Stanley Reviews

Robert Stanley's book lives up to its title, in that he not only guides readers through Photoshop 5, but also provides some understanding of the basics of digital imaging, photography etc. There is even assistance in understanding some features of operating systems such as "Windows" which makes it a real boon to idiots/beginners.

What I loved about Stanley's book was that he doesn't just tell the idiot/reader how to perform a particular action, but he explains why (in terms that even an idiot like me could understand)

When I first encountered Photoshop 5 I was bamboozled by the jargon - e.g. "selections", "paths" and particularly "layers". Stanley takes his reader through each of these terms with clear explanations and practical examples. It is almost like having someone sitting by your elbow as you gradually develop your expertise in what initially seems like a daunting programme.

My only criticism of this book is that the graphics are a little small, and in black and white, which requires a bit of effort for those readers with less than perfect eyesight ! However at the price one can't complain.

I'd recommend this as both a good buy and a useful resource

Al Sinclair

This book rules! Its illustrative, funny and its ease to learn amazes me. I finished this book in a week and was instantly a Photoshop expert. Buy this book today!

This book is wonderful for anyone who's ever been intimidated by Photoshop and all its tools. The author lays out everything in a style everyone can understand and he doesn't get too technical with his words, although he does present techinical information and words for those who want it. The best thing about this book is that he has an exercise to go along with almost everything he writes about, which enables the reader to sit at their own PC/Mac and use Photoshop while following along with the book. He also has a "put it all together" exercise at the end of the book so you can know how to put a lot of the tools you've learned about into use together to create great art, even for the "graphically challenged" such as myself.

same old pattern and lacks indepth knowledge and descriptions.Pj Kumar is easy to read,contains current and up-to-date info and correlates Disease process,diagnoses and management.

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THIS IS BAR NONE THE BEST INTERNAL MEDICINE TEXT YOU CAN GET.

Easy to read, chock full of photos, color pictures, graphs, tables, and beautifully illustrated diagrams. even the most difficult concept can be grasped with ease.

ACHILLES HEEL - the spine - do not lay completely flat during the first week or so of use or when it is cold; it will pop.
I am on my third copy(despite the annoyance I keep going back b/c this book is so completely superior).

This last copy has lasted w/o problem for over a year so maybe the glue issue has been fixed.

Also -- british spelling -- a minor issue.
Hope the come out with an international ed.

having read a multitude of medical textbooks including harrison's, current medical diagnosis and treatment, cecil essentials i can honestly say that this is perhaps the BEST clinical textbook i have seen so far in my experience!

the book is a beautiful one to behold, complete with EXCELLENT diagrams of the clinical presentations of many diseases and fantastic charts of differentials as well as evidence-based medicine all in COLOR!!! i can't tell you how much easier this is on the eyes than slogging through page after page of grey text!

every chapter is organized in a similar fashion with the first two pages going over all the relevant parts of an exam in a specific specialty like cardiology, gastroenterology, etc. davidson's reviews some basic pathophysiology, pertinent studies within the field before launching into the various disease entities.

although the book is not nearly as comprehensive as harrison's principles of internal medicine, it's structured much better for those with limited amounts of reading time (i.e. medical students cramming for the next shelf exam, residents trying to catch up on their sleep, and even newly dubbed attendings who are expecting children!!!).

this book will SURELY help you prepare for those annoying attending stumper questions like: who can tell me all the extra-pulmonary manifestations of sarcoid? what are the exam findings in a dialysis patient?

no respectable internal medicine library should lack this book!

... Mosley gives us a male character who isn't afraid to cry and when he gets angry he doesn't get violent but does get even. The mystery surrounding the death of the white stripper is cleverly written into the plot and when the clues reveal the killer they all make sense. This series improves with each novel and Easy is turning into a complex person who has demons of his own to battle.

