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:

Forbidden City
Forbidden City by William Bell
Vivid details and engrossing story wow reader. By JMM
what to Exspect
Forbidden City, quick must-read for all highschool students!

Forbidden City
William Bell
Manufacturer: Laurel Leaf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0440226791
Release Date: 1996-01-10

Book Description

Seventeen-year-old Alex Jackson comes home from school to find that his father, a CBC news cameraman, wants to take him to China's capital, Beijing. Once there, Alex finds himself on his own in Tian An Men Square as desperate students fight the Chinese army for their freedom. Separated from his father and carrying illegal videotapes, Alex must trust the students to help him escape.

Closely based on eyewitness accounts of the massacre in Beijing, Forbidden City is a powerful and frightening story.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Customer Reviews:

Forbidden City.......2006-03-17

Alex and his dad are going to China! Alex is home when his dad get home. His dad tells them that they are going to China. They go and they are picked up from the airport by Lao Xu. They go to the Beijing Hotel and meet Eddie. A few days later a protest broke out. A few days later, the army comes. Lots of people were killed. Lao Xu was one of them. Alex runs for his life and gets shot in the lead. He hits the ground and passes out. He wakes in a Chineese civilions home. After he is healed, his friend Xin-hua takes him to the airport to find his dad. When they get to the airport, the Chineese soldiers take Xin-hua and kill her. Alex finds his dad in the airport and they go home. There is a lot of adventure, death, and happiness in Forbidden City.

There's a bit a adventure in Forbidden City. Alex and his dad get to go to China, which is an adventure in itself. Alex does a lot of exploring in the city of Beijing. Xin-hua and Alex have the adventure of trying to get to the airport without the soldiers figuring out that Alex is Canadian.

A lot of people die in this book. Many students, who are the ones that are protesting, were killed. Many civilions were killed. Lao Xu was killed. Xin-hua was killed. They were all killed by Chineese soldiers.

Alex is mostly the only one who is happy. He is happy when he gets to go to China. His dad is happy when he gets to go too China with Alex. Alex is happy when he gets home from China. So is his dad.

Happiness, death, and adventure are diffenently in Forbidden City. If there hadn't been as many people die, it would have been happier, but I guess the people dieing made it a better book. If you like book that are based on true events and you like stuff about China history, this is the book for you.

Forbidden City by William Bell.......2005-11-29

Forbidden City is a novel based on the events that swept Beijing in 1989 and the impact of this on one person's life.
The main character, a 17-year-old war history fanatic, Alex Jackson, traveled to the Chinese capital with his father, a CBC cameraman, to cover the Russian premier Gorbachev's visit. During this event, Alex experienced the excitement of being a reporter and of recording the events of the protest, but was apprehensive as the protest became more violent. When martial law was declared in Beijing, soldiers swept in, completely surrounding Tianamen Square with the help of AK47s and even tanks. The students and civilians who were part of the demonstrations were shot down without mercy.
Alex lived out this horror as he was shot by a soldier while carrying illegal videotapes of the demonstrations. At this point, his future was bleak until university student, Xinhua rescued him, and tried to help him smuggle the tapes out of China. Alex managed to get to the airport with the tapes and escaped with his father. Sadly, Xinhua was not so lucky, gunned down by a soldier as she tried to help Alex. After the massacre and finally back in his comfy home in Toronto, Alex destroyed all his military models, realizing war wasn't a game to him anymore.
Young people interested in modern Chinese history or modern international political events will be captivated by this book. Even those with no particular interest in modern Chinese history will find the pace and excitement of this novel quite compelling. This book shares same idea as The Red Scarf by Ji Li Jiang and The Power of Tianamen by Dingxin Zhao.
I personally chose this book for this assignment because it was short but punchy. I read reviews, which recommended this book as exciting to read, and I certainly found it so. The best parts of the book were when his best friend Lao Xu was shot down while trying to stop the killings and when Alex finally gets back home to Toronto with the smuggled tapes. These were the highlights for me because they were particularly thrilling but also moving because they showed much bravery and sacrifice.
I would definitely recommend this book. If you want a fast moving and gripping story, you too will enjoy this novel.

