5 comments about Neurosis and Human Growth: The Struggle Toward Self-Realization.

1. This is therapy in a book. Unbelievable work of psychoanalysis.
   A person, given the chance, will develop his own feelings, thoughts, wishes, interests and potentialities. He will draw on his own resources, skills, will-power, discipline and he will develop his special abilities and unique gifts. In short, he will grow, substantially undiverted, towards what Karen Horney calls self-realization.

   But through a variety of adverse influences, a child, or even an adult, may not be permitted to grow according to his individual needs and possibilities. A persistently hostile environment of people around him, especially during childhood, that are dominating, overindulgent, erratic, partial to others, hypocritical, indifferent, etc., might kill off the ability to grow and become one's real self. As a result the person, does not develop a feeling of belonging of "we", but instead develops a profound insecurity, lack of self-confidence and vague apprehensiveness, which Karen Horney refers to as basic anxieties.

   The person tries to resolve the anxiety by either moving away from people (aloofness, isolation), or against people (rebelling) or moving towards people (submission and compliance). In a healthy individual, these coping trends are present and used in varying degrees depending on the situation. But in a neurotic person, these trends become very rigid and contradictory. Eventually, one of the trends will become a dominant trend, and it will become a predominant trait in the person's personality. It is destructive in that it chokes off much of the other parts of a persons personality and impedes growth.

   This dominant coping trend is an artificial attempt at a solution, and it will fail. But to a person suffering from a neurosis, the trend will appear to work and even become intensified. With large parts of the person's personality undeveloped and even unavailable, the person in grips of a neurosis will then gradually become alienated from his real self. The alienation from the real self will subsequently be followed and replaced by the image of the idealized-self. The person will not see themselves as they are, but instead will see the idealized-image of themselves-the way they wished they were. The energies driving toward self-realization are then shifted to the aim of actualizing the idealized self. This shift means no more and no less than a change in the course of the individual's whole life and development.

   A healthy person will see himself as he is and strive to grow and improve. A neurotic person, however, will see himself as an idealized image. Alienated from his real self, he will no longer have authentic feelings, emotions and ambitions. Instead he will feel what he thinks he should feel according to his idealized self, he will react to others the way he thinks they expect him to react from the perspective of his idealized self.

   Ultimately, the neurotic person will fail to live up to his idealized-self. The discrepancy between what he really is and how he sees himself in the idealized image will emerge and it will be a constant source of conflict. Because his idealized image of himself is one of perfection, there is no way for him to measure up. What will then follow is unconscious self-hate and self-contempt.

   The person will unconsciously be at war with his real self. Compulsive eating, and many other compulsive disorders, anxieties, despair, inertia and even suicide are often manifestations of unconscious self-hate. The person doesn't realize what is happening, but he is in the grips of a deepening neurosis. He is unconsciously at war with himself.

   Karen Horney describes in detail the behavior and personality traits that develop in a neurosis. She explains how it develops and why it is so destructive to the real self. Understanding of one's neurosis is a key development for anyone in the grips of a neurosis, but it is not a cure. She makes it clear, the cure is a process that has to be worked upon with real effort, but knowledge and understanding are the starting point.

   This book is breath taking. It is one of the most important books I have ever read.




2. It isn't often when I read a book, and over time that book's contents become a vital, enduring part of my life philosophy. Well, this happens to be the case with Karen Horney's "Neurosis and Human Growth." I think this is because her theory of neurosis is easily discernable in our modern, everyday society, and verifiable in one's own life. It's easy to see how the tension between reality and unattainable fantasy creates anxiety & depression, self-contempt and self-alienation. It's a truly tragic phenomenon, a terrible waste of human potential, and therefore this book is a tremendous gift in that it clarifies the dynamics of neurosis, shines abundant light on the matter.
   
   Perhaps most pertinently, this book is a wake-up call to parents-- to do all they can to spare their children the traumas that may cause them to eventually cling to idealized images for psychological safety. If a safe environment is provided in the first place, neuroses will most likely be circumvented. But that's a tall order for parents-- who are themselves inundated with idealized images from the media-- sleek, toned supermodel bodies, shiny, rugged Hummers-- things parents need, unless they don't want to measure up. Such media images can eventually cause financial tensions within a marriage, perhaps eventually causing divorce-- which is of course a trauma for children. Such an insidious, vicious cycle!
   
   This book has certainly made it clear and plain what a problem neurosis is, but if there's one thing I might say is wanting in this book, it is a clear solution or path of therapy out of neurosis. One reviewer mentioned Carl Roger's "On Becoming A Person", and I agree: He teaches the importance of 'congruence', of sticking with one's real emotions, instead of trying to feel what one 'should' feel. I would also recommend Kabat Zinn's "Full Catastrophe Living", or virtually any book that emphasizes acceptance of one's present-moment experience. In any case, I highly recommend Horney's book, I give it five stars, and for those who are considering buying this book, you may feel that you've gotten your money's worth after finishing the first chapter, "The Search For Glory".



3. I respect the opinion of the two-star reviewer, but I can only guess that this person is either too young, or simply not crazy enough, to appreciate how Dr. Horney "nailed" the essential problem of one's vital energies being disastrously diverted to the service of the idealized self. A welcome oasis this is for those thoughtful souls who are sick and tired of suffering and want to get on with the business of living. All positive-thinking self-help books -- or programs -- will fail the true neurotic unless this topographical map of the counter-productive Unconscious is studied, understood and committed to memory. Just like knowing how to get around town, when you're in a strange city, if you know what I mean. To characterize this work as a masterpiece is no exaggeration.



