History Books

Book was described well came in better condition than description fash shipping no problemsThe Christian Theology Reader

This is a well-written book. It follows Christian Theology from pre-Greek to modern times. It has all the early prophets and philosophers with excerpts and interesting commentary. It is a good read for any one interested in Theology.

This book is monumental in scope. I have never ran across anything quite like it. It basically covers the entire history of Christian thought. Everything is touched on, all the theological questions you could shake a stick at (and then some). Not all are dealt with intricately, but the author tells us (rightly) that this would be impossible. I want to be clear on this: this is the most balanced, objective, thorough treatment of Christian thought I have ever encountered. But...

The writing is awful. Someone needs to come in with a scythe and mow down all the unnecessary sentences. The work is plagued by repetition and vague sentences. It should be 50 (maybe more) pages less, which would increase readers' attention while reading (I tend to zone off when I start reading a line I can finish myself). No doubt McGrath has a mass of knowledge, but please, someone edit this!

But, if used more of a reference (which, perhaps, it is best used as - I am in the process of reading it straight through), these problems are diminished.

I would definitely recommend this though. The negatives come no where close to the positives.

A clear and indepth look at Theology through its historical setting. McGrath is clear and precise. A must have for the pastoral library.

For introductory level theology courses, this is THE go-to book. The Oxonian does well in describing the development of theology, in giving criticisms, and counter-criticisms, and in bringing the reader to the contemporary debates that have arisen recently. My major complaint is that it is hard to stay with; the reading is laborious (if not boring), and has little value beyond an academic level. But alas! it is a textbook, not a popular read. If you are only going to read one book on Christian theology, this should be in the running.

this is a smaller version of a bigger set.. these are nice sort of like excerpts from a larger text.. if you're only studying a small section of history and don't need to ever compare before or after they are ok..but you're better off getting the vol. I or II or both depending on what your needs are. most profs are going to want you to compare and contrast what came before and after ... these books have great pics..but get the larger versions.. as these are a lot of little books, and depending on your class you may need to carry 6 little books with you instead of 1 text..

I wasn't expecting to recieve a new book but I am glad I did and didn't go to the expensive bookstore across the street

I highly recommend this series of six books. When I was in college, I bought one of the books because it looked so interesting even though I wasn't taking the course. In the past year, I've ordered the other books in the series. The books are very interesting and informative, with many color pictures of the art and architecture discussed. The books also discuss literature, philosophy, and the history of science. The graphic layout of the books is excellent and there are many reading selections of literature and philosophy. Even though the series concentrates on western humanities, there are also excellent sections on Asian, African, Islamic, and Native American arts.

After using this book (as well as books 2 and 3) as texts for a class, I must say that I found all of them to be overrated and a poor choice of reference. The volumes contain nice photographs but are ineffective as textbooks. For example, as material is introduced a sudden segue to a new subject leaves the reader cold. I would not recommend any of this series to those who need detail. These books support a teaching methodology that relies upon mundane memorization of incidental information rather than comprehensive study.

"The wisdom of the Egyptians was a proverb with the Greeks, who felt themselves children beside this ancient race." Plato, Timaeus, 22B, (Quoted from Will Durant, the Story of civilization:I)



Early Civilizations:
As summarized by Will Durant, the development of agriculture helped people to settle in villages and create communities, where the early civilizations gradually developed. Ancient people developed their specialized trades, arts, and crafts, establishing an economy based on trade, which led to the first civilizations. Since there were but few written records, as in the case of ancient Egypt, archaeologists have patiently recreated the history of the first civilizations by putting together artifacts and studying ruins which have been discovered over time. A cardinal characteristic of civilizations was that each had a leader, ruler, priests, and civil administrators. It has been discovered also that early civilizations were tinted by a class system of rich and poor people. First great civilizations were built around rivers, which were crucial to their development, and became a catalyst for the growth of agricultural civilization.

The Humanistic Tradition:
This colorful work is a thoughtful, methodical topical approach to the first classical civilizations that helps not only humanity students but all seekers of common global experience understand humanity's creative traditions as a continuum in space and time, rather than isolated events by human races or nations. This compelling acclaimed survey offers a global perspective, through a gifted editor of many vivid illustrations, integrating an amazing ocean of literary sources. It explores the sociopolitical, economic, and artistic contexts of human culture, providing an analytical perspective of the global multicultural quest which humanity pursued. Gloria Fiero's popular work offers the reader an opportunity to be introduced to 'The Humanistic Tradition' clearly demonstrating the close relationship between the culture of the past and sophisticated life and rich culture of the present. The book explores the arts and thought of the West in relation to ideas of other world cultures, from the ancient mid-East to the modern far East.

