ERA Reviews

This is a study in which the interviewer is from the same background as the subjects. (I forgot the anthropological term for that.) In this study, Higgonbotham asks black women who went to predominantly-White, Northeastern colleges how they got there, how was it, and how did it affect their lives afterward. The book is written in a style that is scholarly but not impenetrable to non-academic readers. But here's the shocker. This book does very little comparing black women to their black male siblings or their white female peers. Most of this book compares the choices and actions of middle-class black women to working-class counterparts. Really, this book was more a labor studies text, than a women's studies or African-American studies one. Further, with the exception of the occasional mention of Patricia Hills Collins, there is no mention of black feminist/womanist thinkers. I wish too that the author didn't make up cheesy names to keep the universities attended hidden. But I enjoyed this book. I think I'm going to give it to my mother as a present. If white women can have Miriam Horn's "Rebels in White Gloves", why can't sisters have an equivalent? Though dated, this book is an excellent edition to books such as Takagi's "The Retreat from Race" and Garrod's "First Person, First Peoples" that look at the lives of people of color in elite universities.

Higgenbotham's book provides a context for and explores the many issues and problems that I faced as a Black woman at a premdominately White University in the late 60's. I learned that my experiences were not unique and personal (as I had assumed), but rather quite typical of my peers. This book reads like my biography, and I can now understand and explain situations that were then inexplicable. I applaud Higgenbotham for her extensive and careful research and recommend this book enthusiastically. This is a history that I lived, and Dr. Higgenbotham has demonstated that it is worthy of scholarly investigation.

This volume collects the first four issues of the Transactions of the Royal Martian Geographical Society, a formerly-defunct magazine for GDW's late, lamented Space:1889. I regretted not acquiring these issues when they came out, but now I'm glad I waited. This combined edition is greatly superior to the originals: layout is improved, there are more graphics, and it is nice to have everything combined under one set of covers. The articles themselves are good-to-excellent in quality, and are frequently better than the material released for the original game. Many of the authors are professional historians or graduate students of history, and their depth of knowledge shows. The only thing preventing me from giving this product five stars were the facts that a: my copy (and mine alone, it seems, since I spoke with others who purchased this) was a little defective, and b: this product only covers Space: 1889--which was entirely fine by me, but might limit its appeal to other Victorian-era gamers who aren't great fans of the Space: 1889 universe. Future issues will broaden the coverage, I am told.

I am also told that the editors believe that this product was not 100% perfect, and that there is room for improvement. Personally, I don't see how. I found the product to be excellent, and welcome its release. And if volume 2 is going to be better than this, as the editors promise, it will be _extremely_ impressive indeed.

If you like role playing in the Victorian Era, this is a resource that you won't want to pass on.

There are all sorts of nifty things, adventures, floorplans, characters, cross over ideas, and background flavor.

I loved this book so much when I bummed it off a friend that I actually decided to buy it! After reading it, you'll never look at type without wondering what cultural and economic influences helped shape it. You'll also get a kick out of seeing how different countries treated type in the same art period. I get bored easily by too many dry sentences, so I geniunely appreciated all the examples of catalogs, posters, etc. the authors put in there. Hardback books can be a killer on the legs if you want to curl up with a good book, so the soft bound cover was a blessing. Anyway, enjoy!

Heller and Fili have done it again. If you love type, and want to get an eclectic overview of the development of typography in the twentieth century you will enjoy this book. . It's also a perfect companion to read with Heller's Graphic Style book. I use the pair as textbooks in the History of Graphic Design class I teach at Parsons School of Design in NYC.

Tony Adams writes the definitive book for those interested in the history of the Mexican-American War. He provides the political and strategic setting of the war, as well as great tactical accounts of the battles.

Of particular interest is his detail on the Order of Battle, uniforms, tactics, weaponry and leadership for both the American and Mexican Army.

The Naval War is covered in suprising detail as well.

This is one great book, in my opinion. It has good maps, orders of battle for each engagement with unit strengths in many cases, chapters on each army and its weapons and tactics, and chapters on the uniforms of each army. Good campaign and battle descriptions too. Good descriptions of the generals for each side. I just can't say enough good things about it. If you have any sort of serious interest in this war, do yourself a favor and get it.

End of an Era is rollicking fun science fiction with many twists. Plots and ideas come naturally to Sawyer but the seams pop when he attempts modern characterization. Give him credit for trying, though.

