B Books

"Every Man Will Do His Duty" is an anthology of 22 excerpts from actual diaries and journals of men who served in the the British and American navies during the late 18th century and early 19th century.

I loved this book. Each selection was entertaining and well chosen, both for the glimpses the provide into the lives of the officers and men who served on such ships, and for their historical context (Such as Dr. William Beatty's account of the death of Horatio Nelson).

I'd suggest it to anyone who enjoys Naval History, or historical fiction (Such as Forrester or O'Brian) on the subject.

I bought this book because I started down the slippery slope which begins with Patrick O'Brian's *Master* *and* *Commander* and ends with a wall covered with naval prints and trips to Nelson-phile conventions.

This book is an anthology of first hand accounts of naval life in the age of sail. The stories are dramatic and gripping, though I wished the they were longer. The editors have helpfully added some diagrams and maps, though I would have prefered even more.

It is very interesting to see the overlap with the O'Brian books. As O'Brian points out in one of his forwards, at least sometimes he did not need to invent the plot, but merely re-arrange and sort out the pacing.

"Every Man Will Do His Duty" is an anthology of 22 excerpts from actual diaries and journals of men who served in the the British and American navies during the late 18th century and early 19th century.

I loved this book. Each selection was entertaining and well chosen, both for the glimpses the provide into the lives of the officers and men who served on such ships, and for their historical context (Such as Dr. William Beatty's account of the death of Horatio Nelson).

I'd strongly suggest it to anyone who enjoys Naval History, or historical fiction (Such as Forrester or O'Brian) on the subject. Give it a read, it's worth it.

For anyone who is interested in naval warfare in the age of sail in general, or in the Napoleonic period, this book is a must. It is simply superb.

This anthology of first hand accounts covers events in both the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, including the War of 1812, in which the Royal Navy getting some very nasty surprises, and even nastier defeats, at the hands of the small, but expert United States Navy.

Some of the subjects covered are the Battle of Cape St. Vincent in 1797, the sea fight between HMS Macedonian and the USS United States in 1812, the cruise into the Pacific of the USS Essex, and such esoteric subject as 'the noted pimp of Lisbon' and Bermuda in time of peace.

This book is an enjoyable read, an outstanding primary source, and one of the best books available on this often neglected subject.

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If all you read in this book is "The Audacious Cruise of the Speedy", you will have gotten your money's worth.

If the only stories you read are the two chapters from the Nagle Journel, "For the Good of My Soul, 1795," and "Mad Dickey's Amusement, 1798-1800", you will have gotten your money's worth.

But you get more than this. You get a total of 22 stories picked from many to capture the history and character of the times.

If you like Patrick O'Brien, and C.S. Forester, you will enjoy the history that gave seed to these stories. You will recognize the events of Lucky Jack Aubrey's fiirst cruise in the cruise of the Speedy, and be amazed.

Index of stories:

1. In the King's Service, 1793-1794

2. Commence the Work of Destruction: The Glorious First of June, 1794

3. The Noted Pimp of Lisbon and an Unwanted Promotion in Bull Bay, 1794

4. For the Good of My Own Soul, 1795

5. The Would as Soon Have Faced the Devil Himself as Nelson, 1796

6. The Battle of Cape St. Vincent, 1797

7. Mad Diskey's Amusement, 1798-1800

8. The Fortune of War, 1799

9. The Audacious Cruise of the Speedy, 1800-1801

10. Bermuda in the Peace, 1802-1803

11. The Battle of Trafalgar, 1805

12. The Death of Lord Nelson, 1805

13. An Unequal Match, 1807-1808

14. With Stopford in the Basque Roads, 1808-1809

15. When I Beheld These Men Spring from the Ground, 1809

16. "Damn'em, Jackson, They've Spoilt My Dancing," 1809-1812

17. The Woodwind Is Mightier than the Sword, 1809-1812

18. HMS Macedonian vs. USS United States, 1812

19. An Unjustifiable and Outrageous Pursuit, 1812-1813

20. A Yankee Cruiser in the South Pacific, 1813

21. Showdown at Valparaiso, 1814

22. We Discussed a Bottle of Chateau Margot Together, 1812-1815

This book is the best in the field for calculus and differential equations. By studying the programs one can learn a lot about writing ones own programs. Two very enthusiastic thumbs up!!!.

It is well-written and explains calculus concepts as well as the subtlties of the TI-92. The accompanying CD is worth twice the cost of the book--many programs that really help me in class. I highly recommend this one!

This book will help you with most of the steps that you need to be familiar with when using your TI calculator. All the examples have step-by-step instructions--just like it should be. All the books by these authors are straight forward and to the point--which is to improve your understanding of your calculator and that of the subject matter.There are no other books being published that address the needs of the advanced math student like GILMAR's.

