History Books

Daughter of a full-blooded Navajo father and white mother, Lori Arviso Alvord grew up on a New Mexico reservation in a family that took pride in its native heritage, but followed few of the traditional ways. She attended Navajo schools but never learned the language; she knew her clan relationships and enjoyed the security of tribal connections but seldom attended ceremonies or understood the depth of meaning in the Navajo concept "Walk In Beauty."

Such a person might expect to shed the remnants of tribal culture on leaving the reservation to become a high-powered surgeon, a career that by its very nature flies in the face of Navajo precepts like privacy and self-effacement.

Indeed, throughout her memoir, co-authored by Elizabeth Cohen Van Pelt, Alvord seems to straddle two worlds separated by an uncomfortable gulf. She first looked upon the deepness of that gulf at Dartmouth.

"For a girl who had never been far from Crownpoint, New Mexico, the green felt incredibly juicy, lush, beautiful and threatening." Unable to see the horizon, she felt claustrophobic. But the culture shock was worse. "I thought people talked too much, laughed too loud, asked too many personal questions, and had no respect for privacy." Navajos do not put themselves forward and cooperation is valued over competition. Not a good prescription for success at an Ivy League school.

At Dartmouth she began to feel her tribal identity more strongly and wonder if a kinaalda ceremony (a celebration of womanhood) would have helped empower her in such alien surroundings. But not until after medical school at Stanford, where she was forced to break numerous taboos (Navajo never touch the dead, for instance) and joined a profession where it is essential to ask prying, intimate questions and invade another's personal space at will, did Alvord really begin to explore the philosophical grounding of Navajo culture.

Becoming a surgeon at the Gallup Indian Medical Center, close to the reservation, Alvord notices that her patients do better when they are calm and relaxed, that harmony - even in the operating room when the patient is unconscious - is important for recovery.

She grows more interested in the Navajo philosophy that "everything in life is connected and influences everything else." To "Walk in Beauty" a person strives to live in balance, symmetry and harmony with everything and everyone else.

While this is an ancient precept, held in common with many other cultures and enjoying something of a renaissance in American medicine today, Alvord comes up with a particularly striking example. One of her surgery patients, a young woman, was the first to die of a strange illness that swept through the Navajo nation, killing 11.

A doctor working for the Centers for Disease Control, Ben Muneta, visited a medicine man, a hataalii, who told him "the illness was caused by an excess of rainfall, which had caused the pinon trees to bear too much fruit." There was "a significant deviation from the natural harmony of the world."

The medicine man showed a sand painting of a mouse and said that twice before in years of excess rainfall a similar disease had struck. " `Look to the mouse,' " he said. Weeks later the CDC determined that the Hantavirus was contracted from the droppings of infected deer mice. The deer mouse population had surged due to an excess of pinon nuts. "It was the rain."

Alvord's tone is quiet, reserved. It does not seem easy for her to describe the alcoholism of her charming father or the difficulties and generosity of her (married at 16) mother. Though she takes us to a nightlong ceremony for the sick and celebrates the strength her patients draw from medicine-man visits, she never explains why it takes her so long to visit a hitaalii during her own pregnancy. Or why she never approaches a medicine man to discuss cross-cultural treatments despite her growing conviction of the efficacy of the "whole body" approach.

While most of the book concentrates on her work and her struggle to reconcile cultures, she provides a wide, sad look at reservation life, beset by poverty and "white mans'" diseases. The long grief of history resides in the alcoholism and the self-loathing of so many - a balance that can never be put right.

At last Alvord leaves. Seeing it as the next natural step in her own "life trail", she returns to Dartmouth as a surgeon and a dean of minority and student affairs. At Dartmouth, she hopes, she can teach the Navajo "Walk In Beauty" principles to new doctors as well as working within the established system to bring better care to her own people.

I am full-blooded Navajo, I was taught to believe in my traditonal ways and it disappoints me that she has talked about very scared ceremonies.

Lori Arviso Alvord walks in two worlds. Raised on the Navajo reservation in New Mexico -- "the rez" -- she is the daughter of a Navajo man and a white woman. Carrying this dichotomy into her education and career, she went from the reservation high school to Dartmouth College, then found her path to Stanford University School of Medicine and a surgical residency in New Mexico.

As the first Navajo woman surgeon, she learned to integrate the science-based world of medicine and the spirit-based Native American culture. The importance of the singing cures, native healing practices, and other spiritual traditions was brought home to her when she observed her patients' outcomes. Surgical skill was often not enough when delivered without respect for the language, culture and spirituality of the Navajo patients.

The main focus of this memoir is Dr. Alvord's path to acceptance of the first Navajo principles: balance, harmony and wholeness, known as "Walking in Beauty." Along the way we learn a great deal about Native American history and culture, sensitively presented.

Dr. Alvord speaks of the cultural bases for Native American alcoholism and the prevalence of gang culture, monumental threats to the health and well-being of her people. The healing of these ills will never be achieved in the operating room alone, and many patients' stories illustrate this lesson effectively.

