The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography (Oprah's Book Club)

Book Description

"I have no wish to play the pontificating fool, pretending that I've suddenly come up with the answers to all life's questions. Quite that contrary, I began this book as an exploration, an exercise in self-questing. In other words, I wanted to find out, as I looked back at a long and complicated life, with many twists and turns, how well I've done at measuring up to the values I myself have set."
—Sidney Poitier

In this luminous memoir, a true American icon looks back on his celebrated life and career. His body of work is arguably the most morally significant in cinematic history, and the power and influence of that work are indicative of the character of the man behind the many storied roles. Sidney Poitier here explores these elements of character and personal values to take his own measure—as a man, as a husband and a father, and as an actor.

Poitier credits his parents and his childhood on tiny Cat Island in the Bahamas for equipping him with the unflinching sense of right and wrong and of self-worth that he has never surrendered and that have dramatically shaped his world. "In the kind of place where I grew up," recalls Poitier, "what's coming at you is the sound of the sea and the smell of the wind and momma's voice and the voice of your dad and the craziness of your brothers and sisters...and that's it." Without television, radio, and material distractions to obscure what matters most, he could enjoy the simple things, endure the long commitments, and find true meaning in his life.

Poitier was uncompromising as he pursued a personal and public life that would honor his upbringing and the invaluable legacy of his parents. Just a few years after his introduction to indoor plumbing and the automobile, Poitier broke racial barrier after racial barrier to launch a pioneering acting career. Committed to the notion that what one does for a living articulates to who one is, Poitier played only forceful and affecting characters who said something positive, useful, and lasting about the human condition.

Here is Poitier's own introspective look at what has informed his performances and his life. Poitier explores the nature of sacrifice and commitment, price and humility, rage and forgiveness, and paying the price for artistic integrity. What emerges is a picture of a man in the face of limits—his own and the world's. A triumph of the spirit, The Measure of a Man captures the essential Poitier.

Customer Reviews:

****LOVED IT****.......2007-09-24

Kept me interested...I really enjoyed this book...I couldn't put the book down until I finished reading it!!!!

MEASURE OF A MAN does not measure up.......2007-09-21

Wow, a book about Sidney Poitier. An outstanding actor with a book that just does not give him true justice. The reading tends to be dry and lacks substance. His life struggles could have been the story of any man or woman, black or white. The writing and editing are weak in some sections.

You should rent or buy one of Poitier's movies instead. His movie roles show his true skills.

SPIRITUAL "Of, Relating to, Consisting of, or Affecting the Spirit" MERRIAM-WEBSTER.......2007-08-30

I've always been smitten with Poitier's voice--his diction and control on film, the flow of his words as they travel in and around ideas during interviews--so I read THE MEASURE OF A MAN with an ear for his voice. I wondered, Is it translatable to print? It is, but that means allowing Poitier's thoughts to meander until they find their point, and that his thoughts are less formulated (or formal) and more "in his own words," than they might be if they were written by a biographer. (I read just enough "You know?"s "You hear me when I tell you?"s and "You follow?"s to feel like he was talking to me, but not too many to be annoyed.) I read to imagine what it might be like to have a conversation with Poitier. The book reinforced what I already knew--I'd be as intimidated as heck--but it also gave me the courage to think I'd be able to speak my mind.

As an editor, I read Poitier's book because I wanted to know how he defines a "spiritual" autobiography. Is it a I-Was-A-Sinner-But-I-Found-Jesus-And-Now-I'm-Saved chronology? Is it about how Christianity or another faith influenced his life? Neither. Poitier examines the people, events, circumstances, beliefs, and so on, which have related to, consisted of, or affected his "spirit," and, in doing so, he writes about childhood experiences in the Bahamas, his changing perceptions of his parents, how he adapts to living in the United States, his approach to acting and filmmaking, and his attitude toward fatherhood. He also shares a debate a friend and he had about the Basic Truth of Nature, a debate worth every second of reading it takes to get to.

