E Books

This is simply one of the most beautiful, and most beautifully written, novels in English. Every sentence is a jewel of construction, filled with humor. I re-read it regularly to remind me of why I love to read. Every page delights me, and the chapter of the Christmas candle-walking makes me cry. The ending is so beautifully handled that it never fails to make me sob happily. If you have an appreciation for our language, and a human heart in you, you'll love this book.

This is my favorite book in the world. It is the perfect book. I read my old beat-up-but-well-loved copy of it once a year, to maintain my equilibrium. It is simple, funny, and beautiful. Once you read it you will never forget it.

This was a great book. At times I would picture myself in their lives and I know that I would have been happy. I especially liked the grandmother, she was funny, witty, sarcastic and above all smart. I highly recommend this book.

This is a charming little idyll about a small village, pretty well isolated from the outside world, which has two preachers, one a fire and brimstone fundamentalist, the other a gentle man of uncertain creed, but great heart. The main plot is a love story. Much of the charm of the book lies in the imaginative poetry of Chute's prose. When he describes a meadow, you can hear the bees on their rounds.

One of the best books I have ever read -- BJ Chute has woven a tale of loyalty, love and humor into a timeless classic. The whimsical town of Greenwillow will draw you in and keep you hooked until the very last page. Chute's characters are eccentric and irresistible -- you'll read of sweet Dorie who bakes bilberry tarts and dreams of a happy ending; the cow that kneels down at Christmas; two Reverends battling over good and evil -- and Gideon, who loves the land with a passion we can only envy. I've read this book at least 15 times, and have never gotten tired of it -- in fact, its appeal grows with each passing year.

This is an excellent book. A must read at least once and perhaps many times over.

Reviewed by Debra Gaynor for ReviewYourBook.com, 3/08
The title of this book says it all, Hurt People Hurt People. People who have been hurt do tend to hurt others, sometimes knowingly and sometimes unknowingly. As I read this book, I kept thinking about people that have been sexually abused and the proven fact that most abusers were abused. "Hurt people commonly use anger to disguise and deflect their guilt and grief." We have all been hurt in some way in our life.
Hurt People Hurt People deals with the emotional and spiritual hurts that scar people. I could relate to many of the statements in chapter three "Hurt by the Unprepared and Unavailable." Sandra D. Wilson writes in a simple easy-to-understand manner; she uses wit and wisdom to impart her message, offering hope and understanding. The healing that hurt people need may not happen overnight; it takes years for the hurts to heal, and only Jesus Christ can heal them.

If you are looking into human behavior and the "why's", this is an excellent book. Gave one to my best friend who is a counselor working with abused and neglected children and with families whose children are in foster care, and she can't order enough copies for her adult cients. Like me, she feels this is one of the best books available for understanding ourselves and others. I read and re-read it, finding myself, my family members, and my friends (but mostly myself) all through this book. Great insights for the lay person.

Sandra Wilson has written a winner here. I read this book in 2004 and have decided to read it again.This book ministers and provides healing at the same time. It helps you to understand yourself and others.

this book is so informative on why hurt people hurt people. I never thought alot about why those people do what they do- with this book you will understand in more depth and clarity what is behind their motives and you will be surprised at the reasons. Sandra Wilson is an awesome author and her books are well worth the read.

This book has to be the most romantic and honest book of all time! I give "If I Should Die Before I Wake" (Lurlene McDaniel) five stars *****. Deanne's mother has her whole life figured out for her, while Deanne doesn't want to be the "star of social register" like her mother dreams. Deanne decides to do something useful, so she became a volunteer worker at the local hospital. At the hopsital, Deanne learns every important life lessons starting from friendship and sharing secrets with her best friend, to life and death relationships. When she makes friends with one of the cancer patients, it changes her life forever.

...The book grabbed me and stuck with me all these years. I connected with Deanna when she had to deal with her over bearing mother, her weight problem and the way she stood up for herself. I loved the way she first met Matt at the hospital, not knowing he was a patient. The way they became friends and then how beautifully their romance grew. Especially over labor day weekend at Matt's vacation home. It was every teenage girl's dream. I admired Deanna's strength, courage and her heart.

I just recently bought this book for my eleven year old daughter. This is a wonderful book. I strongly recommend it.

