Blair Books

Absolution is an interesting novel which reads almost like a detective story, and it sometimes rises above that characterization. Its depiction of a couple active in the peace movement during the Viet Nam era, living in a modest apartment with little privacy, and then the subsequent jailing of the woman is first rate. Its account of the background to a Viet Nam war incident was unlike any other account I have read of that war.

Unfortunately, for the most part I was not very involved with Maggie, the protagonist; nor did I emotionally engage with Richard's tragedy. For a woman who rebelled against her upbringing, and was willing to violate her marriage vows, Maggie is inordinately sensitive to what other people will think. For a man who plays such a major role in the plot, Ev receives very little real attention. Finally, there was an awful lot of plot concentrated in the last few pages.

"Absolution" is superb. It's a wonderful and unusual combination of compelling story and character analysis that is extremely deep and thought provoking. I knew at a certain point I'd have to keep reading to finish it, no matter how late at night, and that's what happened.

The book captures so well the epistemological and ethical limits in which we humans inevitably live, whether in the wartime of Vietnam or the United States of today.

This is brilliant, wonderful writing. The book is superb.

Miriam Herin's "Absolution" is rich in everything that makes a novel a gripping, good read. Herin skillfully weaves a mystery that centers on a widow's struggle to find the truth behind her husband's violent death. It's a journey of the mind, winding its way through her husband's devastating past in Vietnam, the anti-war movement in the United States, and the swirling intricacies of lives steeped in both. Herin's characters are intriguing, her insight into grief and mending comfortingly real.

"Absolution" is a great story and interesting on so many levels including the era, the setting and the spiritual and psychological undertones. It is one of those books that makes me sad when I come to the end, because I want the story to continue. A must read for anyone who came of age in the 60s or who wants to understand the era.

I liked this book. The story is well written and full of enough suspense to keep you wanting to read on to find out what will happen next. I didn't want to put the book down once I had started to read it. It reveals some of the difficulties of the Vietnam War and the way it changed lives. It shows how we sometimes don't know each other as well as we think we do.

This is the best introductory text I've read. I like it much better than Durbin, and it's easier to read than Herstein (though Herstein is still a great book!). The author takes a lot of time explaining proofs in the beginning. Over time, they leave more to the reader. The exercises are bountiful, and I often find a few interesting ones in each section. I highly recommend this text to anyone interested in higher mathematics. It's very thorough, yet very readable.

This book has some nice proofs in it (though, disappointingly, many key results are "left as an exercise"), and some nice diagrams as well, but it is way too light on methodology. Unless you're blessed with brilliance, inpiration, and limitless free time, avoid this book. I've read many chapters two or three times over and still cannot apply what I've learned to the problems at the end of the chapter. In that respect, this book fails as a student textbook. It is concise enough to serve as a reference, but doesn't offer much for someone who is genuninely interested in the subject but doesn't already know everything.

This excellent book was my textbook for 2 semesters of senior level abstract algebra. The unique feature of this book is that elementary number theory, equivalence relations, and permutations are carefully introduced at the beginning. Other books launch right into groups and then have to make long digressions to cover these topics. Comparing this book to the best-selling Contemporary Abstract Algebra by Joseph Gallian, I like that Gallian's book adds many applications which students will find interesting. However, Beachy and Blair's book puts a greater emphasis on developing student's ability to do proofs. The book also incorporates more number theory than many other texts. Answers to selected problems are included, so I recommend this book for self study as well as a textbook for any undergraduate abstract algebra course.

In trying to teach students algebra, I tried to use this book to teach them from, but I found that all the concepts were introduced at what is seemingly high school level. I think that a moderate high school student (with some curiosity) could teach himself the basics of algebra with this book. As an undergraduate text, though, it is way too slow and way too elementary.

Not only is the best book I have seen on Abstract Algebra, this is the best mathematics book I own. I have used it as a suppliment while studying, in research, and in teaching. It is clear and readable. The authors also have a wonderful web site with scores of resources on the subject.

Although it helps to know the characters I don't think it matters. True local history is always fun to read about. I loved the interviews and direct quotes. Always remember when you read this that there are always several sides to the same story.

I am from a similar area off the coast of Georgia and I found this book somewhat informative. However, given the credit for all of the background research, I still found it shallow, long and disappointing.

