TOM Books

BONE POEMS is a collection of poems written by Jeff Moss which were inspired by and researched at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. These poems are both fun to read and educational. Many of them are also highly humurous. For example, "Ostracoderms"

"Ostracoderms"
Ostracoderms were ancient fish
Who had no jaws to chew.
With open mouths their food was slurped
As water filtered through.
Perhaps that's why ostracoderms
Kept such a pleasant mood--
They never had to hear their moms
Say, "Henry, chew your food!"

Besides the poems, the book also includes a mini-comic book telling two sides of a story involving a rhinoceros and an elephant. The end of the book includes a pronunciation guide illustrating how to pronounce all the different animals and many other difficult words found throughout the book. A wonderful gift for any child who likes dinosaurs, bones, or poetry.

This book of poetry is not only true poetry, with rhythm and meter perfectly attended to, it is a great educational text. The author researched his work at the American Museum of Natural History. Although the poems are sometimes silly, they are always accurate and true to our current knowledge of the dinosaurs. There is a pronunciation guide to all dinosaur names in the back, so you will be reading the words correctly and not be stumbling through the poetry. The meter is true and well done, unlike many so-called "children's" poems where the author discards any effort to count syllables, making reading aloud awkward. I was so impressed by this book and my daughter loved it. I had rented it from the library on a lark after hearing about Jeff Moss and what a great children's poet he is and of his work on the beginnings of Sesame Street.

We were first introduced to this wonderful book by the library - what fun! My daughter and I have danced to the rythyms of the words and giggled at our struggles to pronounce all of the species names. It has a great information guide in the back and super drawings. Great for dino and nature lovers of all ages.

My kids (5 and 6) can't get enough of this book. The rhymes are irresistible and the drawings are funny too. My favorite is about the Ankylosaurus ('who moved with a clunk and a clank-ylosaurus'). Finally have to buy it as I'm feeling guilty about hogging the library copy!

I highly recommend this book. It is great for all ages, and it is absolutely hilarious!! Good job Uncle Tom!

PERFECT BOOK FOR THE JOHN. KINDA LIKE THE BOOKS CALLED DUCT TAPE AND OTHER BATHROOM NOVELS. IT REALLY MAKES YOU THINK OF HOW MANY DIFFERENT BOOKS THERE ARE AND THE SILLY NAMES THAT GO WITH THEM. I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK TO ANYONE.

Hillarious! Great coffee table book. You can't put it down once you pick it up. Looking forward to the next edition.

I really have to commend Tom on this one. He has turned usually horrible jokes in to a readworthy book. most of these i couldn't stop laughing. Congrats Tom on your first book!

As Gary Spence puts it "Fathers are just boys with whiskers" and lest the reader fear that Spence is ignoring girls, he intends to write another book for fathers and their daughters. A Boy's Summer is a delight, guaranteed to awaken the boy lurking in every man and to inspire boys to find pleasure in timeless pursuits, loved for generations - from walking on stilts to building box traps.
I bought several copies of this one to give as "new baby" gifts - for the fathers of baby boys, because so many new baby gifts include the new mother, but not necessarily the new father. This one reveals what fun can be had in the years to come, activities which can be shared not only by boys and their fathers but perhaps a kindly uncle or big brother). From hiking to fishing, making fire the way the Indians did to rafting, you won't find a better guide to adventuring together.

Spence has written many books about the law, politics and himself. This book is different. It is a book of short essays about things a father can (and should) do with his son. Although apparently intended for that audience, I found the book terrific and I have two daughters. Perhaps it is about what a father should do with his children. Nonetheless, it is written in the classic style of previous Spence books. The book is co-authored by Spence's brother Tom who also provided the illustrations. It is worth reading. Another victory for Spence. AAA+++

What delightful change, and a pleasantly remarkable book. Gerry Spence, the great trial lawyer, who has wowed us with his brilliance in the courtrooom and his rustic biting commentary on Larry King and the Geraldo Rivera televised shows gives us a book on parenting. It is humorous filled with tips for fathers and sons to spend quality time together. This legal giant shares his own brand of fatherhood and revisits the "boy" in himself.Enjoyable reading.

A great book for fathers and sons. This is a great gift for Father's Day and should be read by Fathers and Sons on Father's Day. It is motivational as well as heart warming. My son loved the book and related well to the various chapters. I have purchased 20 copies to give to my employees with sons. It's excellent.

WOW.... what a wonderful book. If the many many many photographs don't grab and hold your attention the excellent beginning to end chapters of this mans career will.

The most professional book on an athlete I have read and appreciated in years.

The author Tom Kertscher has done an A+ job and I hope all football fans will buy and appreciate this book and add it to your book collection.

