Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times
Average customer rating:

Hopefully, the movie doesn't screw up this story

A great true story

four and 1/2 stars.

Great

Hard to read

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times
George Crile
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Afghanistan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books
Central Asia | Asia | History | Subjects | Books
General | Military | History | Subjects | Books
Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books
Russia | History | Subjects | Books
Intelligence | Freedom & Security | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001

Sleeping with the Devil: How Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude

Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing the War on Terror

See No Evil: The True Story of a Ground Soldier in the CIA's War on Terrorism

First In: An Insider's Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan

ASIN: 0802141242

Book Description

Charlie Wilson's War was a publishing sensation and a New York Times, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times bestseller. In the early 1980s, a Houston socialite turned the attention of maverick Texas congressman Charlie Wilson to the ragged band of Afghan "freedom fighters" who continued, despite overwhelming odds, to fight the Soviet invaders. Wilson, who sat on the all-powerful House Appropriations Committee, managed to procure hundreds of millions of dollars to support the mujahideen. The arms were secretly procured and distributed with the help of an out-of-favor CIA operative, Gust Avrokotos, whose working-class Greek-American background made him an anomaly among the Ivy League world of American spies. Avrakotos handpicked a staff of CIA outcasts to run his operation and, with their help, continually stretched the Agency's rules to the breaking point. Moving from the back rooms of the Capitol, to secret chambers at Langley, to arms-dealers' conventions, to the Khyber Pass, this book presents an astonishing chapter of our recent past, and the key to understanding what helped trigger the sudden collapse of the Soviet Union and ultimately led to the emergence of a brand-new foe in the form of radical Islam.

Customer Reviews:

Hopefully, the movie doesn't screw up this story.......2007-10-05

There will be three main kinds of people who won't read this book. The first are those who see no reason for military intervention anywhere, ever. The second are those who are hypersensitive to any speaking of ethnicity, race, gender, etc., within a kilometer of earshot. The third are those who don't like long books, and "Charlie Wilson's War" is certainly longer than most. All this would be too bad, because the book is a wealth of little known and critical current history, as well as a real rip-snorting adventure. The most intriguing icing on the cake is that Charlie Wilson, one of the boldest and effective national-interest congressmen of the last century, was a Democrat. He was a Democrat who pushed Republicans forward for a decade, mostly to do the right things. How many right things, of course, remains to be seen in coming decades.

Much of the book is written in colloquial style, as the author reproduces many discussions among a very wide variety of people. This sometimes comes out sounding a little coarse, but the reader should see this quickly as a writer trying to be accurate. Charlie Wilson, the man himself, also might turn many readers off. He abused his body with food and drink, mostly drink; he was a maverick to the point of almost being a loose canon; wild, he certainly was. No one, though, can deny that he was one of those rarest of politicians. Here was a man who did not stop with saying what he wanted to do, he found ways to do what needed to be done. Then he kept at it, and at it. Here was a man of his word.

This interesting story suffers only a small weakness as a narrative, and only if the reader minds. The action chapter by chapter, even section by section, does not always tell us what was happening at the same time with other people, and at other places. Rather, the author likes to keep a thread of a theme or thought and follow it to the end. This can be irritating and a little confusing if you are trying to keep things straight for any particular group of years at a time. If this does not make a problem for reader, then so much the better. A last suggestion: this book goes down especially well by audio CD, and the voice narrator does well with dialogs and accents.

A great true story.......2007-10-04

This is a truly amazing tale. Never told until now and soon a movie. Buy this book and read the true story about how a "wild" congressman and a rogue CIA agent changed history. Better by far than all those fictional adventures!

four and 1/2 stars........2007-10-01

steve coll's excellent book "ghost wars" whet my reading appetite for more on the soviet war in afghanistan. since that military action, with the unanticipated consequences it spawned for the united states, was such a catalyst for the 9/11 attacks, it seems essential for an american to get a grip on what took place there. "charlie wilson's war" is a thrilling account of that international drama. though much of the book deals with funding america's covert involvement through congressional appropriation subcommittees, and with CIA office politics, the narrative is interesting page for page throughout this long work. not once did i find it a chore to continue, or feel an urge to skip past anything. george crile brings the colorful personalities of those involved to vivid life through his clear prose. he actually makes appropriation subcommitees, and their methods of work, interesting. and his portraits of afghanistan and pakistan, and their respective political environments and key political players, is brilliantly executed. the story is told completely from the american perspective, true. you will have to seek elsewhere for a more balanced view (by this i mean one that takes into account the soviet soldiers side of things). but this book being what it is, is a fascinating read, and one you can learn much from.

