J Books

I love this book. It manages to be one of the best basic (in this case inclusive of both extract as well as main-line all-grain techniques) brewing books while still touching on a number of advanced subjects. Like another reviewer, I also like Dave Miller's book (Dave Miller's Homebrewing Guide) and regard Palmer's and Miller's books as very complementary and both essential reading for all-grain brewers. I read both again last weekend and value both for different reasons. I also highly recommend the Fixes' book (An Analysis of Brewing Techniques) for its topical coverage. Narrow (few topics), but very detailed and informative.

This is an updated version of Palmer's book. I have the earlier version but recently leafed through the new version and intend to buy it. It has updated and more complete information on a number of topics, notably batch sparging, that make it worthwhile buying the newer edition.

I have made two batches since I bought this book, and they have both come out excellent. I have the "homebrew bible" and while it is a good book, How to Brew just explained things in a way that made me relax about the beer I was brewing. It explains in a more consice way when TO worry about sanitation, and when NOT TO. Overall this is an excellent purchase!

I have to say this is the best book for anyone interested in brewing. Great for the novice and more advanced home brewer.

I originally read the first edition of this book on his website for free. If you can't lay hands on this book, it's well worth it to get what information you can from this book at www.howtobrew.com.

However, if you're a budding zymurgist, or even if you've been brewing for a couple years, this book is well worth the piddly amount they're charging for it. It's saved my butt a couple of times when I've discovered I was low on a certain type of grain or on priming sugar.

Papazian is good, and there are several other books that are good to augment your library, but if you're going to get one book, I highly recommend this one.

Easy to read, informative....it'll help you brew some seriously tasty brews.

As someone who reads technical papers and blogs for a living, I found John Palmer's book to be very easy to read and extremely informative. After reading the book cover to cover, I still find myself going back to it as a "technical reference" book when I have questions about a process or approximation. This book breaks down (pun intended) the mashing process in a way that is both understandable in layman's terms with enough of the real technical process to help you really understand what is going on and why. Through this book I have enlightened many of my friends and coworkers to the joy and wonder of homebrewing.

The title of the book says it all. This is THE definitive collection on the making of Star Wars. Of course there were tons of documentaries being made after the initial film was a huge success but since nobody really knew what was going on with this strange film, film and video footage is sparse at best.
This gives us all the insight we could want about the making of this space fantasy. Even if you're not a Star Wars fan, you will love this record of this high budget independent film.

It's high time. Nicely edited, lots of detail. Basically I am flashing back to my childhood every time I open this book. It is not a casual read as it weighs a gazillion pounds and the print is small. Don't change a thing! Thanks for finally recording this history in a quality fashion. EMPIRE STRIKES BACK may be the cinematic masterpiece but this film was what defined all major studio decisions since, and it is charming, exciting, and inspiring simultaneously. Ironic since Fox never were behind this film in the first place (Holla, Alan Ladd, for believing).

REMEMBER THE GOOD OLD DAYS WHEN WE CALLED THOSE CORNY SCIENCE FICTION MOVIES "OUT OF THIS WORLD" BECAUSE OF THE PRIMITIVE PROPS & SILVER SCREEN TRICKS THAT SEEMED TO MAKE FANTASY REAL! WELL PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT & IF OUR CIVILIZATION WERE TO DISAPEAR & A LONE STAR WARS TAPE WERE TO BE FOUND IT WOULD BE CONSIDERED " THE WAY WE WERE " AS IT IS GOSH !JUST SO WELL DONE! THIS BOOK EXPLAINS THE TRUE GENIUS BEHIND THE BRILLANT GROUP EFFORTS OF SO SO MANY TO MAKE A SPACE FANTASY SCIENCE FICTION STORY MORE THAN JUST ENTERTAINING! THAT WAS STAR WARS & THIS BOOK IS AN ALL TOO COOL SCI-FI FOOL SHOW & DO TELL VIA ALL THAT WILD & CRAZY FUNTASTIC STAR WARS SPACE RAZZ A MA TAZZ JAZZ! GET THIS BOOK & THE AMAZON FORCE WILL BE WITH YOU SO PLEASE DO SMILE!

