Reds Books

Earning my living from numismatics, I can't afford to miss reading just about any book from the field of numismatics. So, I set myself down for some boring reading since I just hate Morgan dollars. But I was engrossed. Mr Bowers is a capable author as well as a famous numismatist. The history of all U.S. dollars is covered in brief, and then the history of why the Morgan dollar was even minted in the first place. Continues with how the original dies were made and includes portions of letters and notes from the people actually involved. There's intrigue, double-crossing, mystery, and so forth -- all in a reference book about one particular coin. You'd just never expect it. Of course, the remainder of the book deals with minting the coins and then a blow-by-blow for each date and mint in the series.

The best information and historical reference of the Morgan series I have read in years!

As someone new to the world of numismatics (but interested in Morgans) I was a bit confused by all the varieties, mintmarks, etc. This book explained everything to me. The history is quite fascinating. I am looking forward to getting my first "CC". Overall, a very heplful and well written book.

This book gives a concise desription of both the historical development of Morgan Silver Dollars as well as pratical information in determining the highlights of each Morgan Silver Dollar according to the chronological year. The book is informative and descriptive in its interpretation of the Morgan Silver Dollar. Most important the reading isn't dry but keeps you intrigued, especially the historical data associated with the Morgan Silver Dollar Series. The book is well written and definitely an addition to any numismatic literary collection.

One Christmas in Old Tascosa. By Casandra Firman as told by Quintille Speck-Firman Garmany. Foreword by Red Steagall and illustrated by Judy Wise. Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press, 2006. xi, 90 pages. 2 photos, 12 illustrations ISBN 089672588X

Tascosa now includes Cal Farley's Boy's Town. Before that it was the wild and wooly West with Indians, buffaloes, gunfights, cowboys, and dancehalls. Between the two, the town virtually went to the ghosts. But here is a sweet story from the interregnum.

Garmany was a seven-year-old in 1931. The Depression Dust Bowl was on, but few would have realized it given how simple life was in Tascosa. Having more than one pencil was a student's wealth.

At the time Tascosa's lone resident was Frenchie McCormick, an elderly woman with a dancing history and an honored wedding vow to remain in Tascosa. Nearby in a one-room school house Christmas was approaching and the children's Pageant was finally ready. And it was nearly, completely, absolutely wrecked. It wasn't the children, the building, the costumes, or even a too-playful dog. It snowed on the day before the evening's performance, so heavily that the audience could not come. Parents knew their children were okay with the teacher in the schoolhouse, but they could not get through the snow. And without an audience to love and smile over the Pageant's young performers, it would be a failure. Then through the blizzard, Frenchie McCormick was spotted coming through the deep snow. The children warmed Mrs. McCormick. She took her place among the chairs out front. And she loved the youngsters' presentation. And the children loved her for being there - just to see them.

Red Steagall, a Texas poet laureate, and Richard O'Brien appends a song "Frenchie McCormick." Merry Christmas!

There is a great "you are there" quality to this story, and the illustrations are wonderful. These events happened not that long ago, but it seems life another world. Reading this book maked me reflect on the "hardships" of my own life, and on the magic of one night in a young girl's life.

This poignant Christmas memoir will appeal to children and adults. The historical element increases the interest and insures that this will be reread every December.

Having known Quinn Garmany my entire life, I can honestly say that this is a truly amazing story. Worth reading and worth sharing!

Even if the illustrations weren't so gloriously detailed and cozy, this book would win you over with its satisfying story. The patchwork cat is drawn so lovingly that she almost shimmers from the page. Her adventure, which is just scary enough, and her rescue, which will make everyone cheer, are appealingly told from a kitty point of view. My two sons and I rank this as one of our very favorite books for younger children. Don't miss Bayley's illustrations in the truly wonderful story by Antonia Barber, The Mousehole Cat.

I really hope it gets put back into print!

I absolutely love this book. I received a copy of my own for my 4th birthday in 1981. I recently found it in my hope chest and read it to my boys. They loved it and had me read it over and over again. The story is about Tabby's journey to bring her beloved patchwork quilt back home after it has been thrown away.
Very few books stick with us for so many years and this was one of them.

