Sherman Books

From Foreword:

"In lending New York's Asia House Gallery this selection of 47 of its finest Chinese ink paintings, The Cleveland Museum of Art provides the residents of our seaboard cities with a rare opportunity to survey one of man's greatest achievements in the arts. Some connoisseurs declare that the Chinese people have produced the most sophisticated and most profound body of painting that the world has ever known. However, the West is still very little acquainted with it and some of our Western art-lovers may still be surprised at this high estimate of its comparative greatness.

Through this exhibition, the whole story of China's genius in painting is not told. As with Europe, her painters used color as well as black and white. Dr. Lee has chosen her black-and-white work as more revelatory of her culture, which he explains in his introduction."

From Introduction:

"..as early as 847 one of the greatest of all Chinese historians of painting, Chang Yen-yan, could say in his 'Li Tai Ming Hua Chi,' 'one can furnish (a painting) with all the five colours by...ink (alone),' a statement accepted as gospel by the later Chinese painters and writers. ....

....One cannot possibly overestimate the importance of calligraphy in the origins of Chinese painting. The written word, or rather idea-character, was of inestimable value to the Chinese. Through writing one could enter the realm of the classics, the world of literature, and from there into the world of the scholar-official, someone who really mattered. Reason combined with knowledge made the ideal man; and calligraphy, together with the more specialized subject of painting, was the mans by which this ideal character was expressed. The scholar-painter was never more alive and a part of past, present, and future than when he applied ink to paper to silk with his brush. Since one designed and wrote a character with the care demanded by art and one's own personality, it was natural to think in terms of ink and brush. The written character, derived from the pictogram, was a sign, an idea made into a work of art, whether composed of one or 64 strokes. Holding the same brush, using the same ink on the same ground before a real or imaginary landscape, the artist could not approach nature as other than a concept, an abstraction in black and white."

This book is well-written comprehensive discussion of complex litigation and advanced topics in Civil Procedure. It is a "must read" for anyone who wants a thorough understanding of class actions. While the book focuses on aggregation-- there is also an in-depth treatment of conflicts between the state and federal courts and MDL. I was lucky enough to have Professor Sherman as a professor and I can say that his personality comes out in this casebook (which is a very, very good thing)!

I have had the privilege of hearing Gary's presentation in Skykomish; he definately knows his stuff. I myself have poured thru source documents at the Coroner's (now Medical Examiner)office & others... and a wealth of information is available on the subject.
Go to Skykomish, walk thru the 3 mile tunnel (beware critters!); it's Northwest history par excellance!

I cannot believe that this title along with "Random Factor" is out of print. At a time (the mid to late 80s) when science fiction was becoming nothing but wizards, dragons, and magic,
Joel Henry Sherman was practically a lone voice to keep alive the legacy of Asimov, Clarke, Niven, and Bradbury. If you love
solid SF, get a copy of this excellent novel; and petition
Ballantine to re-publish both outstanding books. JHS, come back
soon !

This is the story of Sherman, a young sheep who feels himself getting too old to hang around with the young lambs, and is looking for something more. Having grown up in the Good Shepherd's flock, he has now made friends with sheep from other flocks, and their tales of the fun that they have found on Pleasure Mountain make him dream of making the journey himself. And so, in spite of his father's warnings, he sets off to find out just what is at the top of that mountain. But, it is a journey that will take him through misadventures he has never dreamed of, and into dangers beyond his greatest fears. Will the Good Shepherd help him? Can he?

Christian literature has a wonderful tradition of allegorical stories, the most famous of which is John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress (unless you include C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia). Following in that great tradition is Dean Davis's Dangerous Journey of Sherman the Sheep. This book is written for tweens, nine- to twelve-year-olds, who are stretching their wings, and looking with wide eyes on a non-Christian/post-Christian world with many dangers and temptations.

