Jones Books

One of the running jokes with NPR is that it produces "Driveway Moments", which are times you sit in your car in the driveway in order to finish listening to a story. When I first heard this segment on NPR it wasn't just a "Driveway Moment", it was a driveway half-hour. Even after the story segment ended, I just sat in my car dumbfounded. I bought the cd as soon as I heard it was out, and it was well worth it. You will not hear reporting like this very often. I would advise getting the book as well, as it is also brilliant.

the boys in this booklive depressing lives in lots of ways.it shows their lives how they lived and the crime associated wit them. the little boy who fell off the building pray for him...
god bless u

This is a moving and powerful radio documetary conduted by two 13 year old boys living in the Ida B. Wells housing project in Chicago's inner city. It is the story of their lives told in a real and honest way that leaves no one unmoved who hears it. Their mentor, David Isay, gives them the opportunity to tell the world what the life of a child growing up in an American ghetto is truly like. Sometmes hard to hear, the efforts of these young men are genuine and accurate and leave listeners with a glimpse into the problems that grip our inner cities. For anyone who wants to understand the lives and realities of families trapped in America's slums, this should rank at the top of the list. I highly recommend Ghetto Life:101 and Remorse. I use it every semester in my university social problems class. My students come away with amazing insight as a result of these powerful documentaries.

This book truely is an encyclopedia of great ideas to use in the classroom. It is laid out in a very reader friendly format, listing ages, materials needed, and related books and songs. It has an extensive table of contents with clear headings. I can see myself using this throughout the years.

great resource book for cirlce time ideas. lots of fun activities for preschoolers!

This book is full of new, interesting and original tips and ideas that are VERY EASY to use in any teacher's class. It enables the teacher with many resorses to use during circle time without having to bother about looking for extraordinary material; in fact most of the activities won't require any material at all. The classroom resourses will work for any kind of classroom regardeless of size, age (3-6) or even subject.

The Gist of Genetics

I've had Dr. Davis as a professor and he used this book as a reading for the course. It is very helpful and straight to the point, will help you see the big picture, as well as providing the important details.

In my sophomore genetics class we used two textbooks. One is a 600 pages textbook filled with colorful pictures, the other one is the this book. After I spent hours reading and comprehending a chapter in the 600-pages tiny-font textbook, I turned to the 200-pages large-font Gist of Gennetics. And there it is, truly the gist of genetics. I regretted that I didn't read this book first but instead wasted my valuable time reading useless [junk]. The only problem is that this book is entirely black and white, with little to no picture (only has genetic diagrams). But unless you are the type who fall asleep reading b/w textbooks, this is a great book for quick understanding of basic genetics.

The Apostle Paul ended the first part of his Epistle to the Romans (see chapter 8) with a number of almost ecstatic statements about the certainty of final salvation for the Christian. This certainty rests on what theologians have called the "ordo salutis" (traced in verses 29-30 of chapter 8 and beginning with foreknowledge and predestination) and also on what Christ has done for believers on the Cross ("... how much more will He freely give us all things ..."). At a first reading, chapter 9 could seem to be something of an anti-climax with its somewhat difficult arguments about Jacob and Esau, about election and rejection and about the people of Israel.

But Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones points out in these wonderful sermons first preached in 1962/63 in London, England, that chapters 9 through 11 of Romans are, in fact, a kind of continuation of chapter 8. They deal in the first instance not so much with predestination or with Israel; they are rather a "theodicy", a defence of the ways of God with man in view of the revolutionary changes that were taking place within the people of God: the Jews were, for the most part, rejecting the Gospel, whereas the heathens were joyfully accepting it. As a wise master-builder, Paul does not ignore the difficulties this raised, but instead takes up the difficulties and illustrates the truth with reference to the Hebrew scriptures. He admits his own sorrow at the predicament of the Jews, but then points out that "they are not all Israel which are of Israel"; even in the Old Testament there was always the principle of election according to the sovereign purpose of God. Isaac was preferred over against Ismael because he was a "child of the promise", born of the supernatural working of God; Jacob was preferred before Esau, not because of anything he had done, but "in order that the election of God might stand." If I may put it as succinctly as I can in my own words: Paul teaches here that the true people of God has always consisted of those who were saved by sovereign grace and without works of any kind, but who believed in Christ by grace and were born again.

