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

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

How the Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe's Poorest Nation Created Our World & Everything in It

Average customer rating:

A valuable history lesson and food for thought
A must-read!
Excellent Book
Excellent
The Miracle of the Scottish Enlightenment

How the Scots Invented the Modern World: The True Story of How Western Europe's Poorest Nation Created Our World & Everything in It
Arthur Herman
Manufacturer: Three Rivers Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Early Civilization | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

Scotland | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0609809997
Release Date: 2002-09-24

Amazon.com

"I am a Scotsman," Sir Walter Scott famously wrote, "therefore I had to fight my way into the world." So did any number of his compatriots over a period of just a few centuries, leaving their native country and traveling to every continent, carving out livelihoods and bringing ideas of freedom, self-reliance, moral discipline, and technological mastery with them, among other key assumptions of what historian Arthur Herman calls the "Scottish mentality."

It is only natural, Herman suggests, that a country that once ranked among Europe's poorest, if most literate, would prize the ideal of progress, measured "by how far we have come from where we once were." Forged in the Scottish Enlightenment, that ideal would inform the political theories of Francis Hutcheson, Adam Smith, and David Hume, and other Scottish thinkers who viewed "man as a product of history," and whose collective enterprise involved "nothing less than a massive reordering of human knowledge" (yielding, among other things, the Encyclopaedia Britannica, first published in Edinburgh in 1768, and the Declaration of Independence, published in Philadelphia just a few years later). On a more immediately practical front, but no less bound to that notion of progress, Scotland also fielded inventors, warriors, administrators, and diplomats such as Alexander Graham Bell, Andrew Carnegie, Simon MacTavish, and Charles James Napier, who created empires and great fortunes, extending Scotland's reach into every corner of the world.

Herman examines the lives and work of these and many more eminent Scots, capably defending his thesis and arguing, with both skill and good cheer, that the Scots "have by and large made the world a better place rather than a worse place." --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

Who formed the first modern nation?
Who created the first literate society?
Who invented our modern ideas of democracy and free market capitalism?
The Scots.

Mention of Scotland and the Scots usually conjures up images of kilts, bagpipes, Scotch whisky, and golf. But as historian and author Arthur Herman demonstrates, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries Scotland earned the respect of the rest of the world for its crucial contributions to science, philosophy, literature, education, medicine, commerce, and politics—contributions that have formed and nurtured the modern West ever since.

Arthur Herman has charted a fascinating journey across the centuries of Scottish history. He lucidly summarizes the ideas, discoveries, and achievements that made this small country facing on the North Atlantic an inspiration and driving force in world history. Here is the untold story of how John Knox and the Church of Scotland laid the foundation for our modern idea of democracy; how the Scottish Enlightenment helped to inspire both the American Revolution and the U.S. Constitution; and how thousands of Scottish immigrants left their homes to create the American frontier, the Australian outback, and the British Empire in India and Hong Kong.

How the Scots Invented the Modern World reveals how Scottish genius for creating the basic ideas and institutions of modern life stamped the lives of a series of remarkable historical figures, from James Watt and Adam Smith to Andrew Carnegie and Arthur Conan Doyle, and how Scottish heroes continue to inspire our contemporary culture, from William “Braveheart” Wallace to James Bond.

Victorian historian John Anthony Froude once proclaimed, “No people so few in number have scored so deep a mark in the world’s history as the Scots have done.” And no one who has taken this incredible historical trek, from the Highland glens and the factories and slums of Glasgow to the California Gold Rush and the search for the source of the Nile, will ever view Scotland and the Scots—or the modern West—in the same way again. For this is a story not just about Scotland: it is an exciting account of the origins of the modern world and its consequences.

“The point of this book is that being Scottish turns out to be more than just a matter of nationality or place of origin or clan or even culture. It is also a state of mind, a way of viewing the world and our place in it. . . . This is the story of how the Scots created the basic idea of modernity. It will show how that idea transformed their own culture and society in the eighteenth century, and how they carried it with them wherever they went. Obviously, the Scots did not do everything by themselves: other nations—Germans, French, English, Italians, Russians, and many others—have their place in the making of the modern world. But it is the Scots more than anyone else who have created the lens through which we see the final product. When we gaze out on a contemporary world shaped by technology, capitalism, and modern democracy, and struggle to find our place as individuals in it, we are in effect viewing the world as the Scots did. . . . The story of Scotland in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries is one of hard-earned triumph and heart-rending tragedy, spilled blood and ruined lives, as well as of great achievement.”
—FROM THE PREFACE

Customer Reviews:

A valuable history lesson and food for thought.......2007-10-12

An amazing revelation of a small country's enormous contributions to freedom and knowledge with special relationship to the founding of our country. Negative, condescending stereotypes are exploded.

A must-read!.......2007-09-26

An absolute must-read for anyone interested in how the principles and values that America was founded on came to be...I couldn't help but wonder after reading this inspiring book, why there isn't some type of national recognition for the Scots like those that exist for other cultures (St. Patrick's Day for the Irish, Columbus Day for the Italians, etc.).

Excellent Book.......2007-08-23

I was lent a copy of this book and liked it so much that I bought one for myself. It gives a very good background on the Scottish culture and the development of the philosophy that underlies it. It covers a very broad area and the way it is written, makes for very good reading.

Excellent.......2007-08-15

This book was a Christmas gift and I recently finished reading it. I had fairly low expectations going in, but my interest was held all the way through. Mr. Herman does indeed make a strong case for Scots leading the way in many aspects of modern society, although I would say that declaring that Scots invented the modern world is rather speculative. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this book and was especially interested in how Scots helped shape the United States and Canada with highlanders generally siding with the monarchy and migrating to Canada as Loyalists after the War of Independence and lowlanders siding with the revolutionaries. An excellent read if you are interested in Scottish or New World history.

The Miracle of the Scottish Enlightenment.......2007-04-20

How did it come about that between 1700 and 1800 a small undeveloped European country transformed itself into a modern capitalist democracy? The title is obviously pretentious and used as a marketing gimmick. It worked on me because it convinced me to buy this book. Historian Arthur Herman is not Scottish or of Scottish descent, but he has written a very compelling chronicle of the miracle of the Scottish Enlightenment.

In 1707, the Union Act united the kingdoms of Scotland and England. Prior to this, the two antagonists living on opposite sides of Hadrian's Wall wanted nothing to do with each other. Scotland consisted mainly of primitive clans living in the highlands and slightly more advanced lowlanders living mainly in the cities of Glascow and Edinburgh. The parliament in Edinburgh was controlled by groups of noblemen who in turn were dominated by the rigid and inquisitorial Presbyterian Kirk (church) of Scotland.

