Jokerman 8

Book Description

Jokerman 8 is a posse of forest radicals based out of San Francisco State University that engages in a series of demonstrations and stunts to protest environmental destruction: they sink whaling ships in Iceland and stage a "tree-in" in southern Oregon, then party to let off steam. Along the way, numerous subplots merge the past (1960s) with the present (1990s): a young man tries to escape the draft, and yippies succeed in levitating the Pentagon. Challenging and irreverent, the text moves at a breakneck pace, stopping just long enough to question how the world got the way it is and how it might be fixed.

Customer Reviews:

Put aside your preconceptions and pick up Jokerman 8.......2006-05-02

Jokerman 8 is billed as "a rockin, rollin, wild-eyed journey through the American eco-saboteur movement, and a restless multistranded narrative about two pasts that can never be reconstituted: happy childhoods and forests." Reviewers have noted how it moves through the decades with some wild characters and a collective "we" used for the first person narrative. I'm not one for gimmicky books, so I freely admit to being apprehensive about reading and reviewing Jokerman 8. Also, I'm a liberal and a capitalist at heart, and I believe at working for change within the system, so how was I going to get along with a brand of renegade environmentalists?

Melo manages to pull it all off. Music ties the adventures of the edo-sabateurs together, from The Beatles and a daughter named Jude to U2's Joshua Tree, complete with a several-page analysis of "With or Without You." The lyrics and allusions in Melo's prose made me want to run out and listen to these albums. His characters are off-the-wall but always shine with their true colors in a way that endears them to the reader. I admired Willie Shoman's principled approach to his tree-spiking jail sentence, as he chose not to kowtow to the man to get a shortened sentence. I cracked up at the dedication of Eleanor Cookee, who wanted to set up a Wildlife Legal Cooperative, but couldn't find any lawyers in California to donate their time, since time is money. "She does find, however, lawyers who are willing to donate money, which is, in turn, used to hire lawyers. Frequently, she hires back the same lawyers who donated the money in the first place." One the machine is in place, Eleanor loses interest and looks for new challenges.

Melo's book is one that has a generation-spanning audience. The characters are children of the 1960's, but many of their ideals are still held by today's young activists. It's certainly not for everyone, but pick this up if you have an open mind or want to remember a time when you cared more about saving the world than your own personal gain.

Read Jokerman. Repeat........2005-08-03

I like how he uses Beatles tunes as a thread to weave through storyline. Read Jokerman just to hear the story of a girl named Jude. :) Plethora of earthy, rich, colorful visuals plop you, amazed into his 60's and 70's Oregon forest rain, startling and fluid movement rush you back in forth from idealistic decades to current time, and you realize idealism still thrives. Read this book with your friends, to your children, out loud around the campfire, because this is a book that will hook monkey hearts who celebrate facts like love and hope, unabashed, are sustainable. This is the book that teaches us how important it is to take turns on each others shoulders.

An Ode to Joy.......2005-03-12

Jokerman 8 follows a shifting group of eco-saboteurs in the eighties, from their loose beginnings at college to the end of their days as a group. Individual characters are memorably described, but most of the action happens smack in the middle of a collective consciousness. The author accomplishes this through the use of a rare device--first person plural narration, the collective "we." I can't think of it being used in any book besides The Virgin Suicides, which is another incredible portrait of time and place. The "we" places us in the middle of missions to protect old-growth timber stands, Canadian wolves, and more. The "we" invites the reader in and along. It's uncanny. You have to read the book to understand what a joyful stomping journey it is.

A Novel of Friendship.......2005-02-11

Stories told around singular events often have the unfortunate distinction of being remembered for the small details, at the expense of the big picture. Think the rape scene in Deliverance or El Gordo's Last Stand in For Whom the Bell Tolls.

Jokerman 8 has no dearth of singular events. Some are quite spectacular, moving and memorable. But a careful reading will reveal that the bigger picture looms over all these events. Just as Hemingway complained that his tale was one of loyalty, and not war, Melo could easily make the case that Jokerman 8 is nothing more than an ode to friendship. The people we love, and more importantly, who return that love, overshadow any incident, whether it's the levitation of the Pentagon or the sinking of a ship.