Author:Lurlene McDaniels

This story is about a girl named Deanne who mother wants her to work at a country club so she can work with the right people. The problem is she wants to volunteer at a hospital her father works at. She gets a job there and meets a boy named Matt, who has canser. She gets real close with Matt, who has cancer,but she gets scared he might die. So she find out that working at a hospital can be sad.

Author:Lurlene McDaniels

This story is about a girl named Deanne who mother wants her to work at a country club so she can work with the right people. The problem is she wants to volunteer at a hospital her father works at. She gets a job there and meets a boy named Matt, who has canser. She gets real close with Matt, who has cancer,but she gets scared he might die. So she find out that working at a hospital can be sad.

I got this book from a book club when I was about 9 years old. Through the subsequent years, I read this book at least 40 times. It is a lovely story about a young woman growing up, learning about love, and learning about grief. Somewhere along the way, I lost my battered and worn copy. But all this time, I've remembered this book as one of the first to ever move me and to instill in me a lifelong love of reading. I recommend it to any parent trying to get a girl more interested in reading. Hopefully, I'll be able to reaquire a copy soon...

Image processing is used to improve the visual appearance and transmission of images to a the human eye. It also concerns the preparation of images with respect to measuring an image's features and structures. Now in a newly updated and significantly expanded fifth edition, "The Image Processing Handbook" by academician John C. Russ (Materials Science and Engineering Department, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina) "The Image Processing Handbook" features an informative chapter explaining which visual cues elicit a response from the viewer; descriptions of the latest hardware and software for image acquisition and printing including digital cameras; multichannel images and an analysis of their principle components; the issues of deconvolution, extended dynamic range images, and image enlargement and interpolation, and so much more. Enhanced with more than 2000 illustrations, and with the availability of a companion CD-ROM, "The Image Processing Handbook" is a seminal and essential addition to professional and academic library Computer Science and Electrical Engineering reference collections.

This, the fifth edition of this industry standard reference book on image processing has been significantly expanded. There are some 600 new and revised images. A major feature of the new edition is to describe the new advances that have come about in hardware for image capture and printing. This includes both new versions of traditional equipment and new emerging technologies. The text has been expanded in areas like deconvolution, extended-dynamic-range images and multichannel imaging including principal-components analysis.

In general this book does not cover the background mathematics that enables image processing. Those are left to specialty books on the subject. Instead this book is intended to be used in conjunction with hands-on equipment where the reader is encouraged to experiment with different methods to determine what is needed for the particular job.

While suitable for use as a text, this book is really a handbook for technical users. The book is more oriented to what the various tools availavle to help actually do.

I am a biologist with a little background in math. Using this book and matlab I could quickly implement basic feature recognition tools to analyze microscope images. The book focuses on concepts and explains them in intuitive language rather than in mathematical terms. Overall, it worked perfectly for me, but could be over-simplying for people with technical background.

John Russ' book on image processing was never intended to be a textbook on how to understand and write your own image processing algorithms, as you might believe by looking through the table of contents. It does cover just about everything you would see in such a textbook, but from a user's standpoint of these operations, not as an author of image processing code who needs to understand the algorithms behind these operations. Instead, Russ explains all of the operations, their value in various applications, and provides many illustrations showing before and after pictures of what each operation does. There are no algorithms, pseudocode, or mathematics in this book.

The jewel in the crown of this book is the companion CD. It contains over 200 Photoshop plug-ins for performing the operations mentioned in this book. These plug-ins work on 8-bit grayscale and 24 bit RGB images and are divided into the categories of image adjustment, color manipulation, image math, boolean operations, Fourier processing, morphological operations, neighborhood processing, distance-map operations, thresholding, feature measurement, calibration, stereology, and surface rendering. The bad news is that you have to obtain the CD separately. If you need to understand the detailed mathematics behind such operations, you might consult Digital Image Processing by Gonzalez and Woods, and then come back to this book for the tools to accomplish the operations explained in that book. The updates to this fifth edition include an additional chapter on human vision and how it ties into image processing. Also, the author has updated his sections on image acquisition hardware and software to describe the latest tools available. Finally, the topic of tomographic imaging has been expanded and given its own chapter and the chapter on 3-D image acquisition has been deleted.

