Games Books

This wonderful book is much more than a collection of hunting and fishing stories. The author has the rare ability to take his readers with him on both his physical adventures and his philisophical journeys. These journeys delve into the heart and soul of a particular location.

The stories told here take us from familiar ground to the far corners of the planet. Each account includes well-researched observations on the local natural and cultural histories. McIntyre's interpretations of wilderness values and hunting ethics are thought-provoking and profound.

I highly recommend this book to everyone, even those who have no interest in hunting or fishing. If you enjoy visiting truly wild places, or are simply grateful that such wild places and wild beasts still exist, this book will provide much satisfaction.

Tom McIntyre is one of the last great storytellers. His gift with a pen places the reader right in the middle of all the action. The subject matter within the pages of this book is broad. It ranges from an account of a fantastic woodcock hunt in Ireland to the pursuit of the most dangerous African cape buffalo but never once will you loose interest. Be it his candid views of the cultures surrounding the hunt or the excitement of the actual hunt, you will leave each chapter with a better understanding and respect for both the hunter and his prey.

"Dreaming The Lion" is far from the traditional "hook and bullet" prose found in most of today's hunting publications. Rather it is perhaps more of a modern day Hemmingway approach. It is factual, adventurous and all with just the right touch of humor. All of which I found quite refreshing.

If you are a hunter "Dreaming The Lion" belongs in your library.

Ed Noonan
Member of the Outdoor Writers Assn. of American and
New York State Outdoor Writers Assn.

Tom McIntyre is a writer with a distinctive voice and an exceptional talent. His style has pith and elegance -and humor and intelligence. For a couple of decades now (maybe a little more) he has written some of the best prose we have on hunting. "Dreaming The Lion" is a treasury of his finest work, and will prove a delight for every literate hunter.

This is by no means a somber book, but it is a thoughtful one. Reflecting on the prospect of hunting in his native California, McIntyre writes, "The best thing would be to hunt the country you were born into, to make it even more your home. But what if your native country is not only a place, but a time, and what if that time is past?" Not exactly the kind of bang-and- brag drivel so common to lesser hunting writers, and to an unfortunately increasing number of "sporting" publications.

"Dreaming The Lion" is a collection of choice pieces, (mostly about hunting, especially but not exclusively about big game,) connected by one-page, inter-chapter selections from an ongoing African diary. In this safari narrative McIntrye appears more as protagonist than hero; he screws up sometimes, misses badly on occasion, has his ups and downs just like we, the readers, probably would. The book's final section, the title essay in three parts, recounts another African adventure and by any fair standard must be judged one of the finest pieces of hunting writing in our time. Comparisons to Hemingway and Ruark and Capstick or anyone else are as unnecessary as they are trite. McIntyre is his own writer, speaking with his own voice in his own (for a hunting writer, not entirely fortunate) time. Enjoy him.

When a writer conveys an experience he conveys something of himself. Thirty years after reading him, when I think of Robert Ruark in Africa, I remember his honesty in writing about fear and booze and his struggle to live up to his own image of what he wanted to be, as much as his insightful observations of a safari. When I think of Hemingway, the exquisite craftsmanship of "The Green Hills of Africa" is overshadowed by his chest-thumping competitiveness and dishonest self-aggrandisement.

In "Dreaming the Lion," Tom McIntyre brings all the unabashed, unapologetic masculinity you would expect in a book about hunting, but he tempers it with the thoughtful intelligence of someone who thinks about his actions and their consequences, who thinks about the world around him and his place in it. And more: he brings a refreshing mastery of the English language and a wit as quick and sharp as a skinning knife. This is a book about ideas as much as actions, written by a man who doesn't suffer fools gladly, and who sees the world he loves slowly and irrevocably vanishing. Read it and dream of Africa.

In a just world, Thomas McIntyre's Dreaming the Lion would be considered a classic. While it is definitely a "hunting book" it is also literature in every sense, and superior to such curiosities as Hemingway's True at First Light.

