Language Arts Books

It's a long book, so I thought it would last. No such luck. The writing is simply amazing, across the board. Buy it, enjoy it.

No one could possibly take The New Yorker, National Geographic, Rolling Stone, Esquire,The American Scholar, the Atlantic Monthly, GQ, Time, Gourmet, Harper's and Vanity Fair and read all the stories in them every month for a year. But what if the greatest experts, The American Society of Magazine Editors read 1,586 stories and picked just the best 17 of them for you to read. Even if you didn't think you'd like the subject, you will love reading each and every one of these. I'm using it for a seminar I'm giving -- one article and its author to discuss each week for 14 weeks. It's Terrific!!!

For anyone who enjoys feature writing and investigative journalism this is an excellent read. I have made it through 9 of the 17 stories and have thoroughly enjoyed 8 of them. The topics are broad (John McCain, seal hunting in Greenland, a fat wine critic, campaign finance reform and many more.) The writing is so good that even topics that usually bore me (wine for one) became interesting.

No matter who you are, what your interests or where your political affiliations lie, if you enjoy reading good writing, you will enjoy this book. It represents some of the tightest, best researched and most insightful writing of a year's worth of magazine articles. The magazines in which the articles were originally published range from The Atlantic Monthly to Zoetrope: All-Story (did they include the ends of the alphabet for such a sentence as this?). The subjects, writing styles and tones of the stories smatter widely, but have in common one thing: they are stories worth your while. You could be forced to walk, sit and suffer with John McCain through his torturous 5-year imprisonment in a North Vietnamese p.o.w. camp, as well as with the cast of characters behind one week of McCain's presidential campaign tour. You could bask in the glory of Bob Parker, a burly, middle-aged Maryland guy whose freakishly acute sense of smell, coupled with his rigid integrity, led to his publication of The Wine Advocate and the author's well-founded claim that Parker may be "single-handedly changing the history of wine." The book is replete with the end product of authors whose diligence, sensitivity and dexterity with the English language have culminated in some rock-solid reading.

Get this book. Do anything you have to in order to own it. I paid $250 at the Art Institute of Chicago because I was afraid I would miss out...again. This is a collector's piece if you got the first edition. If not, don't hesitate. It is interesting, intriging, thought provoking, ahead of it's time....and not just for 'creative' types. Something good for everyone.

This is the most extraordinary book I've ever owned! I missed out when it was first published as a limited edition and I vowed that if it ever came back,I would grab one. Bravo to Rizzoli Publishers for re-issuing this hard-to-find classic!

These facsimile pages from the twelve issues of Flair are a celebration of Fleur Cowles zest for creativity in the arts. The 338 pages must have been a challenge for the Hong Kong printers, they had to cope with various foldout pages, die-cut holes, different paper stock and bind in several short pages, two concertina foldouts and five sixteen page booklets.

Sumptuous though the book is I feel that Flair is resting in its reputation. To my mind, having worked as a publication art director, the photos, typography and layouts are very conservative and do not show any particular innovative design. Other magazines and designers were much more creative in the fifties, 'Fortune' with Will Burtin, 'Glamour' with Cipe Pineless, 'Harper's Bazaar' with Alexey Brodovitch and 'Vogue' with Alexander Liberman. Certainly the covers with their die-cut holes (sadly only six of the twelve are included) and the bound in booklets were unique to consumer magazines at the time but I think that Flair should be remembered as a magazine concept rather than a magazine full of creativity.

Fleur Cowles writes a short piece about the origins of Flair (handwritten in gold on dark blue paper) but does not give enough detail (I believe each issue involved several printers and binders) and as there were only twelve issues a list of all the articles should have been included. Another reviewer has commented that the high price (reassuringly expensive?) and the cloth covered box the book comes in reflects snob appeal, I agree but I'm still pleased to have a copy.