Vivid details and engrossing story wow reader. By JMM.......2005-04-04

This book is a vivid description of the "events" at Tian An Men Square that fateful spring in 1989. This novel is about a seventeen year old boy named Alex who travels with his cameraman father to China, and witnesses the Tian An Men Square massacre.
In this book the author pays good attention to the facts while weaving a story around them. He used a journal format; from the point of view of the protagonist, Alex. William Bell (the author) paints a vivid picture of the horrendous tragedy in Beijing, and brings a realistic quality to his fiction. The characters develop well during the story, but the secondary characters are very one-dimensional.
The author brings a real and personal quality that to many of us is simply a far-off event that happened to a bunch of people we don't know. Although it is realistic, it is not a historian's account. Overall, it is a good, compelling, and vividly detailed novel.

what to Exspect.......2003-11-13

well the story I read, I thought was great. This book is called Forbidden City.This book is about these two people that is going to film an event. well two of the character named Alexander Jackson and his dad goes to Beijing to do a report on the event. His dad does this and is risking his life as well as his son. Alex was a history freak, he collected soldiers in his basement.well they traveled to where they were going and it didn't turn out the way they expected. When they got there it was ok until the event was going on. They took out tanks and killed people. While this happened alex witness his chinese friend's death. well through this event he recorded it and when it was over his father didn't know his son recorded it. Well one month after the incident chen xi tong the mayor of Beijing submitted his report to the politburo of the communist party of china.

Forbidden City, quick must-read for all highschool students!.......2003-05-08

Overall, William S. Bell does a good job putting a human face on the tragedies that took place in Tiananmen Square. He is refreshingly accurate with regard to factual information. The diary format is easy to read yet leaves the book open to interpretation and discussion. The story of the fictional characters Alex, Ted, Lao Xu, Eddie and Xin hua was created as a way to explain what happened to all sides involved in this tragic event. Bell combines a mixture of powerful emotions and dynamic characters to create a true must read for all highschool students. If highschoolers get anything out of this book at all, it will be that there are people out there who will stand up for what they believe in and that violence shouldn't be used as the answer to every problem our world faces.

My Journey to Lhasa: The Classic Story of the Only Western Woman Who Succeeded in Entering the Forbidden City

Average customer rating:

A history of Tibet that no longer exists, we all owe David-Neel a debt
The Pilgrim was a Lady
An unusual journey to say the least
Massively Overrated
Worth the Effort

My Journey to Lhasa: The Classic Story of the Only Western Woman Who Succeeded in Entering the Forbidden City
Alexandra David-neel
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0060596554
Release Date: 2005-08-23

Amazon.com

In any time, Alexandra David-Neel would have been considered an extraordinary woman, but in the Victorian era, she was truly exceptional. Born in 1868, David-Neel eschewed the dances, dinners, and formal marriages common to women of her era and social standing in order to indulge her fierce independence and insatiable intellectual curiosity. Her interest in comparative religions dated back to early childhood; even as a student in a Catholic convent school, she kept statues of both Christ and the Buddha in her room. She made her first trip to Asia in 1891, then supported herself as a light-opera singer and journalist before marrying a seemingly conventional man, Philip Neel. Fortunately for both Alexandra David-Neel and for posterity, Philip was less stodgy than his position as a well-off engineer might imply; though he did not accompany her, he supported his wife's explorations and even acted as her literary agent when she began to write about the places she visited. Alexandra and Philip remained the closest of friends until his death in 1941.

David-Neel spent years traveling in India and China, but perhaps her most daring adventure was the trip to Tibet's forbidden city of Lhasa. She was 55 years old at the time, fluent in Tibetan and well versed in both Sanskrit and Buddhism. Disguised as a man, she spent four treacherous months on the road before finally becoming the first European woman ever to enter Lhasa. My Journey to Lhasa is David-Neel's own account of her astounding journey, one fraught with hardship and danger. It is both a chronicle of a bygone time and a testimonial to a remarkable human.

Book Description

An exemplary travelogue of danger and achievement by the Frenchwoman Madame Alexandra David–Neel of her 1923 expedition to Tibet, the fifth in her series of Asian travels, and her personal recounting of her journey to Lhasa, Tibet's forbidden city.

In order to penetrate Tibet and reach Lhasa, she used her fluency of Tibetan dialects and culture, disguised herself as a beggar with yak hair extensions and inked skin and tackled some of the roughest terrain and climate in the World. With the help of her young companion, Yongden, she willingly suffered the primitive travel conditions, frequent outbreaks of disease, the ever–present danger of border control and the military to reach her goal.

The determination and sheer physical fortitude it took for this woman, delicately reared in Paris and Brussels, is inspiration for men and women alike.

