Reviews Books

It's the best atlas I've ever seen, it has clear images (sometimes, I think I'm seeing a photo, not a drawing), its "boxes" with information about muscles, etc. are very well done. And its "naming" of the organs, bones, etc. it's not as confusing as Netter's. I own Sobotta and Netter and, Sobotta, for me, simply defeats Netter in every single detail. A must have if you're a medical student.

It is an almost flawless book. I love it... If you are really passioante about medicine and are planning or actually are studying medicine you must have it... It's a real help

I am prenursing student and I love this book.The pictures are great, explanations are wonderful. This is a bible in anatomy. I have a chance to see the other anatomy books in my class but this is the best. You donot need to work on the actual bone, the book is wonderful.

With this CD-Rom you can easily learn the most important concepts of human anatomy without having to read much, it's all a visual process. Then you test yourself on the same picture. It takes no time at all to learn anatomy with Sobotta's. It's a "must have" for every "student" of any age.

Awesome!! I highly recommend Sobotta (Book/CD-ROM) whether used alone or as a supplement to Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy. I am a physician assistant graduate student at Marquette University and I find the illustrations & references to be very useful when studying for my gross anatomy lecture & lab. Sobotta provides modern imaging diagnostics, endoscopic images, color photographs of surgical views, etc. not found in Netter's. The CD-ROM has all the plates found in the book, but gives you the option to quiz yourself which is very useful. It also allows you to display/hide markers on illustrations, also useful for study purposes. Indexs, tables etc are cross-referenced. If you are looking for a tool to help you maximize your anatomy study/review & you have easy access to a computer/laptop with a CD-ROM, get the Sobotta CD-ROM. You'll find it a great resource!!!

Yeah, this was a good book. Very complete. Kinda fun too. Especially for a guidebook

When I graduated from college, I had NO experience and NO job. And then I found the Internship Bible. What an amazing resource! After applying and being accepted to two internships in my field, I now have a job I love...and all thanks to the Internship Informants, Oldman and Hamadeh. If they were here right now, I'd kiss them! Thanks guys..

I purchased Internship Bible for my son last year and he found it very helpful. It's the only complete internship guide out there. He got 6 internship offers.

A hot book! Really useful! Helped me get internships at Microsoft and Late Show with David Letterman

I'm a staff reporter for the Wall Street Journal -- and I used this book to land an internship at WSJ -- which subsequently led to my permanent position at WSJ Interactive. The book was quite helpful, well organized, and a fun read, too. It's the standard bearer for its field.

I really enjoyed the layout and study guide supplied by this book. The study guide is really easy and works very well.

This book has been very useful in my college class. I think that it is written well and it makes the information easy to understand.

this book has helped very much in studying for my class. It hit alot of the main points that I get tested on.

Where was this book at the beginning of nursing school?? The first textbook I had for pharmacology was a nightmare!! And the instructor made it worse. I searched high and low for a pharmacology textbook that I can understand, and now, in my third semester, I find this goldmine! I suggest this for anyone for the quick and easy way to study the drugs, and now, I feel better about entering into med-surg 2, and then the boards. Thanks, Mosby! You've done it again!

product in good condition, delivery was quick. product was as advertised. thank you

This book was given to me by an uncommon friend and I enjoyed it very much. It is about the friendship between a grandmother and her young grandaughter who live on a bit of an island in Finland (?). The beauty and treasures discovered in the quiet lives they lead, finding joy in simple things and loving each other besides those petty annoyances of personality (they are very much alike). There are many "huggable" humorous moments. I think of one in which they trade cats--their cat is indifferent to the grandaughter's overtures and the one traded was much more warm and cuddly, but then (and I quote from the book).

"Hunt! Do something! Be like a cat!" And then she started to cry and ran to the guest room and banged on the door.
"What's wrong now?" Grandmother said.
"I want Moppy back!" Sophia screamed.
"But you know how it will be," Grandmother said.
"It'll be awful," said Sophia gravely. "But it's Moppy I love."

Mm, this is a beautiful, wonderful little book! It is a collection of little stories of a very small girl and her small grandmother going adventures on their little island in Sweden. So full of green things and little bites of happiness. The grandmother is oh so clever and says so many poignants to the girl. The girl is wise too. So full of joy.

