Wizard Books

Frostfell by Mark Sehestedt is the last book of the greatly disappointing Wizards series. When I saw average 5 stars from 10 reviewers, I was really expecting something good, if not special. In the end, I failed to see what is the fuss all about.
First something from the good side. The author does a great job of describing the wastes, and people that live there. Gives really detailed view of the Lythari and their habits. Side characters are also developed and have interesting backgrounds. Here I'm talking about Lendri and Gyaidiun (or whatever its spelled). Besides that, the story also has a nice background, with foundations well in the past. A standard fantasy story, but again told in a very nice way. Sehestedt writes in a flowing, reader-friendly manner.
The main character is the one of the most uninteresting characters I ever saw. She cant carry a chapter, let alone the whole novel. Also there is no introspection from any of the characters, so that makes them bleak and easily forgettable. The plot lacks any intrigue and twists, and it is the boring "go from here to there and defeat evil threatening the world" plot. Also I had a feeling half the book is in italics, with all those expressions in the language of the Wastes.
All in all, a mediocre book at best, closer to 2 stars then 4.
The series of these Wizards books, as a whole, are an epic fail. One decent book (Bloodwalk), one mediocre (this one), one with a good story written in a very confusing way (Blackstaff) and another Cordell classic (Darkvision), a completely unreadable and amateurish work. Mathematically, the series score 2.25 stars in average, which is more then disappointing. Read Bloodwalk, and skip the rest.

As a huge fan of the Forgotten Realms, I tend to be a tough judge of the novels. Well, this is surely one of the better ones in recent years. The main character was well done and her predictament is well played out by the author.

Even better are some of the side characters, particularly the lythari and his human "brother." The action, although intense, is certainly not the focus of the book. A good thing for me.

This book is a dungeons and dragons novel set in the forgotten realms world.
And is Mark Sehestedt first novel.
I enjoyed the book. The author has terrific talent and a flair for writing. Although I did find parts difficult to follow, and hard understand what was happening.
Mr Sehestedt has done his research into the realms , and anybody interested in forgotten realms will love the detail in the book.
And those who don't know the realms will still enjoy the book. The characters and story are all good, the writing excellent.
A must read for realms fans. And I look forward to more books by Mr Sehestedt.

I'm really glad I picked up this novel. I was itching for a good book about wizards and I've been dissappointed in the past about the lack of meat to books where wizards take center stage. This one is full of fight, danger, mystery, drama, action, and lots of magic. LOVE IT!

Mark Sehestedt's Frostfell is one book of a series of stand alone novels called "The Wizards". It's a gripping story about a Cormyrian Warwizard and her adopted son set in the Endless Wastes long after the Tuigan invasion. For Realm's fan this area is brought to amazing life by Mark's style of description and grasp of the scenery.

As the last survivor of a small village, Jalan is found among the wreckage by Amira, a Warwizard tasked to care for the child. Amira ultimately becomes attached to the boy and comes to think of him as her own, little realizing the history of his heritage. When a cadre of sorcerer's kidnap the child, she enlists the aid of Gyaidun and Lendri, blood brothers and exiles of a remote elven tribe, as well Kwarun, the tribe's shaman.

The boy's bloodline holds a story and secret that the group unravels as they give chase to the kidnappers. Amira, as a foreigner in the Wastes, comes to learn more about the history of the land and people that live there and ultimately accept and embrace her role in it's unraveling.

Mark's description of the cold, empty vastness of this region leaves the reader with goose bumps and a sense of desolation. His method of showing this region is palpable as he weaves his story around the backdrop of the land. The characters are rich in complexity and his seamless control of the "foreign-ness" of Amira in this region is perfect.

The story is primarily told from Amira's point of view and Mark captures the communication differences in the dialogue wonderfully. The learning experiences between Amira and the others are fascinating as they struggle to understand one another. Mark's ability to maintain an intense pacing whilst the characters are forced to interact and save the child are amazing. Many times the reader is caught up in the middle of the character's frustrations and anger and then relieves the pressure by providing leaps of progress in the character's interactions.

