United States Books

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Joseph "Crazy Joe" Spaziano, who avoided Florida's electric chair six years ago when his condemnation for murder was thrown out, was denied parole Wednesday, on a sentence of life plus five years for raping a 16-year-old Orlando girl and slashing her eyes in 1974.

The state Parole Commission voted against changing Spaziano's April 2060 parole date on the rape conviction after a 40-minute hearing Wednesday when family members and attorneys on both sides testified in the case of the one-time member of the Outlaws motorcycle gang.

Spaziano, now 58, will be eligible to seek another parole hearing in 2009.

Bill Cotterell has been a journalist with UPI and more recently for a good number of years at the Tallahassee Democrat covering primarily state government news in Florida. His email address is bcotterell@tallahassee.com for verification of this account and a more accurate recounting.

He has recounted to me several times about the time in one case that Ms. Holdman said something to the effect that the murdered youth would just have to miss her high school prom --- said in a scarcastic and offensive tone -- meaning minimizing the impact that the murder had upon the murdered youth herself.

Michael Mello's "Dead Wrong" quote from page 195 (hardcover version): "There were some days (and nights) when CCR was the best public defender office in the world." I agree -- "some" being the operative word here.

For more insight, Michael Moline, formerly of UPI in Tallahassee, wrote a long article for a California newspaper (the name I don't have with me at this time) about Scharlette Holdman shortly after she arrived in California from Florida by means of South Carolina.

A professor in the Sociology department of the University of Delaware recommended Von Drehle to me for an example of a writing style I could use. I'm glad to have made the purchase both because of writing style and content.

Both David Von Drehle and Michael Mello's books are excellent and very well describe what life is like for those on death row and those representing death sentenced persons, particularly at the old CCR [Office of Capital Collateral Representative]. However there is more:

After Mark Olive voluntarily resigned from CCR about March 1988, Billy H. Nolas became the next Chief Litigator. It is extremely odd that neither Mello nor Von Drehle even mention Nolas nor the next Chief Litigator Martin or Marty J. McClain. For important reasons they should have.

Billy H. Nolas is an excellent litigator like Olive. Nolas was the Chief Litigator for the last two years of the Gov. Martinez "regime", which was the most difficult time in CCR history [during my employment there] with Martinez signing death warrants as if he was at a Republican Party event signing autographs.

Nolas resigned at the end of 1990, after Martinez had been defeated by former U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles and former U.S. House of Representatives member Buddy MacKay.

Nolas was completely drained from the years he endured and litigated while at CCR, due to the huge case load and the internecine warfare within the agency. McClain and his faction within CCR did their best to cause Nolas to leave -- eventually they were successful -- and THAT is when clients' cases began to suffer.

Martin J. McClain is an excellent litigator, however his strategic decisions in various cases are questionable. When Mello writes on page 245 of the hardcover version of "Dead Wrong" regarding CCR, "Look beneath the surface of CCR's 'success rates', however, and you'll find an artifice typical of hack public defender officers. CCR has in the past farmed out the hardest cases to outside lawyers (by finding that it has a 'conflict of interest')". The period of time that Mello is referring to is when Martin J. McClain was the Chief Litigator and Michael Minerva was the executive director of CCR.

As the premier example of McClain alleging a "conflict of interest" [and I can only assume with the consent of the director of CCR at the time, Michael Minerva] is the client Jerry Layne Rogers, Sr. -- a wrongfully convicted and innocent man -- Mr. Rogers's case in 1992 consisted of at least 80 boxes of documents, from court files, prosecutor and law enforcement files, trial and evidentiary hearing transcripts, etc. Mr. Rogers's case was the largest and most complicated that CCR has ever represented.

The second largest and most complicated was that of Mr. Gerald Stano, whose lead attorney during most of the development of his case was Mark Olive.

McClain simply didn't want to have such a complicated case as a CCR case, so McClain, in my considered insider opinion as Mr. Roger's only investigator from 1989 until my involuntary departure in 1992, alleged in a misrepresentation to the Florida Supreme Court (FSC) that he had a "conflict of interest" with Mr. Rogers -- while Mr. Rogers's case was pending at the FSC.

