The Road Not Taken and Other Poems (Dover Thrift Editions)
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Clean cold lines of New England poems
  • rooted in New England
  • No 'Stopping By the Woods on a Snowy Evening'
  • The Essence of a Moment ý Poetry by Frost
  • Five stars for the price
The Road Not Taken and Other Poems (Dover Thrift Editions)
Robert Frost
Manufacturer: Dover Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0486275507

Book Description

Originally published in 1916 under the title Mountain Interval, this volume contains many of Frost's finest and most moving poems. In addition to the title poem: "An Old Man's Winter Night," "In the Home Stretch," "Meeting and Passing," "Putting in the Seed," "A Time to Talk," many more. All complete and unabridged.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Clean cold lines of New England poems .......2005-04-29

These early poems of Frost ( 1916) already display his characteristically clear and cold lines, his fine delineations of Nature, his moral meanings. "Two roads diverged in a wood- and I / I took the one less traveled by/ and that has made all the difference.
Frost was a tremendously ambitious and hardworking poet, who some biographers have accused of sacrificing life and family to art. His poetry has a stark beauty about it, the beauty of the birches he devotes a major poem to.
This collection lacks many of his major poems , but nonetheless gives the feeling and flavor truly of a major American poet.

4 out of 5 stars rooted in New England.......2004-05-11

These poems seem firmly rooted in New England and seem to be timeless, though decidedly pre-modern feel to them (this was originally published in 1916). Some of these poems may seem familiar ... "The road not taken" is popular at high school graduations. There are poems of nature such as The Oven Bird ("There is a singer everyone has heard,/ Load, a mid-summer and mid-wood bird,") or "Birches ("and they seem not to break; though once they are bowed/ for low for long, they never right themselves") but with wider significance. There are also poems of rural isolation such as "The Hill Wife" and "Snow". His poetry plays by literary and poetic rules, and may not be simple to read, but he does not oversimplify life.

3 out of 5 stars No 'Stopping By the Woods on a Snowy Evening'.......2002-12-17

I was looking forward to reading 'Stopping By the Woods on a Snowy Evening', but came away disappointed. Of course, 'The Road Not Taken' is worth the price of admission regardless. It is chock-full - as chock-full as 53 pages can possibly be - of other Frost goodies.

Overall, a good book for the price and a great addition to your order, but for serious Frost devotees I would suggest a more comprehensive collection.

5 out of 5 stars The Essence of a Moment ý Poetry by Frost.......2002-08-10

Frost, like no other poet, captures a moment that we all have experienced at one time in life. He paints a picture with such vivid strokes of literary imagery that the mind brings the reader back to a moment in time, almost feeling the sensations of past experiences.

For example, I recently made a decision where I was torn between family and career interests. To ease the anxiety of a lost professional opportunity, I reasoned that the chance would present itself again someday, maybe. Thinking of Frost I realized that he captured that very self-rationalization in the Road Not Taken. "Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back."

As others have pointed out already, the largest drawback of the book is lack of thickness. Even though one of my all-time favorites, "Stopping By the Woods on a Snowy Evening," is not present, others like "An Old Man's Winter Night" make up for it. If you need a small book to stick in a backpack while hiking for moments of inspiration while on the trail, you could do worse than to carry along a little bit of Frost.

5 out of 5 stars Five stars for the price.......2001-10-05

This collection of Robert Frost poems is a clear 5 star for the low price. Dover consistently provides great literature at an extremely low price. Despite the great bargain, you may want to spend more and purchase a book of Frost's complete poerty. Although this book has a nice selection, some of his greatest poems are missing from this collection, notably "Mending Wall" and "Fire and Ice." Still, if you just want a few selected poems to carry you back to another era into a New England woods on a snowy evening you can't go wrong here.
Roads Taken: Women in Student Affairs at Mid-Career
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Signs of progress
  • Excellent Advice
Roads Taken: Women in Student Affairs at Mid-Career

Manufacturer: Stylus Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1579220770

Book Description

The work of student affairs professionals is demanding and unpredictable. This book addresses the particular challenges that it presents to women in mid-career.

