Superman: Birthright (Graphic Novel)

Customer Reviews:

Great Reading and Artwork.......2007-10-04

Very interesting story of how and why Clark Kent becomes Superman. It takes pieces of the different incarnations of the Superman story and combines them into a book that I couldn't put down. I recommend this to anyone that likes Smallville.

Good, but not great.......2007-09-23

It could have been better. It's not as good as John Byrne reinterpratation 20 years ago, Superman: The Man of Steel, Vol. 1, which I consider superior to this one.

Very good book!.......2007-09-04

I'd rate it 5 stars but it is a bit pricey. But then again I didn't spend my money on comic books growing up. My daughter needed it for one of her classes in college and loved the book!

Superman...a Vegetarian?.......2007-07-25

Yes, you read that correctly: Superman, as written here, is a vegetarian. Other changes abound, most notably Superman's new ability to "see souls". This "re-launch" of Superman attempts to update the mythos for the 21st century...but the New Age touches come off as cheesy. The artwork, by Leinil Francis Yu, is gorgeous, but the story is told better elsewhere (i.e. in the films Superman I, II and Superman Returns).

DC's "Infinite Crisis" wiped both this story and John Byrne's 1980s origin story out of official continuity, meaning that Superman's origin will be changed yet again! Third time's a charm, right?

Better than I expected..........2006-11-17

I am a big fan of the Superman world but it was only during this summer that I shelled out money to buy Superman products after seeing the latest movie. Two dvds of the Reeves movies snowballed into seven comic books. This was one of the seven. Out of all of them this one really stood out. I just love the first few pages. It is a given that it talks about his parents and how they sent him to earth in a pod. How they drew and colored and placed the panels and used them as part of the title and credit page and then a time transition....wow. Its like a openning title sequence for film... so beautiful. I'm like YES!!! THIS IS WHY I LOVE COMIC BOOKS! This story talks about a part of Clark's life that is rarely if never addressed. Life after Smallvile but pre Daily Planet. I like it for its youthful hip energy and the addressing of problems in a different country. Lois Lane is a big reason I follow this franchise. Seeing the many incarnations of her is watching the evolution of the independent modern woman. Some depictions leave more to be desired than others. The way they introduced her was refreshing. Her intelligence and her courage has a slightly new flavor. I'd like to see a follow up of this story arc. I recomend everyone pick up a copy and take a good look. I don't regret buying this one. I enjoy looking at it over and over.

Book Description

From bestseller to death-dealer
London's Plumtree Press has a world-class bestseller of a novel. And the sequel is earmarked to get this old family firm out of the red. But its anonymous author, known to Plumtree only as "Arthur," has apparently vanished, leaving the crucial last five chapters undelivered. Alex already knows they reveal the identity of the characters who smuggled British children to America during World War II. But, of course, this is fiction. So when a lead critic previews the book as a nonfiction exposé, Alex is shocked. Even more so when the critic is murdered...and Alex finds himself the target of a ruthless hunt for the manuscript and bizarre attempts on his life. Ducking newshounds, government officials, and the sniping of jealous publishers, Alex knows only one thing: If he can't find Arthur and untangle the truth, his next season's list may be a posthumous one.

Customer Reviews:

A bit bloated, but not bad at all........2005-09-15

Julie Kaewert, Unsolicited (Crimeline, 2000)

Julie Kaewert's Booklovers mysteries took a while to make it to this side of the pond, but I am one of a growing number who are glad they finally made it, even if they did take so long. Unsolicited, the first of them, spends (as do most first-in-a-series books) a bit much time introducing us to characters and their complex relationships, but that rarely gets in the way of a cracking mystery.

While it's inaccurate to call this a cozy (the narrator is threatened with death a bit often for that), "hardboiled" is about the last word one would use to describe Alex Plumtree, the book's hero. He's thin, bespectacled, quite bookish (which shouldn't be surprising, given that he runs Plumtree Press), and an amateur at the whole roughing-people-up thing, to be sure. However, he finds himself forced into it when, at a press party, he narrowly dodges a huge roll of printing paper that comes crashing down from a ceiling, narrowly missing him and killing a friend of his who happens to be a noted book critic. Alex has himself a murder to solve, but things, of course, get far more complex when Alex begins to suspect that the critic's murder has to do with the next book coming from Plumtree Press, the sequel to a runaway bestselling novel by an author so anonymous even Alex has no idea who he is. Add to this his longtime and continually frustrating relationship with an American investment banker, and you've got the makings for a fun mystery.

