Wang Books

i want to plug in the revolution (digital) to this book, in the style of mad libs.

meanwhile i haven't read camera lucida for a while.

The only disparaging thing I can say about this book is that it caused me to purchase a better dictionary.

I am somewhat stunned and dismayed by the negative reviews of this book. In fact, it has seem to elicit a sense of vitriol in some.

It is a brilliant book. How does one state simply such a complicated phenomenon. One doesn't. Those who rated this book so poorly biggest gripe was the complexity of the writing. Well - it is a complex topic. But, I think Barthes beautifully and deftly counters this complexity with his personal reflections. The book is both a critical assessment of photography and an emotional one as well, and this is what makes it so wonderful.

It is not wholly unexpected that most all the negative reviews of this book come late in the day - in the ever increasing time of sound-bites, instant pleasures and generally non-reflective immersion.

If you're thinking of reading this hoping for some insight on the creative process of the photographer, don't look to this ponderous, jargon-laden critique of "The Photograph". Barthes readily admits he's not a photographer and his viewpoint is only from side of the observer and the object. Barthes does offer a couple of intriguing ideas: the concepts of "studium" and "punctum," but since he seems to concentrate almost exclusively on photographs of human subjects (portraits and photojournalism), much of those ideas aren't as developed as they should be. Instead, he tries to explain why certain photographs evoke an emotional response (the punctum) in him. Of course, I may have misunderstood his point completely but not for want of trying. His esoteric use of existentialist terms makes it a tough read for those without a substantial education in philosophy. In any case, much of his critique has been overturned and made obsolete by the advent of digital photography (he explains early on that he doesn't have the patience to be a photography because he wants an instant result; there's nothing more instant than a digital photo) and digital photo manipulation (e.g. Photoshop).

Sorry to say, although Roland Barthes is an icon to some. This short book is self-indulgent, unintelligible, and therefore useless. The author is far more interested in himself than he is interested in the subject.

This book takes a surprising amount of time to read due to the 'hidden' density of the writing. It is a superlative history of one of our most important founding fathers. The impact of 'Common Sense' by Paine simply can hardly over stated. This book is not a dry or boring read, it simply takes more time than I had expected.

The gnawing knowledge that America largely ditched Paine after he dutifully served his purpose is disturbing. He contributed the proceeds from Common Sense to buy mittens for our troops. When imprisoned in France and marked for execution, precisely noyone rode to the rescue. The reason that Paine was largely forgotten is that he had acquired a reputation for not being a man of solid faith. In spite of a remarkable literary career, Paine was destined to die a poor man with a poorly attended funeral. It does seem that he liked to imbibe in the spirits more than he ought to have.

Teddy Roosevelt went on to describe Paine as a "filthy little athiest". He was actually none of the above.

Paine and Samuel Adams suffered the same fate. Both were men of tremendous talent with the pen. Both worked tirelessly. Both played inestimable roles in our freedom. Both tend to be forgotten by mainstream historians. Neither one was an aristocrat. Are historians largely elitist snobs?

I'm no Paine scholar - so I do not understand the quibbles. I love this book. Where today is the person who touches the human heart to stoke that which is already in us, as Paine did? I find the progressive candidates both ring the same (negative) bell about not liking George, Jr. That, however, is a just a pull away from the negative. Where is the today's beckoning cry for that which is in the human heart? Thank you, dear author, for this offering.

When I ordered this book I was thinking of updating my knowledge of one of that group of men we usually think of as our "forefathers"--the ones who were there at the birth of our nation. I got that AND SO MUCH MORE. In addition to learning more of Thomas Paine himself, I learned why he has never had the place of distinction and honor accorded others of his time despite his seemingly crucial activities in securing our independence. THEN, this fine historian takes the "essence" of this dynamic American, traces its ( and his) waxing and waning influence through the decades, and presents us with the need to re-capture, if we can, that zeal for maintaining our freedom and our "national theme" of a nation for the common good--for the common man. For me, anyway: A Masterpiece. The only drawback (if one can call it that): Now I MUST read ( and own) the basic works--in Thomas Paine's own words

I was recently looking through the history shelves of a local book store when I saw the cover of this book staring at me. Recently I've been doing a lot more reading of history on the revolutionary generation and as a consequence I have been looking for biographies of the founders. Since Thomas Paine is someone I've long read and admired, and considering the positive reviews from Ellis and Hitchens on the back cover of this book, I decided I'd give it a try. Wrong move.