McIntyre has hunted everywhere from the Rockies to the Arctic to Africa, not to mention his native California, whose degradation he describes movingly in the essay "Blade Hunter": "...no matter how Californian the armature of my soul may be, in the end it is insufficiently rigid to keep me here until it's all barricaded away and I am reduced to stalking Norway rats in the storm drains with the broken-off shaft of a nine-iron tipped witha fluted point knapped from a glass insulator, til all that's fit to live here is cockroaches and Keith Richards."

McIntyre's essays range from the dark to the humorous to the moving, though always free of the easy sentimentality common to lesser "hook and bullet" writers. He has not only been just about everywhere; he has read just about everything, from novels to history to biology, and thought long and hard about it all. He would never scorn the meat or trophies produced by his hunts, but his real quest is for meaning, experience , and the wild within and without.

If you are a hunter who has not read him, you will find things here that you will find nowhere else. If you are a nonhunter or even an anti-hunter who wants to understand the soul of the hunter, start here. As McIntyre says, "Welcome to the wild."

Duane Barnharts Cartooning Basics has just been so much fun for my kids ages 12, 10, and 7. Using the Books step-by-step guidelines to cartooning they have created some of the most fabulous characters and cartoon strips. Not only is it great from a drawing perspective, but it also has some fun and interesting facts about the history of cartooning. Love this book!!!

'Cartooning Basics' is a wonderful tool for young aspiring cartoonists. No. 2 illustrates how to create friendly, familiar characters from simple shapes, which every child can relate to (ie circles, ovals, squares, triangles, etc.). Art teachers can gain lesson ideas that are effective and easy to implement. This is a great buy and a must read for any aspiring cartoonist, art teacher and student alike. Duane and Angie have created a fun, creative, well-illustrated tool in 'Cartooning Basics'.

Great how-to book, lots of practice exercises. The most helpful, how-to book I've read so far, and I've got a ton of them. Wish I'd found this one sooner!

'Cartooning Basics' is a wonderful tool for young aspiring cartoonists. No. 2 illustrates how to create friendly, familiar characters from simple shapes, which every child can relate to (ie circles, ovals, squares, triangles, etc.). Art teachers can gain lesson ideas that are effective and easy to implement. This is a great buy and a must read for any aspiring cartoonist, art teacher and student alike. Duane and Angie have created a fun, creative, well-illustrated tool in 'Cartooning Basics'.

This book has helped me learn to cartoon, and now, I teach it to my 2nd grade class!

I picked this book up at our local library and thought my nearly 4-year-old son would really enjoy it. It presents the alphabet in a new and fresh way with interesting words. I loved the photographs and how strange objects were juxtaposed together. Unfortunately, I can only give it four stars because Ellsworth's ears scared the you know what out of my son. We did read it together and he enjoyed looking for various objects throughout the story, but was disturbed by the photo of Ellsworth and had bad dreams about it. :( So maybe we'll save it for another time.

This was a book originally taken out of the library, but my kid's didn't want to take it back. We actually bought this copy to use the artwork for my son's room. The pictures, using small toys to create scenes filled with items starting with the same letter is done very well.

My 6-year-old and my 2-year-old both spent a lot of time with the book which is not something easy to find in a single book.

My three kids have many alphabet books but this one really stands out. For every letter of the alphabet there is a gorgeous, vivid, and quirky scene precisely arranged with toys and paper cut outs. In each picture there are many different objects that begin with that particular letter of the alphabet. This makes it somewhat of an "I spy" experience and in the back you'll find an index of all the hidden objects. Underneath each picture is a sentence which uses alliteration and assonance to emphasize the sound of each letter. My kids love to look at and listen to this book. Now that my son is getting ready to learn to read, I'm rediscovering it as a useful tool in teaching him phonics. Also, I truly adore the photos. I'm actually thinking of having some of them framed as wall art for my son's room. They're just stunning. This ABC book is definitely one of our two favorites, the other being the Seuss ABC classic.

