Book Description
Amsterdam, 1659: On the world’s first commodities exchange, fortunes are won and lost in an instant. Miguel Lienzo, a sharp-witted trader in the city’s close-knit community of Portuguese Jews, knows this only too well. Once among the city’s most envied merchants, Miguel has suddenly lost everything. Now, impoverished and humiliated, living in his younger brother’s canal-flooded basement, Miguel must find a way to restore his wealth and reputation.
Miguel enters into a partnership with a seductive Dutchwoman who offers him one last chance at success—a daring plot to corner the market of an astonishing new commodity called “coffee.” To succeed, Miguel must risk everything he values and face a powerful enemy who will stop at nothing to see him ruined. Miguel will learn that among Amsterdam’s ruthless businessmen, betrayal lurks everywhere, and even friends hide secret agendas.
Download Description
The Edgar Award–winning novel A Conspiracy of Paper was one of the most acclaimed debuts of 2000. In his richly suspenseful second novel, author David Liss once again travels back in time to a crucial moment in cultural and financial history. His destination: Amsterdam, 1659—a mysterious world of trade populated by schemers and rogues, where deception rules the day.
On the world's first commodities exchange, fortunes are won and lost in an instant. Miguel Lienzo, a sharp-witted trader in the city's close-knit community of Portuguese Jews, knows this only too well. Once among the city's most envied merchants, Miguel has lost everything in a sudden shift in the sugar markets. Now, impoverished and humiliated, living on the charity of his petty younger brother, Miguel must find a way to restore his wealth and reputation.
Miguel enters into a partnership with a seductive Dutchwoman who offers him one last chance at success -- a daring plot to corner the market of an astonishing new commodity called "coffee." To succeed, Miguel must risk everything he values and test the limits of his commercial guile, facing not only the chaos of the markets and the greed of his competitors, but also a powerful enemy who will stop at nothing to see him ruined. Miguel will learn that among Amsterdam's ruthless businessmen, betrayal lurks everywhere, and even friends hide secret agendas.
With humor, imagination, and mystery, David Liss depicts a world of subterfuge, danger, and repressed longing, where religious and cultural traditions clash with the demands of a new and exciting way of doing business. Readers of historical suspense and lovers of coffee (even decaf) will be up all night with this beguiling novel.
“A novel overflowing with intrigue and duplicity... Once you’ve wandered the back alleys of Amsterdam with David Liss, you’ll never look at your morning cup of coffee the same way again!”
SHERI HOLMAN, AUTHOR OF THE DRESS LODGER AND THE MAMMOTH CHEESE
“In his second novel, David Liss creates his own genre: the historical noir. The seventeenth-century Amsterdam he depicts is a wonderfully dark city of secrets, roiling with deceitful maneuverings and caffeine-fueled perils. The Coffee Trader is vivid, utterly absorbing, and more than a little relevant to our current age of financial skulduggery.”
GARY KRIST, AUTHOR OF EXTRAVAGANCE
“It feels as if David Liss has traveled through time to the stock exchange of seventeenth-century Amsterdam and the immigrant society of Dutch Jews who were forced to reinvent their religion after the ravages of the Inquisition. The Coffee Trader is riveting as a historical re-creation, compelling as a tale, and relevant both about the morality of community—in this case, Jewish community—and about the ethical corruptions of an economy where value is a function of perception, competition, and, above all, manipulation.”
NEIL GORDON, AUTHOR OF SACRIFICE OF ISAAC AND SEA OF GREEN
“Masterfully plotted, brilliantly imagined, The Coffee Trader brims with intelligence, intrigue, and suspense. David Liss has written a riveting novel about commerce and faith, loyalty and greed.”
TOVA MIRVIS, AUTHOR OF THE LADIES AUXILIARY
Customer Reviews:
Insert Coffee Pun Here.......2007-09-18
I liked this book but didn't love it. Liss deserves a lot of credit for his ability to create a histroical scene and really put the reader into the time period he is writing about. That said, it wasn't a can't put down book like his two Benjamin Weaver novels.
If you are a fan of Liss you should certainly read this book. If you haven't read any of his novels but are interested go pick up A Spectacle of Corruption: A Novel and A Conspiracy of Paper: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle) first, and then come back to it.
Fictional Insights into 17th Century Amsterdam.......2007-08-30
I will never understand why it took me so long to discover this book. Stuck in an airport for one of those endless waits that have become a flying staple, I saw this book on a news stand. I am glad I did.