If you are looking for a place to step back into time ...you will have arrived! Charles Seabrook brings to you a special path of so much beauty and history that you can simply feel yourself slipping back as if you are actually standing beneath
the massive, sheltering arms of one of hundreds of arching
oaks that canopy one of many small, dirt lanes. As you continue chapter to chapter, you respect the island more and more in the physical sense, as well as practically standing beside some of the characters that are described. You begin to love the island in the same fashion that so many before you have. You see, I grew up along the Georgia coast and until recently, never realized the history that has unfolded on this cherished island. I cannot wait to set out on a camping trip to really spend some time and discover the multitude of treasures that abide there!

I would give this book 10 stars if I could. This is an amazing wealth of history and information about one of my most favorite places on the planet. For anyone who loves Cumberland Island, as anyone who has ever visited there does, this is a must read.
This book reads well and has all of the "insider" information and juicy tidbits that you could possibly want. Buy it, read it.........you won't be sorry!

What a wonderful book. It was not only a great history of Cumberland Island and the Carnege Family, but was very entertaining as well. Having been raised on an island near the salt marsh, I found the author's descriptions of the island taking me back in time to when I was a child. I sure hope Mr. Seabrook continues to write. He has a wonderful command of the English language.

This book has very potent and inspiring information that is practical for everyday use. The author has an entertaining, conversational style which makes the book a joy to read. If you would like to improve any aspect of your life, simply follow his wisdom!

I continue to be amazed at how practical and accessible the author makes the insights contained in this MUST HAVE book. As a person sincerely interested in exploring all that life has to offer I am so grateful to have finally found a book that connects the dots between the esoteric teachings of the east and a much needed common sense approach to applying those ancient teachings to today's world.

The ideas in this book seem nice enough on the surface, but at the same time quite out of step with reality. Yes, happiness is great, but there is more to life than this. The book contains nothing new, and in my option, may lead people in the wrong direction. Not worth the money. If you're sick or not happy, you won't find anything lasting here. The author seems to enjoy "listing" to the sound of his own words too much. Maybe the happiest I got reading this book was when I used it to cover my eyes as it put me to sleep.

As a current medical student, I've just found the addendum to the medical school curriculum I've been searching for! After reading The Happiness Revolution, I have be shown a completely new framework upon which the rest of my own life and education will be laid--a framework that involves more emphasis on understanding the entirety of the human being; more efficient ways of achieving optimal health through such simple things as diet, sleep, meditation, and holistic medicine (to name but a few); and most importantly, a clearer picture of what it is that we are all striving for in our careers, family lives, hobbies, and each and every other aspect of our lives: happiness. This book is a truly integrative and innovative guide to living with purpose and joy!

Blair Lewis presents a complete program for living a fulfilling life. From diet to exercise, sleep to contemplation to self-transformation and emotional mastery, he covers it all. Best of all, each chapter includes an action plan to put theory into dynamic practice.

I gave it 3 stars, but it's really more like 3.5 stars. I did not feel justified in giving it 4. It's an interesting twist on the plot, and the characters are likeable enough. It is a bit light in the romance department, sometimes slow, and the resolution of the young niece too easy. Still it's pleasant and interesting enough to be recommended for a light read and to consider reading this author again.

Miss Abigail "Abby" Todd was twenty-eight years old. In America she was the owner and headmistress of her own school for young ladies in Boston. The grandmother she had never known had lived in England and was named Miss Clarissa Beaupré, née Bivens.

Upon Clarissa's death, Abby was summoned to her grandmother's home, Arbor Cottage. Upon arrival, Abby was to complete a series of tasks before claiming her inheritance. Mrs. Hannah Greaves went along as her counselor and companion for the long journey.

Clarissa had been known as "La Grande Clarissa, courtisane extraordinaire"! Even knowing she had been his late father's mistress, Jared had fond memories of her. He had often visited Clarissa while he grew simply because she treated him as a son instead of as a member of the snobbish Ton. Because of this, he agreed to Clarissa's request for him to help Abby with her tasks when the time arrived.

***** Jared Verney, Earl of Langley, and Miss Abigail Todd clashed almost immediately. After a truce (sort of) they did each task ... well, not smoothly, let me just say that Miss Clarissa made sure the couple had some adventures. The author, Blair Bancroft, is beyond awesome! I am hoping that Jared's brother, Myles, will get his own story in the near future.