Tread Lightly and Stop to Take Pictures.......2004-09-06

It took me three tries to get out of the basket chair on my porch this morning. Coffee in one hand, the nearly finished reviewer copy of Jokerman 8 in the other, loaned from a friend. I don't know how else to begin a review of a book that starts at such a basic level: humankind's connection to the world, to the universe, to childhood, and to the petty bourgeoisie melodious humdrum of daily life.

I hate that this book is compared to The Monkey Wrench Gang, not out of any particular loathing for Abbey (a damn fine Utahn and a personal hero) but more because the sway of Jokerman 8 follows its theme: gentle impulses. This is not a burn and slash, this is a flow, albeit a tragically funny one at times. Melo has indulged us with the subtle presence of youth; tree spiking and eco-salvation take a backseat to laughter and the revolving door quality of causes and friendships in our 20's.

More importantly, Melo is not starting a cult. Anger is not fuel for Jokerman, as it was for Hayduke and pals.

Why read this? Mainly, because Jokerman 8 will make you remember. Or at least recall THAT moment of sway and simple acceptance; the laughter of youth interfused with political infrastructure; a genuine love of Nature--not only as the outdoors, but as something constantly inherent to ourselves and our ultra-blind staggering through the concrete Wilderness.

Book Description

For two centuries the portion of the great Sovereign Stone belonging to the humans of Loerem was lost from sight and memory. But there are those who dare never forget ...

A magical relic has been miraculously recovered -- and the battle for the future of Loerem begins. It is a nightmare conflict that will ensnare dwarf, human, elf, and orken beings, as the immortal dark lord Dagnarus launches terrible war from the blackest depths of the Void. And now heros must emerge from the most unlikely corners of the world to deny Dagnarus the awesome power of the Stone -- or suffer the hideous damnation of his hellish reign.

Download Description

The immortal dark lord Dagnarus launches a nightmarish battle, and the future of Loerem is at stake. Heroes must emerge from unlikely corners of the world to deny Dagnarus the power of the Stone -- or suffer the hideous damnation of his hellish reign. For two centuries the portion of the great Sovereign Stone belonging to the humans of Loerem was lost from sight and memory. But there are those who dare never forget... A magical relic has been miraculously recovered - and the battle for the future of Loerem begins. It is a nightmare conflict that will ensnare dwarf, human, elf, and orken beings, as the immortal dark lord Dagnarus launches terrible war from the blackest depths of the Void. And now heros must emerge from the most unlikely corners of the world to deny Dagnarus the awesome power of the Stone - or suffer the hideous damnation of his hellish reign.

Customer Reviews:

Better than the first book which only improves the story........2005-08-19

The Guardians of the Lost is the second book in the Sovereign Stone Trilogy by Margret Weis and Tracy Hickman. In the second installment the plot is moved considerably forward at the same face pace as was found int he first book. the characters are also more defined in this book and their roles are more clear than in the first book.

This world is unlike their Dragonlance books in that they have complete control over what happens and it's noticably a little darker than their other works.

The story during the Sovereign Stone Trilogy moves along at a break neck pace. There are multiple twists along the way. I thinkt he thing I like best about this trilogy is that the 'villian' starts off as a good guy for the most part, but with misguided ideals. He doesn't really know he's being evil he thinks he's doing what's best.

Overall, if you are a fan of Weis and Hickman's Dragonlance Chronicles of Death Gate cycle you should give these books a chance. The world if fresh and different from most that is out there today.

If you're ready for a new journey, jump aboard and get ready for a fun enjoyable ride.