Overall, I found this to be a charming book with a great lesson. But, don't get the idea that this book is baby stuff. The book uses allegory, but makes clear the dangers that a young person faces in the world. Overall, I think that this is a great book, one that should be given to all Christian parents with tweens, or youngsters approaching those tween years.

I have read Danielle the Duck and found it to be well written, well illustrated, and very inspirational. I think it is refreshing to see this kind of wholesome material in such an entertaining book. I would recommend it to anyone of any age. Being a parent doesn't come with a manual, and sometimes it is hard to know what to teach children. Wholesome understanding of the needs of others, even a duck, is important to us all.

In Vietnam, we often spoke of seeing the "wolf" while Civil War veterans saw the "elephant". While the canine and pachyderm can't fully describe combat, they symbolize the enigmatic aspect of it. Anyone who has been in combat can't describe it and neither can those who haven't been in combat understand it. Sherman Pratt's book comes closest to bridging that gap between understanding and explaining the unexplainable than any book I have read.

The Korean War was a cold, violent, physically demanding war for both sides. Pratt's thesis is that certain battles were watershed events that shaped the outcome of the war. Pratt's description of life on the front lines is accurate and gives the layman an idea of what it was like to fight the Chinese human wave attacks.

After serving in WWII in Africa and Europe, Pratt reported to the famed 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division and was told he could kick up his heels in a staff job. He volunteered to take a rifle company from the Naktong River line to North Korea and back south after the Chinese intervention.

I can find little fault with the book other than some typographical errors and with some illustrations. The photographs are excellent and while they are obviously snapshots, they depict war as it was in 1951. I felt some battles were not told in sufficient detail such as the Twin Tunnels battle but Pratt is obviously keeping with his theme of Decisive Battles of the Korean War.

Pratt has strong opinions about his fellow officers and is most charitable with his superiors who made grievous errors.

I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to know the infantryman's view of combat.

A great teaching or learning manual for PageMaker! I used this text teaching DTP and PM at a community college. It is well illustrated and has step-by-step instructions. Each lesson has labs that, if completed, will make you proficient in PM. The only drawback to the book is the changes to PM6.5. While the supplement covers the changes, some of the excercises cannot be completed as directed because they do not account for the changes. (for instance, the grid manager in PM6.5 is set up differently). PM6.5 Plus (newest release) has some additional features (such as a tool bar) that may require an additional supplement but can be figured out easily enough until it's available. Overall, a good, comprehensive book for beginners or intermediates.

Just want to note that there is a new book out showing the in depth construction of the Panama Canal. If you are one to be intrigued by engineering feets of yesteryear this book is for you. Great photos of BIG MACHINERY, old ships, and alot of dirt. Much information on the mechanics of digging a fifty mile ditch. Get this one for your library.

Over the years I've read many supposed-to-be-funny-and-clever little books about cats. This is because I live with a lot of cats and a lot of books, and people tend to think that if you like books and cats, then you certainly must find any book with "cat" in the title to be of significant interest. As a result, birthdays and holidays around here often end up looking like a collection site for a charity book sale drive.

And a lot of those little cat books DO end up going to charity, because frankly, quite a few are neither all that clever nor all that funny, in my opinion. There have been exceptions, but they are just that -- exceptions.

The Devious Book for Cats is one such exception. I received it the other day, and just flipping through and reading random sections left me laughing out loud. Really loud. Quite a few times. Given the current state of the economy and soaring prices for cat food and litter, I must tell you that I have not been in much of a laughing mood lately. The catnip budget around here has suffered quite a bit in recent months, just trying to put kibble on the table, you know. So this book is a welcome mood-brightener.

I like this book so much in fact, that I am ordering several more copies to send as holiday gifts. Anyone familiar with the feline lifestyle should find this book entertaining. The authors, Fluffy and Bonkers, have written an unusually creative, original and inventive guidebook.

And even though I am extremely busy these days watching birds out the window and napping, I am going to sit down on that book and absorb it more fully at my first opportunity.