World Literature Books - Page 17

An Inconvenient Book: Real Solutions to the World's Biggest Problems

Glenn Beck

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 445 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

FUNNY. OUTRAGEOUS. TRUE.

Have you ever wondered why some of the biggest problems we face, from illegal immigration to global warming to poverty never seem to get fixed? The reason is simple: the solutions just aren't very convenient. Fortunately, radio and television host Glenn Beck doesn't care much about convenience, he cares about common sense.

Take the issue of poverty, for example. Over the last forty years, America's ten poorest cities all had one simple thing in common, but self-serving politicians will never tell you what that is (or explain how easy it would be to change): Glenn Beck will. Global warming is another issue that's ripe with lies and distortion. How many times have you heard that carbon dioxide is responsible for huge natural disasters that have killed millions of people? The truth is, it's actually the other way around: as CO2 has increased, deaths from extreme weather have decreased. Bet you'll never see that in an Al Gore slideshow. An Inconvenient Book contains hundreds of these same "why have I never heard that before?" type of facts that will leave you wondering how political correctness, special interests, and outright stupidity have gotten us so far away from the common sense solutions this country was built on.

As the host of a nationally syndicated radio program and a prime-time television show on CNN, Headline News, Glenn Beck combines a refreshing level of honesty with a biting sense of humor and a lot of research to find solutions that will open your eyes while entertaining you along the way.

Love in the Time of Cholera (Vintage International)

Gabriel Garcia Marquez

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 463 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Beautifully Written, Plot-less Yawn 2 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

It took me two weeks to read this book. I can't remember the last time it took me two weeks to a read a book, probably because it has never happened. I usually read a book in a day or two, three at most. This novel has no plot. Nothing happens. While I appreciate Marquez's eloquent prose, revealing ideas and timeless characters, nothing ever happens. I kept waiting, and reading, and waiting....all the way to the end.

I hope I do not come across as a bitter cynic because I know the underlying plot is supposed to be about love, and I do believe in love. I think love can conquer all and is worth waiting for, but I did not believe that either of those characters were truly in love. Their "love" seemed juvenile and not real, even at the end.

I do not wish to discourage anyone from reading this book and would like to say that I do not regret reading it and I am glad that I did. Marquez is an exceptional writer and reading his words were a joy, except all the elements that typically make a novel were absent. I encourage everyone to read it and form their own opinion, because that is the only one that matters.

Editorial Review:

In their youth, Florentino Ariza and Fermina Daza fall passionately in love. When Fermina eventually chooses to marry a wealthy, well-born doctor, Florentino is devastated, but he is a romantic. As he rises in his business career he whiles away the years in 622 affairs--yet he reserves his heart for Fermina. Her husband dies at last, and Florentino purposefully attends the funeral. Fifty years, nine months, and four days after he first declared his love for Fermina, he will do so again.

The Marvel Encyclopedia

Daniel Wallace, Tom Brevoort, Andrew J. Darling, Tom DeFalco, Peter Sanderson, Michael Teitelbaum

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 80 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Very poor, cheesy and generic new age animation 2 out of 5 stars.
0 of 3 people found this review helpful.

While this book is somewhat entertaining to flip through, the new style of generic artwork and animation ruins the experience. Gone are the old type illustrations and artwork of these characters from the original artists of the 60's, 70's, 80's and even 90's. They have all been replaced by crappy updated "ultimate" style animations and CHEESY artwork that really is sub-standard in appearance. Most of these characters drawings are very simplistic in their quality and presentation. It is very difficult for old Marvel fans like me to tolerate these low quality renditions. Just not acceptable. Skip it unless you must have it.

Editorial Review:

Marvel Comics' character roster boasts some of the best known and most popular characters ever conceived-heroes that are international household names, both as comic book stars and movie stars, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk and Wolverine. This unique, one-volume encyclopedia contains more than 1000 of Marvel's greatest, with full details of their powers and their thrill-packed careers. The encyclopedia's range of spectacular art features eye-popping work by Marvel's finest artists, while the authoritative text is supplied by a team of top Marvel comic book writers. In addition, double-page features, illustrated with classic covers, trace the fascinating story of Marvel Comics through the decades. The Marvel Comics Encyclopedia is an essential book both for new fans and for those who grew up loving the excitement, heroism and humor of the Marvel Universe. Includes a foreword by Stan Lee.