I first became acquainted with Fleur Cowles' revolutionary 'Flair' magazine during my childhood in the fifties. At that time the publication impressed me with its cultured blend of cosmopolitan sophistication and innovative design, although it didn't escape me that its pages also included a great deal of elitism, snobbery and self-congratulatory arrogance. Although I wasn't fortunate to keep any of the original issues, the magazine became a significant influence in the development of my literary and artistic tastes and in my life-long quest for beauty and elegance. For that I was grateful. So it was a joy to learn that a best-of compilation put together by Fleur Cowles herself had finally appeared. The original 1996 printing sold out before I could manage to acquire a copy and when Rizzoli recently published a second run I quickly got one. This edition has a foreword by writer-socialite Dominick Dunne. Now, is it really worth the rather steep price of [price]? Well... I think that for that kind of money the publishers could have managed to provide us with something much more substantial, for example: a slipcased set containing facsimile editions of all twelve original issues, rather than this comprehensive but ultimately limited look. A complete reprint would have given us the full impression of the range and period feel of a unique magazine, and at this price I think that they could have well afforded to do it. I understand that part of the reason for this expensive price tag is the snob appeal that has always been a part of the Flair mystique and that perhaps this offering is to be regarded as literary caviar for the more discerning (and well-off) among us. On the plus side I must say that the large-format book is lavishly printed, that the articles are indeed very well selected - containing not quite all but much of the best of the short-lived magazine - and that the presentation is very handsome indeed. Several of the covers are reproduced with their distinctive die-cuts and embossing and the book is housed in an elegant cloth-covered box. I still think it could have been more reasonably priced but there it is. Caviar lovers, enjoy it before it disappears again!

I have been reading (and writing for) the online journal Novel Advice for several years. It is always full of helpful, practical advice for writers--whether you are experienced or just starting out. Now this anthology distills the best of the suggestions for improving your writing in a handy format. You will be helped, inspired, and motivated by the essays in this book. Highly recommended for all authors and would-be authors!

One might accuse me of prejudice since I have a number of pieces in this book, but in a sense, that authorship gives me a unique perspective that is worthy of expression here.

Most books on writing address only one phase of the subject -- how to write a mystery, for example, or using fiction techniques in magazine articles or developing characters. This one is far more ranging in subject matter. Here a variety of published authors speak out with authority on an equally varied number of aspects of writing.

Eileen Workman's "Ten Commandments For Successful Plotting" includes the "Cardinal Sin of Plotting" and presents solutions to the problem of plot development in a succinct and useful nutshell. "Five Mistakes Beginning Writers Make and How To Avoid Them" by Gwenneth Barnes addresses several concerns that often surprise the novice. Marcia Kiser's example of how to map a mystery takes the ouch out of outlining and John Moir describes the importance of narrative arcs in nonfiction. Books used in researching pieces are listed in a "further reading" section at the end of the article.

Pieces on Genre Writing: Memoirs, Historical Novels, Mysteries, the Short Story, Creative Nonfiction are examples of the range of advice and short cuts covered in these articles.

The inquisitive writer, even the most experienced one, will undoubtedly find surprises and new insights here. From taking the slack out of your writing to the use of setting to indicate character, and from addressing writer's block to "I Is Not Me," I challenge anyone to read this book and, when finished, to tell me he or she has not encountered some new concept.

THE BEST OF NOVEL ADVICE is novel (meaning unique) and contains some of the finest advice for writers that you'll find between two covers. I'm proud to be part of it.

There are snippets of valuable advice here for every writer, from the novice to the published. As I turned each page, I kept finding a new spin on the craft of writing that I had not thought about before, and I have been a professional writer for more than 50 years. Others will be similarly rewarded, I am sure. As the title suggests, the 78 pithy articles lean in favor of fiction rather than non-fiction, which is my own cup of tea, but then most writers are novelists at heart, aren't they?

Pete

From Sunnye Tiedemann's "How to Write an Anecdote" and "How to Create a Villain" to "Where to Start" by Caro Clark, this volume has a wealth of treats for the writer. If you are doing any kind of creative writing, this book is like a toolbox, filled with helpful devices to improve your work. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

There are alot of the older patterns that you can no longer find.I have made several of the patterns in the book and one special one for a wedding present for my daughter. She loved it.

this is the perfect book for stitchers who like old fashioned romantic designs. the patterns are easy to read and the finished product is beautiful. lots of flowers and quilts in these designs.

