History Books

The most important thing that I gained by reading Janusz Bardach's book is that the will to survive is as important as food when it come to survival. More times that he imagined, he survived because he felt that he would, like he had a special angel or just more "good luck" than other people. It doesn't matter if it's true, it only matters that you believe it.

Luck is also helped by brashness and the will to succeed. His story about becoming a medical assistant, though he had absolutely no formal training, reminds me of Solsenitsyn's tale of how he survived the Gulag by lying about having training as a nuclear engineer. It's the ability to adapt that keeps you alive. Goebbels said that if you told a big enough lie enough times, people would begin to believe it. The only way to survive in the Gulag was to lie to yourself and everyone else.

Since so many of the NKVD were corrupt and brutal, the only way to survive in there world was to also appear to be corrupt. Stalin sent so many of the NKVD and those who worked for them to prison, that they were well cared for by their ex-comrades, because they knew they had a good chance of joining them. Who could survive better in a criminal state within a state then a criminal?

This is a story of hope without all the 'hearts and flowers'. It just the true story of what went on, warts and all (lots of warts).

This is one of the most unbelievable stories I've ever read. It's written with superb simplicity, making it a rapid and engrossing page turner. What a great gift Bardach has given us in writing this book about his horrific and heroic experiences. This is the best account of any world war 2 camp survivor, period. He clearly illustrates that the Soviet Union was about as horrible a place to be as Europe at the time. The book is as well written as the story is interesting. Fantastic. Thank you, Janusz!

I read this after reading The Unquiet Ghost: Russians Remember Stalin. This book may be bleak and shocking, but remember, the author survived! It is an amazing, gripping, shocking story about humanity. I loved it.

I can't really say anything that hasn't been mentioned already, and I think that it would be inappropriate to give away any of the plot.

This is simply the most fascinating story of survival of any that I have ever seen. It is incredible as well as inspiring. It teaches you to value your life, and the relationships that you have with the people you care about most. There were so many instances when he could have resigned to his fate and accepted death, but instead he kept going. Millions of people died in prison camps during the war, and unfortunately all of their stories cannot be told. But to understand what they had to go through in their fight for survival, nothing beats this book. Besides telling his story, it examines the history and psychology behind what happened to him. And overall I believe that it is a valuable read for anyone interested in Russian Gulags or prison camps in general during WW2.

Janusz Bardach, who became a plastic surgeon in Iowa City, Iowa in 1972, recounts his experiences in the Gulag in this bleak tale of survival reminiscent of Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelago. A secular Jewish man and supporter of Stalin and communism living in Poland In 1939, he and his family fear their future as Germany's military forces are set up along the border. He is eventually drafted into the Red Army, but when he inadvertently gets his new tank stuck in a river, he's arrested and given a sentence of 10 years of hard labor. He, like the other prisoners, spends most of his time working to meet ridiculously high work quotas, while in a constant state of starvation. He travels from camp to camp during his six years in captivity working in various work situations including a mine, the forest felling trees, and as a medical assistant working with tuberculosis patients (which he eventually contracts). Once he recovers, he's sent to work in a psych ward, where the main focus is exposing the "fakers," those trying to get out of work. His job is to inject them with a seizure-inducing drug, which he does reluctantly. With a little help from his one surviving family member, Polish army officer brother, he is eventually released and finds out the fate of his grandparents, parents, sister and girlfriend. They were all executed.

What an entertaining book! I'm half-way through it and enjoying every minute. You get a real sense of the various personalities that made up the Ramones roster, which changed over the years. Johnny - the hard-on; Dee Dee - the Crazy; Joey - the freak; Tommy - the oppressed; and Marky - the over the top alcoholic. I personally love the oral history format. Johnny, Joey, Tommy, Marky, Ritchie and Monte, their tour manager, all contribute their stories. For some reason, Dee Dee doesn't personally contribute but he comes through vibrantly in the stories of his band mates.

I'm not a fanatical fan, but after seeing the Ramones documentary: End of the Century - The Story of the Ramones, I knew I had to read this book. The only down side is realizing that the three core band members - Joey, Johnny and Dee Dee - all failed to see age 50.

The Ramones' popularity keeps growing--it's a shame that Joey, Dee Dee and Johnny didn't live to enjoy it. As a result of their popularity, so many--TOO MANY--Ramones books have been written and it seems like a new one comes out every month. If you are a die-hard Ramones fan, this is the ONLY book you need. Monte was with them from the beginning to the end and was partly responsible for making them the best touring band ever. He tells it like it was, and it is a fascinating read. Buy the book!

