Islamic Art and Architecture 650-1250

Book Description

This richly illustrated book provides an unsurpassed overview of Islamic art and architecture during a time that witnessed the formation of a new artistic culture and its first, medieval, flowering in the vast area from the Atlantic to India. Inspired by Ettinghausen and Grabar's original text, this book has been completely rewritten and updated, and many new illustrations have been added.

Customer Reviews:

Islamic Art.......2007-08-27

This book contains the 'nut shell' of Islamic Art and Architecture. There are some plans, and many color photographs. Each project is accompanied by text explaining it and it's cultural significance. For someone who has an interest in the geometries and forms of Islamic Art this book was worth it.

Average customer rating:

Arte Y Arquitectura Del Islam 650-1250
Oleg Grabar
Manufacturer: Catedra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Product Description

The art and architecture of Islam from 650 A.D. to 1250 A.D. Hundreds of B&W photos of these arts all on semi-gloss paper.

Average customer rating:

Totally Amazing Start Drawing Wild Animals

Start Drawing! Wild Animals (Learn to Draw)
Golden Books
Manufacturer: Golden Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0307596443
Release Date: 2000-07-24

Customer Reviews:

Totally Amazing Start Drawing Wild Animals.......2001-02-16

This book was rated excellent by a mother and daughter. I bought this book as a reward for my daughter Veronica who is seven and in the first grade. She is an up and coming artist and very particular when it comes to books. I purchased this book not knowing if she would use it but felt that at the low price it was worth taking a chance. She loves this book! We have both found that this book is an excellent resource for a young artist who wants to know how to draw animals. It provides the necessary detailed visual steps from start to finish of how to draw an animal, instead of the usual 2 step process we were finding in other drawing books. I came to the internet, to this site to try and find additional books because my daughter loves this book so much. Just can't tell say enough about want an excellent find this is for your young artist or for someone taking an interest in drawing animals. Hope you are as pleased as we are with this book!

Average customer rating:

Start to Draw Animals (Junior Funfax)
Susannah Bradley
Manufacturer: FunFax Junior
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Drawing | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Book Description

When Bruce Wayne refuses to allow illegal mindcontrol experiments to continue at Wayne Technology, he finds himself charged with being a traitor. During the police investigation, Wayne is forced to confront memories of the various people who trained him to become the feared Dark KnightBatman. Wayne not only must clear himself, but also protect his secret and save his company from ruin. Batman screenwriter Sam Hamm makes his comic-book debut with BATMAN: BLIND JUSTICE, introducing new elements to the Batman legend including the character of Henri Ducard, played by Liam Neeson in 2005s smash film Batman Begins.

Customer Reviews:

But Justice is Blind. Blind as a BAT........2007-07-19

I'll keep this short and sweet.

If you are like me, collecting Batman Graphic Novels, then make this your next purchase. Elements of this story somewhat reminds me of an early take on the Knightfall trilogy. I liked this graphic novel, I can still even remember some of the one-liners from it. This story exposes the reader to the Inner demons that Bruce faces everyday and the various people who trained him to become the feared Dark Knight. Buy it now~ Enough Said :-)

A Batman story that should be better known.......2007-06-30

I can't remember when I first read this - I must have borrowed it from a friend several years ago. I remembered liking it but I had forgotten just how damned good it really is. It's not as well known in the Bat Canon as stories like Miller's Year One, Moore's The Killing Joke or Morrison's Arkham Asylum, but perhaps it should be. While the overall quality does fall short of those works, the underlying themes are as powerful and refreshing. Hamm looks at Batman as someone whose motivations are less noble than they are a product of his self-indulgence in his suffering. While there are more and more stories of Batman's inflexible self-righteousness - especially in portrayals of an older Batman - Hamm attempts to take a closer look at what is behind that result. Many of the new breed of Batman writers who want to portray him more harshly still end up painting his shortcomings as justifiable within the bigger picture; Hamm seems to want to question the truth of that.

Also, this is the story that gave us Henri Ducard, who like Ra's al Ghul is a much more interesting character than what we got in Batman Begins. Don't get me wrong - I liked the movie and the character that was actually in the movie, I just wish the writers had used different names.

An interesting and novel approach.......2006-10-12

This work in the Batman series is a good mixture of philosophical intrigue, action, and mystery. The tale starts as a villain named "The Bonecrusher" dies twice and seems to keep coming back. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne is accused of being a communist traitor against the US.

