Valley of Bones

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This top-notch novel confirms Gruber's place as a gifted writer who stretches the conventional bounds of the genre by placing the mysteries of faith and religious experience and the complexities of the human mind as well as spirit at the center of his work. It's a taut, compelling whodunit that's as far from a typical detective procedural as good is from evil and a worthy follow-up to his acclaimed debut (Tropic of Night) that also features Cuban-American cop Jimmy Paz. Here Gruber tells a mesmerizing tale of Emmylou Dideroff, who communes with saints and whose checkered past includes stints as a hooker, drug dealer, and the leader of a band of Sudanese freedom fighters. But did she kill the Arab businessman on a government "watch list" who plunged to his death from a Miami hotel? While that's the incident that brings her to Paz's attention, it's only one of his questions about this strange woman, whose unsettling "confessions" stir up the detective's confusion about his own deepest beliefs. Emmylou is as fascinating and fully realized as Jane Doe, the memorable protagonist of Gruber's first book--so too is Lorna Wise, the psychologist brought in to assess Emmylou's sanity, whose personal and professional lives are turned totally upside down by her involvement in the case and her relationship with Paz. This is a smart, riveting, wholly original and thoroughly fascinating book that's impossible to put down and leaves the reader with only one question--when is this author's next one coming out? --Jane Adams

Book Description

The body of a wealthy oilman plunges ten stories from the balcony of a Miami hotel, and is impaled on an iron fence below. In the dead man's room, Jimmy Paz, the famed detective who solved the grisly Voodoo Murders, and Tito Morales, a young cop who witnessed the fall, find a woman on her knees, engaged in intimate conversation with Saint Catherine of Siena. Emmylou Dideroff had a strong motive for murder, and the evidence against her is overwhelming -- but she insists she's innocent of the crime, while freely admitting her guilt in numerous other amoral and unspeakable acts. And the shocking confessions of this complex enigma -- abused victim or vengeful whore, god-touched prophetess or delusional psychopath, demon or saint -- are leading Paz, Morales, and psychologist Lorna Wise into a terrifying dance with the Devil himself.

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The startling reviews of Tropic of Night announced Michael Gruber as one of the most talented thriller writers to debut in many years. Now, with the much-anticipated publication of Valley of Bones, Gruber fulfills that genre-bending promise as perhaps no writer since Graham Greene, with a genuinely exhilarating thriller that simultaneously offers a profound, deeply provocative exploration of the nature of faith itself.

The setting is Miami. Rookie cop Tito Morales arrives at the Trianon Hotel to investigate a routine disturbance call -- and, to his shock and horror, watches as a wealthy oilman plunges ten stories and impales himself on a nearby fence. Soon Morales is joined by detective Jimmy Paz, famous throughout the city for solving -- or at least providing a plausible solution to -- the so-called Voodoo Murders that left Miami burning months earlier.

Together Paz and Morales enter the hotel and discover, in the dead man's room, a most unusual suspect, an otherworldly woman by the name of Emmylou Dideroff. She emerges from a rapturous, prayerlike state and admits that she had a motive for killing the oilman. Ultimately, she says she wants to confess, and asks for a pen and several notebooks in which to convey the details of her confession.

What Emmylou writes is nothing like what Paz expects; he enlists psychologist Lorna Wise in an effort to make sense of things that go beyond Emmylou's explanation of the murder: details of childhood abuse, of other crimes committed, of regular communion with saints -- and with the devil. Is she mentally disturbed or playacting in hopes of getting declared unfit for trial? Or does she really believe herself to be an instrument of God? And why is it that so many people -- including Paz's biological father -- are suddenly interested in the contents of these notebooks and in preventing them from becoming public?

As Valley of Bones moves toward its startling and dramatic finale, Emmylou's ""confessions"" lead Jimmy Paz, Lorna Wise, and Tito Morales down a series of unexpected and dangerous turns that puts them in the path of perhaps the most terrifying evil imaginable and forces each of them to confront questions about faith, love, and the possibility of the miraculous.

Customer Reviews:

Well Done, Indeed!.......2007-02-09

A man is thrown to his death from a high-rise. Cops rush to the scene and find a woman in his apartment. She is arrested for murderer, but claims to be possessed by a demon that makes her do things she can't always remember. Nice blend of horror and mystery and worth reading.

One of the best "thrillers" I have read.......2007-01-21

A complex and intriguing story, written with such intimacy I felt that I knew the heroine personally. Outstanding!

a superior writer.......2007-01-12

Michael Gruber is a superior writer of mysteries which border interestingly and believably on the magical/supernatural. His detective Jimmy Paez is a Cuban who is or was a detective with the Miami PD, a man of superior intuition who is conflicted between his western rationality and something more mysterious and vaster in scope. Night of the Jaguar and Tropic of Night deal interestingly with Siberian shamanism, Yoruba magic, Amazon indian shamanism, and Santeria. Valley of Bones deals with an extreme sect of Catholic nuns consecrated to nursing on battle lines. He acknowledges and delves into matters not as "ignorant superstitions" but as valid worldviews with their own particular power. He is well worth getting acquainted with.

