Games Books

Martin Gardner has written very entertaining and engaging books about an incredibly wide variety of mathematical worlds and puzzles, and in the process made complex mathematical ideas come to life. This CD features 15 of his books in pdf form. The pdf files consist of page scans, which makes the pdf scroll a little slowly, but that isn't much of a problem.

I highly recommend this to anybody interested in recreational mathematics.

Those of us old enough to remember Martin Gardner's columns in Scientific American should buy this CD at least for old times sake. All the favourite characters like Dr Matrix and his daughter are there and it brings back many happy memories of trying to work out some of the problems Martin posed

It's always a pleasure to read anything by Martin Gardner. By getting his works on disk, I can have them on my laptop - much easier than books. The only reason I give this collection 4 instead of 5 stars is that I would have liked the books to be in a more searchable format than PDFs - a minor complaint.

Millions of people around the world have had their interest in mathematics lit, kindled or fed by the writings of Martin Gardner. His regular column "Mathematical Recreations" appeared in "Scientific American" for over a quarter of a century and those articles were readable, entertaining and highly educational.
This CD-ROM is a collection of all his articles organized according to the book in which they appeared. The books are:

*) Hexaflexagons and Other Mathematical Diversions
*) The Second Scientific American Book of Mathematical Puzzles and Diversions
*) New Mathematical Diversions
*) The Unexpected Hanging and Other Mathematical Diversions
*) Martin Gardner's 6th Book of Mathematical Diversions from Scientific American
*) Mathematical Carnival
*) Mathematical Magic Show
*) Mathematical Circus
*) The Magic Numbers of Dr. Matrix
*) Wheels, Life and Other Mathematical Amusements
*) Knotted Doughnuts and Other Mathematical Bewilderments
*) Penrose Tiles to Trapdoor Ciphers . . . And the Return of Dr. Matrix
*) Fractal Music, Hypercards and More . . .
*) The Last Recreations: Hydras, Eggs, and Other Mathematical Mystifications

The opening page displays icons of all of the books and clicking on any icon switches the display to a split screen where the left section contains the table of contents and the right contains the text of the book. Clicking on any entry in the TOC takes you to that article. The collection is searchable, so if you have only a dim recollection of an article you read years ago, you will still be able to find it.
Martin Gardner is a very humble man, arguing that his skill in mathematical exposition is due to the fact that he does not know very much mathematics. He claims that this forced him to research his subject thoroughly before he began writing the article. I find this the only questionable position that he has ever taken; in my opinion the man is a mathematical genius.

Martin Gardner's 30 years of Mathematical Games columns in Scientific American magazine are some of the most fun and interesting reading I've enjoyed. I searched out back issues in the high school library, had my own subscription, and collected as many of the books as I could find. When I was looking for one of the books I didn't have and found this complete collection, I immediately ordered it. There are very few authors in any field who are as clear in their writing and as enthusiastic in their delivery as he is. The content is easily worth the full 5 stars.

But the reason I dropped the rating to 4 for this particular edition is its sometimes haphazard quality of image scans. In the worst cases, the color or shading in the original figures is now black-and-white and of such high contrast that important distinctions are mostly or completely lost. For example, the reversi piece colors in figure 29 of "New Mathematical Diversions" are indistinguishable as are the four-color map areas (of all things!) in figure 43. Many figures show moire patterns from rescanning the original halftones. Yet other figures have been reproduced with much greater care, even in color. Some pages with landscape layout have been rotated for easier reading but others have not. In a few cases, the black-and-white photographs in my books have been replaced with much better color photos. Some books are missing a back cover scan.

The oddest example though, and somehow in keeping with the topic, is figure 109 in "Fractal Music". In my copy of the book, this is a reproduction of Magritte's "The Two Mysteries" and the caption says so. In this edition, it is a redrawn version and the caption now says it is "a caricature" of the Magritte work. At least 4 of the books appear to be affected by poor images and at least 6 of them appear to be fine.