This is an excellent book on image processing from a systems engineering and user standpoint. You will be disappointed if you expect to learn the algorithms behind the techniques demonstrated in this book.

As others have stated, this book comes as close as you'll ever get to a single-source reference on image processing. But if I were ever going to shoot anything down in it, I'd say that a little more mathematical background on some topics (and maybe pseudocoded examples) would help. For example, in the satellite geometric correction section, only a very high level view is given yet this is a challenging topic that could use more depth. Geometric transformations in general could use more depth, e.g. camera calibrations or image warping/morphing/mapping to other projections for example. Another example would be the need for a little more depth on how to make slow algorithms fast ...like convolution multiplications for example. Sure, you could write out the multiplies and spot commonalities, then re-use results that appear in more than one subsequent equation and what not, but some exploration of matrix math and how to make it efficient would be nice. But again ...I'm picking at small things here, and if John's book covered everything that I'd like it to, then it would become 2 books, not one ...hey! Now THERE's an idea! A 2+ book set by John Russ that covers a broader range of topics and does so in greater depth! That's something that I'd pay for (and much better to read than Ballard & Brown)

Unlike many books about the Holocaust this one is truly different in its ending. Suffuring a fate like the Jewish in WWII is not imaginable and this books takes you to a girl and the trials she faced trying to survive and stay connected with her family. This books is an inspiring story of a young girl who tries to survive the terrible fate of her people while trying to stay with her family and the repercussions of this horrible time will never be healed. Although Inge does not get to finish the book herself, her nephew does a great job finishing where she left off. If you like emotional stories that suck you in and you don't want to put the book down, you will love this book!

I won't go into a synopsis since the readers before me have very detailed ones.
I checked this one out from the local library. I could not put it down. I was able to finish in 2 days. I found myself following her on her journey. The book is very well written and really involves the reader in what life may have been like for her. I am purchasing this one to keep on my shelf. Definitely worth reading and rereading.

Most books on the Holocaust reflect the horrible trials of those murdered or sent to Concentration Camps. This is a story of a young girl sent by her family to Belgium from Germany before the war. She is tossed into the whirlwind of war and her separation from her family is greatly traumatic for her. She faces her difficult teen years as a refugee in Southern France. The North of France is occupied by the Nazis, who ultimately control the French Government, both north and south. Each year she grows closer to her 18th birthday, she is painfully aware of the French laws will allow her to be turned over to the Nazis and deported. She is not alone in her travail. This story tells of the genuine goodness of those who helped shelter her and get her and many of her friends to Switzerland. There is love, loss and decency. A really different prospective. Should be read by all.

Much has been written about the millions who were murdered during the Nazis' Holocaust bestiality yet we know less about the effect on thousands of child survivors who suffered separation from family, deprivation and often multiple escapes during World War II. In "Inge" author Gumpert vividly portrays the anxieties and trauma of an innocent young girl under the duress of separation, escape and living on the margin. Inge discovers herself and turns from introvert to courageous escape artist, outwitting adult persecutioners. We also learn about selfless and heroic rescuers. It is fascinating to discover her interactions with peers and even the advent of teenage love during her turbulent youth.

The book vividly presents the gripping dangers and escapades of Inge's teenage years. Even more important, the author reveals Inge's lifelong and unsuccessful struggle to cope with the memories. One feels the author has perhaps finally provided the peace and redemption which escaped Inge during her lifetime.

As a fellow teenage refugee with Inge in 1940-41 (her first love was my best friend Walter), I knew the facts, but I am deeply moved by the compelling story told by this book.

This book takes you into the life of Inge Joseph who lived threw the Holocaust, but ultimitly could not get past it.

Inge Joseph was born in Darmstadt, Germany in 1925. She had an older sister and loving parents. When she was young Hitler took power and her life changed. In 1936 her father got arrested and shortly afterwards her sister then 16 went to live in America eventually living in Chicago.

Inge and her mother remained in Darmstadt with the help of her father's wealthy cousin. During this time however Inge left Darmstadt and went to live with her cousin in Belgium. After only living with him a short time he and his wife sent her to live in a hostil run by Mr. and Mrs. Frank (no relation to Anne.) After living there a while, the Nazis invaded Belgium and the Franks sent the girls to France with a group of boys from another hostil in the town they lived in.

