Essential Saroyan: Challenges and Practices (California Legacy Book) (California Legacy Book)

Book Description

William Saroyan's gift to literature was his humanity. In his five-decades of short stories, novels, and plays, he saw exuberance where others found sorrow and lived a life that was richer and stranger than his fictions. Despite his worldwide fame and his years living in Europe, Saroyan's mind never wandered far from the Fresno, California of his childhood, or his Armenian heritage, and Fresno is the inspiration behind most of his greatest works. The Essential Saroyan brings together the most acclaimed stories as well as a few surprises from one of California's major writers.

Beloved of Armenians everywhere and the only man to win and turn down the Pulitzer Prize, Saroyan's legacy endures today. His work exalts the mysteries of youth, ponders the impossibility of love, speaks to this strange condition of being alive, and above all, declares that the duty of a writer is to have one hell of a good time.

Book Description

The electrifying sequel to the bestselling The Baker's Boy. Demented Prince Kylock murders his father, gaining the vast empire of the Four Kingdoms. Meanwhile, Jack, and Melli, who have escaped from the Four Kingdoms, as separted--Jack is under the spell of a woman's seductive shemes, and Melli is captured by brutal slavers.

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Prince Kylock, heir apparent to the ruling throne of the Four Kingdoms, murders King Lesketh. With this foul act, 'A Man Betrayed' brings the reader further into the turbulent world of the Four Kingdoms. Picking up where ' The Baker's Boy' left off, the betrothment party from the Four Kingdoms is well on the road to meet Kylock's bride-to-be, Catherine, daughter of the Duke of Bren. This is purely a political move meant to solidify The Four Kingdoms' power in the Known Lands. Meanwhile, Jack and Melli, long since escaped from the Four Kingdoms, are separated. Jack falls into the company of a smuggler and black marketeer while Melli is now the pride of a slave trader on his way to Bren. Nabber has followed Tawl westward to Bren only to find Tawl fighting for his living as a pit fighter. Kylock resumes hostilities with the Halcus in what grows to be a full-scale war. As the wedding comes closer to reality, loyalties change hands, marriages are announced, Kylock asserts his Machiavellian power . . . and Jack comes closer to understanding his powers and his origins.

Customer Reviews:

Great.......2005-08-26

A fantastic follow up to the first book. The author keeps the story going strong with enough twists and turns to keep the reader hooked.

Didn't live up to the hype..........2005-01-12

Okay, so if you were snooping around in the fantasy circles circa 1995, you are indubitably aware that this trilogy generated an enormous buzz. That in itself was surprising, since The Baker's Boy was Mrs. Jones' very first novel. In addition, it was published by Aspect (Warner Books), an imprint not particularly renowned for publishing bestsellers.

In any event, to a certain extent taking the market by storm, the series was an instant success. The three volumes were all national bestsellers, which is quite unusual. They all topped the Locus Bestseller List. Okay, so it's not the New York Times, but it is still quite an accomplishment for a new author.

Like a lot of people, I bought the books when they came out. Unlike many, I didn't read them yet. The hype was too strong, and I didn't want it to influence me when I read the series. Of course, I didn't really expect to wait nearly 9 years before reading them, either! For some reason, even though Mrs. Jones wrote 3 more novels since the publication of Master and Fool, she never did create waves the way The Book of Words trilogy initially did. Now was the time for me to see what the buzz had been about. . .

As is usually the case, the series did not live up to the expectations the buzz had created within me. Hence, I'm happy to have waited before reading the novels. Otherwise, I would probably have been VERY disappointed by this series. With the enormous number of books I've read over the years, I'm afraid that I have become definitely hard to please. . .

But although the trilogy suffers from several shortcomings, in all objectivity I must admit that it is still a relatively good read.

My main problem with the series is the fact that it appears to be aimed at a younger crowd. In my mind, it seems to be aimed at readers who are under 18. Being 30 (yes, I AM getting old!), I couldn't quite get into it. But I am persuaded that if I had read the series when I was 16 years of age, I would probably have loved it. There is a certain innocence inherent to the characters and their views of love, honor, obligation, etc, that makes the whole thing not ring true to my "adult" perspective.

