Burton Books

this book helped us find great hikes for kids from the day it arrived. strongly recommended.

It is the most accurate rated hiking book I've owned (I have alot) and most used I would also say its an accurate place to start if your out of shape the ratings are realistic you dont feel like your regretting it half way threw the hike You finish without feeling like the only thing you lost is a few pounds (not your mind or breath) your kids arent whinning and are ready for the next one!!!!

I have purchased several copies of this book, everytime a new edition comes out actually. I can't believe I am the first to review it. If you are a parent and you are new to hiking with kids in the western Washington region this will probably be the only book you need. It is superbly written, with great details on the hike itself,knowing ahead of time what difficulty level you are facing is a must in my opinion, as well as directions on how to find the trail head, tips and tricks to hiking with your children in a way that you will all enjoy it and so much more. I highly reccomend this book, you will not be disapointed.

Exciting, dramatic, romantic and tragic, this book puts it all together in a manner that you just can not wait to turn the page and see what will be coming next.

This book has all the elements of a really good romantic novel. It has excitement, sadness and a wonderful mixture of human emotion. You won't put it down once you start.

What a joy to read! Exciting plot with twists and turns that enticed you to not put the book down until completed. There was no problem in relating to the characters because Ms. Smith Burton made them come alive. I could feel the joy and sadness, excitement and hope as if I were living the moment.

This was required reading for a graduate course in the Humanities. A great story and important historical work in literature. Voltaire was a Renaissance Christian humanist who played a role in the development of the Enlightenment.

On the one hand, the structure of his novel Candide is Homeric, it is the journey narrative, the hero with a thousand faces, but it is a satirical restructuring of that classical motif of the hero on a quest. What is the importance of the quest in Candide? What is the quest about in the classical sense? The quest is about learning. In the classical sense the hero leaves, has to acquire some sort of knowledge, learn a set of skills that is going to help him or her enact the quest surmount the obstacles that they encounter at one point or another, and the finally what does the hero have to accomplish? What is out there the "Holy Grail" The prize, the whole quest is about attaining some sort of ultimate end or some sort of ultimate knowledge. Does it end there? No, you got to go back with that knowledge, because the quest is never just about attaining the goal, it's about bringing it home to make everybody better, to restore the community. The individual quest, the heroic quest in the classical sense always has a larger social corrective end. The purpose of the individual, the function of the individual all depends on his ability to return to the collective, whatever it is that he has found that he has acquired that is going to change the way things are. Now how does that compare to the journey or quest narrative in Candide? Contrary to the notion of what prepares us for the world, OK here is the important structure of the journey or the quest, and the critique of knowledge by Voltaire. It is contrary to the idea of the knowledge that we acquire prepares us for the world. That each new bit of knowledge that we acquire, prepares us for the next step, and prepares us for the next stage. Contrary to the idea that life is somehow to be understood or that human history is somehow to be understood as a journey organized around progress, around betterment advancement acquiring new knowledge more knowledge more science more learning, we're getting better again, Candide tells the story that goes in the opposite direction. So, then you acquire knowledge and then you spend the rest of the journey finding out that the knowledge is useless, bit by bit, and every lesson you've acquired has to be cast aside, everything you learn you have to abandon. Instead of gaining and getting better, it is throwing off, letting go, and getting worse. Where does Voltaire want us in the end to think of the notion and narrative of progress?


