Destination Biafra (African Writers Series)

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Emecheta Explores a Rarily Explored Path

Destination Biafra (African Writers Series)
Buchi Emecheta
Manufacturer: Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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Half of a Yellow Sun

ASIN: 0435909924

Customer Reviews:

Emecheta Explores a Rarily Explored Path.......1999-11-24

This is a must read for all who seek to get the full perspective of what happened during the Biafra War (along with all the other books on the war. Not only men were involved in it, children, women and men were. And Emecheta finally gave a female perspective. Destination Biafra is frank, hard-hitting and much needed. It's also a great read.

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Destination Biafra
Buchi Emecheta
Manufacturer: Heinemann Educational Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000UPA7DU

Book Description

Silent death stalks the Harpers of Faerûn. One by one, members of the semi-secret society for good in the Realms are falling to a murderer's blade. Now a Harper agent and a beautiful half-elf assassin must solve the mystery. If they fail, they will be the next victims.

But things in the Realms are rarely that simple.

Customer Reviews:

Not that good, but not that bad.......2007-04-30

After reading so many of the positive reviews and having read some of Elaine's other books, I was anticipating a good read. I was more than a little disappointed.
The book starts out great with a stunning assassination and then Arilyn as a child who is placed under the guiding wing of Kymil, master swordsman. After Chapter 1, the story begins to fail. Arilyn becomes a detached character with whom I could feel no attachment. I didn't understand her reasonings behind some of her actions (for instance, the jaunt into the marsh). Then, I felt she too easily relied on Elaith (I don't care if they are the same race of Elves, I would have been suspicious especially if I were a loner elf!). However, as the story grew and the identity of the Harper assassin was unveiled, I did begin to grow attached to Arilyn, though not as much as I thought I would have in the beginning.
While Arilyn was a little disappointing as a character, Danilo was superb (though, towards the beginning, a little too cliched for my liking). He was convincing as an undercover agent, and I could really feel for him. His motivations made sense on the most part (although one conclusion he makes about Elaith I feel is contrived).
Other than Arilyn's character, there were a few other problems. Females in the book seemed either to be too much like Arilyn or buxom, brainless barmaids. Males (at least most of them) came in two flavors as well: greedy, fat, disgusting, sex-obsessed thieves (pretty much any villain in the book) or tough, men (i.e. Kymil and Elaith). The magic was unimpressive. And I got so sick and tired of hearing about unguents I thought I would scream.
In the end, I was not upset at the book (towards the middle, I was regretting having ever started it). It ended well, and the characters had grown in ways I had though appropriate. I guess I should not have been expecting something as deep as Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. This is a fun, easy read, nothing more. Keep this in mind if you plan on picking this one up.

Very Pleasent Fantasy / Mystery.......2007-04-12

This is a really good fantasy / mystery story, written by one of the best fantasy writers today. This book like all of Elaine Cunningham's books are pleasant to read, with interesting plots, very likable characters, and an emotional payoff in the end.

Main Characters;
Arilyn Moonblade, half-elf agent, extremely engaging.
Danilo Thann, fun and charming, a very `real' character.
Elaith Craulnober is great, a well written bad guy, but likable just the same.

OVERALL SCORE: (A)
READABILITY: (A), PLOT: (B+), CHARATERS: (A), DIALOGUE: (B), SETTING: (A), ACTION/COMBAT: (B-), MONSTERS/ANTAGONISTS: (A), ROMANCE: (B), SEX: (Light), AGE LEVEL: (PG- 8 and up)

Brilliant debut!.......2006-12-22

I remember reading this story when it was first published in the early 1990s. It reads like a fantasy-mystery. A "magical who-done-it?" with some vivid details painting the fantasy city of Waterdeep, beautifully to life. The streets and spires come to life like never before. I believe she and Ed Greenwood have a secret portal that lets them see what the Realms is really like. I doubt if I ever forget these Realms!

My most favorite character introduced here is Elaith Craulnober, an elven bad-guy who I would love to see more of in future tales. He is the opposite of Drizzt in many ways. Cold, calculating and conspiring against the likeable heroes through out the story. Elven magic runs thick within these pages. Ms. Cunningham is one of the most promising authors this company has to offer!