Despite these problems, it's very handy to have the complete set of books in one place. But I'll be keeping the 4 books with the bad scans until a new edition fixes them.

This is THE definitive book of New York City trivia. More than just informative and intelligent, it's truly fun. It's a great gift for an NYC smart aleck who thinks they know everything about the city, or for anyone who wants to learn a whole lot about what is, of course, the capital of the world. Apparently the author biked from Queens to Manhattan across the 59th Street bridge at an age when most kids wouldn't be allowed to walk to school on their own. So this is clearly a 40-year or so labor of love. Most of all, it's fun. A great buy.

Celebrate New York City with this book, one of the best ways to explore all of what is special about New York City! From the novice to the tourist, from the born and bred to the commuter who works in New York City or just for the curious planning a visit...this book has it all. Little known interesting facts will make your every day stroll down the block into a history lesson. Fun for the holidays to quiz your friends and family.

You won't be able to put it down. Test your own knowledge. Written in an easy reading style, yet thorough and detailed enough to challenge and entertain at the same time.

Enjoy!!!

Definitely a fun and interesting read. It doesn't take a trivia lover to enjoy this book. Volume 2 has its way of sparking your interest on triv-bits about NYC (even those that you normally wouldn't care to know). Once again, only John Barbieri can show you how to really appreciate NYC.

John Barbieri makes the 'second time around' even sweeter, with Mr New York's Trivia Quiz Volume 2. Mr. Barbieri has a talent in bringing us tid bits of information about the greatest city in the world, but with his own unique and entertaining spin. Run, don't walk, and buy this entertaining read.

I give this book a "10". I just couldn't put this book down. You think you know New York, but now you really know New York after reading it. It's a must have even if your not from New York. This book is proof of why there's no place like New York. New Yorkers are the most wonderful people in the world. Only a true New Yorker could write such a wonderful book. This book brings back such great memories growning up in New York. You cover 38 topics, 563 pages on sports, boroughs, politics, theatre etc... I had to go and buy another book because my friends took it and they won't give it back. Thanks for writing it.

This is the first non-beginners' chess book I ever read. Since it was the only chess book I had at the time, I read it over and over until I inadvertently memorized most of it. I can't say that it's the best chess book ever written. There are a few I like better, but this book was the right one for me at the time (1972).

I was a terrible player when I first read this book. Eventually I went on to become a pretty good one. I don't know how much credit Fischer gets. He probably would have told me to get a real job, but I loved the game no matter how awful I was.

I had the Descriptive Notation version in 1972. Sometime I lost it, but a few years ago, I managed to get a copy of it in hardback at a used bookstore for a couple of bucks. No, I am not offering it for sale.

I agree with all of the positive remarks in the previous reviews.
This book is magical. I still remember the names that Larry Evens
gives to each game some 30 years after reading the book. This one
chess book was responsible for me to go from a novice 1600 rated player to a expert almost overnight. The clarity of Fischers approach to the game and his marvelous annotations completely changed my understanding of the game. It is a pity that such a gifted player and writter turns out to be such a creep in real life.

My edition is Faber paperbacks 1972 and covers the period 1957-1967. I always tell people that it is the best (money) that I've ever spent! IM Larry Evans introduces all of the 60 games with titles like "Slaying the dragon", "Peekaboo strategy" and "Meat and potatoes". Although, of course, it is the annotations given by Fischer that make the book - highly recommended.

'My 60 Memorable Games' is a fantastic collection from one of the great players in the history of chess. But, if one happens to run into the Batsford edition of the book, don't trust it at all. Fischer has publicly spoken as to how Batsford has ruined his book. Here is the website where Fischer talks about it. http://home.att.ne.jp/moon/fischer/
It is true. It seems like the people at Batsford are purposely trying to ruin his credibility. They are trying to make him look like an idiot, like a no-good potzer. Nonetheless, the games are awesome and immortal. Fischer should publish a new edition of this book with 40 extra games. He should add the games from 1968 to 1972 and the games from the 1992 rematch.

