Art Books

If you've stayed up nights wondering about the inner workings of a Naboo N-1 Starfighter, or even occasionally contemplate the unconventional solid-fuel concentrate slugs that the strange society of the Neimoidian traders use to give their droid starfighters such powerful thrust, you'll want to read Star Wars Episode I Incredible Cross-Sections cover-to-cover. This handsome book - deservedly referring to its illustrations as incredible - shows us a vroom with a view; more than fourteen vrooms, in fact.

SW Episode I Incredible Cross-Sections is brought to us by the great people at Dorling Kindersly Publishing -- or DK for short - where just about any topic you might think of has already been turned into a beautifully illustrated right-brained adventure in learning. The illustrators for this masterpiece are Hans Jenssen and Richard Chasemore, arguably the two artists with the best job available in that field this side of Alpha Centauri.

Jenssen, who specializes in technical art, especially machines, lives in England but claims to spend his vacations on Tatooine (no accounting for taste in vacation spots) where he has been known to engage in "moderately disreputable pursuits (he goes all the way to Tatooine for that?)." Chasemore has worked as an illustrator in both the U.S. and Europe on a great variety of projects, one of which was another collaboration with Jenssen: DK's Star Wars: Incredible Cross Sections featuring intergalactic vroom-vrooms previously made famous by the vision makers at Lucasfilms. Chasemore says he enjoys "perilous sports involving boards and high velocities (now, maybe he's the one who should check-out Tatooine).

Rounding out the gifted team taking us on intricate tours of Gungan Subs, Podracers, Coruscant taxis and Republic Cruisers, is Dr. David West Reynolds who earned his PhD in archeology at the University of Michigan. His background as a lecturer, veteran of field expeditions on three continents and as an author of scientific archeological publications should make one thing perfectly clear: you don't have to be a dullard denizen of the local mall scene to be a StarWars fan. If his background doesn't make it perfectly clear, the intellectual acuity of his copy will.

This must-have addition to the shelf of any die-hard StarWars fan is equally enjoyable to tot and teen as to tottering sage. It's a picture-book nonpareil or a detailed account of mid-power repulsorlifts and hydrostatic bubble projector units (if you do more than look at the pictures). It's even a trivia-hunter's true treasure. For instance (be honest now), did you know any of the names of Anakin's co-contenders for the Boonta Eve Podrace? Sure, you say - Sebulba. But anybody knows that! True buffs will want this book so they can win rounds of Star Wars Trivial Pursuit with answers like Ark "Bumpy" Roose, Teemto Pagalies, and the ever-impressive Clegg Holdfast.

If you like schematics (or even the word schematics - it's such a great one, isn't it?) you're going to want to pour over this book like hot fudge on a sundae. Featured is a dual fold-out center page affording a panoramic view of the Trade Federation's Droid Control Ship. The resultant artistry of this and the other detailed drawings was generated when the DK team worked directly with the film production art department at Lucas's Skywalker Ranch, mapping out the anatomy of each craft as it was being created. This book comes from the source, folks: from the source ... of the Force.

My ten-year-old loves taking turns with me reading sections of this book aloud and I can almost see his gray matter expanding (hasn't hurt his imagination too much, either) while we huddle by the lamplight. Only problem I'm left with now is what to do with all these detailed schematics of his own left lying about the house - outlandishly labeled creations from foreign worlds contemplating an invasion of Earth, no doubt. Hmm. Maybe I should call George Lucas.

This edition is devoted to the Spaceships and Craft from The Phantom Menace.

As with Star Wars Cross Sections it is very well detailed and even better with todays print technology. Great for children and first generation Star Wars fans alike.

I wouldn't call this the greatest technical book of all times. I wouldn't be suprised if this book wasn't nominated for any kind of award. But Episode 1: Incredible Cross-sections is captivating enough to stand on its own. I enjoyed it because I got to look through the insides of some of the film's most enigmatic ships and vessels like Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator and the Gungan Bongo. It's good for those who were still puzzled about the ships after the end of the film.

One of the missing points is the Chancellor ship which appeared in the movie and it was not displayed in this book.

It is more complete than the former book, even considering it is only for one movie and the other is for all three.

