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Armed Madhouse: Who's Afraid of Osama Wolf?, China Floats, Bush Sinks, The Scheme to Steal '08,No Child's Behind Left, and Other Dispatches from the Front Lines of th

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The "exec summary" of the Bush administration
Palast exposes class warfare.
"Caging" You've heard the tern now read why you should care.
Vote in 2008,,,,,,,,please
PAY ATTENTION!

Armed Madhouse: Who's Afraid of Osama Wolf?, China Floats, Bush Sinks, The Scheme to Steal '08,No Child's Behind Left, and Other Dispatches from the Front Lines of th
Greg Palast
Manufacturer: Dutton Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The Best Democracy Money Can Buy
Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy
Conservatives Without Conscience
Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq
The One Percent Doctrine: Deep Inside America's Pursuit of Its Enemies Since 9/11

ASIN: 0525949682

Book Description

The “top journalist in America and the funniest” (Randi Rhodes, Air America), takes his previous New York Times bestseller a step further with hot undercover dispatches— hanging out the dirty underpants of the “armed and dangerous clowns that rule us.”

A White House spokesman said, “We hate that sonovabitch.” They're not alone: From corporate suites to Osama's cave, they fear what Britain's Guardian calls “investigations up there with Woodward and Bernstein—and a lot funnier.” But Greg Palast's fanatic following (nearly two million readers of his Web column) has made him “a cult fave among progressives” (Village Voice) who can't wait for his next release.

Palast's old-style gum-shoe detective work to dig out the info on the War on Terror, greed- dripping schemes to seize little nations with lots of oil, the hidden program to steal the 2008 election, and the media biases that keep it unreported are the meat and bones of this BBC television reporter's new book. Armed Madhouse is illustrated with dozens of documents marked “secret” and “confidential” that have walked out of file cabinets and fallen into Palast's hands.

You won't find Palast in The New York Times (except its bestseller list), but you will read his reports on the hottest Web sites worldwide, hear him regularly on Air America and the Pacifica radio networks, and see his stories reappearing as the basis for Eminem's hit video “Mosh,” Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11, and sampled by a dozen of today's top platinum rock artists. BACKCOVER: “The greatest investigative journalist in America.”
—ALAN CHARTOCK, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO

“The type of investigative reporter you don't see anymore—a cross between Sam Spade and Sherlock Holmes.”
—JIM HIGHTOWER

“Courageous reporting.”
—MICHAEL MOORE

“Upsets all the right people!”
—NOAM CHOMSKY

Customer Reviews:

The "exec summary" of the Bush administration .......2007-06-27

I read a lot of books on the Bush administration, but this one puts it all together in one big context and timeframe: from the manipulation of the 2000 election to Iraq; players, victims and an outlook for 2008.
Well investigated.

Palast exposes class warfare........2007-06-27

Greg Palast is a modern day Alexis De Toqueville. And, "Armed Madhouse: From Baghdad to New Orleans--Sordid Secrets and Strange Tales of a White House Gone Wild" is "Democracy In America" for the 21st century.

If you aren't angry, you aren't paying attention!

"Caging" You've heard the tern now read why you should care........2007-06-23

Greg Palast got Tim Grifths fired as the US Attorney for Arkansas. Now how did that happen? That a guy who reports for The Guardian, a British Newspaper manages to out scoop the US media?

Want to know how the fix for 2008 is already in? Caging.. a process by which minority voters are first purged, then scrubbed, ID's, provisional balloted, then denied their right to vote. And why? Because they are likely to vote Democratic so off they go. And it's not just Republicans who are doing the scrubbing.. Welcome to the high tech version of Jim Crow laws. Now admittedly denying the right to vote to the lower class has been going on since the Jamestown settlement where if you weren't white, land holding, male, and presbyterian you didn't vote either. So there really is nothing new under the sun but in this case it's time to send some of these felons off to jail.

Read it and weep, and then go out and vote.

Vote in 2008,,,,,,,,please.......2007-06-18

The author has great investigative instincts and ability. Why his findings have not come out in the mainstream press in a timely fashion is the mystery that cries for explanation.

The United States is in debt to this author!

PAY ATTENTION!.......2007-06-17

I had put off reading "Armed Madhouse" because I knew enough of this stuff, but I couldn't bury my head in the sand forever, and I have just read it.

Greg Palast is wonderful at ferreting out information and stunningly good as an investigative reporter. And, of course, the more he learns, the more whistle blowers choose him to make public their concerns. Despite the fact he is a reporter, Mr Palast doesn't write like a reporter. He makes snide comments as well as using more adjectives and adverbs than a proper sort of reporter would. I hope this entertaining and passionate style of writing causes people who "aren't interested in politics" to read the book and sit up and take notice of what is going on around them. If you do nothing else, stand in the bookstore and read the three and a half page chapter entitled "The End: The house I live in." It made me cry.

