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.

C Is for Coco: A Little Chick's First Book of Letters

Average customer rating:

Great book for children
C is for cute!
perfect!!
Adorable!
The BEST Gift

C Is for Coco: A Little Chick's First Book of Letters
Sloane Tanen
Manufacturer: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Board book

General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Coco Counts: A Little Chick's First Book of Numbers
Hatched!: The Big Push from Pregnancy to Motherhood
Coco All Year Round
Where is Coco Going?
Going for the Bronze: Still Bitter, More Baggage

ASIN: 1599900718
Release Date: 2007-02-20

Book Description

Sweet and hip at the same time, this board book featuring Sloane Tanen’s adorable chick, Coco, is just the thing to introduce letters to the very youngest children. Playful rhymes and bright imaginative photographs showcase A through Z, reinforcing early concepts in a fun and engaging way for toddlers and providing plenty of laughs for parents, too.

Customer Reviews:

Great book for children.......2007-06-02

Children find this book fascinating because of the little chick who leads them through the alphabet in the most fun way. The photos are captivating and keep a child wanting to read it again and again. How wonderful!

C is for cute!.......2007-04-23

Another adorable book featuring Coco and her fellow chicks. Like "Where's Coco Going?" and "Coco All Year Round" this book has bright, colorful and interesting images and fun text. And it's a board book so little hands can hold it and litte teeth can chew on the corners!

perfect!!.......2007-04-07

fun book for your little one that won't make you crazy reading over and over again. really fun and sweet with wonderful pictures. my 2 year olds new favorite.

Adorable!.......2007-04-05

I love "C is for Coco"! The rhymes are great and the pictures bring the whole alphabet to life!

The BEST Gift.......2007-04-05

I've been giving Coco books since they first came out. I continually receive very sweet notes saying their kids go crazy over them. One young mother even filmed her 9 month old totally engrossed in Where is Coco Going? C is for Coco is the latest rave.
Out of the mouths of babes is the best review I can give.
Enjoy..........Jackie

My First Book Of Uppercase Letters (Kumon Workbooks)

Average customer rating:

Daughter Loves it
Kumon does it again.
Preschool Writing
We love Kumon!
Great introduction to writing uppercase letters!

My First Book Of Uppercase Letters (Kumon Workbooks)

Manufacturer: Kumon Publishing North America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Preschool & Kindergarten | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

My First Book Of Lowercase Letters (Kumon's Practice Books)
My Book Of Numbers 1-30 (Kumon Workbooks)
My First Book Of Tracing (Kumon Workbooks)
My First Book Of Cutting (Kumon Workbooks)
My First Book Of Mazes

ASIN: 477430705X

Product Description

Description coming soon...

Customer Reviews:

Daughter Loves it.......2007-09-04

This book was great for starting my daughter out with writing skills. My wife and I blindly assumed that we should start with the letters in her name (R) but the book has the kids starting out with straight lines (T, H, E, etc...). That makes a lot more sense. My daughter looks forward to working on her letters.

One watchout: I was told that most parents teach their kids to spell there names in all caps. However, I'm told this is very hard for teachers to correct once the kids start school.

Only reservation that I have about the book is that I'm guessing I will to need to buy several of them since the pages are single use.

Kumon does it again........2007-03-03

I've bought several Kumon books for my 3 yo daughter, this being the lastest. The layout is wonderful. It groups letters together by shape and pattern instead of order, moving from simple to complex. It offers many variations of the same skills and keeps my daughter's interest. I've never ask her if she wants to work in the book, she picks it up periodically and works in it as long as she wants. She effortlessly learned how to write L, H, T, I, E and F.

Preschool Writing.......2007-02-23

My daughter is 4, and just started preschool. She loves the workbook. It teaches her to make different lines before she started the letters,which helped her make them correctly. Great for beginners.

We love Kumon!.......2007-01-11

My girls love to do their workbooks! They are learning incredibly fast - and the Kumon books are colorful, engaging - and easy to understand! I would highly recommend the entire series.

