Reference Books

I very much enjoyed this book for many reasons, not just that it provides information you will never find anywhere else. The book covers many sites that I was familiar with and many that I have heard of and didn't know were accessible and many that I have never heard of. I will definitely take it with me on my upcoming trip, my 18th to London.

I like the style of the book, just casual enough to let you know the authors are real people (and have really been to the sites), but not overdone, which can get annoying with other authors. In fact, I skimmed through the entire book at one sitting, reading many parts entirely, as I found it interesting.

I have a few minor criticisms. (I'm still giving a five-star rating, especially since there is no other book quite like this, so invaluable.)

A few things people should know in advance: there is one general map at the beginning -- the authors state you need to pick up a map in London as this is not an easy city to navigate (I use London A-Z) -- and there are no floor plans of the sites. This is good (smaller size and price) and bad (toting and flipping from book to book or purchasing high-priced on-site guides). I'm sure it would be impossible to locate a floor plan for some of the more obscure buildings, so really can't blame the authors.

My main complaint (not major) is there is not a rating system, formal or informal, for sites. I know a lot of what is "worth seeing" depends on a person's individual interest, but, well, just because a site exists doesn't mean it's worth taking time out for if you just have a week or so in London. There's a big difference between "don't miss this hidden treasure" and "seek this out if you are in the neighborhood" or "best for those with a special interest in Edward IV, or stained glass windows, or gothic arches, or whatever."

Once again let me state that a major plus is the feeling that the authors have really been there and know what they are talking about.

By comparison, many years ago I bought a guide to London by a very well known guidebook publisher. I made a bed-and-breakfast booking on their recommendation of a charming hotel with a bright, cheery breakfast room. I won't tell you the full horrors of the place, other than to mention the tiny rooms with plywood walls and door, and the very dark basement breakfast room done up like a dungeon, complete with instruments of torture on the walls. And one shared toilet per floor, which sometimes actually flushed. I didn't just check out -- I escaped. It was very obvious that the authors of that other book had never set foot in the place, and I have more or less ignored mass-produced guidebooks ever since.

Travellers on the trail of history in London know how frustrating it can be to locate Tudor and medieval places still in existence in that busy, crowded, vibrant, thoroughly modern city. Last year we spent a week with this guide in hand, feeling a bit Sherlockian in our quest. Even with the detailed directions provided by the authors, finding most of these hidden, nearly forgotten sites was a challenge. But with persistence and patience, our efforts were rewarded. What fun! Couldn't have done it without this guide. But if you aren't particularly interested in the places, the era, and the difficult pursuit, better not bother.

I've never known a lot about medieval and Tudor history, but a friend gave this book to me to help me plan a trip to England. Now I can't wait to see the places described in the book. These authors have a fan in me.

I've never known a lot about medieval and Tudor history, but a friend gave this book to me to help me plan a trip to England. Now I can't wait to see the places described in the book. These authors have a fan in me.

For anybody who wants to know more about the history of places they want to see in England, this is the guide book for them. I learned alot of interesting things and had alot of fun reading this book. I like the authors' style very much. They make the history easy to read and understand.

This is a great detailed book featuring many of the beloved American Character dolls! It has helped me tremendously with my doll collection.

Very nice book & lots of information i have been looking for these past few years.

A most comprehensive and well-researched book! Having contributed to the Tressy section of the book (look for pics from my collection!), I must say that this guide is a must have for Tressy collectors as well as for those who collect other American character dolls.

You can order an autographed copy directly from Judith by going to: www.americancharacterdolls.com

You cannot buy an autographed copy through Amazon.

Judith Izen has written another wonderful book! For collectors of American Character dolls, it's a book that needs to be on your bookshelf. It's well written and researched with great photographs. We can only hope that Ms. Izen will continue to share her love and knowledge of dolls with more books.

This is a very useful book and it covers a number of famed and forgotten men and movements. The book is excellent in covering the various aspects of American conservatism. Neocons, paleocons, Catholic cons, Confederate cons, libertarians, all are pretty well covered. The articles are concise and well written. The chief problem with the book is how broad it is. Everybody in American history is a conservative! Abe Lincoln and Jefferson Davis. Daniel Webster and John Randolph. William Jennings Bryan, Teddy Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. Eugene McCarthy and Joe McCarthy. As American conservatism tries to redefine itself after the 2008 debacle, this book shows the various options and the various conflicting currents that will shape today's debates.

AMERICAN CONSERVATISM: AN ENCYCLOPEDIA is essential college-level reading for any interested in the history, philosophy and politics of the American conservative movement: contributions from over two hundred leading scholars pack a weighty reader which blends biography with concepts and history in over six hundred entries. College level holdings strong in social science should consider this 'bible' a must-have reference: from Lord Acton to William F. Rickenbacker, cross-comparisons between theorists and their works make for an essential reference.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

~American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia~ is an insightful encyclopedic compendium offering a survey of the American conservative movement and its diverse elements. The publisher Intercollegiate Studies Institute makes it clear that the focus is upon a distinctively American conservative movement, particularly in its postwar mold following the Depression and World War II. This insightful reference book covers a litany of iconic personalities, people, events, organizations, and concepts of major importance to the American conservative movement. One thing ISI does surprisingly well is achieve a balance while allowing for a profile of an older traditional conservative thought. In the twentieth century, the political fortunes of conservatism are too often measured merely by the successes of the Republican Party. This encyclopedic reference, however, points readers to a diverse, broad conservative movement within the United States. To many outsiders, the conservative movement suffers from a crisis of identity as avowed neoconservatives, paleoconservatives, traditionalists, libertarians, and those who simply call themselves "conservatives," cling to the conservative movement. However, as this encyclopedia makes clear, the diversity of the movement is its strength, and the ensuing debates between its varied elements, has contributed to the advancement of the nation. The American conservative movement will perhaps allow for a brighter future for ordered liberty, a renewed culture and a more vibrant civil society. Herein, this volume, the student finds an erudite window into that American conservative movement. Understanding the movement, its history, and its impact, is integral to sustaining its impact on society for the better in the twenty-first century.