Night World No. 1: Secret Vampire; Daughters of Darkness; Spellbinder

L.J. Smith

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Just not good 1 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I only read the 1st book in "Secret Vampire" It was awful. I wouldn't recommend this to any young people I know. No character development, very rushed. Poppy, our protagonist, is at best annoying -'I'm a sexie pixie'....?) - at worst a silly simpering 16 year old whos notions and ideas are closer to that of a pre-teen. Overly simplistic with basically no plot line. I'm sorry, but this is just drivel. Don't waste your money.

Editorial Review:

Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters -- they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

In Secret Vampire, Poppy thought the summer would last forever. Then she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Now Poppy's only hope for survival is James, her friend and secret love. A vampire in the Night World, James can make Poppy immortal. But first they both must risk everything to go against the laws of Night World.

Fugitives from Night World, three vampire sisters leave their isolated home to live among humans in Daughters of Darkness. Their brother, Ash, is sent to bring the girls back, but he falls in love with their beautiful friend.

Two witch cousins fight over their high school crush. It's a battle between black magic and white magic in Spellbinder.

The Sea of Monsters (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 2)

Rick Riordan

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 112 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Review for the series more than for the book 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

First off, this is an excellant series. It easily teaches mythology, history, and geography through a well-written and interesting adventure. That said, I found this book to be lacking a bit compared to the 1st (The Lightning Thief) and the 3rd (The Titan's Curse) books in the series. Then again, I would give this book 4 stars on it's own because it is still a very good book, and a must for anyone reading the series. Great books for children and anyone interested in mythology.

Editorial Review:

Percy Jackson’s seventh-grade year has been surprisingly quiet. Not a single monster has set foot on his New York prep-school campus. But when an innocent game of dodgeball among Percy and his classmates turns into a death match against an ugly gang of cannibal giants, things get . . . well, ugly. And the unexpected arrival of Percy’s friend Annabeth brings more bad news: the magical borders that protect Camp Half-Blood have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and unless a cure is found, the only safe haven for demigods will be destroyed.

In this fresh, funny, and hugely anticipated follow up to The Lightning Thief, Percy and his friends must journey into the Sea of Monsters to save their beloved camp. But first, Percy will discover a stunning new secret about his family -- one that makes him question whether being claimed as Poseidon’s son is an honor or simply a cruel joke.

The Screwtape Letters: With, Screwtape Proposes a Toast

C. S. Lewis

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 373 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A thought-provoking peek into the mind of a senior demon 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book consists of a series of thirty-one letters written by a senior demon, Screwtape, to his young demon nephew, Wormwood. Wormword has been charged with securing the damnation of a man's soul, but he does not yet know enough about humans to carry out his task successfully.

In his letters, Screwtape gives his nephew advice on the specific problems involved in this one particular case assigned to him, and while doing so he educates Wormwood more generally on a variety of human subjects.

In these letters, you will read about human nature, behavior and psychology, true and false religion, society, history, earthly war and politics, and even the demons' own war against Heaven itself - and always from Screwtape's very practical point of view.

And even though this book was written over sixty years ago, you will recognize our world (and maybe something of yourself) in Screwtape's letters. This book is both serious and entertaining, a cautionary must-read for Christians.

Editorial Review:

Now available unabridged on cassette and CD--C.S. Lewis’ classic Screwtape Letters--the engaging correspondence between two devils. Read by Joss Ackland.

Cat's Cradle

Kurt Vonnegut

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 375 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The master of Cat's Cradle 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

The cat's cradle is an extraordinary tale about the extent of human limitations when incompatibilities exist between the goals of science and humanity. Vonnegut created another masterpiece that describes the dangers of human science when mixed with their desires and lewdness.

