California Books

This is an admirable volume II, consistent with what made volume I my first choice. In this volume, there are monumental inscriptions, instructional literature (including some very amusing works on the scribal life), hymns (including the great hymn to Osiris, and the Akhenaten hymns to the Sun), selections from the 'Book of the Dead', some prose tales and a factual narrative. Introductions and notes are terrific. Ka's are left untranslated.

Ms. Lichtheim has done a wonderful job in her book, Ancient Egyptian Literature: New Kingdom! Her selections cover a wide range.She has a small introduction to each piece, besides the introductionto the book itself. Her placement of notes at the end of each selection is a godsend, no more madly turning to the back searching for the appropriate notes! An excellent choice for those interested in Egyptian history, or simply those wanting a better understanding of ancient literature. Buy it, it's worth it!

Finally, a collection of good and readable translations of Egyptian literature which both the layperson and the expert will find useful. Lichtheim has given the academic world a much needed reference with the translations of the text and a good introduction to the social history of the creators and the circumstances of the texts being recovered.

I really enjoy the thought provoking writings in this book and would recommend it to others seeking to view another way of seeing and understanding ourselves and the world.

This is a powerful little book. It explains how our thinking becomes the law of our life and that if we are sitting around blaming God for our suffering and our challenges, we are misinformed. We must learn to change our thinking which will change our life. This isn't as easy as it sounds but it becomes doable when we understand that we are co-creators with God, and connected to the All Knowing. When I was Editor of Science of Mind magazine, and a spiritual counselor at Agape, I was so fortunate to be focusing my attention on Dr. Holmes's writings and teachings almost 24/7. The end result of all my focused positive thought did change my life and will change yours. Your life experiences must change because, as Dr. Holmes teaches, it is the Law of Attraction - like attracts like. Thinking about health, draws health. Thinking about success, draws success. But the proof is in trying this thinking for yourself. I guarantee it - even Doubting Thomas's will be convinced by this book. Elaine Maginn Sonne, Ph.D., Author of Legends of the Stones and other books on empowerment.

I read this book in a study group. It was an amazingly concise explaination of some major concepts. If you believe that God is always in us and around us, that our thoughts make our world and that we can access the power of God to co-create our universe or if you've suspected any of those things might be true, you will enjoy this book. It may even help you explain some "new thought" ideas to all those people who think you're too "woo woo"

"Annie's Soup Kitchen" would make a dynamite movie!
Here's a game I invented, and played as I read the book: Choose the movie stars you would cast as members of the Soup Kitchen gang. Samuel Jackson as the General!
Can you beat that?
And here's another idea: Get the book to those movie stars. Samuel Jackson, where are you? Here's your role!

Annie, we love you! Who else but a nonagenarian Irish woman straight from the Age of the Potato Famine would undertake to nourish the bodies and souls of the multitudes, the castaways of society who populate a soup kitchen in the shadow of the Valley of the Rich (notorious Orange County, Calif.,where never is heard a discouraging word over the sound of Hummers in the morning, Hummers in the evening). Annie, you're a saint! Tubs of food, tanks of pasta, bushels of greens resurrected (like the souls you cherish) from the supermarket dumpsters (yes, vegetables have souls, too--don't we talk and play Mozart to them?).

And what a motley tribe who feed from your table of viands and inspiration. In fact, filled with your spirit, they conspire with you to subvert the establishment--an oil company, a food-packing company-- Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you don't want to miss the scatological just desserts channeled by mysterious means into a food-packing company. (Ahem, I use the word "desserts" advisedly--don't try this at home, without professionals at hand.) Or the disbeliever brought low by the burning bush, whence speaketh divinity. Poor Betty, she'll never badmouth a person of color again. Or the General--now here's a dude with his mojo mojing. When he sniffs the air, the birds listen; his magic hands choreograph the powers that count against the powers that be; he speaks his own mojo language--those who have ears let them hear, those who have eyes, let them see. He will invoke imprecations and maledictions on the non-readers of Smith's pages: why, I had the audacity to put the book down in an unguarded moment, and the heavens thundered against me. I barely escaped His wrath by feverish catching up. Beware. These powers are best not affronted.

