Book Description
Dyslexia affects more than 40 million American children and adults. Reading David presents an intimate look at the child behind the label of dyslexia and the mother who was desperate to help him.
Incorporating the direct and honest voice of her son, Reading David expresses a mother's fear and hope, as well as the bewilderment and courage of a child who cannot learn along with his peers. It is the story of a journey that not only taught David to read, but also brought mother and son to a deeper understanding of each other.
Customer Reviews:
A window into the home where dyslexia lives.......2005-07-17
I am a teacher and have had close contact with families who have had dyslexic children. This author does a great job of communicating the emotion, questions, struggles, and fears that a mother has. Her son also writes vignettes at the end of each chapter expressing his own point of view and struggles and fears. She weaves into the story enough clinical information to define dyslexia, explain its symtoms, and discuss ways to deal with it. But the main impact is the author opening her heart to the reader.
Reading David.......2003-12-19
The book, Reading David, by Lissa Weinstein helped me deal with my own son's struggle with dyslexia. Lissa and David touch the emotions of both mother and child through the unique, overweleming journey of dyslexia. The reader experiences the triumphs and struggles of everyday living. This book taught me that my son is a very bright, unique individual who desires to fit in. I felt someone was feeling what I was feeling and that it was okay to be angry one day and joyful the next because living with dyslexia is such an up and down rollercoaster.
Thank-You for writing this book!.......2003-10-28
Reading David has been a very emotional experience for me. My son, the same age as David, was diagnosed with a Learning Disability. I have only been reading a few pages a day as I cry with every emotion expressed that hits home - and they all do. What Lissa Weinstein has been able to write about has been cathartic for me. Her advice and the feelings expressed by her and her son will help guide my family through this Labyrinth. Thank-You for writing this book!
A unique voice on dyslexia.......2003-09-30
This is a terrific book, a virtual roadmap for anyone interested in dyslexia, or learning disabilities in general. Weinstein is a clinical psychologist and university professor, with a depth of experience in dealing with childhood learning disorders that is challenged when she has to deal with her son David's dyslexia. As a mother, she understands and conveys the dynamics of dyslexia in a way that illuminates both the helplessness any parent may feel when faced with a child's reading difficulties, and as a psychologist, she offers real self-help, insight, advice and solutions (all with a minimum of jargon) for dealing with a multi-faceted problem that does not go away just by adding some tutoring or changing the curriculum. The passages describing her dawning awareness that her own son has a serious learning disability, and her own feelings of guilt, are especially poignant. The real reward in this book, however, is the voice of her son David - whose words, taken down verbatim by his professor mother, reveal with astonishing directness the hurt, bewilderment, and courage of a child who just doesn't begin reading along with his classmates and the strategies he employs both to try to learn and to hide his failures. The book is a must for anyone dealing with learning disabilities, in the classroom or the home.
Book Description
When Jason Goodwin explored the Ottoman Empire in Lords of the Horizons, The New York Times Book Review hailed it as “a work of dazzling beauty…the rare coming together of historical scholarship…with luminous writing.” Now he returns to Istanbul, with a delicious mystery—The Janissary Tree.
It is 1836. Europe is modernizing, and the Ottoman Empire must follow suit. But just before the Sultan announces sweeping changes, a wave of murders threatens the fragile balance of power in his court. Who is behind them? Only one intelligence agent can be trusted to find out: Yashim Lastname, a man both brilliant and near-invisible in this world. You see, Yashim is a eunuch.
He leads us into the palace’s luxurious seraglios and Istanbul's teeming streets, and leans on the wisdom of a dyspeptic Polish ambassador, a transsexual dancer, and a Creole-born queen mother. And he introduces us to the Janissaries. For 400 years, they were the empire's elite soldiers, but they grew too powerful, and ten years ago, the Sultan had them crushed. Are the Janissaries staging a brutal comeback?
The Janissary Tree is the first in a series featuring the most enchanting detective since Precious Ramotswe of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. Splendidly paced and illuminating, it belongs beside Caleb Carr's The Alienist and the historical thrillers of Arturo Perez-Reverte.
