Europe Books

This book is very helpful & definatley somthing I would recomend. Not only does it have the words & translation it has a pronunciation as well. It comes in handy when I look up phrases & need a quick review. Definatley a good buy

Some one came out with this book! This is a life saver I have been together with a serbian for 5 years and have not completely learned the language. I am leaving for Bosnia in 4 days to meet my in laws and this book has everything I need to know! It's more that enough to get by, and I have purchased several books in the past for a ton more $$$ and didn't get half of what I got out of this book for $4.00. It's a must if yuou are going to FRYOG !

This book is designed to help you get around a Serbo-Croat speaking environment with ease. I think the book is capable of providing the basics needed to get around. I would recommend this book for foregin travelers.

I think this book is the best book ever for getting to know the basics for this language. I know several words in serbian already but I will be meeting my in laws for the first time and I need to know more than everyday words and enough to get by . I have purchased several learning books for a ton more money than this book for the language and this has been th most helpful. They have the pronunciation in English and it's exactly the way I know it's suppose to sound due to looking at the words I already know !

a wonderful well written travel book to get you started learning the serbian language. the book works best when you read thrugh it 2-3 times.then ibegan using cassettes for pronunciation. i would also recommend all of the teach yourself serbo- croat series by TY. it worked for me.I recently traveled to serbia and montenegro ( Yugoslavia)a beautiful country with great food and wonderful people. i loved yugoslavia so much i plan to move their this summer when i graduate from high school. i now am practically fluent in serbian because i have taken night school and saturday evening classes. its all because this little book that got me so fascinated about sebian language and serbian people. i love serbia and am counting the days now. (26) DAYS. in the near future my whole immediate family may move to serbia. i hope you read this and if you do you have got to buy this book. i found it at Borders. so as the serbs would say Dobro dosli!

Some reviewers have commented that Robert E. Conot's book, Justice at Nuremberg, doesn't add any new knowledge or insights into the Nuremberg Trials. This may be true, but why did Conot write this book-what was his purpose? In the introduction Robert himself says why he wrote this book: "Although the record has furnished a documentary bonanza for histories of the Third Reich, there has been an absence of knowledge and comprehension of the trial itself." (Conot x) Conot was concerned that not many people knew very much about such an important historical event. He wanted to write an easy to read book that would interest people in the Nuremberg Trial-and of course, make sure that "history was written true." (Conot xiii) Many people have misconceptions about the trial; the trial is often times seen as a sham trial and Conot wanted to clear up this perception. Indeed, the very name of his book, Justice at Nuremberg, suggests his belief that the trial was in fact fair, from the outset. Conot presents his case convincingly as the lawyers did at Nuremberg, with the final verdict being Justice at Nuremberg.

Some have complained that Conot's jumping around between the trial and what he believed were contextual actions confuses the reader, making it difficult to understand his reasoning. It is true that his presentation style is hard to understand at times, but this is probably more to do with the complexities of the Nuremberg Trial and the historical and political influences that Conot believed affected the trial. The complexities, therefore, can be hard to follow and confusing. In order to understand what happened at Nuremberg one has to understand what happened in Germany when Hitler came to power; all these events are confusing but without understanding them it would be pointless to even look at the Nuremberg Trial. The reason for this is simple: the reader would see what the defense and prosecution were saying; one side saying that the defendants were innocent, the other claiming to have documents and witnesses which show the defendants culpable for many atrocities. How would the reader know who was telling the truth? The past is being studied, and because of that there should be an explanation of the events leading up to the trial.

Robert Conot did a good job putting the trial into its historical context. While readers who have studied Nazi Germany for quite some time would be annoyed at having to read about things they already knew about, this book is good for people who have not studied Nazi Germany in depth. Robert Conot gives background information on the defendants-there are many interesting tidbits that he provides. Two examples that come to mind are the defendants Goering and Hess. Conot provides some interesting information about how when Goering was little he had to write an essay about a notable German and he chose to write about Epenstein. (Conot 41) Immediately after turning in his essay he was taken in to the principal's office and asked why he wrote about a Jew instead of a notable German. He was punished by having to write "I will not write essays in praise of Jews" on the blackboard one hundred times and by having to wear a sign around his neck saying "My godfather is a Jew." (Conot 41) Hess, a very strange man, thought that the Jews were controlling people with hypnotic powers. (Conot 47) He stabbed himself with a knife one time and then claimed that the Jews used magic to place the knife in his hands in order to tempt him (Conot 47) The kind of background information that Conot provides may seem like trivial facts or gossip to some, but these things are important because the reader gains insight into the lives of the defendants; what made them tick.

The author also does a good job of describing the motivations for the trial. The Nazi party, under the leadership of Hitler started a war that killed millions of people-not only soldiers on the battlefield, but noncombatants as well; but millions of civilians murdered. These civilians died in horrible ways: they were beaten to death, gassed, starved to death, essentially boiled with quick lye, worked to death, and used in horrific experiments. What the Nazis did was so unspeakably evil that it had to be addressed. As Jackson said in his opening statement, "The wrongs which we seek to condemn and punish have been so calculated, so malignant, and so devastating, that civilization cannot tolerate their being ignored, because it cannot survive their repeating." (Conot 105) However, if after the war, all the Nazis were lined up and shot, what lessons would the world learn? As Bernays said, "Not to try these beasts would be to miss the educational and therapeutic opportunity of our generation." (Conot 11) Furthermore, what would people today think of these actions? Would they believe that we were the same as the Nazis for not giving them a trial? The trial was important; the trial would show the world not only that this was not "Victor's Justice" but how evil the Nazis were and that such actions would not be tolerated in the future.

