Asia Books

I have been a student of Taoism for over 40 years and try to accumulate as much literature on the subject as I can. This particular book is a very good find. I have been (and still am) enjoying it immensely. And Amazon.com helped me in finding this book at a great value.

Original Tao is a wonderful translation of an often over-looked text. The verses contained within this short work rival and often surpass those found in the more well known Taoist classic, Lau-tzu.

In addition to the translation, Professor Roth's commentary on Chinese mysticism is phenomenal and provides an interesting back-drop to the history of Taoist thought.

I highly recommend this book to both newcomers and veterans of Taoism

The centre of this 200-pages book is the critical edition of the Chinese text and the scholar translation of the Nei Ye (55 pages). Before and after this part, an introduction and 4 other chapters trace the history of the text, its contents and structure, its position in the context of the early Taoist mysticism and its position in the context of the early Taoism in general.

The Nei Ye is not a recent discovery; it was known since millennia but, buried in a supposed Confucian miscellany, its actual contents and significance have been since long overlooked. This book attempts, with success, to re-assess them, placing this work at the origins of Taoist mysticism, as the earliest extant text of the tradition which will later express more widely known works like Laozi and Zhuangzi.

"Original Tao" is a scholar book, it is not an 'easy' reading and the reader without any familiarity with ancient China's history and philosophy will be easily overwhelmed by the amount of names, data, quotations and so on.

On the other hand, its language is not too technical, and basic concepts are never taken for granted but appropriately introduced. And, above all, the new lights it casts on (and the grounds it provides for) the development of the early Taoist mysticism are for sure of great interest even to the layman who knows Taoism only through (more or less sound translations of) the Laozi and the Zhuangzi.

While not really new (it has now about 10 years), this book is definitely to recommend to anybody with a non-casual interest on Taoism.

The only (small) criticism I can make is the use of an old Chinese transliteration system instead of the now more widely used pinyin system.

Original Tao provides a new translation and commentary which revise Taoism's origins and reflect new historic discoveries, uncovering the original expressions of Taoist philosophy and using original texts as masterworks for revision. From an introduction of short poetic verses devoted to meditation to the author's contention that the seminal Taoist work Inward Training is the foundational text of early Taoism, this provides an intriguing new examination.

Reviewed by Patty Inglish for Reader Views (4/07)

The free verse in this book of poetry is startling. It is beautiful and covers nearly all aspects imaginable of any woman's life. Some aspects are still rather unmentionable in Western society so it is good to be startled by the subject matter of this volume and the uncanny structure of the pieces included in it. The verses contain strong imagery while some are images in themselves, designed to flow down the pages in pictures and designs made up of phrases. These images and words are powerful throughout and provided by a wide array of ages among Japanese female poets. Some published their first works in the early 1950s and others are quite new in comparison. All have something vital to say.

This collection of verse is quite surprising in its breadth of subject matter. The dedication reads: "to our mothers and teachers," and gives Japanese women and all women a modern voice with more to say than in previous generations and this time, translated in English. This opens an almost mystic door to the consideration of subjects some Western women have avoided, but perhaps can now embrace and examine. Poetry is an effective venue for crossing boundary lines, as shown by the Beat Generation of the 1950s-60s and Hip Hop poets of today. Truth cannot be ignored but it is easier to face through a doorway that is beautiful

The introduction of "Other Side River" describes Japanese poetry historically and the emergence of women poets. Geishas have a long history of writing poetry as part of their art and profession, but the free verse of "Other Side River" is not quite like those types of poems. These women poets are not Geishas and there is no white make-up and wig to hide anything about them. They are more realistic and strongly voiced in confronting the truth and the human condition, including relationships between men and women in Japanese society - perhaps all society. These poems feel like jazz at times and at other times seem surreal. Then there are interspersed among them, verses of stark reality, some of nostalgia and longing, even of death and sorrow, and other works that form actual pictures on the pages. It is riveting as a whole.

Several poems are displayed with the English translation beside the Japanese original, in Roman letters. This is a fascinating structure, allowing the reader to read the poem in both languages. Even though I know only a few words of Japanese, reading the original language provided me with additional poetic rhythm, flow, and even emotional value. My favorites of the verses in this book are those that are rather experimental visual poetry, such as "Vase," -- the words of which are arranged to form the image of a vase on the page. Another favorite is "Living Thing," which pictures trails of letters forming phrases and sentences just below the title in order to look like literary tentacles of a man o'war.

