Richards Books

I agree with one other reviewer here who said "horrible cover but great book"...the cover and the title of the book are way over the top. I half expected the book to start with chapters of little green men who caused the extinction of mammoths. Despite the goofy title and cover, this is an easy to read, easy to follow theory of what caused the great extinctions of 13,000 years ago in North America, killing off the mammoths, mastodons and evidently much of the human population (clovis culture) along about that time. Firestone's theory of the comet hitting an area near Lake Michigan, which was covered in ice two miles thick at the time, takes a little getting used to, and opening the mind a bit to grasp the entire theory. He examines everything from the mysterious "black mat" at the Murray Springs Arizona Clovis site to the micro meteorites embedded in Mammoth tusks, to the "Carolina Bays" that were supposedly created by large chunks of glacial ice, blown out of the Michigan glacier by this comet. He explains the comet was supposedly made of "dirty ice" a cosmic dustball, and the size of the comet was what caused the depression which later became Lake Michigan. A very entertaining read, and a theory worth considering.

I'll make this short - everyone should read it!!!
The slightly lengthier version is -
The authors put a case for a cataclysmic planetary impact event of circa 13000 - 16000 BP having been preceded by the shock wave and the initial light / radiation blast of a nearby supernova around 41000BP but with the major focus being on the impact event(s).
Unlike others that have written on similar themes, these authors supply a myriad of evidence to back up their claims and the real strength of their work is the breadth of various unrelated scientific studies undertaken which seem to support the proposition. A tremendous amount of work has gone into this book.
It provides the supporting scientific evidence in an easy to read way - I eagerly await the next work they produce on this subject.

Firestone has established a very significant event in world history which appears to have shaped the course of events in nature and culture. Perhaps all points presented are not proven conclusively, but the amount of empirical evidence that is consistent with the authors' hypotheses is substantial.

I'll keep this simple. People who read books like this (alternative theories) want proof. They want research links, physical evidence, and the proverbial "smoking gun." This book DOES deliver. Although the saying "you had me at hello" does come to mind. The book proves the authors point, then does it again, and again, and again. OK I believe you now move on. The evidence stacks up to a morbid sense of proselytizing!

The second part (The Main Event), flips a switch when you read it... Almost like a collective unconsciousness being re-awakened after tens of thousands of years! Everyone I spoke with, in explaining that second part, stared at me like a cow would at an oncoming train. You could see recognition in their eyes... A relative they hadn't seen in decades yet recognized them immediately.

This book is work the money if only you read the second part. The rest is just evidence. For those of us that read this sort of thing a lot, good luck staying awake. (LOL!) For those people out there that are new to this sort of thing. This book is the PERFECT starter. A primer into a new and unsure world known as catastrophism. Welcome!

For a 400-page book, this book is most certainly worth it and I could not put it down. "The Cycle of Cosmic Catastrophes" is one of the most serious works that I have ever read, and it was written by scientists who proposed that we are going through "cycles" of cosmic events as it seemed to be related to the one event that happened over 12,000 years ago in North America lands. This is no speculation book, even though I brought it from "New Age/Speculation" section at my bookstore. I found this book to be quite scholarly and objective read with seriously hard evidences.

The one thing from this book that really interests me is the Carolina Bays. I lived around those areas for a long time, but never once have I noticed those bays until I read about it in this book. These shallow craters, as the authors pointed out, were impacts during the extinction event, which they gave evidences of them being craters, such as extraterrestrial materials. Very interesting!

This book is full of evidences and certainly opened my eyes to the fact that Earth is not, never was, safe from cosmic objects. This book is clear written and easy to read. I would highly recommend it.

I have thought I could just read a bunch of books and then use flower essences artfully, at least on myself. You see, I have 2 books including this one, they seem to have a lot of info but at the end of the day I felt I needed more structured learning.Luckily I found it, it's a long distance class, 325 bucks for 5 lessons, I have a mentor, assignments etc. Now you're talking!
Bottomline, if you're new to flower essences don't even hope you're just going to read something and then go ahead and use them properly, no matter what book you're reading.

This book is incredibly useful for it's categories and cross references. You can find almost any symptom you're looking in this big book. You can self-diagnose psychological, physical, emotional, sexual and spiritual issues. Whatever you're going through, this book can help you pinpoint it. Each category goes through several essences, and how each one may or may not apply to you individually.

The last part of the book profiles each essences. They all list the positive qualities each essence is capable of, and the patterns of imbalance they're most likely of clearing. They're all cross referenced to the previous lists, and also makes you are aware of everything else they're capable of treating.

The beginning of the book is an overview of Bach flower therapy, how flower essences are used, and selecting and verifying the properties of each one. This part is informative, but the purpose of the book isn't to go into at length. This book is very comprehensive, but the focus book is on the last two sections. Hence my mentioning them first.

The whole notion of using flower essences not just for treatment, but to support wellness and even aid psychological and spiritual development may seem illogical.