As a result, Mr. Rogers had no counsel for an extended period of time until the Washington, D.C. law firm Covington and Burling became his pro bono counsel in 1995. The result was an unanimous FSC 26 page opinion ordering a new trial due primarily to prosecutorial misconduct, in particular Brady v. Maryland violations.

To read the opinion, go to the Florida Supreme Court website, to recent opinions, to the year 2001, scroll down to February 15, 2001.

During the summer of 2002, Mr. Rogers was re-convicted, however the jury recommended and Mr. Rogers received a life sentence. Thus for a second time Mr. Rogers has been wrongfully convicted.

Another wrongfully convicted Florida death row inmate, who is now a free man, Juan Melendez, testified about his neighbor on death row, Mr. Rogers. Mr. Rogers taught him how to speak, read and write in English as well as assisting him in coping skills while on death row.

In 2004, the Florida 5th District Court of Appeal denied relief. The FSC declined to accept jurisdiction and thus denied the petition for review.

Mr. Rogers' case is pending Federal review.

Though the author never specifically articulates his beliefs about the death penalty anywhere within this volume, I had the distinct impression that he was actually, in principle, a proponent of the punishment, but had become increasingly frustrated with its practice as he investigated every capital case in Florida during the first few years of the death penalty's reimposition. It is this perspective, along with the excellent writing and the telling details he unearths about each case (details concerning the commission of the crime, the investigation, trial, appeals, execution, and aftermath) that separate this volume from most of the other anti-death penalty materials. Above all else, it is an excellent read.

In response to comments made by Mark Wilson in his review that Susan Fromberg Schaeffer stole Ms. Brodman's (Anya's) life story, the events detailed in "Anya" are common in some way or another to nearly every other Holocaust survivor. An idea, account of events or even the ability to relate those events verbally is entirely different than actually crafting that idea or account into a well written story or engrossing movie.

Writing/directing well is not easy. I'm sure Ms. Schaeffer likely spent hours, days, months and years researching, writing and rewriting her book. Why should Ms. Schaeffer not receive credit for all the hard work she put into the book?

That being said, I'm not a huge fan of the book. The prose is beautifully descriptive but is too wordy for me (more like a romance novel - not really my taste). Also, the main character, Anya, comes off as preening and fairly unsympathetic. I prefer works like "The Great Gatsby", "Shawshank Redemption & Rita Hayworth", "Fight Club", "Atlas Shrugged", "I, Legend", "The Thief of Always" and "Red Dragon" - to name a few.

The books listed above are not special because of the tag line. Those books are worth reading because they are exceptionally well written. It's all in presentation. An idea/account is only an idea/account until someone puts time and sweat into making the idea/account into something tangible.

Give several authors/directors an idea/account and each will mold that idea/account according to individual talent, personality, background, education, etc. Look at the differences in the way "The Shining" as a movie was directed by Stephen King (awful) versus Stanley Kubrick (genius), in the Harry Potter movies(some darker, some lighter) and in the Thomas Harris movies(Hannibal was a comedy compared to the first two).

There really are no new ideas (themes, characters, plots, etc.)-just new ways of presenting/mixing. In fact, most stories are covered or at least alluded to in the Bible and mythology. Look at how Jane Austen's "Emma" was modernized in "Clueless" or how differently J.D. Salenger and Sylvia Plath portray young people dealing with growing pains in "The Catcher in the Rye" and "The Bell Jar". There are lots of other examples.

The bottom line is that Ms. Brodman, unless she voluntarily chose to execute a nondisclosure agreement, had the opportunity to take the time to write her own book in her own words in whatever language she desired so that her book could be judged on its merits accordingly.

ANYA is one of the best modern novels I've ever read. Susan Fromberg Schaeffer does a great job getting inside her protagonist's head. Wonderfully atmospheric, ANYA sets you right down in Anya's world from the first paragraph. I first read the book as a teenager and spent the days reading it and several days afterward in a fog--I was completely in Anya's world.