This powerful tome features articles from one of my former professors Dr. S.A. Samson as well.

In this highly interesting and informative book, the reader will be introduced to the main currents in conservative thought, and in a manner that is objective and with only a few exceptions free from an excess of bias. There are many names and ideas associated to American conservatism, and readers may find that they hold much more in common with it than they might have first realized. Its history and content have been tarnished greatly in recent years, due mostly to the popularity of `neoconservatism' (which is discussed in the book), and the current regime in Washington. This book will hopefully assist in putting conservative thought into its proper perspective, and illustrate to the uninitiated reader its great diversity in ideas. The average reader will probably not read every article in the book, but will instead concentrate on those of interest. There is a fair representation of the major (and minor) philosophical trends that have dominated American conservatism, along with those that have or are losing credence.

By far the best article in the book is the one entitled `Liberalism' and written by Peter Augustine Lawler. In spite of its length, it gives a fair and interesting overview of what constitutes liberal thought and some of its intersections with conservative thinking. It is a refreshing alternative to the vituperation that so frequently occurs in discussions of liberal philosophy. The author does refer to `liberalism' as being `elitist' but this is put in the context of its belief that individuals must be liberated from religion, morality, and other traditional beliefs in order to become fully human. In this sense it is `elitist' in that it makes special and frequently exclusive claims to knowledge about what it means to be fully human. Also interesting (and it is fair to say accurate) is the author's statement that American liberalism has been a mixture of conservatism and liberalism. There is fairly good evidence that suggests even more so, namely that liberals have actually switched places with conservatives in recent decades. Both liberals and conservatives will deny this vociferously of course, but the conservative thought of George Will, who is also included in the book, is a good example of this crossover effect, with his notion of "statecraft through soulcraft", which sounds suspiciously like the belief from liberalism that governmental institutions should be used to promote beneficial social change. The next article entitled `Liberalism, Classical' offers more insight into the nature and philosophy of liberalism, and in fact reinforces this `crossover' effect between the liberal and conservative camps, albeit in a much longer time scale (on the order of a few centuries rather than decades).

It is very surprising to see an article on Ayn Rand appear in this book, given that she chose to distance herself from `conservative' thought throughout her lifetime. She also despised `Whittaker Chambers' due to his extremely negative review of one of her novels. But an article on Whittaker Chambers of course appears in this book. The ideological distance between Chambers and Rand is infinite but they find themselves in close proximity in this book, separated only by a little over six hundred pages. They both are no doubt turning over in their graves over this inclusion, but if the truth be told, Rand does qualify as being a conservative, if one thinks of libertarianism as an element of conservative thought (as it is in this book, having an entire article devoted to its elucidation). Rand's atheism is no doubt one of her most annoying features, but ironically, the renowned Sidney Hook, who is also included in this book, and who was mentor to Leonard Piekoff, Rand's designated heir, was also an atheist. His atheism was apparently excused however, due possibly to his strong anti-communist stance (but Rand was strongly anti-communist?). Edward S. Shapiro, who wrote the article on Hook in the book, is careful to note that Hook did not believe in the "goodness of mankind", and it is fair to say that most conservatives consider it naive or misguided to believe otherwise. They stumble greatly here though, since statistically most people throughout history have conducted themselves honorably, even if measured by a conservative yardstick. To believe in the "goodness of mankind" is to accept the overwhelming evidence supporting the belief.

Conservatives though, it might be fair to say, have had some difficulties with empirical reasoning, and this is especially true in the scientific realm. This is brought out to some degree in the article entitled "Science and Scientism" by M.D. Aeschliman. Scientific and technological progress is at odds with most conservative thought, due to the latter's anathema for change. Most of the article concerns the effect of "scientism" on the individual person in that it negates purpose and meaning. C.S. Lewis (who is also written about in the book) is quoted in this article as support for the alienating effects of scientism, and its capacity for the "abolition of man." But interestingly, the area of science that studies human behavior and its connection with the brain, namely neuroscience, seems to support to some degree conservative thought, due to its contention that thought patterns via neuronal processes are heavily influenced by cultural inputs and are difficult to change once they are learned. On the other hand, neuroscience, and science in general, has learned to live without the concept of a soul, and even some research circles in neuroscience have given up even the notion of free will and personal identity. These two notions are hard for conservatives (and liberals) to give up, with the prospect of doing so even considered extremely frightening. The scientific doctrine of evolution is also of great concern to conservatives, as one will notice in the articles in the book, one being on the Scopes trial.

The only troubling omission in the book is an article entitled "War" or one that would shed more light on the conservative philosophy of war. The article on Neoconservativism says a lot, as does their behavior in real life, but one would like to see an article that compares the different schools of conservative thought on war. Many individuals, who refer to themselves as conservatives, and who are popular in the national press, such as George Will and Patrick Buchanan, have come out strongly against the current conflicts.