4. Karen Horney gives as understandable and elegant an explanation of the basis of human frustration and depression, and of its insidious foundation, as I've had the pleasure of reading. Highly recommended for anyone with an intelligent interest in the "human condition" and its roots. Read it first in the early 1970s and it continues to be the basis on which I peruse and investigate the poetry of our species.



5. This book help me understand why my husband does things he does, The author does a good job of explaining in depth about the problems associated with mental illness and how you become that way and how you can how yourself

1 comments about Chintz: Indian Textiles for the West.

1. Could have been a glorious book but let down by the colour reproductions.I have seen many of these fabrics and quilts and the book does not do them justice.

5 comments about Ten Second Staircase (Bryant & May Mysteries).

1. Christopher Fowler's "Ten Second Staircase" is a seriocomic locked room mystery about a series of murders that may prove to be the undoing of the North London Peculiar Crimes Unit. The PCU tackles high profile cases that are politically sensitive and liable to cause public distress or panic. Two elderly gentlemen, Arthur Bryant and John May, have been in the unit for years and their supervisor, Raymond Land, sends a memo to the Senior Home Liaison Officer complaining about these two "geriatric detectives." Bryant and May have been a constant thorn in Land's side because of their unorthodox and sometimes bizarre behavior and methodology.
   
   The latest case to bedevil the PCU is the death of Saralla White, a female artist who was drowned in her own water-filled artwork. An eyewitness makes the unbelievable claim that he saw a highwayman in a tricorn hat, cape, and thigh boots atop a stallion at the crime scene. Bryant and May follow a host of leads and come up empty. Soon, the very same highwayman is sighted at the scene of other murders, and he seems to be taunting the investigators. The pressure is on; if the PCU fails to capture the killer, it is likely that the unit will be shut down.
   
   Christopher Fowler's writing is reminiscent of Jasper Fforde's in that both authors combine outlandish and serious elements in their stories. Like Fforde, Fowler is highly literate and his descriptive writing and dialogue are immensely entertaining. In addition, Fowler intelligently explores such themes as how criminals have changed over the years, and how new police methods, such as DNA testing and computer technology, can never completely replace the experience and brainpower of a highly intelligent and intuitive sleuth. The author also touches on the politics of policing and the shallowness of our celebrity obsessed culture.
   
   Fowler's characters are all beautifully depicted. Bryant, who is three years older than May, is a Luddite who destroys mobile phones with alarming speed. He drives a broken down rust bucket, dresses in outlandish clothing, and is cheerfully insubordinate to his superiors. He consults "disgraced experts, discredited psychics, and registered felons," in his efforts to solve his cases. May is a bit more conventional and technologically savvy than Bryant, but he is also fiercely protective of his old-fashioned partner. Much to his boss's displeasure, May brings in his granddaughter, April, an agoraphobic with a troubled past, to join the unit.
   
   The mystery is completely implausible, but it also compelling and difficult to solve. My main reservation is that the narrative rambles on for over three hundred and fifty pages, when it could easily have been trimmed with no loss of coherence. "Ten Second Staircase" is filled with so many characters, themes, and plot lines, that it eventually feels cluttered. However, there is enough of value to garner it a recommendation for those patient readers who enjoy strange mysteries and even stranger investigators.



2. Ten-second Staircase is another of the Byant and May mysteries.
   It is possible to read these novels individually, but I would recommend starting at the beginning so that you can fully appreciate all the characters and understand the references that run throughout the series.
   
   If you haven't read a Christopher Fowler novel before I would recommend 'Darkest Day' or 'Full Dark House' as an introduction to Bryant and May, or 'Disturbia' if you just want a brilliant novel.
   
   In The Ten-Second Staircase a controversial artist has been drowned in her own installation (a tank filled with formaldehyde and a number of aborted foetuses!!) The only witness to the crime is a young schoolboy who was sketching in the room at the time of the murder. He says the crime was committed by a Highwayman on a horse...
   Following this a number of minor celebrities are also murdered and each time the witnesses claim to have seen a Highwayman.
   
   Soon London is in the grip of Highwayman- fever, with the gutter press claiming that he is a hero. Will Bryant and May be able to discover the true identity of the Highwayman and stop any further killing?
   
   This is a really typical Fowler novel. Quirky, good fun and creepy in all the right places. He also throws in a few bits of London trivia along the way (For example, I now know why Georgian railings often have pine cones adorning them)
   
   As usual, highly recommended.



3. Gee, this one left me kind of cold. Fowler can write and any individual three or four pages seem brilliant--packed with ideas, observations, lovely metaphors, and striking characters--mixed in with the social satire and the knack for creating a ghostly atmosphere from the miasma of old London. Yet the whole thing is miles and miles (and miles) too long and one comes away with the impression of a writer all too pleased with himself and his virtuosity. Maybe if Bryant and May were believable characters? Even Sir Henry Merrivale gets a little too Luddite and loud about it, and these two are like Merrivale to the 10th power.
   
