Product Description
He was the first astronaut to orbit the Earth. Nearly four decades later, as the world's oldest astronaut, his courage reveted a nation. But these two historical events only bracketed a life that covers the sweep of an extraordinary century.

John Glenn's autobiography spans the seminal events of the twentieth century. It is a story that begins with his childhood in Ohio where he learned the importance of family, community, and patriotism. He took these values with him as a marine fighter pilot during World War II and into the skies over Korea, for which he would be decorated. Always a gifted flier, it was during the war that he contemplated the unlimited possibilities of aviation and its frontiers.

We see the early days of NASA, where he first served as a backup pilot for astronauts Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom. In 1962 Glenn piloted the Mercury-Atlas 6 Friendship 7 spacecraft on the first manned orbital mission of the United States. Then came several years in international business, followed by a twenty-four year career as a U.S. Senator-and in 1998 a return to space for his remarkable Discover mission at the age of seventy-seven.


Amazon.com Review
At a time when overwritten biographies arguably provide too much information about their subjects, astronaut-turned-politician-turned-astronaut John Glenn's breezy memoir is welcome. His life story is simply told, not terribly reflective but enormously compelling: an Ohio boy grows up to become the first American to orbit the earth, takes a shot at the presidency but misses, and triumphantly returns to outer space as a senior citizen and national hero. Following a section on his youth, Glenn describes being a fighter pilot in the Second World War and Korea (where he lived in the same Quonset hut as baseball legend Ted Williams), as well as a test pilot. The highlight of the book is Project Mercury, the early NASA effort that hurled Glenn 150 miles above the planet in a tiny capsule--"flying from one day into the next and back again." In less than five hours, Glenn observed three sunsets and sunrises. He also conducted a few basic experiments, such as "squeezing some applesauce from a toothpaste-like tube into my mouth to see if weightlessness interfered with swallowing. It didn't."

Upon his return to earth, Glenn made a few abortive runs for the Senate. He was finally elected in 1974 as a Democrat and served for 24 years. In 1984, he sought his party's presidential nomination, and it looked like he was the one candidate potentially capable of beating President Reagan. But he stumbled and had to quit. The final pages detail Glenn's 1998 mission aboard the space shuttle Discovery at the age of 77. Just as his journeys riveted the nation, Glenn's memoir will grip its readers. --John J. Miller ... Read more

Customer Reviews (44)

Wow, what a life!
This book reveals a life packed with adventure, accomplishment, and just plain old-fashioned goodness. John Glenn comes across as some sort of ideal person. He seems to be everything we should admire in a human being.

I enjoyed learning about his childhood, fighter pilot and test pilot days, astronaut career and political career. I honestly felt at times that it was all just too good to be true. I kept wondering, "can anyone really be this nice, decent and great?"

Apparently so.

While this is not wall-to-wall exciting space cowboy stuff, it's an inspiring read, a fine example of a life well lived. I highly recommend it.


--Guy P. Harrison, author of:

Race and Reality

and

50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God


You might also be interested in these:

The Right Stuff

We Seven: By the Astronauts Themselves

Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut's Journeys

2 Wars pilot ,space,politics, businessman, great family,hero. Wheres the bad?
John Glenn A memoir with Nick Taylor is 422 pages. Its very well written, fast paced with nice interesting pictures.We see John Glenn's s early childhood in small town Ohio. He is active inmany school sports and other school functions and is a good student. He forms the Rangers scout club.

He meets Annie in a playpen. They become friends and later he marries her. She is his soul mate for life. Together they raise a fine family. Both go to church and are very social with fiends even though Annie has a speech stutter that she eventually improves.


We see Glenn going to college for 3 years and quiting to go into WW2.( much muchlater he gets accredited for a degree and an honorary PHD). Annie graduates college as a music major. His father was a plumber and a Chevy car dealer in Ohio who wanted him to go into the plumbing business with him. He instilled Glenn a love for his country and brought him to parades and ceremonies to play taps on the bugle. His family helps raise Glenn with strong religious beliefs in god and love of country and taking responsibilities seriously.

He becomes a 2nd lieutenant in the Marines and gets into flight school. After graduating he is a fighter pilot in WW2 and Korea. Eventually he gets a regular commission. He is extremely decorated with many medals. He gets assigned to cross training with the Air Force because they had the fast jets for air to air combat. Flying with the Airforce as a Marine he shoots down 3 MiGs before the Korean War is over.

He becomes a test pilot and fies many high speed jets. He breaks the cross country speed record on Project Bullet and gets another Distinguished Flying Cross (his forth) A true hero!

Later he gets in the new space program NASA in a fight to catch up with the Russians. He is selected to be a member of the original Mercury 7 and goes up in Friendship 7 as the first American to orbit the earth. President Kennedy gives him another medal and Glenn becomes a national hero. Big ticker tape parades and much media attention. He become well known nationally. He becomes good friends with Jack and Bobby Kennedy. His family and him have many social outings with Bobby and his family.

