Becker Books

A horrifying and well-researched history of how Mao's "Great
Leap Forward" became the worst famine in history, killing
perhaps 30 million Chinese (1958 - 1960) -- it appears
unlikely an exact fatality figure will ever be known. Which
adds to the horror, I think, that millions of people, with hopes
and dreams like our own, could vanish without leaving
a trace, even a number, in the world outside their homes.
Not to mention uncounted millions of children whose lives
were blighted by brain-damage from malnutrition....

FWIW, Jasper concludes that Mao's Great Famine was more
omission than commission (in contrast to Stalin's): Mao's
absurd ideas of backyard industrialization, plus turning
loose the Red Guards chaos, ruined the harvests. Then
Communist Party officials simply denied the problem, and
concocted elaborate coverups -- even painting the tree
trunks to hide that the bark had been eaten by starving
people -- when Mao or senior officials were to visit famine
areas. And a smiling-peasants "Big Lie" for foreigners,
which worked for years.

It's a remarkable, and depressing, account.
Highly recommended.

Here is Ammie's main page for Hungry Ghosts: Mao's Secret Famine.

Happy reading--
Peter D. Tillman

A horrifying and well-researched history of how Mao's "Great
Leap Forward" became the worst famine in history, killing
perhaps 30 million Chinese (1958 - 1960) -- it appears
unlikely an exact fatality figure will ever be known. Which
adds to the horror, I think, that millions of people, with hopes
and dreams like our own, could vanish without leaving
a trace, even a number, in the world outside their homes.
Not to mention uncounted millions of children whose lives
were blighted by brain-damage from malnutrition....

FWIW, Jasper concludes that Mao's Great Famine was more
omission than commission (in contrast to Stalin's): Mao's
absurd ideas of backyard industrialization, plus turning
loose the Red Guards chaos, ruined the harvests. Then
Communist Party officials simply denied the problem, and
concocted elaborate coverups -- even painting the tree
trunks to hide that the bark had been eaten by starving
people -- when Mao or senior officials were to visit famine
areas. And a smiling-peasants "Big Lie" for foreigners,
which worked for years.

It's a remarkable, and depressing, account.
Highly recommended.

review copyright 1999 by Peter D. Tillman

I found this book to be very useful (so has everyone I've lent it to). Since most of the food items are in alphabetical order, it's easy to find what you're looking for quickly. There's pronunciation help, and information on foods by region. There's also a separate section on beverages, with useful information on wine.

This book was "way fun!" Having lived in Sedona for the last three years and spent time at an ashram in India in the 1980's, perhaps I relate to Lincoln's story more than some. However, anyone who has been navigating the seas of New Age seriousnes for some time will appreciate the witty respite provided by this novel. The plot is original and the characters endearing. When the book ended, I was ready for more. If you'd like a diversion from the mundane, read this book.

The book is a great combination of a toy and a book.

My son brings it to me to sing to him and to read to him. he browses the pages and rolls the book along with the wheels that are attached to it.

This book changed my life! Mr. Becker lays out some very simple, yet effective ways to change one's life.He talks about unconditional love and the power we have internally to make changes in our lives. Great book for businesses too....key elements will help you not only build a strong personal life but a great business one as well!

I am a first year medical student. The library in my town has this great three-volume dictionary. When I study there, I try to get the seat next to the shelf with the dictionary. There are several things that I like very much about it. Very many of the entries explain the how the words are derived from latin and greek roots and suffixes. For me, this really helps me remember what the words mean so that I can recognize them and use them after looking them up in the dictionary. It also gradually builds up my familiarity with latin and greek roots in the vocabulary of my field of studies, which means that the names of things start to make sense and learning and remembering them gets easier all the time. The anatomy entries are listed by the latin forms of the terms. If I only know the English form, I just turn to that and find a reference to the entry with the proper latin term. If I for example turn to "cricoid cartilage" I find a reference where it just says "cartilago cricoidea", which is the name of the entry where a description is found. Since my teachers (and I) prefer the latin nomenclature, this works very well for me. For terms that have synonyms, most (if not all) of the synonyms are listed in the dictionary and refer to the one that has the definition under it. Even really old names for diseases are listed. The dictionary is very complete, as it should be, the size (and price) of it being considered. However, it was written in 1986, so it lacks any knowledge that has been gathered since back then. If a new edition of this dictionary comes out, I'm buying it.

Though it's 24 years old, this is still the best book on auto repair, at least for those who've gotten past the fear of changing the oil in their own car. Becker talks about many of the things you have to deal with in real life that aren't covered in most manuals. These are notes from the grease pit, not from some writer who talked to an automotive engineer who thought, on the spur of the moment, about how to work on a real car (of course, an automotive engineer could not be expected to touch a car, except perhaps to drive one. It would be demeaning to have to perform auto repair ;-)

This is a great supplement to the Chilton and (better) Haynes books, both of which are abridgements of the much better manufacturer's shop manuals - the real manuals don't seem to expect much imagination or mechanical intuition on the part of the reader and therefore go into much more detail than the commercial books. But both seem to follow the form: Remove the obvious wires; remove the obvious bolts; now, remanufacture the engine. That is, they go into excruciating detail about the obvious things, while avoiding any detail about the few things that aren't obvious. Becker fills in the gaps.

I just wish for two things:

Becker whould write an update to this book;

Becker would write anything else - he's a great writer.

I was given the 1964 edition of The Joy of Cooking by my mother when I was in my teens and there is no better than this one in our opinion. Mine had fallen apart from years worth of use and the one that I received was in practically mint condition for a 40 year old version. I would recommmed this to all who love to cook.

This early edition of the Joy of Cooking is the most comprehensive how to cook book I have seen.

Great book, arrived asap, in great condition as indicated. This was my mother and father's favorite receipe book so now I can have all of their great receipe's. A Perfect way to remember a great childhood and wonderful parents. :0)