Warner Books

If you had to read one book about Ireland 1916-1922, this would definitely be it! It starts in the aftermath of 1916 and proceeds through the end of the Civil War. Flanagan does so well in bringing the history, the players - actual and fictional - and the atmosphere to life that I can't believe he wasn't there. (Don't think so, though...) Michael Collins, Ernie O'Malley, DeValera -- they're all here. Finally, this is quite simply an absolutely beautifully written book, even if you're not interested in Ireland, the time period, or the people involved.

The thrird novel, after "Year of the French" & "The Tenants of Time", in Flanagan's magnificent historical novels of Irish history.

"End of the Hunt" paints an exquisite, compelling portrait of Michael Collins Ireland with all the complexity and personal tragedy of the Irish Civil War in tact. Told with bold narrative strokes and page turning action that belies the deep characters and big ideas in a book as beautiful as Ireland herself. Flanagan is no Joyce, he is Ireland's Tolstoy. Characters that breath and a book you won't want to leave.

I loved the Thomas Flanagan trilogy.
By chance, I believe I came across the primary source books for each of the three.
The Year of the French seems quite obviously informed and inspired by Thomas Pakenham's Year of Liberty, a novelistic but dense nonfiction recounting of the western uprising in 1798.
The End of the Hunt takes much of its feel from "The Big Fellow", Frank O'Connor's beautiful account of Michael Collins' revolutionary career.
If these two are obvious the third is less so:
The Tenants of Time builds very effectively upon the foundations of Micheal Davitt's book, "The Fall of Feudalism in Ireland." This book, by an 1867 Fenian who became a leader of the Land League movement and an obstructionist member of the British parliament, is rich in detail about the Land League and the parliamentary struggle of the late 1800's that shows up in the Flanagan book.
I recommend these books to readers who have finished the trilogy, just as I would recommend the trilogy to all.

Thomas Flanagans' The End of the Hunt follows The Tenants of Time as an engrossing novel about Ireland's fight for independence. His most recent novel centers on Michael Collins, but, like previous Flanagan efforts, is told through the eyes of a collection of characters. These individual insights give the reader a well-rounded view of events as they occur and allow us to peer from different angles at the tactics, strategies, subterfuges, and idiosyncracies of the warring parties. From the Easter Rising of 1916 to the edge of Irish civil war, Flanagan weaves a taut web of intrigue, conflict, and tragedy with a "behind-the-scenes" access which affords the reader an extremely suspenseful experience.

Though admirably fast-paced throughout, the story quickens as Collins and crew reluctantly sign a treaty with Great Britain which runs counter to the oaths of their IRA brethren. Creating the Irish Free State, Collins finds himself and his fellow free staters caught between the unconditional IRA demands of full independence and the British who continue to hold Northern Ireland with iron fist and require the rest of the country to ultimately submit to their sovereignty. The balancing act is exciting to behold as Collins continues to abet IRA action whilst holding an ever-demanding Great Britain at bay.

Ireland's struggle to be free of Britain's imperial grasp is a story that, to this day, continues to make headlines. Thomas Flanagan has again provided a ground zero view fraught with peril, passion, and seemingly insurmountable odds. I recommend this book highly as I do his earlier effort, The Tenants of Time.

This is a part of Irish history that most Americans, including many Irish-Americans, don't know well if at all. Thomas Flanagan's story of Irish independence, centering on the figure of Michael Collins (the Big Fella)is a story of historical significance and personal tragedy. While this is not a full rounded history of the time, since it focuses on Collins and ignores for the most part the other Irish leaders, it is still a grand adventure and captures perfectly the tone of time and place. Flanagan is a writer of significant skill and his handling of character and story - not to mention his skill with language - make this book a memorable and moving reading experience.

I took this out at my local library and loved it. I read it THREE times. It is written like a sociological study, So it doesn't come accross as 'sappy' and predictable.
Should you get this book? Well, of all the books I have read about near death experiences/life after death it was the best reasearched of documented NDE. For many, it will be comforting and to others it is confirming what they already must know.