I am a 16 year old sophomore in high school and I came across this book for a book report.As I read I was drawn in as if I were an eye witness to the events happening to Anya Savikin Lavinsky, her daughter, and her family during the holocaust. It really gave me a first hand experience of the horror,hope, and determination of the victims of the holocaust. It was moving and touching.I would recommend it highly. Bravo Susan Fromberg Schaeffer!
Lyn Shakespeare "Jacki" (Illinois,USA)

I first read this novel after reading "First Nights". I must admit, I was attracted to "First Nights" by pure marketing and cover art, but was I a lucky consumer. I completely fell in love with Susan Fromberg-Schafer's style of writing and have read and loved almost everything she has written (Buffalo Day Afternoon was not a particular favorite). "Anya" has become my favorite novel of all time. I have re-read it at least 3 times. This comes from someone who loves to read and has almost never read a book twice. I can't say enough about it except that you should also give "Autobiography of Foudini M Cat" a try if you have ever loved a pet.

Happy Reading!

I moved across the street from Mrs. Brodman (Anya) in Sarasota, Florida in 1979. She lived there with her husband until the day she died. I have been gone for two years now, but believe Mr. Brodman still lives there.

The story is riveting because it is true! It did not come from the imagination of Susan Fromberg Schaeffer. Mrs. Brodman and her husband told me that a lawsuit was filed against Ms. Schaeffer and that Ms. Schaeffer lost. I was told they never wanted the money from the settlement and gave it to an fund for orphans in Israel.

It is shocking to see it listed here as one of Ms. Schaeffer's novels. Mrs. Brodman told me that the book was the result of a series of tapes she dictated and that were transcribed by Miss Fromberg. Though Anya spoke many languages (including English), she said it was too difficult for her to 'write' in English and so she dictated her story. This is what I was told.

Mrs. Brodman told me it hurt her greatly that Miss Fromberg took credit for her life story. Yes there are facts that were changed to also protect others (i.e., she changed the name of her husband, Mr. Brodman, for obvious reasons). My understanding was that the outcome of the lawsuit was to stop Ms. Schaeffer from continuing to take credit for 'Anya's story'.

When I found an out-of-print copy (many years ago) I asked her to dedicate and sign it. I will treasure this forever!

I too heard Anya tell me many stories. I took Mr. Brodman's advice and started reading one of Ms. Fromberg's books. I put it down... no comparison.

Mark Wilson

I was pleased to have this book be in prime condition when it arrived. The price was excellent. The order came in a timely fashion.

The Art of books by Pixar are wonderful. For the artist these books give a great background into how the art brought the story alive.

I highly recommend these books, especially for those who love Pixar.

If you enjoy learning the behind the scenes process that goes into many of the animated and computer animated films of today, you will love this book.

It shows step by step the drawings and thoughts that went into each character in Radiator Springs and also the creation of all the backdrops. From the smallest signs and orange cones to the racetrack and beyond, you can see how it all evolved.

It's nicely bound with a great jacket cover. Definitely a nice coffee table book your guests will enjoy leafing through or the perfect addition to the library of any art and animation lover.

I purchased this art of book recently and found it one of the best art of books I now own. The illustrations are very helpful to my concept art assignments. Great reading

I have to say, I love this series of books. Seeing the concept drawings for the movie is wonderful and how they got there inspiration for what eventually became the charming and funny movie CARS.

Pixar's most recent animation is fully revealed in this wonderful art book. All the research, ideas, and concepts are printed gorgeously in this book. You see how the ideas are captured on paper to guide the production teams to make one of the best animation in years. Conceptual ideas of characters from the beginning to the final rendered CGI model on screen are all there. The landscape is captured in with colorful pastel paintings. Even all the details from neon signs to the Southwest vegetation are drawn out for you to see. Everything in the book is traditional artwork techniques from pastels, blue pencil, to gray scale markers. Only a few pages have any 3D images for you to see, but in an age where everything is computerized... its really nice to see that old fashioned techniques being used.

