S Books

After the brilliant Prisoner of Azkaban expectations were running very high.
Fortunately, Rowling delivers yet again.
Another book that was almost impossible to put down.
Azkaban was shorter, but this one is really long.
Its length didn't deter anyone from reading through it in record time, including me.
Adding even more drama and action and a story line that was simply amazing, Goblet of Fire succeeds on every level.
Goblet adds a more mature theme to the series as the characters get older, which adds even further depth to the series.
Another winner from Rowling and another must have/must read.
Recommended!!!

Title: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Author: J.K. Rowling
Date: July 8, 2000
Publisher: Scholastic press
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
# of Pages: 734
Genre: Fiction

In this fourth edition the main character Harry Potter is now 14 years old. Of course, Harry is still that same boy from book one with the lightning bolt scar, only now he is slightly older and he begins to understand the challenges that face him ahead. It seems like just another year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry until the Tri-Wizard Tournament is announced and Harry is mysteriously entered into the tournament as a contestant. The Tri-Wizard Tournament is a magical competition that tests the contestant's bravery, knowledge, and magical skill. Along with the tournament readers are introduced to two other magical schools (Durmstrang and Beauxbatons) and get a rare glimpse of the wizarding world during the Quidditch World Cup. Again, Rowling combines her vivid details of the wizarding world to paint an amazing picture that allows the reader to revel in even the smallest details that make Harry Potter so special. Along with the death-defying Tri-Wizard Tournament, Harry must now focus on the return of Lord Voldamort and his death eaters. Once again, Rowling also introduces a few new characters into the story, both good and evil. A new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor arrives at Hogwarts and some problems are created by house-elves throughout the story. The positive about this book is that they first third of the book spent reviewing the previous three Harry Potter books, so even if you have not read them you can start at book four and have a good idea of what is happening. Also, many points of the plot are left open leaving room for book five.
There really is not a negative to this book. Honestly, after reading the first three books I was leery that Rowling was not going to be able to continue writing such engaging stories, but once again she proves that she is able to keep the magic alive. Rowling does an excellent job of reintroducing the main characters and keeping her faithful readers engaged.
Personally, this is my favorite book from the popular series. Rowling is able to take this story to a new level by creating a slightly darker version of the popular series and allowing the main characters to experience challenges unseen in the previous books. Goblet of Fire is the first time that a main character actually dies at the hands of Lord Voldamort, the main villain within the series. This is also when Harry Potter, the main character, begins to develop into a young adult and begin to take on the responsibility as the main rival of Voldamort. Overall, this story marks a turn in the Harry Potter books that expresses a more "adult" tone to the story.

I've been reading the "Harry Potter" series sense Gr. 2. The first was ok, the second was mildly intertaining and the third took a giant step in making the series understanding. But the forth is far by the funniest and most clever of the series. I like it how the author (J. K. Rowling) squeezes more information from book to book. It's very understandable and fast to read. If your a fast reader you can probably get to Chapter 3 in about 2hrs. This book is "AR" (Acellarated Reading) and is fun to read. It is worth 32 Points (Awesome). As other books you search for big points this series can take you up far. My friends and I read the "Harry Potter" series and love the films. I heard the other books like books 5-7 have more than fifty Points (I almost threw up it was so high!). I reccomend these books for people who like long stories that make some sense in each book.

Triwizard Tournment ,Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasly.

Harry potter has a horrible life under the commands of the Dursleys. He wants to get to Hogwarts, a wizard and witchcraft school, one of the three, Beaxubutions and Durmstrang. This year the Triwizard Tournment is happening at Hogwarts it hasn't happened in over one-hundred years.

The champions are Viktor Krum, one of the worlds greatest seekers, Cedric Diggory, a fellow hogwarts, Fluer Delacour, a Beaxbutions student, and Harry Potter, himself! The problem is Harry did not put his name into the goblet of fire. He is too young. Who put his name in the goblet of fire?

Draco Malfoy and his gang of Slytherins have badges that say "Vote For Cedric Diggory, The Real Hogwarts Champion". If you press it into your stomach, it says "POTTER STINKS".

