Magic Tree House Boxed Set of 4, Books 9-12: Dolphins at Daybreak, Ghost Town at Sundown, Lions at Lunchtime, and Polar Bears Past Bedtime

Book Description

The Magic Tree House adventures continue in books 9—12. Morgan the magical librarian of Camelot challenges Jack and Annie to discover the answers to four riddles as they travel under the sea to the Wild West, the African plains, and the frozen Arctic. If they succeed, they will become Master Librarians! Books in this set include:Dolphins at Daybreak (#9)Ghost Town at Sundown (#10) Lions at Lunchtime (#11) Polar Bears past Bedtime (#12) Magic Tree House Books #9—12.

Customer Reviews:

Magic Tree House Box Set.......2007-10-09

What can I say about Magic Tree House Books? Wow! My eight year old son has been reading them for quite a while now. Our public library does a great job at keeping a variety but doesn't always have the one that he's just dying to read today. I hope that by giving him at least a few of his own favorites that are in this set to keep on hand at home will satisfy his very large reading appetite.

Great Books for a young boy to read.......2007-10-07

It takes a lot for me to get my son to read anything. But with these books he read them with euthusiam and read each one within a week.Magic Tree House Boxed Set 2, Books 5-8: Night of the Ninjas, Afternoon on the Amazon, Sunset of the Sabertooth, and Midnight on the Moon

Great books for little boys................2007-05-13

We read one or two chapters a night to my 5 1/2 yr. old son everynight. He loves all the topics that the books cover....dinosaurs, pirates, ninjas,etc. Great for any little boy!

Great Books.......2007-05-12

My 5 year old son loves the books. They are short enough to keep his attention, but long enough to challenge his imagination.

Great Gift.......2007-05-12

I bought these for my 6 year old grandson for his birthday. He was excited to get them, but they were laid aside for the even more exciting toys that he received. However, as the toys got boring, these books became more entertaining. Currently he is immensely enjoying reading them. They are excellent beginning readers.

Average customer rating:

Very entertaining, but....
AWESOME!
Just... not very good.
Great
The descent into hell is easy

City of Bones (Mortal Instruments)
Cassandra Clare
Manufacturer: Margaret K. McElderry
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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

Horror | Teens | Subjects | Books

Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books

Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books
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Ironside: A Modern Faery's Tale
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ASIN: 1416914285

Book Description

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .

Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.

Customer Reviews:

Very entertaining, but...........2007-10-10

The book was entertaining, the characters were fun, the plot was twisty enough to warrant the page count, and the setting was gritty and fantastic at the same time. She also plays with themes a lot: I noticed homages to Star Wars, Buffy, Harry Potter and the Evil Overlord List to name a few. For the most part these were homages and not ripoffs, and added to the story.

You may know she made a name for herself before this writing Harry Potter fanfiction, and if you've read her work, you might notice that a few things from it made it into this book. I don't know if she included them in her fanfiction as guerilla advertising or what, but as they're good bits and they account for about three of the five hundred pages, it isn't really a problem- it just jumped out at me as I read.

Good book, very entertaining overall.

AWESOME!.......2007-10-06

This book was great! I have a hard time finding things that I really enjoyed reading but this is second only to the Twilight series. Loved it!

Just... not very good........2007-10-04

I think the problem with this book is that it's like looking at every movie or tv show about teens and the supernatural for the last twenty some odd years. It's loaded with cliches and wise cracks, and if it seems like you've read or seen a story like this before, you probably have.

Teen vampire stories tend to be fairly similar anyway - you can't call the monsters vampires or werewolves unless they follow certain conventions, but this book wasn't even interesting. It's dull. You'll figure out the story long before the characters do, and by the time they catch a clue, you'll be tearing your eyes out from the purply prose.

But I would have tossed it two or three stars just because I do like teens battling demons.... except that it was so poorly edited. Characters described completely different, subplots that went nowhere... Either the publisher didn't care or the author... but someone sure didn't.

Skip it unless you can buy it cheap.

Great.......2007-09-21

My friend and I read this book and both loved it. It was hilarious and a really lovely book. There are many books with duller plots/beginnings, so why is everyone moaning and crying about that? Oh well, I totally recommend this book to everyone.

The descent into hell is easy.......2007-08-21

Things go afoot at the Pandemonium all ages nightclub in Brooklyn for young Clary Fray (15) and her best friend Simon. First, Clary sees a young blue haired boy follow a slim, dark haired girl into a room, then she sees them pursued by two young men, one of whom is carrying a knife. Clary points this out to Simon who alerts a bouncer, but when she sees a dreadful crime committed that no one else can see she begins to wonder what is behind it all. Who are these runic tattooed, attractive young people, and why does the one who resemble a lion treat her so mockingly?

The three turn out to be in an elite group of humans called Shadowhunters, or demon hunters, in "Mundie" terms. Alec and Isabelle Lightwood are beautiful dark haired siblings while Jace, the tall leonine one, is an orphan. After Clary is attacked by a Ravener Demon and poisoned Jace takes her back to the Institute, that is the head of the Shadowhunters realm in the land of Idris, where she can recover from her near fatal wounds.