Except that these flower essences work. The few controlled studies are not strong, but against that is a wealth of experience gained by thousands of patients and practitioners on every continent.

By a strange "coincidence" the publication of this book "coincided" with my final immigration into the United States. After nearly twenty years steeped in the use of the original Bach flower essences created in England and Wales, it seemed only right to see what the plants of the New World had provided for our ever-changing species. Much as I loved my Bach remedies, I felt sure that people on this side of the Atlantic might need something more. So I was interested to see what these New World essences had to offer and I bought my first copy of this book within weeks of my arrival.

I was astonished by what I learned and by the extraordinary work that had been done by Patricia Kaminski, Richard Katz and a small group of dedicated helpers. I soon obtained and started using many of these new remedies and I was - and remain - extremely impressed. I have seen some extraordinary results, despite being a big skeptic.

This is a classic textbook, now thirteen years old. It is beautifully produced and I would be hard pressed to come up with any major improvements.

Though the work is in no way dated, it might be nice to see a new edition, perhaps with plant photographs and more cross tables, to help introduce a new generation to these wondrous treatments.

If you have any interest in natural medicine or wellness, or if you are interested in finding out which essences were provided to help the spiritual practices unique to North America, this book should not just be on your bookshelf, but should quickly become dog-eared from use!

Highly recommended.

I've studied flower essences for over ten years. I am giving this book five stars. For anyone thinking of becoming a flower essence practitioner, this is a ~MUST HAVE~ book. This book would also benefit anyone informally giving flower essences to self, family, friends or animals. The authors work with flowers of northern California, USA (a definite plus), in addition to Bach's. A newer edition is in the works, and I'm waiting on the edge of my seat for it to come out.

BACKGROUND

These days, flower essences include flowers from Canada and USA in North America (Northern California, deserts of Arizona and New Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska, Florida); Scotland; Australia bush; New Zealand; South Africa; South America; Central America; much more than Bach's first 39. Bach died young in 1936, leaving his work unfinished, and many people in the last 70 years have taken up where he left off, expanding on the number and quality of essences (depending on where on the planet the flowers are indigenous).

Frankly, books on Bach's first 39 flower essences are so ubiquitous that I now avoid them in favor of books covering flower essences from other parts of the world besides England. Plants of England are not the only plants in existence! I am REAL tired of books getting published involving only Bach's original 39 essences. Even though Bach "bumped into" his first 39 essences, Bach's essences are not the holy grail of flower essences! Look further afield than Bach's.

I decided to buy a book on flower essences after seeing how much they helped me. I found that, beyond other books on the subject- and there are other good ones- this one was incredibly well written, laid out, informative, you name it. It allowed me, in the absence of a trained flower essence therapist, to make well informed choices as to which essence would most benefit at what time. The cross referencing, much like a thesaurus, helps to narrow down between similar essences. These authors have another tool that I found for free online that compliments this book. That tool lists each essence and a general paragraph of its effect along with a never to always scale for you to determine which essences are core ones for you. Even without that tool, this book lays out how to approach that process. I use it frequently and, like other reviers, expect to for a long time.

This is a great overview of many butterflies. It can be used to ID caterpillars/butterflies, like my grandson did for a science project, or just to enjoy butterflies in a garden full of plants for butterflies.

I am very pleased with my book. This is the second one I have bought. I gave it as a gift to a good friend who loves butterflies.

The Life Cycles of Butterflies: From Egg to Maturity, a Visual Guide to 23 Common Garden Butterflies

My brother and I collected butterflies as children. Our grandfather built beautiful display cases of wood, glass and cork. When I found this book at a nature center I knew I had to have it for my own grandchildren. The focus is on observation rather than collecting, and even includes a section on butterfly gardening to attract the butterflies right to your own back yard. Gorgeous photographs and clear text make this book a valuable resource for young nature lovers, and their grandparents.

This is such a fantastic book for anyone interested in learning about butterflies. The pictures are spectacular and instructive and the verbage is accessible to even the very young. I'm only sad that it covers 12 species. They do a great job creating a starting place for any newbie.

Wow, what a book! Fantastic photos! All the basic information for each butterfly included in the book is listed in one place. I have a butterfly garden in my back yard in central Florida and have several very good books on butterflies and butterfly gardening and this book is an excellent addition. I originally purchased this book to give to the granddaughter of a friend that is interested in butterflies. I am keeping it!

I demarcate (thank goodness that's not a story (-:)) reading Eckhart Tolle's "The Power of Now" The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment as a significant event in my awareness of consciousness. Reading Moss's "Mandala of Being "The Mandala of Being: Discovering the Power of Awareness I sense as similarly significant. I find myself struggling not to get into a fruitless intellectual (read ego) exercise of trying to contrast and compare Tolle and Moss and instead see it as one more refrain of "one teaching; many teachers," and smile and enter the Now. Tolle speaks of an infinite number of portals to the Now available in each moment if we will but allow them. Moss's "The Mandala of Being" is such a portal for me and I invite you to taste and see for yourself.

