Architectural Surfaces: Details for Artists, Architects, And Designers

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Pictures to give Ideas, Pictures to show Clients

Thousands of color photos AND a cd-rom

Architectural Surfaces: Details for Artists, Architects, And Designers
Judy A. Juracek , and Peter Pennoyer
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
General | Building Types & Styles | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
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Decoration & Ornament | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Home & Garden Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
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ASIN: 0393730794

Book Description

The latest addition to the acclaimed Surfaces series catalogs hundreds of different architectural elements and materials.

This new collection contains over 1,600 high-quality color photographs capturing a range of details and surfaces, organized by architectural elements: walls, facades, windows, doorways, ceilings, roofs, floors, pavement, staircases, balconies, columns, and arches. Architectural Surfaces provides a wealth of source material to meet the research needs of architects and interior designers, artists, scenic designers, and graphic designers. 1600 color illustrations; 2 CD-ROMs included.

Customer Reviews:

Pictures to give Ideas, Pictures to show Clients.......2006-04-09

This is a picture book for architects to illustrate various treatments, hundreds of various treatments for surfaces. Surfaces includes walls, facades, ornaments & moldings, columns & posts, windows, dorways, ceilings & roofs, floors & pavement. The concept is to show what has been done by others which can help in filling out their ideas about projects. And it is useful in showing or asking clients for their comments on proposed treatments.

All in all there are some sixteen hundred photographs in the 350 or so pages of the book. The overall design of a building is the first thing that is noticed, but the surface treatment isn't far beyond. And unlike the design, the surfaces from the floor to the ceiling are covered in paint, carpets, drapes, dozens of different treatments. All in all, the surface finishing may be the most expensive part of the building.

This is a reference book that belongs in any architectural library.

Thousands of color photos AND a cd-rom.......2006-03-12

Judy A. Juracek's ARCHITECTURAL SURFACES: DETAILS FOR ARTISTS, ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS comes with a cd-rom and provides students and professional practitioners alike with a new addition to the 'Surfaces' series. Hundreds of different architectural features are portrayed in well over a thousand color photos which capture details and provide a subject organization for quick, easy reference. Professionals and students alike will appreciate the illustrated glossary of technical terms, and the wealth of illustration packs four to six good-sized photos on almost every page.

Average customer rating:

Outstanding Book

In a Class By Itself! A Must Read. I Want To Give It 7 Stars!!!

Intelligent and useful

I wish I could give it 10 stars

7 Keys To Great Paintings
Jane R. Hofstetter
Manufacturer: North Light Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Watercolor Painting | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Painting | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1581804792

Book Description

Seven Keys to Great Paintings puts the fun back into painting with lighthearted, down-to-earth instruction that also reveals the core elements of painting design.

* Each of the seven chapters begins with a poem verse to help readers remember the message behind the concepts

* The emphasis on watercolor will appeal to painting's largest audience, as well as general painters

* Creative, game-like instruction echoes bestsellers like Watercolorist's Essential Notebook

* Full-page charts and 8 well-illustrated step-by-step demos make the concepts easy to understand and apply

The author's friendly, personal tone and extensive workshop experience are sure to charm and encourage painters of all levels.

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding Book.......2007-08-17

I have read a lot of art books - most of them are not worth bothering with. My time could be better used painting, sketching, or going to a gallery. But this book is exceptional. After reading it, my work immediately improved and I suddenly had a framework for diagnosing deficiencies in my paintings. As art books go, this one does seem to be in a class of its own.

In a Class By Itself! A Must Read. I Want To Give It 7 Stars!!!.......2006-09-20

At 1st glance this book looks like all the others, but it's truly in a class of its own. After you read enough art books, they all seem to be saying the same thing just with different pictures. This book is unique in that it expounds on topics that others gloss over and does so with fully commented, detailed, step-by-step photos.

Take for example, the topic of value pattern. Many books mention it. Some even show a few examples. This author goes the extra mile to explain how to develop and use strong value patterns. Detailed and well documented demonstrations include the development of 2 entirely different paintings both starting from the same abstract value pattern. Conversely, working in the opposite direction, she shows how to start with your average (nothing spectacular) photograph, "message" its existing value pattern to create a strong design, and end with a gorgeous painting.

