Virginia Books

The Shot from the Mountain covers the tribulations and quests of an Appalachian miner struggling to improve his life and the life of his family. A world of which I knew little, peopled with characters I grew to care about. Realistic, memorable.

A great novel by a Ph.D.? You bet! And a good one at that. A shot rings out from the hills in a coal minning town in West Virginia killing the local big shot, Avery Murphy, by the protaganist, Clyde Fuller, whose best friend has just been murdered by Murphy. A borrowed gun, an ambush above the town, and only one person- though not a witness- knew who the killer was (he remained mum through the years).

These events set off a train of actions that takes you through the beginning of the great depression and including the beginning of the Roosevelt administration.

Claude S. Phillips who knew them thar hills as a native whose father was a miner, writes with a commanding authority in flawless grammar rarely found in a novel these days...and that without pedantry.

Meticulous in detail, the novel has all the prime elements of a great narrative: exposition, complication, climax, resolution, and conclusion.

At the start the setting is "Appalachia" before and during the Great Depression and the early days before John L. Louis and his United Mine Workers of America came on the seen. Early attempts to organize were met with violence from the coal companies, the violence of which Clyde is intimately involved. The suspense is gripping. The fear in the back of Clyde's mind that his crime will be found out dominates this young man's mind, giving the novel a thrust that grips the reader's attention through a divorce, two marrages, and the restless obsession of a man driven by an ambition to get ahead in life.

The characters are real and the reader is aware of a struggle for the very existance in the West Virginian coal mining town.

The ending has an ironic twist and an O'Henry-like ending.

The novel ends where it begins...but happily.

A Novel Set in the Appalachian Coal Fields of the 1920s and 1930s

Entitled The Shot from the Mountain: An Appalachian Odyssey, the novel was written by Claude S. Phillips, who was raised in the coal mine regions of West Virginia and is now a retired professor from Western Michigan University. The protagonist of the story is a fictional character named Clyde Fuller, but the setting is real: a time of bitter conflict between mine operators and miners over the latter's attempt to form a union in the southern part of the state. The story includes Fuller's role in two violent events, known historically as the Massacre at Matewan (where he thinks he killed a mine "detective" with a shot from the mountain) and the Battle of Blair Mountain. Other events include his heroic act connected with a mine explosion, his two marriages, his determined attempt to rise to a high position in the mines, and his confrontation with the brother of the man he thinks he killed.

I haven't written a review before, but I felt compelled to say that this little book offers extremely valuable insight into how a reliance on judgement and criticism of others to defend our own self-image can be very destructive. It is helpful in limiting the damage that this coping mechanism can have in one's life. I recommend it strongly.

I was amazed by "Shrinking the Judge." I really didnt expect too much when I first picked this book up, but a few pages in I was hooked. By the time I had finished it, I was just shaking my head in disbelief and giggling...I had quite an epiphany while reading this book! Amazing. Ive been studying myself through meditation, psychedelics, depth psychology, mysticism, world religion and philosophy, recovery, etc. basically my entire life and "Shrinking the Judge" helped me more in a few hours than anything else ever has. To my genuine astonishment, I discovered that this book was the exact conceptual monkey wrench I needed to start dismantling the mechanisms of childhood pain that have kept me depressed since about the age of 6.

As the title suggests, the book is about the Judge. What is the Judge? The Judge is the pathological, anti-life part of every person whose sole function is to criticize and condemn. The Judge operates outside of your awareness, attempting to use fear and shame to take control of your life, make you miserable and stop any attempt at personal growth. If you have ever suffered from attacks of fear, hoplessness, shame, depression or a sense of worthlessness for no real reason at all, then you have met your Judge.

This no-nonsense book will help you to identify your Judge, learn how it functions in your life, and then to "deflate" it--negate the power it has over you and reclaim that power for yourself. The Judge operates in darkness, terrifying your inner child. This book shows you how to turn on the light and see the Judge for what it really is, just a pile of old memories, like a TV showing scary old movies, powerless to harm you.