The story itself is very well thought out and the plot balanced between lore and character with no distinction of the two. As a Realm's fan and reader there is a lot of showcased material in this story but to enjoy the book on its own does not require background information. This was a strong tale and it holds its own weight even without the background knowledge.

A wonderful and enjoyable story to add to any fantasy collection.

This is a great classic story and one that is worth reading. McKillip's writing is just so beautiful and haunting that you have to read it to understand. It might be an older series of books, but its creativity really stands up.

Patricia McKillip wraps up her Riddlemaster trilogy in a manner that other current fantasy authors have yet to match. If the second book of a series tends to be the weakest, the last is the most likely to disappoint. Here, the trilogy gets even more amazing.

In the aftermath of Heir of Sea and Fire, Raederle and Morgan have been reunited in Anuin, where the dead are still roaming around, Deth has vanished, and Raederle is afraid to marry Morgan because of her fears of her own strange ancestry. Morgan brings a shipful of wraiths to his home of Hed, and confronts the family who sees that he is no longer as he once was.

And the lands of An are teetering on the edge of war, with shapechangers creeping through the land and the sinister Ghisteslwchlohm somehow at the middle of it. "There are men in it who have already died, who are still fighting, with their bodies possessed by nothing human." So Morgan and Raederle must go on the ultimate mission -- a mission that will take them to the heart and history of their world, the secret of the shape-changers and what they are, and what Morgan's secret destiny is...

McKillip doesn't falter for a moment in this book, the third of the series; she's never written doorstopper epics, but her books are some of the most outstanding fantasy in print. Her writing evolved even over the course of the trilogy, becoming more introspective and more spellbinding in its descriptions. She gives you only a hint of how something looks, but every sense about how it feels and how it is perceived by the characters.

Morgan and Raederle have both grown from the beginnings of their initial books. Morgan is now a more tormented, multidimensional person than the guy who hid a crown under his bed and got sour milk dumped on his head. He feels the weight of An on his shoulders, and experiences equal determination and fear. Raederle has also changed, since finding out about her mixed heritage and why she has her mysterious powers. In a way, this knowledge about her past balances out with Morgan's knowledge about his future destiny. She's not the usual fantasy girlfriend whose sole purpose is to provide the hero with some romance, but a strong and independent female character who acts as a vital part of the storyline.

The supporting characters are also amazing: Deth is his usual ambiguous self, where you can't be sure if he's working for or against Morgan. Rood is still delightful, but transformed into a more serious character. And we see more of Raederle's quirky father Mathom, Morgan's sister Tristan and brother Eliard, and various other faces from the past two books.

This is one of the few fantasy stories where you simply can't guess what is ahead. Questions and hints laid out in the previous two books are followed up on, and pretty much no threads are left dangling. You won't guess beforehand what Morgan's destiny is or what the shapechangers were, or even how they can be dealt with. You won't know what Deth's plans are until he reveals them, or whether he's a villain or a hero. As in real life, the answers are not laid on the table for everyone to see; what you see is not necessarily what is real, and what the hero thinks about a person is not necessarily what is true.

Unlike most fantasies, this book is not padded for extra length, given an enormous cast of characters or an overly complicated system of kingdoms and hierarchies. There are no stereotypical elements like elves, dwarves, gray-bearded wizards, or Dark Lords; only shapechangers and human beings. McKillip's magic is not the slam-bang-whizz-sparks-of-light type, but a subtle, strange, powerful kind.

The climax to one of the best fantasy stories since Lord of the Rings, and one of the best out there. A must-read.

An eloquent tale that has a life and spark of its own. Much can be learned within its pages for those fond of riddling and star dreaming. I read the last first by accident and spent seven years trying to trace back the riddle. I recommend this book to all. A great gift from a great writer.

The Star-bearer (Morgon of Hed) and Raederle of An, united at last, continue their search for their true identities in this final volume of McKillip's 'Riddle-Master' trilogy. "Harpist in the Wind" won the Locus Award in 1980 and I feel 'award-winning' is the least amount of praise one can apply to this trilogy. McKillip 'dreams awake' when she spins her fantasies, and that's how it feels to read them.

