One of if not the greatest, most creative
358724
One of if not the greatest, most creative, and talented Fantasy writers I have ever read in my 33 years of reading the genre.
456709
It is fresh, it is original, and the concepts work.
You will not find old beaten tracks, and plots as old as time.
The writer's voice is clear, easy to follow, and the flow of the work considered from start to finish.
Personally I loved it, and would recommend it to most.

BUT

This is not a work of high brow literary fiction.
In style, and layout, it has more in common with Young Adult works.
Most of the themes, and the style, would probably be more palpable for late teen readers.

I already recommended this book to some of my friend's children, who loved it, and most of the parents ended up reading it too, who also loved it. So do not see the lack of heavy literary language as something to detract you from a great yarn.
If it does, please burn all your Jim Grant(Lee Child) books as well.

Now, if only I could win the lottery, I will buy the rights to produce it into a great TV series.
2330485
RICK JAmes has always been a Great Musicial Genius. His Music Is Funky but also has many other Textures too it as well. His Work Blends So Many Styles all at once but yet he has his own Style&Sound. You&I,Cold  Blooded&Dream Maker are some of the many Great Songs here from this  Great Writer,Producer,Musician&Vocalist. He can Groove on any Style. Very  Essential.
4646226
This was one of the best,if not the best. Didn't know the outcome until the end. Child's is a great writer.
443909
Exquisite; a masterpiece. Wynton has done something great for jazz here. Unfortunately, nostalgia for and festishization of the legends of the '20s-60s will probably not permit it to be placed among the greatest of the  great jazz works but it should be. Also unfortunately, the politicization  of his image (due to him, his allies, and his critics) will affect one's  impression of the album.
Originality, vitality, innovation perfectly  enmeshed with an awareness of jazz's past. Too bad that his other albums  can't match this one in terms of combining momementum, passinon,  creativity, theme and structure.
If you are going to get one album by  Marsalis, then get this one. It is a mindblowing experience. I enjoy other  albums by Wynton but I can't characterize any of them as being  "mindblowing" like I can this one.
2649528
This book became an instant favorite with me because of Lewis' amazing originality and thought-provoking ideas. Though many of the scenarios are, by his own admission, not truly his views of heaven and hell, they remain excellent and creative ways of causing the reader to evaluate other ideas and concepts. Lewis' creativity shines through in this little book more than any of his other books.
1703044
I have read many, many, books over the many years and must say that this is, in my regards, one of the better, if not the best, of those I have had the pleasure of reading. My advise to the author....keep up the fine work, only make them longer!
502270
Most great art is misunderstood to some extent, and anyone (other than perhaps Peter Gabriel) who claims to fully understand this epic masterpiece (essentially the tale of a schizophrenic man's mythological journey in NYC) is either lying or has a quadruple doctorate in abstract post postmodern deconstructionist linguism. Which is not to say that it's impossible to follow. Just unlikely to fully decipher. Which makes it all the more fun to listen to hundreds of times. Each time feels like a discovery of sorts. The challenging quality of Peter Gabriel's semi-cryptic wordplay, coupled with some of Genesis' most profoundly sweeping and elaborate music ensure that this will remain an enduring classic for generations to come. Not easy to wrap one's mind around at first, but ultimately an addictive collection of well-woven ditties indeed. Those who are familiar with the songs but feel dissatisfied with the sound quality of Phil Collins' masterful drum work on this recording should pick up the suprisingly even more remarkable live version which is contained in its entirety on the first two discs of the Genesis Archive 1967-1975 box set. (Please note that while Gabriel's vocals are a bit better overall on the studio version, the music itself sounds even more dumbfoundingly impressive in the live version, and is well-worth picking up.) I attempted to see The Musical Box (who are licensed by Genesis to perform this work in its entirety, recreating every facet of the equally confounding stage show) perform this in Atlantic City, but a series of unfortunate mishaps (not the least of which was my car bursting into flames at the road's edge thirteen miles from the venue) prevented me from getting there until the show was over. But at least I've got the CDs to listen to countless times. A final note for conspiracy theorists... The main character of Peter Gabriel's story is "Rael". There's a cult called The Raelians who believe that extraterrestrials have been cloning humans. Dolly the sheep was the first known clone on earth. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Coincidence, or is Peter Gabriel an alien clone?
1379730
This novel is one of my five or so favorites, and one of a kind.  I think there is also a case for saying it is one of the best and most original ever written.  It is certainly one of a kind.  Structurally, it has some flaws, but the brilliance of its wit and its unflinching confrontation of harsh realities make it a novel to read and re-read.  I can't think of any modern writer who is prepared to look life so fully in the face, and still laugh.  You will be plunged into Georgian England, and enjoy every vivid minute of Thackery's genius.
2566526
It is kind of hard to rate an album that is as eclectic as Genius is.  I don't like every track, but the ones that I do (which is the vast majority of them) are at the level of greatness that you would expect from Strange Music (those familiar with the label know what I'm talking about).  The album's production is top notch.  Most importantly, Kaliko is one of the most talented individuals ever to be recorded, PERIOD.  Don't sleep on this album!!!
1694420
One of the best, and most talented bands which never received the proper recognition.  If you listen to any current music, you can hear an Erasure sample in about 1/2 of them.  Greatness!
1382832
The prose is skillfully crafted, but one a few occasions it slips a bit. I would call it better than average.