Perhaps most interestingly of all, the way the writer characterizes the Batman/Bruce Wayne relationship is very interesting. The writer goes as far as to suggest that Bruce would sacrifice certain moral and ethical standards to keep his life as the Batman. The result is a strange ambivalence toward the Dark Knight that few writers have been able to make me feel towards him. The plot contains a very interesting allegorical addition.

I think this is one of the best Batman graphic novels in terms of writing. Another additional interest is the character Ducard, who helped train Bruce. This book is an interesting challenge to a sometimes long list of overdone Batman cliches.

Had the potential to be much better than it was.......2006-03-03

This trade reprints Detective Comics 598-600 and was written by screenwriter Sam Hamm who wrote the script for the first Tim Burton Batman film. Be sure you read the forward Hamm wrote to get his take on the Batman character.

The gruesome death of a night watchman leads Batman to confront a new villain named Bonecrusher who uses sound as a weapon. Just as Batman is about to capture him he commits suicide. Later Bonecrusher turns up again to commit another crime and again kills himself rather than get caught. All of this leads to a personal crisis for Bruce Wayne as he tries to help a woman find her long lost brother who used to work at Waynetech. Bruce uncovers a member of a covert agency working within his company conducting illegal experiments, but when he tries to expose him he is accused of being a communist spy and arrested. With the help of some fake evidence and a detailed list of people and places Bruce dealt with while training for his war on crime Bruce finds his life on the verge of collapse and his secret identity soon to follow.

This story suffers from characters that never really get developed and in my opinion should have been reworked or discarded in favor of other ideas. The reason this book is worth reading at all is because it introduces the character of Henri Ducard. We learn something about the young Bruce Wayne from Henri's perspective as well as find out why he decided to train Bruce. We also see why Ducard thinks Batman attracts a certain kind of unstable criminal. This story also gives us an interesting take on Batman's relationship with Commissioner Gordon and how much Gordon knows or thinks he knows about Batman. There is also an element of irony involved in Bruce's past as it is implied some of his training was at the hands of criminals.

One of the best Batman stories.......2005-10-23

This is easily one of the best (if not the best) Batman graphic novels I've ever read.

Average customer rating:

Batman: Blind Justice
Sam Hamm
Manufacturer: DC Comics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Batman | Media | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000LKS4RK

Product Description

This is the original collected edition, actual copies of Detective Comics issues 598-600 bound under a stiff paper cover.

Book Description

For his fourteenth book, Patrick McManus lets us inside the laughs. This guide, by one of the world's best-known and respected humorists, is an insightful and entertaining book for anyone who writes humor or has ever wanted to.

Customer Reviews:

Newtonian Humor.......2007-01-08

As an avid fan of Patrick McManus I dove into this book with great anticipation. However, AS an avid fan I must say it was a little different from Patrick's previous works. This book is mostly a Q and A session with a fan named Newton who inquires about the writing process Mr. McManus goes through. The end of the book features more than just a couple of the author's classic stories. Even though the bulk of the book is a step away from the usual stories of hijinks and curmudgeondness, it is still a fun read and brings the expected stitches to the reader's side.

A good textbook on a special type of writing........2006-11-13

This book is an excellent text for those wishing to write satorical stories.His presentation of the technique is different from most texts. I learned a lot fron this book.

You'll learn more by analyzing his stories on your own.......2002-10-27

When I heard McManus had written a book on how to write humor, I almost started counting my royalties in advance. If the master is revealing all his secrets, I thought, now I'd be able to quit my dreary job working as a sex therapist and make a living writing humor, instead.

Well, it seems like McManus didn't put much effort into this one. There are very few techniques listed. A common McManus technique is something I call the "unattributed action." This is a sentence like: "The screams could be heard for miles." Now, of course, he would have set it up that we expect those to be the screams of children in the pool or whatever, only to learn that it's McManus himself screaming. This technique was not even discussed at all.
I imagined that the book would be a large collection of techniques like this and examples where he had used them in his stories. Unfortunately, there are very few actual humor writing techniques in this book.

Instead, we're left with a vague, "come up with a humorous idea," "write in scenes whenever possible," etc. That is about 10 pages in the book.

If you'll look at the sample pages you'll notice that even the table of contents is just a random hodgepodge of questions in no particular order. Most of them not actually about writing humor. Over 50% of the book is reprints of previously written material with BRIEF commentaries.

