Tracks Books

Hi Dave.This book should help us a little in the detective agency.I read the summary and what it is about.It sounds very good.The tittle is:The good detective guide to libary research:How to track elusive fact.By Barbara J. Brown.I know you think it won't help us but just let it have a try.BYE

Almost similar to real-life Ryan White's case, this novel deals with a teenaged suburban boy who caught AIDS infection from a blood transfusion received as a result of an auto accident just months before testing blood supplies became available(and mandatory) in March,1985. The controversy that happens after the fictional character's positive HIV status becomes known is just as real as that of real-life AIDS carries in the 1980's, especially since FDA blood screening became available.

"Gospel Tracks through Texas offers an exceptionally well-crafted examination of the nearly forgotten railroad chapel car phenomenon. This study of the chapel car Good Will is wonderful church history, railroad history, social history, and Texas history." H. Roger Grant, Clemson University

Gospel Tracks through Texas is "a fine work of social, cultural, and religious history. Taylor's style is almost cinematographic. . . . It's a powerful narrative and great fun to read." Paul C. Stone, University of Minnesota

I used this book for research for a new novel set in 1973 (after the court ordered banning of Deep Throat). Gotham Unbound provided just enough information to get the job done. I'm pretty familiar with what this book covers. Nevertheless, the detail provided is enlightening.

In creative works resulting from study, research,
insight, and explanation, one might point out two
particular types: the creative work of origination
and the creative work of synthesis. The originator
creates a work that is seen as being one of the prime,
essential works of theory and exposition around a
particular subject. Such a study is widely admired
and often quoted, sometimes favorably, sometimes in
argument against its ideas...or even jealousy of its
fame.
The creative work of synthesis is built around a
person's enthusiasm for a subject, their fervent
desire to know it to its core. They study it, live
it, breathe it. They want to explain it to others.
So they begin to research, or they have collected
research and quotes and source citations over time.
Then they decide to commit their own understanding
and insight about the subject using all of the
materials and sources and ideas which they have
shaped into a presentation of enlightenment. This

is the person's bold presentation of his synthesized
vision and creative interpretaion of the ideas and
justifications gathered from sources.
In this excellent work by David Sansone, we have
a very satisfying blend of research, source citation
(footnotes), personal insights, and a very obvious
outpouring of love of the subject and a desire to
understand it to its very depths and in multiple
aspects.
Sansone is a Professor of Classics at the University
of Illinois, Urbana (back cover). In his "Prelude"
to this work, Sansone says that he inherited a course
to teach which had been originated (ahh..) by William
Abbott Oldfather, "the American classical scholar."
The course was on the sports of ancient Greece and
Rome, and its purpose had been to "stem the tide of
moral and physical degeneration and to inculcate the
healthful lessons offered by the model of Greek
athletics." Sansone says that when he inherited the
course he hit the books to supplement his lack of
knowledge in some aspects of the subject. But he
believed a more sophisticated and rigorous approach
than Oldfather's was needed, for Oldfather had basically
seen sport as a practice for war carried out by "blond,
tall, muscular Nordics" who found war to be not only
a necessity but an amusement, a form of entertainment.
This approach did not satisfy Sansone, since he was
not Nordic by heritage.
Sansone says that when he started teaching the course
he had no idea of what sport was or why it was so avidly
pursued by so many. Over time, he says, he began to
notice "the intimate connection between Greek athletics
and sacrificial ritual" and it occurred to him "to
wonder whether the athlete was not in some sense
regarded [in ancient times] as a [type of] sacrificial
victim."
Sansone cites many sources in his footnotes, but
they are not overwhelming. The ideas and quotes he
uses are clear and compelling. What is of excellent

benefit is his clear, linear presentation of the
accumulated treasure of his own findings of the
evolution of sport from primitive times to the time
of the Greeks.
But Sansone does not merely stop there. He also
includes relevant comments and tie-ins with modern sport
and events. He has one very interesting section on
the practice of a particular ball sport among the
Cherokee Indians and uses that as a basis for relating
it to aspects of Greek sport. His source is "Cherokee

