Q Books

I love this book. It is a beautiful bed-time story for little boys. I know the story by heart from reading it so often; and have also given the book as a gift. A must have for all little bears.

I bought this book for our own bear, last Christmas.He never has insomnia, but was as delighted as his owners were to read this enchanting story, enjoying the dreamlike prose and illutrations. This book isn't just for children. It's for the child inside all of us, so that we never forget the magic and innocence of being young, and more importantly, that we never forget the importance of bears. Remember - look after you bear, whether you're 2 or 92.

The comments from the Vermont reader match my feelings about Sleep Well, Little Bear exactly. The prose IS gentle, descriptive, and wonderful. The artwork, however, is so truly beautiful. I especially appreciated Buchholz's use of light. The text and the soft, easy, lovingly detailed pictures makes it a very lulling read. I'm keeping this for my (very) future grandchildren.

This is an truly lovable book. A little bear, in typical little boy style, can't quite get to sleep so he reviews his day of being a pirate on the river that flows past his house, and helping old Mrs Rose with her garden, and other wonders of a child's (and bear's) life. The prose is sweet and gentle and clever and lovely, but what really makes this book is the artwork--surreal, truly beautiful pictures of the circus clown playing his violin to put a baby elephant to sleep, and the little bear peering out his bedroom window at the moon, and the night musicians wandering through the meadow, and the deer in the mist. Buy it for yourself, lend it to your kids.

A fantastic book! It was published just as I had finished collecting all the journal articles I could find on statistical intervals. (Years ago, Meeker told me that he and Gerry were thinking of writing a second edition, but apparently it didn't happen.) I did find an error: On p.131, expression 7.7, the first inequality is incorrect. I believe that it should read m/(y+1)>= (n|x)F... for the lower bound.

There is FREE software for calculating some of these intervals. See the index page http://www.public.iastate.edu/~wqmeeker/StInt/

My one disappointment about the book is that it omits some equations/algorithms for estimating some statistical intervals, offering instead graphs and tables. In these cases, if one wishes to extend or modify a result, one must either find the original source article or derive the missing equations/algorithms oneself, using the tables and graphs to check one's work.

Finally, note that for many intervals, use of results based on an assumption of normality (or other underlying distribution) will yield poorer estimates (less tight statistical bound estimates) than will the use of distribution-free methods. This is true even if one's data appears to be normally distributed and tests for non-normality do not reject the normality assumption.

-Stephen B. Cohen, Ph.D.

Gerald Hahn has spent many years in industry working for the General Electric Company. He and Bill Meeker have written this very unique book that provides an up-to-date treatment of statistical methods for interval estimation.

In most introductory courses students are taught about statistical confidence intervals. However, there are many other types of statistical intervals that are appropriate for particular applications. Most students, particularly engineering students, only learn about confidence intervals and hence they apply them whenever they need a statistical interval. But often they are wrong because the problem really calls for a prediction interval or a tolerance interval. This circumstance is what motivated these authors to write this book.

The techniques are standard and are covered in other statistical texts. However, this is the only book with statistical intervals as its theme. It provides the methods and the context for using the various intervals and more importantly makes the distinctions that help the students overcome possible confusion. This is an excellent practical reference. Its many tables make it a great reference book. On many occasions I have needed Gaussian tolerance intervals or sometimes nonparametric tolerance intervals. I go to the tables in this book first. It also includes some discussion of bootstrap confidence intervals and other asymptotic approaches in Chapter 12 where Bayesian intervals are also introduced. Chapter 13 concentrates on 9 case studies and the appropriate intervals to be used in each case. Other practical issues such as determining the sample size requirements for precise statistical intervals are also discussed in various chapters.

