Ken Wells Books

This CD has really great meditational and energizing breathing exercises.It is very instructional and has relaxing flute music in the background. His voice is very gentle and easy to follow. You can really feel physical results after each exercise.It was wonderful. I highly recommend it!

Best example of the fantastic history of this form of racing...I was too young to attend most of these events but can get the sense of the history that was made by these incredible machines.

This is the first in a series of three books and one of my favorite books ever. It is not to be missed!

I loved this novel. Got a copy of Meely LaBauve from my brother last week, down in Mazatlan. He said it was "really good."
He was right and then some. A satisfying, funny, fun read, its different and compelling.
I think what I like best is that after reading this book I was left with the urge to read all the rest of the books by author,Ken Wells. There are some authors I love, Isaac Singer, Elmore Leonard, and a few others, and I know I'll read another book by Mr. Wells.
When just now I looked up the book here on Amazon.com, I was surprised and disappointed that it was ranked where it was. This book ought to be a run away bestseller, really. It would make a good movie too. Unless you're really uptight (sexually) you'll enjoy this book. Heck, even if you are uptight, read it anyways, you'll still like it.

This is a delightful, easy-to-read novel that has a great insight to the society of the have-nots in the deep South. The main character, Meely, is a 14 yr. old that gets by primaily due to his own wits. There is a very interesting part, toward the end, where Meely is asked to identify a corpse. The results of this are hilarious and problem-solving. Believe everyone should like this story; 'tis a dandy.

There aren't too many of these around: a Cajun coming of age novel. In fact, I'll bet this is the only one, and it's a winner. Just made for reading aloud (especially to a young teenage son), the story is told in first person by a 13yo kid who lives in a falling-down (literally) shack back in a Louisiana bayou with his usually absent gator-hunting, kindly, nearly-always-drunk, renegade father who never recovered from his wife's death 8 yrs earlier during childbirth. The sexual initiation scene with Cassie in the middle of a field is unrivaled. Somebody needs to make a movie of this book!

Anyone out there trying to remember the Big Easy the way it was, before the anger of Mother Nature rained down on Louisiana like a story out of the Bible, "Meely LaBauve" is a good way to start. This first part of a trilogy by Ken Wells is set in the good ole' Bayou, long before the devastation of the elements tainted its once rich and sought-after mystique. Within these pages you will find detailed depictions of wild swampland, varied cultures, small town simplicity and gumbo the way it's supposed to be cooked - and eaten. Written in "down home" Cajun prose from the first-person view of our young protagonist Meely, this expert first novel sends you back in time, to an unvarnished place, during a long dead era. Way back when the mere mention of New Orleans brought to mind syncopated musical sounds instead of hurricanes, floods and carnage.

Meely LaBauve is a highly likable fifteen year-old boy who lives with his widower father in a broken down shack out in the Bayou. Well, he sometimes lives with his father, as the man is often away living the life of a rolling stone, leaving his young son to raise and take care of himself. The absence of any form of paternal guidance has made Meely very self-reliant and a little too mature for his age. He has little interest in school, hunts for his own food and drinks coffee like it's going out of style. Truant and filled with what he calls "the wild Injun," you would think that Meely would have turned into a bad kid like many inner city children left to fend for themselves in a harsh and unforgiving world. But, according to Logan LaBauve, his father, Meely was blessed with the good smarts of his dead mother and is thereby perfectly suited to making a way for himself. All by his lonesome.

Strangely enough, Logan is a very amicable character in his own right. He isn't leaving his son alone to feed himself, he isn't mistreating his son with neglect and he isn't being a bad role model when he comes home at night with the local tart, wasted. Logan sees Meely as being far smarter than himself when he was his son's age and regards the young man as an equal, if not better. Throughout the book, you will notice that these two very different beings are more like friends than father and son. Reading on, it becomes hard to dislike Logan for this approach. When was the last time you bought your friend groceries? Told your friend that it was time to go to bed? It's a strange relationship and I bought it hook, line and sinker, mostly because I have no idea what it is like to live with the means and/or limitations that they were dealing with. Either way, Meely pretty much talks to us, often quoting his father's phrases about life. It's obvious that he idolizes his father but knows that he will never be more than a friend to him. I felt for Meely here and there when he says, paraphrasing, "Daddy done give up on jail. Done give up on paying the 'lectric bill too. That's okay, but I shore would like some cold water now and again."