Ancient World's Light:
The above being said, I would like to caution the reader that the colorful author, and creative editor adopts a rather questionably biased theory, lately in great doubt (Ps. see: Barnel's Black Athena,) that Greek philosophy is the foundation of the Humanistic tradition, at least/ even in the West. Late Medieval Alexandria, Egypt was no doubt, the "Mind of Western Tradition". Eugene Holley Jr. expressed it beautifully, "Historians of philosophy have been wont to begin their story with the Greeks. It may be that we are all mistaken; for among the most ancient fragments left to us by the Egyptians are writings that belong under the rubric of moral philosophy. The Egyptians were the light of the ancient world. They produced many early medical instruments, designed the world's first step pyramid, and laid the empirical groundwork for scientific reasoning. Akhenaton, the rebel pharaoh, is cited as "the Father of Monotheism." Asante stresses throughout the book that these developments came from a confluence of African cultures, and not from other parts of the world. "The practice of the African philosophers along the Nile was a practice of maintaining Maat [the principle of truth, order, and justice] in every aspect of life," he writes. "If we could only learn from them the value of harmony, balance, and righteousness, we would be on our way toward a revival of the spirit of human victory."

Sonia's fine Review:
"The Humanistic Tradition is quite simply the finest book of its type. Fiero manages to integrate the political, cultural, and social history of the world into one coherent and fascinating whole. It is a masterpiece of scholarship... balanced, interesting, easy to read, and consummately beautiful." -- Sonia Sorrell, Pepperdine University

This modern-day Herodotus is remarkably unpretentious and his writing style is straightforward and accessible (probably one reason why Kapuscinski has been so widely translated and read). The simplicity is deceptive, though. Kapuscinski's own experience of being poor, cold, and hungry in postwar Poland allows him to empathize with people in similar conditions in other parts of the world. He describes how he and his Ethiopian driver were able to communicate almost without words. Yet he also recognizes cultural barriers that prevent a European from understanding what he sees in India and China, and that manifest themselves during a concert by Louis Armstrong in Sudan. Readers already familiar with Herodotus may not be interested in reading the quotations, and the book wanders and drifts a bit between Kapuscinski's reading of Herodotus and his own experiences, but the author's gift for observation and storytelling never fails. Reading this book is an enrichment. We come away from it with greater knowledge of the world.

Kapuscinski reports on the people and political culture of the third and fourth worlds( the third being countries like Iran and the fourth countries like the Congo).

He is very humble to recognize that it is difficult if not impossible to report on a country if a reporter does not speak the foreign country language such as India and Iran.

He laments the total chaos of countries in Africa, the total anarchy !

He also made us realize through Herodotus Histories that a good reporter is more than the reporter who provides snippets of sound and images clips for immediate daily consumptions.

He forces us to realize that men in their psychological makeups are still the same as in Herodotus times.

Through the Histories of Herodotus underatand today's events.

This book steals the reader away from the present in a journey through time. Although his own stories and narratives are fascinating, Kapuscinski's enlivening of Herodotus becomes what holds you. You can't help but feel excitement for the reading journey ahead when you pick the book up after having put it down for a break. Furthermore, his analysis of a certain type of "traveler" (versus tourist) will haunt (or inspire) any of those who find themselves more the former than the latter. In the realm of memoirs, this book is of par excellence.

A poetic view into the experiences of a Polish man raised with Stalinist-era values, and how he deals with these values' total deficiency in helping him understand and cope with the rest of the world. A little-kid-in-big-city book. I can't dissociate myself from my classicist leanings enough to know what to do with his expansive interpretations of Herodotus, though. Try to enjoy them as fiction, as musings? Tough to do!

Sadly, the book seems to me to lose steam halfway through: it becomes a regurgitation of Herodotus's stories about war (the LEAST interesting bits of Hdt., I think), literally paraphrasing Hdt. for chapters on end. I'm not enough of a literary gal to sustain the attention necessary to make these expansive retellings interesting as new literature. If I wanted to read Hdt., I would. And it would be far more interesting, because I'd get the neat ethnographic and mythological excurses mixed in with the boring accounts of battle formations.

The last book by this great journalist. It makes perfect sense that he traveled with Herodotus, and that this ancient Greek writer, the first historian, or the first reporter, was like a companion to him. History is stories. Kapuscinsky was most wise in always remembering this and he learned it from Herodotus. His writing is transparent. He writes so you can know. He never forgets that nothing is definitive. He has some very wise things to say about Africa. I like that he sees Africa as part of the world and not as a special case. Herodotus did too. Herodotus wrote before the psychopathology of racism became a kind of law. Kapuscinsky writes in the aftermath, as the damage trickles down. He narrates in vivid snapshots. In this book he tells you where he came from. He describes Poland after WWII. He describes life under Stalin. He shares his first travel experiences. India! Completely unprepared! Culture shock! In this book you get to understand where his abiding clarity came from. I just loved it.

My perspectives of reviewing this book might be a little different... since I grew up in a Presbyterian church while going to an Episcopalian elementary school in Hong Kong. Then, when I moved to the states, I went to an Episcopal Church. However, that's not all... for the first 22 years of my life, I went to Chinese churches (the Presbyterian church in Hong Kong and a Chinese Episcopal Church in the states for 11 years each) before relocating to a Caucasian Episcopal church last year. While the churches are probably small in the author's view, I was mentally comparing and contrasting the 3 churches in my mind as I was reading.

