Stone Books

Finally an Owners Manual for Oriental Rugs

This book is aboutmuch more than repairing Oriental Rugs. It is an indispensable ownersguide. Of all the most common questions people ask me about rugs Stoneanswers them in an easy to understand and easy to follow fashion. Howdo you hang a rug on a wall? It is in there. How do I get a stain outof my rug? Whether it is urine (a frequent question from pet owners)to asphalt Stone tells you what you need to save your rug. Stonecovers such topics as "when to repair" or insectdamage. Stone guides us through the problem in a way any of us canhandle it with ease...when I tell you that this book is the best bookin the field it is because after years of study I know what I amtalking about. The thing I like about this book is that Stone gives usa depth of detail found no where else. For instance when it comes tospills do you clean up calamine lotion the same way you clean upAftershave lotion? No, two different processes and not knowing whichone to use can ruin your rug.

What about the actual repair part? Iwill freely admit that I have no intention of ever repairing mycarpets or anyone else's but with this book I could. But even moreimportantly for me is with the information in this book I canunderstand what the repair person purposes when I take a rug in. I canat least nod knowingly when the repairman uses terms like rewarding orreknoting. By the way my brother Jim was textile conservator and he isthe one who gave me my first edition of this book when I was juststarting to study in the field. Jim told me this book was so good theywould never need another. Jim was wrong this second edition is evenbetter than the first.

Should you buy this book? If you own anOriental Carpet then the answer is yes. This is the indispensableinformation that every consumer needs... An owners manual forOriental Rugs

Best wishes,

J. Barry O'Connell Jr.

Thank goodness this is an excellent book, since there are very few others on this topic. Stone's recent Oriental Rug Lexicon is also excellent (and once again essentially unique in English).

This is the most important book on oriental rug repair and restoration in print. Full of illustrations Peter Stone gives the reader a step by step guide to the repair of oriental rugs.
There is also a lot to offer in this volume about basic oriental rug care. Recommended to anyone who owns a rug as well as to those have the time to venture into rug repair techniques.
There is a lot about basic rug repair that this book helps to demystify. I cannot tell you how many people I have known let selvage damage go until it affected the body of their rug rather than trying their hand at simple whip stitching. For those of you who fall into this catagory this book will give you the needed confidence.
I believe even the skilled restorer will benefit from this book.
The book is dedicated to Maury Bynum one of the true giants of oriental rug restoration.
Highly recommended.

it is an exellent book with simply technical explications and very practical. to repeat the words"it's a bible on the subject", but the photos are very "blurred" what I think is a pity... the editor of the book should do something about this problem! 5 stars for the text!!! zero for the quality of the photos

Dr. Stone has provided an invaluable window into the current state of Japanese scholarship around the issues of orignal enlightenment teachings (hongaku shiso) and its role in the formation of Kamakuran Buddhism and Nichiren Buddhism in particular. I believe that she quite successfully brings out the complexities of this teaching and shows that it does not necessarily lead to antinomian conclusions and that it was not summarily rejected by the founders of Kamakuran Buddhism including Nichiren. The chapter on Nichiren in this book could also stand alone as an excellent guide to Nichiren's teachings and practice. She shows that there is much more to Nichiren Buddhism than vainly repeating the Sino-Japanese title of the Lotus Sutra in order to gain worldly benefits. She really brings out the depth and profundity of Nichiren Buddhism. This book, however, is not an apologetic for Nichiren Buddhism or even for original enlightenment teachings. Dr. Stone maintains a very objective and impartial stance throughout the book (which could be disturbing to those for whom this religion and these issues are literally a matter of life and death). She provides both the pros and the cons of the issues that she addresses. She is not so much providing a new theory about Nichiren Buddhism or original enlightenment so much as she is attempting to show that original enlightenment and its impact on Japanese Buddhism needs to be reevaluated and that the issues are far from black-and-white. I would highly recommend this book to serious scholars of Japanese Buddhism and to those who want to delve more deeply into the current state of scholarship in Japan surounding Nichiren Buddhism. This is not, however, a book for those who want simple answers to simple questions, or who want a primer on Nichiren Buddhism. For those hard core Nichiren Buddhists and scholars who want to find out the real truth about Nichiren Buddhism and the development of the Nichiren tradition, this book is worth every penny of its rather steep price tag.

Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, Ryuei Michael McCormick

Is Enlightenment something that we acquire? Or are we really Enlightened already and just have to realize that? Is Enlightenment something that will take us uncounted ages to achieve? Or can we achieve Enlightenment in this life and in this body? Such were some of the key issues of Medieval Japanese Buddhism. Some of the most popular conclusions, that we are Enlightened already, i.e. are Originally Enlightened, and that we can achieve Enlightenment in this life and in this body, remain both popular and controversial even today. Jacqueline Stone takes us into the little known world of the Tendai temples and hermitages on Mt. Hiei, the stately mountain above Kyoto, where much of the doctrine of Original Enlightenment thought was developed -- and whence it spread to the famous founders of Kamakura Buddhism, including Honen and Nichiren. Stone gives us a panorama of what was going on, what we known about it (not enough), and the long history of what happened and the debates that continue down to the present, debates that involve scholars, sectarian apologists, and the religious practice of many people, not just in Japan, but around the world. A fundamental book for one of the great, and still growing, religious traditions in the world.

This book was pretty weighty - real live scholarly work, rather than simple sectarian gloss. I particularly enjoyed the way Professor Stone placed the religious leaders of the time into their proper historical context and showed the way the traditions cross-pollenated with each other. The part on Nichiren was most informative, and gave an objective perspective on the events which occurred after Nichiren's death. Cool pictures of lots of mandalas, too.

Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese Buddhism by Jacqueline Ilyse Stone (Studies in East Asian Buddhism, No. 12: University of Hawaii Press) Being recognized as a major study in Buddhist studies and recognized as one of the best religious studies books of 2000, Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese Buddhism represents some important historical and conceptual clarifications of perennial themes in Mahayana Buddhism.
From flyleaf: Original enlightenment thought (hongaku shiso) dominated Buddhist intellectual circles throughout Japan's medieval period. Enlightenment, this discourse claims, is neither a goal to be achieved nor a potential to be realized but the true status of all things. Every animate and inanimate object manifests the primordially enlightened Buddha just as it is. Seen in its true aspect, every activity of daily life?eating, sleeping, even one's deluded thinking?is the Buddha's conduct. Emerging from within the powerful Tendai school, ideas of original enlightenment were appropriated by a number of Buddhist traditions and influenced nascent theories about the kami (local deities) as well as medieval aesthetics and the literary and performing arts.
Scholars and commentators have long recognized the historical importance of original enlightenment thought but differ heatedly over how it is to be understood. Some tout it as the pinnacle of the Buddhist philosophy of absolute nondualism. Others claim to find in it the paradigmatic expression of a timeless Japanese spirituality. According to other readings, it represents a dangerous antinomianism that undermined observance of moral precepts, precipitated a decline in Buddhist scholarship, and denied the need for religious discipline. Still others denounce it as an authoritarian ideology that, by sacralizing the given order, has in effect legitimized hierarchy and discriminative social practices. Often the acceptance or rejection of original enlightenment thought is seen as the fault line along which traditional Buddhist institutions are to be differentiated from the new Buddhist movements (Zen, Pure Land, and Nichiren) that arose during Japan's medieval period.
Jacqueline Stone's groundbreaking study moves beyond the treatment of the original enlightenment doctrine as abstract philosophy to explore its historical dimension. Drawing on a wealth of medieval primary sources and modern Japanese scholarship, it places this discourse in its ritual, institutional, and social contexts, illuminating its importance to the maintenance of traditions of lineage and the secret transmission of knowledge that characterized medieval Japanese elite culture. It sheds new light on interpretive strategies employed in premodern Japanese Buddhist texts, an area that hitherto has received little attention. Through these and other lines of investigation, Stone problematizes entrenched notions of "corruption" in the medieval Buddhist establishment. Using the examples of Tendai and Nichiren Buddhism and their interactions throughout the medieval period, she calls into question both overly facile distinctions between "old" and "new" Buddhism and the long?standing scholarly assumptions that have perpetuated them. This study marks a significant contribution to ongoing debates over definitions of Buddhism in the Kamakura era (1185-1333) , long regarded as a formative period in Japanese religion and culture. Stone argues that "original enlightenment thought" represents a substantial rethinking of Buddhist enlightenment that cuts across the distinction between "old" and "new" institutions and was particularly characteristic of the medieval period.

