Carey Books

Told in the first person, this is a remarkable book. You'll read a true account of life inside a women's prison, led by a warden with no experience, minimal training, and shrinking budgets. The author made good use of her administrative and leadership skills to implement positive programs for the inmates, only to be sabotaged. Descriptive and fluid, you get to know the author well, and an overview of some of the inmates.

Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views (7/08)

Brook Carey's "The Accidental Warden" is an absolutely fascinating insider's view into the mysteries and the reality of the women's prison, the system and the challenges she faced back in 1975 when she was selected to serve as the CIW Warden. She had no previous experience in the correctional facilities and received no formal training. Actually, as she describes it herself, her training consisted of being handed a bunch of keys and a paperback copy of the book dealing with Charles Manson. What she did have, however, were excellent organizational and administrative skills, compassion, thirst for knowledge and courage.

If you are like me, your "knowledge" of the prisons is based on Hollywood; and you probably think all prisons are the same. Brook Carey dispels any of such preconceived notions, both by telling the story of what a real women's prison looks like, how much more limited their resources were - at least back in 1975 - compared to the facilities housing male inmates; and what unique challenges faced a warden dealing with a female prison population. Ranging from silly, such as the population's preference for rather sleazy, if low-quality underwear, to the trials of dealing with the fans of the "Manson girls" incarcerated there and the riot happening just before Christmas, Carey was ill-prepared for any of those challenges and had absolutely minimal, if any support from her "bosses," including the Governor of California who had to consent to her appointment.

While riveting in their stark honesty, many of the segments in the book sound flat. The readability of this book would have been greatly enhanced with the use of a good copy-editor. The rather unconventional use of punctuation, especially when dealing with the dialogue, does not enhance the reading experience either. Ms. Carey's insistence in determining and naming the race of nearly every person she mentions in her accounts is slightly unsettling, since she categorically states over and over that she is not a racist. Omitting that would not harm the stories told in any way - it really does not matter if the resident complaining about the food was African-American, Caucasian or a Martian.

As fascinating as I found this unique book, it saddens me that it was written more than 30-years after Brook Carey's courageous entry into the rather disheartening administration of the correctional facility. The reader has no way of knowing which of her planned or proposed changes were actually implemented and whether the system has changed for the better at all. While I find "The Accidental Warden" a brave book even after those three decades, I believe it could have made significantly bigger impact if written and published much sooner.

Jaqueline Carey has presented us with a chef d' oeuvre. Brilliant writing mixed with stunning illustrations made for a remarkable book. Carey takes us on a journey through the lives of not only beneficial angels but also the infamous ones e.g. Azazel, the Nephilem, Lilth, etc. "Angels" is split into four unique chapters, Angels of the Divine, The Eternal Realm, The Material World, & The Infernal Regions. Each chapter provided me with simple yet informative knowledge. The only problem I had with this book is that it was too short. About half the pages are art & I ended up reading this book in less then a day. However this book will still always have a special place on my bookshelf.

Angels...has compiled some of the best reproductions of old master paintings and illuminated manuscripts depicting many in the angelic hierarchy. Better yet (and quite surprisingly) the writing is fresh, fun and accurate. Jacqueline Carey tells the stories of the angels using many diverse religious sources so the perspective is never stale. Her writing and storytelling ability make this a great read from start to finish.

This book is perfect for any student of writing, whether enrolled in a university or not. It guides the reader through every stage of the writing process: planning, drafting, researching, revising, and editing.

The unique features of this book are (1) helpful ESL boxes that offer important tips for international students, or for those that help international students, (2) Questions for analysis and useful assignments, both for individuals and groups, (3) a clear, exciting format that makes for easy, captivating reading, and (4) practical charts and helps for easy reference. The book can be read like a novel or used as a reference tool. The only problem is that, because of the size of the book, the softcover does not wear well. I would recommend buying hardcover.

I have always avoided writing; it never quite turns out the way I want. But this handbook, with its clear explanations and user-friendly tone, has inspired me to simply write, not letting burdens of worry slow me down. I have been encouraged to have fun exploring new ways of putting my fingers to the keyboard. This book is for anyone who is not a writer, or is, but wants to be one.

THE BLAIR HANDBOOK IS MUST HAVE FOR WRITING PERFECT ENGLISH. NO HOUSE, LIBRARY, OR EVEN STUDENT SHOULD BE WITHOUT THIS TEXT. EVER WONDER WHY IT IS THAT 'THE ROAD WINDS AROUND THE MOUNTAIN.' INSTEAD OF 'THE ROADS WINDS AROUND THE MOUNTAIN'? WELL NOW YOU CAN FIND OUT, NOT JUST BECAUSE IT DOESN'T SOUND RIGHT, BUT THE REASON IT ISN'T CORRECT. THERE ARE MANY THINGS THAT YOU WILL WRIET AND THEN SECOND GUESS THEM, AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THEY ARE CORRECT. WITH THIS BOOK YOU CAN FIND OUT WHAT IS CORRECT AND BRING YOUR WRITING UP TO A HIGHER LEVEL. USE THE TIPS AND LESSONS TO WRITE IMPRESSIVE RESUMES, PAPERS, THESES ETC. A MUST FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN WRITING EXCEPTIONALLY WELL.