This book is a must have for calculus students that have the TI-89 or -92plus! Instead of fumbling through the owner's manual (what a joke) trying to figure out how to do calculus on the calculator, this book gives you step by step instructions on how to do it in terms you can understand. It also comes with a disk of programs you can download onto your calculator that are so good it is almost like cheating! Also, it helps you understand the math you are doing instead of just telling you what to type.

This book will help you with most of the steps that you need to be familiar with when using your TI calculator. All the examples have step-by-step instructions--just like it should be. All the books by these authors are straight forward and to the point--which is to improve your understanding of your calculator and that of the subject matter.There are no other books being published that address the needs of the advanced math student like GILMAR's.

This is the third book by James Kaler I've read--the other two being "Stars and Their Spectra" and "The Hundred Greatest Stars", in that order. The other reviews and the back matter of the book give pretty much all the relevent info on what the book is about: stellar superlatives.

As usual, Kaler's personal enthusiasm for his subject shines through, to a degree exceptional for any scientific text. He knows how to turn a phrase, how to create a provocative image with words that will stimulate the reader's imagination. There is much here to amaze even those who consider themselves well-versed in astronomy.

Much as I hate to say it, though, the book isn't perfect. It feels like it occupies an uncertain valley between the introductory "Greatest Stars" and the more advanced "Stars and their Spectra", like it's attempting to be the best of both worlds. Consequently, there are parts that are wonderfully new...as well as those that are "Hmm, he wrote about this in _____." As was the case with "Stars and their Spectra", I would have liked an appendix for more dyed in the wool geeks like myself. ;)

Though he eschews math and advanced physics, I can't quite recommend it for beginners; in my op, people just getting into his work should read "Greatest Stars", then this, and finally "Stars and their Spectra".

Good hunting!

Extreme Stars - On the Edge of Creation (Cambridge University Press) is a remarkably fascinating, in-depth look at stellar evolution from the perspective of the Hertzsprung - Russell (HR) diagram, a chart plotting stellar luminosity against temperature (expressed by spectral classes O B A F G K M). James Kaler illustrates the complexity of stellar evolution by examining extreme stars - the faintest, coolest, hottest, brightest, largest, smallest youngest, oldest, and even strangest stars.

Through the telescope most stars look alike, perhaps with a few showing a slight tinge of color. The key to understanding stars is to measure and analyze their spectra, a subject foreign to most readers. Kaler introduces atomic and molecular spectra early, thereafter steadily advancing the reader's understanding and appreciation of spectral analysis, all in the context of the HR diagram.

The HR diagram shows that most stars brighten with increasing temperature; these main sequence stars lie on the chart within a narrow, curved band stretching from the lower-right corner (dim M stars) to the upper-left corner (bright O stars). Hertzsprung's and Russell's key discovery was that many stars lie outside this main sequence, such as the sub giants, giants, super giants, and hyper giants (and contrastingly, the white dwarfs). Many stellar types move either onto or off the main sequence as they age.

The lower main sequence is the home of many of the faintest (and coolest) stars, grouped as M0 through M10. These faint stars, nearly all invisible to the naked eye, comprise about 50 percent of all stars. Surprisingly, other very faint stars - like the Mira variables that exhibit substantial variation in luminosity over months and years - are found among the giant stars, especially on the Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB).

The magnificent, beautiful planetary nebulae are among the hottest stars. The brightest stars are actually quite rare, but due to their flamboyance some are well-known to the sky gazer. The largest stars (super giants and hyper giants) are not always the brightest, but are, nevertheless, absolutely awesome. The white dwarfs, among the smallest stars, exhibit a wide range in spectral characteristics; some even have variable luminosities with periods measured in only minutes. Even smaller yet are neutron stars.

The youngest stars, such as the T Tauri variables, as they fire up by burning deuterium, become visible at the "birth line" on the HR diagram, thereafter evolving toward the main sequence. The chapter on oldest stars allows consideration of the evolution of galaxies themselves. A final chapter looks at truly strange stars that reside within the main sequence, their weirdness revealed by their most unusual spectra.

In summary, Kaler's focus on superlatives (brightest, hottest, oldest, etc. ) proves immensely effective. Extreme Stars will appeal both to the amateur astronomer well-acquainted with the night sky and to the scientifically-inclined reader relatively new to astronomy. Five stars to James Kaler for this remarkable book.

The stars are so distant that even at high power through a telescope they look like nothing more than colorful points of light. In "Extreme Stars", Kaler shows us that in fact these little luminaries of our night sky come in an astonishing variety of temperatures, sizes, absolute brightnesses, and chemical compositions. A chapter is devoted to each type of extreme star, e.g. the coolest, brightest, youngest, etc.