Meely's main nemesis, Junior Guidry, is a terrible young man. A bully and a sadist in every sense of the words. Stocky and powerful, Junior hates Meely and is always salivating at the chance to beat the boy to a pulp. You know the guy. He's that kid in school that, no matter how lame or how cool you were, he was there to take you down. He's also one of the reasons why Meely never goes to school. But, moreover, he's the reason Meely is arrested and thrown in jail. Yes, this innocent little story about a small man living off the fat of the land and minding his own business turns hard into a big "to do" about race, lies and intentional cruelty. Meely will have to deal with harsh things. Things that no young boy should witness. Any more and I would be giving away the best parts of the story.

So, give "Meely LaBauve" a shot. It's worth it. And when you're done, check out the next installment, "Junior's Leg," where the reprehensible Junior Guidry gets his own story some fifteen years later. It's even better! If you hated Junior in the first installment, you will have a hard time hating him as an adult. It's great! The whole trilogy is a hoot, culminating with "Logan's Storm," which backtracks a bit, becoming a sequel to the first book. Happy reading and may God have mercy on Louisiana.

It is a great benefit to everyone that Ken Cohen has created this great reference work containing many details of every aspect of Qi Gong theory and practice. Most other works are either patchy and incomplete, or in Chinese. Since Mr. Cohen speaks Chinese, and has taught and practiced Qi Gong for most of his life, he is ideally suited to providing this material. It's particularly helpful that he has also presented so much of the material as DVD instruction videos.
However, in many ways, this is a work for the Qi Gong teacher, or at least for committed students of many years. While the material can certainly be used by beginners, it requires more time, effort and money than those who only have a casual curiosity are willing to invest in something they have not experienced.
Each aspect of the learning process is dealt with in great detail, such that the student is never going to say "I'm still not sure what I am supposed to do at this point" (which is a comment I've read about many other qigong and yoga products). But the flip side is that the student needs to commit to investing a large amount of time to this course. For example, many exercises have 10 minutes of introductory explanation of the proper state of mind, prior to 10 minutes of explaining the exercise itself - for something that is going to comprise one or two minutes of your daily practice.
So, for the more casual beginner, which is probably going to be most people, there is a more simple and less costly solution. Get the inexpensive and excellent DVD set "Qigong Beginning Practice" by the Garripolis, which is probably the best instruction video for casual beginners, and then get Ken Cohen's paperback book "The Way of Qigong" which contains all his excellent knowledge and explanations of the theory and significance of Qigong. The cost of both together is less than a third of the cost of this course.

Without a doubt, Mr. Cohen has contributed, and continues to contribute, to the expositon of Eastern philosophy within Western culture. The walls are slowly crumbling and giving way to the world of self-development and personal evolution. There are two things I would have liked to have experienced from this program. The first would be a less affective tone from the narration. In its place, I would have preferred a more vibrant, inspiring, less-coddling tone. There is too much breathiness in the narration that distracts from the presentation of the basics and has the potential of turning away readers with a more energetic vibration in their hearts. Perhaps a discussion of the more aerobic forms of Qi Gong, such as Nei Gong or Nei Jia, would have been appropriate, but the tone would have contradicted the energizing power behind these forms. Let us not forget that first, and foremost, Qi Gong was a martial art practiced by the warrior classes. It eventually evolved as a spiritual monastic practice, but the monks themselves were warriors by default. Under the despotic rule of unenlightened emperors and warlords, China's priests had a need to develop a martial defense system. As a Qi Gong and Tai Chi instructor, I find that it is a constant struggle to explain to students that Qi Gong and Tai Chi are not practices that are limited to senior citizens. Once I demonstrate Nei Gong, and/or Tai Chi fighting form, students do begin to understand what these ancient practices have to offer. The troubling thing is that most people walk about with a misguided representation of Qi Gong before they are illuminated otherwise. The second experience I would have enjoyed would have been a more global discussion of Qi Gong history and its evolution. Mr. Cohen presents his style without mentioning that there are thousands of different forms of Qi Gong in existence today. To his credit, Mr. Cohen does recognize this fact elsewhere, but not within the scope of this program. That's fine, not a problem, but the consumer can easily walk away thinking that there is only one style of Qi Gong...Cohen Qi Gong. The reader should also note that some of the exercises are incomplete and only offer an introductory sampling of the tip of the iceberg that is Qi Gong. It is understandable that there is a general, economical need to appeal to a wide audience, but the narration and title should explicitly state that all chapters are simply introductory. Nevertheless, there is much merit and reward to be garnished from Mr. Cohen's work. Practice his way and the reader will definitely see an improvement in health, strength and vitality over time. Although not a seminal opus, this product is the culmination of a highly important, and sorely needed, educational service. I encourage all teachers, readers, students and practitioners to allow this introductory work to be a guide towards a deeper practice.