The first task is easy for Harry it gets harder and harder until the final task.

I would recommend this book to readers who like fantasy and magic. By Zoe

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (year 4 at Hogwarts) is unquestionably the pivotal book of the series. Up to this point, the principal villain of the series has been merely seeking a way to return to his former power, and so his presence has been indirect. This book makes it clear immediately (in the first chapter) that we are on the brink of the Dark Lord's rebirth, after which, the stakes will undoubtedly get higher. The tone of the book is also more dark and serious than the previous ones, with torture and death coming into play for the first time. It is both literally and metaphorically the turning point for all of the action that is to follow.

There are many great things about the book. For one thing, despite it's fairly hefty page count, it has a fair amount of action, and still keeps your interest for the most part. Granted, the Tri-Wizard Tournament is probably not strictly necessary in the grand scheme of things, and the whole plot involving the portkey to the graveyard is needlessly complex (why not just slip Harry a portkey at--oh, say ANY time during the year?), but the story still flows, and is fun to read. In addition, the story continues to build on Harry's strength of character, which is evidenced by his actions throughout.

The most impactive part of the book, by far, is the last portion. Faced with a very real danger and tragic circumstances, the students of Hogwarts are left with a choice--the choice that is perhaps the philosophic center of the Harry Potter series, and which can teach us all a very powerful lesson in our "real" lives as well. It is not the choice between right and wrong, but rather, the choice between what is right and what is easy. The quote to this effect by Dumbledore at the final feast is not emphasized especially, but it certainly speaks to me loud and clear, and seems to ring true as one of the most central themes for the series as a whole--and worthy of deep contemplation.

In conclusion... a very worthy book and a delightful read, even if it could be tighter and have a more solid plot structure.

A fellow Potter fan pointed out that this book was longer than "Chamber"
My bad.
I must have been confusing the movies. DOH!!!
I blame it on age. :)
As for the book, ahem....
In short, it's brilliant.
All the action and drama of the first two with twists and turns that made it almost impossible to put down.
The Prisoner of Azkaban further advanced the series with slightly more mature themes and an absolutely haunting atmosphere.
This book solidified the series as a force to be reckoned with.
Same as the previous two, highly recommended.

Like the first two Harry Potter books this book is great, it is in this book that parents should beware; it starts to have a few more moments that might scare the younger reader, it takes on a darker side as Harry ages and Voldemort begins to gain his power back, Definately makes you want to continue to read the complete set, this is my second time thru the books and I never tire of reading them. Great Reading for all ages

I liked, is in good condition,parece nuevo, a mi sobrina le encanto thank you !!!! por tener todos estos tipos de libros.

It's a great story, with much more detail and interest than the movie that was based on it. Jim Dale's performance is excellent and really brings life to the characters.

I took off one star because one of the disks was scratched & Amazon cowered behind their policy that they would not allow an exchange of an audio product that was opened.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (year 3 at Hogwarts) is regarded by some as the best book of the Harry Potter series. After recently re-reading the entire series, I think am ready to jump on the bandwagon.

For starters, this book has a very compelling plot, brilliantly crafted characters (most notably, Sirius Black) and a critically important plot twist towards the end which shapes the next several books of the series. It introduces the friends of Harry's father, all of whom have extremely important roles to play in the series. It creates a sense of danger, but still manages to be humorous and fun at the right times. And this is the last book in the series that manages to keep itself to a fairly low word count.

There are several key moments of humor (centering on the marauders and Dumbledore's offhand observations, for instance) and poignancy (Harry finding out the truth about the betrayal of his parents, conjuring of patronuses, and saving the lives of characters whose deaths would have been tragic). And this, of ALL of the books in the series, is the only one where I don't feel like the adults are improbably inept. The way in which Harry "solves" the mystery (or gets forcibly dragged to the solution!) is believable and unique to him, such that I can accept that none of the teachers would have solved it.

