Ross Books

...it had been read to her in class at story time and she wanted to hear and read it again, always the best way to engage Children with the power of literature I feel. Anyway I bought it for her and we read it together. I can see why it captured her imagination and had the class captivated, it really is a lovely little book and written in the classic style of good Children's literature. I remember the Author in her other guise as an Actress, a career in which she is extremely accomplished, her writng skills are every bit as good and honed, this dear little book has a lot to tell Children about being unfraid of individuality. The central characters, a Penguin and an Eagle, are unhappy living the life they are supposed to and try and find the life they want instead. I pray the rights are never sold to Disney, they would ruin it's subtle sentiment with syrup and silliness. I highly recommend this book for all children, excellent for informing the "misfit" stage most children experience at some time!

I had the priviledge of reading this book while being taught by the author. Prof. Terrill was my Australian Society and Politics Professor in 2003 at the University of Texas @ Austin. He was a very dry lecturer yet I could never turn away. The depth of his knowledge was never-ending. The subject was made great by him. The book is even more exciting than the stories and events he told in class. I hope to see and hear more from him in the future. Now I'm planning to go to Autralia in the future. All I can say after reading this book and taking Terrill's class is Australia Rocks!

It is very comprehensive. The best I've seen

This book rocks! It takes a complicates subject and makes it easy. The author must be some kind of genius!

Once upon a time there was a comic universe, large and diverse, filled with just about any type of character from any type of pulp genre, and they shared and interacted in the same universe. You had a Martial Arts character named Shang Chi living in the same world as the cosmic space fantasy Silver Surfer who fought against the supernatural thriller Dracula who appeared in the socially conscious Uncanny X-Men and the main nemesis of said group had a daughter (Scarlet Witch) who was married to an andriod Avenger and the Avengers leader fought alongside a gruff Atlantean who was an ally to the Defenders and enemy to the Fantastic Four...mythology, science fiction, magic fantasy, "monster" characters, "horror" characters, all were there in the same universe.

That was the House of Ideas. Marvel comics, from about 1961 to around 1991. Sure, there were dud stories and more than enough cheese to make McDonalds next billionth cheeseburger, but the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. The spirit of creativity and continuity drove Marvel to its market supremacy. Characters embodied ideas, paradoxes, philosophies, sure the comics were aimed at kids, but there was some thought beyond the horizon to captivate the reader willing to reflect on the stimuli presented by the likes of Galactus, the Eternals, the Supreme Intelligence, Ultron, ect.

Since then, its been all down hill. Late spring 1992, Liefeld's Youngblood and Valiant's "Unity" crossover opened the doors to the "spec boom", when comics became investments instead of enjoyments. A comic bought for a buck in December 1991 (*cough cough*, Solar Man of the Atom #1) could be sold for about a eighty bucks one year later. This ended up destroying the comic industry, as DC and Marvel sold their creative souls to try and capitalize on the "hype". Superman was killed off, the Green Lantern corps destroyed, variant covers became more important than the 22 pages in between, Iron Man was turned into a teenager, X-men uber alles and, unfortunately, the sole prism that the next generation of comic collectors would experience the Marvel Universe.

But, in early 1992, Marvel did something right. A 19 part crossover among the Avengers titles called "Operation: Galactic Storm". At the time, it didn't make much of a ripple, as evidenced by the fact this is the first time the series has been reprinted, 14 years after the title hit the stands. But its story-value has increased with age, mostly because of what I've outlined in the first couple of paragraphs--Marvel simply hasn't been as thoughtful and innovative since. Those of us bored by the current Marvel regime, which attempts to make every single comic a replica of Kevin's Smiths overrated (and short) run on Daredevil, find refuge in the hallowed and barren halls of the old House of Ideas.

The premise is simple--the Kree (an Avengers foe) and the Shi'ar (an X-Men supporting cast empire) are at war, two Marvel alien empires that had had little contact prior to the story. The problem is, they use the Earth's sun as a "stargate" to transport warcraft from one galaxy to the other, and the disturbances said stargate causes thus threaten to destroy the earth. Thus, to preserve human life, the Avengers split up so they may "reason" with the two empires, and get them to take their war to some other turf. The story alternates among earth, the Shi'ar homeworld, and the Kree homeworld, and just about every Avenger, ever (except Quicksilver and Dr. Druid) get some face time in this epic.

What makes this crossover so strong? 1.) It's about ideas. Although this TPB only covers the first 13 chapters, its obviously needed to get to the good stuff at the end. The Greater Good, the misuse of evolution (or the inevitable extrapolation of ethics from evolution?!?), what makes one human, pragmatism over idealism, all these play a role in the story, and could elicit a lightbulb or two in the minds of those willing to wonder again. 2.) Its surprisingly character driven. The Supreme Intelligence makes a pretty strong stamp as a unique villain, Wonder Man and Vision have some nice characterization, Iron Man's pragmatism vs. Captain America's "by the book"ism, Sersi and Hercules' old school divine ethos vs. the (let's by honest) navel gazing of the modern day Avengers...even Captain Atlas and the Starjammers get some room to define themselves. and 3.) some well placed humor throughout the crossover.