This is the best book on The Ramones, period. I absolutely loved it!! The pictures are so cool and the stories are even better. I recommend this book to anyone who loves The Ramones. Great purchase.

This book is a GREAT read for any Ramones fan, but it was very heartbreaking in the end to see how "the remaining band members" treated Joey at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction. I only wish Joey's mom and brother would have stepped up on stage to accept that award for Joey. He indeed was the most kind hearted soul and he deserved more recognition then what he got that night. May he rest in peace.

The more I read and learn about Johnny, the more complicated and intriguing I find him. It could be easy to dismiss him as a jerk but then something like the "milk and cookies every night" story comes up and endears him to you.

As an avid photographer - and one who has spent a lot of time shooting in EA - these are precisely the sort of images that make me want to grab my camera and rush back into the Serengeti. It's a well selected collection - perhaps not the greatest photographs I have ever seen, but a beautiful selection nontheless. A wonderful departure from the stock "post-card" photograpy that's been pouring out of the continent, and some are so breathtakingly vivid (like the image used on the cover) that you can almost feel the dust swirl around you, and feel the hot African sun on your neck.

It's a beautiful book. Would make an an ideal gift for the nature photographer, and for the nature lover...

This is a wonderful book with some great pictures of the African wildlife. The black and white photos were striking and the book appeals to 3 years of age to 65. It captured the African wildlife that I have had the privilege of seeing first hand on two occasions.

Amazing BW pictures. Very nice and a good edition. Very interesting for all photo-africa lovers....

This is a collection of beautiful photographs. The prints are warm, with good blacks. This made a great gift for our friends that had travelled in Africa.

Nick Brandt's collection of photography is absolutely stunning. His work is much more akin to portraits than traditional wildlife photography. There is an intimacy between Brandt and his animal subjects which resonates in each photo. Page after page, "On This Earth" shows us the humanity and soul of these animals. Brandt has made a brilliant case for why these creatures have the same right to live on this earth as we do.

This book is so interesting! I love it! My 5 y.o. daughter even loves this book!

This is an all around excellent book, I am completely satisfied with this purchase, and I highly recommend this book for the pirates enthusiast in your family!!

My adult daughter is mad about pirates. Her niece and nephew (6 and 10) bought this for her for Christmas. It was a hit.

I bought this for my 7 year old nephew who had a newfound fashion for all things Pirate. Being a book (at a birthday party) it didn't get his full attention until later on when he asked his parents to sit and read it to him.
Now it's a year later and I found out the book was a tremendous success from the get-go. He brought it into school to share with the class and every kid there wanted his own copy so phone calls were made and the hunt was on. A few parents were able to get a copy. My nephew and his friends dressed up as pirates and went together to see the latest Pirates... movie. Later my nephew was huddled with his special book, relishing all the details it provided. This book is interactive by design which makes the reading all the more personal and imaginative.

I bought this as a birthday gift for my six year old son. He couldn't have been happier. Just to show you how interesting it is, I kept it in my office at work so he wouldn't find it before his birthday. I can't tell you the number of people who stopped to read the book and told me how interesting it was. I even had people who asked me for ordering information on the book so they could get it for their children. This book is inexpensive and a great read for all ages. All the little pockets, fold outs, letters and maps are a great touch.

A very deep map indeed, the second of Heat-Moon's three literary tours-de-force is the story of a county in Kansas. In his first excursion, the best-selling BLUE HIGHWAYS, the author reported on a ten thousand mile sojourn along the old Federal Highways (blue on most maps). PRAIRYERTH grew out of three years of hiking, conversation and archival research in Chase County, Kansas and the result is a living history of both the particular locale and the European invasion of the west. From Knute Rockne's death in a commercial plane crash to Sam Wood's murder to Native medicine, dream walking to newspaper accounts of life on the prairie, and fossils to legends to The Land Institute where Wes Jackson explores the looming demise of the liquid fuel era, this volume casts a wide net. Heat-Moon is clear eyed enough to see the facts and then see beyond the facts to the life between the lines of old courthouse documents and pioneer diaries. He is open to less tangible subtlety as well, admitting susceptibility to hunch, daydream or the message from another's Ouija board. He tells a tale of hawks, buffalo, cowboys and beef, notes the profound damage wrought on the American prairie by McBurger mania and the possibility of recovery in a place of vast flatness and endless wind and sky. He lunches with the dead in old cemeteries and stakes out to observe life in a dying town where nothing happens. There are midnight moonlight hikes and journalistic experiments, pertinent quotes by the truckload and poignant still lifes of moments of love and loss. Such a deep map makes for a long read, but well worth the effort as pieces click into place in later chapters and a pastiche emerges, a hologram in which you can walk between the hills and dip a cupful from a clear flowing spring.