After reading this book one gets the impression that while this trial appears not to have been completely fair, it was far from a sham trial or "victor's justice." The biggest problem had to do with the fact that a Russian judge was presiding over the trial. This is a problem because the Judge's actions were essentially dictated from Moscow. Indeed, for every defendant, the Russian Judge tried to have the death penalty enacted. Furthermore, there was a very embarrassing incident: during a party someone raised his glass and toasted to the speedy trial and execution of the defendants-a toast all judges partook of. (Conot 92). This may be the definitive proof for some that the trial was nothing more than "victor's justice." To assume this though, is to ignore the rest of the facts-this judgment of the trial is too hasty. If the trial was just a sham then why was it that some of the defendants were acquitted? The actual results of the trial do not support the perception that this trial was rigged given the defendants did not all receive the death sentence. Many were hanged, but some were given various prison sentences, and of course, some were acquitted. Schacht, Fritzsche, and Papen were acquitted. Schirach, Neurath, Speer, Raeder, Hess, Funk, and Doenitz avoided the death penalty receiving varying sentences of time in prison.

Furthermore, there is other evidence provided by Robert Conot which shows that the trial was not a sham. First of all, the very fact that the defendants could even give their version of the story is certainly more than one would expect from a sham trial. Second, the defendants actually did have a chance to best the prosecutors in the verbal battle for their lives. Goering was an intelligent man and he outwitted Jackson. "Time and again it was Goering who caught Jackson in error, rather than Jackson who trapped Goering in lies." (Conot 337) Third, the judges didn't always rule against the Nazi defense lawyers. An important development during Goering's defense was that the defense tried to get the right to submit documents into evidence, and although Jackson (prosecutor) tried to prevent this from happening, the judges ruled that the defense should have the same rights as the prosecution in submitting documents. (Conot 346) Another interesting example of the Judges siding with justice instead of the prosecution or the defense was when the defense complained that they were not getting translations of all the documents that the prosecution was introducing as evidence. (Conot 146) When the prosecution was asked why this was the case it was discovered that the prosecution was sending tons of translations to the media, but not to the defense attorneys. (Conot 147) "...the prosecution seemed more interested in trying the case in the press than in furnishing the defense with copies of its evidence." (Conot 147) The judges ruled that copies of the evidence were to be given to the defense before they were given to the press, as the defense obviously needed them more. This is certainly a ruling that one would expect in a fair trial.

Just think, what is usually the purpose of a sham trial? In this case the purpose of having a sham trial would be to punish the Germans for what happened during World War II, right? If the purpose was to punish the Germans, then why weren't all the defendants executed? It makes no sense to claim that this was "victor's justice" when the victors gave a fair trial. The Nuremburg Trial had its problems-it was by no means perfect. However, to say that this trial was "Victor's Justice" is to show an ignorance of the facts. Not only were many people involved in the trial motivated to make it fair, the very fact that not all of the defendants were hanged is proof enough that the trial was fair.

Conot successfully presented his case. He wrote a highly readable account of the Nuremberg Trial that presents the trial, characters and influences in an easily accessible format to the public. More importantly, however, was that history was written true, and proving Conot's thesis that there was Justice at Nuremberg. Robert Conot hoped to interest a large audience in the Nuremberg Trial in the hope that the history surrounding this trial would not be repeated as atrocities of the future. Justice at Nuremberg captures the horrific atrocities committed during the period leading up to and including World War II, the people behind them, the influencing factors that preceded them, and the justice meted out to the perpetrators. Justice that the victims of World War II never received. Justice that lives up to the adage, "two wrongs don't make a right." Justice that says "never again."

The book is written by a Psychologist who was involved in the Nuremberg trials including testing the main defendants. I found his insites very interesting and combined with other books about the trials was a superb addition in understanding what when on.

For anyone who wants to know about the Nuremberg Trials, you must read this book. Canot gives us a real deal of the trial. He gives us an in to the processes of how the Trial worked and how the Justices felt. He tells the History of the Tiral as if you were right there. And that is a trait that not every book has. As an active reader of the Nuremberg Trials, I whole heartedly suggest and push for the reading of this book, in orfer to fully understand the true meaning of this gret event.

For those who enjoyed TNT's Nuremburg movie and would like to develop a more complete understanding of the trial, "Justice at Nuremburg" is for you. Author Robert Conot does a lot more than just recount the trial of the leading Nazis. He gives a full portrayal of their crimes and details their actions while they were in allied custody both before and during the trial. Conot also gives the background on the leading allied prosecutors and judges as well as detailing the increasing Cold War friction that surrounded the trial. The Nuremburg trial set the standard for international war crimes tribunals as we know them today. Many precedents were established that are still with us. But it is the fascinating (and revolting) stories of the defendant's themselves that make this book so compelling.

I can recommend this book to anyone wanting a basic knowledge of the Nuremberg trial and the atrocities that it exposed. My only complaint is that the book often drifts from the subject of the trial itself to general Nazi and Holocaust history, which is fine unless you've already read a good deal about these subjects in other books. One more issue is that Conot's mini-biography of Hitler, found at the end of the book, relies too much on speculation about the cause of Hitler's madness. (Can the root of Hitler's madness really be reduced to the view that he might have had syphilis?) Still, Conot manages to find some nuggets of information that I have not seen elsewhere, and when he does stay close to the trial it makes for highly intriguing reading.