As this book reveals, sometimes succinctly, conservative thought and liberal thought are intertwined, and to omit any influence of liberalism on conservatism (and vice versa) is to destroy both systems. One cannot view them as two separate dogmas, and both will have to deal with the unique challenges of the twenty-first century. Maybe one could say that conservatives generally view themselves as cautious and pragmatic, while liberals generally view themselves as future pointing and idealistic. But the twenty-first century is about change, extremely drastic change, and conservatives are intimidated by change, even perhaps frightened by it. It is difficult to predict what elements of conservative (and liberal) thought will survive this century, but whatever strands are left will no doubt be chastened by radical technological changes. The technology itself will create its own ideas, its own history, and its own politics, all of which it might indeed classify as being conservative.

This is one of my favourite `encyclopedic dictionaries', an underappreciated genre if there ever was one. The "American Conservatism" now stands pride of place along side two worthy peers. Namely Robert Nisbet's superb "Prejudices - A Philosophical Dictionary" and Richard Milner's "Encyclopedia of Evolution", a dictionary style encyclopedia of Darwinism that spans not only the science, but the history, pop and folklore of evolution.

I can see the critics pounding away at their word processors now. They'll say the volume doesn't give sufficient cubic mass to George W Bush and his merry band of Vulcans; or that the neocon movement doesn't get the required number of column inches; or that GOP Republicanism herein seems more a trickle than the mainstream. And why does Eugene McCarthy seem to get more coverage than Tailgunner Joe McCarthy?

I can see their point, and there are a few facets of American conservatism that I would have liked to have seen better represented. For instance, that rare, but tough sub-species, the American monarchists. There are at least two that I can think of. Charles A. Coulombe, a traditionalist defender of throne and altar, who hails from Hollywood, and Hans Herman Hoppe, an anarcho-monarchist libertarian professor from that hive of chivalry, Las Vegas.

Still I think this kind of word processor pounding is misplaced. The book is, after all, a single volume encyclopedia / dictionary. It is meant to be comprehensive in width, not depth. That's what is great about it. It is meant to sacrifice detail for coverage. It is more important that conventional narrative histories dive deeper into the murky depths of the mainstream. The dictionary format, in contrast, gives a Cooks' Tour of the lesser known, but rarely paddled alternative creeks, tributaries and billabongs. And that's what "American Conservatism" does superbly.

The pounders' may as well criticize the Oxford English Dictionary for being full of words most of us never use. That's the point. Dive in and increase your conservative vocabulary.

This has been an amazing book. It describes both prescription and OTC drugs in detail without being overly technical. For years it has been an excellent reference that I have relied on. In the past few years, though, more and more of the drugs prescribed for my family have not been in the book. I really wish that the AMA would put out a fresh edition of this excellent work, which is now not nearly so useful as it once was.

Excellent book. My wife is 69 years old has SLE "Lupus" and she has been on many different drugs. The newer drugs are not listed in the 1988 edition. Would be very happy if a new additon would be published.

I have used this book frequently however I believe with all the newer medications since 1988, we desperately need an up date. This is a very easy book to use. I have used others but prefer this one. A newer book for 2004 would be nice.

I have found this book to be of immense help in not only fully describing the medications in sufficient detail, but also how each medication functions within the body. Dosages, referrals to other drugs in a particular drug family, and the ability to cross-reference medications within the same book, makes it a wonderful book for reference. My current copy is very worn, and I really would like to see this same book revised from the AMA VERY VERY soon. Thanks!!

This book is awesome and certainly has paid for itself as it has saved many a call to the Pharmacist and/or the Doctor. We are however, desperately in need of a update. It seems as though, everyday, there are new drugs that are not listed. We have found some newer, similar books on the market, however, the way they are structured cannot hold a candle to this one. So.....we "patiently" await a new edition. Please---

Very nice Bible with concordance, topical index and maps. Leather cover and gilt edged pages have nice appearance. Bible lays open for study. Text in Topical Reference section somewhat small and light.

Amplified Bible phrasings include alternate word translations within the text where other translations may show them as references or notes. See other reviews for more detailed description of Amplified Bible translation.

The Amplified Topical Reference bible is really all you need for a simple and in depth exhaustive search of many, if not all, topics. I purchased this bible, and it's the one I mainly use because apart from it being Amplified, which gives more insight to meanings right within the verses themselves, it has maps at the end, along with an extensive concordance, and a reference section organized by topics. It's like having Strongs Concordance at the end. It really helps me a lot when I'm studying or preparing a preaching. REALLY GOOD PURCHASE!! I RECOMMEND IT 100%!!

Well made hard back Bible. The amplification gives in depth understanding to the Scripture. Better for study than general reading.

For those who do not know exactly what the Amplified Bible is I will give a short introduction to the translation. After that only will I dwell in the details of this particular edition, which is in particular the leather-bound Topical Reference Bible. In the end I will briefly give my general view on what Bible to own considering the translation methods applied.