In Blue Highways the inimitable William Least Heat Moon drove across the backroads of America. In River Horse this courageous, spiritually-venerable man floated in a barge across this nation's waterways. In Prairy Erth, he does his exploration mostly on foot. Confining himself to a microcosmic canvas, Least Heat Moon spends over 600-pages describing how he spent months delving into a single county in the heart of Kansas. Packed with maps of Chase County, its hills, waterways, roads and farmsteads, the author tells a sometimes dry but often rich story of one remote but improbably charming spot on planet earth. He meets many of the county's 3,000 residents, hears and tells of the folklore, the history, the textured layers to life in such a location. By the book's end an unknowingly begun spiritual journey reaches its conclusion, which is the way with all of William Least Heat Moon's writings. If you have the time to put into Prairy Erth, it is a compelling book that challenges the nature of individual outlook.

New to William Least Heat Moon, I wasn`t quite sure what to expect with Prairyerth. Having heard about the critical acclaim of Blue Highways, I thought a lesser known work would be the place to start. And I am glad I chose Praityerth.

With Prairyearth, William Least Heat Moon has dug down to the heart of a specific place, in this case, the Flint Hill country of Chase County, Kansas. Not unlike Thoreau`s Walden, Prairyerth is an exhaustive chronicle of one man`s journey to the bottom--historically, geologically and geographically speaking--of one particular and rather insignificant place in the American landscape. Prairyerth, like Walden, is impossible to lump into one clean-cut literary category. Neither pure history, nor pure geology, nor `storytelling` per say, it is rather a brilliant concoction of all three. It is, as the author pens it, a `deep map` of one tiny piece of the New World. And deep it is. Least Heat Moon delves into every square inch, every prehistoric layer of his subject. The result is a stirring and fascinating ride through the discovery, settling, exploitation and ultimate destruction of the American prairie. Half Native American himself, Least Heat Moon walks through the tall grass of the American Sea with much the same spirit of his ancestors. Here was not emptiness as thought the first Europeans, but rather a vast ocean of endless natural wealth. Home to the once vast bison herds, the tall-grassed hills of Chase County were once giant mountains of the Kansas range that were slowly worn down into the Flint Hills of today. Least Heat Moon follows the tracks of the Osage and the Kansa, `people of the wind,` who traversed this area long before Zebulon Pike and John Fremont made their tentative forays across the prairie towards more secure landscapes. The author vividly captures the reverence that the Osage and Kansa held for the `prairie.` Tracking down the stories of the few remaining pure-blood Kansa, Least Heat Moon paints a metaphor for what looms in the future for us, lest we ignore the lessons of the past. Not only does the author richly expose the layer of Native Americana within Chase County, but he does justice to the natural elements of the place as well. Some of the most fascinating parts of Prairyerth are the sections on two of the county`s most enduring denizens, the Osage Orange tree/bush and the Wood Rat, aka Pack/Trade Rat. Least Heat Moon has an ultra sharp eye for interesting detail and oddity and knows how to bring such things to life.

The structure of the work is as ambitious as it is groundbreaking. Every other chapter covers another quadrant of the county. Least Heat Moon spends most of his time analyzing the present inhabitants of the county, trying to distill the essence of `Kansasness.` He chats with the weathered old farmers and ranchers who`ve survived every tornado and flash flood over the last half-century and who entertain no thoughts on living anywhere else. Every voice in the county gets its chance. Feminist cattle ranchers give him the lowdown on castrating bulls, local high schoolers divulge their dreams and the regulars of the Emma Chase Cafe unload gossip unaware of who`s writing it all down. Kansasness, according to the author, is a baffling mix of progressive politics and constrictive convention. A place of often violent contrasts. Kansas was the first state born out of the fires of abolition, first to stimulate integration (Board of Education vs Topeka), yet the `n word` is still commonplace all over the county. The forefather of the county, Samuel Wood, was one of the most eloquent voices among the abolitionists, yet he stopped short of pushing for full integration. Kansas was a place where all people had freedom of opportunity (especially to better oneself economically), as long as everybody kept to his/her own. One of the first states to allow women`s suffrage, it was also one of the first to embrace Prohibition. It also kept its archaic and puritan sex laws on the books until the recent Supreme Court ruling overturned such laws.

