Joel LevyBesprekingen

A fairly trite, quick run-through of a pile of conspiracies. Nothing new is presented and there's definitely no depth to any of the entries. Fun to have, but don't go out of your way to get it.

Having just read the companion book about samurais, I knew what to expect with this little book on ninjas: a light but comprehensive overview about the history and and activities of the ninja figure in Japanese history accompanied by various illustrations. I certainly got that, but to be honest, I'm not sure exactly why I don't like this book as much as the samurai book. I think it's because ninja history is so scarce (because the best ninja is the one no one knows about) that any "history book" ends up being a compilation of facts and myths by necessity. In fact, the final chapter is all about controversies caused by the myths surrounding ninjas, including the school of thought that ninjas never even existed in the first place. The end result ends up feeling a little clunky while readers are left skeptical. Is what I just read true or not? It's anyone's guess.

My favorite part of the book is the historical overview of the rise and fall of the ninja, at least to our best guess. Personally, I feel like this grounds the ninja figure because it shows how those in this role operated in the larger socio-political climate of the time, as well as how they would have had to adapt in order to survive (allegedly, of course).

The sections about the training and habits of the ninja were certainly fascinating, and they go a long way from dispelling the mystique that the ninja is a glamorous, super human assassin. Their job is grueling, dangerous, and probably the least glamorous profession in Sengoku-era Japan, especially when compared to their counterparts, the samurai. Honestly, I would have loved a little more in-depth comparison between the two classes because they're set up in opposition to the other, and that dichotomy is just fascinating to me.

This book is not nearly as gory as the samurai book (and it's not that the samurai book was gory so much as it shed light on the gory details of the job). It's approachable, light, and an easy read to pass the weekend or after a long day of work. I recommend this book for anyone who's looking to learn a little more substance about ninjas that's not from a tv show capitalizing on their notoriety.

Fun book. All sorts of "unsolved mysteries" from places, such as Atlantis and Area 51, to people, such as Amelia Earhart and D.B. Cooper, to things such as the Loch Ness monster! Each mystery has three or so pages stating the known facts and then a page on the far-out theories about these things from those silly people who believe in conspiracies, UFOs, Trump, etc. I found it a lot more informative than I expected and did learn a few things. And its always interesting to see what crazy ideas and beliefs are held by some.

Ensayo Cientifico
Rivalidades Cientificas. De Galileo Al Proyecto Genoma Humano / Pd.
Levy, Joel
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La ciencia suele presentarse como una marcha triunfal a L través del tiempo, donde los grandes pensadores y sus revolucionarias ideas y descubrimientos se siguen unos a otros en una progresión ordenada. La verdadera historia, confusa, contradictoria y conflictiva, es un tanto diferente. Desde los argumentos sobre a quién debe atribuirse el mérito de un nuevo descubrimiento a las batallas entre teorías rivales, las disputas expuestas en este libro han afectado de forma importante al curso de la historia científica, estimulando a algunos científicos hacia grandes logros y condenando a otros a la ruina y el olvido. Rivalidades científicas presenta episodios tan notables como el enfrentamiento entre Rosalind Franklin y Maurice Wilkins en la carrera por desentrañar los secretos del ADN, el proceso a Galileo por la Iglesia Católica por haber adoptado la doctrina herética de que la Tierra gira alrededor del Sol y la "guerra de las corrientes" entre Thomas Edison y Nikola Tesla, que incitaron a los partidarios de Edison a electrocutar perros, caballos, asesinos convictos e incluso un elefante en el vano intento por desacreditar el sistema competidor de Tesla de la corriente eléctrica alterna. Desde conflictos épicos a pendencias secundarias, Rivalidades científicas desenmascara la auténtica naturaleza del progreso científico, al demostrar que en su búsqueda por ampliar las fronteras del conocimiento, con mucha frecuencia, los científicos se han creado enemigos. Al descender al lado humano de las historias que se esconden detrás de las ideas, el mundo de la ciencia se muestra pródigo en drama y emoción.

Interesting, but since many of these are largely unknown and close to irrelevant, one wonders about the relevancy of this book, and when each small section ends with the promised info on "How to Join Them" (which I hope no one takes seriously in purchasing this book) and sees that each piece of advice ranges between stand up comic to sarcasm, one wonders whether to place any credence in any information in the book at all, ie, is there anything remotely truthful or accurate in many of these alleged histories? I found the book to be more of an annoyance or perhaps an amusement for children, similar to various fairy tales, in its treatment of real, rumored and fantasized organizations. If one is truly curious about some of these alleged secret societies, one is better served by more serious resources.

Great answers to all those nagging questions like "why is the sky blue?" and "why is blood red?" Includes an appendix with websites to consult and books for future reading.

While an interesting book about military history, it rapidly becomes mired in the details of specific makes or models of weapons and looses sight of the broader ideas and developments that make it such an interesting concept.½

Great quick review of world history....

3.5 Stars

A great book for children who have a curious nature or who enjoy science. Some of the content is interesting and I learned a few things myself.

