Titles Books

This is not just a book with simple facts laid out for you it read as a fun look into lives of these real figures in history, Amazing crazy facts of their odd behaviors and wacky ways! Keeps you wanting to turn the page. Written with a great sense of humor.

Let me be honest, I love these types of books, they are so much fun to read. This book is not only interesting on many levels, but the author is also witty and this is a must for a book of this sort. It's incredible to believe people like this existed and ruled countries, though I have a feeling the poor subjects of these nuts didnt find all this so funny.

This book is a very interesting and entertaining look at some of Royalty's weirdest characters

The people in the book range from Chinese Emperors in the 200 BCE's to the mad Roman Emperors about the time of Christ to people like Prince Phillip and Michael Abney-Hastings who people think is the rightful king of England

Anyone who likes books such as "Royal Babylon" by Karl Shaw, or "A Treasury of Royal Scandals" by Michael Farquhar will love this book!

In this remarkable book, fifty royal individuals are briefly profiled, spanning a period from the third century BC to the present day. In these profiles, the author has gone to great pains to focus on these individuals' various types and degrees of weirdness: from having odd but notable quirks to being stark raving mad. But what makes this book so enjoyable is the author's irreverent tongue-in-cheek writing style. On several occasions I found myself laughing out loud at his careful, well-thought-out choice of words and witty descriptions. This book should be of interest to everyone, but especially history buff who are looking for light historical narrative with a most pleasant twist.

This sweet little book has been in my house for more than 20 years. After taking it out from the library a few times, I bought one, and then another when the first copy wore out. A favorite read-over-and-over-over for my now-grown daughter and now my granddaughters. I'm so happy to see this timeless classic is back in print!

This was one of my favorite books when I was a kid, and I eagerly bought a copy when it was reprinted. The little sister has a plain room and yearns to visit her big sister's room, but she's kept out because she always messes it up. One day she reaches the latch and goes in, and her whole family finds out that she hasn't just grown in size, but also in responsibility. The book isn't preachy at all and doesn't use words like caring and responsibility, but that is why the message comes through so clearly and so poetically. Little Jenny imagines a glass cow wants a blade of grass and brings her a thimblefull of fresh grass. Big sister Sarah comes home shocked that her sibling is in her room, but finds the room clean. Jenny can now play in big sister's room anytime.

The story is beautifully written in a rhyming fashion that will appeal to young children, and Sendak's illustrations are, as always, wonderful to look at and also full of expression.

Jen and Sarah are sisters. Jen wants to have a room like her older sister Sarah's. Jen's family thinks that she's too young to care for nice things like dollhouses and wallpaper. One day Jen sneaks into Sarah's room and plays very nicely. Her mother and realize that she is growing up and can take care of nice things. They decide to redo Jen's room!



The book was short but I did like it because it was fun and full of imaganation.
It's great for children of all ages. Especially girls who have sisters. They will be able to relate to the characters in the book.

I read this book as a child and loved it! It's the story of a little girl named Jenny who loves her sister "Sarah's Room".Reading about how she grows and learns in this story touched me so much that even after 20 years it still is my favorite childrens book.I would reccomend this book for any little girl.Praise for Doris Orgel!

Poor Little Jen! She's too little and careless and messy to have a nice room like her big sister Sarah. In fact, she's banned from the room by a lock because she made such a mess out of it. But in a dream, Jen realizes she's grown enough to reach the lock. Later, while awake, she can in fact get inside and plays nicely. When she's discovered, she's praised and she too ends up with a beautiful bedroom of her own.

Maybe it's being a little sister, or perhaps it's Sendak's fantastic artwork or Doris Orgel's sweet rhymes, but this book always intrigued me as a little girl. I identified with Jen and was so happy for her for growing up. I also liked the idea of having a room in such beautiful, Sarah-like shape. Dollhouses all perfectly set up, glass animals on shelves, toys all in their place, wallpaper in pristine condition. I was always a slob and had to share a room, so this was a fantastic fantasy for me.

Children, especially girls, will love this simple and timeless story of sisters and growing up. It's a nice tiny edition that is a lovely gift for a child with a library or book collection. I had searched for it for years and am delighted to have it for my daughter.

A beautifully written novel about love between a white British woman and a black man from Senegal. The two meet in school, and against all odds and family and cultural prejudices, finally marry. When things go wrong deeply held beliefs are challenged and the reader is shown the "other side of the story." Paradoxes are revealed, allowing the reader to think critically about serious issues of race, prejudice, marriage, fidelity, and more.