Again...WOW!!!

As a Packer Fan we had to have this book but it is a great story for any football fan. Brett Farve will go into the history books as one of the BEST Quaterbacks. Very Enjpyable.

Reviewed by David Olvera for Reader Views (3/07)

"Brett Favre: A Packer Fan's Tribute" does not mince words and the book stays true to its title. Kertscher evaluates Favre's legendary career from crummy rookie in the pro ranks to NFL god. Rather than a long and microscopic analysis of the patron saint of Lambeau, the author cuts to the chase and offers great snapshots of Favre's career. Favre's beginnings, his hallmark comebacks, the Super Bowl, the MVPs, all laid out in clean episodes.

Kertscher also stays true as a fan. You can easily tell the author is endeared to the Packers and he relates that fandom to the reader. You cannot help but relate to Favre, the Packers, and their fans after reading this book. Sure Favre is an All-American, apple pie, Stars and Stripes kind of guy, but the author's examination of his career and even his addiction to painkillers takes you that much closer to being apart of the Green Bay scene.

I would have liked to have seen closer examinations of his personal life, especially his relationship with his father. Although I am not a Packer fan, the passing of Favre's father and Brett's on-field performance afterward was a profound NFL moment regardless of affiliation. I won't knock the author too much for it though...too close an examination would not fit well with the book's overall theme and feel.

The author's writing style is quick and to the point. I get the feeling that Kertscher isn't going for a Pulitzer and that makes the book very versatile. You can hand this book to any child and they could easily become a "Cheese Head." A great coffee table or waiting room piece...or simply what the title says...a book for fans. "Brett Favre: A Packer Fan's Tribute" is not the essential autobiography of Favre, but its strength is in its candid approach to the career of an NFL great.

I just wanted to let other Packer fans know that this is a book
to read if you are a Brett Favre fan, well done Tom!!!
The pictures in this book are great and by the Packer photographer
Jim Biever, great shots. They bring back memories.
Tom writes this book as a true Packer fan and shares stories, pictures
and records that maybe we have not read, if you can believe that...
Order this book today and give a Packer fan a nice gift for Christmas
they will really enjoy the book.
I have added this book to my collection of Brett Favre items.
We will all miss Brett Favre! But of course one never knows...
Brett could return in 2007!

What a source of knowledge?

A great book to learn, teach or help start a new business. It covers basic principles helpful not only if you are starting a business but if you are a stakeholder in an existing, new or forthcoming business.

If you already own or have partnership in a business this books helps you to see if there are any holes or if you missed something or find out why something is not working hte way you thought it would.

I learnt in this book about "How To" start a business that I didn't in the business school.

A GREAT GIFT.

After having jumped ship from a Fortune 25 firm many years ago, I became an entrepreneur with my own consulting business. In addition, several years ago I began teaching entrepreneurship at California State University, San Marcos. I am writing to rave about this "Business Start-Up Guide". It is an excellent resource for any entrepreneur, or anyone considering becoming their own boss. This book is an easy read with priceless, up-to-date information that can save us all a lot of time and mistakes. "Business Start-Up Guide" will be required reading in all my entrepreneurship courses in the future!

If I could trade in every start-up book for entrepenuers I own and keep this one I would do so in a heartbeat! The author is a mentor all entrepenuers can look to for practical advice and specific information. This book works with you every step of the way providing ideas for marketing strategies, finance management, and legal start-up issues. This book also helped me to view the written business plan as a creative planning tool and not just a required document for finacial institutions. There is so much information packed into this book that entrepeneurs in all stages of business development will turn to it again and again. I only wish the margins were wider to accomodate all my notes!

This is an excellent, information-intensive book written and approached not only by an exceptional college business professor (who definitely is an authority on this subject) but a business/tax attorney with many years of experience. A "must read" for anyone considering starting and owning their own business. This is also a great book if you already have your business up and running and need some current ideas and information. Tom shows you not only how to find the information you require but also how to apply it. A road map for eliminating many problems and questions entrepreneurs are faced with. He's going to raise the business successes ratio with this new book.

The front cover sleeve used in Thomas J. Riccio's book, "Busted," makes the reader think the contents of the book is cheap and sleazy. Not only that, but it also makes the reader think the contents of the book is all about O.J. Simpson. The front cover sleeve is a misnomer to what the book is all about.

If a rating was allowed for the cover, I would give it a "0" rating. I personally did not like the cover and got rid of it. I appreciated the book much better after that.

The story Thomas Riccio writes is not only amusing, but interesting as well. "Busted" tells about the author's upbringing, his family, brothers and twin sister, and how he got involved with petty unlawful incidents while he was growing up.