Gerald Hahn has spent many years in industry working for the General Electric Company. He and Bill Meeker have written this very unique book that provides an up-to-date treatment of statistical methods for interval estimation.
In most introductory courses students are taught about statistical confidence intervals. However, there are many other types of statistical intervals that are appropriate for particular applications. Most students, particularly engineering students, only learn about confidence intervals and hence they apply them whenever they need a statistical interval. But often they are wrong because the problem really calls for a prediction interval or a tolerance interval. This circumstance is what motivated these authors to write this book.

The techniques are standard and are covered in other statistical texts. However, this is the only book with statistical intervals as its theme. It provides the methods and the context for using the various intervals and more importantly makes the distinctions that help the students overcome possible confusion. This is an excellent practical reference. Its many tables make it a great reference book. On many occasions I have needed Gaussian tolerance intervals or sometimes nonparametric tolerance intervals. I go to the tables in this book first. It also includes some discussion of bootstrap confidence intervals and other asymptotic approaches in Chapter 12 where Bayesian intervals are also introduced. Chapter 13 concentrates on 9 case studies and the appropriate intervals to be used in each case. Other practical issues such as determining the sample size requirements for precise statistical intervals are also discussed in various chapters.

"Statistical Intervals" has for years been a valuable tool in my professional work, which focuses on environmental statistics. Hahn & Meeker's discussion of how to interpret various intervals--confidence, tolerance, prediction--first opened my eyes to the ubiquity and utility of these techniques. I since have found it worthwhile to have a working knowledge of them all; that would scarcely have been possible without having such a handy reference.

The tables are getting dog-eared and gray from use, especially A-12 (factors for computing Normal distribution one-sided tolerance bounds), in testimony to the frequency I refer to them. The book also contains extensive graphics for estimating intervals and for determining sample sizes: these typically obviate any need to refer to tables or do the computations. There are some neat formulas, clearly described, that one can easily implement in a spreadsheet. These all appear in other texts and journal articles, but having them all in one place, well organized, makes them particularly worthwhile.

This is, indeed, a reference: a statistical "cookbook" if you will (intended in a positive sense, not perjoratively!). This means you will find little theoretical justification for any of the material. For each technique expect to find a clear definition, lucid descriptions, discussions of how to use any supporting formulas, graphs, or tables, all followed by a clear worked example. Of course there's an extensive bibliography if your theoretical curiosity is piqued.

One common technique you will not find (although it is mentioned and references provided) is computing statistical intervals for linear regression analysis. This subject, however, is covered well in other books (such as Draper and Smith's Applied Regression Analysis), so the omission does no harm and helps keep the book to a manageable 400 pages or so.

There are some obscure applications you will not find, in part because they were only under development at the time this book was written. For instance, there is a specialized (but widely applied) theory of "k best of m" prediction limits that is used in groundwater monitoring. For such specialized applications you will have to go elsewhere (such as Robert Gibbons' book on "Statistical Methods for Groundwater Monitoring"). Nevertheless, Hahn and Meeker do a very good job of covering the most widely used applications of statistical intervals.

I do not recollect ever finding a mathematical error or even a typographical error. Over the years I have also checked, and completely verified, the entries in several of the key tables. All in all, this book is remarkably clean and error free.

(This review is based on the 1991 edition; I do not know whether there have been further editions.)

Written by youth and adult leadership trainer Debra J. Slover, U.N.I.Q.U.E: Growing the Leader Within is a self-help guide to cultivating purpose, aim, and leadership skills within oneself. Chapters discuss how to balance the four key behavioral attributes a leader needs (visualization, organization, harmonization, and energization), how to practice and attain the key traits needed for leadership, tips, tricks, and techniques for expressing the voice of the leader spirit within, and much more. Accessible to readers of all ages and backgrounds, and drawing upon vignettes and the occasional gardening metaphor to illustrate its point, U.N.I.Q.U.E. is an excellent heart, mind, and spirit self-help guide, whether preparing to lead a business, a sports team, a coalition, a few friends, or simply oneself.

