Papers Books

I have nothing original to say, I only wanted to throw another five-star endorsement on the heap.
This book is so good that it made me want to be pickier about the books I read. The four or five books I read before and after it were so disappointing in comparison. I keep it in my library to share wit anyone interested in education. But it is a beautiful, quick read that I would recommend to anyone. An absolute classic.

In this age of standardized tests and reading programs, Herndon's clarion call sounds louder than ever. This is one of the best books written about teaching and education and should be required reading for every college teaching education course. It has certainly inspired me and I hope it inspires other teachers to speak and write truthfully about their experiences and stand up to a system that increasingly views our amazing kids as a set of numbers and data.

Does education mean living up to other people's standards? How to write a "proper" term-paper, a "proper" lab report, how make a presentation that will meet your boss's expectations? If so, our school system is doing an okay job, and would be even more efficient if the government started using vouchers.

But Herndon would disagree. He understands that true education = creativity, and that true education only occurs when teachers act like humans instead of "Providers Of Things To Do" or "Entertainers" (pg. 44). That true education only occurs when student participation is voluntary, when they are not pressured or required to do anything, and when teachers are genuinely interested in what's being talked about (meaning they would think about in their free time) so that the creativeness the teacher has for the subject can then be freely spread to the students; just as interests spread between friends. Not that the System doesn't have its place! Just recognize that what usually occurs in schools today is training; preparation for the corporate economy. And not education.

His advice?

"resist every day all the apparatus of the school which was created in order to enable you to manage and evaluate a group, since it is just that management which destroyed the kids you have in your class." - (pg. 156)
"... but you can only live that kind of life in there if you are willing to realize that the dicta of the school are crazy but that at the same time the kid's life is connected to the school in complicated ways and you'd better offer him the chance to take any part of it he wants or has to." - (pg. 75)

Words for any teacher to live by.

James Herndon, in my opinion, has written the two best books about education that I have ever read. The Way It Spozed To Be and How to Survive in Your Native Land were used in many universities and colleges across the country in the 70s. As a now retired teacher, I look at what education has become in this country, how far we have wandered from the Herdon Days of alternative schools and teachers who were not afraid to do the right thing, and I weep.-- Sam Yulish, author of Where Have All the Hippies Gone? and The Hesitant Psychic.

Herndon at his best. In this charming -- if sometimes bawdy -- little book, Herdon brings his students alive. It's the details that are telling -- and school becomes more than school. It's a microcosm. Kids admonish each other to quit pestering the lizards as dozens of hands keep reaching into their home... A monster kite threatens the lunchtime gaggle of 7th grade girls... A dog is obsessed with an old tennis ball... Laugh, cry, think. Read this book.

She had an amazing insight to what the Christian life is all about. A worth while read.

Contrary to popular belief, this is not primarily a book about God. Sayers wisely does not try to tell us about God directly, but about what is godlike in ourselves. 'The characteristic common to God and man,' she says, is 'the desire and ability to make things.' She draws a vivid and detailed analogy between the Christian Trinity and our own creative imagination. In working out the details of this analogy, she tells us a great deal about them both; but, inevitably, more about our own minds than God's.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit correspond to what Sayers calls the Idea, Energy, and Power. For a writer, the Idea is the book as he first imagines it; the Energy is the book as actually written; the Power is the impression it makes in the mind of each reader. The analogy applies equally well to all art forms. Sayers makes the Trinity seem as plain and familiar as a conversation. If you ever knew what you wanted to say but couldn't find the words, you felt the difference between the Father and the Son. If someone took your words to mean something you never intended, you felt the distance between the Son and the Spirit. Critics may say the Trinity is not real, but they can never again call it incomprehensible.

