Books

World History
The Hitler Emigres: The Cultural Impact on Britain of Refugees from Nazism
The Burning of Bridget Cleary
The Elizabethan World Picture
1066: The Year of The Three Battles
The Railway Navvies: A History of the Men Who Made the Railways
Flags of Our Fathers
Renegades: Hitler's Englishmen
Maritime Scotland (Historic Scotland S.)
Liquid History: The Thames Through Time
Bronze Age Britain (English Heritage S.)
The Celtic Druids' Year: Seasonal Cycles of the Ancient Celts
Tudor Church Militant: Edward VI and the Protestant Reformation (Allen Lane History S.)
The Ashdown Diaries: 1988-1997 Vol 1
Turtle Island: A Journey to Britain's Oddest Colony
The Villa, the Lake, the Meeting: Wannsee and the final solution
The Diaries of A.L.Rowse
The Shield of Achilles: War, Peace and the Course of History
Thebes in Egypt: A Guide to Tombs and Temples in Ancient Luxor
About Chinese Women
More Instructions from the Centre: Top Secret Files on KGB Global Operations, 1975-85
Dieppe Revisited: A Documentary Investigation (Studies in Intelligence S.)
The Initial Period of War on the Eastern Front, 22 June-August 1941: Proceedings of the Fourth Symposium, Garmisch, FRG, October 1987 (Cass Series on Soviet Military Experience)
Stalin's Ocean-going Fleet: Soviet Naval Strategy and Shipbuilding Programs, 1935-1953 (Naval Policy & History S.)
Growth of Fighter Command, 1936-1940: Air Defence of Great Britain: v. 1 (Royal Air Force Official Histories S.)

Average customer rating:

Dawkins' Delusional Arguments against God
An Extraordinaily Thoughtful and Courageous Book
Please Pardon the British Humor...
honest
More of a thank you than a review...

The God Delusion
Richard Dawkins
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Atheism | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Letter to a Christian Nation
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason
God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything
Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon
God: The Failed Hypothesis. How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist

ASIN: 0618680004

Book Description

Discover magazine recently called Richard Dawkins "Darwin's Rottweiler" for his fierce and effective defense of evolution. Prospect magazine voted him among the top three public intellectuals in the world (along with Umberto Eco and Noam Chomsky). Now Dawkins turns his considerable intellect on religion, denouncing its faulty logic and the suffering it causes. He critiques God in all his forms, from the sex-obsessed tyrant of the Old Testament to the more benign (but still illogical) Celestial Watchmaker favored by some Enlightenment thinkers. He eviscerates the major arguments for religion and demonstrates the supreme improbability of a supreme being. He shows how religion fuels war, foments bigotry, and abuses children, buttressing his points with historical and contemporary evidence. In so doing, he makes a compelling case that belief in God is not just irrational, but potentially deadly. Dawkins has fashioned an impassioned, rigorous rebuttal to religion, to be embraced by anyone who sputters at the inconsistencies and cruelties that riddle the Bible, bristles at the inanity of "intelligent design," or agonizes over fundamentalism in the Middle East—or Middle America.

Customer Reviews:

Dawkins' Delusional Arguments against God.......2007-06-28

British ethologist, Richard Dawkins, professor for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, is a long-time popularizer of Darwinian evolution, ardent proponent of atheism, and prominent debunker of religion. In his latest book, The God Delusion (Houghton Mifflin, 2006), Dawkins' thesis is that belief in a supernatural creator qualifies as a delusion, which he defines as a persistent false belief held in the face of strong contradictory evidence.

Dawkins claims his purpose in writing is to convert religious believers to his brand of atheism. "If this book works as I intend," says Dawkins, "religious readers who open it will be atheists when they put it down." Are Dawkins' arguments persuasive? Does he accomplish his goal? These questions deserve closer scrutiny. For the sake of space, I'll restrict my comments to reviewing only one chapter of his book.

Dismissing Proofs for God's Existence

In Chapter 3, Dawkins mentions the classic proofs for the existence of God developed by the medieval Christian philosophers Anselm (late 11th century) and Thomas Aquinas (13th century). For example, the cosmological argument uses the principle of cause and effect to establish the existence of a necessary Being (God) who causes the existence of the world. But Dawkins dismisses this by claiming it makes an "entirely unwarranted assumption that God himself is immune to the regress." In other words, if we assume that everything has a cause, then what caused God?

What Dawkins doesn't mention is that there are actually three different forms of the cosmological argument. Aquinas offered one form, but Gottfried Leibniz (d. 1716) proposed another, and a third form was developed by Arabic philosophers during the Middle Ages. This last form, known as the kalam cosmological argument, is considered by many current Christian theologians to be the strongest of the three. It has been defended by Christian philosophers over the years, most recently by William Lane Craig.

In his books, Craig offers an overview of this argument, objections against it, and rebuttals defending the soundness of its premises and conclusion. Simply put, the kalam cosmological argument proposes:

1) Whatever begins to exist has a cause.
2) The universe began to exist.
3) Therefore, the universe has a cause.

Craig offers two philosophical reasons for the soundness of the first premise and two scientific reasons for why the second premise is true. Therefore, the concluding third statement is true. Regarding the conclusion, Craig states that "philosophical analysis reveals that such a cause [of the universe] must have several of the principal theistic attributes." Therefore, not only must God exist, but He would have the qualities generally ascribed to Him in the Bible, i.e., omniscience, omnipotence, rationality, etc.

Sophomoric Smugness

What is so breath-taking about Dawkins' smug dismissal of the cosmological argument is that he does not attempt to respond to any of the specific points that Craig brings up. It's not as if Craig is an obscure author whom Dawkins would not be familiar. Craig has defended this argument in three books dating back to 1979, written numerous articles over the years, and he has publically debated the issue with many skeptics, including the well-known atheist philosopher Quentin Smith.

But instead of dealing with any of the serious points that Craig brings out, Dawkins simply asks, "Where did God come from?" With this, Dawkins shows that he is totally unfamiliar with the wealth of literature on the subject and the strongest arguments currently employed. If he had done his homework, he would have realized that his question misses the point entirely. The first point of the kalam cosmological argument is that whatever begins to exist must have a cause. God, by definition, never began to exist. God is the "Uncaused Cause." So the question "Who made God?" is irrelevant! This is the kind of reckless handling one might expect from first year philosophy students, but not from a seasoned, distinguished university professor.

But one might counter, then why postulate God as having always existed, isn't it simpler to just assume that the universe has always existed? Craig notes two reasons why this is not feasible. Scientifically, we know that the universe is not eternal because of the evidence for the "Big Bang," and second, the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics. Based on these scientifically well-established principles, the most rational assumption is that the universe has not always existed; it had a beginning. And since it began to exist, it must have a cause other than itself. This cause must be of another nature, namely, a supernatural entity. Therefore, a supernatural Creator must exist.

Dawkins mentions several other arguments used to prove God's existence, and in each case dismisses them by arguing from a weak form of the proof. Over and over again, he builds straw men to knock down. So much for Dawkins' "incisive logic."

It seems that the only person deluded is Dawkins who thinks he has adequately explained away God.

