Morrison Books

This book is exactly what my husband wanted. I was suprised, however, that it was just a black hardcover book - there was nothing on the front indicating author or title.

I highly recommend this book.

The happiest moments of a liberal arts education usually take place late in the evening in a dormitory lounge or in a local bistro over several cups of coffee. They're conversations, often between two similarly minded people, that explore a favorite subject. Browsing through Imagining Characters is like lingering in a seat at the next table.

The works selected are an English major's hit list of mainly nineteenth century women's novels. Byatt and Sodre bring their experience as a fiction writer and a clinical psychologist, respectively, to their understandings and develop complementary insights rather than rigorous debates.

This isn't everyone's cup of java. The reader who enjoys this volume probably relishes at least half of the novels discussed, smiles at being called a feminist, and prefers discussion to formal criticism.

Here is the real scoop on toxic waste suits. This comprehensive text covers the subject of contamination and litigation from a variety of approaches, scientific and legal. I particularly appreciated the chapters on the chemical fingerprinting of hydrocarbons and the chemistry & utilization of chlorinated solvents. Having written a piece about a hypothetical hazardous waste site, I wish I had the information in this book at the time.

In spite of the density of the material, there are light touches throughout the book. I particularly liked the three-D glasses that came with the book (I'm not kidding--they are helpful to view site photographs) and the definition of a Texas sharpshooter (draws the bulls-eye after shooting the gun).

This book (and its appendices) is crammed with useful information. I would advise anyone seriously interested in the field of environmental forensics to own this book.

The 1987 edition of Inventing the Truth originated in the winter of 1986 as a series of talks sponsored by the Book-of-the-Month Club at the New York Public Library. A shadow of its predecessor, Extraordinary Lives (1986), this slender book has as its theme, reminiscences about writing memoirs. Although novelist Toni Morrison and medical writer Lewis Thomas veer off to a degree from this theme, all the essays are valuable as examples of good writing. There is no index, but the volume concludes with fascinating annotated bibliographies of the authors' favorite first-person narratives.

This is a great, small book of images. They are compiled in a systematic arrangement that causes some questioning. I can offer no interpretation of the selection of images, because the experience is so individual. This is an excellent buy for anyone interested in challenging thier visual experiences and expanding thier ideas of non-lyrical viewing.

Anything called the `greatest' is always going to be subjective and open for debate. At first glance at "The Greatest JLA Stories Ever Told" seems a bit slight to hold such a lofty title. After all, were talking about a title that has been around for nearly fifty years. I'm not sure if these are truly the best stories ever featuring the Justice league of America, rather it seems that the editors basically wanted to provide a sampling of stories from different eras. This volume stories from:

Justice League of America #19 1963
Justice League of America #77 1969
Justice League of America #122 1975
Justice League of America #166 - 168 1979
Justice League #1 1987
JLA Secret Files #1 1997
JLA # 61 2002

We can see with these stories that the editors have made a concerted effort to cull stories from the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, and 2000's. And in all fairness, these are some solid stories for the most part. In JLA # 19, Doctor Destiny uses the dreams of the members to create super versions of the team that commit crimes. The JLA gets blamed and goes into self-imposed exile off Earth to try and figure out how to defeat their duplicates. This is by far the weakest story in the book. Gardner Fox's script is clumsy, even for the early 1960's. At one point Doctor Destiny goes into one of those villainous monologues (alone in his jail cell I might add) and uses the word "wicked" four times in the space of a couple of panels. Add to that, I always found Mike Sekowsky's art to be very blocky and unattractive.

In JLA #77 the league is betrayed by their mascot Snapper Carr who turns over secret knowledge to a man called John Dough who is leading a sort of religious quest to rid the world of superheroes. Interesting to note is that this story features a Black Canary who has just joined the team and doesn't yet know how to control her sonic scream powers. Story and art by Denny O'Neil and Dick Dillin.

JLA #122 is called "Great Identity Crisis" and rather ironic considering the events at DC over the past year. In this story, which, coincidently Dr. Light figures prominently in, the league members reveal all of their identities to each other to avoid problems in the future. How prophetic is that! Story and art by Marty Pasko and Dick Dillin.