After 1707, there were two developments that were crucial to Scotland's rise to modernity. The first was the opening up to the economic free trade zone of the British Empire. At first the Scottish fretted about either being swallowed-up by their world-class English competitors or becoming pauperized like the Irish. Their fears were misplaced, neither happened. Instead, the Scottish became, Herman argues, the most significant player in the the empire's economic and intellectual sphere.

The second big reason for Scottish success was their public education system - the first in Europe. This was the work of the Presbyterian Kirk. They maintained that political power, ordained by God, was vested in the people, not the monarchy or the church. The Kirk believed that all people should be able to read the Bible, and as a consequence they achieved a 75% literacy rate - unprecedented in 1750.

Near-universal education produced in this tiny country a disproportionate number of world-class thinkers - David Hume, Francis Hutchison, and Adam Smith, to name a few. They transformed the fields of philosophy, history, economics, education, commerce, architecture, and many more. Due to their mutual animosity toward the English, the Scots found inspiration from the great thinkers of the French Enlightenment, and vice versa. It was Voltaire who said that, "We look to Scotland for all of our ideas of civilization."

As for Herman's claim that the Scots invented the modern world, it should be taken with a grain of salt. In the free trade zone of the British Empire, commerce and ideas flowed both ways. It can be said that the Scots did much to improve or make new existing ideas, and in some cases invent; but they did not singlehandedly invent the modern world.

The Scottish Enlightenment was not without its dark side. The modernizing of the Scottish Highlands was anything but civilized. Before the Scots exported the ideas of goverment and commerce abroad, it had to brutally convert some of its own population. Herman also sidesteps the ugly fact that the Scots were deeply involved in the slave trade and the Klu Klux Klan in the US, and in the opium trade in China - recall the trading companies of Jardine Matheson and Hutchison Whampoa originally spoke with a Scottish burr. Not to say that they invented either of these unseemly businesses, but they certainly flourished in them.

Nevertheless, Professor Herman is a gifted writer and he is exceptionally good at explaining the many geniuses that populated this tiny country during the 18th century.

Average customer rating:

EXTREMELY Disappointed
Barbaro: A Nation's Love Story
A heart-warming story
Very Disappointed With This Book
Nothing special

Barbaro: A Nation's Love Story
Pamela K. Brodowsky , and Tom Philbin
Manufacturer: Collins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

History of Sports | Miscellaneous | Sports | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0061284858
Release Date: 2007-02-26

Book Description

This up-to-minute book follows the story of Barbaro, the Triple Crown contender whose unlikely fight back from almost certain death from a shattered leg and ensuing complications captured the hearts of a nation who responded with a stunning display of love.

In 132 years of derby races, only 11 horses have won the Triple Crown, the last in 1978. Barbaro was a favorite to be the twelfth until May 20, 2006, at the Preakness Stakes, when his jockey, Edgar Prado pulled him up a couple of hundred yards from the starting gate. Subsequent examination revealed that he had virtually exploded bones in his right rear leg so badly that under normal conditions he would have been euthanized right on the track. But his owners, Roy and Gretchen Jackson, chose another path, one filled with anxiety and tears—but also courageous determination to save his life.

This touching, soaring book—filled with insights from Barbaro's trainers, breeders, caretakers, and owners—follows Barbaro from foal to colt to champion to perfect patient. But In the end it is not just a story of a down-but-not-out champion, but of human beings at their very best.

Customer Reviews:

EXTREMELY Disappointed.......2007-07-11

I waited to buy this book, knowing that I wasn't emotionally ready to read it. I eventually bought it when I bought W. Nack's Ruffian book and the book about Secretariat's groom. I read the other two books first, and then the Barbaro book. The Barbaro book is littered with mistakes. The editors did an extremely poor job. I realize that casual horseracing fans will probably enjoy the book and won't notice the errors, but there is sooo much missing from this book! I was extremely disappointed in this book. It is not a worthy remembrance of Barbaro, his connections and the fans worldwide who followed his story.

Barbaro: A Nation's Love Story.......2007-05-12

The book is a treasure showing many, many photographs of this wonderful horse. It gives great insight as to the challenges he faced and his life prior to his accident.

A heart-warming story.......2007-04-11

Barbaro was an excellent book and one that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. The authors did a wonderful job in relating the facts and the background about the horse that the world fell in love with. I would recommend it highly not only to all horse lovers, but to everyone who followed the amazing, and unfortunately tragic, career of Barbaro. It is book that you will want to share with your friends and family.

Very Disappointed With This Book.......2007-04-09

I was deeply disappointed with this book. Having followed Barbaro's recovery avidly on a daily basis, and having fallen in love with him, there is a hole in my heart now which cannot be filled. He will always remain a champion and will be remembered by all of those who loved him.

Therefore, much to my dismay, I was disapointed, not only by the book's appearance and presentation, but the writing, the errors, the apparent haste in which the book was thrown together to be released quickly.

I was looking forward to a really wonderful book, with photographs and a quality of writing and presentation that would be worthy in honoring this horse. I must say that my expectations were not met. I have returned the book to Amazon for a refund.

Nothing special.......2007-03-29

This book is about what I expected-- an overview of things we've already heard. Anyone who remotely followed Barbaro's story through the media already knows everything written in this book. Unless you've been living under a rock for the past year, this isn't worth the read. This book almost seems a sacrilege to Barbaro and to those who loved and cared for him-- the author seems to be willing to paste the horse's name on a mediocre book for the sake of a quick dollar. Do yourself a favor and read 'real' racing literature, like Hillenbrand's "Seabiscuit" or Nack's "Secretariat- The Making of a Champion." A quick internet search on Barbaro will uncover better information by more talented writers.

Average customer rating:

Huh?
Saunders made me a fan of the short story
well what can i say about the run on words do they really need to make conjecture sense
A book full of fantastic stories, successes and failures both.
Finding humor in corporate America.

In Persuasion Nation
George Saunders
Manufacturer: Riverhead Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Comic | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 159448242X

Book Description

Talking candy bars, baby geniuses, disappointed mothers, castrated dogs, interned teenagers, and moral fables-all in this hilarious and heartbreaking collection. The best work yet from an author hailed as the heir to Kurt Vonnegut and Thomas Pynchon.

Customer Reviews:

Huh?.......2007-09-30

I feel a little guilty being the only person giving this book a 1 so far. Honest to goodness, I just didn't get it. And I like David Sedares. I'm the person who guffaws loudly when no else gets a joke (or doesn't find something funny...).

