O Books

I am both a photographer and a "train nut". This book is outstanding!

I'm not a railroad enthusiast per se, but I have to admit I was captivated by the photographic artwork of O. Winston Link. This book abounds with not only great photographs, but Mr. Link has definitely defined Americana of the 1950's through his photography. As a child of the 50's I can definitely relate to the steam locomotives, by the beautiful sounds they made not only at rest, but also by the rhythm of their wheels, and the melodic shrill of their whistles. O. Winston Link is without question one of the greatest photographers of our country, and his photography shows it. This is a great book, and I recommend it to anyone interested in a bygone era.

American steam railroading should go down in history as the most evocative and romantic aspect of the industrial age. Winston Link understood what was happening during the 1950s, and he took care of it. Times were changing, the cheapness of the airplane and automobile were replacing the steam railroad with its giant fire breathing behemoths--indeed the most 'human-like' machines, in my opinion. Link primarly photographed at night using indepedent flashbulbs and reflectors; this way he could control the lighting. This makes his images haunting, yet nastolgic and desirable.

My favorite shot in this book is titled "Highball for the Double Header", one of the last images Link photographed of the railroad, and one of the few in which he used color film at night. In it you witness his mastery for composition as well as symbolism: two articulated steam locomotives being given the all clear by a switchman's lantern, the man being dwarfed by the giant engines and their cloud of steam reaching far up into the night sky--all perfectly illuminated by Link's flashbulbs. A fitting end to Link's oeuvre.

Get this book, you won't be disappointed. Check out the new museum dedicated to his work in Roanoke: www.linkmuseum.org

O. Winston Link, in my opinion, was the best train photographer that ever lived. He knew where to aim the light, how much light to have, and the best places to take photos. Most of Link's photos are taken at night, which enhances view of the massive amount of pure white steam.

This book defines nostalgia more than clearly. Being a railroad and steam locomotive enthusiast myself, I dream about the living in pictures that Link took. In the book, Thomas Garver, one of Link's assistants, illustrates the sounds, details, and reasons for the trains being where they are in each photo.

The Norfolk & Western was the last major railroad in the U.S. to say "good-bye" to steam power. When Link heard of the inevitable decision, he immediately began to "document" the railroad as it was before steam was gone. From about 1955 to 1958, he spent countless hours taking thousands of photos of the steam engines on the N&W. "The Last Steam Railroad in America" brings out some of the best photos he ever took.

I like the photos in this book that pertain to the "Abingdon Branch" of the N&W. I used to live in Damascus, VA, a small town that was one of the major stops on this line. The railroad bed is now a bike trail and I have found every spot that Link stood at in order to take his photos of the Abingdon Branch.

I highly recommend "The Last Steam Railroad in America" to any train enthusiast, photographer, or anyone who has memories of a steam locomotive roaring by their home. It will always have a special place on my bookshelf.

While my major interest in photography has always been the early-20th-century Camera Pictorialists, I've always loved the photographs of the late Winston Link. With their tremendous detail and chiaroscuro, they have qualities few photos have - drama and mood. Link was actually trained as an engineer but made his living as an industrial photographer. Even his commercial photographs had a strong narrative drive; they told the story of his clients' products. Because of his tremendous mastery of technique, Link was able to compose photographs with great spatial depth, and through well-placed illumination, bring them off. Link was long interested in steam locomotives but when a commercial assignment brought him to Virginia, he began a five-year-long project to document the Norfolk and Western railroad, the last steam railroad in america. While he shot the trains of the N & W in daylight - in both black and white and color - it was his night scenes that made Link a cult favorite among photographers. To capture the tremendous size of the locomotives and their ever-present steam, Link carefully composed each shot, blocking in where the locomotive would arrive and placing syncronized flashbulbs along the track to capture a steam locomotive at full cry. Winston Link was an American original who answered to his own muse - the steam locomotive.

