California Books

Mona Ruiz is an inspiration, someone both young men and women can relate to, who sees herself and the world she lives in as honestly as possible. This book, written with reporter Greg Boucher, is actually the best written and most fairminded I have read about the gang lifestyle and someone who overcame great obstacles to turn her life around, ultimately using her former life as a gang banger to her advantage as a fine policewoman. I admire her and am happy for her as she continues to try to make her old barrio a better place. As a middle/high school librarian in a school with a number of students who are fascinated by gangs, I am delighted to have found this book and will recommend it to ALL our students. Be safe, Mona.

i began to read this book finally. after years of disregarding it i decided to give it a glance. being related to many of the people in this book it gave me a bit of insight and took me back to the time that they all grew up. for that i am grateful. however at times the writer exhausts the dramatics. I don't know Mona personally, but if this book mirrors your life than my hat goes off to you. it is very inspirational and am glad to hear that it is being read in schools.

This is a really good book to have a teenages read, I read it just because and I liked it so much that I gave it to my little sister to read who then passed it on to her friends.

This book was required when I took one of my college classes. After reading it I knew why. The book offers an inside look into the life of a young woman, hispanic and in a gang. She struggles with many obstacles and in the end pulls herself through. The book is not only inspirational but it is also a demonstration of triumph in spite of obstacles! I give it Five stars and hope that more people can get to reading this book. Maybe instead of requiring it as a college course they should offer it in Junior high's and High Schools. This is the kind of book that should be read.

I am an English teacher at Santa Ana Valley High School, in Santa Ana, CA. Ms Ruiz spoke at Valley several years ago. Her presentation was as memorable as her book, "Two Badges." I bought three copies the day of her presentation, I have since bought ten more. My students love the book. Young men and young women, alike. They relate, and it is such a strong story with a postive, true life ending. Unfortunately, or fortunately (depending on your view) these books do not make it back to my room after being checked out. I am down to three copies. In a way I am happy, in that I know the books are in contiuous use, they are getting passed around to friends. Cool. It is just that I can not afford to buy a bunch more books for my kids this fall.

What is most interesting about this book -- which centers on the poetry of the Bedouin tribe of Awlad Ali -- is not the poetry per se, but that it gives an insider's view of the craft of Ethnography. It shows, through the eyes of a skilled ethnographer, and almost by indirection and in reverse order, how meaning is attached to cultures by the people who live in them.

By peeling back the skin of the Awlad Ali culture - one of the nomadic tribes that once hovered around the edge of the Western Egyptian Desert -- we learn, not just "the ways" of this and similar Nomadic tribes, but more generally, the steps needed to attach meaning to the onion called culture. This analysis reveals, layer-by-layer, the structure and texture of the Awlad Ali worldview. It also reveals the various ideologies that supported its construction.

The Awlad Ali tribe is a society based on blood kinship, on honor, and on a kind of fierce tribal autonomy and independence. And however abstract these categories may seem, and however much they may seem settled at birth, they are in fact constantly being re-negotiated in the tribe's everyday efforts to survive: "lived deeds" in the Awlad Ali culture always trump ascribed status and words. The culture has especially derogatory names and references to those who talk, but fail to act.

Moreover, cultural meaning and societal rules remain close to the ground: that is, closely attached to survival needs. Ascribed status - that is patrilineal genealogy, maleness, etc. definitely have a pride of place in the culture, but these do not settle the matter of status once and for all: What one does with these is the final arbiter of ones position and status within the tribe.

As an American peeping into another culture, what I learned in a somewhat painfully indirect way is that most of rest of the world - even primitive tribes -- still speak and relate to each other in the language of humanity: poetry, songs, prayer, proverbs, folklore, tales, myths, etc. To them, these are not mere cultural trinkets, ornamentations and affectations, to be tossed about during holidays, or to be commercialized and then tossed aside, or just the colorful tools used to promote a particular kind of politics or political organization, but they are the real meat of human discourse. They serve as the actual conduits through which deep human feelings are conveyed and transmitted.

As a backdrop to our own culture, there are at least two lessons to be learned (indirectly and in relief) from this book:

(1) That it is possible to construct a cultural worldview (a complete cosmology of meaning) entirely without the need for a category called "race" or without reference to the idea of a "religion." The author, who was Christian and a partly-white female, lived in the home of the tribe she was studying for two years, which was nominally Muslim, but with all of the many intersecting categories of meaning: race and religion, were never mentioned to her or ever played a role in tribal discourse.

(2) That we Americans live in a social world that is bereft of normal meaningful human attachments and discourse. In comparison to the Awlad Ali tribe, we live in a world of greatly diminished humanity in which racism, acquisition of things, commodification and consumerization of those things, rationalizations and political spin, false piety, rationing of intangibles qualities, knee-jerk bipartisanism, sublimated hatred, and artistic shallowness, are substitutes for real meaning.

Is this all just an inevitable part of modernity? It is difficult to know, but we must be grateful to this author for showing us with great skill that there are other images of, and paths to meaningfulness.