Want a glimpse of where you will ultimately be living when you die?
Read this book. If you don't believe, you will when you die!
Also see my review of "The Message"
Enjoyed this book.

Angelfish

This book was great so good that i ordered a total of six so i could give one to each of my family members. i recieved great service also.

The Eternal Journey's best insight is that what kindnesses sincerely we do especially for the lowly and helpless is what is the most important thing we will be judged by once we reach the afterlife. All the earthly cares and pleasures we are focused on such moving up in the world will not matter much in the afterlife and going after material things solely will deaden our spiritual growth, which has eternal value. We grow by love and according to this book, our faith in the right sort of religious doctrine will not matter as much as how loving we were, even to those very different from us.

As far as practical problems on earth, the book leaves one confused. Things have to be done and set up properly for society to function well and some ideas on how to do that are better than others. So I don't see how one could just sit back and not worry about such temporal problems, as the book seems to suggest we should.

The book suggests we should love everyone, but this suggestion doesn't make much sense to me on a practical level when enemies bent on our destruction will just take advantage of our love and attempt to take all of our power from us.

Another interesting insight is that we, our lives and our decisions are important both temporally and eternally. What we think and do or don't do rightly or wrongly will have an effect on everyone being that we are all interconnected. We should be careful of what we do, think, or say and we should consider what effect that we bring to us and others. This is not a meaningless existence, all of it is rather very meaningful and we are important players in this existence both here and now and in eternity.

Also, we are given a mission that relates to our families, which we should fulfill for spiritual progress of the family. Unfortunately, we don't know exactly what that mission is while we dwell on earth and have passed through the veil of forgetfulness. The mission probably has something to do with love, I suppose. Families and their relationships are important on earth and in heaven.

There are also other interesting tidbits such as it not a good idea to get addicted to something until it becomes a spiritual addiction. You will not be able to slake your cravings in the afterworld without a physical body.

The Eternal Journey has a Christian world view mostly. You get one shot at living a proper life and then you are judged eternally. You don't keep coming round and round like in reincarnation to get it right. It makes this one life much more important, if this is true. Some hellish NDE's are reported, which are about 12 percent of all reported NDE's. Whether hell is eternal or not is debatable, according to the book, but it is appropriately scary. A lot of what is reported in the book illuminates some scriptures such as earthly losers being winners in heaven (the last shall be first) and everything hidden shall be revealed (there will be no hidden secrets in the afterlife).

Reading this book may encourage readers to think about their lives, their values, and whether they are living right and valuing the right things.

I've read this book twice, and I intend to read it again. This is simply the best organised, straight-forward, most scholarly account on the nature and purpose of life that I have ever read. Yet, at no time did I feel that I was being "sold" a particular dogma. There was nothing that I had to sit down and struggle to accept or rationalise;it just simply had the ring of truth. One look at the table of contents reveals the clear, logical organization of the book- there is no fuzzy minded pseudo- mysticism here. Everything from the nature and purpose of pre-earth life, life on earth, and post-earth life is right here. You find definate information on everything from angels, bewildered spirits, pets; to the big questions like the purpose of life and the nature of suffering. If you've been told that you can't possibly understand the great mystery of God's will, try reading this book- it gives some satisfying and comforting answers in clear and simple language.

It offers exactly what it says. Great for learning piano/guitar duets. ADding the vocals is a given.

I first heard the song Imortal on one of the music tv channels,I'm thinking it was VH1. I wish the music channels were all music again. I realized later she was also on the Elektra soundtrack (Great movie and nice outfits-Jennifer Garner) I put the Imortal song on a DVD-I recorded it from TV, I always wanted to learn to play the song so after alittle thinking I decided to purchase the music. I'm the kind of person who buys something -only if it has a few good songs.She has a GREAT voice.

I am a vocalist and am taking piano, and I love this music book! It is really great for the vocalist/pianist/guitarist Evanescence fan. However, don't buy it thinking you will sound exactly like the band. Of course, they can't match up the music exactly, and it is a bit different than the album versions or the songs you're used to. However, if you like Evanescence and want to do their songs, buy it!