The storyline itself is of higher caliber, as are the themes that it explores.  While it also falls short of OMGMINDBLOWN, it is pretty darn exceptional.  The day-to-day life of a hitman has been done several times, of course, but this is interesting to me in that it's the first time I've seen it approach the day-to-day *inner* life of a hitman. Perhaps that's not so novel, but it's at least it's not another "omg hitman goes to get milk and hilarious violence ensues!"
240658
This is a great CD. Simon Jeffes is a musical genius (heh, that's an understatement :). There are some wonderful songs on this album, such as "Zopf" and "Chartered Flight," however, many of the songs are quite abstract. They could really give a person a headache. And some songs on this CD, like "Penguin Cafe Single" are great, beautiful, and relaxing, but they become abstract somewhere in the middle. If you are planning to by more Penguin Cafe CDs, none of the others are quite as bizzare as this one. But I still highly recomend this CD, for its creativity, originality, and variety. Byeeeeee ^__^
2765132
i truely do adore this album.  im a huge fan of incubus.  and this is by far one of the best.  but you must give credit to them for being so creative and original.
the use of words lyricly and instrumentaly is so catchy.  this is the album that turned me onto them.  And S.C.I.E.N.C.E. is just a wonderful album, but please don't compare it to this... they might be by the same band, but incubus always reinvent their music to stay alive.  I adore Incubus and this album proves why.
Incubus prooved once again what wonderful creativity is. The Warmth is a beautiful song about not letting people get to you with whales in the begining.
930543
I'm a fan of Monty Python's Flying Circus, Saturday Night Live's beter stuff (including the great period in the late 80's/early 90's when Mr. Show's Bob Odenkirk was on the writing staff), SCTV, and Kids In The Hall.  Great shows all.  But this one's even better than those.

If you like intelligent comedy you have to check this show out.  It's not perfect - like all of the above-mentioned shows there are some dull or effete patches.  But it's chock full of genius.  It's a tad edgier and more cutting than most of the above (believe it or not).  It creates its own smart, funny universe and it's a treasure.
2530491
The version of Fables of Faubus is fantastic. Great bass clarinet from Doplhy. It was an incredibly creative period for all of the participants with the secret weapon being the piano playing of Jaki Byard. The history of American music is encapsulated in his solos.
3447321
Zappa worked on this project longer than any other. He got an idea for this in 1967 and taped some conversations. Some of them ended up to Lumpy gravy, but rest of them stayed on the shelfs many years, because technology wasn't advanced enough to finish this project. This work is definately a testament to Zappa's genius like one reviewer pointed. This album is performed almost completely by a synclavier, but it doesn't sound artificial. Actually this one of the greatest  sounding albums I have ever heard. The sound is so relaxed. There are many odd sounds that are not playable with normal instruments and material here is very complex and probably unplayable by humans. What makes this album so interesting is that it is closer to classical music than techno or electronic music. This album tells you a story about a civilization that lives in the piano. The conversations here are continuation of Lumpy gravy and they detract musical pieces. The difference in this time is that they are separate songs. So you can skip them, if you are not interested.

But I found some of the dialogue very interesting and maybe it really means something on a symbolic level. Keep in mind that most of this album is instrumental. The longest tunes are 15 and 18 minutes long and in the best case you can listen nearly 20 minutes of music without any kind of stop. About 2/3 of this album is instrumental. This music can be difficult to understand, if you try to catch every single note. But when you understand what you are listening to it is quite easy. This is  electronic chamber music. It makes your mind  wandering other things and that's not because it's boring. The fact that this music makes your mind flow is really the strongest point of this album. Just close your eyes and be ready to be blown away.

This works well as a background music.

The music here is great and beautiful. Some weird sound effects spice up the things. One track called Waffenspiel is completely a collection of sound effects. You can visualize a war and a dog barking. This was Zappa's life long project and one of his most serious works. It is even occasionally dark and there's not much humour here, except maybe in some dialogues. The music here is rich, textured, unique and relaxing. Only flaw is that the longest dialogue sections last 5 minutes. This is not so inaccessible as some reviewers make it out to be. Maybe not good as a starting point, but highly recommendable.

P.S. N-Lite is one of the most adventurous musical pieces ever.