Book Description
A wise and witty thriller of ancient Japan by the award-winning I. J. Parker Government official turned sleuth Akitada Sugawara, on his way home to attend the sickbed of his bitter, aging mother, is spending the night in a monastery when he finds himself drawn to a brilliantly illustrated screen depicting the horrors of hell. His brief stay is complicated by the murder of a beau-tiful young woman. Personal and professional interests begin to merge as Akitada becomes ensnared in a tangled web of deceit and malevolence that will, in the end, strike very close to home. Rich, textured, and historically researched, this com-plex mystery is the second in an acclaimed series featuring Akitada Sugawara.
Customer Reviews:
Absolutely Excellent - Parker's Best Thus Far.......2006-11-28
It's November 27, I've got Parker's fourth Sugawara novel "Black Arrow" on preorder, and I'm consumed with a thoroughly bizarre impulse to strangle my calendar. "Black Arrow" won't be released until the 28th, you see, and I finished "The Hell Screen" just a couple of days ago.
I would read it well into the wee hours to the point of mental and physical exhaustion (I know exactly how Sugawara felt when he first saw the Hell Screen,) then tear home the following afternoon to continue, craving the people and places in it like food, or maybe like air.
In "The Hell Screen" Parker rebounds mightily from the less-compelling work "Dragon Scroll" and surpasses her brilliant debut, "Rashomon Gate." The plotting is ingenious, the characterization continues to be spectacular, and her continued theme - the frequent cruelty of a rigid caste system - is often intensely dramatized but always artful and understated, never overpowering the story as a whole. The character development of the principles - Akitada and his family, Kobe, Tora and Seimei - gets much deeper and richer here without getting the slightest bit overlabored; the supporting characters are the most vivid and memorable I've encountered since those of...dare I make the comparison...J.K. Rowling.
I've only just now unraveled my confusion as to Parker's sequencing of the Sugawara novels, thanks to a kind tip by reviewer Mary Whipple: she isn't writing them in chronological order. "The Dragon Scroll" is first chronologically, followed by "Rashomon Gate," then "The Hell Screen" - but Parker wrote (or at least published,) "Rashomon" first, then "Hell Screen," then "Dragon Scroll."
In a way this is refreshing. Devouring them out of chronological order evokes a sense of making individual forays into a world of the past, like separate trips in a time machine. I suspect it will also prevent Parker's books from falling into that trap of "bigger and better than last time," something some other series exhibit to the point of tedium.
As in my review of "Rashomon Gate," I sincerely hope Ms. Parker makes this an enormous series, because it's been a long while since I've enjoyed a series of novels so thoroughly. "The Hell Screen" is flawless and the best so far - Bravo!
'Scuse me now while I wrestle with that #!%&@*! calendar...
I. J. Parker and Sugawara Akitada just keep getting better........2006-08-27
This is the latest installment of this fine series, and they just keep getting better. Parker's deft weaving of plot and character, her nuanced and sensitive chronicling of the often painful progress to maturity of her fine detective Sugawara Akitada, and her loving presentation of early medieval Japan all deserve the highest praise. I can't wait for the fourth novel to appear, which is scheduled for this coming November.
"That which seems real in the world of men is but a dream and a deception".......2006-04-30
This is I. J. Parker's second novel set in 11th Century Heian Japan. As is always the case in Japanese culture, the politics of the time were extremely complex. Small missteps could quickly turn into personal disasters. Such has been the case for Sugawara Akitada, who was sent from the capital in disgrace to a position as provisional governor of a distant province. Unexpectedly successful, Sugawara has been allowed to return to the royal presence. He is traveling back with his family and retinue when a messenger intercepts them with news that Akitada's mother is in her final illness. Rushing back, Sugawara spends the night at a monastery and inadvertently overhears a murder.
Back in the capital, Sugawara finds his house in disarray - his mother, even dying, tries her son's patience with her constant criticism and the abuse of his sister Yoshiko, who has remained unmarried in order to care for her mother. Adding to the complication, the husband of Sugawara's other sister is suspected of stealing from the royal treasury and asks for his help. One thing leads to another, and Sugawara realizes that the screams he heard in the monastery are connected somehow to the mysteries confronting him in Tokyo. It seems that Sugawara has little hope of enjoying the fruits of his success in Eichigo province.