The first three or four chapters are a concise history of Paine, but Kaye hardly does the history any justice. He glosses over Paine's actual life and spends the last two thirds of the book giving a history of progressive and socialist movements in America. Apparently, in the eyes of Kaye, because Paine espoused liberal democratic views concerning government providing for the welfare of its citizens, no one but socialists and leftists can quote or admire him. How preposterous! Jefferson famously thought that the slaves should be free and realized the contradiction of fighting a revolution for liberty and keeping men in bondage, but he was a racist who thought blacks were inferior to whites and that the two races would never be able to coexist peacefully. None of that, though, prevents anyone from appreciating the Declaration of Independence any less and it certainly doesn't mean that only white supremacists and the Klu Klux Klan have the privilege of owning his legacy.

Anyone looking for a biography of Paine, or even an entertaining read concerning how his reputation has evolved since his lifetime, should stay away from this book.

This is a brilliant work that breathes new life into the legacy of Tom Paine and links his writings to our lives as Americans today. We in the Borough of Fort Lee, New Jersey are proud that Paine began to write "The American Crisis" while in Fort Lee as an aide to General Nathaniel Greene. The retreat to victory through New Jersey in November 1776 was one of the darkest periods of the American Revolution. Paine's words in The Crisis inspired this young nation so much so that General Washington had "The Crisis" read by his offcers to his men prior to the crossing of the Delaware.

We in Fort Lee are presently forming "The Common Sense Society" to promote the ideals of Tom Paine and to work with the Borough of Fort Lee to erect a statue to Paine in our Monument Park where Paine encamped with the American Army in 1776. This would be only the sixth statue of Paine in the world and the fourth in the United States.

This is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful books I have ever laid eyes on. From the paper to the content, it leaves the reader with a lasting impression of the style and elegance that is Vera Wang. And to hear her own story of finding love and marriage only makes the book more special.

Please don't buy this book if you need honest, reasonable tips for your wedding. This has some beautiful photographs and makes a nice coffee table book but it is waaay to huge to lug around as one may wish to do. Photos are nice but that is basically it. In addition, I wish it had more photographs of gowns. Doesn't have as many photographs of a variety of gowns as I had hoped.

Same old stuff nothing different.

Beautifully presented... a wonderful showcase of blissfully simple yet incredibly elegant gowns... also features glimpses into fabulous famous brides & their weddings.... very inspirational & truly lovely ....

This book became the Bible of a certain bride I knew when she was getting married in a VERY big service and I was one of her friends involved early on in much of the planning. We had about three other mass market wedding books as well as a hired advisor/planner but those were quickly cast aside in favor of this one. Soon more faith was placed in this book than in tomorrow's sunrise. "What's Vera say about..." became the catch-phrase of the season.

Vera Wang and her staff not only create beautiful wedding dresses, but they know the occasion of wedding from A to Z. Fair warning, this book does pre-suppose that some serious money is going to be invested in the service and reception, but for those who are planning a once in a lifetime event they want special in every way, I know of no other source I'd put more faith in than this. Everything is compartmentalized and arranged so that the important aspects merit more attention than those that can simply wait till later. I also liked the "take it easy, things will be all right" message that kept popping up almost subliminally in the little reassurances that were scattered about. Those were really appreciated by those of us who were dealing with a perpetually freaked out bride, and in a few cases, made a real difference.

I'm in favor of something more minimalist when it comes to weddings, but for those who want an elaborate service and don't mind spending a lot of money to get it, then this is a book that prove worthwhile more times than you'll be able to count.

Mahan wrote to his contemporary heads of state as Machiavelli wrote to the Medici's. Passages bemoaning the state of the American navy in the late 19th century are sprinkled throughout this text. U.S. policy in the following years and his remembrance in Annapolis, aside from famed anecdotal readers and devotees, attest to his being heard.

While the thesis is self-evident in the title, this book is a worthwhile read to those interested in history and the history of empires. Mahan offers his perspective, contrary to economic or geographic or religious theories, on the forces that affected - one might claim *determined* - the modern geopolitical reality.