What a fantastic experience to read and feel. With the multitude of books out there with themes that touch the soul, this book clearly stands above the rest. As I read the book, I found myself touched but the hidden lessons all thought this beautiful 147 page experience. U.N.I.Q.U.E. Growing the Leader Within does not only transport you to a simpler time in your life by placing you within the pages, but I found that for myself, that it re-stimulated a part of the soul where learning and remembering was easy and not clouded by everyday pressures. To me that is the natural way to learn, and the natural progression into your Leader within.

The main character Huge represents a part of all of us that transfigures the beginning of everyday thought, every experience and every endeavor. You cannot begin anything without starting at Hugh! This book by the author Debra J. Slover, reminded me where I have been and where I will be going. The journey is never ending but full of light. That is what this book is for me. Pure light.

My mom gave me a copy of U.N.I.Q.U.E. when it was first coming onto the market. Leadership Studies are an area of research for me and I am also an avid gardener, so she felt the metaphor of a Leadership Garden was a natural fit. She was right in many ways. After getting into the book, I realized there may be some potential for use in a leadership class. Along same time, my church was proposing a Community Garden to grow produce for the local food bank. Likewise, the university where I am getting my doctorate from and where I instruct was interested in enhancing Service Learning opportunities. A class was soon born using this book as a text that provides a focused journaling exercise for the students. This is coupled with coursework in global food issues such as water scarcity, climate change, Genetically Modified foods, and other topics. These are matched with exposure to local activists in each of these areas like organic farmers, farmer's market associations, and hunger activists. It seeks to make the "think globally, act locally" notion in a very real way with the personal empowerment to make a difference. I highly recommend Debra's book because of its readability and its multiple applications both within and outside the classroom.

Can a lost sheep really become a leader? Why, yes! Of course! We all can!

At first, I thought the book was going to be just another tired lesson plan for finding your way in the world: but Deborah J. Slover's book, U.N.I.Q.U.E.: Growing the Leader Within, goes beyond the traditional self help doctrines to actively explain the ideas behind cultivating an individual leadership spirit.

Funny as it may seem, I followed Hugh the wayward sheep through the book's incredible Leadership Farm Fable where we learned the essential principles and behaviors needed to cultivate our leader spirit through a tour of the metaphorical Leadership Garden.

The first time I read the book I glossed over the actual exercises provided at the end of Hugh's stops on the Leadership Farm tour. But I was drawn by the author's honesty and compassion and by the intricate, beautiful illustrations that adorn the Fable. I reached for the book again and again. Each time I sat down to examine the Fable I found new depth in the story as well as in the author's commentary and soon found myself sitting at the kitchen table carefully completing each lesson. There I was, enthusiastically weeding out my negative tendencies and planting the positive behaviors needed to lead a more fulfilling life.

My absolute favorite concept presented by Deborah J. Slover is that Hugh and I and anyone else can develop into a leader that does not require commanding a following. Good leadership, the type taught in the lessons, allows everyone to become a great leader of their own lives with a unique purpose, aim and love: a type of leadership that means a workable, imaginative co-existence where everyone is a leader.

After reading the book, I imagined all sorts of people using the book to replace counter productive, self-victimization with new direction. I especially could visualize people in positions of authority using the book to understand how their role could be more empowering that overpowering.

I recommend the book to individuals looking for a private experience for self emancipation and to all types of groups looking for common instruction on developing a thriving, cooperative mission.

This book is great....and sporatically go over through it again and again taking the quizzes to see how i have changed since the last time i took them.

It had 6 different sections. the first section is called all about guys, love, & dating. The second one is called all about friendship. The third one is all about the inner you. The fourth is all about the outer you. The fifth is all about school and the sixth is all about your family and home.

Titles of some select quizzes are 'Are you fun to hang out with?'; 'What's your body type?'; 'What's your guy type?'; 'What does your locker say about you?' and lots, lots more....