David–Neel is famous for being the first Western woman to have been received by any Dalai Lama and as a passionate scholar and explorer of Asia, hers is one of the most remarkable of all travellersߴales.

Customer Reviews:

A history of Tibet that no longer exists, we all owe David-Neel a debt.......2007-07-16

Personally, I love this book and have read it more than three times. If, for no other reason, you have an interest in Tibet prior to the Chinese invasion in 1950, this book leaves for posterity a Tibet that no longer exists. The border is gone from modern maps, but even a Westerners' interpretation of their daily lives, is treasure to us all of what once was, a free and spiritually ruled Tibet.

The Chinese have a built a "Disneyland" at the foot of Potalla Palace. I need to remember it before the modern attempt at Chinesification of Tibet.

The Pilgrim was a Lady.......2006-08-11

In 1923 at the age of 55, Alexandra David-Neel put on the robes of a Buddhist monk and walked across Tibet for four months on a pilgrimmage to the holy city of Lhasa. No European woman had ever entered the holy city before, and the road promised many dangers, from wild animals to blizzards to bandits. Her descriptions bear witness to a spunky evolved soul whose scholarly knowledge of Buddhism served her well in her adopted role as an itinerant monk. Her writing is elegant, punctuated by an unselfconscious humor and relentless perspicacity. Truly an adventure trek of many wonders.

An unusual journey to say the least.......2004-01-26

When I was reading the reviews of this book, I was struck by the one of the reviews. It was very negative, and the reviewer missed the beauty of this book entirely. I was glad that I had already read it. I read the reviews because I was curious to see if others had enjoyed the book as much as I did. I was buying it again as a present for a friend. The author was a very unusual person, and this book is very much worth the read. She wrote about customs and values honestly as she saw them. She was not a dispassionate viewer, but I also felt that she was not judgemental or superior. When customs of two peoples are as different as some of Tibet and France are, they will shock a person and that person will remark. However, I felt that she loved and respected the people she wrote about, and she did a remarkable job in recounting what she saw. She gave her readers the pleasure of a most unusual journey with her and her young companion through a country that was worth writing about.

Massively Overrated.......2003-12-24

I did not see what the big deal was, and would not recommend it. Her language and the way she treated people is offensive, Eurocentric, condescending and narrow-minded -- typical of many travel books of this period. For those trying to learn about Tibet, there is not enough here to satisfy. This is your classic I-am-to-be-admired-because-I-left-the-comforts-of-civilization-applaud-me themed books. She is not a traveller but a trophy collector.

Worth the Effort.......2001-03-10

This is a book which I think of often. Ms. David-Neel had or should I say has quite a strong spirit. I would recommend all of her books to anyone interested in spiritual growth, women's triumphs or walking accross high Himalayan passes in the dead of winter with the Lama Yongden. I cross high Rocky Mountain passes regularly, but always in the comfort of an 18-wheeler.

Average customer rating:

Best so far
Good, but not the best of the series
Non-stop action, a sexy protagonist, magic, and China. A great mix
Another good one!
Definitely more like 4 1/2 stars!!

Forbidden City (Rogue Angel, Book 5)
Alex Archer
Manufacturer: Gold Eagle
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 037362123X

Book Description

A stunning artifact holds the key to an untapped power of global destruction—

While working on a dig in the California wilderness, archaeologist-adventurer Annja Creed uncovers evidence of a tragedy that's linked to Chinese miners during the days of the Gold Rush. A sudden attack on the site by shadow if gures drives Annja to if nd the connection to a mysterious buried city in China. Lured by legends of gold, betrayal and the vengeance of a Han Dynasty overlord, Annja travels on the Orient Express, battling avaricious treasure hunters and a modern-day descendant of an ancient league of assassins. Her adversaries will stop at nothing to stake their claim on the fabled lost city, where a Han leader's dark past promises doom for those who dare to reveal its evil power.

Customer Reviews:

Best so far.......2007-09-04

I fell behind in this series but have picked it up again. When people see the nams Forbidden City and China together they tend to think of things other than thos in this book. Annja has decided to help a Chinese man find out if an ancestor was murdered in the old West. Annja talents as an archeologist are put to good use and she soon discovers the right location. One of the things recovered on the dig is a belt plaque that Annja thinks could help prove a pet theory. Unfortunately for her the dig is a sham and everyone wants the artifact. Meanwhile in China a young woman is returning to see her father after too many years. She arrives just in tome to find that he has been murdered. She vows vengeance on those that killed her father. The belt plaque seems very important to many people. Even Roux and Garin get involved on opposite sides as they have motives of their own.

