Howard Books

I owe my acquaintance with the work of Lowry to the Jerusalem artist Rifkah Goldberg who is a great admirer of his work. This volume contains beautiful color reproductions of Lowry's work, and its seems to me a highly perceptive description and interpretation of the artist's work by Michael Howard.
When I first saw the matchstick like figures of some Lowry's cityscenes I was instantly charmed by it. At the same time it seemed to me to present a childlike primitive even Grandma Moses - like way of seeing things.
But later through looking a lot at the work of Rifkah Goldberg ,whose figures have the same kind of stoic immobility that Lowry's do, I began to sense a kind of strange beauty in the work.. It is the Manchester world of many machine- made or machine- like figures each somehow set off by itself completely alone and isolated , barely able to move and certainly unable to communicate.
In one 'family picture' in this work there is a father and two sons . Howard points out that Lowry did not have a wife and children of his own. And that the family presented in the picture is a totally dysfunctional one with each of the people wholly isolated.
Lowry painted the sea and smokestacks of the city and the sticklike figures of a matchbox world. Still it feels upon the looking and re- looking at it as if it is a singular way of seeing things, the brilliant gift of a lone and lonely individual to enhance however difficultly Mankind's picture of the world.

Perhaps the most famous 'outsider artist' L. S. Lowry is honored in this book. The reproductions of his throngs, smokestacks, and seascapes are many and beautiful, and the text is full of Lowry's witty quotes. A bit pricey, due to the independant press and high quality, but this is the only source I know of with this much of Lowry's work, and all in color. Please buy me one.

Have you ever wondered how some authors made the commitment to become writers? Did they know at birth what their destiny would be or were they just plain lucky? Your curiosity will be satisfied as you read about the struggles and triumphs of nineteen people who chose writing as their vocation.

All of the authors profiled come from a variety a variety of backgrounds and experiences. Their way into writing did not follow a clear cut linear path. One poor soul could barely read, another failed english in school while still another had to wait through hippiedom, motherhood and being flat broke before she began to write. Their paths to the vocation were different but the passion and commitment to writing is the thread that ties them together. Being a writer moves beyond knowing the mechanics of technique or being talented or working hard on endless manuscripts. A writer is in the process of creating his or her own identity as they struggle through the craft.

Justin Chin, Jewelle Gomez, and Bill Berkson are just some of the few writers profiled in this inspirational and philosophical work. You will be touched by each unique voice as they share their craft and reasons for taking it up as their life's vocation. Howard Junker has provided you with an engaging and eye opening book on the transformation of ordinary people into writers.

Justin Chin's touching and lurid portrait of his mentor Faye Kicknosway (also poetic mentor to the amazing writers Zack Linmark and Lois Ann Yamanaka in Hawai'i) rocks and probes, revealing the terror and stand-back brilliance of her zen pedagogy of dismantlement and rebirth; his "lucky break" was indeed to get away from Singapore and to create "a line of flight" to Honolulu and San Francisco, brilliant in its oblivion and charm. I am not a big fan of coffee-table poetics, however sheer and cheery pluralist the genre, but this collection on authorial tactics provokes and gladdens the will to write literature amid the postmodern market muck.

Luke Swank may have come to his career as a photographer rather late in life (born into to a wealthy family whose life was inexorably altered by the Great Depression) and became a popular journalistic photographer, even later acknowledged as one of the first of the Modernist School photographers. Then after his death his contribution to the visualization of America from 1920 to 1940 through the lens of his Pennsylvania based camera fell out of sight. Now due to the fine work of Howard Bossen the boxes of photographs kept by his wife have been reassembled into a major photographic exhibition of his life's work: this superb book serves not only as the catalogue for that exhibition but also fills a much missed gap in the journalistic reportage of America under duress.

While other photographers have captured the resolute spirit of Americans during times of stress (such as Disfarmer and Dorothea Lange), Swank's motivation was not to document tragedy but merely to observe, capture on film, and utilize the developing room to create art of the images he elected to immortalize. The collection of one hundred and forty photographs includes people at daily routines, deserted streets scattered with flakes of the ruins of the Depression, portraits of people, landscapes, magnificent architectural studies, and objects for still life. His eye was sensitive and his manner of developing his photographs, emphasizing light and shadow in the most dramatic fashion, was astoundingly unique.

