Domain Books

The author, Mary Randolph, was a member of the aristocratic Virginian Randolph family, and was reputed to be the best cook in Richmond, Virginia in the early 19th century. This book is regarded by most culinary historians as the first true cookbook of the American South. Randolph provides an introduction to food and customs of old Virginia and includes recipes and serving instructions for a wide range of soups, beef, veal, lamb, mutton, pork, fish, poultry, sauces, vegetables, puddings, creams, preserves, cordials, plus pickling techniques and the making of soaps, cleansers, and perfumes. As such, the book is not only an excellent cookbook, but also an excellent almanac and reference for historians and writers of fiction concered with the ante-bellum South. The recipes herein can easily be translated into today's methods of preparation, with the use of healthy ingredients. As a native Richmonder, this book was a staple in our home when I was growing up, and I can attest to the tastiness of many of the recipes herein.

Karen Hess does a great job of introducing you to the person that was Mary Randolph. She helps us understand the background of cooking and cookbooks in America. For those who are interested in how cooking was handled in the earlydays of the states, or for those cooks who are always looking to try something different - this book has a lot to offer.

This is a collection of stories of people in small-town America at the turn of the last century. The book attempts to provide insight by presenting "grotesques" or caricatures of people and their lives. The major themes are loneliness and failure, and so one can imagine that the tales are not very uplifting. The book is fairly easy to read and depicts a suprising view of pre-industrial life.

Sherwood Anderson's one great book contains the moving stories of the odd characters of one small American Midwest tone. His exact and lyrical pictures of this world gave new meaning to the depiction of the everyday in American Literature.

"The Wizard," H. Rider Haggard's 21st novel out of an eventual 58, was initially released as a serial in a publication called "The African Review" and then in its complete form in the October 29, 1896 "Arrowsmith's Christmas Annual for Boys." It was the third of four African novels that Haggard wrote from 1895-97, the others being "Black Heart and White Heart," "Swallow" and "Elissa," all of which I can highly recommend, by the way, especially "Swallow." "The Wizard" tells the story of Thomas Owen, a British missionary who ventures into the wilds of south central Africa to bring the Good Word to a tribe called the Amasuka, or the Children of Fire. A previous missionary had been killed by the tribe for his failure to work Christ-like miracles, but Owen, who Haggard eventually refers to as a saint, is undaunted. His advent at the tribe precipitates all manner of problems, including a poisoning attempt on its king, Umsuka; the seemingly inevitable conflict with head medicine man Hokosa; and a civil war between the princes Nodwengo and Hafela. I have yet to read a Haggard book (and I've read almost 40 at this point; the author can prove addictive!) that did not feature several action sequences, and "The Wizard" is no exception. Owen undergoes several trials by fire against the wizard guild--trials that resemble chicken runs with lightning--and the civil war that ultimately erupts in the land of the Amasuka features several exciting battle scenes and sieges. Haggard was a master at clearly describing these epic battle sequences to make them easily visualized by the reader, and his skill is in full flower here.

As in so many of Haggard's other novels, fantastical elements come into play. Hokosa does indeed seem to be in command of some supernatural forces (he is able to commune with the spirits of the dead, for example), and Owen the saint is apparently capable himself of working miracles. He seems to be endowed with the power of far sight and the ability to deflect lightning, and like a true saint, sacrifices much over the course of the novel with a willing and forgiving heart. Like Haggard, he is a true Christian believer, whose faith he deems the only shield that is necessary. Similar to Haggard's 1920 short story "Little Flower," "The Wizard" is basically concerned with the battle between two opposing theologies (in the short story, the Rev. Thomas Bull goes up against the Zulu wizard Menzi), and although both wizards are shown to be truly adept at the mystical arts, both are ultimately swayed by the Christian missionaries, although for very different reasons. "The Wizard" also features still another of Haggard's strong native female characters: Hokosa's ambitious second wife, Noma. Though not nearly in the same league as Ayesha, from Haggard's seminal fantasy "She" (1887), or even as well drawn as Nada (from Haggard's superb 1892 novel "Nada the Lily") or Mameena (from 1913's "Child of Storm"), she is nevertheless a memorable creation, and is largely responsible for pushing the action along in the book's second half. "The Wizard" has been written in a simple, straightforward style by Haggard, and at less than 300 pages, is one of the author's shorter novels. It is filled with Christian allegory but never becomes preachy or polemical. Still, adherents of the Christian faith may be inclined to give it an extra star, if only for the presence in it of apparent modern-day miracles that are scattered throughout. Though little read today, "The Wizard" is a wonder-filled entertainment, and still another feather in Haggard's already crowded cap.

The plot to The Wizard concerns a clergy man, Owen. He hears a story of missionaries to an African tribe. After preaching the tribe reasoned that if servants of God in the bible could do miracles then those particular missionaries should be able to do miracles. They executed a criminal and asked the missionaries to revive the corpse. The missionaries couldn't and so one was executed for telling lies (either about God or about his relationship to God) and the other was sent back to seek a true follower of God.