Lord Of The Stones.......2005-04-18

Guardians Of The Lost, the second tome in the Sovereign Stone trilogy, follows its predecessor Well Of Darkness with more characters, more races, more action and even more oddity. The setting is 200 years following the fall of Old Vinnengael in the world called Loerem. The races distrust each other and one another while a noble few seek to reunify the sovereign stones and rid the world of evil and woe. The servant of void Dagnarus, still alive and bent on domination, has increased his army of nefarious Vrykyl and moreover used magical portals to gain indefatigable foot soldiers.
For most of the book Guardians Of The Lost bears a close resemblance to Tolkien's Lord Of The Rings. Two sets of companions traverse the land carrying precious (in this case) stones. They flee and approach dark forces bent on capturing them and possession of the prized magical stones. The choice of the companions again defies logic at first, although the gods trust in them is ultimately justified. As battles, betrayals and bewilderment ensues Dagnarus is thwarted in his ultimate dream, but so are the noble companions and their custodians. The book ends mid-saga as danger looms and confusion reigns on all sides.
The fantasy is rich and the characters motley, but one can only wonder at the semblance of the story to the well-known classic of the genre.

Series gets even better in the second installment.......2004-08-26

The first book in this series was very well done and in this second book, the series gets even better. The danger to the realm is much more dire than in the first book as Dagnarus now has an army plus numerous Vykrls at his command. But in typical fantasy tradition there are always heroes to rise to the challenge and defend their land. The characters in this book are very well written and a few even infuse the book with a little humour, something lacking in the first book.

All in all this is a really good book and I can't wait to read the third and final book in this series.

Too Obvious, Backward Characters, and Nothing Accomplished.......2004-08-08

First off, Dagnarus was and still is my favorite character (even though I know, like all my favorite characters, he's going to have to die.)I ploughed through this book like I plough through winter when the snow's up to my waist. Not because the book was bad, mind you, but because I hated to see Dagnarus constantly being thwarted time and time again -- and I knew he would be. But, I didn't take off any stars since that's a personal thing, and not all people love Dagnarus.

That mentioned, and my love for Dagnarus aside, this book lost one star because of the ending. Normally I like a book when something is ACCOMPLISHED at the end, but nothing was accomplished here. New Vinningael hadn't even CRUMBLED at the end of the book. Oh, it was obvious that it would, I have no doubt it will be, but it DIDN'T; The book ends with what could be a guarantee that the stones will be captured, but throughout the book there's been so many times when the same thing was promised, the odds were infinite, and they STILL escaped with both stones. The promise at the end doesn't make you WONDER anymore -- you KNOW that it won't happen; The Grandmother and Bashae, alone and with the human portion of the stone, are ordered to be captured. But again, they weren't CAPTURED, which makes me believe there's a 100% chance that the capturing of these two pecwae, despite that they are weak and cowardly and small, will again be a FAILURE by of an all-powerful Vrykyl.

I didn't like any of the main protagonists, and the ones I did like had the worst ending imaginable - Wolfram and Ranessa. The only two decent characters in the book. Their role was a huge letdown, for several reasons: They were the only flawed characters, and deserved to have a much larger part; Dagnarus knew that they were decoys, so why the hell was he ordering them captured?; and instead of being creative and having a Trevinici who's unlike any other Trevinici, she has to be a dragon, which just shows you how robotic and similar that race is. I was hoping that she would teach the snotty, proud, and ANNOYING Trevinicis a few things.

Success for the good became too obvious (it would have been better if the success of DAGNARUS was obvious, because then you would think, "How the hell are the protagonists going to beat him NOW?") -- furthermore, I was hoping that at the end, Dagnarus would have at least been HOLDING at least ONE of the stones - not promised it AGAIN. I thought the main characters deserved smaller roles whereas the background characters should have deserved larger roles, and the fact that nothing was accomplished made the plot and storyline nowhere near as strong as the Well of Darkness.

Furthermore, I didn't like how a Vrykyl turned its back on Dagnarus when they were linked, and yet a Dominion Lord who has their own free will can't turn a little evil now and then.

I had been about to give it 2 stars, but since there was Dagnarus, Wolfram, Ranessa, Valura, and Shakur (as small parts as these characters had) I bumped it up to 3.

A homage to Tolkin, yet a great book........2004-05-06

Let me tell you the plot of this book, and you'll see how Tolkin gets in: Two people, in this case only one of them is a halfling, are getting a quest which involves carrying a magical item which is the key to rule the races of the world. They ae joined by a wise old person, which happens to be a wizard, and by warriors along the way. A dark Lord, which once owned the artifact, is also searching for it, sending his lethal, undead servants after the party. Reminds you something?

