1984 (Signet Classics)

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"Outside, even through the shut window pane, the world looked cold. Down in the street little eddies of wind were whirling dust and torn paper into spirals, and though the sun was shining and the sky a harsh blue, there seemed to be no color in anything except the posters that were plastered everywhere."

The year is 1984; the scene is London, largest population center of Airstrip One.

Airstrip One is part of the vast political entity Oceania, which is eternally at war with one of two other vast entities, Eurasia and Eastasia. At any moment, depending upon current alignments, all existing records show either that Oceania has always been at war with Eurasia and allied with Eastasia, or that it has always been at war with Eastasia and allied with Eurasia. Winston Smith knows this, because his work at the Ministry of Truth involves the constant "correction" of such records. "'Who controls the past,' ran the Party slogan, 'controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.'"

In a grim city and a terrifying country, where Big Brother is always Watching You and the Thought Police can practically read your mind, Winston is a man in grave danger for the simple reason that his memory still functions. He knows the Party's official image of the world is a fluid fiction. He knows the Party controls the people by feeding them lies and narrowing their imaginations through a process of bewilderment and brutalization that alienates each individual from his fellows and deprives him of every liberating human pursuit from reasoned inquiry to sexual passion. Drawn into a forbidden love affair, Winston finds the courage to join a secret revolutionary organization called The Brotherhood, dedicated to the destruction of the Party. Together with his beloved Julia, he hazards his life in a deadly match against the powers that be.

Newspeak, doublethink, thoughtcrime--in 1984, George Orwell created a whole vocabulary of words concerning totalitarian control that have since passed into our common vocabulary. More importantly, he has portrayed a chillingly credible dystopia. In our deeply anxious world, the seeds of unthinking conformity are everywhere in evidence; and Big Brother is always looking for his chance. --Daniel Hintzsche

Book Description

George Orwell's prophetic, nightmarish vision of "Negative Utopia" is timelier than ever-and its warnings more powerful.

Customer Reviews:

A Dystopian Vision.......2007-10-07

"1984" may well be the poster child for the genre of dystopian literature. Personally, I thought Orwell was most successful when it came to describing the society around Winston or the psychological struggle during the interogations. The love story was a weaker part of the book (for me).
Unlike Huxley's "Brave New World", Orwell dosen't try to go for dark humor but instead uses the society of fear to convey his views on totalitarinism to the audience. Personally I thought Orwell's characters weren't as interesting as those in Huxley's or Lewis's dystopian novels (C.S. Lewis wrote "That Hideous Strenght"). The concept for Room 101 was imaginative but almost seemed to give the Ocenaian officials an unrealistic advantage (personally, I feel some people could have overcome even fear). Perhaps I shouldn't get on to Orwell too much over this; after all Lewis's villans tried to overcome human nature in their own ways as well.
Overall, Orwell wrote an interesting work. It is even more interesting when one compares the totalitarianism of Oceania to that of the U.S.S.R. (notice that Big Brother and Goldstein have some resemblances to Stalin and Trotsky). I am currently reading a book far more chilling than Orwell's fiction. "The Gulag Archipelago" would make a very good companion to "1984" as it gives a picture of actual totalitarianism at the time when Orwell wrote his fictional masterpiece.

Chilling, Yet Moving In Places.......2007-09-26

This book relates the experiences of one Winston Smith in a world where all people belong to one of three totalitarian superpowers. In this dystopian novel, the state requires nothing less than the complete submission of individuals' inner thoughts. "The Party is not interested in the overt act: the thought is all we care about." There is no escape ("Nobody ever escaped detection, and nobody ever failed to confess.") and no practical hope for a free future where human rights would exist once more.

The story is beautiful in parts--such as in the places where it deals with a forbidden love and an individual's struggle to maintain his identity--and incredibly hopeless in others. Orwell is an amazing writer and I spent a lot of time underlining different phrases and sentences. This book is frightening. As Erich Fromm writes in the afterword, "...it would be most unfortunate if the reader smugly interpreted 1984 as another description of Stalinist barbarism, and if he does not see that it means us, too." I recommend this book to all.

A must for any library..........2007-09-15

"He who controls the past controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past."

My definition of a truly classic novel is one that is so talked about and referenced that you can know all about the book and it's message without having ever actually read it. 1984 is one of the most glaring examples of this, as terms such as "Big Brother" and "Doublespeak" are now mainstream concepts that no longer require explanation.

The book itself gained its popularity, however, by successfully reaching a broad audience by exaggerating and reducing the complicated debate of the illusion of free will and freedom of thought in any kind of government structure that strives to control and manipulate the populace for its own benefit in an almost unbelievable science fiction setting. The extremes that are reached in 1984's may seem only possible in a work of fiction, yet there is a truth beneath the pulp novel trappings that most readers can not avoid recognizing.

Note: For those who have already read this, I have a suggestion. Read 1984 again, only assume that the book actually takes place in our modern times, and that the narrator is a paranoid schizophrenic.

In a time of accelerating technology, are we prepared for the inevitable?.......2007-09-14

George Orwell's 1984 is no longer a thing of the future.

The Internet is everywhere--including your wireless cameraphone.

Digital technology makes surveillance push-button easy. Those in power cannot resist. And we even do it to ourselves using social networks like Facebook and Myspace. Soon, every phone will incorporate GPS location technology.

Are we prepared for the inevitable?

In a time when the pace of technology continues to accelerate, Orwell's classic has never been more relevant.

One of the classics.......2007-09-13

This book is one of my all time favorites. Classic in every respect of the word. George Orwell's vision should be taken with a grain of salt, but look at all the striking similarities there are to the world that we live in. With all the recent and upcoming advances in science and technology we would do well to remember the world in 1984.