Even though Clarissa was deceased, the author was able to develop the character's personality. This shows the author's talent in her writing field. Highly recommended reading! *****

The idea of this book was great. The hero and heroine have to complete a number of tasks set out by the heroine's grandmother in her will. The grandmother was a noted courtesan, whose patron was the earl's grandfather. There are some interesting tasks, with a clever treasure hunt. My major problem was that I didn't feel that enough time was spent developing what the hero and heroine saw in each other, and why they grew to love each other. The writing was good, and it was an interesting slice of regency life, but I wanted more character development and more romance. I liked this book, but didn't love it, because it didn't really touch my emotions. I do think that the author showed a lot of potential, and I would try her future books.

This is a fun story that follows not only the budding romance between the hero and heroine but an intriguing mystery as well. The interaction between the two main characters was realistic and never reached levels of silliness or contrivance. Their conflict was solid, and it was great to watch the barriers erode slowly through the book. I do hope Myles's story will be next! You'll really enjoy this one!

Miss Abigail Todd, owner and headmistress of her own school in Boston, goes to England (the enemy in her eyes)to recieve an inheritance from her distant relative. What she finds when she gets there is far more than a simple cottage that she expected. She finds a huge house, a treasure hunt of sorts left by her paternal grandmother, and an incredibly hansome next door neighboor known as Jared Verney, Earl of Langley. It turns out that in order to have the cottage, Abby must fulfill a number of commissions left to her by her grandmother who was the spitting image of Abby herself and the mistress of the old (2 generations old) earl. OH and she must take Jared (the present Earl) with her on everyone of these commissions.

Jared wants the cottage back from this American. But Abby isn't at all what he expected her to be. Old and ugly this lady is not. With her grandmothers looks she turns many heads, including Jareds. So what is a man to do when a girl like this is dropped into his lap? Follow her on her commissions and help her in any way possible, all while trying to woo her subtly at the same time...But can he win her heart over to English soil when she still has such a life over in America? We all know love works in mysterious ways...

Ok first off I juat want to say that I would actually rate this like 3 1/2 to 3 3/4 stars. It was pretty good but there were many times when I just got bored with it and it seemed to slow down too much.

The commissions Abby and Jared are given are well thought out and funny at times, but I thought they should've fallen in love a little more quickly than they did. The secondary characters are great! Myles, Jared's brother, is a great character and the reader sees him grow a lot during the novel. And Abby's companion Hannah adds a lot of life to the book too.

Overall this wasn't a bad read. It just had a couple slow points to it. I would still recommend it to many of you. And this will NOT be the last of Blair Bancroft that I read...

This book allows us to share , in a powerful manner , the lives of the men and women who risk their lives aboard submarines. It is a remarkable compilation of chronological facts , a history of submarines , if you will , accompanied by a treasure trove of phptographs , paintings , and technical illustrations, which will, to say the least, satisfy both our curiosity , and stimulate our imagination .An astonishing accomplisment in such a small volume.

This book commences with a foreword by Dr Bob Ballard and contains examples of the artwork by Ken Marschall found within some of Ballard's own books. With such credentials, I began reading the work with great expectations. Overall, it is a good read and some readers will probably learn something they did not previously know. The question is whether or not we can trust what is written!

What is lacking is the correct detail of the subject in hand. In short, this author seeks to get away with a peripheral overview of some of the world's greatest submarine stories. It is only when the reader comes across a specific subject he knows well (in my case, the loss of HMS Royal Oak in 1939) that we find far too many errors. Prien never claimed to have sunk HMS Repulse. It is a well-established fact he never mentioned the Repulse at any time - not even in his log. During his first attack on the Royal Oak, Prien aimed one torpedo to pass in front of the Battleship's bows to strike another vessel moored in the far distance. That torpedo, however, struck the Royal Oak's anchor chains and exploded. When he mounted his second attack, therefore, Prien was genuinely under the impression he had sunk that distant vessel - which he had not identified.

On his return to Germany, it was the Goebbels and Nazi propaganda machine that put a name to that other ship and publicly announced Prien had sunk both the Royal Oak and the Repulse. This was because the Repulse had been photographed moored in Scapa Flow a few days before Prien's attack and was missing from the post-attack photographs. What the German high command did not know, however, was that HMS Repulse had sailed for Rosyth for a refit where she arrived at 0946 hrs on the day Prien entered Scapa Flow. That ship in the distance, incidentally, was HMS Pegasus.