Yet, even though Tolkin's effect is clear, this book makes a great reading. The plot is of course much more complicated than what I wrote above, and Weis and Hickman's amazing character building, world describing and storytelling talent, makes you read this book flowingly, and be eager for more.

Amazon.com

Mark W. Tiedemann has a reputation for psychologically complex and strongly plotted short fiction (see, for example, his contributions to Vanishing Acts and Sirens and Other Daemon Lovers). He uses these traits to great effect in his first novel, a robot mystery set in the world created by the late Isaac Asimov. In a future where humankind is divided into three broad coalitions--Earther, Spacer, and Settler--positronic robots are governed by the three laws of robotics, designed to make it impossible for them to harm a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human to come to harm. However, positronic robots are outlawed on Earth.

The book opens as a Spacer delegation arrives on Earth to negotiate the repeal of the antirobot laws. Special Agent Mia Daventri is assigned to security for the Earther negotiating team, along with a specially modified robot, Bogard, the only one of its kind on the planet. Neither human nor robot is able to prevent what happens next, something that should have been impossible: the public massacre of both negotiating parties. Mia survives the assassination, thanks in part to Bogard--who does not act according to design specifications--but her life is still in danger. Bogard and Mia join forces with returning franchise characters Derec Avery and Ariel Burgess to unravel the corporate and political conspiracy behind the slaughter of the diplomats.

Dialogue and plot are crisp and tight, and the characters are distinct and multilayered. This is superior franchise fiction, designed for adults with a taste for mystery and rigorous logic. An ambiguous ending hints at future installments. --Luc Duplessis

Book Description

The First Law of Robotics states that a robot may not injure a human being, or through inaction, allow a human to come to harm. At a crucial conference uniting the Spacers, the Settlers, and representatives of Earth, Senator Clar Eliton of Earth and Senior Space Ambassador Galiel Humadros of Aurora are advocating the restoration of positronic robots on Earth, repudiating years of fear and resentment. As the Spacer delegates arrive on Earth, conspirators assassinate Sentor Eliton and Ambassador Humadros. Derec Avery is called in to investigate what may have caused the robot bodyguards to fail at the most critical hour. But when his inquiries are stone-walled, he joins forces with Special Agent Mia Daventri and Calvin Instititute attache Ariel Burgess to penetrate a vast conspiracy that threatens to bring all three worlds to the brink of war.

Download Description

A fantastic new robot mystery set in the world of the late Isaac Asimov; the most improtant conference between the Spacers, the Settlers, and representatives of Earth itself is about to occur. Senator Clar Eliton of Earth and Senior Space Ambasador Galiel Humandros of Aurora are advocating the restoration of positronic robots on Earth, rebuking years of fear and resentment. When Spacer delegates arrive on Earth, conspirators move to assassinate the senator, and Special Agen Mia Daverri - assigned to protect Eliton - is the only member of her team to survive the attack. Together with Derec Avery - she sets out to expose a vast conspiracy that threatens to bring three worlds tot he brink of war.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting, but not great.......2006-07-09

I'm a die hard fan of Asimov's, and really love his robot novels.

This book is interesting, but fails to reach Asimovian heights. The characters are not very compelling, and they all have the same behavior. They lack the caracterization given by Asimov to spacers and terrans. Also, the mystery investigation is too long, and it loses interest from time to time.

The ending is ambiguous, it let me wondering some things, which will hopefully be cleared in the next 2 mysteries.

It is however, a good read, and has good moments. Most of it's flaws como from a comparison to Asimov's work. It is a good piece of sci-fi in it's own right.

Only for Die Hards.......2006-03-10

Purists will argue that once an author has died then his output has finished. Others will argue that there's no compelling reason not play in someone else's imaginary universe if there are good new stories to be told. Certainly there's a thriving market for new Sherlock Holmes stories. I myself don't mind a continuation novel or pastiche if it's well written and captures the flavour of the original.

This book fails on both counts for me. Ultimately this is just a mystery with robots in it. Without Asimov's name to spruik it I doubt most of us would bother picking it up. Tiedemann is not a bad author but this is dry, technical stuff for the most part. His characters aren't badly drawn and there's some mildly interesting discussion of new aspects of the Three Laws but there's long, dense passages of technobabble that simply beg to be skimmed.