The outcome of Dr. Alvord's journey is signaled from the beginning, as is often the case with a memoir. While this may dilute the dramatic tension of her story, we're rewarded with a thoughtful and inspiring look at one woman's life and work, in all its contexts. I recommend this book to readers young and old who have an interest in the cultural aspects of medical care.

Linda Bulger, 2008

I picked up this book and I could NOT put it down. What a wonderful journey described here....how she interlocks traditional medicine with Navajo, how harmony and positive spirit is such a process in the healing world. You will not be disappointed with this read. I have shared this with all those close to me. Make it part of your list

--Dr Alvord writes about her journeys as a Native American student and physician. The book seems clearly designed for non-technical readers rather than the professional medical community, and there's little medical jargon. She uses her own difficult pregnancy and the death of a beloved grandmother as case studies in integrating Western medicine and Navajo ideas.
--On the one hand, it's worth reading this book just to hear such an inspirational story from such a role model. Dr Alvord tells her story with dignity and courage and she has many good ideas about listening to patients and integrating Balance and Harmony in our profession (although these ideas don't seem as radical or as rare within the medical community as she seems to imply, and I don't think she does anyone a great service by implying they are).
--On the other hand, the authors remained disappointingly abstract, even given the limitations of confidentiality and space. The stories of Navajo healing barely scratched the surface and the book was pretty scanty with practical advice that would help non-Native healers understand Native American patients. I'd love to have heard her perspectives on the magnitude of Native American health problems, how she handled the constant pressures of time and funding, or how she successfully used traditional Native American methods to help manage serious medical-social problems (i.e. alcohol use, diabetogenic diets, family pressures, basic compliance and responsibility issues, etc). In short, I'd like to have heard more about her successes.
--The book's perspective gives a good counterpoint to those who criticize Western medicine as too impersonal/sterile/uncaring/whatever, while they fail to demonstrate how to predictably improve things and still efficiently deliver technically competent health care to people with different levels of motivation and understanding. Western medicine works beautifully in its own niche, but it will be made to work less efficiently if we mess around with the wrong things. Perhaps medicine will improve if we balance the responsibilities of patients to live a healthy lifestyle with the responsibilities of healers to carefully listen to patients and then help them heal.
--This book did not practically help me to do this, so I cannot give it five stars despite my respect for her credentials. I do look forward to a sequel.
--Other books which may be of interest include Blessings (by Dr. A. Organick), The Dancing Healers, and Primary Care of Native American Patients.

It was a nice surprise to discover Dr. Seuss' "other" art, the art less known by the public. Theodor Seuss Geisel created wonderful paintings and sculptures, of which I was not aware prior to hearing about this book. Of course, his "other" art is just as imaginative and creative as the art seen in his children's books. "The Secret Art of Dr. Seuss" is a beautiful addition to my living room coffee table.

Betsy Hammer

A visually stunning body of work. This book shares rare and unusual images not seen in the series of children's books Dr. Seuss penned. Some of the images are dark and disturbing but then that's what makes it worth seeing. A wonderful and beautifully written forward by Maurice Sendak, another children's author, adds an interesting insight to the quirky and unique personality, of my beloved childhood hero, Theodore Geisel aka Dr. Seuss.

I recommend this book for kids and adults and anyone interested in animation or comic art.

this book is moving. in the way that a rainy day or a kitten effect your mood, this book too, will leave you changed.

i love this book.

This book gives you some of the everyday images from Dr. Seuss' children books and sketches for those characters, but also invites you into a secret world of other at that he created, some reminiscent of his popular books, but some much more abstract and interesting.

This book is a good buy for those who want to see more of who Dr. Seuss really was and what other art he created.

Ted Geisel, more widely known as Dr. Seuss, was a consummate writer and illustrator. His children's books have sold millions of copies; it is a near certainty that few children grow up in the United States without being exposed to Seuss books. This book contains some of Seuss's art that has not had a great deal of exposure. Most are paintings, although there are some works of three-dimensional art.
There are some very subtle messages in these paintings. On page 67 the image has the title "A Man Who Has Made an Unwise Prochess (sic)." A sad-looking man is walking from a distant building along a trail where there are sharp drops on both sides. The image caught and held my eye as I tried to determine what was so familiar about it. Then I realized that the man looked a great deal like Adolph Hitler. The eyes, hair, mustache and shape of the face all match.
Most of the other works contain characters similar to those that have appeared in his books. They are all well done, exuding a brightness and joy so typical of the Dr. Seuss books. Geisel was just as much an artist as he was a writer, perhaps even more so. If you examine this book, you may also reach that conclusion.

Let me first of all say that Rick Ridgeway is one of my favorite adventure writers. This book is focused on the area around Kilimanjaro and the current state of the conservation movement. Rick does a wonderful job of describing the area as he makes his way on foot from Kilimanjaro to the East coast of Africa.