My endless wait became enjoyable. With The Coffee Trader, author David Liss has penned a page-turning portrait of Amsterdam in 1659. Set around the world's first commodity market, this historical novel has everything: mystery, betrayal, sincerity, deception, revenge, redemption, romance and suspense.
The plot is all-too-understood by anyone who trades for a living. Miguel Lienzo has lost everything. Impoverished and humiliated, he plots a path to return his wealth and reputation. Along the way he encounters unforgettable characters and plot twists.
In addition to being a great read, the book draws a vivid picture of 17th Century Amsterdam. Open to immigration, innovative in its commerce, the city offers a perfect setting for Liss' theme of whether people who manipulate money for a living are inevitably tempted to manipulate truth and morality.
If you are like me and have missed this book, do yourself a favor. Buy a copy. Read it. Its financial schemes, complex characters and intrigue-ridden plot provide an unforgettable story.
Wonderful historical fiction .......2007-05-04
Miguel Lienzo is a Portuguese Jew who fled the Inquisition and ended up in Amsterdam, where he is a none-too-successful commodities trader. Then a mysterious Dutch widow puts him on to something that may be the next big thing -- a drink that energizes you beyond anything you've ever imagined. As Miguel and the widow scheme to corner the coffee market before others can get wind of their scheme, we get all kinds of insights into Jewish life and early financial history, which turns out to be really interesting! Great characters and historical details make this book alive and breathing. I can't wait to read another book by Liss.
Crackling good "noire" novel that transcends typical categories........2007-05-02
The Coffee Trader is an entertaining page turner with danger, romance, mystery and lots and lots of lying and deception on the part of virtually everyone in the narrative. The central action might focus on commodity manipulation (something that some people might find boring - but which is actually as good a theater for action as any crime drama) but the meat of the story involves sexual desire, culture clashes, alliance making and criminal scheming and betrayal straight out of noire film. There's a wicked twist at the end too. The fact that the setting is a brilliantly researched and detailed seventeenth century Amsterdam is just icing on the cake. This one was fun. Highly recommended.
Caffeinated historical fiction.......2007-04-25
I picked up this novel purely by chance as I'd been discussing the coffee trade elsewhere.
What an intriguing novel: set in Amsterdam in 1659 and based on commodities exchange, we follow the fortunes of Miguel Lienzo who is one of the traders. Lienzo has lost everything due to a sudden collapse in the sugar market. Can he change his fortunes with success in trading coffee?
At the same time, there is tension within the community of Portugese Jews to which Lienzo belongs and between Lienzo and just about everyone he comes into contact with.
As in all trading, knowledge is power. David Liss brings life to the world of what was, apparently, the world's first commodities exchange. Few of the characters are intrinsically likeable and yet they are perfect for the story.
Highly recommended to those who like suspense in their historical fiction.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Book Description
She doesn't jog, she doesn't know karate, and she doesn't pass a bakery without a slight detour. She's plus-sized detective Desiree Shapiro returning in one of her classic mysteries-out of print for three years-that her legion of fans won't want to pass up.
Customer Reviews:
Desiree takes a bite out of crime - and just about any edible item she stumbles upon!.......2006-12-14
Plus-sized private eye Desiree Shapiro has vowed that she will not take on another murder case for as long as she lives. However, when her old best friends younger brother, Peter Winters, confronts the New York detective with a serious problem, Desiree finds it impossible to turn him down. Peter's fiance, Mary Ann, along with her identical twin, Meredith, have just been brutally shot in their upscale apartment. And while one of the girls lies in a morgue, waiting to be buried, the other is in a coma, disfigured, and unconscious to everything going on around her. The problem is that no one can figure out which beauty is still hanging on by a thread. So, against her own wishes, Desiree agrees to do some detective work to sniff out just which one of the blondes has survived. Which takes Desiree into actors territory. Now, Desiree is snooping around the theater district, questioning Meredith's fellow actors; while at the same time, attempting to sneakily question Mary Ann's pals, as well as her slimy, snake in the grass ex-fiance, in an attempt to solve the mystery. However, as Desiree digs deeper into the case, she finds herself barraged by a gruesome collection of guilt, greed, lies, and betrayal. And soon, finds herself the next target of the deranged killer.
It has been quite some time since I dove headfirst into one of Selma Eichler's tales, but I am happy to report that the same old Desiree still resides within these pages. Desiree is a detective after every woman's heart - she's big boned, and proud of it. A P.I. who will make anyone squeal with joy, what with her penchant for getting into trouble, digging up clues even the cops can't find, and eating her weight in Chinese food. The mystery found in MURDER CAN RUIN YOUR LOOKS is a little confusing at times, and the fact that the reader doesn't know which of the twins - Meredith or Mary Ann - is lying in a coma in the hospital can be frustrating at times, but that doesn't stop the crime novel from moving forward, and bringing some very peculiar twists and turns to light. Desiree takes a bite out of crime - and just about any edible item she stumbles upon!