While much has been written about new graduate students, new professionals and senior administrators in student affairs, scant attention has been paid to the issues of mid-career, and particularly as they impact women.

Here are the stories of over twenty women, from widely different backgrounds, reflecting on their lives at mid-career. They describe the choices they made and share the lessons they have learned, particularly the ever-present concerns about reconciling the demands of work and responsibilities to family and partners .

The volume focuses on issues that have particular and significant meaning for women. The individual narratives are grouped into five sections, each beginning with a scholarly introduction to its topics. The sections deal with education and self development, such as the life implications of embarking on a doctorate; dual career couples and such decisions as relocation; choices about having children and responsibilities for the care of aging parents; arriving at mid-career; and alternatives to traditional, linear career progression in student affairs administration.

This volume is a particular gift to women currently in mid-career positions in student affairs, women embarking on their personal and professional journey in student affairs, the partners of such women, their colleagues, and the individuals who supervise them.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Signs of progress.......2004-06-23

Perhaps it is a measure of good progress that such a book as this could be written today. The authors present studies of over twenty women, who have made careers for themselves in the occupation of student affairs. Moreover, the women have been in this field long enough, to be now considered in the middle of their careers.

The women's experiences are varied. And several had to make sacrifices or difficult choices involving career and family. But the assemblage of this number of women is not revolutionary now. The presence of women in student affairs is not considered unusual. Plus they did not have to endure outright explicit discrimination based on their gender or race. (Which is not to say that no discrimination was experienced.) So implicitly, you could regard this book as positive, without making light of the issues raised by the editors.

5 out of 5 stars Excellent Advice.......2004-04-22

As a mid-career woman myself, I found this book an excellent source of advice and real-world narratives about what life is like in student affairs. I went through many of the same things the women who wrote for this book did, in terms of deciding on graduate school, coping with a dual-career family, making decisions about children, and worrying about what was next for me professionally.

I recommend the book very highly for anyone who is struggling to find her (or his) way in the professional world of higher education administration and trying to balance work and family while staying moderately sane.

I've been talking about the book with colleagues and friends, and they agree that it's high time someone brought these issues into the open for all of us to wrestle with. I commend the authors and editors for this great resource.
The Road Not Taken: An Introduction to Robert Frost
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Robert Frost has perfect poetry
  • The Road Not Taken�Untermeyer's Invitation
  • Buy it!
  • I read it cover to cover.
The Road Not Taken: An Introduction to Robert Frost
Robert Frost
Manufacturer: Henry Holt and Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0030271509

Book Description

The best-loved poems from one of American literature's most towering figuresNo poet is more emblematically American than Robert Frost. From "The Road Not Taken" to "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening," he refined and even defined our sense of what poetry is and what it can do. T. S. Eliot judged him "the most eminent, the most distinguished Anglo-American poet now living," and he is the only writer in history to have been awarded four Pulitzer Prizes.Henry Holt is proud to announce the republication of four editions of Frost's most beloved work for a new generation of poets and readers.In this brilliant selection of Frost's classic poems, students and scholars alike will encounter a body of work central to American culture.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Robert Frost has perfect poetry.......2003-11-18

i am doing a report on Robert Frost in my English 3 class. Robert Frost is the greastest. No poem is alike. My two favorite books of his were Stopping by woods on a snowy evening and a road not taken. he has a way with words that i have never seen. I give him him and is writings 5 stars!!!!

