History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Average customer rating:

Pretentious and Boring
Great little book with two stories you will love
Twin Souls

Kitchen (A Black cat book)
Banana Yoshimoto
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0802142443

Book Description

With the publication of Kitchen, the dazzling English-language debut that is still her best-loved book, the literary world realized that Yoshimoto was a young writer of enduring talent whose work has quickly earned a place among the best of contemporary Japanese literature. Kitchen is an enchantingly original book that juxtaposes two tales about mothers, love, tragedy, and the power of the kitchen and home in the lives of a pair of free-spirited young women in contemporary Japan. Mikage, the heroine, is an orphan raised by her grandmother, who has passed away. Grieving, Mikage is taken in by her friend Yoichi and his mother (who is really his cross-dressing father) Eriko. As the three of them form an improvised family that soon weathers its own tragic losses, Yoshimoto spins a lovely, evocative tale with the kitchen and the comforts of home at its heart.

In a whimsical style that recalls the early Marguerite Duras, "Kitchen" and its companion story, "Moonlight Shadow," are elegant tales whose seeming simplicity is the ruse of a very special writer whose voice echoes in the mind and the soul.

Customer Reviews:

Pretentious and Boring.......2007-09-06

Overly verbose and try-too-hard quirky. I didn't like it, although it came highly recommended by a couple of friends. I'll try re-reading it.

Great little book with two stories you will love.......2007-07-23

Kitchen has two stories within the cover. The first is the book's title, called Kitchen, and is a wonderful but sad story. Two people, the surviving members of two family, coming together to make a new family. It is a story of love, memories and, well, kitchens. The second, smaller story called Moonlight Shadow is a simple story about love lost, love remembered and, in the end, about moving on with one's life.

Twin Souls.......2006-11-29

When my friend Mini sent me this gift, I wanted to immediately loose myself in the pages. I kept thinking it was truly a book I would want to read all in one sitting. I wanted to curl up on a couch and have my two cats sleeping at my feet and how right I was!

Once I started reading, (my husband sound asleep, cats sleeping at my feet, and the house deathly quiet except for the quiet humming of the refrigerator), I was immediately drawn into Mikage Sakurai's world.

Banana Yoshimoto uses luscious descriptions of food and kitchens. She describes people and places with such poignancy, you truly feel connected to them. Her thoughts burst onto each page with such honesty, you cannot help but fall in love with her innocent, charming writing style.

There are life and death issues in "Kitchen," we can all relate to. Her evocative writing will fill you with nostalgia for some of the cooking spaces you have perhaps left behind. Mostly I love my grandmother's kitchen best. The familiar creak of the oven door, the scooting sound of the chairs as we sit for a cup of tea, and the racks of cookbooks patiently waiting on the shelves. To imagine this kitchen without my grandmother was to imagine the entire house without a soul, without love, and without peace.

This is the emotion Mikage feels as she sleeps on the floor in her grandmother's kitchen. After loosing her grandmother, Mikage is lost, lonely and depressed. Her soul longs for the comfort of another soul who can understand her torment. She feels as though death surrounds her and she cannot escape.

For a time she finds happiness with Yuichi, who knew her grandmother well. He is living with his mother Eriko. Mikage goes to live with them until she can learn to handle her emotions.

Yuichi's girlfriend is not impressed, even though the relationship is purely platonic on the surface. Deep within their souls they are soon to become twins, bearing the scars of a common life experience.

Banana Yoshimoto's writing is fresh, real and casts a spell on the reader. I would have preferred the book to end on page 105. She does truly seize hold of your heart and I wanted the book to either end or I wanted one more chapter in place of Moonlight Shadow.

I found the second book did not belong with the beautiful yet somewhat unfinished story of Yuichi and Mikage. I think you will agree. In fact, I suggest that when you get to page 105, you close the book and come back later to read the second story.

I find her writing to be most inspirational when she has fully developed her characters. To truly appreciate this book, you must love food and kitchens, that is the magic.

~The Rebecca Review

100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed (Black Cat Series)

Average customer rating:

when sexy becomes annoying
Erotic classic
What Women Think
Not very arousing for me
Pornography by and for teenagers

100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed (Black Cat Series)
Melissa P.
Manufacturer: Grove Press, Black Cat
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0802117813

Book Description

An instant blockbuster in Italy where it has sold over 700,000 copies, and now an international literary phenomenon, 100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed is the fictionalized memoir of Melissa P., a Sicilian teenager whose quest for love rapidly devolves into a shocking journey of sexual discovery.

Melissa begins her diary a virgin, but a stormy affair at the age of fourteen leads her to regard sex as a means of self-discovery, and for the next two years she plunges into a succession of encounters with various partners, male and female, her age and much older, some met through schoolmates, others through newspaper ads and Internet chat rooms. In graphic detail she describes her entry into a Dante-esque underworld of eroticism, where she willingly participates in group sex and sadomasochism, as well as casual pickups. Melissa's secret life is concealed from family and friends, revealed only in her diary entries.

Told with disarming candor, Melissa P.'s bittersweet tour of extreme desires is as poignant as it is titillating. One Hundred Strokes of the Brush Before Bed is a stunning erotic debut, a Story of O for our times.

