The Velveteen Rabbit

Amazon.com

A stuffed toy rabbit (with real thread whiskers) comes to life in Margery Williams's timeless tale of the transformative power of love. Given as a Christmas gift to a young boy, the Velveteen Rabbit lives in the nursery with all of the other toys, waiting for the day when the Boy (as he is called) will choose him as a playmate. In time, the shy Rabbit befriends the tattered Skin Horse, the wisest resident of the nursery, who reveals the goal of all nursery toys: to be made "real" through the love of a human. "'Real isn't how you are made,' said the Skin Horse. 'It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.'" This sentimental classic--perfect for any child who's ever thought that maybe, just maybe, his or her toys have feelings--has been charming children since its first publication in 1922. (A great read-aloud for all ages, but children ages 8 and up can read it on their own.)

Book Description

Nursery magic is very strange and wonderful, and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it.

Like the Skin Horse, Margery Williams understood how toys--and people--become real through the wisdom and experience of love. This reissue of a favorite classic, with the original story and illustrations as they first appeared in 1922, will work its magic for all who read it.

Customer Reviews:

A True Classic.......2007-08-30

I just purchased this book for my young neice. The story is beautiful and simple and introduces the concept of loving another thing to children. If you haven't had the chance, read this story; you'll understand why it's been popular for more than half a century.

Great story, flimsy book.......2007-07-17

Velv. Rabbit is one of my favorite children's stories. This book, however, is quite small and flimsy and the illustrations are not very interesting to my child. This would be a great edition for an older child to read to himself (light and easy to hold, certainly inexpensive), but it wasn't great for reading aloud.

One of the books of a lifetime.......2007-05-27

There are reasons that some books, like all things are unforgettable.
This is the wonderful story of a toy rabbit that longs to become real, but must be loved enough. It's a magical fable with beautiful pics, and a touching ending.

Being Real or Being Saved?.......2007-05-14

This book really reminds me of the salvation doctrine of Christianity. You are saved during your lifetime, but it isn't until you die that you actually go to heaven. In the case of the Velveteen Rabbit, he becomes real when he's loved by a boy, but he doesn't actually turn into a living rabbit until he's right on the verge of a fiery demise. I don't know what else to say about the book because its so short, except that its awesome.

Always believe in miracles.

A Taste of Heaven.......2007-05-12

This story could easily be entitled: How things are and how they ought to be. The insights into relationships and friendships are profound and memorable. It is and always will be a classic, and one of my all-time favorite stories.

The Velveteen Rabbit Gift Set: Hardcover book and plush package

Average customer rating:

okay, could be better
The Velveteen Rabbit Gift Set
Great book and animal
Great gift!
Wonderful Story - The Velveteen Rabbit

The Velveteen Rabbit Gift Set: Hardcover book and plush package
Margery Williams
Manufacturer: HCI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0757303552

Book Description

An all-time children's classic "The Velveteen Rabbit" beautifully packaged with an adorable, authentic plush version of the beloved bunny! Margery Williams' The Velveteen Rabbit, the classic story of a toy bunny that learns what is means to be real, has sold more than 4 million copies. This new edition uses an airy layout to highlight the wisdom and beauty of Margery Williams words and a small, gift-book trim size. Additional features include the original 1922 illustrations by William Nicholson and a new introduction by Toni Raiten-DAntonio, author of The Velveteen Principles. Every detail of the adorable 9" plush rabbit featured in this gift set was designed to be true to the original character, from the hand-stitched vintage accents to the actual materials used - just like the rabbit in the story, he is made of real velvet!

Customer Reviews:

okay, could be better.......2007-08-27

The Velveteen Rabbit as a story is absolutely remarkable, but this review is more concerned with the combination book+bunny. The bunny is not nearly as cute as it might seem from the pic. It's just so small! It would be nice if the plush accessory conformed to one's expectations from the book.

The Velveteen Rabbit Gift Set.......2007-07-20

The gift set was lovely and I know the person I am giving it to will enjoy this very much.

Great book and animal.......2007-05-20

The book is as expected really wonderful and the plush animal is smaal but really cute - great gift!

Great gift!.......2007-05-07

My daughter was expecting her first child, and she mentioned that the *one book* she hoped to find was The Velveteen Rabbit.
I was so happy to find this boxed set with not only the book, but the stuffed rabbit as well, to gift her for her baby shower.