It does its job quite well (though in the end we find ourselves with the Least Likely Suspect rule hanging over our heads, proving once again that the journey is often more fun than the destination). There's some prose, especially towards the beginning, that probably could have done with a bit of stripping and sanding; the book's pace gets bogged down a few too many times in the particulars. Once it gets going, however, and finds its pace, there's quite a neat little mystery here. Fans of other authors who spend their time mooning over books will find this right up their alley. *** ½

Not really what it claimed to be.......2002-04-01

I bought this book because it claimed to deal with the world of books, publishing and all things British, but after having read "Unsolicited", I have my doubts about continuing with the rest of the series. In this, the first installment of the "Booklover's Mysteries", a young man by the name of Alex Plumtree - who comes from a British upper-middle-class family, has inherited the family book publishing business after his parents' demise. Plumtree Press has always sustained itself with the publication of anthologies; but Alex always wanted to immerse the firm into the more lucrative fiction market. Just when he was figuring out how to accomplish this, an unsolicited manuscript lands on his doorstep, under the cocky title of "Deliver us from Evil". Nothing mysterious here, with the exception that its author has decided to keep an extremely low profile, and presents himself just under the name of Arthur. No last name, no return address, no phone listed; in fact, un-traceable. Nevertheless, Alex does not get deterred by this and decides to publish the book; a fictionalized story about a group of British children who were taken to exile during World War II and were ultimately sold to their new parents for profit.

After the great success of the first novel, a sequel arrives. More cocky titles here: this one is called "Those who tresspass against us". But when the final chapters miss the submission deadline, Alex gets worried. The mysterious Arthur has never been late before, and Plumtree Press needs the new novel to get back on its financial feet. Just at this time Alex realizes, through a series of mishaps - that in numerous cases come close to ending his own life, that the novel is a very much a true story; a sort of exposé. He starts receiving offers of all types; some very friendly and profitable, others not so. At this point I became disappointed at the novel, which from then on seemed more a story á la Disk Francis than the typical cozy British mystery it claimed to be. Alex's love for his bank loan official, an old friend by the name of Sarah Townsend, is a bit too much, not helping the story in the way it should.

"Unsolicited" might also have been called 'A Yachting Mystery', since at a point we are completely torn apart from books and the British cozy lifestyle to be thrown into what looks like "The Perfect Storm", of sorts. The ending is not satisfactory either, since many questions are left un-resolved, including the scene of an escape with a totally un-realistic and impossible outcome under the circumstances. It would have helped if the author had concentrated more into the theme of the book and less into the life of the main characters per se. People who choose to read a series of this kind will obviously want to dig more into the world of books. The fact of leaving things in the dark at the end of the story makes me think of Ms. Kaewert as a commercial author, interested in royalties more than in the pleasure of writing. I deeply dislike such authors, who are eager to become the "publishing machine" in such an obvious way. I will give the sequel, "Unbound", a chance though. I do hope to meet with more books and less yachts.

Inconsistent and slow--disappointing!.......2002-01-15

I was so looking forward to reading this when I found it; the premise seemed so promising. Publishing--England--Mystery--what could be better? Unfortunately, I was disappointed. The book takes a long time to get going. The author keeps interrupting conversations with flashbacks, exposition or internal thoughts--e.g., Alex will start talking to someone, then after one sentence the author has to step in and give us a lot of background about the person he's talking to, their history, etc. I also found it distracting and unrealistic that bad things keep happening to Alex and he never goes to the police, or at least explains why he's not going!
The thing that really bothered me, though, was that I didn't understand how Alex's father could have been active in WWII. We know that he's in his late 20's or early 30's and that the book was published in 1994; that means he was born around 1964. The second book states that his father died at the age of 57. If he died around 1992 that means that he would have been born in 1935 and would only have been 7 or 8 at the time of the War. This is the kind of sloppy writing (and editing) that should have been corrected.

A surprising find!.......2001-12-01

I picked this book up, not knowing it was part of a series. The story got off to a slow start, but -- wow! It turned out to be not just a mystery, but a thriller, too. It's a modern setting, but the plot involves children who were moved out of London before the bombings in World War II. I found the book really hard to put down! The author also adds in elements of the romance novel -- sometimes a little silly, but I didn't mind. I can't wait to try the rest of these books. Obviously, since I started with this one in the middle of the series, you can, too. I understand the first two in the series are titled "Unbound" and "Unprintable."

