Francis Books

This is a brilliant synthesis of all that is good in British Crime Cinema. The essays are clear and well-focussed, and the referencing is excellent. Particularly well-written and pertinent to the present popularity of such films as Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is Claire Monk's essay on Crime and British cinema in the 1990s. The referencing to both earlier crime cinema and the wider genre of hip, cool trendy cinema directed at the 18-25 year old male with its additional sound track identity is worth reading for anyone concentrating on film studies. Both a good read and an excellent reference work.

This is a brilliant synthesis of all that is good in British Crime Cinema. The essays are clear and well-focussed, and the referencing is excellent. Particularly well-written and pertinent to the present popularity of such films as Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels is Claire Monk's essay on Crime and British cinema in the 1990s. The referencing to both earlier crime cinema and the wider genre of hip, cool trendy cinema directed at the 18-25 year old male with its additional sound track identity is worth reading for anyone concentrating on film studies. Both a good read and an excellent reference work.

Turner's is a well-summarized, well-written introduction to the tradition of so-called critical cultural studies. This can draw a lot of attention from undergrads to phd-to-bes, from all across the social science and hmanities fields--such as mass media, communication, literature, aesthetics, philosophy, criticism, popular culture. If you believe that there's something missing in the US mainstream social science and humanities, this is the book you must start with.

I mark this book as a required text to my students in my Cultural Studies Course.

Despite, or rather because of it's professed limitation to British Cultural Studies, Turner demonstrates a lot of sensitivity to what is and what is not British Cultural Studies, making any reader immediately aware of how other Cultural Studies traditions may differ. His extremely cogent and clear account takes the reader easily into the heart of Cultural Studies- what quarrels does British Cultural Studies have with other disciplines and what is so unique about its orientation as a discipline?

This book has it all for the golfer who follows the game. It is written to provide information about British Open winners over the course of history. It is easy to read and is a great coffee table book with outstanding golf photos. P.A.B.

This engaging book gives the history of the British Open since it was first played in 1860 with complete coverage of each event since 1900. Most of the individually covered Open championships receive two pages, including good textual reporting of the event as well as photographs. The coverage is divided into historical periods such as the age of Bobby Locke and Peter Thompsion in the 50s and 60s when the two won eight Opens between them. This book is so up to date that Tiger Woods' monumental victory in 2000 receives full coverage. The great Open champions as well as the obscure Cinderella stories all receive lavish treatment. Additionally, the book has other great features such as a description and illustration of each of the Open courses, including venues that have not been used in decades. So, if you want to relive Arnold Palmer's emotional fairwell or the great duel between Nicklaus and Watson in which Watson prevailed after a gut wretching effort, this is the book for you. Additionally, this is the type of book that makes a great gift for the golf lover on your gift list.

What a beautiful book -- for your coffee table or your nightstand. It will make you proud to live in Brooklyn, if you do already (I do!), and it will make you want to visit if you don't. Francis Morrone is, to my view, our city's best architectural historian, and here he also brings his incredible knowledge of food, baseball, and just plain fun to bear on the city's most delightful borough.

A book for anyone who cares about the beauty and majesty of New York City.

While this is not a review of the book, it is a review of the author. I took a class from Francis Morrone at NYU and was captivated every day by his breadth of knowledge, his ability to either synthesize or extrapolate at will and, best of all, his ability to convey his undying love for the greatest city in the world. I could wander through NYC with this guy for a month and never tire of the stories he could tell. I don't live in NY right now, but every day I wake up missing the sights and sounds of the city, and that is in no small part due to what I learned from Francis. He is a cultural treasure. Take his class; walk on his tours; and buy his book. I'm online to do just that right now. Oh, and I'm pretty sure Brooklyn is his favorite borough, so it's gotta be good!

This is awesome because it does not only tell the story of Saint Francis' life, but it also looks at what may be happening internally to the young Saint. The insights into what would compel a man to act as Francis is inspiring. Being able to trace the transformation of his heart helps me to believe that I too can become a saint since I can find similar movements in soul through my growth as a Christian.

