Brian Books

The book is an excellent resource for anyone who owns a macaw and provides valueable insight to those considering a macaw. Considering it was published in 1996, the information is still practical and worthwhile. I do not agree with the opinion about hybrid macaws but it is minor compared to the vast in-depth reading it provides regarding husbandry, geographical information, physiological information, etc. A must-own for anyone who loves these magnificent birds!

I found this book to be very informative regarding almost all aspects of owning and living with a macaw.

I love this book it has beautiful pictures, lots of information on everything. I would recomend to to any bird owner...

...after reading and seeing all the information that is given, it was well worth it. This book has 100 times more information than any of the other books on macaws. It was definately worth the price.

Although three people are listed as being the authors of this book, the impressive list of contributors as photographers, design, consultants, collaborators and acknowledgments goes on for three full pages.

This is a huge book (534 pages with the index starting on page 511) that certainly appears to cover everything about the large macaws that anyone would want to know.

The book is divided into three main parts with several chapters in each part. The first is Aviculture, written mainly by Joanne Abramson, the second is Veterinary Medicine, written by Brian L. Speer and the third is Conservation, written mainly by Jorgen B. Thomsen.

Over 300 beautiful colour photographs are used throughout the book submitted by 77 photographers as well as many detailed drawings by Marsha Mello.

Nutritional analysis charts are provided for nuts, seeds, fruits, vegetables and pelleted diets.

It would be much easier to say what is NOT in this book than to list everything contained herein. Other than the fact that there is nothing written by myself, (grin) I could not think of anything else that could have been included here.

This book IS very expensive, but if you have a Macaw - or even if you love Macaws, you should really see if you can get your hands on a copy. I am sure that you will realize that it is worth every penny.

When I read the first book of Mr Woolf for me it was a revolution in term of loyalty for retail organization and all the things in the book I try to apply them to my customers.
The second one that I have read in 2006 (five years after it's first edition brings me less learnings. May be it's too late, may too much books have been written on the subject (loyalty and CRM).
Whatever the book should be read because Mr Woolf is a specialist of the subject.

I have read Brian Woolf's two most recent works on loyalty marketing. For many, the world of loyalty marketing and its results may seem incomprehensible, or worse yet, unquantifiable. However, in his new book, "Loyalty Marketing: The Second Act", Brian has conveyed the importance and power of building real loyalty with the consumer. His frequent use of case studies spanning several industries, illustrates and quantifies the benefits of building an effective loyalty program and putting it to work in even the most competitive and mature of markets. In today's business environment, it's not enough to simply attract new customers. The silver bullet for success is the ability to retain those customers through the years to come.

Whether you are a proprietor or charged with the marketing initiatives of a large retailer, Brian's real-life examples and insights captured in his latest book, will give you the competitive edge to secure profitable and loyal customers.

As a loyalty marketing professional, I found Brian Woolf's new book, "Loyalty Marketing The Second Act," to be filled with fresh insights and useful information. Building on his earlier breakthrough book "Customer Specific Marketing," Mr. Woolf provides new examples of loyalty marketing practices experienced by successful retailers from around the world. I especially liked his chapter on "The Power of Points," where he extols the virtues and variations of loyalty points programs.

The book is written in an easy to understand style, and the author has a special knack for dissecting complex programs into bite size ideas that are easily digested by both new and experienced practitioners. The book repeatedly demonstrates how to use customer data effectively without being overwhelmed by it. Brian's use of statistical tables is judicious and provides just the right information to zero in on the main point. The real world examples demonstrate a "how to" approach to satisfying the needs of various customer segments while enhancing their value to retailers.

This book is a must-read for anyone interested in successful loyalty marketing practices that result mutually profitable customer relationships.

After having read Mr. Woolf's book "Shrinking the Corporate Waistline", and using it as a guide for my business, I was even more impressed with his book Customer Specific Marketing- The New Power in Retailing. After having worn this book out, I ordered 35 copies for each of my Supermarket Manager's, just prior to kicking off our Loyalty Card Program. The success we were able to derive from this simple approach, was unbelievable!!

Now that I am Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for a 120 store chain of Convenience Stores, I was overwhelmed with his newest offering. We will soon begin it here.