Hurray. This book is wonderful. It's inventive and original. Why haven't I heard of this Valorie Fisher before? I see she has two other books? How does she do it? I wish they made postcards of these great photographs, they are so cool and intricately designed. I'd send them to everybody I know. My kids looked at the pages for the longest time--which is a miracle. I am going to buy Fisher's My Big Brother and My Big Sister right now.

My 20-month old daughter considers this her very favorite book in the world. It's so inventive and funny, though, I've sent it off to children from ages 1 month to 60 years old, just to tickle their funny bones. It straddles the line of being both a wonderful learning tool and a wonderful flight of fancy. One more note - it has the most beautiful color palette! Just a lovely object to look at, really.

In this book, you'll find explanation about many things of golden age, old wars, and all thigs that you'd want to know about lunars. I like so much.

Perhaps the most massive revamp of all the exalted types. MoEP: Lunars makes the Lunars as cool mechanically as they are thematically. Not only that, but it expands everything the Lunars are about and ingrains them deeper into the setting.

A vast improvement over its First Edition predecessor. Rather than savage barbarians dwelling at the edges of shaped existence, this book offers the a vision of the Lunars as Stewards of Creation. The Silver Pact now consists of diverse factions, many of which not only tolerate the existence of civilization, but who have actively participated in creation and behind-the-scenes oversight of city states and republics. This new take on the Lunar Exalted adds much needed depth to the Children of the Moon, as well as making it possible to play a wide variety of potential characters, beyond the city-hating, civilization-smashing man-beast.

I can't really speak to the mechanical improvements, since I have yet to play a lunar character in a game, but the backstory alone is an enormous improvement over 1st ed. Back then, Lunars were like a bunch of old World o' Darkness were____s that had wandered into the wrong gameworld--they hated civilization, preferring the 'purity' of the 'barbarians.' Conan plus anarcho-primitivism, how appealing. That, and the old rules made Lunars probably the least popular Exalt type book in the old edition.
Now, however, the Lunar backstory and culture are free of fantasy cliches (ie 'Barbarians') and sure to provide great kernels for character creation. The basic concept that the lunars are 'stewards' as opposed to the Solar 'lawgivers' is well developed into an exalt ethos that puts emphasis on mortal self-determination and self-reliance, a really interesting contrast to the Solar and Terrestrial desire to set themselves up as God-Kings. The factions of the lunars are fleshed out nicely--The Winding Path are dedicated to helping as many different societies as possible evolve among mortals. The Sun King Seneschals once merely hated the Terrestrials but now that the Solars are back may want to be the power behind the throne. The Crossroads Society are the sorcerers who trade lore and take a leading role in protecting the Lunars from the Wyld. Finally the Swords of Luna fight the fair folk (that's it) and the Wardens of Gaia are either civilization-loathing primitivists or simply greens who would like to see mortals live in harmony with nature.

In short, while the old lunars book did little more than provide crazed, not particularly fleshed-out antagonists, the new lunars book paints a picture of exalts at least as interesting as the solars who can either have wonderful adventures on their own or add a new angle to a game with Solars.

Well I must first say that english is not my native language so please forgive me if I make mistakes. Thanks.

Now as for the Lunar Exalted Book. WOAW. Simple.
They completely erradicated all the mistakes of the Lunars First Edition.
Now Lunars are complete characters full of options and with a nice setting, nice background, history, great Knacks, Charms, Gifts and Fury stuff. Excellent new backgrounds, details on what they been doing this last centuries. A good reasoning of the Wyld core in all Lunar Essences. A great explanation of why they need the moonsilver ink tattoos and their restrictions. Also the Thousand Rivers proyect and their involvement in human populations like Halta, Chiaroscuro, Diamond, etc..