To me, the most interesting theme of the book is how a single star can actually change from one extreme type to another over its lifetime. For example, the brightest stars (accounting for 'unseen' radiation like ultraviolet and infrared) are the blue supergiants. These inevitably go supernova and often leave behind neutron star cores, which are both the smallest and hottest of stars. Also, the coolest red giants will form planetary nebulae and leave behind white dwarfs, which comprise one of the hottest types of stars at the outset. Another example is the faintest stars, which are so frugal with their fuel consumption that they have the longest lifespans and therefore will be the oldest stars.

The book is written with great enthusiasm and is well illustrated. I do remember one time that Kaler kind of took it into the deep end with his discussion of electron degeneracy and the Pauli Exclusion Principle, but for the most part the book is easily accessible to the interested layman. Amateur astronomers like myself would really dig it.

After reading the book, it made me want to get the telescope out and simply stare at some of these extreme stars for a while. The easiest ones to learn to identify by naked eye are the bright supergiants, like Betelgeuse and Deneb. But there are plenty of others in the other extreme types that are bright enough to see with the naked eye; these can be located with a decent star atlas.

One minor quibble: I feel that Kaler didn't emphasize enough that the vast majority of stars we see are just regular main sequence stars, ranging from perhaps 0.2 to three or four times the mass of the Sun. Extreme stars are relatively rare.

Highly recommended.

Have you ever wondered how many different types of stars are in space or are there planets orbiting them? The book Extreme Stars, At the Edge of Creation, by James Kaler is a must read for the astronomy enthusiast. This book is a fresh approach at examining the lives of stars. It covers all extremes from black holes and neutron stars to supergiants and hypergiants. Kaler takes a unique way of organizing the stars in sections for example the coolest, the hottest and the brightest stars. In each section Kaler includes lots of diagrams and pictures to help the reader relate to examples from the text. He is also very through about each topic and often explains the history behind the star and the links that change stars from one type to another. In one chapter, Kaler explains that giant Jupiter class planets have been found in orbit around certain stars.
Kaler writes in a way that is very thorough and detailed but where even the most novice astronomer can still understand. The graphs and photos also help to clarify some of the more difficult. For example, when he talks about stars and their spectra he will often include a diagram to help show the relationship.
Overall I enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend it to someone interested in astronomy. It is really interesting and shows the great variety of stars that exist in the universe. Especially for people wanting to learn more about stars this book is a must read.

Kaler's descriptive aptly summarises the theme of this fine work. Astronomy done well is always a fascinating read, and Kaler's done a masterful job. He takes us into the realm of the biggest, hottest, smallest, coolest, most dense and diffuse stars in our universe. Each chapter is devoted to a type, with examples, history, evolution and likely finales. The text is clear and unambiguous, obviously written for anyone interested in our stellar neighbours. Diagrams and photographs illuminate complex subjects throughout, including some spectacular colour plates in one section. Kaler deserves high praise for a comprehensive and exhaustive presentation untainted by weighty philosophy or arcane mathematics.

Kaler's uses the nearest star, our sun, to launch a comparative view of the more extreme versions of stellar objects. Placed in the middle of the band of stars fitting on the "main sequence", it's a valid starting point. Main sequence stars range from very large and bright to very small and dim. Within that range they follow fairly predictable patterns for a given size and type. Outside that stable range, however, loom some immense exceptions and a plethora of tiny, almost minuscule stellar objects. Orion's shoulder is marked by a star with a diameter nearly reaching the orbit of Jupiter. Another, even greater, reach nearly to Saturn's. Others, as Kaler notes, would "fit inside a small town". Even these minute objects have a life history that tells us much about the universe we inhabit. Kaler is vivid in his descriptions of these objects, but he's even more spirited when dealing with the nuclear processes going on within them. Some stars truly seem to "run amok"!

Stars are distant laboratories where reactions occur impossible to duplicate in Earth-bound facilities. Kaler describes the activities of chemical elements within stellar objects and how their signals tell us about the events occurring there. As stars burn away their hydrogen fuel, various options, some still not understood, may be followed. Electrons jump from shell to shell emitting or absorbing energy. These signals, he notes, are the indicators of luminosity, temperature and even distance. One such signal, of course, is the most significant of all - the "noise" indicating the Big Bang that started it all. One result, however, is clear - without these processes neither our planet nor we would exist. This is because the stars, which began as clouds of hydrogen and dust, become the forges of heavier elements. As Joni Mitchell once sang, "we are all made of star stuff". You don't have to be interested in astronomy to enjoy this book. You need only care about your origins and environment. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

I thouroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. I also read and studied "The Mother Factor". Both of these books should be used in conjunction with each other for the best results.