Bottom line, by page 42 I had learned more from this book than from dozens of other books, many with similar titles. I recommend this book highly. It's exceptionally informative. The demonstrations are excellent. The artwork is beautiful. The book is an inspiration.

Intelligent and useful.......2006-02-17

If you are getting bored with the typical watercolour lessons book, I strongly suggest that you consider this one. This evidently written by a talented designer and a top quality artist. The book goes far beyond the easy technique and digs into the core of composition and arrangement of subjects.
I have found a wealth of information about the usual mistakes an amateur will fall into but also a well structured approach at correcting them. I have been able to apply easily many of the lessons and achieved significantly better results with my watercolour.
It is filled with interesting and stimulating examples. I think this one will turn out to be one of my reference books for some time.

I wish I could give it 10 stars.......2005-02-14

I've bought dozens of watercolor books and very few I read from cover to cover (there's only so many red boats in harbors I can stomach). This is one of those books that I've been reading slowly, as it's such a gem I don't want it to end...

I wasn't familiar with the author, but her paintings are absolutely beautiful. From landscapes to flowers to abstract, her strong sense of design really shines. And good design is what this book is really about, not the nuts and bolts of painting in watercolor. However, Hofstetter manages to come up with a fresh perspective on the good ol' "elements" and "principles" of design. More importantly, she shares examples that you feel you can actually put to good use to improve your own work. I found the "value shape plans" a great approach to creating an underpainting, as it forces you to save some whites (click on the "Excerpt" link above and read pages 15-17). I also loved her approach to using "line extension" (pages 36-38), as it's more subtle than other examples I'd seen (which tend much more towards cubism).

Perhaps another reason I instantly liked this book is that her color palette is from this century; most of her preferred paints come from Daniel Smith, such as their Quinacridone line of transparent watercolors. (Be aware though, that she likes her white goauche for waterfalls and so on!)

By the way, the layout, typography, and proofreading are also a notch better than some other North Light books I own. More books like this please.

Average customer rating:
DAIDO MORIYAMA : STRAY DOG
Daido [PHOTOGRAPHY - Japanese] MORIYAMA
Manufacturer: see notes for publisher info
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000L6H0GU

Book Description

Four years later, LA college senior PJ Allen enjoys a lifestyle of school, surf and snow. His bliss is interrupted, however, by Hermes, who informs PJ that he must return to the mythological world, complete Hercules' Twelve Labors and unravel a cryptic riddle to save mankind. During his perilous quest, PJ encounters sorcery, trickery and a face from the past.2004 ForeWord Magazine's Bronze Book of the Year, Young Adult Fiction

Customer Reviews:

Atlas' Revenge: Another Mad Myth Mystery.......2007-07-15

Atlas' Revenge: Another Mad Myth Mystery is the second book of the Mad Myth Mystery series. The first book of this series was a finalist in the IPPY (Independence Publisher Book Awards). In this first book, the reader was introduced to seventeen year old Percy John Allen (PJ), who had recently moved to Athenia with his mother after the death of his father Zack. Soon after the move, a man calling himself Hermes (messenger of the Gods) began appearing to PJ. This strange man revealed to PJ that the boy was actually the descendent of Perseus and that PJ must travel back in time to re-enact the heroic feats of his ancestor in order to save the world.

The second book of this series, Atlas' Revenge, finds PJ four years later and settling into college life, a new job, and a beautiful new girlfriend. All seems well for PJ until a chance meeting with PJ's old flame Andi and an earthquake. At first, PJ assumes these events are complete coincidence, until Hermes appears once again. It would seem that another of PJ's ancestors is in trouble. Evidentially, Hercules has managed to get himself into a little mess. While completing his Twelve Labors, Hercules was tricked by Atlas into holding the world on his shoulders. PJ must not only find Atlas and trick him into taking the world back onto his shoulders and complete Hercules' final labors but also write a paper for school, get drawings done for his slave driving boss, and be sure he's not late that date with his girlfriend. Completing the Twelve Labors of Hercules while balancing all of his other responsibilities is going to make slaying Medusa look like a picnic.