IF I have some disagreements with the book would be that some Charms (7) dont work well. Certain lack of Wyld Mutations to develop the Combat Form of the Lunar (cause they are spread between the Main Corebook, the Compass of Celestial Directions The Wyld and in this Book) I feel like they should have reprinted a complete list of possible Wyld Mutations and rules in this Corebook. Personally I feel that maybe they should have given a little more importance to Artifacts made of Moonsilver and maybe special Celestial Sorcery Spells unique to Lunars. But this is just an opinion.

So far an excellent book. Full of great things.
I hunger to play a full-fledged Shapeshifter that can edure anything and slay Creation's enemies while saving humankind from threats of the Wyld!

This is an interim review as I'm less than half way through the book but really loving it. The aim of the book is to overcome human bias in ruling out outrageous 'computer' moves that might lead to an instant win or gain of material. I suppose I am as guilty as the next person of playing automatic recaptures and rejecting sacrificial continuations that appear to peter out. However in my case, the main reason is that I am a lazy analyser.
The reason I like this book so much is the clarity and helpfulness of the analysis. Each of the over 600 positions in the book is shown with a white or black square next to it indicating who is to move. Hertan then gives the main line of the solution. He also explains why plausible options don't work and gives all the reasonable alternative lines. And he does this all in a very concise way.
The way I am using the book is as to improve my analysis skills. I study each diagram with the solution that follows it covered up. Then I compare my analysis with Hertan's to see what important lines I missed, or where I gave up on a line too soon.
This is definitely not a beginner's book on tactics. It assumes you know basic tactics likes pins, forks and back rank mate combinations. As a puzzle book, the positions are more difficult than Reinfeld's 1001 books but not too much harder. The real differentiator for me is the quality of the explanations.

I used to think I was pretty good at tactics and calculating variations..until I got this book. I've come to see that I have a biased "play it safe" mode that keeps me from seeing the dynamic potential in alot of positions. And I am terrible at calculating with precision. As the author says, close enough is not good enough...you must strive for precision. This book is helping me in each of those areas. The examples are HARD. Usually when you get a book on tactics the first few chapters are a breeze. Not so here. These are advanced, difficult problems, that have FORCED me to go where I haven't gone before: 1) looking for and analyzing moves I wouldn't even have considered before 2) calculating with precision. It's like having a personal chess coach in alot of ways. I also like that there are typically a number of examples of one theme (ie. corridor mate..back rank..etc) grouped together to help you in pattern matching for your own games.

Overall a terrific book! Whenever you find a book that helps identify and remedy a serious area of chess weakness it is well worth the money!

Charles Hertan and New In Chess publishers are missing a great opportunity to convert this book to training software. A case can be made that Hertan's book is more pedagogically focussed than CT - Art 3.0, which dominates that field.

Relative to most other tactics books, this one actually advocates a straightforward thinking method involving forcing moves and, to a better degree than many similar efforts, does not focus on mating combinations almost to the complete exclusion of tactical opportunities for material gain, which are likely more commonplace in practice. "Stock" tactical motifs are covered in the first two chapters. I dare say that 98% of chess tactic books merely provide the information in those two chapters with varying degrees of examples. In this 400-page effort, Hertan moves well beyond that to more broadly consider and categorize forcing moves generally, many of which do not easily fit into traditional typologies.

I'm not necessarily convinced that Hertan's advocated postition of always addressing oneself first to hard calculation of forcing lines, rather than relying initially on more judgmental assessments to identify candidate moves, would survive a cost (in time) benefit analysis in many situations. Accordingly, I am in turn not necessarily convinced of his assertion that "A deep study of forcing moves is probably the single most important task toward achieving chess mastery." Some positions present a bewildering array of forcing moves and, in Hertan's explanations, this fact can sometimes be conveniently ignored, with solutions presented as if the winning move was necessarily the most forcing, which is not really the case. In these cases finding the winning move likley is the product of some process other than raw calculation of a large number of equally forcing moves. Likewise, the separate concept of "computer eyes" is gimmicky and unnecessary to his thesis -- the term is used in connection with the unremarkable concept that identifying the most forcing moves may include moves that are counterintuitive to humans, and that the human bias against considering such moves is not a tendency shared by chess engines. (While I really have no clue, I gather that chess computers in fact do not consider forcing moves first, and thus the computer allusion has no particular relevance to Hertan's thesis.)

