The Fish Can Sing

Average customer rating:

Charming

Wonderful

A remarkable read

A Masterpiece!

The Tao of Lumpfish

The Fish Can Sing
Halldor Laxness
Manufacturer: Harvill Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1860469345

Book Description

A childhood in Iceland is the background to this powerful and evocative tale.

Halldor Laxness's wistfully tender novel tells the tale of Alfgrim, an abandoned child, whose mother gave birth to him in the turf-and-stone cottage of Bjorn of Brekkukot, the fisherman, on the outskirts of what is now Reykjavfk. It evokes his boyhood and youth, spent at his grandparents' home in the early years of the twentieth century, a hospitable place where dignified understatement was the norm and where everything from a lumpfish to a Bible had a fixed price that never changed.

Customer Reviews:

Charming.......2004-01-01

The charm of this book is in its atmosphere. You get a wonderful feel of early C20 Iceland and the characters that inhabit it, from the old-fashioned fisherman who ignores market economics to the admirer of modern cesspits. The age of the novel, like its hero, progresses from child to early-adolescent. A particularly charming thing about this novel is the way rather grimy adult features of adulthood are transformed by the place and its people. The cesspit-admirer, for instance, sees modern cesspits solely as an exciting new invention; and the farmers, when they discover barbed wire, just string it up in purposeless and harmless lines across the country.

The plot involves an orphan boy (Alfgrimur) who might be a gifted singer, his experiences while growing up, and his relationship with the elusive "famous Icelandic singer" Gardar Holm. But "fame" appears to be something petty, the god of Danish shopkeepers (Danes, of course, are grown-up) -- and the "one true note" which Alfgrimur seeks can be attained just as well while singing at funerals in the local churchyard.

Wonderful.......2003-08-06

What a wonderful book. If you loved Independent People as much as I did, you will love this book too. It has the same wit and some similar themes. The book does have a plot (despite what a couple of other reviewers say), but the author develops his story slowly. Once you're "into it" (be patient!) you will be glad for the pace. There are so many marvellous details here to savor. I just loved it, and plan to read it again in the near future.

A remarkable read.......2001-12-19

Laxness' book, "The Fish Can Sing" is a remarkable book. At first, it seems like a random series of vignettes about early 20th-century Icelandic life, full of detail and life, but appearing loosely bound at best. But by the end of the novel, the reader realizes he is in the hands of a master craftsman as the rich detail provided in earlier chapters come back to play important roles in the culmination of the book and its plot.

There's an endless array of well-defined, complicated, and vivid characters. There's the lavish countryside painted simply - evoking the same feeling you get from a good watercolor. Then there's the plot, which is mysterious and complex, but leaves you with much to ponder.

A nod to the translator, Magnus Magnussen, because the prose is fertile and poetic. It's unbelievably rich, yet brilliantly sparse. This is the way prose should be.

Laxness and Magnussen have given us a beautiful, soulful book. It's a remarkable read.

A Masterpiece!.......2001-04-27

This brilliant work amply demonstrates why its author, Halldor Laxness, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1955(?). Without much of a plot--it portrays the maturation and awakening of a young man, Alfgrimur Hanson--"The Fish Can Sing" is nonetheless very rich in characterization and aptly depicts life in early 20th century Iceland. As an American who has lived in Iceland for the last two years, I have grown to appreciate Laxness's insight into the character of the proud and independent Icelandic people. I have read two other Laxness books which I could find printed in English--"Under the Glacier" and "Independent People"--and although those are very good, "The Fish Can Sing" is outstanding and clearly my favorite. Humorous, though-provoking and ultimately very moving, this book is one which you will surely enjoy and not readily forget.

The Tao of Lumpfish.......2001-03-19

I could not help but think while reading this novel of a Frank Capra film from the 1930s entitled YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU about an eccentric household headed by Lionel Barrymore full of amiable zanies who stump the frenetic world around them.

Laxness, Iceland's only Nobelist, writes of a young orphan named Alfgrim who may or may not be a relative of the great opera singer Gardar Holm, who also hails from Brekkukot, where the old lumpfisherman Bjork maintains a rambling house on the outskirts of what was to become the country's new capital, Reykjavik. This house is filled with lodgers who get to stay rent-free for no other reason than that they ask.

Alfgrim keeps crossing paths with Gardar Holm and the young woman who wants to become the singer's lover. For some reason, the singer always cancels his appointments to the chagrin of his sponsors and fans; and the young woman, Blaer Gudmunsen, is always given the slip. The unhappy Holm is in stark contrast to Alfgrim, who maintains his balance by being suspicious of fame and content with a future of gathering lumpfish.

In the end, this is an feel-good work of considerable artistry, with a masterful, rich sense of characterization. The translation by Magnus Magnusson is excellent, as befits the man who at one and the same time is both one of the best translators of Icelandic Sagas and the TV host of BBC's MASTERMIND and WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYHOW?

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The Fish Can Sing
Halldor Laxness
Manufacturer: The Harvill Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000UQQL4S

Product Description

Trade Paperback. 246 p. Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature.

WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE... and ...WHO NEEDS ENEMIES: Some Notes Concerning a Green Box; Why Johnny Can't Speed; The Emoman; Space Opera; The Empire of T'ang Lang; A Miracle of Small Fishes; Dream Done Green; He; Polonaise; Wolfstroker; Ye Who Would Sing

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WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE... and ...WHO NEEDS ENEMIES: Some Notes Concerning a Green Box; Why Johnny Can't Speed; The Emoman; Space Opera; The Empire of T'ang Lang; A Miracle of Small Fishes; Dream Done Green; He; Polonaise; Wolfstroker; Ye Who Would Sing
Alan Dean Foster
Manufacturer: Del Rey - Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000NH7HKG

Average customer rating:

Book Description

Reeth Caldason's quest for vengeance—and for freedom from the twin plagues of rage and immortality—has brought the able swordsman to Bhealfa, where fear, magic, and brute force are weapons employed by the authorities to control the populace. The paladin clans—an order of mercenary knights—are determined to crush a growing revolution while Devlor Bastorran, sadistic heir apparent to the clan leadership, plots a gruesome retribution . . . against Reeth Caldason. But Reeth has more pressing concerns, for he has been entrusted with delivering much-needed gold that will help establish a rebel state on a remote island. And a powerful enemy stands in his way—one who could destroy not only the Covenant but Reeth's one chance for redemption as well.

Download Description

Cursed with immortality and fits of blind, deadly rage, swordsman Reeth Caldason has wandered the world seeking both revenge for his slain tribe and a cure for his affliction. His travels have brought him to Bhealfa, where the authorities use magic and brute force to control the entire population.

The paladin clans, an order of mercenary knights, are determined to crush the growing revolution, and Devlor Bastorran, the wildly cruel heir apparent to the clan leadership, plots a gruesome revenge against Reeth.

But Reeth has larger problems to contend with. The rebels have decided on the location of their new state -- a remote island -- and he has been given the dangerous task of delivering payment in gold. Soon Reeth discovers that a powerful new enemy threatens to destroy not only the Covenant, but also his chance for redemption.

Customer Reviews:

intriguing sword and sorcery tale .......2005-12-27

Immortal Qalochian swordsman Reeth Caldason of Bhealfa detests the paladin clans, enforcers of the rule of the tyrants that run the brutal rivals the Rintarah and Gath Tampoor Empires. All others are subject to their cruel sorcery or abuse from ground armies. Reeth knows that first hand as much of his tribe were killed by the Paladins. Almost as bad as his need for revenge of sending his people to near extinction, Reeth loathes the curse of immortality that haunts him and includes a by-product of out of control rage leading to violence and cruelty on a scale that even the Paladins fear.

As Reeth seeks the cure to his malady, he becomes entangled with a rebellious plot to eliminate the heir to the Bhealfa throne, Devlor Bastorran at a time when the Gath Tampoor Empire rules the island. Devlor the merciless learns of what he assumes is a betrayal and vows to kill those involved especially the immortal Reeth; if as rumor states that he cannot die, then Devlor will torture him for eternity while crushing the rebels that Reeth joined.

The second "Dreamtime" novel (see THE COVENANT RISING) is an intriguing sword and sorcery tale filled with plenty of action, but little of it of a magical variety. Instead the tale focuses more on Reeth's laments and Devlor's scheme to avenge those who plotted against him starting with the immortal swordsman. Thus the two prime antagonists share in common a gut need for revenge. THE RIGHTEOUS BLADE is a well written fantasy thriller even with no enchantments.

Harriet Klausner

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Two generations of Trek go exploring

Star Trek The Badlands Book One of Two Another great Trek!

Reasonably good writing, terrible format.

Unimportant

Badlands.......OK start

The Badlands Book One of Two (Star Trek)
Susan Wright
Manufacturer: Star Trek
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Adventure | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0671039571

Book Description

Located dangerously near the Cardassian border, the unstable region of space known as the Badlands has long been a hazard to interstellar navigation, characterized by violent plasma storms and other even stranger phenomena. Many starships have faced destruction there, including at least two incarnations of the Starship Enterprise™....

James T. Kirk braves the perils of the Badlands to confront a Romulan Bird of Prey that has entered Federation space in pursuit of a fleeing smuggler. But trespassing Romulans may be the least of Kirk's problems when the mysterious forces at work in the Badlands threaten both his ship and his crew!

A generation later, Jean-Luc Picard faces the same phantom menace when he commands his Enterprise into the Badlands on a mission vital to Federation-Cardassian relations. With Will Riker's life on the line, and the entire ship in jeopardy, it's up to Lieutenant Commander Data to determine the true nature of the Badlands' hidden danger!