Clary meets Hodge, the elder tutor of the three, and he begins to unravel the tale of the Shadowhunters and their greatest enemy, Valentine, a former Shadowhunter. He decides to let her in on their history after realizing that her mother has gone missing mysteriously and, based on the information Jace has supplied about Clary being able to see demons, Hodge suspect that she has Shadowhunter blood in her. The Shadowhunters are run by a group of lawmakers called the Clave, who hand down punishments for those who flaunt the laws set up between the Shadowhunters and the Downworlders, otherwise known as the Fey, demons and faeries and what not. Valentine was the greatest source of unrest within the world of Idris, believing that the entirety of the Fey should be killed to leave the world pure for humans. He was not approved of in this quest and he decided to take out the means of turning other humans into Shadowhunters- the Mortal Cup- by setting fire to it, his family, and himself. Now, years later, someone is invoking his name again and the world of Idris and all the Shadowhunters know, is in the gravest peril at this new threat. But how does Clary's past connect with Valentine, a man who wants to purify the world of all non-humans, and why is she getting drawn into their war?

I was so impressed by the first of Clare's urban fantasy series that I started the article in Wikipedia about it. All I can say is wow... and then shake my head and say wow again... This was such a compelling read, dark and rich with vivid textures and description. The characters are real and edgy and the plot twists are original, unexpected, and complex. Clare is the queen of setting literary bombs that explode and astound unexpectedly throughtout the books. Amazingly done. I found myself thoroughly drawn into the lush world that Clare has created. I will be reading "City of Ashes" when it is published in 2008. I have to know what happens next.

The New York Trilogy: City of Glass; Ghosts; The Locked Room (Contemporary American Fiction Series)

Average customer rating:

"The question is the story itself, and whether or not it means something is not for the story to tell."
Was not impressed
Two extraordinary short novels and an exercise by a supreme storyteller
exceptional
Good? Yes. Engaging? that's a different question...

The New York Trilogy: City of Glass; Ghosts; The Locked Room (Contemporary American Fiction Series)
Paul Auster
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

The Brooklyn Follies: A Novel
The Book of Illusions: A Novel
The Invention of Solitude
Moon Palace (Contemporary American Fiction)
Leviathan (Contemporary American Fiction)

ASIN: 0140131558

Book Description

Paul Auster's signature work, The New York Trilogy, consists of three interlocking novels: City of Glass, Ghosts, and The Locked Room—haunting and mysterious tales that move at the breathless pace of a thriller.

Customer Reviews:

"The question is the story itself, and whether or not it means something is not for the story to tell." .......2007-06-13

"He had always imagined that the key to good detective work was a close observation of details. The more accurate the scrutiny, the more successful the results. The implication was that human behavior could be understood, that beneath the infinite façade of gestures, tics, and silences, there was finally a coherence, an order, a source of motivation."

Paul Auster's "New York Trilogy," consisting of the novellas "City of Glass," "Ghosts," and "The Locked Room," is an intriguing blend of post-modern fiction, metaphysical philosophy, and detective novels. Through his reliance on the themes and structure of pulp/noir mysteries, Auster delves deeply into questions regarding identity, purpose, obsession, what is real, and examines the often tenuous grip that most people have on their sanity. His exploration is quite compelling and makes for a fascinating read, but it is unfortunate that the quality of the novellas is slightly uneven. The first, "City of Glass," is far too impenetrable and abstruse to be much more than frustrating. While it is clear that its protagonist, Quinn, is desperate to shed his identity in order to escape from the painful loss that has left him paralyzed, it is unclear why he becomes so obsessed with the case that he takes on after doing so. "Ghosts" is a marked improvement, but it is only in the final novella, "The Locked Room," that this trilogy really comes to life. "The Locked Room" is eloquent where its predecessors are vague, pointed when the others are intentionally blurry, and poignant rather than murky. Auster is certainly a great writer, and I will be interested to read more of his works, but "The New York Trilogy" requires a willingness to stick with it in order to get to its heart. But I recommend hanging in there, because that final novella is a true gem, and makes the ride worth your while.

Here's the grade breakdown: "City of Glass": C+, "Ghosts": B, "The Locked Room": A
Average grade: B

Was not impressed.......2007-05-20

I read this book because I loved Paul Aster's Brooklyn Follies. This compilation of 3 short stories may have well been written by a completely different author. They are short detective stories that are slightly intertwined. I did not enjoy this book and do not recommend it.