After having had the opportunity to hear Mr. Woolf speak of Loyalty Marketing, in the simplist of terms, to as complex as you could keep up with, I am amazed with his insight. I am still digesting his "Second Act", after having gone through it for the third time. The down to earth approach he takes, and the attitude he carries through with, let's you know he is truly talking from experience. The practices he illustrates in length throughout the book, makes it a must read for businessmen and businesswomen who are really interested in customer retention. One thing you will learn from Mr. Woolf is "it's much more important to reach the customers who count, rather than counting the customers you reach! This is a very good book!

"Loyalty Marketing: The Second Acth by Brian Woolf

Retail is a complex system involving many, many factors. In 1996, in his first book, gCustomer Specific Marketingh Brian Woolf added two additional lines to the diagram of this complexity: gCustomers are not equalh and gBehavior follows rewards.h I cannot think of any marketing book ever published that has induced as many retailers, especially grocers, into implementing its basic concepts, as did this book.
gLoyalty Marketing: The Second Acth is a natural sequence to Woolffs earlier book, providing an updated insight into loyalty marketing using real examples from around the world. This book will spark debates and discussions among retailers and the next level of insights, gThe Third Acth, will be anxiously awaited.
Database marketing has long been in existence but unfortunately has been too academic, too abstract, too theoretical, and too impractical for retailers to implement. Brian Woolffs greatest contribution to the industry, though not much noticed, has been to transform esoteric marketing terms and concepts into easy-to-understand everyday words and practical ideas.
This book is a must reading for those charged with marketing. Indeed, for everyone in retail, the most competitive industry today.

As a mother of an adult with Down syndrome, I found this book to be amazing. I wish I had found this book years ago! I now understand why my daughter does many of the things she does. This book delves into not only physical aspects which might contribute to the mental wellness of adults with Downs, but also the psychological as well.
I was fascinated to learn that so many things my daughter does is very common with many adults with Down syndrome.
This book is a great guide to help all parents, family members, doctors and others who live, help and work with adults with Down syndrome.

I just received this book and I can't put it down. I am mother of a 17 year old daughter going on 30. This book is so informative. I am even learning more things about my daugther and I thought I had it all figured out. I think if the public were to read this book, there would be no more trouble having our kids with DS be more accepted in the public eye. Its so enlightening. Dennis McGuire is going to be at the DS conference in April. I can hardly wait to see him. I have been to one of his presentations before, he is so on the mark, its uncanny. Wouldn't it be great if all the teachers, doctors and public knew all this information.

This book has been a real life saver to us during a trying time with our adult son's health. The book is so very complete, yet gentle and comforting in its approach to issues of great concern to parents. I really appreciated their balanced approach to health issues-- medical, behavioral and life st yle. I recommend their adult Down syndrome clinic to anyone who can get to their CHicago area. We gave a visit to our son for his 21st birthday!

This is the best book on this topic I have ever seen! We will soon be responsible for my 44 year old sister-in-law. This book is unlocking some of the mystery of her actions and habits. I have already recommended this book to other parents of down syndrome children. I'm impressed enough to put this book on my keep for life shelf! Thank you so much for offering such an informative book! Keep up the good work. Jean

Adults with Down Syndrome are often misunderstood and a lack of patience on the part of the listener adds to the frustration. This authoritative book written by physicians provides accurate information for parents, caregivers, physicians, teachers and anyone needing to better understand persons with Down Syndrome. Although I have found the information very helpful in understanding some reasons why persons with Down Syndrome have characteristic needs and behaviors, I fear that the use of this information could lead to an over generalization and dismissal of behavior simply as a part of the Down Syndrome. To the credit of the authors, the book talks about this issue and appropriately supports the attitude of treating persons with Down Syndrome as individuals and looking for personal histories when trying to understand their needs. The infomation provided gives us many things to consider when trying to understand a person with Down Syndrome. I would whole heartedly recommend this book. It is about time this information came out in a very easy to read and well organized manner.

I've seen it (and lived it) multiple times. An Exec kicks off a Lean Initiative and the company creates a Lean Enterprise. At first, its all about training, Kaizen Blitz, 5S, prototype cells and Kanbans. The focus is about 95% shop floor processes. But after a while, the program starts to stall. Folks start seeing two sets of rules (traditional MRP and Lean), but none of the traditional goes away. So Lean start sounding and feeling like just a bunch of extra paperwork and steps without any obvious benefit to those who "live it" every day. In the end, the program fails or the Lean Enterprise is reorganized to try again, usually with similar results. This book clearly explains what is happening. It also provides a different perspective to the initial Lean implementation strategies that will help pull the organization through that first big stalling out and propel the initiative into true effectiveness. A "must read" book for anyone that is or is going to be dealing with a fledgling Lean initiative.

