Language Arts Books

This book is freakin AWESOME. It answered ALL and then some of my queries. I didn't think graphology did all of this, but now I'm ALWAYS seeing it everywhere! As it says within the book, "You will never look at handwriting the same way again." It even inculdes a section on what drawings mean. FANTASTIC, UNBELIEVABLE come to mind. I believe it has a small section on PRINT, though I am unsure. I had this book, then lost it in a move....now I'm buying it back (and KEEPING it)! 2 thumbs, 9/10 (or 5/5) watev!

...everything! "Handwriting Analysis: Putting it to work for you" is a well-organized guidebook into the fascinating world of graphology. As a practicing handwriting analyst, I have used this book as a reference many times - with particular attention to such detailed handwriting traits as a "felon's claw". Handwriting reveals many characteristics to the trained eye - this book will educate and amaze readers, especially when they put it into practice.

Clear, concise, interesting and very useful. I already have some knowledge of handwriting analysis and found it very easy to learn more.

This book offers a quick look at how to analyze handwriting. The quizzes help to engage the reader in the analysis of the handwriting instead of using prose to simply explain the concepts. I found myself analyzing handwriting for fun within a few days.

Carrying the knowledge that i got from this book is like carrying a swiss army knife with you everywhere you go. i looked back at cards and "good luck in college" signatures in my yearbook and found very interesting things, that i know are true since i knew the people. the handwritings really do match the personalities. i analyze every piece of handwriting i now see! my coworkers, ads on the train, my friends, doctors, etc. this book is my bible. it teaches you who is a liar, has weird sex prefence, whose psychotic, who is secretive, who's an extrovert, who's suicidal, who wants to be well known, who has poor self esteem, etc. !! GET THIS BOOK!!! includes tons of famous signature and writing samples inside

"Only as Good as Your Word" is a witty and engaging account of one writer's ability to make a career for herself doing the thing she loves most. Shapiro tells the story of her successes and stumbles with humor and humility, while sharing sage advice of her own and words of wisdom from the mentors who guided her along the way. "Plumbers don't have plumbing blocks," said her cousin, the writer Howard Fast -words anyone who has frozen at the sight of a blank page would do well to remember. Shapiro's insights are helpful, entertaining and inspiring. One can't help but admire her perserverance and appauld the success she has achieved. "Only as Good as Your Word" is a great read.

The adventures of making it as a professional writer - it's more than an endless stack of rejection slips. "Only As Good As Your Word: Writing Lessons from My Favorite Literary Gurus" is author Susan Shapiro's memoir of her life trying to make it with her pastime of writing. Focusing on the wisdom imparted on her from her countless mentors over the years, it serves as an excellent source in itself for writers and aspiring writers. "Only As Good As Your Word: Writing Lessons from My Favorite Literary Gurus" is highly recommended to community library memoir collections.

Susan Shapiro brings the same lively, smart, hilarious prose to the history of her writing life as she brought to her sex/love life in Five Men Who Broke My Heart. Who would have thought this book could be just as compelling and entertaining? In writing about her mentors, Shapiro is full of priceless advice about writing--and about living in general. She was a girl who never gave up, who fought hard and worked hard and listened and learned when older and wiser writers spoke. Most of us would do well to read this book with as much attention.

Susan Shapiro's memoir sparkles with humor and insight that any writer could put to good use. Every chapter chronicles her courtship of and relationship with a different literary mentor, each of whom she psychoanalyzes into a substitute familial role - the emotionally available father, the kind older brother, the intellectually-minded maternal figure. What makes this work is Shapiro's endearing candor about her analytical bent, and the way it shapes the narrative into a cohesive whole.

As Shapiro navigates the rocky world of the NYC literary scene, she never hesitates to admit her own mistakes and point out the pitfalls to her readers. The stories are engaging and poignant, and most importantly, they demonstrate that mentors are cultivated in all the expected places in unexpected ways. This book is a useful and entertaining choice for anyone curious about the New York publishing world, and an invaluable resource for those who want to become a part of it.

Shapiro's "Only as Good as Your Word" is an informative, well-written, humorous and heartening book that should be mandatory reading for any aspiring writer. The mentor-protégé relationship plays such a crucial role in the literary/journalism world--which is why the author's no-holes-barred insight on its highs, lows, psychological underpinnings and ramifications as they relate to her are breathtaking. She pulls no punches when it comes to indicting her own neurotic behavior--and in doing so deconstructs the myth that having it all means having it all together. That Shapiro does it with such seemingly effortless yet loaded prose makes for quite the feat; her poetry training has obviously served her well.

