Sheridan Books

Richard Woodman's Drinkwater series have the authentic smell of the sea about them. A feature not dislayed in Patrick O'Brien's novels. Drinkwater is real, with flaws and solid worth. I recommend them to any lovers of fiction set in the days of Nelson.

I can only agree with the reviewer who noted the ten-year time jump between the setting of the first novel (An Eye...) and this one. Lots of material lost there, perhaps.

But, this is a notably better book than the first: sharper in focus on both character and plot. In addition, the secondary characters have more life to them and in this remind one in the best ways of the lesser figures in the Hornblower series. Drinkwater, himself, is a broader fellow (undoubtedly because he is older), and in his maturity we see a maturing action and plot. The second book is as much about character as about the naval technicalities and detail that another reviewer so bemoaned. This is all to the good, and the balance continues into the coming books.

I have found these to fit well on my shelf next to my Forester and O'Brian series. While not quite as insightful into the emotional or historical realities of the period, they are very well written. Hornblower is still my favorite, but Drinkwater is another great Captain to cheer for.

In his second book of the Nathaniel Drinkwater series, Richard Woodman continues to show his ability to communicate the events of the time in an interesting and somewhat suspenseful way. Nathaniel Drinkwater is second in command on the Royal Navy cutter Kestral which seems to keep finding itself in harm's way as the winds of war blow across Europe in the late 1790's. Those of us who grew up reading about the adventures of Captain Horatio Hornblower are returned to the days of sail again. You can feel the wind and smell the salt air as Drinkwater's adventures continue. Good stuff.

I gave up on this book at page 42 owing to paragraphs of marine jargon that meant absolutely nothing to me. Unless you are interested in the very detailed workings of an old sailing ship this book is not for you. Descriptions such as this seem to be on every page:
"By the mast the jib halliard was started and waist deep in water on the lee bow the flogging jib was pulled inboard. Within a minute the spitfire was shackled to the halliard, it's tack hooked to the traveler and the outhall manned. Even as the the big iron ring jerked out along the spar the halliard tightened" Make sense to you? Me either.
I feel that there is a difference between attention to detail and too much detail, especially for us landlubbers who have no idea what he's on about (he doesn't explain it!).
The plot seems to take second place to the author's need to show off his knowledge of seafaring and I was sadly disappointed.
I also found the characters totally forgetable and shallow.

Up to page 42 there is more jargon than plot.

Mr. Jones is one of the more colorful people in the sailing world, he's a largely self-created character who is many things, a good writer, a great story-teller and most likely, an even better liar who for years had the readers of sailing fiction, as well as his editors, believing his most improbable tales. In this text, Jones again confounds everyone with his expert knowledge on all of the many aspects of sailing solo around the world. The point is, that it was only late in his life that it became apparent that he likely did not ever know how to sail, much less did he do a half-dozen or so solo-circumnavigations. Nevertheless, this book should not be overlooked, not only for it's novelty value due to the unique character of the author, but also for it's rock-solid advise on undertaking a great voyage... alone.

A very good book written by a world class sailor. Good logical advice on very specific cruising and sailing situations. One of the better reads on practical sailing books. A most for a sailer's library.

This book is enormously informative. Well worth purchasing and studying. Information that could save your life, no joke!

Tristan Jones is the consummate single-hander.
The current attempts to discredit Tristan
now that he is gone are sad and pathetic.
This is the BEST book for single handed sailing
that I have ever found,
and is a page-turner to boot.
If you sail or just dream of it,
you need to have this book!

Obviously Conrad spends his time reviewing books and not in a boat. Read any or all of the Tristan Jones books. You will enjoy them. They are fantastic tales and full of knowledge from an experienced seaman. This one in particular is full of great information especially for the small boat or solo sailor. I only sail on local lakes but learned a lot from reading Tristan's adventures.