Average customer rating:

1984 - George Orwell
just what i wanted
Terrific reads.
Animal Farm and 1984
A Classic

Animal Farm and 1984
George Orwell
Manufacturer: Harcourt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0151010269

Book Description

ANIMAL FARM

George Orwell's classic satire of the Russian Revolution is an intimate part of our contemporary culture. It is the account of the bold struggle, initiated by the animals, that transforms Mr. Jones's Manor Farm into Animal Farm--a wholly democratic society built on the credo that All Animals Are Created Equal. Out of their cleverness, the pigs Napoleon, Squealer, and Snowball emerge as leaders of the new community in a subtle evolution that proves disastrous. The climax is the brutal betrayal of the faithful horse Boxer, when totalitarian rule is reestablished with the bloodstained postscript to the founding slogan: But some Animals Are More Equal Than Others. . . .

1984

In 1984, London is a grim city where Big Brother is always watching you and the Thought Police can practically read your mind. Winston is a man in grave danger for the simple reason that his memory still functions. Drawn into a forbidden love affair, Winston finds the courage to join a secret revolutionary organization called The Brotherhood, dedicated to the destruction of the Party. Together with his beloved Julia, he hazards his life in a deadly match against the powers that be.

Customer Reviews:

1984 - George Orwell.......2007-10-01

On 1984:
In George Orwell's 1984, war is peace, freedom is slavery, and ignorance is strength. So goes the slogan that describes life in dystopian London, a city monstrously ruled by the totalitarian state of Oceania. Along with Oceania, the states of Eurasia and Eastasia rule the world. Their co-existence isn't peaceful, however, as the three states are perpetually at war with each other. In Oceania, the government's figurehead is Big Brother, who is a personification of the collective power of the state and not a real person. His "face" fills the streets on the poster fronts plastered all over the city with the words "Big Brother is Watching You" underneath his overbearing glare.

Winston Smith, the novel's main character, works for the Party (the government). He despises his job along with the Party and Big Brother, but under no circumstances is he allowed to show it. In fact, to so much as even think a thought against the Party or Big Brother is considered treasonous and punishable by death! At present time, the Party doesn't have the technology to read people's minds, but they are working on it. Instead they control behavior through telescreens (television panels) and microphones. In London, telescreens are ubiquitous and cannot be turned off or interacted with. Presumably there are agents monitoring activity nearly everywhere that a member of the Party might frequent through these devices. In addition to technological surveillance, there is also human surveillance offered by both children and adults. Citizens of Oceania and members of the Party in particular are encouraged to report any unusual behavior which is interpreted as disloyalty to the state. It becomes virtually impossible, then, to get away with saying or projecting any kind of dissidence towards the Party. Individualism of any kind is considered unorthodox and a threat to the state. Winston would not be allowed to read this review without risking his life.

Oceania's population is divided between Party members, who make up 15%, and the unintelligent and underprivileged proletariat, which round out the remaining 85%. The "Proles" as they are known, could theoretically rebel and destroy the Party, but they are too ignorant and simple-minded to even dream of it. Winston knows this to be true, though still reserves some faint hope that he could be wrong and that the Proles could rise against the machine. The only other hope he has of an overthrow lies in the mysterious existence of the Brotherhood, a shadow collective inside of Oceania seeking to eliminate the Party and establish a democratic government. Winston has never met a member of the Brotherhood because it is impossible to even approach somebody to find out if they are disgruntled with the Party. To do so would be to risk your life. If they caught you, you would be eliminated and dubbed an unperson in Newspeak (the official and preferred language of Oceania). You will never have existed.

This is why Winston was apprehensive when Julia, a girl working in the same government building, slipped him a note. Initially he had suspected that she was a member of the Thought Police, an organization involved with seeking out heretics or disloyal Party members. Was she trying to snuff him out? Had she tapped into his mind and found a reservoir of anti-government angst? Winston thought his days were numbered, but was she the one that would reveal this to the authorities?

Orwell has given the world a political and psychological masterpiece. Written in 1948 as a vision of how the world would look in 1984, Orwell's only fault has been the fact that the novel is more relevant today than during its namesake. In our ever-advancing technoage, 1984 stands as a caution and a warning against governmental controlling measures. But to view his novel as a reaction against totalitarianism is to miss the boat. Orwell also explores human nature from a multiplicity of levels. He examines the human thirst for power and how this thirst intensifies when a group fuses their collective thirsts into a giant groupthirst (to use Newspeak). He asks what ultimate loyalty really means and how it can be redistributed from one object to another. What will such a task require? Can pain or love or any human longing outlast or outperform the other? Can truth be altered? And if so, who has the right or the power to alter it? These questions and more are asked in 1984. Will your answers to the questions tow the Party line, or will you sigh in paranoiac relief that you can think for yourself?

On the quality of the edition:
The cover is hard and firm, just what you'd want from a hardcover edition. Unlike other hardcovers which bend easier, however, this version takes quite an effort to keep the book fully opened and bent back to read. This makes it impossible to read with one hand holding the book up. I read with the book placed on a surface, so I have no problems. But for others, this might be an issue. All in all, I am very satisfied with the quality of this edition.

just what i wanted.......2007-07-18

this was just the item i wanted so i was very well pleased with it.

Terrific reads........2007-06-13

We are living in George's nightmare !!ONE!1! =O

Animal Farm and 1984.......2007-02-12

I only wanted "1984" but was unable to find "1984" in a book apart from "Animal Farm". Otherwise the book and timelyness of shipping and receipt were great. You have made my Grand daughter happy with her gift.

A Classic.......2007-02-10

Should be required reading. A starkly written story with incredible accuracy considering it was written decades ago. Orwell is one of the best. Read Animal Farm also.

Average customer rating:

Looking at a future that is now past
Wonderful Work.
Deviates corrected for their own good
Chilling Account of Society without Freedom
Fine

1984
George Orwell
Manufacturer: Blackstone Audiobooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: 0786183926

Book Description

Orwell depicts a gray world dominated by Big Brother and its vast network of agents, including the Thought Police, quashing freedom in a totalitarian world in which news is manufactured according to the authorities' will and people live tepid lives by rote.

Winston Smith, the hero with no heroic qualities, longs only for truth and decency. But living in a social system in which privacy does not exist and where those with unorthodox ideas are brainwashed or put to death, he knows there is no hope for him.

