Companies Books

I love how this is personalized for MOM'S! It has stickers and grocery lists and had a Mom tab and a family tab for things to do! It helps keep your things yours. LOVE IT.

I used to jot notes and appointments down on a calendar. This book is much better. I can keep track of who has an event, apointment or birthday. I close the book and everything remains private, in case I want to surprise someone.

enough space for writing. Two columns - one for my stuff and one for everyone else's - good for keeping my head on straight. The lists in the back are nice, but not really big enough - I am not sure how they could be made bigger, when I have more, I just use two! The stickers are fun, I like to use them to give me a smile. Lots of places to write telephone numbers and kid information. Overall, a great calendar.

I LOVE the format--Mom's schedule in one column, the family's in another! Plus the perforated grocery lists in the back are great! I only wish they were bigger ( I buy a LOT more than 20 items, so I end up using more than one list)! There are lost of useful "extras" (telephone lists, etc), and the stickers are really cute!
My only criticism is that it is bound in paper. I take it everywhere I go and I'm afraid it might not hold up. A "hardback" would be so great!

This is a real find. I love the pockets on the front and back covers. (very handy for stray $100 bills.) I love the detachable grocery/to do lists in the back. I love that I can put my things in one box and family things in another box for each day. It reminds me that I do exist outside of my family functions (chauffeur, cook, bum-wiper, etc.). The artwork is super cute and as a bonus, the cartoon page gives me space to doodle or write notes to myself. My kids love the stickers but I am guarding them fiercely. ANyway, I love this calendar. NOw I just have to find her Mombag - I saw a friend who had it, and now I want one.

Evan S. Connell's "Mrs. Bridge" is one of the truly outstanding works of Twentieth century American literature, a restrained, yet brilliantly wrought fictional portrait of upper middle class married life in the decades surrounding World War II. Connell tells the story of India Bridge in 117 short chapters, each a spare vignette of her enervated life in the perfectly manicured "country-club district" of an affluent Kansas City suburb. Linear in its narrative and meticulously realistic in its style, "Mrs. Bridge" follows India's life from marriage, to the birth of three children, to the rejection by those children of the repressed life of their parents as they grow into adults, to lonely suburban widowhood. While it is, at its heart, a grim tale of one woman's life of repression and, ultimately, loneliness and resignation, Connell's flawless and restrained narrative ultimately leaves the reader feeling exhilarated at the sheer literary achievement of "Mrs. Bridge".

Ostensibly the story of a marriage, Mr. Bridge is noticeably absent from much of the narrative. A successful lawyer, he is a man who is unable to express love or affection for his wife or his children, a man who is focussed on becoming "rich and successful," the epitome of the status-conscious husband and father whose identity lies in material possessions. "The family saw very little of him. It was not unusual for an entire week to pass without any of the children seeing him. On Sunday morning they would come downstairs and he . . . greeted them pleasantly and they responded deferentially, and a little wistfully because they missed him. Sensing this, he would redouble his efforts at the office in order to give them everything they wanted."

Mrs. Bridge, too, is powerfully repressed, unable to articulate her feelings of dissatisfaction, a woman who is beholden to the expectations of respectability and obsessed with appearances. "She brought up her children very much as she herself had been brought up, and she hoped that when they were spoken of it would be in connection with their nice manners, their pleasant dispositions, and their cleanliness, for these were qualities she valued above all others." Thus, she ultimately drives all three of her children from her life, her unthinking obeisance to social convention destroying any thread of relationship that she might have had with them. Her oldest daughter, "curiously dark", flees to New York City, where she pursues her more unconventional dreams. Her second daughter, an accomplished golfer, enters an ill-fated marriage with a college dropout who cannot provide the country club life that she has been weaned to expect. Her son joins the army, asserting an act of individuality that Mrs. Bridge never seems able to accept or reconcile.

