Washington Books

If you sorta like Military History, than you should absolutely buy this book. The book captures the thrill of victory, like never before. If you are like me, and had never heard of Gustavus Adolphus before, than this is an excellent book to read, as a stepping stone to learning more about these men.

An excellent study of exactly why these four generals were so successful on and off of the battlefield. Particularly emphasizes the importance of the cult-of-personality so prevalant in history's greatest generals, while still showing you enough of the army details to let you imagine you're charging across a ditch at Lutzen.

This was a great book for me to read because it influenced me to become the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army,which I am today.I would like to recommennd this book to historians to all people who are interested(especially generals).

Wanda McGee uses beautiful prose to evoke images of nature. From these images she draws analogies to our daily lives, teaching us that our external world abounds with lessons for those willing to quietly observe. Her book has encouraged me to take notice of my surroundings -- of beautiful trees, birds, landscapes --which I otherwise would have rushed right past.

I find her poignant descriptions of nature relaxing to read. I have really enjoyed unwinding with this book at the end of the day.

In a world that most often pushes velocity, this book emphasizes the direction part of the velocity equation. It gently and effectively pulls us back into ourselves to look at where we're going.

Wanda McGee's little book with evocative illustrations by Cindy Mueller is like a spring that begins by nourishing you as an individual. When used with a group it joins other springs, creating a new flow, potentially moving the group to a new destination.

Composed of brief, simply illustrated descriptions of nature observed, and a provocative pattern of questions with each, the scenes evoke associations and spark light onto our own subterranean flows. The underground streams of our own lives get brought to the surface with the questions.

They all start with queries that tap into us at the individual, reflective level, appropriately since that's where the scenes evoke a reaction. Then they weave in questions about the meaning of our associations with the scene, flowing to questions that ask us to sense implications for our lives in groups and organizations. One is left, after flowing down this very gentle stream and around several bends in the river, with a clearer view of where to steer next, or what needs a closer look.

As an individual tool for reflection, the book gives one a wonderful view of the world. Used with a group it can work magic with creating a strong dialogue using inquiry and reflection. The secret is that they start with a place far away from the here-and-now and metaphorically work our spring of discovery towards the edge of a clear brook, running into other streams.

In a world that most often pushes velocity, this book emphasizes the direction part of the velocity equation. It gently and effectively pulls us back into ourselves to look at where we're going.

Wanda McGee's little book with evocative illustrations by Cindy Mueller is like a spring that begins by nourishing you as an individual. When used with a group it joins other springs, creating a new flow, potentially moving the group to a new destination.

Composed of brief, simply illustrated descriptions of nature observed, and a provocative pattern of questions with each, the scenes evoke associations and spark light onto our own subterranean flows. The underground streams of our own lives get brought to the surface with the questions.

They all start with queries that tap into us at the individual, reflective level, appropriately since that's where the scenes evoke a reaction. Then they weave in questions about the meaning of our associations with the scene, flowing to questions that ask us to sense implications for our lives in groups and organizations. One is left, after flowing down this very gentle stream and around several bends in the river, with a clearer view of where to steer next, or what needs a closer look.

As an individual tool for reflection, the book gives one a wonderful view of the world. Used with a group it can work magic with creating a strong dialogue using inquiry and reflection. The secret is that they start with a place far away from the here-and-now and metaphorically work our spring of discovery towards the edge of a clear brook, running into other streams.

I lived for a time, in the Village, during the 60`s, at times in a haze. Therefore I never got to know the Square and her glorious history,so this book gave me an insight to a wonderful place and the many historical events that took place there. It is well written, and the reader knows, the writer has a very close connection to the Village and the Square and Her people. G.F.St.J. Connecticut.

Folpe spent years going through archives and talking to locals to unearth a detailed history of Washington Square. Her research paid off. This is technically an academic book, but the prose is so engaging and lively that anyone who has even a remote interest in Washington Square will enjoy this.

This is a lively history of Washington Square Park from its beginnings to its present embodiment. It is also a pocket history of some of the notabale events in NYC itself. The book is written in a highly readable style and filled with pictures tracing the history of the park. A veritable who's who of NYC politicians and artists parade through the pages illustrating the central role played by the park during NYC's development.
Dr. Folpe thorough research illuminates the text without bogging down in acedemic trivia. This is a fascinating history for anyone who loves New York City or is curious as to how it became the art center of the country.
I would recommend this book as a most enjoyable and informative read.