In the back of the book is a list of the authors and a short biography of each and all are interesting. Aside from lives as poets, some of these gifted women are embroidery artists, illustrators, novelists, painters, PhDs, teachers, and translators. The poets of this book also include those who have been in Japan's "untouchables" class, lesbian poets, Korean-Japanese poets, and even Japanese poets writing in English as their second language. I have found in the East, that poetry is an expressive art form used by many people from all lifestyles, and that a poet is usually accomplished in other arts, literary forms, and professions. In fact, I have found these poets to be decidedly multitalented. The experiences from their occupations and vocations enter into their poems, which are like gold refined through fire over and over until the refiner creates a small amount of a material that is priceless. It is also like a piece of coal on which the pressures of life have exerted themselves with such force as to create a flawless diamond. This is the difference, in my mind, between outstanding poetry of the type offered in "Other Side River" and, say, a philosophical book.

The poems in "Other Side River" should be read by anyone interested in free verse and diversity of poetry types and author backgrounds. The free verse will be enjoyed by readers attracted to the Far East, as well as those interested in women's studies and the global human condition.

From an editor, poet and reader There are no Madam Butterflys in this book. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyama have gathered together, edited and translated an amazing collection of contemporary Japanese women's poetry in other side river. Very prominent on the cover and title page are the words FREE VERSE, and free it is. No one is singing "Un bel di.." in this group. Until now my view of Japanese women was confined to Korosawa's movies and Puccini's heart-rending melodies. What an awakening! Nobody is bowing and smiling, giggling and shuffling among this crew. There may be songs of fleeting love, of disappointment, of nostalgia, even a lament after an abortion-- Hiromi Ito's "Killing Kanoko", but these are modern women expressing themselves in an open, bold and incredibly brave fashion, expressing themselves in songs of protest, triumph, love, survival and on a variety of subjects in a unique way. These are women from every province, from every walk of life. Some embrace the counter culture, some write in more traditional ways but each poet has a distinctive voice, a recognizable style and makes a strong, vibrant contribution to the whole. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyamo have gifted not only women, but what is more important, the life of poetry wherever it may breath.

This beautiful collection surprised me with its depth and breadth. The poetry of Japanese women of all ages and backgrounds comes together in this landmark anthology in clear, poetic translations. What's more (thankfully), there are no geisha or shrinking violets to be found in its pages. Rather, this is a flowering of contemporary women poets from the famous to the virtually unknown, including a range of powerful, strong poems from those whose voices haven't been heard before in English translation. Korean-Japanese poets, Ainu poets, poets from Japan's "Untouchable" caste, lesbian poets, poets writing in English (not their native tongue!) and others are some of the diverse talents blooming here. From the surrealistic to the realistic, from the prose poem to the jazz riff, from experimental visual poetry to confessional chants, this brave and beautiful anthology delights upon each re-reading. A sample from its pages is:

"Attica Blues/Archie Shepp":
Chained in the bottomless marshpond/
I dye my body as black as possible/
Tomorrow I'll be blacker than today./
The days stand on unreasonableness,/
Historical questions crushed under their feet./

But I don't stop protesting/
Even though I can't move when I'm held down/
Even if my last blessing was the sound of my twisted neck,/
I'd make you listen from underground.--by Harumi Makino Smith

From an editor, poet and reader There are no Madam Butterflys in this book. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyama have gathered together, edited and translated an amazing collection of contemporary Japanese women's poetry in other side river. Very prominent on the cover and title page are the words FREE VERSE, and free it is. No one is singing "Un bel di.." in this group. Until now my view of Japanese women was confined to Korosawa's movies and Puccini's heart-rending melodies. What an awakening! Nobody is bowing and smiling, giggling and shuffling among this crew. There may be songs of fleeting love, of disappointment, of nostalgia, even a lament after an abortion-- Hiromi Ito's "Killing Kanoko", but these are modern women expressing themselves in an open, bold and incredibly brave fashion, expressing themselves in songs of protest, triumph, love, survival and on a variety of subjects in a unique way. These are women from every province, from every walk of life. Some embrace the counter culture, some write in more traditional ways but each poet has a distinctive voice, a recognizable style and makes a strong, vibrant contribution to the whole. Leza Lowitz and Miyuki Aoyamo have gifted not only women, but what is more important, the life of poetry wherever it may breath.

