Titles Books

This was a great transaction. I thought the book exceeded the write-up and so I was very pleased. Thanks so much!

This concise but profound book is a beautiful commentary by two contemporary Tibetan lamas on the centuries-old Indian and Tibetan teachings on "lojong," or "thought transformation." The subjects include meditation on emptiness, generation of bodhicitta, and changing adverse circumstances into the path. This is one of the most practical and helpful books on Buddhist philosophy and practice that I have read.

This book gives great advice along the path of the Bodhisattva. You will learn how to make your heart pure and compassionate if you follow the advice in this book. It will give you a verse from the path of the Bodhisattva, then an easy description of it's meaning and how to make it part of your life. Buy this book! This is some of the best advice documented in my opinion from a spiritual friend.

In Tibet, a Spiritual Friend is equivalent to one's lama or guru. This book is a superior introduction to some of the best aspects of Tibetan Buddhism (i.e. Vajrayana). It is written in a very readable form with sensitivity and grace. I cannot think of a better book to give a friend interested in knowing about or starting out on a journey to Vajrayana. I heard of it long before I read/bought it. Presently, I've loaned it out. It's a great book to have on your shelf for reference and especially to loan to other seekers.

Wonderful, fun book... animals who live in Alaska each have their own nursery rhyme that describes the animal and its' habitat. Illustrations are fun and some of the rhymes are hilarious. I loved the book so much I purchased it while on my honeymoon before our children were even conceived! Definately unique. Different than other books in that both the child and the parent enjoy reading this book.

My daughter particularly loves the Alaskan version of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" We live in Alaska, and she has seen the northern lights--she learned "Twinkle Twinkle Northern Lights" first. This is a great book

As you may guess from the title, this book is comprised of variations on Mother Goose rhymes with a theme of wildlife found in Alaska. The author has a wonderful command of words and I love the images she creates. The delightful illustrations compliment the text well. The rhymes have the charm of traditional Mother Goose rhymes, but are mixed with inspiring images of nature rather than images of violence (the baby and cradle falling, etc.). I am so happy to have run across this book.

Having this book since I was a baby, I have loved it up until now. I think I always will! The Alaska Mother Goose, by Shelly Gill and Illustrations by Shannon Cartwright, is a book filled with different rhymes about animals, and the habits that they do in Alaska.
The book describes each animal, starting out with snow geese, then to the end with a child, gazing at the Northern Lights. The poems are hilarious and lighthearted. The sea otter floats without a care, the black bears mouths turn blue from eating too many berries, and a porcupine's prickles get filled with berries from sitting on a cranberry bog! At the end of the book, there is a glossary filled with every animal mentioned in the book describing its name, and what it is.
If you want to get your child more familiar with animals, I think this book is perfect. It's very realistic and informational! Humorous at the same time.

I just love this version of how Anansi--with the help of his cunning wife--becomes the owner of stories. The illustrations in this book are wonderful and unique in the realm of Anansi tales for children. The spiders look like spiders--though with gentle, chubby-cheeked human faces as to show their emotions and expressions. Their clothes are colorful and seem culturally appropriate for their setting. It's quite clever how the illustrator shows recognizably human gestures with spidery legs.

One of the best images is the prideful Anansi standing "nose to nose" with the Sky God as he boldly announces that he has come for the stories. Viewers can even see the spider's cocky shadow carefully included on this page.

A nice touch in this book is the little "Glossary" near the front of the story, which gives pronunciations and definitions of the names and terms used in the tale. Example:pesa (PAY-suh): The breathy sound of whispering. // The glossary is of great benefit to readers who share the story out loud.

This book would be worth sharing with classes and with young family members. Even adults can appreciate the resourceful spider couple as they plot to do the impossible. Overall, I was impressed with this tale, and I recommend it for school and home libraries.

This book was such a delight. My first grade class could not wait to hear what Anansi would do next. For the first time, Anansi uses his trickery to help someone other than himself! It was refreshing to have the author show how Anani's wife, Aso, helped him to reach his goal. I think my readers learned a lot of valuable lessons from this story.

Both of my children, ages 2 and 5, love this book. The two-year-old, normally wiggling and wandering around the room during story time, stays put for this one. They can't wait to see what tricks Anansi and Aso will be up to next!