Of course, you know that Candide is steeped in so many of the political and philosophical controversies of the 1750's. One of his big critiques is of the philosopher Leibnitz who said that `this is the best of all possible worlds," the idea championed by Leibnitz was a simple version of the philosophy espoused by enlightenment philosophers that the existence of any evil in the world was a sign that god was not entirely good or very powerful. The idea of an imperfect god would be nonsensical. So if you are a philosopher who takes for granted that god exists, you would have to conclude logically; and here is where humanities and Christianity really start messing with each other in all kinds of obvious ways, that god is perfect if you logically conclude that god exists. Therefore, his creation, the world, and man must also be perfect. According to many enlightenment philosophers, people perceived imperfections of the world only because they do not get the plan. This is a teleological idea of the world. Now obviously Voltaire does not accept this theory, or that god or any god has to exist. Therefore, he makes fun of the idea that the world is completely good. Much of the novel is a satire addressed to the notion that the optimists who witness countless horrors and unbelievable injustice such as floggings, robberies, and earthquakes will always find a way to write it off. They will say, `oh well there must be part of a plan, even though none of these calamities seem to serve any good at all it must point to human cruelty ignorance and barbarism and points to the indifference of the natural world. Pangloss the philosopher in the book throughout the story is always trying to find some justification for the terrible things that he sees and the arguments that he makes seem increasingly to be absurd, like his quote that "Syphilis needed to be transmitted from the new world to Europe so that Europeans could taste new world delicacies. What other things is Voltaire criticizing here that connects to some of the debates that define the enlightenment period of the 1750's Religion? Religion- He criticizes the whole hypocrisy of religion. In the book, Voltaire has a parade of corrupt hypocritical religious leaders who are like the Pope that has a daughter (should have been celibate). Hard line Catholic inquisitors, a Franciscan monk who should have vow of poverty but is a jewel thief. Here Voltaire provides countless examples of the immorality and hypocrisy of religious leaders, he does not really condemn believers per say, he is really out to attack church leadership and church hierarchy. For example Jacques, who is an Anabaptist is arguably one of the most generous and humane characters.

What else does Voltaire criticize or satirize? Wealth- money corrupts; Candide seems to have more problems when he has lots of money. Things get worse he gets unhappy. An interesting point, Voltaire was deeply involved in a debate with the many deep thinkers of his time, most notably was Rousseau, who lambasted the aristocracy. Voltaire himself really moved very comfortably among aristocratic circles and interestingly the French enlightenment philosophy really took off among the French aristocracy. Since they had the leisure time to contemplate so many of the new ideas in reason, science and rationalism and his notions of progress and advancement were ideas that were principally championed and discussed by members of the French aristocracy. Therefore, it was among some of the idle members of the French aristocrats that these enlightenment philosophers were able to find their most ardent followers. Despite the fact that the church and the state were not more often that not completely allied with each other, kings could be attracted on occasion to arguments that seemed to undermine the authority of the church. The fact that the aristocrats were very much unaware of the precariousness of their position tended to make them overconfident. Dabbling in some new ideas that were part of the enlightenment movement caused them not to take seriously the kind of jeopardy they were in or what the enlightenment would lead to in the championing of the common man and the overthrow of the French aristocracy. Because they found these ideas somewhat new, interesting, and exciting and they did not really see this as at all leading inexorably to the demise of the aristocratic class. Now of course it was thinkers like Rousseau not at all like Voltaire on this particular point that made his chief adversary. Rousseau distrusted the aristocrats out of a hunger to overthrow the class but because he believed that people of wealth betrayed decent traditional values. Rousseau opposed the theatre, which is Voltaire's lifeblood; he shunned the aristocracy, which Voltaire very much courted. He courted their attention he courted their interests. Rousseau argued for something dangerous like democratic revolution, and Voltaire argued that equality was impossible it would never come about. Rousseau argued that inequality was not only natural but that if it were taken too far it would make any decent government a total impossibility. Voltaire was very charming and witty, which led largely to his success in moving about aristocratic and social circles. Rousseau insisted on his own correctness and was not a charming person to be around; he was very intense and very serious about his ideas. Voltaire endlessly repeated the same handful of core enlightenment notions, where as Rousseau was a deeply original thinker. Who was always challenging his own way of thinking contradicting himself, coming up with ideas on the equality of education, the family, the government, and the arts in a matter that was much more radical than Voltaire was ever willing to go along with. They were both skeptics, and Voltaire is nothing if not a skeptic.

What does Voltaire do with the idea of philosophy in Candide? Philosophy- What is the value of philosophical speculation? It is useless for Voltaire; it is one of Pangloss' biggest flaws. Abstract philosophical argument is not based on any real world evidence. In the chaotic world of this novel, philosophical speculation repeatedly proves to be useless, and at times even dangerous. Time and again it prevents the characters from making any useful assessment of the world around them, it prevents them from bringing about any kind of change, it prevent them from thinking that they might try to bring about some social change. Pangloss is the character most susceptible to this kind of foolishness. Example, while Jacques is drowning, Pangloss stops Candide from saving him by proving that the bay was formed for Jacques to drown in. Therefore, at the end of course at the novels conclusion Candide rejects Pangloss' philosophies. If philosophical speculation is useless, what does Voltaire suggest you put in its place? Hard practical work in general. Therefore, it is somewhat surprising in that sense that this judgment against philosophy that is portrayed in the book becomes very dramatic when we think about Voltaire's own status as a philosopher.