The 100 kids went to France and stayed in a barn for a while, until the Swiss Red Cross got involved helping them with food, and finding them a castle to live in.

Life was not easy in the barn or castle, but Inge and some of her friends found love. During the time in the castle the oldest of the children were arrested and sent to a concentration camp, but managed to go back to Chateau le Haille (the castle). Several months later the person in charge decided that the oldest ones needed to escape.

After a failed escape leading to the deaths of Inge's friend and boyfriend Inge made it to Switzerland and finally to the United States to reunite with her father and sister.

Inge tried to get over her experiences, married a Austrian Jew and adopted a daughter named Julie, and also became a nurse. Unfortunitly she was not able to and became addicted to medication that caused her to die in 1983.

A very interesting story, one can't forget

INTO THE MIRROR BLACK IS OVER THE TOP, I GIVE FRANK'S BOOK FIVE STARS AND NOT JUST STARS THEY ARE FIVE STARS THAT SHINE SO BRIGHT, I AM LEFT FEELING VERY IMAGINATIVE AS IF I AM IN MYSTIC, INTO THE MIRROR BLACK PUTS THE CAPITOL C IN CLASSIC HORROR CHARMING YOU WITH TURN OF THE CENTURY DELIGHTS, TO ALL YOU BOOK LOVERS OUT THERE GET GOOSEBUMPS WITH FRANK E BITTINGER NOVELS, I AM GETTING GOOSEBUMPS JUST THINKING OF NOVEL TWO "ANGELS OF THE SEVENTH DAWN" WHICH I WILL START READING TOMORROW, UNTIL THEN NIGHTY NIGHTY SLEEP TIGHT DON'T LET THE BED BUGS BITE!

Into the Mirror Black was one of the best gothic novels I have ever read. I cared about the main character immediately. I loved the home his relative leaves for him. I really loved the idea of a graveyard on the premises. That is my idea of a dream home!
The alliteration to Rosemary's Baby was FANTASTIC!!! I half expected the old lady to offer Storm a blue drink and say, "Go on, it's good for you."
haha. This is a must read!

As a native Western Marylander I was both skeptical and curious about how well Bittinger would work the area into the book. I must say he did a wonderful job. His character descriptions and humor will leave you wanting more. I look forward to reading more of his work.

Into The Mirror Black

This story roped me right in, from the first page of the prologue. The description of the time-frame of 1900, transported me there immediately. I could close my eyes and see the dwelling in which the Ritual was taking place and then gracelessly interupted.
Soon I was traveling back to present day in the first chapter. I saw things in each character I could identify with. The main character in the story is (other than the Mirror) Storm. Poor man seems almost lonely, except for his co-workers and his assistant, Nannette. The exchanges between Storm and Nannette, made me laugh out loud! I believed that Storm's existance was work, and commute, home and sleep. No socializing, he didn't seem to have time. I could feel his depression seeping thru the pages. The shock of finding out about Lila's passing, and then learning of all she left him, pushes Storm to delve into his family's history and secrets in a small Western MD town, where he meets some people that become very important in his life. Vanessa Archer is one of these such people, the kind of person we all would like to have as a friend. The more he learned, the more questions arose. Who are these ghosts, what do they want?
I had to make myself put the book down, so I could function in my daily life, or to sleep. The closer to finishing the book I got, the harder it was to put down.
I am so very ready for the next book, and June 2007 can't get here fast enough!

"Into the Mirror Black" will draw you in with a blend of witty characters and macabre intrigue. The smooth flow of events was compelling to read, but I was even more impressed at how the supernatural aspects of the story were kept within a fully realistic setting. Frank lets the daily lives of his characters interact with his plot in such a way that his exposition isn't as obvious as other writers.

I quickly felt familiar with the characters, and I enjoyed how the clues and mysteries of the plot were peculiar enough to leave me wondering. By the end, I only thought that I'd had it figured out...

Nevertheless, as the first book that I've been able to finish reading in over five years vs. novels written by Dean Koontz and Clive Barker; I'd reccommend "Into the Mirror Black" to reading enthusiasts, but to those of us who aren't as avid as we might have once been.

