England Books

Thomas B. Costain is one of the most readable of historians because he firstly draws on an awareness, gained in his years as a novelist, of the necessity on the part of a writer to above all reach out to his reader. An even greater praise might be this: Costain is also one of the most intelligent historians I've ever had the good fortune to read.

This is Costain's second volume in his well-rounded four-book history of England during the rule of its most storied dynasty, the Plantagenets. Here, in just under four-hundred pages, Costain concentrates on the events of the thirteenth-century reign of Henry III, who came to the throne in 1216, and who passed away forty-six years later in the autumn of 1272. Beginning his story during the regency of the great and good William Marshal, "right hand man" of four monarchs, and ending it shortly after Prince Edward's crushing of the baronial revolt led by Simon de Montfort, Costain makes the interesting case that the thirteenth-century was perhaps the grandest and most glorious if not in the whole of English history, then undeniably that in the era of the Plantagenets.

This was the first volume I've read so far in the quartet, but it won't be the last.

Costain gives his usual rousing treatment to a period not widely treated.

Costain's entire four-volume history of the Plantagenets, "The Pageant of England," is the reason I became a historian and history teacher. I had liked history before, but I'd never before read history that read like a novel. He brought these figures to life in a way that lit a fire that still burns brightly. In short, an excellent history, which I re-read every few years--especially The Magnificent Century!

I have read this book so many times I have worn out my copy, in paperback. I would and do recommend the book to anyone anyone who wants to start learning the history of England and the Middle Ages. The Late Mr Costain brought the people to life, which was a rare gift, he also being a novelist knew how to tell a tale, both are great for generating an interest in history. He leaves a great foundation for a student to build a knowledge of history on.

I first read these books 20 years ago, and the opportunity to purchase them in a new edition is the thrill of the year for me. Costain makes the period come alive, with all its heroes, villains, and bystanders. While many of Costain's opinions and conclusions are somewhat dated by more recent research, there is no more delightful reading experience amongst modern histories of the middle ages.

This personal biography is really a biography of biology in the 20th century. any one interested in how scientific and cultural/political ideas interact, and in how scientists have attempted to understand large issues like human culture and history with the help of small evidences, like genes and molecules, will have a ball reading this lovely, well written book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this engaging and fascinating tale of one of the most controversial and thought provoking scientists of the twentieth century. I recommend it highly to anyone interested in science, biography, and history.

I am not a scientist, but very much enjoy biographies. I read this book on a friend's recommendation, and literally could not stop turning the pages. Darlington, the man and the scientist, is truly brought to life on these pages.

I found the story behind Harman's `unlikely scientific hero' consistently engaging. The author does a superb job of seamlessly weaving together the many colorful strands of the social and scientific fabric that served as backdrop to Darlington's life. With Harman as a guide, the reader gains a unique first-hand appreciation for Darlington's days, reliving them as heady times for genetics in particular and for society as a whole.

A must-read for all those in the know. Amongst the best biographies I have come across.

Harman has produced one of the deepest books about biology and evolution I have encountered in over 30 years of more-than- amateur interest in the field. He has been able to pinpoint the true paradoxes of life: foresight versus randomness, the individual versus the group, the past as against the future. And he has done so with a wonderful pen: understated, deeply intelligent, deeply modest. I believe that while lesser intellects may not comprend its true value, really smart people will recognize it as nothing short of a brilliant book.

This biography of Cyril Darlington is of a renowned scientist who enjoyed a long career, first as a microscopist exploring the workings of the chromosome, then as a leader in the fight against Lamarckism, Lysenkoism, Marxism, and suppositions on the equality of men. His early career was built primarily on a book, "Recent Advances in Cytology" which brought together a coherent picture of the chromosomes and their role in evolution. Perhaps a key insight, new with him, was that though the chromosomes contained the hereditary information, they could be understood better by seeing how evolution affected them as well.