The year 1984 has come and gone, yet George Orwell's nightmare vision in 1949 of the world we were becoming is still the great modern classic of negative Utopia.

Customer Reviews:

Looking at a future that is now past.......2006-11-03

I greatly enjoyed this audio book, partly because the narrator's vocal gifts brought alive the various characters and thier accents. I also enjoyed revisitng a book that I had read long ago, in the earlry years of my life. I now was able to see more clearly the fears inspired by the Communist party in post-war Eastern Europe and China, and how those events inspired Orwell's writing of this book and the reactions of his audience.

Wonderful Work........2006-09-14

Richard Brown's voice is perfect for 1984 - a novel about a distopia. I listened to this while driving to work in my car. This is a very deep, thoughtful novel to begin with. It is made so real by a good actor. I highly recommend this.

Deviates corrected for their own good.......2006-01-02

In a society that has eliminated many imbalances, surplus goods, and even class struggle, there are bound to be deviates; Winston Smith is one of those. He starts out, due to his inability to doublethink, with thoughtcrime. This is in a society that believes a thought is as real as the deed. Eventually he graduates through a series of misdemeanors to illicit sex and even plans to overthrow the very government that took him in as an orphan.
If he gets caught, he will be sent to the "Ministry of Love" where they have a record of 100% cures for this sort of insanity. They will even forgive his past indiscretions.

Be sure to watch the three different movies made from this book:
1984 (1954) Peter Cushing is Winston Smith
1984 (1956) Edmond O'Brien is Winston Smith
Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) John Hurt is Winston smith

Chilling Account of Society without Freedom.......2005-12-04

WAR IS PEACE. FREEDOM IS SLAVERY. IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH. These
are the three slogans that Winston Smith hears every day. When I first read this book 35 years ago, the threat of such a freedomless world seemed impossible to me. After all...we are not Russia. Today, the words of the book are dangerously true. WAR IS PEACE. Have we not started a preemptive war against another country for the ostensible purpose of peace? IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH. Don't some of our public schools and libraries censor books or resist the teaching of contemporary biology? What about the THOUGHT POLICE. Today in America, an individual can be convicted by introducting into evidence information that he or she reviewed from his computer in the privacy of his home. The books we read, the videos we rent, the clothes we wear, the cars we drive are all easily accessible by lw enforcement agencies. New technology allows scientists to scan our brains to determine if we are telling the truth. Yes...BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING US. Listen to this CD, read Orwell, and start a movement that prevents any further inroads into our thoughts and privacy.

Fine.......2005-10-11

It is a good book, i dont know if i totaly understand the point. It does make you hate people not involved with history and the world around them, if you arent you will believe anything.

Average customer rating:

beautiful
Beautyful and interesting book
A charming insight into the soul of a great photographer
Very educational and enjoyable
An Essential Insight

Examples: The Making of 40 Photographs
Ansel Adams
Manufacturer: Bulfinch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 082121750X

Customer Reviews:

beautiful.......2007-07-22

I bought this book to give to my kids. My mother gave me one 20 years ago. Ansel Adams took portraits of my Great Grand Parents and put it in this book. I want my kids to have copies. If you are a photographer, there is a lot of info about how he took the pictures.

Beautyful and interesting book.......2007-06-26

Nice to be able to go back to basics in these times of megapixels and gigabytes.

A charming insight into the soul of a great photographer.......2007-04-27

There are many great books about photography, of which this is just one, but there are relatively few books about how to be a great photographer. On the latter topic this book is exceptional.

Ansel Adams was clearly both a gentleman and a gentle man, who lived to create great images for the pleasure and education of others. We are exceptionally lucky that he left us both his wonderful pictures, but also a few books which explain not only how, but also why some of them were created.

This book covers a photography career of over 60 years, taking 40 of his greatest pictures, and describing how they were made. Although much of the technical advice is still valid today, a lot of it requires on the fly translation from the language of large format cameras and glass plates to the world of digital SLRs, with tiny sensors and vast memory cards. That exercise might put some people off, but it makes you think harder about his advice, and that's a good thing.

However, where this book really scores is with the human stories of how and why Adams made certain pictures. Two examples stick in my mind.
Firstly, how one of his iconic views of Yosemite was made after a day's hard hiking with a full size view camera, large wooden tripod, and just twelve glass plates. He suspected that he had wasted the first eleven, and had just one left for a favourite view of Half Dome. He took extra care with that one, and the results are still thrilling 80 years on.

Then there's his tale of photographing 50s Californian farming families. This is a charming insight into how a great photographer of people develops both trust and ideas, lubricating both with an appropriate supply of beer. You suspect these days were not so hard for Adams as the great Yosemite hikes.

"Examples" also contains some remarkable philosophical insights into the process and role of photography. The one which now sticks foremost in my mind is that enthusiasm for a subject will not create great photographs - you have to visualise the image and its impact mentally, then make it. This is perhaps the single most powerful piece of advice in the book.

In 1935 Adams was concerned that the advent of 35mm would result in a vast number of bad photographs. Yet he was keen on the new medium, because he could also see its benefits. The same page could be written ten times over about digital photography, but you know that had Adams lived a little longer he would have been a keen PhotoShop-er.

This is a good book on photographic technique, but there are others. But there are few books which give such an insight into the soul of a great photographer.

Very educational and enjoyable.......2007-01-12

These days it is easy to do your own color printing, but, what makes a good print? I think I do, but am always looking for help in understanding ways of how to get there, how other people do it and how I could improve. Who could be a better example of a printer than A. Adams? No one, that's who. In this book he tells how he visualized the photo he wanted, and the print before he took the photo. And then his craft in printing it. He also talks about the circumstances around the making of the photo, location, time of day, camera, lens, film, exposure, etc. And all very lucid and enjoyable to read. His other book on printing is also good but in it he concentrates on the technical aspects of printing, i.e. developers, papers, burning and dodging, water baths, drying, mounting, etc.