Some will like the dense, convoluted conspiracy, I found it tedious.

Bottom line is I'm not inspired to read the other two books in the series, which about sums up my indifference to this one.

A Surprisingly Good Addition.......2003-02-01

I read Mark Tiedemann's COMPASS REACH and was blown away by his ability to do terrific characterization in the context of a full-blown space adventure. I was almost disappointed to discover that he had written books in someone else's universe, but I gave MIRAGE a shot and I'm glad I did! All his strengths are here, breathing life into what I'd come to see as a dry, been-there-done-that franchise. Proves that a good idea can always be done a bit better if a good writer is given a chance to reimagine the whole thing.

MIRAGE is an espionage thriller that toys with a frankenstein idea. When the climax comes, teh possibility of a really cliche ending is avoided by following logic--like Asimov would have done!--and sticking to the possibilities in the characters themselves.

Great characters (he even made Derec Avery and Ariel Burgess more interesting!) and a great plot, with impressive speculation to boot. What more can you want from a science fiction novel?

Tiedemann's "original" novels are better, but MIRAGE turned out to be a really good introduction to a fine writer. FIVE STARS!

Mirage: Fails to Excite.......2002-12-14

When a prolific and profitable author like Isaac Asimov dies, his publishers do not believe that his death ought to mark the end of the publishing gravy train. After Asimov's death, his Foundation and Robot universes were novelized again by several writers, most notably David Brin, Gregory Benford, Roger MacBride Allen, and now most recently with Mark Tiedemann with MIRAGE. It is not overly difficult to duplicate the style of Asimov; it is his substance that remains elusive. Tiedemann writes of the robotic future of earth that had not yet morphed into a galactic empire. This empire is staunchly anti-robotic, with much opposition coming from decadent Spacer worlds that require robots to maintain their own self-loathing existences. On earth, a number of humans and Spacers are assassinated by unknown assailants, throwing into jeopardy a major treaty between earth and the Spacer worlds. The problem with Tiedemann is that his characters speak with the Asimovian twang but lack its inner emotional resonance. Tiedemann seems unclear as to who his protagonist should be. Instead he divides center stage between Special Agent Mia Daventri and roboticist Derec Avery, neither of whom is sufficiently interesting to involve the reader. Nowhere in MIRAGE does Tiedemann cause the reader to care about an increasingly volatile symbiotic relationship between man and robot. Roger MacBride Allen was far more successfull in his trilogy of Asimov inspired robot novels. If the reader wants to get further involved in a post Asimovian universe of conflict between man and robot, then this reader has little choice but to hope that writers like Tiedemann learn their craft well enough to make him care about how humans interact with both altered humans and robots. The real test of any novel lies in its ability to cause the reader to think of it long after he closes the flyleaf. Sadly, MIRAGE failed to deliver.

Very re-freshing.......2002-06-03

I gave up the ROBOTS series when I was younger, because I felt the material had gotten stale. Same old philosophies were being re-hashed. But after two or three passes, I picked MIRAGE and CHIMERA up at my bookstore.

I couldn't have been more pleased! Not only were the setting and characters tangible, but the presentation of the technology was both believable and imaginative!

If you are (or were) a fan of Asimovs ROBOT series, these two books will re-ignite the passion.

Buy these books!!

Customer Reviews:

An incredible gift to us. Thank you Jamie........1999-03-07

This book allows us to open our perspectives.The Clan Mothers teach us to honor ourselves as female members of society which is so needed in America. I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to live their spiritual path on a day to day basis.

A gentle and enduring journey of self discovery.......1999-01-07

Within the stories of the births and quests for inner knowledge of each of the 13 Clan Mothers Jamie Sams has held up a mirror for all women. The quest for female spirituality is clearly defined in terms of loving, trusting, nurturing and facing self truth within our sacred space. The knowledge she shares can assist any woman who is on a path to find and hold her impeccable warrior spirit. Her creations of sheilds and dolls to hold the nature of each of the Clan Mothers are magical. Thank you Jamie for sharing your vision.