Two extraordinary short novels and an exercise by a supreme storyteller .......2007-02-08

I do not see this work the way Auster constructed it. To me it is not a 'trilogy' even though there are overlapping themes, and incidents. I see it as a collection of separate pieces. The first and the third are first-rate works of fiction . They are novels which are searches for self. They are -Multiple- identity -mysteries which illustrate Auster's way of seeing life and the world, as unending chance and surprise.
Perhaps the best summary of the Auster credo comes somewhere in the middle of 'The Locked Room' The narrator- best friend of Fanshawe meditates as follows.
" We all want to be told stories and we listen to them in the same way we did when we were young. We imagine the real story inside the words, and to do this we substitute ourselves for the person in the story, pretending that we can understand him because we understand ourselves. This is a deception.We exist for ourselves, perhaps, and at times we even have a glimmer of who we are, but in the end we can never be sure, and as our lives go on, we become more and more opaque to ourselves, more and more aware of our own incoherence. No one can cross the boundary into another-for the simple reason that no one can gain access to himself."
Auster is a supreme storyteller. In these works there are stories within stories of incredible power and beauty. In the first book there is a small story of a mother in the Shoah carrying a baby for whom she at last has the satisfaction of attaining and giving milk. The baby has been dead for days. In the concluding work of the Trilogy Auster tells the story of Lorenzo da Ponte whose life he describes as five or six distinct lives, illustrating a principle of Auster's fiction i.e. we can never know for certain where the story of the life is going to next.
I may not agree with Auster's philosophy of life but find him one of the supreme storytellers writing today . I pick up his work and I want to read and read and read.

exceptional.......2006-11-02

"The New York Trilogy", a volume containing three separate novellas: "The City of Glass", "Ghosts" and " The Locked Room", is an intriguing example of the author's game with the readers and, perhaps, with himself. The motif common for all three stories in the mystery, the solution of which is pursued by the main character, and the place of action, New York City (I do not agree with one of the reviewers who said New York could be here any other urban environment as well; certainly it could not be any European city, NYC gives these stories the distinct character and for anyone who has walked the streets through which the characters wander, it is a setting unmistakable for any other; The City's atmosphere hangs over the characters like a cloud).

"The City of Glass" features Quinn, a solitary man, living quietly after the death of his wife and son, and writing detective stories under a pseudonym. One night, Quinn receives a mysterious phone call from a man demanding the services of a private detective, Paul Auster... Although it is clearly a wrong number, Quinn decides to pretend to be Auster and take the challenge, changing his life forever.

A complete change of life circumstances is also a fate of the protagonist of a second (and the shortest) novella "Ghosts". Blue, who is a professional private detective, receives a task from the disguised client, White, to watch Black. The trouble is, Black never does anything interesting except reading or writing, and bored Blue tries to find out, where the real secret of this investigation lies.

In the last novella "The Locked Room", the main character is involved in the publication of the works of his missing childhood friend, Fanshawe. The books are a great success, he marries Fanshawe's wife and he assumes Fanshawe's identity, happily at the beginning...

These novellas are not, as has been pointed out by many reviewers before me, typical mysteries, where clues lead to conclusions and the reader may amuse himself with finding a correct answer. They are, on one hand, explorations of the soul, of the unknown in us, and, on the other hand, and taken together, a postmodern riddle, with literary jokes, cultural clues. They can be read on various levels, which is what really makes them interesting. For somebody, who expects a mystery story from the beginning to the end this book would be a disappointment, However, it is rewarding for the reader interested in reading itself (sounds absurd, I know, but this may be the truth - books play an enormous role in all the novellas). The introduction of Auster, as a detective, but really a writer in the first story, as opposed to Quinn, the writer, who has to become the detective, is only one of the twists here. The exercise with giving the characters the name of the colors (after all, what, if not "real" names make the reader think of the book characters as real? And are the color names unreal? Such names are common enough...) - is another.

By the way, has anyone been lured into drawing Quinn's walk on the street grid of Manhattan?

Good? Yes. Engaging? that's a different question..........2006-08-19

"The New York Trilogy", by celebrated author Paul Auster, is made up of 3, somewhat interlinked, long stories which were originately published separately at various times around 1985-86.
There is no doubt that Paul Auster is a terrific writer so I won't even get into that aspect of the book.
Let's get down to what's really important by trying to pinpoint the subject matter, i.e., what "the new york trilogy" is really about: in a sense, it's a mystery, in the true sense of the word, because even in the end many questions (most, I dare say) are left unanswered, many stones unturned and many cues are simply left hanging in the air.
The NYT has been described as metaphysical detective fiction and the description might in fact prove apt: each of the 3 stories follows the investigations of one man which always turn into an obsession, making the man completely lose touch with the reality. The NYT is thus much about mental processes, we see each of the 3 main chracters gradually become so absorbed by their quest that they lose all sense of proportion and stop thinking like the rest of us.
It's also a novel about writing because writing, depicted as the greatest obsession of all, always plays a role in the stories.
There is also a definite surreal element in most stories and, quite often, they reminded me of Dino Buzzati's short stories.
The author is obviously very pleased with himself, playing with his own name (much like B.E. Ellis does in his recent "Lunar Park") and toying with the other character's names (which pop up in different stories, alluding to the possibility of a strong link between them all).
Did I like the book? As much as it's clever and well-written, it leaves you with a sense of un-completeness, too much stuff remains only vaguely hinted at (I was never one to fall for open-endings. Plus, everything is open here, much more than necessary) and in the ends, the whole thing sound more like an elaborate intellectual game that engaging fiction. Thus, I give the novel 3 stars although this is in no way diminishes my appreciation of the author's talent.

