Christina Mayhew is a silent-screen actress in Hollywood of 1913. Though a very successful leading lady, for her, acting is simply a way to earn the large amount of money she needs to pay for medical school. Martin Tafft is the producer of her latest film and very much her match in intellect, ambition and personal strength.

Martin is extremely disappointed to learn that Christina is leaving the industry after this film wraps. He had very much hoped to work on future projects with the beautiful, young actress. She is one of the most talented--and most exciting--women he has ever known.

Christina is very attracted to Martin, and when she realizes that his admiration for her is more than simply professional, she determines to proceed as a liberated, independent woman and propose to him that he be her very first affair.

Gentlemanly Martin is shocked to his polished shoe tips at Christina's scandalous offer. He is adamantly opposed to sex outside marriage, tells Christina so, and remains stiffly withdrawn from her until an accident injuring the leading man forces Martin to take over his role. Soon Martin and Christina are sharing kisses on the set so heated, it becomes impossible for Martin to resist extending those kisses into his and Christina's private lives.

The setting of HER LEADING MAN is fascinating, and so authentically drawn, reading it delightfully transported me to the world of early Hollywood. The liberated heroine and the stiff, moralistic hero are a great pair of comic opposites, and the heroine's outrageous grandmother provides a lot of laughs, too. The love scenes between Martin and Christina are very emotional and very hot--I really love stories where a repressed hero finally lets go to the cauldron of passion inside him, because the heroine is utterly irresistible to him.

Film director Martin Tafft grows increasingly disillusioned with the industry. When he began in 1904, he believed that the brilliant creation of motion pictures would be the salvation of humanity, spanning the differences between people to allow them to see the commonalities. Instead, the industry deteriorates into a slough of immorality and decadence. He still has hopes that when "talkies" come into their own actors and actresses will be forced to spend their evenings learning their lines rather than wildly carousing the town.

Martin's newest leading lady Christina is made of a different ilk than most actresses seeking stardom. She sees acting as a means to an end. Rejected from scholarships because she's female, she intends to earn sufficient funds to pursue her dreams of a medical degree. To protect her reputation and run interference, she brings her Grandmother to the set as a chaperone. The elderly Mrs. Mayhew, Gran, provides marvelous comic relief with her high-spirited ways and obnoxious remarks. Christina calls her an Egalitarian because "she treated everyone like dirt." Although Christine prides herself on her independence, it helps to have someone with a reputation for hardhead ness and a nasty disposition on her side.

Martin's latest project is an Egyptian epic based on the bible. But when his loathsome lead breaks his arm trying to ride a camel, Martin finds himself stepping into the part. Despite the strong chemistry between Martin and Christina, he's not prepared for her out spoken ways when states that she wants to make love with him. Rather than flattered, he's outraged because he considers her perspective to be repetitious of the deterioration of the morals of the industry. He doesn't perceive her outspokenness to be a natural part of her independence and honesty. Now they must act together in the roles of lovers, and as the heat increases on screen, it likewise threatens a conflagration off screen. Especially when their passion takes control, but the moralistic Martin wants marriage and the determined Christina wants a medical career.

The entire Dream Maker miniseries has been a huge success, culminating in THE LEADING MAN. Indeed, the early years of the motion picture industry with its rapid changes has provided a fascinating background beautifully captured by author Alice Duncan's talented pen. Further, Duncan has a flair for creating both unconventional and unorthodox characters that really grab the imagination. Christina, like each of her predecessors, possesses strength of character and a gentle vulnerability that makes her markedly appealing. Martin, who's been a background character of each book, finally gets the story he so richly deserves. His concerns regarding the moral character of his industry span the decades, making him a surprisingly contemporary hero. Very highly recommended.

Though a very talented actress and in spite of thinking the film industry is a waste of energy, suffragette Christina Mayhew performs in the movies to finance her life's dream of going to medical school and becoming a doctor. To earn her tuition as she already has acceptance from a school, Christina performs in the latest movie produced by Martin Tafft for Peerless Studios on location.

Martin is an idealist, but is frustrated with all the negative publicity the young Hollywood industry seems to produce. Thus he finds the intelligent Christina with her accompanying escort, her grandmother, quite refreshing to say the least. Christina soon finds Martin not only her intellectual equal but surprisingly he encourages her to use her intelligence rather than pretend to be a vacuous pretty babe. They begin to fall in love, but Martin's codes of ethics involving people working for him seem like a roadblock to any permanent relationship between them.

