S Books

This is my favorite book of all five books I have.You see it starts out with a couple skating competition that Ranma and Akane are in. Exept not only are they doing this to prove that Ranma can do any materials arts (even skating!) they also compete for the cute pig side of Ryoga who was captured by this new character (I forgot what her name was) during the time Akane was skating in the ice rink in volume 2.The new girl (who when ever finds something cute picks it up and names it)is also competing for what she calls the cute pig side of Ryoga Charrelote! Akane being mad at the fact gets into the competition. But during the competition there is a black out! I don't want to ruin the surprise and tell you the rest so i geuss you will have to figure out yourself buy it I'm sure you will love it . Oh! and it also has the first apperence of Shampoo! The kick butt chinese chick!

Just when it seems that things are going right for Ranma Saotome, they promptly go wrong again.

That's the way it is with the entrance of one of Rumiko Takahashi's most popular characters, the won't-take-no-for-an-answer Amazon Shampoo. The third volume of "Ranma 1/2" has Ranma and Akane reaching a new level of interest in each other.... only to have Shampoo shatter it.

The day dawns for the martial-arts skating competition, and Ranma is more determined than ever to beat womanizing Mikado Sanzenin (who gave him his first kiss in the previous volume). But Ranma is given a savage beating that almost kills him -- and soon Ryoga/P-chan/Charlotte has entered the rink, determined to beat the figure skaters as well.

No sooner have Ranma and Akane gotten off the rink than a new problem arises: A Chinese girl batters through a wall, announcing "Ranma, I kill!" She's Shampoo, a Chinese Amazon whom Ranma defeated in one-on-one combat in China. Now Shampoo won't be satisfied until (female) Ranma is dead.

But when she encounters Ranma in his male form, and he accidently defeats her, Shampoo falls in love with him. Now Akane is seething with jealousy, and Ranma is trying to evade a new fiancee who wants him as a guy -- and wants him dead as a girl. Even worse, Shampoo's devotion to her new "groom" extends to giving Akane selective amnesia -- she remembers everything except Ranma.

Before this volume of "Ranma 1/2," the romantic problems were pretty straightforward, and the only rival was a guy who is too shy to say how he feels. But with the arrival of Shampoo, the tangled web of love starts to form -- and poor Ranma is stuck right in the middle of it.

There's more romance than martial-arts in this volume, despite the long-awaited skating match. Poor Ranma is being pursued romantically by a womanizing skater and a deranged Amazon, and it's rapidly becoming a lot more than his limited skills can handle. And only Ranma could pull off a little frilly skating dress.

Romantics will get a few thrills in this volume: Ranma threatens Mikado for saying that he'll kiss Akane, and later vows that he will make sure Akane remembers him. And when Akane takes her jealous frustrations about Ranma out on a straw dummy, she remembers his threat, and them gently hugs the dummy.

Romantic problems get more intense in the third volume of "Ranma 1/2," with the arrival of Shampoo, Fiancee No. 2. And things only get more complex later on....

I was having dinner with my boyfriend at his parents house and after dinner i noticed his sister had this book sitting out. As an avid book lover who devotes her entire being into reading a book, i naturaly inquired about it. My boyfriend and his dad gave it rave reviews and his sister was so far very amused and impressed. Such high ratings from non-book lovers! The sarcasm and humor (yes on every page) are a riot! What can i say - I'M HOOKED! :D

Living in Japan comes with numerous perks. First off, I can brush up on my marginally acceptable Japanese-speaking skills, but I also have access to some things that I just couldn't get enough of anywhere else. Well, Ranma 1/2 lurks near the top of that list.

Rumiko Takahashi, arguably one of the best and most creative writers of manga in history, presents us with the longest-running series of her impressive resume - the story of a teenaged martial arts master, Ranma Saotome, and his irresponsible trainer and father, Genma. Genma takes him to Jusenkyo, a collection of hot springs in China. If only Genma had known how to read Chinese, he would have known that the springs afflict those who fall into them with evil and seemingly irreversible curses - as Ranma and Genma unwittingly duel it out atop bamboo poles high over the springs, Ranma kicks his father into "The Spring of Drowned Giant Panda" ... surprise, out jumps a Giant Panda, ready to resume fighting. Bewildered, Ranma is hit by the panda into "The Spring of Drowned Young Girl", and meets the surface with the curse that haunts his life - you see, once Genma and Ranma make contact with cold water, Genma becomes a panda, and Ranma becomes a female version of himself. Not to completely worry though, because hot water will bring them back to normal every time. But that's only the beginning of the story. Genma trained with a man called Soun Tendo, the father of three teenage girls - Genma and Soun agreed to marry Ranma with one of his girls. The money-grabbing Nabiki and the impossibly-kind Kasumi, the elder sisters, elect the unwilling boy-hating Akane to become fiancees with this "hentai otoko", and this is the rocky start to the relationship that the series revolves around.

Having already read the entire Ranma 1/2 series, I can honestly say that the third book (fourth in Japan, somehow) was one of the best. It begins with the continuation of the ice-skating competition, with not only one, but TWO of the cutest scenes you'll ever see, plus a great appearance by Ryoga, who is lovestruck with Akane. It's after the competition ends that we're introduced to the sexy Chinese Amazon warrior girl, Shampoo. Female Ranma defeated Shampoo in a tournament of sorts while he was back in China. That's wonderful and all, but the only problem is that Shampoo gives "The Kiss of Death" to all females who defeat her - it's the vow that she'll hunt them down and kill them, whatever it takes. Well, she's followed Ranma into Japan, and now he's on the run again. Just one thing - she has never seen the male-version Ranma. He ends up defeating her as well. Expecting the worst, the terrified Ranma is pushed into another "Kiss of Death", but, somehow, this one is a bit different: Shampoo kisses him on the lips, and means it. The other half of Shampoo's vows are that if a male defeats her, she vows to marry him. And with that, Shampoo is trying to kill one half of Ranma, while trying desperately to seduce the other half. The irony here is obvious and hilarious, and it's situations like these that Rumiko Takahashi has the ability to work with flawlessly.