Its a quality book I highly recommend for the Pixar fan, 3D animation enthusiast, and art students.

the book was great son and husband read it fast shipping and in good shape

this is a must read for the bill elliot fan and nascar fans

i am reading the book and so for i have enjoyed it very much and i am finding out what a hard time bill had in his racing career

It was very interesting to read Bill's own story on NASCAR racing and his career. He has not ordinarily been to loose with his words in the past, so it was refreshing to get his views and opinions first hand. He was generally very complimentary towards his fellow competitiors, but was quite critical of NASCAR concerning the safety issue and the death of Earnhardt. A good read from one of racings finest and classiest drivers.

All I can say is...AWESOME BOOK. On a scale of 1 to 10, it's a 15.

This was an okay book. I got it from the library which is what I suggest you do. It has great photos which help you learn things such as clothing your baby, holding your baby, swaddling your baby, bathing your baby and more. Most of the photos are just fun to look at. I read this book after reading many other baby care books but it offered some new ideas for care which I now use. The only problem with this book is that it shows babies lying on their sides or stomach to sleep which is not recommended because of the increased risk of SIDS. Babies should be placed on their back. Keep that in mind and the book is a good read.

If you are looking for an easy-to-read, basic guide to preparing for a baby, buy this book! It is a great addition to any pregnancy or baby care library. It really is a simple book about calm, soothing parenting and preparing for baby, but depending on your needs/experience, it could be all you need. I bought several as gifts for friends and they all love it.

I purchased this book while I was pregnant and the cover brought tears to my eyes (still does). I believe strongly in a relaxed, calm, loving approach to parenting, and was annoyed by all the people who tried to convince me that I should be stressed out about this baby! This book really met my needs - informative and practical, and a soothing read for both calm and nervous parents. The black and white photography is just beautiful.

I'm trying to find it for every pregnant friend!

I actually bought this book before I even knew I was pregnant and put it away for the future. A few short months later, it was the first book I chose to read about parenting and baby care. It was comforting to read such straight-forward, child-centered advice. I believe that reading this book has shaped my attitude toward parenting into a more natural, simple approach and has helped me keep my focus on my child's needs before anything else. It is reassuring to know that you don't have to have it all or know it all to be a good parent. I highly recommend this book for other first-time moms.

Seeing the cover of this book I was apprehensive. Another book on how beautiful it is to have children, with little substantial help, I thought. Well it is about the beauty and a lot lot more. A comparitively short book, each paragraph has practical, sage advice on a host of things one would only learn after years of experience. Written by the daughter of a midwife, the book has years of expereince to draw from. Advice ranges from dealing with family, pets, and guests with bad timing, to setting up a useful nursery. We plan to give this book as a gift to several expecting friends of ours.

Babylon Boyz by Jess Mowry kept me up all night reading to see what happened next. This is a story about Dante, Pook and Wyatt, three brothers who live in Oakland, Cali. Dante has a heart problem caused by his mom's addiction to crack before he was born. Pook is gay. And Wyatt is a cool fat dude. Babylon Boyz is a story about life in the hood and thuggers and drugs, but it's really a story about friendship and that it's more important to stay true to your friends than the game. Friends care about you, the game doesn't. If you like this book you should also like Voodu Dawgz, Skeleton Key, and Way Past Cool by Jess Mowry.

Babylon Boyz, by Jess Mowry, is a thrilling novel about inner city life. It's based around the lives of three youg teens. Starting out with the words "Hey Homo," it captured my attention right away. Pook is the homosexual who is out of the closet. Wyatt is very overweight and Dante is a Rastifarian with a serious heart condition. These boys are best friends who want more than anything to get out of Babylon, their dangerous ghetto. Throughout the story they encounter many problems including: dealing drugs, fights, gang problems, tagging bathrooms and running from Air Touch. (A big gangster/bully)
A quote that particularly stuck in my mind was: "We all just little black ants in Babylon, waitin' to get stepped on and too stupid to see it." It's kind of true because these boys know that they will never be good enough with society looking down on them all the time.
I guess the whole reason I liked the book was, even though the characters may come off rough edged or as black trouble makers they are not. If other people took the time, they would find a bunch of passionate young men.
I would recommend this book to all mature audiances because the content may not be appropiate for children.

