Rose Windows and How to Make Them: Coloured Tissue Paper Crafts

Customer Reviews:

unique tissue paper craft book.......2000-11-24

What is a rose window? It is a stained glass window on a grand scale, as used in Cathedrals. The author gives easy to understand directions for making tissue paper transparency decorations to hang in a window. The photos are lovely and show how beautiful tissue paper can look when light shines through it. The illustration on the cover is for what I consider to be the most difficult project in the book. There are many easier projects for the beginner to try first. Although the finished project looks complex, the projects are easy to make. Basically all that is needed is tissue paper, a handmade cardboard frame, scissors, pencil, and glue. Simple patterns are in the book and must be photocopied before use. These rose windows would make a lovely and unique gift, especially for adults. Twenty-five pages at the end are dedicated to instructions for large tissue paper scenes to hand in a window. The instructions for star money: a fairy tale scene and lantern-holding children are detailed, but once you understand the general instructions, you can make your own custom designs, such as celebrating holidays, festivals, or nature landscapes.

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Better than being there
Beautlful and Profound Rose Windows

The Rose Window
Painton Cowen
Manufacturer: Thames & Hudson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0500511748

Book Description

A visually sensational study of the rose window both in its own right and as a central feature of Gothic architecture.

Painton Cowen has dedicated his life to the study of rose windows. Here he presents the world's best-known rose windows in over 300 new photographs and line drawings—Paris (Notre Dame), Chartres, Reims, Strasbourg, Cologne, Florence, Siena, Palma de Mallorca, Santa Maria del Mar, and New York's St. John the Divine, as well as many lesser-known, but no less astonishing, examples.

Every aspect of the rose window is covered, including its possible origins in the south of Europe, its flowering in thirteenth-century France, the diffusion of styles across Europe, and modern reinterpretations, as well as the powerful geometry behind the designs and the meanings specific to individual examples. Perennial favorites such as the windows at Chartres are dissected and discussed in detail.

This book provides unique insights into the development and organization of the rose window and its central position in Gothic architecture through a lucid, illuminating text and carefully selected comparative material that covers the wealth of Gothic creative activity. It also explores the greater meaning of the rose window through numerology, scholasticism, and the concept of heavenly order. 350 illustrations, 300 in color.

Customer Reviews:

Better than being there.......2007-01-15

If you are at all interested in rose windows, this is a must-have book. The photographs are simultaneously artistically moving and technically informative. The author includes historical photos of windows that would be impossible to see today, either because of damage, restoration, or restrictions on visits.

I have Painton Cowen's earlier (1970's) book on the same topic, and am delighted to have found this new book, in which he deeply explores the topics he touched on earlier. If I could have only one book about rose windows, this would be it.

Beautlful and Profound Rose Windows.......2005-11-30

Painton Cowen's "The Rose Window" is a profound book that combines art history, mystical Christian thought, great beauty and sublime photographs. It is truly a work of art. It is a survey of rose windows: their origin, history, iconography, geometry and spiritual meaning. You will inevitably come away feeling uplifted and having made a significant discovery in your own inner life. I highly recommend the book in all ways.

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Rose Windows for Quilters
Angela Besley
Manufacturer: Guild of Master Craftsman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Quilts & Quilting | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Textile Arts | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1861081634

Book Description

With their kaleidoscopic colors and exuberant patterns, these unusual quilting designs make imaginative projects. Enhanced by black backgrounds and defining “leadwork,” they use an appliqué technique simple enough for beginners. Use the extraordinary patterns to quilt wall hangings; a bed or sofa throw; a bag, foot stool, tablecloth and napkins, and more.

Through the Rose Window: Art, Myth and the Religious Imagination

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A masterfully written and scholarly study

Through the Rose Window: Art, Myth and the Religious Imagination
J. F. Hayward
Manufacturer: Skinner House Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Folklore & Mythology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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The Rose Window

ASIN: 1558964282

Book Description

Fourteen essays explore the many roles of art and religion as vehicles for transcendent truth

“This is the fruit of a lifetime of reflection on the importance of imagination in religion. Thought provoking yet written in readable and beautiful language, these reflections are themselves works of art. This book will be a delight to readers of a variety of religious and non-religious stances.” — Jerome Stone, Meadville/Lombard Theological School at the University of Chicago

Religion, itself a human art, is presented as an invention of the human imagination rather than a gift from a divine source. Like religion, the arts express depths that are not readily available for rational analysis yet are deeply felt in human experience. In these essays, Hayward samples literature, music and the visual arts to demonstrate how the arts reveal “the true music of life.” He discusses myths, which he calls “true-fictions”, as a primary vehicle for religious expression. Hayward invites readers to view the Bible not as “one pure strain of religious witness,” but as a source of affirmations and denials of divine glory and human worth, divine judgment and human frailty. Persuasive and thought provoking, Hayward is an eloquent spokesman for liberal religion's faith in the human spirit.