This novel was recommended by an IB DP English language teacher I work with, and I agree. I highly recommend it for high school (age 16 & up) and university reading lists. Translated from the French.

This is a book club in Boston, MASS-USA of women of color and we focus on books written by "African Female Writers"...... thats how we found ourselves reading Scarlet Song by Mariama Ba... here below is a little synopsis of the book club meeting we had in November 2007.

Since some folks had problems getting the book, we offered a what was intended to be a short synopis - you know ten minutes - well when you get women of color from the diaspora to recap what they read, you will hear editorials, dramatizations and disagreements, that a ten minute synopsis turned into an hour of laughter and a market style conversation.
We all learnt about how our own backgrounds and perception of societal roles influence how we experience the world e.g. some thought that Mirielle did a good job with the meal she was sending her father in-law in an effort to be dutiful daughter in-law..... while quite a number of us did not understand what was going on in her head - like how dare she sends "a piece of chicken" for only her father in-law.... when in actuality he lived in a compound hence he had to send for all. In an African setting your generosity is in quantity not frugality. Yaye Khady was well within her rights to snub at her because for the first time it seemed as if there was a clush of cultures and no clear expectations were outlined. Being that she was the one that was in the foreign land she had to learn the ways of that land and adopt to them rather than the land adopting to her foreign ways. At this point you can clearly see that inspite of Mirielle prior stay in Senegal as a Diplomat's daughter, she experience Senegal through different lenses. Her interaction with the locals left alot to be desired because when she returned she appeared to be clueless about the expectations of the land.

Feminist notions aside ---- All of us were in awe of Ouleymattou's strategy in hooking Ousmane. Girlfriend can be an army general - she has perfect execution and got what she wanted..... and we are all in search of that incense / perfume... read the book to understand the new-found fascination. Our fascination with her was in context of trying to understand what it takes a woman to chase a married man, and a married man to court another woman in instances where polygamy is allowed. So we could not necessary judge her because it was ok in her setting to be a second wife.... as courtship goes its a GAME!

We all agreed that it was just a tragic story - the whole relationship was just naive and it had tragic consequences - I think everybody in the room drew from personal experiences, lessons related to interracial, inter-class, inter-caste --- whatever the social lines are. what needs to be acknowledged in order for things to even remotely work. I was personally enriched by the immerse diversity of opinions that were in the room, how thoughtful and insightful everybody was.

Please dont take this as a book review but just a report back on the discussion we had. As we read more books, I will take the time to do write-ups on the website because I realise that African Female writers are not the MOST explored writers hence any write-up on them would help somebody.

KEEP ON READING

its a wake up call, it was my first book on the subject of interracial marriages I ever read, it sure widened my horizon.

Mariama Ba brings to life the true realities and complexities of interraccial marriage. She writes poignantly and beautifully. She is a master narrator, and will amaze you with her fabulous storytelling. I have read "Scarlet Song" numerous times, and wrote my senoir thesis about this book.

Scarlet song is the story of two lovers, Ousmane Gueye and Mireille De La Valle who are in an interracial relationships. Both set of lovers endured their parental opposition to the relationship with Mireille receiving the raw end of the deal ... her father disowns her after her secret wedding. Unpeturbed by her father's repudiation, she relocates with her husband to his country, Senegal. Unfortunately, their story book romance is unable to withstand some of the traditions and expectations of her inlaws. Her mother inlaw mocks her and calls her a jinee. Ousmane, a weak willed fellow is gradually drawn into his culture, abandons his wife for his once secret crush, Ouleymatou, who had spurned his advances during their teenage years because of Ousmane's devotion to his mom. The two embark on an illicit romance with the approval of their family and a union is produced from the relationship. When Mireille gets wind of the illicit relationship, now legalized by the society, she suffers a breakdown and at the end of the novel, she is about to be deported back to France by the French Embassy.

Scarlet Song is another classic from Mariama Ba. The novel is very deep and intense, the literary qualities is superb, she writes with panache and at the end of the novel, the reader comes out with the conclusion that the narrator of this novel was adept at weaving the story consistently. She would have been a contender for the Nobel Prize for Literature if she was still alive.

Highly Recommended.

The Serenity Principle helped me see addiction from the perspective of one afflicted with the problem, as well as how difficult the road to recovery is. It offers a fresh approach to both situations, as opposed to the tried, and often failed, feel bad in order to feel better. It is a very compassionate and humane approach. I sent copies to some of my friends.