The biggest shortcoming of the series, however, is the fact that the characters are far from being three-dimensional. As a matter of fact, they are not "real." The author fell into a popular trap, namely creating "cliché" characters: the innocent boy with immense potential, the beautiful and spoiled young woman who turns out to be stronger and more courageous than she believed herself to be, the evil mage, the power-hungry prince, etc. And some characters are just caricatures, case in point being the Archbishop Tavalisk. And yet, having said that about the characters, they are still a likeable bunch. Which, in the end, helps you enjoy the books.

Several plotlines had a lot of potential (the knights of Valdis, the Seers of Larn, Jake's parentage, etc), but they were not exploited to their fullest. Had they been, this series would have been much better. Mrs. Jones took the easy road instead. . .

In light of all this, I have to admit that I nevertheless like J. V. Jones' writing style. She has a witty way to write, which I truly enjoyed. I think that she must challenge herself a little more with her storylines, and explore a bit more those concepts that she creates. It would certainly give ner novels more depth, which in turn would make them more enjoyable.

I believe that J. V. Jones shows great promise and could be a bright voice in the fantasy genre. Hopefully her other novels will show just how much potential she truly possesses. . .:-)

Check out my blog: www.fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com

much better than the first.......2004-08-09

A Man Betrayed is the continuation of the Book of Words trilogy by J.V. Jones. The first seemed to end poorly, but I was still determined to read the series because of the numerous praises I have heard. Once I picked this one up, I could not put it down. Betrayal evokes the most primitave of emotions, and this book was able to do just that. I felt for the characters and went through their pain and pleasure with them.

Jack, the main character, is separated from Melli and told that she is dead. He uses this as fuel to light his fire for revenge. Jack is taken under the wing of a bad trader, Rovas, who teaches him how to fight so he can kill the man responsible for Melli's supposed death. While being taught, he falls in love with a seductive older woman, Tarissa. It isn't until his downfall that he realizes the betrayal.

Melli is captured and sold to a flesh trader. Although, the flesh trader finds out that Melli could cause trouble for his business, so he sells her as soon as possible to the Duke of Bren. Each time she tries to find out a way to escape captivity, but all she has is a knife, which ends up being her downfall.

As for the others, Tawl is sent into despair, and it is only Nabber who can bring him back. Maybor and Baralis travel to Bren to set up King Kylock's marriage to Catherine of Bren. Kylock, as the newly crowned King, is destroying the Halcus. And Catherine is not exactly what Kylock believes.

It all adds up to one great story. I normally think of the middle book of a trilogy as just a bridge to gap the first and the last, but this one stands alone, and is even my favorite of the series. Master and Fool, here I come!

Even better than the first.......2003-11-15

This book continues right where The Baker's Boy left off and it doesn't let up. Jack is coming to grips with his power and his destiny but takes several lumps along the way and Baralis is bringing his evil schemes to a head. Kylock isn't yet fleshed out in the book except for two quick glimpses and from what we see, he is one "bad" guy. Not a drop of good in him and I hope he gets it in a painful way in the third installment (which I am about to start tonight). Tawl is also going through some rough times but luckily he has Nabber with him to lessen some of the damage.

All in all a great book and I only had one or two minor dislikes. They did nothing though to make me dislike the book. Need a good fantasy book to read? Get this series.

Tasty!.......2003-01-25

I stayed up until four am to finish this awesome book! Having read the third book first and the first book second I was drooling with anticipation to read A Man Betrayed. I was not disappointed. J.V. Jones does a wonderful job of keeping the audience in her grasp all through the book. Skipping between characters pulls the audience into a fevered frenzy of anticipation while waiting to see what happens next!

