By Subject Books

It's almost impossible to pick an art book based on others opinions but I personally fell in love with this book. I'm new to figure drawing and this book is just what I need. Not only does it give step-by-step instructions for several classic poses in a variety of mediums but it also provides you with the reference photo (which few figure drawing how-to's seem to do). There aren't a lot of exercises but for the price I'm still happy. A far more comprehensive book you should definitely check out is "The Big Book Of Drawing And Painting The Figure" - it's awesome and a great bargain at amazon!

Eric has an amazingly sensitive and intense way of expressing his views on social justice issues. mainly it is all rapped up in love. devour this book and start painting on the walls.

This is a collection of memoir-like essays by Nebraska poet William Kloefkorn, all of them related in one way or another with water - from a near-drowning at the age of four to accounts of river rafting on central Nebraska's Loup River. There is also a baptism in a creek near a small Kansas town where the author grew up. Perhaps most absorbing is the description of life on a hard-scrabble homestead, as lived by Koefkorn's grandparents, without electricity or plumbing, though not without "running water" as provided by runoff from the roof into an underground cistern.

Memories of his young years as a schoolboy include the sinking of ships at Pearl Harbor and drownings at sea during WWII. Granting himself a degree of poetic license, the author weaves together multiple narrative threads and vividly remembered images and epiphanies so that the result is a kind of awed stream of consciousness, laced at points with irony and humor best described as "midwestern". Not a far cry from Garrison Keillor's Prairie Home Companion, and fans of that show should enjoy this book.

26 miles away from the Utah/Nevada border, stands a sculpture that motorist drive by to look at. I always asked people what the sculpture was about. Researching it, I found this book that explained the history and the artist associated with it. The sculpture always seemed mysterious to me driving by it and not knowing what the heck it was. It's not the best looking thing (a tree with tennis balls?) but knowing the history behind it finally helped me out. This a good book for my collection.

Volkmar Wentzel's Washington by Night captures the stark beauty of the Nation's Capital, and the grandure of a bygone era, that almost defies description.

Filled with pictures taken before the World War II build-up, Wentzel's Washington is a still a sleepy southern town, about to awake to the international stage. Captured in this naive state Washington becomes a foreign city ripe for exploration and the unexpected.

The lush tri-tone images compel close study and readers cannot help but find something new everytime they pick up the book.

Volkmar Wentzel's view of Washington is an insight into the simple and monumental.

The art is amazing. And the book is a fine academic effort at explaining Homer.

However, each chapter is authored by a different writer and not every chapter is equally well-crafted. This individual essay format also thwarts any attempt to present a cohesive story arc.

In the end, I still wonder exactly why the outdoors meant so much to Homer; none of the author's fully or successfully explained that crucual detail.

Also, by limiting the book to fishing, the authors have excluded a major portion of Homer's sporting life and artistic inspiration. His hunting pictures are among his most commanding and they get little or no attention in this book. Sport of all sort seems to have informed Homer's life -- and art -- throughout the year; a book simply about his angling art therefore fails to provide a full picture of the man, his life, and his work.

But the stunning art alone is worth the price of admission.

This is basically a well-written and eye-pleasing book. It is printed on slick paper with the pages being typing paper size, and about half of each page is devoted to (black and white) photographs, sidebars, and/or maps. The maps are uncluttered line drawings, while the sidebars are mostly devoted to personalities and weapons. The profiles of the leading personalities presented in these sidebars cover the major controversies as well as the major facts, and often give an assessment of the individual. The photographs, which are frequently cleverly trimmed to fit nicely into the text, are each given a one-sentence caption. The chronology itself, which spacewise occupies only about one half of the book, is brief on any one item, but covers the essentials of the war in a very readable and understandable way--in fact I read the book straight through as a short history of WWI. The only thing that keeps me from giving the book a five star rating is a few inexplicable errors, perhaps the most glaring of which is that in two separate photographs, one of the Kaiser's sons is identified as the Kaiser himself. Even so, I consider this one of the best books on WWI that I own.

Having read Chaos, I was surprisingly disappointed with Faster. Gleick seemed to want to write about so many things, but never really had much more than a few short factoids about each. I was rather disappointed to find whole chapters of a topic comprising less than FOUR pages of text. Yes, this book is a fast read. So, for the person who seeks notches on his bookshelf, this is certainly a book for you! Of course Gleick discusses some very intriguing items concerning time, but unfortunately his execution falls a bit short of his other work.

Jam-packed with information and covering subjects that range from Richard Feynman's observations of theoretical physics to the rise of MTV, this book reads, well, fastly. I got a kick out of it and learned a lot. It has a very large number of chapters which are not always that closely tied together, but maybe an obvious point is that that is the intent of the author, to make the book read like modern Western society, with information flying at you from all directions. If so, that may make the book a little harder to get in to and less conventional in style, but it also makes it more original, and in a sense, more logical because it is consistent with its own theme. Author of Adjust Your Brain: A Practical Theory for Maximizing Mental Health.