Born in 1940, I lived a serene childhood during the War. Our hardships were rationing and blackouts. My like-age cousin in Southwestern Germany dodged bombs and tanks, lost her father somewhere on the Eastern Front and our great uncle when their town was overrun. Like her, I knew we were at war. Our city streets had plenty of amputee veterans and men in uniform. I saw the Atlantic horizon lined with warships. I played war with my brother and "flew" my toy planes crying, "bombs over Tokyo." How protected we American children were!

It may be a cliche to say it but we should never forget. This book brings back the faces of a few of the men who took the war to the enemy and kept it from our land. It is a tribute to the combat photographers that many of these pictures exist and though black and white stills do not communicate the sound, fury, and chaos of the battlefield, many of the photos capture the action in a way that makes it seem to unfold before our eyes.

The battlefield photos personalize the War. You see the tension and fatigue in men's eyes. Where Marines or Japs lie dead you are confronted with the ultimate impact on the luckless. Where men's faces are clear you are struck by the combination of youthfulness and age that seem intermingled. Among the living you wonder what became of them.

For sheer impact, I recommend the photo at the top left of page 154. Taken on a Tarawa beachead, five Marines are visible in the cover of a disabled Amtrak. One is dead, two are ready for action, and two are condition unknown. Of the five, the first three are the true subjects of the photo. Their faces are clear. The dead man looks young and at peace. The other two are alert and tense facing inland toward the enemy. You can imagine them lunging forward at first opportunity out of the cover of the Amtrak to meet whatever fate awaits them.

The book is more than a collection of captioned photos. Instead, the photos illuminate the textual description of Marine Corps activities prior to and during the War in the Pacific. Chapters are devoted to each of the major island campaigns, to training, amphibious force history and development, experiences early in the war etc. The writing is clear and to the point providing a good overview and summary. Readers wishing to focus on just one book covering Marine Corps participation in WWII will be well served by this book.

This is an excellent book showing the US Marines during WW2 in the Pacific. Both the pictures and text are some of the best I have seen. This book will truly be appreciated by anyone who wants to understand what it was like to be a Marine fighting in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II.

This book covers the full scope of the island-hopping Marines, with vivid pictures portraying what they went through in World War II. However, if you want to follow one Marine who hit Tulagi, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Guam, and Iwo Jima, I recommend reading "Pacific War Marine."

Pacific Warriors is one of those rare books that absolutely captures the essence of an era. Eric Hammel's photo selection and text sets the stage and allows the images themselves to tell the story of a generation of Marines who fought the battles in the Central Pacific during World War II. These photos remind everyone that the cost of victory over Japan did not come cheap. The combat cameramen captured the close-range fighting brilliantly, and some of the best war photography ever taken can be seen within the pages of this book. If you have even a passing interest in this topic, you need to own this work. Get it on your bookshelf right away, you will not be disappointed.

This is a good read notwithstanding the sometimes academic treatment of the topic which at best is boring and long winded. Having said as much, the author does a pretty through job of addressing the various aspects of Pathan history which departs quite significantly from the common understanding of the average Pathan of himself and his heritage.

I for one was quite amazed to see the argument posed by the author and the facts laid therein to substantiate his proposition. However, by and large it is a book worth reading given the subject of Pathan history is something that can not be fully understood from a single read.

If you are not a Sindi, Punjabi, Hazara, Tajik or other enemies of the Afghans/Pakhtoon, this is a must reading for you.

This book is an extremely useful work for historical reference, perhaps the only one in its category extant. It can be called a magnum opus. The narrative of its writer is, of course, tinted heavily with his own emotion--and he has pointed this out to the reader himself when describing the nature of his book--therefore this aspect of the book may also be taken as a "historical reference", to its VIP author's attitudes, but otherwise has no value and is sincere, but very harmfully misleading to the unacquainted reader, about the true nature of the evil Pathan society and its ways, in the present time especially. The Pathans/Pakhtuns/Afghans were always a backward, turbulent society with a criminal culture, but they have changed drastically for the worse in the 44 years since this book was first written, mostly in the last 20 years or so.

