Bernard Books

How many authors of popular science books begin their books by boasting that they can teach real science to readers who have no math--or no math beyond basic algebra? And then what do you get? Either a tub full of metaphors sloshing about promiscuously or else a math course so compressed it would leave Newton saying, "Duh?" But not in this book. Bernard Schutz takes the reader by the hand and leads him gently on. There is scarcely a bump in the road; yet, by the end of the book, you've not only learned a good deal of physics, astrophysics and cosmology, you've also gotten an inkling of how a physicist thinks. How does Schutz manage to succeed where failure is the rule? Well, partly by magic, I think. But partly by the clever use of simple computer simulations (downloadable for free) and partly by means of a very carefully thought out pedagogical strategy. This gentleman is a teacher par excellence. If you're only going to read one science book in your life, read this one. Just be prepared to spend some time with it.

I wanted to understand relativity, and tried many books. Up to know i met two kinds of books, the ones which i could not understand because they are to difficult, and the ones with a minimum of math, which are incomplete and oversimplified. I did not understand everything (e,g the Einstein equation and tensors) but most of this book gives me a deep insight in the beauty of relativity, cosmology and astronomy in a way no other book has done.

This is a truly wonderful book. It is suitable for those with little physics and math backgrounds as well as those with more. It is, in fact, incredible how much one can learn here with so little math about topics normally associated with advanced math. In addition to learning many new things, I got great new insights into what I thought I already knew.

I went to this book to learn about general relativity and cosmology. I got that and so much more. The book covers many fascinating topics about the earth, the solar system, galaxies, and brings in physics concepts when they are needed. A recurring theme is the effect of gravity and what resists gravity. So, e.g., white dwarfs are explained by quantum effects resisting complete collapse due to gravity. In addition to learning a lot about general relativity, you get introduced to some aspects of mechanics, statistical mechanics and quantum theory. All this while learning a great deal about astronomy and cosmology.

Calculus isn't required and most of the demonstrations are done with physical arguments, analogies, and simple algebra. Computer programs are available from a website for those who want to use them to illustrate numerical results. (You don't need to use the programs to enjoy the book.) Of course, further study will, at some point, require more math. But this book demonstrates how much can be explained with the simplest concepts, and would be worthwhile for someone to read before getting immersed in the higher math.

This is possibly the best book i own. The book basically covers "all" the important topics in gravity, cosmology and astrophysics. For example equivalence principle, general relativity, gravitational waves, neutron stars, black holes, even a bit of quantum gravity (especially in last chapter) etc etc.

Though i must warn that anyone who reads this book might accidentally turn into a theoretical physicist. Its that fascinating/exciting really and it really makes one feel that this is a special time in theoretical physics (waiting for quantum gravity and new astronomical observations and theories). In this respect it is somewhat similar to popular books.

But i wouldnt call this a popular science book, since it goes deeper into things. For example i have Schutz's "First course in general relativity" and i think that up to the chapter on Einstein's equation it is easier than this. The reason is probably that this book doesnt use explicit calculus (well in a way it does with finite differences) or tensors; for example the chapter dealing with differential geometry and general relativity was pretty difficult to understand without tensors, but it gives very nice intuitive understanding for differential geometry/general relativity. There were other places were i understood something i havent really ever understood but was well explained here. All in all, this is an excellent book on gravity and cosmology and i recommend it to anyone.

McGinn's work engages the reader in an well-organized, fascinating discussion of mysticism in medieval Germany, placing the works in context of larger Church history and contemporary religious movements. I thought I would read chapters relevant to my research only (Eckhart and Suso) and scan the rest of the book, but it is so interesting and well-written that I plan to read the entire work. McGinn is a master of his craft.

This book is the fourth in a general series by Bernard McGinn on the history of Christian mysticism. In this volume McGinn surveys the mystical movement which flourished in 14th century Germany, starting with the famous speculative mystic Meister Eckhart.

This work explores the historical, theological and philosophical currents which conditioned this flowering of mystical thought and writing, and also closely examines the mysticism of Meister Eckhart, Henry Suso, John Tauler, Nicholas of Cusa and other German mystics of the period.

This work is essential reading for any student of theology or mysticism and is a valuable addition to any personal theological library.