I own the Faber paperback version. Love his chess. Pretty balanced, down to earth style. Not dry and dull like Capa or Botvinnik, neither is it too speculative and complex like Tal. More like a aggressive positional with scope for tactics - an in between of the above players. I have modelled my play on his style and i had been playing better chess. I dislike studying all those opening books with plentiful variations and theories, but through this book I learnt something about The Sicilian Najdorf and the KID and Sozins which I still play, and develop my own ideas based on the way Fischer handled those openings. Have to admit that this book is full of heavy analysis and variations which my limited abilities cannot fathom everything or visualise too far ahead, the analysis notes helps in the practice of calculating variations in the manner prescribed by Kotov in his book Think Like a Grandmaster as not many games books are filled with all kinds of variations and sub variations. Apart from the book being more for the stronger or advanced player's study, lesser players like myself can gain quite a fair bit of ideas and insight in just playing through and appreciating the games and ideas as played by Fischer or his opponents. If you are only going to own just 1 chess book, then own this one. Pity it is no longer in print. Get hold of the Faber version if you can. Its the original one.

Rec'd book on time; cheaper than area bookstores. This is not the first time I purchased items from Amazon and I plan to continue. Great job! Thanks!

This is a book that you'll love. There's a lot of things to learn in it and some terms you probably can't listen anymore. A perfect book for a really baseball fan !

This is a book that you'll love. There's a lot of things to learn in it and some terms you probably can't listen anymore. A perfect book for a really baseball fan !

This baseball dictionary is clear, concise and helpful, particularly for people like me. I love baseball, but when I was growing up, girls weren't raised on sports, so I became a fan with sketchy knowledge of the rules and nuances of the game. Since I bought this book, I've learned a lot about pitching maneuvers, stats, history of the sport, slang terms and dozens of other things that make baseball more and more interesting to watch. I'm very glad I own it.

In baseball, what is a crackerjack? A cradle? A drawing Card? Feel the apple means what? What happens when you go to the pump? Who made up Murderers' Row? Open the New Dickson Baseball Dictionary and you'll find out.

This A to Z complete listing of baseball term is about the best book on the subject there is. Paul Dickson has put together over 570 pages of facts, terms, definitions and trivia that are sure to please every baseball fan.

Filled with over 100 photos and illustrations you are sure to find just about every baseball word you can think of. Also included are a thesaurus, a section of abbreviations and a fully annotated bibliography.

The baseball purest is sure to love this book as a gift, and it is priced to meet most budgets. Overall this book is great reading and makes the perfect handy reference book!

I picked up the Corax book when I grabbed three or four other Breed Books at my local game store seeing how they were three or four dollars each. Of all the books I bought that day, this was by far my favorite. The Corax are a changing breed in Werewolf: the Apocolypse, but have a completely different feel than anyone else I have tried. Corax are bird-brained scouts. Their style is great if you are the one at the game table constantly cracking jokes.

The book is, as per the norm for a White Wolf supplement, almost completely written from the perspective of an older Corax explaining the world to a younger bird. I personally found myself laughing on regular occasion at this narration. However, the history, purpose, style, and techniques of Corax were well covered.

The book also carries its standard comic in the front, something that was lost with the Revised editions of White Wolf games. This story gives you a short tale surrounding one of the supposedly legendary Corax, Raina. She is more deeply detailed toward the end of the book as well, if Storytellers want to include her in their story.

Overall, this book is quite possibly the best Breed Books White Wolf put out. Its humor, mechanics, and concepts will sell a player on the Corax quickly, and it will give STs something to play with that can both save their werewolf players' lives and annoy them to no end.