Later he earns the rank of Colonel and retires from both the Marines and NASA. He realizes he is never to go up in another space flight because he is a national treasure ( big time hero). Surprise... later he does go up in the Shuttle as the oldest astronaut ever!

Glenn is a self proclaimed Centrist in politics and wants to get both Republicans and Democrats together in the fight against global Communist take over and improving the American way of life. After a few attempts he becomes a US Senator from Ohio. Later he runs for president but fails.

For Royal Crown Cola he becomes a top executive and is able to financially help both his family and dieing father with his medical bills. He also becomes part owner of a few Holiday Inns near Disney World and makes lots of money.

John Glenn was a true hero in 2 wars and the space program. INMO he was a good politician who really loved his county and tried to help. I am extremely grateful and wish my kids and their kids grow up with such virtue, helpfulness and religious strength. I only wished the book was more balanced. I'm sure John Glenn was NOT a saint and would of liked a more balanced presentation of his faults and weaknesses. The book shows 95% his good attributes and only 5% faults. Even so a great book, well worth reading. 5 stars

JOHN GLENN: A MEMOIR - Good book on a fine life.
I enjoyed reading John Glenn's memoirs and give this book four to five stars.My comments are as follows:

1) Although I started out somewhat less interested in reading about Glenn's background and family life than his space career, I was not able to speed read past this fascinating material and wound up reading his entire book.

2) John Glenn's writings were usually very detailed and his narratives were full of fine points about his perceptions, feelings and reflections on his very eventful life.

3) This is not a book for those seeking lot's of "good gossip" about NASA and the space program. However, John Glenn does hint at various obvious subjects, but with the reserve and understatement of a senator from his time.

4) I especially enjoyed his descriptions of his work as a pilot, test pilot, and astronaut during historic space missions, including his own pioneering orbital flight of Feb. 20, 1962 aboard Friendship 7, and his subsequent return to space aboard the Shuttle.

5)After reading and reflecting on his memoirs I concluded that John Glenn does indeed "tell it like it is" and did not whitewash his life or space history.He was and remains a very fine man and clearly deserves the special feelings that many of us have held for him for all these years.

6) Although I am not the least politically minded I read his views on the possible role of the federal government to help to make us all better people and citizens without infringing on our freedoms. I wish the senate and house were filled with people like John Glenn, whose family history during the depression may have helped form these opinions.

7) My reasons for believing these memoirs is that Glenn was so forthright about his apparently self serving letter writing campaigns in the military and NASA. I was also moved by his stated belief in making the most of what an individual is given by circumstances and/or God, and a general undertone of conviction in playing by the rules.Our country can always use more people like John Glenn.

The world's hero
I'm reading this book and John Glenn is a realy world's hero. The value for him of his family and the proud of his job are references for the life going. I recomend a lot this book and the film "RIGHT STUFF" that tell his history from another angle. Very gooooooood... I reach the end of this book and I confirm my opinion: Very good book. John Glenn give us a new vision of the importance of our family and the people we love.
Excelente livro. Levei mais de seis meses para ler por ter algumas dificuldades no inglês. Mas é um excelente exercício e uma importante lição de vida: Faça seu trabalho com amor e ame seus familiares que tudo dá certo...
Recomendo - Boa leitura.

Interesting and Informative
I found John Glenn's book to be interesting on so many levels...his early years, his remarkable accomplishments, and his family life.He seems to be a man of integrity; although anyone who writes their own book can make themselves seem that way, books I've read by other people have always cast him in the same light.In that sense, it was interesting to read his point of view on his life and accomplishments. ... Read more

Product Description
War hero, test pilot, American astronaut, and U.S. Senator—for John Glenn, serving his country has always been a joyous adventure. How does a boy from a small Ohio town grow up to become one of the most enduring heroes in American history?

Young readers find out as they follow his inspiring story from his schoolboy days in New Concord, Ohio, to his adventures as a highly decorated Marine Corps pilot in both World War II and the Korean War, a test pilot, one of the seven Mercury astronauts and the first American to orbit Earth, a successful businessman, a U.S. Senator, and, at the age of 77, the oldest human being in space.

Don Mitchell skillfully weaves highlights from John Glenn's extraordinary life with inspirational quotes and dynamic images to create an intimate portrait of a man whose challenge to young people everywhere is to become dedicated "to a purpose larger than themselves."

This superbly illustrated book follows the life trajectory of a very focused, highly competitive man, driven by a sense of duty to his country and an innate sense of obligation towards others.Readers will find themselves inspired to "liftoff" to new heights of achievement. ... Read more

Product Description

Dear Reader:

The Childhood of Famous Americans series, sixty-five years old in 1997, chronicles the early years of famous American men and women in an accessible manner. Each book is faithful in spirit to the values and experiences that influenced the person's development. History is fleshed out with fictionalized details, and conversations have been added to make the stories come alive to today's reader, but every reasonable effort has been made to make the stories consistent with the events, ethics, and character of their subjects.