An Extraordinaily Thoughtful and Courageous Book.......2007-06-27

Anyone who thinks of themselves as "religious" or believes in a God should read this book. If, afterward, they still believe, they just might be right.

Please Pardon the British Humor..........2007-06-26

Mr. Dawkins uses our own logic against our beliefs, and does so effectively. The illogical belief structures that exist in Christianity, Islam, and Judaism are laid bare. Some chapters are superb.

Others, however, are not. Mr. Dawkins is overly smug, uses humor in a manner confusing to non-British readers, and fails to answer some questions adequately. Mr. Dawkins flounders badly when trying to explain such issues as why religion is so prevalent if there is, in fact, no God.

I know of no other book that addresses this range of topics in a logical manner. Whether or not you are ultimately convinced, the exercise is well worth taking.

honest.......2007-06-24

This book is remarkably fair, thorough and thoughtful. Publisher Weekly's caustic review was obviously written by someone who reacted badly to irrefutable evidence that some of his his/her most cherished beliefs are false.

More of a thank you than a review..........2007-06-22

Dr. Dawkins,

Thank you for writing this book. You've made an excellent effort in explaining to religious believers that they have faith without a scrap of evidence. If The God Delusion has helped to persuade a few believers in to accepting a new faith, based on evidence, you should be proud of your accomplishment and rest easy knowing that your book has sold over a million copies! Well done.

Brad Schwie

The World Is Flat [Updated and Expanded]: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century

Average customer rating:

Hey, this book is about me!
Fantastic and very insightful - 6 Stars
Extraordinary SYNTHESIS of forces of today
Fabulous book!
A must read

The World Is Flat [Updated and Expanded]: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century
Thomas L. Friedman
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Globalization | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Social Aspects | Technology | Science | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Science Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't

ASIN: 0374292795
Release Date: 2006-04-18

Amazon.com

Updated Edition: Thomas L. Friedman is not so much a futurist, which he is sometimes called, as a presentist. His aim in The World Is Flat, as in his earlier, influential Lexus and the Olive Tree, is not to give you a speculative preview of the wonders that are sure to come in your lifetime, but rather to get you caught up on the wonders that are already here. The world isn't going to be flat, it is flat, which gives Friedman's breathless narrative much of its urgency, and which also saves it from the Epcot-style polyester sheen that futurists--the optimistic ones at least--are inevitably prey to.

What Friedman means by "flat" is "connected": the lowering of trade and political barriers and the exponential technical advances of the digital revolution that have made it possible to do business, or almost anything else, instantaneously with billions of other people across the planet. This in itself should not be news to anyone. But the news that Friedman has to deliver is that just when we stopped paying attention to these developments--when the dot-com bust turned interest away from the business and technology pages and when 9/11 and the Iraq War turned all eyes toward the Middle East--is when they actually began to accelerate. Globalization 3.0, as he calls it, is driven not by major corporations or giant trade organizations like the World Bank, but by individuals: desktop freelancers and innovative startups all over the world (but especially in India and China) who can compete--and win--not just for low-wage manufacturing and information labor but, increasingly, for the highest-end research and design work as well. (He doesn't forget the "mutant supply chains" like Al-Qaeda that let the small act big in more destructive ways.)

Friedman has embraced this flat world in his own work, continuing to report on his story after his book's release and releasing an unprecedented hardcover update of the book a year later with 100 pages of revised and expanded material. What's changed in a year? Some of the sections that opened eyes in the first edition--on China and India, for example, and the global supply chain--are largely unaltered. Instead, Friedman has more to say about what he now calls "uploading," the direct-from-the-bottom creation of culture, knowledge, and innovation through blogging, podcasts, and open-source software. And in response to the pleas of many of his readers about how to survive the new flat world, he makes specific recommendations about the technical and creative training he thinks will be required to compete in the "New Middle" class. As before, Friedman tells his story with the catchy slogans and globe-hopping anecdotes that readers of his earlier books and his New York Times columns know well, and he holds to a stern sort of optimism. He wants to tell you how exciting this new world is, but he also wants you to know you're going to be trampled if you don't keep up with it. A year later, one can sense his rising impatience that our popular culture, and our political leaders, are not helping us keep pace. --Tom Nissley

Where Were You When the World Went Flat?

Thomas L. Friedman's reporter's curiosity and his ability to recognize the patterns behind the most complex global developments have made him one of the most entertaining and authoritative sources for information about the wider world we live in, both as the foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times and as the author of landmark books like From Beirut to Jerusalem and The Lexus and the Olive Tree. They also make him an endlessly fascinating conversation partner, and we've now had the chance to talk to him about The World Is Flat twice. Read our original interview with him following the publication of the first edition of The World Is Flat to learn why there's almost no one from Washington, D.C., listed in the index of a book about the global economy, and what his one-plank platform for president would be. (Hint: his bumper stickers would say, "Can You Hear Me Now?")

And now you can listen to our second interview, in which he talks about the updates he's made in "The World Is Flat 2.0," including his response to parents who said to him, "Great, Mr. Friedman, I'm glad you told us the world is flat. Now what do I tell my kids?"

The Essential Tom Friedman

From Beirut to Jerusalem

The Lexus and the Olive Tree

Longitudes and Attitudes

More on Globalization and Development

China, Inc. by Ted Fishman	Three Billion New Capitalists by Clyde Prestowitz	The End of Poverty by Jeffrey Sachs
Globalization and Its Discontents by Joseph Stiglitz	The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli	The Mystery of Capital by Hernando de Soto

Book Description

The World Is Flat is Thomas L. Friedman’s account of the great changes taking place in our time, as lightning-swift advances in technology and communications put people all over the globe in touch as never before—creating an explosion of wealth in India and China, and challenging the rest of us to run even faster just to stay in place. This updated and expanded edition features more than a hundred pages of fresh reporting and commentary, drawn from Friedman’s travels around the world and across the American heartland—from anyplace where the flattening of the world is being felt.

In The World Is Flat, Friedman at once shows “how and why globalization has now shifted into warp drive” (Robert Wright, Slate) and brilliantly demystifies the new flat world for readers, allowing them to make sense of the often bewildering scene unfolding before their eyes. With his inimitable ability to translate complex foreign policy and economic issues, he explains how the flattening of the world happened at the dawn of the twenty-first century; what it means to countries, companies, communities, and individuals; how governments and societies can, and must, adapt; and why terrorists want to stand in the way. More than ever, The World Is Flat is an essential update on globalization, its successes and discontents, powerfully illuminated by one of our most respected journalists.

Download Description

The Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist gives a bold, timely, and surprising picture of the state of globalization in the twenty-first century

Customer Reviews:

Hey, this book is about me!.......2007-06-28

I've only read the first few chapters, but this is an interesting book on how technology is making the world flatter, bringing us all closer together and giving more people more power to influence the world.

It hits particularly close to home for me, because I've been using many of these technologies for a very long time. Recently become a remote worker and am becoming even more of a player in the flat world.

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I would recommend it to you, as well.

Fantastic and very insightful - 6 Stars.......2007-06-19

Mr. Friedman is par excellence. He has coined these new buzzwords and introduced a whole new subject that very profound affects every individuals and beyond including things that make up this world. A must read and a keep sake!