This book is a great book, especially for guitar /piano / keyboard players. You can play it with your band (if you have one), and the sheet music for "Hello", "My Immortal" and even piano fill for "Bring me to Life" and other songs are there!

Note: Guitar-Bass parts does not included.

This book is easy - BUY IT!

I love this book, I use it all the time at my singing lessons.

I was bored with reading until this book came along. The characters were completely unique and totally captivating. I've read King, Rice, Anthony and too many others to name, but have yet to get as exited about reading as I did when I stumbled upon the masterpiece of a series that is the Dragonrealm!

It is a really great book and i haven't read anything better in my life. I can't believe how good his books are and I can't stop reading them. I am constantly looking for other books written by him. I love the adventures and can't wait to see whats else is going to happen. I felt as if I was fighting right along side them, fighting the aweful Duke Toma. I cheared when they defeated many of the drake lords, and I wish i could have given Azran what he diserved myself. I love the ending, and I will keep reading more of his books. I recomend this book or any of his other books to anyone of anyage with any sort of imagination!

I thoght this book was awsome!! I cheered at Cabe's esacpe from the Brown Dragon and the defeat of several other dragon kings. I enjoyed reading about the Gryghon's, Cabe's and the Lady of the Amber's adventures in the dragon relm. I felt as if I was there fighting along them and aginst the awful Duke Toma. And about Cabe's mad father Azran, I wish I could have given him what he deservrd by myself.The ending was better than I could have imagined. This was the first book by Richard A. Knaak that I've read and it kept me coming back for more and more of his books. I'm now hooked and I can't stop, I don't want to stop either. I've never read better books than his, and I dought that I ever will.

Ok. This book is awsome. Well, I suppose I should write more. I suppose I could tell you that Richard Knack is one of the best writers when it comes to plot twists. I could tell you about how the book grabs you and makes you want to read the book in one sitting (you should be warned at this time that while reading this book time passes at a much faster rate so set an alarm to go off whenever meals are ready). But the two things that make this book so endearing that you will want to read it time and time again are that Knack is possibly the best writer when it comes to battles of sorcery (his unique ideas and perspectives really make the magic come alive) and then there are his characters. Now I have read many books with cookie cutter characters (I know you all know what I mean) but Knacks characters are both unique and ineresting. All of them have something more going on than the story at hand and that is the way it should be. Alright, I'll give an example, stop shouting. Where did darkhorse come from and what are his motives, is he a friend, or is he just following the best coarse for his own motives. You find out in later books but I'm not going to tell you so there! I could tell you all of that but I think "This book is awesome" pretty much sums it up.

Wow! I was blown away by this book. It is the best of all time. The characters are so lifelike and the plot keeps you on the edge of your seat. Darkhorse gives a little bit of humor to the book and Shade entrances the reader with his unpredictability. This is a must read for all fantasy lovers! Only one question: Why is this series out of print?

This is the perfect book to remind children that they already possess the ultimate gift -- God's love -- expressed through His book, the Bible. If you worry that your kids or grandkids have too much of everything, this book may be the perfect, quiet antidote. The lilting verse speaks with a mother's gentle voice. The illustrations captivate with their big inviting images and attractive colors. How nice it would be to snuggle up with his book on Christmas night, when all the gifts have been opened and lay about the house, their appeal already fleeting. God's Amazing Book offers a sweet, loving reminder of those things that truly endure.

My grandchildren listened and looked intently as I read this book about the Bible, God's Amazing Book. This must-have book will allow children to learn about God's promises and is supported with bright and colorful illustrations that help tell the story and keep their interest. Bible verses are included on each page that could be read to older children. This truly is a wonderful book - it relays to children the amazing love that God has for them!

Hooray for this book! I love it's memorable rhymes and beautiful, bright illustrations. It has a timeless message that relates scripture to the little ones in a way that is positive, and is fun too!

God's Amazing Book transforms significant theological concepts regarding scripture -- protection, light, Jesus as the Word, more valuable than gold -- and makes them visually understandable for children. A rare graphic treat!

The book is simple to read and give an understanding of God's creation, the pictures are so realistic and wonderful.