Reviewed by Patty Inglish for Reader Views (4/07)

The free verse in this book of poetry is startling. It is beautiful and covers nearly all aspects imaginable of any woman's life. Some aspects are still rather unmentionable in Western society so it is good to be startled by the subject matter of this volume and the uncanny structure of the pieces included in it. The verses contain strong imagery while some are images in themselves, designed to flow down the pages in pictures and designs made up of phrases. These images and words are powerful throughout and provided by a wide array of ages among Japanese female poets. Some published their first works in the early 1950s and others are quite new in comparison. All have something vital to say.

This collection of verse is quite surprising in its breadth of subject matter. The dedication reads: "to our mothers and teachers," and gives Japanese women and all women a modern voice with more to say than in previous generations and this time, translated in English. This opens an almost mystic door to the consideration of subjects some Western women have avoided, but perhaps can now embrace and examine. Poetry is an effective venue for crossing boundary lines, as shown by the Beat Generation of the 1950s-60s and Hip Hop poets of today. Truth cannot be ignored but it is easier to face through a doorway that is beautiful

The introduction of "Other Side River" describes Japanese poetry historically and the emergence of women poets. Geishas have a long history of writing poetry as part of their art and profession, but the free verse of "Other Side River" is not quite like those types of poems. These women poets are not Geishas and there is no white make-up and wig to hide anything about them. They are more realistic and strongly voiced in confronting the truth and the human condition, including relationships between men and women in Japanese society - perhaps all society. These poems feel like jazz at times and at other times seem surreal. Then there are interspersed among them, verses of stark reality, some of nostalgia and longing, even of death and sorrow, and other works that form actual pictures on the pages. It is riveting as a whole.

Several poems are displayed with the English translation beside the Japanese original, in Roman letters. This is a fascinating structure, allowing the reader to read the poem in both languages. Even though I know only a few words of Japanese, reading the original language provided me with additional poetic rhythm, flow, and even emotional value. My favorites of the verses in this book are those that are rather experimental visual poetry, such as "Vase," -- the words of which are arranged to form the image of a vase on the page. Another favorite is "Living Thing," which pictures trails of letters forming phrases and sentences just below the title in order to look like literary tentacles of a man o'war.

In the back of the book is a list of the authors and a short biography of each and all are interesting. Aside from lives as poets, some of these gifted women are embroidery artists, illustrators, novelists, painters, PhDs, teachers, and translators. The poets of this book also include those who have been in Japan's "untouchables" class, lesbian poets, Korean-Japanese poets, and even Japanese poets writing in English as their second language. I have found in the East, that poetry is an expressive art form used by many people from all lifestyles, and that a poet is usually accomplished in other arts, literary forms, and professions. In fact, I have found these poets to be decidedly multitalented. The experiences from their occupations and vocations enter into their poems, which are like gold refined through fire over and over until the refiner creates a small amount of a material that is priceless. It is also like a piece of coal on which the pressures of life have exerted themselves with such force as to create a flawless diamond. This is the difference, in my mind, between outstanding poetry of the type offered in "Other Side River" and, say, a philosophical book.

The poems in "Other Side River" should be read by anyone interested in free verse and diversity of poetry types and author backgrounds. The free verse will be enjoyed by readers attracted to the Far East, as well as those interested in women's studies and the global human condition.

