Amazon.com
In Harm Done, Rendell has added a remarkable strand of acute social commentary to a book that still functions as an utterly compelling piece of detective fiction. In exploring the controversial subject of pedophilia, she takes the mainstay of her work--the problems of modern life--to a level of passion and commitment that gives the book a truly powerful underpinning.
Back in the familiar Sussex town of Kingsmarkham, Rendell's dogged sleuth Wexford is investigating the strange abductions of two young girls: Rachel, a bright middle-class student, and Lizzie, a mentally disabled 16-year-old living with her unsympathetic parents on a grim council estate. When both girls return home, apparently unharmed, Wexford is faced with a curious mystery: what really happened to them? As Wexford begins to uncover the disturbing truth, the dark psychological world that Rendell is so adroit at exploring suddenly comes into focus. And her gift for sharp but concise characterization remains untouchable, as in the case of a reluctant witness: '''We don't talk about that sort of thing.' She very nearly but not quite tossed her head." --Barry Forshaw, Amazon.co.uk
Book Description
The search for the body commenced. Then the victim walked into town.
Behind the picture-postcard façade of Kingsmarkham lies a community rife with violence, betrayal, and a taste for vengeance. When sixteen-year-old Lizzie Cromwell reappears no one knows where she has been, including Lizzie herself. Inspector Wexford thinks she was with a boyfriend. But the disappearance of a three-year-old girl casts a more ominous light on events. And when the public's outrage turns toward a recently released pederast and another suspect turns up stabbed to death, Wexford must try to unravel the mystery before any more bodies appear, and before a mob of local vigilantes metes out a rough justice to their least favorite suspect. In
Harm Done, the violence is near at hand, and evil lies just a few doors down the block.
Customer Reviews:
Good Story.......2007-07-07
The narrator of the CD production of Harm Done that I listened to was Portia Davinia. She did a great job with the voices and accents of the different characters. There are several mysteries (small and big) that Detective Wexford is involved with. Wexford is a clever and kindly man. This was an entertaining listening experience.
No one does this like Ruth Rendell.......2007-05-25
No one can take on real and hot issues and deal with them like Ruth Rendell does. She is probably one of the premiere novelists out there. In this book she takes on the topic of "wife abuse", and builds a mystery around it. There are a number of things at play here. There is society dealing with the release of a convicted pedophile, there is a young girl who finds herself pregnant by an older man, and there are some girls disappearing for two or three days, and the stories they have when they get back make Wexford shake his head. But overriding of all of this is wife abuse, and the havoc it wreaks on families. Ms. Rendell can tell a story, and increase her readers' social consciences with it.
Too Much Tackled.......2007-01-04
I have read 1 other Ruth Rendell book, and one Barbara Vine (her pen name) book and can tell you that Ruth Rendell strikes me as a good writer. This book is well written, but somewhat hard to follow. To me, the problem was that the book tackled too many story lines. She started with an abduction story, moved to a pedophile story, and ended with a spousal abuse story. Yes, the three stories all tied together, but not well enough (as far as I can see) to justify the book. I would have loved to see the abduction story developed into a full novel instead of being used as a filler in this book.
I will admit I was disappointed in the book, but not because it was a bad book, rather because I expected more from the author. I will definately read another Ruth Rendell book as I believe this book just falls into the "not one of her best" category.
Rendell is always at her best.......2006-03-26
This murder mystery was captivating, dark and insightful. I would recomend this book even for people who are not fans of the genre. The writing is simply brilliant and thats all there is to say about Ruth Rendell.
Not RR's Best, but still Mostly Excellent!!!.......2005-10-07
I admit that this author is one of the very few whom I have finished every book by her that I started, no small achievement! As a "non mystery" examining the lifestyles of the rich and poor in current England, it is a wonderful multi-layered book covering social problems like wife and child abuse, disappearing young ladies, mob psychology, pedophiles, and lots more. The descriptions and interactions between all the actors here are right up to top of RR's books. Some of it is beautifully written, and flows along wonderfully. However, this novel does not supply the usual amount of creeping menace that really makes RR among the top in her field. So, since this is a slightly flawed mystery with all the elements of literary razzle dazzle usually associated with the author, it may not be among her very best. Plus the ultimate resolution seems a bit stilted, if not downright unrealistic. Nonetheless, another outstanding journey thru contempoary English society, with the police procedural angle not quite up to her best. In other words, this would be "5 Stars" for about anyone else, but not quite for this top drawer author!
Book Description
The American Sign Language Phrase Book functions as both an instant reference tool and a long-term study guide for those interested in understanding and utilizing ASL.
Customer Reviews:
Helpful Reference.......2007-09-25
This book is very helpful with basics, but beyond simple phrases it does not contain very many signs... recommended for people learning sign language from scratch. Also, one should cross-reference with a A.S.L. online database to make sure signs are up-to-date.