Love, family ties, and even magical bonds to the land play an important part in these novels, as they do in many other great fantasy epics such as 'Lord of the Rings' and Norton's Witchworld trilogy concerning the triplets Kemoc, Kyllan, and Kaththea. Vengeance, which was a prominent theme in "Heir of Sea and Fire" slows to a cold drizzle in "Harpist in the Wind" and in one case dries up completely.

Revenge might indeed be a 'dish best tasted cold' but if it gets too cold, the hero could end up feeling sorry for his erstwhile enemy or even forgiving him, as does Morgon. His gradual change from innocent farmer-prince, to vengeful shape-changer, to the Star-bearer spins out the most challenging riddle of this trilogy. Who is the Star-bearer? What is his true purpose?

"Stars, children with faces of stone, the fiery, broken shards of a bowl he had smashed in Astrin's hut, dead cities, a dark-haired shape-changer, a harpist, all resolved under his probing into answerless riddles"--at least in the beginning of "Harpist in the Wind."

As in all of McKillip's fantasies, there are scenes of high astonishment and magic in 'Harpist,' most especially in Morgon's discovery of wizards other than the evil Ghisteslwchlohm who are still alive, most prominently Yrth, the creator of Morgon's three-starred harp. Or is this another of the riddles the Star-bearer must solve? What is the relationship between Deth, the High One's harpist who betrayed Morgon to Ghisteslwchlohm, and Yrth, a great wizard who had once been called the Harpist of the magical city of Lungold?

In the end, all riddles are answered and the Star-bearer comes into his heritage, although his friends and loved ones (and the reader) seem to realize who he is long before he does. Such is usually the case with heroes.

The Riddlemaster triology is my favourite story ever. I can't count the number of times I have read it, immersing myself in the beauty of the language and characters, always hurting a little when I come to the end. I have actually printed out and framed the last paragraph of Book Three, because I think it is a piece of the most beautiful writing I have ever come across.

"The Making of the Wizard of Oz: Movie Magic and Studio Power in the Prime of MGM--And the Miracle of Production No 1060" is just downright enthralling. It is an expose' that breaks down the machinery and the machinations of what it took to get a major movie made in the days of the autocratic studio heads. The book offers an entertaining and totally engrossing look at the legendary film. Judy, Ray, Jack, Bert, Margaret, and Toto, too, are all analyzed in this brilliant work. The songwriters, the respective directors, the many other craftsmen, as well as the "little people," in more than the figurative sense, are all here. Vividly embellished with stills from the production, the book's text is just as captivating. The familiar as well as the unfamiliar stories about the production make for a most satisfying read for any "Oz" fan. It is also a good primer for anyone with an interest in pursuing film as a career.

It doesn't matter unduly if you didn't grow up watching MGM's 1939 color movie "The Wizard of Oz" in re-release or on TV. You might think that a "Munchkin" is what used to be called a "doughnut hole." You may think of Judy Garland only as Liza Minnelli's mother, and avoid prewar movies like the plague. Maybe you didn't feel that shock of recognition that "Cora the Coffee Lady" in Maxwell House TV commercials was none other than Margaret Hamilton, the green-faced Wicked Witch of the West.

Of course, if you love "The Wizard of Oz" you've love THE MAKING OF THE WIZARD OF OZ all the more. I just read this book for the second time (the first upon its initial publication), and was astonished and pleased by how well it has held up. Author Aljean Harmetz has crafted a book relevant not only in terms of one particular "prestige" movie off the Hollywood assembly line; but indeed her insight, research and friendly presentation make the book stand as a metaphor of all Hollywood filmmaking during the height of the Studio Era, ca. 1940. Perhaps the late Irving Thalberg was one of the few Hollywood insiders who could "keep the whole equation of pictures inside his head," but Ms. Harmetz opens up this world for us, and shows us both its realism and its wonder.

We return to an era in which studio moguls were as eccentric and powerful as today's software barons, when studio hands were nonunionized yet intensely loyal to their studios, when no movie studio even thought about a future containing broadcast TV, when movie stars were better known than Presidents or Kings, and when Technicolor would give you any color except the one you wanted. Nonetheless, solving the creative problems inherent in bringing L. Frank Baum's novel "The Wizard of Oz" to the screen was seen as an invigorating set of challenges to be met and conquered.