I'm looking forward to the next piece by this author!

it is surprising to find that so few people have anything to say about this book; Hardy was a giant among mathematicians and at last this book is translated in french...Although it is an old book, the younger author saw that it was updated through 5 editions in the 20th century; this book cannot truly become obsolete because it is about number theory from an elementary viewpoint; so no complex analysis, no modular forms and no proof of Fermat's last theorem either but a wealth of results that could keep you busy quite for a while. Moreover, most of the proofs are still up to date and usable in secondary school or college; most of the proofs about arithmetical functions given in this work have found a new life and home in more recent books such as Natanson's: Elementary methods in number theory (another fine book by the way in which Hardy and Littlewood tauberian theorem is proven via Karamata's method to ensure a density theorem on partitions). The main parts of the book I went through are those on arithmetical functions and series of prime and especially mertens's theorem but there is a lot to learn from it on such subjects as gaussian integers (chapter 12), diophantine equations (chapter 13), Rogers-Ramanujan identities, Jacobi and Euler theorems in the chapter about partitions (numbered 19...), Kronecker's theorem on irrational numbers and on a smaller scale e and pi's irrationality (easy) and transcendence (not so easy) in chapter 11 and of course congruences including a famous theorem on Bernoulli numbers of Von Staudt which gives the fractional part of those enigmatic numbers as a sum of picked inverse of prime numbers . Let say it again: a wonderful book.

It was always claimed that of all the mathematicians who ever lived, Hardy was one of the greatest writers. This book certainly confirms that view. From the very beginning, one thinks, "Wow, this guy REALLY knows what he's talking about." Hardy was, in fact, one of the greatest number theorists of the twentieth century. Hardy gives actual intuitive motivation for almost all of the theorems in the book (intuition is often overlooked by mathematical authors who use the confusing traditional "theorem-proof" approach), and his proofs are elegant and easy to follow. Once, I spoke to the chair of the math department at a major University (Wash U. in St. Louis) and he told me that he reads Hardy and Wright at least once a year to refresh himself on the basics. I would recommend this book to anyone who is learning about number theory for the first time, and wishes to pursue the subject through self-study.

This is an unusual number theory book in that it covers topics of interest to the authors which are not often found in the "standard" introductory treatment. My only mild complaints are: no subject index and some ambiguous and unusual notation here and there.

I agree that this book should be in the library of anyone serious about the topic, however, if you are beginning your study of number theory from scratch there are other books that may provide a better start. I would recommend Joe Roberts "Elementary Number Theory: A Problem Oriented Approach" and/or "An Introduction to the Theory of Numbers" by Niven, Zuckerman, and Montgomery.

Roberts offers a wide spectrum of problems, with detailed solutions, written along the lines of Polya & Szego's "Problems and Theorems in Analysis I & II". Nivens book is a solid traditional introduction.

It is fun to read Hardy and Wright though, it exhibits a style that is sadly missing today.

I have to say in closing that it would be good to ignore some of the previous reviews, specifically ones making reference to "idiots". They're unproductive, miss the point of reviewing, and exhibit a level of ignorance which Mark Twain identified years ago: "It is better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt."

This classic deserves its reputation but be warned that it is not an introduction for mathematical neophytes. The authors take detours (which sometimes are looks ahead) from the main path of development that the sophisticate will enjoy but the novice may not be able to recognize as detours. Examples are the geometry of numbers (introduced in chapter 3), the Farey dissection of the continuum, and trigonometric sums.

The authors also present deeper material than is usually considered an introduction. Their presentations are excellent but require sophistication for the following topics among others: quadratic fields, generating functions of arithmetical functions, Selberg's proof of the Prime Number Theorem, and Kronecker's theorem.

This is a book to buy and keep provided you have the necessary mathematical sophistication.

Final note: this book nicely complements Apostol's Introduction to Analytic Number Theory.

First of all, let me say this about the one star review. Do not let yourself be infuenced by lesser mathematicians. Idiots in my opinion. To give this book one star, you must posses some special kind of mediocracy. Keep your stupidity to yourself Lucas.

