Maryland Books

The Melanie Travis series has been fun to follow and enlightening with regard to the details of the "show dog" world - from a "real" person's perspective (Melanie)with the bonus of fun mysteries. This book was fine for what it offered, but was not one of the more challenging mysteries in the series. It did update the reader on the lives of the main character and her family - and added a twist to info. on the dog world - creating and advertising a "new" dog food (not obviously an interesting pursuit, but essential to this plot). I think the author had a good time writing this book and offered an easy read - for dog and mystery lovers.

The true appeal here was dog-related. All the dog information was fascinating and her descriptions of her herd of Poodles (particularly Faith) were priceless.

Unfortunately I question the mode of murder. At the risk of spoiling the plot, I wonder why someone would push Larry down the stairs while he was holding the (hopefully) winning dog - and risk injuring said winning dog (particularly considering who the murderer is finally revealed to be and why she considered Yoda the winner). And if he wasn't holding the dog when pushed, then why didn't the murderer pick up Yoda after doing the pushing? I just couldn't make it work in my mind. (As an aside, I noticed the gender of the dog kept changing throughout the book - first referred to as she, then he, then she again.)

And the constant references to pregnancy were just grating on my nerves. How Melanie could put up w/ the constant intrusions into her privacy (and her uterus is about as private as it gets!!) is just unbelievable. Good grief. If someone hounded a friend or sister like that I'd hope they'd reply with, "If you're so determined to have another child in this family, why don't YOU adopt one? I'll gladly supply you with a letter of reference." Hopefully once this kid gets born, all such intrusive references will be a part of the past.

This was my first exposure to her work. I'm looking forward to further novels full of dog stories.

Each of the Melanie Travis books takes you to her delightful life in Greenwich. The author quickly gets the reader involved in the world of dog shows and sleuthing.

Unfortunately, the books are such quick reads that you are left out in the cold again, and craving the next in her series.

Hurry up and write more, Ms. Berenson.

Everybody needs to laugh and everybody needs to think and this book makes you pee your pants laughing while trying to solve a mystery.
My hats off to Ms Berenson for making me turn the pages of this book faster than the last 4 books that I've recently read.
I highly recommend any of the entertaining Melanie Travis Mysteries.
My sincere hope is that the author is working on the next installment as I type this!

Melanie Travers can't quite bear to disappoint her son when he enters her poodle in a pet food competition and she becomes a finalist, but she doesn't really want to win. Which makes her completely unlike the other finalists. Every one of them seems intent on winning at any cost. When one of the contestants (the owner, not the pet) falls to his death on the stairs of the pet food company, Melanie finds herself in the familiar position of having to investigate what might be an accident but certainly looks like--murder.

Investigating crime is far from Melanie's major job, however. Although school may be out for the summer, she's still getting adjusted to her recent marriage, putting up with relatives urging her to start producing more children, showing her standard poodle at dog shows, and jumping through the many hoops that the contest judges have set up.

Author Laurien Berenson continues her Melanie Travis series with another look into the world of dog shows, and the unusual and colorful people who make these shows their life. These characters, especially Melanie, her aunt Peg, and gay groomer Terry bring the story to life and keep the reader interested as Melanie puts herself in dangerous situations to discover exactly what happened to the unpleasant Larry--and whether she just might be the next to fall victim.

The author gave a birth of her daughter in ' 89, so did I deliver my third kids . This may be only one common thing to share between her , except both are Shubertian.
Jewish and Japanese are often compared, and they are conspicuously differnt in the spiritual distance of each individual from the history of their own people. We , Japanese ,are genious of forgetting and we could change the attitude toward US so dramatically that Ruth Benedict couldn't help studying Japanese war captives. Whereas Jewish people,language wise, music wise , are trying to carry on the tradition, even though great constraint between the host country culture and also between generations of their own people.
And 'an die Music'. Tan Dun, a Chinese composer living in NY,once said,' Western music develops horizontally'. I also admit, music are differnt in East and West, maybe because of Eastern ear VS Western ear. But when lyrics intermediate sounds and internal reality that words evoke , what type of ears you may have, you can enjoy music of differnt culture. So many operas, lied, Italian songs and hymns apperared in this books have told me so.

