Product Description
Searching and assertive, Chicana literature embraces poetry, fiction, drama, essay, and other forms. This first major anthology devoted to the genre is organized by themes that highlight the key issues, motifs, and concerns of Mexican American women from 1848 to the present and features selections from over 60 contributors. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

a must-have anthology
Itself divided into the sections Foremothers, Self and Identity, Self and Others, Spaces, Myths and Archetypes, Writers on Language and Writing, Growing Up, and Celebrations, this broadly inclusive anthology includes writers who need no introduction to anyone familiar with Chicana literature:Ana Castillo, Sandra Cisneros, Gloria Anzaldua, Lorna Dee Cervantes, Alma Villanueva, Cordelia Candelaria...and if you haven't read their poetry or pose, here's your chance.

Review of "Infinite Divisions"
Simply the most comprehensive collection of Mexican-American women's writing --both good and bad-- "Infinite Divisions" has enough jewels to understand why it would be required reading for anyone hoping to delve into Chicana literature.
"Little Miracles, Kept Promises" by Sandra Cisneros is a nice sample Mexican-American life condensed into a format so innovative that it merits being read twice...Prayers and petitions to God and all the saints, hopes and fears aboutsexuality and love and life, the traditional scraps of paper left as a religious offering in church become a touching prose piece.
The book thoroughly disects the sometimes-ghost-story, sometimes-feminist-symbol of La Llorona, the crying woman who murdered her children in some stories and who was the reincarnation of La Malinche (Hernan Cortes' lover) in others. "Aztec Princess" and "Malinche's Discourse" make for wonderful discussion pieces, not to mention reading. ... Read more

Product Description

Master math facts with speed and accuracy! This book provides one-minutedivision timed tests one fact at a time for divisors. The systematicapproach allows students to see their own daily improvements. Great forstudents in regular classroom settings as well as students in specialeducation. Includes reproducible test pages with answer key, activitysheets, progress charts, a pretest and post- test, bulletin boardpatterns, a letter to parents, games, awards, and flash cards!

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Book Description
Electronic workbook with instructions & practice on each page ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Multiplication Division: Windows: Ages 8-Up School Zone Soft
This was just what I needed to review Multiplication and Division facts. It can be practiced as a timed drill or self paced. At the end of each drill you can print out a page that shows the math facts that the current student needs to practice.
This software requires Quick-Time, Microsft WIndows 95 or higher, 24MB Ram, 640 X 480 16 bit color video, 16 bit sound card 486DX-66MHz or faster processor, 40MB free disk space, and 4X- CD-Rom. I purchased this for home for my daughter and individual copies for our school's computer lab and Math classes. This software is set up to use competitively as well. Two players may play at a time and each receive their own print out when the game is over. GREAT SOFTWARE. My 9 year old loved it! ... Read more

Product Description
Over time the impression has grown that the 2003 invasion of Iraq met with little resistance and that, with few exceptions, the Iraqi army simply melted away. As this book clearly shows, nothing could be further from the truth. In its drive to capture Baghdad, the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division was in nearly constant combat for twenty-one days. While Americans were watching Saddam's statue being torn down on TV, a brigade of the 3rd ID was on the verge of being overrun by Iraqi Republican Guard units trying to escape north. Told to hold two bridges in his sector, a brigade commander had to blow up one of them because he did not have the combat power to hold it. The company commander holding the other bridge was so hard pressed that he called on the artillery to fire their final protective fires a command made only when a unit is in mortal danger and one that had not been given since Vietnam. Every one of the division's armored vehicles was hit by rockets some taking more than a dozen hits and the fighting was so fierce at times that entire battalions ran out of ammunition. Nevertheless, when the fighting was finally over, the 3rd ID had destroyed two Iraqi Regular Army divisions and three divisions of the much vaunted Republican Guard.

Takedown tells the little-known story of what happened to the 3rd ID during its struggle to win Baghdad, a campaign that some call one of the most vicious in American military history. To offer this firsthand account, Jim Lacey, a former Time magazine reporter embedded with the 1st Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division, draws on extensive interviews that he conducted with the American soldiers involved as well as access to personal papers and war memoirs. This story is also enriched through his extensive use of interview transcripts of senior Iraqi army officers along with their personal written recollections. From the Kuwaiti border to the streets of Baghdad, these dramatic eyewitness descriptions of what went on give readers an accurate look at the brutal engagements in which the division fought for its life.

Customer Reviews (10)

The amazing story of 3rd ID and the taking of Baghdad
If you hadn't seen it on TV and in print from the people who were there, this would almost seem like fiction.But Jim Lacy interweaves the stories of the participants so well, the story just pulls you in and you can't stop reading.

take Down
If you want to understand, how the push to Baghdad has been done, that is the book to read

Provides great perspective and detail
My boy was driving one of Clay Lyle's tanks in Apache Troop, 3-7 CAV. I watched almost every minute of CNN's coverage -- CNN had Walter Rodgers embedded with his unit -- and I've made a serious study of the events since.
This book provides a detailed and gripping overview of the battles fought by all the key elements of 3rd ID, and properly showcases 3-7 CAV's key role in the events. In ten or fifteen years, maybe the boy will have decompressed enough to read about what he did...

Engrossing book and a performance to be proud of
We in the military have learned to ignore most things reporters write, but the policy of allowing embedded journalists in the Iraq war may change that.