No one writes like this anymore. Mathematicians like Hardy have passed. The subject has ballooned, and now you have to specialize within Number Theory. There are fewer and fewer that can posses knowledge of the entire subject of Number Theory. Remember what Harold M. Edwards said. You have to read the classics, and beware of secondary sources. Authors give their own spin on ideas. And who is to say they have a greater or lesser understanding of the subject. Furthermore, who can determine how well can they express themselves. How many mathematicians our days bother to study grammar and literature? The best example is Gauss' Disquisitiones Arithmeticae. Would you rather read a book written by Gauss himself, the man that established the subject? Or by some one who learned what some one learned what some one learned over a period of 200 years? Also know what Axler, author of Linear Algebra Done Right, said about reading mathematics books. For a mathematics book, if you spend less than half an hour per page you are going too fast. The last thing i will say is again attributed to Edwards. In his book on Advanced Calculus he encourages the reader to jump chapters. A book does not have to, and sometimes it should not, be read in order. It may take some practice to see how you need to jump around, but you will find that you can maximize your reading by doing so.

There are several point in which this book excels. First, in the writing style. Second, in how many ideas it introduces. Or how good an understanding the reader obtains of Number Theory. It is invaluable to have the big picture. Third, the author has in mind the future material the reader will encounter. He knows you will go beyond this book, and prepares you for what is to come. You do not enter higher courses blind.

The writting style is representative of that of Wiles and Loiville. It will show you how your mathematical writting should be. It takes a lot of practice to learn mathematical formalism and how to write proofs. This is the book to learn from. The author is not afraid to connect the ideas you are learning to other advanced ideas and to mathematical history, unlike present day authors. If you plan to be a mathematician, you must know its history. The writting is in a mathematical sense superfluos. It does not assume you are a genius, but strikes balance between what you should know and what you should be told.

The book is successful in providing you with the big picture, and how ideas you are learning reflect one ideas you will learn or have already learned. Having a big picture of the subject, which he describes in the second chapter, lets you know what you are learning now and puts the entire material in context. Gives you great perspective of the subject. Because a great deal of branches of number theory are discussed, you are not only better equiped to choose which branch might interest you, but it eases the transition to more advanced courses, such as Analytical Number Theory.

The author from the start discusses unanswered questions in Number Theory. I know alot of professors which think that the student should not be exposed to questions that surpass his mathematical knowledge. They are the weak mathematicians. Mathematics is about exploring and breaking limits. You should know what is beyond your reach, and the reach of every one else. The questions that still stand might be answered by some one that was intrigued by the challenge of answering them when they are helpless to do so. Fermat's Last Thorem is such an example. The guy learned it at the age of 10.

The last thing i will say about the book is this. Number theory has one scope. Namely, prime numbers. This book make it clear that the purpose of number theory is to determine the properties of numbers. It discusses the limitations of mathematics in attaining answers to Riemann Hypothesis, Fundamental theorem, trancedental and irrational and algebraic numbers, and so on. The book is, in my opinion, an expansion of the section on unanswered questions. And in doing so many more questions are asked and analyzed. There are prime numbers, and nothing else.

This book has all there is for the novice and experienced
investors ... . It has all the information relevant to the world of investments, mutual funds, stocks, bonds, indices ....
All presented in as simple way as possible to the man in the street. Yet in it's own way I would think even the expert money
managers will hate to give this book a miss!

A must read for anyone wanting to know what investing is all about.

As a financial planner, I am always skeptical of how to books. This book was a huge surprise! There is no fluff or selling. It is straight forward, educational and easy reading. I would recommend that any of my clients read this book to reinforce basic investment principles.

In a dynamic market, with so much noise, investors can get confused and make big mistakes. IA gives clear guidelines that are appropriate to all investors. The author's concise, entertaining writing style is easy to follow and retain. I was surprised at how simple he made some very difficult concepts. This always indicates knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.

Anyone who picks up this book will benefit but only if they apply the principles. An A+ to the author for his wonderful effort. Thank you.

I was surprised how quick paced and understandable this book is to read. Investment strategies can be very dry. But this book is a fast read and I learned a lot from the author.

I have never been able to stay in the market when it got rough. But this book showed me why I need to stay in, even when all the bad news tells me to get out. More important, I learned that if I use a wide allocation of funds, I will actually have less risk. This was a real eye opener for me.