In between his quadrant explorations of the county, Least Heat Moon has interspersed chapters comprised of nothing but various epigrams and short passages regarding the state. Coming from sources as disparate as Horace Greeley and Black Elk to graffiti found at the KU library, these chapters are some of the most entertaining and enriching of the book.

William Least Heat Moon is one of the greatest prose stylists I have ever encountered in modern American letters. His writing is rich with metaphor and digression, begging second and third readings of certain passages. While sometimes he expands profusely, Faulkner-like, for paragraphs, clarity is rarely forsaken. It just means reading carefully and slowly. Prairyerth is definitely a book that needs digesting. I took me almost six months to finally devour it up and when I did, I had the distinct feeling of having consumed something grand and very nutritious, albeit a bit heavy. In fact, those without persistent natures would best choose something else to read. Prairyerth is meat and potatoes and requires a lot of chewing. And perhaps that is where the work falls a tad short of its possible ancestor. Whereas one can open Thoreau`s Walden anywhere and revel in the beauty and wisdom (albeit often cryptic) found therein, Prairyerth is nothing if not taken in its entirety. Its just too dense, with too much stuff packed into its innards. In fact, a little editing could have helped the book. Some chapters are a bit superfluous and leaving them out would have only helped the work as a whole. Moreover, Least Heat Moon`s astute observations serve his examination of the natural world far better than they support his delving into the human realm. Somehow a lot of the `characters` of Chase County never fully come to life in Prairyerth. Rather, they seem two-dimensional and oddly trapped on the page. Yet, taken as a whole and for what it is, a grand archaeological and sociological dig through the layers of New World settlement, Prairyerth succeeds grandly. Never has one tiny and often ignored section of the American quilt come to life so vividly and richly as does Chase County, Kansas in Prairyerth. A place so seemingly devoid of life, is, in actuality, overflowing with the past, present and future. All you have to do is look,look carefully. The author himself says it best: `A traveler(who cannot even remotely detect the thousand-mile-an-hour spinning of the planet he rides through space at sixty-seven thousand miles an hour, to say nothing of its solar and galactic movements and its precession) writes in his notebook, ~nothing is happening~. Man muses, God guffaws.` Next time you feel that nothing has ever happened or is happening now or will happen where you`re at, pick up Prairyerth and be amazed.

If only every county in the United States had as passionate and articulate a chronicler as William Least Heat-Moon.

I came to "PrairyErth" after having read and loved "Blue Highways." This tome--though longer and less expansive, geographically--possesses many of the qualities I admired in Heat-Moon's earlier work: the narrative tone (there's none of that stuffy, impersonal, third-person prose one finds in some travelogues; the author is himself part of the story), the occasional dips into philosophy and history; the candid interviews with "locals"; and the intense search for meaning in the most ordinary of places.

I have never been to Chase County, Kansas, but after spending a month or so accompanying Heat-Moon through the pages of his book, I feel as though I have. The book is subtitled "a deep map," and that is indeed what the author provides here. Square mile by square mile, the reader is introduced to the prairie, its topography and history, its residents and its wildlife. Heat-Moon correctly understands that the essence of a place is often best captured through anecdote and observation. There is nothing sweeping or grand about his narrative, and that's what makes "PrairyErth" such a delight. It's a detailed, intimate read; one almost has the feeling of looking over the author's shoulder (and back through history) as he ambles and rambles about the quadrangles of Chase County.

If there's one criticism I would offer, it's that Heat-Moon sometimes lapses into needless digressions about himself and the challenges he faced while writing the book. It struck me as a bit self-absorbed--as did the occasional Faulknerian stream-of-conscious, punctuationless prose. These stylistic excesses add little to what is otherwise a magnificent and fascinating travelogue.

If you want to experience Kansas, with its excruitatingly boring places that slowly creep up on you and leave you blissfully satisfied and in awe of beauty; if you're willing to read long passages of flat text just to discover the beauty of burning fields; I highly recommend PrairyErth.

I grew up in Kansas, about 2 hours from Chase county and was always facinated by the hills, the people, and just the auroa that came from Strong City and Cottonwood falls. After reading "PrairyErth" I am even more mesmorized by the locale.

I have been out of the state for 2 years now, and long to go back. Many friends have complained about the long drives through Kansas, the flat scenery, and boring people. PrairyErth brings to life these flat lands and opens up new worlds of community and life.

For me, reading Moon's book was much like experiencing life in Kansas. I did find some of the chapters long, dry, and dull.. but, that's how some Kansas life is. Moon always concludes these sections with a gorgeous snapshot of the land. He shows us what it is like to be in relationship with the land just as we are in relationship with one another.