The Anansi series are a great read. As usual the author keeps us in suspense as to who and how Anansi will trick. My first grade class loved it. They were at the edge of their seats. I can't wait to read more to them.

This is the book that woke me up from my walking slumber 34 years ago.
I found the thinking radical and challenging plus I admired the fact that Fowles friends advised him not to write it.
As it predates the Magus and the French Lieutenant's woman they were obviously wrong.
It is a great beginning if you are searching for answers.Aristos

John Fowles "The Aristos" doesn't deserve the fate it received - being completely ignored by the reading public - after his best-selling first novel, "The Collector." Some people grudgingly admit Fowles second book - a work of philosophy, not literature - is at least useful in how it sheds light on the author's previous ficition book and subsequent cannon. However, "The Aristos" does much more than that.

This book is really quite a good codefication of many philosophical ideas floating around the fields of humanism, socialism and existentialism. Basically, Fowles ties together the thought of the Pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus with these modern ideas to form a unique and thought-provoking world view. However, his intent isn't to convince us to agree with him, but to get us thinking about our own philosophies. It used to be that every thinking person would come up with his own world view, but now most people just accept other people's ideas wholesale. Fowles wants us to reject this intellectual consumerism and think for ourselves - radical ideas, really!

Beyond serving as an intellectual enema, Fowles ideas are really quite good. Though I certainly don't agree with everything he has to say, I found myself tacitly agreeing with so much of it. The only criticism I have is that he writes in a style very influenced by Nietzche, which though brilliant for Friedrich seems a bit derivative on Fowles lips. Moreover, sometimes Fowles is intentionally mysterious in stating his ideas - a tendency he could have avoided except it might leave some phrases sounding less artful. Finally, though Fowles tries to say he isn't advacating that we, as readers, follow his advice to change the status quo, it seems at many points that this is exactly what he wants us to do. If the Aristos gains only in doing good, then how can the results be irrelevant?

Still, this is a superb bit of modern continental philosophy that deserves attention from more people than just those interested in what light it sheds on Fowles fiction.

Fowles analyses and gives his very educated opinion on all aspects of life, from religion to sex, from education, to philosophy and politics.

It is a must for all who want to know how the author of "The French Lieutenant's Woman" sees the world.

When I read this at 19 years of age I was thoroughly moved by it. It opened my thinking from teenager to grown-up. Now, 20 years later, I will probably find it naive or pretentious, but the 5 start stars are well deserved it you read this at the right moment in life.

This book is handsomely made. The illustrations are lovely, the frontispiece elegant, the pages heavy and the print very dark and readable. The story itself is a work of powerful, simple, and beautiful truth. A very good read aloud and discussion book. The author's handling of the drunken cabman chapter is a wonder of insight and wisdom. What a powerful book of goodness, for child and adult alike.

A beautiful edition of this wonderful and timeless children's classic. Elegantly done, great illustrations, clear readable print. Recommended!

This book reminded me a great deal of "The Little Prince" by Antoine Saint-Exubery, the main difference being that the underlying philosophy here is Christian, as opposed to the Easternish philosophy of the former book. Like "The Little Prince", it speaks quietly and simply of things that are so true we tend to overlook or forget them. Unlike the mentioned book, this one brings in harsher elements, such as poverty and abuse -- and shows how the simple wisdom of a child can overcome them. MacDonald's imagination is wonderful, and some of the dreams and fairy tales in the book almost outshine the "real" story. I love the children who dig for stars. This is one I enjoyed because it is so different, so simple and beautiful, and one I look forward to sharing with my children, should I ever have any.

PS - My sister read an edited, abridged version of this book, one rewritten to make it easier for children, and it was awful. It skipped whole chapters and left out some of the very best parts. I think kids can handle this book, just the way it was written. Stay away from nasty abridgements that are really censorship in disguise!

I love this book. I've read it 3 times, all as an adult. The fragility of life is portrayed in the person of little Diamond, an innocent, sickly child. Though MacDonald is occasionally preachy, (yet on target), he writes a story that will fill you with wonder and sorrow.

I so recommend this book. It is one of my top 5 favorite books of fiction.

I bought several copies of this book for relatives while I was over there. But you don't have to go all the way to Bayern! Just to the Amazon! Among this fine book's extra features are: concise but splendid explanations of some key differences between Old Bavarians, Schwabians, and Franconians, and their cooking traditions; and a nice colorful foldout map showing their respective regions; and a Bavarian calendar; and some helpful words about beer, wine, Radlermass, Russenmass, Schorle, Gschwemm, Leberkase, the different kinds of Wurst, and more! Now, if only Amazon had a way of shipping fresh Bavarian beer with this book!