Ten Stars

the book is written by an american woman with mideastern roots -- she provides great insight into the traditionals of the bedouin and arab worlds. I read this before I went to Egypt and it provided great foundation for understanding the culture of the town and village. I like her writing style -- she makes anthopological analysis interesting by explaining in the context of her interactions with the bedouins.

I agree with the other reviewers. It was the best ethnography I can remember reading. What struck a chord with me was her description and explanation of the women's submission to the men, that the submissiveness was valuable only when it was voluntarily given. The idea of women being submissive to men is not only Islamic, but exists also in Christianity.

Lila Abu Lughod, an Arab American woman, lived among the Awlad Ali tribes of the North West of Egypt for two years. Veiled Sentiments is the book she wrote on the lives and poetry of Awlad Ali. Abu Lughod field work was clearly not carried out from a "superior" stance; she sympathized with her subjects and dealt with them as equal human beings rather than inferior specimen or cultures. Abu Lughod attitude, intelligence, training and tremendous analystical ability helped her in developing great insight and understanding of this fascinating culture.

Abu Lughod analysis of concepts such as "hishma" was truly incisive and shed a great deal of light on the nature of modesty between women and men and amongst men and women. The analysis seems to explain behaviors and norms witnessed elsewhere in Egypt and indeed other parts of the Middle East.

An important thesis of Abu Lughod is that the Awlad Ali people often communicated in very conservative and modest way directly through words; they only said what was proper and fitted the norms. Yet a second mode of communication far more true and expressive was found in their little songs or poems.

Abu Lughod discussed gender relation amongst Awlad Ali at length and the relationship between women and the families of their husbands and the society at large. I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it. For an excellent work on veiling and gender issues, I would recommend Leila Ahmed's Women & Gender in Islam.

"Veiled Sentiments" is academic. It is the outcome of the author's living in a Bedouin community in northern Egypt (the Western Desert) for two years, a feat of no mean proportions.

Lila Abu-Lughod came to a deep understanding of such aspects of the culture as blood ties, veiling and poetry not only because of her talent and training but also because she has ties to that culture. She calls academics like herself "halfies" because they belong both "inside and outside the communities they write about." She realizes that such a situation benefits them in terms of gathering knowledge within close cultures.

The veiling of women (or rather women's veiling of themselves) is an important topic because of recent events including world politics and of the ongoing research in feminism. It is also important because it is so often misunderstood and so difficult to understand even when it is explained.

After reading Abu-Lughod's renowned (in the world of academics) book, "Veiled Sentiments," I think I have a better handle on veiling than I ever would have had otherwise. It was not easy to absorb the concepts that surround it. That it took ¼ of a 315 page book to do it (a conservative estimate) is a testament to the intricacies of and the psychological motivations behind this cultural /religious practice.

Learning more about veiling alone made this study one well worth reading. But the surprise for both the reader, and-as explained by Ms. Abu-Lughod-the author herself is the discovery of this culture's use of poetry. To take it one step further, the insight into how societies in general (at least ours and that of the Bedouins) similarly use their poetry and relate to it.

Abu-Lughod finds that poetry is used somewhat differently among women in the Awlad ` Ali tribes than it is used by men. Because I am writing my own book of poetry called "Skyscapes: A Woman's View," I was especially interested in this aspect of "Sentiments;" it also was, by the author's own admission, an amazing and important cultural discovery. A group of women in China have their own secret language apart from the men; now this anthropologist brings to our attention how the poetry and veiling customs of these women reveal their emotions and are rooted in the traditions of a society in which they live quite separately from men.

Though this book is not meant for mainstream readers, I hope that many who have no ties to anthropology will make an effort to read it. I believe that women will find it especially interesting but men will also find pertinent information for today's political climate within its pages. No amount of travel could impart the depth of understanding of this culture, and-by extension-similar cultures that this book does.

(Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the author of "This is the Place..." )

Paul has a great deal of experience with the Washington Wine scene, and it shows. This should be called the Washington Wine Encyclopedia. The book is full of very current and relevant information about the blossoming (and Booming) Washington Wine industry, and the top 25% (His Opinion) of the wineries. I found the history portion of the book fascinating.

If you have any interest in the Washington wine industry, this is a must read!

While this book may be very informative, it looks and reads more like a textbook and lacks the excitement and entertainment value of its subject matter. The book could be significantly improved simply by adding color pictures of wine labels and/or the wineries themselves rather than black and white pictures of only a handful of labels (which makes the book look dull and cheap). Prior to actually reading the book, I originally purchased it as a gift for out of state friends to give them along with a mixed case of Washington wines as they are unfamiliar with wines from the Pacific Northwest. However, after reading through the book, I decided to find another book that would give my friends a better sense of Washington wine country as well as a visual journey of this beautiful region through pictures.

I agree with the book's bold subtitle. And not only is this survey essential, but it is engaging and entertaining -- my standard for good writing is that I would enjoy reading it whether or not I'm interested in the subject, and Gregutt passes that test with aplomb.