If you've ever, had, been or needed a mentor, this book is for you.

I love this book-as a Spanish major, I consider this the "bible" of Spanish grammar. It breaks down every aspect of Spanish grammar-even small things. It gives examples of how to use it and examples of common mistakes by English speakers. It is complicated and I would not recommend this for beginning students. It "speaks" to you believing you have a certain amount of previous knowledge that might confuse beginning learners.

I think this book is probably the most thorough Spanish grammar book I've ever seen. It's quite detailed. I keep it on my bookshelf at home and use it as a reference. This is a grammar book that no Spanish student should be without. A must have!

This book is exactly what I have been searching for! It covers everything the english speaking spanish student could want. It is detailed and gives excellent usage examples. It can be somewhat tidious on certain points. Despite this, it immediately became an indespensible part of my library. It is very thorough. I love it.

Here is a standout presentation of the ins and outs of contemporary Spanish. Examples of idiomatic usage are generously supplied, but fine points do not get in the way of the basics. Altogether an exemplary text--well-orgnized, lucid, and thorough.

Even as a beginner in spanish, studying mostly at home with books and digital files (Learning Spanish Like Crazy and Rocket Spanish) and occasional visits to a local spanish tutor -- I have found this book to be my best source for grammar clarification.

I purchased about 5 grammar books. My other favorites were actually workbooks rather than reference sources -- likely to diminish in usefulness as I progress. While they seemed easier at first, I would be tripped up by inconsistencies here and there and gaps when I tried to extend beyond them to reading spanish texts. In some cases my tutor could not explain what I needed about a particular grammar rule or common usage pattern.

After about 3 months of using other references, I finally became more comfortable with finding my answers in this reference. So far every topic I have explored was included, usually with pretty good thoroughness. When a rule seems to deviate from the expected, or no consistent rule applies -- it is acknowledged. When there are regional trends -- these have also been documented better than in any other reference I have seen.

It took me awhile to have enough Spanish exposure to understand some of the details, but with time it has been well worth the money and effort. Now I've come to rely on it almost exclusively.

It clearly outshines the others on my shelf. I expect it will remain a classic reference as my language skills continue to develop. I wish I could find the equivalent book for English -- because while working with my spanish tutor I realized that I couldn't easily explain some of the grammar rules of my native language either!!! Like her, I sometimes had to just say that I just knew what sounded right. This comprehensive reference gives much more satisfying answers.

Ok, before I explain the title of this review, let me make an embarrassing admission. I originally picked this book up at a library instead of purchasing it. I did this because I have wasted the rough equivallent of 2 wheelbarrels full of cash on copywriting courses that turned out to be complete and utter wastes of my time, money, and remaining hair waiting to be pulled out...

If you have invested any of your own precious time searching for great advice and material on how to make a great living as a copywriter, then I'm sure you understand exaclty what I mean.

As I cracked open The Well Fed Writer: Back For Seconds, I skimmed through the book as I always do when sizing up new material, searching for relevant chapters. I must say that it took only 1 chapter of reading for me to set the book aside, whip out my notebook and furiously scratch down good advice, valuable resources to check out on the web and even 2 clever quips that I wanted to use the next time I host a teleseminar. (The comparison of common marketing practices to camoflauge was a stroke of genius)

I realize that I may be dangerously close to sounding like a gushing teenager asking for his favorite celecrities autograph, but I cannot emphasize enough how 'right on the money' this book is. Perhaps the best way to illustrate how valuable the Well Fed Writer is to your success as a freelance writer would be to show you what 3 qualities I look for in a 'good' book:

1 - Straight forward - The author must not pull any punches. Tell it like it is. Don't paint overly rosey pictures or candy coat your advice. If there are landmines to my career that must be avoided, then by all means point them out! Thankfully Peter goes above and beyond by acknowledging traits that are common to most humans that could kill your progress before you even get started. Peter seems to have a talent for painting visual pictures and images that will stick with you. I hope he doesn't mind if I use a few of his analogies with my clients!

2 - Realistic - I don't know about you, but I'm tired of having my ears tickled. Don't tell me what you think I want to hear, tell me the truth! There's enough hyped up pie in the sky books, websites and emails floating around in cyberspace... I don't need to spend money on a book that will add to it! I found this book to be a refreshing change of pace as you are constantly reminded of the fact that we live and work in the real world, so results can and will vary.

However, Peter also takes the time to show you alternative paths to success should you find that your current conditions are less than ideal. Much appreciated!