Even I, who tries to keep up with all the real news (rather than the sanitized TV stuff) learned some things in this book. For instance, did you know that William Rehnquist once headed a harassment team called "Operation Eagle Eye" in the 1960's designed to discourage Hispanic voters in Arizona from voting? No wonder, once he was on the Supreme Court he thought it was all right to appoint a president in the 2000 election. And no wonder, despite strong evidence that thousands of votes in Ohio and New Mexico weren't counted in the 2004 election, Democrats figured taking it to court wouldn't help.

Greg Palast also explains exactly how oil influenced the US decision to go to war against Iraq. Here's a clue: it wasn't what we thought.

The last chapter tells us how to avoid the theft of the next election (and what is planned to steal it). However, as long as 59 million Americans are willing to stand four square against the Constitution (and are even surprised and disapproving of what it says), it is probably too late to save the US.

Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women: The Twentieth Century 1912-2000 (Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women)

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Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women: The Twentieth Century 1912-2000 (Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women)

Manufacturer: M.E. Sharpe
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women: The Qing Period, 1644-1911 (Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women)

ASIN: 0765607980

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An unbelievable story and man
One of the best China biographies out there
The man who stayed oblivious in spite of mounting evidence
A Hero by Failure
A man of true integrity

The Man Who Stayed Behind
Sidney Rittenberg , Sidney Rittenberg , and Amanda Bennett
Manufacturer: Duke University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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China Hands: Nine Decades Of Adventure, Espionage, And Diplomacy In Asia
Mao's Last Revolution
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ASIN: 0822326671

Book Description

The Man Who Stayed Behind is the remarkable account of Sidney Rittenberg, an American who was sent to China by the U.S. military in the 1940s. A student activist and labor organizer who was fluent in Chinese, Rittenberg became caught up in the turbulence that engulfed China and remained there until the late 1970s. Even with access to China’s highest leaders as an American communist, however, he was twice imprisoned for a total of sixteen years.
Both a memoir and a documentary history of the Chinese revolution from 1949 through the Cultural Revolution, The Man Who Stayed Behind provides a human perspective on China’s efforts to build a new society. Critical of both his own mistakes and those of the Communist leadership, Rittenberg nevertheless gives an even-handed account of a country that is now free of internal war for the first time in a hundred years.

Customer Reviews:

An unbelievable story and man.......2007-04-24

Few books written about Communist China are pleasant to read because of the experiences related, this is certainly one of them. Mr. Rittenberg's quixotic adventure in China was tragic-comic to an unbelievable proportion but still his undying idealism commands one's respect.

I have googled and read his speeches about China on internet and I think he is one of the wiser guys in matters of China. He knows China inside out.

One of the best China biographies out there.......2006-09-14

Sidney Rittenberg is a truly amazing character, and you must read his story to believe it. It's also one of the most insightful and thorough evaluations of Maoism and the Cultural Revolution, written by someone who believed firmly in those ideals at the time, but came to reexamine and question them as he saw their darker sides. This book is highly recommended for anyone even remotely interested in China, Chinese history, Communism, or just a really well-written autobiography of someone with an extraordinary life.

The man who stayed oblivious in spite of mounting evidence.......2005-11-21

Sydney Rittenberg was one of a tiny handful of misguided utopia seekers who escaped from America to the Workers' Paradise, Mao's China. Rittenberg spends decades of his life in China championing a supposedly idealistic movement that was rife with intrigue from its inception. I cite Mao's "Let a 100 Flowers Bloom" campaign as one of many examples. It was a call for a dialog with the country's intellectuals. After getting them to air their true feelings he launched his "Uprooting Poisonous Weeds" campaign in which those who's views didn't spout the official party line were sent to the laogai, the Chinese gulag. I won't get into Mao's manufactured famine (read The Hungry Ghosts and Scarlet Memorial) or the Cultural Revolution. He was imprisoned twice for a period of 16 years. He didn't commit any criminal offense he was simply an international pawn for the Communist Party. What is so frustrating about this autobiography is that he never wavers in his so called "faith". For whatever reasons he just can't contemplate the reality that the intensity of his obsequiousness and fanaticism or political correctness (we got that term from the communists) is irrelevant to the Chinese. Perhaps that realization would have totally destroyed his persona. At the end he decides that the Communist Party has deviated from its "pure and humble" origins and moves back to the capitalist United States where his wife makes a windfall from an import deal. The United States is hardly perfect but I think it speaks to our generosity that after Rittenberg's dream of a totalitarian utopia failed, after he spent decades denouncing the "yellow dog imperialists" he was allowed to return along with his Chinese wife and Chinese born adult children.

