Journals Books

As I was beginning my research for my MSW, I struggled to find appropriate material to address the needs of at-risk teen girls. I knew in my mind that there had to be a way to push young women toward independence, rather than allow them to be sucked into the murky waters of a media-created "feminine" ideal. A fellow student brought "Choices" to my attention. Through readings and practical exercises, it explores attitudes, values, career goals, assertiveness, budgeting, and pregnancy, among other things. It provides an arena for girls to assess their values, to analyze where they come from, and to re-evaluate them based on the assimilation of new knowledge. If I had to list a deficit in this work, it would be that it may lack cultural relevance for certain groups of students. The vignettes which are used to illustrate various concepts are race-ambiguous, which was positive. However, I somehow got the feeling that the stories were about the plight of middle-class or working class girls. I fear that the examples may appear laughable to girls who are homeless, who already have children, or who come from violent or destructive home environments. Perhaps it would be appropriate to include examples which consider race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic variables in the perception and analysis of problems. Despite this drawback, Choices is still a powerful work. In conclusion, this book will appeal to almost anyone who is interested in fostering independence, self-reliance, and self-esteem in young women.

This book really helped me in believing that sex before marrige isn't right and now that I am married and can always look back and thank the author!

I am constantly ordering this book. I am a foster parent for teenagers and I use this book as a family activity as well as at girls slumber parties. It makes thinking of the future and what you want to do with your life almost a fun thing. My childrens' therapists keep borrowing it and not giving it back!

I am a 30 year old woman who received this book back in 1987. I just "rediscovered" it this week. As I look back on the entries, I'm surprised at how much I've grown, how much I've learned, how tolerant I've become & also how I have very much stayed the same. This book guides you thru some of the bad things that can happen to a woman who doesn't plot a course for her life. Some of the myths of being a woman are debunked (can't do math, can't be a trucker, or a construction worker, etc). What I liked most is that it doesn't push any specific feminist ideaology - just asking the question - what would you do? The message is clear - don't count on anyone to "take care of you". It tries to teach us to take care of ourselves. It is true that this book (at least my edition) is geared toward working / middle class teens. But as a middle class teen, it helped me enormously! This book is great and I look forward to getting it for both of my daughters!

This is a smart looking dossier with plenty of entries to last you a long time. There are fields on each entry for Brand, Size, Where Purchased, Price, Box/Individual, Time Smoked, Date, Rating, Last Meal Eaten & Time, Wrapper, and of course a Comments section. There's even a place to put the bands from each cigar.

I've only just started, so I'm not sure if adding the bands will make the journal thicker than the binding. Use a glue stick instead of tape, and you'll be able to fit more.

The only thing it lacks is a "Country of Origin" field. But the Comments section is big enough to include that if you like.

All in all, a great buy. Recommended with 5 stars.

If you'd like to keep track of the different cigars you've smoked - not a bad idea considering the vast amount of smokes available - Cigar Dossier will have you logging thoroughly and in style. With about a hundred and sixty pages with four entries each, the average smoker could record a lifetime of stogies. Each entry provides space for the brand and size of cigar, where purchased, cost, time and date smoked, your rating, last meal eaten and time (I don't use this one, but it's a nice touch), wrapper color, your comments, and the cigar's band to be pasted. There's also a page on which you can list your favorite cigars and tobacconists, then a few more pages for your notes. It's nicely bound in a black hardcover with gold embossed letters. The pages are cream colored with soft burgundy print.

If I were asked to improve this book, I would add a block to each entry in which to record the country where the cigar is made. Other than that, this log has everything the cigar enthusiast needs. Cigar Dossier is a classy journal that would easily be a cherished family heirloom for future generations of cigar enthusiasts.

Read the past reviews says it all. This is a great find. I've been keeping a journal for a few years and now a very classy hardbound book shows the passion people can express about the cigars they smoke. I bought this black leather bound book with gold embossed lettering "Cigar Dossier". Although I do have one problem: I have done about 50 pages with my cigar bands glued in its appropriate box and now this book is becoming much thicker than the binder. This will cheapen the look more and more as time goes on. Nonetheless, this is the best I've seen and definitely worth the buy.