The rest of the book concentrates on the purely human maker. The longest chapter, 'Scalene Trinities', discusses the ways that the creative imagination can go wrong, and classifies them as failures of the Idea, the Energy, or the Power. I find this the most useful part of the book. Whatever kind of work we do, we find it all too easy to become obsessed with technical details (the Energy). We almost forget that we are trying to express an Idea, and so our work loses the Power to benefit other people. We need to be fully aware of all three parts of the process.

The Mind of the Maker is a brilliant book. But if you read it just for its theology, you will miss two-thirds of the brilliance. It has still more value as a guide to human creativity. If you are a Christian, or if you do any kind of creative work, this book will do your mind good.

If you are interested in an airtight, supremely reasoned, brilliantly explained, and determinedly impersonal description of what Christians state in their creeds, this is the book for all time. Beware, Unbelievers...**

**Of all the silly things written in the name of "atheism," probably the silliest is that God is the product of our minds. Well, duh.... How are we to know God except through our human minds? How are we to describe God except through our language and actions? It's only a question of which came first - God or the human capacity for an idea of something greater than ourselves who must have created us. I am infinitely more interested in the thoughts and writings of those who have studied and labored over a subject for all of their lives and built on the ideas of those who have done the same since the beginning of self-conscious thought. I am bored to tears with the ravings of those who just can't accept as the result of, say, several weeks - or a lifetime - of intermittent, random thoughts that there is something greater than themselves and with rules that go along with this being. So, on the grounds of depth, completeness, longevity, and logic, I prefer "The Mind of the Maker" not only to anything ever written denying God but to all other books about God.

The Mind of the Maker by Dorothy Sayers is a classic for a reason. She is an excellent writer and a wonderfully deep thinker. At times I honestly got lost in the depths but, as I look back, the truths and nuggets of "ah ha"s are worth a few head scratches.

She opens the book explaining that it is not an explanation or a defense of the Christian faith. The book is her attempt to "demonstrate that the statements made in the Creeds about the Mind of the Divine Maker represent, so far as (she is) able to check them by (her) experience, true statements about the mind of a human maker." (preface) There is a universal truth found in the act of someone who creates and the Creator of all things.

She explains how Father, Son, and Spirit can be well understood by the creative mind's "Idea", "Energy", and "Power". She mainly focuses on the illustration of the writer (her occupation and obviously greatest experience). The essential nature of an idea working its way with the energy of a person writing with its connected power that is released is an incredible thought. I've been meditating on it often.

Many times, as a follower of Christ, I focus on "just" one aspect of our God: the Father or Son or Spirit. I too often miss and do a vast injustice to Him as I do not focus on the eternal relationship that they all together forever work. Sayer has given me a new way of remembering and reflecting on my Love and Hope which has affected me.

I believe that being creative can be a spiritual discipline. This book will be my "proof text". We are most like our God when we exhibit his love and work in a finite yet glorious way while we create something. Be it a new song, photograph, painting, story, etc. Hmm, maybe even creating another blog entry... a bit.

I highly recommend The Mind of the Maker even if you can't run through it, it is worth a slow soak. Don't be afraid to put it down and ponder. This book isn't for the "fast food" reader but it is accessible to all.

Sayers starts with the orthodox concept of the Trinity and suggest that the mind of man as creator is analogous. By examining the mind of man as creator and the work he creates, we can acquire a better understanding of the Holy Trinity. While this might seem outlandish at first, it works! When you think about theological concepts just as concepts, they can be very hard to grasp. But Sayers uses concrete examples to illustrate theological concepts, and avoids the temptation to overextend her analogy. She concentrates mainly on the writer-creator, since she herself is a writer. Her insights on the creative process of writing are almost as interesting as the light they shed on the nature of God. These insights go well beyond the concept of the Trinity--she offers an interesting perspective on the existence of evil, free will, and much more. I've never read anything like this.