Is THE MEASURE OF A MAN going to satisfy readers interested only in Poitier's film career? No, but I urge them to read it anyway, if for no other reason than to find out how his "spirit" influenced the films he starred in.

Books.......2007-08-21

I purchased this book for my daughter and she loved it!
She is a teacher and plans to teach this story in her English class fall 2007.
A great story with a great moral.

Never cared for the man, but his book is great........2007-08-12

I have my preferences as to actors. Poitier was never in a prominent standing. But, then neither were a few others; like John Wayne. Not saying they both weren't good actors, just two of the many I didn't watch much.
Having said that, I find Mr. Poitier's book an interesting read. I feel it was well worth the money.

[...]

The American Accent Guide, Second Edition: A Complete and Comprehensive Course on the Pronunciation and Speaking Style of American English for Individuals of All Language Backgrounds / book and 8 CDs

Average customer rating:

It's the best!
A complement to Ann Cook's American Accent Training
An Excellent Work
In terms of bang-per-buck, I think one will be hard-pressed to find a better investment.
A very good treatment of intonation

The American Accent Guide, Second Edition: A Complete and Comprehensive Course on the Pronunciation and Speaking Style of American English for Individuals of All Language Backgrounds / book and 8 CDs
Beverly A. Lujan
Manufacturer: Lingual Arts
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0963413945

Book Description

This highly sought after program with an international following provides thorough instruction on the intonation, stress, rhythm, and the sounds that work together to give American English its distinct "accent".

Produced by a speech-language pathologist with expertise at training all components of American English speech, this program imparts a wealth of insights and techniques, accompanied by clear graphics.

This new edition includes 8 CDs featuring a variety of male and female voices, and more conversational exercises. Interactive exercises use everyday language of social-casual to professional-business-technical situations.

The American Accent Guide is highly relevant to speakers of all language backgrounds who want to attain mastery on all aspects of English as commonly spoken in North America.

Customer Reviews:

It's the best!.......2007-03-14

I recently purchased this product. I haven't got immensed into it but from listening to the CDs, it's concise, and applicable to daily conversations. I especially like the fact that it used the voices of both male and female. Other products I've perused only use one gender. I would recommend this product to anyone who wants to speak standard American English.

A complement to Ann Cook's American Accent Training.......2007-01-17

I bought this book because although I can pronounce words perfectly in English, I still have some problems with intonation. I have used Ann Cook's American Accent Training but there were still things not really covered in her book. The American Accent Guide has only two chapters on the subject but the last chapter on Intonation is covered in a way that I had never seen and goes beyond Cooks' book. It's really good. I highly recommend it but if your main interest is on intonation, you should also buy the American Accent Training since the latter has more exercises on intonation. However, if you also have problems with the sounds of English, The American Accent Guide is the perfect book for you. Maybe the only one you will ever neeed. My wife who is a U.S. born American is not happy with the book because I'm really losing my Brazilian accent which she thinks is very sexy. She says I sound too much American now. Well, if you're like me, that's not a bad thing, is it? We can always work on the sexy part some other way.

An Excellent Work.......2007-01-09

This is a complete and well rounded work. Eventhough I have been living in the US for over 17 years and earned an AS and a BS, I found myself having difficulties in the pronunciation of the english words. I have gotten a lot of helps from my kids, however after applying the American Accent Guide to my daily routines for a couple months, I have been feeling a lot more confident to express myself. The digital media is professionally prepared and the speakers are pleasant and very well articulated. I used the cds in my car and also ripped them into my mp3 player to listen to when I am excercising and riding with someone.
The Accent guide has helped me to be more aware of the subtle nature of the English Language. If you would like to speak the American Idiom better and more fluently this is a great resource to have. It works!!!!

