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.

On the Shoulders of Giants: My Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance

Average customer rating:

A lovely and important piece of writing
This book is a great view into the history of NYC & Harlem
Memoir and History
Standing on the Shoulders of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Harlem that I didn't know existed

On the Shoulders of Giants: My Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , and Raymond Obstfeld
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1416534881

Book Description

From 1920 to 1940, the Harlem Renaissance produced a bright beacon of light that paved the way for African-Americans all over the country. The unapologetic writings of W. E. B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey, the fervent fiction and poetry of Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes, the groundbreaking art of Aaron Douglas and William H. Johnson, and the triumphant music of Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong gave voice and expression to the thoughts and emotions that Jim Crow segregation laws had long sought to stifle.

In On the Shoulders of Giants, indomitable basketball star and bestselling author and historian Kareem Abdul-Jabbar invites the reader on an extraordinarily personal journey back to his birthplace, through one of the greatest political, cultural, literary, and artistic movements in our history, revealing the tremendous impact the Harlem Renaissance had on both American culture and his own life. Beginning with the rise of the Harlem Rens as pioneers of professional basketball, Kareem traces the many streams of historical influence that converged to create the man he is today -- the NBA's all-time leading scorer and a veritable African-American icon.

Travel deep into the soul of the Renaissance -- to the night clubs, restaurants, basketball games, and fabulous parties that have made footprints in Harlem's history. Meet the athletes, jazz musicians, comedians, actors, politicians, entrepreneurs, and writers who not only inspired Kareem's rise to greatness but an entire nation's.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was born in the midst of a cultural reawakening, carried on the shoulders of athletes trying to prove there was a lot more at stake than a ball game, men and women who made music that could break your heart, and writers and intellectuals who gave voice to not just the ideals of a movement but the raw emotions. Kareem tells what it took to get these revolutionaries to Harlem and how they changed the world. A world that is still riding on the shoulders of giants.

Customer Reviews:

A lovely and important piece of writing.......2007-07-11

On the Shoulders of Giants speaks of a bygone, sometimes forgotten piece of America and its culture that nevertheless has great, reaching tentacles into our present, and that will continue to shake and embrace us well into our future. Beautifully written, with a title that says it all, this book is just as evocative and fascinating for non-sports, non-jazz fans as it will undoubtedly be for those entrenched in both subjects.

A wonderful discovery.

This book is a great view into the history of NYC & Harlem.......2007-04-16

Especially interesting are the musicians and music that originated or passed through Harlem during this time.

Memoir and History.......2007-04-12

The Harlem Renaissance continues to contribute to society today, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar explains why in this memoir.

Standing on the Shoulders of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.......2007-04-06

If the winner of six NBA championships and just as many MVP Awards wanted to write a book of passable reflections on the Harlem Renaissance and make it sound like a big deal when it wasn't, he could probably get away with it. Fortunately, that's not what Kareem Abdul-Jabbar chose to do in "On the Shoulders of Giants." He took the opposite route, providing readers with a superior work of lively history, passionate memoir, keen social commentary, and entertaining musical appreciation.

Dozens of books on the Harlem Renaissance have hit the shelves since the 2003 publication of Facts On File's Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance . Few (if any) have illustrated as precisely as "On the Shoulders of Giants" exactly why and how the Harlem Renaissance remains a vibrant cultural and spiritual force. Like other competent authors on the subject, Abdul-Jabbar provides literary snapshots of the major players and events that produced the Harlem Renaissance. Unlike other books, his gives us something more. He includes chapters on how elements of the Harlem Renaissance directly impacted the development of his own life as a son of Harlem and that of others who picked up where the Renaissance left off and kept it going in other forms.

The world knows Kareem Abdul-Jabbar mostly as a champion athlete. In "On the Shoulders of Giants," we meet him as the teen-aged scholar Lew Alcindor working beside famed educator Dr. Henrik Clarke. With Dr. Clarke, Abdul-Jabbar helped publish a weekly journal on Harlem and discovered how his birthplace earned the title "The Capitol of Black America." We see the youth inspired by the world famous Harlem Globetrotters give up his dream to play professional baseball in exchange for a plan to conquer basketball. We meet the great lover of classic black literature, the connoisseur of jazz, and the defender of his beloved community.

Aside from his individual highly informed observations of the Harlem Renaissance proper, Abdul-Jabbar also offers some daring interpretations of the movement. Take, for example, his contention that "The Harlem Renaissance didn't end... [it] pried open a lot of reluctant doors and those who came after learned how to shoulder those doors open even wider. The guiding principles of the Harlem Renaissance survived and flourished." Towards that end, he cites both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr., as products and embodiments of Harlem Renaissance ideologies. This writer agrees with that assessment.

