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- One of the Best Early Spensers
- Enjoyable, great characterization all around
- Great as an audiobook
- Frozen Steam in Dark Side Snow. Spewed Blood. Boiled Pasta. Presto Pesto. Day Saved? Penance Made?
- War Between The Sexes
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Looking for Rachel Wallace
Robert Parker
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The Judas Goat
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A Savage Place
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Early Autumn
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The Widening Gyre (Spenser Novels (Dell))
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Promised Land
ASIN: 0440153166
Release Date: 1987-08-01 |
Book Description
Spenser is..."The sassiest, funniest, most-enjoyable-to-read-about private eye around today...the legitimate heir to the Hammett-Chandler-Macdonald tradition." --The Cincinnati Post
Spenser is..."Tougher, stronger, better educated, and far more amusing than Sam Spade, Phil Marlowe, or Lewis Archer...Spenser gives the connoisseur of that rare combination of good detective fiction and good literature a chance to indulge himself." --The Boston Globe
Customer Reviews:
One of the Best Early Spensers.......2007-09-12
LOOKING FOR RACHEL WALLACE is the sixth Spenser novel, and it's one of the best ones. Spenser is hired as a bodyguard for Rachel Wallace, a lesbian writer and activist, and eventually has to rescue her from kidnappers.
I love Parker's prose, and in this novel he has a good, exciting story to boot, filled with lots of action, humor and pathos. Rachel Wallace is an interesting character -- not entirely likable, but an honorable person who sticks by her belief system no matter what. The gay rights theme of this novel is a bit heavy-handed, but it was probably very cutting edge for the year 1980, when this novel was first written.
This is one of my favorite Spenser novels, and I've read almost all of them. Highly recommended.
Enjoyable, great characterization all around.......2007-05-31
Undoubtedly, this was more than a little controversial when it first came out - in fact, feminists and lesbians face the same sorts of problems in this day and age. I was a bit disappointed that Parker went the route of making Rachel Wallace attractive and made the one woman she was seen spending an evening with attractive - although there are plenty of attractive women who are lesbians, the concept of "hot girl on girl action" is mostly just a prurient notion designed more for titillation than anything else. That said, the issues were handled quite well overall - I was amused by Rachel's ongoing declarations at the beginning that she had no sense of humor and the fact that Spenser eventually wore her down to where she almost lost it enough to make her mouth twitch once . . . It was nice to see more of Susan in this outing - a personage sadly missing for most of the last book. The writing was such that the reader was drawn in and felt Spenser's frustration over his inability to protect Rachel and his need to find her and make sure she was OK.
All-in-all, the progression of these books is proceeding apace and watching the writing style progress has been a fascinating experience. I think it will be interesting - once I read the final one - to go back and read the first one and compare the differences in style, just for the fun of it. A must-read for sleuth buffs, PI addicts and anyone who likes suspense.
Great as an audiobook.......2006-12-25
I read "Looking for Rachel Wallace" years ago, but I don't have a great memory for all of the plot details so I am re-enjoying the Spenser books as audiobooks. In this case, Spenser and Rachel Wallace kept me company while I wrapped presents and fed my one-year old. And they were quite good company.
My audiobook was read by Michael Prichard who does a decent Spenser but a great near-humorless Rachel Wallace.
What can I say about the Spenser books that has not already been said. They're a bit formulaic (wisecracks, meet Susan for some snuggling, fistfights, cooking, etc.) but I love the formula so I enjoyed this one thoroughly. I consider it to be one of the stronger books, despite the fact that the protestations against feminism and lesbianism seem outdated in the year 2006. It almost makes it seem like a period piece. Interesting how the world changes, isn't it?
My grade: A-
Frozen Steam in Dark Side Snow. Spewed Blood. Boiled Pasta. Presto Pesto. Day Saved? Penance Made? .......2006-10-13
Hired as a bodyguard, Spenser opened a significant chapter in The Cultural Conversation, in an Ongoing Dialogue with a gay feminist author who had dedicated her life, and possibly her death, to her cause. The first half of this book had a tight focus and that was it. In Parker's hands, that simplicity of plot read out as mesmerizing, and sped along at a good clip.
The contrast was striking between THE JUDAS GOAT (fifth book in the Spenser series), and LOOKING FOR RACHEL WALLACE (sixth book). The literary style, mood, and content in these novels was dramatically different. Parker seems to possess an endless versatility of adapting his writing style to demands of theme and content.
Since this plot revolved around the antithetical anomaly of a feminist needing a bodyguard, especially with that bodyguard being Spenser; this woman, Rachel Wallace, had to come across as a full-blooded, intriguing character to carry her huge amount of plot space. Not to worry. Intriguing she was. Parker drew her in a touchingly human manner, dramatizing a sensitive underbelly barely protected by her not-as-hard-as-might-be-expected shell.
Given the serious sensitivity of the theme, I shouldn't have been surprised at the amount of funny wit Parker easily interjected into it. An especially hilarious scene was Spenser waiting/guarding outside the hotel room of his "charge" while she was inside the room, engaged with a gay partner. The humor was employed in Spenser's thoughts as he squirmed to avoid imagining precisely what events might have been unfolding behind the closed door. His obvious attraction to Rachel's partner added to the grin worthy mix.
However, the humor halted abruptly in the second half of the plot, when a seething Spenser was forced to began looking for Rachel Wallace. At first it was hard to discern whether Spenser's boiling anger was steamed from getting himself fired; from feeling he'd failed; from protective needs surged out of respect for a few of Rachel's character traits (honest dedication to pacifism coupled with not scaring easily) which had gotten under his skin; or because he believed so strongly in free speech, because he held sacred all the freedoms the US had fought for and held dearly. I was compelled to pause between the lines, looking for those answers.