Sign Language Phrase Book.......2007-09-18
This book teaches the use of simple phrases that are used in everyday speech. A good book.
Funky little book!.......2007-06-03
This is a great little book and is very helpful. The pictures of the strange guy with an ever changing nose are cute and amusng
Excellent, easy to use resource........2007-05-09
I have learned a lot about ASL grammar as well as useful phrases from this book. Although I know that I will not be able to attain interpreter status by studying ASL on my own, I have used this book, the Signing Illustrated by Mickey Flodin, and the Barron's ASL The Easy Way to learn enough ASL to be fairly communicative.
Mr. Fant's book is organized by categories, which is the most efficient way to learn ASL I am finding out, and it includes detailed notes on syntax, and useful phrases.
Although no one book can stand alone as the "definitive resource," the 3 I have mentioned are excellent resources for the serious ASL student like myself. I carry the Fant book around and brush up on my phrases whenever I am at a doctor's appointment, or I'm waiting to pick the kids up from school or at a sporting event.
5+stars.
the syntax grasp.......2007-02-22
This book was a great help to disconnect from manual signed english and flow into ASL. Once you get enough of the vocabulary down, this book will help you to understand the difference in syntax and grammer, and ultimately, it helped me to communicate faster.
Customer Reviews:
A good start, but not too complete........2007-06-16
There's very few entries in this dictionary. I've seen word lists in films that contain thousands of entries. This maybe contains a hundred or two.
One benefit to this is that the glyphs are very big- one inch by one inch- huge, really, and you can see all the details necessary for drawing them yourself.
But it's not too terribly scholarly. If a guy wants to be fluent in this language as a careers (as I), very soon (5 years) I'll outgrow this dictionary and need another of greater depth.
Here's the big-picture low-down: ancient languages (Archaic Sumerian, Oracle Bone Script Chinese, even Middle Egyptian!) like this are poorly represented in public-accessable books, despite the number of interested scholars we have devoted to these these languages. This is something I see historically in anthro-archaeological academia: No one pubishes to get the information to the pubic, even in their own country.
I would like to become an expert in all of these languages and others and write many books for the English-speaking market. Until then, we'll have to settle for a limited selection by a labotomized group of knowledge-hogs.
lemuria.......2004-07-30
A good dictionary for studying Mayan inscriptions.I hope J.Montgomery will publish new and more comprehensive grammar books and dictionaries to enlighten us.
Book Description
Here’s a great book for every young adult age 11 up, Signing Fun: American Sign Language Vocabulary, Phrases, Games, and Activities. Signing is visual, easy to learn, and fun to use. Author Penny Warner offers 441 useful signs on a variety of favorite topics: activities, animals, fashion, food, holidays, home, outdoors, parties, people, places, play, emotions, school, shopping, travel, plus extra fun signs for especially popular words. Each chapter includes practice sentences using everyday phrases to help new signers learn in a fun way.
Signing Fun provides dozens of entertaining games and activities, too, such as Alphabet Sign, Finger Fun Gesture Guess, Match Signs, Mime and Sign, Oppo-Sign, Picture Hand, Secret Sign, Sign-A-Gories, Signo Bingo, Snap and Sign, and Truth or Sign. It also features a list of tips on how to sign, including how to fingerspell, use numbers, and communicate with deaf people. Whimsical drawings clearly illustrate all of the signs, and a full index lists all of their English meanings for quick reference. Signing Fun is a terrific first book for learning sign while having a great time.
Customer Reviews:
An excellent beginner's book and vocabulary builder.......2007-04-11
Written by child development instructor Penny Warner, Signing Fun: American Sign Language Vocabulary, Phrases, Games, & Activities is a guide to learning American Sign Language for readers age 11 and up. Each handsign is illustrated with cheerful and cartoony black-and-white pictures. Presenting 441 useful signs for a variety of favorite topics, practice sentences with everyday phrases, games and activities for practicing signs, tips on how to sign or fingerspell, use numbers, and communicate with deaf people, Signing Fun is highly recommended as an excellent beginner's book and vocabulary builder for learning ASL.
Average customer rating:
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Greetings and Phrases / Saludos Y Frases (Talking Hands)
Kathleen Petelinsek , and
E. Russell Primm
Manufacturer: Child's World
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ASIN: 1592966829 |
Customer Reviews:
Excellent, though less user-friendly than alternatives.......2007-08-20
The main two books I read when studying the Maya script were this one and Michael Coe's "Reading the Maya Glyphs." Ultimately, I preferred this one because it is more in-depth and scholarly, but I did miss the exercises and easy-to-look-up tables that the Coe has. The Coe is also slightly better illustrated (or, at least, more flashily illustrated, which is admittedly not the same thing). Either book can add greatly to your appreciation of monuments at sites such as Palenque and their museums, and ideally I would recommend purchasing both books.