An Essential Insight.......2006-05-24

Heralded as perhaps one of the most influential conservation photographers of all time, Ansel Adams for many has existed only as a name attached to brilliant, vibrant and expressive landscape photography. Perhaps if you have read his three-party series, "The Camera," "The Negative," and "The Print," you are familiar with Adams's technical thought processes. With "The Making of 40 Photographs," we gain insight into Adams' creative process. And for many of us who aspire to create brilliant nature photography, it is this insight that is most valuable.

"The Making of 40 Photographs" seeks to answer that question we all ask when we see a tremendous photographic print: How did the photographer take that photograph? But, "The Making" does far more than that. It seeks to explore not only the individual creative process, but the growth of the art form and the important historical transition of its wide acceptance as true art in his discussions of the f/64 Group.

As far back as 1980, Adams even goes so far as to predict digital photography as the next big step, referencing what he calls the "electronic image." This is a valuable insight, as many today challenge digital photography and question its detrimental impact on the photographic arts.

Any photographer who wishes to learn more about this master and explore his or her own potential to create brilliant images must read this book.

Average customer rating:

A classic
Nice introduction to Truman Capote's work
Have a wonderful fictional dream...
a definite classic
There's a reason it's endured

Breakfast at Tiffany's
Truman Capote
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0679745653
Release Date: 1993-09-28

Book Description

This volume includes three of Capote's best-known stories, "House of Flowers, " "A Diamond Guitar, " and "A Christmas Memory, " in addition to his bestselling novel, Breakfast at Tiffany, the popular story of Holly Golightly--"a cross between Lolita and Auntie Mame" (Time).

Customer Reviews:

A classic.......2007-07-08

I got this book because I love the movie, and now I can say I greatly appreciate the book also. It is always nice when a movie follows a book well and not make their own story and just use the title. But this is definitely a book i read again and again. The other stories in the collection were good also.

Nice introduction to Truman Capote's work.......2007-06-01

Like many others here, I was inspired to read Truman Capote's work for the first time after seeing the movie Capote. I thought that starting with In Cold Blood would be too dark, so I chose Breakfast at Tiffany's instead. Surprisingly, this orginal work is not nearly as light and cavalier as the famed film version. Although the movie stuck fairly closely to the actual plot, Holly is a much deeper character than her excellent portrayal by Aubrey Hepburn would suggest. There are nuances to her story that are completely left out of the on-screen version, including a poignant conclusion that is nowhere near a Hollywood ending. Overall, however, Breakfast at Tiffany's is an excellent read, at it alone is deserving of a 5-star rating.

While Breakfast at Tiffany's is more of a novella, the other tales in this book are simply short stories, and I found them to be much less compelling. House of Flowers is a sort of off-beat romance, some of which I found to be disturbing and with an ending that I found to be unsatisfying. A Diamond Guitar was more moving yet quite depressing. Finally, A Christmas Memory, the best of the three, was a sweet tale of a young boy's special bond with a much older relative.

If you are looking for an entry point to Truman Capote's work, this book would be a good place to start familiarizing yourself with this talented, important writer.

Have a wonderful fictional dream..........2007-06-01

The late novelist John Gardner said that an ideal fictional story invokes in the reader an unbroken, fictional dream. I like this way of thinking about reading a novel or short story. If you keep "waking up" during the reading, then the author isn't doing his job very well.

I just read Breakfast at Tiffany's--not 30 minutes ago--and I'm still not sure I'm fully "awake." Holly Golightly, the focal character here, seems so real to me, I can hardly believe she isn't in New York, this moment, missing her door key. Very few novels have affected me this way, this strongly. A Catcher in the Rye--that one did it. Jane Eyre, a few others. If you read, as I do, primarily for company, to share the company of fascinating "people," I think you'll love this little book.

Truman Capote was one of America's most gifted writers, and in this story, he not only brings his characters to life, he brings this New York City neighborhood, in the 1950s, to life as well.

A magical, unforgettable read.

a definite classic.......2007-06-01

Holiday Golightly. She's quirky, comical, and glamorous. She's fashionable, in-the-know, and in-the-now. She's lonely, lost, and waiting to be rescued. You couldn't resist her charm if you tried, and you can't help but fall in love with her.

Well, at least in the Hollywood film version. Capote's original novella paints a darker portrait of Miss Golightly. Unlike Audrey Hepburn's adorable Holly, who needs a knight in slightly-rusted armor to save her, Capote's girl is a "wild thing" who cannot be caged, trained, or rescued.

I can't deny that the film is a classic and is one of my favorites. Audrey Hepburn may be the epitome of glamour and beauty, and Hollywood's Holly can't help but absorb Audrey's charm. By the end of the film you find yourself rooting for "Fred" to save her from the nonsense of high society, reunite her with the cat, and wipe away her case of "the mean reds" forever. That is Hollywood, after all, and we would expect nothing less.

But the real Holly, Capote's Holly, can never be caged by convention. It would be hard to imagine her ever settling down and being content with Fred (regardless of the fact that he is an implied homosexual in the book. Hollywood seemed to have "overlooked" that).

Don't get me wrong, it's not that the book's Holly is a Bad Person; she's just more layered and real. Think about it - how many people have you come across who create a new persona for themselves, based on what they perceive others to desire? People who feign interest in the popular styles/entertainment/notable people of the day, just to seem like a Very Important Person and garner adoration, fame, and possibly fortune. I could name a few.

But we get to go deeper than Holly's exterior and see the scared and lonely girl at the core. She is terrified of being a caged animal, but also tired of being alone. She wants to seem as though she's making a holiday out of life, but struggles with the need for stability and the desire for freedom.

The book I read also included three of Capote's most famous stories, and I'd be remiss not to mention them as well: House of Flowers, A Diamond Guitar, and A Christmas Memory. The three short stories are amazingly intimate and touching, illuminating different sides of human emotion. I have not read Capote's magnum opus, In Cold Blood, but after witnessing his detailed descriptions and haunting perceptions of human nature in these shorter forms, I have added his novel to my "to-read" list.