One of my favorite aspects of this book is that Rick includes all the books he has used in his research to gain a better understanding of the history of East Africa.

If you love a well written adventure, with enough meat to make you want to dig deeper in understanding Africa - this is your book.

Author Ridgeway writes a well-paced narrative that smoothly ties together his personal adventure in eastern Africa with the area's history and culture, particularly in terms of its ecology, with focus on elephants as the defining megafauna of the area.

Ridgeway provokes thought on the future of Africa's large animals, the past fate of those large mammals that have already disappeared, and how we humans tie into all of this. His primary sources are the people who have shaped and continue to shape Kenya's game and wildlife policies; these sources give his writing the distinct tinge of veracity.

Recommended for any interested in travel, African history, or ecology.

Rick Ridgeway has written a very informative and entertaining account of his 300 mile hike West to East across southern Kenya in 1997. The walk was metaphorically in THE SHADOW OF KILIMANJARO beginning on the summit of that great mountain and spanning the different ecological zones of mountain moraine, foothills, savannah, scrub, desert, and finally tropical white sand beaches of the Indian Ocean coast near Malindi. More significantly Ridgeway writes about his journey in the shadow of others who have written famously on Kenya, most significantly Hemingway, Dinesen, and Blixen. At yet another level this story is set in the shadow of Kenya's colonial history and its current struggles as a developing nation trying to make its way in the modern world.

Ridgeway deals with all the relevant issues - ecology and the environment, conservation, domestic politics, the economy, tourism, the romantic literary images, the colonial legacy, the Mau Mau uprisings, cultural, ethnic, and social issues. And he deals with them in the way good travel writing should. Simply present the facts as you get them and let others speak their truths. No moralizing and very little contextualizing and therefore very refreshing.

The image of Kenya that emerges is that of a real country. Not too much of the fantasy and gloss of a romantic wilderness nor the equally unreal vision of warring tribes at THE ENDS OF THE EARTH. Just reality. Strengths, weaknesses, beauty, blemishes, issues, agendas, and concerns. All the things that face a people making their way on a rapidly globalizing planet. Although Ridgeway's Kenya is a very different place than the country I knew in the 1960's when I lived there in my youth, it's still as rich and as alive as I remember it and Ridgeway has done an excellent job of bringing it home.

I was so disappointed by this book I could not get through more than a couple of chapters. The author may know about mountaineering, but he seems to know very little about Kenya. Moreover, I found the writing to be ethnocentric and quite boring.

Combining moments of danger with moments of profound introspection, mountaineer/explorer Ridgeway details his journey from the top of Mount Kilimanjaro through the Tsavo game reserves to Mombasa, a month-long journey on foot, which allows him to experience man's primal relationships with the environment. Traveling with an experienced guide, two members of the Kenya Park and Wildlife Service, and two sharpshooters (in case of life-threatening danger), Ridgeway follows dry riverbeds across the savanna, seeking "tactile knowledge of Africa's wildlands and wild animals."

Far more than a search for thrills, the journey offers Ridgeway an opportunity to observe breath-taking vistas and the full panoply of wildlife, from the elephant to the tiniest of birds, paying equal attention to all. Mourning the absence of once-plentiful animals from the bushlands near Kilimanjaro, and the decline of species elsewhere, Ridgeway contemplates the long-term effects of colonialism, big game hunting, poaching, traditional tribal values, climatic changes, and tourism, as well as man's seemingly innate tendency to kill certain species into extinction.

Ridgeway, long a hunter himself, is an engaging author, both observant and thoughtful. A great admirer of hunter-turned-game-park-adminstrator Bill Woodley, whose two sons from the Park and Wildlife Service are on the journey, he provides a sensitive and impartial treatment of conservation issues. Extolling the work of elephant researchers Cynthia Moss and Joyce Poole, the latter of whom joins the group for part of the journey, he points out that they have acquired through study a kind of knowledge not available to hunters. Without preaching, he conveys "the big picture," making a compelling case for the fact that to preserve Africa's large mammals one must "fight fiercely not only to preserve, but even to expand, their wild habitat." Mary Whipple

..for tone enthusiasts. Great photos, great amps & great stories. Don't miss it, it'a a real very very sounding book!

I've been playing for 37 years. Great tone has always been a never ending quest. Some gear sounds thin, some tinny, or boomy, too fuzzy, or brittle, even dull. But some appliances produce sounds that are awesome. This book is about several of those savage appliances--vintage Fender amps. This book and its 2 accompanying CDs are wonderful; I've learned so much and I've been very entertained.

Great read.

