Massachusetts Books

What a mature, positive and loving book by an author who spoke so wonderously of her life.... indeed, of what life can be if experienced so profoundly and openly. It's a beautiful book.

I feel it's a privilege for me to have followed Gale Warner on her journey: What was her journey? A journey we'll all have to embark on, sooner or later (hopefully, later), since we're all going to die. Gale Warner was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at age 30 and lived 13 more months. In these months, she wrote in her journal about her thoughts, her insights, her struggle, her pain, and finally her acceptance and serenity: But it was never easy, never simple. Gale Warner saw cancer as the ultimate test of her faith (her particular, private sort of faith). She worked and struggled with her own mortality. In her own words-

"Limits. In order to boil water, you must put it in a pot. The pot sets a limit and so does cancer. When you learn you are not immortal, that you may only have a few years to embrace life, you start doing so. The photo of the Earth on my wall shows its beauty- and its limits. It would not be the same if those same colors and swirls were sloshed all over space".

"Dancing at the edge of life" is an important book, because in the end, everybody has to find their own answers or anyway, start asking their own questions. I would recommend this book to anyone and of course, not only to people with cancer. You don't have to get diagnosed with lymphoma to start thinking of the "big" questions, you don't have to wait to have cancer in order to learn how to live.

Another reason that makes this memoir important, is that Gale Warner must have been a very special, intelligent & sensitive person. She had worked as an environmental journalist & was also an accomplished poet. A person that fully embraced life was ultimately able to fully embrace the journey towards death.

By letting us into her thoughts as she moved from hope to resignation, Gale Warner has allowed us to witness close-up the emotional process of dying. I've read this book over and over, trying to really grasp what it must have been like to have understood, and written "We are entering a new reality" (the time when she recognized and had to fully comprehend that she was not responding, would not recover, and that death was imminent.) Whether or not you share her profound relationship with the natural world, her assertion that she has had sufficient joy and experience in her life really does ring true. I've never read anything quite like this: it is an amazing gift.

Gale Warner's story is positive proof that each of us, if we make a conscious choice, can see and feel the Spirit of God in everything and everyone, in spite of, and especially during, adversity and pain. It is the little moments, Gale's descriptions of that divine CONNECTEDNESS, consistent and enduring, that touches me the most. Her tender, poetic prose allows us to glimpse the radiant, spiritual essence that is the birthright we all share. During these troubled times, the world finds itself somewhat short of role models, but with the loving gift of "Dancing at the Edge of Life," Gale remains a lasting example. In her own words, she was and is "a daughter of the four winds, a child of the moon and rain and sun ... sister of the whale, and the juniper." I suspect that she now shines brightly in the heavens; each person who reads this book will feel the warmth of her glow, and best of all, will want to share it with others.

If ever a book had the potential to change lives for the better, it's this one. Gale's diary reveals a sensitive, intelligent and spiritual woman - whose genuine attraction to life reminds me of an infant's sweet, simple fascination with its newly discovered hand. I was most inspired by her courage during the final months of her conflict with cancer: it never faltered - even as she struggled to define her religious beliefs. This book leaves one with a rekindled passion for life. Tonight at dusk I'm going to seek out the sunset ...something I haven't done since I was a kid.

This beautifully written, lyrical book is genuinely scary in a way that puts much modern children's literature well and truly in the shade. Grandmother Oldknowe is protected by all the good things of the earth - stone and water, and all the deep things of nature - in her struggle with the horrible Melanie Powers. Aided by Tolly and Ping, it's a battle for the soul with moments that will make adults draw their breath sharply.
Not a book for those who are easily scared, nor for those with strong prejudices against the supernatural - but for the bravehearted reader, an truly thrilling ride awaits.

Why is this book out of print?

In this, the fifth Green Knowe book, Tolly AND Ping come to spend the summer with Tolly's great grandmother, Mrs. Oldknow, and do battle with the forces of evil as personified by a newneighbor, Melanie Powers.

Absolutely wonderful -- my favorite part is the very end, where everything comes together serendipitously to defeat Miss Powers, leaving you to feel that all is right with the world.

