Robertson Books

Step back in time to national Virginia, formerly one of a union of nations, forced to side with those bent on dissolution and compelled to mount a defense against imminent invasion.

The scholarship for which Davis and Robertson are noted is joined by that of other established authorities, in particular John Coski [The Confederate Battle Flag] and Ervin Jordan [Black Confederates and Afro-Yankees in Civil War Virginia]. Coski's essay on the Virginia Navy is unique and information rich. Jordan's essay on black perspectives is essential to understanding period society.

This native Virginian, whose fifth grade class in Richmond still stood to sing Dixie before a portrait of General Lee in 1960, now appreciates the Commonwealth's pro-Union sentiments and leadership evident in Robertson's essay on secession.

The edited selection from the diary of Judith Brockenbrough McGuire compliments the work.

The idea for the series is brilliant. I look forward to the remaining volumes.

This book of essays is the first of five planned books discussing Virginia during each of the years of the Civil War. The essays are written by well-known historians and cover an interesting range of topics. Particularly intriguing was the essay about the decision to relocate the Confederate capital from Montgomery to Richmond. The motion just barely passed. The location of the two capitals had considerable effect on the strategy of the war and one wonders what things would have been like if the capital had remained in Alabama. The essays are brief and well-written. This is a volume for serious students of the subject but is an interesting concept for a series.

The authors web page is very helpful - be sure to check it out. http://www.shore.net/~pi/vr.html

Finally, a guide to internet technology written for the non-technical reader. Virtual Realty takes real estate agents step-by-step through the process of getting their business set up on the Web, from choosing the best equipment and most effective service providers, to creating support materials that provide easier client access to their on-line listings and other services. The book teaches realtors in clear, comprehensive terms how to tap into the staggering sales potential of the web by presenting their listings and services to a global market. Profuse illustrations and an upbeat, user-friendly style enable even novices to understand and implement this information.

Excellent book used with instructor (the author). It explains the techniques you must observe and perform. It also gives many illustrations for guidance. I strongly recommend this book to the beginner.

As an art teacher, I was pleased with the easily explained techniques that I can use with beginning watercolors.

My boys love this book ~~ even though they don't understand telling time yet, but this book is very entertaining for them especially with the pictures throughout it! It's great illustration with a great story and a surprise ending! If your child is learning how to tell time, this book is great!

And be warned, this book with its descriptive language will make you hungry! =0) This is just a fun book as well as educational!

10-28-03

Mr. Wolf is planning a dinner party for his barnyard friends, who question when this delicious meal will be served. His answer is vague and it seems evident the guests of honor at this special meal may be contributing more than they expect to the dinner itself - but the ending provides a real surprise. Fun drawings throughout.

For what it's worth to those reading this:
--on pg 17, in TITLE section, a reference to 2Kings 4:10 is made for usage of 'euaggelizo' in LXX. I don't see it there, but do see it in 2Samuel 4:10.

Just a note for David A. Durland and those reading his review. In the LXX otherwise known as the Septuagint, 1st and 2nd Samuel are considered 1st and 2nd Kings and 1st and 2nd Kings are considered 3rd and 4th Kings. It probably wasn't a typo but just a fact not clear to those who might not have a copy of the LXX.

Certainly a great book exposing how one culture whether miles apart or continents apart do not understand one another. I have a son who has an austism spectrum disorder, and although this book is not even close to anything to do with autism or any other kind of disability...this book somehow made me able to "see" how one set of people does not understand another and for no particular reason, other than they are different from one another in such a way that one cannot possibly comprehend. I'd say if you arent reading it for the actual story, and you know of someone with a disorder, try to think of that person as a 'native' and you as the 'colonist' as in this story and you may have your answer or be able to pass it along to someone else.

This powerful novel by Barbara Kingsolver charts the lives of a missionary family and portrays the interplay of good intentions and motives warped by dogma. One ends up with an aching wonder ... what was changed, by whom and who or what prevailed!

Simply wonderful reading. I could kick myself for not paying enough attention to my wife's recommendation several years ago, but she was exactly right: this is a story well worth the amount of time in your life you sacrifice to read it. In fact, it is many stories interwoven and they each grow as a vine of their own before interlacing themselves through each other. For me, most good books take quite a few pages before the hook is set but the author had me with the first paragraph.