The day after I bought it my boss asked me to build a priority matrix. I didn't bat an eyelash. I went back to my desk and 15 minutes later I emailed him a priority matrix for our project. He had a meeting in the conference room 15 minutes later with the director and partner. They were so impressed with my work. Thanks Memory Jogger II.

The book provided quick tips for facilitation and team building. I like the format which allows for using the book without ruining the pages.

I had to get this for an MBA class I am currently taking. It provides summaries and examples of common business tools in a small package. It's a great reference guide. I didn't do a lot of searching, but for the little searching I did, Amazon had the lowest price.

This book is set up for anyone to have many tools for them to use at anytime. It has flowcharting, public speaking, many diagrams, and several team based exercises to help become better. In the front of the book it has a tool selector, and it takes some of the guess work out of tool selection.This is just one of many great books this company offers. Our copmany uses several of these in our professional training with our clients. This is a really good book for those looking for continuous improvement. The Memory Jogger Plus is an excellent book also and has many great tools and other goodies.

I first used this as a high school student then later at university doing engineering. It's so worn it's due for replacement. Handy size, useful tools, practical. Worth every cent.

The commentary is true to the text and serves the reader well.

This is a really great commentary on Ephesians. I went through it with a bible study and it was extremely helpful. It is thorough and academic (others are probably more qualified to talk about the scholarship) but also readable and devotional. O'Brien, of course, is solidly evangelical and very well respected in the academic world. If you are looking for a commentary on Ephesians for use in a Bible study or personal devotions, this is the one, provided your group is already fairly grounded in the scriptures and in theology and is willing to invest some time into their study. Other commentaries in this same series (Carson on John etc) are also excellent.

Peter O'Brien's outstanding commentary on Ephesians completes his trilogy on the Prison Epistles (see his commentary on Philippians in the NIGTC and Colossians-Philemon in the Word series) and, in my judgment, ranks as first among commentaries on Ephesians. Writing from a solid Evangelical stance, O'Brien defends Pauline authorship and wrestles honestly with Paul's majestic, but often complex, letter. While Harold Hoehner's commentary is broader in its coverage, O'Brien brings an amazing depth of insight to the table, and interprets Paul with skill and clarity. I especially appreciated O'Brien's keen eye for biblical-theological connections, which helped draw out many of the Old Testament references which lie behind Paul's letter. O'Brien is excellent with the Greek (though all Greek words are transliterated in the actual text of the book - actual Greek words are in the notes) and almost always has good reasons for his positions. Also, unlike Hoehner, O'Brien doesn't seem tied to a theological system (like Hoehner's dispensationalism, which occasionally slips in) and lets the text say what it says. I've read most of this book as I've preached expositionally through Ephesians over the course of nearly two years, and it is the main commentary I would recommend to others. Hoehner is a close second. The two commentaries together will serve an expositor well. But if you can only get one technical commentary on Ephesians, get O'Brien.

This commentary on Ephesians is a mainstay in my research on this letter by Paul. I am reading and researching Ephesians for the purpose of writing my own commentary for eventual use in a sermon series, and use this book as well as others as a check on my own exegesis. It is highly readable, very insightful, and contains enough detail without being overly simplistic on one hand and overly academic on the other. This was one of the first commentaries I picked up and just read, and found that it read well, unlike some commentaries that are great reference books but just plain hard to read. O'Brien rigorously defends Pauline authorship of Ephesians, and falls squarely within the conservative evangelical camp. The book is technical, with solid exegesis and transliteration of Greek words in the body text with actual Greek in the notes. I would highly recommend this book on Ephesians along with Hoehner and Stott and Bruce. If you can only get one commentary on Ephesians, O'Brien is a good balance of technical and pastoral insight.

Over all this commentary is one of my favorites. (I'm a pastor who does exegetical sermons from the Greek text).

He interacts with many scholars on a variety of details without getting bogged down. It's easy to read yet gives substantive arguments that summarize well the opposing views as well as explaining his own view.