No Sophomore Slump here.......2006-06-27

I was intrigued by Gruber's first outing, Tropic of Night. I expected a let down for book two.... Boy was I disappointed -- and delighted! It's like he went to the world's greatest writing school and immediately learned how to expand his best parts and whittle back the slower sections of Tropic of Night.

Valley of Bones will surely be the best book I read this year. I'm sure of it and it's not even July.

On to # 3 !

Peculiar ecclesiastical murder investigation.......2006-05-18

As is his penchant in previous Michael Gruber propagated novels, Cuban American Miami P.D. homicide detective, Jimmy Paz becomes immersed in another strange investigation in "Valley Of Bones".

Paz is called into a case which on the surface appears to be a suicide. A big wig Muslim from Sudan apparently jumped from a tenth floor balcony of a posh Miami hotel, impaling himself on a spiked wrought iron fence. Upon further review of the body shows signs of foul play. Paz and his partner Tito Morales find a woman in the victim's room praying when they go to investigate. Clues found at the scene implicate the woman. Here we are introduced to the multi faceted religous fanatic suspect Emmylou Dideroff.

At this point Gruber proceeds in a rather unique manner. He weaves together 3 separate storylines which alternate in his chapters. The main body of the plot involves the investigation of the murder by Paz. We also learn that Emmylou had a hard to fathom life history. We learn this because she writes out the story of her life to be used in her defense and at the behest of court appointed psychologist Dr. Lorna Wise. Wise is to judge whether Emmylou is mentally competent to stand trial. Gruber devotes chapters to the relating of Emmylou's story. We also find out that Emmylou belongs to an order of nuns called the Nursing Sisters of the Blood of Christ. The history of this well funded order founded in 1895 is also explored in a series of short chapters.

What makes the plot interesting is the background of Emmylou Dideroff. She hailed from Florida the product of a philandering Cajun father who died young and a young ill prepared psychotic mother. She suffered pedophilia at the hands of her stepfather, a local lawman. She suffered from visions, thinking them to be of Satan who lead her down an unfortunate path. She was manipulative and arranged things that resulted in the murder and suicide deaths of her mother and step father. Fleeing the scene she took to living in the streets, streetwalking and taking drugs. She eventually allied herself with a major marijuana cultivator and distributor Orne Foy. Foy headed a commune in the wilds of Virginia where she lived. The commune was eventually raided by the Feds and she was wounded. This led her to the enclave of the Nursing Sisters where she eventually joined the order. Oh yes, she also apparently had visions of St. Catherine of Siena as well as the devil.

Her association with her order led her to work in Sudan where she helped organize a largegroup of poor villagers caught in between waring factions of a civil war.

Paz began realizing that his investigation led to clandestine groups within the government, which was corroborated by his superior Major Oliphant. Paz along with Dr. Wise who was helping him in his inquest and eventually becoming a love interest, began to have threats on their lives. Paz, whose life had been filled with religious beliefs of Santeria, began believing that Emmylou had some supernatural aspects to her being. He also discovered that the murder of the Sudanese victim had a tie in to a supposed large cache of oil reserves buried in southern Sudan.

Gruber's convoluted plot while fascinating was occasionally just too overwhelming. Having to digest the supernatural, religion, philosophy along with a tortuous murder investigation at times became too tedious. His imagination, however is very expansive and for the most part "Valley of Bones" was an intriguing read.

Dancing Bones: Living Lively in the Valley (Women of Faith)

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Dancing Bones: Living Lively in the Valley (Women of Faith)
Patsy Clairmont
Manufacturer: Thomas Nelson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0849901766

Book Description

We all want to live on a peaceful mountaintop where we can look down on the world below without getting hurt. With her trademark humor and style, Patsy Clairmont uses the story of "dancing bones" in Ezekiel to remind us that life in the valley can be pretty breathtaking, too. It's often in the valley that we learn and love the most. Rather than running from our troubles, Patsy says true "valley girls" find grace, freedom, and a sense of humor in the midst of turmoil.

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A book for all Ages
great book-a must read for all ages
A wonderfully descriptive Dark Ages fantasy tale.

Through the Valley of Bones
Randall Thorn
Manufacturer: Infinity Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0741422069

Book Description

Upon the arrival of an old friend, an aging commoner, known as Mere, embarks on a journey to a distant land. Their travels are soon interrupted by an evil troll determined to end Mere's life. Now plagued by the horrifying dreams and terrifying visions given to him by the troll, he and his companion flee for their lives only to find more dangers await them as they press deeper into the woods. Thorn creates the essence of a believable fantasy world in graphic detail, thus pulling the reader into his unique vision like no other.