I have used this book many, many times to either make a Corax Character for myself, or to help others make their characters. The book is well written, and takes a turn away from the normal kill first and ask questions later style of the Garou (werewolves). The book is very informative and had a lot of background info for the Corax. If you are looking for a different type of character to play in your tabletop or LARP group, this is a great choice. Besides, how can you go wrong when you can have a character that can FLY?

Honestly--I picked up this book because I was going to be creating a character to help a friend out and I was immediately hooked! I read the thing from cover to cover and have several times since. The text is written with a great sense of humor and gives valuable insight to the workings of those wacky little were-ravens.

The wereravens are the messengers and scouts in the world of Werewolf. The history of the breed is narrated by a humorous Corax, who takes things that you think to be written in biblical style writing, and translates it into modern english (VERY funny)
I suggest this book to anyone who plays Werewolf but is getting tired of strictly garou and wants to add some color to the game.

I'll say openly that I'm no fan of Werewolf. Don't get me wrong, I understand the system and I've played my share of the characters, but werewolves always seem to be played a bit to slash and kill for my taste. Well, you can imagine my surprise when a friend lent me this book and told me, despite my less the cheerful comments on the subject of werewolves, that it wasn't like the others. He was definitely right. Not only are were-ravens extremely interesting, and the book it's self amusing. It's a wonderful change of style from the typical werewolf characters. Were-ravens aren't slash and kill characters, but they have other interesting skills that lend depth to any game I've seen them in. Not only would I suggest this book to were-creature fans, I would suggest it to people who aren't (like me) because if you think that were-wolves are all about death, be prepared for a wonderful surprise.

EXCELLENT book. A Coach or parent must read . Easy to understand with a vast amount of effective baseball knowledge with great illustrations . I especially like section that covers understanding kids emotions and psychological effects of ups and downs on players . Most parents and coaches do not realize how they can have a long term negative effect on a player. This book brings a whole new light on to the subject.

Very well written, very informative down to earth explanations and philosophy.

Gives insight that can be used for any age player. Breaks down to a fundamental level. Recommend for any youth coach.

This book isn't bad. I have not finished reading it, but it does give quite a bit of useful information. However, Cal seems to repeat himself several times in the book. There are many books out there that offer adequate, if not better, knowledge of how to play the game. Louisville Slugger's book is good as well as Coaching Pitchers. I would suggest only buying this book if you are a die hard baseball fan and plan on collecting many books. One good thing about the book is that Cal does give that sense of how to be a good teammate and maybe even a great family member.

I picked up this book at the local sporting goods store while I was buying gloves, bats, socks, pants, and etc. for my two sons who were starting little league baseball.

Just a few weeks earlier, I had declined a spot as an assistant coach due to not being "athletic", and I saw Ripken's book as an opportunity to learn some of the things that other dads had learned as kids.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I have not read it cover-to-cover, but have browsed and spot-read it throughout the season.

As a result, I now understand more of the things other dads are yelling out. For example, for those in the field, "keep your eye on the ball" means watch the ball from the beginning of the pitch, all the way to the bat, as it connects with and leaves the bat, then all the way to the glove.

Chapters are given for each of the aspects of the game, pitching, fielding, hitting, catching, running, and so forth. Text narratives are easily understood, avoiding or explaining the sports "jargon" that confuses many beginning players (e.g. "choke up on the bat", "take two"). Pictures explicitly illustrate concepts such as batting and fielding stances.

Ripken's narrative also provides fun training excercises used by coaches (both major and little leagues) to develop baseball skills.

I have kept this book within an arm's reach in my office all summer long. Ripken's baseball insights have enabled me to help my sons develop their own throwing and batting skills.

Maybe next year, I might take that assistant coach position!

How does a kid learn to read...by reading. Get your students into the Reading Zone. I was sucked into the guided reading, small groups, centers, rotations, strategies method of teaching too. However, my students just were not progressing or developing that "love of reading" that I wanted for them. Within a month of reading this book and changing my approach, almost all my students have jumped into the ZONE. This book will change how you teach. It's the next step in your evolution as a reading teacher. Happy reading!