After "The Children of Green Knowe," this is my favorite of the five central books of the sequence. It includes all the elements that make the series immortal: the mysterious old Norman manor house with its lush garden and bordering river, the wise and wonderful Mrs. Oldknow who often seems to have more than one foot in any time but her own, her young great-grandson Tolly (now probably about 12) to provide the spark, tales of the mysterious past of the house, and magic--some of it not very nice. Kids who enjoy identifying with the juvenile protagonists of R. L. Stine's horror tales may be well served by being introduced to Tolly and his friend Ping, the Chinese refugee boy, and following along as they slowly become aware of the character and lack of scruples of "Dr. Melanie Powers," the sinister lodger at The Firs, who wants to acquire a gramarie (book of spells) said to have belonged to a tutor employed at the house in the 17th century. While Mrs. Oldknow quickly comes to agree that Dr. Powers is both powerful and evil, it's left up to the boys to beat off her nastier efforts and, ultimately, find a means of defeating her utterly. (Ping has an excellent heroic role when he summons the shade of the slain gorilla Hanno.) Mrs. Oldknow's lodger, the scholarly Mr. Pope, also has his moment of glory when, reciting an ancient Hebrew spell for his tape recorder, he unknowingly halts a spell that threatens to literally ruin the manor. Even the time-travelling blind girl Susan makes an appearance, though I wonder that Tolly's first ghost-friends, Toby and his sibs, are conspicuously absent, this being as much their house as Tolly's--perhaps more: they've been there longer! The one question that itches at me is what has become of Tolly's stepmother: her husband, his father, is mentioned and even arrives at the end of the book, but she isn't and doesn't.

Children like to be deliciously frightened, and this book is a superior title to frighten them with--though not one you'll want them reading alone in their rooms late at night! A superior entry into the series.

I remember reading these books on my summer vacations to my grandparents...I was bored and the local town librarian recommended them to me. Many years later, looks for books on mysterious houses for a nephew, I remembered and re-discovered them. My favorite is An Enemy At Green Knowe. The story is full of twists and turns and quite frightening events, with the excitement lasting just long enough to tantalize the reader. You feel the house itself is a living breathing character, as is true of the entire series. This is the kind of book an adult needs to put in the hands of the student -- as is true with A Wrinkle In Time -- and sit back while the child becomes wrapped in the world of Green Knowe. A superior children's book!

The fifth book in Lucy Boston's "Green Knowe" series finally brings together our two main protagonists: the house's blood relative Tolly and the Chinese refugee Ping, both of whom have featured in the previous books, but never together. Unfortunatly we do not see their meeting, but instead join the story half-way through the summer, by which time the two are already best friends.

As always, the mysterious Green Knowe is filled with ancient and semi-magical artefacts (all of which are actually real relics that belong in the author's home on which she based the books) and Grandmother Oldknow tells the children stories concerning the past inhabitants of the house. Now for the first time, she tells them a story that holds a more sinister edge to it. In the 17th century a young boy had a tutor that was said to dabble in alchemical practices, and have a number of magical books with which he created his spells. An author with astonishing vision for her time, Boston highlights the unfairness of such a man being thought of as noble and intelligent for following such a practice, whilst harmless women were often prosecuted for dabbling in herblore. Grandmother Oldknow tells the children that Doctor Vogel eventually burnt all his equipment with the help of the local minister (whose testimony was found in "The River of Green Knowe", but only now translated), but it is rumoured that one book of dark spells may have escaped the flames.

In typical Green Knowe fashion, in which the past regularly surges up to greet the present, it is not just a coincidence that directly after this storytelling a new neighbour comes to call: Melanie Powers, whose interest in the house and in the legend of Dr Vogel hints at her true intentions. She is after the missing book, and begins a systematic assault on Green Knowe as its first truly evil antagonist, whereas up until now the worst the children have faced is meddling adults. Like the Twelve Plagues of Eygpt, Ms Powers sends nasties crawling into the Green Knowe: maggots, snakes and bird-snatching cats.

But of course, Tolly and Ping have their own spells and allies, and with this comes wonderful reappearences from previous characters, including the spirit of the gorilla Hanno and the ghostly past-resident Susan. Even the starlings, who have been pests in previous books, prove their worth. It is stirring stuff to see the children fight passionatly for the home they love and attempt to reach the book before Powers does. I only wish Boston had taken the opportunity to include more characters: what about Ida and Oskar? Toby, Alexander and Linnet? Boggis and Feste the horse?