Customer Reviews:

A masterfully written and scholarly study.......2002-05-17

Through The Rose Window: Art, Myth And The Religious Imagination by John F. Hayward (Minister, First Unitarian Church, Columbus, Ohio, and Editor of "The Journal of Liberal Religion") is a masterfully written and scholarly study of the intersection between expressions of the human spirit and the profound, life-changing impact of deep religious faith. Fourteen essays study the importance of imagination in religion, in meaningful and perhaps somewhat provocative manner. A profound and thoughtful analysis, through The Rose Window is very highly recommended reading for students of the interrelationship of religion, art, mythology, and spiritual expression.

Roses & Windows: Selected French Poems of Rainer Maria Rilke

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Roses & Windows: Selected French Poems of Rainer Maria Rilke
Rainer Maria Rilke
Manufacturer: Zuzu Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Perfect Paperback

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

French | Foreign Language Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

All French Books | French | Foreign Language Books | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 1599718480

Product Description

Rilke's French poems represent an important yet neglected aspect of his vast contribution to literature. These poems shine with the sparkle and depth of precious jewels. Susanne Petermann introduces soulful new versions of two French series by Rilke. In Roses, we experience the infinite metaphor of the rose as Rilke's object of praise and transformation. Windows explores Rilke's fascination with paradox, where inner and outer meet, where limitation and expansion pull simultaneously on our lives.

The Rose Window and Other Verse from New Poems

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The Rose Window and Other Verse from New Poems
Rainer Maria Rilke
Manufacturer: Bulfinch Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

German | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

German | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Packed with Adobe Goodness
Some useful information, but mostly a long ad for Adobe.

Adobe Web Design & Publishing Unleashed
Vincent Freeman , Blake Benet Hall , Roderick Harlan , Steve Hartert , Aandi Inston , Scott Kelby , Cyndie Shaffstall-Klopfenstein , Lisa Lopuck , Sheryl Hampton , Michael O'Mara , Carla Rose , Dan Rose , Moe Rubenzahl , Konrad Schafer , and Sherry Stinson
Manufacturer: Sams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Databases | Software | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

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Customer Reviews:

Packed with Adobe Goodness.......1999-05-05

It's true, this book focuses exclusively on Adobe software, but it IS called Adobe Web Design & Publishing. The warning is right there in the title. That said, it's a tome of useful tips on using Adobe software to create professional quality web sites and graphics. If you use Adobe software to create web sites, consider buying this book. One caveat: Adobe Web Design & Publishing does not cover Adobe's latest and greatest web site design software, Go Live. Hopefully the next version will.

Some useful information, but mostly a long ad for Adobe........1998-10-21

Beware those Adobe-endorsed books. While there are some useful examples herein, most of this is just one long diatribe on the virtues of Adobe and their pivotal place in developing web content. If you're looking to this book to discover how to publish for the web, there are precious few really useful pointers. While the Adobe Classroom in a Book series is instructive, their other titles are of very limitted usefulness (and often very expensive). This book is no exception. Lacks any real discussion of the intricacies of web design. Say nay. Docked a notch for being so expensive.

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Intense collection of church window color photos.

Rose Windows
Painton Cowen
Manufacturer: Chronicle Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0877011214

Customer Reviews:

Intense collection of church window color photos........1999-07-22

Excellent book for restoration reference. Also good for research, as the photos are noted with location, date of creation, etc. Good for ideas to permutate into your own designs. Save the plane fare and time, read this at the dinner table. -Architectural Art Glass, 517-451-4008

Anatomy Practice: The Undergraduate Edition of A.D.A.M. Practice Practical (CD-ROM for Windows & Macintosh, Individual Version)

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Anatomy Practice: The Undergraduate Edition of A.D.A.M. Practice Practical (CD-ROM for Windows & Macintosh, Individual Version)
A.D.A.M. Software , Rose Leigh Vines , Wojciech Pawlina , and Todd R. Olson
Manufacturer: Harcourt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: CD-ROM