Who wrote this? Agatha Ludlum?.......2001-11-05

"Unsolicited," billed as a Booklover's Mystery is a bit of a mystery itself. From its setting, the world of London publishing, one might expect a cozy British whodunit. Instead, we get a mini-thriller about international intrigue during World War II, something that might have been penned by Agatha Christie and Robert Ludlam's love child. It's not always (if ever) an easy mix. One wishes that Kaewert were less ambitious. Her main character, Alex Plumtree, is an affable fellow, but we never quite believe the situations in which she places him. Perhaps if she were a better writer (an Elizabeth George, for instance), she could pull off the "ordinary man in extraordinary situations" scenario, but she simply is not. Two other points: The truly vicious feud that Plumtree has with his crack-head brother leaves an unpleasant aftertaste (where can it possibly go in further books?); and Alex's lascivious salivating over the woman he loves unrequitedly is never worthy of an English gentleman. I suppose I shouldn't criticize "Unsolicited" for what it isn't; I just wish I enjoyed what it is a little bit more.

3 Mystery PBs by Julie Kaewert: Unbound, Unprintable, Unsolicited (Booklover's Mysteries)

Average customer rating:

3 Mystery PBs by Julie Kaewert: Unbound, Unprintable, Unsolicited (Booklover's Mysteries)
Julie Kaewert
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000ST79MA

Product Description

Paperbacks

Average customer rating:

A Great Medieval Fantasy!!

Shylah: And the Arena
Victoria Frey
Manufacturer: PublishAmerica
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1413751008

Book Description

In the wicked and evil country of the Darklands Kingdom, peace is something long forgotten. A frozen wilderness of strange and cruel creatures, the dreadful Arena and its Dark Prince have kept the land under a rule of fear and hatred for countless ages. Yet a tiny spark of hope begins to burn in the heart of one of the Arena's tortured prisoners—the little half-Sprite named Shylah. Refusing to live and die under the hand of evil, she plots her own precarious escape from the bloodthirsty reign of the Dark Prince, only to find herself lost to a mysterious and entrancing world. Befriended by a wandering group of renegades who live by their own code of faith, and defy the malevolence controlling the land, Shylah must discover her own destiny and find her place in the midst of chaos and unrest.

Customer Reviews:

A Great Medieval Fantasy!!.......2005-07-08

An awesome story! Original, creative, entertaining, and deep. Not your typical fantasy, there is a great deal of depth, emotion, and spirituality present all the way through. If you enjoy Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and the like, try this book!

Average customer rating:

Must-have

Little info for Radiation

Its good to know what you're facing

Best information

Excellent. A must for all on chemo and/or radiation therapy

The Chemotherapy & Radiation Therapy Survival Guide (Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy Survivor's Guide)
Judith McKay , and Nancee Hirano
Manufacturer: New Harbinger Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Cancer | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Medicine | Subjects | Books
General | Oncology | Internal Medicine | Medicine | Subjects | Books
Oncology | Internal Medicine | Medicine | Medical | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

What to Eat if You Have Cancer (revised)

Cancer: 50 Essential Things to Do: Revised and Updated Edition

Eating Well Through Cancer: Easy Recipes & Recommendations During & After Treatment

Chemotherapy and Radiation For Dummies

Beating Cancer with Nutrition

ASIN: 1572240709

Customer Reviews:

Must-have.......2006-04-23

Since my diagnosis three weeks ago I have checked out and read every book on chemo and radiation in my county's library system. This is by far the best - it's the only one I decided to go out and purchase so I could keep it around for reference. The advice is very down to earth and practical. The authors' knowledge and practical experience is evident on each page. The diagnosis of cancer sent me into an information seeking frenzy - I'm glad that I found this one right away as it de-mystified a lot of things for me. Read this one first!

Little info for Radiation.......2005-08-19

I bought this book expecting information for dealing with radiation. There was very little information on radiation at all. The book may be useful for Chemotherapy patients (which is why I give it two stars). It had no stars of value for me dealing with radiation. My doctor told me more. "Cancer for dummies" and "just get me through this" have more information.