This story is important as it shows Harry starting to believe in his own abilities, and beginning to really take a stand for what he knows is right. He shows mercy and compassion, a sense of justice and conviction, and of course hope and love. In a way, this book has the "happiest" ending of any in the series, and certainly a meaningful one.

In short, is this the best book in the Harry Potter series? I can't say absolutely that it is, but I'm certainly having difficulty convincing myself that it's not.

Today is the fourth of July, 2008. What we aspire to, what we celebrate, what we fear -- are so far removed from the reality of one man attending to the basic needs of all humans on earth. There is no terrorism, there is no war that does not find its roots in the two children who clung to the robes of "Christmas Present," so many years ago. These two plagues of "ignorance and want" - the children of humankind - are what cause war and fuel terrorism. Put your minds and hearts to that simple fact. Read this book and turn all the energy, wealth and good intentions of this country to affecting a real solution. This book and its lessons are a must for making ourselves and our leaders truly authentic and of value to the world and to our own county.

In a time when the words `Middle East' can bring up such anger, why would you want to read a book about that area? Well for starters this book isn't about anything to do with the ongoing war you hear about every night on the news.

3 Cups of Tea is a more 'behind the scenes' look at many of the areas that never make headlines on any of our news stations. What this book is about is one man, Greg Mortenson, who puts his life on the line to try to end the war, the way it should be ended, with books, not bombs.

The Taliban believes that keeping the population ignorant is the best way to keep them following the same ways they've been following for the past few hundred years. When the Taliban comes into an area, they burn every book except for the Koran. They know if their population was to become educated, they'd know that war will never solve anything.

What Greg Mortenson is doing is amazing. Never before have I felt so utterly useless when comparing myself to what he's done. Never before have I finished reading a book and wanted to do something to make a difference for others. Why isn't our government going at it like Greg Mortenson is? To read this book just makes so much sense.

This book should be required reading for everyone who thinks they have an opinion on the Middle East. If there is one book you read this year, make it this one, you won't be disappointed. [...]

This is an incredible story and it makes so much sense. Who can argue with the root cause of the rise of radical fundamentalists being directly related to ignorance. The book also will help dissipate the generalized negative image of muslims as all being the same. We've abandoned Afghanistan again and have mixed relations with Pakistan and don't understand how the Taliban and other radical groups continue to grow. Greg Mortenson is an amazing man who certainly deserves a Nobel award for his efforts. At the very least his organization, The Central Asia Institute, deserves a contribution from any of us wanting to see a real reduction in the threat to this country.

In this book there are such apt descriptions of the stunning land and the people...My family and I have had the good fortune to travel in northern parts of Pakistan twice, once in the Hunza Valley and once to a base camp on Nanga Parbat. We'll never forget the hospitality we experienced. I really appreciate Mr. Mortenson's sensitivity and efforts in working with the various peoples. My husband and I have taught abroad for the past eleven years in three different countries (including Lahore in Pakistan for four of those) and have a real appreciation for the inherent challenges. Keep it up. The book struck an in-tune chord.
Deirdre Roberts

I don't have anything profound to say about the book, only that it literally changed my life - that one man could be both so driven, and so completely humble and gentle with the cultures he was servicing...
...a truly amazing man, one I desperately wish the US government would study carefully and start modelling their foreign policy after - around a philosophy of genuine 'aid' where it is most needed, thus eliminating the allure of terrorism for the young.
On a nice side-note, it not only an account of an amazing man, its an AMAZING account of an amazing man - his time in Pakistan, as you can imagine, has been pretty bumpy, and the result is nothing short of a one-in-a-million read: a 'Charitable Page-Turner', a soul-satisfying action epic!
Read it - it'll correct your vision.

I have found this book very helpful in getting started with the FAM method to avoid conception as an alternative to hormonal birth control methods. The author very clearly describes the fertility process and the steps to observing and charting a woman's cycle. I especially enjoyed the tone of the book, which is gently humorous and devoid of religious ideology. It really convinced me that FAM is a good method of birth control as well as an aid to conception.

