Book Description
The best-selling textbook in the field, The Last Dance offers an interdisciplinary approach to the study of death and dying. Integrating the experiential, scholarly, social, individual, emotional, and intellectual dimensions of death and dying, the seventh edition of this acclaimed text has been thoroughly revised to offer cutting-edge and comprehensive coverage of death studies. Together with its companion volumes, this new edition of The Last Dance provides solid grounding in theory and research, as well as practical application to students' lives.
Customer Reviews:
WONDERFUL AND ENLIGHTENING.......2007-02-13
I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT THE AUTHOR THIS BOOK DID A SUPERB JOB IN PLACING THE EMPHASIS AND KNOWLEDGE OF VARIOUS CULTURES HANDLING OF DEATH. I HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH FROM THIS BOOK.
Boilerplate plus.......2004-12-22
For those readers who have not done much reading or thinking about death, this book offers an easy to read and thoughtful introduction to looking at death vis a vis topics. In addition, this book provides for the scaffolded reading experience by asking the reader many questions, summarizing the main points of chapters and providing resources for further exploration.
On the negative side is the fact that the topical approach is available elsewehere in other books on death and dying in more encyclopedia form and more complete form.
The authors seem to think that death isnt something that people wonder a lot about or should wonder a lot about the mysterium tremendum of death. The illustrations in the book are sans context and images or illustrations on death are important in their own right for exploration as numerous authors like Robert Lifton have pointed to the importance of images when contemplating mortality. Furthermore the authors could have and should have indicated what complete exploration of death might be-surely the topical approach is just one amongst many approaches to death. So in this regard there is a disconnect between death as a subject of interest to be held at arms length and death as a highly personal vital concern that transcends topical approach.
In concluding if looking at death from arms length as a subject of interest is what youre into this book provides a good enough scaffolded reading experience. If you want something to be or more personal value in dealing or orienting to your own mortality then this wont fit the bill.
excellent.......1999-01-22
This book accomplishes a rare feat--appealing to those who would use it as a teaching guide but also so readable that the average reader will find it fascinating and invaluable. It is packed with illustrations as well as solid advice and history--from ancient funeral practices to today's arguments on assisted suicide. In between is every conceivable question and answer you could want on the subject of dying and death.
This is a wonderfully written and organized text that students will hold on to and not sell after reading it!.......1998-11-12
I will be using The Last Dance for the third year in a course I teach on Death and Dying in Western Culture. This text does a marvelous job of addressing the socio-cultural aspects of death in America and the world. The chapter on suicide is both helpful and haunting. There are so many excellent illustrations and photographs in this book that it really comes alive for the students. It is clear that the authors are very familiar with their subject matter, and that they care very much about those who read this book. I cannot imagine a better general text on the subject of death and dying.
Average customer rating:
- Calculations are only as good as your numbers
- Pants on fire?
- Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
- Very Interesting
- History as Science Fiction
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History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
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ASIN: 2913621058 |
Book Description
Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.
Customer Reviews:
Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03
Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.
Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19
Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09
There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.
For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.
Very Interesting.......2007-03-07
It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.
History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10
Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.
I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.
Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.
Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.
I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.
This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.
Book Description
Originally published in 1985, Neil Postman's groundbreaking polemic about the corrosive effects of television on our politics and public discourse has been hailed as a twenty-first-century book published in the twentieth century. Now, with television joined by more sophisticated electronic media—from the Internet to cell phones to DVDs—it has taken on even greater significance. Amusing Ourselves to Death is a prophetic look at what happens when politics, journalism, education, and even religion become subject to the demands of entertainment. It is also a blueprint for regaining controlof our media, so that they can serve our highest goals.
Customer Reviews:
Outstanding book - must read.......2007-09-27
One of the best books on the danger posed by entertainment to our civic community.
Important read.......2007-09-04
This book asks questions that we need to be asking but aren't. How can we not at least question the media and technology that we take in like oxygen? It's an important read and I recommend it to anyone who isn't apathetic.
The Audio Was Great.......2007-09-03
If you like people like Colin Wilson, you will love this well written and well thought out book. It is like listening to Colin Wilson without the references to literature but the lessons are intact.
Another "Thin" Classic From Postman.......2007-06-22
This is Postman's most famous and widely read book (as is attested by the more than 100 customer reviews here on Amazon) and it is, as other reviewers have suggested, a classic in the Media Studies field. The songwriter Roger Waters was inspired enough to title his album "Amused to Death" after reading Postman's book (although Postman states in one of his later works that he himself would never stoop to listening to the likes of a "Roger Waters").
Instead of giving the usual plot synopsis here as other reviewers have done, I would like instead to perform for you a Media Studies reading of the book. That is to say, instead of reviewing the book's contents, I would like to draw your attention to the medium and format of the book itself, and in doing so, point out what this reveals about Postman as a philosopher.
To begin with the most important point: there are no pictures. Anywhere. And not only is this true of Amusing Ourselves to Death, it is true of every single one of Postman's books. This should alert us to something very important here about Postman: he is iconophobic. He is engaged in a battle against images of any, and every, kind. Not even Marshall McLuhan was so antipathetic to the use of images and illustrations, for his very first book, The Mechanical Bride, is a series of commentaries upon advertisements. In the age old battle of the Word vs. the Image -- a battle which goes way, way back before the twentieth century to the Iconoclastic debates amongst the Greek Byzantines whose iconophobes were in fact influenced by the aniconism of Islam, an entire religion which, like Judaism, had been based upon a rejection of images -- Postman, in this tradition, definitely aligns himself on the side of the Word against the iconophiles, be they Catholics or Hindus or lovers of comic books, or whomever.