Erika Sorocco
murder can ruin your looks.......2001-08-24
as in all of selma eichler's stories about Desiree Shapiro...the ample detective... this a light reading ....an entertaining story... only someone who cannot appreciate the genre would be disappointed... these are meant for mental r&r... not to challenge the mind, but to entertain... Desiree's comments on her size challenges and some of its complications... her appreciation of various foods... her sense of humour about life situations ... and its ironies... are meant to simply entertain... I find them delightful... and only wish there were more.... all too many people consider themselves "literary critics" without being at all aware of the type of "literature" they are reviewing... some things are just meant to entertain... each of her books have made me smile at some points...or made me smile about some life experience... I believe that to be a great gift... the more we can see our lives thru a sense of humour, the happier our lives become.. laughter being the best medicine... so choose this series to enjoy a light snack...
There is only one word to describe this book: tedious........1998-11-24
I made the mistake of buying several of the books in this series because the main character sounded interesting: an overweight, middle-aged PI, (i.e not your run of the mill detective). Unfortunately, the books turned out to be uniformly tedious! The entire book consists of an endless succession of "witness interviews" interspersed with minute descriptions of every meal this "full bodied" woman eats. (And she eats constantly!) When the main character tries to act "cute," making what is intended to be humorous observations, she only comes off as irritating. I would definitely NOT recommend this series, unless you suffer from insomnia.
Product Description
5 Titles By Selma Eichler Desiree Shapiro Series : Murder Can Kill Your Social Life Murder Can Ruin Your Looks Murder Can Stunt Your Growth Murder Can Singe Your Old Flame Murder Can Upset Your Mother. five mmpb books.
Average customer rating:
- dream fantasy at it's best
- In the Ruined Temple, at Dusk
- Tales of the dreamer
- A terrific collection of obscure gems
- 5 Stars for Lord Dunsany and 0 for the Publisher
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The Hashish Man And Other Stories
Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, Baron Dunsany
Manufacturer: Manic D Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Anthologies
| Fantasy
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
Anthologies
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
Short Stories
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1933149043 |
Book Description
In this collection of 23 short stories, one of the original masters of early-twentieth-century science fiction and fantasy is introduced to a new generation of readers. Fanciful tales of strange adventure in imaginary exotic locales and depictions of otherworldly grim creepiness abound.
Customer Reviews:
dream fantasy at it's best.......2006-04-22
This collection ranges from new takes on 1001 Arabian Nights to pastoral English dreams. Lord Dunsany remains one of the formost modern fantasy writers.
In the Ruined Temple, at Dusk.......2005-07-21
The world is still haunted, and there are yet gods in the wild places.
The gods abide, grim and wicked and gentle and brooding, in our forlorn, crazed, forsaken world. In the still of a country night you can feel them, pressing close on the wind: the forlorn gods who whisper about the crumbling hillside shrines. The nautical, bloodthirsty gods of the tropic Deep, who rose out of sea-slug haunted temples in the Pacific to feast on the anguish of Captain Cook's sacrificed sailors. The lonely gods of the abandoned wastes, bereaved for worshippers and curses that once worked but now, like dying tapers, gutter and go out.
Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany, had magic in his fingers and a suspiciously lucid familiarity with the Gate of Sleep and the Real of Dreams. Some of his most powerful and affecting gems are displayed in "The Hashish Man", an indifferently bound but decidedly choice collection of his short tales of fancy, wild whimsy, the fantastic, bizarre, and strange.
In the 26 tales collected here, not one fails to astound, to awe, to move, to raise the hackles. Dunsany is a masterful author: what most writers would take thousand-page volumes to do, he can achieve in a few graceful sentences.
And the tales themselves: for instance, what could make ancient, fearful Charon, the ferryman of the Styx, smile and weep? Or what of the young Lord in London, who orders a table set for two, spends the night in conversation with an invisible companion, and caps off his meal with an astounding dessert?
You'll learn of the piratical Captain Shard and his freebooting crew of the Desperate Lark, who, pursued by the bristling galleons of the Danish, French, Spaniards and English, affix wheels and axles to their ship and steer her across the African sands to the Atlantic.