Now, I'm thankful that McManus even ATTEMPTED to share this information with us, but, sadly, it seems like he didn't put much effort into it.

Of course, because every teeny bit of information helps, you should probably read it anyway; but don't pay for it. It's not like you're going to have every other page highlighted. There are only about 10 sentences worth highlighting in the book.

One thing I DID like was the list of books and authors that influenced him at the end of the book. I will definitely be checking those out.

In summary, though, save your money: You'll actually learn more just by analyzing his stories on your own, and asking yourself this question when you laugh: Why is this funny? and then by incorporating your answers into your own writing.

A Humor Tool.......2002-08-21

For those of us who write and want to inject a bit of humor in our writing, Patrick McManus has given us an invaluable tool with this book. It's not only instructive and reflective on what makes humor humorous, it's also a funny book in itself. It probably helps that I love to read McManus's wild stories and find them hilarious. But he's a good enough story teller that anyone will find him a good tutor. The only disappointing thing was to learn that many of his stories are complete fiction (and not loosely based on some real event in his past). He sure had me convinced.

Snatch the Pebble from his Hand.......2001-11-08

Patrick McManus has always been somewhat of an enigma to me. I loved to read his columns as a child. I'd sneak away with my father's hunting and fishing magazines just to read the humorous writings of McManus like other children did with their dad's Playboy magazines.

It wasn't until I was an adult that I truly appreciated McManus' humor. And, now, as an author myself, I have come to understand his writing.

This book gives great insight into what makes McManus write. He uses past essays to help describe the techniques he uses. Most of all, he gives all of us a glimpse into what makes McManus funny.

If you're looking for the "secret" that makes McManus an awesome author, you won't find it in black and white. It's more like studying a master and hoping that some day you can be half as good. No one can be another McManus, but if you study his writings and study his words on writing humor, you might, JUST MIGHT, get to be half as funny.

So, as Grasshopper learned from his master, you too can learn from this master.

Average customer rating:
Samuel L. Jackson: The Unauthorised Biography
Jeff Hudson
Manufacturer: Virgin Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 1852270241

Book Description

Samuel L. Jackson is one of the most recognisable and hard-working actors in the world. His films are as varied as Star Wars (Episodes I-III), Jurassic Park, Jungle Fever, Jackie Brown, Pulp Fiction and The Long Kiss Goodnight. But he is just as well-known for his lifestyle: his back-to-front Kangol beret, his unrepentant attitude towards his past drink and drug addictions and his outspoken views on racism in Hollywood.

Deserted by his father as a baby, Jackson was raised by his mother and grandmother in Tennessee. He made his acting debut in the 1970s with a hamburger ad, moved to New York and worked in theatre and film, but it was his breakthrough role as Gator in Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever in 1991 that put him on the map. During the 90s he appeared in 33 films in the US, more than any other actor. He has worked with just about everybody: Scorsese, De Niro, Tarantino, Spielberg, Pacino, George Clooney, Harrison Ford, George Lucas, Ben Affleck, Uma Thurman, Yoda…

Unbelievably, Samuel L. Jackson - The Unauthorised Biography will be the first ever biography to be published. Thorough and authoritative, it will be essential reading for film fans.

Book Description

Sentimental standards include: Skylark * What's New? * Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry * I've Got a Crush on You * Crazy He Calls Me * My Old Flame and more songs.

Book Description

This is the classic work on coach building in all its branches, reprinted from the 1875 second edition. Included are sections on: drafting, designing, and the construction of the frame and all the wooden parts; smithing of the metal, the springs, platforms, axles, wheel hoops, etc., complete with detailed diagrams; painting, applying designs and ornaments, varnishing, gilding, lettering, trimming; other miscellaneous interesting and valuable information. The reader will find this a wonderful reference on an early trade that is now enjoying a strong revival. 384 pages. Fully illustrated. 6" x 9". Soft cover.

Average customer rating:

Chock full of knowledge

This Book Is An Excellent Investment

Good reference, not very well written

Best book of it's kind

Excellent Resource

FLIP: How to Find, Fix, and Sell Houses for Profit
Rick Villani , and Clay Davis
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Real Estate | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Investments | Real Estate | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Sales | Real Estate | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Find It, Fix It, Flip It!: Make Millions in Real Estate--One House at a Time

The Pre-Foreclosure Property Investor's Kit: How to Make Money Buying Distressed Real Estate -- Before the Public Auction

Flipping Houses For Dummies (For Dummies (Business & Personal Finance))

The Millionaire Real Estate Investor

The Millionaire Real Estate Agent: It's Not About the Money...It's About Being the Best You Can Be!