From an editor, poet and reader There are no Madam Butterflys in this book. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyama have gathered together, edited and translated an amazing collection of contemporary Japanese women's poetry in other side river. Very prominent on the cover and title page are the words FREE VERSE, and free it is. No one is singing "Un bel di.." in this group. Until now my view of Japanese women was confined to Korosawa's movies and Puccini's heart-rending melodies. What an awakening! Nobody is bowing and smiling, giggling and shuffling among this crew. There may be songs of fleeting love, of disappointment, of nostalgia, even a lament after an abortion-- Hiromi Ito's "Killing Kanoko", but these are modern women expressing themselves in an open, bold and incredibly brave fashion, expressing themselves in songs of protest, triumph, love, survival and on a variety of subjects in a unique way. These are women from every province, from every walk of life. Some embrace the counter culture, some write in more traditional ways but each poet has a distinctive voice, a recognizable style and makes a strong, vibrant contribution to the whole. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyamo have gifted not only women, but what is more important, the life of poetry wherever it may breath.

This beautiful collection surprised me with its depth and breadth. The poetry of Japanese women of all ages and backgrounds comes together in this landmark anthology in clear, poetic translations. What's more (thankfully), there are no geisha or shrinking violets to be found in its pages. Rather, this is a flowering of contemporary women poets from the famous to the virtually unknown, including a range of powerful, strong poems from those whose voices haven't been heard before in English translation. Korean-Japanese poets, Ainu poets, poets from Japan's "Untouchable" caste, lesbian poets, poets writing in English (not their native tongue!) and others are some of the diverse talents blooming here. From the surrealistic to the realistic, from the prose poem to the jazz riff, from experimental visual poetry to confessional chants, this brave and beautiful anthology delights upon each re-reading. A sample from its pages is:

"Attica Blues/Archie Shepp":
Chained in the bottomless marshpond/
I dye my body as black as possible/
Tomorrow I'll be blacker than today./
The days stand on unreasonableness,/
Historical questions crushed under their feet./

But I don't stop protesting/
Even though I can't move when I'm held down/
Even if my last blessing was the sound of my twisted neck,/
I'd make you listen from underground.--by Harumi Makino Smith

From an editor, poet and reader There are no Madam Butterflys in this book. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyama have gathered together, edited and translated an amazing collection of contemporary Japanese women's poetry in other side river. Very prominent on the cover and title page are the words FREE VERSE, and free it is. No one is singing "Un bel di.." in this group. Until now my view of Japanese women was confined to Korosawa's movies and Puccini's heart-rending melodies. What an awakening! Nobody is bowing and smiling, giggling and shuffling among this crew. There may be songs of fleeting love, of disappointment, of nostalgia, even a lament after an abortion-- Hiromi Ito's "Killing Kanoko", but these are modern women expressing themselves in an open, bold and incredibly brave fashion, expressing themselves in songs of protest, triumph, love, survival and on a variety of subjects in a unique way. These are women from every province, from every walk of life. Some embrace the counter culture, some write in more traditional ways but each poet has a distinctive voice, a recognizable style and makes a strong, vibrant contribution to the whole. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyamo have gifted not only women, but what is more important, the life of poetry wherever it may breath.

I purchased this for my 7 year old granddaughter - we both enjoyed it! The book includes paints and a rock. Instructions include how to mix the paints for different colors and a myriad of examples and inspirations. If the stone you found does not already suggest something, there are many examples of things you can paint: one side says 'Turn me over' the reverse says 'Thank you'. I have found most Klutz books to be easy to follow and lots of fun. Great pictures!

I used this book as inspiration for a project with the grades 3-5 crafts class I teach at my daughter's school -- it was a LOT of fun! I told the kids it would be the "hardest" project we'd ever work on ;) Instead of using the included paints we used numerous little 2 oz bottles of acrylic paint, which were really inexpensive, more colorful and gave the rocks a wonderful look. While the kids flipped through the book for ideas, the room was filled with lots of "Oh, cool" and "Oooooh!" and "Awesome!" remarks. So many choices, so little time! This was a neat project with great results from the kids. I began several rocks myself and I'm just as hooked! With a virtually endless supply of free or inexpensive "canvas" around and a comparable bounty of ideas, this book can lead you to limitless fun creations. A+

Super choice for a stocking stuffer. Let your child use their imagination. My son loves rocks, and loves art, so this was a number one choice for us. I also reccomend "Pipe Cleaners Gone" and "A Look Inside Dinosaurs".