The back of The Most of P. G. Wodehouse declares this to be the "most lavish P. G. Wodehouse collection ever published," and when one considers the breadth of selection crammed into just over 700 pages, it's hard to argue with the publisher's assertion. Wodehouse's writing career spanned over forty years, and while I am far from being able to claim that I've read even a third of his output, in my opinion his genius and comic timing rarely faltered. Probably Wodehouse's best known creations are Bertie Wooster and his indefatigable valet, Jeeves (memorably portrayed by Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry, respectively). The pair is represented here by five short stories. As I recently acquired Jeeves & Wooster - The Complete Series, I have to say that Laurie and Fry captured the characters so perfectly that I now hear their voices in my head when I read the J&W tales. Wooster's cronies at The Drones Club are represented by seven stories - "Tried in the Furnace" and "Goodbye to All Cats" are particularly hilarious. There are seven Mr. Mulliner stories, where he sagely dispenses his life wisdom based on the experiences of various and sundry members of his incredibly large family - I especially liked the story "Mulliner's Buck-U-Uppo." In five stories one can read five of Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge's wildly whacky money-making schemes, and there's a brief stop at Blandings Castle, home of Lord Emsworth and his prized pig the Empress of Blandings. There are five of the Golf Stories, and they were an absolutely revelation - so hilarious, and I am not a fan of golf in the least. The one complete novel, Quick Service, is a solid representation of Wodehouse's full-length fiction, full of romantic entanglements and comic misunderstandings. Wodehouse's sense of humor and command of the English language make his stories and novels an absolute joy to read, and this anthology is probably one of the best introductions out there. Read, enjoy, and laugh till you cry.

The best distillation I've found of Wodehouse's amazing body of work. Great introduction to his variety of characters and situations. One of the few authors that can make me laugh out loud, even on the second or third reading.

Like the last Wodehouse anthology I read (and the first Wodehouse book I had taken the time to read) this book is a splendid collection of humorous stories by Wodehouse, all of them really first rate. However, where the Bestiary only had one or two samples of each of the different "genres" of Wodehouse this one has grouped several into chapters. It really is a marvelous book!

This collection is a fantastic introduction to Wodehouse, who is known as a master of the English Language and a brilliant plotter. Includes the hilarious "Uncle Fred Flits By," a short story that fires on all cylinders, and the complete text of "Quick Service," one of my favorite Wodehouse novels. Other well-known stories like "The Great Hat Mystery" and "The Great Sermon Handicap" are here as well. You'll get a good sense of what Wodehouse was all about and have fun while you do it. Pick it up today!

"The Most of P.G. Wodehouse" was the first book of his that I've read, but you can be sure that it won't be the last! Though Wodehouse was first brought to my attention because of the Jeeves stories, I started in with the Drones Club and was immediately hooked. This book is hysterical. Who knew there were so many things in life to place bets on?!

Having read other short story collections in the past, I was ready for the typical couple thousand word stories that were good, but not exceptional by and large. Wodehouse's short stories, however, are brilliant.

This collection is fantastic. It's perfect for those times when you just want a quick, entertaining, light read. My wife always knew when I was reading this book because I couldn't stop laughing.

Definitely no ordinary love...at least none I have ever heard of! This book has all the makings of one hell of LIFETIME movie! Moody Holiday knows how to tell a story that keeps you on the edge!

I did not like the first book in the series, Portia, and this book is even worse. Weak story line, poor plot development and under developed characters. I would not recommend this book.

OMG, the sequel was beter than the first book! So many secrets came out in the sequel! William is still calling the shots in this book, but Selena has had enough!

Please pick up this book asap! You'll love it!

I couldn't put it down!

HIGHLY recommended

THIS BOOK BRINGS OUT ALL OF YOUR EMOTIONS. YOU GO FROM SHOCK, TO BEING SAD, TO WANTING TO SMACK THE HELL OUT OF SOMEONE FOR BEING STUPID! DEFINETLY A PAGE TURNER.