I recommend this book to teenagers everywhere who have a little spare time. It's also something fun to do with friends.

Are you a quiz fanatic. Do you love taking quizes out of magazines, books, etc. Well if you are then this book is for you. If you think you know yourself really well then think again. There are ton of quizes to help reveal who you really are. And you don't just have to take quizes on yourself you can also quiz your friends and family; and learn more about them. In this book there are more than 25 cool quizes on a bunch of varied subjects.There are six different chapters/sections on different subjects. Here are the 6 different chapters/sections
*all about guys,love & dating
*all about friendship
*all about the inner you
*all about the outer you
*all about school
*all about your family and home
Well those are the six different chapters/sections. They all have great quizes. You can really learn more about yourself. By the way this is book would be for a girl.

I love it!! It has a bunch of quizzes. Its not the same old boring ones you see all the time in magazines. It has more than that! It has more than you think. Its not just quizzes on guys. It also has quizzes on family, friends, and other things. It is so much fun to read! I couldn't put it down. Quiz yourself and your friends.

I loved it! The quizzes are cool and fresh, not like the same ones you see again and again in the magazines. I couldn't put it down! Beth Mayall is brilliant!

A very well written book, with lots of detail and accounts of Rochester area Regiments during the Civil War. The Author has spent much time in research and interveiwing local people who have a vast knowledge of the subject. A must read and a beautifully printed and bound book.

Where They Fell is a wonderful account of the stories of the Rochester, New York area men that served in this nation's bloodiest war. Robert Marcotte has provided charts, pictures, and side-notes to enhance your reading. If you have just a casual interest in the Civil War, I HIGHLY recommend this book! You won't be disappointed!

This book, concentrating on the Civil War experiences of Rochester's soldiers and citizens, is a must read for everyone. The book is divided into chapters, includes actual soldier's letters and accounts. It has lots of maps and great photography. It is in coffee table format, with much of it in color.
Anyone interested in the Civil War battles, no matter where they live, will enjoy this book. It is written in conversational style, and shows the influence of the writer's journalistic training. I can highly recommend this book for its fascinating content and user friendly style.

Where They Fell is a wonderful collection of stories of the Rochester, NY area men that served in this nation's bloodiest war. Robert Marcotte has done a terrific job not only telling these stories, but he has also added many pictures, maps and charts that enhance your reading. I am a casual observer of the Civil War, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is even slightly interested in this period of history.

This book is a vivid journalisitc exploration of the children's lives who have been affected or infected by the African Aids epidemic. Ms. Kew has rendered these little souls with a humanity that transcends the tradgey which is about to engulf them. With sales from this book, produced almost entirely from her own funds (which in itself is quite amazing), she has managed to build her first school in Africa to educate 500 orphans and to retrain adults for future employment.

It is a worthy read and acknowledgement that we are all in this together, whatever continent we happen to reside on.

This beautiful book of African photos tells the touching story of a woman (Chelli Kew) who was compelled to help the aids orphans in Africa. She literally risked her life in this pursuit and against all odds has published this book. Sales proceeds from the book have enabled her to establish a school and continue down the path of helping many of the orphaned children. She is an excellent example of how one person can make a difference. Her story is truly inspiring and one that I have been proud to share with my family and friends. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in helping others and learning more about the disastrous aids situation in Africa.

This book is a beautiful collection of stunning photographs, thoughtfully recorded impressions, vividly depicted stories, and honest reflections. Kew combines the power of imagery and words to tell the story of children orphaned by AIDS in Africa. The work she is doing is so valuable, and this book supports her efforts. I hope it opens the minds of many readers who care, like Kew, to make a difference.

Without a doubt, the most comprehensive and best illustrated publication I have seen on "America's Finest." A book that should be in the library of all airborne troopers, particularly those involved with the D-Day landings in France.
Equipment, insignia and operations are covered in great detail.
A truly indispensable book.

The first edition of this book broke new ground 12 years ago when it was first published.

