Nicholas Books

I have two copies. Geil and Wenger descendants included due to cross marriages between 3 families over centuries. Good job of putting data together. Would consider trading one for the Geil book.

Some of the problems that many Western readers have when confronting a topic such as the history of Islam include difficult names for people (to the Western ear), unfamiliar place names (some less unfamiliar now due to the Western attention focussed upon the Middle East at present), and unusual theological concepts and practices that don't always neatly relate to Western ideas of philosophy and religion. Authors Fred James Hill and Nicholas Awde obviously took these difficulties into account when developing this text on the history of the Islamic world, for it is exceptionally readable and accessible to the Western audience, its intended group.

Hill and Awde have written then with somewhat of a bias, which is admitted early in the text. This is both a history and a celebration of Islamic culture; whereas often history of non-Western societies is an add-on to the overall 'march of history' narratives popular in school texts and other books, this book treats Islamic history as a history in its own right. The history overlaps with the Western culture, and this is explored in good detail (particularly the Spanish Islamic period, and Eastern European/southern Russian-Asian lands), but the culture also ties in significantly with the African, Indian, and Chinese cultures in many ways.

Hill and Awde develop the text chronologically in three major divisions: The Rise of Islam, the Age of Three Great Muslim Empires, and Islam in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries. In the Rise of Islam, the authors begin with a brief biographical sketch of the prophet Muhammad, the four Caliphs, and the development of both the Quran and various practices and cultural identities. The rapid early expansion of Islam coincided with the so-called Dark Ages of Europe; while there was a general decline in intellectual and social society in Europe following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, and the contraction of the Eastern Roman/Byzantine Empire, Muslim societies were in fact flourishing, with great centres of art, science, literature, philosophy and more growing throughout the Muslim world - some of these cradles of intellectual fervour helped fuel the later European Renaissance. This period saw the rise of rulers such as the Umayyads, the Abbasids, and individuals such as Saladin.

In the Age of Three Great Muslim Empires, the authors explore the Ottoman, the Safavids and Shi'ism in Persia, and the Mughals in India. These three empires were to have lasting effects on world affairs economically and politically, with divisions in current affairs and nation-states dating from these particular empires.

In the third section on the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries, the authors look at the nation-state phenomenon and how it has impacted the way Islam is practiced as well as the way that it is perceived beyond the Muslim world. Crucial to the understanding of current affairs is the understanding of the inter-Islamic relations, and what challenges face the future.

One wonderful feature of this text is the side-bar boxes that are frequently used to highlight particular aspects of the culture, particular places, events or people without interrupting the general narrative flow. These boxes include discussion of Islamic art and calligraphy, various architectural creations, religious/theological concepts, and particular events. There are a lot of pictures, line-art graphics (calligraphy and such), and maps, which help to locate and add visual substance to the text.

This is written in an engaging style that should be generally readable by those with high school education forward; it is not heavy with footnotes or other scholarly additions - a section on suggested readings would be nice. There is included in the appendices a glossary of Islamic terms, a glossary of key figures and dynasties, a timeline listing of key dates, and a general index for the book.

Since this book has been well reviewed by others, I'll refrain from writing much about the content of the book. I've started to notice a tendency from the author to repeat himself a LOT in his books. Large parts of the various chapters are word for word taken from other places. My point is that if you buy the "Black Sun" book by the same author, you'll get everything about Savitri Devi you need to know in a condensed form, AND you get some bonus chapters. That being said, I did enjoy the book, but that is because I'm into the subject at hand, but I don't think most people will need to read a whole book about her, the chapter in "Black Sun" is quite enough, and the words are exactly the same, so.

All in all, recommended but unecessary.

(I read a different edition)

Since this book has been well reviewed by others, I'll refrain from writing much about the content of the book. I've started to notice a tendency from the author to repeat himself a LOT in his books. Large parts of the various chapters are word for word taken from other places. My point is that if you buy the "Black Sun" book by the same author, you'll get everything about Savitri Devi you need to know in a condensed form, AND you get some bonus chapters. That being said, I did enjoy the book, but that is because I'm into the subject at hand, but I don't think most people will need to read a whole book about her, the chapter in "Black Sun" is quite enough, and the words are exactly the same, so.