The contrasting parts here, almost in a reverse order from JUDAS GOAT, had the Spenser/Rachel dialog flowing through the first half of the book, whereas Spenser set out on rampage, alone, in the second half. In that highly skilled spree of bashing bodies, Spenser came close to losing the cheering surges from my end of the grandstand. My first take on his red streak of anger was that he was going too brutally far with his fistful means of getting people to talk.
Pausing to contemplate that picture and plot, I settled with a couple achievements of awareness:
-- Realistically (as a few interjected comments made by Belson kept to the fore), Spenser would not have been able to get Rachel back by being a nice guy, nor by means other than those applied. And he managed his physical pushes with restraint, taking them only as far as each situation demanded, to get results quickly enough to find Rachel before she was destroyed.
-- The characters which had been heatedly convinced to talk had earned Spenser's tactics, many times and in multiple ways. I had to remind myself what these people had designed themselves to be, what they had done to others, with true brutality repeatedly applied. They had habitually gone beyond what Spenser's ever present code (and sense of humanity) would have allowed him to do. This was not a matter of politics, a matter of Right Vs. Left. It was a matter of pure-and-simple, ongoing cruelty, halted only by the amount and type of force Spenser used, forced by an established history and present danger of unjustified prejudice and harmful acts done to innocent people.
I was curious to discover Spenser's reason for not seeking Hawk this time. I'll be interested to see when, why, and how he brings him back in. Spenser gave his reason in response to a question from Susan, though his explanation made me want to dig into that "why."
At least two drool-worthy cooking scenes sauced up the plot, and relieved tension. Just as I noticed I had been missing Spenser's nurturing sprees, as he connected counter-tops, cupboards, stove, and refrigerator; he brought out the pasta pot, and parleyed serviceable left-overs into a simple, luscious concoction, one step better than Pesto (I reread the short list of ingredients a few times to memorize). The way he came to have and use a Cuisinart was endearing, and I recalled that those slice-n-dice devices must have been peaking in popularity in the late 70's when this plot was probably written.
The ending scenes with Rachel were quite sensitive, the most touching ones I remember, so far in the series.
Overall this was a fast reading exposition of several dilemmas and a true dichotomy. Did Spenser construct a bridge between the honorable side of Machismo and the hardcore edge of Feminism? You decide.
This story felt like Spenser was sweating up all his strength, wise-cracking the to extent of his wit, to pull two ropes together (to begin construction on the bridge mentioned above). Yet, the ropes were simply not long enough to connect. If anyone could accomplish that impossible task, Spenser should be able to do it. Right?
I particularly liked the alternate angles from which Spenser and Rachel defined Machismo.
Okay. I'm almost ready to order EARLY AUTUMN and A SAVAGE PLACE, after catching up with a few unread novels on my shelves, collecting dust when they deserve to shine.
I'm glad to have put up a 2 part Listmania on this series. Using that and the lists included in most of the Parker books I own, I'm easily sailing through Spenser seas, mostly in sequence now, though I'm pleased to have read a few of the middle and later books, in order to maintain a sense of style evolution, and to feel the changes more acutely, possibly to see some of the causes for shifts in stream.
Macho rocks, and dirty socks dream ... of cleaner days. We each have our ways ... and means ... of dining on dreams.
Linda Shelnutt
War Between The Sexes.......2006-07-21
Take one testosterone-laden private eye with and admirable world view but who knows that his code of honor is the backbone of everything he believes in (Spenser). Add one fiesty lesbian feminist out to point out the faults and foibles of a male-dominated society (Rachel Wallace). Shake vigorously to mix the two together so they become combatants. Season with vicious hired gunmen. It all adds up to one of the most delicious dishes ever served by Robert B. Parker.
Hired by a book publisher to protect Rachel Wallace, one of their hottest properties, Spenser finds himself at odds again and again with the woman he's supposed to take care of. Both of them have their own ways of doing things, and both are intractable. Eventually their differences outweigh the reasons they should stay together and Spenser gets fired. However, someone kidnaps Rachel Wallace and Boston's toughest private eye makes things personal when he goes looking for her. Through the bluebloods and the hired street muscle, through a snowstorm that shuts the city down, Spenser goes on the hunt, mowing over everyone that gets in his path.
Robert B. Parker is the author of the Spenser novels, the Jesse Stone novels and the Sunny Randall novels as well as others.
This book, along with EARLY AUTUMN and MORTAL STAKES, is the best to define Spenser's character and Robert B. Parker's thoughts on the world and his place in it. In the course of this short novel, Parker explores the differences between the male and female of the human species, and the struggle that each undertakes to understand the other. This isn't a societal diatribe. It's a great novel that's larger than the sum of its parts. Not only does the suspenseful action and great dialogue keep a reader turning pages, but it serves up a healthy does of thought-provoking commentary as well.
Readers who have never read a Spenser novel before would find this a good starting place. This is one of the foundation novels that spins completely out of the character, up against others and up against the world. Readers looking for a a great private eye novel with heart need to look no farther.
Average customer rating:
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Looking for Rachel Wallace
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Hardcover
| Parker, Robert B.
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ASIN: B000FRYHCK |
Average customer rating:
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Looking for Rachel Wallace
Manufacturer: Dell Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GYUKK0 |
Average customer rating:
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Looking for Rachel Wallace
Robert B. PARKER
Manufacturer: Delacorte Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Hardcover
| Parker, Robert B.
| ( P )
| Authors, A-Z
| Mystery & Thrillers
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ASIN: B000OPQDZM |
Product Description
multiple books ship as one item. save on shipping/handling charges.