One issue I would take exception to is his exegesis in Ephesians 2:1 where he labels the phrase 'trespasses and sins' as a hendiadys. The term is probably simply a synonym use-not a hendiadys. I checked with a number of Greek experts who all concur that he is probably off on that point...not a biggie...but I did remember it for some reason.

One issue I really liked was his handling of Ephesians 5:18 ff. Some miss the linkage of the participles which follow 5:18...but O'Brien nails it. His explanations of the Household Table and it's header/title in 5:21 are more convincing than most I've read. I think coupled with FF Bruce on Ephesians and Stott for preaching/teaching phraseology this commentary ranks right up there as a top notch..ya gotta have it...commentary for the 'prince of epistles'. I highly recommend it and still use this book.

The binding on my copy was pretty cheap. The book started falling apart the first time I opened it...and I am seeking another copy. Hope that was just a fluke.

If you are a pastor or bible teacher who works through Ephesians I think you will find yourself referring to this book over and over. Buy it if you have the funds...you won't be sorry if you are a serious student of Ephesians.

I first bought this book when we bought a property with trashed-out soil. I've since grown attached to this book, which I find myself referring to. It's clearly written, well organized, and covers so much information. I really think that you can't go wrong with this book, if you want to know about soil (be warned: it doesn't really cover soil microbiology, the living aspect of soil - I'd recommend the book by Robert Tate III; the copy I have is Soil Microbiology 2nd Ed. (c) 2000)

With that said - I've gone through other books but haven't found one that I'd compare to this one. It's just really well done.

The first time I ran into this book was at the public library, while serching reference material for my daughter's science project. I found the book so helpful that I checked it out again for my own use. The third time I said: "I have to have my own copy." The 13th edition is now on its way.

My "Science of Soils" class at Stanford University (Autumn '01) used "The Nature and Properties of Soils" as our main textbook. It is clearly written, easy to read, and has lots of helpful figures (including graphs, diagrams, drawings, and black-and-white and color photos). The chapters are well organized, so that you can find exactly what you need to know. The authors include hundreds of websites for those who want more information, and make the book more readable by starting off each chapter with a quote and a "big picture" statement.

"The Nature and Properties of Soils" has a good mix of theoretical and practical information. Wherever possible, the authors do sample calculations and describe applications for agriculture, ecology, and engineering. They thoroughly cover every major topic in soil science, as well as delving into some more specialized ones (for example, symptoms of micronutrient deficiencies in plants).

In conclusion, I've found this textbook to be both very information-rich and very readable, and highly recommend it. (The other day I caught my boyfriend, who's a materials engineer, reading it for fun... that's about the highest accolade any textbook can get!)

I'm an agronomist.Here in Brazil, I read this book.
This book is long and has many informations.
Every agronomist must read, a book such as this.
At least in ediction that I read, this book has a big failure.This book is weak about tropical soils.
For american reality, I think this book deserves 5 stars.
Well, I live in Brazil.I'll give four stars for it.

This is the 13th edition of a text that has been the standard in this field for 84 years. Its durability lies in its solid information; clear presentation; and graphics that are as rich as they are numerous. It is peppered with fascinating sidebars. You can dip into it as a reference and find just what you need (assuming you have a foundation in soil science). Even after I moved on to advanced coursework in soils, I found myself referring back to this.

If you have been assigned a soils text for a class, do not go with the abridged version of this, Elements of the Nature and Properties of Soils. It is 1/2 the book for 3/4 of the price (and at discounters the books are priced identically). If you plan to continue studies in the natural sciences, you will want this unabridged version. It's indispensable.

What a great book. I only was going to read one chapter on the plane but, I just wanted to read more and more. I ended up sharing some of the stories with a passenger and she also grew up in the 50's. I know he will inspire young readers to write there own stories. Hope someday he will tell these stories on the stage! Its amazing how I was feeling reading this book - I was in my own childhood when things were simple and more open space everywhere. He truly is a great storyteller.