"A Joyful Noise," Deborah Weisgall's serious and brooding memoir, is far from a fluffy celebration of music and Judaic heritage. Its subtitle, "Claiming the Songs of My Fathers," more accurately captures the sense of conflict and struggle which permeates the life of a talented, tormented and frustrated young woman, who at once soars with the rich musical background of both her father and grandfather but simultaneously is denied participation and validation because of her gender. "A Joyful Noise" elicits both compassion and anger from the reader; one senses that had the author been born some twenty years later she would have had much more direct access to both her own talents and her clearly-articulated love for her heritage. The author does not disguise the central theme of her memoir. After a disappointing experience at a Passover seder, Deborah expresses her yearning to join her father and grandfather as full participants in both music and heritage. "I hummed the songs as quietly as I could, aching to get them right, afraid that my father would hear my wrong notes and correct me. They ran perfectly through my head but not from my mouth. I loved them. I wanted them." Yet, she understands that her ambition does not correspond with the very heritage she so deeply desires. Segregated, minimized and isolated due to sexist traditions and practices, Jewish women have had to sublimate their otherwise honorable ambitions into other avenues of expression. Sensing that possibility, even as a child, Deborah laments: "My desire was as strong as theirs; my voice was not. My breath stalled against my vocal cords, and the back of my throat throbbed from stopped-up songs and angry tears. I wanted to sing. I wanted to be heard." Weisgall's quest for authenticity, for voice, occurs during a period of national affluence and cultural indifference in the 1950s and on the cusp of our nation's profound social revolution of the 1960s. Deborah comes of age in a tension-riddled family; her non-religious mother, Nathalie, is indifferent to housework, and her beloved father, Hugo, consistently produces operas which are artistically gifted but critical failures. The Weisgalls constantly move from their Baltimore roots, whether it be to Maine for summers, or from college town to another, where Hugo can sustain his family's material needs while he tries to fulfill his own battered expectations as an artist. Deborah realizes the discored in her family is real; her mother's physical beauty cannot hide her bitterness just as her father's rapture with musci cannot hide his own frustration with failure and betrayal. Looming like a dense cloud over the family is the Holocaust, whose disruptive horror has created a permanent sense of dread and loss. In a desultory search through her parents' closet, Deborah discovers a shoe-box stuffed with raw and brutal photographs of cocentration camp victims. She understands in a visceral sense the impact of genocide on her father, who directly witnessed the horrific scenes while he served as a translator for the liberating United States Army during World War II. The Weisgalls are derivative survivors, having lost their past, their roots, their culture through the Holocaust. The author is able to trace the genesis of family friction to this loss of place. Nathalie, a lover of beauty, flounders in America; Hugo, linked in memory to his childhood in Czechoslovakia, wrestles with his own struggle to match his father (Abba) without the support of cultural stability and identity. The memoir is not without its faults. Unless one has a solid grasp of opera and classical music, Weisgall's detailed descriptions of her artistic passion tend to overwhelm the reader. Deborah's ultimately successful climb to identity occurs too abruptly, as well. Her ultimate chapters, which recount her experiences as Radcliffe and her emergence as an independent, secure woman, appear rushed and lack the elegant detail so prevalent throughout descriptions of her childhood. Nevertheless, this serious and introspective work deserves the critical praise it has garnered. "A Joyful Noise" deftly interweaves music, religious heritage and family into a tapestry both instructive and inspiring.

I LOVE this book! Before I read this book, a family friend of mine read it and highly highly recommended it. When I started this book, I couldn't put it down, thats the kind of book it can be for certain people. The reason why this book was a huge page-turner for me, was because I felt relate to the author in many different levels. (...)This book isn't just text on a few pages to me, it is guidence for my life.