What about the garden at the end of the novel? At the end of the novel Candide defines happiness in raising vegetables. On the one hand it is indicative of the turning away from the following of philosophy, from the abstract speculative nature of philosophy towards something hands on something pragmatic. Does the garden have a symbolic resonance to it? Is it related to the Garden of Eden? For Adam and Eve the garden is the beginning of their troubles, here it is the end of their troubles. It is the end of the narrative the end of their quest, their journey, and the end of their travails. This is where they wind up this is where they retreat. In the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve do not have to work to have fruits of the garden; this garden requires work, and constant tending. In that I think the garden here represents much, more in a very different way than the biblical garden represents. An embrace of life, but an embrace of life of what? For all the horror, hardships, and nightmares that these characters experience throughout the entire course of the text, at the end, they embrace life; they take it they say yes.

The status of knowledge in Voltaire, what do we know? The garden is a final retreat from activism, or social engagement in the world. Finally, what Voltaire is saying is look go back to the basics. Do not try to change, analyze the world, or try to speculate about the nature of our existence. Retreat into your own sphere and do not mess with the world around you, because ultimately you are powerless, to do anything in this world. I think Voltaire is commenting on in a sense the Utopian impulse and imagination. Specifically as it influenced enlightenment philosophers of the period with respect to the notion of progress and advancement.

Recommended reading for anyone interested in history, psychology, philosophy, and literature.

(This refers to the Peter Constantine translation from 2005.) This wonderful and short book ought to be first called philosophical, then satirical, then an adventure, and finally political. Unlike his contemporary Flaubert (such as in A Sentimental Education), Voltaire manages to keep contemporary references staggered in a perfect quantity to not overwhelm his 'main meal' with spices of political reference and opinionated controversy. While the story itself is a little unbelievable and facile, this fits perfectly with the satire Voltaire is able to exact on just about every nation, religion, political party, playwright, and idea he chooses--and he chooses to be inclusive! The bashful optimist Candide, the love of his life Cunegonde, and his troupe of intermittent companies such as a mulatto sidekick, a practical foil, an 'old woman', a womanizing abbot, and finally his lifelong tutor, Professor Pangloss, who teaches primarily 'metaphysico-theolog-cosmo-idiotology all serve to act out an adventure and a wonderful debate on how to think about and act toward this very hard thing called life. While not a Buddhist tract by any means, it certainly concludes with some telling signs supportive of 'calm abiding'; and resolves to a very simple, perhaps almost Theroux-esque philosophies. This is put together well on all levels and will be enjoyed by all except staunch and sensitive believers of their own religion. The book is tawdry and explicit at times, which dulls its impact.

The Constantine translation is light, wry and true. It feels as if this is most like what a contemporary reader must have transacted out of the book at the time it was written, certainly in terms of humor and light pique. The last time I read this was in French in middle school and it was much more of a pleasure in English in this version.

According to many scholars, Voltaire (pen name for Francois Marie Arouet) was the embodiment of the Enlightenment. Born in Paris is 1694, he was well educated by the Jesuits, studying law prior to turning to writing as a profession. His lampoons and satires won him fame and infamy; he was imprisoned and exiled at various times for his writing. He was forced into exile from France to England; later, he was invited to work for Frederick the Great in Berlin (politics and his reputation blew rapidly in the ever-changing winds of Europe). Voltaire wrote 'Candide' shortly after this period, when he had moved to Geneva. In 1778, the year of his death, he returned to Paris, a triumphant celebrity -- many of his ideas served to strengthen the movements that would eventually culminate in the French Revolution.

The story of 'Candide', the primary character in the Voltaire's novel, is the story of the search for answers. It is hard to classify 'Candide' solely as a political satire, or indeed in any other genre where it might find similarities. Voltaire explores religious and theological ideas, social and political situations, personal and intellectual issues, and the general strand of history. How could an omnipotent and benevolent God permit the world to be as it is? How can human beings, supposedly rational beings, treat each other as they do? How can rational beings act, feel and believe so irrationally?