This book was a huge hit with my entire family, adults and children. My girls repeat the jokes to their friends. It reminds us of the stories of Chelm. The art is wonderful too.

I bought this book for my husband and daughter to share together. My husband is Jewish and I am not, so that makes my daughter 1/2 Jewish. The umor in these stories is funny and also teaches a lesson. Some of the concepts are over a 4 year old's head. The illustrations are fun. Definitely recommended for anyone with a Jewish sense of humor!

With kinetic Jewish drawings and a book design that only Taback can achieve, the author retells 13 stories that were told to him by his zayda. The inside front and back covers are filled with famous Yiddish axioms in primary colors (well, most are Yiddishisms, others might be from Poor Richard's Alamanac). Idioms include From the lowly potato you get the choicest latke; Words are like arrows - both deliver with speedy aim; Words should be weighed and not counted; "Keep you eye on the bagel, and not the hole; and It is easier to be a critic than an author. Each of the 13 stories is followed by axiom. Each story is about 2 pages, maybe 4, but who's counting? One story is about a fish monger, and his neighbors (they all have to put in their two cents cuz they are kibitzers.) Another is about a shnayder, a tailor. Is he a genius, or just bad? One story is about a sick chicken (look closely at the thermometer). Some stories seem like they are from Chelm, one might be from Mel Brooks (hehe); but all have a twist. Of course, there is a well drawn colorful story about the difference between a shlemiel and a shliMazel. In a story about two brothers, God has an important insight into the human condition. In one story we find out when a Labish Noodleman can be a Yankel. My faves: If I Were a Rockefeller; and The Caretaker. The book closes with a glossary of over 45 words, including cheder; meshugge; megilla; klug; Gottenyu; and even gonif.

Gottenyu, I haven't seen a Simms Taback book I haven't liked!! This one is excellent. It has the same wonderful syle of illustrations you've come to love in Joseph Had a Little Overcoat (Caldecott Medal Book), There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly (Caldecott Honor Book), and This is the House that Jack Built, but this book is fundamentally different.

Like Joseph, it's set in a shtetl, but it's not one story. It's a collection of very short stories that teach about Jewish culture and also teaches some basic Yiddish words and phrases. The short glossary (52 words) in the back of the book is quite useful too.

The description on Amazon says it's aimed at ages 4 - 8, but I'd say more like ages 6 - 10. I don't think it will hold a preschooler's interest, but is an absolute must have in your child's library. Not to be a kibitzer, but every Bubbe or Zayda should buy this for their grandkids!

Although this book is considered a childrens book, it reaches all ages. Short stories giving meaning to common Yiddish words through short humorous stories and magnificent illustrations. I gave the book to a 6 year old who loved it; a thirteen year old boy roared with laughter and a 50 year old non-Jewish woman who loved seeing words that she had heard but was not sure of their meanings.What a find! I highly recommend this book.

I travel to Italy a lot on business and I'm taking the whole family for the first time. We've been reading on the internet and other travel books in preparation, but came across this one and thought we would give it a try. It's excellent. In addition to being full of good travel advice and things to look for that are fun for kids of all ages, it is also a good "study guide" of sorts. We homeschool our children and this is the kind of book that is perfect to help teach them about a new country and culture. I highly recommend it.

My kids (and I) think this book rocks. We happen to live in Italy but, even after 18 months here, we still find things in this book that surprise us. The book makes historical sites interesting and fun by pointing out things that kids would find fun and interesting. We have explored "Strange Parks" and located almost all of the license plates and cars listed as we travel around Italy. I'm always surprised as I read it to find more information that I didn't know, more things to try and places to go. We hope to go to Paris soon and I'll be ordering a copy of Pat Byrne's Paris book first.

Pat Bryne provided the personal attention we all hope for when conducting an internet transaction. Her book, Italy Discovery Journal, is both entertaining and informative for a child's natural curiousity. We gave them as gifts which were well received and, reportedly, heavily utilized prior to, during and even following our nephews trip to Italy.

My boys used this journal both times we went to Italy. It gave us a lot of ideas and sparked some that were not in the book. They liked that they didn't have to bring the entire journal around with them; they could just take out the pages that they needed. Even my teens took some ideas, like charting gelato flavors. (Same flavor changed from place to place.) The journal made some of the lesser kid-friendly activities more enjoyable for them, therefore, more enjoyable for us. We are looking out for journals for more countries.

This is a small publishing production, not very sophisticated in terms of formatting or reproduction, but, guess what? The kids loved it. There really isn't any other guide for children out there; I looked! This is for the kids, tells them about things they might be interested in like pasta and fast cars. There's some subtle education going on but mostly just ideas about wierd history, Italian culture and things kids like to eat. Our two children, a boy 13 and a girl 11, carried their little books everywhere and would point out things to us, the parents, that were interesting or surprising. Good little investment for your travels!

Anna Manna!

I will travel to Kiev this fall; this book is fairly recently published (prices quoted are undoubtedly higher) but has all the essential information and very readable historical and factual descriptions of the city, amenities and sights. It will be in my luggage!

This is a terrific introduction to the city, easy to read and digest. It is not detailed like a DK Eyewitness Travel Guide, but it has the essentials, including some phrases, maps, and web site references.