Joseph Bailey did a wonderful service by writing this book which clearly and efficiently discusses how to apply POM to the understanding and treatment of addiction. Highly recommended to professionals and the self-help audience. --Fred P. Gallo, Ph.D., Author of Energy Tapping and Energy Psychology

This is a practical spiritual book no unlike 12 steps it works. I would also encourage people to read An Encounter With A Prophet for a powerful spiritual book that get's you closer to your higher power.

Bailey has presented easy to grasp ideas that really work for the person in recovery. I have used it on both a personal and professional level and would encourage others to do the same.

This book is excellent. You do not have to be recovering from anything for this book to have meaning. Read it several times.

I first came across the book when I was in 6th grade. I had never seen the story illustrated or told in such a way before. The memory has haunted me for nearly seven years now. It will be one to share with my own children.

I read the story as a youngster and I never ever forgot this haunting retelling of the classic fairy tale. I am delighted that the book is back in print so my children will be able to enjoy it in the future. The illustrations are breathtaking! Don't pass this one up!

SO many things to love about this book, this version of Snow White. It's not sanitized, the binding on the inside is a two page spread of a glossy ebony tree, against spellbinding white snow and one stain of red blood - every single image is exquisite, I could describe them all poetically.

As usual the young queen bears a girl and dies, the king remarries a "superlatively beautiful queen", who "also had a proud heart and a greedy, jealous temper".

So the story goes on as usual, but is somehow injected with new Excitement! new Pathos.

Although snow white is supremely silly, and the prince falls in love far too easily, the Dwarves are excellently drawn & written.

Instead of being humorous shovel-totting twats they're just stolid kindly woodsmen who grow fond of poor young SW.

The story is retold very nicely and fresh, but it is the paintings that make this book priceless.

Every single page is a peek into an enchanted world, moody romantic & mysterious.

kotori ojadis@yahoo.com

The cover image stopped me in my tracks at the bookstore, and I bought multiple copies. The young woman at the checkout counter was mesmerized by the image as well. The illustrations inside equal or surpass the one on the cover.

The images are detailed but not fussy. They are highly evocative of German Romanticism -- very moody, dreamy, somewhat melancholy, with an emphasis on the grandeur of Nature. If you enjoy the illustrations of Maurice Sendak, Edward Gorey, Arthur Rackham, et al., you will like this book.

Like Barrett's artwork, Poole's text tells the classic tale soberly, including the queen's botched attempts to strangle Snow White with silken laces and prick her with a poison comb. There is also more mention of Snow White's mother and father than in many retellings. This version is certainly more in line with magical/mystical/matriarchal imagery than Disney's.

Some of the images -- e.g., drops of blood -- and the story itself may be too intense for very young readers. For me, this book is a contemporary gem and is worth seeking out.

Wonderful illustrations, of course, but also the story includes the incidents with the poisoned comb and the suffocating bodice ribbons (left out in many editions). A great book for parents looking to replace the Disney-fied version for their children.

If you like this, also check out the same author/illustrator team's collaboration on "Joan of Arc."

The illustrations are beautiful without being frou-frou, serious without being creepy. Highly recommended for ages 4-8.

This book that is great to give to new families starting out their library. The rythm of this story makes it so fun to read and for the kids to listen to- over and over and over again. Its simple enough for the youngest child to have fun with and fill in the fun sounds, or a life lesson in getting, or not getting, your work done for older kids.

My 7 month old loves this book. His face lights up when he hears the rain "plinka, plinka" and the wind "Wooya, Wooya". He also loves the pictures. I know this will always be one of his favorites.

The talents of the prolific Nancy Van Laan ("In a Circle Long Ago," and many others) and illustrator Yumi Heo ("Sometimes I'm Bombaloo") combine in this cheery retelling of a Brazilian folktale about blackmouth monkeys. The monkeys frolic through the Brazilian rainforest, swinging from vine to vine, and, most importantly, climbing the thorny tall trees:

Still they climb, UP-UP!
And they slide, Down-Down!
They sing, "Jibba-jibba-jabba."
swinging round and round

JUMP, JABBA JABBA,
RUN, JABBA JABBA,
SLIDE, JABBA JABBA,
Tiny monkeys having fun!

But these same trees keep them from having a comfortable home, unlike their neighbors the armadillo and the toucan. The monkeys SAY they're going to build a house, but fun and delicious things (e.g., bananas!) keep them from doing it!