This book has a lot of insights about various ways in which the ' pace of life and learning' have since the Scientific Revolution accelerated. In other words it is a book which gives one much to think about.
The problem is that it also suggests that given the vast increase of information available to us, the vast increase in 'possible alternatives' for our attention, that we will probably have our minds moved away from the insights so rapidly as to not even absorb them.
The obvious reply to such an intense barrage upon our consciousness, is to withdraw. And when we withdraw and close out all that is accelerating around us, we begin to try and make a pace and story of our own within ourselves.
The faster we are forced to go, the slower we may need to go.
I think a companion volume , or perhaps a contradictory volume should be written on all those human activities which might be aided by our ' going slower in them'. And along with this volume should be advice and recommendation of how to keep out of our life these seemingly endless intrusions which disrupt our living by our own rhythm.
"Run slowly, slowly horses of the night".

I obviously did not conducting enough research before buying this book. I am seventeen and this was an easy read, but I was hoping for and expecting a philosophical examination of our speedy lives. Instead I was bombarded by semi-interesting, useless facts about how our world has been struck by "hurry-sickness" and how everything has been accelerated (a fairly obvious fact).

If you are consious enough of our world to buy this book (because of its title) for yourself, it will not raise you conciousness with any deep philosophical questions or with any solutions. The only people who will benefit from this book are the ones who will never buy it for themselves. Therefore I believe this book is basically useless and slightly boring.

Gleick would like us to feel that everything, EVERYTHING is going faster. Ultimately, whetever you are doing now, it will happen faster tomorrow.

Sure, life is getting faster, but that's not the ultimate goal. People want to do MORE, they do not want to simply go faster.

To ignore the need for more is to miss the entire point of why we want to do some things faster: so that we have the leisure to do other things more slowly! I would like to finish my work faster so I have more time to cook a gourmet meal. I like to commute via bicycle so I can combine my workout and commute, but I certainly don't rush!

This book has a lot of anecdotal data, which is all very interesting, but doesn't amount to much. Some of the individual chapters give very detailed analysis of specific people or technologies, but Gleick never pulls it all together.

In short, interesting data, but not enough to support his position. And certainly not nearly enough to appease a skeptic.

Anyone who has read widely on the subject will be familiar with much of the historical material Buchanan uses.

Buchanan's contribution to how we view the tragic and fascinating history of this global cataclysm is his compilation of historical facts, lesser known to the wider public, in a way that prods us to reconsider engrained assumptions. The ghastly nature of Hitler's totalitarian regime is a given, so the book focuses on weighing the costs of the various lousy alternatives available to other powers, such as the UK and US, that were not directly in Hitler's line of march. In particular, Buchanan challenges the wisdom of Britain's 1939 war declaration. The justification of allied war methods, such as mass bombing of civilians, is scrutinized using the same standards for belligerents of both sides.

Most of the criticisms found in the reviews had been predictable. Buchanan anticipated and effectively addressed them point by point. They get repeated just the same, as if Buchanan never thought of them. Obviously he has touched a nerve.

My last relative who truly represented "the Greatest Generation" has passed away. I'm glad most vets of that war, justifiably proud, will be spared the necessary reassessment of the almost unchallenged "good war" mythology. I sympathize with those WWII veterans who view doubts about the war's necessity (from a US or British standpoint) as a challenge to their own noble sacrifice and ideals. That's certainly not what this book is all about.

As an infantry veteran of the Vietnam War, the cold shower of doubt about its political justification came after returning home in 1967. For many Vietnam vets, doubts came while they were there. For others who went later, the doubts were there before leaving home. Whatever, we have had plenty of time to get used to the idea that the war's potential benefit was not worth the cost in shattered lives and resources. The same may be true of many Iraq war veterans. To confront WWII vets at this late date to similar doubts about the necessity of their sacrifice might be cruel. But to everyone else, the thesis and array of events that Buchanan has assembled in this excellent historical review are necessary reminders of just how deceptive ostensibly clear moral choices can be when militarily intervening in far-away conflicts.

US intervention in WWII did not start on December 7, 1941; just as US intervention in the Middle East did not start on September 11, 2001. The chronology of escalating tit-for-tat violence is something we need to focus on a lot more than we have. Buchanan has done just that in this hard treatment of the comfortable black-white WWII legend.

