The Clouds, the Sky, and I

Average customer rating:
The Clouds, the Sky, and I
Toby Elster
Manufacturer: Authorhouse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Military & Spies | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Military | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Aviation | Transportation | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1588202968

Average customer rating:
I Am Like A Remnant of a Cloud of Autumn Uselessly Roaming in the Sky, O My Sun Ever-Glorious ...[Song Offering 80] (EASTERN LITERATURE, INDIAN POETRY)
Rabindranath Tagore
Manufacturer: AREPRINT SERVICE
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000H4MYWG

Average customer rating:
The Whole sky sensor: Phase I, final report
James K Rocks
Manufacturer: Micro Science Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00072KBX2

Customer Reviews:

fun read !.......2003-08-05

This book pulls you in from the beginning. It's not a dry history but a witty and sharp look at the Bloomsbury Group and issues about sex and gender in England. She can be critical of Strachey's misogyny and class elitism while at the same time she makes her readers feel strongly about the plight of the gay man during a repressive era. The book is loaded with fascinating stories about his relationships with Virginia Woolf, Dora Carrington, and John Maynard Keynes. Sodomy, war, complicated love affairs--what more could a reader ask for?!

Wow! A great read!.......2002-11-21

I had never really known much about Lytton Strachey before reading Taddeo's book. I ordered this on a whim and loved it---I've just ordered Strachey's Eminent Victorians after reading this.

Taddeo writes really well---the book moves quickly and I was fascinated by Taddeo's analysis and discussion of Strachey's sexuality. What I liked most about this book (and I can't say this enough!) was its readability. This is a book for scholars and non-specialists.

If you've read any of the books by the Bloomsbury group or if you love the Victorians, buy this book (actually you should buy it and read it no matter what!).

Average customer rating:

Wow! Incredible Book!

Extraordinary Power to Help!

Written in a hurry

An Extraordinary Power to Heal
Bruce Semon , and Lori Kornblum
Manufacturer: Wisconsin Institute of Nutrition, LLP
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Nutrition | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Special Conditions | Diets & Weight Loss | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Healing | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Candida | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Feast Without Yeast: 4 Stages to Better Health : A Complete Guide to Implementing Yeast Free, Wheat (Gluten) Free and Milk (Casein) Free Living

Extraordinary Foods for the Everyday Kitchen

Tics and Tourette's: Breakthrough Discoveries in Natural Treatments

Candida Albican Yeast-Free Cookbook, The : How Good Nutrition Can Help Fight the Epidemic of Yeast-Related Diseases

Complete Candida Yeast Guidebook, Revised 2nd Edition: Everything You Need to Know About Prevention, Treatment & Diet

Accessories:

Airborne Effervescent Health Formula, Original Orange, 10 Tablets (Pack of 3)

Tanita BC533 Glass Innerscan Body Composition Monitor

RESPeRATE Blood Pressure Lowering Device

ASIN: 0967005744

Product Description

An Extrardinary Power to Heal, by Bruce Semon, M.D., Ph.D., and Lori Kornblum, was written for people suffering from supposedly untreatable medical conditions. This book explains why yeast and yeast chemicals from the yeast in your intestines and in your food cause these conditions and how you can change your diet to stop them. An Extraordinary Power to Heal has explanations and case studies about so-called auto-immune conditions, including fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Crohn's Disease and ulcerative colitis, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and other conditions. An Extraordinary Power to Heal also has explanations and case studies about other medical conditions that respond to anti-yeast treatment, including Autism, ADHD and ADD, Tourette's Syndrome, depression, headaches, seizures, skin problems including eczema and psoriasis, allergies and food addiction. The case studies are of real patients who changed their lives by changing their diet and using anti-yeast therapy. An Extraordinary Power to Heal contains a complete treatment plan, and has comprehensive footnotes referencing medical studies that support the observations, case studies and explanations in the book. The companion cookbook, Extraordinary Foods for the Everyday Kitchen, has more than 125 recipes and more than 60 menus to help you implement the suggestions in An Extraordinary Power to Heal.