Product Description
5 Mass Market Paperback Titles in Spencer Novel Series: God Save the Child - Mortal Stakes - Promised Land - The Judas Goat - Looking for Rachel Wallace
Customer Reviews:
An excellent anthology........2007-08-24
A collection of short stories written by fans of Marion Zimmer Bradley's "Darkover" series, edited by Ms. Bradley herself, this is a very enjoyable read. Like almost all anthologies, some of the stories are stronger than others; personally, I wasn't much taken with "Girls Will Be Girls", by Patricia Shaw-Mathews, but even that story was entertaining and well-written; I just didn't feel that it treated the Comhi-Letzii with the respect they were due. It was an enjoyable piece of fluff, but a piece of fluff nonetheless, and seemed to me out of place. But any anthology which can claim that the worst story in it is well-written but possibly a bit out of character for the subject is doing pretty well.
Of course, if you've read Darkover fiction before and didn't care for the stories of Free Amazons, you may want to give this one a pass, but I shouldn't need to tell you that; the title should be all the hint you need.
2 versions of the oath + 18 short stories.......2002-12-02
Armistead, Barbara: "On the Trail" features two of Kindra's band from THE SHATTERED CHAIN.
Bigelow, Jane M.H.: "Tactics" Neither Bronwyn or her cousin Danilys are Renunciates. Bronwyn's marriage is disintegrating, as her husband Donal cares only for warfare; when he isn't fighting, he talks tactics at the dinner table. When he's killed in battle, however, the tedium stands the cousins in good stead.
Boal, Nina: "The Meeting" A magician from another culture, with reversed male/female social roles, strays onto Darkover.
Bradley, Marion Zimmer: "The Legend of Lady Bruna" was cut from THENDARA HOUSE, where it would have been a story-within-a-story read to Margali and Jaelle.
Bradley, Marion Zimmer: "Knives" Marna, a contemporary of Gwennis of THENDARA HOUSE, has often ventured to the local Guildhouse on business - but this time, although she's a year underage, she seeks sanctuary from her stepfather's abuse and her mother's disbelief.
Breen, Walter and Jaida n'ha Sandra each present a version of the oath - Breen's analysis of *the* oath, Jaida's a version tailored to 20th century society. Breen was MZB's husband, incidentally.
Carter, Margaret: "Her Own Blood" Gwennis' putative father often called her six-fathered when he beat her for her 'seizures', but she didn't know it was true until her mother brought her to Dom Elric - the only man who could have given her flame-colored hair, let alone the untrained, unidentified laran that brings on the seizures. Gwennis' life as a junior servant is a vast improvement, but given that Elric's only son is like to die of haemophilia, her life may not remain peaceful for long.
Holtzer, Susan: "The Camel's Nose" Seven Domains society is notoriously technophobic, but there are anomalies in every society. Elinda's love of technology drew her into the Renunciates, and from thence to study Terran engineering. Upon seeing her first bicycle, she feels it's obviously superior to a horse, and Cholayna Ares is willing to let her try this unusual entering wedge for technology, which falls outside the ban on powered devices.
Kramer, Sherry: "The Banshee" Janet Rhodes, Terranan biologist, gets more than she bargained for when her hosts introduce her to the fine art of banshee-removal.
Lackey, Mercedes: "A Different Kind of Courage" Rafi's rejection from Keeper training drove her into the Guildhouse to escape being sold into marriage as a broodmare. Her oathsisters see her as a disastrous failure at everything she tries: she's almost supernaturally clumsy, and timid to boot. But when a courier team is to be sent to Caer Donn, her familiarity with Keeper protocol puts her on the team, despite her inability to defend herself. (Compare her with the more assertive Herald-Chronicler Myste in EXILE'S HONOR - neither lady can fight her way out of a henhouse. If you like this story, try Elizabeth Moon's 'Gut Feelings' in LUNAR ACTIVITY, where a similarly timid personality develops backbone under pressure.)
Paxson, Diana: "The Mother Quest" Caitrin raised her son to the age of four - but no male past five may live in a Guildhouse, so she finally gave him up to his father's custody. Four years later, word has come of his death - but Donal's half-sister follows hard on its heels to mount a rescue operation.
Riggs, P. Alexandra: "To Open a Door" Buartha fled rape and betrayal in the Domains to a hermit's life in the Hellers with her daughter. But now her daughter's laran is beginning to flower
Shannon, Maureen: "Recruits" The narrator is the housemother of the Sisterhood of the Sword's new house in Caer Donn, left to the Sisterhood in gratitude by a man whose sister left a life of prostitution to join the Sisterhood. Since they're forbidden to actively recruit, Maellen worries over how anybody will find out they're here - needlessly, as it turns out. *Everybody's* heard of old Larren's will. There's an old saying that every Renuciate's story is a tragedy, but the motley crew of recruits who appear on the first day test that theory.
Shaw-Matthews, Patricia: "Girls Will Be Girls" My favorite. Catlyn, Dalise, and Ariane react to the standard 'your childhood has put chains on you' with laughter - 'well, they *tried*.' They're wild - a living challenge to sober Renunciate discipline, even without the practical jokes. :)
Shwartz, Susan: "Growing Pains" Like 'Girls Will Be Girls', this story makes the point that a misfit in the outside world may also be a misfit in the Guildhouse. After the fall of the Forbidden Tower, Catriona can't get laran training even at Neskaya. She plans to follow her foster-brother into the Empire, but her oath-sisters see Ann'dra's payback of old debts as a violation of the oath.