I wish every LA/English/Reading teacher would read this book. Atwell, in her experience and wisdom continues to advocate independent reading and a reading workshop approach as the single most important element of any English classroom. Her language is more blunt and direct than in any of her previous books. Her argument here is that, like most things, if you want to learn to read, you read. All other "related" strategy, vocabulary, grammar, worksheet, book report type activities are a waste of time. Notice the title, though, if that sounds wrong to you. She clearly explains how having students read in a workshop along with teacher conversation, whole group sharing, and a written response in the form of a "letter-essay" are all that is required to create "skilled, passionate, habitual, critical readers." Also includes an excellent chapter on what reading/writing instruction should look like in high school. The book is written with clear, direct, concise language. It is a quick and important read. I agree with her position and her approach. Buy this book!

Another great work by Nancie Atwell. So inspiring and logical. Filled with practical suggestions. I wish my teachers had read this when I was in school. Will challenge all teachers of reading and literature.

I teach middle school English, read and profusely highlighted Nancie Atwell's seminal work IN THE MIDDLE, and once served as an intern at her Center for Teaching and Learning one snowy February in Edgecomb, Maine (a class act, Atwell came in on a snow day to meet with a group of teachers who expected the day to be a complete loss due to the school closing). Under her influence, I built an in-class library at considerable cost, launched a full-steam-ahead reading workshop, and spent countless weekends poring over kids' reading journals so I could write back encouragement and questions. Still, there were always questions and concerns about the workshop method (not to mention the time-intensive journals), plus new reading strategies to reckon with as the years rolled by. This new book deals with both issues - concerns related to workshop methodology as well as the latest reading strategy fads.

For instance, in recent years our school has jumped on the "Sticky-Note Bandwagon" and English teachers were like flies to flypaper following its prescriptions to create better student readers. Under this "Reading Strategies That Work" spell, we began to isolate readings, stop our readers mid-page, and teach kids how to make connections, determine importance, ask questions, make inferences, visualize, and synthesize.

You can imagine my pleasure, then, when I read Atwell's words in a chapter called "Comprehension." She writes, "In the 1990's, I jumped -- VAULTED is a more accurate verb -- onto the comprehension-strategy bandwagon.... In I plunged. I explained proficient reader research and schema theory to my students. I prepared, rehearsed, and modeled a connection-packed read-aloud of a short story by Robert Cormier. Then I passed out individual pads of self-sticking notes and invited kids to activate their existing schema, connect these to the new schema that emerged as they read, and capture it all on sticky notes" (pp. 51-53).

If misery loves company, then you know why I found comfort in these words. You see, I, too, had followed the pied piper. I, too, had sensed something was wrong as my students dutifully parroted my words and terms while playing a game whose rules I spelled out. And yes -- I, too, had sticky-noted my way to reading perdition, wondering all along why so sound a theory was striking such a strident note with my increasingly restive 8th-grade readers.

Enter THE READING ZONE, where the Empire Strikes Back in the form of Atwell reaffirming her original tenets, built on the work of countless researchers such as Frank Smith and Louise Rosenblatt. Turns out, all that stopping to think about reading was interfering with... reading; and all that stopping to write on a sticky note was interfering with... the zone. In the words of Atwell via Rosenblatt, it's a case of efferent reading vs. aesthetic -- reading for knowledge (as in, from a textbook or article) vs. reading for pleasure (as in, from a novel, short story, or poem). Must the "fun" be gutted from reading with a coroner's report of "Death by Sticky Note"? Atwell thinks not.

