Death on a Friday Afternoon: Meditations on the Last Words of Jesus from the Cross

Death on a Friday Afternoon: Meditations on the Last Words of Jesus from the Cross
Average customer rating:

Lenten Meditation

A profound meditation

"Saving Private Ryan" and the crucifixion

don't skip right to Easter and forget Good Friday

Quite simply, the truth about everything.

Death on a Friday Afternoon: Meditations on the Last Words of Jesus from the Cross
Richard John Neuhaus
Manufacturer: Basic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Catholicism | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Catholic | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Apologetics | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Christology | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Catholic Matters: Confusion, Controversy, And the Splendor of Truth

As I Lay Dying: Meditations Upon Returning

The Seven Last Words

Jesus of Nazareth

Cross-Shattered Christ: Meditations on the Seven Last Words

ASIN: 0465049338
Release Date: 2001-02-05

Amazon.com

Richard John Neuhaus chose a daunting project in Death on a Friday Afternoon: the book is a wide-ranging meditation on Jesus' seven last words spoken from the Cross on Good Friday. (These "words" are actually Jesus' seven final statements, taken from the four gospels; they include "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do," and "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?") Neuhaus has a powerful rhetorical style, which disposes him occasionally to make questionable, grandiose claims, such as, "If what Christians say about Good Friday is true, then it is, quite simply, the truth about everything." Yet Neuhaus also has a great respect for the mysteries of Christianity and is capable of open, honest grappling with the toughest questions of the faith: "[W]hat does it mean to say Christ died for our sins? Why was it necessary? Or was it? And which sins in particular?" Despite its occasional overreaching, Death on a Friday Afternoon is an elegant, mature, and compassionate exploration of the hardest, darkest questions in Christianity. --Michael Joseph Gross

Book Description

In the tradition of C. S. Lewis and Thomas Merton, this profoundly moving and enlightening journey through the meanings of Good Friday is destined to become a classic. Numerous writers and composers have been captivated by the suggestiveness of Jesus' Seven Last Words. But Richard John Neuhaus's sustained exploration of these utterances is something altogether different. Through them he plumbs the depths of human experience and sets forth the central narrative of Western civilization-the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ-in a way that engages the attention of believers, unbelievers, and those who are not sure what they believe. Death on a Friday Afternoon is an invitation to the reader into a spiritual and intellectual exploration of the dark side of human experience with the promise of light and life on the far side of darkness.

Customer Reviews:

Lenten Meditation.......2006-08-28

I bought this book as a guided meditation during Lent one year, but I have kept coming back to it year after year. Fr. Neuhaus knows how to cut to the heart of the matter and really make us think about our lives. Ever since high school, I've had a practice of "giving up something" for Lent. However, recently I've found that "adding something", especially something as powerful as the meditations in this book, help me to prepare much better for the Easter celebration.

Of course, you don't have to wait until Lent to be moved by the power of Fr. Neuhaus's message. I recommend this book at any time during the year.

A profound meditation.......2006-04-01

My first encounter with Fr. Neuhaus's writing came through the pages of "First Things", a magazine on the role of religion in public life. His penetrating insights and carefully crafted arguments are true gems of wisdom. I've come to appreciate them and depend on his daily reflections on current issues the way some people depend on a shot of caffeine to get them through a day.

This book, however, is written in a completely different style and with a very different aim. Here we see a more spiritual and meditative side of Fr. Neuhaus, and I, for one, am grateful for this insight. Here he contemplates the seven last words of Christ, devoting a chapter to each one of them. His aim is to takes us deeper into the mystery of crucifixion and the death of Christ, and to resist the temptation to just rush over to Easter. The book can be used as a devotional aid, and would be a good companion reading material during Lent.

The meditative nature of the book does not prevent Fr. Neuhaus from making and defending some theologically strong positions. The greatest, and for non-Christians probably the most controversial, claim is that "[i]f what Christians say about Good Friday is true, then it is, quite simply, the truth about everything." The purpose of this statements is not necessarily to argue a theological position, but to bring urgency and highlight the importance of what happened on that Friday afternoon. In reading this book we can make one big step closer to that goal.

"Saving Private Ryan" and the crucifixion.......2006-03-17

This is one of the most profoundly moving books I have ever read. I re-read it every year during lent, and it never fails to move me in the same was as before. Here is why.