On the up side, the artwork, photographs and readability all score well. On the down side, my problem is that perennial complaint about accuracy of information. If the details pertaining to the attack on HMS Royal Oak are incorrect (and there are more errors!), then it is difficult to trust anything written elsewhere. Quite frankly, this book might just as well be categorised under "fiction." Altogether, I was left with the indelible impression this author seeks to include the names of more established (and more reliable) authors in a bid to give false credibility to his own work.

NM

From the Civil War submarine Hunley through the 2000 sinking of the Russian submarine Kursk, this 176-page medium format book has eight chapters about the loss and subsequent discovery or recovery of several famous American, Russian German, Japanese, British, Australian and Israeli submarines. By far the best feature of the book is the large quantity of well-reproduced paintings and photographs. There are terrific paintings depicting nighttime images of the CSS Hunley stalking the USS Housatonic in Charleston Harbor in 1864 and dramatic paintings of German U-Boats stalking their prey in the stormy WWI-WWII Atlantic. The most unique and haunting images are underwater photographs of sea growth-encrusted submarines taken on research and archeological expeditions around the world. There is a small bibliography, list of relevant websites and source for each reproduced painting or photo.

I recommend this book. While not providing full details on any of these famous incidents (virtually all the submarines are the topic of at least one full book and numerous articles) this book is a good overview for anyone interested in naval and submarine history. It makes a photographic/painting supplement for the more demanding submarine researcher or buff.

Lost Subs isn't heavy-duty history by anyone's standards. Skimming lightly over material covered more completely in scholarly books, Lost Subs allows its pictures to do the heavy lifting, and what a wise choice that is! Lavishly illustrated, Lost Subs covers wrecked boats of every era, and provides limited, but relevent background on each era along with discussion of the individual wrecks. Drawings, paintings, and photos bring to ghostly life boats both famous and obscure.

To this former submariner, this book feels more like a tour of historic graveyards, complete with color commentary on the 'lives, times, and families' of the deceased boats, than it does academic 'History.' All submariners fear ending their lives on the bottom of the sea, though we don't discuss it much. This book shows another side to such an fate, in the remembrance of those who come after. These boats, these gravestones in the deep, punctuate and anchor that remembrance.

If you want scholarly depth, or stirring stories of war, go elsewhere. If you want to remember the lost or reflect on the fate of the men who trusted their lives to the deep, then Lost Subs is the book for you.

If you are looking for a quick overview of the history of submarines and submarine disasters, "Lost Subs" provides several hours of interesting reading.

The book describes the historical development of the submarine, from Bushnell's Turtle and Fulton's Nautilus, through the Hunley, the Holland, and the U-boats of the two World Wars, and on to the nuclear boats of the Cold War. The text is filled with photographs of submarine wreckage and rescue efforts, dramatic paintings of submarines at sea, and diagrams showing how sumarines work. Especially interesting is a detailed recreation of the CSS Hunley's pyrrhic victory against the hapless USS Housatonic during the American Civil War, together with some interesting speculation about why the Hunley sank after its successful attack.

The book's main weakness is that it surveys a big field that has been thoroughly covered in other works. If you enjoy digging into the details, this book may disappoint you. But if you like your maritime narratives to be accompanied by dramatic and often moving photographs and paintings, "Lost Subs" will be a very enjoyable adventure.

If you would like to explore the subject in more detail, try:
Peter Hutchhausen, "Hostile Waters" (a near catstrophe when a Soviet boomer experiences a missile tube failure);
Brayton Harris "The Navy Times Book of Submarines: A Political, Social and Military History" (everything you always wanted to know about the history of submarines, from the 1620s on)
Edwin Gray, "Few Survived: A History of Submarine Disasters" (the title says it all)
John Craven, "The Silent War: The Cold War Battle Beneath the Sea"
Sontag & Drew, "Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage" (hard to put down)
Hicks & Kropf, "Raising the Hunley: The Remarkable History and Recovery of the Lost Confederate Submarine"

For thirty years now, a new kind of astronomy called "state of gravitational wave" has been taking place as we get ready to "listen" to what is out there. Gravitational waves are "ripples in space time." These infinte waves when they do happen will not disturb the placement of objects in four-dimensional space time (what we live in), but they may change the distance between them by stretching space time itself in one direction while compressing it in the other. Einstein predicted this in 1916 in his general theory of relativity.