There is no doubt about it, this book is clearly outstanding in its language and description of Brother Francis of Assisi. Ignacio Larranaga has captured the true essence of St. Francis: his spirit, his love of "Lady Poverty" and his determination to hold fast to a state of grace which was certainly unpreciedented for his time. What a fantastic description and deptiction of a truly holy man. Highly recommended.

A delightful book that reads like a story (rather than a historical account) of Francis' many experiences with animals. Great for kids and adults alike.

This is a really fine illustrated life of St. Francis for youth. It is in large print suitable for children age 8 and up, and is likely to appeal to parents as well. I really enjoyed the art work and the well written text.

This is probably the original source for information of pirates. It contains such a vast compendium of information that it is difficult to select anyone in particular. The cruel reality of pirates is sometimes terrifying; however, in the context of their times this may not have been so shocking. Each reader will take away what they find most interesting. I find that the interaction between the pirates and the indigenous people of these island most intriguing.

This is a book about buccaneering written by one of the participants. Esquemeling was a Dutch physian who went to the Caribbean during the heyday of the Spanish Main. He was the surgeon to Henry Morgan's expedition against Panama City.

Like many educated men of his time, he tried to be a scientific observer of the New World. As a result, you'll see descriptions of flora and fauna of the Americas mixed in with anecdotes about the famous and near famous of the period. The phraseology can be stilted in places, but that is how people spoke at the time.

Is it worth reading? I certainly think so! It's valuable in the same way that Bernal Diaz's account of the conquest of Mexico is valuable, it gives a flavor for how the participants saw themselves. So, if you want real, this is it.

To the Western mind raised around religions where a supreme being is constantly appealed to and expected to intervene favorably in your lives, Eastern religions can appear baffling. The symbolism, images and beliefs seem contradictory to the Judeo-Christian theses. However, there is a lot of similarity between the religions, as all have as their basis a fundamental code of ethics.
Hawkins covers the origin of Buddhism from the time of Gautama, the spread throughout the Asian continent, the major variants and the extent to which it is currently practiced. No short book could possibly cover all aspects of a complex religion, and this book is no exception. However, if you are someone who was raised in a Judeo-Christian culture and are interested in learning the basics of Buddhism, this book is an excellent choice of material.

This book is an exceptional introduction for the beginner in Buddhism. It covers all the major points in a form that is easily understood. The author clearly has a deep understanding of Buddhism, but has gone to great lengths to write in a style that is accessible to the average person. Highly recommended for those beginning their study of this fascinating religion.

A very good guide for Christian Friendships - easy to read and simple, but challenging to follow.

In our search for the answers to the desire for happiness, companionship and fulfillment, we often craft complex answers that deliver little satisfaction. The answers to these problems are often instead very simple but challenging to follow. That is the case with the vision for friendship which Mother Mary Francis puts forth in this collection of conferences which she gave to her sisters. If we live the demands of friendship as Mother Mary Francis illustrates them what emerges is the genuinely lives Christian life as Christ asks of us. This is certainly good reflection material to weigh against how we're living out our daily relationships as well as good guidelines to shore up those portions in our lives where we are not quite meeting the mark.

Aaron Brown on CNN's Newsnight has complained two nights in a row that turkey is always dry.

He should read this book. Not because it will necessarily solve his problem directly, but because reading it might just forever change the way he looks at cooking.

The essays (and recipes) in this book show how intelligence and wit, brought to bare on almost any subject, can make it seem fascinating.

I am not sure what initially prompted the editors to ask members of the Royal Society for _recipes_, of all things, but the responses range from directions for making applejack to a recipe for camembert scones. Many of the recipes include the science of how they work (yeast, salmonella, etc.), and some are even worth trying. I highly recommend it for all scientists, whether cooks or not, and for all cooks, whether scientists or not.