the jingle of coins that is...

Dr. Van Wie's historical masterpiece on the evolution of European coinage is nothing short of a relevation to the modern world. Within these few 224 pages, Dr. Paul Van Wie enlightens us to how the symbolism on coins can represent the beliefs and socio-economic trends of a particular civilization.

Furthermore, I truly believe that Dr. Van Wie is the reincarnated Johann Tetzel, our beloved sacrilegious friend. Just the way he sings the line "as the gold in the basin rings, so the soul in heaven sings". It makes me tingle all over. But more than that, it is full evidence that Dr Van Wie is Johann Tetzel. Not only that, but he posesses special powers. Dr. Van Wie has an uncanny ability to harness the forces of transubstansiation. With a wiggle of his ears he can transform an A.P. European history lesson into magical mystery tour. Dr. Van Wie also has mastered the translation of Swiss proverbs into English. Now all Americans can learn that "As they say in Switzerland, your finished, baby."

Dr. Van Wie has transcended into a god-like figure among Americans. In fact, Paul Van Wie now has a cult following on the Eastern coast of the United States. FBI reports have recently shown a sharp increase in the number of snowball attacks against old ladies.

So, as Doc would say during his translation of swiss proverbs...

"As they say in Switzerland, see ya."

If only such a man with his minute knowledge of modern coinage as Dr. Paul D. Van Wie existed during the time of Louis XIV's reign in France, then maybe The French Revolution could have been outright avoided! This brilliant author's book on modern coinage was a delight to read and a real page turner! After having read this novel, I feel prepared to answer any question on modern coinage should it show up on the show Who Wants to be a Millionaire, which I plan to enter soon. Maybe I'll give this fine, young author a piece of my profits. You never know!

There is no one more informed on this topic than Paul Van Wie. He truly is a treasure. Anyone who has a remote interest in History and/or Politics must pick this book up. A must read!

In 1968 I received this book as a bonus from the Farm Family Book Club. I started to read it in the evening and read until I was finished at 4:00 a.m. The next day I said, "If Brother Andrew can trust God for 365 days a year, I can trust Him for one day, no matter how foolish it makes me look." I did, and I did look foolish. But I found out that He is faithful. My life has never been the same.

If self-sacrifice is the mark of true heroism, then Brother Andrew is in a class with the most valient. This book tells his story from birth and youth in WWII poverty, to the agnosticysm of a young man to the realization that God is REAL and part of his life. It will challenge your faith to rely on God as if he were a king leading his troops into battle. He is. Brother Andrew's story is one of the most involving STORIES I have read. But it isn't just a story, it is the life of a real man who has given everything for the mission to spread light to a dark land. Just because the Iron Curtin has fallen, dosen't mean that this book is any less relevant today. It will change your faith. Gaurenteed.

This book can change your life and how you see God. Brother Andrew gave his life totally to God, and God remained faithful to him. you cannot read this book and come away with the same view on God. I read this book, and could not put it down. Sure to strengthen your Christian experience. As thrilling as any spy novel. Not one to be missed by any christian. What one person can do when they give themselves totally to God. If you thought the result would be a dull life, you're dead wrong! Read the book!
IF YOU LIKED THIS, I HAVE ANOTHER TO RECCOMEND. It's called "A Thousand Shall Fall" But you must be sure to get the right one. The full title is "A thousand shall Fall: The electrifying story of a soldier and his family that dared to practice their faith in Hitler's Germany." Written by Suzy Hazel Mundy. It's as much of a page turner as this book and will also change your life.

Happy reading!

THE CONQUERING FAMILY is the first book of four by Thomas Costain on the Plantagenet kings of England. In my opinion, this set, and the 3-volume masterpiece by Shelby Foote on the U.S. Civil War, are the best historical series I've ever read. (The last three volumes in the Costain quartet are: THE MAGNIFICENT CENTURY, THE THREE EDWARDS, and THE LAST PLANTAGENETS.)