There's a reason it's endured.......2007-05-29

The best introduction to Capote's work, in my opinion. Holly Golightly is a dream of New York City, a figure that so many millions of people, male and female, have come to Manhattan to try to be. Those amoral jerks! (ha ha) Capote's ability to sustain this dream in prose, even though Holly is not much more than a stylish wh*re, is what has kept this short, breezy-yet-tragic postwar novel in print for almost 50 years. A classic.

I'll always love Audrey Hepburn in the movie (though let's admit it, she's too old for the part), and Moon River is a great song, but I'm sorry that Fassbinder couldn't have done his own movie adaptation. THAT would have been something!

Average customer rating:

Quite Cold, Indeed
Read the book before the movie!
Capote's Masterpiece Is Full Of Thrills, Suspense, And Incredible Prose
As Good as it Gets
A compelling read

In Cold Blood
Truman Capote
Manufacturer: Modern Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0375507906
Release Date: 2002-03-05

Amazon.com

In Cold Blood was a groundbreaking work when released in 1966. With it, author Truman Capote contributed to a style of writing in which the reporter gets so far inside the subject, becomes so familiar, that he projects events and conversations as if he were really there. The style has probably never been accomplished better than in this book. Capote combined painstaking research with a narrative feel to produce one of the most spellbinding stories ever put on the page. Two two-time losers living in a lonely house in western Kansas are out to make the heist of their life, but when things don't go as planned, the robbery turns ugly. From there, the book is a real-life look into murder, prison, and the criminal mind.

Book Description

On November 15, 1959, in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas, four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime, and there were almost no clues.

Five years, four months and twenty-nine days later, on April 14, 1965, Richard Eugene Hickock, aged thirty-three, and Perry Edward Smith, aged thirty-six, were hanged from the crime on a gallows in a warehouse in the Kansas State Penitentiary in Lansing, Kansa.

In Cold Blood is the story of the lives and deaths of these six people. It has already been hailed as a masterpiece.

Download Description

With the publication of this book, Capote permanently ripped through the barrier separating crime reportage from serious literature. As he reconstructs the 1959 murder of a Kansas farm family and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers, Capote generates suspense and empathy.

Customer Reviews:

Quite Cold, Indeed.......2007-10-06

It is a testament to Truman Capote's ability that he was able to take a small yet disturbing blurb in the New York Times and not only write a compelling book about it, but create a new literary form, the nonfiction novel, and also turn the story into an American classic. IN COLD BLOOD fully deserves the accolades that have been heaped upon it since its publication.

That newspaper blurb, of course, was about the mysterious murders of the Clutter family (father Herbert, mother Bonnie, and teenagers Nancy and Kenyon) in the small, isolated town of Holcomb, Kansas. At first, it was unclear why the family had been slaughtered and it was thought to be the work of a psychopathic killer. That such psychopathy flared up in America's heartland made the story all the more disturbing. After all, everyone knows all the weirdos and lunatics were supposed to live in New York or San Francisco. To think that they were right in our midst...

Capote's detailed (and controversial!) studies of the murders take us so deep into the story it is like we were really there. Using the techniques of fiction and applying them to a non-fiction story, Capote brings the real life tragedy to life a second time around. This is particularly disturbing with respect to the two men who committed the crime, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. IN COLD BLOOD probably is the first book of its kind to give the readers such an accurate portrait into the minds and personalities of such brutal killers.

What strikes the reader hard is that, of the two criminals, it is the actual trigger man, Perry Smith, who is the more tender and emotionally vulnerable. That Dick Hickock seems, by every measure imaginable, to be a harsher person than his compatriot is juxtaposed powerfully with Hickock's own complaints that he is the only person on death row who did not actually kill anyone. We now know, of course, that Capote developed some type of emotional relationship with Perry Smith while researching the book and so it is up to the reader to determine how much this might have clouded Capote's judgment and writings on him.

Despite the bleakness of the story, IN COLD BLOOD is written in a very feminine and flowery style. If Capote's homosexuality were not widely known, one could almost assume as much by this. Again, this creates a jarring juxtaposition for the reader, as he is confronted with the darkest corners of depravity.

Anyone who visits the true crime section of a bookstore is confronted with books basically reeking of schlock. A good writer, however, can turn the average, or even below average, subject and elevate it to new heights. This is what Truman Capote did. IN COLD BLOOD is very cold, indeed.

Read the book before the movie!.......2007-10-05

This was a wonderful book, but I made the mistake of seeing the movie and then I had a biased. I enjoyed this.

Capote's Masterpiece Is Full Of Thrills, Suspense, And Incredible Prose.......2007-09-24

When Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" was published in 1966, it became an international bestseller and was lauded by the critics. Now, over forty years later, "In Cold Blood" remains the crowning achievemt of Capote's career as a writer. Capote's skill as a journalist and natural talent as a writer combine to create the definitive American true crime book. Whether you prefer nonfiction or fiction, Capote's true account of mass murder and it's consequences is sure to please!

As Good as it Gets.......2007-09-19

In Cold Blood is incredibly well written. Unlike many of his short stories, the prose is clean and not overly adorned. Without moralizing, he simply tells the story of one of the most random and nonsensical murders of his time. In my opinion, Capote wrote one great book, and this is it.

A compelling read.......2007-08-23

Because I practice criminal law, I walk around in a world with stories like this one everyday. So I didn't really see the big deal until I finished reading Capote's In Cold Blood. Capote makes a nonfiction account read like fiction. That may not sound like much, but it impressed the hell out of me. Usually nonfiction has a dull feel to it. It just doesn't pop like fiction does. But Capote is able to cut right through that and make this story every bit as compelling as fiction without giving it a corny, Court-TV "true-crime" feel.

Average customer rating:

Stunning black and white masterpiece

Yosemite and the Range of Light
Ansel Adams
Manufacturer: Bulfinch Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0821207504

Customer Reviews:

Stunning black and white masterpiece.......1999-05-22

Published in 1979, Yosemite and the Range of Light is 116 impressive prints demonstrating the mastery of Ansel Adams. The book contains poster classics like "Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite Valley, 1944, Moon and Half Dome, Yosemite Valley, 1960, and Winter Sunrise, Sierra Nevada, from Lone Pine, 1944." Non students of Mr. Adams will discover many "unseen" photographs that are beautiful in their own right but did not have the mass-market appeal of his classics. Too valuable to be a coffee table book, this collection is the archetype for fine art books. My copy is a family treasure.