The Influence of Sea Power upon History: 1660-1783 is practically a historical document. The book's first copyright was in 1890 by Alfred Thayer Mahan. The copyright was transferred to Ellen Lyle Mahan in 1918 which eventually fell to the publisher who has published twelve editions of this book.

The style of the writing and the format of the text adhere to that of the original text and the traditional style. These aspects not only allow the reader insight and virtually unheard of detail about the various battles discussed but also a view of how those campaigns were viewed in the original author's time.

Unfortunately, these same aspects make this book somewhat cumbersome. The book is meant to be read from start to finish (all 557 pages). Thus, the reader's knowledge gradually grows as the book progresses making it difficult to look up details on a particular change of technology or a specific campaign.

Introductory chapter provides classic overview of importance of naval power and is alone worth the price of the book. Historical chapters are perhaps less relevant today in an era of air and space power, as they were written during the transition from sail to steam navies. Introductory chapter provides inspiration for "out of the box" thinking about strategy, political power, and business, made significant by its view that the oceans provide a means of connecting nations and peoples rather than imposing a barrier to contact and communication. Reverses your thinking about the importance of land versus sea transportation.

This book ,written by an obscure U.S. Navy officer, is credited with opening the eyes of many emerging countries to the need for seapower. It lit off the first arms races that almost bankrupted countries building "dreadnoughts" (early Battleships) and lead to the rise of both Japan ,Germany and the U.S. as serious Naval powers actively seeking colonies.

This book ignited the fuse that lead to the battle of Jutland and to Pearl Harbor.

History buffs,Naval officers and students getting ready for their first year at Annapolis should check it out.

Mahan's work is great for those studying the development of US sea power. However, NuVision has managed to take this great historical work and turn it into the worst published book I have ever seen.

It seems as though they printed out the book directly from the OCR with little or no proofing. They apparently had no interest in meeting a reader's most modest expectations. There are frequent obvious readability-compromising typos, for instance the date 1607 on page 117 should be 1667, and 'the' substituted for 'time' on the same page (this particular OCR typo occurs throughout the book). There is even an inexcusable typo in a chapter title - BATTLE OP MALAGA. The missing periods are particularly annoying. There are no chapter titles at the top of the pages making it difficult to see where chapters begin and end, there is a detailed table of contents (not shown in the Amazon preview) that is not formatted at all and virtually useless, and quoted passages are not even indented. All paragraphs are separated by a full blank line throughout the book with no variation, thus there are no breaks mid-chapter. It is amazing how tedious reading becomes due to this little defect. Even the title on the binding of the book does not have enough contrast so is difficult to read. There is no index.

There was no care given to making this book, no pride in the work. Nobody read through it to proof it. I have never seen anything like it.

Niccolo's Smile is, undoubtedly, a masterpiece in accessibility, ease of prose, and historical flow. Viroli has written a book that is both deeply human and unabashedly humane, as well as enjoyable, both for the Machiavelli fan and the newcomer.

I cannot, however, understand or even detect where all the kudos and admiration for the translation come from: the book was evidently written in Italian, and the translation is so literal, so unedited, and so evident, that it is sometimes difficult to read through entire paragraphs without picking up a pencil and correcting the evident mistakes.

Perhaps it is due to my Romance-languages background (Spanish is my native language), but I didn't find anything commendable about the translation, whereas the biography itself, on the other hand, is indeed a true masterpiece. (And this from a fan who's read through 12 other Machiavelli biographies, including De Grazia's intriguing Machiavelli in Hell, also available from Amazon).

In short: buy it, enjoy it, and if you find yourself re-reading certain portions in search of a more coherent meaning, don't blame yourself: it's the translation.

Every now and then you read a book that brings its subject to life. Having studied Machiavelli from his writings, it helps to now know of his charms. This book contributed to my understanding of his works but more importantly to the background and history of his conversations. A good, quick read... Recommended.

This biography presents the full Machiavelli, not just the cynical philosopher of politics. The reader discovers many other facets of his sometimes lusty, sometimes ironic, sometimes mischevious personality. The book places Machiavelli in the context of local events current to his time. We can see how he was influenced by, and tried to influence, the politics of his day. Above all, this book conveys Machiavelli as a writer, more effective in offering advice than he was at managing events. Viroli's brief essays at the beginnings of some of his chapters are elegant works in themselves. A plan of Renaissance Florence would have been a useful addition.