It is, most notably, however, in her relationships with her peers-with the other affluent housewives of the "country-club district"-that the grim and vapid nature of Mrs. Bridge's life becomes most apparent. In particular, her friend Grace Barron becomes a kind of outward manifestation of India Bridge's discontent, someone who lives a life of equal desperation, but not so quietly as Mrs. Bridge. Grace Barron "was a puzzle and was disturbing" to Mrs. Bridge. Why? Because she actually questioned the life she led, moving outside the banal, the conventional, if only in her discourse. As Grace once said to Mrs. Bridge: "India, I've never been anywhere or done anything or seen anything. I don't know how other people live, or think, even how they believe. Are we right? Do we believe the right things?"

Unlike Mrs. Bridge, who talked of "antique silver, Royal Doulton, Wedgwood, the price of margarine as compared to butter, or what the hemline was expected to do," Grace Barron talked of "art, politics, astronomy, literature." Ultimately, Grace cannot cope with the ennui, the claustrophobia of her life, and she does what Mrs. Bridge ultimately lacks the fortitude to do; in a sense, Grace is a sort of "double" who acts out the dark alternative to Mrs. Bridge's repression. And when Grace does act, all that comes to Mrs. Bridge's mind is something Grace once said to her: "Have you ever felt like those people in the Grimm fairy tale-the ones who were all hollowed out in the back?"

Denounced in 1959 for not being a 'real' novel, Mrs. Bridge is judged differently these days--and rightly so. The novel is a compelling portrait of American suburban bourgeois life; reading it causes precisely the same claustrophobia Mrs. Bridge sometimes realizes she's suffering from. In a way, this is Sartre's La Nausee moved to Kansas City, but an easier read--almost deceptively so. Closing the book though doesn't really relieve the angst the reader shares with poor Mrs. Bridge in the final section (no I won't give it away)--this book is too real. Don't look for plot, don't look for cheap thrills, but do look for detail, look for the Real peeking into Mrs. Bridge's seemingly perfect life in the Imaginary.

I'll be brief: others have said plenty. Just one quick remark: Connell is a stylist of the highest order. His prose is crisp; style matches subject matter. Example: "It was necessary to be careful among people you did not know." Every sentence is carefully crafted to the point where grammar itself becomes a web of cleanliness, clear and transparent. It may seem nothing special, but Connell is a craftsman. All the more striking, both in grammar and in plot, are the few moments, aporia, where something else could have happened--such as when Mr. Bridge is breathlessly studying, in Paris, "a black lace brassiere with the tips cut off," a moment Mrs. Bridge returns to later with vague uneasiness.

I am glad I was recently introduced to Connell's work. It is a treasure trove, and it's a pity so few of his works are still in print. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some more of his novels to read: Deus Lo Volt! is next.

This book is a sharply written work of literary realism, and paints a crisp portrait of the very prim and proper Mrs. Bridge. By the end of the book I was thankful that we all (hopefully) live in less repressed times -- a sentiment made possible because of Mr. Connell's excellent writing. Jonathan Franzen owes a large due to the books of the Bridge's for his in vogue novel "The Corrections" -- much of that family material is first seen in the Bridge books.

Connell's extended character sketch is as close to perfect as novels come. His depiction of a mid-century St. Louis housewife haunted by the limitations placed her on society, but too timid to directly confront those limitations (even in her own mind) is both deeply touching and often wildly funny. Connell never lets his humor become mocking, however; he clearly has great love for the character he has developed here. Although the companion novel Mr. Bridge is excellent, this is the better of the two.

Set in Kansas City of the 30's and 40's the author uses his mother as the basis of India Bridge. She lives in an upper-middle class home in middle America and views her times with detachment born of reliance on her husband -- the subject of a later parallel novel -- and her secure position in the local society. She is comfortable with, but slighly puzzled by the actions and motives of those arround her. She is certain that when all is said and done, everything will turn out all right. The calm and physical and emotional flatness of her surroundings and her life are beautifully developed by Mr. Connell. His precise, intimate but undramatic style is a perfect complement to his subject. I see a whole generation of my female relatives, all deceased, in Mrs Bridge. Satisified, well provided for, devoted to their families, but faintly aware of missing something. They are of a generation that begain to fade away during WWII and had completely disappeared by the Kennedy inaugration. More so than "Mr. Bridge" this novel is an insight into the life and times of an interesting, but nearly invisible segment of our society: the society matron of of urban middle America -- beautifully done and a pleasure to read. They don't make novels, or people, like "Mrs. Bridge" any more.