I am very grateful the author took the time to write this book. It will change my entire approach to investing. Now maybe I will actually achieve my objectives. Thanks

A believer in a buy-and-hold approach to mutual funds investing, I am trying to develop an efficient asset allocation plan. I have read useful and informative books such as Bogle on Mutual Funds (by John Bogle) and The Winning Portfolio (by Paul Farrell), and while they provide readers with what they consider model portfolios, I was frustrated by the lack of information on how those asset allocation pie-charts were actually derived. If you are the type of person who prefers to learn how to catch fish than to be given one, then Investment Alchemy provides you with a tangible starting point, and it does so in mere 130 pages.

By perusing this book, you will have a concrete idea of why an efficiently diversified portfolio should minimize the risk (volatility), thus yielding higher returns. Think of Portfolio A and B having $100 each to start with. Portfolio A grows 10% in the first and second year, while Portfolio B grows 19% in the first and 1% in the second. While the average return rates for both portfolios are 10%, the Portfolio A shows higher balance at the end of the second year. The authors' idea of building an efficiently diversified portfolio centers around this concept. You will then learn how to combine different asset classes to develop such an efficient asset allocation plan without having to be too theoretical.

I recommend this book to any mutual fund investors who are trying to establish his/her own investment strategies over a long haul. A basic familiarity with mutual funds and some statistical concepts (such as correlation and standard deviations) will make the reading easier.

Raymond Capt has become my favorite author. This thought provoking book charts the traces of the Ark of the Covenant in archeology and history that is hidden from our eyes. Accepted recorded history may not be the most accurate version of history. Read Mr. Capt's works for a new look at very old concepts.
He traces the stone to the Biblical Jacob when he laid his head when he dreamt of the great ladder described in the Bible. The stone was named, Beth-el. The book traces how the Israelites valued this stone and took it with them where they traveled. However, the Israelites had become too sinful and disobeyed God and consequently paid the price.
The house of Judah was taken into captivity but we were reminded by Mr. Capt that God doesn't idly promise something and doesn't fulfill it in a way that is highly original. That stone was taken by the prophet Jeremiah as the city was being taken by the Babylonians and he took the daughter of King of Judah before his sons were killed and the king's eyes were put out. He hid the daughter and this stone in a very unlikely place.
We never think that that the Biblical people traveled far by sea, but they did as Jeremiah took this stone by way of Tanis, Egypt and then on to Ireland where he married the Princes of Judah to the high King of Ireland. The people were the Tuatha de Danann, meaning the House of Dan, (also of the house of Israel). Her name is plastered all over Ireland, Tea Tephi as Team hair or Tara. Tara is named after this daughter of King Zedekiah of Israel and married to preserve the line of Judah promised by God so long ago.
Following the stone, "the Stone of Destiny" had been on loan to the Kings of Scotland from their cousins the Irish, relatives of the ancient Irish, but some how the stone was never returned. All of the Kings and Queens of Ireland were crowned on this stone and then the stone was lent to Scotland and all the Kings and Queens of Scotland were also crowned on this stone. And then the stone went on to England through the merging of the two houses and it has stood in the coronation chair in Westminster Abbey until it was returned to Scotland and now sits in Edinburgh Castle as a good faith gesture to the people of Scotland.
Learn the lost ways, but newly found truth of a stone long forgotten. I highly recommend it.
Janice Kilgore

This captivating book by E. Raymond Capt takes you on a fascinating journey through the Bible and secular history, tracing Jacob's pillar from its origin in Bethel (Gen 28:10-22) to its final resting place in the Isles of Great Britain. He shows how this Stone of Destiny upon which the Kings of the House of David were crowned is the exact same Stone that has been preserved for centuries and used in the coronation ceremonies of the kings and queens of Ireland, Scotland, and England (descendants of David's House). It is amazing to comprehend, but Mr. Capt brings the evidence together as the pieces of a puzzle until it becomes clear that our God is a covenant-keeping God and delights in leaving physical proofs of His Sovereignty and Faithfulness among His people. It just makes you know that if God can preserve a Stone through thousands of years, He is certainly able to establish His everlasting Kingdom in righteousness among regathered Israel. Another intriguing book concerning this Righteous Kingdom is Mr. Capt's recently published book entitled Stone Kingdom, in which he identifies the United States of America as the fifth kingdom of Daniel, chapter 2.