Customer Reviews:

A book for all Ages.......2006-02-21

This is an awesome book! It will capture and place you right in the middle of the adventure. I can't wait to share it with my High School freshmen.

great book-a must read for all ages.......2005-01-04

Very detailed and intelligent writing. I would recommend this book to anyone. I hope there are more to come from the same author.

A wonderfully descriptive Dark Ages fantasy tale........2004-11-16

This book is set in the Dark Ages in a world with many fantasy creatures. We find Randall Thorn's own unique vision of gargoyles, trolls, elves, dragons, goblins, fairies, and the undead, as well as common folk. His visions of these beings are described in such a manner that you feel as though you are standing next to them.

The story centers around the main character, Mere, and his long struggle with his faith. A large part of the story involves his friend, Lod, and then Lod's brothers, Gar, then Zor. Mere sets off with Lod on a journey along which they encounter many obstacles. Through their struggles, their beliefs are tested. Finally, Mere must confront fears that reach as far back as his childhood when he seeks to help a long lost love. Will Mere prevail, or will his faith falter? Will the encouragement of his friends and his own beliefs strengthen him, or will his questions and doubts weaken his resolve and cause his downfall? To find out, you will have to read Mr. Thorn's vividly descriptive, sometimes amusing, and wonderfully imaginative story.

The end does gets a bit scripture heavy, but that is when two characters are having a theological discussion, so it fits in the context of what is happening. Go ahead and pick up a copy today. I think you'll enjoy this one!

The Valley of the Dry Bones: The Conditions That Face Black People in America

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a must read with 2 issues
Valley of the dry bones
I FOUND THE BOOK STARTLING, AND INFORMATIVE.

The Valley of the Dry Bones: The Conditions That Face Black People in America
Rudolphf R. Windsor
Manufacturer: Windsor Golden Series
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

ASIN: 0962088102

Book Description

Mr. Rudolph R. Windsor, has a fascinating compilation of history, antropology, sociology, and theology. Drawing extensively from the Bible and many works by eminient scholars in various disciplines, the author has created a work that is at once inspiring and intriguing. He seeks to prove that the black people, more properly called "Black Israelites," are truly God's chosen people and as such, should become more aware of their unique heritage. The Valley of the Dry Bones represents a first step in this amirable endeavor.

Customer Reviews:

a must read with 2 issues.......2006-11-01

i love this book. i've read it about 5 times and it's changed my life (along with scripture). every brother in america should read this, as we are the valley of the dry bones that ezekiel spoke of.
2 very important issues though,
windsor corroborates the popular belief that hyksos were in egypt as the ruling class when the israelites were there and later enslaved. however these hyksos were called "shepherd kings" but joseph told his family that the pharaoh thought shepherds were abominations and inferior before they entered egypt, so this could have only been native egyptians who ruled at the time, Hamites aka "black africans".

secondly, the israelites were not enslaved for four hundred years in egypt. the total time they spent in egypt was 430 years, so after the first 30, slavery should have begun if the prophecy of genesis 15:13 were about egypt. if you follow the life span of joseph, you'll see that he was buried as an egyptian (embalmed and mourned by the people of the land). if the israelites were enslaved, how could joseph had been a vice royal in the land and been buried with honor? it wasn't a secret that he was a hebrew, and slaves in ethnocentric egypt would not have embalmed just anyone. i mean, the israelites were brought in to egypt with the pharaoh's chariots, not in ships and in chains (as dueteronomy 28:68 says slavery will occur). furthermore to close this topic, i just want to point out that the bible says (in exodus) that there came a pharaoh that didn't know joseph (who lived to be 110). this means some time passed between the life of joseph and the slavery of the israelites. we can see that 30 years isn't enough time to forget a man who was mourned and loved by the masses. this tells us that the slavery didn't last four hundred years. if you understand this prophecy, you'll see that the trans-atlantic slave trade is the one in prophecy, which coincides with this book. Israelites are the black masses who have lost their history and traces of their ancestry. we are the valley of the dry bones. 1ove and halleluYAH!

Valley of the dry bones.......2005-08-10

This is a pretty awesome book, should be read by all!

I FOUND THE BOOK STARTLING, AND INFORMATIVE........1999-10-24

I HAVE SEEN VIDEOS AND READ SOME BOOKS ON THIS SUBJECT, BUT I FIND THIS BOOK ESPECIALLY COMPELLING FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS; THE POINT OF VIEW THE BOOK TAKES THE READER, AND THE INFORMATION AND THE INTERPRETATION OF THE SUPPORTING FACTS OF HIS POINT OF VIEW.

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Great lawyer mystery set in Sarasota FL
Well worth your time!
zany whodunit
Funny and engrossing.

Bone Valley
Claire Matturro
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0060773243
Release Date: 2006-10-24

Book Description

Eager to bill more hours, ambitious Sarasota lawyer Lilly Cleary tackles a rather odd case defending two guys accused of libeling oranges. They claim pollution turned the fruit toxic—a definite no-no in the Sunshine State, where folks should not be defaming the main money crop. But Lilly's case goes from wacky to deadly when someone blows up one of her clients right in front of her.