My Ukrainian girlfriend and I spent 9 days in Kiev last month. This book was invaluable. Naturally, when visiting a country it's very helpful to have someone with you who speaks the language. This is particularly true in Ukraine - even though many people in Kiev do speak English. We stayed in a hotel she heard about through a friend that's near the Golden Gate (Zoloti Vorota) Metro stop - centrally located in Kiev. It was $30 a night for me and around $10 a night for her. While I bought a Visa to go to Kiev (around $120) in May - I'm told they are free to Americans and Europeans these days.

The color map of the metro layout and the color maps of the city listing landmarks in the back of the book were particularly useful for us. The bus guidance was a bit of a waste - never seemed to be right. There were buses going where the book said they were but they always had different numbers than the ones in the book. I never did see a bus schedule anywhere and the bus signs at the bus stops didn't seem to list the numbers properly either - so maybe this was no fault of the author. If you want to take a bus somewhere - go where the book says and then start asking questions about a bus to the place you want to go.

We saw Faust at the opera house. A marvelous performance - for just a little more than the price of a movie back in the states. The author is right about most bathrooms having either rough and unpleasant toilet paper or none at all. The opera house, for all the grandeur of the building and world class performance, had no toilet paper in either the men's or woman's restrooms.

The list of restaurants in the book is ok - but could be better. I enjoyed the Indian food at Himalaya, and Kozak Mamai did indeed have exceptional food (along with very nice atmosphere) - though our waiter was a little pushy about getting a tip. We searched all over Pankivksa street but couldn't find Mangal anywhere. Makabi Kosher is more of a snack bar than a restaurant. We couldn't figure out how to get a substantial meal there. We ended up at a Georgian restaurant a across the same street - a little further down. The wine was very good but the portions were too small and it was a bit pricey. I was thoroughly disappointed with Kyivska Perepichka (author's favorite). I have found bageldogs enjoyable in the past but a hotdog inside some greasy bread is not my idea of good street food. Some other places serve bilash (maybe the wrong name) - hamburger inside some greasy bread. For some reason, I found this to be a great deal better. There are lots of places to eat in Kiev. Some charge quite a bit of money for lots of atmosphere and mediocre food. It make take some talk with the locals to find the good ones.

I really enjoy visiting churches and was most impressed with St Vladamir's - beautiful place and much more exciting than St Sophia's or St Andrei's. We were even lucky enough to catch a ceremony led by the Patriarch of Kiev - head of the Orthodox church in Ukraine. I also highly recommend the Patriotic War Museum. While it helps to have someone who can read Russian or Ukrainian along - there are lots of pictures and maps that can be appreciated by anyone. The statue over the museum is a site to see in its own right. The Monastery of the Golden Domes was a little disappointing. The grounds are lovely, as is the view of the city from them but the caves were not what I had hoped.

The book is full of little anecdotes. The author gives his thoughts on the use of language (Ukrainian or Russian) in Kiev. Many people (including my girlfriend) feel pretty strongly about what language should be spoken and displayed. He also provides an interesting tale about why there are so many old women (and not old men) and why the sword held by the statue over the Patriotic War Museum looks a bit short.

I have made several trips to Kiev (officially Kyiv) in recent years and am very glad to have found this excellent guide, which I will use on my next trip. Well-written, packed with information, and handy. Although more than 300 pages it can easily be carried in any pocket.
Evans covers all the tourist sites but he is very good also on the culture, the amenities, how to get the most from your trip. This book will also be very useful for people who will spend a longer time in Ukraine, at a job or on a business project, or studying. It covers a lot of nuts and bolts that visitors need to know. It is filled with information that will save you a lot of money and that will protect your health. For example: "don't drink the water."
Anyone who gets this book and the very good, just published, Lonely Planet guide to Ukraine, will be well-armed for an enjoyable trip. Evans has also written a guidebook to all of Ukraine that I haven't read yet.

There are not many travel guide books to choose from in English on Kiev. No matter, Mr. Evans book proved to be extremely useful on my first trip to Kiev, Ukraine. It was accurate and I used this guide book every day for the two weeks I was in Kiev. His review of hotels, shopping, restaurants, clubs, and casinos were excellent. Mr. Evans was very adept at suggesting places to go where Westerners could get by with little or no language skills. I recommend this book and I hope he plans an update in 2006. John Doyen, Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas USA

Best travel guide bar none. Fits your pocket or small purse.. Visually great looking.There are actual pictures .... All high recommended hotels different prices..Great maps.. hard to get lost even in Barcelona .. Great recommends for food I am a shopper.. Absolutely great & unusual shops ..None of the bad tourist gear only the styling gear.. .I had four guides to Barcelona this is the one we used every day...We do not go anywhere without this guide if there is one available for the destination I will be traveling to....

These are great guides. Very small on size, huge on information! These guides contain all the information that you need.

If you've never tried Knopf MapGuides, you are missing out.
I've used them in several countries, from Russia to Italy, and I'm never disapppointed. They mark every single street so you never get lost walking between toursits stops.

They are easy to use, thanks to the sections that fold out - no more struggling with big clumsy maps, or straining to read tiny maps in guide books that only label the big streets. They always include a metro map and show metro stops.

The best part is, they have recommendations on everything for each area in the city: entertainment, arts, food, cafes, hotels, etc. Just leave a museum and want to grab a pastry & latte? No problem, there are 4 good choices within the area listed. Want to know a good spot for food within walking distance of your hotel? There are a dozen spots listed.