Darlington was a confirmed materialist, hard headed scientist, but was positively attracted by controversy, and a rather intolerant, arrogant character to boot. He had many enemies, but was a forceful and prominent public voice, who relished his role. This combination makes for a lively biography, and deserves serious consideration by anyone interested in the history of the development of the "modern synthesis" of evolutionary thought. He was a driving force for much of it.

Darlington was during the 1940's to the 1980's a sort of early version of Richard Dawkins, and was opposed for many years by JBS Haldane, who was a sort of early version of Stephen Jay Gould. Many of the controversies, being rooted in deep-seated views of human nature, have hardly changed. There is the Marxist version of a faith in the malleability of man by wishful thinking, opposed by hard lessons drawn from science, evolutionary theory and the observation that man is a creature acting in accordance with hereditary behaviors which have developed differently in different races. Not for Darlington the notion that race is a "social construct" or that IQ is a "reified" useless hypotheis, the same for all races. He was a sociobiologist well before the term was invented.

The first part of the book that deals with Darlingtons cytogenetics is not the easiest read, dealing as it does with a pretty arcane subject in perhaps a little too much detail, even for the informed reader. The old controversies about such things as parsynapsis vs telosynapsis, are enfolded in a vocabulary that will be intimidating to many readers. I wish, though, that he had covered in a little more detail the methods of cytogenetics, the stains used, the sample preparation methods, and so on. Just how hard was it to prepare an informative experiment? A little more about the influence of Darlington's cytological insights on the conventional modern practice of the art would have been welcome too.

No matter--skip on to the major part of the book where Harman covers the course of the debate over the nature of man and the insights brought by an evolutionary perspective. The meat of the book is here.

In his later years, as for all scientists who live a long time, the main developments in his science began to become too much for him--molecular biology, psychometrics, and a bevy of new techniques were to add much that he could appreciate, but could contribute very little. Exploring the big picture, speculating, theorizing and publicizing became his game, and we are better off for it.

Harman has done a splendid job in this biography--he writes clearly, and has a very good understanding of his subject. It is based on exhaustive research and interviews and will be the definitive work for a long time. The many pictures bring the story to life, and make for a lively read. I enjoyed the book a lot and even re-read much of it for a second time!

I bought this in paperback in England. The store had a pile of them so I assume it's in print there. I read it on the plane home. What a perfect book for a nervous traveler -- for the first time in my life I forgot to give my whole attention to keeping the plane airborne! All the way to New York, all the way home, with the warmest, happiest chapters at the end to finish off with when you get back into your own familiar territory. But now London is familiar territory, too. Read this and know a city as one who loves it and grew up there. The Blitz scenes are worth the money alone! Funny, moving, profound,unsentimental, humane. This is a big novel, with a big generous heart. I would not be the first to compare it to Dickens. Peter Ackroyd, Dickens's and London's biographer, has compared Moorcock to Dickens and has given lavish praise to MOTHER LONDON, as have many London literary critics. Another London novel KING OF THE CITY is also a great read, though very, very different. Read MOTHER LONDON and see the city at her best, dauntless under the Nazi bombing raids, her ordinary citizens not only surviving and making the best of things, but making the quality of their lives better through sheer old-fashioned grit and determination. A lesson for all of us who never experienced our home under constant daily attack, but a heartening message with an old-fashioned up-beat celebration of ordinary human beings. Wonderful!

A stunning book, in which the city speaks to us like never before. In this book, we see just how powerfully the city moulds the lives and characters of its inhabitants, and in turn, how the inhabitants mould the city. War and destruction inflict damage on city and citizen alike, but life and the city continue. An inspirational tale.

Why this masterpiece is not in print in America while so much lightweight BritLit fills the stacks, I cannot explain. The London online Guardian has just done a discussion group on this book and it is fascinating to see how the writer, in the Q&A, describes his intentions -- working inwards and outwards from the key Blitz scenes which are at once the most terrifying and uplifting of the whole novel. This novel doesn't let you in easily but once you are there, you have to let it seize you and carry you along. When you do, you find that you are experiencing something both warm, magical, humane, profoundly funny and with a respect for the under-dog we have not seen in this country since Steinbeck's generation. Maybe an English Don DeLillo ? Really, there's no comparison. Moorcock is as modern as today's Middle East and as compassionate as Mother Therese. You won't regret taking the trouble to read this once. And you will find yourself reading it again and again for the rest of your life!! Ask those of us who have been rereading this since it came out! A genuine modern classic.