Anatomy | Basic Science | Medicine | Subjects | Books

AUTOBIOGRAPHY: Book (1) One: I Knock at the Door; Book (2) Two: Pictures in the Hallway; Book (3) Three: Dreams Under the Windows; Book (4) Four: Inishfallen, Fare Thee Well; Book (5) Five: Rose and Crown; Book (6) Six: Sunset and Evening Star

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AUTOBIOGRAPHY: Book (1) One: I Knock at the Door; Book (2) Two: Pictures in the Hallway; Book (3) Three: Dreams Under the Windows; Book (4) Four: Inishfallen, Fare Thee Well; Book (5) Five: Rose and Crown; Book (6) Six: Sunset and Evening Star
Sean O'Casey
Manufacturer: Pan Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000NP9VZM

Average customer rating:

Awesome sophisticated looking projects,inspirational

You can't go wrong with Grace Taormina's books

Complete Guide to Decorative Stamping: Decorate Your Home Simply and Beautifully With Your Own Easy-To-Make Stamp Designs
Grace Taormina
Manufacturer: Diane Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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Bob Harris' Guide to Stamped Concrete

Complete Masonry: Building Techniques, Decorative Concrete, Tools and Materials (Sunset)

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The Complete Guide to Rubber Stamping: Design and Decorate Gifts and Keepsakes (Watson-Guptill Crafts)

Bob Harris' Guide to Concrete Overlays & Toppings

ASIN: 0788197002

Amazon.com

Beyond very solid groundwork on all kinds of stamping basics as well as more advanced techniques such as masking, embossing, creating depth and shadows, and producing dimensional effects, this wonderful book offers plenty of smart advice on making color choices, working with patterned repeats, stamping on a variety of different surfaces, combining stamping with other crafts, and assessing a room to overcome what may be the hardest part of all--figuring out where to begin. Walls, floors, furniture, linens, pillows, and accessories take on unique looks, more interesting than most wallpapers or purchased fabrics, and certainly much more exciting than solid-color surfaces. If you're new to stamping, start with something small like a mirror frame, mini-chest, place mat, or flowerpot. But even the more ambitious projects--tables, curtains, bureaus, embossed velvet, entire walls--are made approachable in this very appealing presentation. --Amy Handy

Customer Reviews:

Awesome sophisticated looking projects,inspirational.......2001-06-12

This is a terrific book on using rubber stamp techniques to decorate your home. It shows how practical and creative stamping can be for things other than just making cards. The projects are artistic have a sophisticated look and for the most part they are not too cutesy. Though sophisticated looking, with a little time and patience all the projects are fairly easy to create.

The book starts out with stamping basics such as masking, embossing, purchasing supplies and even making your own simple stamps. Principles of color and design follow. Stamping on various surfaces such as paper, wood, fabric, pottery, glass, clay, metal and leather are next. Then it is all put together in decorating your rooms. There is great information on assessing your room, making samples and working with patterns as well as creating borders, wreaths, and painted floors.

Over 15 projects follow including chest of drawers with elegant swirls, butterfly embossed velvet throw, lemon wall vine, paper mache bowl with leaves, orchard mini-chest and leather portfolio. My favorite project was the gorgeous Africa theme mica collage table. There are excellent step-by-step instructions accompanied by clear demonstrating photos for all the projects. A large photo the finished pieces as well as a complete materials list is also included.

A few patterns and a resource directory are located in the back. This book is a great source of inspiration and ideas for decorating and makes the perfect house-warming gift for the stamper in your life.

You can't go wrong with Grace Taormina's books.......1998-08-05

This a book that puts you in control of the look you want with decorating projects. Whether you are working on placemats or living room walls, there are ideas for making your own stamps out of everything from polymer clay to foam to natural objects.

Looks range from cute country to modern and mica flecked. Photos are very clear and the processes in the projects are described in detail. A source directory is included.

Book Description

Thomas Struth (b. 1954) is one of the most compelling artists using photography today. Coming to prominence in his native Germany in the 1970s, Struth captured the atmospheric power of the contemporary urban landscape in his early black-and-white works. With an intent gaze and exacting lens, Struth expanded his range to include color portraits, bringing a unique psychological precision to the tradition of portraiture. Perhaps Struth's best-known works are his majestic, large-scaled museum photographs depicting visitors to some of the world's great museums and buildings, including The Art Institute of Chicago, the Musée du Louvre in Paris, the Accademia in Venice, and the Pantheon in Rome. These captivating photographs not only transport us to the place depicted, they also provide a chance to reexamine our own selves looking at art. Continuing his interest in series, Struth has recently created expansive works based on the natural world, often training his camera on a particular contemporary melding of nature with technology and architecture.