Vampire Hunter D Volume 4: Tale Of The Dead Town (Vampire Hunter D)

Average customer rating:

Moody and thoughtful
Vampires rule the night...
Yet Again Wonderful Book
Would make a great movie
progress is being made

Vampire Hunter D Volume 4: Tale Of The Dead Town (Vampire Hunter D)
Hideyuki Kikuchi , and Yoshitaka Amano
Manufacturer: Dark Horse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Horror | Graphic Novels | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books

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All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
ASIN: 1595820930

Book Description

Eons in the future in a toxic, terror-stricken world, The City is a veritable paradise. A tiny hamlet of a few hundred sheltered citizens, it floats serenely just a few feet above the ground on a seemingly random course, safe from the predation of marauding monsters. But paradise is shattered when a vampire invasion threatens the peaceful haven. While the Vampire Hunter known only as “D” struggles to exterminate the lethal scourge, the gorgeous Raleigh Knight and the brash John M. Brassalli Pluto VIII seize control of The City, launching it on a new and deadly course. D’s travails are just beginning.

The heart-stopping thrills and nightmarish plot twists that fans of series have come to expect are on full display in Vampire Hunter D, Volume 4. Six stunning illustrations by the renowned Yoshitaka Amano underscore Hideyuki Kikuchi’s hellish vision of the future.

Customer Reviews:

Moody and thoughtful.......2007-09-22

Raiser of Gales is an interesting, and I think introspective and thoughtful adventure. It more firmly establishes the what and why of D's world. Also, the wording in this novel is well written, far less "All your base-" than ended up getting through in the first translation.

My favorite is that an enemy uses a type of trap that was later incorporated into the second D movie, but I've risked spoiling it enough here.

Vampires rule the night..........2007-08-21

...but when they're victims start moving about and killing people during the day time hours that can be a problem. The people of the village of Tepes are starting to become paranoid, seeing evil in everybody and everything. And they weren't too pure to begin with. Now they have the tall, dark, and handsome Vampire Hunter D in their town. And he is not too sure it is a vampire that is the problem.
Can D solve the mystery before too many people die at the hands of the new type of vampire? Can he solve the mystery before too many people die at the hands of their own protectors?
Great story, great illustrations, great second book to the ongoing Japanese horror series. I will be collecting as many as I can. Get it used or new!

Yet Again Wonderful Book.......2007-07-16

I liked this book as much as I love the first one. This time D finds himself a world he just can't get out of. It keep repeating itself over and over again. The girl in this book as quit a charcter and did not annoyed me as much as Doris Lang. She keeps following D where ever he goes. And he always tell her to "Go Home" Which always made me laugh. The girl he meets is very interested in Vampires and D in the novel finds her strange. WOW that something coming from D. The book was fantasic as always. But it's little sad at the end though.

Would make a great movie.......2007-01-24

This book would definitely make a great anime movie. The story is action-packed and full of unexpected twists and turns. However for me it was not as exciting as the second and third novel, may be because of the fact that it was all action and no feelings. I personally like to see a softer side of D. As much as I love reading all Kikuchi's novels I still don't understand why D enjoys hunting Nobles and protecting humans despite of the fact that humans are always trying to kill him one way or the other. Maybe we'll find out by the end of 17th novel...

progress is being made.......2007-01-14

Many have already commented on the translation, so I will just take a moment to note that it has certainly progressed a bit beyond that of the previous novel. Action sequences in particular seem to have taken on a smoother pace, though the rather spartan and abrupt nature of the original text still causes the occasional coltish wobble.

As with all VHD novels there is a haunting quality to the prose that shines moon bright: D is still more or less at war with his soul, and our plucky coquette-du-livre is enjoyable. The odd coyness about Left-hand (the wise cracking sidekick/parasite) remains; though, since the novels are not particularly linear, this may be less noticeable to those who do not read the books in order or back to back.

Ghost Town at Sundown (Magic Tree House)

Average customer rating:

My favorite part
MY BOY LOVES READING IT
Cool!
Recommended by this reading specialist
I love this book

Ghost Town at Sundown (Magic Tree House)
Mary Pope Osborne
Manufacturer: Random House Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Action & Adventure | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

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Lions At Lunchtime (Magic Tree House 11, paper)
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Vacation Under The Volcano (Magic Tree House 13, paper)

ASIN: 0679883398
Release Date: 1997-09-16

Book Description

The saga and success of The Magic Tree House continues! The tenth adventure, Ghost Town at Sundown, is filled with the excitement, action, and fun facts always found in Magic Tree House books.
Morgan le Fay has promised to make Jack and Annie masters of the tree house if they can solve four riddles. In Ghost Town at Sundown, the Magic Tree House whisks Jack and Annie back to a ghost town in the Wild West of the 1880s. There, they meet a mustang herder named Slim as they search for the answer to the second riddle.