Great.......2007-09-08

One of the most intriguing stories of American foreign policy making. This book was recommended to me by a staffer for a military oriented Congressional committee. He was quite emphatic in stressing that this book, better than any other, offers a great perspective on the influence Congress can have on foreign and war policy. I don't know how representative it is of the day to day activities of members of Congress, but it certainly shows how a dedicated member of Congress CAN get seriously involved in an issue.

Charlie Wilson is one of the most interesting politicians to have walked on the stage in the past 50 years. Part JFK, Nixon, LBJ, and Clinton - both good and bad parts - Wilson was a smart and dedicated defender of CIA efforts to support the mujaheden in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union. More than any supposed hardline conservative, including President Reagan, Wilson, a socially liberal Democrat from Texas, was the most agressive elected official to back the CIA in its anti-Soviet effort in Afghanistan. Wilson was also wildly able to get in the worst kinds of trouble: womanizing, drunk driving, and questionable uses of public money. I guess it goes to show that people are incredibly complex and contain a much more dynamic mix of good and bad within them. Kind of like the Incredible Hulk, but with less green.

Hard to read.......2007-08-29

Content was OK, I'm sure acurate, but about 210 pages into this 500+ page book I had to give in - I just couldn't make myself want to read it. I am only 31, so I do not know of Charlie Wilson, or the political temperature in the 80s, but this book was recommended to me so I tried, but couldn't make myself do it.

Charlie Wilson's War Abridged: The Extraordinary Story Of The Largest Covert Operation In History [ABRIDGED]

Average customer rating:

Charlie Wilson's War Abridged: The Extraordinary Story Of The Largest Covert Operation In History [ABRIDGED]
George Crile
Manufacturer: Blackstone Audiobooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Memoirs | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Central Asia | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

General | Books on CD | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
Similar Items:

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times
Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq
Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq
The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 (Vintage)

ASIN: 0786179953
Release Date: 2005-08-15

Product Description

Charlie Wilsons War is the untold story behind the last battle of the Cold War and how it fueled the rise of militant Islam. Charlie Wilson, a maverick congressman from east Texas, conspired with a rogue CIA operative to launch the biggest, meanest, and most successful covert operation in the Agencys history, procuring hundreds of millions of dollars to support the mujahideen.

Moving from the back rooms of the Capitol, to arms-dealers conventions, to the Khyber Pass, Charlie Wilsons War is a detailed and brilliantly reported account of the inside workings of the CIA.

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History
Average customer rating:
Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History
George Crile
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000MFKRFG

Average customer rating:
Charlie Wilson's War
George Crile
Manufacturer: Atlantic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books
Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books
General | Political Science | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1843547368

Charlie Wilson's War (Audiofy Digital Audiobook Chips)
Average customer rating:
Charlie Wilson's War (Audiofy Digital Audiobook Chips)

Manufacturer: Audiofy/Blackstone
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Cards
ASIN: 1599124467

Product Description

This Audiofy audiobook chip packs Christopher Lane's full 20.5 hour reading of "Charlie Wilson's War" on a tiny memory card. A single Audiofy audiobook chip, hardly larger than a stamp, holds a complete digital audiobook, and saves the last listening position automatically, unlike CDs. With an SD memory card slot or adapter - like those for digital cameras - this Audiofy audiobook chip can be played on Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh desktop computers or laptops (Microsoft Windows XP/2000/Me/98, or Apple Mac OS X 10.3.9 and above) or transferred to Apple iPod media players. Audiobook chips also move seamlessly to most Palm OS and Pocket PC handheld PDAs with SD expansion slots, as well as Treo and Windows Mobile "smartphones" (Palm OS 5.2 or Windows Mobile 2002 and above)... This New York Times best-seller is the untold story behind the last battle of the Cold War, the rise of militant Islam, and of a colorful congressman from Texas who conspired with a rogue CIA operative to launch the most successful covert operation in CIA history.