Atlas' Revenge, is a great action filled twist on an old story that will be enjoyed by all ages, those who know these myths by heart, and those that have no previous knowledge of the Greek myths. PJ is just an average guy stuck in an extraordinary situation. He makes mistakes, he flounders, and he tries his best. The results are often humorous and always completely entertaining.

Reviewed by Amy Ryder.......2007-01-26

When his parents divorce, PJ and his mom move to the tiny country town of Athenia. PJ finds an old art set in his room, and he draws a roly-poly old man who comes to life as Hermes. He convinces PJ (actually Percy, or Perseus) to help him behead Medusa and save civilization from a drought. PJ becomes much too close to people in his past and present who are actually characters from Greek myth as he accompanies Hermes on wild adventures based on the mythical Greek stories.

The fast-paced action and element of mystery in these books would appeal to the modern adventure fantasy reader. They do teach as well as entertain, since they are based in mythology. The main character is a fantastic athlete, and each book also contains great sports action sequences.

The myths are woven naturally into the story, but at times they were hard to follow, with many characters and situations thrown at the reader simultaneously. For the young adult unfamiliar with Greek myth, this series would be overwhelming at first. The second book in the series has a smoother flow between the myth and the story. Some of the characters are cliché, like the tomboy neighbor with a secret crush on PJ, the "big man on campus" who is jealous of PJ's new popularity, and the crazy roommate who eats cold pizza and calls everyone "dude." Overall, these are satisfying reads that will appeal to readers who enjoy fast-paced fantasy and action stories.

A Fast-paced Trek Through the Greek Myths.......2006-11-06

PJ is an ordinary 21-year-old college student, in many ways, with a part-time job doing graphic design for a small studio (with a mean boss named E.G. Never) and a beautiful, red-headed girlfriend, who is quite demanding and unpredictable.

However, he isn't so ordinary, after all. You see, he is the descendant of the Greek hero Perseus and the Greek semi-divine hero Hercules, and, four years ago, the ancient Greek gods pulled PJ into the middle of a major problem they were having, with PJ ending up proving himself by slaying the Gorgon Medusa and helping Zeus, the King of the Greek gods, again defeat Cronus, the King of the Titans.

Now, there is trouble again in Olympus. The defeated Titan named Atlas had been petrified and sentenced to carry the Heavens for all eternity, but Atlas has somehow escaped, and fooled Hercules into taking his place. Even the mighty Hercules, though, cannot hold up the Heavens for very long, and the Earth begins experiencing a series of "natural" disasters as a result of Hercules' growing fatigue. PJ meets with the Greek gods, and finds out that, to help solve the problem, PJ (as heir to Hercules) must re-do the famous Twelve Labors of Hercules. As PJ embarks on this arduous quest, he begins to find out that there is a deeper mystery going on, and the future of everything is at stake. Some friends are actually not who they seem to be, and some foes might even end up as allies. Can PJ accomplish the Twelve Labors? Can he figure out the mystery of the puzzle pieces and the plot underlying Atlas' disappearance? Can he do all that fast enough to prevent the ruin of the Earth and the end of Humankind?

At first, the story is, given the premise, quite simple, with PJ starting to complete the Twelve Labors, with the Olympians giving advice and tools to help him. The story then gets much more complex, as the plot-within-a-plot begins to emerge, the identity of some of the characters is revealed to be different from what everyone first thought, and treachery comes into play. The characters seem two-dimensional at first, but adversity, intrigue, and betrayals help us see them as much more complex, even as the story grows more complex.

Tony and Robyn DiTocco co-wrote and helped get this book published. It is the sequel to "The Hero Perseus" (the adventures of PJ's first Olympian encounter at age seventeen) and is part of their "Mad Myth Mystery" series for young adult readers. The book is very fast-paced and, once one gets past the somewhat simplistic beginning, and into the more complex story-lines, this is a very exciting and interesting mystery-adventure story, with lots of action. The authors did an excellent job of giving the reader enough information on the preceding book, so that this book can stand alone. I appreciated this, as I have not read "The Hero Perseus", but I have not put it on my list of books to get.