Customer Reviews:

Wow! Incredible Book!.......2006-02-22

An Extraordinary Power to Heal is chock-full of information and personal stories about people who were able to make slight changes in their diets and really live a better life. It is very very impressive. But more impressive is that it makes some complicated topics, like the immune system, easy to understand. This is an excellent book to explain why yeast wreaks havoc on the body, and to help heal. The food plan is based on Feast Without Yeast, but is much more detailed. This book also has chapters specifically to help your own doctor prescribe nystatin, if you want that. The book is the total "bible" for yeast free living. All that is missing is the cookbook, which I found in Extraordinary Foods for the Everyday Kitchen and Feast Without Yeast. This is an easy diet to follow, because it is done gradually and only as much as you would need. This book was a lifesaver for me.

Extraordinary Power to Help!.......2005-06-22

I'd like to first, thank Dr. Semon for this book. An Extraordinary Power's approach has helped my son incredibly. Before I knew about the 4 stages, I never considered that the food I was preparing might in fact be harming my children. The book is well-laid out, and it gives a very comprehensive explanation as to why malt and other chemicals commonly found in foods are actually bad for us. My son was identified as mildly ADHD. This diagnosis was made and medication was recommended. Dr. Semon's book made it possible for us to change his diet (something we did very easily) and the difference in his behavior is remarkable! I was skeptical at first, but by following the first stage of the four stage diet, we saw an amazing difference in his ability to focus, and use self-control. Now, whenever we stray from the 1st Stage, we notice a spike in his hyperactivity. We get back to the 1st Stage, and he is once again in control. The book is well laid out and easy to follow. It is written in a language that is easy for anyone to understand and follow, and the chapters are written such that it doesn't need not be read in an exact order. An Extraordinary Power To Heal is exactly what it promises, a power to heal. I would highly recommend this book to any person or parent that is seeking help for ADHD or anyone who feels like they would like to improve their eating habits.

Written in a hurry.......2004-12-07

Well, I liked so much Feast Without Yeast. That's the previous book about Candida from the same authors. And I wanted to know more about this beast, on a scientific point of view. So I ordered this one. Well I am disappointed. The book DO have some new material. But most of it is already on the web site. There are two chapters that are more interesting. Chapter 2 describes the toxic effect of Candida on our body. Chapter 8 discusses the interaction of Candida and our immune system. The final chapters discuss why there is not that much research on the subject, which is a cry of heart from the authors for more involvement from the part of universities and governments. The book has many flaws per se. First and foremost, it has many, did I say it, MANY typos and repetitions all over the book. This means to me that the material has not been well organized and that the book has been written in a hurry. It also makes me think that the book is much too long for what it really has to say. That's a sad story, given that the first book, Feast Without Yeast, is a very well written and concise book. 3 out of 5.

Average customer rating:

No pictures

A delicious read. Buy It!

A Taste of Southern Italy: Delicious Recipes and a Dash of Culture
Marlena De Blasi
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Italian | European | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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Ursula Ferrigno's Trattoria: The Passion for Italian Food

ASIN: 0345487230
Release Date: 2006-04-25

Book Description

“It has always been true for me that to know a place, I must first know how it eats and drinks. Everything unravels at the table.”
–Marlena de Blasi

Marlena de Blasi’s lifelong affair with cooking began at age nine on a beach along the coast of southern Italy, where she met an elderly woman roasting potatoes coated with olive oil, rosemary, and sea salt over an open fire.

Now, in A Taste of Southern Italy, de Blasi brings to life the spirit as well as the cuisine of this bountiful region. With de Blasi we travel down remote country goat paths in tiny island villages and along sun-washed avenues of great cities in search of some of the most treasured recipes in the world. This is as much a storybook as it is a cookbook: a gathering of small rhapsodies, impressions, and romantic notions from a land where such delights are plentiful. In our journey through the kitchens of southern Italy we find tantalizing recipes for a host of mouthwatering dishes, including

Gnocchi di Castagne con Porcini Trifolati
Insalata di Pesce Dove il Mare Non C’é
Pane di Altamura
Frittelle di Ricotta e Rhum alla Lucana
Peperoni Arrostiti Ripieni
La Vera Pizza
Pomodori alla Brace
Pesce Spada sulla Brace alla Pantesca
Ricotta Forte
Pasta alla Pecoraio
La Torta Antica Ericina
Un Gelato Barocco

With these authentic recipes at your fingertips, you can master the luscious tastes and rustic ambiance of southern Italy. These dishes are sure to become a tradition in your home, and will fill it with tantalizing aromas and love.

Customer Reviews:

No pictures.......2007-01-18

I would NOT recommend this book to anyone. THere is not 1 picture in the entire book. What is a cookbook without pictures????