A reader looking for a Bible should be aware of the difference between dynamic, free (paraphrase) and literal translations. I will only discuss the problems a translator has when trying to produce a literal translation; the Amplified Bible (AMP) is, afterall, first and foremost an attempt to produce a very literate translation faithful to both the original (SL) and the target language (TL). The problem with translating is of course that when we translate either on a word-level or on sentence-level we will most likely lose meaning on the word-level of words that either have various meanings or are ambiguous in the context. Even the most literate translations such as the King James Version (KJV) and the New American Standard Version (NASB) have this problem if they are unable to find an exactly rich and variable word in TL; in my opinion this is a paradox in itself and impossible, as a SL word is not only understandable by its grammatical but also by its semantic properties, to which the cultural identification has an immense effect.

What the AMP has done to avoid this problem is to give a rather ingenius way of glossing words that can have various meanings in the English language: with parentheses "()" AMP gives "additional phases of meaning included in the original word, phrase, or clause of the original language" (Introduction, ix). Brackets "[]" are used to "contain justified clarifying words or comments not actually expressed in the immediate original text, as well as definitions of Hebrew and Greek names". For example, I will here include the familiar passage from John 3:16:

"For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life."

The word even is given in brackets and thus indicates that the word is a clarifying word not immediately present in the original Greek text but not in conflict with that text; often this is used to clarify a personal pronoun or a direct reference to Christ (as in John 1:1ff, where the "Word" is glossed with "Christ" in brackets). The so-called amplification occurs with the words "begotten", "believe in", "perish" and "eternal" and the additional meanings are given in parentheses. What this passage does not include is the use of italicized words. When whole sentences are italized they often indicate passages that are not found in the oldest manuscripts (often footnoted); if conjunctions are italized they are connected to an amplification: not present in the original text but necessary to connect two or more amplifications of a translated word.

Now I will move to discuss the present edition. This edition includes an introduction to each book and also gives an outline of the structure of the book in question. At the end of the Bible, after the Book of Revelation, is a bibliography and the Glossary section. The Glossary section is very useful if you are interested in a word-level meditation, as it gives you a list of words that are most often amplified with such and such words. As an example, it gives the word "discernment" and after it the words that are most consistently amplified with it (the words are "comprehension" and "understanding"). Then there is a concordance of 192 pages from the word "Abandon (Abandoned)" to "Zion (Zion's)". This is the place from where you can search for individual words within passages. Whilst never complete, this is a very exhaustive list and very useful.

The most useful feature of the Topical Reference Bible is the Topical Index after the Concordance. This is the most useful and informative section after the Bible itself and it works as follows: this index gives you, for example, "Aaron" as the first entry. Then it lists three categories (A, B, C) that are named "Family data", "His priesthood" and "Significant events". These categories include sub-categories that, as an example of his priesthood, refer to his duties: they are listed as "to teach God's decrees", "to offer prescribed sacrifices", "to officiate on the Day of Atonment" and "to make atonement in special situations", each after which the proper passage in the Bible is given. This spans for 175 pages from Aaron to Zophar, from individuals to topics such as animals in the Bible with proper passages given, baptism, Heaven, judgement, patience, Rome, etc. Consider that you want to know what the Bible in general speaks of sin, for example. Then you go to the Topical Index and it gives you a great reference tool; it is useful to read it through even as it stands, as the short descriptions are very useful. This is very helpful when you need to convince either yourself or your friend in argument that thus it stands in the Bible.

The edition I am reviewing is the leather-bound edition, and I can say that the leather is of excellent quality. The only negative side of this edition is that there is no zipper to protect the pages, but its absence allows the book to open more widely; I should also address this issue with a positive comment that even though my relationship with books forces me to handle them with care, occassionaly when I have placed this badly in my backpack the pages have never been damaged in any way. This is, of course, a subjective point I am making: I am sure that if you handle this book (or any other for that matter) roughly you will tear the thin pages apart.

You might have discerned as much already, but I truly recommend this edition. The glosses are abundant and helpful, and the Topical Index, whilst not completely exhaustive, is exhaustive enough. As a translation this is not as poetic as the KJV or the JPS (the Jewish Publication Society's translation of the Tanakh), but this will not be a problem if you know it before purchasing; after all, what matters is that the translation is truthful to the Word of God. What you get is a very informatively supplemented Bible that is more than sufficient to your Bible study without too obvious or too intrusive footnotes. It has its own aims, but its main viewpoint is to prove it biblically, that is, to retain the harmony between the interpretation and Scripture. As an example is the identification of the Angel of the Lord with Christ pre-incarnate, not necessarily the most talked about feature in any Bible studies. Here the passages in the Torah are annotated accordingly and it always relies on the Scriptures; in the Topical Index there is an entry for the Angel of the Lord and a subcategory in the end that reads "How can we identify him as God (Jesus)?" What follows are references to the passages in which such information occurs.

No matter how much I enjoy this edition, I would recommend you not to be content with only a single edition yet if you thought you needed only one translation I would recommend this one. Thanks to the Internet and places such as the Bible Gateway you do not have to purchase every single edition, but I still recommend to obtain at least some different editions. I am a Finn and my first language is Finnish, thus I own three translations in Finnish; in English I have the KJV, NASB, AMP as well as the evocative JPS (it of course rearranges the books in the "Jewish order"). Of other languages I own an Italian translation. What I am trying to say is that even if you were to purchase the AMP now, always take heed of other translations. If you are looking for a full concordance, an exhaustive one bordering on suffocating in its enormity, this will not do. Yet if you grow into this translation you will have an excellent benchmark to evaluate other translations that might be free translations (The Message and The Living Bible are two examples). From the English translations I read this Amplified translation and the KJV the most, and then the JPS for the Hebrew Bible passages.