Customer Reviews:
Good travelogue, dull mystery.......2007-09-01
The prose is generally fine, with only the occasional poorly-chosen word causing me to rise from the world on the page to the world around me. The history is interesting, but not my favorite era or place, nor do I read a mystery solely for the exotic locale and culture. As a mystery, for me, there was insufficient character development to care about the investigator or the murderer, or anyone else in the book. The chapters were hit and skip, jumping from one character or place to another, pushing so much history and cultural traditions on the reader that the murder mystery never came into focus for me, but seemed to be more of an aside than the thread that held the book together.
A pleasure to read.......2007-08-23
Well plotted, beautifully written, with a strong sense of place--Istanbul and the dying Ottoman court of the 1830s. Eunuch Yashim sees lots of action ...
Short on character development, long on travelogue........2007-08-12
If you love Istanbul, you'll enjoy the deft way the author weaves in the many memorable and meaningful sights, sounds, and smells of the city in to this second-rate mystery. He is obviously in love with the Ottoman Empire and with Turkish Istanbul -- Constantinople to the Greeks who founded Byzantium 15 centuries earlier. He is cheap with praise for any precursor to the Turkish achievements in Istanbul, incorrectly implying that they sprang up, full grown, over night (and by their own efforts). I guess novelists don't have to be concerned with truth. The Turks are all talented, smart, and cultured, everyone else is not. The characters in general are two dimensional. The significance of Yashim as a eunuch, for example, is never really clear. Why? What does it mean? How is he able to fulfill his role, his destiny, better or worse as a result of this fact? And of course there is no mention of the legendary cruelty that the Turks showed toward their minorities (and still do). Still, for those who love history in this part of the world, it is an interesting read.
Intricate historical mystery about a Turkish eunuch in the last ..........2007-08-07
... days of the Ottoman empire who must solve a mystery with political consequences. Our hero is too repressed and restrained, but the story is interesting. Longer review available at my website the Impatient Reader. See My Amazon profile for URL.
Murder in Istanbul 1836. Janissary Redux? Call in the Eunuch.......2007-07-30
Jason Goodwin sets 'The Janissary Tree: A Novel' in 1836 Istanbul, just ten years after Sultan Mahmud II destroyed the Janissaries in what was known euphemistically as The Auspicious Incident. The Sultan is now modernizing his army, but four of them have disappeared and begin to turn up dead. Simultaneously, one of the Sultan's harem is murdered. The 'detective' Yashim is called in to investigate both crimes.
Yashim is unusual in literary history; for one, he's an Ottoman detective and for two, he's a eunuch. Believe it or not, Turkish detectives (see Graveyard Eyes and even eunuch detectives Four for a Boy (John the Eunuch Mysteries) can be found elsewhere. Nonetheless, Yashim's character is certainly an attention-grabber.
The Janissaries had been the Sultan's household army for some 450 years including playing a key role in the final defeat of the Byzantine Empire at Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453. Are they behind the disappearance of the four soldiers of the new army? Is the murder in the harem related?
As Yashim pursues answers he takes the reader through 19th century Istanbul, a teeming cosmos at the juncture of Europe and Asia inhabited by peoples from around the Meditarrean and beyond, but still tradition bound - dominated by Islam but claimed Jews and Orthodox Christian as well.
Goodwin brings to bear his formidable knowledge of the region's history (see his Lords of the Horizons: A History of the Ottoman Empireand On Foot to the Golden Horn: A Walk to Istanbul) to create a lively sense of this wondrous city as rich in human history as any place on earth. His descriptions bring the sights and smells, - especially the smells of cooking - to life. He plays on the possibility that the Sultan's mother, the Valide Sultan, may have been the cousin of Josephine Bonaparte. And, Godwin's Yashim will almost certainly change your opinion about eunuchs.
The major shortcomings of 'The Janissary Tree: A Novel' are the introduction of too many characters that are not developed and a couple superfluous side stories.
A strong first novel by Jason Goodwin with more to come. A fun, engaging, and dare I say educational tale. Highly recommended.