Impatient as ever, Lilly sets out to find the killer. But stalking the truth's hard when everyone is lying, including the surviving client, a very fortunate guy who just happens to have a criminal record for making bombs. Lucky for Lilly, she has a handyman who can sniff out a great wine—and an explosive killer.

Customer Reviews:

Great lawyer mystery set in Sarasota FL.......2007-04-17

Lilly Cleary is an author in Sarasota, Florida. Normally her cases are medical malpractice. She is asked to defend Angus and Miguel in a fruit libeling case. Their claim is that phosphate mining residue was mixed into the soil in an orange grove thus infecting the oranges.

M. David Mooney, Lilly's ex-boyfriend, is killed in a toxic waste lake. She soon finds he is tied to her current case as well.

When one of her clients is blown up in front of her, she sets out to find the killer. She's not sure whether she can trust the gorgeous Miguel. Can she unravel this case without putting herself in danger? She enlists the aid of her wild religious brother and her handyman is also quite involved.

This is the first I've read in this series. It definitely won't be the last. I really enjoyed Lilly. The writer has created a wonderful protagonist and the Sarasota location is great too! Lilly is an attorney I'd love to have in my corner. She's a bit quirky, but she cares a lot and gets to the bottom of things.

I highly recommend this book.

Well worth your time!.......2006-11-15

This is the third Lily Rose Cleary mystery by attorney Matturo.

Lily Rose is a health food addict who lives Sarasota, Florida. She is a defense attorney in medical malpractice suits, usually--but her case in this book involves defending two environmentalists who called an orange grove toxic and the oranges poisoned--because residue from phosphate mining had been put on the soil. They are being sued for libel by the orange grove owners!

The complicated story involves a murdered phosphate mine owner (and also one of the owners of the orange grove), his obnoxious wife (who has a new escort very quickly), more angry environmentalists, a very ill saintly woman who cares for sick and damaged wild animals, Lily's handyman, the elderly Jimmie Rodgers and her wild religious brother Delvon.

While Lily works to clear her clients of the orange defamation charge, she gets involved in the battle to stop a new phosphate mine, and almost gets blown up when one of the environmentalists is killed. She seriously starts working with Manatee County Sheriff Josey Farmer to solve the murders, while trying to figure out if her remaining client, the dreamy Miguel, is innocent.

Lily Cleary is a truly distinctive and hilarious character and her legal work fascinating. The issues (phosphate mining and environmental damage in Florida) are serious, and the plot is full of action--bombs, a kidnapping during a ferocious storm, and a panther caged with Lily who is smeared with raw hamburger (a fate almost worse than death for a vegetarian!)

Lily is someone I would like to know. I would compare Matturo to Evanovich and Cruisie.

Armchair Interviews says: Great kudos from this reviewer.

zany whodunit.......2006-11-06

Sarasota, Florida Attorney Lilly Cleary suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder that either drives people crazy except for those who benefit from her hyperactive sex drive or are the clients she defends at an incredible pace. Lilly agrees to legally represent environmental activist Angus John Cartwright, who is being sued by a Sunshine State orange grower for libel. The suit states that Angus John and his partner disparaged oranges with unfound claims of toxicity caused by pollution.

Angus hides from Lilly that his partner is her weird former boyfriend, M. David Moody as she would not have taken on the case. However, not long afterward, M. Donald is found dead in a toxic waste lake in Manatee County. Following that death, Angus dies in an explosion. Lilly thinks she also is on the list of someone who is systematically making their opposition extinct.

In her third zany appearance (see WILDCAT WINE and SKINNY-DIPPING), Claire's energy and enthusiasm provides a humorous counterpoint to a deep whodunit. However, the star of Claire Matturro's latest legal thriller is the geography as the audience obtains a deep frightening look at a global environmental problem as represented by Florida's BONE VALLEY where mounds of phosphogypsum causes harm to people. The story line is action-packed as the case twists from a legal matter to a self preservation scenario. Still with a strong investigation and a wonderful wacky heroine, the environment rules in this eye opening cautionary thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Funny and engrossing. .......2006-11-01

Young and ambitious attorney- Lilly Cleary, takes all possible cases,even the strange ones. One of those cases gets quite complicated when a body of a prominent businessman is found. Lilly is eager to find the killer and takes all possible actions to solve the murder mystery. However, turns out to be more dangerous than she thought it was going to be and Lilly's inevstigation gets her in a lot of trouble. The book is very smoothly written and quite funny at times. The main characters are very convincing and likeable. I could not put the book down until I found out the outcome of Lily's investigation. This was my first book by this author and now, I'm quite eager to read her other books.

Adventures in the Bone Trade: The Race to Discover Human Ancestors in Ethiopia's Afar Depression

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Fresh View on Looking at Old Fossils
Stoned in Ethiopia!
Down and dirty with J Kalb
Fascinating reading!
A Truly Superior Book about Doing Science.