The downside is a few "over the top" moments in the book. After using this method I will agree that the process of taking a temperature every day and charting fertility signs is not as inconvenient as I had originally thought, but I will not go so far as to say that "charting is a privilidge".

Overall, this book is a good start. I recommend it.

My husband and I had been trying to conceive for 4 months without any luck so I decided to buy this book - we got pregnant the 1st month that I started charting. I am assuming that most people reading this review are trying to conceive so I will add that I also was taking an herb called Vitex which I would highly recommend as well. I believe that the combination of this book and Vitex helped me get pregnant.

Wow! A friend told me about this book, and I ordered it right away. I am so relieved and amazed to finally find a method of keeping track of my cycle, and avoiding pregnancy! Every gal should have this book!!

I learned how to read my body for signs to let me know when to "try". I knew exactly when we conceived, because I knew my body was ready. It took one month to chart and understand, and the second month we got pregnant. Good information, easy to read.

This was a wonderful and informative book. My husband and I were set on using natural birth control when we got married, and weren't quite sure of the specifics. Originally, we got a book on NFP (very similar to the FAM method described in this book). The information was very similar, but this book was so much easier to read and understand. We thought the charting and temperature taking would be too much, but we got used to it pretty quickly. The book also came with a computer program that I love, because it calculates everything for you, and even predicts your cycle (very accurately for me!). I would highly recommend this book to any couple who wants to avoid or achieve pregnancy. I have read many books and internet articles that have their information all wrong about your temperature and your fertile and infertile phases. Written by doctors none the less! Even more reason to READ THIS BOOK!

I have recently read Seabiscuit and watched the film and found both to be very compelling. We dont think much anymore about the dark days of the Depression but Laura Hillenbrand puts us right back in the middle of it. The important lesson was to look to the future as Charles Howard implored, the sun will come up tomorrow.

Three incredible characters intersect with this horse of unknown promise. Howard is the wealthy owner, despondent over the death of his son and unsure how to live the life of leisure; Red Pollard is a jockey not able to break into the big-time, due to his attitude, blindness, and injuries; Tom Smith is a taciturn man who belongs in the 19th century of his youth, not the modern world. Together they develop and promote Seabiscuit, a horse of incredible bloodlines, yet given up on by better trainers due to his work habits, attitude, injuries, and size.

Eventually the Biscuit wins all the stakes in the state of California and gets a shot at a match race with the great Eastern horse and Triple Crown winner, War Admiral. Both horses are descendants of the great Man'o'war, but the eastern elites dont want to give the western upstart his chance. After a few cancellations due to injuries and prickly owners, the match race goes off in Baltimore and the smaller horse brings it home.

The book is more enlighting with respect to the fuller stories of the characters, especially the relationship between the jockeys and Pollard's romance and marriage to a Boston nurse. The movie brings the times to life. Howard and Pollard were the raconteurs who made Seabiscuit the hero of the little guys during those lean years. Dont forget, tough times dont last but tough guys do.

Ms. Hillenbrand is an equally interesting story. She suffers from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and is only able to work at a fraction of the typical writer. Here she focused her energy on this story and these times. Seabiscuit has been the story many times in film and books but Ms. Hillenbrand brings it to life for us.

Seabiscuit is a great story, book, and movie. If you have not read it, buy it today and start reading. You will not be disappointed.

This book is a true American legend at its best. "Seabiscuit" was written by Laura Hillenbrand based on a true story of one horse and jockey's incredible life. This biography is set in the 1930's and 1940's and takes you on a journey with someone and something that no one believed in until they were given a chance to prove themselves. The perseverance of these two characters is admirable; they never give up, no matter what. The jockey, John Pollard, was struggling in life until given the shot to show he was more than just an average jockey. Seabiscuit, on the other hand, is my favorite character; he never accepts the possibility of losing. Pollard and Seabiscuit's relationship started when trainer Tom Smith paired them together out on the racetrack. I love that they were given a chance to prove everyone wrong by winning race after race with odds stacked against them; both had been injured numerous times. Read about how they smashed people's disbelief and made history, performing one of the greatest comebacks in all of sports. The theme of "never giving up no matter what" would most likely interest people who enjoy sports novels. "Seabiscuit" is truly the greatest sports story of all time.