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times

Average customer rating:

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times
George Crile
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Central Asia | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Book Description

A gripping and vibrant book soon to be released as a major motion picture starring Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts and directed by Mike Nichols, Charlie Wilson’s War was a New York Times, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times best seller when it was published in 2003. Crile’s book is the true story of how a Texas Congressman and a rogue CIA agent conspired to launch the biggest, meanest, and most successful CIA campaign ever — the operation to fund the mujahideen in their fight against the Soviet army that had invaded Afghanistan. Moving from the back rooms of the Capitol to secret chambers at Langley, from arms dealers’ conventions to the Khyber Pass, Charlie Wilson’s War presents an astonishing chapter of our recent past, and the key to understanding what helped trigger the sudden collapse of the Soviet Union and ultimately led to the emergence of a brand-new foe in the form of radical Islam.

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History

Average customer rating:

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History
George Crile
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | History | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Military | History | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

United States | History | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Thrillers | Mysteries & Thrillers | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Afghanistan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Russia | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of How the Wildest Man in Congress and a Rogue CIA Agent Changed the History of Our Times
Age-Proof Your Mind: Detect, Delay, and Prevent Memory Loss--Before It's Too Late
Friends, Lovers, Chocolate: An Isabel Dalhousie Mystery
The Craft of Intelligence: America's Legendary Spy Master on the Fundamentals of Intelligence Gathering for a Free World
No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II

ASIN: B000SOVCFK

Average customer rating:

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History
George Crile
Manufacturer: Blackstone Audio Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Central Asia | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Product Description

A Blackstone Audie® Award Winner

Charlie Wilson's War is the untold story of the last battle of the Cold War and how it fueled the rise of militant Islam. Charlie Wilson, a maverick congressman from east Texas, conspired with a rogue CIA operative to launch the biggest, meanest, and most successful covert operation in the Agency's history.

In the early 1980s, after a Houston socialite turned Wilson's attention to the ragged Afghan freedom fighters who continued to fight the Soviet invaders despite overwhelming odds, the congressman became passionate about their cause and procured hundreds of millions of dollars to support the mujahideen.

Customer Reviews:

Very Good Book; Much Too Bad It's OOP!.......2004-04-15

I can't believe this title is out of print...I wouldn't say the book is anywhere near perfect (it feels just that much more "serious" or "scholarly" than the typical History Channel or Learning Channel program), but it seems to be the only book about early enlisted life in the U.S. Army (namely, boot camp and one's first duty station) -- certainly the most recent, unfortunately!

I was hoping to find a new edition of this really good book, and instead I find that it's hardly available anymore! What a disappointment -- and a loss in this age of an all-volunteer force, when the American military is "actively" deployed more than ever before and the vast majority of youth know nothing first-hand about military service....

I can't believe someone else isn't taking up the mantle here, picking up the fallen standard! I want another book about Army infantry Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training, by gum! We have stuff on Marine Corps boot camp, we'll have stuff about West Point cadets...but the mud soldiers, the grunts, the common enlisted man of Army infantry and combat arms in general...we need at least an update on this the only game in town!

Excellant.......1999-11-03

George Wilson is an excellant author and gives the truth in this book. I wrote to Mr Wilson and at the time my husband to be was in basic as a mud soldier and Mr Wilson autographed and sent me a copy of his wonderful true book. A must read for infantry.

An excellent look at the life of a U.S. Army infantryman.......1999-04-13

George C. Wilson captures the true essence of the life of an infantryman during the waning years of the cold war. He exposes a side of the military in an objective way, in which few people truly see. Mr. Wilson makes it clear that the military needs to place that invaluable American asset, the soldier, on a level of extreme importance. He shows that our military is facing a leadership crisis, especially at the middle management position. The Washington bureaucrats need to read this book, and get a grip on the true state of our United States Army. Good job, Mr. Wilson!

Book Description

This book accounts for the resurgence of Gothic, and its immense popularity, during the British fin de siècle. In particular, Kelly Hurley explores a key scenario that haunts the genre: the loss of a unified and stable human identity, and the emergence of a chaotic and transformative "abhuman" identity in its place. Gothic is revealed as a highly productive and speculative genre, strongly indebted to nineteenth-century scientific, medical and social theories, including evolutionism, criminal anthropology and degeneration theory.