If you are a fan of the Fender sound, and curious about the origins of Leo Fender, the Fender company and the legendary Fender guitar amplifiers then this book is for you. Its the first coffee table sized book I've ever had that is more than wonderful photos. Its a book I enjoy reading a great deal. There is a lot of detail, enough to keep a amplifier technician, or someone who doesn't care about the details of how they get the sound happy. There are lots of delicious quotes and images about those that prefer to use the Fender amp in their performances. Examples are Dick Dale, Buddy Guy, B. B. King, to Keith Richards. If those names aren't familiar to you, well it might not be a book for you. This is a book about influences and origins. Its not afraid to expose the mystery behind the curtain, but also to expose the inconsistencies of the Fender company.

Then there is the disc that provide you with the ability to hear and compare the sound of a wide variety of amplifiers under very similar conditions. This provides those seeking to develop a tone all their own through a Fender guitar amplifier. It doesn't denigrate other vendors, and has comments and interviews by many of the other legends and current boutique makers in the guitar amplification arena.

If you want to know about Fender amplification, this might be the only book you ever need.

Buy this book - treasure it - read it thoroughly over and over again - you will learn so much.
Listen to the CD by Greg Koch - amazing!
If you love Fender - and their history, you CANNOT do better than buy this beautifully produced book.
Tom Wheeler is an authority - along with Richard R. Smith, they are the world leaders when it comes to anything Fender.
This is a book for life - fantastic illustrations - and a wonderful companion to The Stratocaster Chronicles.
Obviously written with intelligence and insight - this is THE reference on the subject - and what a subject!
Fender made/makes the finest sounding guitar amplifiers in the world.
I've got 3 different models here in my study that range from 45 to 50 years old - and still going strong as ever, being played in the bedroom - or pubs and clubs....they sound fabulous.
Tom Wheeler knows what he's talking about - a writer of the very highest integrity. I highly recommend this wonderful book.
Bob Hewitt UK [...]

I think that Amazon needs to stop bothering me to write these reviews. Even though they know that my knowledge in this field is considered by many to be the final word in all things amplified. And even though the last review that they finally got me to write was disputed by the latest Russian experts, absurdly claiming that my "thoughts on atom/electron sequencing can only be pulled out of a wizard's sleeve". Enough said. This claim is not only false but void of any reliable rebuilding process. Finally, the review...

I didn't start with Fender amps. I learned the hard way, which is why I know what I'm talking about. So thanks and praise to Leo for coming up with great ideas -- so good that all people even Russians can do now is to try and copy it. That's how good it is. I've experimented a lot, tried all sorts of amps, but I don't change there things 'round no more. I found what I'm looking for.

I feel a sports columnist's job is to evoke emotion in the reader. Make him/her laugh, cry, get angry, just don't bore them. Riley does that better than anyone. He's an amazingly gifted writer and I loved nearly every bit of this book. I'd already read most of these columns being a subscriber to Sports Illustrated, but they were definitely worth a re-read.

He's great at tugging the heartstrings: The story on the cross country runner with cerebral palsey, the Middlebury fan who is confined to a wheelchair because of CP, the father who nominates his son -- killed in a motorcycle accident -- for Faces in the Crowd. All tear jerkers.

He makes me laugh throughout the book, and get angry with all those arrogant/self-entitled athletes such as the steroid users.

He's not just a sportswriter, he's a great writer. I can't recommend this book enough.

* I wish Riley would've stayed with Sports Illustrated. I've heard he's dabbling in TV or ESPN, somewhere. Bad move. I've seen his TV commercials, he's not good on TV. He's a superstar in print, he should stay there. Nevertheless, this is one heckuva book.

As a recent Journalism grad this book was amazing. I would love to get into the sports writing field (although I have a feeling I'll never reach Reilly status). This was a great set of stories and life experiences. Very humorous and very touching.

I read a few chapters each night.

One night I had tears on my pillow from laughter.

The next night I had tears on my pillow from the inspirational story.

It's likely that many of my friends will get this book for Christmas or their birthday. Just a great book!

I have read Rick Reilly on and off in SI for years. I am not a regular subscriber, so my readings of his work have not been consistent. I was getting ready to take a trip and wanted something that would be fun to read. I saw the 5 star reviews (on Amazon) of Rick's book but I was somewhat skeptical about getting it. As a University of Tennessee alumni and fan I had been upset when he had written an article slamming Pat Summit (legendary UT women's basketball coach) about "running up the score" on one of the Lady Vols opponents. Despite all this I decided to take a chance. I needed a good read on my vacation, and I knew he was a good writer, and I needed have a laugh or two while flying, or more often than not,sitting in the airport during another delay.
This book is far more than I expected. This book is very funny, but many of his articles are very touching, and he exposes the best and the worst in the people involved in sports. Sports are the venue, but it is his insight into the people that make the stories so compelling.
As a big fan of the late Jim Murray's writing, I never believed there would ever be another sports writer that good, but I think Rick is getting to that level. A great read, a must read, for any sports fan, period! Every bit a 5 star rating and more.