As important as "On the Shoulders of Giants" is for what it says about the past, it's even more important for what it indicates about the present and the future.

by Aberjhani
author of The Harlem Renaissance Way Down South
and Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance (Facts on File Library of American History)

Harlem that I didn't know existed.......2007-03-26

It is an eye opening account of Harlem. I didn't realize that Harlem had such a diverse group of writers, musicians, singers, etc. A very eye opening book.

HARLEM RENAISSANCE, THE: Hub of African-American Culture, 1920-1930 (Circles of the Twentieth Century)

Average customer rating:

It's good
Outlined the experience but no depth
This book is informative, entertaining, coherent.
Their Eyes Were Watching God= A Great Book!!

HARLEM RENAISSANCE, THE: Hub of African-American Culture, 1920-1930 (Circles of the Twentieth Century)
Steven Watson
Manufacturer: Pantheon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0679423702
Release Date: 1995-03-14

Book Description

The first book in the Circles of the Twentieth Century series which focuses on writers, artists, poets, hostesses and patrons who played a role in moderism as we know it. Watson explores the lively and fascinating people who helped bring about what became known as the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s.

Customer Reviews:

It's good.......2006-06-28

This is a worthwhile and well-researched book. It is more scholarly than I expected, and as a result, it took me a while to get fully engaged in. By the time I got to the section discussing the jazz artists, it was hard to put down. I was familiar with most of the writers and artists of the Harlem Renaissance to some extent. The book painted a more vivid picture of many of them, and gave keen perspectives on the social and economic milieu that helped to shape the period. It was fascinating to read about some of the interlocking relationships, in particular the relationships between Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and Charlotte Mason. Examples such as this changed my notion of writing always being an insular profession. The men and women of the Harlem Renaissance benefited by each other's support as well as competition.

Outlined the experience but no depth.......1998-06-12

In my journey to explore the Harlem Renaissance, I started with this book. I felt the author gave a good basic view of the era but he left out the soul. He focused on six or seven primary personalities of the time, from Langston Hughes to Zora Neale Hurston, and tied the times into their existence. I was left feeling like there had to be more about the era. The author also chases around issues of major character homosexuality, stating it but not really being clear about it. I was ready for it to end.

This book is informative, entertaining, coherent........1998-02-07

I read this book in hardcover as well as several others for a paper I wrote. The author was able to take the disparate threads of musicians, artists, writers and benefactors who contributed to the Renaissance and weave together a chronology that contained pictures, specific information about the "hotspots" in Harlem and complete, sometimes intimate portraits of all concerned. If the Harlem Renaissance was ever to be depicted in a movie, this book would be a ready-made screen play. The hardcover edition is worth the extra money.

Their Eyes Were Watching God= A Great Book!!.......1997-11-03

I really enjoyed this book. I had to read it for an english class. At first I thought it was going to be hard to read and dumb due to the dialect, but as I read further into the book, I found out what a great book it was and why it was on the required reading list. I would greatly recommmend reading this book to any one who hasnot. It deals with a black woman's search for indeoendence over 25 years and 3 marriages. It is a great book and gets TWO thumbs up from me!!!

The RENAISSANCE TAROT: LEGENDS OF THE PAST NOW REVEAL THE FUTURE

Average customer rating:

A fantastic tool for divination

The RENAISSANCE TAROT: LEGENDS OF THE PAST NOW REVEAL THE FUTURE
Jane Lyle
Manufacturer: Fireside
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Medieval Cat Tarot

ASIN: 0684854902

Customer Reviews:

A fantastic tool for divination.......1998-11-24

This kit of a book and full set of tarot cards is a fantastic tool for divination and self-analysis. Helen Jones' beautiful graphics provide an understandable interpretation of the meaning of the cards, which helps the novice reader to recall the symbolism with ease. The book gives clear explanations of what the cards mean in a historical, astrological and alchemical context which makes for an interesting read even when not actually doing spreads. The sample readings offered are a useful reference tool, to illustrate the way the different cards work together to create a unique outcome. The only criticism I would have of this book is that of the 4 different spreads offered as a tool only 2 of them are really suitable for those new to reading the cards, as 13 and 21 cards to a spread makes the reading quite intricate and difficult. An excellent gift for the spiritual person!

Reversing Sail: A History of the African Diaspora (New Approaches to African History)

Average customer rating:

Reversing Sail ( A History of The African Diaspora )
Excellent source
A unique history

Reversing Sail: A History of the African Diaspora (New Approaches to African History)
Michael A. Gomez
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521001358

Book Description

The experiences of Africans in the Old World--the Mediterranean and Islamic worlds, is followed by their movement into the New, where their plight in lands claimed by Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, French and English colonial powers is analyzed from enslavement through the Cold War. Particular attention is paid to the everyday lives of the working classes and their cultural development. Their exploits, challenges, and struggles are covered over a broad time frame that links as well as differentiates past and present circumstances.