JLA # 166 - 168 is a three part storyline featuring the Secret Society of Super Villains who use a magical artifact to switch bodies with the league and then imprison the JLA into a stasis cube. Some nice interplay between the characters in this tale. Story and art By Gerry Conway and Dick Dillin.

Justice League #1 was the Keith Giffen revamp that went for a good deal of comedy and slapstick...usually at the expense of Guy Gardner and Blue Beetle. In the first issue, Gardner is being his usual loudmouth self and starts a fight with several of the new members until Batman puts him in his place. That is still a classic scene! Kevin Maguire handled the art.

JLA Secrect Files #1 is a modern retelling of the League's origin and their first threat of Starro the Conqueror. The Spectre shows up to warn the league not to interfere with the military's response to the alien threat and shows them the dire consequences of what will happen if they disobey him. Story written by Grant Morrison and Mark Millar.

JLA Vol. 2 # 61 - The League has to face the wrath of a horde of mythological creatures such as the Greek Titans and Krakens in a story by Joe Kelly, Doug Mahnke, and Tom Nguyen.

If I had a few hours I could certainly find stories I think were as deserving to be included such as the story from Justice League #99 - 100, but overall it's a solid collection. Dick Dillin was an underrated artist. Not spectacular but steady. Kind of like a George Tuska or Sal Buscema. The greatest stories? Well, it's awfully hard to choose the greatest from literally hundreds of issues but all in all a pretty good job.

Reviewed by Tim Janson

In a housing tract called Poverty, population seven, a grave is dug, then filled, even though eight year old Little's body is missing. This unsentimental first novel revolves around the seven people who knew the nearly silent Little and who scratch out a difficult life on a Ojibwe reservation in Minnesota. They lend their voices and perspectives, some contradictory, to this bleak story of how Little came to "be in everything." The heart of this novel is not Little, however, but the people who knew him. Even though Little is not a major character the way his brother Donovan is, he represents the deformity in the others that must be overcome to survive.

Treuer has structured his novel in individual stories that are connected more through the association of the characters than any solid narrative drive. His writing is stark - sometimes poetic and others ordinary, but always fitting the mood of the moment. If this novel suffers from anything, it's obtuseness. The reader knows when he is supposed to read more into dialogue or a description, but the connections aren't always clear. The author's talents far outweigh this flaw, as Poverty and its residents are memorable, complex creations.

LITTLE is not an uplifting novel, nor is it an easy read, so readers looking for these qualities should look elsewhere. For those interested in literary fiction or in issues facing contemporary Native Americans, you will find much offered here by the author of a later work, THE HIAWATHA.

First and most notably, the contributors to this book are all extremely well qualified; most of them are professors from prestigious universities whose fields of expertise include sociology, urban and regional planning, and political sciences. Each angle of the Los Angeles riots is discussed objectively with in-depth analysis. The book covers issues before that caused the riots, during the event, and after the dust has cleared. The authors present lessons to be learned from the Rodney King tape, the proceeding trial and the social reasons why each neighborhood in LA is unstable. The book also presents hard evidence about the Rodney King incident, including recordings of the policemen involved and how non-chalant they were about the beating. Most of the points raised in the book are accompanied by charts and figures that illustrate each idea. All of the arguments made are followed by solid precedents and findings from independent researchers. This book is not light reading, but it will be the best source possible for writing a paper or learning all there is to be learned on the topic.

You know a book's worth when you read the last few pages very slowly hoping it will never end and just go on and on. Dr. Robert Morrison's book inspired me, like I try to do with my students, to always strive to be the "best you can". Even if you fall short sometimes, it's the striving that counts. Dr. Bob is truly an inspiration to millions of people with poor vision and especially contact lens wearers. The bottom line is, HE CARES. About the poor people in undeveloped nations, the royalty around the globe and the common person who has a vision problem and needs help from a master. I will never forget this book, and more importantly the man, Dr. Bob, who strived and succeeded in " making a difference " in life. I pray everyday that my high school students become the Jane Goodalls and Bob Morrisons of the future and straighten out some wrinkles in a troubled earth. Read this book.