Book Description

Edward B. Lewis' science is the bridge linking experimental genetics as conducted in the first half of the twentieth century, and the powerful molecular genetic approaches that revolutionized the field in its last quarter. His Nobel Prize winning studies founded the field of developmental genetics and laid the groundwork for our current understanding of the universal, evolutionarily conserved strategies controlling animal development. A lesser-known aspect of Lewis' canon is the pioneering studies he carried out on ionizing radiation and human cancer. In doing so, he was propelled into a public storm over nuclear weapons testing policy. For the first time Lewis' key publications in the fields of genetics, developmental biology, radiation and cancer are compiled within one volume.

Book Description
In the small 'Fly Room' at Columbia University, T.H. Morgan and his students, A.H. Sturtevant, C.B. Bridges, and H.J. Muller, carried out th ework that laid the foundations of modern, chromosomal genetics. Theexcitement of those times, when the whole field of genetics was beingcreated, is captured in this book, written in 1965 by one of those present at the beginning. His account is one of the few authoritative, analytic works on the early history of genetics. This attractive reprint isaccompanied by a website offering full-text versions of the key pa persdiscussed in the book, including the worldFs first genetic map. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A great History Lesson
As an undergraduate at Columbia University Sturtevant worked in T.H. Morgan's famous flyroom.The book describes some of the early advances in genetics and the progress that Strutevant, Morgan, Mueller and others made.Remember this was before the world even knew what the genetic material was composed of and the genetic code. An amazing history lesson that puts the advances of Science in perspective and reading about these experiments and deductions it is little wonder that by "standing on the shoulders of giants," we have made so much progress. ... Read more

Product Description
This is the 1897 New York edition. The stories by the authors are:The Box Tunnel;Minionsf th Moon;The Four-Fifteen Exress;The Wrong Black Bag;The Three Strangers;Mr. Lismore and the Widow;The Philosopher in the Apple Orchard ... Read more

Amazon.com
Even as the lunch counters were being liberated in the South, W.E.B. Du Bois predicted the "... deepening class conflict within black America and superficial economic improvement at best in the lot of the great majority of black people." Always an utterer of difficult and unpopular truths, Du Bois's writing still has the ring of prophecy come true. "The inflexible truth he embraced was that, just as Africans in the United States 'under the corporate rule of monopolized wealth ... will be confined to the lowest wage group,' so the peoples of the developing world faced subordination in the global scheme of things capitalist."

The long span of Du Bois's remarkable life (95 years) embodied the essence of African American dilemmas, from the early 1870s and post-Reconstruction to the early 1960s' civil rights revolution. Honored primarily for his enormous breakthroughs in black scholarship, urban sociology, and civil rights, Du Bois also paradoxically "... espoused racial and political beliefs of such variety and seeming contradiction as to bewilder and alienate as many Americans, black and white, as he inspired or converted." Marxism, in his old age, would supersede civil liberties as his ideological foundation.

The contradictions, the uncompromising brilliance, the allure, still has David L. Lewis asking, "Who is Du Bois, the man?" The more the details of his early life are probed, the more evident it becomes that Du Bois's "facts" differ from how he wrote about them. He crafted "a grand prose wherein the 'golden river' flowing near his birthplace is in fact the highly polluted Housatonic River; the 'mighty [Burghardt] clan' of his mother's people is in reality a hardscrabble band of peasant landholders clinging to postage-stamp-size holdings; the dashing cavalier father, Alfred Du Bois, is an army deserter and philanderer; and the 'gentle and decent poverty' of his childhood is more often sharp and deep." Are such discrepancies significant? In as much, claims Lewis, that they represent Du Bois's cultivation of his outsider vision--a stance articulated in his 1903 classic, The Soul of Black Folk, which describes the essential and necessary double-consciousness of the American black.

In his concentrated but vastly informative introduction, David Levering Lewis, Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of W.E.B. Du Bois, posits four career turning points that shaped this highly charged political life--from the disputes between Du Bois and Booker T. Washington and Marcus Garvey to the New York-NAACP years (1934) and the internal rift caused by Du Bois's fearless denunciations to the halls of academe to a run for the U.S. Senate at the age of 82. His directorship of the Peace Information Center (PIC), which advocated nuclear disarmament, would get him declared a foreign agent. Turning to communism, even as Khrushchev disclosed the Stalin-era crimes and Soviet atrocities, he exiled himself to West Africa. The timing seemed ironic. The American civil rights revolution was just gathering force.