3 - Easy to read - Ok, call me petty for listing such a seemingly unimportant feature in my #3 spot, but I couldn't resist. Regardless of how good the information is, if I feel as if I am plodding my way through a college biology text book, then chances are I'm more likely to use the book as a paper-weight.

I found this book to be entertaining to read as well as informative. Please do yourself a favor and purchase this book now. I returned my copy to the library and snagged my own personal copy, because this is a book that you will want to highlight and bookmark for continous future reference. You can thank me for the strong recommendation later!

All in all .. Peter Bowerman has one of the few "voices" that bears a ring of truth rather than hype to me. My aversion to hype is one of the reasons I struggle with even trying copywriting for real. Your books resonate with me because he is doing it everyday.

This is as opposed to those who have done it for a thousand years and might not have to work as hard as the rest of us in this day and age. That's not to negate their success or status but getting advice from someone who has already made their fortune and can sell on name recognizability alone is very different than having someone who's risen from the trenches in the same era that new aspiring creatives are coming from.

I say creative btw because much of what Bowerman advises should (will?) work for my design aspirations as well as writing.

Like Peter Bowerman's first book, this book is well worth the $20. He expands on concepts from the first book, goes into more specific detail and gives more examples. I found it very useful.

The market demanded this book so Bowerman put it out.

It's okay. It's mostly more of the same - it doesn't
much represent a leap from the first book so much as
it's like a 284 page appendix... useful material but much
of it would have been edited out or folded into the
first book if they were published as one volume.

Not particularly flawed - but like many business books
it's padded out with 3rd-party stories - enthusiastic
and informative vignettes from succeeding freelancers
who liked the first book and wrote in to Bowerman to
share their stories.

Major points - cold calling isn't so bad, marketing
isn't so bad if you think about it in a nice way,
professionalism matters, consistency pays off.

Fairly toothless, but inspirational. If you read the
first book and need a little more encouragement to
jump into the marketplace and do the business this
might be the push you need.

Worth reading but if you are already hustling work as
a freelancer you may find it redundant.

Peter Bowerman makes it seem like there`s FLCW (freelance corporate writing) work in abundance for everyone who could possibly seek to get into the game (and has a modicum of talent and is willing to work hard etc.) I love his style. I think he has some good tips. However, he skips the reality that content buyers are developing a Wal-Mart mentality and trying to get 50 articles for $2 each -- no attention to quality as long as certain keywords appear and it meets some sort of hi/lo age group. I know corporate writing is not like poetry or even essay writing. I accept that. As a struggling writer however I see the reality and that is that corporate buyers -- of writing or widgets or any commodity -- are trying to go as cheap as possible no matter what the sacrifice in quality. That`s why many website and brochures, annual reports and white papers you see today have frequent and horrifying grammatical and syntactical errors.

Today even well trained actors balk at having to do Shakespeare. This book provides the tools necessary to bridge the daunting task of getting your mouth around the words and understanding what you are saying. Thanks to the authors for creating a book that captures their extensive knowledge and expertise in a user friendly volume.

Beyond the pronunciation dictionary, essential to every North American actor and director of Shakespeare, the book's notes on scanning Shakespeare's verse set forth briefly in ten clear pages, not extended pedantic garble, what an actor must know, since scansion may dictate pronunciation. The additional notes on dialects, accents, Latin and other foreign languages used by Shakespeare, and the observations on differences in poetic diction in each of his plays, also have great value.

This is as essential a tool for any actor performing Shakespeare as the voice, body and mind! I highly recommend it to anyone who is serious about their craft.

GREAT FIND!! Any and every word Shakespeare ever wrote is in this book with the proper pronounciation. This is a "must have" for any Shakespeare actor, or for someone who wants to read Shakespeare and know exactly how to say every word. Also, the verse speaking techniques are excellent. If you are serious about Shakespeare, get this book!

This incredibly thorough and efficient book is essential to any person who wishes to study or truly appreciate Shakespeare. I've been an actor and a student of English literature for many years, but I did not have the access to or admiration for classical works that I have gained since using Younts' and Scheeders' text.
The poetry is better this way! You need to know how to say it if you want to perform it! Actors, Directors, and Lovers of Shakespeare, GET THIS BOOK!!!

"The Great Shark Hunt" serves as a fantastic first volume that serves as possibly the ultimate re-cap of arguably his most influential period. Featuring cuts from now seminal classics such as "Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas", "Hell's Angels", and "Fear & Loathing On The Campaign Trail '72" supplemented with a large collection of articles that have over the years become journalistic staples within the Hunter S. Thompson fan collective and outside observers a like. Whether his first introduction with Ralph Steadman ("The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent And Depraved") or the death of Ruben Salazar ("Strange Rumblings In Atzlan"), Hunter S. Thompson has always managed to immerse himself in the story in ways still unmatched.