Tabby loves her quilt and goes to great lengths to save it. She loves her home, too, and faces danger to return there. And you will love Tabby. The story is riveting, the artwork unforgettable. Tabbys' love will stay in your heart always! Please try to find it. You'll cherish it for life

This was a wonderful book, beautifully written, and I simply loved it!
Can you tell I am a BN addict?:)
Anyway, this satisfied my appetite for now...

About the book. Yes, it has bits of the Cinderella feel to it, with the stepmother and 2 beautiful stepsisters and their thoughtless concern for Philomena. And of course there was Dr. Walle Van der Tacx.
I liked the fact he didn't leave her languishing for too long, wondering if he loved her. And that she gets to live in a castle, with her gorgeous Prince Charming! that will show her self-absorbed family!!! (who so thoughtlessly, and so often pointed out how plain she was!)

I also liked that Walle wanted Philomena and let nothing stand in his way of getting her. Not even that irritating aunt of his, who was so determined that he should marry his useless, air-headed, adopted cousin.
Walle, however, had other ideas, he simply offered Philomena a job in Holland, so he could be near her, and bided his time until she came to care for him too, and he could tell her how he felt.

I found the emotions and dialogue between the H/H in this book, a whole warmer then other BN books.

A truly, marvelous tale. Don't miss out on it.

Darn it, why do they re-release so few titles at a time?!:(

Book Description: SHE LIVED IN HOPE THAT HE WOULD NOTICE HER! Dr. Walle van der Tacx was a very attractive man! When he offered Philomena a nursing job in Holland, she jumped at it -- surely it would mean that she could see more of him? It didn't take long to realize her mistake, and to discover that there was no point in entertaining romantic thoughts about the doctor. When it was clearly just a question of time before he married his pretty vivacious cousin Tritia, it would take a miracle for him to notice plain competent Philomena, who had nothing but a kind heart to recommend her!

Selection: "He was almost as tall as his grandson, with a splendid head crowned with white hair, even in old age, his good looks were still striking..." - "'H'm -- so this is Philomena.' He had a deep voice and his English was slow and deliberate. His blue eyes, as blue as his grandson's raked her from head to foot. 'No looks, lovely eyes, pretty figure...going to marry her, Walle?' - 'Yes,' said Walle'"

***Absolutely Wonderful Neesl!!! Another rich, handsome Dutch Doctor and the kind, plain, hardworking British Nurse Cinderella-tale as only Neels can do it. Philomena's selfish, self-centered step-mother and step-sisters are joined by Walle's aunt-by-marriage and cousin (?) to cause conflict. However Wallie knows what he wants and is determined that nothing or no one will thwart him from achieving his goal. A must read for any Neels fan.

Christain and Eliza van Duyl appear. Christain and Walle went to medical school together.

From book cover:
"Are you going to marry her, Walle?"
The old man's question was unexpected. The answering "yes" took Philomena completely by surprise.
She had hoped her new hairdo and wardrobe would have some effect on her handsome new employer, Dr. Walle Van der Tacx. But there had been no romantic gleam in his eye. In fact, she thought he'd brought her to Holland just to
exploit her capacity for hard work. Now here he was telling his grandfather they would be married?

COVER: Dr. Walle van der Tacx was a very attractive man! When he offered Philomena a nursing job in Holland, she jumped at it--surely it would mean that she could see more of him? It didn't take her long to realize her mistake, and to discover that there was no point in entertaining romantic thoughts about the doctor. When it was clearly just a question of time before he married pretty, vivacious Tritia, it would take a miracle for him to notice plain, competent Philomena, who had nothing but a kind heart to recommend her!

I have collected all of Ms. Neels' books, and, for me, this is one of her finest stories. In it, we have a stepmother, two very pretty stepsisters, and Tritia, a young cousin to the doctor and another pretty rival. I always felt that, although she was described as "plain," Philomena was was not so much "plain" as she was "overwhelmed" by her pretty family and Tritia. Certainly, we see in the end that the doctor did not feel that she was "plain," and he loved her deeply, despite the fact that Tritia's mother does her best to end the relationship. The interchange between the two main characters is very sweet, and it seemed to me that their dialog was a little "warmer" with each other than in most of Ms. Neels' books. Though I have read this story many times, I find myself going back to it again and again. It just satisfies that desire for a truly happy ending! I recommend this one highly!