This narrative leaps out of the first paragraph in the same way Seabiscuit learns to bolt from the starting gate. From the start, Laura Hillenbrand draws the reader into the story with colorful, taut writing. There are no meaningless side stories in this book - each detail weaves itself back into the tale of a horse who beat the odds to become one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century.
This story is gripping even if you have no interest in horseracing.

I loved this book !! It made me feel as though I was there watching the drama unfold as the unknown underestimated horse rose to champion status. The characters are real and the story is built piece by piece. If you like rooting for the underdog and enjoy the thrill of competition, this book is for you. The large print of this edition was easy on the eyes as well.

The Revolution: A Manifesto I read this to get a better idea of Ron Paul's phylosophy, as I had been on the fence about some of his positions. Out of any contemporary in politics today, I'd say Ron Paul is the closest I've ever seen to what our founding fathers intended a politician (or U.S. Citizen) to be. I'm disturbed by the entitlment society that has been created in this country. This Manefesto is one giant step in the right direction.... A must read for every American (especially those in politics).

Every one in America should read this book! Should be taught in history class rooms!!!

Reading Ron Paul is like going from the depths of hell into Disneyland. I share his vision for a free America. Sadly few others do. I have given up any hope for America's future and simply ripped up my voter registration card and will not vote until others realize what we have lost in the last 20 years.

Sandra Price
Arizona

In his latest book, Ron Paul maintains that, if we are to have "real change" in this country, we must break free from the "artificial limitations" that are so often imposed by the political and media establishments on free debate. And to do that, he argues, we must "start asking serious questions once again," instead of allowing said establishments dictate to us what questions we're allowed to ask.

In chapter one he rightly points out how American voters are being given "false choices" every election season, since the policy agendas of the two major parties are far more similar than different.

In his chapter on foreign policy, he takes neoconservatives to task for blurring the fundamental distinction between "isolationism and noninterventionism," and posits that it is actually they, not he, who are the "real isolationists," since they isolate the U.S. "in the court of world opinion by pursuing needless belligerence and war that have nothing to do with legitimate national security concerns." By engaging in such belligerence, Paul argues, our government has merely stirred up "hornet's nests," and thereby made us "more" vulnerable to attack "than we would otherwise have been."

In chapter 3 he does an admirable job of explaining why Constitutional phrases such as "general welfare" and "necessary and proper" do not, in fact, give an "open-ended character" to the powers granted to Congress in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution. Nor, Paul correctly asserts, is there anything in the Constitution that allows Congress to "delegate" any of its powers to the executive branch.

In chapter 4 Paul points out the multiple ways government engages in "legal plunder" -- whether directly through taxation or indirectly through "regulatory schemes" that protect politically-connected businesses from price-lowering competition. To that extent he is on solid ground. He is on very weak ground, however, when he parrots the Austrian school's fairy tale view of the Gilded Age (see Age of Betrayal: The Triumph of Money in America, 1865-1900 (Vintage), blindly denying that corrupt monopolies were defrauding or fleecing consumers, that laborers were (in many cases) being forced to work for slave wages, and that "giant corporations" were routinely and effectively engaging in anticompetitive behavior. He also makes the exaggerated claim that the American economy was "starved for capital" during that era, and that this was the primary reason so many people were poor, when the reality is that capital often sat idle due to land speculation-caused depressions (see Progress and Poverty: An Inquiry in the Cause of Industrial Depressions and of Increase of Want with Increase of Wealth... The Remedy). Fortunately, he returns to solid ground when he accurately characterizes organizations like the WTO and NAFTA as "government-managed trade schemes" that, as such, have nothing to do with "genuine free trade"

The "civil liberties" chapter alone is worth the price of the book. Here Paul exposes how control-freak politicians, in the name of "protecting" us from terrorists, have waged a virtual terrorist attack of their own on the very "freedoms" for which Muslim extremists supposedly hate us; and proposes as a solution to this outrage the enactment of his "American Freedom Agenda Act of 2007." He also explains why the drug war is a failed, destructive and unconstitutional war, and why ending this war would greatly reduce if not eliminate many of the problems that countless people mistakenly attribute to drugs themselves.