This is a pretty good tree book.Not my favorite, but not bad.The illustrations aren't real exciting but they are more than good enough for identification purposes.All in all a pretty good book for someone who wants to learn about the trees of the Eastern US.

Excellent book for those interested in identifying eastern forest trees.
The full page sketches of leaves, fruit, and buds are very accurate and
would look great as framed art. The book also contains a system of summer and winter identifying keys for each species, and a very interesting section on "forest association", ( which trees live together).
The text on each species is very complete. This book is a lesson on trees for anyone who loves trees or wants to identify or learn about them. This book is of northern trees. Grimm's later book, "The Illustrated Book of Trees", includes the southern trees also. Same book, more trees.

This collection of stories brings forth a surge of emotions that range from satirical humor to suspense, and they do this from page to page. Peter Carey's collection of short stories flows with all these emotions, keeping the reader in suspense through the surrealistic tales he creates. Events and locations seem so normal that one almost forgets that these are fictional tales, taking place in a world where things, places and events seem perfectly conventional until it break the laws of what is feasible and what is pure fantasy. A native Australian, Carey's stories take place in a would be Australia. Here we look into the thoughts of people in completely different situations. There is a tale of a soldier who has to guard a fence in the desert, keeping people "out". Soon he forgets which side he is supposed to be guarding, doubting his competence and his sanity. Some other stories deal with lost dreams, people who have sunk so far into despair that they emerge victoriously on the other side. This is a very good read, especially if you like to read a satisfying tale, and only have short periods of time to accomplish it.

Here are the complete (26) short stories of Peter Carey in a single volume, including those collected in the books "The Fat Man in History" (Crabs, Peeling, Life & Death in the South Side Pavilion, Room No. 5 (Escribo), Happy Story, A Windmill in the West, Withdrawal, Report on the Shadow Industry, Conversations with Unicorns, American Dreams, and The Fat Man in History), "War Crimes" (The Journey of a Lifetime, Do You Love Me?, The Uses of Williamson Wood, The Last days of a Famous Mime, A Schoolboy Prank, The Chance, Fragrance of Roses, The Puzzling Nature of Blue, Kristu Du, He Found Her in Late Summer, Exotic Pleasures, and War Crimes), along with 3 previously unpublished works (Joe, Concerning the Greek Tyrant, and A Million Dollars Worth of Amphetamines).

Peter Carey has risen to fame as a novelist, having gained notoriety from such works as Oscar and Lucinda (which garnered him the Booker Prize), Jack Maggs, The True History of the Kelly Gang, and My Life as a Fake. However, like most writers, his debut publications were short story collections and "Collected Stories" finds his mini-masterpieces all in one place. I started reading Carey during a brief residence in Melbourne (I'm a short story fan and was looking for an Australian writer to compliment my travels -- I think it was a travel guide that pointed me to Peter Carey). I bought "The Fat Man in History," but after being blown away by the first few stories, I returned it for the complete "Collected Stories" and never looked back.

Many of the stories have a surrealistic plot, such as "Do You Love Me?" in which the work of cartographers plays a role in the dematerialization of places and people, "Life and Death in the South Side Pavilion" in which a man attempts to shepherd a group of horses that keep dying by falling into a pool of water, "Peeling" in which a man's lover unravels into nothingness, or "Exotic Pleasures" in which captivatingly beautiful birds murderously overwhelm the world. Others center on human relationships, such as "Room No. 5 (Escribo)" in which a couple traveling in a foreign land fall in love in the midst of a military coup, "Happy Story" in which a man balances his love for his girlfriend with his passion for flying, "The Uses of Williamson Wood" in which a woman confronts her abuser, and "He Found Her in Late Summer" in which a man sacrifices himself for his lover. The stories are difficult to describe further because they're not really "like" many other authors I can think of. The language and character interaction are spare but powerful (reminiscent of Joe Frank -- see [...], the stories are brief, often divided into terse sections/chapters and focusing on the bizarre or fantastic (like Vonnegut), and there is a recurring theme of futility in impossible situations and suggesting a larger metaphorical meaning (evoking Kafka). Each tale leaves a strong emotional impression -- I found myself eager to read the next, but not wanting to finish too soon and exhaust the supply either.