Customer Reviews:

Reversing Sail ( A History of The African Diaspora ).......2007-03-30

Reversing sail: A history Of The African Diaspora, by Michael A. Gomez, knocks it out of the ball park; with this highly engaging, well reseached, & wonderfully written book. He leaves no thread untied, in bringing together the history of the African Diaspora; and his scholarship is beyond reproach. He unites the African Diaspora in a insightful, "Holistic" way, better than any book on the subject I have read so far,I defiantly, highly, recommened this wonderful book !

Excellent source.......2006-12-29

Professor Gomez has written a rather concise but scholarly general overview of the history of the African Diaspora. For three years I have been teaching a course in the Afr. and Afr. Amer. Studies department at the University of Memphis which is designed to introduce the student to the concept and early history of the Diaspora. I had also been assiduously searching for a quality, cost efficient text which could serve as a compliment to my notes. I think that I have found it in this work.

A unique history.......2005-05-27

This book has a statement in its epilogue that is among the best I've ever seen as a match between the subject matter and the purpose of the book itself - Michael A. Gomez writes of the growth of reconnection between Africa proper and those scattered around the world, stating that, `Given the ongoing impoverishment of many in Africa and the Diaspora, such interrelationships require deeper and more practical meaning if they are to play a significant role in ending the despair. The incredible beauty and creativity of the African Diaspora, combined with its unbelievable suffering and disadvantage, are contradictions awaiting resolution.'

Gomez is a professor of history at NYU, a university that offers degree programmes in the study of the African Diaspora. Gomez remarks on the value of the interactions with people at the university in his acknowledgements - it is in the storytelling and conversations that many subjects such as this one come to greater life and clarity. Gomez writes that the story of the African Diaspora is unlike any other in the history of the world, full of contradiction and ambiguity, but nonetheless sharing a pedigree as ancient as almost any other continuing society in the world.

Gomez makes the distinction between the study of the African Diaspora and the study of African Americans in two ways: first, it looks to see the influence of and influences on African-descended persons in different ways in new non-African environments and cultures; and second, it makes comparisons and examines relationships between these communities in geographically separated or distinct ways. It is not tied to the American nation-state, or any other particular nation-state or continent, but looks at persons of African descent outside Africa on a global scale.

There are shared features, however, that many of these communities share beyond their point of origin. Many of the communities find an experience of enslavement, a struggle to maintain traditional African culture, struggles against discrimination, and continuing identification with Africa as common bonds. Gomez divides the book into two sections, the `old world' and the `new world'. Old world topics include the ancient cultures in and around Africa (Egypt, Nubia, Greece and Rome), biblical themes and influences (and the broader context of Judeo-Christian history in African Diaspora themes), and Islamic cultural influences. The role of Africans in each of these histories and traditions is varied and significant; some myths are laid to rest here (the Islamic cultures practiced slavery as did the Western cultures, and in some places continue to have race-relation issues that stem from economic and cultural disadvantages coming out of this period much as the Western world has had), and points of difficulty in understanding and researching are identified (the lack of primary sources, sustained communities preserving histories, etc. means that much has been lost).

With regard to the new world, the history begins with the transatlantic slave trade, particularly the Middle Passage. Slavery was not a monolithic institution, and slavery was practiced differently in different parts of the new world. Thus, the response of the African descendents and the dominant culture vary from place to place; Gomez looks at slavery experience from colony to colony as well as from general regional perspectives. South America, Central America, the Caribbean, and North America all had different purposes and different treatment toward slaves. Again, Gomez lays certain myths to rest: `Although there were 8 million white Southerners in 1860, only 384,884 were slaveholders. This would suggest that the vast majority of whites had no relationship to slavery, had no vested interest in it, but just the opposite was true.' The dominant culture needed the institution of slavery, even if it was only a minority of members of that culture who actually owned the slaves.

Gomez also looks at the emancipation processes of the slaves beyond the North American perspective, showing the different ways in which the struggle for freedom and the achievement of the same manifested in different countries. For example, Haiti's Revolution in the late eighteenth century is shown to be both `crowning achievement' and an ironic catalyst for worsening slavery conditions elsewhere. The aftermath continues to be felt to this day, as `those who struggled so valiantly against tyranny have only met with a U.S.-led policy of ostracism and indifference every since.' Gomez also highlights the experience in Cuba, distinct from many other experiences in the Americas, as a place where the post-slavery situation did not automatically become a place of racial tension and prejudice.