This is a great book and unfortunately not too well known. Children and adults love puppets, the ideas are original and the characters very distinctive. The book offers many types of puppets and it makes a great gift.

I ordered a Muppet book from them that was quite cheap. It was in great condition and very low-priced. I received it promptly and was very pleased with the service.

I bought this book expecting little more than sharing some arts-and-crafts time with my kids that also blended with my interests in puppetry and the Muppets. Big surprise -- this book is full of good, basic advice on puppet manipulation, voice, and puppet building. My daughter and I have already made one of the puppets, involving gardening gloves, ping-pong balls, and feathers, and each of us came up with something different and delightful. The addition of some small supplies to get the aspiring puppet builder started is very nice, but this would have been a good buy even without that.

This book has so many great ideas using many easy to find objects. It even includes a little packet with 2 pairs of eyes, some faux fur, a few feathers and other sundries. The day this book arrived, my daughter and I made 3 puppets. In the next several days we made many more out of socks, oven mitts and other things that were just laying around the house. If you hate to throw things away, you'll love this. After reading the book, you'll start looking at your trash with new eyes. Old paper towel rolls, band-aid tins, fabric scraps, plastic spoons, small plastic bottles you might throw out, sponges, pot scrubbers, erasers--all these things can be transformed into puppets.

My only quibble is that the suggested reading level is ages 4-8. My nearly five-year-old can't do these projects alone, (I also use a hot glue gun, so it's too hot for her) so I've ended up letting her direct what goes where on the puppets. I think a six year-old working with less dangerous adhesives could do many of the projects himself, and I think kids even older than the age range would find the projects fun, especially if they have little siblings or an opportunity to teach younger kids. (Like helping out at Sunday school).

The book is full of projects that are easy to do right away, don't cost much money or require special trips to the craft store and let your child develop her imagination/creativity/emotional skills.

but children will not be able to reproduce the puppets pictured. Maybe that is the point, that you can make puppets out of anything. So the book is good for inspiration. But don't expect to be able to make the puppets quite like they do!

Being a Civil War buff, I greatly appreciated the angle Davison and Foxx took to capture the lost story of Nathan Bedford Forrest. Forrest was a pivotal character in the war, yet so much of his story has been swept aside in light of General Lee and other figures who were more recognized or perhaps more publicized. This is a must read for Civil War aficionado's and those just diving into the pages of history because it is so well written and ties Forrest into so many important historical happenings. Bravo! Write another one!

I am a highly biased reviewer due to the fact that I drew the maps for this book. I deeply thank everyone who has purchased this book and/or given it a positive review. It warms my heart that there are still real Americans that can appreciate a real American hero, and not cave in to the forces of Political Cowardice.

I picked this book up and almost returned it after looking at the campaign maps. They were well made but gave me the impression this was a bland recounting of every little military move by Forrest. Luckily I kept the book and found a gripping story of his life, personality and campaigns. I felt like I really had an idea of what kind of person or leader he was after reading the book. This is an excellent story. It was one of those books you hope never ends.

For anyone with an interest in the Civil War's most interesting character , General Nathan Bedford Forrest , this new book is a MUST ; "Nathan Bedford Forrest , In Search of the Enegma" , by Eddy W. Davison & Daniel Foxx (and forward by Ed Bearss) !!