I appreciated the fact that the packaging wasn't excessive, and I could open the box, remove the book to write inside the cover, then replace it as it were.

In my case, this was the pefect gift at the right price.

Wonderful Story - The Velveteen Rabbit.......2007-01-12

My family and I love this story. It's a classic for kids and adults will love it too! We love The Velveteen Rabbit because it teaches a wonderful loving message and the stuffed rabbit that comes with this set is adorable. My daughter enjoyed this book when she was very young - we still have her original book. I recently purchased two of these book & rabbit sets as baby shower gifts and the mom's to be loved them! I highly recommend The Velveteen Rabbit.

The Velveteen Collection: The Velveteen Principles & The Velveteen Rabbit

Average customer rating:

The Velveteen Principles
We all need to aspire to be Real
A children's classic that can shape your life.
The power of being real!

The Velveteen Collection: The Velveteen Principles & The Velveteen Rabbit
Toni Raiten-D'Antonio , and Margery Williams
Manufacturer: HCI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0757303471

Book Description

Boxed set of The Velveteen Principles and The Velveteen Rabbit, beautifully slip-cased and shrink-wrapped! Margery Williams's classic The Velveteen Rabbit tells the story of a stuffed rabbit who finds himself looked down on by the other toys. With the help of the Skin Horse, he learns that real is not about how you are made, but your relationship with others. The Velveteen Rabbit's journey from loneliness to love has inspired generations of children and adults. This beautiful hardcover edition includes margin design on every page and the original 1922 artwork by William Nicholson. The Velveteen Principles is fast becoming a classic of its own. This comforting, inspiring book draws twelve lessons from Margery Williams's story to show how each of us can become more Real about our values, our goals, our loves and our lives. And most importantly in a world that is often superficial and stressful, its simple wisdom points the way to rediscovering our own true selves.

The Rabbit in the stocking isn't as expensive as the other toys: hes covered in velveteen. On Christmas Day, the Boy enjoys his new toy but then quickly forgets and neglects him. Shunned and unsure, the Velveteen Rabbit questions his worth. Should he even becalled a real toy? An answer comes from his friend, the Skin Horse: "Real isnt how you are made. . . .It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real." The Velveteen Rabbit's journey through love and loneliness to become who he was really meant to be is a story that inspires us all on our own journey to Real. The Velveteen Rabbit is a timeless tale of friendship, love, acceptance and honesty. When the world seems uncertain, Margery Williams's classic story reminds all of us what really matters. The type in this edition has been reset to emphasize the poetry of the language and to bring out the depth of sentiment in the story. William Nicholson's 1922 illustrations, which have delighted generations of readers, are rendered in full-color just as they appeared in the original edition of The Velveteen Rabbit. Together words and pictures create a world so much like our own, and yet so delightfully magical.

In the tradition of The Tao of Pooh, a noted therapist shows how the wisdom of a children's classic can lead to a life of love, fulfillment and purpose. Who wouldn't want to go back to when life was simple and a stuffed animal could fix all your problems? Botox parties. Extreme Makeovers. "Reality" TV. These are just some examples of how we have lost sight of something so basic yet so essential to true happiness: On our way to becoming status-seeking super-humans, we forgot how to be Real. This charming gift book guides readers down a simple path to reclaiming joy, fulfillment and individuality, using an unconventional source-the children's classic The Velveteen Rabbit. By sharing the timeless insights and poignant quotes from the popular children's book, the author identifies 10 keys to becoming Real, with the promise that when you become Real you will love and be loved with all your strengths, weakness, faults and gifts. As the Skin Horse explains to the Velveteen Rabbit: "Real isn't how you are made . . . It's a thing that happens to you. . . . Generally by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes droop and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But those things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." Destined to be a classic in its own right, The Velveteen Principles delivers a simple yet profound message for the ages.

Customer Reviews:

The Velveteen Principles.......2007-01-09

I was disappointed in the content. I had purchased 6 sets hoping to give the books as gifts at Christmas. After reading the Velveteen Prinicples, I returned 5 sets.

We all need to aspire to be Real.......2006-02-17

This is a quick and easy read on complex subjects that leaves the reader with a compass for continued thought and development. The table of contents speaks for itself. Life has little meaning without values.