Customer Reviews:

when sexy becomes annoying.......2007-09-25

One hopes that the translation of this text accounts for the ludicrous prose here. Can you imagine this chick ever writing ANOTHER book?

Erotic classic.......2007-08-09

Her genetalia becomes the "secret", his the "unknown".

In a breezy, elegant prose, Melissa P. creates a style all her own, vividly recounting her tale of lost innocence and a perpetually emerging sexually that knows no boundaries.

Overwrought? Perhaps, but effective nonetheless. It's like the literary equivalent of an atomic bomb; excessive force, certainly, but its impact is indelible.

What Women Think.......2007-03-30

This book, like many out today, offers a womans (or in this case a girl's) view of sex and sexuality. It makes for fun and stimulating reading. I enjoyed it. I am now reading Diary of a Sex Fiend: Girl with a One Track Mind. Same genre. Also sexy and fun to read.

Not very arousing for me.......2006-11-05

I was not terribly impressed, but perhaps I am jaded. Everyone else apparently loved it.

I've not read "The Story of O" or "The Sexual Life of Catherine M" which both received rave reviews as well, so I can't compare this to either of those.

Pornography by and for teenagers.......2006-03-30

I was surprised to hear that people actually doubted that this could have been written by a teenager. I was also surprised that anyone was shocked by it. Mildly titillating, the prose is mediocre and the plot weak. This is pornography by a teenager (let's hope she's a teenager, that's the only decent excuse for using so many cliches and hackneyed language) for a teenager. It's a little depressing that anyone finds this cutting-edge or exciting: girl wants love, uses her body to try and find it, degrades herself along the way, ends up finding love with someone who sees her as a whole person and appreciates her for who she is. Couldn't recommend this.

Black Bodies and Quantum Cats: Tales from the Annals of Physics

Average customer rating:

Not what i was looking for.
like sjg, she entices you into an amusing essay
Way more fun than I thought I'd have...
Science Writing for the Masses
Fun but Flawed

Black Bodies and Quantum Cats: Tales from the Annals of Physics
Jennifer Ouellette
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Science | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0143036033

Book Description

Physics, once known as “natural philosophy,” is the most basic science, explaining the world we live in, from the largest scale down to the very, very, very smallest, and our understanding of it has changed over many centuries. In Black Bodies and Quantum Cats, science writer Jennifer Ouellette traces key developments in the field, setting descriptions of the fundamentals of physics in their historical context as well as against a broad cultural backdrop. Newton's laws are illustrated via the film Addams Family Values, while Back to the Future demonstrates the finer points of special relativity. Poe's “The Purloined Letter” serves to illuminate the mysterious nature of neutrinos, and Jeanette Winterson's novel Gut Symmetries provides an elegant metaphorical framework for string theory.

An enchanting and edifying read, Black Bodies and Quantum Cats shows that physics is not an arcane field of study but a profoundly human endeavor—and a fundamental part of our everyday world.

Customer Reviews:

Not what i was looking for........2006-07-05

I have read many scientific publications in my life so when I do read book with a scientific focus I have many standards that I like to have fulfilled(in other words im very anal lol). The only reason that I rate this book as low as I did is only because I was completely expecting a book like Stephen Hawking's, A Breif History of Time (great book by the way!!!) I have taken physics in highschool and in college and I felt that her delivery of many physics concepts were too dumbed down and many fruitful aspects of them were left out for the sake of either complexity or any other reason(cannot think of why else they would be left out lol). I also found that many of the ways she tried to deliver the physics topics were rather questionable and left me with a bitter tase in my mouth. Overall I was dissapointed because I bought the book without doing any backround research on it beforehand. If you are looking for a Physics book like those written by Stephen Hawkings then this isn't the book for you. If you are interested in Physics and have no prior knowlege of the subject then this is the book for you. Sorry for any misspelled words, names, ect..

Ps.. Because i am a biology major I had to add this in...at the end of the second chapter she states that "some textbooks in Alabama still contain a disclaimer stating that evolution is just a "theory""...but i mean evolution IS a theory...its not neccesarily considered a fact even though there is overwhelming evidence in support of it. I believe evolution is true but maybe i'm just misinterpreting what she ment by this statement. To me I thought that it implied that evolution is a fact when in reality it isn't. Evolution as I see it is the best way to decribe life and how it came to be AS OF NOW, (maybe there will be a better theory in the future?)because fact is too strong a word it doesnt leave room for the grey areas....but thats just my opinion. and if I have misunderstood this statement i am truely sorry i just think there is nothing wrong with being a theory lol.

like sjg, she entices you into an amusing essay .......2006-07-01

Real science made fun.In easy bites, she starts with an anecdote, like SJ Gould and teases you into understanding principles of physics you never thought you coud learn. In an antiscience age, in an antirational age, this is to be cherished

Marvin Thalenberg MD

Way more fun than I thought I'd have..........2006-04-21

I found this a curiously fun sort of read-different from my usual choice of reading entertainment. I don't typically read science books, mostly because I'm lazy and don't want to work at understanding something really technical (many science writers put off the general public by delving too deeply), but hey folks, the author makes the science easy to grasp. And the writing style is witty, light and intelligent. Ouellette has a gift for marrying science, history and storytelling.
What's especially appealing is the way the author connects seemingly esoteric science with our everyday life-Reddi-whip (the physics of foam), velcro (biomimicry)-and illuminates the process by which scientists and inventors impact our lives. I loved the references to literature and pop culture that segue into the science or serve as examples of the science in action.
There's something for everyone. Science fans will get an enlightening and lively look into the history and people behind the discoveries. Those more interested in history will learn a thing or two about the science (painlessly). And old English majors, like me, will appreciate the storytelling.