All in all, recommended but unecessary.

(I read a different edition)

This is the most thorough book on the Mass I have ever seen! Recommended to me by Father Chad Ripperger, F.S.S.P., and the main source for his Latin Mass article, The Merit of a Mass, it explains ever aspect of the Mass in minute detail. It covers topics from the virtue of religion and the meaning and efficacy of sacrifice to the two kinds of merit in the Mass, intrinsic and extrinsic--intrinsic being infinite and dependent on Christ, extrinsic being finite and dependent on man--to the use and meaning of light at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the liturgical act of the fraction of the host and the mingling of the consecrated elements. It explains in detail every prayer and gesture of the of the ancient rite of Mass!
It's not an easy read, but probably a book every priest and layman who is serious about understanding the Mass should read and re-read.
I can't recommend it enough!

I was never big into the doctor who comic after Tom Baker left, mainly because the later issues were not reprinted in America so I missed the issues with Frobisher, the shape changing Alien who's favorite shape was a Penguin.

Until this episode Big Finish never didn't include the comic companions and other than a free giveaway hasn't since. This episode shows what we've been missing and it is a lot.

The combination of Colin Baker and Robert Jezek as Frobisher is just plain entertaining to listen to. The chemistry is great and the fact that he is more of an equal than just than most companions really makes it work. Robert Shearman's first rate story and a strong set of supporting performances certainly didn't hurt.

The story is pretty simple, the Tardis (which is on strike) arrives in a world run by an odd combination of religious zealotry and tradition. Of course at the moment when someone asks for a sign this blue box with a talking bird shows us, the disappointment of the crowd when the Doctor comes out and is just a "regular person" is priceless.

Some people tend to look down on semi-comedy in Doctor Who but there is no reason why you can't have a good story with a little comedy (ie: The One Doctor). This one certainly does the trick.

However the comedy ends in the final episode as the plot twists rather cruelly. It is a stark contrast from the rest of the story but doesn't take away from it.

Buy it, and write big finish and ask for more Frobisher, you won't regret it.

Expertly compiled and co-edited by the team of Nicholas Delbanco (Professor of English and Director of the Hopwood Program at the University of Michigan), Andrea Beauchamp (Program Associate at the Hopwood Program), and Michael Barrett (Associate Editor at the Hopwood Program, University of Michigan) The Hopwood Awards: Seventy-Five Years Of Prized Writing is an impressive literary anthology of University of Michigan students who won the prestigious Hopwood Award for literature and showcasing three generations of these outstanding writers. Inclusive of writings drawn from the work of John Ciardi, Anne Stevenson, Henry Van Dyke, Max Apple, Cid Corman, Sarah Messer, Laura Kasischke, Garret Hongo and so many more remarkable authors, The Hopwood Awards presents an eminent compendium of intellectual literature. The Hopwood Awards is very highly recommended reading for its showcased compilation of prizewinning literary talent.

Many dog owner's give their best friend everything they think they want; however, this time Rover (or Roxie) speaks out about what they are really in need of, a partner! With creatively posed pictures and to the point portraits of their ideal mate, these "Hot Dogs" will win the hearts of every dog lover and a few hard core cat lovers.

I read this Amazon Short and was facinated by how the author transports you back into the times of ancient Greece. He makes this histotical playwright-general come alive, along with the times he lived and the people that knew him.

This writer [Nicholas Nicastro] has an exceptional command of the historical data and sets the stage for the reader's insight into the minds of both highborn and common people alike in the narrative.

I never imagined that even the farmers and tradesmen had such a keen knowledge and appreciation of their culture. What we study in highschool and college, these people viewed such productions like Vaudeville; sans all the highbrow hoop-la and judged it accordingly.

The reader, through the writer's presentation finds an empathy
with Sophocles. In spite of his vanity, arrogance and weaknesses, the man comes through. So that now, his work can be seen with another dimension.
Salvatore Novitski

I purchased for a friend for Christmas and he loved it.