Book Description
Forty years in the making, a new cultural canon that celebrates truth over hypocrisy, literature over totalitarianism.
Echoing Edward Said's belief that "Western humanism is not enough, we need a universal humanism," the renowned critic Clive James presents here his life's work. Containing over one hundred original essays, organized by quotations from A to Z, Cultural Amnesia illuminates, rescues, or occasionally destroys the careers of many of the greatest thinkers, humanists, musicians, artists, and philosophers of the twentieth century. In discussing, among others, Louis Armstrong, Walter Benjamin, Sigmund Freud, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Franz Kafka, Marcel Proust, and Ludwig Wittgenstein, James writes, "If the humanism that makes civilization civilized is to be preserved into the new century, it will need advocates. These advocates will need a memory, and part of that memory will need to be of an age in which they were not yet alive." Soaring to Montaigne-like heights, Cultural Amnesia is precisely the book to burnish these memories of a Western civilization that James fears is nearly lost. 110 photographs.
Customer Reviews:
A difficult read,but worth the time.......2007-10-01
Although this book has an intersting premise,it is a difficult book to read.It is written in essay form,and the author's style is not flowing or easy to read.However the content is interesting and does make you think about how we got where we are to-day:by losing sight of,and forgetting the past and important peope in it.
You can read this book a chapter at a time, and leave it for a while since each chapter is an essay on one person.it is not a novel,but a collection of essay/biographies, and includes some very intersting people
Absolutely Must Reading.......2007-09-15
In fairness, I had never heard of Clive James until he appeared on Bill Moyers Journal on PBS. I was just blown away and ordered this book the next day. If you want to understand Western culture ... I mean truly understand the culture in which you live, you should read this book. What you learn here is that a whole lot of people you never heard of and a few you have made monumental contributions that you didn't know about. This is the kind of book every person should have in their library as a reference. You can read it at leisure and you should. You should savor it.
Read it at your own perill.......2007-09-11
If you never studied French, German, Italian or Spanish, you will be sorry you didn't. You will be made aware of all you are missing because you can not read the all those untranslated or untranslatable important writers that are fundamental to our civilization. If you know them you will see that for English speakers is very difficult not to be confused by Spanish and Italian. I have found misspelled Spanish words because the Italian spelling was used in the wrong place. Clive James is almost pushing me to start again with German, French and Italian.
convoluted writing.......2007-09-04
just found what I've read so far very digressive and convoluted. He is a much better speaker than writer. haven't given it a full read, but am daunted by the many digressions from the points I'm interested in. don't care about 10 other people whom I may or may not know who really don't have relevance to the person I'm reading about.
Unsurpassed both for content and style.......2007-09-01
This is an amazing book. Clive James was only a dim sound in my limited background before the book was presented to me as a present. When I finished this book, I made the unusual promise to myself to read it again, an unusual decision since I am not thoroughly committed to modern writing and have found nothing that quite measures up to it, either traditional or modern. The essays, it is made clear, were not written at the same time, but were the accumulation of some years of reading and study. The casual reader will be introduced to a number of people hitherto unknown or barely known, mixed in with giants like Tacitus, Keats, Proust, Kafka, the three Manns,and Camus. I cannot ignore James's prose style, which astonishes minute by minute. A must-read for anybody interested in history and the arts.
Book Description
Marian Keyes has introduced readers to the lives, loves, and foibles of the five Walsh sisters -- Claire, Maggie, Rachel, Helen, and Anna -- and their crazy mammy. In this funny, heartbreaking, and triumphant new tale set in the Big Apple, it's Anna's turn in the spotlight.
Life is perfect for Anna Walsh. She has the "Best Job in the World" as a PR exec for a top-selling urban beauty brand, a lovely apartment in New York, and a perfect husband -- the love of her life, Aidan Maddox. Until the morning she wakes up in her mammy's living room in Dublin with stitches in her face, a dislocated knee, and completely smashed-up hands -- and no memory of how she got there. While her mammy plays nursemaid (just like all of her favorite nurses on her soaps), and her sister Helen sits in wet hedges doing her private investigator work for Lucky Star PI, Anna tries to get better and keeps wondering why Aidan won't return her phone calls or e-mails.
Recuperating from her injuries, a mystified Anna returns to Manhattan. Slowly beginning to remember what happened, she sets off on a search to find Aidan -- a hilarious quest involving lilies (she can't stop smelling them), psychics, mediums, and anyone in the city who can promise her a reunion with her beloved. . . .
Written in her classic style, marrying the darker parts of life with humor and wit, Anybody Out There? is Marian Keyes's best novel to date, a wonderfully charming look at love here and ever after.