Science Writing for the Masses.......2006-04-20

If Jennifer Ouellette had been writing books like this when I was a kid, she'd have been my favorite explicator of science. Instead, I was reading Isaac Asimov, who was fun and interesting but a scientist himself, with a tendency to focus on minute details that were sometimes a little bewildering to someone just getting her feet wet. Ouellette knows not only how to get her physics-phobic audience's attention, but avoids bogging them down in technicalities.

Occasionally, the techniques of writing for a general audience call for the sacrifice of precision in favor of broader generalities, like "rounding off" the technical details of lens grinding, which are best left to a more in-depth discussion of the topic. But as a non-scientist who's been reading science writing for the last 30 years as well as teaching it at the university level, I can truthfully say that very little is lost in this book. In this case, "a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down," to quote Mary Poppins. Not too many people are eager to read about physics, whether it's cloaked in pop culture or not, but Ouellette slyly draws you in with doses of the Olsen Twins, the Addams Family, and the DaVinci Code. By the end of the book, you'll catch yourself thinking that maybe physics isn't so terrifying, and certainly not boring. And if you're not getting the nitty-gritty details here, well, you can always go read Richard Feynman, or try plowing through Stephen Hawking.

And you're not going to read about flying monks in any of their books.

Fun but Flawed.......2006-04-19

Jennifer's Ouellette's venture into the esoteric realms of science is light and fun, but, I'm sorry to say, it is sprinkled with factual errors. Here are just a few:

In her discussion of telescopes, she says the objective lens of a refracting telescope is concave, to gather light. This is just not so. The objective lens is always convex. Millions of teleswcope and astronomy buffs know this. How come the two academioc gurus who praise this book in its front matter didn't catch it? They couldn't have read it carefully. Most high school physics students would spot the error.

More errors: In her discussion of spherical aberration in lenses she says the aberration is the result of faulty grinmding of the lenses. Not so. The aberrration is inherent in the spherical curvature itself. A lens that is ground to a perfect spherical curvatue will still exhibit the aberration. The fault is not in the grinding, but in the design.

Spherical lenses, that is, lenes with surfaces that are part of a perfect sphere, are the easiest to grind; that's why lenses have been made this way for centuries. Only recently, since about 1920, have methods for making aspheric lenses been developed. Aspheric lenses have non-spherical curvatures which correct for the aberrations caused by spherical surfaces. A common aspheric lens is the Schmidt corrector lens used in many reflecting telescopes.

My credentials? I worked for American Optical Company as a lens grinder. Later, as a TV science writer, I wrote a TV script in collaboration with Dr. John strong, physicist at the Johns Hop0kins University. Strong put the aluminum reflecting surface on the Hale telescope at Mt. Palomar and was known world-wide for his design of a diffraction grating ruling engine capable of making 6 inch gratings.

I have also written a column on science and natuire for a weekly newspaper for over 15 years. Like Ms. Ouellette, I try to keep my science writing light enough to be interesting to a general readership, but I try very hard to get my facts straight.

Perhaps the author and her publisher should employ the services of a scientifically trained editor to pick out the mistakes before publication.

For better science writing, Ken Volduzi

Average customer rating:

A Little Predictable But A Good Story Continuence
good but a little slow in parts
Good Fluff Reading
The BEST GW could give
Good story but too many inconsistancies

Black Cat (Gemini)
V.C. Andrews
Manufacturer: Pocket Star
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743428609
Release Date: 2004-09-28

Book Description

She hid her true self.

Now the truth will be revealed.

Living a life of lies under the thumb of her widowed, spiritually-obsessed mother, Celeste has been forced to take on the identity of her dead twin brother, Noble. She's almost forgotten what it's like to be Celeste -- except for the one thing that keeps her sane: caring for her darling daughter, Baby Celeste. But when Celeste's mother marries a kindly neighbor, a new breed of poisonous secrets and vicious enemies will force Celeste to do what she must -- to survive the darkness....

Download Description

"She hid her true self. Now the truth will be revealed. Living a life of lies under the thumb of her widowed, spiritually-obsessed mother, Celeste has been forced to take on the identity of her dead twin brother, Noble. She's almost forgotten what it's like to be Celeste -- except for the one thing that keeps her sane: caring for her darling daughter, Baby Celeste. But when Celeste's mother marries a kindly neighbor, a new breed of poisonous secrets and vicious enemies will force Celeste to do what she must -- to survive the darkness.... "

Customer Reviews:

A Little Predictable But A Good Story Continuence.......2006-10-06

When I started reading the Gemini series I was plesently suprised by the darkness in tone. It was a return to form for the author. But as usual the second book falls a little bit short. After Celeste gave birth to Baby Celeste her mother made her go back to being Noble. In this book, things pick up where they left off. Celeste is still Noble and her mother is still wacky. The story continues as Sarah marries the next door neighbor (who is the grandfather of Baby Celeste). This leads to an eventual confrontation with his daughter Betsy. The book concludes kind of abruptly and doesn't leave a great ending.

good but a little slow in parts.......2005-12-27

I have read every V.C. Andrew book & this one is like all the rest. It has a good plot and parts of it just grap you. The ending was wonderful. There was a few parts that were kind of slow but then it would pick back up. Now I need to read the next one in the set.

