Vision Books

I enjoy books that I can read at bedtime before going to sleep, and this book was a very good one, although there were times when I ran into that old problem of reading a portion that was too good to put down! It kept me up a couple of nights, which really isn't a problem, except that I am ready for the sequel to be printed and reveal what happens to all these chararcters I enjoy so much!

A great read with a plot that moves with astonishing vigor. For a fantasy novel, the format is classic coming-of-age and good vs. evil, yet Quyle introduces an unusually authoritative undertone of spiritual importance. The welfare of his characters matter to the reader; there is no more enticing way to encourage the turn of a page.

Warning: this is just Part One of the story; it will leave you wanting more in the same way that the rapid plot development will leave you slightly breathless. This is a thoroughly enjoyable and thought-provoking book.

While the book has a number of mature themes appropriate for older readers it is highly suitable for young adults as well. I would also recommend it as the perfect vehicle for a book club or other discussion group.

I enjoyed this book as a great example of the fantasy adventure/quest novel. This is the genre I usually read for fun, escapist reading, and this book seemed to capture all the right parts of the genre to make it a pleasure to sit down and read. The author uses dialogue to move the book along in many places instead of relying on narration. I hadn't ever found a book that uses medicine and healing as a "special power" to make the hero someone who is out of the ordinary, so this author gets credit for finding something new to use. The boy, Alec, who is the hero of the book, seems like a very likable character, and Natalie, the girl he is trying to find and rescue, comes across as believable and fun.

The plot manages to have scenes that are located in both wilderness areas where there is loneliness and isolation, but then also moves into a large city, Goldenfields, where Alec is sucked into the court of a nobleman, and urban scenes with crowds and bustling activity also occur.

There are battle scenes, scenes of magical energy, and mostly clear lines drawn between good guys and bad guys.

The book reminded me somewhat of work by David Eddings or Anne McCaffrey, to give a sense of some peers. If you like those books, you'll probably enjoy this.

The book was not a short novel. I felt I got my money's worth in the amount of story that was told, and I look forward to reading the next volume that is apparently due out soon.

Once I started I couldn't put this book down. Wonderful characters, exciting story and interesting plot made it a great read. It is a story for all ages - after I finished, my 17 year old son read the book and can't wait for the second one (the excerpt at the end of the book said it will be out this fall). If you like fantasy/adventure novels you will like this one - a lot happens in one book.

Young boy discovers he has magical powers and while using them for good, makes influential friends who help guide him through the intrigue of his world. He learns to fight using his magical powers and becomes a great swordsman.

I highly recommend this book.

Marcia is the best romance writer around! Her books are clean, but oh, be still my heart! The Visions of Ransom Lake is my favorite so far. I couldn't put it down.

In this story, the wild and imaginative Vaden Valmont moves with her sister to the untamed West where her aunt and uncle need help with their mercantile. While she immediately catches the eye of Jerome Clayton, the well-mannered, ideal gentlemen and perfect beau of the town, Vaden's only interest is the mysterious and brooding town hermit, Ransom Lake, whom she continuously trips up, but whom eventually wins her heart.

I would give any of Marcia's books no less than FIVE STARS, because that's what they all deserve. It is absolutely amazing, the writing skill of this woman. She can weave a spell with her magical words and transport you to the exact time and place of the story. It is beautiful historical romance, but without smutty trash or preachy Christian ties. It's filled with sweet kisses, healing kisses, promising kisses. If you're looking for an amazing romance story that will keep you riveted from beginning to end, this is it! Page one will pull you in and you won't be able to put it down till the early hours of the morning. You won't regret buying this book.

If you feel the offers are too expensive or the books are unavaliable, try Googling her name or look for her publishing company, Distractions, Inc. All her books are avaliable for under $20 on her website and worth every penny. Spread the word, because Marcia is entirely too underrated and overlooked.

Clean with no yucky suprises. Lots of yummy kisses. This is my favorite "Marcia" book! Shackles of Honor is a close second. What can I say there is nothing like MmmmmmmmmMarcia's books. Read one and you have to read them all, again, and again until the pages fall out. Not exagerating at all. My litte sister got me hooked on her books. She can't write them fast enough as far as we are concerned.