The powerful use of imagery in healing is beautifully depicted in Shrinking the Judge: Freeing the Inner Child by Rick Malter, Ph.D. and Rosalie Malter, M.A. By combining unique "Judge-work" concepts that apply to all humans with Jungian Psychology, Inner Child Work, and Transpersonal Psychology, this book becomes more than just fascinating reading; it becomes an experience in personal growth. This book encourages the reader to engage in active participation. The models that come to life include a Judge, a Wounded Inner Child, a Natural Child, and a Warrior. The concepts within its pages can be applied to life at an inner personal level, to relationships, to institutional and social life, and to international relationships in the world. This book doesn't get stale. During the first reading, my mind focused on active Judge-work. I drew my Judge, felt its impact, and destroyed the illusion of its control. During the months that followed, I became acutely aware of the times my Judges became inflated. The second time I read Shrinking the Judge: Freeing the Inner Child, it seemed like a different book. I picked up a new and deeper understanding of the ploys of my Judge and was able to take my personal growth a step further. To free the Natural Child within the soul takes courage. This book guides the person ready to embark on the journey with the vision to rally all of their inner strengths into a Warrior image which can stand up to the Judge, comfort the Wounded Inner Child, and free the creative intuitive life force of the Natural, Spiritual Child within each of us. I highly recommend Shrinking the Judge: Freeing the Inner Child to all people and especially to those in the mental health profession.

Pamela Re, M.A., Professional Counseling

It is a fast-paced action/romance novel that becomes a "page turner," after the stage is set in the first two chapters. The author's artistic ability is apparent. Story, descriptions, and character development are masterfully written by someone who experienced war in the Balkans. The powerful underlying subject of the book is genocide, which is delicately and artistically dealt with from a Christian Biblical perspective. A must read on anyone's contemporary book list. It is an especially empowering book for women.

Sins of the Fathers portrays the essence of how wars encompass the political views of not only religious sects and cultures, but also the roles played by women in those wars. The main character in this book finds herself in a compromising position as a Christian and an American female soldier in a Muslim environment. Her job is complicated by the way she is perceived by militant Muslims. As a former female soldier in the Gulf War, I would recommend this book to all females who consider the military as their career choice. In lieu of more women taking part in wars today, it gives great insight as to how we are viewed by our own male members, as well as by other cultures and nations.

This is an intriguing book for public relations/public information professionals. Suspense and romance are all rolled into one story! The main character, Leslie Johnson, is a public affairs officer stationed at the Pentagon, but on temporary assignment to the IFOR Headquarters in Zagreb, Croatia.

Her experiences are educational and entertaining!

The essays in this book are consistently interesting and thoroughly researched. The writers are some of the finest active historians of the American South. I particularly recommend Robert Paquette's article on slave drivers and Eugene Genovese's interview in Appendix A. I also liked Clyde Wilson's analysis of John C. Calhoun's economic thought. Calhoun's dual executive theory may have been off the mark but his economic thinking was first-rate and profoundly republican.

Twelve scholars provide essays debating the cause of Civil War history and the relationships between slavery and master-slave relationships in the South in a title which revises and challenges central themes of Eugene Genovese's work on the subject. The result is Slavery, Secession, and Southern History, a new analysis and interpretation of Southern history recommended for any student of the era.

If you are intrested in Slavery, Secession, and Southern History as am, this book is perfect fo you. Edited by the brillant Professor of Economics Louis Ferleger, this book is a collection of articles that discuss diffrent parts of th 19th century south. I think it is a great book every history buff should own, no collection is complete without it.

Sometimes I Feel Awful focuses on a child's rough day, with a first-person presentation exploring how a positive day turns negative. The focus is on emotions and how they develop, and how communications become scrambled. Sometimes I Feel Awful will prove the perfect title for an introduction to kids on emotions and feelings. Highly recommended.

This is one of my very favorite resources for teaching young children the difference between feelings and actions. I am a school social worker in an early childhood center and teach "social skills" classes to our kindergarten students. After we spend time identifying feelings in ourselves and others, and how children might express them, I read this book to the class. The author does such a wonderful job of portraying this little girl's impulsive responses to her day's disappointments and fears. The children in our classes are captivated by her struggle and have no trouble "reading the feelings" on her face. They really relate to this story and illustrations. After reviewing each problematic situation, they brainstorm more appropriate ways the little girl could let the other characters know how she is feeling. One dilemma for our five year olds is that the main character does not have a name and they often want to refer to her by name. This is one of the books that the children talk about for many weeks after it's initial presentation, and revisit it during our "problem solving" unit. Parents also like to borrow it from our "Life Issues Library" of children's books, so I need to buy another copy to be sure it is available for "social skills" classes this year. Some adults may be put off by the title, thinking it sounds too depressing for a children's book, but we have found that it is one of the most popular, powerful, and relevent books to help teach children about feelings, behavior and consequences, without being "preachy".

