Chinaman is a great character and he is what makes the book so interesting. Particularly, his Beijing background and his character. The New York setting is also very well done and the plot works well. The author obviously knows things Chinese as well as Manhattan, etc. A very well done detective novel.

The story of this book is well plotted but it is the characterization that I like best, esp. of the main character. "Chinaman" as his friends call him is tough, sensitive, funny but never politically correct. He came from Beijing and doesn't quite fit in with American pop culture anymore than he buys into the complaints of American Chinese he meets (or has an affair with). The author obviously knows New York City like the back of his hand. This is supposed to be a series with Murder in Dominatrix Black next. That should be a corker! Chinaman is no Charlie Chan but he has some of the best traits of Charlie: integrity, honesty, brains.

A really well done mystery set in New York City by someone who obviously knows the place well. The detective is a Chinese who was smuggled into Hong Kong and then into New York after his father was murdered by China's Red Guards. He is damaged by his memories (his mother committed suicide) and hates crowds. When a woman he loves if found murdered in a New York hotel, he is determined to bring the murderer(s) to justice. Lots of twists, tension, humor and very good writing.

Like all National Geographic titles this book is packed full of great photographs and details about the parks. Having visited many parks already - I am amazed by how up to date all the comments are, together with very good suggestions for times to visit and accomodation available. The layout of the book is superb - its like a travel directory - taking you from one park to another without stepping outside your front door. I feel this guide is essential for anyone visiting America's National Parks - its also just the right size to take with you !. My aim is to visit all the parks - this book has made it easier ! Please get in touch if you have any questions.

This book is loaded with top quality National Geographic photographs of the National Parks, and the written commentary and the important park information included is excellent. A must book to have for anyone visiting any of the USA parks. In fact, you can stay at home and page through this book, and it is just like a mini-tour of the parks. It is printed on glossy, heavy weight paper that resists tears and spills of over active children, and it allows one to toss it into a backpack or car glove box with minimal damage. Another quality National Geographic publication that deserves 5 stars.

This book has a section on each National Park which describes how to get there, the best times to go, and what to do when you arrive. It includes color pictures and maps of each park. The maps show all the park's visitor centers, main roads, trails and campgrounds. It gives suggestions on what to do if you can spend a half day or full day, etc. It also includes information on facilities for the disabled. Nearby motels and campgrounds are also listed together with the address and phone number of each park's headquarters. I take this book with me to each park we visit and stamp the front page of book with the offical park stamp found in each visitor's center. I've been to 24 of the parks so far and hope to someday visit all of them. This book has been a valuable guide for me

If you are looking for a more complete book dealing with the lives of helicopter pilots in Vietnam, look no farther. This book is it! From cover to cover, Outlaws in Vietnam tells the full, rich story of the "Magnificent Seven" as they flew in the 175th Aviation Company (AML) from late 1966 until late 1967. These seven classmates of flight school class 66-14 lived at Vinh Long and experienced the "best years of their lives" as they wrestled everyday with danger, boredom and terror! This book is a wonderful story of comrades in combat, told through the clear, vivid writing of David Eastman, one of the "Magnificent Seven".

Outlaws in Vietnam is a great mix of 40 short stories, so interesting and gripping with detail the reader will easily be able to visualize and understand every described happening. Each story will leave you wanting more, more. Funny, sad, tragic, ironic but never dull, all chapters are "brim full" of wonderful details and emotion. David is very skillful as a writer and he easily brings back vivid memories about his fellow helicopter pilots and enlisted crews. He also enhances the understanding for the non-pilot reader. In real life, David Eastman is a Forester and is attuned to the aesthetic world of wildlife, the environment and landscapes. He writes and publishes regularly for the print and broadcast media about the outdoors and its beauty. He lives in New Hampshire where forestry, nature and esthetics are very important.

Most books about Vietnam usually begin with flight school and the too long a flight to the other side of the world. However, David Eastman teases the reader with a very interesting turn of events, which could have allowed him to, perhaps, escape the trip. David was an honorable man, however , deciding to have no part in the "chance opportunity." Then as luck would have it, his assignment to the 175th Aviation Company (AML) at Vinh Long would be a wonderful stroke that would launch the young RLO (Real Live Officer) for a year of flying which he describes as, "the best year of his life." Many, but not all, helicopter pilots have echoed this thought. But, all would admit that their lives were changed, significantly, by the experience.