While I love his page-a-minute ideas, his explanations of mundane events strain credibility. For example, why was the time travel venture so low budget they needed to buy second-hand goods (p. 53)? His explanation of a world recession (p. 95) is ridiculous - Sawyer has never been good at economics but this just made me laugh. Meanwhile, Sawyer would have us think a time travel venture needs good PR (p. 53). Also, why were 2 rivals (only 2 for this mission?) sent back in time? The explanation on p. 148 was hardly satisfying (i.e. mission control spent a lot of time debating it). Finally, why doesn't Thackeray identify himself as a doctor to a fellow scientist (p. 78)? The scientist refuses to listen to him until Thackeray mentions he's a doctor on p. 132. The reason for the delay, of course, is to have the resolution of this plot line occur later in the novel.

Despite these minor quibbles, the novel's far-fetched ideas had me smiling throughout the book. The writing is crisp and the twists hooked me until the end. Sawyer's knowledge of paleontology and physics kept the science fiction elements believable. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking fun science fiction. Like many of the reviewers, I also enjoyed other Sawyer books such as Terminal Experiment and Starplex.

End Of An Era has it all for Sci Fi fans: time travel, alternate time lines, alien vistors, multi-planetary space wars, an explanation of the end of the age of dinosaurs, a solution to the riddle of dinosaur gigantism, fist fights, blue slime, Jamaicans and a Jeep. What more could you ask?

But what makes this book worth reading is that it isn't just another sci fi story. Sawyer lays out the plot line so that is a combination mystery, soap opera, and suspense novel. His writing style is very streamlined - no extraneous characters, words, or plot lines. It is written in the perspective of Dr. Thackery, and we share his fears, self-doubts, tortures, and conquests. In this sense, the author forces us to share in his experiences first hand.

Sawyer is also quite adept at adding humor. Some spots managed to be laugh-out-loud funny. Imagine talking to aliens who have learned your language, but cannot distinguish slang and insults from deadpan serious truth. Sawyer also pits his two main characters against each other - former best friends turned rivals in love and career.

This is a well-written story, full of humor, tension, and surprises. Truly something for everyone here. I loved it!

The last book I read by Robert J. Sawyer was "Calculating God", which I think was a phenomenal book. Hoping for another book on the same level, I got "End of an Era". It's quite uncommon that an author writes two superb novels in a row - however, this time Robert J. Sawyer absolutely did it! "End of an Era" was a fantastic, fabulous story and I enjoyed every minute I spent reading it. It contains everything a good science fiction story should have: a great idea, great writing, face pace, hard science, and themes which remain with you long after you finish the book. And believe me, you won't forget this book for a while.

As for the plot: Brandon Thackery, a Canadian Paleontologist (sounds familiar? his previous protagonist from "Calculating God" was also a Canadian Paleontologist) is being offered the chance of a life time: go back in time 65 million years, and actually witness the dinosaurs - and hopefully, see what killed them. Along with Brandon comes his best friend/nemesis (he stole Brandon's wife) Miles "Klicks" Jordan. Once they arrive to the past, they are surprised to find a few unexpected things.. First, Earth's gravity is about a 1/3 of what it should be. Second, there is a second moon to the Earth. Third, and most surprising, the earth is populated by enigmatic aliens, which apparently can control the dinosaurs. I am sure you're already intrigued, and trust me, this book promises AND delivers!

In my opinion, this book would literally appeal to everyone: for those who like action and adventure, as well as those who love serious themes. The book continues the ideas started in "Calculating God", although is a bit lighter and less serious. To summarize: terrific book - can't wait for the next Robert J. Sawyer book who has already become one of my favorite authors.

This book is largely a restatement of Trout (and Ries) previous assertions that brands have to stand out, get noticed in a world cluttered with brands. That's fine. Where this book goes wrong is when it flogs the old idea of having to have a unique selling proposition or 'competitive advantage'. This is a tiny part of real world marketing and competition.

Most brands are highly similar to competitor brands, or with differences too subtle for buyers to care about. And much of competition is about staying similar to competitors.

Yet without being perceived to be much different brands still survive and even thrive. Consumers aren't looking for different, they are looking for a brand they know is good (enough). They have lives ! The marketing battle is to get into the consideration set.

Like other brands this book sells because many people have heard of Jack Trout and because it doesn't say anything different. If it was really different from other marketing books/magazines and told marketers something different from the accepted gospel it wouldn't sell so well.