I kept trying- I'd skip a story, move on to the next. About half way through, I gave up. I had a hard time following the story lines. I couldn't get to where the author needed me to be in order to find anything remotely humorous. Some of the stories seemed way out there.

I'm not hip, so maybe that was the issue. What can I say, everyone else seems to like it, so it must be me.

Saunders made me a fan of the short story.......2007-09-14

I had always been reluctant to read short stories. I have no idea why but this might be the first collection of short stories that I wasn't forced to read and I am truly glad I did.

Saunders is talented on so many levels. His stories flow well and he has the unique ability to say a lot without using a lot of words to do it. Saunders has a wickedly sardonic sense of humor and if you the least bit cynical about the future, you will love reading this book. The humor is very dark, so it's not for everyone.

After I finished, I went out and picked up Saunders' other books and in my opinion, this is by far his best. So if you are interested enough to buy one of his books, this is the one.

well what can i say about the run on words do they really need to make conjecture sense.......2007-09-10

must it really be coherent or can it just be diatribe's as it exits from the two braincells wich are throwing stones at each other just sort of spew out on to the page for us mere mortal to make somewhat of some sort of some type of sense even though. Well you get the idea SPARE ME YOUR GENIUS, PLEASE?...

A book full of fantastic stories, successes and failures both........2007-06-15

George Saunders is a man who - when he wants to - knows his way around a story. One needs look no farther than "Sea Oak," the crown jewel of his last collection of stories, "Pastoralia," to know that Saunders has a way with tapping the plight of contemporary man and owning it completely. When Saunders is on, his stories feel like reading the new classic literature of our generation: stories that will transcend this day that we live in and serve as more than mere snapshots. Other than "Sea Oak," Saunders caught snatches of this same success in the title story and "The End of FIRPO in the World," but was hampered somewhat by a tendency to retreat into the safe space of over-the-top kitsch and narration clouded by rumination.

In "In Persuasion Nation," Saunders demonstrates a frustratiing tendency to write meta-stories: that is, stories tied together by an overwhelming theme, or - worse - message. The first four stories - "I CAN SPEAK!", "My Flamboyant Grandson," "Jon," and "My Amendment" - fall victim to Saunders' willfullness as an author, to varying degrees. "My Amendment" is the worst offender, as a fictional letter that panders to the good common sense of a fictional editorial writer in the fictional letter-writer's attempts to outlaw "Samish-Sex Marriage," an idea that is neither original nor, particularly problemlatically, clever. You can almost hear the grating voice of Saunders, pandering to his audience, trying his very hardest to be endearing but also talk about "serious issues." "I CAN SPEAK!" fails for similar reasons, though it's main problem stems from inhabiting a sort of near-future fictional world ruled by advertisement and technology that Saunders, again, thinks is far more clever than it actually is. The best of this batch is probably "My Flamboyant Gradson," for successfully tapping an actual human connection and relying only heavily of exposition rather than exclusively. "Jon," despite some clever advertisment ideas that I'm sure ad agencies will consider in the coming years, falls just short of being compelling, partly due to length and partly due to Saunders' lack of grace with exposition in his imagined near-future.

But then the good ones start. "The Red Bow" comes out of nowhere and presents a totally feasible situation, alternatively fascinating and terrifying, that thrusts an unlikely hero into the spotlight in a human way that, heretofore in the collection, Saunders had proven himself incapable of achieving. "Christmas," a story about a teenaged youth working as a roofer, is much the same: Saunders is working with familiar clay, but working it in such a simple and appealing way that it doesn't matter. "Adams" is even the best of the trio for its punchiness and position as the shortest of the three - this is a one-two-three combo that left me reeling, and more importantly, wondering where this stuff had been in the first four stories.

The next story, "93990" - a fictional account of a medical experiment on chimps - is not, strictly speaking, a story, but it's miles and miles ahead of the two stories that follow it, stories that make me think that Saunders needs a better editor or a more stringent publisher. "Brad Carrigan, American" is a messy hodgepodge of ideas borrowed from the first three stories in this collection and the story that follows it, and utterly fails to forge any kind of emotion or lasting impression. "In Persuasion Nation" is worse, for its rambling, and its prattling, and its condescension. This is a story that tries to invoke the various characters from advertisements and have us believe that they live on a separate plain, living out their advertisements in an endless loop. When some of the downtrodden rebel, a corner of a wrapper of some fictional energy bar becomes a God-figure and berates a polar bear, who then tries to committ suicide. It's a cute idea, at best, but the execution is sloppy and tedious.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your viewpoint, Saunders then serves up two simply superb stories, in the form of the already-recognized "Bohemians" and the piece de resistance, "CommComm." The former made an appearance in the 2006 "Best American Short Stories" for a reason: it has an instantly timeless feeling to it, is the most effortless of the short stories in this colleciton, and is so apparently liminal so as to be out of place in a collection this self-satisfied. Then there's "CommComm," a story I suspect arose from the title, which manages to glean one of the few interesting ideas from the title story (repeating an experience over and over), turn that on its ear, and then portray two inherently human characters - a man with an incapacitated wife, and a man who clings too tightly to his faith - and humanize the freaking both them, in a way that is bound to break your heart into tiny pieces. When Giff talks about hating himself for pinching his wife, there better be a part of you that snaps off and falls away, or else there's a very real danger that you've become desensitized by the 11 stories that came before it.

"In Persuasion Nation" is too long, and sloppily organized, and poorly imagined, but goddamn if the man can't write a hell of a story when he puts his mind to what works. The last two stories in this collection are bound to be as good as any stories you read this year, and there are others earlier on that can do considerable damage from out of nowhere, too. It's just too bad that his creative leash is so long here; that we have to slog through the fantastically bad to get to the good.

Finding humor in corporate America........2007-04-10

George Saunders' short stories have appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, and Harper's magazines, and his tragicomic, avant-garde writing is frequently compared to other great American social satirists including Kurt Vonnegut and Thomas Pynchon. While his fiction typically focuses on consumerism and corporate culture (a culture synonymous with greed, materialism, conformity, competitiveness, environmental ignorance, and spiritual blindness), many of his stories also grapple with much larger moral questions, such as the vitality of human existence in a vacuous American culture. Reading IN PERSUASION NATION, Saunders' third collection of a dozen stories, is nothing short of an overwhelming experience. "The Red Bow" (in which a town suffers from pet-killing hysteria) won a 2004 National Magazine Award and and "Bohemians" (in which two Eastern European widows attempt to adjust to American suburbia) was included in The Best American Short Stories 2005. Recommended.