This book not only talks about living in Awareness, but also gives an actual tool that we can use in our most ordinary days. A tool that makes sense. Dr. Moss writes in plain English about practice, action and becoming more enlightened.
This book speaks to the Universal Consciousness that lives in each of us.
It allows us to see ourselves as who we think we are, and to shed those stories to become more present in who we truly are.
A very wonderful, personal, and extraordinary book. I wish everyone on the planet would read it! I went back and bought over 10 more copies to give as gifts. I feel it is that important of a book.

Spend just a single day being completely aware of where your thoughts lead you. How often does your mind wander? How much time do you find yourself recalling or analyzing things that happened in your past? How much time do you spend worrying about what might happen in the future? What stories do you make up about yourself in your wanderings? Are you self-sacrificing, underappreciated, and undervalued? Are you hardworking and eagerly climbing the ladder of success? Are you bitter that everyone else seems to catch a break but you get nothing?

Anyone who has ever tried this exercise knows that the majority of our time is spent anywhere but at the present moment. We fixate on the past, we fantasize about the future, we create self serving stories in our minds, and we judge others. Very little of our time is actually fully focused on what we are doing and feeling in this exact moment. So in essense, we rarely focus on the here and now, on the moment.

The Mandala of Being guides the reader to a better understanding of this very human process explaining that these seemingly harmless distractions actually color the way we see ourselves. Basically, all of these stories do two things. They either feed our ego so that we feel that we are somebody special (hiding the underlying feeling that we are not enough as we are) or we opening berate ourselves. The end result in both cases is the same, it reinforces the notion that somehow we have to be, act, or have something specific in order to be valuable human beings.

The simple solution is to have our thoughts stay in the here and now, to see events for what they really are, and to get in touch with our true selves. This may be easy to say but it is extremely hard to do. The Mandala of Being teaches us how to make a start in this attempt and how to counteract some of the major obstacles on this path.

Dr. Moss brings awareness to all of us. In these chaotic times, I respect him greatly for speaking to the "fear factor" that has been created in our culture. He gives structure to consciously choose to become more "awake" in our own life. If we want a better world, we can not live in fear. I challenge readers to become informed.

If you are interested in living more completely in the now then this book is for you. Richard Moss, MD shows us why and how we habitually obstruct our innate potential for what Richard calls radical aliveness as said by Deepak Chopra.

If you want to take a close look at yourself then this book is for you. How simple and direct Dr. Moss is.

Happy Reading

Chekawa

The characters and their actions are clearly drawn from the imagination of an inexperienced writer sitting back and trying to think of something clever, rather than from life. The consciousness of the main character, who ages from 11 to 13 years old, ranges wildly from brooding adult to childishness, but not in a way that shows awkward adolescence; instead, it seems as if the author has little understanding of who he is writing about. This seems to be the work of someone who would like to be a writer, not of someone who can write, and I assume that the book's fans must really want to believe in it because it is a coming-of-age story of our generation. I only finished reading it as a matter of principle, because I started it -- A Nixon Man isn't unreadable, but it isn't very interesting, either.

Found this book in a used book store. What a wonder. I loved it. The recollection of life in San Francisco in the early '70s reminded me of my own crazy youth and moved me immeasureably. The sensiblity is poignant and hilarious and profound. The wild masturbatory scene in the sand is virtuouso. The exploits of the main character, Jack, have stayed with me for days. This writer has a lot to say about family and love and loss. I hope the he publishes another book soon.

It has been a long time since I have enjoyed a book so much. A wonderful, haunting, read.

Comparable to the peculiar memories of thomas penman, thumbsucker, and the adrian mole diaries. Every adolescent male should read this book.

Its a shame that some authors live can off their celeberity and others (without publicity machines behind them) are far superior to the supposed masters. This book deserves to be a best seller and Cahill's storytelling runs circles around the John Irvings of the world.

Being the same age as the book's central figure added to the enjoyment, as recogntion of events - both public and private pop up on most every page. This great novel can not be recommended highly enough.

This is a huge book packed with information and gorgeous photography. There is plenty of science contained in these glossy pages from how the planets in our solar system formed, to the breakup and movement of our land masses to their current day positions, ocean currents, weather, ecology, glacial periods, and so much more. Most of the first half of the book is devoted to these subjects. The second half of the book gets into ocean life, from the smallest to the largest, how they live, feed, defend themselves. The pictures are breathtaking. This is a great educational book for all family members. Trust me, this one won't just sit around on your coffee table.

I recently sent this book to my younger sister who has inspirations of becoming an oceanographer. The book is so colorful and educational I think I want to become an oceanographer now!