Adventures in the Bone Trade: The Race to Discover Human Ancestors in Ethiopia's Afar Depression
Jon Kalb
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Ethiopia | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

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The First Human: The Race to Discover Our Earliest Ancestors

ASIN: 0387987428

Book Description

Over the past 25 years, a stream of fossil and artifact discoveries in the Afar Depression of Ethiopia has produced the longest single record of human ancestors in the world. Many of the fossils found in this region are the missing links leading to modern humans. This book chronicles the exploration of this unique desert area, focusing especially on the 1970s when the valley was mapped and many fossils and archeological sites were discovered. The author gives his personal account of the 25 years he spent researching the region.
As co-founder of the team that discovered Lucy, Jon Kalb has first-hand knowledge of the research that was involved in the findings of this region and of the intense rivalry that has accompanied those findings. He discusses the political drama of Ethiopia and the effects this chaos had on the Afar. This book covers the scientific discoveries of the area, the author's own explorations and findings, and the political struggles involved with these discoveries.

Customer Reviews:

Fresh View on Looking at Old Fossils.......2006-01-03

I thought all this time that seeking old fossil material in some hot dry place would be boring but this book took away that idea. Its really entertaining, besides being full of facts about the part of Africa where we might have started being human.
I would recommend it to any one who wants to chuckle and learn at the same time...

Stoned in Ethiopia!.......2002-11-08

Wow! If you like science, this book has it all. Kalb gives a serious accounting of plate tectonics, geology, anthropology, paleoanthropology and politics. Both the politics of Ethiopia and of hominid anthropology.
This is the second book that I have read where Don Johanson, discoverer of the Lucy fossil, is lambasted. I am beginning to believe that Johanson left alot of people in his wake, including Kalb, on his way to fame and fortune. Kalb even gives details of Johanson's marijuana smoking exploits. Scandalous!
It is Kalb who worked behind the scenes to elucidate the geology of the Afar region of Africa and set the stage for the advancement of many discoveries in the field of paleoanthropology. And he did it while dodging the bullets of a communist revolution! Kalb survives even though he is suspected of being a CIA operative planted in Ethiopia under the guise of his scientific mission. Kalb suspects that it was his falling out with Johanson that caused this little tidbit of doubt to be planted in the minds of the Ethiopian government. Kalb spends alot of effort over a few years fighting this charge, but he eventually loses and is expelled from Ethiopia.
Kalb's story includes his sometimes angst ridden dealings with the Ethiopian government, who it seems are caught in the middle of a struggle of competing groups to exert dominance over the rich fossil beds of the Afar triangle. The struggle is not just between competing organizations of American science, but also between the Americans and a French team that comes close to stealing the show.
The only flaw in the book is the way that Kalb weaves the recent history of Ethiopia into the book. That could have been a book in and of itself. Kalb is best when discussing geology and anthropology. The Ethiopian revolution and subsequent war with Somalia and Eritrea is distracting to the reader. Kalb's first hand journalist account of the struggles of the Ethiopian government is superb, but it would have stood on it's own. Kalb tried to write two books in one and almost pulled it off.
One of the reasons why I read this genre of books is that it always offers surprises. One of Kalb's characters, Doug Cramer, assists in creating a couple of interesting fireside stories. Cramer taught Anatomy at NYU medical school. As an alumnus of NYU medical school, I remember Cramer well. We used to call him "The Viking" for his looks and demeanor. Cramer used to tell us that he was a "pastist", and now, twenty-five years later I understand what he meant. I am sure that Kalb could easily have written a book solely dealing with Cramer's antics.
This is a must read for any armchair paleoanthropologists like myself. I am now inspired to read "Lucy" again given all the information I have about Johanson. The book was a page turner for me and I think that you will enjoy it.
Thank you, Jon Kalb, for your contribution to paleoanthropology. I hope that you can get back to Ethiopia to make some of the discoveries that you say will eventually be unearth there.

Down and dirty with J Kalb.......2001-12-12

The geology is a bit daunting, but the book is quite readable for anyone with a smattering of earth science background.

The inside poop on competing researchers is funny as hell. Kalb shows SOME restraint in detailing Johanson's efforts to block his (Kalb's) access to the Afar, more restraint than was called for if Kalb's claims are true...

Insights into the politics and history of Ethiopia abound.

Great stuff overall. Well written.

Fascinating reading!.......2001-09-15

Kalb takes a subject which could be as dry as old bones in a desert and makes it living and fresh. He combines real life drama with an informative tour of the competitive worlds of geology and anthropology. A fellow member of the Texas Coalition of Authors told me, "He is the personification of Indiana Jones."

I have read many books and many soon become a weariness of the flesh (Ecclesiastes 12:12) but not this one. It is fascinating reading; informative and entertaining.