As you can imagine, Akane (although she won't admit it) is quite jealous and annoyed by Shampoo's advances towards her fiancee - and although Ranma and Akane would rather die than admit any sort of more-than-platonic feelings for each other, we can start to see the sweet silhouette of some sort of attraction between them when Akane meets her first rival suitor for Ranma. Akane, being the violent tomboy, picks a fight with Shampoo. Ranma realizes that Akane is no match for Shampoo, so he comes to her rescue to find her lying on the ground - she wakes up with part of her memory gone - the part of her memory that has anything to do with Ranma, that is. Of course it's Shampoo's wily tricks that did this to her, and Ranma is determined to find the '911' formula shampoo that will bring her memory back. He ends up successful in bringing Akane's memory back, and all is well for everyone. Well, except for Shampoo. It's then that she discovers the shocking secret that Ranma keeps, and is devastated. She leaves (presumably for China) with tears in her eyes ... but distance makes the heart grow fonder, as they say.

If you're as in love with this series as I am, you must read on, it's definitely worth it. The beginning is all about introducing main characters and building the foundations of their relationship with everyone else, but as we progress through the story, the relationships start to develop and Rumiko Takahashi can leave us all with endearing smiles on our faces at this very sweet, hilarious, and exciting action-packed romantic-comedy.

Just when it seems that things are going right for Ranma Saotome, they promptly go wrong again.

That's the way it is with the entrance of one of Rumiko Takahashi's most popular characters, the won't-take-no-for-an-answer Amazon Shampoo. The third volume of "Ranma 1/2" has Ranma and Akane reaching a new level of interest in each other.... only to have Shampoo shatter it.

The day dawns for the martial-arts skating competition, and Ranma is more determined than ever to beat womanizing Mikado Sanzenin (who gave him his first kiss in the previous volume). But Ranma is given a savage beating that almost kills him -- and soon Ryoga/P-chan/Charlotte has entered the rink, determined to beat the figure skaters as well.

No sooner have Ranma and Akane gotten off the rink than a new problem arises: A Chinese girl batters through a wall, announcing "Ranma, I kill!" She's Shampoo, a Chinese Amazon whom Ranma defeated in one-on-one combat in China. Now Shampoo won't be satisfied until (female) Ranma is dead.

But when she encounters Ranma in his male form, and he accidently defeats her, Shampoo falls in love with him. Now Akane is seething with jealousy, and Ranma is trying to evade a new fiancee who wants him as a guy -- and wants him dead as a girl. Even worse, Shampoo's devotion to her new "groom" extends to giving Akane selective amnesia -- she remembers everything except Ranma.

Before this volume of "Ranma 1/2," the romantic problems were pretty straightforward, and the only rival was a guy who is too shy to say how he feels. But with the arrival of Shampoo, the tangled web of love starts to form -- and poor Ranma is stuck right in the middle of it.

There's more romance than martial-arts in this volume, despite the long-awaited skating match. Poor Ranma is being pursued romantically by a womanizing skater and a deranged Amazon, and it's rapidly becoming a lot more than his limited skills can handle. And only Ranma could pull off a little frilly skating dress.

Romantics will get a few thrills in this volume: Ranma threatens Mikado for saying that he'll kiss Akane, and later vows that he will make sure Akane remembers him. And when Akane takes her jealous frustrations about Ranma out on a straw dummy, she remembers his threat, and them gently hugs the dummy.

Romantic problems get more intense in the third volume of "Ranma 1/2," with the arrival of Shampoo, Fiancee No. 2. And things only get more complex later on....

This is definately a winner! Great little gems from Walt Disney's family, closest friends and colleagues. The pictures are equally wonderful. Great candid shots and personal family photos. This man had more character than Mickey Mouse himself!

The pictures were nice. I'm a big Dinsey fan so I pretty much enjoyed this book. It told what people who worked with him thought about him. I gave the book four stars because there were some bad words.

This book is exactly as one would expect by reading the title. It's just quote after quote from people who knew Walt Disney best. I liked that many of his former employees were interviewed. Since I was familiar with some of the animators, imagineers, and actors it made it a more personal thing for me when reading this book. There are also many pictures that show Walt during all the different periods of his life, though the majority of them are during his successful years heading the Disney corporation. I share the sympathy of another reviewer who said that after reading this book they wished they had known Walt Disney. I think a person who really admires the Disney empire will share the same sentiments about the man who dared to dream.

This lavishly illustrated tribute --- first published in 1999 and now released as an oversized trade paperback --- is a must for diehard Disneyites. (Dig the vintage, time-worn color
cover photo of Uncle Walt, with Cousin Oscar clearly in view.) Amy Boothe Green and Howard Green's text is nothing more than quote after quote from Walt's pals, peers, co-stars, family and friends, all of whom (surprise!) praise The Man Who Would Be King. But it's the vast array of black-and-white and color photographs --- many rare and many never-before-seen, all of which are stuffed into the pages --- that make this a winner. Walt as a young boy. Walt as a young man. Walt at play. Walt at work. Walt with family. Walt with friends. Walt with Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. Walt with Hayley Mills. Walt with Shirley Temple. Walt with Annette Funicello, who provides the book's most poignant quote: "When I was first diagnosed with multiple sclerosis ... I thought,. "If Mr. Disney were here, I could ask him what I should do. He would know." And, of course, Walt with the Mouse and the Mouseketeers. Noting goofy here. Except Goofy.