This set is the best compilation of beginner exercises and meditations I have seen yet. He combines instruction with information to help you learn as you practice. Definitely worth the buy.

Ken Cohen is clear in his descriptions - knowledgable of the material - useful in the information and exercises he describes and practices and models in the CD's, DVD's and book. The practice of qigong can be learned well through this material. He is down to earth in his explanations and demontrations, making understanding very accessible.

I bought this thinking that it was a workout DVD set. I was initially disappointed that it wasn't, but as I watched the DVDs, listened to the CDs, and read the enclosed booklet, I was pleasantly surprised. This was actually so much more. The instruction is more detailed than you will ever get on an exercise DVD. It answers a lot of the questions that have been turning over in my mind. I didn't know it ahead of time, but it was just what I needed.

Most daily journalism is written, edited and published under strict deadline pressure, and is as perishable as the newsprint it's printed on. But there are exceptions. Give a talented reporter freedom of time and subject matter, and sometimes the result can soar close to, if not actually achieve, the quality of literature. Some great examples of this are collected in "Floating Off the Page."

The Wall Street Journal is primarily known as a financial newspaper. But since 1941, the middle column of its front page has been devoted to a feature on just about any subject under the sun. What happened to the mail destined for the World Trade Center after 9/11? Why were people attempting to translate the Bible into Klingon--and why was there a dispute over how to do this? Why was a man trying to develop a non-flatulent bean? This is only a quick sampling of some of the stories to be found in this offbeat, entertaining, informative volume.

Some of these pieces are truly timeless, though most represent a snapshot of a past moment; all are worth another look. Keep it by your bedside or in your bathroom or carry it with you on your next trip. You'll find it a great one to browse and dip into again and again.--William C. Hall

Admittedly, I knew very little about the Middle Column of the Wall Street Journal before reading this book. Now, I might just have to get a subscription to WSJ! The stories unfold as if they are the creation of some short story writer. Would you ever think that getting a hole-in-one in golf could be a bad thing? Well, in Japan, it is....in a way. And if you think that Stephen King writes a lot of books, wait until you hear about the man who holds the world record. A lot of the stuff you will learn from this book is mainly to entertain friends, but it's just as entertaining as reading a novel. Plus, you will get a perspective of how people thought 25 years ago and just how right they were. The only thing preventing the book from getting 5 stars is that it might be a tad bit on the "long" side and the editor attempts to group the stories by content. Personally, I would have rather had it completely mixed up because one of the chapters is a bit "dry." All in all, a great read that will have you smiling quite a bit.

Some of them a extremely funny, a few quite serious. This book makes an excellent airplane read and shows off the wit of the WSJ's writers.

For those who enjoy good journalistic writing, these stories are like eating a box of chocolates. Reading one or two a day can be a real treat. Reading a half dozen at a time may leave a saccharine aftertaste.

Editorial arrangement of the stories in topical groups is reasonable enough, but the editor plays coy with the date of composition, putting it at the end of the essay. It's as if the topics are so airy, it makes little difference whether they're true in the recent past or forty years ago. Enjoy the writing, chuckle over the odd characters profiled, don't take the book too seriously.

A few times a year we need a gift for someone whose tastes and interests are not well known to us. After perusing the many brief essays that make up this book, I know this will be a choice we'll use again and again.

First, the editor chose widely among dates available, resulting in a selection that includes not only material from the past decade, but studies that reach into the early sixties. It is intriguing to play a little game whilst reading each story: what decade is it? Sometimes you'll win; sometimes the answer will have you scratching your head for a while.

Second, the range of topics is virtually encyclopedic: from the academic ("The Art of the Perfectly Awful", a writing contest), to the esoteric ("The Bean of His Existence", about improving the quality of beans), to the banal ("Naked Assumptions", about nudist prudists), to the frankly bizarre ("Bear Hunting Is Hard on Wives"). There is much here you do not know about; there is probably plenty you have never heard of before.

Finally, some of the material is side-splittingly funny, some is thought provoking, and some is frankly poignant. This is far from being a one-note book; it invokes a full range of emotion whilst it ranges across time, geography, and subjects. This makes it a good gift for yourself or, for that matter, nearly anyone.