This author was embedded as a reporter for a national news magazine. He tells the tale of an amazing performance by the 3d Infantry Division from the inside, but with an outsider's perspective. He intersperses his own observations with accounts from interviews with officers and men of the Third, and even occasionally with the reaction of Iraqi officers to the Third and other U.S. units.

Well worth buying. Highly recommended.

Good overall narrative.
The author does a good job accounting for the "big picture" of the drive to Baghdad from the 3rd ID's perspective.It shows how speed was achieved, and puts into perspective the great challenges and accomplishments of one divisions rampage through Iraq, and how there was very little the enemy could seemingly do to stop them.If you are more interested in the individual's story.... this book is not for you.But if you generally love military history and how tactics develop on the battlefield from a unit perspective, you will enjoy this book.And it's a quick read!I was not dissapointed. ... Read more

Product Description
These lessons increase students' understanding of the connection between multiplication and division; help them learn divisibility rules; and build their understanding of the relationships among dividends, divisors, quotients, and remainders. This book builds on the lessons included in Lessons for Introducing Division, Grades 3-4 with activities and strategies for solving division problems with large numbers. ... Read more

Product Description
The all-volunteer 'Blue Division' was a formation that allowed Franco's technically neutral Spain to support Nazi Germany's invasion of Russia. Following initial training in Germany, the Blue Division's units were sent to the Eastern Front in August 1941, where, after a 40-day march to the front, the Division fought in several major battles including Leningrad. In 1943, with the tide turning against the Axis forces in Russia, the Division was ordered to be withdrawn, yet many men chose to stay on and serve with the Volunteer Legion. Even after the collapse in the East, some volunteered to serve with Waffen-SS units through to the fall of Berlin in 1945. This book narrates the experiences of the common soldier, exploring his motivation for serving the Wehrmacht, and detailing his dramatic experiences in a brutal and hostile theater of World War II. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Blue Division Soldier 1941-45: Spanish Volunteer on the Eastern Front (Warrior)
I found this book to be very informative on a heretofore little covered unit that fought with the Germans on the Eastern front.

New light on the Spanish effort
I was intersted in the Blue Division, a unit which fought for the Germans on the Eastern Front during World War II, but found that most sources give it short shrift saying that it was an "ineffective unit" provided to Hitler by Franco in an effort to "buy" Hitler's assistance in regaining Gibralter at some future point or as a quid pro quo for Hitler loan of the Condor Legion to the Nationalists during the Civil War. This book, short as it is, gives a more complete picture.

When Germany invaded the USSR there were spontanious and Falangist-led demonstrations in support of the effort. Spain had just come out of a painful civil war, one in which Stalin had sent weapons and soldiers to bolster the Republic, which would come further and further under the sway of leftists as the war went on. Many in Spain believed that the war was prolongd by the Soviets and others were still bitter over the atrocities committed by leftists against the Catholic clergy prior to and during the war. It was not surprising then that many Spaniards volunteered to serve in the German Army in order to "finish off" Stalin.

This book discusses the organization, leadership and decorations of the division sent to fight on the Eastern Front. It also discusses the support contingents provided for the division inside German-occupied Europe. Lots of great artwork and photographs and a good illustration of the insignia worn by the unit. No maps though, which would have put the organization in better perspective. This is a great book!

The spanish soldier in Russia
After the help to FRANCO in Spain its natural that spanish volunteers fight with the germans against the russians, a good book with good drawings, photos and histories of the 250 division der infanterie in eastern front, a good source for begginers!

Good Look at the Men in the Blue Division
The subject of the Spanish volunteer "Blue" Division serving with the Germans on the Eastern Front in the Second World War continues to attract far more interest than many other Axis minor allied formations. Osprey produced the earlier Men-at-Arms title Germany's Spanish Volunteers, but Blue Division Soldier 1941-45 in the Warrior series does not repeat much from the earlier volume. Instead, this book is written by a Spanish historian from a Spanish point of view and while it offers much less on the activities and equipment of the Blue Division, it provides a better glimpse into the human aspect of this story. The bulk of the volume consists of a discussion of how the Spanish volunteers were inducted, how they served in the division and what became of them. Readers looking for detailed tactical descriptions will not find them in this volume, but it has merit as an examination of Spanish volunteers on the Eastern Front. Overall, a decent volume that doesn't make me feel like I'm just getting an updated version of the MAA title.

After a brief discussion of why Spain felt compelled to send volunteers to fight with the Germans against the Soviet Union in 1941, the author moves into a section discussing how the recruits were drawn from the Falange Party as well as the Regular Army. The author makes some important points here, that the Falange and the Army had different visions for the division and some of these factors were not brought out in other books on the Blue Division. He provides only a brief section on training in Germany (a bit too brief), then spends about 10 pages discussing the composition of the division, broken down by ranks. The author makes the point that a major weakness of the division was the lack of a strong Spanish NCO corps, which made it difficult to fill out the large number of NCO slots based on German tables of organization. He discusses tactics in 3-4 pages, with one of the interesting items being that the Spanish use of bugles on the battlefield annoyed the Germans. Although he alludes to the Spanish aversion to static, trench warfare, he also points out that they lacked the training to conduct the German version of mobile warfare, so it's just as well they ended up at Leningrad.