I was very happy while reading this book. I found all the things Walt's aquaintances had to say about him very interesting and credible. Very little seemed sugar coated (as Disney personel seem to be sometimes). I would make the assumption that Walt's personality was portrayed correctly by the many people that knew him. Throughout the course of reading this book I kept thinking about the quote that one amazon reviewer said that made me buy this book in the first place, "makes me wish I knew that man."

I came across the paperback edition of this book a couple of years ago and snapped it up at once. Major kudos to Ms. Plunkett-Powell for what is obviously a labor of love, painstakingly researched and exhaustively documented, full of great stories, equally great photos and reminiscences from loyal Woolworth's customers. Today's variety store chains, including Dollar General, Family Dollar and Dollar Tree, owe their very existence to the groundbreaking Woolworth's five-and-dime store chain and its contemporary competitors, such as Ben Franklin, McCrory's and S. S. Kresge (the precursor of Kmart). This book makes it abundantly clear why, as well as bringing back tons of wonderful memories of Woolworth's sheer variety of merchandise, its friendly and helpful sales staff and its dearly-missed lunch counters full of delicious meals, snacks and treats, all of which I enjoyed as a boy in my hometown of Lafayette, LA, with my late maternal grandmother, and later as an adult in New Orleans, which had not one but two Woolworth stores on its main shopping drag, downtown Canal Street. That its later owners allowed it to be so mismanaged and finally killed is a scandal to the jaybirds...but at least we have Karen's book to help us remember it.

Without question, the best written book on the nostalgic craze I have read. The book is superb with photos of all kinds.My favorite is the lunch counter chapter. Thumbs up to the author who cuts Woolworth's no slack in the poor wages paid to the counter girls and the refusal to serve blacks food in the white only lunch counter sections, which caused the well known sit-ins in 1960. This book would also make a nice gift to anyone. Hope author comes out with another nostalgic book.

Beautifully written. Well researched. Excellent sequence. Marvelous layout. Well presented. Not at all like the history books of yore, or the dull stuff by corporate hacks. "Remembering Woolworth's" brought back memories of the Bayonne, NJ, store where I got caught shoplifting. Only books, of course, because I was a literate young hoodlum. I think they called them "Big Little Books." Very bulky under a 10 yr. old's jacket.That's why I got caught, and learned my lesson. No police; just shocked and disappointed immigrant parents. Still, I went on to a brilliant career in crime.

Working class Americans once had a place to shop with their families where they were made to feel important, even rich. They could dine inexpensively at the lunch counter and spend a morning or afternoon just browsing through the most fabulous Five-and-Dime store in the world. The rich had Tiffany's and Macy's. Everyone else had Woolworth's.

Some Sunday mornings I still walk through the aisles of that familiar building with the Red-Font which bears the Woolworth's name. It is no longer Woolworth's, of course, but this only adds to the nostalgia while looking for Coke items or other bits of Americana to take home. The building is a nostalgic downtown landmark here in Bakersfield and has been converted into an antique's store. It still feels like a Woolworth's inside, however, even the famous lunch counter remaining to add to our sense of stepping into the past.

This marvelous book by Karen Plunkett-Powell will bring back fond memories for those not fortunate enough to still have that connection to America's past to enjoy. It is filled with sentimental remembrances from children who shopped with their parents or grandparents, or had an ice cream soda with the girl they later married. It is a book filled with recollections from those who bought all their Christmas presents for friends and family at America's Christmas store, and even some who worked at Woolworth's, personalizing a great success story.

It is that mix of personal nostalgia and historical narrative about this most wonderful of stores which separate this book from others of its ilk. The book is augmented by color and black and white pictures of stores in America and abroad, and Woolworth's products and collectibles. Even photos of Hollywood fan magazines showing the retailer's connection to early silent films are included in a book both fun and informative. While dealing with the business transitions and social and economic changes which finally saw the last store of this greatest of companies fade into the sunset, it is the nostalgia most people will find irresistible.

Not just the story of Frank Woolworth and how he built a retail empire by offering customers quality merchandise at low prices while making them feel special, it is very much a story of America's nostalgic past. Woolworth's was everyone's store. It belongs to our past and is imbedded into our memories. Any girl who ever bought a bottle of Evening in Paris and any young man who ever enjoyed its fragrance while sitting next to her in a movie house is connected to that icon of retailers, Woolworth's. I highly recommend this fabulous trip down memory lane. And if you're ever in Bakersfield you might want to stop at the Red-Font once again and remember how America once was.

This book brought back so many memories - and I'm only 41! It's
fun to read, with a layout that mixes photos, anecdotes, drawings, and personal reminscences - almost like a magazine. Reading this book makes you realize that Woolworth's was everything Kmart and Wal-Mart are not - charming, inviting, and much more than a place to get a bargain. Author Karen Plunkett-Powell captures the Americana, the nostalgia, and the details that make us all smile when we remember Woolworth's. For me, it was about recalling the malted milks my aunt used to buy me at the counter when I was small, and the quick gifts I used to pick up for friends and my children from the Woolworth's that used to be located downstairs from an office building where I worked for many years. So many of our everyday experiences nowadays are empty -- do yourself a favor and travel back to a simpler yet more meaningful time by reading this book or buying it for a friend. It's not a typical boring history book -- and it makes a GREAT gift for the senior citizen in your life who you never know what to get for a present -grandma, a relative in a nursing home, a neighbor who signs for your packages or whatever - even if that person is not the type to sit down and read a book, they'll have so much fun leafing through it.