   People have made comparisons to the novels of John Dickson Carr but in my opinion, Dickson Carr, for all his faults, was a far better plotter and storyteller than Fowler. I don't want to reveal any spoilers here, but Carr would never have written the scene in which we find out that, after hundreds of pages believing it, an eyewitness account of an "impossible crime" proves to be a lie on the witness' part, thereby removing the "locked room" aspect in one fell swoop. Carr was not above providing footnotes to his text, saying something like "And as it turned out, every word that Mary Smith said was the truth, and the reader may take it for gospel." Well, graceless as it may be, I wish Fowler had adopted that device and had had the wits to think of a true "locked room" plot instead of one that depends on one person's word alone--the word of a liar.
   
   All that business about the Leicester Square Vampire was completely extraneous and bogged down the entire rest of the book. I didn't care for the story, even though it claimed the life of May's daughter, and I was utterly non-surprised when April's agoraphobia got cured--that was a given from page one.
   
   My verdict: it was okay, just a bit of a cheat, and his charming elderly sleuths he got out of an old Ealing comedy like THE LAVENDER HILL MOB. Add a star if you like whimsy.



4. When in comes to the classic British locked room mystery, the stuff that we associate with Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, there is no contemporary writer more adept than Christopher Fowler. And "Ten Second Staircase" is one of his best.
   
   While the aging and eccentric detective duo of John May and Arthur Bryant are no Holmes and Watson, they are certainly more unusual, at least as entertaining, and in many ways more interesting given the depth and complexities of Fowler's multiple story lines which transcend and sometimes overpower the core mystery. Cleverly conceived and elegantly written, "Ten Second Staircase" delivers a head-scratching whodunit while plumbing deep issues of morality, vigilantism, and restless youth. If this seems like a lot to swallow for a simple mystery, the talented Fowler pulls it off while maintaining his patented British tongue-in-cheek humor balanced with genuine suspense.
   
   In this installment, an obnoxious artist is found dead, floating in her own piece of outrageous "art". The only eye witness to the apparent murder is a young teenager, visiting the gallery with his private school class. But the lad's description of the killer - a man on horseback dressed in the garb of an early 18th Century highwayman - stretches credibility and leaves the May/Bryant team with scant evidence and little to go on. When other minor - and annoying - celebrities start meeting grisly demises of their own, with reports of the "highwayman" in the vicinity, it appears a serial killer is on the loose. But rather than cowering in fear, Londoners view the killer more like a rock star, a modern day Robin Hood-like figure doing the city a service by clearing out some of the human vermin. Meanwhile, the improbable crew of May and Brant's "Peculiar Crimes Unit" are again under attack, sabotaged by their oily leader, Leslie Faraday, and highly in risk of being shut down at the hands of a heavy-handed thug hired by the home office.
   
   Through a complex series of plots and subplots, Fowler shows no impatience - much like his cranking protagonists - in weaving his way to another satisfyingly bizarre conclusion. Intelligent, savvy, and insightful, Fowler's May/Bryant series in one which deserves more acclaim and a broader following. If you haven't discovered these guys yet,do yourself a literary and entertaining favor and make the acquaintance here.



5. This is a fantastic Bryant and May mystery , top notch entertaining from Christopher Fowler at his very very best

5 comments about Sea Glass: A Novel.

1. I could not recommend this book to anyone.
   It is full of boring, disjointed characters, who hardly know each other, and hard for the reader to get to know.
   It is torture reading this, but a friend recomended it as a great read so I am trying to get through it.. I have read over 200 pages, and still there is no "hook"...
   
   Steeny



2. Anita Shreve writes beautifully. Her use of the language and vivid imagery is unique and at times, even breathtaking. The pleasure of this alone is worth slogging through the predictable, formulaic plots Shreve employs throughout most of her novels. I am definitely a fan.



3. Sea Glass is the first book by Anita Shreve I've read. I've seen her books everywhere and wondered what the fuss was all about. Sea Glass has all the trappings of a "book club book", including the (to me) patronizing Reader's Guide in the back. The sea glass (or beach glass, as we called it) collected by the main female character is Highly Symbolic. The book is told in the present tense ("She takes the pot from the stove") which, rather than making the events more immediate, give them a dreamlike quality.
   
   The story is very slow to get off the ground. First we are introduced, in alternating chapters, to a bunch of characters in very different life situations on the eve of the Great Depression. I kept wondering how their lives were going to intersect. Finally, around halfway through the book, they began to meet one another until their lives became intertwined. The lifestyle collisions occurring when the idle rich, the struggling middle class, and the lowly factory worker are in the same room are mirrored by the social conflicts of the early 1930s. Between the stock market crash, the Depression, and mill strikes, there's conflict aplenty. The book resolves in a not very conclusive ending that leaves open questions.
   
   I would be curious to talk with someone who found this book life-transforming. The characters were historical curiosities to me. The author has obviously done her homework on the period, but I never felt their passion. If you are an Anita Shreve fan, you will enjoy this book. In the Afterword she says it takes place in a house on the beach she has used in two other stories. If you like American historical fiction, or are interested in the period, especially in New England, perhaps this book will appeal.



4. The IDEA of Honora and Sexton's story gripped me. Two people who don't know each other very well fall for each other, get married very quickly, and then their marriage suffers from the blows life throws at them. The issue I had with their characters was that Honora seemed too perfect--good cook, great housekeeper, cares for her husband--and Sexton seemed too flawed--greasy salesman type, keeps important secrets from his wife, eventually even cheats on her. In my opinion, Ms. Shreve's characters aren't usually so perfectly defined as "good" and "evil"--and that's what I've always liked about her novels.
   