Customer Reviews:

a great review of his work.......2004-09-12

I really enjoy this book. It gives you a global point of view on the author resume.
the selection is excellent, and the print too.
If you love his work, you'll love this book.
thanks Thomas!

Average customer rating:

Thomas Struth 1977-2002
Thomas and Douglas Eklund, Ann Goldstein, Maria Morris Hambourg, Charles Wylie Struth
Manufacturer: Dallas Museum of Art
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OS2010

Book Description

Drawings from the Cheap Seats is a collection of sports cartoons by noted sports cartoonist Richard Harris. Many of the cartoons in this book have appeared in his Newsday sports cartoon, "The Cheap Seats." Some of the cartoons are new and others were considered a little too racy for a family publication like a newspaper, but fortunately not for his book. Harris draws in a smooth free-line style that is provocative and eye-catching. The athletes look like athletes and the expressions on his characters are right on the mark. Harris also has a talent for taking a national news story or situation and cleverly tying into the sporting world. Harris' Drawings from the Cheap Seats, is a must read for any sports fan.

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A Great Read

A pleasure to know him

"every spring he saw we see still"

being touched by the POET

Touched by a poet

Don't Touch the Poet: The Life and Times of Joel Oppenheimer
Lyman Gilmore
Manufacturer: Talisman House Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Authors | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Journalists | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1883689635

Customer Reviews:

A Great Read.......2002-12-15

This is by far one of the best biographies of a contemporary poet I've ever read. Gilmore gives us Oppenheimer the drinker, chain-smoker, cuckold, cocksman, lover, friend, good-guy, wise-man, and master of the directly stated, simply worded, poem. Oppenheimer comes across as a person who was--somehow--more than the sum of his parts. That "somehow" was his gift for living close to the bone, surviving break-ups and bouts with the bottle, and ultimately writing well. No hagiography (as so many paeons to the Beats turn out to be), Don't Touch the Poet allows us to hear from enemies and not-so-impressed-ex-wives as well as life-long friends. The end result is similar to Boswell's portrait of Dr. Johnson holding forth in his dressing gown: at one and the same time a bit off-putting, yet somewhat charming, wholly fascinating, and, one feels, totally true to life.

A pleasure to know him.......2002-07-09

I really enjoyed this book. As a 1987 graduate of New England College, I had Joel as a teacher and an advisor, and most importantly as a friend. (and a fellow Mets fan!)
Joel helped me to transform from a disjointed, disorganized and immature college freshman to a more focused and interested writer.
The book shed light on his life and reminded me of a few stories he told me in my four years of knowing him.
I can vividly remember sitting in his smoke filled office arguing over my lack of attention to my studies...:)
What a great guy, I sure wish he was still here with us.

"every spring he saw we see still".......1999-08-19

As good a biography as we are likely to get of Joel Oppenheimer and perhaps the only one. Joel's earlier years are especially well researched and told. The absence of Amiri Baraka's voice is a pity.

The book would have benefited with more input from Pete Hamill, Sam Abrams and a few others. Also, a few of Joel's more notable students are silent: Tom Weatherly; and Bob Rixon, who has been telling lovely anecdotes about Joel for years over WFMU in New York.

Which is maybe a complaint that the book is too short at 246 pages. But Gilmore writes with devotion and leaves us with the belief that "every spring he saw we see still"

Fine work.

being touched by the POET.......1998-07-01

I am fortunate enough to have known Joel Oppenheimer pretty well. He was my advisor and professor at New England College for a couple years before he passed away. Lymon (also a past professor of mine) has done a fantastic job describing Joel and his workings. There was so much about Joel that I didn't know and wish I had known. What I do know about Joel is that he was a positive presence. He was also very much a positive force in my life as a student.

Thanks, Lymon. Being taught by you, once again, was a pleasure...