This book is aimed at younger readers, and I can see it being good for readers as young as nine or ten, if they are good readers, and especially if they have read and enjoyed something about the ancient Greek myths. At 46, I found the reading very fast, but I enjoyed it and, while I had solved most of the mysteries slightly ahead of the protagonist, PJ beat me to a few of them, leaving me wondering why I hadn't figured it out.

Atlas' Revenge Another Mad Mystery.......2006-02-02

Atlas' Revenge, Another Mad Mystery by Robyn and Tony DiTocco is a great book! Normally, I find books about Gods, Destinys, and Mythology boring and un-eventful. That is certainly not the case with this book which is the sequel to The Hero Perseus, another great book. This second story is about an average boy, PJ, in his early twenties with a normal life of school, work and his girlfriend. But, as you probably guessed, there is a catch; PJ is the only descendant of the great god Perseus!
The Gods atop Mount Olympus have a problem. Atlas, who holds the heavens atop his shoulders is gone...Hercules holds them for now and cannot for much longer. He is slipping, and with each slip a devastating natural disaster strikes the world. When he falls, the heavens will crush the earth. The Gods desperately need to find Atlas and save the world! There is another problem though, magic has been cast, and PJ needs to complete Hercules' 12 labors while he holds the heavens. Throughout the book PJ faces death straight in the eye. With each task completed, more pieces of the puzzle are added as to where Atlas is and how PJ must save the world.
This book is for a fantasy, mystery, and adventure seeker who is a medium level reader. I, as the reader absolutely loved this book! It's a "Don't want to get up and stop reading" story, beautifully written with a great plot line. There is never a quiet moment and each time you think you have figured something out a new piece of information is added, making the story more and more complex. Besides reading the book I ask you this, do you dare to learn the dazzling mysteries of PJ and how he saves the world? I'll let you decide that for yourself.

ONE GREAT READ!.......2005-02-10

I was first introduced to our hero in this couples first work, "Hero Perseus." PJ was four years younger and dealing with the trauma of losing his father at that time. In this work, we are reintroduced to a now college age PJ, who although is older is still dealing with his identity and what his future holds. Although the hectic California lifestyle seems to be agreeing with him; PJ is still plagues with some inner turmoil's.
Things have changed for PJ. His mother has remarried and he has a new stepbrother, that he is definitely jealous of, and a new girlfriend, who he seems to be obsessed with. His life is full and the last thing he needs is another quest, but lo and behold here it comes.
This time PJ is called by his old friend Hermes to complete Hercules Twelve Labors. Why? Because Hercules is busy holding up the heavens for Atlas who has disappeared. Ah! So we have our story.
Chock full of adventure, PJ is hurled into a war to save the world. Forced to battle such mystical creatures as a lion, and a pig who becomes almost a friend and a host of other not so friendly characters, we are plunged into an adventurous read that is a real page turner. We also have a tad of mystery as Andi, PJ's former girlfriend, reappears on the scene. Just what part will she play in all of this? To add spice, we have a riddle that surely must mean something, but what?
This is another delightful, action packed story for young and old. It's always nice to be familiar with the characters you have learned to love, and hate, from previous works as you begin the read. I recommend this book. It can stand alone, but start your own collection of Mad Myth Mysteries. I'm sure there will be more to follow, at least I hope so. These books are real winners!
Shirley Johnson
Senior Reviewer
MidWest Book Review

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The Mad Book of Revenge
Stan; Coker, Paul; Meglin, Nick Hart
Manufacturer: Warner Books Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000NLMHQ6

Average customer rating:

Mad Book of Revenge
HART STAN
Manufacturer: Warner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0446904287

Mad Book of Revenge (Or How to Torment Your Tormentors)

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Mad Book of Revenge (Or How to Torment Your Tormentors)
EDITORS OF MAD MAGAZINE
Manufacturer: Warner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Jokes & Riddles | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0446350729

Amazon.com

One of the biggest under-told stories of the past 20 years is the engulfing of independent newspapers by large media chains. The Chain Gang is the account of two battles waged by Richard McCord with his independent newspapers against the Gannett Company. In Santa Fe, New Mexico, a small weekly he started had to fight for survival against Gannett and its nasty tactics. In Green Bay, Wisconsin, he again waged war against Gannett. His experiences make for a fascinating narrative and provide a real-life account of the struggle for an independent voice in the face of a corporate steamroller.