Based very much upon the late (and yes, great) Tove Jansson`s own family experiences on an island in the Finnish archipelago, this magical, elegiac, very funny, yet - despite its title - autumnal book, subtly draws the reader into the seemingly mundane lives of six-year old Sophia, whose mother has recently died, and `Grandmother` (who could almost be a humanised character from one of Jansson`s immortal Moomin books), as they potter and squabble around their small, idyllic island summer home.
Sophia`s `Papa` never speaks (never? Hm...) but is a silent, prosaic presence throughout, while Sophia is (as her name implies) wise, as well as temperamental, and Grandmother dispenses brief, ironic snippets of wisdom and can be just as prickly. They are a double-act; and, like all the best double-acts, rely on each other - at least for the grateful reader - to each `complete` the other. One feels Grandmother learns from her granddaughter as well as vice versa.
This is a beautiful, thoughtful, unsentimental, deceptively straightforward meander through the summer months with three generations of a grieving family each determined to hang on to their individuality. There are also the occasional - and rarely welcome - visitors.
If I make The Summer Book sound more than simply a light read, it is because even Tove Jansson`s children`s books (of which this can hardly be said to be one) have a tough melancholy strain to them, and a `message` of independence and personal integrity as the sanest way to be.
In its modest, breezy way, this is a great little book. One to treasure.

The connection between grandmother and granddaughter is a marrow-deep one in "Summer Book." Sophia and her grandmother spend their days exploring, talking about life, nature, everything but their feelings about Sophia's mother's death and their love for one another. And yet, underneath the offhand, and often strange conversations that take place between them, you feel their affection and the concern they feel for one another.

"Summer Book" is a strange and beautiful story. There's no false emotions here, no manipulation for the sake of effect. Just an account of a very real relationship between a child and her grandmother, during the last weeks of the grandmother's life. Very highly recommended.

I rejoice that this short work has come into print again, though it's rather sad that it took the author's recent death to prompt the publishers into action. I'd read an extract in a guide to the top 100 books of the twentieth century and was surprised and disappointed not to be able to get my hands on the full edition.

Jansson has an inate understanding of the wisdom and skewed world-view of children, and manages to capture the fragile - and ephemeral - friendship which can exist between the very old and the very young. There is a freshness about her style which never teeters into whimsy. A rare achievement indeed.

In 1987, President Ronald Wilson Reagan nominated Judge Robert H. Bork to the United States Supreme Court. Leftist pressure groups immediate launched a strident attack on Judge Bork and his record, including such tactics as printing his video rental history in newspapers. The ensuing firestorm gave the American lexicon a new verb - to Bork.

In 1990, Robert Bork first published this book as an explanation of his judicial philosophy, attempting to clear his name. The book has three parts. The first part gives a history of the Supreme Court, showing how the use of judicial activism (judges ruling based on the biases of their own class, rather than on the wording of the Constitution) has been a part of the Court since the early days of the Republic. The second part of the book deals with various theories of Constitutional practice. And, the third part is Judge Bork's memoirs of his nomination battles.

Overall, even after all these years, I still found this to be a fascinating book. In particular, his history of judicial activism was highly enlightening.

What I couldn't help but wonder is how things have changed since this book came out in 1990. The recent firestorm of criticism of the Supreme Court's radical expansion of the power of eminent domain in the case of Kelo v. City of New London, have produced no great groundswell of support for reigning in the Court's activism. Indeed, after the initial criticism, most Americans accepted the new rules of eminent domain as the new law of the land. The activism of the Court was accepted.

So, was this a highly influential book? I suppose that only time will tell. But, I must say that as a history of the United States Supreme Court, and as an explanation of the theories of reasoning used by judicial thinkers, it is absolutely excellent. I loved this book and highly recommend it.

Judge Bork is a brilliant thinker. Book is a masterpiece of brilliant deduction and understanding of critical political, educational and judicial issues in America, and provides the reader with a foundational grasp of why there is such volatile division between political ideologies in America. We need more thinkers and writers like Judge Bork.

The Tempting of America is the finest book ever written in defense of the judicial theory known as 'original understanding.' In this brilliant tome, Bork enunciates the dangers and abuses (by activist judges of the Right as well as the Left) inherent in rejecting the original understanding, shows the logical impossibility of constructing an unbiased alternative and shows that the original understanding is not only what the Founding Fathers intended, but is the only safe and non-partisan way to allow a free people to govern itself.

Complaints? This book is a heavy, intellectual read, not for the faint of heart. It merits attention and study--but it will reward your efforts ten-fold.