The quality of scholarship that Dr. Bernard McGinn displayed in vols. 1, 2, and 3 of his "Presence of God" series is evident in this fourth volume. May he be blessed with enough years and good health to write the next volumes, bringing us up to the 20th century (and, if we are lucky, he'll have time to write briefly of the 21st too).

This volume is the fourth in the series of Bernard McGinn which aims to give a comprehensive history of Christian mysticism.

This volume focuses on the Rhineland mystical tradition (Eckhart, Suso and Tauler) in medieval Germany, and also examines the controversy over heretical mystics and mainstream mysticism, the historical and intellectual background to medieval German mysticism, and also examines the mysticism of Nicholas of Cusa.

The main dissapointment for this book was the omission of John Ruusbroec, the critical Flemish mystic, and the important medieval English mystics including the author of the Cloud of Unknowing. Perhaps they will be in the next volume.

Overall the very high quality and depth of McGinn's scholarship is retained in this volume and as such it is an essential purchase for any theological library.

What a great nutrition book. It covers everything. It's like having a session with your own personal dietician. The format is easy to follow, the layout is colorful and interesting and it inspires the reader to make sound nutritional changes in their diet and develop healthier habits in their life. I wish I'd read this book years ago.

I found this book lives up to its title. It is an all around, useful aid to get off the yo-yo diet track, and onto a lifestyle change. We all know that is easier said than done. I am using the journals, and finding all their suggestions to be realistic. I love the idea of pleasurable eating as well as healthy eating. It is wonderful to have a "guidebook" written by professionals who really know their subject-and their audience.

This book is fun and easy to read. It is a week to week guide book on getting healthy. The assignments are realistic and attainable, so I was encouraged right off the bat! It's a refreshing realistic look at diet and fitness. I highly recommend it!

We used the Healthy Habits for Life as our winter employee wellness promotion and it was an overwhelming success. Staff evaluated it highly and provided comments such as "it was the most common sense approach I've seen." "It was the kick-off to our family's lifestyle change." We plan to offer it to our employees every year.

I truly appreciated this book, I thought it was practical and thorough. I liked particularly his words on perseverance, prayer and discernment. I thought his focus on the church rather than the individual was wonderful. Worth a read for anyone who is seeking to become more authentic in their Christian faith. This book was not prescriptive, rather encouraging and challenging.

i am enjoying this read
thanks for the speedy delivery & a book in new condition

This book is not a "how to" or "10 Easy Steps" on being a saint. It is a thoughtful re-definition of what it means to be a serious follower of Jesus in a world that likes to compartamentalize the Christian faith into something you do only on a Sunday morning (hmmmm, some Christians think like that too!?). The author talks about some basic steps that we all need to practice and yet he takes it beyond that ----wanting the reader to embrace a bigger view of what it means to live in light of the love of God.

Written by Christian missionary Jack Bernard (1942-2002), How to Become a Saint: A Beginner's Guide is a simple guide for anyone who seeks to become closer to God and Jesus Christ through embarking upon the long road to sainthood. How to Become a Saint denounces the myth that sainthood is an anomaly, only for a few individuals with superhuman religious zeal. Chapters discuss sainthood defined as undividedness toward God; the obedience that comes from faith; the importance of perseverance; true versus false mysticism; and much more. "As a proper grasp of grace leads to obedience, knowing we are predestined leads to determined effort at faithfulness. You are not on your own with the promise of a reward at the end if only you can gut it out. What Jesus said to his first disciples he still says to you 'And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age' (Matt. 28:20)". Highly recommended for dedicated Christians seeking to better understand and embody their faith.

I read both the Origo books many years ago and found her company delicious. One really feels honored to enjoy the refinement and intelligence of such a writer.

This well-written memoir is an opportunity to get a first-hand peek at a whole different culture, society and way of thinking. The author is not pretenuous at all in the almost matter-of-fact style that she uses to describe a privileged life where money was always available to provide the necessities and the luxuries. Here we see a glimpse of the reaction of the privileged class to the horrors of war when it made its way to the door steps of their salons.