In short: if you are looking for an Amplified Bible, buy this one. If you are looking for a Bible to own without any previous translations, buy this one or the dual-edition with the KJV. If you are looking for a study Bible, this is more than sufficient, yet if you are looking for footnotes that guide you through as if this were an Arden Shakespeare edition, look for a more thorough edition. In fact, if you are looking for a study Bible, the King James Version Thompson Chain-Reference Study Bible is hard to beat. If you are a literary-type of a person looking for a poetic translation, do not buy this but the KJV or the JPS translation of the Tanakh. Yet the AMP has been worth its price and more for this particular writer and has been in as heavy use as the KJV.

The reference material is an excellent addition. Great for Bible Study. The Leather cover is soft and really good quality.

This book contains various translations of ancient works relating to mystery cults. A great deal of focus is placed on Greek and Roman works. This is therefore a nice reference to the topic.

I found the translations to be, for the most part, clear, accessible, and to preserve a great deal of emotional power that these original sources had. This is an extremely important work on the subject.

The book is informative and well presented. It was required reading for a Masters Class, and it augmented the other required reading, as well as the classroom information. The author writes commentary on the background of the mystery, and then the sacred text.

Ever hear of the ancient mystery religions from the ancient mediterranean world that supposedly influenced the new testament? This is just about the best book to actually read up on what the mystery religions consisted of. A good tool to check out for yourself if there are or are not any parallels between the mystery religions and new testament content.

As Marvin M. Meyer explains in his excellent introduction, the Mysteries (from the Greek myein = to close) were associations of individuals: 'The Mysteries were secret religious groups composed of individuals who decided, through personal choice, to be initiated into the profound realities of one deity or another. They joined an association of people united in their quest for personal salvation.'

Unlike the Catholic Church or State religions, the Mysteries had no power base and no organized structure. They were an easy target for those who considered them as enemies or serious rivals in their power search. The Catholic Church attacked them fanatically in speech, picture and scripture. After becoming the official religion under Constantine the Great, the Roman Church convinced emperor Theodosius the Great to commit one of the most savage crimes against humanity: he ordered in A.D. 391 the abolition of all pagan mysteries and the destruction of their sanctuaries, giving at the same time a religious monopoly to the Pope.

This book contains excerpts of very well known works like 'Bakchai' by Euripides or 'The Golden Ass' by Apulejus, but also texts which are difficult to find.
The editor wrote a small introduction for each of the mysteries considered together with excellent bibliographies.

Not to be missed by all those interested in Ancient history.

A very useful source book, I use it often. The division of the book into specific religions/cults makes it easy to use.

The only thing lacking are images/diagrams to supplement the texts.

The chapters on Isis, Osiris and Mithras are excellent.

Divided into five distinctive sections, this book provides an introductory look at the conceptual world surrounding the Hebrew Bible. The five sections are Comparative Studies, Literature of the Ancient Near East, Religion, Cosmos, and People.

The section on Literature of the Ancient Near East is is a good, although very brief, survey of the literature of the ancient near east including Egyptian, Sumerian, Akkadian, and Hittite. The author has included a good cross section of ritual texts, letters, chronicles, legal collections, hymns, wisdom literature, and prophecy.

The section on Religion is subdivided into The Gods, Temples and Rituals, and State and Family Religion. Here the reader is exposed to ancient thought on these subjects with the intent that they come to understand the common beliefs and practices well as beliefs and practices that differentiated them from each other.

The section on the Cosmos examines both the geography of the cosmos and the beliefs surrounding them. The section on the geography of the cosmos is excellent and includes an examination of the structure of heaven, the earth and the netherworld. I found this section to be particularly interesting and very informative with an excellent exposition on the Hebrew word "bara" and the functional aspects of naming.

The final section on People provides an excellent examination of the various concepts of creation of the human race as well as what it means to be human. It also includes a very good explanation of the interaction between the people and their religion including prophecy, oracles, and their perception of history as a nation. This section ends with a discussion of the beliefs about the future of the earth and what happens after death.

Throughout the book the author has included excellent side-bar sections offset in shaded boxes that further illuminate related ideas and concepts. These often contain some of the best and most interesting observations of the material if you are already somewhat familiar with the subject.

Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament provides a solid comparative study of the various literature from the ancient near east showing both commonalities and differences with the beliefs of the nation of Israel. The book clearly sets the culture of Israel in the Old Testament times alongside those of its neighbors and allows the reader to better understand the mindset of the time. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament is highly recommended.

Walton's book focuses on the similarities between the Ancient Near Eastern religious teaching with the Old Testament. He is careful to point out that similarites between the two doesnt necessarily imply that one is borrowed from the other. He emphasizes that they came to some similar conclusions based on their similar environments. This is a quite interesting take on this hotly debated subject.

His introduction to the book and introduction to Near Eastern literature is excellent.

However, while I will admit readily there are some similarites between Ancient Near Eastern religions and the O.T., Walton seems to see some similarities that I do not. He seems to be reaching quite a bit in those instances. For this reason, I gave it three stars.

The similarities between the two schools of religious thought are so few and far between that I feel a case could be made for coincidental similarities.

The book did however, accomplish what I thought it would accomplish. Regardless of the author's comments, the comparisons between the religions really emphasizes the distinctiveness of the O.T. For that reason, I am grateful for purchasing the book. Its something I have never doubted, but it certainly makes the chasm wider between the Ancient Near Eastern religions and the religion of the O.T.