The 10-page section on life at the front covers the effect of mud and cold on Spanish troops, trench warfare, replacements, support and medical services, and discipline. The next section on motivation and morale covers food, religious services, propaganda, mail and awards. Another section covers the relationship between Spanish troops and Germans and the local Russian population. A final section covers the volunteers after their return to Spain and post-war veterans organizations. The B/W photos throughout the volume are very good and most have not appeared before in English-language works. The volume has six color plates (the departure of the Blue Division; decorations and badges; Spanish infantry in the Battle of the Volkhov Pocket; the Battle of Krasny Bor; daily life in Russia; veterans). Overall, this is an interesting look at the men that formed the Spanish Blue Division, but it is a bit light in areas that many military history readers enjoy (weapons, training, battles), so it is best used as an adjunct to other works. There's nothing terribly new here, but it is an interesting read and provides some depth on the human dimension of the Eastern Front.
... Read more

Product Description
Against the backdrop of the violent partition of India and Pakistan, this volume sketches one last bittersweet romance, revealing the divided loyalties of the British as they flee, retreat from, or cling to India. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Brilliant finish to a well-crafted series
The Raj Quartet comes to its spectacular conclusion with "A Division of the Spoils." Of the four books, I perhaps enjoyed this one the most. The main character (Guy Perron) is observant, funny, and human, so he's easy to like. He is a complete opposite of the story's antagonist, Ronald Merrick. The scenes in which they must work together (Perron is a sergeant and Merrick his officer) are some of the best. I could hardly put this book down and finished it in just a few days.

Please do not let the length of this series dissuade you from reading it! The books are all very compelling and well-written. If you like historical fiction, they are very much worth your time. I would recommend you watch the mini-series (I rented it from Netflix), read the 4 books, and then watch the mini again. You'll get quite a bit out of it that way.

Enjoy!

Last book in series the best
Anyone reading the reviews for the previous 3 books, knows I have struggled to read these series. However, Scott absolutely redeemed himself with this final book.

The first book focused on the British occupation of India during WWII and introduced us to the "Manners" case - the only interesting bit in a book that had long waffly passages describing India. Who needs to read a history book? This book would have done it... The 2nd book focused more on the "Layton's" and was much more readable as it was the changing India as seen through the eyes of a few key characters. The 3rd book was a boring repetition of the 2nd book and this last book, about the end of the British occupation and WWII was just brilliant!

Like his much more enjoyable 2nd book, this one is told almost exclusively through the eyes of key characters we met in previous books - and it introduces us to the rakish charm of Guy Perron. I always remember Charles Dance's interpretation of Guy Perron in the BBC series making a strong impression on me, but I found the character in the book even more engaging.

This last book in the series was absolutely stunning and made persevering through the whole series somewhat worth it. I say somewhat, because it has been a real trial getting through the denser parts of Books I and III and I wouldn't push this series on anyone, even though the last book is a literary accomplishment.

I try to think if this book is readable without having read the previous books, and although I suspect it is (Scott continues to go back over vast chunks of history from someone else's point of view), it would be a shallow interpretation without the reader gaining all the knowledge from the first 3 books.

The Tour de Force
The four volumes of the Raj Quartet overlap and complement one another, while at the same time forwarding the main storyline of the slow twilight of the British ascendancy in India, always with the rape of a white girl by Indian men as the central lodestone everpresent in the background, the nightmare which is seldom mentioned but which none can drive from their minds. Events occur, are discussed, witnessed as newspaper reports, court documents, interviews, vague recollections from years later, or perceived directly by the main characters. Then the next volume will take two or three steps back into previous events, and these same events will be perceived from another angle, perhaps only as a vague report heard far away across the Indian plain, or witnessed directly by another character, or discussed in detail long after their occurrence over drinks on a verandah. This may at times seem like rehashing, indeed as one reads the four volumes one will be subjected to the account of the rape in the Bibighar Gardens many times over; but what will also become apparent is that additional details, sometimes minor variations in interpretation and sometimes crucial facts, are being added slowly to the events discussed, as though the window to the past were being progressively wiped cleaner and cleaner with successive strokes of Scott's pen. In this way he draws the picture of the last days of the Raj not in a conventional linear fashion, but recursively, and from multiple angles. One gets the clear impression of life in India during the first half of the 20th century as similar in nature: Fragmented, multifaceted, largely dependent upon perspective and experience and never perceived whole or all at once.

Book 4 is the tour-de-force of the series, the longest and the one that covers the greatest distance, emotionally and chronologically. Into the Laytons' social set come Nigel Rowan, an officer in the political branch whom we have met before in Book 2 interrogating Hari Kumar some years after his imprisonment, and Guy Perron, a sergeant in the intelligence service who is "chosen" against his will by Ronald Merrick to serve in his unit. Merrick seems deliberately to surround himself with people who dislike him: Guy Perron, Sarah Layton, and before them Daphne Manners and Hari Kumar. Rowan and Perron, incidentally, are former schoolmates of Kumar's at the posh Chillingborough Academy in England. And they're not the only ones: The British in India seem constantly reminded that Kumar symbolizes the insoluble problem of India's Britishness. He's too British for the Indians and too Indian for the British. Perron is an excellent guide through the final days of the Raj, stolid and proper yet inwardly seething with intellectual outrage. An explosive yet sombre climax in 1947 details the very end of the British presence in India, the beginnings of the Hindu-Muslim riots throughout the country, and gives an expansive sense of just how far one has come from the small town of Mayapore and the darkly deserted Bibighar Gardens.