Now for the good stuff: After I read Bork's book, I told fellow law students there were few law school courses I would not trade for it. I only wish I had read it before sitting through Constitutional Law.

Yet the book would be worth the reading for anyone interested in the law. It is likely the most complete and well-reasoned statement of the conservative position (and arguably the historical "American" position) on judicial philosophy, legal practice, and several key political doctrines, including the separation of powers, federalism, and the Madisonian system. He begins:

"In the Past few decades American institutions have struggled with the temptations of politics. Professions and academic disciplines that once possessed a life and structure of their own have steadily succumbed, in some cases almost entirely, to the belief that nothing matters beyond politically desirable results, however achieved. . . . It is coming to be denied that anything counts, not objectivity, not even intellectual honesty, that stands in the way of the `correct' political outcome."

He goes on to describe the greatest threat to the law today:

"In the law, the moment of temptation is the moment of choice, when a judge realizes that in the case before him his strongly held view of justice . . . is not embodied in a statute or any provision of the Constitution. He then must choose between his version of justice and abiding by the American form of government. Yet the desire to do justice, whose nature seems to him obvious, is compelling, while the concept of constitutional process is abstract, rather arid, and the abstinence it counsels unsatisfying. To give in to temptation, this one time, solves an urgent human problem, and a faint crack appears in the American foundation. A judge has begun to rule where a legislator should."

Bork argues that these result-oriented decisions have moved holdings steadily to the left for the last half century. As a result, many Americans do not like those outcomes and are no longer "deceived by the claim that those results are compelled by the actual Constitution." Soon the law may go the way of the press, Bork fears, losing legitimacy with a large part of the public. And conservative activism would only make it worse.

"Conservatives . . . may decide to join the game and seek activist judges with conservative views. Should that come to pass, those who have tempted the courts to political judging will have gained nothing for themselves but will have destroyed a great and essential institution. . . . There are only two sides. Either the Constitution and statutes are law, which means their principles are known and control judges, or they are malleable texts that judges may rewrite to see that particular groups or political causes win."

Bork answers a likely question: "What does it mean to say a judge is bound by the law?" It means he is bound by the only thing that can be called law: the principles of the text, whether Constitution or statute, as generally understood at the enactment." He notes that the lay reader may wonder at this statement. Isn't that obvious?

"Of course, the judge is bound to apply the law as those who made the law wanted him to. That is the common, everyday view of what law is. I stress the point only because that commonsense view is hotly, extensively and eruditely denied by constitutional sophisticates, particularly those who teach the subject in law schools."

Here, Bork argues, commonsense is sound. He quotes Justice Story. "A constitution of government is addressed to the common sense of the people; and never was designed for trials of logical skill or visionary speculation."

Bork resumes: "Story might have been addressing today's constitutional cognoscenti, who would have judges remake the historic Constitution from such materials as natural law, conventional morality, prophetic vision, the understanding of an ideal democracy, or what have you. No matter the base from which they start, they all wind up in the same place, prescribing a new constitutional law that is much more egalitarian and socially permissive than either the Constitution or the American public. That, surely, is the point of their efforts."

Some of my most engaging law school professors saw everything as relative, and the law as an evolutionary force, changing the times and changing with the times. Any appeal to original intent is an appeal to something not only irrelevant but also unknowable. (Of course, the original intent of a contract is evident from the four corners of the document, right? But that's not possible with the Constitution apparently, nor are the numerous speeches and ratifying conventions any help.) Here Bork concedes a distinction. For hair splitters, sure--original intent "calls for speculation." But the ORIGINAL UNDERSTANDING is not at all hard to determine. The reason so many are unhappy with the doctrine of original understanding is not--as they claim--that they have philosophical questions about epistemology. Activists deride appeals to original understanding because they fear such a rule would never have won for them the great civil rights cases of the late 20th century--and those they hope yet to win.

But Bork disagrees. Here his book becomes a tremendous resource. He examines the history of the Court and most of the great cases, explaining that many revisionist cases could have reached the same results through an appeal to original understanding and would have strained logic less in doing so. BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION is the most stunning example Bork cites of a case in which the Court felt compelled to look outside the original understanding of the Constitution when it did not need to. The result is that the century's most immediately, even dangerously controversial decision was based on an argument few could accept. It need not have been this way. Bork's discussion of the this point alone will be worth the price of the book for some.