The best part of the book though was the insight into the author's opinions about the philosophy of writing. Here the modern middle-class American is allowed into the thoughts and opinions of one who was raised with all the advantages of tutors, exposure to the best art in the world, and variety of influential and interesting characters who sailed through her life.

The book would have been much better had the author allowed her emotions to shine through when writing about the deaths of her loved ones. This is the only flaw in the book and this failure leaves the reader with a longing to have had more opportunity to learn the complexities of this intelligent lady.

Anyone who enjoys reading about the aristocracy will enjoy this small, spare book.

I turn to this memoir whenever I need perspective on what matters in life. Origo, despite her privilege and access to many of the great figures of the 20th century, never lost sight of what mattered: the people that she loved. This is how she introduces her memoir: "It has sometimes been pointed out to me that I have had a very varied and interesting life, have lived in some extremely beautiful places and have met some remarkable people. I suppose it is true, but now that I have reached `the end game', I do not find myself dwelling upon these pieces on the board. The figures that still stand out there now are the people to whom, in different ways and in different degrees, I have been bound by affection. Not only are they the people whom I most vividly remember, but I realise that it is only through them that I have learned anything about life at all. The brilliant talk that I heard at I Tatti in my youth, in Bloomsbury in the thirties, in New York and Rome in later years, has lost some of its glitter. All that is left to me of my past life that has not faded into mist has passed through the filter, not of my mind, but of my affections. What has not warmed by them is now for me as if it had never been."

This a charming and moving account of what on the surface appears to have been a very privileged life; however the author tells her story (which at times is very sad) without 'showing off' at all.

For those who have enjoyed this book, I recommend Kinta Beevor's A Tuscan Childhood and, also, although it is about an English childhood, James Lees-Milne's Another Self. Both manage to evoke the magic of childhood in the early 20th century in settings that are closer to, say the 17th century, than to today's world.

Ignaz Goldziher is a pioneer Islamicists whose views have still not yet been outdated despite new discoveries. An essential read for those who want to have an outsider's opinion on the beliefs and jurisprudence of the religion of Islam.

By Ignaz Goldziher; translated by Andras and Ruth Hamori; edited by Bernard Lewis. From the back cover: "Ignaz Goldziher (1850-1921), a Hungarian scholar, was recognized as one of the outstanding European Islamicists of his time. Presented here for the first time in a scholarly and accurate English translation are six lectures he originally had planned to deliver in America in 1906. Though the lectures were never given, they were published in the original German in 1910 and were translated into many European languages. Since then, this classic work has served as an essential guide for serious students and scholars of Islam." "Based almost entirely on primary sources, the lectures are devoted to the following aspects of Muslim religion and culture: Mohammed and Qur'an; the holy law of Islam; the principles of Muslim theology; asceticism and Sufism; Islamic sects; and developments in modern times." "...Bernard Lewis is Cleveland E. Dodge Professor of Near Eastern Studies, and Andras Hamori is Associate Professor of Near Eastern Studies, both at Princeton University. Ruth Hamori holds a master's degree in Near Eastern Studies from Harvard University."

Even though his scholarship is over one hundred years old, Goldziher's scholarship still remains relevant and in use. A parallel could be drawn between the continued importance of Albert Schweitzer's work on NT studies and the continued legacy of Goldziher. This edition of the work is nicely translated and well edited and belongs in the library of anyone interested in Islamic Studies. Along with Muslim Studies, this work remains as an historical monument marking the beginning of modern historical skepticism and critical scholarship towards the Muslim jurisprudential literature.

Having just read the Qur'an, I wanted to learn more about Islam. A study of available literature on the subject revealed that modern writing falls into three basic categories: 1. anti-Islamic polemic; 2. pro-Islamic apologetic; 3. "Impartial" studies overly concerned about political correctness and hyper-careful not to touch off the "Danish cartoonist effect."

What to do? Find something written before all the modern craziness began. Goldziher, a Jew writing at the turn of the 20th Century, prepared this book as a series of lectures to be given on an American tour that never came to fruition. He displays an encyclopedic knowledge of the history of Islamic thought, and presents that knowledge in a sympathetic, even-handed way. He is unstinting in his praise for those things he finds praiseworthy and unflinching in his criticism of those things he finds blameworthy. And there is plenty of both.