I own many books , old & new , on General Forrest's life and activities . This is the very best that I have ever read on this topic . There are plenty on good ones and some are on very specific topics , such as the new books "Forrest's Escort & Staff" , by Michael R. Bradley and "Men of Fire" , Grant & Forrest at the Battle of Fort Dolelson , by Jack Hurst ! These 2 new books concerning General Forrest are excellent & are must reads for "Forrest entheusists" , but are basically on very specific topics concerning Forrest . "In Search of the Enegma" covers Forrests life , with emphasis on the civil War , of course , but is in search of The Man , behind the legend !

It is extremely well written , in every way , but I must comment on the way that "battles & engagements & troop activity" of General Forrest's are described ! Everyone with an interest in General Forrest has read about his part in battles at Shiloh or Brice's Crossroads or the Tupelo & Memphis Raid ,for example . I have from several good books ! I have never had such normally "complex battle situations" ; with moving men & horses & confussion & indecisions & mistakes & foul weather & poor communications & heroism & bravery & inactions & retreats----so clearly described & made more understandable than ever before ! Davison & Foxx turn a battle into a "moving picture in your mind" ! You are "there" & you "feel" the situation . You understand more about the "Why's" of how these battles & engagement , concerning Forrest , turned out as they did & its very interesting reading & not "dead facts" !

These two authors , Davison & Foxx , give first hand accounts , often from "non-famous" soldiers & civilians , recorded long after the war , that add "something new or a different prespective" on General Forrest ! The indepth research is fantastic ! You find out from Union reports , just what was being discussed concerning Forrest & his command , as certain actions were about to take place or were happening ! You see how unique Forrest was in almost always "creating the illusion" of haveing a much , much larger force than was reality , to his enemy . Also , you see how confussing Forrests actions & objectives were to the opposite side in a conflict !

Just a splendid work on Nathan Bedford Forrest , by two excellent researchers & story-tellers !

A MUST Read , for anyone interested in Forrest !

Just the over-all best book on this topic of Nathan Bedford Forrest , that I have ever read ! Highly recommended to all who want to know & understand more on "Forrest The Enegma" and Forrest The Man !

The authors did a great job of trying to put the pieces of a very interesting warrior. Bedford was that a warrior. This is now my favorite book on Forrest. I have read many. They have come close to telling it as accurate as I have read. They had respect for him as a leader for battle but also recognized he had failings in temperament. He was a more agressive Patton in battle. He did slap soldiers for being out of line and maybe even as a coward. This is a more total history of the man and if you want to read a book that a movie could be made this is it. It is nearly unbelieveable that he was able to do what he did with no military background just common sense and will to fight and win. It is a shame that his history could not be told exactly as it was without some unknowns in the background. It is good for the North that the leaders of the Souith did not recognize his ablility until it was to late. A very readable and interesting book about the Civil War in the west.

As a fairly new resident of Florida I look forward to Robert Haehle's NGA email each month, with his great advise & tips. This book is a "must have" for anyone new to tropical gardening, as well as, the Southern natives. The information & beautiful photos are especially helpful in identifying what is in my yard & what I would like to add.

While no one book is perfect, this revised edition has a lot going for it. It has interesting chapters on Florida's climate and different plant communities, e.g. seaside, interior sections, etc. Then it gives an excellen t and concise description of plants, e.g. DAHOON HOLLY (Ilex cassine)with a GOOD COLOR PHOTO. I have one in my backyard. It gives all the relevant information in a clear and concise way: height, light, bloom,etc. Habitat was extremely helpful, i.e. usually found near streams and swamps. I started making sure it got more water! It is on my shelf next to "Florida Landscaping Plants Revised Edition" by Watkins and Sheehan, and between the two, I think I can usually find some helpful information.

I am the co-author of "Native Florida Plants". The new revised edition was printed in early 2004. The new book is not listed on www.amazon.com I think the problem may be the different ISBN number. The new ISBN number is 1-58979-051-0. The book is available from National Books Network at 1-800-462-6420. We hope to see our book on www.amazon.com very soon. This is a great site to get new and used books. I am a customer. Robert Haehle

Great book. Shows many pictures of native plants, trees, shrubs, flowers, vines, etc.
Also talks about how they grow, best areas, etc.
While this book will show you all the native plants in Florida, it does not touch (of course) on plants that WILL grow in Flrodai, of which would be an even bigger book.
Still very useful & will stay on my shelf for many years.

