Product Description
El perro de Baskerville de Arthur Conan Doyle (1902), es re-escrita poco más de un siglo después, Caleb Carr, que conoció el éxito internacional con su thriller histórico El alienista, retoma a Sherlock Holmes como protagonista de una nueva investigación con connotaciones sobrenaturales. En esta ocasión, Sherlock Holmes, ayudado por el incondicional Watson, investigará el apuñalamiento, en el siglo XVI, de David Rizzio, un confidente de la reina María de Escocia. / Caleb Carr recaptures the path of Conan Doyle in one of his most popular novels, The Baskervilles Hound (1902), whose resolution has paranormal shades. Little more than one century later,Carr brings back Sherlock Holmes as the main character, helped by the unconditional Watson, will investigate the stabbing, in the XVI century, of David Rizzio, confidant of Mary, queen of the Scots. ... Read more

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Although terrorism seems a relatively modern phenomenon, novelist and military historian Caleb Carr illustrates that it has been a constant of military history. In ancient times, warring armies raped and slaughtered civilians and gratuitously destroyed homes and cities; in the Middle Ages, evangelical Muslims and Christian crusaders spread their faiths by the sword; and in the early modern era, such celebrated kings as Louis XIV victimized noncombatants for political purposes.

During the Civil War Americans first engaged in "Total war," the most egregious of the many euphemisms for the tactics of terror. The forces of the South tried to systematize this horrifying practice; but it fell to a Union general, William Tecumseh Sherman, to achieve that dubious goal. Carr recounts Sherman's declaration of war on every man, woman, and child in the South -- a policy that brought long-term unrest tot he American South by giving birth to the Ku Klux Klan.

Carr's exploration of terror reveals its consistently self-defeating nature. Far from prompting submission, Carr argues, terrorism stiffens enemy resolve: for this reason above all, terrorism has never achieved -- not will it ever achieve -- long-term success, however physically destructive and psychologically debilitating it may become. With commanding authority and the storyteller's gift for which he is renowned, Caleb Carr provides a critical historical context for understanding terrorist acts today, arguing that terrorism will be eradicated only when it is perceived as a tactic that brings nothing save defeat to its agents. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

painful
I listened to the audiobook version of this book and it was painful. The reader's voice was annoying and I couldn't wait for the book to be over.

As far as the book goes, I don't think it was that great. OK, you do learn some history of how warfare has been conducted over the past 2000 years. And yes, civilians are killed often - I guess this is what Carr calls terrorism. So in his view, what happened on 9/11 is not so strange in the history of warfare. We are war with Al Qaeda and terrorism is offten a major facet of war. I was not utterly convinced that 9/11 is of the same flavor of terrorism as troops overstepping boundaries during wartime. We would call that latter war crimes but the 'war on terror' is of a definitely differentsort of war. Like most things, terrorism is a term that is a spectrum of tactics and not a one size fits all definition. One must also consider motivations: is the motivation of saturation bombing the same as 9/11? It would seem to me that bombing is more to destroy an enemies resources that what 9/11 was - destroy American symbols and innocents.

Even more doubtful is Carr's contention that his widely defined terrorism ALWAYS backfires on those who use it. When it seems not to, he say for example Rome succeeded so well 'in spite of' it's terrorist tactics not because of. Yes, creating malice in people will usually cause them to be malicious. Terror is one way that can happen. But not the only and probably not the most dominant. Of course the nuclear bombing of Japan seems to contradict Carr's premise. We killed a lot of civilians which directly contributed to us winning the war against Japan. And Japan has not sought revenge since as far as I know of. Is the lesson here that a large enough act of terrorism can actually lead to success for the terrorizers? It seems truer than Carr's categorical statements.

Written in 2002, there is no comment on the Iraq War.

And did I hear him call the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire?

Skip this one.

not convincing
This book is elequent and occasionally hits a nerve. But basically it's message is simply: Terrorism (or war against civilians to achieve a political effect) is a self-destructive method of warfare, because the reaction to terror is more often than not outrage rather than capitulation.

Carr goes beyond this to suggest that there are no exceptions to this rule, when some obvious exceptions come to mind (eg., Hiroshima, the extermination of the American Indians, and the frequent mass killings of any inconvenient population by various nations throughout history). So even the central message of the book is muddied by inconsistencies.

And beyond that message, this book has little to offer, and is badly flawed by its single-mindedness, its rush to judgement about complex events, its deliberate ignorance of obvious counter arguments, and a tendency to patronize the audience by asserting that events be interpretted his way, even when more familiar interpretations are more convincing.