I am a huge fan of Bernard, and LOVED "The Long Way". Perhaps I was just not in the mood for this lengthy diatribe involving his youth in Indochina and the stages of his life. I made it through about 3/4 of the book but his going on and on and on about his gardening methods and coconut planting just made me impatient; frankly, I just lost interest. It seemed a bit narcissistic to me also, and, when he was younger, he found it very entertaining to hunt and kill beautiful animals with his slingshot for entertainment, which really upset me.
This is my least favorite of his books I've read; my husband loved it. It does contain his usual themes of freedom and bucking the materialistic establishment, though he seems to come from a very privileged background and also seems to enjoy making money when he can do it some of the time.
We do happen to be sailors and I read most of this on our sailboat. Sorry, I just didn't get it and feel I am a pretty discriminating reader.
It just went on way too long and in detail I found to be boring and excessive. Just my opinion; everyone else seems to love it.

Bernard Moitessier was more than the "Father of singlehanded sailboat racing", his book is that of a poet in action-all his life. Reading The Long Way first would be well recomended to better understand Bernard's references in this book. The author has put his heart & soul into writing this for us as he did working to elevate social awareness. If you've ever been daunted by Cape Horn, yearned to live on a deserted Atoll, or thought World Powers should make the world a better place, then this is for you! If you want to bring Western ways to the Paradise of Sea and Sand, you'll not likely understand what the title means!! :)))

This was my first Bernard Moitessier book. I picked it up after reading "Godforsaken Sea" by Derek Lundy. Lundy referred to Moitessier several times through the book as the father of single-hand sailboat racing.

The book was not at all what I expected, about solo long-distance blue water racing, but I enjoyed the first half about Moitessier's childhood in Indochina, how he came to love the sea and set out to follow his dreams. It was an account of the history of Indochina that I found facsinating, told through the eyes of an adolescent that loved that part of the world. Moitessier can be an excellent writer.

Unfortunately, the second half of the book turned into a self-absorbed, preachy lecture about his trying to "find himself." What was forgivable wanderlust and adolescent idealism in a teen and twenty-year-old, turned into a sad tale of a middle-aged guy who could never grow up. He tried to legitimize his behavior as his attempt to save the world from war and poverty (from Tahiti, mind you). On several occasions I felt like saying "Get a life!"

I probably will read Moitessier's classic, "The Long Way." I hope that it is as good as he says it is in "Tamata and the Alliance!"

The book is for anyone with the insight and vision to look within themselves for the answers to the questions that plague man. Bernard Moitessier once wrote, "to feast at the great table, you must have a great hunger and a willingness to go unfed. Only one in amillion have both." This book illustrates that beautifully. This book isn't about sailing. It is about man's struggle within himself to reach peace and harmony. This book is about the hope and triumph of man's indomitable spirit. It is about man's fortitude to pursue dreams and follow their passions. The ideals contained in this book are like the messages in the bottles that Moitessier alludes to in the book. Some of them will bear fruit immediately, others, only after many years, and yet others will be washed up on desert islands where they will fade and wither dismally with age.

Bernard Moitessier's writings are a true work of art. I was so inspired by this book, that I have just had a 28' wooden sloop restored for Circumnaviation. The boat's name:
ESPRIT DE MOITESSIER ( Spirit of Moitessier ).
Tamata and the Alliance is not just a sailing book, but is a magical window into the mind and soul of a peaceful man, whos wonderful ideas and insights have the power to change your vision of the world ... for the better.
Don't miss out .... buy Tamata and the Alliance.

For those who enjoy adventure there are no better reads than Richard Woodman. His books have excellent historical backround, extreemly exciting with a very good insight to British navy life in the late 1700's.
I have read Woodman's first three volumes and have four more in my library lined up to read. If you like action, these are the books for you.

Those who love nautical or maritime historical novels will find this Drinkwater series wonderful. Full of history, and a great "yarn" to go along with it. Very detailed about life on board during the time of the Napoleonic Wars and Admiral Lord Nelson. The series takes you all over, from England to Africa, the Red Sea, the Baltic and more. Also, quite historically accurate.

This book covers the period from February 1798 to January 1800. We follow 1st Lt Nathaniel Drinkwater as he sells on the War brig hawthorne to the Red Sea. I have not read any other book in the series and found this enjoyable. I actually felt like I was on the ship. This is a true action book. And the author must really know his seamanship and history of the period to develop his world. A fun read.