Or you can shiver to the tale of the Doom that came to the shadow-haunted wizard's tower of Thlunrana, or to the account of the feral man roaming the English wilds with his Three Deadly Jokes; or the weird marble goddess to which ships pray---their figureheads muttering heathen verses---at the Temple of the Sea, whence they steer when all the sailors are drunk and slumbering; you'll hear of fabled, many-spired Bethmoora, abandoned in a day, and of imperial Perdondaris, which celebrated its Great Ivory Gate made of the vast tooth of a fearsome beast, until the beast came looking for its fang.
These are not just tales you'll read and consign to memory: there is not a page here lacking a gnome's treasure of wonder, and glory, and deep, dreadful fear, tinged always with melancholy, and a surprising gentleness, and perhaps a whiff of regret.
Dunsany is certainly a wizard. He wields, with dangerous precision, the totemic power of the printed word, ever a double-edged sword. There has never been a writer on Earth who conjured up the fantastic, the haunted, the doomed and the damned like Lord Dunsany.
If his sorcery-infused writings, heavy with the aroma of deep sleep, were traded in the bazaars of his tales, a single page might bring a wagon-load of precious spice, or a vat of deadly nightshade or darksome myrrh, or a trunk of gold. If I had to, I would willingly trade half the libraries of Christendom and Araby for a single volume of Lord Dunsany.
So read on, savor and relish these tales of madness, and doom, and desolation, and irrevocable curses, and wanton cruelty, and wildness: drink deep of the draught, but beware---there is potent magic here.
There may indeed be gods, and if there are, Dunsany was their Prophet and Oracle: Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron Dunsany and Votary of the Strange. May they sing dreams of comfort and wonder to him, as he sings from the pages to us.
JSG
Tales of the dreamer.......2002-05-01
Lord Dunsany's works are gradually coming back into print, a great relief to someone who has liked his works for a long time. The pre-Tolkien fantasy authors are too often neglected because of their different style, but any person who appreciates beautiful language will appreciate Dunsany's unique fantasies.
This includes such stories as "Charon," a brief story about the ferryman of the dead; the rather odd "Three Infernal Jokes"; "The Guest," about a young man who launches into a strange monologue; "Thirteen at Table," about a strange house and a fox-hunt; "Three Sailors' Gambit" is somewhat more prosaic, the tale of three sailors in a pub; "The Exiles' Club" is the story of a sumptuous but somehow strange and sinister house in London; "Where the Tides Ebb and Flow" is a dream -- and a darn disturbing one at that, where a young man dreams that "I had done a horrible thing, so that burial was to be denied me either in soil or sea, neither could there be any hell for me"; "The Field" is at first mysterious and then saddening, where someone visits a beautiful field where he senses something terrible; "A Tale of London," where a sultan asks his hashish-eater to tell him about the far-off city of London; "Narrow Escape" tells what occurs when an evil magician decides to obliterate London; "Bethmoora" is the reminiscences of an exotic city that no longer exists; "Hashish Man" is something of a sequel to "Bethmoora," in which a man tells the narrator about how he uses hashish to travel to the city of Bethmoora. "How An Enemy Came to Thlunrana" is how a mighty wizards' citadel was overcome by an unexpected means; "In Zaccarath" is the story of a mighty, beautiful, and seemingly everlasting city and its king; "Idle City" is a very odd one, about a polytheistic/monotheistic city, now very lonely-looking; "The Madness of Andelsprutz" is another story about a "dead" city, in which the narrator is told how a certain city became "soulless".
"Secret of the Sea" is about a very sad sailor; "Idle Days on the Yann" is exactly what it sounds like, a pleasantly plotless but beautifully written story about sailing on the mythical Yann River; "A Tale of the Equator" is about the foreseeing of a magnificent city; "Spring in Town" is about the arrival of a season; "In the Twilight" is the beautifully-written vision of a man whose boat had capsized; "Wind and Fog" is a slightly odd little story about the North Wind and some fog; "A Story of Land and Sea" is the sequel to a story in Book of Wonder, more about Captain Shard; "After the Fire" is what happens when a dark star collides with the world, and what other creatures see in man's temples; "Assignation," the last story in the collection, is about what a poet and Fame have to say to one another.
As for this edition: I must agree with the previous reviewer who commented on the lame cover and unfortunate title, as well as the fact that the binding could be better. That's why it rates four out of a potential five stars. I will also warn buyers that several of these stories appear in other anthologies, so don't be surprised if you bump into things you already have. Many are from the "Last Book of Wonder" or "Dreamer's Tales" and overall they tend to the less fantastical stories.
Dunsany's prose tends to be dreamy, lush, and unabashed in its Eastern tone. There's no starkness here. Despite the title of the collection, there is minimal drug use and it is definitely not recommended by Dunsany's works. His story vary widely in range, but this is an excellent collection and well worth finding.