Back then, MGM had a real "can-do" attitude. So no one had
ever created a moving tornado for a film? After two tries the MGM tech people got it right, and the depiction of that horrendous twister so set the tintype for what a tornado ought to look like that it persists in our collective consciousness today, despite today's ubiquitous video cameras.

There were no tape recorders. How, then, to raise or lower voices artificially for dubbing? This book tells how. What happened when Buddy Ebsen almost died from an allergy to aluminum dust he had worn as the (originally intended) Tin Man? Why was Margaret Hamilton burned severely and ignored, yet Billie Burke turned an ankle and was whisked off the set in a white ambulance? Why did the film need four directors and half a dozen screenwriters, yet was fondly recalled as a labor of love by practically everyone except a prematurely embittered Judy Garland? Was the film the great commercial and critical success you might think it would be? And, by the way, what about those Munchkins' alleged sexual proclivities? Excellent answers provided by excellent research present a fully-formed world view, warts and all.

THE MAKING OF THE WIZARD OF OZ would be a wonderful companion to the new restored DVD version of the film, which is so crisp you can count the gingham checkers on Dorothy's blue dress (which was actually violet, to fool the Technicolor process). How were the ruby slippers made? What about that poppy field? Read on. Some critics have said that Harmetz's later work is not as excruciatingly well researched as THE MAKING OF THE WIZARD OF OZ, but I don't care. This book and the movie are not only as much fun as ever, but a great education in the good old/bad old days of the Hollywood "Dream Factory." Don't miss it!

MGM's movie,based on the book by L. Frank Baum,"The Wizard of Oz,"is nearly 70 years old. But its stars, Judy Garland, Bert Lahr, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Billie Burke and Margaret Hamilton, still shine brightly as ever, and the movie continues to be a particular favorite of young and old.

Aljean Harmetz is the daughter of a woman who worked backstage at MGM. Harmetz's mother worked in the Wardrobe Department; she was able to estimate sewing costs on thousands of costumes, from 1937 to 1951 --including the nearly one thousand needed for "The Wizard of Oz,"alone.

So starting from this birds' eye view, Harmetz is well able to explain how "movie magic and studio power in the prime of MGM" resulted in "the miracle of Production #1060." To that end, she did hundreds of interviews, with actors, singers, songwriters, cameramen, screen writers, costumers, directors, and technicians. She succeeded in bringing the great glory days of MGM, under its sentimental czar L.B. Mayer, to technicolor life.

Harmetz explains how the Emerald City was designed and built; how the cyclone was created. She tells us how Judy Garland's immortal "Over the Rainbow" was nearly lost, as envious, nitpicking producers responded after the film's first screening: "Why does she sing in a barnyard? Take it out!"

The author gives us fine portraits of Margaret Hamilton, who played the Wicked Witch of the West--"she enjoyed every moment screaming about those slippers." Binnie Barnes, who played the Good Witch Glinda, retiring to her pink and blue dressing room to await her next call. Bert Lahr creating the endearing cowardly lion-- his costume weighed over 50 pounds. "It was like carrying a mattress around with you," he said. And he could only sip liquids once in full makeup. Ray Bolger, the dancer who created the Scarecrow, " I have no bones. I have nothing inside me. It's just the wind holding me up." And Jack Haley who inherited the Tin Woodman's part after an allergic reaction to the aluminum paste makeup, put Buddy Ebsen, first cast for the part, in hospital.

You should find you read these marvelously detailed pages with great enjoyment, and if you're as sentimental a fool as I can sometimes be, even with emotional involvement. If you love the movie, you might want to try to find this book.

The making of the Wizard of Oz is a wonderful book to anyone who has grown to love the Wizard of Oz. You don't even have to be an obsessive fan of the movie like myself to enjoy it. It is extremely well researched. If information is not known the author says it so and does not attempt to recreate history as some nonfiction works do.

Perhaphs what makes the 1939 movie so wonderful is learning all the behind the scenes things that went into making it. This book gives respect and a knew sense of understanding as to what movie making was like in the biggest studio of that time. It is written so that it doesn't need to be read front to back. You can start in the special effects section and finish in the chapter about the script, or the music, or the directors (did you know there were four?).