Good Fluff Reading .......2005-05-26

I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed that according to this book, Celeste was supposedly eleven when she gives birth to Baby Celeste.

I know kids start early these days, but that darn Elliot is such a pedophile! He's old enough to drive and he still can't find enough desperate women to prevent him from going around and raping eleven year olds in the woods. He even thought she was a boy up until a couple minutes before he slept with her. Does that sound like a normal reaction to you?

The front cover on this novel and Celeste boasts "A mommy that is worse than the Flowers In the Attic." I disagree. Her mother was off the wall and eccentric and she buried her son in her daughter's clothing and made her daughter cross dress for years and called her Noble, but I didn't see her feeding anyone arsenic. Of course, there does seem to be some doubt about the way Dave Fletcher died, but this was never clarified.

As far as villians go, the Mother was by no means a sweetheart. She was perverse and cruel and she would give her daughter some kind of herbal tea that made her hallucinate whenever Celeste put on lipstick or tried to brush her hair. But she wasn't THAT bad.

If Celeste had any kind of a backbone she would have just up and left. For most of the book, I was under the impression that she was in her early twenties and just hanging around her house to help her mother and keep the spirits appeased. But at the end of this, I'm set straight. Celeste was only 17 and a half. Her daughter is six. She was a minor.

Everything is clear now. Thank you, ghostwriter!

The BEST GW could give.......2005-03-07

Wow! Thanks! This is why when I see a new VCA coming out I have to buy it... it's a compulsion - MUST HAVE VCA. This book didn't let me down.

Good story but too many inconsistancies.......2005-02-23

In Celeste (to anyone who paid attention) Celeste/Noble was 16 when she had Baby Celeste. It was brought up that she was 1 year younger than Elliot who was already driving and she was old enough to driver herself (Sarah was going to get her a car that proves this fact). At the end of Black Cat, they try to sell her off as 11 at the time of the birth. Sorry, no dice.

That is not the only inconsistancy in the series (there's also a question as whether she ever had the chicken pox), but definetly the most unforgivable. I can't get past it. It clouds my judgement of the rest of the book.

I will read Child of Darkness because I have to know if that was done on purpose, but I'm dreading it.

Black Cat, Volume 7 (Black Cat (Graphic Novels))

Average customer rating:

Black Cat, Volume 7 (Black Cat (Graphic Novels))
Kentaro Yabuki
Manufacturer: VIZ Media LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Comic

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ASIN: 1421510367

Book Description

Train Heartnet, also known as "Black Cat," was an infamous assassin for a secret organization called Chronos...until he abandoned that cold-blooded existence to live on his own terms as an easygoing bounty hunter. But is Train's past as far behind him as he thinks?

Book Description

Based on police wiretaps and exclusive interviews with drug kingpins and hip-hop insiders, this is the untold story of how the streets and housing projects of southeast Queens took over the rap industry.

For years, rappers from Nas to Ja Rule have hero-worshipped the legendary drug dealers who dominated Queens in the 1980s with their violent crimes and flashy lifestyles. Now, for the first time ever, this gripping narrative digs beneath the hip-hop fables to re-create the rise and fall of hustlers like Lorenzo “Fat Cat” Nichols, Gerald “Prince” Miller, Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff, and Thomas “Tony Montana” Mickens. Spanning twenty-five years, from the violence of the crack era to Run DMC to the infamous murder of NYPD rookie Edward Byrne to Tupac Shakur to 50 Cent’s battles against Ja Rule and Murder Inc., to the killing of Jam Master Jay, Queens Reigns Supreme is the first inside look at the infamous southeast Queens crews and their connections to gangster culture in hip hop today.

Customer Reviews:

An Urban History Lesson....Life chooses you.......2007-08-31

I read this book in its entirety today. It bought back a lot of memories and pain. As a 38YO husband, father of 3 beautiful children, with a wonderful wife and 18 year IT career, I grew up during the 80's crack epidemic. I sold drugs. I was a crack addict. I watched childhood friends involved in the drug game die. I saw beautiful women become crack addicts. Even then, as a teenager, I wondered why something so small could cause so much destruction. This book reveals a lot. How drugs almost destroyed Urban America, in particular NYC. This book should serve as a history lesson to young people who view rappers as gangsters. "Real gangsters move in silence". This book should also serve as a reminder to people who survived the devastating decade that was the 80's. "Never forget where you come from".

It's easy for privileged people to dismiss the urban population; however when you have people that are disenfranchised, suffer abject poverty, and lack educational, creative, and/or financial opportunities; the majority will do whatever necessary to create opportunities for themselves, even if it means hurting their own. It's unfortunate that the crack epidemic was largely ignored until children of White America started dying.