Marcia Lynn McClure is one of the best authors I have found who write "clean" romance. I loved all of her books. This book was not my favorite (Dusty Britches and Heavenly Surrentder tied for that spot) Here is the basic overview of the book (taken from Marcia's website)...................
Youthful beauty, naive innocence, a romantic imagination thirsting for adventure...an apt description of Vaden. Vaden Valmont, who would soon find the adventure and mystery she had always longed to experience...in the form of a man.
A somber recluse, Ransom Lake descended from his solitary concealment in the mountains, wholly disinterested in people and their trivial affairs. But somehow, young Vaden managed to be ever in his way...either by accident or because of her own unique ability to stumble into a quandary.
Yet the enigmatic Ransom Lake would involuntarily become Vaden's unwitting tutor. Through him, she would experience joy and passion the like that even Vaden had never imagined. Yes, Vaden Valmont stepped innocently, yet irrevocably, into love with the secretive, seemingly callous man.
There were other life's lessons that Ransom Lake would inadvertently bring to her as well. The darker side of life...despair, guilt, heartache. Would Ransom Lake be the means of Vaden's dreams come true? Or the cause of her complete desolation?

This book answered a lot of questions I had about Escher's regular division of the plane. It has highly enlarged my understanding of his work, and thus made me enjoy it even more. My initial interest was deepening my mathematical knowledge on tessallations, and I can tell I did.

Doris Schattschneider's book takes a look at Escher's research on the regular division of the plane.

1/8 on an iceberg is visible while 7/8 is hidden. Escher's prints are like this. The visible image is only a small part of the thought and preparation that lies beneath the surface. Schattschneider takes us beneath the surface and shines a light on this hidden behemoth.

This volume is more demanding and difficult than other Escher books. But it is rewarding to delve into.

Meticulous, tenacious, thorough, playful. My adjectives for Escher are driven home even more forcefully by this book.

Ms Schattschneider did a fine job putting this book together.

As a child, Maurits Cornelis Escher fitted together irregular pieces of cheese in his sandwiches so that they would completely fill the space between the slices of bread. From the very beginnings of his career as an artist, in 1921, he devised ways of interlocking images so as to leave no empty space, and then of making these images repeat infinitely in increasingly complex ways. Professor Schattschneider's magnificently illustrated volume analyses this critical aspect of Escher's work, focussing on a series of 137 symmetry drawings and watercolors created from 1926 to 1971, which the artist kept in five folders throughout his lifetime and which he used as references for his continuing work on the regular division of the plane. Included are analogies from each of these works (which now sell for tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars each) to his original prints and projects. As owner of and dealer in the main body of Escher's original prints, drawings and watercolors, which were previously on loan to the Hague Museum, I make extensive use of this book and commend it to all. Some of the text is written for the layman; other portions of the writing are technical and will be of interest to mathematicians and crystallographers. In addition, the quantity and quality of the full-page color illustrations, few of which are to be found in any other publication in print, contribute to making this book, which serves as a catalogue raisonné of the symmetry drawings and watercolors, eminently collectable.

The other key books on Escher are M.C. ESCHER: HIS LIFE AND COMPLETE GRAPHIC WORK; THE MAGIC MIRROR OF M.C. ESCHER; THE GRAPHIC WORK OF M.C. ESCHER; and ESCHER ON ESCHER. Persons technically inclined may also be interested in ART AND SCIENCE, which constitutes the proceedings of the 1985 Escher conference in Rome.

This book has beautiful full color reproductions of Escher's notebooks, along with erxplainations and diagrams showing how Escher accomplished such a volume of work. It also includes anecdotes told by his friends, and reproductions of all three of the metamorphosis. Truly Brilliant! You can't go wrong with this book, be you mathemetitian, or artist

The poetry of Visions of War, Dreams of Peace is moving, in part because most of the poems have been written by women who were nurses on active duty during the U.S. war in Vietnam. From their position, they could speak of what they saw as the deaths continued to mount all around. Many of the poems are awkward and sentimental, many rely on limp rhymes, many wear their hearts on their sleeves. Most ache with wounds that will never heal. The authors' courageous struggle to face the eternal suffering of war, to try to find words to express how others' suffering has deeply moved them, gives some of these works a rough edge that cuts the reader to the soul.