A terrific collection of obscure gems.......2000-07-08
While I'm not a die-hard fan of fantasy and science fiction, I really liked this collection of short stories, which transcend the usual definitions of the genre. Unlike some readers who believe that obscure literary gems like these tales should be hallowed in the dusty stacks of libraries, I salute the publisher who has made these amazing works available again - I certainly would have never stumbled upon this book otherwise! Edgy like Lovecraft (whom I adore), these stories reflect a sense of wonder and imagination that is often missing from the fiction of today - a great read, highly recommended!
5 Stars for Lord Dunsany and 0 for the Publisher.......2000-03-26
I have just received this book in the mail and I am sending it back on Monday. For one thing, the materials this book is constructed out of are very cheap. The cover picture is made with an off-the-shelf 3D graphics program and done in a very amateurish manner. The title "The Hashish Man" was chosen purely to attract what the publishers thought of as a "hip" target audience and smacks at Lord Dunsany's sober genius. Lord Dunsany never took drugs and one would know where he got his inspiration if they read any books about him. Of course, because our times produce writers of infertile minds we automatically assume he had to have been on a drug to write these beautiful and imaginative stories. The publishers are associating Lord Dunsany with "the Hashish Man", the title of this anthology, when in fact in his (fictional) short story Lord Dunsany is approached by the "Hashish Man" who relates to Lord Dunsany how HE travels to dream worlds (via hashish) which is in contrast with Lord Dunsany.
Besides trashing Lord Dunsany's character the introduction is a bad two-page college essay written by a person who is totally unknown. Who is Jon Longhi of San Francisco? Here are a few pathetic quotes by Mr. Longhi: Describing Lord Dunsany's writing, "At times these details veer toward the noisome realm of elves and hobbits". The "realm of elves and hobbits" is only "noisome" because the publishers think that readers of H.P. Lovecraft don't like fantasy writing and that Tolkien is not popular right now. However when Ballantine Books published "The King Of Elfland's Daughter" in 1977, when Tolkien was the flavor of the month with publishers, they boasted "A fantasy novel in a class with the Tolkien books!," which ever way the wind blows I guess. Another quote: "psychedelic rave-up of language and imagery...it's great fun riding on the hallucinations." More drug association. "Captain Shard pilots a boat which sails across the desert on huge wheels, just like the main vehicle in the movie Time Bandits." Doesn't this sound childish? What main vehicle in Time Bandits? The only thing with sails in that movie was the ship on the giant's head, but it did not have wheels. Mr. Longhi might be thinking of the building with sails traversing barren wastelands manned by the intrepid crew of the Crimson Assurance Co. in the mini-movie before Monty Python's Meaning of Life.
Either this guy is an absolute idiot or he is just failing miserably to convince me that he is really anything like the people he is trying to reach. Mr. Longhi, like some desperate college sophomore, has padded out his introduction with a variety of multi-syllabic words in the hopes of impressing the average (ignorant) reader. This introduction should be in an anthology of drugstore-swords & sorcery-escapist-self-indulgent-trash.
I know that anthologies of Lord Dunsany's writings are rare but I would rather have them rare and cherishable instead of common and degraded. Most libraries have some of Lord Dunsany's works and through interlibrary loan you should be able to get just about anything written by this laudable fantasist. Do not pollute your personal library with this trash. Let us not reduce Lord Dunsany to the level of pulp. Let us not patronize publishers that drag remarkable writers down to their seedy level so they can make an easy buck. We need to have more respect.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting..........2006-02-03
This was an interesting book and I feel that I learned a number of things about medical school education. However, I must agree with the other reviewers that Mr. Konner is a bit of a narcissist and a little too pessimistic. If you can ignore his self-aggrandizing tone and slight pessimism, this can be a fairly interesting and informative read. As far as the literature on medical education, I can't say this book really stands out. I recommend reading "Intern Blues" first.
Candid, yet Idealistic.......2004-10-08
Konner's "Becoming A Doctor" chronicles the experiences, perceptions, & problems he had as a third-year medical student. Konner repeatedly remarks that he was much older than most of his peers as well as many of the residents, but what he doesn't explicitly articulate is his different perspective on patient care and, well, his compassion. He seems more idealistic than most of the other characters in his narrative -- I suspect this may be a consequence of his age & life experiences. Nevertheless, I enjoyed and appreciated the experiences he shared, especially since they are told from the perspective of a man in a different phase of life. There are several books that chronicle life as a medical student --- this is just one --- and this book ought to be regarded as one that deserves a peek for what it is: medical school as experienced from a well-educated man on the verge of middle-age.