As first novels, these are almost as subtle and enigmatic as P.O'B's later works, but just as gripping as his early stuff; similarly based on historical fact, they are definitely a cut above the rest and should be read in order, to get the best enjoyment.

Excellent descriptions of below-decks and battle actions take you right inside the ship; an acquaintance with nautical terminology helps, but is not vital, to understand the gist of the action or the day-to-day management of the ship - e.g. the handling of sails is particularly well-described, far better than any other book I've read. and succinct descriptions of wind, weather and tide preface each event; the stage is already set - action soon follows.

Book 3 'A Brig of War' sees Nat dashing round to the Red Sea to subvert Napoleon's suspected attack on India. A tense sea-chase ensues, brilliantly described, there are some on-board intrigues which keep one guessing, an old enemy returns to haunt Nat, plus the minutiae of running a ship make this immensely enjoyable reading. We see more details of Nat's long-time colleagues, in particular the misanthrope Appleby, whose didactic prolix is an undercurrent of humour which endears him to both Nat and his ailing Captain.

I read the first 3 books in a weekend - good job I'd already bought the follow-on, because this is addictive reading.

I did not feel that this third book in the Nathaniel Drinkwater series was as good as the second (A King's Cutter), but it is a good Royal Navy adventure with lots of action as Drinkwater's ship is sent to the Red Sea. It provides an interesting story set in one of the far off areas of the war, not usually covered by other authors. As in his other books, Richard Woodman provides a time period with each chapter heading. This book covers the period from February 1798 to January 1800. It is desirable to read the books in chronological order as this book reintroduces characters from both books 1 and 2 in the series. It gives a good account of the struggle for promotion and notes the effects of bedroom politics (an officer whose sister is the mistress of someone with connections can gain promotion through his sister's influence). The story provides an accurate picture of natural hazards when sailing, hazards of warfare, and hazards to health a in tropical climate. Enemies aboard ship continue to be a problem, almost deadly in Drinkwater's case.

>The Nazi Seizure of Power< is a solid history book, good enough for use in a college-history syllabus, which is where I came across it. It is something of an eye-opener. Nazism, i.e. "National Socialist German-worker Party" is as enigmatic at the working level as its name is long, which helps it hoodwink German voters and prove that you can establish a dictatorship as easily with ballots as you can with bullets.
Nazism in "Thalburg," Professor Allen's sample pseudonym city, was never an overnight sensation but the result of tireless effort by legions of party workers, who were ignorant of Nazism's true intentions:
1) A housewife put it clearly: "The ranks of the (Nazis) were filled with young people. The people who joined did so because they were for social justice, or opposed to unemployment."
2) Others joined because it looked as though the Nazis would be victorious, and they hoped to profit.
3) "Most who joined did so because they wanted a hard, sharp, clear leadership. They were disgusted with the internal political strife of parliamentary party politics."

One cannot read >The Nazi Seizure of Power< and not be impressed at the sophisticated organizing technique that the Nazis employed to sway the elections:
1) In the early months of 1930, the (Nazis) held a meeting nearly every week, advertised with such titles as "The German Worker as Interest-slave of Big International Capitalists," or "Saving the Middle Class in the National Socialist State."
2) In newspaper advertisements, Thalburgers were urged to give deeply. "Sacrifice" was the key word.

Before the Nazis could succeed, they had to break the hold of private organizations:
1) There is a proverb, "Two Germans, three clubs." This was almost true of Thalburg where, in 1930, there were no fewer than 161 clubs.
2) There were 21 sports clubs, 47 with an economic or occupational function, 23 religious or charitable societies.
3) With hardly an exception, they followed the town's class lines.

The Nazis also had to abolish distinctions between schools:
1) There were three public primary schools, arranged so that children could also secure religious orientation.
2) Burgerschule 1 was Lutheran; the Katholische Volksschule served Catholic children; Burgerschule 2 was non-denominational.
3) Each school had its own School Advisory Council, elected by the pupils' parents.

The abolition of private or exclusive spaces by the Nazis was a process they called "Gleichschaltung," i.e. linking to one source:
1) Eventually no independent social groups were to exist. All of society would exist whereby each individual related not to his fellow man but only to the State.
2) What social cohesion there had been in the town existed in the club life, and this was destroyed in the early months of Nazi rule.
3) With their social organizations gone and with terror a reality, Thalburgers were isolated from one another. By reducing the people to unconnected social atoms, the Nazis could move the resulting mass in whatever direction they wished.