But sometimes even magic, the will of a Saint, and the best laid plans of cagey conspirators are not enough to cleanse the dross of the world, to transmute the lead into gold. It takes an act of divine nature--all those politicians, all those media hounds, all those wanna-be's who wanna prevail by prevarication and jumping on the bandwagons of the holy. We see it every day. Here's someone doing GOOD. Let's act like this is our bandwagon. Annie's Soup Kitchen, like all mythic books, is REAL. You'll know it when you see it. Everything in it happened, just like you saw it on the evening news, only without the fictionalizing. The rains fell, the dams broke, the unwashed masses were washed in a universal baptism, and the world tried to reconstitute itself under the new order. Only Grady, like Ishmael, is left to tell the tale.

So, read this book: fall under its spell, or try in vain to escape the conjurings of the General: he knows who buys, and he knows who only window-shops. He's tapped in. The lookers-in-windows live in glass houses. Fortunately, they're only a stone's throw from the Truth and a good meal.

Once in a while-not often-a writer comes along with a voice and a story so good-humored, hopeful and compelling that the reader's world-view is changed for the better. Lawrence R. Smith is one of those writers, and "Annie's Soup Kitchen" is one of those stories. It might fall roughly into the category of magic realism, but it's more accurate to say this book is just plain magic.

The cast of well-drawn, unforgettable "marginal" characters starts with Annie O'Rourke herself, a ninety-five-year-old nurse who runs a soup kitchen from an abandoned lot by the railroad tracks, and includes hard-nosed Betty, who undergoes a startling conversion after talking to a burning palm tree out back (who says miracles can't still happen?); the General, a powerful black man who delivers mystifying monologues while wearing knee-high rubber boots filled with soapy water; John DeLorean-is it that John DeLorean?; and a host of other mostly good-natured eccentrics. In response to a frightening "shadow plague," they form the monkeywrenching Magnificent Seven in an attempt to stop the disease at its environmental source. Though antagonistic, the authorities are impotent against the power and good-will of these quirky and magical souls.

Especially in these dark and discouraging times, "Annie's Soup Kitchen" is a wonder and a joy.

There are many biographies of Chekhov, including the new one by Rayfield, but this edition of the letters is the best source of the writer's life and thought. Long out of print, it was wise of Northwestern University Press to re-issue this book. The other editions of the letters, by Hellman and another by Yarmolinsky, cannot compare.
This volume is valuable for its superb, lengthy introduction, which is a capsule biography. In addition, each of the fifteen sections are introduced by an engaging biographical headnote.
The letters themselves are the record of an extraordinary person, a man who instructed other writers to succeed in their work by feeling "compassion down to their fingertips."
This book shows the emotions and thoughts of the writer who lived that simple but wise piece of advice.
Among the more amusing letters is the one to his wastrel brother, in March 1886, in which he wittily enumerates the qualities of well-bred people. Among them: "They don't guzzle vodka on any old occasion, nor do they go around sniffing cupboards....They shun all ostentation: empty barrels make the most noise."
This volume is full of such humorous but sage advice, and reveals the man behind the extraordinary short stories and plays better than any biography.
You will remember some of the letters in this book throughout your lifetime.

This is a fascinating book, for fans of both great literature and great biography. There have been many collections of Chekhov's letters, but this one points out the errors in those previous ones (such as the one edited by Lillian Hellman) and corrects them. It focuses primarily on the letters in which Chekhov talked about his literature and the productions of his plays, and on his relationships with other artists, such as Tolstoy, Gorky, Stanislavsky and many others less well known outside of Russia. It also corrects many misperceptions about Chekhov created the various memoirs (such as Stanislavsky's) and biographies based on the erroneous information in those memoirs.

The Chekhov that the reader gets to know through this book is a vividly real human being.

A fabulous book!! No one could ask for a better read, late at night, with the blankets tucked around one, and a hot buttered rum at one's side!!

Chekhov was a man!!

If you'd like to take any of several self-guided automobile tours of Los Angeles and nearby areas, Laura Massino Smith's books are excellent. Each tour book has clear directions and easy-to-read maps, lots of fascinating notes and information, plus photos of what to look for. I've lived in LA for over twenty-five years, and Smith's books have surprised me with things I'd never seen or hadn't noticed. There are three of her books in my glove compartment so far (Hollywood, Silverlake, and Hancock Park/Miracle Mile) and I'll be getting the rest as well.