Well structured and very clear concepts, It help me to have a deep understanding of how to develop a value stream mapping. I really recommend it.

Best book on how to get your accoutning function to look at, use and make use of lean costing which really makes your lean projects work.

"Who's Counting" and "Practical Lean Accounting" are two great books on lean accounting. I wondered some time ago, which one to read and I am glad that I could not decide, so I bought and read them both. They complement each other extremely well and each one conveys the lessons of lean accounting from a different angle.

"Practical Lean Accounting" is a well structured textbook, approaching lean accounting in a systemized way. Starting from straight-forward shop-floor measurements, like the day-by-the-hour report, it gradually immerses the reader into more demanding topics, like value stream costing or lean performance measurement, culminating in the thorough description of the Sales, Operations and Financial Planning (SOFP) process, which is the way, how an entire lean enterprise is planned, controlled and measured. Lean practitioners looking for specific answers to particular questions will find it easy to navigate through the book. People with the luxury of time for reading it cover to cover will also like it, due to the gradual increase in the complexity of the topics and the many references to other chapters.

"Who's Counting" focuses more on the human side of turning the vision of lean accounting into reality. The novel format is the best way to illustrate, how strong the resistance against change will be and from how many corners of the organization it will attack back. Knowing what to do and knowing why is not enough, the issue is not capturing people's brains. The real challenge is conquering their hearts, while tearing down decades worth of wrong beliefs, bad trade-offs and political game-playing. Mike, the hero of the book teaches us through his own mistakes, that patience, tactfulness and respect for people is more helpful, then acting like a bull in a china shop. The reward is the enthusiastic desire of fellows to go his way and take ownership of the new processes. He even manages to turn Fred, a CFO who has to recognize, that most of what he built during his career was wrong, to use the 3 years until his retirement for becoming the most enthusiastic advocate of change!

Both books provide the reader with insight and incite self-reflection about "the way, we do things". There is hardly any chapter without a sacred cow being slaughtered, however this will strike the reader as plain common sense, due to the thorough description of the reasons. Deeply engrained management practices, such as approval routings, full absorption overhead allocation, standard costing or departmental budgeting will seem ridiculous, once the reader starts to open the eyes to see their fundamentally wrong assumptions.

These books will make You hate many of Your current processes!

"Practical Lean Accounting" is the best management accounting book I've read in 20 years - maybe more. Well written and illustrated with plenty of examples and diagrams, it adds new tools to management accounting and restores the relevance of some older ones. As such I recommend it to all management accountants and students - whether or not you are involved in lean accounting itself.

The aim of the book is to "produce a roadmap for finance managers in companies seeking to transition their organisations into lean enterprises". Lean accounting is a new approach to managing a business and, as management accountants, we have a duty to be there. As the authors say "it's never too early to start dismantling the company's transaction driven control systems. They represent huge amounts of waste and cost to the organisation !".

Specifically, lean management seeks to radically restructure the organisation into Value Streams (rather than functional departments), and this requires new management accounting tools including Value Stream performance measures, Box Scores, new methods of planning and budgeting, target costing and a whole host of other tools. The book explores all these tools in detail. The introduction of "lean" tools also allows significant reduction in transactions in the company's accounting processes, including the elimination of full-absorption costing.

Lean accounting is, therefore, designed to replace "traditional" accounting techniques which encourage inefficient practices such as building inventory, and often lead to poor management decisions (using Standard costs). Traditional measures are also too complicated for operational employees to understand easily and are often too late to be useful in shopfloor decision making. Lean accounting, by contrast, is very much focused on simple visual shopfloor measures for instant decision making, coupled with management accounting tools for longer term planning.

"Practical Lean Accounting" provides a good overview of the lean management process, and excellent linkage to management accounting activities. Highly recommended.

This is a book I picked up on a whim, and it blew me away. It seems to me more than just a lesson in dogs and ratting; it is a lesson about mind over matter. Here is a guy who made reading about rat hunting as exciting (to me) as stories I've read about big game hunting in Africa. Maybe it was just his indomitable spirit; either way it is a good, short read.