Ken Wells has done it again! Meely LaBauve was a good book, espcecially for someone originally from La. But Junior's Leg is even better. I've known lots of people like Junior, who never seem to be able to grow up. I've often wondered if life ever did make them mature. With this book, I've seen it happen. Poor Junior has had a rough life, but everything that happens is his own fault. The character is gross, but funny at the same time. Iris Mary is a little too good to be true, but she is exactly what Junior needs in his miserable life. This book had me laughing out loud, and brought back so many memories from my youth in Louisiana. At one point Junior describes a mobile home park as a "trailer court". That's a term that was very common back then, but that politically correct people no longer use.
If you want a book that is funny, thought-provoking, tough, and tender, read this one. You won't regret it!!!!!!

Junior is the meanest person in the Bayou. Foul mouthed with a foul attitude, life can just about get swallowed by the shark who ate his leg as far as Junior is concerned. Until Iris Mary breaks into his trailer. She thinks it is abandoned until she sees Junior crumpled up in a drunken slup. She cleans up Junior and the trailer, throws up all the bottles of liquor and makes gumbo. She is on the run from the law, and Junior is on the run from life. When the law catches up to them, you will not be able to put this book down. I stayed up all night to see how it would turn out and I was not disappointed.
This book mad me laugh out loud in certain places. And I found myself holding my breath in suspense in others. If you don't read this book you will be sorry because it is well worth the read.

In his debut novel "Meely LaBauve," Ken Wells established himself as an affectionate and wryly observant chronicler of life in bayou Louisiana. His sequel, "Junior's Leg" is nothing less than extraordinary. Capturing the essence of this distinctive culture through language and razor-sharp characterization, Wells not only creates a larger-than-life protagonist, but infuses his story with genuine compassion, grief and wisdom. His protagonist, a drunken, ill-educated, perpetually sexually aroused reprobate, Junior Guidry, grapples with issues of identity, purpose and love without even knowing it. Junior easily captures the heart of his audience; his rough-hewn sense of humor, his abject acceptance of all the crud life seems to throw at him, his utter shock at discovering his heart -- all his perilous, skewed attempts at understanding his predicaments reveal a bayou everyman.

Mr. Wells is wise enough to allow Junior to tell his own story in his own words, and Wells gracefully incorporates the patois of the spoken word, the incredibly rich idioms of the bayou, and the sharp, spicy tang that a storyteller utilizes to make events into fable. On the surface, "Junior's Leg" is an incredibly funny story, but, just below, where the gators and snakes live, resides a serious commentary about dissolution, despair and despondency. It is one of the delightful paradoxes of the novel that its protagonist, so thoroughly stupid and self-destructive, discovers the ability to redefine himself in spite of (or perhaps because of) alcoholism, lack of education and prejudice.

In this sense, "Junior's Leg" joins hands with the greatest coming-of-age novels of our national experience. It doesn't matter that its protagonist has already reached, and long sense passed, the age of adulthood. The wreckage of Junior's life, movingly recounted in his own words, becomes the prelude to the pivotal event of the novel: his accidental encounter with an albino woman with a tattered, burdened past. The confluence of her virtue with his vinegar, her hope with his despair, her confidence with his fatalism result in a powerful, compelling story.

"Junior's Leg" affirms all that is noble about our American character. Its author, Ken Wells, writes with the best type of convictions: that common people may instruct us to great truths, that language can delight and elevate, that ironic humor and wry laughter may well be the best antidotes to sadness and loneliness.

Junior is a real (curse word) but I'll be darned if he isn't one of the funniest characters I've ever read. Written in Cajun drawal, Wells' book is a real feast. My only problem with it is, the ending seemed like it didn't know how it wanted to come together. Trying this, failing it - throwing that in, missing the mark - until finally, a culmination that just should have come earlier than it did. I understand that Junior appears in some other books written by Wells and I plan to check them out.

Junior Guidry, the creepy bully from Meely LaBauve (2000), takes the lead in this book, which takes place 15 after ML ended. Now sporting a wooden leg, Junior is more despicable than ever, a drunk who finds himself taken on as 'a cause' by Iris Mary Parfait. Herself on the run from the law after she killed a dude in self-defense, she starts trying to get Junior to mend his ways. When he discovers he can get some cash by turning her in - but realizes he might be falling in love with her - things get mighty complicated.
Full of Cajun dialect, humor, honest, and most of all compassion, Junior's Leg is a worthy step-brother book to Meely LaBauve.