He concludes the book with a beautiful journey down the Kaw Trail.
"How do you know when the Prairy is in you?"
"When you see a tree as an eyesore."

Kokoris does something unusual with this book: he captures the core of people that you probably know (at a minimum, their personalities will be familiar), and shows them in a sweet, compelling story. The boy's-eye view works to a T. The Dad is a delightful introvert, neither simple nor heroic . . . . the result is a novel that will win you over.

This book was very well written and captured my interest from the beginning. It was interesing to see how people make a decision and the ramifications just continue on through the years.

You will laugh, you will cry...but you will not put it down... A great read...can't wait for the movie Jim K.

I'm a little late getting to read this wonderful book, published in 2001, but am oh so glad I found it on the shelves.

What a delightful read, couldn't put it down. When you laugh out loud and also shed a few tears you know you found the perfect book.

Good Job, Jim KoKoris...keep 'em coming.

Penny Burke
Mt Laurel, NJ

"The Rich Part of Life" depicts the good, the bad and the ugly that befalls the Pappas family after winning the lottery for $190mm. Theo, the family patriarch hits it big playing his deceased wife's lottery numbers. Upon revealing that he is the holder of the winning ticket, Theo is bombarded by request for financial assistance from strangers, neighbors and family. Socially introverted and emotionally reclusive, Theo is faced with the challenge of managing the celebrity of his new found wealth in the midst of the resurrection of a long forgotten adversary whose demands of Theo threatens to destroy the Pappas family.

"The Rich Part of Life" is filled with genuinely likeable and detestable characters portrayed in clean, crisp language that uniquely sets them apart. The only character disappointment for this reader was the unimaginative portrayal, usage really, of the Maurice character. Although I never discounted his importance to the novel, I wanted to know more about him than was broadly revealed by the author. Ultimately, the novel is successful in its exploration of the dynamics of chance. What are the odds of winning the lotto? What wonderful or dreadful situations await us when the stars are perfectly aligned or the comets collide? What's likelihood of a middle aged recluse starting a family with a young dancer? This is an excellent debut novel that reconfirmed for me that it's not money, but people that's at the root of all evil. Enjoy!

A beautiful book written by a former Jewish Journalist of Austrian origin who travels to the middle east and stands in admiration at the lifestyle of the Muslims in the Arabian peninsula.

Although his embrace of Islam is not immediate he comes to understand the beauty of this religion and finally embraces it while in Europe. He later decides to move to live in Arabia by giving up completely his western lifestyle and past, the story focuses on many various events and I found it quiet impressive as to the amount of famous persons Mr. Asad has come accross in his journey in the middle east, some of which are: King Ibn Saud (founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), the president of the world Zionist organisation (who is later to become the first president of Israel), the Shah of Iran, the famous Lybian Mujahidin Omar Al Mukthar, the King of Jordan Abdullah and many other.

Although the book is quiet old, as it recounts of events which occur in the 1920's, it is very well written and beautifuly explains the beauty of the life in Arabia in those times, it gave me a nice image and picture of the life of the beduins, their hospitality and gratitude from life and it's simplicity but how the people live it full of happyness. I was quiet impressed as well with the many events which have occured during the travel of Mr. Asad, in his attempt to help the King Ibn Saud to understand how the rebels operated against the King in order to prevent the Kingdom from successful establishment, to his travel to Lybia to meet Omar Al Muhtkar for possible assistance on providing additional support to continue the rebellion against the Italians.

In overall, the story is quiet beautiful, gives us a nice feeling of the Arabian desert and most of all the discovery to Islam of Mr. Asad is an impressive story to read.

This book is a very enjoyable read. Asad's stories of adventure and his search for personal fulfillment provide constant historical, cultural, and religious lessons for the reader. A wonderful way to learn and understand other people and their ideas, which may or may not be different from your own.

I have always felt a longing for the desert. This is the first time I have ever read someone putting these feelings into words. Simply awsome!

I read this book a while ago and can still remember some of the most thrilling parts of the book. Even thought the book is an autobiography it almost reads like a thriller. I reccomment this book to all Muslims. MUhammad Asad is truly an example for all.