This book will help you overcome the career problems instilled in you from the way your father raised you. The first step is to be aware of the things written in your father factor "rule book". The next step is to figure out a way to change these rules to ones that will help you in your career. If you go on denying that the problems encountered in your career have anything to do with the way your father raised you, then you will run into more problems changing the pattern then you would otherwise. The book points out that denial is a way of allowing your father factor rules to creep up on you and sabotage your career. Most of us try to solve our problems by cutting the "branches and stems" instead of the roots, hence allowing our problems to crop up all over the place. By studying this book and following the author's advice however, you will not likely be blind-sided by those unwritten father factor "rules".

This book is written by an extremely knowledgable professional. In general, I tend to be skeptical about self-help books but this one was worth every dime and more. I felt that I was receiving quality phychotherapy, which I could partake of at my own rate of comprehension. While it's true that a portion of its content is clinical--maybe a tad dry--the bulk of it is engaging and illuminating. The advice, checklists and exercises are extremely valuable. If you are open to this man's message, able to think critically about your behavior and its influences, and motivated enough to change by doing the difficult work herein, then this book will help you. For me, it was validation. It was the first, and most important, step toward healing and reform. It took me several months to read it because I re-read a lot of material, using it more as a textbook. Not only did I recognize myself in its pages but also many other types of my coworkers. This book increased my awareness and understanding of why people do the dysfunctional things they do, thus increasing my empathy and sympathy and, inevitably, my productivity and progress.

I am always leery of new ways to blame our parents for our struggles. Fortunately this book didn't fall into that trap. It does offer some interesting insights into how our leadership and management styles at work may be influenced by the styles and preferences of our dads.

It's not all bad news. I can attribute my creative approach to problem solving, the use of humor to put people at ease as well as my reluctance to play office politics to my dad.

In my work coaching executives, this book is helpful in shedding a light on previously misunderstood behaviors. Seeing the source of a lack of power, low self esteem of hesitance in decision-making has been very useful. This helps in my work with men who are dealing with a sense of disconnection with their professional success. Dr Poulter offers some interesting sources of blind spots - those unexplained reasons why we do what we do. This can really help with those "hot-buttons" we all have and a new way to work with them

I wrote an article about this book on my blog at my website about "The Disquiet in Men".

This is a very intense book requiring a lot of self honesty and much self reflection. However, I highly recommend it for any man or woman who experiences a lot of anger and frustration related to career and "father" issues that they just can't resolve.

The Father Factor: How Your Father's Legacy Impacts Your Career comes from a psychologist who maintains the influence of a father is key to understanding choices and roadblocks in a career. Both positive and negative impacts are surveyed, from a passive or absent father's influence to understanding how destructive messages translate into workforce action or inaction. The 'what you can do about it' section is critical for change and a successful career approach.

Or about living in Africa, or living in the past, or some sort of troubles (modern or historical). It's so nice to just see a family doing what families *do*. (They even recycle!)

My nieces ask me to read this book to them often. It's a very fast book, suitable both for very young children and for slightly older ones. We love looking at various details - like the fact that "five kinds of beans" includes JELLY beans, or the fact that the baby sits on a lap at dinner. It's just a quick, sweet book.

A very sweet and very simple book. Nice to see a family of color in a book for a change.... so my daughter gets a nice variety. My daughter's teacher requested books for the classroom as her Christmas Gift this year... so that should be a selling point! So sweet that the teacher wanted it! :)

My son actually pick this book out by himself in a bookstore when he was 18 months old. He fell in LOVE with it. We had to read it every morning. We loss it transit and I finally remember to get it from Amazon this summer. At 2 1/2 it is still his favorite book. He loves the counting and the actvities reminds him of when "Granny-Gran" comes to visit. Thank you so much for this book.

A sweet 1-10 counting book that has a nice rhyme scheme and builds its story by counting to ten, not once, but twice. The art designs feature a black extended family, however, this is not central to the story. What is emphasized is the feeling of family warmth and cooperation throughout as everyone pitches in to create the feast for ten. Children can also count the items in each picture that correspond to the poem. Well done.

This book has been around for a long time, but it continues to be a favorite in my classroom. It's one of those simple books that sparks so many different curriculum paths! Counting, number groupings, nutrition, cooperation, family activities, word choices, story writing, and more. It has also initiated collage art projects, quilt making, and paper mache vegetables! FEAST FOR 10 is a goldmine. I see that it's coming out in a board book soon, too. We have both the hardcover and several paperbacks in my class.