Gomez' final two chapters show the reconnection and movement of people back toward their history, culture and identity, while still remaining, as members of the Diaspora, outside of their ancestral homeland. Communities reconnected with Africa as well as connected for the first time with each other; people of African descent all over the world had the freedom and resources, however limited, to make their own connections on a global scale. This includes but is not limited to political, social, and artistic connections - in areas such as sports and music, there is substantial success across such international boundaries.

Gomez ends each chapter with a narrative bibliography for further readings and research. Gomez states specifically that his intention is not to be exhaustive or comprehensive, but rather to give an introduction into the various places, times, events and persons connected with the broad topic of the African Diaspora. In this regard, Gomez succeeds. The text is interesting and accessible, giving sufficient detail without becoming tedious but also not lacking information or leaving things unaccounted for, save when the primary source material simply is not available (as is the case frequently, and this is part of the issue that Gomez highlights throughout the text). The index is useful, and there are a few maps and pictures scattered throughout the book. I might wish for one bibliography listing in the back for ease of reference, and footnoting through the text for further identification of sources, but these are minor quibbles given the scope and purpose of the book.

The Vampire Armand : The Vampire Chronicles (Rice, Anne, Vampire Chronicles)

Average customer rating:

Interesting back story, difficult read
Not Free SF Reader
A good read for any Armand fan.
WOW
Intresting.

The Vampire Armand : The Vampire Chronicles (Rice, Anne, Vampire Chronicles)
Anne Rice
Manufacturer: Alfred A. Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0679454470
Release Date: 1998-10-10

Amazon.com

In The Vampire Armand, Anne Rice returns to her indomitable Vampire Chronicles and recaptures the gothic horror and delight she first explored in her classic tale Interview with the Vampire (in which Armand, played by Antonio Banderas in the film version, made his first appearance as director of the Théâtre des Vampires).

The story begins in the aftermath of Memnoch the Devil. Vampires from all over the globe have gathered around Lestat, who lies prostrate on the floor of a cathedral. Dead? In a coma? As Armand reflects on Lestat's condition, he is drawn by David Talbot to tell the story of his own life. The narrative abruptly rushes back to 15th-century Constantinople, and the Armand of the present recounts the fragmented memories of his childhood abduction from Kiev. Eventually, he is sold to a Venetian artist (and vampire), Marius. Rice revels in descriptions of the sensual relationship between the young and still-mortal Armand and his vampiric mentor. But when Armand is finally transformed, the tone of the book dramatically shifts. Raw and sexually explicit scenes are displaced by Armand's introspective quest for a union of his Russian Orthodox childhood, his hedonistic life with Marius, and his newly acquired immortality. These final chapters remind one of the archetypal significance of Rice's vampires; at their best, Armand, Lestat, and Marius offer keen insights into the most human of concerns.

The Vampire Armand is richly intertextual; readers will relish the retelling of critical events from Lestat and Louis's narratives. Nevertheless, the novel is very much Armand's own tragic tale. Rice deftly integrates the necessary back-story for new readers to enter her epic series, and the introduction of a few new voices adds a fresh perspective--and the promise of provocative future installments. --Patrick O'Kelley

Amazon.com Audiobook Review

Die-hard Anne Rice fans will enjoy listening to this unabridged version of her latest installment of The Vampire Chronicles--the tale of the soulful, eternally young, Botticelli-faced Armand. Reader Jonathan Marosz instills a lot of effort as well as time--a mind-blowing 16 hours--as he uses several voices to take us from modern-day New Orleans back through 500 years of history in this bodice ripper without bodices. Marosz deftly handles the anguished conversations, the bloody feedings, and the ripe homosexual erotica that is bound to turn ears red. Familiarity with Rice's earlier Vampire Chronicles works will help; new Vampire Chronicles listeners may find themselves hitting rewind frequently as they try to discern dialogue, character relationships, and history. (Running time: 16 hours, 10 cassettes) --Kimberly Heinrichs

Book Description

In the latest installment of The Vampire Chronicles, Anne Rice summons up dazzling worlds to bring us the story of Armand--eternally young, with the face of a Botticelli angel. Armand, who first appeared in all his dark glory more than twenty years ago in the now-classic Interview with the Vampire, the first of The Vampire Chronicles, the novel that established its author worldwide as a magnificent storyteller and creator of magical realms.

Now, we go with Armand across the centuries to the Kiev Rus of his boyhood--a ruined city under Mongol dominion--and to ancient Constantinople, where Tartar raiders sell him into slavery. And in a magnificent palazzo in the Venice of the Renaissance we see him emotionally and intellectually in thrall to the great vampire Marius, who masquerades among humankind as a mysterious, reclusive painter and who will bestow upon Armand the gift of vampiric blood.