G. Merritt

Average customer rating:

JUst as good if not better than Monster Island!
Enjoyable pulp, bad research
Bought it, read it, returned it
Could have been a great book...but its not.
Uneven and silly with very few scares

Monster Nation: A Zombie Novel
David Wellington
Manufacturer: Thunder's Mouth Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1560258667

Book Description

In the heart of America, in the world’s most secure prison, something horrible is growing in the dark. A wave of cannibalism and fear is sweeping across the heartland, spreading carnage and infection in its wake. Captain Bannerman Clark of the National Guard has been tasked with an impossible mission: discover what is happening — and then stop it before it annihilates Los Angeles.

In California, he discovers a woman trapped in a hospital overrun with violent madmen. She may hold the secret to the Epidemic but she has lost everything — even her name.

David Wellington’s first novel, Monster Island, explored a world overcome by horror and the few people strong enough to survive. Now he takes us back in time to where it all began — to the day the dead began to rise.

Customer Reviews:

JUst as good if not better than Monster Island!.......2007-09-29

This second book in the trilogy takes us back to when the dead began to rise, truly great story telling and truly horrifying!!! Bring on Monster Planet!!

Enjoyable pulp, bad research.......2007-09-19

I really enjoyed Monster Nation - it was great light reading for a long airplane ride. The author is a talented wordsmith and creates interesting scenarios that appeal; I have a thing for zombie movies and Monster Nation would probably make a good one.

I did have some issues with the poor research though. Monster Nation is all about what would happen if the U.S. was overrun by zombies and focuses a lot on the military response to such an event taking place. However, the author clearly didn't talk to anyone in the military when he wrote the novel. Majors do not salute Captains. The Beretta M9 is not generally held to be a major improvement over the 1911 it replaced. Etc, ad infinitum. For me, as a soldier, the suspension of disbelief was mitigated by the obvious lack of military knowledge.

I'll probably pick up another of the Monster series though, because David Wellington is a good character developer. Monster Nation kept me glued to the pages wanting to find out how things would turn out. In the end, I felt it was all a little hokey but still highly enjoyable.

Bought it, read it, returned it.......2007-07-15

There are some things to like about this book... and a lot to not like. Basic things. Some of the other reviewers have already covered some of it:

- Military detail. I could go on and on but some of the more egregious errors are: there are no 35-year veteran 61-year old Captains, in the National Guard or elsewhere... There is a thing called the "up or out rule;" people don't "come to attention and salute" as it is portrayed... that's like something out of a bad movie; and CSM's are not Platoon Sergeants, nor are they referred to as "Chief." Chain of command... Captains don't report directly to Generals or to DOD officials. National Guard response doesn't cross state boundaries unless it is requested by the state in need of support. I could go on and on, but you get the point.

- Needless mysticism. Without spoiling the plot, one of the characters is guided by what seems at first to be an Indian Spirit Guide, only to later be revealed as some sort of Druid. But to no real end... he's neither a causal character nor is he a solution. The same with a character who is "psychic"... They're just some sort of dei ex machina... and distracting ones. I wonder if the author inserted them as mechanisms to work himself out of dead ends that would otherwise collapse of their own internal contradictions.

- Needlessly perverse senior officials. Both the Colorado Adjutant General and the DOD official should be key characters, not a lowly Captain. It could be a plot component for them to be incompetent or even corrupt, but their incompetence (CO Adjutant General) and perversity (DOD official) are unnecessary, as if it's de rigeur for senior officials to be bad guys without any sort of explanation, reason, or point of contribution to the plot.

- Unlikely exercise of authority by FEMA. He gets some of this right... emergency response was regularized and streamlined after 9-11, and that would have been an interesting part of the story if it had been done well. But FEMA doesn't decide anything... they just show up and support the state or local officials who do the deciding. If a national-scale disaster occurs (such as this surely is), then a "lead Federal Agency" may be appointed, with a "principal Federal Official" in charge, but he doesn't explore any of this, just presenting the bureaucracy as a faceless black box. While this might be excusable if the plot perspective was that of an outsider (i.e. an "everyman" civilian), it is not excusable when one of the main characters is very much an insider and should be intimately involved with the process. At least be familiar with the detail before you write about an organization.

- Universally bad character development. Wellington starts out to flesh out nice three-dimensional characters only to abruptly halt this development short of a complete picture. The gimmicky names are a distraction, too.

Even the stuff to like is a set of dichotomies with some of the things done well crippled by components done poorly. As an example, Wellington explores the response to biological incidents by including USAMRIID (but then undercuts himself by writing off the critically important and internationally-recognized Centers for Disease Control).

With that said, there are some things to like. The basic plot premise is intriguing as a thought experiment into how societies react under unusual or extraordinary circumstances. Science Fiction is particularly useful for this sort of thing; by taking current social issues and extrapolating them by accelerating or accentuating variables, often based in technology. Wellington does include some "cutting edge" components, such as the Civil Support Teams, Stryker Brigades, and the Department of Homeland Security's relationship with local response; unfortunately, there is not enough of it. Even the (WARNING: Plot Spoiler follows!) "mad scientist" at the end is cartoonish and hastily contrived, as if the author got tired of writing and just decided to abruptly end it all. None of the social implications of the technology (or even of the disaster itself) are ever really explored beyond the gory and graphic details of death and mayhem. What is happening in Washington, beyond the dissipation resulting from alluded-to "crisis-fatigue?" What is happening in Las Vegas, where a totalitarian police-state seems to have been established? What is happening in Denver, as it is overwhelmed? He dangles the situations, but never explores them, to the detriment of the plot.

I was waiting for more. It never arrived. The basic premise still remains to be done well... domestic military operating against a pervasive and insidious threat; the response of society to both the threat and the response, the ways decisions are made in such circumstances and why... in the post 9-11 and post-Katrina world all these questions beg answering. It's too bad that Wellington doesn't even get all the questions right, much less the answers. It rates two stars, solely because I did finish it... it wasn't so bad that I stopped reading out of boredom or disgust. It wasn't a keeper, though... nor do I recommend it.

Could have been a great book...but its not........2007-07-07

I'd been thinking of buying this one through Amazon.com for awhile, so when I saw it at a local booksellers, I grabbed it.

First the good. It puts a slightly new spin on the zombie tome of old. The zombies are brought back by (some kind ? ) of magic. One of them, at least, maintains some humanity and the IDEA is well thought out and Could work well.

There are Many basic problems though. First off the pacing makes a 280ish page book read more like six or seven hundred, and not in a good way. Changing PoV from character to character every third paragraph doesn't help either. Then there are the characters...

Nilla, the female lead, is likable and real and in her own way - kind. But she is only partially explored and gets bogged down by various hangers on who are Not particularly likable...and the One that is rides off into the sunset never to be heard from again!

