In The Mail

Oct 14 2011

In the mail: Tiger Tanks and Aerosmith

I recently received two books from publishers. Tiger Tank Manual: Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger 1 Ausf.E (SdKfz 181) Model by David Fletcher (published by Zenith Press) delves into the history, development production, and role of the Tiger Tank (the largest and most feared tank of World War II). Here is a brief description of the book from Zenith’s website:

The German Tiger I—officially known as the Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger I Auks. E (Skiffs 181)—was probably the most feared battle tank of World War II. Its invincibility lay in its main gun and heavy defensive armor. The Tiger’s primary armament was the deadly 88mm Kiwi 36 L/56 gun that was the most powerful antitank gun then in use by any army, capable of penetrating 112mm of armor plate from a range of 1400 meters. The Tiger I also had the toughest armor of any German tank—its frontal armor plate measured 100mm thick. Using the successful approach and format adopted for the Spitfire and Lancaster manuals, Tiger Tank Manual gives an insight into acquiring, owning, and operating one of these awesome fighting vehicles. It also gives an idea through personal recollections of what it was like to command a Tiger in war and what it felt like to be on the receiving end of its 88mm gun.

Here is a brief description of the author from the publisher:

David Fletcher is the Tank Museum librarian, prolific author, and a world expert on tanks. He will write the historical part of the manual. Other museum volunteers who have been closely involved in the Tiger 131’s restoration to running order will write the technical element of the manual.

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By Jeff Grim • In The Mail • 0 • Tags: , ,

Jul 14 2011

In the Mail: Quirky, yet kind of neat

I recently received three books on various subjects that are quirky, but kind of neat.

The first book is for engineer types – RMS Titanic Manual: 1909-1912 Olympic Class (Haynes Owners Workshop Manuals) by Richard F. Hutchings and Richard de Kerbrech.  Here is a brief description of the bok from Amazon:

The world famous ocean liner Titanic, which sank on her maiden voyage in1912, is the latest subject to receive the Haynes Manual treatment. With an authoritative text and hundreds of illustrations, see how this leviathan was built, launched, and fitted out. Read about her lavish passenger accommodation. Learn about the captain’s responsibilities, including the operation of a transatlantic liner. Consider the chief engineer’s view—how did he manage the huge engines and other onboard systems? What was it like to operate the luxury ocean liner from the perspective of Titanic’s owner, the White Star line?
The second book also is for engineers – Burt Rutan’s Race to Space: The Magician of Mojave and His Flying Innovations by Dan Linehan.
Here is a brief description of the book from Amazon:

Years ago, Burt Rutan told a reporter for Popular Mechanics, “If we make a courageous decision like the goal and program we kicked off for Apollo in 1961, we will see our children or grandchildren in outposts on other planets.” Legendary science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clark would later recall Rutan’s quote in a piece he wrote about SpaceShipOne and comment, “Fortunately, we need not rely solely on governments for expanding humanity’s presence beyond the Earth.”

Burt Rutan’s Race to Space showcases Rutan’s herculean efforts to do just that. Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum displays his most celebrated achievements, including SpaceShipOne, which won the coveted $10 million Ansari X Prize for private spaceflight; Voyager, which hangs with SpaceShipOne in the Milestones of Flight gallery; the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer; and the VariEze.

His many aerospace innovations preceding his most recently conceived designs, SpaceShipTwo and WhiteKnightTwo, chronicle a progressive, step-by-step attempt to break barriers with engineering know-how and a wondrous imagination, all the while remaining on the forefront of the burgeoning private spaceflight industry.

Rutan’s X Prize triumph and subsequent spacecraft designs are not a beginning, nor an end, but are steps in Burt Rutan’s continuing adventure to expand humanity’s presence beyond the Earth and into space.

The third book is for Cold War afficionados – Survive the Bomb: The Radioactive Citizen’s Guide to Nuclear Survival by Eric G. Swedin.  The description below is from the book’s cover:

Attention, citizens and fellow travelers of the Cold War: Survive the Bomb is your family’s ultimate fallout shelter companion. Keep this book at the ready next to the emergency drinking water and vacuum-packed canned meats and vegetables for that moment when the saber-rattling between the world’s superpowers turns Atomic.

By Jeff Grim • In The Mail • 0

May 9 2011

In the Mail: Queen and Rockabilly

I recently received two books for music aficionados.

