Rednecks Eggheads and Blackfellas is unrelentingly intelligent and bold - it is hard to know where to start and what to say! I am finding in so many places phrases and ideas that are immensely relevant and well written. Particularly impressive is the broad sweep of knowledge and perspective across the policies from the time of the ordinance to assimilation to 'self determination' to now. The statement that "assimilation can be referred to contemptuously as though it was only an outdated govt. policy rather than a cultural process of making similar, which characterises much intercultural experience" (p.293) is spot-on and well said; it makes we whoop! This book is full of beautiful writing that can only come from fully digesting the subject matter and making it your own. This is an incredible, great book. Students will find it in the library and think, "This is terrific! This is humourous and funky and sage!" It may be too challenging of conventional wisdoms, too intelligent and scholarly (not easy rhetoric and populism) to make the big public splash it deserves. It is also ahead of its time - in so many place the book says things I have been trying to think, but no one else has articulated, let alone worked out how to write it in a sustained fashion. It may be twenty years before it is appreciated but 'Rednecks..' will make some serious waves.

When I was a kid, getting art books from the public library, there were dozens of books about the Italian Renaissance and only one about the Renaissance in the north. Van Eyck, Van der Weyden, Memling, all of them were crammed together in one book and called by the derogatory-sounding name of "Flemish Primitives".

Happily, new books in recent years have begun to give the northern painters their due. Books by Dirk de Vos, Otto Pacht, and a recent catalog from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York ("Van Eyck to Bruegel"), among others, have given us the chance to see splendid reproductions of some of the most enchanting, jewel-like paintings in the world. Recent books on Gerard David and Petrus Christus, also from the Metropolitan, have even turned the spotlight on these less well-known painters who can easily come to win a place in your list of favorites.

Still, though, there was a strong sense that North was North and South was South and never the twain would meet. That idea has been eroding under recent scholarship, however, as researchers have begun to make clear the influences and crosscurrents that occurred between Italy and the north countries of Europe. More than some of us might have guessed, there was a lot of exchange going on. Painters from Durer to Bruegel travelled to Italy to learn what they could of the traditions there, and painters as thoroughly Italian as Raphael and Botticelli took ideas from what they knew of the north.

These exchanges have now been very thoroughly spelled out in a new book from Rizzoli that accompanied a recent exhibition in Venice. It is a huge thick block of a book, with 210 color plates and hundreds -- possibly thousands -- of black and white reproductions of drawings, prints, etc., -- anything that sheds light on how artistic ideas travelled up and down over the Alps. The print is small, and comes four columns to a page in some spots, with copious footnotes. In other words, it seems as if the editors of this book have taken on the ambitious task of filling in a fascinating blank in the history of art by pouring everything they know into one gigantic book. If either the Italian or the Northern Renaissance, or how the two rubbed together, is of interest to you, this book will fascinate you with details, comparisons, and unexpected connections.

It's sad to say that sometimes the reproductions are not what they could be. Many are much darker than the original paintings. This is the first time I have seen a reproduction of Giovanni Bellini's Pieta since it was cleaned, and it is looking very good indeed, but the photo of the Van der Weyden Lamentation on the preceding page is badly out of focus. If you are looking for gorgeous lusciousness in an art book, this would not be the one for you. For sheer quantity and historical interest, though, this is a prize.

A great book for an overview of Soviet policy regarding Siberian indigenous groups. Kuoljok compiles pure Soviet policy into one publication. Interesting that what the soviets said they were doing was often different from practice.

Padraic Fiacc's 'Ruined Pages' is a generous selection of some of this poet's most hard-hitting poetry. Belfast poets are not a rare species, but Belfast poets who engage directly with the conflict in that place do seem to be thin on the ground. This makes 'Ruined Pages' a hugely important book. Fiacc's poems are not always easy to read; he does not shy away from presenting violence in its grimmest terms. Reading a collection like this, one feels that a personal experience is being related. Fiacc is a citizen of Belfast first and a poet second. He does not use the city, rather the city uses him. This book is almost impossible to come by in any book shop. Maybe the lack of demand for it stems from the fact that it is not beautiful or transcendant. But human suffering is not beautiful or transcendant. If you're more interested in reality than poetry, then track down this book.

It's dry reading but establishes the foundation for all of his subsequent books. Flowers is also published under the pen-name Edred Thorsson, and is the founder of the Rune-Gild. Anyone interested in serious study of the magickal aspects of the runes should try to obtain this seminal work.

This volume is a careful analysis of the embellishment of ritual costumes, of patterns on shirts, leggings, and moccasins, which symbolized the traditional religious believe of American Indians. One finds highly inspiring interpretations on the spiritual basis of arts and crafts of Native Americans. With this book, the author confirms his excellent reputation as authority on material and spiritual culture of American Indians.

I found the book to coinside with most of my research on Sarah. There are some inaccuracies, however. The statements on stage-appearences, and rape, to be general, overall and too sweeping in context. Sarah's death of TB is highly unlikely--food poisoning is more possible. Some of Scordato's terminology in describing Piute things and locations is inaccurate. And--Sarah would never, ever not be interested in the welfare of her people! "A 44 year old Sarah took little interest..." says Scordato. Hah! And--Sarah spoke five languages, not 2 languages and 3 dialects. I have Gae Whitney Canfield's research on that!

I recently spent a semester in Ireland & N. Ireland & this was one of the books we were required to read. I drank a lot of Guiness & didn't do much homework so I can't really tell you much about the book. What I did read was good.

Must reading for any Irish of problems suffered by poor and catholic residence from 1920 till present time

Henry Charlton Beck tells folklore and legends about the small towns in Northern New Jersey. Although not an official account of our history, Beck toured small towns, researched local resources, and had conversations with the locals. Highly recommended for someone who has an interest in local history.