Capt. Bannerman Clark... (And here is an example of how Not to write. Having one character with an unusual first name is great, makes them memorable. Loading down a story with three or four like this loads it down and stretches the ability of disbelief. Short verson, unless you're Stephen King, it won't play off - and it doesn't) But back to Clark: Though the author tries to make him seem like a fully dedicated National Guard Officer, he comes across as DANGEROUSLY idiotic! (A disemboweled man staggers toward him and he still steadfastly denies that the guy in question is, uhm, dead. For the first hundred and some pages in fact, we don't even see "Zombie" but rather despite bones showing through and completely autopsied bodies, this rocket scientist is convinced that he is dealing with live but "infected" (by some disease) people.

Dick is actually one of the more down to earth and likable characters, and he is introduced with a nice amount of backstory...only to be killed and brought back as a mindless pawn of...something. What it is is never really made clear.

I could go on but you get the idea. I gave this book two stars for the idea alone, but kill two hours reading it and it will feel like eight.

Pass unless desperate.

Uneven and silly with very few scares.......2007-06-27

What started out as promising quickly fell into a mystical cross country adventure that felt totally out of place in a zombie story. Wellington creates a realistic world of the undead and then keeps adding more outlandish plot points, completely pulling me out of the story. I don't think I'll be coming back for more.

Knowledge and the Wealth Of Nations: A Story of Economic Discovery

Average customer rating:

Enjoyable history of the development of growth theory
Economic History at its Best
More Economic History than Economic Thought
Great Topic; Anecdotal Book
Disappointment

Knowledge and the Wealth Of Nations: A Story of Economic Discovery
David Warsh
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Economic History | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0393059960

Book Description

A stimulating and inviting tour of modern economics centered on the story of one of its most important breakthroughs.

In 1980, the twenty-four-year-old graduate student Paul Romer tackled one of the oldest puzzles in economics. Eight years later he solved it. This book tells the story of what has come to be called the new growth theory: the paradox identified by Adam Smith more than two hundred years earlier, its disappearance and occasional resurfacing in the nineteenth century, the development of new technical tools in the twentieth century, and finally the student who could see further than his teachers.

Fascinating in its own right, new growth theory helps to explain dominant first-mover firms like IBM or Microsoft, underscores the value of intellectual property, and provides essential advice to those concerned with the expansion of the economy. Like James Gleick's Chaos or Brian Greene's The Elegant Universe, this revealing book takes us to the frontlines of scientific research; not since Robert Heilbroner's classic work The Worldly Philosophers have we had as attractive a glimpse of the essential science of economics.

Customer Reviews:

Enjoyable history of the development of growth theory.......2007-10-05

David Warsh presents the economic problem of increasing returns in this history of economic theory from Adam Smith up to Paul Romer, which is to say the present day. The first half of the book is primarily a recap of the history of economics with a focus on the built-in problem of increasing returns. The problem being that growth and increasing returns were always the result of external factors rather than intrinsic to the economic model.

The emergence of growth theory, as propounded by Romer, has led to a "tectonic shift" in the conceptual foundations of economics, according to Warsh. This shift started almost a century ago and culminated in Romer's "Endogenous Technological Change" paper. The after-effects of the realization that land, labor, and capital can be rethought of as people, things, and ideas are still to be realized.

Warsh spends a bit of time in hero-worship of Romer, which I found somewhat dragging. However, the rest of the story, with its interplay of competing economic theories, not to mention competing economists, was well-described by the author. I didn't come away with a very deep understanding of the issues at play, but I did get broad exposure to those various issues. My curiousity is certainly piqued.

The book works well as a general interest reader for anyone wanting to get a handle on the most recent developments in economic theory. The book is very readable, though the lack of technical details (and a gut feeling that Warsh is sometimes glossing over things that he himself doesn't understand) makes it difficult to take the book 100% seriously.

Economic History at its Best.......2007-08-23

It is no secret: ideas motivate the world. They propel markets. As obvious as it seems today, it has not always been so.

It was not until 1980 when a 24 year-old graduate student, Paul Romer tackled the role of knowledge that the concept assumed it rightful role. It took him eight years to solve the puzzle. While the problem was clear, the tools to solve it were not.

David Warsh, an economic journalist, narrates this tale of economic discovery. Drawing vivid portraits of those pioneering economists who work advanced this idea, Warsh explores Adam Smith's paradox of falling costs. He explains the contributions of Smith, Alfred Marshall, John Maynard Keynes, Joseph Schumpeter, Paul Krugman, Robert Solow, Kenneth Arrow, Robert Lucas and, of course, Romer.

His portraits draw a rich picture of how theoretical economics evolves. The personal struggle to clarify disparate vapors of ideas, luncheon meetings with colleagues for inspiration, the circulation of notes, preparation of papers, the struggle publish them in respected journals and attendance at conferences.

A skillful writer blessed with the ability to translate complex ideas into clear and concise prose, Warsh brings new insights and understanding to problems posed more than 200 years ago by Adam Smith.

More Economic History than Economic Thought.......2007-06-24

Warsh has authored a well written book with a compelling tale of the foundations of theory of economic growth. More than anything else, it is a story of Paul Romer and his groundbreaking ideas. Romer is a remarkably creative thinker on a search for an economic theory (aka model) to explain growth. The author starts us on Romer's odyssey first with a brief history back to Adam Smith. It is clear Romer stood on the shoulders of giants (Smith, Marshall, Arrow, et al) in formulating theories (models) for growth, recognizing the value of knowledge and technology.

The kernel of the story becomes a bit muddled at times as Warsh becomes more fascinated with the great economists than he is about great economic ideas. The book is not written with a clear exposition of the evolution of economic thinking. It is written toward explaining the history of events of how the evolution of the thinking occurred. As such, it can be a tough slog as we are introduced to one economist after another without sufficient explanation of each person's contribution of ideas and how it fits into the mosaic of 'the real economy' (my emphasis). Romer comes and goes throughout the chapters but he is the central subject.

Toward the end (chapter 25), the history of Microsoft is introduced as an example of the ultimate 'pin factory' (Adam Smith). At this point in the story, reading about MS feels artificial and disconnected. I would have left it out completely.

One interesting observation was leading economists make 'discoveries' through models, explaining through sophisticated mathematics what the average businessman already knows from observation and experience. I felt this throughout the book so was not surprised when the author recounted a story of Krugman testing a new learning from a model on a non-economist friend. The friend's response was the discovery was "obvious". This says something about the theoretical economist's need to connect with the real world as opposed to spending all their time with models. To be fair economists must work with models which are mathematically well behaved, similar to physicists and engineers working with linear equations which are tractable for solution. These models often require assumptions or simplification which leaves out important factors. (I do worry at the unreal assumptions in the models described since many of these same economists find their way to be Presidential advisors or Fed Governors.)