As one who both contributed to Ron Paul and voted for him in the primary, I'm sad to say chapter 6 is by far my least favorite chapter, and the main reason I couldn't give the book 5 stars. Although I agree with him that we urgently need to reform the current money system, I'm convinced, after reading this chapter, that he has a very limited understanding of both the nature and history of money (see The Lost Science of Money: The Mythology of Money, The Story of Power), and that this limited understanding causes him to advocate a deflationary cure that is actually far worse than the inflationary disease. Among the many facts he ignores (however unknowingly) are:

* that the worst depressions in U.S. history (including the Great Depression) all occurred under his beloved "gold standard";
* that the average person was significantly poorer in 1932 than in 1928, even though the value of the gold-backed dollar was significantly higher in 1932 than in 1928;
* that debt-based fiat money is fundamentally different from debt-free fiat money (see the documentary film, "The Money Masters");
* that money is uncreated whenever the principal of a bank loan is repaid, and that the money supply would therefore collapse -- and the economy along with it -- if everyone, including the government, got out of debt; and
* that banks never create the money needed to pay the interest on all the money supply-expanding loans they make, and how this actually creates a built-in SHORTAGE of money.

Those wishing to have a full understanding of the money issue (including how best to reform the current system) would be much better served reading Ellen Brown's masterwork, Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free (Revised and Updated).

The 7th and final chapter is mostly a summary of the previous six, and a stirring call to action. "The empire game our government has been playing," Paul concludes, "is coming to an end one way or another. This is the fate of all empires: they overextend themselves and then suffer a financial catastrophe....We are already seeing the pattern emerging in our own case. We can either withdraw gracefully, as I propose, or we can stay in our fantasy world and wait until bankruptcy forces us to scale back our foreign commitments. Again, I know which option I prefer."

And so do I. Thank you, Ron Paul, for writing this book (even if you are innocently mistaken on the gold standard ;-)).

Absolutely enlightening book about the reason for the destruction of our great country by means of stealth and strategy. The whistleblower of all whistleblowers! Sound money, the public education system, foreign policy... this man knows it yet what he says goes the contrary to the status quo. Must must read!

... "On June 4, 1960, the Big Creek Missile Agency, fresh from its medal winning performance at the National Science Fair, is sponsoring a day of rocket launches at its Cape Coalwood range. Everyone reading these words is invited..." This quote can be found on page 356-357 of a book called Rocket Boys; this statement showed me that the success of the main characters was a result of personal hard work and teamwork.

"Rocket Boys" by Homer H. Hickam, Jr. is a nonfiction account of a group of friends from Coalwood, West Virginia in the early 1960's who have a fetish for making rockets. Homer and his friends have a dream to shoot a rocket up into the clouds. This story gives the reader a message that dreams really can come true.

Rocket Boys is one of the strongest books I have ever read. The author accomplished his goals to tell people that team work is one of the most important things to know in your life. This book is recommended for people that like space and rockets and who want a hopeful book to read. Reading Rocket Boys really gets you thinking about team work and how far you can get with it.

I was a little disappointed by the ending and the fact that Homer Hickam gave John Kennedy the idea to go to the Moon but other than that I couldn't help but root for the band of misfits.

I bought this book and the audio tapes and my son and I listened and read this amazing book together. Our plan was to read for 30 minutes a night...however it was sooooooo good we listened and read for 5 hours!

We are now going to rent the movie that was made from the film! All systems go....we enjoyed the adventure!

Homer Hickam grew up in a rural isolated mountain town but went on to win the National Science Fair.

This book is his story and how he was successful.

I bought 24 copies of this book to inspire my advanced 6th grade Reading class. They loved the book. In our discussions they mentioned never giving up. Homer and his friends kept trying until they had success.