The artifact may have the clues to find a city lost in the deserts of China. Once known as the City of Thieves there should be large amounts of treasure to any who find it. But is there more than treasure in the old city? Surely Roux and Garin would not go to such leangths for mere wealth. You will have to read the book to find out what it is all about.

This is a very well-crafted tale. Multiple plots are woven together seamlessly. The action is fast and wild. It was good to see Roux back as more than just a cameo. Kelly, the young Chinese woman, is a wonderful character and I hope we see more of her in future volumes. All in all I found this to be the best volume in the series to date. Check it out.

Good, but not the best of the series.......2007-07-04

I was a little disappointed in this one. I have been following the series and find this one much less satisfying at the end.

Unfortunately, the books don't seem to build on one another aside from the premise of the sword (and even that is explained/summarized in every book to allow readers to jump in at any place in the series), so we'll never really know what tragedy was averted.

Escapist reading... it was enjoyable, just not as much as the others.

Non-stop action, a sexy protagonist, magic, and China. A great mix.......2007-03-18

It seemed like a great job offer. Archeologist Annja Creed takes some time off of her TV career to help a Chinese businessman look for the bones of his relatives who were lost in a racist incident during the California Gold Rush. When she discovers bones--along with an ancient artifact, though, Annja's client attempts to kill her. Annja doesn't think the bones are worth that fuss--which means that the artifact--something that appears to be of Sythian design, must be important.

Annja is not unfamiliar with important artifacts. She is the current carrier of a sword which once belonged to Joan of Arc. This weapon has the handy ability to be summoned from thin air--useful if you're being attacked, which Annja frequently is.

The Chinese gangster looking for the artifact is also seeking other clues--clues that might lead him to the rediscovery of an ancient city of assassins along the silk road in China. This lost city may be full of treasures, but it may also be subject to ancient curses, including the curse of the Fox Spirit Woman. What he doesn't realize is that he's stirring up a lot of trouble. Annja is a lot more dangerous than he'd anticipated and he also makes an enemy of a Chinese-American CIA assassin. But making an enemy out of Annja comes with one positive result--from his perspective. Annja has powerful enemies including a man who fears his immortality is threatened by Annja's sword.

Author Alex Archer continues his ROGUE ANGEL series with an exciting thriller. CIA Assassin Kelly Swan is an intriguing new character to the series--one I hope we see more of in the future, and the Chinese setting and the Chinese legends underlying this investigation give the story an exotic feel--but also remind us of race problems in American history--problems that are too-frequently ignored in popular history books.

I've found the ROGUE ANGEL series to be of consistently high quality and FORBIDDEN CITY is definitely a welcome addition. If you enjoy kick-butt female protagonists, non-stop action, magic, exotic locations, and powerful shadowy underworld villains (and who doesn't), you'll definitely want to grab FORBIDDEN CITY.

Another good one!.......2007-03-14

Another installment in the adventures of Annja Creed. Annja is up to her neck in murder, mystery and mayhem again, this time from California's gold rush ghost town to the desert of Eastern China.
Annja is asked by Huangfu Cao to help find the remains of a Chinese immigrant who was murdered in Volcanoville, a gold rush shanty town in the hills around San Francisco.
Cao claims he is searching for the remains of an ancestor to return him home for burial. Annja agrees to help, because that ancestor happened to own an ancient plaque carved by the Scythian people thousands of years ago. When Annja finds the plaque she is targeted for murder by Cao. It seems no one is what they seem.
Huangfu Cao fails to kill her, leading to a chase through the forested hills. Annja'a knack for survival, not to mention the Sword of Joan of Arc, keep her alive an one step ahead of death. Annja escapes the killers and is rescued by park rangers.
The police try to protect her, but fail and she loses the plaque, but our girl is smart, she took pictures. Her investigation leads her to a local historian who knows something about the plaque and its curse.
No good Rogue Angel story is complete without Roux, who puts in an appearance. He wants the plaque also. The plaque is the key to an ancient city in China, the City of Thieves. The City of Thieves was home to a group of assassins that worked for the ancient Emperor of China, Qin. Qin fought and won wars and eventually forged the nation that is now China. He was a great warrior, who had the services of these assassins and their leader, Sha Wu Ying.
Sha Wu Ying betrayed Qin, but in doing so, led to his own destruction. His cabal of assassins died with him and the City of Thieves disappeared into history and mythology. Enough hints have survived that can lead back to the treasure of the thieves and Cao works for a ruthless Chinese crime lord, Ngai, that wants that treasure for himself. Roux wants the treasure also, but only to keep another mystic talisman from falling into Garin's hands. Garin aligns himself with Ngai and the hunt is on.
Another new character is Kelly Swan. Kelly is the daughter of a poor Chinese fisherman who is murdered by Ngai and she is out for revenge. Lucky for her, she is a CIA trained assassin who has the skills and drive to go for it. Her character is interesting. Interesting enough to warrant her own book or at least further appearances in the Rogue Angel series.
The only negative comment I have is the cover. It is spectacular artwork, but it shows Annja submerged in water, her head and sword barely peaking above the surface. But nowhere in the book is there a scene like that. As a matter of fact, the climax of the book is in a desert! Other than that one little thing, I loved the book. Good job,Alex.