I read Logan's Storm on a long plane ride last week and enjoyed it very much. This book continues where the other two of Ken Wells' Cajun books leave off, but it is the story of the dad this time, and his adventures.
For anyone who has never read anything by Ken Wells, I think you have a treat in store for you. My brother first discovered this writer about a year ago when he read Meely Labauve. He passed the book on to me; I loved it, gave it to my wife and she loved it too. We then bought and read the next one, Junior's Leg, a real hoot! Tons of fun, some serious laughs in Junior's Leg.
I'm a writer myself (Allergy-free Gardening, Safe Sex in the Garden, etc.) and I love to find new authors whose material is terrific. This is how I feel about Ken Wells and his writing. It is fresh, lively, different, touching, sometimes profound, never preachy, and completely colorful. I keep waiting to see his books make it to the bestseller lists....they deserve to be there, and I think it is just a matter of time. Too good to pass up. Check this book out!

Logan's Storm is the third and final book in the Meely LaBauve trilogy. It is set in the time immediately after the original offering ended, and it opens with his hilarious and ne'er-do-well father , Logan, on the run (duh - to readers of the original, this will require no explanation) from the law with a black teenager. Love is in the offing when Logan meets up with Annie Ancelet, who has all sorts of ideas for evading the lawmen.
Logan's storm is an affectionate and endearing character study, full of humor and adventure.

We have long enjoyed defining the American character through our literary heroes. We prefer rough-hewn men, resolute in their own vision of the world, often at odds stuffy conformity, comfortable with their reprobate attitude. Huck Finn exemplifies this allegiance to the rebellious, misunderstood, action-based hero. It matters little if this figure has stretched or broken the law; his illegal behavior usually results from altercations with ignorant, small-minded or prejudiced authority figures. Beneath an exterior of illiteracy or deceptively simple manners reside an elemental decency, a profound dignity and an abiding optimism about the human condition.

The perceptive author Ken Wells understands our perpetual hunger for these larger-than-life heroes, and his final installment of the Catahoula Bayou trilogy, "Logan's Storm," satisfies our appetite. Logan LaBauve, already erroneously pronounced dead as a result of avenging his son's abuse at the hands of a racist cop, confronts nature, faces down bad guys and even finds room in his broken heart to open himself up to the possibilities of love. Logan, through dialogue and action, reminds us of the best aspects of our quest to become genuinely self-made. His unceasing and unflinching confrontation with life's exigencies, messes and hopes serves as a cock-eyed model for even polished urbanites. This man lives large, loves life and doesn't hesitate to squeeze living for all that it's worth.

"Logan's Storm" is actually less a novel than it is three extended vignettes. Each vignette serves as a means through which Logan's character is tested, fortified and sublimely altered. What results is a bayou character who is a loyal friend, savvy con-artist, expert storyteller and redoubtable champion of little old ladies and stricken children in distress. This swamp superman throws out Cajun metaphors with the same grace he demonstrates when he teases a meal out of bayou critters. He knows exactly how much bilge he can safely swallow from adversaries and precisely when to strike back. Though Ken Wells moves his story with breathtaking confidence, he never forgets why the reader will rapidly turn each page.

Unfortunately, the last two vignettes don't carry the power and promise of the first. We first meet Logan during his sojourn in a dangerous swamp, on the lam from prejudiced officers who'd like nothing better than to lay their hands on not only Logan, but his son's African-American friend Chilly. The author paints a lush and absorbing physical and emotional protrait of two men struggling for survival under extreme circumstances. The second vignette borrows heavily from Mark Twain, in both style and content. Here Logan outwits a professorial villain, whose flowery elocution masks a pathetically craven heart. This melodramatic chestnut of outlaws outfoxing other outlaws is saved only by Wells' love of his characters, his engaging use of Cajun patois and his keen sense of irony. The final vignette, featuring an overpowering hurricane, blows itself out from predictablility. It is as if the author himself became exhuasted from the excesses of his own writing.

"Logan's Storm" is cause, however, for rejoicing. Its author, Ken Wells relishes spinning a good tale and is a marvelous scene setter. Logan LeBauve, podnah, will happily find his own niche in our national pantheon of authentic American heroes.