Parker is an excellent writer and fills her pages with a complicated story of murder and insanity. Always taking the time to share the details of life in a city that was one of the most sophisticated of its time. Comparisons with Laura Joh Rowland are inevitable, and it is this depth of detail that keeps Parker from simply being a copycat. Rowland's forte is her character development. Thus both authors have much to offer in mystery stories set some 600 years apart. In either case the reader is treated to a good mystery story, strong writing, and everything a Japanophile could ever want.
Bland in the historical department.......2005-10-05
For a book advertised as being historical fiction, I found it truly bland in the historical department. Little cultural details are mostly absent. Common terms are often used (such as rice wine, instead of sake), which when combined with dubious details (such as large amounts of "fruity" wine being drunk, modern-ish character traits, etc.) makes the novel seem like it could be set in just about any generic "historical" time period or place. To me the story seemed almost completely devoid of a specific cultural setting.
If you are looking for a decent mystery story, give the book a try. If you are looking for good historical fiction of ancient Japan, look elsewhere.
Ms. James does it again!.......2004-08-28
At a temple outside Heian Kyo, the wife of a wealthy antique dealer is found, brutally murdered, in the room of her brother-in-law, who is immediately arrested for murder. He claims he did not do it, but he has no remembrance of the evening at all.
Akitada is just returning to Heian Kyo from several years as a provincial governor, and present the temple on the night of the murder. He hears a woman scream that evening, but it is not until several days later that he learns of the crime. Despite Inspector Kobe's reluctance, Akitada turns his deductive skills to the case, while also trying to remove his own brother-in-law out of a bit of a potentially ruining situation.
Meanwhile, Akitada's servant, the womanizing Tora, decides to prove his deductive prowess, and find "the slasher" that is mutilating women in the Pleasure Quarters. He has seen the slasher's work and is determined to stop him.
As with the first Akitada novel, there is a lot going on. But, Ms. Parker pulls it off with style and intelligence. The descriptions of eleventh-century Japan are detailed, and yet casual so that the reader doesn't feel that history is being pushed down the throat. Akitada and his friends and family are convincingly real and the plot is credible.
On the whole, this five star mystery is a worthy successor to (also five star) Rashomon Gate and Ms. Parker keeps rising in my esteem as a gifted author.
Book Description
Under the nom de guerre of Gar Pike, renegade psychic wizard Magnus D'Armand travels the stars fighting injustice and oppression, like his father, Rod Gallowglass, the Warlock in Spite of Himself. But this time the Rogue Wizard may have encountered a tyrant even he can't overthrow: a stern Protector who dictates the very thoughts of his "loyal" subjects. So successful if his regime that Magnus is hard-pressed to find anyone willing to oppose it--until a misguided handful of would-be aristocrats unwittingly provides a spark of rebellion. Here is Christopher Stasheff in top form: swashbuckling, stylish, and slightly subversive adventure from the author of the bestselling "Warlock" chronicles.
Customer Reviews:
A Wizard not so peaceful...........2000-05-26
Depending on how long one has been reading the Warlock series, one could become rather bored with Stasheff's never-ending devotion to the family Gallowglass. This book is one that justifies HIS devotion, and rewards the reader for his/her loyalty. Time well spent!
It has been pointed out in many cases that it is difficult to give Magnus a task too difficult to accomplish, too daunting to undertake, but this one gives him a REAL challenge.
The plot is simple... Magnus' continuing goal to provide regressed colonies with the government best suited to the needs of the society present on each planet he encounters, primarily by inserting himself into said society. What he finds on this planet is a Brazil-esque bureaucracy managing every facet of society. With no open rebellion in sight, and fewer even capable of thinking of one, Magnus has no method to use short of bloody mayhem. What he actually does do is both innovative, and emotionally draining. Magnus does things which, while noble and compassionate in nature, still have him questioning his own ethics. The solution to this society's problems takes much longer to implement than in previous quests, a statement on how difficult it is, even with Magnus's considerable talents, to start a revolution where there is no conception of what revolution IS.
From the lofty viewpoint of three books later, it is easy to say that, so far, this is the BEST of the Wizard series. Magnus has to make some very difficult decisions on his own about HOW to use his abilities... Stasheff poses some difficult questions about what is the RIGHT THING to do. So... if you were slowing down on the Wizard series, this book will give you momentum to keep going onto future books.
A madhouse in a spaceship?.......2000-04-08
A Wizard in Peace is the 4th book in the Rouge wizard series where magnus and his sidekick Dirk once again find themselves on a planet abandoned by their old government but unlike the other stories this planet hasn't been taken over by a dictator but by bureaucrats. On their travels around the planet Dirk and Magnus stumble upon the local madhouse, which insodently is located in an abandoned spaceship. The mentaly insane inpersonate the bureaucrats to help Magnus and Dirk overthrow the local government. After all who could be better suited to impersonate bureaucrats then the insane?