Bork has no raging desire to see the poor cases overturned, however. Out of respect both for stare decisis and the integrity of the Court itself, Bork would not even reverse the most badly reasoned case of the 20th century, ROE V. WADE. To be more precise, Bork places Roe in a group of cases "so embedded in the life of the nation, so accepted by society, so fundamental to the . . . expectations of individuals . . . that the result should not be changed now." (*I believe he has since modified this position.)

This brings up another interesting issue. Bork makes the case for judicial integrity, the most important commitment of any judge. The temptation to fudge the law to help bad facts is one the judge must resist, because any time the law is compromised, it is weakened. The judge's task is simple:

"In a constitutional democracy the moral content of law must be given by the morality of the framer or legislator, never by the morality of the judge. The sole task of the latter--and it is a task quite large enough for anyone's wisdom, skill, and virtue--is to translate the framer's or the legislator's morality into a rule to govern unforeseen circumstances. That abstinence from giving his own desires free play, that continuing and self-conscious renunciation of power, that is the morality of the jurist."

WHO IS ROBERT BORK TO TALK ABOUT A DISCIPLINED JUDICIARY, ABOUT PERSONAL OR PROFESSIONAL INTEGRITY, some will ask. The second half of his book addresses just that. He describes in detail the nomination process he endured and the lies told about him in the campaign to keep him off the bench. For example, his position in a number of cases was exactly the opposite of the way it was described in the hearings. He received a ringing endorsement from the ABA before taking a seat on the D.C. Court of Appeals. Once there he decided a number of cases in favor of women and minorities. But in the Senate confirmation hearings he was asked, "Why are you against women?" He repeatedly directed Senators Kennedy, Biden, and others to the pages in the opinions proving he had in fact held exactly the opposite. But as they say, a lie told often enough begins to seem true--and such was the case with the lies told about Bork. During one private moment of peculiar candor, Ted Kennedy shook Bork's hand and said, "Nothing personal." Then they vilified him.

Bork's book then, is his public defense. In that it is unique. Not only did the Reagan administration do little to defend him, so unprepared were they for the unprecedented campaign to destroy a judicial nominee, but Bork himself made no public defense.

"The public interest generated by the enormous campaign against me caused dozens of reporters to seek interviews, and television and radio talk programs repeatedly asked me to appear. Despite the unanswered hostile campaign, I decided that it was improper for a judicial nominee to wage a counter campaign by discussing his views on substantive issues anywhere before the Senate, even if it meant letting slanders go unanswered."

Toward the end White House strategists plead with Bork and his wife to appear on a Barbara Walters special. "But . . . we decided we would rather go down than compromise ourselves with what would be, in effect, a personal media appeal." White House advisors thought this a serious mistake; some thought it cost him a seat on the bench. "However that may be, I continue to think that was the right decision.

"The entire process of a judicial confirmation was politicized more than ever before in America's history, but at least I did not contribute to that."

This book may be heavy going in places, but this is because the author deals with a complex and important subject. The single most compelling lesson is how an intellectual elite has become forced to rely on the least democratic element of our government in order to negate the results of free elections, all in the name of "liberalism"! It should be a basic text of any American Government class.

If you enjoy That Girl you will enjoy reading this book. It has the making of the show and lists all the shows in order. It is interesting to see which tv unknows were guest stars on this show. It also tells you who got to say That Girl in each show. It talks about the show came about. It is a nice companion to have along with the DVD set.

I have to say I was very impressed with this book wonderfully written and assembled by Stephen Cole. It was recommended by a friend and I was pleasantly surprised with the care that was put into what should be called the "Official" book on THAT GIRL. This is perhaps the BEST book written on a classic television sitcom! There is something here for everyone. If you are even slightly interested in reading about the series and Marlo Thomas, I suggest you pick it up. Well done Stephen!

I remember watching Marlo Thomas's entertaining sit-com in the late 60s and early 70s and thoroughly enjoying the trials and tribulations of a young struggling actress trying to make it big in the big apple. Being re-acquainted with this delightful series via cable has made it all the more enjoybale and pertinent in the themes explored and in the witty, challenging and humorous encounters an independent woman can face. Stephen Cole has added enormously to an appreciation of this ground breaking show through great research (interviews with Thomas and the writers) as well as providing an episode-by-episode guide to what made each show so special. You will find in this book references to the time, the fashion and the special chemistry between the leads in what is one of my all time favourite television shows...Thanks, Stephen for the love that shines through every page.