The author gave a birth of her daughter in ' 89, so did I deliver my third kids . This may be only one common thing to share between her , except both are Shubertian.
Jewish and Japanese are often compared, and they are conspicuously differnt in the spiritual distance of each individual from the history of their own people. We , Japanese ,are genious of forgetting and we could change the attitude toward US so dramatically that Ruth Benedict couldn't help studying Japanese war captives. Whereas Jewish people,language wise, music wise , are trying to carry on the tradition, even though great constraint between the host country culture and also between generations of their own people.
And 'an die Music'. Tan Dun, a Chinese composer living in NY,once said,' Western music develops horizontally'. I also admit, music are differnt in East and West, maybe because of Eastern ear VS Western ear. But when lyrics intermediate sounds and internal reality that words evoke , what type of ears you may have, you can enjoy music of differnt culture. So many operas, lied, Italian songs and hymns apperared in this books have told me so.

"A Joyful Noise," Deborah Weisgall's serious and brooding memoir, is far from a fluffy celebration of music and Judaic heritage. Its subtitle, "Claiming the Songs of My Fathers," more accurately captures the sense of conflict and struggle which permeates the life of a talented, tormented and frustrated young woman, who at once soars with the rich musical background of both her father and grandfather but simultaneously is denied participation and validation because of her gender. "A Joyful Noise" elicits both compassion and anger from the reader; one senses that had the author been born some twenty years later she would have had much more direct access to both her own talents and her clearly-articulated love for her heritage. The author does not disguise the central theme of her memoir. After a disappointing experience at a Passover seder, Deborah expresses her yearning to join her father and grandfather as full participants in both music and heritage. "I hummed the songs as quietly as I could, aching to get them right, afraid that my father would hear my wrong notes and correct me. They ran perfectly through my head but not from my mouth. I loved them. I wanted them." Yet, she understands that her ambition does not correspond with the very heritage she so deeply desires. Segregated, minimized and isolated due to sexist traditions and practices, Jewish women have had to sublimate their otherwise honorable ambitions into other avenues of expression. Sensing that possibility, even as a child, Deborah laments: "My desire was as strong as theirs; my voice was not. My breath stalled against my vocal cords, and the back of my throat throbbed from stopped-up songs and angry tears. I wanted to sing. I wanted to be heard." Weisgall's quest for authenticity, for voice, occurs during a period of national affluence and cultural indifference in the 1950s and on the cusp of our nation's profound social revolution of the 1960s. Deborah comes of age in a tension-riddled family; her non-religious mother, Nathalie, is indifferent to housework, and her beloved father, Hugo, consistently produces operas which are artistically gifted but critical failures. The Weisgalls constantly move from their Baltimore roots, whether it be to Maine for summers, or from college town to another, where Hugo can sustain his family's material needs while he tries to fulfill his own battered expectations as an artist. Deborah realizes the discord in her family is real; her mother's physical beauty cannot hide her bitterness just as her father's rapture with musci cannot hide his own frustration with failure and betrayal. Looming like a dense cloud over the family is the Holocaust, whose disruptive horror has created a permanent sense of dread and loss. In a desultory search through her parents' closet, Deborah discovers a shoe-box stuffed with raw and brutal photographs of cocentration camp victims. She understands in a visceral sense the impact of genocide on her father, who directly witnessed the horrific scenes while he served as a translator for the liberating United States Army during World War II. The Weisgalls are derivative survivors, having lost their past, their roots, their culture through the Holocaust. The author is able to trace the genesis of family friction to this loss of place. Nathalie, a lover of beauty, flounders in America; Hugo, linked in memory to his childhood in Czechoslovakia, wrestles with his own struggle to match his father (Abba) without the support of cultural stability and identity. The memoir is not without its faults. Unless one has a solid grasp of opera and classical music, Weisgall's detailed descriptions of her artistic passion tend to overwhelm the reader. Deborah's ultimately successful climb to identity occurs too abruptly, as well. Her ultimate chapters, which recount her experiences as Radcliffe and her emergence as an independent, secure woman, appear rushed and lack the elegant detail so prevalent throughout descriptions of her childhood. Nevertheless, this serious and introspective work deserves the critical praise it has garnered. "A Joyful Noise" deftly interweaves music, religious heritage and family into a tapestry both instructive and inspiring.