Its good to know what you're facing.......2004-12-06

This book is great. It helped me face radiotherapy, and I incorporate this into my teaching (I'm a science teacher).

Best information.......2003-09-11

After my dad's recent diagnosis of colorectal cancer, I purchased a ton of books about his cancer & treatments. This one is the best one I've purchased so far. My dad refers to it daily to check his symtoms & even just to get alittle more educated on what he should be expecting. VERY beneficial to have.

Excellent. A must for all on chemo and/or radiation therapy.......1999-11-04

I found this book very informative, and it makes the idea of going into this type of therapy less frightening and "unknown". I am purchasing several more for people I know who are receiving chemotherapy too, so they can have access to this same knowledge. Special thanks to those who took the time to make this book available.

Coping With Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy

Average customer rating:

A consumer's guide to everything from common side effects to preparing physically and emotionally for treatment & managing pain
A consumer's guide to everything from common side effects to preparing physically and emotionally for treatment & managing pain

Coping With Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy
Daniel Cukier
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Pain Management | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0071444726

Book Description

New advances in treatment offer cancer patients more options than ever before. Coping with Chemotherapy and Radiation is an accessible, accurate guide to the latest developments in radiation therapy and chemotherapy. You will find important information on how chemotherapy and radiation treatments work; what to expect from treatments, how to alleviate common side effects, and more.

Download Description

Customer Reviews:

A consumer's guide to everything from common side effects to preparing physically and emotionally for treatment & managing pain.......2005-07-06

Dr. Daniel Cukier has been a radiation oncologist for over thirty years, and works with other oncologists and health writer Virginia McCullough on Coping With Chemotherapy And Radiation: a consumer's guide to everything from common side effects to preparing physically and emotionally for treatment and managing pain. While some of the details on specific drug effects may become outdated as they're replaced over time, the book's overall value won't decline anytime soon - as long as cancer remains and chemo and radiation are the preferred method of treatment.

A consumer's guide to everything from common side effects to preparing physically and emotionally for treatment & managing pain.......2005-07-06

Cancer Guided Imagery Program for Radiation, Chemotherapy, Surgery and Recovery

Average customer rating:

This Program is a MUST for anyone with cancer!
solid program
One of the readers

Cancer Guided Imagery Program for Radiation, Chemotherapy, Surgery and Recovery
Steve Murray
Manufacturer: Body Mind Productions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Healing | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Medicine | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0974256900

Book Description

This Book is simple and easy to read. You will be able to start your own Cancer Guided Imagery Program right away and:

Tap into the Healing Power of the Body and Mind Connection

Prepare mentally, emotionally and physically for cancer treatment and recovery. Help reduce and relieve side effects, lessen fear and stress of cancer treatment. This program when used in conjunction with your prescribed medical treatment, shows you how to do just that. With easy to understand explanations and directions, you will be able to start a Cancer Guided Imagery Program right away.

Book Includes - Programs with easy Step-By-Step instructions on preparing mentally, emotionally and physically for:
Cancer Surgery
Radiation Treatment
Chemotherapy
Destroying & Dissolving Cancer Cells
Cancer Recovery

You will also learn:
What is Cancer Guided Imagery
How and why Cancer Guided Imagery is successful
A Relaxation Technique, and why it's effective
How to personalize a Cancer Guided Imagery Program
How to acquire Imagery Content for your Program
The difference between Guided Imagery and Visualization

This book is based on Steve Murray's successful Cancer Guided Imagery Video Programs (soon to be DVD), which are in hospitals, support groups and libraries throughout the country. Here are just few examples: -Patient's libraries at the Mayo Cancer Clinic, St Mary's Hospital, and Gilda's Club. Suffolk and San Antonio county libraries.

-Video on demand in patient's rooms at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Customer Reviews:

This Program is a MUST for anyone with cancer! .......2004-08-17

I would highly recommend Steve Murray's Cancer Guided Imagery Programs for anyone currently on the journey of recovery from cancer. I am a current breast cancer patient that was looking for a complimentary therapy to help me reduce my stress level while I was going through chemotherapy.