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Big Brother Is Watching You.
Apocalypse Now and Then
One of my favorites...
Required Reading for any thinking person
A few thoughts on my favorite book...

Nineteen Eighty-Four
George Orwell
Manufacturer: Plume
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0452284236
Release Date: 2003-05-06

Book Description

Thought Police. Big Brother. Orwellian. These words have entered our vocabulary because of George Orwell's classic dystopian novel, 1984. The story of one man's nightmare odyssey as he pursues a forbidden love affair through a world ruled by warring states and a power structure that controls not only information but also individual thought and memory, 1984 is a prophetic, haunting tale.

More relevant than ever before, 1984 exposes the worst crimes imaginable-the destruction of truth, freedom, and individuality.
With a new forward by Thomas Pynchon.

Customer Reviews:

Big Brother Is Watching You........2007-09-24

_Nineteen Eighty Four_, first published in 1949 by George Orwell (pen name of Eric Blair), is a horrifying dystopian novel of a world in which the individual human being has been completely degraded and deprived of his fundamental humanity that reflects the totalitarianisms of the day, particularly communism and Stalinism. George Orwell (1903 - 1950) was the pen name of the British author Eric Blair, who developed an early enmity towards those in power and their abuses of power. Orwell was a socialist but came to witness the horrors of the Soviet state and the betrayal of his ideals by Stalinists. As such, Orwell came to loathe totalitarianism in general and wrote novels showing the degrading effects such societies had on people. Throughout this book, one can witness the underlying hatred of Orwell and those imprisoned by the system for the totalitarian state and bureaucracy which completely controls their lives and existences. This book in particular shows that rage in the main character of Winston Smith, a mere pawn in a totalitarian society. Orwell's books are indeed prophetic and show us a world in which the very life-force has been sapped out of mankind by those in power. Orwell imagines a highly efficient totalitarian state, capable of enforcing political correctness at the highest levels, tampering with the memories of men, and maintaining a total disregard for the truth. Orwell shows how under such regimes the very notion of truth becomes suspect and the individual can no longer distinguish between fact and state propaganda. This particularly applies to the Soviet Union under Josef Stalin, which is the primary setting for Orwell's stories. However, Orwell's books are also applicable to the West of today, where the constant menace of totalitarian ideology exists.

_1984_ gives us a whole slew of new terminology to describe the situation as it exists in a totalitarian state in which political correctness is enforced. The book introduces such terms as thought police, thought crime (and thought criminal), doublethink, memory hole, Ingsoc, and Newspeak. Such terms reflect the complete disregard of the totalitarian state for the truth and the active promotion of propaganda within society. They have also largely entered into our culture as expressions to describe the enforcement of political correctness.

_1984_ focuses on the main character Winston Smith, a member of the Outer Party who lives in England and works for the Ministry of Truth. As it turns out, the Ministry of Truth ironically is responsible for spreading propaganda, and as all ministries mentioned by Orwell has a purpose exactly opposite to its stated purpose. The world of 1984 is a very bleak one indeed, run by a single party and its ruling leader "Big Brother", in which all individuals are subject to surveillance by the state should they commit a "thought crime". All expressions of individuality in 1984 have been wiped out and the human being is totally degraded living a pathetic existence of total subservience to the party. Sexuality has been suppressed as part of the "Anti-sex League" as well as religion. Truth itself is highly malleable and memory is constantly distorted, reflected in such ironical and oxymoronic sayings of the party as "War Is Peace", "Freedom Is Slavery", and "Ignorance Is Strength". Further, the nation of Oceania is constantly at war with either Eurasia or Eastasia, varying from day to day and reflected in the official propaganda of the state bureaucracy. All party members revere their leader "Big Brother" (perhaps reminiscent of Josef Stalin or other totalitarian dictators) and despise the rebellious "Goldstein" (perhaps reminiscent of the Soviet hatred for Leon Trotsky). Further, the party exists in a caste system in which the "proles" (the proletariat) live underneath the party members (who are divided into the Inner and Outer Party). Winston Smith works for the Ministry of Truth but begins to keep a diary (which is strictly forbidden to party members) in which he reflects his hatred for "Big Brother". His work involves developing propaganda for the party. At work he meets up with Julia, who he initially believes is a strict orthodox member of the party. However, eventually he comes to realize that Julia is in love with him and they have a secret encounter in the countryside. Eventually Julia expresses to Winston her complete loathing for the party, though she publicly maintains a persona of utter obeisance and orthodoxy and belongs to the "Anti-sex League". Together they find a new hiding place in a shop in a part of the city where the "proles" live and attempt to re-discover the past of England. Throughout this period, however, the two live in constant fear of the thought police, should they catch onto their affair. Eventually, Winston meets up with O'Brien at work, a man who he believes is a member of the Resistance, and is given a copy of Goldstein's book which explains the rise of the party and the need for perpetual war. Orwell quotes extensively from Goldstein's book which reflects much of the social thinking of the time, in particular the theory of managerial elites. However, Winston and Julia are captured by the party and it turns out that O'Brien is in fact a member of the party. While taken captive, both are tortured and made to recant their original beliefs about the party. In a particularly disgusting scene, Winston is taken to Room 101 where he must face his worst fear. There he ultimately betrays Julia (as she has already betrayed him) to save himself from being tortured by rats (the worst torture that he can imagine). Eventually, Winston is completely re-educated and made to love "Big Brother" while his relationship with Julia is forever changed after their mutual betrayals of each other. Thus, ends in the most horrifying of manners Orwell's classic novel. Orwell concludes with an appendix on "The Principles of Newspeak" which effectively shows how even the language itself can be put to the purposes of propaganda within a totalitarian state.