5 out of 5 stars The Road Not Taken�Untermeyer's Invitation.......2001-09-01

It could be said that art, including poetry, should never be taught, only presented. A sure death knell to reader endeavor is having an artist's work forced on reluctant subjects at very young ages. Frost's universal appeal and critical success made him a favorite of the pedantic, institutional teaching of the 50's and 60's. His late-life ties to Kennedyýs Camelot made the situation worse, as increased recognition diverted plaudits askew from the real measure of his work. The negative experience of my own such introduction forced in me a habit of deliberately overlooking celebrated well-knowns for the shadowy lesser-knowns. This practice unearthed for me a few rare delights in reading, music and general discovery. Then, in my late twenties I picked up a copy of the Frost/Untermeyer, The Road Not Taken, read a couple of poems along with some of the commentary and thought well enough of it to actually buy it. I summarily read it cover to cover (something I'd rarely done with books of poetry). There were the same poems again--the ones I'd been lead to read as a youngster...but not quite. Untermeyer teaches, not out of pedantic duty, but as a true friend and scholar of Robert Frost, the man. There may be less skewed critical evaluations of Frost's poetry; but these are usually set apart from the work, and most often geared to literary scholars. In essence, Untermeyer presents rather than evaluates Robert Frost, and does it in the same manner Frost wrote--simple, deliberate, and non-intrusive.
This (an earlier edition of the one offered here) is one of my most treasured books--not so much for the poems within, but for what Louis Untermeyer offers--an access to opportunity missed. Frost ýdoubted if [he] should ever come back,ý to where the roads diverged; yet, Untermeyer offers us a second chance, and this time (for all who think they know enough of Robert Frost), it may very well make ýall the difference.ý

5 out of 5 stars Buy it!.......2000-12-26

Excellent collection of Frost Poetry. Plus, the analyses by the author are a nice addition.

4 out of 5 stars I read it cover to cover........1998-09-06

Some of Robert Frost's best poetry, woven together with insight and thoughtful comments.
The Road Not Taken: A History of Radical Social Work in the United States
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • A triumph!
The Road Not Taken: A History of Radical Social Work in the United States
Michael Reisch , and Janice Andrews
Manufacturer: Brunner-Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0415933994

Book Description

The Road Not Taken takes a new perspective on the course of social welfare policy in the twentieth century. This examination looks at the evolution of social work in the United States as a dynamic process not just driven by mainstream organizations and politics, but strongly influenced by the ideas and experiences of radical individuals and marginalized groups as well. Michael Reisch and Janice Andrews have interviewed contemporary social workers, seasoned and novice, radical and mainstream, and combed archives and scholarly writings to explain why the profession has faced intense, sometimes self-imposed repression, and why anti-social welfare main. The Road Not Taken is an appeal to examine the past, the battles deferred, and to consider the ways that social work might respond to current and future political and cultural threats to social work values.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A triumph!.......2001-10-17

Going beyond mere history this presentation takes the reader into the heart of radical thinking in contemporary social work. This remarkable work, drawn from original sources--archives and interviews--reveals how much of the past is in the present. Each chapter is a major contribution in itself. Radicals will treasure this book forever; for others it is a must read. Learning about the purges of the McCarthy era is highly relevant in the warfare state of the present day. The Road Not Taken is well written, well organized and well conceived. I could hardly put this book down and will be citing it in my future research on the welfare state.
The Galilean Jewishness of Jesus: Retrieving the Jewish Origins of Christianity (Conversation on the Road Not Taken, Vol. 1)
Average customer rating: 1 out of 5 stars
  • Prattling On About What We Don't Know
The Galilean Jewishness of Jesus: Retrieving the Jewish Origins of Christianity (Conversation on the Road Not Taken, Vol. 1)
Bernard J. Lee
Manufacturer: Paulist Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0809130211

Book Description

In The Galilean Jewishness of Jesus, the first of a three-volume series, author Bernard J. Lee, S.M., reconstructs the historical, cultural and religious fabric of Galilee in the time of Jesus and examines four kinds of Jews who would have been familiar to the religious landscape of Jesus' Galilee: teacher, Pharisee, wandering charismatic, eschatological prophet. Author Lee shows how Christians today can interpret the meaning of Jesus in a way that is both adequate to their religious experience and yet does not violate Jesus' Jewishness.