ASIN: 0071486100

Customer Reviews:

Chock full of knowledge.......2007-08-15

I bought this and another highly reviewed book on flipping and this book was vastly superior. It contains a wealth of information about every phase of flipping a property, including detailed information on how to calculate quiet costs, good rules of thumb for rehab costs, and detailed lists of what is involved in a rehab and the correct order to undertake them in. They have obviously flipped a lot of houses and have condensed their experience into extremely helpful lists and formulas that anyone can benefit from.

I could have done without the fictional storyline that accompanies each chapter, but since you can skip it without losing anything, I'm not docking their score.

This Book Is An Excellent Investment.......2007-08-08

I've been interested in flipping houses since I first heard of the concept about 10 years ago. I just never knew where to start. This book walks you through the entire flipping process. It's written in an easy to follow, logical start to finish format. There are formulas for calculating all your costs and your profit before you even make an offer on a house. Outstanding book! I highly recommend it to anybody who wants to get started in house flipping.

Good reference, not very well written.......2007-07-12

First, I must say that this is so far the best book I have read on this subject. The authors seem to be very experienced and knowledgeable in the field of rehabbing homes. I am very pleased with what I got for $15 (or whatever I spent). I feel that with this book, I could successfully FLIP homes. My first primary home was a fixer upper, and I did pretty much all of the work myself. I turned a nice profit when I sold it, but I think that I could have done better had I known then what I know now.

There was not a lot of information that was new to me, but the book did bring together a variety of related topics. Likewise, the authors presented a few smart systems for completing the project.

The reason I gave this book only 4 stars is that I don't like the writing style of the authors. This book could have easily been 150 pages or less. The font was a little big, and there was WAY too much worthless text, random anecdotes, and stupid analogies. One page in particular was about Punxsutawney Phil...it wasn't until the third or fourth paragraph that the author crafted some way of connecting that to flipping houses.

Overall an excellent book worth every penny (the authors need to stick to flipping houses though). I wish I could get my friend who has recently jumped headlong into rehabbing houses to read this book...

Best book of it's kind.......2007-06-14

I am a small time real estate fix and flip investor. I have read many books on this subject and this is by far the best.

Excellent Resource.......2007-05-25

As a Realtor in the Denver Real Estate area, this is a great book! It spells out what it takes to make a flip successful.

Average customer rating:

This is the book to read on this subject.
Excellent Source for Those Beginning RE Flipping
README - ONE OF THE BEST REHAB BOOKS OUT THERE!
A terrific book, especially for rehabbers
I am now in the green despite my ex!

Buy It, Fix It, Sell It...PROFIT
Kevin Myers
Manufacturer: Kaplan Business
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Buying & Selling Homes | Real Estate | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Real Estate | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Investments | Real Estate | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Business Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0793169380
Release Date: 2003-07-15

Book Description

In Buy It, Fix It, Sell It...Profit!, real estate investor and rehabbing expert Kevin Myers presents all-new insights on how to create a quick turnaround in your investments by renovating properties for profit.

Beginning and experienced real estate investors will benefit from the new and improved real estate rehabbing techniques to develop a high-profit, low-overhead business. This expanded edition discusses property inspection, tax issues, funding projects, and maximizing profits. Buy It, Fix It, Sell It...Profit! is a hands-on guide sprinkled with inspirational stories for those who want to create a financially secure future.

Customer Reviews:

This is the book to read on this subject........2007-01-03

If you are trying to find a step by step guide for this business then this is the book for you. I recommend it to anyone who is interested or new in this type of business. It gives you a business plan and it goes through all the things that really matter, what gives you the best return on your money, how to use outside resources, etc. I looked for a long time for a book that was easy to follow and talked about the subject in a realistic manner and not like of some strange form of art. I found it, this is it.IT ACTUALLY TEACHES WHAT IT SAYS IT DOES.

It will give you the knowledge you need to gain (or in my case re-gain) confidence that you can do this business. I read "Flipping Properties" and it confused the heck out of me by telling me all about taxes and liens and paperwork and contracts before it told me anything. I got confused and intimidated.