Arilyn Moonblade has won a place in my heart!.......2004-06-22

Definitely two of my all time favorites, Elfshadow and Elfsong, bring to life the story of Arilyn Moonblade, a half-elf Harper, and her adventures in the World of Faerun, as she tries to cope with her dual heritage and seeks to unlock the mysteries of her magical moonblade sword.
The books are so incredibly well written that the reader feels that they have been transported to the Forgotten Realms universe and are actually present among the characters, seeing what they see, feeling what they feel, sensing what they sense. Elaine Cunnigham has truly outdone herself and has presented us with a masterpiece of literature the likes of which we have seen only in JRR Tolkien's work, RA Salvatore's The Dark Elf and Icewind Dale trilogies and in authors Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's Dragonlance Chronicles and Legends trilogies.
She has done a FANTASTIC job of both acquiring vast knowledge relevant to Faerun as well as presenting this material relating to the customs, the religion and the history of Toril, efficiently and successfully! Her solid grasp of factual detail makes her very capable of providing the necessary background needed to carry out the difficult task of writing Forgotten Realms novels, which is something often missing from the work of many Fantasy authors. Consequently, from the moment you pick up the books you have trouble putting them down and if that is not a clear sign of a fantastic writer/author who can come up with a great plot, I don't know what is!
Elves, spies, assassins, honor, bravery, magic, and swordfights are all about. Elfshadow and Elfsong make up for a great trilogy along with Silver Shadows and are a "must read" together with Evermeet, especially for all those who have a soft spot for everything Elven! In short, it's what Fantasy reading SHOULD be! One should seriously start thinking about turning these books into movies...

Elfshadow was amazing.......2004-04-05

Elaine Cunningham has to be one of my favorite writters of all time. Ever sence I picked up this series I can not put the books down. They are good reads and incorprates many respects, in my mind, a better name for Forgotten Relms.

Product Description

6 Titles Forgotten Realms Series The Harpers (1-6) : The Parched Sea Elfshadow Red Magic The Night Parade The Ring of Winter Crypt of the Shadowking. six mmpb books.

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Elfshadow
Elaine Cunningham
Manufacturer: Wizards of the Coast
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000OUVQLI

THE HARPERS 1: Parched Sea; 2: Elfshadow; 3: Red Magic; 4: Night Parade; 5: Ring of Winter; 6: Crypt of the Shadowking; 7: Soldiers of Ice; 8: Elfsong; 9: Crown of Fire; 10: Masquerades; 11: Curse of the Shadowmage; 12: Veiled Dragon; 13: Silver Shadows

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THE HARPERS 1: Parched Sea; 2: Elfshadow; 3: Red Magic; 4: Night Parade; 5: Ring of Winter; 6: Crypt of the Shadowking; 7: Soldiers of Ice; 8: Elfsong; 9: Crown of Fire; 10: Masquerades; 11: Curse of the Shadowmage; 12: Veiled Dragon; 13: Silver Shadows
Troy; Cunningham, Elaine; Rabe, Jean; Ciencin, Scott; Lowder, James; Anthony, Mark; Cook, David; Greenwood, Ed; Novak, Kate; Grubb, Jeff Denning
Manufacturer: TSR Forgotten Realms
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N5GD44

5 Titles Forgotten Realms Series The Harpers (1-5) : 1. The Parched Sea 2. Elfshadow 3. Red Magic 4. The Night Parade 5. The Ring of Winter

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5 Titles Forgotten Realms Series The Harpers (1-5) : 1. The Parched Sea 2. Elfshadow 3. Red Magic 4. The Night Parade 5. The Ring of Winter
Troy Denning , Elaine Cunningham , Jean Rabe , Scott Ciencin , and James Lowder
Manufacturer: TSR
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000VLUM10

Product Description

multiple books ship as one item. save on shipping/handling charges.

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Customer Reviews:

Book 3.......2006-05-30

This is the third book of the Last Chancers trilogy. Please notice that the novel was released in April 2004, almost three years after the first two! I would think that it meant the author took extra time to make the ending extra surprising and/or climatic. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

You must read the previous novels or you will not only be lost, but also never come to really know the characters, such as Kage and Schaeffer. Numerous battles occur with the single objective of letting me, the reader, marvel at the outstanding fights and a few strategical elements. I was not disappointed in these combat scenes either! Yet nothing important really happens here. They wander around, fight, wander some more, fight, on and on.

*** I got to see more orks than normal for a WH40K universe trilogy. Kage even seems a bit more believable than ever when a female enters the picture. Well, sort of anyway. You have to read in order to fully understand what I am driving at. (On a more personal note, and at the risk of sounding like a heretic, I really enjoyed the character of Urkug. He is a massive ork and bit like one of my online role playing orks.) This novel wraps up the original trilogy. The ending is weak and seems pointless, but not totally bad. For the full effect, consider purchasing the entire Last Chancers trilogy, with two extra short stories that tie it all together ISBN: 1844163008 ***

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

nice ending to a great series.......2005-01-12

I absolutely loved this book. The action was intense, the plot twists awesome, and the ending is one of the best i've ever seen. Some books leave me with this wow feeling when im done with it, and this is one of those books.