I had read the first edition one that I borrowed
from the library. Then I decided to purchase this
2nd edition. I am looking forward to reading it
once again.

I got the book in very good shape in few days. I was very pleased with the service.

This is an excellent fluid mechanics text. It is also my first recommendation to those who wish to study acoustics. You ought to start with the initial chapters on fluids; you'll need that material for some of what follows. The 65-page chapter on sound is simply marvellous. And then comes material on a wealth of topics, including shock waves, supersonic flow, detonation waves, relativistic fluid dynamics, and a short but valuable section on superfluid dynamics and the propagation of sound in a superfluid.

For physics majors, this is the book to get on fluid mechanics. The explanations are short and clear, and the material is comprehensive. In addition, the exercises are well-chosen, and the solutions are always included.

Landau & Lifshz "Course of Theoretical Physics" is a famous and respected set of books in Physics. Unfortunately, Butterworth-Heinemann, who currently prints those books in English, prints them with very poor quality. The books seem to be "printed" in old copy machines and the paper used is also a cheap one. In many pages, it is really hard to read the text, due to such poor printing.

This is a classic text on fluid mechanics, and an essential for any serious researcher in the field. This book starts by deriving the basic equations of fluid dynamics (a few simple equations - easy, huh?), then each subsequent chapter discusses narrower topics such as viscosity, turbulence, supersonic flow, etc. As a text for a student, this book has some serious limitations in my view. I would not recommend this book to someone approaching the material for the first time, or to teach oneself, it is really best as a research resource for a professional or graduate student. One thing that I didn't like about this book (and this is a complaint about the LL series in general) is that it is very difficult to separate which topics are general and which are very specific. The reader needs to know a bit about hydrodynamics before approaching this book in my opinion. For example, LL discuss the Rankine-Hugoniot equations for flow across a shock (a general result fundamental to hydrodynamics), then in the next section they discuss the supersonic corrugation instability, a subject that is really of interest to a small number of researchers and advanced graduate student in specific fields. Overall, not a great learning text, but an irreplacable reference on hydrodynamics. If you are looking for an introductory text, start with Batchelor.

This is persented as a collector's price guide, so he can know the value of his Lucille Ball collection. It has rare pictures of her and is a must for any Lucy fan. The prices are outdated however and there are too few stories throughout the book. The book might feel to some as too much Lucy and not enough pictures of others who worked with her.

Let me start with the complaints. The prices that the items have designated to them are very off. You can easliy go to a flea market or an online auction and get most of the things at least 25% cheaper than they are listed as being worth in here. Maybe the prices are so high because the guy never planned to update it, but an update is what the book needs. After the 50th Anniversary of I Love Lucy there was a ton of stuff released. In all honesty a For The Love of Lucy Pt.2 book could be made, after all the book is 7 or 8 years old. Now moving on to the good stuff about the book. This book includes so many Lucy items that were made available from early on in her carrer to after her death that this book would be a great conversational piece for when you have any company. Each page is filled with stuff from cards and comic books, to dolls. This book is perfect for any Lucy fan who is or isnt collecting Lucy stuff. Overall this book is great, but updating it would be nice.

This book is full of photos of beautiful collectibles on Lucy - magazines, posters, toys, all sorts of memorabilia. It is wonderful to the Lucy fan to use a something of a check list. The one flaw is the absolutely ridiculous prices Wyman says some of these things are worth. I recently bought the 40s picture frame photo he says is worth $75 for $4! Many times I have paid less than a third the price he says these things go for. Wonder if he jacked up the prices expecting they would eventually fetch these rates in years to come. Still, this is a gorgeous book and he certainly does have an outstanding collection on Lucy.

Ric's does a beautiful job on this book. I get the feeling he really loves Lucy! Ric is a true fan. The photos and information on Lucy are outstanding!

Talk about complete! "For the Love of Lucy" is the ultimate book for fans and collectors of "Lucy" memorabilia. Filled with beautiful color and black & white pictures, along with helpful text and value estimates, this compendium will keep any fan busy for hours. I'm not a collector, but I found it thrilling to sift through all the pages and see the many different things out there. This would be a great birthday or Christmas gift for any Lucy lover you know.

I fell in love with Rucker's work after reading Spaceland, and Frek and the Elixir proved to be yet another science and literary masterpiece. Rucker makes the most complex aspects of science obtainable to the average reader who has a bit of imagination. Rucker is a pure creative genius. Frek and the Elixir is a wonderful tale that I would highly recommend to any reader who enjoys imaginative stories that offer a bit of science education at the same time.