Coming full circle.....
A DIVISION OF THE SPOILS by Paul Scott is the last book in his series known as the Raj Quartet. The four books are classics, that have been read and will continue to be read centuries from now as readers attempt to understand what happened during the last days of the British Raj in India. I read history but I am also a great fan of well written historical fiction and these books are extremely well written historical fiction. Having read them, I am much more enlightened about the struggles which continue today betweem Hindu and Muslim.

Many of the characters from the earlier books converge in DIVISION, and the book introduces a new character, Guy Perron, who is a Chillingborough-Cambridge educated historian whose "period" and place are mid-19th Century India. Guy's character is used to tie up all the loose ends.

After arriving in India as a British army sergeant (he has elected not become an officer although his education and class clearly warrent it), Guy has the misfortune to be "chosen" by the recently-promoted-to-LtCol. and very wicked Ronald Merrick as his aide-de-camp. Merrick is still riddled with class envy, and sees in Guy an excellent opportunity to abuse someone he despises. Fortunately, Guy is able to escape from Merrick through the graces of his Aunt Charlotte who pulls strings to have him released from the army.

Fortunately for Guy, he doesn't escape Merrick before he meets Sarah Layton. Their story is told in this fourth volume and certain elements of the tale bring to mind the earlier story of Hari Kumar and Daphne Manners. In fact, it is through Guy's meeting of Merrick, Sarah, and another Chillingburrian, Nigel Rowan (who interviewed Hari Kumar in prison) that he becomes interested in the events at Mayapore in 1942 and the subsequent consequences for all involved.

As with other great classics, in DIVISION things do not always evolve as the reader would have wished. This book is very realistic -- sorrow and joy are mixed. In JEWEL IN THE CROWN, the first book in the series, Lady Chatterjee says she does not want to go to a heaven that excludes joy and sorrow because being human requires one to feel joy and sorrow.

Perhaps it is because humans can experience sorrow they are capable of experiencing joy. In the end, the reader discovers Hari Kumar's fate and the identity of Philoctetes as well as the difference between Dharma and Karma. This is a powerful series and a fabulous ending to the tale.

Impressive last volume
This book is just as impressive as the three others of the Raj Quartet.Once again, the cast of interesting characters is huge; the atmosphere ofthe time is brilliantly captured and the variety of scenes/plots is wellmastered. The book is instructive and yet enormously entertaining. The RajQuartet is one of the most rewarding pieces of literature I have ever read. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Something rare: a new idea
When I was thinking about writing the history of a professional society, I was urged to do some reading on professions. It was discouraging. The authorities had been going in circles for years, until Abbott came along and clarified the topic. His book was well-received; as I recall he was a visiting professor in New Jersey before it was published, and a full professor at Chicago soon afterwards.

Actually, there are several new ideas. One them is that professions restrict their markets when they attempt to raise their fees by adding barriers to entry. Since demand is stable or rising, this creates opportunity for other groups to move in "below." As physicians' time becomes ever more valuable, RNs achieve the status of practitioners and LPNs fill in. Aides are now certified, and so on. This seminal idea was published in 1988. Almost ten years later, Clayton Christensen described in his well-regardedInnovators' Dilemma how a corporate fixation on upselling existing customers assured that less lucrative markets would be neglected, providing rich opportunities for new entrants. The parallel is striking.

Whether you have any interest in his topic, Abbott's exposition is worth studying as a model of effective rhetoric. And the writing is vivid; he worked for years in a large mental hospital, "After five years, . . . I had helped administer several tons of thorazine, mellaril and their cousins . . ." ... Read more

Product Description
This book gives the reader a rare view of army life during WWII, as it traces the experiences and the adventures of an army private from induction, through basic training, combat in the South Pacific, occupation of Japan, and finally home. One highlight is the visit to Hiroshima two months after the bomb. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

A Grunt's Eye View
Frankly, this memoir was poorly written, badly organized, and repeatedly repetitive -- and I enjoyed it immensely.

It is not history, certainly not of the Pacific War nor the 41st ID, and barely touches upon operational or tactical actions.Even as a memoir, it is disjointed and tends to head off in random directions, especially when Wilson wants to share the research he has done on locales or geography or units.What it is, and is revealing as, is a personal memoir of a typical Army infantryman swept along in the tide of the South Pacific War during WWII.

Wilson, in his untutored and uncensorsed and naive style, simply tells us about his war.His vision is limited, focused largely on food and physical comfort.Oh, and staying alive when the opportunity to die arises -- combat is one topic that he glosses over and that he really doesn't want to share deeply with his readers.His innocent marvelling at the machines of war, his lack of worldliness, his ignorance of the broader world, and his occupation with the here and now do give us an unequaled insight into the mindset and interests of a kid from Illinois.He is endlessly engaged by the new experiences, sights, and people that war introduces to him.He engages in mischief whenever he can, sometimes at risk to his life and the lives of others.He rubs against authority, frets over the injustices that fill the military experience, happily purloins various comfort items, and keeps himself occupied and active when not actually in combat.Reading his memoir is akin to trailing him around during WWII.