Of particular value -- and at the heart of the book -- is Gregutt's well researched and knowledgeable summary of each of wine grape grown in the region, with a listing of "best bottles" of each varietal. This section of the book by itself would make a handy stand-alone pocket publication.

Gregutt's choice to limit his reviews to the top 20-25% of wineries, in terms of quality/style/value, regardless of size, leaves off the radar screen some fairly large wineries that might have broader national distribution (Hogue, for example), but out-of-region readers with favorable shipping laws would do well directly purchase wines from some of the smaller wineries that he suggests.

Paul Gregutt truly understands Washington wine, and it is very well demonstrated in his book (Washington Wines and Wineries). Paul does a terrific job covering the history of the Washington wine industry and many of the top vineyards. The most intriguing part of the book has to be the way Paul provides detailed information on the "Top 25%" of the states wineries. Since many of the top Washington wines are produced in limited quanity by very young wineries, this book provides a much needed resource to help navigate through the current releases. Whether you are a newcomer to Washington wine or a connoisseur, this book is a must read.

As Gregutt himself says, fifteen years ago a book like this might have covered every winery in the state and maybe also all of the vineyards. Today he can write this book focusing on only the top 25% most significant wineries and vineyards and it's still a lot of information to take in.

Washington is one of the most exciting wine areas in the world. The growth in output is spectacular, but even more spectacular is the growth in international reputation. Gregutt tries to take the reader behind the scenes and into the history of wine in Washington.

At the same time, he explains that everything he is writing about is still in flux. Even the oldest vineyards are usually still run by the person who planted the first vines, and Washington is still searching for exactly what its real specialties are going to be.

It would be interesting to revisit this book in 20, 50, or 200 years and see what has become of Washington wines by that time.

This is not a boring list of "90-point" wines, or really even a guide to individual wines or wineries at all. Instead it is about the wine industry and wine scene in the state.

Where the Money Is, is a collection of true stories featuring some of the most unusual and thought provoking crimes in what is described by the author as The Bank Robbery Capital of the World - Los Angelinos, the City of Angels.

Charting the rise of street gangs, hardcore villains, down and out debutantes, sheer opportunists, muscle-bound psychopaths, and brilliantly sophisticated tunnelers, Where The Money Is, is a breathtaking rocket trip of the world of bank robbery as seen through the eyes of the former head of the FBI Bank Robbery division, William Rehder.

A hugely entertaining, dynamite whirlwind speed ride, Where The Money is, is a fascinating insight into a world that, for the majority of us, is simply the subject of movies and TV. Written in a wonderfully accessible style with the vigour, sensitivity, and passion of a man whose life's mission has been to make the world a better place, Where the Money Is is totally and utterly enthralling right down to the mind blowing final chapter.

Non judgemental in his assessment of the motives for bank robbery, Rehder's masterpiece is a comprehensive and refreshingly objective take on a world of crime and for the first time I was disappointed that the author didn't go into more detail about himself (most of these types of books seem to be screaming "ME ME MEEEE, look how great I am and how I had to struggle!!! Not the case with Where The Money Is) but of course that's because he has the humility to recognise that the these stories are about a bigger picture than just one person. I would love to meet this man. Praise too, to Gordon Dillow.

It's clear that there's respect there for some of these people - perhaps the ones who ended up in the criminal world through unfortunate circumstances beyond their own control, but there's also a sense of duty that is from the heart of a true hero.

My one and only criticism was that once I'd read it I wanted more. If this book was 50 times as big, it still wouldn't be enough. William Rehder's Where The Money Is is amazing. I can't praise it enough, because I was blown away by it.

Outstanding. Truly one of the best true crime books I have ever read. I felt like I was sitting having a beer with the authors and they were talking to me as a friend and sharing an inside view on bank robbery in LA. Funny, with "cop talk" and a tremendous amount of insight into the characters involved - cops and criminals. Definitely tells you about the who,how, and why, and it is FASCINATING. I was riveted after just the first few pages and looked forward to every minute I could grab to read it. And just to make sure I didn't miss a thing, I'm going to open it back to the first page and start all over again. I really can't convey what a good book this is.... I highly recommend it.

A very entertaining read on several different bank robberies in the L.A. metro area. Rehder and Dillow have a very humorous and witty tone to their writing and it makes for a fast read.

A fascinating look into the minds of the robbers as well as the F.B.I. Agents and LAPD Officers who pursue and catch them. It is trite to say, but neither I nor my wife could put this down. Having lived in LA at the time of some of these cases, I found that this book was a great look behind the scenes and headlines of some of the most riveting true crime tales in that ever seedy and sorted town. Buy this book !

in our media-saturated audio-visual age when most shows are crime dramas or reality shows (there should be a law prohibiting some of those shows), it comes as a welcome relief to read this live-action real-life tale about one very good guy (natch, the FBI co-author), and many bad guys who rob banks. You can learn more from this anecdotal-laced memoir than a years's worth of law & order episodes. I felt that I got good education about how banks operate and foil thiefs. I got an equally good education on how the FBI tracks down their sticky finger prey. All the action takes place in L.A. which is the bank robbery capital of the world. You can take that to the bank...