   The novel itself, set on the cusp of the Great Depression and focusing on three completely different classes--Vivian as the upper class, Honora and Sexton as the middle class, and McDermott and Alphonse as the mill-worker lower class--seemed as if it was just trying to cover too much too fast, leaving it disjointed, and leaving me feeling as if the plot as a whole never came together.
   
   The only thing that seemed steady in this novel as compared to Ms. Shreve's other endeavors was her style of writing, which, as always, gripped me. The fact that I am a huge fan of how she writes is, however, the only reason I could give this novel 3 stars.



5. Set in the early depression era on the East Coast, the novel follows Honora and Sexton Beecher from the beginning of their marriage. They moved into a large deserted old house on the beach and threw themselves into making it habitable with mostly sweat equity and little money. Sexton is away every week because of his job as travelling salesman and Honora lives a quiet but very structured life. She walks frequently on the lonely beach and collects colorful bits of sea glass.
   
   When the owner decides to sell the home, Sexton manages to scrape together enough for the down payment and takes a mortgage at the local bank. Unfortunately, it's at the worst possible time as banks are starting to collapse and many are losing their jobs.
   
   The story follows the arc of their relationship from good times to bad and explores the discoveries they make about each other as a result of their travails. Part of the subtext of the story is revealed through homey letters from Honora's mother. Sexton becomes involved with a group of men fomenting a strike at the local textile mills. Their home becomes the headquarters of the organizers, bringing them into the center of a dangerous and controversial movement.
   
   The historical context of the novel was interesting, but what was most compelling was Anita Shreve's ability to create a fully imagined, complex, sympathetic character - Honora Sexton. I could imagine myself living in her time and faced with the same challenges. It's not always possible to "associate" yourself so completely with a fictional character, but Anita Shreve's skill make it possible.

5 comments about The Hours.

1. I was unable to get past page 49 of this incredibly tedious novel. It must be what optimistic publishers call a "literary" novel, if one defines "literary" as "unreadable".
   Nothing really happens after the opening, which is a vignette of Virginia Woolfe's suicide. (I have little idea of who she was other than that she was popular with my mother's generation, but even then, I recall no book of Woolfe's in my mother's extensive collection of books from that long ago period.)
   The writer merely wiffles on and on .. .. and on, describing people's ordinary lives in three different times and spaces. Hell, if that's all there is to writing a book, I could have written a hundred myself by now, instead of the handful I actually have written. Let's see:
   
   Page 37:
   
   Mrs Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself.
   For Lucy had her work cut out for her.
   
   (Isn't this a perfect example of the horrible lack of proper grammar that your Junior High English teacher would have criticised? Note that the second sentence isn't a proper sentence, it is a disaster.)
   
   The doors would have to be taken off their hinges; Rumpelmeyer's men were coming. And then, thought Clarissa Dalloway, what a morning -- fresh as if issued to children on a beach.
   
   I find myself irritated not only by the crummy sentences but also by the odd, non-standard, punctuation. the hyphen above has no spaces in the book, not even "hair spaces" between "morning" and "fresh", as if to make one compound word, 'morning-fresh'. In other words it is presented as a dash except with the length of a hyphen.
   
   This is the kind of "writing" that pretty much anyone could do. E.G:
   Sandra goes into the kitchen. That pan, she thinks, that saucepan sitting over there, on the stove. Its Teflon surface reminds her of Richard's conscience as he sits in the office rejecting manuscripts.
   
   - and so on, and on, and boringly, on.
   This book, an advance reading copy that has somehow come into my hands, is going into the garbage.



2. After seeing the movie nearly two years ago, I read the Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Hours. I was intrigued with the story and eagerly anticipated certain scenes before starting the book. Even with the prior knowledge of the plot, I was not disappointed in the least. Michael Cunningham's sentences flow with ease, gracefully taking the reader through three stories. The set up of the story is simple: a day in the life of three women in three different locations and time periods. No one story or woman is more significant than the others; each is intertwined and dependant to the others.
   
   As an avid fan of Virginia Woolf's work, including Mrs. Dalloway, I have come to love the stream of conscious writing style. Cunningham pays homage to Woolf, her distinct writing style, and, of course, to her seminal work Mrs. Dalloway. Cunningham takes Woolf's style and reinvents it to a modern day version. Unlike the modernist writers that started anew and broke from tradition like Woolf did, Cunningham reuses the famous story of Mrs. Dalloway and Woolf's brilliant writing style in a different and, in some respects, more profound way. I think Cunningham achieved this through the seemingly trivial details and other lesser known characters.
   
   One particular that brought the story together is Lara Brown's son, Richard. Through Richard, Cunningham takes on the contentious Oedipus Complex and unearths the roots of older Richard's psychological instability. Richard's indefatigable desire to be loved by his mom is incredibly poignant and tragic. While I badly want Lara to love Richard back like the way he loves her, I understand Lara's inner dilemma and empathize with her. It's almost magic the way Cunningham makes it easy to sympathize with Lara, a monster of a mother. I know many other writers have accomplished this feat, but it's still amazing to me. Richard is seen as the aftermath, the destruction that is caused by a mother that thinks independently and, at times, selfishly. This is not to say that Cunningham advocates for the antithesis: a mother that avoids her inner voices for independence and freedom. His frequent reference to Woolf's opening line, 'Mrs Dalloway said she would buy the flowers herself', makes that evident; it is a declaration for the rights of women in some sense. Nonetheless, Cunningham presents both sides without taking a stance on either one, leaving it up to the readers to make their own conclusion.
   