On the plus side, I see no political bias or propaganda. Whatever biases the author has, they appear to be personal.

Ignore the criticism!
Despite some unfair negative press, this book is yet another example of Carr's masterful writing style and unparalleled ability to create strong, lasting images. Some readers expecting historical fiction might not appreciate Carr's subject matter, but it is important to remember that military history is Carr's field of expertise. Knowing this going in, I was able to immerse myself and enjoy from beginning to end.

After September 11, it is important to have a reasonable, intelligent response that avoids sensationalism and fear-mongering. Carr's approach (and use of history) not only describes the ultimate futility of terrorist actions, but attempts something few people in the media dare to do -- provide context and comparative understanding. Our plight might seem unique and unprecedented to those in the full arrogance of their Americanism, but Carr rightfully dashes such nonsense, demonstrating that terror, far from a "Middle East problem," is (and has been) world-wide in scope, taking various shapes and employing wide-ranging tactics.

Above all, however, Carr is simply a wonderful writer. His prose is clear and direct, yet always intellectually sound. This is far from the simplistic rants one comes to expect in this area; Carr always takes his book in the right direction and (thankfully!) expects his audience to bring more than a working knowledge of the subjects at hand. He is a challenging, provocative author, always avoiding self-righteousness and easy targets.

Buy -- and read -- with confidence. Carr is, as always, the man to seek in such matters. I only wish he gave us more non-fiction for his love (and knowledge) of the subjet is quite apparent. ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles!Caleb Carr (born August 2, 1955) is an American novelist and military historian. The son of Lucien Carr, a former UPI editor and a key Beat generation figure, he was born in Manhattan and lived for much of his life on the Lower East Side. He attended Kenyon College and New York University, earning a B.A. in military and diplomatic history. He writes frequently on military and political affair and was a contributing editor of MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History until 2008.Carr is author of the novels The Alienist, The Angel of Darkness, Casing the Promised Land, Killing Time, The Italian Secretary, and the nonfiction books The Devil Soldier, a biography of 19-century American mercenary Frederick Townsend Ward, and The Lessons of Terror. Many of his novels are set in the Gilded Age or Victorian times; The Italian Secretary was an authorized Sherlock Holmes mystery. ... Read more

Product Description
This is nonfiction commentary. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: The Alienist, the Italian Secretary, the Angel of Darkness, Killing Time, Casing the Promised Land. Source: Wikipedia. Free updates online. Not illustrated. Excerpt: The Alienist is a crime novel by Caleb Carr first published in 1994. It takes place in New York City in 1896, and includes appearances by many famous figures of New York society in that era, including Theodore Roosevelt and J. P. Morgan. The sequel to the novel is The Angel of Darkness. The story follows Roosevelt, then New York City police commissioner, and Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, as their investigative team attempts to solve gruesome murders through new methods including fingerprinting and psychology. The first murder victim investigated is a 13-year-old immigrant who has had his eyes removed, and the investigators deal with various interest groups that wish to maintain the status quo regarding the poor immigrant population in New York City. The book made best-sellers lists of Publishers Weekly and The New York Times the month it was published, and film rights to the story were purchased by producer Scott Rudin and Paramount Pictures. The Alienist received generally positive reception. Booklist described it as "superbly atmospheric and compelling", Forbes called the work a "fascinating, fast-paced spine-tingler", and author Paul Levine wrote in the Chicago Tribune "at the end the reader thirsts for another tale of Dr. Lazlo Kreizler". The Houston Chronicle characterized it "an out-and-out page-turner", and The Seattle Times noted "Carr brings the dual sensibilities of historian and novelist to the story." Narrated from the first-person perspective of John Moore, a crime reporter for The New York Times, the novel begins on January 8, 1919, the day that Theodore Roosevelt is buried. Moore...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=1498012 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

The Yankee sailor that saved the Chinese Empire
In 1859 a 28 year-old sailing officer from Salem Massachusetts took service under the Chinese Empire to defend it from mortal danger. When this young man died in battle in 1863 he had put down the largest and bloodiest civil war in human history (the American Civil War raging at the same time pales in comparison), he had been made a general and a mandarin, he had married a Chinese princess, and he was interred in his own temple. Perhaps most impressively was the fact that he did all of this while retaining the reputation among his friends and foes of being a man of decency, fairness, honor and incorruptibility. And yet for all this, he is nearly forgotten in both his native and adopted country.