Customer Reviews:

Gripping and disturbing - I couldn't put it down.......2003-12-31

You don't have to be in the newspaper business to find this book interesting. Even if all you do is read newspapers, or use them to line the rabbit cage, you will be astonished. This exhaustively researched, extremely well-written account demonstrates in graphic detail the lengths to which a desperate monopolist will go to achieve and preserve its monopoly profits. This is a really important book.

Let the truth be told.......2002-05-16

For one who was currently employed by Gannett and had never heard of its ways, this book could be a kick in the face.

I enjoyed "The Chain Gang" because of its raw, solid descriptions of what tactics someone can use to get what they want. It almost reminded me of a spoiled child. Richard McCord, its author, is obviously a very hardworking man who genuinely cares about what he does. Above all, he must have a big heart for people and the journalistic business itself.

This book did more than provide an interesting view to its readers, it provided information for one to learn from. It was full of details, honesty, and insight. McCord shared his every thought with the reader about the whole ordeal, begining with his struggles in New Mexico. He was honest about his feelings about the whole Green Bay Project, the people he came in contact with, the homesickness he felt and even how he felt after a hangover his next to last night in Green Bay. The reader appreciates honesty instead of words that are just expected.

The book, however provided too much detail at times. No being interested in law, there were times I got bored with the different cases and rulings that were thrown out at me throughout the book. Often times, I lost my concentration because of this. It felt, at other times, that he went on and on about some of Gannett's tactics as if this way was his only means to get the message across. Sometimes I think short would have been sweeter.

All in all, the book was very informative and a fairly easy read. I would recommend it to anyone before they began working for a Gannett-owened paper. It just might make them change their mind.

My review.......2002-05-10

The Chain Gang, written by Richard McCord, was an interesting synopsis featuring the undermining practices of the Gannett Empire. He tells his own story of his dealings with this masterful mega-chain and also his personal crusade against it. Overall the book was an excellent read and a necessary referance for any community journalist.
The information McCord produces with this book is almost overwhelming. He has no problem showcasting everything he discovered about Gannett, no matter how ugly. The shocking quality and amazing clarity of his wods would grab even those who are not at all interested in the details of the newspaper.
Another great aspect of the book is the way it lets the reader flow through it. The words are not unnecessarily difficult and the tone keeps the pages turning. The book leaves room for more thn just journalism issues. I think you can even substitute the newspapers for other kinds of businesses and still get the point across. We always need to fight for the underdogs, if not for them than for our own good.
There was one part of the book that I did not particularly care for. I thought McCord repeated some things too many times. I know he wanted to instill Gannett's crimes into our minds, but I found myself skipping over parts where it seemed like I had already heard about them. Besides this, I think the book was great and I am very glad I was able to purchase it.

The Best Book I've Ever Read.......2001-08-03

This is an incredible book. First of all, it's a great read. It's written by a journalist and it's compelling--I couldn't put it down. It should be made into a movie. And it's all true.

It recounts how Gannett, the nation's biggest newspaper chain, resorts to illegal, and immoral tactics to force other newspapers out of business. Gannett can be perfectly profitable WITHOUT eliminating the competition, but if it has a monopoly, it can make over 30 percent profits with its newspapers.

This book also tells what Gannett does to the papers it consumes--namely, slashes content, puts articles about dogs on the front pages, increases advertising, raises subscription AND advertiser rates, fires lots of employees, etc.