Great introduction to writing uppercase letters!.......2006-10-30

I really like the straight forward and fun approach this book uses to help the student learn to write uppercase letters. This allows learning to write to be fun instead of boring. A + book.

My First Book Of Lowercase Letters (Kumon's Practice Books)

Average customer rating:

Awesome Resources
really well done
great help for preparing for school!!!

My First Book Of Lowercase Letters (Kumon's Practice Books)

Manufacturer: Kumon Publishing North America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Preschool & Kindergarten | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

My First Book Of Uppercase Letters (Kumon Workbooks)
My Book Of Numbers 1-30 (Kumon Workbooks)
My First Book Of Tracing (Kumon Workbooks)
My First Book Of Cutting (Kumon Workbooks)
My Book Of Simple Addition

ASIN: 4774307068

Product Description

Description coming soon...

Customer Reviews:

Awesome Resources.......2007-07-10

These books are by far the BEST tools I have ever used for my preschool children. It teaches work ethic because they are simple and the children can work on them on there own after giving them instructions once. This is specific to my children who can not read yet. We set the timer for 20 minutes and that is our 'homework' time for my 2 & 4 year old. They love it and I'm teaching them to work independantly.

I can't get enough of these books!

really well done.......2007-06-12

I bought four Kumon workbooks for my 5 year old. This will be our first year homeschooling and I am totally thrilled. With all of the workbooks there are about sixteen full color pages and after that they are printed in two-color. They are all very well organized, incremental and simply laid out. The illustrations are great - they make the pages interesting but they don't get in the way of the work. Some children might not like how similar every page is to the next, however for my child this will be absolutely perfect! She likes being confident in what she is supposed to do and enjoys doing the same (or similar) thing over and over.
The one thing about this particular book that I don't like is that I don't think it has quite enough review work. It goes like this: two pages of a new letter for three letters, then two pages of review for those three letters. The ten pages of a-z review at the end. I think I'll photocopy the review pages to have her do over.
I love the book and am confident that it will work really well.

great help for preparing for school!!!.......2007-05-12

not only do i love this book, but my 5 year old LOVES it too! he thinks it is fun and is eager to practice. it is not only great for practicing writing the letters but also is a tool for learning the lowercase letters. a must have for kids getting ready for kindergarten!

Average customer rating:

Perfect for my 2-year-old!
Fun Book
Makes Learning Letters Easy
wish it were larger!
Great ABC book!!

I Spy Little Letters (I Spy)
Jean Marzollo
Manufacturer: Cartwheel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Board book

Picture Books | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

I Spy Little Animals (I Spy)
I Spy Little Numbers (I Spy)
I Spy Little Wheels (I Spy)
I Spy Little Book (I Spy)
I Spy School Days (I Spy)

ASIN: 0439114969

Product Description

Teach your preschooler the letters of the alphabet with this engaging collection of I SPY puzzles. Jean Marzollo's delightful text has been tested and reviewed to ensure that the words and objects in the book are age-appropriate and educationally sound. B

Amazon.com

Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick team up yet again for another perfect little I Spy picture book. In this one, kids who are just learning to read can practice their ABC's with Wick's special photo illustrations and Marzollo's clever alphabetical rhymes: "I spy an L wearing lacy white, and a metal M that's screwed on tight." Borrowing from some of their previous books (I Spy, I Spy School Days, and others), the author-illustrator team adds an original twist to the usual alphabet book, with each letter covered in its own letter-inspired design. P is plaid, E is a pink eraser, V is veiled with vines. Surrounding each letter are pictures of objects beginning with that letter (octopus, orange, ostrich). Young children will enjoy identifying the crisp, detailed pictures and reciting the bouncy rhymes. (Ages 2 to 5) --Emilie Coulter

Customer Reviews:

Perfect for my 2-year-old!.......2007-03-01

My daughter has loved the I Spy board books since I first checked one out of the library for her (and then went on to buy about 4 of them). She just turned 2 and this is her favorite book, hands down. We read it every night and she can't get enough of it. She's can identify almost all of the letters and gets a big kick out of it. Unlike some of the other I Spy books, the letters really aren't "hidden" as with the other editions. I didn't like this until we started reading it. Maybe if they were hidden it'd be too much for a child just learning to ID the letters? I don't know, but I know lots of kiddies turning 2 this year and I'll be buying this book as part of their gift!