Interesting, but seriously flawed and dated.......2004-10-07
Although I did enjoy portions of this book, I was also particularly annoyed at his constant misogynistic tone -- women, be they patients or fellow physicians -- are often first described physically, with particular note paid to their attractiveness. It seems that Konner clearly believes he is superior to many of his co-workers, as he repeatedly interrupts the medical narrative to mention his status in the anthropological field. This isn't a terrible book, but it certainly isn't a book I'd recommend to very many people.
Physician, Heal Thyself.......2004-08-02
As someone who's had 2 serious operations in just 6 months, I am now obsessed with all things medical/surgical. I did like this book for its "behind the scenes" look at what a doctor's training is like. However, if I had never had an operation at a great hospital with a great surgeon, with great results, I'd be afraid to go to the hospital, the way some of Konner's peers are described. Obviously, it takes all kinds, but I agree with the reviewers who felt that the more negative personalities received emphasis. But hey, we all have bills to pay, so who am I to argue?
While many people criticized Konner for being arrogant and pompous, I was very surprised that no one noticed something that, to me, was disturbingly obvious; and that was his salacious descriptions of VERY young women. There is a passage in the Pediatrics chapter, I believe, where he describes, with great zeal, how attractive he found a 15 year old girl. You can almost hear him drooling as you read it. There is another spot in the book where he talks about listening to a teenage girl's chest with a stethoscope, and while he does say he feels awkward, you can't also help but sense he was diggin' it. Hope the old boy was able to wipe down the keyboard when he was done writing.
There were some informative things in this book, but I'm glad I had a positive surgical experience BEFORE I read this book. I am a much bigger fan of "Complications" by Atul Gawande.
good for the infor, but bad for his personality........2004-05-12
The author himself has lots of personality problems. You can read his book to get an insight of the 3rd and 4th year. Beyond that, there is nothing that you will learn from him. I certainly hope that you won't learn anything about how he deals and sees the world.
He is very pompous. I am really glad that he didn't chose to actually practice medicine. He will make a bad doctor, and I doubt that he won't have lots of lawsuits piled up against him. With his personality, he won't go far. He can't take criticism.
He likes to say bad things about those people who taught him without positive proves. For example, he wrote "an immigrant physician who happened to be a superb if slightly pompous neurologist." I don't know where he came up with the "pompous" conclusion, because he did not explain further. First of all, everyone should respect his own teaching doctor. Second, even if the doctor was, this is not a book for it. It is simply rude to call someone pompous in a book, which people of generations later can still read.
And he is very self centered. "Hardly anybody I worked with at the hospital even knew I had written a book, much less one that was considered to be quite good." He obviously has an egoistic problem. We all know that anyone has some money can publish a book easily. Why is it necessary that everyone should pay attention to his book nomination, which "would ceremoniously not receive the award in the science category? It is even funny that he wrote, "Ceremoniously not receive." It means that his book was not good at all.
This guy likes to show off, and he doesn't even know it. "It was not usual for me to scoop the residents, or even the other medical students in this type of exercise, so I felt good." I don't see the big deal of giving a correct answer when all others fail. Everyone does that once in a while.I have taken some time to digest the whole book page by page. If you are interested, email me, I will show you.
Average customer rating:
- I loved this Cookbook
- It's like being back in New York
- A whale of a cookbook
- Fish Lover's Delight
- Tasty recipes--even for culinary impaired
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Manhattan Ocean Club Cookbook
Jonathan Parker
Manufacturer: Friedman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Seafood
| Meat, Poultry & Seafood
| Cooking by Ingredient
| Cooking, Food & Wine
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Cooking, Food & Wine
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1567997988 |
Customer Reviews:
I loved this Cookbook.......2000-01-05
I love Seafood. And I love to cook. Over the years, I had bought a number of Cookbooks and used 'em. Mr. Parker's Cookbook is undoubtedly the best of 'em all. Easy to follow recipes, parctical guidelines and gorgeous photographs made this Cookbook an exceptional one. Seafood lovers like myself would love this book.
It's like being back in New York.......2000-01-05
Several years ago I was lucky enough to visit the Manhattan Ocean Club Restaurant when I was in New York. I have thought of the wonderful treats that I enjoyed there and wished I could experience them again without going back to New York. Now I have the pleasure of Chef Parker's delights right in my own kitchen!