This vast collection of the writings of W.E.B. Du Bois is organized under 15 headings to reflect the philosophical shifts and changes in a long and contradictory life. Each section is introduced by Lewis with commentary on where Du Bois stood historically in relation to issues of race and, where appropriate, elucidating on the issues. Lewis's selections from the Du Bois opus arise from a vast and confident knowledge. Students of race and the civil rights movement in American history will want to add this remarkable collection of Du Bois's essential writings to their library. -Hollis GiammatteoBook Description
The essential writings of Du Bois have been selected and edited by David Levering Lewis, his Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Reveals The DuBois you Didn't Know
Most Black History fans think they have DuBois figured out. You either hate him for his haughtiness and elitism or you love his militant stands. This collection of DuBois' writings shows that the truth was somewhere in between. We see DuBois change his mind on Marcus Garvey and the elitist "Talented Tenth" idea. We see DuBois evolve from Integrationism to Black Nationalism to Communism. We basically see a man who is not afraid to change his ideas and admit his errors, a very human and complex man. ... Read more

Amazon.com
W.E.B. Du Bois--the first African-American to earn a doctorate at Harvard, one of the founders of the NAACP, visionary Pan-Africanist intellectual, and author of the seminal text The Souls of Black Folks--has not received due honor in his own country because of his radicalism in later life. Du Bois, hounded during the McCarthy era for his left wing beliefs, eventually gave up his American citizenship. But as a revered leader of black people worldwide, Du Bois merited a state funeral in Ghana when he died there in 1963. This first volume in Lewis's biography, winner of the 1994 Pulitzer Prize, details Du Bois' early life and work, up to the landmark Pan-African Congress following World War I, which brought "black liberation" to world attention. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Thoroughly interesting.
This book is used as a reference in many books about ancient China by prominent authors. There is good reason: it is engrossing in its discussion of how myths of sage-emperors actually reflected customs found in supposedly "enlightened" eras. It is startling to learn how many people -- including the supposedly benign "creator" of the Yijing -- fed people stews made of their enemies. The scholarship is amazing and so is the journey from the world of the Zhou to the Han and the differences in the amount of control over individual lives. ... Read more

Book Description
This new popular-level book from renowned C. S. Lewis scholar Bruce Edwards will enable C. S. Lewis buffs, new and old, to gain immense access and understanding into the mind of the author of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and the creator of the world of Narnia. Further Up and Further In examines the message and theme of the first book in the Chronicles of Narnia. This book is a perfect companion for those who intend to see the forthcoming movie based on this story and wish to know about what Lewis was trying to communicate to his readers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Outstanding!
All C.S. Lewis fans are excited about the forthcoming movie soon to be released based on the work by C.S. Lewis, "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." Understanding the symbols and hidden meanings in this writing enhances the read and certainly will enhance the enjoyment of movie viewing. This book is your key to both.
In this work by Bruce Edwards you will find an extremely in-depth overall of the different messages and their meaning. He takes his time, carefully going over the work in chapters, giving much insight and helping the reader to connect with the inward working of this read. I found it extremely interesting and entertaining at the same time, easy to digest and enjoyable.
He gives study questions that will cause you to rethink much of what you have mentally stored and cause some thought provoking questions within you as you realize that you didn't understand as much as you thought you did. I really enjoyed reading this book; it was insightful, informative and enlightening. I recommend it and encourage you to pick up your copy and keep it handy for continual reference or just pure reading enjoyment.
Shirley Johnson
Senior Reviewer
MidWest Book Review

A Walkthrough to the Wardrobe
"An unliterary man may be defined as one who reads books once only." Said C.S. Lewis in his essay, "On Stories." Not every book is worth reading more than once, and some aren't worth even the first read. But when it comes to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, one of those classics is found that begs us to return on many occasions. How is it possible to read the same story countless times and not grow weary of it? One way is to broaden our understanding of it by approaching it from different perspectives.

In Further Up & Further In, Bruce Edwards gives a walkthrough to this enchanting story. He begins by introducing the reader to C.S. Lewis raising the question, "Who was Clive Staples Lewis that we should be mindful of him?" (2)

The bulk of this short book is dedicated to the story in which many have fallen in love with the great lion, Aslan. The seventeen chapters of Lewis' tale are grouped into 5 chapters in Dr. Edwards's book. First, the story is narrated with attention drawn to the emotions of the characters and reader as it progresses. After the story as been explained some background information is offered on various subjects relevant to the material covered, such as "The Wardrobe," "The Beavers," and "Deep Magic." At the end of the book are a series of study questions for each chapter and a suggested bibliography for going even further up and further in.