Spider-Girl, Vol. 7: Betrayed (Spider-Man)

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Spider-Girl continues to impress

Spider-Girl, Vol. 7: Betrayed (Spider-Man)
Tom DeFalco , and Pat Olliffe
Manufacturer: Marvel Comics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0785121579

Book Description

Who will lead the New York underworld? Will the Green Goblin go good or give grief? What secret is Mary Jane keeping? And who is the NEXT true Spider-Man? Guest-starring the Fantastic Five! Collects Spider-Girl #34-38, 51.

Customer Reviews:

Spider-Girl continues to impress.......2007-09-14

I haven't enjoyed a comic from one of the big publishing houses this well written in quite a while. Spider-Girl really gets back to its roots in terms of moral subject matter and everyday human troubles, just like the original Spidey used to do.

Pearl Harbor Betrayed: The True Story of a Man and a Nation Under Attack

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More than a few nuggets ...
Another well sourced defense for Adm. Kimmel.
Washington's and Kimmel's mistakes revealed
Failures that doomed a fleet
Better than Midrange

Pearl Harbor Betrayed: The True Story of a Man and a Nation Under Attack
Michael Gannon
Manufacturer: Holt Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Naval | Military | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0805071822

Book Description

For sixty years, myths about Pearl Harbor have proliferated. After six years of intense research, naval historian Michael Gannon has finally separated fact from fiction to re-create the dramatic events surrounding that fateful December morning. Drawing on largely untapped U.S. and Japanese primary sourcesincluding overlooked or unknown military orders, code intercepts, aide memoirs, eyewitness interviews, and private correspondencethe author builds a stunning narrative that penetrates a smokescreen of cover-ups, top-level military misdirections, and faulty diplomatic decisions. In Pearl Harbor Betrayed, Gannon has accomplished what heretofore seemed impossible: he has set the record straight about the most exhaustively examined and debated event in our entire history.

Customer Reviews:

More than a few nuggets ..........2006-05-29

While Professor Gannon (Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Florida) has now shifted his interest and research focus to the early history of Florida, he remains best known for his work on German U-boats of WWII (Operation Drumbeat), and investigating the issue of the effectiveness of aerial reconnaissance at Pearl Harbor (e.g., Dorn Report).

This book is a valuable addition to our better and fuller understanding of Pearl Harbor. Its logical structure, crisp writing, and expertisely developed train of citations offer the reader a journey that is rewarded by its "let you decide" conclusion.

Some of the more intrinsical materials Professor Gannon uses are from newly released documents; but much comes from the earlier Pearl Harbor investigations and documents from that period, particularly the Martin-Bellinger report.

For example, note 78 from "Chapter Six: War Warning" has Seth Richardson's comments:

"It was well known and recognized in Washington for at least a year prior to 7 December 1941 that adequate protection of the fleel in Hawaii, where Washington ordered it to base rather than on the west coast, depended on having an adequate number of patrol and bomber planes with which to maintain reconnaissanace and to defeat any approaching attacking force; that during the year 1941 there were manufactured in the United States a very large number of patrol and bomber planes, of which only a few were sent to Hawaii while a large and dispportionate number were diverted by Washington to Great Britain, in many instances under lend-lease; ..."

[N.B., Lend-Lease records show that over 200 PBYs went to Great Britain in 1941. Harry Hopkins, personal advisor to FDR, was the Director of the Lend-Lease Program at this time. Also, Great Britain received US built PURPLE machines and Pearl Harbor did not received a one.]

Another example, from the Epilogue, is note 56, of interest to the "pied piper" of Prange and associates and their ageing lemmings:

"Ibid., p. 344. Use of the language 'most dangerous sectors' reminds one of the historian Gordon W. Prange, on two counts. First, because, as Prange wrote, the Martin-Bellinger estimate of 31 March 1941 was an 'historic work' 'famous to all students of the Pacific war," At Dawn We Slept, p.93. Second, because he (or his two collaborators) wrote that the Martin-Bellinger estimate of 31 March 1941 postulated that the "most dangerous sectors" from which an air attack on Pearl might be mounted were "the north and northwest." Gordon W. Prange, with Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon, Pearl Harbor: The Verdict of History (New York: McGraw-Hill Company, 1986), p.411. But Martin-Bellinger states no such thing; the text can be found in three places in the JCC record: Pt. 1, pp. 379-82; Pt. 22, pp. 349-54; and Pt. 33, pp. 1182-86. It appears that the 'famous historic' is also an unread work. ..."