This book is wonderful -- I can't recommend it highly enough. My daughter is a preschooler who is developing all sorts of complex feelings and emotions. Reading this book with her has helped her identify what she is feeling and learn to articulate what she wants and needs. What makes this book about kids' feelings stand out from other similar books is that it runs through a variety of situations where the little girl in the book could have used her words, but didn't, and what the effect was on the situation. It goes just a bit deeper than some similar books, but it is presented in a very positive and child-friendly fashion. My husband and I enjoyed reading this book over and over (and over and over... :-) almost as much as my daughter did.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book about Sugarloaf Mountain. As a hike leader with a local trail club, it was most helpful before leading a recent hike on the mountain. But more than that, I just loved reading it. The history, especially, was interesting to me, but the rest was very good as well. If you have ever been to (or wish to visit) this wonderful little slice of nature amidst all the suburban sprawl, you should read this book.

Choukas-Bradley and Brown's book is superbly written and provides a wealth of compelling information. Perhaps even more importantly, it reminds us of the value of our connection to sacred places in nature, something so threatened in our modern culture. This book has really increased my appreciation and enjoyment of Sugarlaf Mountain and all the natural beauty that surrounds it.

As a regular visitor to Sugarloaf Mountain, I was pleased to learn so much more about it from reading this book. I normally shy away from nature and history books but the writing in "Sugarloaf: The Mountain's History, Geology and Natural Lore" is so good that it just drew me in. I literally couldn't put the book down!

I especially loved the chapter describing each season on Sugarloaf. With such obvious love for and knowledge of the mountain, the author vividly describes the different aspects of each season in exquisite detail.

I highly recommend this book!

I had been searching through all of the sewing books I could find to learn more about the nature of fabric and fibers...and everything I could possibly want to know was here, and more. Absolutely fascinating. It is a textbook, but was written clearly enough that anyone with an interest in the area can easily understand it. I've been teaching classes to costumers and members of the local American Sewing Guild, who are equally impressed with the knowledge we got from this book.

This was an easy textbook to follow when I took my textiles class. It is very informative and interesting.

I use this book as the text for teaching a basic textiles course for sophmores. This text provides a sound foundation for students understanding the textiles and the science foundations that are the base for predicting textile performance. Every line is packed with information; there is no fluff in this book. If you want to understand WHY textiles and textile products perform in specific ways, this is the book to buy.

Earl J. Hess's new "Trench Warfare under Grant and Lee: Field Fortifications in the Overland Campaign" is as good a piece of Civil War scholarship as I have read in years. It is at the most fundamental level a narrative history of military operations in the Overland Campaign of May and June, 1864: the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, North Anna, and Cold Harbor, but it is a narrative history that focuses particularly on how field fortifications evolved over the course of those six weeks of heavy combat and it details how the use of field fortifications influenced the course of that campaign. In his earlier volume, "Field Armies and Fortifications in the Civil War," Hess dispelled the old myths that such entrenchments were a direct consequence of the power of rifled-muskets or that their use suddenly sprang into being in the spring of 1864 (he documented three years of field fortifications, although not on such a scale as became standard by the end of the Overland Campaign) and that these entrenchments were somehow merely the fruit of the teaching of Dennis Hart Mahan at West Point. Or to quote the author: "The use of field fortifications evolved during the Civil War not due to some irrational fear, but due to a real and potent threat: the continued presence of an enemy army within striking distance. Their use was a rational and logical response to that threat."

Hess reserves most of the technical details of entrenchment and breastwork design for an appendix, leaving his main narrative fast-moving and compelling. "Trench Warfare under Grant and Lee" is an important contribution to Civil War literature and should find a ready spot on the bookshelves of any serious student of the era. I look forward to his planned third volume, to examine field fortifications during the Petersburg campaign.

Inevitably, it must be asked how Hess views the Overland Campaign in balance. Was it a Union or a Confederate success? Although Hess does not absolve Grant of errors in too hastily ordering attacks or in failing to recognize the power of impromptu fieldworks, Hess concludes: "Grant's most significant achievement in the Overland campaign was not in capturing territory, or in positioning his army close to Richmond, or in reducing the fighting strength of the Army of Northern Virginia by 50 percent; rather it lay in robbing Lee of the opportunity to launch large-scale offensives against the Army of the Potomac. In laying claim to the strategic initiative, Grant won an important physical and emotional victory over Lee, and he did it with fewer losses than his predecessors had suffered in attempting the same goal ... Most important, he did not give up the strategic initiative and thereby brought the war to an end. The Overland campaign was as much a watershed in the strategic course of the Civil War as the Seven Days."

By the time of the Overland Campaign, the star of Earl Hess's second volume on Civil War fortifications, the idea of bravery that most soldiers had when hostilities began had just about fizzled out. In that more innocent time, soldiers and officers thought it cowardly to hide behiind entrenchments, or anything else for that matter. Battles were about sticking out your chest and, in plain view of the enemy, marching and shooting. (For a good account of this transition, see Linderman's Embattled Courage.)