   Overall, I'd highly recommend this book even if you've seen the movie. And if you have read The Hours, read Mrs. Dalloway and watch the movie!



3. "Here, then, is the world (house, sky, a first tentative star)..." These words are not the words of Virginia Woolf, although readers could certainly be forgiven for thinking so, they so accurately catch her idiosyncratic cadence and her offhand thrilling shimmer; they are the words of an invented Woolf in The Hours--"The Hours" was Woolf's working title for Mrs. Dalloway--a novel in which the American writer Michael Cunningham imagines several episodes in Woolf's life over the course of a single day in 1923 (the year she was writing Mrs. Dalloway). He then sets these episodes against a single day in the life of a young married woman and her little boy in California in 1949 and, in alternating chapters, against a day in the life of a middle-aged New York editor and her (gay) circle of friends at the end of the twentieth century.
   
   He also invents the afternoon of Woolf's suicide: "She hurries from the house wearing a coat too heavy for the weather. It is 1941. Another war has begun." But even on the way to her own drowning, the writer in Virginia (and the writer was all of her) is distracted by "a scattering of sheep, incandescent, tinged with a faint hint of sulphur..."
   
   How accurate Cunningham's evocation of her subsequent drowning is we can never know, but it feels inspired and terrible, and there is even, at the heart of it, the kind of mad glee of a children's book: "She appears to be flying, a fantastic figure, arms outstretched, hair streaming, the tail of the fur coat billowing behind..."
   
   A mother and her little boy, walking across a nearby bridge, just narrowly miss catching sight of her. They foreshadow another mother and little boy living in Los Angeles in 1949. Laura Brown (the other mother) is longing to stay in bed so she can finish reading Mrs. Dalloway--she reaches for it automatically "as if reading were the singular and obvious first task of the day, the only viable way to negotiate the transit from sleep to obligation"--but she forces herself to get up and have breakfast with her husband (who, when he takes a bath, boyishly floats in the tub, his "sex shrunk to a stub") along with their son Richie who makes her think "of a mouse singing amorous ballads under the window of a giantess."
   
   Laura Brown later escapes to a hotel room for an illicit afternoon with her book, an escape that parallels Virginia's earlier attempt to escape suburban Richmond for the psychic dangers of London. But then there are so many parallels: Richie will grow up to be called Richard (the first name of Mr. Dalloway) and before he comes to accept the fact that he's gay he'll have an affair with a girl named Clarissa Vaughan (but the fact that her first name is Clarissa will lead Richard to call her Mrs. Dalloway) and Vanessa Bell will come to tea with Virginia, and Vanessa's children will find a dead bird in the Woolf garden and circle it with roses so that Virginia, looking down at its "modest circlet of thorns and flowers" will think, "It could be a kind of hat. It could be the missing link between millinery and death." Years later, back in New York City, Clarissa (the other Clarissa), on her way to buy flowers for a party for Richard--he's dying and is about to receive a major literary prize--will spot a famous face peeking out of a movie trailer and wonder if it belongs to Vanessa Redgrave (not only another Vanessa, but also the actress who played Clarissa in the movie version of Mrs. Dalloway).
   
   There are non-Woolfian allusions as well: Clarissa Vaughan leaves a copy of Doris Lessing's The Golden Notebook on her nightstand, and at Laura Brown's hotel the desk clerk gives her the key to Room 19 ("To Room 19" being the title of one of Lessing's most anthologized stories) and the writer in The Golden Notebook is another sort of Woolf (Anna Wulf) and later still, Clarissa Vaughan concludes that Lessing has long been overshadowed by other writers. All of this might sound just too postmodernly coy for words, but in fact Cunningham is playing--just as Woolf did--not only with time and ideas about time, but also with ideas about how much we are not only part of one another but also ghosts of one another. He also quotes the part of Mrs. Dalloway in which Clarissa sees herself as part, "she was positive, of the trees at home; of the house there, ugly, rambling all to bits and pieces as it was; part of people she had never met; being laid out like a mist between people she knew best, who lifted her on their branches as she had seen the trees lift the mist, but it spread ever so far, her life, herself."
   
   Even the typography of The Hours supports these death-in-life and life-beyond-death intensities via the ghostly aura given to the chapter headings, making use of the pale-grey names of the characters whose chapter it isn't to flank the name (in bold type) of the character whose chapter it is. But is this evocative and tender novel derivative? Only in the sense that it couldn't have been written if Mrs. Dalloway hadn't been written first; except for a very brief flat patch in the middle and a ho-hum ending, it's too inspired to ride on Woolf's coat tails. Its buoyant precision also catches Woolf's clarity and comedy, along with her clear-eyed ability to be critical of herself and her work. It's also an extremely intelligent novel that ends up feeling like an extended riff by a gifted jazz musician on the work of a genius of a classical composer: with its complex arrangements of literary reverberations and its memorable descriptions of regret and civilised squalor, with a woman's straw sandals making a "small, crisp sound when she walks" and "decapitated flowers floating in bowls of water", it has its own marvels.
   