One thing stands out about flying helicopters in the Delta was the size and lack of recognizable landmarks. Plus, the vast, flat, often flooded southern ¼ of Vietnam, offered very little contact with or support from U.S. troops. In the Delta, the Vietnamese mainly fought the War. Not until the 9th Division came to Dong Tam, later in the War, did U.S. forces enter the Delta region in significant numbers. U.S. Advisors were the only Americans that David and his fellow pilots came in contact with on a daily basis. The Delta was a different world, a world where the young helicopter pilot and his trusted crew spent hours and hours flying daily to the far reaches of IV Corps. The long days and many flight hours insured their learning many skills and "tricks" about flying over what could be described as mostly enemy territory. And, if these little details were not passed on to other young pilots, or adhered to exactly, the crews could be destined to a lonely death!

Staying alive and reaching DROS was always in the back of each crewmember's mind. But in the end, David Eastman is full of mixed emotions about going home. Leaving his fellow crewmembers and their past months together was harder than expected. He would no more be experiencing the intense and close lifestyle of Vinh Long. Such realizations caused him to wrestle within himself. Then, when that long awaited DROS day finally arrived and he could leave Vinh Long with the other members of the "Magnificent Seven", he found it very difficult. An interesting conclusion to a very good book!

Outlaws in Vietnam is a book that is well written, interesting, and certainly deserving of your reading. It is one of the best I have read. It would not be a surprise to have the entertainment industry agree. We just might see something in the future based on this book and its real life, no, bigger than life characters. If the details, as written by David Eastman are retained....it will be a great story.

I was impressed with this spine-tingling, close-up and intimate version of the lives of these helicopter pilots in the Delta region of Vietnam. Most of the press followed the Americanization of the war north of Saigon, and I was amazed to learn how much went on with the traditional helicopter aviation companies that continued to be stationed at Vinh Long and Soc Trang in the IV Corps. I genuinely liked being in the cockpit with these guys, and felt I had learned to fly a helicopter by halfway through the book. There is much humor to experience here, along with the thrills and bizarre war-stories inherent in a tale like this. Read it! And get a copy for the vets in your family that might have trouble telling you exaxtly what they went through flying these incredible Hueys, either as pilots or door gunners.

For thirty some odd years, America has been subjected to lots of hype and fictional fantasy about the Viet Nam war in the form of movies and books. Now comes a real story in the form of Dave Eastman's book entitled Outlaws In Viet Nam. This book takes you into the hearts and souls of the people who served with the Outlaw Aviation crews from Vinh Long in the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam. Eastman provides a direct view into the daily lives of this unique helicopter company and enables the reader to come to an understanding of the bonds that made this military unit such a closely-knit group, different from other such units in Viet Nam at the time. The closely-knit bond of these aviation soldiers continues today in the form of an association that still meets in a reunion every two years, with the next reunion slated for San Antonio, Texas in October 2002. Whether you were part of this unique chapter in the history of Viet Nam aviation, a family member of someone who served with this company, or a reader who is simply interested in knowing about these guys, you will not be disappointed with this book. For the children of the people who served with the Vinh Long Outlaws but never knew their parent, this book will become a wonderful keepsake to document the memory of your parent and what life was like for them in Viet Nam. After thirty four years, it still brings tears to my eyes.

I thought this book was very informative and well written. My heart goes out to all women that served during the Vietnam War. I was nice to here stories of every different types of women that served. If you are interest at all about women that served in the Vietnam war this would be a great book.

... for all of the women who served in Vietnam. Read this book, plus the late Lynda Van Devanter's Home Before Morning and you'll see why.

While Lynda's book is a hauntingly graphic record of the triumphs and tragedies that the ANC nurses and Army surgeons experienced in Nam, A Piece Of My Heart gives the reader a very broad perspective of the contributions of women in many other areas.

The foreword to the book was written by the wonderful Martha Raye, whose unflinching commitment to the men and women who served in Nam led to her being a two-time Purple Heart recipient. That even an entertainer could be wounded twice in the line of duty speaks volumes about the risk level In Country.

Equally, Civilian Flight Attendant Micki Voisard almost met her end when her airliner almost collided with a B-52 that was maintaining radio silence during an airstrike.

Yet even though the Red Cross Donut Dollies, such as Penni Evans and "Sam" Bokina Christie and WACs such as Doris Allen all have compelling stories to relate, it is the experiences of the nurses that really stay with you, long after you have put the book down.

For most of her post-Nam life, former ANC nurse and author Lynda Van Devanter (Home Before Morning - available through Amazon.com) was haunted by the memory of a young soldier who had no face, and who eventually had to be left to die because of the extent of his injuries.