Other missing point is the lack of a picture of the ship without the cross-section. It is important to compare.

I recommend.

I always wanted to see more and to be able to look inside of the vehicles more closely, and this book provides that information (and more more) in great detail. I really like the mini illustrations of where in the vehicles that events from the movies took place, it helps to "put a name to a face".

The set was very well priced and the shipping being included definitely helped the sale. Being a new item, it is in excellent shape. I have told others about this and recommended they look to Amazon first if they are interested in purchasing this set.

Excellent edition. Easier to use than the one-volume Liturgy that the Daughters of St Paul put out. Comes with helpful accessories. If you can't afford to buy all four volumes at once, buying them one at a time is a great alternative.

Is this the english translation of the 1985 revised latin or not?
I think this is still the 1975 translation....
Would someone please reply? thank you.

These volumes are excellent quality. The paper is thin and buff color, the printing is two color, and the font is readable. They were much better quality than I was expecting. Thank you.

I realize that most of the readers of this review will be unable to carry out my suggestion but for those that can, I recommend this procedure to get the most out of the Liturgy of the Hours. After daily or even Sunday Mass, walk over to the rectory and suggest to the pastor that you would like to have the priests join and of course lead Morning Prayer in the Church before daily Mass. He will probably be overjoyed that you are that interested in praying 'his' prayers and will begin as soon as he can. In addition to the spiritual benefits of group prayer, you will be surprised how quickly you become expert in navigating the 'Breviary', even pointing out, diplomatically, the times the priests make a mistake. It becomes quite habit-forming and as others have said, your day will not be complete without it. Since we have two daily Masses, we are able to pray both Morning and Evening Prayer in common. The priests still pray the Office of Readings and Compline in private but who knows when we will join them for that. We have also printed up books with the Morning and Evening Prayers in them for those who do not wish to purchase the Liturgy. The only day we do not pray in unison is on Sunday and maybe someday we will bite that bullet. By the way, we are not the only parish that does this. I know of at least one other parish that recites the Morning and Evening Prayer and like us has a goodly number of participants. I do understand that work would preclude the majority of wage-earners from participating but for those who are retired or otherwise not working this does give you the chance to practice your faith. And finally, the daily reading of the Psalms mirrors so much of what is occurring in our modern life that it is almost scary. But then, considering the author, how else could it be?

I am so happy I finally bought this book. I was hesitant to spend the money on something not entirely useful but it's breathtaking and so refreshing compared to all the red lips/platinum hair shots we see of her. The book is thicker and heavier than I imagined and has found it's place on my coffee table, partly because I can't move it around so easily. I am so so happy with this purchase!

The book is very well made with great quality paper. There is a little introduction by Bert Stern at the beginning and then all the pictures of the last sitting in chronological order. You can see big images, the ones that Stern thought were the good ones, and then the little ones which are very interesting and funny too. It's an incredible book, you can see a new Marilyn, more mature and prettier on the inside and on the outside.

Come ho detto nel titolo, è il migliore libro di foto su Marilyn che c'è in circolazione, lei è assolutamente spendida, in uno stato di grazia che l'obbiettivo del fotografo Bert Stern è riuscito in pieno a mostrare.
Questo grande libro con tantissime pagine e tantissime foto che ci mostrano Marilyn bella come non lo è stata mai è per tutti i grandi fan consigliatissimo avere!
compratelo!!!!!

Its simply a must in every Marilyn collection! Its like spending an entire day with her! If you like Marilyn you will love this book with hundreds of pics.

Thanks Bert Stern a wonderful photo documentary about
Marilyn Monroe.

I was very impressed from the pictures.

Thank you!

This is a good book on the topic of psychotropic plants, though I have to admit that I'm a little shocked that the opium poppy wasn't included. Oh well. There are enough books on that subject that I'm sure if you really want to study the "black smoke" you can find another book to read. It presents an interesting subject in an approachable, readable format. My one complaint is that parts of it read a little too New Age-y, which irks me. But that's the way I am. Aside from that one (rather small) problem, I would readily recommend this book to anyone looking for an all-in-one look at this branch of botany.