The Nazi leader in Thalburg was "Kurt Aergeyz," not his real name. Aergeyz was "cynical, ruthless, and brutal." Indeed his name means "ambition" in German:
1) It is possible to construe the actions of Kurt Aergeyz, after he came to power, as expressive of class divisions. Nothing is more difficult than discovering the truth about personal motivation, but many of the actions taken by Aergeyz suggest they were a product of social resentment.
2) Kurt Aergeyz was possibly attempting to triumph over the environment in which he had grown up and which condemned him to the condescension of his social betters.

With an Presidential election coming up, >The Nazi Seizure of Power< is a worthwhile read.

Beware that this is ACADEMIC history. If you like a good READING experience, look elsewhere. But full of fascinating information. Maybe someday a narrative historian (or novelist) will make good use of all the material contained herein. VITAL for Nazi/WW 2 buffs.

This is a good book to read in explaining how a democratic society became totalitarian in a span of six months. THe author Allen explains it using the small town of Northeim in Hanover. Northeim was a typical town that weathered the turmoil of the twenties and thirties. In 1932, 66% percent of the population voted for the Nazis. In 1933, the Nazis took over the town administration and basically wiped out any opposition by the SPD or Nationalists. This book explains how the Nazis did it on a small scale. Initial violence, concentration camps, firing of those who held opposite political views, and police raids silenced the opposition. They were so silenced that the town did not get back its freedom till 1945.

This is a fairly long book and centered more toward the academic audience. However it gives a great view of how Germany changed overnight when Hindenburg selected Hitler to be his Chancellor. Democracy died a quick death, even at the local level. A great read for those trying to understand the Nazis.

I found "The Nazi Seizure of Power" compelling and frightening. In my 25-year career as an assignment editor at daily newspapers, I have become familiar with the structure of communities of the size studied in the book. Thanks to the William Allen, suddenly I can see how a minority of radical reactionaries took control of a populace of ordinary, decent people. Add a little more fear and bruised pride to America, I realize with a shock, it could happen here.

Allen concentrates on Northeim, Germany in looking at the transformation that took place from 1922 to 1945. In his approach, key individuals are shown to be the players who brought about the change in thinking in the community. His study offers depth in that regard. In considering these key leaders, he goes on to describe how they influenced the general population to buy into their ideology.

There were points of internal conflict within the organization. The Nazi Party was not a unified whole. Like any human social structure there were different ideas about what should be done and how matters should be approached.

Generally, the public is shown to be apathetic. There wasn't much feeling one way or the other to the average citizen in Northeim. Chronologically, Allen goes on to describe what took place in the town after WWII.

I really love this book, even though te pretty much only covers the tip of the iceberg, this books gives me an insight in to the things to consider when outfitting and choosing a boat that i plan to buy. I love the way Tor has written the book, it had made me understand the fundamentals in a simple and illustrative way

I sold my house and am leaving for the sea shortly. Tor Pinney has gone a long way to get me to get it right. I am on my third reading now. Almost every bit of helpfull advice will become part of my plan to go to sea. The best book I have read to prepare me for cruising the Caribbean and beyond. Thanks Tor!~

The content is broad, the advice general, and this book just doesn't rise to the level of the works of other authors who have tackled this subject. There are many fine books on this subject, and this is not among them. Pass.

I am using this book to help me oufit my boat for Caribbean cruising. I find it useful almost every day. Lots of great ideas.

I've read Tor Pinney's "Ready for Sea" and, after seeing Christopher Korody's comments below, I can not imagine he even read the same book. Pinney has a friendly, easy-going writing style, a pleasant way of sharing his vast, first-hand knowledge on the subject at hand. I think he's a very fine writer, better than most in this genre. I wish more boating books were as easy to read as this one. It's more concise than many of the longer books on the subject. "Ready for Sea" covers a great deal of solid information in just 200-odd pages, and some very novel ideas, too - like the last chance trip line. I highly recommend this book to anyone thinking about going cruising.