Dr. Lloyd-Jones expounds all this at great length and with the utmost clarity, at the same time offering an impassioned defence of historic infralapsarian Calvinism and demonstrating the spiritual nature of the true Church. He occasionally also shows up the fatuity and/or superfluity of the opinions of theologians such as Dodd or even Barclay. I think it would be impossible to read and study this book without learning a great deal, although it would probably be advantageous to have read at least some of the prior volumes in the series beforehand. Of course, not only Lloyd-Jones's book but also his text in Romans is anything but easy, and even as a Calvinistically-inclined evangelical I baulked once or twice at such statements as that there is a difference between what God wants and what God wills (making me ask why, if God is omnipotent, he cannot will what he wants). But Lloyd-Jones himself makes abundantly clear that the Bible does not give us all the answers we would so often like to have and that even if it did, our minds would probably be too small to comprehend them.

So, this is an in-depth Bible study for folk who really want to grasp the teaching of Romans 9 and also to see the principles behind historic evangelical Christianity. It is not an easy read, but will reward patient mulling over with an open Bible at your side.

Dr. Lloyd Jones is masterful as always. He always has the majesty and glory of God in mind during every sermon. This is the best exposition of the chapter I have ever read. He digs into the commentaries of the past and explains why some of the best commentators have been wrong in their exposition of certain verses. Before I read this book, I had other opinions on certain verses, but his logic cannot be defeated. The only thing left to do after reading a book like this is to echo the great Apostle at the end of Romans 11 - "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!"

If any man has ever had the thinking ability to plumb the depths of God's wisdom and ways it would have been Lloyd-Jones but he constantly admits his desire to submit to the revelation of God, even commands that we should not even desire to look beyond what He has revealed in His word. We have the right to explore to the best of our ability what God has given us, but beyond that we must wait until Beulah Land to be shown the rest of the mystery. God's sovereignty and man's responibility are worked out perfectly in this exposition of one of the most controversial chapters of the Bible. A must read! Soli Deo Gloria!

This book is an excellent resource for someone looking to exhaustively study Romans 9. The "doctor" goes through all the major interpretations and systematically defends the Reformed position. In an age of chronic Arminian tendencies, this book is a much needed biblical antidote, revealing the sovereignty, grace, and majesty of God revealed in this glorious chapter. S.D.G.

This book is wonderful! I don't know how to describe it. I'm not into sports and all that, but this was a riveting read.

In many autobiographies, it seems obvious that someone wrote the book for that person. But in Gold Thunder, Rex's no-punches-pulled account blends with Anne's seamless strorytelling to the point that one can almost imagine Rex sitting next to you.

Gold Thunder is very fast paced. You put the key in the ignition, rev it up a few times, and then watch it go. As the motor purrs to a stop and you turn the last page, you'll wonder where all the time went

Anyone will enjoy this book,including non race fans like myself. I'm sure that many aspects of it make more sense to race fans, but the book itself is a wonderful introduction to racing. I had no idea that NASCAR had such a colorful history. What a cast of characters! It's enough to make even the newest fans feel a bit of nostalgia.

Here's another great auto racing book that will not only let you into the life of Rex White, it will teach you along the way. Stricken with polio at a young age, growing up in poverty and working countless hours on a farm never hindered little Rex White's passion to get behind the wheel of a race car. You'll find out why his father played a major role in his "race to finish, race to win" atttitude, and you'll meet all of the people who impacted Rex's life on his way to becoming a NASCAR champion. People like modified great Frankie Schneider, who became White's mentor, to partner Louie Clements are all given prime space in this book. Rex tells what racing was really like in the good old days, his love of Chevrolet, and the countless hours on the road traveling on nickles and dimes to get to the next race. A regular dinner was a package of Lance crackers. You'll also attend several wild parties honchoed by Clown Prince Joe Weatherly.
The best part of this book are the lessons learned thanks to a great work ethic. You'll laugh at the loads of funny characters that come into Rex's life, and then also deal with racing's dangers and the many tragic events that happened on the track. It's loaded with photos, tells of the great/not so great 1963 year at Daytona with his Mystery Motor 427 Chevy, GM's "on again, off again" policies on racing and becoming a member of the official Chevy racing teams.
Another can't miss book on the great sport of auto racing from the eyes of one of NASCAR's all-time best 50 drivers. He may have stood only 5'4" in stature, but this is a giant of a man when it comes to racing and winning in life.

This well-written biography of Rex White, one of NASCAR's Fifty Living Legends, will keep you reading to the end to find out the outcome of all White's adventures in the 1950s and 60s on the early NASCAR circuit. White drove before the ovals were paved, and seems as comfortable on dirt tracks and on the road to the next race as anywhere in the world. Along the way, readers will learn as much about the stock car racing sport as readers of "Seabiscuit" found out about the life of the jockey and the history of the horse racing sport. This is a very enjoyable book with delightful accounts of team high jinks throughout the story and enough historical material to keep NASCAR fans arguing for years.