Here is a rather delightful novel from Rudy Rucker. Frek and the Elixir is set more or less at the next millennium -- to be exact, in 3003. Hundreds of years before, NuBioCom destroyed the remaining natural species on Earth, and replaced them with a very few genetically engineered variants. They even destroyed the records of the genetic code of the natural species. Now, in 3003, Houses are grown from trees, the only pets are dogs, much of the food comes from anyfruit trees, and in many other ways it is clear that species diversity is rare. Frek Huggins is a 12-year-old boy living with his mother and his two sisters. He resents the fact that his father, Carb, left for the asteroids several years before. His life is nominally fairly pleasant but he doesn't quite fit in.

Then a flying saucer shows up, looking, it appears, for Frek. Frek is suddenly the object of the not-entirely-friendly attentions of the "counselors" of Gov, the worm-like alien that controls his city. He finds a saucer under his bed, and inside it is an alien cuttlefish, who assures him he will save the world and find the elixir that will restore the natural species to Earth. But Gov's representatives are not happy, and soon Frek is fleeing, at first into the dangerous Grulloo woods, home to many unusual kritters such as the Grulloo, intelligent people consisting of only a head, a tail, and two arms. Frek and a Grulloo make their way to Stun City to free the captured saucer and kill Gov -- but that doesn't work quite as expected. Soon they are off on a trip around the Galaxy, and indeed to different "branes". The situation is a lot more complicated than expected. Frek is to act as agent for a group of aliens who want to control the broadcasting of human experience to eager alien "viewers" -- but that broadcasting might also include mind control. And there are other aliens interested in controlling the same rights. Moreover, Frek meets his father, in the company of his new girlfriend and her daughter Renata. Naturally, sparks fly between Frek and Renata. So things continue, with visits to a number of alien milieus, some really fun and wacky SFnal ideas, and with Frek always keeping in mind not only the saving of the Earth's ecosystem, and the freeing of humans from potential mind control, but the restoring of his family.

I don't think I've really captured the fun of this novel very well. Rucker has long been known as an ideas man, and he doesn't disappoint here, with a couple of nicely portrayed alien species, some interesting mathematical and physical notions, and lots of clever biological ideas. The plot is not quite as successful, though it is fun to follow -- still, Frek's powers grow alarmingly as the novel continues, and the ultimate resolution, though emotionally satisfying, isn't fully convincing. The novel, with its 12-year-old protagonist, has a rather YA feel to it, though distinctly in the "YA to please adults" mode -- that is, I think it's a novel that will wow teen readers, but it's also quite fun for adults. I liked it, at any rate!

This book is simply one of the best science fiction titles to be written. The main character is young, true, but this is soon forgotten in the complex, intriguing, and yes, allegorical storyline. The book is Rucker's denoucement of monoculture, a perfect statement for our day and age. The innovation in this book is spectacular; no old reused ideas here. I strongly recommend this book.

A joyful, picaresque novel full of mind-blowing concepts from veteran mathematician-cyberpunk-sci-fi writer guru, Rudy Rucker.

It's 3003. Earth is a true nano-biotech Eden. Or is it? Well, families live in comfy house trees, food comes from the anyfruit tree, friendly dogs can talk to their masters but...

...there are only 256 highly-tweaked species created by the powerful NuBioCom corporation who also destroyed the Earth's original biodiversity in 2666...

Sure the families might have a happy time inside their house tree but the Gov is trying hard to keep them in line. (Gov - government - giant media-controlling brain-washing worms, now that invention won't need a 1000 years to be accomplished on this planet.)

Also there is the small problem of alien species determined to turn humankind into a massive reality TV show, each human monitored and more or less tele-controlled by an alien "player" to spice up the aliens' own boring lives.

Frek Huggins (a modern Frodo Baggins?), a twelve-year-old kid becomes humankind's unlikely hero and only hope after a few clashes with Gov, NuBioCom and a dozen different alien species.

Frek has no choice but to navigate the whole universe, visit different galaxies, enjoy or suffer the physics of different dimensions while fighting for his own sanity, his life and his friends and family. Can he also be the one who finds the Elixir, the DNA blueprints of all the lost biodiversity of planet Earth? Will he also free humankind from government, corporate and alien influence?

This post-modern odyssey sounds like a recipe for big time disaster (a few Hollywood script writers would fry their brains after the first scene) but Rudy Rucker pulls off the impossible with a surprisingly joyful, intense and interesting novel. Other than him it may only be Paul Di Filippo (Fuzzy Dice, anyone?) who can convincingly push his heroes through ten dimensions, hurl them into a sun or have a billion cartoon characters fight the last crusade.