Maurizio Viroli does a masterful job of bringing the teachings of the world's first modern philosopher, Niccolo Machiavelli, to light. Machiavelli has gained an unwarranted notorious reputation for his "evil" treatise on political thinking and acting through his authorship of "The Prince". "The Prince" received more notoriety than his politically erudite work "Discourses on the First Ten Books of Livy" in which Machiavelli espouses his belief that the Roman Republic was the best and most virtuous form of government to emulate. His breadth and understanding of Roman history is remarkable. Viroli throughout his book emphasizes Machiavelli's love of his country Florence, and the proud political work as a minor government administrator and ambassador Machiavelli performed during its years as a republic. It was on his many ambassadorial trips to the French, Papal, and Italian courts that he learned to observe political leaders and their governmental institutions which formed the basis of his political theories in his many writings. My favorite quote from the book is from a letter Machiavelli writes to a friend; "It's better to act and repent then not to act and regret".

Modern philosophers starting with Machiavelli reject the classical view of politics as undemocratic and elitist. Only wealthy men of leisure would have time to develop the virtues and character necessary to rule. Machiavelli believed that man by nature was selfish and driven by ambition. Machiavelli is not interested in character formation and moral appeal but in building the right kind of institutions to govern society. Laws and justice would protect men from power hungry rulers. Modern philosophy is an out growth of the revolution that takes place in the natural sciences during the Enlightenment. The purpose of science is the conquest of nature man is in control of human life. Philosophers from Machiavelli on become sectarian. "Everything good is due to man's labor rather than to nature's gift." This book is not all politics and philosophy. Viroli gives us a good insight into the life and times of Niccolo Machiavelli with a good study into his character, passions, and psyche.

As a retired Army officer and student of political philosophy, I found this to be a great book to continue one's journey into political philosophy and history of Europe.

This is a concise and lively account of Machiavelli's life. It provides the general reader with much needed context and background in order to read Machiavelli's works with any kind of understanding. While there are good scholarly works that can provide the feeling of more intellectual heft, this book should not be underestimated simply because it is easy to read and doesn't require weeks to read.

Machiavelli is one of those brand-name characters that evoke certain reactions in people in such a generalized way that people mistakenly believe they know something about the man and his work. This book can help debunk much of that received nonsense. It is surprising how "modern" a man he was considering he lived nearly 500 years ago.

The author has admiration for Machiavelli's skills as an analyst and as a diplomat, has sympathy for his personal suffering and disappointments, and forgiving in his attitude towards Machiavelli's human failings (the author might not even agree they were failings - they were just human). And that is the book's greatest contribution; it shows its subject as a human being rather than a caricature or a statue.

In any case, I found this to be a very valuable and entertaining book. I recommend it highly. You can draw your own conclusions about the subject and they author's conclusions. But you will have gained a lot in the process of coming to those (now better informed) conclusions.

There are a few helpful maps throughout the book and a suggested reading list at the end. The translation is terrific.

If you have past computer knowlege, this is a waste of money. If this software is new to you, it would be helpful

I purchased this book used. However, it was in excellent condition, I could have sworn it was brand new. It even smelled like a new book! My place of business has switched from 2003 to 2007, and this book has been incredibly helpful with the new program. I enjoy all of the Dummies series books, and I will buy from this seller in the future for sure!

I bought this book because I had just purchased the upgrade and was concerned about the comments I was hearing about MS Office changes. It is great. Made the changes understandable and my transition easy! Certainly would recommend!

I love all the dummies books, and this is no exception. I am the "tech" person where I work, so everyone looks to me for answers. If I can't figure it out, I look to these books.

This book is absolutely wonderful - I know Office 2003 - and found 2007 confusing - purchased the book - all went well and now I am teaching others - my family and friends. The persons who write this book are the best. Thank you!

This book is an interesting if super-polemical account of the political maneuvering and PR spin that surrounded passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993. As MacArthur notes, NAFTA was not about trade, but about making Mexico safe for U.S. investors seeking cheap labor. The central irony of his heavily ironic book -- sarcasm oozes from almost every page -- is that a Democratic administration ended up in alliance with Republicans and business interests to push a trade deal opposed by labor unions, a core Democratic constituency.