Thank you for sharing your life with us, Mr. Hickam.

Children in West Virginia mining towns became coal miners. They did not become rocket scientists. But it did not matter how well-known this was, for Homer "Sonny" Hickam, Jr. there was only one way out. He was the right age and had the right amount of ambition when the United States and Russia became entangled in the Space Race and as far as he was concerned, his fate was sealed.

Hickam's writing carried the comfort of conversation with an old friend. It was remarkable how easily I became nostalgic for neither a time nor a place that I had ever known. The story drips with the passion of a man who if he had to do it all over again, probably wouldn't change a thing. He understood and appreciated the importance of everything that happened to him and helped him on his way.

One thing that I found particularly fascinating was how closely this book resembled the old proverb that It takes a whole village to raise a child. And I mean no disrespect to Mr. Hickam when I point out how amazing his circumstance was in that he could not have done it alone. The stars seemingly aligned perfectly so that one boy from West Virginia could capture the hearts of so many people that he would be able to get such invaluable assistance. There was probably no way anyone else could have done what he did. And that is to his credit. (The way his path was guided by fate, or something like it, reminded me of how Ruth Reichl became a food critic in Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table.)

I loved this book for Hickam's ability to transport me from my favorite reading chair to a West Virginia high school in the late 50s. I found myself hanging on every word wondering what would happen next. There is something special about an intelligently written story about a successful man who takes no credit for himself, but rather gives it to each person who helped him make his dreams come true. Rocket Boys may now find itself among the short list of my favorite books.

I bought this book as a gift for my 16yr old niece. The very next day, she told me how much she loved the book. She even cried reading it. I think it's nice to find reading materials that can move the minds and feelings of teenagers.

I skimmed through the book before I gave it to my granddaughter who just turned 13. I thought it had some well written stories that a teenager can relate to and a lot of food for thought. She was so happy to get it, since she had the one for pre-teens also and really liked it.

Once again, "Chicken Soup for the Soul" books has a hit. This is a wonderful gift for young teens with its easy read of short stories on pertinent topics and experiences teens face. Teens I have given it to as a gift have loved it and purchased the next in the teen series. Also a source of good talking points for those anxiety ridden moments or social issues teens face.

I am a teacher in two high schools and I like to read the stories of the book to my students from time to time to inspirate them and reinforce their teenage self esteem! I suggest it to all teacher to make the same with a nice calm background music.

I recomend that you read this book because its stories are touching, sad, heart warming, and pretty much every other emotion you can feel. You can learn a lot about different in life, and how people got through them. :p
zoe r.
lanier ms

I bought this book for one of my children for a summer reading project. I needed a specific version and was glad I could search Amazon by ISBN. The book arrived quickly and the price was reasonable. I'm sure other family members will enjoy the book when the projcet is complete.

except for the Bible, this is the best.
It is the full and undiluted version from the first english translation.
read it, learn it,live it.
j

Although the story is well known to me, the editing of this audio book was so confusing. I absolutely could not follow it. Too much is cut out.

Story has good twists, but there are too many French places and people which makes the audio confusing.

The book is excelent reading but please get a different version.
This version only has 580 or so pages where as other versions have over 1,300 pages. That means that this version is only half the story.
So much gets lost in translation already don't cheat yourself even more.

I am going to make this simple. I read an old paperback copy of the original "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". Having enjoyed reading the original, I found the "Ultimate" version in the discount section at Barnes and Noble. What a great buy for ten dollars.

Not all may like the series. For those that do, I highly recommend all additional books to the original. You will not be let down, as (the late) Mr. Adams continues to entertain again and again as things move on. Just about any science fiction fan with a sense of humor will love these books.

Great read, I didn't even know about the Zaphod short story (my own words) that was included in this book. Happy to have all of the stories all in one book and makes it easy for me to go back and reference parts from the earlier stories, especially since I enjoy noting the really good lines.