These books reaffirm the importance of our American heritage. We hope you learn to love the heroes and heroines who helped shape this great country. And by doing so, we hope you also develop a lasting love for the nation that gave them the opportunity to make their dreams come true. It will do the same for you.

Happy Reading!

The Editors ... Read more

Product Description
This authoritative, new edition of the world's most loved songs and arias draws on original manuscripts, historical first editions and recent research by prominent musicologists to meet a high standard of accuracy and authenticity. Includes fascinating background information about the arias and their composers as well as a singable rhymed translation, a readable prose translation and a literal translation of each single Italian word. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Just Want I Needed.
Exactly what I wanted. The packaging was great, they make sure my book came to me in perfect condition.

Lovely book!
This book is well made and has been used for 2 years now.The outside is thick and has done a good job preserving the pages inside.

sheet music
The product was in very good condition even though it was used.It arrived in a timely manner.

Great Choice
Great choice for college students studying voice.BUT, make sure your book comes with the CD, mine did not and I paid more than I should have being it didn't come with the CD.

Great Song Book
This book is filled with great Italian vocal literature.It is great for beginner to advanced. Also each piece is discussed, translated, and IPA'd, although some of the IPA I disagree with but thats just a pedagogical difference. I recommend this book to high school and college singers as well as professionals looking for some nice pieces. ... Read more

Product Description
Alternatively exposing or addressing the larger, enduring myths of our culture through sketches of seemingly lost childhood reveries, this first compilation of ex-downtown indie art, film, and music god John Lurie’s paintings presents his would-be musings in a new, interpretive storytelling—haunting, poignant, or puerile as the outcome may ultimately be. The paintings are passages from the semiotics of his own mind: the enduring stories and images are seized upon then captured to communicate Lurie’s cryptic symbolism. The visions are of a perverse adult playground, peopled not by men and women in conventional adult roles or scenarios—at the office, home, or on vacation— but rather animals in new contexts, a reversal of the personification found in stuffed animals and bedtime stories. The titles or incorporated language and text are too simple for revelation, even too brief for a Lurie brand of dreamscape Americana, and function as a complicating punch. He broaches necessary questions in perhaps the only way we can access them—by the alarming surprise of his simplicity, and the non-sequiturs in association with his symbolism. A modern-day shaman, Lurie leads us on a vision quest through the annals of our collective history, and on to a broader world. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Lurie fan all the way
I'm just a Lurie fan in general, usually his music, but the same humor and simplicity exists in everything he does. i'll be tickled to get this book.

This Book is a Treasure.
Flipping through this book is truly an experience.Each painting is its own universe and you never know what to expect on the next page.Lurie has done things with watercolor that I never thought possible - he has completely obliterated my association of the medium of watercolor with watery landscapes by old ladies.The colors are rich and vibrant, sometimes almost primitive - the subject matter is profound, completely simple, hilarious, tragic, understated, insane.I have never encountered an artist so freely able to express his subconcious mind on paper - and it is a fascinating mind.

The New Neighbors Are Exciting
John Lurie's work often seems to walk strange lines.Often oscillating between innocent and profane, jarring and soothing, jovial and haunting Lurie's work seems be less concerned by what it's called and focuses instead on being what it is.Like his first collection, John Lurie: Learn to Draw "A Fine Example of Art" contains Lurie's distinct vision and humor.With titles like "Davey Crockett Has Lost His F***ing Mind" "Harry Didn't Want to Say Anything But The Appearance of Jesus Was Ruining His Vacation" and "Dog is Blind, Who Will Help?" give a glimpse into the world that Lurie creates.

... Read more

Product Description
"Some of the most sensible, genial prose west of the Mississippi. A kind of sequel to Hard Scrabble-recounting more about his twenty years of quiet combat with the forces of nature. He tackles such everyday subjects as home repairs, fences, killing animals for food, growing grapes, making wine and collecting junk. His writing seems as natural as breathing."-People

"A native son who left home, came back and actually liked it, Graves writes about Texas and Texans with full attention to the complex peculiarities that distinguish the region; but because he so lovingly particularizes, rather than generalizes, his thoughts come to us in larger terms, made universal by the art of language and feeling. Although permeated with a sense of place, Graves's writing translates Texas as though it were Anywhere, much as E. B. White took Maine and made it the world."-Washington Post Book World

"Graves's work is full of his awareness of the Indian and Anglo past and of his eroded slope back to prehistory."-Fort Worth Star-Telegram

"Graves accomplishes what can make essays so satisfying to read: He takes the mundane observations and details of everyday life and shapes them into something not mundane at all. What otherwise would have been a fleeting response is preserved in a form that others can share."-Christian Science Monitor

Originally published by Knopf in 1980, From a Limestone Ledge has never been out of print. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

An open window into profound treasure of simple daily joys
Now in a new edition with a foreword by Bill Wittliff, From A Limestone Ledge: Some Essays And Other Ruminations About Country Life In Texas is a collection of the writings of Texas author and freelance writer John Graves. Enhanced for the reader with illustrations by Glenn Wolff, the subjects range from caring for animals such as cows, goats, bees, dogs, and chickens to growing grapes and making wine, smokeless tobacco ponderings, the day-to-day issues that face a countryman, and much more. From A Limestone Ledge reverberates with the wholehearted appreciation for Texas country life, and offers an open window into profound treasure of simple daily joys.