A children's classic that can shape your life. .......2005-11-20

I first came upon Toni's book one day by accident. Intrigued after looking through the chapter content, I purchased the book and found myself deeply effected by the author's observations. I have to confess, I wasn't really familiar with the story of the "Velveteen Rabbit", as I never had that story introduced to me as a child. I wish I had, as there is some real power behind the story's message. Toni Raiten-D'Antonio does a great job in the book illustrating how this children's classic has a great message for children and adults alike. I highly recommend this book.

The power of being real!.......2005-10-04

I found this book almost by mistake, and when it arrived I began reading immediately. It is one of the first books in a long time that I was compelled to read in one sitting. Author Toni Raiten-D'Antonio's writing is clear, compassionate, accessible and stimulating. It didn't hurt that the text was crafted around the children's story, 'The Velveteen Rabbit', one of the stories from my childhood that I loved dearly. I recall both the book and the film, and being moved to tears each time, both with the rabbit's becoming real, and the realisation that this reality came with a heavy cost.

'The Velveteen Rabbit' is a short children's story written in 1922 by Margery Williams. Simple in plot and idea, it nonetheless contains wisdom beyond its seeming simplicity. The issues brought up are those that concern children and adults in many ways, and Toni Raiten-D'Antonio taps into the key issue - living a life that is real, not fake or phony. Some authors in the area of vocational discernment and personal fulfillment talk about living an authentic life; this is another term for what is here meant to as being real.

What does being real mean? For the Velveteen Rabbit, being real was a goal to strive for, not in a material sense (the rabbit did exist), but in a spiritual and emotional sense. The rabbit was one of many toys in the boy's room, many of which were flashier, more complex, brighter, shinier, or just 'more' in some way than the seemingly cheaply constructed Velveteen Rabbit. Yet the wise old horse, the Skin Horse, loved so much that his fur had rubbed off, inspired the rabbit by his acceptance, sense of self, and grace he extended, even sometimes to other toys that did not seem to deserve it.

One of the key concepts in the story that Raiten-D'Antonio highlights is that 'real' isn't a product, but rather a process. 'It doesn't happen all at once,' the Skin Horse tells the rabbit. It is a process that can be slow, it can be painful, and it can lead where one doesn't expect. But the first concept is that being real is possible - Raiten-D'Antonio states that from the moment the rabbit realised that `real' was a possibility, the rabbit was on the road to becoming real.

For us as human beings, becoming real is not something we're likely to find in a self-help video or encounter workshop, going in as one thing and coming out as another. There is no `eight-minute abs' variant for becoming real. Nor is being real always pretty. Again, according to the Skin Horse, 'It doesn't happen to people who break easily, or have sharp edges or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby.' However, these are things that matter only to those who don't understand (which, unfortunately, is much of our society). Raiten-D'Antonio coins the term 'United States of Generica' (U.S. of G., for short) for the kind of plastic, flashy society that runs on media-hyped images of what good and desirable should be.

Raiten-D'Antonio is a therapist, having left the more glitzy world of television behind - once a mover on the corporate ladder (even if the intention was to produce PBS/educational 'worthwhile' television), she found herself in a place personally and vocationally that was inauthentic, and worried that by the time she would be permitted to do what she wanted to do, she might not be herself any longer. The culture in which we live has misplaced values (she highlights the fact that we pay more attention to models than to Nobel Prize winners; even the term 'model' has implications beyond what in fact they are), and it is a struggle, a process, to become real - real to oneself and real to what is truly important in life.

One of the tasks toward becoming real, according to Raiten-D'Antonio, is to learn empathy, and in particular self-empathy. The Skin Horse had great powers of empathy. The rabbit grew in this during the course of the story. Empathy and self-empathy an important principle, as are all twelve principles gleaned from the story. Being real is meaningful, as Raiten-D'Antonio describes in her epilogue, and leaves a legacy more lasting and real than stocks, bonds, real estate, etc. 'If you become more Real in your own life and bring that to your relationships, you are practically guaranteed to leave behind an inspiring example for others.'

The transformation of the rabbit from toy to real is dramatic and poignant, and has lessons that can help transform our lives, too. This is a remarkable book, one that will stay with me for a long time to come, long after the whiskers have faded, the tail has become unsewn, and the fur has been loved off.

This wonderful book, paired with the original 'Velveteen Rabbit', makes a wonderful gift for oneself as well as a special someone.

The Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Organizational Behavior (Blackwell Encyclopedia of Management)

Average customer rating:

Every manager should have a copy

The Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Organizational Behavior (Blackwell Encyclopedia of Management)

Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishing Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The Blackwell Handbook of Principles of Organizational Behavior (Blackwell Handbooks in Management)

ASIN: 0631187812

Book Description

Containing 425 entries from over 180 leading authorities in the field, The Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Organizational Behavior, now available in paperback, provides clear, concise and informative definitions and explanations of key concepts and issues, with an emphasis on current and developing trends.To ensure a fully international perspective, the advisory editors, Professor Randall Schuler and Professor Andrew H. van de Ven, have made significant contributions to the preparation of this unique reference resource.Providing comprehensive and balanced coverage, this dictionary is destined to become the standard reference work for teachers, practitioners and researchers in the field.

Customer Reviews:

Every manager should have a copy.......2001-04-01

Readers may wonder about the obscure title: why exactly an `Encyclopedic Dictionary'? Don't be put off, however, by this imposing name. What we have here is a genuinely useful book that should be close to hand in the offices of managers who really want to understand their profession. Organisational Behaviour studies what makes people do as they do when they gather together in task-oriented groups. This dictionary provides a (largely) jargon free guide to the best academic thinking on the subject. It contains around 500 entries of about 1000 words each, written by 180 specialists from the discipline.

The entries are cross-referenced so you can start reading on any topic of interest and follow a web of connections through the book that broadens and deepens your understanding of the subject. Like the best reference books its easy to pick it up wanting a quick definition only to find you're still reading an hour later because of the fascinating connected material it contains.

For example, looking at the entry on "crises" leads to references for `accidents' (reviewing how failures happen because of the complex interactions of systems); `Identification' (of causes); `decentralisation' (as a means of avoiding accidents); `risk taking and `organisational learning'. Entries on `decision-making', `group decision-making', `organisational neurosis', `culture' and `innovation' to name just five are all equally fascinating and lead on to yet more useful entries.

Any one responsible for managing people will find material here to improve their understanding of the task. Managers should avoid the latest airport news-stand pot-boiler on business advice and instead invest in this book. By business book standards the paperback is good value. More often than not you'll find it will be open on your desk rather than gathering dust on the shelf.

Average customer rating:

This book will stay with you for a long time after you read it.

Why did I like this book?

What?

over the top start, hard to believe middle, cliched close

strong thriller

The Society of Others: A Novel
William Nicholson
Manufacturer: Anchor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Trial of True Love

Shadowlands

Flicker: A Novel

ASIN: 1400078210
Release Date: 2006-01-03

Book Description

Cool, clear-eyed, and bluntly cynical, the young narrator of The Society of Others embarks on a journey without a destination. He hitchhikes through Europe only to find himself in a mystifying country where terrorists are inexplicably after him, and so is a sinister government.

In a surreal landscape where people are shot to death without reason and social control runs deep, he must learn who to trust–and what to stand for. Fast paced and provocative, a gripping philosophical thriller, The Society of Others is an ingenious meditation on the nature of contemporary innocence and identity.

Customer Reviews:

This book will stay with you for a long time after you read it........2005-07-02

Im not going to pretend that I read a lot because I dont, every once and a while Im browsing in a book store and something calls out to me READ ME. This is what the Society Of Others did to me. I dont want to tell you much about the book, I want to surprise you. The end will either shock you or go over your head. Its a book that you will have to read in between the lines. If you want a laid out obvious plot then read Tom Clancy but if you like books to effect you then read this. Its a heart racing hypnotic book of wisdom

Why did I like this book?.......2005-03-19

No need to worry that I might give away the ending. I can't figure out what happened.

The story is too loose to be literal, too realistic to be allegorical, and too arrhythmic to be poetry.

What if Milan Kundera, Gabriel Garcia-Marquez, and Tom Clancy decided to write a movie together - then they changed their minds and published it as a novel.

Yes. It has some problems. But at least it has interesting problems.

That's why I enjoyed it. This is proof that a book doesn't have to be well plotted to be fun. It broke some of the more formulaic story-writing conventions, it explored a setting that you seldom see in novels, and it had an engaging philosophical angle. Most important of all it was fast-paced and short.

For all the flaws, it was entertaining and challenging. The story and the philosophies will stick with me.

If you find that after reading this book the subject matter, setting, style, and characters leave you wanting more (and better), try to find a copy of The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov.