The call for an updated revised edition has now been realized.

The author has privately published a much revised and expanded edition that somewhat makes the old previous edition obsolete.

Packed with even more information and excellent photographs, it is more than twice as good as the original edition.

New and more interesing details about the Airborne have come to light and are covered; facts about certain pieces of equipment not known or covered in the First Edition are presented in detail for the first time.

Comprehensive in every way, the new revised edition presents it all in over 300 illustration, and is accompanied by detailed technical descriptions.

The revised edition provides a detail and clarity of illustrations and descriptions that create the definitive source of information for militaria collectors and re-enactors.

An absolutely outstanding and indespensible tool for the reenactor and historian. Howard has a vast collection, and the photos of the items in B&W and in color and top-notch. Each item of equipment is carefully described, from uniforms to web-gear to weapons to toilet articles. As a self-styled historian, as well as paratrooper veteran of 26 years who collects airborne equipment, I use Howard's work repeatedly. Well worth the money!!

Excellant, the book looks as if it is brand new. I would gladly do business with this seller. Thank you.

The Art and Craft of Flower Pounding is awesome. This arts and crafts book is well written with easy to understand directions. The photographs of the projects presented in this book is a motivator in itself. The ideas are endless. Flower pounding is easy enough to do for a child's summer project as well as for an adult. My family is really enjoying this new craft so much that we had to go out and purchase a few more hammers! I highly recommend this book - especially if you are looking for a new, easy and unusual craft - this is it!!!!

I found Laura Martin's book over a year ago, and following the very easy to understand steps, have learned to pound flowers, leaves, and stems onto treated material (she gives the receipe)and also on paper. I have been able to spend many stress-relieving moments with my board and hammer in my little flower garden on cool mornings capturing and preserving the lovely blossoms which I have used to make very special cards, gifts, and treasures that will last a lifetime. I am now teaching this art to a few good friends and some young girls in our homeschool group, encouraging them to buy this book! My 9 year old daughter and I love to make "Flower Fairies" and "Flower Ballarinas" to put on cards, in frames, and on material for pillows and handmade journal covers, etc. The ideas shared have endless possibilities! If you have had a stressful day, go outside in a shaded area, sit on a blanket with your supplies, pick a few wildflowers, or blooms from your garden, or even some from the flowers you find in the floral market of your grocery store, and pound to your hearts content! I especially appreciate Laura Martin's knowledge of flowers shared in her "Plant Guide" in the back of the book. It has inspired me to plant more flowers, spend more time at the floral market and public gardens. I have even purchased seeds from a Wildflower Company online to grow this spring on our 1/2 acre of land that is usually overgrown with weeds! When I visit our kids in Oregon next month, we plan to find some ferns on our hikes that we will pound while taking a rest from our hiking. We will have these beautiful plants preservered as a wonderful reminder of our visit! As a homeschool family, we are using this art to teach our daughter about botany, keeping a visual record of the plants & wildflowers in a notebook, and then looking up the names in books at the library. And we are learning how to cultivate the flowers and are keeping a diary of that process! Highly recommend this book and craft for Garden Clubs, Girl Scouts, and the boys like it, too!

As a layman interested in how to read the New Testament I have been very grateful for the recent literature that is now available on the history and origins of early Christian writings. Bart Ehrman and the Jesus Seminar have been a breath of fresh air, and the idea that the books that should be included in scripture are those that have historical authenticity and not just approval by the Church is an attractive idea. I want to know what Jesus really said. Not what the Church tells me he said.

The problem has been that much of what is available in the field assumes the existence of Q, the common source for Luke and Matthew, without explaining why. This is not a problem, of course, if the reader knows why Q is believed in by so many scholars. Q seems to be a tidy way of understanding how Mathew and Luke got some material in common. However even I, without a knowledge of Greek, can think of reasons why there should be other ways to think of the origins of what the three evangelists teach.