My doctor recommended that I explore a method that focused on mind, body and spirit. I stumbled upon Steve's dvd series and was amazed at how it put me in a calm state almost immediately. The guided imagery sections were so soothing and relaxing that I felt completely at peace and any tension that I was holding was one. As a result I have not had any of the side effects that most people have with chemotherapy. The visual images are absolutely beautiful and vibrant. During one of the segments, I was convinced that the images leapt off of the screen and surrounded me with healing light. Everytime I watch the dvd, I am further empowered to be able to fight this disease.

My oncology staff at UCLA's Cancer Center acknowledge the effective support the mind/body connection have as an aide in fighting this disease and Steve had perfected the tried and true art of visualization. I have been asked to speak at an awards dinner for the American Cancer Society, in which we will honor 5 individuals who have made great strides in promoting cancer awareness and patient support and I will certainly speak well of Steve Murray's Cancer Guided Imagery programs.

Kim Smith

solid program.......2004-04-12

I bought Steve Murray's cancer imagery dvds and decided buy the book also. The book took the mystery out of cancer imagery and made it simple to start a program. I recommend the book and getting one of his dvds or videos on cancer imagery. It would be money well spent.

One of the readers.......2004-02-09

A well written book,easy step-by-step instructions.

"You do not have to believe in Guided Imagery for it to work
You just have to have an open mind each time you do it"

Average customer rating:

Very decorative sushi ideas!

Great Sushi book!

Neat tricks!

A great book for home sushi.

Reasonable But Not Great

Sushi Making at Home
Yasuko Kamimura
Manufacturer: Japan Publications Trading
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Japanese | Asian | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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Encyclopedia of Sushi Rolls

ASIN: 0870409921

Book Description

Learn to make the most popular varieties of sushi: chirashi-zushi (scattered), maki-zushi (rolled), bou-zushi (bar-shaped) and fancy sushi. Basic ingredients, simple instructions and tips are detailed throughout.

Customer Reviews:

Very decorative sushi ideas!.......2002-04-02

After taking a class on how to make basic sushi I bought this book for some new ideas. I love the colorful decorative Maki-Zushi recipe! They also have very good visual layouts for how to make thick sushi rolls, hors d'oeuvres sushi, Ichimatsu Oshi-Zushi & other great meal ideas. Lots of pictures, colorful illustrations, decorative sushi & meals prepared which is great for those of us who are visual people! I recommend this book as a great way to create great looking as well as tasting sushi! :)

Great Sushi book!.......2001-10-04

For quite some time now I have loved going to various sushi places and trying out all different types of Sushi. One day I decided I wanted to make my own, so I picked up this book at a local store, and I must say I am completly satisfied. this book is a great refrence guide on how to make many different types of sushi. It aslo shows you how to prepare the basic ingredients such as the rice. I can recomend this book for a newbie interested in making their own sushi.

Neat tricks!.......2001-01-01

This is NOT a book for those hoping to learn how to make restaurant-style nigiri-zushi. Instead it's filled withfull of pictorial step-by-step directions and color photos for making the kinds of easy-to-do sushi Japanese friends might make at home and serve as party fare. You'll find recipes for chirashi-zushi (a bowl of rice with ingredients scattered over the top), maki-zushi (rolled sushi), inari-zushi (sushi rice in fried tofu bags) and oshi-zushi (pressed sushi). Included are a lot of simple but decorative tricks, such as turning fried tofu pockets inside-out for visual variety... and, yes, a sushi "birthday cake."

A great book for home sushi........2000-07-07

After being introducted to traditional sushi in a Japanese home many years back, I have searched for the right book that would help me replicate what my memory serves me. After purchasing this book and trying several recipes, I have definitely found what I was looking for. The instructions are quite clear with concise listings of ingredients and utensils. Although the color pictures are beautifully done, sometimes their layout can be a bit confusing to the actual "process" of sushi making. I am also fond of the different types of sushi that the book covers... most think sushi consists of "raw fish" only; this book squashes that myth. I have this book at my arm's reach when I am in the mood to recreate my past....the recipes are timeless.

Reasonable But Not Great.......1999-12-29

I have been making sushi for about a year and bought this book in the hopes of obtaining a reference for basic techniques and a guide to new new techniques. Overall I am happy with the book, but not as happy as I had hoped. Although there are some good ideas for exotic sushi, there really isn't much included in the way of basic techniques. Techniques for preparing Nigiri-zushi aren't even discussed. Novices would be better off looking elsewhere for instruction; I would recommend The Book of Sushi. Still this can be a vaulable book for intermediate sushi chefs and does include a variety of interesting sushi ideas such as squid sushi. Aditionally, this book is written by a japanese author seemingly for a japanese audience; western readers may have trouble finding some ingredients.