Definitely more like 4 1/2 stars!!.......2007-03-12

Nothing is ever easy with archaeologist Annja Creed. She sets out for a deserted Chinese mining town in California to help Huangfu Cao recover the bones of his ancestor while seeking an unusual belt depicting Scythian art. Soon she finds herself embroiled in a deep archaeological mystery with roots in China. When Roux joins in on the search, Annja realizes that the stakes are much higher than a mere belt. Annja's most recent adventure may be her deadliest one yet.

Rogue Angel is a series that only deepens with each ensuing book. FORBIDDEN CITY takes readers into the heart of Chinese mythology and history. Once again, the history is provided through a series of flashbacks, internet postings, and dialogue between the characters, all of which makes the complexity of the storyline much more palatable than one would expect. Normally, one would not expect a story about Chinese miners to be entertaining but when you throw in assassins and a possible treasure, well, what more can you ask for?

The strength of the Rogue Angel series rests solely on the phenomenal combination of action and superb character development. Annja's role as a modern day Joan of Arc continues to take some unusual twists and turns as new revelations are made in the relationship between Annja, Roux, and Garin. Kelly Swan is a fantastic secondary character and one hopes she makes a reappearance in future Rogue Angel books.

FORBIDDEN CITY is another powerful addition to what is quickly becoming one of my favorite series. Annja Creed is an almost superhero-like female heroine but yet she manages to remain likeable and realistic, despite being the reincarnation of Joan of Arc. FORBIDDEN CITY is one thrill-packed adventure in this highly addictive series!

COURTESY OF CK2S KWIPS AND KRITIQUES

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)

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Check and see
Suprise! Suprise!
Prescient St Augustine?
Something of a disappointment
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy..

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Anatoly T Fomenko
Manufacturer: Delamere Resources LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 2913621066

Product Description

`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.

Customer Reviews:

Check and see.......2007-06-21

I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.

Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22

Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.

Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05

We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:

a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;

b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;

c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.

Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:

It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.

- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.

- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.

Fomenko goes by the following axioms:

- Chronology is the basis of history;

- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;

- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;

- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;

- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;

- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.

Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?

The Russians:

Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.

The Westerners:

Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.

The Chinese:

Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.

The Arabs:

Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.

The Divinity:

Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.

According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.

St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."

Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09

After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.

However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:

- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.

I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.

The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.

It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?

Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.

Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).

Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30

If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?

Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.

Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..

Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.

The Palace Museum: Peking, Treasures of the Forbidden City

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The Palace Museum: Peking, Treasures of the Forbidden City
Wango Weng , and Yang Boda
Manufacturer: Harry N Abrams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Great Pictures But Could do more work on the Information
Great Pictures!
A Coffee-table Book ý but no more

The Forbidden City (Images of Asia)
May Holdsworth
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 019590608X

Book Description

Halls of dazzling glory or an 'ill-omened pile of buildings' A sight unforgettably lovely or merely commonplace? Long shrouded in mystery, Beijing's Forbidden City has provoked all these conflicting descriptions. Built to a grand scale, its design determined by the art of fengsui, the Forbidden City was at once a palace and a prison. Good luck did not always bless its denizens, and life was cold, lonely and stifling for many of the emperors, empresses, and imperial concubines who lived within it. Today the palace receives many visitors, yet the realities of imperial life in the Forbidden City are stil little known. This illustrated introduction exposes the private world hidden behind imperial walls, bringing to light mundane processes of its every day life. Ritual procedures and domestic arrangements, wedding, births and deaths, the practical concerns of heating, lighting, and cooking: each of these topics is explored in this unique portrait of one of Asia's premier historical and cultural sites.