MacArthur interviewed a lot of key NAFTA players, and his book is quite good on Washington infighting. On trade and economics, however, it is terrible. It does no economic analysis, it doesn't discuss the details of NAFTA (instead, MacArthur lazily refers the reader to "specialist literature"), and it caricatures pro-free trade economists as dupes or sellouts. It is also riddled with errors -- anyone who thinks that the 301 law was designed to address dumping in domestic markets has no business writing a book on trade agreements.

Bottomline: the book is nasty and fun but not recommended for anyone who wants to do serious research on NAFTA.

Bill Clinton cites numerous pieces of legislation as part of his legacy; one of which was the passage of NAFTA in 1993. This book offers a bottoms-up view of NAFTA, its push, its passage, and its effects in two communities, one in Mexico and one in the US. The book begins and ends with the community in the US, a Swingline factory in NYC to be exact. In between, the book analyzes the origins of NAFTA, and how the Clinton presidency got it thru Congress against popular opinion in the US, both among the public at large, and within the ranks of both political parties. This middle part of the book is told in chronological order, and covers all the major characters involved, such as Ross Perot, Al Gore, Lee Iacocca, Richard Gephardt, Bill Daley, and Mexican President Salinas.

After reading this book, one gets the idea that NAFTA was essentially a treaty between an overlord, the US, and its colony, Mexico, in which the former gets protection of corporate assets in the latter's territory. In exchange, the latter gets a lot of low-paying jobs, perfect for its lowly-educated workforce. One also gets the idea that during the 1990's, the Democratic Party essentially became a socially-liberal version of the GOP; both answered to big business at the end of the day.

The author does a good job of interviewing common people, individuals who worked in factories that were directly affected by NAFTA. This added a human touch to a subject that can be quite dry. I only give this book four stars instead of five because for a book about NAFTA, very little text is actually spent thoroughly explaining this document and what is contained inside of it.

NAFTA became a blue-print for exporting jobs all over the world. It allows corrupt governments everywhere to exploit the poor for the benefit of the world trade organization (WTO) and the wealthy of these countries.

This book is an example of excellent reporting. MacArthur takes a small subject--the fate of the Swingline staple factory in New York and shows you how a company cut its labor costs by moving to a bordertown in Mexico. This factory once was the first job off the boat for thousands of immigrants. Now, it is the modern equivalence of the workhouse in places like Mexico. There a corrupt government threw its peasants off their land offering them a brutal choice: be exploited by corporations in Mexico or take a chance at a new life in America.

What shocked me was how in such a world as we are creating, friends come in strange packages while your enemies come at you with warm hands and friendly smiles. Bill Clinton, to the delight of conservatives, pushed NAFTA through Congress. The opposition: a lonely, odd, short guy from, of all places, Texas, by the name of Ross Perot. "Can you hear that sucking sound," was his cry throughout his tour of America against NAFTA. We did not listen. Instead, we bought Bill Clinton and Gore, who was the front man for this PR campaign, based on their supposed liberal values. We got took.

Read this book and find out how. I took off a few points because the flow dragged a little but otherwise, a great book --- MacArthur made the Conservative hit list.

Please rate this review. Thanks.

Chapter One tells of the history of the Swingline stapler business from 1920s to 1997. This still profitable business was shut down when production was moved to Mexico. Computers resulted in a great increase in the use of cut papers, and this needed more staples to fasten them together.

Chapter Two quotes the David Ricardo statement of "comparative advantage" (p.71). Isn't this just a simple argument created to support a point of view, and not reality? It doesn't address shipping costs, or other facts. Hardware and other goods CAN be manufactured in America and Poland, or France and Portugal. This example masks the political decisions hidden in his argument. Page 75 quotes Ricardo again, and notes it was false when he wrote it; another created argument. Pages 78-79 repeat the praises for President Salinas, then. He unilaterally lowered Mexican tariffs to allow US exports to gain market share; the book says this wrecked the Mexican economy, and Salinas fled the country to avoid arrest for murder and money laundering! The net effect was to loot and impoverish the country.

Page 95 speaks of the Republicans and Democrats as if they were real things, and not just names for a collection of special interests that create oratory to advance their aims. Page 97 discusses the rational of lowered tariffs: to fight "communism" by importing foreign goods! The fact that those who profited by financing and merchandising these imports also influenced government policy is just another coincidence. Pages 99-125 tell of the intrigue behind the passing of NAFTA (like other special interest legislation). These pages are one of the most important part of the book!