John Waters is a very funny, albeit very warped, man, but if you're considering buying this book, you probably already knew that. In this book he tells his life story (up to about 1980, when this book was first written), focussing on the making of his movies; on his friends (such as Divine, Mink Stole, Edith Massey etc) who became his regular cast and crew; and on some of his more unusual hobbies and obsessions (such as his fascination with high profile criminal cases and his love of Baltimore); and it is every bit as hilarious as his movies (although slightly less disgusting). In addition, it also includes interviews with Divine and Waters' heroes, Russ Meyer and Hershiell Gordon Lewis; a brief biography of Edith Massey (the egg lady from "Pink Flamingos"); and a large number of black and white pictures.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, although I did find the interviews to be a bit tedious, particularly since I am not a fan of Meyer or Lewis (to me they felt like filler, put in solely to make the book a publishable length). Nevertheless, this book should appeal to all fans of Waters' work, and to anyone interested in the process of film making.

John Waters is a very funny, albeit very warped, man, but if you're considering buying this book, you probably already knew that. In this book he tells his life story (up to about 1980, when this book was first written), focussing on the making of his movies; on his friends (such as Divine, Mink Stole, Edith Massey etc) who became his regular cast and crew; and on some of his more unusual hobbies and obsessions (such as his fascination with high profile criminal cases and his love of Baltimore); and it is every bit as hilarious as his movies (although slightly less disgusting). In addition, it also includes interviews with Divine and Waters' heroes, Russ Meyer and Hershiell Gordon Lewis; a brief biography of Edith Massey (the egg lady from "Pink Flamingos"); and a large number of black and white pictures.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, although I did find the interviews to be a bit tedious, particularly since I am not a fan of Meyer or Lewis (to me they felt like filler, put in solely to make the book a publishable length). Nevertheless, this book should appeal to all fans of Waters' work, and to anyone interested in the process of film making.

I was hoping to learn more about John Waters, the man, when I bought this book, and I was far from disappointed. This book is a great memoir of his life from start to finish, with lots of juicy inside info on all of his films. Throughout the book the reader meets all of the outrageous and delightfully politically incorrect characters that inhibit his movies and his life. There are lots of inside stories about Mink Stole, Divine, and everyone else ever seen in a Waters film, as well as the sweet low-down on that famous poop scene as well everything else you've ever wondered about. Waters is surprisingly honest about all sorts of rude and criminal acts that I'd never have known about if I hadn't read it. Underneath it all he shines through as a lovable guy who adores his hometown of Baltimore as well as the genre of trashy movies. If you love Waters, or even don't particularly like him but want to know more about him anyway, you must read this book.

Before reading Shock Value, I'd read John's other book - Crackpot - and found it to be extremely witty and insightful. He seems very humble and able to communicate with anyone. I like this book Shock Value, however I am giving it 4 stars b/c I would rather not see images and snapshots. I'd rather just have had a full book I could read. Also, I didn't find his career-oriented to be interesting.

John Waters is fantastic. His true talents are not in his films, but in his writing. He can take the mundane and make it extraordinary, the creepy and strange and make it funny, and the ugliest of the ugly and make them things of beauty. Though he's an old man now, and his movies have gone mainstream, this book is a look back at his hilarious youth and all the mischief making that made him and the Dreamland cast stars.

This book covers the making of all his films, the biographies and interviews with his famed cast members, as well as his inpirations (ex. Rus Meyer). You enjoy their antics and feel as if you are right along side them in the making of their hilarious movies and tasteful adventures in bad taste. You can't put it down and are actually laughing out loud as you read. And he even writes about his family. How punk rock!