This is not to say that Hertan's unique perspective, argument regarding thinking methods, and wealth of fresh examples from practical play, is not appreciated, or that adding increased consideration to forcing sequences will not contribute something of real practical value to those who need to sharpen their alertness to tactics. Hertan suggests at the end of the book that he wished it could be one's first book on tactics. Very few of Hertan's readers are likely to be blank slates, but I suspect that the greater value of his book will be to add new and useful dimensions to the play of those of us whose tactical approach runs somewhat in a rut.

Not insignificantly, the layout and production values of this book are above average. Returning to my initial point, the only way to materially improve the presentation would be to convert the book to training software.

I'm a big fan of studying tactics to improve at chess, and I have a large collection of books on the subject. This is a very well written book on tactics, and is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Good layout, large diagrams, and the fonts and printing are excellant. This challenging book contains 650 fresh and very exciting tactical positions divided into examples and exercises. My only possible critism is that it could use even more exercises, but I keep a note card in the book to cover the answers to the examples and I use them as exercises also. This may not be the best for a beginners first book on tactics, but it is outstanding for intermediate players looking to improve. It is defintely on my deserted island must have list.

I've got plenty of tactics books, even tactical programs like ct-art (which is awesome btw). But there is something magical about this book! The tactics are so rich and vibrant and truely do change the way you look at positions. You'll find after going through about 50 of these puzzles (out of 650 I think) that you are yourself looking at the board differently. Also this book is thick for a modern day chess book less than 20 bucks, I was shocked to get this book in my hands and discover how the publishing company didnt "cheap out" on the size or text like they were going out of business... Buy this book, you wont regret it...

Game theory is an area of mathematics that has a very short history; it began with the publication of the classic book, "Theory of Games and Economic Behavior" by John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern in 1944. It is a very dynamic field, having applications ranging from parlor games to economic competition to potential warfare between nations. Straffin covers all of these areas in a manner accessible to anyone with a mathematical bent.
To me, the most interesting games are those that rely on the unpredictability of human behavior and there is nothing better to illustrate this than the prisoner's dilemma. Two criminals are captured and kept in separate rooms. If both keep silent, there is no evidence against them and they are released, but if one talks and the other doesn't the talker gets a reward and the silent one gets two years. If both confess, then each gets one year. In the standard model, the fear of being the fall guy causes both to confess, even though it is to their mutual advantage for both to keep silent. Straffin covers this situation in detail.
As some of the examples point out, free markets, where each participant pursues their self-interest are not always the most efficient way to allocate resources or make decisions. Cooperation between the participants where each gets something less than the potential optimal can be the superior way to make decisions. This occurs when the payoff is high when only a few can take advantage but is negative or low if all try to take advantage.
There is no area of mathematics that can match the fascinating consequences of game theory. It is about the complex interactions between humans, both individually and in groups. In my opinion, it is impossible to understand sociology if you lack understanding of basic game theory. This book is the best place to acquire that understanding.

This is a good first book about game theory for those who are not afraid of math but not mathematically inclined. The book is full of math but the simple explanations and the way the author builds up to the theory makes it simple to follow.

I actually bought this copy for my library. I had used this book in college but had borrowed that copy from a friend.

I found this book accessible when I first read it in 9th grade, and I still find it fascinating today as a soon-to-be grad student in math.

I read a couple of books on game theory. This is one of the better books... but it also has one small advantage... it's small. I carry it almost everywhere and read its short chapters (another advantage) without getting too tired. It's also quite difficult to get tired reading the book as the author keeps his explanations fairly simple, lively, and to the point.