I too picked this up in London, where it's commonly available along with the paperback of King of the City, and while I am not a Londoner, I felt I was one after reading the book. If you read this and Peter Ackroyd's LONDON; A BIOGRAPHY you will have a tremendous sense not only of the city's living history, but of her contemporary heart. A great city, largely free from violence and the problems which trouble our American cities, and one that is constantly changing with fresh waves of immigration. This is a book primarily about human beings -- and very fine human beings most of them prove to be. Heartening, intelligent, with a sharp eye for human wickedness, as well as virtue. (...) Read it over Christmas if you can. It will remind you of Dickens and you will feel a whole lot better about the world, in spite of its troubles. It ends with a big party. You will love it.

As much as I love the concept of Moorcock's Multiverse novels, I have to admit that it takes a lot of searching to find the gems amidst all the rest, since many of them were written when he was a lot younger (and often very quickly) and have a bit of a slapdash quality to them, so that the concept is clearly there but it's also all over the place. His best books are the ones where the vision is clear from the onset and he manages to sustain across the entire work, like the Jerry Cornelius novels. And this one. This is probably his most famous work to non-SF readers, I don't know if I'd go so far as to say it's "mainstream" because even though there aren't people with giant black swords cutting everyone to pieces and invoking ancient gods, it's still very clearly a Moorcock book. This is probably the best novel to recommend to people who want to get into him but are scared off by his other novels because it's self contained and more or less "normal". Basically it's his love letter to the city of London, through the eyes of three characters, Mary Gasalee, David Mummery, and Josef Kiss, all of whom were involved in avoiding getting bombs dropped on them during the Blitz and who we follow as the story reels back and forth in time, as the characters wander all over the neighborhoods of London, running into the people there and commenting on the changing times. Moorcock evokes the spirit of London through the characters, both literally and figuritively (Mummery is compiling notes about the city, Gasalee and Kiss are both mildly psychic I think), in the same way that Ulysses gives you a tour of Dublin and Lanark represents Glasgow (on that note, has there even been a definitive novel of NYC . . . Dos Passos' Manhattan Transfer?) in a way that lets an outsider like myself get a feel for the city and it's movements but at the same time I think you'd have to truly be a Londoner to understand it all . . . by making the foundation of the novel rooted in the Blitz and having everything either proceed from or regress to there he centers it on what is probably the most defining event for most of London, and contrasts both the great uncertainty and fear of those days with London's nonchalance and ability to survive . . . the shockwaves of it continue to resonate throughout the book, like echoes that haven't reached their targets yet. And due to the characters being psychic, interspersed throughout the narrative are the jumbled thoughts of the people of London, giving voice to the millions that live there, adding a different texture to the proceedings. Moorcock throws everything he can into the novel, giving us a city and a people that are comic and tragic, mundane and grand, all at the same time, creating a story that could only happen in one place, hinting that the only way to really survive is to create your own myths, and run with them. What you get there isn't so much a tightly plotted story but a series of images cascading one after the other, putting together a picture of a place that you'd never understand completely unless you lived there, but since most of us don't, this is the closest we'll ever come. I don't know if it was ever published in the US, but it's certainly out of print here now, though I'm sure used bookstores and UK-related websites have it, since it's definitely still available there I'd recommend snagging it. It shouldn't be the only Moorcock book you ever read, but if you have to start somewhere or if you really only want to read one, this would be it.

This is the first time I have ever purchased a Farmers almanac, and now I wonder how I ever gardened without one! It is set up in an easy to read format, and is small enought to carry around!

This is the first time I have ever purchased a Farmers almanac, and now I wonder how I ever gardened without one! It is set up in an easy to read format, and is small enought to carry around!