   And yet the movie made from this often fascinating book was pretty awful, in spite of the brilliant casting of Nicole Kidman to play Woolf (she was a revelation). Most of the other actors were extraordinary too. So was it the script? The direction? That turned it into a period piece that was also a soap opera? I can't remember it well enough at this point to hazard a guess.



4. This book makes it clear that perfect execution is not required in order to win a Pulitzer Prize. The editor in me cringed at all the parentheticals and head hopping, but the story-teller in me rejoiced at the vivid imagery and intricate, interwoven plot lines. It's an easy one-day read and well worth the investment regardless of familiarity with Virginia Woolf.



5. This is a downer of a book. Though it is beautifully written and the concept of using "Mrs. Dalloway" by Virginia Woolf as the template for the novel is a brilliant idea, the novel is depressing and deeply upsetting to read. Two suicides and a wannabe suicide are not what you want to encounter when you are depressed. What could have been a life-affirming book was doomed from the start. It's a lesson in how to squeeze the joy out of life and living, although the author would argue otherwise.
   The three main characters inhabit three parallel stories in different eras: Clarissa Vaughan who is giving a party for her writer friend, Virginia Woolf who is in the midst of writing "Mrs. Dalloway" while trying to fend off her mental anguish, and Laura Brown who is fighting to retain her sanity while preparing a birthday party for her husband. Cunningham, like Woolf, is obsessed by the passage of time and time's inner and external adumbrations.
   The highlight of Woolf's novel is the party Clarissa Dalloway has been preparing for all day. In "The Hours" it is the aftermath of the aborted party for Richard that Cunningham highlights. Is the lesson of "The Hours" that a poet has to die so we, the living, value our own lives more?
   The only character who is appealing in the book is Julia, Clarissa's lover. Most of the characters are selfish, self-absorbed, desperate people. Some of them fear the hours going by out of their own mental instability. It's almost a casebook in various types of insanity. We read about exasperating, annoying people teetering on the edge of mental instability. Sexual ambiguity is a constant theme in the book. Two events in the novel have great impact and make Virginia Woolf and Mrs. Brown really perk up--when they kiss another woman. And, of course, Clarissa is in a long-time relationship with her lover Julia. Two sexually equivocal women are toppling out of their nests (homes) like birds falling out of their nests. Paradoxically, Cunningham has created real, three-dimensional characters.
   Writing about ravaged people is almost as bad as reading about them. Like Hickey in "The Iceman Cometh" Cunningham has taken the kick out of the booze. Where is redemption in the book? We can wallow in the mental states of the deranged only so long before we slip into an abyss of melancholy ourselves.
   Nine Lives Too Many
   The Daemon in Our Dreams
   The Rice Queen Spy
   Clawed Back from the Dead

5 comments about The Expert's Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins: Secrets Of Success.

1. This is the best "general information" book about US coins I have ever read. As usual with Mr. Bowers`s books, it is well written, higly readable and full of useful information. It is not to replace a handfull of notable numismatics books (Green's encyclopaedia, Ruddy's Photograde, etc.)- it shows you what American numismatics is like - and you are ready to consult and read the classics. Truly a wonderful book, much more than tells the title.



2. This is a must have book for all coin collectors. It discusses the difference between investors and collectors and how one can become the best of both worlds, a COLLECTOR/investor. A wise collector can result in one becoming an investor as an after thought. The book is loaded with coin-related information that is too much to mention here but all valuable. The book has the history of the US instilled as part of the coin information. This is a book hard to put down. I have read many "coin-related" books but seldom find one interesting and informative enought (at least for me, to see my way thru from cover to cover. This book is a rare exception. BUY!



3. Very informative, well written guide in investing in coins. The author possesses unquestionable authority on the subject and has a remarkably well-honed ability to write on an academic topic in an exciting manner. He is sharp-witted and enjoyable. The book is very complete and most importantly - relevant and timely. If you wish to invest and collect coins this is a must have guide.



4. I read "Gold Rush: How to Collect, Invest & Profit With Gold Coins" by Mitch Battino and Arlyn Sieber (see my review of that book) prior to reading this book by Q. David Bowers. I'm glad I did because while the Gold Rush book was a very big disappointment, it made me realize just how truly good Mr. Bowers book is.
   
   I have to be honest, coin books are generally NOT books that you read from beginning to end and find that you can't put down. This book is an exception - I couldn't put it down and I read the entire book from beginning to end.
   
   Although I've been collecting for years, one thing I enjoyed about this book was that some of those obscure numismatic terms that other authors assume you know, Mr. Bowers will stop and take a sentence or two to explain the term. I really appreciated that.
   
   Plus, where the Gold Rush book failed in the "How to Collect, Invest, and Profit," this book did an excellent job of showing how to do just that. It is not a price guide with outdated prices. It is an excellent reference guide with information that will never get old. This book will still be great 10 years from now.
   
   This book has excellent chapters with hands-on advise and great stories to help explain coin market cycles, determining coin prices and value (not a list of coin prices like other books but goes into things like grading, rarity, and demand), history of the coin market and predicting the rare coin market, techniques for buying and selling, and chapters on collecting advise for everything from gold coins, commemorative coins, to paper money and tokens and medals. The only thing I would point out as that this book sticks to the U.S. rare coin market and does not discuss World coins.
   
   I own more than a few coin books and this book has shot up to the top of my list as the "must have" book. Whether you are a new or experienced collector or investor (aren't we all really both), you will enjoy and profit from this book.
   