It is the first Green Knowe book to instigate a good against evil theme, and for that reason is sure to be a favourite among most readers since all the other books make more meandering and whimsical reading. In fact, one should be warned that this installment can get a little scary at times, and even gruesome, as in the case of Powers hanging dead birds on a clothesline or the sight of a horned ritual stick, which was described so evocatively that it sent shivers down my spine: "they recognized it at once as absolutely evil." I should also warn New-Agers and modern day "witches" that Ms Powers is a witch in the medieval description of the word - with black magic and links to Satan.

A great addition to the "Green Knowe" books, though often mistaken for the final installment. This is false, as there are six books in the series, and the last title is "The Stones of Green Knowe", an essential part of the collection. Boston claims that she wrote these books for her own amusement, and that has never been more apparent than in "An Enemy at Green Knowe" since many questions are left unanswered concerning the background of Mr Powers and the real intentions of Dr Vogel, yet despite that, this book is one of my favourites.

And as always, Peter Boston's illustrations are excellent, and I love Brett Helquist's new covers; let's face it, these books were in need of a face-lift.

I loved this book. It had the pace and humor of the Bridget Jones series but with the twist of motherhood. Eccentric, fun, funny and a page-turner for sure!

I had a great time reading this book. I could really relate to it since I am divorsed. She has a very funny sense of humor and I laughed through the whole thing.

Excellent book. Entertaining, and thought provoking all at the same time with a "happy ending" to boot! Definately, a 'feel good' book.

I have to say, I couldn't put this book down. Downey is masterful at creating a flawed and lovable heroine who any mother will completely relate to. The pervading sense of chaos is almost too realistic, but you will envy her boyfriend choices, cringe at her romantic misteps, and applaud her final solution.

But calling this a romance or chick lit wouldn't be doing it justice: it is not just about romantic love. Downey's character grows as the book progresses and her relationships with her children are central to her life. The writing is crisp, fast-paced (echoing the live of her character) and literary. I was particularly taken with how she portrayed the older women in the work such as her mother, grandmother and funky aunts. They are sexy, smart and there isn't a apron-clad blue hair among them!

Brava, Annie Downey, brava.

I simply loved this book, it was funny, touching and unique. I would recommend it especially for all mothers and daughters.

As a kid of ten I rode out this storm in a car at Crescent Beach not far from where the high water and debris stopped. This book brought back vivid memories of that day and the days that followed.
If you are in any way connected to this area of Cape Cod or this time (1954) you will enjoy the many pictures and first hand accounts. What comes through is the way neighbors cared for each other in this time of need.
Mrs FitzGerald was a personal survivor of this storm and has done an excellent job of collecting the interviews and photographs that went into this book.
Thanks for the memories.

I really enjoyed reading about the experiences of the residents in the path of Hurricane Carol. As a resident of Florida, I have experinced numerous Hurricanes, ranging from Category 1 to Category 3, and I could not imagine having no foreknowledge of an approaching storm. The first hand accounts of the storm and the pictures of the subsequent destruction were amazing. This book is rich in both history and community togetherness and I highly recommend reading it.

A wonderful piece of work detailing the menace that was Hurricane Carol.

I laughed, I cried, I learned something about the people & history of the South Coast, Mattapoisett & Crescent Beach.

I am in love with this book. The photographs, the stories and the memories are just amazing. After living through Hurricanes Andrew, Charlie, Frances, Jeanne and Wilma, I greatly appreceiate and can relate to the personal accounts of the effect Hurricane Carol had on these people's lives. It is obvious that Ginnie loves this town, and this book is truly a wonderful piece of history that should be shared and not forgotton.

I found this book a fascinating collection of real stories! The "then" photos are fabulous and really give a sense of the damage! They were also incredibly well preserved for being 50 years old! ! I also liked the "now" photos! It made me feel there was a happy ending, because most homes were rebuilt! This certainly is a good piece of history that may have been forgotten had this book not been made. Great book!