Customer Reviews:

Two generations of Trek go exploring.......2003-01-28

The first book in the Badlands series of Star Trek books by Susan Wright is a bit of a letdown from what I had heard about it. The concept of the Badlands isn't a bad one, an unknown and mysterious area of space where something is lurking, and all four of the Star Trek crews have to deal with it in their own time. Something strange is lurking there, damaging ships and making the crew sick, and the different ships have to figure out whether it's something natural or something much more malevolent. However, this first book just falls completely flat for me.

First of all, as a series, I think that Pocket Books' penchant for tying all four Trek series together in a book series, where they all interact with the same storyline, is starting to wear a little thin. It's becoming a bit too unbelievable that they all interact with the same problem this many times, though this time Voyager isn't on the other side of the galaxy, which is a switch. I realize that it's a marketing ploy to entice readers of all the various series, but I hope Pocket Books starts to tone this down a bit. At least all of the other ancillary series aren't involved.

Secondly, it gets off to a bad start with this book. The only book I have read of Susan Wright's is the Voyager book Violations, and I remember liking it a great deal. This novel, however, seems written for a much younger level than I remember most Trek books being written. The sentence structure seems very simplistic, and I just had a feeling I was reading a Young Adult book. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but I did find it quite jarring. Maybe I just wasn't ready for that.

The characterization seemed a bit off as well. The most glaring example was Ensign Ro in the TNG story. This story takes place directly after the TV episode that introduced her, "Ensign Ro." This episode established her as a hothead with a lot of rage seething inside her. Even given that, though, I think Wright took her a little too far. Ro is a Bajoran, a race of people who have been subjugated by the Cardassians for years. When two Cardassians are brought on board, she has trouble dealing with that fact, exploding in a rage a couple of times. However, for me, that doesn't jibe with the episode. First, she acts like this even before the Cardassians come on board. Secondly, she always struck me as somebody who seethes inside, and would refuse to let a Cardassian see that he is affecting her. She seemed too explosive for me, and not the Ro I'm familiar with.

Finally, I think the stories suffer from feeling truncated. I think both of them could have used a bit more story, almost as if they both deserved their own book. I would not like the idea of this being a four book series, just because it would seem like more Pocket Books marketing. However, the stories do suffer from being squeezed into two books. The second story suffers from this more than the first one does. Kirk's story could just use a couple of scenes of falling action, because as it is, the story just ends. Obviously, one plot thread isn't finished because it has to be left for the subsequent stories to deal with. However, the rest of it just comes to an abrupt halt, with one thread having been dealt with and another one just hanging there.

The TNG story, though, feels very unfinished. In the plot thread that must continue for the next book, Data ends up making some scientific observations about it and that's about it. Two Cardassians come on board, see the crew fall ill, decide that the Federation is full of weak people, and take some of their intelligence back to the Cardassian Union. There is some resolution to the theme of the story, which is that one of the Cardassians has a fascination with Data as an artificial life form. Data neatly turns the tables on him, and the Cardassian is left with much to think about. It just seems like this story could have used some more meat to it.

One more complaint, and I'll make this a brief one. Please, spare me the "Kirk's yeoman is really in love with him and oh, isn't he a wonderful captain, I can't let him see that I'm a weak person" schtick. It got old in the original series, and it was particularly annoying here. Even more annoying is that, once Wright includes it she doesn't do anything with it. It almost seems like it's there just to make Kirk seem like an even more heroic figure.

I know this review consists of all negatives. I did, however, enjoy the book, faults and all. It is a quick read, which helps. The stories themselves, truncated as they are, are interesting if you're a Trek fan. I would certainly recommend that a Trek reader take a look at these, though I might suggest that you save your money and check them out from the library. There are better Trek books out there, and this one is just a nice side story.

Star Trek The Badlands Book One of Two Another great Trek!.......2002-12-20

Part 1

Star Trek

Part one takes place in 2268. Captain Kirk and the Enterprise are ordered to a set of coordinates that are way outside of Federation space. The mission: intercept and detain a smuggler that is supposed to be heading towards those coordinates. That smuggler is supposed to be smuggling plasma beam weapon technology. Once the Enterprise arrives, they discover the Badlands which to this point had not been discovered by the Federation. Captain Kirk is given credit for naming this space phenomenon "The Badlands." Captain Kirk eventually finds himself dealing with a Romulan smuggler, a Klingon D-7 cruiser and a mysterious radiation that is affecting his crew.

Part 2

Star Trek The Next Generation

Part two takes place in 2368. The Enterprise is ordered to survey the Badlands. Once there, Captain Picard dispatches Commander's Riker and Data in the shuttlecraft Hawking to explore the Badlands. Upon completing their survey, they discover that their navigational grid is down and have to find a way out of the Badlands and back to the Enterprise. Unfortunately for Riker and Data, the warp and impulse engines are down and they encounter the Cardassians who gladly insist on helping them.

Overall, these first two stories are extremely well written, albeit short, Trek stories that are in good keeping with Susan Wright's excellent writing style. She has definitely become one of the top Trek writers. In reference to some of the other reviews, the minor mistakes that are pointed out, are exactly that, minor and easily dismissible. This is good Star Trek that I recommend to any and all fans.