In the final scene of "Saving Private Ryan," Ryan himself, now much older, is visiting the grave of the soldier who saved him. He recalls the final words of the dying soldier who rescued him, a plea to make his life worthy of the sacrifice being given. In tears, he asks his wife whether he has in fact lived his life in a way that justifies that sacrifice.

Although "Death on a Friday Afternoon" is far too complex and nuanced to be summarized succinctly, one of its objectives (which it fulfills admirably) is to look its reader directly in the face and ask, "Are you in fact living your life in a way that justifies the sacrifice that Jesus made to save it?"

Two brief excerpts provide a glimpse of this book's seriousness and importance:

"Our lives are measured not by the lives of others, not by our own ideals, not by what we think might reasonably be expected of us, although by each of those measures we acknowledge failings enough. Our lives are measured by who we are created and called to be, and the measuring is done by the One who creates and calls. . ."

"To belittle our sins is to belittle ourselves, to belittle who it is that God creates and calls us to be."

This book is a call to seriousness about living our lives in response to what God has done for us.

There is much more as well. Don't miss it.

don't skip right to Easter and forget Good Friday.......2003-09-12

This is a wonderful book, written with patience, love, and care--written, at times, prayerfully and poetically. In contemplating our Christian faith, Neuhaus urges us not to skip Good Friday and go right to Easter and the joy of the Resurrection (though it IS joyful). Rather, we must reflect on the Crucifixion, on His death, without which there could have been no Resurrection and without which there would be no redemption. Some outsiders and even many Christians find the Crucifixion morbid and shy away from pondering it, but it is meant to shock and disturb. (This was not lost on Dostoevsky, who has some excellent passages and descriptions of the crucified Christ in The Idiot.) It was a death and murder, one in which we all are complicit. We must understand this before we can hope to understand the meaning of His death.

Neuhaus uses the seven last "words" (utterances, really) of Christ to explore the nature of His life and death, as well as the nature of our own lives and deaths. Tangentially, he comments on our culture and society, on permissivity and the like--ideas that will be familiar to readers of First Things. But this is primarily a book on religion, not politics. Nor is it an exposition of theology. Neuhaus avoids the often complicated and difficult-to-understand theological matters (and debates) that surround Christ's life, death, and resurrection, as well as the implications for us. Certainly, Neuhaus adheres to his--which is to say, the Catholic Church's--interpretation, but here he seeks to get to the foundations of Christianity. The result is something all Christians--and, indeed, anyone desiring to understand the faith--can enjoy and appreciate.

Quite simply, the truth about everything........2002-06-17

The Seven Last Words are not seven "words" but seven "utterances" and they are these:
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
"Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise."
"Woman, behold your son. Son, behold your mother."
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
"I thirst."
"It is finished."
"Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."

These are the seven biblically recorded utterances of Christ on the cross, and Neuhaus has written, in my opinion, the superlative meditation of the significance of these final words of Jesus. Each chapter expounds upon one of these "words". The writing is so clear-headed... it will appeal to those who need to approach the ineffable mystery with at least one foot on the ground. Or even two! It is not spiritual platitude, it is gut-level and sobering. Have you ever wondered what happened when Jesus died on the cross? Or WHY it happened? Or IF it happened? This book speaks to those questions, with a rational approach that can only be likened to the writings of C.S. Lewis.
I was transfixed, and overwhelmed (in a good way) with the wealth of information in Neuhaus's book. Beautifully written.
He says in the preface, "If what Christians say about Good Friday is true, then it is, quite simply, the truth about everything. I have written this for people who are convinced of that truth, for people who are open to thinking about whether it may be true and for people who are just curious about why so much of the world thinks Good Friday is the key to understanding what Dante called 'the love that moves the sun and all the other stars.'"
The Convinced. The Cautious. The Curious. If you are any of these three types, this book will not disappoint you.
"We must not turn away from what we have done to God, lest we be found to have turned away from what He has done for us." (p.257).

Death in the Afternoon
Average customer rating:

BULLFIGHTING 101

Happiness Is A Dead Bull

Excellent journalism

Yes = the Fine Art of Bullfighting

Reminiscence of Spain and Bullfighting

Death in the Afternoon
Ernest Hemingway
Manufacturer: Scribner
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Hemingway, Ernest | Classics | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Classics | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | Hemingway, Ernest | ( H ) | Authors, A-Z | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Paperback | Hemingway, Ernest | ( H ) | Authors, A-Z | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books | Dance | General | Reference | Theater
General | Sports | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Art Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Look Inside Sports Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The DANGEROUS SUMMER

To Have and Have Not

Green Hills of Africa

For Whom the Bell Tolls

The Sun Also Rises (Scribner Classics)

ASIN: 0684801450

Book Description

Hemingway's Classic Portrait Of The Pageantry Of Bullfighting.