One thing he taught me to do was to love my hometown. People never seem to like their hometowns, whether they are in the most flashy of cities or the tiniest one horse town. Life is what you make of it, and John put the hairdo capital of the world (Baltimore) on the map with his hijinx and adoration of all things weird and wonderful. He takes his enemies and makes them into glowing monsters we can all throw rotten tomatos at in his absence. The creepy weirdos aren't monsters, they're glorious, misunderstood creatures we are to embrace. Look for the scariest, craziest places and have the most rip roaring time with the clientele. I've taken his advice and now have the ability to talk to anyone, because there are loads of lonely lunatics out there just dying to be friends with you.

Started slow, and although I had a difficult time finishing it, this was a pretty good book.

Do we always choose people that remind us of our parents? An interesting look a marriage & friendship. And how the past does not have to dictate our present.

On the surface, Tamra and Charles Lane seem to be living the American lifestyle. They were childhood sweethearts in Maryland and in spite of different dreams for their future, are happily married. Yet after thirteen years of wedlock and having children, Tamra leaves her spouse, not an easy decision since she still loves him.

Tamra looks to her heritage to help her finalize her decision. She turns to her own mother Virginia who left her own spouse, a school administrator. Tamra also looks back at the family powerhouse her grandmother who kept everyone together while the world collapsed around their family. Still, Tamra needs to learn what she can from her immediate female antecedents while Charles struggles with why since he feels he has given her everything she wants.

CHESAPEAKE SONG is a well-written character study that centers on how the lessons of childhood impact the adult as family patterns and histories repeat itself in each generation. The story line employs flashbacks to provide insight into the relationship between Tamra's parents and the influence of her grandmother as well as how Tamra and Charles have reached a critical fork in the road. Though not paramount to the main theme, but an added bonus, the audience observes African-American relationships over the last four decades. Readers who want action need to go elsewhere, but anyone interested in family dynamics will enjoy the insightful debut of Brenda Lane Richardson.

Harriet Klausner

From the moment I opened the book, I was captured. It was very refreshing to read the words on the page that actually made you feel as though you were right in the mist of the characters. I thought that characters Tamara and Charles could be any couple of today. Most interesting however, is that we all must battle with the demons of the past before we can move on in life. Tamara having her life long friend walk her through the hurt put an interesting take on the novel.

Although a little lengthy, 'Chesapeake Song', is an excellent, honest story of love, heritage, and marriage. It depicts how your upbringing and adolescent environment capitulate many aspects of your adult life. This story will tug on your heart, and make you think. Read this book on a sunny day, at the park, under a tree, with a cool glass of lemonade.

CITY SMART: BALTIMORE is a great book about Baltimore and its surrounding suburbs, with descriptions of where the best shopping and dining are. However, because the book was written several years ago, the radio listings need to be taken like the humor in AMERICAN WEDDING, SABRINA, THE TEENAGE WITCH, DRIVE ME CRAZY, SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, 13 GOING ON 30, DATE MOVIE, HARVARD MAN, and the two GARFIELD MOVIES featuring Jennifer Love Hewitt. This is a minor quibble, though, because this is an excellent book for anyone interested in the Mid-Atlantic states.

The thing I like about this guidebook is its honesty. I've lived in Baltimore all my life and I recognize my city in this book's pages. It's genuinely entertaining and exposes a few warts as well as the good stuff. Plus, it has top 10 lists from Gov. Shaefer and from John Steadman, my all-time favorite Baltimore sportswriter.

This guide is sweet!
Again Joe Sugarman, in a light and appropriate tone for a city guide, points out the best in town... If you want to visit Baltimore without fear of loosing time and wasting money walking in circles: read this guide.
Read it and you will enjoy Baltimore; loose it and you will not be aware of the beauties you're loosing in this marvellous city.

This guide might not be the *most* extensive, but all the info that has been packed in it is selected: I don't want to see everything there is to see - I want to see the *best* there is to see!