One of my favorites
This book is one that finds its was to my night stand again and again. The humorus manner in which the essays are written make the most mundane things become interesting. The authors ability to poke fun at his own follies while coping with country life are half the fun of reading it.

Possibly the worst book I've ever read
I bought the book because about 2 years ago I began my own project in the Texas Hill Country.My husband and I own some land there, and we've been working on it and enjoying it tremendously.

Mr. Graves' book must be the most boring piece of writing I have ever read, and I'm a serious reader.I don't usually write reviews, but this book was so bad I simply had to respond.

So don't bother reading the book; there's much better stuff out there.And please, do not form a negative opinion about the Texas Hill Country based on this book.The fact that the author has nothing interesting to say about it doesn't mean that there is nothing interesting to talk about.The area is beautiful, and there certainly is much more to it than what you'll find in Mr. Graves' ramblings. ... Read more

Product Description
The work of two great American landscape photographers presented together for the first time—revealing an artistic progression from one generation to the next

· 88 color and duotone reproductions of works from a major exhibition organized by the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas
· Both photographers are celebrated for creating art for environmental activism
· Includes an introductory essay by John Rohrbach, senior curator of photographs at the Carter, and closing remarks by Robert Glenn Ketchum
· Includes chronologies of both artists along with lists of their publications and major exhibitions

Eliot Porter (1901-1999) was the first established artist-photographer to commit to exploring the beauty and diversity of the natural world with color film. Widely exhibited, Porter set the standard for color landscape photography. But he was also a passionate ambassador for environmental causes: in 1962, the Sierra Club’s publication of his book "In Wildness is the Preservation of the World" set him on a lifelong path. His artistic vision in service of environmental activism inspired generations of photographers, and Robert Glenn Ketchum counts himself among them.

Ketchum is recognized as one of the leading contemporary photographers of the American landscape. Like Porter, Ketchum creates portraits and publications of ecologically significant places. The images in Regarding the Land reveal how Ketchum has honored Porter’s pioneering use of color and graphic composition, but moved beyond Porter’s careful description of place. Ketchum presents landscapes as ideas that can be shaped, even defined, by the imagination. An essay by John Rohrbach, senior curator of photographs at the Amon Carter Museum of Fort Worth, Texas, illuminates the development of these two artists. Rohrbach reveals how Ketchum has expanded upon Porter’s visual vocabulary, both with his photographs and with magnificently embroidered translations produced by China’s renowned Suzhou Embroidery Research Institute. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Stunning, simply stunning; splendid and challenging
First, I can review this book without even cracking its spine (though I have), as I have seen the Porter/Ketchum exhibit at the Amon Carter in Fort Worth, Texas. (I live in suburban Dallas.)

Eliot Porter was the country's first color nature photographer. This was when photographers such as Ansel Adams were moving near their peak and color film shooting was considered askance, suitable only for things like fashion magazine slicks.

But Porter showedwhat could be done with color, including building on Adams' work at placeslike Glen Canyon to jump-start environmentalism into a new era.

He was a seminal influence on Glenn Ketchum, who then took his camera to places like the Cuyahoga River south of Cleveland, documenting efforts in the '60s and beyond to bring national parks and other preservation to scenic areas of the East that had already suffered human encroachment and alteration. Ketchum even went beyond that in spots, in some cases juxtaposing stereotypical "Rust Belt" industrial development with land still showing environmental quality.

Ketchum then went on to be a leader and pioneer in aerial nature photography. His Arctic and Antarctic shots are simply incredible.

His and Porter's photos are displayed in sizes as large as six feet wide at the Carter exhibit; should this show move on the road and come to your area, you must go see it.

The essay in the book by John Rohrbach, senior curator of photographs at the Amon Carter, is a definite must-read. (The Carter has one of America's best museum collections of photographs, and works much more with photographic exhibits than the typical art museum.) Rohrbach discusses how Ketchum has built on and moved beyond Porter, as good students of photography can readily determine. This includes working with China's renowned Suzhou Embroidery Research Institute, which has created some difficult and highly creative tapestry reproductions of some of his scenes. (About 8-10 of these tapestries, ranging from display piece size to triptych room screens, are also on display as part of the exhibit.

Environmentalists will love to see what both photographers were trying to say about different aspects of preservation and how they were "speaking." Nature photographers will gain new ideas for lighting and perspective angles.