Did you know that the movie had the work of 10 writers or do you know how the surrender dorothy scene was done? Well, in this book you find out his and thousands more did you know facts to impress friends. I recommend this to anyone who has watched the Wizard of Oz. And if Oz didn't win an academy award for best picture in 1939 than that was because the academy didn't have this book to help choose.

If you're a die hard fan of this classic film then you'll want to read this well-researched "making of" tome. The book is filled with all sorts of wonderful trivia tidbits but most of all it gives an insightful review of those behind the camera in a way I've yet to find in other "OZ" related books. The one and only shortcoming of this book is to be found in the number of pictures, in my opinion there could have been more, otherwise it's a behind the scenes look that most OZ fans won't be disappointed with.

I bought this game to suplement a Spades group I run. When we have 6 people, 2 have to sit out while the others play. So now with Wizard accomodating anywhere from 3 to 6, I can have everyone play, no matter how many people! We've had 18 playing - 12 at Spades, and 6 at Wizard. It's a lot of fun.

Wizard Deluxe Edition Card GameThis is a great game with no sure winners. It has become our favorite game for our RV group. It is easy but competitive. Probably good for kids but great for adults

This is a fun card game especially for families with older children (10 and up). It's a trump game that requires concentration and confidence, but not difficult like bridge.

This is a fun game. The strategy changes a lot based on the number of people playing. It is like Hearts, but less frustrating to those of us without much luck.

AS a family we have played this game many times. It's fun for ages 8-80. The rules are simple and easy to follow. One does not have to be a card shark to enjoy this and it works for any number of players from 3 to 6. I would highly recommend it for those who enjoy having family around the table.

When I was finished with the book I was already wishing to read the sequel of this book "Emilyn's Moon". When I read this I pictured myself on the Mountains and looking at the Island of Wales. I was all over this book 24/7. Rating this book I give a 5 out of 5. I sugest those who want a good but not long book read this! - Reader Nick age 10 permissioned by mom

This review is for all three books in Jenny Nimmo's Magician Trilogy (The Snow Spider, Emlyn's Moon, and The Chestnut Soldier).

Jenny Nimmo's writing style is very powerful, and her characters come to life as you read these books. The descriptions of locations (people's houses, the Welsh countryside, the town, the school) are so vivid that you can immediately picture yourself there. These books have a few scary parts, but the endings are very positive and satisfying.

These books are recommended for anyone who enjoys fantasy or Welsh mythology. Similar books include Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising Sequence and Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Chronicles.

I picked up this book for my [...]son since he was required to read something for 20-30 min twice/week in [...]it could be anything. At that pace, it took us a few months to get through it, but we were never disappointed in the book. It's written from the perspective of a child my son's age & the words were not too difficult for a young reader. Some of the parts dealing with loss are maybe too disturbing for some very young readers. The mystery & the discovery throughout the book kept our interest. We have now purchased & started the 2nd book in the series & will begin the 3rd book as soon as we are finished with it. Well worth the money of a hardcover edition, as it's a keeper.

Snow Spider by jenny nimmo is an fantasy book that I would recommend to any ages. The first thing that happens in the story is that Gwins sister gets lost in a storm,up in the mountain and she never returns.
One year later, Gwin had his birthday on the same day his sister dissapeared.Gwins grandmother gave Gwin some weird stuff like:a horse with a broken ear,a piece of seaweed and his sister's scarf that was found up on the mountain a couple of weeks after she was lost and much more.
At the weirdest time, he was told to throw them into the wind,and he would find something weird,so he did. that night Gwin found something so cool,but out of the ordinary. It was a spider. No original spider no,it was a snow spider. I wont tell you much more than that but i will tell you that,later in the story he gets a flute. When he starts to play it he hears something you might hear every day. But the things he hears is something from a different planet. It was little children voices screaming,playing,laughing and much more. Soon he sees his spider spinning a web all over his room,he then started to see a mysterious city with the little children in it.
When his grandmother finds out Gwin gave the stuff to the wind. She was so proud. The reason why she was so proud was that,she said that Gwin was a magician. Here are the clues that he would be a magician was: the birthday gifts,not something you would get for your birthday from grandma,the flute that flies into your open window and lands in your lap,and last,a spider shaped as a snow flake,white as snow and silky webs so silky and silver and sparkly.
Gwin is the type of boy you would call different to other people. He is very imaginative and different. His friends think of him as being weird and crazy. At first Gwin doesn't believe in the hole magician thing. His sister did but she didn't talk to him about it at all. Until Gwins grandma was telling stories to Gwin and made him wonder about things like that. When he got alittle bit older he would go to school and get books about it. thats my description about him. About Gwin.That was my description of the Snow Spider.