Customer Reviews:
Her best yet!.......2007-09-10
I just finished devouring all 4 Walsh sister books, and this one has Marian Keyes at the top of her game. You can really see her grow as a writer from each book to the next. This particular one puts her as a master of tapping into the reader's emotions. You feel every ounce of Anna's pain - I think I cried the whole way through (I needed it).
This book has Marian on the threshold of breaking out of the chick-lit constraints. I recommend starting with Watermelon, on to Rachel's Holiday, then Angels, then Anybody Out There? - you'll get a better feel for the characters, and it makes this book a great read since you're already involved with the characters. Anna is introduced as a flighty teen in Watermelon, but we see her grow into a sweet, sensitive woman in Rachel's Holiday & Angels.
While this is her hardest hitting, it does still fit into the beach-read category. But get them all at once, you'll want to tear through each quick-read novel one after another.
We're Running Out of Walsh Sisters!!.......2007-09-05
Only Helen's left now! I don't know what I'll do when Marian runs out of Walsh girls!!! Hoprfully she will lead them all on further adventures. This one was the saddest of the lot but just as wonderful to read Marian just keeps honing her craft and getting better and better. I want a sequel to find out when Anna gets her second happy ending!
Keyes' Best Novel Yet.......2007-08-21
I just finished reading "Anybody Out There?" five minutes ago and had to get on-line and tell the world how much I enjoyed it. I have read all of Keyes' novels and I enjoy the Walsh sister sagas immensley. But this novel was different. I don't know if it was the subject matter, or how it was written, but the humor, emotional aspects, and narrative were all absolutely wonderful. I highly recommend it and hope others are able to love it as much as I do!
I'm ready for Helen.....
The Walsh Sisters Return, Changed, But Lovable as Always........2007-08-21
Marian Keyes returns to the source of her best work, the Walsh sisters, in this novel. This is the story of Anna Walsh, the second youngest of the Walsh sisters. I've been reading Ms. Keyes' work for about 5 years now, and have laughed and cried with every one of the Walsh sisters. In my opinion, RACHEL'S HOLIDAY is Ms. Keyes' best work, with ANGELS following close behind.
Though Keyes returns to the Walsh sisters in this novel, this book somehow doesn't have the charm of her earlier work. We, her devoted readers, had been introduced to Anna Walsh in 3 earlier novels. She had long, untamed hair, an unfocused air about her, and wore long flowing skirts and smoked a lot of pot. She was a mellow hippie in a houseful of melodramatic sisters (and mother - let's not forget the always hilarious Mammy Walsh). I had always looked forward to reading about Anna's story, so I was thrilled when I saw ANYBODY OUT THERE? getting published.
And yet, Anna has lost her sweet, and sometimes foolish, innocence. Sure, that's all part of growing up, and I wouldn't want to see a character remain stagnant, but I had always been an Anna fan over the years, and I was disturbed to find her so changed in these pages. A marketing executing for cosmetics? Anna? Really? Where had the loopy Walsh sister gone? Rather than being allowed to see her transformation into the businesswoman she was by the time this book opens, the reader was simply forced to accept, very early on, that she'd "grown up" and out of her previous fashion mistakes.
Ah well. Despite my complaints that Ms. Keyes didn't stay true to the character of Anna in this book, this novel was otherwise filled with her usual skill. It was funny, and incredibly poignant. We got to see Anna Walsh in love, and I'll admit that I fell in love right alongside her. We saw more of Helen's and Mammy's outrageous exploits, and Keyes followed up on several story lines that she began years ago with WATERMELON, RACHEL'S HOLIDAY, and ANGELS. Despite my early discomfort at the change in Anna's character, I found myself swept up in the story, and finished the book in a couple days of just reading after work.
Definitely worth buying and I will continue to read Ms. Keyes' books as long as she continues to write them.
Complete-absolute-shockingly great!.......2007-08-20
I read sushi for beginners and was looking for a light read when things got a little slow. It took me like 5 days to really begin reading past page 20 just because of the constant noise around me.
Once I got started, I could NOT stop.
It is such an honest and insightful book that it was even hard considering this a chick-lit read.
I don't review books, but if you are looking for a book that will make you reflect on how you live life, laugh outloud and cry then this is the book for you.
Anyway, this is an very good read. For any woman over the age of 18.
Average customer rating:
- ENJOYABLE???
- 3 1/2 stars.
- It's an OK book to read!
- Good characters, so-so love story
- sensational read
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Until You
Judith McNaught
Manufacturer: Pocket Books
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A Kingdom of Dreams
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Something Wonderful
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Whitney, My Love
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Almost Heaven
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Once and Always
ASIN: 0671880594 |
Book Description
New York Times bestselling author Judith McNaught sweeps readers from the wilds of America to elegant 1820s London in this unforgettable romantic adventure.