This is a superb find. The book couldn't be more straight forward. This is a book that not only allows you to develop your own tastes and preferences in fine tobacco but also allows you to track some of the variables that will impact your reviews. The isolation of the variables allows you to sharpen your awareness and "learn" more about the cigars you have sampled. Not overly complex but very detailed and a must for any serious cigar lover or casual cigar enthusiast.

This book stands out as a historical summary of trad jazz! No book is absolutely complete history, but Levin does a superb job of highlighting the trad jazz revival. His accounts of Eddie Miller, Rosy McHargue, Pete Daily, Bob Scobey, Turk Murphy, Muggsy Spanier, and others are flavored with personal reflections and accurate facts., He gives Kid Ory his rightful due, and, although too brief on Bix Beiderbecke, Red Nichols, the Original Dixieland Jazz Band and nothing on George Brunis, he treats the west coast revival of dixieland with much needed love and respect. I thoroughly recommend the book and believe it to be the best on trad jazz in this country.

Floyd Levin has always been a stalwart jazz enthusiast. Living in the Los Angeles area, he has had opportunity to know many of the jazz musicians personally and to share their stories with the readers. As the title implies, this is a personal recollection for Levin.

Floyd's book fleshes out some of the jazz history and clarifies some points. One is the story about the plaque in Touro Infirmary in New Orleans. Trumpeter Muggsy Spanier had a perforated ulcer which was operated by the famous Dr. Alton Ochsner, Tulane Professor and founder of famed Ochsner Clinic. During convalescence, Spanier composed and later recorded a tune called "Relaxin' at the Touro." Previous jazz writings had told about a plaque in Touro commemorating this event. Floyd tracked down the plaque which administration couldn't exactly locate. Because there had been renovation, the plaque was in a somewhat obscure location. Levin interviewed Muggsy about the event and they became fast friends. ( This is frequently a jazz quiz question: In the famous Muggsy Spanier tune, "Relaxin' at the Touro," what is the Touro? Now you know the answer.)

Levin writes about musicians he has known including Benny Carter, who wrote the foreword, James P. Johnson, Milt Hinton, Wild Bill Davison, Artie Shaw, Barney Bigard and many others. He also includes many West Coast musicians with whom he came in contact. There is a chapter on musicians, lesser known, who deserved greater recognition. Two of those included reedmen Pud Brown and Rick Fay.

Levin's concluding chapter covers the struggle to get an appropriate memorial for Louis Armstrong. Funds were being raised by various jazz societies and individuals for a statue of Armstrong to be erected in Armstrong's native New Orleans. He recounts how Bing Crosby donated the proceeds of a concert in San Francisco which put the fund over the top. That twice-lifesize statue of Armstrong stands in Armstrong Park in New Orleans and was unveiled on the nation's bicentennial in Jackson Square in New Orleans. Levin made the presentation, on behalf of the Louis Armstrong Statue Fund, to the city of New Orleans. Four years later, the statue was permanently erected and dedicated in Armstrong Park.

This book is not a definitive jazz history but an interesting view into the lives and careers of musicians who have been influential in shaping jazz--America's Music.

My review of this book is not without personal bias. I have known and worked with Levin on the Board of American Federation of Jazz Societies and have visited with him at various jazz festivals and in his home. Two of my photographs have been included in the book. I am pleased to have known him and congratulate him on completion of this book, his labor of love.

If you love New Orleans traditional jazz, you gotta read this book. Mr. Levin writes about many of the legends of jazz and recounts personal experiences with many of the the jazz musicians. I liked the depth of treatment by the author. He tells you a lot of interesting things about the musicians and their careers, but doesn't go overboard in telling you more than you really want to know. His telling of the story of how the statute of Louis Armstrong made it to Louis Armstrong Park in New Orleans is especially informative. I recommend it to most anyone who has an interest in traditional jazz, but especially to those who want ot knwo just a little bit more about the major players.

Maybe I shouldn't call the book a popouri of Jazz musicians because Levin's stories of the many personalities and events are well organized. However, a mine of classic jazzmen, famous and/or forgotten, are included with stuning, compeling and personal detail. Many talents I followed years ago who'd dropped off the radar, and about whom I've never been able to glean prior information, are included along with their more famous brothers and sisters.