The first is about the legendary rock band Queen.  The book is entitled Queen: The Ultimate Illustrated History of the Crown Kings of Rock.  Here is a brief description of the book:

Queen was renowned for electrifying performances, envied for rumors of rock excess, and beloved for music that melded an array of genres. Now available in a nicely priced paperback edition comes the first history befitting this larger-than-life rock band.

Packed with stunning performance and offstage photographs—dozens of them previously unpublished—as well as handbills, posters, backstage passes, tickets, T-shirts, LPs, and singles gathered from around the globe, this is the ultimate visual history for Queen fans everywhere. A history of the band spans the pre-Queen years to current work with Paul Rodgers. Complementing this thorough account are reviews of all studio and live albums; complete tour dates; an extensive discography; reflections on the band and their music from some of rock’s top performers past and present; and exclusive insights from their former crew.

The next book is about a genre of music called rockabilly.  Rockabilly: The Twang Heard “Round the World: The Illustrated History traces this unique genre.

It was the twang heard ’round the world: Rockabilly was born out of country, bluegrass, jazz, and the blues in the 1950s, becoming rock ’n’ roll and ruling the world. Here’s the story of Elvis Presley’s first Sun records that inspired all. And here’s Carl Perkins, Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, and many more rockabillies from the golden years of 1955–1959, in a book chock full of photos, collectible memorabilia, movie posters, rare records, fashion, and rebel lifestyle. Includes contributions from noted music journalists Greil Marcus, Peter Guralnick, Luc Sante, Robert Gordon, and more.

The story continues today, with a rockabilly revival that began with stars, such as the Stray Cats and Robert Gordon, spreading around the globe from Europe to Japan. Today, rockabilly is better than ever, with bands like Rev. Horton Heat and others playing the music and living the life from Memphis to Helsinki to Tokyo. There’s still good rockin’ tonight!

By Jeff Grim • In The Mail • 1 • Tags: ,

May 8 2011

In the Mail: Lumen

Lumen (Captain Martin Bora) by Ben Pastor

Publishers Weekly

Mixing elements of a psychological thriller and an existential meditation, Pastor’s debut follows a German army captain and a Chicago priest as they investigate the death of a nun in Nazi-occupied Poland. Mother Kazimierza’s alleged power to see the future has brought her a devoted following; her motto, “Lumen Christi Adiuva Nos” (“light of Christ, succor us”), gives the novel its title. In October 1939, Captain Martin Bora discovers the abbess shot dead in her convent garden. Father Malecki has come to Cracow at the pope’s bidding, to investigate Mother Kazimierza’s powers. Now the Vatican orders him to stay and assist in the inquiry into her killing. Meanwhile, the Germans are consolidating their hold on their Polish territory, dispossessing farmers, beating civilians and forcing Jews into labor gangs. Though stunned by the violence of the occupation and by the ideology of his colleagues, Bora never deviates from his Prussian duty. After three months, two suicides, much detective work and some speculation about Catholicism and faith, choice and chance, good and evil, Bora and Malecki discover the true story of the abbess’s death, which implicates Bora’s fellow army officers. Pastor’s examination of Bora and his colleagues illuminates the many contradictions of life in the service of a criminal state.
The narrative’s explications of Catholic belief and theology defy readers to reconcile faith, or inner light (lumen) of any kind, with the realities of the Nazi regime. Pastor’s plot is well crafted, her prose sharp, but her novel is meant to be more than light entertainment. She raises again the questions recently posed by Bernhard Schlink‘s The Reader: how can art explore the human side of a victimizer without seeming to forgive the unforgivable? Pastor’s disturbing mix of detection and reflection is a provocative though not definitive answer.

By Kevin Holtsberry • In The Mail • 0 • Tags: , , , ,

May 7 2011

In the Mail: Amazing Crayon Drawing With Lee Hammond

Amazing Crayon Drawing With Lee Hammond: Create Lifelike Portraits, Pets, Landscapes and More

Description

You don’t have to leave your beloved crayons behind when you grow up! Best-selling author Lee Hammond shows you how to create dramatically realistic and lifelike drawings of a variety of subjects using the familiar and beloved medium of wax crayons. You will learn to draw lifelike animals, people, flowers, landscapes and more using simple techniques and colorful step-by-step demonstrations. Lee shows her proven graphing and blending techniques that translate into remarkable drawings; demonstrates the shape and “puzzle piece” theories that can apply to anything you want to draw; and gives plenty of quick tips for achieving lifelike textures and colors using nothing but crayons.

By Kevin Holtsberry • In The Mail • 0 • Tags: , , , ,

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