Average customer rating:

13 ORIGINAL CLAN MOTHERS
Jamie Sams
Manufacturer: HarperSanFrancisco
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OEN4CI

The 13 Original Clan Mothers - Your Sacred Path To Discovering The Gifts, Talents, And Abilities Of The Feminine . . .

Average customer rating:

The 13 Original Clan Mothers - Your Sacred Path To Discovering The Gifts, Talents, And Abilities Of The Feminine . . .
Jamie Sams
Manufacturer: Harper-san Francisco
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IWLLFS

Average customer rating:
The New Balanced Diet: Enhance Your Well-Being with Delicious, pH-Balanced Food (Powerfood Series) (Powerfood)
Dagmar Von Cramm
Manufacturer: Silverback Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Healthy | Special Diet | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Healthy | Diets | Diets & Weight Loss | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Exercise & Fitness | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Fatburner: Get Slim Using the Glycemic Index Theory of Food Combining (Powerfood)

The Acid-Alkaline Food Guide: A Quick Reference to Foods & Their Effect on pH Levels

Eat Papayas Naked: The Ph Balanced Diet for Super Health And Glowing Beauty

The pH Miracle: Balance Your Diet, Reclaim Your Health

The Acid-Alkaline Diet for Optimum Health: Restore Your Health by Creating Balance in Your Diet

Accessories:

Tanita BC533 Glass Innerscan Body Composition Monitor

ASIN: 1930603053

Book Description

In a healthy body, alkaline and acid are properly balanced. Unhealthy eating habits, stress, and other factors can disturb this balance. The New Balanced Diet provides simple, tasty recipes to counteract excessive acid in your body and help you to feel great.

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The Bible of British Furniture.

British Antique Furniture PG & Reasons for Values
John Andrews
Manufacturer: Antique Collectors Club Dist A/C
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Furniture Design | Design & Decorative Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Furniture | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Reference | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

English Furniture from Charles II to Queen Anne

18th Century English Furniture--Norman Adams

The Bulfinch Anatomy of Antique Furniture: An Illustrated Guide to Identifying Period, Detail, and Design (Bulfinch Anatomy of Antique Furniture)

Eighteenth Century French Furniture: A collector's guide to furniture sytles and values

English Country Furniture: 1500-1900

ASIN: 1851490906

Customer Reviews:

The Bible of British Furniture. .......2007-05-07

The Collector Club books been around for years. This is the recent update of the best British Antique Funiture Price guide and references you could find. Updated and some added. If you value art and don't have this book. Then you are missing a great resources of information.

Victorian and Edwardian Furniture: Price Guide and Reasons for Values

Average customer rating:

Victorian and Edwardian Furniture: Price Guide and Reasons for Values
John Andrews
Manufacturer: Antique Collectors Club Dist A/C
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Furniture | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1851493840

Book Description

This is a major revision of what is acknowledged as the best general survey of this major collecting area. It is written in straightforward, down-to-earth language and discusses works accessible to most collectors, not museum pieces. The text is lavishly illustrated with clear informative photographs.

Book Description

Because the edge you need begins with the space you occupy . . .The Office Interior Design Guide enables facilities professionals with little or no design experience to become knowledgeable, active partners with consultants and designers in developing efficient, flexible office spaces that work. It is also intended to serve as a general overview of the office environment for the design or engineering professional.

This practical book covers the entire planning and management process for both conventional and alternative officing, with important information on The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, indoor air quality, fire safety, and more. From building support systems to key elements of interior design, this comprehensive guide shows you how to:

Create a strategic facilities plan
Put together an effective in-house team
Define project needs and objectives
Build solid relationships with management, technical, and creative consultants
Choose the right design firm
Select appropriate facilities
Develop an on-target schedule and budget
Achieve adaptable, cost-effective design solutions.

Complete with sample letters for requesting proposals and qualifications, plus a detailed programming questionnaire to help you specify project requirements, The Office Interior Design Guide enables you to create hardworking environments equipped to handle today's business challenges and tomorrow's organizational needs.