What?.......2005-03-17

This book is engagingly written and contains some delightful set pieces. But I'm underwhelmed. It's difficult to shake the impression that the author lost interest in the project about two thirds of the way through. The narrator's character is deftly established at the outset, but his passivity and memory lapses quickly become irksome, and his later mental development is not altogether convincing. The last few chapters degenerate into an uninformative muddle through which one can hear the author faintly screaming, "I want to stop writing this book RIGHT NOW!" On the other hand, it's a quick read and worth dipping a toe into.

over the top start, hard to believe middle, cliched close.......2005-02-27

One feels silly writing such a poor review on the work of someone with a resume like Nicholson, but it's hard to find much positive to say about the Society of Others, the first adult novel written by someone known for his screenplays, stage plays, and young adult. Though perhaps that's the problem, for Society reads very much like a screenplay or young adult novel, despite being otherwise intended.
The book's unnamed protagonist is a sullen, cynical young man, recently graduated from college who sits in his room all day and tries to ignore the world, whether it come in the form of his family, his girlfriend, or his economic future. The first quarter of the book introduces the character, puts him through his "world-weary" paces, and then has him use the thousand pounds gift from his writer father to "get away from it all" by hitching a ride with a trucker to an unknown destination.
The problems begin almost immediately. Though he is supposed to have graduated from college, in his speech, his sullen tone, and his cliched version of cynicism, the narrator sounds much more like a 13 year old boy brooding in his room than a 21 or 22-yr-old. His character is way over the top and while he occasionally hits some perceptive notes, they're surrounded by so much cliched and over-the-top noise that the few good notes get drowned out. And none of the dialogue in this section, mostly between the narrator and his family or his girlfriend, sounds like authentic speech. One can argue that Society has a "fable" feel to it, so perhaps it isn't intended to, but the thing about most fables is they're short; it's hard to pull off the style and tone over long periods of time--it just gets too wearying on the reader. In either case, the first 40-50 pages are a struggle to get through. The trucker whose hobby is philosophy and manages to sum up then skewer most philosophers in a single conversation can be seen as part of the fable mode or as highly contrived; in either case it didn't work for me.
The middle section of the book picks up when the trucker is let into a country that has the look and feel of the old Eastern Europe police states. Turns out the trucker is smuggling copies of an illegal book into the country. When he is discovered and violence occurs, the narrator manages to escape, left on his own in an unfamiliar, unknown country whose language he does not speak. The narrator then hooks up with a violent resistance movement, a non-violent poetry-loving resistance, a simple peasant couple trying to get by while caught between the state police and the terrorists, the state police, an absurdist television talk show host, a strange cello-playing monk with a secret identity, and a man in a grey Mercedes whom the narrator is sure has been hunting him. While the pace and sense of tension, suspense all pick up in this section, it's marred by some hard-to-believe scenes, some triteness (the peasant couple for instance), and the sense that the characters we meet are just props rather than characters. Again, one has the sense of fable here with the simplistic viewpoints, the shallow characters, the sense-of-disbelief, but it's far too extended and just doesn't seem to work.
The end focuses on his attempts to disentangle himself from the politics he's become enmeshed in and to escape the country, as he realizes that all his earlier cynicism was horribly wrong: his country, his family, his life wasn't so bad; his family loved him and he didn't do enough to return that love; life is for living; and other nice but trite sentiments. The end itself returns to fable form.
The whole book reads much more like a young adult novel (not a particularly good one) in its simplicity and obviousness of message and its mostly shallow characterization. The speedy shifts from scene to scene with little description and the changes in character that are propelled by external events (sometimes too contrived) and occur far too quickly make it feel like a screenplay. The side characters as props, the lack of names for the main character or main setting, the simplistic notions, and the close make it read like a fable, but one that should have been at most a novella, at best a long short story, rather than a 200 page book. In short, while it had a few good moments- a few times when the narrator sounded like an original, modern Holden; a few incisive comments on people or society-they were far too few and far between. Not recommended.

strong thriller .......2005-01-26

He recently graduated college, but has no goals and speculates that life is meaningless. Why bother? However, tired of parental nagging, he decides on a coming of age grand adventure on the continent. He hitches a ride from the English side of the Chunnel with a philosophical truck driver on a three day trek across Europe.