I was more impressed with Army Private James George Veneris, the man who stayed behind until the end. Veneris was one of 21 POWs during the Korean War, between America and China, who chose not to be repatriated. Eventually all but Veneris returned to the US in disgrace. I realize that a lot of Americans would consider Veneris a traitor, but at least he stayed true to his principles to the end. I was quite intrigued by the adaptability of this man and what motivated him to sever all aspects of his former life. I spent the academic year of 1999/2000 in China and had many difficulties adjusting, even with access to the Internet, English TV, and Hong Kong nearby. I wanted to write his biography. Unfortunately, he died a few years ago. In the process of searching for Virginia Pasley's book, 21 Stayed: The story of the American GI's who chose Communist China: who they were and why they stayed, I came across Rittenberg's book.

The book is worth reading for the fact that Rittenberg had a unique experience during an interesting period of history. I would also recommend Jan Wong's Red China Blues. Wong is a Canadian born Chinese who was a college student during the Cultural Revolution. She decided that revolution was the way to paradise and was allowed to go to China to participate in the process. She became an ardent fanatic, but it only took a few years for her to wise up.

A Hero by Failure.......2005-08-04

Anyone who has made seeking truth his or her quest should read this book. With a painful honesty, Rittenberg accounts a sincere believer's failed efforts in pursuing idealism. He does not shun away from the truth that idealism and stupidity were often twins in human history. In fact, "faith" can make one blind and an involuntarily contributor to harm. It took the author a lifetime - including 16 years in the prisons of the system he believed in - to realize this simple truth. An ordinary person might have woken up a lot earlier, but not a believer. Is this faith or stupidity? The reader should draw his or her own conclusion. Nonetheless, what I really want to say is: although his effort in pursing ideals has failed, his life experience is not a waste; we can all learn from his lessons. In this sense he is still a hero, or in classic Chinese terms, a "hero by failure". To the reviewer below who called Rittenberg a "coward" with the "integrity of a worm" I want to ask, could you do better than him in those circumstances - in the bombing and in the prisons? That is a very pointed question.

Rittenberg's Chinese name Li Dunbai has been known to me since my childhood during the Cultural Revolution in China, though I never knew him personally, and still don't know him now. In this book it is his candid and thorough accounts of the personal experiences of the familiar history that grab me, from the opening page to the last. Unlike some other bestseller memoirs on the same period of China, such as "Wild Swans," which emphasize the virtue while downplaying the deficits of the protagonists, Rittenberg hides nothing about his own personal weakness and mistakes. Anyone who has gone through the same period knows that we were all participants, no matter how noble or gaudy our motives were, no matter you admit it or not. To deny this and dress up as a pure victim or even a hero is truly a shame. Only by facing our mistakes and failures honestly we can help ourselves.

A man of true integrity.......2004-04-06

As an ethnic Chinese grown up in China and having lived in Europe and the US for 17 years, I find this book very readable and highly educational. I immensely admire the courage and candidness of Mr. Sidney Rittenberg in presenting his complete life experience in China, particularly those embarrassing experiences. It is exceptionally rare that an autobiography author does not elevate one's wisdom, ability, and strength, glorify one's success or accomplishments, forget one's own weakness and short-comes, and blame others for failures.

The 35 year life experience of Mr. Rittenberg in China is a dramatic odyssey and a unique story, which could only be found in a masterpiece novel. He went to China as a US army soldier equipped with Chinese language capability at the end of World War II, stayed as a UN aid worker, and then worked as an English language expert for Chinese Communist propaganda organs at the proximity of the power center. He witnessed and experienced how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) relentlessly purged itself to preserve its core strength and how the CCP leadership changed from grass-root to self-isolation. Although he worked very hard and tried everything to win the trust and acceptance of the CCP and was a member of the Party, ironically he was groundlessly accused of spying for the US and imprisoned twice for 16 years in total. He married two Chinese women. The first one divorced him during his first imprisonment, but the second waited for him for more than 9 years when he was in jail for the second time. His tour of duty ended with bringing his family to the States shortly after all the false accusation on him was cleared up.

This book can be read from several aspects or levels. One can enjoy it as a novel with a moving and amazing story. This is also a documentary of personal witness of Chinese revolution, Cultural Revolution, and astonishing changes in many aspects of China occurred during these 35 years. It clearly describes one's struggle in living in and getting accepted by an alien culture. Furthermore and furthermost, it is a highly educational book on valuable life lessons. Among many valuable life lessons, the following are just a few of such examples:

1. We are all educated that there never are too many friends in anyone's life; however, Mr. Rittenberg's first imprisonment tells us good friends may bring us troubles as well. This is such a common experience for many people, yet it is hardly acknowledged anywhere.
2. His second imprisonment could well be avoided if he shined away from many luminescent foci. He was not cunning enough to play the games. But how many of us know where we really belong to, until too late.
3. It is pity that the book did not elaborate the advice of his boss and friend, Mei Yi, to him never to accept a chief executive officer position. Although having literally taken this most valuable advice that he got in China and recorded in this book, Mr. Rittenberg might not truly comprehended the full implication of this advice. He never was one ordinary member of his comrades' club.
4. He lived a roller coaster life in China, and always in two extremes: either highly privileged and beloved, or dismissed and untrusted. He dined at a small canteen, befriended with many high rank cadres, and had access to inner circle information prior to his first imprisonment, and had a salary at least ten times higher than his colleagues and even higher than Chairman Mao (!!!), and lived in an apartment compound exclusively for foreign experts before his second imprisonment. Such privilege would undoubtedly build an impassable barrier preventing his colleagues from sharing and communicating opinions and thoughts with him at equal footing. If he was consciously aware of such a barrier, his life experience in China might be very different.
5. We all know the fact that anyone's life can make a sudden turn by some unexpected events or unknown people. Mr. Rittenberg's experience in China exemplified this belief.

After finishing reading the book, I could not stop thinking about the story. This book has left the readers with many issues to ponder, such as:
1. If his first Chinese wife did not divorce him while he was in prison, what will be the situation after his release and finding that she was no longer the same woman he loved and married to?
2. If he had no option to move back to the US with his family after his release from second imprisonment, how would he struggle to go back to work in the Broadcast Administration?
3. He had many high rank and influential friends. How had those friends tried to help him and his family when he was in prison?
4. As a privileged alien totally devoted to the CCP, he had to struggle so hard to get accepted by the Party. If he did not have all the privilege, what would be his life experience in China?

As a Chinese, I feel terribly sorry for all the pain and suffers that Mr. Rittenberg was imposed. It is often and common to see people, who had been mistreated by others and become the biggest victim of him- or herself, developed overwhelming bitterness and irrational prejudice. It was yet another amazing character of Mr. Rittenberg. After having had such experiences in China, he did not have any bitterness against China and/or Chinese people, and he did not blame anyone for his personal suffering (16 years in solitary confinement). At the end of the book, it becomes crystal clear that in spite of all the weakness he might have had, Mr. Rittenberg is a man of true integrity with a big heart, strength, courage, and honesty. Honesty is so precious; people practice it rarely. "The Man Who Stayed Behind" is a rare and valuable exception.

Who's Who in Hollywood: The Largest Cast of International Film Personalities Ever Assembled
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Essential for the film buff.

Who's Who in Hollywood: The Largest Cast of International Film Personalities Ever Assembled
David Ragan
Manufacturer: Facts on File
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0816020116

Customer Reviews:

Essential for the film buff........1997-08-19

From the 1890's to the present, in over 35,000 entries, the author has included virtually everyone who has ever appeared in a film shown in North America.
The entries are necessarily brief, but include the birthplace and date of birth, birth name and place of residence for the living, age and date of death for the deceased, screen credits, and Academy Awards and nominations.
Of particular interest are the asides and comments by the author, a Daily Variety reporter for many years, on people he has known personally. His affections are warm and obviously genuine, and if some relatively minor players are given greater space than more famous others, the author may be forgiven.
This work will find a permanent place on the bookshelf of film students, fans, and old-movie buffs everywhere. Highly recommended.
(The numerical rating above is a default setting within Amazon's format. This reviewer does not employ numerical ratings.)

Writer's Market 2000: 8,000 Editors Who Buy What You Write (Writer's Market)

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Good, but not new
I Buy it, I Use it, I Like it ... BUT:
Not worth the money - too generic and untailored
A Very Important and Handy Tool for Writers
Stop. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200.

Writer's Market 2000: 8,000 Editors Who Buy What You Write (Writer's Market)
Kirsten C. Holm
Manufacturer: Writers Digest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0898799112

Amazon.com

Editors are so accustomed to receiving inappropriate queries that they "rejoice," according to a Writer's Market tip from the University of Arizona Press, "in receiving material that is clearly targeted to [them]." So, please, do not send your article about porcelain-doll collecting to Sport Fishing magazine. Put your postage toward this updated edition of the Writer's Market instead. This book might not seem to change much from year to year, but it does. Editors move, publishing houses are gobbled up by one another, and magazines open and fold like Japanese fans. And where else can you learn both that Focal Press is publishing fewer photography books, and that Ide House is inaugurating a poetry branch?