This book was a page turner, it took me 1day to read the whole book, i cant wait for, moody holidays next book to come out

Like Volume I, Volume II is filled with easy to follow directions that allow the beginning or advanced paper engineer to learn how to make an amazing variety of pop-ups. I can't wait to share this Volume with my students who love paper and sculpting with it. The easy-to-follow directions and fabulous illustrations make it just plain fun. AND--I was motivated to play around and try each one of the structures because of how these two elements work together. If it was just plain paper, it would have ended up on my shelf with some of my other resource books.

Well done Carol!

The Pocket Paper Engineer, Volume 2, is as exciting and approachable as Volume One. I am a novice paper engineer. However, not only am I able to understand the clear instructions, but can hardly wait to go on to the next beautifully illustrated project. This book has my mind buzzing with ideas to do on my own. In addition, I love the provacative quotes in both volumes at the beginning of each section. Thank you, Carol Barton, for another excellent book.

Like volume 1, Carol Barton's newest book on how to create pop-ups is a must-buy for every paper-crazy person, whether or not you think of yourself as an "artist." Her instructions are easy to follow, and creating pop-ups is a great kid-friendly project. Loved it!! I'm still working on my floating platforms, but I can't wait for volume 3!

Having loved Carol Barton's Pocket Paper Engineer, Volume I, I was, of course, eager to move on to Volume II. With that now in hand, and already sampled, I can say it was worth the wait. Like the first volume (which I would recommend as a superb introduction to the world of "paper engineering" aka pop-ups) the new volume clearly presents each structural paradigm and encourages one to create other variations. Although one can make copies of the templates Barton provides [...], it might be nice to have a separate packet of same (as was created for Volume I.) And while I am in the wishing mode, dare I hope for a Volume III? In Barton's hands, the possibiilties seem endless!

Unlike the other reviewers, I don't have a copy of Volume 1, but Volume 2 is so well written, and the projects are so well organized and intriguing, that I'm now looking forward to working my way through both volumes. This will be a special pleasure since my 11-year-old granddaughter is very excited about creating her own pop-ups; this book is just what we both need!

This book makes fascinating reading. It helped me to appreciate more the musicians I was already familiar with, such as Jack Teagarden, and opened my eyes to a lot of people I knew little or nothing about. Be sure to pick up the companion CD, too.

This is the finest book about jazz that I have ever read. I own many of the records that the author dissects, as well as having seen several of these great jazz artists perform, and I find his judgment perceptive and unerring. But this is far more than just a book about jazz music. What makes these musicians tick, how did they happen to assemble together for a recording session, how did the record business impact their selection of pieces to perform? The author draws on a variety of academic disciplinces, including art, psychology, economics, and social history, to put his subjects in perspective. Most important, he is a fine storyteller who empathizes with the people he writes about. While many reviews focus on his overall thesis about race in jazz, this is but one theme he articulates, and it serves more as an organizing structure for the book than as its sole message.

First of all, Dick Sudhalter is a gifted writer. He crafts his narratives like a well constructed solo or composition. Second, this book tells us about early white jazz musicians and correctly describes the interplay between vital African American innovations and the contributions of Caucasian jazzmen. Sudhalter in no way diminishes the seminal contributions of African American jazzmen. He simply talks about the contributions of other artists, and does a masterful job of helping us to see the interplay between musicians who have given us this wonderfully entertaining music. I thought I knew a fair amount about the history of jazz. After reading this book, I know more. Nothing is more American than Jazz music (just my opinion), and the more you understand it, the more you know about the USA in the 20's and 30's. I keep re-reading parts of this book because there's so much here.

While a brilliant documentary, Burns' "Jazz" also reinforced the notion that jazz is exclusively an African-American artform. Fortunately, "Lost Chords" does much to blow away that misperception. While never belittling or downplaying the role of those African-American giants in jazz, this book does an outstanding job of profiling all of the individuals and bands who received short shrift from Burns: Steve Brown, who pretty much invented jazz bass playing; the Jean Goldkette Orchestra; Miff Mole; Frank Trumbauer; and may more. And he does so in a way that is both interesting to the casual fan (with anecdotes and such) and the hardened muso (excerpts of scores abound). A scholarly tome, this is a worthy addition for any jazz fan's library. I look forward to Volume II.