A Truly Superior Book about Doing Science........2001-05-08

This is a book about exploring for humanoid fossils in the Afar Depression of Ethiopia from 1967 to 1976 during the overthrow of the Haile Selassie government and the beginning of the Derg--Mengistu Marxist regime. Rare indeed is the book that gives a good sense of the ambience along with immense readability. It is mostly about the geology and anthropology of the Ethiopian Rift Valley, but anyone interested in science will find this book fascinating because it is really a story about "doing" science: the fun, the people, the jealousies, ambitions, dirty pool, and and an exceedingly fine discussion of why the digging and excitement occurs in Ethiopia.

This book must have caused its publishers agonies of indecision. It doesn't fit usual categories: It is a personal memoir; an account of Ethiopian history; an overview of the geology of the rift valleys and a thorough discussion of the activities of anthropologists searching for human ancestors along with explanations of how they know where to look for these goodies. the whole thing is interspersed with amusing and exciting anecdotes. The geology part of this book is as fascinating as anything you are likely to read. Partly this is because the Afar Triangle is such a formidable place, parts of which are among the lowest and hottest areas on earth. But don't think that this is a geology text book--far from it. I could say a whole lot more in favor of this book, but you get the idea that I think it is superior--well worth a good look.

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Visible Bones

A strong portrait of a dynamic, changing landscape

Multi-dimensional

Multi-dimensional
Visible Bones: Journeys Across Time in the Columbia River Country
Jack Nisbet
Manufacturer: Sasquatch Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The Mapmaker's Eye: David Thompson on the Columbia Plateau

Sources of the River: Tracking David Thompson Across Western North America

Singing Grass, Burning Sage: Discovering Washington's Shrub-Steppe

Purple Flat Top: In Pursuit of a Place

Northwest Passage: The Great Columbia River

ASIN: 1570613761

Book Description

In the vast Western territory defined by the Columbia River, historian and naturalist Jack Nisbet tracks the stories and meaning of remains such as a trilobite fossil that points to a tropical prehistoric ecology; the indelible stain of the smallpox pandemic that overcame local native peoples; the remains of Jaco Finlay, a trapper and scout from 200 years ago. The photographs, map, and Nisbet's poetic style create an inspired chronicle of this region.

Customer Reviews:

Visible Bones.......2006-10-01

People who have read my reviews of other books by Jack Nisbet know that I consider him a very fine writer. "Visible Bones" is both archeological history and a nature book. It is subtitled "Journeys Across Time in the Columbia River Country" and is a series of essays on a variety of topics. The book is a combination of nature, history, people and reflection. Nisbet has a great deal of respect for Native Americans and that shows through in most of the stories.

The book starts with fossils and salamanders. It ends with Jaco Finley who was a confederate of David Thompson, an early explorer in Canada and the United States. In between we hear stories of a rock in the Columbia River that has been ground into gravel and the natural history of a mountain that ended up in the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. Always, the stories lead to people. Nisbet tells of how smallpox ravaged the native tribes and he describes a trip to gather roots with a Salish woman.

Each new story brings a different facet of life in the Columbia River Basin. Each one is gentle but leads the reader into a new avenue of thought. I read the book aloud to my wife while we drove through Washington and Oregon. It flows naturally and smooth like the water where the Musquash swims.

A strong portrait of a dynamic, changing landscape.......2003-12-08

This impressive survey of the Columbia River country concerns the journey of a fossil trilobite, the disappearance of condors, and other altered landscapes of the America Northwest. Author Jack Nisbet's intention in Visible Bones is to show how varied relics of the past have been altered over time: geology and changes blend with human records of change, taken from ship logs, field journals and news accounts, to make for a strong portrait of a dynamic, changing landscape.

Multi-dimensional.......2003-11-14

The sub-title of this book, "Journeys across Time in the Columbia River Country" gives you some idea of the scope of it. The writer, in twelve gentle essays, explores aspects of the natural and human history of the region. Combining the vast sweep of time with the wide range of ecology of such a large region is a huge undertaking. I'm in awe of a mind that can conceptualize such a topic, never mind bring it to fruition in book form. Of course 248 pages can't do the topic justice, but ten times or one hundred times the number of pages wouldn't do it justice either. The writer can only choose minute representative aspects of the whole and offer more information and a fresh lens through which to view it.

To take the dimension of history first. The writer starts out with a personal tale of hunting for trilobites in a creek swollen with snow melt. Trilobites are the tiny fossilized creatures whose massed bodies helped to create the land in this western corner of the U.S. But this is not a Geology 101 text. It places the 250 million year old fossil in the human scale of things - part of human history, part of the writer's experience. And that is the magic of this book - it takes a vast store of history, geology, nature and human nature and blends it into an understanding of how the Columbia River country used to be and how it came to be the way it is now.

The writer presents the natural history also. He shares with us the "water dog" (actually a salamander), the sheep moth and buzzards. We see muskrats through the eyes of native hunters and we discover Indian tobacco. We watch as the river changes with the coming of fur traders, dam builders and the presence of nuclear material.