Snow Spider by Jenny Nimmo is an exciting and courageous book I would recommend this to our age or an older age group because of the variety of words and sentances. In the beginning of this book you would find out that Gwyn's grandmother (called Nain) tells Gwyn about his ancestors who where magicians.
Then for his 9th birthday she gives him 5 gifts and tells him that if he gives them to the wind and gets something in return then he is a magician. Well it turns out that he is a magician. He gets a couple of cool things back like a snow spider who can spin silver picture webs. And a pipe so he can hear the the the sounds to the picture. He uses his power to do some really cool things! However you cant have a book without running into some problems right? Well in this book a couple of things happen like for example his spider Arianwen gets thrown into the sink because his mom doesn't like spiders so he has to use his powers to get her back.
One of the gifts is a broken horse, Nain tells Gwyn that he shouldn't give the horse to the wind but when he went to the mountain the wind took it from his hands and it released it to be a demand horse. Read the book to see if his powers can overcome the demand or if Gwyn will let his ancestors down!
The book takes place mostly near Gwyn's house. He goes up to the mountains a couple of times to let things go to the wind. He also goes to school, he goes to the Lloyds house, and he goes to his nains house. He says that nains house is like a library it is full of so many books. Gwyn however lives on a farm with cows and sheep. There aren't a lot of characters in this book but the main character would have to be Gwyn he is a 9 year old who is looking for adventure. Nain comes back and forth in the book but is his grandmother who gets attacked by the demand horse. She knows a lot about Gwyns ancestors so that's how Gwyn knows about every thing his ancestors did. I would also say that Bethan (his sister) plays a big part because the people in the web kidnapped her on his birthday a few years back and now that he is a magician he needs her so she comes back as Eirlys.
So read the book to find out if Gwyn defeats the demand horse of if the horse can out smart him and keep destroying the town!

My friend introduced me to Wizard a year ago. Since then I bought a set and play it with all my family and friends. They went out and bought their own sets. My wife is a card hater and she insists on playing it at family get-togethers. It is a great and easy game.

We were hooked the very first time we played and, subsequently, so has everyone to whom we have introduced it. It's difficult to explain in this review, but the directions that come with the cards are very clear. As with all card games, luck plays a part, but in Wizard you soon become aware of the strategies as well. Bidding and making your bid is the primary premise of the game. Our ten year old grandson grasped the concept about half way through the first time we played with him. He was hooked!

Great game. We played this game for hours. The learning curve is not too bad and the scoring is a little difficult but everyone really enjoyed this game. Our family's ages are 6 to 82. Highly entertaining and I really recommend this card game.

I got this game for Christmas, and love it! I am 18 and play it with my dad and grandparents. I like it, because I finally have a chance to beat my dad and grandpa, and my grandparents like it because it is more challenging and spontaneous than Bridge. It's small enough to play at home, on vacation and in airports during layovers! This game is highly reccomended!

Four years ago I was introduced to the game of Wizard by an ex-boyfriend and his family. That relationship didn't last, but my facination with the card game remains. It is a great game because of its flexible number of players, fast-paced and above all, entertaining. It is an easy game to teach new players because it is based on several popular card games including hearts, spades, and whist. Nearly everyone who I have played the game with enjoys it and rushes out to purchase their own deck.