This is one of the most comprehensive books on the subject of the Pathans (Pukhtoon or Pushtoon. Written by the last British Governor of the North West Frontier Province, this book traces the geneaology of this unusual race. Recently the Readers Digest (July 2000) wrote a story on the connection with Alexander the Great. This is a scholary work so if you are looking for light reading this is not for you. At one time Afghan and Pathan or Pukhtoon/Pushtoon were synonymous. It was the fear of the Pathans of Pakistan joining with the Pathans of Afghanistan that led Pakistan to deny naming the province "Pashtunistan" (Land of the Pashtuns)for fear of lending legitimacy to their desire for independence. Winston Churchill fought here. So did Sherlock Holmes' friend Dr. Watson. The general fascination with this area can be gauged by the number of National Geographic articles about it. This book brings these people to life and gives them the honorable treatment they have earned. I should know, I am a Pukhtoon of the Yousafzai (Joseph's Children) tribe.

Brilliant in every way, David Kidd's carefully weaved tale of the end of Old China, as seen through the eyes of an upper class family, is profoundly personal and endearing. As it wavers between fact and fiction its underlining message becomes abundantly clear: the Old China is gone and never to be forgotten, even as those who lived it fall into the abyss of time. A moving,humorous, delightful, and sorrowful read. Simply brilliant.

Memoirs of the surviving privileged classes who lost everything in twentieth-century revolutions can often seem terribly materialistic and self-pitying: when displaced aristocrats wail and wail for their lost tiaras or smashed porcelain, without a jot of sympathy for why they were asked to leave in the first place, you can begin perversely to develop sympathy for the cadres who called these people class parasites and threw them out. David Kidd's memoir of marrying into an ancient and wealthy Chinese family in 1948 shows every sign of such a work, but it's far better than it starts out to be (given his adoration for lives of privilege and his almost willfuil refusal to see the point of view of why anyone would support the Communists in 1949 in the first place). The superb descriptions of the Yu family's rotting but beautiful manor are done with great humor and artistry as well as with melancholy, and the very memorable portrait of the phlegmatic and wry Yus themselves seems to bring additional perspective and depth to the material. What emerges in the end is (despite the book's brevity) a very artful and moving snapshot of a world in transition

Beautifully, lyrically rendered in the author's inimitable voice, full of haunting descriptions of a world that is gone forever yet never to be forgotten. David Kidd was truly one of a kind, unique in every way.

This book haunts..it stays with you as a most intimate portrait of those special and tender people caught in the transition between the old China and the Revolution in 1948. No account has ever brought more tears and love for those real people who saw and felt their world change almost beyond their understanding.

I was struck by the creative use of the Chinese characters in the drawings themselves which were very fresh and alive. A Chinese/American friend of mine also read the book and said that these characters must be rather new. She didn't think that her father would recognize them. I think the book would be compelling for both children and adults.

I am a director of a Preschool and we teach the Mandarin Language here. I ordered this book to add to our collection of story telling and was pleasantly surprised! This is a great book to start teaching the Chinese written characters and the children love love love this story! They even now can pick out the written characters in other written materials because of this book. The story is memorable. Author uses the Chinese character strokes over the pictures. Pictures are cute and story is entertaining.Highly recommend this book!!!

I bought this book as a present and had to read it first for myself. The book's illustrations help you understand the Chinese characters and bring the story together. After one look through, i was already testing myself on which characters I had learned. You'll be surprised at how fast you can pick up on it. I definitely recommend this book for you, your child or as an awesome present!

I love this book! It is a large format so my son has a lot to look at and does not get as easily distracted as he does with smaller books. The pictures are also high contrast. I enjoy the illustration a great deal myself. And did I mention the clever integration of the Chinese characters into the illustration. I'm not sure yet how much my son has learned but it has taught me a lot. Great book!

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the history of the Japanese pirates. It provides enough details to make one feel like one learned something interesting but does not overwhelm with boring details.
The "further readings" section has a lot of useful references (though I don't think I have time to dig into all of them...)

Basically, the early Japanese pirates were thugs, or 'terrorists', who engaged in rape, murder, theft, kidnapping and arson etc. They terrorized the coasts of Korea and China. These violent pirates later became 'navy' during the 'warring period' and the 'Imjin War (invasion of Korea)'. While now we can read with amusement (just like the pirates of the Carrabeans), they were one of the 'axis of evil' at that time.