The authors Richard Schultes, director of the Botanical Museum at Harvard and Albert Hofmann, discoverer of LSD and former director of the Pharmaceutical-Chemical Research Lab in Basel, Switzerland, together have over fourteen years of research in field of botany, chemistry and ethnobotony. In their book the authors offer an ethnobological look at the sacred use of hallucinogenic plants and include: an introduction to hallucinogenic plants, a plant lexicon, overview of plant use chart, detailed section of fourteen major hallucinogenic plants, and concludes with an overview of the chemical structure of hallucinogens.
The plant lexicon includes ninety-one known and most common hallucinogenic plants with: a colored picture for each plant, botanical name, geographic location, hallucinogenic properties and a short description of the individual plant. Following the lexicon is a chart overview of each plant that includes: usage in history, context and purpose, preparation, chemical components and effects. Following the chart is a detailed account fourteen major hallucinogenic plants. "Most of these plants are or have been culturally and materially important...that they can not be overlooked "(81). The authors include: a descriptive history, gathering techniques, rituals, the chemical make-up of the plant, pictures of ceremonies, and artwork of "visions" by people.
Plants of the Gods is more than a research book, it is a guide to understanding the role hallucinogens play in various religious cultures using a scientific and anthropological approach.

This review is based on the 1992 publication:
Schultus, Richard E., and Albert Hofmann. Plants of the Gods: Their Sacred, Healing, and Hallucinogenic Powers. Rochester: Healing Arts Press, 1992.

This is a good starting point for working with Psychoactive Plants. It is however not quite as informative as the author's "The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: Ethnopharmacology and Its Applications". If you are interested in working with plants but are not sure then this is the book for you to get the real information you need to make a informed decision.

If you're looking for information on how to prepare psychoactive plant medicine and, well quite frankly, how get high, this is not the book for you. However, if you'd like to gain more wisdom and insight into shamanistic practices around the world, this is a wonderful history that draws you into the mind of the shamin. I loved this book. It gave me new respect for the wisdom of those ancient people of whom we know so very little. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in shamanism and herbalism. It offers insight into not HOW but WHY psychoactive plants are ingested. Plant medicine is afford the tremendous respect it so rightly deserves.

Plants of the Gods: Their Sacred, Healing, and Hallucinogenic Powers
by Richard Evans Schultes, Albert Hofmann, and Christian Rätsch

Publisher:Healing Arts Press/Inner Traditions

Year:2001 (revised and expanded edition)

ISBN:089281979-0

Categories:Book Reviews, Recommended Books

Reviewed by Jon Hanna, 6/26/2007

It may be a rare thing for a second edition of a book to warrant its own review, but such is definitely the case with the new edition of the Schultes' and Hofmann's 1979 classic Plants of the Gods. The updated version was produced as a German translation in 1998 by Christian Rätsch, and Healing Arts Press released the English translation of this in late 2001. It is a thing of beauty.

The primary and most dramatic improvement is the inclusion of numerous new photographs and art images. Although this second edition retains many of the same photos, it introduces a lot of new ones as well. In some cases, the item depicted-such as the statue of Shiva with Datura flowers in his hair (p. 11)-has been revisited with a higher-quality photo. Frequently, black and white images have been replaced with a similar image in stunning full-color. While this works superbly in most cases, there are a few situations-such as the replacement color photo of an aerial view of the Kuluene river (p. 24)-where the original black and white photo was much better. New psychedelic art is featured throughout from the likes of Pablo Amaringo, Walangari Karntawarra Jakamarra, Nana Nauwald, and Donna Torres. There are even some incredible watercolor paintings done by Christian Rätsch himself (think Codex Seraphinianus on acid)-where can we see more of his art!? A beautiful mural of an ayahuasca ceremony that graces a wall at the Cuzco Airport in Peru reminds us that some countries have a more enlightened attitude towards the use of psychoptic plants.