I'vebeen involved with terriers for 25+ years and have hunted with terriers for the last ten years. Brian Plummer is one of the true "characters" of the terrier world. A Great read!

I read of this book in a Forbes magazine some years ago, and was fascinated. I don't hunt at all, but was very diverted and horrified by the details of this sport, as well as an illustration of a side of Great Britain I never expect to see. Remarkably well written and enjoyable, but not for the squeamish.

Being new to the world of rat-hunting,I borrowed an old yellowed copy of this book from a friend.
I just couldn't put it down!
I own two terriers (but i'm still trying to persuade my better half to allow some ferrets into our family)
I learned some very valuable tips from this book that will save me hours of heartache when training my dogs.
Whilst being absolutely rivetting reading it is also a mine of information.
Written in plain English, a true classic.
Ihave'nt read anything on this subject that comes even close.

This book is a favorite of mine. It is one of the best books on hunting ever written. Despite its apocalyptic setting, "Tales of a Rat Hunting Man" contains more wildness and freedom than the vast majority of books and magazines on hunting. That description doesn't do it justice. This is a fun book, one that you won't be able to put down. The descriptions of rats and terriers and rat hunts will take you to a world you never knew existed. Rat hunting is a weird pursuit, and Plummer conveys it with humor, adventure and passion.
The introduction by Steve Bodio is worth the price of the book.
Read this book. You won't be disappointed.

good book, just to know about the history of the celebration and some good pictures. quick read ...

"This is Burning Man" is an excellent view on the Burning Man festival held every year in the desert near San Francisco. The book provides a rare multi-viewpoint perspective on the festival and it's researched very well.

The first part of the book describes the history of the burning man event, how Larry Harvey one day decided to burn a wooden man in the golden gate park and how it created an audience of people who organized around the burning of the man. He decided to do it again and slowly the burning man event was created. It describes how Larry hooked up with several other groups and how they moved to the middle of nowhere, in the desert. The stories about the early days of the burning man event are insane and clearly describes the sense of freedom that's part of the burning man event.

The second part of the book focuses more on the later years of burning man and describes the different viewpoints as it follows several different people and their burning man history. It talks about the art creation, the city build-up, the city cleaning, the expressions of total freedom and the shared sense of making the event a better place. Near the end of the book, it tells how burning man has now grown and how, unfortunately, the original atmosphere started changing and how everything is slightly more controlled. That's probably inevitable for growing an event like burning man.

The book is exceptionally well researched and the writing style is clear. The author tells the many stories from his research while linking it with his own experience and his own opinion. I enjoyed reading burning man, recommended for everyone interested in the burning man event.

Burning Man is the arts/creativity/freedom/whatever festival held every September in the Nevada desert.

It started in 1980s San Francisco, in part as a reaction to Ronald Reagan's America. A man named Larry Harvey and some friends gathered on a San Francisco nude beach to burn a wooden effigy of a man (for no especially good reason). The event was "adopted" by various California punk and arts groups, like the L.A. Cacophony Society, and soon grew too big for the nude beach. A home was found deep in the Nevada desert, miles from the nearest civilization.

It is a huge, empty, desolate place, described by one person as living inside an ashtray. The wind blows constantly, sometimes up to 100 miles an hour, and within seconds, everything and everyone is coated with the same gray dust. Permits are required from the Bureau of Land Management, the official owner of the land, and from the local county governments, not always an easy process. As the attendance at Burning Man has grown over the years, from a few hundred people to, presently, 30,000 people, changes have been needed in the organizational structure of the festival. An LLC was formed to take care of the financial recordkeeping, which, for several years in the 1990s, was loose, to say the least. An unofficial police force was formed, to peacefully resolve disputes and to supplement the actual police force, there to keep things from getting too out of hand. Actual zoning has taken place, including the laying out of streets.

At Burning Man, self-reliance is expected by all participants, which includes bringing your own water. Everyone is expected to participate in some sort of art project; spectators are discouraged. "Art" does not mean a painting that is hung on a wall, but some sort of large, interactive creation that people can touch and feel, usually involving fire.

For those with any sort of familiarity about Burning Man, this book does a fine job at getting behind the scenes. For those who have never heard of it, read this story of a truly unique American arts festival. Either way, this is very much recommended.