Giving five star does not mean it is above my criticism. The 'pirate ships' section is a little shakey in my humble opinion.
As the author acknowledged, there is no remnant of the ships, nor is there any detailed drawing to tell us conclusively the size or compartment of the pirate ships. So, stating that the Atakebune (large battleships) manned 80 oarsmen and 60 fighting men (140 men crew) can be misleading if not inaccurate. I tried to find where this 140 men number came about, but couldn't find it. There are documents that describe much larger battleships built by daimyos such as Oda Nobunaga (200 oars battleship) and Kuki, not to mention Hideyoshi, who preferred large battleships. As the warring period intensified in Japan, many diamyos who teamed up with pirates pushed for larger Atake ships.

There was by no means a unified version of Atakebune. This was a very different situation from Korea, where the design/size of the Korean battleships were standardized under one Court.

In other books the author has mentioned the piratical activities of the Wako, or Japanese pirates. This book is a good expansion on those mentions, and a good summary of wako activities. Illustrations are good. I feel, however, that the format of the book limited the information to be had. I would have liked to see more on the Portuguese pirates that joined the late-era Wako, for example, as well as more detail on the campaigns and life-styles of the pirates. The title, incidentally, is misleading, implying that the Chinese and Malay pirates, who were long-standing menaces to the Far East, would also be included. All in all, a good book, but not enough pages. This could be the basis for a larger, much better book.

I never knew there were pirates of this nature. Brutal and bold. I loved this book and will reread.

I remember when I first saw this title advertized earlier this year. 'Pirate of the Far East 811-1639? What the heck?' This had to be the most obscure title yet published by Osprey! Nonetheless, as a fan of both Samurai Warfare and Stephen Turnbull, I went ahead and bought it. I was not disappointed.

To sum it up, Turnbull examines 800 years of raids on the civilizations of China, Korea, and of course Japan by bands of cutthroats, mercenaries, lordless Samurai, and plain scum, and the wars of revenge fought against them both on land and at sea. These fierce and unruly warriors, known for their cruelty and complete lack of respect for any ruler or religion, had the ragtag appearance one would expect, but many managed to acquire Samurai weaponry and armor. In fact, one of their greatest leaders, the 'pirate-king' Murakami Takeyoshi, was of an illustrious Samurai clan.

Turnbull opens his book with a summary of the history of these fearsome seamen, and goes on to describe their culture and outline their history. He then examines their physical appearance, clothing, armor, weapons, and ships, and then looks at their daily life, chain of command, and the various types of raid they made. Then he examines their tactics and the battle experience of individual pirates. He closes the title with sections on museums, sites, and further reading. As with another recent warrior title, the plates and plate commentary are spread out throughout the book, rather than being grouped together at the center and back.

Overall, despite their exotic location and appearance, these pirates were just that-typical pirates whose lifestyle and tactics were not overly different from the contemporary Vikings and European mercenary bands, and the classical buccaneer and Caribbean-type pirates still to come. As he already has with the warrior-monks, ashigaru, and ninja, Turnbull does these hard-fighting and murderous raiders a service by revealing to the modern English-speaking world just how vital a role they played in the the politics and wars of contemporary China, Japan, and Korea, and does so in a manner than is exciting and readable, and leaves the reader stunned at the chilling cruelty of these pitiless mercenaries.

I never had an interest to go to China. It just seemed like some distant fantasy. But when I was required to pick a book from my high school book report, I picked Postcards From China. I must admit that I partly picked it because it was written by my Aunt, but it was no mistake. This book journies through the lives of a family trying to survive in a country where the language is foreign and the culture is out of the box. As I finished the book I realized how badly I want to go to China. I want to experience being in a different culture, and being with different people. More than that, I want to go to China show the love of Jesus to the people who are suffering there. The pain of the people that is expressed through this book opened my eyes to see how lost this world is. This is an amazing book, and it is worth your time to read it. I am a sophomore who is not a big fan of reading, but I am telling you, it is amazing.