This book is just too funny!!! I graduated in California the same year Bob did and I could totally relate to everything in the book. I laughed so hard reading it on an airplane from New York to California that people turned around and asked what I was drinking so they could have as much fun as I was having. I've purchased it for other friends and they have laughed just as hard as I did. It's a must read for those who want some true lighthearted humor about the trials of growing up. What a magic time to be a kid.

Sure we have seen movies, news reels and read about the 50s but never really had a feel for what it was like in the (extra)ordinary lives of people growing up in America of that era.
A book that combines both ecstatic and sharp humors with an honest and sincere accounts of "those good old teenager years." A true Americana. When life gets crazy, this book is a great stress relieving antidote that puts a smile on your face better than a sitcom. Prepare to laugh out loud. This book sets a new book category of its own.

Everyone is always looking for that perfect gift for someone. You know the Baby boomer reaching 40, 50, 5x, or 60 something, who wants some remembrance of what it was like before they emerged to become who they are today. Deaton's book, like a fine root beer float, hits the spot. (burp) This book is also a great gift to give to teenagers so they can laugh about how funny their parents were. This will have the unexpected effect of creating a bond, because their current trials and tribulations are not so different from the nerdy experiences of Mr. Deaton that most of us don't admit. I have five kids and they all want to read about "back then." I saw many similar emotional events in my life in this book, but Deaton portrays these events with lots of teary-eyed belly laughs. The first date episode is a classic and worth the price alone. I could see kids all over the country taking snippets of this book and working them into funny school play skits, making me think that the movie contract is just around the corner. Seriously, this book is a hilarious hoot.

This book takes you back to childhood memories that we mostly remember, sometimes embellish, and always feel a gentle warmth about. The wit of the author comes through, and we can relate to every experience. I read it a chapter a night, and slept peacefully every time.

What a terrific resource this book is! This book is a comprehensive compendium of facts regarding herbal solutions. It is written in an easy to read style. To often today folks reach for the next "best" pharmaceutical when often a less expensive, less dangerous and sometimes more efficient solution can be found in nature. This book is a good guide for those willing to step outside of western medical mind-set.

YES, THIS BOOK DOES COVER THE NEEDED SUBJECTS THAT I AM INTRESTED IN.

Very informative. Well organized and easy to locate info depending on herb or illness.

Alan Tillotson is an experienced herbalist and independent thinker whose One Earth Herbal Sourcebook is useful for professionals and educated consumers alike. Trained extensively in Traditional Ayurvedic Medicine in Nepal, Tillotson draws upon a sophisticated herbal repertoire in dealing with MS, opthalmologic conditions, hepatitis C, diabetes and allergic rhinitis. He uses the best of Chinese, Ayurvedic and western herbs in protocols that are practical and effective. Written with humor and intelligence, the book is over 600 pages of useful herbal and nutritional advice. This is one of the better books of herbal medicine I own.

By far the most scientific based compilation of information on herbology. Dr. Tillotson provides clear, organized information in a systems based format. As an osteopathic physician I highly recommend this source to all medical professionals interested in integrated western and eastern approaches to health and disease.

Very interesting and great recipes

Every recipe I've tried from this cookbook has gotten raves, and considering the source, many of these recipes are terrifically easy (no specialized knowledge or equipment required). O'Connell has no fear of cream, butter, and salt, so this isn't everyday fare, but for special occasions, holidays, birthdays, and nights when you really want to impress, this book is indispensable. The Amazon price is excellent too, and the book's worth every penny. Definitely destined to become one of my favorite cookbooks (it's coffee-table pretty, but my copy is already smeared with butter and dusted with flour).

This beautifully photographed book was a vivid reminder of the unique dining experience we had at the Inn. Recipes are easy to follow and results have been great. I especially liked the "pantry" section at the back of the book. Thank You!