Still considered one of the best books ever written about bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon reflects Hemingway's belief that bullfighting was more than mere sport. Here he describes and explains the technical aspects of this dangerous ritual, and "the emotional and spiritual intensity and pure classic beauty that can be produced by a man, an animal, and a piece of scarlet serge draped on a stick." Seen through his eyes, bullfighting becomes an art, a richly choreographed ballet, with performers who range from awkward amateurs to masters of great grace and cunning.

A fascinating look at the history and grandeur of bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon is also a deeper contemplation on the nature of cowardice and bravery, sport and tragedy, and is enlivened throughout by Hemingway's pungent commentary on life and literature.

Download Description

Still considered one of the best books ever written about bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon is an impassioned look at the sport by one of its true aficionados. It reflects Hemingway's conviction that bullfighting was more than mere sport and reveals a rich source of inspiration for his art. The unrivaled drama of bullfighting, with its rigorous combination of athleticism and artistry, and its requisite display of grace under pressure, ignited Hemingway's imagination. Here he describes and explains the technical aspects of this dangerous ritual and "the emotional and spiritual intensity and pure classic beauty that can be produced by a man, an animal, and a piece of scarlet serge draped on a stick." Seen through his eyes, bullfighting becomes a richly choreographed ballet, with performers who range from awkward amateurs to masters of great elegance and cunning. A fascinating look at the history and grandeur of bullfighting, Death in the Afternoon is also a deeper contemplation of the nature of cowardice and bravery, sport and tragedy, and is enlivened throughout by Hemingway's sharp commentary on life and literature.

Customer Reviews:

BULLFIGHTING 101.......2007-05-22

At the time that Hemingway wrote this book the rather exotic art of bullfighting was fairly unknown to English audiences. Hemingway almost single-handedly drove many expatriate Americans and Europeans of the `lost generation' to the corrida. Some of his novels and short stories also have the bullring as a backdrop. This book is an interesting combination of Hemingway's literary flair and a how to book on the art of bullfighting. The bullfight experience (watching, that is) became a mandatory exercise for later, mainly American, male writers and formed a rite of passage for manly writing. One thinks immediately of Norman Mailer but there were others.

Having watched a bullfight in Mexico I find it hard to see the interest that Hemingway and the others had in the sport. I do not care for prizefighting either. I will admit to having spent many a fruitless hour watching the 'bullpen' of the beloved home town Red Sox at Fenway Park blow a lead that would make any bull see red. On its own terms, Hemingway surely had more than an amateur interest in describing the ritual of the fight and grading the performances of man and beast. That part, in essence, the literary part is what held my interest. If one suspends a certain disbelief about the obvious surface brutality of the event and rather delves into the `man against nature' and `dancing with death' aspects that is where you will find Hemingway. Ole

Happiness Is A Dead Bull.......2007-05-10

For Ernest Hemingway, a fiesta wasn't a fiesta until someone got killed, preferably a 1,400-pound male bovine, horns dripping with horse blood, legs up in front of thousands of cheering Spaniards. That was the world of the bullfight, a world Hemingway discovered by accident while on a break from mingling with the Lost Generation in Paris, and made his own with the help of this book.

First published in 1932, "Death In The Afternoon" may be what separates Papa's truest fans from mere admirers like myself. Most people who value writing understand that Hemingway wrote very well, but many like me would go on to say we wish he spent less time on attitude and posturing and developed a surer sense of focus, in line with "The Sun Also Rises" and "In Our Time." But for those who drink and fish and grow white beards in emulation of their hero, "Death In The Afternoon" is THE book precisely because it so messily captures Hemingway's self-image of the macho artist.

"Death In The Afternoon" starts out with a rambling chapter that deals with American attitudes about bullfighting rather than the thing itself. It finishes with a self-indulgent one where he outlines all the things he left out as if giving a long-winded Oscar speech. In between is much to admire, for bullfighting aficionados and vegetarians alike, including some of the most arresting passages in American letters.

"Someone with English blood has written: 'Life is real; life is earnest, and the grave is not its goal,'" Hemingway writes. "And where did they bury him? and what became of the reality and the earnestness?"