A delicious read. Buy It!.......2006-07-13

`A Taste of Southern Italy - Delicious Recipes and a Dash of Culture' by Marlena De Blasi, who has done a similar book for northern Italy and several volumes of memoirs, is not your usual study of a regional cuisine. It is certainly not the usual study of an Italian regional cuisine, which are among the very best in English on local food culture.

The book covers Italy from Lazio (Rome) and points south, including Abruzzo, Campania (Naples), Puglia, Basilicata, Calabria, Sicilia, and Sardegna (Sardinia). Now there are already excellent books on the cuisines of Lazio (`Cooking the Roman Way' by David Downie) and Campania (`Naples at Table' by Arthur Schwartz) plus dozens of books covering Abruzzo, Puglia, Sicilia, and Sardinia. The only single region for which there are few if any titles may be Basilicata. There are even some other excellent books on all of Italy's southern cuisine, such as `The Flavors of Southern Italy' by Erica De Mane.

The important thing to keep in mind about De Blasi's book is that it is different from all of these. Unlike Downie, it is not a fairly comprehensive coverage of the region's full range of dishes. Unlike Schwartz, it includes no study of the history of the region(s) and how this history influenced the cuisine. Unlike De Mane, this is not an analytical treatment of the region's ingredients and methods. All of this means that even if you own all these other books, De Blasi still has something to say to you.

I always appreciate it when an author stays true to the promise of their title, and you have to take the `Taste' of the title seriously, as the author makes no attempt at completeness. She is clear in stating that her selection of dishes are those which appeal to her the most as she was writing this book. That takes care of the `Delicious Recipes' of the subtitle. What De Blasi gives us whom no other author can touch is a great literary evocation of the spirit of southern Italian cooking. Senora Marlena really knows how to write and to use that skill in bringing her subject to light. The one dissonance in that message is her claim that no recipe executed in America can ever faithfully reproduce the taste of the same recipe done in Southern Italy. This is the big issue of `terroir' over which the French get so excited.

Ms. De Blasi's primary contention is that the cuisine of southern Italy is more varied than that of the north. And, since Ms. DB has done a companion volume on the `Regional Foods of Northern Italy' and has lived in Tuscany and Venice for several years, she should know from which she speaks. Unfortunately, aside from giving us a really excellent selection of recipes, she really doesn't address this contention much in her text. I certainly do like the fact that Ms. De Blasi gives us recipes composed entirely of genuinely southern ingredients. There is no Parmisano Reggiano here. All cheesy sharpness is imparted using the southern Romano cheese.

While Ms. DB makes a point of saying that her selection of recipes is very personal, she also happens to pick a very satisfying selection of recipes in at least two different ways. First, there are many recipes for local breads and pastas. When a book covers a cuisine where bread is a primary ingredient, and it doesn't give us any bread recipes, I really wonder about the seriousness of the author's commitment to their subject. When we are dealing with Italy, the same goes for pasta. Second, the selection of recipes is interesting even when compared to specialist books on an Italian region. While Mr. Downie faithfully gives us recipes for the Roman specialty, `saltimbocca', Ms. DB gives us a local variation on the saltimbocca ingredients, `Uno Stufatino di Vitello' (A little braise of veal) which has all the same tastes, but none of the fiery fast saute of saltimbocca. Still comparing Downie to De Blasi, I find her recipe for Roman style artichokes to be really superior to that in Downie's book. Not only does De Blasi include pancetta, she also gives a better narrative of how to do the dish.

This is a cookbook meant to be read from cover to cover, enjoying the description of the dishes and their lore here is almost as much fun as actually making and eating the dishes. I heartily recommend this volume to any amateur foodie who simply happens to like everything about Italian cuisines.

Average customer rating:

Very, very disappointed.

INFORMATIVE, EASY TO READ AND ENJOYABLE

discription of shapes

Fantastic Antique Reference

Koval's getting bettter

Kovels' Antiques & Collectibles Price List, 38th Edition, 2006 (Kovels' Antiques and Collectibles Price List)
Terry Kovel , and Ralph Kovel
Manufacturer: Random House Reference
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Reference | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Reference | Subjects | Books
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Collectibles Price Guide 2006 (Collectibles Price Guide)

ASIN: 0375720995
Release Date: 2005-10-11

Book Description

KOVELS'—THE RELIABLE CHOICE

IN FULL COLOR—ALL APPRAISER-APPROVED PRICES

America's bestselling price guide, Kovels' Antiques & Collectibles Price List 2006, 38th edition, gives you an insider's edge when you are buying, selling, or collecting. With over 45,000 items and their prices, this book gives an accurate, reliable view of today's American marketplace.