The short rhymes and wonderful animal and nature sounds make this a very fun book to read out loud. The rhythms are musical, and the capitalized sounds (e.g., PLINKA PLINKA, WOOYA WOOYA, GURR-YUH GURR-YUH) are your cue to turn up the narrative volume for your little one. They'll eat it up. Slightly older toddlers may also enjoy the monkeys' priorities of fun and food over practicality. Yumi Heo has an unusual palette: I love the blues in her bubbling river and stormy sky. Her repetition of the playing monkeys nicely complements the repeated sounds of the text, and her flat, "folkish" drawings, filled with repeated designs and iconic imagery, evoke the teeming rainforest. The book was included in "The 3rd Edition of The New York Times Parent's Guide to the Best Books for Children." A simple but superb performance by van Laan and Heo.

Both my three year old daughter and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's rhyming verse is fun to read and the pictures are captivating. The actual story of how the carefree monkeys avoid making their night-time nests is light-hearted and amusing. My daughter and I borrowed this entertaining book from our local library. We liked it so well that I intend to buy it for her collection of favorites.

Never mind the review that says this for age 3+. My 14 month old won't go to bed until we've read this at least three times. He's barely talking but he picks up the books and says "Whee!" And his older brother (age 4) chimes in with the "Jibba Jibba Jabba" every time!

This is a great beginners book for anyone interested in the history of philosophy. The concepts are well introduced in an easily read format. I could definitely see this book in the personal library of any college student.

Strumpf has proved himself to be a master of making somtimes dificult philosophical problems easy to understand. I found this book very helpful, it set out major points, and the basic philosophy of the most important philosophers from pre-socratic times up into the present. It is one of the few history of philosophy textbooks to include philosophers who are still living today, and most people haven't heard of (e.g. Quine). I appreciated the way in which Strumpf sets up the philosophies in referance to the past, as well as its respective present. The book was just a bit dry, but it was chock full o' info. Well worth it for anyone interested in getting into philosophy, or the college student looking for an easy to understand guide.

I recommend this book to anyone studying Philosophy. I majored in Phil in college and owe a great deal to "Socrates to Sartre" for helping me understand so many abstract concepts. It is writen in contemporary english so it is much easier to understand than many of the philosophers' own writing. The reader can follow the book as a historical text or use it as an encylopedia. All major theories by all major western philosophers are concisely broken down and explained. Examples are given. The book is structured in order of schools of thought and historical order. I swear one of my instructors must used this book for his lectures beacuse I used it for his classes and did very well. I don't mean to sound like I'm related to the author but this book is the best guide around.

Socrates to Sartre is a great book to use to understand the basic thought of any philosopher. The greatest strenghts of the book lie in the analysis of philosophy up to the modern period. In particular the book seems thin on the areas of existential philosophy and post-modern thought. Those limitations acknowledged, I would recommend this book for any person trying to crack the world of philosophy. Make sure you get another book if you want to understand the thought of 19th century or 20th century philosophers.

Professor Stumpf has done an excellent job at clearly describing all the key philosophical ideas and the awsome men who introduced them... beginning with the early Greek thinkers and moving chronologically to late 20th century philosophers. So the title of his latest edition should probably be slightly changed to reflect this latest reality.

Stumpf has taken the fog out of philosophy and instead has given the interested reader mostly sunlight from which to study these great ideas that have guided civilization to its present state.

Ironically, though, I find it odd that Stumpf book is not widely used, as I believe that it should be, throughout U.S. colleges and universities!

This may be due to the old silent fact that most college professors order textbooks for students that are exceedingly difficult to read, thus hoping that students will spend more time reading these foggy textbooks when in reality students end up not reading these foggy books at all. So college professors must begin changing their textbook selection criteria and start ordering textbooks that are, above all, well written and easy to follow as Stumpf's book clearly is.

Gerard J. Sagliocca, P.E.
Social Critic

I had the chance of taking a soil mechanics class with Professor Mesri at UIUC and I know first hand of his expertise and attention to detail. However, these traits are apparent when reading the Third edition, the information is well organized and exhaustively backed up with experimental data. The only issue with the book is that it has so much information in it, it is hard to finish and can be tough to use as a quick guide.

If you are taking a soil mechanics or even geology in general I strongly recommend this textbook.

Since Wiley does not (apparently) publish errata for this book, I figured I'd post this here; it may be some help to some frustrated grad student (like me).