Given the unbelievable variety and sheer number of publishers listed here--1,170 book publishers, 1,534 consumer magazines, 464 trade magazines, 250 script buyers, plus book producers, syndicates, and greeting-card publishers--it's almost hard to imagine a writer not finding a publisher. New this year are large icons indicating new listings, a limited section on literary agents, and a chart showing the owners and imprints of the major book publishers. In addition to the standard articles about query letters, book proposals, and freelance rates are profiles of authors, including nature writer and prisoner Ken Lamberton, Sebastian Junger (The Perfect Storm), and Anna Quindlen (Black and Blue), who says that "Writing is like anything else. You fall, you pick yourself up, and you try again. When you're discouraged, you eat ice cream." (Also available with CD-ROM.) --Jane Steinberg

Book Description

Get published and get PAID for it with 2000 Writer's Market! Inside you'll find more than 4,000 up-to-date leads, featuring consumer and trade magazines, book publishers, script buyers and more. Using easy-to-reference symbols and indexes, you'll quickly target your most promising market opportunities among listings that provide all the critical submission information you need:

Icons for easy referencing
Who to contact
What to send
Where to send it
How to contact
What they're looking for
What they pay
Inside advice
When to follow up
Circulation

2000 Writer's Market also goes beyond the listings, offering you the insights of bestselling authors, including Mitch Ablom, Caroline Alexander, Jane Smiley, Russell Banks and more. You'll also receive valuable how-to information on writing query letters, formatting submissions and much more. It's all here. From current market data to savvy business advice, 2000 Writer's Market has what it takes to make your writing career.

Customer Reviews:

Good, but not new.......2003-12-16

This is still THE reference guide for authors to get their works published, but it is not as updated from the 1999 version as I would have hoped for. If you have 1999, you can probably wait for the 2001 or 2002 edition.

I Buy it, I Use it, I Like it ... BUT:.......2003-07-29

One day in 1973 I decided to stop on the way home from work and browse the science fiction section at my local Walden Books (we didn't have SmashedWords back then). By happenstance, the Reference shelves were adjacent to the Science Fiction & Fantasy section. There wasn't much new in SF that day, and my eyes wandered as I scanned the shelves...

By some quirk of fate, my gaze came to rest on a book titled WRITER'S MARKET.

"Hey," I said to myself, "I wonder if that's what the title implies?" I pulled the book from the shelf, leafed through it, and yep--it was what the title implied. I bought it, took it home, and within a couple weeks I had sold some articles. (All I really wanted to sell were science fiction short stories, but that would take another five years.)

In the (whoa!) 30 years since, I've never been without WRITER'S MARKET. As a freelancer I (and you) have to know who's where, and what they're buying. This is the source.

(But remember this: It's not the only source. I also recommend THE WRITER'S HANDBOOK, from the Writer Books. It has listings that are not in WRITER'S MARKET (and vice-versa), and the differing approaches to organizing content make both equally useful.)

There were times when I didn't exactly need it, as I had my hands full with columns and book contracts, but I was glad to have it. In addition to being the great reference that it is, seeing WRITER'S MARKET on the shelf above my desk always made me feel like I was a part of something.

More important, I've found the book to be a find idea generator. I get all sorts of useful ideas just reading publishers' requirements and needs.

Having said all that, I must also say that I prefer THE WRITER'S HANDBOOK approach of putting listings in multiple categories where appropriate. I also think the book could carry less advertising. And a few other things (which is why I recommend THE WRITER'S HANDBOOK equally and concurrently).

Anyway, buy the book or borrow it from your library. Whether you're writing full-time or part-time, WRITER'S MARKET is one of the most valuable professional references your'll find.

Not worth the money - too generic and untailored.......2003-05-28

This book has hardly been used since I bought it a year ago. I would suggest that you borrow a copy from the library or from a friend rather than purchase it.

As a freelancer of lifestyle magazine articles and the occasional news report, I find this book not very useful. The magazines listed in the book tend to be very subject-specific, e.g. will only accept in-depth articles about medical issues, or Korean American life, or hunting. It's not very helpful at all if you are not already a speciality subject writer. Chances are you will probably find 1 or 2 magazines that you don't already know about from the whole big book. Also, the book ostensibly does not list some really (relatively) well-paying and well-known magazines that accept freelancers' work, for example, Film Quarterly.

It's not very helpful either to someone who wants to get short stories published. It's a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack - you'll have better luck looking online, or simply a book of short story collections (e.g. collections of the O. Henry Prize, which list America's best short story magazines at the back, with addresses).

I regret having bought it and it's certainly something that I'm going to give away when I move.

A Very Important and Handy Tool for Writers.......2003-05-17

If you are a serious writer and really want to know where you can send your work, the "Writer's Market 2003" is just the thing for you. It doesn't guarantee that you'll get published, but it increases the chance of it. I'm still waiting and working, but I know one of these days it's going to pay off. And this is something I always manage to pick up each year.

The "Writer's Market 2003" is a book filled with hundreds upon hundreds of listings for different publications and publishing organizations. From plays to books, short stories to poems, non-fiction to essays, and that only covers a FEW of the things these organizations are looking for. There's also a listing of various contests you can participate in.

It's very easy to use. Each listing gives you a brief summary of what these places are looking for, the kind of writers they're interested in, and most importantly what LEVEL of writers they want (from veteran authors to new authors). You'd be surprised to learn there are quite a few places that accept work from people without literary agents (and yes, there are listing for them as well). And there are also very easy-to-use symbols that will help guide you through this monster of a book.