I'm somewhat conflicted about this next issue. The Coe book delves further into some more cutting-edge grammatical theories such as morphosyllables and syllabic disharmony (don't worry, both are explained well). These theories are fascinating, and are barely discussed by Montgomery in the book on this page. HOWEVER, there is far less scholarly support behind these controversial ideas, and in many ways I think Coe makes them seem more accepted than they are. Montgomery's conservatism is probably more academically honest.
It's very difficult to recommend one over the other because they both have their strengths and weaknesses. It may be overly general, but if you're looking for a more sophisticated and deep understanding of Maya script, the book on this page is probably better. If you want a more practical study (including exercises to test your comprehension), go with the Coe--just remember that scholars are less certain about some of his claims than it may seem.
I never got it!.......2007-03-09
Sorry, I never got the book, so I would not know what to say about it.
How to read Maya.......2003-05-08
In short, it is a book for those interested on learning how to read Mayan Hieroglyphs. It gives you a step by step approache and good examples, taking you to some final exercises that will help to start by yourself.
AWESOME!!.......2002-09-03
This will become known as one of the standards. It is a masterpiece in its format and its presentation. Mr. Montgomery did a fine job in methodically (a compliment) going through the material and explaining the nuances of "hieroglyphs." I highly recommend the book.
review of Mayan hieroglyphs guide.......2002-04-08
Excellent book. I have a degree in cultural anthropology and started studying the Maya thirty years ago. Finally, we have a clear, precise explanation of how to approach and gain understanding of the glyphs with excellent background history and perspective. Although I am now an attorney, I still study Mayan culture and archaeology and find the book extremely interesting, approachable and a great pleasure to read. The facts that are added to give background do indeed, provide a well-rounded understanding of the evolution of the cracking of the code. I can't praise it enough. I waited a long time for a book like this!
Book Description
In 1943, a young and determined Sema Wilkes took over a nondescript turn-of-the-century boardinghouse on a sun-dappled, brick street in historic downtown Savannah. Her goal was modest: to make a living by offering comfortable lodging and southern home cooking served family style in the downstairs dining room. Mrs. Wilkes' reputation was strong and business was brisk from the beginning, but it was the coverage in Esquire and the New York Times, and even a profile on David Brinkley's evening news that brought southern food lovers from all over the world to her doorstep. Sema is now 94 years old, and four generations of Wilkes help her keep the tables laden with platters of her legendary fried chicken, pork ribs, and biscuits, while friends and strangers pass bowls brimming with her sublime butterbeans, collard greens, mashed sweet potatoes, and banana pudding. The line snakes out the front door and down the street, where along with the locals and visitors, it's not uncommon to find Jimmy Carter or Roy Junior Blount, among other familiar faces, waiting for their turn at Mrs. Wilkes' table. With over 300 recipes and culinary historian John T. Edge's colorful telling of Mrs. Wilkes' contribution to Savannah and southern cuisine, the rich volume is a tribute to a way of cooking-and eating-that must not be forgotten.
Customer Reviews:
Savannah Lore and Recipes. Good Look and Read.......2004-12-30
`Mrs. Wilkes' Boardinghouse Cookbook' is a collection of recipes attributed to Sema Wilkes of dishes served at her famous Savannah boarding house (which no longer takes in boarders). The recipes are augmented by a series of articles on the history of the Wilkes family and the restaurant by John T. Edge, a widely and favorably recognized writer on southern culinary matters.
The most interesting aspect of the recipes in this book is that they are as much an interest as an historical record as they are a basis of culinary inspiration. The most interesting books with which to compare this work may be, for example, `Rome, at Home' by Suzanne Dunaway and the books on Sicilian cookery by writer/actor Vincent Schiavelli. The most similar book I have seen is Ms. Sally Ann Robinson's charming little book, `Gullah Home Cooking the Daufuskie Way'. A non-culinary comparison may be to a manual on how to do decorative painting in the style of the Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs. I say this only to enhance the value you can anticipate from this notable book.
This volume contains recipes for `Comfort Food Central'. Ask a hundred second generation Americans to name their top five favorite dishes and recipes for virtually all these dishes will be in this book. Main dishes include fried chicken, chicken cacciatore, roast beef, beef bourguignonne, meatballs, meatloaf, chop suey, corned beef and cabbage, and chili. This is the typical collection of both classic Southern dishes mixed with Americanizations of famous foreign dishes. All other types of dishes show a similar selection of favorites. The dessert chapter stays just a bit closer to home by featuring primarily cakes, such as pound cake, red velvet cake, carrot cake, and fruitcake and pies (and cobblers) such as lemon meringue pie, sweet potato pie, pecan pie, peach pie, and blackberry pie.