You can't go wrong with any of Paula Vaughan's adaptations to cross stitch. They are all beautiful and even more beautiful when stitched.

It's such a beauty! Paula Vaughan's artistic expression is incredible! Must get a copy - even if you don't stitch. It's so beautiful just to look at!

I received an advance copy of this book and devoured it in one sitting. Now I've put the book on a syllabus for a course I teach in creative writing and am ordering it for all my writer friends. Bonni Goldberg's practical, inspirational and fundamental approach to writing will get you started and keep you going. Her take on such critical topics such as writer's block, revising and going public are so practical I wanted to cry. Before I read this book, I'd been in a writerly slump for several months. No more. If I get stuck, I pick it up and read it all over again. One of the best books on writing I've read ever (and I've read quite a few!)

This book is like an "I'm OK, you're OK" for writers--it discusses all sorts of topics, like getting input or not getting input, writing every day or not writing every day, going public or not going public--and makes you feel okay about whatever it is you're doing: for every thing there is a season. It's just what you need if you're having any doubts or experiencing rejection (or, for that matter, selling everything right and left!). It helps you get in touch with a lot of wisdom about why we write and how to nurture your writing self, whether you are having "success" getting published or not. I read it right after a big agent turned down my manuscript, and it really helped me put the whole thing in perspective. A wise, engrossing, touching book, like having a good friend at your side. Along with If You Want To Write and Bird By Bird, it offers inspiration about writing, creating and life. Go to books like Self Editing for Fiction Writers for the craft.

This book is like an "I'm OK, you're OK" for writers--it discusses all sorts of topics, like getting input or not getting input, writing every day or not writing every day, going public or not going public--and makes you feel okay about whatever it is you're doing: for every thing there is a season. It's just what you need if you're having any doubts or experiencing rejection (or, for that matter, selling everything right and left!. It helps you get in touch with a lot of wisdom about why we write and how to nurture your writing self, whether you are having "success" getting published or not. I read it right after a big agent turned down my manuscript after reading it twice, and it really helped me put the whole thing in perspective. A wise, engrossing, touching book, like having a good friend at your side. Along with If YOu Want To Write and Bird By Bird, it offers a lot of inspiration about writing, creating and life. Go to books like Self Editing for Fiction Writers for the craft.

I borrowed this book from a friend, and then bought a copy to send to another friend. It's one of the most helpful books I've read, suggesting that the key to successful writing is looking at how writing is incorporated into one's life. It's not just percolation, writing, revising, and publishing, but the balance between these elements. Buy this book and begin to enjoy your writing life in new and unexpected ways!

The item was shipped very quickly, however, it was unclear at the time that I bought it which edition the book was.

For anyone interested in historical linguistics, Millward's textbook is the first you should read. Her dry sense of humor livens even the most dense chapters on inner history and spelling reform. The book is intended to serve as a text for a graduate course on the history of English, and it is useful for both experienced linguists as well as those who have no prior coursework in linguistics. The text begins with chapters on language, phonology, and writing to provide the novice with background on linguistics, phonology, and phonemic transcription. The chapters that follow on Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English, and Present Day English have dense, but easy to read, overviews of both inner and outer history of the language. Millward intersperses humorous vignettes with her main text and heightens the reader's appreciation for the language

I used this text in a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga "History of the English Language" course for English majors. Millward does a wonderful job of explaining the information and her examples are recognizable and helpful. you will find yourself reading part out loud as you try and discover your own language usage. In fact, I think I would have enjoyed this book even reading it on my own. Language History is not explored enough, and this is a great text with which to begin

This book was one of the first books to turn me onto the field of Linguistics. --BUT-- you don't need to be a linguist to enjoy this book. All you need is a curiosity in the history of the English language. Suddenly, all the crazy "rules" of grammar, and the seemingly senseless spelling of many words start to make sense. It is fascinating to see how the language has evolved, and you learn to appreciate the nature of language.

Let's get something out of the way first: I am a "language person." I understand languages intuitively and have very few problems learning them. That said, however, I share Elizabeth Little's passion for languages. I loved reading this book, especially as she went over languages that I've studied - Spanish, German, and Arabic - and over languages I will eventually study - Hebrew, Ancient Greek, Latin, Sanskrit - and, thanks to her irreverent, informal, entertaining style, the whole experience was extremely pleasant. If you're at all interested in languages, this is one book to pick up immediately.