What makes the book a real five star celebration are the first hand naratives along with page turning drama and pictures that carries along any New Orleans, Chicago, San Francisco, et. al. jazz lover. The book is in lyric style just like the music it presents with great pictures as well.

Persosnally I savored the mid-century west coast scenes, documenting what has not prevously been so well described, about Ory and the host of his compatriots including my favorite, Buster Wilson (whom I had never found in any other publications).

For me this is the best jazz book ever -- just what I wanted.

It's a little hard to write about something that can't be written about, but Watts gives it his best shot, and he seems to pull it off.

He writes, for example, "Yet the intention of the guru himself is simply to exhaust the energy of the illusion by bringing his disciples again and again to experiences of the absurdity of trying to transform mind with mind."

Watts, as his readers know, started as an Anglican (Episcopalian) priest, and then studied at a Zen monastery in Kyoto, Japan. His metamorphosis is evident in these writings (he died in 1973, right after this book was published).

Watts has little sympathy for the established Christian churches and instead finds sustenance in Zen, Taoism, and Hinduism.

Personally, I found sustenance in his writings here. He doesn't give a whole lot of what we might call "practical" advice, except to meditate, but that's the point of his teachings: "So long, then, as we are concerned with powers, we are still aiming at increased control of nature and aggravating our frustrations." The "Western" efforts to control nature, Watts feels, are self-defeating.

"You, as ego, cannot change what you are feeling, and you cannot, effectively, try not to change it."

You may get the dichotomous drift of what he is saying in these few quotations. When you read the book, you'll get much more. Like other books with a spiritual theme, but moreso, this book will fulfill and feed your spirit. Diximus.

This is perhaps the best of the half dozen or so Watts books I've read. Watts is a brilliant philosopher of the "Big Picture", and it is all wonderfully laid out here: Cosmic consciousness, Tantric Buddhism, the Hippies, Tao... he nails them all in splendid fashion. Highly recommendable.

Unlike "The Book", one of my favorite books of Watts, "Cloud-Hidden..." is a collection of short essays that can be digested in a brief sitting. Some of these essays are direct transcriptions of his lectures. Yet, I find myself returning to this book quite often for a quick "Watts fix".

Timeless wisdom wrapped in beautiful language that soothes the soul. Alan Watts was a brilliant storyteller who managed to stir things up a bit before leaving on an optimistic note.

This work is edgier than his others and will satisfy the more rebellious new agers.

The 200th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution resulted in a series of columns by J St. John. These 1787 meetings were secret, no official records were kept. But the notes of James Madison and others survived to reconstruct daily events. The original intent of this meeting was to revise the Articles of Confederation (Appendix 1), but a new Constitution resulted (Appendix 2). There is no index.

Many of the basics were the subject of debate and controversy. Some called the result a "miracle" (p.x), but it shows the power of a committee whose members work to the same ends. This book attempts to portray the meetings as an evolving news story, as it was happening. Most Americans do not understand the Constitution, because it is poorly taught in schools from unclear text books (p.xiv). Deliberate obfuscation? These 230 pages are a remedy. This book will give a short introduction into the daily operations of this historically important event.

The Constitution has endured for over 200 years because it is a framework (p.131), not a detailed plan that can't be adapted to changing situations. The Constitution has endured as long as it is in the interest of "We the People" to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity. The hidden agenda of the convention was to create a strong national government that had veto power over all state laws (5-20-1787). The most important reason was the question of domestic and foreign commerce. Rivalries between the bankers and merchants of the North against the planters of the South prevented Congress from regulating trade (5-23-1787). Both forces would unite against farmers and the common people, and the danger of too much democracy (5-29-1787). The Convention wanted to avoid the failures of the Articles of Confederation. The Confederacy owed [money amount]in debt and needed to find a way to pay off their debts (p.139).