It is easy, in the (politically) post colonial world of modern Africa to descend into limp wristed European angst.
This book teeters on that edge.

It is a book written for colonials and the colonialists.
It has very little to say to those of us whose birthright is Africa, of whatever colour, creed, nationality (or tribe).

It charts that moment in time when direct political subjugation was replaced by economic subjugation through local proxies.
Alas, this is a human tendency that has persisted through all of the history of humanity.

It uses the brief period in the history of Zaire (then Congo) immediately prior to, then after the death of Patrice Lumumba and the dictatorship that followed as the locus for it's message. Thereafter it rambles on to the ends of days of it's narrators.

What I liked about this book outweighs my dislikes, so here are some of them ...

Some things I liked about the book ...
- The different voices giving perspectives on the same events. The truth is a secret garden and we all look into the garden from a different vantage point. Each bush and shrub is a cultural, personal or similar impediment to seeing the complete picture, and Barbara Kingsloveruses her device to good effect.
- The political, social, economic and cultural drivers are well brought out, and their implications on the outcomes of everyday life is thoughtful and so well constructed
- The writing itself is evocative and moving

Some things I did not like about this book ...
- It is too long. The last "books" could quite easily have been replaced by an epilogue, and would (imo) have carried more weight. The later stories of the women would have been better served in follow up books, as a series maybe.
- It is too euro-centric. This has the (unintended?) consequence of transmogrifying it into a polemic against Western culture, values and mores. Sketchily decrying western consumerism and the avariciousness of big business allied to political expediency does not reflect the reality of the world's steady drift into exactly that milieu. In the final History of the World as seen by Mankind, will it matter that we rape and pillage our societies and geographies by proxy or through our own efforts?
- For a work of such high ambition, it does not answer the "so what?" test, nor does it point a way forward: it drifts to its own conclusion, flotsam and jetsam washed up by a high tide of introspection.

"Jesus is Bangala!" declares Reverend Nathan Price to his ragtag congregation deep in the Congolese jungle. The exclamation is full of irony; in the villagers' native Kikongo, "bangala" means either "precious and dear" or "poisonwood tree," depending on the pronunciation. Rev. Price blithely uses the latter pronunciation, characteristically misunderstanding his would-be flock as he blunderingly tries to superimpose Christianity and American customs onto their culture. The consequences of Price's ignorance (and arrogance) are grave, playing out alongside the exploitative history of Belgian colonialism, the struggle for independence, and the subsequent CIA coup that replaced the Congo's first elected leader.

Kingsolver's engrossing novel is narrated by the five Price females, each coping in her own way with what they have been part of. Orleanna is a missionary wife who, as a woman in the late 1950s, has little choice but to obey her husband, but who later struggles with her complicity in Nathan's--and America's--interventions in the Congo. Rachel, the eldest daughter, is vain and superficial (when the house is besieged by army ants, Rachel rescues not one of her weaker siblings, but her mirror), with an attitude of pure condescension toward the villagers she lives among. Then there are the twins: Leah, a tomboy who tries in vain to win her father's love, and the dark, poetic Adah, who was crippled in the womb. The youngest daughter, Ruth May, is most beloved by Orleanna, who struggles to protect her from the dangers of the jungle. Some make it out of the Congo; others do not, whether by tragedy or by choice. In the latter half of the book, the surviving members come to terms with their time in the Congo in different ways: becoming part of the machinery of exploitation, shunning whiteness and assimilating into Congolese culture, entering the healing profession, or turning inward.

Only Nathan remains essentially untransformed by the Congo, although he does evolve into a more grotesque version of himself. Unlike the (mostly) dynamic Price females, he is a one-dimensional character with no redeeming qualities, quick to anger and incapable of seeing past his rigid views. While he is a poignant symbol of colonialism and post-colonial intervention, trying to baptize the village children in crocodile-infested waters, the flatness of his character makes him seem inhuman.

"The Poisonwood Bible" is beautifully written, and the story of Price family is absorbing, as is the history of Western intervention in the Congo. A brilliant novel.

Notwithstanding comparisons with the movie, this is a very creative and classic horror/sci-fi novella. The plot is essentially that a virus has been unleashed on the earth that has turned everyone in the world into vampires. One man has the anecdote and was able to remain untouched by the virus; however he has as yet been unsuccessful in saving others from the virus. Thus, by day the main character hunts the vampires and conducts his experiments against them. And by night, the vampires attempt to break into his "fortress" and destroy him. The vampires seem to loath the fact that someone exists who is not like them and has seemingly remained untouched by the virus.