When my husband's Sports Illustrated comes, I open it up to the last page and read what Rick Reilly has to say. I really like his column and the fact that he went onto the Oprah Show to try to defend his gender...I know, I know, it is a losing battle if you saw the episode, you know what I mean. The column is usually is the only thing I read in the magazine. So when my husband mentioned Rick had this new book out I had to get it for him...if for nothing else to see him actually reading a book instead of Sporting News or Sports Illustrated.

I read this wonderful book as a young man back in the sixties and I have just ordered a new version to recapture its wonderful moments

But I also saw the film version many years ago.

No I would be wery exited if anyone could lead me to a DVD or VHS version of the film

How gratifying to read the other reviews, and to learn that others have also experienced and loved this book at different times in their lives. The remarkable thing about it is how Dr. Munthe speaks to us in different ways at different ages. As a teenager, I was impressed by the passions, even though a lot of the details were above my head. In my late twenties, the way he tried to balance career and his love for San Michele was very meaningful. As a 44-year-old, I was impressed (and saddened) with the loneliness of Dr. Munthe's struggle, with really only his animals for company. While he speaks of friends, he shares little about them. And nothing about a lasting romantic involvement.

We all have our San Micheles. They may not be homes, but they are ideals toward which we strive. But for me, it exists only in my mind. Dr. Munthe was in some ways very lucky, yet also cursed, to be able to bring it to life.

The only frustrating aspect of "San Michele" is that it is, as its author notes, a fragment. I am interested to learn more of this fascinating man. Does anyone know if any biographies are in print, or in English? Thank you.

I came to this strange and wonderful book without the slightest inkling of what it was about -- simply because it was in the recommended reading for many guidebooks about Italy. First and foremost, it is an autobiography of a great physician and animal lover who just happened to spend some years of his life on Capri.

Autobiographies can make for strange reading, especially when there are obvious omissions. Although Axel Munthe frequently accuses himself of being a ladies' man, there is no mention of any love interest by name or even generic description. (That reminds me of film director Josef von Sternberg's FUN IN A CHINESE LAUNDRY, where we learn in passing that the author was married because of a cryptic mention in a subordinate clause 300 pages into the book.) Also missing is any mention of Munthe's childhood, although I understand there is at least one other autobiography written by him (MEMORIES AND VAGARIES), which I have not read.

There is, however, one section that does not appear in any autobiography that I have ever seen: An anticipation of Munthe's Last Judgment in Heaven following his death, with St. Peter, Moses, Athanasius, and St. Francis joining in the discussion.

STORY OF SAN MICHELE ranges from Paris to Lapland, Rome, Naples, Calabria, and Capri. We see duels, medical cases of wealthy women with imaginary diseases, demonic housekeepers, quacks, midwives, prostitutes, victims of cholera and earthquakes, brigands, shamans, and even an alcoholic ape. Munthe is a magnificent raconteur, and his book is a joy to read and reread.

How can one write a review of The Story of San Michele that comes close to doing justice to the book? There are many humorous episodes, such as The Giant and Mamsell Agata, touches of the macabre in the description of the cholera epidemic in Naples, misadventures, like the journey to Sweden accompanying a young man (then his corpse). There are also angry moments, as when his dog Tom is brutally kicked by the slimy Vicomte Maurice. Who could not be moved by the story of the boy John, who was rescued by Munthe but never lived long enough to find a loving home. It is a book that includes many memorable events in a life that was very full indeed. Many of the chapters in this book could be made into marvelous films, given the right adaptation.

The Story of San Michele is very well written, to say the least, and the many people, events and personal feelings of the author combine to make this a special adventure. Perhaps most special of all is Axel Munthe's relationship to animals that allowed him to get close, even to "wild" animals and have a special relationship with them. He was a man who held nature and all life in special regard but was pragmatic in the face of illness and death.

I have had a copy since 1988 and I have given Axel Munthe's book as a gift and been thanked for the introduction. I could not recommend this book highly enough.

My father had mentioned this book to me as a teenager. I read portions of it then, but have always wanted to read it in full. Finally, I found a paperback edition and found an absorbing and thought stimulating book. Dr. Munthe's care of the sick, his love of animals and the characters he describes, all will stay in my memory. This is not a book that you read once. I plan to read it again and again. Hopefully I will be able to visit Villa St. Michele some day and see the beauty of the place that he saw. I hope to find a bound edition with the photographs.

As an event manager for Jan Mulder and orchestra, website: www.janmulder.us I purchased three copies of The Story of the Orchestra which will be given to young people to learn about the orchestra's various instrument. I highly recommend this book for both adults and younger people.
Hans Goede

Excellent tool for teaching your children about the Orchestra. The CD that comes with it is great.

"Santa" brought this book for our 4 year old. She loves it! It is layed out in a way that we can read just portions of each page without her getting overwhelmed. It is definitely a book she can grow with. Because a mom has to brag: My daughter can now easily name each instrument and knows which "family" it belongs. She laughs hysterically over Beethoven's picture, knows Tchaikovsky composed Swan Lake and the Nutcracker (the sweetest thing is hearing a 4 year old rattle of Tchaikovsky and Vivaldi!) etc. Highly recommended!