Average customer rating:
- Silly opening, followed by good execution
- Kidnapped by aliens!
- A Surprising Classic
- Good, but not great
- Great Book
|
Janissaries
Jerry Pournelle
Manufacturer: Baen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
 Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Pournelle, Jerry
| ( P )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
( P )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
| Pratchett, Terry
General
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
All 4-for-3 Deals
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Janissaries Iii Tr (Janissaries, No 3)
-
Birth of Fire
-
Janissaries: Clan and Crown
-
Falkenberg's Legion
-
Dauntless (The Lost Fleet, Book 1)
ASIN: 0671877097 |
Customer Reviews:
Silly opening, followed by good execution.......2006-08-26
A bunch of mercenaries trapped on a hilltop and about to be wiped out are saved by an alien spaceship that lands, opens its door and says, "Come on in." Goofy, yes, and worthy of some '50's space opera. After that, though, the novel picks up and becomes pretty absorbing. Pournelle deals a lot with military tactics, and this novel is no exception. There's also a lot of politics, and some religion. I've always found Pournelle to be a very interesting writer, who's never written a book I didn't like.
Kidnapped by aliens!.......2005-02-09
Upon opening the book and discovering the illustrations, I was prepared for a cheesy space opera, especially since the story starts with space aliens abducting a group of mercenaries from the jungles of Africa. However, from this rather pedestrian opening, the author has developed an intriguing story.
Set against a backdrop of an old and large galactic civilization that uses humans as administrators and servants, this is a story of survival. One race of aliens is illegally kidnapping humans and transporting them to a secret planet to cultivate periodic crops of an intoxicating drug. The mercenaries are dropped, with their equipment, into the middle of a human culture trapped in the middle ages. Can they gain the control and cooperation of the exisiting human society and produce the drugs required by the aliens? Should they even try? Can they use their twentieth century knowledge to help the humans prepare for the impending climatic shifts?
This book includes interesting analyses of military tactics from various periods of human history, together with a unique setting and a plausible science-fiction story. It also provides interesting food for thought, especially regarding the proper uses of military power and the use of advanced knowledge to improve the human condition.
A Surprising Classic.......2003-11-29
The original issue did far better than expected. Apparently, while both Pournelle and his publisher hoped for the best when it came out, the reception was superb.
Thence came the demand for a sequel and later, after that, for the next one. In the mid 1980s, Pournelle was asked about this at a Los Angeles SF Convention, and he replied "Soon". Indeed, the third volume was soon published. But, like any good author who knows how to write well and milk a successful series, dangling threads were left. It is from these that other reviewers here have asked for a fourth volume.
It has now been 15 years since the 3rd volume! Frustrating. Sadly, it appears that Pournelle's productivity has fallen in recent years. Still, we can only hope... And also hope for a reissue, maybe in hardcover, of THIS first volume. As you may recall, the first publication was in an extra large paperback format, with illustrations. It has been sufficiently long that perhaps now a hardcover with the lovely drawings might be justified.
Good, but not great.......2000-08-30
A group of soldiers is brought to a primitive planet, Tran, populated by humans by an alien race called the Shalnuksis, that are part of an interstellar confederacy. The population on Tran consists of the descendants of humans brought to the planet by the the Shalnuksis every 600 years at least since 1000 BC. Humans are part of the Confederacy as slave soldiers and administrators, bred for loyalty. Earth is used by the Confederacy as a source of strains of wild humans to crossbreed with their Janissaries. The story is about the fate of the soldiers, fighting against and with the local humans, working against a deadline, and of course for the survival of the human race, on and off planet.
The greatest flaw however is as only too frequently that the story is far too short. But I guess that's why there are the sequels.
Great Book.......2000-03-14
I've re-read this book many times. The theme is an old one but no one executes it as well as he does. The characters are believable and 3 dimensional. JEP's military understanding is good. The action sequences are authentic. I've read all 3 books but the other 2 are progressively worse because Roland Green wrote them. The next two books have incredibly boring and inane dialogue and that's what killed the series. To top it off, my Storms of Victory ended without any explanation of what happened next. If I could find another copy of this book I'm gonna turn it to the back page to see if I had a bad copy.