Multi-dimensional.......2003-11-14

The writer uses a rather circuitous approach to present a wide view of individual species and actions that are representative of eras and world views. This is a book rich with ideas, embracing a gentle all encompassing philosophy. I enjoyed this book because of the writer's understanding and appreciation of the land. On the practical side, however, the presentation of the book left something to be desired. For the reader trying to follow along, the map was inadequate. I would have appreciated a more detailed map showing historical names and places. More illustrations would have enriched the book, too.

Average customer rating:

Prettily written pretensions

Good cookbook, will use often

Great food, great life lessons

The Bounty and Beauty of Western Colorado

As refreshing and soul-stirring as a Rocky Mountain breeze
At Mesa's Edge: Cooking and Ranching in Colorado's North Fork Valley
Eugenia Bone
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
West | U.S. Regional | Regional & International | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Memoirs | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0618221263

Book Description

Eugenia Bone was perfectly happy with her life as a New York City food writer, but she knew that her husband, a transplanted westerner, was filled with a discontent he couldn't explain. So when he returned from a fishing trip in the Rockies one day and announced that he wanted to buy a forty-five-acre ranch in Crawford, Colorado (population 255), she reluctantly said yes. Then she loaded imported pasta, artichokes in oil, and cured Italian salami into her duffle bag and headed west with her two young children. At Mesa's Edge is the witty, often moving story of ranch restoration and of struggles with defiant skunks, barbed wire, marauding cows, and loneliness. Eugenia learns to garden in the drought, to fly-fish, and to forage. In the process, she discovers the bounty of the region. She fries zucchini flowers in batter and dips them in cilantro-flavored mayonnaise, grills flavorful T-bones from the local ranchers' grass-fed beef, pan-fries trout, fills crepes with wild mushrooms, and makes cherry pies with thick, sugary crusts. Gradually, she begins to adjust to the rhythms of the land. Partly a memoir, partly a cookbook with 150 appealing recipes, At Mesa's Edge is a transporting tale of rejuvenation, a celebration of everything local, and a reminder that the best food is to be found in our own back yards.

Customer Reviews:

Prettily written pretensions.......2006-08-29

I applaud Ms. Bone's willingness to try something new, to embrace a lifestyle so foreign to her own. I appreciate her fine writing, and, while I have not made any of her recipes, they do look delicious. All that said, I am absolutely appalled by the pretentiousness of this book. There are small errors in fact, such as her description of pheasant hunting on page 75, when she writes eloquently of the green-tipped drakes rising into the air. Drakes are male ducks. Male pheasants are generally known as roosters or cocks. But it's the arrogance, the absolute tone-deafness of the book that bothers me most. I offer a few examples - Ms. Bone writes about how vital water is to this region, and how many ranchers no longer have rights to the water they need to maintain their ranches. She later notes that she and her architect husband quickly accumulated enough shares to irrigate their acreage. Does it ever occur to her that the reason western ranchers cannot afford enough land or water to profitably ranch is because urban dreamers can easily outbid them? Ms. Bone wryly comments that the young boys in her hunter safety class must have "done some hunting prior to their certification." Does it occur to her that yes, these boys have grown up around guns and hunting, and their parents have quite responsibly educated them about gun and hunting safety? I'm glad Ms. Bone was inspired by The West. I'm glad she sees the beauty in its rugged landscape and the warmth in the people who make their living there. But her belief that a summer or two on her "ranch" makes her one of them and allows her to speak for this amazing part of the world is the book's biggest failing.

Good cookbook, will use often.......2005-05-30

I am really enjoying this cookbook. I have to be honest, though, I've only skimmed over the memoir section. Having read enough similar memoirs of urbanites moving to the country, it wasn't anything too remarkable. I do admire Ms. Bone's grit, though, and her recipes are great.
With that said, there are an overwhelming number of recipes featuring cilantro. And lime. This seems out of place, since, as a previous reviewer noted, this book is being promoted by slow-foodies. Slow food doesn't necessarily mean that if you live in Colorado, you can't cook with cilantro or lime, but I'm pretty sure that neither of these ingredients are native to Colorado, (I could be wrong. I've not researched this thoroughly.) the combination reminiscent of Mexican and South-East Asian Cooking, and I feel that the frequency of use of these ingredients is at odds with a philosophy that emphasizes local produce. With that said, the recipes are great. She provides many delicious recipes for things like stuffed chile peppers and zucchini flowers which were delicious. There are also some very interesting Italian-inspired preparations of ingredients that Ms. Bone finds available near her ranch. I think that this would be a good addition to any cookbook collection.

Great food, great life lessons.......2004-12-07

I love this book. Lately I've become intrigued by all kinds of regional American cooking, which is what drew me to this book in the first place. But what I found in these pages was so much more effecting and profound...