Fairy tales are usually about a young man who becomes a hero by battling the most dispicable enemies and achieving his heart's desire. In the end, despite great odds, monsters are vanquished, villainy is given the heave-ho, the princess' heart is won and great treasure is acquired far from the eyes of the Internal Revenue Service (which is how you can tell this is a fairy tale).

"The Making of Star Wars" is just such a fairy tale, but it's not about the one up on the screen. This big, beefy, bouncy delight tells in 360 eye-squinting pages of type and hundreds of photos the story of how George Lucas, armed at first with nothing more than a bare bones script and a reputation for interesting, if not money-making movies, devoted more than four years of his life, bet his precarious career, and came up with a movie that not just redefined Hollywood blockbusters, but reimagined heroism and other virtues that touched a generation made cynical by the upheavals of the `60s and `70s.

How he did it -- as described in this book -- should give all writers, artists and other dreamers pause to reflect on the value of preparation, hard work, a willingness to absorb ideas from others, and going into a project knowing that you have not only no idea how it will come out, but that bad luck will doom you no matter what you do.

It's amazing that "Star Wars" was made at all, when it becomes clear in the book that the executives in charge at 20th Century Fox were more interested in busting Lucas' chops instead of making a movie. As one of Lucas friends notes: "There was a lack of respect for George. The movie industry is a very vituperative and petty industry most of the time -- and part of the negotiations was just to see how much they could push George around because they felt like they could."After getting Lucas under contract cheap, before the success of "American Graffitti," Fox proceeded to fritter away their leverage by withholding the contract for "Star Wars." To keep the project going, Lucas was forced to invest his own money, and in the end, had to threaten to stop filming to get the contract. By that time, the project was so far along that Fox was faced with either agreeing to his demands, or letting the project go to another studio. Hence, was born the most lopsided contract in history, giving Lucas say over final cut, plus control over all sequels and merchandizing.

Considering that "The Making of Star Wars" was published nearly 30 years after the movie's stunning debut, going back and putting together this history is a major accomplishment. Fortunately, J.W. Rinzler had access to interviews conducted during the production of `Star Wars," when people were in the midst of the work and uninfluenced by its future success. This fills the book with episodes and incidents of such detail that it's possible to fall into the pages and imagine yourself, back in the mid-'70s, where hair was blow-dried, collars and pants were wide, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter were atop the political pyramid -- reflect on that when you look at Obama/Clinton/McCain!

For the two weeks, I was in film geek heaven, boring my wife at lunchtime with details about alternative casting (Christopher Walken as Luke! Jodie Foster as Leia!), alternative storylines (Luke was a girl at one point and named Starkiller; the robots were originally bureaucrats working for the Empire; Lucas toyed with filming it all in Japanese, with subtitles), sources for names (Han Solo? From a brand of paper cups) and those small incidents that acquire greater meaning (an out-of-work James Earl Jones spending a day in a studio to record Darth Vader's lines for $7,500). And don't get me started on the models and special effects; we'd be here all week.

But the heart of the story is George Lucas, and while I've always respected the man, my heart went out to him once I understood the impossible odds he worked again. "Star Wars" was made because he willed it into being; he was the Jedi who rescued his movie.

Lucas created a fairy tale for our times, but his story had a fairy tale twist as well. After laboring for years, fighting the studio executives and impossible deadlines, Lucas got his movie out. But he thought he had failed: "When I saw the first cut, my only opinion was that I did a terrible job, but it works. It doesn't work very well, but it works. ... And then when I finally saw it with an audience for the first time, I realized that no matter how far short I fell and how far short all the departments fell from what I wanted, the film did work for an audience. ... They all laughed at the right place and they believed it."

So the hero wins after all, but not in the way you'd expect. That's the hallmark of all good stories.