This is the first time I have ever purchased a Farmers almanac, and now I wonder how I ever gardened without one! It is set up in an easy to read format, and is small enought to carry around!

the 2000 book is a collectore edition and it is better than 1999

This book tells it all like it is. It leaves nothing out. If you have problems figuring out what the symbols mean, there is a directory that helps you. I recommend the books to friends & family every year - which I perchase every year myself.

enjoyed the book and found an artist rendering taken at a train staion, i beleive. the approximate page location is 70 & 71, give or take. what i need to know is where i can obtain a source that has this picture showing this german train station during WWII. it is for a friend who works for union pacific and loves enginges. please contact me about the picture. as for the book i grew up near wright-patterson AFB, Dayton OH and love planes - loved the book - hope to purchace it someday. any direction to a source will be greatly appreciated. thank you. Dave Falknor.

This was so well done!!! The written account was complimented so well by the great pictures that I felt like I could get an better idea of being there. This really needed to be recorded before it was a forgotten era in history. Thank you for doing that.

This book is an excellent postscript to reading thousands of pages about the air war in Europe. I've always been fascinated by what the air crews did, and how they lived their lives. Part of what makes it so interesting is the vast span of time that exists between now and then. This book, through photographs, documents that span of time... and through these photographs, you can see how something so large as a world war can fade into the past, which in a special kind of way makes the people involved that much more interesting: larger than time... bigger than anything you can see now. The text in this book is limited (by their design), yet concise and informative. Yet, if a picture is worth a thousand words, this book is probably a million words long. I haven't seen pictures as vivid as those in this book anywhere else. Many are in full color, some are vintage WWII color photos spanning two pages. The appendix is filled some pretty amazing statistics, right down to the number of .50 caliber rounds fired by 8th AF bombers.

The foreword by Andy Rooney is pretty revealing as well. You won't watch him on 60 minutes the same way again.

This is not a formal history, but an attempt to convey the atmosphere and experience of the time. Well written and artfully laid out.

As the son of a surviving B-17 pilot, I have spent considerable time poring over books specific to the subject. This book, along with Half a Wing, Three Engines and a Prayer are true treasures. History books alone cannot convey information to our successors like a story retold by someone who had the events firmly planted in their memory by the first-hand impact of the situation.

I bought this book before going to Acadia Natl Park. It was incredibly helpful. Our exploration of the Park Loop Road was more interesting because of all the helpful info in this book. Loved the pictures. Very representative of the actual places.

I can't wait to get there in late Summer '06!
This book is great for anyone planning on visiting Acadia National Park.
If the park is only half as beautiful as the pictures in the publication, I can't wait!
I've already planned several routes to run and ride (bicycles) while we are there.
Thanks!

After throughly reading this book through 3 times I have come to the conclusion it is a wonderful book full of useful information. The pictures alone are beautifuly taken giving reason enough to purchase this book. Also Mr Thayer is an excellent chemistry teacher and I hope after reviewing this comment he will raise our grades

An excellent overall introduction to Acadia National Park and Mount Desert Island. Good overview of geology and natural and cultural history. Provides up-to-date information on roads and hiking trails. A wonderful guide or souvenir of the Acadian experience.

All of the books written by Robert Thayer convey the true beauty of Acadia National Park. Robert is an outstanding photographer/ author and is an inspiration for my own work. I have seen many slides of Roberts work and I am always impressed. I give this book my highest recommendation for any person interested in learning about Acadia, nature, wildlife, and especially photography. He also has 3 other books available on Amazon.com of an equal caliber.

This book was one of the most interesting I've ever read. Penelope Lively created two of the most interesting, yet pathetic characters in modern fiction. Both siblings Helen and Edward were destined to lives of social isolation from birth because of their controlling mother Dorothy. The story is gripping from the onset.

Only an author of Penelope Lively's talent could present a story of two diffident, almost invisibly shy middle-aged people and make the reader not only care about them, but care deeply.

On the surface, nothing whatsoever happens in the very quiet country lives of Helen and Edward, a brother and sister caught in a time warp of old-fashioned Victorianism smack in the middle of the teeming 80s (when this book was written). Having lost their domineering old battle-axe of a mother as the book begins, both brother and sister are having trouble banishing her critical and strident voice from each of their minds.