Hemingway's theme, here and throughout the book, seems to be that death and suffering are the things of life, its essence and only ultimate truths. Only art lends them meaning. Of all art, Hemingway finds bullfighting the truest and most inspiring because of how close it is to the bone of the matter, to death, and how transitorily it is experienced. All art, even the most lasting, ultimately fades, but only in bullfighting is that impermanence accepted and understood.

Hard words, hard philosophy. But Hemingway works hard too at entertaining the reader, often quite successfully. He tells of one matador's farewell performance where he dedicates the killing of his last bull before the fact to first one, than another, and then a third person, so caught up is he in the moment and his own eloquence. There is an ongoing discussion with an old lady frankly curious about the sex habits of both bull and bull-killer. He extols Faulkner, has at Huxley, and fesses up to how he must come off: "The fellow is no philosopher, no savant, an incompetent zoologist, he drinks too much and cannot punctuate readily...He is bull crazy."

The book comes with a generous number of photographs with Hemingway-written captions that are works of art in miniature. Under a photo of a dead matador surrounded by people, he notes: "Only two in the crowd are thinking about Granero. The others are all intent on how they will look in the photograph."

I didn't really buy Hemingway's take on some things, especially the issue of the horses. He opposes padding their undersides to protect them from bull horns as it violates the aesthetic of the performance. Then he writes of how the picadors riding the horse will use the horse's horning as a way of artificially tiring the bull to give the matador an easier time. Doesn't padding then produce a better bullfight?

Hemingway also loses his train of thought, in ways that impair rather than enrich the reading experience. One moment he's talking about the handling of the muleta or the politics of the cuadrilla, the next he is talking about a pair of homosexuals or how langostinos are best enjoyed.

It's really about a man discovering a country he loves, and in that sense, the Spanish backdrop is the best thing about "Death In The Afternoon." It's a love letter with more than a touch of sadness; the Spain Hemingway knew was about to be lost, to civil war and Franco, for the rest of his lifetime. But nothing was forever to Hemingway. In the world of the bullring, he found the closest thing to perfection he could believe in. Believe it or not, you have to admire the result.

Excellent journalism.......2006-08-07

An epic tome on the art and grandeur of Spanish bullfighting from one of America's greatest aficionados, Ernest Hemingway, who explicates the craft and spiritual intensity of this ancient European ritual through terse, journalistic, prose and rigorous scholarship. Not surprisingly, Hemingway is not terribly perturbed by the grotesque barbarity of the violence of bullfighting; Hemingway was an enthusiast of hunting and had little to no moral qualms about killing animals (and sometimes people). Yet he is not totally insensitive, warning the reader that most spectators of bullfighting are normally disgusted by the killing of the horses more than anything else.

For Hemingway, the bullfight is not meant to be understood as an equal battle between man and beast. Rather, it is a tragedy, and the tragedy is for the bull who ought to be killed. He writes, "The best of all fighting bulls have a quality, called nobility by the Spanish, which is the most extraordinary part of the whole business" (113), yet Hemingway does not provide any comment on the utter absurdity of the whole business. Hemingway was a writer obsessed with, and in search of true courage in the face of natural danger and fate, and he found it most explicitly in war and in bullfighting.

However, some readers will be surprised to find that `Death in the Afternoon,' is not simply about bullfighting. Hemingway also expounds quite at length about his views on art and the craft of writing. He says: "When writing a novel, a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature" (191). Unfortunately, Hem was never fully successful at creating a living woman, but every writer has a weakness. "A serious writer may be a hawk or a buzzard or even a popinjay, but a solemn writer is always a bloody owl" (192).

Also included in this altogether excellent volume is a collection of stunning photographs depicting various stages of the bullfight and various matadors of fame; there are also fascinating portraits of the running of the bulls in Pamplona (echoing those fabulous sequences in `The Sun also Rises'). Additionally, Hemingway has provided the reader with a detailed glossary of important bullfighting terms for true aficionados. Originally published through Scribner in 1932.

Yes = the Fine Art of Bullfighting.......2005-10-12

One thing that Hemingway clears up is that bullfighting is not a contest between man and beast. It is a tragedy; no matter if the bull succeeds in killing the matador, and all the picadors and bandierros for that matter, he will still be executed after the fight. This is pure art, and nothing more. I can't explain why to you, but Hemingway says that it is very Spanish, and to understand it you must understand the Spaniards.