Three years of the harsh reality of war changed all that, and by the time of the Overland Campaign, troops on both sides were digging in fast and furiously whenever they got the chance. Aside from the Vicksburg and Petersburg campaigns, nowhere was the entrenchment so obvious as in the Overland one. Most Civil War buffs know about the entrenchments at Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor. But many will probably be surprised (as was I) that entrenchments were also dug in The Wilderness and at the Bermuda Hundred.

Hess' account of the evolution of fortifications in this stage of the war is well-written and entirely accessible to the nonspecialist. He tends to protect Grant from the general's worst critics, arguing (much as does James McPherson) that the huge cost of federal lives in the Overland in fact did succeed in strategically defeating Lee.

The photographs are priceless. I've actually never seen most of them before. Moreover, the line drawings of fortifications and entrenchments are brilliant. All in all, highly recommended.

This is the second book in a series on fortifications in the eastern theater during the Civil War. The first book covers the war up to this point, while reading the first book is not required; it is worth taking the time to do so. 1864 produced a major revision in how digging in and fighting behind entrenchments is viewed by both armies. Open field battle gives way to fighting from behind entrenchments as both sides maintain close contact for months. The war is no longer open fields with a mile between the armies. Both sides dug into the earth often closer than skirmish lines were in 1862. The book details this change and the impact on the commanders and men.

The author continues working fortifications into the overall campaign giving the reader an excellent history of the Overland Campaign in the process. This presentation keeps the subject fresh while presenting the nuanced tactical differences in a logical sequential manner. This is very much a battle history but the emphasis is on how fortifications changed the campaign even as the campaign changed fortifications.

Earl Hess is one of our best authors. In this series and this book, he manages to give the reader a rich learning experience coupled with an enjoyable read. This is not a beginner's book but can be enjoyed by anyone with some knowledge of the Civil War.

As a person very attracted to the colors & shapes of Viking Glass, I have enjoyed this book immensley! I have been able to identify most all pieces in my collection from this book and learned about new patterns, colors, shapes to look for in the future! I'm also looking forward to seeing a new book that covers 70's & beyond! Hope he's working on one! Thank you Dean Six!

As a glass collecting enthusiast I have read my share of collecting books through the years, and I have to say that this is the most visually appealing and informative books I have ever read. Viking made beatiful and colorful pieces of glass, and Dean Six's book captures the beauty of the glass while putting the pieces in a logical and historical context.

I highly recommend this book not only for the serious Viking collector, but for anyone who collect glass, is interested in history or enjoys a beautiful decorative arts book.

Beautifully compiled by Dean Six, the Schiffer edition of Viking Glass 1944-1970 is a superbly organized and presented collector's price guide enhanced with more 520 color photographs of the exceptional, painstakingly handmade glassware produced by the Viking Glass Company of New Martinsville, West Virginia from 1944 to 1970. Glorious color and design mark virtually every page of this beautiful display volume which will prove an invaluable reference for professional dealers and dedicated collectors.

This slim volume is like a slender candle that sheds much light over a topic that seems so confusing. Until you read this book, you may never understand why the Mid-East "Peace Process" was still-born. Orr weaves together short essays that leave an indelible impression on the tangled origins and uncertain future of America's closest ally in the Mid-East, Israel.

This slim volume is like a slender candle that sheds much light over a topic that seems so confusing. Until you read this book, you may never understand why the Mid-East "Peace Process" was still-born. Orr weaves together short essays that leave an indelible impression on the tangled origins and uncertain future of America's closest ally in the Mid-East, Israel.

The only thing to say about this collection of insightful essays is that it is perfect. Nowhere else can one find such succinct, incisive writing about a topic so deliberately obfuscated as the Middle East. In one essay, Orr writes an exact history of Israel in nine pages. Major news media organisations, such as TIME and NEWSWEEK, would do well to follow. Their pages-long analyses of Israel and the Palestinians lack the focus and commitment to honesty that Orr exudes on every page.

Orr's credentials are rock-solid, too: he is a citizen of Israel and a former member of the Israeli Defence Forces, so he knows that nation from the inside. While he believed at first in the righteousness of Israel's cause, as a soldier and member of civilian society he came to see the true, criminal nature of the state. He compares its siege mentality to that of the Nazis, a comparison only a Jew can make.

If you haven't time to digest great tomes on Israel and the Middle East, sift through this one-hundred page beauty and emerge a more enlightened man.