And when you think about it, it's common sense. As teenagers, how many of us -- while we secretly continued to read THE OUTSIDERS by flashlight under the covers long after Mom had insisted we go to sleep -- remember pausing Ponyboy to write down a connection, detaining Dally to determine importance, or stopping the Socs to synthesize? Not this guy. In a world far away from the sheets and blanket that tented my head, I was in the zone, flipping pages without realizing they were pages, wondering if Johnny would pull through and live or if Dally would ever get to "see" stuff like sunrises. Isn't that what reading was supposed to be? Isn't that what made reading such a vicarious delight?

A satisfying return to sanity, THE READING ZONE came as a needed refresher for me and a reaffirmation of the vows I once took. Having read it, I feel as though I have strayed, become lost, and found my way back again.

For new readers to Atwell, this book will serve as a clarion call to the ramparts. It is an eloquent plea for pleasure reading, for kids, and for sanity in English instruction. In addition to practical "how to" type information, Atwell explains her philosophy with support and includes a special chapter addressing high school English teachers -- those keepers of ancient traditions that often perpetuate the sins of our pedagogical fathers. For anyone who remembers reading MOBY DICK chapter by chapter and pop quiz by pop quiz, it is a whale of an eye-opener.

As for workshop-related concerns, Atwell admits that she, too, struggled under the workload of carrying boxes of reading journals home each weekend. First she broke it up by having kids write to each other for 3 weeks, then her for 3 weeks. And now she's come to having kids write a "letter essay" every 3 weeks (the kids' letters can be staggered) ONLY about a book that they have completed. This reduces the number of letters and allows the kids a greater range of topics to address (Atwell provides prompts) as they look back. It also hones the literary criticism skills in such demand during high school and college.

Overall, the book serves as both long-awaited updating to IN THE MIDDLE and bracing read for teachers and parents who are new to Atwell's teachings and beliefs. As for me, it was proof that Thomas Wolfe was right. You CAN go home again... and I feel like I have. For that, I tip my metaphorical hat to Atwell. As is the case with hers, my workshop classroom will continue to be a work in progress, always built on a bedrock of principles based on choice.

Although Ms. Atwell teaches middle school students, this book applies to grades K-12. She devotes a chapter to high school teachers. The Reading Zone occurs when a reader becomes completely immersed in and engaged with a text. Atwell is convinced that this can happen only when students are given time to read and choice of books. She provides compelling evidence that "the only delivery system for reading comprehension is reading" from published research as well as her many years' experience in the classroom. There is healthy controversy for discussion to be found here, as Atwell argues that the place for reading strategy instruction is in the content area classrooms. With the plethora of reading strategy books out there, this is A MUST READ!

Russian Tarot of St Petersberg is my first deck.
I believe it is one of the best waite clone decks.
Many people recommend beginners to start with a Rider Waite deck, but I think the artwork of Waite Smith deck is quite poorly done. Beginners who are looking for a good looking version of Waite deck should buy Russian Tarot of St Petersberg.
The artwork is delicate and detailed. Conservative individuals should buy this deck as well as there are nearly no nudities.
I strongly advise those who wish to buy this deck to buy the book written by Cynthia Giles as well. The text is informative and interesting. It would let readers look deeper into the symbolism of the deck.

Ever since my eyes fell on this deck I was drawn to it. I am of Eastern European heriatage and it appeals to me. The artwork is beautiful and makes for great readings. I am one who interprets the cards and the artwork, as well as the meaning, when reading the cards, and this deck is wonderful for doing just that. I also love the feeling I get when I'm reading these cards. I can't quite describe it, but it is special. Perhaps it is reconnecting with my family heriatage.
I love this deck!

This deck has delightful illustrations and is a joy to read. I find this to be a pleasant change of pace from my Universal Dali tarot deck. If you want to learn tarot, but the Rider Waite deck is not your thing, I suggest you take a peek into this one. The size of the cards are pleasant.