Reasonably good writing, terrible format........2002-01-29

Rather than writing a four-book series, each a full-length novel set in one of the Star Trek series, the author compresses this series into two books; the first tells a half-length story of the "Original Series" crew and a half-length story of the "Next Generation" crew. The second will have a half-length story of DS9 and a half-length Voyager story. This leaves each story feeling more than a bit rushed.

Other than that, the writing is fairly good, although it started weakly. There were a half-dozen typos and copyediting mistakes in the first 70 pages, (to say nothing of the anachronism of Kirk calling Scotty on his commbadge, a technological innovation that didn't exist for about another 80 years or so, roughly equivalent to an author of a historical novel set in the time of the War of 1812 having James Madison call James Monroe on the telephone) but I didn't notice any after that. The characters were competently handled, the plots were reasonably good as far as they went. They simply didn't have time to go far enough; that was the only serious problem with the book.

Unimportant.......2001-03-12

This was a frustrating read for me, containing good writing, but unimportant and meaningless plot that got nowhere.

Compesating the plotlessness there was the fact that Ro has always been one of my favorite characters and she has a prominent role in the second part of the book, wich pretty much saves the day.

Also, I was gratefull for the information regarding the existance of the novellas on the star trek timeline. Not horrible, but not nearly good either.

Badlands.......OK start.......2000-07-06

While this first book does bring the four parts of the startrek universe together, it has some problems. Right when the story begins to get interesting you jump a few years and start another. What the author should have done is separate the four stories into four stories. This was very successful for the Invasion Series and would have helped out this series as well.

However...the storyline is good, and the way she brings the star trek universe together is worth mentioning.

I cant wait to read the second book. To see what this phenomenon really is.

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Star Trek The Badlands Set Book One and Two
Susan Wright
Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000WW28P6

Product Description

Book one and two in The Badlands series. This is a complete two volume set not in a box.

2 Star Trek Badlands Titles - Book One and Book Two

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2 Star Trek Badlands Titles - Book One and Book Two
Susan Wright
Manufacturer: pocket
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

Product Description

2 massmarket paperbacks

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Don't shoot the wounded

Answers I've been looking for

Grace and Divorce: God's Healing Gift to Those Whose Marriages Fall Short
Les Carter
Manufacturer: Jossey-Bass
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Christian Living | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Divorce | Relationships | Christian Living | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0787975818

Book Description

Grace and Divorce, written by noted author and psychotherapist, Dr. Les Carter, provides sound theological thinking on divorce and wise and compassionate suggestions for reframing and deepening our understanding of this difficult and controversial topic. Using stories from his practice as a therapist, Dr. Carter offers healing to both those who divorce and those who know and love them. He explains that Jesus never intended us to be so fixed about right and wrong and so judgmental that we lose the ability to love those who do not meet His perfect standards. With kindness and love, he shows that the wonderful gift of God’s grace is the best way to respond to people facing this trying life challenge.

Customer Reviews:

Don't shoot the wounded.......2007-08-26

Dr. Carter provides great encouragement for those of us that are divorced by reminding us that God's grace in there for us, too - just like it is everyone else. Sometimes, in the midst of the turmoil, it is hard to remember that and, unfortunately, it is ofter hard for others to remember that about the divorced folks as well. This is a great book to encourage the divorced and would also be a great book for a pastoral staff member to read.

Answers I've been looking for.......2006-07-19

This book helped me to resolve questions and fears regarding the shame and guilt of divorce in my life. Coming from a Christian background and having a desire to do the right thing, even after four years of recovery, this was not fully resolved with me, especially in the area of remarriage. Les is able to explain God's grace and where divorce fits in there, in a way I never fully understood before.

This is a great resource of understanding and empathy for anyone who has not experienced divorce in dealing with anyone who has. This book sheds light on this often avoided subject and often neglected action in Christian churches today. This book is a MUST HAVE for Christian lay ministry and pastors.

Average customer rating:

A culinary journey

A promising book, until...

The chocolate pound cake recipe is worth the price alone!

This book is wonderfully written, with great recipes!

Bread and Chocolate: My Food Life In and Around San Francisco
Fran Gage
Manufacturer: Sasquatch Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Baking | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 157061153X

Customer Reviews:

A culinary journey.......2000-08-18

Fran Gage's lively curiosity and her knack for finding answers to her questions make this book an inspiration for food lovers in the Bay Area. Her stories about the people who grow, harvest or produce memorable foods in this region are personal, comprehensive, and delightful to read. Fran has a talent for storytelling that takes you vicariously to the spots she uncovered in her quest for answers. Her extensive bibliography is a great list for finding out more about cooking and ingredients. As a Bay Area resident, I found this book refreshing, readable, and informative - I learned so much more about the area I live in!

A promising book, until..........2000-06-25

the author starts writing about herself. There were parts of this book that were an absolute joy to read...but eventually, they were marred by the author's relentless self-promotion and conceit. Reading this, one would get the idea that Fran Gage single-handedly created the California cuisine movement. She mentions landmarks such as Chez Panisse or famous chefs only to imply that they were influenced by her. However, when she sets aside her bias to describe food and cooking, her writing truly comes alive. An uneven book, and certainly an exasperating one to get through.

