Foote Books

This is a good first read of Tolstoy's material. It is not nearly as long as _War and Peace_, but is still a good first exposure to the great works of Leo Tolstoy.

Tolstoy is recognized as one of the leading writer of novels, and he was a leading Russian writer of the 19th century. He wrote three monumental works including War and Peace, Anna Karenina, and the novella The Death of Ivan Ilych." Two were written by Tolstoy at his peak around 1865 to 1980, and Ilych was written in 1886 before Tolstoy started to lose his interest in fiction.

Based on his younger days as a soldier, he wrote four novels or novellas: The Raid (1835), Wood-Felling (1855), The Cossacks (1863), and the last was Hadji Murat, written between 1896 to 1904.

The Cossacks was written just before Tolstoy's peak as a fictional writer or artist, and the writing is acknowledged as an important work for Tolstoy and an important work of Western literature, marking the rise of an important new writer.

The story is about a young and wealthy Russian nobleman, Olenin, who joins the army as an officer cadet and goes to the Caucasus, leaving Moscow life behind. In this story Tolstoy explores the universal theme of a young man falling in love with a woman of a different cultural background. The young woman is called Marianka, and the mystery of the story is will the relationship develop? Will they get married and will he settle in the Caucasus. Will Marianka and her family accept him, or is he simply a short term novelty in the community?

Olenin, who is an army officer, lives in a Cossack community with a Cossack family. He spends a lot of his spare time hunting in the local woods, having discussions with the natives, going to parties with the natives, drinking, etc. It gives Tolstoy the framework to explore his well known themes: "man, society, and nature." The novel contains many beautiful descriptions of the forests and the plants and animals, along with descriptions of the native people and their social customs.

This is an excellent novel. It has some good characters and they display a range of emotions. The first third of the novel is a bit slow and contains many non-fictional comments on the Caucasus, but then as the story develops, the reading becomes much more compelling and the element of drama increases. This is a good novel but it is far less complex and shorter than Anna Karenina.

The Penguin version comes with two other stories: "The Sevastopol Sketches" and "Hadji Murat." I was somewhat neutral about the last story - although it is based on real events - because it lacks a strong central protagonist. Because of that weakness, I preferred the more complex novel, The Cossacks, which has the strong character Olenin.

In the middle of _The Cossacks_, Dmitri Olenin, a young Russian cadet reflects joyfully, "Happiness is to live for others. How clear it is!," while being mercilessly bitten by mosquitos during a deer hunt. Despite the fact that his "whole body [is] consumed by a consuming itch," Olenin revels in the beauties of bountiful nature. It is almost as if he gives himself up to the mosquitos, whom he imagines are yelling out to each other, "Over here, boys! Here's someone we can devour!" Tolstoy develops the scene with such skill. We see Olenin's joy quickly turn into confusion and mortal terror.

Leo Tolstoy's _The Cossacks_ (begun in 1852 and published in 1862) is about a young aristocrat's quest for happiness and his uncertainty about what will make him happy--whether a life given up to the senses or a life devoted to others. The novel begins with a late night discussion in a Moscow alehouse about Olenin's relationship with a wealthy Moscow woman whom he is about to abandon. One of his friends responds, "You have not yet loved, and you don't know what love is!" Dmitri bids his friends adieu and sets out by carriage for a military assignment in the faraway Caucasus to start life anew and to find out what love means (ironically, while serving as a military cadet in a war).

The novel contrasts Dmitri Olenin with Lukashka the Snatcher, a young fearless Cossack soldier admired by everyone in his village. While Dmitri's life lacks purpose and direction, Lukashka is driven to become an ideal Cossack warrior. Lukashka is a carouser who is a brave fighter. Dmitri envies Lukashka's life and, in particular, the defined Cossack traditions to which Lukashka devotes himself.

