Review:For those who learn little of European history (i.e. Anglos) this book is an insight into that history from a great writer, who was personally affected by the events of the twentieth century.

Easy to read, personal. Highly recommended. Read more

Review:Well written and informative. A must read for anyone who is interested in how the evil slavery trade was finally brought to light as the evil that is was. Wilberforce was a genius, a Christian, a man who used his position in government for good. Highly recommend! Read more

Review:Many of us thoroughly enjoy Donna Leon's mysteries set in Venice and featuring Commissario Guida Brunetti. I've always thought Brunetti was an interesting detective because he's convincing as an Italian man (Leon is an American woman, a New Jersey girl), as a happily-married family man, and as a cop in a milieu very different from Harry Bosch's or Matthew Scudder's. Leon has lived in Venice for thirty years and My Venice and Other Essays is just what the title says it is.

Most of these no... Read more

Review:Carl Morck is one of the most engaging detectives I have encountered recently. He's rude, funny, smart, fierce, incorrigible, irreverent and probably has opposition disorder when it comes to bosses and authority. He also has a huge crush on the staff psychologist which is a hoot to read about.

Carl has two upbeat and energetic sidekicks, both somewhat annoying, who act as a foil to his morose curmudgeonly nature. In this novel his team is delivered information about a former prep schoo... Read more

Review:The story of Alicia Appleman Jurman as told in this book is one of the best written, fastest paced, most interesting survivor accounts from the Holocaust. It reads like a well written novel but is entirely a true story. It is also much more interesting than other accounts, such as Anne Frank's Diary, due to the broader scope of Alicia's life, she was not confined to a hiding place for most of the war but instead survived by staying on the move. Read more

Review:This book chronicles one person's tragic memories of life during Hitler's reign of terror. Nonna tells of the love of her family, and describes the horrors they endured unto death. Courage beyond the ordinary, and heroic survival despite the demonic evil released upon defenseless men, women and children are presented with the underlying hope of "never again." Read more

Review:I have read most books about the concentration and extermination camps built by the Nazi's. I have also read a lot about Stalin's Gulags. This book was different in so many ways from the others. The research Ms. Helm did astounded me from the very first paragraph. I cannot begin to imagine the amount of work she put into writing this amazing book. It was very difficult to read due to the pain of these women, and I can barely think about what it must have been like to interview survivors and... Read more

Review:I think that the author, Gavin Menzies makes an excellent case that renaissance Italy was at least inspired by Chinese civilization and invention.

The author is very well read and the book contained a wealth of knowledge that one cannot find elsewhere. He is well versed with astronomical arguments, though not active in that field. For instance, how many people tell us that, a century before Copernicus, Regiomontanus (von Konisgsburg), a great thinker and polymath, found that the inner pla... Read more

Review:Disclaimer: I like Jo Nesbo; I don't mind gruesome crime scenes; I am a woman. Now that all that is clear, I am going to warn you not to waste your time or money on this truly awful book. I bought this based on reviews in the Wall Street Journal and I am thoroughly disgusted with them. The writing is poor, the characters are wooden and unbelievable. The plot is predictable. And someone needed an editor on this doorstop! There was a lot of noise in many of the reviews about how this book r... Read more

Review:I consider this book very informative, and believe it or not, enjoyable! However, the writer has a very high intellectual writing style, and if you have problems with reading definitions, you may want to have a dictionary ready! I love the old writing style! Read more