THE CONQUERING FAMILY chronicles the reigns of Henry II (1154-1189), and his sons Richard I "the Lionhearted" (1189-1199) and John (1199-1216). Henry II, in my opinion the greatest of English monarchs, created an empire that included not only Britain, but perhaps as much as two-thirds of present day France (thanks, in great part, to his marriage to the dynamic Eleanor of Aquitaine, the Duchess of that province and the former Queen of France.) By the end of John's reign, virtually all French possessions were lost and England was racked by civil war. No chip off the old block was John.

The general public usually associates Henry II with his quarrel with, and eventual murder of, Archbishop Thomas Becket of Canterbury. Richard I is, of course, "the Lionhearted" king who crusaded in the Holy Land against the infidels, and who has a fictional association with Robin Hood. And, lastly, there's the misfit King John, of Magna Carta fame.

A perfect companion piece to this volume is the 1968 film THE LION IN WINTER, starring Peter O'Toole as Henry and Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor, the latter winning an Academy Award for her performance. The film's story evolves over Christmas, 1183, in the royal castle of Chinon, as Henry, Eleanor, and sons Richard, Geoffrey and John quarrel, backstab, and plot amongst themselves as to which son will inherit the thrown on Henry's death. It's my all-time favorite film for reasons given in my review of it on this website. More to the point, the book and the film are consistent in their portrayal of this royal family as dysfunctional with a capital "D". It's a quote from Hepburn's Eleanor that heads this review, and which says it all. (By comparison, the current English royal family is merely a bunch of trivial sissies.) Both the book and the film are powerful portrayals of a ruling dynasty, the likes of which the world will likely never see again. If you're at all interested in English history, you absolutely must not overlook either the Costain series or the movie.

Thomas Costain managed to create in one book entertainment, a research source and a book that has pleased people interested in medieval history and the first Plantagenets for quite some time. "The Conquering Family" is not a dry textbook, Costain has given the history a flow which makes the reading more interesting without sacrificing the facts so that the book is a good read for those who are not especially interested in history as well as a good resource for students on the English monarchy from Henry II through Henry III. This and the other three books in the series, "The Three Edwards", "The Magnificent Century" and "The Last Plantagenets", makes a good basis for launching any interest in medieval studies.

I picked up this book and haven't been able to put it down. Mr. Costain has written a vivid and engrossing account of the lives of the Plantagenets who ruled England. He begins with Henry I (who was not a Plantagenet), whose daughter Matilda married, for her second husband, Geoffery of Anjou (who would be the first to be called by the name Plantagenet). The family is handled down to and including John, brother of the so-named Richard the Lion Heart.

His account is respendent with detail where it exsists historically or is highly suggested culturally. He notes the difference by indicating what was probable, what was possible, what is known, and what is thought to be known.

Before I click over into my dry academic language, let me say that this book rocks! It is obviously well researched. I would recommend reading this BEFORE you read Alison Weir's "The Princes in the Tower." After you read "The Conquering Family" may I suggest picking up "The Three Edwards" (also by Costain). This will give you a good portion of the background and backdrop of English History against which the tragedy of the imprisonment and subsequent disappearance of Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York (not to be confused with their uncle who would later become Richard III). THEN read "The Princes in the Tower," which of course examines, in light of ALL of the available historical evidence, the 'who-did-it,' 'when,' and 'how' of the disappearance and death of the two young princes (King and Duke actually).

Given the time period which "The Conquering Family" treats, there are next to no pictures. While I would dread to see enough pictures to warrant calling this a pictorial history, I would suggest that some portraits of the participants and such, would have helped to spark the imagination of the reader and to further engage their interest. Also, while there are maps in the book, there is no listing of the maps in the front of the book, and a map of locations such as Anjou, could only have served to enhance the readers' perspective and understanding of the subject matter.

Now if someone would only buy me "The Magnificent Century" and "The Last Plantagenets"!

The road from home is perhaps the best children's book I've ever read. The genocide of the Armenians is a period of history that is greatly overlooked. This book presents a chilling account of one girl's experience in that terrible time when the Turks decided to eliminate the Armenian population. The author does this in a way that is neither too depressing for children to grasp nor is it too flip to be meaningful. I could not recommend this book more highly. It is a must-read for anyone.