Customer Reviews:

1 out of 5 stars Prattling On About What We Don't Know.......2000-03-29

Bernard Lee has written a book on a much needed subject. Certainly, he is correct in wanting to explore the Jewishness of Jesus and the implications for the Church today. But, he should have done this. Instead the book is primarily about the process of doing this without ever seriously exploring the subject it talks about exploring.

A full third of the book describes the structure of the rest of the book which he then ignores in the rest of the book. I got the distinct impression while reading that Mr. Lee was wanting to explore the subject but never achieved enough of a grasp of the subject to know what he was exploring.

Don't waste your money or time.
The Road Not Taken (Alias)
Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • If you like Alias, it's worth reading
  • One of my favorites
The Road Not Taken (Alias)
Greg Cox
Manufacturer: Simon Spotlight Entertainment
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 1416902481

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After one botched assassination attempt leads to the discovery of another high profile murder-for-hire in the works, Agent Sydney Bristow goes undercover to untangle a twisted plot of betrayal, terror, and revenge. Thrown into the midst of a dysfunctional yet extremely powerful family, Sydney must determine who is trustworthy and who is out for blood. Luckily, she has some experience in this field.

With time running out and political alliances hanging in the balance, the APO operatives work together to infiltrate the family and determine the target of an impending deadly attack. Unfortunately, the intended victim could be anyone -- a world leader, an adulterous wife, a group of innocent civilians, even a fellow agent -- and the clock is ticking.

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars If you like Alias, it's worth reading.......2007-06-06

I give this book 3 stars because it's really only worth reading if you're an Alias fan. I got it for a dollar at a thrift store, and that was a good deal.

It's a very short and easy read, and while there are some twists, it's nothing that you'll have to try to wrap your head around - especially if you've watched Alias at all. I'm sure there were some strict editing guidelines the author had to follow to maintain continuity, but he often relies on what you already know about the characters to fill in where a lot of what an original fiction book would have to explain. The characterization of Weiss is well done, but Sydney feels a little thin, and Vaughn is overdone.

I'd give the book 4 stars for people who like Alias, but I'm not one to give a book a good review for a specific audience (as Roger Ebert tends to do with his movie reviews).

4 out of 5 stars One of my favorites.......2006-01-19

I have read almost all of the Alias prequel and APO novelizations and I would have to say that this one is definately in the top 3 for favorites. It is interesting and edgy and keeps you guessing until the end.
How Cities Work : Suburbs, Sprawl, and the Roads Not Taken
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • How Cities Work
  • A Well-Rounded Perspective
  • Maybe I'm confused, but...
  • How Cities Work
  • Wishing for more....
How Cities Work : Suburbs, Sprawl, and the Roads Not Taken
Alex Marshall
Manufacturer: University of Texas Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0292752407

Book Description

"This is an outstanding book that I hope and expect will make a major contribution to the current debate on cities and suburbs."

—Robert Fishman, author of American Planning Tradition: Culture and Policy and Bourgeois Utopias: The Rise and Fall of Suburbia

Do cities work anymore? How did they get to be such sprawling conglomerations of lookalike subdivisions, megafreeways, and "big box" superstores surrounded by acres of parking lots? And why, most of all, don't they feel like real communities? These are the questions that Alex Marshall tackles in this hard-hitting, highly readable look at what makes cities work.

Marshall argues that urban life has broken down because of our basic ignorance of the real forces that shape cities-transportation systems, industry and business, and political decision making. He explores how these forces have built four very different urban environments-the decentralized sprawl of California's Silicon Valley, the crowded streets of New York City's Jackson Heights neighborhood, the controlled growth of Portland, Oregon, and the stage-set facades of Disney's planned community, Celebration, Florida.