In an incredible early scene, Tolstoy introduces Lukashka on duty at a military look-out point that protects the Cossack village from Chechen "marauders." The tension of the scene and the philosophical undertones also reminded me immediately of Hemingway--as another reviewer commented. In a brilliant transition, Tolstoy revisits this scene later in the novel as seen through Olenin's eyes.

The novel, while mythic in its discussions of love and youthful idealism, takes place in a background of ethnic conflict and suspicion. The Russian troops are quartered in a Cossack village, and the Russians, Cossacks, and Chechens are all in conflict, either in outright war or deep distrust. One of the most endearing characters of the novel, Uncle Eroksha, a rogish seventy year old villager and hunter, suggests the pointlessness of all this division. Uncle Eroksha, who is "a blood brother to all," maintains that "Everyone has his own rules. But if you ask me, it's all the same."

For the contemporary reader, the book also offers some historical context to the current conflict in Chechnia, between the Chechens and the Russians. Cynthia Ozick's introduction provides useful historical background information and challenges Tolstoy's romanticized depiction of Cossack society. Ozick discusses a history of ethnic cleansing in the region that goes back many centuries. The fierce pride in culture and clan often has dangerous effects, a subject that Tolstoy does not really address.

The novel is steeped in sensuous passages, of nature, war, and physical attraction, which are unforgettable. Over the course of the novel, Dmitri becomes obsessed with a Cossack peasant woman named Maryanka. The passages describing his infatuation are intense. The narrator describes Dmitri's first long look at Maryanka as follows: "With the quick and hungry curiosity of youth, he noticed despite himself the strong virginal lines that stood out beneath the thin calico smock, and her beautiful eyes were fixed on him with childish terror and wild curiousity." This gives a taste of the vividness of Tolstoy's writing and the wonderful skill of the translator, Peter Constantine.

This is a truly excellent novel. I agree with the reviewer who says that it is a great novel to introduce Tolstoy to new readers since it is short and accessible. I would recommend this edition in particular because the translation is great and Ozick's introduction is astute. Many of the major themes in Tolstoy's work are evident here, particularly the conflict between sensual and spiritual impulses.

Tolstoy is one of the most famous names in Russian literature. Sadly, the sheer size of most of his celebrated works, i.e. War and Peace, tend to make many readers anxious. However, readers fail to realize that Tolstoy has quite a phenomenal collection of short fiction, such as this 178-page novella.

Tolstoy explores the dissatisfaction a young Russian aristocrat holds towards the emptiness of high-society, and his subsequent journey in search of meaning. The aristocrat finds himself as a young Russian army officer, serving at a remote Cossack outpost in the Caucasus. Here he finds that his wealth and breeding do not garner him respect. Instead he is looked upon as an outsider, and an unwelcome one at that.

Nevertheless, the aristocrat finds himself in love with a beautiful Cossack girl, who is promised to a Cossack warrior. Tolstoy discusses the emotions that rise between these three parties regarding love, class, and sacrifice.

Indeed, The Cossacks is great first exposure to Leo Tolstoy and his descriptive writing style is sure to lead the reader to explore more of his works.

Here's a book that not many people know about which should be read by all. It was really just what I needed to read, having just dropped out of university myself. Also, does anyone else think that this book must have greatly influenced Hemingway? It sounds just like him, and he says in A Moveable Feast that he was reading lots of Russian stuff at the start of his career. I realize it might just be that the translator liked Hemingway, but even so it's amazing how much it ends up reading like one of his novels and is so unlike the rest of Tolstoy.

I am an prose editor and short-story writer. Barron's is par exellence. Needless to say, I have many references, but what separates Barron's from the rest is its concise accumulation of many topics. I could have saved a lot of $$ had I known about it earier.

I do not find it boring nor overbearing. It is a reference book, period.

This book's name falls short of the actual excellent information it contains to guide writers and would-be writers into taking advantage of the best of their possibilities through step-by-step pointing out of common errors, from all angles, and clean ways out of them to produce perfect texts. A "must" for all writers' libraries.
Salvador Oria aka Argie, Buenos Ayres.