This book not only has great recipes but also is full of the history of Bavarian cooking and culture. I would reccommend this book to anyone interested in preparing dishes rich in ingredients and Bavarian style.

I am very fond of this book, it is simple to use and has real recipies and interesting information about the recipes and how they originated.

I stumbled across this book at a Salvation Army store in Portland and knew right away that I'd come upon a rare find. I sat right down on the cold and dusty floor and started right in reading "A Few Words About Bavaria," the two page intro to Bavaria, then I opened the full color fold out and got an immediate sense of place, then read, "A Few Words about the Bavarians," moved onto how they use spices and herbs, then went to the recipes. I knew I was going to be cooking something up from this book this night.

Our meal started with the Asparagus Salad, prepared exactly ad the book says on page 90. Then onto the Creamed Asparagus Soup (we really like asparagus in our house) on page 36, which was to die for. The main course was the Old Bavarian recipe for Roast Pork on page 53. The dark beer really set that off. Who would have thought of brushing the pork with that. Emmmm, Emmmm good.

Of course, there are some recipes here I'll never try, like the Fried Calf's Brains, for example, but for the most part, most of the recipes here look like they're finger lickin' good. If you see this book somewhere, snatch it up. You won't be sorry.

Reviewed by Captain Katie Osborne

I ordered 5 of copies of the this book. We used it in a mother-daughter book club this summer. We visited a bee keeper, tasted many types of raw honey and honey comb. We learned many new things about the health benefits of honey.
Some discussions that this book sparked:
Are bees our friends too?
Living things that are transformed in nature
What animals transform food they eat into foods for people
What is the difference between being magically transformed and being transformed through growth?

The illustrations are beautiful. The Disc that comes with shows the artistic process. My children and myself found that very interesting.

I agree with the above reviews completely! As an aspiring children's book writer and illustrator I can not praise JP Lynch's masterful ability to weave his illustrated visions with verse. I was so deeply taken by the detail of the illustrations of the book, that I was even more spellbound when I watched him share his process in the DVD. His journey into the illustrations is a wonderful accompaniment to the story, and not only that but the music that (he?) chose for the background make the adventure into his 'medievil world' all the more breath taking. I felt like I was there in the world of the story all the more as I watched the DVD & artwork unfold. I highly reccomend both the book and the DVD for aspiring artists and story lovers! As for children, or the child within any adult, it is a precious story of being true to who you already are!

Stockton outdid himself with this amazing story of the Bee Man - my all-time favorite picture book character.

Exquisitely illustrated by P.J. Lynch, the story comes to life to tell of the Bee Man, aptly named for the swarms of bees he keeps as company. A sorcerer comes to reveal a life-changing secret to him, so he sets out on a journey to confirm its truth, and therefore his own origin.

The living watercolor illustrations are positively luminous and as visually enchanting as any I've had the pleasure of witnessing. Impressive work by Lynch once again...he's truly one of the best in the business. The big bonus is the accompanying DVD highlighting Lynch's work in progress on this project. If you want to be awed, check it out.

Frank R. Stockton first wrote "The Bee-Man of Orn", a strange blend of folktale and original fairy story back in 1964, with illustrations by Maurice Sendak. Although good, Sendak's illustrations were bright and kooky, high-lighting the comic aspects of the story, rather than the deeper more thoughtful elements. On the whole, I prefer this new edition, with new illustrations by P. J. Lynch that create a more realistic and folktale-like setting.

The Bee-Man lives in a small hut in the countryside that has been so covered over by the honeycomb of his friends the bees that it resembles more of a hive. He's happy there, but is instantly alarmed by the arrival of a young Sorcerer, who informs him that his strange way of living has come about due to the fact that he's been *transformed*. Transformed from what? The Sorcerer doesn't know, but now the Bee-Man is determined to find out. Gathering a small hive of bees that he wears on his back, he begins his journey to find out what he once was, eventually coming to the mountains that hold the caves of dragons...