Personally, I think this book is designed for clergies as well as young adult leaders. Because I got used to be treated as a young adult leader since 2004 through numerous young adult leaders events I went to (at local and national levels), I think this book does apply to me.

Anyway, I would say this book offers pretty good suggestions for non-ethnic churches. The only weaknesses are the following.

1. The solutions might not really work for these churches outreaching first generation young adults of minority descents with limited or no church background. I say that because they might have a language barrier with the rest of the members of these churches, which makes them sharing these problems more difficult than it already is. Can these churches do anything about it? The answer would be yes/no. Yes... if the community around the church is changing over time. No... if the church is only catering to a few individuals. This is not to say the church is dismissing these individuals. Rather, it's the fact that the church has no ability to cater to those needs at this time, especially if the individuals don't do their part in the process of getting helped.

2. For ethnic churches (at least the Chinese ones I know)... while it's easier to cater those who can only speak a language that's not the dominant language in the church (like Mandarin or English for a mostly Cantonese speaking church), the language barrier could be a hard factor to ignore, too. While those churches would have an easier time making adjustments, in terms of adding certain services, the clergy would be forced more than ever to be stuck in the "prison" the author talked about. After all, not only he/she has to prepare one sermon, but several for one Sunday, if the clergy needed to do all the sermons by him/herself.

Having said that... the rest of what he said was pretty much right on the button, whether it's inside an ethnic church or not. In fact, I had the same feeling on quite a bit of things he mentioned throughout the book. So, overall, I would give it an 9 out of 10.

If there's one thing I could suggest Mr. Kimball to do, it would be spend some time visiting some ethnic churches. That would make his work even more well-rounded.

I do not like the title of this book but overall I like the book. I do not believe most non-Christians like Jesus. They like their perceptions of him, but their thoughts of him are not well-rounded. Most people I have talked to see him as a great teacher and example, a person of love and a person who sacrificed greatly for others. These things are true but are only part of the story. The people Kimball references are no different than any other people, they like Jesus as long as he doesn't offend them. But in time Jesus will offend a person, because he breaks down our pride and self-reliance through his actions and words. In John chapter 6 this very dynamic plays out. Jesus is very popular with the people in the beginning of the chapter but by the end many people turn away from following him. So many people in our culture may think they like Jesus, but when they hear a fuller presentation of who he is, they turn away. This may be the case with some of the people Kimball is referencing. Since they don't want to come right out and say they don't like Jesus, they blame the church when confronted with the cost of discipleship. There's no doubt the church can be abusive, narrow, and stuck in tradition. But people outside the church are not just a bunch of well-meaning people who have been confused by the church. They are rebels against God, whether they know it or acknowledge it. All Christians were once in the same place, rebels to the core.

Kimball does a good job of highlighting the way Christians are often misperceived by the culture as well as the way Christians often stand in judgment over the culture. His approach of relationships and love is good and should be an important focus of the efforts of believers to live their faith and share it with others.

We are using this book for our Young Marrieds & Singles class on Sunday mornings and it has been a good fit so far. There are a lot of things in it that are obviously going to make people uncomfortable but I think that they are things that all need to be said and understood if we are going to be able to reach today's generation.

Dan Kimball says he needs to edit The Bible by tearing out pages.

Revelation 22:18-19
For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:

And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

A life changing book with a real honest (and solution based) look at the church. I highly recommend this book. May it give all who read it insight into this mission field we call the United States.

A local newspaper just reported that Microsoft will be opening an Innovation Center here in Boston.

Having just finished Richard Florida's Rise of the Creative Class, I found the news to make a lot of sense.

In this book, Florida lays out snapshots of economic patterns, developments and innovations throughout history and then attempts to tie them all together into an arch thesis. He sees most of the economic power, and indeed the power to to form the way we work today, shifting to a class of innovative-minded, usually educated, creative workers.

Mobile, intense and diverse; the creative class, Florida points out, tends to cluster geographically around innovative centers. But unlike some long held beliefs would have it, (beliefs that still influence much public and urban economic policy,) "creatives" aren't attracted by larger capital projects like suburban industrial parks. Instead they like to live in, or close by, locations that have creative enviroments influenced by thing such as tolerance, talent and technology. (Florida calls these the 3 T's.)

Florida has a palpable despair when he talks about his adopted hometown of Pittsburg, PA. Here is a city, he tells us, that still doesn't get it. Despite many traditional urban policy efforts, that city continues its decline from a once vaunted status as an innovative center, where new methods of steel production made it an economic powerhouse. Meanwhile, a city like Austin, Texas is able to attract the most innovative young Americans and spawn startups and companies that are powering the new economy. Examining differences like these provides both the starting point and the heart of Florida's argument.