As the author describes the various deviated incidents in his life, the readers cannot help forgive him for the petty unlawful behavior he had as a kid. All kids, no doubt, have stories to tell similar to Riccio's. However, he does not outgrow the petty wrongs, but in fact takes them to the next level. It is at this point that forgiveness is blind.

This is not to say everything Tom Riccio did was unlawful. Nonetheless, his love for buying and selling memorabilia together with high stakes gambling, more often than not, got him into trouble. The love of buying and selling memorabilia and gambling also sent him several times into a whirl of large amounts of money. He could have been a millionaire. However, the virus inherent in his being of wanting more money; of enough not being enough, caused him not only to lose his wife, home, and friends but to find himself behind bars in prison several times.

The last chapter in his book is devoted to the problem of O.J. Simpson in Las Vegas, Nevada. The reader will believe he did not set up O.J. His intent was to help O.J. recover some stolen memorabilia in return for O.J. Simpson's signature on 200 copies of the book, "If I Did It."

Tom Riccio's story is interesting, rousing, but mostly sad. At the end of his story he admits he must get rid of the virus of wanting more; never having enough. Only he knows what is next for Thomas Riccio.

I recommend this amusing, interesting, and exciting book to readers who like to know and learn how "enough" can become a virus of "not enough."

Yes OJ's an interesting character, and you learn plenty about the Las Vegas robbery here. But the back story is just as interesting, especially for card collectors or memorabilia people. The busting out of jail parts are crazy (you gotta read it to believe it) and so is Tom's lotto/gambling tales. Luck is a funny thing and Tom Ricico has had plenty of it on his side. A controversial guy who's lived a wild life--it's all in the book.

Thats how I would sum up this book. The OJ robbery is really inconsequential to the true story of this book. It's only a backdrop to a life that was lived to the fullest (sometimes foolishly) straight from the man who lived it. Truly an amazing tale of love, luck, money, and greed. Its a terrific book from someone that lived a life that Hollywood probably wouldn't be able to create in any movie. Good Luck with the rest of it Tom!

If a bland life story "Catch Me If You Can" can be made into a movie, this book should be too. Riccio's life story would be unbelieveable if it wasn't true: escaping from jail, winning the lottery, beating Vegas, successful entrepenuer and a life filled with being in the middle of breaking news events from OJ Simpson to Anna Nicole Smith. Truly a one-of-a-kind story. This book is a page turner and an easy read and better entertainment then the 10 bucks you would pay to see any of the lousy movies that are out now.

This book features beautifully executed illustrations of both male and female Byzantine fashions from the empire's many ages. Adapted from works of late-antique and medieval art, the drawings present emperors, aristocrats, townspeople, country people, clerics, and soldiers. The introduction gives an overview of terms pertaining to Byzantine clothing. Explanatory notes, including reference to the time period and to the class of individuals represented, accompany each drawing. Finally, the closing pages contain small depictions of the various hats, hairstyles, and footwear worn throughout Byzantium's long millennium. A valuable resource for students of Byzantine history, and a genuine visual treat.

I would recomend this coloring book to any young artist, especially one that loves history. Actually, I think all the Dover coloring books are great: very detailed and beautiful!

When I've got a Tom Tierney coloring book, I know I'm in for a world of fashion fun. I own several of Mr. T.'s coloring books - and have enjoyed all of them immensely.

I always have a creative blast with Tom's coloring books. He draws each person as an individual with interesting expressions and body language which I find invites me to create dialog for the character, especially since there are usually two figures per page.

Tom also supplies interesting facts about the fashions being worn and the time period.

The fashions and figures are always very well drawn. Some of the designs are intricate, if a child finds the smaller lines difficult to manage, I would suggest just color over the design/pattern on the clothes--it will still look wonderful--if you use something which allows the design to show through the color.

I do them with markers that won't bleed through, and colored chalk applied with Q-tips.

An ideal coloring book for anyone who enjoys coloring people and costumes/clothes.

Highly recommended.

As an educator of history I feel that this is a great outlet for the precocious child or the history buff-collector. Money well spent!

Although the official "Thumping Good Read" is no longer being given, this book would certainly be an excellent candidate for it. Written by two erudite writers, it is entertaining and informative on many levels.For those who have lived abroad, and experienced the petit miseries that arise, for those who have ever taught,for those who are culturally curious,for those who have been involved with theater,for those who love a good laugh, this book is for you! Enjoy

At a time when most reports from the Middle East are gloomy at best, it is refreshing to read The Cairo Diaries, 2004-2006, by Tom Marcus and Linda Sarver. This is a delightful account of their days in Egypt,
Tom as a member of the theater arts faculty at the American University in Cairo, and Linda as a student of art and architecture. Entertaining and witty, it reflects brilliancy of mind and a spendid sense of humor. Most enriching are reports of the generosity of the Egyptian people, descriptions of weekend travels to areas rich in antiquities, and insights into the minds of the citizens of Cairo and the students at the university. This book makes one want to charter a passage to Egypt. I would recommend taking along a copy of Cairo Diaries to supplement the standard guides.