Extraordinary SYNTHESIS of forces of today.......2007-06-10

The World is Flat is an extraordinary SYNTHESIS of forces shaping the world today - chiefly a new globalization where individuals hold power - not companies or nations.

Friedman looks at globalization through an staggering number of lenses - politics, economics, environmentalism, socio-economic division, national identity, healthcare, poverty, terrorism - the list goes on and on.

This may sound chaotic, but somehow Friedman binds it together into a cohesive, coherent body of thought, resulting in a portrait of a global community with both tremendous potential and tremendous challenges.

I see I'm reviewer #999 of this book, so no need to go on. IN SUM, check out this book if today's world seems fragmented, and you want a vision of the pieces fitting together.

I listened to this book unabridged on compact disk, read by Oliver Wyman. Wyman does a terrific job capturing Friedman's enthusiasm and optimism - to the point you think Friedman himself is reading it. It's a captivating listen, but 20 disks long. Give yourself a few months!

Fabulous book!.......2007-06-08

The World Is Flat offers an incredibly insightful analysis of the factors affecting the business world today, bringing together technology (in a way that is accessible for non-geeks!) sociology, economics, etc. It is an exciting read, and I couldn't put it down! This is a must-read!

A must read.......2007-06-01

The world is flat provides a very detailed explanation on why, how and when globalization turning points happened, and who made them happen, but above all it provides the reader with general guidelines on what to to to avoid being run over by this porcess.

Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army

Average customer rating:

Liberal agenda
Scahill has created a masterpiece.
Great liberal insight
Blatant bias erodes credibility
Very enlightening, in an interesting and sometimes shocking way.

Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army
Jeremy Scahill
Manufacturer: Nation Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Company Profiles | Biography & History | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Iraq | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Licensed to Kill: Hired Guns in the War on Terror
Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic (American Empire Project)
American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America
At the Center of the Storm: My Years at the CIA
Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team

ASIN: 1560259795

Book Description

Meet BLACKWATER USA, the world's most secretive and powerful mercenary firm. Based in the wilderness of North Carolina, it is the fastest-growing private army on the planet with forces capable of carrying out regime change throughout the world. Blackwater protects the top US officials in Iraq and yet we know almost nothing about the firm's quasi-military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and inside the US. Blackwater was founded by an extreme right-wing fundamentalist Christian mega-millionaire ex- Navy Seal named Erik Prince, the scion of a wealthy conservative family that bankrolls far-right-wing causes.
Blackwater is the dark story of the rise of a powerful mercenary army, ranging from the blood-soaked streets of Fallujah to rooftop firefights in Najaf to the hurricane-ravaged US gulf to Washington DC, where Blackwater executives are hailed as new heroes in the war on terror. This is an extraordinary exposé by one of America's most exciting young radical journalists.

Customer Reviews:

Liberal agenda.......2007-06-29

I've read about four chapters of this "book." I have one question... Was Scahill actually writing about Blackwater, or did he use this as disguise to push his hippy agenda? Very little of this "book" even talks about Blackwater. The rest talks about the Iraq war and provides viewpoints only from his liberal buddies. If you believe this nonsense, then the U.S. military hasn't killed one enemy fighter, but instead, has intentionally targeted women and children without pause. He will provide you with a quote from some al-jazeera "journalist," then immediately following, will insert a random quote of some Marine Major saying that "we will crush them."(or something to that effect) This, of course, would lead you to believe scahill's belief that the Major was talking about gunning down innocent civilians. Scahill must have attended the michael moore school of journalism, because the entire "book" is filled with twisted facts and untruths. Horrible, Horrible, Horrible... Mr. Scahill, I look at your book and smile. Because I am grateful to live in a country where children such as yourself are allowed, and in some circles praised, to publish this sort of crap that somehow passes off as "journalism," and not be thrown in prison.

Scahill has created a masterpiece........2007-06-27

I don't normally write reviews. But seeing as this book tends to attract some negative reviews, and I did buy it and absolutely love and enjoy it, I felt it my place to offset those reviews.

I will keep this short. The book is very engrossing, it is non fiction but extremely difficult to put down. A very attractive combination. The content is so well researched and studied. Many reviews portray the author as slanted. He is, and I am surprised he isn't much more so given the content of the book. When you get to the end you will notice the 50+ pages of footnotes. Every fact/quote/statistic is thoroughly researched and documented. I won't go into the subject matter, as it is far too much to discuss in a review. I strongly encourage anyone on the fence about reading it to opt for exposing your mind to this very important work.

Great liberal insight.......2007-06-27

Scahill sheds light on the vastly changing foundation of how warfare is played out all around the globe. Much of this book is investigative research centered around the Blackwater company, but there are many others around the world that are seizing the opportunity and money to put themselves and their men in harms way. In my view, these companies are doing these jobs with much more efficiency than national governments yet the governments struggle with how to categorize these private sector businesses and how they operate.

Blatant bias erodes credibility.......2007-06-26

This book seems a liberal house of cards with Scahill's sources selected to support his views. For example, he quotes sources saying US Marines sniped woman & children in Fallujah based on their predominance in the wounded. Well, duh, the young 'military-age males' were probably killed by the Marines while they hid & fired from behind these woman & children - isn't this equally likely? Also, quoting Al Jazeera for the story of the Falluja battle was it for me. I took everything subsequent with a grain of salt. I'll give Scanhill credit for digging out a lot of history and connections but the Democratic liberal bias is too rich for my diet.

Very enlightening, in an interesting and sometimes shocking way........2007-06-24

I picked this book up a few days ago and slowly and deliberately read through its 400 or so pages. What I loved about this book is that Scahill shows just how much the Bush administration likes to surround itself with like-minded religious zealots. And how far-right religious types like to set themselves up in positions of power to further their religious agenda. I never got very political until I saw the idiocy of the Bush administration, but what I did notice even as a younger man that the far-right is filled with people always trying to impose their religious ideals on people with their wealth, their political and religious connections, and now it seems even by use of military force.

I did find it funny though that just like a lot of the big far-right Christian owned companies in the U.S., Blackwater's personel seems to be being outsoruced to cheaper and cheaper "labor" from poorer countries with cheaper "labor". Hahahaha...

Average customer rating:

Suite Francaise
YUCK
Moving
Excellent Depiction of the German Occupation
Tell me about Life in France during the War(II)...