This is a well-written and fresh look at John Winthrop, first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Bremer derives his view of Winthrop from the "Model of Christian Charity" sermon, which Winthrop delivered sometime around his emigration to North America. Rather than the stern, unbending, and judgemental character that is the common perception, Bremer shows Winthrop as a pragmatic leader who often worked behind the scenes to reconcile diverging points of view. As portrayed in this book, Winthrop was a man of humility who strove to include anyone with a "spark of godliness" into the community.

At 385 pages of text, the book moved along quickly. I was sorry to get to the end.

Thanks to an absent minded John Winthrop falling into a foul smelling peat bog and surviving (which he took as a sign that he should emigrate to the colonies) the settlers of the Massachusets Bay Company were blessed with a practical and efficient administrator. Elected Governor many times over, John Winthrop is portrayed as an honest and god fearing a man as any patriotic American would want.
Although a good third of the book describes Winthrop's life in England, it is justified and necessary to see the religious and social preparations for his career in America. Once he came to America, his life was devoted to the preservation of his religion, his family and his colony.
Those readers familiar with Boston and surroundings will enjoy the detail in this biography; the streets he lived on, the configuarion of the city, its growth during Winthrop's lifetime.
And how easy it is to forget how little in the way of goods and services was available to the settlers in the 17th century. John Winthrop was not in the first wave of New Englanders in Plymouth, but even 10 years later he had to bring with him wheat, barley, oats, beans and peas for cultivation, potatoes, hop roots, hemp seed, tame turkeys and rabbits, linen and woolen cloth, bottles, ladles, spoons and kettles, among a long list of other essentials.
In spite of harsh conditions and personal tragedies, Winthrop prevails and the reader will learn much about this "forgotten" Founding Father in this compelling and interesting biography.

This is a wonderful book. The author demonstrates a rich, nuanced command of the period and the players. I especially appreciate how he works to portray the characters from their own perspective instead of juding people who lived four centuries ago by todays ideas. I appreciate that he goes to great length to provide historical context. Indeed, he provides so much context, beginning with the subject's grandfather, that the book starts out a little slowly. But once the book reaches the point of Winthrop's departure for America, it remains compelling up to the end. A wonderful book for a more complete picture of the settlement of our country and a valuable addition to a balanced view of the puritans.

John Winthrop: America's Forgotten Founding Father

by Francis J. Bremer

Oxford University Press, published 2003

Millerstown University Professor Francis Bremmer's John Winthrop: America's Forgotten Founding Father is the first major work on the Massachusetts's governor in over fifty years. It is an engaging and comprehensive volume serving as the author's attempt to provide a more balanced view of Winthrop than has been seen in other works. Bremer writes, "The Winthrop of modern histories has been constructed to suit particular agendas. It is time for biography that is interested primarily in John Winthrop himself." (pg. xvi) Bremer is well qualified to take on this task, as he is the editor of John Winthrop's papers for the Massachusetts' Historical Society.

The narrative traces all of Winthrop's known ancestors in England. Almost a century before John was born, his grandfather, Adam, was a successful London cloth merchant. Adam profited handsomely from Henry VIII's reformation of the church. He purchased monastery lands from the government and established the family's seat in Suffolk. It was to this estate that Adam retired during the Catholic restoration of Mary I. The Winthrops were staunch Protestants and the move was designed to prevent retribution from the Marian government. The estate was to be the family's headquarters until John's departure for the new world in 1630.

The family estate was located in the Stour Valley, which was a hotbed of reformed Protestantism. Bremer deliberately avoids using the term Puritan because he feels that it carries to strong a connotation to the modern reader. "Godly" was the description used most often by the Winthrop family and their circle. Like many others in Suffolk, the Winthrop's were non-conformists to the Anglican model and hoped for continued reforms of the church.

John Winthrop was born in 1588. He attended college at Cambridge for two years and left without taking a degree. While he considered entering the ministry, his early marriage and family obligation precluded that career path. In 1605, he married for the first time. From 1605 through 1630, John Winthrop lived the life of the minor gentry. He was involved in running his estate, raising his family and practicing law. In 1615, his first wife died in childbirth and Winthrop soon remarried. His new wife died a year later in childbirth; John married again in 1617 to his third wife, Margaret Tyndal.