The good Professor is one funny guy. This book will have you rolling on the floor laughing out loud. And it will do so while educating you on the debacle/scandal that was and is the Clinton Years. From the bimbo eruptions to the servicing intern, it covers it all. If you want to indulge in the lighter side of "historical analysis," this is the book for you. Enjoy!

The good Professor is one funny guy. This book will have you rolling on the floor laughing out loud. And it will do so while educating you on the debacle/scandal that was and is the Clinton Years. From the bimbo eruptions to the servicing intern, it covers it all. If you want to indulge in the lighter side of "historical analysis," this is the book for you. Enjoy!

Think of Dave Barry's humor gone Gonzo and interested in Politics. Mix that with the Impeachment of Bill Clinton and what came out would look an awful lot like this book. This was a truly refreshing and funny read. I laughed so hard a few times that I thought I was going to hurt myself.

The good Professor is one funny guy. This book will have you rolling on the floor laughing out loud. And it will do so while educating you on the debacle/scandal that was and is the Clinton Years. From the bimbo eruptions to the servicing intern, it covers it all. If you want to indulge in the lighter side of "historical analysis," this is the book for you. Enjoy!

Professor Jerry Mander's tounge-in-cheek 'review' of President Clinton's approach to President of The United States is an entertaining and enlightening view of today's politics. Very right-winged, the book is chock full of tidbits from the controversial Starr Report as well as pertinent stories, facts, and related conjecture. Not for the faint-of-heart or liberal minded or those others in opposition to the Vast Right-Winged Conspiracy.

Wonderful picture. A great thing to add to any kids Library. I have enjoy this book with our 6 year old. She like the movie and she wanted a copy of the book. So I keep looking for the Wizard of Oz with lot of colorful picture and this one was right on.

Thanks so much

Racheal Kirkland

Before I buy any book I always read all the reviews, and go and look at them at a book store. I went and looked at all the available Wizard of Oz books. This one by far beat all the rest. The artwork is so beautiful, and it just keeps on coming, page after page, with lot's of double page spread pictures. There is a lot of detail and enchantment to the pictures. It really takes you to another place in your imagination. The stroy as everyone
already knows is a classic that every child will enjoy. I can't say enough about this book!!!!

The illustrations are beautiful and the story is condensed just enough to keep the interest of my curious 6 yr. old.

I love the Wizard of Oz books.... I just can't seem to get enough of them.... it brings your mind to a whole different world.... its great for young adults, teens, and adults.... I give it an A...

It was very hard to find the Wizard of Oz story for toddlers... it is certainly close to impossible to find it in stores! This book is beautiful and just perfect for the 3-4 year old I purchased it for. Wonderful pictures and story is perfectly written for toddlers to understand and sit through, captivate.

came on time and in great condition. Still prefer 1st ed and 2ed over 3rd ed and up any time.

If you are reading this review, and you want to play the new 4th Edition D&D, you have come to the wrong place.

Unearthed Arcana was written in 1985. I was about 10 years old and was playing AD&D, which consisted of the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manuals 1 and 2, and the Fiend Folio. That year however, Gary Gygax and Jeff Grubb decided to try to add a further dimension to the 1st Ed game.

This game not only adds dimensions, it adds a number of "fixes" to the game to raise problems that had come about from the initial books.

Problem 1 - the level limits for non-human characters were too low. This book addresses this by giving higher ability score characters higher limits. (GOOD)
Problem 2 - the fighter subclasses do not have distinct enough roles. This book separates the Paladin to become a subclass of Chavalier, and the Barbarian becomes a new class of fighter. Therefore, we have the "knight" style classes, Chavalier and Paladin, and the "warrior" classes - Ranger and Fighter, who get weapon specialisation, and the "tanking" brute class the barbarian. (GOOD)
Problem 3 - charisma is not physicial attractiveness, but personal magnetism. Solution - introduce (redundant) seventh attribute = Comeliness. (BAD)
Problem 4 - characters not heroic enough. Solution - make uber powerful characters who are rewarded for rolling high ability scores. Encourage players to cheat or do anything to raise ability scores. (BAD)

It appears that after Unearthed arcana, for all its great new spells, magic items, class changes, and variation of the races (now you can play a Drow = dark Elf, and history was never the same again) fuelled the creation of mega-powerful characters. Ability scores rise in importance. The new race subtypes add an element of richness into the characters that was welcome. The new classes were generally good (with the exception of the comical Thief-Acrobat) but a DM might wish to be cautious before introducing all the changes here. However, this book is full of something that I see lacking in the newer volumes of the D&D products - imagination.