This is a great source for Yosemite Big Walls. It provides valuable information including strategies, ratings with relative comparisons to other big wall routes, approaches, precise topos, optimum belays and bivy locations, pitch-linking possibilities, weather/seasonal factors, and descent routes. For those interested in Yosemite Big Wall history, there is a section devoted to the pioneers of Yosemite Big Wall climbing that is quite interesting. All in all, a great book for Yosemite's Big Walls. Thumbs up!!

Yosemite's best in painstaking detail -- a truly outstnading resource !

These topos are the best on the planet!

They are so detailed they allowed me to relive most of the hard or akward sections on the wall, occasionally even describing a single move. With the supertopos you can be ultimately prepared, as they include to what extent "clean routes" depend on fixed gear and what to bring if some of it rips out.

Real wall-rats/purists might feel that it removes some of the adventure, but then again you don't have to read everything and there is still plenty adventure left. Also the stories of the first ascents and histories of the climbs make it the ultimate guide, and even a good read.

Reading it got me so psyched up that I can hardly wait for my next "Big Wall" trip.

I can only hope that the other supertopos (e.g. free climbs) will be just as good.

This is hands down the best climbing guide I have ever purchased. Not only does McNamara replace the ambiguous beta from past books with straight-up ratings and tips, he also provides entertaining history and profiles to get you psyched. I also recommend "The Road to The Nose" book that Chris sells on his site ...

This book sets new standards for climbing guides. The production values are superb, and the information contained detailed and informative. If you're even thinking of climbing a big wall in Yosemite, buy this book. If you're a guidebook author, or thinking of becoming one, buy this and imitate it.

Fun romp featuring repo men (and women) of DKA as heroes versus gypsy clans. The king of American gypsies has died, and the clans from around the US are vying to have their leader be selected as the new king. To this end, they are stealing Cadillacs left and right in order to show up in the proper style at the big gathering where the new king will be selected. Lots of fun to be had as Gores skillfully describes scam after scam after scam, both by the gypsies and the repo men. Both groups are sympathetically portrayed for the most part, and the background detail about modern gypsy life is interesting in its own right.

This book is full of heroes on all sides as DKA agents and gypsies strive to outwit each other throughout a very funny story. 32 CADILLACS is the best entry in the entertaining DKA series.

This book explores the world of gypsies, scamps and thieves and the offbeat group of Private Investigators who pursue them.

Always planning the next con, theft or bunko, a band of gypsies in San Francisco pull off a perfect crime. Using four branches of the same bank, slick tactics and phone banks, a group of gypsies manages to steal 32 cadillacs, all in the same day.
Facing a million dollar loss, the bank hires DKA, a local PI firm, to recover the stolen cars. Tipped off that a gang of gypsies was responsible, the DKA operatives, or repomen, start a chase that follows the cars across the US. Using very unconventional methods this quirky band of PIs, who are rejects and misfits, must use their wiles to "outcon the cons."

What makes this story really outstanding is the background tale of the gypsy life, description of how the cons are done and the plotting of the PIs to get the cars back. There is lots of action too including breakneck chases and escapes, including one where a DKA agent must leap into a car while his rear is filled with buckshot.

My favorite character is Ken Warren, a repoman with such a severe speech impediment that he barely communicates. But with extraordinary skills in hunting down and absconding with cars that no one else can get, he earns the respect of his fellow DKA agents.

A fun ride which I highly recommend.

... I found it to be a nice treat.

It was an interestinglook at the workings of the repoman and an enlightning look at the gypsy lifestyle.

The members of the DKA agency were wonderfully drawn characters...very Runyon-esque. The gypsy characters could not have been more colorful. The plots and sidebars were neatly tied together.

There is a lot of humor mixed in with the crime, trackdowns, deceptions, double dealings and repo procedural. This would make a great movie. The action never stops and Mr. Gores does a great job of putting the reader inside the mind of the players.

"32 Cadillacs" was very entertaining and my initial Joe Gores book. I feel like I have discovered a new writer and look forward to more fun reads by Joe Gores.

Why Joe Gores isn't a better known author is a complete mystery to me. Ok, Ok, he's won 3 Edgar Awards and all, but still you don't hear his name mentioned too often when asking for recommendations. His DKA Files series are full of action, humour, cons and scams and in short are pure entertainment. Well, no matter, I've discovered him now and I'm here to tell you that the series, and 32 Cadillacs in particular, is one that's not to be missed.

For the first time, the DKA Agency is pitted in a head-to-head battle with San Francisco's Gypsy community following a Gypsy scam that had netted a grand total of 31 Cadillacs. This is a once-in-a-lifetime job, recover the 31 Caddys for a nicely negotiated fat fee. But the Gypsies are crafty specialists of the long con and are exceedingly difficult to track down, so the recovery process will require the DKA team to use every resource available as well as every underhanded trick in the book.