I got the impression that after his combat journey and his occupation duty in Japan
Wilson was one of the many American who easily returned to civilian life and was able to put the war aside.He did become a doctor, but admits that he considered remaining in the Army.And then realized that the Army was simply not for him.

After bearing with the stylistic issues of Wilson's memoir, it was a engrossing and amusing and satisfying read.I hold it unique among the personal military histories I have read.

Sunset War; 41st Infantry Div
A gift for my Father. He was in the 41st during WWII. He enjoyed it thoroughly.

Real change of pace ..
I was particularly interested in reading this book in that my father served in the same Division as Mr. Wilson, the author. I was surprised to discover 1/2 way through that Mr. Wilson and my Dad were likely in the same section (messages), headquaters company, 3rd batallion of the 41st Division.While I have read several books and accounts of the 41st Division's WWII history, this is the first that gave me a sense of what day to day life was actually like for the soldiers that fought in jungles of New Guinea. Mr. Wilson - thank you for writing this account.I would love to get the chance to talk with you some day.

Very good first person account of WWII in the Pacific.
From an old Navy veteran: The book is rather short and in some cases repetitive, but from my studies of WWII in the Pacific this is an authentic, first-person account of this soldier's memory of the war against a sadistic, evil, brutal, suicidal enemy.I especially agree with his opinion that the U.S. Army was often overlooked when someone wrote about the war in the Pacific with so much press given to the bloody battles of the U.S. Marines.Don't misunderstand, the Marines were in some miserable, bloody, awful campaigns, but so were soldiers and sailors and they seldom get the recognition due them.This book gives some of that recognition to the soldiers.

Great Story!
This is a great story of the GIs who served in the 41st "Sunset" Divsion and fought their way from New Guinea to the Philippines. A great personal memoir of a young soldier who, due to his vast resourcefulness, made the most of his overseas experience. My Dad served in the 163rd "Montana" Regiment of the 41st Division, and though the author was in the 162nd Regiment, his telling of what it was like over there must have been similar to what Dad went through. Dad would only occasionally mention in a sentence or two something about the War and New Guinea. Thanks, Paul Wilson, for giving us a detailed account of the experience. This book should appeal greatly to anyone interested in Pacific War, it was a quick read and hard to put down! ... Read more

Product Description
When Becca's dad goes off to fight in a war on the other side of the planet, she does her best to live up to his expectations. But then long division hits her like an earthquake and her whole world starts to disintegrate. After years of straight A's, she's failing math. Her baby brother lands in the hospital, her friends turn mean, and her mother is too hassled to help her. Even her hair's a mess. How will Becca survive a journey through this treacherous terrain? Where will she find the tools she needs to untangle the bewildering mysteries of math and put her crumbling life back together? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great reading!
This book was an easy read and an enjoyable, real to life story.It was especially interesting because our children have all gone through the struggles of long division. It was helpful to see how the character in the book worked her way through.

This book is great!
I loved this book! It not only is an entertaining story but also gives great lessons to kids on how to self-sufficiently solve problems at school as well as at home. A great addition to any school, classroom, or family library! ... Read more

Product Description
The lessons in this book present a series of explorations that introduce division to students by helping them relate division to multiplication and learn how division relates to equal groups. Students also learn how to recognize the two types of division problems, think about remainders in different ways, and use division to solve real-world problems ... Read more

Product Description
Illustrated with detailed artworks of German tanks and their markings with exhaustive captions and specifications, The Essential Tank Identification Guide: Wehrmacht Panzer Divisions 1939-45 is the definitive study of the equipment and organization of the Wehrmacht's armored divisions. Organized by division, the book describes in depth the various models of tank in German service during the war with each individual armored division, with listing of the unit commanders and any famous tank aces. Each divisional section is further broken down by campaign, accompanied by orders of battle, a brief divisional history of the campaign and any specific unit markings.

Customer Reviews (10)

Great Idea, Poor Execution
While the drawings and images are informative, and serve as a good cross reference with other sources for markings and camouflage, the organization of the book is maddening.Rather than choosing a simple chronological, divisional or campaign explanation of camouflage schemes, the author uses labyrinth of all of these.Chapters repeat, and yet still seem incomplete.I recommend this book only as a secondary reference.

Great, for the correct audience
This book will greatly please modelers, and will frustrate history buffs. The art is great, and there are many details which will allow detailing a model Panzer, but the history of each division is fragmented, and many of the campaign details are repeated. The use of small drawings of multiple AFVs to show unit strengths seems contrived. The art work is what you will buy this book for and it is very pretty indeed.

An excellent guide to the panzer divisions of WWII
This is a great book if you want a basic summary of the actions of each panzer division throughout the war (with the exception of SS panzer divisions).For example, you can find out the exact tank strength (divided by type, such as 34 Panzer Is, 68 Panzer IIs, etc.) of the 7th Panzer Division as it invaded France in May of 1940, as well as the different types of tanks in its inventory, and the type of combat it was involved in.Nearly each page is complete with full color illustrations (profileviews of tanks). Each tank pictured is accompanied by a chart which includes the number of crew, weight, length, speed, and other specifications.

The book also discusses and features pictures of various types of assault guns, tank destroyers, and armored cars employed by the panzer divisions.This publication is, much as the title of the book states, essential for anyone who wants a quick guide to the panzer divisions of WWII.