Este libro es la tercera parte de la trilogia que se forma con "La hija de la fortuna" y "La casa de los espiritus".
Con el estilo maravilloso de la narracion de Isabel Allende, es una mezcla perfecta entre fantasia y realidad que atrapa al lector hasta el final.
Excellente libro para recomendar!

este libro lo recomiendo 100% me encanto ,y puedo decir que es uno de sus mejores trabajos.

Es un libro muy entretenido que dificilmente lo quieres dejar de leer. La gracia que tiene Isabel Allende al describir a los personajes hace que te adentres en ellos.

MCAC

Esta es la primera novela que leo
de la escritora Isabel Allende, me
parecio una obra genial, la manera
y el estilo de Allende son tan originales
que me dejan sin aliento y sin nada
mas que agregar,lo unico que se puede
decir es que la lean.

Excellent Novel, should be read as a supplement after reading "La Hija de la Fortuna" from the same author.

Bought this for my daughter who is entering third grade. Personally I am thrilled she is reading books I read. She is borrowing from the library but she received the first few from an aunt and we have purchased what she can't find to borrow.
Well written with an appropriate sense of humor for her age level. As a teacher I'd say they are probably appropriate for grades 3 through 6 or 7th grade dependent on their reading level.

I read (the twisted candals)by Caroline Keene. its about a girl named Nacy drew and she likes to solve mysteries. In this Nancy and her friend Ned go to a haunted hotel to try to save beth,one of there other friends out of a closet that that can olny be opened by a secret code on the twisted candals.

I liked alot of things in this book but one of the things i liked alot is that Nancy comes up with really good ideas and ned does them.

This book is so action packed that I think there is nothing to hate,if you like mysteries i think you should definitely read this book

Applewood Books has turned back the hands of time and given back Nancy Drew to readers. Faithfully restored to its original form, word for word, this is the real Nancy. These beautifully reproduced hardback editions are not condensed, rewritten or updated. This is the Nancy Drew of the 1930's, her blonde bob and 30's style dress shown on the facimile of the original dust jacket, conjuring up images and phrases from the enchanted America of yesteryear.

While it is still a book designed for youthful readers, there is a bit more depth here in the originals, and not a small dose of nostalgia when read today. You can almost see the Coke sign outside the River Heights Theatre showing the latest Nancy Carroll picture, as Nancy goes whizzing past in hot pursuit of a clue.

"The Sign of the Twisted Candles" remains one of the best in the series conceived by Edward Stratemeyer, creator of The Hardy Boys. A ghostwriter from Iowa named Mildred Wirt fleshed out his story outlines and "Carolyn Keene" was born. When he died in 1930, his daughter Harriet continued to oversee his company and in 1933 "The Sign of the Twisted Candles," the ninth book in the popular series, was published. A warm and affectionate introduction by mystery writer Carolyn G. Hart is the only addition or deviation from how it first appeared in this lovely edition.

Nancy and her pals George and Bess are caught in a rainstorm and seek shelter at The Sign of the Twisted Candles. Nancy befriends a young orphan named Sadie and finds danger and mystery lurking at the Twisted Candles, of course. The plot revolves around Asa Sydney and his will, and a family fued which will cause George and Bess to desert Nancy for a time until a lesson about loyalty is learned. Nancy's father, famous lawyer Carson Drew, gets involved on behalf of his daughter, and Hannah Gruen, the Drew's houskeeper and mother-figure to Nancy, is present here as well.

Buried secrets and an attempt to run Nancy off the road offer plenty of action unmarred by today's brand of violence for readers. An exciting and heartfelt conclusion punctuates a wholesome mystery which provides a role model even today. These beautiful Applewood editions stand head and shoulders above the others as they help young readers discover Nancy in a romantically nostalgic past. It is a past more innocent to be sure, filled with ice cream parlors and roadsters, five cent Saturday mornings at the movies watching our favorite serial adventure and, of course, Nancy Drew.

Young readers will discover a new friend to rush home to after class and the joy of losing yourself in a book with this edition. Older readers who either read them in their own youth or bought them for their children all the time will heave a wistful sigh for a time long gone in America's past.

I loved this book! I have about 26 other nancy drew books, but this one was one of my favorites! it made you keep saying, "okay, my eyes are getting REALLY tired, I have to stop." at 1:00 in the morning, but you end up reading another 4 cahpters. THe book is about a 100 year old man, named Asa Sidney, who lives in an old mansion which his realatives have turned into a resturaunt and inn. The mansion is really Asa Sidney's but because it is a inn, now, his realatives keep him in the small tower, and have told him that if her went down the steps he would fall, so,he satys up there all the time. He used to be a candle-maker and he got lots of money from some of his invetions with candles.His family had been fueding,on who got his money when he died. His wife's side of the family wanted his money, and the same with his side. His neice, Carol, was his only friend, Carol would sneak up to the tower every once in a while to visit with him. THen, one day, when he got ill, he had Nancy's father draw up a will for him, and Mr. Sidney told Nancy and Carol to start searching for THE SIGN OG THE TWISTED CANDLE, any where they went, he said that where ever a twisted candle, or a picture of a twisted candle was, there would be something very valuable. But the next day, he died and when they read the will.......... well, you'll just have to see for yourself. BUY IT!!!!!!!!!!!

i really loved this book.there were some sad and exiting parts in this suspenceful book.nancy goes to the sign of the twisted candles inn where rumors are heard that asa sidney,bess's and george's relative is being held prisinor in his own mansion.this is true and when nancy meets carol wipple,who lives in the inn with her foster parents.thats when asa sidney seeks mr.drew to come to the inn to make a will for him.on the way out of the tower room nancy looks out the window to see frank jemmit,carols foster dad burring a chest.but nancy is sure she saw the chest the other day in asa sidneys tower room.is frank jemmit and emma jemmit being dishonest to carol and asa sidney?in mr.sidney's will he leaves alot to carol,but why??find out in this exiting mystery.oh and the most exiting part to me is the 19 chapter where nancy climbs up a ladder to the tower room to see if emma and frank are taking hiding in there.