You also get very important tips on how to submit your work, how to set up your letters (queries and cover letters), and much more. There are some very important and helpful tips in here, so be sure to read them.

The only real drawback is the pricing. It can be pretty pricy. And it's going to take up a lot of room on your bookshelf, being how big the book is. Now, these aren't terrible drawbacks, but they are indeed drawbacks, especially when they keep coming out with new editions each year.

If you're a writer and you're having trouble finding places to send your work to, then the "Writer's Market 2003" is something you should definitely consider checking out. Not only does it help you get your work out there, but it also encourages you to write more and send more of your works. A very important tool for writers, or at least that's what I think.

Stop. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200........2003-05-15

....without buying this book.

Book Description

An amazingly thorough chronicle of live performances played by the hardest-working rock n' roll band of all time.

Customer Reviews:

If you can have only one Who book. . . . .......2006-06-21

I passed on this book when it first appeared figuring a mere concert list wouldn't be very interesting, what a blunder! This book is far more than a concert chronology, it's an enthralling history of the band, bursting with photos and short essays on the people, places and events that make up Who history. This was clearly a labor of love for the authors, and if Who fanatics have been able to find a few errors scattered around, big deal, I'm just glad the book was reissued as a sub-compact paperback updated to the shows following the death of John Entwistle. As the surviving members of The Who have chosen to "Defiantly spit into the abyss" and continue to tour to critical and public acclaim, further editions of this fine book are entirely justifed. And boy was I thrilled to recently find I still have a ticket stub from a Who show thirty years ago documented in this book. There are maybe half a dozen essential books about The Who and this is one of them, if it's the only one you buy then you've made a good choice, it's outstanding whether you're a new Who fan or a grizzled Wholigan.

A Near-Complete Who Record.......2005-04-04

Seem to be reading and listening a lot to the Who, and this book was an impulse buy.

For the fan, this is a way to walk through history with the band, from the earliest beginnings as the Detours, and even before with Daltrey's founding of the group, and Townshend and Entwistle's affiliation with others.

A lot of stories, memorabilia, set lists, and very interesting stuff.

Great book with one significant flaw.......2004-11-26

First thing you should know is that while this is a thick book, it is also small; around 6" x 5", which is quaint, and not a flaw in anyway, just a surprise. There are lots of great pictures, reviews, accounts, and set lists provided.

The flaw, to my mind though, is that there are no references about circulating RECORDINGS of these shows. Most of the hardcore fans who would buy this book probably collect tapes, bootlegs, and cdrs. Most of the time a setlist or stage comments are provided for a show it's because a recording exists. I would have loved it if the authors could have aknowledged this with brief comments like, "A clear, but distant audience recording exists for the first 80 minutes of the concert" or "A mixed soundboard recording of this show has been bootlegged and rereleased many times." There are websites with this kind of information and other highly collected bands, such as Led Zeppelin, have entire books devoted to the collection of unreleased material.

If you're a fan you're guaranteed to enjoy this book regardless, so get it!

The Who's amazing journey 1963 - 1997.......2002-01-24

I really enjoyed this book. Especially the great photos included.
I bought my copy in London, so it was nice to travel parts of London and see a few places where they actually played! But it's really only for die hard fans of the band (like myself, I guess). Also interesting are the set lists to the shows they played.
I'm no good at writing reviews, but I'll highly recommend this one. It's worth the price. A thanks to Irish Jack and Joe McMichael for making it.

And of course The Who. The greatest band in the world.

The Who's Playbook.......2000-07-11

If you get an opportunity to see The Who (now on tour - summer/fall 2000) please do so. Other than Bruce Springsteen, they are without peer on stage.This book does a fine job of detailing Who gigs from the early 1960's (as the Detours)to the 1996-1997 Quadrophenia tour. The authors recap the songs, the stage "happenings" (smashed guitars, onstage feuds, etc.)and other "Odds & Sods". It's kind of like a baseball box score for Who fans! If you're already a Who fan (or are an aspiring one) this is THE book for you!

Who Rules America?: Power and Politics in the Year 2000

Average customer rating:

A ruling oligarchy
Ruling class - hidebound thinking
Ignorance is Bliss
An X-ray Film of Our Society
The truth about government not taught in civics class!