Goodacre's book is very helpful in this regard. He uses the original Greek freely so the reader can see exactly what is being compared, word against word. He makes the case that the language of the Q proponents has become uncritical. They use hyperbolic language that denigrates their opponents' ideas and shuts out any true intellectual discourse about the alternatives. He points out inconsistencies in the Q hypothesis that are very reasonable to infer from the data and for which data to not exist to prove the
hypothesis.

The scientific method requires that one postulate a theory and then look for data that contradict it. In the field of New Testament studies it is not possible to produce data at will, so the method has to be modified somewhat, to account for the possibilities with any hypothesis. Goodacre points out that there are holes in the Q hypothesis that make it still a hypothesis and that maybe assuming it to be accepted as firmly as, say, the theories of relativity, may be premature.

The Case Against Q: Studies In Markan Priority And Synoptic Problem By Mark Goodacre (Lecturer in New Testament, Department of Theology, University of Birmingham, England) is a crucial and scholarly study of the relationship between the Biblical figures of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The "Q" hypothesis claims that Matthew and Luke referred to another source as well as Mark. That source, now lost, is called "Q." The Case Against Q is a meticulously researched, well-reasoned, carefully documented, cautious analysis and criticism of the Q hypothesis. A fascinating in-depth look at Synoptic relationships, The Case Against Q is a seminal and highly recommended addition to Biblical studies reading lists and reference collections.

Ch1 The psychological reasons Q is taken for granted. Q literature is written in the language of "discovery" as if an archaeological find rather than a hypothesis. The literature goes from calling it a "source" to calling it a "gospel document." Many scholars either ignore or are unaware of rival hypotheses. Although Q is taken for granted, people can't agree on a reconstruction of it.

Ch2 Arguments for the priority of Mark. His strongest argument is the argument from fatigue. Where Matthew or Luke alter Mark, they sometimes fail to incorporate the change throughout the passage being redacted leaving it incoherent.

Ch3 Answers some arguments for Luke's independence from Matt. According to Burton Mack, Matt was written in the late 80's and Luke around 120, yet Luke had a copy of Q, but not Matt. Goodacre argues that if Luke was written that late, he would be more likely to have a copy of Matt than Q because Q was waning in popularity and Matt was gaining in popularity. Fitzmyer argued that Luke is ignorant of Matt's additions to Mark, but Goodacre shows that Luke agrees with Matt's additions to Mark.

Ch4 Explains why Luke follows Mark's order, but not Matt's. If Luke follows Mark's order but not Matt's, so the argument goes, because he's following Q, and not Matt. Goodacre thinks the claim is overstated because Luke somtimes DOES diverge from Mark's order. Since Matt was written later than Mark, Luke was likely more familiar with Mark. Mark became his primary source and Matt was suplementary. Goodacres shows that Luke breaks up long discourse in Mark 4 which makes it understandable that he would break up Matt's sermon on the mount. Sermon on the mount is very Mathean, so it's reasonable to think Luke would alter it.

Ch5 How narrative criticism could shed light on redaction criticism. Fitzmyer said, "Why would so literary an artist as Luke want to destroy the Matthean masterpiece of the Sermon on the Mount?" Goodacre replies, "It is the thesis of this chapter that it is precisely because Luke is 'so literary an artist' that he would have wanted creatively to rework the Sermon on the Mount." He points out that Luke's purpose was to write an orderly account, so Luke was able to take from Matt's long discourses and weave them into a more plausible historical biography.

Ch6 How Jesus films can shed light on the synoptic problem--analogy of film makers working with their sources. JESUS OF NAZARETH has no Sermon the Mount, but distibutes the material. Film makers abreviate, omit, relocate, and redistrubute to add dramatic effect and biographical plausibility, especially with the Sermon on the Mount, yet they know Matt and aren't cranks for changing it. On the other hand, some of these reworkings were probably inspired by Luke's reworking. But that shows Matt's sermon is not superior to Luke since film makers choose Luke over Matt. Goodacre refutes the argument that Luke wouldn't have altered Matt's masterpeice unless he was a crank because Matt's version is superior to Luke's.

