Bernard Books

I've listened to all of Bernard Cornwell's Saxon series in audiobook format (and read them in hardcover, too) and this is the best of them all. Richard Armitage's reading is vastly superior to the other narrators (Tom Sellwood, Jamie Glover, and Gerard Doyle). Mr. Armitage is a master storyteller. His narration does not sound like the book is being read (as it sometimes does in the other versions) -- it's being performed -- no, it's lived. The pacing is impressive -- calm and contemplative when required, intense and passionate for the action sequences. He adds just the right level of humor (sometimes wry but without too much sarcasm) which is sorely lacking in the other audiobooks.

Mr. Armitage's range of voices and accents is astonishing. He's lucky to have such flexible vocal chords to be able to go high enough yet gentle for the women and children and never sounds false or forced. Hild, Gisela and Thyra are particularly wonderful, exuding patience, passion and rage. I lost count of the number of male voices he created but the range is stunning -- some very bass, some very tenor -- age, class and region all incorporated so smoothly that at times I forgot that one person was creating them all. Every voice, even the least incidental ones, has a distinct character.

It's a shame that Amazon doesn't sell this version but you can get it through audiobookcollection{.com}. This company is in the UK but they do ship overseas. I truly hope that Mr. Armitage will be available to record an unabridged version of Sword Song, the next book in the series.

This is a favorite from my own childhood and has now become the same for my own children. The very curious fish, Lorezo, explores the ocean with his large family, and one day his curiousity causes him to fall behind. He must learn how to fend for himself as he searchs the sea for his family. The illustations are drawn in a way that encourages the child to find Lorenzo within the pages where he is hidden among his fellow fish, the other fish, and his environs. Your children will enjoy being read this one again and again!

8000 años de historia en 255 paginas no es muy creíble pero el autor lo ha logrado de una manera muy condensada dándole importancia a los hechos mas conocidos de este pueblo tan admirado por su Historia Antigua como por su importancia después de los atentados del 11 de sept.

Se aborda los inicios de Egipto con la ayuda de varios mapas los cuales son muy útiles para seguir la narrativa del autor, desde sus orígenes la importancia del Nilo para Egipto a sido primordial, un país que esta abierto a cuadro mundos; por el sur, a África Nilotica; por el norte, al espacio mediterráneo; por el este, a Oriente Próximo y al mar Rojo, y por el oeste, a las inmensidades saharianas.

He disfrutado mucho la lectura de este libro pero creo que autor debió de abordar con mas profundidad algunos periodos como el siglo XIX(es el capitulo VIII de 1801 a 1914) la Conquista Francesa de 1798 se le da un capitulo, el incidente entre Francia y Inglaterra por Fashoda esta muy bien abordado ya que gracias a este pequeño problema entre dos Naciones Imperialistas se le dio mano libre a los Ingleses sobre Egipto y Francia renuncio a sus pretensiones Históricas a cambio de Marruecos y el apoyo contra Alemania, si esta tratara de protestar por la conquista del Norte de África.

No puedo olvidar mencionar el buen trabajo que hizo con los capítulos dedicados al Periodo Mameluco el cual es muy difícil conseguir información en Español al respecto además de la conquista Árabe(se incluye una pequeña genealogía de la Familia del Profeta Muhammad)

También debió de abordar con un poco mas de profundidad la Rebelión del Mahdi o mejor conocida como la Rebelión de los Dervishes para los Británicos, el autor describe de una manera muy interesante el Egipto moderno, de la caída del Imperio Otomano hasta 1999, pasando por las guerras Árabe-Israelí y de manera rápida la Crisis del Canal de Suez.

Este libro te ayudara a conocer mejor a Egipto y su pueblo pero 8000 años de historia en un solo tomo es mi parecer muy difícil pero si queremos adentrarnos en Egipto de una manera rápida y sintetizado este es el libro que tal ves te pueda ayudar. Muy Recomendado.