A whale of a cookbook.......2000-01-03
Someone once said, "Great books have great opening lines." One sea story begins, "Call me Ishmael." Another great book about the sea begins, "I was destined to become a chef." And from one whose name could be shortened to Jona, he might almost have been specific and said a seafood chef. The book of course is Jonathan Parker's, "The Manhattan Ocean Club Seafood Cookbook." It comes with all the trappings of today's great culinary tomes: imaginative photography, menus (for those who need help getting it all together) and wine suggestions. The layout is enormously helpful. All the ingredients are listed in one place along the side of the page as is the equipment needed to prepare the recipes. Instructions are clearly written, so you don't have to be Cordon Bleu to prepare the dishes Parker describes. I especially liked two things. One is that Parker has a nice genial writing style, so the book is fun to read, even if you don't want to cook seafood. But to miss the food would truly be to miss the best part of the book. Parker's work is always both tasteful and tasty. He has apprenticed with the best and learned his lessons well. In short, it's a whale of a book.
Fish Lover's Delight.......1999-12-02
Wonderful read, attractively presented, but most of all, wonderful recipes!
Tasty recipes--even for culinary impaired.......1999-11-30
I am *not* a cook, never bought a cookbook before. But I've been to the restaurant a couple of times and always have had wonderful meals there, so I thought I'd give it a try. It did not disappoint--I tried out a few recipes and food was delicious! By the way, I am NOT a family member--just someone who likes fish, and spends way too much money/time online...
Book Description
Popular antiques expert George Grotz reveals how to make real money in the antiques trade--must reading for every collector, auction-goer, and flea-market fanatic.
Customer Reviews:
Not What I Thought.......2004-09-28
I liked the straight-forward writing style of the author but felt the title was misleading. It went downhill fast when the author states that if you want to make money you have to move to a few parts of the country where he thinks the antiques are. I don't know about you but I can't pack up and move to upstate New York or the rural area of Maine. (He stated there are no good antiques in the South since Sherman burned it down). This is basically a overview of the antiques business and how things are run. I don't agree with some of his list of things to buy and not to buy. It's an okay book and you can gleam a few gems out of it but I don't think you are going to double your money just by reading this book.
Entertaining as well as informative.......2004-03-15
I recently purchased 4 books on getting into the Antiques trade. The first one I read was mildly entertaining, but disjointed and hard to follow. The second one was written in a very business-like manner--2 pages and I'd be snoring.
I then got to Mr. Grotz's book. I read the whole thing in a weekend. This book is the best of both worlds. It's quite entertaining, at least it was to me. Some may find the author's remarks caustic, but I thought they were quite amusing. He slings his arrows at everyone from his wife to the entire population of the American Southwest.
However aside from the quips, the book is really everything you need to get started in this business. I will say with one exception though, and that is, one of the "requirements" is that you live in the Northeast, which of course makes the book somewhat useless to someone living in say, New Mexico. But as I live in Connecticut....
After reading this book I feel armed to enter this interesting world of Antiques--I know which periodicals to subscribe to, where the best locations are to both buy and sell, and how to conduct myself and my business in all avenues of the trade.
In short, a highly readable and informative book--lots of info and interest packed into less than 200 pages. I will be purchasing some of the author's other books based on this one.
Many handy hints and new ideas.......2001-07-08
Mr. Grotz has offered the general public an insight into the antiques business. I've bought and sold collectibles and small pieces of furniture for several years. I still learned many valuable ideas from this little book. I used to wonder, "Should I refinish this piece?" George Grotz tells you how to decide! He also includes chapters on where to buy "Good Stuff Cheap" and "How to Sell at Antiques Shows". Have you ever been to an antiques auction? There is definitely a "dealer's ring" at these. What is a dealer's ring? Read this book to find out. I'd recommend this reading to those new to antiques dealing and to those who want to turn their hobby of antiques into a business.
Book Description
Sam Hawkins has used his considerable skill as a cross stitch designer and his love of the natural world to bring together a stunning collection of seasonal designs.
Throughout the year there are many cross stitch occasions. Sam has taken these moments and created a seasonal collection of projects that stitchers of all skill levels will enjoy. Each of the four chapters has a sampler to show the beauty of the season and is packed with stunning designs, including a breakfast set in yellow and lavender for Spring, picnic napkins in strawberry red for Summer, cushions to celebrate the gold and orange of Autumn, festive designs in red and green for Winter. At the end of each seasonal chapter is a library of smaller designs that give stitchers a wonderful year-round resource for cards and keepsakes.
Customer Reviews:
JUST BEAUTIFUL DESIGNS.......2002-04-01
I have been a cross stitch addict for about 30 years and have always been a Sam Hawkins fan. This book is full of designs that really show Mr. Hawkins' skill as a cross stitch designer. From small simple and easy to stitch motifs, to 4 large absolutely beautiful pieces of fine art stitchery for each of the 4 seasons.