I have a number of tarot decks that I actively work with,
more for spell work than reading the future, but this particular
tarot deck, the Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg, is without
doubt the most beautiful tarot set I have ever seen. Each card
is elegantly painted by the very talented Yury Shakov and
really captures the spirit and images of old Russia. But, more
importantly, at least to me it seems that Yury Shakov must have
also been a talented magician, because each card is filled with
mystical and occult symbols that are truly amazing. A wonderful,
beautiful tarot deck, regardless if you wish to read the future,
create spells or simply gaze upon them as artistic masterpieces.

Russian artist Yuri Shakov's miniature art work (he painted them at normal card size) is a crystaline cathedral of 78 stained-glass plates. Mr. Shakov incorporated historical icons where symbolically referential. Example: The rotting skull on the Death card may be that of Ivan The Terrible, and as has been mentioned, Stalin is the Devil. The Two of Clubs is a Russian 'Boyer', an influential man, akin to a 'Burger', to which the word is probably related anyway. The Fool is a rag-tagged 'scomorhoki'. Mr. Shakov passed away during his illustration of The Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg, and so not all of the cards were actually painted by Yuri Shakov.

The accompanying book by Cynthia Giles is not at all childish, but rather sophisticated and scholarly. Some very interesting Russian history is presented, which sets the stage for some of the characters on which the cards are modelled. Especially useful are the "keys", or one-word meaning of the card, written underneath the card name. The court cards and the major arcana do not use these keys, however. Be mindful about nuances of meaning that vary from those traditionally given for the Ryder-Waite deck. The Death card, for instance, can in fact indicate physical death. But these things are always subject to context. The arrangement of the court cards together, breaking them out of the more orthodox habit of listing cards One through King, is a bit difficult, and impedes the ease of looking up cards. For example, if you want to look up the Page of Clubs, you don't start with the One of Clubs and flip through to the Ten of Clubs and then Page of Clubs; oh no, this would be too easy. You have to find the section marked "The Court: Card By Card".

The cards are startlingly beautiful, and capture an essence of psychic experience not unlike that revealed by hallucinogenic mushrooms, where a dark "outer space" background frames illuminated colors and strictly define textures. Mood is precisely captured. In some ways, these cards are cold, dark, isolated and lonely, in contrast to the Ryder-Waite, which can be warm, sunny, and in the company of friends or family. I've imagined that this is what existence may look like if our spirits roamed randomly throughout the spirit world, like the Vietnamese girl in the film Hair, who, after becoming a war casualty, was shown floating through space, aware and melancholy.

The integrity of the elemental significance is not well preserved, I think. Clubs and wands are traditionally assigned to the element of fire, but the clubs of the Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg are simply war maces, as opposed to green staves (Ryder-Waite) or torches. Ryder-Waite uses plenty of hints to indicate the suit of wands as belonging to fire: red-haired knights, kings and pages; green buds issuing from staves (inner flame or life force). Still, each and every card has depth and character. Nothing about this deck is dreary, including rendered meanings.

I rarely open the box, and when I do it is mostly to admire the artwork, rather than conduct a metaphysical assay. Imagine the gilt leaded crystal in your fine china cabinet--that glass set you take out on maybe one dinner party a year, and you will have an idea of what I'm talking about. The backs of the cards are gilt bordered, with fine floral scrolling. You will not be disappointed.

If you are interested in developing new skills in how to do the relationship dance, this is the book for you. Fearless Loving is a must read. It doesn't matter whether you're currently in relationship, whether you would like to be in a relationship, married, single, recently split up, or divorced. Rhonda has a talent for bringing together concepts and distilling them into bit size, chewable skills for taking action, which most any one of us can implement, given our commitment.

This book is a valuable tool for me, personally and for my sixteen year marriage/partnership. I'm finding new ways to really listen, communicate, to set boundaries, to clarify perceptions, to honor my feelings and to play.

Fearless Loving also offers an insightful and helpful protocol for people who are interested in a new way to date. I highly recommend this book to my friends and anyone interested in Love.

