New Jersey Books

I picked this book up a few years ago from the author at a fire instructor class. I gave it a read and it was a pretty good book. I liked it because it was all true stories from NJ firefighters, mostly from northern NJ since the author is a Kearny firefighter. I guess firefighters from other areas would like it too. Id's say pick up a used copy here if you can since it seems to be out of print now. Some of the Emergency Services book stores still carry it I think.

This is a very nice little book, and I found it to be surprisingly readable. The book is nicely written. Standard ML is used to illustrate the technique of compiling a functional language using continuations as the primary intermediate representation. Lack of familiarity with ML is not particularly burdensome. I would like to have seen more discussion of other languages, though (Scheme?).

The text is very interesting and informative. The only thing that I would add is more victorian homes from Cape May. This makes a nice coffee table book.

Read this book in junior high. This history is fairly accurate and it's worth reading.

Owen Keane is perhaps the most unassuming, reluctant "hero" I've encountered recently between the covers! In fact, his reluctance to reveal much about himself was part of what made this an interesting mystery read. Not only does the reader get to wonder about the "case" he is working, we also wonder about his own background. What happened in his life that pushed him to become such a self effacing "hero"? (We only get a hint here and there.) In spite of this, he manages to uncover some very obscure truths, both about himself and the case. I look forward to reading more about him, just to satisfy my curiosity. He is enigmatic in himself. His relationships with his closest friends are also a bit out of the ordinary. Makes me want to know more about him. Guess that's a good ploy by the author to drive sales, and create a following of Owen Keane fans....

Philadelphia private detective Frank Sweeney visits Atlantic City searching for the missing brother of his best friend. It seems that Nick D'Angelo was a compulsive gambler, who vanished about six months ago. Frank quickly learns that Nick died in a fire set by an arsonist hit man, whose modus operandi is to trap his intended victims and watch them horribly suffer as they burn to death. ...... Frank starts to investigate the mysterious fire breather, who apparently has killed other people with his fire bombs. He traces the last days of Frank and asks questions of those individual who knew the former cop just before he died. As he comes closer to identifying the culprit behind the fiery deaths, Frank realizes that he himself might become the next seared casualty trapped in the heat of the night. ...... DEATH IN A DRY SEASON is a fiery thriller that will please fans of action novels and lovers of the high technology supporting today's gambling industry. Frank's personality is a strange combination of eastern philosophy with western inner city street smarts. Most of the time this works well, but occasionally the character appears a bit off centered. The story line is predictable, but is fun to read anyway as John Wells demonstrates he has the talent to take his private detective very far in today's market. ......Harriet Klausner

I own the 4th edition of this book printed in 1976 so it's almost as old as I am. Obviously some information is out of date, such as Bertram Island and the Terry Lou Zoo, which are both out of business. Regardless, it is still a very solid summary of things to do in NJ. It covers all the bases, from historical places, to parks, even golf courses (!!)

Sumaries are short and concise which allows for a lot of information to be packed into a small book. A very decent book.

The incredibly over the top and amazing space warfare continues.

There are a handful of Second Stage Lensman, those good enough at their craft to go beyond the Gray, and receive further treatment and training from the Arisians.

Kimball Kinnison is one of them, and he and his fellows, some of the best aliens you will meet in SF books, go out to do further battle. That is not all though, as Second Stage Lensmen abilities are ideally suited to spying and information gathering. The Second Stage powers include the 'sense of perception', an ability to sense what is going on around you, which basically gives you x-ray vision and the ability to see in the dark, among other things. Mind control is another.

The time spent with Nadreck, Worsel and Tregonsee, the other Second Stage Lensmen, is quite enjoyable.

The book, which I read for a feminism class, actually turned out to be one that I liked. The book focuses on a small, truck-stop restaurant called Route. The book tells stories of women's work in the restaurant and everyday problems that they face.

Most people never realize some things about waitresses if they've never been one. For example, waitresses' minimum wage is about 3 dollars less than that of normal jobs. They are expected to make up the difference in tips. After reading material such as this, sympathy for waitresses will go out even more. These are the same people that have to put up with rude and picky customers.

Managers seem to have it almost worse. Although, managers are usually thought of as having a higher and better position, this is very untrue in the restaurant business. Managers get minimum wage, but no tips, sometimes making less than the waiters. And because the turn-over rate is so high for managers, they've often work fewer time than the waitresses, which makes them seem as less of an authoritative figure. And, the manager has to deal with personnel problems and fill in for anyone who doesn't show up for work, or who quits on the spot. It's actually much tougher than one would think.

The books tells of how much waitresses put up with and the low wages that the make. I would recommend this book, if just for that fact that it opens up people's eyes to the fact that waitresses really do depend on tips - so don't stiff them. It's also a wonderful book to read just for enjoyment because it keeps your attention with different stories and interviews of several ladies, so in that sense, it's almost more of a story than a boring book of research.

I have just recently discovered the extremely talented and prolific writer Joyce Carol Oates. Currently, I have read three of her novels,MAN CRAZY, BROKE HEART BLUES and DOUBLE DELIGHT. Her writing style is always interesting, but at times, unpredictable, and while some of her novels are conventional, others are more free-style and sometimes difficult to get through. DOUBLE DELIGHT, written under the pseudonym of Rosamond Smith, is one of her more conventional novels, an intricately plotted, psychological thriller that keeps you always guessing. A story of seduction, sexual obsession and deception, that drives an ordinary, upstanding man, Terrence Greene to commit extraordinary crimes in the name of passion. DOUBLE DELIGHT is an excellent book for the JCO novice to begin with. She is a wonderful writer, one of the masters of the psychological suspense genre.