Silvestri, Margaret: "Cast Off Your Chains" Marissa Del Gado has hired Guild guides to take her into the desert - but her real goal is to rescue her sister Teri. Teri, it turns out, fell into the hands of Dry-Town slavers - and after escaping, has her own goal: establishing a new Underground Railroad.
Verba, Joan Marie: "This One Time" A childhood story of Lady Bruna Leynier, told from her mother's viewpoint. When Lord Alton leaves a skeleton force at home during a bandit-hunt, another band of raiders attack the estate.
Waters, Elisabeth: "Child of the Heart" As with Caitrin in 'The Mother Quest' (see above), Jamilla has given birth to a son - but she has chosen to give him up at birth.
Wheeler, Deborah: "Midwife" Trapped in a banshee's nest while travelling alone, Gavi helps the egg hatch - only to have the giant predator imprint on her. :)
An excellent antidote to Testosterone Poisoning.......2000-10-05
If you've grown tired (as I occasionally do) of fantasy and science fiction filled with either damsels in distress or "women warriors" who seem to spend most of their time half-dressed, give this collection a read. You'll feel much better.
The quality is uneven, of course, and there were some stories I didn't particularly care for (which kept this from being a five-star review). My two favorites were "Knives" and "A Different Kind of Courage," but your mileage may vary, as always.
There's something for almost everyone here, unless you WANT half-dressed warrior women and damsels in distress. :)
wonderful characters, excellent plot.......2000-04-01
A foundation stone to understanding the Guild of Renunciates (Free Amazons). The characters have great depth, and the plot is compelling. They should reprint this book!
Average customer rating:
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Free Amazons of Darkover
Manufacturer: Daw Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GRRKQO |
Product Description
Set of 5 novels from the Darkover series: Sharra's Exile, The Forbidden Tower, Free Amazon's of Darkover, StormQueen!, City of Sorcery.
Average customer rating:
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Free Amazons of Darkover
Manufacturer: New Amer Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GRQ4XY |
Book Description
A serious but down-to-earth tone encourages readers to embrace conflict rather than run from it. The author's experiences as a school psychologist, educator and practicing Buddhist demonstrate how conflict serves as a catalyst for examining childhood beliefs, engaging in dialogue and finding peace in all our relationships.
Book Description
Voyage to Mars is the gripping story of an elite group of visionary scientists and their passionate quest to explore our closest cousin in the solar system. Acclaimed biographer Laurence Bergreen "goes to where the action is-NASA-profiling the scientists who are trying to make a manned mission to Mars a reality" (San Diego Union Tribune). It is a true adventure story of our time, about a modern-day odyssey that will not only push the limits of science, but will change our understanding of the universe and ourselves.
"Voyage to Mars makes a compelling case for the inevitability of a [manned] mission to Mars... Bergreen does a good and serious job. By focusing on selected individual men and women, he brings to life the rather abstract scientific and bureaucratic processes that drive NASA's Mars program. The reader gets a sense of the drama, the intense joys and disappointments, of science at the outer edge of knowledge." (Los Angeles Times)
"It's not hard to get caught up in the spirit of the enterprise, and it's impossible not to like the irrepressible Garvin or admire his unself-conscious, unabashed commitment to Mars. Bergreen is particularly engaging on the intense (and intensely personal) controversy-as yet unresolved-over ALH 84001, the Martian meteorite. In a heart-thumping, stomach-churning final chapter, Bergreen harrowingly relates what it would be like to be an astronaut on the way to Mars. Voyage to Mars is likely to draw even the sourest reader into the ranks of cheerleaders. Mars or bust! (Wired)
Customer Reviews:
A Behind the Scenes Book about Mars Exploration.......2001-06-29
While Laurence Bergreen's book "Voyage to Mars" does contain some information about Mars space missions, robotic probes, and scientific study of Mars, it is primarily about the scientists, both men and women, who study Mars and design experiments for NASA robotic explorers and how they dedicated their lives to the study and exploration of this planet. Most of the book covers the people involved in Mars research since the Mars Observer failure in 1992.
This book follows the lives (personal and professional) of several NASA scientists who study Mars, whether they're off in some remote location studying geology that's similar to Mars or designing an experiment for a robotic exploration mission. The book includes the many battles that each one fights, whether is with NASA bureaucracy, their personal lives, with each other for experiments to be flown on an upcoming Mars spacecraft, or dealing with each other's conflicting theories on Martian geological history. One of the things that I gleaned from reading this book is that while each of the people maybe specialized in a given area, they all have a board background in planetary sciences and spacecraft design. Also, there seems to be a lot jealously between scientists, especially for those people who worked on the "Life on Mars" Rock. It was also nice to see that a good portion of the people that NASA employs are women.
Since I've known several of the people involved in Mars research who are described in this book for over a decade, I can definitely say that the stories presented are true and I found the personal descriptions of various individuals to be dead on as well as those of NASA facilities. The book could, however, benefit from some photos and illustrations instead of the detailed of various Martian geological features. It also would have been nice to some parts of the book devoted to the engineers who help make these missions possible, but that might be an inappropriate topic for this book.
Excellent look inside a science team..........2001-03-29
Bergreen's book is a very intimate look at how science really works. In successive chapters, he takes us inside four groups of men and women: the team of scientists that worked on the Martian meteorite ALH84001; the Mars Pathfinder/Sojourner team, the team in charge of the Mars Global Surveyor's laser altimeter, and finally, inside Dan Goldin's NASA. What we see is a far cry from the polished interviews on TV, or the neatly written articles in Nature or Science. The truth is that scientists rarely agree on anything other than very broad assumptions, and often not even on those. Instead, scientists, even those working together on the same project, can heatedly disagree with one another's assumptions or interpretations, making it difficult to agree on the best way data should be released to the public.