His writings and subsequent volumes of letters have alluded to a man that was as intriguing as he was unnerving.. and that possibly is the testament why Hunter S. Thompson is the "founder" and only real contender in the arena of "Gonzo Journalism". His strong personality is what made him the center of the story, and his sharp incite and wit were merely the icing on top.

Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon, Muhammad Ali.... it is all here.

Phenomenal, one of Thompson's greats. Great stuff with his meeting of Ralph Steadman. He interacts with the world like no other. You get a feeling that he is right there again being as chaotic and eccentric as he is expected to be. By far some of his great writing.

This book is really amazing. It spans, not chronilogically, throughout most of Dr. Hunter S Thompson's early/middle stages of his career. It is satirical and hilarious and straight to the point. Straight to the point meaning he does not bite his tongue, especially when speaking about "that twisted beast of a man" Nixon. Sometimes the writing begins getting off on a tangent, but if it didn't then it wouldn't truly be gonzo journalism. This book is incredible!

Hunter S. Thompson was a raving lunatic, a mad professor, a crackpot, and a Genius all wrapped up in one. If you're up for a wild ride through the late sixties and early seventies then get this book - nobody else has come close to describing those times so well. I found myself giggling like a Moron at some of the outrageous things that Thompson did and said, and pounding my fist in anger at other things that the Mad Doctor did and said. At certain intervals during this read I vowed to never touch another Thompson book, but there were times that I couldn't put it down, and eagerly anticipated his other books. It is worth the read for it's insight, and for the jaw-dropping affect that Thompson causes so easily and so frequently.

Much like Sony's "The Essential" series, which collected the greatest songs from the greatest musicians of the past century, "The Great Shark Hunt" is an anthology of the greatest of the Good Doctor's work from his peak period of the 60's and 70's.

Perhaps no other American writer captured the essence of that tumultous era better than Hunter S. Thompson. He was simultaneously of his time and above his time, and invented a new kind of journalism, dubbed "Gonzo." All objectivity was thrown out the window as the author thrust himself into the action of the stories he was reporting. Whether it was dropping acid at a police convention in Las Vegas, sabotaging the presidential bid of Ed Muskie, or running for sheriff of Aspen, Thompson's antics are legendary, and "The Great Shark Hunt" is a great way to get acquainted with the man and the writing for which he is best remembered.

It's been 15 years since I first encountered this book - part of a vocabulary challenge in the sixth grade. I still remember most of the stories, and I must have infuriated my parents using each word incessantly as I learned it. I can't recommend it highly enough.

I love this book.This book is one of the best books ever.The reason why I gave this book five stars because its funny and senstive. My favorite word was laxcity.Laxcity means that you dont even care about whats gioing on.I think that this book is good for all ages. I hope that you read this fantastic book.

This animated book gives children a new way to learn the definitions of words. It was highly recomended to me, and I loved it!

I use this book with my third grade students. We read a story per week. Many of their parents tell me it becomes a topic of conversation each week as the child teaches Mom and Dad a new word. It is fantastic.

This book is one of the best books I had ever read in my life.I would recommend this book to every one because its funny and great.

"Karen Wiesner's ELECTRONIC PUBLISHING is undoubtedly the single most important resource for anyone-author, editor, publisher-with an interest in the future of publishing. I can't recommend it enough."
--Brian A. Hopkins, Bram Stoker Award-winning Author

"Wiesner's book, first published in 1999, remains one of the best sources of information and advice on getting your book published by a royalty-paying e-publisher."
--eBookNet Undiscovered Gem

"If you want to be published by an e-publisher, or are wondering if maybe the "e-" route is the way to go, this book is for you. In this updated version of her landmark reference text, Ms. Wiesner outlines everything an author needs to know about the e-publishing industry in her first section, starting with the differences between vanity, subsidy, and traditional publishers, then discussing the technology used for ebooks, advantages and disadvantages to e-publishing, and common misconceptions about e-publishing along with the facts to set people straight. The major bulk of the book, however, is an alphabetical listing of all non-subsidy, royalty-paying e-publishers, along with interviews from the editors and publishers about what types of books they want to buy. There is also a section at the end of the book about how to use the Internet to promote your book after you've sold it. If you read the book on a computer with an active web browser, it contains hotlinks to all of the publishers, organizations, and resources listed in the text. Using the power of HTML links in this way is a good thing."
--Science Fiction Romance Newsletter