Also, you will not find any references to works of art of any kind in this book. Postman apparently has an antipathy to painting and imagery of any kind whatsoever, be it "classical" or electronic. It is important to point this out because it reveals, in the tradition of Harold Innis, Postman's essential "bias" in this book. Indeed, Postman's dialogue with Camille Paglia, published in an old issue of Harper's, underlines this point, for Paglia is as much an iconophile as Postman is an iconoclast. "In the beginning was the Word," Postman quotes, as though to clarify his own personal theology, before proceeding onward with his dialogue with Paglia.
The next thing to notice about the book is its brevity. It is very short, as in fact, are all Mr. Postman's books, for Postman has been quoted as saying that he does not believe in writing long books, and that if one cannot express oneself in two hundred pages or less, then one has no business writing a book. The bibliography, accordingly, is also short, and so apparently Mr. Postman did not feel the need to read many books in order to write this book.
For Postman really only has a single point to make here, and it is an important point which he argues persuasively and eloquently: television is taking over our culture, and all our thought patterns in every aspect or division of our culture is taking its cue from the syncopated, discontinuous and ahistorical "mentality" of television. How this has affected our reading habits, and whether those reading habits still continue, albeit in a changed manner, Postman fails to address. For people have not stopped reading books; instead, they continue to read books, but their expectations of the book have changed. The brevity of Postman's book is itself perhaps an example of what happens to sustained intellectual discourse in the Electronic Age: books get shorter because our attention spans (Postman's included) have shrank. Nobody wants to wade through books on the scale and magnitude of Spengler's Decline of the West or Hegel's Phenomenology of the Spirit. I notice, furthermore, that the sorts of books which Postman exhibits in his Bibliography are, one and all, short books.
Thus, here is the secret of Postman's book: Postman himself suffers from the very same attention deficit disorder that he castigates others for having suffered at the hands of Electronic Society.
Hmm. One would expect a professor of Media Studies who was as well read and thoughtful as Postman to engage our attention for a while longer. If this book is the greatest thing Postman ever wrote, then we must confess, alas, that Postman's work does not contain a single magnum opus on the level of a Gutenberg Galaxy or an Understanding Media. Perhaps this fact in itself is evidence of a general decline in intellectual and literary ability in our culture during the latter half of the twentieth century.
The reader should not understand that I am saying that there is anything wrong with Amusing Ourselves to Death. But we should learn to understand its limitations in order to appreciate its place in the pantheon of Media Studies classics, upon which list, after all is said and done, Amusing Ourselves to Death places relatively low.
--John David Ebert, author Celluloid Heroes & Mechanical Dragons: Film as the Mythology of Electronic Society
Deserves to be Called a Classic.......2007-06-19
It seems unlikely that a book labeled "Current Affairs" could have a shelf life of more than a few years. It seems preposterous that a book dealing with television and referring to Dallas and Dynasty could have anything to see twenty two years after being published. Yet Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death, now in it's "20th Anniversary Edition" continues to be read and studied and to hold influence. Even today it is used as required reading in many high school and college level courses. Though written by a man who made no claim to Christianity, few modern books written by an unbeliever have been more widely read and quoted by Christians. It truly is a remarkable little book.
Postman had that rarely quality of being able to see behind a fad, behind what was late and great. He saw the significance of the rise of the image and the fall of the word, the rise of amusement and the decline of discourse. He saw that television would soon saturate every area of our lives and taint the way we understand politics, religion, education and every other area of importance. As we now transition from a television-based culture to a computer-based culture the image remains central. Perhaps we have already amused ourselves past the point of no easy return. Television is remarkably effective at doing what it does best--entertaining. Postman had no argument with television is a tool of entertainment. In fact, the best things on television are its junk and no one is seriously threatened by this. Where television fails is in attempting to do the more serious work that has traditionally been carried by the written word.
Postman makes it his goal in this book to make the epistemology of television visible, demonstrating that television's way of knowing is hostile to typography's way of knowing, and not only that, but it is inferior to it. "Serious television" is a contradiction in terms for television speaks only in the voice of entertainment, never of serious, weighty, discourse--the kind of discourse that is essential to politics, religion and education. Television's influence has been relentless, transforming our culture so that every area is now considered a venue for entertainment.
Electronic media, led by television but being superseded by the computer, has changed the way we view the world and the way we carry on any kind of public discourse. Gone are the days when content was of overwhelming importance. Instead we deal with sound bites, with discordant images torn from any kind of context, and with style when in former days we relied on substance. Politicians win and lose election campaigns not on the basis of what they say, but on the basis of how they look when they say it.
Throughout the book is an interesting interplay between Huxley's Brave New World and Orwell's 1984. In the latter an oppressive regime dominates the world while in the former the people allow themselves to be overcome by levity, by entertainment and by pleasure so that they have no need of an oppressive regime. They were controlled by their amusements. Huxley, Postman argues, had it right. And I would tend to agree.
Amusing Ourselves to Death is a good read, a disturbing read, a thought-provoking read and, dare I say it, a must-read. It deserves its status as a classic and, though already two decades out of date, it is as timely as ever.