I purchased this book in preparation for teaching a group of homeschooled students (ages 7-14) a short course in music appreciation. It was a terrific resource for them. The text was brief but engaging; the cartoons were entertaining; and the photography was so eyecatching. It covered the musical periods, with information on several representative composers. Then each of the orchestra sections was covered, with a helpful CD included to hear snips from pieces that featured the instruments. The students all learned quite a bit from this book. I recommend it highly.

I was looking for resources to help make teaching about classical music and composers to primary grade children more entertaining and I found what I needed all wrapped up in this book and CD combination.

Part I of the book concerns composers and is separated into the periods in which they composed, ie., Baroque, etc., with a brief description of art, architecture and feeling of the period. The composers covered for all periods are Vivaldi, Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Mahler, Debussy, Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Gershwin, Copland and Bernstein.

Part II of the book is about the instruments of the orchestra. Again, this is further broken down into the different sections of the orchestra such as strings, woodwinds, etc. Then within each of those sections a feature on the individual instruments.

The accompanying CD has brief examples of the compositions introduced in the composers section and for each instrument. It really helps the kids hear what they've been discussing.

One of the best things about this book are the illustrations. They are colorful and entertaining. Sometimes there are humorous illustrations such as a drawing of the ideal Baroque instrumentalist needing 2 right hands, 3 left hands, and 3 eyes which really had my 3rd grade kids in giggles after hearing the intricacies of "Spring" by Vivaldi. There are also entertaining illustrations showing how an instrument produces its sound and they are mixed with photographs of the instrument itself. I highly recommend this book for music teachers to use as a reference and for parents who have children interested in learning an instrument.

This is one of the all time great true crime books. If you like true crime, you must read this book.

I realize this is an odd heading for a review, but one of the very first things the author points out is that the crime was as incredibly stupid as it was brutal. I don't want to spoil the story too much, but added to a long list of very stupid mistakes made by the kidnappers was an apparent failure to understand how the telephone system in San Jose worked.

The author tries to explain this, but I supect that in this day and age when many people haven't even used a rotary dial phone, his explanation was inadequate. In 1933 the telephone system in San Jose was completely "manual." Telephones had no dials or buttons. When someone wanted to make a call, he or she simply picked up the receiver. This action caused a small light to go on over a jack in the switchboard, which was of course marked with the number of the calling party. The operator then plugged in one of a pair of cords from the shelf in front of her and asked "number, please?" The caller then spoke the wanted number to the operator who used the other plug to connect to the jack of the wanted number. She then had to press a small lever to ring the wanted party's bell. Consequently, tracing a call was ridiculously simple; all someone had to do was read the numbers next to the jacks in question on the face of the switchboard.

Of course all operators would have been alerted to signal the Chief Operator when anyone asked for the number of the Hart residence. The operator could also delay a few seconds before starting to ring the Hart's phone, giving the Chief Operator extra time to alert the law enforcement officers at the Hart residence that there was an incoming call.

All this resulted in Thrumond being arrested while using a pay phone to call the Hart residence. While San Jose city police were not involved in the arrest, it should be noted that he was using a telephone something like 150 feet from the main police station, not the wisest choice of locations.

This evidence would have been crucial if the case had come to trial and if Thurmond and Holmes had recanted their confessions, or if the confessions had been ruled inadmissible, which was possible even in 1933.

In other areas the author paints a vivid picture of the local political scene, and how "bosses" controlled much of city and county government. It's also interesting to note that much of the area around San Jose was rural at the time.

The brutality of the crime notwithstanding, I cannot in any way approve of the lynching, and I'm of the opinion that the governor should have been impeached for first failing to provide national guard troops to help defend the jail, and secondly for his outright approval of the lynchings and treat to pardon anyone convicted of taking part in them.

Prosecutors in three, if not four different jurisdictions were preparing charges against Holmes and Thurmond. There is simply no way they could have gone free if the first case against them for any reason had failed.

Swift Justice is more than a story about the murder of Brooke Hart, the son of a prominent San Jose businessman in 1933. It is about vigilante justice in its worst form--lynching.

Farrell starts the book off with Brooke Hart and the events that led up to his kidnapping and murder. He points out that most of his material was gathered from witnesses and/or people who wish to remain anonymous to this day. So, he cautions the reader about the accuracy of his story. The detail in which he describes the body and the lynching is gruesome. It works with the story, though, because I got the sense why the citizens of San Jose flew into a rage at those two men and the justice system. Brooke Hart and his family were revered by many, and in their eyes, what those two men did was unforgivable. The sheriff's department started receiving anonymous threats against those men and alerted the police chief. When the threats became more severe, he brought in more deputies to secure the area while the police chief did nothing. Then a small crowd gathered outside the station house. Slowly, it grew into a large mob. At eleven o'clock that night, they stormed the jail, dragged the men out of their cells, and hung them on two trees in St. James Park.