Of course, the difference is one is real, and the others arent.

very scholarly, but easily understood,; cogent discussion of how to understand the Hebrew Bible on its own terms, integrating science and archeology. a must have book.

First off I want to say that I audited a course by the author of this book, and read through the book throughout the semester. It is part of the core curriculum for an M.A. in New Testament or Old Testament Exegesis at Wheaton. I am a pastor who preaches regularly. This book has impacted my entire understanding of the Old Testament in a powerful way.

The logical format of this book gives the reader a simple and effective way to slowly enter into the worldview of ancient people. The author is very good at giving readers hinge concepts to help understand the distinctions between our worldview and their worldview.

The book categorizes ancient near eastern thought into topics that are actually enjoyable to read. Each topic could easily overlap with other topics, and Dr. Walton does a great job of separating the topics without distorting them (in my opinion).

This book tackles thorny issues that separate Evangelicals from Liberals in the land of scholars, without alienating either side of the issue. Walton's premise is that we should abandon the old approaches to Ancient Near Eastern Thought and simply understand what they believed, and how it was different from or the same as Old Testament thought.

One concept that emerges as the book develops is the idea that some Israelite prophets argued for the support of the covenant with God rather than for the reinforcement of the Kings authority (as the prophets of other cultures and sometimes Israeli culture did). This sets Israeli prophets who held to the covenant with God at odds with everyone else who prophecied in Israel and around Israel. Coupled with the exclusiveness of the Jewish religion, and the people soon became alienated from those around them and sometimes from their own religion or people.

Probably the most helpful aspect of this book is his excellent approach to comparative studies without labeling certain parts of the bible as extensions of other cultures or vice versa. His approach, when properly understood, is actually what both sides of the historical divide on this topic ought to be doing. I find it not only full of wisdom, but extremely helpful in preparing sermons from the Old Testament.

A nice companion to this volume is The Bible Background Commentary of the Old Testament. I think that this book shows you how to use the Bible Background Commentaries.

One criticism that I would like to mention is that some of the charts in this book are a bit difficult for me to understand. That's an area that the next edition may have to improve on. However, there are only a few pages like that and the rest of the book is really a very very good summary and introduction to Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament.

Some of the topics he covers include but are by no means limited to:

The Ancient View of the World.
The Ancient view of the heavens.
The Ancient view of Temples
The Ancient view of Omens and Magic.

I think he has around 13 topics in all. This book is well worth reading and if you plan to teach from the Old Testament over the years, you might want to pick up a copy for your personal library. It's packed with helpful references also.

"The synthesis that I have offered is undoubtedly characterized by assessments that some scholars will judge to be misleading, premature, or even wrongheaded. ... Instead, I desired to sift through the information provided by the specialists who have diligently made the literatures and cultures of the ancient Near East available to us,..." John Walton.



Prologue to Hermerneutics:
Half a century past, when I read the Old Testament in the city where it was first translated from Hebrew, now then, in its cousin language Arabic, much of the biblical narratives seemed stories from an ancient mythical past to me, the young Psaltos. However, when I started to formulate inquisitive questions, the most refreshing though troubling replies came from my father, a specialist in comparative civil law, a professor in the French Lyceum and a former Viennese student in the European enlightenment milieu of the thirties, the young teenager was then introduced to comparative criticism through JH Breasted, Gardiner and Lang when I began to understand how ancient Egyptian viewed the world, the Old Testament becomes more clearly a book that stood "within its ancient context, while also speaking against it," in the words of Wheaton's J. Walton.

Renewal of Biblical Studies:
"The rediscovery of Egypt began in earnest in the eighteenth century AD and of Mesopotamia in the mid-nineteenth century AD. With the decipherment of the ancient languages, the tens of thousands of texts that were being unearthed began to be translated and analyzed. ... Initial studies were inclined to be defensive of the Bible, even if such a stance required the dismissal or distortion of the cuneiform texts. The flurry of activity in connection with the relationship of these texts to the Bible had reached a critical mass of sorts by the turn of the century; and, consequently, widespread attention was attracted by the series of lectures presented in 1902 under the auspices of the German Oriental Society and attended by Kaiser Wilhelm II."

Israel's Intellectual Milieu:
John Walton suggests three main roles that a comparative study could play in Hebrew Bible interpretation: critical analysis, defense of the biblical text, and exegesis. He focuses on exegesis and its particular importance for guarding interpretation against applying modern world-views. Walton offers a thoughtful introduction to ancient Near Eastern literature and the common milieu of 'cognitive environment' that rediscovers the world of ancient Israel. He evaluates concepts of ancient beliefs on gods, views on people and history, about religion, the cosmos, after surveying types of literature, after a survey of the interface between the ancient Near East and Israel, clarifying the analogies and non similarities between them.

Comparative Biblical Study:
This book provides an excellent introduction to the field of comparative Biblical studies and integrates many specialized studies by Coogan, Chavalas, Currid, Kitchen, Redford, and Yamauchi on Israel's neighbors. He makes use of extra biblical resources to enrich their understanding of ancient Israel and its Scriptures. This is very well explained by Peter Machinist, of Harvard University, "Comparisons between the culture of biblical Israel and the other cultures of the ancient Near East have long been a fundamental part of biblical scholarship, but more often than not, they have been presented in piecemeal, isolated fashion. In his new book, John Walton offers a much broader reach, giving us arguably the most extensive review of these cultural comparisons now available together with a serious meditation on what the enterprise of cultural comparison is all about in biblical study."