Fun Book.......2007-02-23

My son loves this book. He loves to identify the letters and objects he knows as well as learn the names of new ones.

Makes Learning Letters Easy.......2007-02-01

We received this book as a gift for my 2 year old son and he LOVES it! This book, more than anything else, has been amazing in helping him identify the alphabet. He is much further ahead regarding his ABCs than his peers and I think this book is the reason. It is much more simple than the other I Spy books that we own and at first this bummed me out, but after reading it over and over, I think the simplicity helps him concentrate on identifying the letters and not getting lost in the objects. I especially like that the objects that are there start with the letter on the same page. For example on the page with the E, there is also an elephant. This gives us lots of cues for further discussion about each letter. The last page is my son's favorite, which has all of the letters and we always sing the ABC song while he points to each letter. I also recommend I Spy Little Numbers.

wish it were larger!.......2006-04-11

My 3 year old loves the I Spy computer games so I got him this I spy book for letters (which he still needs help recognizing). It is a very cute book - several images for each letter and cleverly done. I just wish it were bigger so we can spend more time with it. Overall, a good buy in a small boardbook.

Great ABC book!!.......2006-03-13

My sister in law, a Kindergarten teacher, highly recommended this book. She read it to her son all the time and she couldn't believe when he started to learn his letters. The rhyming is enjoyable to little ears and fun for parents to read, the colors are simple and bold and there is a lot of growth to this book. You can start my just reading, then naming objects as they get older. I always sing the alphabet song at the end where the entire alphabet is listed. Each letter is filled in with what it starts with. For example: dots in D, water in W, kites in K. I bought the numbers which is good too - but if you get one, the alphabet is the best!

Average customer rating:

So much fun!
FUN and educational!!
Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC
Cute Alphabet Book
Our favorite alphabet book yet!

Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC
June Sobel
Manufacturer: Harcourt Children's Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Action & Adventure | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Humorous | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Do Pirates Take Baths?
Night Pirates
How I Became a Pirate
Pirate Pete
Pirates Don't Change Diapers

ASIN: 0152167323

Book Description

The captain of this brave and bumbling pirate crew has ordered them to capture the entire alphabet--and they'll walk the plank if they're missing a single letter! Now these swashbuckling mateys are embarking on an alphabet adventure unlike any other, and they won't (ahem, can't) rest until they've found an A, a Z, and everything in between.

June Sobel's hilarious text and Henry Cole's adventurous animal pirates harmonize in an irresistible book for alphabet-learning, pirate-loving kids everywhere.

Customer Reviews:

So much fun!.......2007-01-28

This is an adorable and entertaining book! I did it as a read-aloud to my first grade class and they immediately asked me to read it again. Prior to reading, I asked them if they knew what Pirates said, and they all growled, "ARGH!" which was the perfect lead-in to this story..."R" said the pirate. "R's not enough! We need more letters to make us sound tough!" So the pirates go off in search of the entire alphabet. The pictures and rhyming text make it a very enjoyable story.

FUN and educational!!.......2007-01-12

We checked this book out at the library at first and my two-year old loved it so much..we decided to order our own copy. He loves to repeat what the pirates say and in the process is learning his ABCs. We read this book several times a day! He loves it and we don't even mind the repetition.

Shiver Me Letters: A Pirate ABC.......2006-09-07

Loved this book! As a kindergarten teacher, I am always looking for books with an alphabet theme. This book held my children's interest and mine. Some letters easy to spot, others required more thought. Great book for a pirate theme, or a letter p theme.