To give you a head start, I'll introduce you to the central DKA characters. They are, Dan Kearny, Giselle Marc, Patrick O'Bannon, Larry Ballard and Bart Heslip. And two new characters are added to the staff, Trin Morales, a sleazy Latino who failed on his own as a PI, and Ken Warren, the genius carhawk with a killer speech impediment. Both bring tremendous dimension and entertainment to the DKA team.

But the real stars of the book are the Gypsies, colourful in character as well as in their various ingenious scams. Although they're such big thieves that they'd make a kleptomaniac look like a saint, you can't help but like them and hope that every now and then they'll catch a break.

Joe Gores is an author who has walked the walk, having been an agent in the real life DKA Agency. His first-hand knowledge and experience is apparent as his agents work through their cases. Rumour has it that the Larry Ballard could very well be modelled on Gores himself.

As a final word, if there are any Donald Westlake fans out there who have read and enjoyed his Dortmunder book Drowned Hopes, I would urge you to read this one too with a brilliant crossover of storylines. This book was an absolute pleasure to read and, I know it's a much-overused catch phrase but I would term it a "must read book".

I have enjoyed reading this well written book and learning about the scientists and volunteers who are working to restore the species. Science got a little short shrift, which is probably nice for many readers. I learned a lot anyway. Though I did not always agree with the author's opinions, I think this is an important book and may help reduce the general ignorance about the fate of the American Chestnut, something everyone really ought to know about.

I have read a number of books in the genre of environmental science or nature that missed the mark for me when it came to explaining the science of the problem. This book was perfect. Some books spend too much time on personalities - again perfect and seemingly balanced. My only minor complaint was that I didn't need so much preaching about why I should care about the chestnut. I do! This book exceeded my expectations and I truly learned something from it.

I work in plant pathology which sparked my interest in this topic. This book is written by a non-scientist and it is very well researched and full of interesting stories of many of the people affected by, and dedicated to saving the American Chestnut. I would recommend it to anyone interested in US history or biology or just looking for a good read.

As an avid amateur botanist, it is rare when an informative AND interesting book on plants is published. But this the case here. Freinkel speaks with an informative and lyrical voice, making one ponder the tragedy of the loss of this truly magnificent tree. I'm very glad to see this lovely book published, and hope more writers follow Freinkel's example.

As a biologist with an intense avocational interest in the American Chestnut, I planted nearly a hundred seeds on my property in PA way back in 1972. After 8 years of beautiful growth, the blight hit them. I joined the American Chestnut Foundation and discovered a hypovirulent chestnut on my property that I shared with professionals studying the blight fungus. But my interest in chestnuts waned, in part because of the ACF's backcrossing program, until I read Susan Freinkel's marvelous book! The people I knew only as names became personalities--Burnham, Rutter, Hebard--and she introduced me to others, such as Gary and Lucille Griffen, whose work she described finally explained to me why the hypovirulent inoculants I applied to my chestnuts back in 1980 didn't help at all. It's the combination of genetic resistance with hypovirulence that is needed. What an eye opener and what a fantastic book she has written, one that has rekindled my youthful interest in restoring the role of the American Chestnut. Her book supports the huge role natural history plays in producing good science. Passion for a species is a natural element in knowing it.

Okay, so I was on a tight budget and needed a new book...found this in hardcover at the local superstore on the bargain table...what a find! Frances Norris tells a wonderful story of a character coming to grips with the loss of her family, both recently and in the past. The characters are very believable and Norris gives a true feeling of setting without drowning the reader in description. I read this quickly, but still felt satisfied. Very enjoyable read.

Love and food are two of my favorite subjects, so how could I resist this book? I was not disappointed. The loss element keeps the story subtantive so that its not just another piece of fluff. The book has hilarious characters (including an overbearing narcissist in an amoeba jumper), but the author treats all with compassion enough to make them full and true. The food styling scenes bring together Hollywood fakery with a delicious disgustingness (photographing motor oil poured on macshed potatoes to resemble a sundae). You can't help cheering on narrator Julia as she navigates the crazies and searches out her soul in a soul-less city. Buy this book right away and enjoy!

I loved Julia's story. She finds her inner spark by overcoming her pain, loss, and depression and finding love and forgiveness in unusual ways. The characters are well portrayed and do not lack depth, even the obviously obnoxious figures are seen with irony and compassion at the same time. Highly recommended.