I am glad I read the book and learned about how the profession develops its thinking. I also wonder if the time was well spent.

Great Topic; Anecdotal Book.......2007-05-12

A good overview, particularly for non-technical readers. Too superficial, anecdotal, repetitive, and imprecise for readers who want to find out what the major economic models really are and how they compare with economic data. For such readers, Charles Jones's Introduction to Economic Growth is much better.

Disappointment.......2007-02-17

Most of the reviewers of this book apparently found it to be impressive. Sadly I did not.

Too little time is devoted to offering adequate clear explanations of the economic ideas and theories being addressed, too much time is devoted to irrelevant social asides. The non-economist reader seeking to understand the economics as opposed to learning a great amount of academic gossip and politics will probably be disappointed. I wanted to understand growth theory. I did not and do not care that the reason why Paul Romer left Chicago for the Bay Area was that his wife had a disagreement with her lab manager or that Paul Romer has developed software to teach economics. I found such digressions to be unnecessary and distracting.

To cite just two of the book's specific limitations:

(1) The book lacks referential footnotes and a bibliography. Readers not already familiar with the subject wishing to pursue a topic further will be at a loss.

(2) The book lacks a glossary. Throughout the book numerous technical terms are introduced and, at best, briefly described. It would have been nice to have all of these key terms explained in one place for easy reference.

Small efforts on the part of the author would have remedied both of these deficiencies.

The Basque History of the World: The Story of a Nation

Average customer rating:

Reading in situ at the Guggenheim, Bilbao
fascinating subject, but only a so-so book
A Useful Introduction into the Basque Culture
An Amazing History of an Inspiring People
Recommended

The Basque History of the World: The Story of a Nation
Mark Kurlansky
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0140298517

Amazon.com

The buzz about the Guggenheim Bilbão aside, the Basques seldom get good press--from the 12th-century Codex of Calixtus ("A Basque or Navarrese would do in a French man for a copper coin") to current news items about ETA, the Basque nationalist group. Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod, sets out to change all that in The Basque History of the World.

"The singular remarkable fact about the Basques is that they still exist," Kurlansky asserts. Without a defined country (other than Euskadi, otherwise known as "Basqueland"), with no known related ethnic groups, the Basques are an anomaly in Europe. What unites the Basques, above all, is their language--Euskera. According to ETA, "Euskera is the quintessence of Euskadi. So long as Euskera is alive, Euskadi will live." To help provide a complete picture of the Basques, Kurlansky looks at their political, economic, social, and even culinary history, from the valiant Basque underground in World War II to medieval whalers to modern makers of the gâteau Basque. The most affecting chapter focuses on Guernica, a small market town bombed by German planes for over three hours on April 26, 1937, and uses interviews with survivors to illustrate the horror of the attack.

Kurlansky is clearly enamored of the Basques, which leads him to see them in a uniformly positive light. That rosy outlook aside, The Basque History of the World is an excellent introduction to these romantic people. Are they the original Europeans? Kurlansky doesn't weigh in on the issue, preferring instead to honor the Basque request Garean gareana legez--let us be what we are. --Sunny Delaney

Book Description

Straddling a small corner of Spain and France in a land that is marked on no maps except their own, the Basques are a puzzling contradiction-they are Europe's oldest nation without ever having been a country. No one has ever been able to determine their origins, and even the Basques' language, Euskera-the most ancient in Europe-is related to none other on earth. For centuries, their influence has been felt in nearly every realm, from religion to sports to commerce. Even today, the Basques are enjoying what may be the most important cultural renaissance in their long existence.

Mark Kurlansky's passion for the Basque people and his exuberant eye for detail shine throughout this fascinating book. Like Cod, The Basque History of the World blends human stories with economic, political, literary, and culinary history into a rich and heroic tale.

Among the Basques' greatest accomplishments:

• Exploration-the first man to circumnavigate the globe, Juan Sebastián de Elcano, was a Basque and the Basques were the second Europeans, after the Vikings, in North America
• Gastronomy and agriculture-they were the first Europeans to eat corn and chili peppers and cultivate tobacco, and were among the first to use chocolate
• Religion-Ignatius Loyola, a Basque, founded the Jesuit religious order
• Business and politics-they introduced capitalism and modern commercial banking to southern Europe
• Recreation-they invented beach resorts, jai alai, and racing regattas, and were the first Europeans to play sports with balls

Customer Reviews:

Reading in situ at the Guggenheim, Bilbao.......2007-05-25

This very readable book will greatly enhance a visit to the Guggenheim in Bilbao and touring in the surrounding area. The Basque region is geographically and culturally very different from the rest of Spain. Much of it's history is unknown to the ordinary traveller history buff. Kurlansky's book will be a pleasure to have along.

fascinating subject, but only a so-so book.......2007-05-22

I have to admit to not finishing this book. The history of the Basque people is a fascinating tale, but this book was a dreadful slog. The writing style was too loose and chatty resulting in a narrative which was more of a jumble of anecdotes than a cohesive history. There is altogether too much space devoted to the Franco/WWII years. I did like the recipes and the food commentary. Historians often forget that food is an integral part of a national identity.

Perhaps this book improved at the end. However, as mentioned previously, I couldn't get through it.

A Useful Introduction into the Basque Culture.......2007-05-08

I found this book particularly interesting because I am part Basque and Spanish. Prior to reading this book, I had been confused about the Basque culture. Where could this group of people have derived from given that their language has no direct relation to other European languages?

Were the Basques' related to the Celts? American Indians? Why is it that their language has similarities to Hebrew, Persian, Hungarian, or Finnish? Could they be related to the Roma people (incorrectly referred to as Gypsies)? Are they descendants from the hypothetical people of Atlantis? Are they perhaps Russian? or relate to those living in Georgia? Could they even be descendents from Asia? or one of the lost tribes of Israel?

After reading Kurlansky's book. I offer a far more simple explanation on the "mysterious origins" of the Basque people. Perhaps they always lived in the valleys between the Pyrenees Mountains and because of their isolation from other cultures, they maintained an unconquered language and culture despite not being recognized as an official nation.

Perhaps they descend from no one and perhaps they are not as complicated as pointed out by linguists, anthropologists, and historians. What Kurlansky's book brilliantly points out is that because the Basque People have never had their own officially recognized country, their history has been obscured, twisted, and distorted by other countries where their land has been.