The greatest strength of Bruce Edwards's book is that he never lectures the reader. He is more of a guide, or a fellow reader, pointing things out as the story progresses. Rather than analyze isolated aspects of the story, he takes us into the story itself with witty and whimsical comments along the way.

There are always things of which more could be said in any book, but at times it felt like more should have been said. And so, the greatest weakness is the book's brevity. The best example is on the final page of the book where points are made of the story in light of Grace, Redemption, Resurrection, and Restoration. Only two to five sentences were written under each heading, though this would have made for a powerful conclusion had it been expanded upon.

Aside from its brevity, the book is a welcome companion to reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; whether it's for the first time or the tenth time. Bruce Edwards succeeds in showing us another way to view the story, to find our selves in it, and leave us wanting more.

Very Good book on Narnia
Thoroughly enjoyed this book.

My only complaint is the retelling of the story in each chapter.In some cases it was insightful but most of the time it felt overbearing to reread the basic storyline when I already knew it.

It isn't the best book on Narnia that I have read but it is definetly worth your time. ... Read more

Product Description
There are ten articles in this collection. They are: The Thief of Baghdad by Edward Mortimer. This is Mortimer's review of the following four books:Saddam Hussein: A Biography by Fuad Matar; Iraqi Power and US Security in the Middle East by Stephen S. Pelletiere, Douglas V. Johnson II and Leif R Rosenberger; Republic of Fear: The Politics of Modern Iraq by Samir al-Khalil; and Human Rights in Iraq by Middle East Watch.The Shi'a by Bernard LewisHow Assad Has Won by Scott MacLeodIsrael: The Tragedy of Victory by Arthur HertzbergThe Palestinian Refugees by Robert I FriedmanIsrael: The Rise of the Ultra-Orthodox by Avishai MargalitOn Gaza Beach by Ari ShavitThe Way to War by Michael MassingKuwait: The Last Forty-Eight Hours by Andrew Whitley Iraq and Its Future by Samir Al-KhalilAlong with these ten articles is a end section containing Note on the Contributors. The book is also laced with wonderful drawings by David Levine, who frequently provides portraits for the NYRBThe cover has some light shelf wear but the text is completely clean--no writing or markings of any kind that I can see. The book measures 5" by 7 1/2" and has 191 pages followed by short bios on the authors of the articles.From the back cover: "This collection of essays, all published in The New York Review of Books...provides fresh, unexpected insights into the explosive politics in the Middle East and the role taken by the United States. The essays trace th backgrounds, politics and rise to power of...dictators (including Sddam Hussein of Iraq)...They explain the beliefs and influences of religious fundamentalist...Other essays provide a fresh view of the difficulties in reaching a lasting Middle East peace. They discuss the life of the Palestinian refugees throughout the Middle East as well as an Israeli prison camp in the Gaza strip." ... Read more