As they go about their days--Helen as a part-time librarian, Edward as a schoolteacher--the reader senses that something horrific is about to happen. The very stillness of their lives portends something awful. It is the genius of the author that can portray that feeling without in any way discussing it or warning the reader...it's just there.

And when it happens, lives are shattered, and the reader simply must weep.

This is a tour de force. A brilliant piece of writing. And something that cannot be put down and forgotten.

Helen and Edward Glover have just buried their mother, Dorothy. Dorothy, the manipulative and domineering woman that she was, raised two meek children who did her bidding and one child, Suzanne who escaped her, but understood the life her siblings had led. Penelope Lively has once again written a wonderfully literate book of characters, showing their foibles, yet the allowing the mysteries of life to unfold in real drama.

Helen and Edward live in a small town near the edge of Cotswold. Helen is 52 and a part-time librarian. Edward is 49 and a teacher at a girl's school. It appears that both of them have not made much of their life, under the eye of their mother who had a need to keep them under her thumb, while allowing them to think they were not worthy of much.

They live in a large, unkempt home Greystones, and have a piece of land known as the Britches, which Edward keeps as an environmentally safe place. After their mother dies, she stays with them in picture and soul. It takes a while before either of them can talk about her. It is while Helen is cleaning her mother's room and then cleaning the entire house that she finds the "nasty" things her mother had done to keep her two children at home. In the meanwhile, Helen has blossomed and has become good friends their solicitor, Giles, She falls in love with this wily man and feels like a school girl again.

Edward, in the meantime becomes more reserved and into himself. An incident occurs that rocks both of Helen's and Edward's lives. As it happens, Phil, their sister, Suzanne's son has moved in with them because he and his parents do not see eye to eye. Both Helen and Edward continue their daily life and seem to make a difference in Phil's life. Has Dorothy's death freed these two characters to pursue their own lives?

Both Helen and Edward appear to be accepting what has been lost in their lives because of their mother and moving on to a new and better life. Their next door neighbor wants their land and will use every wily trick he can muster. Are Helen and Edward smart enough to rebuff this man? What would new found money do to their life? Penelope Lively has introduced us to two characters that move our hearts and souls. She has been able to develop their personalities to such a degree that we can begin to understand how Dorothy, the mother has taken over their very thought and desires. How to break free of this tragic creature?
Can something be done, be retrieved of their lives. A poignant and personal look inside the minds and hearts of two people we come to care about. Penelope Lively has done it again! prisrob

Reading this book broke my heart. And yet, when I finished it I turned back to page one and began again. The characters in this book are so complex and compelling, it was as if they were people who inhabit my day to day life. I recommend this book to anyone wishing to be haunted by perfect fiction.

I realised about half way through this book that I had read it before (the first thing to really push my recognition buttons was a typically straw man attack on Creationists. I also remembered the technique she used of telling us early that one of her characters fiddled with their glasses when perplexed, and later just saying when they started fiddling). All the plot seems to happen in the last couple of chapters, whereas until that point we're just getting a picture of the main two characters. Our central character, Helen, is a 52 year old woman dealing with the death of her overbearing mother, who may have actually altered the whole course of her daughter's life by, for example, not handing on a potentially vital love letter Helen finds while sorting her mother's things. The issue for Helen is less whether things really would have been different if her mother hadn't have been involved than how much she is to blame for not taking a stand, for being too pliant.