This 'quick and dirty' little guide to English takes what you would have expected to be a big thick highschool textbook into a small, easy to read, yet complete course in communicating in English. Beyond high school English, the book gives examples of the practical use of the language.

As a writer, I think I know the language (college degrees and all that stuff) but when I am unsure of some point, this is where I turn. It is quick and concise, easy to find what you need, and tells you what you want to know.

At $10 retail, and usually available at a lot less than that, this is a 'don't miss.'

'Essentials of English' is a great resource book to have on hand should you be uncertain if you are expressing yourself correctly in the written word. It is very concise, and while a bit 'dry', does not waste time in teaching you what you should know about the English language. But I am worried that I won't be able to remember what I am trying to remember from this book. I fear that no matter how hard I try, it is not sinking in and I just can't get it right. So while the book is excellent, I myslef am a failure on many counts.

This was the worst example I have ever come across.
I'm a college student and this set of books is what we have been using in english to brush up on grammer. As you may notice mine is still awful. My entire class is extreamy frustrated and highly dissapointed with this poor excuse of a tex/work book.
I think it is wort nothing more than 0 stars!!!

Reading Farewell, it is hard to imagine how Horton Foote ever followed the path in life that he ultimately took. Yet the tiny town of Wharton, Texas, did produce a legendary American writer, and his memoir about growing up in small-town Texas is a charming, well-crafted pleasure to read. The book brought back some similar childhood memories. But Foote's clean writing and vivid descriptions will also delight readers unfamiliar with this forgotten way of life.

As someone who grew up in a small town in Texas, I can identify with so much of this book. My late Mother's childhood and her stories of growing up in a rural area with colorful characters are very similar to Mr. Foote's story. If you didn't grow up in this era or in a small town, these stories may not have the charm I feel about them, but Horton Foote could bring a tear to a glass eye with his charming memories, and I will bet that he can tug at your heartstrings as well. There is a place for sentiment and burnished memories in this busy life of ours, and I found myself wanting more after reading this memoir. As I read this book, I found myself envisioning the whole story in a pleasant sepia toned, soft cocoon of a state of mind. You come too.

Among all the facinating characters of the small town, Mr. Foote must be the town gossip (but not a malicious one). Seems like Mr. Foote knew EVERYONE... and I don't think he left anybody out, either. Fun to read, good storytelling style, but it seemed more like a series of great characters sketches than a "real" memoir. At the end I was frustrated that I didn't find out more about how he got started as an actor/playwrite/etc. But that's nothing a sequel won't solve.

Think life in a small town is idyllic? Think again. Horton Foote gives us a portrait of his home town, complete with the details many wish to forget. Pettiness. Alcoholism. Racism.

At the same time, Foote describes his childhood in tones that leave a lasting impression of roots and home. Of growing up and new responsibility. Of family.

Foote has shared with us his appreciation for small town life in such great works as "To Kill a Mockingbird", "The Trip to Bountiful" and now "Farewell". Enjoy.

I just finished re-reading this book, and enjoyed it more this time than previously, probably because I literally devoured the first read. I come from a rather limited circle of family and was enchanted by the seemingly endless supply of relatives and their stories. To be embraced by such an environment as a child and to relate this to the reader is to share a very precious gift. Thank you Mr. Foote,and please give us a sequel.

I felt that this book was a very elementary work by an inexperienced author. It did little to help me research the work of Horton Foote. I found several inconsistencies in the book according to my own research.I would give it a one star at best.It does make great bedtime reading.

I can safely say that Mr Woods has produced a coherent body of work that will be of great benefit to professors, students and readers. Buy this book and see for yourself!

Indeed, this is an fine book, and the scholarship is top-notch. An interesting idea, too, Foote as a Southern writer. He certainly is, and it is about time that a serious book looks at Foote's work beyond a Texas frame. It is fair to rank Foote with Williams as one of the South's great playwrights. Gerald C. Wood's book is very readable and thought-provoking. I recommend it for all students and scholars of Southern literature. Indeed, I'm also requesting it for my university library.