These 4 (detailed and intricate) patterns to me were worth the cost of the book itself. I cannot express enough the beauty of these designs and found the price to be very much worth it to me. A very excellent selection of designs for all seasons. THANKS AGAIN TO SAM HAWKINS FOR A GREAT DESIGN COLLECTION.
Fun Designs, but a bit expensive.......2001-12-15
As the title suggests this book has four chapters,one for each season. For each season there's a sampler and simple but practical, functional projects and a number of colorful,playful almost childlike designs: scarecrows, ducks, flowers,fruit and angels to name a few. The winter season includes an interesting Santa stocking and some tree ornaments. This book is suitable for different skill levels,but mostly from simple to medium, the charts are color coded, , but I think the price is a bit too steep for the patterns offered. The "501 cross stitch designs" book is more packed.
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An Old House in Greenville, Virginia: A Study of Human Intention in Vernacular Architecture
Michael S. Shutty
Manufacturer: Mcdonald & Woodward Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0939923661 |
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A Corpus of Spanish Drawings: Volume II: Madrid, 1600-1650 (Harvey Miller Publication)
Diego Angulo , and
Alfonso E. Perez Sanchez
Manufacturer: A Harvey Miller Publication
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0199210225 |
Book Description
This corpus is designed to present a complete survey of Spanish drawings from 1400 to 1800. Each catalogue entry contains detailed information about size, medium and condition of the drawing, as well as a critical analysis of its attribution. The drawings are on a variety of subjects, ranging from studies for altar-pieces, monuments, sculpture, wall-paintings and embroideries to copies of prints and of Italian masterpieces.
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Teatros y Comedias en Madrid: 1600-1650.: Estudio y Documentos (Fuentes para la historia del Teatro en España)
Manufacturer: Tamesis Books
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 090041121X |
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Madrid 1600-1650.
Diego Angulo
Manufacturer: A Harvey Miller Publication
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKS1AW |
Book Description
"Parsifal" was Richard Wagner's last opera, and many consider it his most beautiful and moving work. It is concerned with the belief that human salvation is to be achieved not through the satisfaction of worldly desires, but through compassion. The story reflects Parsifal's inner journey towards his own "enlightenment through compassion" and his consequent ability to ease the moral burdens of others. It is set amongst a Christian religious military order of knights at about the time of the Crusades. To convey the work's subtle and mystical ideas, Wagner wrote music that was decades ahead of its time and influenced many great composers -- Mahler, Bruckner, Debussy and Richard Strauss among them. Peter Bassett has made a special study of "Parsifal" looking particularly at the relationship between Wagner's sources and his text. It has become fashionable in recent times to interpret "Parsifal" in terms of twentieth-century politics and late nineteenth-century theories about race. The author shows that Wagner's text owes more to his sources than many people suspect, and he identifies important thematic connections with other works, namely "Der Ring des Nibelungen." This guide, which includes a translation of the libretto, will be invaluable to those new to "Parsifal" but will also provide fresh insights for readers who are already familiar with Wagner's final work.
Customer Reviews:
Highly recommended.......2001-07-10
I cannot recommend this too highly as an introduction to what many regard as Richard Wagner's most problematic work. Peter Bassett's book restores balance to modern perspectives on Wagner's "stage dedicating festival-drama"; a balance that has been missing from (most significantly) Robert Gutman's eccentric interpretation and Lucy Beckett's interpretation from a narrowly Christian perspective.
As Peter Bassett makes clear "Parsifal" is a work that can be meaningful to adherents of any religion or none. He discusses the roots of Wagner's drama in the Grail legend as it appears in medieval romances; he also explains how the work relates to Wagner's interest in Buddhism.
The book includes a prose translation of Wagner's 1877 German text into modern English. This translation is more literal than rhyming translations such as those made by Andrew Porter or Lionel Salter. The reader will find Bassett's "free translation" useful both for study of the text alone and when listening to a recording of "Parsifal".
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- The Complete Book of Figure Skating
- The Favored Child : A Novel
- The Ghost and Mrs. McClure (Prime Crime Mysteries)
- The Ghost of Hannah Mendes
- The Language of Threads: A Novel
- The Last Will & Testament of a Very Distinguished Dog
- The Line of Beauty: A Novel
- The Making of a Modern Japanese Architecture: From the Founders to Shinohara and Isozaki
- The Schopenhauer Cure: A Novel (P.S.)
- The Shell Seekers
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