Touched by a poet.......1998-06-11

A superb listener, Gilmore has tracked down and evoked from an ever-widening circle of Joe Oppenheimer's friends, enemies (few), and family the life of amid-century American poet. It's rare that biography begins from such carefully sorted living testimony. Gilmore's resulting insightful observations are met on the page by an inviting and enlisting set of Joel Oppenheimer's poems. To read DON'T TOUCH THE POET is to be touched by a poet.

Book Description

Ten-Year-Old Krystal Surles Watched In Horror As Her Best Friend Was Murdered At The Hands Of An Intruder.Then with cold-blooded precision he brought a twelve-inch boning knife to Krystal's throat. With a single, violent slash, he severed her windpipe and left her for dead. Miraculously, she survived and would lead authorities to the arrest of 35-year-old Tommy Lynn Sells, a former truck driver, carnival worker, and cross-country drifter....He Aspired To Become "The Worst Serial Killer Of All Time."With no apparent motive and no common pattern to his inconceivable bloodshed, the elusive Sells had carved his way across the country for two decades slaughtering women, men, transients, entire families, teenagers, and even infants with ghoulish abandon. Through The Window is more than an investigation into a crime spree that stunned a nation. It's an utterly terrifying plunge into the unfathomable dark mind of a serial killer, and the heart-wrenching story of the brave child who finally brought him to justice.

Customer Reviews:

Same Old St. Martin's Press .......2007-10-01

Diane Fanning's THROUGH THE WINDOW is the story of Tommy Lynn Sells, an itinerant thief, con man, and murderer and possibly the most appalling and cowardly serial killer you will ever hear about. The first quarter of the book, which presents the crime for which Sells was finally apprehended, the murder of Katy Harris, is thorough and well researched. Likewise, Fanning provides well reseached and necessary information on Sells' childhood. The last portion of the book consists of a letter, which I found interesting, from Sells to Fanning in which Sells paces the blame on everyone and everything he can think of rather than take any personal responsibility for his brutal murders. Finally it is apparent that Fanning has devoted an honest effort to make THROUGH THE WINDOW a comprehensive study. This is not one of the cynical rush jobs too often found in true crime writing.

Unfortunately, for me at least, the negatives outweigh the positives.
While the description of Sells' murderous odyessy is well done, the subject soon becomes repetitive. Sells wanders endlessly by car or train around the country killing and raping, and as the accounts of the crimes are necessarily short because there are so many of them, it becomes difficult to keep them straight. While I understand Fanning's desire to acknowledge as many of Sells' victims as she can, this does not always translate well to a coherent narrative.
It is however considerably more compelling than Fanning's presentation of Sells' trial. In my opinion a good true crime writer will, unless a trial is the high point of the story, seriously condense the trial segment of the narrative to contain only that portion which provides information which is truly necessary for the reader's understanding of the story. Otherwise the narrative will generally grind to a crawl, which is what happens in THROUGH THE WINDOW. Fanning includes verbatim way too much of the trial transcript: is it really necessary, for example, to provide the reader with as much of the almost always boring forensics as she does? In my experience this is a technique used by lesser writers and/or those who need padding to complete a minimum number of pages.

But the worst part of THROUGH THE WINDOW is the writing. The best true crime is professionally and reportorially written. The genre is at its best as TRUE crime. Fanning's writing, however, is often enough dramatic, sometimes to the point of becoming ridiculous, that her book enters the realm of dramatized, rather than true, crime.
On page 29, describing the scene of a kidnapping and murder, Fanning writes "The trilling songs of birds and the rustle of leaves caressed by a breeze provided a harmonic backdrop to the screams of a tormented young woman." Really?? On page 72, we get, "The warmth of the mellow sun competed with the warmth in Nora's heart." Though it may be considered a spoiler, I will tell those who are interested that Fanning does not reveal which source in this warmth competition was victorious. Perhaps it was a tie.

Then there are the silly similies. On page 33, describing a future victim's acquiescience to Sells' manipulation, she writes, "Like a leaf in a whirlpool, she was drawn into his world of uncontrollable violence." And on page 57, "Kent had bled to death - homeless and alone like a dog scavaging the city dump."

On pages 82 and 86 are two irritating examples of semi-pro writing. "Carnival season started early every year in South Texas - 1998 was not an exception." And, "The flood was a traumatic experience for the whole community. This family was no exception." If neither of these occurences was an exception, why mention it? This seems sort of high-schoolish. What would be wrong with a simple period after "South Texas"?
And finally, in a flourish combining the ludicrous soap-opera with plain bad writing Fanning gives us, "And in his hand was a knife from her kitchen. Her gullibility gleamed on its blade." That's just embarrassing, and as I was reading it, I felt my gullibility for having started this book reflecting dully off its pages.