Customer Reviews:
Great learning tool.......2007-08-24
A great lesson! I bought this book to refresh my memory of screenplay style as I begin to prepare writing my own. Tarantino is known for his dialogue between characters and that is why I purchased this. It was a good read and did not disappoint. I took away from it several lessons on screenplay style.
Do not be swayed by the Tarantino haters out there. If you want to learn style he is one of the best today. There are many that throw around the terms "boycott", "overrated", etc. I am still fascinated by the number of people that go out of their way to drag down Tarantino's work yet they still see his movies. You would think by now that they would have learned to just not watch them. In reality these people are just jealous of the success he has had. Tarantino very often is referencing other movies that he watched while growing up. He is usually not doing anything original but is instead giving a film history lesson giving us glimpses of the movies of the past.
Follow your own path. Make your own decisions and do not listen to the haters.
Sweet screenplay!!!.......2007-07-07
If you like Tarantino, you'll like the Screenplay he has written for Death Proof. Simple as that. Plus, it helps young screenwriters to know what to look for and what to do when attempting to write a screenplay of their own.
A great screenplay to a great film........2007-05-29
Wow. Tarantino does it again, and is still at the top of his game. Quentin took a break from his smooth dialogue in both Kill Bill films. But he returns and scores gold once again. I recommend this to anyone interested in Quentin Trantino.
"The woods are lovely dark and deep...".......2007-04-18
This is an amazing piece of screenplay literature to own! I am a music major and after reading this and viewing Grindhouse several times I am seriously considering changing my major to film. This is an amazing addition to your library as it weaves you in and out of action, horror and sex; the "100% Death Proof" Tarantino way.
Book Description
Two brothers.One,top FBI Agent, Aloysius Pendergast. The other, Diogenes, a brilliant and twisted criminal.An undying hatred between them.Now, a perfect crime.And the ultimate challenged: Stop me if you can.
Customer Reviews:
A very silly book.......2007-09-25
If this weren't the only audiobook on my iPod at the moment, I'd have bailed on it. Everything in "Dance of Death" is a cliche or stolen from some other, better specimen of genre fiction: Sherlock Holmes, Hannibal Lector, etc.. All of the research is bogus. The authors are very keen to let their readers know how "classy" everything they write about is, from the rolls driven by their ludicrous hero to the fact that one character is supposed to be a reporter for the New York Times. But they obviously have never even read the Times themselves, since they have this poor sap chasing a sensational murder case as the "big story" of his career, when that stuff is strictly tabloid fodder. Maybe it'd make the Metro section, but that's about it. Everyone in the Times scenes behaves like extras in an old '30s newspaper movie, nothing like the Ivy League types that actually work at the paper. Plus, movie stars don't go to openings of Natural History Museum exhibits. I'm sure the stuff based on other professions is equally preposterous. Besides the total lack of originality, it's the nose-pressed-up-to-the-glass wannabe-ism of this book that makes it kinda painful to read. At least Rene Auberjonois seems to realize that it's pure kitsch and reads it with a lot of campy brio.
What happened?.......2007-08-17
Is it just me, or is Pendergast starting to get a little boring? Perhaps it's because we have the full story of he and his brother, and I'm certain we have not seen the last of Diogenes, but somehow we've lost that mysterious edge to him. I fully appreciate the authors commitment to making their story a three part series and giving us the detail that they did, however they missed so much and took shortcuts in other ways. Where has Diogenes been? What has he been doing all those years that Pendergast was looking for him? Why is it that Constance tracked him down in a heartbeat and left Pendergast in the dust? I'll stop there, no need to be totally negative. I still enjoyed the ride for the most part and I'm looking forward to the next installment, Wheel of Darkness, hopefully a change of pace, environment, and villian will spark a new passion. P.S. - Absolutely HATE Pendergast's love interest, Viola, she is sooooo not interesting in any way. Would love to see someone who could kick Pendergast's butt, make it a little interesting, shall we?
Dance of Death a Slow Predictable Two-Step .......2007-08-09
Perhaps since I read Preston and Child's "Dance of Death" out of sequence and was well aware of the outcome before the actual events transpired throughout the novel, I found this contribution featuring the reoccurring characters of Special Agent Pendergast, police lieutenant D'Agosta, New York Times reporter Bill Smithback, Nora Kelly, Margo Green and the rest of the Museum of Nature History team not up to the coauthors' usual page-turning standard.
It's not as if the novel excites the reader with fresh scenarios or ideas; certainly Smithback, Pendergast and D'Agosta have moments that seem all too familiar. Nevertheless this novel does bridge "Brimstone," the first novel featuring Pendergast's deranged brother, Diogenes with "The Book of the Dead," the culmination of this trilogy whose overall theme pits the ingenious siblings against each other. Perhaps this explains to a degree why the action seems stalled and rather hackneyed.
Plot, in this one, seems to be sacrificed for further character development, the inclusion of a love interest for white knight Pendergast interjects some emotion to an otherwise rationally, educationally and intellectually developed human machine whose lack of reaction and intuitiveness sometimes seems uber human. That Diogenes would utilize Pendergast's personal weakness to his utmost advantage comes as little surprise. In fact, what is lacking in this novel is just that: the bombshell twists and turns that one has come to equate with a Preston/Child novel fizzle like dud firecrackers wet-blanketing the reader with about fifty cents of bang for his/her expected buck.