Trout's book builds on Rosser Reeves' premise in his 1961 book REALITY IN ADVERTISING about the unique selling proposition. (Trout acknowledges this and dedicates the book to Reeves.) Trout's book essentially is Reeve's Trout's thesis is basically Reeves's but with new examples. That makes for not a lot of startling revelations here. In short chapters, Trout distinguishes differentiating factors (such as being first, leadership, market specialty) from stuff that falls outside of such factors, like creativity, price, and quality. Trout makes the argument that fast growth can be a wicked distraction and get in the way of successful differentiation. But while he trots out some examples of this (ESPN's rollout of other cable offerings, for example), there's nothing here that makes a compelling case about why fast growth and differentiation can't go hand in hand. Fast growth can be a distraction from any aspect in business; the trick is to figure out how to manage it. That's not something that you'll get here.

Even though Jack Trout has tried to illustrate his theory by many diverse examples, moslty those examples have been obvious. However, troughout the book he clearly makes a point: do things in 'unique' way, otherwise other competitors will take the market share.

I thought that the greatest part about this book was the way it was written. Ms. Hess did a very good job in the way she put the words on the page. The word and phrases dance across the page as though she is playing the piano. The author also makes you feel as though you are standing side by side with Billie Jo, pinning damp clothes to the window panes to prevent dust from getting inside. Hess also uses very descriptive similes and metaphors that force a mental image into your head. I like the way this book is interesting yet the facts, dates and events are accurate. I think I learned alot from this book. Before I read it, I knew nothing about th Dust Bowl. Through the descriptions in this book, I feel as though I was there. This novel as written as though it was Billie Jo's diary. On the other hand, if you don't particularly like poetry, this book is not for you. I also think that if I wasn't the same age as Billie Jo, I might have a completely different perspective. Overall, I think this book should receive 3 stars because I personally don't like poetry and this typ of book is not my favorite. However, this book is VERY well written and is very informational. Even though I don't like this genre, the author made this book extremely enjoyable.

In Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse, a 14 year old struggles with life in 1930's. Her life is pretty good, her Ma pregnant and her being great at the piano. But a terrible accident changes her whole life. Her mom is longer with her and she can barley play the piano. How will she ever survive with only a father? This novel was good and quite an emountial rollercoaster. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves to read.

For Billie Jo a fourteen-year-old living in the Oklahoma panhandle playing the piano is the only thing that comforts her. Her life is rough like a rock as even the short walks to school are dangerous because of the sudden and unsuspecting dust storms. Then to make matters worse her mother's life is abruptly put to a halt and Billie's hands are damaged so they can never play again. Without the comfort of her mother and music Billie wants to escape her town and her tragic life. But when she gets the chance to escape she learns about companionship, forgiveness and most of all family. Throughout this novel you feel Billie's emotions and thoughts. This novel by Karen Hesse is one that will thrill readers' will for years to come.

I've read through the other reviews and people seem very polarized over this book. Either you love it or you hate it, but there doesn't seem to be much of a middle ground. I would like to make an argument for that middle ground.

The book is quite readable. Although it conveys some useful information, it is not as dry as many books on investing. Each chapter is actually penned by a different author, but the text flows well from subject to subject. It reads more like a lengthy magazine article than a book. Although the informal and almost conversational tone of the prose makes for light and quick reading, the authors do convey some practical advice. The book is full of references to various websites (and not just their website, street.com) for researching stocks. Although this is extremely useful for the internet-savvy investor, it may tend to date this book. I suspect it will become less useful as it becomes farther away from its publication date. It covers the major aspects of fundamental analysis well, and has a particularly good chapter on when to sell a stock (and its relative tax implications), which is often missing from comparable investment books. Although it touches upon technical analysis and charting, the discussion is very superficial and is better addressed in other references.

Overall, it's a useful book and even somewhat fun to read. It is by no means comprehensive and probably not the only investing book you'll ever need. But as an amateur investor with a moderate amount of experience, I found enough to justify the purchase price and even enjoyed reading it too.

If you can make it past the typical James Cramer stock-market cheerleading, The Street.com's guide to investing is well worth a look for novices. Skip over the dated, New Economy hype and get right to the overview of global equity markets, including risk factors, economic indicators and corporate performance measures. Author Dave Kansas does a great job of summarizing these voluminous concepts in a way that's easy to digest and remember. This book reads much better than most of those in the investment field, perhaps because it was written by actual writers, not economic experts fumbling their way through the writing process, or ghostwriters churning out personality-free prose. We from getAbstract highly recommend this book to beginning investors, with a word of warning: The tone of this book is still very much of the optimistic '90s era, and does not seem to reflect the subsequent market retreat.