Many of the savory recipes are simply `dump and heat', where the procedure could hardly be any simpler. Recipes for chili and beef bourguignonne which in some hands take on epic dimensions are so simple in this book that you need to look twice to be sure this is the dish being made. This simplicity is achieved in many cases by using one or more classic darlings of 1950's cooking, canned, condensed soup, canned mushrooms, bouillon cubes, French dressing, and bottled mayonnaise. This doesn't mean the results of these recipes are not tasty, it only means the dishes may be a lot different than what you may be expecting. This is definitely not Julia Child's beef bourguignonne. Even such staples of Southern cooking such as fried chicken are done in a highly abbreviated way with no brining and no buttermilk marinade.
Another caution with these recipes is that many have not been scaled down from boarding room proportions to suit a family of four. Still another concern is that like a lot of recipes in `Gullah Home Cooking the Daufuskie Way', there is a certain sameness in a lot of recipes. All the potato and macaroni and chicken and egg salads are about the same except for the star ingredient. Again, this doesn't mean they are poor recipes, it just means they all reflect a time when supermarkets didn't have radicchio, fennel, Belgian endive, celery root, and leeks. So, lots of recipes had to depend on celery, onions, and carrots.
Since this oversized book with lots of excellent pictures and really interesting text lists at only $29.95, the quality of these pictures and text and the `archeological' interest of the recipes is more than enough to make this book a worthy addition to your cookbook collection. If you want to make pies, read Nick Malgieri. If you want to bake cakes, read Maida Heatter. If you want to make meatballs, read Marcella Hazan. If you want to make barbecue, read Steve Raichlen. If you want classic Southern cooking, read Edna Lewis. If you want to make beef bourguignonne, for heavens sake, read Julia Child, Tony Bourdain, or Thomas Keller. But, if you want a taste of Savannah boardinghouse cooking, this is your book.
Aside from supporting recipes for preparations such as meringue, sauces, dressings, and piecrusts, there are virtually no cooking instructions here. Even the index fails now and then in that there are prepared ingredients mentioned in some recipes for which there are no entries in the index. So, I have no clue to how to make a `Kitchen Bouquet' mentioned as an ingredient in several recipes. And, I suspect a great part of the quality of the food at Mrs. Wilkes boardinghouse can be attributed to the skill of the staff and to the quality of the ingredients rather than to the excellence of the recipes.
As long as you buy this book for the right reasons, you will not be disappointed.
Southern Comfort.......2003-07-22
The narratives of memories from years past are wonderful additions to the recipes in this gem of a cookbook. I particularly appreciated the personal remarks by the Wilkes family about many of the recipes. Having grown up in the south myself, I continue to be amazed at the simplicity of southern cuisine (yes, it's cuisine!) while at the same time being so wonderfully sublime! I've found more recipes I want to try in this book than in any other I've bought in a long, long while.
Takes me back.......2002-07-24
I enjoyed many meals at Mrs. Wilkes Boardinghouse during my six year tenure in beautiful Savannah, GA. I can't tell you how the atmosphere and family-style serving add to these wonderful recipes. You wouldn't think they could get any better, but you'd just have to go there and see for yourself! The experience just takes you back to another time. You're seated at large tables with other folks who've waited in line (that wraps around the corner and down the block on most days) right along with you. Then they bring out the food (there's no ordering, everyone gets the same thing) and it's passed family-style around the table. There is nothing like it. I highly recommend a visit to Mrs. Wilkes Boardinghouse which is located on Jones Street (between Bull and Tattnal Streets) in the heart of the historic district.
Just like mom use to make........2001-12-29
I enjoy the stories interlaced with the recipes in this book. I am looking forward to making pies, macaroni and cheese, and many of the other wonderful recipes in this cookbook. I think new cooks would find the recipes easy to follow, and everyone would find the stories entertaining.
Raves from Transplanted Magnolia.......2001-12-05
I have over 100 cookbooks in my collection, so it is rare that I will sit down and read a new one cover-to-cover -- but that's exactly what I did last night with Mrs. Wilkes. Setting aside the recipes for a moment, her description of life in the South in my parents' era is priceless. Now for the food: also priceless! I've been searching for years for my great-aunt's recipe for Coconut Cake -- Mrs. Wilkes has it. My Mother never fixed Creamed Corn from scratch - but Mrs. Wilkes does. All those dishes you remember fondly from family reunions and favorite aunts - they're here! Mrs. Wilkes has them! Hurrah!
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- I Had the Right to Remain Silent...But I Didn't Have the Ability
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- Jane and the Man of the Cloth: Being the Second Jane Austen Mystery
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- Last and First Men and Star Maker : Two Science Fiction Novels
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- Maigret A New-York / Maigret in New York (Inspector Maigret Mysteries)
Books Index
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