By the way, reviewer mcl173 "Mike" was wrong when he said the book made an error on page 12.The tank pictured IS a panzer III.If he had bothered to read to page 44 of the book, he would have discovered that the tank is a Panzer III Ausf D1, which had eight road wheels.

great illistrations
love this book. i am not a modeler but i love the illistrations. a must for any ww2 history buff.

Good Idea - Wrong Title
Wehrmacht DOES NOT equal the German Army.Literally translated it means: "defend/defense make."For native English speakers it means: "Armed Forces."

Heer equals German ARMY and is a BRANCH of the Wehrmacht.The Waffen SS was also a branch (de facto) of the Wehrmacht, along with the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe.

Granted, the book does have nice eye candy and useful basic information.Then again, some of that information is outdated or simply wrong.Example: The introduction claims that "Panzer Division Organization" for "1944" contained 17-22 tanks per company (Kompanie), with four companies per battalion/detachment (Abteilung).
What is not pointed out, is that this was THEORETICAL for ELITE units (i.e. Grossdeutschland, Panzer Lehr, several SS, etc.).It does NOT apply to the units covered in this title.

Another example is the caption on page 12.It identifies the tank as a Pz.III, it's actually a Pz.IV.Look at the road wheels; a Pz.III has six, a Pz.IV has eight...

The complete list of errors are too numerous to detail here.The shoddy research brings into question how accurate the book really is. Thus, my low review rating.There are better books, booklets, and web sites out there (e.g. see W.J.K. Davies, "German Army Handbook 1939-45").

As always though, the choice to make mistakes are yours... ... Read more

Product Description
This honest, unflinching narrative presents the personal stories of the 25th Infantry--the division that inspired Oliver Stone's film, Platoon. Bergerud contends that the Vietnam War was lost in the field, where divisions like the 25th Infantry were obliged to fight in massive, expensive, and seemingly pointless campaigns against a stubborn, resilient enemy. Photos. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

hagiography, worth reading in combination with other works
Reading Red Thunder, Tropic Lightning brought me back to the feeling I had in High School upon reading a book simply titled "Nam."I suppose that my fascinations to buy and read that book stemmed from the fact that my friends' fathers and friends of my parents' sons had gone to Vietnam and yet none of them really talked about it when they returned... even when asked.

One of my friends' fathers told only one story, that of patrolling in the forest and the `Three Step Snake.'If it bit you, you would be dead in three steps.His telling only of the flora and fauna of Vietnam left me wondering what had happened in Vietnam.I had become interested in history as a child through military history.But Vietnam was almost so close to me that I could touch it.I saw it on the nightly news, as well as the local SF Bay Area protests.I had watched the last helicopter leave from the US embassy on the news.So what about three step snakes.What about the people I wondered... I also wondered how `we lost' and bought a book describing various sequences of battle but the men I met or knew never talked about it.

Eric Bergerud's book tells that story from the position of the 25th Infantry Men's perspective.The use of both officers and enlisted is appreciated.Though Sheehan's book is well written, I grew annoyed at his failure to give the names of the NCOs that supported Vann and his intel and ops officers.That neglect seems to perpetuates the thinking that somehow they are less qualified to comment... OK for fodder, not worth remembering their names and their sacrifices. Bergerud not only counters such a notion, but embraces the enlisted man's view.

The way in which the book structures similar experiences gives one a deep sense of appreciation for these Soldiers (hopefully regardless of one's personal position on the Vietnam War.)These are not men telling triumphalist embellishments, or `there I was' stories.Though Platoon was based on a real attack, there are some things a film of Platoon's sweep cannot convey.Some of the things that film can't always do even with a narration are like the feeling a soldier has.The GI's telling of the lack of comprehension of what was going on didn't mean they didn't sense that they were being used.But his recollection of the Colonel's speech about being rewarded and decorated only becomes clear after the fact.They had been the bait.(Bergerud, 154.)The Soldier does not go on to mention however, that the awards and decorations for many that stood in that formation listening to the colonel's speech would only be awarded and decorated posthumously.

In light of this speech by the colonel, the scene of vets at anti-war rallies in Washington DC throwing their medals back with looks of anger, anguish, bitterness, and despair resonates at an even deeper level.However, as strategy goes, the tethered goat tactic was successful.In many ways, the crucified Elias character in Platoon was the only way the film could represent the potential sacrificial victims.

I also appreciated the highlighting of the petty parochialism of the units that made up the 25th Division.The artillery units' shooing of the infantrymen from their water buffalo (The water tank truck) is completely real.It is also understandable that the infantry are somewhat dismissive of the comparatively easy life led by the Air Force units (see 173.)Of course at least within the 25th Division these units' parochial tendencies evaporate immediately after the attack on `Burt' establishes the bond of brotherhood. (This attack is at the end of the movie "Platton".)

One preference I would have had would have been that Mr. Bergerud designated the rank of the Soldiers at the time that their stories pertain to.He does usually do the formal citing of retired officer ranks, but there seem to be many of the enlisted whose ranks are never mentioned other than a Sergeant here and there. I also believe there was room for some analysis.

The portions speaking to the lack of career NCOs and the decline of discipline is also worth highlighting.As the Soldier who observed the phenomenon noted, many of the instantly promoted men were fine leaders in combat, but the absolute breakdown in military discipline and an increase in unacceptable behavior rose sharply until the final pull out of US forces.