Who Rules America?: Power and Politics in the Year 2000
G. William Domhoff
Manufacturer: Mayfield Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

The Power Elite
Who Rules America? Power, Politics, and Social Change

ASIN: 1559349735

Customer Reviews:

A ruling oligarchy.......2004-07-23

There is a minor shift in this new version of G. William Domhoff's magisterial analysis of the US power system.
He adds 'top-level managers' to the power elite, which is composed of the owners of large income-producing properties. He adds also one more question to the three ones quoted in his former book: who shines?
Those income-producing properties are, on the national level, big corporations, banks and agribusinesses and, locally, real estate, construction and land development companies.
The owners and top-level managers constitute at best 1 % of the US population and have an enormous share of all income and wealth in the US.
G. William Domhoff shows clinically how they defend their interests through a small cluster of people and institutions ( a social upper class, a corporate community and a policy-formation network). Individual members (the oligarchy) of the upper class and the corporate community are involved in the policy-formation network. See, as an example, the members of the president G.W. Bush government.
The power elite dominates the two major political parties and the federal government through a coalition of Republicans and rightist Southern Democrats.
Concerning the general public, G. Wiliam Domhoff remarks that it has little or no influence except in times of unpopular wars or domestic social upheavals. He sees no change in the actual situation and predicts that the corporate-conservative coalition is most likely to prevail for a long time.
G. William Domhoff's arguments are extremely powerful. Therefore, this book is an essential read for the comprehension of the political/economical functioning of the US power system.

Ruling class - hidebound thinking.......2001-07-18

A tedious and shrill book which supposes that as soon as you have achieved some measure of success and/or wealth, you join a "ruling class." The language is instructive, as the author is still working with European (and Marxist) models. Kings, Queens, Dukes, Viscounts must haunt his soul. Anyone with comfort is suddenly "ruling" and part of a "class."

This book should be covered in tie-dye.

Ignorance is Bliss.......2001-02-21

Words are simply inadequate. This is the best book I never read. Amen.

An X-ray Film of Our Society.......1999-10-07

Clearly shows how the American society works, exposes the control of the upper crust - and never slides into the swamp of conspiracy theorists. Every serious student of our society must read this book!

The truth about government not taught in civics class!.......1999-07-23

I have read the author's two previous versions, "Who Rules America" and "Who Rules America Now", the latter an update of the first. Now I can't wait to get the latest! Clear & concise presentation of de facto governing and power structures at all levels of government. A sane and rational alternative to conspiracy theorist ramblings, this book shows plainly how we the people are not in charge, who is, and how their methods of rule have been legitimized and, even subsidized with our tax dollars. Learn the truth about such not-for-profit think tanks as the Council on Foreign Relations (not as black as you may have heard from the paranoids, but just as powerful and collusive.) Also a great handbook for those who wish to engage local and state power structures for profit and power.

Customer Reviews:

Who's Who Syria.......2006-11-05

This is a valuable reference tool for those who are reading or studying about Syria. It is a tool that not only helps with political, military, economic porttaits but also cultural biographies.

Syria: Hopes dashed, hopes resurgent.......2005-11-20

I cannot do this book enough justice.

Having been written by a young Syrian, makes it all the more relevant; as it has become regrettably customary--in this iconoclastic day and age--for young Middle-Easterners, to distance themselves from reverence for (or even simple interest in) their own heritage and history.

The bleak present and dark future--which are the direct descendants of decades of tyrannical, despotist, absolutist and opportunist rulers and forms of government--have not only left their imprints on the psyche of many young Arabs (especially Syrians); but also created a wide chasm between them and an active interest in their modern history.

The author of this book defies these two hurdles, marvelously escaping one of the tumors infecting young Arabs today: apathy.

In this book, the author lucidly brings to life the biographies of Syrian personalities (politicians, but also socialites, artists and women and men of literature, thinkers and reformers, economists and educators) through an astonishingly original, astute and concise narrative that not only focuses onto heroic deeds or great contributions to Syrian history--but also manages to paint a human portrait of them, by vividly portraying cultural nuances, interesting trivia, and funny anecdotes.

This book makes for a riveting read, and is a must-have for anyone seeking to discover (or re-discover) Syria; a Syria of hope, of human promise, and potential--in stark contrast with the prevalent image of Syria in the media today.

Finally, Jamil Mardam Bey (Prime Minister of Syria in the 1940s--and quoted in the foreword of the book) said it best: "...all is not lost."

A Must for all Students of Syrian History.......2005-11-06

Sami Moubayed's book is indispensible for students of Syria and all those who are interested in its modern history. It is a work of love by one of Syria's leading journalists and historians. As advertised, "In Steel & Silk you will meet the nationalists who led the independence struggle against the French. You will meet the statesmen who made Syria a central player in the Middle East. You will meet poets, painters, dramatists and thinkers as well as diplomats, journalists, and civil servants. Over 160 black & white photos. Includes a workshop for students, journalists, and researchers that includes an annotated timeline of 20th Century Syria, and lists of Syrian officials since the fall of the Ottomans in 1918.