The unlimited powers of the Royal Governors made the delegates fearful of a single executive. The consequences of consolidating power was fatal to ancient republics (6-2-1787). Experience rather than abstract arguments shaped the Convention (6-4-1787). Neither the executive nor the legislature should have absolute power. The big problem was to create a national government that would provide balance between the large and the small states. States would be equally represented in the Senate, the lower House would be directly elected by the people, based on proportion to population. This was the key to creating a new national government (p.110). The Southern states were more numerous and wealthy than the Northern states; their method of computing political representatives won (7-12-1787). The Convention unanimously rejected "wealth" as the basis for representation; they should not fear the growth of population (7-13-1787). The new government would be a compound of national and federal government (7-17-1787). A Supreme Court was established, with lower courts (7-18-1787). A single powerful executive would be elected by the people to control the legislature (7-19-1787). The importance of impeachment was discussed and adopted (7-20-1787). The executive was given a veto (7-21-1787). The Constitution would be ratified by the people, not State Legislatures (7-23-1787). The office of President did not exist under the Confederation (p.133).

Each year in September is a little known holiday known as Constitution Day - timed to be around the close of the Constitutional Convention in September 1787, this day is honoured at the college where I teach by speakers in a special forum, and the gift of pocket versions of the Constitution for all interested students.

However, the Constitution is heavily in the news, more than we often realise. When the election of 2000 was contested, the Constitution became primarily important; it is always in the background of Presidential elections, but this time it came to the forefront. In the current situation between Chief Justices (a relatively rare occurrence in American history), once again the Constitution is big news. We the people are interested, and we the people should be interested. However, we the people often have little concept of how this formative and foundational document came into being. Jeffrey St. John provides an answer to this situation, in very engaging and accessible style.

This is a journal, a day-by-day account, done in a sort of combination of journalistic and court-reporting styles. Of course, we have no direct journal of this sort, as the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention were strictly secret (not the kind of thing that would play out well in our media-saturated world - CSPAN and CNN among others would certainly expect to be there!). Indeed, those who went to the Constitutional Convention in May 1787 were charged with a reformation of the Articles of Confederation, not the drafting of a new Constitution. History had a surprise in store.

This is not the only area of interest. St. John's documentation shows the different influences into the formation of the Constitution - while it is common to look to classical times and contemporary European governments for influences and inspiration, in fact the most memorable words of the Constitution come from the constitution of the Iroquois League, drawn up in 1520, which began with the words 'We the people, in order to form a union...'.

The various federal structures, the separation of state and federal powers and responsibilities, the debates over how representation is carried out (and who gets represented; the issue of slavery was contentious from the start, and one can clearly see the seeds of the Civil War being planted even at the Constitutional Convention) - these are all portrayed with clarity and candour.

The Constitution was not a document that was intended to be from the outset, nor was it passed unanimously (indeed, not all states were represented at all times of the Convention, not all delegates appointed attended, and one state never participated at all). Some of the founding fathers, including Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, made references to divine intervention being key in the process; Franklin at the end made the warning about the government being a Republic, 'if you can keep it' - no doubt recalling the fall of other great republics in the history of the world.

This is a fun and exciting book to read, a real page turner. It was published in 1987 as part of the bicentennial celebrations of the Constitution; former Chief Justice Warren Burger provides a foreword for this text.

This is a great and inspiring story, one that should be of concern to Americans of all types and walks of life. We are all 'we the people'.

I'm a nerd. 95% of my books are computer-related. This book will gave me an appreciation of what an extraordinary event the convention was. Several times it shows how it could have so easily fallen apart or gone off in a different direction (and Lord knows what kind of land this would be if it had). This book and another great book called 'Voices of 1776' will give you an awesome sense of how lucky we are to be what we are today. I cannot recommend this book more highly. (BTW, did you know that the only two signers of the Declaration of Independence who went on to become presidents, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, died within two hours of each other on July 4, 1826 - 50 years to the day the Declaration was signed?)

Fantastic series! Read all three.

If you want to learn about history it is best to read the reflections, diaries and memoirs of those who lived it. Samuel H. Sprott, 40th Alabama Infantry, Army of Tennessee, wrote his memoir 34 years after the War Between The States for a now defunct southern newspaper. This memoir was recently discovered tucked away in county probate records and probably not studied by historians for details about the W.B.T.S. in the deep South.
Sprott, tells the story of the 40th Alabama Infantry, Stone's Battalion and Ector's Brigade. I was especially interested in information about General Ector and his brigade as little is written about this unit especially at the battle of Chickamauga. He will educate you about the everyday life of the Confederate soldier in the Army of Tennessee. His and fellow comrade's trials and jubilations are all there.
The editors do a fine job coordinating Sprott's manuscript, filling in his thoughts and corroborating historical evidence.
Highly Recommended!