"Dance of Death" attempts to assemble some Pendergast family history for us while tunneling further into the deep dark secret that Pendergast has hidden even from himself with regard to his brother's lack of humanity. Because of this, unlike "Relic", "Reliquary", "Thunderhead", etc., this novel does not rely on unique state-of-the-art scientific factoids to explain initially nebulous events that occur throughout the plot. Instead of baffling and then educating the reader with fascinating archaeological or forensic scientific tidbits that eventually formulate the basis for a tightly crafted tale, "Dance of Death" relies on the reader's built up interest in the characters themselves. The entire galaxy of players cultivated from "Relic" on appears in this the writing team's tenth work. Knowing and understanding the actual interrelations between the different personalities enhances an otherwise mundane kidnapping/chase storyline with this genre of writing's glib and sometimes senselessly predictable dialogue.
Bottom line? The bridging nature of "Dance of Death" necessitates it being read in the correct sequence. The second in the Diogenes trilogy of novels, its success depends on the reader's knowledge of characters that Preston and Child have developed in the first nine of their popular thrillers. Although I enjoy the Pendergast saga and would like to see this develop further, I prefer to see this author collaboration inject more scientific/technical data to give their adventure more teeth. Recommended to those who like Agent Pendergast and enjoy a Cain versus Abel type romp through New York City and its environs.
Diana Faillace Von Behren
"reneofc"
Meanwhile, back at the museum.......2007-07-22
This here's the 6th Pendergast novel, and is the strongest since Reliquary. The unbelievably well prepared and impossibly well informed Pendergast takes on his evil twin. (Well, ok his younger brother.) Many plot twists worthy of a Victorian melodramatic Gothic ensue, and some plots twists are about that old. It's rather silly if enjoyable pulp fiction, that's saved by the more interesting and more believable supporting cast. While not as reliable or interesting as Wilson's Repairman Jack series, it's fairly decent summer reading.
Much to do about lilttle.......2007-07-22
I probably read two to three books a week. And I could not get past page 22 of this one. Dialogue is trite, and plot seems convoluted. My wife bought the hard cover at 7.99 in the bargin bin. Its probably not worth that. Certainly not in the same league as Crichton, Patterson, Connelly or Dunning. Will donate to the local library. Maybe someone will find it enjoyable.
Average customer rating:
- Started strong and then flat-lined
- Multiple cases
- BROADWAY BABES AND BAD BOYS
- Absolutely Horrible. A must NOT read
- Good mystery !!
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Death Dance: A Novel (Alexandra Cooper Mysteries)
Linda Fairstein
Manufacturer: Pocket
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 074348228X |
Download Description
New York Times bestselling author Linda Fairstein takes readers behind the scenes of New York City's theater world -- from Lincoln Center to the lights of Broadway -- in a riveting new novel, rich with her trademark blend of cutting-edge legal issues, skillful detective work, and heart-stopping suspense.
Customer Reviews:
Started strong and then flat-lined.......2007-08-16
I could go on and on about how bad I found this book to be, but I always feel guilty when I write a bad review. Because, hey, at least this woman has the discipline to finish a manuscript and someone thinks her work is good enough to publish. So, does that change my mind about giving this book two thumbs down? Nah.
A less promising beginning might have prepared me for the truly awful and unbelievably anti-climactic and waaaaay drawn out ending that lead nowhere. Tied up while her captors argue about....well, she never said what they were arguing about....the heroine says, "Two hours later I was even more tired." Nothing compared to the stupor your readers are in by that point, Ms. Fairstein.
Multiple cases.......2007-07-23
Like a real prosecuting attorney, Alexandra Cooper has a case load to deal with. The main case is the death of a ballet dancer. Alex is drawn into the case because the circumstances of the death are unclear, i.e., was it an attempted rape, a crime of passion, or a murder for another reason. Along the way she becomes involved in a case involving use of a date rape drug, a serial criminal attacking women, and a man trying to evade questioning (which reopens another case).
There are issues that keep attorneys employed. Besides the usual crimes, there is a family feud over inheritances, and the question of trusts and possible tax evasion (or maybe just creative tax avoidance). Money is power, and some people are willing to use connections.
You will learn a lot about the New York theater business, and the backstage areas. There are also some historical vignettes that I personally found interesting, but some people may think there is overly much background color.
I would note that there are some interesting discussions of the use of DNA and other forensic science. There are also legal issues about obtaining evidence, and what constitutes invasion of privacy.
The plot of the novel is complex, and requires that you pay attention. It is not a quick read.
BROADWAY BABES AND BAD BOYS.......2007-07-05
Fans of Law and Order, SVU (Special Victims Unit) where cutting edge forensic tools are coupled with gritty detective work will definitely relish Death Dance. The book captures the reader's attention with a look into the personal and professional life of a New York criminal prosecutor and two of her colleagues. Her cases are varied and range from indicting a physician involved in drug facilitated sexual assaults to the murder of a prima ballerina at the Metropolitan Opera House.
While I do not want to give away the complete plotline, let me just say that the book treats the reader to a descriptive behind a scenes tour of the Met as well as a couple of other famous New York theaters; gives us a history lesson about the famous and infamous residents of the city, both past and present, supplies lessons in forensics and police procedures and finally allows an exasperating glimpse at the practice of releasing non-citizens on their own recognizance with the naive expectation that they will return for trial and not flee the jurisdiction. (Are we stupid, or what??)