In Barcelona, I found two amazing spots to eat that wouldn't have been written up anywhere else (in the second eatery they locals looked stunned when we walked in - obviously not a usual place for tourists). Other guidebooks limit the total number of write ups - with the design of the fold out map, Knopf has space for many more. Haven't eaten at a Knopf recommend place that was subpar yet, and I can't say that for my other guidebooks.

The only draw back is Knopf only covers so many cities, but hopefully they'll continue to expand.

I brought 5 Barcelona books with me for the trip. This was the only one I carried around throughout my stay there. Great fold out maps and color coded to easily find your destination. It's small and compact, easily fit into a coat jacket or a purse.

We've just returned from Barcelona, having brought several pocket guides with us -- this one was the lightest to carry and had the best maps. The city is divided into six sections, each with short descriptions of several attractions and restaurants, and each with a fol-out map to that section. These maps were included metro stops, street names and the places listed, and were augmented by small color photographs. Attraction and restaurant listings include hours, prices and telephone numbers/ The front and back covers fold-out also and give general and metro information and some hotel listings. We found this little guide to be fairly useful, but particularly liked the maps.

Ms. Skrypuch's passion has always been "to write stories that capture real experiences that have been suppressed or lost"--and, thus, this anthology came to be born. As she states, "We are the Kobzar's Children. Our parents and grandparents suffered in silence, with their life stories and histories either suppressed or falsified. This anthology tells a century of untold stories."

Honored as a Canadian Ukrainian Woman of Influence and as an author of seven books for children and young adults, many of which have been nominated for numerous awards, Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch is editor of "Kobzar's Children: A Century of Untold Ukrainian Stories ("Kobzar's Children")" and contributor of two of its stories.

"As a child, she could only find one Ukrainian book written in English, so she started to read Russian stories, Polish stories, and Jewish stories. The more she read, the more she noticed a disturbing trend: `Ukrainians were often portrayed with negative stereotypes'--they were portrayed as buffoons, bullies, drunks, and murderers."

As an adult, she heard about the kobzars--blind, wandering minstrels of Ukraine who memorized long epic poems, which had been passed down generation to generation. "Those poems captured the rich history, the folk tales, and the cultural identity of Ukraine."

During Stalin's regime, kobzars intermingled the older tales with "contemporary stories of Soviet repression, famine, and terror. In the 1930s, Stalin called the first national conference of kobzars in Ukraine. Hundreds congregated. And then Stalin had them all shot. Stalin then rounded up Ukrainian journalists, artists, novelists, and playwrights, and murdered them, too."

For the Ukrainian, the word kobzar has special meaning--Kobzar is the title of (Ukrainian bard) Taras Shevchenko's first collection of poems, which was published in 1840. Shevchenko "is popularly known as The Kobzar. During Stalin's time, Shevchenko's writings were deliberately falsified."

The publication of "Kobzar's Children" was sponsored by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Government of Canada through BPIDP, and the Ukrainian Canadian Foundation of Taras Shevchenko. The cover image is from the Library and Archives of Canada. Each of the twenty writings is accented by artistic design work by accomplished illustrator Fortunato Aglialoro, and photos throughout have been supplied in many cases by the authors.

Twelve Ukrainian-Canadian authors (from Quebec, Ontario, and Western Canada) collaborated on this anthology of memoirs, historical fiction, and poetry that chronicles the lives and struggles of Ukrainian immigrants to Canada during the past one hundred years (1905-2004).

"More than a collection, it is a social document that revives memories once deliberately forgotten." Events heretofore described in articles, come to life as characters take on a very personal persona. The topics are as varied as their lengths--the shortest being a poem placed prominently on one page, the longest being a story spanning twenty-two pages. The reading is engrossing, informative, and thought inducing.

"Kobzar's Children" begins in the early 1900s with a fascinating recital of a family's homesteading and concludes in 2004 with an engrossing historical fiction dealing with the very real, recent Orange Revolution in Ukraine. Although the recommended reading level is ages 9 through 12, nevertheless, the adult will also benefit from this rich reservoir of remembrances. To enhance your reading experience, each author (Kobzar's Child) is given a face by way of a photo and brief resume.

The days of Ms. Skrypuch's youthful encounters with hostile, derogatory portrayals of Ukraine and Ukrainians are slowly metamorphosizing, as the Internet exposes to the world the true beauty and culture of Ukraine.

On June 14, 2008, former Beatle, Sir Paul McCartney gave a free concert in Kyiv, Ukraine before a live audience of 350,000 fans--it was "simultaneously broadcast on giant screens in Odesa, Donetsk, Lviv, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk, and on television, with an estimated 10 million people watching." The concert ("a mammoth 33-song set") started a half hour late due to the heavy pouring rains--which didn't dampen anyone's spirits, though!

"McCartney has made mention of Ukraine in a song with the Beatles. In the well-known hit "Back in the USSR" the Beatles sing: "The Ukraine girls really knock me out." Also, several years ago during the concert in St Petersburg in Russia Sir Paul in response to a greeting of Ukrainian fans suddenly took the microphone and said: "I send all my love to you, Ukraine."

Sir Paul McCartney took Ukrainian lessons for an hour, "hoping to be able to talk to the audience." During his three-day stay in Kyiv, "Sir Paul McCartney will open a personal exhibition of his artistic works, which will include 40 of his works at the PincukArtCentre." And, he'll bike Kyiv's streets seeing what his friends told him is "a beautiful city with lots of historic places." His video is on YouTube--see it. Kobzar's Children who witnessed this concert will pass along their stories for generations to come.