As a student of the history of Christianity, I could not help but be struck by the many theological parallels between various schools of Islamic thought and various schools of Christian theology. Goldziher elucidates the influence of Roman Law, Neoplatonism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, and Hinduism upon the formation and growth of Islamic theology. He discusses the differences among Shi'ite, Sunni, and Sufi, and writes on other splinter sects, some of which have died out and some of which still exist.

Of particular interest was Goldziher's treatment of Hadith, and how the Islamic world views the words of the Prophet and his Companions. At its best, there is much to admire about Islam, but there are disturbing currents of thought: the two most dangerous being intolerance and belligerence. At several times in history certain portions of Islamic culture eschewed both to the betterment of contemporary culture. Of course, there are undercurrents of intolerance and belligerence in the Dar al Harb also.

Goldziher opined that the less attractive aspects of Islam were due less to Islam itself than to the culture in which it grew. [Page 16]. Although he did not use the following datum as an example of his point, I think it supports it. Goldziher writes that the earliest Moslems were friendly with their Christian neighbors, and it was only later that they became increasingly hostile to Christianity. It seems that their immediate Christian neighbors were Arab Christians who were considered heretics by the Byzantine Church. In the spirit of brotherly love the Byzantine Christians hated the Arab Christians and vice versa. As Arab Christianity was assimilated into Islam, hatred for Byzantine Christianity (and by extension Christianity in general) was assimilated into Islam also. [Page 33, footnote 3]. It seems the irony of this was lost on Goldziher, else he would not have buried the datum in a footnote.

We can only wish that people in responsible positions in the West had read and absorbed the points Bernard Lewis makes in "Islam in History." He certainly tried.

Lewis is no ivory tower historian who writes recondite monographs for other ivory tower historians. Many of the essays collected here -- as well as his other, more recent collection "From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting the Middle East" -- were published in various easily accessible, if high brow, venues, such as the New York Review of Books.

And they have been out for a while. The first edition of "Islam in History" was published in 1973. It received the attention due to a leading -- some would say, the leading -- Western scholar of Islam, but not the understanding. In the preface to this newer, revised and expanded but still rather elderly collection (1993), Lewis thanks those who helped him but, in his reserved but mordant style, adds, "I do not however feel obliged to defer to the judgments of those reviewers who in 1973 thought that I had underestimated 'the gains made by secularism in the Muslim world' and that I had exaggerated the significance of Muslim movements in Iran."

Touche. But with the experience of an additional 15 years, we can see that even Lewis was not pessimistic enough. And that the executors of history have learned nothing at all from Lewis' half century of brilliant insights.

Not that I think they are all brilliant, a point I will expand later. But in a 1992 essay, Lewis probed deeply into the question: Why do they hate us? That Muslims do hate the West and its values should hardly be debatable in 2008, although it still is debated. In 1992, Lewis was bemused by the rally to Saddam by Muslims and Western leftists. His core paragraph deserves to be quoted in full:

"But beyond all these (enthusiasms of Arabs for antidemocratic forces in Europe) there was and unfortunately still is a profound, pervasive, and passionate hatred of the West and all it represents, as a world power, as an ideology, as a way of life, and that hatred is extended to embrace a wide range of local Westernizers and modernizers. It is a hatred so deep that it has led those who feel it to rally to any plausible enemy of the West -- even a racist like Hitler who despised Arabs, an atheist like Stalin who suppressed Islam, a gangster like Saddam Hussein who violated every rule of Arab decency and Islamic morality."

Well, I don't think much of "Arab decency," but if George Bush had understood the arguments that underlie that paragraph, he would not still be making fatuous statements about Iraqi democracy. He might still have been justified in knocking off Saddam. Being the only man in history to depose a genocidal murderer from his throne, hale him into a court of law and see him convicted and hanged is no small achievement, and Muslims should thank him for it, but they don't; but to also expect the rescued Muslims to embrace political liberty was expecting much too much.

After long experience, we are entitled to ask, is Islam compatible with democracy or, as I prefer to phrase it because, as Lewis says, democracy is a slippery word, especially as used by Arabs, popular self-government? The answer appears to be no, and this is where I part ways with Professor Lewis.