Winthrop became involved with the civil government when he was appointed to the Court of Wards and Liveries. It was at this time he grew increasingly displeased with the corrupt state of the civil government. After considering emigration to Ireland, he and Margaret decided instead to join with members of the Massachusetts Bay Company and move to the new world. The venture was seen as a way to serve God and to make a profit. The founders of the company decided on John Winthrop as Governor for the colony. This is a reflection of the modest nature of the project in the eyes of the founders because, "if Massachusetts had been a larger, more important venture, he would not have been entrusted with the responsibility." (pg. 170)

As Governor, Winthrop was responsible for seeing the colonists through the bitter early years and for establishing order among the colonists. It was at the start of the emigrating that his famous "Christian Charity" sermon was given. He compared the colonists endeavors to a "city on a hill" that all could see. This biblical reference is Winthrop's most enduring literary legacy and is often quoted by politicians to this day.

Winthrop strove to live a good Christian life and to ensure the others the opportunity to so as well. He sought unity amongst the settlers but was willing to compromise and attempt to reach consensus. He was unwavering, however, in his principles and showed no reluctance to expel Roger Williams or Anne Hutchinson from the colony when their unorthodox theologies threatened the stability of the society.

Winthrop served as governor for 12 of the 19 years he lived in Massachusetts. He was untiring in his efforts to promote the growth of the colony. In the winter of 1649, he became ill and died. Bremer sums up the man and his accomplishments, "Zealous but not a zealot ... he helped to prevent his colony from being blown off course by the winds of extremism and from being wrecked on the rocks of fanaticism." (pg. 385)

Accessible to all levels of interested readers, John Winthrop: America's Forgotten Founding Father is a valuable portrait of an important figure in American History. Sources are extensive and meticulously documented. They primarily come from the records of the Courts of Assistants in Massachusetts Bay, Official Records of the Governor and Winthrop's own papers and journals. In addition, a host of sources from both sides of the Atlantic is employed in the work. The in-depth coverage of the Winthrop family background can be tedious to readers only interested in American events, but they provide needed insights into the English Reformation and the events that lead to colonization of New England. Bremer's work takes its place as the definitive biography of John Winthrop for the next fifty years.

Bremer has brought us a sensitive and balanced portrayal of Winthrop, one that is at the same time truly gripping. One of the significant contributions of the book is Bremer's attention to Winthrop's forty or so years in England prior to coming to New England, which helps create the sense of organic development and shows points of continuity between English Puritanism and that of the New England colonies. The relationship between Bremer's presentation and other scholarly opinions is covered in many of the endnotes, which makes it useful to the scholar but not burdensome for the average reader. Scholars, history buffs, and even those just interested in the human experience of life, will find this book rewarding. Highly recommended.

I love Boston. I really do. This beautiful, progressive city known for being an academic, cultural and historical mecca is brilliantly presented in this delightful book.

This book will take readers alphabetically through the city that has long established itself as the Cradle of Amerian History. The alphabet format is good and effective as readers will more easily remember the sites in and around Boston. The map of the Boston area is also a good idea and an excellent added touch.

Using alliterative sentences is another good mnemonic device; readers will readily make associations with the places they are reading about in this delightful book about Boston. Readers also get text with chronicled detailed history about the places and historical events that took place in the Boston area. The lovely illustrations and rich history will delight readers of all ages. I highly recommend this one.

A wonderful book to see Boston and find out about Boston. I would recommend this to anyone (adults and children) about to visit Boston. I am looking forward to buying more books by this author and illustrator.

I discovered this book while doing a search for travel guides
to Boston. I was surprised when this book popped up 2nd in the
list, but since I collect children's illustrated books, I had to
take a look, and found it to be absolutely wonderful. I do have
to admit that it certainly would be for the very top end of the
picture book gang, not those just learning their ABC's. But so
what. It is wonderfully informative with beautiful illustrations.

Whenever I run into an ABC book, I first look to the X's to see
how the author handles that. I am pleased that this author
did not feel compelled to use X's in the beginning of the words.
Her X's became "Extraordinary Exhibits excite viewers." That is
so much better than yet another xylophone.

Perhaps my favorite page was "Y": Yarns have been spun at Ye Olde Union Oyster House for Years". The page was so compelling, I made special effort to get to the Oyster House though it wasn't
on my original agenda.