This book was used in an art class that my daughter was in. She loved it so much that I am going to order it for us. The truth is I got to paint a rock too, and I am dying to do more. It has great illustrations with lots of ideas.

The title makes it pretty self-explanatory. The first one was very cute, with all the different islands. this one takes off with Pete and his pirate sitting in their rowboat after losing their ship. They make a deal with a mermaid to retrieve a jewel for her from Thunder Island, where a Giant is guarding it. Pete is still clever, but humorously flawed, often not paying attention to what the more alert parrot is trying to tell him. The illustrations are nicely done in lovely colors and there's enough mix of pirate for the boys and girly bits for the girls, so both genders of children will enjoy it.

My son loves all books about pirate Pete. He is in his pirate stage now, therefore we have a lot of pirate books. But about Pete are the favorite.

When my three year old son took an interest in Pirates, I was concerned about the violence in the topic. The Pirate Pete series are sweet books that lack the violence found in other pirate books. My son loves the series and so do I. Cute, cute, cute...

Pirate Pete's Giant Adventure by Kim Kennedy and featuring the illustrations of Doug Kennedy is a remarkable tale of a pirate named Pete and his ultimate journey to take hold of the Sea-Fairy Saffire in exchange for his very own ship. Encountering a multitude of treacherous enemies, including a quite frightful giant, Pirate Pete's Giant Adventure carries young readers through an engaging picturebook story of wit and intrigue as Pete's expert cunning and creative approach to piracy brings to his prize despite a rather gullible giant. An all-around fun story for young readers, Pirate Pete's Giant Adventure is very highly recommended for school and community library picturebook collections.

I was amazed at the effects that this book had on my Bird-brain. Our mind is only limited by our beliefs. The author backs up all of his assertions with facts and real life examples. Several mind-expanding accounts of people all over the world who are not limited by a "confined consensual reality". Changes your beliefs and your experiences will follow. I highly recommend reading this book.

Powers of Mind is brain candy. It is intuitive, original, and fascinating. One of the most informative and interesting books on the subject that I have read. The author lightens up normally dry reading with humor, sarcasm, and other literary devices. If you are interested in the extended issues of psychology, and parapsychology, then this book is a must read. Everything from LSD and "mind opening" experiences to ancient perspectives and interesting historical fact.s

One of the best non-fiction books to come out of the mid-1970s was this wonderful tongue-in-cheek exploration of a whole raft of different mind-expansion techniques by the best-selling author Adam Smith. From Rolfing to EST, Smith includes us in his often humorous attempts to gain genuine insight into how the human mind works, and how we can each individually overcome the limitations, liabilities, and lamentations associated with living with our minds. And, as Smith tells us again and again, your mind is not necessarily your friend.

Although he writes in a self-deprecating and quite comedic way, often he uses his wry and laser-sharp mind to show us things well worth knowing. Indeed, this book is not a throwaway effort, but is a very helpful and essential guide to a plethora of different philosophies, techniques, and modalities dealing with different ways of gaining further self-awareness. Smith asks himself if he really could, as is claimed by some adherents, learn to control his blood pressure, stifle headaches, or learn to pop himself into an alpha state? And by the way, he asks, what is an alpha state, and why do we want to achieve it? How useful is meditation, and what can it really do for us?

In reality, this is aground-breaking effort to introduce the field of consciousness psychology, of the whole field surrounding questions of the mind-body connection and how to approach getting involved. What makes sense and what doesn't become more apparent as we accompany Smith through adventures in Arica, or Transcendental Meditation, or what Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard refers to as the post-relaxation response. In an aside, Smith begins to question his own ideas about what is real and what is not, and the ways in which our own so-called reality paradigm predisposes us to seeing, interpreting, and experiencing the world around us in a particular way.