Cute Alphabet Book.......2006-06-12

This is a cute alphabet book for the preschool set. The letters are cleverly disguised although by no means hidden. My three year old enjoys reading this as pirates have become popular recently with him and his friends. "R said the Captain!" (instead of "argh")

Our favorite alphabet book yet!.......2006-05-30

Our two sons (5 and 2) absolutely love pirates, so we were immediately drawn to this book when we saw it. The whimsical pictures and interesting writing sold us on the book. It isn't written in your typical sing-songy alphabet book rhyme, although the rhyme and rhythm are still there. As parents, my husband and I love the way the kids have to "search" in the pictures to find the letters - for instance, the "S" is in the curve of the blade of a pirate sword and the "O" is a life preserver. Our 2 year old giggles every time we reach the ending (but I won't give that away!) You just can't go wrong with this book.

Answer Key To Alif Baa: Introduction To Arabic Letters and Sounds

Average customer rating:

It's the standard for a reason
I love Alif Baa
This is the answer key to an AWESOME product
Alright for what it is
Middle Aged College Arabic Student

Answer Key To Alif Baa: Introduction To Arabic Letters and Sounds
Kristen Brustad , Mahmoud Al-Batal , and Abbas Al-Tonsi
Manufacturer: Georgetown University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

General | Reference | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Alif Baa: Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds
Answer Key To Al-Kitaab Fii Ta Callum Al-cArabiyya
Al-kitaab fii Ta'allum Al-'Arabiyya with DVD's A Textbok For Begining Arabic
Answer Key to Al-kitaab Fii Ta Callum Al-carabiyya: A Textbook for Arabic
Arabic-English Dictionary: The Hans Wehr Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic

ASIN: 1589010361

Customer Reviews:

It's the standard for a reason.......2007-08-05

Alif Baa is SO much better than the later "Al-Kitaab" books in this series. If you want to learn the Arabic script, buy this and do the drills (then turn elsewhere for the language).

I love Alif Baa.......2007-08-03

My only gripe is that I bought the book in the store and had to buy the answer key online. The answer key should be included with the book in store as well or INCLUDED in the damn book.

This is the answer key to an AWESOME product.......2007-04-09

This is the answer key. It is very useful if you want to check your work and it isn't very expensive.

Below is my review for the Alif Baa: Introduction to Letters and Sounds set (just to help you while you are looking).

This is the answer key to a product that is AWESOME! The explanations are very clear. The listening exercises give students exposure to colloquial Egyptian Arabic. The listening exercises also help the learner to distinguish between letter sounds and reinforce their letter sound pronunciation.

You really should buy this if you are learning Arabic. It is that useful!

Alright for what it is.......2007-01-11

Fine answer key. Very Useful but not completely necessary for study in Alif Baa.

Middle Aged College Arabic Student.......2005-10-07

We meet twice a week at night. No contact with the Teacher in between. So the answer key lets me know how I'm doing with the assignments. You could cheat and just write in the answers but you'd pay dearly for it during quizzes, exams or trips to the board during class. Using this has kept me on track and helped identify things I need to do again - and again.

Alpha Beta: How 26 Letters Shaped the Western World

Average customer rating:

Who is John Man?
Great Read!
Quite interesting indeed.
Neither style nor substance as easy as ABC!
GOOD TOPIC, HAPHAZARD GISTS

Alpha Beta: How 26 Letters Shaped the Western World
John Man
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Early Civilization | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Writing Systems | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

Alphabet | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Linguistics | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Study & Teaching | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Reference Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

All Amazon Upgrade | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

History | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

Reference | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Letter Perfect: The Marvelous History of Our Alphabet From A to Z
Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World
The Story of Writing: Alphabets, Hieroglyphs, & Pictograms, Second Edition
The Secret Universe of Names
The Power of Babel: A Natural History of Language

ASIN: 047141574X

Amazon.com

In the tradition of small books that try to explain a lot (think How the Irish Saved Civilization), John Man's Alpha Beta is an excellent survey on the history of letters. They may have played a more dramatic role in the advancement of Western culture than most people realize: "The Greeks, so this argument runs, would not have been so influential but for the invention that fixed their writings, the invention that they named after its first two signs, alpha and beta--the alphabet." This opinion will no doubt ruffle a few feathers in the classics departments at universities, which have instructed students on the intellectual and literary achievements of the Greeks for generations. Man seems to challenge the idea that the Greeks offered something inherently worthwhile. "Possibly nothing of their oral genius would have been preserved but for a piece of astonishing good fortune. They just happened to live near one of the cultures that had stumbled on the alphabet, and they just happened to be at a crucial state in social evolution that made them open to its adoption." This is a fascinating argument, and Man makes it a compelling one, although it's also possible to believe the Greeks had the additional good fortune of producing a storyteller as good as Homer.