I have returned from Iraq this year and found this book an incredible read. The stories, poems and letters written by nursses in the Vietnam War are the same stories that can be retold by the nurses from this Iraq War. We all share that same bond. I have given this book to many friends who have served in Iraq or who have recently returned. This is a book written from the hearts of those that have served our wounded heroes!

I first read this book in the mid-1990's. Recently I picked it up again. The insanity of war is just that, regardless of whether it happened when I was in my twenties or now in my sixties. As a non-participant in the immediacy of war, I can still feel my heart wrench as I read these poems. I cannot even begin to imagine the agony of working day to day in a combat hospital. If I had a son at war now, I would hope that women such as these would be there for him.

I admire Van DeVanter and Furey's courage in presenting such a wide range of poetic expressions. Some are, admittedly, the work of rank amateurs, but many carry the power of the true poetic voice. They included a few poems by Vietnamese women, with no indication of which "side" they were on. Loss of a loved one in war is, after all, a tragedy. Period.

VISIONS OF WAR, DREAMS OF PEACE is a monument, as lasting as the Wall itself. If someone you know is in Iraq, or has returned from Irag, or will never return from Iraq, here is an outcry against war, an eternal wish for peace. I wish you well.

Ten of the poems in this book were wrenched from my innermost feelings... All of the poems are a true experience of the women who were and are touched by entering the man's world of war. I didn't carry weapons, didn't walk the bush, but I saw the carnage and felt the then seeming helplessness of the wounded bought in by dust-off. Intolerant of being helpless, I lived my tour in numbness and left Vietnam as only a shell. Who wouldn't in those conditions? To see and feel the real experience of war - read and know what it's like to walk in this woman's combat boots. N. Griffiths

I found Visions unusual very informative book giving a consise overview of metaphysical world. Any person willing to take up spiritual journey in his life, would find it very useful. I would recommend reading it more than once!

Now I understand so much more about esoterics and spirituality and religion and about metaphysics. I must show this to my husband who only believes in what he can see and touch. This makes so much sense. I recommend this book to all those who hop around looking for answers and cannot make up their own mind. This Christmas I know at least three friends of mine who will get this book as a gift from me. I know it will help them tremendously.

A friend recommended that I buy this book which he thought was very special as it is packed with metaphysical information, it puts together and explains clearly many aspects of esoterics that it is easy to understand. The book is not easy to read, it needs time to digest. The best I found out was to read one chapter at a time, digest it and then perhaps even reread it, then move on to other chapters. The book explains and makes sense of the difference between regligion and spirituality, the cosmos and the human, the mind and the intuition and much more. The exercises in the third part of the book are particularly good and helpful. Not only that but easy to follow and to practice at one's own pace and according to one's own needs. I highly recommend this book particularly in the chaotic times we live in today. I'm definitely going to buy the other two books from this author as well. They must be just as good. I like the straight forward, simple and clear approach to the subject. Anyone who has questions about why we are here, who is God, and what is mind, I recommend that they read this book. It will widen your horizon of thoughts.

This is a great book for those who want to have an overall view of the metaphysical world. It explains clearly and puts together many aspects that I would otherwise have to read in several other books and sources. This is a book for someone who is skeptical about everything intangible, esoterics and spirituality. It makes sense of a lot of things and is a good referral book to have in my library to come back to again and again. The practical exercises are easy to follow and extremely helpful in many ways. I recommend this book highly to all those who are interested in expanding their general knowledge self development, self growth and expansion in consciousness. I think every manager should read this book.

We are visually oriented people. As the old saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. And with the dramatic increases in computer power that have come about in recent years we can visually display things that not too many years ago took a whole room of equipment.

This book presents a concise one volume introduction to visualizing data structures. It is not specific to any one discipline. The biologist programming how to visualize DNA will get as much out of the book as will the game developer. The material is presented at the undergraduate student level where some programming experience, especially in C++ is a prerequisite.