Not a mere antidote to political correctness in jazz criticism; Lost Chords is a prewar cultural history, a lesson in music structure, a history of woodwind instruments, a guide to innovations in guitar tuning, AND MORE. It shows the musicians as human beings with all their failings, humor, drives, hard work, and talent. I especially loved the account of the bass sax --- an instrument that looks like it could double as a moonshine still --- and its usefulness in the early days of sound recording. Sudhalter admonishes us to listen to the music and to make up your own mind. Exactly right. A good place to start is Robert Parker's Bix Beiderbecke Great Original Performances 1924-1930 (available on Amazon) If you have ever heard an early 78 rpm record, you will be astonished at Parker's sound restoration.

I have been quilling for a number of years and have several books, and this one is the best I have found so far. It has all the instructions needed for beginners, but also contains instructions for different herbs, berries and a wide assortment of flowers. It also covers several 3-D projects, holiday projects, ideas for framing pictures and invitations, tags, and miniature plants. I refer back to it on a regular basis. Overall, an excellent choice and a wonderful addition to your library!

I borrowed this book from our local library in Rotorua,New Zealand. Just loved it so had to get my own copy. I am a beginner and find the book full of instructions and thoroughly enjoying the book and the art more and more. A Lot of fun!

VERY EASY TO READ AND THE PICTURES AND INFORMATION FOR MAKING ALL THE QUILLING PIECES WERE CLEAR AND COLORFUL.

This my first quilling book and i love it. It has some great patterns including a cross, minature plants, kitchen herbs and more! I recommend this book for both beginners and advanced quillers.

I am an ardent collector of craft books, and have three on quilling now. Of those I have, this is the best one; it covers the basic technique itself, exhibits the many various shapes, gives helpful suggestions on form, design and uniformity, and provides the student with a number of useful suggestions for finished projects. (I also enjoyed the book because it wasn't filled with the "I" word every other sentence.)

I don't have the third book. I enjoyed the first 2 books. I wished they woild have made another movie reguarding book 2 and 3.

N. L. Bowden

The first part of this all-in-one volume is The Talman, the Holy Book of the alien Drac race. The Talman is the premise for the rest of the three novels that follow in the volume. I consider scripture to be inspired search for truth, including the true definition of the relationship between man (or Drac, in this case) and God (or other Higher Power). While reading The Talman, I had the distinct feeling that I was reading real scripture disguised as fictional scripture. Mr. Longyear's insight was thought-provoking as well as entertaining. The series is a worthy entry among the classics dealing with the problem of the relationship between theology/spirituality and science, such as James Blish's A Case of Conscience and Robert Sawyer's Calculating God.

The first part of this all-in-one volume is The Talman, the Holy Book of the alien Drac race. The Talman is the premise for the rest of the three novels that follow in the volume. I consider scripture to be inspired search for truth, including the true definition of the relationship between man (or Drac, in this case) and God (or other Higher Power). While reading The Talman, I had the distinct feeling that I was reading real scripture disguised as fictional scripture. Mr. Longyear's insight was thought-provoking as well as entertaining. The series is a worthy entry among the classics dealing with the problem of the relationship between theology/spirituality and science, such as James Blish's A Case of Conscience and Robert Sawyer's Calculating God.

Rumor has it the tenitive title for this book was "Enemy Mine Omnibus", but in the long run I'm glad they didn't call it that.

"The Enemy Papers" is a collection of stories having to do with the war between the Dracs and Humans. The collection starts with an "abridged" version of the Draconian Talman or holy book.

A revised/extended author's addition of "Enemy Mine" comes next in line with contains a closer look at Shigan and Davidage's relationship and, later, the relationship Davidage has with the Jeriba family.