Chapter Three investigates the details of the NAFTA agreement. It starts with the candidature of William Clinton, a "master of two-dimensional obfuscation" ("like Woodrow Wilson") on p.143. Clinton's attraction was that, however flawed, he could win and the politicians preferred him over a loser, however pure. Clinton supported NAFTA because that was where the big money was (p.150). Also, it would not give Bush an issue when Clinton was ahead in the polls.

Chapter Four deals with the politics of passing NAFTA with Democratic Party votes. President Clinton sought the help of the Republican Party and the Fortune 500 (p.199). Why? "Politics is self-interest. Simply put, it's complete self-interest. The fact of the matter is, they'll get in bed with anyone" (p.201). Pages 17-8 tell how a "grass roots" campaign is manufactured. Pages 218-9 tell how a "grass tops" campaign is run: find important people in a congressional district and get them to repeat your requests in person. with a lower tariff on Mexican imports, the lost revenue means higher taxes for Americans whether or not they still have a job (p.232).

"The fact of the matter is they won NAFTA because of money, because of gifts, because of special interests, goodies, and everything else. They did not necessarily win the debate" (p.275). Since then the number of manufacturing jobs have declined; NAFTA helped to export jobs, not goods (p.282). Pages 285-6 lists the bad things that happened after NAFTA's ratification. Page 291 says the abolition of the Mexican communal land system (like the English Encclosure Acts) drove millions off the land, and some across the border; an increasing pool of cheap labor.

This book had no recommendations, no dust jacket, and no introduction to the qualifications of the author. The only reason I picked it up out of the library was because I am currenty a student of International Business and Global Economics.Our group assigment is to pursue a debate upon free trade in general, for the opposition.

For it's treatment of trade theory, especially Smith and Ricardo,I thought MacArthur picked up a salient point...why in the modern world of technology and global trade are thinking individuals (for example...academics?) silently allowing a group of self-interested multi-national corporations to devour and destroy what took western societies, not just capitalists, hundreds of years to attain?

Namely, a worker-protected environment, minimum wage laws, and government regulations to prevent exploitation of labour? Vanishing due to greed. The same old greed that could be scientifically theorized upon more than two hundred years
ago, during the ages of mercantilism and comparative advantage.
Why no new theories on how to maintain worker rights?

MacArthur identifies the players in American politics, the benefits assumed and trade among all dealers in the free trade debate, and spends as much time as is necessary to capture the attention of the reader. Canada and Mexico are mere pawns here in a game the Americans play much better than many nations.
Thus clear causes and effects of the support of free trade in these other nations should be reviewed in numerous other texts.

The points he picks up the best include the clauses in chapter eleven preventing privatisation of Mexican-held American assets, the collusion of the mass media, the deification of Salinas, etc.
The question he raises with the greatest irony, "How could such a trade policy be permitted without minimum standards of environmental and labour regulations in the developing
country, as was required in the EU of Portugal and Greece?"

Finally, the idea should be about creating wider consumer markets of products, which due to this trade deal, almost certainly will never happen in Mexico. The experts still
remain silent about the after-effects, research classified
into documents that claim the success of the project will
take fifteen to twenty years to adequately assess...waiting
for those accountable to pass away? Not a great sucking sound, but a slow, persistent dripping sound.

Now I know why one of my co-workers in the desert was from Georgetown University. Idealism dies pretty fast in
MacArthur's lens upon Free Trade. An enlightening read.

This book was a little bit confusing to follow. I understood that he was a holocaust survivor, and it was sad what he went through. I didn't like how the author left it up too us when he got hit by the taxi. Did he do it on purpose or was it just an accident?

This book did give me a better prespective on what life was like for the survivors and how much suffering they went though after the holocaust. I thought this book was ok.

The Accident was a well-written book. It showed a life that I don't hear much about, life after the Holocaust. I didn't realize what happened to the survivors and how their lives were changed forever. This book was a little confusing at first but it all made sense in the end and was great. It was a sad story but a story that people need to hear to fully understand the effect the Holocaust had on people. I am glad I read this book.