Jean Marie Christenson's mastery of documentary journalism shines through in this compelling collection of interviews, from the world behind prison bars, a world that the large majority of Americans do their best to deny, ignore and wish away. The great conundrums of the topic are portrayed, including: (1) the "prison industry", which employs tens of thousands of Americans to keep caged millions of other Americans, at huge financial expense to American society; (2)human tales: 1st-person interviews of a Governor, prison heads, prison guards, and, most of all, prisoners. Reading the book refreshes one's respect for the enormity of the topic. American governments, particularly our local governments, must devote immense, ever-growing sums of money to keep law-breakers separated from polite society... so much money (taxes) that insufficient tax resources are left for the many positive functions of local government: eduction, public health, social services... so much money (taxes) is required to cage people (consistent with all the criminal laws which we insist our lawmakers pass), the weight of the resulting tax burdens lead to tax revolts, in which society cuts off its nose to spite its face. Christenson's book comes from her heart and her own life-experiences... and that is obvious in reading her work. A passionate work of documentary journalism, about vital issues facing society which are manifestly unsolved, and cry out for solution.

READ THIS BOOK, YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO PUT IT DOWN! FASINATING! INFORMATION THAT IS NO OTHER PLACE.

THIS IS A MUST READ IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT GOES ON ON THE "INSIDE". A very interesting book. Many insights. You won't be able to put it down!

This is the best guide to the DC and surrounding area, but in some cases this book needs to be updated. Some attractions have relocated or closed since the book was published. Fortunately, the book lists phone numbers and websites so you can make sure of the current location and hours of operation. I would highly recommend it to anyone, with or without kids, who wants to see the sights in DC and the surrounding Virginia and Maryland area.

Great resource. I just was hoping it would be updated, since it's been a while, and not all information is still current.

We live in DC and we love this book! Whenever I feel like we need a new place to visit, I flip the pages and find something perfect to do. All of the places we've discovered through the book have been places we've vowed to return. My son is one and a half -- I look forward to exploring more and more as he grows up in DC. I work at a school and have also purchased copies for teachers to give them great ideas for field trips.

This is one of the best books about the Northwest. Corr does a great job blending the story of an activist family with the rise of Seattle after World War II. Next to "Skid Road," my favorite on Seattle. Should be a movie. A great female lead character in Dorothy Bullitt.

Corr's book is more valuable than the narrow title suggests. More than a history of a powerful Seattle family and its TV-Radio empire, Corr's larger theme is the post-war growth of Seattle, the price of its progress and the universal tension between idealism and commerce. This story is interesting because Dorothy Bullitt did not set out to make money in the new medium of TV. Rather, she and her son, Stimson, created a new media force that shook up the sleepy newspaper-dominated local media. Well into the 70's KING-TV scooped many big stories. Corr does a masterful job of tracing the early deviations from the "King ideal"--Dorothy's dumping of her son in favor of Ancil Payne, the shift from hard news to TV celebrities, and the ultimate cash out by Payne and Dorothy's daughters. Along the way Corr paints many colorful portraits--the Machiavellian Payne, Dorothy's hopelessly dysfunctional grandchildren, the bright and attractive Jean Enersen--the lone remaining link to the glory days, the irasicble Don McGaffin--a throwback to the hard drinking, hard working, macho muckrakers of the turn of the century, and the glib, shallow Jim Foreman--the self-described "ratings machine" and low water mark for KING's television journalism. There is much to savor in this well written and colorful book. One hopes that Corr will soon devote his considerable talent to a subject with broader appeal.

Corr has done lovers of radio, and television, specifically those of us in the Pacific Northwest a tremendous favor, capturing the drama of the Bullitt family. His writing is lively and the story is compelling in its narritive detail. You'll learn of the struggles, gambles and tremendous paybacks the Bulletts made as they began and grew their broadcasting kingdom. If I had any criticism, it would be that the book is a little short of details concerning KING-AM and KGW-AM's heydays as Top 40 Rock N Roll outlets. The author completely fails to include, KINK-FM, one of the most interesting and hybrid FM radio stations in the country. If you are at all interested in radio, television or Northwest business history, this is definately a book worthy of purchasing.