Contrary to another reviewer here, neither photographer represents an "all or nothing" version of environmental activism, and in fact, the idea that there is such a thing, while not strictly untrue, is as much a caricature as reality.

Indeed, Ketchum's photography on the Cuyahoga River National Recreation Area, before it became a national park, and elsewhere in the northeast, puts the lie to the idea thatenvironmentalists of his generation never included human artifacts or aftereffects in their artistic work, or that they thought the only true environmentalism was environmentalismthat totally eradicated all human traces and touches. Ketchum does NOT present "simply preservation and destruction" as the only alternatives in photographs such as on the Cuyahoga "The Indian Point Atomic Power Plant," and others. Showing the ugliness of ugly development implies nothing as to whether or not Ketchum thought there was a "third way" of man-made artifacts being incorporated into environmental preservation.

And, the fact that this reviewer holds up discredited global-warming skeptic Bjorn Lomborg as an intellectual grounding point for a new environmental ethos should show just how much his comments are to be trusted.

A Retrospect of Environmental Activism Past
For most people, environmental photography starts and ends with Ansel Adams.His famous black and white prints of Yosemite and the High Sierra, and his advocacy for national parks and wilderness areas has made him a household name among conservationists and a perennial calendar favorite among the broader public.But color photographer Elliot Porter was nearly as influential, even if less popular.His work helped preserve much of the Glenn Canyon area.He also helped inspire Robert Ketchum whose work is the focus of this book.

Ketchum differed from Elliot in that he made color the central focus of his study.For Elliot, color was but a medium, whereas for Ketchum it was the main element of his work.But like Elliot, Ketchum also used his photography to capture scenes for the express purpose of furthering environmental activism.This book contains numerous photos from two of Ketchum's published works, 'The Hudson River and Highlands' and 'The Tongas" which were both used to further environmental causes in the 1980s.Finally, this collection explores how Ketchum has tried to caputre his photographic images on a new medium:Chinese embroidery.The resulting embroidery is every bit as revolutionary as Ketchum's own photographs.

If Ketchum's technique was influenced heavily by Porter (many plates of the latter's work also grace these pages) his environmental philosophy, like many others in his generation, comes from Rachel Carson (Silent Spring) and Aldo Leopold (Sand County Almanack).These works portray nature as a seemless web always tending towards stasis or "balance."Only man's activity destroys this seemless web.Whereas Porter (and Adams) had tried to promote conservation by capturing the beauty of nature, Ketchum has gone further and attempted to show the ugliness of civilization.Readers of this book will be treated to "The Indian Point Atomic Power Plant," "Railroad adjacent to Beacon Landing," and many similar works of this sort.But this sort of vision is problematic in many ways.Man can be a destructive influence on nature, but the alternatives are not simply preservation and destruction.A third possibility also presents itself, surprisingly within Ketchum's own work.Humanity can contruct attractions which actually complement the beauty of the natural surroundings.The plates "Taconic Parkway" and "Popolopen Bridge" illustrate this well.

And this raises a larger problem with the environmentalist heirs of Carson and Leopold in general.For them, conservation is an all or nothing issue; a zero sum game."Preservation" means not merely conserving resources for future enjoyment, but eradicating the influence of "man."Little consideration is given to man's creative powers to actually augment the beauty of nature, as Bill Bryson suggested in his book on the Appalachian Trial.What is needed now is a new environmentalism:one which truly incorporates people into the world we try to protect and preserve.The intellectual groundwork for such an environmentalism has already been laid by Bjorn Lomborg (Skeptical Environmentalist) and Alston Chase (Playing God in Yellowstone and In a Dark Wood).All that remains is for some talented photographer to capture the reality these writers describe.Just as Ketchum looked to Elliot Porter for inspiration, so future photographers may find in Ketchum a glimpse of the coming new environmental movement. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Whose Museum Is It Anyway?
With everything from motorcycles, cars, boats, Jackie O's clothes, Star Wars artifacts, elephant dung and more finding their way into the museum, this is probably a good time to examine just what the museum is and who it is for. Art Institute of Chicago director James Cuno has assembled a veritable who's who of major museum directors to hold forth on this topic. Taken together, the essays provide rare insight into how museums are being shaped in the 20th century. With sometimes surprising candor the directors make their case for how and why the museum is beholden to the public trust. A roundtable discussion at the book's end further amplifies the issues set forth in the essays. This is an important book.