As the novel races to its climax, moving through scenes of luxury and elegance, of ambush, fire, and devil worship to nineteenth-century Paris and today's New Orleans, we see its eternally vulnerable and romantic hero forced to choose between his twilight immortality and the salvation of his immortal soul.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting back story, difficult read.......2007-09-24

I wouldn't say I'm a huge Rice fan (the only Rice books I've read are Interview With the Vampire and this one), so my opinion should be taken with a grain of salt. This book provided me some interesting information about Armand, Lestat, Louis, etc. However, I thought Rice had a tendency to veer off into extraneous details. I also found the descriptions of the gay sex to be a little stomach churning for me, but I can deal with that. I did enjoy reading about Armand's childhood and family. That being said, it was still a difficult read for me. I probably should have gotten the second installment before jumping into this story. Die hard fans will probably enjoy this book.

Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03

Thankfully, the Vampire Armand is somewhat a return to form after the terrible previous book. Armand has been seriously injured by the sun at the end of the previous novel, and is stuck, unable to move while he recovers.

An ideal device to delve into his back story, his discovery by Marius, their love of art.

Armand, while recovering, uses his abilities to get two children to bring him a drug dealer, so he can do the bloodsucking thing to restore some strength. He takes the two kids as proteges, much as Marius did for him, and eventually Marius turns them into vampires, provoking some argument.

A good read for any Armand fan........2007-07-14

For me the "secondary characters" such as Louis, Marius, Armand, Pandora, Santino and even Daniel are the more interesting of Anne's vampires. Lestat bores me. Armand is one of my favorite characters because he's so complex, menacing and yet seemingly innocent. I enjoyed reading about his past very much. The only problem I had with the book was I found the characters Sibyle and Benji very trite and dull.

WOW.......2007-05-19

"The Vampire Armand" By: Anne Rice
First, let me say that I love this book. Anne Rice has excellent word choice in this book. Everything about this book is great. The chapters had excellent endings and made me keep on reading, I actually had to make myself stop reading so I could go to sleep at night. This book also has an awesome lead in the beginning. The genres of this book are romance/adventure/inspirational.
Again, I can't stop complementing on the word choice, with almost every word that was written here's an example; "Strident perfume rose from the gardens right and left, from purple Four O' Clocks as mortals called them here, a rampant flower like unto weed, but defiantly sweet, and the wild irises stabbing upwards like blades out of the black mud, throaty petals monstrously big, battering themselves on old walls and concrete steps." I could easily picture all of these things in my head. It was practically like a movie playing because all of the words flow together. Anne Rice does such an excellent job in this and deserves 10 stars for this book.
If you like romance in you novels, along with a little bit of adventure, you should defiantly get this book and read it! A+ to this book and the author! This book will keep you up for hours. Anne Rice has the main character, Armand write his life story out for people to read it, and she has an excellent set up with the whole thing.

Intresting........2007-05-10

This book really clears up alot of missing info that we needed from Armand.

Way of the Druid: Renaissance of a Celtic Religion and its Relevance

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Highly recommended
Best Book on the Subject
An excellent addition to the literature
Best book on Druidry I've read so far
The Best Druid Book

Way of the Druid: Renaissance of a Celtic Religion and its Relevance
Graeme K. Talboys
Manufacturer: O Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1905047231

Book Description

A thorough explanation of Celtic history and beliefs is followed by an analysis of their view and its modern relevance. After all, it's the religion we all used to follow in the West. Massively comprehensive but very accessible, all students of religion and serious seekers will find this definitive guide to what Druid means and how to be one today.

Customer Reviews:

Highly recommended.......2007-08-09

This book is perfect for the established Druid or those who are just curious. It offers a lot of important background information that other books I have read leave out. After reading this book, I feel a renewal in my Celtic and Druid beliefs.

Best Book on the Subject.......2007-02-18

Seemingly effortless in it's portrayal of a complex subject, I agree with the other reviewers who consider this the best book on Druidry available. I only wish I had found it 15 years ago! Easy to understand, accurate, encompassing a wide variety of topics, practical, well organized & engrossing. Kudos to Graeme Talboys!

An excellent addition to the literature.......2007-02-08

Graeme Talboys is to be congratulated on the writing of such an effortlessly readable yet intellectually satisfying account of the history, nature and practice of the modern Druidic tradition. This book is written for Druids and non-Druids alike and both will learn from it. The book begins with a succinct but useful history of the Celts and then proceeds through philosophy, cosmology, ritual and practice. One of the most difficult aspects in writing a book of this type is getting the structure right - taking the reader through the various aspects of Druidy in such a way that they receive the right information in the right quantity and in the right order; this is the book's strength. The writing at times seems to suggest a preference for solitary practice over the institutional. His section on modern organisations could have offered the reader more information on contemporary orders. It was interesting to note that the Bibliography contains no books by either Philip Carr Gomm or Emma Restall Orr, both leading figures in major contemporary Druid communities. The Way of The Druid is an excellent addition to contemporary writing on modern Druidry and I recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about its beliefs rituals and practice.