Perusing the images in this book, all well informed by Bossen's commentary, is a subtle journey back to the times when the country ached under depression but somehow found the courage to celebrate beauty in the strangest places. Hopefully this book and this exhibition will restore Luke Swank's position as one of America's foremost artists of photography. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, December 05

Luke Swank (1890-1944) was a photographer of the 1930s. Up until 1930, he was a used-car salesman in his hometown of Johnstown, PA. Five years later, photographs of his were being shown at an exhibition at the New York Museum of Modern Art. Unlike Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange, Swank's photographs did not aim to portray the trials and anguishes, or the rural or industrial ruin of the Depression. Although the viewer cannot help but see Swank's photos in some respect through this historical and social lens. Swank's works are recognized as being of the 1930s from the clothing of the individuals, cars, buildings, incidental advertising in the scenes, and the equipment, towers, etc., of the factories. Besides mostly regional photographs of western Pennsylvania including Amish, farm buildings, plain rural people, and steel factories, the characteristic element of Swank's photographs is the varying pitches of darkness, or shadows. One hundred and forty plates of photographs of this fine photographer grouped into subjects such as Steel, Circus, Rural Architecture and Landscape, and others following the front matter of a biographical essay and one on each of the subject groups of the photographs.

I enjoyed the book and would like to formally ask for permission to down load and copy the cover. I think it is and excellent book to introduce ethic culture in a simple form.

I enjoyed the book and would like to formally ask for permission to down load and copy the cover. I think it is and excellent book to introduce ethic culture in a simple form.

Arturo Toscanini was born in Parma in 1867. His father had served with Garibaldi in his youth. Arturo began at age nine his studies at the Parma Conservatory. The school was French in its orientation.

What was required of a conductor was to lead, to fire up an orchestra. Toscanini wept when he heard LOHENGRIN. He left the conservatory with highest honors in piano, composition, and cello. At school he stood out for zeal, intensity, and knowledge.

A professional engagement at age nineteen involved playing the cello in an opera company touring Brazil. The audience drove two conductors from the podium because a popular Brazilian had received bad reviews. At the request of the musicians Toscanini stepped into the breach to perform AIDA. It was a triumph. He was installed as conductor of the Rossi troupe and conducted eighteen more operas.

Alfredo Catalani, composer of LA WALLY, arranged for Toscanini's employment as a conductor in Italy. In gratitude Toscanini named his children Walter and Wally for the opera. In the early years Toscanini went from house to house and from cello player to conductor all over the country. In LA GIOCONDA the audience clamored for a repeat. Toscanini refused.

He conducted the world premiere of PAGLIACCI. In 1893 he withdrew from conducting for a year. He feared he was being used as a ploy against another conductor. In 1894 he accepted an engagement in Pisa and plunged back into the activity. In the afternoons he played the late Beethoven quartets with friends. The big Wagner works were particularly exacting. The first production of DIE GOTTERDAMMERUNG in Italy was an event. In 1896 at Turin Toscanini conducted the premiere of LA BOHEME.

In 1897 Toscanini married. His son was born nine months later. He said to someone that he was always on the beat. I should have mentioned earlier that Toscanini was noted for his strict fidelity to the printed score. He went over the scores with unrelenting thoroughness.

He arrived at La Scala in 1898. This theater was closest to his heart. People in Milan said that Toscanini would stir things up. Toscanini wanted to create a unified artistic point of view. After the production of FALSTAFF Verdi sent Toscanini a telegram saying thanks, thanks, thanks. Toscanini thought that the voice of Enrico Caruso was at its purest and most electrifying when he appeared at La Scala in 1901.