Customer Reviews:

Thanks for the heads up........2007-07-03

Thanks to this review, I now know to stay away from this book. There was, there is, and there always will be an essential human nature. The likes of Harold Bloom, Camille Paglia, and Steven Pinker should have proven this to any sensible person's satisfaction. This review is a perfect example of the irrational, anti-science, intellectually soft, "blank slate" nonsense that overwhelmingly dominates modern American academe, and which is single-handedly responsible for my dropping out of graduate studies when I was almost done with the program. It is not the responsibility of literary academics to make the world a better place and stop genocide: it is their responsibility to shed light on literary texts so we can appreciate their aesthetics, their respective cultures, and general human nature better. The mentality in this review perfectly illustrates how leftist ideology has poisoned and corroded literary studies over the last 35 years: we have subjugated literary and psychological theory towards certain politically correct ends. Never mind if the theories have any truth to them, just as long as they bring to fruition the desired objectives (which they won't, since they have no truth to them). It is disgusting to witness the appalling proportions of the liberal arrogance of those that believe it is their prerogative and duty to impose their non-literary, political agenda on an intellectual endeavor that should be concerned with aesthetics, psychology, and culture rather than Darfur; and it is more than a bit sad to witness this death of American academic intellect. Damn those French imbeciles Foucault and Lacan.

Insightful & fun book from prestigious Cambridge Press serie.......1999-11-02

At long last, humanism is coming into question. Critics and theorists such as Louis Althusser and Michel Foucault began this process; critics and theorists such as Kelly Hurley continue the process, and in so doing, carry out one of the most important cultural and intellectual tasks of our time.

We must move beyond humanism -- which includes the belief in an essential human nature -- if we are to stop the cycle of genocidal violence, to build fair and free communities for all, and to save our planet and its remaining species.

But to move beyond humanism, we must be able to step outside of it. 'The Gothic Body' help us to do just that. Prof. Hurley carefully investigates some of the most revealing artifacts of humanism: the literature of the fantastic, which includes Stoker's Dracula, Stevenson's Jekyll and Hyde, and Well's Island of Dr. Moreau. Hurley analyzes these and other works within the context of their times, using early criminology studies, for instance. And thanks to her post-structuralist/postmodernist perspective, Hurley points to a range of important insights about these works, about their times, and about our times.

Read this book, enjoy it, and think about it. It may change your appreciation of the significance of literary (and cinematic) genres. And it may help to change your worldview in some very central ways -- if you allow it to, and hopefully you will. It *is* a detailed literary study of important works seldom studied so closely and taken so seriously. But the works deserve this attention. And the issues raise by these works through Hurley's analysis are of great importance. It is no exercise in esoterica.

Finally, the person behind this book, is a truly great teacher and person. Not only does she provide original and incisive ideas and insights, she does so in a remarkably accessible and enjoyable manner. If you cannot take one of her university courses, then do the next best thing by reading 'The Gothic Body.'

If you are interested in the issues raised by her book, you should also look at 'Posthuman Bodies,' a 1995 anthology in which Hurley contributes an article entitled "Reading Like an Alien: Posthuman Identity in Ridley Scott's 'Alien' and David Cronenberg's 'Rabid." Also, you should check out 'The Cinematic Body' by Steven Shaviro, a like-minded thinker who is also represented in the 1995 anthology.

To learn more about what exactly is at stake in regard to humanism, and how to think about humanism and the alternatives, there are many resources. Among the most profound in terms of what is at stake, is William Haver's 'The Body of This Death: Historicity and Sociality in the Time of AIDS.' And of course, there are the works of Michel Foucault ('Discipline and Punish' & 'History of Sexuality' for example). Plus there's Louis Althusser, Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari, Michael Hardt, Brian Massumi, Toni Negri, Gloria Anzaldua, Judith Butler, Donna Haraway, Iris Marion Young, Elizabeth Grosz, John Caputo, William Connolly, Jean-Francois Lyotard, Jean-Luc Nancy, and the recent works of Jacques Derrida. And there's so many, and so much, more.

Literature and Science in the Nineteenth Century: An Anthology (Oxford World's Classics)
Average customer rating:
Literature and Science in the Nineteenth Century: An Anthology (Oxford World's Classics)

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Classics | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Literary Theory | History & Criticism | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Collections & Readers | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | British | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | Criticism & Theory | History & Criticism | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books
History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Membranes: Metaphors of Invasion in Nineteenth-Century Literature, Science, and Politics (Medicine and Culture)

Darwin's Plots: Evolutionary Narrative in Darwin, George Eliot and Nineteenth-Century Fiction

Darwin and the Novelists: Patterns of Science in Victorian Fiction

The Cambridge Companion to the Victorian Novel (Cambridge Companions to Literature)

The Cambridge Companion to Victorian Poetry (Cambridge Companions to Literature)