Best book on Druidry I've read so far.......2006-09-30

This should be required reading for all Druids, from aspirant to sage. It philosophically drills down to the core of essential ideas and the very nature of druidic spirituality. It gets below the surface idea of a druid and outlines Celtic thought and how it applies today. Best book on Druidry I've read so far.

The Best Druid Book.......2006-09-03

The last year some fine books have come out on the druid way. I have read quite a few books on celtic religion and druidism. Mr. Talboys new book covers it all from the ancient to the modern "druid way". His insights are great and his understanding of the ancient celtic worldview super. The book my be a big step for someone new to the druid path. For people who are looking for ancient and modern wisdom of the druid path..this is it. I really can't say enough good things about this book! Buy, read, and learn from a great druid! You will have a better understanding of the druid path after the read.

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"Scrupulous But Unprincipled Orgasmic Essays With Emissions"
Waiting for a Theory of Practice

Practicing New Historicism
Catherine Gallagher , and Stephen Greenblatt
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0226279359

Book Description

For almost twenty years, new historicism has been a highly controversial and influential force in literary and cultural studies. In Practicing the New Historicism, two of its most distinguished practitioners reflect on its surprisingly disparate sources and far-reaching effects.

In lucid and jargon-free prose, Catherine Gallagher and Stephen Greenblatt focus on five central aspects of new historicism: recurrent use of anecdotes, preoccupation with the nature of representations, fascination with the history of the body, sharp focus on neglected details, and skeptical analysis of ideology. Arguing that new historicism has always been more a passionately engaged practice of questioning and analysis than an abstract theory, Gallagher and Greenblatt demonstrate this practice in a series of characteristically dazzling readings of works ranging from paintings by Joos van Gent and Paolo Uccello to Hamlet and Great Expectations.

By juxtaposing analyses of Renaissance and nineteenth-century topics, the authors uncover a number of unexpected contrasts and connections between the two periods. Are aspects of the dispute over the Roman Catholic doctrine of the Eucharist detectable in British political economists' hostility to the potato? How does Pip's isolation in Great Expectations shed light on Hamlet's doubt?

Offering not only an insider's view of new historicism, but also a lively dialogue between a Renaissance scholar and a Victorianist, Practicing the New Historicism is an illuminating and unpredictable performance by two of America's most respected literary scholars.

Customer Reviews:

"Scrupulous But Unprincipled Orgasmic Essays With Emissions".......2007-09-21

"Practicing New Historicism", Catherine Gallagher and Stephen Greenblatt - Univ. Chicago Press, ISBN: 0-226-27935-9 (PB) - 234 pages plus Index (15 pags), 8 1/2" x 5 3/8"

A prime exemplar expounding construct of "Representations" (plural) to articulate equitable confines to encapsulate, embody and validate archetypal literary receptacles for a presumptiously new discipline, a "field" of rumination, coerced by heralding exigency of a job register (yes!) for the MLA (see book explanation of abbreviation). B.E. Seedy in 1883 had already warned us of this coming calamity.

Vigilantly, the authors dissected their MS into six organic parts or entrails, two "about", and four "of" new historicism, allowing spurious ectasy, relish and anabolism of punctilious emissions, some of who/which conjure blemishes of/with disbelief, biliousness, and even "high-brow" prefunctories, albeit allowing binary synapses to "fine tune", in ephemeral sequentiality, liberating unspecified primeval "bit of fire" and fracture of DNA that possibly (but exclusively admitting a 'peewee' likelihood), of its repression (17.3 n)to aggrandized antidiluviuan RNA, primeval matter most (almost?) disgusting to the disingenuous, partly due to lack of learning, laziness and autisms.
'Litterateurs' faithful but protracted disquisitions with reference to theology (...Religioso...), agreeably wrangled with Corpus Christi, dead bodies, undead bodies, Resurrection, resucitation, "almost-dead", the Host or "altar bread", "money changers" (Jews), and also relatively antiquated pious paintings, caves with missing walls (for illuminatio...)askew 'parterre', tiles and varmint breaches to exude bodily fluids including 'reyd' blood. Undoubtedly, authors sanctioned or "put in tune" their sage moils, fluidly, but not invariably sensitively enough(?) though, to evoke deep-seated Freudian repulsions of earthy matters or "materiel", as the boorish potato(oes) question, Irish (as people of Earth or muck), pigs, but coupled with embodiments of cherished participants in immigrant 'novellae' as Hamlet, Great Expectations, and even the Holy writ. The Holy writ being published under many names and divers language.