In terms of bang-per-buck, I think one will be hard-pressed to find a better investment........2007-01-05

This book and CD program provides a systematic and intuitive approach for ESL learners who wish to improve their English at their own pace. Good investment for the price.

First, my native language is Chinese. I have been in the US for six years; and have had no intensive training in English. I consider myself an average, or slightly above average, ESL learner. Like many native speakers of syllabic languages, I had a tendency to apply the stress and intonation patterns of my first language when speaking English. In addition, I used certain vowels interchangeably. Listening to radio or hiring a tutor did not help much because I still couldn't figure out what to listen for and how I should sound. I always felt uncertain when speaking English.

The American Accent Guide has definitely been a big help and is the most insightful material I have used. The lessons can work as individual modules, but if you go through them in order a few times you will see that the organization is integral to gradually raising your awareness of how the speech factors work together to form the American accent.

The American Accent Guide also does a great job in conveying the ideas through integrating visual and audio aids. The Rhythm section is a good example: the practice sentences come with markings to show the stress in sentences, and the CD walks you through sets of sentences that have the same rhythm structure, which brilliantly demonstrate the idea of how to use stress and rhythm to improve the flow of speaking. It's really a very intuitive and effective approach that helps with both speaking and listening comprehension.

Another strength of the material is that the practice sentences are quite useful in daily life, unlike many ESL textbooks with phrases that have little practical use and get boring after a few repetitions.

In short, the American Accent Guide is a well thought-out and executed study guide for ESL students of all levels One can listen to it again and again and each time learn something new to work on. In terms of bang-per-buck, I think one will be hard-pressed to find a better investment.

A very good treatment of intonation.......2006-11-23

After looking through the contents of the book and the amount of information it contained I was more than eager to buy it. After all, all that I needed for my pronunciation classes was there: comprehensive charts and graphs , streamlined layout, IPA symbols, grapheme-phoneme correspondence tables for problem areas such as the long / i / sound, and on top of that, a package with 8 CD's in a neatly-enclosed folder. Yet, oddly enough, I felt like something was missing. Then I reached the last chapters. "Boy, there's something new here," I thought. Very few authors have treated intonation this well: The attitudinal / emotional aspect of intonation is explored at length: higher pitch tones for heightened emotions and politeness. Swinging pitch inflections and slightly rising inflections for casualness. Longer pauses for the expression of meaning. So, although I think some of the sound discrimination exercises may lack creativity and sometimes fall short of raising students'awareness , the last chapters saved the day and may explain why shelling out over US$ 60 for this manual might have been a good decision after all.

Side by Side: Student Book 1, Third Edition

Average customer rating:

excellent service
Very Useful For Beginners
Side by Side: Student Book 1, Third Edition
I love "Side by Side"
SIde By Side Book 3

Side by Side: Student Book 1, Third Edition
Steven J. Molinsky , and Bill Bliss
Manufacturer: Pearson ESL
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0130267449

Customer Reviews:

excellent service.......2007-09-26

The service is faster I received the book in 3 days before the promise date..Very good service...

Very Useful For Beginners.......2007-05-15

This is a very useful book for beginners. The topics are contemporary, the pictures are engaging, and it's not overwhelming for new students who don't want to be scared away. I have book number 4.

Side by Side: Student Book 1, Third Edition.......2007-01-04

Excellent book for beginning English students. The material is presented logically, leads to great discussion topics and is useful for real life encounters.

I love "Side by Side".......2006-09-12

I was from China and started my life in the USA as a graduate student in Engineering. Although I took the TOEFL before I came to USA, my English is not good enough to express myself clearly and accurately. I decided to improve my English about 4 months ago and started to borrow some ESL books from local libraries.

About 2 weeks ago, I found four "Side by Side" books (Book 1 to Book 4) from a local library and borrowed them. Now I am working on the Book 3 and I have enjoyed every book. I believe that "Side by Side" Book 1 to Book 4 will make very good textbooks for ESL (or ESOL) programs.