For the person who gave this book one star, I have only one thing to say: learn how to read intelligently. Gerald Wood's Horton Foote and the Theater of Intimacy is an excellent study. The negative about allowing anyone to post reviews is that sometimes the crackpots do it. Ignore "A Reader" and read Wood's book for yourself.

Indeed, this is an fine book, and the scholarship is top-notch. An interesting idea, too, Foote as a Southern writer. He certainly is, and it is about time that a serious book looks at Foote's work beyond a Texas frame. It is fair to rank Foote with Williams as one of the South's great playwrights. Gerald C. Wood's book is very readable and thought-provoking. I recommend it for all students and scholars of Southern literature. Indeed, I'm also requesting it for my university library.

Ignore the offensive Introduction by Jon Murray. The bulk of the book consists of quotations in which God or his agents do evil things, among them exterminating entire populations and punishing persons for the crimes of others. Making the crucifixion of his own exemplary son the price for redeeming sinful mankind is something one might expect from a Caligula or a Nero, not a just deity.

Many factual contradictions in the Bible are also listed. The devout reader will realize that he had been conditioned to suspend all critical thinking in the course of religious activities.

I rated the book 5 stars despite of the fact that it could be improved by deleting much of it, because there is no other book like it.

peterungar@yahoo.com

It's nice to see all the supposed errors of the King James Version laid out in one volume. Of course, pointing out mistakes in the KJV only shows that its translators made errors. Many of these errors are pretty trivial and many others turn out to be more symptomatic of the impoverished imaginations of those who dwell on such trivialities. Even if this book did refute the KJV, it wouldn't refute any other translation, nor would it make a dent in the ancient texts.

Still, this book is useful, not only for those looking to poke holes in what is one of the literary masterpieces of the English language, but for Christian apologists who try to explain such problems to unbelievers as why God's decision to drown the whole world was morally justified, while some man who wishes to imitate God by drowning a few of his morally depraved neighbors would not be morally justified in doing so.

The persistent ridiculing tone of the authors is distracting, but this book is a useful reference.

This book raises most of the right issues about the reliability of the Bible, especially regarding the problems surrounding the teaching and character of Jesus. Their comments on the fig tree story in Mark 11 are especially incisive. (I would add that Jesus could have miraculously made the fig tree produce fruit out of season, if he wanted figs that badly. And if the tree was someone's property, he committed an act of vandalism by killing it!)

The chapter that hasn't worn well, however, is the one where Foote and Ball describe all of what they considered "obscenities" in the Bible. Perhaps to their Victorian sensibilities (the book was originally published circa 1900 CE), descriptions of circumcisions, menstruation taboos, "goings in unto the harlot," and so forth were unseemly, but as a 21st Century CE Materialist I don't find them particularly offensive. The Old Testament writers are generally quite frank about the animal substrate in human nature, which New Testament writers try to ignore or "spiritualize" away as they were under the influence of Greek philosophical dualism. Not all Greek-inspired writers were that reticent to acknowledge the biological facts of human existence, however: The Roman Epicurean, Lucretius, is quite as open about bodily functions in his poem _De Rerum Natura_ as many of the Old Testament writers are.

No, I'm not offended by the Bible's acknowledgement of our animality. It just supports the Materialist position that we are products of this world, and not visitors from some "higher plane." The passages which offended Foote and Ball may be in bad taste, or present examples of conduct which wouldn't be wise to emulate, but I don't consider them specimens of biblical errancy per se.

Still, this book is a worthwhile addition to the skeptic's library, despited the compilers' outdated attitudes.

This book contains all the contradictions, absurdities and atrocities in the Christian Bible. The introduction is a lame piece of writing, and the book contains a lot of repetition, but there's no better way to prepare for a debate with a Christian. This book is a one-stop Bible buster.