"Logan's Storm," the last in the Wells' bayou trilogy delivers on a scale that its predecessor, "Meely LaBauve" doesn't. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the first novel about Logan's self-reliant little boy, but "Storm" and the piece before it, "Junior's Leg" are far more interesting. Perhaps I just prefer to read more adult literature.

Wells does a strange thing here. He tells the story of Meely LaBauve with the first book, leaving it open for a sequel. Then he jumps fifteen years into the future with the ongoing adventures of Meely's high school adversary, the reprehensible Junior Guidry. Now, we have an exemplary road movie starring Meely's rolling stone daddy, Logan, which takes place during the middle of the first book. Sound strange? Yeah, I thought so.

The book picks up right as Logan and his young "partner in crime," Chilly Cox have to leave an injured Meely by the side of the rode to deal with the police, while they escape into the night swamp. It's a precarious situation. They decided that Meely would probably get off easy, but Logan and his running mate would no doubt fry. The cops despise Logan anyway and Chilly is a giant black kid who dared to defend himself against the racist white cop, Junior's uncle. Logan tells us his side of the story and we understand, even if we didn't read "Meely," that they were framed.

That was tough to explain. Hope you got it all.

The first hundred pages or so, Logan is really, really an impressive swamprat. A natural hunter and trapper, Logan navigates swampland and fills us in on important nuances about the wildlife, why he does what he's is doing while cohabitating with them, and what he's going to do next. It's like a super-exciting episode of "Wild Discovery," and "Crocodile Hunter." Logan and Chilly spent most of the book crusing around in their canoe and trying to find something to eat.

They meet some interesting characters along the way, like Annie Ancelet, the only woman Logan has really taken to since his wife died years before. And Harris the cabbage salesman is a real hoot to read about and a good friend to our two boys.

Eventually, Logan and Chilly make it up to Mississippi and shack up with Chilly's black relatives. It's a nice existence for awhile, but Logan wants to see his son again before going down and taking a job in Florida. He takes off after a few months with Chilly's family and heads back to the bayou.

There is a scene in "Meely LaBauve" where Logan and his boy find each other for a short time and catch up a bit. It's a great scene, almost exactly played out in both novels, but from the title character's point of view. Very clever.

On his way to Florida, Logan looks up Annie one more time. She offers to take him to his new job when they get news of a terrible storm on the way. They get caught up in it and it almost never ends. Together, they face tornados, hurricanes and a small tsunami. Riveting reading that has its ups and downs in the last 100 pages. That's why it doesn't get five stars. That, and the strange opening that connects the first book. It can confuse some people.

If I were to cast this film, Billy Bob Thornton as Logan and Rob Brown as Chilly. Maybe Gina Gershon as Annie. Lucas Till from "Walk the Line" would be a great Meely.

An unexpected surprise and joy, well scripted and paced, this book has got to be made into a movie. A Cajun adventure of the heart, with unsophisticated but never crude characters, and a story about not giving up on love. These characters are real people, middle-aged (like me), who love, sweat, fear, laugh, and connive. Logan is a 40 something widower, and single father, who has turned to the swamp for solace and escape, only to find deliverance of a kind he never expected, nor will you. He is a swamp fox, both agile and deliberate, depending on whether he is dealing with insane, depraved, or violent situations, as the need arises. I loved this book.

Now, is Ken Wells related to Rebecca Wells, the Ya-Ya Queen?

Ken Wells takes us into the bayou for a look at a culture rarely seen and too little appreciated, a culture at risk. He has done the nearly impossible: he's written an ecological novel that's beautifully researched and true, and at the same time is funny, heartwarming, and filled with characters you won't easily forget, from the Cajun governor to the venial oil magnate and his mysterious mistress. This is story telling at its best.

Too often a novel based on an author's pet peeves falls flat. That is not the case in this novel, which combines environmental issues, corporate greed and political shenanigans, with bribery, love affairs and blackmail thrown in. The story is told with the background of the Louisiana Wetlands and the power of the oil interests in the state in the forefront.

At the heart of the story is the degradation of the bayou ecosystem and the effects on the coastal areas, which led to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Justin Pitre's grandfather bought acres of pristine marshland, built a "shack" there, fished and trapped, living a happy life. He left it to Justin, asking him not to let any changes take place. When a greedy oil executive tries to cut a pipeline through it, all hell breaks loose.