The book constructs a very compelling narrative, which feels, in some ways incomplete; it makes sense that the author has gone on to write several other books to elaborate and track his thesis as our times change.

The major problem Florida encounters, (mentioned in other reviews, and which I will second here,) is just how to define his "creative class." Who is in it? While he does segment this class into two distinct categories, sometimes it is tough to follow. At one point he seems to be saying that everybody is in the creative class because everybody is creative.

The book is easy to read, but perhaps not easy enough. What I mean is that Florida writes in very simple, understandable prose, (almost too simple at times; the most interesting passageas are quotes cited from other authors) but the overall structure of the book seems a little off. He will sometimes lead with pages of dry, statistical information, and then follow up with a narrative or colorful example. While this seems like a logical way to construct the argument, (lay out the evidence and then nail it home,) sometimes it can make for a frustrating reading experience.

Overall, Florida's book has somewhat of an identity crisis: Current Affairs/Economic Policy Paper/Self-Help/Journal Article/Memoir/Powerpoint Presentation. He intends the book for anybody, but he knows that he is dealing with statistical and economic models that may be too much for the average reader. He thinks the stories and observations bring home his point better than the data, but is concerned that critics, and even readers, may think he is centering his thesis on anecdotal evidence.

Reading the book is necessary if you are going to develop an opinion on the policy suggestions Florida is inspiring all over the country. For example, Massachusetts just appointed, in their Business Development Office, a Creative Economy Director. A superficial synopsis of the ideas presented in Rise of the Creative Class tends to betray the larger and more complicated development issues with which the author is concerned.

The book will keep you thinking for a long time afterwards.

Very well researched subject that counters many of the traditional myths about poplation growth and opportunities for development. Highly recommended reading for anyone interested in promoting vibrant, growing communities.

Richard Florida is one of the most original thinkers explaining how the world works. Others are better known such as Thomas Friedman. But, not many are more insightful. I got to R. Florida's work in reverse. I read his most recent book first Who's Your City?: How the Creative Economy Is Making Where to Live the Most Important Decision of Your Life. I enjoyed this book so much; I read this earlier book second. It is just as interesting.

If you are in the workforce, you will identify with Florida "Creative Class." He analyzes all the economic, social, cultural, and psychological trends associated with the emergence of this Creative Class. The world he depicts is recognizable because it pictures the working world we live in.

He observes two major emerging trends: first people sort themselves by his defined classes (creative -, working -, service -) and by places. Second, the Creative Class represents the economic winners. Wherever they cluster, places thrive. This work supplements Hernstein and Murray's observations in Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life (A Free Press Paperbacks Book) that people sort themselves by cognitive abilities. R. Florida supplements that this cognitive stratification has a geographical component.

There is nothing fuzzy about his `Creative Class' concept. It is based in precise definition of census job categories (IT, engineer, lawyer, scientist, business, finance, health care, arts, etc...) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Appendix Table 2 shows that the Creative Class grew from 10% of the workforce in 1900 to 30.1% in 1999. During the same period, the Working Class shrank from 35.8% to 26.1%, and Agriculture shrank from 37.5% to 0.4%.

With the rise of the Creative Class, innovation in the U.S. has grown exponentially. In the third chapter `The Creative Economy,' the author shows graphs disclosing the very rapid growth during this period in R&D, patents, and number of scientists. R. Florida shows how the U.S. in 1999 was the world leader in the majority of Creative Class sectors such as R&D, software, Media, film, fashion, and art. This is because of the U.S. competitive advantages such as first class universities, research, and venture capital financing. Also, those factors are supported by a tolerant culture that he measures at the MSA level with his Gay Index and Bohemian Index. He states that the U.S. hi-tech centers (San Francisco-San Jose, Seattle, Boston) were first culturally tolerant cities that fostered out-of-the boxes concepts generated by any weirdoes that came by. He describes Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Bill Gates in such fashion. Their ideas would have not succeeded in traditional locations.

R. Florida views creativity as the main economic engine. It is more important than labor, land, or capital. He refers extensively to the major economists who studied the economic impact of creativity before him, including Joseph Schumpeter who came up with the concept of creative destruction seventy years ago as depicted in The Theory of Economic Development: An Inquiry into Profits, Capital, Credit, Interest, and the Business Cycle (Social Science Classics Series). He explores this concept more extensively in "Who's City Are You?" where he shows that 40 Mega Regions with only 17% of the World's population generate two thirds of the World's GDP and over 80% of its innovations. Nevertheless, R. Florida was already onto this concept back in 2002. Three years before Thomas Friedman wrote The World Is Flat R. Florida already knew it was not. Instead, it is really spiky with most of the economic and creative activities concentrated in just a few regions. His analysis of how the world works is more insightful than Friedman's.