"Fourteen Major Hallucinogenic Plants" of the first edition has been altered to become "The Most Important Hallucinogenic Plants," and expanded to include new sections on Anadenanthera colubrina, ayahuasca analogs, Salvia divinorum, and Duboisia hopwoodii. There have been numerous expansions on the old chapters as well, including many additional species of the genera discussed. Six new plants have been added to the "Plant Lexicon," and this section has been vastly improved through the addition of color photographs. Previously, the majority of the plants described were depicted via illustrations, with only a few photo images; this situation is now reversed, with only a few illustrations. (It is a shame that there are any drawings remaining, although I suspect in some cases it might be hard to obtain photographs of the plants in question. Still, in other cases it should not have been difficult-photos of Banisteriopsis caapi, Lagochilus inebrians, Mandragora officinarum, Mimosa tenuiflora [= M. hostilis], Peucedanum japonicum, Scirpus atrovirens, Tabernanthe iboga, and Virola theiodora are all available via the web). The map of "Native Use of Major Hallucinogens" has been expanded to include Hyoscyamus sp., Duboisia sp., and A. colubrina, and the depicted range of Cannabis use has been increased.

Some problems that the original book had are, alas, retained or, in a few cases, exaggerated. The gutter of the book is too tight, causing one to crack the spine to get a full view; this was the case in the earlier edition as well. New layout glitches include shaded backgrounds for text boxes being placed too close to the edge of the text (in some cases touching it), and headlines that sit too close to the images. The problem of citing alkaloid contents as fixed numbers is still present (although in a few cases ranges are presented). Those with little knowledge on the subject might actually believe that all dried Trichocereus pachanoi plants have a 2% mescaline content, while this is actually the peak of the range that can be determined through a survey of the scant few published isolation analyses (which dips down to 0.33%, and even lower in published HPLC analysis), and may not be typical. In new cases when ranges are presented, such as the case with Mimosa tenuiflora root-bark said to contain 0.57 to 1.0% DMT, the information may not be correct. (M. tenuiflora has been reported to contain 0.31 to 0.57% DMT with specific analyses available in the literature of Gonçalves de Lima 1946 and Patcher et al. 1959, and there have been unsubstantiated counter-culture claims of 1% to 11%, see ER Vol. X, No. 3, 2001 and Ott 2001). Both the new and the old editions of this book are riddled with statements about alkaloid contents that are presented as if they were fixed amounts, when in reality alkaloid content can be highly variable.

Some new errors are introduced with this edition. Spelling mistakes are peppered throughout (they've misspelled author Hofmann's name on the back cover!), and awkward phrasings are not uncommon in those sections that were translated from German. In some cases, plants are presented as containing specific alkaloids that they do not have. For example, it is remarked that "The Turkey Red variety of the grass Phalaris arundinacea contains liberal amounts of DMT." This is in error, as this variety contains liberal amounts of 5-MeO-DMT, not DMT. Also, photographs of four cacti-Ariocarpus retusus, A. fissuratus, Astrophyton asterias, and Aztekium riterii-known in México as "peyote" are depicted, with the statement "They primarily contain the substance mescaline and other psychoactive alkaloids." This too is in error, as only A. riterii has been found to contain trace amounts of mescaline, and no mescaline has been found at all in the others. (It was interesting to see that Rätsch considers a heftier amount of mescaline, "0.5-0.8 gram" to be a dose, compared to the Shulgins' more conservative 200-400 mg dose listed in PIHKAL; I tend to agree with Rätsch.)

Any and all criticism of this book should be viewed as minor, as it is truly a marvelous work. Rätsch has taken a great book and made it better. Especially if you own the first edition, you owe it to yourself to pick up this revamp. It is visual delight, a joy to read cover-to-cover, and it will no doubt be revisited repeatedly for years to come.

This coloring book is the perfect coloring book. It's non-traditional, but it encourages your child to build upon his/her imagination and express their individuality as well as personal artistic flair. It provides the foundation for a lot of coloring fun!

Love this series of book!! I ended up buying one for each of my eight kids ranging from 16 to 4 years old.

My four year old got this out of my gift pile (to give to others), and had a great time doing the first half of the book. Needless to say, it works for almost any age! It gives you the beginning of a picture (usually) and gives you guidance on what to draw. Here's an umbrella, draw some rain. Fun and creative gift for any age!

