3 comments about After the Fact: Two Countries, Four Decades, One Anthropologist (The Jerusalem-Harvard Lectures).

1. A Professor of Social Science at Princeton for decades, Geertz gave a series of lectures at the University of Jerusalem and these were the result. The book serves as a memoir of his four decades in the field of anthropology and brings together two areas of the world where he has built his career. Noting the similarities and differences of working in Indonesia and Morocco, Geertz draws comparative aspects of these divergent cultures. Known for his 'thick description' which was made Bible in the "interpretation of cultures" (a must first-read for understanding his theories), Geertz uses it some, but doesn't overload the reader here. The uninformed reader can still enjoy the behind-the-scenes-look at one of the foremost anthropologists of the 20th century and not get lost along the way. For the Geertz fan, it is a must read, if nothing for his funny anecdotes.



2. I have been influenced by the beauty of Geertz writing for decades, but After the Fact has left me disturbed and confused. This summer I read an essay by Stephen Reyna claiming Geertz covered-up genocide in Indonesia, I didn't believe Reyna's claims until I read Geertz's account of these events in this book. Now I don't know what to think, and I am beginning to question Geertz's methods and I want to know why Geertz was not outspoken about the genocide he saw.



3. I developed a strong preference for Geertz and his methodology during my undergraduate studies. In this book he does an outstanding job of amending structuralism with realtivism, anecdotally, and manages to keep the tone entertaining and personal.

4 comments about Ancestral Passions: The Leakey Family and the Quest for Humankind's Beginnings.

1. This is an engrossing story of archealogy's first family. The title hints at their adventures, loves, intrigues, battles, all most passionate. I could not put the book down. The landscape of archealogy will forever be, for me, after this book, a color filled map with the land of our ancestors fully pictured in my mind. No longer will archealolgists seem to be dull digging tan people,but exciting real people, made of the passion of us all. A superb read



2. Amidst the splendor and corruption of Africa, this family battle the weather, the government, the prejudices, the lack of funds, and even each other. Their intelligence and love for the country is evident as they search for prehistoric evidence of earliest humans. The more I read about them, the more I admired their contribution to East Africa and to the world.



3. This is a long, engrossing, detailed book about the Leakey family and their impact on paleoanthropology in Africa. It's a real pot-boiler of a book--hard to put down and a totally fascinating study of the family. You get a real sense of their human failings as well as their triumphs. The family comes across as stubborn, intense, egomaniacal and prickly, as well as totally dedicated to their pursuit of man's ancestry in Africa. Although the author has a higher opinion of the Leakeys than some of their rivals (Donald Johanson), she by no means glosses over the more unsavory aspects of their characters. I would highly recommend this book, regardless of your level of familiarity with paleoanthropology.



4. Morell's astounding level of research reveals the Leakeys individually, as a family, and as dogged searchers for the truth about man's origins--and as living, breathing humans. Through letters, diaries, journals, personal interviews, and family archives, they speak to the reader with unprecedented candor about their personal travails, but more importantly, about their early struggles for funding, their fossil discoveries in remote desert locations, their constant surprise by the historical record, and their uncertainty, to this day, about modern man's exact lineage.
   
   Some Leakey peccadilloes, never secret, are fully documented here: Louis's constant womanizing and his "adoption" of young female researchers, such as Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Birute Galdikas; Mary's scotch-drinking, her cigar-smoking, and her intolerance of those on her Stinker List, some of them other researchers; and Richard's boyish brashness and arrogance, along with his health problems and dislike of Donald Johanson. Less appreciated, however, is the fact that before Louis's work and significant discoveries, people still believed that early man was from China or Europe, not Africa. Mary Leakey was the first person ever to excavate a Paleolithic site, and her meticulous care about documenting the tools and animals found in the same stratae as her hominid fossils, told here in detail, revolutionized the way fossils were recovered and catalogued. Richard found as many hominid fossils in two years (1971 and 1972) as Mary and Louis found in 36 years, and his level of dedication to research since finding his first hominid fossil at age 6, his mentoring of young researchers, and his creation of museums and foundations in Nairobi have perhaps received less attention than they deserve.
   
