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Review Date: 8/8/2013
Helpful Score: 1
This series could best be described as "Kim Possible" in Japanese-style manga form and with a cuter school uniform. This is not surprising as the husband-wife authors also wrote for the Disney series. There's nothing wrong with this, as the story is funny and contains the standard mixture of high school girl with hangups, but who is also a secret agent type with neat weapons and ninja moves! There are a few difference as Luna was created in a test tube by yet another secret government agency (no wonder we have a budget crisis!) Her (fake) parents are a workaholic trainer and a laid back feel-good research scientist. Don't expect anything radical, just good clean fun (no fan service here), action and teenage humor!
Review Date: 7/29/2014
Teenage ninja girl Luna continues with her adventures as she fights attempts by an evil scientist working as a teacher undercover at her school. As in the first volume, there's frustration, humor, ninja moves, with some romance added for both Luna and, perhaps, her "mother." (Luna calls her 'Control,' which as strange a name as you can get!) As always, it's good clean fun, with just a hint of danger.
Review Date: 4/25/2014
If you like guns, really BIG guns, such as howitzers, artillery and railroad guns, here's your book!
Ian Hogg is the Master of all things that shoot loudly; a British artillery expert, veteran of the Royal Artillery, and a great story teller. He not only knows just about everything there is to know about shot, shell, barrels, carriages and such; he probably fired just about every weapon mentioned in his book.
Although this small book from the Ballantine Military Series covers large guns of World War II in very good detail, it is far from dry and overly technical. Mr. Hogg has written countless books on military weapons and he has a delightful dry British wit that makes you feel like you're reading something by P. G. Wodehouse. Hogg also takes no sides and passes out praises and brickbats to all countries products and gives credit where he feels it belongs.
Of course, this is a book about weapons of war and not everyone's favorite topic, but if you need a short and accurate summary of the artillery of World War II; you can't do any better!
Ian Hogg is the Master of all things that shoot loudly; a British artillery expert, veteran of the Royal Artillery, and a great story teller. He not only knows just about everything there is to know about shot, shell, barrels, carriages and such; he probably fired just about every weapon mentioned in his book.
Although this small book from the Ballantine Military Series covers large guns of World War II in very good detail, it is far from dry and overly technical. Mr. Hogg has written countless books on military weapons and he has a delightful dry British wit that makes you feel like you're reading something by P. G. Wodehouse. Hogg also takes no sides and passes out praises and brickbats to all countries products and gives credit where he feels it belongs.
Of course, this is a book about weapons of war and not everyone's favorite topic, but if you need a short and accurate summary of the artillery of World War II; you can't do any better!
Review Date: 12/7/2013
Many books written on specific aircraft types tend to be little more that "hero worship" essays that appear to be written by the company's public affairs department. In them, the design had no faults and, if it was used in combat, nearly won the war single-handed.
Fortunately, this study of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier, which includes the US McDonnell Douglas AV-8 version, manages to maintain some degree neutrality, even though the author's love for the aircraft is very obvious.
The book contains a good number of statistics, specifications, photographs, and much information on the development, production, testing, service introduction and peacetime and combat operations.
The Harrier was truly an amazing and unique design and when operated within it capabilities, was an incredibly effective air-to-ground and air-to-air weapon system. The author does discuss the the design's limitations and early problems. The major problem was the massive Pegasus engine that provided vertical lift and forward momentum. Although a marvel of engineering, it took up most most of the space in the small airframe and was very thirsty. With little room for fuel and avionics internally, extending range and adding additional electronics involved creative weight and balance changes and also meant that many items were mounted externally.
Nonetheless, the British and American engineers worked to keep the aircraft current, such as using new composites to save weight on the new larger wings used on the Harrier II model. Plus,the British and American services (the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and US Marine Corps) fine tuned the Harrier into an aircraft that more than met it design specifications.
Mr. Nordeen did a good job of telling the Harrier's story without too much 'cheerleading.'
Fortunately, this study of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier, which includes the US McDonnell Douglas AV-8 version, manages to maintain some degree neutrality, even though the author's love for the aircraft is very obvious.
The book contains a good number of statistics, specifications, photographs, and much information on the development, production, testing, service introduction and peacetime and combat operations.
The Harrier was truly an amazing and unique design and when operated within it capabilities, was an incredibly effective air-to-ground and air-to-air weapon system. The author does discuss the the design's limitations and early problems. The major problem was the massive Pegasus engine that provided vertical lift and forward momentum. Although a marvel of engineering, it took up most most of the space in the small airframe and was very thirsty. With little room for fuel and avionics internally, extending range and adding additional electronics involved creative weight and balance changes and also meant that many items were mounted externally.