• Over 45,000 retail prices of collectibles offered for sale, reported from shops, shows, auctions, and Internet sales during the past year
• More than 500 categories of antiques and collectibles
• Over 500 full-color photographs
• The Kovels' exclusive 16-page illustrated report featuring antiques and collectibles that sold for very high prices over the past year
• Easy-to-use alphabetical listings, cross-referenced and indexed

OVER 4 MILLION COPIES SOLD!

"America's leading popular authorities on collectibles and antiques" —AARP

"America's most popular price guide for collectors, dealers and appraisers.... [T]his new edition is indispensable."
—The Journal of Antiques and Collectibles

"The Kovels are arguably the authorities on antiques and collectibles in this country." —Los Angeles Times

Customer Reviews:

Very, very disappointed........2007-09-22

I did not like this book at all. I found it very limited. Information was geared mostly to figurines, bottles, dolls, vases, cup and saucers, toys, etc.
There was a lot of information on furniture but very, very few pictures.
Very little information on 'country' type antiques, which is what I was looking for.

INFORMATIVE, EASY TO READ AND ENJOYABLE.......2006-08-10

Really enjoyed this guide; I was surprised to find that some of my "dust collectors" are actually quite valuable!

discription of shapes.......2006-08-06

I like all of Kovel's book's. I only wish they had more pictures of their discription's on certain item's. What does cartouche, crosshatched,baluster etc. mean? Overall a good book for collecters.

Fantastic Antique Reference.......2006-07-28

Kovels' Antiques & Collectibles Price List, 38th Edition,2006 is a fantastic reference book for those that have heirloom antiques and are not aware of their actual monetary value. I was amazed to discover that many of the items that I own are actually worth much more than I realized. The detailed information about identifying certain labels and other distinguishing marks has been most helpful in taking my own personal inventory. I would highly recommend this reference to any serious antique collector.

Koval's getting bettter.......2006-07-24

This version expands on photos and is a better paper quality than past versions. As always, Kovals has extensive listings and clear descriptions, but the additional pictures are an added benefit.

Average customer rating:

This is one of a kind

Words of Faith in Wood: 53 Artistic Patterns for the Scroll Saw
Jeff Paxton
Manufacturer: Fox Chapel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Fun with Paper & Wood, Stones & Knives | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Woodworking | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Projects | Woodworking | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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North American Wildlife Patterns for the Scroll Saw

ASIN: 1565232283

Book Description

Woodworkers learn to express their faith in wood with the 76 inspirational scroll saw patterns included in this book. These patterns focus on combining scripture verses with artistic imagery. An overview of wood, tips for scroll saw blade selection, tips for cutting patterns, finishing, matting, and framing techniques provide woodworkers with everything they need to know to get started. Four additional mini-projects feature full-size patterns and detailed instructions for cutting success. These projects include a wooden Bible case, bookmark, letter holder, and greeting card. Each project contains a scripture verse with a complimentary image such as a grapevine, cross, or other Christian symbol.

Customer Reviews:

This is one of a kind.......2006-01-13

Dr. Jeff Paxton's book is truly one of a kind. I purchased my copy about 3 months ago and began cutting out the patterns immediately. I have been looking for a book like this since I began scrolling. These framed, "Words of Faith" was my Christmas gift for over 30 of my closest friends. I have received more positive feedback about them in 3 weeks than any of my previous work in 3 years. My scroll saw experience is limited, but I believe a beginner can cut these out. Dr. Paxton has included very detailed patterns and some excellent tips on things like wood choice, stack cutting and etc. This book has taken my scroll saw work to a new level of recognition and accomplishment, but yet they are so simple to cut out. The inspiration from this book has lead me to develop some of my own patterns. Well, I don't know what else to say except, if you're a scroll saw enthusiast and don't buy this book call; "Words of Faith in Wood" you are missing out on a tremendous blessing. Many blessings to come. Happy scrolling!