Good questions and chapters such as

Why is the Universe Expanding?
Why does the wind blow?
Why does Iron Rust?
Why does water freeze?
Why do things burn?

There a few odd questions that don't seem to belong in a science book though, especially "Why are babies and puppies seen as universally cute?"

There's this weird bit thrown in there too:

"Cute babies get more attention and are more likely to be looked after. Babies with tiny eyes, flat foreheads, and square faces unfortunately tend to get less attention."

I took off a star s the nonfiction book opens with a bible quote of all things, and then disagrees with it. The scripture it uses isn't even talking about not questioning things of science necessarily, is taken out of context, and the book quotes it without listing the scripture it's quoting from. It seems in poor taste to me.

It also makes clear that in the chapter on the greenhouse effect that if we continue at our current rate, the earth will not be inhabitable in a few centuries. It does not put in beyond this that it is very unlikely we would continue with the same usage, since very likely we will not be as dependent on the same fuel sources as heavily for the next hundred years.

Questions range from easy and clear such as Why do Apples Fall down, to more complex ones like "Why does E=mc2?" (I can't do the right 2 symbol on here...)

The book is divided into three segments - Nature and the Earth, The Human Body and Mind, Physics and Space.

Not perfect, but a good gift for young scientists and children if you run into it, especially with Christmas around the corner.

It's a useful book, though I'm not sure how much I trust its contents. It's pretty to look at too.½

WHY? ANSWERS TO EVERYDAY SCIENTIFIC QUESTIONS by Joel Levy is a very interesting Young Adult non-fiction/Science & Nature/General from start to finish. Age: 12+,grade level: 7+. With questions such as: Why is water wet?,Why My Cell Phone loses its signal?,Why is the sky blue?, Why can we not eat grass? These are only a few questions you will find simple, concise,straightforward answers to. The Q&A range from the ordinary to difficult and from various subjects such as geology,chemistry,geography,biology, physics,meteorology,paleontology, and planetary science, I may have missed one or two subjects. This, to me was an outstanding,well thought out, title with a few fun tidbits included,some trivia and explanations. I had forgotten so much from school. This is an excellent resource for not only parents, and grandparents but for educators as well as anyone who enjoys answers to obvious questions you ever thought to ask. Loved it! Highly recommend this title! It has over 50 questions and answers packed into a little over 180 pages. It has the question,the answer with an explanation after each question. Powerful and enjoyable! Received for an honest review from the publisher.

RATING: 5

HEAT RATING: NONE(NON-FICTION)

REVIEWED BY: AprilR, Review courtesy of My Book Addiction and More

For the format being largely illustrative, there was a very good amount of detail contained in the text. Well laid out from a timeline perspective as well. The book was a general biography without having a focus on one necessarily one particular aspect of his life; and as such didn't really bring in any new material that hasn't been previously produced. That being said, I would have chosen this book over several of the other general biographies as my first biography read on Newton.

Great little pocket reference book full of great, general information. Also useful for when students claim they've done all of their work but have "nothing" else to do. They either get interested and are learning in spite of themselves, or they suddenly "remember" they have work to do. A great reference for students to have on hand!

Pretty good histories of random everyday things. Good trivia!

I picked this book up as a gift for a relative and decided to give it a read before it disappeared into the all consuming black hole that is commonly known as a “teenager’s room”. I’m glad I did, this is a interesting light read on the history of the ninja. It covers from before the time of the first ninjas to the last recorded ninja mission in the 1800’s. It’s written in easy to understand language and does not get bogged down in the details of each section. Each section is pretty through on hitting the important parts of what it is covering and sometimes directing the reader to where they can get more information. If you are getting this for a child / teenager who is interested or may become interested in the subject there is a short bibliography in the back of the book for more information. On a side note it’s not really a long book, half of the pages have a picture of some sort on them, usually showing what the opposite page is describing. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in the history of ninjas (child or adult) and to those looking for a place to start on learning about it. M.a.c

Brief accounts of some more-or-less mysterious facts and places of history.

recycled. didn't read.

From the mountain-top citadel of Peru's Machu Picchu, shrouded in cloud, to the forgotten splendour of Persepolis, Iran, seat of a long-vanished kingdom, Lost Cities surveys the world's most evocative abandoned settlements.
The 28 cities in this book are some of the most inspiring places in history -- the near-mythical cities of Babylon and Troy are home to world-famous legends, while others, such as Harappa in the Indus Valley of Pakistan, had been all but forgotten before their discovery, and existed only in the hazy tales of local folklore. While cities such as Alexandria or the beautiful rose-hued Petra were home to some of the world's greatest civilizations and empires, others, including Mexico's Chichen Itza, remain cloaked in mystery, with strange petroglyphs and carvings hinting at a complex culture that, to this day, we know little about.
From religion to government, food to art, alliances to enemies, Joel Levy discusses the lives of the people who inhabited these metropolises, the reasons for the cities' founding and, eventually, their subsequent abandonment.
Beautiful and fascinating, Lost Cities brings forgotten worlds to life.