A teacher in a school for wealthy young ladies, Sheridan, Bromleigh is hired to accompany one of her students, heiress Charise Lancaster, to England to meet her fiancé. When her charge elopes with a stranger, Sheridan wonders how she will ever explain it to Charise's intended, Lord Burleton.
Standing on the pier, Stephen Westmoreland, the Earl of Langford, assumes the young woman coming toward him is Charise Lancaster -- and informs her of his inadvertent role in a fatal accident involving Lord Burleton the night before. And just as Sheridan is about to speak, she steps into the path of a cargo net loaded with crates!
Sheridan awakens in Westmoreland's mansion with no memory of who she is; the only hint of her past is the puzzling fact that everyone calls her Miss Lancaster. All she truly knows is that she is falling in love with a handsome English earl, and that the life unfolding before her seems full of wondrous possibilities...
Customer Reviews:
ENJOYABLE???.......2007-06-03
I gave this book 4 stars because I like the parts about Whitney and Clayton. Since reading Whitney My Love I just couldn't get enough of them. Stephen was so much better in that book that I was hoping he would come out in this the same way but I never really felt that. He got mad at Whitney for doing the same things that he did in WML (like trying to get Clayton just to listen to her before he married someone else) So Whitney was going about it the same way. I notice alot of same situations in this book. She never seem to be jealous of the other women they should of had a throw down at that party. The first parts about her past I thought drag on and on. She should of meet up with her relatives in England when she ran away maybe she could of been as rich as him. All and all I enjoyed the book I guess I just think of ways that it could of been better. I really love Judith McNaughts books this is my third so I'm going to read Once and Always and Something Wonderful. Then I am going to reread this one I believe that I read them out of order. After WML I had to find out what happened to Stephen, now I know....
3 1/2 stars. .......2007-05-15
Having read almost all of JM's books, I wasn't impressed with this as much as the others. I found myself skimming through a lot of the dialogue and it just wasn't holding my attention. Some of the romance seemed forced, a lot of the time I felt JM trying to convince us about their love, instead of letting the characters reveal that to us themselves. Here's s run down of the plot...Sheridan, a governess is sailing to Englad from America with a young lady, Charise, who is to wed a Baron. Only, the young lady Charise jumps ship mid voyage to elope with another man. Sheridan is now forced to face the Baron and tell him of the news and is scared he will not believe her and fears she'll be thrown in a dungeon for letting Charise get away. Little does she know the Baron is dead, killed, accidentally by the Earl of Langford, Stephen Westmoreland. (Clayton's brother from Whitney). Stephen shows up at the dock to meet Charise and to guiltily tell her of the terrible news when off walks Sheridan and she is hit in the head and gets amnesia. Stephen, never seeing Charise before, assumes Sheridan is Charise and feels guilty, again, and decides to take her up in his home while she recovers. Only, once she wakes he tells her he is her fiance and that her name is Charise (because he doesn't know any different) so she doesn't feel alone and more scared than she already is having lost her memory. From there the story unfolds. Stephen begins to fall in love with her as does she, as she struggles to remember who she is and she thinks he's her beloved fiance. This story sounds good but there are things that bugged me. For instance, Stephen once and for all decides to put an end to the charade by finding her a suitor and possible husband so he enlists his family to come up with names and they have this elaborate scheme to see that she meets new men. Sounds like a good storyline? I thought so too, because then he'd be jealous and we'd get to see just how tormented he'll become until finally he realizes that he truly loves her and blah blah. Well, the very night of her coming out, he changes his mind and right after the party says you're marrying me and that's that. Where's the drama and the build up and all that makes a romance a romance? Sorry, I'm getting carried away. The point is this had the potential to be GREAT. It was just ok in my book, but that's just my opinion. Don't get me wrong, there are a few tender and poignant moments in the book. I just wish it were cleaned up and edited a bit for better enjoyment and suspense. I guess I'm comparing it to her others that I love so well. Please read it and see for yourself, many others have enjoyed it.
It's an OK book to read!.......2007-04-06
I liked the book but there's just part of the book that is kind of dragging. The misunderstanding between the two people in the book, as i think, can be prevented. I have not experience any temporary amnesia and or have known someone with it so I really cannot know what kind of reaction they will have when they recover their memories but I think, for the heroine instead of running away which in my point of view is a sign of being guilty or have done something wrong, she could've stayed and just deal with whatever consequences may occur. As for the hero, I do not understand why he said or thought in one part of the book that "she's dead to me" and the anger that he felt for her while he is as guilty as all of them are. He pretended, lied to her, have his family lied to her for him and he have some guts to get so angry at her to the point that he cannot stand being near someone that remind him of her - like Burleton's elderly butler so he sent him away to his brother's house to work there instead of his. Anyway, it still is a good book to read, not because I found fault with it does not mean that it is a blah book. Whitney my Love is still better and Kingdom of Dreams the best!!!