His massive erudition does not always save him from making some odd mistakes. For example, he excludes Buddhism from the universalizing religions. Buddhism is, like Islam and Christianity, both salvationist and universalizing. It is not, however, monotheistic, which saves it from being obnoxious to freedom.

Closer to the topic, he accepts Turkey as a democracy. It is, obviously, a disguised military dictatorship, although now in the crisis of Islam's indifference -- or worse -- toward even pretend democracy. It is unlikely Turkey will still present itself as a democracy much longer.

In several essays, Lewis writes about the Islamic view that innovation is a sin. This helps explain the deep conservatism of Islamic societies, and the Young Turks are the exception that proves the rule.

In "The Guns of August," Barbara Tuchman has a long passage on the curious indifference, even antagonism, of the Young Turks toward Anatolia's long and, at times, brilliant history. "We like new things," she quotes one of them as saying.

Yes, and the Young Turks abandoned Islam. The mass of the Turkish population has not, however, even after eight decades of experiencing the supposed benefits of new things. It would be difficult to find any Islamic political movement that likes new things, although Lewis astringently observes that some of the most reactionary -- like Khomeini -- blandly adopt Western forms when it suits them, like parliaments. When challenged, they are usually able to manufacture an Islamic justification, but there is, Lewis points out, no warrant in Islam for such a thing.

Lewis's particular merit -- among many -- is his willingness to notice the obvious. This is especially appealing in the last, most currently impressive essay (the one I quoted from), "The Middle East Crisis in Historical Perspective." But it is a characteristic virtue. In "Behind the Rushdie Affair," for example, Lewis manages to skewer not only Khomeini but a passel of Islamic jurisconsults for ignoring the very obvious violations of Islamic law in the fatwa.

This habit probably helps explain why Muslims and their apologists hate Lewis so much. This is strange, because Lewis, though not ignorant of Islam's flaws, is overall an admirer of this ancient system that once reveled "in the glorious days when Muslims led mankind in the arts and sciences of civilization."

The historical record, as I read it, does not show any such days, and at this point we are entitled to wonder whether the "ignorance, poverty and arbitrary rule" that Lewis identifies as Islam's modern flaws are not actually its necessary outcomes. Suicidal martyrs are known in Christianity and in other societies, but they are a wasting asset in every society but Islam.

We have to wonder why.

Lewis, as always, impresses; breadth of knowledge and research is typically outstanding. Flashes of good judgement, but pretentious and assertive (though mine's apparently an earlier edition: "Ideas, Men and Events...East" and he may've softened tone a touch for 2nd ed.)- and, regardless, it'd certainly be difficult to blame him for this-- the man's a thoroughbred. His philology isn't always accurate, and the spirit is truly 'orientalist' in Said's sense; nonetheless, a terribly enjoyable read and a classic source for a foundation in the subject.
ps- His Babel to Dragomans is even more impressive and should be compulsory.

Bernard Lewis is considered the foremost authority on the Middle East and has written many highly acclaimed works.

This book has 32 essays that focus on very specific topics. Each essay is presented objectively and his technical expertise and depth of knowledge is masterly.

My personal favorites in this collection are the essays on Muslim History and Historians, History and Revolution, New Idea's and lastly, the section on New Events.

Essays are designed to stand alone, however, when read consecutively as part of a section, also add further clarity as part of the larger topic.

As Professor Lewis states in the Preface to the second edition of this work, "Islam in History" is a collection of thirty-two articles on Islam. Anybody wishing to gain some understanding of this very important, very misunderstood, and very troubled civilization, should read this book. Lewis, once again, provides the reader with a magnificent work that is not pedantic but instructive, that does not belittle its subject nor its audience, and that demonstrates how necessary true scholarship is, particularly in times such as these.