When you read the piece by Anne Simon Auger (91st Evac. - Chu Lai) you realize that injuries of that magnitude were not as uncommon as you might hope and pray. Anne also described a young soldier whose face had been shot away, leaving him blind and in her words, "a vegetable".

While my own view is that people in such terrible physical condition should be given enough morphine to shut down their breathing, or in the absence of that, on the battlefield, a mercy round from an M-16, I fully accept that however you have to deal with such shocking injuries, it will stay with you for the rest of your life.

Let us not forget that while the cowardly Stalinist flag burners were calling the returning troops "baby killers", thousands of true blue American women were risking their own lives to support the largely teenaged US soldiers in a war that increasingly made no sense to the people who were being asked to fight it.

These women were Vets. These women were heroes. These women were angels.

We must constantly seek ways to honour them. Their sacrifice must never be forgotten.

These stories are so heart-wrenching I had to take a break while reading simply to keep from falling to pieces. These women are so amazing and strong - they're inspiring. I Loved this book and GREATLY recommend the play with the same title by Shirely Lauro that was based off of these stories. It's so unbelievable and so real it makes you feel for those 6 women more than you'd ever imagine!

As a member of the 'X' generation, I never really understood the significance of the sacrifices and experiences that our grandparents endured during World War II. After reading John Robinson's first-hand account of his own experience flying in the army air corps, I have a new respect and appreciation for the Greatest Generation. Having myself served as an airman for three years in the Navy, I could relate to some of Mr. Robinson's unique experiences as an enlisted man in the armed services such as bad food, separation from loved ones and the close bonds developed between crewmates.

This book captures the true meaning of the experience of war that Hollywood has been so far unable to do. An excellent recollection of one man's struggle to stay alive so that he may be united with his "reason to live", this book sends the reader through the entire gamut of human emotions. Thank you, Mr. Robinson for enligtening me to the true meaning of the sacrifices men have made in the name of freedom.

Inspired by his love for his wife, John H. Robinson's story is an enlisted airman's account of war in the skies over Europe in world War II--a gripping saga of why his is called our best generation. He epitomizes the men who grew up during the Great Depression and came of age amid the most devastating war mankind has ever endured. through his eyes the reader will be taken back to a time we thought was simpler only to find that love, comradeship, and human suffering are common bonds linking fighting men of every era of man's experience. It will entertain you, move you to tears, and call forth the best in all of us.

"A Reason To Live" provided our family with the never before know facts about being an enlisted flyer with the 445th Bomb Group(H). Robbie flew beside our Uncle Lyle C. Duzan on many of his missions. His story represents everything our family wanted to know about what it was like to endure such a challenge. The deep love and devotion described so well by Robbie mirrors the service and lives of Uncle Lyle and his wife Hazel. It will always serve as our masterpiece in personal history and dedication to duty. For any person whose relative served in WW II, this is the book that tells "what is was like", "how he felt", "who he depended upon", "what the living conditions were like", and "coping with it all". It will lead you from training to combat in what can only be described as "moving targets" for the Germans. You'll ride the roller coaster of going on missions and wondering if you'll get back. And then, in the end, you'll come to understand he had "A Reason To Live". THANK YOU, Robbie, for everything!

Bruce Catton is, in my opinion, the most readable author of American Civil War history. Whenever I've labored through some book I wanted to read but have struggled with, I reward myself with something he has written. This trilogy is, as all his work is, thoroughly researched and very balanced. It would be hard to detect any bias in this native Michiganer of the first half of the 20th century, though I vaguely suspect he had more sympathy for the South, if only for the "pluck" (he likes that word in fact) of their "David vs. Goliath" undertaking. In any case, this first volume delivers a very important message in a very complete way, and it's a message I had never before considered: The Army of the Potomac's loyalty to the government was never compromised, but it was fretted about in some pretty high places, perhaps not the least important of which was in the White House. So completely was this Grand Army made in the image of its creator, McClellan, that his removal gave cause for many to hold their collective breath and pray that it would remain intact and loyal to the Union once stripped of its beloved leader. That it did, and the rest, as they say, is history. McClellan is thoroughly understood by the reader of this work. He is a man of some complexity and some sympathy, diminished by his ego perhaps. Despite many lost opportunities that would have made the war much shorter and correspondingly less bloody, he was a good soldier caught between military logic and political caution. In fact, Catton points out to us that never before had there been a general of a great army of a democracy, and that that arrangement itself is tenuous at best. In the end, we understand that the Army of the Potomac was Lincoln's Army for just as long as he remained the Commander-in-Chief, and despite their love for McClellan, they always stood ready to do what was asked of them.