Good characters, so-so love story.......2007-02-18
I guess I just hate it when some ridiculous "misunderstanding" crops up near the end of a romance novel that forces the lovers apart, and miraculously all is forgiven and rectified somehow by magic in the end. It's uncharacteristic of human beings, and really flaws the tale. I just couldn't get past it. Plus I was terribly disappointed that all of Sherry's riding & outdoor talents were barely expressed in the experience with Langford. What a waste. It was also disappointing that Sherry's Papa & Rake show up for one little page in the wrap-up. I kind of agree with the other reviewer who said the real Charise Lancaster should have gotten her comeuppance! What a brat.
sensational read.......2007-01-14
this story holds your attention and the characters are interesting enough to want to follow through to the end in this must read novel
Book Description
Her first novel, Topping from Below, was a cause celebre of erotic fiction. Now, in Panic Snap, Laura Reese once again crosses the boundary between pleasure and pain with a story of extreme sexual obsession and one family's terrible secret.The accused murderess in a sensational trial, Carly Tyler waits outside a California courtroom as a jury decides her fate: Is she the depraved Madame de Sade of the newspaper headlines or the innocent victim of one wealthy family's gothic past? Left for dead by the side of a road fifteen years earlier, she emerged from a coma with no memory and a face completely altered by the plastic surgery need to repair her injuries. Who is she and what happened to her? The trail leads her to a magnificent vineyard and its mysterious owner, James McGuane, a man of wealth and immense sexual charisma who holds the key to her past. But to unlock it, she must risk her life on a terrifying erotic journey that tears apart a dynasty and reveals the truth about an appalling murder.
Customer Reviews:
(2.5).......2006-08-11
I read this one immediately after the author's first novel, Topping from Below. Perhaps I would have liked Panic Snap better if Topping from Below hadn't been so fresh in my mind, because the first thing I noticed was that the plot was pretty much the same. Woman, trying to solve a heinous crime, enters into a Dom/sub relationship with the prime suspect in order to glean clues.
And as before, he doles out the clues slowly, over a period of months, so that he can gradually break down her psychological barriers and make her submit utterly to him. As before, be warned that the sexual scenes are not for the squeamish, though thankfully she mostly left out the bestiality this time.
In addition to the too-similar plot, I also found this novel disappointing on the level of character. I don't know why, but I never felt that I knew Carly, James, and Gina the way I knew Nora, M., and Franny. I believe Topping is by far the better book.
A Breach of Promise.......2005-03-22
This book is one of those clear cases of breach of promise, where the blurbs promise you the world, and you wonder if the learned critics have actually read the book.
The author uses a mixture of suspense, drama and revenge as a vehicle for her clinically described rough stuff, and tries to push as much of it as possible into the story, until the repetition has the reader crying out in pain. Maybe this is the objective, because by the end of the book, I felt like I had been soundly whipped by an amateur.
Following the pattern of B grade porn, the weak storyline tells of a woman who emerges from a coma after having been left for dead, and who, despite suffering from amnesia, tracks down the man who she feels tries to kill her fifteen years earlier. The plot twists can be seen from a distance, so the only reason for reading this would be for the sadomasochism, which to be honest, gets boring very quickly.
No erotic novel should have the reader turning the pages just hoping for the end. As far as erotic fiction goes, this one is a cold shower.
Amanda Richards, March 22, 2005
Disappointing.......2004-08-24
Topping From Below was much more interesting. Panic snap has a slow start and not much to keep the pages turning. Somewhat disappointing.
Rawr!.......2004-02-19
I enjoyed this book and thought it was a pretty creative bend on the whole domination/submission s&m type thing. All in all, the "mystery" got a little tedious...Laura Reese has sort of a Dean Koontz writing style wherein you want to reach in and smack the main character for being such a knob about things that are completely obvious to the reader. The erotic bits of this book were absolutely haunting, however...stuff that sticks with you for a long time, be it good or bad! Unfortunately, I read this book prior to reading Ms. Reese's first book (Topping from Below) and ended up sorely disappointed in that book. If you've read Topping from Below, don't bother with this one at all. They're nearly the same book, with the exception being that "M" or "Michael" in Topping From Below is easily, incredibly hate-able. There's a finer line with the male lead character in Panic Snap. He's less hate-able...but still not terrifically like-able.
For folks who want to make the argument about the portrayal of the s&m lifestyle in Ms. Reese's books, I have this to say: No one said these were MANUALS. They're works of FICTION and last time I checked, FICTION didn't have to follow any rules because it's, well, MADE UP!
At any rate, it's an enjoyable read as an erotic novel. As a mystery novel, well, it really leaves a lot to be desired.