Customer Reviews:

Intelligently Presented and Extremely Useful.......2004-07-07

After sourcing out dozens of books on office interior design, I found Julie Rayfield's Guide To Office Interior Design more than helpful. It was a real gift from heaven! I'm totally new to the world of design and about to start a job in sales and management for an international office furniture supplier and designer. I needed some information quickly. And I wanted it in a user-friendly, comprehendible manner. Reading the Gudie to Office Interior Design was like doing a crash-course in interior design without the heavy technical approach you would normally be subjected to.

The book recognises that office design and execution is no simple task. It does what few books do - offers numerous ideas and tools to get the job done perfectly in a step-by-step guide that makes sense. It's a real life saver because using the outlines and project-oriented structure it offers, you can't go wrong. It's like a map that will get you exactly where you want to go without the sweat, drama, and disappointment that you could face if you weren't sure what to do or which direction to take.

If you need a simple, easy to understand and very useful guide to office interior design, you can't get a better book than this. Highly recommended.

Book Description

A brilliant study on the use of typography in exhibition and display design. The book establishes the basic rules, which must be mastered before they can be broken. The major part of the book is devoted to contemporary exhibition design and features the world's leading design groups such as Pentagram, working on a range of projects from the most distinguished museums in the world to local venues.

Customer Reviews:

Unfinished.......2005-04-10

"Note from the Editor: Every effort was made to obtain all fonts listed in this book. Where possible, fonts were listed in the named typeface, if not, Courier was used."

In fact, Courier was used 69 times.

Considering this is a book ABOUT fonts, the fact that they couldn't obtain the typefaces is just unnacceptable.

There is a short chapter on each designer, with a list on the side of the typefaces they designed. With some of them, the typeface is spelled out in that font. Makes sense right? Well, then in other (69 to be exact) cases it is spelled out in Courier (a typewriter-like font), making it seem like that is the font they designed. But on a few, you'll see that failed to obtain almost ANY of the fonts the designer was responsible for, so on the list, it looks like that person designed 10 identical fonts that all look like Courier.

I also found several obvious typos that should never have made it to print.

BUT - information and pictures are very interesting and well done, giving insight into their work and highlighting designers that aren't recognized enough in my opinion. Still, I would say do not buy this book. Not unless it is reissued with corrections. If the fonts were there, I would give the book 5 stars. Without them... what's the point of publishing it at all?

includes font creation tips using Illustrator & Fontographer.......2000-04-23

Hidden within the book's very good information on type design and the process of designing a typeface are numerous tips for the drafting of letterform in Illustrator, Fontographer, and Ikarus. For instance, Matthew Carter informs the reader of certain rules for the "placing of control points (vector points) in Postscript." Many designers discuss their different methods of inputting their drawing. Issues of font: outlines, metrics, bitmaps, hinting, scaling and other technical infor is touched upon. Though this technical stuff is not the focus of the book this sort of information is very hard to come by, hence, the book is a wonderful asset because of it.

Gets inside the head of some great living type designers!.......1998-09-14

Review from Chris MacGregor's Internet Type Foundry Index -

One question I get via E-mail more than any other is about learning how to start designing type. The problem with this question is that every type designer I know designs using a different method. Allan Haley goes to fourteen different type designers including Matthew Carter, Jonathan Hoefler, Erik Spiekerman, Carol Twombly, Tobias Frere-Jones and David Berlow to ask each one of them how they design type. This great book also includes information on how you can make cool fonts for hard cash (trust me, it is not a get rich quick craft, your hard cash may be a few coins a day at years end), Multiple Master fonts and a fantastic type timeline.

This book makes an excellent addition to Michael Harvey's Creative Lettering Today for the beginning to the master type designer.

Book Description

Twenty-five years after his death, Elvis Presley is still one of the biggest names in entertainment. This book will teach you through Elvis's own words and wit the techniques he used to become the icon that he is today. You can apply these tips to improve your confidence, social, and communication skills. You can find the fast track to reaching your dreams. You can develop your personal and professional life.

You will discover: Things you need to know about Elvis, strategies Elvis used to become a phenomenon, how Elvis acquired undying loyalty, what you can learn from Elvis for financial success and why Elvis is a source of inspiration.

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