These are great guides to view all the architectural gems in my neighborhood and surrounding areas. Highly recommended for locals or people who visit Los Angeles often. You wouldn't think there are so many historical houses and buildings to see in this town, but Laura Massino Smith has compiled them into these handy books with great photos as well.

I loved Laura's architectural tour of Hollywood. Her directions are clear. She includes lots of interesting places that are both on and off the beaten path. The pictures enable the reader to easily identify the buildings she features. And, she includes helpful descriptions of the architecture and interesting facts about the buildings' history. Great tool for travellers intersted in architecture.

If you'd like to take any of several self-guided automobile tours of Los Angeles and nearby areas, Laura Massino Smith's books are excellent. Each tour book has clear directions and easy-to-read maps, lots of fascinating notes and information, plus photos of what to look for. I've lived in LA for over twenty-five years, and Smith's books have surprised me with things I'd never seen or hadn't noticed. There are three of her books in my glove compartment so far (Hollywood, Silverlake, and Hancock Park/Miracle Mile) and I'll be getting the rest as well.

A lot is packed into a great "carry with you as you tour around the hard to fully describe area of Silverlake". I give my `I keep in my car' copy to visiting out of towners so they don't have to figure out what the big deal is; it's all in the book and they can then see it for themselves right in front of them. A wonderful series of architecture books for both natives and visitors of Los Angeles.

These are great guides to view all the architectural gems in my neighborhood and surrounding areas. Highly recommended for locals or people who visit Los Angeles often. You wouldn't think there are so many historical houses and buildings to see in this town, but Laura Massino Smith has compiled them into these handy books with great photos as well.

This is certainly the best serious introduction to Aristophanes you can find. He covers almost everything: his introductory chapters cover the textual evidence, stage directions, the comic theatre, play structure, parody. Having done that, he works through the plays using each play to examine a different aspect of Aristophanes and the comic theatre. There are a few pages on Aristophanes' predecessors and rivals, then a larger section on the nachleben - posterity - of Arisophanes' works, finishing with an examination of various translations (the latest translations discussed are those of the 1960s - naturally for a 1972 book) and adaptations. It's a book I can't recommend enough, academic without being obscure and clear without being patronizing.

Other general books on Aristophanes that you may find interesting have a more limited range. Russo's _Aristofane: Autore di teatro_ (translated as Aristophanes: An Author for the Stage) is excellent for just that - Aristophanes as a playwright of real plays. MacDowell's Aristophanes and Athens: An Introduction to the Plays is a more recent book, somewhat like Dover but more focussed on the plays rather than themes, and rather less useful in my opinion. For a major literary study, Silk's Aristophanes and the Definition of Comedy might be tried.

For the Graecist, I recommend Willi's The Languages of Aristophanes: Aspects of Linguistic Variation in Classical Attic Greek (Oxford Classical Monographs). But that's for the more experienced.

Finally, as a very short - but intense - introduction, Ussher's Aristophanes (New Surveys in the Classics No 13) is excellent, and should be findable for five or so dollars second hand.

If you don't know your parabasis from your agon, your are probably better off starting your study of Aristophanes with this book than one that assumes more like Strauss' Socrates and Aristophanes. In this book, Dover gives you an overview of the structure of the Attic comedy, defines terms, explains how they were staged and selected for performance (all the mundane issues Strauss does not deign to cover). Strauss is, of course, still the undisputed champ in explaining the meaning of the plays, but you have a better chance of understanding his explanations if you've read Dover first. Crede experto. I did it the other way round.

Admittedly, Strauss' Socrates and Aristophanes is the best book of higher criticism on Aristophanes' remaining plays. Unfortunately, that book has a painful deficiency: Strauss overrates his readers, assuming they know their agon from their parabasis (a dubious assumption). Dover, while not where near so insightful, makes up for Strauss' deficiency by explaining the parts of the comedy, how they were staged and all the other practical details Strauss disdains. If you are a classical scholar, well maybe Dover's book is a waste of time. If not, then it is a valuable adjunct to Strauss( Better read before Strauss. I did it the other way. Not pretty.).