Sushi: Easy Recipes for Making Sushi at Home

Average customer rating:

Sushi: Easy Recipes for Making Sushi at Home
Emi Kazuko , Fiona Smith , and Elsa Petersen-Schepelern
Manufacturer: Ryland Peters & Small
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1845970977

Book Description

Healthy, delicious, modern - everyone loves sushi. And it's not hard to make yourself. It's delicious as a quick snack, part of a more substantial dinner, or easy party food. Ami Kazuko, Fiona Smith, and Elsa Petersen-Schepelern explain how to cook sushi rice and start with simple rolled sushi using classic ingredients such as cucumber or tuna. There are also recipes for sashimi and miso soups, plus great accompaniments.

Average customer rating:

Sushi Making At Home
Yasuko Kamimura
Manufacturer: KODANSHA AMERICA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N74YV6

Average customer rating:

Rago can't be beat

This is THE book!

Yet another book on American Art Pottery? Give me a break!

A book for the ages!

A must have for arts and crafts enthusiasts!

Miller's: American Art Pottery : How to Compare & Value (Miller's Treasure Or Not)
David Rago , and Suzanne Perrault
Manufacturer: Amazon Remainders Account
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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Art Pottery: American & European Price Guide (Antique Trader's American & European Art Pottery Price Guide)

American Art Pottery: Identification & Values

ASIN: B0002Z09GS

Book Description

A veritable master class in appraising art pottery, this authoritative guide includes an introduction to the subject, covering such topics as buying and selling, care and security, materials, decorations, periods, and styles. All the key studios of American art pottery are featured including Paul Revere, Rookwood, Grueby Faience, Dedham, Volkmar, and Taco. A directory of specialists, galleries, and museums, and a glossary of useful terms make this an invaluable resource for collectors.

Customer Reviews:

Rago can't be beat.......2006-04-07

This guy knows his stuff...Photography is excellent, as well as the descriptions.
IMPORTANT NOTE Aug 2006: I don't know why only one star appears for my review. I rate it FIVE STARS but can't seem to change the on-line rating.

This is THE book!.......2003-10-22

I might be biased because I think everything Rago touches is genius but you just can't beat this art pottery expert. This man knows his stuff in a way no one else at this time can touch. His extensive auction and appraisal experience give him light on a subject that is still quite murky. Most of the examples in the book are from his collection or auctions so the reader gets a vicarious view of these masterpieces through Rago.
This is the one book to own if you love art pottery. I have spent years waiting and wanting a book like this. Apart from Kovels (written years ago), you cannot come close to this book. Miller's Treasure or Not Art Pottery is also excellent but Rago pours his all into this one. The photos are outstanding-they make you drool. Nearly all notable potters are represented. This is a great book for the expert and novice collector.

Get it now...it'll be relevent for decades!

Yet another book on American Art Pottery? Give me a break!.......2002-03-20

Yet another book on American Art Pottery? Give me a break!

And thatÕs exactly what the authors here have done. TheyÕve given us a break. Given us entree to insights and opinions formed from their handling and viewing more than 100,000 pots and tiles over some 30 years. And theyÕve done it in a refreshingly readable, yet authoritative style.

This work is aimed at the less experienced collector as well as those of us who will admit to still having a few things to learn. Whether new to the game or an old hand, if you love pottery, but your experience doesnÕt quite stack up to that of the authors, we think youÕll find this a helpful -- and very enjoyable -- addition to your antiques library.

Longtime art pottery aficionados, dealers, auctioneers and, for the past five years, appraisers for the "Antiques Road Show," authors David Rago and Suzanne Perrault have taken a leaf from Albert SackÕs popular "Fine Points of American Furniture" to give us a look at "Good" and "Better" pieces from 43 American art potteries, from the popular and ubiquitous Ð like Roseville -- to the relatively obscure Ð like Walley.

Using a reader-friendly format, they present, for each pottery, a Good and Better example on facing pages, together with a value range for each -- 60 such combinations in all. Then, for each piece, they highlight and analyze the key features that distinguish it from its neighbor and tell us why they value one more highly than the other.