An example from the MGS laser altimeter team (specifically the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter or MOLA). This instrument shoots blasts of laser light from the orbiting spacecraft to the surface of Mars, and times their return to the sensor. By doing so, an incredibly accurate topographical relief map of Mars can be created. However, Mars has no absolute altitude marker like Earth (sea-level). Therefore, the scientists have to agree on an altitude reference against which all other measurements are compared. The specific reference chosen is critical because it will be used in all subsequent analyses of MOLA data. Any error could potentially be a spoiler for generations of future reserachers. Bergreen was there when they discussed whether they were ready to commit to an altitude reference and start releasing data (many team members argued "yes!") or whether more data and study were needed before the team published such critical information (other team members said "wait!").
Also typical was the conflict in choosing a landing site for the Mars Polar Lander. Scientists pour over the data from MGS and pick a site that is geologically interesting. Engineers pour over the MGS data and pick a site that is safe. The two goals are often at direct odds with one another. The engineers want stastical rock-counts so that they can ensure their craft won't topple over a boulder. Scientists argue that the sites chosen by the engineers will nullify all the science objectives of the mission. Such discussions can quickly become personal as emotions boil over and passionate beliefs give way to shouting contests.
Bergreen's book is in many ways reminiscent of Overbye's Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos, only directed at Planetary scientists instead of cosmologists. This book will be of extreme interest to Marsophiles, but will also be enlightening to those who want an inside look at Dan Goldin's NASA, or at the process actually followed by scientists in the trenches. I recommend this book highly to these two groups as well as anyone else who hasn't updated their knowledge of Mars exploration since Viking.
In many ways, this book was not really about Mars!.......2001-03-07
Although on the surface this is a book about the recent robotic missions to Mars, the book is really an exploration of the culture of the project scientists at NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Bergreen paints very full portraits of many key people involved in NASA, JPL, etc including the scientists, graduate students, industry representatives, etc. The book reminded me very much of Jim Watson's excellent account of his work to elucidate the structure of DNA, "The Race for the Double Helix" in that it showed the human side of science. Jim Garvin, Jim Head, Sean Solomon, and the other scientists in this book seek good and solid data, but also (understandably) seek publications in prestigious journals to advance their careers. They worry openly about funding and grant support. Jim Garvin has what sounds like a strained relationship with his wife, who does not really seem to understand her husband's passion and dedication. Some of the investigators don't like each other, and show this openly. These sorts of interludes were very interesting as many books about science and scientists are sterile and portray scientists as absent-minded-professor types who are not grounded in the real world (which is only very rarely the case).
The book is very readable and well written. My only complaint is that the book would have benefited from some illustrations. The images from the Mars Orbiter were discussed ad nauseum, but no representative images were between the covers of the book! Also, I would have liked to have seen a few photos of some of the hardware and researchers discussed.
Mars: A Personal Odyssey.......2000-12-19
Travelers often opine that the experience of a trip itself, the way stations and characters encountered, rather than the final destination, is the most exciting aspect of a journey. After reading Laurence Bergreen's latest offering, VOYAGE TO MARS: NASA'S SEARCH FOR LIFE BEYOND EARTH (hardcover edition), one may reasonably conclude that the peripatetic author is as fascinated with the personas and psyches of the various individuals he encounters along the way as he is with the ostensible subject of the book: Mars. Indeed, a glance at Bergreen's previous books, works covering the gamut from Al Capone to Louis Armstrong to Irving Berlin, shows that the author is a keen observer and no stranger to character studies; his most recent book is no exception.
Bergreen's tour, which starts on Surtsey, a volcanic island off the Icelandic coast, eventually ends on Mars. Throughout, he manages to weave an interesting narrative, replete with detailed personal observations of the scientists and engineers he encounters along the way, which is interspersed with some fairly decent Mars science written in layspeak. The author recounts the often-rancorous Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) team meetings and the clash of egos between scientists pushing their own competing theories and hypotheses about Mars. He encounters scientists in the nascent astrobiology community, some of who are veterans from the Viking mission to Mars of the mid-1970's, and who have bittersweet memories of the main finding from that mission, namely that Mars was a lifeless world. He smoothly segues into the modern view (based on more recent analyses) that the question of life on Mars, either extant or extinct, may not be a closed issue. The reader is caught up in the excitement and the glimpses into the inner sanctum, which is made all the more fascinating because the subject is the Red Planet. The reading is pleasurable (I read the entire book in two sittings) and insightful, but there are a few problems. As a scientist, I am trained to be alert to what is termed "observational bias", which, upon careful reading, appears to raise its head in the pages of the book. It is almost axiomatic that scientists, as well as science teams, tend to be very competitive. So it is not surprising that Bergreen appears to view the world primarily through the prism of the MOLA team. Indeed, he seems to accept their characterizations of others (especially competitors on the other MGS science teams); an interesting parallel to Stockholm syndrome. Additionally, given that Bergreen is really not a "participant" in the normal sense of the word, there are the inevitable factual errors (mostly minor) that are sprinkled throughout the book. Without wanting to appear as a nitpicker, I'll list a few that came to my attention:
Page 104: "...the same moment in 1993 when Mars Observer slipped behind Mars and never resumed contact with Earth." Fact: The failed Mars Observer spacecraft lost contact with Earth three days BEFORE Mars Orbit Insertion and Earth occultation.