Having seen all 3 original trilogy movies over a hundred times a piece, (I paid theater admission for most of those viewings, no video back then), I was and still am interested in the behind the scenes events that took place during the making of the movies.
I have read all three of the "Making Of" books about the original trilogy. This book is definitely the most thorough and indepth with the technical aspects and day to day events on set. I enjoyed the interviews with George Lucas and the other people involved in the film. On the lighter side, (Being a huge Luke/Mark Hamill fan) I really enjoyed the candid photos of Mark Hamill and the other cast members on set.
The true Star Wars fan will enjoy the unlimited access to George Lucas' earliest thoughts about the trilogy and a detailed look into his film making style. This book is a must have for all who have ever dreamed of "a galaxy far, far away....

I was pleased with the delivery time and with the quality of the product. I cannot wait to give these 3 books as gifts: one to each of my adult children.

This is a really cute book. But I have an issue with the idea that the most important person is whomever you happen to be with at the time. I think we need to foster in our children an ability to consider loved ones who aren't standing right next to us.

This would make a great present for any age. If we all followed the advice in this book, the world would be a much better place. So simple, yet so complex at the same time. We loved it, and I will read it to my children once a week so they remember always.

This book is a beautifully illustrated journey that explores life questions in a way that is magic for the reader of any age.

My husband has recently started reading on the topic of Zen and Buddhism and wanted to expose our children to the practices as well. This is a wonderful story. Perhaps a little more than they can comprehend yet (ages 4 and 2) but a wonderful, beautiful story.

I read this book years ago and I remember absolutely loving it. It's taken me years to find it again (I could never remember the title or author). I'm not sure I've ever read a book that has haunted me and disturbed me as much as this one.

A group of teens face an evil, deserted amusement park with rides and objects intent on doing them harm. Jenny, Dee, Michael and Audrey all set out to find Jenny's boyfriend, Tom and her cousin, Zach. Jenny constantly resists the charming Julian and proves herself as stronger than anyone ever thought her to be. Julian, who was introduced earlier in the series as the demanding and ruthless evil Shadow Man, shows that he has a much more caring and vulnerable side. Jenny and her friends face various obstacles and change along the way- their support, friendship and solidarity strengthening each other. The ending is bittersweet and, in my opinion, a tearjerker.

L.J. Smith should really consider writing a sequel to this series! The ending ends with some hope and really, I find the possibilities of what could be done now to be extremely interesting.

(Spoiler) What do you all think would happen IF Julian's name was carved once again? Would he be the same Julian with the same feelings, would he be as Julian was when he was first born, or would be another being entirely? These questions were never fully answered and I would love to know!

I do detest the ending however I don't think I'll spoil it for you but never the less still good story.

This entire Trilogy is just amazing. I was given a present of the first book when I was about 7 (10 years ago), and I immediately wanted the next two! I fell in love with Julian there and then, and was never able to understand why Jenny didn't just choose him! I've read these books over 20 times, and they're all falling apart. Everybody in the entire world should read them, because you're missing out if you don't. I highly recommend them. The last book is a nice finish, but it's incredibly sad. I wish it had ended differently! (...)

In the trilogy of the Forbidden game i thought that the first and third were the best books I've ever read, and although the second was good it didnt even compare to these. I thought the game was great but if I were jenny I'm afraid I would miss out on it because one look and a few words from Julian and I would run away with him straight away. The books were made to be so real that I'm still searching for my own door, call me sad but you have to admit if Julian wanted you, you wouldn't be able to resist!

This was the first LJS book I ever read and it awakened me. Never before had I realised what a book could truly do to a person. This, the final book of the Forbidden Game trilogy, really gives the reader an insight to all the characetrs. It shows how they have developed, especially Julian. It also brings out different feelingsof the main characetr, Jenny. She learns so much about Julian and learns to understand. This book is definatly the most important and is a wonderful way to end the trilogy.

This is my favourite book, only challenged by other of L J Smith's works. She is an amazing woman and it is well worth reading her stuff.

I read this book many years ago, and I don't remember much about about it other than the following: Its one of the best books of science fiction I have ever read, has one of the bests plots about time travel, and finally is one of Asimovs bests. So I highly recommend it if you like science fiction, time travel and/or Asimov.