   In the future, when I'm asked by new collectors what is a good book to get, this will be the book I recommend.



5. --
   "The Expert's Guide to Collecting & Investing in Rare Coins" is definitely worth reading. It is autobiographical and contains the secrets of his 60 years of success as collector, investor, numismatist, grader, dealer, auctioneer, ANA board member, and author.
   
   Cramming six decades of numismatic life experiences into a single book is tough, requiring mental and spiritual strength. Doing this in a comprehensive, coherent and organized manner is unquestionably a laborious, taxing, onerous, and difficult task. Such a demanding project could only be achieved by the formidable Q. David Bower.
   
   Mr. Bower is one of the most prolific numismatic writers of all time, he has written over 30 books and numerous articles and columns.This is by far the most important of his works and possibly the best ever, the quality of information & wide-ranging content makes it the cream of the crop, flower of the flock, pick of the bunch --whatever you want to call it.
   
   It is full of valuable expertise, candid story telling, dealer & auctioneer trade secrets, smart buying and selling techniques and recommendations, and detailed descriptions of every US coin by type, complete with a close focus on: Rarity, Grading, Quality, and Value of coins. It also includes his recommendations and insights on Conferences, Life & Internet Auctions, Library, Protection and Conservation of Coins, Tokens, Medals, and Paper Money.
   
   Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I Recommend this Book.
   
   See my other reviews.
   
   
   
   Official A.N.A. Grading Standards for United States Coins
   High Profits from Rare Coin Investment
   A California Gold Rush history: Featuring the treasure from the S.S. Central America : a source book for the Gold Rush historian and numismatist
   A Guide Book Of Us Morgan Silver Dollars: A Complete History and Price Guide (Official Red Book) (Official Red Book)
   The History of United States Coinage
   The United States Gold Coin Collection
   Silver Dollars and Trade Dollars of the United States: A Complete Encyclopedia
   The Numismatist's Bedside Companion (The Numismatist's Companion Series)
   A Guide Book of Modern United States Proof Coin Sets: A Complete History and Price Guide (Official Red Book)
   The Inside Story Of The State Quarters (Official Whitman Guidebook)
   A Guide Book of U.S. Commemorative Coins (The Official Red Book)
   Coin Dealer Newsletter: A Study in Rare Coin Price Performances
   American Coin Treasures & Hoards
   Recollections of a Mint Director

5 comments about The Official Precious Moments Collector's Guide to Figurines.

1. Just received this book in today's mail, and frankly, other than the pictures of the pieces, it is, in my opinion, not worth the paper it is printed on. There is NO secondary market except internet auctions for Precious Moments any more. This guide lists "Free Puppies," for example, as a value of $2,100 - they sell regularly on auction for $300 - $450, depending on whether or not they have a box. Last week, one with an original brown cardboard box (extremely unusual), went for just under $600 in mint condition - a beautiful piece. The rest of the "Original 21" are priced through the roof - some of them 10 times and higher prices than what reality is. There is a disclaimer in the book claiming that the prices vary from spot to spot, and they got this information from dealers and collectors around the country. I wish they would give credit to these so-called knowledgable people, and it would be nice to know who paid $2100 for "Puppies" and how many years ago that happened.
   
   For the pictures, the guide is fine, but beyond that, DO NOT rely on it for accurate price information - even many of the suggested retail prices in the book are incorrect.
   
   I give this one a thumbs-down. There is no secondary market to amount to anything in collectibles any more, in my opinion, and this book's prices just encourage disillusionment among collectors so they keep buying (or investing?) in pieces, hoping to make good money when they sell. It ain't gonna happen - there is a ton more merchandise out there than anyone ever guessed back 30 years ago at the beginning of this.
   
   Buy what you like, like what you buy, and don't expect to put your kid through college when it's time to sell - you might not get back enough money to even pay the bookstore bill!
   
   For what it's worth - my opinion!



2. This guide is an essential reference for any serious collector or anyone buying or selling Precious Moments figurines. The lack of serious competition will make sure this sells. However, there is little improvement in this 3rd edition over the 2006 second edition. The addition of the newer figurines and an update in pricing, which seems to average about 16% increase, are the main differences. There is also a size difference. The second edition was a handy 8.5" x 5.5" but the third ed is 11' x 8.5", which I believe is too large for a soft cover book. There is no new information about each piece that is not in the earlier version. It would have been nice to include the size of each item. There is an annoying change in the index that consolidates several previous entires into entries by series. For example, instead of separately listing the sugar town skating pond there is one listing for the series 'sugar town' with 18 page numbers.
   
   Overall, I was disappointed in this guide and would recommend that anyone not needing information on the last 2 years figurines stays with the 2nd edition and awaits the 4th.



3. I think this book is a great way to keep track of my Precious Moments and give me a current value of each one. However, because values change from year to year, it could be a lot of work transferring them to a new book each year. I think every couple of years would be fine to keep track of what you have unless you purchase numerous figurines every year.



4. Took a while to receive due to release issues, but once received, Book is great!



5. The 2007 Bomm Precious Moments guide is truly precious since it incorporates retail and secondary values into the same book. The cross-indexing by figurine title and model number is also wonderful. The photos are great quality, too. The guide is a must-have for all collectors!

5 comments about Complete AR-15/M16 Sourcebook: What Every Shooter Needs to Know.