Native Florida Plants is NOT out of print! A new, updated edition was published early this year, and includes additional plants, an updated source list, and a list of family names. Hope it appears on Amazon's website ASAP. (I am the co-author.)

This is a great book, especially if you are Irish-American. I couldn't put it down. After this, read All Souls, Easter Rising, Castle of the Fynns... Slices of life about growing up Irish in American in the 1960's and 1970's....

Anyone who reads Dan Barry's regular columns in the NYTimes will welcome his memoir first as if from a friend and buddy. Barry has given us, however, an extraordinary and, yes, radiant account of a man who would tell stories. He grew up in a haze of cigarette smoke, beer, and his father's howls of agony from migraine, but also with his mother's stories, his father's songs, and his siblings' affections. He traces his own journey to high school (casual boy torture on the school bus); St Bonaventure University (where he discovered you could make a job of tellling stories) to his early career in Rhode Island and then at the Times. He loves baseball, his mother dies, he and his beloved struggle first to conceive and then to adopt a child. He is diagnosed, and survives, a gaspingly terrible bout of cancer. Memoirs come by the handful, but Barry's is so vividly sketched, all the protagonists so fully present on the page, the prose so wickedly sure and sweet, that his sings close and real as a heartbeat. Wonderful.

As with all fine Irish writers, there's a poet's heart in Dan Barry.

Pull Me Up, A Memoir is Barry's masterful landscape of his life and family, wondrously painted with words poignant with pain and breathtaking in beauty. Never mind that the setting is the same Long Island I grew up in, nor the fact that this Irish-American love song calls to my own heritage, nor even the fact that there are personal connections I can trace to many of the people and places he writes about. The soul of Barry's story is its firm grip on universal human fears and foibles, how he captures the heart-piercing trials of childhood, youth, illness, addiction, and family.

Any reader who ever felt alone or insecure as a teenager, grew up with a sick parent, or whose family struggled with monthly bills will cherish the emotional depths to which Barry dives to harvest the treasures of his past. A truly rewarding read.

Kathy Carroll
http://www.oneclearcall.blogspot.com/

When I finished reading Dan Barry's book, I was hungry for more, but not so much on the same topic. Instead I wanted to find another book with narrative so well-written it would inspire me to fill my leisure time with nothing but reading. Sadly, there aren't many books that do that.

This one did. Perhaps it's my own connection to growing up in the same era, though I'm a bit younger. Maybe it's because we're both journalists, though books by journalists don't always merit reading sprints.

For me I think what astounded me was Barry's ability to be honest, allowing us to see the weaknesses of the people in the book and see those people as human, rather than evil (with a couple exceptions). As a reporter Barry has seen some amazing things, but that's not the focus of his book. Those things are sidelights in a story about family and about growing up. That takes amazing skill. I'm glad Barry lived long enough to tell us about it. In another 40 years or so, I'll be excited to read the sequel.

This is the best memoir I have ever read, beautifully written. While my Irish family is very different, I loved reading about his. I'm recommending the book to everyone.

Qué Se Puede Esperar Cuando Se Está Esperando: (What to Expect When You're Expecting, 3rd Edition)

This book is a must for the future parents, especially the mother, and it is in both English and Spanish; my wife has been reading the Spanish version and she has been learning and preparing herself for her pregnancy with confidence, since she reads one week ahead of what her situation is going to be and what challenges she has to prepare as the weeks keep adding up and the baby keeps growing.

I will recommend this book to both the future parents, the father can understand all the symptoms that the future mother will go thru week after week and also, he can aleviate her situation by assisting and by providing moral support.