I have had it on my desk for only a few months now and have already refered to it many times to find out more about the men and women who made Syria. Joshua Landis, author of SyriaComment.com

Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market, 2000: 800 Editors & Art Directors Who Buy Your Writing & Illustrations (Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market, 2000)

Average customer rating:

The next best thing to being there
Excelent
An absolute must for children's writers
A Must Have Book
The Children's Writer's an Illustrators' Bibel

Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market, 2000: 800 Editors & Art Directors Who Buy Your Writing & Illustrations (Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market, 2000)

Manufacturer: Writers Digest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Yearbooks & Annuals | Almanacs & Yearbooks | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Publishing & Books | Reference | Subjects | Books

Rhetoric | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Children's Literature | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

Marketing | Promotion | HOWdesign Studio | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

How to Write a Children's Book and Get It Published
Writing Children's Books for Dummies
Childrens Writers & Illustrators Market 2007 (Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market)
The Business of Writing for Children: An Award-Winning Author's Tips on Writing Children's Books and Publishing Them, or How to Write, Publish, and Promote a Book for Kids

ASIN: 089879935X

Amazon.com

The big news accompanying this year's Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market is its increased emphasis on illustration. Artist's & Graphic Designer's Market editor Mary Cox reveals what art directors at children's publishers are looking for; Lowell House Juvenile discloses that there are never enough illustrations of junior-high-age kids; and Joe Lacey, whose characters appear in coloring books, kids' magazines, and on Silly Putty packages, divulges that much of his success can be attributed to his sending frequent mailings "to all my clients regardless of how steady the work is from them."

But, writers, don't despair. There's just as much for you here as ever, starting, of course, with the invaluable listings--everything from publishers to contests. The tips from industry insiders continue to discourage alphabet books, anthropomorphism, and preachiness; those same sources seek books concerning multiculturalism, the mentally and physically challenged, and emotional intelligence. Katie Davis (Who Hops?) tells how best to submit a picture book, and Kathleen Krull (Lives of the Presidents) recommends nonfiction as the best way to "get one's writing 'foot' into the publishing 'door.'" As always, we are cautioned not to write down to young adults and children. And writers are counseled not to neglect the rich resources of the local public library. "Immerse yourself in the best children's literature," recommends Richard C. Owen Publishers. "Cultivate the company of librarians," adds Kathleen Krull; they "will tell you the many subject areas where they can't fill requests." --Jane Steinberg

Customer Reviews:

The next best thing to being there.......2005-03-23

Let's be honest. In a field saturated by talented writers, there is no substitute for having some help from inside the industry. However, for any persistent writer or illustrator who has the talent, but no "in," there is no substitute for this listing, which gives one hope for publication without candy coating the difficult task of breaking into this field.

The listings are easy to use, and writer/illustrator-oriented, really bending over backwards to provide enough details about each potential publication company to prevent wasted effort. If you have an agent, or the means to get your manuscript or portfolio looked at by someone who matters, use that. But if not, use this book to maximize your effort and chances.

Excelent.......2004-06-26

This is a necessary, indespensible resource for anyone desiring to become published. It is completely detailed with every iota of info you could possibly need for submission. It also provides helpful anecdotes & facts about the whole process of getting published.

An absolute must for children's writers.......2002-07-21

If you want to find out where to submit your novel or story, there's no doubt that Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market is about the best place to look. Unfortunately, despite the 2000 edition's claim of containing 250+ book publishers, the number I found suitable for a fantasy novel was pathetically small. A publisher for children that doesn't have a fantasy list has always seemed to me like a butcher shop without sausages, a hot bread shop without French loaves, a sweet shop without toffees ...
However, this is a publishing fault rather than a criticism of the book. My only criticism of the book itself is that you have to shelve out somewhere in the region of US$22 every year. Using last year's edition could land you up addressing your package to the wrong editor.

A Must Have Book.......2001-06-06

What's to say about Children's Writer's and Illustrator's market? If you write or illustrate children's books you have to have this book. A library edition won't do because this book has to have yellow highlighting and colored tabs applied! and then too, it needs to be constantly updated as new information arrives about which editor is working where and which publisher is still in business. No, every writer and illustrator needs their very own copy!

The Children's Writer's an Illustrators' Bibel.......2001-01-23

And, no, that's NOT a typo.

While every Writer's Digest Books "Market" title is a valuable source of information about who to contact and what to send, the reputation is slightly tainted with this year's edition of Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market. The very same guide that admonishes the hopeful author and illustrator to dot every "i" and cross every "t" is riddled with the kinds of typographical and grammatical errors that send one's dreams to the dreaded slush pile.

Examples:

"Paula Danzier collaborated with friend Ann M. Martin for 'P.S. Longer Letter Later' and it's (sic) sequel 'Snail Mail No More.'"

"Her book is a first-person account of three days in the life of Memphis Riley, a thirteen-year-old girl who has lived with her grandmother Naomi four (sic) five years. . ."

". . .and also deals with sibling rivalry from the point of view of an 'only dog' dealing with the edition (sic) of a new baby."

Throughout the book, the reader is constantly exhorted to put together a professional, error-free presentation but that advice can be a little disheartening when one's own Bible doesn't practice what it preaches.

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