This is just a general overview of bullfighting. The book is very descriptive and very much more worth your time. You will find that there is something of the bullfight and the muleta in all of us.

The three steps of the bullfight are clear and showcase the bull. (It is worth mentioning that these are not just any bulls: they are finely bred fighting bulls that are too agressive to be good for anything else.)

One: the bull shows his strength and bravery in the killing of the horses in the first stage with the picador. The picador pierced the muscle on his shoulder, therefore showing the bravery of the bull if he continues through the pain to gore the horse. After this stage, the dead horses are covered and the bandierros enter the ring.

Two: The bandierros use small spears with hooks on them so they stay in the bull's hide. They are 'set' in pairs in the large hump of agrivated muscle over the withers. These are used to raise the neck of the bull and therefore weakening it so the matador can do his work. In this stage the bull is confused: he cannot (if the man knows his work and is not unlucky) catch the man as he did in the last stage. His courage is useless.

Three: The matador enters the arena (or barrera, I believe...it's been a while) to finish the bull. At this stage, the bull is tired and his head is beginning to droop. His shoulders are covered in blood but he stands there arrogant. The matador cannot rise over the horns of the bull to kill in his origional condition; therefore, he must tire him over the course of the three stages. The matador does his part with the muleta (cape) and then kills the bull by stabbing him with a sword to his heart. It is here, Hemingway will tell you, that the bull is either said to be killed or assasinated. If the matador is competent, his body will come over the top of the horn. If the bull lifts his head, the matador is gored. Thus, in a proper kill, the bull in the end had a chance to kill again. If the matador pulls back at the last second and just stabs the animal without the threat, he is said to "assasinate."

This is excellent. Your friends might look at you a little funny for reading about "killing bulls" and not understand that it is...well, an ART. This is just plain wonderful. Hemingway again does a terriffic job, showing more of his journalistic side than in For Whom the Bell Tolls.

Excellent read, but not for everyone. Get it from the library and read the first few chapters. If you still feel sorry for the bulls after that, you're on your own.

Reminiscence of Spain and Bullfighting.......2005-08-13

I'm glad to see a reissue of this classic in hardcover.

If you are interested in bullfighting, Hemingway or Spain you should find this book interesting, enjoyable reading.

It is a playful introduction into bullfighting and at the same time a reminiscence of Spain and bullfighting.

The book deals with the art of bullfighting as it existed in the twenties.

That said, most of the passes, techniques, tricks, foibles he describes still exist in bullfighting as it is practiced today. And while not extremely deep on the technical side of the subject, this is the most readable of any book on the technical aspects of bullfighting I've come across. If you want to understand the basics of bullfighting, this would be an excellent place to start.

Hemingway profiles a handful of matadors. They are all from impoverished backgrounds, basic peasant stock, that despite the fame and money they never can quite leave behind this past. It was a much more dangerous profession then, before the advent of antibiotics when death from a septic wound was a risk from even a minor goring.

Hemingway is unrestrained in his love of Spain and this shines through the book.

A Companion to Hemingway's Death in the Afternoon (Studies in American Literature and Culture)

Average customer rating:

A Companion to Hemingway's Death in the Afternoon (Studies in American Literature and Culture)

Manufacturer: Camden House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 1571132023

Book Description

Published in 1932, Death in the Afternoon reveals its author at the height of his intellectual and stylistic powers. By that time, Hemingway had already won critical and popular acclaim for his short stories and novels of the late twenties. A mature and self-confident artist, he now risked his career by switching from fiction to nonfiction, from American characters to Spanish bullfighters, from exotic and romantic settings to the tough world of the Spanish bullring, a world that might seem frightening and even repellant to those who do not understand it. Hemingway's nonfiction has been denied the attention that his novels and short stories have enjoyed, a state of affairs this Companion seeks to remedy, breaking new ground by applying theoretical and critical approaches to a work of nonfiction. It does so in original essays that offer a thorough, balanced examination of a complex, boundary-breaking, and hitherto neglected text. The volume is broken into sections dealing with: the composition, reception, and sources of I>Death in the Afternoon; cultural translation, cultural criticism, semiotics, and paratextual matters; and the issues of art, authorship, audience, and the literary legacy of Death in the Afternoon. The contributors to the volume, four men and seven women, lay to rest the stereotype of Hemingway as a macho writer whom women do not read; and their nationalities (British, Spanish, American, and Israeli) indicate that Death in the Afternoon, even as it focuses on a particular national art, discusses matters of universal concern.Contributors: Miriam B. Mandel, Robert W. Trogdon, Lisa Tyler, Linda Wagner-Martin, Peter Messent, Beatriz Penas Ibáñez, Anthony Brand, Nancy Bredendick, Hilary Justice, Amy Vondrak, and Keneth Kinnamon.Miriam B. Mandel teaches in the English Department of Tel Aviv University.