Customer Reviews:
Jannisaries Pournelle.......2007-09-23
I rate Pournelle either good or great. This one is only good but it is a necessary part of the series, and the series as a whole leaves you wanting to now more about Galloway and Company. Reason that this is good but not great is that there are a few too many cardboard characters.
The series seems to be a lead in to another series about a galactic empire and that is going to be a tough job.
The story continues.......2005-02-16
Rick Galloway and his band of mercenaries have been stranded on a secret planet by space aliens who want them to produce a crop of intoxicating drugs. In order to achieve this goal, however, Galloway and his men must bring order to the chaotic mix of human cultures they find surrounding them. By carefully building alliances, Galloway begins to transform the planet's social, political and military landscape. However, his efforts are hampered by the changing climate and the resulting mass migrations. Galloway struggles to improve the lives of the people he rules, always mindful that any progress he promotes increases the chances that the aliens will bomb the planet back to the stone age.
While not as well written as the first book, this follow up does flesh out the varied cultures on the planet Tran, and shows the continuing impact of the introduction of advanced technical knowledge in a low technology culture. The military and political implications prove to be challenging, but perhaps not as bad as the social impact. While the first book could have stood on its own, this one ends abruptly, without any resolution, and is clearly intended to be read as part of a series.
a very short book, but damn good.......1999-05-19
ISBN 0-441-38294-0 Ace Books first printing Nov 1982. A large format book, unusual in the 1980's with illustrations, and large print. Why they didn't just combine this book with Storms of Victory (Janissares 3) I have no idea, because it was 1/2 of the original book. Easy logical progression of the original. Rick Galloway and his men have their hands full -changing weather patterns, growing madweed, spreading technology, revolting nobles, reuniting Rome and preparing to survive the nuclear winter if he succeeds.
Book Description
From the fifteenth to the sixteenth century, the janissaries were the scourge of Europe. Their ferocious spirit allowed their masters to extend their conquests from the Danube to the Euphrates. Their power was such that even sultans trembled.
But by the end of the eighteenth century, they were more interested in trade than war. Ill-disciplined and arrogant, both rulers and ruled turned against them. Yet their political power was so extensive it took years before they could be suppressed.
Customer Reviews:
Janissaries.......2007-05-13
A good genral history of this Elite Ottoman fighting force. I recommend this for any who need or want a quick and dirty history of this facinating culture.
Book Description
The Janissaries comprised an élite corps in the service of the Ottoman Empire. It was composed of war captives and Christian youths pressed into service; all of whom were converted to Islam and trained under the strictest discipline. In many ways, Jannisaries reflected Ottoman society, which was itself dominated by a military elite and where there was much greater social mobility than in Europe. On top of this, the Turks looked upon Europe much as the early Americans viewed the Western Frontier – as a land of adventure, mission and opportunity. David Nicolle examines the history, organisation, weapons and uniforms of these élite Turkish troops.
Customer Reviews:
The Turkish version of the Pretorian Guard.......2005-08-01
A good solid book that looks at one of the Turk's better fighting Units that spanned several hundred years from Malta to Persia. Well done!
A Good Source for the Cenissaries........2005-06-23
This is a good source of information about thier lives and their ways as well as their units. I would recommend this to anyone interested in the period or the empire. While my field falls away from this as, I would recommend it in a heart beat just to show how they dressed and acted as well as thier units and weapons. A 5/5 for me.
Janissaries: From Slaves to Ottoman Warriors.......2005-03-08
"The Janissaries" by David Nicolle is a nice companion to his Men-at-Arms volume "Armies of the Ottoman Turks 1300-1774." Although the book is readable by someone with little to no background knowledge on the Ottoman Turks, it is not the best book for beginners. The book is loaded with Turkish words and names, so it can be a little confusing.
Overall, I probably learned more useful information from his other book. Essentially, there is a lot of attention placed on details of names and not enough attention on a general overview. Regardless, it is still worth reading "The Janissaries" if you enjoyed Nicolle's other book on the Ottoman Turks and wanted to learn more about them.