Farrell did an excellent job in depicting this scene. I felt like I was right there in the sheriff's office while he pleaded for those men to confess to their crime. I felt his desperation and terror of the crowd outside, and the adrenaline rush when he and his deputies fled for their own lives. He was a man on his own; however one firefighter helped another prisoner escape. Other than that, nobody helped them. Then there was the mob, itself. As I read those pages, I couldn't believe how good, decent citizens turned into bloodthirsty savages. But there they were, chanting and raving as the men were dragged out by their peers. The lynching was a spectator event, and everybody who knew or heard of the Harts attended with their babies and children. It was appalling and sickening. The authorities didn't arrive until it was time to gather the bodies and clean up the mess.

The St. James Lynching of 1933 was the last to occur here in San Jose. Since then, the penal system has made several improvements; however, the system leans more toward the civil rights of the criminals than to the victims. The pendulum always swings left and right, never landing in the middle. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in San Jose's history and/or the justice system. With all terrible tragedies, there is something to learn.

I'm not ashamed to stay I stayed up all night reading this book. I thought I'd read a few chapters before bed and...well, I just couldn't put it down. Brooke's murder is particularly brutal -- I could hear his final calls for help inside my head. The description of the lynching is so vivid you feel as if you're there, shouting and manning the battering ram with the rest of them. My only complaint was that the "after the lynching" section seemed to drag a bit. All in all a wonderful book, which I would highly recommend to any fan of true crime.

I must admit, I have a biased viewpoint. As a descendant of not one, not two, but three people who were summarily executed without the benefit of due process (one was most probably guilty --- the other two probably were not), accounts such as the San Jose Lynching tend to rub a raw nerve with me.

In a brisk, wonderfully written narrative, the author sets the stage and lets the events unfold to their unsettling conclusion. Along the way, he makes some interesting points about mob mentality, vigilante justice, and the abication of moral authority that our leaders on occasion display.

Most troubling for me are the points raised at the end of the book. The abrupt dispatch of the two murder suspects meant that other leads never were followed up on by the authorities. The author makes it clear that the two men were most certainly guilty --- they confessed to the crime, and the circumstantial evidence certainly pointed towards their guilt. However --- most troubling of all --- the circumstantial evidence also pointed quite strongly to additional men being involved in Brooke Hart's kidnapping & murder. Did other men get away with murder because the San Jose mob was too impatient to wait for a trial? The author does not beat us over the head with his theories, but he correctly points out that, because there never was a trial, a lot of questions that needed answering went unaddressed.

Certainly, it is a cautionary tale for those who believe that the justice system is too sluggish, and that we should just "line 'em up against the wall and shoot 'em." Maybe some time has been saved --- maybe justice has been served fully. But you can't confidently state it as fact.

This book is full of information that is useful to a Soldier. It covers alot of lessons that are lost to todays young soldiers due to are ability to overwhelm with our technology alone.

While preparing to deploy to Iraq last Summer I embraced two books. The Small Unit Leader's Guide to Counter-insurgency and this one.

Poole took his research of every Eastern military he could muster and outlined the training and expectations of thier lower enlisted, stressing not only the importance of empowering the lower enlisted of the US military and our allies, but just how skilled our enemies may be.
Rather than officers having most if not all of the say in how operations had occurred, or are to be run, Eastern armies such as the Chinese, let all men involved in a battle have a say in what had happened, and how things can be improved.

Having been trained in a top-down military organization I am skeptical of the value of Poole's reccomendations for us to emulate the Chinese and other organizations, but I am not skeptical of his insight that things must adapt to their time. In a recent conversation with him he made reference to the French, stating that they had been an incredible military strength, but lost it over years of remaining as they had been when they were the most powerful military force of their time.
In North Korea they have their men go 10 miles into S. Korea as part of their training. Knowing Marines who have performed sweep operations on the DMZ and having heard stories of S. Korean Marines disappearing from one day to the next, mines being set where they'd been cleared the day before, I believe it.

Poole believes that the US Private should be the greatest warrior on the battlefield, confident in his abilities as he is in his fire team leader. Poole also believes that we should be able to send a Sergeant, Lance Corporal, and two PFCs into Colombia without any officers, and they should be able to accomplish their mission successfully.
After two years in Vietnam and close to 30 years in the Marines Corps as an infantry officer and enlisted man, he may be onto something.

John Poole has written a fantastic treatise on what will be needed to fight and win wars in the years to come. Though it makes for dry reading at times, this book is absolutely fascinating.It not only discusses enemy tactics, it recommends methods on how to develop ninjustsu-like tactics on your own. Spectacular book. A must-read for anyone in, or planning to join, the military. Top-shelf material!