Thomas Desjardin has done something I would have thought impossible. He wrote a history book that I found hard to put down! His expanded research included many eye witness accounts of the battle of Little Round Top which serve to give us a clearer picture of what happeded that day. No one or even couple of people can give an accurate accounting. We all have a limited range of vision. When gathering all accounts it may seem that one contradicts the other, but it's really only a matter of perspective. We all see things differenly plus & understand it differently. This book takes nothing away from Chamberlain. It only shows he was not alone up there. I found the book fascinating & well worth reading.

I initially read this book after participating in a staff ride of the Gettysburg battlefield. My knowledge of the battle at that time came largely from Shaara's "The Killer Angels", and the subsequent film "Gettysburg". As both were meant to inspire and entertain rather than inform, I had an unrealistic understanding of the 20th Maine and its place in the struggle at Gettysburg. Thomas Desjardin's book changed that.

Well written and fast moving, "Stand Firm Ye Boys From Maine" provides excellent background information on the 20th Maine, identifies members of the Regiment beyond Chamberlain and his brother Tom, and reminds the reader that the 20th Maine's opponents at Little Round Top weren't a nameless mass of rebels, but members of a proud regiment with a strong leader all their own.

Desjardin explains the fight between the 20th Maine and the 15th Alabama in tremendous detail, with accompanying maps that enhance the narrative. More importantly, he describes the post-war growth of the Chamberlain legend, and explains the difference between Chamberlain the Man, and Chamberlain the myth. Desjardin's Chamberlain is not the battlefield intellectual who conceived an unorthodox maneuver in the face of the enemy to win the day, but an ordinary man who led from the front under extraordinary circumstances. I prefer the latter.

Students of Gettysburg will be interested in Desjardin's perspective on familiar events, and those unfamiliar with the battle will find it a great introduction to the subject. While not a history of the overall campaign, it is definitely a great starting place to learning what took place in PA over 140 years ago.

This is a well worked area of the ACW but Thomas A. Desjardin brings a fresh look to the subject. He is an excellent author and scholar, both show in his books. The book contains very good maps, photos and current status of Little Round Top, roster of the 20th Maine, 5 Appendix, notes and index. This is a very well done book that can be used as an introduction or reference.

The defense of Little Round Top by the 20th Maine Regiment on the far left of the Union lines on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg, July 2, 1863, is perhaps one of the most famous small unit actions in American military history, right up there with Custer's Last Stand - except the latter lost. As the author of STAND FIRM YE BOYS FROM MAINE (SFYBFM) points out, the U.S. Army still uses the actions of the 20th Maine's commander, Col. Joshua Chamberlain, as a model of leadership under hostile fire.

Author Thomas Desjardin picks up the story of the 20th Maine in the aftermath of Chancellorsville on or about June 21 as the regiment marched north along the east slope of the Blue Ridge Mountains while Lee marched his Confederates on the west slope towards Maryland through the Shenandoah Valley. After some skirmishing at Ashby's Gap, the unit arrived in the vicinity of Gettysburg at the end of the battle's first day. Desjardin's focus is, of course, on the 20th Maine's resistance against the assaults of the15th and 47th Alabama regiments against Vincent's Spur on Little Round Top, followed by the 20th's relatively uneventful occupation of Big Round Top before being relieved. Chamberlain's command spent the third day, during Pickett's Charge, in reserve behind the front lines. The next day was spent maneuvering across the Gettysburg battlefield until, after it became apparent that the Army of Northern Virginia had decamped and was headed homeward, a pursuit was mounted through rain and mud to a final skirmish with the Rebels on Sharpsburg Pike on July 10, an event that marked the end of the Gettysburg Campaign for the boys from Maine.

Having finished with the battle itself, Desjardin examines the post-war period, during which, Little Round Top having receded in time but not in the participants' memories, bickering broke out among the survivors as various accounts of that fateful day in July, 1863 had to be reconciled with each other (or not).

I saw the film Gettysburg (Widescreen Edition) on the Big Screen when it was released, and was greatly impressed with the leadership qualities of the Joshua Chamberlain character under fire (as portrayed by Jeff Daniels). Subsequently, I visited the Gettysburg National Military Park and stood in reverence before the monument to the 20th Maine set in the trees now covering Vincent's Spur. Therefore, the final chapter of SFYBFM, "American Legend, American Shrine", in which Desjardin puts the regiment's defense in perspective and deflates some of the mythology surrounding the action, poured a certain amount of cool water upon my adulation. As the author points out, as evidenced by Chamberlain's recollection of the event, the colonel never actually ordered "forward", but only that his men fix bayonets. With that, the Maine troops charged off down the slope on their own and the famous "right wheel" by the 20th's left was more of a ragtag pursuit after already fleeing Rebels instead of the textbook maneuver of mythology. Moreover, the entire Army of the Potomac's line, from left to right of the famous "fish hook", was never in danger of being rolled up. Had the 15th Alabama actually been able to capture and hold Vincent's Spur, it would've had to face the 83rd Pennsylvania, the regiment next to Chamberlain's, as well as the 140th New York that had just come up. Furthermore, there was only room on Little Round Top for perhaps eight artillery pieces to be aimed at the rest of General Meade's army. If all of Longstreet's cannons couldn't dislodge the Federals on Day 3 of the confrontation, eight weren't going to do it on Day 2.