(Submitted by Justine Spencer)

Life ain't always like some of you may live it the easy way- sometimes life sucks, and sometimes it ain't fun at all. And that's the way it is for these three homies, the Babylon Boyz.

Take Pook, tall, gorgeous, and gay. Always fighting for who he is, always wanting to get outta Babylon and be a doctor.

Take Dante, who's never had a chance. His mom was heavy into crack when she was pregnant with him, and died when he was born-born with a bad heart. If he's really good, no smoke, no alcohol, no excitement of any kind, he might live till he's 30.

Take Wyatt, over 300 pounds of flab with a 300 pound attitude to back it up. Don't mess with him-you don't want to know how he sneaks his gun into school every day.

For these brothers, life is not fun. Life is not easy. Everyday they fight the gangstas in the street and the jocks at school who hate gay boys, fat guys, and guys with bad hearts and a worse attitude.

These are the good guys, Pook, Wyatt, and Dante, but what will happen when they witness a crack dealer's arrest, and end up with his gun and the briefcase he threw out of the car just before the cops caught up with him? It could be money-money for a new heart, a medical education, a new start. It could be crack, crack that they could sell for that money. But either way, that briefcase is guaranteed to be danger. What will they do with it?

Jess Morwy wrote the awesome book, Babylon Boys about friends sticking together to stand strong in Babylon. The Babylon boys stick through rough times making good or bad choices to stick with one another. The book is written in third person narrative explaining what kind of life people in Babylon live. (Troubles you face in Babylon are watching for cops, protection to family, drugs, and even school problems as well). Babylon relates to real life in Chicago's South side and also New York's crime and hatred. Most cities face problems with drugs, cops, and wrong decision just like this book and more problems. There are lots of things to like about this book, such as when they make fun of one another in a profanity kind of way and get in fights with older people because they think they are not the same because they of a bad heart, are fat, or even gay. This book is an adventure for thrill seekers, or even a book to imagine and learn what it would feel like to live with troubles everyday and only way out is a illegal way out would you take it.

Since childhood, they have been best of friends, three troubled boys, Pook, Wyatt, and Dante. They want nothing more than to escape their ghetto, crime-filled neighborhood, where everyone around them seems like "little black ants...waitin' to get stepped on an' too stupid to see it." They have no way of reaching their dreams-until they discover two packets of cocaine worth thousands of dollars.

What would you do? Would you sell drugs at your school, deteriorating your community and getting the money YOU desperately need for medical school, a heart operation for your dying friend, and most importantly, a one-way ticket from behind the bars of your own neighborhood?

That's exactly what these three boys had to decide when Pook and Dante witnessed Air Touch, a rich and popular drug dealer, throwing a suitcase full of what they thought was money, out of his car window during a police chase. Later, they bring the suitcase home realizing they had brought home the same terrifying evidence that had killed Dante's own mother.

And everyone knows, "It only gets worse before it gets better." Not only was this incident a problem, dilemmas rained in regarding Pook's homosexuality, the homelessness of a younger boy the trio makes friends with, and Wyatt's obesity. And the new homeless "boy" has a great surprise for us all!

I would recommend this book to all mature readers age twelve and up, regardless of gender. Also, just because a tree died to make this book, doesn't mean you'll die reading it. Actually it's the complete opposite. Reading this book gave me a much closer view into our own great neighboring cities about how life really is for some kids like you and me. And not only does Mowry do a spectacular job of revealing the secrets of Oakland, California, she verbally indicates the setting of lower class residents all over the United States. If you're also in to fiction, this book is definitely calling your name! This book deserves to be put in every hotel side drawer in America!


