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Silently into the Midst of Things 177 Squadron Royal Air Force in Burma, 1943-1945: History and Personal Narratives
Atholl Sutherland Brown
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1552126633
Release Date: 2006-07-06 |
Book Description
The men who were to become 177 Squadron RAF assembled in India in early 1943, not knowing their destination - or their fates. Soon after they were flying repeatedly by day and by night over Burma and Siam, frequently in abominable weather, destroying Japanese transportation and infrastructure, playing an important role in the eventual Allied victory. 'Silently into the midst of things' was an appropriate motto for the 177 Squadron. Equipped with twin-engined, cannon and rocket firing Bristol Beaufighters, the pilots flew just above the jungle or the plains - too low to be detected by radar - and were often unseen and unheard until the moment of attack. No wonder the Japanese called them 'Whispering Death' ... using the squadron's Operations Record Book, his own memories and those of his colleagues, Atholl Sutherland Brown has meticulously recreated the triumphs and disasters of a group of unknown heroes - the air and ground crews of the 177 Squadron.
Customer Reviews:
Whispering success.......2007-07-11
The Burma theatre is perhaps unjustly overlooked by many reading about WWII most probably because of the mass of material available on the Pacific and European theatres. Fortunately, among those masses, there are gems like this book that make valuable contributions to recording the history of the forgotten theatre.
After the war the author worked as a geologist so the opening to the book is a very informative description of the topography of Burma. Coupled with the type of flying 177 Squadron did over Burma, very low and fast, and the reader gets the impression that the author is an authority on the Burmese landscape!
The book follows the history of 177 from inception to disbandment. Equipped with Bristol Beaufighters, the author and his colleagues flew ground attack sorties day and night at very low level. The author draws on his memories, the squadron operations book and the memoirs/writings of his squadron mates to paint a vivid picture of life in 177. The drawing together of these records is the most valuable service the author has done. While my only (minor) complaint about the book is the poor quality of some of the reproduced photos (understandable that the originals might be poor given the humidity etc in Burma), the writing does more than enough to paint a picture of what these men faced on operations.
Told with some humour and an eye for detail, perhaps the last word should be left to the last words from the book:
"What enemy projectiles could not accomplish, Time's arrows have done. This is why we want to tell our story while we can."
We owe these men a great debt[...]
Book Description
The Future Lasts Forever is the famous French philosopher Louis Althusser's memoir written during his years of confinement in a mental hospital after murdering his wife. Reminiscent to many readers of Strindberg's Diary of a Madman and Styron's Darkness Visible, The Future Lasts Forever is a profound yet subtle exercise in documenting madness from the inside. This paperback edition also includes Althusser's earlier autobiographical essay "The Facts," as well as a preface by Douglas Johnson, Emeritus Professor of French at London University.
Customer Reviews:
Self-annihilation or self-apotheosis?.......2003-06-01
I like Althusser. He was the first to try to fit the esoteric Heidegger, as presented by Jean Hyppolite in Logic and Existence, together with Marx. There had been attempts (by Sartre and Henri Lefebvre) to put the explicit Heidegger together with Marx, but no one was buying it, since the German thinker disavowed humanism. Hence Althusser's rather bizarre (to contemporary eyes at least) claim that you need to READ Marx correctly, that is find all the esoteric truths in Capital, to have a revolution.
Althusser was a depressive all his life. His illness prevented him from entering into les evenements of 1968, where he might have actually done some good. But he was also a manic. His books have the sort of obsessive compulsive features you only find with people on amphetimines. Those who say that this memoir is just a depressive trying to commit suicide aren't taking Althusser as he was diagnosed. He was also capable of limitless affirmation of life.
And we find Althusser making some pretty huge affirmations in this book. He liked the USSR in the post-Stalin era. Since the people of Russia are so much worse off under the system that they have now (arguably the world is, both for their infamous Mafia and the lack of a check on US hegemony), this is probably not a bad thing. His argument as to how the people of the USSR really were free in every way except politics is specious (it's sort of like saying the people of the USSR were free in every way except the one that counts), but its very speciousness smacks of a manic affirmation.
He also says that he never had sex until he was 29. This apparently was because he was disgusted with sex. He says something like "We have bodies! And they have sex organs!" He went on to be quite the ladies man, even conquering women in front of his wife. Which means that he affirmed, like a good Deleuzian, life in all its ugly glory.