One thing that did strike me as being odd was the Turks were painted as being such tolerant people and that Europeans are somehow biased and dislike them. The brutality, conquest, and their encroachment on their neighbors was absent from the book. At least addressing the issue of what the Turks did to get their "terrible" reputation would have given a more complete picture of who they were.
Very good.......1999-06-04
This is certainly one of the best volumes in the Osprey Elite Series. Author David Nicole gives an excellent overview of the Janissary corps of the Ottoman army, without the usual western European bias. The chapters: Origin and evolution of the Janissary corps - Recruitment and training - Ottoman army infantry forces - Uniforms and weaponry - Strategy and tactics - Promotion, pay and morale - Support, services and other duty - Other infantry forces. The book is no easy reading, as David Nicole uses the correct Turkish terms for weapons, army units and the like; but he explains all terms, so with a little bit of effort one can follow his thoughts and learn a lot. The illustrations by Christa Hook are of outstanding quality. The book should even interest readers who are already familiar with the subject.
Customer Reviews:
The final chapter (or is it?).......2005-02-26
In the first two Janissaries books we were introduced to Rick Galloway and his band of mercenary soldiers as they are kidnapped by aliens and transported to Tran, a world trapped in the middle ages, to grow illicit drugs for the aliens. We followed Galloway's adventures as he befriended the locals and tried to introduce technology to improve their lives and defend themselves against their enemies.
This final volume to the Janissaries series was a disappointment on a number of levels. Most significantly, while it does further develop the activities of the human servants of the alien civilization off of Tran, that part of the story is never brought to a conclusion. Also not resolved it the question of the preparations of the humans on Tran for the coming "Time." We are not provided with any closure on the question of whether the mercenaries will be able to prepare their new friends and allies to survive the coming conflict with the aliens.
The first two-thirds of this book delve deeply into the political intrique, and it is only in the last third that we return to the faster paced military story. Unfortunately, the book ends with the battle, without resolving any of the important plot lines. In many ways, it feels like another book was meant to follow this, but no such follow up seems to exist. It isn't clear why so much time was spent developing these plot lines if the ending was intended to leave them unresolved. The ending of the first book was much more satisfying, and that book can clearly stand on its own, but by the end of the third book, the reader deserves a more complete ending.
Please, Please, Finish the series!.......2001-11-17
This is a good series. I enjoyed all three books in the series, even if it did take quite awhile for the third one to be published. The worst part to this series is not knowing if the author is ever going to finish it. We were left hanging at the end of the third book. I hate it when authors leave a series of books unfinished.
Still Waiting for Green to Finish.......2001-06-08
Perhaps if enough of us let him know, Roland Green will finish this series, or turn it over to someone who will! He has left other series unfinished as well, especially the Wandor series. Come on Roland, you are an excellent storyteller, and create wonderful characters. Can't you finish a series? I won't even start Peace Company, since I understand you haven't completed that series either.
Otherwise, an excellent book, but you need to read the books in sequence to understand the background, and to understand why the characters make some of the choices they do. That's why Green is so good at character development, they act in a manner consistent with their backgrounds.
moderate sequel.......2000-06-19
Note that this was reprinted in 1996 together with "Janissaries 2: Clan and Crown" by Baen as "Tran".
This book is not in the same class as "Janissaries" (1), but still is a pageturner. A bit spoiled by intrigue of the nasty sort.
fascinating / dissapointing.......2000-01-08
After reading the first book I started looking for the other 2 "definitely out of print" in the series. I purchased both from Amazon, and I've read both like the first part: fascinated and(almost) without a stop from first to last word. I senced a growing disapointment while advancing in part 3 finding out the story does not come near an end. I any of you know of a part IV, let me know. I expect humanity to conquer the universe and would like to read about it . .