Suite Française
Irene Nemirovsky
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

French | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Water for Elephants: A Novel
A Thousand Splendid Suns
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan: A Novel
The Road (Oprah's Book Club)
The Glass Castle : A Memoir (Alex Awards (Awards))

ASIN: 1400044731
Release Date: 2006-04-11

Book Description

By the early l940s, when Ukrainian-born Irène Némirovsky began working on what would become Suite Française—the first two parts of a planned five-part novel—she was already a highly successful writer living in Paris. But she was also a Jew, and in 1942 she was arrested and deported to Auschwitz: a month later she was dead at the age of thirty-nine. Two years earlier, living in a small village in central France—where she, her husband, and their two small daughters had fled in a vain attempt to elude the Nazis —she’d begun her novel, a luminous portrayal of a human drama in which she herself would become a victim. When she was arrested, she had completed two parts of the epic, the handwritten manuscripts of which were hidden in a suitcase that her daughters would take with them into hiding and eventually into freedom. Sixty-four years later, at long last, we can read Némirovsky’s literary masterpiece

The first part, “A Storm in June,” opens in the chaos of the massive 1940 exodus from Paris on the eve of the Nazi invasion during which several families and individuals are thrown together under circumstances beyond their control. They share nothing but the harsh demands of survival—some trying to maintain lives of privilege, others struggling simply to preserve their lives—but soon, all together, they will be forced to face the awful exigencies of physical and emotional displacement, and the annihilation of the world they know. In the second part, “Dolce,” we enter the increasingly complex life of a German-occupied provincial village. Coexisting uneasily with the soldiers billeted among them, the villagers—from aristocrats to shopkeepers to peasants—cope as best they can. Some choose resistance, others collaboration, and as their community is transformed by these acts, the lives of these these men and women reveal nothing less than the very essence of humanity.

Suite Française is a singularly piercing evocation—at once subtle and severe, deeply compassionate and fiercely ironic—of life and death in occupied France, and a brilliant, profoundly moving work of art.

Download Description

Irène Némirovsky was born in Kiev in 1903 into a wealthy banking family and emigrated to France during the Russian Revolution. After attending the Sorbonne, she began to write and swiftly achieved success with her first novel, David Golder, which was followed by The Ball, The Flies of Autumn, Dogs and Wolves and The Courilof Affair. She died in 1942.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

Suite Francaise.......2007-06-27

The book was interesting, but a bit confusing with so many charachters to keep track of. I thought the appendices were more interesting than the story.

YUCK.......2007-06-23

Sorry, but I can't believe anyone enjoyed this book. It was our book club pick for the month and halfway through I sent out an email asking for ANYONE to give me some hope to continue. No one could do it. It was difficult to keep track of the characters, and I didn't "care" about any of them, they just weren't developed enough.

Moving.......2007-06-16

Russian/Jewish author, Irene Nemirovsky set out to write a 4 or 5 part epic in 1939, just prior to WW2. She achieved only two of the books which were to make up her epic before being captured by the Germans and killed in Auschwitz concentration camp. Her surviving work, which was scribbled in tiny writing in notebooks, was somehow saved by her daughters and remained lost for over 50 years. This book is the first two sections of her work, unedited and without a final polish, nevertheless it is a masterpiece of simple yet superb writing, detailing the lives of various classes of Frenchmen, and how they all coped with bombing, evacuation, lack of food and amenities and the things which make up everyday life. Some of the so called upper classes do not come out of it smelling like roses, while the so called "noble peasants" appear brutish and ugly with selfish and animal like behaviour. When I started this book, I was expecting to read about acts of unspeakable cruelty, committed by the Gestapo but the author did not live long enough to write about these future events. The world has surely lost by not being able to read this lady's thoughts over the years of late 1941 and into 1942, as her writing is masterly yet simple and without any of the so called "clever tricks" that some writers aspire to in order to appear more brilliant. M/s Neminovsky writes without pretension and from the heart.

Excellent Depiction of the German Occupation.......2007-06-15

I was in a bookstore, and a woman was showing her friend this book and supplying him with some background information. She said, rather loudly, "I thought the book could have used an editor." Yes, well if that's her biggest criticism ...

Lack of editing or not, I couldn't put this book down until I finished it. "Suite Francaise" is extraordinary, not just because of the weighty story behind its birth but because of the way it was written. This is no story of the unsullied French pitched in territorial battle against the demonic Germans. That would have been too easy. Nemirovsky's characters and situations are complex, illustrated by how easily alliances can shift in the interest of self-preservation. (Nemirovsky does, however, prove herself to be a bit of a moralist.) I especially loved the first novella, "Storm in June." The descriptions of the people fleeing Paris a classic nailbiter. I'm also grateful for the appendices which outline some of Nemirovsky's ideas for the latter, unrealized sections of the book.

In a perfect world, Irene Nemirovsky would have lived and completed the novel; but in a perfect world, the events that led her to write this book wouldn't have occurred. I'm glad this book was found and is a testament to Nemirovsky's writing abilities as well as an addition to her legacy.

Tell me about Life in France during the War(II)..........2007-06-14

As an American living and traveling in Europe
for the past 25 years,
I often wondered.....

"What was it like to live in Paris
when the Germans arrived?
What did real people do to survive,
physically and emotionally?"

Irene Nemirovsky answers these questions vividly,
personally, in this "can't put it down" novel.

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot

Average customer rating:

Judas the Ensnared
The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot
Lacks Impact
Disappointed
A new perspective

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot
Jeffrey Archer , and Francis J. Moloney
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Biblical | Fiction | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Fiction | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Fiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Reading Judas: The Gospel of Judas and the Shaping of Christianity
The Missing Gospels: Unearthing the Truth Behind Alternative Christianities
Jesus: A Meditation on His Stories and His Relationships with Women
Cat O' Nine Tales: And Other Stories
The Lost Gospel of Judas Iscariot: A New Look at Betrayer and Betrayed

ASIN: 0312375204
Release Date: 2007-03-20

Book Description

The very name of Judas raises among Christians an instinctive reaction of criticism and condemnationThe betrayal of Judas remainsa mystery. Pope Benedict XVI, October 2006 The Gospel According to Judas, by Benjamin Iscariot sheds new light on the the mystery of Judasincluding his motives for the betrayal and what happened to him after the crucifixionby retelling the story of Jesus through the eyes of Judas, using the canonical texts as its basic point of reference. Ostensibly written by Judass son, Benjamin, and following the narrative style of the Gospels, this re-creation is provocative, compelling, and controversial. The Gospel According to Judas, by Benjamin Iscariot is the result of an intense collaboration between a storyteller and a scholar: Jeffrey Archer and Francis J. Moloney. Their brilliant workbold and simpleis a compelling story for twenty-first-century readers, while maintaining an authenticity that would be credible to a first-century Christian or Jew.

Customer Reviews:

Judas the Ensnared.......2007-06-28

I've been reading Archer since Kane and Abel and when I saw that he was writing a fictionalized account of the life of Judas as told by his son, I thought, wow, this could really be a great read and a little controversial. Neither came true. Basically, it's formatted like the gospels (nothing wrong with that), but just not an exciting read this time around. I was actually kind of bored reading it and the only reason I kept going was because it came in at around ninety pages so I persevered with it. The last chapter or two is when the basis of the story comes out and nothing earth shattering here. Judas was the victim of the religious zealots at the time to get rid of Christ. Maybe, maybe not. Does it change my point of view or my beliefs, probably not. Just something more to ponder about; the Bible, its writers (Did they embellish the truth from generation to generation before writing it down, whether on purpose or by accident. Kind of difficult to keep the same exact story going for tens or even hundreds of years orally without some of it being changed on the next telling), and the facts that surround it that science today continues to try to prove happened. I expected Archer to put this into more story form like all his other works and I think then he could have gone into more depth with this alternate theory and really provoked the reader's imagination. But he chose not to, giving us instead this lackluster rendition of what could have been a great story about Judas Iscariot.