One of the greatest of the series, this book unusually partners the Ds and the Amazons, with the Swallows not arriving until the day after the last page. As usual Nancy and Peggy are in dire straits, this time thanks to a surprise visit from the dreaded Great Aunt. With their guests, Dick and Dorothea just arrived, they are forced to take extreme measures to keep life on, what they consider, an even keel. Dragged into their web of deception are a myriad of �Natives� including the doctor, Squashy Hat, Cook and the postman. As usual, there is continual suspense and excitement and once again we are transported to a better world and left the better for it.

It's another fun holiday with the Amazon Pirates, Nancy and Peggy, until their Great Aunt discovers that Mother is away, and they have no one to look after them! Nancy and Peggy know they must hide visitors Dick and Dot, but where? Of course! In an old abandoned hut in the woods! They will be "Picts" while the suffering Amazons will be "martyrs." Will the G. A. find out? Will the doctor give away the secret? Will Dick be able to help Timothy with his experiments? Will the amazons be stuck in frilly frocks for the rest of the summer?

Sail with Dick and Dot on their new boat--the Scarab--in this funniest of Arthur Ransome adventures through the Lake District.

Very few things scare Amazon Pirate First Mate Peggie Blackett -- mostly thunder, but also the Great Aunt.

The only thing that scares Amazon Pirate Captain Nancy Blackett (well, "Ruth", properly, but Amazon Pirates are ruthless) is the Great Aunt.

Great Aunt Maria Turner, who raised Nancy & Peggie's widowed Mother and their Uncle Jim, is a formidable maiden lady of firm opinion, unbending will and repressive manner. "Having fun" is not on her list of summer tasks that well-brought-up children need to perform during the Summer Holidays. And dressing in comfortable shorts, knit shirts and red stocking caps is hardly suitable for Young Ladies in their early teens.

Not that this is particularly worrisome in the normal frame of things, because she lives Far Away.

But somehow Aunt Maria gets word that Ruth and Margaret are to be alone for a goodly part of the Summer Holidays as Uncle Jim (Captain Flint) takes their mother on a cruise for her health... and decides to visit Beckfoot for most of that period and make sure that Nancy and Peggie don't get into trouble.

Not that this, even so, would be worse than Unpleasant... except that their friends, Dick & Dorothea Callum ("the D's") are to be staying at Beckfoot... and it's a sure bet that the Great Aunt would visit a devastating scold on their Mother if she found out that they were having other guests their own age to stay, to be supervised only by Cook.

And so, quicker than you can say "Are you sure this isn't a Bad Idea?" Dick and Dorothea, city kids with limited experience at camping and fending for themselves, wind up ensconced for the length of the GA's visit in "the Dog's Home" -- a one-room stone forester's hut in the woods up above the lake.

And, since a number of people know that they're supposed to be at Beckfoot, and don't know it's a secret, and because Dick is supposed to be working with Captain Flint's friend on Captain FLint's houseboat on some chemical analysis of samples from a mine they discovered in the previous book and because Murphy's Law applies to everything in life, from there the story becomes more and more complex and full of hair's-breadth escapes and humourous adventures and close calls (the burglary at Beckfoot being particularly fun).

In the end, of course, all is (relatively) well, the GA gone, the D's have their own boat to race with "Swallow" and "Amazon" and the Swallows are due to arrive any day and most of the Summer still stretches ahead.

Like all the rest of the series, humourous adventure fiction for the YA age group. (And perhaps a bit younger; since they were mostly written for British juvenile audiences, and sixty to seventy years ago to boot, the "Swallows & Amazons" books may contain references and language that today's younger readers may have some problems with. OTOH, i first read "Swallows & Amazons" [the first book] at age eight or nine and i had no problem with it.)

Which is not to say that adults can't enjoy them -- many do. Buy them for a son, daughter, nephew or niece and give them a try before you pass them on; Ransome has a huge adult readership worldwide, even today.

This is a typically terrific Arthur Ransome book. Who on earth listed it for babies and toddlers hasn't read any of Arthur Ransome's works let alone this one.

This whole series is great for reading aloud to children 7 or 8 and up.

I am very glad that I found these little books written by Petra Eiko. The author manages to cover serious topics while keeping the fun in reading intact. It is great to see something new and innovative on the crowded book market.

What kind of secret does 'Power' share? It shows the meaning of power and how never to be powerless again.

I highly recommend the whole Seeds of truth" series.