Dear Francie:

I just finished your book. What a wonderful story, full of feeling, wisdom, beauty and hope. I really enjoyed the characters, not to mention that you are an incredibly gifted writer style-wise. I lived the whole trip to Sedona as if I was there. And the end is so sexy, yummy, I love it!! All I can say is, keep writing, girl! And like I said, some day we may see the movie "Blue Plate Special", very attractive title to my ears. Thank you for your gift to the world of readers,

The only reason that I got this book was because the author went to my high school - so I have to admit that my expectations were not that high. But I really, really enjoyed this book, for the reasons stated so eloquently by other reviewers. It was gripping though sad.

excellent preparatory for dmv test in california. the # of sample tests

and the repetition practically guarantee a high score, leave a buffer for

errors so a pass is likely

....By which I mean that if you buy this book and work through [ sorry about that, I _am_ English :-)) ] the test papers you will gain much valuable knowledge about driving in the USA. This means that you are more able to enjoy your holiday as you will know so much more about the rules and regulations that there are in the USA and so, hopefully(!), not fall foul of them! By the time I'd worked through the first two papers and read the detailed information towards the back of the book even I was getting 30+ correct answers! So, I'd definitely recommend this book to any fellow "Brit" who wants to be less of a hazard when driving in the USA. Finally, Alice herself was _most_ helpful when I emailed her with a query I had regarding the DMV in California. So not only a most helpful book, but also excellent feedback direct from the author herself. Do yourself a favour/favor(!!) and buy it :-)

Alice Syman's book is wonderful -- full of useful tips and clear explanations of the California laws. You WILL pass the written test if you study this book. Highly recommended!

I purchased the original "Califonia Drivers Test Made Easy" several years ago when I took my first CA driving test and again 5 years ago when my wife came down from Canada. In both cases it was an essential tool to make sure that we were ready for the test. Alice updates her book constantly and this is really needed because the CA driving laws change all the time.

Having scored well in the book tests gives you a really good level of confidence since practically 100% of the questions you will be asked are in the book.

So when I decided to take a CA Motorcycle test last year (which is a mix of regular driving test questions and motorcycle related questions) I went back and obtained the latest copy of Alice's book. Of course again, that was the right thing to do.

Bottom line: Alice book is a MUST for anyone that wants to take the CA Drivers test examination with the confidence needed to pass it.

I highly recommend Alice's book.

I'm going to study in California next year and I don't have a drivers license yet. But thanks of this book I am sure I will get it easily!!!

The author of Operation Mind Control, Walter H. Bowart, died on December 18, 2007, according to his obituary in The New York Times and the reference page at Wikipedia.

In 1978, while living in New Hampshire, I had the opportunity of hearing a local radio interview with Bowart concerning his book. I immediately went out and purchased a copy at the cover price of one dollar and ninety-five cents.

Government censorship of the book has created a scarcity of available copies and has skyrocketed the market selling price.

Everything the other reviewers at Amazon have alluded to regarding its supression by the government is true, for Operation Mind Control is indeed a mind blower. The State could not permit anyone to disclose such damaging information.

The secrets revealed in this book openly describe a clandestine government at war with its own people, covert forces which Bowart describes as "the cryptocracy."

This is precisely the kind of dangerous information that governments fear.

Operation Mind Control is not conspiracy theory.

It is documented fact.

Governments live by lies, by bamboozling and hiding the truth from their subjects.

Accordingly, the primary task of opponents of modern tyranny, as libertarian Murray N. Rothbard pointed out, is an educational one: to awaken the public to this manipulation and propaganda, by demystifying and desanctifying the state apparatus upon which such lies are built upon.

Walter Bowart heroically accomplished this feat.

Operation Mind Control spoke truth to power as few books published in the past thirty years have done.

That is why the government tried to destroy it.

Years ago I had the opportunity to discuss these matters with John Marks, the brilliant author of The Search For The Manchurian Candidate: The CIA and Mind Control. Mark's volume somehow escaped the government's relentless campaign waged upon its predecessor.

I highly recommend his book in addition to Operation Mind Control.

Two excellent documentaries tell the sordid and shocking story discussed in these books. They are, Mind Control: America's Secret War, and Bad Trip To Edgewood. Both are available at Google Video for viewing.

This is a book to be read, not to buy and put on a shelf to impress your friends. In a free society we all need to be informed. Read other reviews for more detail.

As one of the researchers mentioned in Operation Mind Control (Jim Moore - pp 262-264, orig. edition), I followed this book and its author with great interest. The book disappeared because, according to what I learned, the CIA did not want the public to know the extent and details of its mind control programs. I believe even Walter Bowart himself once described how the entire warehouse supply was bought up by the CIA. The book also began vanishing from libraries across the nation, and virtually every copy available in bookstores was suddenly bought up and disappeared into a black hole. Very few copies survived this draconian purge. Those that remain are quire rare and expensive and should be must-reading for all Americans concerned about the future of our country and how our thought processes are manipulated by the political-intelligence "experts". especially in the wake of what is being revealed about 9-11, Iraq and the NSA spying.
At one point, even photocopies were going for as much as $75-100. The book itself (1st edition) has sold for as high as $250. There was a second printing (with a different cover) that also quickly disappeared; whether it was an authorized printing or not, I don't know.
Walter Bowart reportedly wrote a follow-up, but suddenly stopped and virtually vanished. The rumor mill has it that he was threatened with "termination with extreme prejudice" - a phrase for assassination that is now outdated.
To my knowledge, he is still alive but living his life in a very low profile. From my own experiences over the years, I can't say I blame him.