Where the French established the notion of "witch hunts" and the spanish persecuted any who associated with Jews, the history books have inaccurately documented this culture who had not been outspoken about what their culture is or what their language is.

This book is a great introduction on the Basque Culture and explains their role in European history from the beginnings of Capitalism and as discoverers of the New World.

It seems that because the Basque's yielded their land to the Romans with free access to the land of the Gauls (France), their language and culture survived without being conquered by Romance language influences as what occurred in France and Spain.

Ironically, their loyalty to the Roman Empire, which gave birth to this culture's loyalty to the Roman Catholic Church, eventually led to their near demise by the Spanierds.

This book goes into these aspects of history. However, in between history lessons, Kurlansky tries to spin off history with Basque culinary ideas and link the two. I found that style a bit tiring and distracting. Making a history book and recipe book into one is not the most efficient manner in which to explain the Basque culture and as a result, makes the book unnecessarily complicated.

I enjoyed the first 70 pages which discusses the Basque's contribution in shipping, whaling, capitalism, and trade.

It's given me a tremendous insight on my own personality and my cultural roots.

An Amazing History of an Inspiring People.......2007-03-14

Excellent, pleasant to read, informative, and inspirational. This book is an affectionate look into the history of the Basque people and their language, from their first settlement of Europe to the modern times. I would recommend reading this book to anyone concerned about the plight of indigenous peoples anywhere or with a curiosity about the Basque language, history, or culture.

Recommended.......2006-07-26

Have you ever been to San Sebastian in Spain? Have you ever been to a Basque Restaurant in Bakersfield, California or any other place? Have you ever heard of The Basque People? Especially if your answer is "no" to the above, you can learn about these surprisingly enterprising people who live in The Pyranees Mountains. They have existed as a people and a culture since 200 BC and earlier. They existed during Roman times and they still exist. And they have a rich, active, history that matches the accomplishments of entire countries. They have been successful entrepreneures for two thousand years of recorded history! This book is worth reading. I promise!
Email:boland7214@aol.

Our Sacred Honor: The Stories, Letters, Songs, Poems, Speeches, and Hymns that Gave Birth to Our Nation

Average customer rating:

Our Sacred Honor...
One Inspirational Read
Bennett chose material well
The greatest generation speaks
Quite Enjoyable

Our Sacred Honor: The Stories, Letters, Songs, Poems, Speeches, and Hymns that Gave Birth to Our Nation

Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

Ethics & Morality | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Inspirational | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 068484138X

Book Description

Millions of American families have turned to The Book of Virtues and The Moral Compass by William J. Bennett for moral guidance in troubled times. Our Sacred Honor offers inspiration and instruction as well...this time of a particularly American sort.

The lessons it contains are especially welcome. We live in a time when the practice of representative government in the United States of America is under siege from both the left and the right. Scandals abound. We are first shocked, then wearied, to learn that our national leaders have feet of clay. We live in a time, in short, which demands that we return to our origins to discover the common principles that make us essentially American. Our Sacred Honor reveals those common principles. They are articulated by the flawed but deeply admirable men and women who first wrote what it is to be American. The pledge made by the Founders to one another that hot July day in 1776—the pledge of "our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor"—has been redeemed many times in the centuries since, but the nation they founded has never failed to profit from their example.

It is time to profit from their advice.

In Our Sacred Honor, William J. Bennett has collected the best that has been thought and said by and about the men and women who founded America. And what a group they are: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John and Abigail Adams, and so many more that otherwise first-rate intellects such as John Dickinson, Benjamin Rush, and George Mason are relegated to the status of footnotes in the popular imagination. Not since Periclean Athens has such a small nation been led by so many larger-than-life figures. The only characteristic they shared more widely than revolutionary ardor was their talent (and inclination) for advice. Here is that advice on virtually every aspect of "the good"—good government, good relations between individuals and nations, and what it means to live a good life. Here are Thomas Jefferson on piety ("Adore God. Murmur not at the ways of Providence"); James Madison on justice ("It ever has been, and ever will be pursued, until it be obtained, or until liberty be lost in the pursuit"); and Patrick Henry on patriotism ("Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?"). Here are Abigail Adams on love ("When he is wounded, I bleed..."); Benjamin Franklin on industry ("Have you somewhat to do tomorrow, do it today"); and George Washington on friendship ("Be courteous with all, but intimate with few"). Here are the lyrics to "Yankee Doodle," Longfellow's celebration of the midnight ride of Paul Revere, and the Declaration of Independence. Here are the stories of the Liberty Bell, Washington at Valley Forge, and Nathan Hale. Here are selections from The Federalist Papers, and Ralph Waldo Emerson's "Concord Hymn," with "the shot heard round the world." Here are Poor Richard's Almanack, the extraordinary correspondence between John and Abigail Adams, and George Washington's Farewell Address.

The stories, songs, letters, and speeches collected in Our Sacred Honor are an inspiring celebration of American exceptionalism, produced by a collection of exceptional Americans. It is the best book of advice in more than two hundred years.

Customer Reviews:

Our Sacred Honor..........2007-10-06

As always, Bennett tosses us a great story about our founding fathers. His writing is coordinated and he points out the best of the dramatic tales (real) that they endured--as individuals, as well as family heads. If only, when future historians look back on our current days, they would be able to say..."Those were great days." Alas, I doubt it. Although the founders were what might be called "normal mortals", to challenge each other to create our great nation makes one proud to be able to say "we belong!" They were clearly heroes.

One Inspirational Read.......2007-05-14

I was tasked to find an appropriate book to give to outstanding high schoolers for our local Rotary Club. I felt this book well represented the ideal of the club. This book should serve as a valuable resource in future years as these young men and women matriculate to higher learning, and careers.

Bennett chose material well.......2007-03-26

Bennett chose his material well. Historians may argue with some of the details in his commentary (e.g., that Burr shot to kill Hamilton, aiming directly at his chest). Others may take issue with some of the "nuclear family" biases inherent in his commentary. That isn't the meat of the book. The importance of the book rests in the quotes of the founding generation, and Bennett went beyond some of the most famous quotes and speeches, although these are represented as well, to give us a true feeling of a generation that approached life with a genuine goal of self-improvement. Most interesting were some passages from Abigail Adams, from her "tough love" to John Quincy through her disdain for french dancers. Anything regarding Bennett's personal life is irrelevant for assessing the value of this work.