This is an excellent resource properly subtitled as "The Definitive Guide." As a print publisher of sixteen years, I wanted to learn about electronic publishing and spent hours on the Internet wading through the various, and often conflicting, information. I purchased a copy of "Weave Your Web" by Karen Wiesner and after reading it decided that I had to have her book on Electronic Publishing. Everything you could possibly want to know is covered in this book. I especially like the way she details the 22 common myths of e-publishing and gives her opinion on the advantages and disadvantages of publishing in this manner. Once I read this book, I no longer felt like a novice and am slowly converting some of my print titles into e-books. If you purchase this book, you will save much time and frustration. Although we have different viewpoints on subsidy publishing and the role it plays with all publishing firms, if I could, I would give this book a rating of ten.

"...Wiesner provides an honest portrait of the state of e-publishing as we know it (so far), giving us the skinny on standard formats, copyright protection, and distribution... After opening arguments about the pros and cons of electronic publishing, the book turns into the e-publishing equivalent of Literary Market Place with 125 pages dedicated to listings of e-publishers, including web site addresses, contact information, submission guidelines, payment terms and distribution methods. The section on book promotion contains low-cost promotional ideas worthy of perusal by both electronic and traditional authors, such as Internet interviews, live chats, exchanging banner ads, issuing on-line press releases, organizing contests and special events, e-serials, promotional bookmarks; and other ideas so unique the chapter could potentially be worth its weight in gold... If you're thinking seriously about learning more about e-publishing, most of the legwork is done for you here."

--The Writer Magazine

Great book & well worth the money. Christopher not only explains how, but why. I now see movies in a different light which helps in understanding why certain movies appeal to the masses and most importantly, why others don't. If you have a story in your head, this book will explain how to coax it out for all to enjoy. It's been a tremendous help in guiding my stories from imagination to page.

The name Keane might not jump out at you as "major Hollywood screenwriter" but after reading over the first few sections of this book it is obvious that he knows what he is writing about. Honest and straight forward, this book takes you from stage one (you have an idea) all the way through the proper way to write your script to how to sell it (stubborness is the key!). The best part is that the author has one of his complete screenplays at the end of the book. It comes with annotations and is a big help for a visual learner like myself.

I highly recommend this book. It has helped write the Different Flags screenplay. Eugenia RenskoffDifferent Flags

So far the best and complete guide for screenplay that I've read. Very useful for those who wants to start writing a screenplay. I recommend it.

This books is very well written and has loads of information for the beginning screen writer such as myself. The author takes a chronological step by step approach as to how to get started and the proper format for a screenplay. The only thing I'm sort of ad odds with is that the author doesn't say much as to how in the world you get an agent to just read your script, let alone representing you. He sort of glosses over that problem and a real problem it is. I personally have been sending out query letters since February of this year and have received only "polite" rejection form letters or no responses at all. I've even sent out "follow up" queries and still no responses. I assume that agents need postage stamps, they've obviously kept the ones that I've included for return postage, or that in order to get ANYTHING read and actually produced, you have to know someone personally in the business. Don't quit your day jobs and think that you're going to sell a story. It's next impossible, as I've unfortunately realized. You would assume that it's not really that difficult given all the "schlock" that IS produced. Case in point: an independent film maker made a film this last year about zombies attacking a small town and it cost him about $30,000 to make. He released it and it made over $35,000,000 in one weekend! Out grossing the three main stream releases put together! Go figure. Never the less, this book is a good fundamental but just don't depend on it too much as gospel. Keep writing, keep looking for an agent but also keep/find a regular job in the meantime.

Great children's book. It's a fun way to encourage and read with your child.

This books is wonderful! I am using it in small groups at work and the kids absolutely cannot get enough of this book. I bought all titles in the series! Great for paired reading among siblings, parents and children, and friends!

Our students really love all the books in this series. They frequently choose them to read to each other during free choice time. I would really recommend this book to other teachers as a great source for oral reading practice!

My seven year-old grandson introduced me to Mary Ann Hoberman's work. He loved reading to and with me. I'm a volunteer reading tutor and I use her books to teach first graders to read. They love it.

I highly recommend the books by Mary Ann Hoberman to excited kids about reading.

Judith Hays

I love Mary Anne Hoberman's "The Cozy Book", it is always a great bedtime story. So, when I found this title on Amazon, I couldn't resist. My son is 7 and enjoys reading, so this was perfect for us; he reads to me, I read to him, and we read the last verse together. The stories are cute and short, good if you only have a few minutes at the end of the day. The emphasis on reading is an added bonus.