The strength of SFYBFM is in the comprehensiveness of Desjardine's research, which encompassed examination of close to eighty accounts of the battle by survivors on both sides. There are twenty-two pages of Notes and a six-page Bibliography. There's a complete roster of the 20th Maine soldiers at Gettysburg, which includes each man's rank, company, hometown, age, marriage status, civilian occupation, height, and post-battle status as applicable (killed, wounded, mortally wounded, captured). In addition, Appendix One enumerates the number of combatants in the three regiments involved. Appendix Three, Four and Five list in greater detail the nature of each casualty for the 20th Maine, 15th Alabama, and 47th Alabama respectively. For example, Private Mansfield Ham of the 20th Maine is noted as having been:

"Wounded severely in side, thumb shot off."

SFYBFM includes a serviceable assortment of photos sprinkled throughout as well as a number of maps, the most useful of which depict the evolving positions of the 20th Maine and 15th Alabama as they engaged.

STAND FIRM YE BOYS FROM MAINE is an exemplary battle history. While it may refute some of the more outlandish claims of the legend, e.g. that the survival of the Union hinged on the 20th Maine's victory, it puts the supreme efforts of both sides on a human scale and not on pedestals, especially as the personalities and civilian lives, both pre- and post-war, of combatants from both sides are described. From this vantage point, the Civil War student, whether casual or serious, can better appreciate the command style of the regimental officers and the heroic fighting qualities of their men. The volume deserves prominent place on any bookshelf dedicated to the American Civil War.

Interesting book, good subject. Some people, with a degree of justification, bemoan the attention given to the 20th Maine, but I'm not one of them. What I would like to see is that same attention given to other deserving regiments as well.

This book has the advantage of being well-documented and, as far as I can tell, accurate. It has the disadvantage of being somewhat superficial in that the regiment is never put into any larger context. There are anecdotes galore, and of course there is a thorough reconstruction of the 20th Maine at Little Round Top. But the substance of the battle around them is lacking; to be fair, this is not supposed to be a book about the battle as a whole.

In short, this is a good supplementary book if you have already read a thorough account of the battle (I recommend Coddington, personally), and it's good for bits of information about the 20th Maine, so it fulfills its purpose. Subjectively, I found it a rather dry account; interesting, informative, clearly written, but somehow lacking flavor.

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.

For me--raised on Sherlock Holmes--this novel, first published 1968, is not a detective novel in which morality or heroism triumphs, or in which the hero is able to think his way out. When Conan Doyle invented his hero, he was writing within the context of a moral Victorian society in which Holmes's kind of detective work was able to triumph over perpetrators, or at least able to rationalize his own faults. But the world Sciascia shows us is one in which the police remain silent, and those who inquire and question are punished. Sciascia gives us an intelligent, inquisitive high school teacher, Professor Laurana--not a Sherlock Holmes--but, as a learned and well-meaning man, he is an engaging main character. What sort of society is it in which sensitive, inquisitive people are devalued and ignored?

Professor Laurana's questioning opens doors and others shut. And in a town in which people teach each other to keep quiet, we have to wonder what is being taught. It seems that this society is reduced to primitive survival instincts. Only someone like Laurana can break the vicious circle of crime, but Laurana's emotional vulnerability--his sensitivity to literature--is considered a fault. There are clearly characters who do not like anyone asking questions. And there are two characters who are philosophical and analytical, but their ability to understand human psychology disables Laurana's investigation. It's as though too much belief in moral ambiguity can stop a criminal investigation.

While this novel is a comment on Italian or Sicilian society and politics of the 1960s, this setting could be anywhere in the world. We all must be vigilant that through silence and acquiescence, our world does not become like the one Sciascia shows us.

This short novel (158 pages) has so much wonderful, nuanced writing that virtually every page is enjoyable in and of itself. One Amazon reviewer called "To Each His Own" postmodernist, but it also seems reminiscent at times of 19th Century writing that is more character insightful than plot driven. Sicilian master, Leonardo Sciascia, certainly does provide a plot in this novel - an inexplainable double homicide begins the story, followed by the slow accumulation of clues leading to the unlocking of the mystery by a hapless bystander, who reveals his revelations despite himself. The cautious innocent ultimately wanders into the killers' crosshairs betrayed by his own lust and the quiet complicity of the entire community. And it's lust that author Sciascia suggests is at the bottom of everything in the Sicilian town that is the novel's setting.

This is a highly literate and entertaining read that will encourage most readers to seek out other titles by this terrific author.

This book is a well written mystery. The author sets the crime out before you right at the beginning and gives many leads for you to try and draw your own conclusions. His style of writting is very different, but very interesting. It is the type of book that you must continue to read to find out what the ending is about.

The basic principles of right are: to live honorably, not to harm any other person, to render to each his own." Digest of the Emperor Justinian.

The Latin phrase "suum cuique tribuere" or "to each his own" is one of the three fundamental maxims of the law laid down by the Emperor Justinian. The peculiar interpretation of that phrase in Sciascia's native Sicily forms the emotional core of his brilliant "To Each His Own."

"To Each His Own" begins with a double-murder. A local pharmacist, Manno, receives a death threat in the mail, compiled with words and letters cut and pasted from a newspaper. The pharmacist laughs it off. He considers the letter to be a joke and although these threats are usually taken seriously in his town, Manno leads a blameless life and simply cannot believe anyone intends him harm. So he goes off hunting the next day with his friend Dr. Roscio and, without further ado, both Manno and Roscio are shot dead in the woods.