Although the author highlights the exploits of particular South Queens drug gangs, I think the overall context of the book should be reviewed in a larger perspective: From the Civil Rights inequality, to government disenfranchisement, as a result of Vietnam, subsequent escapism via drug abuse, to opportunities via drug sales, to capitalism/exploitation via urban music.

This book should serve as a guide for kids that want to get involved in hip-hop/rap music (STAY TRUE TO YOURSELF. STOP BEING SOMEONE ELSE).

It should serve as a wakeup call to those (Music companies/Law Enforcement/Religious organizations) that want to exploit kids in the music game (STOP EXPLOITING OUR CHILDREN).

It should serve as a warning sign to all Black youth that murder each other for nonsense (STOP KILLING EACH OTHER. THAT'S WHAT THEY WANT US TO DO).

As long as there's a mongoose, there'll be a snake. As long as there's an audience, there'll be a minstrel. It's sad how life chooses you....

Excellent.......2007-01-31

If your from Queens, or you have listened to 90's rap, then this is a good book for you. It explains the litany of characters(criminals) mentioned in so much gangster rap. It is also gives excellent accounts of the "crack" years of NYC in Queens. There were so many locations in Queens, that I was stunned to find out the history of. Well worth the cheap purchase price!

Will The Snake Charmer Please Stand Up!!.......2006-10-24

I ordered the book last week and read it in 2 days. I feel like I'm still trapped within the pages. Looking at the picture of the author Ethan Brown I found it hard to believe he could get so many people to talk. No offense but the man looks like a skinhead. I did some research on him and found out he's not even from NY much less Queens which puzzled me even more because why write a book about Queens if you have no history or ties to the era or place? Then I see a dedication to someone he calls "the snake charmer" who he claims is the preeminent street historian. If the snake charmer is the preeminent street historian then Ethan must be his stenographer. For the life of me I can't figure out why someone with all this riveting detail would allow someone else to claim the credit in exchange for anonymous praise. The book was EXCELLENT but I want to see Ethan give credit where it's due because there's no way in hell HE could've done that book. Anyone who reads it and sees his picture will have to agree.

Read It ASAP.......2006-07-21

No matter what you're reading, put it to the side for a bit, especially if it's fiction. This is fact. Everyone from 13 to 43 should read this book. If you lived through the crack era you should read this book. If you grew up anywhere in the five boroughs of New York can identify, you can remember the stories, you can remember the fear you can remember the body count delivered on the front page of the newspaper. If you remember being afraid to ride the trains and welcomed the site of the red tams you should read this book.
Brown impressed me with the thoroughness and professionalism of his work. He didn't try to sell us mythical figures or misguided youth. He simply told the story as it was, as it is.

If you have African American youth in your life give them this book. Buy them their own copy; make them read it because they need to know. The youth of today weren't there in the 80's and 90's. They think the rappers they like are "gangsta". No matter how hard you try to tell these kids that you can't be a multi-millionaire rapper and gangsta, what you think the police wouldn't notice. Real ganstas hustle to get out of the ghetto and are hardly concerned about keeping it real. I say all that to make this point...Queens Reigns Supreme is the book that can challenge a generation to question the direction that rap is going. This is a book that can open eyes and cause a life changing thought process. The revelation of a number of things in this book will have you seeing things in a new light. If you never invested in a book starting with this one would be a good choice.

The Realness.......2006-06-23

This book is not a fictional "hood" farce as I initially thought upon seeing it in the store. After reading the abstract on the back cover, I was compelled to read the Preface and first two chapters while still sitting in the store. I purchased the book and read it in less than 48 hours. I literally could not put it down. It is filled with the TRUE stories of Queens hustlers like the Supreme Team and Pappy Mason. These are hood icons that you may hear about in a rap record but never know who they really were. This book does an excellent job of conveying the street savvy and relentlessness of these hustlers who amassed millions as well as carefully cataloguing their down fall. There are times where you read the book and almost hear these figures talking to you or reading what was going through their minds at the time. You see them on top of the world as well as at the bottom of the barrel. You see them as violent and fearless as well as seeing them desperate and vulnerable.

The connection that is drawn to the current hip hop music and culture is drawn seemlessly. There are a lot of familiar names and some unfamiliar stories. Some truths come out and we see who is "gangsta" and who's not. This is a must read for anyone interested in Urban History/ Culture.

Four Plays: Come Back Little Sheba; Picnic; Bus Stop; The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (Black Cat Book)

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FOUR AMERICAN PLAYS
A Playwright in Need of Rediscovering?
Heartbreak Country
Four Plays: All Great!
A superb overview of one of America's Best

Four Plays: Come Back Little Sheba; Picnic; Bus Stop; The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (Black Cat Book)
William Inge
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 080213209X

Book Description

'Inge has presented with astounding veracity the oppressive banality of the lives of his characters: the events of their lives have the nerve-lightening regularity of a dripping faucet. His female characters especially are engulfed by the bathos of their lives, and Inge capitalizes on this fact in order to heighten dramatically the moment of personal crisis which comes to each of them. In his four major successes--Come Back, Little Sheba; Picnic; Bus Stop; and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs--the play carries the audience through the moment of crisis; and the final curtain falls upon a note of hope and fulfillment.'--R. Baird Shuman

Customer Reviews:

FOUR AMERICAN PLAYS.......2003-09-25

Four plays by William Inge all published and produced on Broadway in the 1950s. The plays are underbellies of the American dream concerning modestly incomed average Americans facing conflict in a changing social environment, each with a deep dramatic sense of the human spirit riddled softly with a genuinely comedic edge. "Come Back, Little Sheba" is a low-key story of a recovering alcoholic which rises to thunderous and violent drama. "Picnic" follows two Kansas households whose lives are disrupted when a stranger comes to town during a Labor Day weekend. "Bus Stop" concerns an unlikely wedding engagement among a group of stranded passengers in a coffee shop bus stop. Only "Dark At The Top of The Stairs" is a little less focused in it's story of a 1920s family threatened by marital discord, the play is unfortunately reliant on a shock-value incident which seems to only serve as a melodramatic device. The book includes an essay by William Inges on being a successful playwright.

A Playwright in Need of Rediscovering?.......2001-07-31

Midwesterner William Inge was one of the most celebrated playwrights of his day. No one would have blinked to hear his name mentioned alongside Arthur Miller or Tennessee Williams. Today he is not much thought of, except for the four popular movies spawned by the four plays in this anthology...

Inge may or may not be "world class," but he shouldn't go ignored. He dealt with the "little people," common Midwesterners and how they lived. Inge was superb at slowly revealing the subtext of their lives--the situations and mishaps that had got them to the point where a pivotal decision had to be made and there were only one or two options to consider.

"Come Back, Little Sheba" is the first play, and the one the movie industry left almost untouched. With today's hindsight it becomes easier to understand Lola's depression in the context of Doc's incipient alcoholism, and the fact that they feel stuck with each other in a joyless middle age. As with Shakespeare, Inge would have made a terrific psychotherapist.

"Picnic" is a Freudian's dream. Inge tells a realistic story of a twentyish beauty from the wrong side of the tracks who feels trapped into marrying one of the town gentry until a sexy drifter hits town. At the same time, without compromising realism, the subtext screams with repressed sexuality. Pay attention in particular to the three schoolteachers and how they talk about the statue in the high school. Cinematically, Rosalind Russell made the best of this meaty part. When the play was "opened up" into a movie, it gained realism with excellent cinematography and outdoor settings, but lost much of the hothouse atmosphere that is quintessentially Inge.

"Bus Stop" is the most optimistic of these four plays. It concerns a likeable but socially and sexually naive young cowboy from Montana who falls head over heels in love (and lust) with a young woman trying to make a living singing in a seedy bar/nightclub. How this young bronco gets busted is interesting to watch--it's kind of an anti-screwball comedy although it ends well. Again, Inge relates his characters through dialog and you couldn't ask for a more colorful slice of Fifties Americana than this busload of strangers stuck for the night in a rundown diner/bus stop. The movie was a fine vehicle for Marilyn Monroe but except for a few scenes, doesn't follow the stage play...

Re: "The Dark at the Top of the Stairs": Without giving too much of the plot away, this play concerns a character that unfortunately has become too much of a stock figure in American fiction: the father who is too busy making money to take much interest in his children. This father, specifically, is a traveling salesman, and despite his wife's insistence on maintaining all the 1920s proprieties, the children become uncomfortably aware why Dad is out on the road more than is strictly necessary. Inge turned the pace down on this one to match the children's slower pace of recognition that the ideal moral world they had been instructed to live by wasn't always followed.

For the money "Four Plays" is a great investment. In particular, I urge anyone with an interest in American theater to buy it. With plays that are 40 to 50 years old, Inge does not read like a contemporary playwright; his product is very 1950s. To today's upper-middle-class, therapy-aware audiences, some of his Freudian insights might come across as laughably overstated. Bit simply as works of literature these plays are well worth the reading.

Heartbreak Country.......2001-05-19

The plays of William Inge depict the character of a very specific place: Southeast Kansas. The longing-for-elsewhere among the inhabitants of that part of Kansas is crafted into all of Inge's stories. Inge's gift is his awareness of that yearning and how it effects Kansans' daily lives. His writing makes it compelling and universally poignant.

Four Plays: All Great!.......2000-08-02

Mr. Inge, in "Bus Stop," has crafted a tale of first love and cynicism that we can all relate to. People jaded by life, people wanting something more, people content with their lot... it's all here.

The other classics contained in this volume are also well worth your time to read.

A superb overview of one of America's Best.......2000-07-26

William Inge certainly has been overshadowed by his contemporaries Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller and yet he was certainly their equal in many ways. Williams, a close personal friend to Inge who suggested he enter the playwrighting profession, even said that Inge was his favorite. And although his work does lack the dense poetic symbolism of the aforementioned playwrights, Inge grounds his characters in true spare dialouge and often heartbreaking simplicity that deceptively hides complex characters.

Proving to be easy stagable and ultimately actable, Inge's dialouge develops out of carefully drawn characters enacting direct and clear objectives. All the plays represented here also feature opportunities(especially "Bus Stop" and "Picnic")for strong ensemble work. Having both directed and acted in several productions of Inge's scripts, I can say from experience that Inge's language connects easily and brilliantly to the actor.