Okay, I know I've ranted about novelizations before and how they are totally artless and only enjoyable on a purely pulp level. But The Goonies is the exception to that rule and actually proves to be rather brilliant. Yes, it's totally not George Orwell's Animal Farm or Huxley's Brave New World so a five-star review in comparison to them would seem kind of ludicrous, but on it's own level, The Goonies is the perfect adventure book.

The main thing that makes this book so much better than typical film novelizations is that it's told from the point of view of Mikey Walsh (Sean Astin's character), so we really get inside his head and his early-teenage perspective on things. Second is the fact that writer James Kahn (no, not that one) wastes no time in getting things going and makes every sentence and every paragraph relevant or interesting.

He also nails every character to a tee. Chris Columbus' crazy assortment of Goonies and their eccentric personalities is one of the many things that make the film so great and Kahn gives them all enough space to fully develop among chase scenes, octopus attacks and booby traps. But the best character of the lot has to be Sloth. He's such a cool guy!

Taken from Chris Columbus' complete script, there are a few scenes in here that were cut from the final film (I don't know if they are included in the DVD extras) but I particularly like the extra scenes were Sloth shows off what a misunderstood genius he is and how good he is at impersonating and acting. He and Chunk are the REAL heros of the film.

The last, but certainly not least, advantage this book has is the deeper insight into the metaphysical connection between Mikey and One-Eyed Willie. It was present, to some effect, at the end of the movie but I always thought it could be taken further and Kahn manages to create an inspiring character out of a dead guy.

If you are a Goony, then you must get this book. It's such a shame that it's out of print because I think a new edition, marketed as a teen-adventure novel would be very popular.

Goonies are forever. Goonies never say die!

Long ago, when I was really hooked on the Goonies, I read this book with great zeal. It really does capture the essence of the movie, and I would have to agree with the other reviewers that it may in fact be better than the movie.

I liked the book a lot better than the movie because you see the peoples feeling so much better. This also has scences that explain what happens a lot better. This is a must read book!

Last time I checked, the book comes before the movie......so the movie would be the one changed, not the book.......correct me if I'm wrong......

I just bought the book on e-bay, and have already read it!!! i highly reccomend this book! as a child i think its better than the movie!!

This book includes one of my favorite works by Melville (or anyone, for that matter), "Bartleby The Scrivener". It tells the story of the document copier (or scrivener) Bartleby as narrated by his increasingly perplexed, unnamed employer. Unlike Mobey Dick which is so symbolic and philosophical, I gave up on page 13 or so, this story is strangely accessible and contemporary. The alienation that Bartleby feels for his job, his fellow employees, and the narrator is, at once, sad and humorous. Today, when it seems a job can easily become interchangeable with who we are, the fact that Bartleby is, at first, reluctant to do what's asked of him and later would "prefer not to" do anything at all is a bitter, if accurate, portrayal of the kind of ever-threatening psychosis that nibbles around the edges of the world of work from time to time, whatever it is we do to make a living. What's the word? Yeah; there's an existential quality to this tale that fits just as securely in 2007, as it does in the mid-19th century, the story's actual setting. Like Bartleby, I sometimes find myself fading away before the tasks I am asked to perform on the job; "I would prefer not to..." comes to mind pretty often, but, of course, I push on because at the time it all seems to mean something. And it does....Doesn't it? Melville was on to something.

a great collection! when it comes to Melville, i usually prefer annotated editions, but, this particular version does not include either 'The Confidence Man' or 'Moby Dick', thus, i believe i will be just fine. If you've already read 'Typee', 'Pierre', or either of the two above mentioned titles, then this collection may just be for you. It's worth it alone just for 'Billy Budd'. My one complaint? The cover artwork depicts ol' Herms to be a distant relative of Leonardo da Vinci, and while ol' Herms was a genius (although not on Leonardo's level), i think Perennial could have offered a better looking picture than the one they chose to use... talk about your old man and the sea...