This book is not a typical "coffee table" book. Although full of beautiful photographs, there is equal emphasis on educational text. Instead of being a book containing only full-page photos of ocean life, each page is a collage of wonderful photos and short articles that you will want to read. The publisher of this book (DK), offers a variety of books in this format (travel, etc), and the layout of this book is similar. That is not to knock the photos at all - they are great and some are full-page, but this book isn't page after page of full-page photos as some others are.

That said, this is an excellent educational text with so much interesting information to offer. (It made me want to read the book cover-to-cover, which would probably keep me busy for at least a few days!)

The four main sections of the book include:

Introduction
Ocean Environments
Ocean Life
Atlas of the Oceans

The Introduction section takes a scientific look at the earth. A sampling of the topics of this section include "The Evolution of the Oceans", "Tectonics and the Ocean Floor", "Hurricanes", and "El Nino and La Nina". Mixed in with the photos are a number of color drawings and graphs to help the reader understand the concepts.

The section on Ocean Environments includes articles on specific places like San Francisco Bay and Hardanger Fjord as well as general information on habitats such as Salt Marshes, Mangrove Swamps and Rocky Sea Beds. The pages are full of photos of the areas as well as typical species found there.

The largest section is on Ocean Life and focuses on the variety of creatures found in the sea. Exhibited within these pages are a number of amazing photos of plants and animals that I had not seen before (though I'm not an expert on this subject) including creatures such as the Glass Squid, the Blue-Ringed Octopus and the Goblin Shark. I thoroughly enjoyed the short paragraph articles describing unique aspects of the species shown as well as the longer texts on topics like "Echinoderms" that includes anatomy, reproduction, feeding and defense sub-articles.

The last section is Atlas of the Oceans and includes maps of the different oceans and text describing them.

Again, the focus of this book is learning, not just amazing photography, and it does an excellent job of offering a smorgasbord of articles on different topics. If you really want to learn about the ocean and its inhabitants while paging through fantastic photographs, you will thoroughly enjoy this book!

NOT 500 pages and if I had paused to read the item description properly I wouldn't have bought this book! Way too good a price to be true, it is not another edition of the wonderful Cousteau-forwarded book, but a perfectly respectable DK full-color children's book with many very nice color photos. Probably very worth $7.99 and I was just far too greedy to read the fine print.

I had been looking for a comprehensive ocean book for a while, and more or less found it here. A complete overview of the ocean: physical features, marine life, fishing, exploration - this book covers it all. Great photography and short pieces of information on hundreds of the ocean's species will immerse even the most casual terrestrial browser.

The species featured in this book are well distributed - representing all classes of animals and plants, and all zones and ocean communities, from the coastal to deep sea ecosystem. Their mini synopsis of species is proceeded by a helpful overview of the general category that covers them (such as mollusks: their basic anatomy, movement mechanics, feeding and life cycles for the entire group) before telling you about, let's say, the octopus. The bulk of the book is on ocean biota, with a smaller sections on ocean environments and an atlas of the oceans.

Perhaps the biggest gap I see in the book is that it covers fisheries and other human impacts (trash, pollution, warming, acidification) only minimally and sporadically. The human impacts are highlighted for only a few key species, instead of treating it as an separate issue in its own right that affects, directly or indirectly, all forms of marine life. Indeed, the subtitle for the book, "the world's last wilderness revealed," is misleading and biased. It's akin a travel brochure selling an overrun tourist destination like Waikiki as exotic and pristine ("come and watch the natives surf!" I read once somewhere) - given our massive interference with most of the ocean, the term "wilderness" simply does not apply, except perhaps for the Antarctic region, for now.

But what the book does cover, it covers it well, being both engaging and informative. Over 500 pages serve as a good introduction to our waterworld.

"Patriot Dreams" is the most gripping true story I have ever read, and I am a voracious reader. From the opening page, you will vicariously enter the inner world of Robin Higgins, and experience the tragic death of a true American hero.

Rich Higgins was a Marine lieutenant-colonel who saw himself as a peacekeeper and a protector of the nation he loved. His duties in Lebanon required him to be unarmed, and he accepted those conditions as part of the job.

Unfortunately, the Hezbollah did not respect his show of good faith. What happened to Rich and his ever-faithful wife, Robin, will give you the deepest understanding of the contemporary Middle East and the ineffectiveness of our government in protecting its citizens in that area.

"Patriot Dreams" is written with an understated passion that sweeps the reader along; I was unable to put the book down until I finished the last word.

Robin Higgins is an extraordinarly powerful writer. Her work combines the best features of a novel with a strong dose of reality therapy. You will be both wiser and better informed as a result of this read.

The author was a student at North Shore High School when I taught there, and I can, without qualification, vouch for her good character and loyalty. When she introduced me to her husband, Rich Higgins in 1982, he was a major, and she was a captain. You would, as I did, recognize that he was a product of the best of our culture--strong but humane, highly intelligent without conceit, loyal without fanaticism.

Rich Higgins will be mourned, but he must never be forgotten.

Let me be clear: by guts and loyalty, I mean Robin Higgins. I do *not* mean the leaders who, incredibly, abandoned her husband in his captivity.