M. Asad has written a truly inspiring work with "The Road to Mecca". As a foreign journalist in the Middle East, he was in a unique position to truly experience the culture and religion of the area and express his experiences in a way in which only a journalist could. What caught my eye was what happened when he returned to Europe where he suddenly felt like an outsider who was surrounded by people simply sleepwalking through their lives. It was after this revelation that he truly grasped the draw that so many feel towards Islam awakening within himself. As a muslim convert myself, I felt that this was something that I could closely relate to. Nonetheless, I believe that M. Asad's novel was not only inspiring but also a useful, insightful resource into understanding the countries and cultures of the Middle East; something which is useful to muslims & non-muslims alike. I would highly recommend this book to all.

The Indian mutiny of 1857 sees the cantoment of Krishnapur besieged by sepoys. For three months Mr Hopkins (the collector) galvanises the British community in resisting the onslaught...
This book is superbly written and often reminds one of the style of George Elliot. It is both witty and profound and wonderfully researched and charactorized.Like the best of Elliot,Farrell uses his narrative to inform on other topics-the great cholera debate;the Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace- and questions the basis of what culture actually lends to civilisation.
Books like this just don't get written these days.

Paul Scott wrote in his RAJ QUARTET that it was in India during the last days of the Raj that the British came to the end of themselves as they were. In this superb Booker Prize-winning novel written concurrently with the QUARTET (and which casts a similar cold eye towards the British imperial ambitions in India), J. G. Farrell shows how the Raj itself was formed and how it already carried within it in embryo the seeds of the destruction for the entire Empire. The novel takes place in a city in Northeastern India during 1857, the year of the Great Sepoy Rebellion: the British stationed in Krishnapur hear vague rumors of what they will call "The Mutiny" from faraway towns but are mostly unwilling to take them seriously. The ensuing siege they endure carries on for months as they wait for help to relieve them; though slowly forced to an absolute subsistence level--and then to even less--, they refuse to relinquish the habits of social conditioning that have made them already who they are. Social snobbery, physical modesty, gender segregation: all remain firmly ensconced even as their physical conditions start deteriorating so greatly they start dying in large numbers.

The novel's subject would seem to suggest that the novel would make for almost unbearable reading: oddly it does not, because the characters of the novel (who are almost entirely British) maintain such a droll and uncomprehending attitude towards their conditions, no matter how desperate things seem. Thus, since Farrell focalizes his narrative mostly through his thoughts, everything seems unreal throughout the entire siege and not quite so nightmarish as it might have been had he used a more distanced narrator. The work is in part a parody of old-fashioned "Mutiny novels," so you should know that the ending is very much in keeping with those kinds of novels (which proliferated throughout the Empire during the latter half of the nineteenth century); characteristically, however, Farrell puts his own intelligent spin on things, so even if the ending you had been expecting does occur it doesn't in the way you had expected. This is the second, and perhaps most famous, of the three superb works of Farrell's "Empire" trilogy which beautifully illustrates the conditions of Empire described in another nearly coeval work, Jan Morris's famous PAX BRITTANICA trilogy. It's exciting, amusing, intelligent, and greatly worth reading.

This is an excellent novel about the Sepoy Mutiny in India in 1857. The focus of the story is the siege of the British Civil Service enclave at Krishanpur (historically this was the siege of Lucknow). A group of Sepoy soldiers was given new rifle cartridges that were wrapped in greased paper, and the paper was removed by biting it off with one's teeth. The word spread was that this grease was animal grease, which was an insult to religion. The sepoys mutinied, killed their superior British officers, and started marauding across India.

Hearing about the mutiny the (tax) Collector in Krishnapur had ramparts built around the British buildings in Krishnapur. Shortly afterwards the Sepoys attacked in waver after wave for a period of several months. Surprisingly author Farrell describes the sufferings of those besieged with a good deal of humor, humor that pricks holes in the pompous beliefs and attitudes of 19th century British colonizers. We bring them progress, a superior civilization, yet they turn on us marvels the Collector. The condescension doesn't stop with the Indians. At one point the Collector speaks to the British women in the enclave, and silently thinks that in reality women are really useless creatures. It is the men of the world that shoulder the responsibility of getting things done. The padre runs around telling everyone that God is punishing them for their sinful behavior. A new school and an old school doctor constantly disagree over medical treatment. In perhaps the funniest scene of the book the old doctor contracts cholera, and instructs his aides to cover him with mustard plasters. The young doctor, who is aware that cholera victims die from dehydration, initiates a saline IV every time the old doc sinks into a coma. The IV brings him around, and he immediately pulls out the IV and insists on getting his mustard plasters, following which he soon sinks back into a coma. Back goes the IV and the doc becomes conscious again. This cycle goes on and on and becomes hysterically funny.