ASIN: 0192839799

Book Description

'It has been said by its opponents that science divorces itself from literature; but the statement, like so many others, arises from lack of knowledge.' John Tyndall, 1874 Although we are used to thinking of science and the humanities as separate disciplines, in the nineteenth century that division was not recognized. As the scientist John Tyndall pointed out, not only were science and literature both striving to better 'man's estate', they shared a common language and cultural heritage. The same subjects occupied the writing of scientists and novelists: the quest for 'origins', the nature of the relation between society and the individual, and what it meant to be human. This anthology brings together a generous selection of scientific and literary material to explore the exchanges and interactions between them. Fed by a common imagination, scientists and creative writers alike used stories, imagery, style, and structure to convey their meaning, and to produce work of enduring power. The anthology includes writing by Charles Babbage, Charles Darwin, Sir Humphry Davy, Charles Dickens, George Eliot, Michael Faraday, Thomas Malthus, Louis Pasteur, Edgar Allan Poe, Mary Shelley, Mark Twain and many others, and introductions and notes guide the reader through the topic's many strands.

Nineteenth-Century Science, An Anthology

Average customer rating:

Nineteenth-Century Science, An Anthology

Manufacturer: Broadview Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

History of Science | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Science | Subjects | Books

Scientists | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

On the Origin of Species
Victorian Print Media: A Reader
Victorian Science in Context
The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Vol. 2B: The Victorian Age
The Coming Race (Hesperus Classics)

ASIN: 1551111659

Book Description

'Nineteenth-Century Science' is a science anthology which provides over 30 selections from 19th-century scientific monographs, textbooks and articles written by such authors as Charles Darwin, Mary Somerville, J.W. Goeth, John Dalton, Charles Lyell, and Hermann von Helmholtz. The volume surveys scientific discovery and thought from Jean-Baptiste Lamarck's theory of evolution of 1809 to the isolation of radium by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898. Each selection opens with a biographical introduction, situating each scientist and scientific discover within the context of the history and culture of the period. Each entry is also followed by a list of further suggested reading on the topic. A broad range of technical and popular material has been included, from Mendeleev's detailed description of the periodic table to Faraday's highly accessible lecture for young people on the chemistry of a burning candle. The anthology will be of interest to the general reader who would like to explore in detail the scientific, cultural, and intellectual development of the nineteenth century, as well as to students and teachers who specialize in the science, literature, history, or sociology of the period. The book provides examples from all of the disciplines of western science-chemistry, physics, medicine, astronomy, biology, evolutionary theory, etc. The majority of the entries consist of complete, unabridged journal articles or book chapters from original 19th-century scientific texts.

African-American Poetry of the Nineteenth Century: AN ANTHOLOGY

Average customer rating:

African-American Poetry of the Nineteenth Century: AN ANTHOLOGY

Manufacturer: University of Illinois Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Anthologies | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Criticism | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0252062469

Science in the Nineteenth-Century Periodical: Reading the Magazine of Nature (Cambridge Studies in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Culture)

Average customer rating:

Science in the Nineteenth-Century Periodical: Reading the Magazine of Nature (Cambridge Studies in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Culture)
Geoffrey Cantor , Gowan Dawson , Graeme Gooday , Richard Noakes , Sally Shuttleworth , and Jonathan R. Topham
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Science Serialized: Representations of the Sciences in Nineteenth-Century Periodicals (Dibner Institute Studies in the History of Science and Technology)

ASIN: 0521836379

Book Description

Magazines and periodicals played a far greater role than books in influencing the Victorians' understanding of the new discoveries and theories in science, technology and medicine of their era. This book identifies and analyzes the presentation of science in the periodical press in Britain between 1800 and 1900.

Future Perfect: American Science Fiction of the Nineteenth Century: An Anthology

Average customer rating:

Fantastic as a textbook or casual read
Excellent Selection, wish there was more!

Future Perfect: American Science Fiction of the Nineteenth Century: An Anthology
H. Bruce Franklin
Manufacturer: Rutgers University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Anthologies | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Anthologies | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Time Machine (Signet Classics)

ASIN: 0813521521

Book Description

Critics, science fiction writers, scientists, and scholars throughout the world hailed the original publication of Future Perfect in 1966 as a book that would transform our evaluation of science fiction and our understanding of American culture. The praise has proved well founded, for Future Perfect has been more responsible than any other single work for the recognition of the value and significance of science fiction.