A good spread of topics and examples too!

I planned to do a talk on the subject of the mathematics of a particular game, called Snood, and I had to learn Game Theory quickly to do so. This book explains things well, and the exercises, while easy enough to do in my head, still cement everything very well so that I can honestly say that I have a solid understanding of the subject even though I just picked up a single book.

Very good.

Even though Myerson asserts that this book is intended to be "a general introduction to game theory" in Preface, it is difficult to understand for beginners who have not mathemetics knowledge in the level of upper class. In this point, the volume is different from other introductions - e.g. Morton Davis' "Game Theory"-, rather is suitable for M.A. or first year Ph.D students. However, this book is not so much for students majoring economics as for various social sceintists in the sense that it does not focus on only "economics" but on pure game "theory" in nearly all areas.

very comprehensive book. Covers pretty much everything. It's supposed to be a graduate text but undergrads can handle it as long as they know some math and aren't too scared by all the notation. Oh and Myerson is nice guy too.

excellent book,very comprehensive step by step approach.I especially enjoyed the sections on Nash equilibria and infinite strategies.Great for those who wish to understand the underlying foundations of decision making via both simple and intricate mathematics. The concepts are also explained well in english through generally understood examples.

This book is not good only because it explains all well known difficult concepts which noone so far has been able to explain clearly and rigourosly in one book but for new important topics that are less known for the majority of game theorists. I'm refering to the idea of networks and cooperation structures and also cooperation under uncertainty with the idea of virtual utility.

This book is a masterpiece: it goes from the simple and straightforward (with examples of sequential equilibria) to technical and challenging material (such as the Mertens-Zamir type space). I own Fudenberg-Tirole and Osborne-Rubinstein, but it is Myerson that gets picked up the most. What I find most rewarding is that Myerson introduces everything gently, working from examples to build a general theory.

There is alot of stuff that happen sin this book. The main point being that Shun Mitaka is put out of the contention for Kyoko's affections. He does end up marrying Asuna, but the interesting part is how he ends up marrying Asuna. Also Kozue finally confronts Godai about the prospect of marriage because she has been proposed to by another man. Godai tries to tell herr that he is in love with someone else, but everything as usual ends up becoming a big misunderstanding. Kozue even kisses Godai, and of course Kyoko sees it, which fuels yet another jealous rage. Also Godai has to help out Akemi by paying the bill at a love hotel, but Kozue sees them coming out, and runs off and later tells Kyoko. Kyoko and Godai get in a huge fight in this book and it looks like everything could come to an end for their relationship. good stuff

With only one volume to go, things are rapidly coming to a head. At least one of Godai's problems seems to be solved as Coach Mitaka debates proposing to Asuna under the assumption that he made her pregnant while in the midst of a drunken stupor. He also begins to realize that he might just care for her. But Godai still has problems of his own as his teaching exams are rapidly approaching and he's on the skids with Kyoko. She's angry at him for not exerting any self-discipline to get ahead in life. She's also mad because he always gets into compromising situations with women because of his wishy-washy nature. Because of this, Kozue comes around again after she gets proposed to by a guy she's been dating. She tells Godai she doesn't know what to answer because she wants to be with him! With all the mess going on at Maison Ikkoku, Godai decides to move out and live at the Bunny Club until his exams are over. Of course, all of the residents don't think he's going to be able to stay away, much less pass his tests! But if he doesn't pass, he won't be able to ask Kyoko to marry him.

Finally, after 13 volumes, we're coming to the end and getting to see how this love triangle works out. That's not to say Maison Ikkoku wasn't an enjoyable series. It's a classic. I'm just looking forward to seeing what happens in the last volume. There's a point in this volume where Godai says that if only him and Kyoko would just talk and listen to each other, they could have avoided a lot of misunderstandings and pain. Misunderstandings are what comedy is made of though, and a large part of our daily lives. While keeping the comedy level high throughout its run, Rumiko Takahashi has also put in a layer of complexity dealing with the striving to be accepted by the one you love and the acceptance that there isn't just one love in your life. You can begin again.