The Enlightenment brought the ideas of Deism forward as important, and began to explore in earnest intellectual and political freedoms for people. The acquisition of knowledge, both pure theory and experiential/applied, was of high value. Candide was a student more than anything else, although in the course of the story, he holds many roles. Others who appear include Pangloss, the know-it-all philosophy teacher; Cunegonde, Candide's on-again, off-again love interest (who has her own set of adventures reported); Martin, another scholar (this one rather hopeless, in more ways than one); various other characters including Jewish merchants, Grand Inquisitors (the Enlightenment equivalent of Monty Python's Spanish Inquisition), and other bit players.

Candide travels all across Europe, from Westphalia through the Latin countries, ending up finally in Constantinople. No stone is unturned to expose the foibles of the locals, the problems of the travelers, and questionable underside of all society as they move from place to place, culture to culture, and crisis to crisis. Ultimately, the plot is not as important as the characters and characterisations -- for a book written in the 1700s, it is remarkably modern, hinting at sexual innuendo (including homosexuality) among royals and clergy, making fun of the military mindset and leadership (the king of the Bulgars is modeled upon Frederick the Great, and the Bulgar army is the Prussian army) and the church (the pope here has an illegitmate daughter, etc.).

The key satire, however, is against Leibniz, philosopher and mathematician, very intelligent but obviously not in directions Voltaire cared for. Leibniz had a directional metaphysics and historical sense -- this was the best of all possible worlds (the most famous phrase from the novel, put in Pangloss' mouth); the amiable but not-swift-on-the-uptake Pangloss is the stand-in for Leibniz.

Norton's Critical Edition includes several essays, in addition to the text of Voltaire's 'Candide' -- the novel itself is a mere 77 pages, translated by Robert Adams of UCLA. There are several background pieces, including a general survey of the intellectual background, philosophical explanations, and a brief biography of Voltaire.

Essays on criticism include discussion of Voltaire's narrative art, the ideas of pessimism and providence (it is worth remember here that Voltaire's purpose in writing 'Candide' was as a critique against optimism, of a sort), and various controversies. This is truly a fascinating collection, with pieces by such heavyweights in literary history as William Blake and Heinrich Heine giving their impressions on Voltaire and the issues addressed in 'Candide'. Gustave Flaubert and Anatole France give reflections on Voltaire's humanity; Victor Hugo discusses his greatness.

As Adams says, it is a surprise to find that 'Candide', a classic, is nonetheless funny. However, that is because it is so readily identifiable -- many heroes in modern stories are re-worked Candides of one sort or another; it is an Enlightenment Everyman, and we live in a period still heavily invested in and self-identified with Enlightenment ideas.

This is obviously the best of all possible Norton Critical Editions of Voltaire's 'Candide' from Adams.

What sets this book apart from the usual book of beautiful paintings is the text. Every painting is accompanied by a statement from the artist addressing some aspect of the creative process, ranging from why the scene was chosen to difficulties encountered in executing it. In addition there is a statement by a professional naturalist giving interesting natural history information about each location. You would expect a book of paintings to be a pleasure to view, and this one is. But it is also a pleasure to read.

Door County, Wisconsin, combines the natural beauty of bluff-defined shorelines, northern forests, quiet meadows, secluded wetlands, and an astonishing array of wildflowers. This coffee table book features the work of 70 artists who set out to capture the wildplaces of Door County. Most of the paintings were selected by a nationally-known jury. Some invited works are by well-known artists such as Charles Peterson, Karsten and Ellen Topelmann, James Ingwerson, and Gerhard Miller. Paintings represent the artist's impressions of the special wildplaces of the peninsula, and there's not a painting in the book that I wouldn't wish to frame and display in my home. A truly special book for a special place.

An outstanding variety of fantastic work. Any Door County fan will appreciate the true beauty of Door County and the incredible talent of the artists in the area. Charles Peterson, Bridget Austin, Jack Anderson, and other talented artists contributed to this awesome book. Worth double the price and for a great cause...

I first saw this little book just after starting my surgical residency. I had already heard many of these "sayings" on rounds and in the OR. But having a whole book full of nice little quotes was great.

The one liners collected here, obviously from many mouths over many years, are priceless. Some, unfortunately, are dated or no longer relevant, as the art and science of surgery has progressed; but they all serve to illustrate the unique perspective and attitudes of surgeons, especially in an academic setting. All surgeons, however, were once residents, and we all will recognize events, patients, attitudes, roadblocks, and lots of other memories in this book.

It's not a book with stories --- it's like a collection of aphorisms. Every surgeon should read this one.