While many observers debate the origins of feminism on television, I believe that "That Girl" was the FIRST show of its kind; to portray a single career woman defying convention and starting out on her own. Strip away the humour from this show and you see the predecessor of many of the supposed ground breaking feminist tv shows of the 60's and 70's!

Mr Cole has done an OUTSTANDING job in assembling the history of this show and while recognising the show's clever scripting and acting, draws attention to the groundbreaking issues it tackled for its time. Selected quotes from Gloria Steinman and from Marlo Thomas herself verify the credibilty of his research.

Having said that, don't let me make you think this book is necessarily a feminist manisfesto for the new millenium. It's a funny, clever and insightful companion for anyone who ever loved the show and I found myself laughing out loud as I fondly remembered moments in a show that I grew up with but have never forgotten! Well done to the author: his love of the show and its characters comes through on every page!

Well worth a read!!!

Before Mary had bad parties, before Lucy Carmicheal and Viv had their screw-ball adventures, before Janet and Chrissy stood up to Jack. And before Blanche, Rose, Dorothy and Sophia toughed it out through old age and countless dates; there was "That Girl."

Lovable Ann Marie, her nerdy yet very strong (he always seems to be punching other guys out on a count of a misunderstanding) boy friend Donald, and her worried parents are all characters in "That Girl". Ann is a girl, living on her own in NYC for the very first time. She is a struggling actress who is smart, talented, witty and determined...yet she still manages to have the poise and serenity of Samantha Stevens (when all is well on Morning Glory circle, of course).

"That" is where "this" book comes in, it was very informative in all aspects of the history of "That Girl". It went into such detail as original names of characters and original actors..etc. Marlo Thomas really seems to be a true rolemodel, she was strong, independent, and still managed to keep her poise. The actors/producers were interviewed honestly and well. A true monument to the history of TV, and one of its most ground-breaking shows.

I am a BIG fan of Ludwig von Mises. I am aware of what his great contributions are to the science of Economics. All free-market believers are indebted to him for his work. That is precisely why I bought a copy of his Theory of Money and Credit.

I found it VERY DIFFICULT to read, even with a dictionary in hand. So much so that I never finished it. And this even though I have read Rothbard's classic "America's Great Depression" twice.

Admittedly, von Mises wrote the original in German (I think), and translating technical material from another language may be quite difficult.

I give von Mises 5 stars for his Theory, (which really isn't a theory, but FACT). But I must subtract one star for it's lack of readability.

--George Stancliffe

The Theory of Money and Credit is the foundation of modern Austrian Economics. The central contribution of this book is its application of marginal utility theory to money. Mises takes a micro-analytic approach to money that differs from the Hume-Fischer-Friedman Quantity Theory significantly. Of course there is some truth in the Quantity Theory. The Quantity Theory also teaches some lessons against inflation.

Mises set the groundwork for Austrian Business Cycle theory, as later developed by Hayek and Garrison. Both the Quantity Theory and the Mises-Hayek theory of trade cycles point to the same root cause: inflation. However, the Mises-Hayek theory explains trade cycles in terms of intertemporal dis-coordination. Hayek owes his Nobel Prize the groundbreaking work of Mises.

The Theory of Money and Credit also served as the basis for the calculation critique of socialism. Mises began to see the significance of monetary calculation in this book. The Austrian theories of the trade cycle and monetary calculation are the two main lines of modern Austrian research. These were the two critical debates of the Interwar Years. Also, Mises formulated his `Regression Theorem' in this book. Without this book, the modern Austrian paradigm would differ beyond recognition. Anyone who wants to learn Austrian economics should read this book.

Von Mises' "The Theory of Money and Credit" is a great work in theoretical economics. Its key insight is that money has an influence on the real economy.

Monetary financing of deficits leads to inflation, but this inflation is never proportional, that is variations in the money supply produce variations in relative prices and therefore have distributional consequences.

MV = PT is an identity. The 'V' reflects the money demand of individuals for whom a $ has a subjective value. What happens to PT is dependent on who how the new money will ripple through the economic system. Every change in the amount of money is different. Apart from subjective factors the velocity of circulation will depend on trends in population growth, the division of labour and financial innovation all of these tending to accelerate it over time.