Not only gorgeous, but absolutley oen of the mouth taste titillating cookbooks I've ever seen (along with their first book, Inn at Little Washington Cookbook)... and everything is do-able!!

I've bought this book a few weeks ago. Prior to start selecting the recipes I usually read any cooking book like any other book. I just found out that I was putting marks in all of the pages, so I stopped doing it and instead, I started cooking each one of the recipes, choosing whether I wanted fish or meat.
Even if you replace or adjust some of the ingredients, the result it's absolutely amazing.
Try the recipe that has a picture in the cover, and you will see what you get from your family, friends, or even for your self. Don't skip the decoration, it's easy to prepare and looks stunning.
This book was for sure a very important addition to my small library of cooking books. I have slightly more than 200 cooking books.
MT-Japan

I am a semi-professional chéf. I saw this book in a friend's library and fell in love with it. I bought one myself recently and found it even better as I read it. I highly recommend it.

I have 2 more sushi (at home) books in my library. They are also quite good but this one is superior. Detailed descriptions, beautiful pictures and perfect knowledge. There's no need for another sushi book.

Also, congratulations to DK publishing and authors Kimiko Barber & Hiroki Takemura on such a masterpiece.

Excelent book with lot of pictures to show the final result.

Absolutely loved this book. I like to make my own sushi and this book is simply amazing. Excellent photos with very detailed instructions.

I especially like the section with all the different types of fish and how to cut each one.

This book is really good for beginner, very simple to learn too.

The photos in this book are beautiful and inspiring. I cannot read it without wanting to make sushi.

Contents include under these major categories:
-Basics
-Making
-Eating

The best part is the simple and clean photography, especially of the fish which the show what they look like both whole (scales and all) to cut up.

The "pressed sushi" section is my favorite, very impressive!

I believe that a well written short story is easy to imagine but difficult to capture. Mr. O'Hara, however, seems to capture different moments and ideas in his short stories with effortless flair. His writing is both sparse and ornate--which is just the way I like my stories. His words took me to places that were magical and raw. Reading The Swan also made me want to visit the Sacremento Valley immediately.

Mr. O'Hara has given us such a gift with this book. I will read it again and again. I am honored to have it in my collection.

lavish Lines/luscious Lies

The Swan: Tales of the Sacramento Valley is the debut book of Andrew F. O'Hara, a former patrolman and current editor of the online magazine, The Jimston Journal www.jimstonjournal.com. Mr. O' Hara's book is a collection of short stories and from past experiences, any collection of short stories that I've read with the exception of Carol Riley Cain's Ghosts, Spooks and Spirits of South Texas, have been rather dismal or uninspiring to say the least. But this little 140-paged book was a welcomed change.
The Swan, as mentioned before, is a diverse range of short stories. From humorous yarns about a nagging wife to a patrolman who's losing his sanity and resorting to alcohol for some solace, there is something here that caters to everyone's taste.
There's a mantra that has been around for many years now and that is, "never judge a book by its cover." Well when one glances upon the cover of The Swan, they are greeted with an image of a swan with its wings poised in the air as it glides along the shimmering waters of some anonymous pond or lake. This image of pleasantry does somehow go hand-in-hand with the stories of this book as they are beautifully written. Every tale was unique and written in a fresh approach but what was really distinctive was the method in which the author was able to breathe new life into each character. From start to finish, one has a vivid picture in their mind of the character's actions in all the compositions. My favourites are "A Poet's Song" and "An Act of Cowardice" because these contain, in my opinion, the strongest characters of the entire collection. In "A Poet's Song", an old husband and poet, has to listen to the nagging of his wife as she no longer likes to see him writing poetry. Her biting words or comments ring in the ears of the reader and you cannot help but feel pity for the old man. The main character in, "An Act of Cowardice", is a World War II vet who feels guilty about a deed he did in his past and although anyone in his position would've done the same if they were in his position, his feeling of guilt resonates with the reader. Another talent that O'Hara possesses is a certain richness in his descriptions. For those of you who may never get a chance to visit the Sacramento Valley or indeed the US, Andrew paints a scenic picture of the location in which each tale is set in. It's these attributes that make Tales of The Sacramento Valley a worthwhile addition to your bookshelf.
If you're remotely interested in compiling a book of short stories, then The Swan is a must read as O'Hara expertly displays how it's done. With splendid characterisation, picturesque descriptions, and excellent stories, this should be on everyone's "to buy" list and would make a great gift at Christmas to pass away the winter blues.