Lively is good, you get to like and respect Helen. A major theme is linking nature to our lives: how do we deal with the fact that we really are just beasts with intelligence? (The conclusion manages to have some hope in this bleak outlook: 'They saw that there is nothing to be done, but that something can be retrieved.') This is the assumption - obviously I deal with it differently to Lively. And I suppose I put a minus after the A because I think her insight, while profound in some areas, doesn't extend to respecting anyone with alternate views. The novel is a bit preachy (in a relatively subtle way - it's not the only concern of the book), and does unapologetically reduce several characters to mere goodies and baddies (eg. Ron Plaget, Helen's mother, Giles Carnaby, Susan Wilmot). She also is pushing a pretty tough barrow: she wants us to feel sympathy for Helen's 49 year old brother, a repressed homosexual who gropes the neighbour's 14 year old, and to utterly condemn, in contrast, anyone in society opposed to homosexuality - including the father of the 14 year old (set up for a fall, of course, an utterly immoral opportunist). The way she tells the story, we are sympathetic, but it is such a contrived 'moral' that makes its point but undermines the universality of the story.

Plotwise, slow moving, sure, but a dynamite finish, with several things all happening at once, rather than conveniently pacing themselves throughout the drama. We reel with the characters with no time to wallow over major events as more major ones rudely jump in. The irony is thick as Helen's younger sister talks on about her daily crisis' assuming that her stick in the mud single older siblings will have had nothing to report - when actually they're going though much more that she probably will never give the chance to hear (shades of some conversations I've had with ' also reminds me of that ably presented scene in 'Pulp Fiction' where Bruce Willis' character, on the run from the mob, has to tread carefully around his girlfriend's potential tantrums about her nails or whatever).

Like I said, she's good - but she should read some Hornby and see it's possible to present characters that differ but are both respectable. It does surprise me when people like Lively or Adam Spencer (JJJ presenter/mathamatician) do just write off anyone who believes that the complexity and beauty of nature suggest there is a God. Not just disagree, but vehemently abuse. Surely somewhere they've come across someone they respect who holds to this idea? Maybe they have but can't put the two together. Christians with half a brain have known and made it clear for ages that some very intelligent people are atheists. How about some atheists with half a brain making it clear that some very intelligent people are theists?

Pigs have wings is one of the best books I have read, because it so funny. The way the characters are many times spaced out and the way they act on their stupidity, mostly the way P.G. Wodehouse makes fun of characters. Pigs have wings, is about competition between two pigs for the fattest pig class. They try to steal each other's pig, and the Empress (the name of the hero's pig) has been the winner of this class for two years in a row. All this is tied with some knotted yet silly love relationships. But the way Wodehouse makes fun of it is so funny that you will laugh untill tears start pouring down.

A great and entertaining read. I highly recommend it. It's one of P.G. Wodehouse's best in my opinion. Life at Blandings castle
is like paradise!

In typical Wodehouse fashion, this is a comical story with many hilarious twists and turns. I found myself laughing aloud in many places. Simply put, if you like Wodehouse and especially the Blandings Castle series, you like this book. It is one of the later "chronicles" of Blandings Castle, but it would be a good read for anyone--even those unfamiliar with Lord Emsworth. This is a great book, and author, for those who enjoy light, comical novels.

P.G. Wodehouse was the 20th century's answer to William Shakespeare reproduced as musical comedy. In Pigs Have Wings, Mr. Wodehouse produced one of his very best efforts.

As usual, the themes involve a satire of romantic love, miscommunications between the sexes, the vapid interests of the titled class, and the silliness of people in general.

As the book opens, Clarence, ninth Earl of Emsworth finds himself faced with a threat to the supremacy of his pig, Empress of Blandings, in the Fat Pigs class at the Shropshire Agricultural Show. Sir Gregory Parsloe-Parsloe, Bart, of Matchingham Hall, had already hired away Clarence's pig handler, George Cyril Wellbeloved . . . and Clarence is sure that some new skullduggery will soon follow. As the story develops, we find that it's all too true. Soon both pig camps are doing their best to knobble the other man's pig. With everyone else having a bet on the outcome, many other people are soon engaged in trying to sabotage one pig or the other. It's the most pignapping fun caper you can imagine!

In the background, we have all sorts of people who've become engaged to totally unsuitable people on the rebound from slights they feel from the one they really love. P.G. Wodehouse does a yeoman effort of returning all of those twisted loves to the proper party. The plot will keep you constantly chuckling throughout.

There are quite a few books based on the Empress of Blandings. So if you enjoy this one, go on to the others in the series.