Harlan is a technician and works for a political sort of organisation called The Eternals. They minister to time over tens of thousands of centuries, and try and keep it running with a minimum of adjustments.

People being what they are, Harlan decides to make a minor fiddle because of his feelings for a woman.

I probably first read this classic sometime in the late 1950s; certainly, it's the earliest time travel novel I can remember reading. Andrew Harlan, a native of the 95th century, is a Technician in Eternity, a member of a corps of self-appointed guardians of reality that exists outside of ordinary time. It's a highly stratified society and Harlan is a member of the caste that actually effects changes by making the "Minimum Necessary Change" at the selected point in time and space. Then he meets a woman outside of Eternity with whom he falls in love -- sort of -- and takes it upon himself to protect her from a Change planned for her continuity. Of course, it's a far more complicated matter than that, as Harlan finds out the hard way. In fact, the very existence and survival of Eternity is at stake. But maybe it ought not to survive. The writing seems a bit sappy now, a bit turgid, but styles and tastes change. The basic "time patrol" theme, however, has been riffed on by scores of subsequent novels and short stories. Some points seem rather naive to us now: The enormous size of the "computaplexes," even thousands of years in the future, a voice recording device that's still large enough to require a storage case and a separate microphone, and so on. (It's always surprised me how many Golden Age authors failed to anticipate the minute size of electronic devices so short a distance in their future.) But ignore all that and just enjoy the story for what it is.

Isaac Asimov has written a brilliant glimpse into the fragile psyche of man. In our neverending quest for knowledge and to seek the unknown, we take chances. In Asimov's future we have The Eternals to keep us safe from ourselves. The Eternals manipulate the timeline by altering any dangerous situations that may harm mankind in the long run. This creates a dichotomy as mans adventurous and sometimes self-destructive basic need to break free clashes with our conservative desires to play it safe. Asimov explores the end results of this clash with the central character Andrew Harlen. Harlen is the catylist as he unwittingly is played by both sides in a fascinating chess match of truly epic proportions. Some of the aspects of this story were later explored in Spielberg's "Minority Report", as in preventing future events from happening before they can do harm. The best Science Fiction is the kind that really makes you think and this book most assuredly does that.

Time travel is a great, speculative sub-genre of scifi. Although mildly dated this is book highly worthwhile. Asimov's storytelling and imagination are legendary due to works like this.

I can't believe I missed out on this one as a child... but it's just as good coming to it as an adult. The perfect lazy Sunday afternoon book to read. Adults can also escape to the wilds of Lake Windemere (Lake District), to sail up the Amazon, do battle with pirates and search for buried treasure on Cormorant Island.

The year is 1929 and story is about four children - John, Susan, Titty and Roger (in age order) - who are holidaying on the shores of Lake Windemere with their mum and baby sister, Vicky. The children are an adventurous lot and love sailing in their boat, the Swallow. Towards the end of their holiday they persuade their mum to allow them on an adventure for a week. They're allowed to sail across to the island not far away and make camp there by themselves.

This is a great adventure for these intrepid explorers. They discover a retired pirate, camp, bathe in the lake, fish and cook for themselves, and are threatened by a rival group of bandits, the Amazons (otherwise known as Nancy and Peggy). All in all a great week of fun and adventure is had by all - brilliant to read about, although there are very few children who'd be allowed to do this now! Inspired by the author's own childhood holidays at the south end of Coniston in the Lake District.

This wonderful book was written about 75 years ago, but is still extremely popular today. It is ageless. I first read it as a nine or ten year old and have read it several times since then. The last time I read it I was in my late 50s or early 60s. Every young person should enjoy it immensely as a fictional story. But there are many moral and ethical issues that are slyly inserted into this novel. The biography of the author and how he came to write this book, which was the first in a series of 9 or 10 novels, is a fascinating story in itself.

The Swallows and Amazons series was one of my favorites when I was a child. The story, set in the Lake District of England where Wordsworth and other great poets grew up, is a gentle adventure tale about children camping out on an island and rigging a little sailboat. It is slower paced than children are used to today. But I think a sensitive boy or girl would find it reassuring that the children solve their own problems of navigation etc.

