Review by: John J. Casper
ANATOMY OF DECEIT is an extremely accessible 150-page introduction to Traitor gate. The chapter titles provide a window into the mastery that Marcy Wheeler brings to this material: 16 Words [September 2002 - March 2003]; Deconstructing Judy [March - July 2003]; Truth and Consequences [July 2003]; The Beltway Insider [July - October 2003]; Beat the Press [January 2004 - July 2005]; The Spin Doctor [September 2003 - August 2006]; The Fall Guy [September 2005 - December 2006].
Written in flawlessly clear prose, the novice needs no prior experience with Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Valerie Plame, and the invasion of Iraq to understand the story or its importance. A time line is provided that all readers will find invaluable. Readers, who are familiar with the story, will relish the rich detail provided by the excellent endnotes. The end notes are consecutively numbered from start to finish, so the reader does not have to remember the chapter number, to find it in the notes. Perhaps a second edition will include a bibliography and even more importantly, an index, but these concerns are small against such a worthwhile and timely book. ANATOMY OF DECEIT will receive very strong consideration for a Pulitzer.
Monday, 19 February 2007
Friday, 16 February 2007
The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate
Author: Gary Chapman
ISBN-10: 1881273156
Comments By: Al-Hasan
The five love languages is one of those books that help you to understand the people you love in your life. The author attempts to show the reader how to understand and speak the language of love. Not in the way you understand it, but in the way the other person understands it.
The five languages Chapman refers to are "Words of Affirmation", "Quality Time", "Receiving Gifts", "Acts of Service", and "Physical Touch". These are the primary languages (principles) your spouse speaks. The idea is to figure out which of those you need to do more of to make your significant other happy and fall back in love with you
The author relates insightful examples from his and other people’s realities in each principle to explain his premise which makes the book easy and friendly to follow. The book primarily focuses on the husband-wife relationship, but the 5 principles Chapman mentions could be applied in understanding relationships with parents, friends, co-workers, children and anyone who you come in contact with.
It is an insightful book, but it does go on a bit. The author could have mentioned the principles and explained what they are and how to apply them and end it, but I feel it was not going to end.
The are many beneficial points that the author expresses, however there are some flaws; near the end of the book he stipulates that even if the husband hates his wife she should approach him for intimate relationship because the husband might fall in the category of ‘’Physical Touch’’. This is an erroneous, unrealistic and flawed assertion. He even tries to ‘holify’ it by quoting Jesus. Apart from that, it’s a good read.
ISBN-10: 1881273156
Comments By: Al-Hasan
The five love languages is one of those books that help you to understand the people you love in your life. The author attempts to show the reader how to understand and speak the language of love. Not in the way you understand it, but in the way the other person understands it.
The five languages Chapman refers to are "Words of Affirmation", "Quality Time", "Receiving Gifts", "Acts of Service", and "Physical Touch". These are the primary languages (principles) your spouse speaks. The idea is to figure out which of those you need to do more of to make your significant other happy and fall back in love with you
The author relates insightful examples from his and other people’s realities in each principle to explain his premise which makes the book easy and friendly to follow. The book primarily focuses on the husband-wife relationship, but the 5 principles Chapman mentions could be applied in understanding relationships with parents, friends, co-workers, children and anyone who you come in contact with.
It is an insightful book, but it does go on a bit. The author could have mentioned the principles and explained what they are and how to apply them and end it, but I feel it was not going to end.
The are many beneficial points that the author expresses, however there are some flaws; near the end of the book he stipulates that even if the husband hates his wife she should approach him for intimate relationship because the husband might fall in the category of ‘’Physical Touch’’. This is an erroneous, unrealistic and flawed assertion. He even tries to ‘holify’ it by quoting Jesus. Apart from that, it’s a good read.
Thursday, 15 February 2007
Eight Theories of Religion
Daniel L. Pals
ISBN-10: 0195165705
ISBN-10: 0195165705
Book Description
Why do human beings believe in divinities? Why do some seek eternal life, while others seek escape from recurring lives? Why do the beliefs and behaviors we typically call "religious" so deeply affect the human personality and so subtly weave their way through human society? Revised and updated in this second edition, Eight Theories of Religion considers how these fundamental questions have engaged the most important thinkers of the modern era. Accessible, systematic, and succinct, the text examines the classic interpretations of religion advanced by theorists who have left a major imprint on the intellectual culture of the twentieth century.
The second edition features a new chapter on Max Weber, a revised introduction, and a revised, expanded conclusion that traces the paths of further inquiry and interpretation traveled by theorists in the most recent decades. Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, begins with Edward Burnett Tylor and James Frazer--two Victorian pioneers in anthropology and the comparative study of religion. It then considers the great "reductionist" approaches of Sigmund Freud, Emile Durkheim, and Karl Marx, all of whom have exercised wide influence up to the present day. The discussion goes on to examine the leading challenges to reductionism as articulated by sociologist Max Weber (new to this edition) and Romanian-American comparativist Mircea Eliade.
Finally, it explores the newer methods and ideas arising from the African field studies of ethnographer E. E. Evans-Pritchard and the interpretive anthropology of Clifford Geertz. Each chapter offers biographical background, theoretical exposition, conceptual analysis, and critical assessment. This common format allows for close comparison and careful evaluation throughout. Ideal for use as a supplementary text in introductory religion courses or as the central text in sociology of religion and courses centered on the explanation and interpretation of religion, Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, offers an illuminating treatment of this controversial and fascinating subject.
Why do human beings believe in divinities? Why do some seek eternal life, while others seek escape from recurring lives? Why do the beliefs and behaviors we typically call "religious" so deeply affect the human personality and so subtly weave their way through human society? Revised and updated in this second edition, Eight Theories of Religion considers how these fundamental questions have engaged the most important thinkers of the modern era. Accessible, systematic, and succinct, the text examines the classic interpretations of religion advanced by theorists who have left a major imprint on the intellectual culture of the twentieth century.
The second edition features a new chapter on Max Weber, a revised introduction, and a revised, expanded conclusion that traces the paths of further inquiry and interpretation traveled by theorists in the most recent decades. Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, begins with Edward Burnett Tylor and James Frazer--two Victorian pioneers in anthropology and the comparative study of religion. It then considers the great "reductionist" approaches of Sigmund Freud, Emile Durkheim, and Karl Marx, all of whom have exercised wide influence up to the present day. The discussion goes on to examine the leading challenges to reductionism as articulated by sociologist Max Weber (new to this edition) and Romanian-American comparativist Mircea Eliade.
Finally, it explores the newer methods and ideas arising from the African field studies of ethnographer E. E. Evans-Pritchard and the interpretive anthropology of Clifford Geertz. Each chapter offers biographical background, theoretical exposition, conceptual analysis, and critical assessment. This common format allows for close comparison and careful evaluation throughout. Ideal for use as a supplementary text in introductory religion courses or as the central text in sociology of religion and courses centered on the explanation and interpretation of religion, Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, offers an illuminating treatment of this controversial and fascinating subject.
About the Author
Daniel L. Pals is at University of Miami.
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