This book captures the readers attention from page one, twists and turns its way through 482 undeniably intriguing pages and deposits us at the end of a devilishly good story, satiated for the moment but definitely looking forward to another delectable helping of Linda Fairstein. Take her along on your next lazy afternoon at the beach or better yet on a long, tedious plane ride. You won't regret allowing her to join you.....she makes flying fun.
Absolutely Horrible. A must NOT read.......2007-07-02
This book was so horrible and poorly written that it took me over 3 months to complete reading it. I couldnt get into the book because there was to much useless information not even pertaining to the plot and the characters were all one dimensional. I had to force myself to read a few pages a night,after the first few nights I realized that this is something you should read if you have difficulty falling asleep because its a very boring book.
I dont reccomend this book to anyone.
Good mystery !!.......2007-06-27
Alex Cooper and her sleuthing companions are at it again. Didn't put down the book till it ended. Good writing, great and unusual plots and enjoy getting to know the characters more with each book.
Product Description
`History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2` is the second volume of the most explosive and astounding tractate on history ever written - however, every theory it contains, no matter how unorthodox, is backed by rock solid scientific data. The book is easy and pleasant to read; it is well-illustrated, contains hundreds of charts, graphs and illustrations, copies of ancient manuscripts, and countless facts attesting to the falsity of the chronology used nowadays. You will be amazed to discover: - That the chronology universally accepted today and taken for granted is simply wrong; - That ALL methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts known today are erroneous or non-exact; - That there is not a single document that could be reliably dated earlier than the XIth century; The Author refers to the Middle Ages as the Antiquity and proves mutual superimposition of the Second and the Third Roman Empire, both of which become identified as the respective kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Furthermore, he asserts that the famous reform of the Occidental Church in the XI century by Pope Gregory Hildebrand was the reflection of the XII century reforms of Byzantine emperor Andronicus who in his turn identifies with Jesus Christ. The Trojan war counted by Homer happened only as late as of the XIII century A.D. and the great poet actually lived in XIV century A.D. No stone in history of Antiquity is left unturned. Literally. This book is the beginning of a major correction to the chronology we live with.
Customer Reviews:
Check and see.......2007-06-21
I don't care what other people say of this book. Those affirmig it's fake, they hadn't ever read it. Or have some special reasons to do so. "Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see..." This book won't make you feel comfortable. It'll make you feel free. It'll make you feel you're "not the only one" to feel you'd been lied to for centuries.
Suprise! Suprise!.......2007-03-22
Here is a serie of books which turns "the whole world" upside down. I learned a lot of it and I hope that a new book from A.T. Fomenko will follow very quick. A absolute must for everybody who is interested in history or even a little bit from it.
Prescient St Augustine?.......2006-02-05
We can so far divide the New Chronology into the following three parts:
a) The verifiable theory that proves consensual chronology wrong with the aid of astronomy, statistics and mathematics;
b) The new chronology hypothesis based on a new understanding of known historical facts and the most likely logical explanation of the most obvious inconsistencies inherent in the official version of history;
c) The history conjectures, that is experimental historical reconstructions based on assumptions that the authors believe to make sense in the light of their research and linguistic parallels - void of ironclad factual support to date.
Fomenko's theory complies with the most rigid scientific standards as a whole:
It gives a coherent explanation of what we already know.
- It is consistent: independent lines of inquiry all lead to the same conclusion.
- The predictions it makes are confirmed empirically.
Fomenko goes by the following axioms:
- Chronology is the basis of history;
- Human evolution has always been linear, gradual and irreversible;
- The "cyclic" nature of human civilization is a myth, likewise all the gaps, duplicates, "dark ages" and "renaissances" that we know from consensual history;
- The accumulation of geographical knowledge as reflected in cartography is a gradual and irreversible process;
- The chronological distance between a given manuscript and the events described therein is proportional to the amount of distortions it contains;
- There is no "useless" information in authentic ancient sources.
Why the mainstream historians do not shower mathematician Academician Dr.Prof Fomenko with thanks and laurels?
The Russians:
Because Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by three centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called "Tartars and Mongols" were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a bilingual state with Arabic spoken as freely as Russian. The ancient Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities. The hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called "blood tax"). Their "invasions" were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion. Fomenko proves that Russian history as we know it today is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scientists brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs, whose ascension to the throne was the result of coup d'état, charged with the mission of making their reign look legitimate. Fomenko proves Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. They represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate rulers and the ambitious upstarts. The winner took it all! Over some 30 years of controversy, Russian historians have made a most remarkable transition - they were initially accusing the young mathematician Fomenko of anticommunist dissident activity and attempts to deface the historical legacy of Soviet Russia; nowadays the middle-aged mathematician is accused of adhering to "pro-communist Russian nationalism" and defacing the proud historical legacy of Great Russia.
The Westerners:
Because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History. Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one the Ancient Rome (the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the XIV century A. D.), the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, and the Ancient Egypt (the pyramids of Giza become dated to the XI-XV century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global "Mongolian" Empire, no less). The civilization of the Ancient Egypt is irrefutably dated to the XII-XV century A. D. with the aid of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone. He was the first one to decipher and date all such horoscopes, coming up with mediaeval dates in every case. English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. To reward the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.
The Chinese:
Because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such thing. Full point. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the XVII-XVIII century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation, this time performed on the Chinese soil by the loving Jesuit hands. The Chinese are the next in line to go berserk. Chinese history is inevitably bound to get both more ancient and more eventful, proportionally to the growing involvement of China in the world affairs. Chinese historians will keep on finding valid proof of prehistoric Chinese spaceflights until the Politburo orders them to shut up.