Average customer rating:
Carnation production,: Including the history, breeding, culture, and marketing of carnations
Winfred D Holley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006AYVG8

Average customer rating:
Carnation Production Including the History, Breeding, Culture and Marketing of Carnations
W. D. Holley and Ralph Baker
Manufacturer: Wm C. Brown Co Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000J5AA88

Book Description

The spanish edition of Active Parenting Today. Dr. Popkin shows you how to develop courage, responsibilty and character in your children.

Amazon.com

To call Janis Joplin the Judy Garland of the Woodstock set is in some sense a fair characterization. The brassy, carnal, extravagant, and ultimately pitiable queen of psychedelic rock is indeed a cultural icon. And while Joplin reveled in her own ballsy, boozy legend, its needy, inebriated, real-life equivalent was a shadow that darkened her short life and, in the decades since her 1970 drug-induced death, has come to eclipse the party-girl persona.

To her great credit, author Alice Echols reconciles the two faces of Joplin in this ambitious, thoroughly readable biography. She does so by tracing Joplin from her youth as a natural-born libertine in dreary Port Arthur, Texas, to her emergence as the sole female rock superstar of her era--a period when beneath-the-surface sexism hampered Joplin's progress even while women's liberation was being widely touted. The author does not shy away from sordid sex-and-drugs episodes, and there's plenty of raw material---the singer was promiscuous, bisexual, and, at various times, an alcoholic, a speed freak, and a junkie. Echols, however, elevates this biography above run-of-the-mill rock profiles by painting her subject against an elaborate and ever-changing cultural backdrop. Here is Joplin the aspiring folksinger, the white-picket-fence wannabe, the wayward daughter, the hit-and-miss recording artist, and, finally, the ill-starred spirit with nothing left to lose. --Steven Stolder

Book Description

Janis Joplin was the skyrocket chick of the sixties, the woman who broke into the boys' club of rock and out of the stifling good-girl femininity of postwar America. With her incredible wall-of-sound vocals, Joplin was the voice of a generation, and when she OD'd on heroin in October 1970, a generation's dreams crashed and burned with her. Alice Echols pushes past the legary Joplin-the red-hot mama of her own invention-as well as the familiar portrait of the screwed-up star victimized by the era she symbolized, to examine the roots of Joplin's muscianship and explore a generation's experiment with high-risk living and the terrible price it exacted.A deeply affecting biography of one of America's most brilliant and tormented stars, Scars of Sweet Paradise is also a vivid and incisive cultural history of an era that changed the world for us all.

Customer Reviews:

the best Janis biography.......2007-09-10

This is my fourth biography I've read of Janis' and by far the most well-written and informative. Instead of being filled with personal judgements and opinions it seems to document the happenings in Janis' life and the lives of those around her in a very easy to follow manner. Lots of history about other San Francisco bands and connections in the music world. Photos are great!!

An Overdose Janis.......2006-04-03

Oh Lord, won`t you buy me a Mercedes Benz, my friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends," Janis Joplin sang so outragedly, if it would be seriousness and not satire (knowing very well, that, occasionally, some wishes are not fulfilled). Worked hard all my lifetime, no help from my friends," - that does not matter anyway and applies to God (if there is one) not as an argument: Proof of it is clear to find. Janis Joplin has slaved away and lived, intensive as a lunatic -- this has not changed the mind of God to let her get 100 years old. Perhaps it was not God, however, who set forcefully a final stroke to this style of protesting impudently (Oh Lord, won`t you buy me a colour TV, ...I wait for delivery, each day until three"), it seems, that Janis arrived at the dead end, because she once took pure, separate heroin (her main dealer was just on holiday). Oh Lord, won't you buy me a night on the town, I'm counting on you Lord, please don't let me down, prove that you love me, and buy the next round..." There was not any next round, after she had taken this song ("Mercedes Benz") in the studio - a capella - the instruments should get mixed the next day. But in the night of October 4th 1970 Janis Joplin died. Eric Burdon commented: "Janis did not die of an overdose heroin. She died of an overdose Janis"

Times are a Changin'.......2005-01-03

I found this book to be quite interesting on the level of an historical and cultural analysis of Janis's life. Echols manages to write an objective biography on Joplin that does not get too sentimental or depressing, as have other biographies on Janis. This biograpy provides one with an education on the late 50s/ early 60s (on the level of history and lifestyle); however, it is not as personable as other biographies. Overall a very good book.