A key price in any economy is the real interest rate. Within a stable monetary framework these would reflect time preference and the (perceived) profitability of investments. By artificially reducing the rate of interest investment booms are provoked by making longer processes of production seem more profitable than they are and when finally because of a intolerantly high rate of inflation the monetary growth is halted a sharp recession occurs, in which firms go bust and the some investments are liquidated. Hence business cycles.

In essence it a manifesto for sound-money which in Mises' view amounts to adopting the gold standard. Inflationary deficit finance is dishonest and arbitrary on people's incomes and should be replaced by explicit taxation.

Murray Newton Rothbard has been quoted as saying this book is THE best book ever written on Money & Credit. So having found Rothbard's writings to be outstanding in their own right, I moved on to this Mises classic!

The first thing to note is that this book was first published in 1912 and in German, and although the translation has been accomplished superbly, the style of writing has somewhat of an antequated feel to it; not quite the same free flowing prose you get with Rothbard. Once you get into the feel of it though, this in no way detracts from your understanding of the theory presented.

It has an excellent new Foreward by Rothbard himself, extensive footnoting and index and is hardbound beautifully by the Liberty Fund Press, with dust jacket. There is also a nice Appendix: On The Classification of Monetary Theories, that is very useful and informative.

The book itself is divided into four main Parts:
Part One: The Nature of Money.
Part Two: The Value of Money.
Part Three: Money and Banking.
Part Four: Monetary Reconstruction.(This part was added in 1952).

For me the book really took on a story of two halves. In the first half of the book, Parts 1 & 2, the bulk of the theory is really laid out. It can be slow going as it is extremely in depth but I highly recommend you stick with it as this pays off in the second half of the book!

In Part 3 Mises really starts putting flesh onto the theory when we get into Money & Banking proper with discussion of demand for money, credit, fiduciary paper, rate of interest etc. But towards the end in Chapters 19 & 20 things get MUCH more interesting as equilibrium rates and interest are discussed in detail and he finally talks about gold, the gold standard and banking freedom.

Part 4 is where my heart lies. Here we have the discussion of the principles of sound money versus contemporary currency systems. There's then an excellent discourse on the Return to Sound Money, ie the Classical Gold Standard.

The second half of this wonderful book certainly flowed better for me, but that may also be just because I am more of an investment manager/trader and less of an economist! You feel like you have had Mises teaching you in fine detail and that he has left no stone unturned in your understanding. Mises doesn't read as easily as the prose of Rothbard but that does not detract from the excellence of the material. Superb!

It really IS a truly outstanding work and if not the best book ever written on the subject, it surely has to be at the very least, one of the very best, and as such is certainly a "must-read"!!!

This wonderful, beautifully bound, classic is an absolute "steal" at $20. I still cannot believe it is sold for so little. My recommendation is to buy it while it is still available in this beautiful hardbound edition!

Enjoy!

The late great Murray Rothbard described Ludwig von Mises's _The Theory of Money and Credit_ as the best book on money ever written. And so it is.

It is probably best known as the volume which first set out the distinctive Austrian theory of the trade cycle. For that alone, it deserves a place on the bookshelf of everyone who cares about such things (and more people should).

But there's much more to it than that. This volume sets out a complete and groundbreaking theory of money itself: what it is, where it comes from, what it means to speak of its "value," the differences between commodity money and fiat money, the demand for money and what it has to do with banking, and -- crucially -- the jiggery-pokery that becomes possible when the State starts messing around with unsound monetary policy.

This edition also includes a section on "Monetary Reconstruction" written in 1952 (and first included in the 1953 Yale University Press edition).

Plus there's a foreword by Murray Rothbard. And, finally, it's another beautifully crafted volume from the Liberty Fund, practically a steal at the price posted above. You'd have a hard time buying most such books _used_ at this price.

So what are you waiting for? Throw your Samuelson and Keynes in the trash and pick up a book of _real_ economics.

I love Carolyn Haines!!! Especially when she writes in this genre. I do enjoy the Sarah Booth Delany books as well, but it is like comparing a fine wine to Kool-Aid!
When the author writes in this genre it is always tough, life then was never "pretty" or easy, yet she counters it with characters who are gracious.
The only critism was the ending, a bit too abrupt. Or perhaps I just did not want it to end??

This book is different than the Carolyn Haines mysteries I have read, and is just as enjoyable. Touched is written in beautiful language, and I felt as if I were right there in the thick Mississippi summer heat, felt the heavy air just before a thunderstorm would hit. She knows how to weave a story so that you just want to keep on going.