The Arabs:
Too bad. Islam with all its key figures is datable to XV-XVI century A. D. Arabic historians may find consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire in the XVI-XVII century. The trouble is that this empire was initially a Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, according to Fomenko! We can only guess if the acquisition of Alexander the Great (a Macedonian and a Christian) as the founder of the Muslim World Empire will make Fomenko's theories more acceptable to the Arabic mainstream. He certainly does not spare any holy cows at all, claiming The Stone of Qa'Aba in Mecca to contain the lost Arch of the Covenant.
The Divinity:
Despite of reiterated statement that his theory is all about chronology and not Religion, Fomenko stirs up a whole condominium of wasp nests. His collection of anathemas, fatwa, and other condemnations from all parties concerned is already considerable. Little wonder, considering that the history of religions à la Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the XI century and JC), Bacchic Christianity (XI-XII century, before and after JC), JC Christianity (XII-XVI century) and its subsequent mutations into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on.
According to Fomenko we know strictly NOTHING about the events that predate the X century A. D.
St Augustin was prescient when he spoke unto us: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."
Something of a disappointment.......2005-09-09
After having read the first volume of this expected series of 7 volumes I was triggered by the thesis of these authors that ancient Greek and Roman history did in fact take place in the Middle Ages. So I started studying medieval history of the Middle East - also known as Islamic history - to find out if the opponents of the ancient Greeks and Romans - the Acheamenid Persians, Sassanids, Scythians, Egyptians, etc. - also have their duplicates in medieval history. My search was disappointing: none of the many medieval Islamic dynasties seemed to correspond to the ancient middle eastern rulers.
However, I did find a close correspondence between Herodotus' Persian kings and medieval events:
- the defeat and capture of an Anatolian king - the Lydian Croesus - by the Persian conqueror Cyrus is identical to the defeat and capture of another Anatolian king - sultan Bayezid - by the Asian/Mongol conqueror Tamerlane;
- the Persian conquest of Egypt by the cruel tyrant Cambyses reds almost exactly as the Ottoman conquest of Egypt by Selim the Grim (note the nickname!);
- Darius the Lawgiver of the Persian Empire looks very much alike to Sulayman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver in Islamic history;
- Xerxes, whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by the Greeks at the naval battle of Salamis, looks like Selim II (the Sot) whose main claim to fame is to be defeated by a Spanish-Italian alliance at the naval battle of Lepanto.
I should have expected Fomenko et al. to arrive at similar conclusions, however, they claim that the Persian kings are the alter egos of the Angevin kings of Sicily whose biographies do not contain the exploits of the Persian kings.
The similiarities I indicate lead to the conclusion that Herodotus must have written his Histories at the close of the 16th century. But this is extremely late, given that Herodotus is "the Father of History", so therefore all other "ancient" histories must have been fabricated even later. Yet, the founders of modern chronology - Scaliger and Petavius - laid their foundations also at the close of the 16th century and had the full corpus of ancient histories already at their disposal.
It seems to me that Fomenko has to address these inconsistencies, maybe in the forthcoming 5 volumes?
Another critique of their book is that the correspondencies between different rulers are often based on a superficial comparison of the biographies; upon a more thorough comparison many details appear that do not correspond at all.
Finally, the authors rely heavily on the works of Gregorovius (1821-1891!!) - his medieval histories of Rome and Athens - as the source of medieval history; these works are - at least in the West - hoplessly outdated and have been superceded by more up-to-date works (for instance, Julius Norwich's trilogy on Byzantine history is not even cited).
Romulus courts Helen, Paris founds Rome, Moses goes to Troy.........2005-07-30
If you agree with Fomenko that Roman chronology is basically the foundation of the entire edifice of global chronology; you would also certainly agree that despite its numerous gaps and inconsistencies, Roman history is the best-documented field of ancient history, and thus a reference scale. But how well is the actual date of the Eternal City's foundation known?
Firstly, Rome is supposed to have been founded by the Trojans who had to flee after the fall of Troy. Some claim Rome to have been founded by Aeneas and Ulysses shortly after Troy had fallen; others are of the opinion that there was an entire dynasty that ruled for 500 years between the fall of Troy and the foundation of Rome.
Well, that's just an innocent 500 years long misunderstanding compared with what heretic Fomenko says, asserts, proves in his second volume: Second Roman Empire, Third Roman Empire, Biblical Kingdom of Israel, Biblical Kingdom of Judah, Holy Roman Empire are stories about basically same events, written from different points of view at different times. The underlying events have actually taken place during xii-xv cy. These histories have been written and perfected by multitude of highly talented humanist and clerical writers of xiii-xvi cy disguised as "ancients" with glorious names like Homer, Pluto, Thucydides etc..Chronology 2.0 beta..
Historians are kindly invited to report the bugs.
Book Description
The first biography of the Italian director who reinvented the film Western with his series of "spaghetti" westerns.
The Italian film director Sergio Leone reinvented the American Western with his movie A Fistful of Dollars, a spare reworking of Akira Kurosawa's Japanese outlaw drama Yojimbo transferred to the Texas-Mexican border. In doing so, Leone also created a new kind of Western protagonist--silent, mysterious, morally ambiguous--and found a new star to embody this new archetype: Clint Eastwood.