Human capital is the central factor in regional growth. Investment in higher education predicts subsequent growth better than investments in physical infrastructure like roads. Regional economic growth is driven by the choice of the Creative Class. Where they decide to live, places will thrive. It is crucial for a city to develop a people climate that attracts the Creative Class in addition to a business climate. City leaders waste tax credits on stadiums that do not contribute to economic growth instead of applying them to university research, local neighborhoods and communities, music scene, and start up incubation. Two cities that have done an outstanding job in this area are Austin and Dublin in Ireland. One city, among many others, that did not is Pittsburgh.

He uncovers strong positive relationships between his Bohemian and Gay Indices and economic growth, hi-tech sector growth, and population growth. He advances his theory of the three Ts. Economic growth and innovation flourish in places that are tolerant, attract talent and in turn attract technology. However, he divulges that such places are not ethnically diverse. He notices an absence of African American. However, earlier in the book he mentions that Asians and Indians (from India) are more than well represented in such hi-tech enclaves including San Francisco and Silicon Valley. Thus, his findings on diversity depend on what ethnic group he focuses on.

R. Florida captures other interesting cultural features of the Creative Class. The members of this class are into sports such as biking, kayaking, hiking, instead of football and baseball. They are into experiencing nature at their own pace (often intense) instead of waiting around for a ref to make a call. He states that in certain hi-tech circles mountain biking has become a required social skill. R. Florida being also a touring biker indicates he chronically meets the top echelon in human capital (college professors, surgeons, entrepreneurs, lawyers) when biking. Also, he observes a high correlation between a city's fitness rank and its Creativity Index.

When combining this book with his subsequent "Who's City are You?" Richard Florida explains a whole lot of what is going on from the local to the international level. His theory is scalable like a beautiful intellectual fractal.

I never read anything but fiction as a rule, but I couldn't put this down. This was my history, my family, my city, all the changes I've seen in them over the last 50 years, explained and redefined. I consider it a great tool for employers and city planners and for creative people it creates a great sense of connection.

Upon a cursory glance, Richard Florida's theories regarding the factors that empower truly dynamic, prosperous cities resonate as highly embellished common sense: open-minded, diverse cities (i.e., New York, Chicago) have always and will always outperform more close-minded, culturally heterogeneous places such as Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. But look deeper, and what you discover is a truly unique view - and in my opinion, a correct analysis - of a fundamental shift in the orientation of our society's workforce and economic structure, transcending even the oft-accepted "intellectual capital" approach to urban success.

Essentially, Florida argues that an active fostering of the "3 T's" - technology, talent, tolerance - will be key to cities/urban areas wishing to thrive in the next century; and that a new class of knowledge professionals has emerged, coalescing around work that requires some degree of "creative" thought. This new creative class includes two components: a "super-creative core" consisting of scientists, artists, and engineers, along with more tertiary professionals such as accountants, lawyers, IT professionals, and financial analysts. The creative class, it is quantitatively demonstrated, has led the nation in job creation and income growth, and with the rise of global economic integration (i.e., globalization) and competition from low-wage countries for basic service-level jobs, the creative class will continue to ascend into a role of economic primacy. The cities that thrive in the next century will be the "creative centers"; places like San Francisco, Atlanta, and Denver that actively nurture the 3 T's. These will be the cities that combine a strong technology-empowered economy with highly-educated citizens and a tolerance for immigrants and alternative lifestyles, best exemplified by the presence of "bohemians" (i.e., artists and other "quirky" intellectual types) and gays. The emphasis on the latter two groups has brought Florida's work under attack from many social conservatives, but facts remain facts: as Florida clearly demonstrates, cities that are tolerant of all forms of diversity have fared better and will almost certainly continue to fare better than those who uphold exclusionary, bigoted social agendas.

Of course, this is a gross oversimplification of Dr. Florida's theories. Much attention is focused on the social and economic developments that preceded the emergence of this new social model; methods for rating the creativity of cities (an overall "creative index", along with his controversial gay and bohemian indexes); and a discussion of how some cities have succeeded in becoming creative centers, while others have failed.

Whether for urban theorists/students of urban theory, leaders in municipal governments, or social scholars, Dr. Florida's work in The Rise of the Creative Class sheds great insight into one of the most important emerging trends in the early 21st Century.

The book was in excellent condition and arrived to my place on time. This makes me to consider buying all the books I need for school from you guys.

Thank you guys.

This is a great book and I use it as a textbook in my classes at the university. It is really a refute of the Bell Curve and Gould does a great job in presenting the historical facts that make us question the pervasive uses of IQ testing.

This book is supposed to be an accurate refutation of "the Bell Curve", but there is truth to the arguments in both books. The only question is to what degree do nurture and nature effect human intelligence?

Are there entire populations of people who are born with an innate, quantifiable intelligence greater than others? Can intelligence even be quantified? According to Gould, science has not yet arrived at a meaningful and scientifically legitimate understanding of this concept of intelligence, nor a way to measure it, nor any proof that certain races are naturally smarter than others.