Then there's his last work on Machiavelli. Or is it his last work on himself? Machiavelli formalized the relations between king, nobility and people. Just as Althusser formalized Marx's discussions of class relations and structures in Reading Capital. The fact that he's pulled this off so convincingly in Machiavelli and Us, and the fact that the people who have made a career out of riding on his coattails totally missed it, implies to me that he successfully became-other/imperceptible. In the same way that both Bataille and Sartre missed the point of Genet means that Genet did successfully become-other (as per Derrida's Glas).
As a last point to consider, for those who see this book as just the sorry chronicle of someone who had better shut up before he gives the entire game away, look at the books he did claim to read. He read all three volumes of Marx's Theories of Surplus Value. I know of no one else who can make that claim. I barely made it half way through the Grundrisse before I gave up. Since he's so humble about his actual reading of Capital (didn't get past the first volume and didn't get the theory of fetishism in the first 50 pages), he probably really did read TSV.
It's true that after this book Althusser was shunned by French intellectuals. It was, as a French student of Badiou wrote, a form of social suicide. BUT that wasn't what Althusser intended to do with this book. Or not only that.
If you're a Marxist and you liked Althusser, you can always enjoy Etienne Balibar who has at last fitted together the esoteric Heidegger with Marx in his Marxism and Philosophy. That was what dear old crazy Louis was trying to do all along.
perhaps best read symptomatically.......2002-10-13
This contains one of Althusser's late writings on materialism, which might be read profitably alongside "Machiavelli and Us". The train metaphor is especially useful, and Althusser here rejects -- as he did increasingly after 1967 -- any idea of materialism as a philosophy of the primacy of matter over ideas, and grounds it in the thesis of the materiality of ideology, or that "the imaginary exists only in its effects" ... As far as the claims made by Althusser regarding his abilities and knowledge in the text, or his criticisms of his books, these need to be read in light of his quest of self-annihilation, and this genre of autobiography -- and the authority which readers conventionally regard it to have regarding the 'truth' -- provides the best means of achieving that end. Warren Montag's essay on the autobiography, which can be found in Callari, Cullenberg & Biewener (eds), "Marxism in the Postmodern Age" (1992) is essential reading for anyone tempted to take Althusser's confessions at face value.
Dear Stalin: "Alas, ... [he is] no Rousseau".......2000-03-29
A review in New Republic by Tony Judt of Althusser's posthumous The Future Lasts Forever implements what might be called the standard reactionary reading of that "curious" autobiographical document. Judt was, at least initially, correct in refusing to read the text as a "Rousseau-like confession", although he claims, and not incidentally, that Althusser would have us read it as such. Curiously enough, however, Althusser cites the exact reason as Judt for encouraging readers to repress the inclination to read the memoir as his Rousseaudian "Confession": he is simply not up to the challenge, at least in the sense that he has no pretensions concerning originality and philosophical profundity. Rather than Rousseau, Althusser sounds more like a victim of a Stalinist inquisition: all he has to do is to confess his guilt, explain in vulgar psychologistic terms his aberrant psychoanalytic constitution. He would have been wise to adopt the Deleuzian stance of, "I have nothing to admit" - who cares if Althusser only studied Vol. 1 of Das Kapital? This would be the effective hystericization of Judt's position in his review. Thus, it is not that he overidentifies with Althusser, takes him too literally, but that he does not identify with him enough - that is, we must take Althusser at his word when he says, "Alas, I am no Rousseau".
This is the truth of an individual........1999-11-17
Well, I've read this book in Korean and I'm not deeply read in his theories but as I read this, I couldn't help feeling sorrow. What a peculiar life as a human being , let alone as a philosopher! Whatever they say about the man, to me he seems a vulnerable human being and the victim to a wrong network of human interaction. Think of what this man could have avoided in his life...( Someone might ask "How?" ) Why and how he had to murder his wife will remain a forever mystery. He's dead but I want to pray for him while I'm alive.
M. Lacan, I'm in crisis.......1999-10-01
I found Althusser fascinating here, much more so than in his "philosophical" work, i.e. "Lenin and Philosophy". The story he tells is rather heartfelt, although the explanation of the accidental stranglation of his wife is disturbing. Lacan fans will no doubt enjoy tales of Lacan in action en route to a crisis resolution in a speeding Mercedes. Enjoyable for enthusiasts of Althusser, philosophy, Lacan, or unique memoirs.