The second last book in this outstanding series. Plot lines start coming to an end in this book. We finally get to see our hereo in a few kisses and embraces (ok the cover kind of gives it away). The end will simply have you begging for the next book.

Having read Ranma 1/2 and parts of Urusei Yatsura I was amazed by the maturity level of this series. The humour elements are certaintly their but it's raw human emotion that carries this series. At 14 volumes the plot is kept pretty tight (though i found the addition of the new tenant to Ikkoku extremely pointless) and doesn't have that drag on feeling like Ranma 1/2 does. Also the ending of this series will have more of an impact then the one Ranma 1/2 did.

Godai gets slapped...Godai runs away...Godai tangles with another girl...nosy tenants hound Godai...Kyoko lands on top of a man...Kyoko runs away...Godai gets slapped again...nosy tenants hound Kyoko...Godai gets in trouble with another girl...nosy tenants hound Godai again...Kyoko VERY NEARLY gets slapped...Kyoko runs away again...blah, blah! With all that mean-spirited gremlin-like timing in Ms. Takahashi's romantic slapstick comedy, perhaps both Godai and Kyoko would be much better off if they just forgot about each other altogether.

But - in the very last book right before the grand finale yet to come up, we personally witness the true maturing of the young Godai from a drooling girl-crazy kid into a solemn-faced, long-suffering hero with tenderness for small children and a grim determination to succeed at everything, no matter what - to win the affections of the pretty young Kyoko. But - on the other hand, however, Kyoko herself, though a seemingly perfect, self-contained young woman on the outside, she actually turns out to be a spitting hellcat when it comes to sexual jealousy. All in all, it's a very engrossing trip that will surely hold you fast until the very conclusion of the whole series finally comes right off the press!

Maison Ikkoku has been an consistently charming and witty read, more so than the better-known "Ranma 1/2" series (which isn't bad, either!). "Game Set Match" shows about 3/4's of what we voyeurs into the lives of these bumbling Tokoyo-ites have been waiting for since probably the vicinity of Vol. 3.

Unfortunately (and on purpose), it's not the most important stuff that we're shown. We're given resolutions to the Mitaka and Kozue issues but left with an incredibly unfair cliff-hanger...what will happen to Kyoko and Yusaku? Of course, it had to be arranged thusly...but it still annoys the heck outta ya to be left dangling like that.

At the time of this writing, the final issue (in trade comic form) has been in stores for a few months now. I hope that before summer hits, we'll be given a chance to sit down with a loved one and finish out this incredibly engrossing series.

(One final question...will we *ever* know exactly what it is that Yotsuya does for a living?)

This book is fantastic and I highly recommend everyone who wants to better themselves to keep this book and read it regularly.

Great job Ed, and can't wait to see part 2 =).

~Alexa.

A thoughtful, compelling, inspirational book that will transform people's lives. I already passed it along and will buy more to share with my friends. Keep up the great work, Ed!

"Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are." Just read this book.

"Hi my name is Max Rubin, I am currently a 16 and under junior tennis player in New Jersey. I am ranked #6 in the USTA/Middle States section and #170 in the country. Throughout my life and tennis career I have never been able to beat someone ranked higher then me until today...last night Ed told me a quote-'It's better to go all out and lose, than to hold back and win." I played like that today and for the first time ever I beat two top 100 players in the country...THANK YOU, ED!"

This book "Game.Set.Life" is a great easy to read book that embraces true inspirational concepts. Its jam packet with personal stories, quotes, and great advice from the author. This is a book that I can throw into my backpack before school or in my gym bag to help lift me up when I'm down. If you want a little motivation to help boost your daily moral than I would highly suggest this book.

A quick read for someone on the go and ready to achieve great things! Practical advice on reaching fullest potential.