Disappointing.......2004-09-26

After reading about Schaeffer's Last Chancers in the Imperial Guard codex, I got my hands on a copy of Kill Team. I enjoyed Gav Thorpe's Angels of Darkness, so I had faith that Kill Team would live up to the same standards. It did.
Annhiliation Squad did not. The beginning is a bit disorienting and there is a noticeable lack of character development that made the previous novel interesting. Much of the plot development is meandering and monotonous. The epic backdrop of the 3rd Armageddon War can't even invigorate this lackluster story. In the last 3rd of the book there are some intriguing twists that immediately spiral into a miasmic convolution that abruptly terminates like a piece of rotten fruit hitting a concrete wall. You read the last sentence and turn the page, thinking there will be another paragragh or new chapter and realize that the story is just ... over!
I won't speculate why it ended the way it did, but it was disappointing.

What happend Gav?.......2004-08-25

Wow! Was this ever BAD! Awful! Stinks! ....
Absolutely none of the "charm" of the earlier Last Chancer's novels. If there was character development here, I sure missed it. The plot is weak -Chancers land on Armageddon and wander around supposedly on an assassination mission - but mostly stuff just happens. And speaking of stuff just happening... the ending feels so tacked on, artificial, and just plane dumb, you almost wonder if Thorpe had to complete the last chapters in 10-15 minutes to meet a publishing deadline. I wish I could be more specific with the flaws in this book but I don't want to provide any spoilers to those that would like to experience this for themselves.

Really, truly, surprisingly bad. That's sad since the others in the series have been interesting reads. Hopefully this was an aberration, not a sign of things to come.

Customer Reviews:

The Eucharist - A renewed experience.......2007-06-02

Excellent perspectives of the Eucharist by six doctors of the Catholic church. Quite thought provoking. Your experience in receiving the Eucharist will be renewed. You will be more conscious of what receiving His body and blood means to you and your relationship with our Lord will be deepened. You are the monstrance and your life is a living prayer to Him.

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Great South Texas Mexican Cookbook

Experts Only

South Texas Meican Cookbook

Excellent both from a cooking and cultural standpoint

Real Mexican food, not something from a frozen box

South Texas Mexican Cookbook
Lucy M. Garza
Manufacturer: Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
South | U.S. Regional | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0890153442

Customer Reviews:

Great South Texas Mexican Cookbook.......2006-06-15

Several of my relatives have this book and really love it.I was fortunate to see it and use it and I love it.
I am going to order one for a friend and me.I am from South Texas and I have been looking for a receipe book from this area.
Thank-you for having this book so i can get a copy.

Omelia Salinas

Experts Only.......2005-11-08

My family grew up in South Texas, and it's a good thing or the cookbook would not be very helpful. The recipes are what you would expect from South Texas, however the details needed to prepare these authentic recipes are simply not to be found in this cookbook. I also have the Tex-Mex Cookbook, and the San Antonio Tex Mex Cookbook, and both offer well written recipes which you can duplicate. I would only recomend this cookbook for nostalgic reasons, a much better choice would be the tex-Mex Cookbook, both historically and for the recipes.

South Texas Meican Cookbook.......2003-12-08

Ms. Garza, I want to personally thank you for putting a book together that has all my childhood food recipes together. The food is exactly how I remember my mom's cooking. I have also purchased this book as gifts, so my friends can also pass this wonderful traditional food on to their families and friends. Many Thanks

Excellent both from a cooking and cultural standpoint.......1999-05-25

The riddles and Versitos Para Ninos are a delightful touch that adds to the great down home recipes. It offers the reader a trip down memory lane for those famaliar with Spanish and Mexican everyday life and a peak at another culture for those who are not. It is a great gift as well as one to own yourself. Enjoy!

Real Mexican food, not something from a frozen box.......1999-01-12

This book was gift when my family was transferred from Houston, Tx to New York State. Enables us to still have good down home mexican dishes that just don't exist north of the mason dixon line.

The World Of Mexican Cooking: A collection of delicious, authentic dishes from south of the border...

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The World Of Mexican Cooking: A collection of delicious, authentic dishes from south of the border...
Mary Margaret Curry
Manufacturer: Galahad Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 088365007X

Product Description

Mexican cookbook featuring mexican recipies with southern Texas twists.

Customer Reviews:

Entertaining, extremely interesting, highly informative........2000-11-23

Convoluted stories of master criminals whose devious and clever schemes hoodwinked people for centuries. Sounds like a good plot for a novel, but it also accurately describes those 'stranger than fiction' types of stories to be found in Rosenblum's book.

Focusing on literary forgeries, he enlightens us to both the motives and the methods used by nine talented if devious men: George Psalamanzar, James Macpherson, Thomas Chatterton, Willim-Henry Ireland, John Payne Collier, George Gordon Byron, Vrain-Denis Lucas, Thomas James Wiese and Mark William Hoffman. While Rosenblum acknowledges that most of them worked for financial gain, the other complicated motives, fooling colleagues with whom they had grudges, manufacturing evidence to support a critical thesis, and just seeing if it could be done, make for interesting reading. I was especially fascinated with the first story in the book as George Psalamanzar manufactured 'information' about China and Formosa at t time when little actual information was available in Europe.