So Owen sets off to Africa in the hope that God will work miracles and show the tribe the truth. Meanwhile the old king in Africa is getting old and there are many politics involving the following: the king's two sons, the wizards or traditional spiritual leaders and Noma, everyone wants her, she wants power, she is married to the head wizard. Owen shakes things up by continually being commanded to do certain miracles. As members of the tribe convert those in power become concerned about the effect Owen is having on their personal situations.

The writing and mix of action is typical for Haggard. It has the desirable powerful woman in the form of Noma. The exotic landscape and political intrigue worked well. I liked this book except for...

Since the plot concerns a missionary, there is a bit of religious reference here. It seems that Haggard was just a tad confused about church doctrine, which never helps. Owen struggles to deal with converts who already have multiple wives fitting into a monogamous religion. He comes to the "compromise" that if they are already married its OK, but after they convert they can't marry again if they are already married. News flash: that isn't a compromise. That allowance was made for converts to the early Christian church. So the religion thing is just tacked on and is based on stereotypes of Christianity. It makes the book seem quaint at times and is probably the reason this book hasn't been reprinted recently.

If you are a big fan of Haggard or of victorian literature then you probably really like this. If you aren't either of those things then don't bother. This is a good book, but some of the themes it deals with are a bit dated. The more timeless themes are present in other works by Haggard, so try one of those instead. She and Cleopatra are both good, as are others.

A note to scholars: Haggard frequently gets knocked for being racist. In this book it seems that he is actually presenting a very unracist message and trying to make people think. For example, one of the Africans asks Owen if it is true that all Europeans are cannibals. There are other places where the stereotypes seem to be intentionally reversed, maybe to make people consider their own ideas.

A note to all: This book is public domain and can be downloaded from Gutenberg Project and elsewhere. Printed editions are scarce, but don't seem to be stolen from libraries in my area, so that is a good bet for preventing eyestrain.

The book is wonderful. My toddler enjoys the tune very much. We had a question, needed to know how the battery for the book could be changed.

Thanks,
Yogeeta

Our six-year-old son loved Yankee Doodle so much that he brought it home from the school library two weeks in a row. He was fascinated by the pictures, and he enjoyed telling us his own interpretation of the story. After reading (and singing) the book together for several nights in a row, his reading improved noticeably. Not surprisingly, he begged us to get him his own copy.

There is lots of sing-a-long fun for the whole family here. We have several book versions of The Twelve Days of Christmas song, but this one ranks first on the fun-fun-fun meter. Each day a young pig's True Love brings her a gift, hidden behind a fold-over section on the right-hand page, and the gifts pile up and the disorder does too. Finaly, all is in place, in order, and ready to sing.

The illustrations are great, simple, and silly. This is a constrant grab by the youngest with the demand to sing. She's picking up the words as we sing along and by the end of the book, she's singing loudly and confidently, even if its not the right words. When we start, pretty soon everyone, including the cat, has come into the room and joined in.

Kids love singing. They do it naturally and this book is a natural way to nurture that love.

This guide is a compilation of many areas of military information that is useful for both personnel on active duty as well as the reserve, national guard and the retired from nearly all the armed services. The Fact book alone is worth the purchase. I was surprised as well as pleased by the inclusion of so much information. Except for the drawings I was pleased by the effort.

I am enjoying reading this classic to my son. I read it years ago. By reading this story to him, I am finding myself excited and ready to take on a new adventure. The price is unbelievable, too.

Hudson was such a wonderful pastoral writer (although his novel 'A Crystal Age' pushes well passed the pastoral), full of sensitive observations of nature - geography, buildings (yes, they are part of nature too), people (usually humble people) and especially birds. His childhood took place in Argentina but he always had a yearning for England. He did write about that other world too. At the start of 'Afoot in England' it appears he was undertaking his walks - free of guide books quite deliberately - with his wife. But she disappears midway through this book, is not refered too - not even obliquely - any more and I wonder what sort of tragedy might have marked his life at the time of writing. But whatever might have happened it didn't impair his ability to continue observing and reporting in a down-to-earth way (in comparison to, say, the somewhat aloof short stories of Rabindranath Tagore).

Other recommendations:
W H Hudson novels - 'A Crystal Age', 'Green Mansions'
W H Hudson non-fiction - 'A Shepherd's Life', 'Idle Days in Patagonia'
W H Hudson autobiography 'Far Away and Long Ago'
Rabindranath Tagore - selected short stories

I personally find mythology pretty fascinating. On some levels it is an attempt to explain the human psyche. On others, it is an attempt to answer "why." This text is inferior to no other in its stories of myth and legend. With a twist, the author explains many of the verses and dialogue in many of the classic dramas and writings of some of the world's most famous author's throughout the centuries.

Porter's potrayal of Renno,the White Indian has always sparked my imagination. I have enjoyed every book Porter has wrote. Though, Ambushed started slower than the others,it was a great book to read.I thought it was a shame that it was the last one.