Though Devil in a Blue Dress and A Red Death are great reads which stand apart from other books in the genre White Butterfly might be the best Easy Rawlins story. Like Ross Macdonald, Walter Mosley weaves a tapestry of pain and heartache and human frailty into White Butterfly. Along the way we get to revisit the friendship of Mouse and Easy and again we learn that there are degrees of right and wrong.
It is only the killing of a white girl which prompts the police to ask for Easy's help. There was no hurry when only black girls were getting murdered in the Los Angeles of 1956. It is the last thing Easy wants as he has a woman named Regina and a child in his life now. Yet he can not give all of himself to them and holds back from telling Regina about his life and his property and where he gets his money.
Mosley has tightly written a character who though good also is flawed and wrestles with his own life and motives as much as he does with the cops and bad guys. We understand why Easy is more comfortable with the amoral Mouse than with the rest of society. You do not have to be black to appreciate the complex moral landscape Mosley paints of Easy's world. You feel Easy's personal loss at the end of this book and it stays with you longer than the mystery.
If Ross Macdonald wrote like a slumming angel then Mosley writes like an angel of the slums. He doesn't try to make us understand Easy's world, only lets us ride along with Easy as he attempts to make sense of it all himself. In the struggle we learn about pain and sorrow and regret, which is to say we learn about life. Reading this book will make you want more of Easy and more of Walter Mosley.

This was my first Mosley/Easy Rawlins mystery and I enjoyed it immensely. It had depth of character and interesting plot twists and turns. I also liked the fact that it was a story about African Americans in 1956 Los Angeles and it didn't rely on the 'N' word for shock value (unlike Ellroy and a few others). I think it was a great introduction to the series.

Robbins pathology is a classic textbook for medicine. 7.edition is very attractive with funny illustrations. Saunders quality seems obviously. But Robbins couldn't solve that problem: It is becoming looser and looser... Rates, incidences are not satisfactory... It tends to escape from details,but sometimes it makes this classic book simple... Clinics are not updated enough. There are many misscarriages... For example rutin thyroid scintigraphy uses Tc99m pertechnate, not radioiodine... Little doses of it may cause permenant hypothyroidism. And osteomalasia/osteoporosis. Now,we now that: Only 1-2 h/week UV to face and forearms is enough to synthesize essentiall amounts of vitamin D. So wears (veils etc) are not important as the cause of vit. D deficiency. It is not realistic and new datas showed these kind of comments are all defective. Race and geographic position is the important factors ( As written in an other classic: Harrisons...). Of course these are not interesting details for someone, a pathology book maynot talk about them, if it does, it must true. I hope 8. edition will become stronger... Cost of price... Thanks for editors. Essentiall for USMLE, with BRS pathology...

The 7th addition of Robbins Basic pathology is several hundred pages shorter than the previous edition. Most of what was removed was basic physiology and anatomy review. I found that while it's good to have a shorter textbook, the loss of these subjects made for less interesting reading. The 7th edition also adds quite a bit more molecular biology and molecular genetics, reflecting chnages in the study of pathology. Overall, it's an excellent pathology review book and will be very useful for medical students and path residents who want to review. The main flaw of the book is an unavoidable one. Many important areas of pathology are covered in a single paragraph and much detail is lacking. However, the authors had to do this to keep the book relatively short (only 700 pages). I recomment this book highly as a good way to begin studying pathology.

This book makes the compilation of the main concepts of medical pathology that every medical student or physician must know for an optimal practice.... the figures and tables makes understanding a lot easier and faster..... it's a jewel in pathology books!

...for anyone who is involved in legal proceedings, professionally or otherwise. Brodsky's latest installment, based on his obviously extensive experience and insights, is replete with useful info for both those who testify and those who solicit expert testimony. At the same time, it's marvelously well written and entertaining and hard to put down once you start reading it. Brodksy has clearly done it again, and let's hope there's a third installment in the works.

The Expert Expert Witness by Dr. Stan Brodsky is a powerful and invaluable tool, for novice and expert experts alike. Dr. Brodsky's writing is extremely engaging, witty, and articulate, yet the text's informal style does not minimize the importance of testifying as a professional. This book differs from other expert witness books in that it emphasizes professional competency, preparedness, and responsibility, in the context of personal integrity. The book clearly explains legal rulings applicable to expert testimony, integrated with Dr. Brodsky's vast experiential knowledge. I highly recommend that the Expert Expert Witness become a permanent part of your personal and professional library!