"Buy it, Fix it, Sell it, Profit" is definately worth your time. It is the best I have found.

Excellent Source for Those Beginning RE Flipping.......2006-11-16

This has it all. Detailed information for each level of RE Investing. He does everything but hold your hand!

README - ONE OF THE BEST REHAB BOOKS OUT THERE!.......2006-11-13

This is one of the best rehab books out there on how to flip something for profit or rent it out by fixing a broken house. Simple ideas but creates long term networth. I also read Investing Without Losing (ISBN: 0978834607 NOT on amazn, on other stores) so I could figure out how to get rehab properties.

A terrific book, especially for rehabbers.......2006-08-16

I found this book very helpful. It was apparent early on that Kevin actually does this (yes, many real estate writers are not real estate investors). The detail that he goes into for rehab checklists and cost per items is very helpful.

I personally "buy and hold" rather than "flip," but I found the rehab information valuable since I rehab every property I buy. I really liked Kevin's exposure of the myth (generated apparently from a report by Remodeling Magazine) that remodeling rooms is not profitable. Kevin notes that the magazine stated that a major kitchen remodel would only return you 67% of your investment. Hogwash. I presume that the magazine only queried those remodeling their personal residences, rather than real estate investors.

Kevin could certainly have told them that he makes many times over his investment when he sells the property. He cites a recent kitchen remodel that he did for $1895. He doesn't give the profit on that when he sold the house, however, so we can't see his return on investment. From one who buys, rehabs, rents, and holds, here's my perspective. I just completed a kitchen rehab in a rental unit for about $1220, as follows:

$300 - new refrigerator from Appliance Direct
$380 - new stove from Appliance Direct
$ 30 - new light fixture
$150 - new counter top
$ 30 - new tile
$ 50 - new cabinet doors and hardware
$ 30 - paint
$250 - labor (handyman)

The rent on this unit before I purchased it was $625/month. My new tenant now pays $850, or $225 more per month after rehab. Granted, I did other cosmetic fix-up around the unit, but most of my costs went into the kitchen. Let's assume that the new kitchen accounted for only 60 pecent of the rent increase, or $135. If so, I've paid for my investment in 10 months and every month thereafter is gravy. That's the way a rehabber might look at it. But here's the way a real estate investor looks at it. Rental properties are valued based on the GRM, gross rent multiplier (or multiple, as some call it). What is the real value of my improvement? I increased the rent, just allocated to the kitchen, by $135/month. As such, I increased income by $1620/year. The going GRM (puchase price divided by annual income) in this area is 16, what I bought it at. We now multiply $1620 x 16 = $25,920. That is what I can recoup, based on actual rents and market values, the day after I place my new tenant in the unit. Seems to me that my $1220 investment returning $25,920 is just a bit better than the Remodeling Magazine "average."

In my own book, "Investing in Duplexes, Triplexes & Quads," I recommend the best books I've read in several real estate categories. I list Kevin's book as the best of the fix-up and flip books. In fact, it's the only one that I list!

Larry Loftis
Author: Investing in Duplexes, Triplexes & Quads: The Fastest and Safest Way to Real Estate Wealth

I am now in the green despite my ex!.......2006-05-01

I was left with not much money after my divorce. While cleaning the books shelfs out I found Mr Myers book (My ex had bought it!)
I read this book one night and then re-read it. I said I can do this! I followed Mr. Myers tables, formulas and bought a house on paper only(I was nervous). I realize this could work. Then I took the money I did get from the divorce and bought a rehab. I am a school teacher so I moved in June and had the house finished before school started in August. I contracted with different professionals and became their helper. I learned to do things on my own by the time I finished my third rehab. I made $40,000 on my first rehab and increased my profits on the next three. This book changed my life- Thank you, Mr. Myers, for writing a very easy to follow book!

3 Real Estate Book Collection; Find It, Fix It, Flip It!; Find It Buy It Fix It; Buy It, Fix It, Sell It: Profit!

Average customer rating:

3 Real Estate Book Collection; Find It, Fix It, Flip It!; Find It Buy It Fix It; Buy It, Fix It, Sell It: Profit!
Michael Corbett , Robert Irwin , and Kevin C. Myers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000W27JTG

Product Description

3 Real Estate Book Collection; Find It, Fix It, Flip It!; Find It Buy It Fix It; Buy It, Fix It, Sell It: Profit!.

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