This edition of Melville's short fiction is, I think,
the best...certainly a real bargain at this price.
In this one volume, the reader gets all of Melville's
short fiction -- plus the novella, *Billy Budd, Sailor*
(the Harrison Hayford/Merton M. Sealts, Jr. "definitive"
Reading Text published by the Univ. of Chicago in 1962).
The collection is edited and has an excellent
"Introduction" by Warner Berthoff.
The selections are each preceded by a very informative
"Note" which tells you when the piece first appeared
and in what periodical. Berthoff also supplies in each
"Note" delicious suggestive context insights...which
help the appreciative/analytical/interpretive process
begin to percolate.
The 1st selection is "The Town-Ho's Story" (a
chapter from Melville's novel *Moby-Dick*). But
this chapter was printed in *Harper's New Monthly
Magazine* in October 1851 (according to Berthoff's
"Note")as a portion of a work-in-progress.
The collection presents the pieces in the CHRONOLOGICAL
order of their publication in various magazines.
But it also contains "The Two Temples," which
Berthoff says was rejected for publication. So,
the collection contains all of Melville's "short"
fictional pieces, including prose pieces meant to
accompany poems. These pieces in the collection
include: "The Marquis de Grandvin," "Three 'Jack
Gentian Sketches,'" "John Marr," and "Daniel Orme."
The collection concludes with *Billy Budd, Sailor."
All of the *Piazza Tales* are in this collection
along with "The Piazza " piece, itself.
This is a fine collection. The Northwestern/
Newberry editions of Melville's works are nice,
but expensive. And you would have to get 2
separate volumes to also get the *Billy Budd,
Sailor* which you get included in this one
volume.
However, what the N/N edition of Melville's
prose pieces gives you which this collection by
Berthoff does not (their title is: *The Piazza
Tales and Other Prose Pieces: 1839-1860*)are:
"Fragments from a Writing Desk" (1839),
Melville's inspired essay of idolatry and
insight, "Hawthorne and His Mosses" (17 and 24
Aug. 1850), many other uncollected pieces,
Melville's reconstructed lectures from his
stint as a public speaker/"performer" (Yikes!)
"Statues in Rome," "The South Seas," and
"Traveling." There are also copious notes,
scholarly information, photo facsimiles,
and other helpful items in the N/N edition.
But, unless you are a scholar, a Melville
fanatic, or financially unfrugal, BUY this
edition by Berthoff and published by the
Perennial Library of Harper & Row.
* * * * * * * * *

This is worth buying if only for the masterpiece that is Bartelby the Scrivener. One of the all time great short stories, it tells the story, narrated by an employer in a Wall Street Law office who finds a peculiar scrivener called Bartelby in his employ.

Bartelby is initially a quiet and efficient copyist, but when asked to undertake extra work, he deflects it with the simple rejoinder 'I would prefer not to.' He repeats this mantra, over and over, calmly and without malice. 'You will not?' thunders his employer in frustration, 'I prefer not,' says Bartelby. And with that simple 'I prefer not', Bartelby strikes a blow on behalf of all the inconspicuous millions who find themselves wasting their lives, their creative human potential, in drab, workaday office jobs, counting down the months of their lives staring at a computer screen, the sterile hum of life passing them by. All the tedium of office life is in Bartelby - anyone who has worked in such an environment will recognise the compulsive snacking, the drab natureless view out the window, the modes and systems of the company affecting the consciousness and behaviour patterns of the staff. Bartelby, simply and effectively, questions all of this with his quiet actions, heading off in another direction from the common herd, unpicking the knot at the end of the string that binds all corporate paperwork together. Hurrah for Bartelby, whose quiet, tragic existence unravells the whole rope, and hurrah for his legacy - for without Bartelby there would be no Camus, there would be no 'Something Happened' by Joseph Heller, no 'And Then we Came to the End' by Joshua Ferris, the masterful debut office novel published this year.

To read Bartelby, to devote a valuable hour of your life to Melville's pioneering existentialist story, is to momentarily glimpse a chink in the darkness, a sense of what might and could be, instead of the living death that a great many people trudge through, like the dead in T.S. Eliot's poem 'The Wasteland', trudging over London Bridge on their way to work.