You may argue with some of the cited pricesÐ which they readily admit reflect their own biases, to wit, "I like Grueby more than WheatleyÉand I like Weller less than Roseville" Ð but youÕll find the careful and thoughtful analyses nonetheless interesting and helpful. The prevailing biases of other collectors as regards their attitudes toward the effect on value of damage, one pottery vs. another, are but one example.

Encompassing 124 pages, this comparison section alone is more than well worth the price of admission. But the sections on Understanding the Market and An American Art Potteries Primer are equally helpful, as a learning experience for newer collectors, and a thoughtful refresher for those whoÕve been to Zanesville more times than they care to tell.

Few antiques authors manage the authoritative and colloquial with such ease and aplomb, and to such enjoyable effect. It is in these sections where that effect is most evident.

Here weÕre helped to understand and make sense of a market where, from 1975 to 2000, an 8" Rookwood Standard glaze, floral decorated vase increased in value by 450%, while a similarly sized and decorated Iris glaze vase soared by more than 1600%. And here weÕre provided a thoughtful analysis (though not without bias) of the essential elements which serve to distinguish the producers and the products of the Ohio Valley, New England, the South and California.

The one fault we found is in the brief section on How to Clean a Pot. Recommended is soaking "for at least 24 hours in a bucket of very hot tap water to which is added a cup of sudsing ammonia and at least a half a cup of Spic and Span. After the soak, remove the pot and soak for at least another 24 hours in clean hot tap water." Perhaps inadvertently deleted in editing is any caveat restricting this approach, at best, to non-porous pots. DO NOT try this on porous pots Ð like Peters & Reed Moss Aztec -- or cracked or crazed pots.

With only slight and otherwise forgivable puffery, the book jacket heralds this as "a master class in appraising art pottery." And a "master class" it may be. But as anyone whoÕs earned and gone forward with a "masterÕs" will attest, you have to get your hands dirty before it pays off. "The best you can do," say the authors, "is to learn enough about pottery to form your own biasesÉ learn to appreciate the beauty of the objects, and integrate the history that fueled the kilnsÉ(and) Allow the works of these great potteries to enter your life and delight your soulÉ" as they have quite obviously done for the authors.

And take this book along.

A book for the ages!.......1999-06-19

David Rago knows his subject to the point of having no need for reference books or any other source for information. This title reflects years of knowledge accrued through ongoing study. Thank you David Rago for sharing your knowledge with us!

A must have for arts and crafts enthusiasts!.......1998-08-30

This book is not only a great source for reference, it also details the most important aspects of the art pottery movement (with great photographs as examples!).

Book Description

Roman, antique, Gothic, from 19th-century America; mostly in full upper and lower, plus numerals. Unusual, striking, boldly designed. 100 plates.

Book Description

talian villas are generally regarded as beautiful havens where a privileged elite, fleeing the harsh realities of the city, found peace and harmony amid buildings and gardens framed upon classical ideals of proportion, balance, and the natural. In her interdisciplinary book, Dianne Harris presents a radically different view of villa life as it developed during the eighteenth century on the vast estates dominating the fertile Lombard plain. Governed from Vienna by a Habsburg regime bent upon increased tax revenues, the great landowning families lived lives fraught with tensions and contradictions. Although they retained many privileges and indulged in shows of wealth and social distinction, they faced mounting demands for reform and progress from an absolutist state.

The Nature of Authority employs what Harris calls "panoramic history" to trace the mingling of enlightened reform and a culture of display in the design and functioning of villas and villa life in eighteenth-century Lombardy. Cadastral maps are juxtaposed with Marc'Antonio Dal Re's famous prints of the "delights" of villa life; both are woven into an exceptionally wide-ranging investigation of the villas, their gardens, and crop-bearing fields and their representation in visual and written sources from agricultural treatises to books of etiquette. Combining this diverse material with a sharp focus upon the organization of space and class privilege, Harris shows how the villas served as centers of complex cultural and sociopolitical transactions, fashioning a landscape that was at once a beguiling vista and a tool in the enforcement of a strict hierarchy of use and value.

Harris's innovative book reveals the complicity of landscape in the formation of culture and the structures of everyday life. It also elucidates the significance of Lombardy as a testing ground for Habsburg policies of enlightened reform in the social and natural orders.