_Patriot Dreams_ is LTC Robin Higgins' story of the way she kept two oaths that she never imagined would be brought into conflict: her duty to her husband and her oath as an officer. What stands out about the book is the composure with which she writes about the topic, which gives voice to her determined but very mature and dignified efforts to obtain her husband's (an unarmed UN peacekeeper) release from brutal captivity. It's very likely to push the reader's buttons, not by design but by the nature of the topic, but you'll very likely come away with great respect for Robin Higgins. I did.

Worth reading for anyone wishing to pay respect to two fine Colonels of Marines, for starters. It would also appeal to those who enjoy reading about true commitment in marriage. One other group, in my view, should give it a read: those who still maintain that women should be barred from combat military roles. I'm not taking a position on that topic here, but I do encourage this: if you feel that way, then read Robin Higgins' book, and then ask yourself if you'd want to be the one to tell her--and others of her calibre--she wasn't up to combat leadership, or for that matter if we can afford to exclude her brand of guts and loyalty from leadership in battle.

One of the great privileges of my life was getting to know Rich and Robin Higgins when Rich was attending the National War College in the mid 1980s. Robin tells the story of their life together and the great tragedy of Rich's capture and assassination. What is equally powerful is how well Robin outlines the lessons learned. This book deserves a wide readership by those interested in the future of this country and the challenges we will face world-wide.

An easy to read book that captures the integrity of a military officer whose last tour of duty was to serve his country as a peacekeeper. He never made it home. The book, written by his wife, details the frustrations, the red tape and the longings of the heart, all of which become intertwined in her efforts to bring him home. Beautifully written.

I remember reading about the murder of Col. Higgens and thinking at the time how awful and what risks the military took when they served in foreign countries. And, not to mention, how unappreciated they are. And, those who served or serve, can't depend on the support of those who sent them if something goes wrong. Patriot Dreams is a must read book. In fact, if the active military of all the services had any sense, they would jump all over Patriot Dreams for the families and make it standard reading; unfortunately, those in charge rarely see the obvious. Military families sacrifice in enormous ways and I often wonder why they choose to do it. And, Colonel Higgens is an example of what happens when a military man leaves for work in the morning and does not return. Soldiers, wives and families understand this but few in the civilian populace do. This is a wonderful book. Colonel Higgens himself is quite the inspiration. Then Lieutenant Higgins served in Vietnam in 1968 with C Company, 1st Battalion, 3d Marines as a rifle platoon platoon leader. This was a hard time in Vietnam and fighting was fierce as this was the year of the infamous TET offensive. Colonel Higgens was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat 'V' for heroism. It probably should have been much higher. I give him the Congressional Medal of Honor. Captain Higgins returned to Vietnam in 1972 as an Infantry Battalion Advisor to the Vietnamese Marine Corps and then as a rifle company commander with B Company, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. By anyone's standards, Rich Higgens is a hero. Equally as important is the incredible devotion that his wife Robin had to him, both in life and in death. She did as a minimum double duty as a wife and fellow Marine. Wow! Semper Fi! This is a book that tells about it, the bureaucracy, the stupidity of government bureaurcrats, and the feelings of abandonment of good men. Every Vietnam vet can empathize with her. Many who gave their all to the country, to include their families, have experienced the feelings created by the government of having been used up and then tossed aside. Don't miss this reading and if you know someone in the military, get Patriot Dreams to them.

For a book that eventually got made into a Steve McQueen movie I was very surprised by the depth of this book.

McKenna does an excellent job of portraying China in transition, told from the points of view of the sailors on the USS San Pablo and from the missionaries at China Light, people whose world is literally shattered. The first part of the book focuses on the protagonist, Jake Holman, as he learns to adjust to life onboard the tiny San Pablo after having transferred from the Pacific Fleet. Everything is going to be perfect, he is going to have his own engine, his own engine room and be able to run it the way he wants to. Except that's not how it is on the San Pablo - most of the engineering work is done by coolies, cheap contract laborers who make their living by skimming off the ship's supplies. Coolies cook, clean, iron uniforms, swab the decks, maintain the engine and do all of the menial work leaving the crew to drill, and drill and drill and drill. The paper tiger of the San Pablo's small crew and it's three pound cannon is the only force guarding American interests - missionaries, factories, mines and more, this far up the Yangtze and appearances have to be maintained no matter how ultimately ineffective the reality may be.

By the second part of the book the Chinese have seen through it. The armies of Chiang Kai-Shek marching under the "gearwheel" flag of the Kuomintang are marching north towards the Yangtze while Bolshevist forces are working and agitating along the northern banks of the river. At first the coolies start skimming more and more off the top, and then they abandon the ship, running overboard and swimming towards a blockade of sampans that have started to surround and harass the ship every day. China is awakening to a sense of self-identity that had been suppressed for a very long time and the men of the San Pablo are despised relics of the old China, an abused and tortured China with no sense of pride or self-worth.