Although "Collected Stories" is the complete collection of Carey's short works, it isn't as available (in the U.S.) as is "The Fat Man in History." But trust me, after reading a few of these stories, you won't be satisfied knowing there are more out there.

After reading this short story collection, I tried a few of Carey's novels. None ever matched the power of these short works. There have only been a few other authors whose stories made such a mark. I also happened to read "Letter to Our Son" by Carey while browsing in a bookstore -- a very short tribute to his son's birth, but also great little story that sticks in my memory.

Some good advice here, but not totally inclusive. As liquor laws vary by state, it is tough to outline each state's process in detail. Quite basic, but gets you on the right track.

From beginning to End! A to Z. This Bar guide is definitely a great tool. For anybody trying to make the Big Leap into the World of the bar business! Very informative!

Former F&B Assistant
Desert Inn, Las Vegas, Nevada
Don Miller

I am an avid reader of both Secular and Christian fiction, and of Christian non-fiction and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I couldn't wait to sit down and read it again. Not only was it written extremely well, but it also keeps your attention because of the shocking way that people of the jungle in Bolivia lived. There are miracles abounding in this book, and I found it a great strength of encouragement in my daily walk with God. You see through this book how satan can reign when there is no real knowledge of God, so thankfully missionary's are willing to risk their lives and the comfort of home to reach these lost tribes!

okay i'm reviewing this w/ an 8 year old's eyes-back when my uncle wrote this book and before he launched himself into his hard core church growth and spritual warfare mode-he wrote this book as a dedicated missionary of the gospel.i have no room any longer for any of the religious nonsense that accompanies my family's lives-however, i very much loved this book as a child and thought my uncle one fine guy.i should probably re-read this book-but, i think it best to let the memories live on.he doesn't need this review to continue writing or selling his books anyway.

I have read a number of authors who have excoriated William Carey for the way he treated his wife. I felt that Beck has given a much more nuanced and balanced portrayal of Dorothy's life and her relationship with William. One of the things he points out is that if William had taken her back to England, the treatment at the time for people with emotional illness was quite harsh, and that she probably received much more loving and gentle treatment by remaining in India under the care of William.

This is the story of Dorothy Carey, wife of William Carey, the first English Baptist missionary to India. Dorothy Carey was a simple, uneducated English women married to the man who became known as the Father of Modern Missions. While William was a linguistic genius and fell on Indian soil like a seed on fertile ground, Dorothy did not fare so well. With two small boys in tow and a babe in arms, Dorothy was physically sick from the time they arrived until she died twelve years later. William flourished, easily learning the language and productively translating Scripture. Dorothy buried her baby, suffered constant dysentary and finally sunk into deep paranoia. Her final years were spent confined to home under constant watchcare. Much of the day to day happenings are from the journals of William Carey. Those journals,along with letters back to the Mission Committee in England, give the sad story of the wife of the "Father of Modern Missions." Dorothy Carey also deserves to be remembered for the sacrifices she made for the cause of Missions and James Beck has done us a great service in presenting her story.

My first inclination to pick up this book came from an endorsement by the great preacher Martyn Lloyd-Jones that caught my eye. Lloyd-Jones' endorsement read:

"Lewis provides an excellent foretaste of the rich meal that readers of the works of the Puritans can enjoy. His arrangement of the matter--the brief biographical touches, the judicious selections threaded into a continuing theme, etc.--is brilliant."

To this endorsement I must give my hearty agreement. Make no mistake about it, Lewis gets right to his point --and he stays on his point until the very end. His point is simple: to give a taste of Puritan theology and writings by letting the puritans speak for themselves. Though the book is a mere 136 pages, it boats 351 direct quotes/references from Puritan writings.

The outline is fairly simple. Lewis breaks things down into 3 parts: The Puritan in the Pulpit, the Puritan in the Pew, and The Puritan in Private. From this standpoint he surveys the distinctives of Puritan theology in each of these areas, often with an eye to correcting common misconceptions about them.

* Are you one who has the perception that the Puritans were high-tower theologians, long-winded, overly cognitive, and dry? The section on Puritan theology surrounding the pulpit will disprove that caricature.

* Did the Puritans see the church service as mere formalism where one goes to hear great oratory and 'high' church? The Puritan in the Pew lets gives us a glimpse into what a Puritan service was like and the attitude of the common layperson.

* But what about legalism and impossible standards of living for the saved? Did the Puritans raise the bar too high, quench the smoldering flax of weak believers, and form their own community of self-righteousness? Such hideous lies are exposed in The Puritan in Private, the largest section of the book which deals primarily with spiritual depression, doubting of salvation, etc. No doubt there will be some who will be very surprised at how warm, pastoral, and patient the Puritans were towards those who struggled with besetting sin, depression, and doubts about salvation!