The first section, the memoir, reads like a sort of fish-out-of-water coming-of-age tale about the author's reluctant (at first) immersion into this part of the world, and her gradual embrace of it. I found it sometimes haunting, sometimes hilarious, and always very engrossing. And tender -- yes, there's some fun poked at the locals, but it's usually the locals themselves wielding the stick as far as I could tell, and no one gets poked more often than the author. She's the one who is transformed by these encounters; she's the one who "comes of age".

Then there are the recipes, which seem to have been either informed or inspired or enhanced by the experiences described in the first section, which is a great way to approach a recipe in general, I think -- as a sort of companion piece to one life experience or another. Like listening to the soundtrack CD of a movie you loved. You definitely get the feeling these recipes could stand on their own -- they make that intuitive kind of sense on the page, and the ones that I have tried so far have been pretty sublime. But reading the memoir just made them that much tastier.

Taken as a whole, the book is really about how a love of food, and the pursuit of good, real food, offers a doorway into all kinds of magical places that would otherwise remain shut tight. We've all heard that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. This book seems to say that the way to the heart and soul of a community is through its food -- its produce, its livestock, and all of the one-of-a-kind characters who bring those things to life, literally. It made me want to get to know all the people who grow or gather things in my own community. I bet I'll look at where I live differently after that. Probably look at myself differently, too.

Beautiful book.

The Bounty and Beauty of Western Colorado.......2004-08-30

At Mesa's Edge is a wonderful book for people who love the West and who also love cooking and good food. The Author describes the land and the residents beautifully and respectfully. She has a clear understanding of the region...from water rights to wildlife to the quality of the harvest to cattle ranching. There is nothing pretentious or self-serving in the author's description of her many "adjustments" to life on a Colorado ranch. Her description of restoring the run-down property are both amusing and amazing. The book is a fun and informative read.

I grew up on the Western Slope of Colorado, know the area well, still visit family there, and remember with great nostaligia the bounty that the wondrous land produces. I highly recommend At Mesa's Edge. I am looking forward to preparing the many interesting recipes.

As refreshing and soul-stirring as a Rocky Mountain breeze.......2004-07-25

After taking my wife and 18-month-old baby for a long month to sweltering France last summer, I resolved to do better by them this year. And so, before the first snow had fallen, we drove out to the posh resort town of Southampton, New York, to rent a modest cottage with the promise of an ocean breeze. Right off, we found a simple little house with a bonus: a rear deck designed by an extremely tasteful architect named Kevin Bone.

It turns out that, several decades ago, I had met --- and not repulsed --- the architect's wife. After we struck a real estate deal, we struck up an e-mail friendship. Only then did I learn that she would be publishing her first book. So I had the odd experience of reading Eugenia Bone's AT MESA'S EDGE: Cooking and Ranching in Colorado's North Fork Valley, in the house that she and her family abandons each summer. Confession: The Bone ranch sounds so beautiful and Eugenia's recipes are so enticing that, Hamptons be damned, I'd rather be on her porch in Colorado.

Eugenia Bone may be the Peter Mayle of the American West, but she sure didn't start out with much enthusiasm for Colorado. Her husband came home from a fishing trip and said he'd found a 45-acre ranch. She understood why: "There was an empty place in him that was not being filled." And so she signed the mortgage papers "the same way I would sign a release for Kevin to have necessary surgery; it had to be done."

Of course the place was a wreck. And Eugenia, a New York City-based food writer, was not a great candidate for assimilation. But as she comes to learn, the hard work of restoring the ranch is balanced by simple pleasures not available in Manhattan. The postmaster divides her mail into two piles: "important" and "not." The sign in front of a church reads: IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A SIGN FROM GOD, THIS IS IT. The woman at the gas station gives her credit: "I trust you." She cooks fish caught earlier that day. She discovers that no meat is more tender than elk.

And, slowly, she learns, mostly about the relationship of water and land. She loves to cook; she comes to realize that the land too needs to be fed. That moment of revelation seals her love of this place. And she comes to see that living in the moment --- really, the only way to live in a place so dominated by Nature --- is magical. "Time passes slower; life seems to last longer, and death, because it is daily observable in nature, is not quite as frightening."

It's a delicious life, and she shares it not only in her quiet, concise prose, but in the generous chunk of the book where she serves up recipes. Some of the dishes require ingredients not available in city markets, but anyone can master her Cold Zucchini Soup enlivened with chile powder and tortilla strips and an intensely flavored (thyme, rosemary, sage, lemon zest) Lamb Stew.

Armchair travelers, dreamers and weekend cooks should find AT MESA'S EDGE as refreshing and soul-stirring as a Rocky Mountain breeze.

--- Reviewed by Jesse Kornbluth

Art and artifacts of bone and antler in the lower Ganges Valley

Average customer rating:

Art and artifacts of bone and antler in the lower Ganges Valley
Prasanta Kumar Mandal
Manufacturer: Tamralipta Museum and Research Centre
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Average customer rating:

Bones Gather No Moss
John Sherwood
Manufacturer: Scribner
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

British Detectives | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

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