To build better cities, Marshall asserts, we must understand and intelligently direct the forces that shape them. Without prescribing any one solution, he defines the key issues facing all concerned citizens who are trying to control urban sprawl and build real communities. His timely book will be important reading for a wide public and professional audience.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars How Cities Work.......2007-09-28

I bought this book because I wanted an introduction to urban studies without having to slog through a dry, academic textbook. What I got was not really an introduction to the subject, but rather a polemic against the current trends of urban planning, and the ever-growing dominance of suburban sprawl and the personal automobile. This is not to say that Marshall doesn't describe the basics of planning, he does, but this serves mainly as the backbone of his argument; that being that the car and the massive freeway systems that accompany them, have basically destroyed the city and the notion of community. We live in an aimless, rootless society, he argues, with no sense of place or meaning.

He starts by explaining that cities are founded on three basic components; transportation, politics, and economics. What type of city you will have depends on the type of transportation system you have, and the type of transportation you have depends on political decisions. And economics are the whole reason cities exist in the first place argues Marshall, "cities exist because they create wealth."

Marshall spends a good portion of the book criticizing "New Urbanism" which basically embraces suburban sprawl and artificial communities like Celebration, Florida. These communities, argue Marshall are trying to build new urban communities without the transportation systems that are needed to support them, and thus are bound to fail. Marshall supports things like growth boundaries to help revitalize inner cities instead of just continuing to spread outward, eating up more precious land and resources while leaving the center city areas to decay. He supports more government involvement in such matters and thus will make no friends out of the free trader types. Overall, I think Marshall makes a compelling case, although I think he tends to blame too many of societies problems on suburban sprawl. I am a lifelong suburbanite myself and I have a love/hate relationship with the burbs. I like the privacy and convenience it affords me, but I can't help but emphatically agree with this statement by Marshall:

"I believe...that the generally fragmented lives so many of us lead break up marriages, disturb childhoods, isolate people when they most need help, and make life not as much fun. We live, to speak frankly, in one of the loneliest societies on earth."

Can all this be blamed on the car and suburban sprawl? Probably not, but I would whole-heartedly recommend this compelling read anyway. Four stars.

4 out of 5 stars A Well-Rounded Perspective.......2006-12-22

Marshall does an exceptional job of telling readers that the form of our cities is based strongly on the choices (and tradeoffs) we make, be they governmental, transportation, economic, or otherwise. The book is a good exploration into how cyclically linked are developers, government, and taxpayers.

5 out of 5 stars Maybe I'm confused, but..........2006-04-29

I give this book five stars.

It's a good resource for refuting the New Urbanist horse pucky, and I've seen those ideas crash and burn exactly as he describes. He is dead on with his defense of suburbia and mocking of the pinky raised urban elitist.

Liberal authoritarians hate his idea that cities exist to create wealth. You can see that in some of these reviews.

This is a book a person can read and understand how urban planning affects our lives directly and indirectly. It's worth reading, and, if you're always being criticized for living in "cookie cutter suburbia", has lots of good answers for the snobs.


5 out of 5 stars How Cities Work.......2006-03-23

For a beginner Public Administration Masters student, this text provided an excellent intro into some far reaching subjects. I used it to focus on the relationship between transportation and urban/suburban growth. The examples were easy to follow and correlated with other professional writings that I have found relating to this discussion thread. I highly recommend this book for getting your feet wet in the transportation side of public administration, or simply for examination of your local communities' current and possible growth concerns.