Brilliant biography and counterculture history.......2004-12-16

This brilliant book is both a biography of Janis Joplin and a cultural history of the 1960s. Scars Of Sweet Paradise is a very thorough and in-depth look at Joplin's life and times and at the same time an exploration of the quiet suburban life versus the lure of the counterculture. The bohemian underground, unlike some idyllic portrayals of it, had its share of cynicism and destructiveness.

Much of this book deals with this evolving underground as it relates to the music, gender relationships and the merger of art and commerce. It is the story of a generation's restless and reckless life on the edge, from which Janis and many others never returned. The author conducted over 150 interviews and spent 5 years on research to produce this comprehensive work on Joplin and her era.

The Janis that emerges is a complex, multi-faceted personality that inspires admiration and sadness. The story begins in Port Arthur where Joplin's early life is described, including her first exposures to rock and folk music. It follows her to college and her first taste of the bohemian life then on to her first visit to San Francisco and eventual return to Port Arthur.

She went back to SF and her career began to take off. It is fascinating to read about the colourful personalities that she mixed with in San Francisco: the friends, the lovers and the musicians. Echols is a skilful narrator, seamlessly blending Joplin's moves and her relationships with the rise of her career. There are plenty of quotes from contemporary musicians that really illuminate this mythologized period in history.

My only minor complaint is that the author does not seem to share in the excitement as Joplin finally makes it big with Big Brother an the Cheap Thrills album - this story is just given clinically as part of the larger narrative. The various bands, Big Brother, Kozmic Blues and Full Tilt Boogie, are discussed in detail, as well as the recording process of each of the major albums: Cheap Thrills, I Got Dem Old Kozmic Blues and Pearl. The personalities behind her success, like Abert Grossman and Linda Gravenites, are sympathetically portrayed.

Echols explores Joplin's influence on various performers and notes that the heavy metal crowd picked up on her style but that she didn't directly inspire any clones. Ultimately, Janis appears as a brave, wild and very vulnerable human being who was quite likable, if somewhat volatile. There are 35 black and white photographs and the book concludes with a discography, copious notes and an index. Almost scholarly in its depth, Scars Of Sweet Paradise is yet a gripping read that will please her fans and all who are interested in the 1960s counterculture and the evolution of rock music.

Excellent.......2003-11-14

Alice Echols skillfully weaves the cultural nuances of the complicated '60s with the life and times of the great Janis Joplin. Informative and painstakingly researched. This book is far superior to Myra Friedman's overrated "Buried Alive," which is a vast pile of stinky doo-doo rather than a definitive biography. Avoid "Buried Alive" and get this book instead.

SCARS OF SWEET PARADISE: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JANIS JOPLIN

Average customer rating:

SCARS OF SWEET PARADISE: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JANIS JOPLIN
Alice Echols
Manufacturer: Henry Holt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000PLY1IQ

Customer Reviews:

A book worth reading once.......2001-07-13

While this book is certainly worth reading once,I must say that I can not share in the glowing review presented above.Aside from the fact that the book contains several historical inaccuracies,the "hero"- Elias Aelion is neither particularly heroic nor interesting.

As to the author's inaccuracies, I will posit but two examples(although there are several):1.the author points out that the Albanians "defeated the Italian Army" when the latter invaded Albania as a first step in their disasterous subsequent invasion of Greece.Well,check again because this never happened;2. the author states that Elias Aelion, the principal character marched back from Bulgaria-Yugoslavia,after the defeat of the Greek Army by the Germans, for a distance of 300 miles.This is quite suspect for two reasons:1.The Greek Army was never in either Bulgaria or Yugoslavia, and 2. the distance from the border in question to, lets say Athens is far less than 300 miles. Yes, I know this sounds a bit picky, but either the author failed to do some basic homework or Elias Aelion is not telling the events quite right.

And speaking of Mr. Aelion. I wondered, as I read the book, why a trained soldier, such as he, spent his time either lounging in Athens or having little parties while tens of thousands of others, including Greek Jews, were fighting in the mountains of Greece with the Resistance, against the Germans. I remember my father telling me about "David'- a Greek Jew who was his comrade in the Resistance. David lost everyone- but he never lost his love for his country nor his thirst to avenge his murdered family. He was always first in battle...and he took no prisoners.

Yet,while Elias Aelion feared capture and went in to hiding-- he did so in the relative comfort of Athens,with a roof over his head and with some food in his stomach. While I find the description of his return to his home quite touching, I am sorry to say that I found little else sympathetic about him.