I've read all of the books in this series except for "Wisdom" and I just ordered that one. These books by Petra Eiko are so refreshingly different and fun to read. This is a great collection of information in a conversational approach that makes you think and feel good about yourself and helps you through problems in your life. I can't wait for the next book by Petra Eiko.

Reading this little book took me 45 minutes. The result I got out of it was worth much more. i did not feel powerless anymore. Life is wonderful after you get all the inspiration this book gives you, I got a lot of energy and power back.......Thanks!!!

Boy, am I glad I picked up this little book from Eiko, it made me find my power again, I new it was in me somewhere, but it wasn't roaring loud enough any more. Reading about the comparison of a seacucumber and a Tiger got my interest peeked and reading on, made me realize how easily and how often we give our power away. This is an easy Read and made me aware that my inner jungle needed some attention as well and that I am the only one in control of me. And the best part is it's only 38 pages. I've also read Eiko's other little books, Is, Fear, Heart, Vision and she really has a knack for simplifying what we tend to overcomplicate. Can't wait for the rest of them to come out!

Even though the book is written for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 you can still find in the book something that might help you in your quest for knowledge about Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Overall it is a good book.

I can recommend this book for those, who have just installed Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 (aka RHEL 3) and
are wondering what to do next with it; but have no significant Linux/Unix experience to fall back on.
For the more seasoned RHEL 3 SysAdmin, you'll probably want to thumb through it before deciding to buy it.
This book is notch or two above a starter book on RHEL 3. There are not that many books like this out
there, so for this reason alone it may be worth the purchase.

I read this book back in January 2005. Writing a review about it was easy. Why? Because the authors
repeatedly state throughout their book, what it is they are trying to cover in RHEL 3 and what they
are NOT going to cover. They do a very good job of sticking to their objectives.

The authors cover many of the services and applications which are commonly configured on RHEL 3. They
admit it is not a comprehensive coverage, nor is meant to be. {SysAdmins will have varied opinions on
what should and shouldn't be included in this book. SysAdmins having opinions is a given. :) }
The authors selections are as good as any. They are also trying to deal with keeping the book down to a
readable size, i.e., less than 700 pages. Many of the chapters and topics in this book, are already
separate books unto themselves.

Each chapter is a survey of one or more solutions/services/applications. The authors forewarn you,
these are not all the possible combinations of the same. The authors pick one example and work
through an implementation of it. The examples are a good mix of Command Line (CLI) and Graphic User
Interface (GUI). Most of the time further references, usually URLs are included in each chapter.

I personally liked chapters 4 - 6 on Storage Management, HA (Clustering) and Red Hat's WAF (Web
Application Framework). Storage Mgmt and HA/Clustering are of particular interest to me and the
Red Hat WAF stuff was new for me.

The authors covered NFS and automounting (autofs), but omitted NIS. {Remember SysAdmins' have
opinions.} Manually doing NFS mounts is fine, if you have just a few systems. Once you get over a
couple of dozen systems requiring NFS mounts, then automounting is the next logical step. Its also
equally common to do automounting in conjunction with NIS. Yes, I know NIS is going to be replaced
by LDAP and NIS+ is dead. But using NIS and NFS automounting together is still quite common and
will continue to be for some time. (Security-wise; NIS & NFS are only done inside the firewall.)
The authors also covered file sharing via Samba. But LDAP just got a skimpy couple of pages.
Authors' choice, I guess?

My other curious observations was their coverage of LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and Python, Perl, PHP...).
They covered LAMP pieces in the book and in the last chapter without actually using the word "LAMP".
One of the authors is involved with LAMP through his company. So why not use the word? To quote
John Madden, "What was that all about?". I just thought it a strange omission, considering...

Red Hat has just recently released RHEL 4. So how long will this book on RHEL 3 be relevant?
Probably at least through this year (2005) and longer and/or until someone writes the RHEL 4 version.
Note, there are still folks out there running RHEL 2.1.

My background is, I've been in IT for over 20 yrs as a IT Mgr, SysAdm, System Architect and System
Engineer. I worked with various flavors of Unix since 1985 and with Red Hat since version 3.0.3
back in 1996. My current Linux flavor of choice is Fedora Core 2 (soon to be 3).