Analytical Book reviews:
- "... excellent survey of the interface between the ancient Near East and Israel. I especially appreciate his sidebars on 'Comparative Exploration,' which enable readers to 'zero in' on the comparative topic of their choice relatively easily."--Mark Chavalas, U. Wisconsin
- "... an important and useful guide to entering into some of the major worldviews and value systems found in ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Israel. ..., bridges the gaps between ancient Near Eastern texts and the perspectives of the Bible." Richard Hess, Denver Seminary
- "Walton penetrates beyond the simple comparisons often made to bring back intelligence about the contexts and constitution of the ancient world, stressing the ideas Israel and its contemporaries held in common. Yet Walton repeatedly demonstrates how Israel's faith was distinct,..." Alan Millard, U. of Liverpool

Angus and the Hidden Fort, by Steven A. Corirossi, was one of my favorite books. It's about [a small]kid who found a secret fort and it actually belonged to someone very famous years ago. To find out who it is, you got to check this book out. I loved how Steven wrote the ending. He added so much detail that I was disappointed when the book was over. This book is one of those books that you wish could never end. I recommend this book to six graders and up because I don't think that little kids would understand. If there are anymore books by Steven Corirossi, I got to read them!

Angus And The Hidden Fort by Steven A. Corirossi is an engaging novel for young readers about Angus McBride a nine-year-old boy, and his best friend Andrew Sills, who when exploring Black Hawk Park, discover the legacy of a one hundred and fifty year old mystery. Angus And The Hidden Fort is a highly recommended, adventurous and exciting tale, and one that opens with an unknown individual fleeing the wrath of two bare-chested Indians and proffers tantalizing hints as to the who and the why of the chase, until the stunning revelation of the end. The debut novel of a six-book series, readers will appreciate author Steven Corirossi's talents as a first class storyteller and will look eagerly forward to the new two titles: Angus And The Mysterious House and Angus And The Forgotten Trails.

Angus and the Hidden Fort is a very funny, mysterious, and exciting book. Although some words in this book I didn't know, by the time I was done with each chapter I had at least one word to add to my vocabulary list. I could read this book over and over and never get tired of reading it.

I was so excited to learn about this new adventure series--set in Central Illinois--that I just had to write and tell the author how grateful I am... it isn't too frequent that I can share with my 5th graders such wonderful, family-friendly stories that practically take place in our own backyard! Both Angus and the Hidden Fort and Angus and the Mysterious House are creatively and well written chapter novels that not only my students enjoyed, but I did as well. We're anxiously awaiting the arrival of Steven's third book, Angus and the Forgotten Trails... hurry up!

The book was a nice adventure story for boys or girls, although more geared to boys because all of the main characters in both time frames were male. Going back and forth in time made for more interesting reading and there was an element of mystery about the characters from the past that made the reader want to keep going to see what really happened and to whom.

The protagonist in the present was an adventuresome boy and I could imagine more stories of his exploits from the author. As an adult, I found the book a little simplistic and fairly predictable; still, I enjoyed the yarn and read it all. I think youngsters could picture themselves involved in this kind of exploration, doing a little detective work and trying to figure out some of the unexplained happenings.

There seems to be some confusion in this group of reviews. I am reviewing "Antipoems" translated by Liz Werner and Liz Werner only.

I picked up this collection because Roberto Bolano said that he gave up on Neruda and followed Parra. I love Bolano so I followed him to Parra. Parra is different from Bolano so if you follow Bolano don't be surprised when you discover Parra. They are different; their poetry is different.

Parra is an antipoet. What does that mean? According to the translator's introduction, "antipoetry mirrors poetry, not as its adversary but as its perfect complement."

The book contains both the original Spanish version, which is good (all translation works should contain the original), and the English translation. Ms Werner captures the spirit, the humor, and the sense of Parra's poetry.

One of my favorite poetic ideas is from Holderlin, who calls for us to live poetically. I suppose Parra would say Holderlin is a poet. Parra, the antipoet, responds in his short poem "Poetry Poetry" to Holderlin's sentiment:"Poetry Poetry it's all poetry/we make poetry/ even when we're going to the bathroom." I think you can see from this fragment the antipoet at work.

Parra reminds me of the surrealists but he is not one. There is something quite material about his poetry. Within the poems you feel the steel of a political mind.

One of my favorite poems of the collection is "Stop Racking Your Brain."
The whole poem consists of three lines but it is quite true and sad for people interested in poetry: "Stop Racking your brains/nobody reads poetry nowadays/it doesn't matter if it's good or bad."

This is a very nice book, another amazing collection of (anti)poems and visual artefactos by Parra.

Remarkable translation of Liz Werner.

This is an english edition, but since some of these poems have not appeared previously, this book will also be a must-have for Parra followers in the spanish community. But even for old poems, is a very interesting experience to read the antipoems in a different language and to see them find their way in the intricacies of each language. It is necessary to say, however, that in the introduction Werner clearly states that Parra thinks that these are not really translations, because antipoems cannot be translated, so these are rewrittings. But probably the best possible ones.