This is essentially the premise and of course, something has got to give....

The story "I am Legend" is actually closer to a short story than a novel -less than 200 pages. The particular issue I read included several other Matheson short stories, which I did not get all the way through. I struggled through a couple but felt they sub-par especially by comparison to "Legend."

I give it 4 out of 5 stars, and definitely recommend it. I probably still consider Dracula the essential vampire classic, and also recommend "the penguin book of vampire stories;" but "Legend" is a very good and is probably one of the greatest examples of horror and sci-fi crossover out there. Again, it is a rather quick read. Another reason I recommend it if you have seen the movie is to learn why it is called "I am Legend," which is not entirely evident in the Will Smith version, in my opinion.

I also recommended the book to a friend who thought it was one of the best things he has read, and considers it a lot better than the movie versions.

(Note - In addition to Will Smith's "I am Legend" the book has also been made into 2 other movie variations - "The last man on earth" starring Vincent Price, and "The Omega Man." Starring Charleton Heston. "The Omega Man" is a nice interpretation of the book and one of my favorite sci-fi movies, though clearly deviates from the book.)

I just finished this story --> after seeing the latest film adaptation.(The Fresh Prince version of the story is similar in name only.) The novel clearly is the inspiration for many of our modern day scifi/horror stories. Standing alone, I Am Legend is a well written novel exposing the innermost human condition, reminding me of Joseph Conrad. It also reminded me of Poe -- the human mind and soul pushed to the limits of sanity. I Am Legend is a winner!

I Am Legend - In this most popular collection of shorts, the novella 'I Am Legend' has turned out to be a timeless piece of horror. Originally written in 1954, it takes place in the future of 1976. Robert Neville finds himself alone as a human in a sea of vampiristic creatures who once were human beings. After losing his wife and daughter to the "sickness", he turns his house into a fortress and spends his time drinking heavily and studying blood and bacterium. He discovers the "vampires" are actually victims of a bacterium, and begins to frequently experiment on cures and repellents as he hunts out the living dead during the day. Some are truly dead, but others, though only coming out at night, still breathe in their hidden cubbies. Neville kills them all; after all, they're ALL the enemy, gathering on his lawn night after night, wanting in. When Neville finally does meet a woman (Ruth) in daylight, he discovers he has become too much of a loner, leaving him very suspicious of Ruth. After she leaves, following an 'altercation' I won't explain, she gives him a warning. But is it too late for Neville to hear her message? In the end, Robert truly is a legend.

'I Am Legend' is a classic novella of terror, isolation, and the human condition. You can't help but think of a herd animal segregated from it's herd, and how much anxiety and behavioral changes that animal would make. It's been used for three movies; 1964's 'The Last Man On Earth', 1971's 'The Omega Man' (starring Charlton Heston), and 2007's 'I Am Legend' (starring Will Smith). The book, however, is a collection of shorts that are all good. Here's a quick summary of the other stories in the book:

· Buried Talents - An odd man wins a carnival game.
· The Near Departed - Very short story of funeral arrangements
· Prey - A strange little doll comes to life
· Witch War - Seven pretty little girls win a military battle
· Dance Of The Dead - An innocent girl gets corrupted by wild friends who take her to a bar where the "Loopy's" dance
· Dress Of White Silk - Strange but flat tale of a young girl and her dead mother's white silk dress.
· Mad House - An angry man with a volcanic temper passes along his rage into the very fiber of his house
· The Funeral - A Vampire funeral starts a fad
· From Shadowed Places - An ancient African ritual must be performed to save a man's life
· Person To Person - A man receives phone calls inside his head, but who are they coming from?

The novella 'I Am Legend' is a must-read horror classic. The other stories included in the book were written between 1952 through 1987. Matheson was an artist of horror and science fiction writing, a master at his craft. If this is the first Matheson book you pick up, you'll be hooked and want to try out his novel length books, all of which are timeless regardless of the era he wrote them in. Definitely worth a purchase. Enjoy!