This book is very well done. The web of politics and history is developed to the last detail. I gave this book a 5-star rating. I started to give it a 4-star, but then realized that the weakness was my own Achilles heel in history. I think from my standpoint the only thing that would have made it better would be if there was a glossary of the "cast of characters" in the back. I kept trying to refresh myself with Who's Who. But again, I gave it 5-stars because that was probably my own fault

This is not my favorite book from Pat. I think his thesis is interesting: was WWII avoidable? Did bad choices made by British political leaders force the West to enter into a world war? What can we learn from this to avoid a future world war? Pat argues that WWII was "unnecessary" and could have been avoided; yet, due to the "arrogance" of England's foreign policy, we were thrust into a world war. The problem I found with his argument is that Pat never laid any of the blame for the onset of WWII on Germany, Hitler or Mussolini ... huh?

This book is not an easy read; a real drag in certain places. Overall, the book was overly lengthy and a bit boring at times due to the long quotes used to substatiate many of his claims. This is the main problem in Pat's book, he used secondary quotes to prop up his theory. This works in some places, but seems hollow in other. Pat may have done extensive research for this book, but his lack of primary sources undermines his argument and his "scholarly authority."

I recommend this book for the history buffs who have a lot of time on their hands to kill. I gave it a 3 star (average) rating because that's what this book is - average. Interesting thesis backed with few credible, non-second hand sources. I could get past that if this book was not so slow, boring, and hard to get through in certain places. I believe that history can be exciting and compelling to read - but this my friends, is anything but. I still love Pat though, and will continue to watch him represent the Right on MSNBC.

This book is an eye opening look at a subject most people think they know all there is to know about. While not excusing any of the monstrous evils of the Hitler regime, Patrick Buchanan demonstrates that Churchill and other British politicians were just as responsible, if not more so, as the German politicians for the outbreak of World Wars I and II and all of the attendant horrors. Buchanan also exposes the bloodthirty side of Winston Churchill. Churchill, for example, was the architect of the starvation blockade of Germany during World War I and advocated bombing civilian targets in Germany and the use of poison gas against Iraqi rebels during World War II. As for Hitler, Buchanan portrays Hitler not as a maniacal ideology-driven warmonger bent on world conquest but as an opportunistic nationalist politician who badly miscalculated and blundered into a war he very much wanted to avoid. Finally, Buchanan illustrates the tragic consequences of what many call "the good war." Buchanan notes that the war destroyed what was left of the British Empire, and left a brutal Soviet tyranny in control of virtually all of eastern and central Europe. The war also set in motion a series of events that would lead to communist tyranny and atrocity in China and other parts of Asia. Churchill, far from the farsighted statesman he is generally portrayed as, comes off in this book as a mendacious, ego-driven and erratic bumbler. As for World War II, rather than an inevitable and necessary war, Buchanan demonstrates how even as late as the fall of 1939 catastrophe could have been avoided. Commenting on the outbreak of World War I, Winston Churchill once said, "The terrible 'ifs' accumulate." Indeed.

Once again Pat has gotten it right. To think that so many Americans were called upon to surrender their lives or years of their lives to help a Soviet regime achieve hegemony in Europe.
Britain was basically done after World War I. To suck so many other nations into a war that was inevitably a Germany - Russia conflict was the height of selfishness and immorality. Even if Hitler had defeated Stalin, how would the Germans been able to control such vast expanses of territory? Germany would have been exhausted and would have crumbled from within.
I think the height of British duplicity was the guarantee of Poland. As Pat points out it was sheer idiocy. But, if Britain was sincere, why did she declare war on Germany alone. Stalin also attacked Poland. Why didn't the Brits declare war on Russia? Or was the guarantee selective.
Britain and the forces within her government and those that had the power to influence her government were fixated on Hitler. That myopia caused several horrible tragedies--World War II, the enslavement of eastern Europe and most of Asia, the cold war, the decline of the West and the ubiquitous Nazi phantasmagoria that has debased our laws and culture.

This book is good if you are new to JW doctrine and have family members and persons you wish to discuss matters with. However, for Ex-JW's or persons trying to help a loved one to see the error of man made doctrine, it is not very useful.

Most subjects do not receive more than 2 pages of information, with some, such as the Deity of Christ or Michael the Archangel, only receive about 3 pages of scriptural proof and poor explanation. In some cases the author lists scriptures you could use but adds no intelligent explanation to them.

Quite frankly it is easily more beneficial to choose a single subject and research it online as you will get the same information in David Reed's book but with much needed detail.

It seems that the author uses basic and common scriptures to refute JW doctrine and simply adds additional and general logic to his explanation. Again, you can easily get this from online sources a long with in depth discussion on lesser known scriptures that drive the point home.