This is the beginning of American literature. And these short works I think tell the tale more clearly than that confusing (though still great) big book Moby Dick. Melville wrote from an outsiders perspective and he was an outsider as perhaps all Americans were because we did not yet have an identity as a people. Melville explores our institutions of justice and our ability to comprehend life through them in Billy Budd in the way a foreigner would examine justice and understanding in a land whose logic he was unfamiliar with. He seems to ask "how will our sense of justice be different than France's or England's and therby make us a different nation than theirs?" or even more simply "Is real understanding(of ourselves, or others) ever possible?" Melville is very much the anti-idealist in a work like The Piazza in which one valley dweller imagines existence on the upper slopes to be grander than his own only to travel there one day and be made aware of the opposite. So there is no dreaming colonist in Melville, in him we have a measured study of ourselves as we were in his day, and perhaps still are, a dreaming people,a restless people with only the vaguest notions of what life and its true nature is. The strangest story in this collection is Benito Cereno which is perhaps the work which most defines a democratic nation's uneasy alliance of peoples and points of view. In that work there is no one defining perspective, only differing views of one event that remains disturbingly unclear as all of Melville's worlds are. In Melville we have an author defining what we are or perhaps more importantly what our problems will be in the future. Interesting short works full of that rare kind of insight that does not seem to be trapped in its time but somehow seems to have seen what is to come. There is the idea that a new nation has of itself and a confidence that in the works of Melville is challenged. The mystery in these works is the mystery at the heart of existence and life remains inscrutable even here in this new land with its new ways. In Moby Dick the innocent Ishmael is the only one spared, in Billy Budd(Melville's last tale) the innocent is the one sacrificed. Melville's vision is not a comfortable one. The strange Bartelby,the Scrivener is a tale where personality is consumed by an impersonal system. The story strikes an odd alienated tone which will later be taken up by Kafka and Pynchon and countless others.

GUN DIGEST IS AN EXCELLENT PUBLICATION ABOUT GUN & AMMO THAT IS AVAILABLE IN THE MARKET TODAY. I HAVE BEEN BUYING THIS BOOK EVERY YEAR SINCE 1980. DUE TO MY PREOCCUPATION I MISSED 1988, 1999 & 2000 EDITIONS WHICH I SHALL ORDER VIA THE INTERNET THROUGH AMAZON.COM. THIS BOOK WAS HELPFUL IN MY CAREER AS IT EXPANDED YOUR KNOWLEDGE MORESO WHEN I AM SO FOND OF HUNTING & SHOOTING.

So what if it appears only yearly...Gun Digest is the best periodical firearms publication going and has always been. The monthy magazines don't support scholarly firearms writing...only Gun Digest.

The book is a true complete guide to anything that shoots, even the airgun section is great..

It also includes a wonderful web directory, index of every known maker's address etc..

The only problem is with listed prices, some of them are little above average (I assume these are the manufacturer's suggested retail prices), While other prices listed are True market prices, which may confuse you a little.

This is one of the more comprehensive reference guides to firearms. It covers all the bases- auto pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns, blackpowder guns and military guns. It features informative specs, data, and pictures in the firearms listings, plus other added informational filler content, which is pretty useful to collectors and enthusiasts. I would have liked to see the bulk of the introductory editorials and commentary on weapons devoted to new firearms instead of old curio and relic guns... (FYI I don't just rate this book 5-stars merely because its another book about guns and I like guns. It is probably one of the better gun reference books.)

If you do get this book, I'd recommend that you AVOID Guns Illustrated by Ken Ramage, the author of this one. Not that is particularly bad. It is really more or less a condensed version of Gun Digest with some different features. I also recommend the hardback Illustrated Book of Guns by David Miller. Jane's Gun Recognition Guide is pretty good as well.

Gun Digest: excellent illustrations, accurate data, expanded lists of manufacturers abd suppliers, catalogs of accessories , and many other things make this book the first choice and a sure winner. Very useful for collectors.

This is a great history of both the Wolfman and early jazz and blues, leading into rock and roll. I sure wish current radio was as it was in the 1960s and 1970s. This country would be a better place.