Leone's entire life pointed toward his reinvention of the American Western: he grew up during the Nazi occupation of Italy, a period in which he saw terrible parallels to the traditional Western. When he was in a position to direct his own films, the low budget of his first "spaghetti" Western meant that he could only afford to hire a relatively unknown American actor, Clint Eastwood, to star in A Fistful of Dollars, which has been credited with reviving the Western as a credible film genre in the 1960s. This book is the first to document not only Leone's life but also to explore fully the development--and phenomenon--of the Italian film Western. In addition, Christopher Frayling examines Leone's late masterwork, Once Upon a Time in the West, which TimeOut says "ranks among the greatest examples of 'pure cinema' in the history of the medium."
Customer Reviews:
Where was this 30 odd years ago?.......2003-10-10
Awesome reading for the die hard spaghetti western fan!
Leone is God, and this is the Bible.......2003-04-17
I worship Sergio leone. I've been a huge fan of his films since my childhood in the late Seventies. I've always wanted/needed a weighty, fact-filled bio-reference to illuminate his here-to-fore mysterious life/career. This is that book. More detailed than the expensive, picture-packed Italian book on Leone, S.T.D.W.D. will stand for a long time as the essential Leone tome. Literate, balanced, and exhaustive, this book is a triumph in every respect.
Masterful biography.......2003-02-07
There aren't too many directors who could inspire me to read a 576-page tome about their career. In fact, apart from a handful of auteurs to whom I'm still trying to speak and the dozen or so who have opened their hearts to Cashiers du Cinemart, there aren't too many directors I'd even like to read about. Yet, of all directors-past and present-it's only Sergio Leone's name that I've been scanning for when I troll the "directors biographies" section at Borders Bookstore. Sure, sure, maybe it'd be fun to read a nicely done work on Fritz Lang or Kenji Misumi but it's Leone who presents me with the biggest challenges.
This Italian mastermind helmed a handful of films, nearly all of which would rank among my favorites. More than creating some damn fine work, Leone's style influenced untold filmmakers. His films were operas powered by the music of Ennio Morricone. His dialogue's sparseness made it all the more powerful. Leone didn't shy away from embracing the language of cinema and creating his own dialect.
Remarkably, though Leone's filmography can be tallied on both hands, the breadth of rumours and conflicting stories are enough to easily fill Frayling's tome. Luckily, Fraying isn't above questioning the veracity of his subject. While never denying Leone respect, Frayling doesn't shirk his journalistic duty to present as many facets of the fiery, passive-aggressive auteur as possible.
Something to Do with Death takes its sweet time to get moving (I had to skip the second chapter and skim a few others before getting to the real "meat" of the book) but, once it gets going, there's little that can deter the reader from delving into the life of a truly enigmatic talent. (ISBN: 0571164382)
Brilliant.......2002-04-05
I cannot understand the first review of this book. I understood this book to be a biography of Sergio Leone, not a story about Spaghetti Westerns so I was pleasantly surprised when the author began by desribing the whole cultural background of Mr Leone. The book is certainly not without emotion, but the author has attempted to provide a detailed and unbiased insight into the life of Mr Leone.
Had the book been more "humourous" as per the intial reviwer thoughts, this would have diverted from the objective of a biography, as I am sure Sergio's life was not just fun all the time, no offense to the first reviewer ("You smell like a pig already, lets try not to make things any worse" Tuco's guard "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly")
Mr Frayling has obviously researched his subject in a fantastically detailed way, constructing a clear picture of his life, not just by his films, but by the people around him. This is evident in that Sergio himself contacted Prof Frayling after reading his earlier book on Spagehtti Westerns as it contained information about Sergio's father that even he hadn't previously known.
Check out Cenk Kirals site for Sergio Leone info (he was thanked by the author in the book)
All You Need to Know About Spaghetti.......2000-06-03
Not only a fascinating insight into the spaghetti western and its master practitioner, but also an examination of where this form stands in the context of Italian cinema as a whole. Having finished reading, I re-viewed all of Leone's films. They are totally different viewing experiences in light of the knowledge gleaned from this book. A truly al dente reading experience.
Book Description
More than two decades of research provide the basis for this true-life detective story of the mysterious man who stepped into Harry Houdini's dressing room on an October night in 1926, delivered one fatal sucker punch, and then vanished from the public eye completely. Nine days after the incident, Houdini was dead, the victim of a ruptured appendix, and his killer, a Montreal student named J. Gordon Whitehead, was nowhere to be found. Up to now, this tale of a mistimed punch and an untimely death had become myth, with many questions still unanswered: What happened to the man who threw the fatal punch? Who were the two witnesses and how much did they know? Was Houdini's death truly an accident? Interviews, affidavits, eyewitness reports of the night, and the only known photograph of Whitehead ever published all shed new light on an enduring mystery. Written with flair and wit, this tale of true crime gradually builds a riveting profile of the life of this intriguing but unknown historical figure, finding and then following Houdini's killer.
Customer Reviews:
ok book but wrong.......2007-04-26
A woman gave Harry something to drink and it killed him slowly.
A MUST for the serious Houdini scholar.......2005-05-16
This is a definitive investigation into the events that occurred in Harry Houdini's dressing room on Oct 22, 1926, and the man at the center of the fatal "attack," J. Gordon Whitehead. It's a remarkable work that will blow the minds of Houdini scholars.