Linux used to be so simple. You went to your favorite book or computeer store and sitting on the shelf was a shrink wrapped red box that contained all you needed. You followed the directions and in a short time you had Linux running on your system. Of course back then we didn't worry much about security. HA (High Availability) was an acronym that hadn't been invented yet. MySQL was a ... Well never mind! The world simply isn't like that any more.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is the stable, supported heavy duty version of Linux intended for stable, mission critical applications. This book clearly describes what you get with RHEL and how to utilize these components to build an enterprise level server. It presumes that you have some knowledge of Linux and probably you should have some working experience with some kind of Linux distribution. Given that, if you are a systems administrator and want to learn about RHEL, or you're now assigned a security responsibility, high availability, server farms or the like, this is for you.

A book written in this fashion has been needed for a long time. I found it to be a very easy read and filled with the day to day task that new and seasoned Red Hat administrators come in to contact with every day.

I have spent many hours reading other Red Hat books but never found one particular book to encompass all that I needed. This book does that and more. The newbies will find it easy to understand, as the veterans will find it a usefull resource for those times when an answer is needed right away.

If you are new or a veteran to RH EL 3 GET THIS BOOK, it will save tons of time, and provide the answers you are looking for.

Wrox has picked a winnner w/ Mohammed J. Kabir, I have been a fan of his writing style for a long time, although some may disagree, he writes in a very clear concise manner, which will help the newbs out there to grasp a concept and method.

Bernie Johnson
Sr. Linux Admin

Structured something like a workbook, with questions at the end of each chapter. Mr. Gray's writing is intelligent and intelligible; he does not "dumb down" the subject matter but he does not talk "over the heads" of beginners. His tone comes across something like what I imagine as a classic English schoolmaster: knowledgeable, practical, stern but friendly, approachable, and trustworthy. I knew next to nothing about Qabala when I bought this book. Gray recommends that the student read a chapter and then let it soak in for a week or two before proceeding to the next one. I tried that initially, along with doing the exercises and answering the questions, but I got bogged down & distracted, and lost interest about 4 chapters in. Recently I picked the book up again and just read straight through it to get a "concept overview." This time I found it to be very fascinating and instructive, and I hope to return to it again later with a slightly improved understanding and do a slow pass through it according to Mr. Gray's recommendation.
I was able to catch Mr. Gray out on a few factual errors concerning linguistic history and word derivations (apparently not his strong suit.) For example, in adding "th" when assigning letters of the English alphabet to paths, he mistakenly calls the rune "thorn" by the name "eth" (in Old English, eth and thorn were two different letters with different origins, both representing the "th" sound) and furthermore, he tells us that "eth" (actually "thorn") was the origin of the modern letter Y, which is not the case at all (y was already in use as a letter in Anglo-Saxon / Old English. Substitution of Y for thorn as in "Ye Olde..." occurred because Italian type foundries did not include thorn in printing typesets, thus forcing its use to wane throughout the renaissance and eventually be replaced by the modern spelling "th".) Don't trust William Gray when he tells you where a word came from, but the quality of his OTHER information seems to be good.
I have other questions about the assignment of the Tarot Major Arcana cards to paths on the Tree. Gray proposes path assignments that make a lot of sense, but for some reason none of my other sources about the Tarot have adopted them; they all still use the traditional Golden Dawn "numerical order" assignments. I have to do more research in order to find out what justification there is behind the traditional system in order to decide which is better. Gray's system seems a lot more logical and is easier to remember.
All in all, you can't go wrong with this book as an overview of Qabala, but don't rely on it as your sole source of information. It opens the door and invites you to further exploration.

This book is a really good read. It works like the way you would learn something in an occult organization and is actually part the framework for the training of the author's occult organization. Questions at the end of each chapter helps me to personally try to be very aware of all that I read. William Gray goes through meditation techniques, pathworking, linking the tarot with the Tree of Life (it would probably be of even greater benefit to get The Sangreal Tarot) and the various philosophies associated with the tree of life. Buying this book is money well spent. There are not many occult authors you can trust because they write alot of trash or mix trash in with good stuff. In this book you'll find everything worthwhile.