The Golem's eye is the second book in the delightful and superbly written Bartimaeus trilogy.
Like its predecessor, there is plenty of action, intrigue and humour, largely provided by everyone's favourite djinny Bartimaeus. As with the Amulet of Saamarkand, he manages to steel the show whenever he's given page time.
Jonathan Stroud continues to show the style and attention to characters and detail that he displayed in his first book, only this time, the pageant of characters has been augmented by Kitty, a commoner struggling to live her life under the magician's rule. In Kitty, Jonathan Stroud has created a strong feisty young woman who stands up for what she believes in, and I feel that she is definitely one of the better modern female heroines to emerge in recent years.
Nathaniel is also developed well. Stroud has depicted a deeply flawed, but essentially human hero, whom it is always hard to predict.
The reader is drawn in to the separate stories of Nathaniel, Kitty, and Bartimaeus, and is hooked long before the inevitable moment when their worlds collide.
A worthy sequel. Just as difficult to put down as the first one, and of course, the superb narration of Simon Jones is just the icing on the cake.

He's rude. He's surly. He won't hesitate to tell you when your haircut looks stupid. And in over 5000 years, he's seen some bad haircuts. I'm talking about my favorite djinni, Bartimaeus, back in book two of his young adult fantasy trilogy.

THE GOLEM'S EYE is an excellent sequel to the first book in the series, The Amulet of Samarkand (The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 1). In the first book, we meet Bartimaeus, an ancient creature of enormous power that can best be described as a type of demon. Unfortunately, he and all of his kind hate the word demon. He classifies himself as a djinni, so we'll just go with that for the purposes of this review. Why annoy anyone who can shoot magical firebolts at you, right? Anyway, Bartimaeus, and other creatures like him, are summoned by human magicians to do their bidding. Needless to say, this forced servitude, or slavery, is not popular with the servants, so they do their best to turn the tables on their human masters whenever possible.

Enter Nathaniel, a boy who is in training to become a powerful magician. In book one of the series, he summons Bartimaeus from the netherworld and an involuntary partnership begins. In THE GOLEM'S EYE, young Nathaniel again finds himself in need of the djinni's aid, so he again turns to reluctant Bartimaeus. This time, a revolutionary group is blowing things up in London, which may or may not be related to a series of unusual occurrences that have the police stumped. Nathaniel feels that his career would take off if he can solve these crimes. But the stakes are high because he knows that his career, and possibly his life, are in jeopardy if he fails.

A key part of THE GOLEM'S EYE storyline centers on the activities of a London resistance group that is fighting to overthrow the magicians' government. Nathaniel's inability to track down these criminals is part of the reason he needs Bartimaeus's help. Of course, the djinni has little interest in helping magicians maintain their dominance. After all, they're the ones who continually force him and his kind into servitude. This conflict of interest makes for some entertaining scenes and conversations.

If you have not read The Amulet of Samarkand (The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 1), I strongly recommend you pick that one up before diving into THE GOLEM'S EYE. Technically, you don't have to read the first one, but there is an awful lot of background you will miss if you don't. Plus, it's really fun.

Normally I find myself disappointed in sequels. Somehow they never seem to live up the expectations established by the original. But in this case, I was pleasantly surprised. This book is full of excitement, political intrigue, and humor. Bartimaeus is back with all of his cheeky comments, and there are plenty of thrills to go around. Overall, a great book.

Reviewed by: K. Osborn Sullivan

I have always preferred "real" books to audio books, until now that is. Simon Jones perfectly captures the characters in this book (especially Bartimaeus). The story is wonderful and well-written. My sons and I listened to the Amulet of Samarkand on tape and knew we had to have this one as well. I hope the third one comes soon!!!!!

This book is an indespensable tool for the community design professional - don't leave home without it! Hundreds of color photos of well-designed multi-family housing in 85 case studies from around the US.

Fantastic. Wonderful reference for the professional and student

This book provides an excellent summary of the architecture of affordable housing and the best way to design and develop it. It is particularly useful for architects, planners, city staff and developers interested in improving their communities.

Englishman Owen Jones first published his monument to design, the Grammar of Ornament, in 1856. It was originally published in installments for subscribers. Jones's illustrated plates and design motifs drew from nineteen different cultures including the ornament of Oceania, Rome, Byzantium, ancient Greece, Renaissance Italy, Rome, and Moorish Spain.

The Grammar was adapted to architectural decoration, fabrics, textiles, tile design, furniture and wallpaper during the second half of the nineteenth century. It has remained influential among designers worldwide.

The quirky colorways are decidedly of another era and worthy of study. I have effectively used them to thwack my creativity out of occasional dead ends or potholes. This is a respected, classic reference. It is deserving of space in every designer's reference library.