The characters include a charismatic Governor (not quite a Huey Long), and true-to-life, loveable Cajuns, among others. The tale is well-told, although this reviewer found the wrap-up somewhat contrived. Nevertheless, it is a most enjoyable read, and, given the time, it probably would be well worth the effort to go back and read the previous Catahoula trilogy, which we missed.

Recommended.

This was a great book but it ended way to soon. it needed more explanation.

I have just "reread" H. G. Wells classic of science fiction (actually I listened to the audiobook version on my iPod on a long flight). And it is still as gripping to me as it was many years ago when I was a young teen. As the grandfather of all science fiction concerning invasions of alien beings from advanced interplanetary civilizations "The War of the Worlds" always will be considered a seminal work of science fiction.

The book is a first person account, by a survivor, of a Martian attack on the south of England during the late 19th century. Human armies and weapons are totally inadequate to stop the invading alien army. The Martian technology that Wells describes would have been frightening to anyone living in the late 19th century. Rapidly moving fighting machines, heat rays, and poison gas attacks all at the command of a totally inhuman and merciless enemy whose attack was entirely unprovoked. However, we had only had to wait for 2 decades to experience tanks and poison gas on the battlefields of Europe. A few decades more and we had atomic bombs and lasers. Neither did Wells depict the Martians as invulnerable. After all, the torpedo ram "Thunderchild" took out two and possibly 3 of the Martian war machines before it was sunk. Of course today a squadron of modern F16s could wipe out the entire invading Martian army of 1898 in a few minutes. Followed by a thermonuclear attack on Mars iteslf, of course. We clearly have outstripped the technology that Wells imagined.

However, futuristic technology is not the point of Wells' book. Wells knew that human machines were advancing at a rapid pace. He probably would not be surprised at today's technology. Wells book actually is a social commentary and a condemnation of the British colonial system and the cruel indifference with which Europe exploited less technologically advanced peoples. The Martians that he describes could well become us. Sluggish beings, entirely dependant on machines, living on the life blood of the less fortunate. This is in fact what half of humanity does become in Wells' equally important novel "The Time Machine." So the theme of "The War of the Worlds" is as important today as it was in 1898 in spite of the admittedly dated technology that it describes.

I bought this for my 10 year old son who saw the movie (Tom Cruise). He loved the book and because it's in paperback we took it everywhere.

BAM went the heat ray as it was fired by the aliens. If you want to hear what happens next then go read War of the Worlds.
War of the Worlds, by H. G. Wells, was written 110 years ago in 1898. It takes place in a small town in England. One day a mysterious black cylinder falls out of the sky. A couple days later the cylinder opens up and a cylinder is fired. Many people are killed but the main character just manages to escape. The aliens build up a ship thing and call for other cylinders to come. The aliens try to take over the town, then the world!
I did not have a favorite part in War of the Worlds. I thought War of the Worlds was actually a pretty boring book because there was barely any good and exciting action at all. There was a lot of shooting, but all they shot at were the alien's ship things and the bullets just bounced off.
H. G. Wells described almost everything way too much. For example: he uses 3 pages describing a dead horse and 2 pages describing fire.
I thought the whole plot of War of the Worlds was good except for the beginning. For no reason at all a cylinder from Mars with Martians in it falls out of the sky.
I do not recommend this book for people who like action. If you want a lot of action, I recommend the movie War of the Worlds starring Tom Cruise.

I have been planning on reading this book for over 10 years. I remember watching the movie when I was little (and then the remake a few years ago). First of all, this was far better than either of the movies.

Written in first person from the account of a survivor of the attack (who is never named) and then recounting the tale of his brother, this is a very immediate and unsettling tale. What I did not expect was the time frame the book was written in. I assumed (for some idiotic reason) that it would take place in the twentieth century. Instead, for those of you who like myself, forgot the timeframe that Wells lived in, this book takes place in the nineteenth century. The Martian attack occurs prior to the weapons of warfare that we are so used to thinking about; there are no tanks, no planes with bombs. Hussars and artillery are their greatest defense. People couldn't hop in their cars and drive from the invaders; they were instead in horse drawn carriages, communicating the disaster via telegraph and daily papers. This put a whole new twist on the tale from what I was expecting.

Our narrator lives only a few miles from where the first "ship" lands and we follow the town's initial curiosity and complete lack of fear as they peek into the hole in the ground created by the wreak. Even after the first "heat rays" are fired and people are killed, there is still no sense of fear. When the action comes, it comes quickly. Separated from his wife and family our unnamed narrator survives mainly through luck and the fact that he never stops moving. The entire story takes place in less than a month, from initial landing to total devastation. There is a lot of science involved, discussing the physiology of the aliens, speculation on their planet, and how they evolved. For the casual reader it's not too bad and doesn't bog down the story. For the rabid science hound, please remember when this book was written before you blast the scientific inconstancies and flat out scientific errors.