Besides a very attractive architectural illustration of the Oyster House, there is an insert that shows some of regional foods such as Boston Baked Beans and Boston Cream Pie. Below the
pictures is a short paragraph about the pictures. In this case
there is information about baked beans and why they were so popular with the Pilgrims. Below that is a wavy line (as there is on each page) with another bit of information, this time about
lobster which is usually available in the waters close by.

In September I am going to Cape Code and her A to Z book on
Cape Cod will be part of my planning. I hope she keeps this
wonderful series going, and if she branches out into Europe -
so much the better! If you are reading this, Martha, I am going
to London in the Spring next year and Venice in the fall, just
in case you are looking for your next subject.

Highly recommended.

JOURNEY AROUND BOSTON is another title in the series created by author, artist and one time teacher Martha Zschock. Zschock was a third grade teacher at the time she wrote the book. As a teacher she has the respects both the natural curiosity and intelligence of children. A mallard, a duck often associated with the city thanks to Robert McCloskey's immortal MAKE WAY FOR DUCKLINGS, leads visitors on a tour of Boston and the vicinity. Her book includes the familiar tourist attractions as well as lesser known and perhaps even ignored places in Boston. It serves as a wonderful introduction to Boston and its illustrious history.

This book is a must for any family with young visitors coming to the city of Boston. It will also be of interest to the children of Boston who wish to learn a bit about the city and its history.

It seems a bit strange to use an alphabet book format for middle schoolers, but the idea is well-executed in this nicely illustrated guide to Boston. The book begins with an undetailed map of the Boston vicinity, continues with a paragraph of introduction, and then moves on to the alphabet. Each letter gets a full page and has an alliterative title with a few explanatory sentences and some related factoids. For example, "M" is entitled "Minutemen made ready at a moment's notice"; text describes the events in Lexington and Concord on April 18, 1775; watercolor pictures show the Minuteman statue in Lexington and the Old North Bridge in Concord; factoids tell us that British soldiers were called "regulars" and that the midnight riders (Paul Revere, William Dawes and Samuel Prescott) called out "The regulars are out! The regulars are out!" as they rode through the night. End pages depict an alphabet of objects other than those seen in the book, such as Magnolia for "M".

With nice art and layout, this book imparts quite a few interesting facts about Boston, though one thinks it might have benefitted from an overarching coherence with which to motivate the more sophisticated young readers at which it is purportedly aimed.

I was transfixed by this well-written account of a Mount Hermon legend. I attended the school in 1951-52 and remember it fondly. Reading about people and buildings and locations with which I am, even after all these years, familiar, the story was very real to me. I found the experience compelling and commend it to others.

Murder At Mount Hermon: The Unsolved Killing Of Headmaster Elliott Speer is a true crime story concerning the 1934 murder of a thirty-five-year old school administrator, whose efforts to bring progressive reform to the tradition-bound Christian prep school earned the good graces of many students and faculty. A shotgun blast through his study window killed him, and the murder was front-page news nationwide, yet no criminal was ever charged. Veteran attorney Craig Walley pieces together the clues of history and dares even to indicate the most likely killer. A fascinating, fact-filled study of murder and the shortcomings of a 1930's homicide investigation.

Love this revisit to the unsolved murder case of Elliott Speer. The author's distinction voice and detailed descriptions truly bring the case and the characters alive.

As a student at Northfield Mount Hermon in the early 1970s, little was said about the unsolved murder of former Headmaster Elliott Speer. I recall a rumor that the gun used in the killing was somewhere on the bottom of the school's Shadow Lake. Craig Walley's well-researched and -written book examines that rumor and many more in an absorbing murder mystery. Murder at Mount Hermon captures the school's history and religious roots, and how the forward-thinking Speer's efforts to break from the past and move the school and its students into a new era sealed his fate. While the murder remains unsolved, Walley's book comes closer than ever before to finding the "smoking gun."

The 1934 murder of Mount Hermon School for Boys Headmaster Elliott Speer remains unsolved today, legally speaking. What youngster could resist such a mystery's allure? Not Craig Walley, a Mount Hermon student from 1957 through 1961. During the years afterward, throughout his career as an attorney, Walley thought about it often. In 2001 he decided to research the case and write this book.