"Kobzar's Children: A Century of Untold Ukrainian Stories" should be in libraries worldwide, both public and personal! A definite five-stars plus!--Mandrivnyk, Arlington Heights, IL

The modern Kobzars who wrote the stories in this book do an invaluable service for readers everywhere. They bring together a group of tales that gives vivid life to the Ukranian immigrant experience. The unique, remarkable and sometimes horrifying events are related with such clear voices that the result is an uplifting testament to the power of the people who have lived these lives. For all its disturbing imagery, in the end, reading this collection is ultimately a celebration of the Ukranian immigrant experience, as told in the many and varied voices of Ukranian storytellers.

I didn't know very much about Ukrainian immigrants, but this collection of fiction, poetry, and memoir has really opened my eyes. For one thing, it reminded me that life for so many people on this planet has been one of grim survival--and that's just the effort to farm an inhospitable land, let alone to deal with man's inhumanity. This story collection, while it has moments of humor ("The Red Boots" and "A Bar of Chocolate" spring to mind), is mostly poignant and at times haunting as it evokes events such as Stalin's famine-genocide against millions of Ukrainian farmers, an event punctuated by farcical displays of peasant well-being orchestrated and enacted for foreign journalists.

The challenges facing immigrants is a timeless message which has an unpleasantly real application for me today, since I live in a country where many people direct hostility toward Hispanic immigrants. Likewise, the internment of Ukrainian immigrants in Canada during World War I is reminiscent of the Japanese internment here in California during World War II. I was also reminded that, though the primary focus of the Nazi Holocaust was the Jews, other peoples, including Ukrainian and other political dissidents and resistance fighters, were also tortured and killed in death/slave camps.

It's nice that the book ends on a hopeful note, with a contemporary story about the Orange Revolution.

Kobzar's Children is not for young children, but for those Young Adult (and older) readers who are willing to consider the complexities of this world we live in and to focus on a less well-known era and people in history, I highly recommend this book.

The Kobzar's (storytellers) of the Ukraine died by Stalin's orders, as did their stories. A new generation of Kobzars emerged. In this title, a collection of short historical fiction, poems and memoirs, Kobzar's children chronicle the Ukrainian immigrant experience in Canada from 1905 to 2004--living through internment as enemy aliens, displacement, homesteading, concentration camps, and more. This magnificent collection is so absorbing, it is impossible to put it down.

Marsha Skrypuch has gifted readers with a mix of dark and light subjects that are intimate and totally absorbing. While enriching one's knowledge of Ukranian immigrant history, this collection gives testimony to the human experience unbounded by geography. Masterful!

In the introduction to this collection of short historical fiction, memoirs and poems touching upon a century of the history of Ukrainian immigrant experience, Marsha Skrypuch writes the following:


"When you don't write your own stories, others will write them for you."

And in publishing this marvelous collection of stories she begins the process of putting the record straight. Like Marsha, I too grew up with the realization that I belonged essentially to an invisible and completely unknown ethnic group -- Ukrainians, whom no one seemed to have ever heard of, and if they had, they said things like -- "That's the same as Russian, isn't it?"

As Marsha explains in the foreword, the kobzars were Ukraine's blind, wandering minstrels, who in the ancient tradition of Homer memorized long epic historical poems that spoke of the great events of Ukrainian history, and in doing so kept a population that was largely illiterate in touch with their great heritage.

During Stalin's times they kept people apprised of the repressions and persecutions and famine in addition to their traditional role, and so they came to the notice of Josef Stalin, who called for a national conference of kobzars. Hundreds showed up, and all were shot. There are a few kobzars who survived to tell the tale, and a very few who carry on the tradition today.

Because Marsha does not speak Ukrainian, she did not have access to emigre literature that spoke of the immigrant experience, and of experiences in Ukraine. But Ukrainians are inveterate story tellers, and as fortune would have it, the writers of these tales are either witnesses themselves to the events they describe, or are children of parents who told vivid tales of their own experiences, and as such the works have a compelling and hypnotic interest.

I couldn't put the book down. I frankly had expected a charming work aimed at children, but how mistaken I was. Although this book is suitable for all ages capable of reading at this level, it is of no less interest to the adult reader as to the young reader. It never talks down to its audience. In the same way that I remember my own parents relating the many stories of our family, no punches are pulled. Harsh reality and horror and danger take their place alongside tales of humor, childhood pranks and misunderstandings.

Beginning in the early part of the century, the stories span everything from a memoir of homesteading in the early 1900's in the wilds of western Canada, to a first-hand horrifying account of a young child's suffering and survival during the Stalin-created Ukrainian famine genocide of 1933, in which at least seven million Ukrainians perished. Tales of helping out in a family grocery store take their place alongside a psychologically insightful meditation on the interior life of an elderly Ukrainian woman living in her memories while confined to a nursing home. One of the stories relates the shocking history of how Ukrainians were unjustly interned in hard labor camps by the Canadian government during WWI, and subjected to treatment that is sadly reminiscent of Soviet gulags. This is a chapter of immigrant history I knew absolutely nothing about. There's a delightful tale about the tragicomedy of attempts to move the grave of one family member from one cemetery to another, followed by a grim personal memoir of surviving Auschwitz. The stories span a century of experience, beginning in the early 1900's and ending with a charming Christmas time tale that takes place during the exciting days of the Orange Revolution.

Ukrainians do not talk down to their children. We do not protect them from the harsh realities of history and of repression. Perhaps this is why Americans and Canadians of Ukrainian descent are generally highly sensitive to any encroachments upon their freedoms and dangers gathering in the world. We have experienced, if not first-hand, then through the tales of our parents, the kinds of things that can happen if people forget their history.