Customer Reviews:
Anything with Naked and Chocolate in the title is going to be good........2007-07-30
Yup, it's naked and there's chocolate galore. You'll gain 5lbs just holding the book!
naked chocolate.......2007-07-28
I learned a lot about history and the properties of chocolate, which I enjoyed. I tried a recipe or two and then went my own way with the net result being I no longer buy my raw food bars but make them myself and like them better.
The writing; well, I didn't buy it for the writing, I bought it for the info.
Highly Recommended!!!!!!!!.......2007-06-11
This book is incredible! So much information! Great style of writing! Sense of humor! You just need to read it! And eat raw chocolate!!!!
One Fantastic Book.......2007-03-14
David Wolfe is my personal hero and inspiration. He and the beautiful Shazzie have put together the ultimate research, history, and nutritional information about the planet's greatest food...Chocolate. If you ever wanted to know the difinitive history of the cacao (cocoa) bean, this is it. The recipes are delishious, and the info is incredible. I thought I was addicted to Hershey's chocolate..Nuh-uh...Raw Chocolate is the way to go. I have never felt so energized in my life. This book would be very good for even the newest raw foodist. One drink of one of the concoctions and you will be a believer in the power of raw and living foods. For me this book is a great addition to my collection of raw food information and the the single greatest addition to my library as well as diet. I can't wait until my next bag of Navitas Cacao Nibs, Goji berries and Maca Powder arrives via Amazon!
I never knew how amazing chocolate could be. This choc-o-holic will be giving this book as a gift to all her friends on birthdays and Christmas.
Read all you can by David Wolfe(The Sunfood Diet Success System!!!!), he will change your life by the first 2 pages.
Now I just need to find a way to get ahold of some Durian fruit!
Full of information; recipes complicated........2007-02-14
Naked Chocolate is packed full of information about chocolate. In fact, of the many chocolate books I have looked at, it is one of the most informative I have found.
The book has chapters dedicated to: legends and history of chocolate, chemical composition of cacoa, myths and beliefs about chocolates abilities, rumors and urban legends about chocolates, chocolate and health, and a huge collection of chocolate recipes. The legends, especially the historical ones, are very interesting. They tell the legends of how cacao came to be as told by the various native tribes of South America. They also chronicle the history of cacao as it is used as money in South America, traded with European explorers, brought back to Europe, and eventually made into the chocolate we know today.
While the information is there, it is sometimes unsubstantiated. For the most part it is either referenced or believable, but some of the claims are a little far out. For example, in one page the authors explain how chocolate is good for the heart because it contains magnesium. In the next paragraph, they authors write that chocolate opens the heart center on a metaphysical level. Magnesium is science, chakras are a different realm.
The recipes look really great, and the photographs are beautiful. However, most of the recipes require kitchen gadgets that some people do not have (like myself). You must have: a food dehydrator, a juicer, a food processor, a blender, a spice/coffee mill, and a hand blender. I have a blender. Of the pages and pages of recipes, I think I found two that I could make with my limited gadgetry. So, unless you are equipped with the gadgets of a raw-foodists kitchen, do not expect to be able to make all these recipes.
Also, there are occasional places in the text when the authors jump around randomly, inserting quotes with no transition, including long quotes from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" without apparent reason, etc.
And finally, the authors also talk about themselves a little too much. They tell all about their experiences with chocolate as though it is a personal journey, and I guess for them it is, but for me, I'm just trying to read about chocolate.
Despite all this, it is still overall informative and worthwhile.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book!.......2006-08-09
A very imaginative and inspiring book. After reading this book I felt that a whole new world of romantic possibilities was opened to me. I wholeheartedly reccomend that women should buy this for their guys (or leave it laying around where guys might sneak a peak at it), and that couples should read it together. -D. M. Olympia Washington
Eat Chocolate Naked.......2006-07-24
What a wonderful and honest way to look at the relationships between men and women! I found myself laughing and agreeing to just about everything I read. She's brutally honest with her own relationship and I found that so refreshing! Very insightful...a fun read. Don't miss this one!
A Valentine's Day MUST!.......2004-02-11
This book is so creative. For any woman who feels that their romantic life needs some sprucing up. I particularly love #61!