I just finished reading the day that John Law sued the other founders over the name. So what are they calling it now? Hot Dude Fest?
For someone who would like to but cannot attend Burning Man (no guts!) it is fun to read. I did not go to Woodstock either. (Too pregnant.)
The book really is an underground networker's dream.

No one can tell the whole story, but to date no written account is out there to equal to this masterful work.

Avery comrehensive production covering a selection of dumplings beyond most food lovers knowledge and experience. Thoughtfully put together in an easy-reading, friendly style

This is a great collection of all things dumplings, the definition might be a little loose for some, but that gives you an in to some tasty dishes you might not have tried. Just be warned a few sunday afternoons might be lost to making dumplings after buying this book :)

I love single subject cookbooks because of how in-depth the good ones are. And this is an especially good one. I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, but the book is fun to read, very informative and educational and makes me very hungry while I'm reading it. I can't wait to try some the recipes!

This is a very interesting book with excellent photographs throughout. I have already made the Meat Piroshki from Russia, Cabbage and Mushroom Pirogi from Poland, "Fast and Naked" Gnudi con Zucca from Italy and the Little Ear Dumplings in Borscht from Russia. All were very tasty. The recipes cover specialties from many countries in Asia, the Middle East, Eastern and Western Europe and the Americas. Why 4 stars instead of 5? I was disappointed not to find any dumplings to drop on top of stews or fruit, no drop dumplings for soups and the one recipe from Canada (from Quebec which is where I live) is not one that I or my friends have ever heard of. Maple syrup dumplings would have been really typical but alas, there is no recipe for them. Still, this book is certainly worth having for what it does contain.

`A World of Dumplings' by Brian Yarvin is exactly the kind of passionate treatment of a specialized culinary subject we like to find from `little presses' like `The Countryman Press' up to and including former upstart (and now giant) 10 Speed Press. Yarvin is neither a chef like Rick Bayless nor an established culinary journalist or writer such as Paula Wolfert or Claudia Roden. But Yarvin has what appears to be a consuming interest and passion for his subject which has produced a book which is at the top of its class as a survey of dumpling recipes.
The very first thing Yarvin does right is that he covers the whole world, as promised, but touches of few if any types of food which are NOT easily recognized as dumplings.
My very first interest was to see how he would approach that very special Pennsylvania Dutch contribution to world dumplings, the baked apple dumpling. As it happens, Yarvin lives and works just across the Delaware from Dumpling Central, in western New Jersey, so he was in an excellent position to do lots of first hand research, and that is exactly what he did. As a very amateur student of this dish, I have tried several different recipes from PA Dutch cookbooks, and I have eaten many a sample at local restaurants and fairs. And, I can attest that Yarvin has captured this dish in all its sweet and spicy and doughy glory. This is NOT diet food, kiddies, and Yarvin has applied the sugar, lard, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg at all the right places. Even better, he has not assumed, as many of these PA Dutch cookbooks do, that you know the basics of preparing dough. His recipe is more detailed than anything I have seen coming out of Lancaster County from Best Books!
My second check on Yarvin's recipes was to compare his Steamed Chinese Pork Dumplings (shu mai) to a recipe by an oriental culinary specialist, Ellen Leong Blonder in `Dim Sum, The Art of Chinese Tea Lunch' and I found again that Yarvin again gives us a recipe which is as good or better than one available from specialists in the area.
My third check was to compare his empanada recipe to Rick Bayless' recipe in his authoritative `Authentic Mexican' book and also to the equally authoritative Diane Kennedy's `The Essential Cuisines of Mexico'. Here, I found a somewhat puzzling result. Bayless and Kennedy give two different recipes for the empanada wrapper, with Bayless using only wheat flour and Kennedy using only masa (corn flour). The simple explanation is that Bayless is describing Empanadas de Picadillo from northern Mexico and Kennedy is describing Empanadas de Requeson from southern Mexico. Yarvin splits the difference with his single recipe and creates a wrapper with about ¾ wheat flour and ¼ corn flour. So, Yarvin is not giving us ethnically precise empanadas; however, just like his apple dumpling recipe and his shu mai recipe, his empanada recipe is as detailed and illuminating (or better) than any of the ethnic sources. And, Yarvin gives us five different recipes for fillings using the one `universal' empanada wrapper recipe.
The story of empanadas is repeated for virtually all of the world's varieties of dumplings, from Italian raviolis to Polish Pierogis to Russian Varenicki to Indian Samosas. Every major dumpling genre has its variations which change from region to region and, if you are to believe many writers, from household to household, with everyone believing theirs are the best.
Yarvin adds to his recipes some great stories describing his search for some of these recipes, plus some very nice condiments, such as the dipping sauces for the Chinese dim sum dumplings and pasta sauces for the Italian galaxy of filled pastas and onion marmalade condiments for the eastern European dumplings.
Very few books of this type have ever disappointed me, and this one is better than most. If your interest is exclusively in dumplings from Italy or Mexico or the Ukraine or China, this book may not be the most authentic source, but if you are a foodie omnivore and relish the notion of experimenting with all sorts of dumplings, Yarvin is your man. Of course, if you are in love with Dutch apple dumplings, the recipe for that dessert may be worth the price of the book.