As more Pearl Harbor material continue to be released, now even with some original documents coming from private hands, it is fitting to recognize Professor Gannon ending sentence.

"Truth is the daughter of time."

Another well sourced defense for Adm. Kimmel........2006-01-08

The theory that Roosevelt may have ordered a passive response to the attack by Japan on the Pearl Harbor Fleet is not to be found within this book. However, this book reinforces my opinion formed by reading other recent books on this subject, that Roosevelt did encourage a passive response to a pending Japanese attack. Gannon's knowledge of what took place in the Atlantic helps the reader understand the risks he placed on Kimmel, who fell into his job, because his predecessor spoke his mind about the grave risks to the Pacific Fleet.

As Gannon points out, Roosevelt replaced a permenent 4 star (Admiral Richardson) with Kimmel, who recieved a temporary 4 star as CinPac. It is not hard to believe that Roosevelt wanted someone who would be more pliable, and the leverage was the temporary jump in grade for Kimmel.

Gannon points out that eventually Kimmel came to the same conclusions as Richardson, but he never went personally to Roosevelt to complain. Roosevelt was an armchair admiral based on his previous service as Assitant Secretary of the Navy during WWI. He didn't like people who disagreed with him, even if that person had Richardson's experience and expertise.

It is not hard for me to believe that Roosevelt fired Richardson because he was standing in the way of his overall strategy to bring the US into the war with Germany.

A 1998 publication of Thomas E Mahl, Desparate Deception, which describes Roosevelt's cooperation with British Intelligence during this period depicts a President willing to participate in plots that are not covered in College History texts.

Gannon does provide enough information for the reader to realize that Kimmel was not the incompetent that was the fabricated judgement of the first "investigations" about Pearl Harbor.

Gannon does provide evidence that Kimmel and Short were among the first victims of the shooting war, as convenient scapecoats and provided political cover for a story that was too complex and emotional to be covered during and shortly after the war.

Dennis Sculimbrene

Washington's and Kimmel's mistakes revealed.......2002-04-23

December 7, 1941-Who was to blame? This book attempts to answer this burning question and does a pretty good job. There are several different points that the author makes in this book, but his main thesis is that Admiral Kimmel, Commander-in Chief of the United States Pacific Fleet, was denied valuable information which, in his mind, could have prevented or in the least alerted the U.S. forces to the impending Japanese attack. The author brings up several points to prove his case. For instance, Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner, chief of the war plans division, believed that Kimmel had in his possession a "Purple" machine, which could decipher the Japanese diplomatic code, and that Kimmel was reading all of the information that Washington was receiving. This was not true. The Purple machine that was supposed to go to Pearl Harbor was instead sent to the British. Admiral Stark and General Marshall are also singled out by the author. No "clear" war warning message was sent to Kimmel by Washington, and on the Day of the attack, Marshall was out horseback riding and did not arrive in his office until approximately an hour before the attack began. A warning was sent when he arrived, but it was delayed by atmospheric problems and could only be transmitted as a telegram. Kimmel received this message about an hour after the attack began. In retrospect, Washington must shoulder some of the blame for failing to keep its Hawaiian commanders informed, but Kimmel and his subordinates must share some of the blame as well. For example, the author tells of the story of the Japanese submarine that was spotted and sunk off the harbor entrance. Why was there no alert after this sinking? Also, two army privates spotted the Japanese attack planes on radar while they were still over 100 miles from Pearl Harbor. Still, no alert was issued. This book also has excellent excerpts from the Congressional Hearings held in 1945-46. Overall, I think this book is a excellent, although short, examination of Kimmel and Washington.