While it didn't bother me as a child that the language was distinctly British, as I'd been prepared by the Winnie the Pooh stories, and Wind in the Willows, I would recommend Swallows and Amazons as a bedtime story to be read aloud by an adult reader. The reader could then explain the language. A map of the UK would help too, as the story is set in the Lake District.

An adult storyteller might be interested in a biography of the series author, Arthur Ransome, who led an adventurous life - including work in the Soviet Union and marriage to a Russian woman.

Enchanting
It's hard to explain what makes this book so charming: The writing, the way the children and their relationships with each other are shown so clearly and believably, the very real adventures they have, the sense of place....but listing those traits doesn't do the book justice. It's also really funny in places! Ransome creates a world that is clearer and lighter and more enchanting than the one most of us live in -- but he's also written a realistic book. The Lake District DOES look the way he describes it, and there could be children like the Swallows and their friends the Amazon pirates.

The books are for all ages, and I think they are also inspiring and a good influence! They make me want to have adventures -- and they encourage parents by example to let their children have them. The parents in the books are responsible, teach their children well -- and allow them to adventure on their own. They can do that because they've taught the children to have good judgment and be responsible.

Arthur Ransome's own favorite in the series was WINTER HOLIDAY, which I also loved. Once the original characters leave the series, it loses its interest (for me, anyway) -- children who enjoyed the first books will also probably like Blow Out the Moon by Libby Koponen and all the E.Nesbit books.

About 60 years ago I read as many books from this series that I could find in my local public library. I had passed through a phase of devouring the Dr. Doolittle fantasy series (so damaged by the motion pictures using that title - how could they cast tall lanky Rex Harrison in the role of a short cuddly grandfather-like figure?) Another series in which, as an American boy fascinated by warplanes during the Worl War II era - I went on to become an aerospace engineer - I was enthralled, was "A Yank in the RAF", which I don't think would translate to the 21st Century very well. But the series that made the most impact on me was Ransome's Swallow family. As with Hugh Lofting's Doolittle, the author's drawings enhanced the books.

I have not visited there yet but I plan on touring Britain's Lake District (I don't think I was cognizant of where the tales took place, except I knew the children were British. They liked to drink ginger beer; in the US we had a ginger ale drink, but not ginger beer and I was curious to have some.) I have long wanted to live somewhere that would allow me to experience the thrill of mastering the small sailing boats of the story. The closest I came was living near the Pacific in California and near the Potomac River. But the boats in those regions were larger and not terribly accessible. I did go sailing with friends and tried to sail on my own in a marina with a rented boat (a too narrow and crowded venue for a novice just learning to tack and unfamiliar with how to dump wind from the sail when being carried in the wrong direction.) I have gotten to taste ginger beer. I have also used the children's means of including coded messages in their letters in the form of dancing stick figures around the page's margin (the secret was to ignore other parts of the figures and concentrate on the positions of the arms, which were standard semaphore code.) I introduced the code to one of my daughters when we were in the "Indian Princesses" organization. (Is the name and programs of that organization offensive to American Indians? I'm sure its founders weren't sensitive to the fact that American Indians still existed.)

I will introduce this series to my precocius 6 year old grand daughter when I think she is ready.

This book, read first when I was 14 years old, and since added to my adult library, read and re-read again, has stayed with me like so very few other books in my life.

I wont over-egg the review - Corbett wouldn't have liked that kind of lionising (good pun!) and he doesn't need it. Suffice to say I respect Corbett deeply, and often think of him. Unabashed admiration for this man is easy. All his books are worth your money, but start with this one.

Probably the best big game hunting book ever written. Will keep you on the edge of your seat and I do not recommend reading it while camping in the woods (especially if the woods happen to be in India). Corbett describes stalking man-eating tigers and often they stalk him. These are not made-up stories nor are they self justifying. Corbett ONLY hunted tigers that the local population asked him to, after dozens or sometimes hundreds of people had been killed. His descriptions are beautiful and picture an era (India in 1900-1930) that has long since gone. I have read it many times, the first when I was about 11 years old.