THE ROAD FROM HOME, A True Story of Courage, Survival and Hope by David Kherdian, Beech Tree Books Reviewed by Y. Stephen Bulbulian Although considered juvenile literature, poet David Kherdian's award-winning story of his mother's young life is a story of silent determination, hope and ultimately survival. This is far more than juvenile literature. Through unbelievable adversity and suffering, there is astounding good luck and grace in the face of misfortune. "The Road From Home" is also a sociological slice of life into the being and ways of the Armenians, historic inhabitants of Anatolia, now Turkish territory. Driven from their homes and massacred, this is a classic story of Armenian survival. The young girl, Veron Dumehjian, lived a placid life in the home of her well-to-do family. She loved her family home and the garden with "the poppies that grew beyond [the] garden wall." Her desire to return to the garden kept her hopes up during years of adversity. Kherdian describes the customs, traditions, holidays, rituals, the Armenian words, and even the food, that immortalizes the life of the peaceful people, annihilated by the Turkish genocide. This book is excellent sociology, written as no sociologist could.

In her eighth year, Veron's life, the Armenian homes and countryside are darkened by the black cloud of Turkish repression. In the latter-days of the previous century, and in 1909, in Adana, Armenians suffered barbarities at the hands of the Turks, under the rule of Abdul Hamid..

Young Veron began hearing words like "deportation, massacres and annihilation." Her uncles were conscripted into the Turkish army; World War One had broken out. Using the war as an excuse, the Turks began a protracted annihilation of the Armenians. Given three days to prepare, the Dumehjian family began their forced march from the family home into the Syrian desert. Veron slowly loses all of her immediate family, brother, sister, mother, father, grandfather during the course of the journey. She becomes an orphan, nearly starved and survives with the help of deposed women (aunties) from her village. Ending up in an orphanage in Aleppo, she becomes reacquainted with relatives. Miraculously, she returns to her beloved grandmother, still living in the family home in the old village, only to discover she could not return to the idealized home she dreamed of. All things had changed, all lives were irreparably damaged by the lose of loved ones and the destruction of the Armenians. Her own grandmother, with her family lost, becomes Veron's slave-master.

Relocated in Smyrna, on the Mediterranean coast, Veron lives through yet another round of atrocities at the hands of the Turks. With uncommon luck, she and an aunt are rescued and sent to a refugee camp in Greece, where life begins again in the pursuit of normalcy. From there, she becomes a gracious and beautiful young women and a fiancee to a pre-arranged marriage in America.

"The Road From Home, " is the story of insurmountable hardship and suffering inflicted on the soul of an innocent young girl. Her ability to block the horror and tragedy from her thoughts, sublimating the pain and death she experienced daily during the darkest moments, summonsed her strength and fortitude to live. Many souls were trampled, giving her life beauty and triumph.

An outstanding and award-winning book, it is the winner of the Newbery Honor Book Award, the Jane Addams Peace Award and many others. David Kherdian crafts his mother's story, a history similar to thousands of Armenian survivors in diaspora, a sad story filled with overriding hope. The magnitude of the story and the young girl's resilience, where strength and determination overcome adversity, makes this a moving and memorable reading experience, and a story to be remembered and retold.

This is one of the best first-hand accounts about the Genocide that I've read. FINALLY, a book was written about it for younger people. Once I start teaching, this will definitely be on my list of required reading.

Kherdian started off a bit slow--I wasn't sure I'd get through it. But once I hit page 20, I couldn't put it down! It was captivating, touching. I just wanted Veron to be okay--to be able to understand what was going on. For her to survive. Only two books have ever managed to bring tears to my eyes, and this was one of them.

Even though I'm not Armenian, I've read countless books about both Armenia and the Genocide. This definitely is one of the best. It's easy to understand (though the fact that it happened is still so difficult for me to comprehend).

If you're an Armenian parent (or grandparent!) struggling to tell your teen about it, this book will help greatly. I highly recommend it. Kherdian should be given high praises for having the courage to pen this book.