Failures that doomed a fleet.......2001-12-21

It's hard to decide which is more disturbing: the oversights, omissions, and bad decisions that led to America's unpreparedness in the face of Japan's devastating attack on Pearl Harbor ... or the desperation, speed, and skill with which senior military and political officials unjustly made Admiral Husband E. Kimmel and General Walter Short the scapegoats for what happened.

Both elements are exposed to view in Michael Gannon's excellent book -- a fine addition to the Pearl Harbor bookshelf.

Gannon does a very good job sorting out who was in possession of what intelligence information in the weeks and days leading up to the attack. The 'betrayal' -- one of them, anyway -- was that, for a variety of reasons, much of that information never ended up in the hands of the on-scene commanders, who needed it most.

As Gannon summarizes, 'An Army Chief of Staff orders that no operational intelligence drawn from Magic be sent to his menaced commander in Hawaii, then later states that he was unaware that enemy intelligence was denied him ... An Army intelligence chief, representing the service specifically charged with defending the fleet at Pearl, punts on the grounds that fleet ships, after all, belong to the Navy ... A Navy war plans chief states that any transmission of operational intelligence of this kind should have been sent out by ONI [office of naval intelligence], something he himself never permitted to happen ... A director of naval intelligence discerns in bomb plot messages no more than Japanese curiosity and "nicety" of detail about the time required for ships to sortie from harbor ... and a CNO [chief of naval operations], as uninformed at the time on this espionage as was the Army Chief of Staff, states four years later that ONI should have sent the information to Kimmel -- in direct violation of restraints that his own OpNav office had placed on ONI ... Surely, if ever there was a "fog of pre-war," it hung over Washington in the fall of '41' (p. 195, ellipses in original).

(Gannon firmly rejects the 'Roosevelt knew' hypothesis. He also treats Stinnett's 'Day of Deceit' to only a paragraph or so of scathing analysis, noting in italics, 'It is important to recognize that no naval operational message text in JN-25B [code] was read by the United States prior to 7 December' [p. 206].)

But the intelligence failure was only part, albeit the largest part, of the 'betrayal.' Early in the book, Gannon lists a damning catalog of the ways higher-ups in D.C rejected Kimmel and Short's pleas for men and materiel. More patrol planes? Denied. More AA guns? Denied. Money for more airstrips, so planes could be dispersed more widely? Sorry. Not in the budget. More radar installations? Maybe in the future. More trained gunners and patrol pilots? Sorry. We need them elsewhere. And on, and on, and on. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, don't give us the tools and we can't do the job.

And yet, Kimmel and Short were scapegoated precisely for their alleged 'failure' to do the job. In the end, Gannon explicitly declines to draw conclusions, leaving that, on his last page of text, to the reader. It may not be too much of a reach, though, to suggest that Gannon seems to agree with Admiral Raymond Spruance, whom Gannon quotes at the start of his final chapter: 'I have always felt that Kimmel and Short were held responsible for Pearl Harbor in order that the American people might have no reason to lose confidence in their Government in Washington. This was probably justifiable under the circumstance at the time, but it does not justify forever damning these two fine officers' (p. 261).

Personally, I think losing confidence in the 'Government in Washington' is precisely the conclusion that *should* be drawn from Gannon's analysis, 'circumstance at the time' be damned. As an illustration of bureaucracy's ability to shift blame away from itself and sweep unpleasant facts under the rug, the story of Pearl Harbor is unsurpassed. And Gannon is an excellent and insightful storyteller. I recommend this book to any student of Pearl Harbor.

Better than Midrange.......2001-10-24

It's hard to tell from the title, but this is neither a conspiracy book nor (entirely) a whitewash of Adm. Kimmel but a fairly good overview. The book covers the comprehensive blind spots, especially those in Washington, that lead to the surprise at Pearl Harbor. Gannon writes entertainingly and covers detail well. However I think his (deserved) admiration for Kimmel leads him to soft-pedal the parts of the evidence that suggest his culpability. The admiral deserves, although not the whole blame for being unprepared, a sizeable amount of it. Gordon Prange's relatively hard to find "Pearl Harbor: the Verdict of History" covers much the same ground as Gannon but does not hesitate to point out Kimmel's and Short's mistakes alongside everyone else's. And Prange (himself a WWII vet) knew and liked Kimmel personally. I don't regret buying Gannon's book but I would hate to use it for my sole resource on the subject.

