Windsor Books

I saw this play a couple of years ago at a drama festival - it was the third play of the evening and my friends and i had been on second. The play is so moving despite its short length (28 pages) that it even had several of our cast members (including me) in tears. It follows Effie, a 63 year old woman who has the mentality of a ten year old as she is admitted to hospital covered in severe burns. Doctor Kovacs - the only other character to appear on-stage, is treating her as well as becoming drawn into Effies story. Slowly we learn why Effie was in a mental asylum, the transferrence to a half way house to rehabilitate her and how Effie came to be injured so seriously. Whilst Kovacs attempts to treat this vulnerable patient she is also wrestling with her own feelings as she fights to be successful in a male dominant world, especially as she strives to gain promotion and realise what made her become a doctor in the first place.
The play is moving, poignant and tragically comic all in one as you work through the tragic events in Effie's life and the desperation in the doctors. The play is dramatic in its start as it is in its end as we see the influence Effie is having on the doctor, and vice versa.
Windsor wrote this play for the defunct Luchtime Hour at Manchester's Library Theatre and it's short length and dramatic plot make it a regular favourite with companies performing for the One Act Play Festivals which are held up and down the country. I highly recommend this play for anyone to read as its a wonderful story, Effie's Burning also provides numerous speeches and dialogues suitable for exam or presentation pieces.

I read all of Spoto's books about movie stars. He is a really interesting writer with lots of amazing details. You really get into the characters and know them well. I really enjoyed this book.

Emerald Decision was the second and last novel written by Craig Thomas under the pseudonym of David Grant. Unlike the first and forgotten David Grant book, poor Moscow 5000, Emerald Decision would later be re-issued under the rightful name of Craig Thomas.

Craig pulled a Godfather Part II, and set the novel in two different times, alternating between a father and son. In 1940's Europe, we follow Anglo-Irish spy Michael McBride who uncovers a plot involving German U-Boats in the South of Ireland. Much later during the 1980's, McBride's son, Thomas McBride, who's mother moved to America before he was born but after his father died during the war, is a popular historian who comes across stunning information involving his father's discoveries of a Nazi invasion of Ireland which could lead to him making another bestselling history book. Though the powers at be would prefer the secrets to remain as such. Both Michael and Thomas McBride must fight for their lives to uncover the truth.

A great book from Craig Thomas. After thinking of why he chose to publish this and Moscow 5000 under a pseudonym, I've figured that with all the books that he wrote in the late '70's/early '80's, which was quite a few, he thought he shouldn't flood the world of literature with so many novels in so short of time. But they're both great books that any Craig fan would enjoy.

Tras la authentica avalanche de libros sobre los miembros de la familia real britancia, esta obra nos ofrece por primera vez una vision bien documentiada de los Windsor. El libro contiene informacion extrada de los archivos y la correspondencia de la familia; entre otros detalles, datos jamas revelados hasta ahora, como:

* Las poco victorianas actitudes sexuales y la conducta de la reina Victoria.
* Las maquinaciones de la actual reina madre para separar a los dos hermanos (Jorge VI y Eduardo VIII)
* La eutanasia del rey Jorge V... ; con el fin de que los periodicos de la manana incluyeran la noticia de su muerte!
* El hecho de que el hermano del rey Jorge VI, el duque de Kent, contara al dramaturgo Noel Coward entre sus amantes.
* La verdadera historia del principe Carlos y Camilia Parker-Bowles.
* La no muy privada delduque de Edimburgo, esposo de la reina Isabel II.
--- from book's back cover

This is a collection of short stories that is never less than good and contains one , about a medieval herald, that I have never read better. It makes no pretence of being poetry but its alternating scenes are so vivid that in memory it seems to have no narrative - you just see it unroll infront of you. Its too short to say much without giving its denouement, but to fit love, war and maturity into 10 pages is fantastic.

Enter the world of an English village. I hope it still exists; the warmth and love that a group of people can and should have despite the problems that can come in everyday life. I have such a deep affection for the people of these small English towns and Miss Read captures them perfectly - the village fetes, the stories of a town and people living their lives.
What must be said, in this day and age, is that it seems hard to find a pure and wonderful book that people like your mother, to use a stereotype, would read. You can be assured they would love this as a gift, but look at Miss Read first and learn why her books are so loved

The Opera Journeys Mini Guide Series is just wonderful; it's like a "Cliff Note" of the opera, and extremely informative and educational. I particularly like the size; these guides are not cumbersome and fit right into my shirt pocket. The ladies will find sufficient room in their pocketbooks.

The story narrative with the music examples is excellent. I prefer it to a libretto; indeed, it's a much easier way to follow the essence of the story. The essay is magnificent; very well written, not pedantic, and extremely insightful and comprehensible. I congratulate Burton Fisher for a job very well done and Amazon for making these handy, information-laden booklets available. The Opera Journeys Mini Guide Series is a wonderful contribution to opera education and opera appreciation.

My tip: acquire the entire collection because you will be in easy reach of superbly presented opera guides consisting of story analysis, principal characters in the opera, story narrative with music highlights, background, analysis, and commentary.

Heinz Dinter, Ph.D.

Lots of twists and turns and a wonderful ironic ending. It's one of those books that you keep thinking about long after you've finished reading.

Description of book (found in the back of the book):
LEGACY OF SHAME
The Beresfords. they have everything-and want more. Now they gather together with their spouces or lovers in their New England family compound. They have come around the world to hear the reading of a trust that may increase their vast wealth-and make their ultimate dreams come true. For Robbie, the dream is the political office he was born to win. For Elizabeth, it means freedom from a marriage that is falling apart. For Caleb, it is a way to make a mark on history and shape the fate of a divided nation. And for Terry, it is a chance to prove that a woman is as good and as tough as any man. But there is an uninvited visitor at the reunion to remind them of guilty secrets and betrayals...a lost son with explosive revelations and revenge on his mind...ready to destroy the proud Beresford name and turn it into another word for shame.

This is an unusual murder mystery set, as are most of William Marshall's books, in the fictional Hong Bay section of Hong Kong in the last several decades of British rule in Hong Kong. This time, Chief Inspector Fieffer, O'Yee, Spencer,and Auden are looking for a seemingly cold-blooded killer who is murdering Hong Kong residents who apparently have no connection to each other. As in other Yellowthread Street mysteries, it is up to Fieffer and company to figure out the connection between the crimes they are investigating. In this book, the connection is filled with irony, sadness, and greed, making this book far more than just a murder mystery. Marshall deserves to be much better known, and read, in this country than he apparently is. I hope, with Amazon.com's help, that he finds additional readers.