Not a boring subject!
This is a compilation of essays written by directors of major art museums: Cuno from the Art Institute of Chicago, De Montebello from the Met, Lowry from the MoMA, MacGregor from the British Museum, Walsh of the Getty in LA, and Wood, formerly of the AIC.Each addresses how museums can cultivate public trust in cultural institutions, the kinds of authority museums have, and how they should manage their responsibilities.MacGregor's essay was my personal favorite; it includes two amazing stories of how art proves to be valued for its emotional power during times of crisis (specifically on 9/11 and during WWII).Walsh offers suggestions as to how museums can offer its visitors a more genuine experience through curatorial choices and placement of lighting and seats.Lowry and De Montebello write about the relationship of the entertainment industry to museums.A very accessible, jargon-free text that is surprisingly interesting. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (6)

The Magnificent Sturges
"Escape Artist" excels as both a biography of director John Sturges and an exploration of his career and films. Within the Hollywood studio system, Sturges worked his way up from editor to director and quickly displayed a unique storytelling technique that distinguished standardprogrammers. This led to a contract with MGM where he graduated to top-of-the bill features and perfected his craft on movies of all genres. These included film noir ("Mystery Street"), thriller ("Jeopardy"), Western ("Escape from Fort Bravo") and suspense ("Bad Day at Black Rock," the acclaimed modern Western about racial prejudice in which his innovative use of the new widescreen process established a precedent.)

Though Sturges was often labeled as only an action director, author Glenn Lovell demonstrates that he was much more than this since he placed equal emphasis on incisive characterizations. In his most popular movies -"Gunfight at the O.K. Corral," "The Magnificent Seven," "The Great Escape," etc. - it is not only the superb action sequences but also the careful development of characters and relationships that elicits emotional involvement from audiences and makes the films so memorable. On the other hand, the book doesn't gloss over the director's failures which reveal that he was not suitable for either soap opera ("By Love Possessed") or comedy ("The Hallelujah Trail").

The author provides astute and insightful critical analyses of the director's major films. He explains why Sturges' best-known movies remain enormously entertaining while his detailed accounts of others that were initially unappreciated ("The Old Man and the Sea," "Hour of the Gun," "The Satan Bug," "McQ") suggest why they have since grown in prestige and/or popularity. And more significantly, he proves how influential Sturges was to other directors, many of whom today acknowledge their debt to him.

Thiswell-researched book contains anecdotes behind the making of the movies that are fascinating, particularly regarding egotistical stars. Steve McQueen's tantrums could have destroyed "The Great Escape" if not for the skills of Sturges and his screenwriters. Frank Sinatra and Clint Eastwood made certain that Sturges knew that they controlled their respective productions; this control impaired the quality of the films ("Sergeants 3," "Joe Kidd") which suffered due to their interference. Charles Bronson was grateful for a bit role in a 1951 Sturges movie and years later was again indebted to the director for three significant supporting roles; but by 1973, he had become a superstar who flaunted his contractual right to approve of Sturges as director for "Chino."

In contrast, Spencer Tracy, John Wayne, James Garner, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster and Ernest Borgnine, among others, were total professionals who for the most part trusted the director and made his job easier for him. This was appreciated by Sturges, a modest man who rarely had a critical word for anyone except himself. Though not without personal flaws, he just wanted to make movies and for this, filmgoers should be very grateful.

In preparation for "Escape Artist," the author met with Sturges several times and interviewed dozens of people with whom the director worked as well as his family members. As a result, this is a comprehensive and intelligent study of one of cinema's most underrated directors who was also a skillful creator of pure escapist entertainment.

An underrated director gets his due
As Glenn Lovell points out early in "Escape Artist," John Sturges has been somewhat forgotten over the years.It's all that more surprising when considering the caliber of the films the director made, notably The Great Escape, The Magnificent Seven, and Bad Day at Black Rock, among several other almost-classics.Lovell's book is an excellent read that details Sturges' career as he worked his way up through the studios in the 1930s until he was one of the highest-paid directors in Hollywood by the late 1960s.Each of his movies is dealt with, but extended segments are given to his most well-known movies like Great Escape and Magnificent Seven.It's an interesting read to hear about all the behind-the-scenes antics going on through his movies.

Sturges is and was known for his tough guy movies, men on a mission movies, and by staying within the action/adventure genre, he worked with a wide variety of actors including Steve McQueen, John Wayne, Spencer Tracy, Frank Sinatra and many more.The stories about the actors is worth it alone.If you're a long-time fan of Sturges movies like me, or just discovering the director, definitely give this book a try.It's well-written, an easy read, and informative.Don't miss out on "Escape Artist: The Life and Films of John Sturges."

Fine review of an underrated director
John Sturges has never received the attention he's due from Hollywood historians, and Glenn Lovell has created an excellent biography that deals primarily with the work that Sturges created to entertain those who love excellent entertainment. He delves into the making of some of Hollywood's greatest movies, and gets into how they were done, the problems and satisfaction in getting it done, not to mention the frustration.A wonderful job, and one that any movie buff would enjoy.

JOHN STURGES -THE MAN WHO CALLED THE "ACTION" IN HOLLYWOOD!
It seems such a crime in itself that this is the first and only book on the life and career of such a legendary HOLLYWOOD director. But author Glenn Lovell has more than done justice to one of the greatest action directors of all time. A man who not only entertained us, but really defined what a good action movie could be. BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK, THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN and THE GREAT ESCAPE are his greatest and most respected works. In addition great westerns such as ESCAPE FROM FORT BRAVO and GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL.