Now, in LSU Physics Department, the mathematicians and physists (college instructors, not astronomers) have built LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory. First, they used ALLEGRO to listen since 1991 but as yet no sound has come forth, to show us that there is indeed some intelligent species besides our own. In ALLEGRO, they used liquid nitrogen (77 degrees K) which can burn out pre-cancers but leave behind masses of scar tissue on a human's face. The second chamber used liquid helium (4.2 degrees K, the lowest temperature possible in nature).

The two LIGO detectors sensitive to different frequencies are waiting to hear the sound like a big, low-pitched bird. The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LIGO) is the latest in technology which will track three spacecraft orbiting the sun in formation. The gravitational wave detector outside Baton Rouge, Louisiana, will fliter out noise as it waits for the subtle shiver of a gravitational wave passing by.

These waves carry information about extreme astronomical processes now unknowable any other way. NASA and the European Space Agency are working together for an experiment with LISA in 2014. Astronomers have observed indirect evidence of this phenonenom with two white dwarf stars circling each other. As they spiral inward they will fuse into a single mass. We are eagerly awaiting ET as the changes in gravitational fields send shudders across the universe.

Thirty years of research and expensive equipment worldwide, but no evidence of what we are waiting or looking for. Maybe soon, if ET decides to come back to Earth. In the meantime, we wait and wonder.

To the publisher I would appreciate it if the publisher could produce an audio adaptation of this book. I would love to listen to this while I drive to work and to let my 16 month old son listen to it as a bedtime story. Arnold D Veness

Overall this is an excellent treatment of a little considered but intriguing problem of physical theory, the direct observation of gravitational waves. Such waves seem to be demanded by Einstein's gravitational theory, general relativity, but, as gravity is by far the weakest of the fundamental forces, it is a phenomenon that presents great difficulty in terms of direct detection. In trying a little too hard to build interest in their thesis, the authors conjure a small blunder early on, but once they 'get down to business' the book unfolds as an exceptionally well-told story. The first chapter blunder is not particularly important to the thesis and many readers won't even notice it, so I'll return to it only as a closing thought, and only in the interest of defending science from misleading oversimplifications.

Paul Davies' foreword and the authors' prologue should not be missed, and when Blair and McNammara hit their stride, discussing the gravitational curiosities that are quite commonplace in our universe -- supernovae, black holes, white dwarfs, and neutron stars, especially pulsars which lend themselves so well to close mathematical examination -- the text is outstanding. The discussion of the processes that produce these objects is a real page-turner as is the examination of the objects themselves: A densely massive binary pulsar traveling at one-sixth the speed of light! Emitting the gravitational wave 'luminosity' of a hundred thousand galaxies! Talk about energy! If we could examine the gravitational wave spectrum, what kind of information might we glean? No one knows, but Blair and others want to. The text does become less interesting in protracted discussions of the mechanics and sensitivities of instruments employed in the search for gravitational waves and the myriad technical difficulties and challenges involved.

Okay, about that blunder: In a first chapter derision of "lies" taught "at school," the authors lament that students are taught "lies" about the correct nature of space-time, as opposed to other areas of scientific interest in which schools are said to teach "the truth." With uncharacteristic carelessness it is said that we are taught "the truth" about "the solar system," about "atoms," and about the biological "evolution of species." As a matter of sober epistemological integrity, such cavalier statements create an unwarranted mess. How can we teach "the truth" about the solar system if we are teaching "lies" about space-time?! Is "the truth" about atoms the so-called objective particles of the standard model or, are "particles" really field oscillations, the vibration patterns of string/M theory? Are "atoms" classical physical objects or pragmatic mathematical abstractions of 'something' rather 'immaterial'? Is "the truth" about biological evolution "the truth" of C. Darwin, "the truth" of L. Margulis, or "the truth" of S. Kaufmann? Is "the truth" of the evolution of species what R. Dawkins believes it to be, or is it what S.J. Gould argues, or is it what S.C. Morris thinks? Although each is held to be an 'authority', they do disagree. Strongly disagree. What a mess the authors create with just a couple of reckless sentences! If we must claim that we teach scientific "truths" we should do so cautiously, even tentatively (see R. Feynman). If we must call some things 'scientific truths' we should at the least restrict ourselves to what R. Penrose has wisely called our 'Superb' theories, as opposed to those that are merely 'Useful' or 'Tentative.' Superb theories are mathematically fertile, general relativity being an excellent example. There are only a handful of 'Superb' scientific theories and all fall strictly within the categories of mathematical physics. "The truth" of biological theories, such as the evolution of species for example, is unclear, and is at best an inductive or pragmatic version of "truth" and not a rigorous, mathematical "truth." (If biology has any theory that might advance beyond being 'Useful,' it is mathematical genetics.)