The chocolate pound cake recipe is worth the price alone!.......1999-05-23

I loved this book and read it easily in one sitting. My regret is that I didn't know of Fran before her bakery burned down. Her style of writing is free and easy and without pretension. My only wish is that she had written more of her experience running a renowned bakery!

This book is wonderfully written, with great recipes!.......1999-05-17

I really love this wonderful, and inspiring book by Fran Gage, who used to own a bakery in my neighborhood. Not just a collection of stories, but interspersed with the prose are recipes culled from her experiences and travels. To me, this is what a cookbook should really be. It's a lovely book--well worth owning.

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Uniform Buttons of the United States, 1776-1865: Warren Tice

Excellent Reference

Uniform Buttons of the United States, 1776-1865

correction of an error

correction of an error

Uniform Buttons of the United States, 1776-1865: Button Makers of the United States, 1776-1865; Button Suppliers to the Confederate States, 1800-1865; Antebellum and Civil War Buttons of U.S. Forces
Warren K. Tice
Manufacturer: Thomas Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Conventional | Weapons & Warfare | Military | History | Subjects | Books | Armored Vehicles | Firearms | General
Military Science | History | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1577470249

Book Description

Already an enormously popular title - An absolute must for all collectors. More than 3500 actual photos of buttons. Nearly every make and style is represented and identified with key variations shown.

Customer Reviews:

Uniform Buttons of the United States, 1776-1865: Warren Tice.......2007-02-01

Nice all around book. Plenty of pics & information. A plus for a collector or investor of Civil War Buttons.

Excellent Reference.......2006-08-24

This is a very well written and informative book. The amount of research to write it must have been staggering. I strongly recommend this to anyone interested in the subject. I have had a little problem finding the meanings for all the symbology used by the author, but this is a minor problem.

Uniform Buttons of the United States, 1776-1865.......2000-09-07

I do not know of any more comprehensive book on American uniform buttons, and I have been heavily involved in the collecting of Civil War buttons for seven years. I have acquired a number of books on the subject, but I use none more frequently than this one. In this field of study, Alpaeus Albert set the standard with his book, "Record of American Uniform and Historical Buttons". Warren Tice makes a number of notable improvements over Albert's book. Tice's book includes many buttons unlisted by Albert. Tice also often gives a short history of the button, or of the military men known to have worn that specific variety of button. Tice also lists more backmarks, and makes many statements concerning the scarcity or availability of certain buttons or varieties of buttons, this is something that Albert neglected to do. Whereas Albert's book is simply a cataloguing of military buttons, Tice's book is a comprehensive and exhaustive study. At the beginning of the book Tice delves into the history of button making, giving information on all known button manufacturers- including a listing of the buttons each manufacturer produced. He then lists and pictures all known buttons of Federal armed forces 1830-1865- including political, patriotic, and personal image, Confederate armed forces, Militia buttons of the 31 states and District of Columbia known to have produced buttons during this period, and a section on unidentified buttons of the Antebellum and Civil War period. All in all, this is a wealth of information that no military button collector should be without. I would feel as if I were buying and trading blindly without it. It is noteworthy that Tice does not list button values in this book. Tice does sell a seperate book that lists only values; this book is of use only to the collector of non- excavated buttons. If Civil War buttons are your interest, and you collect excavated, as well as nonexcavated I recommend the North South Traders "Civil War Collector's Price Guide. Good luck with your button collecting, I know this book will be a useful and irreplaceable addition to your personal library.

correction of an error.......2000-06-05

This book is really well written, with two major errors from my viewpoint. My gg uncle was William C. Wildt, son of William Wildt of Richmond, Va, who made buttons with the imprint of W. Wildt and Son, Richmond, VA. The correction is that there were two brothers who came from Prussia: Julius and William. William had two children, William C., and Elisa Wildt. Julius had one child, Julius, Jr. Julius, Jr. was a hunchback, and an artist. We have one of his paintings. He manufactured buttons for the Confederate Army with a Mr. Kline, in Columbia, SC. William C. Wildt manufactured buttons with his father, William, in Richmond, VA. After the Civil War, he moved to Rockford City, Illinois, and married a lady named Agnes, who was from Madison, Wisconsin. William C. also served as Vice Consul and Consulate Agent in Honduras for the US in the 1890's, and died in Illinois in 1908. Julius, Jr. and his mother, Elizabeth Wildt, died of Spanish flu in Richmond, VA., in 1918. William C.'s sister, Elisa Wildt, married Numa Robert, divorced him in June of 1865, and married Ernst Kahl. She died in 1941 at the home of her daughter, Mrs. O. F. Ostergren, my grandmother. If anyone knows the web address of Mr. Warren K. Tice, please ask him to contact me.

correction of an error.......2000-06-05

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Carving Wood Spirits in Tree Bark: Capturing Unique Faces & Expressions in Wood
Joyce Buchanan
Manufacturer: Fox Chapel Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

History & Criticism | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books | Criticism | General | Regional | Themes | Women in Art
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ASIN: 1565231325

Book Description

Powerfully evocative faces can be carved in tree bark. This guide offers lessons on the anatomy of the human face, information on carving tools and how to use them, sources of bark suitable for carving, and step-by-step instructions for the creation of four terrific "wood spirits," including the Cottonwood Sage, the Lady of the Cottonwood, the Two Grand Masters, and the Cottonwood Duo. Using these patterns as templates, carvers can alter different facial expressions to create unique relief carvings.