Book Description
Walk your way to health and well-being!
Regardless of your level of fitness, you can improve your cardiovascular health, weight control, stress management, and overall well-being through a simple walking program. In the American Heart Association's The Healthy Heart Walking Tape, the leading crusader in the fight against heart disease presents two complete walking workouts to help you get started. Designed to be listened to again and again, when7ever you have time for a half-hour fitness walk, The Healthy Heart Walking Tape includes:
- A 30-minute beginner's walk
- A 30-minute intermediate walk -- for walkers ready for a faster pace
- Original music written exactly to American Heart Association-recommended paces
- Easy-to-do stretches and a diary in the illustrated booklet
Here are all the walking tools you need to increase your stamina, ability, and fitness. So whether your idea of a walk is a stroll around the block or ten laps at the track, The Healthy Heart Walking Tape will start you on the road to a fit lifestyle.
Customer Reviews:
Walking is good for you........2007-09-20
This cd is worth it's weight in gold. It has a great beat for anyone to walk to and is easy to follow. It gives encouragement and actually times the walk out. It's informative and most of all...not boring. The second half of the cd give you something to work towards. It's a great cd.
Elevator music with a beat.......2007-03-11
I need a more pronounced beat in my walking, and music that's easier to listen to, or at least doesn't make me feel like I'm in the elevator going up to see the cardiologist instead of trying to postpone the visit for a few years.
Healthy Heart Walking CD.......2007-02-20
A very well thought out CD. I feel as if there is a coach with me every step of the way.
Sometimes basic is best...........2006-04-22
I have many walking tapes, but sometimes I just want the encouragement without all the blather. This CD set a very nice pace, and I found Rita "speaking up" periodically helped to keep me focus when I started to drift off. One advantage to this over my iPod playlist is sometimes the music beat is too fast, and I'll get so caught up in the increased tempo that I risk straining something. I bought 2 more copies for family members.
The Healthy Heart Walking CD.......2006-02-25
This was a waste of money. I wish I could exchange it for a more effective CD.
Customer Reviews:
Delightful.......2006-04-18
One of the features of this little book which I appreciate more than words can convey is the little glossary of dishes found at its end. Listed within 3 columns are the names,spellings and pronunciations of dishes in Italian, English and Sicilian. It is a delightful resource.
Vincent Schiavelli's recollections of his grandfather's stories are very sweet. It is far more than a "recipe book". It's an enchanting family history as well.
Papa Andrea's Sicilian Table.......2006-03-27
While stationed in the Air Force at Hempstead, Long Island, I use to visit with my aunt Anna who lives on Ellery Street, down the block from the author, and this book brought back many many EXCELLENT memories of Brooklyn. Great reading and recipts.
Book Description
'Where did you get that red hair?' 'What's the story behind that gorgeous wedding dress?' These and scores of other family history topics are scrapbooked beautifully in this jumbo Treasury of Favorites from Creating Keepsakes publications. The incredible stories and layouts will inspire families to dig through their own pictures to create priceless, lasting heirlooms. There are even fast-to-finish mini album ideas for busy folks who feel overwhelmed at the thought of getting started! Devoted to weddings and births, childhood and grandparenting, there are more than 575 creative page designs and practical tips to guide first-time or longtime scrappers alike.
Customer Reviews:
Great for Heritage Scrapbooking.......2007-05-13
This book is full of helpful ideas and suggestions. Also lots of information on preservation and research. I have just started scrapbooking, but have done some extensive genealogy work. Now I can put all that research into a visual "work of art" for generations to come.
full of simple, elegant layouts.......2005-09-05
I just purchased this book a few days ago and was so engrossed that I read it cover to cover. Lots of clean, simple ideas that don't require tons of specialized equipment (i.e. eyelet setters, brads, pockets, foldouts) but that could certainly be adapted that way, if you like to use those gizmos. I liked that there were both ideas for doing pages/books chronologically, and doing them thematically (i.e. places we've lived, our home town past and present, our family business). It encourages scrapbookers to chronicle their current life for generations to come (very interesting and creative sequence of layouts about one woman's college career and trinkets/papers that are relevant to her life as a current student). Also gave good ideas for how to scrap pages when there is missing information about relatives, embarrassing decades (aaah, how to scrap the '60's, '70's and '80's when so many of us were awkward teens), and "sensitive" topics or details. The one thing I wish this book had, was more information on how to save/restore old and crumbling memorabilia--I was hoping for a lot more details than "use acid-free paper" or "consult a professional conservator".