A must read for anyone concerned about newspapers.......2000-08-20

As a newsroom employee of a once-proud independent newspaper that was bought by the Gannett chain in 1997, I was told by colleagues who had read "The Chain Gang" that the book was a cautionary tale which would reveal the dark side of the corporation that had become my new employer. Unfortunately, I didn't take those warnings seriously enough, and I took my time about picking up the book. Now that a few years have gone by, and the newsroom staff at the paper I worked for has been decimated by the kind of cutbacks the bean-counters at unscrupulous corporations like Gannett delight in, I wish I'd read "The Chain Gang" much sooner.

If you're in the newspaper business and not working for Gannett yet, the chances grow greater each year that you will be. "The Chain Gang" helps explain why, and it's a sordid story.

By the way, I now refer to the newspaper mentioned at the beginning of this review as the paper I "worked" for, because after I challenged whether the paper and Gannett were living up to a corporate "ethics policy" Gannett professes to have adopted in 1999, I was transferred, against my wishes, to a much smaller newspaper the company owns. I'm continuing to try to fight that action -- not that I hope to have any kind of career with Gannett, of course -- but it would probably help to have someone like Richard McCord on my side, in his feistiest, most energized mode.

Having said that, my only real complaint with "The Chain Gang" is the melancholy, defeatist tone of much of McCord's epilogue, in which, despite the admirable personal triumphs he scored in battling Gannett, he ultimately depicts his efforts as gestures bordering on futility. But I can hardly fault McCord for his candor -- something any Gannett employee is bound to find refreshing.

It's truly appalling that such a shady company is among the corporations to which Americans apparently will be entrusting an increasingly disproportionate responsibility for upholding a freedom as precious as the First Amendment.

Can I give "The Chain Gang" any higher praise than to say that upon reading it I immediately bought a half-dozen copies to distribute to friends in the journalism business? But you needn't be a reporter or editor to appreciate this book. In fact, the focus is less on the journalism side of the newspaper business than it is on the advertising and marketing side. But that's appropriate, since that's clearly where Gannett's focus is too.

Average customer rating:
The Chain Gang, One Newspaper Versus the Gannett Empire
Richard McCord
Manufacturer: Columbia & London: University of Missouri Press, 1996
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NVLSQG

Average customer rating:
The Chain Gang: One Newspaper Versus the Gannett Empire (ISBN: 0826210643)
Richard McCord
Manufacturer: Univ. of Missouri Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000O92Z0A

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The Chain Gang: One Newspaper Versus the Gannett Empire.: An article from: American Journalism Review
Carl Sessions Stepp
Manufacturer: University of Maryland
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books | Classics | Comic | Contemporary | Literary
General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | e-Docs | Formats | Books
ASIN: B00096MQF2
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from American Journalism Review, published by University of Maryland on September 1, 1996. The length of the article is 749 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Chain Gang: One Newspaper Versus the Gannett Empire.
Author: Carl Sessions Stepp
Publication: American Journalism Review (Refereed)
Date: September 1, 1996
Publisher: University of Maryland
Volume: v18 Issue: n7 Page: p53(1)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

In the spring of 1964, Joel Agee, not quite at home in his native New York (having spent much of his boyhood and youth behind the Iron Curtain), accidentally ingests a sizeable dose of LSD. All at once he is thrown from the precincts of bohemian normalcy into a whirl of bizarre synchronicities, symbols and omens. Nothing is ever the same again. Thirty years later a sobered Joel Agee sets himself the task of recounting his adventures. He begins as a memoirist, but the truth he is seeking is not just that of memory. This book is a rescue mission — to find the ghosts of his past he must write his way into the house of his fear.

Customer Reviews:

Have some NoDoze at hand........2005-12-21

A friend sent me this book including a claim that it had helped him find "himself." He asked me to read it. I did and I am fighting the impulse to suggest my budy seek counseling. The book is about sex and drugs and the search for "Who am I?" Agee must have no shame revealing what is possibly the most uninteresting biographical history I've ever read. Perhaps all those 5 star reviews were children of the 60's and 70's who were remainded of the foolish culture created by sex and drugs. It was a fun time, but those of us who remember it should have grown up by now. Save your money: buy a comic book.