Starting out as an editor alongside Robert Wise and Mark Robson, Sturges knew how the pieces all fit to make a great movie. Unfortunately as is so often the case in HOLLYWOOD, Sturges had to contend with bad casting, bad producers and bad writers, who just seemed to get in the way and screwup a good many other of his pictures. You'll learn all about that and so much more in this fitting tribute. It was John Sturges that was the catalyst for the careers of Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson and James Coburn. He had a talent for sensing up'n coming actors and he knew how to get the best from them -usually without them even knowing it.

As the book title reads, Sturges was an escape artist in that he didn't dig the HOLLYWOOD "scene". The studio politics and the partying were left far behind, as Sturges sought the outdoor life of Mexico and Hawaii. To make his escapes even more faster, he was a lover of fast cars and owner of so many Porsche's. Robert E. Relyea a man who knew Sturges well and a contributor to this book, also documents more about his friend in his book NOT SO QUIET ON THE SET. It's a good supplement and it will give you even more detail behind the scenes of so many Sturges classics.

The craft of movie making
John Sturges was one of the craftsman of American movies who went about their work with quiet focus and skill, which means his films are remembered better than his name.When Sturges was at the top of his game his pictures had flawless momentum and were charged with a level of invention filmmakers continue to study.Glenn Lovell's biography and overview of Sturges's career fills a major gap in American film criticism.The book was long overdue and fortunately it's the book admirers like me have been waiting for.Clear eyed, carefully researched, informed by an impressive set of author conducted interviews, written with a solid understanding of the craft and business of filmmaking, it puts Sturges and his movies into coherent context for the first time.Anyone interested in rock solid American movies should read this book and then revisit Sturges's greatest hits. ... Read more

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Note: Song Contents listing follows Chapter 12 in the textbook. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Foundations In Singing:A Basic Textbook In Vocal Technique and Song Interpretation
Fabulous book. It truly is like a new book for the fraction of the cost.

As for the content, so easy to read and understand. The material is so valuable in growing in singing skills.

I am very pleased.

Great - Thanks.
This CD has the warm-ups for preparing to sing, as well as the instrumental music for all the songs.It is definitely improving my grade for beginning voice class in college.

Wrong edition.
I based my purchase on the title and ISBN number of the book I needed.The picture shown is on the edition I needed.What I received was an old and very used edition.

A Great Practical Guide
My voice teacher recommended Christy's "Expressive Singing" when I was studying opera.I found it helpful, although the photos were already dated.Recently I discovered "Foundations in Singing" in my public library.Impressed with its concepts, exercises, & approach, I puschased my own copy and use "Foundations" when I teach others.The cassette tape completes the set.My only reservation is the cost - ouch!Grudgingly, I must admit it was worth it to "bite the bullet" and buy the set.Hope this is helpful.

The "Foundations in Singing" Tape is a great addition!
"My own voice teacher recommended Van Christy's "Expressive Singing" to me years ago when I was an opera student.It was most helpful.I must admit, however, "Foundations in Singing" is great for beginning students. I have elected to use it with my voice students.The cassette tape adds an additional dimension to the text:The demonstration of exercises is quite helpful.The song collection covers a wide range of styles and languages, while reinforcing the concepts in the text. ... Read more

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A biography of the first American to orbit the earth. covering his youth, his career as an astronaut, and his life after NASA. ... Read more

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Learn more about the first American to orbit planet Earth!Relive the excitement of John Glenn's first space mission!Read about John Glenn's valuable research on the Discovery Mission! Biographies of Senator/Astronaut John Glenn and his wife Annie Glenn are surrounded by mission information from Mercury 6 and Discovery.Awe inspiring photographs supplied by NASA! A personal letter from John Glenn serves as the forward of the book!Robin Moore, author of The Green Berets, The French Connection,and many other best-sellers, has written a poem for John Glenn!Poets from around the world honor John Glenn in verse, continuing poetry's traditional role in preserving the legacy of history's heroes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Awesome, awesome, awesome!!!
It's more than a biography of John Glenn.It's more than a poetry book.I'll keep one for myself, and will get one for my old parents.I'm sure it will encourage them as his last mission did. ... Read more

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A richly illustrated, informative guide to gardening explains how to create a welcoming habitat for a wide variety of wild creatures through the use of an environmentally friendly collection of native vegetation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

I Really Love this book!
I don't have children, but I found this in a children's asile in my local bookstore and I had to buy it! This is the book I have on my backyard picnic table right now and I read thru it daily and love it! It's NUMBER 1 on my list of books to read right now with summer here. The photos are wonderful; the small editorials are written so that anyone can understand them, and as an adult I don't see the "child -like" reading here, but rather a book that everyone can enjoy and learn from and all of Time Life Books are finely manufactured. For a book I'd rate them as "Excellent Quality" and suggest this along with the other's from this series would make a wonderful gift for children and adults alike.You'll learn alot about gardening, how to attract butterflies or hummingbirds to your backyard; wild flowering, A-Z, way too much to mention.