I found myself particularly astounded by his own experiences in a sensory deprivation tank, and how he seemed to experience out-of-body experiences associated with these excursions to the far reaches of consciousness exploration. I lost my only copy of the book in a fire last year, and just recently re-acquired another copy through the Amazon out-of-print book service. It is an unqualified joy to be re-reading it again after all this time. Do yourself a favor a get yourself a copy too. I know you will love reading it too. Enjoy!

5.5 stars

You will NEVER find a better deal on this site than Powers Of Mind for a penny.
This is one of the most underrated and unfairly forgotten books I can think of. When I found it in my Dad's library and read it at age 12, it changed the way I saw life and my mind and why I am on this planet.
Reading it 30 years later, it's just as powerful and enjoyable.
Smith is really George Goodman, a brilliant mind who wrote some of the best books on money and Wall St, including Paper Money and The Money Game. Here he turns his brilliant brain to the various modalities of consciousness expansion around in the mid-70s, the peak of such pursuits. From yoga to acid, biofeedback to tennis, sensory deprivation tanks to EST, and on and on, he checks it all out. What makes this book so enthralling and loveable is the author's constant awareness of multiple perspectives and his willingness to be deeply curious, wrong, and in awe, often all at once.
Smith calls it exactly as he sees it; if he thinks something or someone is a fraud, he gently points that out. If there is more to something or someone than meets the eye (a major theme), he evokes the mystery while never judging or discounting the "impossible". It's tough to write about the nebulous, but Smith does it in such an elegant way that you feel both smarter and happier every time you put down this book. He's also funny as hell at many points; imagine the 200-IQ uncle/grandfather/best friend you always wanted, and here he is.
Great writing can be like a drug in your brain, expanding and enlightening your basic take on the world as you read. This is just such a book.
I can not recommend this book highly enough. At a penny for a beautifully bound hardcover first edition, this is well beyond the no-brainer category. It's a full-brainer, and it'll be even fuller and happier once it's encountered this book.
God bless you, Mr, Goodman, wherever you are. You've made my life a lot more fun.

an excellent collection of rock photos from rolling stone
beautiful work

the best part was courtney love on the cover, and nirvana on the last page.

This is one of the best photographic books I have ever seen. The photographers who took these photos really captured the feeling and emotions of the artists at the time. All the classic and famous personalities of music are here, from Ike and Tina to Bob Dylan; from Elvis to Bowie to Nirvana; from The Beatles and Stones to Alice Cooper and all that lies between (too too many to list here). An excellent array of both black and white and colour shots. The close ups allow you to see into the sometimes troubled, sometimes happy, but ever changing eyes of these rock icons. The broader shots show some of these bands and performers in their most comfortable and bizarre surrounds. A worthwhile purchase, that allows you to ponder each and every photo for hours and hours. In the back is a complete copy (small version) of the photos together with a who is who. Buy the hardcover; not only is it worth the price, but it will last forever. This is easily the greatest and most comprehensive collection of rock and roll pictures in one publication!

This book is excellent. It made me jelous that I couldn't experience the atmosphere of the time. The stars in the pictures range from Jerry Garcia to Iggy Pop, from Jimmy Hendrix to Dr. Dre. The photography is awesome. It really captures the attitdue of the musician. I would recommend this book to any one impressed by the talent of these outstanding artists. I am 18 and I loved the book. My dad is 50 and liked the book just as much!!!!!

I seeked this book out for my mother (class of 78) and i found myself amazed at all the coverage the book had about her century. Each chapter was writen about each year and within those chapters you were filled with pictures quotes (from the people who lived the time) as well a time line (breaking down each current event within that year)!! It was so great i was caught on the train reading it and i was stopped by people who were breath taken from the pictures.