Customer Reviews:

My favorite part.......2007-03-23

My favorite part was when Jack and Annie figured out that the book they had was written by Slim Cooley.

This was a very great book, because it was a good story.

MY BOY LOVES READING IT.......2007-01-07

My 1st grader hates to put it down, he would rather read Magic Tree House books, than play video games. He even reads them to his class and explains the story for show and tell. In his kindergarten class the teacher would also let him read the Magic Tree House books out loud, not to give her a break, but to promote reading out loud. Great books!

Cool!.......2005-12-09

The book where Jack and Annie are warped in Wild West and sees a ghost!

Recommended by this reading specialist.......2005-02-17

I'm a children's reading specialist and author (Teaching Kids To Read for Dummies). I use these books with kids who are really starting to take off with their reading and consistently get great feedback. Kids love the Magic Tree House series so if you're looking for great gifts or a bunch of books to keep your reader hooked, buy the lot.

I love this book.......2004-03-22

Annie & Jack find out that there's a rattlesnake in a ghost town and they have to hide from some people. And they find a piano that's playing all by itself. And we don't know what ...was playing it. It's a surprise for you, because you might find out. And I might find out too, because I have it at home. I have a lot of Magic Tree House books at my house. ...

Average customer rating:

The ghost town bible
Wonderfull Book!!
The best Ghost Town book I have ever read!!
It's entertaining, informative and well researched.

Ghost Towns of the West
Lambert Florin
Manufacturer: BBS Publishing Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Supernatural | Occult | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

North America | Travel | Subjects | Books

Great Ghost Towns of the West
Fodor's The Old West, 1st Edition: Relive America's Frontier Days---Explore Ghost Towns, Pioneer Trails, Spanish Missions, and More (Travel Historic America)
Guide To Colorado Ghost Towns: And Mining Camps
Ghost Towns of the American West
Ghost Towns and Historical Haunts in Arizona (Historical and Old West)

ASIN: 0883940132

Customer Reviews:

The ghost town bible.......2000-11-08

I have been to many of the locations given in this book. It is almost a shame that some of them are no longer in the same shape as when this book was originally published. I think that the research used by the author to be very accurate and makes for very entertaining reading. When I wish I was out exploring but can't go I pull this book off the shelf and it is as if I am there. The pictures leave a little to be desired but that adds to the mystery of the ghost town being described. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants a thorough guide to western ghost towns. Well worth the cost of the book.

Wonderfull Book!!.......1999-05-18

A great book on the subject! The only reason I did not give it five stars is the lack of maps and the antiquity of the maps shown. Otherwise this book is a great source of information!

The best Ghost Town book I have ever read!!.......1998-01-28

This book has the best information of any ghost town book that I have read. I would recommend it highly to anyone interested in learning about the mining camps and people of the old west.

It's entertaining, informative and well researched........1996-12-21

This book is the most extensive ghost town book I have ever seen or read. I believe the content is well detailed and documented. Though true of many ghost town books, I wonder if Florin's photos illustrate current conditions. Florin does not appear to leave any stone unturned in order to find historical details to compose each town's history in an interesting and many times comicial combination of text and pictures. To the book's detriment, the pictures are horrendous. Many are too contrasty, poorly exposed, and lack detail. I would have rated this book 10 if the photographs complemented the extensive research and text. If you are interested in ghost towns, it would appear that this publication could be a benchmark by which others are judged (exclusive of Florin's apparent lack of photographic expertise)

Mining Camps and Ghost Towns; A History of Mining in Arizona and California Along the Lower Colorado (Great West and Indian Series, V. 42)

Average customer rating:

Mining Camps and Ghost Towns; A History of Mining in Arizona and California Along the Lower Colorado (Great West and Indian Series, V. 42)
Frank Love
Manufacturer: Westernlore Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

North America | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

The Ghosts of Berlin: Confronting German History in the Urban Landscape

Average customer rating:

Interested in Berlin, architecture/urban design, or German history??
Makes Me Want To Visit Berlin!
I highly recommend it!
Forget the guide books! Take this instead!
A city comes to terms with its past

The Ghosts of Berlin: Confronting German History in the Urban Landscape
Brian Ladd
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Urban Planning & Development | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0226467627

Book Description

In this compelling work, Brian Ladd examines the ongoing conflicts radiating from the remarkable fusion of architecture, history, and national identity in Berlin. Ladd surveys the urban landscape, excavating its ruins, contemplating its buildings and memorials, and carefully deconstructing the public debates and political controversies emerging from its past.