It's beyond me to understand how horror fans can go on and on about their favorite horror novels as if they were masterpieces written by Pynchon or Nabokov. The bottomline about "I Am Legend" is simple: it's about loneliness and loss in a post-apocalypse world overrun by vampires. If that doesn't cause you to dissolve with laughter, then "I Am Legend" might be for you. It's well-written, holds the reader's interest, and has been the basis for three movies. It will appeal to most teenage boys (or to grown up men who remember how the world feels to teenage boys). However, it doesn't deserve five stars because it doesn't have enough cool details about the end of humanity.

I didn't see "The Omega Man" when it came out in the early 1970s. However, one of the kids at my junior high school got to see it and he described every detail of the story to me. I was captivated. Now I'm almost 50. Now Charleton Heston is dead. I am legend.

I read the book because I saw the movie (as surely many others did). I have to say that I actually liked the movie more, but they are so different that it's hardly worth comparing them.

The whole story is about what it would be like to be, basically, the last man alive. Although the conclusions it reaches are not entirely happy, the ending left me with a lot to think about in a way that the movie did not. It felt like it was political in some sense, but I'm not sure exactly what to think of it.

Although the story is older (1950s? I think '54...) it is written in a very modern style -- and it's horror that's neither gothic nor "splatter." I'd recommend it if only because it's not what you're expecting, and it does not end how you expect it to end.

The best thing about this book, however, is that it is followed by a collection of short stories... actually, about half of the book is short stories. Some of the stories were better than the novel, in my opinion, although not all.

I typically like Nora Roberts books, they are fun, quick, and a little twist at the end. This one just didn't do much for me. I realized I had read over half of the book before anything happened! There were just too many words and not enough story. I never really cared for the characters, none of them were convincing to me. I liked the end and had it figured out long before I got to it, but the book ended so abruptly. It felt like the author had to get a certain number of pages, got there, wrapped it up and got it published.

This is the second book I ever read by the author, and I have to admit it got me hooked on her books and romace novels in general. I thoroughly enjoyed the interactions between the main protaginists, but found the secondary romantic relationships just as compelling. The twists and turns of the suspense will have you turning the pages. Tory may have come back for herself, but in order for her to heal, she soon discovers that she has to solve the mystery of Hope's death.

Carolina Moon was my first introduction to Nora Roberts. It is a wonderful book that keeps you engaged. The murder mystery and medium like abilities are well written and exciting. The murder mystery is very suspensful. I enjoy the spoiled,damaged but has a big heart, Faith. Tory is a strong leading female and I loved Cade and Tory's romance. It is definitely a book I would recommend to others.

Nora Roberts is as talented in suspense as she is in romance. This was a very good read.

Tory Bodeen and Hope Lavelle were inseparable eight year olds. When Tory is unable to meet Hope at their special place after a beating from her father, Hope is goes alone and is murdered. Due to her psychic ability, Tory is able to see it as it happens and leads the Lavelle's to Hope. Unfortunately it is too late, and no one believes her about her gift. She hasn't been back for 18 years but is compelled to return because Tory's murder still haunts her.

Cade Lavelle has always had a soft spot for Tory, and was left feeling empty when she left so many years ago. When he tries to get close to Tory, she rebuffs him because her second sight offends most people she comes in contact with. They feel uncomfortable about the secrets that are revealed to her. Cade eventually wins her over with his sexiness and charm. When Hope's killer takes another life, they realize they can't move forward until the past is put to rest.

The characters in this story are so strong and well developed. Tory and Cade are wonderful, but so are the supporting characters like Wade and Faith. The romance is to die for, and the mystery will draw you in and keep you guessing until the very end.

I've read most of John Dean's books and enjoy them. This was a good book, very interesting and informative about the evil tenure of Bush/Cheney. I'm sure it's dead on with what went on behind the scenes and how we got into the sorry mess of a country that we are today largely due to these 2 idiots.

While the book is old (written prior to the 2004 election) and politics tends to change very rapidly, there is still quite a lot of relevant information. Dean dissects the Bush regime and compares it to Nixon's. He points out what Nixon did wrong and how Bush is following the same path. He does so in an intellectual manner and doesn't resort to Bush bashing or name calling like some books I have read. All of Deans points are well thought out and backed with evidence from sources from across the political spectrum. Overall, even though this is an old book, it is still a very good and worthwhile read.