I would expect an eminent evolutionist to spend his time making a case for how biological diversity lends itself to multiple levels of mental ability through natural selection. But instead Gould puts on a turtleneck and tweed and plays historian--quite well, too! His scientific background gives him the credibility to explore this topic like no historian could.

Gould walks through the history of science's attempt to quantify human intelligence and demonstrates how and why each method eventually failed. But of course this type of science exists today in various types of IQ tests, bell curves, all of which are used to not only measure this thing we call intelligence, but also by some to argue that some groups are naturally superior to others. Gould analyzes the history, methods and underlying theories behind these contemporary incarnations.

The book is readable, well illustrated, well documented, and has a lot of solid historical analysis.

This is a necessary book during the current climate of high-stakes testing as mandated by No Child Left Behind. No Child Left Behind stipulates that test results should be publicly reported for each subgroup (i.e., African American, Hispanic, White, etc). What is not being discussed though is how the current test results might be influenced by the culturally and linguistically biased nature of the tests. Gould's books serves as a reminder of the historical misuse of culturally and linguistically biased tests, and how the tests have historically been used to "prove" the inferiority of African Americans, immigrants, etc. The current mandate that "subgroup" test results are to be publicly reported reeks of the era of using the measurement of skulls as "proof" of African American intellectual inferiority (as delineated in Gould's book).

Regarding Stephen Jay Gould's book "The Mismeasure of Man," it seems to me that a recurring theme can be found in many of the negative reviews. The theme is a variation of the claim: "Gould allows his ideology to get in the way of his analysis." Putting aside, for the moment, the question of whether or not that particular criticism has any basis in fact, I find it remarkable that the progenitors of such a claim do not (will not?) consider the possibility that the scientists, scholars and social scientists who hold views antithetical to those of Gould's--e.g. intelligence is largely genetic and heritable; the gap in I.Q. test scores between whites and blacks is due to innate genetic differences--may be guilty of committing the same malfeasance for which Gould is being accused.

Moreover, one has to wonder if the prime reason for all the strong negative criticism is not necessarily a general disagreement with the printed facts, but rather a personal, visceral rejection of the perceived incompatibility between the conclusions Gould recovers, on the one hand, and the chosen ideology of the critical reviewers themselves, on the other.

Given the plausibility of such a scenario, I believe a healthy dose of introspection and sincerity is in order, lest one proceeds to "cast the first stone."

Mr. Chang has repeatedly denied that his book is definitive, but his subtitle says otherwise. The volume struck me as being comprised of two rather disjointed halves. The first is more about hip-hop and the latter more about violence, gangs, and race relations. It's the second half which falls apart as he fails to tie all those stories of riots and truces back to hip-hop. This section might as well be a separate book.

The author goes into excruciating detail around many historical and racially motivated killings (those of Karen Toshima, Michael Stewart, Amadou Diallo, Michael Griffith, Yusuf Hawkins, George Jackson, Eddie Lee, Latasha Harlins, Oliver X. Beasley, Henry Peco, etc.). Cataloging these injustices apparently seemed topical to him, but they are tangential to his ostensible subject, music. Failures in race relations are treated over and over again in the book, to the detriment of many other roots of hip-hop (funk, 808s & 1200s, marijuana, the dozens).

Mr. Chang is prone to hyperbole: "A millennial impulse was brewing." (329) "Youth itself was being criminalized." (389) "The discourse was migrating from the realm of the political to the cultural, from the intimacy of street corners and race papers to the fishbowl of the global media." (273)

The author's grip on economics is shaky and anecdotal; he makes many difficult uncited assertions. Several egregious editing mistakes crept into the first edition. The 500-page book is inexplicably set in a sans serif font.

The detailed histories of graffiti, Public Enemy, and Source magazine were excellent and worthwhile. The letters and speeches quoted are illuminating and would be difficult to find elsewhere.

While I did finish the book, and enjoy many parts of it, the hip-hop generation Mr. Chang describes is apparently not the one to which I belong.

From Jamaica to Public Enemy all the way to The Source and beyond, this book is just chock-full of really gripping narratives which help hiphop fans really see what shaped the music we all love. My favorite part is the Public Enemy narratives simply because it shows, very clearly, the struggle artists go through. or when Tipper Gore and her gang go from attempting to censor heavy metal to rap. Just goes to show how powerful of a catalyst music is.

A MUST READ FOR ANY MUSIC LOVER.

Rocky

Chang's history of hip-hop starts at the beginning (in the 70s) and examines the phenomenon from musical, cultural, and political viewpoints. His main strength is that he refrains from discussing "current" events, lest the book become dated too quickly. Indeed, only the last couple of chapters deal with the last ten years, and at that it's a cursory look. Chang's writing is outstanding, if a little too focused on certain acts (Public Enemy seems to take up the entire mid-section of the book), but his depth of knowledge of his subject matter and his manner for conveying it are excellent. His primary weakness is that he has a definite political slant to his work, occasionally dropping his journalistic guard to take shots at right-wing causes/politicians. It doesn't get in the way of the text, but it does get annoying. It's hard to write a history of a person/event/phenomenon that is ongoing that actually seems like a history, but Chang has done an excellent job doing just that.