Early in the book the English words and familiar mental images run out - Rudy forged some 80-100 new words to describe as many astonishing concepts regarding life in the 3000s, alien species and the joys and perils of intergalactic or transdimensional travels.

The ever wilder adventures and the thought-provoking ideas jump at the reader with an alarming speed every half page or so. Science, science fiction and a great dose of humane concerns about our future mix with a ripping yarn.

The intended audience (science fiction or science fans) might find it weird to follow a twelve-year-old character through interspecies business dealings, psychedelic space travel or battles against biotech-enhanced monsters, omnipotent aliens and evil governments. Hopefully, twelve-year-old kids, too, will pick this book up and allow it to create another few trillion neural connections in their developing brains.

Perhaps the protagonist could have been older. However, if the child is a metaphor for humankind's lack of knowledge regarding sustainable living, space travel or using and not abusing advanced technology then I suppose we can live with that.

The novel may be a little long or is just the right size at 460 pages. It is hard though rewarding to get through all the high concepts. The joyful, humorous writing does compensate for the effort.

The only negative aspect might be the frequent recaps on the adventures. Every day or so (as the majority of the novel spans the most exciting fortnight in Frek's life) the boy is thinking about the grand adventures he just had and we get a ten sentence summary of the last 40-50 pages. If we spent a whole delightful chapter in that galaxy or among those aliens why do we have to read a review at the end of that adventure. This happens probably 6-8 times in the book and I find it jarring.

Rudy may have wanted to follow a children's tale structure where you have to remind the children what happened just a little while ago. As the audience most probably will be in their twenties, thirties, forties, this may be unnecessary. Don't worry about our attention span, Rudy.

All in all, a very strong, enjoyable novel, hundreds of great new ideas, profound, gripping insight into our own government-, media-, globalisation-controlled lives.

For all aspiring writers and people fascinated by a writing process or a humanist thinker's mind, you can read an additional 145-page PDF document available for free download from Rudy Rucker's website. It is full of detailed notes and deleted scenes, the triumphs and nightmares of the whole novel creation.

Rudy did wrote a few pages on how old his hero should be, he was considering adolescents, teenagers, young adults and even burnt-out adults.

He mentions that he followed a heroic "monomyth" story structure, making sure that chapters reflect various significant parts such as "meeting a temptress" or "atonement with the father". This gives a strong push to the events and we don't get lost in the wonders of these super-weird worlds.

Three (million) cheers for such a brave and ambitious attempt. A true myth for the space age. Kids, please track this book down before the H-P reading fever leaves your veins.

This has got to be one of the most inventive and imaginative novels in recent memory. Rudy Rucker has created an astonishingly creative story by mixing well-drawn comedy and drama with the latest knowledge in biotech, computing, and quantum physics. Not to mention a visual richness that will turn on the inner freakiness of even the most stoic reader. Here we have the adventures of 12 year-old Frek, who lives in the 31st century in a world of forced conformity, and where a megalomaniac biotech corporation has eliminated most of the Earth's life forms, patented the genomes of the few remaining utilitarian species (including humans), and prohibited reproduction except by contract. Meanwhile, several different species of aliens are trying to turn the human race into a giant reality show, via interactive technologies controlled by weird multi-dimensional demigods. In short, Frek is the chosen human negotiator, and decides to bargain for the return of Earth's lost species in a deadly high-stakes production deal, becoming a hero in the process.

Thanks to Rucker's knowledge of advanced science and the wildest future possibilities of technology, this novel benefits from a setting and characters quite unlike most sci-fi. The story is overflowing with crazy but strangely possible biotech and interactive technologies, while Rucker has also turned up the creativity meter with loads of inventively bizarre and truly "alien" aliens (I especially liked the wisecracking Orpolese and the droll Unipuskers). Rucker has also envisioned a completely mindboggling method of space travel called yunching, which is based on actual currently-known concepts from superstring theory. In a few places, Rucker lets the plotline slip while breathlessly inventing pile upon pile of future phenomena, but this is a novel that is as relentlessly fascinating as it is fun and empathetic. There are even good themes of friendship and family lurking beneath the wild and wooly sci-fi wonderments. This novel is highly recommended for any reader looking for something both really new and really different. [~doomsdayer520~]

This is just one of these books that puts you in a good mood! it's fun to read, ammusing, and light. if u liked the movie i'm sure you'd love this book! i sure did!

I am a totally devoted Cluless fan! I own the movie, buy the books, watch ever show but I must say that this is the best book they've got. It has a good plot and two major settings, more than one problem (as usual this includes a "Cher/Boyfriend" thing) and totally clueless characters. I loved the way Cher and Dionne take their spa troubles and make it the best. My absolute favourite part is how the two settings tie into one another! This book is soooooooo worth reading! It's funny and cool. If you decide not to take a chance and read it you have no idea what your missing. Two very enthusiastic thumbs up!