MURDER AT MOUNT HERMON tells the story, provides its background, and analyzes the available evidence with an attorney's precision. I think it's safe to say that you'll come away from it certain you know the murderer's name and understand his motives. More case study than murder mystery, the book reaches for broader relevance - and for a connection to our 21st Century present - by speaking of another time when "Fundamentalism" and "Modernism" clashed. Did that clash at Northfield and Mount Hermon, sister schools founded by the great 19th Century evangelist D.L. Moody, lay the groundwork for Elliott Speer's murder? To answer this intriguing question for yourself, you'll have to read the book.

In school the time before The Revolutionary War is briefly touched. This book will enlighten those who read it with a new understanding of the persecution regarding the Freedom of Speech and religious bias.

The book is an easy read. This is an accomplishmnet with the heavy subject matters that are entailed in the book.

Please read this book and pass it along. We must learn from our past to avoid the mistakes that were made.

Ms. Brinton delivers a fascinating account of Mary Dyer's life which is vivid in both detail and authenticity. I found this work illuminating about the religious intolerance of the time and the particular suspicion that was cast on many women. Mary 's story should be taught in schools as an important part of our American history. The religious and social freedoms we enjoy today are due to martyrs such as Mary.

Elizabeth Brinton's fascinating historial novel 'My American Eden' brings home the suffering and eventual execution of Mary Dyer, a colonial spiritual leader who fought and died for religious freedom. I can't help but worry that our country is going to have to fight this battle again and again with the threat to our freedom by the current administration and it's followers. This book is a must-read for anyone who truly loves the principles this country was eventually founded on.

This inspiring tale of the life, convictions and death of Mary Dyer captures the readers imagination from the first chapter.
Life in early America is well portrayed and is intricately woven with periods in England as Mary's tale unfolds.
It is difficult to grasp the severity of puritan law in Boston and the cruelty that early American settlers were subjected to. Elizabeth Brinton has skillfully brought this period in history to light by sharing with the reader the startling tale of Mary Dyer and Quaker followers in 1600 America.
We can wish it ended differently, but historically, it did not. A captivating and inspiring novel.

This is a wonderful book that tells an important and little told story of just how profound religious intolerance was as our country was being settled by colonists. We are skillfully taken on the courageous journey of a woman who ultimately martyrs herself for being a Quaker. Ms. Brinton helps us understand the daily consequences of Mary Dyer's struggles and the constant sacrifices necessary to be a woman with a spiritual calling. The author accomplishes this with a spunky narrator who takes us in to the family and household of Mary Dyer as her indentured servant who was Catholic. I liked this divergent voice of a woman who was of a different religious persuasion and yet able to respect and even love Dyer deeply. I benefited from the author's vivid descriptions of the daily life of a colonist and what it took to survive with very little community to support them. It is marvelous to read a piece of early American historical fiction that capably allows us to contemplate such facinating and still relevant motivations. I wanted to read more.

You cannot put a price on how many hours this book will save you! Has every possible side street. You will never get lost!

This guidebook's title is right on: it's not for tourists. It's for those of us who are moving to Boston and need good maps, information on T-stops and bus lines (very helpful, as no other guidebook I've seen shows bus lines), restaurants, bars, etc. We don't need information on fancy hotels and the Freedom Trail- for that, a different guidebook might do. But this is the one worth buying and keeping tucked in your purse or bag when you're out and about in the city.

I first picked up the NFT guide for New York City in May of 2006 when I was looking for a tourbook for a long weekend trip I had planned. I now have the Chicago and Boston books as well.

These books are the ultimate guide to a city and are not just for people new to the cities. They provide EXCELLENT coverage of the public transportation systems and numbered nieghborhood maps. As well as the locations of resturants, coffe shops, bookstores, edcuational instutions, hospitals, shopping and more.

The design of the books; compact with a black elastic band to either hold your place in the text or to keep items secure within the book, easy to read, and somewhat sarcastic demeanor; is a joy.

If you like to travel, these books are a must.