Great Resource!.......2005-07-09
As a beginner scrapper, I just loved this book. It has tons of ideas for pages. I really liked all the info that is provided as to where to purchase supplies etc. There are tons of the best websites provided to get just what you need. I also purchased the Creating Keepsakes Tips and Tricks and loved it just as much!
Don't Put Off Scrapbooking Your Family Memories.......2005-07-02
I'm been afraid to start my family heritage scrapbook, but the ideas here have really started me thinking. I can do it! With this book to inspire me, the project seems within my capability.
There are tons of ideas with almost 300 pages of photos showing real scrapbook pages. Each sample has details of the paper, font, accents, etc. to show you how it was done.
Sample ideas: use lace or a handkerchief on a page to relate to clothing in vintage pictures * including a family tree * use old letters and cards.
Learn how to incorporate memorabilia without bulkiness and how to give historical perspective to family events.
Quibbles: The tiny print of the photo captions is a little hard to read.
Great ideas for someone new to scrapbooking.......2004-12-05
I decided to give my mother a "surprise" scrapbook for her 75th birthday, December 23, 2004. I had a few old pictures that I had borrowed from her during the years and had copies made. I knew I wanted this book to be really special but I did not know how to go about displaying the pictures of my mothers parents and grandparents.
This book is full of pictures and it will help me put this all together in the two short weeks I have to complete it.
I also found an old picture of my mother when she was in her late teens or early twenties. I used it to make an announcement of her upcomming 75th birthday by turning it into a four quarter fold card. I wrote a poem about her and asked all family and friends to send a birthday card, picture or a note for her surprise scrapbook and for them to mail it to my home. That way she will get all the cards at once and they will be a nice keepsake for the scrapbook. I will include one of the announcements I created as part of the scrapbook also. I found an old but pretty etched hand mirror at an antique store and I will incorporate it on the cover of the scrapbook with some lace and ribbons. I will title this scrapbook "Reflections of my family". I will also include pictures of all her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Without this book I would not of thought about the journaling involved with the photos. Luckily, I can contact my mothers sister and cousins for information on the history of the people in the pictures.
My mother lost one of her daughters this September to cancer so it has been a hard year. She was only 53 and very close to mom. I plan to do a special page for her in the scrapbook. I later plan to make a scrapbook called "Sisters" and have just pictures of me and my 3 sisters in it. This was another idea I got from Creating Keepsakes Scrapbooking Family Heritage.
I plan to do more keepsake scrapbooks now for my own grandchildren because it is important to have your family history available for future generations.
Customer Reviews:
Needs revising.......2004-10-09
Informative...yes. Entertaining...kinda.
BUT, the author is heavily into chemical solutions. There is no mention of environmental consequences of pesicides, integrated pest management, or organic solutions. Many of the photos were too unfocused, poorly lit, or grainy to be of much use.
This book needs a major overhaul.
Perfect for the average house - entertaining & comprehensive.......1999-09-30
This book is perfect for Texas homeowners who want to identify, learn about and control bugs. The writing is entertaining and an amazing number of bugs are included. Loads of pictures.
VERY informative and funny too!.......1999-07-08
"Critters" is a delightful book and an invaluable resourse for gardeners, homeowners and anyone likely to come in contact with insects. It is beautifully illustrated, informative and a really good read, to boot!
Product Description
This one-of-a-kind book discusses the pros and cons of hiring in-home care providers for children with autism spectrum and other neurological disorders. Everything from assessing the familys needs and core values to advertising for, interviewing, hiring and training care providers is discussed, along with the special considerations necessary to support the needs of children with neurological disorders.