   The Leakeys believe at least two and perhaps three or four different hominids may have lived in certain areas simultaneously, sharing space for a million or more years, and that the exact line of descent to modern man is still unknown. Tens of thousands of extinct, fossilized species of hippos, elephants, saber-toothed cats, crocodiles, antelopes, and even insects, unearthed by the Leakeys, are overwhelming evidence that if species, including hominids, do not change and adapt, they die. While some may argue about how certain hominids are labeled, no one can argue with their existence in the historical record, and nearly all of them have been unearthed by just one family. These contributions continue beyond the purview of this book into a new generation: Dr. Louise Leakey and her mother Maeve (Richard's wife) found yet another completely new hominid species in March, 2001. Mary Whipple

1 comments about The Best Families: The Town & Country Social Directory, 1846-1996.

1. The book was nothing of what I expected,own fault. I guess I was expecting manymore photographs of the various High Society familys.Instead I received a book of small blurbs, almost telephone book-ish, about the familys. THere are about 20 or so families pictured witha few small collections of pictures. Would work for a reference book I suppose.

2 comments about Por estas calles bravas.

1. it takes you into another time and place and makes you feel as if you were there partaking in every moment described by the author. Being a Puerto Rican growing up in New York's Spanish Harlem was and still is hard, he also describes certain racial issues he confronted as a Puerto Rican of color. Overall the book takes you through a journey through Harlem and other areas in a distinct and creative way.



2. This book was something that stirred alot of things inside of me. I was so awestruck, that I did what I have never done with any other author and that was write a letter. The best way to tell my review is to share part of the letter so here goes. Soul searchind is something most of us do at one time or another. Looking for the meaning of life, why we are here? Etc, etc. Sometimes we indulge in our sorrow so much that we forget to see that life is beautiful. So beautiful like our first love, our only love or the love of our lives. How familiar I find the feelings you describe of trying to be cool and the best of friends with your dad. Remembering your mother and the softness, tranquility and peace of mind you can only find in a mother's arms. The elated feeling you had when Trina was your girlfriend Your sense of being a true gentleman, treating her like your secret treasure. The flood that washed over you when she was lost to another man. Damn!!! That tore open an old wound. The author made me feel his pain, his joy to a lesser degree because nothing can compare to living the actual events. The memoir translated into Spanish in no way lost its power whats more there are certain things that can double the impact spoken in the tongue of Cervantes.

1 comments about Dream Notes.

1. German philosopher and cultural critic Theodor W. Adorno wrote down his dreams throughout his life. Dream Notes is an unvarnished, as-is selection of Adorno's writings concerning his dreams, spanning the final twenty-five years of his life. No attempts are made to "interpret" Adorno's dreams, or force a connection between them and the events of his life, or to psychoanalyze them. They are simply offered for the reader to evaluate as he or she sees fit. An editorial foreword, an afterword by Jan Philipp Reemtsma, and an index round out this one-of-a-kind collection. Especially recommended for students and scholars seeking an extra dimension of insight and understanding into Adorno's works and ideas.

1 comments about Abbie Hoffman: American Rebel.

1. The book's great. A complete account of the life and times of one of the 1960's New Left's major characters.

1 comments about Emile Durkheim: His Life and Work: A Historical and Critical Study.

1. This is the best book ever written concerning Emile Durkheim

No comments about Without Guarantees: In Honour of Stuart Hall.

2 comments about Two Years in the Melting Pot.

1. Are you interested to know how a Chinese person experienced cultural shock in the US ? Then this book is a MUST. No book that I have read about the Chinese (and I have read many indeed) has touched me as profoundly as this precious glimpse into the personal feelings (rarely shared with Westerners) experienced by a gentle Chinese man during his two year stay in the Chicago area during the early 1980s. His English is excellant and his literary style very expressive and easy to read. His honesty and humor can not fail to touch the soul of the reader. I am deeply grateful to Mr. Liu for sharing his thoughts and experiences with us.



2. As of you always heard people saying America is the melting pot, or a salad bowl, well this book tells the story of a Chinese man learn what it is to be and how hard it is to adapted to another culture. As the heart broken story start with him leaving his home of his family and children are waiting for him when he get back from his educational journey. Nearing half of his life away, he have leave home many times some times even long and much more dangerous then this journey to America but everyone still strong, but the story, the author have his way of describing the sadness of leaving his home and his family.
   Liu Zongren shown a lot of honesty in himself with other, and also the humor of how the author describe the ways that he adapted to the American ways with his many questions of the cultures he barely know and soon be leaving again. As the author dealing with cultures shock you will be drawn into the book and soon you will feel that you are dealing with the culture shock with the author also, the writing of Liu is very strong and it will attract you to the book as you read along.

No comments about Classical Sociological Theory: Rediscovering the Promise of Sociology.