_1984_ remains a classic dystopia reflecting the darker side of human existence within the Twentieth Century as it played out in the totalitarian dictatorships of the age. Throughout this novel, the very notion of truth remains problematic, as the party re-defines history to reflect its own agenda and thus even memory itself becomes distorted. Orwell shows the sheer degradation that the human being undergoes within such a surveillance society, to the eventual point where a man can be tortured by the powers that be to such an extent that he will eventually even renounce his love and embrace the figure he hates the most. While the novel is made to reflect Soviet society and Stalinism in particular, it also reflects the modern world in general, in which large-scale and efficient bureaucratic structures rob man of his humanity. Orwell's novels prove particularly prescient warnings to mankind to avoid the dangers of totalitarianism. As such, they should be read by all thinking individuals who seek to understand the horrors that can be inflicted upon the human being through totalistic societies.

Apocalypse Now and Then.......2007-09-17

"1984"--or "Nineteen Eighty-Four" in the Oldspeak--is one of those books prophecizing doom that has remained relevant enough to generate a famous Macintosh commercial, a "Simpsons" parody, and a reality television series named for it among other things. What allows "1984" to remain in our consciousness and not a relic of the post-World War II, Cold War, Atomic Age era is that like the book of Revelations, "1984"'s dire predictions can be adapted for each new generation.

"1984"'s epic battle of good versus evil doesn't take place on any plain of Armageddon, but rather within the mind of one man: Winston Smith. Winston is a 39-year-old man who works for the Party at the Ministry of Truth, which has an ironic name because Winston's job is actually to doctor reality so that the Party always appears infallible. Winston sees that while the Party, under the leadership of Big Brother, claims surpluses of everything, no one can buy simple items like razor blades or shoelaces. As he becomes disillusioned by the Party's rule, he and a young woman named Julia begin a torrid secret affair. Then he is contacted by a man high up in the Party named O'Brien who works for a resistance group known as the Brotherhood. But before he can help the Brotherhood, Winston is betrayed, arrested, and taken to the dungeons of the Ministry of Love, where he endures physical and psychological torment that threatens to break him and strip him of all humanity.

As it is written, Big Brother and his Party would seem to represent the fascist or Communist movements of the 1940s. Taken literally it would be easy to dismiss the book as an archaic remnant of Cold War hysteria. But the beauty of "1984" is that because it focuses on the internal struggle for Winston Smith's soul, it can transcend all that. For the warning in "1984" isn't about communism or fascism, but the threat of letting anyone crush the human spirit through overbearing dogma.

Much like faithful Christians of every generation have painted everyone from the Pope to Hitler as the Antichrist, every generation looks for its Big Brother. From communists to corporations to churches, individual readers can read "1984" and make their own interpretations of who or what Big Brother and the Party represent. But no matter how each of us sees it, the general warning should be clear: the human spirit is our most precious possession and must be retained at all costs.

That is all.

One of my favorites..........2007-09-11

This is one of my favorite books of all time, right up there with Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead. If you haven't read this book, and you are into politics, it is a must read for everyone!

Required Reading for any thinking person.......2007-08-15

1984 should be required reading for any thinking person. Not only is the base story line compelling and thought provoking as a lesson on the more obvious problems presented in Orwell's dystopia, the ideas and thoughts presented through such things as the book the "resistance" reads are extremely relavent to today's world. The view of the military-industrial complex and how it helped lead to the society shown are amazingly prescient of how many industrialized nations are conducting business in modern society.

A few thoughts on my favorite book..........2007-08-09

Reading this book as an impressionable youth back in 1976 turned me, in many ways, into who I am today, thirty-plus years later. Never trusting the official government story, whether it be the Kennedy or Martin Luther King assassinations or the official 9/11 conspiracy theory. I realize that the powers that be always have their own agenda, which invariably differs completely from the people's interests. It has led me to do my own research (now far easier on the internet than in the NYC libraries with their budget-slashed hours I could never coordinate with). It has led down some frightening paths that more people should be going down, for truly we are living in Nineteen Eighty-Four this very minute.
And as a bit of clarification, Orwell was not "predicting" this dystopia for 1984, as some have written here. He was not a soothsayer. With this book he artfully expounds on his experiences working in the real "Ministry of Truth" during World War II: the BBC's Propaganda department. The date 1984 is a simple juxtaposition of the date in which he wrote the book, 1948. Another way of saying, "today". And to me, that's far scarier than some date off in the future.

Average customer rating:

Gave it as a gift
Nice Reproductions
A fantastic Collection
An exquisite collection!
Great Images Reproduced in Tiny Sizes Spoil The Effects

Ansel Adams: Classic Images
Ansel Adams , James Alinder , and John Szarkowski
Manufacturer: Bulfinch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0821216295

Book Description

Introduction by John Szarkowski Essay by James AlinderIn the last years of his life Ansel Adams selected the seventy-five images that he believed represented the finest examples ofthe quality and breadth of his artistic legacy. Those images he designated for exhibition throughout the country as "The Museum Set" and published in this essential volume:Classic Images.Classic Imagesincludes many of Adams' most famous and best-loved photographs and encompasses the full scope of his work: elegant details of nature, architectural studies, portraits, and the breathtaking landscapes for which he is revered. The latter range from his beloved Yosemite to the Pacific Coast, the Southwest, Alaska, Hawaii, and the Northwest.The portfolio is preceded by an eloquent introduction by John Szarkowski, former Director of the Department of Photography at New York's Museum of Modern Art. An authoritative biographical essay- and a detailed chronology - by James Alinder further establish Classic Imagesas required reading for a full understanding of Adams' development as apre-eminent American artist.

Customer Reviews:

Gave it as a gift.......2005-08-17

I gave it as a gift to a friend of mine who loves nature photography. He loved it.