Its funny how the wheels where turned. I not only gave the book to my mother but i bought one for myself. At the moment i am still on the quest for searching more books like this, but ofcourse this time in my decade (90's)

Rolling Stone the Seventies by Kahn et al. admirably distills the current and past thoughts of many of the influential 70s writers, and a range of participants from politicians to musicians. It is too bad there is no accompanying CD or CD-ROM to go along with the book.

The collection -- mostly essays and pictures, places the 70s in a nicely printed coffee table book. Marginal notes including timeline reference the dramatic movement through the decade. As a reference or a momentary revival of the period, the book provides content and layout that no other book contains.

The wild, disillusioning, violent, and tragic face of the 1970's is covered in seventy (how apropos!) essays ranging from writers, entertainers, journalists, people connected with the entertainment industry, and more. Together, they bring about an exhaustively covered retrospective composite of that decade.

Self-expression and the alarming gung-hoism of the US is recounted by Chrissie Hynde, who was a freshman at Kent State on that fateful day in 1970. To her, it was "inexperienced people put in chrage of events they didn't know how to handle," but she lists Sinead O'Connor being booed by Dylan fans for her political slap at the pope on TV, realizing how self-expression has become suppressed in the name of patriotism.

The redemption of the South is told in essays about the resurgence of Southern rock, e.g. the Allman Brothers, and Jimmy Carter's winning the Oval Office. His advisor Hamilton Jordan defends Carter by his tackling tough issues Nixon or Ford refused to touch, such as the Panama Canal treaty, SALT, and the Middle East peace process, but was sunk by bad luck (the price of oil, the shah's ouster).

Nothing new is revealed in Dan Rather's essay on Watergate. Yes, that scandal fostered a deep cynicism and skepticism in journalism and among the people in politics. It was the American people who decided Nixon's fate, but the legacy of that is what do people do when confronted with similar guilt from a politician or celebrity? Do they want objective truth, or do they want something splashed out sensationalistically, with a "gate" suffix attached?

The music acts/artists covered here are David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, The Who, The Eagles, and Fleetwood Mac. The portion covering the Eagles is an interview with Don Henley and Glenn Frey, and something Henley said struck me as embodying what the 70's was. Henley lists the 70's as an attitude of disillusionment that the love-one-another ideal of the 60's didn't pan out and how a self-centered, self-concerned, materialistic mindset arose from the late 70's. Still, Glenn Frey does argue that the 70's gave some great names in music.

Fleetwood Mac carved their name into rock legend status with Rumours, and the essay on them is written by Mick Fleetwood's ex-wife Jenny Boyd, who writes about the breakups and affairs that were going on during the making of the album and how they affected her personally.

The essay that really drew me was Mikal Gilmore on his reaction to his brother Gary Gilmore, who became the first men executed after the Supreme Court made capital punishment constitutional after years of review, and the ethics of life and death in the Karen Ann Quinlan case. And disabled veteran Ron Kovic's quote on Vietnam rings true today: "a war ain't over until you don't have to live with it anymore."

Film critic Peter Travers says he hates what Star Wars led to: the spate of sequelitis, cross-merchandise marketing, and soulless sci-fi movies like Starship Troopers. SW also rode the crest during a brief time (1976-1978) when it looked like things would be better, as Don Henley also thought. But it was also an escapist thriller, something needed after Vietnam and Watergate, something simpler, exciting, and yet innovative.

There's also a chronological timeline by day listed in the margins, listing events as groundbreaking as Nixon's resignation to what song and album were at the top of the Billboard charts and what were the year's biggest movies, albums, and books. Mostly a pop culture stance on the Me Decade, but with asides to issues still relevant today.

I'd had about as much ironic 70's redux as I could take; maybe that's why this book was such a pleasure to read. That and the fact that it exceeded all expectations that the Rolling Stone imprimatur conferred. This is a collection of essays by people who were there and have something to say about what they saw. The perspective is intimate but the observations-- especially if you were a teenager then as I was-- are universal. Patty Hearst, Ali, Nam, Zep, Nixon, Evel Knievel, disco, Dr. J., it all came jumping off the page. Many of the decade's Who's Who-- Dan Rather, Chrissie Hynde (present at Kent State!), John Milius, Hamilton Jordan, Joan Baez-- are not just subjects; they're essayists! Oh and by the way, the photos alone are worth the price of the entire book.