John, the narrator, is writing a book about the day the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, and in the process of his research discovers the life of Felix Hoenikker, the Nobel prize-winning physicist and one of the creators of the atomic bomb.

Similar to walking through a hilarious human maze, we are taken to San Lorenzo; a town were Hoenikker's two sons and daughter live and ignorantly use their father's last invention causing another world wide human disaster.
Vonnegut brilliantly shows human limitations and foolishness with his description of an imaginary religion called Bokononism, which originated and blossomed in San Lorenzo.

Vonnegut, who survived the cruelty of war and faced life's emptiness, is one of the few writers who can laugh at the human inability to reconcile the inherent conflict of science's power and capabilities with the needs and limitations of humanity.

Editorial Review:

Told with deadpan humour and bitter irony, Kurt Vonnegut's cult tale of global destruction preys on our deepest fears of witnessing Armageddon and, worse still, surviving it ...Dr Felix Hoenikker, one of the founding 'fathers' of the atomic bomb, has left a deadly legacy to the world. For he is the inventor of 'ice-nine', a lethal chemical capable of freezing the entire planet. The search for its whereabouts leads to Hoenikker's three ecentric children, to a crazed dictator in the Caribbean, to madness. Felix Hoenikker's Death Wish comes true when his last, fatal gift to mankind brings about the end, that for all of us, is nigh.

The Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 481 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Bitter sweet 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I'm Jake. Jacob Barnes. American journalist. Living in Paris. I send off my cables. I work hard for a couple of hours. I put the stories in big manila envelopes. And send them out. That brings in the money.

French? I speak French.
Spanish? I speak Spanish.

Don't think I've got it made. I don't. The War did bad things to me. The War wounded me. Physically. Okay, I survived. Some say the wound was worse than dying.

I have a girlfriend. Brett. Brett Ashley. Lady Ashley. She got "Lady" from a past marriage. Everyone loves Brett. She is a remarkably attractive woman. And she loves that everyone -- all the men -- love her.

I love her, and she loves me. Deeply. That's the end of it. We know that I can't consummate anything. Physically I cannot get it on. That's the War wound. We can kiss, and she shivers. But that's it.

"We kissed standing at the door. She pushed me away. We kissed again. 'Oh, don't!' Brett said."

The wound hurts me and the wound hurts her. So, she sleeps around. With all the guys in our group that she is attracted to. And others not in our group. Like the daring young, very young bullfighter later on. And with others she is not attracted to. Like the ex-champion boxer from Princeton, who is a Jew, sometime author, and magazine publisher. The Jew keeps hanging on. She would like to be rid of him. But he keeps hanging on.

Brett does not have independent income. The boys, the men, who love her take care of her. Drinks. Food. Hotel rooms. Sometimes they go on short trips.

All of us do a lot of drinking. A lot of drinking. We drink in the morning. We drink at lunch. We drink in the afternoon. We drink at dinner. We drink in the evening. We drink during the night. All night. We drink. Good stuff.

We all love hanging out. Going out. To the bars. Inside the bars. Outside the bars. At tables. And drinking. We get drunk. Hung over. Feel bad.

And arguing. Fighting even. Sure, and sometimes we hike. We walk through Paris. The Tuileries. By the Seine. Or out in the towns. In the woods. We play some tennis.

In Paris you can see anyone you want. South Americans. Americans. The English.

A bunch of us decide to hire a car and driver to go to Spain for some fishing in the mountains and for the fiesta at Pamplona. Others go by train.

My friend Bill and I ride a crowded bus to the mountains. We sit with many on top of the bus. The riders pass around leather wine-bottles. Lifted high, the wine streams down to your mouth. Good fun. Laughing. Good camaraderie.

We reach the river. We have worms and fishing flies and catch a lot of trout. We hide wine bottles in the cold river. The bottles get very cold.

Back to Pamplona. The others arrive in time for the fiesta. The fiesta explodes. The street is solid with dancers. The fiesta goes on for seven days and nights.