Full Disclosure: Amazon.com customers should know right off the bat that I am a columnist on TheStreet.com, and have many friends among the co-authors of this book, so I am undoubtedly biased about this book. (But I didn't write any part of the book; I'm busy on two new investing books of my own these days....)

That said, I think this is the one book about investing that you simply MUST read if you're in the market now, or considering getting in.

The investing landscape has changed profoundly over the past year, and virtually every other "how to" book on investing I know deals -- often very well -- with the way things *were.* This one looks at the way things ARE, and WILL BE this year...and gives you the tools and perspective you need to make money in a vastly more difficult market.

Far from the easier and fondly-remembered world in which we invested in 1998 and especially 1999, during 2000 and now in 2001, this has become a market in which stock-picking is much harder -- but good stock-picking is even more important than it was. There are no easy bets any more.

You need the information in this book to prosper in 2001 and, almost certainly, beyond. The easy-money days are not coming back anytime soon...though I'm convinced that the decade ahead of us will be the best time to make money in the adult lifetimes of most of us now in the market.

Remember my bias...but consider this one seriously. It's the one book you really do have to read this year. --JS

This book is a disgrace.

It is clear in the first few pages that it is not an accurate account of John Dillinger, his cohorts or the 1930s. When I purchased this book, I thought I was buying a historical analysis of the "Dillinger Days," where the author would present the facts and allow me to draw my own conclusions. Instead, what I got was a one-sided view of conspiracy theories.

Even worse, the book is riddled with typos (i.e. the caption under the first picture of Dillinger), the language is simplistic (borderline insulting) and in the first three chaprters alone I counted more than 15 grammatical errors. What's more, the author purports to be a student of history, but not one footnote appears in the text after a supposed fact; leaving much of what's read open to a heavy and well-deserved dose skepticism.

From page 1, the author proudly demonstrates a strong bias against the government which leads to - not an open discussion of facts - but to a long-winded tale of conspiracy theories which boggle the mind. Everything from orgies involving the Kennedys and Marilyn Monroe; to claims that Hoover deliberatly shirked his responsibilities as FBI Director in exchange for tips on winning horse races.

The book was not hailed by any major periodicle or book club, but not surprisngly, received much acclaim from fellow conspiracy theorists and anti-government types. Go figure.

Anyone with an interest in history will be most dissapointed with this book. Be very skeptical of any reader who has given this book a "5 Star" rating.

I purchased a copy of Tony Stewart's new book Dillinger, The Hidden Truth and can't put it down! The book has tons of new facts and even has a complete reference section on outlaws and lawmen of the nineteen twenties and thirties. Truly Fasinating! As a historian on American history for years, I find the book to be very accurate and detailed on events, places, dates and people. Anything and everything you want to know about the criminals of this era is all here. The book gets into the early criminal careers of outlaws like John Dillinger, Harry Pierpont, Charley Makley, Russell Clark, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, Bonnie and Clyde, Karpis/Barker gang and several others. This is truly a historical book. I give Mr. Stewart's book 5 Stars for accuracy and detail. The book is listed number 5 on the Best Sellers list ... and I believe will soon reach number one! Buy a copy, and learn the truth behind all the cover-ups hidden for years.

As a historian myself, I strongly recommend this book. I've read it twice now and still find it fascinating! You can't always believe reviews of those who comdemn books about outlaws of the past who probably burn any books written about outlaws. However you can believe Qualified Authors and Historians who would only put their names on books they believe in. I agree with the responses written by the people who know best. The ones who hasve done the actual research and written about these events. Please read what these authorities of American history have written about Tony Stewart and his amazing book Dillinger, The Hidden Truth. Below is a list of recommendations taken off the cover of Dillinger, The Hidden Truth.