"The Tomorrow Testement" is the story of a human female soldier who gets taken to the Dracon as a POW and how she caught the eye of a leading Draconian offical and helped bring an end to the war. Bear this in mind; "Enemy Mine" and "Tomorrow Testement" occur at the same time.

"The Last Enemy" takes place around 30 years after "Enemy Mine", only this time from the point of view of a Draconian terrorist living on the planet that started the entire war. This unique view into the after effects of the peace treaty and the universal mindset of a war weary soldier is a nice addition to this collection.

The collection is completed with a set of essays about writing alien languages, Longyear's experiences writing the stories and a small Drac/English-English/Drac dictionary for those of us who are obsessed with these stories. Longyear does admite that, with a little persuassion, he might continue the series, complete the Talman and lenghten the dictionary.

With a little persuassion.

The Enemy Papers is a compilation that includes three novels, Enemy Mine, The Tomorrow Testament and The Last Enemy, as well as The Talman, an alien Bible. Barry Longyear's trilogy of the war between humans and the alien Dracs was always a fantastic story, philosophically deep while entertaining to read, but today the story is even more timely. In this world of renewed terrorist activity and threat of war, a well-thought-out treatise of unrequited hate, fierce nationalism and the horrors of war reads like a world relations primer. The issues of how to establish and keep peace are dealt with honestly and with human (and alien) nature always considered. Nothing is easy, and nothing is straightforward. Longyear is a spectacular writer and this is one of his best. I guarantee that the ending to the last novel will knock your socks off, whether you are wearing socks or not. I promise. Read this book, it will engrave itself on your soul.

This is a good source book on firecrackers from China to the world. It was well organized with large pages of colorful photos in rare package labels. The chapters on the origin, evolution and manufacturing of firecrackers were concise and informative. Of significance was the chapter on Chinese celebrations. For more than a millennium, firecrackers have been there from weddings to dragon dances, from funerals to store openings (p.27). For the Chinese, firecracker is a must for festival tradition celebration especially to welcome the Chinese New Year (same as firing guns at New Year Eve).

However, Chinese Christians celebrate Christmas with firecrackers (p.36) is a doubtful assertion as the authors failed to provide where, China or US. The same page said firecracker is celebration and sadness. To Chinese, firecrackers never are associated with sadness. It can mean scare off the evil spirit, negative chi and bad luck.

It is a great book to read and enjoy the colorful labels and package with different themes, ranging from Chinese mythology and folklores to western tradition. The Chinese knows the American market well. The nude angel with wings (p.76) is a case in point; others included are battleship (p.121), Red Devil, thunder cloud, dinosaur, Robinson Crusoe, King Kong, cowboys, Indians, aquatic animals, astrospace and explosives (atomic bombs), bullfight, woman boxers, baseball, football, circus, auto race, military and Dixie boys. The un-named artists were impressive. Labels from Guatemala, Indonesia and India are included as well. Of special meaning were the two package labels related to WW II - four Chinese soldiers with weapons on hand, a firing tank, a Chinese flag and three double decked fighter planes heading East resisting Japanese aggression (p.100); a young Chinese soldier in green uniform, gun at back and bullet case belt with a raised right hand V finger sign, an obvious V- J Victory celebration (p.101).

This book gave good information. However, the authors failed to mention that firecrackers and fireworks, the Chinese invention are intended celebration for prosperity, happiness, luck and peace as well. But once introduced to Europe, they were turned into weapon to wage war against Chinese as recorded in history 150 years ago under the free trade in China's favor excuse.

Next time, when you light up a package for July 4 celebration, think about the excitement and joy this Chinese gift brings.

This book shows great insite into the history of the firecracker and the intricate artwork involved with the packaging of them. The clarity of the illustrations are wonderful, its hard to believe some of the labels are as old as they are. I highly recommend this book to anyone who can remember the excitement of being able to "set off" these firecrackers on the 4th of July, without worrying about breaking the law. Those of you who were not as lucky to experience this thrill, will definitely find this book fun.