Page 104: "For the first time in twenty-one years, a spacecraft [Mars Global Surveyor] was orbiting Mars." Fact: The author is apparently unaware of the Soviet Phobos 2 spacecraft, which successfully entered Mars orbit on January 29, 1989, although the spacecraft was lost in March of 1989 when controllers lost contact while it was approaching its primary target, Phobos, the larger of the two Martian moons.
Page 111: "...[Mars Observer] and finally launched in 1991." Fact: Mars Observer launched in 1992.
Page 114: "He's [Malin] a member of the MOLA team." Fact: Dr. Michael C. Malin is Principal Investigator for the Mars Orbiter Camera team and a Co-Investigator for the Thermal Emission Spectrometer team; he is not a member of the MOLA team, and would therefore normally not be expected to attend their meetings. This "factual error" by the author is less innocuous than it appears and perhaps was colored by observational bias accruing from his association with the MOLA team. Moreover, the misidentification is used to strengthen his claims that Malin is secretive, elusive, one who holds onto data, and one who does not respond to email, etc., which do not appear to be well-supported by the facts, although one can easily believe that the MOLA team encouraged this view. In fairness, though, it is possible that the author simply confused membership on the MOLA team with membership on the much larger and more inclusive MGS Project Science Group.
Page 138: "...and the Journal of Geophysics Review." Fact: After checking with the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) online database, I discovered that no such journal exists. It is likely that the author confused two separate journals, the Journal of Geophysical Research and Geophysical Research Letters, both of which are key publications for planetary scientists.
Page 205: "Stardust will swing around Mars..." Fact: The Stardust spacecraft did not and will not "swing around Mars." It does, however, travel beyond Mars' orbit, but never comes closer than several million kilometers to the Red Planet at any time during its baseline mission.
Page 216: "And a little camera will pop up..." Fact: The author, while apparently describing a portion of the mission profile for the two Deep Space 2 penetrators (part of the failed Mars Surveyor 98 mission), incorrectly describes their instrument packages. There was no camera aboard either of the impact probes; however, Bergreen may be referring to the Surface Stereo Imager, a camera system aboard the Mars Polar Lander.
Despite these errors (which might have been eliminated by more careful proofreading and better research), the book is a fascinating read and, given the relative lack of publicity on the subject, a good source of information on the current state of Mars exploration efforts. If for no other reason, though, I would recommend the book for its introduction to the reader of some of the key figures in Mars exploration, past and present, which gives a personality to the often obscure names that are only found in science journals.
Average customer rating:
- A Classic of Hard Science Fiction- Holds Up After 50 Years
|
Beyond Mars
Manufacturer: Blackthorne
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0932629849 |
Customer Reviews:
A Classic of Hard Science Fiction- Holds Up After 50 Years.......2005-09-22
_Blackthorne publishing is to be commended for resurrecting this two-volume set of the entire run of the pioneering "Beyond Mars" comic strip. This strip ran exclusively in the old New York Sunday News from 1952 to 1955. It was far ahead of its time- and one of the best hard science fiction strips ever published. The writer was science fiction pioneer Jack Williamson, and the artist, Lee Elias. Elias had also worked on Terry and the Pirates and he carried over the same highly detailed style into this strip. Volume one has a nice introduction written by Williamson on the history of project.
_The strip itself centered around the main character of Mike Flint, licensed spatial engineer and free-lance pilot. Flint is headquartered on Brooklyn Rock, in the new frontier of the asteroid belt- in the year 2191. In fact, the entire strip has the feeling of the excitement of a new, booming frontier- full of post-war optimism for a bright scientific future. Indeed, the freshness of the strip really holds up- it is hard to believe that it ran half a century ago.
_An interesting feature is the "Space Guard" introduced in this series. You can see where it originated from Williamson's "Space Legion" (a boyhood favorite of Asimov's.) It is also obviously the inspiration for Elias' excellent later work on "Tommy Tomorrow and the Planeteers" for D.C. comics.
_Both volumes are printed in black and white except for the excellent cover art. Only volume one has Williamson's introduction. These two books contain every strip of the entire run.
_This page refers to volume two.
Book Description
This electronic book and video file collection on eight CD-ROMs provides the complete story of the President's Commission on Implementation of United States Space Exploration Policy, chaired by Pete Aldridge, which issued its final report in June 2004. In addition to the report itself in high resolution PDF format, we provide comprehensive background material: the full set of hearing minutes, transcripts, and slide presentations from the five public field hearings:
February 11, 2004, National Transportation Safety Board, Washington, D.C.;
March 3-4, 2004, United States Air Force Museum, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio;
March 24-25, 2004, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, Georgia;
April 15-17, 2004, Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, San Francisco, California;
May 3-4, 2004, Asia Society, New York City.
The highlight of this superset: an incredible, historic collection of almost forty hours of video files, in RM Real Media player format, showing the testimony and deliberations at the public hearings! The video is closed captioned with audio. Here are just some of the witnesses included in the videos:
* Norman Augustine, Report on the Future of the U.S. Space Program
* General Tom Stafford (Ret.), Report on America at the Threshold
* Ray Bradbury
* Rusty Schweickart
* Cort Durocher, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
* Mark Bitterman, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
* Sean O'Keefe, NASA Administrator
* Numerous panels with experts from many fields
From the Executive Summary of the Report: "On January 14, 2004, President George W. Bush announced a new vision for America's civil space program that calls for human and robotic missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. This vision set forth goals of: returning the Space Shuttle safely to flight; completing the International Space Station (ISS); phasing out the Space Shuttle when the ISS is complete (about 2010); sending a robotic orbiter and lander to the Moon; sending a human expedition to the Moon as early as 2015, but no later than 2020; conducting robotic missions to Mars in preparation for a future human expedition; and conducting robotic exploration across the solar system. Such a focus for the American space program has not existed since the Apollo era and establishes a much-needed direction and purpose for our national space efforts. While discovery is the goal of space exploration, the Commission is certain that the benefits here on Earth will make the journey at least as important as the destination. The long-term, ambitious space agenda advanced by the President for robotic and human exploration will significantly help the United States protect its technological leadership, economic vitality, and security."