SIde By Side Book 3.......2006-08-07

My wife and I have been using Side By Side since living in Japan as ESL teachers 1987-89. We used the first edition way back then. My wife still is active tutoring English to Japanese in our area of the USA and this is an excellent series for English learners. We would recommend it to anyone from any culture.

Average customer rating:

2 for 1
Life Doesn't Frighten Me
Undecided
Art Appreciation For All Ages---
Pure Bosh

Life Doesn't Frighten Me
Maya Angelou , and Jean-Michel Basquiat
Manufacturer: Stewart, Tabori and Chang
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1556702884

Customer Reviews:

2 for 1.......2007-08-12

You have two great contemporary artists combined in this book.....I plan to buy it again as I gave it to a friend who is a new grandmother.

Life Doesn't Frighten Me .......2007-05-21

This is a great book! This book is a good starting point for conversation with children in helping them talk about what might frighten them. The artists (both Maya Angelou and Jean-Michel Basquiat) both have created a unique book for all ages.

Undecided.......2007-04-22

The pictures are abstract looking and dark in tone. The book makes reference to; ghosts, bad men fighting in the dark, and cougars in the park. I'm not sure my 3 or 5 year old children had thought up these bad things on their own yet. While reading them the book I felt uneasy about the dark pictures and scary references to things they may not have even thought of before. I'm still undecided if it will be helpful in convincing them that they don't need to be afraid of life or if it will convince them that life is pretty scary and they ought to be afraid! There is one reference to 'having a lucky charm up her sleeve' that protects her from the bad stuff and also allows her to walk on the ocean floor without having to come up to breathe. Those are both useless defenses in the real world so the book doesn't offer any real reasons to not be scared of life.

Art Appreciation For All Ages---.......2006-11-19

This book is truly for both parents and children. The cadence of Angelou's poem is one that appeals to kids of all ages, even if they don't initially understand it's meaning. The artwork in it's 'stick figure form' can be appreciated by all who enjoy the complexity of Basquiat's work as well as children relating to it's color and elementary presentation. It's one of my favorite gifts, from baby showers to adult parents. If you appreciate art and culture this book is one to have in the home as well as gift to a friend.

Pure Bosh.......2006-07-13

What a deep, deep woman this Maya Angelou is. At least this book ADMITS it's for little kids, unlike a lot of her other work.

Killed Cartoons: Casualties from the War on Free Expression

Average customer rating:

Antidote to editorial timidity
Kartoons that did not see print
Wrong choice
Funny, but you don't want to laugh
Understand what you're getting

Killed Cartoons: Casualties from the War on Free Expression

Manufacturer: W. W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0393329240

Book Description

One hundred political cartoons you wanted to see, but weren't allowed to: all were banned for being too hot to handle.

Think you live in a society with a free press? These celebrated cartoonists and illustrators found out otherwise. Whether blasting Bush for his "Bring 'em on!" speech, spanking pedophile priests, questioning capital punishment, debating the disputed 2000 election, or just mocking baseball mascots, they learned that newspapers and magazines increasingly play it safe by suppressing satire.

With censored cartoons, many unpublished, by the likes of Garry Trudeau, Doug Marlette, Paul Conrad, Mike Luckovich, Matt Davies, and Ted Rall (all Pulitzer Prize winners or finalists), as well as unearthed editorial illustrations by Norman Rockwell, Edward Sorel, Anita Kunz, Marshall Arisman, and Steve Brodner, you will find yourself surprised and often shocked by the images themselves—and outraged by the fact that a fearful editor kept you from seeing them. Needed now more than ever because of a neutered press that's more lapdog than watchdog, Killed Cartoons will make you laugh, make you angry, and make you think. 100 illustrations.