Todas las madres recien estrenadas deben tener uno en su biblioteca. La mayor parte de las dudas que tenemos cuando entramos en esta nueva etapa son abordadas de manera sencilla, paso a paso, y, como regalo adicional, un resumen de las cosas que puedes necesitar saber antes de pasar por ellas.

It give you step by step all you want to know about that important period of the parent life.

I bought this book for a former high school student of mine who found herself young, married, and pregnant this year.
Next to a mother's advice, this is best thing out there. I owned the English version when I was pregnant, and it answered all my questions plus some!
This is a highly useful book in every language!

"The perfect companion for Spanish-reading expectant parents. It is a must-have for doctors, midwives, and other health-care providers who need help communicating with Spanish-speaking patients. Qué se puede has been carefully translated by Rosales Communications to be understood by all Hispanic linguistic groups--Cuban Americans, Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and more." (summary by South TX Library System)

The book kept me in suspense and could hardly put the book down. I look forward to more books in this series.

Just like the previous reader, I couldn't put the book down! It was such a wonderful story I only wished that I had read the first two novels! I'm a first time reader to author Jannette Oke and I'm happy that found her! It was wonderfully written and very warming to the heart. I was glad to see Virginia's strength renewed during her toughest times. May God continue to bless Mrs. Oke.

I loved the first two books, but this one is the best yet! Virgina has now grown up. At first I was sad that her teen-years adventures were over, but reading about her as an adult has been thrilling. So many things, including an abused child, her own children, a husband, struggles, and her grandmother, happen to her. Through the whole thing she realizes that her relationship with Christ is not what it should be. I think that this book has a great value to it!

I read the first two stories in this series and loved both of them. The plight of young Virginia in the first, and the older Virginia in the second gave us a glimpes into the life of a girl in that time period, I'd say, around the turn of the century. This third book introduces us to an adult Virginia, a married woman, caring for an elderly grandmother and an abused child as well as her husband, her own child, and household chores. Life for her was not easy, but she had God by her side, and He is the only one who can give you the stregnth and endurance to make it through the tough times. This book was really inspiring, and I hope Ms. Oke takes pity on us and writes the next one soon.

Virginia is so anxious to be married to Jonathan that she does not fully count the cost. When reality hits her, she is angry and disallusioned. Her home is finally built and just as life looks promising, an old friend drops in and with her a little waif daughter who ends up being Virginia and Jonathan's. Raising horses is risky and not without long hours - again leaving Virginia to fret. With a baby on the way and an wounded child to heal, horses take priority and Virginia loses her perspective on what is really important. The last straw is when Grandmother breaks her leg and must come live with them. Virginia is ready to throw in the towel when she allows God to speak to her heart and she finally listens. She is able to sort between fact and fantasy, romance and committment and wakes to the real reason for being a family. She is changed forever. Another Janette Oke thriller. Off to book 4!

While I enjoyed the book, it wasn't very original. I was hoping to find out additional information that wasn't already contained in Passions Child: The Extraordinary Life of Jane Digby by Margaret F. Schmidt, published in 1976, Charles River Books. This book didn't provide any additional information, despite the author's claims.

I adore biography - especially those of the great characters of the second half of the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries. I knew of Jane Digby el Mezrab from Irving Wallace's Nymphos and Other Maniacs which I read many years ago and also via several biographies of Sir Richard Burton. This is a well written, carefully and extensively researched book which benefited enormously from the author's good luck in uncovering much new, previously unseen and unpublished family material in Dorset and New Zealand. This, the author says in her acknowledgements, is more satisfying than the publication of the book itself. I agree, for this sort of discovery is palpably thrilling and the author's excitement shines through her narrative.

This biography reads like fiction and Jane Digby, firstly Lady Ellenborough, was one of those larger than life people who followed their own path, irrespective of the mores of their own time. Following Jane's life is a tour through the drawing rooms of Regency England, several European and Balkan courts to the deserts of Syria and Arabia. It is the story of a woman (thrice divorced) who eventually found happiness and fulfilment with a man of great nobility from an entirely different race, culture and religion. Jane's interest in the minutiae of life in Damascus in the mid 19th century makes fascinating reading and her wit and fondness for her adopted "tribe" in the desert is moving.