What refreshing, unique book! Although nonfiction, this reads like a thoroughly enjoyable, can't-put-it-down novel. The author's letters home and journal entries during her tour of duty in the American Red Cross tell her story in an engaging manner; yet Mrs. Norwalk also gives one a deep appreciation for the amazing sacrifices made by the WWII generation.

Settle in with some coffee and donuts and get ready to enjoy this book. The letters Rosie sent home are fascinating, but her insightful journal entries really make this story outstanding. Her descriptions of her Red Cross co-workers are wonderful; you really feel that you know them. And her adventures in England are also well described: you'll learn how to wangle an invitation to a private tour of a castle, and how to behave when meeting the royal family. But it's more than just light-hearted adventure: Rosie has moving encounters with young GI's and a disturbing encounter with Leavenworth prisoners. And the section of her book dealing with her time in Germany will haunt you. This is a funny, insightful, and moving book.

What a wonderful book! Rosie's letters and journal entries transport the reader to the 1940s like no other book I have read. This book offers a keen insight, as well, into the American Red Cross, an organization that is what it is because of people like Rosie. Bravo!

The Europeans' displacement and replacement of native peoples in the temperate zones were more a result of "superior" biology than military conquest, according to Crosby in this book.

Europe held an unassailable biotic mix that some native peoples and ecosystems could not withstand. This biota fucntioned as a team wherever Europeans took it. European germs swept aside native peoples. Europe's cattle, pigs and horses filled native biotic niches. European weeds and agriculture squeezed out native plants. This biological expansion of Europe created "Neo-Europes" which still function today in North America, Australia, New Zealand and southern South America.

European imperialism often failed or was considerably delayed in areas where Europe's biota could not prevail. In China much the same biota was already present. Africa, the Amazon and southeast Asia were too hot, too fecund and too disease-ridden for Europe's animals, plants and humans. These areas were among the last to be dominated as a result, and then only briefly, when Europe's technology gave temporary edge to its armies.

Alfred Crosby's "Ecological Imperialism" is a provocative, well-written and definitely fascinating book. Crosby examines the reason Europeans were able to defeat the Indigenous people in American, Australia and New Zealand. Crosby argues that the biology and ecology factors played tremendous roles in their win. Crosy argues that the weeds, animals and the Europeans best allies, the germs or diseases that they brought with them to the New World dominated the Indigenous people. The Europeans sought to make the New World as similiar to that of the Old World. It was interesting for me because we were taught that the military superiority of the Europeans was the main factor. In addition, Crosy also examines the unsuccessful attempts of the Europeans at dominating Asia and Africa.

"Ecological Imperialism" definitely is a groundbreaking book in the field of environmental history.

'Ecological imperialism: The biological expansion of Europe, 900-1900', by A. W. Crosby, is a cogently argued and well written book. The main thesis of the book is that the expansion by Europeans to the Americas, Australia, New Zealand, and a few other enclaves (what Crosby calls the Neo-Europes) wouldn't have succeded if the biota the Europeans brought with them had not suceeded. This biota included not only humans, of course, but pathogens, weeds and grasses, and horses, cattle, goats, and pigs, among the most important. Crosby addresses the reasons why this biota was so succesful in the new territories, and concludes that, in general, the climatic regimes there were sufficiently similar to those of its European origins and the indigenous biota was so 'naive' that 'victory' was almost assured to the invaders. To be sure, this is not an original conclusion, but the wealth of data Crosby uses, along with his synthetic power and sense of humor, makes of this book an enjoyable and thought-provoking read. People interested in searching for the biological causes of the successes (and failures!) of Europeans in the world should read this engaging book.

"A Boyhood Under Nazi-Occupied France" is a compelling story of a Jewish family in their struggle to keep one step ahead to stay alive.
As a master story teller, Dr. Burnell retained a vivid and close memory of his personal experience, as a youth, surviving the horrors of war.
His mother was a very strong and resourceful women, allowing the family to land on their feet each time they were to forced to move from city to city. The family was tested in every way.
Dr. Burnell's extrodinary book will take some readers to a place
they have never been and others from a place they have never forgotten.