A comprehensive guidebook of all the wonderful things to do in Charm. A well researched, well written guide that will not leave the user with any loss for activities to do, see and experience while in Baltimore. Hopefully, Sugarman will live in every city around the world and keep us abreast of all the attractions within each one.

Besides this book, I purchased at the same time The Insiders' Guide to Baltimore, which is $2.00 more and 150 pages longer. I give this City Smart guide 2 stars, compared to a 5 star rating on the Insiders' Guide. The reason for the wide difference in rating the two books: This book, City Smart, is trying to be hip, flippant, and tounge-in-cheek. Instead, it comes off as very negative. I purchased the two books at the same time, read this one first, and when I was done I really wasn't sure I wanted to visit Baltimore. And that would be a mistake because Baltimore is indeed Charm City, and the other book really brings that out. It has a much more upbeat, positive, optimistic, good-natured style; as well as more depth and details in the extra 150 pages. The Insiders' Guide was true to the Baltimore I discovered, this City Smart guide was off-putting and off the mark.

I love this book! Many other hiking books for the D.C. area list hikes that are much further out, but this book lists easy to get to, fun hikes that don't require an entire day for the hike and travel time. I have purchased this book for friends in the area as well, and we are looking at future hikes together.

Just tried to use this book for hike in North Point State Park and found it difficult to follow. Luckily, we had another guide with a map. This guide often does not have maps and the directions lack points on the compass, i.e. north, south, east, west.

Having been on many trails in the region (and now many more thanks to this guide), I highly recommend100 Easy Hikes. It's as good as it gets for hitting all the hot spots in the Washington DC area- from nearby jaunts on the trails of Rock Creek Park to the lesser known gems in the Shenandoah. Additionally, the author's insider tips and her clear directions to the trailheads make this guide exceptional.

I was particularly impressed the "best of" recommendations. They were right on target. Neither bluebells nor waterfall classics escaped her attention. The maps, as you'd expect from the National Geographic Society, are clear and easy to follow. Anyone looking for a basic resource on the area should have this guide.

I have been looking for a book just like this for some time now. Having hiked a fair amount in and around Washington I was running short on ideas for new hikes. I had tried the Appalchian Trial Guides and some other books that are out there but felt that while they were great on trail details they didn't provide much of the practical information that you want when heading out to a new destination. Especially enjoyed the author's editorial comments and trail descriptions which combined to make the book a pleasure to read. The author must be a dog lover as well which earns her points in my book. She marks each trail to let dog owners know if their pooches are welcome.

There's several books with basically the same theme and roughly the same hikes - e.g. those by Alan Fisher and those by the Appalachian Trail Club. This one does have more hikes described than any other single volume I've seen, but it doesn't have enough maps or sufficiently good trail descriptions to make it a hiking "bible". Only recommended for those folks who've already exhaused the other available guides and are looking for more.

I moved to the DC area two years ago and found this book immensely helpful. It not only had information about fun things to do in the area but it also had answers to the most practical situations. I read one of the other reviews that said that it didn't tell him where to have his car inspected. It doesn't go into the minute detail but it will tell you what the requirements are and how to find out where you need to go. I now work in an HR office and we are giving this to new hires that we relocate to this area. All of them have really appreciated it and remarked on how helpful it has been. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone relocating here.

For all you hear about the benefit of living near a metro, I expected the metro locations to be shown on street maps. They weren't, and the other maps were of little use as well. For guidance on finding a safe area, they suggest asking local police.

If you don't care about either of those, most of the other info was okay.

This book is devoid of any of the information I really needed, like where to get my car inspetected (and the whole process of getting a DC driver license) or even where the good playgrounds are.

THE NEWCOMER'S HANDBOOK FOR MOVING TO AND LIVING IN WASHINGTON DC is a great book for people relocating to the area, but even people who are not moving there can enjoy it. It talks about where the best neighborhoods and schools are in the District itself, as well as in Maryland and Virginia, mentions where the shopping malls and other stores are, and it even goes into detail about the town of Columbia, Maryland, which other books about the Baltimore-Washington DC area fail to do. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is proud to say "I'm an American."