I am glad I stumbled across this author and her books!

Carolyn Haines' descriptions are so vivid and powerful that I felt I was walking on the road or actually sitting in the room with her characters. There were times the hairs on my arms just stood up or my heart was breaking with them. If Carolyn Haines was attempting to reveal the narrow mindness of people in small towns of the South, my opinion is She Nailed It. If she was trying to awaken compassion in her readers She Nailed It. Her characters took my heart. I am having flashbacks of times in her story and I am in the exact same spot with them I was while reading the book. I would recommend this as a wonderful read. It hurts but it certainly makes one think. I am so glad I read it. I believe it awakened a compassion in me which will remain a lifetime.

Ya never know what your gonna get. Touched is one of those books you think about at work...because you want to get home and finish it. I love it when Southern authors can make you feel the heat and humidity with their words; parts of this book reminded me of To Kill a Mockingbird (because of the place descriptions and the weather.)This is actually a quick read but you find yourself slowing down to savor the story. A five star book through and through!

Through Ms. Haines' descriptive powers, you can literally feel the heat of 1920's rural Mississippi in this exquisitely suspenseful tale. Racial tension and small-town suspicion simmer beneath supernatural overtones that hang over the tale like the humidity of the deep south.

This story is told from a feminie viewpoint, and I've walked the landscape of Carol Haines'"Jexville" through the memories of my own mother on many occassions. Born in southern Mississippi and raised in the deep south by a woman who lived that time and place, I found humour, insight, compassion, and courage in the characters, and a reality that is perhaps more palatable when wrapped in the threads of mystery and the supernatural.

I loved it!

A fantastic book about the fastest growing area of DVD releases at the moment, TV series! With breakdowns of cast and guides to the best episodes and releases I only hope enough credit goes to the website [...] who helped TV Guide put this book together!

Fantastic resource for anyone who likes watching reruns and is interested in contemporary tv culture. There are loads of forgotten facts in this book for all the classic tv shows and new ones for current programs. This is an inheritently readable book that belongs next to everyone's tv!

The descriptions of the shows are priceless--they brought back so many memories! And the guide covers a lot of shows that are new or still running, like 24 and ER. I'm not even a serious DVD collector, but the book gives great trivia about all my favorite shows (when they aired, what the names of the original stars were, which episodes went down in TV history). This book is really a history of TV in America, and it covers so many different categories that it really does solve the gift problem for just about everyone on my Christmas list. They won't be able to read just one or two of the listings; once they start in, the trivia will have them hooked. It's organized like a reference book, but It reads like an entertainment magazine.

If you are a tv junkie like me, this book is a blast. It's a handy offline reference to all the shows now available on DVD, and it's filled with lots of trivia and lists. Be ready to shop because the book will make you want to buy even more DVDs for your home library...

This book isn't perfect (I'd rather have more pictures of DVD set covers than old TV Guide covers, for instance, and the descriptions are a bit dry in places), but it IS cool to have a handy-dandy reference like this to use when you can't get online to look up the info. Good to take to the store or keep next to the TV. And if you read the fine print, you'll see that this book was made with the help of data from TVshowsonDVD.com, which is the best place I've seen online for that sort of info. Cool 'dat, and maybe for the next edition of the book TV Guide will work more with that website's staff to talk more about what's new, what's not out (any hints as to why), and what's expected to come soon. You know, show more of the TV-DVD enthusiast in this book...there's a lot of us out here!

Twisted is right. Twisted perceptions, twisted plots and twisted people abound in this novel. Avey kept me guessing until the end with one final megaTwist. When's the next one going to be released?

The story begins with the murder of Lagayle Zimmerman, she is found in her vehicle with a shiny necklace hanging from the rearview mirror. Kenny Elliot is a detective in Tulsa, Oklahoma and is on the investigation of the murder of Lagayle. Kenny remembers a time back in Porter where a similar necklace hung from the mirror, where the bodies of his friends were found. He also remembers being a suspect in their murders, but the murders were ruled as murder/suicide, however, Kenny never believed this to be true. The reason Kenny was suspect in their murders is the night before the murders there had been an altercation between he and his friends, and Kenny was known to have a temper. Now with this new murder of Lagayle, Kenny is faced with the past and to finding the answers in order to find the true killer of this murder as well as his friends murders from years ago.

The characters are well developed and believable. It has an intricate plot, the story is full of detail, with twist and turns, and is loaded with surprises.