Meeting up with a Languid Youth who wants to be more energetic, the two enter the caves and find something there that will solve *both* their problems. The story ends on not one but two notes of the laughable actions of Fate and inevitabilty, leaving the story with a satisfying ending and a topic open for more discussion. How many children's books do you know that do *that*?

The story is charming and P. J. Lynch's illustrations are fantastic. His watercolours brilliantly convey the glorious green world of Orn and the expressive lined faces of the people within it. The pages of the book are large and glossy - giving his work their best chance to shine, and do so to their full effect in the scenes of open country and lofty caverns. If anyone has seen his illustrations in "Catkin", they'll know how good he is at underground scenes, and here they're even better: misty depths, fiery walls and rocky textures all seen real enough to touch.

Although the Languid Youth looks a bit too droopy to me, the Bee-Man is perfect in both his incarnations, and on the whole, Lynch's work better matches the text. Together, the story and the illustrations have an almost Tolkien flavour to them: the story could easily belong to "Tales from the Perilous Realm" or one of Middle-Earth's folktales, and I always recommend people to P. J. Lynch if they like the art of Alan Lee and John Howe. A big, beautiful book that has pictures that match the text perfectly - what more could you want?

My daughter loves anything "Cinderella" and this book is her favorite one plus the fact that the cover and illustration is really pretty.

You really can't go wrong with SS! All the books and movies are wholesome and entertaining. I love reading them to my daughter and watching the movies with her. Actually, my son loves them too but would never admit it to his friends (he's 9). Good thing he has a little sister ;)

We had this book in soft cover and lost it. We purchased this hard cover book and we found the book we had lost the next day. My daughter was happy so it made us happy.

Thanks!

Okay, I admit it. My daughter received this book as a present and I rolled my eyes. I expected this book to be way too saccharin to stand reading it... BUT it is really cute and my daughter and I both enjoy it.

[Btw- don't know what is wrong with the front cover shown above. It is, in fact, in full color and not a line drawing.]

In this book the premise is that Strawberry Shortcake and her friends are going to play dress up and act out the story of `Cinderella'.

Most of the storyline is kept. The stepmother and sisters are mean. They keep Cinderella too busy to get ready for the ball; and they try to keep the prince at the end of the story from meeting Cinderella and fitting her with the shoe, etc.

Where the story deviates is that the girls are vying NOT for the princes hand in marriage, but for the chance to live at the palace and care for the `royal berry crop'. Decidedly better, in my opinion, than all the emphasis being on marrying someone one hasn't met yet.

Four Stars. [B+]. Very Good Read-aloud. Drawings are what you would expect; large and colorful, simple and sweet.

I really enjoyed the short version from the excellent anthology REVELATIONS (1997) and loved how joe took
this and made a great novel. This would make a great movie
someday!

Very interesting short novel written in Joe Lansdale's unique style. This story takes place in 1900 in Galveston Texas. Lots of characters for a short novel and the main character changes his name from Lil Arthur to Jack. It's boxing and a hurricane. Lots of excitement.

Joe Lansdale writes many different kinds of fiction - horror, westerns, mysteries and more "serious" novels like The Big Blow. He excels in all genres. There is a lot going on in this short novel. The two events central to the story are the great Galveston, Texas hurricane of 1900 and a fictional, I presume, prize fight between the famous black boxer Jack Johnson and a white ringer from Chicago by the name of John McBride. These two events track each other to their own respective climaxes. The novel is packed with well-drawn secondary characters and story lines that all fit together very nicely. Lansdale could easily have expanded this book to at least twice its actual size. The fact that he didn't do that demonstrates remarkable self-restraint as well as good judgment. Regardless of the genre, Lansdales stories are always gritty, insightful and humorous. Racism, prejudice and other consequences of ignorance are underlying themes of most of his work. Most importantly, Lansdale is a master story teller. The Big Blow exhibits all of these qualities. I recommend setting aside a few hours in order to be able to read this book in one sitting. The book is hard to put down.

This novella has one of the best opening lines of all time, and classic Lansdale: "On an afternoon hotter than two rats (making love) in a wool sock, John McBride... arrived by ferry from mainland Texas to Galveston Island, a six-gun under his coat, and a razor in his shoe". The rat metaphor (he doesn't use the term I did--if I quoted him directly, this review would get tossed) did it for me.