1 out of 5 stars Wishing for more...........2005-08-06

The author and I had the good fortune to grow up in cities shaped by the street car. Even though the cars were going or gone by the 1950's, many cities retained the urban patterns established sixty and seventy years before. Hoping that light-rail might bring about a return of street car city neighborhoods, I was looking for useful information that might fuel the cause of light-rail. From that aspect the book was disappointing.
As a history of 20th century urban development, it seems uneven. Who killed the street cars? Conservative Republicans? In New York City it was LaGardia with backing from the Roosevelt administration. The same was true in city after city through the 1940's and 1950's. Democratic party controlled cities from coast to coast dumped the street car in order to "modernize". Would Mr. Marshall be surprised to know that Paul Weyrich and the conservative Free Congress Foundation are light-rail advocates?
Mr. Marshall seems too impassioned in a quest for big government to provide a useful roadmap. Cities such as St. Louis, Denver, Houston, and San Jose hope that building light-rail lines will be followed by dense urban development, without 'growth limits' like those in Portland Oregon or Boulder CO. Why does the author think that will not work? Why would the heavy hand of government in Portland not eventually bring about the same results as Boulder CO? Because they started with more open space? It has to fill up eventually. Why ignore the evidence that light-rail does lead to dense urban redevelopment? Even without growth limits.
Why not give people a choice? Suburban sprawl vs. a livable urban environment with light-rail? I say "no thanks" to Disney's fake cities too, but if some folks want to live in one (gag- choke-gasp), it is their choice. Mr. Marshall may still have the last word. Maybe Portland's growth limits are necessary to prevent a suburban ring from choking the central city. I would hope the same could be accomplished by not building any more freeway lanes in dense urban areas. That seems to be on the verge of the politically possible in Denver CO.
For those interested in a light-rail revival and the renewal of cities that could bring about, I recommend "Light Rail and Heavy Politics" by Jack McCroskey. Chock full of useful ideas. It discusses the obstacles that arose, and how they were overcome. McCroskey's book is filled with tidbits of useful information that seem to be few and far between in Mr. Marshall's work.

Washington's New Poor Law: Welfare Reform and the Roads Not Taken, 1935 to the Present
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • A powerful and fascinating work
Washington's New Poor Law: Welfare Reform and the Roads Not Taken, 1935 to the Present
Gertrude Schaffner Goldberg , and Sheila D. Collins
Manufacturer: Apex Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

GeneralGeneral | Poverty | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Social Services & WelfareSocial Services & Welfare | Poverty | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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Similar Items:
  1. When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America
  2. American Poverty in a New Era of Reform American Poverty in a New Era of Reform
  3. The Divided Welfare State: The Battle over Public and Private Social Benefits in the United States The Divided Welfare State: The Battle over Public and Private Social Benefits in the United States
  4. The Great Risk Shift: The Assault on American Jobs, Families, Health Care, and Retirement--And How You Can Fight Back The Great Risk Shift: The Assault on American Jobs, Families, Health Care, and Retirement--And How You Can Fight Back

ASIN: 094525783X

Book Description

Examines the history of the AFDC program--commonly known as "welfare"--from its inception in the Social Security Act of 1935 through its repeal in 1996. The authors make a case against its legislative successor, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, popularly known as "welfare reform" arguing that it offers neither "work opportunity" nor real reform. In repealing the entitlement to welfare and failing to create an entitlement to work at the same time as it imposes strict, time-limited work requirements, Washington has, in effect, written a new Poor Law.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A powerful and fascinating work.......2002-01-12

Washington's New Poor Law: Welfare "Reform" And The Roads Not Taken, 1935 To The Present is a comprehensive study of the consequences of the "welfare reform" legislation of 1996, which repealed entitlement to welfare, yet was not especially successful in creating an entitlement to work. The new poor law still has major problems with perpetuating poverty. The history of this pivotal 1996 legislation is meticulously traced, as are its modern-day consequences, and a final chapter regards the nature of what real welfare reform should be. A powerful and fascinating work, Washington's New Poor Law is strongly highly recommended reading for anyone with an interest in or responsibility for combating poverty in America.
Robert Frost Reads: The Road Not Taken, the Pasture, Birches, Death of a Hired Man, Mending    Wall, and Other of His Poems
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • A very good audio cassetee
Robert Frost Reads: The Road Not Taken, the Pasture, Birches, Death of a Hired Man, Mending Wall, and Other of His Poems
Robert Frost
Manufacturer: HarperCollins Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