While there is no CD in the book, there is a companion web site maintained at the publishers which includes the source code of examples given in the book as well as additional source codes of various algorithmic procedures as well as test data to check that the code is compiling correctly. Also on the web are pointers to useful resources related to the contents of each chapter.

This is not a "How did Photoshop do it?" kind of algorithm book. I would suggest that if you want to make good use of this book that you already have had a course on the theory of algorithms, and thus understand how to follow the derivation of whether an algorithm is O(n), O(nlgn), etc. That is because the author dedicates much space to determining what the time-efficiency of each algorithm is before he goes into the details. Next, the author talks about each algorithm in pseudocode, and then finally there is the actual C++ code for the algorithm itself. Not every algorithm involves OpenGL, because quite a few of them don't actually draw anything, they just support the drawing of images by other algorithms. The book is well illustrated. Whenever there might be a question about an algorithm that words or equations can't answer, there always seems to be a figure available to finish the job. The book has a very academic tone to it, and each chapter ends with extensive bibliographic notes. The following is the table of contents:

1. Overview - A fly-over of the entire book.

2. Abstract Data Structures - Talks about solutions to common problems that come up time and again in visual computing. Topics include the Fibonacci numbers, conversions between 1D and nD array indices, how to flood-fill an area using a queue, and detecting whether or not a set of line segments intersect. This may not seem to have much to do with data structures, but the book ties it all in.

3. Coordinate Pipelines - Subjects include translation between Euclidean and projective points, 2D polygon transformations, 3D mesh transformations, and how to render multiple views to one device display by using viewport mappings. OpenGL is used heavily in this chapter.

4. Images - An oddly titled chapter, because if you get right down to it, the whole book is technically about images. The topics include the simple task of displaying the RGB color cube in OpenGL as well as the more complex tasks of image warping, image compositing, halftoning, and dithering.

5. Meshes - Meshes come up often when drawing complex and realistic 3D figures. Topics include approximating a sphere by with a mesh and various remeshing experiments and algorithms with the "Stanford Bunny" as a subject of these experiments.

6. Animation - A brief overview of what it takes to make your images "move". I found this the least satisfying of the book's chapters. "Computer Animation" by Parent does a better job of discussing this topic, in my opinion.

7. Randomization - Topics include computing a uniformly random permutation, quick sort, selecting the nth smallest element of an array, and computing the scaled rigid transformation matching a given pair of segments. The author does a great job of discussing the algorithms, but comes up a bit short in the motivation for these algorithms in visual computing.

8. Higher Dimensions for 3D - Includes some good algorithms on computational geometry and how it ties into graphics. Topics include the k-means iterative clusteriing method, rasterizing a Voronoi diagram, and computing an approximation of the smallest enclosing ball in large dimensions. The author does a good job of tying in each algorithm to its significance in graphics.

9. Robustness - Discusses how to determine if certain algorithms are easily "broken". This discussion is done from the perspective of computing the area of triangles using floating point numbers and also determining if and only if two line segments intersect.

This book does not hold your hand on the issues of algorithm theory, C++ programming, OpenGL, or even basic computer graphics and image processing theory. You are expected to already know that material. This book is more about the algorithms that are applicable to geometry, graphics, and vision and what makes them useful, efficient, and robust. Highly recommended.

I should say from the get-go that I know the author personally, and I've reviewed chapters before the book appeared. I think this book fills a great space between more applied computer vision or computer graphics books, and the more theoretical computational geometry books. It provides a host of practical problems that the author has encountered in his research at Sony Research Labs, and feeds tons of excellent theory to solve it. The theoretical part is made very accessible, even if it assumes some reasonable (college-level) mastery of linear algebra.

The biggest attraction of this book is that it lies at the confluence of several fields. Depending on your background, you may be more versed in the systems issues (vision or graphics), or the algorithmic issues (computational geometries). The first kind of person will really appreciate all the foundations they are given to solve the problems at hand. How to apply them is very well explained in the chapters by using hands-on examples, and ample illustration.