All in all, those particular disciples with penchants to harvest prodigal sagacious perspicacity fancy spoils from abstruse contemplation of this adamantine (sic) proportion of line and mass, a "near" depraved profliagacy but also a cunning artform best shielded from juveniles who lack understanding of perverse perspectives of historicists, both old and new! Guard these with your life! J.B. Wharton in 1932 had cautioned: "Be chary in these trouble times where worldwide more than one language is "lost" weekly, the 'hot' area being Australia what with its Aborigine(s)". Yes, (T)roubled times as who now still reminisces his Morse code and pidgin? Amelia Earhart having untutored in the former and unskilled in the latter. Even the idiot savant must ponder these grave issues. The authors are to be applauded, comest as thy haf, onto hallowed Earth of Berkeley and Harvard.

Waiting for a Theory of Practice.......2000-07-11

Written by the two leading practitioners of New Historicism, this book is the most valuable reference up to date demonstrating the power, as well as the weaknesses, of this peculiar "method" of reading. The first three chapters on methodology advocate the immanence of (counter)historical particulars and anecdotes, which explains the authors' reluctance to endorse any transcendental abstraction of theory. Paradoxically, the historical sense as well as literary "taste" (the valuation of difference, details, ruptures) that Greenblatt and Gallagher embrace is recognisably shaped by contemporary theoretical interventions, but this debt to theory is obscured as a result of their disavowal of any "methodological directives." This obstinate disavowal, worse still, seems to join force with the conservative current of "Against Theory" in the name of history (the very motto put forward by some critics who are also related to New Historicism). The next four chapters are the "practice" part, where the authors obviously feel more at home. Their close reading and deft montage of a wide variety of discourses or artifices (drama, fiction, paintings, theological and economic debates, medical treatises...) is marvelous and dazzling, testifying how much New Historicism has widened the horizon of literary criticism. The juxtaposition of topics (the Host and the potato, the wicked sons in Hamlet and Great Expectations) also throws unexpected light on the materials. Yet the question remains: how to theorise further such montage or juxtaposition, if it is not entirely governed by whim?

The Big Sea: An Autobiography (American Century Series)

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"Sometimes life is a ripe fruit too delicious for the taste of man."
Must read
The journies of a Hero
Great!!!!
A wonderful memoir

The Big Sea: An Autobiography (American Century Series)
Langston Hughes
Manufacturer: Hill and Wang
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0809015498

Book Description

Introduction by Arnold Rampersad.

Langston Hughes, born in 1902, came of age early in the 1920s. In The Big Sea he recounts those memorable years in the two great playgrounds of the decade--Harlem and Paris. In Paris he was a cook and waiter in nightclubs. He knew the musicians and dancers, the drunks and dope fiends. In Harlem he was a rising young poet--at the center of the "Harlem Renaissance."

Arnold Rampersad writes in his incisive new introduction to The Big Sea, an American classic: "This is American writing at its best--simpler than Hemingway; as simple and direct as that of another Missouri-born writer...Mark Twain."

Customer Reviews:

"Sometimes life is a ripe fruit too delicious for the taste of man.".......2007-09-30

Published when Hughes was 38, the subject of The Big Sea is the period of his life from 1902-1939. It covers a wide variety of episodes in Hughes' life, with key elements being his travels as a youth, his relationship to his father, and the Harlem Renaissance.

I knew his poetry, of course, from all those years as an English major. I have not had the occasion to read any of his prose, and decided to pick this up after reading the collected works of Nella Larsen.

There was a lot to engage with in The Big Sea. I particularly liked Hughes' description of the Harlem Renaissance. His tone when he talked about it was affectionate and wistful, but still acknowledged the limitations that it had as a lasting solution. There were many great stories ("never hit a woman") and fascinating details-- reproductions of the whist party invitations, for example.

I also really was interested in the way that Hughes discusses his father and the issue of the race. His father left the US (first to Cuba, then to Mexico) in order to avoid race prejudice. His father had nothing but scorn for people of color who stayed in the US and subjected themselves to the inevitabilities of race and class limitations. The anger that this self-imposed exile cost him comes out in his dealings with his son and the way in which he engages with the world around him.

At points, it is as though Hughes is meditating on all the different ways that people around him (including him) have used to address the race problem. It is not the most uplifting of sketches, since none of the various paths seem (according to Hughes) to be a good or lasting solution.

Well-written, interesting, and with many pointers to further reading.

Must read.......2007-05-12

I read this as an assignment in college and found it wonderfully painful in its realism and truth. A must read for every American, regardless of what ethic origin.

The journies of a Hero.......2006-07-17

"On a radio show, he (Hughes) defended the right of trumpeter Louis Armstrong, who had long faced the white world with a broad grin, to vent his racial anger."