We live in Southern California so I was a bit dubious how useful this book would be. Happily, it still has much to offer for anyone wishing to wildscape. There's plenty of general advice re. food/water/nesting sites etc. and good plans for bird houses and bat houses. There's a nice chapter on attracting hummingbirds and butterflies, and plenty about creating and maintaining water features (a huge attraction for wildlife in hot areas like ours).

You will need to cross reference the plant lists against what's native for your area, and find your own local native plant nurseries, but there's still lots of great advice here for wildlife gardeners that can be adapted to almost any region.

Trish

Link, Russell, Landscaping for Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest, University of Washington Press, Seattle, 1999, 320p.

Soft cover, perfect binding, acid free paper, 8.5 X 11.

The book is divided into 5 parts 1) Wildlife Habitat Design and Maintenance 2) Pacific Northwest Wildlife in the Landscape 3) Special Features for Wildlife Landscapes 4) Coexisting with Wildlife 5) Appendices

Volume has good index , bibliographic references and is clearly printed.

Over one third of the book is in the Appendices, they are excellent, perhaps its best `part'.

A) Pacific Northwest Habitats B) Wildlife Plants Lists, Tables, and Maps C) Landscape and Wildlife Information for Specific Plants D) Construction Plans for Nest Boxes and Bird Feeders E) Resources (in my opinion, very important)

Content:

Well written, educationally enhanced by wonderful illustrations, good examples and step-by-step procedures. Quality, abet small, section of color photos of wildlife identification and descriptions. Includes description of habitat construction from apartment balcony to acreage. Also discusses ponds, dust paths, nest boxes and nest structures, feeders with detailed tables, brush piles, snags, hedgerows, bird watching, problems with wildlife and responsible pet ownership.

Book can be read as text or used as a reference resource. The publication is a must for any land steward or wildlife enthusiast. An excellent purchase as a gift for yourself or fellow enthusiast. Available in bookstores or if you order from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife you receive a copy autographed by Russell.

This is my 4th or 5th purchase of this wonderful book. I have given all my copies away and need another for myself. It has great resources on the plants birds, insects and animals use for food, cover, etc. We made our voilet green swallow nest boxes from the plans in the book. We've watched new swallows peek out and take their first flight every year since we put them up.

We live in the foothills of Mt. Hood and it took me a few months after moving here to realize I shouldn't bring the invasive plants I used in town to the mountains. And I realized I could have turned my city home into a wildlife haven. The book is a great resources for all city, suburb or rural locales in the PNW.

It's just a wonderful book!

By any measure, humans are pretty amazing animals. Only humans build cities, drive cars, fly airplanes, surf the Internet and write book reviews to post on Amazon. Clearly intelligence is what underlies all these abilities, but where does our intellectual endowment come from? The standard explanation has to do with brain-to-body ratio, which is far greater in humans than in any other species. On this view, our big brains make us more intelligent, giving us the ability to solve problems, make plans and communicate with each other effectively. Because it seems obvious that intelligence is advantageous to survival, it is assumed that it would be selected for and that evolution would push hominids towards larger and larger brains.

However, linguist Derek Bickerton takes issue with the standard model. In particular with regard to the relationship between intelligence and language, he believes the evolutionary scientists have the process backwards. Instead of viewing language as a product of intelligence, Bickerton argues instead that intelligence is a product of language. In "Language and Human Behavior," Bickerton presents the case that humans stumbled upon language, which then drove brain expansion and intelligence.

Bickerton argues that language evolved in two stages, and that "fossils" of the first stage still exist today. The distinction he makes here is between proto-language and full language. Proto-language has a limited vocabulary and no syntax; it is spoken in a halting fashion and has limited range of expression compared to full language. Full language, other the other hand, is represented by English, Chinese, or any other language spoken in the world. It also includes most signed languages, as well as the languages of so-called "primitive" peoples. (It should be noted that while their technologies are primitive compared to ours, their languages are every bit as complex.)

The speech of young children is one example of proto-language. From about one year of age until around age three, children's vocabularies are extremely limited, and the utterances they produce are simple, typically consisting of a single word or a two-to-three word string. A second example of proto-language is pidgins. When adults who do not speak a common language are forced to live and work together, they quickly develop a simple communication system consisting of a small vocabulary and virtually no syntax. Pidgins have arisen naturally many times over recorded history. A third example of proto-language comes from attempts to teach language to apes. In some cases, primates (and even a parrot) have been able to learn a vocabulary of several hundred words that they can understand and produce; however, they never seem to pick up on the rules of syntax. Finally, some mentally disabled and aphasics are only able to produce short, halting utterances with the same characteristics of proto-language.