The greatest generation speaks .......2006-07-09

The United States of America was blessed with a generation of founding fathers who were at the same time people of action, and people of thought. They were an incredibly brilliant group of political and moral thinkers. Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Franklin, Hamilton, Madison had a profound understanding of both human nature and the unique circumstances bound up with the founding of the United States. Their dream was of creating a nation like no other before, one based on principles of freedom, and dignity of the individual The ideal formulation is of course in one of the documents central to this collection, ' The Declaration of Independence' , life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
In this anthology of the founding fathers' writings in story, letter song, speech and hymn we feel the spirit of a new and great nation and vision for mankind.
God Bless America.

Quite Enjoyable.......2005-12-31

Bill Bennett has collected some of the greatest pieces of rhetoric and stories of our founding fathers. This work includes everything from patriotism, the meaning of freedom, and romance to ethics and advice. It's a wonderful collection, one that will connect the listener to the intellect of the greatest Americans, at least the greatest of the early Americans. Bennett doesn't read any of his selected pieces, only some of the introductory material. However, the people who do read the work do a magnificent job. It's an abridgement of the source work and runs about 4 hours. It's a perfect collection for long drives.

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)

Average customer rating:

Check and see
Suprise! Suprise!
Prescient St Augustine?
Something of a disappointment
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy..

History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Anatoly T Fomenko
Manufacturer: Delamere Resources LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 2913621066

Product Description

`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.

Customer Reviews:

Check and see.......2007-06-21

I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.

Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22

Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.

Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05

We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:

a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;

b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;

c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.

Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:

It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.

- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.

- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.

Fomenko goes by the following axioms:

- Chronology is the basis of history;

- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;

- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;

- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;

- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;

- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.

Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?

The Russians:

Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.

The Westerners:

Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.

The Chinese:

Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.

The Arabs:

Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.

The Divinity:

Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.

According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.

St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."

Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09

After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.

However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:

- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.

I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.

The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.

It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?

Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.

Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).

Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30

If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?

Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.

Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..

Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.

Lone Star Nation: The Epic Story of the Battle for Texas Independence

Average customer rating:

Detailed; Raw and Not over your head
Brisk retelling of early Texas history
Putting the Story Back in History
A great, readable history of Texas' fight for independence

Lone Star Nation: The Epic Story of the Battle for Texas Independence
H.W. Brands
Manufacturer: Anchor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

ASIN: 1400030706
Release Date: 2005-02-08

Book Description

In Lone Star Nation, Pulitzer Prize finalist H. W. Brands demythologizes Texas’s journey to statehood and restores the genuinely heroic spirit to a pivotal chapter in American history.

From Stephen Austin, Texas’s reluctant founder, to the alcoholic Sam Houston, who came to lead the Texas army in its hour of crisis and glory, to President Andrew Jackson, whose expansionist aspirations loomed large in the background, here is the story of Texas and the outsize figures who shaped its turbulent history. Beginning with its early colonization in the 1820s and taking in the shocking massacres of Texas loyalists at the Alamo and Goliad, its rough-and-tumble years as a land overrun by the Comanches, and its day of liberation as an upstart republic, Brands’ lively history draws on contemporary accounts, diaries, and letters to animate a diverse cast of characters whose adventures, exploits, and ambitions live on in the very fabric of our nation.

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Critical Acclaim for The First American, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize
“Enchanting.”—The New Yorker

“A Franklin to savor.”—James Grant, Wall Street Journal

“In his clear and sprightly biography, H. W. Brands . . . recovers the actual Franklin who lived—before his memory became a bourgeois icon and was later, like all icons, trivialized.”—Alan Taylor, The New Republic

“Benjamin Franklin’s life is one every American should know well, and it has not been told better than by Mr. Brands.”—Bob Trimble, Dallas Morning News

“H. W. Brands is a master storyteller.”—Richard Norton Smith, author of the Pulitzer-Prize finalist Thomas E. Dewey and His Times and Patriarch: George Washington and the New American Nation

Critical Acclaim for the celebrated The Age of Gold
“An engrossing, multifaceted history. . . . Its author, like the miners of the gold rush themselves, leaves no stone unturned.”—Janet Maslin, New York Times

“Dazzling. . . . Even California reviewers have gritted their teeth and handed Brands, an acclaimed popular biographer of Benjamin Franklin, some Texas-size praise.”—Los Angeles Times

“There’s only one thing to say about a book that brings the twin touchstones of T.R.’s vigor and Franklin’s humor to bear on the Golden State, and that’s ‘Eureka!’ ”—San Francisco Chronicle

“A fine, robust telling of one of the greatest adventure stories in history.”—David McCullough, Pulitzer-Prize winning author of John Adams

Customer Reviews:

Detailed; Raw and Not over your head.......2007-01-10

Brands writes the "epic" story of these men who fought for Texas independence. He does not write over your head and does not leave the reader uninformed. He does not hold back details about the "mythical" Texas figures who are "larger than life" in most accounts. It is a simple and effective way to learn about the Texas Revolution.

Brisk retelling of early Texas history.......2006-04-01

A well-written history of the Texas Revolution and the events leading up to it. If you're already well-acquainted with Texas history, there's not much of anything new in this book, but H.W. Brands has an excellent eye for the telling detail and a good ear for the vivid quote that make the material feel fresh and lively.

What I especially liked about Brands' approach in this book is that he steers a commendable middle course between the traditional hagiography of flawlessly brave Texan heroes fighting evil Santa Anna for Liberty and the revisionist school of greedy white male slave-mongering mercenaries stealing poor Mexico's land. He shows both the strengths and warts of admittedly self-interested people on both sides of the fight who generally believed they were doing the right thing.

My main caveat for anyone who's well-read in early Texas history and is considering picking up this book for another perspective on the Texas Revolution would be that it takes 11 chapters and more than 250 pages of reviewing Texas colonial history (with the emphasis on Stephen F. Austin's colony) before the book finally reaches the actual outbreak of fighting. But, for someone who's relatively new to Texas history or could just use some brushing up on the subject, those 11 chapters do provide a surprisingly brisk and eminently readable account of Texas history from the first Spanish explorations up to the revolution.

Putting the Story Back in History.......2006-03-18

Brands does a great job of weaving the lives of Austin, Santa Anna and others together in a compelling fashion. His vivid narrative style makes you forget you are reading history, but rather makes you feel you are sitting around a fireplace listening to a master storyteller perform his craft with grace and ease.

A great, readable history of Texas' fight for independence.......2006-01-22

Brands, without being multicultural for multiculturalism's sake, documents both the Hispanic and the Anglo contribution to Texas' independence. He does so without giving saccharine descriptions of either group's leadership or their ability to always get alone with one another, either before or after 1836.

And, in the years leading up to the Texas Revolution, he doesn't sidestep the slavery question either.

That honest eye is important, because in the last section of the book, he carries the story of Texas forward through 1865.

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