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot.......2007-06-21

The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot
Where Do I begin. Lets start with the title, The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot by Jeffrey Archer, come on!! It should be the fictional story of The Gospel According to Judas by Jeffrey Archer as Benjamin Iscariot.
A Relevant Story:
A friend of mine recently told me of a Pastor who liked to make hot fudge, apparently he used all organic ingredients. One day the Pastor's daughter wanted to see PG parental guidance rated movie, that only had 5%, swearing/drug use or sex scenes. After much insistence the daughter when to see the movie, the next day the Pastor decided to make some hot chocolate fudge the aroma filled the house the Pastor stated that he'd used 5% of a special organic source and kept the matter a secret until all the fudge had been consumed. Then he asked did you notice any difference in the quality/flavour? No.. they replied, well the 5% special ingredient was organic it wont do any REAL harm, it was only dog p##h. lol
If you take a solid truth as the Life, Death and Resurrection of Jesus and you contaminant 5% to 10% of it with a special 'organic substance' what do you have in the end - dog p##h. I felt the tone and reason for the book was a Jewish backlash hardliner trying to have some justification why Jesus wasn't who he said he was the Son of God. The book was written from the sour grapes attitude, "[Jesus wasn't] ...the long-awaited Messiah."p1, on the betrayal of Christ, Archer says, "...Judas knew that he was innocent of such an accusation, as his only purpose was to save Jesus from an unnecessary death." After Jesus' Death, the sorrowful Judas goes a lives amongst the Essenes then a Masada as a "marked man". And the book concludes with "Judas died as Jesus did. He was crucified by the Romans." It's all a bit desperate!
The whole story Gospel of Judas is unbalanced what about Isaiah 53 The Sin-bearing, Suffering Servant? The Gospel of Judas omits the 30 pieces of silver, and suicide of Judas. The Gospel of Judas is nothing more that fragments of quotation out of context in Holy Bible blended together (very poorly) it just doesn't stick!
Let us set aside a few things, just say by chance that this gospel of Judas was right, and the whole of the New Testament wrong. Ok we've been deceived by the BIGGEST hoaxes since man made fire. We could be waiting for the Messiah to still come as the Gospel of Judas indicated, unhappily Israel still waits, they missed the boat. Not one Holy Prophet has been around for over two thousand years.
Israel is one of the most violent, sad and godless places on earth. There is no peace, the temple has gone, the glory has gone, as a nation they forsook the Lord time and time again and were taken off to captivity. Jesus said in Matt 23:37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city the kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See your house is left to you, desolate..."
Now let's just say that the Gospel of Judas is false piece of fiction. Look at the people in New Testament who believe and were change by it and gave their lives for it (Peter & Paul), they did not write empty words by words of someone who knew and walked and talked with Jesus. The story of people in Bible give us hope, in a world where we are saturated with Hollywood, sexism, drugs and alcohol, domestic violence (rape/guns) the list keeps on going on. I want freedom from all that this world offers because it like hot sweet chocolate fudge one isn't enough and one piece is too much.
In closing a quote from James 3:13, "Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.
What was Archer really trying to achieve by the release of this book?

Lacks Impact.......2007-05-28

In spite of the clever packaging---this small 100+ page novel appears to be an ancient leather-bound journal complete with built in ribbon bookmark--- Jeffrey Archer's "The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot" fails to deliver the punch needed to smack it into the significance realm of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

I expected some grand revelation---perhaps Judas and Jesus had concocted the whole betrayal bit; Judas gladly takes the hit and for two millennia is thought to be the ultimate 30 pieces of silver traitor. As I read this little gospel formatted tome, I am thinking, Judas's legendary despicable actions were all part of his Master's ultimate plan, right?

Wrong.

Supposedly, in "The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot" Archer and Moloney collaborate to formulate a tale believable to both Biblical scholars and modern laymen readers. The format definitely bespeaks of their desire to create something that resembles a gospel rendering complete with chapter and verse and the Jesus quotations (most of which are familiar from evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) highlighted in a red italicized font. Nevertheless, the story itself disappoints as it is far too similar to the actual gospels from which it is based to excite any degree of controversy. The supposed mystery of the real Judas simply neglects to properly mystify.

Bottom line? Years ago, I had read Frank Yerby's novel, "Judas, My Brother." Believe me as scandalous as the plotline of this older book seemed to me then, it could far more captivate its audience now than this Archer-Moloney collaboration. Sadly, "The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot" attempts to retell the story of Christ's ministry utilizing a fifth evangelist format that simply doesn't work. Why read this when the original four authors of the New Testament gospels have already told the tale and have told it the best way possible? Not recommended.
Diana Faillace Von Behren
"reneofc"

Disappointed.......2007-05-20

Since reading The Last Temptation of Christ, I have expected the gospel of Judas to be written. Archer and Malononey too often take the safe easy path and never challenge the reader as Kazantakis (sic) did. I had high hopes but ultimately was disappointed.

A new perspective.......2007-05-17

This was a beautiful and moving book. After all everybody thinks Judas was a monster and my opinion has changed after reading this book.

Epicenter: Why Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future

Average customer rating:

Third Lense Makes You Aware
Thought Provoking
Epicenter what you don't want to miss
Just ok
Fascinating analysis

Epicenter: Why Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future
Joel C. Rosenberg
Manufacturer: Tyndale House Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Copper Scroll
The Last Jihad
The Last Days
Joel C. Rosenberg CD Collection: The Last Jihad, The Last Days, and The Ezekiel Option
Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America

ASIN: 1414311354

Book Description

With over one million novels in print, New York Times best-selling author Joel C. Rosenberg has been called "eerily prophetic" and a "modern Nostradamus" for his uncanny ability to write political thrillers that come true. In his first nonfiction book, this evangelical Christian from an Orthodox Jewish heritage takes readers on an unforgettable journey through prophecy and current events into the future of Iraq after Saddam, Russia after Communism, Israel after Arafat, and Christianity after radical Islam. You won't want to miss Joel's exclusive interviews with Israeli, Palestinian, and Russian leaders, and previously classified CIA and White House documents. Similar to the approach Joel takes in his novels, his desire is to draw readers into stories, anecdotes, and predictions in a way that builds confidence that allows Joel to share his faith in Jesus Christ and the reliability of Scripture as a guide to understanding the past and the future. Drawing on his experience in Washington, his own exclusive interviews with world leaders, and his astute political acumen, Joel makes sense of the events surrounding the Middle East. He connects information in a way that will make you understand and really care about the world's most important events and how they impact your life--from gas prices to your bank account.Epicenter is about: Change--big changes, dramatic changes, changes that will transform the world as we know it. Answers--what the changes are underway in the world's most important countries. Insight--readers will understand the trajectory of world events by being taken inside the governments of Iran, Iraq, Russia, China, and more. Accessibility--aimed for a wide audience in both the general and Christian markets. Faith--Joel shares his faith in Jesus Christ and the reliability of Scripture. Epicenter will answer questions like: Will Iraq go from bad to worse? Will Israel and her Arab neighbors find peace, or is another major Middle East war just around the corner? If the new, post-Soviet Russia is our friend, why is the Kremlin creating a new class of thermonuclear weapons and building an alliance with radical Islam?