As a literate college graduate who loves hiphop and reading, this book bridges the gap by bringing a history of the movement and the place that, more or less, made hiphop. The initial chapters about NYC and Jamaica from the sixties onward really clarified the scene for me: white flight, the major NYC highway projects and the civil strife in Jamaica created a cauldron of creative activity in the center of the greatest city in the world, among its poorest citizens. This book rules, quite simply. I read it over a weekend, while downloading a lot of the music along with it, immersing myself in an epoch and a movement that I have only begun to truly appreciate in the last 3-4 years. Excellent and highly recommended.

After reading Chang's book Can't Stop Won't Stop it is amazing how all the pieces come together. He writes with an amazing breadth that captures politics, sociology, history, economics, globalization, exploitation, capitalism, racism, media tricks, etc. and how they have all contributed to the formation of hip-hop and the resulting culture. As I came of age in the mid 90's I became transfixed with gangsta rap and inner city culture, I never realized how all the afore mentioned concepts made up an entire culture that connects with audiences all around the globe or the economics that helped regenerate a struggling economy and an evaporating job landscape. As the new century comes into full swing it is astounding to think of the power hip hop still holds and the mouths it feeds.

As I dig deeper into the sociology of this last statement I can't help but think while hip hop has revived industries like music, fashion, and film and laced corporate pockets with green the conditions that breed hip hop still have not changed. The current Bush Administration is continuing where Reagan and his pops left off by gutting social programs and destroying education while offering hope through the army only to die for a country that doesn't give a damn about a better tomorrow only a richer, whiter one. Hip Hop heads are still seen as criminals in broader society, still harassed by police and still followed around the stores their culture helps feed.

Perhaps Hip Hop can be the vehicle that delivers a unified front to reclaim this country from corporate interests and the carnivorous capitalist system. It has the power to reach audiences of every creed and the prophets to deliver the message.

Jeff Chang is a prophet of history. Thanks for writing this book and teaching me about my past. Because if you love hip hop this history is a part of you.

Don't care for the type font. It does contain factual info. Will use as a resource text for term paper.

Noll's book is well worth the cost and the time to read. It is a fine resource for teaching in the local church or for individual study. Written in plain prose with adequate explanation of the technical theological terms that must be considered, it is easily accessible by the average reader today. If for nothing else, this book will acquaint or re-acquaint us with the importance of doctrines, Evangelical piety no matter in what tradition it is found, and how the world can be changed. It is implicitly, a call to return to our roots.

Noll's major contribution in this work however, may very well be how he demonstrates to us that crucial turning points in the progress of history are often the consequence of intense, penetrating debate concerning rather precise and difficult concepts. These debates may be acrimonius and there may be many dark episodes that accompany them, but Noll's synopsis makes us realize just how vital those debates are, even when so accompanied. We often consider the ancient thinkers as being somewhat primitive because their technology was not as advanced as ours. A survey of history such as this will quickly disabuse us of this notion and cause us to reflect upon the paucity of such thinking around us now as was evidenced in these debates.

I highly recommend reading the book. It would be good to pay attention to the names and dates but the real teaching, for me, is that we moderns need to get back to thinking deep thoughts about our time and place as these men and women did in theirs.

Christians believe that God is a God of history. Events, councils, decisions, all involving people, are part of God's continuing revelation through history.

This book allows the reader to see Christianity's history since the fall of Jerusalem in 70 C.E. with the pushing of the early church from its Jewish roots into the surrounding Roman world to events that are occurring around us today.

Christians who do not know their Christian heritage since the New Testament times including the struggles and debates that bring us to where we are today should read this book.

Included "turning points" in this book are as Luther and what we now call the Reformation. There are endless numbers of books with 300 to 600 pages available to read and learn about Luther and the Reformation. If, however, you want to learn of the Reformation and other chosen turning points with their beginnings, issues, and consequences in about 20 pages per topic, this is your book.

Noll brings over 13 turning points in the history of Christianity to his book in 20 page segments. The turning points are placed in full context of surrounding, influencing forces such as government, wars, economics, languages, theology, church maturity, Christian zeal, personalities, etc.

He closes with "turns" that are occurring today and what Christianity might look like in the future.

As a Church History professor I highly recommend this book as a supplemental text that would complement an edited book of readings and perhaps a biography or two. This volume picks up on decisive events, and as such is not an encyclopedic text with all the facts and figures. Noll is a great writer and he knows how to synthesize very complex matters such as the Council of Nicaea. He does a masterful job in explaining this theological maze to students--especially ones who do not have theological degrees. Because of the brevity of the book, some important figures recieve very little space (St. Augustine) or no space at all (Abelard), and women are few and far between. Nevertheless, it served as an excellent text in my classes at Calvin Theological Seminary, where I taught before I was given the boot ("My Calvin Seminary Story"). Each chapter begins and ends with worship liturgy, hymns, and prayers fitting the time period.