I bought this book as something my 3 y/o and I could do together. We finally pulled it out tonight (I was saving it for some quality alone time) and I LOVE IT! This is just very basic generic coloring book and each page has a simple instruction to add to or finish the scribble on the page. You can interpret it however you want and do with it what you please. Follow the instructions literally, abstract something, create something completely different. This book definitely inspired creativity in both me and my son. My mom is pretty artsy and I am going to order one for her. I'd love to see what she'd do with it. Great choice if you're looking for something different and I totally agree it's good for any age.
As for the dead person...if your child can read, let them draw a dead person. It's about interpretation and creativity. They don't have to draw a corpse. Maybe they choose to draw Abraham Lincoln or Jesus. If they can't read, tell them to draw whatever you'd like to see.

I bought this for my 3 year old who loves coloring books, as long as they have dot to dots and "design the cookie" type pages. This is perfect for her. She loves it just as much as i thought she would. What I don't like is that some of the pages are landscape style. I mean, they go across the binding of the book which makes it difficult. I tried ripping the pages out, then glueing them to a bigger piece of construction paper. That can olny be done if you have already done the pages on the back sides (unless you want to waste pages out of a 20.00 book, i don't) it would be nice if the whole book were landscape, and the worst thing about this book is the page that says to "draw a dead person." What in the world? I ripped out that page, and good thing i saw it before she did. It has a box that resembles a coffin that you are supposed to draw the 'dead body' in. I would have considered returning the book for that reason alone had she not used over 1/2 the book already,a nd been in love with it. Seriously everyday since she got it, she has done 10-15 pages.

I am very new to learning sign language. I feel this book will help me be able to communicate better. Very well illustrated! When you lose your ability to speak, you need to be able to learn how to sign as easily as possible. This book is the perfect tool for easy learning.

I am taking American Signing Lessons and my teacher recommends this book! It is easy to follow with great pictures and comprehensive content. I love it!

Hi im hard of hearing and my friend is also hard of hearing. when i typed in signing books to learn more signing the first book came up was this. I clicked on it and read the contets of this book. It looked so good i bought it of amazon. It came in 1 week. i was so happy i got it and looked at it all day. The signs are so easy to read that you could do it right of the bat!!!!!!! I love it!!!!!! But when it arives the cover is a little different but thats all. My book is kind of my interpiter. (Some anyway)I hope you buy this book because its easy and its great!!!!!!!!!!!!

This vocabulary in this book is organized into categories so that, for instance, all the relationship words are grouped together. The drawings of the hand shapes are better than in a lot of ASL texts, and each drawing is accompanied by an explanation as to hand shape, position, and orientation, as well as little memory tips to help link the sign to its meaning.

For the beginner this book is helpful including these sections:
Getting Started: The basics (Showing proper positions for finger spelling and the proper signing area etc.)
Basic Hand Shapes
Hints for Better Signing
The Manual Alphabet
There are 16 chapters, with each chapter covering word groups such as Family,People and Pronouns; Home,Clothing,and Colors; Food and Eating;
Technology; Thoughts,Emotions,and Abstract Ideas; Time,Seasons Weather;
Health,Medical,and the Body; God and Religion; Cities, States, Countries,&Governments; as well as many others.
At the end of each chapter there is a test for those of you that may try to learn ASL on your own (with answers in the back).This is great for testing your comprehension.
There are 1,550 signs clearly illustrated with a memory aid to go with each sign.
I would highly recommend this book for anyone with the desire to learn Sign Language.

Frank Miller doesn't pull many punches when he writes. I use the word raw to describe his writing because honestly, there is no more appropriate word if you ask me. His characters exist and breathe unapologizingly in the world of Basin City and That Yellow Bastard is way at the top of the best Sin City books for a reason. You have a hero that doesn't have an ounce of quit in him and who's pushed beyond what's even amorally admisible. Hardigan is the type of hero everyone says they would be in a situation such as that but quite frankly, I don't think there exists someone who is as unbreakable as Hardigan. Moral dilemmas don't exist when it comes to saving a kid from a rapist but it all gets way complicated when push comes to shove comes to murder. The beauty of Sin City is that even though it's noir fiction, you can't help but believe these characters, feel their pain, feel their anger and silently nod as some questionable decisions regarding what's right in this world are taken by a hero that shows that being a hero sometimes means not giving a damn and taking your hatred for one Yellow Bastard to the brink of sanity.