But all things considered, I do have one complaint about this book, and it is but a small one: the last section, the Puritan in Private, is close to three-fourths of the entire book, and I must say that it was tough to follow. The material was great, don't be mistaken, but with 259 references in this section alone, the material was overwhelming. Simply too much crammed into too little of space, and I was left a little disillusioned. Half the length and half the references would have made it just perfect, and would have eased things up for the reader unfamiliar with the Puritan style of writing.

Overall, I highly recommend the book as instrumental in getting a proper view of Puritan theology, and of the monumental contribution they have made to the church. For the serious student, and the one seeking, like David Brainerd, 'Oh Lord, for more holiness!', this is an introduction that will open up a world of writings to you that will certainly change your life and deepen your affection for Jesus Christ. Put it in the top 10% of your 'must-have' book list.

Peter Lewis is Britain's greatest champion of solid, Biblical, Reformed and Evangelical Christianity - a very worthy successor of his fellow Welshman and friend, Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. This great work of Lewis on the Puritans has been out of print for too long and it is more than exciting to see it back on the shelves again. Every Reformed pastor ought to have this (not to mention his entire elder board, congregation and more besides) and it is worth giving to non-Reformed friends too because they will learn to appreciate the Puritans in a whole new way. Sell your shirt - buy 20 copies of this book for your pastor and for all your friends. Christopher Catherwood, author of CHRISTIANS, MUSLIMS AND ISLAMIC RAGE (Zondervan, 2003)

Its a good book for any star wars rpger.

After a wait of several months, gamers finally have a new SWRPG sourcebook in the form of Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds. If you've read Coruscant and the Core Worlds then you know the pattern that this sourcebook follows as well. While there are some gaps, players and GM's will probably be slightly more interested in this sourcebook than its older sibling, because as we all know, most of the actual action in the Star Wars universe takes place in the Outer Rim!

Let's cover the aesthetics first. As usual, the SWRPG team has given us another attractive book. The image of a Republic gunship blasting its way through the sky is pretty darn cool. Between the covers this book is full-color throughout with a large amount of quality original artwork. There are a handful of photos this time as well. In short, it just feels like a Star Wars sourcebook.

On to the content. The book's main focus is on 29 Outer Rim worlds. Each planet receives an overview which includes vital statistics, a basic description, a short history, a description of its people (if any), and a selection of important locations. Each planet also has a GM-only section that includes a few adventure ideas, new NPCs, and any new races, creatures, or equipment. Note that there are no new feats or prestige classes at all. Minor worlds like Roon and Kintan receive an average of 5 pages of attention, while major worlds like Geonosis and Kamino receive 8-11 pages each. Again, keep in mind that each entry is a generous but broad overview, not an exhaustive description.

Most worlds, like Bespin, Dathomir, and Ossus have appeared in the movies or novels at some point. Some worlds seem to be brand new. However, three notable worlds are missing entirely: Hoth, Naboo, and Tatooine. Sure, Hoth doesn't have a lot going on, but a page or two would have been nice for the sake of completeness. The authors also explain that Naboo and Tatooine were left out because they already have their own sourcebooks. And they do- but they were (in my opinion) mediocre sourcebooks that are now years out of print. I understand the logic, but it's not an omission I care for. On the other hand, the authors state in the foreward that they may produce a second volume on the Outer Rim if there is sufficient interest. I hope they do.

I also found it interesting that the table of contents lists the NPC's, creatures, equipment, and other extras by page number, and not in alphabetical order. That's not a choice that I would have gone with, but everything is still listed by category as well, so locating an entry is still easy enough.

As a player, the main thing I like about this sourcebook is how sharply the worlds contrast with each other. That makes for excellent character background material. As a GM, I really liked the adventure hooks. The authors have taken the hooks a step further by linking some of the worlds together for two-part adventure ideas. That was a nice touch.

There are also 86 new NPCs (each with a personality and background, and most linked to a specific planet), 15 new species, 10 new pieces of equipment, 10 new vehicles, 1 new starship, 28 new creatures, and 1 new droid. The vast array of new NPCs and creatures in particular seem to provide a wealth of options for roleplaying, combat, or just as a spur for new ideas.

And oh yes... there are many maps as well. Compared to previous books, map quality has really improved. The maps are bigger than they have been, and finally, every single one actually has a key! In fact, the map of the Great Temple on Yavin IV takes up a whole page and is perfect for anyone running a Rebellion or New Jedi Order campaign.

Overall, despite a few flaws and ommissions, Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds is a good, solid reference. Players will like it for its wide array of background material, and GMs will also appreciate the ready-made worlds, adventure hooks, NPCs, and creatures. In short, this is fertile soil for any campaign that ventures into the Outer Rim.