Ch7 Discusses the beatitude, blessed are the poor (in spirit). Matt has "in spirit" but not Luke or Thomas, so it is argued that the version without "in spirit" is more primitive, and therefore reflects Q, explaining why Luke doesn't use Matt's "in spirit." Goodacre explains why Luke would change Matt's version by pointing out that 1) Luke is concerned with the poor, 2) reversals in Luke (blessings and woes) would not work with "in the spirit," for it would have to be contrasted with "woe to the rich in flesh" or "woe to the rich in spirit" which doesn't make sense, and 3) beatitude was addressed to disciples who had left worldly posessions to follow Jesus and were actually poor. Goodacre also says that Luke and Thomas probably agree because Thomas relied on Luke. To explain why, in the beatitudes, Thomas changed "kingdom of God" to "kingdom of heaven" while Luke has "kingdom of heaven" and Matt has "kingdom of God," Goodacre points out that nowhere in Thomas do you find "kingdom of heaven."

Ch8 Argues that Luke used Matt, which is evident in the minor agreements between Luke and Matt against Mark in triple tradition. Against the argument that the minor agreements are too minor to prove anything, Goodacre points out that there's a sliding scale from minor agreements to major agreements (called Mark-Q overlap by Q theorists) to double traditions, and these categories are artificial.

Ch9 Discusses the relevence of Thomas on the synoptic problem, since Thomas seems to give precedence to the genre of "sayings gospel." He argues that they really aren't the same genre since Q has a narrative sequence containing chronology and biography not found in Thomas, especially in the first 1/3 of Q. He explains the other 2/3 and how it is explicable on the assumption that Luke used Matt.

Goodacre is an outstanding teacher. He took a tedius subject and explained it in a way that was easy to follow. His arguments are sharp and well-articulated. He uses footnotes instead of endnotes so you don't have to flip back and forth to read them. The only bad things I have to say about the book is that the vast majority of it answers objections to Luke's use of Matthew, and only a small percentage of the book makes the case that Luke used Matt. He does a great job of tearing down one point of view, but doesn't do much in the way of building up his own case. Ch8 seemed to be the only chapter that really argued positively for his case, and I think more should've been said about the major and minor agreements between Matt and Luke against Mark. The book is way over-priced. There are 17 pages of bibliography, but there are only 189 pages of text.

This is a wry, funny and wonderful book. Quentin blakes water colours are the best I have seen and the story he tells is amazing. A family dump their toys in a rubbish bin. A clown doll comes to life. He has lost his feet so he finds a pair of shoes, and then goes off searching for someone to save him and his friends. This is the story of his trip, the various people he finds, and the reasons he can't be saved. It is really beautiful and it works on many levels. You can talk about processes of following a story, there is the discussion of what is happening and why. There is the simple narrative you can make, you can get the children to talk about the story (and about the emotions) Overall it has a wonderful happy ending where everything turns up right.

I've been reading this captivating story to my 4-year-old daughter for about a year now, and we are both quite fond of it. I think it's one of the easiest wordless picture books to "read" because there is an illustration to depict every little event, so you don't have to rack your brain for words to describe what is going on--I find that the words just flow. The expressive characters seem very real, and the compassionate clown will easily find a place in your heart.

This book, without using any words at all, taught me one of the greatest lessons in life. The co-existence of humility and love. Watching the story develop with eyes and imagination,I realizes that this book allows each reader to come up with their own dialogue, providing a unique, special experience for each child (and adult) who happens upon it. I read this book a few months ago, and loved it. I am 21 years old, and think "Clown" has transcended the language and age barriers some of us have come across. It should be enjoyed by everyone.