Customer Reviews:

Great Pictures But Could do more work on the Information.......2000-09-06

I had hoped to be reading about the Forbidden City-its origins, its designers, its layout, the function of the buildings and structures, the treasures it contained,the catastrophes it survived and so forth.

I was disappointed to find that only the first chapter was of some relevance to the Forbidden City. The rest of the chapters were devoted to the famous "inhabitants", the officers ranking system, concubines, eunuchs, the foreign priests and so forth.

The books saving grace is the breath-taking photography. But then some of the pictures I felt were rather irrelevant to the Forbidden City ie Yong Zheng's concubines, Kang Xi's various potraits.

In conclusion, this is a good book for browsing through the pictures, but not for the serious historian.

Great Pictures!.......2000-07-01

If you are a fan of Chinese history or art, this is the book for you. I enjoyed this book because of the magnificent pictures, and ancient Chinese paintings depicted in it. Not only are the pictures interesting, but so is the text. It tells of......I guess you'll have to see for yourself! Great buy, all though I was afraid at first that I payed too much, after I recieved it those fears were put to rest.

A Coffee-table Book ý but no more.......1999-10-06

If you want a coffee table book, then buy it. The photographs by Hu Chui are stunning, and the reproductions of Chinese scrolls and paintings are excellent.

However, the information about the Forbidden City is at the breakfast mush level - easy to digest but of little value. The information is superficial, and often inaccurate. Knowledgeable students of the Forbidden City will groan, and wince. It perpetuates blunders such as referring to the East Glory Gate as the East 'Flowery Gate,' and the Chinese advisor on eunuchs knows little about the subject. The book talks about emperors as if they all had the same personality and all did the same things.

Book Description

Enjoy the dazzling adventures of film director Luc Besson's Arthur and the Minimoys and Arthur and the Forbidden City together for the first time. Join Arthur as he embarks on a journey to the land of the Minimoys, a tribe of people less than one inch tall, to find his missing grandfather and a stolen treasure. Arthur joins two Minimoy friends on a trip to the forbidden city of Necropolis, where they battle the evil wizard Maltazard.

Now a major motion picture brought to life by Luc Besson himself.

Performed by Jim Dale

Customer Reviews:

This is as good as it gets in audio books.......2007-05-01

Jim Dale is the most brilliant audio book performer in the world. He is as wonderful here as on the Harry Potter audios. I enjoyed this story immensely. The three main characters - Arthur, Selenia, and Beta - are all engaging. The story has an endearing sweetness. I just loved this and would very highly recommend it.

Hue, the Forbidden City: His Majesty Emperor Bao Dai

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BREATH TAKING,...
A Glorious Past

Hue, the Forbidden City: His Majesty Emperor Bao Dai

Manufacturer: Art Books Intl Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 2856203817

Customer Reviews:

BREATH TAKING,..........2006-03-22

This book is beautiful. It's a masterpiece of breath taking photos of not only the city and palace itself, but of the people that make up the culture and the beautiful natural landscape that surrounds it. The photos are almost ALL page size and are in full color. One of the many nice attributes about this book is that the pages are dedicated to honoring the photo displayed. Every ten to fifteen pages or so you'll find an explanation of what the pictures are, by page number, with more detailed information. Definitely worth the money, and not that expensive. Worth every cent.

A Glorious Past.......2001-09-05

Hue, the Forbidden City contains a treasure of rare photographs by M. Lafond showing the old imperial capitol as many have never seen it. Far from the crumbled and blasted buildings of the time of the Tet Offensive, this book shows Hue in its full glory as the Imperial capitol of Vietnam with all of its temples, tombs and the Imperial palace. His Majesty Bao Dai, the last Vietnamese Emperor, provides a special commentary on his former residence, the ceremonies and traditions of the forbidden city at Hue. There are beautiful landscapes, magnificant monuments as well as photos of the people of Hue, from the common people participating in the cities' ceremonies to the traditionalists who still worship their divine Son of Heaven. It is a fantastic book that anyone interested in the Far East and Vietnamese history will enjoy. People should read and look through this book to see the glorious evidence of Vietnam's imperial past.