The novel "The Accident" by Elie Wiesel is about a young boy named Eliezer who was a prisoner in a Nazi death camp, but who is now trying to get on with his life. However, readers wonder if he is really trying to live his life again when he steps out in front of an oncoming taxi. This makes us question whether the car incident was an accident or a suicide attempt. Throughout the book he has many flashbacks of the death camp in Germany and what horrible things happened there. Along with flashbacks from the Holocaust, he has flashbacks of his grandmother, his mom, Sarah, and a French prostitute whose name is also Sarah. Because of his past, Eliezer is suicidal and does not want to live, but the book still leaves readers with the question of was the taxi incident an accident or a suicide attempt?
I liked this book because although it was depressing at times, it kept my interest and was exciting. It did not have very much history except for Eliezer's past experiences of the Holocaust, but it was still very gripping. In addition to the question of whether Eliezer attempted suicide or not, there is also a question of whether people can move on with their lives after horrifying experiences. For Eliezer, he is trying to get over his experiences in the Nazi death camps, but it is hard because he keeps having flashbacks. These flashbacks seem to prevent him from moving on with his life. Overall, this book was fictionally a great book, but historially, not the most descriptive book to read on the Holocaust.

As usual, Elie Wiesel has taken the experiences of his life in the concentration camps and instilled those experiences into his main character. As he says in his introduction the story springs from his imagination, "I speak for my protagonist, but he does not speak for me. He has lived through some of my experiences, but I have not lived through his." And those experiences are what motivate and frustrate the main character throughout the course of this novel.

"The Accident" tells the story of Eliezer, a survivor of the death camps, who cannot forget his past. He is constantly haunted by his memories and those who have died, so much so that he cannot even live his life. So when he his hit by a taxi one summer evening, the reader is unsure whether it was on purpose or if it was an accident. As he lies in his hospital bed, not necessarily fighting for his life, his story fluctuates between the past and present, allowing the reader to enter into his suffering and understand his misery.

As always, Wiesel's writing is full of questions. For a Jew who survived the horror of the Holocaust, these questions always include how God could have allowed this to happen. Eliezer is convinced that God uses humans as toys to manipulate and enjoy their sufferings. He is finally brought to terms with his inability to live and what he needs to do in order to leave his past where it belongs and move ahead with his future. "The Accident" is a quick read, full of daunting questions and fearless searching that typifies Wiesel's writings.

I do not agree with most of the other reviews.

The greatness in this book lies Elie Weisel's ability to come so close to answering unanswerable questions. He has a perspective that none of us will ever attain. An unspeakable suffering is captured in mere words. Living is the horror, not death. The living mourn the dead; the dead mourn no one.

The main character sees every aspect of life from an unnatural perspective. He cannot love, he sees death in everything, he yearns for silence, he lives in his past. We are jealous of his severance from a pitiful humanity. He is almost a true stoic.

As a technical note: No, as the other reviews stated, the character did not try to commit suicide. Suicide is killing yourself. He was walking a few feet behind his girlfriend, and although, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a car speeding toward him, he did not try to save himself. This is not suicide. It is an indifference toward life. Death was his only chance for freedom. The true accident was that the doctor was able to save him.

Book was shipped promptly within the projected time frame. Quality of book met my expectations. Speedy delivery.

The authors goal of trying to show how the 20th century was going to be radically different from the 19th is a tough one to pull of but Rauchway makes a valiant effort. This book deserves five starts because it takes a topic that no one else has attempted and presents the information well. There are a few minor errors that I discovered but on the whole it presents a useful history that when taken in context is an excellent segway into the era of American imperialism. Overall this is a good book that is a great read for those who have knowledge about the Gilded Age.

Those who have noticed my growing list of reviews will find a lot of things reviewed, including several books on history. If you are one of those, you may notice that these books deal with presidents of the late 1800's and early 1900's. Considering that McKinley is my favorite president, this book captured my interest. However, it failed to maintain it.

I noticed it goes along with the traditional view that McKinley was basically conservative, and that progressive Roosevelt became vice-president to get him out of the hair of NY boss Sen. Tom Platt. Having read Kevin Phillip's biography, I disagree with this assessment. I also found the comparisons between McKinley's assassin Leon Czolgosz (pronounced "Cholgosh") with Garfield's killer Charles Guiteau interesting, having read "Dark Horse" about Garfield.