Bickerton reviews the evidence on human evolution and argues that a punctuated-equilibrium approach best explains the data. Technological advancement (as judged by tool remains) has proceeded in a stepwise fashion from homo habilis to homo erectus to homo sapiens. That is, there is some technological advancement at the rise of each new species, followed by a long period of stagnation. And then around fifty thousand years ago there was a "great leap forward," from which time human technology has been advancing apace. Bickerton maintains that such a fossil record is inconsistent with a gradualist approach. Rather, some important change occurred two million years ago in homo habilis, and then again in homo sapiens fifty thousand years ago.

What made homo habilis different from any other primate, Bickerton speculates, is proto-language. Having stumbled upon a simple communication system, homo habilis was now able to coordinate group activity toward directed goals. Just as half an eye is better than no eye at all, proto-language gave homo habilis a significant evolutionary advantage. It also gave them a means for thinking out problems.

Continuing in this line of thought, Bickerton explains the great leap forward fifty thousand years ago by the advent of full language. A key difference between proto-language and full language is syntax, which allows for complex thought, including causal inferences. Thus, Bickerton argues, human intelligence arose from language, and not the other way around.

In the remainder of the book, Bickerton fleshes out his theory of linguistically driven intelligence. First, he makes a distinction between on-line and off-line thinking. On-line thinking involves direct interaction with the environment; inputs are received by the senses and processed by the brain, which then programs responses. Driving a car is a good example of on-line thinking in humans. Any creature with a nervous system engages in on-line thinking, although the degree of complexity varies greatly from species to species. Off-line thinking, on the other hand, is detached from the immediate environment, and operates on mental models instead. Making future plans, abstract problem solving and hypothetical supposition are all examples of off-line thinking. As far as we know, only humans engage in off-line thinking.

Language is related to thinking by the way each type of thinking is represented. On-line thinking works on sensory inputs and motor outputs, and Bickerton calls such a system a primary representational system. But off-line thinking operates on abstract representations that have no direct connection to the immediate environment. Bickerton calls such a system a secondary representational system, and he argues that it is language that provides these abstract representations.

Bickerton swims against the mainstream; however, his arguments are not without merit. Most evolutionary scientists do not fully appreciate the complexity of language and discount its importance, viewing it simply as a communication system only tangentially related to thinking and intelligence. Most linguists are woefully (and sometimes even blissfully) ignorant of human evolution, and do not even attempt to build linguistic theories that are evolutionary plausible. Bickerton is well versed in both fields, and so both evolutionary scientists and linguists alike should pay heed to what he has to say.

It is easy to suspect that we humans can talk because we have smart brains. Bickerton instead argues that as our brains developed the capacity for speech we thereby became smart. Like other animals we have "on-line" thinking to help us survive. This consists of sensory('objective') knowledge of the world and ('subjective') inner states of consciousness. These latter are sometimes automatic responses to sensory knowledge --when you see a lion slinking, run! Sometimes they are awareness of inner states such as pain or body position. On-line thinking is automatic, either instinctual or a kind of learned stimulus-response process. But humans also have "off-line" consciousness. This consists of mental representations of the world and of ourselves, but even of events that are not really occuring. We can think about things not present to us, far away or in the past or in possible futures. So we can evaluate possibilities and make choices in our head; we can plan ahead. Bickerton uses his expertise in pidgin and creole languages to compare different kinds of thought. By this he shows that full "online" thinking is much more than koko, washoe, and kanzi, the sign-using primates (and two-year old children for that matter) are able to do. How he gets from pidgin and creoles to his conclusions is a major aspect of the book. He does it clearly and elegantly. Overall, he argues that as the mind developed capacity for full language, it was also developing the capacity to formulate, hold on to, and manipulate concepts and the relations among them. This language skill is also skill at thinking. So as the human brain developed the structures and connections to make language possible, this created the possibility of offline thought--the power to manipulate ideas well beyond the limits of ordinary "online" sensory experience and flash responses to those experiences.

If you like Dennett's books, I urge you to read this one, "Language and Human Bahavior", by Bickerton. The whole book, which is not long, developes a single argument clearly and cogently. It is Vytgotsky's argument (see "Thought and Language" written in 1934), but updated and expanded. In Bickerton's own words: "human cognition came out of language" (page 160), though the title of this review is more exact. So Vygotsky from psychology and Bickerton from linguistics reach the same heretical conclusion. I believe very deeply that they are right.