A police investigation follows but it is doomed to go nowhere. Sciascia paints a very explicit portrait of a society in which everyone knows (or suspects) everything but says nothing, certainly not to the local police. The general consensus (on the surface) seems to be that Manno was killed by a jealous husband and Roscio was an innocent bystander. The matter would have ended there but for the curious intercession of Professor Laurana. Laurana is a history and Italian teacher at the local liceo (high school). He walks into the pharmacy where the police are reading the anonymous letter and quickly spots a clue. The police dismiss his information out of hand. Laurana, however, driven by what appears to be no more than a desire to solve a puzzle, decides to follow up on the clue. In short order he seems to have solved the mystery. Laurana is oblivious to the fact that his musings on the crime pose more of a threat to the murderers than a typical local police investigation. Events play out to their natural conclusion, and in Sciascia's Sicily natural conclusions are not quite so neat and tidy as say in Agatha Christie's parlor room England.

The enjoyment to be found in reading "To Each His Own" is not the mystery itself. The fact of the matter is that, for Sciascia, solving a mystery doesn't require great insight. Rather, it simply requires a willingness to actually see that which is self-evident. As blind as Laurana may be to the danger he puts himself in, he can see well enough to understand why Manno and Roscio were murdered and who murdered them. Laurana's problem is not that he knows more than anyone else in town, Sciascia makes it clear that the actual events do not seem a surprise to anyone. No, Laurana's problem is that unlike everyone else in town, he doesn't bother to hide his knowledge.

Sciascia's writing is both precise and enjoyable. He seems to have a keen eye and affection for his native place, but that affection does not diminish, but likely enhances, the despair he feels for a culture in which silence is golden and in which "to each his own" does not bring to mind Roman traditions of equity but, rather, the critical importance of minding ones own business. "To Each His Own" is a cynical, but highly-entertaining piece or work.

Highly recommended. L. Fleisig

Having read "To Each His Own" (or rather, "Il ciascuno il suo") twice, once in Italian and once in English, I find that each time I found new interesting nuances.

Rich, ambiguous characters fill the novel and leaves one wondering who is considered intelligent and who is considered an idiot in Sicilian terms. It also leaves one wondering what exactly is the crime: the killer or the one that deems himself the investigator? Is it the one who deals in politics or the one breaking the law of "omerta"?The novel explores the mafiosi as an institution, as a family, what it is in the government, the church, the peasant village.

Sciascia's novel is a page-turner for both those who want an easy read detective thriller and also for those wanting to dig deeper into the story's message.

This manual should be required reading for any candidate for public office at a national level, as well as all foreign staff personnel. After reading the manual I was better able to understand the motivations and actions of the various factions within Iran today. It also re-enforces the idea that terrorism / insurgency is not just an issue for a single nation, but anymore is a global issue.

This is the best manual that the military has ever published. While it is very thorough and covers every aspect of how to run a successful counterinsurgency, it is broken down into easy to understand concepts. Designed for commanders at all levels, it easily applies to every military member involved in the campaigns of Iraq and Afghanistan. This should be a must read for anyone deploying to the AOR, military or civilian as it will shape the way you think, speak, and act while trying to successfully end the insurgency that grips these countries.

I believe this manual is an excellent overview of counterinsurgency strategy and some tactics. This includes the broad strategy as well as to the drill down for the units/teams/boots on the ground. Its stated audience is for battalion commanders and their staff and higher. I would recommend it to any soldier, sailor or marine regardless of rank and for U.S. citizens generally who have an interest in the topic.

According to the manual, the host nation (HN) and the counterinsurgency force (COIN) will win if they can provide security first, and then other functions of a responsive - responsive to the HN populace - HN government. Otherwise, the populace will seek security and services elsewhere (i.e., in insurgent organizations/militias). This is not necessarily a sequential ordering. While basic security is fundamental - once a baseline is reached - other governmental functions responsive to HN's populace's concerns should also be instituted, supported, and reinforced, while still improving and accelerating the improvement of the security environment for the populace. One example used is how insurgency organizations/militias can destabilize the security environment and create insecurity through terrorist strikes, in order to then be viewed by the populace as the cure to the insecurity by operating militias to defend against such insecurity, and thus try to gain popular support.

Bottom line: creation, maintenance and sustainment (or assisting/building up) of legitimacy in the host nation vs. the insurgent organizations is the contest and crux of the matter. Insurgency and counterinsurgency is a fight for the support of the populace (i.e., the big middle). This conclusion should have been clear by now - insurgency has been with us for a very long time. For some examples, in the West, you can go back to at least to Julius Caesar for lessons; see also Napoleon; in the East, you can go back to at least to Sun-Tzu's The Art of War.

According to the manual, to win an insurgency/counterinsurgency type conflict, requires staying power without intentional or unintentional signaling of wavering support for staying the distance, at least until the HN has achieved the "tipping point" in terms of legitimacy and popular support.

As an aside, there is a good appendix on Social Network Analysis (SNA), which provides a cogent overview of some of the key concepts for those not familiar with SNA or its use in war, conflict, or intelligence.

I've been studying insurgent warfare for a long time before it became a hot topic... again. I still recommend Galula's Counterinsurgency Warfare and Hamilton's The Art of Insurgency which is a great book but is little referenced. There are of course books by Kitson and others. (Nagl's book which I've reviewed is a good dissertation but is limited in it scope and perception. He writes the forward to this edition.) The two volume War in the Shadows is okay background but not worth a two volume read. Which brings us to the Counterinsurgency Field Manual, which if you are serving and only have time to access one source, this is a dependable one.