This book looks at various aspects of the turn of the century outlook. It seems to see Roosevelt as the beneficiary of Czolgosz's crime. I find some of the former interesting, but the book continued to bore me. Like "Dark Horse", it is told as a story, but it would make an excellent bed-time story because I would be asleep in no time.

If you have a keen interest in the mindset of that period of time, I would recommend this book to you. Likewise, if you want to deal with what constitutes insanity, I would also suggest you read this book. However, if you want a book to keep your interest, this is not it.

I'm sure the statement, as fact, that Emma Goldman "dismissed [Czolgosz] as a police informant" would come as a great surprise to Miss Goldman. Anyone who read her autobiography, living my life, or looked into the subject at all would know that it was her friend, the Mennonite anarchist Abraham Isaak, who published a warning about Czolgosz being a spy in his newspaper "Free Society." Goldman didn't really know Czolgosz (or even his real name), but she demanded Isaak publish a retraction as he had no proof of his allegation. She later blamed this kind of hostile treatment from the very Chicago anarchists she'd introduced Czolgosz to for driving him to "prove himself" through his attentat.

If you want to know about Anarchism and the period, don't buy this book. Buy "Living My Life," or read it right here for free: [...]

Frankly, that's what the author would have done if he'd cared about getting even the most basic facts correct.

The assassination of William McKinley is far less examined than those of Lincoln and Kennedy. If only for the relative obscurity of the topic alone, this deserves a look. While somewhat disappointing for a lack of focus, the book is quite informative.

The author's thesis seems to be that the assassination of McKinley was symbolic of America's discontent with conservativism and big business's hold on politics, bringing about the progressive movement and the emergence of Theodore Roosevelt. The title of the book would seem to imply a focus on the assassination of McKinley, which is not accurate. Make no mistake about it, the title of the book is deceiving. Rauchway goes for several pages at a time examining nothing but the rise of Roosevelt. In that respect, the author strays from delivering what the title of the book suggests and at times from supporting his apparent thesis.

One of the issues the book does a reasonable job of addressing is the story behind McKinley's assassin, Leon Czolgosz. Alienist Vernon Briggs investigated the life of Czolgosz only to find the powerful businesses that McKinley shielded were a key part of the environment that created the assassin. In the process of his investigation, Briggs brings the issue of the insanity defense to the attention of the American justice system. In this respect, Briggs's research had a major impact on the judicial system.

Without the significant digressions into the social changes brought about by the Roosevelt administration, this book would be much thinner. Perhaps that is why Rauchway chose to include it. Even with the digressions, the book is decidedly thin. I enjoyed the book even though I believe it could have been composed with a much better sense of focus.

Amazing story.Hard to put book away.Truly inspirational.This is not book for beginner on Path of Tao.Greatly recommended for those seriously studying Qigong Meditation or Taoism .One of most influential books had joy to read

This was an exciting look into the life and training of a Taoist master in China living through the Communist Revolution. While offering a compelling tale of cultivation and growth, this book also gives the reader insight into the practice and attainment of Way. It allowed me to reflect upon my own life and inner journey and gain new perspectives for my own qi gong practice. I was truly humbled and inspired.

If you practice any type of inner art or are interested in doing so, this is a great book to read.

This book looks like pure advertisment of Wang Liping who is said to be chosen as 18th generation transmitter by one Taoist sect. Difficult to read because every second page I stumbled over direct or masked praise on Wang Liping / sect abilities. In the end (as expected) Wang Liping finishes with giving lectures to hundreds of students of Qigong. Special pages dedicated to how simple Wang lives, etc. Taoist teachings are scattered all over the book and don't give the impression of integrity.

One quote from the 1st page: "Over the preceding years the three Taoist masters had been engrossed in secret consultations about the matter of utmost importance, not only to them but to the world at large... trying to find a successor ...". Well after this matter important to the whole world I already assumed that money spent on book was wasted.

This was a very good perspective on Taoist miracle working. It briefly mentions many techniques, without explaining them, so this is not a manual for learning Taoism. Some of it is unbelievable, but as a story it is excellent. It mentions many books, mostly from the last thousand years. It provokes the reader into more study.

Great disservices to people whom are searching for information and enlightenment on Taoism. The authors used a map of china and a few books on Taoism to take the reader on an almost 300 page fairy tale coated to read like a biography. The characters shift personality quicker than a chameleon does color. I think there is a story in the book but the contrived situations get in the way.