Ultimately, in my opinion, Fanning's style of writing leads to melodrama rather than drama and results in, rather than a true crime book, a work of what is often dramatic fiction based on a framework of fact - fictionalized, as opposed to true, crime. This style of writing would seem to be more appropriate for romance novels or soap operas, but it has come to be representative of much of the catalog of the publisher, St. Martin's Press.
There are thousands of better true crime books available for devotees of the genre.

Another great true crime book.......2007-09-12

Diane has managed to do it again. A well written book that takes you into the demented mind of Tommy Lynn Sells. I can only imagine the research that went into this book. Cross-Country killers are especially hard to write about because their crimes are so widespread.

Solid True Crime: Needs Corroboration?.......2007-08-15

"Through the Window" is the story of Tommy Lynn Sells. Sells was a prolific serial killer who murdered countless victims from 1979-1999. As the cover accurately states, he was a "cross country killer". This reviewer quickly turned to his Rand Mc Nally Atlas to locate Del Rio, TX; Welch, OK; Lockport, NY; Jackson, TN; and Winnemucca, NV and many other locales where Sells did his deeds. After reading and reviewing so many True Crime tales, it's impossible to state that any one individual is the "worst" or "sickest" criminal. There is too much competition for that dreadful distinction. But the sheer length and breadth of Sells' murderous ways are what should astound the reader. Here is no Green River Killer, concentrating on the Seattle area or a wacko job slaying prostitutes. Sells murdered them all-women, men children-and he murdered them everywhere. Authoress Fanning has done an excellent job of compiling- contending with the stark obstacle that so many of these killings are unsubstantiated! We have only Sells' word here but so many ring frighteningly true. There are a few problems with TW: This reviewer has frequently bemoaned the lack of a stern editor to truncate tales that ran too long. TW is the opposite: It is too short! Many descriptions are too brief. Many of Sells' activities cry out for more detail. Chapter 14 is an especially egregious example. TW often reads as if it were rushed to print, meeting a deadline imposed by someone in a suit. (True, too short is better than too long!). And Tundra will be happy to know that the Ann Rule rule here is entirely moot here. Those pesky centerfold photos, which can either reveal endings -or supply background and context- serve absolutely no purpose! Four stars appear to be a fair review for TW. The brevity and lack of documentation prevent a 5 star call. Two closing thoughts: First is a chilling quote from Texas Ranger Johnny Allen: "It would blow your skirt over your head if you knew how many serial killers are running around the United States at any one time". Also, for all he did, Sells will only face punishment for one of his murders. Isn't it bizarre that we only read about the serial killers that are apprehended? Who else is out there?

Untrue.......2007-08-01

Diane Fanning does not check out her information before she publishes it and this is a grave mistake on her part. She will do anything to sell a book.

A Real Life Bogeyman!.......2007-08-01

A madman of monstrous proportions, Tommy Lynn Sells moved from state to state, killing at random anyone who crossed his line of sight at the wrong time. Creeping under the cover of darkness, Sells thought nothing of bludgeoning entire families with a baseball bat or viciously stabbing his victims in a fit of rage unleashed. Sells often murdered those whom he perceived as having slighted him in some way. However, he also killed randomly and without motive. Often women and female children were sexually assaulted, but just as often, the victims were simply bludgeoned without apparent motive. A true lust killer on the loose for almost two decades, Sells followed no pattern and left few clues.

My complaints are few. The back cover of the book states, "He aspired to become the worst serial killer of all time." This is a greatly exaggerated claim and there is nothing in the book to support this statement. Similarly, I agree with a previous reader in that once Sells is apprehended, the pace of the book slows considerably. The reporting and coverage of the trial was also extended and unnecessary. It is for this reason that I cannot rate this book a perfect 5 Stars. I would have preferred more information about Sells childhood and the long term sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of a pedophile; however, it appears neither Sells nor his mother, both of whom were interviewed extensively by the author, were very forthcoming about these dark moments in his history and Ms. Fanning is certainly not responsible for this deficit.

Well edited and with very few typographical errors, THROUGH THE WINDOW moves at a gripping, breathless pace for 150 full pages that will satisfy even the most critical of True Crime followers. Kudos to the author!

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