Nonetheless, the British and American engineers worked to keep the aircraft current, such as using new composites to save weight on the new larger wings used on the Harrier II model. Plus,the British and American services (the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and US Marine Corps) fine tuned the Harrier into an aircraft that more than met it design specifications.
Mr. Nordeen did a good job of telling the Harrier's story without too much 'cheerleading.'
Review Date: 12/31/2013
Helpful Score: 1
A well written and illustrated guide to the primary combat aircraft used by the major participants of World War II. It contains historical summaries and development for each aircraft included, plus many photographs and color images, and overviews of their combat record. The major players are all represented, including the main fighter, bomber and reconnaissance types of the USAF, USN, German Luftwaffe, Italian Regia Aeronautica, Imperial Japanese Navy and Army and the air units of Soviet Union. Bill Gunston is a respected and prolific military aviation historian that can also write a book that is both interesting and educational.
In short, it's a valuable reference guide that is also is a 'good read'.
In short, it's a valuable reference guide that is also is a 'good read'.
Review Date: 8/4/2012
A good introduction to the humorous world of spoiled English youth of the 1920s, as created by P D Wodehouse. Bernie Wooster and his 'gentleman's gentleman,' Jeeves are easily the most famous residents of this strange world, with Wooster getting in trouble of some sort and Jeeves stepping in to save the day. A great read!
Review Date: 6/25/2020
A brief, but detailed, summary of the organization, aircraft, tactics and operations of the Eighth Air Force Fighter Command from its creation in 1942 until the end og the War in Europe. Although it does not contain all of the details of missions and aircraft as covered by the Rodger Freeman series, it does provide a strong and unbiased account using not only historical records, but also personal narratives and interviews of the pilots, leaders and support personnel. The selection of photographs and technical data of the various fighter aircraft add to the publication. A detailed bibliography also helps.
Review Date: 11/19/2016
Helpful Score: 1
A generally well written overview of the airwar over the skies of Southeast Asia from 1965 to 1973 from the prospective of the US Navy, plus the US Marine Corps and Coast Guard as well.
Due to its size, it cannot be considered complete, yet the authors do a very good job of covering the key events, missions, aircraft and ships as they fought a very frustrating and difficult war against a crafty and dedicated enemy in the air and the ground.
It is a very good starting point and overview of the actions of the F-8 and F-4 fighters, A-1, A-4, A-6 and A-7 attack aircraft, plus the various support aircraft such as reconnaissance, electronic counter measures, airborne early warning and support helicopters.
Due to its size, it cannot be considered complete, yet the authors do a very good job of covering the key events, missions, aircraft and ships as they fought a very frustrating and difficult war against a crafty and dedicated enemy in the air and the ground.
It is a very good starting point and overview of the actions of the F-8 and F-4 fighters, A-1, A-4, A-6 and A-7 attack aircraft, plus the various support aircraft such as reconnaissance, electronic counter measures, airborne early warning and support helicopters.
Review Date: 4/27/2014
If you like romance. humor and classical music, this is the series for you! Produced in both manga, anime and even live-action movie, "Nodame Cantabile" covers charming, dramatic and sometimes hilarious activities of a strange, but serious, group of university students at a prestigious Japanese college for classical music.
Nodame is the main female character and a real hybrid of personality quirks, massive eating skills, sickening personal habits, but yet a talented pianist. The main problem is that she's totally unpredictable (and a slob!) Chiaki is ultra-serious, ultra vain, extremely talented, hot-tempered, and so handsome that there is always a background harem watching him from afar in adoration. The smart ones don't get closer because he shoots them all down in flames with his temper and nasty personality. He wishes to return to Vienna and become a conductor, but is afraid of flying!
The story is much more complex than expected and the large cast of supporting characters keep the plot going in multiple directions, usually with great humor and drama.
The only downside of the manga verses the anime and movie is the lack of music, which adds so much to the story!
Nodame is the main female character and a real hybrid of personality quirks, massive eating skills, sickening personal habits, but yet a talented pianist. The main problem is that she's totally unpredictable (and a slob!) Chiaki is ultra-serious, ultra vain, extremely talented, hot-tempered, and so handsome that there is always a background harem watching him from afar in adoration. The smart ones don't get closer because he shoots them all down in flames with his temper and nasty personality. He wishes to return to Vienna and become a conductor, but is afraid of flying!
The story is much more complex than expected and the large cast of supporting characters keep the plot going in multiple directions, usually with great humor and drama.
The only downside of the manga verses the anime and movie is the lack of music, which adds so much to the story!
