Awards Books

This beautifully illustrated cookbook is a must-have for those who want a primer to the foods that make Kentucky distinctive: benedictine, burgoo and beaten biscuits. There are new favorites here as well, reflecting the new population of Spanish-speaking immigrants and the proliferation of B&Bs serving dishes such as creme brulee French Toast. The photographs are fantastic.

Read "Tell Me", on "The Writer's Almanac" daily e-mail. Had to read the last line twice. A great thought: To be done with caring so much about what others think of me; No more secrets between us. I see myself reading this collection, appreciating life, gaining a little wisdom. Thank you to the author.

This is a fine children's book about the life of William Bartram, one of America's early and great naturalists. The story is told in the form of a journal, written by the young William, and is accompanied by helpful maps and vivid illustrations of scenes from his various journeys. Begun on his eighth birthday, the brief but evocative journal entries tell of the boy's early interest in botany, and of his longing to accompany his father John Bartram on his explorations of the newly colonized Americas. He learns to make detailed renderings of leaves, and to identify the various types of plants in the region. Historical details are introduced casually, in the matter-of-fact manner of a child. He tells, for example, of a war between the British and the French that caused them to cancel a journey, or of his encounter with a friend of his father's -- Benjamin Franklin!! - who explains to him the marvels of electricity. We eventually see the young boy grow into a man, who is both sensitive to nature and respectful of the diverse cultures of the various inhabitants of the land. Particularly poignant is the subtle manner in which the author portrays the young man's attachment to and feeling for his aging father, as indicated in a pivotal scene where the son must rescue his father from drowning. Or in a later scene when William brings stories of a lovely but as-yet unnamed tree. His father has lost his vision, and cannot see the drawings that his son brings home for him, but together they name the species Franklinia, in honor of their mutual friend. In an informative afterward, the author points out that this tree has only survived today due to the plantings of it that Bartram made on his farm. This is a very simple and unassuming story, about a remarkable man, that can be appreciated by both young and old. It introduced me to a part of American history that I knew little about, and even inspired my two children to begin journals of the things they discover in nature.

I don't own this excellent book yet, but I have read it several times as a matter of interest. I live in Germany and have found this book invaluable when going to markets where all this stuff is presented. Angolia's book allows you to distinguish between originals and fakes to a good degree, and gives numerous photographic examples of documents and paraphenalia that accompanied the award. In addition, it goes into great detail on what each award was presented for, how many were presented and some brief examples of citatations. If you have never heard of the german close combat clasp, it is probably because so few were awarded (at least humously). The criteria for many of the awards was astounding, and more astounding still are the stories of those who earned them. I cannot recommend this book highly enough for any level of collector or WWII enthusiast.

The author has been quite exhasting in his research of the medals and awards in this book. He is quite clear of both his facts and opinions. Those persons who collect Third Reich awards and medals would do well to use this book as a reference and check against any forgeries that may have found their way into their collections.

This book has so many ideas I have never thought of. As a new book publisher I need all the help I can get and Carolyn's book has been a great help. I would recomend it to anyone that is promoting their own book. All authors should add this to their library.

Dr. Uslar makes us think in where the hispanic heritage will take the inhabitants of the continent in this information-technology driven society, and if there is a hope for this continent in the future.

This book is a thoroughly enjoyable exposure of the gibberish that both soccer stars and commentators come out with when holding forth on the beautiful game.

The section on Ronglish is particularly hilarious.

What's in a name? The etymology of Melanie is "black or dark-skinned" and Galatea is "she who is milk-white." From these origins we have flesh made word in the text and page before us. Galatea, whether body or statue, casts the same dark shadow. In this case what lies in shadow is not evil, but truth--what Robert Graves must have had in mind by suggesting the myth depicts the overthrow of the matrilineal cult.

Challenger writes:

Strangeness comes to us all at the limits of Eros,
Where tenderness, by the gradual erosion
Of each small act of worship, mercerises the flesh
Of the love-feast, rendering the body revelational.

Like the palindrome, Eros saw I was sore, Romanticism is a vicious cycle that must be broken. You can't eat Hope. Tenderness has left us to chemically treat the body as if each pill were the small act of worship. Mercerise could also render a mercer out the tenderness as in legal tender--money is made of cotton. Mercerising increases the luster and affinity for dye. So what does that teach us about the body? We are born and given a birth certificate with a name on it to be bought and sold as a product--willingly or unwillingly. So what is revelational is not ecstacy, but a spiritual apocalypse in order to identify the body without giving it a name. It is a complete erosion of the self-constructed self and the socially-constructed self. To put it quite simply Challenger reminds us what it is to be human. Easier said than done, and she does it here.

Covered are 220 orders, decorations, and medals of 37 nations, well illustrated, with written descriptions, representative citations, a good ribbon chart, glossary, and other useful information. Several countries included cannot be found elsewhere. Events since publication have dated some of the entries but this does not detract from the overall worth of this well- researched and handy book.