Another disturbing edition.......2004-01-17
I am not straightlaced or prudish (why would I read this book if I were?) but the activities represented in this novel as erotic only made me feel ill. Are there really people that find the use of farm animals in sex play exciting? Okay, maybe I am naive to some degree, but that is just plain icky! Reading this book is like looking at road kill, somewhat compelling but still an unhappy experience.
Customer Reviews:
Well Worth Reading.......2004-11-21
I went to a lot of trouble to locate this book in another town's library. It was well worth the effort.
Velikovsky endured scathing abuse by the scientific community for his unconventional theories merging cosmology, geology, archeology and mythology. Despite his serious research to support his theories, he was proclaimed unqualified to discuss subjects outside his field of medicine.
Well, the ideas set forth in this book cannot be dismissed by similar claims. Velikovsky was, by training, a psychoanalyst trained by a student of Freud, eminently qualifying him to discuss the possibility that our species has repressed the memories of earth-shaking events too terrible and frightening to acknowledge.
It gives one a new perspective on the vicious denunciations of Velikovsky's unorthodox theories by mainstream scientists. Just why did the scientific community find Velikovsky and his ideas so threatening? Read this book and you may wonder if Velikovsky was really onto something.
The Perils of Pauline.......2000-05-09
Mankind in Amnesia, (Doubleday, New York, 1982) by Immanuel Velikovsky
Dr. Velikovsky gave us the controversial best seller "Worlds in Collision" (1950), and sequels on the same theme including "Ages in Chaos" (1952) and "Earth in upheaval" (1955). "Mankind in Amnesia" is the first of several to be published posthumously and it develops the thesis addressed in his other books, namely the catastrophic history of our planet-so traumatic that the human race has rejected it from memory and refuses to face evidence of it. He postulates near collisions between Earth and Venus and other bodies.
Velikovsky, a Russian-born Jewish psychiatrist, uses his theory to justify a literal reading of the Exodus. The miraculous events (the parting of the Red Sea, manna from Heaven, etc.) he ascribes to natural causes.
He was quite a salesman. Although his formal education, gained throughout Europe, was in medicine, obviously his great interest was astronomy, cosmology, geology and the architectonics of the universe. And his writing has had an impact on those who pursue knowledge in those areas. The late Buckminster Fuller, inventor of the geodesic dome, said of the book, "...an extraordinarily important book, beautifully researched and devastatingly true." Or, so he is quoted on the dust jacket. The late Carl Sagan, on the other hand, calls his approach "shoddy, ignorant and doctrinaire," and strongly implies that his scientific understanding is sadly lacking (Broca's Brain, Random House, N.Y., 1974.)
So, Velikovsky's theories, to put it mildly, are not universally embraced by his peers. Nevertheless, this is a good book. He has a good vocabulary and he uses it enchantingly and persuasively to sell his great idea. It is a book for the literate person who relishes new ideas and fresh approaches to old ones.
Joseph Pierre,
Author of THE ROAD TO DAMASCUS: Our Journey Through Eternity
Book Description
From the Exodus to the crucifixion the Bible records a struggle between two worldviews: the dominator system and partnership ways. God favors partnership ways, but the dominator system is a formidable opponent. Its agents are often the powerful, the rich and the religious. Indeed, an alliance of such people crucified Jesus. The irony is that we cannot understand the Bible because we read it as if God favors the dominator system! Biblical Amnesia corrects this fatal flaw. In the process, we glimpse alternatives to the ways of life we now painfully life.
Customer Reviews:
A Much Needed Paradigm Shift.......2005-11-07
Scott Gustafson brings to light an important and exciting new approach to understanding the Bible that is dynamite. His insights make the biblical message an important social and political statement that confronts the timeless hypocrisy of those in power. It really makes you think. It stirs the soul. It's the kind of thing that puts steel in faith. This author makes it clear how much we have forgotten. But it's not too late to learn that what was forgotten can makes all things new.
Biblical Amnesia.......2005-09-06
President Bush needs to read this book, (or have someone read it to him).
Biblical Amnesia: A Forgotten Story of Redemption.......2004-11-17
Scott Gustafson in clear and easy to read language speaks about some startling ideas that are found in scripture, but which have been forgotten due to our cultural relgion covering up the message of the Bible. The fact that morality comes as a result of the human fall into sin, and is a force for death, rather than life, was a new way for me of seeing the context of the Biblical writings. He makes use of the work of Raine Eisler to define dominator and partnership ways and shows how the scriptures both Old and New Testament are examples of a partnership model trying to survive in a dominator system. This book would be helpful to anyone who is working on models of change both in the church, as well as any political organization. Anyone in a position of power in an organization would find it useful in defining a role that has as it purpose, the fostering of partnerships rather than autoritarian relationships.
Average customer rating:
- Very good sci-fi/horror/detective/family life novel
- What a concept - couldn't put it down!
- Way off the mark
- The best Koontz book ever.