However, once they leave the land of the Euro into the heavily guarded East, thugs using a roadblock stop the truck, torture and kill the trucker, but his passenger escapes. They burn the books inside the truck, but the hitchhiker rescues one along with an envelope that the driver gave him. The hiker reaches a nearby town where he meets Petra, who informs him that the burned books were targeted to go to those names listed in the envelop. He joins Petra's revolutionary band, but when her group torture the enemy at another roadblock, he flees into the woods in despair. By himself he ponders the meaning of life.

The first half of this novel is a great coming of age tales as the unnamed narrator (apropos label for the disenchanted) finds his grand tour turn into a nightmare. Nameless struggles with both sides in the dispute who use any means to achieve their end. Once he flees from Petra, the story line turns much more introspective as the lead character begins to analyze his relationships especially with his parents even while he dodges the police and to a lesser degree the revolutionaries. This is a strong thriller worth reading due to the despairing antihero but the latter half though superbly well written cannot match the incredible levels of excitement and suspense of the first part.

Harriet Klausner

Emergency Response and Emergency Management Law: Cases and Materials

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Emergency Response and Emergency Management Law: Cases and Materials
William C. Nicholson
Manufacturer: Charles C Thomas Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0398074070

Modern Algebra with Applications (Pure and Applied Mathematics: A Wiley-Interscience Series of Texts, Monographs and Tracts)

Average customer rating:

The best modern algebra text I have seen
important computer applications

Modern Algebra with Applications (Pure and Applied Mathematics: A Wiley-Interscience Series of Texts, Monographs and Tracts)
William J. Gilbert , and W. Keith Nicholson
Manufacturer: Wiley-Interscience
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Elementary Analysis

ASIN: 0471414514

Book Description

Blending the theoretical with the practical in the instruction of modern algebra, Modern Algebra with Applications, Second Edition provides interesting and important applications of this subject—effectively holding your interest and creating a more seamless method of instruction. Filled with in-depth insights and over six hundred exercises of varying difficulty, this invaluable text can help anyone appreciate and understand this subject.

Download Description

As a cornerstone of mathematical science, the importance of modern algebra and discrete structures to many areas of science and technology is apparent and growing with extensive use in computing science, physics, chemistry, and data communications as well as in new areas of mathematics such as combinatorics. This book contains the essentials of abstract (or modern) algebra together with a wide variety of applications.

Customer Reviews:

The best modern algebra text I have seen.......2006-07-22

It has been some time since I taught a course in modern algebra, but if I were to teach it again, I would use this book. The first chapter covers the basics of binary operations and algebraic structures. Seven pages in length, it is a basic overview of what the students should already know. Chapter two covers what is arguably the simplest abstract algebra, Boolean algebra. Propositional logic, switching circuits, posets and lattices are the examples used. I am in strong agreement with the introduction of switching circuits this early in a course. It is an application of abstract algebra that students can easily understand and relate to. Switching circuits also immediately demonstrates that the inclusion of "with applications" in the title is not a misnomer.
Basic group theory is the topic of chapter three, quotient and symmetry groups are covered in chapters four and five. The Polya-Burnside method of enumeration is the topic of chapter five, monoids and machines the focus of chapter seven, rings, fields, polynomial, Euclidean and quotient rings are examined in chapters eight, nine and ten. Field extensions are covered in chapter eleven, Latin squares in chapter twelve, geometrical constructions in chapter thirteen and error-correcting codes in chapter fourteen.
The exposition is excellent, it is one of the more readable texts in advanced mathematics that you will find. There are many examples of the applications of modern algebra to the real world and a large number of exercises are included at the end of the chapters. Solutions to the odd numbered exercises are found in an appendix.
Modern algebra is a difficult topic due to the abstract nature of the material. It is easy for students to get confused and lost when they are studying the book on their own. The risk of that is minimized if they are reading this book.

important computer applications.......2005-01-01

This book is pitched at the level of a third or fourth undergraduate year in maths, or at a graduate level course. Gilbert assumes a solid background in maths, especially linear algebra. He expounds on groups and rings.

You can certainly treat this book as a pure maths text on algebra. But there is a twist to it, for some of you. He discusses applications in engineering. Notably Boolean algebra. Boolean logic forms the conceptual and practical basis of computer hardware and software. Gilbert shows how to represent a Boolean expression in a normal form and how to simplify it. Very practical and vital to circuit design.

Later on in the book, he gives a good but all too brief discussion of finite state machines. These can be used in control systems and even in the construction of computer languages like Java. Where the Java bytecode can be validated precisely because Java is a finite state machine.