Toscanini went to the Metropolitan Opera in 1908. He spent seven seasons there. In 1920 he conducted at Padua and Rome. He sought to rebuild the orchestra at La Scala. The orchestra toured America and the theater reopened in 1921. For three years he worked with consuming intensity. Then the matter of Mussolini intruded. From 1926 to 1929 Toscanini took on a dual role. He conducted the New York Philharmonic each season and retained control of La Scala.

Toscanini was coming to occupy a niche all his own. It was consistent with the age--the virtuoso conductor. There was no lack of public fascination with his life, his person. He was invited to conduct at Bayreuth. Fascists bothered Toscanini and his family at Bolgna. From 1933 Toscanini decided to avoid Germany. He took an engagement with the Vienna Philharmonic. He left the New York Philharmonic in 1936. In 1938 he abandoned plans to return to Salzburg for political reasons.

The N.B.C. Symphony was organized for Toscanini. In 1950 at age eighty three he set out for a tour with the N.B.C. Symphony from coast to coast. The drive for perfection was relentless. He dealt with tempo first and insisted that it must be sustained. He sought the proper balance of instruments. The author used both a chronological plan and a thematic plan to illuminate the Toscanini genius.

The author, Howard Taubman, states clearly at the onset of his affecting, personal and fascinating biography of Arturo Toscanini that the maestro would not have allowed it to be published if he'd had the say.
Nonetheless, Mr. Taubman, a music critic with the New York Times, who had many personal encounters with the conductor went ahead with this wonderful account of his life. It is chockablock with information on operas, orchestras, festivals, and musicians encountered in the long life of the little, fiery man from Italy.
I recommend this book to all lovers of music who treasure the memory of an artist dedicated wholly to the art of its creation and presentation.

This is the only legacy book for Mage the Awakening that I have bought, principally because I wanted to see how the Threadcutters and the Thrice Great were treated (these two legacies correspond to the Euthanatos and the Order of Hermes from the old Ascencion game). I was very pleased with the write-ups and I think they are even better than their predecessors. Im glad I purchased this, not sure if I'll buy another legacy book but Im really pleased with this one (although I may buy another if they decide to do a treatment on the Cult of Ecstacy).

Great addition to the mage setting.

Long awaited since Mage: the Awakening first came out, this supplement reveals the remainder of the mysterious Legacies from the core book, along with a few others. Most of the 13 Legacies presented in this book are supposed to be ancient, as the title implies, dating back to the first civilizations that arose after the collapse of Atlantis. Their magic is primal, sometimes mirroring mortal occult practices (the Dreamspeakers draw on shamanism and indigenous beliefs, the Thrice-Great share similarities with western ritual magick, and the Thread-Cutters arose from Indo-European cultures). As you might notice, some of the Legacies are tributes to the older Mage: the Ascension game, though their Awakening incarnations are very different indeed. The book also throws some light on the Elemental Tamers, Legacies who claim to pre-date Atlantis! And there are hints of other Tamer Legacies, left intentionally vague for STs to use or ignore. As always, each Legacy gets the same basic write-up, along with the background, Attainments, plot-hooks and sample characters. In order, here are the Legacies:

* Dreamspeakers - A tribute to the old Dreamspeakers from Mage: the Ascension, these Primal Thyrsus shaman speak to the Dream-born spirits of the astral realm. Certainly one of my favorite Legacies in the book. They draw on many different cultures from American Indian traditions, Aboriginal Dreamtime lore and Siberian shamanism, to Buddhist mystics, evangelical Christians and Etruscan witchcraft (which, indeed, their signature character practices). Ironically, becuase they draw on cultural magic and generally reject the Atlantis mythos, the Legacy is strongly associated with the Free Council. I found this to be a good write-up, and an interesting take on shamanism in the Awakening setting.