Customer Reviews:

Third Lense Makes You Aware.......2007-06-27

Joel Rosenberg has produced a well thought out argument for looking at the happenings of this world through a "third lense" of the Holy Scriptures, taking a microscopic look at the prophecies of Ezekiel. In the style of a true story teller he hooks you with his dramatic presentation of the crisis before telling how he arrived at the crisis or how it is resolved. A fascinating read on the whole. However, he does bog down occasionally in citing news releases and quotes. Thinking about your personal world view may create a "crisis" of conscience in your own reactions and conclusions.

Thought Provoking.......2007-06-27

I have found Mr. Rosenberg's book extremely interesting and thought provoking. His frequent references to "the third lens of scripture" helps broaden the reader's viewpoints as they read this book. Many of the recent happenings in the Middle East mentioned in this book completely escaped my notice when they occurred, or perhaps were not covered by the major news reporting agencies. When all of this information is taken together, it presents a compelling case for understanding today's news from the Middle East and its possible implications for the future. I'd consider this a "must read" for anyone who accepts Holy Scripture as God's truth! The "end times" may be closer than many think.

Epicenter what you don't want to miss.......2007-06-26

This Book is showing you how the bible is showing you the facts that are and that will come to be in the Middle East and for our Fortune Too, If we don't read this book and listen

Just ok.......2007-06-19

There were parts of this book that I really enjoyed, such as the history of the nations, but there are quite a few parts that I believe detracted from the book. First, I felt that since this was a non-fiction book that it was not appropriate for Mr. Rosenberg to continually refer to his past fiction books as though they were fact. Second, it seemed to me that there was almost an attitude of pretentiousness because of who he had met, or worked for, or what someone said about him, etc. Also, I felt like he made way too much about his "ability" to "connect the dots" and predict the headlines. Anyone who knows the Bible and keeps up with the latest technology and political happenings can predict a headline. Here's one of my predictions... "Cash No Longer Accepted at Many Stores". I make this prediction because Revelation 13:16-17 says you will not be able to buy or sell without a mark in your forehead or right hand. After reading the internet, I have "connected the dots" and decided that this is probably fingerprint and iris scans. Check out Verichip, Verimed, Digital Angel, and a whole host of other sites that are using biometrics to scan for security, pay for school lunches, sign on to computers etc. Because of my ability to write my own headlines, I have less confidence in the headlines that Mr. Rosenberg writes.

Fascinating analysis.......2007-06-18

Rosenberg is certainly dialed in with the key actors in this space and provides a perspective on the Middle East that I had not read or really even thought of. It is a real page-turner.

Average customer rating:

Night Continues to Shed Light
Excellent and sad
Classic Holocaust Literature!
powerful
Faith dies in the flames

Night (Oprah's Book Club)
Elie Wiesel
Manufacturer: Hill and Wang
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Holocaust | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Jewish | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Memoirs | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Glass Castle : A Memoir (Alex Awards (Awards))
A Million Little Pieces
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
Day: A Novel
Dawn

ASIN: 0374500010
Release Date: 2006-01-16

Amazon.com

In Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel's memoir Night, a scholarly, pious teenager is wracked with guilt at having survived the horror of the Holocaust and the genocidal campaign that consumed his family. His memories of the nightmare world of the death camps present him with an intolerable question: how can the God he once so fervently believed in have allowed these monstrous events to occur? There are no easy answers in this harrowing book, which probes life's essential riddles with the lucid anguish only great literature achieves. It marks the crucial first step in Wiesel's lifelong project to bear witness for those who died.

Book Description

A New Translation From The French By Marion Wiesel

Night is Elie Wiesel’s masterpiece, a candid, horrific, and deeply poignant autobiographical account of his survival as a teenager in the Nazi death camps. This new translation by Marion Wiesel, Elie’s wife and frequent translator, presents this seminal memoir in the language and spirit truest to the author’s original intent. And in a substantive new preface, Elie reflects on the enduring importance of Night and his lifelong, passionate dedication to ensuring that the world never forgets man’s capacity for inhumanity to man.

Night offers much more than a litany of the daily terrors, everyday perversions, and rampant sadism at Auschwitz and Buchenwald; it also eloquently addresses many of the philosophical as well as personal questions implicit in any serious consideration of what the Holocaust was, what it meant, and what its legacy is and will be.

Customer Reviews:

Night Continues to Shed Light.......2007-06-27

Even though this book was originaly published many, many years ago; this revised version is still a very compelling read. It brings the truth and horror of the Holocast down to a level accessible and identifiable to people who were not in the Army in Germany at the end of WWII and witness the liberation of the Death Camps first hand or who themselves were not the lucky survivors of the Death Camps. This book lets the reader get a feel for what went on there, the pain, the anguish, the daily terror and the occassional heroic manvuorers by a caring few who dared to be brave enough to risk being killed themselved to save anyone they could. If anyone has any doubts that these events took place (i.e. the President of Iran) this should be required reading.

Excellent and sad.......2007-06-23

I started reading this book one evening and didn't stop until I was finished. For me there can be no higher praise. Night is a well written (and depressing) pictures of the author's life as a Jew in WWII Germany. The books starts before his internment, ends with his liberation, and paints a vivid and horrifying picture of everything in between. I was so intensely frustrated reading about how the Jews refused to believe bad things were happening through the patches the ghetto's even right up until they were being marched into gas chambers single file. Whenever I watch/read something about the holocaust the most amazing thing for me is how so many people just marched trustingly along right to their deaths.

Classic Holocaust Literature!.......2007-06-22

I feel for Elie Wiesel not because of the loss of his family in the Holocaust. He does have my deepest sympathies as does everybody who lost relatives in the Holocaust. Elie's writing illustrates his loss of faith and his anger at God for allowing the Holocaust to happen in the first place in their own countries and Europe in general. It was like a wake-up call for the European Jews to see the deportation, the stripping of identity, the torture, the labor or death, the burning of human bodies, the stench in the camps, the lack of human dignity. Wiesel should realize that these events didn't go away. Genocides have been around since the beginning of time just as racism, anti-Semitism, sexism, discrimination, ageism, etc. Wiesel's book asks us to ask questions about God, existence, and life purpose. Elie's book asks those same questions. Some of us are comforted in our religions, our families, our relationships with other human beings, etc. The Holocaust destroyed countries in Europe. Poland has never fully recovered. On my trip to Warsaw in 2000, we visited the tallest building in the city and there was a newspaper in the 1930s about the upcoming Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, before the war of all wars. Seeing that photo there is an understated memorial reminding us of what might have been than what is. Poland's post-war Anti-Semitism had a lot to do with the Soviet Communism. Now, I keep thinking about my two aunts who never married and the fact that my father who lived in Siedlce, Poland watched half of his town be massacred by the Germans in 1941. My father didn't tell me that they were killed because they were Jewish. He just knew their names, their faces, and they were his friends and neighbors as well. Poland tries to move on with the future instead of being dragged down in the past. Sadly, Wiesel has to remember the past to move on with the living. More and more Holocaust survivors are dying each day. Survivors like Wiesel have been blessed with survival as well as guilt for being a survivor. After my father died in 1991, I went on a quest to understand death and I don't believe in it after all. I believe that God does exist and I could hate Him for my own personal reasons but I think He wants me to learn my lessons in life. That's why I prefer Victor Frankl's book on Man's Searching for Meaning after his Holocaust experiences, he focuses on the positive and surviving and living better and being alive without feeling so guilty for it.

powerful .......2007-06-17

Long after you have finished this book you will think about it on days when you think you have it bad or a hard day at work you will remember how sweet your life is and freedom is . This small little books packs alot of emotion and a powerful message. A must read book.