For those who are interested in MidEast affairs (as myself) this covers a fascinating topic and is written in a fluid style, which adds up to a truly gripping read.

The only reason for which I am not awarding this book 5 stars (and were it possible 6 or 7 stars) is the fact that many of the claims are indeed extreme...

Too much of the book simply adds up to bill this as complete fiction. Several other books (amongst which "The Samson Option", written by a renown journalist) have been based on Ben-Menashe's knowledge. Investigations have sprung up in the US and in Australia. Of course, these haven't lead far, but this is a serious case of the poeple in power charged with investigating the people in power - so what would you really expect?

Whilst I was reading this book I kept my copy of "Israels Secret Wars" at hand to verify events, facts and dates, and together with a bit of searching around the net, the essence of it all seems to add up.

Right from the start the author makes his embitterment with the "system" clear, so accusing him of having an axe to grind is pretty lame - add to that the fact that amongst his sworn enemies (at the end) was the media mogul R. Maxwell (who unleashed the full weight of his media empire to destroy his credibility) and you end up without much of a case...
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TO SUM IT UP: You have to be deeply cynical, but alas perhaps realistic, to accept all that is stated in this book. In the end, however, I am one who believes that where there's smoke, there's got to be some fire as well, and this book discloses a hell of a lot of smoke!

I have been investigating this book for about ten years now and my conclusion is that A B-M was telling what he knew.
Any errors are due to his not being aware of certain things, like the details relating to certain Arab regimes etc.
But in general A B-M had no reason to make up this stuff, which even a seasoned fiction writer could not have delineated with so much sharp detail.
The various establishments that have tried to discredit him have in fact discredited themselves, amongst them are Newsweek magazine, the White House reporter Steven Emerson and various Wikipedia aministrators that are employed by AIPAC.

After reading this book I didn't know how to react to much of it. Many of the claims are plausible, many are wildly implausible, and some of the information is just plain factually wrong. Sharon left the IDF in 1973, not 1970 as Menashe says. Shamir retired or "was retired from" the Mossad in 1965 not the "early 1970s." Ben-Menashe is the first person who claims that the IAF has B-52s--two squadrons no less--but he doesn't say where Israel hides these massive eight-engine bombers. He also claimed that the murder of an old American Jewish cripple by Abul Abbas' organization on the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro was an Israeli plot to discredit the PLO. Ben-Menashe doesn't really document any of his claims but asks us just to trust him. His first whopper is to claim that Shimon Peres had been paid millions by Lockheed while defense minister. Since all of Israel's American fighters were built by McDonnel Douglas or General Dynamics this seems highly unlikely. Israel does use the Lockheed C-130, but the Lockheed scandal in Europe at the same time was to get the Belgians, Dutch, and Italians to purchase F-104 Starfighter interceptors. This is typical of Ben-Menashe--he seems to take bits of news and spin it into a plot like a Hollywood screenwriter.

Amazing book on the inner workings of Mossad, Israeli govt, CIA, the Republicans, Democrats, etc. What a bunch of gangsters. Even the cynical will be surprised.

An excellent well documented book by a high level Israeli agent. I have to give Sheridan Square Press's publishers Ellen Ray & Bill the Credit for the content as the author did the same. Most of us out of the publishing, or, media business are not skilled writers. Sheridian Square Press out of N.Y., N.Y. did the same service for the deceased Jim Garrison in his book "On the Trails of Assassins" documenting events leading up to the events of the Kennedy asassination that Oliver Stone made a movie of.

I've now read book three (The Secret Lovers) in the seven-part Paul Christopher series, and I think it is the best so far -- a good mystery as much as it was a good spy novel. I disagree with those who say this book is tedious. It needs virtually no action because the cat-and-mouse descriptions of the various players chasing each other around through their various feints just keeps teasing your curiosity about who done it. The story of Carolos in the latter pages was fabulous. Solid 4 stars.