The book is divided into eight parts: Western Approaches, Muslim History and Historians, Muslims and Jews, Turks and Tatars, In Black and White, History and Revolution, New Ideas, and New Events. Since this new edition dates from 1993, the recent developments in the world should not be expected. However, I really meant it when I wrote that true scholarship is necessary in our world: in the last essay of this volume, Lewis writes that there have been basically two atitudes from Muslims to confront the problems of the Islamic/Arab world (he does not deal with the East-Asian Mulims, like Indonesians and Malaysians, because he admits that he does not know much about them), divided into two questions. The first one is "What did we do wrong?" The second is "Who did this to us?" The first question leads to the search for solutions. The second question, and this deserves to be quoted at length, "leads to delusions and fantasies and conspiracy theories--indeed, the most dangerous enemies of the Muslim peoples at this time are those who assure them that in all their troubles the fault is not in themselves but in open or occult hostile forces. Such beliefs can only lead to resentment and frustration, to an endless, useless succession of bigots and tyrants and to a role in world history aptly symbolized by the suicide bomber. In the first of these questions ["What did we do wrong?], for those who have the courage to ask it, and the vision to answer, lies hope for the future and for a new dawn of Muslim creativity."

Professor Lewis wrote those lines in 1993, but they are as relevant today as if he had written them on September 12, 2001. In fact, the last number of "The Atlantic Monthly" has an article by Professor Lewis where he presents this basic premise once more, since it was true a decade ago and it is true today.

I cannot recommend Bernard Lewis's books strongly enough. This one, as all his other books that I have read, is erudite, informative, interesting, serious, entertaining and, above all, important. If you have never read anything by him, but are interested in this book, read his recent article in "The New Yorker" ("The Revolt of Islam"), and the already mentioned article in "The Atlantic." Those articles will serve as an Introduction to "Islam in History." Bernard Lewis is an extraordinary scholar, and we are lucky to have him with us.

James Joyce's "Dubliners" is a shining example of the beautifully expressive power of the English language. The book offers a compilation of short stories, each as intriguing and captivating as those that precede and follow.

To truly enjoy the remarkable magnificence of this book, it is important to first recognize the three key aspects of each story: symbolism, imagery, and character development. The first of which to be examined is the most vital, as each story of the book is enveloped and completely built upon Joyce's deep and profound symbolism, with each character also defined by the same.

We can first look upon the title character of "Eveline," for whom the lattice-work of a window represents the bars of her prison-cell, and the fading streetlights beyond depict the hope of her life dissipating in the darkness of ever-encroaching night.

Easy to recognize, the symbolism of "Dubliners" is amazingly proficient in its ability to provide a deeper insight and understanding that truly does raise this book above the stature of its otherwise common stories. Joyce's masterful use of this literary technique is then placed within simple linguistic structures that are easily identified, yet powerful and splendidly thought provoking in its very core and concept, as well as by the nature in which it is employed. The careful explication of, and adequate attention give to this symbolism is very relevant, as it is essential in achieving a greater appreciation of each story being told, the characters portrayed within, and of Joyce to entertain with each.

Wild and vivid imagery frames the story through the author's immense, yet extremely enjoyable descriptive nature. A majority of each story's progression takes place between the dialogue, which is sparse to say the least, giving ample opportunity for Joyce's spectacular, though usually dark and gloomy imagery. It is also within this narrative that the characters spring to life. Being depicted as ordinary people suffering internal conflicts, they are tightly bound to the reader through relative and universal experiences. Eloquent and poignant examples of this can be found in the title characters of both "Eveline," and "Araby."

The central characters of "Dubliners," at first glance, appear quite flat, as seen in their dialogue. But upon closer inspection, the depth of Joyce's imaginative narrative bring them round, and fully-developed. Each of these characters, in their own respective way, is brilliantly constructed through elaborate thoughts and feelings, which, ironically, display the faults, failures, and weaknesses that they bring into their personal struggles. This appears to be Joyce's unique and quite genius way of building to climax, in which the audience is forced to believe in the strength and courage of characters of which we already know them to be deficient. It is, therefore, a cleverly devised surprise when they remain weak-willed, and are lead into despair, even though this path has been clearly laid out from beginning to end. Correlations can then be drawn between these characters, and the settings of the stories in which they appear. Being the same throughout, his setting is the Irish city of Dublin, which Joyce goes out of his way to portray as bereft of light, warmth, and color.

Though Joyce's obvious theme and intent was the portrayal of the internal conflicts of common people, this subject does become redundant when replicated throughout all stories of the book, offering the one real drawback of "Dubliners."