This is a must read for mystery fans. I highly recommend this book, not only is it a page turner, but will keep you guessing.

Quality Book Reviews gives Twisted Perception 5 stars.

Kenny Elliot is a detective in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Kenny hails from the small town of Porter, Oklahoma. Kenny grew up poor. He didn't know his father and his mother's problems led her to an early grave. In spite of his background Kenny was a football star in his hometown. The police chief helped him through some of his rough times as a young man growing up.

Now Kenny is faced with the investigation of the murder of Lagayle Zimmerman. Lagaye is discovered in her vehicle, which contains a shiny necklace hanging from the rearview mirror. Kenny mind transports him back to Porter where a similar necklace hung from the mirror of a Mustang containing the bodies of his friends, Jonathan
Alexander and Marcia Barnes. Kenny was even a suspect in these two murders. The murders were ruled as a murder and suicide but Kenny never believed this.

Now years later Lagayle's death brings back memories and he travels back through his past to find the answers to the nightmares he has had for years and to reveal the true killer behind the murders of the past and the murders now happening in his city of Tulsa.

Kenny not only learns the identity of the true murderer but many secrets from his past are also revealed. This is a book that I very highly recommend. I will look forward to reading the next Bob Avey book.

Bob Avey hits the ground running with his solo debut into the mystery-suspense genre. Twisted Perception is filled with brilliantly written characters that are as believable as they are entertaining.

Kenny Elliot had a tumultuous childhood, growing up in the small town of Porter, Oklahoma. Never knowing his father and with little guidance from his troubled mother, Kenny found a friend and mentor in Sheriff Charlie Johnson. When the mutilated bodies of his friends, Johnnie Boy and Marcia Barnes are found, in a car, with Kenny's class ring swinging on a necklace from the rear-view mirror, suspicion and town gossip pointed to the hot tempered teen. The case was officially closed when the deaths were classified a murder-suicide. However, doubts persisted within the community about Kenny's involvement. Unable to shake the suspicions and unsure of the findings himself, he took Sheriff Johnson's advice and left town, with no intentions of ever returning.

Nine years have passed, and Kenny Elliot is working for the Tulsa, Oklahoma Police Department. When Lagayle Zimmerman's murdered body is discovered in her car, it's the shiny necklace dangling from the rear-view mirror that catapults the detective into the spot light. As the clues mount, the crooked finger of blame seems to be aiming once again at Kenny. Plagued by nightmares and haunted by unanswered questions, he finally realized it was impossible to escape the past. Risking everything, including his own sanity, he returns to Porter determined to uncover the truth that would stop the killings, find justice for his murdered friends and clear both his name and conscientious.

Fast paced and realistic, Twisted Perception is a character driven novel, laced with intricate plot lines that could easily be part of the hushed history of any small town in America. With clinical precision, Avey has delivered a suspense filled mystery that reaches far beyond surface entertainment, to expose the deep, often hidden psychological scars left on the souls of child abuse survivors. Avey indulges Kenny's ruminations about the old traumas that fuel his nightmares, successfully using his personal history to propel the story, instead of swallowing it whole. The palpable tension in the novel is heightened with each chapter as Avey takes the reader on a full-circle journey, reminding everyone, no matter how far or fast, you can't outrun your past.

Happy Reading!
RJ xx
3Rs

Twisted Perception begins with the murder of Lagayle Zimmerman. Tulsa Police Detective, Kenny Elliott is put in charge of the case. But when he gets to the crime scene it is almost too much for him as it blends with his nightmares. Lagayle Zimmerman is found dead in her car with her necklace hanging from the rear view mirror. When Kenny was a teenager in Porter, Oklahoma, his best friend Johnnie and his girlfriend were found dead in Johnnie's car with Kenny's class ring on a chain hanging from the rear view mirror.

Kenny was the only suspect in their deaths as they had a huge fight that night in front of a crowd and Kenny was also known for getting in trouble and having a temper. However, their deaths were ruled a murder suicide so Kenny was never charged and urged to leave town by the sheriff who liked him and his football coach. But now Kenny must go back to Porter to uncover old secrets to try to solve the murders occurring in Tulsa as the body count continues to rise and Kenny is looking more and more guilty.

This was a wonderful book full of twists and turns and lots of surprises. Bob Avey did a wonderful job with his character Kenny Elliott. I would highly recommend this book as it was quite the page turner.