Bergerud's perspective on Tet was also worth reading as it challenged my notion of what had happened.In retrospect, though I believe American war planners in the Pentagon were mad with blood lust, and like their presidential aministrations, they couldn't conceive of the possibility of defeat.Yet it seems that the Tet truly had sapped the fighting strength of the Popular Front forces.In that light, it seems that the idea of a weakened VC as turning into a victory could be understood.One hears Colonel Mathieu's voice (Battle of Algiers) coming through the soldier discussing the `no-fire zone.' Mathieu tells about how he had requested a `free hand' in Algeria but was denied.Oliver Stone served in the 25th Infantry Division.Stone's character, SSGT Barnes, also complained of those in Washington "trying to win this war with one hand tied to their balls" as soldiers of the 25th sustained fire but had to wait for permission to return fire into that `no-fire zone' around Saigon. (Bergerud, 172.)These voices are those of soldiers.They couldn't know that even if the VC's war fighting ability had been greatly reduced, the people were still not inclined to support the corrupt Saigon government, just as the Algerian people no longer wanted the French even though the NLF cells had been crushed. (See the movie Battle of Algiers.)

If Marilyn Young's book "The Vietnam Wars" provides an overview of historical factors and policies and politics, we see America's involvement in Vietnam through her work at 30,000 feet.Neil Sheehan's book "Bright Shining Lie" with its histories and examination though the life of John Paul Vann gives us a Helicopter view at 2,000 feet.Bergerud's work is on the ground where the American Soldiers fought and died (and for some it was worse, to survive, with all its horror.)

If you like childish assumptions...
If you read lots of military history, read this:
If you read this book, only read if for the EDITED and not ORIGINAL quotes of veterans. Bergerud made an attempt to simplify the book for the casual reader, which was probably not the best idea. The average reader does not read history, and the odds are that everyone who bought this book knew quite well what an APC is. Also, Bergerud makes ... comments like "THE TROPIC LIGHTNING DIVISION WAS THE BEST DIVISION IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD!!!". Not quite that extreme, but, it verges on that level. I mean no offense to the Tropic Lightning Division, as I regard them with the utmost respect, as I do for every veteran. My intention is to illustrate the author's seemingly sophmoric writing style.

Well-written accurate and moving
I was there too (June 68 to Junre 69), so let me add my voice to that chorus.In addition, this book is very well-written and a pleasure to read.There has been more nonsense written about Vietnam than the next 10 subjects combined; this book is a good start toward an antidote to all those years of lies.Vietnam veterans will love it.Non-veterans looking for the truth will find it fascinating and enlightening.Strong recommended.

A Superb Piece of Research
Although I never served in Vietnam, I was an 11B in the 25th from 12/72-9/74.I served in the Army six years, so I have a good sense of what sounds right and what does not. It is clear to me that Mr. Bergerud put together a well researched product that does a fine job in explaining to me the reader what life in the 25th must have been like in Vietnam.It is the only book I have come across that is Tropic Lightning specific.This book gave me a connection to those guys who served before me.

From one who was there
I served with the 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam--the unit which is the subject of Red Thunder, Tropic Lightning. I have read over a hundred books about Vietnam, but was really impressed with this work. Dr. Bergerud andhis oral contributors, one of whom was in my squad, tell it the way it was.I've read other books by Eric Bergerud and consider him a meticulousresearcher and brilliant historian.I believe the 25th Infantry DivisionAssociation, who recently honored Dr. Bergerud with their Stanley R. LarsenAward for his efforts on this book and his portrayal of the "TropicLightning" (25th) division, speaks louder than the "reader fromVA". I'd highly recommend this book to anyone interested in what itwas really like to be an infantryman in Vietnam. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Solid history of the British 78th infantry division in WW2
This is a good history of the British 78th (Battleaxe) infantry division in WW2. My only genuine complaint about the book is that it seems to have become a requirment of military histories to have bad maps. Given the mountain terrain that the 78th fought over in Tunisia, Sicily and Italy, this is especially frustrating as the author consistantly reinforces the the problems posed by an enemy holding higher ground, so the 'broad brush' approach of the maps is not appropriate. That said, this is a very good divisional history. Perspective is given from both the brigade and divisional level to see the 'top down' perspective of battle problems, but also from the perspective of the battalions involved, and how they approached each battle, and deployed their companies and reserves.

Without commenting directly on it, the fluidity of the British system whereby battalions and brigades are individual units that can be assigned to a particular problem or reassigned to a different command comes through clearly. So do the problems of 'seniority' whereby the Guards brigade originally assigned to the division has to be reassigned. The problems here are not gone into, but frankly it does not reflect well on anyone that pride appears to have meant more to some people than professionalism. Thus, after the appointment of a 'junior' brigadier to command the division, the Guards brigade (with its 'senior', and 'overlooked' commander) must be removed from the division.

The narrative is interspersed with commentary from the soldiers of the 78th, and this is invaluable to later readers to get some idea of what the soldiers were going through. The courage, the fear, the 'near misses' and the survivors of the disasters all have their voice.

Not surprising the book starts slowly, but as the division moves into Sicily it becomes engaging reading.