To give you a short idea of the table of contents (more information can be found on the author's book web site, easily found through google):

The chapter on images, for instance, does great job discussing Halftoning, Morphing, Color space, and Interpolation/Sampling/Convolution, and contains material that will be familiar to computer vision and graphics people.

On the other hand, the chapter on meshes (with discussion of half-edge and mesh data structures, and mesh smoothing/parameterization) will be very familiar to a computational geometer or graphics person.

The chapter on data structures includes what is usually found in advanced algorithm textbooks. The advantage of having it in such a context is that its presentation is much more adapted to immediate use. There is also practical considerations such as C++ implementation, and a separate chapter on the use of randomization as an algorithmic design technique. That chapter covers an important problem of point registration and geometric point matching that is very useful in camera registration and in photo merging.

The central piece (that takes 130 pages) is the discussion of coordinates (chapter 3, "The Coordinate Pipeline") which achieves the feat of presenting all that is useful for discussing images (2D), meshes (3D), or camera transformation (projective geometry) in a unified and very accessible presentation. This chapter also introduces a few fundamental tools like homographies and epipolar geometry, singular value decomposition (SVD), Plucker coordinates (for lines in space), conics and quadrics. It is a gem and will prove an invaluable reference in my library.

Finally beyond the algorithmic and application issue, the author concludes with a chapter on robustness, a problem that plagues all these applications. It discusses a set of techniques that can be used to eradicate or at least lessen floating-point precision-related crashes (which not just result in numerical inaccuracy, but can altogether prevent the successful completion of a program and generate all kinds of catastrophic failures).

To recap, this is an excellent books that puts into perspective techniques from more theoretical algorithm and geometry communities to use for vision and graphics problem, among other applications. It is geared towards researchers/developers of applications. It is not a research monograph, and can advantageously be used as a textbook for a graduate or advanced underdgraduate class.

A good book for the student of computer graphics. The field is now very mature, and the book describes key algorithms invented over the last 30 years for rendering and ray tracing. Also useful to some readers will be the samples of C++ code that implement several of the algorithms.

As a learning experience, the book has merit. However, if you are tempted to do research in this field, the book should be approached with caution. When I said the field is mature, I meant that surely much of the techniques for visualisation have already been found. Combine this with the high resolution of current graphics consoles, and we get little room for significant visible improvement. Diminishing returns. The time to get into this field would have been in the 70s and 80s. As a research guide, the book does not really convey the prospects of this field.

Blaschke asks the right questions and gets the most fascinating answers. A good range of insights into the thoughts, ideas, and lives of some of the most interesting sci-fi and fantasy authors.

A series of interviews from some of the best writers in the business. Excellent work.

This book is a collection of interviews of editors and writers in the field of Fantasy and Science Fiction - including some of the legends.

As the title for this review states - this book would be very helpful for anyone wanting to break into the field. Several editors give hints as to what they are looking for in a prospective story. It is also helpful in that each editor gives his/her individual opinion and it can be seen that what one editor rejects, another is desperately seeking.

I had a problem reading the Harlan Ellison interview. It seems that every few paragraphs, he triggered a thought in my head that went flying off and delayed my finishing the piece.

Over and over, I kept thinking that this book would be an ideal text for a writing course. It would probably not be accepted as such, though, because it does not cost enough and would probably stay current for more than one semester.

The official table of contents for Voices of Vision:

Part 1: The Editors
Chapter 1. Gardner Dozois
Chapter 2. Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Chapter 3. Stanley Schmidt
Chapter 4. Gordon Van Gelder
Chapter 5. Scott Edelman

Part II: Unique Voices in Fantasy & Science Fiction
Chapter 6. Robin Hobb (aka Megan Lindholm)
Chapter 7. Patricia Anthony
Chapter 8. Charles de Lint
Chapter 9. Elizabeth Moon

Part III: The Comic Book Creators
Chapter 10. Elliot S! Maggin
Chapter 11. Frank Cho & Scott Kurtz
Chapter 12. Brad Meltzer
Chapter 13. Neil Gaiman

Part IV: Masters of Speculative Fiction
Chapter 14. Samuel R. Delany
Chapter 15. Gene Wolfe
Chapter 16. Harlan Ellison
Chapter 17. Jack Williamson

The Edelman interview is a new, never-before published piece, and the Harlan Ellison and Elizabeth Moon interviews have extensive material restored that was cut from the original published versions due to space considerations.