This book was written by not only a very brave man but a man that possessed great character and class. His only reason for hunting these Man-Eaters was to rescue the villagers from this ever present terror. He took no money for his efforts. Very exciting reading without ever a hint of bragging about his extraordinary gift of successfully hunting the most dangerous animals on earth.

I can't speak highly enough about the book. His discription of his journeys made you feel as if you with right there with he and his men. If you like the outdoors and adventure, you simply must read this classic.

In the early twentieth century, British held South Asia was terroized by a number of infamous tigers and leopards. Entire villages were abandoned and literally hundreds of human beings found out they weren't at the top of the food chain. In the "Man Eaters of Kumaon", hunter jim Corbett describes in vivid and suspensful detail his hunt for tigers in Northwest India.
Corbett describes the perilous beauty of the jungle clad hills in the shadow of Nepal's majestic summits. He also masterfully paints an image of terror and suspense as he faces off against tigers, leopards, a bear, and a venomous snake. Even as he pursues his prey, he often comes close to having the tables turned on him. He also presents readers with a glimpse of the cultural spectacle and harsh life-or death realities in India under the Raj.
Corbett doesn't come across as very prideful. In fact, he even respects the animals he's hunting and often notes injuries or situations that likely caused them to hunt humans. I will warn potential readers that there are several rather gruesome scenes ranging from finding dead or injured humans to some of the hunting itself. However, I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in adventure, hunting, or both. It is well written, a fast read, and ultimately a powerful tale of man against beast.

Words are not enough to describe this beautifully written and illustrated book. You should experience the descriptive, poetic words and haunting drawings of a young boys rite of passage. All ages would enjoy the well told story. This is a must read!


Owl Moon

I used this book in my classroom as an example for my students to write thier own story. My 3rd and 4th graders loved the story and it worked great for the lesson I was teaching.

My grandaughter fell in love with this book from the library and Granpa had to buy it for her birthday. It is very well illustrated and well written, Granpa never tires of reading it to her, as she never tires of hearing it. In a market filled with children's books of dubious merit or worth, this is well worth it, to read, to buy, to have in the library of a young reader on her way to a lifetime of reading.

I ordered this book based on the reviews found on amazon. I was looking for a nature oriented book for my 2 year old son. This has become, by far, one of our favorite family bedtime stories. The illustrations are beautiful. The story is heart warming and real. My husband loves to read it as much as I do. This is a classic in our library and will remain so for many, many years.

I like Jane Yolen's work - the children do too (lol). But Owl Moon is probably the most poetic of her works that we have read. The word choice and imagery is wonderful; soft and soothing. You can hear the crunch of snow, and feel the biting cold.

Like the others I give it 5 stars, and would add that it makes for a good bed-time book.

Five Stars. Top notch Read-aloud. Artwork is nice, in darker shades than Yolen's other works. Perhaps not quite as nice in detail, but well suited to the story.

Ever since I received this book, my customers get the opportunity to bring photos of their corla for me to identify them. This is wondrful!

I'm new in salt water aquarium. I'm reading, studing, looking for informations to care my reef with safe and with environmental responsability. This book was essencial to construct the knowledgement that helped me in this challenge (to keep sea life above sea level).

Aquarium Corals is: "This is a new field of discovery --come and be part of it." (Foreword by Dr. J.E.N Veron)

This book has and continues to help us. I feel it is well worth the money.

Great reference with some pretty good insight to go along with it. I wish it would have been more in depth when describing water flow and lighting but it does cover alot of other topics including feeding and coral toxicity. I will refer to it often.

This is a valuable asset for any marine aquarium hobbyist, it is well written, easy to read and understand and is a useful resource tool for the experienced and novice reefer.