One single, solitary chapter in Mazower's book "Inside Hitler's Greece" on the plight of Greek Jewry in the Holocaust has more power, force and accuracy than this entire book.

The loss of a Sephardic culture in the Holocaust.......1999-02-12

BOOK REVIEW - 2/10/99

THE HOUSE BY THE SEA: A PORTRAIT OF THE HOLOCAUST IN GREECE by Rebecca Camhi Fromer Reviewed by R. Bortnick

There are far too few books in English on the Sephardic experience in the Holocaust. There would be fewer still if it weren't for Rebecca Camhi Fromer, author of the groundbreaking The Holocaust Odyssey of Daniel Bennahmias, Sonderkommando (University of Alabama Press,1993) and co-author, with Rene Molho, of They Say Diamonds Don't Burn (Judah Magnes Museum, 1994.) In her latest book, The House by the Sea, she weaves the facts of the Holocaust in Greece around the personal story of Salonica native Elias Aelion. Elias is not a Holocaust survivor in the usual sense, for he was never in a German concentration camp. There are no descriptions here of concentration camps, mass murders, or crematoria. Yet the book is subtitled "A Portrait of the Holocaust in Greece" because, as the author says in the Preface, this is "a serious work that is grounded in the past, the tenor of the struggle to survive, and the nature of the loss in Greece due to the Holocaust." Elias Aelion was born in the house at the edge of the sea, a house which remains associated in his memory with "all that seemed worthwhile, warm and loving, simple and natural..." His grandparents lived there, and it was the focal location of the very large family's life (his parents had sixteen siblings between them!), of gatherings on Sabbaths, holidays and special occasions, of games and fights with cousins, and of other mundane events of a normal life. Elias was inducted into the Greek army in 1939, becoming part of the defense army against the invading Italians in 1940. When the Germans invaded in April, 1941, the Greek soldiers fled in disarray, and Elias escaped on foot with his comrades, walking for about 300 miles from somewhere between Bulgaria and Yugoslavia into Greece. When his family and friends and all the other Jews of his hometown went on the infamous "transports", he was in Italian-occupied Athens.. His tale of the war years, of running, evading, riding on cattle trains and stolen trucks, hiding, and avoiding a German arrest by-the skin-of-his-teeth, or, rather, by the force of some hard green beans (you'll have to read the book to see what that means!), absorbs the reader like an adventure movie. When he returns to Salonica and finds his community and family gone, we feel with him, in the depths of our souls, the tragedy before our eyes. Besides lending her own poetic eloquence to Elias's language, Ms. Fromer also speaks to us directly in the Introduction, the notes, the Appendices and the Afterword, in order to to create a complete picture of the events. In the Introduction, she presents a general historical background of the Jews of Greece, the culture of the Jews of Salonica (the city that "was a main center of Sephardic life, not a mere outpost of Jewish survival"), and the destruction of their great culture in the Holocaust in a period of less than five months, culminating with the nineteenth and last transport out of Salonica on August 18, 1943. Alongside Elias's story, Ms. Fromer adds side notes which are generally very illuminating and interesting. The Appendices include a historical time-line, a chronology of the Holocaust in Greece, a map, and archival information on the transports. One of the documents is especially important. This, from the O.S.S. (Office of Strategic Services), declassified only in January of 1998 and published here for the first time, dispels any doubt that at least by 1943, the Allies had clear information about the planned extermination of the Jews of Europe. Having established the importance and beauty of this book, we intend no detraction by mentioning two mistakes which, although not significant in context, did catch our attention. One is in the explanation given for the origin of the term sefer tasin - a portable food pot - which in fact has nothing to do with the Hebrew sefer, meaning book, as is indicated, but comes from sefer tasi in Turkish - sefer, meaning journey or expedition (related to the English word "safari"); the other is in the use of the term Inquisition for the Spanish expulsion of the Jews. The House by the Sea is an eloquently-told piece of little-known history. It is an intimate look at the destruction of a great and vibrant Sephardic culture. If we are to understand the full scope of the Holocaust, this history must be known, and that culture must be understood,. This book should be on every Jew's - and certainly on every Sefardi's - bookshelf.

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The House by the Sea: A Portrait of the Holocaust in Greece
Elia; Fromer, Rebecca Aelion
Manufacturer: Mercury House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K3PJ08

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