Anyone who is at all familiar with forensic psychology knows and appreciates the work of Dr.Brodsky. This text continues the long tradition of contributions to the field by Dr. Brodsky. This book, as is his ususal style, is clearly written, to the point, pragmatic and above all helpful. It contains specific strategies and guidelines that are essential to the newcomer to testifying in court. These strategies, as well, are important guides for those who have experience testifying. I have used his strategies, both from this text and the one preceeding and have found them to be on target, useful and highly effective. One should not venture into the courtroom without having had the benefit of this work.

Sleep is one of the most common activities in our lives. As such, one would expect that everybody would know a lot about it.

This book shows that this is not the case. Our western work-ethos has led us to believe that sleeping is for weaklings and that sleeping very little is a sign of discipline and diligence . This book is full of examples of the results of that attitude. As a renowned researcher into the science of sleep, the Author is able to list a considerable number of instances where a lack of sleep did not only lead to less productivity, but led to downright disasters such as the sinking of the "Exxon Valdez" or the Chernobyl nuclear accident.

I found that the book gives a real insight into the importance of obtaining enough sleep. In my case, I found it convincing enough to change some of my habits and go to bed earlier, if need be. As the author shows, a like change throughout society might safe us billions of dollars per year.

We spend a full third of our life sleeping, but what do we really know about it. Why do we sleep? What causes us to sleep? What happens when we sleep? All these questions remain unanswered, but scientists are working--dare I say it? oh, why not--around the clock to explain why we can't work around the clock.

Lighter in tone, and much more accessible to the most techno- or medio-phobic of lay readers is Sleep Thieves by Stanley Cohen. While Cohen's book does not have the same claim to impartial accuracy of the researcher, it gains ground by its engrossing style and an ability to merge folklore with medical studies. The whole, as it appears, is then dissected, and Cohen ends up destroying as many myths as Prof. Lavie in The Enchanted World of Sleep (in many cases, the same ones). Cohen does have a purpose with his book, and that is to say that as a culture, we are running up a "sleep debt"; that is, by denying ourselves the amount of sleep that our bodies need, we endanger ourselves and others. Before he gets to this conclusion, his common ground with Prof. Lavie is visited, including studies on sleep deprivation and its results, people's perceptions of sleep, and the amount of sleep that our bodies fall into without the self-regulating clock of the sun. His conclusion is tied together neatly, with a fine work of statistical research using the time lost and gained during the change from and to Daylight Savings Time. Lack of sleep, due to cultural demands, is a major cause of accidents that are often fatal.

Cohen's book, with its amazing conclusion that lives with you, makes it obvious that "sleep debt" is not just a funny phrase, but a real problem, and one that is being ignored by almost everyone. It is time, as Cohen ironically states, for us to wake up about sleep.

I ordered this book just because Dr. Coren is my favorite author (How To Speak Dog, The Intelligence Of The Dogs, Why We Love The Dogs We Do). I was certain that I would find this book very interesting, and I wasn't wrong. This book is truly wonderful. He explains how many hours should we sleep and what happens to us if we don't. How our mental and physical health depends on sleep, and gives advices as to how to improve the quality of our sleep.

There is a test you can perform in order to understand how many hours of sleep you need. It's just great.

I wish all doctors read this masterpiece and instead of giving Valium or whatever to people with sleeping disorders, were giving them advices taken from this book. Once more, thank you Mr.Coren

This book is the original canon upon which the classical series was based as well as good part of the Next Generation series. After that the series no longer followed the book but it continued to be used as reference.
The First Contact film is an example. It contained all the basic ideas of the book, like the contact with vulcans and the first tentative warp drive, but they've changed the fact that Cochrane was an alien to make him human, so it would appeal to human pride and therefore to public interest.
The contemporary series Enterprise also contains elements of the book, albeit with some changes. I'm not going to put spoilers here, but as an incentive it describes how the Federation was founded and the Romulan wars, which are a few years ahead of the timing in which the series is passed.
I stronlgly recommend this book, I owed this book for many years until I gave it to a Trekkie fan which is a friend of mine.

. . ."First Contact" was a disappointment of Warp 10 proportions!

I was a "Trekkie". For many, many years, beginning in Jr. High (where I discovered this book), continuing through my highschool and college years, and many years since. However, since the death of the Great Bird of the Galaxy, I have been increasingly disappointed with what the "Star Trek" universe has become.