How well I remember World War II, but only from the safety of my childhood in the United States, unlike Dr. Burnell whose youth during the occupation of his beloved France is the subject of this memoir. It provides us with historic data that is particularly relevant as our own country faces another major war. As a Jewish family working with the French Resistance, life for young George life became a series of escapes, moving from city to city to avoid execution. George's beloved step-father died for his heroic efforts, but mother and son managed to survive the ordeal. This easy to read book is written with sensitivity and intelligence during a period fraught with atrocities that one should never forget. I couldn't put the book down.

"Beating the Odds" by George Burnell is the exciting autobiography of a youngster growing up in Nazi-occupied France during WWII. In 369 action packed pages, the author traces his journey from Strasbourg, France in 1939 until the end of WWII in May, 1945. "Beating the Odds" is a real page turner that reads like a novel full of twists and turns. As an adolescent French Jew, George with his family lived in constant fear of discovery by the Nazis and moved frequently to ellude them. Despite these risks, he manages to join his Uncle David, a Dentist, and others in the French Resistance and narrowly escapes with his life. This fascinating memoir gives the reader an interesting and unique perspective on WWII in France and I highly recommend it to you.

Henry Miller paints a wonderfully enticing portrait of Greece in this well-written account of his travels there in the 1930's and 40's. I liked this book so much that it inspired a trip to Greece, to visit some of the ancient historical sites. While visiting such places as Mycenae and Delphi, it was enjoyable to re-read his own impressions of them.

The book is full of colorful observations, and is written in a far more traditional and accessible style than Miller's "Tropic" books. I only have a couple of quibbles about this very fine book. First, the title character of the book, a Greek friend of Miller's, is never developed in a way that justifies the appellation "Colossus." Second, I think Miller sometimes strains a bit to lend a literary effect to rather commonplace things or experiences.

As a Greek-American reading about Greece in Miller's account written in the 1930's, I found it to be very moving. It isn't simply a travel book about Greece, it's about Greece healing someone's soul!

I absolutely love Miller's, "Tropic of Cancer," and was expecting the same style for Maroussi. However, I was mistaken. Miller doesn't include any of his notorious womanizing stories here. Instead, Miller writes about finding peace in contemplating Greece, modern and ancient. Again, his written prose is like reading poetry. There are some passages from this book that I had to "cut out" and keep for inspiration.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Henry Miller or Greece. I must also recommend Edmund Keeley's, "Inventing Paradise," which is something of a companion to Maroussi. In it, Keeley discusses Miller's Greek journey, which he took along with George Seferis, Lawrence Durrell, and other 20th century Greek poets, writers, and painters.

I first read this bookin the mid-seventies when I was in my early twenties. I recently re-discovered it as a niece was going to Greece to study and wanted some backround about the culture and character of the Greek people. Reading a book some twenty years later and particularly and author like Henry Miller can tell you something about the author and the reader and how perceptions change in twenty years. Miller's crystal clear renderings of the ambience and character of the Greek landscape and the Greek character are timeless treasures to be soaked up as in the brilliance of the Greek light by anyone that loves art. Although I would not define the book as a classic work of literature (there are too many first person accounts that wax and wane depending on the mood of the author, I would say that it has some characteristics of classic art in it's timeless appeal as well as it's changing meaning to a changing reader. We can look at at great work of art, say at age 21 and it means one thing. then we can look at the same work 25 years later and it will mean something totally different, yet have more depth in some areas and less meaning in others. This is what I found in reading The Colossus of Maroussi. If you want to be transported to the timelessnes of the power and potency of the Greek mind and heart, read thhis book.

In his usual erudite style, Col. Cooper lays forth the basic use of the general purpose rifle. This is an excellent book for anyone who wants to improve his skill with a rifle and therefore his self-esteem as an individual citizen. His opening line says it all, "Personal weapons are what raised mankind out of the mud, and the rifle is the queen of personal weapons." Do expect the straightforward dope on how to handle, hold, sight, and fire a rifle. Don't expect lengthy anecdotes, although personal examples, experiences, and observations are thrown in. Don't expect specialized material regarding target shooting or any specific (non-hunting) sporting applications. This is an easy-to-read book of just under 100 pages that will help the beginner build a solid foundation and help the expert hone their skill. You (as I did) will read it over and over. In a time where the skill of rifle use is rapidly disappearing from our increasingly urban society, this book is both timely and useful. I highly recommend it to all shooters and those who would like to be.