Frederick Townsend Ward's history was erased largely because he was feared by both his Manchu masters and by the European powers that were seeking to dismember China for their own mercenary ends. The author speculates that due to his contempt for the cruelty and corruption of the Manchu's, that had he survived, he might have turned the instrument of his "Ever Victorious Army" against them in order to restore the Ming Dynasty. Had that happened, the history of China could have far different in the century that followed. It is clear that Ward found the concept of ending the Empire as unthinkable- which is why the later republic never honored his memory.

One other thing struck me while reading this book: Ward wanted to attend West Point but was not able to obtain an appointment because he lacked "connections." In the long run this didn't seem to hurt him too much....

If this story were fiction it would surely be dismissed as too far-fetched to ever be believed.

The Stuff of Heroic Fiction...But I'ts All True!
When you mention to most (Americans) about the civil war of the 1860's, most likely they'll think you're talking about "The War Between The States", The American Civil-War.

However, roughly around the same time that America's North & South were slowly edging towards that great tragedy over the issue of slavery, a different civil war was gripping another of the Earth's great nations half a world away in a struggle that would claim millions(!) of more lives than even that more famous (to the American mind) struggle.The Taiping Rebellion (1851-1864), initiated by Hung Hsiu Chuan, a man who had failed in China's examinations to become a civil-servant, was a war over religious beliefs, ideology, & class-struggle.Hung, in a "vision" had believed himself to be the younger brother of Jesus Christ(!)His Taipings, made up of neo-Christian Chinese converts, frustrated & angered over the corruption & poverty imposed upon them by their inept Manchu rulers, captured several Chinese cities, established their base in Nanking, & nearly succeeded in toppling the Chinese (Manchu) empire.Hung's Christian learnings came from an American, Issachar Roberts.One of his oppoenents, an important adversary, a soldier for hire who had worked in Mexico, California, & Texas as a professional mercenary, who came to China & trained Chinese soldiers in the most up to date weaponry & tactics (as well as absorbing much of China's military culture), was an American also:Fredrick Townsend Ward.

Ward was a loner, a man who worked for prestige rather than money, a man who was stern yet fair to his band of mercenaries, & a man free of racial prejudices.He was the classic warrior, a character you would expect to find in westerns & adventure movies.However, he was real!He fought against both the Taiping Rebels, who he respected in battle & who respected him, as well as the corruption of his Manchu employers & the British military, who saw Ward's actions as a threat to the West's (Europe & the U.S.A.'s) strict policy of neutrality.In the end, he died in battle, but he won what he prized above anything else, recognition for his outstanding achievements in this most deadly of occupations.For a brief moment in history, thanks to Ward, East met West in a joint-collaboration to form a team of fighting men the likes of which the world had never seen.(Imagine the sight.American & European mercenaries armed not only with rifles & cannon, but also being acquainted with Chinese martial-arts weapons, including swords, spears, & bamboo-clay "bombs", filled with gun-powder, natural poisons, & (yuck!) human feces.Fighing alongside with them are Ward's Chinese troops, wearing the traditional Manchu queue (pigtail) & also armed with traditional martial-arts weapons, but also instructed (by Ward) in the use of Sharp's rifles, Colt revolvers, & modern cannon & mortars!Again, this isn't a comic-book fantasy or a Jackie Chan movie, this was real life!)

Caleb Carr does a meticulous, yet gripping, & in fact, fast-paced narrative on Ward's life.This book, along with Evan Connell's "Son of The Morning Star" & Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" should be a classic in historical reading.It gives a good portrait of the times, the nations, & the individual characters of this truly international struggle.(It wasn't just Chinese & Manchus.The British, The Americans, The French, The Russians, & even Filipino mercenaries all played a part in this epic true-life story.)It's tragic, compelling, uplifting at times, & depressing at others.However, one thing is certain.It educates & entertains without compromising on either count!

Hollywood (& Hong-Kong) film-makers take notice!This book is the stuff of great action-films, with heroes (& villains) that you would find in the greatest Westerns, the romance of high-adventure, & (given the culture & the methods of the major antagonists) all the flash of a martial-arts movie classic!("Crouching Tiger" eat your heart out!)

Buy this book if you can.You won't be dissappointed.

Caleb Carr, As Writer and Historian
The author has done excellent research in developing a biography of the life and times of Frederick Townsend Ward during China's Taiping rebellions during 1860 through 1863. But as a historian seeking accuracy of facts, theauthor commits several types of "avoidable" error in justwriting.

In attempting to get the who, what, where, when, and why aboutpeople and places, he clouds these issues with such overwhelming"context", that it becomes difficult to read at times to see theforest because of the trees. Quite often his sentences are just too long,many running 200 words or more, with the result that the reader has to goback and re-read them again. It's easy to get lost because of his verbosityin spite of the fact that he uses simple words.