Plotted with intricacy, this spy story has interesting and attractive characters, convincing detail, and tone in its characters' speeches that takes the reader to the time and locale.

found this book in the dollar section of the local library charity bin, lost it on the plane, went through security to retrieve it, and that was after 25 pages. secret lovers, seductive title for my bookcase, but once you understand the secrets are spies, and real ones, the lovers and what their need for secrets create has stayed with me for years, images constant, and i see daniel craig as paul christopher, too bad for the timing, but still looking for my cathy. this gives dinner party talk a new spin, kennedy conspiracy and the gulag! and i believe it ...

As much as I enjoyed Old Boys and Ghosts, I just couldn't get past the dreadful Cathy. Paul Christopher's first love age 16 (Rima)had character, brains and nerve. Christopher's choice of Cathy, a neurotic, rather stupid, slutty mess, simply doesn't ring true.

The Secret Lovers by McCarry is a cold-eyed but fully engaged odessey of love, the emotional and analytical paths of betrayal and its unraveling, and the imitation of life that is tradecraft.

If you found a lifetime of enjoyment in LeCarre's Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (i.e., if you re-read it every few years just to spend a day with an old friend) you will find the same kind of unforgetable stories and characters in this novel, only a few more of them, and most of them a little more developed.

McCarry's literary voice (think Scott Fitzgerald to LeCarre's Dickens), his empathic but not the least bit co-dependent connection to his characters, and his ability to remind us that his complete novel is just a few weeks in their busy lives, reminds us that greatness is a quantum leap from the ordinary.

The Secret Lovers will stand with Tinker Tailor, and with Erje Ayden's almost unknown Sadness at Leaving, as a masterpiece of a time that is both past and, like the human needs for conflict and resoltion, timeless.

This is a book for those for whom printed words on a page have far more power than images on a screen, or probably, for the recorded voice reading them aloud.

This is the clearest, most user-friendly explanation of the differences between Bible translations that I have found. I heartily recommend it. Whatever the reader's background and level of experience, an article here will help them understand how Bible translators work and think, and how that process affects the Bible they read. Beginning with the simplest, easiest-to-understand explanation of the difference between essentially literal and dynamic equivalence translations, the book gradually increases in difficulty, with the final article providing details for those who are already familiar and are more analytical. Of special interest is the case study of the translation of 1 John.

I long have been a supporter of the literal translation (or as the English Standard Version puts it "essentially literal."). Having been a disciple of Jesus Christ since 1992, I first grew in grace (2 Peter 3:18) using the NIV along with many others. The church I attended, however, used the New King James Version. The NIV and the NKJV were world's apart! Then I attended Bible college where the required Bible was the New American Standard (NASB). Again I found the NIV, the NASB, and the NKJV to be vastly different.

In 1996 the New Living Translation came on the scene. At the time I was a youth pastor and begin to use the NLT to teach the teens. However, I soon found the New Living Transltion to be very free in its translation and it just didn't seem biblical.

Have you felt the way I felt? Many Christians get confused with so many different Bible translations now on the market in the English language. While millions of disciples in China long for one Bible, we have hundreds in many different styles. In fact far too often the Bibles in America represent lifestyles rather than God's truth. We have come a long way from the days of a literal translation such as the King James Version in 1611 to now dynamic equivalent's such as the NIV or the New Living. What we need is some wisdom on what Bible translation is best.

This book is such a book. TRANSLATING TRUTH offers a look not only at the English Standard Version (ESV) but also all literal translations such as the New American Standard, the New English Translation (NET), or the New King James. It helps you to see why an essentially literal Bible is the best. It offers a candid look at the NIV and the New Living and why they simply are not good translations.

Overall this is a solid work and features some great writers such as Wayne Grudem, Leland Ryken, and John Collins. Your knowledge of the Bible will grow and you will won't to purchase a literal translation when you are done.

Grudem and company, have done us a favor in taking on the issue of correctness and obedience to ethical norms in Bible translations.

The 'dynamic-equivalents', such as The Message by Peterson, fall short of the
litmus test. They divulge the author's lack of respect for God's inspired Word, and lack of faithfulness to its purity.

The literal, word-for-word versions have a strong case for upholding the perfect, completed Word of God.

'And in terms of the history of English Bible translations, dynamic equivalence is almost wholly a modern phenomenon.' pg 63

And, no dramatics are called for from the pulpit. Definitely no scripture twisting.