The Book Of Words Series: The Baker's Boy, A Man Betrayed (Volume 1 & 2)

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The Book Of Words Series: The Baker's Boy, A Man Betrayed (Volume 1 & 2)
J.V. Jones
Manufacturer: Aspect, Warner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000W9BDPU

Product Description

First 2 volumes of "The Book of Words" series.

The Book Of Words Series: The Baker's Boy, A Man Betrayed, Master and Fool (Set of 3 Fantasy Novels)

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The Book Of Words Series: The Baker's Boy, A Man Betrayed, Master and Fool (Set of 3 Fantasy Novels)
J.V. Jones
Manufacturer: Aspect
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000MMBPO6

THE BOOK OF WORDS: A MAN BETRAYED VOL II

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THE BOOK OF WORDS: A MAN BETRAYED VOL II
J.V. JONES
Manufacturer: ORBIT
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000S5WQOU

Man Bait Ravishing Shirley Swore to Drive Men Wild...Betrayed, She Bartered Love for Vengeance !

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Man Bait Ravishing Shirley Swore to Drive Men Wild...Betrayed, She Bartered Love for Vengeance !
Richard Grant
Manufacturer: William Godwin Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000J42SZW

The Constitution betrayed: Usurpers, foes of free man

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The Constitution betrayed: Usurpers, foes of free man
Hamilton Abert Long
Manufacturer: Your Heritage Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

DK31 A MAN BETRAYED John Wayne MINT orig '41 lobby card. HereÂ’s a terrific lobby card from the original release of A MAN BETRAYED featuring a great image of JOHN WAYNE and FRANCES DEE. Lobby card is in MINT condition. No pinholes, no stains, no tears. A lobby card is an 11 x 14 inch placard advertising a movie. They were displayed in the theatre lobby to entice moviegoers to go to the box office and buy a ticket.

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DK31 A MAN BETRAYED John Wayne MINT orig '41 lobby card. HereÂ’s a terrific lobby card from the original release of A MAN BETRAYED featuring a great image of JOHN WAYNE and FRANCES DEE. Lobby card is in MINT condition. No pinholes, no stains, no tears. A lobby card is an 11 x 14 inch placard advertising a movie. They were displayed in the theatre lobby to entice moviegoers to go to the box office and buy a ticket.
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ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Cards
ASIN: B000VIPZD8

DL30 A MAN BETRAYED John Wayne MINT orig '41 LC. HereÂ’s a terrific lobby card from the original release of A MAN BETRAYED featuring a great image of JOHN WAYNE and FRANCES DEE. Lobby card is in MINT condition. No pinholes, no stains, no tears. A lobby card is an 11 x 14 inch placard advertising a movie. They were displayed in the theatre lobby to entice moviegoers to go to the box office and buy a ticket.

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DL30 A MAN BETRAYED John Wayne MINT orig '41 LC. HereÂ’s a terrific lobby card from the original release of A MAN BETRAYED featuring a great image of JOHN WAYNE and FRANCES DEE. Lobby card is in MINT condition. No pinholes, no stains, no tears. A lobby card is an 11 x 14 inch placard advertising a movie. They were displayed in the theatre lobby to entice moviegoers to go to the box office and buy a ticket.
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ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Cards
ASIN: B000VIPZKQ

Book Description

Cadets that enter Starfleet Academy have two mantras drilled into them from their very first day. They must do their duty for the Federation and Starfleet, and they must strive to honor their oath as Starfleet officers. Among those who have best embodied these guiding principles and who have strived to live up to the coda "to boldly go ™" are those who once served aboard the Starship Enterprise under the command of Captain James T. Kirk. Who then, was better to guide the next generation of officers? After Kirk became an admiral, the officers of the Enterprise were promoted, and several became Academy instructors. Transformed from a ship of the line to a training vessel the Enterprise's days of active duty are behind her -- until a frantic message from a distant outpost interrupts a training exercise and pulls the ship back into action.