Review Date: 9/11/2016
An excellent study of the greatest aerial military disaster! Much has been written about the large aerial losses during certain World war II battles, especially during the Battle of Midway, the low level B-24 raid on Ploesti and the "Black Thursday," the attacks by the US Eighth Air Force against Schweinfurt and Regensburg, but the RAF Bomber Command raid against Nuremburg during the night of 30-31 March 1944 produced the highest number of aerial aircraft losses in a single mission; over 100 British heavy bombers. The author goes into great detail on the reasons for such high losses on what should have been a routine bombing mission, pointing out that the disaster was caused by a combination of poor weather forecasting, bad judgement in planning, and, mostly, the superior aerial defenses of the Luftwaffe night fighter forces, using improved tactics and weapons, including the capability to locate British aircraft by their own radar emmisions. Their other 'secret weapon' was a simple modification to the armament of the night fighters by which two cannons were mounted in the center of the aircraft at an angle which allowed the pilot to fly under the bombers in its blind spot and fire directly into its vulnerable fuel tanks and engines. Usually only a few rounds of 20mm cannon shells would send the plane down in flames. The RAF Bomber Command had been suffering high losses to German night fighters for sometime before this mission and earlier raids had losses of over 70 aircraft. Yet, the RAF did little to address the problem. The events of the Nuremburg raid were not, however, caused only by night fighters; the British planners miscalculated the weather believing that the formations would be protected by clouds. The cloud cover disappeared too soon, making the bombers much more visible. The author explains every aspect of the mission, including diversionary raids that did not divert, the complicated flight route which increased vulnerbility, and finally, the fact that, for all of its effort, very few of the RAF bombers were able to locate and bomb the target. Most of the bombs fell in open country, on small towns nearby, and some actually struck Schweinfurt, the subject of earlier USAAF attacks. Bomber losses continued not only over German held territory, but even as damaged aircraft, some will nearly empty fuel tanks and carrying dead or wounded crew, force landed in the English Channel and over Britain, some as they attempted to landed at airfields. But this is more that a cold battlefield analysis, Middlebrook interviewed a significant number of RAF and German participants and included many stories of bravery and professionalism. In the end, the Nuremburg mission, for all of it's losses was just another part of the continuing effort by RAF Bomber Command to destroy German industry and, hopefully, shorten the War. The book includes many maps and photographs, along with statistics. This book is an excellent example of military history written without bias. The actions of the crews involved tell the story best.
Review Date: 2/11/2014
An amusing tale of a 'typical' teen age girl, Nina, with a normal life of grades, crushes and friends. Her traveling father gives her a mysterious crystal and tells her not to expose it to moonlight. She accidentally does so overnight and wakes to find that there are now seven of her and each of the six copies has a different part of her personality. One is shy, flirty, smart, strong and so on. The plot is silly, but watching her (and her clones) go from one crisis and disaster after the other is funny and entertaining. What happens when all seven Ninas go after the same boy? There's a little partial nudity and 'panty shots', but nothing offensive. A fun read!
Review Date: 2/20/2014
This story presents a different spin on the classic country girl goes to school in the big city that is popular with mangas. The main character, Yumi, is a teenage 'magic user,' a special group of people who are born with various kinds of magical powers. In this era, they are required to take certification training before using their magic abilities for hire. High on passion and short on self control, Yumi wants to help people attain their wishes and follow in her mother's footsteps. The first volume introduces Yumi, her surprisingly young male instructor and various clients that she tries to help, with various degrees of success. Her attempt to help a stranger who saved her from an accident leads to her first big error when she 'manufactures' a large sum of cash with her magic!
The art is delicate, the humor is understated and the plot is engaging. For a change, there is almost no nudity, e.g., bath scenes, that some writers believe is required, regardless of the story. The book and anime series follow close together and both are enjoyable.
The art is delicate, the humor is understated and the plot is engaging. For a change, there is almost no nudity, e.g., bath scenes, that some writers believe is required, regardless of the story. The book and anime series follow close together and both are enjoyable.
Review Date: 7/30/2014
Not all romance drama mangas involve middle or high school students. Suppli is a well-written story of a professional woman, 27, with a boy friend she's been dating for seven years. She's a workoholic and very good at what she does, but it usually involves nonstop overtime, poor meals and often sleeping in the office. Her coworkers are just as bad off as she, so they are not surprised when her boy friend politely ends their relationship (she was thinking about doing the same thing, as well.) From there on, the story is about her and her coworkers (she doesn't have time for friends) as they go about their lives, dealing with losses and successes. By the end of the first volume the main character has a possible new love interest and even turned down the approaches of another male coworker. The author doesn't drag down the characters, but doesn't sugar coat their lives, either. There are some great lines about the differences in expectations for men and women in work place, told with a dry humor.
Review Date: 8/1/2012
A cute and entertaining story of two shy people who meet on a train and fall in love. The guy is helped by his unknown allies on his 'loney-hearts' blog.
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