This is for those wanting a more than 2-line review of Walter Bowat's "Operation Mind Control."

For whatever reason this book was not widely publicized nor advertised when it first came out during my high school years. I read a lot then and this book certainly would have been the type I'd wanted to read. OMC was published in 1978. In "the author's note" Bowart describes his book as "an excercise in citizens' intelligence" because he like many authr's Bowart cites in his bibliography [including but not in entire: John Marks ["The Search for the Manchurian Candidate"], Lincoln Lawrence["Were We Controlled?"], Donald Bain ["The Control of Candy Jones"] expressed "shock and outrage" over govenment abuse of our [US] people.

Below is a brief synopsis of the "Contents" of "Operation Mind Control"...

FOREWARD:

This was written by Richard Condon who wrote the novel [& from which the first movie titled] "The Manchurian Candidate."

CH 1. "The Crytptorian Candidate"
Discusses the concept of government mind control such as the use of drugs [including LSD], behavior modification, various frequency of sound, hypnosis and other "psycho-weapons." [Note: this book was published 2 years after both Watergate was exposed and also, the Senate's Church commitee had dredged up many ways the CIA had run afoul of the law & one part dealt with a subcommitee dealing with the MKULTRA scandal].

The author discusses how he came about to write this book & later put an ad in the mag "Soldier of Fortune" about possible military victims of gov't mind control. After sifting thru the alledgedly obvious cranks he further interwiewed those who had convincing stories. Bowart discusses the concept of possible Manchurian candidates.

CH. 2 "Only One Mind For My Country"
Discusses the case history of former Air Force "box pusher" [who scored very high in several aptitude tests]named David. David awakes in a hospital where doctors tell him he'd attempted suicide. He discusses later being involved in clandestine operations where for years he had no recall. At first all he recalled about his Vietnam experience is having fun at the beach with 2 other people & no military recall. Over time he recalls scenes that very much seem like the island scenes of the compound in the 2004 version of the movie "Manchurian Candidate." He believes the alledged "suicide attempt" [which he denies attempting] was put on record to discredit him should he later recall events.

CH. 3 "The Mind Laundry Myth"
Discusses the case hitory of Vietnam POW George E. Smith who was in the Green Berets. Also discussed is the concept of Korean/Red China/Communist "brainwashing" where the victim is broken down psychologically & once the mind is "empty" it is refilled with whatever the brainwasher wants. This is illustrated by the story of Francis Gary Powers [and others] who was allegedly "brainwashed" in Korea [others in Vietnam, Russia] Discussian of brainwashing techniques that the Communists use versus the Western Model [slow vs faster with adjunct of drugs, electoshock for example]

CH. 4 "Without Knowledge Or Consent"
Hypnotist George Estabrooks techniques of mind control thru OSS [later CIA] on unwitting soldiers & later US & other countries citizens. The various uses of hypnosis combined with uses of drugs or shock in some cases is discussed as how it is used in the concept of mind control tests on unwitting "volunteers." The "war" against Communism thru mind control now becomes "a private war within."

CH. 5 "Pain-Drug Hypnosis"
Various uses of drugs [barbituates, nonbarbituate sedatives, calmatives, amphetamines & finally "conscious expanding" LSD] use for mind control discussed. Abbie Hoffman & Timothy Leary's stories are discussed as are Sandoz lab's [where LSD was "discoverd" association with CIA. The heroin addiction of many Vietnam GI's and later the "voluntary" participation in the drug BZ[10 X stronger than LSD 25] by soldiers at Edgewood Arsenal. are discussed.

The government becomes more interested in not only the mind control of individuals but populations. Also, other biological weapons are discussed.

CH 6. "The Guinea Pig Army"
Discusses how in 1975 the public [tho in reality most news sources heavily censored this info or never reported it at all] learns of what was the MKULTRA files being destroyed & how well over 100 subprojects dealt with gov't research on citizens of the US [also at least one was in Canada {not mentioned here}: the story of Dr Ewen Camereon]

CH 7. "The MKULTRANS"
Richard Helms DCI of the CIA and the various MK projects including MKULTRA, MKSEARCH, BLUEBIRD, ARTICHOKE, MKDELTA, etc are revealed but highly censored is discussed. A brief story about the California Medical Facility in Vacaville is discussed. Basically the CIA wanted to find out if & how it could control our minds.

CH 8. "The Mata Hari of Mind Control"
Discusses the story of CIA Mind Control story of "courier" Candy Jones.

CH 9. Discussion of of the CIA also mind controls their own. Discusses briefly Wild Bill Donovan of the OSS & the Dulles brothers and the concepts of the US cryptocracy & the military industrial complex & how these relate to mind control & the control the US gov't thru various types of propaganda and mis-& dis-information. The cryptocracy engages scientists to do covert research engage in covert control & create the ideal of national security to enslave the US citizens with "Operational Mind Control,the ultimate technology of secrecy and control."