Product Description

Traveling through time and space in dreams? Impossible, you say? Anna Lane would have to agree. And even Alex, her best friend, next-door neighbor and child genius, can t convince her. But when Mama Do-Right, a guide from the afterworld, moves into the abandoned house across the street with a message from Anna s father, Anna has a big decision to make. Should she believe in Mama Do-Right and the power of her magical black cat bone and dream travel to find her father or walk away knowing she may never see him again. Join Anna, Alex and Mama Do-Right on their first journey of many as the two young adventurers discover special gifts and learn valuable lessons about love, life and magic.

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful story!.......2007-10-09

This is a great story that teaches compassion, spirituality, and the value of keeping an open mind all in a smart, funny, and fast paced read that kids will enjoy.

Mama Do Right....Magical Reading.......2007-08-07

I am very pleased with this book and I can't wait to read the next adventure of Anna and Alex and Mama Do Right. It was so magical, I read it in one day. I didn't realize that it was a book for younger readers, but I enjoyed every second of it and I'm sure the younger readers will as well. Buy the book..you won't be disappointed.

A truly stunning book for children and adults.......2007-08-03

Let Mama Do-Right take you where you have always wanted to go - into magic, mystery, and a Universe of delightful possibility. Poignant life lessons weave throughout this beautiful story, which will deeply enrich your dreams and waking life. The characters of Anna and Alex, and of course the Mama, are so vibrant and refreshing that they'll inspire you and your children for years.

I just read this to my friend's 10 year old son and I've never seen him get so animated about a book. He actually made his sister turn off the T.V. so I could continue reading. Wow. Not a common experience with this kid.
Bottom line: Read this book and gift it to as many children (and adults) as possible, and let the dreamin' begin!

A magical book!.......2007-07-03

Reviewed by Aja King (age 11) for Reader Views (6/07)

What I really liked in the book "Mama Do-Right and the Black Cat Bone" was the adventure and magic that the main character experienced. I also really like how the main character took all the bad events and all the bad feelings, and throughout the story all the bad things eventually turned into great things. I liked the whole story, but what really stuck out to me was that through helping other people by appearing in their dreams, she found away to help her self.

I think this book would interest elementary school kids, because it is easy to understand what is happening in the story and most people could read the story without having to find out what a word means or something like that.

The story was interesting to me because of the lesson it taught. Some of the events in "Mama Do-Right and the Black Cat Bone" could also happen to anyone which made the story seem more real.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a fun and magical book to take them on the adventure of dreaming.

Magic and compassion..........2007-02-15

A plucky heroine and a brainy side-kick....on a quest to help other children face the fear and sorrow in their lives....with a good pinch of humor, time travel, invisibility, and .......
A most enjoyable read.

Cats of Any Color: Jazz, Black and White

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Meditation of Jazz and Race
Some unflinching truths about the world of jazz...
An intelligent and thoughtful book, marvelously written.

Cats of Any Color: Jazz, Black and White
Gene Lees
Manufacturer: Da Capo
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0306809508

Book Description

It was none other than Louis Armstrong who said, "These people who make the restrictions, they don't know nothing about music. It's no crime for cats of any color to get together and blow." "You can't know what it means to be black in the United States--in any field," Dizzy Gillespie once said, but Gillespie vigorously objected to the proposition that only black people could play jazz. "If you accept that premise, well then what you're saying is that maybe black people can only play jazz. And black people, like anyone else, can be anything they want to be." In Cats of Any Color, Gene Lees, the acclaimed author of three previous collections of essays on jazz and popular music, takes a long overdue look at the shocking pervasiveness of racism in jazz's past and present--both the white racism that long ghettoized the music and generations of talented black musicians, and what Lees maintains is an increasingly virulent reverse racism aimed at white jazz musicians. In candid interviews, living jazz legends, critics, and composers step forward and share their thoughts on how racism has affected their lives. Dave Brubeck, part Modoc Indian, discusses native Americans' contribution to jazz and the deeply ingrained racism that for a time made it all but impossible for jazz groups with black and white players to book tours and television appearances. Horace Silver looks back on his long career, including the first time he ever heard jazz played live. Blacks were not not allowed into the pavilion in Connecticut where Jimmie Lunceford's band was performing, so the ten-year-old Silver listened and watched through the wooden slats surrounding the pavilion. "And oh man! That was it!" Silver recalls. Red Rodney recalls his early days with Charlie "Bird" Parker, and pianist and composer Cedar Walton tells of the time Duke Ellington played at the army base at Ford Dix and allowed the young enlisted Walton to sit in. Tracing the jazz world's shifting attitude towards race, many of the stories Lees tells are inspiring--Brubeck cancelling 23 out of 25 concert dates in the South rather than replace black bass player Eugene Wright, or Silver insisting that while he strives to provide his fellow black musicians opportunities, "I just want the best musicans I can get. I don't give a damn if they're pink or polka dot." Others are profoundly disturbing--Lees' first encounter with Oscar Peterson, after a Canadian barber flatly refused to cut Peterson's hair, or Wynton Marsalis on television claiming that blacks have been held back for so many years because the music business is controlled by "people who read the Torah and stuff." From the old shantytowns of Louisville, to the streets of South Central L.A., to the up-to-the-minute controversies surrounding Marsalis's jazz program at Lincoln Center, and the Jazz Masters awards given by the NEA, Cats of Any Color confronts racism head-on. At its heart is a passionate plea to recognize jazz not as the sole property of any one group, but as an art form celebrating the human spirit--not just for the protection of individual musicians, but for the preservation of the music itself.