Book Description
A story told in dramatic form about the "Sword of Christiandom," Skanderbeg ("Captain General") and the Janissaries ("Fighting Priests"), and its leading players: Mohammed II ("Conquer of Constantinople"); Pasha Ballaban (Albanian Renegade), the favorite and most effective general of the Sultan, chief Aga of the Janissaries, the elite corps of the Turkish forces, recruited as young lads from the conquered lands, a majority of whom were from Albania); Moses Goleme, confidant of Skanderbeg and spiritual leader of the Albanian cause. Most of the main players (from both camps) were bound together by family ties. Morsinia (leading lady), the Albanian beauty, provides not only the love interest of the drama, but also symbolizes the purity of Albania in its heroic struggle - under Skanderbeg - against the Turkish hordes with overwhelming odds of over 15 to 1...
Customer Reviews:
Fascinating story, but the writing is hard to follow........2007-06-30
Skanderbeg (whose Albanian name was Gjerj Kastrioti) was taken into service by the Turks (after the capture of the Albanian village Kruja) and brainwashed in order to convert him into a Muslim. He excelled in strategy and tactics and therefore became one of the most highly respected (and among enemies) highly feared commanders of the Turkish Army. Whe he found, however, that his beloved father had died and his superiors had said nothing (instead placing his beloved Albania under the rule of a Muslim), his longing for his home country set a chain of events in motion that led to Skanderbeg turning against the Turks, joining the Chrsitian forces, and liberating Albania. Today Albanians look upon him as a saint.
No problems with the story, which is fascinating. On every pagethere exists an obvious bond between the men of Albania in which loyalty, bravery and humility all play a part. One cannot help but feel the duty and love with which Albanians put their country above their lives. The story, however, needs either a proofreader or an editor. I found myself many times having to scan a page in order to discern what the writer was trying to convey. He will often end a paragraph with one character saying something, and then begin another paragraph with the same character saying another thing, but makes no distinction of this. There are many words thrown uselessly into sentences which do nothing but add to the sense of confusion, in some places.
Overall, a fascinating study of Albanians, their senses of duty, loyalty, and bravery in defense of their mother country, but you might have to read it a few times to get the whole message.
Average customer rating:
|
Janissaries
Jerry Pournelle
Manufacturer: Ace Books Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: 0441382878 |
Books:
- Red Hot Root Words: Mastering Vocabulary With Prefixes, Suffixes And Root Words (Book 2)
- Research Methods in Family Therapy, Second Edition
- Roses (Time-Life Complete Gardener)
- Spoiled Rotten America: Outrages of Everyday Life
- Sunflower Houses : Inspiration from the Garden - A Book for Children and Their Grown-Ups
- Taylor's Guide to Roses: How to Select abd Grow 380 Roses, Including the New Hardy Ever-Blooming Varieties - Flexible Binding (Taylor's Gardening Guides)
- The 2007 Import and Export Market for Herbicides, Weed Killers, Antisprouting Products, and Plant-Growth Regulators for Retail Sale in Argentina
- The Accounting Game : Basic Accounting Fresh from the Lemonade Stand
- The Baby Sleep Book: The Complete Guide to a Good Night's Rest for the Whole Family (Sears Parenting Library)
- The Big Book of Children's Reading Lists: 100 Great, Ready-to-Use Book Lists for Educators, Librarians, Parents, and Children
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Supramolecular Chemistry of Anions
- My Life in France
- Don't the Moon Look Lonesome: A Novel in Blues and Swing
- History: Fiction or Science
- Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Qu
- Modern Ferrite Technology
- Just a Dream
- My Country, My Right to Serve: Experiences of Gay Men and Women in the Military, World War II to the
- Employment And Wages in the Canadian Furniture Industry
- Florida Law: A Layman's Guide
The Secret Life of the Dyslexic Child: How she thinks. How he feels. How they can succeed.
Are You Prepared to Teach Reading?: A Practical Tool for Self-Assessment
Laughing Allegra: The Inspiring Story of a Mother's Struggle and Triumph Raising a Daughter with Learning Disabilities
My Name Is Brain Brian (Apple Paperbacks)
Other People's Words: The Cycle of Low Literacy
Health o Meter HDC100-01 "Grow with Me" Teddy Bear Scale for Babies and Toddlers
Braun IRT 4020 ThermoScan Ear Thermometer