Monique K.
Des Plaines, Ilinois

IT IS AN INTERESTING BOOK, AN IT IS VERY CHEAP.
I COULD READ ALL THE BIOGRAPHY ABOUT MY FAVORITE GROUP AND I THINK THAT I FALL IN LOVE WITH THEM.
THE BEST PHOTOGRAPH IS WHERE THEY ARE TOGETHER IN A CONCERT.
THEY ARE VERY GOOD-LOOKING

i love the pic's in this book, when i read this book it told me some thing i didn't know, but some parts iretate me cause i know they are wrong,but i think i was well written it made me laugh many times,i love most the pic's on nick, as i have all the books on bsb i find this one of the best i have!!!!!!!!! it's a must!!!!!!!!!!

Horrible book, because it deals with a horrible "band" which is fooling millions of people around the globe...

I LIKE THIS BOOK CAUSE THE PICTURES INSIDE IT LOOK SO GOOD ESPECIALLY AJ MCLEAN AND HOWIE D AND THOSE ARE MY FAVORITES IN THE GROUP AND I ALSO LIKE BRIANL.BECAUSE HE IS SO FINE AND THE BOYS GOT IT GOING ON ALL THE TIME.

It was great! I love the Backstreet Boys (especially Brian) and I loved this book. It had great info on each of the guys, good stuff about how they got together, and really hot pictures. If you love the Backstreet Boys, get this book!

I was a bit disappointed in this book, I have to admit. I was hoping to learn more about Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, who they were, what circumstances led them to life of crime, and so forth... I was expecting maybe some new never-before-seen photographs in this book, but I guess that's a lot to ask for people who lived 80 years ago. I am very interested in the Bonnie and Clyde story, and I have to rate this book good, but not great.

This is a nice condenced overview of Bonnie and Clyde. If you want a crash course or are just interested in the true story- start here.

This book has a lot of interesting information and tons of pictures. If you want to know anything about Bonnie and Clyde, it's all in this book.

I first became aware of Bonnie and Clyde after a frigid night's motorcycle ride to see Arthur Penn's 1967 movie. Except for buying a DVD thirty years later, I seldom thought of them. Then, last November, my wife and I visited Dexter and Stuart, Iowa. In April of 1934, a month before their deaths, Bonnie and Clyde, along with Henry Methvin, robbed the bank in Stuart. Ten months before, the Barrows had shot it out with a posse at Dexfield Park, north of Dexter. The site of an abandoned amusement park, Dexfield offered Bonnie and Clyde, along with the severely wounded Buck Barrow and his wife Blanche, temporary sanctuary following a shootout in Platte City, Missouri. Penn's movie placed the shootout in Platte City, Iowa, which doesn't exist, ignoring the long ride from the Kansas City area to western Iowa. It also ignored the fact that Buck lived several days after his head wound and actually died of pneumonia. Penn's characterization of Blanche as a screaming ninny isn't accurate, either, and it got him sued.

Penn wasn't after history, but sensationalism. James R. Knight is after history. He is one of those wonderful people who recognize that everything is coming together and seizes the moment. Penn's movie was only the latest in a thirty-year sequence of stylized and mostly inaccurate portrayals of the lovers and their companions. It perhaps began with Jan Fortune's Fugitives, published a scant few months after the fatal ambush in Louisiana. It continued through books by several members of the posse who killed Bonnie and Clyde, and by former criminal companions. As many of the principals, including members of the Barrow and Parker families, aged, other writers began to interview them before it was too late. Given the opportunity to pull together their work with original research, James Knight acted.

This book is the result.

Perhaps only a person who doesn't depend on writing for his income could have done it. Knight, after all, is a pilot for Federal Express who just happens to be an excellent historian. His book shows meticulous patience, coupled with a desire to be what Fox news isn't, fair and balanced. For instance, he gives Fortune's oft-maligned piece credit for what it got right. Though he depends heavily (for the first few chapters) on the recollections of Marie Barrow Scoma, a teenager at the time of her brother's death, Knight sometimes argues, appropriately, with her recollections. After all, she could not have known all that her adult brother was up to. Knight understands that the Barrow and Parker families were far more complex, and far more involved in supporting their wayward kin, than has heretofore been obvious. The evidence has always been there, but Knight uses it broadly and well.