While I admit that I am an unabashed fan of Colonel Cooper, I without reservation regard this book to be one of the essential elements to the aspiring rifleman. This book however is useful to one person, the rifleman. If your into Benchrest, 1000 yard competion, and nameless other disciplines of specialized rifle usage, spend your money elsewhere. This book deals purely with the employment of the "queen of personal weapons", the rifle. The only thing that I did not like about the book was it's size. The information is so useful that I found myself in want for a compact "field edition" that could acompany myself and my rifle into the field. In short this book encompasses the most usable 97 pages of rifle related instruction that I have ever read.

This book is excellent reading. I recommend it to anyone who wants to improve his or her rifle skills. My only quibble with Cooper's presentation is his dismissal of the .223 Remington round and the semi-automatic rifles that favor this caliber. I must respectfully disagree with him here. Apply Cooper's principles to the modern .223 rifle, and you will be well ahead of the game.

From the techniques involved in decoding and deciphering German diplomatic messages (in layman's terms) to the sacrifices and lives spent acquiring the knowledge of Room 40 (i.e. code books) to the tenacious efforts of Germany to spark U.S involvement in Mexico as well as against the Japanese(!), Tuchman provides a thorough account on the Zimmermann Telegram and its crucial role in pulling a reluctant American nation into the First World War. As a History grad student, I never knew about Germany's aims regarding Japan ("the Yellow Peril") during this period until I read this book. In addition, Tuchman's excellent and often witty writing style makes Zimmermann Telegram (and her many other works) gripping and entertaining, as well as informative.

This book is history at its very best. Tuchman has brought to life an amazing story of espionage and deceit that reads like an Ian Fleming novel. Her fluid writing style keeps you turning the pages. Although the outcome is known, the reader still finds themselves asking what will happen.

The book covers Germany's pre-war intrigues in Mexico, and then once the war starts, follows the agents sent to America to keep us out of the war. She discusses how German spies plotted to take over munitions factories and stop the flow of war goods to the Allies...and how they nearly succeeded. The story also discusses how Wilson was tormented by the decision to bring America into the war, and how he really did wish peace for the world. Yet, when confronted with the Zimmerman Telegram, which offered Mexico the reacquisition of Texas, Arizona and New Mexico, Wilson was left with no choice but war.

It is incredible at how a blunder by one German official was able to bring the world's most powerful nation into the fold against them. Yet that stays with the theme of WW I, and the Zimmerman Telegram may have been the biggest blunder of the war. Thanks to Barbara Tuchman, we know how it all came to pass.

The story of the Zimmermann Telegram is a gem of history that literally is a ripping good yarn.

The nutshell: In the middle of WWI, German foreign minister Zimmermann -- worried about how to keep America occupied on our side of the Atlantic and out of the Allied camp -- sent a telegram instructing his Mexican envoy to propose an alliance between Mexico, Japan and Germany. The payoff for our southern neighbor: the restoration of Texas, Arizona and New Mexico to the country of Mexico.

This very fine book is many facets tightly woven in 200 pages: British code breakers. German diplomatic efforts. President Wilson's unshakable will for neutrality. Mexican and Japanese intrigue. Submarine warfare. Mexican revolution and America's chase for Pancho Villa.

The story has drama (the fight to persuade Wilson that US interests lay with the Allies and not in being a neutral broker of peace), excitement (British code breaking efforts and the intrigue to get the telegram published / into American hands), and near comedy (German bungling with codes, diplomatic missions and high strategy)written by the masterful Barbara Tuchman.

The author takes all these elements -- which are almost Shakespearean in their complexity and interplay -- and crafts a terrifically exciting history. A very fine read.