Alice Duncan's entire "Dream Maker" series has been a delightful look at the first decade of the movie industry, but this novel is by far the best of a wonderful collection because this is Martin's story. Martin has been a key secondary player in the previous novels and readers (except perhaps this reviewer) have patiently awaited his venture into love. The story line is insightful, but also loaded with fun as Christina realizes that she must persuade HER LEADING MAN to reach for the stars with her.

Harriet Klausner

Telling the basic plot of this story won't give anything away: God offers the Devil a deal: come to earth and take over the body of a poor soul who has just committed suicide, stay out of trouble for one month in this body, and gain re-entry into Heaven. The story is told as a confession by Lucifer himself.

From this promising premise, Glen Duncan takes the reader on a verbal rocket ride which ends...well, that doesn't matter, the ride is so enjoyable. Duncan is well-versed in literature going well beyond the obvious Blake (whom Lucifer dubs "Blakey") and Milton, and clearly has a deep knowledge of New York as well as London, modern as well as ancient history. At least in its references this book is surprisingly erudite.

The passages describing Lucifer's embodiment into a human being, and his evolving responses to possessing five senses, are realized fully enough to rate this book worth reading just for that vicarious experience. The author's main achievement, however, is his imagining a fully believable, fascinating, and yes, dammit, likeable Lucifer. At once biting, arch, and occasionally oddly touching, Duncan's Lucifer makes P.J. O'Rourke sound like Mister Rogers.

If you are easily offended by criticism of the Almighty, of organized religion, and just about everything else, this is not the book for you. If you like your humor without cream or sugar (as for example in the film "Dogma"), give this book a try.

A fiendishly clever and wonderfully subversive story (how could it be anything else?). In case it escapes notice, Declan Gunn, the (un)fortunate embodiment of Lucifer, is an anagram for the author, Glen Duncan.

Awesome. If the idea of the devil as a guy with horns, wings, red scaly skin, a forked tail, and pitchfork makes you laugh and you appreciate some well constructed vulgarity you should give this a read. It felt to me like the author wished he could be the devil himself, and really enjoyed writing this book. The character he creates is every bit as mischievous and cunning as you would expect, and half the time you don't know whether to believe him or not. Particularly amusing are the potshots he takes at religious figures such as Adam, Eve, Gabriel, Christ, etc. Not recommended for anyone who actually believes that anything in the bible really happened (you know who you are).

There are people who think of such a book as a glorified comic book. You know, little graphics on every page to make a point. Actually, I felt that way when I first saw this text. But, then, I found philosophy too boring a subject to take seriously when I was in college. In fact, I'm still somewhat amazed that "philosophers" have as much influence as they do.

But romanticism has interested me. It's, what, unenlightened? So I got this little gem.

There's a surprising wealth of information in this book, enough that it has induced me to buy a few other philosophy books (something I said twenty years ago that I'd never do!) Lots of names, how the romanticists of various nationalities were motivated (I found the Germans particularly interesting, maybe because I've been someone interested in Schopenhauer and Kant over the years).

Don't be put off by the graphics. They are effective at adding more substance than a paragraph or two can cover. And they're simple but well done.

The bulk of the text covered European romanticism, so I wondered where's the American breed of that animal. The final portion of the book didn't let me down. It covered the likes of Thoreau, Walt Whitman, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and others, all of them characteristic American romanticists.

Most of us are "lay persons" with respect to philosophy as a discipline. This book will at least introduce us to the roots of romanticism, even to its critics. And, among the things I learned from it is that there is not a black and white break between romanticism and its compatriots. Some European romanticists, for example, were closer to postmodernist, according to the authors, and others claimed to be "Neoclassisist," apparently pre-evolved romanticists. So where one ends and the other begins isn't as clear as, frankly, I wish it were (so I could define them all more clearly!

It's such a good read that I bought the book on Postmodernism from the same series! Expect to see names you've never seen before, but read it!

Very possibly one of the best intros to the subject of Romanticism ever written. Full of info, and insight, the book covers the high and lows of the movement that influenced Napoleon, Beethoven, Kant, etc. Sweeping thru several countries, and numerous art forms, including music, literature, and theatre. One is introduced to the high wire tension of the Romantic, forever trapped between the Unreal (primal nature) and the Real (Civilization).

I have no idea how authority will speak of this book, but me, as a curious reader with interests in all the topics about art and literature find it a really fascinating book!

