Connecticut Books

Very well written, but why not, it was written by John T. Fitch who has spent so much time researching the Fitch family. He knows our family inside and out. This book traces the early Fitch family back to England. There are numerous pictures in it from documents in old England. If you don't understand some of the words from old England have no fear, he gives a wonderful Glossary with definitions. He explains how the Fitch name and it's different spellings came about and has an extensive index. There are explanations on the different coats of arms and where they originated from. It reads like a novel though. You can sit down and just run through it quite fast and then go back and get the details on the different names for research. What a wonderful book for your Fitch research and best of all he's done the work for you.

This book is chock full of great information for any foodie living in Connecticut. Not only are there great tips on restaurants, but also tips on artisan food producers, farms, farmers markets, gourmet shops, recipes, etc, etc. I have been a fan of Patricia Brooks restaurant reviews but this volume exceeded my expectations. It's also written in a chatty personal style that's fun to read. A real treasure!

This publication is a treasure trove of information on the people who lived in Simsbury, Connecticut in 1930. As a genealogist from this area I realize how wonderful this book is for researchers. If you have relatives or ancestors who resided in Simsbury at that time, this publication is a must. I wish all the towns could have a resource like this one. Great job Jean!!

Tom Seymour, acclaimed as a naturalist from the State of Maine, has written a fascinating survey of nature's bounty. This book is highly recommended to readers with an interest in ecology and the world of nature. The author supplies much hard to find information concerning nature's many hidden treasures: edible plants, medicinal plants, and the like. The book features superb color plates, cross-referencing, and a writing style that says "keep reading...."

Very helpful for understanding the experience of immigrants in their own words. Interesting reading for all. Includes much on the Italian immigrant that is of particular help in knowing about my husband's family.

  

A reader from Newburyport: This was both a fun and a great learning book.This book presents interesting, sometimes obscure facts about Connecticut. Subjects covered include historical figures, legends, geography, wildlife, stories, and other little known facts about the state. You can learn a lot by reading it and another interesting feature is that the book is designed so that you can also use the book to play a family or group trivia game! Well worth the price! It is a great book for adults, young readers, or teachers.

The process of selling your home can be a very emotional and stressful one, while the process of choosing the RIGHT realtor can also be confusing.

This book helps avoid costly mistakes made by many homeowners, who attempt to sell their most valuable assest on their own, or who don't have enough information on how to choose the best realtor for them. This book gets the point across of how the NET return is the most important number to the seller(finally!), highlighting a common mistake many homesellers make by focusing only on the commission charged.

Written by two very experienced agents, this book outlines the important tips for gettting the MOST money for your property in any market, and how to avoid common pitfalls made by inexperienced homeowners and/or agents.

Using real-life case studies, this book demonstrates how empowering yourself with information can make all the difference to your bottom line, as well as the level of stress involved in the selling of your home. I would highly recommend to anyone thinking about selling that you read this book first!

This was a nice book, nicely done. The photographs and descriptions gave a thoughtful picture of a town justifiably proud of its history.

Architecture without walls:
The "Glass House" by Philip Johnson, Toshio Nakamura and Monacelli Press.

Can you take along with you the Parthenon, the Pyramid of Giza, The Taz-Mahal, the Spanish Steps, the Meinji-Jingu Shrine , the Kimbell Art Museum following your visit to them ? Well, NO ! But you may carry with you memories, mostly fragments, sometimes highly poetic other times adverse. The nuisance of the camel owner trying to seduce you to a ride up-there, or of the striking ministry of culture personnel who would not issue you tickets up to the Holly precinct the day of your visit , may cover the negative end. The highly poetic and memories of the serene and eternal could be the sound of the gravel and the singing of the birds before the abrupt turn at the Meinji Jingu at the point you just see the shrine at the distance, similar and everlasting to the memories when visiting Kahn's great museum at Forth Worth...!
But in the Architecture without walls , THE BOOK, you can have all of the above at your fingertips, in the highest of memory, feeling and the Poetic . There is no doubt in my mind that one of the best such books ever created on Architecture is the "Glass House" by Monacelli Press.
This book represents for me "Architecture in its entirety", that is , an evaluative and interpretive presentation of the work of Architectural Act in time: the building in its context, as conceived , built and even criticized by its architect ; as evolved along with its meaning and the interpretations of its critics ; through its contribution to architecture by means of experimentation and materials of the era, and finally through the ever-evolving advancement of its architect to "inclusiveness" and "Permissiveness", as evidenced though his other works that spot the estate. A book of the meta-user shortcomings and the need for restoration and further up-keep, through the most sympathetic argument and persuasion. From the highest poetic and contemplative to the lowest but real trivial, the gavel flat roof that needs to be mended...Superceding all of the above is the books exquisite photography. Some shots taken from levels no lay viewer can hardly experience, while other shots are intimate and personal as only the owner and his close guests had the joy to enjoy. The textures of pictures , the included drawings and the text , both in visual as well in meaning and suggestion depth , are as poetic as any great poem or haiku could ever reach. In philosophical terms the book is an assembly of "Logos" and Cosmotheory : of the architect (Philip Johnson), of the men who visited and were affected by it (Toshio Nakamura), of the photographer (Michael Moran) , of the publisher who produced it, of the draftsmen who drew the architectural drawings, of the book designers (Michael Rock and Susan Sellers), of the reader who by reading or just going through its pages becomes part of the building's history , the closest to the building a lay person could ever be.
In this sense, the BOOK , the "Glass House" , is , I believe , superior even to any museum that presents works of Art; because the commentary of the art work is usually missing from a museum's presentation, and the visitor can hardly be said to be able to take away with him the whole, unless perhaps a catalogue of the works presented. A "Library" of books on a particular Art work, may perhaps be close to what I suggest for anyone who has visited it , and perhaps more so, for those who have not visited the work. So, I view the book the "Glass house"as a total museum , a work of Architecture without walls, an Art-work that can be carried home, always ready to please the reader with a repeated visit to the artifact, a personal contemplation and enjoyment, even a further interpretation under new circumstances of life and events. An eternal holistic museum for as long as it is out on circulation or kept in libraries. I very strongly recommend it to any reader, a unique gift to oneself without hesitation.

Anthony C. Antoniades

For those of you who enjoy Janet Evanovich's spunky heroine Stephanie Plum, get ready for an equally spirited amateur sleuth.

Wanda Miranda LaFortuna is one determined young woman. Hollywood may not have recognize her talent, but fortunately, private detective James Wingfield does. Wanda is one of those oh-so-likeable characters who wants desperately to be someone, to do something that matters, and to be really good at it. Unfortunately, her track record is not encouraging. But in tracking down a vampire wannabe killer, Wanda discovers just how good an actress she is. She also risks her life.

Author Leslie O'Grady has created a fresh, witty, and oh-so-human heroine. Wanda Miranda LaFortuna, failed actress and private eye's assistant, will make you laugh and leave you eager to ready about her next adventure. Don't miss this one!