As such, Marsha Skrypuch has done a great service by publishing this book. Not only has she introduced the literature and history of Ukraine to immigrants who may no longer be in touch with the language of their ancestors, but also she exposes the stories of these people to a wider American and Canadian audience.

This book must and will, by its very nature, find a wide audience. It is gripping, well-written, well-balanced, and paced with a mixture of lighter and darker topics, and in the end is a testament to the basic humanity that binds us all into one common human experience.

History comes alive when we read about the lives of individuals. What once existed only as a page in a history book or a phrase with a date attached, suddenly becomes a gripping personal drama that anyone can identify with.

Buy this book, read it. You don't have to be Ukrainian to thoroughly enjoy it and to profit by it. We are all enriched by enlarging our knowledge of history and the very human stories that make up that history.

The kobzars indeed live, and this book carries on that great Ukrainian tradition. Every country needs its kobzars.

Leonard Gross's well-researched and well-documented book about a few of the Jewish 'U-Boats' who survived in hiding in Hitler's 'Juden-Frei' Berlin is truly magnificent.
It reads like a thriller but every bit of it is true. I found it informative, well-written and very accessable, unlike similar works, (Such as 'Stella' by Peter Wyden) which, while also well-reseached and well-informed, were dry and hard to follow.
Less than 1% of the Jews that lived in Berlin before Hitler came into power were there after the fall of Berlin (some having escaped, most having been banished to the death camps), and the fact that Gross was able to get several of these survivor's stories is just incredible.
The characters were truly alive and I acutely felt every joy, every danger, every near capture and had to stop reading several times because it was all too real and terrifying, especially the horrifying concept that some turncoat Jews, thier own people, were hunting for them.
This is an unbelievably compelling piece of work that deserves to be read by everyone and I cannot recommend it strongly enough.

I bought this book a short time ago, and I started to read it the day I found it in my post box. It is a very captivating book about how 18 Jews survived in the very heart of Nazi Germany during World War. Some managed to keep their families somewhat intact, while others were the only survivor among their entire family.

They survived in different ways, but all had at least one person helping them. One of the things I liked the most with this book; was the very fact that it tells the stories of brave and good Germans who risked their lives in order to help fellow citizens. Despite the fact that they had had to live with Hitler's propaganda and terror for more than a decade, they still aimed to do their best. Even though many survivors and rescuers often were lucky, I was amazed about how clever they were and how they managed to stay alive.

On the front cover of the book Los Angeles Times is quoted to have written: "[Reads] like an Alfred Hitchcock thriller", and I agree with them. The book was very well written, and it was very hard to put it down. I found myself reading until I went to sleep, and next morning I managed to read another chapter before I went to work. I read the book in no time, and I was only sorry I had finished it. I wanted to keep on reading.
The big difference between this book and a Hitchcock thriller is of course that: "The Last Jews in Berlin" is not fiction.

The only thing that I missed was photos of the people I read about. Still, the book is so good I find it really deserves five stars

Gross is an exemplary writer, letting this story unfold through a spare, unembroidered narration of the harrowing events that affected the lives of a half-dozen different Jews. In this case, reality doesn't need any authorial florishes to create suspense and terror, and Gross's restraint as a writer highlights his subjects and lets them tell their stories in a very personal way. More than just a war history, this is an examination of the human spirit under seige.

This is one of my favorite books, not only because of the wonderful narrative, compelling characters, and inspiring stories, but because of the variety of circumstances these Jews found themselves in. Some went into hiding, some passed themselves off as Gentiles, some collaborated with the resistance, and all managed to survive. Some had no help and were separated from loved ones, some managed to keep their families somewhat intact. Their struggles, defeats, and victories are inspiring and a testament to the nature of the human spirit.
A small note: the stories are not told sequentially, and it may be easier the first time to skip chapters and read each person's tale completely, otherwise it becomes a tad overwhelming to keep track of so many characters.

Very worthwhile book. It was fascinating because it dealt with ordinary people in probably the most extraordinary circumstances. These multiple tales of survival explore what it took for persons who could easily be our friends, our neighbors, our familiy, to heroically survive in the midst of their hometown enemies while undergoing the privations of war. Substantively an excellent book.

I would caution you, however, that the tales are presented in a disjointed fashion, and I would recommend taking notes at the beginning on who's who in order to keep up with the players.

This is not a travel guide with notes on best restaurants, cheapest hotels, and favorite tourist sites. Proper wrote about a Portugal he knew and loved well, providing nice mental images of friends, customs, food, and fishing. A really nice read.

First things first. I am a big fan of Portugal. I've been there three times. I have a reasonable, if sometimes rusty, command of the language. I do like fado music and innumerable Portuguese dishes. And, like the author of this very pleasant book, I admire the Portuguese people for their lack of pretension, their down-to-earth lifestyle, and their belief in hard work, family, and a bit of cynicism for the many phonies of this world. When he tries, Datus Proper can bring alive any episode from history, for example, the crucial battle of Aljubarrota in 1385. Cultural comparisons between Portugal and the USA are his forte; I really liked the way he handled them. Then too, Lisboa is one of my favorite cities in the whole world. So, with all this, how could I not like THE LAST OLD PLACE and its wry humor and insightful comments on Portugal, Portuguese history, and Portuguese people ? In fact I liked it a lot, was even sorry to reach the end and I suspect, if you give it a try, you will feel the same.