Faith dies in the flames.......2007-06-15

As a child, Wiesel dreamed of becoming a Jewish mystic, of studying the secrets of the Kabbalah. This dream perish, along with his family, in the hell of the Nazis' "Final Solution." This slim volume is Wiesel's first person account of the ordeal he faced...from the Ghetto to Auschwitz to Buchenwald. Along the way, his Faith dies in the flames as he watches children tossed into pits of fire. He questions the very existance of God in a world where such attrocities are possible. The "Night" of the title is not only the darkness of the evil perpetrated by the Nazis, but also the darkness that the experience imparts on Wiesel's own soul.

This book is powerful not only because it bears witness to a horror that is almost beyond belief, but because it also gives us a glimpse into how the impact of such evil goes far beyond the physical impact, to scar a person's very soul. This book should be required reading for anyone who wants to understand the true scope of the evil man is capable of inflicting on his fellows.

The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion

Average customer rating:

Very informative & worthwhile
A response to the liberal universities
Can't recommend it enough
Important
Valuable Contribution

The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion
Robert Spencer
Manufacturer: Regnery Publishing, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Muhammed | Islam | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

History | Islam | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Church & State | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Islamic | World | History | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Religion & Spirituality Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

America Alone: The End of the World as We Know It
The Politically Incorrect Guide(tm) to Islam (and the Crusades) (Politically Incorrect Guides)
Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America
While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam is Destroying the West from Within
The Politically Incorrect Guide to Global Warming (and Environmentalism)

ASIN: 1596980281

Book Description

In this startling new book, New York Times bestselling author Robert Spencer, provides a warts-and-all portrait of the Prophet of Islam and draws out what his life implies for reforming Islam and repulsing Islamic terrorists. Spencer relies solely on primary sources considered reliable by Muslims and evaluates modern biographies to show how Muhammad has been changed for Western audiences, lulling them into consoling but false conclusions.

Customer Reviews:

Very informative & worthwhile.......2007-06-26

This is a very informative and worthwhile book. Mr. Spencer has produced a scholarly and well documented work. I did not get the impression that this book was written for the purpose to be hostile to Islam, but to expose the necessary historical truth, however unflattering it is, so we can better understand the present. It is too bad that Messrs Bush Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz did not get a chance read a book like this before they plunged our nation into a military adventure in the Islamic world. I hope whoever occupies the White House after 2009 takes some the time off the current campaign trail to read it, but that is probably wishful thinking.

A response to the liberal universities.......2007-06-25

As a freshman in college who took six college classes in my senior year of high school, I appreciate this book as a well-reasoned response to the liberal propaganda that incontrovertibly exists in our institutions of higher learning here in the U.S. Even in my reasonably conservative university, a freshman level World Religions class completely softened the truth about Muhammad's teachings past reason, teaching that jihad is not holy war by any means, and only in a few cases may apply to a just war to defend Muslims.

Drawing from the Qur'an, Hadith, and Sira, Mr. Spencer shows us the clear falsehood of such a euphemistic portrayal of Islam and its Prophet. Of course, the book does not deny that among Muslims, Muhammad was seen as relatively equanimous in most situations, who treated his own people well, with respect and a peaceful attitude. It also cannot be denied that before his relationship with the Jews soured, he showed them a great deal of respect as well. However, this book will make you aware that we cannot simply take one part of Muhammad's life and disregard the rest, because the Mujahideen (today's terrorists) certainly don't. To all Muslims, Muhammad, throughout his entire life, not just the early phase, is to be considered a most excellent model for human conduct. What a weakness it is for the left-wingers of our day to turn their faces from the reality that much of Muhammad's way of conduct is in no way applicable to civilized modern society.

By Allah, I wish this author peace and safety, and thank him for his contribution to our limited Western understanding of Islam.

Can't recommend it enough.......2007-06-24

If you want to understand current events, especially issues like foreign policy, the Middle East policy, and terrorism, it goes without saying that you must have at least a basic understanding of Islam. Unfortunately, most Americans, including many politicians and policymakers, lack this very knowledge.

We are continually informed by the media that Islam is a "religion of peace" that is being "hijacked" by a small group of "fanatics," and that "real Muslims" are, of course, opposed to violence in the name of Islam. I even read recently the ridiculous claim that Muhammad himself never participated in or endorsed violence, a claim that Spencer shows to be the exact opposite of the truth. Muhammad himself, assuming that the Koran and Hadith provide a fairly reliable account of his life (which is rather debatable, but that's a different topic), most certainly both endorsed and participated in violence.

Spencer argues very convincingly that the popular myth of a peaceful Islam is decidedly false. He traces the life of Muhammad, focusing on the history and development of his intolerance and violence towards other religions, demonstrating how modern-day violence springs from the teaching and example of Muhammad. Throughout he argues that Islam will continue to be a violent religion as long as Muhammad is seen as the highest example of human behavior. He also argues against Islam's "sacred cow" status in the media, showing that we ignore the truth about Islam only to our peril. It is very ironic how, with each new act of violence from Islamic fundamentalists, the media simply continues to repeat their mantra about how "Islam is a peaceful religion!", even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

The issue of Islam isn't going to go away any time soon. If you want to understand it, then you owe it to yourself to read this superb book. If you have always been told that Islam is just a peaceful religion that's been hijacked by a few radicals and would like to know the truth, read this book. In our age where political correctness often substitutes for clear, factual thinking and reasoning and common sense have virtually been abolished, this book is a breath of fresh air. I can't recommend this book at once; if you read only one book on Islam, this should be it. It is highly relevant to current events I strongly recommend it.

Important.......2007-06-23

Robert Spencer has writen a very important book. The West has little or no understanding of what is contained in the Koran and what that will mean for the West's future. When read with a dark purpose in mind, the Koran can be used to justify almost any political agenda. This book explains what we are up against and why it is so hard for moderates to speak out. You should read this so you can help preserve the freedoms that are so important to the West.

Valuable Contribution.......2007-06-21

The non-Muslim world should thank Mr. Robert Spencer
for his effort. Mr. Spencer's books provide a great
education for non-Muslims, warning them about dangers
they are going to have to confront in the days and
years to come.

Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty

Average customer rating:

Eye Opening
Nobel Peace Prize Winner Book
An autobiographical tour de force!
a book you should read
a small idea that grew and helped people

Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty
Muhammad Yunus
Manufacturer: PublicAffairs
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Business | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Policy & Current Events | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Development & Growth | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Economic Policy & Development | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Banks & Banking | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Bangladesh | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Biographies | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits (The Wharton Press Paperback Series)
How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas
The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time
Microfinance Handbook: An Institutional and Financial Perspective (Sustainable Banking With the Poor)
The Economics of Microfinance

ASIN: 1586481983
Release Date: 2003-10-14

Amazon.com

It began with a simple $27 loan. After witnessing the cycle of poverty that kept many poor women enslaved to high-interest loan sharks in Bangladesh, Dr. Muhammad Yunus lent money to 42 women so they could purchase bamboo to make and sell stools. In a short time, the women were able to repay the loans while continuing to support themselves and their families. With that initial eye-opening success, the seeds of the Grameen Bank, and the concept of microcredit, were planted.

After earning a Ph.D. in economics at Vanderbilt University, Dr. Yunus returned to Bangladesh to settle into a life as a professor. But a famine in 1974 ravaged the country, leading Dr. Yunus to alter his thinking and his life profoundly: "What good were all my complex theories when people were dying of starvation on the sidewalks and porches across from my lecture hall?.... Nothing in the economic theories I taught reflected the life around me." Armed with little more than a lofty dream to end the suffering around him, he started an experimental microcredit enterprise in 1977; by 1983 the Grameen Bank was officially formed.

The idea behind the Grameen Bank is ingeniously simple: extend credit to poor people and they will help themselves. This concept strikes at the root of poverty by specifically targeting the poorest of the poor, providing small loans (usually less than $300) to those unable to obtain credit from traditional banks. At Grameen, loans are administered to groups of five people, with only two receiving their money up front. As soon as these two make a few regular payments, loans are gradually extended to the rest of the group. In this way, the program builds a sense of community as well as individual self-reliance. Most of the Grameen Bank's loans are to women, and since its inception, there has been an astonishing loan repayment rate of over 98 percent.

Banker to the Poor is an inspiring memoir of the birth of microcredit, written in a conversational tone that makes it both moving and enjoyable to read. The Grameen Bank is now a $2.5 billion banking enterprise in Bangladesh, while the microcredit model has spread to over 50 countries worldwide, from the U.S. to Papua New Guinea, Norway to Nepal. Ever optimistic, Yunus travels the globe spreading the belief that poverty can be eliminated: "...the poor, once economically empowered, are the most determined fighters in the battle to solve the population problem; end illiteracy; and live healthier, better lives. When policy makers finally realize that the poor are their partners, rather than bystanders or enemies, we will progress much faster that we do today." Dr. Yunus's efforts prove that hope is a global currency. --Shawn Carkonen

Book Description

This autobiography of the world-renowned, visionary economist who came up with a simple but revolutionary solution to end world poverty--micro-credit--has become the classic text for a growing movement.

In 1983 Muhammad Yunus established Grameen, a bank devoted to providing the poorest of Bangladesh with miniscule loans. He aimed to help the poor by supporting the spark of personal initiative and enterprise by which they could lift themselves out of poverty forever. It was an idea born on a day in 1976 when he loaned $27 from his own pocket to forty-two people living in a tiny village. They were stool makers who only needed enough credit to purchase the raw materials for their trade. Yunus's loan helped them break the cycle of poverty and changed their lives forever. His solution to world poverty, founded on the belief that credit is a fundamental human right, is brilliantly simple: loan poor people money on terms that are suitable to them, teach them a few sound financial principles, and they will help themselves.

Yunus's theories work. Grameen Bank has provided 3.8 billion dollars to 2.4 million families in rural Bangladesh. Today, more than 250 institutions in nearly 100 countries operate micro-credit programs based on the Grameen methodology, placing Grameen at the forefront of a burgeoning world movement toward eradicating poverty through micro-lending.

Customer Reviews:

Eye Opening.......2007-06-27

I'm very impressed with Mohammad Yunus. He created an entire network of microlending without ever selling out his dreams or ideas to the larger banks or even the World Bank. I found his passion to help the extreme poor to be inspiring. I have a new found understanding and respect of Bangladesh and its' people through his eyes. He is most deserving of the Novel Peace Prize.

Nobel Peace Prize Winner Book.......2007-06-09

This book arrived on time and in great shape, which I was pleased with since it was mailed to a friend as a gift. Thanks!

An autobiographical tour de force!.......2007-05-30

A saga of how one man can truly transform the lives of millions of a lesser God. The eminent Nobel Peace Laureate, Mohammad Yunus elucidates his path-breaking business model of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, which lends without any collateral to the financially and the socially ostracized. His ideology - access to credit is a fundamental human right. What is interesting to note is that 98% of the borrowers are women (way to go, ladies!) and the impressive repayment rate of 97%, which is way superior to that found in traditional banks. I relished the success stories explicating how these industrious women entrepreneurs were able to free themselves from the viscious cycle of poverty not to mention the happy escape from the exploitative and manipulative money lenders and come out on top. Very heart-warming indeed! The borrowers own 90% of the bank. Convinces you that micro-credit is an incredibly powerful tool for eradicating world poverty. Little wonder, Dr. Yunus' successful business model is implemented by so many other countries today.

Ergo, this book deserves a chance if you are intrigued by the concept of micro-credit or feel the inclination for some inspiration, you will not be disappointed.

a book you should read.......2007-05-26

you should read this book not because its exceptionally well written, because it is only competently written. You should read it because it is written by a man who has challenged our business model of helping the poor (and make no mistake, helping the poor is a business model more than a charity model)>

There is a reason these ideas rated a Nobel Peace prize, and reading about the thoughts and ideas in the firsst person is more powerful than others' interpretations.

So read it to learn, and to expand your thinking.

a small idea that grew and helped people.......2007-05-18

Mr. Yunnus details how he helped people slowly and on a small basis and with that foundation helped people on a larger scale. The discussion of failure and politics and buercracy are invaluable here. A great book especially if you are studying economics and banking.

A History of Greece (Works in Ancient Philosophy)

Average customer rating:

A History of Greece (Works in Ancient Philosophy)
George Grote
Manufacturer: Thoemmes Continuum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Greece | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

General | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 1855068508

Book Description

'The author is not surpassed...in intimate and accurate acquaintance with the whole field of Greek literature and antiquity; while none of his predecessors have approached to him in the amount of philosophy and general mental accomplishment which he has brought to bear upon the subject' - J. S. Mill's review in the Edinburgh Review

This is a complete reprint of the 10-volume 4th edition. Published posthumously in 1872, it is considered the best edition, containing a portrait, maps and plans plus a note by Mrs Harriet Grote. Grote's exposition was based on a thorough knowledge of the subject and, as a friend of James Mill, John Stuart Mill, Jeremy Bentham and David Ricardo, an exceptional background in politics, philosophy and economics. His unparalleled experience meant his understanding and interpretation of Greek life was second to none. The History is written in an accessible style, with penetrating portraits of Greek political and philosophical thought that made the subject intelligible as never before. Grote's study is the pinnacle of nineteenth-century Greek scholarship and is still of immense value to the modern classics scholar.

--monumental nineteenth-century work that set the new standard in Greek scholarship
--particular emphasis on philosophy and politics
--great nineteenth-century historian, who also wrote the highly acclaimed Plato and the Other Companions of Sokrates and Aristotle

Books:

Books