"Mr. Lincoln's Army" is the first volume in Bruce Catton's celebrated trilogy chronicling the history of the Army of the Potomac during the Civil War, one of the most exciting war narratives in literature. Catton had grown up in Michigan around men who had served in that Army and these books were his attempt "to find out about the things which the veterans never discussed." Catton relies on a host of source material to weave his tales, from autobiographies of Generals McClellan and Howard, to the correspondence of Generals Sedgwick and Meade, to dozens of soldiers' reminiscences and regimental histories, to military histories relating to specific battles, campaign, military tactics and weapons. As you read these books you are always feel that you are dealing with living literature rather than dead history. This is because Catton privileges "The Diary of an Enlisted Man" by Lawrence Van Alstyne and the history of "The 27th Indiana Volunteer Infantry in the War of the Rebellion" more than he does "McClellan's Own Story."

"Mr. Lincoln's Army" covers the Army of the Potomac from its creation to the Battle of Antietam. Despite the title the central figure in the book is General George B. McClellan, the war's most paradoxical figure who gave this Army the training it needed to become a first rate military unit and who then refused to use the great army he had created. There are 6 sections to the book: (1) "Picture-Book War" actually covers the events in 1862 that led to McClellan being placed back in charge of the Army of the Potomac, setting up a rather ironic perspective for what happens both before and after that decision; (2) "The Young General" provides the background on McClellan and details his formation of the Army; (3) "The Era of Suspicion" covers the ill-fated Peninsula Campaign; (4) "An Army on the March" centers on the Second Battle of Manassas/Bull Run when the Army was under John Pope; (5) "Opportunity Knocks Three Times" begins with the great intelligence coup of the Civil War, the discovery of Lee's Special Order No. 191 and establishes how the upcoming battle was handed to McClellan on a silver plate; (6) "Never Call Retreat" tells the story of how McClellan snatched defeat--or at least a bloody tie--from the jaws of victory.

Bruce Catton's books on the Civil War are eminently readable, and with his History of the Army of the Potomac he finds his perfect level, writing about the men who were the common soldiers as much if not more than he does about the generals and politicians. You certainly get the feeling his heart was in these volumes more than it was in his larger histories of the Civil War. For those who are well versed in the grand details of the war, these books provide a more intimate perspective on those great battles.

As other reviewers have mentioned, Bruce Catton is considered to be one of the best authors to read if you are interested in the Civil War. Despite many recommendations from others I had not read any of Catton's books until now. Having just finished Mr. Lincoln's Army, I can finally understand why Mr. Catton has received so many accolades (to include the Pulitzer prize). This book is an outstanding introduction to General McClellan, and the Army he commanded.

I truly enjoyed this book for several reasons. First, the writing style is excellent. This book is not boring history (facts, figures, hyposthesis, conclusion). Instead, Catton tells the interesting story of what happened to the Federal Army from the beginning of the war up until the battle of Antietam. The book reads more like a good novel, than a history text book. Having read many Civil War authors, I would put Catton in the top category.

Secondly, Catton includes many observations and stories from the everyday soldier which add vivid details to events as they unfold. His description of the Battle of Antietam comes alive when he includes descriptions of what the men who fought actually saw and experienced. I learned a lot and gained new insight into many events which speaks volumes to the quality of this book, considering it was written back in the 1950s.

Lastly, Catton stays focused on his topic and does not try to cover too much material. The book is about the Union Army, so he does not waste time getting into too many details about what was happening on the Confederate side. I enjoyed this perspective because Catton succesfully answers the question of why the Union Army could not defeat the Confederates early in the war, despite the great advantage of resources that it possessed.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the Civil War. Whether you are a "Civil War Buff", or just trying to find out more about this pivotal event in American history, you will enjoy this book.

Young Mattie Gokey uses words as shields, she stores them away in her mind as buffers against her hard scrabble existence in the early 1900s. Due to the unexpected death of her mother the raising of her younger sisters falls to Mattie. Add to that seemingly never ending, arduous farm chores.

Her dull days aren't even relieved by romance as Royal Loomis is handsome but boring.

Accomplished Broadway actress and active film performer (About Schmidt, Hearts In Atlantis) gives memorable reading to Mattie's thoughts and aspirations, her hopes of attending college in New York City.