Wodehouse, master of words that he is, shows his wit to be in top form in this wonderfully funny story of Blandings castle. As usual, Lord Emsworth is a bit dazed and obsessing about his pig (now hoping that she'll win first in her division for the third year running at the local agricultural show) and the guests at Blandings are falling hopelessly in love with one another. This is a great book for both those new to Wodehouse and those who have enjoyed his other works. I highly recommend it.

This is a must have book! I had bought The PreRaphaelites: Inspiration From the Past but this book is much better! The first book did not have the breadth of illustrations and seemed to focus a lot on the sex lives of the artists. Many of them were promiscuous, but their artwork is still awesome. The illustrations in this book are very inclusive and none of the large illustrations is split between two pages, which is true of the other book I got. The illustrations are gorgeous here and plentiful and the text is intelligent and informative without being too "heavy." I can't recommend this book highly enough for someone who enjoys the PreRaphaelites (and perhaps like me, wishes artists today had the same color sense, high ideals and delight in nature).

This is a stunningly beautiful book filled with incredibly beautiful art. The narrative text is well written.

This book is the most amazing introduction to the Pre-Raphaelites! The pictures are absolutely amazing, especially since this is an over-sized book and therefore the details in the photos are amazing!

I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to know more about the Pre-Raphaeilite Artists (in general) and also to anyone that loves the Pre-Raphaelite works of Art & needs a good introduction!

First, let me say what I like about this book. It is profusely illustrated with full-page images, nearly all pictures mentioned in the text are reproduced in good quality, so one immediately sees what is described by the author. The text is free of jargon, lucid and highly entertaining (check the story of John Ruskin's unhappy marriage). Basic facts are rendered, short biographies of major painters are here, as well as some historical background (for example, the Aesthetic Movement and Oscar Wilde).
But this book has its weaker points. Mr. Christopher Wood does not specify what he means by "Pre-Rafaelite style"; sometimes it appears as he only means close adherence to nature and precise detailing. But what would he say then about German Biedermeier or French Neo-Grecs? The text overall is too smooth, it does not take into consideration newer approaches to art history (Norman Bryson's studies of pictures as sign systems, for example). So if you want a problem book, a challenging essay, you better look to Elizabeth Prettejohn's study. This one is just an introductory survey aimed at a general reader -- but a pretty good introduction, I might add.

I am a learning hobbyist artist interested mostly in portraits. An artist friend told me that I might be interested in the pictures of the Pre-Raphaelites. "Pre-Ra...What?"

When I bought this book I had not intended to read much of the text. I was primarily attracted to the beautiful pictures in the book, which I hope to learn from. It turns out that Christopher Wood's rendition of the biographies of these remarkable group of mid- to late 19th century English artists was exceptionally well weaved and readable. I got a very good education on the history of the Pre-Rephaelite art with fascinating details of the lives of the key players and, of course, beautiful, large-format reproduction of their best work.

I came across a number of books on this subject. Some have better and more detail prose, but none comes close to this one in terms selection and the quality of reproduction of the pictures.

This book was well written and I really got my emotions involved with her thoughts and feelings. I found myself very much with her...on her travels.

"Living is about Learning. It is a lifelong Quest."
Questing Marilyn is a memoir of one woman's journey to seek the ever-illusive "SELF." Marilyn shares her journey from Canada to England, Wales and Ireland as she visits known places of self discovery-Stonehenge, Chalice Well, Glastonbury Abbey and Tintagel. We move with her through her confusion, her anger and her realization that her life is not what it seems. We listen to her arguments in an effort to regain her composure based on years of training and discipline only to watch it crumble at her feet. Finally she emerges a stronger, wiser woman full of "Self."
The location descriptions are vivid giving the reader a true sense of being there. Armchair travelers will love the imaginary feeling of the drizzle settling on their faces as they gaze at thousand- year- old structures. The author mentions in one chapter that she would like to become a good storyteller as she listens to a local woman describe the beauty and superstition surrounding her hometown. This reviewer feels that she has achieved this and Questing Marilyn is an excellent example of her story telling skill.
Each one of us is on our own personal quest to find our life's purpose, our "soul", if you will. This book will give readers some insight into one person's search and the conclusions she draws. It will stimulate readers to look with earnest, travel farther and dig deeper to find their own "Holy Grail."
Author, Marilyn Barnicke Belleghem is a Registered Marriage and Family Therapist with a Masters degree in adult education and applied psychology. She is a sought after counsellor, consultant and speaker.
Recommended to anyone on a quest.
Reviewer: Shirley Roe, Allbooks Reviews