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Arts & Crafts Style and Spirit
Chase Reynolds Ewald
Manufacturer: Gibbs Smith, Publisher
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0879058943

Book Description

Equally at home in a classic bungalow surrounded by antiques or a loft apartment decorated with modern art, the creations of a dedicated contingent of furniture makers take center stage in today's Arts & Crafts decor. One-of-a-kind pieces in wood, metal, pottery, tile, glass, and textiles are testaments to the enduring influence of visionary designers such as Gustav Stickley, Greene & Greene, and Frank Lloyd Wright. Building on the grand simplicity and exceptional quality that were hallmarks of the original Arts & Crafts movement, talented furniture makers fuel the Arts & Crafts Revival, still gaining momentum after two decades of growth. Twenty contemporary artisans are profiled in Arts & Crafts Style and Spirit, and the works of many more are shown. Their meticulous craftsmanship is seen in wooden furniture; lamps and lighting fixtures of metal, mica, and art glass; handmade vases and one-of-a-kind tiles; linen table runners and pillows. The Arts & Crafts tradition is not only upheld by contemporary designer-craftspeople but expanded and refined for a new generation of collectors and aficionados. The result is a simple, elegant approach to living that makes any home a refuge.

Eric Gill: Man of Flesh and Spirit (Tauris Parke Paperbacks)

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An exhaustive survey of an exhausting artist

Eric Gill: Man of Flesh and Spirit (Tauris Parke Paperbacks)
Malcolm Yorke
Manufacturer: Tauris Parke Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1860645844

Book Description

Eric Gill is perhaps the greatest English artist-craftsman of the twentieth century. His most celebrated achievements were sculptures in stone and wood ("Prospero and Ariel" on Broadcasting House; the "Stations of the Cross" in Westminster Cathedral). Malcolm Yorke reassesses this cranky, eccentric but vulnerable and modest man and illustrates his life and work with over 100 examples of Gill's engravings, sculptures and erotic drawings.

Customer Reviews:

An exhaustive survey of an exhausting artist.......2001-10-23

Although one doesn't necessarily get to know Eric Gill the individual any better through this book, Malcolm Yorke does an admirable job presenting the man through his works. I was anticipating more of a biography than a survey-cum-biography, but the format works well to distill the broad (and usually overlapping) scope of Gill's artwork and personality into something approaching manageablity. While I concur that it makes the most sense to start, as Yorke does, with Gill's writing, I found this section to be the most tedious. However one musn't fault Yorke for this, as indeed this can be generally attributed to Gill's own rather byzantine writing style. The following chapters (including many fine examples of Gill's broad talents) make the slow start well worthwhile.

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As Katherine McCoy states in the opening essay of Taking the Leap into New Media, "Is new media design a subset of graphic design or a sibling ... under the larger umbrella of communications design?" This defining question underlies the major problem faced by design studios today: whether to incorporate a new media/Web design department within their existing company or start a sister company to handle it.

The book profiles 15 designers and firms that have successfully undergone this transformation into the new multimedia/Web/interactive areas of design, including Duffy Design in New York (duffy.com), Segura, Inc. in Chicago (segura-inc.com), and Galie Jean-Louis of Seattle, the pioneering art director of MSNBC (msnbc.com).

Each case study documents the process of how new media was integrated into or evolved from the traditional print design environment. Designers face learning new technologies, dealing with new clients, and new challenges. At times these challenges include finding new team members such as musicians, videographers, or programmers, or deciding to outsource work if specialists are needed.

Along with color illustrations of Web sites and interactive projects, the book offers tips from each of the studios profiled. For example, Pinkhaus/The Designory in Florida (pinkhaus.com) advises, "Watch your behavior on the Web and let that be a guide as to how you should design."

Designers even share the challenges of their projects. For the Allina Health System, Hall Kelley in Minnesota (hallkelley.com) created an elegant and inviting interactive CD-ROM that organizes different levels of healthcare information with clean layout and iconography.

In addition to McCoy's essay, Taking the Leap into New Media features well-written pieces by Roger Black and Randy Weeks, which alone are worth the price of admission. If your studio is wondering how to proceed into the broader world of graphic design and new media, the valuable advice here can ease the transition. --Angelynn Grant

Topics covered: Fifteen case studies of design studios that have branched out into Web design, interactive design, and/or multimedia. Also, three essays by established writers/designers on the challenges of new media faced by established print designers.