This is an excellent primary source for a soldier's eye view of the daily experinece of the civil war. Unembelished with romantic bravado or the mythology of causes, Captain Samuel Sprott's journal of the experiences of the 40th Alabama regiment presents the reality of war for the common soldier- general bordome and petty detail alongside short episodes of battle, tragedy, and confusion. Smith and Quist do an excellent job of providing essential supporting information in the preface and appendix while avoiding the temptation to intrude upon Sprott's narrations. The book should be a hit in the classroom as a primary document that is brief, easy to read, and relatively inexpensive. For the same reasons it is recommended to the general reader.

Any Civil War buff will find Dr. Louis Smith's "Cush" to be an outstanding addition to his/her personal library. It is an account that brings countless historical facts that will enrich that library in terms of the military engagements fought by Samuel Sprott and his men. But there is more to this work than the simple regurgitation of historical fact -- this is a book that reflects the struggles and privations of the everyday Civil War soldier as he endured the reality of his world: rotten weather, whizzing minnie balls, the deaths of his comrades. "Cush" is a look at the humanity behind the facts. It puts the reader in the Civil War -- fighting next to Sprott and his compatriots.

As a high school US History teacher, I have found that it is books such as "Cush" that makes history come alive to students. They can feel the emotion with which Sprott's story is told. And, because it is a primary source - straight from the "horse's mouth", it has much more credibility to it than the facts they can glean from their text books.

Dr. Smith has done a marvelous job of editing Sprott's papers. The work was no doubt tedious but at the same time must have been intensely rewarding when it was finished. After reading the book, I have come to feel like I knew Samuel Sprott on a personal basis!

"Cush: A Civil War Journal" is a great book from the point of view of a "run of the mill" Alabama infantry soldier. That is, the grunt who did most of the work and most of the dying.

Samuel Sprott was under 90 days of constant bombardment from Sherman's forces during the Atlanta campaign. It becomes so common that when he encounters a General of a Texas regiment whom he had met during the siege of Vicksburg, he casually and calmly sits down to breakfast with bullets wizzing by and artillery exploding around the two of them.

I cried when I read of their charge over an open field against the breastworks of the entrenched Union soldiers. They marched over the first hundred yards, dropped down taking a rest, and then jumped up and charged the rest of the way. People dying left and right. Brave or crazy these men were... but it made me cry.

I laughed when Sprott got caught out on a picket line when the Yankees charged. He relates the Yankee telling him to stop but he turned and ran for his life determining better to die than be captured. The Yankee got off shot after shot as Sprott zigged and zagged trying not to be shot. When you read it, you will see the humor.

I was struck by his observations of women in South Carolina versus the women in North Carolina. I was also struck by how little he says when his older brother is mortally wounded.

If you enjoy reading real history of the Civil War, you will love this book.

If you know someone that has cancer, this book takes you through the first year covering awake craniotomy surgery, radiation therapy, chemo therapy, and others. There are a lot of pictures.

If you or a loved one is dealing with a tumor or a cancer this is the book to help you get through it. It details the authors personal problems and medical problems. It is a real page turner and very informative. A recommended read for everyone!!!

This guy has quite a story to tell. It's nice to read a journal of an another brain tumor patient. Having a brain tumor myself, this book makes me realize how good my situation really is. His story is inspiring, and I really like his writing style. I read this book in one night.

I read this book when my mother was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Multiforme IV. It was very quick and easy reading, which is good during a time like this. It tells what this guy experienced from the beginning symptoms, through surgery, and recovery. It helped to reaffirm that what the doctors were doing for my mom was the "standard" procedure for this type of cancer, and helped to familiarize me with the terminology that I was both hearing from the doctors as well as reading simultaneously in this book. Although people experience different symptoms from this cancer, much of it is the same. Because this guy was able to write about what he experienced, it helped me to understand more of what my mom was going through... with the loss of words and thoughts, inability to do simple everyday activities that we take for granted, the craniotomy, and treatments - radiation and chemo. I would recommend this book to anyone who is caring for someone with this tumor.. It's affordable, quick reading, and it will help give you more insight on what the patient is going through.
I would like to say that my mom has undergone 2 craniotomies, she is walking again, becoming easier to understand, and has the best attitude towards life. She's got too much to live for to let this little thing called "cancer" get in her way. :-)

I read this book and broke into LOUD gales of laughter on the F train. I bought 15 copies and sent them to my three sisters and all my closest female friends. They laughed harder. This is what it's like to be a single woman today. And even a not-so-single woman today.