My husband was looking for a book on firecrackers and I tried the local book stores, i.e. Barnes and Nobles, Bookmart, Books a Million, but no luck. I browsed the internet and the reviews on firecracker reference materials were few and far between. Finally I came across this book on Amazon and took a chance it would please him.....he's quite picky about his reference library. This soft-cover book is GREAT! It is packed with beautiful, vibrant full color photos of the common labels all the way up to the very rare. The book layout is dotted with photos and the glossary is helpful to even the intermediate collector. The section "Interview with a Collector" gives a nice insightful look into the pursuit of fireworks labels. The history of firecrackers is also discussed, giving the collector a great back-story to the industry. No price guide, but that is fine with my husband, as it tends to date a book after a couple of years. This is an informative addition to the Hubby's library......he's happy and I'm glad.

Excellent beautifully illustrated book well worth the money. The illustrations and layout are extremely well done. This is easy reading that covers some terrtory not well documented anywhere else (Vietnam.) Some historical inaccuracies especially in the history of the manufacture of "Chinese" crackers in the 20th century. Overall an excellent job! Highly reccomended to anyone who has an interest in the subject, or who just likes the imagery of the old labels.

Bright, colorful pages packed with color illustrations and photos chart the art and history of the firecracker, from their construction and advancement to the making of labels and items promoting them. Beautiful drawings pack an illustrated history which invites leisure browsers as much as researchers, and which is very highly recommended for general library collections.

My 9 year-old gives it two-thumbs up!

I had been searching for a good paper airplane book for a long time looking for plans that involved only paper and folding - no scissors, tape, glue, paper clips, or anything extra. While travelling for work in Arizona several years ago I found this book at a Barnes & Noble - it's the best paper airplane book I have ever run across. Some of the folds can be challenging but the author's use of flip-through animation in the corners of the book help tremendously. I've built and flown every plane in the book and they all perform incredibly - especially "The Plane". Buy this book and you'll be amazed by the looks and performance of your paper airplanes.

I could not remember how to make a good plane. I was just looking for one good plane and I found it in this book: The Phoenix (page 25). Easy to build and my five year old can succesfully throw it. I'm glad I bought the book. After the plane crashes a few times, like all paper planes, they no longer fly correctly. But thanks to John's "trimming and flying" trips, I can make the plane fly well again.

While some of the folds are origami difficult (there should be difficulty ratings for each plane), the planes really are impressive flyers! The book attempts to demonstrate the more difficult folds with flip-through style animations on the margin of the pages. My 5-year-old son thinks I'm the best paper airplane maker in the world!

My nephew is really into making flying rockets out of paper. He's five. Well, I wanted to impress the little devil, not an easy feat as this young man is more proficient on the computer than I'll ever hope to be, so I got this book, decided to learn how to make a couple complicated paper planes.

My plan, learn a couple of these designs, practice them over and over till I could fabricate them blindfolded, do them in my sleep. I wanted to make making these babies as easy as tying shoes.

I skipped the easy stuff, went right to the Trang on page 75. This baby was for me. If I could knock this out, while watching television, you know, as sort of an after thought, well that little booger would really, really be impressed.

First off, let me say, that maybe I should have started slow and worked up, but I didn't. There are seventeen different steps to building this glider and the design assumes that you've at least looked at some that have come before. But after several failed attempts, I got it down. I went through quite a bit of paper, but I mastered this (in between practicing the Trang I was learning how to juggle, a feat my nephew wants to master, but is having trouble with).

So the next time my brother asked me to babysit, I did my juggling bit. My nephew wasn't impressed. But when I built that Trang while watching Wolf Blitzer on CNN, now that impressed him. If you've got kids, or nieces or nephews, this is a good book to have around. Really!

Review submitted by Captain Katie Osborne