A mostly honest cop close to retirement saves a young girl, foiling the plots of some crooked colleagues and other powerful men. He takes the torture, deprivation and long prison sentence to protect her, revelling in the letters she writes him.

They stop, he is let out. Finding the girl, he realises he has been played, and knows there is only one way to stop the little yellow bastard and company.

Frank Miller's Sin City is paradise for noir fans, nothing can't happen in these graphic novels. "Walk down the right back alley in Sin City, and you can find anything." Book 4 of 7, That Yellow Bastard is a tale of bravery and sacrifice. It's my absolute favorite of all the Sin City books, Frank Miller's dark and extremely stylized way of telling this masterpiece is electrifying. The artwork is tip top, the writing is crisp and smooth, and the characterization is excellent. I hope you enjoy this amazing book!

A fan favorite due to the movie, John Hartigan is probably the most unusual character in the Sin City roster - an honest and honorable cop in a very corrupt and dishonest city. Not surprisingly, things do not go well for him. Betrayed by his partner and set up as the patsy for a heinous crime, he represent the epitome of honor as he quietly and passively accepts his fate in order to protect the innocent.

On the other side is Hartigan's polar opposite. The title character is probably the single most despicable character in the series who tortures little kids before killing them, uses family connections to get himself off while framing an innocent man. The great thing about this book is that it really presents the two extremes of humanity and puts them at crossing paths to each other.

The story has more sticking power than many of the others by Frank Miller. No doubt this is due to the ending, far more poignant than that of others. It is too bad that Miller did not continue with this story line in other volumes as there are enough loose ends here for a number of good stories. Perhaps, though, the ambiguity is part of the charm.

Frank Miller gave noir a new, gritty face with the "Sin City" series, and his favorite is reportedly "That Yellow Bastard." It's another story where a hardened man goes down a dark path, regardless of harm to himself -- and Miller's exceptional art and storytelling are in their prime here.

John Hartigan is mere hours from retiring when he finds that little Nancy Callahan has been kiidnapped by murderous pedophile Roark Jr., who also happens to be a senator's son. Hartigan disarms Roark Jr. (both as a killer and a rapist) but ends up in prison, abused and hated, where his only comfort is his weekly letter from little Nancy. She knows the truth, and loves him for what he did.

But eight years later, Hartigan finally gets himself paroled, since he's concerned about Nancy. She's now an exotic dancer being pursued by a hideous, yellow-skinned creature -- Roark Jr., reborn as a horrendous, unnatural creature. Now Hartigan will do anything -- including sacrifice himself -- to save Nancy from her disgusting attacker.

A knight-in-tarnished-armor theme runs through the "Sin City" series, with deeply flawed men seeking revenge or protection for women. It started off the series, and popped up in many others. That story is at its height in "That Yellow Bastard," which also contains what may be the noblest character in the whole series -- and he's a broken-down cop with angina.

Miller's black-and-white artwork is as striking as ever, especially for a series where everything is a shade of grey. There are lots of shadows and stark faces, as well as the typical violence of the series -- guys, you may end up cringing a lot in the castration scenes. Yet somehow the violence seems appropriate, no matter how horrible it is, since it's being aimed at the deformed rapist-murderer.

Hartigan may be the noblest character in the entire series. The entire story is about him trying to protect Nancy, even to the point of suffering eight years of prison and beatings without a word. He's the only honest cop in Sin City, and similarly, Nancy Callahan retains a sense of innocence despite her raunchy job.

"That Yellow Bastard" is a raw, dark noir comic that somehow manages to be poignant as well. It's a disturbing ride, but still worth taking.

Being a 4th Dan black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I tend to really dissect books on the subject and more than likely also tend to be more critical of the subject matter than perhaps I ought to. However, in this particular case, I feel that my very critical outlook on this book is actually a good thing, as this book far surpassed my expectations as an overall reference guide to Tae Kwon Do.