As a mom of a kindergartener and a preschooler, who works outside the home, and maintains the home the rest of the time, I constantly felt too tired to play with my kids. Most kids games are so boring for an adult that I'd be falling asleep or lose my patience when they couldn't follow the rules or get too goofy half-way through the game. I also did a poor job feeling like I was teaching them anything to help them do well in school.

The games in this book are perfect for a tired parent to play with little or no advance preparation required. No hunting up paper plates or craft sticks or glue or paper lunch bags. Just think of a word to rhyme with or grab a sticky note or an index card or an old grocery store receipt and write a letter on it and hide in in plain sight and ask your child to find the sound for that letter.

Some good games for playing while waiting in a restaurant or doctor's office like draw a letter and have your child trace around and keep it tracing around it so you have a series of rings shaped like the letter. Secret sentence helps improve memory and makes your child feel special because they have a "secret" with mom or dad for the day.

I feel great because I'm interacting with my kids more in a way that doesn't tax me and I know I'm helping to sharpen the skills they need for learning at the same time. They love it because Mom is playing with them and the games are fun. Playing these games are often the best 10-20 minutes a day I have with my kids. That it will help them do better in school makes it even more valuable to me as a parent.

Whether you are tutoring, a classroom teacher, homeschooling, or a parent you will find this, and Kaye's other books, chock-full of great ideas to enhance learning. The best part is how FUN these activities are and how easy she has made it for you to implement them with any child.

I used this book when homeschooling my son many years ago. I just bought it for my sister who will be homeschooling her daughter this coming year. It is a great way to "make your own" curriculum and very inexpensive too! Great ideas using simple material that help kids learn; in 10 minutes and fun for them. I highly recommend this book as well as all of Peggy Kaye's Learning books.

The parenting section of my local bookstore contains several shelves of workbooks designed for parents who want to help their kids with schoolwork. The books are nothing more than page after depressing page of the same dull exercises most kids get plenty of already in school. I assume they must be selling well, or the store would not order so many of them. But looking at those workbooks makes me want to cry. I think it is wonderful that parents want to help their children do well in school, but the parents who buy those books are getting cheated (and so are their children). The last thing kids who are struggling need is more worksheets. And they are even less useful for kids who are ahead of the curriculum and need more challenges.

The games in this book provide an antidote to the worksheet pushers. I am a huge fan of Peggy Kaye's books (She has three more in this series: Games for Reading, Games for Writing, and Games for Math, and all of them are excellent). Whether you are trying to find a way to help a child who is behind in a certain subject or skill, or looking for challenges for a kid who is ahead, this book has some fun ways to help. The best thing is that she has several games for every skill, because she recognizes that children like different things and learn in different ways. So if a game for a skill you are working on falls flat with your child, there are plenty more to try. A few of the games require a little investment of your time, like making playing cards or game boards, but a lot you can do without any advance preparation, and several are so no-fuss they are perfect for car trips, or time spent in a waiting room.

This is a first rate book, the best of its kind by far.

This book is a real find. It is full of inventive and fun little games that teach skills needed for reading and math in such a way that children have so much fun they don't even realize they are learning. Kaye introduces each game with a description of the student and the learning problem she designed it for, and there is a key next to each game with suggested grade levels, both of which help the reader to pick out the best games for their kids or students. She aslo explains what each game teaches.

I bought the book because my daughter was having some trouble with reading and math in Kindergarten. I've tried out a few games and she enjoyes them while it provides us with quality time together. I've also learned from the directions some key tools for how to approach children and learning tasks so that they feel like fun, not a task, for example, Kaye recommends that we play the games with the child, taking turns and participating equally.The book has also helped me to understand where my daughter is coming from at the age of five, what kinds of developmental issues are common, and how to recognize where learning is occurring. Though I'm a college professor, I didn't have a clue how to teach a child or what was age-appropriate. So, the book not only helps me educate my daughter, but it is educating me about teaching and learning, and the games are easy to fit into a busy schedule.