To begin with, I'm a foreigner, so the elegant English is in itself a beauty and value for me. And then, with the contents covering so much in western history, culture, literature & art, there's still an running clue getting all parts together. The authers performed so graciously such a daunting task and reveal such a profound, beautiful and enlightening world to me.

In a word, it's an enjoyment to read the book ( as a whole, though some part of it seems to me too redundent with academic-like details)

I really enjoyed reading this book. It is a very warm and personal book about children's books. Ms. Duncan, a mother of three children, starts off telling you about her first experience with children's books (very little at the time). You then follow her on her journey to become a true children's book expert, all along telling you about the books that worked very well in her family and for her friends. Her children are now avid readers. The books she recommends are very much liked by my children (and by me as well!). This is a book to give to your friends and family as a baby shower present and should be read once a year to get new ideas on what to read in the following period. Highly recommended.

Debbie Duncan knows her children's books -- and children, too. This mother of three is a writer and advocate of children and children's books who is well-known in her area for her understanding, intelligence, and creativity in making books come alive for children. Debbie has written about children, parents and books for regional press, hosted radio call-in shows receiving calls from parents about reading, and appeared on NPR talking about family issues. Now she brings her expertise to a national audience through Joy of Reading. I like this book because it doesn't tell, it shows how literature of all kinds becomes a member of the family. Debbie's kids -- a teen, a beginning reader, and one in-between -- have, with their parents, their own culture of books. Debbie talks about how they got this way, through early reading, continued reading aloud (yes, into the teen years), and many, many book conversations. She gives clear, bright, simple advice on getting started with ! your own family or with raising the level of book enjoyment in your household. She shares stories about relationships individual kids have had with books and confronts the problems that keep some kids from becoming enthusiastic readers. The book includes a wealth of titles of specific books as well as information about genres appropriate to different children. Told with humor, warmth, and love, Joy of Reading is a joy to read and to implement

I ordered this book from Amazon expecting it to be a good reference book, but I found it to be so much more than a reference. Little did I know when I ordered it how much the text itself would affect me! I kept stopping to read passages aloud to my husband or call my mom over the phone to do the same. I have spent the last few days, when not reading this book, thinking about all the wonderful books my mother read to me when I was young and looking forward to doing the same when I have children. Many of the books discussed and the household scenarios described were so familiar! The chapter on family sayings taken from books made me laugh out loud. I still call my mother when I've had a "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day," and when my sister and I were growing up we often heard our own mother quote Ramona's, saying "Once is hilarious, twice is funny, three times is a spanking." This book is not just a great place to look for that perfect book for any child you know, but is a great place to look for inspiration about reading to children.

The Lasso Professional 5 Developer's Guide certainly demonstrates the foundations of exemplary Lasso development: simple, efficient, well documented code, proper security mechanisms, and a well organized project. But, more importantly, it provides a critical perspective: Lasso is not only a tool to throw up some forms or get a database on the web; it is a fully featured development platform which will allow you to build web applications with incomparable efficiency. Users of Lasso since version 1 to those embarking on their first Lasso project will benefit from the perspective and experience clearly articulated in this well organized and thoughtful guide.

The author has done an excellent job of presenting the enormous amount of information contained in this book. It is laid out logically with step by step instructions and plenty of easy to follow examples. It can be read right through or dipped into when needed. I recommend it to advanced Lasso developers and beginners alike.

This guide is excellent. I've read the thing cover to cover and consequently left my nervous insecure lasso newbie stage for a pretty much know what the heck I'm doing and can get it done pretty dang fast stage. The book is easy to read with excellent and clear examples. The sample code is invaluable and very practical. It's oriented for both the new and experienced Lasso developer with many insights on Lasso 5 that you won't find elsewhere. It's a reference book and a learning guide. The section of regular expressions just might change your life. I don't think you can't go wrong if you get this book.

This book is an invaluable addition to any pastor's library. Though brief, it gives a concise and pragmatic look at what vision is and how to implement it. Barna chips away at our misconceptions concerning vision and argues persuasively that it is the one indispensable ingredient for a growing church. Pastors who have a well-defined vision and who are able to articulate it to their congregations grow their churches, those without it do not.

The book's greatest strength is Barna's lucid style. I appreciate his way of dealing with each objection that is raised to vision he destroys each with irrepressible logic. Barna disarms the reader whose preconceptions about vision would have torpedoed anything he was trying to communicate.