Death in the Afternoon (Hear No Evil , No 1)

Average customer rating:

This was a good book
Death in the Afternoon (by Kate Chester and Guccione)
Great Mystery to Solve
Death in the Afternoon (Hear no evil 1)
This book was great !!!

Death in the Afternoon (Hear No Evil , No 1)
Kate Chester , and Leslie Davis Guccione
Manufacturer: Point
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Teen Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Dead and Buried (Hear No Evil , No 4)
Playing With Fire (Hear No Evil , No 6)
Missing (Fear Street ): Missing
A Time of Fear (Hear No Evil , No 3)

ASIN: 0590673262

Customer Reviews:

This was a good book.......2003-12-11

This was a good book because it was cool and she found out who killed her dad. In the beginning it was exciting because she was on a case about who killed her father. She kept collecting clues to help her to find out. she has three friends who help her on her way. In the end she was on a boat and she heard people talk about killing her and another person. She had been shot at and that is how she found out who shot her father.

Death in the Afternoon (by Kate Chester and Guccione).......2000-11-30

I enjoyed this book, Death in the Afternoon, Hear No Evil. I started reading it with my classmates and teacher. We read a chapter almost every night and learned more and more facts about the characters. This novel was about a teenage girl, Sara Howell who is deaf, and lives with her older brother Steve. Sara's mother wasn't mentioned in the novel, but her father was killed in a hit and run accident. Sara and her brother become suspicious for who killed their father. Sara is being followed, and soon gets messages sent to her by a mysterious person. There are much more facts to what happened in this novel. If you want to know what happens next, you should read the novel for yourself. I liked the author's stile of writing. I especially liked how the author wrote,"gooseflesh," instead of,"goosebumps." The suspense of the book became pretty intense for me at times because you don't know what was going to happen next. I basically enjoyed this book at all times, if you are the kind of person who enjoys reading mystery books, I would definatly recommend this book to you. Sarah, age 12

Great Mystery to Solve.......2000-11-30

This story was well written. This book kept me on the edge of my seat. The suspense was intense and the author made me feel like Sara was a friend of my own and I felt very afraid for her. If I had to rate this book from 1-10, I would give it a perfect 10.I suggest this book Hear No Evil Death in the Afternoon to all people who love mysteries. People who love to put clues together and solve cases would enjoy this book. I think this book is great and it will always be one of my favorite books.

Death in the Afternoon (Hear no evil 1).......2000-11-29

For my Reading class we read the book Death in the Afternoon (Hear no Evil 1) by Kate Chester. It was pretty good book. Some of the parts were very exciting while other parts were not. The characters of Sara & Steve were very intelligent thinkers. The plot was planned out very well by Kate Chester. It was very differnet to who the killer was then who I thought it was. The book almost seemed like it took place over a long period of time but it did not. But, If you like a a mystery stroy that is not to intense then this is a great book for you!

This book was great !!!.......1999-04-15

Last year my dad gave me Hear No Evil 1 for Christmas. I picked up the book it took me a week to read. Last month I read it again in only 5 hours I loved the book so much. Once you pick up the book you can't put it down! This book made me cry with Sara and laugh with her. After I read this book I started searching for the sequill, but could not find it anywhere until now. I recomend this book to all those who were caught by the title because the book not only lives up to it but surpasses it. A reader

Muerte En La Tarde/ Death in the Afternoon

Average customer rating:

The Art of Bullfighting. El Arte de Corridas de Toros.
bullfights seen by an american writer

Muerte En La Tarde/ Death in the Afternoon
Ernest Hemingway
Manufacturer: Espasa Calpe Mexicana, S.A.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Foreign Language Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Customer Reviews:

The Art of Bullfighting. El Arte de Corridas de Toros........2004-12-29

Though at the end of the book Hemingway states that his book is in no way intended to be an all inclusive book on bullfighting, it is considered by many to be "the" best book ever written on the subject. A literary triumph for those interested and those opposed to bullfighting, filled with details of what goes on before, during, and after the fights both from the matadors' and spectators' point of views. If you've never been to a bullfight, this book will put you ring-side to the artistry that is bullfighting. (It is easy to see why this book is so well esteemed, Hemmingway's writing is an art all its own and this book is his fiercest ever.)