Customer Reviews:

Meditation of Jazz and Race.......2003-07-31

Gene Lees' bok had its genesis as a series of articles nominally written around a common theme, that of race and jazz. The're no real narrative structure here; some of the pieces are narratives, some more essays and some are just rememberances that sort of meander here and there.

They're very readable, although I do get a little annoyed at times by Lees' short, punchy newspaper style, with two and three word sentances and one-sentance paragraphs. It's a technique that is best used very sparingly. Lees does do a superb job of recreating conversations, showing that he has a marvelous ear for the rhythms and conventions of spoken English.

The unifying theme through all these pieces is Gene Lees' concern with the role race played in jazz, whether the early racism that kept Black jazz musicians out of the limelight, or the contemporary racism of people like Stanley Crouch who proclaim jazz to be Black music. What puts Lees' essays a cut above others who have written on this topic is that he goes beyond the simple enumerating of players and their opinions; he has a real musicologist's interest in the history of jazz and popular music.

One piece, an extended profile and interview Dominique d Lerma is devoted to breaking the stereotypes of the earliest jazz music. If you watched Ken Burns' history of jazz you could be forgiven for thinking that jazz came from ill-educated, poor Southern blacks. de Lerma emphasizes, for example, the role of conservatory-trained Black musicians who integrated the harmonies of the European composers they studied into the popular music of the times, and the role of the great Black music publisher W. C. Handy in popularizing this music.

The last essay is specifically devoted to Wynton Marsalis, a man with marvelous technique and shallow opinions, who refuses to admit that any white musician has contributed anything to jazz, thus bringing the debate full circle. Marsalis is a trumpter with a brilliant classical technique who unfortunately has been elevated in recent years to the position of being the modern savior of jazz by the efforts of Burns and Stanley Crouch despite his not having much of anything original since his early days as an up-and-comer with Art Blakey's band. Unfortunately he has come to be viewed as a major figure and authority in jazz by outsiders, despite being generally ignired as disparaged by most jazzers.

The real pity of attitudes like Marsalis' is that they lose sight of the fact that while Jazz certainly had its origins in Black musicians, it has always been as much an American music form as a Black form, and that today it is an international form that transcends boundries of either race or color. The greatest musicians have always ignored artificial boundries, and many of the great bands of the post WW-II always included musicians of all races. It takes nothing away from Ray Brown to say he was influenced by Scott LaFaro, or that Miles Davis was strongly influenced by his close association with Gil Evans. (Miles, responding to a comment by Marsalis that Miles was never Marsalis' idol, reportedly told him "without me, you'd be all 'Flight of the Bumblebee'")

For that matter, in the end it becomes ridiculous to talk about race. Horace Silver, as Lees notes in one interview, Black, Native American, and Portuguese ancestors; his father spoke Portuguese. Does that make him a white musician? A Black one? A European? Charles Mingus had a similarly mixed ancestry. Does the fact the he was perhaps a quarter African make him less Black in the eyes of Marsalis, and thus less of a musician?

There's a lot in this book to think about long after you put it down. As you might be able to tell from reading the above, I'm still thinking about it.

Some unflinching truths about the world of jazz..........1998-09-28

Gene Lees strikes me as one of the more level-headed individuals in jazz. Like it or not, the hard-core jazz word is these days filled with elitists, racists (mostly reverse these days), and people protecting their "territory." When I see the doings and hear the rantings of the likes of Stanley Crouch and other pretentious writers and "social critics," I am reminded of the character of Max Mercy from Bernard Malamud's novel (and the movie) The Natural...Mercy isn't interested in baseball and has never played a game, but stirring up controversy using baseball as his medium keeps him in the spotlight and makes him rich. Crouch is much the same way--would any of us have heard of him, would he have a tenth of his current income and notoriety were he not clutching the coattails of a currently well-known jazz musician? Lees' discussion of Crouch, of other figures in jazz history, and his inside stories about the jazz world and the psyches within it are like a bucket of cold water to most of what passes for jazz scholarship today. But don't get the impression this is a kiss-and-tell book, or something scandalous. Mr. Lees is actually a rather level headed individual. A must read for anyone not in any "camp" or defending any "turf" but who just loves music and musicians and realizes that jazz, like any art, is a mixture and mixing that quickly becomes so intricate it's impossible for any one group to claim they "own" it. Too bad there are only two other reviews of this book on Amazon's page as of this writing. I can see people would rather believe the hypola histories instead. Too bad...

An intelligent and thoughtful book, marvelously written........1996-09-20

Gene Lees has steadily built a reputation as one of the finest of all writers on jazz. This intelligent, thoughtful, and insightful look at current attitudes on the part of jazz musicians towards race and racial bias is firmly grounded in historical research without being pedantic. Part of the success of this book comes from its organization -- many of the chapters are profiles of musicians and musical scholars which are incidentally used to illustrate the issues under consideration. Whether or not one finally agrees with Lees' premise -- that we have reentered a period of "reverse racism" in jazz -- the quality of the interviews and interviewees makes this an important book, and a wonderful read in the process.

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