However. I don't feel like excusing Portuguese deeds overseas by saying that, well, that was long ago, and we all had different standards then. Of course, that is true, but still, Portuguese colonialism in Asia and Africa was ugly, even if it was less ugly than that of some other, nameless countries. A minor quibble, I mean, the book isn't about colonial deeds or misdeeds. The main point for most readers is the following....how interested in trout fishing are you ? Alas, I am not the slightest interested in it, so I was kind of "floundering" there, if you'll pardon me. The author travels around Portugal with a local friend-a kind of human equivalent of Steinbeck's Charley---a man we don't really get to know much about, but one who perhaps represents some old, now-vanishing Portuguese qualities, but more importantly, shares Proper's addiction to fly fishing in remote streams. So, to reach my conclusion rapidly, I would have liked a lot more of the author's clever, humorous, apt observations on Portugal and a lot less clambering around the rocks looking for the perfect trout hole.

This is the most affectionate writing on Portugal I've encountered in English. Pure pleasure from beginning to end. Note the incisive comparison between Spaniards and the Portuguese. I can tell you it's right on the money. There are things in this book that would escape the notice of a native, so it's a particular treat for Portuguese-Americans.

I initially read this book because of the author's great bird hunting book, Pheasants of the Mind. I have read 100's of books and it is one of the best explorations of a place and its culture I have seen. I wish I could find others like it.

I can't believe this book is out of print! Proper combines three aspects of Portugal to create his richly evocative book: his relationship to the land through trout fishing, his relationships to old and new Portuguese friends, and his sensitive portrayal of the way the past informs modern life in Portugal. You'll smell the fresh bread, frolic with Camoes's nymphs, and feel the sun in the Algarve. A terrific book.

There are two reasons to read this book. First, a marvellous account of life at sea in the 18th century, written beautifully and yet spontaneously by a simple sailor. Second, a moving human microstory of genuine love, adventure and lost hope. The two intertwine magnificently and I could not help identifying with the writer's plight.

This is gripping history as seen by the average participant in it. It's not about Admirals or Generals or World Leaders, it's about everyman and every woman. I first learned about John Nicol from another excellent history book "The Floating Brothel: The Extraordinary True Story of an Eighteenth-Century Ship and its Cargo of Female Convicts" by Sian Rees. John Nicol was on that extraordinary voyage and his memoir done when he was in his 60's was the only first-hand account of those voyages. I decided to seek out his memoir. After reading either of these two books, the readers will probably no longer yern for a romatic voyage on an ancient sailing vessel. Life wasn't pleasant on those sea voyages for anybody on board. The story of how John Nicol's story was eventually dictated to John Howell, an Edinburgh book binder who found him wandering the streets is also amazing. Howell is another average guy who made a great contribution to history through small acts of charity and publishing.

This is the life of an ordinary seaman at the time of the beginning of scientific exploration. John Nicol a seaman on the voyages of discovery and later trade to Australia, the Americas and to Africa. He observed life of the captains, the ordinary men at sea and the people of the lands he visited. He went to sea at an early age was imprisoned, married and lived to 94 and died in England. The diarys are a remarkable work of an eyewitness to history. It is written and edited in an easly readable style and brings history to life.

I love nautical fiction set during the age of sail (O'Brian, Pope, Kent, etc.) and so I enjoyed this memoir of a real-life sailor from this period. There are two disappointing things about this book though; it's very short (only about 160 pages if you exclude the introduction) and Nicol doesn't spend very much time relating events from the voyages themselves or his day-to-day life in the Royal Navy. Nicol mostly describes the places he visited and the cultures of the people who lived in those places. He does do a wonderful job describing these people and places, and he does it without being long-winded. He also relates a few humorous stories and gives us some details of his personal life, such as his ill-fated romance with a convict during their journey to Australia. Animal rights advocates and environmentalists would be horrified by one of his voyages in which he claims that he and his crew clubbed about thirty thousand seals plus many sea-lions. The way I look at it though, it was just a very different, more primative age. In any case, I enjoyed this book, and only wish that it had been longer and more detailed.

This account was first published in 1822, and has been republished with a forward and added footnotes by the editor. Unlike most seamen in the Royal Navy, John Nicol enlisted for the adventure, first serving at the age of 21 as a ship's cooper during the American Revolution, mostly in Canada and the West Indies. For the next 25 years he served on a large number of Royal Navy and merchant ships. He was present at some well known battles including the victories by Admiral Jervis at Cape St. Vincent and Admiral Nelson at Aboukir Bay. In the merchant service, he went to China 3 times, to Australia, Hawaii, the west coast of the Americas from Cape Horn to Alaska, Brazil and Portugal, and to the West Indies. He served aboard whalers and sealers that took him to Greenland and the Falkland Islands.

As noted by the editor, mortality rates among seamen at that time could average 15 percent per year from disease, shipwrecks, accidents aboard ship, or armed conflicts. John Nicol was one of the minority who survived to old age. He had saved his money and would have been reasonably well off ashore, but he married a cousin, and then abandoned a well paid trade as a cooper to escape the Royal Navy press gangs after 1801 and stay with his wife. He was a widower living in poverty when offered the opportunity to publish his story.

This is a well written account by a man who had only a basic formal education. I would highly recommend it as a "must read" book for readers interested in naval and merchant marine service of that time period. The book contains many tidbits of information not available elsewhere, including his recollections of female convicts in the second fleet to sail for New South Wales.