Irons Books

I loved the whole Iron Tower story. I have to admit the first two parts are a bit better than the third one. But you definitely do not want to miss the final.
If you love fantasy, Elfes, Dwarves, the fight against the Evil One - you will love the Iron Tower Trilogy!

Structural Steel Design, through the years, has changed through the past decade. But the basics have remained the same. With the advent of computer softwares, analysis and design have become a lot easier. But what if you lack electrical power, as in the case in some parts of the Philippines? Or if you do not have an access to a computer hardware or software? Well, with John Lother's "Steel Design", you could cover a lot of grounds without much effort if you just kept with you as a structural engineer your basics. The book is very practical and provides the user simple approaches to problems w/ no need for computers for as long as you have a reliable scientific calculator. For beginners, it gives a guide to the hows and whats of steel design.

This twenty-eight page unpaginated pamphlet deals with antebellum slavery in Page and Rockingham Counties. Ballard gives no bibliography, but does offer sources for his information in the Endnotes (at pp. [21]-[24]; pp. [25]-[28] are blank).

Ballard's monograph challenges the idea that only a few blacks lived in the central Shenandoah Valley in pre-Civil War times (at p. [12]) and calls into question John W. Wayland's view of a Germanic Valley antislavery culture (see pp. [1]-[3]). Unfortunately, Ballard conflates the titles of Wayland's works as Histories of Rockingham and Shenandoah Counties (at p. [1]; as his endnote at p. [21] indicates, the correct titles are A History of Rockingham County, Virginia and A Short History of Page County, Virginia), which could lead to confusion for the cursory reader. The twenty pages of text have at least one sentence fragment ("A factor that ..."; at p. [4]), and one typo ("Tewnty"; at p. [8]).

What Ballard does do, is to indicate the importance of slaves for working iron furnaces (see p. [4]) and to demonstrate their ownership by "the largest and wealthiest landowners, millers, farmers, professional men, and ... iron makers of Page and Rockingham Counties" (at p. [10]). Ballard discusses The Narrative of Bethany Veney A Slave Woman (1889), an important autobiographical source for slavery in the region (see pp. [13]-[19]; he does not note that this is reprinted in the same Page County Heritage Association series as Aunt Betty's Story: The Narrative of Bethany Veney A Slave Woman (1998)). A particularly interesting tidbit concerns the rouse used by blacks to hinder their sale (at pp. [16]-[17]). Ballard also utilizes other sources on antebellum blacks in Page and Rockingham counties, and reproduces an interesting account of the Valentine's Day, 1842 murder of John Wesley Bell by his slaves (see pp. [14]-[15]).

Although short, Ballard's work provides a useful introduction to slavery in the area and is an important starting point for those desiring to do further research on the topic.

Samuel Pyeatt Menefee

Railroads are necessary for the development of any nation. Certainly for one as large as China. This book delineates the laying of railroads, up till the onset of World War 2. The record is distinctly mixed. Several European nations underwrote many of these railroads. But much unlike where Europeans also invested in building up the American rail network. For the latter, the Europeans were strictly limited to providing capital, to be invested in a sovereign nation. Whereas for China, as the book makes plain, the investments were often in the context of European gunboat diplomacy. Railway rights obtained by coercion were by no means unknown. The main beneficiaries of the railroads were to be the European investors. Often by presumably allowing access from their national companies to the Chinese consumer market, as it then existed.

There is a piquant irony in this. Given that nowadays, China has grown by the reverse process. Where goods made in China travel overseas to consumers in developed countries.

Another drawback of the European involvement in China's railroads was that gauges were often incompatible. Reflecting perhaps the lack of compatibility between the various European railroads. For China, this was indeed a serious problem. By limiting the benefits of providing rolling stock compatible across a vast nation.

On balance, the building of the railways was probably a net gain for China. But in retrospect, matters could have been more efficiently handled. If it's any consolation, other nations with large land area, like the US and Australia, also suffered from incompatible railways in the 19th century, albeit for different reasons.

This collection is a fun (if fleeting) romp through Japan starring the Fantastic Four and Iron Man. The art, by the late Seth Fisher (of "Green Lantern: Willworld" fame), is odd and mesmerizing and never short of amazing. Big monster battles ensue! Collects Fantastic Four/Iron Man: Big In Japan #1-4.

Also included in this TPB is novelist Joe Hill's comics debut from Spider-Man Unlimited #8. Joe Hill is Stephen King's second son, so the issue has been in demand by curious King fans. Since that issue goes for a pretty penny on the back issue market, it's a nice bonus thrown in by Marvel. It's not, however, related to the "Big in Japan" storyline nor quite as fun, so it's appearance here is somewhat of a mystery.

A useful book because it covers both doorstops *and* doorknockers, bookends, banks and other cast iron ephemera. The photographs are dark and the pricing is out of date, but there are very few books on cast iron collectibles, making this a valuable addition.

Detailed and well illustrated history of the Forges du Saint-Maurice, the first ironworks in Canada. Provides a wealth of information on both the Canadian and the European pre-industrial iron industry.

Dr Turkdogan has written a book that at the same time can be helpful for those working in the field and makes for an excellent textbook. The author has used his vast theoretical and practical experience for the benefit of the reader, presenting concise explanations, clear organization and an excellent overview of the knowledge required to understand the fundamentals of the art of steelmaking.

It is really unfortunate that this book is out of print now, it deserves to be reissued and widely read. Those who know of Primo Levi only know, for the most part, that he was a partisan, was a survivior of Auschwitz, a chemist, and died, a likely suicide. All of these are true. However, there is more to Primo Levi than those stark facts, and this book makes them abundantly clear. Levi had many interests, a lively curiosity, and was an excellent writer. Think Stephen Jay Gould or Lewis Thomas as a passionate Italian, and you're close.He does not mention his time at Auschwitz in this book. He writes about his youth, the apartment building in Turin he always lived in, about his experiences with primitive personal computers/word preocessors, his trip upon a submarine, and so much more.

The girl, the apprentice, and the dogs of iron is full of excitement and jealousy all at the same time! This is a book that people can learn from. It shows kids like us how to work together, even if you are against each other or are people who don't want or even don't like to work together, but no matter what that you have to work together. When I finshed this book I felt lucky that I'm an only child and that we didn't have to many family gatherings. It is a very exciting book and I hope that you will agree with me after you read this book, this might be the best book you have ever read!