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ON APPEAL

Name: ON APPEAL
Author: Frank M. Coffin
ISBN: 0-393-03582-4

COURTS, LAWYERING, AND JUDGING

by Frank M. Coffin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 28, 1994

A valuable guide, by an insider, into our nation's most important legal institutions.

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Federal appellate judge Coffin (The Ways of a Judge, 1980, etc.) takes the reader on an erudite, informative and witty tour of American appellate courts, those courts that review the legal decisions of trial courts and give litigants a second chance at justice.

Coffin is judge on the United States Court of Appeals, which makes most authoritative decisions on federal legal issues (the U.S. Supreme Court, the only high court in the federal system, hears only a relative handful of cases each year). He does not limit his treatment to this important court, however, but examines the appellate process in both the federal and state systems. After presenting the historical background and present characteristics of the often sharply contrasting English common law and European civil law models, Coffin lays out at length the distinctive elements of American appellate practice. He contrasts the federal and state appellate systems, pointing out both the dominance of state appellate courts (they make 85 to 90 percent of all appellate decisions in this country, he concludes) and the problems that dog them (underfunding, for instance). Insightfully and often humorously, the author treats virtually every other aspect of appellate advocacy and judgeship: the judge's "chambers family,'' including relationships with clerks; the development of an adequate record for appeal; the submission and reading of briefs; the preparation and presentation of oral arguments; the judges' conference, at which the merits of the case are discussed; and the drafting of opinions by the judges. Coffin offers his own thinking on judging appeals and offers suggestions, such as instituting alternative forums for dispute resolution that are aimed at preserving the central role of the appellate court in our rapidly changing society and legal culture.

A valuable guide, by an insider, into our nation's most important legal institutions.

Pub Date: Feb. 28, 1994

ISBN: 0-393-03582-4

Page Count: 352

Publisher: Norton

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1993

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.