In the late 1800's if mainstream art had continued on the classical path and been influenced by art nouveau instead of impressionism the result would have been the beautiful, luscious, and wonderfully designed art of Arthur and Lucia Mathews. If you love classical art and Mucha this book is a must have. The color reproductions are large, numerous, and benefit from the accuracy of modern printing technology.

The book gives an in depth coverage not found in abridged articles
and gallery sheets. It is worth having.

The collective and profusely illustrated study of Harvey L. Jones (Senior Curator of the art at the Oakland Museum of California since 1971), Kenneth R. Trapp (independent curator and writer), and Kevin Starr (Professor of History at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles), The Art Of Arthur And Lucia Mathews is provides the reader with an intricate detailing of the collective works of the two truly great artists. Providing art students and scholars with an in-depth understanding of the history and comprehensive production of their eclectic and contemporary artistry, Arthur Mathews and Lucia Mathews are presented as artists who were progressive for their time, and this 272-page compendium of their work righteously and validly expresses the entirety of what truths, beauties and gentle intricacies they strove for. The Art Of Arthur And Lucia Mathews is very highly recommended for academic library Art History collections, as well as students of modern, contemporary, progressive art.

see my review under listing of ART OF GRT HWD PORTRT
other edition.

John Kobal's The Art of the Great Hollywood Portrait Photographers is as good as his book on Hollywood with Kevin Brownlow, which is one of the essential books to read (and one of the essential TV series to watch) for anyone interested in movies.

Kobal gives an illuminating account of the function of the movies during the Depression, contrasted with eg Walker Evan's photography, and explains 'glamour', tying movie stars in with the Venus from Milos and the Mona Lisa quite convincingly. Well thought, well written. Chapters follow on the organisation of the studios, how publicity was done as it has rarely been done before or since. And some beautiful images - Garbo by Ruth Harriet Louise, Clara Bow by Nicholas Murray and Eugene Richie stand out, but there are many. The images are exceptional, taken by some of the greatest artists of the camera and the volume layout does the images justice. All complemented with reminiscences from the stars and photographers themselves. The very best history, anecdotal, with many perspectives and implications explored, and written with love.

This book has touched a deep chord sensitive to vanished beauty. The stars are now just names, some of them not even that. And of course they were not the same as their carefully crafted images displayed in this book. These evoke not only the stars themselves but the fact that they brought hope to many who perhaps would have found it otherwise hard to deal with the Depression - all those hopes, fears, ambitions, petty, grand and mean, silly and endearing. Only the images of beauty remain!

Publisher: Knopf; (October 12, 1980)
First edition copy. This book is oversized and OUTSTANDING!

291 pages of glamour. 1925 - 1940 is the tops in Hollywood glamour. Though the 40s weren't bad either.

These are some magnificent photoplates. Superbly printed in this volume. Even the pickiest at quality (like me) will be happy. Amazing images not shown in ohter books. The Kobal colection is vast and bar none the best. This is a wonderful selection from him, that he put together in this book.

See more of my reviews for more must have full page or near full page portrait glamour books from this Golden era.

BUY THIS BOOK, then thank me later.

What a wonderful read! Complex and intriguiging, covering a wide range of complex moral, physical, and emotional predicaments of the Latino community of Southern California, making them accessible to the reader in the most inclusive and spell-binding way. No simplistic situations here; Mr. Olivas is advancing American writing from the Latino perspective to the level of the great South American authors.

This books contains a series of shorts stories that are freshly written and enticing to read - at times funny and always fascinating. Although fiction, the author's references to actual locations in Los Angeles (including Pico-Union) sometimes transported me back to the "old neighborhood". Enjoyed this books many short stories involving themes of racism, Latin culture and sexuality. Highly recommend.

Assumption And Other Stories is an anthology of short stories by the demonstrably talented Chicano author Daniel A. Olivas (Deputy Attorney General, California Department of Justice). His diverse stories intermesh themes of human sexuality, tragedy, challenge, loss, gender, and ethnicity , ranging from a young lawyer who tells her parents about her lesbianism, to the dark sexual rumors of surrounding the suicide of a popular young priest at a Catholic school, to the terror that strikes families when a white supremacist starts shooting at a Jewish children's day camp. Highly recommended reading, these original and memorable stories clearly document Daniel A. Olivas as one of the best and most original Hispanic American authors working today.