Little's look at the world of languages, their common traits, and their huge range of differences, will introduce everyone but the most well-informed of linguistic scholars to the unique and at times amusing quirks of language. From languages that click, to languages with only three names of colors, Little takes us on a grand tour through both time and space, broadening our horizons and understandings of history and culture as evidenced by the way people have used language.

The real charm of the book, however, is Little's frequent use of pop cultural references, witty remarks, and double entendres, to make what could be a dry topic turn out simply effervescent. Any reader will be infused with Little's own passion for languages after turning just a few short pages.

It's time for the annual sheap-shearing contest in the Aberfan Valley. You're there, checking your flock before entering. How do you count?

Yan, tan, tether, mether, pip, azer, sezar, akker, conter, dick, yanadick, tanadick, tetheradick, metheradick, bumfit, yanabum, tanabum, tetherabum, metherabum, jigget.

This vestigial vigesimal counting system is just one of the many delights to be found in Elizabeth Little's completely enchanting book of musings on language. As she puts it, the words are "utterly charming, sounding like nothing so much as the names a young Will Shakespeare might have conjured up for a litter of adorable kittens." She's right -- I have no words to describe how much joy that little sequence "yanadick, tanadick, tetheradick, metheradick, bumfit" brings me, except to say that when I first read it, I literally squealed with delight . And how often does one get to do that these days?

Though the chapter names are sober: "NOUNS, VERBS, NUMBERS, MODIFIERS, SPEECH", this is a book which romps, gambols, and frolics along the highways and byways of language, unearthing fascinating nuggets along the way. Little claims no formal qualification for writing on linguistic topics, other than a lifelong enthusiasm for language. In writing such a wonderful book, she has demonstrated that no other qualification is needed.

If you are a language geek (like me), this book gets 5 stars hands down. Though it seems hard to believe, not everyone will stare transfixed by the beauty of the declension table specifying all 18 Hungarian case endings that Little includes in the book. But for those of you who find such matters eerily fascinating (and you know who you are!), "Biting the Wax Tadpole" is a garden of earthly delights.

As a professional writer, I really should have much more than a passing interest in the finer points of grammar and linguistics. So, to assuage my guilt, I periodically try to find a book that will help me learn more about English and its illogical curiosities, not to mention its austere technicalities. It can be a bit embarrassing. For example, if someone who knows that I'm a writer asks me to define the copulative then I'll try to change the conversation to football, which I find fifty times more interesting than grammar. Of course, it depends who's asking.

This book caught my eye initially because it's yellow. Every other book about the language is light blue, dark blue, light mauve, taupe, or fawn. I also liked the title which is as strong a non sequitur as Monty Python's Flying Circus. Most books about linguistics have dreary titles and a dreary layout. Memo to publishers. Try this next time...The Hooters Monthly Guide to Semantics and Participles, or Debbie Does Declensions. This approach might increase sales and interest.

While Biting the Wax Tadpole is a serious look at a serious subject, Elizabeth Little writes with a warm, self-effacing, and generous style that makes the technical interesting and fun. To be honest, some of the work is a bit deep for me and might be best for, say, a tenured professor of linguistics, but the the journey around the world's languages is a crazy ride that makes me appreciate my native language and hope that I never get caught in Swaziland trying to find a square meal. I, for one, am glad that we don't have masculine and feminine nouns with no logical way to determine gender. Imagine what the political correctness mafia here would do with that system! Look at what they have organized, as Little points out, with "alumni."

Anyway, this book is a must for anyone who loves language and/or works in the field. Biting the Wax Tadpole provides an intriguing and witty introduction to how we communicate. And it's yellow.

I hope that Elizabeth Little writes many more books--on many more subjects.

Jerry Pallotta, a.k.a. "The Alphabet Man," has once again written an entertaining book for children. Coupled with Biedrzycki's illustrations, "The Boat Alphabet Book" is one of Charlesbridge's best offerings. This book is a must for any student (or teacher) studying water travel.