Customer Reviews:

Antidote to editorial timidity .......2007-05-30

If you're disheartened by pusillanimous publishers who lack the sand to back up their writers and cartoonists when they come up with controversial material, David Wallis is your man. In his previous work, "Killed: Great Journalism Too Hot To Print," he championed journalists whose articles were decommissioned by their fearful overseers; now in KILLED CARTOONS he's back with a book that does the same for editorial cartoonists. Clever, thoughtful, and brave.

Kartoons that did not see print.......2007-05-13

What a shame these weren't printed. All were to the point, and pertinant.

Wrong choice.......2007-05-13

The Book was good enough it just wasnt quit what I was looking foward to

Funny, but you don't want to laugh.......2007-04-28

I enjoyed KILLED CARTOONS immensely. The work illustrates beautifully why political cartoons are important. (And why they're capable of generating real controversy.) What Wallis understands is that cartoons have a contradictory function. One the one hand they have to amuse the reader, and on the other, they have to upset his/her equilibrium--ideally to the boiling point. Cartoons reach us on a visceral level, which is why I found Wallis' commentary (captions, if you will) a perfect complement to them. Wallis is a witty intelligent and apparently well-informed writer. This book came to me as a gift, I just bought his KILLED: Journalism To Hot to Print, with my own money.

Understand what you're getting.......2007-04-21

For the right audience, I'm sure this is a fine work. I was not the right audience. I wanted a book that presented the cartoons, with perhaps minimal commentary, and let me decide for myself. Instead, this provides pages of commentary and, actually, very few cartoons (94 in its 282 pages - I counted). If you're looking for a treatise on the myth of freedom of the press, using a few cartoons as case studies, then by all means look at this book. Just know what it is you are buying, and know that less than a third of the pages in the book actually show the "Killed Cartoons" that the title promises.

American Accent Training: A Guide to Speaking and Pronouncing American English for Anyone Who Speaks English as a Second Language, 2nd Edition (Book and Audio CD Edition)

Average customer rating:

This is it!
The American pronunciation building
American Accent Training
american accent training
Worth for your $$

American Accent Training: A Guide to Speaking and Pronouncing American English for Anyone Who Speaks English as a Second Language, 2nd Edition (Book and Audio CD Edition)
Ann Cook
Manufacturer: Barron's Educational Series
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

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Pronounce It Perfectly in English with Audio CDs (Pronounce It Perfectly CD Packages)

ASIN: 0764173693

Book Description

The second edition of the highly acclaimed American Accent Training, now on 5 audio CDs, is for foreign-born students and business people working, traveling or studying in the United States and Canada. Through extensive intonation and pronunciation exercises, students learn how to speak with a standard American Accent. At the same time, listening comprehension improves dramatically. Supplementary materials included detailed nationality guides for eight languages (Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Spanish, French, German, Russian and Korean), access to a comprehensive website, and referral to a qualified telephone analyst for an individual diagnostic speech analysis. Also included are colored markers for written exercises, and a mirror to practice accurate pronunciation.

Customer Reviews:

This is it!.......2007-09-16

Great for English-as-a-second-language, or for those who just want to sound more American. American Accent Training is THE tool for developing your American Accent. I am American born, from the Midwest, so I bought it to help me learn how to speak better in my own native tongue. Most people don't realize that there is a unique, distinct accent that is truly American. And, contrary to popular belief, the American Accent once developed will make you sound more intelligent and confident. Most Americans want to learn Spanish or some other foreign language; I say learn your own language first before stumbling into something else!

The American pronunciation building.......2007-09-15

This book is helpful for everybody who is training his or her pronunciation and intonation. It gives you possibilities to master your pronunciation with routine practice when you follow the instructions in the book. The book helps you to hear, understand and build the music of the language. It contains helpful exercises for every sound and intonation stress. The voice and pronunciation on CD are very clear and professional. I enjoy using The American Accent Training guide.