"Tony Stewart's book 'Dillinger, The Hidden Truth' captures that shoot-em-up era to a 'T.' With the ever-growing library dealing with the '20s and '30s' gangster era, Stewart's book is another tasty dish on that splashy wine and blood splattered dinner table." (Tom Hollatz - Gangster Holidays--the Lore and Legend of the Bad Guys).
Tony Stewart's dedicated fascination with John Dillinger and other infamous gangsters from the 1920s and 1930s is finally revealed in "Dillinger, The Hidden Truth." (Robert Livesey - author of On the Rock).
Tony Stewart uncovers the "Hidden Truth" behind the Dillinger legend in this blazing ride through America's golden age of bank robbers. (Jim Adams - City Editor of the New Hampshire Sunday News).
When it comes to John Dillinger, author Tony Stewart strives to -tell it like it is! "Dillinger - The Hidden Truth," presents this dapper 1930's outlaw, as you've never really known him. This is a must read book! (Frank R. Ballinger - Bonnie & Clyde's Hideout Website).
"Finally we have a factual and engaging story of Dillinger¹s life, refreshingly devoid of the fantasy, bias and sentimentality of previous accounts." (Alston Purvis - Boston University).
If you read only one book this year, make it " Dillinger, The Hidden Truth." Tony Stewart presents an exciting new look at the bank robber's career and those who attempted, by any means, to "Get Dillinger." (Bill Hanson - author of "Closely Guarded Secrets" and "Mystery Florida.")
Read for the first time, Tony Stewart's well-researched book that uncovers the hidden truth in the annuals of the Gangster era that the FBI and J.Edgar Hoover didn't want the public too know. (Jeffrey Maycroft; Historical Consultant, Public Enemies Almanac).
J. Edgar Hoover ignored the Mafia to ruthlessly exterminate easier targets--celebrity bandits like Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, and Bonnie and Clyde--check out Tony Stewart's Dillinger, the Hidden Truth. Moves with the fast pace of a stolen Ford V8 to the staccato bark of a Tommy gun! (Rick Mattix - co-author, Public Enemies, America's Criminal Past, 1919-1940 and Thompson, the American Legend: The First Submachine Gun).
In this new work John Dillinger is researched to the insight never before researched. I have a lot of respect for anyone who takes the time, patience, and discipline to research and then write a book on any subject, let alone a subject as complicated as the life of John Dillinger. This new insight and information that Mr. Stewart has written is a refreshing and new look at the famous John Dillinger. This is recommended reading, before the lights go out on the final chapter of John Dillinger. This is the final chapter.(Gordon Herigstad -author of Colt Thompson Serial Numbers).
I applaud Mr. Stewart and HIGHLY RECOMMEND his new book Dillinger, The Hidden Truth. It is 515 pages of of fascinating updated events that were build on a foundation of facts. I love this book and added it to my collection. Thank you

This book was ok in that it did a good job in describing workplace dislocations caused by new technology, but in many ways, its the same old situation. If one is looking for a very clearly articulated portrayal of these dislocations in the modern time, then one will like this book. I disagree with all of the doom and gloom, however. This sort of doom and gloom reminded me of the Malthus's writings about overpopulation and fears of machinery in the late 19th century, both of which I view as very discredited observations.

There will always be dislocations as result of technological progress; and as tragic as it is, one cannot progress without rendering something obsolete. But we are nowhere near a post-market nor a post-scarcity era.

Rifkin provided a good historical examination of how technological innovations of automation, corporate reengineering, lean production, and computers have replaced the need for workers at an alarming rate culminating in what he termed "The Third Industrial Revolution". Every sector and industry has experienced significant trends in unemployment and underemployment. Although virtually every worker has been affected, African-Americans were particularly devastated as they got caught between the machanization of southern agriculture and automation in northern cities resulting in the creation of the underclass. In all, technology has undermined the worker and reconceptualized our notion of the workplace.

Solutions to global worker displacement include shorter work week to share the remaining work to all workers. Rifkin also argues for investment in the third sector of volunteerism and social services to combat the rise in crime and violence that is inevitable in a society of large scale employment.

Although his historical examination is admirable, his future prophecy of a massive unemployment did not convince me that we are headed to a society run by machines. Alternatively I believe there will always be demand for human labor as machines present their own limitations. Several years ago many proclaimed that dot.com's will put bricks and mortar stores out of business. Despite these claims bricks and mortar stores did not disappear partly because many customers enjoyed the personalibility of social interaction with salespeople and other customers. Doing Christmas shopping over the internet is not a comparable replacement to going to a shopping mall for everyone. In addition, Rifkin never addressed the all important realm of unpaid work that will never diminish as long as there are humans on earth.

Overall, this book is a good read although I had trouble with his future predictions.

I must admit that when I read this book, I was a bit dissappointed at the lack of new information. As a student of labor history, I had read previously many of the ideas and concepts that Rifkin expands upon in several other books. I only wished I had picked up this one book, prior to reading all the others. It would have saved me much time and money.

In short, Rifkin decribes the transition of the worker from pre-industrial revolution, through the era of machines and mass-production, and the advent of the information age in which he predicts there will be fewer and fewer workers. His analysis describes how this effects the worker, organizational make-up, employment relationships, and even how government has been forced to change to accomodate the modern economy.

I believe that anyone interested in the dynamics of technology and globalism on the workforce will find Rifkin's work very interesting, well-written, and easy to read.