Finally, error correcting codes take up an entire chapter. Important in communications theory, and even in such common items as storing information on computer media like DVDs.

Average customer rating:

A fascinating and rewarding read
A clarification
An example to follow
The story of C.S. Lewis and the American poet Joy Gresham
My Favorite Play!

Shadowlands
William Nicholson
Manufacturer: Plume
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0452267323

Customer Reviews:

A fascinating and rewarding read.......2005-05-13

Even most well-written plays are an absolute bore to read. But William Nicholson's SHADOWLANDS (title taken from the final chapter of the final book in THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA) may present a different case to C.S. Lewis fans the world over.

Fans of the movie will be pleased since they are already familiar with the lines spoken by the characters. But all Lewis fans will be fascinated because this play gives the reader a front row seat (no pun intended) to the life that Jack and Joy had together. Even though the story does take certain liberties (for instance Joy Gresham had two sons, the elder named David), it's still a rewarding way to spend one's time and is short enough (100 pages) to read in one sitting.

If you're looking for a more factual account of C.S. Lewis's life with Joy Gresham, I would recommend the book LENTEN LANDS by Douglas Gresham.

A clarification.......2003-08-23

This is a great play, but an earlier review incorrectly identifes Lewis as the author of the "Alice In Wonderland" stories, when he wrote the Narnia Chronicles.

An example to follow.......2003-07-21

When I first read this book and my husband and I first watched the film together, he was well, and we were very happy. It was a second marriage for both of us, and we planned on making up for time lost in, unsuccessful, unhappy marriages for both of us, with another twenty or so years of happiness together. He has since passed away after we fought his Cancer together for almost two years. Obviously, the story of Shadowlands has taken on new meaning for me. I have, since his death, read "Grief Observed" by C. S. Lewis, and I would recommend that anyone reading "Shadowlands", also read this essay. It isn't very long, and it helps incredibly to bring some meaning to these tragedies of life.

The story of C.S. Lewis and the American poet Joy Gresham.......2002-10-09

William Nicholson's Shadowlands (adapted for a radio theater production by Jenny Sullivan and Martin Jarvis) is the story of C.S. Lewis and the American poet Joy Gresham. Lewis, famous for his "Alice In Wonderland" fantasy for children, was a teacher at Cambridge and Oxford Universities, and an avowed atheist throughout his early life. But in 1931 Lewis converted to Christianity and became an outspoken defender of the faith until his death in 1963. Shadowlands is based upon this his meeting Gresham and how their lives became entwined with a shared love that transformed all of Lewis's relationships, including his relationship with God. A full cast that included Martin Jarvis as C.S. Lewis and Harriet Harris as joy Gresham, under the direction of Jenny Sullivan, makes Shadowlands a superb acquisition selection for personal, professional, academic, and community library collections.

My Favorite Play!.......2001-12-17

Shadowlands is my all-time favorite play to read on a rainy day, on a lazy Sunday, and even on a rainy, lazy Sunday! The story of the famous Christian writer, C.S. Lewis, moves the reader to tears, laughter, and reminds us that life is a precious gift. Lewis marries a divorced woman named Joy, which creates a conflict with his solid religious beliefs. Joy's severe case of bone cancer causes Lewis to question the God in whom he has so firmly belived, despite his famous speeches written about the purpose of pain and suffering. As Lewis is forced to grow up through experience, one can share his emotions and close the book with renewed faith and hope for our own lives. Nicholson writes eloquently, bringing to life Lewis' speeches on pain and suffering within the play. The play is based on the actual lives of Lewis and Joy.

The Six Miracles of Calvary: Unveiling the Story of Easter

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Don't Update the Classics
Detailed yet quick read of that time period
The Six Miracles of Calvary
Insightful, thoughtful analysis of the Calvary miracles

The Six Miracles of Calvary: Unveiling the Story of Easter
William R. Nicholson
Manufacturer: Discovery House Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1572930721

Product Description

Magnificent insight into the miracles surrounding the crucifixion of Christ. Why was there a tremendous earthquake? What was the meaning of the three hours of thick darkness? Why was the temple veil torn in two? Why did graves open, and corpses come to life, and Christ's graveclothes remain undisturbed following His resurrection? Dan Schaeffer has skillfully updated William Nicholson's 1927 classic for today's seeking audience.