* Elemental Masteries - Actually five seperate Legacies, each with their own seperate write-ups, the section starts with a very brief introudction explaining the background (and interconnectedness) between the Elemental Masteries. Despite what the corebook said about them using Atlantean symbolism, the five Elemental Legacies claim to pre-date Atlantis, and are often at odds with more traditional Orders because of it. However, they've been influencing Sleeper society for millennia, in various roles. For example, the Tamers of Rivers were involved in mystery and fertility cults, the Tamers of Winds served as priests and educated professionals, and the Tamers of Stone were the builders and sacred artisans. The Legacies were as follows:

The Tamers of Fire are a firey and passionate Obrimos Legacy whose Attainments use Forces to create, direct and even become fire! Optional use of Mind can be used to inspire and lead others as well. The Tamers of Rivers are a Thyrsus Legacy of wandering healers, mostly associated with old fertility Goddess cults (and, indeed, most are still female). Their Attainments use Matter to create and manipulate water, with optional Life use for healing. The Tamers of Stone are a Moros Legacy of builders and architects, whose Attainments use Space for finding ideal sites for building (and optional Matter use for shaping and building things). And the Tamers of Winds are an Acanthus Legacy that focus on learning, memorization and knowledge. Their Attainments use Forces for enhancing sounds, telekenitically moving things and even flying! And they have the option of using Mind to enhance their mental facilities.

Finally, there is a fifth, rare Elemental Legacy representing the element of void, ether, akasha... The Tamers of the Cave are a Mastigos Legacy that represents the "fifth element". They are noble martyrs, sacrificing themselves for the good of the all. Their Attainments are all focused around the 'etheric mirror', which they construct through the Death Arcanum. I loved the Tamer of Rivers and Tamer of Winds, but I found the Tamer of the Caves to be an especially interesting Legacy, and a novel take on the 'fifth element'. Very good stuff here.

* Forge Masters - A Moros Legacy, the Forge Master represent the master smiths and artisans of ancient civilizations, which viewed creating tools (and weapons) as a magical art. Their Attainments focus on using Prime to augment their creations, and eventually create idealized objects out of thin air! This section includes some notes on the Perfected Metals of Atlantis, and a couple of new Rotes as well. Interestingly enough, although they are a Moros Legacy, the chapter hints that in some parts of the world other Paths might follow the Legacy as well!

* Skald - As their name implies, members of this Acanthus Legacy are wandering bards, poets, musicians and story-tellers. After the fall of Atlantis, they charged themselves with memorizing the history and lore of various cultures. Once again, they draw on cultures as diverse as Nordic skalds, Homeric poets and Armenian gusan. The Legacy's Attainments use Mind (and, optionally, Spirit as well) to influence the way others think and act. The section also includes an optional Merit, Skald Cant, a secret language which helps memorize things and when dealing with spirits. Once again, I found this to be a very interesting and enjoyable Legacy that I could see myself playing.

* Sphinxes - Another fascinating Legacy, the Sphinxes are a Mastigos Legacy associated with the Mysterium. Originating in Renaissance Spain, the Sphinxes are obsessed with uncovering the mysteries of the universe. They are all about looking for patterns and hiden meaning, researching things like chaos theory and linguists. That sort of stuff. To this end, their Attainments are all about using Fate to analyze and (at higher levels) manipulate probability, with optional Mind effects to notice hidden details. Interesting stuff, and good fluff for information on the cosmology of Awakening. Their signature character, Babel, is pretty fun too.

* Thread Cutters - A Moros Legacy loosely associated with the Guardians of the Veil, the Thread-Cutters are something of a tribute to the Euthanatos Tradition from Mage: the Ascension. Again, these Mages reject alot of Atlantean tradition, instead having become strongly attached to various Indo-European traditions such as the Indians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Etruscans and Celts. They believe in serving Fate itself, whether through Creation, Preservation or Destruction, and thus are sometimes at odds with more mainstream Guardians. Indeed, some consider the Legacy Left Handed! The section includes a new Death Rote for entering the Underworld, and again, the signature character is unique and interesting. I was pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of this Legacy, and look forward to using it in future games.

* Thrice-Great - Drawing on Hermetic ritual, this Legacy is associated with both the Obrimos Path and the Silver Ladder. Appropriately enough, they believe in using magic to bring the spirits of the Celestial Courts under humanity's control and recreating the ladder of Atlantis! Once again, this Legacy is a tribute to the Order of Hermes from Atlantis, and draws on the same sort of stuff - astrology, Gnosticism, Neo-Platonism and so forth. Their Attainments are all about using Spirit to interact with the Celestial spirits of the planets. The section also includes another new Merit, Celestial Name, which confers a bonus when interacting with Celestial spirits. Great stuff for a spirit centered chronicle!