Peter Ferrucci enriches Roberto Assagioli's Psychosynthesis and gives many gentle step-by-step guided journeys and meditations that assist the reader to experience the vast love and unlimited knowledge of the soul.

In this classic book Mr. Ferruci reveals his highly creative artistry with words that inspire. Using his excellence as a trained psychologist and spiritual leader, he has produced a very fine synthesis of transforming one's personality through spiritual contact. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who is awakening to the spiritual world.

I discovered this gem about 10 years ago at a time when I was searching for a way to change my life, to be happier, and to make some sense of the things going on. There is no psycho-babble in this book. Instead, what you find are very simple exercises designed to take you along a path. The exercises are deceivingly simple. At first, I thought that just reading them was enough, and I did feel better just reading them. But when I actually took the time to do one, I discovered that I felt EVEN BETTER, so I began from the beginning, working through every exercise.

For years, this book has been my secret, the tool that I used to help me that I didn't share with anyone. Now that I'm busy creating the life I have always wanted, I understand that there is enough for everyone, and want to share this book with the world. If you want to change your life, if you are seeking for something you can't quite describe, this book may just have your answers. But don't make my m! ! istake and just read it--do the exercises!! That made all the difference for me.

Anyone who feels they'd like to develop their own wholeness further, who'd like to delve into a realm of peace and calm within, might find this book very helpful. The book gives many many very diverse meditation and visualization exercises. It is great even for the beginner, since it starts with very simple, and yet suprisingly so effective little exercises.

The book is also an introduction to Psychosynthesis, a guide for enhancing psychological and spiritual growth. It is a philosophy of self-actualization and the art of living. The basic premise is, that we need to combine all the split-off or repressed parts within us into a harmonious whole to feel fully alive and free. In easy chapters, the different concepts are introduced to the reader. Definitely worthwhile reading!

I definitely recommend this book for not only those interested in Psychosynthesis, but those interested in introducing clients to guided imagery, meditation and self-reflective exercises.

The book is awesome and you need to read it for yourself to know just how great Wigglesworth was in God!

I've read several biographies of Smith Wigglesworth over the past twenty years, but this is one of the very best I've read. An honest and unapologetic account of the life of this very unique man of God. The story of Wigglesworth's life is so inspiring that almost 60 yrs since his death his ministry of faith, holiness, and healing is still touching lives.
I would highly recomend this book to anyone without hesitation. Read it and see what it will do to your own faith!

Wow! This book is so informative and inspiring! Need Faith, read this book! Wow!! This is Rev. Wigglesworth's story with so many of his miracles! I would start here if you want to know anything about Smith Wigglesworth. He was a pioneer of Pentecost!

I sent this book to a friend as a Christmas Gift. He thoroughly enjoyed the book. Smith Wigglesworth was an illeterate Master Plumber that became an Apostle of Christ. The relationship Smith had with God was awesome; the fact that he brought several dead people, back to life.

This debut thriller is a standout. Haunting and mesmerizing, it grabbed me and kept me up all night reading it. I was drawn into the minds of the characters who have to go with their lives while dealing with their changed world. Yet the author's touches of humor alleviate the intensity of the suspense.
Birnbaum displays a superior talent in a first novel, and we can only hope for more to come.

A very well-written book, down to the very details of how ordinary activities of daily life would change should something like this befall our communities. Impossible to put down!

A prescient view of a post 9/11, bioterrorism conscious world. An artfully written blend of technology, politics, action, emotion, and humanity. Exciting to read. Should be a best seller.

If you've ever worried about bio terrorism, reading this will interfere with your sleep. The plot is terrifying in its simplicity and plausability. A page turner that is a must read for anyone who wonders if this could really happen - it can. The author clearly understands the medical underpinnings and has woven his medical knowledge into the plot as well as the psyche of his characters - makes for a very interesting read.