The author is so careful to remain balanced, and to avoid the hysterical tone of previous books, that his prose sometimes seems bloodless. Nowhere is this more evident than in chapters 36 and 37. There, he recounts events around the May, 1934, ambush that killed Bonnie and Clyde. He is meticulous in describing the location and sequence of the wounds each received, the damage to their stolen Ford, and the behavior of members of the posse. It's important, though, because the ambush has so often been misinterpreted. I hope that in a future work Knight will greatly expand these chapters, taking a closer look at everything and everyone who contributed to the ambush and at the questions that still remain. Still, Knight corrects several misconceptions and downright errors fostered by the movie and by previous books. You won't know it, though, unless you read the extensive footnotes.

Which brings me to the subject of how most to benefit from reading this 2003 work. I read it twice. The first time, I had a bookmark in the footnotes and flipped back and forth frequently. The second time, the bookmark was located in the first appendix. This allowed me to review a full history of each character as s/he surfaced in the text. As a result, I have a far better idea of "the story of Bonnie and Clyde" (to borrow the popular title of Bonnie's second poem) than I received on that winter night in 1967.

For all of that, Knight neither whitewashes nor condemns Bonnie and Clyde. Rather, he recognizes the essential tragedy of their story. They lived on their own terms, but everyone paid a price. That they paid with their lives does not obscure the suffering inflicted on their families and on families left fatherless. At the same time, Clyde might have remained a relatively small-time crook (or made changes in his life similar to those accomplished by Ralph Fults) were it not for the brutality he experienced in the Texas prison system. The story of Bonnie and Clyde, then, is in some sense the story of human beings interacting with our surroundings--for good and for ill. I am writing this review two days after a confused and angry teenager murdered people in an Omaha mall. He did it with an assault rifle, at a time when gross inequalities again exist between Americans. Clyde used a 1930's version of that rifle, at a similar time. When will the American people demand gun control? And when will we insist on an end to national policies that lead to the creation of millions of poor people?

"Here they come down that dusty road, and muddy bend; Man and woman welded in crime, together they lived and together...they died. Who else could it be?; But good ol' Bonnie and Clyde!"

The book entitled, "Bonnie and Clyde A Twenty-First-Century Update" by James R.Knight (with Jonahtan Davis )is... "A killer of a book!"

This is a superbly written and researched book. James R. Knight is too young to have ridden along with them, at least in this life. However, his knowledge and interest in this gun toting couple makes me wonder, where he may have been in his last life time?

His writing is informative, easy to read and follow, and...extremely descriptive. In addition, the book is a photographic library in itself!

Sometimes, I could almost hear the heavy "barking" of Clyde's "BAR" and watch the black exhaust clouds rise from the tail pipe of his get-away, 1934 Ford sedan.

Frank Hamer does not appear to be as powerful a figure as he was portrayed in the 1967 movie with Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty. Although, a central figure in orchestrating the couple's final demise, the initial credit seems to flow toward a little known figure of the ambush group listed as, Officer Prentis Oakley.

Author, James Knight also gives the reader what Paul Harvey used to say on his radio program: "and now you know ... the rest of the story."
Knight follows through with information on the fate of each actor who ever played any part on the stage of "Bonnie and Clyde."

A great job Mr. Knight(and Mr. Davis)! When can we expect another publication???