I've found some of this book unique enough and copious in content.... Well, there's a section on pole arms in this book which is outstanding, filled with [historical] data. In geocities/timessquare/dungeon/9939, you'll find a pole arms section in which I've taken the time to post this out-of-print invaluable material. [And there's a link at the bottom of the page. =)]

This is an outstanding book, and is worth almost any pricetag for its original and truly unique content. It litereally is unearthed arcana.

This is the book that changed a casual passtime into an obsession for me. It adds a new layer of depth and magic to the D&D system. It was here that Dark Elves became player characters, the barbarian was introduced. Paladins became the horsemen they always should have been. Here are advanced spells, weapons & armor, character classes (thief-acrobat, higher level druids, cavaliers, and more), and races. At last you could be more defined that simply "elf" or "dwarf." This book loosened up the system a bit and allowed for player individuality and choice. I love this book so much that I still prefer to play 1st edition D&D-- though I have played many many other systems-- because this book allows for so much freedom and creativity.

I KNOW this book is good, because someone always ends up stealing my copy (the true mark of a book's greatness), but I always replace it-- and it's worth whatever I have paid for it.

It's so good, I think it would make interesting reading for a non-gamer. I gave it five stars because they don't allow six.

Highest possible recommendation.

This is the final piece in the puzzle that is the AD&D rules - Gary Gygax's last major contribution to the game system, before the diluted 2nd edition came out, is displayed in its full glory here. It's obvious that this is a work for intermediate and advanced players, since some of the races and classes here (and the attribute-rolling system!) are over-powered for easier, beginning campaigns. In addition to the dark races (such as the Drow, Duergar, and Svirfneblin), and the advanced classes (such as the Hierophant, Acrobat, Cavalier and my fave, the Barbarian), there's also new weapons, hundreds of new spells, hundreds of new magical items, the deities of the demi-humans, and much more. It's sure to add an entirely new level to your campaigns!

I have to agree with the other reviews on this book, it's a MUST have at any price.

The art from the early Dragonlance covers has always been some of my favorite fantasy art, and this book dives deeper in the vaults to bring out art that if you're like me might never have seen. Some of the art is from the dragonlance calandars, posters, etc. This book will leave you with a deep appriciation for Larry Elmore and the other great artists who've done these covers.

I was born with the name of Raistlin.. naturally i would want to see the character i was named after. This book provided me with the start to my passion with Dragon Lance.
It goes into detail and explains everything (how the dragon riders stay on the dragons etc.).
I have one copy and so does my Dad, but mine has pages missing from when he used them as posters. I want another copy but it depends how much i am willing to pay on e bay.
This book is worth getting for a price such as £50.

Enjoy.

This book is worth every penny I paid to get it. It includes a short story about how the Dragonlance epic came to be, the four original color roughs (by Larry Elmore), sketches of the dragonlance and saddle and how to use it, sketches and pictures of the many types of draconians, armor and weapons, beautiful oil and acrylic pictures, a little history and pictures of the Heroes of the Lance, pictures and history of minor characters such as Lord Lorac, the elven king, and much, much more! This book is a must-have for any Dragonlance collector. You won't be disappointed!

This gorgeous book is one of the finest compendiums of TSR artwork ever created - it is loaded full of hundreds of illustrations, free of print, on glossy paper; included are every piece of full-color artwork ever created for Dragonlance (up through 1987), supplemented with rich text and many, many concept sketches that appear nowhere else! For Dragonlance afficionados, or those who appreciated classic art by Easley, Caldwell, Parkinson, Elmore, and more, this is the ideal collection.

This was an absolutely beautifully laid out book. It contains 'round 40 full color full page prints of paintings of the dragonlance saga. Along with the prints there is also background info. on how the artists put the images together, along with an intriguing storyline that ran with the images. An absolutely fantastic book... can't say much more about it!