Admiral Kirk is forced to take command of the Enterprise in order to stop an old nemesis from commandeering what could be the most deadly weapon ever devised. In the course of his actions, the crew will find itself facing death...and life -- as they deliberately violate their Starfleet oaths, travel through time to save Earth, and ultimately earn redemption in the eyes of the Federation.

Now, for the first time ever in one volume here are the novelizations of three Star Trek® films: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,® Star Trek III: The Search for Spock,® and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,® all by award-winning author Vonda McIntyre.

Customer Reviews:

Star Trek II, III, IV.......2007-09-16

This is one of my favorite story arcs of all time. Plus with the novelizations there is so much more background to characters such as Lt. Saavic (She's half Romulan?!) and David Marcus.

Thoroughly enjoyable.......2007-03-21

'Duty, Honor, Redemption' is the compilation of the novelizations of Star Trek II, III and IV. As with most Star Trek novelisations, it is well worth the read. Reading it made me feel like I was meeting up with an old bunch of friends that I hadn't seen in years.

The books are written faithfully to the films, obviously taken from the script, with extra scenes added here and there, most of which is I suspect scenes that never made it to the final film.

Vonda N. McIntyre does a mesterful job with all the characters she writes for, and, in particular, Saavik. Ms Mcintyre explores Saavik's Romulan side in much more detail than the films.

One of the most interesting aspects of these books, for me, were the sections detailing what the Enterprise did immediately after Star Trek II, in particular, the scene where Kirk, Estaban and Carol Marcus debate the future of the Genesis Project. Another fascinating section are Saavik's eerie premonitions of Mr Spock. Having recently rewatched Star Trek III, I found it to be a little too fast paced at time, and I think it could have benefited from some of this material.

This book is a thrilling and fascinating read. I highly recommend it.

Awesome Book!.......2006-05-14

This is a great way to get the novelizations of the three best Star Trek movies in one book. Tthese three movies came about at the end as a trilogy, and anyone who enjoyed the movies will love this book.

As far as Nan Lewis's several reviews with one star about buying books only to find out at home they were re-releases, a simple look at the back of the books would reveal this. Why would someone buy a book without knowing anything about it? That one-star reviews are not for the content, but the reviewer's foolishnes.

A treat for those who enjoyed Star Treks II, III and IV.......2005-07-10

This is a handsome trade paperback which reprints Vonda N McIntyre's excellent novelizations for Star Treks II, III and IV ("The Wrath of Khan", "The Search for Spock" and "The Voyage Home").

The only changes to the original books are the correcting of errors, such as "McGivers" for "McGiver". Sulu also goes back to the rank of "Commander" (where McIntyre had promoted him to captain in her novelizations, as per the dropped scene from ST II that was never picked up on by the other movies).

If you've never read the ST II or ST III novelizations before, you are in for a treat. Heaps of great scenes and characters that were never in the movie! Lots of background on Saavik, Peter Preston, the Genesis Project scientists and even an explanation for why Spock's mother Amanda was not present at his Fal Tor Pan ceremony in ST III. The ST IV novelization doesn't add as much new stuff, but is still enjoyable.

The size of the print in this omnibus is very tiny and I feel sorry for people who order this book thinking it's an all-new novel, but there is so much to like about these "Signature Edition" books. I bought this even though I already have first editions of all the movie novelizations. The cover is eye-catching (the lower quarter of Kirk's colour portrait) and matches the other six books in the "Signature Edition" reprint series. Oh, there is one new component, too: a three-page essay on "Harve Bennett: The Man Behind the Movies" by Terry J Erdmann.

WARNING: COMPILATION, NOT A NEW STAR TREK NOVEL.......2005-01-17

This is NOT a new Star Trek novel: it is merely a compilation of three previously released ST novels, ST II: The Wrath of Khan, ST III: The Search for Spock, and ST IV: The Voyage Home. My one star rating reflects my annoyance at having to return what I thought was a new novel when I purchased it. The rating is not a commentary on any of the novels included in this compilation, which I thought were quite good for novelizations.