Wolfman, who left us a few years ago, led a life few of us can imagine. Influenced by the great DJ's of a long lost era, and music few of us have ever heard (I was born in 1949), Wolfman was a juve (short for juvenile deliquent, a term for a lost soul, or worse, someone headed into the hands of the justice system). But through an amazing string of circumstances he found himself first in a prestigious broadcasting school, then happened into a string of low power, low budget AM stations where he was allowed to create the persona of the Wolfman. His experiences with XERF, the Mexican powerhouse read like a poorly written thriller, except they are true. I couldn't put this book down and knocked of it's 350+ pages in two days. Buy this book, you won't be sorry.

I read the book after he died. What a book!! The book takes the reader for a ride with a character that the reader will never forget!

The book will make a great movie and I hope that there is a movie made from the book.

I can not wait till the publisher starts publishing the book again because I will buy another one for sure.

HAVE MERCY!!

HAVE MERCY! takes a wild ride through an important era of broadcast history. HAVE MERCY! captures the renegade spirit that led a few pirates and pioneers to take risks for entertainment sake. HAVE MERCY! does a superb job of describing the times and painting a picture of what those who ventured into early rock were up against. HAVE MERCY! helps us to better understand what made one white boy howl in the night - and others sing the blues. HAVE MERCY! makes clear the impact of radio in the early days of rock-n-roll. Its a classic expose' on pop culture. HAVE MERCY! shows the drive and determination and focus and endurance and high energy it took to succeed in a highly competetive industry. HAVE MERCY! catches the gimmicks and the glamour. HAVE MERCY! drops all the right names in all the right places. HAVE MERCY! doesn't shy away from revealing the hazards, the hardships, the dirty deals and the difficult decisions either. HAVE MERCY! is a roller coaster without seatbelts - a wooden one with plenty of bumps and sharp turns and deep drops along the way. HAVE MERCY! chronicles the life of a street tough kid with a dream - someone least likely to succeed - who beat the odds and made it. HAVE MERCY! relives the roots of rock as told through THE VOICE that spoke for a whole generation. HAVE MERCY! grabs onto the craziness of THE VOICE but doesn't see the flip side. Nothing is revealed about the inner stuff the Wolfman was made of. HAVE MERCY! tells the what, when and where of Wolfman's story but fails to communicate the why well enough for reader's know who the Wolfman really was. Its as if the author is writing from a distance - on the outside looking in when a more compelling biography would be told from the inside looking out. HAVE MERCY! recants the making of the personality . . . but fails to see beyond the legend the Wolfman had become. If I hadn't already known the huge impact Wolfman had on my generation, I'm not sure I would've comprehended it from the book. The author tries, but fails to show the true connection between THE VOICE and his listeners. HAVE MERCY! gets the facts but not the feelings. Its like when a record company measures the quality of a song by its sales instead of its message or craftmanship. HAVE MERCY! records details but never gets the big picture. The author never catches the vision. He rides with the Wolfman but never contemplates the reason. He notes the Wolf's charisma but never understands it. Its clearly too overwhelming to describe and so its treated almost like an after-thought. Not a lot of effort goes into getting to know Wolf's fans or measuring his impact on the world around him either. HAVE MERCY! never sees the Wolfman as a wholistic being - the author never gets into his soul the way I, the reader, wanted him to. And so, the Wolfman came across as a wild, but somewhat packaged, entertainer with a well inflated ego - rather than a dedicated spokesman whose main mission may have been just to spread some joy. What if the radio was nothing more than a vehicle to enable the Wolfman to accomplish that goal? HAVE MERCY! only suggests such honorable motives - instead the author dwells on stereotypical indicators that suggest the Wolf was mostly after fortune and fame. The Wolfman is depicted as a relentless industry climber willing to do just about anything to claw his way to the top. HAVE MERCY! had me asking whatever happened to Robert Smith? Did he completely disappear whenever the Wolf came out to play? If HAVE MERCY! were an instruction manual on how-to develop a strong stage personality the author would succeed in covering the steps and listing the most sensational ingredients needed - but he'd fail to give a clue as to what makes the recipe work. The author wasn't able to make me feel the fire and the author didn't manage to make the Wolfman bleed. His pen barely scraped the surface. Had it dug deeper it may have gotten to the heart of the story. A good book gets the info, keeps the pace and tells an interesting story - but a great book goes beyond the expected by sharing keen insights and by giving the reader something valuable to hang onto long after the last page is read. HAVE MERCY! is a good book, not a great one. I walked away exhausted from a really wild journey - but still not certain as to who I'd shared it with. That's a shame because I'm certain there was more to the Wolfman than the world ever got a chance to know, or this author ever managed to uncover.