Thoughts of her future are pushed aside when the body of a young drowning victim, Grace Brown, is found. As it turns out it was only hours before her death that Grace gave Mattie a packet of love letters. These letters are a landmark in Mattie's life.

Based on a turn of the 20th century murder case that was also the inspiration for Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy, A Northern Light is a compelling coming-of-age tale woven of history, mystery, and love.

- Gail Cooke

This is one of those books where about a third of the way through, you anxiously thumb the remaining pages, knowing that despite your best efforts to savor it, the book will be over all too soon. When A NORTHERN LIGHT falls open, you,the reader, will fall in. Descriptions of this book by previous reviewers, while excellent and accurate, still do not prepare you for the sheer delight and pleasure of reading this story. While it has been classified as a Young Adult novel, as it does contain some language and situations, every word is absolutely true to the character who is speaking or being spoken of. I urge every teenage girl to read this, then pass it on to her mother, all of her girlfriends, aunts, a favorite teacher--in short, anyone who has a love of words, of learning, of mysteries, and a belief in the power of young women. A NORTHERN LIGHT is a most extraordinary book. Don't miss it!

I eagerly awaited the publication of this book after reading Jennifer Donnelly's The Tea Rose, which I loved. A Northern Light did not disappoint. Donnelly's first book for young adults is very engaging. I cared a great deal about the characters, especially Mattie, the clever female protagonist trying to do right by herself and her family. I enjoyed the use of vocabulary words as representations of situations or feelings in each chapter. The use of An American Tragedy as a frame for Mattie's coming-of-age is also inspired. Highly recommended for teens and adults!

This is one of two "must-haves" for fans of silent film, the other is "Silent Clowns" by Walter Kerr.

Brownlow (as usual) researches well, provides great narrative, and treats his subject with the respect it deserves. Anyone who has seen his documentary collaborations with David Gill, or his restorations of great classics will be familiar with his thoroughness.

This book is very easy to read, but insightful, helpful...makes you wish there were still silents, particularly in the wake of movies overdone with Dolby Surround.

Kevin Brownlow has written THE definitive and loving tome on silent films. An informative, well-researched, and entertaining book, this is an essential must for every afficiando of the silver screen. The only competition of this caliber is Walter Kerr's "The Silent Clowns". It is a shame that silents are overlooked by the majority of the public----this book will enlighten and make you hungry to view the films discussed.

Dave Gersztyn

This book is great for two types of people. Those who know nothing about silent films and want to learn more, or those who are already enthusiasts. For beginners the book gives a great amount of detail and background to the entire silent film era. For enthusiasts it's a great addition to your library. Chapters are dedicated to various artists and aspects of the era (such as Buster Keaton, stunts, and so forth). Kevin Brownlow is not only an enjoyable and insightful writer, but his own enthusiasm shines through. The edition that I read was also dedicated to Abel Gance, a French film-maker who should never be forgotten. I thought that was a nice touch to a wonderful book.

Lane was the first to open up criticism of the Warren Report with his "Rush to Judgment". Almost three decades later, he once again brings President Kennedy's assassination cover-up in full view, and this time he reveals the culprit behind the killing.

After reading this, there was no doubt in my mind that the CIA had masterminded the killing of JFK, and then carried out the cover-up. They lied under oath, pressured the media, encouraged censorship, presented false evidence, threatened and killed witnesses and potential stool pigeons--it's all right here.

While Lane's work is without question some of the best detective work in the 20th century, he was personally involved with much of the cover-up and experienced persecution as a result of his views. Unlike in his "Rush to Judgment", he has a tendancy to take much of this personal, and it shows. Throughout the book, Lane blows his own horn and vehemently attacks Earl Warren, Howard Hunt, and the like. The evidence might speak for itself, but I can see people being put off by Lane's unproffessional attacks.

Perhaps the most chilling conclusion one gets out of "Plausible Denile" and "Rush to Judgment" are not that the CIA conspired to kill a President, but that they conspired to frame and innocent, unsuspecting citizen for the crime.

For years, we have heard the reasons why JFK was assassinated by a faction or factions of the government. Influential people have posed questions about the plot or plots to cover up the truth about his death. Mark Lane's riviting explanation of the only trial linked to the JFK murder and it's subsequent subplots is a must read for any assassination buff. One of the base literatures for the Oliver Stone movie "JFK," the book footnotes the investigation by New Orlean's District Attorney Jim Garrison into the alledged conspiracy by tycoon Clay Shaw along with David Ferry, Lee Harvey Oswald and others. It also details the depositions of key government secret operatives, many of which play a later roll in United States history. Men like George Bush, G. Gordon Liddy and E. Howard Hunt. Once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down, and it made me wonder would another anti-big government/anti-establishment leader in this country meet with the same fate?