This CD-ROM set has over 1,200 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software and Reader software is included. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, and portable!
Our CD-ROMs are privately-compiled collections of official public domain U.S. government files and documents - they are not produced by the federal government. They are designed to provide a convenient user-friendly reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapidly reviewed, searched, or printed without untold hours of tedious searching and downloading. Vast archives of important public domain government information that might otherwise remain inaccessible are available for instant review no matter where you are. This book-on-a-disc set makes a superb reference work for scientists, researchers, libraries, schools, students, and home reference!
Book Description
Here is the final report of the President's Commission on Implementation of United States Space Exploration Policy, issued in June 2004, titled "A Journey to Inspire, Innovate, and Discover". The commission, headed by Pete Aldridge, was formed by President Bush to examine and make recommendations on the implementation of the Vision for Space Exploration announced in January. The executive summary of the report states: "On January 14, 2004, President George W. Bush announced a new vision for America's civil space program that calls for human and robotic missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. This vision set forth goals of: returning the Space Shuttle safely to flight; completing the International Space Station (ISS); phasing out the Space Shuttle when the ISS is complete (about 2010); sending a robotic orbiter and lander to the Moon; sending a human expedition to the Moon as early as 2015, but no later than 2020; conducting robotic missions to Mars in preparation for a future human expedition; and conducting robotic exploration across the solar system. Such a focus for the American space program has not existed since the Apollo era and establishes a much-needed direction and purpose for our national space efforts. While discovery is the goal of space exploration, the Commission is certain that the benefits here on Earth will make the journey at least as important as the destination. The long-term, ambitious space agenda advanced by the President for robotic and human exploration will significantly help the United States protect its technological leadership, economic vitality, and security. This ambitious path of exploration and the achievements made along the way will inspire the nation's youth, yield scientific breakthroughs, create high technology jobs, improve our industrial competitiveness, demonstrate America's leadership, and improve prosperity and the quality of life for all Americans."
In addition to the Aldridge report, we have a complete reproduction of an important NASA document, the Bioastronautics Critical Path Roadmap (BCPR) Baseline Document, Revision D for 2003, which outlines 55 major risks to long-duration human missions. The BCPR is a systematic approach to the goal of reducing and managing risks to crew health, safety, and performance during, and following, all human space flight missions. It offers a guide for the prioritization of research and technology efforts aimed toward that goal.
Categories covered in this detailed report include:
* Advanced Life Support;
* Bone Loss;
* Cardiovascular Alterations;
* Environmental Health;
* Food & Nutrition;
* Human Behavior & Performance;
* Immunology,
* Infection & Hematology;
* Muscle Alterations & Atrophy;
* Neurovestibular Adaptation;
* Radiation Effects; and
* Clinical Capabilities.
Book Description
This electronic book on CD-ROM provides the final report of the President's Commission on Implementation of United States Space Exploration Policy, issued in June 2004. In addition to the report itself in high resolution PDF format, we provide extensive background material: the full set of hearing minutes, transcripts, and slide presentations from the five public field hearings (February 11, 2004, National Transportation Safety Board, Washington, D.C.; March 3-4, 2004, United States Air Force Museum, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio; March 24-25, 2004, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, Georgia; April 15-17, 2004, Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, San Francisco, California; May 3-4, 2004, Asia Society, New York City.)
We also have four video files with almost three hours of material:
* the Bush announcement and NASA introduction;
* testimony at the February hearing by General Tom Stafford (Ret.), Report on America at the Threshold;
* testimony at the March hearing by Buzz Aldrin; and
* the "rollout" video presentation of the report narrated by Neil Armstrong followed by the press conference.
From the Executive Summary: "On January 14, 2004, President George W. Bush announced a new vision for America's civil space program that calls for human and robotic missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. This vision set forth goals of: returning the Space Shuttle safely to flight; completing the International Space Station (ISS); phasing out the Space Shuttle when the ISS is complete (about 2010); sending a robotic orbiter and lander to the Moon; sending a human expedition to the Moon as early as 2015, but no later than 2020; conducting robotic missions to Mars in preparation for a future human expedition; and conducting robotic exploration across the solar system. Such a focus for the American space program has not existed since the Apollo era and establishes a much-needed direction and purpose for our national space efforts. While discovery is the goal of space exploration, the Commission is certain that the benefits here on Earth will make the journey at least as important as the destination. The long-term, ambitious space agenda advanced by the President for robotic and human exploration will significantly help the United States protect its technological leadership, economic vitality, and security. This ambitious path of exploration and the achievements made along the way will inspire the nation's youth, yield scientific breakthroughs, create high technology jobs, improve our industrial competitiveness, demonstrate America's leadership, and improve prosperity and the quality of life for all Americans." This CD-ROM has over 1,200 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software and Reader software is included. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, and portable!