Average customer rating:
The Nature of Authority: Villa Culture, Landscape, and Representation in Eighteenth-Century Lombardy (Buildings, Landscapes, and Societies)
Dianne Suzette Harris
Manufacturer: Pennsylvania State University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000ORAAL8

Average customer rating:
Drawings of the Hudson River School 1825 - 1875
Jo Miller
Manufacturer: Brooklyn Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GKEZYG

Average customer rating:
Extracts from the Report of the United States Deep Waterways Commission prepared at Detroit, Michigan, December 18-22, 1896 ... Reprint of parts relating to the Oswego-Oneida-Mohawk Route from Lake Ontario to the Hudson River, and Drawings pertaining
James B., & John E. Russell, & Lyman E. Cooley Angell
Manufacturer: NP
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000LRE5K8

Average customer rating:
Hudson River Drawings
Richard McDaniel , and Frances F. Dunwell
Manufacturer: Purple Mountain Pr Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Drawing | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0935796487

Average customer rating:
Hudson River houses : Edwin Whitefield's The Hudson River and Rail road illustrated
Edwin Whitefield , and John Zukowsky
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00005W42A

Average customer rating:
To Embrace the Universe : The Drawings of Frederic Edwin Church - An Exhibition at the Hudson River Museum, Yonkers, New York - January 22 - March 18, 1984

Manufacturer: The Hudson River Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000H4PFVS

Average customer rating:
An unprejudiced eye: the drawings of Jasper F. Cropsey: An exhibition organized by the Hudson River Museum, December 22-February 24, 1980
Jasper Francis Cropsey
Manufacturer: The Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006DXKSU

Average customer rating:
John La Farge: Watercolors and Drawings
John] Hudson River Museum of Westchester [La Farge
Manufacturer: The Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KVM5A2

Average customer rating:
Meditations on nature: The drawings of David Johnson
John I. H Baur
Manufacturer: Hudson River Museum of Westchester
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Landscape | Painting | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0943651042

Average customer rating:
Old sailing days on the Hudson: The maritime drawings of John Douglas Woodward
Richard W Wilkie
Manufacturer: Three City Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006WHRKS

Average customer rating:
To embrace the universe: Drawings by Frederic Edwin Church : an exhibition at the Hudson River Museum, January 22, 1984 through March 18, 1984
Elaine Evans Dee
Manufacturer: The Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006EQB0S

Book Description

bio of the "La Bamba" singer-songwriter

Customer Reviews:

WHY WASN'T THE MOVIE LIKE THIS??.......2000-10-24

This was a great biography. I foolsihly thought that the movie was accurate, but this book proves me wrong. It would have been good for the movie to be just like this book, but of course the show business just wants to make it look good to make a profit! As well, maybe the movie makers had to change some things around or they would get sued. If I were going to make a movie about him, I would base it on this book. The movie was a good movie, but not truly about the real Ritchie Valens...same as the Buddy Holly Story.

Ritchie Valens.......2000-02-03

I had been a fan of Ritchie's since 1988. When I learned of this book through Ritchie's offical fan club; I couldn't have been more pleased. I had done a research paper in my senior year of high school, on Ritchie, and I realized how little was written about him. The first Latino Rocker is the only book out there about Ritchie, and I thought it was wonderful. The other shared someone personal traits about Ritchie that allowed me to know him at least a little bit. It was actually better than the movie La Bamba. I highly recomend this book for a new Ritchie fan. I love the pictures of him in the book. My heart goes out to his family and friends since tomorrow will be February 3rd.

An absolute MUST READ for ALL Valens & rock-n-roll fans!!!.......1999-05-24

Ms. Mendheim does much much more than give us an accurate account of the famed Lation rock-n-roll star's life. She successfully immerses us completely in Ritchie Valens' music, leaving us with a comprehensive wealth of knowledge that was long overdue for the public! Ms. Mendheim's thorough research is to be congratulated time after time! You WON'T be disappointed!

A complicated, and confusing read.......1998-07-30

The First Latino Rocker jumps around more than a 2 year old on a sugar fix. It is terribly written, yet the author says it was 20 years in the making. My grade school cousin can write a one page book report with more info on a subject, than Ms. Mendheim gives in 175 pages. After the first 3 or 4 pages she has jumped from his infancy, to his musical career several times. Halfway through you are so confused with his story you have to continuously look back towards the front to see what the hay is going on. Let's just hope she does not quit her day job. The only high point in the book are the photo's.

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