A Masterpiece!.......2005-10-22

Anyone who lived through the Sixties and has any sembalance of rememberance about those years should read this book. Agee's experiences and recollections are nothing short of amazing, and his unique insights into the metaphysical side of life and things is stunning. In the House of My Fear is a classic.

Astonishing.......2005-03-09

Joel Agee read at my Reading Series last week (March 4, 2005). This is the introduction I gave for that event:

I received an e-mail from Joel Agee. Spoke to him. Then, last week, I met him. Despite that, while reading "In the House of My Fear," late in the book, while a man is wandering through the streets of London, the abyss very near, I totally forgot that the very same man and I exchanged e-mails not a day before. I felt...afraid...for him.

The places--on the map and in the mind--that Joel Agee describes--often seem impossible to escape from and emerge...what? Sane? Whole? I don't know.

I often forgot--completely, as if the words "a memoir" were not written on the front of the book--that what I was reading was true. The events related in this book...happened, even though the narrator hardly believes much of it was actually real while it was happening to him. It sometimes seems like a common thing; we read books, see films, listen to music, view paintings, etc..., and the power of great art takes us out of ourselves, even briefly, to another, more wondrous place. Places that exist only in the mind of the artist, who, if expert, by an act akin to telepathy, transmits those experiences to us, profoundly.

But beyond the simple telling, the act of transmission, "In the House of My Fear" has a power, a force, that I simply have not experienced as a reader, maybe ever. The act of reading it was, for me, a physically altering experience. I do much of my reading these days on the subway. Now, in New York, where eye contact is often seen as threat, and displays of public emotion are usually frowned upon, my reactions to this book could not help but have been expressed. I found myself, at one point, almost folded in half, holding the book between my legs. The story had literally bowed me down. I can't imagine what the people on a crowded E Train thought at that moment.

And I took the sensations, the moods, the feeling imprinted upon me by this amazing book up from the underground, to the world above. The very air seemed more vibrant. And I, with nothing stronger in me than food and water, felt a little of that hallucinatory state that Joel Agee describes in such a terrifyingly beautiful way.

This is a book that unerringly organizes tangled events that, in and of themselves are seemingly random, into an inarguable order; with unexpected deadpan humor, uncanny understanding of the connections between loved ones, and a feel of a great and necessary quest. It was a joy and a privilege for me to read, and an honor to be able to present Joel Agee...

I cannot recommend this book highly enough...

An important book.......2005-02-26

IN THE HOUSE OF MY FEAR is a great book. Not only is Joel Agee a wonderfully gifted writer and storyteller, but his memoir/novel is a terrific evocation of a time when many young people said, "Make love not war," and "May the Baby Jesus shut your mouth and open up your eyes." I was a photographer in the 1960's and did my own book about that time period (Britannia Press, "It Happened In Monterey") about the 1967 milestone, the Monterey Pop Festival. I remember that era with fondness and wonder.
In telling his own story of gradual breakdown and eventual breakthrough into self-realization, Agee recounts a series of incredible adventures and meetings. He also captures the essence of a time when no dream seemed impossible, and manages to evoke, not just remember, a consciousness I believed was buried before reading this book. I have always wished for writing that succeeded in revealing the hippy experience, always wondered if a psychedelic drug trip could find expression in language. This book does both. It is also a timeless story about a soul's passage through great danger and ultimate redemption. I recommend it highly.

In the House of My Fear.......2005-02-17

All of us who were "on the scene" in the sixties, that indescribable time of extacy and rage, now have a book that like no other helps us to understand our own experience of the time. Younger readers will learn more about this watershed moment in modern American history by reading this novelized memoir than by reading the historians. Unlike his father in Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, Agee's focus is inward, an attempt at a "rescue mission" to release the ghosts of past terrors. Agee's journey takes us on an often breathtaking trip in a VW bus through North Africa, Spain, France, Switzerland, and finally England, where he loses his bus and, temporarily, his mind. Readers of Agee's earlier memoir of boyhood, Thirteen Years, will welcome this continuation of a remarkable biography by a brilliant prose stylist.

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