American Accent Training.......2007-09-03

If you are looking for a book to improve your skills with speaking and pronouncing American English, then this is the book for you. The text comes with the CD-ROM that goes through everything written in the book, then provides space for the student to repeat back what has been said if the student is working on his or her own. However, it is also quite useful as a text for in-class work and one-on-one tutoring to help non-native speakers improve their American accent, with the CD-ROM providing supplemental training opportunities for the really motivated student.

The emphasis in Ann Cook's approach is to practice the vocal patterns associated with standard American English, rather than to focus on the exactly correct and distinct pronounciation of each word. In the process, students start sounding more natural to the native speakers around them, thereby increasing the students' confidence in the skills they are learning.

american accent training.......2007-09-01

this book allows me to improve my intonation and accent as like a native

speakers.

Worth for your $$.......2007-08-17

This is something you must have. If you are not a native English speaker and have been looking for a good book. This is the one. I bought so many audio books and did not feel right about it, but this one. So this is really worth for your $$.

Average customer rating:

Excellent as a Historical Text Book
Not very good...
A very useful beginners guide to American film.
Movie spoiler

American Cinema/American Culture
John Belton
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0072886277

Book Description

Ideal for Introduction to American Cinema courses, American Film History courses, and Introductory Film Appreciation courses focused on American Film, this text offers a cultural examination of the American movie-making industry, with particular attention paid to the economic and aesthetic institution of Hollywood.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent as a Historical Text Book.......2007-03-24

So, I expected this book to be a bit more fun. Unfortunately, the fun element is missing. However, in fairness, the book serves as a thorough textbook for the history of American Cinema and its techniques and various genres. I did enjoy reading about the early studio system and the vast amount of control this oligopoly held. There were some very good critiques and studies of specific films, and a bit about specific actors and actresses. Even a bit about directors. Though packed with information, the book just lacks an entertainment value that it could and should have pulled off based on the subject matter.

The different genres studied include:

Westerns
War Movies
Silent Films
Film Noire
Screwball Comedies

As well as an overall dissertation on Classical Hollywood Style and its various techniques.

Not very good..........2005-03-05

I got this book for a class on the history of cinema. Unfortunately, as the title implies, it only deals with American Cinema. If this is a book for school, check out the class to see if foreign films and film history will be discussed. This book is, again, as the title implies--one-sided. Most of the movies it discusses, gives away crucial plot-points and endings. Some movies that I've been dying to see were ruined in just one or two sentences. This book is also very puffed-up and biased (I don't know any other way of explaining it). Many times throughout the book, Belton seems like James Lipton of "Inside the Actor's Studio", and goes on and on about the greatness of Hollywood, actors, director's, and films with nothing negative to say. It's not at all critical of anything and the author frequently inserts his own interpretation of films into the general text, which I found a little pompous. The book does offer up some interesting facts about the early history and the birth of cinema, but there's something about the way this book was written that makes it hard to stay interested. I think the chapters about film genres exaggerate the importance of some of them, and neglects other genres completely, ie. Horror, Thriller, Mystery, Sci-fi, Animation, Epics, etc. Again, question the instructor and/or look at the class syllabus before siging up if this is the only book for this class. I don't believe this is a comprehensive and unbiased view of cinema and it's history.

A very useful beginners guide to American film........2003-01-08

Years ago I took an intro-level film class at a community college. This was the text for the class. It was accompanied (at least in my class) by a PBS video series that combined film clips with interviews and historical information. Going into the class I had little more than a passing interest in film and film history. But after taking that class, my passion for film has grown exponentially with each year. But back to the book, I really liked this book and highlighted my way from the front cover to the back cover. There are of course limitations to this book. Firstly, it deals only with American films. Secondly, this book barely breaks the 300-page mark - hardly a comprehensive volume. You aren't going to get any information on John Cassavetes here or anything. Now if you have a chance to use this book in conjunction with the PBS films, I think you'll do much better (in fact I think the vids even give a nod to Cassavetes), but even then please note that this material is for an INTRO-level film class, and won't be much good for someone who already knows a fair amount about American film. But with that in mind, the book still has a lot to offer someone looking to introduce themselves to film history.