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Accessories:
  1. Sony WMFX479 Walkman Sony WMFX479 Walkman

ASIN: 1559945664

Amazon.com Audiobook Review

Originally recorded between 1950 and 1952 at New York City's Poetry Center, the first of these two cassettes captures Frost reading some of his most famous poems ("Fire and Ice," "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"), using his voice's dramatic strength and surprising flexibility to bring full life to the diverse characters he shaped with his written words. The second cassette, recorded at his New England home in 1956, presents Frost at his most evocative: crusty, warm, deeply moving and contemplative. Poems include "The Road Not Taken," "Mending Wall," and "Death of a Hired Man." In each, Frost reads with a generous spirit, infusing his naturalistic images with subtle meanings and precise wordings, a perfect blend for his uniquely realized language. Listen to Robert Frost read "The Pasture." Visit our audio help page for more information. (Running time: 1.75 hours, 2 cassettes) --George Laney

Book Description

Robert Frost reads The Road Not Taken, The Pasture, Birches, Death of a Hired Man, Mending Wall and some of his other poems. Made at Frost's home in Cambridge, MA, a feeling that this recording was to be the definitive Frost recording influenced the fine vitality of this reading

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A very good audio cassetee.......1999-05-31

I bought this book for my father as a present. when i gave it to him he loved it.
Roads Not Taken
Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • Classic stories...
  • Mediocre
  • Inkling to New Worlds of If.
  • Varied Quality, Too much history required?
  • If you like alternate history, save your money
Roads Not Taken
Gardner Dozois , and Stanley Schmidt
Manufacturer: Del Rey
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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Similar Items:
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ASIN: 0345421949
Release Date: 1998-05-27

Amazon.com

Although none of the stories in this anthology take place in the future, they qualify as science fiction (or perhaps speculative fiction would be more accurate) because at the heart of each one lies the question "What if...?" Only in this case, instead of a question like "What if we had faster-than-light travel?" all the questions revolve around alternative historical events. What if the Chinese had colonized America before the Europeans? What if Joseph McCarthy had become president? As in science fiction, the question is the seed from which the author extrapolates a future and a narrative.

The stories in this anthology cover a wide range of other pasts and presents. Highlights include "Must and Shall" by Harry Turtledove, the modern master of alternative history. His fictional present stems from an alternative Civil War, one that the North still won, but in a very different manner. Gene Wolfe presents a timeline in which World War II is settled by an automobile race, and Robert Silverberg looks at a modern-day world in which the Roman Empire never fell. This anthology will definitely appeal to those who enjoy the curious mental frisson that comes from exploring worlds that are in many ways similar to our own, but also quite different. --Brooks Peck

Book Description

Alternate History: The What-If? fiction that has finally come into its own! Shedding light on the past by exploring what could have happened, this bold genre tantalizes your imagination and challenges your perceptions with thrilling reinventions of humanity's most climactic events. Enter worlds that are at once fanciful and familiar, where fact and fiction meld in a provocative landscape of infinite possibilities. . . .

"An Ink from the New Moon" by A. A. Attanasio
"We Could Do Worse" by Gregory Benford
"The West Is Red" by Greg Costikyan
"The Forest of Time" by Michael F. Flynn
"Southpaw" by Bruce McAllister
"Over There" by Mike Resnick
"An Outpost of the Empire" by Robert Silverberg
"Aristotle and the Gun" by L. Sprague de Camp
"Must and Shall" by Harry Turtledove
"How I Lost the Second World War and Helped Turn Back the German Invasion" by Gene Wolfe

With these dazzling stories, discover just how different things might have been!

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Classic stories..........2007-05-03

Roads Not Taken are ten tales of alternate history, most of which have been published before. In fact, all of them have been published before, and this book is like a flashback of my early reading of science fiction. The stories such as Aristotle and The Gun or We Could Do Worse are stories I have enjoyed before. But some of them, such as The West Is Red or Must And Shall, are totally new to me and I enjoyed them very much. I would suggest this for any sci-fi fan, as a gift or just an addition to their private library.