In this first new edition since 1978, H. Bruce Franklin has made major revisions and additions, including a new section displaying remarkable contributions to science fiction by nineteenth-century American women. Future Perfect now offers a stunning perspective on the relevance of nineteenth-century science fiction in the dawn of the twenty-first century, illustrated by wonderfully enjoyable stories by obscure figures and by well-known authors, including:
-- Nathaniel Hawthorne
-- Washington Irving
-- Jack London
-- Herman Melville
-- Edgar Allan Poe
-- Mark Twain

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic as a textbook or casual read.......2007-07-11

I found this at a used-book store, and was excited at the notion of reading short-story 19th century visions-- of the fantastic and of the future. The author gives a very interesting commentary/criticism which I feel adds much value to this book, not only as an anthology, but as a critical study (given this book was published so long ago, the criticism itself is an interesting look back. However, I do feel it was odd that attention was given either to a specific author (there was a very long Hawthorne section, for example) or to a sub-genre (e.g., automata)--making the topic of commentary seem at times a bit arbitrary.

Overall, I enjoyed this book immensely--it was extremely engaging and entertaining (and the format made it a perfect read on my commute). I thank the author for introducing me to science-fiction by authors I wasn't aware of (or by those who I had not previously considered sci-fi authors--e.g., Melville). The sophistication and logic (and surprisingly accurate projections in many cases) have made for some interesting dinner-table discussion with my husband (who is now reading it). I'm giving this book 5 stars, as I believe it to be a must-read for those interested in the history of the future.

Excellent Selection, wish there was more!.......2000-04-15

This book brings together short stories by largely canonical American authors--people we all read in school such as Hawthorne, Poe, and Melville. What Franklin has done brilliantly is shown, by the way he has collected the stories, how much they share a developing science fiction sensibility. Franklin also offers introductions to the stories and authors that are well written and intelligent, but here is also the source of my only complaint: I wish the introductions were slightly shorter, leaving room to include a few more stories. Still, this is an excellent anthology, one that will interest both converted science fiction fans and those who restrict themselves to reading that counts as "virtuous."

American Contributions to Mathematical Statistics in the Nineteenth Century: An Original Anthology (Three Centuries of Science in America)

Average customer rating:

American Contributions to Mathematical Statistics in the Nineteenth Century: An Original Anthology (Three Centuries of Science in America)
Stephen M. Stigler
Manufacturer: Ayer Co Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Aspects of Astronomy in America in the Nineteenth Century: An Original Anthology (Three centuries of science in America)

Average customer rating:

Aspects of Astronomy in America in the Nineteenth Century: An Original Anthology (Three centuries of science in America)

Manufacturer: Ayer Co Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0405125291

English Hymns of the Nineteenth Century: An Anthology

Average customer rating:

English Hymns of the Nineteenth Century: An Anthology

Manufacturer: Peter Lang Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Book Description

English Hymns of the Nineteenth Century brings together for the first time the most popular and widely used English hymns from that period, continuing the work of its foregoing volume, English Hymns of the Eighteenth Century, the genre's formative period. This annotated and edited collection of nearly 200 hymns (with author introductions and a general historical introduction) will be of inestimable value to scholars, students, and laypersons from several disciplines and interests: from hymnology to church and social history and theology, from political science to literature to popular culture. Hymns were the most widely read and memorized verbal structures from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries—and in the nineteenth century the hymn became not only the property of dissenters, but also of representatives from the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church. This anthology, therefore, provides unique and highly significant insights into the culture, beliefs, and habits of thought of a people and their spiritual leaders.

Hawthorne's Mad Scientists: Pseudoscience and Social Science in Nineteenth-Century Life and Letters

Average customer rating:

Hawthorne's Mad Scientists: Pseudoscience and Social Science in Nineteenth-Century Life and Letters
Taylor Stoehr
Manufacturer: Archon Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Book Description

International institutions and structures are crucial to the management of the global environment. The present arrangements are failing to cope adequately with the scale of the task and the demands placed on them and alternatives are urgently needed. In this second volume of "World in Transition", experts in the German Advisory Council on Global Change (WGBU) analyze the current problems and set out comprehensive and very persuasive policies for a successful future regime. Central to the future will be a strengthened and more effective UN Environment Program within an alliance organized around three main objectives of assessment, organization and funding.

WORLD IN TRANSITION NEW STRUCTURES FOR GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

Average customer rating:

WORLD IN TRANSITION NEW STRUCTURES FOR GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
German Advisory Council
Manufacturer: JAMES & JAMES (SCIENCE PUBLISHERS) LTD
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N5DMKC

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books