If you are relocating to DC, don't do it until you've read (or at least skimmed) this book. I haven't even moved yet and it's been helpful. First it explains different neighborhoods and why you may or may not want to move to that location. It also gives you helpful hints and good questions to ask regarding a place to rent or buying a home. Included are the daily life information such as where to buy a couch, find a veternarian, or the location of the closest park. All in all the book covers many issues that I would not have thought about before moving to a new place.

Like his other two Civil War books, Donnybrook Donnybrook: The Battle of Bull Run, 1861 and AllegianceAllegiance: Fort Sumter, Charleston, and the Beginning of the Civil War, this book is very readable and extremely well researched. I am an avid reader of everything I can get about the Civil War and this book reveals many things not contained in other writings. My only complaint is that there are far too many "what ifs", moving it into the realm of fiction too often for my taste

The author's obvious feelings as to the relative merits of the North and South justifications for conflict heavily color the narrarative. Also my taste does not run to the many "what if" scenarios included. I gave 2 stars instead of fewer since a book on this subject was long overdue.

April of 1865 has been referred to as the month that saved America but April of 1861 may have been just as vital if not more so. It was during this time that Washington DC sat completely surrounded by two states that were teetering on the verge of secession. Once Virginia did leave the Union only Maryland provided the federal government with a connection to the rest of the nation and it was a tenuous connection at best.

Abraham Lincoln was clearly out of his league in this early stage of the game and he leaned heavily on General Winfield Scott. For his part, Scott was keenly aware of the danger facing Washington and began to immediately call for any militia units that could get to DC quickly from loyal northern states. The problem was that these militia units would have to travel through Maryland, a slave state that might well consider these Yankee troops to be invaders and could easily be pushed into the Confederacy by such an affront to state sovereignty. It was also distinctly possible that these militia units might be attacked by not only the people of Maryland but also ultimately by the state militia.

In the meantime Virginia forces had seized the federal armory at Harper's Ferry and the Gosport navy yard near Hampton Virginia. Rumors are rampant in DC that the Virginia militia that had taken Harper's Ferry was preparing to move on Washington and many in the Federal City were in a state of panic.

The questions that arise from this drama involve the decision making process on both sides and the ultimate question is of course whether Washington DC was ever in any real danger. Did the Confederacy in fact lose it's only real chance for ultimate victory during this time period? David Detzer has done an admirable job in this book of not only bringing this evolving drama to life but also of answering these questions in a clear and concise manner.

This book reads much like a great historical drama and the author's writing style is superbly readable. It is rare for the author of a history book to achieve such a sense of drama since the reader usually already knows the outcome. Detzer has accomplished this however and although I was keenly aware of what was about to happen at every turn I had a tough time putting the book down. This invigorating writing style is often derisively referred to as popular history but Detzer blows the sides off of that old mold by not only offering new information but also keen observations that cut directly to the heart of this eventful period of American history. No hero of American history is spared criticism when criticism is due and conversely even Ben Butler is praised when his actions merit it.

This is the story of those fateful days of April and May of 1861 and it is a story that is well told by this supremely able author. This book is well researched, very well written and the story is told from the point of view of both governments as well as the lowliest private in the Pennsylvania militia. It is a story upon which the fate of the United States once turned.

His newest book may be the best. Everything you wanted to know about the in between days of the early civil war. This is an area typically skipped by most historians. Excellent treatment.

I believed that the Insiders' Guide to Baltimore was a travel guide when I bought it. Unfortunately, it is an odd hybrid of travel book, relocation guide, and general source of information about the Baltimore area. As is often the case with a book that tries to do too much, it doesn't excel at any of them.