As a Sinologist by training, I have been much fascinated by early travel accounts of Europeans in the far East whose worldviews limited them interpreting the evidence before them in very peculiar ways.like the British who compared the 'red Indian's' to the Irish in the 18th and 19th centuries. George must have seem just as valid to his readers and auditors as many of those actual travelers, even though he had never left England. Rosenblum's introduction places these rogues in the context of other famous forgers, "From Antiquity to 1700", and reminds us that the current, financially-motivated reasons for forgery are time-bound. We think of literature too much as a financial property to really understand historical views of this activity such as 1) that it takes a great deal of talent to forge Shakespearean dramas such as did Ireland and Collier or to forge something in Ancient Greek or Latin that will be convincing to educated scholars. 2) That for many eras and civilizations plagiarism and forgery were considered a kind of compliment and the literary text was not separated from history, philosophy and other 'belles lettres' until very recently in the history of civilization.

While entertaining to read, then, Rosenblum's book is also extremely interesting and full of insights on the nature of authentication and the literary text. It should be required reading in library schools and graduate literary programs, and, I think, would be more useful and educational than many of the critical works that make up reading lists for MA's and Ph.D.s in our universities.

Jan Bogstad, Reviewer

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Practice to Deceive: The Incredible Story of Literary Forgery's Most Notorious Practitioners
Joseph Rosenblum
Manufacturer: Oak Knoll Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OMEIR0

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Quilt-Lovers' Favorites, Volume 3 (Quilt-Lovers' Favorites)
Better Homes and Gardens
Manufacturer: Better Homes and Gardens
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Quilts & Quilting | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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Quilting Pieces of the Past (Better Homes & Gardens)

ASIN: 0696221632

Book Description

Traditional quilt designs for home decorations, wearables, and accessories.

Includes patterns for wall hangings, lap throws, baby quilts, table runners, and more.

Step-by-step instructions guide quilters of all skill levels.

Easy-to-follow charts offer alternative sizing options.

Removable full-size pattern pack in pocket folder bound in the back of book.

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Quilt-Lovers' Favorites Vol. 3

Quilt-Lovers' Favorites from American Patchwork & Quilting (Better Homes & Gardens Quilt-Lovers' Favorites, Volume 3)

Manufacturer: Meredith Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound
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Quilt-lovers Favorites

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ASIN: 0696217953

Product Description

Volume 3 of the series presents 15 classic quilt patterns using a variety of constructive techniques for a variety of quilt sizes; optional applications such as runners, pillows and bags are also included. Each pattern is beautifully illustrated with many full-color photographs. Complete patterns included in pocket in back of book.

Customer Reviews:

Quilt-Lovers' Favorites Vol. 3.......2004-05-09

Excellent quilt book with a lot of patterns and variations to each.

Book Description

Using interiors created by artists, interior designers and decorators from all over the world, and incorporating the latest in furniture and object design, this book is a practical encyclopedia of home decoration. Aimed at a general audience, it offers over 500 pages of useful ideas, tips, suggestions, advice and solutions for anyone interested in decorating a first time home or remodeling an existing space.

Choose the perfect drapes. Find the ideal flooring for any room. Install atmospheric lighting. Select complementary colors and textures. Transform big or small spaces. Even the toughest of design challenges are addressed.

From space distribution to layout, from materials and colors to styles and fabrics, even incorporating furniture and lighting, 1,000 Practical Ideas for Home Decorating presents basic concepts of interior design in a clear and easy to follow style. Beautiful photographs, drawings and informative sidebars provide inspiration for those beginning to explore the principles of interior design. Crammed full of ideas that anyone can use, 1,000 Practical Ideas for Home Decorating is the basic resource for interior design.

Book Description

“Learn from the Master” it's said, and Tommy Tune is a master. He not only knows the creative side, but also the business side of the theatre profession. This little book can serve as a handbook for students and anyone who wants to go into the business as well as theatre buffs who like to know the "ins and outs" of show biz. What better person to learn from than Tommy Tune. With author Frances Johnson, Tommy candidly shares his observations and experiences which have come to him as he's made his way to the very zenith of the theatre world. His talent and accomplishments cannot be denied. His career spans several decades of success. He is the ultimate performer, director, choreographer and the creative force behind some of Broadway's top musicals. His accomplishments have been recognized by all the major theatre and dance awards. Whether his success will ever be topped is doubtful, but only the future will tell. Certainly he has earned his place in theatre history and it will be interesting to see where Tommy is headed in the 21st Century. I can almost guarantee it will be fascinating.

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