I've lost track of the number of times I've read the Guide novels over the years. This compilation of a 'trilogy in 5 parts' makes it nice and easy to read them all as one continuous story. I don't really need to elaborate on how good these stories are as those who have read them will already know. But to the uninitiated I strongly urge you to purchase a copy, prop yourself up against your towel, and eat plenty of peanuts. And most importantly, Don't Panic!

If finding out your house is about to be bulldozed to make way for a highway bypass is unnerving and life changing, imagine finding out the same is about to happen to your planet. Thus begin the adventures of human Arthur Dent in The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams.

Of course Adams is not the first writer to use science fiction to satirize the foibles of the human race and its institutions and culture (including science fiction), but he does does so with a rare combination of sophistication, style, and humor. His description of why the bypass is being built and why Arthur doesn't know about it alone starts the series off on a scathing note. In the universe of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (the book within a book), people sometimes survive government and corporate bureaucracy and personal greed and thoughtlessness, but more often destruction and waste seem to result.

Throughout his post-Earth adventures with Ford Prefect, the two-headed Zaphod Beeblebrox, fellow human Trillian (Tricia McMillan), and Marvin the perpetually downcast robot who takes lows to new highs, Arthur is the proverbial Everyman, whose struggles to make tea (and thus achieve some sense of ordinariness) in his new life result in near-destruction. At one point, he happily serves as "Sandwich Maker" on a pre-technological world that views this skill with awe.

Adams is perhaps strongest in his numerous asides in which he talks about The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the publication for which Ford Prefect researches and writes, and the Encyclopedia Galactica; the nature of improbability; the humorously and seemingly invariable and inevitable tragic histories of various planets and races; and various theories surrounding such things as time, space, and infinity, almost always with a slyly serious wink about the absurdity of it all. These digressions allow his imagination and his intellect to soar and in many cases are more interesting than the story itself. This may go back to how The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy begins--that people want to move between Points A and B very fast, and that people at Point C in between (Everyman Arthur Dent) "often wish that people would just once and for all work out where the hell they wanted to be." There seem to be no Points A and B in Arthur's new universe; there are infinite points and lines and continuums, most of them absurd in one way or another.

With the exception of Trillian, Arthur's fellow travelers are well drawn. The most amusing is, sadly, Marvin, whose programmed depression is annoying and whose perception is accurate.

There are ingenious ideas scattered throughout the six stories, including the irony of a lorry driver who hates the perpetual rain that follows him no matter where he goes because, unbeknownst to him, he is a Rain God.

The problem is that many of these ideas, like life events, crop up randomly, play themselves out, and then seem to fall flat in the end. Undoubtedly, this is part of the universe as Adams sees it; it is made up of absurdity upon absurdity, which may not have neat Point A to Point B progressions. Some of this lack of cohesion also may be the result of transforming material written for episodic radio into book form; a certain sense and continuity may have been lost as the author diverts his tale to Points E, M, and T.

The first two books, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, are the best in the series. Life, the Universe and Everything is, almost as the title promises, too contorted and meandering. So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, which takes place on Earth, lacks an engaging focal point, which makes it seem long and tedious at times. "Young Zaphod Plays It Safe" appears to be a throwaway story reflecting the author's views. Mostly Harmless, written at what Adams admitted was a bad time in his life, lacks the élan of the earliest books; it is more downbeat in attitude than its predecessors and borders on determined and grim. Marvin is long gone as comic relief; the weakest character, Tricia/Trillian, now moves to the forefront but without further development; and even Ford Prefect has sobered up, quite out of character. It as though Adams wanted his characters, most notably Random, to reflect his anger and depression and his universe to end without possibility of resurrection--in the same way that Arthur Conan Doyle tried to kill off Sherlock Holmes.

Underneath the satire, the humor, and the bitterness, The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide is imaginative and thought provoking, revealing a rare story-telling and writing gift that is brilliant both on the surface and in the depths.

As usual the movie can't live up to the book. This is a must-read -- one of those points of cultural brilliance that will still be read three hundred years from now. Be prepared for very dry humor, British-style...