Great tongue-in-cheek humor!

This book is a compilation of humorous comments heard in teaching hospitals across America. I bought my copy while I was a medical student and its humor is relevant today. Its great for the coat pocket as you can flip through the pages and read a dozen entries in a few minutes before your beeper sends you back to work. It would be the best few dollars you could spend on a book if you work in medicine and enjoy a good giggle to reduce stress. You'll just wish you had thought of it first!

My daughter is a voracious reader and always has a book in her hand...so I was so surprised when she told me with such great enthusiasm how much she LOVED this book. Just a few days ago she raced in from the bus to report "Mom!! It's a SERIES!!" and pointed to the "1" on the spine. Needless to say we have now ordered the 2nd book (Shadow of a Doubt) and are looking forward to the others.... Here's hoping Jeremy Brown writes as fast as my daughter reads!!

This book is great for kids who love mysteries !!!i love jeremy browns books and you will to! follow wes burton from case to case on new adventures round the corner!

madison cumings age 9 cypress,tx

Great book! Perfect for a child who can't sit down and read for long legnths of time, but enjoys a good book.

Chretien de Troyes invented the Arthurian romance with Erec and Enide. It was the first of what would soon come to be a genre unto itself. Tales of King Arthur and his knights are still popular after centuries of retelling, and Chretien de Troyes is responsible for many of the stories as we know them. Erec and Enide, the earliest of his surviving works, is a story about all the things we recognize as Arthurian--honor, chivalry, love, and courage.

When the poem begins, Erec is a young knight at Arthur's court and heir to his father's throne. When an unknown knight humiliates one of Guinevere's handmaidens during a hunt, Erec follows the knight, his lady, and their cruel dwarf home. There he meets an old man with a beautiful daughter, Enide. They come from ancient nobility but are no impoverished, and the girl can afford nothing but a ragged tunic to wear. The man tells him about a yearly ritual enacted there, where a fine hawk is placed on a perch and only the man with the most beautiful lady can dare to take it. The arrogant young knight from the day before has won several years in a row.

Erec, of course, takes Enide with him to the ritual and, because of Enide's superior beauty, denies the knight the hawk. The knight is furious and challenges Erec to combat, which Erec wins. The father of the girl is so overjoyed that he gives her to Erec as his bride, and the two fall madly in love.

So much in love, in fact, that Erec is soon criticized by many for staying at home in bed when he should be looking to chivalry. After overhearing complaints among the other knights, one night Enide accidentally speaks of her worry about Erec's reputation. Erec is angry and determines to prove himself. He immediately saddles his horse, has Enide follow suit, and orders her to ride ahead of himself and not speak. They set out with no specific destination in mind. Enide is understandably upset.

For the rest of the poem, Erec saves Enide from one predicament after another--three bandits, five bandits, giants, pandering nobles, and would-be assassins. It is never clear whether Erec is proving himself or proving Enide's loyalty, but in the end, when Erec is believed to be dead, only to regain consciousness and kill an overeager suitor, the two are reconciled to each other.

It is then that the poem moves from a string of episodes to a moving and deep symbolic tale that parallels Erec and Enide's own. In another kingdom there is a man trapped in an enchanted garden by his beloved after swearing to do whatever she pleases. In fear that he will leave her, she has made him swear an oath that he will not leave the garden until someone challenges him to combat that he cannot beat. Dozens have tried, and all failed. Erec is victorious, and the man and his lover are set free of the garden.

This, in part, saves Erec and Enide from becoming a tedious, episodic story without a point. The poem--just under 7,000 lines long--is so carefully constructed and unified that a second reading is just as rewarding as the first time. Throughout the story, seemingly every incident in the lives of Erec and Enide have a darker parallel that must be overcome. And, of course, the two lovers must prove to each other that they have "the proper balance between devotion and freedom," that they are not so tied to one another that they neglect their duties, or vice versa.

These themes and the history of the poem are explored in an informative afterword by Joseph Duggan, who has written scholarly end matter for all of Burton Raffel's translations of Chretien's works. Raffel himself has written a short translator's note, and the translation itself is outstanding. As he has proven time and again, Raffel can perfectly balance literalness with beauty--his translations actually convey the spirit of Chretien's poetry.

Erec and Enide is required reading for anyone with an interest in medieval poetry, Arthurian legend, or great literature in general.

Highly recommended.