I go to sleep in my room. I wake to a rocket exploding, announcing the release of the bulls from the edge of town. From my balcony the street is empty. Suddenly the street is filled with people running. And the bulls running on the way to the ring. The bulls toss several runners.

In the ring the bullfights begin. The purest and most exciting fighter is Pedro Romero. Everyone sees the bulls goring the picadors' horses and goring the steers brought into the ring. Romero is nineteen. Brett is in her thirties. She has eyes only for him.

In a restaurant in the evening, our group strikes up a conversation with Romero's table. Introductions all around.

Brett confesses she is a goner for Romero.

Later, more about Brett and Romero. And about Brett and myself. About Paris. And Madrid. But . . . not right now.

Editorial Review:

The quintessential novel of the Lost Generation, The Sun Also Rises is one of Ernest Hemingway's masterpieces and a classic example of his spare but powerful writing style. A poignant look at the disillusionment and angst of the post-World War I generation, the novel introduces two of Hemingway's most unforgettable characters: Jake Barnes and Lady Brett Ashley. The story follows the flamboyant Brett and the hapless Jake as they journey from the wild nightlife of 1920s Paris to the brutal bullfighting rings of Spain with a motley group of expatriates. It is an age of moral bankruptcy, spiritual dissolution, unrealized love, and vanishing illusions. First published in 1926, The Sun Also Rises helped to establish Hemingway as one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century

Katherine

Anya Seton

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Total reviews: 262 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

The Enquirer of the Middle Ages 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 4 people found this review helpful.

This is a fantastic story of the birth of the Tudor family. It is also a story that truly tells how love conquers all.

I was unable to put this book down! It is a mix of a heroine that you love, pity and are sickened with due to her own wants and desires. It is a wonderful story about how we can all lie to ourselves when what we want is morally wrong and what can happen as a result.

Editorial Review:

This classic romance novel tells the true story of the love affair that changed history-that of Katherine Swynford and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the ancestors of most of the British royal family. Set in the vibrant 14th century of Chaucer and the Black Death, the story features knights fighting in battle, serfs struggling in poverty, and the magnificent Plantagenets-Edward III, the Black Prince, and Richard II-who ruled despotically over a court rotten with intrigue. Within this era of danger and romance, John of Gaunt, the king's son, falls passionately in love with the already married Katherine. Their well-documented affair and love persist through decades of war, adultery, murder, loneliness, and redemption. This epic novel of conflict, cruelty, and untamable love has become a classic since its first publication in 1954.

Separation of Power

Vince Flynn

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Total reviews: 112 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

CIA superagent Mitch Rapp is back in action in this high-velocity adventure from the master of the political thriller, Vince Flynn.

SEPARATION OF POWER

CIA director Thomas Stansfield is dead -- a fact many individuals in and around the nation's capital are pleased to hear. But their happiness proves to be short-lived once they learn that Stansfield's successor is the late director's close friend and protégé, Dr. Irene Kennedy. Her plan of action is to pursue the very goals Stansfield established -- something Stansfield's fiercest enemies don't want to hear. And something they refuse to accept.

Meanwhile, Israel has discovered that Saddam Hussein is close to entering the nuclear arms race -- and they've vowed to stop the Iraqi madman before he can get his hands on the ultimate weapon. With the Middle East teetering on the precipice of chaos and devastation, the president of the United States is forced to act. The commander in chief's secret weapon? None other than the CIA's top counterterrorism operative, Mitch Rapp. But the window for action on this crucial mission is incredibly tight. Israel has given the United States only two weeks to take the nukes out. After that, they'll do whatever it takes to destroy the weapons themselves. With the haunting specter of World War III looming, Rapp races against time and impossible odds -- navigating the deadly alleys of Baghdad, tearing through the corruption-riddled streets of Washington, D.C., and taking drastic measures against anyone who gets in his way.

With action that sizzles and true-to-life insider detail, Separation Of Power showcases New York Times bestselling author Vince Flynn at his shell-shocking best.