I bought this book off Amazon and was a little ticked off when it came because:
A) It was so small
B) Half of it was maps

However I have come to love this little book for precisely those reasons. It's the ultimate walking around the city book. It's small enough to fit in your pocket, yet the maps are detailed enough to show every street. The authors accomplish this two ways: there are a lot of map pages, and the guide doesn't try to cover too large an area. If you live in Medford or Arlington, you're out of luck. Somerville is as far north as the guide goes.

Since each map page covers such a small area, you have to turn pages fairly often, but this is not a big deal because:
A) The authors let the map pages overlap considerably, so it's easy to orient yourself on the new page.
B) The maps cover neighborhoods, using logical boundaries. For example, one map page will stop at the charles river, and the next will pick up on the other side.

By devoting three map pages to each neighbourhood (essentials, entertainment, and transportation), the book can convey a lot of information without being cluttered.

Since it fits in your back pocket, this guide is best suited to those taking public transportation. It covers probably ~85% of the T's network (some outlying areas are excluded) and also includes bus routes.

I have been using Rand McNally's street guide boston when I drive around. It's great in the suburban areas. Since its pages are big and is spiral bound, I can keep one page open in the passenger seat. However since it uses a grid system, the positioning of the page boundaries is arbitrary. Since there is no overlap between the pages, navigating around the page boundaries can be a pain.

If you move to Boston, you will need some type of map. There is no rhyme or reason to the streets here.

As a new Bostonian this book has saves me a million times already. If you are newly moved to Boston, this book is a definite must have. There is no rhyme or reason to the streets of the city. Boston was made before the grid pattern existed. Streets constantly change names and directions. Half of the time there is no street sign, and if there is it is microscopic. This perfect compact book fits nicely in your purse or pocket so it is extremely portable and easy to carry with you. It is filled with maps of all areas of Boston and also includes some surrounding areas. It is mostly a map book but also lists entertainment, nightlife, schools, liquor stores, grocery stores, restaurants, banks, etc. Has multiple maps of each area including a public transportation map and a key map. Maps are very user friendly and easy to read. I have gotten lost multiple times and this book has always helped me find my way. There is a street index in the back and an elastic band that you can use to hold the page you need. A small price to pay for your sanity while navigating the city!

If you like nature and have an introspective attitude, then this is a book for you. The author examines the life of a man who spent a life time "wedging down" into nature and communicating his insights to the rest of us through his writings and actions.

David Gessner does us all an immense service with this lovely description of his friendship with John Hay--the much-too-poorly-known dean of American nature writers. Gessner captures the spirt of this charming and visionary man at the end of his life. John Hay's dedication to place, family, and language, and his intense relationship with the natural world are an inspiration. Bravo!

Author David Gessner had always known of John Hay, who was his hero; but he only befriended the older naturalist when he returned to his childhood home on Cape Cod. His thought of writing a biography of the naturalist changed when their conversations became a record of Hay's naturalist knowledge, and thus THE PROPHET OF DRY HILL: LESSONS FROM A LIFE IN NATURE isn't just a survey of Hay's life and personality but a treasured collection of his seasoned observations on nature itself, packing in much more detail about nature than any biography would have achieved. Highly recommended.

Diane C. Donovan, Editor
California Bookwatch

I have always imagined a dinner party with only the list of "pedestal people" in my life attending. David Gessner would be on that list. While reading this amazing book, I felt like I had walked silently behind David and John Hay on the Cape that is also so close to my heart. What an amazing gift of writing from Gessner.

I've read almost everything David Gessner has written, and this slim book towers above his already impressive body of work. Gessner's portrait of naturalist John Hay is frank and warm, and depicts Hay as a philosopher from whom we all could learn some profound lessons. Hay's commitment to the natural world, and his insistence that we look to nature for the questions and answers in our lives, rather than probing the inner recesses of our psyches, stands as a much-needed corrective to the easy psychologizing of daytime television and self-help books. Hay finds meaning in our lives in the passing of the seasons, and this book can help us find meaning there too. Gessner mirrors Hay's outlook by searching for meaning through his depiction of Hay, and by letting Hay speak for himself throughout the book, rather than philosophizing about Hay or dissecting his published work. This book is really a brilliant achievement of nonfiction writing in any genre, though of course it will have special appeal to anyone interested in the natural world.