Customer Reviews:
Sound advice and compassionate counsel..........2005-09-24
"A 'Stranger' Among Us" is no less than a fabulous resource. The book's title is accurate, but quite modest: Though written with a focus on finding support persons for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders, this book is nonetheless a valuable guide for families of persons with physical challenges, mental health difficulties, dementia, and serious learning/cognitive limitations as well. This book has a place in the library of any professional or agency serving challenged individuals and their families, and I heartily recommend it to family members and prospective support personnel alike. The author's personal experiences, professional training, extensive knowledge, and abundant compassion combine to provide a tool that is at once accessible, accurate, and wise. This book is a "must-have" resource, a generous and courageous gift.
Excellent Resource.......2005-08-14
Lisa Lieberman's book is a excellent resource for anyone requiring outside assistance in their home. Well-written and well-researched, I am sure it will be a great help to many people.
A must for a medical library.......2005-08-12
A fantastic addition to my medical library to use for all of my patients who have family members with disabilities. The book provides many answers and practical help for those seeking and employing in-home support. It is written in an easily readable, user-friendly format.
I most appreciate the sample advertisements and the sample contracts provided. It also helps give permission to those who stay at home to consider in-home help.
Great Resource for Anyone Hiring In-Home Support.......2005-08-05
A "Stranger Among Us" is very well written, with easy to follow examples and even worksheets to greatly assist with the hiring process. I especially appreciated how the author allows us to benefit from her "hands-on" experience in her own household, and also includes input from some of the providers that she has employed. Also the reader benefits from extensive research put into this book regarding boundaries that should be established between you and the "In-Home Provider" .
The information and insite offered in this book is amazing. This book illustrates how to endure the difficult and time-consuming process of hiring the right person for the job who will also 'fit" with your family, how to see if the support is working as well as expected and also includes a chapter "When It's Time To Say Goodbye".
A "Stranger " Among Us is a must for anyone who intends to hire "in-home" help, whether you require special support for disabilities or to hire someone to assist with the everyday tasks of a busy household.
Detailed and Diverse.......2005-07-23
FINALLY, a book that understands the true needs of families and how to help us proactively help ourselves. One of the most difficult dilemas when you have a loved one or child with special needs, whether medical or neurological, is how do you find qualified, caring caretakers? So often as family members we find this task so daunting that we choose not to seek outside help. This book is so reassuring, it gives you the tools to find qualified care, but also the right people for YOUR family.
The thing that strikes me about this book is not only how detailed in strategies it is, but how respectful it is about different kinds of people and their diverse needs. One chapter in particular that stands out is Defining Your Family Culture and Needs. This author recognizes that families have different values, and she discusses how having caretakers who match those values can create harmony, or finding caretakers who are different can enhance a family's life by exposing them to a new way to look at the world. It celebrates the benefits of both and the right to make the choice that is right for your family.
This book has step by step instructions about the various ways to go about hiring caretakers, in and out of home, the strategies you can implement in order to find the best match for your family, there is also a strong emphasis on the role of communication and having mutual respect. She recognizes that a caretaker can become part of your family (which we have certainly found to be true.)I could go on, but it is so incredibly detailed that I couldn't possibly do it justice. This book takes all the guess work out of finding a caretaker, all the things I have wondered and worried about facing when our current caretaker eventually move on to other endeavors. The book makes facing that so much less frightening. I HIGHLY recommend this book not only for parents of children with special needs, such as myself, but as a template for anyone seeking qualified care for their loved ones, whether they have disabilities or not. This book should be on hand in every library and every program that works with families in order to provide an understanding of the need for qualified care and how to how to provide in home supports for those families. I already have two copies and am planning to buy more to make sure our local therapy centers have them in their libraries.
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The Strange Case of T.L. (Artspace's Series)
Tony Labat , and
Carlo McCormick
Manufacturer: Artspace Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0963109545 |
Books:
- Storming the Desert: A Marine Lieutenant's Day-By-Day Chronicle of the Persian Gulf War
- Summer at Little Lava: A Season at the Edge of the World
- The 16th Mississippi Infantry: Civil War Letters and Reminiscences
- The Camp Men: The Ss Officers Who Ran the Nazi Concentration Camp System (Schiffer Military History)
- The Civil War Story of Bloody Bill Anderson
- The Color of Truth: McGeorge Bundy and William Bundy: Brothers in Arms
- The Eyes of Orion: Five Tank Lieutenants in the Persian Gulf War
- The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour
- The Man Who Invented the Third Reich
- The Splendid Five: A True Story About the Splinter Fleet in the Pacific During WWII
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