The book only occassionaly steps back to look at the larger picture of campaigns to see where other allied forces may be, and while some readers may have a problem with this, I do not, the book has one division as its focus and does an excellent job maintaining it.

Overall, this book is to be recommended to readers with an especial interest in the British 78th division, but also to those with either an interest in the Scilian and Italian campaigns or the British forces in Italy and Sicily. ... Read more

Product Description
For many people, the very image of Blitzkrieg is of massed columns of tanks sweeping through Europe, smashing all resistance and leaving a trail of devastation in their wake. Indeed, it was the Panzers' achievements in battle that were largely responsible for Germany's early run of success in the Second World War and, once the tide of war began to turn against the Reich, the Panzers subsequently became the backbone of its defence. The dramatic story of Hitler's tank divisions is brought to life in this authoritative narrative. Panzerkrieg vividly describes the evolution, exploits and eventual destruction of this superlative fighting force in immensely readable fashion. Particularly accessible to the general reader who wants to know more about Germany's Second World War tank forces, the authors dispense with technical jargon and pedantic detail to give a comprehensive overview of all aspects of the subject, both human and technical. The book gives particular emphasis to the men who fought in and led the Panzer divisions: great generals like Guderian, Rommel and Manstein, tank masters like Wittmann and Bake, and inspired commanders like Balck and Bayerlein.The whole vast canvas of the war emerges from this narrative, as it follows the titanic struggles which ranged between the bocage country of France, the desert wastes of North Africa, and the limitless steppes of Russia. The evolution of German fighting vehicles and tactics is fully charted, and the many myths, fallacies and misconceptions that have grown up around the Panzerwaffe are exploded. Extensive research, reference to the memoirs of the leading participants, and original new conclusions all contribute to a comprehensive account that critically examines the achievements, failures, and ultimate legacy of the Panzer divisions.The key features of the book include: the secret pre-war birth and development of the Panzerwaffe; the lightning campaigns in Poland and France; the four bloody years of the Russian campaign, the greatest clash of arms the world has ever seen; the exploits of Rommel and his Africa Corps Hitler's increasingly disastrous influence on the Panzerwaffe; disputes between the Panzer officers and their High Command Portraits of the Panzerwaffe's leaders; detailed analysis of the great tank battles such as Kursk and the Battle of the Bulge, with clear maps; comparative rank and organizational charts; information on the technical evolution of Germany's armoured fighting vehicles, including the development of the mighty Tigers and Panthers; unique sections on uniforms, crew functions and how German tanks were built Rare coverage of how the Panzer leaders fared after the war; and the legacy of the Panzers. ... Read more

Product Description
While headline writers in the ETO were naturally focused on events in Normandy and the Bulge in the north, equally ferocious combats were taking place in southern France and Germany during 1944-45, which are now finally getting their due. The US 14th Armored Division-a late arrival to the theater-was thrust into intense combat almost the minute it arrived in Europe, as the Germans remained determined to defend their southern flank.Like other US formations, the 14th AD, after advancing through France against intermittent opposition, was hammered to a standstill at the Westwall in the fall of 1944. Nevertheless, it had gained experience, and when the Germans sought to turn the tide, with Operation Northwind, they found a hardened formation against them. This book explores in detail what happened in the month of January 1945 in the snow-covered Vosges Mountains, when the Wehrmacht's attempt to destroy the Sixth Army Group failed. Northwind began in the mountains but was extended onto the plains of Alsace very near the Rhine River. A strategic withdrawal after a hellish ten days of fiery combat allowed the Allies to hold the line until a spring offensive. The dreadful cold and the conflagration of battle took a toll on both sides, but by now the 14th and the other American divisions felt the heat of battle in their hearts and knew what had to be done to defeat a wily enemy. But the Siegfried Line still loomed in front to American forces, and in the sector of the 14th, the divisions literally exploded their way through it in March at Steinfeld, and began to propel the Wehrmacht into a retreat from which it could never recover. Armored columns kept punching their way through roadblock after roadblock in town after town with powerful artillery and air concentrations that never gave the German soldiers a chance to respond. As a result of the rapid advance of Seventh Army and the 14th, German POW camps like the ones at Hammelburg and Moosburg were liberated of over 100,000 prisoners, an achievement which gave the division the nom de guerre "The Liberators." Timothy O'Keeffe, a Professor Emeritus from Southern Connecticut State College, had a brother-in-law who lost a leg while serving with the "Liberators," and thus has devoted years of effort to unveiling the crucial, yet heretofore unwritten, role that they played in the ultimate Allied victory. ... Read more

Product Description
Fun practice!
Practicing skills has never been so easy! This ready-to-use resource includes more than 40 fun practice pages. The simple directions and fun exercises make them perfect for kids to use independently in school or as homework. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great supplements
AS a special ed inclusion teacher I need to find "extra" or "different" work than what the general ed teacher provides and this workbook has been perfect!

good basic math book
OKAY so this is a good workbook for fourth grade basic math. I am not sure that you could consider it a stand a lone book for home schooling as I use it with several other books, but I find the pages helpful and colorful. ... Read more

Product Description
This book teaches and reviews important multiplication and division concepts with which many children need extra help. Practice exercises cover the basic steps in solving equations and include multiplying and dividing multiple-digit numbers, solving problems with money, solving story problems, and more! ... Read more