The first third of the book starts with the birth of film, moves quickly on to the Hollywood studio system, and walks us through the basics of film style (camerawork, lighting, editing, etc.). The second third covers the basics of film genre; there is a chapter about film noir, one on comedies, one on war films, and one on westerns. This second section was particularly useful to me. I could read each chapter, jot down a list of promising titles, hit my local video store, and I was good to go. The third section covers American film after World War II. In this section things seem a little compressed. 110 pages for 50 years of film? A lot is lost on the cutting room floor. But there's lots to dig into all the same. There's a chapter on Hollywood during the McCarthy years (yikes!), one on film's evolution during the emergence of television, a chapter on 1960s counterculture films, one on the film school directors of the 1970s and 1980s, and finally a pretty weak chapter on film in the 1990s. Oh yeah, and at the end of the book there's a handy glossary (in case you're ever stuck on what point-of-view editing is) and a pretty thorough index.

Again, not a book for someone who already has a good feel for film history. But definitely a great resource for someone new to film studies, or for someone who has trouble finding a movie at Blockbuster on Fridays. It did a great job getting me excited about movies, and I imagine its done the same for others.... A good companion to this text (or possibly an all-out replacement of it) is Scorsese's VHS/DVD, "A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies."

Movie spoiler.......2002-10-08

This would be a great book to read if you have no intention of watching the films discussed within, or if you've already seen them. On quite a few films, it tells the whole plot, in detail, from opening to end credits.

I also don't like the prose of the author, as he excessively uses sentences "in quotations". The writing structure is very formulaic and boring. The "5 paragraph essay" format is good for high school students learning to write, but imagine an entire book written that way. I can only read it for 15 minutes before losing interest.

The book does, however, provide plenty of examples from a variety of films.

Book Description

Speak Business English Like an American is the new book & audio CD set designed to help you succeed on the job - whatever you're doing, wherever you're working. The set is great for self-study, with dozens of helpful exercises to reinforce the material.

American English speakers use many phrases and expressions on the job. If you don't know these expressions, you're left out of the conversation. You're out of it. This book & CD will help you speak business English like an American — quickly and confidently. Once you have the knack, no one can take it away from you. With this book and CD, your career will benefit for years to come.

You'll learn the idioms & expressions that you hear at work. What do your colleagues and coworkers, your customers or clients really mean? How can you use these expressions too?

Language is always changing and business English changes especially fast. That's why we've explained the most up-to-date expressions — today's business English. Now you'll be able to use these expressions, too. People will marvel at your command of English.

Customer Reviews:

A "must" for any non-native business English learner.......2007-09-06

Although many of the idioms and expressions Ms. Gillett brings to the page are typical in non-business usage, the huge number of idioms and expressions related to American business English (as opposed to British business English--in some cases they are quite different!) is an asset to any student of this subject.
The contents are grouped in chapters by common subject, e.g. Discussing a New Ad Campaign, Motivating A Co-Woker, and Conducting a Performance Review. Learning new idioms and expressions is made simple by an easy-to-read dialog that demonstrates (and can be used with a partner) the usage of each idiom, and then is followed by self- or partnered-checking and review. The accompanying CD clarifies pronunciation, rhythm, and intonation.

I highly recommend this text to all--native or non-native speakers of English--who want to fast-track themselves into usage of the American business vernacular.

My qualifications to review this book? I teach this subject, among others, at UCSC Extension.

An excellent book for improving business English.......2006-06-29

I used this book and CD system with my students, a group of adults in an ESL class at a community college. They really enjoyed it! They found the dialogues interesting and realistic. The idioms in this book are excellent. The exercises are helpful too, and we appreciated being able to go to the publisher's website (Language Success Press) and getting supplementary exercises for this book for free.