Book Description
More than 500 years before the Odyssey and the Iliad, before the biblicalbooks of Genesis or Job, masters of the epic lived and wrote on theMediterranean coast. The Ugaritic tablets left behind by these masterscribes and poets were excavated in the second quarter of the twentiethcentury from the region of modern Syria and Lebanon, and are brought tolife here in contemporary English translations by five of the best knownscholars in the field. Included are the major narrative poems, "Kirta,""Aqhat," and "Baal," in addition to ten shorter texts, newly translatedwith transcriptions from photographs using the latest techniques in thephotography of epigraphic materials (sample plate included). ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Important translations of Ugaritic Stories
Ugaritic Narrative Poetry edited by Mark S. Smith, Edward L. Greenstein, Theodore J. Lewis, David Marcus, Simon B. Parker (Society of Biblical Literature) (Paperback) The Ugaritic narrative poems all come from the ancient city of Ugarit, which lies half a mile inland from the Syrian coast opposite the eastern tip of Cyprus. The city was discovered after a farmer's accidental exposure of an ancient tomb nearby in 1928 and has been excavated almost annually since 1929. The excavators have uncovered a large palace; an acropolis with two temples, the house of the high priest, and the house of a divination priest; and numerous other large and small buildings, both sacred and secular. These all date from the fourteenth and thirteenth centuries B.C.E. The levels from this period lie closest to the surface, have been most extensively excavated, and have yielded several archives and libraries. The uninscribed and inscribed remains together disclose many aspects of the city's culture during the Late Bronze Age.
Ugarit was well situated for trade. Trade routes extended by land east-ward to the other major cities of Syria, to Mitanni, and to Assyria; by sea westward to Cyprus and the Aegean; by land and by sea northward and westward to Asia Minor and the territory of the Hittites; and southward to Palestine and Egypt. Through economic and cultural contacts with these various regions, Ugarit became a rich and cosmopolitan city in the Late Bronze Age.
Excavators have found in the city the scripts and languages of several of the cultures with which it had relations. Two languages and scripts predominate, however. Akkadian, the language of the Assyrians and Babylonians, was the international language of the period and was used especially for communications between states, including Egypt. (Ugarit was predominantly under Egyptian influence in the first part of the Late Bronze Age but after ca. 1350 B.C.E. was dominated by the Hittite state to the north.) Akkadian was written in the complex cuneiform writing system, in which each of several hundred signs consisted of a cluster of wedge-shaped impressions on soft clay and represented a syllable, word, or indicator of a semantic category. But Ugarit also had its own native language, related to several Semitic languages, but generally classified as Northwest Semitic, reflecting its proximity to the hypothetical ancestor of the first-millennium languages of Syria-Palestine: Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician, and so on. To write this language, the scribes of Ugarit devised their own script. They exploited the alphabetic principle that had already inspired the invention of the Canaanite alphabet farther south, but devised signs using cuneiform impressions on clay, as for Akkadian. The Ugaritic alphabet consists of thirty simple cuneiform signs, each one representing a consonant (except for three which represent the same consonant -a glottal stop-with three different vowels). In this script the scribes of Ugarit wrote numerous internal administrative records of the city government, many letters and religious texts, and a few literary texts.
The Ugaritic texts include the only collection outside of the Bible of native poetry and narratives from pre-Roman Syria-Palestine. These narrative poems are of unique value as a source of information about Syro-Palestinian poetry, narrative, and mythology toward the end of the Bronze Age. As such, they also provide us with a sample of the traditional background of some of the poetic, narrative, and mythological material in the Hebrew Bible. We find in the Ugaritic narrative poems representatives of a developed poetic tradition that lies behind the poetic achievement now pre-served in the prophetic, liturgical, and wisdom books of the Hebrew Bible; versions of traditional tales or motifs that are later recast in Hebrew prose narratives; and a world of gods, with their conflicts and assemblies and interventions in human affairs, that is still dimly reflected in the surviving Hebrew literature.
The Ugaritic narratives are all apparently poetic; that is, they consistently use parallelism and/or poetic formulas. Parallelism, familiar from most biblical poetry, refers to the juxtaposition of phrases or clauses in usually two, sometimes three, and occasionally more, poetic cola of similar syntactic structure and/or semantic import. Poetic formulas include standard epithets for common characters, including gods; standard expressions for the introduction of direct speech, for a character's arrival at or departure from aplace, for the passage of time, and so on; and standard pairs of words or phrases used in parallel cola. Many formulas constitute a complete colon and even appear in pairs or larger clusters of cola. While a prose translation that did away with these features would offer a more fast-paced and engaging narrative to the modern reader, we have retained them in the interest of giving a sense of the traditional, poetic character of narratives that would have been not read silently but recited orally.
The first three narratives translated here, Kirta, Aqhat, and Baal-stories of a king, a patriarch, and the gods respectively-are recognizably literary works, whatever the social purposes they served. Several of the other, shorter narratives, however, appear to have some more immediate, practical use, as is suggested by references to ritual acts, prescriptions, or social circumstances in conjunction with which the narratives were recited. This suggests the immediate power of specific narratives in relation to specific situations.
The first three works are best known and have been translated several times. The other, shorter texts have in many cases not been included in the standard translations of Ugaritic texts, and the translations that are available sometimes exhibit the translator's creativity and imagination where a sound basis for determining the meaning of the original is lacking. The more fragmentary and obscure texts are included because of their obvious relations with those that are better preserved and understood and also because they have been used in some bold hypotheses concerning Ugaritic mythology and religion. ... Read more