The author makesexcessive use of parentheses to slide extra context into his sentences;where in itself this isn't bad, but when his writing contains sub-contextwithin sub-context of a context in one single sentence, before he tells usof an event happening, his writing is difficult to read (like thissentence).

Moreover, what is surprising is that the author, Caleb Carr,is not guilty of any of these stylistic errors in anything else of his thatI have read. He has always gripped my attention.

But my criticisms aside,the author goes out of his way to be an independent observer andcommentator about the events concerning Ward's battles, based on a plethoraof well documented research and opinion. He is very careful to imply justthis, as opposed to fact, as a responsible historian should. In so doing,he does a very credible job in showing Frederick Townsend Ward to be anhonourable, honest, responsible, and loyal warrior of the Manchuimperialists who were just not at all deserving of the services of\a man ofsuch integrity.

Also because of the author's research into the culturalattitudes of the Chinese, it becomes easier to understand how China'speople fell into another form of personal domination, by the same calibreof government it has today. ... Read more

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BASED ON THE FILM FROM THE ACCLAIMED DIRECTOR OF AUTO FOCUS AND AFFLICTION, AND FROM THE WRITER OF THE ALIENIST

In the aftermath of World War II, Lankester Merrin finds himself in the remote Turkana region of Kenya. Haunted by memories of the war, he has taken a sabbatical from the priesthood and journeyed far from his native Holland. He has come to lead the archaeological excavation of a mysterious, Byzantine church, buried in pristine condition as if on the day it was completed. Directly underneath the church, Merrin discovers a much more ancient crypt -- and finds himself face-to-face with unspeakable Evil.

Madness descends on the local villagers and the contingent of British soldiers sent to guard the excavation. Merrin watches helplessly as the atrocities of war are repeated against another innocent village -- atrocities he'd hoped to never see again. The blood of innocents flows freely on the East African plain, but the horror has only just begun.... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Exorcist: The Beginning
Boring and badly written. Cliche after cliche trying to sound intelligent. Caleb Carr probably regrets being associated with this BOMB.

Mostly good
An enjoyable read, but differs on key points with the film.
Yes, I know, different genres, so different methods and ways to an end.
Anyways, there is enough crossover with the film to wonder why the writer was not kept up with the script changes. Personally I liked the way some scenes at least gave a background to actions, even if a "madeup" reason is given. However, the visual stun that the opening section of the film gives is just superb, and the writer could at least have delivered something just as powerful. And yes, the film has gross scenes, so the book delivers on some of those, but still , as a novelisation it could at least have followed a first person narrative method to convey the film in a much better way. Still, worth the read.

They should concentrate on being scary, instead of gross
I bought this book because I wanted to find out what the movie would be like. Of course, this is a novelization of the movie. I am pleasantly surprised and disappointed.

First off, the novel being a novelization is not as deep as real novel. We don't learn that much about the characters. It's basically a screenplay of the movie. Hence, it is sometimes really hard to care about the characters, especiallythe ones that get killed and there is a lot of killing. There are also a lot of people that get touched by possession, but not truly possessed. They go crazy, hallucinate,kill and die but since, we don't really care about them, who cares.

Second, this book is overkill on the gross stuff. Flys, maggots, hyenas, crows are everywhere. Flys come out of a man's boils. A woman has stillborn child with maggots in the afterbirth. A guy hallucinates that his butterfly collection has come to life. A butterfly crawls out of his mouth. He kills himself. There are at least 3 vomiting scenes. And why? What are the filmakers thinking? Is the demon Candyman on crack? This stuff is not really scary it is just gross for grossness sake. I really hope they cut a lot of crap out of the movie.

However, this story is interesting and very atmospheric. All the stuff about the church and why it was made is capitavating. The demon is captivating too and so is father Merrin. Their battle at the end of the book is a really good one. Unfortunately, getting to that battle is an uneven journey. They really needed to concentrate on characters such as Sara and Bessian. I would have like to seen Bessian first go into the church and release the demon, or chant the spell on the spiral alter. We don't see any of that. Instead we get a couple of over-the-top evil characters, one with boils all over his face and one a quick to kill general. Both die, but why? You would think the devil would want to keep them around. There is another priest in the book besides Merrin. His role is a rip off father Karras from the origianl and we really don't learn that much about him. Of course, he battles the demon too. But looses big time with an ancient sword in his chest.

Overall, the movie is probably going to be pretty good, especially the battle at the end. The mysteries are good and I'm sure the special effects will be good. But be prepared to be more grossed out then scared. This will be a standard horror movie for a lot of people. ... Read more

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Word count: 3237. ... Read more