Anyway, once they've escaped the temptation toward bellicose grandiosities, the authors proceed to do a pretty good job. For those who might read and enjoy this book, I recommend a somewhat similar but even better book by cosmologist George Smoot, 'Wrinkles in Time.'

I too would have appreciated a glossary. Also illustrations would have been very helpful along with the explainations and descriptions of the various instruments used to attempt to detect gravity.

This book would have greatly benifited from the inclusion of a glossary. Any work covering a subject this complex needs definitions set out and collected together. The publisher's given web site was unavailable.

Good little story about a magical economic takeover, both of the bad sides wanting the resources, and one fighter stuck between, and having to deal with two catgirls in the meantime.

Overall, I would rate this one a pleasant surprise. Too often, I've found these graphic-erotica books to contain a pretty cover drawing but then inside it's all raunchy XXX-porn. That's not the case with this one! The elf girls are very pretty, and their Katmite slave girls are very attractive as well. There's a lesbian-theme throughout this book which I found to be really hot. On the negative side, it's to-be-continued, with only the first part of an apparently long story told. Will I purchase book two? Most definitely!

First off, some people need to be able to know what is and isn't an elf. Pointed ears usually means the character is an elf. Round ears, they aren't.

Sapphire and the other female forest warriors aren't elves. They make the point that the elves are a race they try to protect.

Be warned that this volume is a bit more explicit then the first volume! And it ends on a cliffhanger. Wonder when this series will continue.

Sapphire is on a quest to get her Katmite (catgirl) side kick. But when she get there two trolls try to steal her companion. when she's done she leaves with 2 Katmites and returns home for orders. And her orders are to look for a sister that is long over due from her last job.

Very good drawings and very hot.

Adult graphic novel in color. Fantasy series with much nudity.

Female warrior Elves guard the "Forest Heart." One of the elves has turned evil and must be stopped.

The book opens with the new warrior Sapphire battling Orcs on a bridge leading to the sacred cave where the Katmites (cat-like females, bonded to the elves) are hatched. The Orcs desire to capture some Katmites for themselves, to play with and sacrifice.

This book is stronger than its sequel.

The series has violence, bondage, sex and full-color graphics. The characters are well drawn, though the books are rather short. Overall, an interesting series (there is at least one sequel).

This book is written by 4-time nobel prize nominated author Assia Djebar, who combines the wonderful poetic tradition of her native Algerian Arabic in a story translated from the French, that not only gives us a picture of modern Algerian women and what their lives can be like, but has literary allusions that pervade through out (though they may not be obvious to all readers). Regardless of how literary a person may be, this story has an ending that is completely unpredictable and yet completes this story and connects the literary themes employed exquisitely.
Does it help to be familiar with Algerian history and Arabic tradition? Absolutely, but is not necessary.

Is it a feminist book? Yes.

Is it controversial? Djebar has received death threats and has been exiled from her own country.

Will Djebar win the Nobel Prize? I think so, eventually.

Is it a good read? Well, other than the fact that the prose is so beautiful it flows like honey, that's for you to decide.

Enjoy this book, but don't expect it to be anything even close to ordinary.
W.M.

I thought this book was pretty good. It is a story that follows two women, both wives of the same man. When Hajila sees an "unveiled woman," she too, wants a life "beyond the veil." This book does a good job of describing some of the traditional restraints placed on these women, and how they work to escape them.

Djebar's first work to be published simultaneously in French and English in Paris and London, attesting to her global reputation as a post-colonial writer. It would seem that the stronger feminist message in this work resulted in a stereotyped approach to women in Algeria, although Djebar also subverted these Western preconceptions by indicating that modern women suffer from their own gendered problems.