Customer Reviews:

Don't Update the Classics.......2007-04-12

I have the one of the original Moody Press Classic prints of this body of work and this modern day "updated" reissue. The original work done by Nicholson used only the KJV for his scripture references. I see this happening more and more as Satan gets the present day world to change not only The Father's Holy Word, but to water down classic works based on the only english translation without error, the King James Version! Why can't the classics that are KJV based be left alone and just reprinted!

Detailed yet quick read of that time period.......2007-03-30

A great little book explaining the miracles surrounding the crucifixion and resurrection of the Messiah listed in the Bible that we sometimes blow by. This book is excellent for anyone, parent teaching children, teacher of Sunday school, pastor making a series for congregation, all based on the Word. Easily carried in pocket or purse.

The Six Miracles of Calvary.......2006-11-10

Was not quite as neat a copy as I expected, but it did arrive on time.

Insightful, thoughtful analysis of the Calvary miracles.......2002-05-14

Although this book has few pages, the insightful analysis of the miracles occurring during Christ's crucifixion are thought-provoking and drive you back to the Bible to check out the miracles with new eyes. If you thought you knew the story of the crucifixion, the tearing of the veil, the earthquake, the cry of Christ at His death, etc. the reading of this book will reveal many things that have escaped your attention. As many times as I have read the story in the Gospels, this book has shown things I have never seen in the different accounts of His death. We have used this book for weeks of study in our local Bible Study. If the Six Miracles of Calvary gives you a new revelation of only one miracle, the 3 hours of darkness, it is well worth the price. Absolutely fascinating, so glad we were introduced to this small powerhouse. I highly recommend it.

William Nicholson (Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in Britis)

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the student artist's view
Nicholson: An Overview

William Nicholson (Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in Britis)
Sanford Schwartz
Manufacturer: Paul Mellon Center BA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0300095430

Book Description

William Nicholson (1872–1949) was an English painter of ravishingly beautiful still lifes and landscapes. Yet he holds an uncertain place in British art, largely because he left no statements about his aims and indirectly because his son—the better-known artist Ben Nicholson—subtly downplayed his father’s achievements.
In this lively book, the first full critical biography of William Nicholson, Sanford Schwartz argues that the artist’s output has a coherent philosophical and psychological unity very much in harmony with his times, and he links Nicholson’s work in fascinating ways to that of his fellow artists. Schwartz also portrays Nicholson’s personal life in a more complex light, finding that it was a series of rivalries and collaborations with many individuals and that Nicholson’s uneasy relationship with his son Ben plagued him for years. Generously illustrated with paintings, drawings, and photographs, many of which are reproduced for the first time, this book reassesses Nicholson’s achievement and position within twentieth-century art.

Customer Reviews:

the student artist's view.......2007-10-04

This is a literary review, not a collection of his art. The art in this book was mostly 2 inches square, with one or two exceptions. If you are looking for his art, find "The Art of William Nicholson".

Nicholson: An Overview.......2006-06-05

This book is long overdue as is a reapprasal of Nicholson's work. This book provides the reader with a sense of why Nicholson's work matters, whether it be the delights of the early woodcuts with their essential Britishness, the beauties of the landscapes, and finally the still lifes, with the tendency toward silvery and reflective materials. Did anyone in the 21st century make more of the colors black and brown? Did anyone every paint a silver casket with more panache.

The discussion of Nicholson's art was what made this book memorable for me. The book probably provides the reader with the most complete listing of these works, along with discriptions of how Nicholson came to paint them in the manner in which he did. The author also draws an unexpected link between William Nicholson and his modernist son Ben.

While Nicholson's still life paintings are perfect examples of simplicity and calm, his private life was anything but. Although friendly with many of the leading lights of the day (Nicholson gave Churchill painting advice), Nicholson had a Byronnic streak that lead him to lead an unconventional life. There were three marriages and none of his first set children appear to have forgiven him for his second marriage and numerous affairs. His second marriage broke down and he ended his days with Margarite Steen, who produced Nicholson's first biography in 1944. Nicholson's last years were marked by a complete physical decline.

After his death, his reputation decreased annually. His son Ben's portrayal of his father as a kind of "bloke who painted" has lead in part to many of the most remarkable works to be consigned to museum storage rooms. This work is intended to spark a Nicholson renaissance. Here is wishing the author, Mr. Sanford Schwartz the best of luck, since both this book, along with Nicholson's reputation deserves all the best.

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