Ball-Play" (1890) by James Mooney, included in S. Culin's
_Games of the North American Indians_ (1907).
Sansone's other favorite source is a work by Karl
Meuli, "the great Swiss scholar," whose title is
"Griechische Opferbrauche."
Sansone's work is divided into two parts. Part One is
titled "The Genesis of Sport," and Part Two is titled
"The Nature of Greek Athletics."
In the first part, Sansone goes into the characteristics
of "ritual" and shows how those aspects relate to sport.
Then he does the same with the characteristics associated
with "sacrifice," and also relates them. There is a very
good "Selected Bibliography" which cites sources such
as W. Burkert, _Structure and History in Greek Mythology
and Ritual_; E.N. Gardiner, _Athletics of the Ancient
World_; J-P Guepin, _The Tragic Pardox: Myth and Ritual
in Greek Tragedy_; and H.A. Harris, Greek Athletes and
Athletics_. Perhaps the most provocative source is
W.E. Sweet, "Protection of the Genitals in Greek
Athletics," published in _Ancient World_ (1985).
This is a highly interesting, informative, and
enlightening work of synthesis. And is much more
valuable and useful than the "crock of self-evident
nonsense" or the "eccentric curiosity that happened
to contain a meticulous examination of the work of
others" that he feared it might be labeled as being.
Heck, I would have paid part of the price just for
the cover photo of my favorite piece of sculpture,
formerly known as "The Wrestlers," now titled as
"Pankratiasts in action" (Florence, Galleria degli
Uffizi) [back cover information].
* * * * * * * * *

I'm recently out of college and have had the desire to go to a beautiful region with history, nice beaches, and warm weather for a vacation. Someone told me I should check into Guam so I got this book and was amazed at the detail put into it! It lists different historic sites, parks, beaches, and other great places to visit and everything each one has to offer along with the story behind it. It even summarized a list of twelve essential things to do when you visit Guam which is helpful for an indecisive person like me who would want to do it all!!! :) The clincher that made me sure I want to go there on vacation? The clear and colorful pictures throughout the book that show how incredible and breathtaking each part of the island is! I can't wait to take a hike on Guam to one of their many majestic waterfalls!

This very readable book is both informative and interesting. Brief presentations of a more scholarly nature (e.g. examinations of statistics on crime and gun ownership, debates over the advertising techniques of gun manufacturers, law enforcement policies) are interwoven with the personal accounts of a variety of gun women, including police officers, hunters and competitive shooters.

The authors of this book state they hope to "open up the conversation about women and guns in America." From my perspective as a female gun owner and avid participant in the shooting sports, such conversation is desperately needed. I found this book a valuable source of information and support on several fronts. First, it provided insight to the thoughts and beliefs of those people who react with shock and dismay to the discovery that I actually own a gun. Second, it provided some hard facts with which intelligent responses can be made to the disparaging comments of those same people. Third, and perhaps most importantly, I discovered that many more women than I expected share my love for the shooting sports.

I highly recommend this book to any woman who owns a gun and participates in any of the shooting sports. It is also an excellent source of information for anyone who is interested in learning about what motivates females to become "Gun Women."

From book's back cover:

"Here is a complete analytical guide and review on how tested handicapping systems compare and more than that

The authors, Jenson and Moravek, have done a vigorous and exhaustive research, reviews, test and evaluation of over 70 popular books, pamphlets and other publications on handicapping, which includes over 150 different systems.

The systems are tested over identical conditions, using 5 racetracks - Santa Ana, Belmont, Arlington. Monmouth and Golden Gate - during 1982. This empirical test allowed for each system, method or technique to be compared to one another in an objective manner. In addition, the authors report on each publication's: Contents - giving an overview of how each system works; Test Results - over 30 statistical measurements are displayed in 2 easy to read tables: Test Analysis; Analytical Review: Evaluation, plus many other features, all presented in a uniformally designed format made for easy reading and referencing.

In total, The Handicapper's Analysis and Review, is an informative handicapping reference, ideal for handicappers everywhere."

The Harcourt Street Line was a double-track suburban railway that ran in Ireland from Dublin through Dundrum and Foxrock to Bray. It was shut down and abandoned in 1958. Some forty years later in May 1998, the Irish government launched a major investment of capital to create a new railway (Luas Line B) that would run along the identical trackbed of the old Harcourt Street Line as far as the Sandyford Industrial Estate (a distance of about eight kilometers). In The Harcourt Street Line: Back On Track, County Dublin native and railway enthusiast Brian Mac Aongusa presents the reader with an informed, informative, and colorful history of this local railway. Highly recommended reading for all railroad fans and a unique contribution to Irish transport history collections, The Harcourt Street Line is so well done that it could wonderfully serve as a template for others wanting to capture the history of their own local commuter lines.

Well, I just downloaded this absolute masterpiece. Incredibly informative, and surprisingly witty. Its compelling from the first page to the last. It was easy to understand and certainly showed a few moments of sheer brilliance!!! I'm about to read it again, it was that good. And, if you're any kind of a harness racing history buff (as I am) then you'll really fall in love with chapter one. 5 BIG STARS ALL THE WAY!


I'm out!

J.R.