This book was the ORIGINAL "Chronology" of the future for Trek fans. What has come after is a destruction and desecration of Roddenberry's original vision. I'm sorry that this book is out of print and remains largely unknown to the Trek fans of today. The illustrations are wonderful, the "tie-ins" with the episodes of "Classic Trek" are wonderful, the imaginary history is wonderful -- and although the book predates most of the Classic Trek movies (it came out about the same time as "Star Trek: The Motion Picture") it dovetails nicely with the films and many of the original Star Trek novels.

Unfortunately, the current powers and authorities running the Star Trek universe have rejected this work in favor of their own agendas -- and why I no longer purchase Star Trek novels, see the movies in their theatrical releases, or watch the new series.

May God forgive Rick Berman and his ilk for what they have done to the inspiring and fresh vision of Gene Roddenberry -- but I suspect that many "TRUE" Star Trek fans will not.

Find this book, buy it -- whatever the cost, and see for yourself what the Star Trek universe was -- and still SHOULD be.

I own a copy of this book and was looking for a copy to give to a friend. I have really enjoyed the history in this book as well as the creative ideas of where mankind maybe in the future with space travel. I would be lying if I did not rate this book with 5 stars!

This book is certainly an interesting one, telling stories of near-fatal accidents. It's fascinating to read what is going on inside the airplane at the time, but I get more enjoyment (if you can call it that) from stories that also encompass more of the technical side of aircraft accidents.

The flip side is that it doesn't get weighted down with technical language or mechanical intricacies, and really adds a human touch to the crews who we typically think of only as someone who brings us soda.

Finally a book that focuses on what went right instead of what went wrong. A positive approach to aircraft incidents. Notice I did not say accidents. Through solid airmanship and crew resource management and a touch of luck, these heroic crews prevented a disaster. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat and at the same time provide a look at skills and attitudes we should try to emulate when at the controls of an aircraft. Written in a style that is understandable to a lay person. Highly recommended

On the contrary of the next rewiever, to read this book increases my reliance in airliner's pilots. It's a very amusing and explanatory book that carries you to the cockpit and shows you how a pilot (and, sometimes, the luck) can to convert a potential disaster in only a nasty experience. Highly recommended.

This is a wonderful introduction to the study of what has been traditionally referred to as "systematic theology." Grenz has obviously strong commitments to the evangelical Protestant tradition in particular, but this in no way hinders his ability to survey quite objectively the vast multiplicity of views available on any given subject; no stone is left unturned in the fields of the traditional categories of systematics.

The work is structured primarily around two themes in particular: trinity and community. One would have to surmise that his commitment to a proper understanding of the trinity stems from his commitment to historic orthodoxy; on the other hand, his emphasis on community situates the work squarely in the so-called "post-modern" context. While the "community" motif might at times be a bit over-done, it provides a sturdy backbone to the work as a whole.

As a composite, the volume is meticulously well-structured. Each categorical section relates to the respective sections preceding and following, and one finishes the book with a strong feeling of having been exposed to a quite comprehensive survey of the various issues facing modern theology.

Grenz does an excellent job of interacting extensively with other theologians, both those from the contemporary scene and from the throes of history. All things considered, this is a refreshingly comprehensive, objective, and erudite work, and Grenz never once diverts from his task of appropriating the traditional themes of the faith to the contemporary situation.

This book has to be one of the most accessible evangelical theology books out there. Grenz's book is scholarly yet simple for the layperson. He writes from an evangelical Baptist perspective but builds his work around the concept of the community aspect of the Triune God. He argues that the Triune God's fellowship overflows into the church. All the sections are written from this community aspect of redemption. Grenz covers practically all matters you'll find in standard systematic theologies (from prolegomena to eschatology). The writing style is not like other more technical systematic theologies (e.g., Erickson, Grudem, Reymond, etc.) because it is written in a narrative fashion. You won't see Grenz being too detailed in his discussion of certain issues (hence, his book is only about 700 pages). This book is a must read for anyone wanting a good and easy introduction to the major topics of systematic theology.