Since about the middle of the 20th century, it has become increasingly difficult to find poetic translations of long poems. This trend has recently been reversing, with some excellent translations of the Iliad and the Odyssey -- and Ruth Harwood Cline's translations of Troyes' works joins this new and welcome trend.

Most reviews and reviewers will concentrate on the plot -- I want to focus on the translation itself. For too long there has been a philosophy of translation that does not see any value in translating poems in the forms in which they were written. With longer poems especially, more "literal" and plot-driven prose translations have been the norm. But prose is not how these works were written, and it is not how they were meant to be read or heard. They are poems, and only a poetic translation will be able to communicate the full meaning of the poem being translated. Meaning in a poem lies not just in the plot and characters, or even in the particular words used -- though all of this is true -- but also in the rhythms and rhymes, the music, of the poem. Cline's poetic translation thus translates too the music of the poems she translates. We get the full beauty of the works only when we read them the way they were meant to be read: as poems. One hopes Cline continues to translate poems of this period into English.

And now, for a slight aside: Do not read Cervantes' "Don Quixote" until you have read all of Troyes' works, for you will miss almost all the jokes and the full satirical impact of the novel.

With Arthurian Romances seemingly always staging a comeback, how nice to have a fast-read, "words-a-poppin" translation of the very first Arthurian Romance, written in Old French around 1170. What I found most intriquing was that the book essentially wrestles with the ways in which men and women define themselves when becoming partners. Erec's rather pig-headed forcing of Enide to lead the way in the forest and never speak to him has odd contemporary overtones. But they are sweet compared to the couple they meet in Erec's final quest in the book - wait until you find out who "The Joy of the Court" is. Burton Raffel's translation, even if you don't like poetry, reads like a smooth silver skate. I gave the book a "9" instead of "10" because it doesn't have any illustrations. I know it's a University Press, but come on folks, with a story about knights couldn't you throw in at least one old woodcut or something

The four huts are four short essays about retreat from the world, specifically retreat to small and private home. I'm not a very romantic person, but I started to feel that longing for a thoughtful, simple life as I read these essays.

The four cover an 800-year period, starting in China then moving to Japan. The earliest writing, by Po Chu-I, may be my favorite. The first part is brief and business-like, a description of the hut, its environs, and the views from it. Although the writing is plain, I can't help imagine the drifting Chinese landscape paintings I've seen, with mists and peaks off to the edge of vision. This piece ends with two brief poems that express some of the writer's quiet passion. I was quite taken by the way the prose and poetry are used to express different parts of the author's experience.

The second writing in this book struck me, at first, as disingenuous. Again, the hut is simple but sturdy and well-made, and the environs capture many different aspects of natural beauty. The landscaping is completely man-made, though, and the property was acquired and developed at huge expense, near the capitol. My second impression was that yes, the scene has some Disney artificiality about it, but the urge that drove it was as real as any. Even at that time, the start of the Heian era or just before it, urban crowding was a reality, and urban gentrification was as much a factor as in any modern city. If "The Pond Pavilion" could not be an actual withdrawal from the world, it was a lovingly built homage to the ideal.

The third essay, the Ten Square Foot Hut, has appeared elsewhere, and is still worth reading. This focuses less on the hut itself than on the process of withdrawal and the life of the near-hermit. It is pervasively Buddhist, and does not promote complete isolation from the world. It does, however, offer an appealing look at an old man, usually alone but never lonely, doing what he has worked for many years to do.

The final essay may be the shortest. It is certainly the most recent, written some time in the 17th century AD. It is also a symmetric end to the collection - Basho's lttle essay reads much like the first.

This book is quite brief, and even shorter if one skips over the translator's noted. It seemed to be over much too soon. Still, the book's brevity and simplicity are modeled after the scenes it describes. It was hard to close the book and come back to the reality of the modern world.

Burton Watson, the well-known translator of 'The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu' and Ssu-Ma Chien's 'Records of the Grand Historian of China,' here turns his attention to something much slighter, though perhaps no less profound.

'Four Huts' is made up of four short prose pieces or 'chi' (Records) praising the wisdom of the simple life: 'Record of the Thatched Hall on Mount Lu,' by the major T'ang poet, Po Chu-i; 'Record of the Pond Pavilion' by Yoshishige no Yasutane; 'Record of the Ten-Foot-Square-Hut' by Kamo no Chomei; and 'Record of the Hut of the Phantom' by the famous haiku poet, Matsuo Basho.