Aidan Lucid
www.iol.ie/~thelucidreview

Andy O'Hara is a storyteller who understands the value of a good story, well told. And that is what you'll find in The Swan - a collection of very good stories, very well told by a writer who understands that a whispered word can pack more punch than a raised voice. These are stories of love and death (and really what else is there worth writing about?). They are not easy stories and they are, perhaps, uneven (which is just another way of saying you'll have your favorites). They are written with a gentleness of spirit that some might call old-fashioned. So be it. I just call it good writing.

This 2007 revised edition is a collection of wonderful provoking short stories. Each as engaging as the one before. The descriptions of the small towns made me feel that I was in each place; seeing and feeling the scenery, people and even the stars.
I could not put it down. My only disappointment was that there was not another story and I had to close the book with its beautiful cover.

This is the new Swan, the 2007 Edition with feathers all bright white, fluffed and ready to lull and captivate you at the same time. Andy O'Hara has improved on the un-improvable this time around. The weave is tight, but so smoothly done the stories blend into each other, carrying two common themes to fruition by the turn of the last page. The fun is how Andy has taken the reader on a swing through his beloved Sacramento Valley. He describes obscure towns giving us a mental picture along with the smell of the dust, the fields, the eucalyptus groves and more. The stories, Andy claims, are fiction, but I would bet most have been drawn from his own experiences. A great read and a great buy, one I will enjoy over and over again...J.B. Bergstad

This book teaches us what everyone should know about Autism and I can't thank Miss O'Neill enough for her insight. And her poetry is lovely!
Autism is a different way of being and should be respected and appreciated.

My 7 year old son is autistic and has opened doors in my mind and in my heart to things that I never knew existed. He changed how I view the world entirely. I've never ounce wished for him to be like other children, nor would I ever teach him that something is 'wrong' with him.
He is unique person, an interesting person. He is different and that's okay, differences is what makes our world beautiful. I am so glad that I found this book and I not only recommend it as a 'must read' but as a 'need to read' for anyone on the spectrum or for anyone who's life has been IMPROVED by an autistic person :)

I am Autistic, and I love this book. Autism is not a condition, it is a personality type. This book succeeds in making that point. This book is all about acceptance of the Autistic individual, a refreshing change from books about eradicating Autism from the face of the earth. I would also recommend "Walden" by Henry David Thoreau. I believe that it is another book about how an Autistic person views the world. It is of my own opinion that I think he was Asperger's Syndrome.

Ms. O'Neill gave me a chance to see and feel some of the things my beautiful 6 year old son does. He is Autistic and truly a gift. The words to thank Ms. O'Neill for this opportunity of letting this "big worlder" inside my sons private world, escape me. I had highlighter ready and used it often. I will refer back to many passages for years to come.
I was unable though, to give this the highest rating due to the very personal experiences and generalization of them for all autistics the author gave. I felt the authors pain from past discriminations and crule treatment especially in a public school setting. My son is now in 1st grade and fully mainstreamed. He is obviously different to the other children. The kids in his kindergarten class last year and now in 1st grade are nothing but affectionate, kind, patient and understanding. I do not feel it is wrong to mainstream some Autistics. They are individuals and each situation is unique. What is good for one may not be for another.
I also believe this book may not be for the parent of a newly diagnoised child especially if the child is very young. There are portions of the book that are hard to handle for even the experienced parent like myself. What I mean by "handle" is Ms. O'Neills statements that lead me to think she is totally against any intervention at all. While some parents might be looking for the "cure", which in my opinion is pointless and also is denying your childs special gifts , others want to help their child learn to deal with the big world around them. Our goal should be to find a balance. We should give them all chances of being able to cope with life, possibly become independent and to rejoice in who they are and what a gift they are to us and the world.
I encourage you to read this book, though I caution any reader who might not understand this is one persons experiences and may not reflect all Autistics lives.

