Gayle

I concur completely with the enthusiastic reviews of this book. It would be a great "read", but the dramatization really does improve the book, bringing out the personalities of the three main narrators. I would call this book "Dickensian" in the best sense of the word.

It is compelling nonfiction - a very interesting look at post Kruschev Soviet/Russian history and the rise of Putin - "the man without a face."

Lenin's Tomb - by David Remnick - a story of post- Lenin Russia. A more comprehensive book than "Man with out a Face." And more compelling, but in the same ilk.

She does adequate characterizations, but the book doesn't require more than adequate. Her voice is a little hoarse and grating at times, but the narration overall is fine.

The book gives another aspect of post-Soviet Russia - and shows how the soviet legacy of power politics and the crushing of dissent have survived the "fall" of the iron curtain.

A very good read for anyone who wishes to see beyond the minimal press coverage of Russia since the 1990's. Also a stark warning to those who see Russia and Russian politics as a benign force to be ignored.

This book is balderdash. Hacked up complaints about capitalism - create a straw man and bravely execute him. If you want to learn something, hear an important argument, find a great insight, I have only one bit of advice - look elsewhere!

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There are those who would shrink from the message in this book - that the Koran is not a religion of peace, that a major theme of Islam is to subjugate all those of a different religion. This book, mostly in tedious way, goes through the Koran in detail. It analyzes the many positions on the Koran, e.g. that sections of it (regarding killing infidels, for example) are read "out of context." It looks at the sections that are contradictory, or that are used to validate the claim that the Koran is just a book of wisdom. The Infide's Guide is somewhat dry and somewhat tedious, as it analyzes the positions and then cites the verses in the book that support or refute these claims.

No one can say that this book is a rant against Islam. That is what makes it so compelling. It is a scholarly, dry, and altogether horrifying look at what the Koran really says. You can't deny it, because the citations are there, and there are many.

This is a must-read for those who want to cut through the rhetoric and conflicting emotional appeals and learn the basic content of the Koran. While the author takes a clear editorial position, the only conclusion that this reader can make is that the editorial bent is driven by a criticial reading of the Koran.

The narration is adequate for the task.