I'm not a reader of travel books, but on recommendation I dipped into this delightful book and found it wonderful. It's much more than a look at Cairo but offers insights into the Egyptian culture and American expectations. Lots of the books is funny. The narrator is funny, incidents are funny. It's a great read! It's also very current, letting us know what is going on NOW and what the American University is like NOW. Not a bit pedantic, the book is accessible, enjoyable, and informative.

In this lively account of two years spent in Egypt, Tom Markus and his wife Linda Sarver paint a rich and absorbing picture of their daily life in that ancient and still exotic land in a tragically troubled part of the world. Markus is a distinguished professor, theatre director and actor, Sarver an equally accomplished stage designer and it was his two-year appointment at the American University of Cairo that brought them into the Middle East. The juxtaposition of American intellectuals (yes, sophisticated, travelled, and so on but deeply and unself-consciously American) and the folk ways of Cairo provides illumination on both. The details with which the book brims add up to something more than a personal story: the struggles to get a broken window fixed or to discover the way to a dentist's office, to cite two examples, convey more succinctly and flavorfully the "otherness" of the culture (and the region, one is fearful to suppose) than any amount of statistics, dates of battles, elections, etc. And it is written in great good humor and love for the place, the people and the experience. Almost as good as a trip to Cairo itself.

Like Carol, I am a member of the High Point University Class of 1998. Carol was one of the most kind, honest, and intelligent people I've ever met. I now attend East Carolina University School of Medicine, and seldom a day passes without a thought about Carol; she wanted the opportunity to train here, but cancer took her away before she could come. This book gave me new insight into Carol's early years, revealing much I did not know. This book, like Carol, is truly remarkable.

I read this book in one day, through a few tears, as well as laughter. This is a very, very touching book which should be read by everyone who has a child! It is very heart-wrenching to know how bad cancer hurts the whole family. I definitely give this book 5 stars!

I am a personal friend of the Hookers. I was with Carol at different times in her life. She was one of the strongest christian I have every know. This is an encouragering book for you to hold on and trust in Jesus Christ.

Amanda Hooker was full of promise; the perfect child when she became ill. This book chonicles her fight for life and her parents' struggle to help her survive, and finally to go through the loss of their adored daughter to the demon cancer. The author emphasizes her positive attitude and how hard they all fought. There is detail about the treatment that she received, and the fact that the family relied on God to get them through one of life's most difficult experiences. Sharing their experience was no doubt helpful to the parents of this talented young person who was full of promise, yet taken in her prime.

Tom Phelan makes those terrible times come to life in a very special way with this novel. The characters are engaging, the story first rate. He clearly has done his homework, and this is a very moving book. It is one of the saddest things I've ever read.

Canal Bridge was an amazing book about an Irish story one never hears about or sees in the movie -- Irish in World War I -- fighting for the British against the Germans -- but it was more than that -- it was their Vietnam -- an unpopular war, an angry populace. Yet this is also a fierce love story told through multiple points of view, between lovers, friends, neighbors. Also amazing -- the author is 90+ years old! Not that that should matter in a book, but it's a wonderful tidbit. READ THIS wonderfully written and compelling book!!

I absolutely loved this book, from the first page to the last. Mr.Phelan has honed his writing skills and sharpened his pen (well, computer) to produce this excellent novel of a small village in Ireland and the folks of same who lived through World War I. The writing is good. the storyline crisp, and the characters well defined.
Good job!

The Irish Independent calls Tom Phelan's THE CANAL BRIDGE "Another First World War masterpiece....An ambitious, accomplished and deeply moving contribution to Ireland's formidable corpus of fiction about the Great War."

Books Ireland, the magazine of the Irish publishing industry, describes THE CANAL BRIDGE as "a powerful and deeply affecting novel."

The Irish Emigrant says THE CANAL BRIDGE is "a masterful story...Must be ranked among the more successful of the novels dealing with the First World War."

About a quarter of a million Irish men served in the British army in World War One, and about 35,000 died. Tom Phelan's gripping new novel, THE CANAL BRIDGE, tells the story of two Irish stretcher-bearers (and the lovers and families they leave behind) as they struggle to survive the slaughterhouse that was Europe from 1914-1918.

Due to political divisiveness, Ireland has no tradition of honoring the memory of its WWI soldiers. In writing The Canal Bridge, Tom Phelan has raised awareness of these men and paid tribute to them.