FREE use of graphics is permitted ... it is a great resource for web designers. It has great designs and textures which, if used properly, can really enhance your website. A lot of the graphics can make for lovely textures and backgrounds. The graphics are from history .... ornaments from Oceania, Egypt, Greek, Pompeian, Roman, Byzantine, Arabian, Turkish, Moorish, Persian, Indian, Chinese, Celtic, Medieval, Renaissance, Italian ... loads of Ornaments from all over. A must buy IMO!

This book is excellent for artists, web designers,students. there are well chosen designs of many countries and eras and more than just a few for each catagory.It is a reference book that is a total must.

College-level art library holdings will find much to recommend with GUNNAR ASPLUND, the only detailed monograph in print on the Swedish architect. Given that Asplund is hardly an unknown name in the world of architecture, it's amazing to note that this is the only such reference in print, providing a scholarly survey of all of his works both popular and lesser-known, and packing in new color photos along with sketches and drawings. Perhaps it's because Asplund's buildings don't neatly fit into architectural categories, and thus have missed extensive survey in genre-specific considerations - but they certainly deserve the depth GUNNAR ASPLUND provides, here.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

The influence of Scandinavian design in the United States, if not in the whole world has been immense. The clean simple lines of functional design pioneered over there have influenced more designs than have been built in Scandinavia. Gunnar Asplund is one of the lessor known (in the United States) architects of Scandinavian design.

Born in 1885, he began his career in 1907 with a small villa. A few years later he won his first competition for a school which launched his professional career. From then until his death in 1940 he designed a range of structures that reach from small homes through large commercial/government/public buildings. They remain classics of their type.

This profusely illustrated book is unusual in that it includes not only photographs of the buildings as they exist now, but also many line drawings that illustrate the original concepts. As such this is both a tribute to his designs and an idea book for designs being made today.

This is a beautifully illustrated, comprehensive monograph on the underrated Swedish architect Gunnar Asplund. Although Asplund's work is contemporary with Mies, Le Corbusier, and Aalto, it is of an entirely different current -- Asplund weaves together vernacular, classical and modernist influences in a way that stands solidly outside standard, official history of Modern Architecture. Like the Slovenian architect Plecnick, Asplund's work has always been tricky for historians to place in the march from Wright to Gropius to Mies that is the standard trajectory of early 20th c architectural history.

While that fact may contribute somewhat to the neglect of his reputation, this is undeserved. Aplund's best projects, like the Snellman House, the Enskede Cemetery, or the Stockholm City Library are phenomenal masterpieces of 20th century architecture. The photographs of the work in this book are excellent, and fortunately plenty of line drawings are included too. Jones' summary of Asplund's career is lucid and solidly researched. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in early modernist architecture or Scandinavian design.

Hacksaw is a book written by Edward Jones, escape artist extraordinare. He sucessfully escaped from prison fourteen different times, making him somewhat of a criminal legend. Unfortunately for him, escaping fourteen times means that he got caught that many times as well, which does not say much for his ability to evade the police and FBI. While excessively good at escaping from prison, he was absolutely stupid when he was out. He made all kinds of major mistakes which landed him right back in prison again.

This book, besides being a fun read, illustrates the contemporary prison problem in the United States. Mr. Jones was nothing more than a misbehaving child when he was first given a stint in prison. It was in prison that he became a real criminal. It was in the place that he was supossed to reform that he learned to purposely break the law. This same thing happens to many in prisons today. A teenager is jailed for reckless driving or the such, and while he spends his few months in jail, he picks up a new lifestyle from the experienced criminals he is living with. Hacksaw is an excellent picture of why the criminal punishment system in the U.S. is suceeding only in producing more criminals. Mr. Jones realizes partway through his life that he is in a Catch 22: he is running from the police because he has been sentenced to life imprisonment for multiple escapes, and either he turns himself in and spends his life in prison, or he keeps running but can never live a normal life because he must always be moving from place to place to stay ahead of the law enforcement. In either case, he loses. In the end, he decides to give up trying to keep escaping, and decides to write books from prison instead. I believe he finally made it out of prison on a legal technicality, and was freed to live a normal life.

Overall grade: A

I've read many books about escape but most are POW's or convict stories from early in the century. This is one of the few that takes place in more modern times & in North America. Even though I have read of lots of daring escapes this guys really impressed me with how good he was at escaping. Memorable book.

I recently read a book for my ninth grade English class, and I chose the book Hacksaw, By Edward Jones. It was an intense thriller with suspense and cunning wit. I was amazed at the writing level of this book and reccommend it to everyone.