If you are interested in Bible translation then this book will be of great interest. Yes the writers firmly have the ESV in mind but i do not think that in any way clouds their argument.
This puts the case for a literal word for word English Bible translation. They use many examples, argue fairly and make many interesting points. The book reads well for such a technical (at times) discussion. They acknowledge that all English Bibles are in some ways interpretations but their case is; lets try and minimize our input and leave the reader to make their minds up as to meanings and ambiguities.

If you are of the opinion that the Bible is the word of God then by the time you have read this book you may have some strong feelings about such translations such as The Message, the NLT and such like. regardless of what "camp" you may be in this is a challenging read and well worth the effort.

When demonstrating what they consider the inferior translation methodology (dynamic or functional) the writers zero in on the New Living Translation. The problem is that their criticisms (some of which I heartily agree with) applies to the older edition of the text. The NLT was updated in 2004 and this book was released in 2005!! I understand that when the book was authored the criticism applied, but since its publication, the NLT has been replaced in most stores by the 2004 edition. The newer edition has made a number of improvements in light of the criticism when it first appeared. Therefore this book's arguements are already dated when it was released. They should have relized this and went back and changed the references to the NLT. One wonders how much changing would need to be done in order to make their criticisms applicable to the newer NLT. Maybe because the changes would be so extensive that they went ahead and released this book anyway. It is a moot point, the book's criticism's against the older NLT edition is no longer applicable. People are updating their copy of the NLT with the newer 2004 edition!

Initially, this book is very alluring. Now, i'm not one to "dog on" anything affiliated with the legendary icon, Gene Kelly... However, this book is less than PERFECT. It contains many wonderful pictures, as well as commentary(nowadays, the "bare-minimum requirements of any "celebrity tribute" book), but lacks in-depth information about the artist. In that sense, this "celebration" does not do Mr. Kelly justice. Mr. Kelly is great, the jem of americana. Sadly, this book is only half as pristine.

I am so ecstatic that they finally have a book out there all about Gene Kelly.. The pictures are great. It's well worth your time to order it.. I am such a HUGE fan of Gene Kelly, he is the ultimate cure for the blues, him and chocolate Forever sigin' In The Rain.. :o)

This book is a must for all Gene Kelly fans. It has wonderful pictures of him, and allows you insight into his life. This book describes the making of each movie that he made. Buy this book, and I'm sure you won't regret it.

I really thought this book was great! If you are a Gene Kelly fan this book is for you. It has little tid bits about Gene that a fan would want to know. Gene Kelly- A Celebration mostly talks about the movies Gene made and his contributions to the movies. Great pictures also. I highly recommend buying this book.

The other reviewers have said what I am going to say: There just is not enough about Gene Kelly's life in this book. It's a little TOO "celebratory". Any conflicts that arise between him and others at the time are glossed over as Kelly doing no wrong. Some of his failures are presented as if they did not create a problem for the star, yet anyone who has lived on this planet (so then everyone) KNOWS that Kelly's failures and difficulties were probably not as ho-hum as the authors would like us to believe. In their attempt to be respectful of the venerable star, they take us sometimes for fools who have not experienced life. I'm only two-thirds of the way through the book, but it does not seem to me they are going to mention the fact that Kelly kept Michael Kidd from becoming more than he could have been, speculated by some to be the result of jealousy and insecurity about the competition Kidd offered. Also, several of Kelly's famous dance numbers are referred to as "the most remembered", "his biggest", "his most famous", "his daringest", etc. Well, they can't ALL be that. This indulgence in hyperbole is reminiscent of a "That's Entertainment" film. The photographs are wonderful, but the book's layout creates an awkardly cumbersome book that is too heavy for what it contains, and just doesn't "fit" well on your lap when reading in bed, nor does it carry around well when moving from room to room in your house on a lazy Saturday when trying to enjoy your book. I know that seems petty, but reading is an entire experience with a definite ritual. The shape of this book interferes with that coffee-and-pajamas-on-the-couch ritual. It's just too heavy and could have been easily condensed into something smaller and more manageable. Nitpicking aside, read this if you are a Kelly fan. It's a delightful journey back in time.