Thank you Jerry Pallotta and David Biedrzycki for putting together a wonderful book about a subject near and dear to me. I saw the review in Parade magazine and I couldn't wait to get the book!

I purchased this boat book for my nephew based on how the book was rated age wise, which was for 4 to 8 year old children. This book is packed with so much wonderful knowledge on different kinds of boats! I just, believe that a 6 year old would get so more out of the book. This book could be used for younger boat lovers if you just read the why type of boat it is and move on, I don't really see my nephew sitting down and paying attention. Plus most are boats he's not familiar with or would ever see here in Florida. The art work is well done and looks very realistic.

Here is a list of the boats featured in this book.
A - Aircraft Carrier
B - Barkentine ( tall ship)
C - Canoe
D - Dory
E - Electric boat ( submarine)
F - Ferry
G - Gondola
H - Hydrofoil
I - Icebreaker
J - Junk ( Chinese Junk boat)
K - Kayak
L- Lightship
M - Minesweeper
N - Nao (possible Spanish word for boat, no one knows for sure)
O - Ocean Liner
P- Paddleboat
Q- Quffa (basket boat found on the Tigris & Euphrates Rivers)
R - Reed Boat
S - Steamboat
T - Tanker
U - Umiak ( a traditional woman's Eskimo boat)
V - Viking Ship
W- Windjammer
X - Xebec ( 3 masted ship)
Y- Yatch
Z - Zodiac

Update on my review: I had to change my prior review because I gave this book to my nephew and he ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! We happened to be at a restaurant for a family breakfast and painted on the wall happened to be a cruise ship( Ocean Liner in the book) we looked at that page and he was absolutely fasinated during the whole breakfast! This will definately be a book he will grow into especially on some of the boats he does not know about. The age range for this book is correctly rated.

This book has brightly colored, interesting illustrations to engage a tiny tot. It is a rhythmic and engaging alphabet book for the slightly older child. And it is a tightly written informational book on boats for the gradeschool age child. A winner that grows along with the youngster. We couldn't resist buying one for both of our grandchildren.

This book is a great resource for all elementary teachers. It is easy to understand and practical for everyday ideas. This book is full of wonderful activities that can come in handy when planning a lesson plan.

Marcia Freeman recntly addressed the teachers in our county on this book. Everyone present was moved with her easy and practical advice for teaching writing. It was a truly innovative and exciting workshop. This book is full of useful and easy-to-implement teaching methods that actually make teaching writing easier with the results we want: better writing from our students.

This book is a fabulous resource for constructing a school-wide writing community. We purchased it as a resource for all of our teachers and immediately began discussing it in small groups and staff developments. The teachers see it as a tool to help them keep student writers at the edge of their learning. We have seen writing scores on state-wide assessments increase in our school using the target skills and craft models discussed in this book.

This book is easy to read and will be a great resource for years to come!

Marcia's book is the best! It is completely practical and has step-by-step information about how to teach every genre of writing in totally KID-FRIENDLY terms! If your students aren't getting better by just going through the writing process, then this is the book for you! Her approach is unlike anything else on the market. It can make teaching writing, if not a breeze, then at least something over which you can gain control. I can't say enough about how useful this book is. If you can only buy one book to help you teach writing, then this is it!

Mr. Zwiers has come up with some great reading activities for the classroom. They are easy to understand and modify. It is a great resource for teachers looking for ways to reach their students.

Of the many books on reading strategies, this one had the highest quantity of innovative activities (tools) that I need for my social studies and language arts classes. I love the many clever reproducibles and how they help develop the six reading strategies (habits) in engaging ways--especially for my students who are not usually interested in reading or becoming better readers! This book inspired me to model my thinking more as I read to students and to create my own visuals and activities that build comprehension processes. This will be a well-used book. Thanks!

This book gives good strategies to use with students to increase their reading comprehension. I am using the textbook for my reading and writing class but I know I will refer to it once I start teaching.

The book arrived in time for me to use it for my Master's class. It was also utilized by a friend of mine who is already a teacher. She said the book is one of the best she's seen and needs to be used as textbook by Master's Programs in Education.
This is definitely a must-have for anybody who is going into teaching