The Postcards came from Xiamen, China's incomparable "garden city". I received Sandy's Postcards one by one, as they were written, and I was one of the people who urged her to publish them in book form so that others could also enjoy Megan, Larry, Sandy, and Xiamen. Sandy's writing is just like her voice---she is a great communicator. I was worried that her editor might tamper with her writing, thereby obscuring her inimitable style, but thankfully, this did not happen. The editor had the good sense to leave her excellent writing intact.
The story is a charming and compelling one, but is Xiamen and its people really like Sandy has described, or is this fiction masquerading as non-fiction? Well, I was so enchanted with what I was hearing about Xiamen that I went and visited the Slavins twice, for a total of ten weeks. The Xiamen you will read about is truly the Xiamen I experienced first hand.
Do something nice for yourself---read this book!

The most impressive part of the story was when the Slavins moved to China so their adopted daughter can reconnect with her country of birth. Their open hearts and eyes made the book a joy to read. I liked its down-to-earth view of life in China that any American can understand. Even though China is westernizing at a dizzying pace, their daily adjustments to life in China reminded me of the many conveniences we take for granted in the U.S. Their spirit of adventure was inspiring. A fun read!

Sandra Slavin relates their family's China experience with an astute eye. She paints pictures with charm, wit and a insight and portrays a culture that eventually impacted their lives in unforeseen ways.

I really like this book for a first course in topology. It has the right level and balance of subjects. The book has been very hard to find for a number of years but has now been republished by Thomson Learning in Singapore. The new ISBN is 981-243-288-4.

I was very disappointed to see that this text is out of print. I would like to use this text for our topology topics course at USAFA. It pitches the subject at just the right level for the beginner in topolgy! Fabulous First Text! Does anyone know how I could get my hands on about 30 copies. OR know of one similar to this text which is still in print?

I taught a one semester course on basic point set topology out of this book. The emphasis in the first half is on metric spaces, which provide the most natural class of examples for the basic principles of point set topology that any student taking a course in topology must know about. There is little extraneous material, and I found that the students thought the book was very good. This was a group of students at a regional campus of a large state university, and I would recommend the book for a beginning course at a comparable campus. Those teaching at research institutions will want more.

As many math educators agree, there are many textbooks not written for beginners. This textbook is outstanding for any level of beginner. I wish it can be picked up by Dover. I highly recommend it to any reader who wants to know the subject: Topology.

This is an excellent first hand account. It is rather well done, more so than several others I have read. I do wish we had more like this one. Very inspiring. I felt it gave even a greater insight to the war in the Pacific. Recommend you add this one to your collection.

William Berry has written a well-detailed, although brief, look at his attempted escape and captivity after the fall of Correigdor. While not a scholarly look at these events, the author gives a good account of his capture, escape and trek through the jungle, recapture and liberation by American servicemen from Bilibid prison in Manila. He painfully recounts the agony these men went through as they were crammed, up to 13 men at one time, into a 10 by 10 cell and forced to sit, without flinching, and stare at the wall all day.

As a recaptured prisoner, Berry and his two comrades somehow survive the war, as the usual penalty for escape is execution. They were sent to the maximum security prison in Manila for "special prisoners", and many prisoners stopped here only long enough to be sentenced and shot. Berry, who was a fledgling lawyer before enlisting in the Navy, saw these skills save his life and the lives of his friends when being sentenced, not so much his arguments, of course, but rather how he shaped it to fit his audience (A Japanese tribunal)

This book does not take long to read, but it is an interesting tale, and well worth the time invested. But, if you want greater scope and detail of Americans in Japanese captivity, read "Prisoners of the Japanese" by Gavan Daws, an extremely informative and well-written look at the horrors these men had to endure daily.

The author of this book is my grandfather. I found this book to be inspiring as I am also a soldier. I am in the Army and found this book to give me a greater appreciation of my profession as well as bring a greater understanding of my grandfather's life and why he is so proud. I would recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand what POWs in the Philippines went through. I have lent my copy of his book to several of my friends and they all gave it great reviews as well.

One of the few true to life books written by a WWII POW. As a history buff I find the first hand accounts in this book of the authors experiances and the others he came in contact a first rate story of America's darkest time. A must for all those who want to know more about POW's of the Japanese.

Having been stationed in the Philippines and traveled to Battan and Corrigidor it brought the meaning of those visits a little sharper in focus.