A beautiful lay-out makes this book a pleasure to read.
This book is beautifully designed and well organized.Full color photography enhances each page. It includes basic information on gardening with native plants, planning a garden, attracting birds, butterflies, and other wildlife to your yard.Photographs and desriptions of plants and trees, organized by geographic location, are accompanied by maps, field notes, tips, and drawings of animals prefered by each.Lots of references are included in the back. It may be geared more towards the layperson than the expert, but this book really opened my eyes to the possibilities of gardening.Gardening is not just picking pretty flowers anymore! Natural Gardening a joy to browse through and to read. ... Read more

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Since Glenn Gould's death in 1982, the pianist's extraordinary talent has captivated new listerners through the re-release of his most famous recordings. Recently, a stage play and a feature film, "32 Short Films About Glenn Gould," introduced the eccentric artist to a new audience. With the publication of these 184 letters, a wide range of Gould's artistic activities is presented. Whether he is writing to esteemed musicians such as Leonard Bernstein or Leopold Stokowski, or to friends and colleagues in the world of performing and broadcasting, or answering the numerous fans who sent him questions, Gould explores all aspects of the art of making music.

In his own words, we hear about his favorite Bach, the choice of tempi for Beethoven's late piano sonatas, the power of Richard Strauss and Arnold Schoenberg, to name only a few of the musical concerns that fill his correspondence. His letters, which concentrate on the creative life, provide a rare glimpse into how the man worked, suggesting, finally why he devoted himself to music with such dedication and single-mindedness. A valuable addition to "Gouldiana," Glenn Gould: Selected Letters will give pleasure to all students of the piano, admirers of Gould, and music-lovers who have ever wondered how a great musician thinks about his art. ... Read more

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A first-rate biography and true adventure story for young readers about one of modern America's greatest heroes and his contributions to our nation's fledgling space program.
On February 20, 1962, as millions of Americans waited anxiously, astronaut John Glenn blasted off in his rocket ship, Friendship 7, and became the first American to orbit the Earth. Although the risks of such a mission were well known, neither they-nor Glenn-knew the peril he was about to encounter.
John Glenn was one of the Mercury 7 astronauts, the early pioneers of manned space flight portrayed in the film The Right Stuff. His historic flight followed years of intensive physical training-and a devotion to the pursuit of a career in the exciting but risk-filled world of aviation.
Ruth Ashby's dramatic story of John Glenn's near-disastrous mission in Friendship 7 also takes young readers through his small-town Ohio boyhood, his extraordinary experiences as a fighter pilot in two wars, and his life as an astronaut in the prestigious and dangerous Mercury 7 program. The book concludes with Glenn's successful career as a U.S. senator and his triumphant return to space in 1998 at the age of 77.
Throughout, Ashby demonstrates how Glenn's love of flying and his steadfast commitment to both his family and the realization of his full potential was the foundation of all the great things he accomplished in his life.
... Read more

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The life of Senator John Glenn from his childhood in small-town Ohio, through his days as an astronaut, to his present political career, and his 1998 return to space. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

nice biography for younger readers
When John Glenn, Jr. boarded Friendship 7 on February 20, 1962, he became the first American astronaut to orbit the earth.This book gives a biography of his life and describes how he came to be an astronaut.It also describes some of the technical information of how the shuttles are safely able to enter space and return astronauts to earth.

This book is a great biography of a very important man.This is the first biography book geared towards younger readers that I have encountered and I was very impressed by it.The beautiful illustrations draw the reader's interest and the story of John Glenn's life is written in a way that younger readers can understand it and will be interested in it.The sidebars include more technical information about how the shuttles work and the space program, which will appeal to older readers who are interested in space.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too
For John Glenn, becoming an astronaut seemed natural.After taking an airplane ride as a small boy, he became a Marine Corps fighter pilot during both World War II and the Korean War.Besides the numerous medals that he won during these wars, including being awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on six different occasions, Mr. Glenn grew to love flying even more than he had as a boy.This led to a job as a test pilot for experimental aircraft.

It seemed only natural that in 1959 John Glenn was chosen, along with six other men, to form the Mercury Seven--men who would train with NASA to become astronauts.As they withstood the difficult training that they'd need before they could ever enter into space, NASA was busy sending animals, including Ham the chimpanzee, into orbit to test the body's ability to deal with weightlessness and other issues.

John Glenn's day finally came on February 20, 1962, when he boarded the Friendship 7 and was shot into space.After orbiting the Earth three times, he was forced to return due to a malfunction aboard his capsule.However, that first man-made orbit into space gave President John F. Kennedy the facts he needed to make a push for a man eventually landing on the Moon.

GODSPEED, JOHN GLENN is an excellent illustrated biography, perfect for a middle school library or classroom.For those students interested in space or history, this is a great book from which to gain knowledge of both.

Reviewed by:Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius" ... Read more