- TOTALLY CREEPY WITH TIME TRAVEL & ENDEARING CHARACTERS
|
The Bad Place
Dean Koontz
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Contemporary
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Hideaway
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ASIN: 0399134980 |
Book Description
Frank Pollard develops a fear of sleep because each time he wakes he finds strange and frightening objects in his hands and pockets.
Detective team Bobby and Julie Dakota agree to investigate where Frank goes when he sleeps. They encounter an ominous figure stalking Frank and ultimately learn that bad places exist in the world of the living; places so steeped in evil that, in contrast, death seems almost a relief...
Customer Reviews:
Very good sci-fi/horror/detective/family life novel.......2007-09-12
I'm sure the Messrs Koontz and King hate to hear this, but their novels do read alike. I mean that as a high compliment, since King's been a favorite of mine for years, while I've just started reading Koontz.
This novel's a great mix (see title above), and keeps you engaged to the end.
My only niggle is that the good guys are mostly just a bit too good - almost more like GI Joe cutouts than real people. IMHO, the bad guys are more believable bad guys than good guys are believable good guys. But maybe that's old age and cynicism talking.
What a concept - couldn't put it down!.......2007-09-08
Koontz shows again why he is one of the masters of the horror/thriller genre with "The Bad Place." When a man wakes up face-down in an alley with nothing but a flight bag, he has no memory of where he came from, why he is there or why he feels that he is running from someone. He can only remember his name - Frank Pollard - and a haunting phrase: Fireflies in a windstorm. And he knows that there is someone near from whom he must escape. When he does escape and find a place to hide, he discovers the bag is full of money. He discovers that any time he sleeps, he wakes up with evidence that he has been somewhere in his sleep - clenching sand in his hands; blood all over himself; bags of money or gems. Finally he hires detectives Bobby and Julie Dakota to watch over him and discover who he is and where he goes while he is sleeping, as well as figure out why he has two different sets of identification - neither of them with his real name.
That is where things get weird. But I don't want to spoil the book for you! I'll just tell you that the plot outlined above is only part of the story - there is a sub-plot involving a serial killer that apparently bites the victims and drinks their blood.
Always creepy, sometimes scary, and often quite moving, Koontz is a master with using the English language to create a sense of excitement in his readers. I highly recommend this book for those who enjoy a good horror novel or a good thriller.
Way off the mark.......2007-07-28
We found this book long and hard to get through. There is a lot of graphic and pointless gore the main characters teleport all around but then the book tries to make them normal in most other respects. This was just too much of a stretch for our feeble minds.
The best Koontz book ever. .......2007-07-16
This book will make all who read it become an instant Koontz fan. It will let you in on Dean's style of writing. He uses reality with a twist to draw you into his world, leaving his readers wanting more Koontz style of writing. This is an outstanding book that the reader will want to read more than once. Enjoy this book and look forward to the next Koontz book that you will excited to read.
Jim Z.
TOTALLY CREEPY WITH TIME TRAVEL & ENDEARING CHARACTERS.......2007-07-09
I was very pleased with this Dean Koontz book. I'm an avid Dean Koontz fan and I love stories about vampires and other supernatural beings. I had a hard time putting this book down. The actual hero of this book, in my opinion, is a down-syndrome young man. The main characters are a married couple working to save up money their "dream". The bad guy is truly horrifying and his sick, sick, sick family (their mother is to blame) is just as horrifying. I'm a cat lover though and didn't like the cats thrown in as psychic monsters. There's a lot of violence and sexual perversity thrown in, so it's not suitable for younger readers. It was a great read for me though. I highly recommend this book if you can handle the violence.
Book Description
Following the publication of Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace and Dreaming War comes award-winning Gore Vidal's long-awaited conclusion to his landmark, best-selling trilogy. Now, Vidal has written his most devastating exploration of Imperial America to date. "Not since the 1846 attack on Mexico in order to seize California" Vidal writes, "has an American government been so nakedly predatory." Bush's apparent invincibility, and what he might or might not know—especially about those new "black box" voting machines being installed all over the country—is one of the central themes of "State of the Union 2004," a magnificent and witty Olympian survey of American Empire, where the war on terror is judged as nonsensical as the "war on dandruff," where America is an "Enron-Pentagon prison," a land of ballooning budget deficits thanks to the growth of a garrison state, tax cuts for the privileged, and the creeping totalitarianism of the Ashcroft justice department. Collected in this volume are Vidal's earlier State of the Union addresses, a tradition inaugurated on the David Susskind show in the early seventies as a counterpoint to "whoever happened to be president."
Customer Reviews:
A Real Patriot.......2007-08-18
Mr. Gore has an in depth and uncanny view of American Politics and he is right on. Would that we could have leaders such as Mr. Gore running the Country. I can only dream of what could have been while I suffer the ineptitude and greed of modern day politicians. We need more like Mr. Gore who can stir the masses and demand change.