Most of the book is a well-told tale that runs a course from the first symbols pressed into clay tablets to the advent of the Internet--the Greeks are just a piece of it. The book covers the ancient Egyptians, Phoenicians, Etruscans, and several other cultures in some detail. One of the most interesting sections discusses the Koreans, creators of "an alphabet that is about as far along the road towards perfection as any alphabet is likely to get." Man is a colloquial writer; reading Alpha Beta is like listening to a popular college professor lecture on his favorite topic. The complex and controversial scholarship on the alphabet becomes instantly accessible to nonexpert readers on these pages. Anyone interested in the power of words and the history of civilization will find Alpha Beta irresistible. --John Miller

Book Description

Praise for Alpha Beta
"This book comes at the perfect momentas we rediscover the importance in early reading of cracking the alphabetic code. The story of how that code came into being is a fascinating one, and Man is the ideal writer to tell it." Times Educational Supplement

"A richly absorbing exploration, from B.C. to PCs, of the evolution of the most fundamental characters of our cultural history, the alphabet we so much take for granted. John Man writes with a compellingly restless curiosity and immediacy. The ever surprising, exotically detailed narrative in his informative book makes it as undryly enjoyable as a successful archaelogical dig of one of Alan Mooreheads colorful histories of African exploration." -David Grambs, author of The Describers Dictionary and The Endangered English Dictionary

"Text that is crisp, taut, and as clear as a bell.... A fascinating story with many a beguiling subplot along the way." New Scientist

"Letter perfectthe best histories and mysteries of our ABCs!" Jeff McQuain, author of Never Enough Words and Power Language

Customer Reviews:

Who is John Man?.......2006-06-24

The book provides a clear enough pathway along the history--at least, the author's version of the history--of the roman alphabet. Obviously, a book published by Barnes and Noble will be geared toward a popular rather than academic audience, and Man recognizes this, but he seems uncomfortable drawing a boundary. For example: leading off the first chapter with a story about his headmaster in boarding school, who only had one eye, then the seventh chapter with, "at this point in my research, I began to wonder what was going on." On page 204, while discussing the adoption of the Phoenician alphabet by the Greeks, he says that "some classicists would rather Zeus is pronounced 'Zday-us,' to the confusion of non-specialists like me." Why would you read a book written by someone who's not a specialist in the topic they're writing about? Couldn't this book have been better written by someone who's actually made a career of studying it, rather than just reading up for an assignment? Also puzzling and distracting are his frequent anecdotes from his field work among the Waorani Indians in Ecuador (hard to get less relevant than Ecuador), his irritating habit of filling in historical information with first person narration, and the yarn about the time he shot a hole in the wall after his Uncle Stephen left a rifle loaded in his cabin. In sum, he never reaches the balance between actual scholarly work (which is good, by and large) and awkward attempts to identify with what he must imagine to be an ADD-inflicted reader, making this book unsatisfying for readers with either a casual or a serious interest.

Great Read!.......2005-12-04

I love this book, and I think anyone with a passing interest in linguistics and language evolution (as well as art history) will as well. Man does delve into minutiae, as other reviewers have suggested, but I enjoy minutiae, myself. I think the book was cleverly and humorously written, making it an easy read, and I look forward to Man's next project.

Quite interesting indeed........2003-10-30

I was indeed quite surprised to find so many negative comments about this book from other readers' reviews. Indeed personally I found this book quite interesting, just to mention how the author proposed the interesting theory of the evolution of the character "a" in the chapter of "Letters in the Wilderness". And I like the chapter of "Into Sinai" which proposed another theory of how a biblical figure (Mose) was created. I have no way to tell if his theories are with or without facts, but it's interesting to read.