Average customer rating:

Fun, Fast Read!
Decent, but Lukewarm Follow-Up
Better than the first and keeps on going...

Arthur and the Forbidden City
Luc Besson
Manufacturer: HarperTrophy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0060596287
Release Date: 2006-08-22

Book Description

Arthur's backyard looked like an ordinary garden—until he discovered the Minimoys and their vast world where fierce battles are fought, ferocious monsters are faced, and one evil wizard, Maltazard the Cursed, rules from his terrifying stronghold: Necropolis, the forbidden city.

Now ten-year-old Arthur—magically transformed into a Minimoy—must help them find a way into this forbidden city in order to rescue Arthur's grandfather, recover a stolen treasure, and save the land of the Minimoys before it's too late.

Don't miss the live-action and 3-D animated movie based on the Arthur books!

Customer Reviews:

Fun, Fast Read!.......2006-12-25

This sequel to Arthur and the Minimoys is still a Honey I Shrunk the Kids meets The Secret of Nimh with a smidge of Indiana Jones conglomeration, and I rather like that about it. In this book, we pick up right where the first one left off and we get answers to all the questions left unanswered before -- Will they make it to the Forbidden City? Will they be able to stop the evil M, the cursed? Will Arthur get the treasure back before the cruel Mr. Davido boots his grandma out of her house? We also find out just how vile Maltazard is, we get a look at the Necropolis and of course, the lair of the evil villain. The author is also still parrelling the plight of the Grandmother and Mr. Davido with that of Princess Selenia and her people against M. These are the stark good vs. evil kind of stories where you just KNOW the good guys are going to win in the end...but you still find yourself watching because you HAVE to know HOW they do it and how it all plays out in the end.

In the second half we find Arthur married to the princess...a bit surprising since he's ten...but ok. We also get to meet Arthur's parents who are, well, more interested in finding the rubies than the are in finding their son. In fact, other than voicing their concern they don't seem to care at all but that does seem to be the pattern in the child hero/adventure type stories...the parents are either absent (dead) or indifferent (caring more about stuff or work than about their children). This is a convenient plot device which frees the child to be bolder and more heroic than they might otherwise be allowed to, but with suspension of disbelief, readers can disconnect from what is illogical with regards to a ten year old saving the world (Indiana Jones style) and just enjoy the story for what it is!

Overall...this isn't great literature; it's just plain old fun reading. The story is easy to follow, the good guys are all good (and likeable even) the bad guys are all totally evil and the parallel story line between the "real" world (the M, the Cursed and Mr. Davido) and the world of the Minimoys adds a nice second layer to the story. This book would make nice light reading for a couple of nights for readers aged 8-12...nothing too taxing, but highly entertaining for a few hours! I give it four stars.

Decent, but Lukewarm Follow-Up.......2006-09-16

In the sequel to Arthur and the Minimoys, Arthur, Princess Selenia and Prince Beta brave Necropolis, The Forbidden City. Arthur is searching for a lost treasure that will save his family's home, and Selenia and Beta seek the evildoer who threatens their entire people.

In Necropolis, a seedy market leads to a seedier palace, in which danger and fear are the norm. Imprisoned by Maltazard the Cursed, the three adventurers see little hope for escape. What they find in the prison and deeper in the palace will change everything. Hope MUST be found, or all the Minimoys will be doomed.

Although this installment carries the spirit and creativity of the first, it seems to lose some of the promised gusto. Things seem to come together a little too easy at times (a toy race car shows up right when and where it is needed), and a little too stretched at others (why did Arthur's grandmother and parents not to more to search for him while he was missing?).

The story is well crafted, but it is missing that intangible something that a truly great story possesses. It's one of those qualities that is hard to describe, yet easy to recognize. Perhaps it is spirit, or cultural differences, or perhaps it is something else altogether.

This is a decent follow-up to the first book, but in the end, some readers might leave with a lukewarm feeling.

Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer
9/15/2006

3½-BALLOONS for WUAT Kids!; 4-STARS for Amazon.com

Better than the first and keeps on going..........2005-09-16

Wow...

I use to say that writing in books don't do justice to living through events. But in this book I find I want to live these words and in this world. Realationships in this world make more sense they are easier. Kissing and Love this man has these themes down to a "T". Perfect from cover to cover. Just The right amount of humor. I couldn't put it down and I tried. I am so impressed with the writing that I'm learning french in order to reread the first two books and get the second two before they make it to the us translation.

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