Book Description

What if the Dead Sea Scrolls were not a product of an Essene Community at Qumran?

In this bold reassessment of the archaeological evidence of Qumran and other nearby first-century sites on the western shore of the Dead Sea, Professor Hirschfeld argues persuasively that Qumran is not the site of an Essene community hitherto thought to be responsible for the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Reassessing and marshalling the evidence (some of which was overlooked in earlier explanations of the site) with the skill of a detective reconstructing the scene of a crime, Hirschfeld reveals that Qumran was not the communal site of an impoverished and ascetic religious group, but the prosperous estate of an influential member of society. Bringing a new understanding to the textual evidence of the archaeology of the site during the Roman period as well as evidence from neighboring archaeological sites, Hirschfeld dramatically illustrates his arguments with more than 135 maps, archaeological drawings and reconstructions, as well as vivid photographs of the archaeological and geographic sites. A masterpiece of argument with lasting impact on our understanding of the origins of the Dead Sea Scrolls, this work will be discussed in academic circles for years to come and will be appreciated by all who are intrigued by the mysteries surrounding the ancient texts associated with Qumran. The implications of this new perspective for the scholarly understanding of the Dead Sea Scrolls are earth-shifting.

"Qumran is a complex and puzzling archaeological site that is generally associated with the Essenes and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Yizhar Hirschfeld, one of Israel's finest archaeologists, questions many assumptions that would make such an association necessary. By placing Qumran in a regional context Hirschfeld opens up other types of interpretative possibilities, and focuses in particular on the local economy and industries around the Dead Sea. This challenging study impresses by its clarity and methodological soundness. Hirschfeld proves himself adept at providing innovative answers to old questions. He uses his wide knowledge to show interesting parallels, provoking his readers to think about the site as the centre of an estate, as a complex of residential wings and industrial installations that he calls a `manor house', comparable to others in the region. This finely-illustrated and well-argued text will undoubtedly cause much debate and is a welcome addition to Qumran research." —Joan E. Taylor, History Department, University College London.

"Hirschfeld's description of the archeology of Qumran is so different from the influential accounts of de Vaux and Magness that it is sure to be controversial. Even those who are not persuaded by his assertions will appreciate his knowledge of the Judean context and the fine collection of photographs included in this book." —John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament, Yale University

Customer Reviews:

This will challenge traditional views of Qumran.......2005-08-09

In this well-written study Hirschfeld challenges the widely-accepted view that the buildings located at Qumran were occupied by Essenes and that the Dead Sea Scrolls found in the caves nearby were used and ultimately hidden there by members of that sect. After a careful analysis of the architectural remains and the artifacts found in association with them, Hirschfeld concludes that the earliest stage of construction may have been during the Hasmonean period (130-37 BCE), perhaps incorporating Iron Age structures about which little can be known. The buildings are understood to be a small fort and associated road station intended to control the important road leading from Jerusalem to the southeastern regions of the kingdom. In the Herodian period (37 BCE-68 CE) the earlier buildings became the core of a large manor house occupied by inhabitants engaged in extensive agricultural production. The remains at nearby ‛Ein Feshkha are seen as a part of this elaborate estate. The estate was destroyed in the First Jewish Revolt (66-70 CE) and a small Roman fortress, perhaps later used by rebels in the Bar Kochba rebellion, was erected at this site. After 135 CE Qumran seems to have been abandoned. In keeping with this assessment of the evidence, Hirschfeld suggests that the Dead Sea Scrolls were not Essene documents but rather part of an extensive library, maintained by the Sadducean community in Jerusalem and preserved by hiding the scrolls, on the eve of the First Jewish Revolt, in caves located near the manor house at Qumran. This book is well-written, well-documented and superbly illustrated with more than 135 maps, drawings and photographs. Anyone seriously interested in the Dead Sea Scrolls or in Jewish/Roman history in the Hellenistic and Roman periods should read this book.

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