* Echo Walkers (Left Handed) - A new Left Handed Legacy, meant for Storytellers to use as antaognists, this fanatical Obrimos Legacy believes in dissecting the human soul to get a glimpse of the primordial beings that existed before humanity! Nephilim, Fomori, whatever you want to call them. The magic they use to do so is essentially the equivalent of spiritual rape, which puts them at odds with pretty much everyone else, but the Attainments they gain from their studies allow them to enhance themselves with Life, making them quite formidible! Very creepy and thematic, and it's nice to see a Left Handed Legacy that isn't Moros or Mastigos.

* Logophages (Left Handed) - Although sometimes associated with the Guardians of the Veil, this second Left Handed Legacy can be followed by any Path or Order. As their name implies, the Logophages eat knowledge, stealing it from other Mages. These guys are great antagonists. Interestingly enough for players who remember the old World of Darkness, their chapter includes their own take on the story of Cain and Abel. And the signature character, Queen Scotch, is a great antaognist to throw at players. Very original stuff here.

All in all, the book is excellent. I especially appreciated the fact that the Legacies in the book provided so many different takes on the history and cosmology of the Mage setting, including a fair number of Mages who don't neccessarily believe in Atlantis, or accept the common beliefs of the five Orders (the Dreamspeakers, Elemental Masteries, etc). Yet also have other Legacies that expand on the history, background and culture of Atlantis, like the Skalds and Thrice-Great. In addition, it was nice to have some examples of how culture influences magic (something that the forth-coming Magical Traditions promises to show more of). As a player who remembers Mage: the Ascension, I found the new take on some of the old material especially nice. I strongly recommend this book, in addition to other supplements such as Secrets of the Ruined Temple, Tome of the Mysteries, the Shadows of... series and the forth-coming Magical Traditions, for greatly expanding the setting of Awakening. Plus, you get to see most of the Legacies from the core book (except for the Bokor and Clavicularis, which were covered elsewhere). And, do yourself a favor and read the introductory fiction, which is a good example showing two Legacies in action.

This book is VERY helpful for every-day relationships.
I gave my son a copy.

This book gives you a whole new outlook on living a christian life and how we handle it. As a husband and father, it has strengthened me in all my abilities. It also wakes you up to the fact that we can't be everything, but god can use us in his own way, how we are. I wish Dr. Faulkner only had more titles to dive into.

A real story about an everyday man...

The Triangle Region of North Carolina unveils more misfortune than promise for a decent professional/family man whose world is indelibly changed in an instant, and his solitary struggle over the next several years will forever redefine his life. Lured from Mid-Hudson Valley New York by the promise of a booming economy and a better life, he must now strive daily to remain dutiful to the wife he adores in the face of her sudden pernicious illness... and his chance extra-marital temptation.

As if fate weren't cruel enough, he must continually seek solid ground among the unrelenting tremors of corporate restructuring that threaten to swallow up the job he loves, even sever his lifelong employment. But the crush of his losses empowers him to pursue the one thing that matters above all else... a chance to know love again.

A great read! A story for every man or woman who has ever lost nearly everything dear to them... or was lucky enough not to.

This book is absoltely terrific. It gave me everything I needed to understand the differences and similarities between these two phenomenal leaders.

This book presents the differences between arguably the two most famous civil rights activists of the fifties and sixties, as well as showing the convergence between their ideas and ideals toward the end of thier respective lives. It is readable, succinct and thorough. I highly recommend this book, especially to anyone who will be teaching this period in history to middle or high school students.

The five pastors' wives of Red River, Ohio meet every Tuesday at Lulu's Café, forty miles from their churches in order to nosh and commiserate. They share their woes that they cannot tell anyone else even their husbands.

Mimi Plaisance left teaching to be a stay at home mother to her four preadolescent children, but the newborn Milo is driving her insane as he always cries. Mimi never sleeps except when driving as she feels like his personal 24/7 slave.