"Written in a clear and elegant style, The Ghosts of Berlin is not just another colorless architectural history of the German capital. . . . Mr. Ladd's book is a superb guide to this process of urban self-definition, both past and present."—Katharina Thote, Wall Street Journal

"If a book can have the power to change a public debate, then The Ghosts of Berlin is such a book. Among the many new books about Berlin that I have read, Brian Ladd's is certainly the most impressive. . . . Ladd's approach also owes its success to the fact that he is a good storyteller. His history of Berlin's architectural successes and failures reads entertainingly like a detective novel."—Peter Schneider, New Republic

"[Ladd's] well-written and well-illustrated book amounts to a brief history of the city as well as a guide to its landscape."—Anthony Grafton, New York Review of Books

Customer Reviews:

Interested in Berlin, architecture/urban design, or German history??.......2005-08-18

'The Ghosts of Berlin' was a great overview of the urban history of Berlin. The main argument of the author is that German history is apparent in the urban landscape of Berlin. The book was easy to understand and had a lot of relevant photos and maps to show Berlin throughout the ages. A turnoff about this book for me was that Ladd was repetitive on some points and really drove home his opinions on the many roles the Berlin Wall served (a whole chapter doesnt seem like much on such an important subject, but most of the chapter seemed to repeat and restate the same information). However, in general the book provided a great start for researching the complex history of architecture, city planning, and urban spaces in Berlin. I chose to read this book as research for an architecture project I am designing in Berlin & it proved to be a very good decision. It is especially helpful if you have been to the city and have seen first hand some of the spaces he describes. I would recommend it to anyone with interest in Berlin, architecture, history, or urban design.

Makes Me Want To Visit Berlin! .......2005-03-06

I read The Ghosts of Berlin for a college course. When Americans say "this place has such a rich history," it brings a chuckle from me and is reinforced by books such as this.

The book focuses on the last 125 years or so of Berlin's extremely diverse and chaotic past. Ladd writes in a very detailed, yet concise manner. Berlin has had virtually every type of government known to man rule over it and an entire chapter is devoted to the most vital eras in the city's history; namely, the Imperial City from the late 19th century until the end of WWI, the Weimar republic in the '20s, Nazi Germany from 1933-1945, the divided city during the Cold War (with an entire separate chapter dedicated to the the Berlin Wall), and the capital of a reunified Germany. The focus is as much on the changing architectural styles as well as the social and political outlooks of the day. There is much symbolism in the buildings Ladd writes about and we get a great interpretation of what they mean. Ladd illustrates his work with some nice black and white photos, so we do not have to rely on his descriptions alone.

While this book isn't quite a tour book reagarding which restaurants to visit or tourist attractions to avoid, it is a great book to learn about one of the most prominent European cities. So why only four stars instead of five? Well, I did have a deadline to meet and had to rush through this book in about 2 days. Maybe I didn't appreciate as much as I should have.

I highly recommend it!.......2003-06-13

This book was required reading for my university geography module "Geographies of the European City". I thought it would be long, dull and confusing. I was very wrong! It is one of the first academic books that i just couldn't put down!

Intresing, mind opening and detailed, yet written in a simple and accessible manner. I learnt not only a lot about the history of Germany and Europe and the Second World War but also about how we view cities, how they are formed and their role in the world today.

Forget the guide books! Take this instead!.......2003-01-16

This book was on the short list of texts my German language/culture study abroad course required. As far as the architectural culture went, this book was all you needed to taste the essence of the capital. It was better than any guide book out there, especially relating the tulmultuous past with what you were seeing with your own eyes as an urban landscape.

Berlin is complex, historically and culturally - from its imperialist days to Hitler's capital to the scarred divided city just now seaming together. Germany is the embodiment of ambiguity - which is made abundantly evident by its very structures throughout the wide city. Brian Ladd's photography is unobtrusive and tasteful, illustrating his thoroughly researched work. He compares an old photograph to one taken recently by him to study, at one point, how unchanged some parts of the city have been in the midst of constant upheaval in the last century.

It is remarkable how entertaining the book is, as well as its vitality in its examination of Berlin. It was, quite simply, such a pleasure to read. The Ghosts of Berlin takes in the large picture, of a country uniting, political ideologies - past and present, and the significance of massive structures - standing and ruined. It also encompasses details in exquisite ordinariness, like street corners, department stores, and public transportation. All this is told in an appealing style that is accessible (so you don't need any background in Germany or Berlin), but not overly casual (Ladd is informed and comprehensive).

A city comes to terms with its past.......1999-06-24

This is a brilliant book that looks at a remarkable city after the fall of the Berlin Wall and asks the question: How to come to terms with the monuments of the past? The Brandenburg Gate? Hitler's Bunker, etc. Should they be torn down, the stories they embody erased? Or should they stand as a legacy of German culture, however tainted it may be. A remarkable book about a remarkable city. Do read it.

Average customer rating:

Weak horror novel
SOMETIMES THE OLD WAYS ARE FOR THE BEST...
Little Lite
Not his best
My first Bentley Little book--and probably my last.

The Town
Bentley Little
Manufacturer: Signet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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Similar Items:

The House
The Walking
The Store
Revelation
The Ignored

ASIN: 0451200152

Book Description

You think your hometown is scary?