I really enjoyed this book and had trouble putting it down.

So much of what Marilyn went through was a mirror image of my life. I was also brought up to please, to be the peacemaker and responsible for things going smoothly. Deep down I always felt something was wrong with this picture but until middle age was unable to see clearly.

Marilyn is a very strong and courageous lady and I admire her openness in allowing us to view the steps that led her to the point she is now. I learned a lot about myself from her book and suggest that any woman over 40 would garner a great deal from reading this wonderful autobiography.

Thank you Marilyn. I am looking forward to your next book.

Questing Marilyn was more like Questing Me! I am a singer-songwriter-actress, and so many personal issues and emotions of my own were addressed in her book. It was great to read about someone that experienced many of the same feelings I have had and also to realize that I was not the only one to be asking these questions. I can accept that I shouldn't understand the personal makeup of other people but why am I kept a secret from me? I have read many self help books and done a lot of work on myself, but this book answered so many of my questions. It also helped me see where things in my past fit into making me the person I am now. It was like getting a lot of personal counseling while I was totally engrossed in the exciting storyline. In fact, I kept holding off reading the last ten or so pages just because I didn't want the adventure to end. What courage it must take to allow readers into your personal life. I truly thank Marilyn for that because I found answers to some of my questions. I can't wait to read her next book. Thank you Marilyn for being so brave.

Questing Marilyn is a multidimensional book about the author's travel experience to Britain and Ireland. The book begins as the stressed out author realizes that despite her overachiever attempts to have the perfect life (a loving family, a successful counseling career, and a sturdy religious foundation) that something is missing causing her to feel disconnected and ill content. In an attempt to reconnect and find herself, the author joins a group of colleagues and acquaintances on a tour of Britain and Ireland's sacred sites.

On this tour, the author is scheduled to visit sites such as Salisbury Cathedral, Stonehenge, Glastonbury Tor, Glastonbury Abbey, Avebury, Tintigel, Bath, Kilkenny Castle, and New Grange. Furthermore, as part of this organized expedition, group tours, hikes, and self-development rituals are to be undertaken at many of these locations.

This book relays detailed information on the mythological, historical, and spiritual significance of each stop of the tour while providing unique insight into the accommodations, dining, shopping, and sightseeing opportunities are available near these sites. As much of the author's tour is specially organized, this information contains a good deal of insight not commonly found in most tour guides of Britain and Ireland.

Another important aspect of this book is that the author candidly discusses the pros and cons of group tours by detailing her experiences during this vacation. The reader can then use this information to decide if he or she would be more suited to directed group travel or more flexible individualized travel.

The most important message of this book, however, is the introduction of travel as a tool towards self-exploration and self-acceptance. Often, due to the busyness and chaos of daily life, individuals don't have the luxury or time to truly understand who they are and what they want from life. However, during a vacation, normal routines and responsibilities can be temporarily forgotten. Thus, vacation time is the perfect time to reflect on these very personalized aspects of one's life, how he or she feels about that life, and what they need to do to make his or herself happy. Moreover, this analysis need not take place in Britain or Ireland. In fact, where the reader's quest starts and ends is completely unique to that individual.

Questing Marilyn: In Search of My Holy Grail, Personal Growth Through Travel is a great book for both those individuals interested in visiting the sacred sites of the United Kingdom and those individuals searching for self-exploration and self-acceptance. This book will make an excellent gift to yourself, to your best friend, to your sister, to your daughter, or to your mother.