The British thought they were doing wonderful things for the Indians, but the harsh reality of it is they were creating harsh lives for their colonial subjects. The sepoys, for example, were paid near starvation wages. This is an important novel about the misguided philosophy behind imperialism. Perhaps there is a lesson here for us Americans. Should we really be focused on bringing our way of life to other countries?

"The Siege of Krishnapur', the second of J.G. Farrell's now classic works on the British Empire, (see also Troubles (New York Review Books Classics) and The Singapore Grip (New York Review Books Classics)) is a fictionalized account of the Siege of Lucknow during the Great Mutiny of 1857-1858 (aka the Sepoy Rebellion). The mutiny or rebellion, depending on one's point of view, was ultimately defeated by the British and led to the replacement of East India Company rule by direct British governance under the Raj.

Farrell masterfully recreates the insular British upper-class life in India - and the siege only intensifies this insularity. As the siege drags on and on, the inhabitants strive to maintain expected standards of behavior and decorum. Farrell populates his book with interesting characters who debate and dispute morality, religion, progress, and civilization.

Excellent introductions are a hallmark of the New York Review of Books Classics and the introduction to this volume by Pankaj Mishra places the book in historical and cultural context and adds significant value.

Highest Recommendation.

At the climax of this magnificent novel, the book's protagonist, Hopkins, the British civil administrator or Collector of Krishnapur, finds himself trapped in a Union Jack whose flagstaff has been shot down, knocking him to the ground. He recognizes it as the scenario of a persistent nightmare that had been troubling since his small enclave had been put under siege several months before. But it is also a symbol for the entire book.

The initial set-up here is similar to that of the author's TROUBLES: a group of British colonialists crammed together in a decaying building while the threat of native rebellion comes closer. But this is larger in scope, with a bigger cast of characters, grander themes, and a rebellion which is much more than some background disturbance. Unlike the violence in TROUBLES, which is seen at first hand only in the hallucinatory final chapters of the book, this one (the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857) takes center stage about a third of the way into the novel, leading to harrowing scenes of death, starvation, and disease. On the level of a simple war story, these events (based on the siege of Lucknow) make for a stirring story of heroism and courage -- especially where these qualities are unexpected, is in the formerly stuffy Collector who discovers hidden talents for generalship and strategy, and the young poet George Fleury, fresh out from England, who proves to have a strong practical streak and a remarkably cool head.

Also as in TROUBLES, there is a pervasive eroticism to this book, centering around three of the younger woman besieged in the Residency: the debutante Louise, chaste belle of Calcutta balls; Miriam, George's young widowed sister, tired of being assigned to stereotypical female roles, and Lucy, whom everybody knows as a "dishonored woman" although nobody is entirely clear as to the extent or agency of this dishonor. As the siege persists, the courtship conventions of colonial society are turned on their head by proximity and deprivation. There is one almost surreal scene in which Lucy, attacked by a huge cloud of otherwise harmless flying beetles, rips off her clothes and promptly faints, leaving two young men to scrape the insects off her, in the process discovering the differences between a real female body and a marble statue.

For, despite the bloodshed, Farrell's characteristic tone of comedy is present here too, but now his targets are as much institutional as personal: the hypocracies of colonialism, trivia of class and culture, and Victorian attitudes towards faith and science. As we meet the cast of characters, we find many different points of view: the Padre who believes that the rebellion is God's punishment for sin, the cynical Magistrate who is a confirmed atheist, the Opium Agent who believes only in profit, rival doctors from older and newer schools of thinking, bluff soldiers who do not think much at all but who can yet be excellent at their jobs, the aesthete Fleury whose first reaction to being under fire is to assemble phrases for an epic poem, and the Collector, who believes in progress, but attempts to strike a balance between all points of view. And to a remarkable extent, the author also manages to retain that balance. The siege is a crucible in which every kind of received attitude may be tested, and for the most part found wanting. But Farrell is never preachy or polemical; he does not make everything subservient to a single point of view, even the anti-colonial one. His great gift is to keep you thinking, even as you turn the pages with bated breath. A brilliant achievement!

I learned so much about all of my favorite artists in this book. This book is tastefull done (unlike Building a Mystery by Judith Fitzgerald). The author actually talked to the artist and got their perspectives on many different topics and the meanings behind their songs, which makes this book true and somewhat autobiographical. It is good to see a book also where the artists are not portrayed as glamorous. These black and white photos seem the bring the artists back down to the same level that the reader is working on. It is a really nice book and an interesting read.