All four of these 'Records' or essays have the same theme: the wisdom of removing oneself from the rat-race, setting up a simple residence in beautiful natural surroundings, and getting back in touch with one's real nature and with real things. They celebrate, as Po Chu-i puts it, being 'happy with one's surroundings and at peace within' (page 9). Short, and easy to read, it would be a wonderful book to have along with you on your next trip to the forests, lakes, or mountains.

The book also contains a brief, though somewhat uninspired Preface, by Watson; brief Introductions and endnotes to each piece; and twelve fine halftone illustrations, by the remarkably competent Zen calligrapher Stephen Addiss, which help set the mood

It's a small and beautiful book of just 132 pages that will easily fit into a purse or shirt-pocket, well-printed in two colors on a heavy high-quality ivory-tinted paper, bound in a stiff glossy illustrated wrapper, and it even has persimmon endpapers. As a book, it would have been perfect if only someone had thought to add stitching.

Most of us probably realize that it is the simplest things in life that bring us the greatest joys - a simple and unostenatious dwelling, time in which to unwind and become what we are supposed to be, a refreshing breeze, sunlight, wholesome food, raindrops, birdsong, the sound of water, children's laughter, a well-loved book.

But despite knowing this we allow ourselves to be seduced by the tinsel glamor and superficial excitements of the bustling metropolis. And the question raised by this book is just which of the two, the simple or the glamorous, provides the richest and most rewarding satisfactions?

'Four Huts' will probably be read by those who need it least. But it would make an ideal gift for some Prozac-popping friend you think needs it most. It might, with a bit of luck, just end up changing their life.

This small book containing 4 short essays (and a poem or two) on the simple life makes one realize that possessions and big houses can be a burden; life can be lived simply and serenely. These essays were written by one Chinese author and three Japanese authors, over almost a thousand years, ending with Basho. I enjoyed all four essays, but Basho has so much wit to him that I have to say he is my favorite. I love the image he presents: nothing holy or wise, just sitting there admiring the view and squishing lice. What more is there to life?

As always, money talks. Or was it more than money? That question is not exactly answered in this chilling expose of Nazi war criminals living quiet, peaceful lives in the United States, the corruption in the INS that allowed them entrance (and citizenship!), and the man who tried his best to hunt them down and expell them. Although the author concentrated on four of these monsters, he might have done the world a service in 1977 by naming all 59 names on the list Tony DeVito was supplied. Looking back through the Kosovo experience, would expelling those Ustashi leaders hiding here and openingly publishing their hate literature have somehow prevented the blood-shed in Serbia? And the disgrace to the Rumanian Orthodox Church! No wonder there were young people in the 1960s for whom "organized religion" was a joke! This book actually raises more questions than it answers and someone should do a thorough examination of INS records for the years 1945 to 1960. It would make another good book!

I have read and re-read this book several times, and it is fantastic. By selecting four Nazis who slipped through the cracks of the overwhelming post-war immigration, Howard Blum skillfully details their stories, and the efforts to expose them for living the good life here in America. The detail with which their horrific actions are recounted is ample evidence of Blum's thorough nature and regard for history while keeping the reader mesmorized. Even though it was written in the 1970's, the impact on today's readers should be felt just as deeply.

You would have to consider this book to be a literal eye opener. The author gives several real life examples of Nazi war criminals living the good life in the United States. The author
takes several cases of Nazis who have set up residency in the
United States. The details of these individuals false residency
makes for informative reading as well.The network that protects
these individuals is given attention as well.This makes for scary reading that Nazi war criminals could actually live the good life of the United States as normal American citizens. This
is a book that will make you wonder. Read this book. It is definitely a page turner.

Ruffed Grouse hunters can't miss this one. Anything by Spiller on grouse hunting is a joy to read and this is the one to start with.

Another great nostalgic look at the "good ol days" of upland bird hunting.Definitely a must-read for grousers!

This is a very well-written book with abundant good humor and dry wit. It is one of the classics of grouse hunting literature. It is not a natural history or a how-to book, but is literature written in a very accessible style about one man's adventures while hunting grouse over a period of many years near his New England home.

I am 44 years old. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, and so did my 80-year old Uncle who had hunted ruffed grouse for many years in the woods of northeastern Pennsylvania.