Easy tips to throw some kerosene on your "love fire"!.......2004-02-09
Truth be told, I purchased several copies as gifts due to the catchy title. Who doesn't like chocolate and eating it naked sounded even better. I was therefore amazed at how applicable this book was to the current state of my love life. Ms. Johnson offers so many simple ways to fan the flames and be sure that your "romance tank" is always full. The next time you need a hostess gift, forget about flowers or a bottle of wine, bring her a copy of this book. She'll be thanking you for years to come!
Great gift for Valentines!.......2004-02-04
Eat chocolate naked offers some simple, practical, and creative ways to spark romance in your relationship. With Valentine's Day around the corner, I am looking forward to trying a few out!
Average customer rating:
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Milk Chocolate Naked Moon
Joe Okonkwo
Manufacturer: Writer's Showcase Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 African-American & Black
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ASIN: 0595248993 |
Book Description
Joe Okonkwo has produced a volume of poetry that is actually a mosaic of African-American and Gay issues. This riveting collection covers everything from Jazz and sex, to politics and dating; from racism within the Gay community, to black on black racism. There are poems about the journey from depression to wholeness and poems about exuberant gay men flouncing about the streets wearing only silk boxer shorts and argyle socks.
This volume has a little of everything including poignant tributes to Jazz greats Ethel Waters and Billie Holiday. Joe Okonkwo fearlessly tackles taboo subjects such as what some African-Americans really think about the ghetto, who really bears the blame for slavery and how expectations the Gay media sets forth affect those who don't--or can't--comply.
Milk Chocolate/Naked Moon is exactly what we've been waiting for: an unpredictable, page turning collection of poetry.
Average customer rating:
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Naked Chocolate
David Wolfe
Manufacturer: Maul Brothers Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000NX5ORI |
Book Description
With the mission to “lay naked before the world the true meaning of chocolate,” David Wolfe and Shazzie present a spirited and unconventional history, materia medica, and recipe book for the world’s most pleasurable food: chocolate. This book describes the wonders of cacao–where it comes from, how it is processed, its three varieties, and its origins and role in pre-Columbian cultures of the Americas. It explains the scientific properties and health benefits of chocolate, and elaborates how you will lose weight, soothe your heart, double your joy, increase your sensuality, nourish your intellect, and attract prosperity by eating it!
In contrast to most books about chocolate, this one focuses on the raw cacao bean, or “naked” chocolate. Of course, this chocolate manual wouldn’t be complete without a step-by-step guide on what to do with the cacao beans, and over sixty original and mouthwatering chocolate recipes guaranteed to enhance your life.
Amazon.com
In A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking, Goldman defines Jewish cooking as a combination of influences from religious laws, holiday and seasonal events, what is locally available, and cross-cultural adaptations created as Jewish families moved around. She also explains much about Jewish dietary law and other food customs.
Holidays, in particular, call for foods with symbolic as well as sensory resonance. This leads to baking a special, spiral-shaped challah--a reminder of life's continuity. This egg bread is reserved for the Sabbath and most holidays, while triangular Hamantaschen, a pastry resembling the three-cornered hat of the evil Haman, are unique to the lively holiday of Purim.
Novice cooks will appreciate Goldman's list of "Winning Recipes for the Bakery Challenged." Her discussions of yeast (five pages) and sensible equipment (seven pages) are an education for any baker, while everyone will enjoy her killer frozen cheesecake, which you can keep for unexpected guests; flourless and rich, rich Espresso Truffle Torte; and Smoked Salmon, Dill, and Cream Cheese Pizza. Whatever your persuasion, Marcy Goldman's A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking belongs on your bookshelf. --Dana Jacobi
Book Description
Here at last is the first lovingly assembled, comprehensive collection of delicious, fail-proof baked goods--for the Jewish holidays and throughout the year--compiled and interpreted by Marcy Goldman, a professional baker who is also a professional writer on food.
Even if we don't have time to bake on a regular basis, holidays are something different--special occasions that encourage us to pull out the cake pans and present our family and friends with a gift of homemade love. And this is particularly true of the Jewish holidays, which are so centrally focused on special foods--and, of course, special desserts.
From the round raisin challah that symbolizes the sweetness and continuity of life for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, to triangular, jam-filled hamantaschen for Purim, to a Chanukah dreidel cake, to the best flourless Passover cakes in the world, Marcy Goldman offers recipes that are traditional as well as those with an innovative flair.