SPOILER ALERT:
Astrid Lindgren lost her marbles when she wrote the last chapter. The story is beautiful and as a christian I have no problems reading it to my children as a fantasy rendition. The illustration of evil regimes and quest for freedom is very moving and uncanny in many ways. Worth reading for this alone, but the ending speaks a message that should never have been spoken. The older boy, the hero, would rather kill himself and his younger brother in a suicide attempt, rather than living a life as a cripple. SICK!

I read this book when I was a child and it was one of my favorite. Now I finished reading it to my sons and they love it too. It took me a while to read the first two chapters though, I just couldn't stop sobbing...although I knew the story. It didn't take us long to finish the book, we needed to find out what was happening next...Such a great book, we will buy some copies and give them to friends!!!

Way before Harry Potter and JK Rowling came along, European children book writers were taking children more seriously than most English and American writers. At the helm of this beautiful movement of children-centric literary world was Astrid Lindgren of Sweden and the wonderful Erich Kaestner of Germany, both well-known and widely read in non-English speaking Europe and most other places, but conviniently limited to a few of their works in UK and the USA (Pippi Longstocking for Lindgren and The Parent Trap for Kaestner).

Brothers Lionheart is Lindgren manifesting Kaestner's frustration at those childrens books authors who think that "children are made out of sweet pastries and cotton candy" (expressed at the beginning of the Flying Classroom, another master piece not known in the English speaking world). I read this book when I was 7 and have continued reading it, mainly in other languages, and had never seen it in English. The translation is good, although I do not like "Scotty" as a translation of Carl's nickname. The real one "Skorpan" (a sort of doughnut) is much nicer and homier.

Brothers Lionheart was very influential in my life. I learnt many lessons from it and enjoyed it very much, and I never felt that I was being preached to or was put down by the author. It is a novel that will appeal to children and even many adults (those who have not forgotten their childhood and thus their reason). I profoundly disagree with the person who is worried about the "negative" effects of the books darker issues (the after-life). It might surprise you that children are a lot more open-minded than their parents: they have not been spoiled by the prejudices we call "our heritage".

This book, I will claim, is one of the best books ever written, anywhere, in any language, and if it was me, I would have given it to all the 6 billion people in the world to read...

What happens when I die? Will I be all alone? Where will mom and dad be when I die? Will they be sad? What will happen to me after I die? These are questions children wonder about. When my daughter was about 5-6 years old she kept talking about "the mysterious beyond" where you go after you die. We have no idea where she got this idea from.

In this book, Astrid Lindgren, the Swedish author who also wrote the Pippi Longstocking books, the Emil books and the "Children of Noisy Village" books, address these difficult questions. She does this without giving any definite answers and still she succeeds to give comfort to children via this exciting and beautiful "after death adventure". Astrid Lindgren's writing is very much in tuned with the feelings of children and the story is spell binding and well paced.

Briefly, Scotty (Skorpan in the Swedish version) is a ten year old boy who is very sick. Everyone knows that he is dying except himself. Then one day he finds out in a cruel but accidental turn of events that he is going to die. To comfort him his older brother Jonathan tells him a story about Nangiyala, the land of adventures that lies beyond the stars, where you go after you die. As it turns out Scotty will not be going to Nangiyala alone. In fact the tragic and short life of Scotty and Jonathan and the love they developed for each other during their earthly lives enabled them to be the heroes that Nangiyala needs upon their arrival. The adventures in Nangiyala are much like many other good fantasy stories like the Chronicles of Narnia or the Lord of the Rings, but they also have a deeper meaning to them.

My teacher read this book to the entire class when I was about 9 years old (the Swedish version). All the kids in the class loved the book and we listened intently while our teacher struggled to read it. The death of your child is a parent's worst fear and having to deal with it head on like you do when reading this book is, I think, emotionally harder on the parent then on the child. I and my wife started reading this book to our daughter (8-years old) but she ended up reading the whole book to herself and she loved it.