Neither style nor substance as easy as ABC!.......2003-10-07

You would be hard pressed not to agree with other reviewers who seem near unanimous in their sense of frustration with the author's meandering style which unfortunately obscures some interesting points. Instead of holding up and walking us through a clear thesis, the author continually digresses into various minutiae about ancient Mediterranean history, archaeology, and linguistics, coupled with an awkardly placed chapter, two-thirds into the book, compariong and contrasting the dynamics of biological and cultural evolution.

This being said, I feel it only fair to tell you what the book attempts to convey. John Mann sees the alphabet (by which he really means the modern Roman alphabet used widely in western civilizations) as a peculiar artifact of human invention and whose origin and spread were hardly accidental. According to him, the evolution of the alphabet was shaped by dynamics similar to those which cause heridity, variation, and selection of genetic traits among species. His foil is the work of Yale classics scholar Eric Havelock whom Mann characterizes as holding up the ancient Greek alphabet as the paragon of literary perfection and the underpinning of Greek genius.

Mann then proceeds to dismantle this image of the ancient Greek alphabet, showing the debt the Greeks owed to older civlizations, notably the Phoenicians, through a complex process of evolution initally shaped by the needs of recording trade transactions in a mechanism more efficient than Egyptian hieroglyhpics or Sumerican cuneiform, and later by the needs of an emerging culture (the Hebrews) whose ideology required literacy under a strogn charismatic leader (Moses).

It would be neither fair nor accurate to represent John Mann's arguments on the origins of the alphabet as based on biblical claims. In fact, he is cautious to point out the such claims are generally not substianted by available evidence, much of which however was gathered by archaeological expeditions exploring such claims. Unfortunately, the discussion of this topic is too full of digression from the book's purported central thesis to be worthy of the few interesting insights it does bring.

Having described the archaeological finds around the "Asiatic" script which was contemporary with ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, Mann shows links between this script and that developed in the mysterious eastern Mediterranean state of the second millenium known from Egyptian sources as Ugarit, one of several~~ rival Phoenician ports of that ancient period. Again, the central thesis in the book gets lost amidst a welter of minutiae, albeit not uninteresting, about this civlization.

In the next step towards completing the jigsaw puzzle he presents, Mann shows the links between the Phoenicians who had their alphabet around 1200 BC and the ancient Greeks whose early alphabet is not evidenced till 800 BC. But before leaping into this discussion, Mann inserts the seventh chapter of the book whose title "The Selfish Alphabet" takes off from biologist Richard Dawkins' book "The Selfish Gene" and in which he develops a curious argument about the evolution of cultural artifacts as language and religion which he likens to the so-called memes, the famous term that Dawkins coined in his 1976 book. Mann admits his own struggle in seeking his "Grand Unified Theory of Culture" and does humbly invite the uniterested reader to proceed to the next chapter where he continues his exposition on the transmission of the alphabetic tradition from the Phoenicians to the Greeks.

Lest you think that Mann has a narrow focus on Western civilization, you might be interested to discover his special interest in Mongolian culture and history. In fact, his fifth chapter provides an absoluting fascinating account of the development in fifteenth century Korea of an alphabet which Mann, quoting British linguist Geoffrey Sampson, describes as QUOTE one of the great intellectual achievements of humankind UNQUOTE

With this chapter,in which he shows this Korean script drew from the Mongols, Mann tries to butress what seemed to me to be one of his key points: that the invention of the alphabet was a rare intellectual achievement whose impact was independent of technology and which has linked many civilizations. Referring to the thirteenth century adoption by Mongolian leader Chingis Khan of the alphabet of the Naiman people he had conquered, Mann proclaims grandly QUOTE He [Chingis Khan] ordered his staff to adopt the script of the newly conquered Naiman tribe, who wrote taking a system from the Uighurs, who inherited ot from an Iranian culture, Sogdian, who had taken it over from Aramaic, who had it from old Hebrew: in effect, the script familiar to the Israelites 3000 years earlier UNQUOTE Full circle back to his argument on the origins of the alphabet.