Highly recommended!

Jane Digby led a life of glamorous scandal - mostly played out during the reign of that most prudish of rulers, Queen Victoria. Biographies of her in the past have not been too successful as her story is obscured beneath layers of misinformation generated from the tabloid press of the time, and from well-meaning interference by such people as Richard Burton's wife.

Lovell has done a stunning job in digging through all the sources and turning up a great deal of new information on Digby which finally exposes her life in all its strengths and weaknesses. It is interesting how much you can dislike a subject and still like a story and that is what happened for me with Jane Digby. I found her as a person to be rather flirtatious and passionate and not very sensible. She did so much for 'love' and was so disappointed by in it. She married four times and had an equal number of well-known lovers as well. There is a litte on her childhood but the story really begins from her first fatally flawed marriage to Lord Ellenborough. As Digby's life progressed I felt Lovell managed to capture her increasing commonsense and growth as a person. The story of Digby is so amazing - she travelled all round Europe creating scandal as she went until finally settling in Palmyra with her last husband, an Sheikh.

Her life is part a travel-logue of Europe in the mid Nineteenth century part brilliantly readable scandal. A truly flawed subject, she makes great reading and Lovell has done a great job in presenting her.

When the then Pamela Digby Churchill (later to be Pamela Churchill Harriman) shocked British and European society with her string of marriages and romantic alliances, she was actually following more in the footsteps of an ancestor than blazing new ground. Over a hundred years before Pamela romped her way through Europe and America, the Honorable Jane Digby, Lady Ellenborough was embarkening on a series of affairs that drove her from England and eventually to the desert where she spent her final years.

Mary S. Lovell could have potrayed Jane Digby as a heartless tramp or made her a cartoon maneater that wouldn't be out of place in a Jackie Collins novel. At times, Jane Digby's life does seem larger than life and more like a daytime soap opera. Her lovers included crowned heads of states and even her own beloved cousin. Her final years were spent as the wife of a Beduoin chief, performing the traditional female duties while the tribe was traveling. Luckily, Mary S. Lovell is a carefully biographer who sorted through masses of documents to find the truth behind the rumors and legends.

Along with the legacy of her scandals, Jane become a mother several times. Her children, mostly seen as more annoyance than objects of affection, where left with their fathers when Jane moved onto her next adventure. Tragically, one of her daughters succumbed to madness and two of her sons died in childhood.

If you adore biographies or have come across the name Jane Digby in your reading, "Rebel Heart: The Scandalous Life of Jane Digby" is must read.

An excellent and accurate account of Jane Digby - A woman ahead of her time. Several surprises and facts are in store and would be great interest to students of the Middle Eastern culture, in particular the Bedouin tribes, the Arabian horse, falconing, Salukis and the social customs and manners of this golden era of history. Couldn't put it down. Very highly recommended!

A decent if disjointed book. You can tell from reading it that Jean had great respect for his father and loved him very much. Unfortunately, there was a large gap between his father's death and the writing of this book, with Jean working from memory and not notes, and it shows. There are times where it's hard to see where Renior stops and Jean starts, and this can make things a bit confusing. If you are a fan of Renior's however,don't pass this book up.

A biography written by a child of someone famous often carries more than one burden, similar to the responsibility or encumbrance of the overshadowing parental fame. However, in filmmaker Jean Renoir's lovingly detailed remembrances of his Impressionist painter father, the reader gleans more than a timeline of an artist's rise to prominence. The author shares a richly detailed account of life in a culture that--in most areas of France save for Paris--was still foremostly agrarian. In this burgeoning Industrial world, Renoir tells of the rise of his father's art and the changing cultural behaviors, shifting societal patterns and troubling questions within that framework.