This is tremendous work of Poems that seem to speak your soul- Taking you into your past- Helping you see your present and to look forward to your future. Mr. Briggs builds wonderful visions in your mind and warms your heart. I recommend this collection of poems to everyone who loves the magic of a wordsmith who can write what you feel. From love to fun! It is also appreciated as a gift for friends and family who enjoy reading poetry and for those who are new to the craft. A unique masculine point of view.

This is our first (and favorite) Lyle book. It is a cute story, enjoyable for the whole family. Of course, it has a happy ending, and Lyle is the hero. Although it is rather long, my 2 1/2 year old has memorized it, and knows if I miss a word. I highly recommend it. We can't wait to get started with the other Lyle books, and hope that they are as good.

St. Bernard's prose style in these four magnificent homilies aspires to the beauty and mystery of its own subject: Mary, Queen of Heaven. The homilies contained in this tiny 60+ page book could be described as efflusive theological songs. Almost every other word out of St. Bernard's mouth comes from the pages of Scripture. As the handy introduction of this particular printing notes- Bernard is of course associated with the full flowering of Marian devotion of the twelfth century but it should not be an exlusive bond in comparison with other popular Marian devotion or with the entire corpus of Bernard's work.
Theologically these Homilies have value in their skill and beauty of incorporating the Scriptural typological understanding of Mary as a whole. Bernard is not here proving that Mary is the Ark of the New Covenant he is espousing that self-evident fact. But I find that these meditations are perfect for devotional reading and even prayer. They are homlies that are perhaps only secondarily adressed to the reader but often seem to be adressed to Mary herself.
Overall this book is a welcome addition to your devotional shelf and also a jewel in the crown of Marian literature- both devotional and theological. Highly recommended for slow and meditative reading.

The catalogue for a comprehensive exhibition at the Jeu de Paume in Paris held in 2003, this book is a very good, well-documented, well-illustrated study of this ubiquitous Belgian artist who has inspired so many contemporary artists and publicists. There is quite a lot of material available on Magritte and I would say this one is one of the safest bets. Daniel Abadie is a leading French modern art historian and curator and his signature is a token of quality.

This is just a SUPER book! There are great photos of Mks I, II, III, and IV and of their componants, great material on Aiken, and this book imparts a lot of the feeling of the time. You get the feeling that if you were there, in Aiken's shoes, you'd have done things the same way - there were reasons for the use of relays as basic computing elements for instance. There's a great chapter by Grace Hopper, "Why The Mark I Is My Favorite Computer" and chapters on construction, programing, and so on. The book makes clear that Aiken was a man who believed in rolling up his sleeves and building a working machine that could be used, rather than, like Charles Babbage, just dreaming and never getting anything built. This made all the difference in the world; keep in mind that Babbage was the last person to try building a large general purpose calculator, and his failure kept the whole field in stasis for close to a hundred years. Aiken had a score to settle, and he settled it all right.

Dr. Brock's political analysis of language across the political spectrum is an interesting study of the impact of rhetoric as it defines political issues and political parties. Warranting his argument though timely topics and the way in which perception is created through labels and symbolism, the book begins to illuminate the differences inherent to our uniquely centrist dominant political parites and their more radical or reactionary fringes. Most importantly, the book presents an insightful explanation of the pendulum upon which our political parties swing, and the symbolic language signifying the change that is before us. If you are interested in politics, the study of political rhetoric and language, and an incredibly accessible analysis of these issues, Brock's last work is well worth the read.

When I read part of this book to my writers' group, they howled with laughter. If you should read it alone in a darkened room, it might be a significantly different experience. These stories are powerful, though I'd recommend avoiding the sections after which the book is named, the book should absolutely not be out of print, and Kenneth Bernard is without peer. He's like William Vollman in that no one can write like him, although he uses one word to ten thousand of Vollman's. Demand the book be in print, stage a sit-in, well, steal something if it seems a good idea. This book if you can find it.