I'm a Believer.......2007-06-01
I'm over 55 and I thought I knew about our government and about Gore Vidal. 40 years ago, I dismissed him as a "queer", as he was called by William F. Buckley. Big mistake.
I don't believe everything I read and I'm not easily impressed. But after reading "Imperial America", now I'm a believer in what Gore Vidal has been saying for a very long time- that America is no longer a Republic, but an Empire and that the interests of "The People" do not drive our elected officials.
This book will make you feel like the wool the government has been pulling over your eyes for the past 50 years is 50% dacron!
Required reading for every concerned American- I wonder how many are out there.
Thought provoking.......2007-04-12
It seems almost inevitable that associated with every fact is a level of fiction. So rather than argue "the facts" or regurgitate them, let us instead argue their relevancy to the state of American society today. In that vein, this book was personally very relevant. Although I fail to agree with every problem cited and/or proposals for their solution, I wholeheartedly agree with its overall assessment for our malaise.
This book expresses an intelligent and insightful perspective of our state of American governance. To ignore this message because we do not agree with all it says or how it says it does us a disservice. Even though three quarters of the book is composed of articles published during the eighties, I feel collectively that they are no less relevant today then they were then. Reading this book has broadened my perspective and I encourage everyone to read it.
In a word...Brilliant !!.......2007-03-19
Gore Vidal does a brilliant job at pointing out how our "Republic" has turned into an Empire as expansive and militaristic as Rome in the first century and Britain in the nineteenth. He has a keen eye and is a wonderful observer. It is amazing that more Americans will not wake up and smell the coffee. Face it, America is an Empire! America is the 21st century Rome! And Mr. Vidal does a fantastic job at describing and detailing how we have arrived at as the Empire that we are.
However, there is one discrepancy that I have with Mr. Vidal's thesis. Mr. Vidal, who is very patriotic, does his best to try and explain ways in which the American Empire can return to a Republic. In other words, he does a good job at explaining that the world is round (that America is an Empire)but still has the attitude that it is flat (that is still Republic in spirit and will become a Republic once again). I believe that the American Empire will fall very soon - within a matter of five years - as the Prophet Joseph Smith predicted in Nauvoo. I believe that the only stable institution that can and will survive the coming anarchy (see Robert D. Kaplan's book) is the theocratic Kingdom of God (see my personal portfolio). As Francois-Marie Arouet, Voltaire, said it best, "I disagree with what comes out of you pen, but I would defend to the death your right to write it."
As I said before, I believe that Mr. Vidal does a great job at defining that America is an Empire, but that is it. I think that it is too late for the American Empire. It will crash and burn HARD! Mind you, I did not say the people. I believe completely that the people living in the American Empire, and the people in the rest of the world for that matter, can easily repent and return to Jesus Christ the Lord.
So all in all, a great observation on the American Empire. Four out of five stars.
"Power Corrupts, and Abosolute Power Corrupts Absolutely.......2007-02-22
Gore Vidal's anthology titled IMPERIAL AMERICA is an anthology of essays written between 1980s and c. 2004. While these essays may seem dated to those with short memories,the theme of unbridled power, media lying, and the outer limits of hypocrisy are the same even though the "actors" are different.
Vidal cites historical anecdotes and comments from the Founding Fathers about the perils of political power. According to Vidal, American drive toward imperial power and central power began with the Civil War or the War of Southern Secession or the War of Southern Independence. The basic synamic of this war was that Northern Bankers made considerale money and have ever since became more greedy and powerful.
Vidal's description of the Spanish-American War includes the bloody suppression of the people of the Phillipines who were promised independence in 1898 only to have such promises and oaths revoked. The subsequent war of suppression which probably lasted from 1898 to 1902 costing over 200,000 lives.
Vidal's description of the Cold War is as clear a presentation of trends and events as this reviewer has read. What U.S. authorities could have gained by policy, they tried to get by military force. Vidal explains that the reasons for this use of force was/is to enhance arms executives, oil executives, and bankers at the expense of U.S. taxpayers.
Many times U.S. citizens are not alert to the "Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace" trends because journalists and yes, historians repeat the same distortions and lies. Due to corportate executives controlling newpapers and other media sources, journalists, and academicians have "sold their soul" to please corporate masters and bankers. If one reflects on sensationalist news stories for the past 60 years, he/she will discover that most of these stories were lies, exaggerations, and distoritions. When some honest historians corrected any of these distoritions, the corrections got little or no attention. Or, anyone who made such an honest effort was badly smeared by "offical panals" of liars in the absence of the person in question. In fact, this is exactly what happened to Vidal himself. The montior of the panal was Roger Mudd (Mud?) who made all sorts of accusations against Vidal when Vidal was not on the panal to defend himself. The fact is Roger Mudd is a coward.