Within the first few chapters, author Bell rewrites Houdini history by discovering that the magician was attacked (or at least "tested") three separate times during that fateful week in Montr?al. A native of Montr?al, Bell finds independent eyewitnesses to each of these other, non-lethal "punches" who readily corroborate the facts. It's a stunning discovery.
Unfortunately, Bell doesn't investigate these other incidents in detail, but remains focusing in the final and most infamous dressing room attack by J. Gordon Whitehead. Bell's hypothesis is that Whitehead may have been acting as an agent for spiritualists. Considering Houdini's vehement anti-spiritualist crusade, this is not a far-fetched theory. Trouble is, absolutely nothing is known about J. Gordan Whitehead (and some have even questioned whether or not he even existed).
It's Bell's search for the phantom Whitehead (which takes up a good middle of the book) that presents my only criticism with the book. Bell describes in detail every step of his 20 year investigation, including his many false leads. Okay, dramatizing a few false lead is entertaining and adds to the detective story (not to mention makes the eventual discoveries all that more exciting), but Bell relates EVERY false lead, devoting whole chapters to lines of inquiry that never pan out. This does becomes a bit tiresome after a while.
However, when Bell finally gets on the right scent and starts uncovering the life and death of "the man who killed Houdini", the book again becomes fascinating. I won't spoil it, but somehow J. Gordon Whitehead turns out to be both a complete surprise and exactly what we would expect. Bell also tracks down the elusive witnesses to the dressing room incident, Jack Price and Sam Smiley. Thanks goodness Bell did this investigation when he did, as most of these key players are now deceased (including the author himself).
In the end, Bell is never able to pin a conspiracy on spiritualists, nor link Whitehead to the movement. There is also a nagging feeling that there is still something untold in all this. But in this age of sensationalized conspiracy theories as entertainment, it's refreshing to finally get book that admits the truth of its own findings (even though this tends to relegate them to smaller publishers, as is the case here). But this honesty also legitimizes this book as a real investigation by a real investigator. And what Bell delivers in The Man Who Killed Houdini is far more interesting than any conspiracy, and of much greater value to the serious scholar of Houdini and magic history. This book is a must.
A personal look into the past........2004-11-01
This was a detective story with real people and events involvled. A true story. Well written and well researched.The author was dedicated, and it is sad that he did not see the fruit of his labor.
Average customer rating:
- Different kind of drama
- The Laramie Project
- Laramie
- For a parent, almost unwatchable
- Powerful piece of work
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The Laramie Project
Moises Kaufman
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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The Laramie Project
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ASIN: 0375727191
Release Date: 2001-09-11 |
Book Description
For a year and a half following the murder of Matthew Shepard, Moises Kaufman and his Tectonic Theater Project-whose previous play,
Gross Indecency, was hailed as a work of unsurpassed originality-conducted hundreds of interviews with the citizens of Laramie, Wyoming, to create this portrait of a town struggling with a horrific event.
The savage killing of Shepard, a young gay man, has become a national symbol of the struggle against intolerance. But for the people of Laramie-both the friends of Matthew and those who hated him without knowing him-the tragedy was personal. In a chorus of voices that brings to mind Thornton Wilder's
Our Town, The Laramie Project allows those most deeply affected to speak, and the result is a brilliantly moving theatrical creation.
Customer Reviews:
Different kind of drama.......2007-03-26
Based on the "Structural drama" we got a different option to see the incredible notes compiled after several interviews at Laramies' residents who was shock (as the rest of the world) for Matthew Shepards' case. I loved it.
The Laramie Project.......2006-06-15
Like a quilt, each little piece of play is woven together beautifully. Some pieces are juxtaposed next to contrasting pieces, but step back -- the entire piece is a sight to see, and touch, and feel.
What a sad, revealing, fearful, fearless, exasperating and lovely work of theatre.
This truly is an American quilt -- the ugly, the bittersweet, the glorious.
Absolutely recommended for anyone mature enough to deal with a tragedy of hate.
Laramie.......2006-03-24
The book was in excellent condition and was delivered even earlier than expected.Wonderful and smooth purchase.
For a parent, almost unwatchable.......2005-10-27
I am the 61-year-old father of a 24-year-old son who appeared in The Laramie Project two years ago, when he was a college senior. I sat in the front row of the theater in the round in which the play was produced. The play did not "get to me"--it dragged me into the worst What If a parent can have: what if my son were gay (he's not), what if he were murdered--how would I react, what would I feel?
The question was answered via the actor who played Dennis Sheperd. When he delivered his monologue to the Aaron McKinney character, and referred to Matt Sheperd as his firstborn son and his hero, I absolutely lost it. Hatred, a desire for vengeance, but a recognition that this was the start of a time to heal. A message like this can go out of style...never. For any parent, The Laramie Project is terribly difficult to witness. But witness it you must.
Powerful piece of work.......2004-01-29
I give this story five stars because it is a powerful piece of work that taught me a lot of things about how American society deals with homosexuality. I've never been to Wyoming but this story helps to give some insight on how things were in that state when this horrible tragedy happened. I hope more people get a chance to read this book as it is evident, based on the speeches by some members of this government, that homophobia is still present in this society. That kind of institutionalized homophobia was seen in its worst form when Matthew Shepard was viciously attacked and killed because he was gay. This book certainly is an eye-opener and for that it deserves the best praise. Kudos to Moises Kaufman.
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