The content of the book includes a wide variety of subjects which is useful for those who are new to the JW doctrinal structure, but for those with deeper knowledge, this book is useless because the content is weak and I don't believe that by using this book you would give enough biblical evidence on any given subject to completely dispel the JW theology from a loved one or to enlightened a seasons ex-JW. If you read through the Pauline letters, there are dozens of scriptures that point to the Deity of Christ yet these are missing from the book and for that I won't recommend this as an authoritative source for discussing theology with a JW. This is a light read and only useful to those new to JW circles.

I would suggest this author to everyone. He is very thorough and informative. He knows this Cult. I decided to read the book straight through and I am glad I did. This is not just a quick referance tool, it is a must read.

Jehovah's Witnesses are forbidden by Watch Tower leadership from reading books by former members, such as this one, so their commentary on this book is deceitful at best, though they justify their lies as "Theocratic Warfare."

Jehovah's Witnesses are experts at using "hand-waving" arguments, by stating that ex-members must be "bitter," and therefore, you should ignore whatever they have to say. That's just an attempt to quarantine.

Jehovah's Witnesses have mastered the fine art of manipulation through shunning. Of course, the Jehovah's Witnesses notice many things that seem odd, even unbiblical, but with (seemingly) no other option, the JW remains comfortable until the axe of the WTS swings their way, and then, low and behold, the outrage and indigation, oh my! Great, well where was your high and mighty conscience "years ago" while you sat comfortably in apostasy? Only now when the strong hand of the WTS comes down on old #1, do matters of right and wrong become so clear.

This book is an inoculation against the Watch Tower. Ex-JW, David A. Reed is a HERO, and gave me an inside look to how the Watch Tower has doctrinally programmed its followers. It is a basic essential, along with JW's Answered Verse by Verse. I highly recommend both.

The book Answering Jehovah's Witnesses: Subject by Subject is written by author David A. Reed. Mr. Reed is a former Jehovah's Witness who was open to seeking the truth and because of his openness, came to understand the reality of how the cult operates. He describes how it was the cult's constant elevation of the organization above scripture that drove him to start questioning their authority. He uses his experience as a Jehovah's Witness in this work to expose both the corruption of the organization as well as its doctrinal fallacies. In addition, he reminds the reader throughout the book how to talk with Jehovah's Witnesses and which topics to start with. He suggests that we work with their training and not against it. He informs us to start by asking them questions about the information and to have them explain the answers. He states that the worst way to approach them is in a confrontational manner. Previous to this work, Mr. Reed produced a book with a similar title, Jehovah's Witnesses Answered Verse by Verse in which Scripture passages are used as proof-texts for Jehovah's Witnesses belief. In addition to this, he edits for a publication on Jehovah's Witnesses' beliefs titled Comments from the Friends. He is president of Gospel Truth Ministries, Inc. Other works include the Index of Watchtower Errors and Jehovah's Witness Literature: A Critical Guide to Watchtower Publications.
The author's purpose for this book is to offer a response to a change in Jehovah's Witnesses behavior. Today's Jehovah's Witness seems, according to the author, not as well versed in scripture as the older Witnesses. They instead seem to be apt to rely on the authority of the organization more than scripture. This is likely do to the fact that more and more of the cults teachings are deviating further and further from scripture. Thus, making it risky for the cult to train their followers in scripture. This book is written to show the reader first how to get people to see that the cult is not "God's organization" but rather a human organization that is out to control them mentally. Once this is accomplished, the reader can move on to a subject-by-subject discussion of doctrinal topics.
I think this book is extremely well written and offers a format that any reader regardless of experience in dealing with Jehovah's Witnesses can just jump right and get started. I think he does an excellent job at using their own sources against them, so it is hard for them to say that he doesn't know what he is speaking of or that he has misrepresent the facts. He does an excellent job of dismantling the credibility of the watchtower as "Gods organization" and as long as we are faithful in consistently representing these fallacies and errors to the Jehovah's Witnesses I think we will see many people leaving the cult. Mr. Reed should be commended for the amount of research that he put into this book. If there is any critique of the book that I could find is that maybe there were too many topics and could be a bit overwhelming and repetitive but this would only be a minor problem.

I know David Reed has some issues with the Witnesses. Anyone who has devoted/wasted any significant amount of time with them does. However, his book is so well researched and his knowledge of theology allows him to set the record completely straight. I am currently researching the topic and found that this volume was quite a bit better than the "Verse by Verse" volume. I found that it was easier to search by subject and have all the verses in one place. The only criticism I might have is that there were too many categories. Some of the information gets repeated and this can be frustrating (but that's if you read it all the way through like I did). If you're just browsing for a particular topic, the organization of the book works out just fine.

I'm impressed with the amount of research that he put into his work. I've seen some of the standard quotations from Witness literature before, but he adds to them with additional, equally damning quotes that haven't been used in other tomes of this sort.

This proved to be an engaging read, and useful for anyone doing research on how the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society has deceived millions.