I was quite surprized by the clear and concise manner in which the author presented his material. Nothing of this nature was available when I first began my own investigations (prior to WW II.) His methods are workable and I especially blessed him for reiterating several times that you must build your own version of the tree and his recommendations to use any tarot deck that suits your fancy. What a blessing that todays seekers have a book that cuts out all the rhetoric and goes directly to the point..I threw away my old Rider deck of tarot and am now using the Arthurian deck, which makes more sense to me as a grail seeker also....this deck is quite beautiful and struck a personal note....three cheers for Mr. Gray.

those familiar with the subject of Quaballah will find the techniques used in this book very interesting. The mental techniques and symbolism are easy enough for the beginner to understand and for the some-what experienced to use as a stepping stone to look at things in a different way. Lack of familiarity with mystisism should not turn anyone away. The book is able to fill in alot of the blanks that some people may have on the subject.

Perhaps this very compelling read should be entitled:'A dark red' or something similar. Why: because the novel takes the reader on an enjoyably 'dark' journey in time and space. It is a very varied journey, but my favourite part of the voyage takes place in eighteenth century - revolutionary France, where I really felt like a 'fly on the wall' in history. I won't elaborate: enjoy finding out for yourself!

An intriguing journey through time and space in which mystery is surpassed only by sexual tension.

This is a celebration of one man's extraordinary life - a life that spans oceans and centuries. In part, Red is a literary thriller in the European tradition, focusing on mysterious art collectors and the curious machinations of Dr Mabuse (who may or may not be the Devil). But, as it moves cinematically from the English Civil War to the Mexican Revolution and from Venice to New York, there is much more to this story.

A very unusual Faustian epic told in 3 non-linear parts with 3 twists/twisted endings, written eloquently yet playfully in cinematic episodes, that celebrates beauty, cities, history, architecture, 20th Century art film and literature, people, wine and food... and much more besides.

Robert J. Topmiller paints a brutally honest picture of the mayhem and carnage of war in "Red Clay on My Boots: Encounters with Khe Sanh 1968 to 2005". In January 1968, Corpsman "Doc" Topmiller arrived at the Khe Sanh Combat Base a few days prior to the North Vietnamese Army attack that initiated the infamous siege. "Doc" found himself living his solemn pledge to care for the injured, but never imagined the physical devastation he would encounter. Doc's description of the initial attack and subsequent days of the siege are honestly and vividly graphic.

Doc provides a personally revealing look at the aftermath of war, on both sides of the skirmish line. Topmiller's anger clashes with his sincere compassion as he struggles to understand the decisions made by the leaders of both countries, the United States and North Vietnam, and the damage inflicted, then and now, upon the combatants of the past, the lives of the present, and what the future holds for the Vietnamese people under communist rule. Red Clay on My Boots is a provocative read that will evoke emotion and bring the reader into a closer relationship with the realities of war.

After looking forward to receiving my copy of the book, I was not disappointed. I read the first 100 pages at once. The descriptive details Doc gives and the feelings that he shares with the reader are overwhelming. I found myself clenching my teeth. It is hard to believe that so many 18-19 year olds were subject to this type of intense stress over such long periods of time. I felt alot of saddness and anger as I read through the first section thinking about the war and how many lives it ruined on both sides. And many of us are still asking why.
Doc's experiences as a corpsman, brought back memories from the late 70's and early 80's for me. I worked at the local VA Hospital with Viet Nam vets especially those on the psychiatry ward who were suffering with PTSD. In my experience,none were more affected than the medics. They seemed to have their own particular brand of trauma: survivor guilt, their inability to save everyone who needed saving, and just the everyday life as a medic.
The second section of the book provides more of a hopeful feeling. Doc
seems to come grips with his demons, maybe not completely, but at least gives the reader a feeling that "coming to terms" is a possibility. His efforts at peace and reconciliation with the people who were his enemies reminded me of Nelson Mandela's generous olive branch to his enemy captors. His commitment to "the children" is a turning point for him and made me recall the Albert Schweitzer idea that: "only those of you who have learned how to serve will be truly happy." Doc finds a purpose with the children in the Catholic orphanage and in the School of the Beloved.
All is all, this story of one man's journey to find his own brand of peace, is a worthy read. I hope that with each subsequent visit to Viet Nam, Doc can find more answers to his questions and above all the acceptance and inner calm he seems to be searching for.

Few people are more intimately acquainted with the horrors of war than Navy corpsmen serving with U.S. Marine units in combat. Upon that terrible and grisly stage, corpsmen carry out their duties, and become heroes to Marines, by risking their lives to help others; bandaging wounds, easing pain, comforting the dying and lamenting (sometimes forever) the loss of those they could not save.