Our CD-ROMs are privately-compiled collections of official public domain U.S. government files and documents - they are not produced by the federal government. They are designed to provide a convenient user-friendly reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapidly reviewed, searched, or printed without untold hours of tedious searching and downloading. Vast archives of important public domain government information that might otherwise remain inaccessible are available for instant review no matter where you are. This book-on-a-disc makes a superb reference work for scientists, researchers, libraries, schools, students, and home reference!
Average customer rating:
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21st Century and Beyond Future Space Transportation: Complete Guide to Advanced Concepts and Rockets – Nuclear, Fusion, Elevators, Antimatter, Science Fiction Ideas, Moon - Mars Vision Plans (DVD-ROM)
World Spaceflight News
Manufacturer: Progressive Management
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM
Mars
| Astronomy
| Science
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
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2006 Complete Guide to NASA's New Moon Program, Post-Shuttle Spacecraft and Launchers, Crew Exploration Vehicle, New Heavy Rockets, Lunar Landing Plans, Mars Missions (DVD-ROM)
ASIN: 1422001148 |
Product Description
This unique electronic book on DVD-ROM has an amazing and comprehensive collection of the finest NASA and federal research documents and resources on futuristic space transportation concepts and advanced rocket plans, with a wide range of exciting “breakthrough” concepts for possible use in the future. Nuclear rockets, fusion systems, hypersonics, space elevators, solar sails, ion electric engines, antimatter engines, tethers, beamed energy and laser propulsion, plasma thrusters, scramjets, interstellar sails, helicon-wave thrusters, and nuclear fusion rockets are included, with proposals for the exploration of Mars, asteroids, the outer planets, and even stars! Let your imagination soar as you read some of these incredible ideas that could take humanity far beyond where chemical rockets can travel. In addition, there is complete coverage of the plans announced in September 2005 for implementing the Vision for Space Exploration, created by President George W. Bush. It has the full presentation, with video animation clips, of the program to replace the Space Shuttle with an Apollo-like Crew Exploration Vehicle and a Shuttle-derived heavy-lift cargo rocket designed for returning American astronauts to the moon. The disc includes full coverage of space elevator and tether concepts and plans. A space elevator is a physical connection from the surface of the Earth to a geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) above the Earth 35,786 km in altitude. Its center of mass is at the geostationary point such that it has a 24-hr orbit and stays over the same point above the equator as the Earth rotates on its axis. The vision is that a space elevator would be utilized as a transportation and utility system for moving people, payloads, power, and gases between the surface of the Earth and space. It makes the physical connection from Earth to space in the same way a bridge connects two cities across a body of water. The Earth to GEO space elevator is not feasible today, but could be an important concept for the future development of space in the latter part of the 21st century. It has the potential to provide mass transportation to space in the same way highways, railroads, power lines, and pipelines provide mass transportation across the Earth's surface. Given proper planning for the development of critical technologies, it appears that space elevator construction could become feasible. This incredible CD-ROM is packed with over 24,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software - allowing direct viewing on Windows and Macintosh systems. Advanced search and indexing features are built into our reproduction, providing a complete full-text index. This enables the user to search all the files on the disk at one time for words or phrases using just one search command! The Acrobat cataloging technology adds enormous value and uncommon functionality to this impressive collection of government documents and material. Our news and educational CD-ROM and DVD-ROM discs are privately compiled collections of official public domain U.S. government files and documents - they are not produced by the federal government. They are designed to provide a convenient user-friendly reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Adobe Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapidly reviewed, searched by finding specific words, or printed without untold hours of tedious research and downloading. Vast archives of important public domain government information that might otherwise remain inaccessible are available for instant review no matter where you are. This book-on-a-disc format makes a great reference work and educational tool. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, thoroughly researched, and portable - everything you need to know, from the federal sources you trust. This DVD-ROM disc is for use in a computer DVD drive. The files can be accessed from the File Explorer in the same way that you
Product Description
Mass market paperback by Popular Library, Inc., 1968. Ten startling sci-fi adventures by Anderson, Bloch, Brunner, Campbell, Dick, Hamilton, Russell, Sheckley, Simak, Wyndham. 176 pp
Average customer rating:
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Beyond Infinity
Manufacturer: Dell Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 1440007810 |
Product Description
Science Fiction
Book Description
Hearty bistro fare such as crisp pommes frites paired with a sizzling pepper-coated steak. Rustic country dishes, including coq au vin and fragrant seafood stew. Decadent desserts such as crème brûlée and cherry clafoutis. These are the simple recipes that capture the essence of French cuisine.
Williams-Sonoma Collection French offers more than 40 delicious and satisfying recipes, from time-honored classics to inspired new ideas, all designed for the way you cook today. When paired with a glass of wine and a fresh baguette, recipes such as caramelized onion tart or endive salad with beets and goat cheese make the perfect light lunch or casual dinner. For special celebrations, serve roasted asparagus with hazelnut oil vinaigrette alongside filets mignons with Roquefort sauce. Whether you enjoy the well-loved dishes of the French countryside or want to entertain with Parisian panache, here are recipes for every occasion.
Beautiful full-color photographs of each dish help you decide which one to prepare, and each recipe contains a photographic side note with additional information on key ingredients and techniques. With an informative chapter that covers the basics of French cuisine, as well as an extensive glossary, this essential volume will help you make simple French cooking part of your everyday culinary repertoire.
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- Murder in Montmartre (Aimee Leduc Investigation)
- Murder Makes Waves (Southern Sisters Mysteries)
- Murder of a Barbie and Ken (Scumble River Mysteries, Book 5)
- Murder on Astor Place (Gaslight Mystery)
- Murder on St. Mark's Place (Gaslight Mystery)
- Murder on the Iditarod Trail (Alaska Mysteries)
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