CH 10. "Brave New World in a Skinner Box"
The cryptocracy meets behavior modification.

CH 11. "A School For Assassins"
The cryptocracy searches for the best killers: they look for the passive-aggressive types & desensitize them to gore & mayhem. Watson assists the cryptocracy with creating the model in a series of lectures. One of these experiments--Project Camelot--[the demise of Chile's President Salvadore Allende] is an example of creating such assassins who will kill on demand. [Allende was overthrown in a CIA sponsored coup who killed himself after his palace was set afire by recruited assassins.]

CH 12. "The Four Faces of a Zombie"
A trained "multiple zombie-state killer named Luis Castillo is discussed in one theory of the JFK assassination. The connection to the JFK is debatable but what was fascinating was the discussion of how the various zombie states were fleshed out with various word commands.

CH 13. "The Lone Nuts"
Discusses how accused killers Lee Harvey Oswald, Sirhan Sirhan, & James Earl Ray acted under various depths of hypnosis and/or truth serums is interesting/chilling. The CIA has fingerprints throughout this chapter as well.

CH 14. " The Ignored Confessions"
Jack Ruby, Dorothy Kilgallen [who interviwed Ruby in his cell] talk & die under cloudy circumstances as does Professor[former oswald friend & intelligence agent] George de Mohrenschildt's dies mysteriously & also after telling his story. de Morenschildt had also been subjected to mind control drugs and electric shock.[?]

CH 15. "Another Hypno-Patsy?"
M L King's death & cover-up.

CH 16. "Confession By Automatic Writing"
RFK's assassination by Sirhan Sirhan & the assassin's strange behavior following under hypnosis & alledged writings possibly planted in Sirhan's home?

CH 17 "The Patriotic Assassin"
First discusses how the word assassin came to be.Then how the NSA uses this model to create assassins with its black ops & how the CIA is the "whipping post" of the NSA. Chilling interview of how they use ultrasonic & electronic manipulation of the brain so the assassin remembers nothing unless cued by the handler. Discusses how Presidents will obey their handlers wishes or face the same as JFK.

CH 18. "Deep Probe"
Jose Delgado & electronic brain stimulation & his desire for a "psycho-civilised society." Remote control of the brain. Brain implants.

CH 19. "From Bionic Woman to Stimulated Cat"
Lincoln Lawrence & RHIC-EDOM: Radio Hypnotic Intra-Cerebral Control-Electronic Dissolution of Memory. The concept of sleeper assassins is discussed

CH 20. "The Engines of Security"
Summarizes the cryptocracies want/"need" to control the minds of society.
*******
Some of the book is outdated but this book is often used as background in more recent works on the subject of mind control. The book is diificult to find & expect to pay even more than $100 for a copy in any condition. It took years to find one for a little more than half that price. The book is worth reading if you can find a copy of it. Hope this helps.

This is a review of the scarce 2nd edition of Operation Mind Control, which appears for sale occasionally on Amazon, originally a subscribers only edition, with author's seal and name of the person it was prepared for on the first page. Limited to 500 copies.

I mostly found this to be a very interesting book about the so-called cryptocracy. There's a lot of startling stuff in the 686 pages of main text, and in the appendices. There do appear to be a few factual errors however. He states that B.F. Skinner's daughter committed suicide, but doesn't say where he got that information. According to the book "Opening Skinner's Box", Debbie Skinner is alive and well. He also declares that Skinner was a tool of the cryptocracy out to turn people into "obedient automatons", which is a contentious argument. All I will say is to recommend Lauren Slater's book to get both sides of the argument and also to read a balanced analysis of "false memory syndrome". Mr Bowart argues against that in the chapter "False Memory Spindrome". However, earlier in the book he mentions the case of Sirhan Sirhan, who apparently after hypnosis claimed he killed Robert Kennedy and who, according to a psychiatrist in 1973, had hypnosis used to plant ideas in his mind to make him accept that he killed Robert Kennedy. This psychiatrist is quoted as saying that a polygraph is more accurate than hypnosis. This suggests that memories can indeed be planted through hypnosis!

Most of the sheer volume of information appears to be well researched. In the interests of space I will just list some search terms that could be entered into a search engine to find out about some of the subject matter: "george estabrooks", "mary pinchot meyer", "sir william stephenson", "mark phillips mkultra", "triple dissociation", "mindwar", "dr colin ross", "franklin cover-up", "finders cia", "michael aquino", "luis angel castillo", "david ferrie", "george de mohrenschildt", "becker body electric", "consumertronics", "high power microwave technology", "gunther karl russbacher", "white phosphorus waco", "genie laborde", "col john alexander", "black hole of guyana", "dorothy burdick", "armen victorian", "mike-alpha-delta-3", "tesla generator", "alt.mindcontrol", "mkdraco", "fletcher prouty", "jacques vallee", "martin cannon controllers", "harlan girard", "p.a. lindstrom", "biotelemetry".

There's supposed to be a documentary based on this book too, according to Mr Bowart in this book.