Al fin del libro Hemingway dice que no lo debemos considerar el libro todo inclusivo de tauromaquia o corridas de toros, muchos lo consideran el libro definito en el tema. Un triunfo literario paro los interesados y los opuestos a las corridas, lleno de detalles de lo que susede antes, durante, y despues de las corridas en los ojos del matador y los espectadores. Si nunca ha ido a una corrida, este libro lo pondria pormedio del matador y el toro en el arte de la tauromaquia. (Es facil ver porque este libro es tan bien estimado, el estilo de Hemmingway es un arte enteramente suyo y este libro es su mas feroz.)

bullfights seen by an american writer.......2002-03-08

Hemingwat wrote thhis book after lived many years in Spain, but he had saw the bullfights with a crtitical and analitic eye like no other writer, even spanish or mexican did it.
His comments to the bullfighters life, and his analisis to the bull's nature and raise are simply punctuals and corrects.
I think this is the best bullfights book ever wrote.

One Afternoon at Mezzegra : The Story of Mussolini's Death

Average customer rating:

badly needed a map but otherwise excellent
The last five days of a dictator's life.

One Afternoon at Mezzegra : The Story of Mussolini's Death
Peter Whittle
Manufacturer: Prentice-Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Customer Reviews:

badly needed a map but otherwise excellent.......2005-01-09

A map, a map & a map that was something I missed like I miss sugar in my coffee. Remember how often we use to refer to the map while we were reading "Hobbit" - since these are unknown worlds so we need a map to navigate. If you start reading this book then please have a map to Italy close by - it will be handy. All the descriptions become so much clear when you can see the towns, their strategic locations in a map.

The book essentially talks about the last 4 days of Mussolini's life and during these last 4 days Il Duce was hopping from one town to another in order to save his own life. As you will notice that this guy is outright selfish and even though he sends rosaries to his wife but still he is trying to escape with his mistress rather than helping out his real wife and children. Duce was always more of a comic characters and the Germans made a cartoon out of him. Whittle has done an excellent job in describing the relationship between Mussolini and the SS command. His portrait of Birzer, the SS officer, in-charge of protecting Mussolini's life is excellent.

The detailed description of the events are quite fascinating and shows signs of a lot of research that has gone into writing this book. I would have enjoyed as few more footnotes to see which portions of the book are actually from factual research and which are the ones from hear say.

As you will notice that like most of the other dictators Mussolini is also extremely selfish and in his last days instead of helping his wife and kids - this guy was still hanging on to his mistress. It is amazing how parts of Europe - the so called devloped society supported these people and brought them to power.

The last five days of a dictator's life........2001-10-05

After reading this book, I realized how a cornered rat feels when he knows there in no way out.

The book details the end of World War II in Italy and the last
days in the life of Benito Mussolini. At first it reports how
Mussolini was surrounded by hundreds of faithful, including German soldiers detailed to protect him. He runs here, then there in hopes of retaining a little more power. In the end he
is caught by the Communist partisans who execute him, rather than
have him talk to the Allied governments.

At least Mussolini faced his situation in the end with bravery.
The book provides a negative view of the the Communist partisan
who executed him and other Italian fascists, and the people of Milan who displayed his corpse and others.

Death in the Afternoon
Average customer rating:
Death in the Afternoon

Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Hemingway, Ernest | Classics | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000BP4I5C

Product Description

This volume is not intended to be historical or exhaustive. It is intended to be an introduction to the modern Spanish bullfighting.