Rhonda Britten just gets it. This book is so wonderful. She can guide you along your path to loving in a way you never thought you could, but always wanted to. The most poignant truth for me is that everyone is innocent. That's so hard to think and act on, but she's so right about it. I would have everyone believe me innocent until proven guily, so it only seems fair for me to believe that about everyone else. This book will help you with understanding any type of love and how to do it best! She never coaches you to be someone you're not, and even highly discourages behaving as if you were playing a game. She teaches you how to test your prospective partner, or current partner so you can hear what they're not saying (which is more insightful than what they are saying). Rhonda will fill you full of courage and you will feel that you can love confidently without ever sacrificing who you are, or ever compromising what you need from a loving relationship.

Fearless Loving is well-written and packed full of useful tools that if followed will send you on your way to building new love relationships, enhancing the one's you already have and uncovering and discovering the ways in which we block or deny ourselves love. The author jumps into the trenches with you as she reveals her own personal experiences. This approach made it feel real and tangible. The best self-help book I've read in a long time!!

If you've ever been through divorce -- if you've ever had a failed relationship and aren't quite sure why things couldn't have worked out better -- if you're tired of playing relationship roulette -- READ THIS BOOK!! It's the guidebook for finding and keeping love that you've been looking for. And don't forget to read Fearless Living, too! It's your ticket to freedom and to the real YOU!

ok, i only first heard of Rhonda by watching the TV reality show "starting over" + then got hooked onto watching the amazing clarity with which she brought women from all walks of life to.
so my roomate bought this book to assist her from dating another jerk, and boy, is this book stellar! its not thick, not complicated, but really packs an emotional + mental punch. i have even more respect for this woman, who has been through so much + has found a way to positively help others. i've been telling all open-minded pals of mine who really do want to change any "failures" they have to read this. its really good stuff!

When I was in middle school, my friend Scott and I occupied our time on the school bus by playing a string game called "Cat's Cradle." Although repetitive, it was a fun game; it took many hours of play before we finally grew tired of it. That game is one of many described in this book.
Until I read it, I was unaware of how many different string games there were in the cultures of the world. Korea, Japan, China, India, Borneo, the Philippines, Aleuts in Alaska, the Navahos of New Mexico, the Osage of Oklahoma, pygmies of the Congo, the Pacific island of Nauru, and Uap in the Caroline islands is just a partial list of the points of origin of the string games described in this book. The construction of each figure is explained using a sequence of diagrams.
If you are interested in string games from around the world, then you will find this book to be an excellent reference. Had I known of it when I was younger, Scott and I would never have grown tired of playing string games.

I learned some string figures in my childhood and recently became interested again. I found this book on Amazon and promptly ordered it!

The book is quite fascinating. There is a huge collection of string figures which in themselves are interesting to look at and learn how to do. There is also a considerable amount of anthropological information (the author was after all an anthropologist) and some amazing photographs from around the turn of the 19th/20th century. In addition some of the stories and legends that go with these figures, many of which are very old indeed, are collected in the book with relevant figures.

My only complaint is that the string figures on the cover are from the collection of 20 or so at the end of the book for which no instructions are given because there wasn't time due to the book being in the final stages of publication! (Remember this was in the time long before computers). It's still however a collection which many can enjoy for all sorts of reasons.

I had a copy of this book as a child and bought this for my son who is 10. It's quite interesting, the instructions are easy to follow, and since we homeschool, it's made for some nice opportunities for geography and culture discussions. Adults could learn some of them for family-friendly parlor tricks at parties.

Considered by many String Figure people to be the "Bible" in this field. It has easy to follow instructions using what has become standard nomenclature. This book is referenced in recent writings probably more than any other. Anyone with interest in String Figures should have this book in their collection.

Once you master the language of manipulating the string--with a little patience-- you'll find the explanations easy to follow. The selection of string figures was wonderful. A strong collection --a legacy that has travelled throughout the world. Pass it along to your children.