Wolfman Jack "was" the ultimate D.J of all time. No one will ever fill his shoes. This book defines how his career got started, but it's too bad it wasn't accompanied by an "audio". You can't learn about or know "Wolfman" unless you've heard one of his shows. I was stunned that the entertainment world never gave him a tribute! But he "did"it in the way he lived his life! HAVE MERCY WOLFMAN. (insert a HOWL here!)

Thank you for sharing your wisdom through this book. I often wondered about that gap between passive and reactive and how one finds a comfortable medium. There are also implications on cross cultural communication. As the oldest child of two in an Asian family, the words "no" and "I, me, and mine" were hardly uttered in our household. The expectation is to say yes, watch for everyone's needs before our own--and we better be happy doing it! It's amazing how these learned behaviors find themselves into the workplace. As an adult, saying no can still be difficult but I'm learning to do so honestly, directly and respectfully. Your book has been an epiphany. Thank you.

You will probably guess by my last name that I am related to the author. As a matter of fact, I am his brother. I am also a pastor on the coast of Oregon and I am offering an honest opinion of the book.

Dennis has hit the nail on the head. This concept, in it's simplicity, is amazing in it's scope. You can use this in every area of your life and the results are the same. IT WORKS !! As I communicate with people every day on many different levels, I have found that by following these three simple words, I can always walk away knowing I have communicated clearly.

I will take this one more level. As I spend time communicating with my God, I find that this type of communication is what He desires. There is no profit in playing games with God. Being honest, direct and respectful clears the way for a much stronger relationship.

Keep up the great work Dennis. I know this book will change alot of lives.

Marty Adams
Pator of Worship and Fine Arts
Florence Christian Church

As a teacher, and as a wife, I found the skills in this book to be invaluable. It helped me identify my strengths and my weaknessness in my communication with others in a very safe, insightful way. As a result, I have been able to refine those areas that needed work, and I have enjoyed the results! I know others have too!

I found this book to be a great insight. It made me stop and take a hard look at myself, and has change the way I deal with people.

Reviewed by Regan Windsor for Reader Views (6/07)

Is your communication style effective? Do you communicate in a way that is Honest Direct and Respectful? "Honest Direct Respectful: Three Simple Words That Will Change Your Life" is a small book that packs a big punch. Providing an analysis of the passive - reactive communication continuum, Dennis D. Adams guides the reader through an analysis of their communication style and the implications that their style may have on the many facets of their life.

The book begins with a description of both passive (quiet and reticent/ unresponsive) and reactive (loud and aggressive or demanding and "in your face") and provides examples of how people on the passive and reactive sides of the continuum think. It then follows with a short quiz to test where on the continuum your communication style lies.

Adams then provides examples from his own experience, and the experience of others, to further define passive versus reactive communicators. If you see yourself in both the passive and reactive styles it's possible you're a TOP - Ticked-Off Passive. This occurs when people are passive so long, they are now angry at the world and react in a reactive way, but then feel bad about it (a reaction true reactive types do not experience).

The most effective communication style exists in the middle of the continuum, where communication is not confrontational, and it is not avoidance. It is truthful and it is executed in an Honest Direct Respectful manner.

"Honest Direct Respectful" provides a simple and effective model for successful communication. The ability to communicate effectively has vast implications on your success both personally and professionally. I would highly recommend this resource book for everyone; even those that are not extreme passive or reactive communicators will find value in the suggestions in this book.