This book is a bit dated as it was originally written before the 2004 elections but it has been updated a bit past that point so it still has relevancy today. Any impeachment proceedings against Bush and Cheney and their minions should use this book for talking points. Mr. Dean points out all the horrific and illegal things this White House has done that are far and above what President Nixon ever did. It also makes the "impeachment" of Bill Clinton look even sillier than the total farce it was. These two (and others in the administration) should be in jail.

Worse Than Watergate by John Dean is worth reading just because of the title and who he is. John Dean, counsel to the Nixon White House, says that the Bush/Cheney White House is "worse than Watergate" -- that is like Jesse Ventura calling someone an obnoxious loudmouth! The book was published in 2004, ahead of the presidential election, so by the time I found it on the bargain table, it was somewhat dated. However, Bush/Cheney are STILL in power, and while the country has largely turned against them because of the war in Iraq and the slumping economy, Dean's real case against them describes the more subtle ways that the Bush II administration has weakened our democracy.

The main beef that Dean has with Bush and Cheney is their secrecy. True, this is definitely a politically motivated treatise written by neither a scholar nor journalist, but it is also true that Dean has researched his topic well and that he has some first-hand experience in the matter of damage caused by a secretive executive branch. Worse Than Watergate is not going to sway Bush supporters -- if they haven't lost their confidence in his leadership by now, they are never going to budge. But, Dean has an interesting perspective, and if you are capable of separating the facts from the commentary, this short book is definitely worth the read.

This book is a well researched and documented examination of the excesses of the Bush/Cheney presidency and how this came to be. In the book, Dean looks at the issues of secrecy within the White House, lying and dirty tricks. And, if there is anyone, anywhere who knows more about this subject I would love to see who they are.

Dean does a wonderful job of comparing and contrasting the current regime with the Nixon presidency and writes in a clear, concise and easy to read manner. I look forward to reading his other 2 books, as to learn more about what has gone wrong with the current Republican Party.

This is a must read for any American who wants to see this country remain free!

The Faithful Spy is a promising start to what will hopefully be a new series. John Wells is a CIA agent under deep cover within al Qaueda. During the years it took him to gain some trust within the terrorist organization, Wells has lost contact with his ex wife, young son, and his handler at the CIA. He blames himself for failing to stop 9/11 and knows that he is losing the trust of the CIA after being out of contact for so long. When Wells is sent back to the USA by al Qaueda for a mission he knows nothing about, he sees it as an opportunity to redeem himself in the eyes of the CIA. He struggles to stop an act of terror, while being pursued by the very government he has sworn to protect.

Fans of Daniel Silva and Vince Flynn will enjoy this book. Like those authors, this book deals with contemporary issues but Berenson does a better job than the others of showing the human side of the enemy. My only complaint is that John Wells himself is not in much of the book. However, this may be because the author is trying to establish the other characters for future books. I will be adding the next installment in this series to my wish list.

Pretty good - for a spy novel. No real new info about the Agency or AQ but a pretty-good page-turner. The plot is a lot like a '24' Season as is the main character. Not a lot of character development, etc., & the Arabic is wrong or mistranslated but it's a spy novel so if you're reading it you're not interested in these things anyways. Better than the other ones out there at least.

here's one i really enjoyed! i liked the plot, the characters, the writing style, everything!
i'm looking forward to reading more from the writer! keep up the good work, mr. berenson!

I would give it no stars if I could. If you enjoy false bravado, racism, the end justifying any means and this country's insane policies in the middle east-This is your cup of tea. I felt like this was written for people who would join a milltia or go out and shoot up roadsigns.
I am not a muslim, not foreign born, and not of a minority.

This novel is well written, believable and fast paced. The hero, John Wells, was born in Montana, a convert to Islam and a CIA operative who over a period of time infiltrated al Qaeda in the mountains of Pakistan/Afghanistan. He was dispatched back to the U.S. to participate in some dramatic terrorist activities. Think dirty nuke/germ warefare. In the meantime, the CIA had not heard from him for so long they were concerned that he had defected. In the authors hands, the plot moves along at a fast pace and seems quite within reason. The author writes for the N.Y. Times, most commonly, I think, regarding medical/drug type issues. I couldn't help but wonder about the horror some of his colleagues at the paper of record probably felt about the succesful use of harsh interrogation techniques used on captured terrorists in the book.