What are some weaknesses? Well, first off, its just the first volume, and the second volume will have one of the most memorable climaxes for a crossover. Secondly, the art is (very) uneven, and it seems even the reproduction of the coloring is uneven. The Quasar issues are hard to look at, but the Wonderman and Avengers chapters (illustrated by Jeff Johnson and Steve Epting) hold up not only well, but very well. The story starts off slowly and unremarkably. To the modern eye trained to over realism-ify the superhero genre, the notion of Captain America wearing a trenchcoat and walking into a diner in Arizona may induce a groan or two. But the story picks up once the Avengers split up and go after the empires. The story will require a heavy dose of Avengers-background--if you don't know the relationship between Vision and Wonder man, and if you don't know that the Kree have been culturally stagnant for millenia (from the classic Kree/Skrull war from the early 70s), then much of the nuance of the tale may be lost.

I'm probably reviewing this volume through rose-colored glasses, remembering the good ole House of Ideas, but I think the story nonetheless holds up on its own merits. Its not a Bronze Age story, its not a Dark Age story, it's certainly not a Silver Age story, Galactic Storm is its own entity, built from Marvel's history and the diverse characterization in the Avengers family, taken to a logical conclusion. That, is a good story.

Gilliam Fuller and Ross Harley's AVIOPOLIS: A BOOK ABOUT AIRPORTS is a winner surveying airport culture in the first book-length critical study of how information, buildings, people and machines make up a new urban form dominated by logistics. Airport studies may sound obscure but their results have wide-ranging impact on urban studies, city planning, information usage, architectural design, and more. As bodies become integrated into networks of daily life through biometrics and privacy evaporates, the philosophical and practical aspects of AVIOPOLIS become even more intriguing. An excellent survey includes color photo examples of airport interior and exteriors combined with thought- provoking analysis and statements.

Our one year old son is capivated by the colorful pictures. This is one of his favorite books. Its a happy story that shows everyone has something to give no matter how big or how small. I would definately recommend it!!!

If homicidal faeries aren't enough, they can have a twisted sense of humor, too. Many of these stories will be your favorite. It's hard to reccmmend a favorite to start off with, but I recommend a cover-to-cover approach, because the stories just keep getting better and better. If I were to list 3 here, the most memorable from my picky perspective would be Passarella's "Twillight Crossing" Cameron's "Whisky Sour" and Ackley-McPhail's "Within the Guardian Bell" ...the continuing dramatic story from the first BAF best-selling book. It had sure been a pleasurable chilling night reading obsessively. It'll haunt you like that, too.
Passarell's Twilighy Crossing" is a reflection of his usual brilliant writing. This tale starts you out falling in love with the characters and story-telling style all at once. It's hilarious at times and twisted when you least expect it. His characterization skill is consistent, his clever and vivid descriptions bring you into the scene, as well as the Just Plain Bad nightmare... if you're not watching. One read and you're hooked. These authors rein supreme.

When Craig Blackburn, a young, Mancunian, British officer, and three mates take a short cut across the desert to flush out a small group of Sunni insurgents, holed up in a dilapidated house to the north of Basra, only Craig survives. As a massive bomb explodes, killing the three men instantly, Craig is half way up a mound concealing a cave. The impact of the bomb shakes the ground beneath Craig's feet and the side of the mound collapses, plummeting Craig into the cave, where he finds two scrolls. When he decides to take photographs of the scrolls with his mobile phone and leave the scrolls hidden inside the cave, little does he realise the trouble the photographs will cause him. The scrolls could spell disaster for any kind of peace in the Middle East and set not only Arab against Jew but Arab against Arab.

Lionel Ross has written a thrilling page turner that will keep the reader enthralled to the very end, as he depicts life in the war-torn areas of Iraq and the surrounding Arab countries.

Read about the ill fate of Al Qaeda and Mossad members, an Israeli politician, a Jordanian prince, an Iraqi professor, and even an American Baptist minister, who all have a vested interest in securing the scrolls for their own differing reasons.

The Baghdad Declaration is a cracking read that you will not want to put down.

Shelagh Watkins
Mr. Planemaker's Flying Machine

Sara Madison is an art teacher, not a forger. However, her ability is such that she can make some damn good forgeries. She says she's only doing it so she can have her revenge. Sparks fly when Noah Lancaster butts in her plans & the action takes off. Who does he think he is anyway--James Bond?