The ultimate instructive guide to the hundreds of expressions and idioms heard at the workplace daily.......2006-03-09

Enhanced with the addition of an audio CD, Speak Business Like An American is the ultimate instructive guide to the hundreds of expressions and idioms heard at the workplace daily. Amy Gillet's provides the language student wanting to gain fluency in doing business in the American marketplace with consistent, easy to use constructs that are accurate, appropriate, and effective. Speak Business English Like An American is very highly recommended for those new to the business workplace and in need of being able to communicate fluently in standard American English.

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

Average customer rating:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers
Pants on fire?
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
Very Interesting
History as Science Fiction

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 2913621058

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.

The Cinema of David Lynch : American Dreams, Nightmare Visions (Directors' Cuts)

Average customer rating:

Very good read on David Lynch
lynch debunk
adulation or criticism?
One of the Best Books on Lynch

The Cinema of David Lynch : American Dreams, Nightmare Visions (Directors' Cuts)

Manufacturer: Wallflower Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 190336485X

Book Description

David Lynch is an anomaly. A pioneer of the American 'indie' aesthetic, he also works in Hollywood and for network TV. He has created some of the most disturbing images in contemporary cinema, and produced startlingly innovative work in sound. If the consistency of his 'vision' suggests he might be approached as an auteur, defining that vision raises many questions. The essays in this collection push toward a fuller account of the cultural and technological contexts within which his works developed during the 1980s and 1990s, and of his intense engagement with the creative and working practices of the industry. They offer an up-to-date range of theoretically divergent readings that demonstrates not only the difficulty of locating stable interpretative positions for Lynch's work, but also the pleasure of finding new ways of thinking about it. Films discussed include Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart, The Straight Story, and Mulholland Drive.

Customer Reviews:

Very good read on David Lynch.......2007-07-06

I'm reading this book a 2nd time now. I would say this book is im my top three Lynch books as well and it provides a very good outline, and possibly, a key, for the way Lynch thinks. If anything, it will help you come up with more of your own conclusions. From a devoted Lynch fan, this is a great read!

lynch debunk.......2005-10-14

I gotta agree with Critic-AL... too much ink is being spilled about Lynch that reads like retread po-mo theories. I'll go with Pervert in the Pulpit too, and I'm not alone. You don't have to be a film student or academic to appreciate Johnson's heady read ... still, I think the review of Pervert by David Lancaster in the latest issue of Film and History totally sums up my thinking: "There is a slightly malicious pleasure in seeing a modish reputation being debunked, especially when the reader was mystified by the fuss in the first place. Pervert in the Pulpit is not a crude hatchet job, however. Rather, it is clear-sighted and informed, and, in true Manichean fashion, on the side of the critical angels."

adulation or criticism?.......2005-03-26

By calling Nochimson's book "amazing," [...]the problem with a lot of Lynch criticism: the audience for his films is divided between fans and serious students of cinema. As Lynch's reputation as an innovator continues to wear thin - face, it, his uneven oeuvre is not aging well - die-hard loyalists continue to gush about his, in my opnion, limited success as a cutting-edge film director. This book may be timely, but it isn't as interesting as Jeff Johnson's iconoclastic "Pervert in the Pulpit: Morality in the Work of David Lynch," which I'd recommend before any of the other, more pandering texts Joe cites.

One of the Best Books on Lynch.......2004-09-23

Is it possible for a good book of film criticism to be dominated by lavish photos and the like? Not in my experience. The closest to that is the BFI series, and those are hardly the sort of thing "a reader" is talking about. Of all the books on Lynch out there, this is probably my #3, behind Martha Nomchinson's amazing "Wild at Heart in Hollywood" and the essential "Lynch on Lynch."

The simataneous release of the paperback and hardcover editions should have clued "a reader" into the HC edition being a library edition... Don't let this person's stupidty put you off, this is one of the best books analyzing Lynch one can find.

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