Well, I am going to read the book, if I ever get a credit-card...which hopefully there's another option..( or I'll be broke before I get paid....) Anyhow, I'm sure this book is well worth reading..TO me anything by any of these great artist(s) who have inspired me in my darkest hours of frustration.. I will never give up the God given gift(s) thanks to you all!!!! (And hopefully we'll all Jam before New Year's Eve!!!!!) -C

com) from Atlanta, Georgia November 14, 1998 Dear Emma and Marc, Solo is awesome, the images and narrative are both soulful and powerful. As a practicing artist I'm attracted to the imagery in your book. The photographs have a cinematic quality to them, in particular the series of photo's of Holly Palmer. When I look at the images in your book I feel spirit and emotion of the people represented through your imagery. Examples of what I'm referring to are images of Lucinda Williams (pg 290 and 300), Sheryl Crow (pg 273), Roseanne Cash (pg 246), Jewel (pg 224), Shawn Colvin (pg 39), and Sarah (pg 18)... I like the way the narrative and art work weave together like a quilt, your images make me feel good. More on Solo later... Peace, Love, and Understanding, Freddy Ciminelli

This is the finest example of what beautiful photography and amazing storise can do for your soul. This book should be read by every woman in America at every age. The stories are personal, enlightening and truly amazing! There is so much to learn from SOLO... I return to it daily.

The night I bought this book I sat down and finished the whole thing. I bought this book because I was a huge fan of Sarah McLachlan and Shawn Colvin, Jewel and Cheryl Crow, but I learned so much more from the other singers too. Sarah's interview struck me as the most down to earth, but every interview was intriguing and I just couldn't put it down. Some of the artists I had never even listened to like Ani Difranco but then next day I borrowed a friends CD and I have to say thanks to this book my CD collection has gotten a lot larger! Thank you Emma and Mark! The only bad thing about this book is......it ended! (and Tori Amos wasn't in the book, but was mentioned by Sarah McLachlan! =)So that was fine by me!!!)

In his wonderful and fascinating book Unspeakable ShaXXXspeares, Richard Burt, the leading scholar of Shakespeare and film studies, pioneers research into the manifold ways Shakespeare enters into American popular culture. Concentrating mostly on film but attending as well to television sit-coms, Burt offers penetrating insight into everything from mainstream adaptations of Shakespeare to "low" spin-offs in which Shakespeare's language almost entirely disappears. Burt explores both what film and mass media have done to Shakespeare and also what Shakespeare enables our culture to do trhough film and other electronic media. Readers intersted in this book will be happy to know that Burt has since edited a related collection entitled Shakespeare After Mass Media and has co-edited Shakespeare, the Movie II.

One doesn't usually expect to find oneself laughing when reading a book of criticism written by an academic, much less a book on Shakespeare. But Burt's book is frequently just that, funny to the point of making me laugh out loud. Burt has a refreshingly off-beat sense of humor, and the materials he has discovered--such as an adult movie version of Hamlet--aer themselves often hilarious as well, though not always intentionally so. But far from being just a laugh riot, the book is also a serious, critically sophisticated analysis of Shakespeare's fate incontemporary mass media, where much of hte lnagugae is cut or confined to well-known quotations. Burt's final chapter on films about teaching Shakespeare is quite moving, and Burt has the courage to raise difficult questions without pretending he is able to answer them. He is right to think that the questions are more important than the answers. Burt is to be congratulated for writing his book in a clear and engaging prose style without sacrificing the complexity of his thought.

One of the many strengths of Burt's truly excellent book is that it not only discusses Shakespeare adaptations but uses Shakespeare, or of ShaXXXspeares, to discuss post-war American popular culture. Burt's theory of the loser as critic has ramifications for all criticism, not just Shakespeare. This is a profound, original, and engaging book.

I happened to be doing research for my thesis on Shakespeare in the university library and, while looking for other books, I was intrigued by the three XXXs in the title of Burt's book on the shelf, so I pulled it off and looked through it. What a daring work of cultural criticism! When I saw the chapters on Shakespeare porn, I marvelled both at the courage of the man to write such a book and how at the publisher who took it on. Of course, I check it out and read it. I especially was drawn to the chapter on action films and Burt's point that while the films cannibalize others, no one in the films ever eats; the characters are anorexic. The book is full of similarly wonderful insights. I am a cinephile, and very much appreciated Burt's quite hip approach to ShaXXXspeare. Now, it's back to those other, rather staid books of Shakespeare criticism, I was orginally looking for.

Whatever you think about Shakespeare, it is impossible not to agree with the points Burt makes in this book. His analysis is right on the money and you will never be able to look at Shakespearean movies or literature in the same way. A fantastic book and a must read.