Book Description

Multimedia and the Web are leading the world to new and exciting places. But what is the role of graphic design--or for that matter, you, the designer--in shaping these new frontiers? If you're ready to claim your place in this lucrative field but don't know how or where to get started--start here! This book will show you how to reinvent your business to take advantage of new opportunities in digital communication design.

Inside, 15 top designers talk about how they did it and the lessons they learned along the way. Discover proven strategies for quickly learning new media, developing networks for collaboration and more. You'll get nuts-and-bolts information to get you started, along with plenty of inspiration and encouragement to keep you going.

Use this 20/20 hindsight to guide you through your transition from a traditional design operation to a more comprehensive, collaborative and strategy-oriented multimedia firm. Whether you're launching an initiative or simply fulfilling your clients' needs, this book will help you take the leap--and land on both feet.

Customer Reviews:

Only for the unimaginative.......2001-06-05

If you already have some imagination or are a little artistic but are seeking inspiration, or insight, don't buy this book. If you're looking for good site designers, then you'd find this book of ads for designers helpful. Borrow it from the library to check out the links. Don't waste your money unless you don't have the space within your life to borrow the book. Buy it used if you can. I sure wish I had.

Design by Inspiration.......2000-09-29

A voyeuristic smattering of work from many of the hottest design firms today. Choc' full of eye candy to get your mojo workin' and make you want to jump into new media if you're not there already. Candid thoughts from designers and studios who sucessfully nudged, pushed, prodded or leaped into the digital arena. Inspiration to juice up your own designs or get the skills to do so (but that is another book, NO step-by-step or direct how tos here). Small but solid. I bought two other "web" books for twice the price, and this is my favorite.

Book Description

In this first study of the man behind the myth, Oliver Trager explains Buckley's life and career and the enormous following he developed in the entertainment community as well as the reasons behind the obscurity into which the man and his work disappeared after his death in 1960.

Customer Reviews:

Somebody should have like, hipped an editor, Lord and Lady........2002-07-23

Like so many bios today, there's a good book in here somewhere. But as wrought, Dig Infinity is an absurdly long, poorly edited work. Oliver gets all kinds of facts wrong and is egregious when it comes to people's names (Preston STURGIS? CINDY Miller for Donald O'Connor's sidekick instead of SIDNEY Miller? And that's just two). What a shame that such a great subject and such obviously hard work have actually done the impossible...made Lord Buckley boring. The best way to read this book is to skip much of Trager's endless and repetitive analysis of his Lordship's work and just peruse the oral histories.

A most immaculately hip biography.......2002-06-24

Oliver Trager did such a fine and thorough job on _The American Book of the Dead_ that I had high hopes for his biography of the great Lord Buckley. It's even better than I expected.

Trager's approach is suited to his subject. Rather than write a straightforward biography -- which would be difficult in any case because there are so many unanswered and unanswerable questions -- Trager has opted to tell His Lordship's life story through a sort of montage of mostly oral history. For this purpose he has interviewed, apparently, just about every living person on this sweet swingin' sphere who knew the Hip Messiah or was directly influenced by him in some way, and supplemented the interviews with excerpts from articles and other sources.

This approach makes the book read a bit like an extended episode of "Biography," flipping back and forth between the interviewees' reminiscences and the author's comments. It's not at all hard to follow; Trager even uses a different typeface for his own comments so we can tell what's narrative and what's not, and each interviewee/writer is clearly named at the beginning of each excerpt. (Each is introduced the first time one of his or her comments appears. If you forget who somebody is, you can flip to the back of the book and look up his first appearance; there's a list.)

It's about time somebody did a biography of The Lord of Flip Manor, and Trager's approach is highly appropriate to his subject. For example, by telling the story through the voices of others, he's able to present all the conflicting theories about Buckley's mysterious death without having to decide which one is most likely to be true. And more generally, since so much of Buckley's persona was realized through his interactions with other people anyway, it's fitting to present his life through the responses he created in the people around him. (You'll be amazed at the people he's influenced. Some of them are pretty obvious -- Robin Williams, Captain Beefheart, and so forth. But James Taylor? I've been listening to him for thirty years and I'd never have guessed -- and yet there's a song on _New Moon Shine_ that quotes directly from "God's Own Drunk.")

If you're a Buckley fan, you'll enjoy Trager's book. If not . . . well, I don't really know how to explain to you who and what Lord Richard Buckley was. Was he an entertainer? A saint? A scoundrel? A bodhisattva? A con man? A raconteur? A shaman? A swindler? An evangelist? A shameless moocher? An artist? An agent of God? A prankster? A drunk?

Well, yeah.

Above all, His Lordship was a sweet cat who blew a solid ace lick, and the way to meet him -- really the only way -- is to hear him. The book includes a CD with lots of good stuff on it, including several of His Lordship's raps and snippets from an interview with Studs Terkel. If you want to buy (or already own) the CD _His Royal Hipness_ (which is a re-release of _The Best of Lord Buckley_ and, if I'm not mistaken, the only Buckley CD currently available), don't worry about redundancy: the only overlap is in the two selections "The Nazz" and "People," and even these are different recordings.