Parra style, for those that have not heard about him, is better understood by reading it than by using descriptions:

TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT

To make a long story short
I leave all my possessions
to the Municipal Slaughterhouse
to the Special Forces Unit of the Police Department
to Lucky Dog Lotto

So now if you want you can shoot

There are a wide variety of translations here; in both quality and fidelity to the original spanish. The fact that the poems are presented with both the original and the translation makes this book worth it. The Miller Williams and William Carlos Williams translations are wonderful, but some translations, like those by Ginsberg suffer from perhaps too much beat aesethetic co-oped into the work. Still, Parra is wonderful, full of grit and strange images; yet the Spanish, aside from a few words that are only found in Chilean Spanish, is clear and easy to read. I have even translated some of these poems myself. This is amazing work.

Theodor Adorno claimed that to write poetry after Auschwitz is barbaric. If so, then Parra is the one man who can justifiably escape the charge of barbarity. What Parra writes is nothing less than a full-scale assault on poetry, or as he calls it, "anti-poetry". Parra's work stands in violation of everything that poetry has ever been. If you are used to lyricism and poetic embellishment and will accept nothing less, you will hate this book. Either that, or it will revolutionize how you see the poetic art. Parra is for poetry what the WWF is for entertainment: it is raw, crass and, as people say, "in your face". It is also brilliant. It is not poetry, but it is, in its own unique way, poetic. And like much of the best poetry always has been, it is immersed in life. Its themes are those we all recognize: crooked police, pestering grandchildren, the morning alarm. It expresses for us what we would all like to express but do not or will not. I suppose one could call it catharsis through anti-art. And perhaps in our post-holocaust world, the most genuine art IS anti-art.

This is it, this is where poetry had to go after its many incarnations and its eventual and fateful death. Parra takes (knowingly or unwittingly) Derrida's concept of differrance and uses it to sledge hammer away his words into his `antipoems'. You'll find no Byron in his pages, or even any Cummings, not to mention any particular style per se. There's so much experimenting -and simplifying- with the word here one doesn't know what one is reading anymore... poems? random (though coherent within themselves) thoughts on paper? cooking recipes? jokes? straightforward reflections on banal life? political commentary?.. yes, all of this.

If there is anything `anti' here is anti-boredom, each `piece' jumps out of the page with offhand easiness, and pomposity is reduced to the reader's own dull lack of imagination. Parra does so much away with droll academic stodginess and allows the invigorating flow of his... expressive, often hilarious and profound, communications; for it is this in the end that comes through -to which anyone at any reading level can enjoy. There are even some `poems' done in a cool artwork-doodle style. What a stimulating and inspired work of art.

If you are looking for the perfect stocking stuffer for your favorite teenager or "tween" this season, then this is it. I am currently a mentor for troubled girls at a local youth center in Baltimore and can't think of a better gift to share. There's no better feeling than helping someone discover their untapped potential, and giving them the wings to fly. Kudos to the author for helping to fulfill a critical unmet need!

If it wasn't for this book, I would be working in Starbucks, or worse, Texaco. "Applying to College: A Planning Guide" by Casey Watts lays it out clearly and ingeniously for someone planning to attend college. My parents didn't even have to intervene. I did it all by myself. Applying to UPenn couldn't have been easier, and I got in! There should be more useful books like this out there. Casey Watts should write another book on "How to get your Boss' job" or "Becoming a US President". More books like that would make a difference in this country. I highly recommend this book for anyone planning to apply to college or any other institution of higher education. She knows what she's talking about, and she knows it well.

Um, my mom bought this book for me because she tells me I have to go to college. She tells me I can't live at home like my uncles, who still live in their house and who are in their 40's.
Anyway, I got this book to get her off my back but, it has lots of cool stuff in it about applying to college and stuff like that. It tells you lots of helpful things you have to think about before applying to college so hopefully, I won't make a big mistake. All kids in HS should read a book like this so they know what they are doing, and it keeps your mom off your case.

When my little sister was applying for college, I gave her this book. I certainly wish I had it when I did my college applications. Not only was the book informative, helpful, and easy to read, it was also fun and interesting. Casey Watts is a masterful writer, and the book reflects her witty and wise style. I would recommend buying it for anyone who is applying to college or knows someone who is!

After leaving the armed services, I did not plan on attending college. In fact, I never intended to go to college. The process seemed daunting. And, after what I had seen in my life through various tours in the Marines, I could not fathom how book-learning and course-work could be relevant to my life.

Truth be told . . . I was scared. Applying to college required organizational skills I simply did not have. So, rather than pursuing this challenge, I preferred to think of it as a non-option, a waste of time. Nonetheless, I found myself coaxing my friends to send away for brochures and applications. I experienced college vicariously through the smiles and comaraderie depicted in the pages of Beaver College, State University of Alabama, and Boomerton College. It was exciting and I got hooked.

Hooked with no where to go. No plan for how to tackle the task of a college application. No plan for how to make my dream a reality.

That's where Ms. Watts' book stepped in. A clerk at the local bookshop pointed me in the direction of books geared towards helping people like myself tackle the application process. He offered no recommendations, but Casey Watts' book caught my eye. A quick skim revealed this book to be a treasure trove of knowledge, a compendium of wisdom. Casey Watts is to the planning and organization industry what Martha Stewart is to home decorations and gourmet cooking . . . though, from what I know, Casey has never been, and hopefully never will be, incarcerated.

If the doors to opportunity ever seemed closed to you in your life, turn to Ms. Watts. She has the key.