Wait until you read the new shocker from the man Stephen King calls "a Master.

Bentley Little recently made the national news when Stephen King revealed he was reading Little's latest novel. But critics and fans have known for years that Little is one of the hottest horror writers in the business. And now, with his newest novel, The Town, Little brings the horror home to a small Arizona town.

Because home is where the heart is...ripped out.

Bentley Little is:

"A master of suspense."--Stephen King

"Inventive and chilling."--San Francisco Chronicle

"Nightmarishly brilliant."--Publishers Weekly

"A must for those who like horror with a bite."--Richard Laymon

"If there's a better horror novelist than Little...I don't know who it is."--Los Angeles Times

Little is a winner of the Bram Stoker Award

Customer Reviews:

Weak horror novel.......2007-04-23

This is the second novel I have read by Little. I read University first and thought it to be a good read, a little riduculous at times. But the horror was constant and good. The Town, however, was WEAK and boring. There were a few moments here and there of some good horror. Just when it got "good" it sank back down into a slump of boring reading. Waiting and waiting for another exciting moment. There was a very disturbing fantasy plot and ONE shocking moment, to me anyway, involving Sasha at the end. I just did not see it coming. The Town was just way too ridiculous, Jedushka Mevedushka? That was really the explanation for all of this??!! What a let down. Seemed a little too silly for me to buy, especially for an adult horror novel. There was also hardly any blood or gore. I am, however, not giving up on Little yet. I will give him another try with The Association.

SOMETIMES THE OLD WAYS ARE FOR THE BEST..........2006-10-10

This is a moderately entertaining horror story, though not one of the author's best. Here, California lottery winner Gregory Tomasov is now a man of means. He decides to move himself, his wife, their three children, and his mother, back to his home town of McGuane, Arizona. The Tomasovs are of Russian extraction and were brought up in the Molokan religion. As a group, Molokans are milk drinking pacifists, who live strictly by the tenets of the bible and recognize both Christian and Jewish holidays and celebrations. This makes them a much misunderstood group, and their beliefs have subjected them to persecution throughout the ages. Gregory's mother is an old school Molokan, although Gregory and his family have fully assimilated into the American culture.

When they move to McGuane, the Tomasovs are, unbeknownst to them, moving into a house where mass murders took place, as a man killed his entire family and himself in one night of senseless carnage. Meanwhile, Gregory's mother, Agafia, is very upset that her son did not invoke the old Molokan tradition of inviting Jedushka Di Muvedushka to come live with them in their new house in McGuane. He is what Molokans call the Owner of the House, an unseen little man with a beard who keeps those in the house safe from harm.

When they get to their new house, it seems that the town is going through some changes. Evil seems to be lurking everywhere and odd things seem to be happening....in the dark. Despite being reunited with his best friend from childhood, Paul Mathews, owner of the local coffee house, it seems that maybe moving back to McGuane wasn't such a good idea for Gregory and his family. Their house has some of the family members spooked, and the old ritual bath house on their property has a miasma of evil hanging over it. As more and more bad things happen in the town and to the townsfolk, the talk is that perhaps the newcomers are responsible. Moreover, to the locals all the Molokans in the town seem to be suspect, as well.

Meanwhile, Agafia has joined up with other members of the local Molokan church, as she knows that evil is afoot in the house in which she, as well as her son and his family, are living. She also knows it is afoot as well as in the ritual bathhouse. She feels that it is up to her to cleanse the house and bathhouse of the evil within. She believes is her fault bad things are happening for not having invited the Owner of the House to live with them, as Molokan tradition demands. Evil, however, will not go down for the count without a fight, a fight that is proving to be more than that for which even Agafia bargained.

With most of the author's works, there is a jarring sexual note that is interjected into the story. This book is no exception. Some of it is, as always, shocking. The only difference is that, in addition to being shocking, there is one incident that is absolutely side-splittingly funny and involves probably one of the most grounded characters in the book, Odd Morrison, the local handyman. You will know what I mean when you get to that part of the book. It is, in fact, the highlight of the story in my estimation. I do not know when I last laughed so hard. Odd is one of my favorite characters in the book, along with Agafia. All the others pale in comparison.

In any case, while this is not one of the author's best efforts, fans of the author and those who enjoy the horror fiction genre will derive a modicum of enjoyment from its pages.

Little Lite.......2006-03-09

I really like Bentley Little. He seems to be a writer you either get or don't. I get it. However, this is not only the worst book Little has written but it's up there as one of the worst books I have ever read. There is so much "nothing" going on here I am stunned. It takes well over 300 pages (the book clocks in at 375) for any action and it's such a letdown. It seemed Little wanted to school the reader on Russian customs more than anything else. One of the main characters, an over-religious grandmother, stands in my memory as possibly the most annoying character I have ever endured. If you are new to Little's work please begin with the Store, the Ignored or the House...great stuff there. But this was seriously awful.