Vidal gives clear evidence of unbridled power and hypocrisy. He also suggests means of ending the corrpution of a centralized police state. He suggests a return to the concept of federalism and uses the examle of the Swiss. Notice the Swiss stay out of war and have high living standards. Vidal suggests that U.S. citizens could locate in areas that satisfy their cultural and social preferences.
One feature of Vidal's essays that should catch readers' attention is his criticism of the U.S. Supreme Court justices whom Vidal accuses of giving legal sanction to what is otherwise illegal and unconstitutional. This trend has only accelerated since the 1980s, and Vidal presents brief but concise explanations of these Supreme Court decisions.
While some may think some of these essays are redundant, they need to be. Those with short memories need repeated reminders of serious problems or, as the subtitle of the book reads REFLCETIONS ON THE UNITED STATES OF AMNESIA. Vidals depth of knowledge and writing style make these essays well worth reading.
Average customer rating:
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Hypnosis and Memory
Manufacturer: The Guilford Press
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0898623383 |
Book Description
The rapid growth of interest in the role of hypnosis for memory
enhancement has generated a significant amount of experimental work in recent years. This book is the first to provide in a single volume a comprehensive discussion of the conceptual and methodological foundations underlying studies of hypnosis and human memory. Written by leading figures in psychology and psychiatry, chapters explore the effects of hypnosis upon recall while integrating both forensic and clinical case examples.
Book Description
A widely consulted and quoted authority on trauma takes up the controversial topic of repressed memories, presenting seven riveting cases of people whose lives changed forever when they reclaimed forgotten memories.
Customer Reviews:
Brilliant Work - Brilliant Book.......2007-07-26
I must say that this book is one of the most helpful, brilliant, and critical pieces of work, I have come across. To the survivor who had to repress or dissociate their trauma, Dr. Terr combines deep compassion with scientific evidence, to help the trauma survivor validate their unchained memories, when they come alive... If you are reading this, Dr. Terr: I salute your brilliant, compassionate work that has helped me on a very deep level. A MUST READ! -Rebecca
The secret life we keep inside.......2007-03-01
Terr's book is an astonishing look at the secret life we live inside our unconscious mind. Meticulously researched, thoroughly explained, this book should be required reading for every serious student of human motivation, psychology, criminology, and social science. I am both a therapist and a writer, and found high adventure and thought-provoking science in Terr's true-life accounts of traumatic memory. This is an invaluable resource, a unique contribution to the field of human understanding. Readable, engaging, and powerful!
An important book for many reasons........2005-11-07
In 1990 Lenore Terr was a hero for helping Eileen Franklin uncover the repressed memories of her father killing her best friend. Terr's testimony was seen as a victory over "False Memory Advocate" Elizabeth Loftus who was an expert for the defense.
George Franklin was convicted and sent to prison in 1990 due to the details of his daughter's "repressed memories." It is important to note however, that advances in DNA technology led to DNA tests in 1996 which cleared George Franklin, showing that he could not have been the murderer. He was released from prison.
Today this book stands as a great example of the functions and dysfunctions of memory, and the incredible danger in putting faith in anything "retrieved" via hypnosis.
The Terr vs Loftus battle has definitely shifted in the last decade. Terr's books are frequent finds on the shelves of used book stores, while the works of Loftus must be purchased new.
Excellent and Informative.......2004-07-10
I finished the book yesterday and my copy is now highlighted and bookmarked. This book is a compelling read on trauma and its effects on memory. Terr writes about her interviews and court cases with several adults abused/traumatized as children. The cases are fascinating and dispersed throughout the book are studies, findings, and a great deal of information about how the mind works and what happens to thoughts and memories when trauma surrounds them.
An Incredibly Important Book..........1999-12-30
I have written about the same subject, i.e. Traumatic experience in childhood and repression in my review on Lenore Terr's other book, " Too Scared to Cry ".
Unchained Memories is a very important work, as it shows different real-life cases. After reading the book one can make their own judgement about whether repression is a real phenomenom. ( I know from first hand experience that it is real and that we can repress old petrifying experiences that are banished from everyday conciousness.) Please read this book and try and raise your awareness about what is real and what isn't real in the world. There are so many myths being promoted by those in positions of power that for many people it is hard to tell what is real and what isn't.
If the world and it's peoples continue to drift into this anaethetized fog they will perish. Denial, Lies, Deceit, Manipulation of the Truth and Abuse of Power seem to be winning in the world, but the victory of those that keep pushing the suppression of the real root causes of society's problems will be a hollow one.
One day, gentleness, honesty, loyalty, compassion and inner peace may transcend the " power " energies of the world.
Awareness - Peace - Love - Unity in Diversity
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