I was very impressed with the wealth of general information that was provided by the authors in this book. It was very well thought out and the organization of the material presented was exceptional. This book was so well done, that I even decided to hang onto it and keep it in my own personal library of martial arts book. It is that good!

The basic layout of the books starts with a brief but very informative look at the history and philosophy of Tae Kwon Do from ancient times to the more modern era. This is quickly followed up by a section on warming up and stretching, which brings up the one item that is usually a detractor when not used, but in this case it has been minimized by the use of well drawn human figures, and that is the lack of photographs in this book. Now I don't mean to say that there aren't enough photographs, I mean that there aren't any photographs at all in this book. Now under normal circumstances this would have been a HUGE detractor, but in this case it ends up being only a minor annoyance. At least that is how I looked at it.

The author's chose instead to provide some very well done drawings of a human figure to demonstrate the various techniques explained in this book. And though I still believe that photographs would have been helpful, the drawings themselves were done well enough that I considered them, for the most part, to be an acceptable substitute.

The next few sections cover some basic techniques in Tae Kwon Do such as; stances, footwork, blocks, strikes, and kicks. Of which, the following kicks were demonstrated:

Front Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 6)
Axe Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 3)
Crescent Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 4)
Reverse Crescent Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 5)
Roundhouse Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 9)
Side Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 10)
Back Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 1)
Hook Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 7)

Now I must add a particular note here that all of these techniques came with very good explanations to their proper execution and in some cases applications against an actual opponent. A lot of good relevant information was included in this section, as well as, the rest of the book.

The second to the last section of this book was very well done concerning the use of Tae Kwon Do techniques in a sparring type situation. Although I might add that some of it is also relevant to use in a self-defense type situation with just a bit of modification.

The final section in this book is devoted to the eight basic Taegeuk poomse or forms that are required for advancement through the gup ranks and also for the rank of black belt. Now I must admit that I am not a fan of the Taegeuk forms, but they are demonstrated rather well in this book and if you are looking for good reference material to refer to, then this section will definitely be of interest to you.

Overall this is really an outstanding book and one that I highly recommend.

Shawn Kovacich
Martial Artist/Author of the Achieving Kicking Excellence series.

I have purchased many books from Amazon and have never left a review. I feel compelled to write on this textbook because it is an extraordinarily well written and has fleshed out in my mind the history, principles and practice of taekwondo.

All of the important fundamentals are here, with concisely rendered figures of the stances, strikes, blocks, kicks, footwork etc. What is most helpful to my children especially the poomse sections. All of the taegeuk forms are here with explanations and review sections with schematic figures of the patterns. This book is essential for any age taekwondo practitioner.

I've found this a really good book. It covers basic techniques and stepping in enough detail to be really useful, then moves on the descibe the forms in three different ways - a text description with notes on specific moves, a description using drawings, and a quick summary of the moves involved. And it includes information on sparring. I own three or four other books dedicated to different aspects of Taekwondo, but this is the one I use 90% of the time.

The only problem I had was with a couple of pages becoming detached, but this was probably from me having it open in my hand while I practiced!

This is a really good book . . . I have been studying Tae Kwon Do for a couple of years now and this book allows be a quick review of some of the things we do at class. The step by step Poomsae picture section at the end is very helpful for polishing your forms.

I highly recommend this book.

I bought this my first week of TaeKwonDo. At first it was a little overwhelming. As I learned, the book became a very useful tool. It's really great to practice the physical and read the theory and history behind it in this book. It's a great guide for practicing at home. I recommend this book for any beginner to this sport.

I gave this as a gift to someone who likes to read about the movies as much as he enjoys watching them. Because he has a collection of movie guides, this one caught my eye because it was different with a more unique take on film.

I have purchased other movie guides in the past but always end up getting the current Videohound. It's more concise than other books. Lots more information available. I love the catagory lists. Some of the catagory titles they think up are great! I would recommend this book for video lovers over any other that I've purchased.

i consider myself a movie buff, and this is my bible. this is the fourth edition of this book that i bought, and i will continue to buy one every year. it helps me to choose the movies i watch, and answers the questions that plague me. with the many options for reference (title, category, actor, director, composer, awards), i find this book very easy to use. not only does this book list actors, awards, directors, etc. a description of the film and a rating are included. i freaking love this book! 'nuff said.