I will struggle to find words to describe this book, though I can say I think it is beautiful and it is one of my favourites. This is such a lovely, strong, positive look at the autistic experience. It is practical and well informed, realistic, and yet inspirational. I don't know what else to say other than read it, and perhaps a warning... as a person on the spectrum myself, during and after reading this book I felt so much more relaxed and comfortable about being me that I felt even more disconnected than ever from the neurotypical people with whom I must share my life. This book is not just a book for autistic people though... it will give invaluable insight and advice to anyone who wants to see 'through the eyes of aliens'.

This author, while she writes with crystalline and seemingly fragile prose, is absolutely uncompromising in her view that autistic people are a unique form of human being who should not be forced to conform to the standards of other people.

By this, she does not mean that autistic people should not learn, or that there are no difficulties associated with autism -- critics often read it as if she says this, but she clearly discusses autism's unpleasant side. She also clearly demonstrates ways to teach autistic people, although, like much of her book, she seems to base her details on a combination of her personal experience and some dubious but well-accepted research. There are more factual errors than it would be possible to list in a review, but this ends up not mattering much to me in the end. Most autistic authors overgeneralize about what the experience of autism is like; O'Neill is no exception to that rule.

What bothers me most about this book, however, is the view that autistic people are fragile creatures that must be shielded at all costs from the "big world". One would think, reading this, that we were all special little dolls made of porcelain. It makes me suspect that the author has experienced the horrors of being abandoned to the clutches of an uncaring and hostile world, but has not experienced the at-least-equal horrors of being overprotected to the point of imprisonment. As such, she unflinchingly advocates residential homes for autistic adolescents, and naively believes that it is possible to tell a good one from a bad one by visiting. Having been placed in a beautiful, abusive residential home as a teen, I'm forced to disagree. You can't judge a book by its cover -- as surely the delicate face on the cover of this book full of tough ideas shows -- and you can't judge a residential home by its appearance on visiting day. Thinking we could led my whole family into grief that none of us have recovered from. After experiences like that, I'm quite willing to take my chances with the abuse the "big world" could dish out -- at least in the outside world you can pack up and move on if you don't like a place.

The only other noteworthy potentially dangerous advice in the book is the author's equally naive belief that herbal remedies are automatically safer than traditional medicines. Plants can be just as poisonous as extracted chemicals, and while I have used a few herbal remedies, I used them with that knowledge in mind.

The author, who has a gentle writing style that belies the strength of her plea for acceptance, never once wavers and says, "Well, in this case autism should be cured." She doesn't believe in prolonging suffering. She believes that unusual-but-harmless things about autism -- like augmentative communication techniques and stimming -- should not be stopped in a person just because more neurotypical movements and communication styles are the social norm. She does not believe in social norms that exclude certain kinds of people, and she explains why very well.

Even among the other books that urge acceptance of autism, a person is unlikely to run across a book with such a pervasive and unswerving attitude of this kind, even in the years since its publication. This is an important book, a historic book, and a book which, if read properly, can translate to an attitude of accepting *all* autistic people as real and valid human beings as we are, and learning to teach us and learn along with us rather than force us into a mold we can never fit. It is a rare book that can cause me to discard nearly all of my misgivings about the details, but this is one of them. I would recommend reading it along with William Stillman's _Demystifying the Autistic Experience_. I would prefer to give this a 9 out of 10 stars, or 4.5 out of 5, but since there are only 5, rounding up can't hurt.