As a ministry student I find this book immensely helpful in our postmodern culture because of its emphasis on community. Grenz does an outstanding job integrating church tradition with contemporary culture and theology. His relational view of the trinity is his paradigm for understanding community. This relational view is present throughout this work and is a refreshing idea in today's western society where individualism is dominant. For a one volume systematic theology it is comprehensive and thorough. Grenz's writing is easy to understand for theology students, but I would recommend his Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms if you are new to reading theology. I think anyone could benefit from reading this contemporary evangelical theology.

This book is amazing! If you love short stories with a twist (or twisted short stories), you will be mezmerized by this book. The real gems in this collection are the short stories--you will find it difficult to put this book down. If you loved "The Lottery", get this book! The collection was assembled posthumously by Shirley Jackson's most trusted critic--husband Stanley Hyman--and it is pure gold!

Shirely Jackson was a gifted writer who deserves to be regarded with the same prestige heaped upon Ray Bradbury and others. Come Along With Me, a posthumous collection gathering together early works with lectures and a novel fragment, not only allows readers to shiver and giggle as only Ms. Jackson could make us do, it also offers the reader an intimate glimpse into the creative process (compare the sharp focus in the revised segments of Come Along With Me with the somewhat blurred unrevised sections) and, by printing short stories in order of their publication, the growth of Ms. Jackson's considerable talent for the intelligently ghoulish can be seen and savored. As with her other, more famous stories (i.e The Haunting of Hill House), it is what is implied in the methodical unfolding of the tales that makes for the chills rather than in your face grue. This book, along with Jackson's others, is an essential in any literature loving bookworm's library. Highest recommendation.

This book is a fitting testament to Shirley Jackson, as the selections span her entire literary career. It is tragic that a writer of Jackson's caliber should be called away during her productive years, but we are quite fortunate to be allowed a taste of the novel Jackson was working on when she died. That taste is a short one, consisting of six chapters (roughly 27 pages), the final three of which are the first draft. The protagonist is a thoroughly Jacksonian character, sometimes spontaneous and sometimes nostalgic, making a new life for herself in her own peculiar way. Her attempts at shoplifting are particularly telling of her character, but unfortunately her story ends at just about that point. The other stories included here are a special treat. While "The Lottery" is included (just in case someone may not be familiar with it, as Jackson's husband tells us in his preface), the other stories are poignant looks into the lives of rather ordinary people. Jackson had an amazing talent for characterization; the smallest actions can tell us more about a person than his/her overt actions and words, and such little things make Jackson's stories incredibly vivid, illuminating, and personal. Shirley Jackson was a wife and mother whose writing always took second place behind her family. Many of these stories center on family life in all its aspects. "The Beautiful Stranger" and "A Day in the Jungle" deals with the sense of unfulfillment and unhappiness that one partner may come to feel in his/her marriage, "The Rock" speaks to the strength of a brother-sister relationship, "Island" is a somber story about one's end-of-life years. "Pajama Party" is a simple tale of a young girl's birthday slumber party. The story sounds so much like real life that it could be a neighbor telling you about it firsthand; it is also the funniest story Jackson ever wrote There are darker stories where characters become "lost," hopeless, and frightfully alone--"The Bus," "The Little House, "A Visitor" (which is a strange ghost story of sorts). The best stories here, in my mind, are "Louisa, Please Come Home," which has a uniquely Jacksonian twist of the prodigal son motif, and "I Know Who I Love," which illustrates the fact that parents can be much too overprotective of their children.

The true highlight of this book, though, are the three "lectures." One gives Jackson's response to the old "where do you get your ideas?" question. Another one addresses the techniques of writing effective fiction. My favorite, though, is an essay describing the reaction of readers to the publication of "The Lottery" in New Yorker Magazine. Jackson includes comments from all sorts of readers, almost all of it negative, which she breaks down into three different categories. While "The Lottery" is certainly an original, successful story, I cannot imagine that so many people would have been so affected that they felt compelled to put their shock and disapproval into words. The responses that Jackson describes to us offer a vivid look at American culture at mid-century.

If you are a Jackson fan, you (should) already own this book. If you want an introduction to Jackson, the stories included here will certainly delight you and win you over to Jackson's unique way of telling stories. These stories clearly reveal Jackson's humanity and family devotion, and the reader comes away with great respect for the author as both a writer and as a human being.