North Carolina Books

This book was written by a relative of mine and names most all of my family in Bladenboro, NC. It is very well presented, although it did not present the Hesters in a good light. I am one of those Hesters, and some of the things that were said in the book, I know to be a falsehood.

Functioning modern states have their own myths, stories (historical or otherwise) that illustrate the shared communal values that the state is believed to embody and wishes to project (to citizens and foreigners alike). For Renaissance Venice, the myth was that of the Most Serene Republic, built on a perfect foundation of justice, peace and the rule of law, established as the Christian heir to pagan Rome and protected by the saints. In this brief, elegant book, David Rosand shows how richly that political myth was embodied in the public art of the Venetian state, focusing on the paintings and sculpture of the Doge's Palace, the Loggetta of the Campanile, the Libreria di San Marco, and various of the scuola grande. Rosand does a superb job of teasing out all of the multi-layered mythological meanings and allusions present in individual works and in the relationship of one work (or even one building) to another. He also shows that these meanings, although not transparent to most visitors today, were easily understood by educated Venetians and foreigners (and recorded in their diaries and descriptions of the city) throughout the Renaissance. I saw many things that I had not seen before, and will go back to these works with a new appreciation of their meaning and function.

This is not art criticism or art appreciation (there is barely a mention of anyone's technique or of aesthetic issues), it's real art history. Rosand's goal is to show how the artwork he considers functioned to both present the Venetian state's self-image and to persuade viewers to accept that image. Given Venice's important role as an early example of a modern state (one that viewed the state itself as an abstract concept, separate from the ruler, who is himself subject to the rule of law), we can still learn much from the methods that Venice used to envision and market itself.

Rosand writes for an educated audience, but is readily accessible to non-scholars. He assumes a fair degree of familiarity with Venice -- if you do not know the Piazza from the the Piazzetta, or which facade of the Palace is the south one, you will occasionally find yourself confused. Nor does he stop to explain in any detail the Venetian constitution or the organization of Venetian society. This is a book to take with you on your second or third trip to Venice, or to read while planning such a trip. It does not pretend to be comprehensive, but will give you a real insight into one of the many beautiful threads that make up this complex city.

If you are researching the Upper or Lower Creek Indians or the Chickasaw Indians of the late 1600s to early 1700s, this is a book you simply have to have, so this new edition is heartily welcomed! Thomas Nairne was an Indian Agent devoted to the spread of English culture and goods throughout the southeast. He opposed the Spanish, who had the same goals, and successfully brought many southeastern Indian towns and confederations into South Carolina's field of influence. He was killed at the very beginning of the Yemassee War, in 1715, attempting to diffuse the powder keg of Indian anger at unscrupulous Carolinian traders (which was largely justified), and though it took a while, many of his viewpoints and plans for the Indian trade were eventually adopted by the United States. His map of the southeast, showing locations of Indian towns just after 1700, is, along with this book, one of the most important primary documents of the era. Unfortunately the map is reprinted so small in this edition that none of the detail can be seen.

One of the best books I have ever read! I read it in three hours. Full of interesting facts.

This turns out to be an outstanding book and I'm very happy to have it. The text is pleasant to read, written in a friendly and personal way. The pictures are crisp and beautiful, and laid out nicely alongside the text for easy access while reading the description. One outstanding feature is the detailed habitat information based on the author's years of field experience in observing the habitats of each of these orchids. Another stand-out is that the author has done the photography himself, resulting in pictures that support and complement the text very well. I checked several books on orchids and wildflowers while trying to identify an orchid in my forest (which turns out to be a lily-leaved twayblade), and I found this book to be the best. In summary, I'm impressed with this book. I hope it will set a new standard for other books on regional wildflowers.

A Nature Guide To Northwest North Carolina by Stewart Skeate (Professor of Biology at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina) is an in-depth, 215-page, profusely illustrated reference and guide to the flora and fauna to be found in the natural areas of the northwestern counties of North Carolina, and a well-written collective mapping of the landmarks to be found. Introducing the reader to an expertly informed and soundly informative text, A Nature Guide To Northwest North Carolina provides a descriptive summary of Grandfather Mountain, Pisgah National Forest, Roan Mountain, Linville Gorge Wilderness Area, the Blue Ridge Parkway, Mount Jefferson State Park, the New River, and many more interesting places. Inclusive of 260 color plates for animal and plant identification, specific locations highlighted with descriptive details of habitats, trails, directions, and a precise text for each location focusing on the varied habitats of the region, a Nature Guide To Northwest North Carolina is very highly recommended to all campers, visitors, or naturalists visiting the northwestern landscapes of North Carolina.

The Nature Neighborhood book and accompanying video was developed over many years by the North Carolina Musuem of Natural Sciences, one of the country's best science centers. The Nature Neighborhood program is the outcome of years of work by the highly regarded education staff of the Museum to build a science program that was not only accessible to students and teachers, but also transforms school ground from pedestrian to paradise. I predict teachers will also be sneaking this one home as it is the perfect "how-to" for a gardening who wants to attract wildlife in addition to accolades.

For anyone interested in the Black Mountain College literary tradition and the next generation of poets/writers, this selected poems by Jeff Davis is just the thing. As a member of the Black Mtn. College Museum & Arts Center in Asheville, NC, and a former student of Robert Creeley, Jeff Davis is truly in line to be considered as one of the "Baby Black Mountain Poets". This collection of poems over the course of some thirty years, shows a consistancy that is rare among young poets these days, and a maturity of style and voice, also rare. Poems of Nature (big N) as well as eros (big E) comingle, here, and one feels as if he/she were in a forest glen or glade experiencing the poems, in fact. Particular to the Blue Ridge, Appalachians, Mr. Davis is, at once, a student of his environment as well as someone who has truly found his place, and hence, his voice. I highly reccomend this collection to anyone who appreciates poetry that is finely crafted and linguistically visionary.

Early in 2001, two big economics stories crossed paths and received vastly different coverage. The meltdown of the "dot-coms" dominated the front pages. Meanwhile, congressional passage of a new bankruptcy law that threatened to establish more favorable terms for creditors passed mostly under the radar screen.

Edward Balleisen's engaging social and economic history of bankruptcy in the mid-19th century United States anticipates today's trends, both noisy and quiet. It is a lively yet thorough chronicle of the kinds of booms and busts to which capitalism is prone. When a New Yorker of 1837 ruefully remarks that fortunes "have melted away like the snows before an April sun," it is easy to believe that his cruelest month is ours as well.

One of the book's many virtues lies in reminding readers that lesser-known stories-such as the passage of bankruptcy laws-may have a bigger long-term impact than panics and crashes themselves. Liberal bankruptcy laws have been and remain important for many economic and cultural reasons. Some of the characters in this book-and they are truly characters, a tribute to Balleisen's skills as a writer-yield to disappointment and become the security-seeking cadres of corporate capitalism. Others take the "double or nothing" pledge and become even more reckless entrepreneurs.

This is historical writing at its best: by opening a window on crucial but little-known episodes in the nation's past, it lets through rays of insight that illuminate the present.

I used this book for a research paper on interchangeable parts and it was a great read. The book offered super assistance for my paper.