Beginning at Louis-Philippe's "July Monarchy" (1830-1848)-- generally seen as a period during which the haute bourgeoisie was dominant and the 1840's which saw financial crisises and bad harvests with an ensuing economic depression--we are reminded of the general and specific trends vis-à-vis how they affected the Renoir family's world. Curiously descriptive, this was a world of street oil lamps and chamber pots; anesthesia was not yet invented (nor any antiseptics); butchers slaughtered the animals on site in the back of the shop; great debates about the inferior railroad system and the overall safety of locomotives were waged (could a pregnant woman harm her unborn child by moving a such great speeds? Did the smoke and soot emitted hinder crops in nearby fields from growing). Adding to the vivid and graphic storytelling of French life are vignettes of the senior Renoir's dealings with fellow Impressionists and art dealers as well as his painting process behind some of his masterpieces. Family life, the defining touchstone of the artist as a man, is shared in humorous and matter-of-fact style ("My mother brought a great deal to my father: peace of mind, children whom he could paint; and a good excuse not to have to go out in the evening.") This book, which was first published in the mid-1950's, affords the reader a complete picture of the life of a great artist during a time of vicissitude and excitement in all facets of French society.

An affectionate remembrance of Renoir by his son, concentrating the years up to the turn of the century.

Renoir considered himself an artisan rather than an artist, disliked anything artificial, from margarine to ready-to-wear clothes, had among his friends artists, and musicians who are household names today. "It is when you have lost your teeth that you can buy the best beefsteak" he would say, and considering that he became more infirm with age, this truism affected him no less than the rest of us.

Impressionism is my favorite style of painting so I was really enchanted with this biography. Written by Renoir's middle son, Jean, Renoir, My Father not only gives us an intimate look at the life of Auguste Renoir, it gives us an intimate look at the Paris of Renoir's day as well.

As we get to know Renoir we get to know his contemporaries, too. Jean Renoir writes about Monet, Cezanne, Manet, Sisley and many other great artists. We learn many "little known" facts, such as Monet's penchant for lace and his "artful" way with the ladies.

Paris really comes alive in this book. Many of the places Renoir writes about still exist and can be visited today. This book makes any art lover's trip to Paris more meaningful whether he's a Renoir fan or not.

When reading this book, one must remember that this is not a "run of the mill" biography. This is a son writing about the father he adored. The portrait we are given is very intimate, detailed and loving. It's obvious that Jean Renoir adored his father, just as Auguste Renoir adored his family.

Ultimately, this book is a beautiful tribute from a loving son to a father who was one of history's consummate artists. If you have any interest at all in art, this is one book you simply must not pass up. The last page alone will break your heart.

We adopted "Renoir, My Father" as bedside reading while my wife was recovering from hip surgery, and (aside, perhaps, from "Goodnight, Moon,") I can't imagine better therapy. This is odd, in a way: Claude was an old man (and in pain) when Jean got to know him, and Jean was an old man when he finally brought his recollectios together. You might expect cranky, but nothing of the sort: it's a book full of sunny afterglow. Every parent would hope to be rememnbered so well.

The book might take a bit of getting used to: Jean has his own pace and his own way of telling his story. We did it in small doses and I'm not certain yet that I quite catch the rhythm. None of the rough edges have been smoothed off which, come to think of it, is just as Claude would have wanted: Jean speaks with his own voice. You have to listen well, but you know that the voice is nobody else's.

I suppose it helps to know a bit about the Impressionists to enjoy it all, but I can't say I know all that much, and I didn't feel impaired. Anyway, God bless Google: more than once, when Jean talked about a painting or a subject, I key-clicked my way to an image and completed (as it were) the picture.

Kudos also to NYRB (this time) for producing what it does not always produce: a finished physical specimen The paper feels like quality; the binding is sturdy, and there is a small but satisfying selection of pictures, both colored and black-and-white. There is even an index of sorts (I assume from the original translator) but it is patchy and incomplete. That last is a shortcoming, but forgivable in light of the book's other virtues. In the NYRB firmament, this is surely a star.