The only short side is that it only produces info for on tape or DVD. Other than that it is a gem. When ever you don't remember an actors name, find the movie or the movie you remember them in and your there.

The bones critic of the film (ergo hound) is very good, a real persons review of the film.

Look for info by genre, title, actor or whatever.

This is a film buffs must and a great conversation starter!

What was Bogart's final film? What was Lizabeth Scott's first film? How many movies did Gregory Peck make? How many movies did Raoul Walsh direct? When did John Wayne die? And what was Vincente Minnelli's final film? Answers below! All this and considerably more movie information is included in the veritable encyclopedia "Golden Movie Retriever". There are fully 929 pages of movie synopses and ratings. Also included are indices on movie writers, cinematographers, composers and categories -how many Zorro movies are there? (13!). There are over 30 pages of major awards- and even a section on alternate titles! Apparently, "Summer Stock" may also called "If You Feel Like Singing"! It could easily take a lifetime to mine the nuggets here. The only possible weakness to GMR is the paper cover, which should be well worn very quickly. Answers to the questions above are: "The Harder They Fall" (1956); "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" (1946); 49 (count `em!); 43; 1979 and "A Matter of Time" (1976). What's not to like? There is absolutely nothing for a movie fan to ponder here. Hit hat "Add to Cart" button now!

I picked this book up hoping to write a cookbook, and I have to say that I love it overall. Dianne's style is lyrical, and she's got the friendly tone of a beloved mentor. It's a comprehensive guide, and while it covers any topics, if you want to delve into deeper detail on any one of them, you need to do more digging for further resources. This guide, though, is a great introduction and inspiration. Highly recommended.

In a profession without a road map, this book is essential. A skilled editor, Jacob's tone is at once motivating, demanding, and kind. In her chapter on recipe testing, she brings you into famed kitchens--i.e. those of Deborah Madison, Mark Bittman, and Alice Medrich--to show that recipe developing is both hard work and loads of fun, like food writing itself.

I stumbled upon Dianne's website while I was researching for my book proposal. I wasn't planning to write a cookbook but since I love food and this book is so unique, I got myself a copy anyway.

I'm pleasantly surprised! I've learnt a great deal about raising one's platform/profile before publishing a book, as well as the nuts & bolts of the publishing industry. This book is a MUST-HAVE for all aspiring cookbook writers!

An inspiring food writing with a stack of gastronimic literature to read through over a long weekend, I had a goal of finishing at least two of three books that were sitting on my coffee table. The first one I chose was "Will Write for Food" by Dianne Jacob. A food writer who's been writing since 1978, Dianne also instructs and coaches individuals and groups on becoming successful food writers. As she mentions in her book, she used to tell students to go check out books at the library about food writing to gain perspective of the business outside of class. After students repeadedly came back to her stating there were no books out there on food writing, Dianne decided she'd be the one to write it. So I guess one could say this is the first book published on the nuts and bolts of becoming a successful, professional food writer. I found the book incredibly helpful, honest and no-nonsense. Dianne has a gift for mixing honesty (don't quite your day job right away) with pep talks (just keep writing, you'll get there). She delivers practical advice and covers topics from writing cookbooks to the art of restaurant reviewing, pitching food article ideas to magazine editors to writing memoirs, and getting ficiton and nonfiction pieces published. The book also features a number of exercises at the end of each chapter for readers to stretch their creative muscles, like brainstorming exercises that assist in developing magazine article topics, writing your own food recipe and researching food and book publishing markets. Finishing the book inspired me to march forward and capture all the ideas floating in my head onto paper to get them closer to being published pieces of work. This is a book I will refer back to regularly.

I have read many advice/guidance books on writing, and I truly found this book to have more practical and thorough information than all others I have read - and solely on the subject of food writing! The 'Interview Subjects,' 'Bibliography,' and 'Selected Web Sites' sections knocked my socks off. It is obvious that Dianne Jacob put a lot of time and effort into this book. I read it completely in just three days, and I will refer to it regularly for my food writing pursuits.