Perhaps one of the most difficult things for the crew to deal with is the fact that the people they are supposed to be protecting, largely missionaries, are full supporters of the Kuomintang. When the San Pablo is told to stand back and only defend American lives, not American property, it is because of the missionaries who have gone home and lobbied for American non-involvement in China. The reader feels the frustration, anger and demoralization of the crew as they are curtailed repeatedly from executing what is supposed to be their primary purpose - protection of American interests. The Chinese have also learned how to make paper tigers of their own from their Russian advisors and waste no time in churning out propaganda and sometimes outright lies about the San Pablo and their men. There is no place for the men of the San Pablo towards the end of the book - their country has for all intents and purposes abandoned them and there is no place in this new, alien China they find themselves in.


One last thing I will mention is that that most readers will be sent running for a dictionary of mechanical engineering by about fifteen pages in. I learned more about steam and marine engines reading this book than I ever expected to.

The Sand Pebbles is a wonderful, edgy, sweeping, panoramic novel, to be sure, and I highly recommend it for all those reasons. But one aspect of it makes it an unexpectedly valuable historical statement. It concerns the sailors of a US Navy vessel patrolling the upper reaches of China's Yangtze River in 1925 and....

Excuse me? Hello? There were US Navy vessels a thousand miles inside China? In 1925? In the heyday of "isolationism?" During the supposedly minimalist administration of "Silent Cal" Coolidge? Can you imagine the equivalent, were the tables turned: that some foreign power might assert its "right" to protect its expatriate nationals by permanently stationing gunboats on the Ohio between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh? The arrogance of it (and its undoubted cost to the US taxpayer) is staggering.

If highlighting this absurdity was any part of author McKenna's immediate intention, it's not apparent. He was too great an artist to flog any political point-of-vew. But his realism requires him to portray the ambivalence of the sailors on the front line of this policy, the rigidly-repressed doubts of the captain, the hostility of some of the putative beneficiaries, the cheerful advantage taken of it by a few, and the stubborn resistance to alternatives or change everywhere.

"The Sand Pebbles" is an interesting and entertaining novel set in China circa 1925. China is governed by feuding warlords, and its foreign trade is dominated by foreign "treaty powers" including the USA, Japan, and the leading European nations, all of which maintain strong naval and marine forces in China to maintain their positions and protect foreign persons and property.

The novel takes place on an obsolete, barely functioning American river gunboat, the "San Pablo," known to her crew as the "Sand Pebble." The protagonist, Jake Holman, is an engineer-crewman aboard the Sand Pebble. Jake has a passion for mastering the ship's engines, but initially is frustrated by the fact that aboard the Sand Pebble each American sailor has a Chinese coolie understudy who in fact does almost all of the work aboard ship. The Sand Pebble crewmen have delegated almost all of the ship's routine to a shadow crew of Chinese coolies, and do very little actual work. Jake's frustration with the coolie-understudy system and his attempt to fit in with the Sand Pebble crew are part of the main theme of the novel.

The real story of "The Sand Pebbles" is, however, the emergence of China as a modern nation. The Kuomantang Chinese Nationalist movement is becoming ascendant in China as the novel unfolds, and it seeks to sweep away foreign influence, and the warlord system that has kept China weak and divided. The officers and crew of the "Sand Pebble," in common with the other foreign military forces, must deal with this new movement, which seeks to change Old China, which had seemed eternally unchangeable. The slow understanding by the foreigners, including the Sand Pebble, that this change is real and something that must be dealt with, is the real story in the novel.

Author McKenna does a masterful job of presenting China as it was in the 1920s, together with life in the American gunboat navy of those times. This is a novel rich with detail and atmosphere. Both the American and Chinese protagonists are presented with dignity and insight, making this a very interesting read. While the storyline of crewman Holman is interesting enough, this is only an excuse to tell the real story--the transformation of China.

This novel will reward the patient reader. I personally found it engrossing and entertaining. Recommended.

Some weeks ago, I was playing channel flip on the telly, and came across an old movie on a cable station. Happily, I caught it at just the begining, and settled in to watch this tale of American Navy men aboard a rickety gunboat in China. In fact, I was interested enough to find a copy of the book that the film was based on and happily settled in to read.

The Sand Pebbles tells the story of the San Pablo, a creaky, none too sturdy gunboat from the Spanish-American war cruising the rivers and lakes in Hunan Province in China. Much like the boat, the crew isn't much too look at either; under the command of Lt. Collins, they're a rough lot, at the very bottom of the barrel. Into this world comes Jake Holman, another American seaman, who has come to the San Pablo to find a place where he can fit in, without the annoyance of the petty demands that the Navy sets on their crewmen.