What happens when Cher and Dionne go on a three day camping trip? Cher and Dionne are the prettiest, most popular and richest girls at school. Everyone looks up to them, but when Cher and Dionne are away a new girl, Marriah, comes to their school. Not only is Marriah rich and beautiful, but her brother is a famous TV-star. Friend or Faux is written by H.B. Gilmour. He has written other books about Cher and her friends. They all take a look at teenage life in sunny Beverly Hills.

The best part about H.B. Gilmour`s books are the characters. Cher is a sixteen year old girl living in Beverly Hills, California. When she was a baby her mom died, so it is only Cher and her dad. Cher`s dad is a famous lawyer. Her best friend, Dionne and she are never apart. They are always shopping, talking on their cellular phones or driving in Cher`s Jeep. There are other charaters in this book, but Cher and Dionne are my favorite. Every since kindergarten, they have been together. When Marriah comes to Cher`s school, Cher is glad she has Dionne. When their other friends are ignoring them, Cher and Dionne stick together. In the end, everything works out fine. To find out what happens, you should definitely read this book. Pick up a copy of Friend or Faux today!

Okay, I have the movie, 1,000s of fuzzy pens (and other fuzzy things), I watch every show, and I read every book, BUT I think this one makes it to the gallery of "funny books". I especially like it when Cher and Dee make their cabin an estate instead of an out-house! Even for stylin' Beverly Hills girls Cher and Dee really pull it off at that awful so called "spa"! In short, I LOVE THIS BOOK!

What happens when Cher and Dionne go on a three day camping trip? Cher and Dionne are the prettiest, most popular and richest girls at school. Everyone looks up to them, but when Cher and Dionne are away a new girl, Marriah, comes to their school. Not only is Marriah rich and beautiful, but her brother is a famous TV-star. Friend or Faux is written by H.B. Gilmour. He has written other books about Cher and her friends. They all take a look at teenage life in sunny Beverly Hills.

The best part about H.B. Gilmour`s books are the characters. Cher is a sixteen year old girl living in Beverly Hills, California. When she was a baby her mom died, so it is only Cher and her dad. Cher`s dad is a famous lawyer. Her best friend, Dionne and she are never apart. They are always shopping, talking on their cellular phones or driving in Cher`s Jeep. There are other charaters in this book, but Cher and Dionne are my favorite. Every since kindergarten, they have been together. When Marriah comes to Cher`s school, Cher is glad she has Dionne. When their other friends are ignoring them, Cher and Dionne stick together. In the end, everything works out fine. To find out what happens, you should definitely read this book. Pick up a copy of Friend or Faux today!

This is a great book for the very young who are just starting to read. The text has repetitive elements which makes it great for a child's sense of accomplishment. They continue to learn new words in each new spread, while also repeating some of the words that they have just learned in the previous spread! The text is fun to say out loud, too. The text describes the illustrations well, and the illustrations always have a little something extra to share about the story in them. You can find new little details in the artwork with each reading. Last but not least, the artwork is absolutely adorable - the illustrations are very funny, sweet and cute!! These characters are full of expression and charm. You can't help but enjoy this book - it will see a lot of repeated use with children who are just learning to read!!

A very cute book, beautifully illustrated. The author has a great sense of style and her illustrations are lush, but simple (sounds like quite a contradiction!).

"Ghost Eats It All!," by Janee Trasler, is a great example of pure Halloween fun. Aimed at the toddler set, "Ghost Eats It All!," features a greedy ghost and a quiet, resentful, hungry Frankenstein.

Ghost eats ice cream, an egg, an apple, pizza, candy, and cake in front of Frankenstein. Frankenstein becomes more and more hungry and more and more angry at Ghost's insensitivity, so he finally takes action, scaring Ghost away.

It's a simple tale, but toddlers will love looking at Frankenstein's facial expressions as he becomes increasingly upset by Ghost's selfish consumption of all the sweets. Perfect read-aloud fun for the 1-5 year-old crowd. Happy Halloween!

Intended for the very young, this book can be made enjoyable for the entire family by reading it aloud.
It's simple, cute but funny while delivering the message to share your food with your friends or else there could be consequences!

My son is 18 months old and loves books, so I picked this up for him at work.
It immediately became his favorite book. :)
The illustrations are adorable (I love poor ghost stuck outside the window) and the story is the perfect length for squirmy toddlers.
He looks at it by himself and yells "BOO!" when he gets to the page where monster scares ghost into sharing.
Cutest. Thing. Ever.