Like Armstrong, Hughes also faced the same world with his broad smile. Throughout the BIG SEA and I WONDER AS I WANDER, there in the texts of both autobiographies is the ever smiling Hughes. Other than the people he met and the foreign lands he visited---all making for great and entertaining reading--- very little is revealed about the man he was. His larger than life personae masked a man who was only 5'4 in stature, closeted gay
because being open would have meant a short career and ostracism, especially in the African American community who was a refuge from a racially hostile world and who Hughes loved with an unmatched passion back in his day, and, according to the late Gwendolyn Brooks who had known Hughes since the age of 16 wrote in a New York Times article that when Hughes was subjected to offense and icy treatment because of his race, he was capable of jagged anger - and vengeance, instant or retroactive. She has letters from him that reveal he could respond with real rage when he felt he was treated cruelly by other people.

Both autobiographies do a great job at documenting the world in Hughes' day. The most fascinating thing about the first book of his life is the Harlem Renaissance and the people who moved in it during its illustrious height. Till this day, the BIG SEA provides one of the best sources of this important period in American culture. Few people realized that if not for best friend Arna Bomtemps the autobiography may have never been written. Bontemps encouraged Hughes to write the book. Up to that time, few blacks, especially black males, had seen and done what Hughes managed to do. Plus, the book challenged stereotypes about black America in general. The challenge he had in writing the book was how to write for two audiences, white and black. Characteristically, Hughes did not pander to the white audience, "I do not hate `all' white people," nor did he distance himself from and sacrifice the racial pride his grandmother taught him to have for his people, who he primarily wrote for. In the second autobiography, Hughes is on the road again and much more time is given to his travels, especially in the then Soviet Union. Absent are his communist sympathies. Like many blacks of the day, socialism was preferable to segregation. Blatant is the unspoken critique that in the absence of capitalism, everyone man is "equal." As far as romance is concerned, scholars have noted Hughes'rather perfunctory and insincere rendezvous with the very few woman he talks about in these autobiographies. Quite understandably, Hughes attempts to pass himself off as having all the accoutrements of straight men. His situation with the over zealous Russian woman who he does not portray favorably in I WONDER AS I WANDER is interesting. She is portrayed as the Duboisian woman whose association with black men destroys them. Plus, Hughes did not favor interracial marriage so it is peculiar that he proffered the idea in the text of bring the Russian woman home as a wife as she wanted.

The above quote was from Volume 2 of Arnold Rampersad's biography of Hughes. What made Hughes' defense of Armstrong so intriguing is that Hughes also reveals much about himself and what lied behind the mask he wore. The readers of the BIG SEA and I WONDER AS I WANDER will not see the man behind the mask. They are largely presented surface, a fleeting glimpse of Hughes here and there. A scholar said to really understand Hughes, one must read Rampersad's two biographies. This scholar was partially right. But, don't dismiss these autobiographies! They are worth the read and are a enjoyable read. Time and interest permitting, do read LANGSTON HUGHES Vols. 1 and 2 by Rampersad for balance also read Faith Berry's LANGSTON HUGHES: BEFORE AND BEYOND HARLEM. Reading these latter biographies with the two autobiographies by Hughes, one will be presented the man Langston Hughes was: proudly African American, gay, brave, smart, ambitious, often very angry, and often lonely.

Hughes doesn't reveal much of himself, but his autobiographies are still 5 star ratings because like his work they continue to inspire and for everyone, especially young blacks in the inner city, let them know that they can overcome any obstacle in life so long as the desire and determination is there.

Great!!!!.......2005-09-27

Even though my book got lost in the mail, I was still able to get my money back. Thank you very much. I hope I have the chance to buy another book from you.

A wonderful memoir.......2003-12-04

Langston Hughes was a wonderful poet and story teller so it is not surprising that his autobiography/memoir is a joy to read. He tells the story of his life by giving us delightful episodes that each read like short stories. Each chapter has the structure of a short story with a beginning, a middle, and an end. Along the way, the reader has to be amazed at the texture and breadth of his life adventures. He lives for a short time in Mexico with his father, in several cities with his mother and other relatives, and then his wonderful sea going adventures in Europe, Africa, and also his stay in Paris. The reader also gets a first hand glimpse of what it was like to be "Negro" in America as well as in other places in the world. The writing is bright and energetic and the book is very difficult to put down. I highly recommend it to anyone who might be thinking about writing an autobiography or memoir.

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Modernism and the Harlem Renaissance
Jr., Houston A. Baker
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0226035255

Book Description

"Mr. Baker perceives the Harlem Renaissance as a crucial moment in a movement, predating the 1920's, when Afro-Americans embraced the task of self-determination and in so doing gave forth a distinctive form of expression that still echoes in a broad spectrum of 20th-century Afro-American arts. . . . Modernism and the Harlem Renaissance may well become Afro-America's 'studying manual.'"—Tonya Bolden, New York Times Book Review

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