He has left us with a view of our Civil War, that was never captured before, and has not been since. This volume begins with the horrific carnage at Fredericksburg and the crises in Lincoln's cabinet in the aftermath. As in Vol. 1, Foote transitions smoothly from politics to battlefield, and from the war in the East to the campaigns in the West, and stays highly readable every page of the way.

This second of three volumes covers the conflict from late 1862 to early 1864. This is the period where events began to favor the Federal or Union forces. The largest portion of this volume covers Grant's successful but difficult campaign to seize Vicksburg Mississippi and Lee's disastrous invasion of Pennsylvania (i.e. Gettysburg). While other books provide more details of a single battle, Foote touches and summarizes nearly every engagement during the period covered. He also covers political, economic and civil events on both sides.

A note of criticism or warning if you will. Approaching 1000 dense pages "Fredericksburg to Meridian" is not for the faint of heart. While the narrative style and inclusion of several black-and-white maps make it more readable, the additional inclusion of small details can interfere with the 'big picture'. For example, Foote mentions nearly every Brigadier in the conflict along with the movements and actions of their commands. Nevertheless, the book is recommended for serious history readers and a must have for Civil War buffs.

I read all three volumes of the great Shelby Foote's Civil War narrative in the 80s. This volume is yet another of his logically well-integrated, dramatic trio on that war and speaks a soft/loud pianoforte of war from the Southern perspective. It contains many a large gulp of its often hesitantly bitter, prolonged agony from the bloody cup of setbacks and disappointments on both sides of the conflict. Had Foote given us the same mysterious energy without frequently caricaturing the North to glorify the South, it, in my estimation, would've transcended all such history, narrative or not, in the long fog of peace and romancing of the war. Yet it's THE monumental work, forcefully contradicting the rule that only victors write definitive histories of war. I hope its brilliant histrionics are never misused by historical revisionists, or deter America from completing the Spartacan dream of abolishing all vestiges of involuntary servitude.

The Color of Secrets is an avenue for parents and grandparents to communicate this vital, yet often uncomfortable subject - all while reading a delightful story with beatiful illistrations! It has the ability to empower children with the knowledge of what's appropriate and what's not regarding their bodies.

As a grandmother I shared this book with my two year old grandchild and was surprised at how well she understood the message. The use of color to describe good and bad feelings is a brilliant approach to instructing children of all ages. [...] This book belongs wherever children live and learn. Shelby Gengo

The first thing that you'll notice about The Color Of Secrets are the vibrant and striking illustrations by Donovan Foote, and then you'll realize the importance of what is written inside. Kim Steward has written a book that has the power to encourage children to talk about the terrible things that they may suffer through, as well as encourage adults to address these issues with the children in their lives. It is a topic that has been ignored for far too long in our schools and our homes, and the best way to help children with this problem is to teach them how to recognize abuse, how to learn that they do not ever deserve abuse, and how to feel okay about finding help dealing with it-- not embarrassed or further alienated from society. Buy this book and share it with the people in your life, both young and old.

Say what you will about the greatness of modern translations of great literature--I too would argue that Fagles's Homer is worth its weight in gold, I'd take Raffel over Putnam any day the week in both Cervantes and Rabelais, Pevear and Volokhonsky have brought Dostoevsky to life for me--and yet there is something to be said for reading the E.V. Rieus, Samuel Putnams, and yes, the Constance Garnetts of the world.

I am sure Pevear's Chekhov is Chekhov straight up, no filler or watering down. I'm sure it reveals the author in ways that those of us not yet able to speak or read Russian have not yet known. I will gladly read Pevear (and hopefully the Russian) somewhere on down the line.

But here is Chekhov in the original English. Here is the wide-eyed, yet steady prose of Constance Garnett. We must not, in our hubris, bypass this. It is a treasure. I am glad for having read it.

Mr. Foote's selections and foreword are as steady and beautifully clean as the translations of Ms. Garnett. He spent a good deal of time on this project and is to be commended for it. He is a true force in American letters, one whose greatness and influence will only grow with time.