This book is not a guide for people trying to get a grip on what is happening to our forces in Iraq. It is a good basic soldiers book that is made from many different types of 'field manuals', compiled and catagorized. Nothing new, but a good source for a yound Infantry NCO or Commissioned Officer who wants to keep his 'mind in the game'. Much of the information covers Infantry subjects, some of which is of no use in Iraq. However, we are a world-wide force and need to keep looking over our shoulder at the next conflict. The author speaks with some authority and it shows. As a graduate of the Infantry School at Ft. Benning (I wont say when) this book is a good refresher and contains some new information. If you go on patrol, regardless of you MOS or job title, this is a book you cna use.

I have not finished this book, you should know. However, you should also know that this book made enough of an impression of me that I am writing a review before I have finished in violation of my own rules. I am an author myself and I value these reviews greatly - I wouldn't write if I didn't mean what I say.

This is a great book. In short, it takes the premises - as best we know - of Togakure ryu Ninjutsu and applies them to contemporary military arts. Squad mechanics - the focus of every lieutenant who has ever served - are the focus of Poole's tactical revision of the current philosophy of combat in the US military.

I am not a military man, but I am surrounded by them. I am a ninja, studying Bansenshukai Ninjutsu. We also have some Togakure ryu curriculum, and Poole hits hard on the right stuff. Early in the book he points out that the close combat ryuha are not his focus. Instead, he is looking at the understudied arts of Zanson, Intonjutsu, Shinobi Iri and Hensojutsu. This is a book about how to not fight if you don't have to.

Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu practitioners will argue that this `is not ninjutsu' because it isn't what Hatsumi teaches (in public anyway) but they would be wrong. The taijutsu that BBT teaches is just a small part of what the ninja represents, and this book covers practically everything else. Admittedly, the second chapter references books by Haha Lung and Ashida Kim, who are widely discredited. However, even quacks can have good ideas and Poole expertly extracts the choice tidbits. You will not be displeased.

What can I say!!!Another great Dear America Book!!Their becoming addicting.As Kathleen Bowen lives with a topsy-turvy life you can see the real life features of Life in Washington D.C. 1917.Great book for anyone who is as addicted to the Dear America Series as I am!!

"A Time for Courage" centers around 13-year-old Kat Bowen who lives in Washington D.C. with her family. The year is 1917 and there are many political developments in the country - the women's movement towards voting rights for females and also the US involvement in WW I. Kat's mother and aunt are involved in the movement, and though Kat's dad supports his wife, her uncle is against it. Readers are also made aware of certain historical facts such as the fact that President Woodrow Wilson wasn't a supporter of women's right to vote. The story also explores Kat's close bond with her cousin Alma.This makes a great introductory read in politics especially for younger readers, and will enhance their awareness of the subject.

As is the custom in the Dear America series, there is a hisorical note at the end that touches on women's rights in the middle of the nineteenth century and the leaders of the suffrage movement in America. There are also historical photographs and a timeline of American women in politics. Conclusion - a fascinating fictional account of the suffrage movement as seen through the eyes of a young girl.

Kat Bowen is living in Washington D.C. during the woman's fight for the vote. Her own mother is among the woman picketing outside the White House Kat writes down her own views and opinions during this time. She supports her mother but at the same time worries about her mother. Especially after Kat sees how women picketing are being treated. She also witnesses trouble in her family when her uncle is so against the picketing and noting of women voting to the point it almost ruins the marriage of her aunt and uncle. Its amazing how badly picketers were treated and at the same time the women who did picket and go through the hunger strikes and horrible time in jail they were all so brave. An excellent book.

Kat Bowen is a thirteen year old Washingtonian girl. Her family is generally wealthy, and she has a s many friends as she could need. Her cousin is her best friend, Alma, and her father is a well known and widely respected physician. But when the first World War and the women sufferage in her own home city begin to take the spotlight in her life, Kat finds herself being pulled deeper in with each day. Her mother decides to become a sufferagete, and her father supports her.
But Kat's uncle, Alma's father, is outraged, and refuses to allow the womenin her family to participate. Kat decides to help her mother sew banners for the suffragete movement, and do other deeds to help the women.
Real characters are incorperated into the book, which is one of the reasons as to why it is such a good historical reference. Another success in the Dear America Series.

A Time for Courage by Kathryn Lasky is one of my all-time favorite books in the Dear America historical fiction series. It is not particularly my favorite era of American history, but it is so well-written and interesting you just fall right in.
Kathleen Bowen's mother, aunt, older sister, and best friend's mother are all deeply involved in women's suffrage and equality rights, living in Washington D.C., 1917. Kathleen's father does not approve only because he worries for his wife's safety---many women have been arrested and beaten by police for protesting outside the White House. Yet Kathleen's friend's father disapproves of his wife's antics because he is a bit of a sexist. Soon, Kathleen becomes involved with the rights of women everywhere, just like her sisters and mother.
This timeless addition in Dear America will please all, and I promise you shall not be able to put it down. All the protagonists are extremely likable, and this book is just indescribably great. I just can't put it to words. READ IT!