Also worthy of mention: a very thorough discography and bibliography, and a selection of hard-to-find photographs.

I'm surprised by other readers' comments about poor copyediting/proofreading. Sure, I spotted a handful of typos, misspellings, and such, but I didn't think it was an unusually high number. Most of them, unsurprisingly, are in the transcriptions of the oral interviews -- references to e.g. "Tom Leherer [sic]" and "Betty [sic] Davis" and that sort of thing. (Also, readers who know what "erstwhile" means will be amused at one or two points, notably the introductory remarks on former Grateful Dead keyboardist Tom Constanten.)

And I don't think the format looks "pasted together" at all; on the contrary, I think Trager has done a marvelous job combing through many, many hours of interviews and putting the bits into coherent order.

On the other hand, I have to admit that there are a few things that could have been better handled. For example, there are many references to Buckley's "hat trick" during the first portion of the book, but we don't find out what the "hat trick" actually _was_ until something like page 182. At least a topical index would have been helpful here (though frankly it's not a job I'd have cared to tackle).

It would also have been nice if, in summarizing Lord Buckley's influence on the world of literature, Trager had thought to mention Spider Robinson, who works a Buckley reference into just about every science fiction novel he writes and who has probably done more than anyone else to keep Buckley's influence alive among SF fandom.

But it's always possible to pick on little omissions with a work like this. Trager has made a massively successful effort on a monumental task -- a task that, for him, is clearly something between a labor of love and a vision quest. God swing him.

Great Subject--Poor Presentation.......2002-06-08

Lord Buckley certainly deserves to be the subject of at least one major study, and for that reason alone, we should be grateful "Dig Infinty" exists and we should thank its author for the public service he renders. But as the other reviewers here have indicated, the book itself is rather slapdash: it's poorly edited and highly repetitive. A shorter, more concentrated, and zippier text would have done much more work on Buckley's behalf. To this I must add that one of the bigger weaknesses of the book is the author's own miscalculation of Buckley in general. For the author, Buckley seems to provide some sort of acid test, a way of telling the cool from the uncool. And because of this overarching "hippie" ethos, Buckley becomes for the author a kind of "in" currency, a fetish if you will, something that can be traded and used as a sort of tool. Buckley, of course, was the antithesis of this "acid test" or "usefulness," and because of the author's own wish to use Buckley to portray his own insider's perspective, we have to wonder just how well the book portrays Buckley. In short, Buckley worked for inclusion, but the book falters in its purposeful stance on exclusion.

His Lordship deserves such fealty.......2002-05-26

A fascinating if disjointed study of the art [mostly] and life [not as much as one would wish, but it's tough to catch up with the detritus of vaudeville and walkathons] of one of the most original and most influential comedian/orators ever to grace a stage, a view that people ranging from George Harrison to David Bowie to Frank Zappa to Steve Allen to James Taylor to Lenny Bruce all shared. Anyone who hears Lord Buckley -- and there's a half-hour audio CD included with the book so you can sample his hipsemantic style -- has to become curious about the man himself. This book finally helps to explain, and paints a fan's-eye picture of a gone cat who sweetly and profoundly decided to regard everyone he met as a potential member of his own Royal Court. I start with five stars for the subject and dock it one for the overly repetitive and pasted-together oral-history format, which skips around too much for comfort, and for the publisher's lousy copyediting and proofreading job.

Lord Buckley Lives ! ! !.......2002-05-14

I have to give this book 5 stars on the subject alone. Its about time that someone sat down and took the time and effort to let Lord Buckley's story be told once again. - - I do have a problem with the narrative style of the book, but its probably moreso a matter of taste... Rather than telling the story, the author basically reprints one interview after another... and kinda pastes his sources together so Lord Buckley's story is told in the interviewee's own words... Many of these interviews come straight from the pages of magazines and radio interviews with people who knew him and they're strung together to create a sense of a coherent dialogue. The end result... some fascinating stories (I almost fell off the bed in laughter a few times... Lord Buckley's sick off stage pranks and antics often rivaled his actual act) but lot of repetition and choppy reading. I also felt that the author merely glanced over his childhood and evolution into the entertainment world, though in all fairness much of the information has probabably been lost to posterity. - - Overall, its a fascinating subject, the CD alone is worth the cost of the book... and the book really will pull you into Lord Buckley's sick world. - - Interviewees seem to include a cast of thousands... from Royal Court members to hiers of the legacy from the Rock and Roll and Comedy World... Move over Lenny Bruce, His Lordship is back ! ! !

CD includes some interviews by Studs Turkel, The Nazz, Murder, Ode to a Policeman... about 34 minutes... Well worth it ! - -

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Dig infinity! The Life and Art of Lord Buckley
Oliver Trager
Manufacturer: Welcome Rain Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KRWQF0

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