This book was used for a class I took last year on the history of Christian theology, and I greatly enjoyed this book. Noll manages to take 2000 years of history and center it around 12 major turning points, interweaving ideas and events around these points. He makes it very readable to someone who had not studies the subject before, and presents a new perpective on a number of issues to those who have studied this before. I found it to be a very enjoyable book.

The only complaint I have about this book is the lack of discussion of the 20th century. Barth, Lewis, Vatican II, etc. hardly get mentioned. He really should have dealt with this some. As it is, he brings us up to about 1910 or so then leaves us with only a vague and fuzzy vision of where the church has gone from there.

Overall grade: A

Andrew Sean Greer is a riot of talent. He carves his words with such precision that one can have no choice but to be surrender to his writing. His works, including Story of a Marriage, always deal with the subtle underplay of the human mind, and ultimately reveal the fragility of our existence.
I don't want to reveal the stories - a lot of reviewers have already done that. Besides, with this story, more than the story itself, it is the manner in which it is laid out that matters. Almost like midnight-blue silk skeins spread one beside the other.
For those who look for literature, rather than just an easy weekend read, for those who seek to tease from stories a modicum of meaning, The Story of A Marriage has many delights to offer. It will leave a lump in your throat, show you exotic new vistas of the human soul, leave you with the sort of feeling one has when they read a monumental work.
Mr. Greer, thank you for elevating our literary experiences to transcendental levels.

I had problems with this novel. It started beautifully but soon became heavy-handed. My interest flagged from time to time. However, I pushed through, and found myself totally absorbed and rewarded by the end. There is one helluva good story here: a young married woman is confronted by her husband's former male lover who insinuates his way into their lives with devastating consequences (yes, there are shades of "Far From Heaven" - if he were alive Douglas Sirk would film this with Halle Berry tomorrow). Though the prose is often arresting (I highlighted a number of passages), there is simply too much of it. Nothing is simply stated and this inhibits the flow of the story. So why four stars? The story is THAT compelling and the prose is THAT good.

This novel was hyped on NPR, so I assumed it would deliver with a solid plot and engaging characters. I was terribly disappointed. Greer relies on several plot "surprises" here and there to keep the story progressing. However, without solid character development and voice, these twists feel like pathetic manipulations to keep readers engaged. I got through the book in a weekend, but what motivated me to finish was the thought that once I hit the last page, I could finally move on to another novel and be done with this one. Trust me -- don't bother. If you must read it for yourself, check it out from the library and save your money for a better read.

"It started as a love story, the story of a marriage, but the war has stuck to it everywhere like shattered glass. Not an ordinary story of men in battle but of those who did not go to war." So writes Andrew Sean Greer: in marriage, and in war, there are hard times, severe pain, and sometimes, resolution and understanding.

The story, set in 1953, centers around Pearlie COok, a dutiful wife, her husband Holland, a conflicted man, their young son Sonny who is afflicted with polio, and a stranger named Buzz who throws this world into turmoil. Within their story, much of the fear and paranoia of the era is played out -- sexism, racism, homophobia, and the continuing saga of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, executed for treason.

This is not a perfect book. As other reviewers have pointed out, some of the coincidences are improbable; also, the characters are not as introspective as this reader would have liked. What's more (no spoilers), the sacrifice Pearlie is willing to make to ensure her husband's happiness seems excessive and, to this reader, unlikely, especially considering the era. On the other hand, the questions Greer raises on war, love and motherhood, combined with the luminous writing, raise this book to a higher standard. I'd recommend it with qualifications.

Pearlie has a taste for aphoristic musings. "We think we know the ones we love," she writes. "But what we love turns out to be a poor translation, a translation we ourselves have made, from a language we barely know." These quasi-Proustian observations and their associated metaphors are brought to a state of high polish. But Greer's plotting doesn't always live up to Pearlie's commentary. A side-story involving a spirited white girl who's secretly engaged to a prejudiced soda-jerk is tacked on to the main plot in a way that's both implausible and underexplained. Pearlie's sympathy for Buzz blooms remarkably quickly, and there's an excess of busily symbolic detail. If the characters watch a movie, overhear a TV show or read the words printed on a paper bag, what they come across will be eerily reflective of their predicament.
Most of all, Greer's first big narrative bombshell doesn't detonate with the force that he seems to be hoping for. After all the wary looks from white neighbors, references to the status of the "colored" population, mentions of Pearlie's "community" and descriptions of visits to segregated lunchrooms, only very inattentive readers will be startled to learn that the Cooks are black; some might even wonder why Pearlie has tried to play such a heavy-handed trick. The surprises in what follows are managed more skillfully, and Greer has clearly done his homework on the time he's depicting. But the artificial, slightly tinny resonance never goes away.