The Stone of Destiny traced -- presentation of the cumulative evidence which reveals the fate of the Bible's most famous stone.

The scriptures are full of references to "stones", both literal and symbolic. One such stone is identified as the stone upon which the patriarch Jacob rested his head when he dreamed of the heavenly ladder. This stone has not received the attention it deserves from Bible scholars, because they generally assume it was left where Jacob found it.

However, this is not the case. The stone that Jacob later annointed with oil and declared to be "God's House" (Beht-El) did not remain lost in the wilderness of Luz; it continued to play an important part in the destiny of Jacob's descendants. In the past, such suggestions have been dismissed as fascinating legend and tradition, but there are pertinent historical writings and visible evidence worthy of consideration.

Is Jacob's stone "the House of God?" Does it exist today? Does it bear witness to God's amazing plan for our planet? The questions are puzzling, and the answers are startling, throwing new light on the Bible. The purpose of this book is to present the cumulative evidence which reveals the fate of the Bible's most famous "stone".
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Using this book and a good map of Ireland, I found and explored the two possible sights of the tomb of Jeremiah. I had a great time in the effort.

macfaith

Very good read. Very informative information on the the biblical Jacob and the promise God made to him through a dream. The book for as small as it is has alot of info and alot one can use for historic studies.

Great entertainment from the the first to the last page, even if you aren't a jazz buff. Mr. Crow was a bassist and he must have heard most of those anecdotes on the grapevine.

I love every moment since I read this book. This book would take u on forever even if u're a craver for jazz music. It tells all the details from Wynton, Duke, Miles, Hirt, Coltrane, Bird, all of 'em right here on 1 book. Go get it or u'll miss out a world of good music.

For anyone into jazz, if you don't have a copy of this book, you're in for a rare treat. Wonderfully captures the essence of jazz and jazz musicians. Great stories, unique personalities, and guaranteed a laugh a minute. Caution: Don't read it while you're eating and/or drinking...you'll probably choke to death. Thanks for a very special book Bill!

I bought this book for my son, whoÕs a musician, but I heard him laughing so much as he was reading it that I asked to borrow it. Even if youÕre not a musician, or even very knowledgeable about jazz, this is a really entertaining book. Almost every chapter has at least a couple of laugh-out-loud lines. It also gives you a good feel for what the lives of jazz musicians were like Ð the camaraderie and competition, the inventiveness, the struggles over money, the often terrible working (and especially recording) conditions. There are also poignantly funny stories about problems with drugs and alcohol, and even about the racial prejudice that musicians had to put up with. My favorite story in the book was about Bessie Smith storming out to confront a group of Klansmen gathering outside the tent where she was working. Peppering them with curses, she ordered them to "pick up them sheets and run." They did. Great woman. There are lots of great women (and men Ð mostly men) in this book. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know a little bit about them.

A - "About half a beat behind the drummer." Or. Q - "How can a jazz musician end up with a million dollars?" A - "Start with two million." Or. Q - "What do you call a person that likes to hang around with musicians?" A - "A drummer."

Jazz Anecdotes by Bill Crow is much more than a collection of jokes skewed towards a jazz musician's cattywhumpus view of the world. It's even more than a collection of colorful war stories about life on the road, playing lousy clubs, and trying to keep a band together. It's really an insider's look at the world of jazz, and a wonderful one. If nothing else emerges from this book certainly one learns that only love could keep a jazz musician playing, given the obstacles of this lifestyle.

Fact and myth seem to bob and weave through these tales, which is perhaps appropriate. I am a little uncertain about Lester Young's claim that he started playing the sax only after giving up on the drums because he noticed that when a gig was done and girls were milling around the bandstand, the sax players quickly packed up their horns and left with girls on their arms while the drummer desperately tried to pack up and when he was done - left empty handed.

Jazz Anecdotes is rich in content, interesting for novice and aficionado alike. The careers of great individuals and the storied histories of seminal bands are examined in detail. What's fun is that some of the "legend" is worn off, replaced by the person. Jazz truly is America's greatest contribution to world culture, we should all be proud of it. It's worth remembering that the music is not a monolithic entity but an organic, dynamic thing - the product of a diverse and eccentric group of splendid individuals. Bill Crow's book takes you inside that world.