"Golden" Kitty Fleming remains a snob as her spouse pastors the largest congregation. She is the self anointed Queen of the Southwest Pastors' Wives fellowship society, but fears being on top means others want to displace her.

Jennifer Shores is the church secretary where her husband Sam is the pastor, but she wants children and has none after a decade of marriage. She is even jealous of the single moms she councils at the crisis pregnancy center even though she knows their lives are hard.

Lisa Barton is a stay at home mom to her two teens. She has the DNA for being a pastor as her parents are the pastors of a nearby church. However, her daughter Callie is rebelling and causing problems for them at the church with her behavior.

Public relations guru Felicia Lopez-Morrison came with her husband and their now four year old child from Los Angeles two years ago. She worries that her firm will close the Cincinnati office where she works and that her son has reverted back to his terrible twos biting people.

Although rotating the story lines of five lead characters is a bit overwhelming (novellas seems more suited), each of the wives seem real and their woes genuine. Each has problems that they handle differently with Mimi's proving quite a stunner. Fans will enjoy dining and gossiping at Lulu's café with the pastoral quintet (see Desperate Pastors' Wives).

Harriet Klausner

Pastors' wives are real people. Real women dealing with temptation, self-esteem, child-rearing, child-bearing, and rocky marriages. Often these women feel alone, unworthy of the path God has called them to. In A Matter of Wife & Death, (Secrets from Lulu's Café Series), Ginger Kolbaba & Christy Scannell craft a story of five such women, sisters in Christ and fellow pastors' wives of Red River.

On a retreat for the wives, a bickering session rises up and one of the women end up dead, another accused, and the others left questioning their friendship and right and wrong. The reader is taken in small part on a mystery. On a larger scale, the reader is taken along as these women discover what is really important in their walk as the wives of pastors, and the mothers of preachers kids.

As we read of their struggles, we realize how normal these women are who are often placed on pedestals. We laugh with them, cry with them, and pray with them. We rejoice as they triumph.

I thought at first I'd have trouble keeping up with and associating with five main characters, but as I read, I had no trouble at all and joined in with the women's friendship group. Good job.

The feisty foursome of pastors' wives are back! This time the gals are battling new adventures in their lives of serving God and their church. Felicia has to adapt from being a career woman to a stay at home mom. Jennifer continues her quest to become a mother with surprising results. Lisa is battling with a rebellious teenage daughter. And Mimi is struggling with a colicky baby and an attraction to her kids' principal? On top of all that, mega PW Kitty Katt is still trying to outshine her fellow PWs and still getting on everyone's nerves. Will a PW retreat finally manage to bring all the women together?

I enjoyed this book A LOT better than the first book in the series. I felt that the characters were developed more and they weren't just a cleaner Christian imitation of the ladies from Sex and the City. There was a lot more communication between the husbands and the wives, something that I had felt was severely lacking in the first book. Sometimes it still feels like there's too much going on with 5 story lines happening at the same time. I think it would have been better just to focus on two of the women with the background story involving everyone.

I really liked Lisa's story with her daughter. I think it also rings true about how a pastor just can't quit his job when he's fed up or things start going wrong. He has to think about the whole church before he makes any decision. It's also sad about how tough it is for pastor's kids to see their parents' lives dictated by the people in the church. Mimi's story this time was a hoot! I was really glad to read about a mom who's not afraid to admit she's sick of her baby crying all the time. The scene where she's pulled over by the copy for falling asleep was hilarious. And then her relationship with the principal....wow I didn't think I'd read something like that with a preacher's wife! The only thing that got me was how calm Mark was when she told him about it. It just seemed rather fake for him to be not bothered by it. And I really don't want to spoil anything about this book but wow there's a storyline in here that I totally did NOT see coming! I thought it was an excellent way to distract the reader to not even guess what was going to happen next.

If you enjoyed reading the first book, you'll like this too. Even if you didn't, I would still recommend picking this one up. It's a whole lot more fun and lot less desperate!