Not his best.......2004-11-03

If you are interested in reading Bentley Little, try The University.

The Town was slow and did not make sense. A large part of the story focuses on a certain culture and this culture is not explained well enough for the reader to understand.

The "horror" is bizarre to the point of silliness.

No matter what Little book you read - it is very "out there", but the story is usually interesting. This story did not make sense and twisted and turned so much that it was just hard to follow.

My first Bentley Little book--and probably my last........2004-07-15

I am a fan of horror, and usually gobble up anything I can get my hands on. I came across this book in a used bookstore, and having heard the name of Bentley Little before, I thought I should give it a chance.

This book was absolutely stupid. I don't want to give anything away by revealing the premise, but trust me--your patience will not be rewarded by the ending. It's a completely ludicrous and juvenile plot that makes no sense.

Bentley Little could not keep the momentum up in this book either. His pacing was way off. There were times when the suspense would start to build, and I would think to myself that this book may not be so bad after all--then Little starts plodding along again at the same boring pace. I would actually skip paragraphs at a time--and not miss anything relevant to this thin story.

I couldn't wait to finish this book so I could pick up a Richard Laymon novel.

Book Description

Victim Advocate or Victim Witness? Chloe Newcomb defines her job in the County Attorney's office as "helping victims of violent crimes through the criminal justice system in any way I can." Actually, there's much more to that than meets the eye. The description of "victim" stretches to include not only the muggee or even the murderee. In Chloe's past experience the people she is assigned to help in "whatever way that she can" includes those affected by a disaster, even an innocent bystander who has witnessed the event. And since she moved to the small desert town of Dudley, Arizona, she learned very well that disasters aren't limited to the cities.

Chloe's current assignment is to notify the family of a local judge, who has disappeared, and whose body is subsequently found at the ruins of a deserted hotel in a ghost town near Dudley. She finds the family to be a living illustration of the description "dysfunctional." The widow seems to have been on the verge of collapse before her husband disappeared, her live-in mother is an evil-tongued shrew, losing no opportunity to worsen the atmosphere. The couple's daughter, away at college, has cut off all communication with her family (something Chloe can hardly blame her for), and the pre-teen son is a bewildered, angry child. A victim advocate doesn't seem to be what this bereaved family needs. However, Chloe feels she can stretch the definition somewhat and see what she can do to solve the mystery of the judge's murder --not only who killed him and why, but why in such strange circumstances? She has her own reasons as well - her friend Nate, a young journalist has disappeared from Dudley after telling Chloe that he had uncovered some information about the judge that would "blow this town apart." Now she fears for his life. Meanwhile, she is beginning to feel that she needs a victim advocate herself, because not only Nate, but her lover Craig has vanished. The county police are investigating the judge's death; it's Chloe's job to be her own victim's advocate, seek out the late judge's estranged daughter, and more important, locate lover Craig and friend Nate, both of whom, she learns have secrets of their own.

Thornton has been lauded for the quality of her writing, the reality of the atmosphere in her tales of the Arizona desert, the subtlety and solidity of her characters and the excitement of the action. Ghost Towns takes all of these one step higher.

Customer Reviews:

Ghost Towns.......2002-05-16

This is the thrid in a series and not quite as well plotted as the two previous books. I like the victims advocates program used in this book and the heroine is interesting, but this book left a lot of unanswered questions to some of the sub plots and did not connect well with the two other books in this series

best Betsy Thornton yet.......2002-05-15

This book has gotten rave reviews, and deserves them. Shows maturing of artist. No more just a literature major.

engaging amateur sleuth tale.......2002-01-22

Cochise County, Arizona Victim Advocate Chloe Newcombe knows that in spite of the relatively small population and the isolation of the mountains she has plenty of clients assigned to her. Local Deputy Sheriff Hector Estrada turns to Chloe to inform Lee Thomas that someone killed her husband, State Supreme Court Judge Cal Thomas, in the nearby ghost town Windy City. Chloe is shocked to observe Lee as an antisocial shell of the once civic-minded individual she had been and her family totally ripped asunder.

As Chloe tries to help Lee, reporter Nate Pendergast, who was working on a story about Judge Thomas, has disappeared. Chloe's lover Craig Williams another person linked to Thomas also vanishes. Rationalizing what she is doing as part of her job to help victims, Chloe investigates the late Judge and his links to the missing people starting with the Thomas family. Chloe is unaware of the danger she places herself in by stretching her job beyond the limits.

Once the audience accepts Chloe's definition of her job to include "police" investigation, the story line is an engaging amateur sleuth tale. However, by going down that path, readers lose an opportunity to see what a victim advocate must fully deal with, as that role serves as a secondary plot to Chloe's inquiries. Elizabeth Thornton provides an entertaining mystery, but needs to place Chloe on the fringe of the case because her official work should serve as the lead theme of the plot. In other words, leave the crime busting to the pros, but make that a subplot. Amateur sleuth fans will delight in Chloe's antics, but feel a bit gypped.

Harriet Klausner

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