It should be noted that the story is not tied to a specific set of religious beliefs about life after death, so if you have strong beliefs in what exactly will happen after death (religious beliefs or atheistic beliefs) you may have a problem with this fantasy version. In my opinion this book is Astrid Lindgren's greatest book. However, it is also her most potentially problematic book, so I advise that you read the first third of the book yourself before you read it to your child. This would help you to prepare answers to difficult questions and to verify that you really want to read it to your child. The writing is very sensitive, peaceful, and thoughtful but it deals with difficult questions. Some people have a problem with the ending so check out the ending too (I did not have a problem with the ending). I loved it as a child and so did my daughter but it may not be true for you, so find out.

A number of stories end with the death of their heroes; this the first one I can recall that BEGINS with the death of its heroes. In addition the sometimes charming, sometimes terrifying illustrations by Ilon Wikland nicely complement the story.

Everyone knew that 10-year-old Karl (Scotty) Lion was dying, what with his crooked legs, his constant coughing, and now being too sick to go to school anymore; everyone except Scotty that is. But now he knows, and he's terrified. His brave, handsome, and loving brother, 13-year-old Jonathan Lion, tries to comfort him by telling him that when he dies he will go to Nangiyala, where all sagas come from, where he will be strong and no longer sick and where Jonathan will eventually join him, and because time passes differently in Nangiyala, it will only seem like a couple of days to Scotty even if Jonathan lives to be 90. But poor Jonathan must live on Earth without his Scotty, maybe for 90 years.

Well, it doesn't quite work out like they thought, but a couple of deeply moving, heartrending chapters later, the boys are together again in Nangiyala, and the REAL story begins. Jonathan told Scotty that in Nangiyala you have adventures from morning to evening and at night, too, but he failed to mention (or more likely failed to grasp himself) that there are adventures that should not happen... but do. There's a cruel tyrant in Nangiyala who has imprisoned the people of Wild Rose Valley and intends to do the same to Cherry Valley where the Brothers Lionheart now live,...

and it is going to be up to them, especially little Scotty who still doesn't believe he is brave at all, to stop him.

Astrid Lindgren, of Pippi Longstalking and Mio, My Son fame, has written a powerful and deeply moving story here that I'll not soon forget if ever. So why only three stars? Because I've got a serious problem with her shocker of an ending.

With far too many sincere but ill informed parents panicking over the Harry Potter books (while Philip Pullman's openly, even proudly Satanic "His Dark Materials" trilogy oozes by under the RADAR), I don't want to hit this too hard, but parents need to be aware of what is IMHO a serious flaw in this book. It is NOT as you might expect with the neo-pagan afterworld her story takes place in; IMHO there is nothing here that anyone whose religious beliefs postulate a different sort of afterlife need fear to expose his children to. It is FICTION after all. The problem is the ending.

SPOILER ALERT

The Brothers Lionheart triumph in the end but at a heavy cost; many friends are dead, including their beloved and faithful horses. Worst of all Jonathan has been poisoned and will soon be paralyzed, but he has a solution. It seems that when you die in Nangiyala you go on to Nangilima, where it is still the time of the sagas but only happy ones and no more adventures that should not happen. So if Scotty will take Jonathan upon his back and jump off a high cliff, just like Jonathan took Scotty upon his back and jumped out of an upper floor window to save Scotty's life from the fire at the cost of his own back at the beginning of the book, they can go to Nangilima now, together.

So that is exactly what they do,...

and I'm sorry, but this is SICK!

Jonathan earns the name of Lionheart when he risks his life, loses it in fact, in order to save his soon-to-die little brother, but when HE faces some amount of life (but probably not all that much) as a paralytic, he talks that very same brother into killing him along with himself, in order to get into a BETTER afterlife a little bit sooner. What in God's name was Lindgren thinking? Oh, I'm not especially worried about children reading this and killing themselves in order to go to Nangiyala, but our children could do without Yet Another message that if you are crippled, you are better off dead. They get quite enough of that from too many so-called "Pro-Choicers" who apparently fear that if people get the idea that life is still worth living even for the severely handicapped, they might begin to wonder about the ethics of killing the healthy but merely too small to scream.

END OF SPOILER

If you disagree with my opinion and own an older edition, The Purple House reprint of The Brothers Lionheart is worth picking up because of the smooth new English translation by Jill Morgan (the publisher herself?).