As Holman finds out very quickly, he doesn't fit in very well at first. For one thing, there's the system of letting the local chinese coolies do all of the work, while the crew merely sits back and, well there's a lot of topside drills. Holman hates it, being one of those sorts who would rather be with his beloved engines than around other people. It's a trait that instantly sets him apart from everyone else in the crew. They don't care what's going on, just so long as they don't have to do much, have good chow and clean quarters, with on board coolies to do the laundry and give daily shaves, and liberty now and then. They grumble a bit, but it's friendly jibbing -- they know they have it good here, with a fine soft perch, and are collectively known as the Sand Pebbles.

But Holman -- it's not so good. He almost immediately gets into a fight with the coolie who is running the black gang in the engine room, with consequences that will have much more serious repercussions later. He takes another coolie, Po-Han, who has promise, trying to teach him the inner workings of the ship's engines, but a lack of communication skills make it nearly impossible. Holman struggles to fit in, but it not easy.

We also get to met other crewmen, from Frenchy Burgoyne who is smitten by a delicate Chinese girl that he could never marry; Red Dog Shanahan, perpetual troublemaker and wise-mouth; Lynch, one of the petty officers with a Russian woman tucked away in Hankow. Finally there are the missionaries at China White, a nearby religious outpost. Holman is attracted to Miss Eckart, a young woman that he is drawn to despite the deep wide of culture and morality that separates them. For a while, everything seems to be settling in place, but all too soon, revolution is growing and soon the San Pablo will be right in the middle of it all.

I have to say, I was really impressed with the book. Author Richard McKenna takes the time to create a world that is very alien to most of his readers, and his own knowledge from serving with the US Navy gives the details of living on board a gunboat an authentic flavour. While many readers will be offended by the slang and abuse that is very misogynist and racist, it also brings forward a past that most of us never knew. McKenna is simply writing about the world as it was at the time -- where other nations and races were viewed with outright suspicision and no one worried much if such terms as 'slant eye,' 'Slopehead' or 'chink' was hurled about. But McKenna is also careful in how he does it as well -- the reader will find themselves being rather unsettled as they read, and left to decide for themselves if times have really changed much in the last forty years since this novel was published. In any case, it is certainly a very good read, with plenty of introspection, action, and the day to day lives of men who are being forced into a untenable situation and one that may have no survivors.

I recommend this one for any one interested in military history, China in the 1920's, or just want a good story about bravery and heroism in a desperate time.

In this new edition, Robert Shenk provides an introduction that talks about Richard McKenna's own adventures serving in China with the US Navy, his attempts to write after leaving military service (he wrote science fiction at first), and then the experiences that brought around writing The Sand Pebbles. The book is now published by the Naval Institute Press as a Bluejacket Edition, a collection of books that focus on naval and military subjects.

It really doesn't matter about your attitudes about war with this one; instead it focuses on the people who work hard and serve, sometimes in awful places and situations and explore their lives and thoughts, and how they survive. It's just about a five star read, and I was left with quite a few questions and thoughts myself once I had finished it. It's a very different sort of novel than what is being published today, without the hyperaggressive macho of most military thrillers today, and one that feels and sounds realistic.

Five stars. Highly recommended.

Old China Hand had a meaning during the early 20th Century. Jake Holman, primary American character of this book is an old China hand. He's a sailor on an American gunboat, a part of the multi-national forces cruising the interior waters of a China in the throes of unrest, warlordism, rebellion, turbulence and chaos created by the downfall of the Manchu Dynasty and the Boxer Rebellion.

Jake's navy is one that resembles the post-WWII US Army in most of Asia prior to Vietnam in some ways. Asians do the unpleasant and difficult chores as houseboys and other types of assistants, to the point of imposing a dependence on them and degradation of competence of the Americans. Those who love Chinese history, those who love historical fiction, those who served in the Far East and remember, almost anyone can appreciate this classic work of (greater than) historical fiction.

This book is one you'll read more than once, probably see the movie and love it, and read the book again without feeling the least letdown. It's a gripping tale of an almost forgotten time in history. I recommend it thoroughly, whatever your reason for reading it.

We have a few pop-up type books and a lot of them just have something stand up, or have pieces that are too delicate for younger toddlers. Although this one is also easy to rip, there aren't tiny pieces so it takes a little more tug than some others. But the pop-ups are bright, not too busy, and really engage my toddler. Heads bobble, arms wave. We'll definitely keep an eye out for others in this series. On sale, only, of course, since the lifespan of this will surely be limited as much as my daughter loves it and will eventually manage to rip the pop-ups!

The book Snappy Little Colors is great because not only is it a book to teach kids about colors, it's a pop up too. They kids can have fun learning their colors as well as learning to read better. You get to see different animals with different colors on them. I would say this book would be good for kids the ages of 1 and up.

My son is 18 months old and he loves this book-- especially the shark and the bear! I am buying 2 Snappy books for a friend's 2-year-old's birthday. Excellent!