But the book's greatest strength is also its greatest weakness; it left me hungering for more. Although I can understand why he wants us to go to extraordinary lengths to "know yourself" (pg. 80 ff) the series of forty-one essay questions that each pastor should ask himself is a little much. It would take an extraordinary person not to become lost in the process before discovering the end.

The book gave me hope. I have always known that the reason one church grows and another does not is because of pastoral leadership, rather than congregational indifference. What I did not know was why. Was it merely that some pastors have a natural charisma that others do not? Or was it something more fundamental, namely vision? It also helped me overcome the old "enabler" model of leadership I was taught in seminary. Vision comes from an inspired pastor and then "trickles down" from the top and not from committee consensus. It is an outstanding book.

Of the thousands of books written on the subject, Barna's is at the very top of the pack. This book powerfully, succintly, grippingly presents what a vision is, where it comes from, how to capture it, how to apply it, how to deal with myths and vision killers, and much more. If you want to be an effective minister, or an effective, purpose-filled human being, read this book, then read it again. Every seminary and every Church ought to present this book as a gift to graduating students or at ordination. The vision comes from the Lord, the resources come from the Lord it is impoosible to fail.

To this point the, The Power of Vision is the best work I have read on the subject of vision for ministry. Barna does an outstanding job of defining vision and explaining its importance. Along the way he gives many valuable insights concerning the crafting and casting of vision for ministry.

I was really impressed with Present Moment Awareness. I have read many self help books and feel this book is a boiled down version of what I was looking for all along. Its the only self awareness book I can honestly say makes a difference in my day to day life. Interesting ,enlightening and easy to follow. The author makes complicated issues easy to understand. It is the most important book I have ever read for self improvement!

Thank You Mr.Duncan!

Rich Matthews

Cudos to Shannon Duncan for putting together such an awesome package.

First you get his book, which is already a word of mouth hit. It opened my eyes to so very much...

Second you get the focus tool, which I was pretty skeptical about - but have found that I use it all the time and am amazed at how often it works just exactly as Shannon had intended. It goes off when I am least expecting it, I do the quick exercises from the book (the "core" exercises) and as the weeks and months have gone by, I really do see a difference in how I go about my day and how I am feeling about my life.

Third is the CD. I was genuinely surprised at this! This CD is AWESOME! I've been practicing meditation for years and was totally amazed at how deeply relaxed I was in both mind and body when listening to it. My favorite is track 3, Deep Serenity. I don't really understand the technology at work here, but it sounds just like I'm there, sitting on the beach, with sounds in 3D all around me (you have to use headphones for the 3D effect). I've purchased several more Audio Serenity CDs and use them almost every day!

You also get a video, which is very brief. I don't really find it all that useful, but it was cool to get to see the author and hear him talk about how to get started. I guess I have been applying that advice.

Lastly you get a small booklet. The idea is that you are supposed to carry it with you, and read from it now and again. I didn't find it all that useful, but gave it a read anyway. Once I understood the core exercises, I really didn't need it.

I would certainly recommend this to anyone. If you'd like a book like Shannons, then you'd love this package.

I bought this system over the Internet at the PMA site several months ago. It has Shannons book, Present Moment Awareness, as well as all of these really great tools to support us in our efforts to become more present and enjoy our lives more.

The video is pretty short, but was helpful just the same. The pocket reference guide is a little book with quotes and exercises in it. I didn't think that it would be helpful, but I've used it now and again and have found myself looking more closely at how I was living my life at that moment. But, the Focus Tool, is just great! I use it all the time, and it never fails to amaze me how well it works for its intended purpose.

A person could certainly get a lot out of this great book, and buy it by itself. The whole kit isn't necessary. But, it IS really, really useful. I recommend it!

I am a fourteen-year-old who someday wants to become a doctor, but until I read this book I honestly had no idea what the medical residency entailed. Although Residents did not discourage me from my dream, it definitely opened my eyes to what I will be facing in less than ten years. However, I feel that this book is also of interest to people who do not have any interest in a medical career, simply because when it's estimated that 100,000 people die every year because of doctors' errors, it's obvious that this issue affects more than just the small percentage of the population going through residency training. A definite five-star read.