Be advised that this is a novella. 153 pages, very large margins. Not saying it's not worth picking up, or reading, just warning you in case you were gonna take it to the beach expecting a long read. The story is set in 1900--it originally appeared in a shorter version in the uneven collection Revelations --and covers five days, broken down by times (4 PM, 10:21 AM, etc. ) rather than chapters. A young black man, Jack, has beaten a white man in a boxing match at the Sporting Club. The townspeople are none too thrilled about a white man losing to him and hire McBride, a vicious and successful fighter, to face off against him, offering more money if McBride will kill him. Meanwhile, the storm of the century is brewing, a dangerous tropical storm blowing in from Key West. Will they even make it to the match? Will the townspeople the book follows live through it?

This is classic, wonderful Lansdale. We spend a lot of time with McBride, who is entertaining but not a likable guy. In fact, most readers will probably want him dead for at least three different reasons by page 20. Jack, his opponent, is not a saint, but he's fighting for his dignity in a racist town. Yes, the characters are racist--the n-word gets thrown around quite a lot-- but it's the characters, not the author,using the term and it's not exactly out-of-place for the location and time period. Offensive, but sadly realistic. We also follow a young couple with a baby, who have to keep moving to higher and higher ground as the flooding worsens... soon they're up to the second floor of their house, with their valuables and their poor scared horse. If you have a phobia of deep water or drowning (I do) some of the scenes, such as the description oft he furniture below them thumping on the ceiling, grating against the floor on which they stand, will make your blood turn to icewater. Actually, they'd probably make anyone's blood chill, phobia or not, especially when Lansdale follows some very unlucky men stuck out at sea on a fishing boat (shades of The Perfect Storm, but remember this story was first published in 97, way before the movie). No matter how bad off you think you are, you'll be thanking God you're not in their shoes.

Lansdale is that most rare and enjoyable of authors to read in that he fits all my criteria for an author who I'd spend my last 20 bucks on to read his latest: a great writer AND a great storyteller, plus this man writes with style (see the fornicating rat description). There's no-one like him out there. This HC may be pricey for the word count, but it's so well written I felt that even though I finished it in one evening, it was worth every penny.

This lovely picture book, whose tall thin shape reflects its subject, is the fictional journal of a lighthouse keeper's daughter in 1855, Birdie's tenth year. Hopkinson, author of the highly acclaimed SWEET CLARA AND THE FREEDOM QUILT, returns with evocative prose that captures the roar of the sea, the lonely isolation of lighthouse life, and the terror and exhaustion of managaing the lights alone in a fierce storm. Root's brooding pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations reflect era, setting, and emotion. An author's note reveals the inspiration for Birdie - four heroic lighthouse women and girls, including the Maine herione, Abbie Burgess.

This lovely picture book, whose tall thin shape reflects its subject, is the fictional journal of a lighthouse keeper's daughter in 1855, Birdie's tenth year. Hopkinson, author of the highly acclaimed SWEET CLARA AND THE FREEDOM QUILT, returns with evocative prose that captures the roar of the sea, the lonely isolation of lighthouse life, and the terror and exhaustion of managaing the lights alone in a fierce storm. Root's brooding pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations reflect era, setting, and emotion. An author's note reveals the inspiration for Birdie - four heroic lighthouse women and girls, including the Maine herione, Abbie Burgess.

This lovely picture book, whose tall thin shape reflects its subject, is the fictional journal of a lighthouse keeper's daughter in 1855, Birdie's tenth year. Hopkinson, author of the highly acclaimed SWEET CLARA AND THE FREEDOM QUILT, returns with evocative prose that captures the roar of the sea, the lonely isolation of lighthouse life, and the terror and exhaustion of managaing the lights alone in a fierce storm. Root's brooding pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations reflect era, setting, and emotion. An author's note reveals the inspiration for Birdie - four heroic lighthouse women and girls, including the Maine herione, Abbie Burgess

This book made me smile. I have known Deborah Hopkinson since I was born, and I am now fifteen. I think she is a wonderful writer and comes up with really clever ideas for books. I never knew there was someone that actually took care of the light house, I thought it was just there. She has a way of writing fiction that teaches readers at the same time. I also loved her other book, SWEET CLARA AND THE FREEDOM QUILT. When I read her books, I can sort-of hear her reading them aloud, telling the story of Clara or Birdie. She will always be dear to me and I hope that she keeps writing books for a long time to come. --Angela Kieran-Vast