As informative as anything I read as an Ivy League history major and as good company as my high school party pals. If you lived it or if you want to find out how we got where we are then you must read this book.

THIS BOOK IS MOST ENJOYABLE READING, BUT EVEN MORE SO TO VIEW THOSE PAINTINGS BY REEVES SHOWING THESE GREAT RACE HORSES. AND THE STORIES BEHIEND HIS PAINTINGS.

"George Stubbs, a Briton was the 18th century's great painter of horses. In the 20th century it is Richard Stone Reeves (RSR), an American " - The New York Times.

Take a look at the prices for RSR's signed prints on one of the online auctions--Sports artist Leroy Neiman doesn't even come close! You could get a Secretariat bobble-head doll for less than half of what you would pay for an RSR print of the same horse.

As befits royalty, most of the oil paintings in this book show the Thoroughbred classically posed, head up, one leg slightly in advance of the other. Swaps is walking away from the viewer, and Damascus and Forego are in full flight in their respective paintings, but most of the subjects stand regally still--either because RSR doesn't like to work from photographs, or because that's what the owner commissioned.

Aside from some commentary on each painting and its subject by RSR, renowned 'Derbyologist' Jim Bolus (who unfortunately died of a heart attack in 1997) provides most of the text about the Thoroughbreds whose portraits are included in this book. They range from the incomparable Man o'War, Citation, Secretariat, and Ruffian (to mention a few) through the not-quite-so-famous Hansel, Fly So Free, and Tabasco Cat, who are still standing at stud. A few English and European Thoroughbreds are also added to the mix. Bolus narrates the history and some interesting anecdotes about each of these fifty beautiful race horses. There are also black-and-white photographs of each horse, a three-generation pedigree, and (more occasionally) a line drawing.

"Royal Blood" comes in a slip-case and Irish linen cover and would make a beautiful gift for your resident horse-lover (that's how I got mine). Hurry though--the price is bound to go up as it has for all of RSR's books.

Richard Stone Reeves is one of the best equine artists of all time with a career that has spanned five decades and hundreds of great horses. His beautiful portraits truly capture the indominable spirit of these champion runners.

Collected in this volume are portraits of many of the best horses he has painted in his long career. Many of these portraits hang in private collections and are reproduced for the first time in this book. Also included are sketches and photographs used in the process of creating the portraits and Mr. Reeves' own comments about the horses and people involved.

Although the gorgeous portraits would be enough to make you want this book, you also get complete historical profiles and pedigree information about each horse from the award winning turf writer Jim Bolus who passed away in May 1997. Considered by most to have been the foremost expert on the Kentucky Derby, Mr. Bolus' commentary provides an excellent addition to the artwork.

This book is a must-have for any racing fan and a valuable reference on the champions of the sport.

As always, Reeves' paintings and sketches of the finest Thoroughbreds are stunning. The background information and behind-the-scenes stories make this the perfect book for any Thoroughbred or racing enthusiast.

I haven't done the projects, but have worked a little with a loom. This is a good, basic book, written in the 70's. I think it's a good start, but am more used to real photographs and color diagrams, which this is lacking. I'd recommend it for someone who is really into this kind of beadwork and is artistic, which I'm not.

Extraordinarily complete, this volume features closeup photos that demonstrate exactly how the stitches and wire work is done. Very helpful, for anyone of any level - even advanced or expert beaders who may yet be vague about certain aspects of their craft.

I thought the book was educational as the pictures and text were easy to follow. Many different projects to work on.

Excellent! You'll love it. If you're a novice beader it's a wealth of information that's clear and concise. If you're an accomplished beader it can only add to your already vast knowledge. Unusual among craft books, beading books in particular, due to it's large, clear, step-by-step pictures.