2 out of 5 stars Mediocre.......2006-04-27

This collection suffers. It suffers bother external and internal repetition. By external repetition I mean that a number of the stories are printed in other, more famous alternative history anthologies, and so one feels like they haven't received their money's worth, reading the same thing they already have elsewhere. By internal repetition, I mean the stories are bad. They are boring. They don't flow. They don't excite. You have to skim them to complete them.

"How I Lost the Second World War" is mostly about very mundane car races and war board games. It tries to be funny and achieves a solid mediocrity. "Southpaw" looks at Fidel Castro as a baseball star yearning to unite the workers of the world, and you can see why he chose the path he did; the baseball path would have obviously drained the life out of him. "We Could Do Worse" drowns in it's own self-importance. "Over There" takes the dynamic life of Theodore Roosovelt and tones it down to the soothing strains of elevator music.

"Must and Shall" and "An Outpost of the Empire" are slightly better writings, but they lack punch or real completion. The three best of this collection are towards the end, and they are definitely quite good. "The West is Red" takes a new path in alternative history, positing not a change in history but a change in the nature of human nature, where communism is more economically viable than capitolism. It brings up some intriging ideas about how Americans could see themselves if the shoe was on the other foot. "The Forest of Time" and "Aristotle and the Gun" play with science fiction time and universe travel in alternate histories, looking at the horror of not finding your way home, and the horror of changing the world irrevocably.

While I would recommend these three stories, the rest of the anthology is badly written, or can be found in other books, with better stories. Save your money and rent this from the library, where you can read the best parts of the book.

4 out of 5 stars Inkling to New Worlds of If. .......2005-02-25

If you are an Alternate-History lover this is a good collection for you. If you are not, this book will help to make up your mind: you'll become a new addict or you'll understand that Alt-His is not your cup of tea.

It starts with brief essay "What is Alternate History?" that gives the reader a broad picture of the genre.
Each story begins with a little article describing the author and his works giving the reader useful information for future choices.
Next the book provides one of he best sample, I ever read, written by well known Alt-His' authors: Turtledove, Attanasio, Silverberg and Wolfe amongst others.
Many of the main "What if" themes are present: if the Roman Empire hasn't ceased to exist; if Communism has triumphed worldwide; if Chinese arrived to America before Columbus; if Civil War scars weren't cured; if ...if...; the reader is invited to a wonderful imaginative tour.

For me Flynn's "The Forest of Time" is a treat. Not only starts with the proposal of Disunited States of America but gives a turn in time and forking realities.
Wolfe's "How I Lost the Second War..." is a puzzling story in parody cue.

An enjoyable collection to be sure!
Reviewed by Max Yofre.

3 out of 5 stars Varied Quality, Too much history required?.......2002-10-18

The best thing about this collection is Shelly Shapiro's introductory essay that attempts to define "alternative history". As a historian and a college instructor, I can't really agree with Shapiro that using "alternative histories" is a great way to discuss history -- students seem confused enough about history at least at the earliest levels. Most "alternative history" seems focused on WWII or the American Revolution and thus I've not found it very interesting. I bought this specifically for the variety of time periods covered. However what I discovered was that I either had too much historical knowledge or too little really grasp the stories depending on the period covered. Of the 10 stories included in this book, Robert Silverberg and A.A. Attanasio's work stood out in my mind for their ability to tell a story that seemed worth reading and yet also be close enough to "historical facts" to make sense. Some of the stories are so subtly different that you have to really think to understand what is going on while others seem a bit confused in the telling.

1 out of 5 stars If you like alternate history, save your money.......2002-07-11

I was really eager to read this book because of all the good reviews.

I love alternate history, when it is plausible and when there is a STORY that plays along the alternate scenario.

So, I was really disappointed. Alternate history may be a minor genre, but nothing justifies reading minor writers.

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