Summary: The book is very interesting and very well written; it was easy reading for me. It deserves the best score and I strongly recommend it.

Did you know that the illustrator who did the art for Lootas also did the art for People of Salmon and Cedar. My kids loved the pictures in this books and liked the fact that they knew this otter personally.

Lootas was selected as a 1999 Notable Books for Children by Smithsonian Magazine! It also received a great review in School Library Journal. And no wonder. This book engages the reader at all levels: it's a wonderful story, and filled with great factual information. A "must-have" in home and school!

Delightful! Entertaining and Educational

Altonya continue to give her reader what they want, and she know we want more Ramsey, well reader you know the saying ask and it shall be given. Well Altonya has given us yet another Ramsey and this time Moses.....name sound strong don't it we let me tell you he lives up to the Ramsey's name. Also you get to visit with the others cousins which is always good to revisit with them. You will not be disappoint in this book if your have been following this family from the beginning then you know what I am talking about you will get answers from previous question and you will have new question once you finished reading this book.

Can't give to much away but know that Moses risk everything he tried to protect in the past because Jo is worth it..........Pick up & buy the book your are going to love it. Moses knows how to love just like his brothers & cousins the love scene are HOT.......I tell you after reading each book I don't know which Ramsey l like best they are all AWESOME men.

Take care and enjoy the book.

Louise

If the ratings went up to 10 stars, I would want to give this book 20. After waiting for a year for the continuation of the "Ramsey" saga, It did not disappoint. answered a lot of my questions and in true Altonya Washington fashion, opened up several other cans of worms. Moses, the dark, brooding hero is sexy as sin and his chemistry with Johari was off the charts. This installment was excellent. It has the making of a great movie, and the hot steamy love scenes were as only Altonya can do. Marcus is still up to his same old tricks but no one is falling for them now. Catch up with the rest of the Ramsey's Quest & Michaela, Quay and Tykira, Countess and Fernando, Melina and Yohan. And she throws in some unexpected twists that I as a loyal Ramsey fan would have never expected. This book is excellent!!! GET IT NOW!!!

In this continuing series, Ms. Washington has once again outdone herself..The Ramsey men only get sexier, bigger, and better with Moses. To protect her, he is trying to stay away from Johari, the only woman he has loved.It just doesn't work, he can't stay away so he will just have to protect her with his life if need be, that is if she can forgive him his past wrongs (which are considerable). The dynamics are as intriguing as the love between these two strong characters and with danger all around ..... Ms. Washington certainly has a real winner on her hands with the Ramsey series and with this one in particular.

Ms. Washington has done it AGAIN! I found myself thoroughly CAUGHT UP in the Ramsey family, their circle of friends and their enemies. Every time I read about this family, I want more, more and more! The whole cast of characters, heroes and villains, are well developed and UNFORGETTABLE. With each new book she reveals SURPRISING twists and leaves you with new questions, that can ONLY be answered by completing this AMAZING series. IMO, "A Lover's Worth" has more action/adventure, and some seriously heart wrenching moments that will keep you turning the pages. As usual the Ramsey men are "SEXY AS ALL GET OUT" and extremely protective of the women in their lives. And Moses Ramsey is definitely no exception to that rule. EVERYTHING he does towards Johari Frazier, in his mind, is to keep her safe from not only the EVIL surrounding Marcus Ramsey and his circle of friends, but also to protect her from himself; and the man he thinks he is turning into, HIS FATHER. Moses' greatest fear is that he will hurt Jo in the same manner daddy dearest has hurt his mother. He's determined to put distance between them and that can only be achieved by breaking her heart. But once shocking circumstances are revealed, Moses is thrown back into Jo's life, and he is determined to reveal the truth to her and hope that she can forgive him and give their love a second chance. But Jo, has a dark secret of her own that she thinks will make Moses change his tune about wanting to recapture what they once shared. In the midst of all the turmoil surrounding Moses and Jo, Ms. Washington still thrills us with the intense fire and desire, that's still quite evident between this couple, creating some very HOT & STEAMY love scenes. 2009...WOW...I don't know if I can wait that long for this HIGHLY entertaining mystery/romance series to continue.