Average customer rating:

Death in the Afternoon
Ernest Hemingway
Manufacturer: P. F. Collier
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

To Have and Have Not
The DANGEROUS SUMMER
A Farewell To Arms
The Old Man and The Sea

ASIN: 0084850485

Death and Money in the Afternoon: A History of the Spanish Bullfight

Average customer rating:

A Great Historical Guide to Bullfighting
hmm
Thoroughly Factual and Incredibly Dry
Impartiality at Last!
Much ado about nothing

Death and Money in the Afternoon: A History of the Spanish Bullfight
Adrian Shubert
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Spain | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Social History | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

Customs & Traditions | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Ecology | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Outdoors & Nature Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Sports Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 0195095243

Book Description

Bullfighting has long been perceived as an antiquated, barbarous legacy from Spain's medieval past. In fact, many of that country's best poets, philosophers, and intellectuals have accepted the corrida as the embodiment of Spain's rejection of the modern world. In his brilliant new interpretation of bullfighting, Adrian Shubert maintains that this view is both the product of myth and a complete misunderstanding of the real roots of the contemporary bullfight. While references to a form of bullfighting date back to the Poem of the Cid (1040), the modern bullfight did not emerge until the early 18th century. And when it did emerge, it was far from being an archaic remnant of the past--it was a precursor of the 20th-century mass leisure industry. Indeed, before today's multimillion-dollar athletes with wide-spread commercial appeal, there was Francisco Romero, born in 1700, whose unique form of bullfighting netted him unprecedented fame and wealth, and Manuel Rodriguez Manolete, hailed as Spain's greatest matador by the New York Times after a fatal goring in 1947. The bullfight was replete with promoters, agents, journalists, and, of course, hugely-paid bullfighters who were exploited to promote wine, cigarettes, and other products. Shubert analyzes the business of the sport, and explores the bullfighters' world: their social and geographic origins, careers, and social status. Here also are surprising revelations about the sport, such as the presence of women bullfighters--and the larger gender issues that this provoked. From the political use of bullfighting in royal and imperial pageants to the nationalistic "great patriotic bullfights" of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, this is both a fascinating portrait of bullfighting and a vivid recreation of two centuries of Spanish history. Based on extensive research and engagingly written, Death and Money in the Afternoon vividly examines the evolution of Spanish culture and society through the prism of one of the West's first--and perhaps its most spectacular--spectator sports.

Customer Reviews:

A Great Historical Guide to Bullfighting.......2002-03-12

I am doing my thesis on bullfighting and find Schubert's investigation interesting and helpful. It may not be the most interesting topic in the world to people who aren't crazy about bullfighting but I feel that this would open doors to allow people to see the other side of bullfighting, instead of seeing it for the death that everyone thinks that it's about.

hmm.......2001-01-12

This book does a good job of ripping off a nice Hemingway title.

Thoroughly Factual and Incredibly Dry.......2000-06-08

In a clearly acedemic work the authors imparts a wealth of information about business of bullfighting in the 18th and 19th century. The different factions within the business of bullfighting, matadors, their assistants, promotors, bull breeders, the press, and the crowds are all examined in fine detail. Unfortunately, this interesting information is delivered as simply one fact after another with little consideration for creating an engaging narrative. By the end of the book you'll know a great deal about the history of the business of bullfighting but it'll be up to you to put the facts together the get more complete picture.

Impartiality at Last!.......2000-04-01

Adrian Shubert presents a historical view of the bullfights that is neither pro or con, which is very rare today. The origins, although unclear to everyone, are presented in an unbiased form. Having attended over fifty bullfights in my 34 years of life, I found it very refreshing to learn the importance of the bullfight, not only in the romantic and cultural sense, but from historical and buisiness facts. This was definately worth the money.

Much ado about nothing.......2000-03-12

Shubert has found that the "sport" of bullfighting has attracted (and attracts) a lot of people and that it has involved (and involves still) a great deal of money. That's quite true, but not really novel; of course this has been a popular "mass sport" for a long time, and of course it has involved considerable amounts of money. But historians, God bless them, must always claim novelty for their writing, and this author is no different in this respect. What Shubert writes is informative, and he does write competently. But none of that "disproves" that bullfighting is indeed a relic of Spain's barbarism and a vehicle for sadism, acted out on the animals and engendered in the rabble. Even the grand pronouncements of no less than three other hsitorians on the the back cover cannot mask this simple fact.

Death in the Afternoon (Hear No Evil, # 1)

Average customer rating:

Death in the Afternoon (Hear No Evil, # 1)

Manufacturer: Scholastic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0590933264

Product Description

Sara Howell is smart, savvy, beautiful...and deaf. For Sara and all of Radley, things get frightening when the Shadow point Bridge collapses. 5 people die then one more: Sara's father, in a hit and run accident. Now someone is following Sara taking pictures. Her older brother, Steve, a rookie police detective, is receiving threatening messages. Sara Howell must find some answers or she could be the next victim.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books