Nice Reproductions.......2004-06-17

Ansel Adams: Classic Images

This book provides high quality representations of Ansel Adams' photography in examples of 75 of his best images. The text, written by James Alinder along with a preface by John Szarkowski, portrays the story of Adams' life and his philosophy regarding art and existence. The text starts the reader off at his birth and takes you through Adams' childhood and the decisions he makes as he searches for an outlet for his creativity and a strong career path. Having also been a professional pianist, Adams' later discovers his passion for photography and nature, and spends the rest of his life a successful artist and activist.
This book takes you through major events in his life and references prints in the book to give visual examples of his ever-evolving photographic style. I would definitely recommend this book, if not as a successful biography, but as a stage for some beautiful, high quality reproductions of Adams' work.

A fantastic Collection.......2002-03-16

This collection can be seen at the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson, Arizona, through July 7, 2002. This book is the catalogue of the exibition! If you like the book you should see the originals! They will blow you away.

An exquisite collection!.......2001-03-18

This is a wonderful book filled with breathtaking photographs taken by the late and well-respected Ansel Adams. Each of the photographs contained is a unique masterpiece with a life of its own. Looking at these splendid photographs, one feels drawn right in to the specific location and year. Some of my favorites include, "The Golden Gate Before the Bridge" (1932), "Barn, Cape Cod, Massachusetts" (ca. 1937), "Clearing Storm, Sonoma County Hills, California" (1951) and "Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona" (1942). This book will definitely hold your attention and keep you captivated if not mesmerized. With so many minute and beautiful details in these photographs, it's easy to see why Ansel Adams was one of the most respected and popular photographers of our time. He didn't just take a picture; he ceased moments in time and captured the beauty of the subjects being photographed. This is an excellent book that will make a fine addition to any library. This book would make a great gift for photographers and art connoisseurs alike!

Great Images Reproduced in Tiny Sizes Spoil The Effects.......2000-11-13

Ansel Adams was very concerned that his work always be reproduced in a high quality way. I fear that he gave too much attention to fidelity of reproduction, and not enough to size of image in the reproduction. This otherwise valuable book is seriously marred by the designer having chosen page and print sizes much too small for Adams' work. I suggest you avoid this book.

I would like to compliment James Alinder on an outstanding biographical essay concerning Adams' life and photographic techniques. This essay will add useful knowledge to anyone who wants to better understand Adams' work and life, and their effects on us all. I would also like to compliment the selection of the images. These are clearly among Adams' best work.

Adams' technique used the very stark light of dawn and dusk to create vivid detail that echoed across the image from figure to figure. The result was to help the eye capture the connectedness of nature, the oneness of creation. So when the details become too small, it is like rubbing out whole chapters in a book. I was very disappointed in the publishing decision for this book's page size. In fact, only one of my favorite images still held most of its power for me in these large postcard sizes, Moon with Half Dome, Yosemite, 1960.

Without Mr. Alinder's essay, I would have graded this book as a two star effort.

Some of the lesser works which have less fine detail still show well. Here were my favorites of this small-sized collection:

Self-Portrait, Monument Valley, Utah, 1958

Monlith, The Face of Half Dome, Yosemite, 1927

Winnowing Grain, Taos Pueblo, New Mexico, 1928

Rock and Grass, Moraine Lake, Sequoia National Park, 1982

Georgia O'Keefe and Orville Cox, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, 1937

Mormon Temple, Manti, Utah, 1948

Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico 1941

White House Ruin, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, 1942

Monument Valley, 1958

Cypress and Fog, Pebble Beach, California, 1967

Sand Dunes, Oceano, California, 1950

If you are like me and love Ansel Adams' work, I suggest you look into Ansel Adams, The American Wilderness, which does feature large enough reproductions.

Sometimes we learn more from mistakes than from successes. Where are your efforts being undertaken on too small a scale to be fully effective? What can you do to change that?

Book Description

The Total Car Care series continues to lead all other do-it-yourself automotive repair manuals. This series offers do-it-yourselfers of all levels TOTAL maintenance, service and repair information in an easy-to-use format. Covers all models of Cherokee, Grand Cherokee, Comanche, Wagoneer, and Grand Wagoneer (1993 only). :Based on actual teardowns :Simple step-by-step procedures for engine overhaul, chassis electrical drive train, suspension, steering and more :Trouble codes :Electronic engine controls

Customer Reviews:

Do not buy-you will regret........2007-07-30

This book covers way to many models.
It lacks detail and diagrams are tiny and inaccurate.
The index is terrible. There are topics covered that you do not find in the index. Be prepared to flip through the manual to find your topic-only to be disappointed by its content.
Troubleshooting? Very little.
This repair manual will frustrate you! Check out other manuals first. For the basics stick to your OEM manual

Chilton's Total Car Care Repair Manual).......2007-02-03

I purchased this book to repair my A/C condenser that's located inside the car under the dash. There were no instruction at all to even try to attempt this project. I was very disapointed due to that lack of information not published.

buy a factory service manual.......2003-11-10

A serious do-it-yourselfer better buy a factory service manual for his/her specific vehicle from Chrysler. It costs $90, however, non-factory service manual is a waste of money for most of buyers. You just don't find information that you need to repair your vehicle.

Garbage, inaccurate, incomplete, misleading.......2003-09-02

This book is garbage, innacurate and misleading. Like frustration-then buy it. A jeep mechanic told me this book was a great source of customers for him. The Haynes book is no better. These companies just copy errors and inaccuracies from each other.
Another experienced mechanic called it propoganda, just enough truth so people can't tell what is lies. Maximum frustration. Example- just try to replace a front axle u joint using this books method. Their method works only on new cars. You won't be doing work on new under warranty cars. 5 year old cars rust. The Chilton new car methods in this book just don't work. This book will make you think repairs are simple, until you get half way into it and it just does not work.

RE-build it yourself!.......2003-08-07

Typical Chilton book, tells you everything about the car you could possibly want to know except the thing you're looking for. I recently bought an old (1988) Jeep Comanche; wanted to replace the speedometer cable...using this book I could replace the transmission, overhaul the engine, re-build the differential, but no where could I find any info on the speedometer. Line drawings are crude and difficult to interpret, photos are worse. The text is good and gives adequate instructions. When I go to grind the valves, I'll know how!

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