This was my first book by an Algerian author. I found it, hard to say, kind of impressionistic writing, where subjective feelings and thoughts that occur at the spur of the moment count more than actual description. The main characters appear in the story as "I" and "you" and "the man". This no-name-man was married to both women, and the only time he appears in the story is when he calls on the wife to come to bed. The women, meanwhile, are described wandering aimlessly in the town, pondering to take off the veil or not, or worrying about her child who is with the other woman now. I kept waiting for something to happen, for some solution in the hardly existing plot,but... The whole book left me feeling uncomfortable and empty, maybe this was the intention of the author. Anyway, I think, I will stick to Fatima Mernissi in future, much more human and entertaining too.

About life in front of and behind the veil, this book presents a compelling read: the body becomes the battleground for men and women to take ownership of their own bodies, and in some ways, consequently their own minds. I was considering this book for a world literature class, but the sex scenes are a little risque for 10th grade. However, those scenes are not gratutious--they have their place in this book. Perhaps, however, not for 15 year olds, just yet. Djebar writes the book in both first person narrative and directive narrative (second person)--what results is that we're inside the head of one woman and the commanding voyeur with the other. Djebar makes us uncomfortable looking in and directing a woman who clearly wants to escape such structures. What we're left with is an uncomfortable with our positions, but the wiser for having become uncomfortable. A great read! Well worth it.

The most easy to use, comprehensive course available

Go from beginning to advanced levels in one course

Speak the language, not just pass the test

Puzzles, games stories, and music

Activities for all types of learners

No boring rote memorization

You-are-there adventures

Memory aids

Diglot weaves

This course really works. I've wanted to learn a foreign language for a while, and I'm glad I found this. The first lesson starts out:

"It's just before dawn. You and your companion are intelligence officers assigned to parachute onto Isla de Providencia, a tiny island in the western Caribbean. It has been seized by invaders from an unknown place of origin. Your mission is to discover why this tiny island was singled out for capture. What is there on the island that is of such value? A submarine is to pick you up in ten days at midnight at the north point of the island."

The people on the island speak Spanish. As you continue you meet people who help you to learn the language. You do Puzzles, games stories, and music etc. etc. And then it reads "The adventure continues" and tells you what happens next. For example the invaders are searching the area so you are told to go into a basement to hide and are given a note that says:

"Hidden on esta isla is a treasure of great value, one that may give wealth and fame. The invaders seek this treasure to steal it. The invaders do not know the location to this treasure. Since knowledge of its location is closely tied to and understanding of the Spanish language and culture, chances art that they will not fid it. Hidden in this room is una mapa that will help you in your search for the treasure. To learn the location lf el mapa, complete the puzzle that begins on the next page."

After you finish then "The adventure continues"

Power Glide is a comprehensive Language program. There's a mystery story throughout the program, which gives clues on speaking the language. Much of it you must figure out yourself, but that only makes you retain it better. The only thing I didn't like is every few chapters, they go off in a different direction and it's kind of frustrating, but I wouldn't let that stop me from buying the program. It's one of the better Language programs I've seen.

First rate. This is a very effective language-learning tool, practical and without a lot of the distracting and irrelevant nonsense that irritates me, at least, in many other such products that I've examined.

This program was disappointing; it's not systematic enough and the material covered is all over the place (The first words covered are: rock, soup, ball, and shoe). I like the idea of an adveture story and that is certainly a great tool to get children interested. However, there is way too much English used with just a few Spanish vocabulary words inserted here and there. This program claims to use the total immersion approach; however, in a true total immersion approach, you are immersed in the language just like a child learning his/her native language or an individual living in another country: only the native language is used. If you are looking for a program that will teach you the Spanish you need to converse fluently with a native speaker, I would not recommend this one. However, if you just want to learn a few words and phrases to get by, you may be better off buying a small booklet for much less money.

He usado la mitad de este libro y ya puedo hablar espanol bastante bien. Es la verdad! This is an excellent Spanish course that uses the newest innovations in foreign language instruction combined with an exciting format to make Spanish possible, even for people who have difficulty learning languages. More than that, it has given me the confidence I will need to become proficient. I highly recommend this text.