1. The Complete AR-15/M16 Sourcebook: What Every Shooter Needs to Know keeps with its title. Well, somewhat. The book is a very detailed SOURCEBOOK. Do not buy this book to find out what you can do to accessorize your rifle. This book goes into detail about the origins of the AR-15/M16 beginning with the early years and including some photos and text on early models and models that did not make it. The book talks about some of the larger companies that make the AR-15/M16, and has pictures of most of the variants by company. It is a worthwhile read if you desire to learn about the history of the rifle, but is by no means what every reader needs to know.



2. The Complete AR-15/M16 Sourcebook: What Every Shooter Needs to Know keeps with its title. Well, somewhat. The book is a very detailed SOURCEBOOK. Do not buy this book to find out what you can do to accessorize your rifle. This book goes into detail about the origins of the AR-15/M16 beginning with the early years and including some photos and text on early models and models that did not make it. The book talks about some of the larger companies that make the AR-15/M16, and has pictures of most of the variants by company. It is a worthwhile read if you desire to learn about the history of the rifle, but is by no means what every reader needs to know.



3. I enjoyed and found the information useful. If your new to the AR15, this is
   a great way to get up to speed on the subject. The author knows his subject
   and communicates it well. There's a lot more that could have been covered
   but for that, one is well advised to visit www.ar15.com
   You'll find answers there to questions you probably haven't even thought of.



4. I was new to the AR-15 pattern rifle. This book was informative and still a great read. Provides a full history of the design with info about competing rifles. It could use some updating to cover newer accessories.



5. Nice history and overview of the rifles development, but weak on assembly instruction, maintenance, cleaning etc. A nice historical reference book really.

4 comments about Great Collectors of our Time: Art Collecting Since 1945.

1. Will be enjoyed by those interested in the most significant collectors of great art since the end of World War II and the role each played in preserving various treasures of the world's culture.
   
   By its nature this is a quick survey work, with short articles on each collector, along with nice photographs of important pieces within their separate collections. Each individual survey spans the time from when and how the collector started; to the collection's ultimate breadth and setting; to how it was eventually dispersed (usually to a museum or two) at death or other final point--unless the collector is still alive and still in possession.
   
   My favorite collector in the book: The Canadian embassy worker in the Soviet Union, Mr. George Costakis.
   
   For those really interested, you can find more detailed books on a number of these collectors, such as "Memories of a Collector" by Giusppe Panza.
   
   James Stourton is a highly informed and interesting art expert, although certainly given to focusing on the positive about each of his selected collectors and their collections.



2. This is a truly magnificent book, very well written, very complete. The text is scholarly and straight forward, with many answered questions about this club of great collectors. While the events of theirs lifes are vividly told, the text also explains and illuminates each personality through interesting analyses. The author tends to be factual and does not speculate much. If you want to be as much entertained as educated on this great collectors buy this fantastic book. This is no ordinary art book. You will treasure it and be proud to show it to friends. Simply 5 stars!



3. Written by a senior staff member of Sotheby's, this book offers an interesting overlook on the collections and personalities of some of the most important art collectors of our time. The text itself is a collection of short pieces on each collector, describing the building and the highlights of their collection (which can be African art, Islamic art, modern paintings, rare books, old masters, contemporary art, etc). You will not find any real scoop here, since, but for a few exceptions, most of the people and collections described are already well-known , but it is still a book that is pleasant to read and full of good-quality illustrations of seldom reproduced works.



4. Excellent, if expensive, volume. The first survey of collectors and collecting since the early 60's. Well illustrated. Mostly on art collecting.

5 comments about Sea Glass Chronicles.

1. Nice book with some pretty pictures but does not really contain much useful information about sea glass. The book "Pure Sea Glass: Discovering Nature's Vanishing Gems" contains much more information about the possible origins of sea glass for the novice collector.



2. 
   
   Fabulous book for anyone who loves beachcombing and collecting sea treasures - highly recommended!



3. so much information about seaglass...
   and the photos allow you to compare what you have already found or looking for.



4. Last night I opened Sea Glass Chronicles to read a few pages, but found I couldn't put it down! This lovely book is a treasure, just like the "treasures" it describes in each chapter. After a few pages, I realized that Pat Hanbery's photographs were amazing as well! Enjoyable on several levels, it's a "coffee table" book that any age would enjoy simply for the browsing, but the writing and research by C.S. Lambert will take you much, much deeper into this hobby enjoyed by nearly everyone: beachcombing! It is an educational trip through the archaeology of beach glass, pottery, and doll fragments, caught in time before they were all altered by water's relentless task of reducing them into sand particles on a beach. Although there is a great deal of information, it is presented in quickly-readable short stories. This is a real "keeper" as well as a good gift idea.



5. Considering there was only one other book on sea glass that I knew of, I absolutely HAD to have another-being the avid sea glass fan that I am. However, upon receiving the book, I was greatly unimpressed with not only the images, but also the lack of magnificent specimens. The book tells more about ceramic shards than it does actual glass. In my opinion, I find actual glass to be much more attractive than any kind of pottery shard.
   
   Furthermore, the book had hardly any information on where to find glass, how to look for it, or even when to go and look... absolutely nothing about actually collecting. Or what about the weathering process of the shards? Nope. I was very disappointed in the lack of information. For those craving explanations of the possible origins, when and where to find glass, and just general information regarding anything one can think of about sea glass, get the book Pure Sea Glass. It's an amazing reference whenever I come home with new and interesting pieces.