I couldn't help myself from laughing out loud at this incredibly witty piece of historical fiction. I loved it.

What a hysterical send up of historical fiction. Mel Brooks couldn't have done better. I was laughing through every page, the author's toungue must have been firmly planted in his cheek the entire time. Hard to believe this is the same person who wrote the ever so serious (and brilliant!) Within The Fetterlock.

However, I would recommend that you have a passing knowledge of the Wars of the Roses, Edward the IV and Richard the III. Otherwise, you'll miss most of the jokes. Highly recommended and a breath of fresh air from so many serious works of fiction.

I read this book based on Elizabeth Chadwick's glowing review of it in her list of 10 favorite works of historial fiction. Chadwick's opinion bears weight with me as she herself is an accomplished author in that genre. Her thumb's up vote was bolstered by the wild cheering from other reviewers on this site. Just goes to show that one man's hilarious is another man's ho-hum.

The narrator is a wise-cracking "damosel" whose snide observations pertaining to the life and times of England during the Wars of the Roses form the basis of the book. I realize this is intended to be a send up of "straight" historical fiction and, being pretty well familiar with the England of this period, I think I "get" a good many of the jokes. Although light-hearted, this book is a far cry from a hilarity-filled, rib-tickling rolliker I was expecting based on the knee-slapping, guffawing glee expressed by others. Smart-alecky in a wink wink, nudge nudge kind of way, it is far from the laugh-a-page I was anticipating. I felt grateful for the few puny yuks Alianore's japes did afford.

I'll credit Wainwright with originality, but this book was quickly read and quickly forgotten. Witty, yes. If you expect more, I fear you will be disappointed, as I was. By way of an aside, it has been my experience that readers of these reviews seem to like other reviews which support their own opinions and dislike differing viewpoints. I fully expect this review to be widely deemed "unhelpful" being an unpopular vote in an otherwise adoring "fan base." I only wish someone else had earlier risked offering an opinion that this book is maybe not so 5-star funny after all.

I envision Brian Wainwright as a complete history geek who had a blast writing this brilliant book to entertain other complete history geeks. He has done a marvelous job! Brush up on your English Monarchy history from the Wars of the Roses and the Tudors, and keep today's political themes in mind as well, and then dive in to this hilarious "mockumentary" style book.

Alianore Audley is a smart & sassy 15th century wench who is distant kin to the Plantagenets. Her bumbling idiot older brothers do little to look to her welfare, so she relies on her own wiles and is rewarded when they are noticed by King Edward IV. After turning down his first award proposal, she accepts his offer to spy for his government and soon finds herself at the helm of a Middle-aged CIA. She encounters danger, trumps evil, finds love, reluctantly (cough, cough) has sex, and all the while manages to keep her files on various court figures and plotters in meticulous order.

Wainwright's spoof-tale is full of constant sarcasm and history-laden zingers (ie: "You ain't just whistling Greensleeves!"). Alianore's adventures are wonderfully entertaining - the comparison to Mel Brooks by another reviewer is right on target! Alianore is hysterical - this book is great fun and highly recommended, even if you aren't a total history geek. Her sarcasm and the comparisons to more modern politics are obvious to all!