Although the CFM is oriented more toward the current unpleasantness the principles of counterinsurgency have been carefully gleaned from the best sources and multiple situations as well as updating insurgent response for the 21st century. Keeping food deliveries out of active insurgent areas might have worked for the British in Malaya, but you could imagine the field day CNN would have with it today. Probably the best things the writers do in this manual is freely admit that the devil is in the details and that these will have to be worked out locally and supported nationally.

For those who still aren't buying into "the insurgent stuff" which unfortunately over the last 30+ years has gone under state department approved phrases like "nation building" and executive office of the President terms like "counter terrorism" you don't have to worry that the Army or Marines are going to lose their conventional edge with these approaches. The CFM makes it clear that this is only one form or warfare and that modern war can slip across the entire spectrum. What is not needed is more doctrine...what is needed is a tool box and the CFM attempts to be one of those tools.

The CFM makes many good points and I'm not going to list them all here, but the most important one I felt has to do with the assumption of more risk. Insurgent warfare requires soldiers to go out and get in the streets with people to provide the basic security for everyday activities that will lead to a legitimate government. Legitimacy cannot come from the national level down no matter what form of government people actually settle for (A basic concept found in any undergraduate PolySci 101 class which no one in the State Deptment or Congress must have taken.) The average Joe doesn't care about the grand schemes. He wants to go to work, get married, raise a family and have a shot at some level of comfort without getting killed. The key to winning against insurgents is that the most committed to providing these basic parameters for the average Joe, wins. You show your true colors and level of commitment when you have to go out and get shot at. But the alternative, which never works, and we still seem to be doing is to concentrate forces on large FOB's and separate them from the population. This has got to be one of the toughest of balancing acts to provide force protection, logistics as well as force projection and maintenance that supports an ongoing relationship with the civilian population. Fighting an insurgency is not for the faint hearted, the draftee, or those who needed to be reelected every 2 years. It takes soldiers in neighborhoods who know the people and have the power to affect their lives...albeit indirectly if possible.

I disagree with the CFM on two points. I disagree with using the idea of "counterinsurgency" for philosophical reasons. The term by its very nature places you at a disadvantage to the insurgents. I believe you fight an insurgent war and win it by being better insurgents, not by being better "counterinsurgents." But this is probably more a matter of semantics. My second area of disagreement is really the book itself. This "new" book on insurgent warfare is really a great gazette of all the current knowledge that has been around for years plus the all necessary Army doctrine, without which the lowliest private cannot have a bowel movement. The Army's "can't do it without doctrine" attitude is what made this book come out so far behind the power curve to begin with. All this information is and has been known and available but the Army couldn't "discover" it. The US has a long insurgent history that is little studied or learned from. Our nation was founded by an insurgency. We've fought insurgents throughout our history: Native Americans, especially in the West, the border struggles during the Civil War, Phillipines, Cuba, Nicuagua, Vietnam, and Afghanistan. As organizations that need to be highly adaptable, the Army and the Marines need to stop paying tuition for the same lessons over and over again. I realize that not all of this lack of organizational awareness is theirs. A great deal of the responsibility for lack of responsiveness lies at the feet of elected officials who do not do their part and provide the clarity of purpose upon which coherent military strategies are based. The mist in Congress becomes a dense fog for those who are tasked with the nation's defense.

I actually bought this book some months back but I kept putting off picking it up because I assumed this would be a dense work filled with military jargon and more acronyms than one could shake a stick at. I assumed that it would be a tedious and difficult read so I found reasons to put it off, but when I finally forced myself to begin this book I was quite shocked. The book is very easy to read and very well written. The book has just a few acronyms that I had memorized within a couple of pages after their introduction, and the book is very well laid out with impeccable organization (as should be expected I guess). I dare say I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book on all levels. Of course the information and the knowledge to be gleaned from this work is extremely important.

I think if this book were to become required reading for students then I think we could prevent some costly misadventures in future because this book really details what an occupation requires. Everyone would understand that military action will require a deep level of commitment for the military and on all levels of civil society as well.

I also think it is the least we can do as citizens to educate ourselves on what our military men and women are doing and attempting to implement in situations where they face this type of conflict. One gets a sense of what a soldier goes through and the huge load that is put on the ordinary soldier. It is an extremely difficult task they are asked to perform in these situations, and they are asked to perform this task with honor and discretion in the face of terrible situations.

There are some good reviews here that speak more to the content of the work by people obviously more versed in the topic than myself, so I will just say that this book is very well done and an easy read. If you are like me and are putting off reading or buying this book, then let me just say go ahead. It is worth the money and the effort. I highly recommend this book.

Un frase diaria para cada día del año.. QUE INTERESANTE !

You have to read the signaled marvelous phrase for the day... that`s all in order to live better and happier

encontré el mejor instrumento para estar contenta y de buen animo todo el dia..
Leo una frase, entra a mi cabeza y no sale hasta por la noche...

NO SIRVE SOLAMENTE PARA PASAR BIEN UN RATO... SE TE METE A LA MENTE Y PASAS EL DIA CON TODA FELICIDAD Y SIN PENSAMIENTOS NEGATIVOS,...

¿Vieran como han diminuido las fricciones entre mi esposo y yo?

so that I can read a phrase each morning...
IT MAKES YOU FEEL SOOO GOOD !
Now, I don`t fight anymore at school... Because I keep a nice modd all day long !
IT`S GOOD FOR BAD TEMPERED KIDS LIKE ME