I highly recommend reading this book, to just about anyone. It is a fast read, which manages to keep your attention from beginning to end. The political and social commentary though written for another time still holds value today. The religious implication is not jammed down your throat. This is a fun yet chilling read, which you will find yourself pondering over long after you have put the book away.

TRAVELS WITH BARLEY - A JOURNEY THROUGH BEER CULTURE IN AMERICA chronicles an industry that has undergone explosive growth through the renaissance of US craft beer that began some thirty years ago.

A long-time career journalist originally hailing from Louisiana's Cajun Bayou, Ken Wells is a Wall Street Journal Pulitzer Prize finalist with a gift for weaving a masterpiece. His "River of Beer" explores beer cities along the Mississippi, from the heart of Minnesota to the delta of Louisiana. Along the way, he displays a tapestry of the finest hops and malts, accented with exuberance for the complexity that is the heart of the brewing world.

Wells satisfies the thirst of beer lovers - from the social drinker to the aficionado - with tales of gangsters, extreme beer brewers, power giants and designer ingredients - while subsequently searching for exemplary examples of the "perfect beer joint" in an industry that boasts of creative entrepreneurs and cordial camaraderie.

He breaks from the limits of the Mississippi to areas of the country molded by beer - Seattle, California, Delaware, Boston, and the hop farms of Idaho. As a self-proclaimed, incurable hophead, Wells explores the ultimate in triple zymurgy and designer beer, speaks with experts like Garrett Oliver and the relationship of beer to food, and explores the accomplishments of the contemporary capital of the brewing world, also known as "Brewvana." With Wells by our side, we peer into the shrouded world of California's beer-yeast rustlers. "Among the Yeast People, there is nothing simple or ordinary about beer yeast. It is beautiful, glorious, mysterious, magical, sexy, and, of course, to them, the single most important ingredient in beer," writes Wells.

This is a must-read for all beer lovers throughout North America.

I agree with the other reviewers that have rated this book low (3 stars or less) - the supposed mission that the author was on is completely blown by his choice of territory to cover and his personal schedule. This is like reading about the authors vacation - driving from small town to small town and going out for a beer each day. Let me tell you, this gets repetitive very quickly.

The only thing I learned from this book are some towns to avoid if I am looking for a flavorful craft-brewed beer.

Wells is the first person to attempt this kind of beer book and I think he succeeds wonderfully. Neophites can learn a lot about beer and the craft brew movement (not to mention a nicely delivered short history of beer in the world and America) and the beer savvy will like his chapters on Extreme Beer, yeast rustlers and a home brewing contest. Meanwhile, if you like travelogue there's lot of tasty stuff in there. The first chapter on a "beer spill" at a legendary Florida beach bar is funny and informative and Wells' trip down the Mississippi River in search of the perfect beer joint is a nice ride. Perusing the reviewer before me who declared the book "awful" I can't help but think: it's not that Wells can't write. It's that some reviewers can't read!

Simply awful. Though author Ken Wells may not have succeeded in finding "the perfect beer joint" (as the "premise" of this book seems to have been), he certainly succeeded in writing an awful book about a delightful subject.

Travels with Barley is uninspired, aimless, uninteresting, and and pointless. I gave the book a very generous 2 stars only because I found the chapter on "yeast rustling" very interesting -- it would have made a very good newpaper feature article, as very few of the chapters in the books might have. This collection of mediocre newspaper articles is mashed up into one barely readable book.

If you know little to absolutely nothing about beer but would like to learn a little or buy a nice gift for a beer lover, then DO NOT buy Travels with Barley (stick with one of Michael Jackson's books [not the King of P--, the Beer Writer]).

Even though it was stated that a goal of this book was to find a perfect beer joint, the true essence of this book (as the TITLE depicts) is to show Beer Culture in America.
It is an entertaining read spotted with humor. I don't think Ken demonizes the American Lager Style and, in fact, drinks his share of those industrial beers along his journey. But he does prove that there's far more being brewed in the US than tasteless yellow beer.
This book is great for anyone who enjoys beer, whether you're a beer geek, brewer, beer judge, or just occasional sipper.