Best Read. John Annerino's CANYONS OF THE SOUTHWEST. -Tucson Weekl

CANYONS OF THE SOUTHWEST by John Annerino features the author's photographs of towering red rock and rushing waters. -Travel-Holiday Magazine

CANYONS OF THE SOUTHWEST by John Annerino. A stunning overview of the "inverted mountains." -Summit Magazine

For people who love the West, especially those who seldom leave the concrete road, this book provides unbelievably beautiful pictures and stories about gorgeous places in the wilderness. -Rocky Mountain News

Foremost are the photographs. I would call Annerino's canyon portraits the best of a really good lot, even over big-time large-format photographers. While the large-format works are stunning artistic studies of light and color shot with impossibly huge f-stops, Annerino's canyon photographs give expression to the phrase "wearing one's heart on the sleeve." His photos have an active passion that others lack. Anyone who knows him will say he is among the "hardmen' to tackle the Southwestern mountains and canyons, but that he is definitely the most sincere in his passion for place. Perhaps, because of this he lacks a calculated commercial view of the places he photographs. His images also record his own passion, creating compelling and unique photographs. More than any other contemporary outdoor photographer, Annerino's photos mirror his love of the land's people. In the text, Annerino portrays canyonlands people as part of what makes the places special. He has a deep affection for past and present native peoples, but unlike some Anglo North Americans, Annerino isn't a lost 20th century soul. Rather, he seems to have a straightfoward and genuine admiration for native people, and has learned a great deal about them. His research on each canyon's history is impressive. Annerino writes with an immensity commensurate with his subject. His style is old-fashioned, evoking an older, more grandiose era of writing of explorers like Powell and Pattie. While many modern writers seem bent on infusing themselves into as much of the story as possible, Annerino's style is not so full of himself as full of the intensity of his canyon experiences...Annerino is at his best when he writes about Mexico, especially the Big Bend passage where he talks about the injustices served the Mexican across the river at the hands of our national park there. An optimist who sees great things in the canyons, Annerino neither ignores nor dwells on the obvious problems facing the West like pollution and development. And fortunately, CANYONS OF THE SOUTHWEST is not a treasure map guidebook to these areas. -Desert Skies

I really like Mary Hunts books I find them a lot more useful than books like the tightwad gazette which is way to extreme.Mary Hunts books are full of good useful information.

I subscribe to Mary's CheapskateMonthly.... and highly recommend both her website and most of her books. I have read and reread the books of hers that I own, of which this is one. If you're having finacial difficulties, get this book and subscribe to her newsletter - you can do this online or through the mail. I swear it's been the best money I've ever spent. And I have actually started to see a difference in my finances.

This is a good, solid, book covering the "basics" of money management. It can be said that Mary Hunt is just reiterating philosophies of money management that have been preached over the decades, if not centuries. Better, more comprehensive, readings include "The Millionaire Next Door", "Your Money Or Your Life", "The Complete Tightwad Gazette", and "The Richest Man In Babylon."

That being said, this book did introduce me to one innovative idea of which I have incorporated into my financial arsenol. It's what called the "Freedom Account". The Freedom Account is a fantastic tool devised by Hunt to manage payment of irregular,
non-monthly bills. The concept is not new, but Hunt's system is definitely the best I've ever come across.

My philosophy on reading books has always been that if I can get just one great new idea, then the investment in time and money is worth it. I can assure you that if you decide to buy this book, the "Freedom Account" system alone is well worth the investment.

Has worrying about money or paying your bills ever kept you up at night?

Me, too. Until I found this book.

About 7 years ago, our family was suffering from unbelievable money problems. Depressed and confused, I decided to stop by the bookstore and browse the personal finance section. There was only one problem. I didn't have twenty or thirty dollars to buy money management advice. I decided to get Mary's book and could not believe how many great examples and strategies she gave for reducing debt.
By following Mary's instructions, our family quickly began reducing our debt and wiped out almost $ 20,000 of credit card bills within a few years.
Her book is my money "Bible" and like scriptures in a holy work, I have highlighted paragraphs on almost every page that give insights into a subject that had always been beyond my control.

This book saved my marriage and brought me peace.
I highly recommend it. . . to everyone.

This is a good book for a great cause: getting and staying out of debt. However, after reading it, I liked Dave Ramsey's Money Makeover and Financial Peace University MUCH better - more thorough, great ideas, and fabulous examples of how a little money can grow w/ time - which this book, CM, is lacking.