I gave the book to my roommate when it first came out. We were both young professionals and we could relate to the book.

Although the book is a collection of anecdotals essays, I still quote them as pearls of wisdom.

What a great read!

This book is so great! It's stories are clever, funny, and totally true. I've read it more times than I can remember, just because it always puts a smile on my face. Buy it. NOW.

Cathy Guisewite once commented that she has three sisters, but did not give her alter ego siblings because they're like "three women sharing a brain." After reading this book, it's utterly undeniable.

Mickey Guisewite, Cathy's sister, pens a hilarious tale of the modern woman, her career, her relationships, her home life, and why all of them are disastrous and conflicting. All in a style very reminiscent of her sister. Can you trust a girlfriend not to tell her husband about the shoulder pad that wandered down your chest? Can you angrily confront a man in the office without sniveling? Can you get a boyfriend to pick up a container of Windex? How do you choose one of the four million "white" paint chips? And what can you do when the fifteen pairs of shoes JUST DON'T MATCH the dress for the Big Meeting?

The real-life relatives and significant others resemble characters in Cathy as well (one can see from where the cartoonist gets her inspiration): the obsessively thrifty, why-aren't-you-married-dear mother, the golf-obsessed boyfriend, the father who arrives at the airport six hours early, the married friends who whip out ten thousand ugly baby photos, the friend she eats lunch with, and so forth.

Amusing anecdotes (that probably wouldn't be allowed in a strip) include the woman who shrieked "I'M NOT WEARING UNDERWEAR!" in a crowded party, and the gal who had to call her mom for help when her merry widow got caught in her bedspread. These tales of romance, food, and humiliation will make you laugh, cry, then laugh a bit more.

Micky Guisewite has a hilarious style and plenty of emotional crises to unload. Well worth the read, and the reread! (Illustrated with little one-panel cartoons by Cathy Guisewite--also hilarious! They're worth the book alone...)

The title sold me on this book, as did a friend who read it. I have not read it yet but expect it will be worth the price when I do finally get to it.

Barbara Rose's authenticity and deep understanding shines through in this small but powerful book. Like only a wise, loving, tell-it-like-it-is friend can do, she offers you powerful understandings and leads you through the process that can deliver you into the clear light of truth and freedom. If you are hung up on a "lost love," your ticket to reclaiming your Self and true Love--is found within.

Every time I read another one of Dr. Barbara Roses' books, I truly feel the same response; beautiful, brilliant, healing, loving, and simplistic; "Dear God, How Do I Get Over a Former Lover I Still Love" is just that!!
"Gratitude is motivated by love, pain is motivated by fear". There are many more profound statements as this one written between the pages of this incredibly informative book. IN ADDITION, still loving a former lover, does not have to apply to you, in order to receive this brilliant, nurturing loving advice. The advice that lies between these pages will touch your very soul, and also teach you all there is to know, to love yourself first and foremost and release all fears as well as getting past the pains of what you may perceive as loosing a lover you once had in you life. These are some powerful words of wise, loving knowledge, which is why I truly love this book!

This book was very informative and helped me to understand what a woman might feel when trying to get over a deep love attachment to someone who is no longer interested in her. I think that all men should read this book to better understand how a woman's love could be so much different than qa man's love.

The book was well written and the solutions were very clear and appropriate.

Received these today - was very pleased with the quality and the delivery time. Plenty of time before the holidays.

the quality of color and card style are just so nice! The flowers chosen are vibrant and a very nice selection. They are simple and calming, anyone would love to receive a card like this.

These notecards by D. Schenck are thoughtful and tasteful. The colors are soft and beautiful. They are great for any occasion, from a birthday card to a friendly note.

These notecards are very pretty. They are extremly handy to have on hand, I've used them as thank you cards, wedding cards, and last minute occasions. they are universal, well worth the money.