All the basic information is here including entries places to stay, eat, and shop. Local attractions are also covered in addition to a chapter on day trips. One problem is that these entries tend to be shorter than you would find in most guides. I also would have appreciated more of a critique of the attractions. All the descriptions read like something out of a marketing brochure from the operators so it's very hard to know what is most worth your time. Similarly, I found no critical comments of any kind in the descriptions of restaurants and hotels when clearly some will be better than others.

The truth is that if you want a guidebook to Baltimore, you have very few choices. Still, I would probably recommend using the web to gather information on the few real tourist attractions (like the outstanding National Aquarium) and accommodations and save your money rather than purchase this book. If you want happy-talk that sounds like it came from the local Chamber of Commerce, you can always to the actual Chamber's web site and get it for free.

THE INSIDERS' GUIDE TO BALTIMORE is a great book, even if some of the radio station info is outdated. It features detailed information on where the best neighborhoods and dining are, as well as mentioning several great shopping malls. The only other problem, besides outdated radio station listings, is a lack of discussion of the planned Baltimore suburb of Columbia, which is really a city of its own. Other than that, though, this book is essential.

Aunt Wendy is going to move to be closer to Sarah when Mr. Specky passes. Until then, she is going to stay in Texas. I'm buying her this book, or one like it. Then she'll know where all of the hot spots are. Specky will be looking down from doggie afterlife jealous of Aunt Wendy's cool new life in Balto. Have fun in the Bay area Sarah and Wendy, without Specky, but with this book.

My husband and I just returned from our trip to Baltimore, and might I say, I don't know what we would have done without this book! We went to attractions recommended by the book, and we were not disappointed. I love the way that the book gives you the kind of information that you need and leaves out the subsidiary parts. The book also had an invaluable map that showed the main streets that we wanted. We chose restaurants based not only on price, and neighborhood, but also the "vibe," that was very well described by the authors.

I saw this book at Barnes and Noble and thought it was too big and complex for a labor day weekend in Baltimore, but my mother surprised us by sending this version via Amazon. I am so glad she did. It was so easy to understand and really helped with a trip that we wanted to have a "winging it" feel, instead of a very "planning it" feel.

We liked this so much that I have just ordered the version of my own hometown to "explore" the parts of our own city that would be interesting to visitors.

Hats off to "The insiders guide" folks!

I actually thought this would be a real how to book on making Baltimore Album quilts instead of a chat session on the author's experiences doing the same.

More of a diary of interactions of a wonderful woman doing gorgeous applique' despite disabilities. She never let her body let her mind down. A remarkably encouraging book for those who feel they can no longer do this art. She shows true love and strength of character to continue under such circumstances. A true award quality quilt in the end. Bravo.

This is a delightful little book for the experienced person who is knowledgeable about Baltimore Album quilts. It Will NOT tell you how to make a quilt or the blocks shown in the book. There is background introduction by Elly Seinkiwicz and several letters from the quiltmaker to friend about her trials in making the quilt, since she was severely disabled. Each page has a quilt block in glorious color and large enough for to look at inorder to draft your own pattern, if you like. The entire quilt is on the back book cover, and not inside the book itself. What makes this book (it's a small sized book) outstanding is the fantastic workmanship, the very close up pictures of the varied appliqued quilt blocks, and the wonderful combinations of colors used that can act as a primer for a person wanting to start their own Blatimore Album Quilt.

Written by Frances Benton, The Making Of A Baltimore Album Quilt is not a "how-to" book, but rather a celebration of a quiltmaking master's finest work. The Making Of A Baltimore Album Quilt consists of compiled letters of expert quilter Frances Benton, written during the year and a half that she dedicated to creating the twenty-five blocks of the Baltimore Album quilt despite her own severe physical pain, alongside full-color photographs of each of the quilt's blocks. The finished quilt celebrates life with the colorful symbols of flowers and birds, exquisitely handmade and balanced. A message of passion for the craft, from the "Everyquilter" to all quilters, The Making Of A Baltimore Album Quilt is especially recommended as a giftbook for quilting enthusiasts.