Modern Library is also to be commended for releasing these books in three well-done and excellent volumes. One could not ask for a better package for these works.

I give this book and its two companion volumes a warm and heart-felt recommendation.

this is a must have collection (the 3 volumes), for anyone intersted in writting short stories or the russia of 1900's, it contains his most important works of this type, the translation is made by one of the foremost experts on russian literature 'Constance Garnett', although is to notice that it does not include any references in the footnotes of changed russian words that do not exist in english.

Marvelous is the only word to describe this first of three volumes of Anton Chekhov's short stories published by the Modern Library. While the following two compilations are each superlative in their own way (thank you again, Shelby Foote), this Early Short Stories 1883-88, is a thrilling peek at genuis not only flowering but seemingly mature; a self-assured young artist at play in his medium, inventing a new(then) approach to emotions as easily as passing off a serf's bromide or a bishop's benediction. This is lesson one in the art of the short story, boys & girls, and it doesn't get much better....ever.

This book is hard to put down. Foote's characters are so detailed and fascinting that I found my self totally drawn into the story --even though some of the characters are completely unlikeable and almost pathetic in their selfishness. Foote tells the story of two families affected by the same man (a virtual con-man, who sees himself only as ambitious -- and justified in everything he does). The book was written almost 50 years ago, but it still reads like a modern character study. I'll admit that some of the historical references where too obscure for me, but the characterizations are timeless.

This is a fascinating examination of the courtship of a well heeled spinster in a small Mississippi town. Young Shelby Foote turned down his flame a little for this one, having just been stung when told by his moonshine hunting pal and idol, William Faulkner, that he should "try to do better" next time after finishing Follow Me Down. Following the lurid and colorful courtroom drama of that first mature work, the prose of "Dry Season" is indeed about as dry as it gets. Those few pithy words from a master are paid up fully here, as a plot virtually without significant action proceeds with extraordinary tension, as the reader almost literally waits for the next pin to drop.

The male lead is a classic American archetype, the confidence man, already explored by luminaries such as Faulkner himself, Melville and Twain. The reader is in little doubt about the character, although Foote's direct statements about the fellow are few. Nor is it an absolute matter; he is gainfully employed and there is room for him to grow or change. So all the drama is on the level of deeper morality and character. The social fabric is what is being explored here, finally, the delicate surface tension of the remnant of Southern aristocracy persisting into century 20 and holding things together in straightened circumstances.

This is classic fiction, perhaps as old fashioned in theme as Thackery and Austen, but fully informed stylistically by Foote's incredible melding of the best of two modern masters, Hemingway and Faulkner. It is finally an odd book, no doubt -- one of a kind but unforgettable.

Good feeling for the South and good expression of that frenetic and searching period of our history, this is the first novel of Shelby Foote's that I have read. I found it a very "good read" sort of novel and look forward to the next one - comng soon in the mail.

The ending to this book was the best part of the book. It seemed to drag a bit in the beginning and almost had two separate themes to the book. (buying and caring for the lizard, the science fair tadpole project) I did like the ending and thought it a great life lesson for all kids. Great read for younger beginning readers.

Owen Foote loves science. He is hoping to get into a class who's teacher loves science and teaches lots of neat science topics. He thinks the best way to get in is to win first prize in the school science fair. He and his best friend Joseph try and come with a winning project. Joseph doens't want to do the same things that Owen does and this causes some problems. Can they work together or will their friendship end?

What did you like or not like about the book?

The book was easy to read. It's a great choice of kids who are just starting to read chapter books.

Would you recommend this book? Why or Why not?

We do recommend this book. The is one of several books about Owen Foote. He is a character that kids can relate to well.

Owen wants to be a real scientist and has high hopes of getting into the top science class in school: the best way is for him to win first prize in a school science fair, but their project lizard is uncooperative and so is his helper friend. How will Owen become successful if even his experiments go wrong? A funny story of goals and achievements - and friendship.