My daughter (26 months) LOVES this book! I read it to her often but she really spends lots of time looking at it on her own, too. She will flip through it saying each animal's name, then again making the sound of each animal, then one more time stating the main color on each page. Great big pop-ups really catch her attention. This book is especially helpful for learning colors or animal names. She loves it so much I have ordered her a couple of other Snappy Books for Christmas. Enjoy!

A friend gave this to me as a baby shower gift and I started reading it to my son at about 4 months.

At first it was the only book (out of many) to hold his attention all the way through. It still holds his attention now at 9 months no matter what he's doing when I open it.

The print and mechanical quality are first rate. The text is very well written and if I quote phrases from the book (at non-reading times) my son will recognize them and start giggling. The illustrations are quite clever and make learning entertaining.

If you buy no other children's book, buy this one! I plan to give it as a shower gift to all new moms from now on.

I saw 2 of Chekhov's plays in college and I honestly don't remember them. Glenn Close appeared in one I remember, but beyond that I was obviously distracted. Nothing could have prepared me for the perfection of these stories. I have never read a collection that had such an impact. Chekhov's clear-eyed world view peers at tiny physical details in the lives of the characters to see into their souls. They are tragic heroes in common clothes.

Chekhov looks on without judgment. His attitude is humane and liberal. No matter how foolish his subjects, his attitude is never condescending.

I hadn't realized it until I finished Pevear's forward, but Chekhov begins to slip subtly into stream of consciousness in several stories. This and many other innovations make Chekhov a pivotal figure in fiction writing. He is certainly under appreciated at present.

(I can't compare it, of course, but the P&V translation is another gift.)

Anton Chekhov is largely known for his plays (The Cherry Orchard, Uncle Vanya), but he is also widely regarded as a master of the short story. However to fully appreciate these stories the reader should be somewhat familiar with the state of fiction in Russia during the last half of the 19th century as well as social and political conditions in the country at that time. Some knowledge of Chekhov's personal history and his philosophy of life is also helpful. Lacking these insights one is likely to find these stories to be excessively negative and depressing.

One difficulty in reading this book of his best short stories is that the first few (50 pages or so) are unrelentingly depressing; death and unrequited love being the main themes and they are told in Chekhov's spare style. A Boring Story is a longer and more interesting piece. It includes some aspects of Chekhov's philosophy, and while it ends on another depressing note, there is still an element of hope present. Ward No. 6 is perhaps the best of these stories, as well as the longest. It tells of a hospital in Siberia with a ward for mental patients. The story centers around a doctor (Andrei Yefichmych), a decent and compassionate man who gradually descends to the depths of the place. Along the way he has an interesting exchange with a mental patient, Ivan Dmitrich. The doctor suggests that one can be happy anywhere, even trapped in a prison, and cites the example of the Greek philosopher Diogenes who so distained material things that he lived in a barrel. The patient disagrees strongly, shouting, "I love life, I love it passionately!" He adds, tellingly, that maybe Diogenes would not have been so happy if he had had to live in a barrel in the wintry cold of Siberia!

The other stories in the book treat of a variety of people and situations from all walks of Russian life. While despair and a sense of hopeless fatalism remains the main thrust of many of these stories, there is also an element of hope present. Chekov keeps coming back to the idea that the future will be better. Some stories, such as Anna on the Neck, even have an element of humor. The last story, The Fiancée, perhaps sums up Chekhov's view of Russian life. In this tale a young woman living in a small town becomes engaged to a local man. A guest from the city, Sasha, starts to talk with her about how empty her life will be if she marries this man. Gradually she begins to come to this realization and in the end leaves to move to St. Petersburg to have "a new, expansive, spacious life, and that life, still unclear, full of mysteries, lured and beckoned to her."

I have given Chekov a rating of 4 stars, rather than 5, because, compared to Guy de Maupassant and O. Henry, his stories do not sufficiently express the full range of human emotions. Both of the latter masters of the short story infuse their work with humor and even broad satire and this is the stuff of life as well as the dreary world that Chekov inhabits. Yet maybe Chekov is reflecting the reality of Russia in his time. In any case these stories are well worth reading.

There are no better short stories than those of Anton Chekov. He wrote characterizations that resonate across the years and across cultures. Chekov takes you deep into these people's lives and struggles so that the reader feels a very definite strong connection with these characters that populate pre-revolutionary Russia. Short on plot and yet each story is satisfying and memorable. Some , Ward 6 is an example ,are masterpieces of the short story form.

Excellent translation and stories that you can read and enjoy again and again for years. You can't go wrong here.

This is the first series of works that I have read by Chekhov. I wanted to read some of his shorter works before beginning reading his novels. Now that I realize how much I enjoy his stlye, which I think other people will like as well, I am looking forward to reading his larger works. I very much liked the insight into the Russian culture.

Chekhov simply astonishes. "The Lady with the Little Dog," one of his most famous stories, is rendered splendidly by Pevar and Volokhonsky. I don't know of any other writer who captures the confusion, fear and excitement of romantic love as well as Chekhov does here. The last line is perfect.