Jewish or European-style baked goods--coffee cakes, strudels, cheesecakes, rugelach--are so universally popular that they have become as American as apple pie, and now, with A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking, every home baker will have access to the secrets of how to make them. As if she were a mother passing down techniques to her own children, Marcy Goldman's voice is warm, encouraging, and inviting, as well as authoritative, clear, and knowledgeable. She provides not only detailed instructions that yield delicious baked goods every time, but also a wealth of information on holiday customs and history.
Here is, indeed, a treasury to be welcomed by those who grew up with such recipes, those who are seeking to reestablish traditional holiday celebrations in their own home, and those who simply want to know the secrets for producing a wide range of delicious cakes, pastries, and pies.
Customer Reviews:
I've become famous for the brownies in this cookbook!.......2007-06-03
I have many Jewish cookbooks, and bake a lot for all the holidays and Shabbat, and this is by far my favorite book for desserts. Marcy Goldman's brownies recipe is quick and easy, and the resulting amazing, chewy brownies have become my Shabbat hallmark, with everyone requesting the "famous" brownies when they visit.
Goldman also includes wonderful recipes for honey cake, bagels, apple cake, cookies, and more. One of my favorites is her unusual etrog cake: it's moist, tart, and divine, and an original way to use up the etrog after Sukkot. Last Passover, my mother used this cookbook, and baked a rich, creamy Passover chocolate cake. It tasted like cheesecake - though it was parve - and didn't taste "Passover" at all. We all tried to guess what was in it, but couldn't. When I got home, I looked it up, and was surprised to see the secret ingredient was sweet potatoes! (It sounds wierd, but like everything else in this book, it works.)
This book never misses. Definitely a great resource, chock full of solid classics, with a few ingenious new twists.
Essential.......2007-05-09
Marcy Goldman's "A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking" is one book I keep going back to again and again. It's packed with delicious recipes, great tips, funny little stories, and (for us non-Jews) interesting information about every Jewish holiday.
What I love most about this book is the breadth of the recipes. There is something for everyone -- beginner, novice or expert. And Marcy's Classic Cuisine d'Or Carrot Cake recipe alone is worth the price of the book. (It is hands down the best carrot cake I've ever tasted.)
If you love baking, you need to buy this book. Highly, highly recommended.
So good this library girl had to buy it!.......2007-03-04
I found this book in our branch library a week or so ago and, always on the hunt for new Hamantaschen recipes, decided to check it out. Eight dozen Hamantaschen later I love the book so much I'm ready to find a place for it on our crowded cookbook bookshelf! The traditional hamantaschen dough recipe made a really lovely dough - very short but easy to work. The results were amazing. Her filling recipes are great too. I'l be trying the chocolate dough tomorrow and my husband is ready to tackle Bialys. I've already ordered our own copy1
Perfect!.......2007-01-05
I haven't tried all the recipes, but I make the New Year's Challah all the time and it is one of my favorite things. The Hamentaschen are also excellent.
The Most Indispensible Cookbook EVER!.......2006-07-16
I collect, read, savor, and love reading cookbooks. This cookbook is a KEEPER. Every recipe in it is a 100% success. The one recipe that totally separated this book for all others is Bubbie's Orange and Oil Hamantaschen recipe. We've all tried to make hamantaschen with the dough collapsing or sticking all over. Not any more, with Ms Goldman's amazing recipe you too can make wonderful hamantaschen. I did it at home, with kids I teach, even made them at camp. Buy this cookbook, You'll be glad you did!
Books:
- The House on the Borderland and Other Mysterious Places (The Collected Fiction of William Hope Hodgson, Vol. 2)
- The Infernal Device and Others: A Professor Moriarty Omnibus (Professor Moriarty Novels)
- The Joe Leaphorn Mysteries: Three Classic Hillerman Mysteries Featuring Lt. Joe Leaphorn: The Blessing Way/Dance Hall of the Dead/Listening Woman
- The Lamorna Wink (Richard Jury Mysteries)
- The Master of Rain
- The Seven Treasure Hunts (Trophy Chapter Books)
- The Shadow Dancer
- The Shaman Laughs (Shaman Mysteries)
- The Sittaford Mystery [BBC AUDIO COLLECTION, 2 AUDIOCASSETES]
- The Snake-Oil Syndrome: Patent Medicine Advertising
Books Index
Books Home
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Rashomon Gate
The Dragon Scroll
Black Arrow
Red Chrysanthemum: A Thriller (Sano Ichiro Novels)
The Assassin's Touch: A Thriller (Sano Ichiro Novels)