Residents : The Perils and Promise of Educating Young Doctors gives a very true-to-life description of the often overworked and abused physician in training. When I read this book I was at the end of a very frustrating political battle in my own residency training which ended sadly with my moving into another field where I could still make use of my medical knowledge and training. In the book there are cases which sadly paralleled my own experience. The most positive aspect of this book is that it can make everyone aware of this often abusive training system which has a very powerful impact on medical training in this country and which ultimately effects everyone's health care. It is important for everyone to know what goes on in teaching hospitals and this book is both informative and very readable. It is unfortunate that it is currently out-of-print since it is important reading for anyone who is concerned about the health care system. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the field of health care or who cares about those who may need the services of a physician both now and in the future. It is a must read!

David Duncan's exploration of the life of residents was fascinating and frightening. I couldn't put the book down. He really made me think twice about the current educational system for Doctors in this country. I can't wait to read another of Mr. Duncan's explorations! Amy Kemp (AMYMKEMP@AOL.com

Let me be very clear as to why I give this book a full five stars... it makes Shakespeare's sonnets readily accessible/understandable to the average common reader (which I consider myself to be). This Arden version has become a treasure to me. I have loved W.S.'s sonnets ever since committing #116 (my favorite) to memory a few years ago, but I admit that many of them have left me with one profound thought at the end of the fourteenth line, and that thought is... "huh"? It is truly a sad predicament to be left in such a state of ignorance when Shakespeare is ALWAYS saying something AWESOME! But this book has come closest to a complete cure for me. I am now seldom (if ever) left in the dark by an obscure phrase, line, or context, because the notes on the opposing page are right there to help me through those exact points of difficulty. I unreservedly recommend this affordably priced 3rd Series edited by Katherine Duncan-Jones to any and all sonnet lovers. Let it "give physic" to your ailment.

P.S. It begins with an excellent over 100 page introduction and follows the sonnets with an equally great exposition of "A Lover's Complaint".

This is a nicely bound, low priced volume of Shakespeare's sonnets. But it is more than just that. Each sonnet is on a page by itself with explanatory notes on the facing page. While most of us do not need a spoon-feeding of these wonderful works, we sometimes do come to an abrupt halt at "some in their garments like new-fangled ill", or "sometimes a blusterer that the ruffle knew of court". In the above instances we are talking about fashionable but absurd garments, and a braggart's display. Also, many elisions are changed to modern words (e.g. advised for aduis'd) except where such a change would hinder the flow of the sonnet. There are also over 100 pages of historical and critical comments at the front of the book, which you can read or ignore as you choose.

All in all this is an excellent package of the sonnets with a very useful set of notes. It's great that all of the notes are adjacent to the sonnets, so that you do not have to page back and forth, and that there are no nasty little note reference numbers marring the lines of the sonnets.

This is a nicely bound, low priced volume of Shakespeare's sonnets. But it is more than just that. Each sonnet is on a page by itself with explanatory notes on the facing page. While most of us do not need a spoon-feeding of these wonderful works, we sometimes do come to an abrupt halt at "some in their garments like new-fangled ill", or "sometimes a blusterer that the ruffle knew of court". In the above instances we are talking about fashionable but absurd garments, and a braggart's display. Also, many elisions are changed to modern words (e.g. advised for aduis'd) except where such a change would hinder the flow of the sonnet. There are also over 100 pages of historical and critical comments at the front of the book, which you can read or ignore as you choose.

All in all this is an excellent package of the sonnets with a very useful set of notes. It's great that all of the notes are adjacent to the sonnets, so that you do not have to page back and forth, and that there are no nasty little note reference numbers marring the lines of the sonnets.

The sonnet is one of the more difficult-to-write forms of poetry, with very strict rules on rhyming and lines, and that makes Shakespeare's collection of sonnets all the more impressive. Shakespeare sprinkled his various plays with poetry and songs, but there is something of a different flavor to these works.

Titleless, identified only by numbers, these poems have vivid metaphors and imagery ("let not winter's ragged hand deface," "gold candles fix'd in heaven's air"). The tone of the poetry varies from one sonnet to the next; sometimes it focuses on old age, to love that "looks upon tempests and is not shaken," and simple expressions that can't really be interpreted any other way. Some of it is pretty well-known ("Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?/Thou art more lovely and more temperate") but most of them you won't have seen before.

Even if you're not normally a fan of poetry, the delicate touch of Shakespeare's words is worth checking into. Fantastic.

This edition of the sonnets is one of the most important and the description on Amazon is misleading - It is actually both volumes 24 and 25 bound together so you get the complete set It's hard to find this book so it is a great find in this version

Shakespeare's amazing Sonnets are compiled here in this wonderful volume, a great addition to anyone's bookshelf. If you love Shakespeare, then this is a must-have book.