I can't adequately describe how much I loved this book. Not only is it absolutely hilarious, it's also very clever and extremely well-researched, and full of intentional anachronisms which are laugh-out-loud funny. Just a couple of examples: the duke of Gloucester browsing the 'Used Destriers' section of the court newspaper, and Alianore Audley informing Edward IV of his approval ratings. It's also very sympathetic to Richard III, and tells the reader what REALLY happened to the princes in the Tower....
Highly recommended!

This book does an excellent job of testing all relevant concepts. Some of the questions are artificially difficult and a little on the difficult side, but if you learn the answers your boards will be a success. I just finished the book for the second time and noticed a marked difference in my ability to remember the concepts that i had seen before. i definitely recommend this question book.

It's just as good as learning from the authors in person. Comprehensive with nice discussion of answers, sectioned by system, and a good format to review topipcs.

I had the pleasure of working with Brian Hall for a couple of years and he is a fantastic educator and is always quizzing himself and others to keep everybody sharp. I used this book for my written board review and found it to be very helpful. The residents nearly universally used this review at the Mayo Clinic and seemed to feel that it was of substantial help in their preparation.

This is a great review book, it got me 100% on my first anesthesia test!!!

I thought this Q&A review book was easily the most "bang for the buck" in preparation for the written boards. It does require a solid fundamental knowledge of anesthesiology, but the questions are very representative of written board-type questions, and the answers are comprehensive and largely satisfactory. Textbook references are fairly comprehensive and accurate. I highly recommend this book as a final step in preparation for the written boards!

Fascinating book, very worthwhile. Tons of well organized and documented information. Wonderful and thorough reference.

I've made armor using the diagrams of existing armor types from this book. I didn't much care for some of the strapping arrangements described, so I designed my own. (Hey, this is the armor the regular fighters left behind - Wisby was defended by the teens and the oldsters to judge from the age of the bodies. This suggests the men of prime fighting-age were elsewhere, with their primary armor.) It worked, well, and protected me in combat. And the illustrations and text were clear, clear, clear.

This book has a very special meaning to me since I'm from the town of Wisby(nowdays spelled Visby). Born and raised on the island Gotland and lived most of my life thete. I'v built several of these coats of armour and so far everyone I've tried on have been of satisfatcion. The book is so far the best resource book I've ever found. I have for a long time tried to find the first edition, but IF you can find it somewhere it's incredibly expensive. So jus imagine my joy when I saw there was a reissue! And very soon I'm going to be proud owner of this masterpiece...
The book is really easy to use and have exceptional drawings and scetches. Transforming the scale of the objects in the book to original size is really easy and there's a lot of information i general. At last a recommendation for all you SCA-fighters out there. Try out armour no.6 and no.9 because they give very good protection and are comfortable to wear.

This book has a very special meaning to me since I'm from the town of Wisby(nowdays spelled Visby). Born and raised on the island Gotland and lived most of my life thete. I'v built several of these coats of armour and so far everyone I've tried on have been of satisfatcion. The book is so far the best resource book I've ever found. I have for a long time tried to find the first edition, but IF you can find it somewhere it's incredibly expensive. So jus imagine my joy when I saw there was a reissue! And very soon I'm going to be proud owner of this masterpiece...
The book is really easy to use and have exceptional drawings and scetches. Transforming the scale of the objects in the book to original size is really easy and there's a lot of information i general. At last a recommendation for all you SCA-fighters out there. Try out armour no.6 and no.9 because they give very good protection and are comfortable to wear.

This book contains a wealth of knowledge about medieval armour and the effects of weapons. The pictures are fantastic, skeletons buried in their armour, rarely does one get to see how armour was actually worn. The breakdowns and detail of actual armour construction is immaculate and enables any competant armourer to reproduce the examples shown. The detail from an archeologist's point of view was a little too in depth for my interest but if you are that way inclined then great. Only issue I have is the "analysis" of some of the wounds seen, Mr. Thordeman seems to imply that this battle was unusual in some way, that the combatants fought with unusual fury. He sites one incident of one combatant having both legs severed by a single blow as an indication of some great fury and intensity. I only disagree as there are very few examples of medieval battle wound pathology to compare the Wisby corpses. It seems that the author is looking at the battle from too detached a viewpoint, forgetting that killing was the purpose of the people who showed up to battle that day. This is a small detail but supposition as to the mental states of combatants, by someone who has no first hand experience of battle is unproductive. Otherwise a great book.