The appendices provide some interesting set of transliterations across different alphabets, a historical timeline, and a fairly extensive biobliography. I was truly sorry to find this intriguing book handicapped by its cumbersome style, let alone some likely questions about the scholarship.

GOOD TOPIC, HAPHAZARD GISTS.......2003-01-22

The motive of this book is very fine, but its factual presentation is the exact opposite.
Starting with the first chapter, John Man's intention to initiate his audience into the ancient Chinese writings brought confusion to both himself and his audience. Information about the ancient Egyptian writings are not better. They were presented in hazy haphazard manner. It is easy to lose patience with the very first part.
The author had scarcely understood his topic before rushing into teaching his audience.
Nevetheless, I must add that if the needed homework is accomplished, Mr Man would come up with a better book: a very interesting piece. But as regards the current situation, most readers would get lost in this book. It is that confusing!

Average customer rating:

Entertaining and educational
Great product!
Great idea!
Great for beginning writers
Pen dries up too fast!

Wipe Clean Letters (Wipe Clean)
Roger Priddy
Manufacturer: Priddy Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Board book

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Wipe Clean: Learn to Write Your Numbers : 26 Wipe-Clean Pages of Number-Writing Fun (Wipe Clean)
Wipe Clean Animals (Wipe Clean)
Wipe Clean Things That Go (Wipe Clean)
Wipe Clean Simple Spelling (Wipe Clean)
Wipe Clean Simple Math (Wipe Clean)

ASIN: 0312492510

Book Description

Suitable for children aged 3 and up.Sturdy pages

Customer Reviews:

Entertaining and educational.......2007-03-18

My 3 year older daughter loved both the letters and numbers books. They really helped her learn her letters and numbers and she loved playing the little games in it. It was a great activity for her to do while I made dinner too!

Great product!.......2006-08-28

This is the only way that I have ever got my son to sit down and do letters and/or numbers. He finds these books fun. He won't do flash cards or color but he'll write with these books. Just be careful the marker is permanant.

Great idea!.......2005-11-22

I bought this book for my 3 1/2 year old boy. He is very interested in letters, but has been too frustrated trying to "start from scratch." What a great idea! First, there are tons of pictures, which he really likes. And there are big letters to trace, which helps his confidence. Also, the surface is smooth, which makes for easier writing. He has gone from writing no letters, to almost all of them within a week of getting this book. It's great.
My only complaint is that the "big" letter on each page is a lower case letter. Since almost everything at his age that concentrates on letters is uppercase, it has thrown him for a loop, but there are small versions of the capital letters on each page, so we are working on that.

Great for beginning writers.......2005-09-21

This book was a gift for my daughter and she loved tracing the letters and the other activites they had in the book. I even found myself doing some of the activities. I then bought it for my niece and she loved it too. Nice little gift.

Pen dries up too fast!.......2005-07-15

I really love the book, and I bought two of them but the pens dried up in less than a week. Should put a great pen to match a great book.

Hooked on Phonics: Letter Sounds / Pre-k

Average customer rating:

Fun learning

Hooked on Phonics: Letter Sounds / Pre-k
Hooked on Phonics
Manufacturer: Hooked On Phonics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Hooked on Pre-K Super Workbook
Hooked on Math Numbers (Hooked on Math)
Hooked on Phonics: Beginning Words
Colors, Shapes, and More (Hooked on Learning)
Hooked on Phonics Rhyming Words and More: Kindergarten

ASIN: 1931020639

Book Description

Workbooks
Pre-K - Hooked on Phonics Letter Sounds
64 colorful pages, Progress poster and stickers, Certificate of completion

Customer Reviews:

Fun learning.......2007-04-05

I am very happy with this curriculum. Our family home schools and our youngest was beginning to show signs of interest in reading. This makes first lessons quick, easy and fun. And she really is learning.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books