On pg 293, top of the first column, an equation for the change in horizontal stress is given (for Boussineq conditions). The first subtraction operator should be an addition operator and the first addition operator should be a subtraction operator. This modification renders a reasonable result in keeping with results from Poulos and Davis (1974).

Hope that spares you a couple hours of hair-tearing.

In India people say there is no building like Tajmahal. In civil engineering, I say there is no book like Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice. Karl Terzaghi, the father of soil mechanics, had a vision, a vision that he lived by, nurtured and preached. Very few have personified Terzaghi's vision better than co-authors, Peck and Mesri.

Permit me to say, no book in this century has had more influence on the rise of civil engineering than has Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice. Since its first publication in 1948, the book has guided a multitude around the world, spawned countless other books, and set a stage of research for a geotechnical generation gone by, there is, and yet to come.

The library of a geotechnical engineer cannot be said to be complete without a copy of this book.

you've got to have this book if you are a geotechnical engineer. terzaghi gives examples from actual projects and presents them clearly. there are solutions to geotechnical problems encountered in the field.

Many have commented on my review below -- most favorably. A few said, it was the second edition of the book they had admired most. Well! that was in 1967. Geotechnical engineering has exploded since then. Today it would be almost impossible for anyone to write a 5-star general purpose book on the subject.

I want to thank you for your kind words and encouragement. I am most grateful.

This is a great version of the story of The Steadfast Tin Soldier -- always one of my favorite stories as a kid. My son, age 7, loves this book and we read it over and over. The illustrations are excellent and I recommend it. My son found it in his school library but when we went to buy our own copy, it was out of print. So we had to buy it used but it was well worth the effort to have our own copy.

This book tells the classic tale of the one-legged tin soldier who falls in love with a paper ballerina. The soldier suffers a series of misadventures, including being placed at the helm of a doomed paper boat, being chased by a rat, and swallowed by a fish. It's a wonderful tale that will hold older children spellbound. The illustrations are delightful. All told, the book has about 2000 words.

I taught 1st grade for 4 years and all of the teachers in my grade passed this book around at Christmas to read to our class. I cried everytime I read it. It has a wonderful message and my kids in my classroom always loved it! I have now (finally) purchased my own copy of this book to read to my little girl. It is a classic and I know she will love it as much as I do. Every home should have this book to read at Christmastime.

This is a really good book. It has all the characteristic's that made the original a cherished and remembered fairy tale. It is a great gift for any young child, and can be enjoyed by adults too. It maintains the feel of the original tale, but is more like a poem. The art work on each page is beautiful, and the pictures are totally devine. I would recomend buying this for a different and fully enjoyable version of the original.

A little boy had a set of tin soldiers that were made from a melted spoon. One soldier was missing a leg because there was not enough metal left over from the melted spoon.

Tossed aside by the boy, the one-legged soldier sees a paper cut out figure of a ballerina. She is poised on one leg and he feels an instant bond. He has found another one-legged toy and believes this to be love.

The steadfast tin soldier has a series of mishaps. He falls off the window sill into a stream. From there, he is transported to a rat infested sewer. He is swallowed by a fish and through an unlikely stroke of luck, winds up back in the boy's playroom with the other toys and the ballerina.

The ending is what gets to me every single time. A gust of wind lifts the paper ballerina up and she flutters into the fire place, winding up a charred heap of ashes. Devastated, the tin soldier joins her. The remaining metal that was once the tin soldier is a charred piece of heart shaped metal.

I still think this is a very sad story. The photographs really emphasize the feeling this story evokes.

a Caribbean Cinderella story, well told and intriguingly illustrated. My daughter (9) requested the book after we had read the Public Library copy.

I probably read this to my daughter for the first time when she was about 7 and it has been a favorite of hers and mine ever since. I am at a loss to explain exactly what is so captivating about it, but it just seems more real and a notch above other mermaid stories.

My children sat spellbound as we read this book. We loved this story for the original plot, the strange dialect (not too heavily used), and the unusual art work.

I am a fifth grade student at North Hills Traditional Academy. And,yes, I like this book. I like this book because the pictures are pretty. I like this book because the words are beautiful. I like this book because it tells a sweet story. This book is for people who are caring.

This book has become a mainstay in my children's library. I read this book to them over and over again. My 3 daughters never tire of it. The way the tale is written allows the reader to inflect his/her own creativity in delivering the story to an entranced child's ears. You can choose to sing parts of the tale, you can inflect tonality and create the dialect as you see fit, as well. Along with the wonderful, unique artwork, this book will become a classic children's tale for generations to come!