On the one hand it is truly surprising this book by Mark Lane did not receive greater coverage. On the other hand, given the fact that official Washington has never deviated from its view that President Kennedy was murdered by Lee Harvey Oswald, the dearth of coverage was to be expected.

What makes this book special is that Mark Lane uses federal trial transcripts and deposition testimony to prove his point. That point is: the Central Intellligence Agency was complicit in the murder of President Kennedy.

I was unaware that Mark Lane is an experienced litigator who had criminal trial experience prior to JFK's murder in November 1963. In December 1963 he wrote an article which set forth a lawyer's defense for Lee Harvey Oswald. By that time Oswald was dead, having been murdered in the Dallas jailhouse two days after Kennedy was murdered. Lane pointed out one month after the assassination that a jury most likely would not have found Oswald guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Warren Commission and its 26 volumes went to greath length to show that Oswald was the lone assassin. Mark Lane's 1966 'Rush to Judgment' became the seminal work in disputing the lone assassin finding.

Perhaps 'Plausible Denial', coming almost 30 years after JFK's murder was old news. Whatever the reason this work has been sadly ignored. Mark Lane was defending a publication which had been sued by E. Howard Hunt for defamation. The publication maintained that E. Howard Hunt, veteran CIA operative and convicted Watergate burglar, was in Dallas on November 22, 1963.

Lane's book lays the groundwork to show that Hunt's contention he was in Washington, DC that is unprovable. Instead, Lane uses E. Howard Hunt's contradictory testimony under oath to show that nobody can say he was there.

Instead, Lane brings forth witnesses who cannot say he was in Washington DC and a witness who says she met him in Dallas just prior to Kennedy's murder.

Natually, there is much more to all this than E. Howard Hunt. What Lane shows the reader is that the whole matter of President Kennedy's murder is an issue which will never be truly resolved.

Chris Offutt is a great short-story writer. You come out of a story of his thinking you have just read something small and simple, and it isn't until some time later that you realize what you've really been shown: a true emotional panorama, drawn with the most clear and efficient of lines; a sort of semantic loaves-and-fishes, where a comprehensive truth has been packed into an impossibly small space. Offutt has got a highly selective, quietly explosive palette; words you use a hundred times a day are coiled into powerfully emotive combinations. His characters are tack-sharp and of few words, and when they speak they seem to do it with the weight of heroes. Offutt's written a lot of good things, but the short story is presently where he's at his most powerful, and some of his best are in "Out of the Woods," particularly the title story, and "Melungeons," and "Tough People."

Presently you won't see Chris Offutt's name on any bestseller's list, but please don't let that discourage you from reading his wonderful work. In "Out of the Woods," Offutt follows the lives of ex-cons, alcoholics, gamblers, and drifters as they struggle to find direction and purpose.

Offutt's characters share one common thread, they were all born and raised in Appalachian communities in Kentucky. Reared in a culture in and of itself, these Kentuckians face harsh realities as they try to carve out a path for themselves in mainstream America. Most grapple with a strong desire to get out and see the world yet simultaneously they fight the urge to return to the comfort and security of home. In "Moscow, Idaho," a young prisoner on grave digging duty aims to turn over a new leaf and wonders if he will ever find a woman, a good job, and a town to settle in. "Two-Eleven All Around" is the story of a man who is so desperate for attention from his girlfriend, that he stages his own arrest in hope that she will hear about it while listening to her radio. These tales combine perseverance and heartbreak into poetic prose.

There have been comparisons of Offutt's writing to that of Raymond Carver's. Only in my opinion, Offutt is better. Carver's characters tend to present with a flat affect, but Offutt is able to take the reader subtly and deeply into his characters minds. Chris Offutt excels at what he writes about because he lived the life of his characters. He grew up in a small Appalachian community and at the age of nineteen he meandered across the country where he went through more than fifty jobs before returning to home and raising a family. Chris Offutt has come full circle and there is no doubt that he will find himself a place in the world of literature.

It's been a long time since I've read-- and re-read and re-read again-- a book that affected me as deeply as "Out of the Woods." It is beautiful story-telling, and I am grateful that someone with his gifts also has the access to share them with us. As a reader of fiction, I am not concerned with "authenticity" or "verification"; I am simply concerned with reading a good story. Thank you, Chris Offutt.