In 1968, at age 19, Bob Topmiller found himself in just such a situation, amidst of the longest and bloodiest battle of the Vietnam War -- at a place called Khe Sanh. Surrounded by as many as 30,000 of North Vietnam's best troops supported by artillery, tanks, anti-aircraft guns and rocket units, 6,000 Americans successfully held the majority of their positions despite fierce ground attacks and endless artillery bombardment. Young Bob Topmiller was among a handful of corpsmen that, at great peril to their own lives, forayed out each day under intense enemy fire to assist some of the nearly 3,000 Marines who would eventually be killed or wounded during the three-month long battle.

In Red Clay on My Boots: Encounters with Khe Sanh 1968-2005, now Professor Bob Topmiller combines chilling personal recollections, with his expertise as a distinguished scholar of Vietnamese history, to create a unique and powerful account of the Vietnam War -- and the disturbing human toll it continues to exact. Topmiller's courage during that fierce and bloody battle would later serve him well in his tireless quest for reconciliation; eventually leading him from the brink of despair to rediscover a level of compassion he thought lost forever amid the carnage and ubiquitous red clay of Khe Sanh.

Topmiller's search took him back to Vietnam a dozen times, visiting a multitude of cities, villages, and former battle sites. His knowledge of the language and culture permitted him access to facets of the society often missed by more causal travelers, but which provides the reader with astonishing glimpses of the war and its aftermath.

Everywhere he traveled, Bob Topmiller witnessed the shocking legacy of Agent Orange on Vietnamese society; particularly evident in the appalling numbers of children deformed at birth by an environment still poisoned from the war. His search for inner peace ended in 2002 at a non-descript doorway on a street in Hue - a special school for these severely handicapped boys and girls. Since that day, Bob has been supporting them- back again, easing the pain of war.

Terrifying, heartbreaking, enlightening and, above all, honest; Red Clay on My Boots is a story hard to forget.

Boy oh boy, this book will get you going. Before you know it you will have drawn your battle lines, and as surely as the Vietnam War divided this country in the 60's and 70's, readers of this book will divide themselves again. Generally, I hate and fear books like this, because I don't have the time or patience for soap boxes. I just want to read the story without the crapola, the present without the shiny wrapping paper. To be straight up, I don't like pushy people, REALLY, REALLY don't like them and Mr. Toppmiller will push every available button you have. I received this book on recommendation by author Mike Archer, a man I truly admire- which is a good thing too, because otherwise I would have done with this book what I have done with others- that I thought were similar- give it the boot. Now after having read it of course, I am glad I did not make that mistake.

What I found when I read this book was a complexity that I could not have foreseen. I have read many with bigger words and more mumbo jumbo designed to make me think the author is an authority. But I do not think I have ever read one with as much in my face pure gut and heart thinly veiled in political opinion. The author gets in your face and pretty much stays there the entire time, but when you think of it, that is not unlike the history of the Vietnam War itself. I would also like to add that unlike many authors of books written about the Vietnam War, this man is not writing form information he gleaned from national archives, DOD documents, second hand information and opinion not based in fact. He lived it. He survived it and whether he believes it or not, he triumphed inspite of it.

It would be easy to be caught up in his rants about the state of the world today and feel you need to be left or right, conservative or something else. Don't be misled, not only has this man earned his right to say the things he has, not only has he seen the greatest evils and greatest kindnesses that man can offer another, there is something more here. There is a lot more here, so please look. This book is the testimonial of the human spirit written by a Navy Corpsman who survived the battle for Khe Sanh, the only way he could. Guts. He calls it a lot of other things and I respect his opinion, but I will respectfully also
disagree with his own self effacing descriptions. You cannot survive Hell and not have guts, fortitude, deep down survival instincts and a reason to live. You cannot
come through such evil and devastation and waste unscathed. You come out angry, broken, beaten and regretful. You leave that pile of rubble knowing it is the
most expensive and worthless piece of real estate on which you have ever tread. You come home sad, defensive, easily aggravated and distant to the world. You come home
different. You want, need, ache for what cannot be articulated. You come home someone else. You are not understood, even by yourself and if you are destined to
help others to heal and perhaps heal yourself you write a book. What I think the author fails to realize the depth of his healing of others as he continues, by his actions, to bandage the wounds of his comrades, which is the greatest triumph of all.