Overall, Joyce's simplistic use of language is evocative, as it conveys complex ideas in very simple words, making it an easy read for even the least literary-minded of readers. The thought and story progression is virtually flawless, being laid out in a proper and unmistakeable order that can be widely enjoyed for both its surface-value, and its underlying literary techniques. The philosophical themes are relative to virtually anyone, making this a book well worth spending time on.

My only complete reading of Dubliners was from this version. What makes Dubliners so amenable to an annotated edition is that it is essentially an immediately accessible work of fiction - Joyce's only (the Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man being slightly trickier). Why are annotations so crucial to this work? The multiple place and character references make up a significant portion of these stories: Without a knowledge of the settings you're left with the virtuoso, stand-alone, psychological complexities of Joyce's style.

For example, Margaret Mary Allicott. Passing reference is made to her in Dubliners; Buck Mulligan refers to her also in Ulysses as "Margaret Mary ANYcock". Without annotations, what can you make of that? Who was she? The annotated Dubliners points out that she was a figure of considerable religious veneration in Dublin at the turn of the century. Icons of her graced many Irish homes. Seeking sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church, she would drink only dirty washwater and eat only the pus from her numerous sores. This gives some idea of the crudity of public ideas of morality at the time. The annotation permits you to enjoy not only the bizarre Irish Zeitgeist but also appreciate the Buck's nasty pun. This is just one example of the value of annotations for this work. You can easily imagine that the instances are numerous, and that the pictures included throughout this annotated Dubliners also breathe life into the stories.

Most of all, if you like Joyce's fiction, this is a fun copy. And remember, these stories were originally read by people who *did* understand the numerous references and allusions. My experience of Dubliners is that this is the only truly readable version. Enjoy these heartwarming yarns of a city's moral and psychological twilight: Paralysis, disillusionment, collapse.

Marvelous work.

The voluminous notes gave me a richer understanding of this work. The book is beautfully laid out and much easier to read than other "annotated" books. I wish the author's would tackle ULYSSES next.

I found several copies of the book, new and unused, for sale at Heffers bookstore in Cambridge, UK.

The drawings, photographs, and newspaper clippings provide a first hand sense of what Joyce's Dublin was like then. Like a mail order fountain pen, whose newspaper advertisement from Christmas 1903 is reproduced in the book. Maybe Gabriel Conroy bought one. I've never used a fountain pen - to me the advertisement is a subtle reminder of how distant Joyce's Dublin is from us now.

Warning - It's tempting to spend more time reading the notes and annotations than reading Joyce himself.

This in one of my favorite texts. I refer to its relevant chapter each time I start teaching English to a student with a primary language I've never encountered before. Predictions this book makes about common problems that may be encountered by the learner are right on the mark. I'd feel lost without my "Learner English" book!

If you have a desire to understand errors associated with English language learners that come from various cultural backgrounds, then this is the book for you!

This book is an asset to understanding which aspects of English may cause students from various L1 backgrounds the most trouble. Excellent for a multicultural classroom.

This is an amazingly thorough resource that explains different problems different learner groups have with English. The books is organized by language group (Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish, etc.) so that you can easily look up your area of interest. Each chapter covers phonology, orthography, grammar, vocabulary, culture, writing/translation issues, and more. Each EFL teacher should have a copy of this book, to help him/her understand his/her students better, and it would be great for EFL students to have a copy too, so they can more readily see their pattern of errors.

The only thing missing is some kind of section on exercises to do to correct the errors. You'll have to go to another book for that.

I used this book so much that I wore it out! I had to get it re-binded. I needed this book for just about every course I took in Labor
Studies. It is a great reference book to have.

I first purchased this book two years ago. I have used it in every labor studies class that I have taken and I wouldn't dream of not using it. The definitions are precise and clear. I feel so strongly about this book that I recently purchased another copy for my Local Union President. This book is a must have.

For 12 bucks, no one could find a more rich, and most important, more concise compendium of the American labor movement and American labor at work. Murray et. al. have done a service to everyone with this thoughtful, experienced addition to the record of American toilers.

This book has a lot of history and definitions included. Awsome book. Every worker should know the struggle labor has indured.