Used Books

LIVING ON THE RAGGED EDGE is a commentary on the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes. This was a life-changing book for me in 1986. My whole life had literally collapsed right in front of my eyes. And I also had a nervous breakdown all in the pursuit of success and graduate school. This book seems to advocate living the "Simple Life", knowing God, having a wife and kids, not overdoing work or success. I have received alot of abuse the past 20 years about why I don't go back to graduate school; and the wisdom of this book is part of the reason. I had written to Radio Havana Cuba once and had said that this is a religious book that even Fidel Castro could appreciate! I hear that since then he invited to Pope to come to Cuba to visit.
We do live in an insane money-hungry society that has no values, no philosophy, no religion but the pursuit of the "Almight Dollar"! This ia a major reaqon for why we see American society disintegrating right before out eyes!
It is not deliberate, but I think I see myself as living in the 60's because of circumstances beyone my control. People in authority try to make my life as miserble as they can so as to pressure me into going back to college-this is called persecution.
The amazing thing about our secular achievements is that when we die, we do not get any reward in Heaven for them. Both Solomon in Ecclesiastes and Jesus Christ in the New Testament say that we get no reward in the next life for being a successful doctor, lawyer or businessman. Jesus said to lay up treasure in heaven-good works like charity towards the poor.
Also I noticed that it is God who gives man the ability to enjoy life. And contrary to religious tradition in puritalical America, I have found on my electronic Bible the advice to "eat, drink and be merry"{within moderation, of course.) the phrase occured five times in Ecclesiatstes. God gives the common man and the man who pleases him the ability to enjoy life. The life of the success driven rich man is so full of stress that he may have a fancy meal, yet he cannot taste the food he is eating! You can only live in one house at a time. You can only drive one car at a time. You can only spend so much money in this life because when you die, you won't have it any longer. You can have a house full of adult toys and possessions; yet you are unable to enjoy any of them. I would focus on having a couple of things and being able to use them to the full.
Solomon spoke from experience. He was the richest man in ancient Israel as he was the king. He had all the education a man could want. He had sexual pleasure-a harem of 500 wives like the Sultan of Brunei. He had more horses that he could ride. He had more achievement than he knew what to do with. Yet he couldn't find satisfaction. His advice was to fear God, obey his commandments and enjoy the simple pleasure of life. He found out that sometimes more is less.
In an exotic fashion, I had found out about INSIGHT FOR LIVING while monitoring Trans World Radio broadcasting from the island Monaco to England in 1986. They sent me a magazine promoting the book. I bought it and the study guilde and used them both. I have read LIVING ON THE RAGGED EDGE three times since them. This is obviously a message that God wants me to get into my spirit. And this is actually good advice for all of materialistic, worldly America!
Another afterthought is this. I don't think that joining the Army is the place to go to find God. But I had managed to get away from my home, family, church and social influences in Toledo. I read the Bible independantly and did not often attend church. I had found Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament; yet the message seemed to offend and irritate me at age 17. I think that you may have to go through a few things in life, have a few misfortunes and find a need to look to God for answers in the Bible to really appreciate this book and Ecclesiastes! Ecclesiastes is a book of godly philosphy! Philosophy=the study of wisdom!
This book's teaching is completely compatable with the New Testament and Christianity. St. Paul himelf had once written "Godliness with contentment is great gain"

Quick. Name the author who wrote the famous lines, "Vanity, vanity! All is vanity!"

If you said Solomon, the ancient king of Israel, you'd be right. It's the opening refrain from Ecclesiastes, uttered after Solomon goes on the ultimate road trip, searching the world for meaning and happiness. He goes on to describe his journeys and offers observations including, "A human being is no better off than an animal because life has no meaning for either. They are both going to the same place --- the dust." And, "In this world you find wickedness where justice and right ought to be ... If you love money you will never be satisfied; if you long to be rich, you will never get all you want. The richer you are, the more mouths you have to feed." For the most part, the book is a downer.

It would be tempting to skip over Ecclesiastes. To not delve into its hopelessness and wrestle with why it's part of Scripture. But as renowned bible teacher Charles Swindoll points out in his book, LIVING ON THE RAGGED EDGE, Ecclesiastes is as true and relevant and important today as it was thousands of years ago.

"Ecclesiastes has today's world woven through the fabric of every page. Whether or not we are willing to admit it, deep within most of us there is this restless, irresponsible, adventuresome itch. Deadlines and responsibilities grate at us. We find ourselves ready to run --- to escape into the back road of our memories, to travel down the blue highways of life under the sun. 'Surely, there I will find what it takes to fill the void.' Before we are able to crank up the car Solomon's advice brings us back to reality: 'Don't bother, it's a pipe dream, empty as a puff of smoke, lacking in substance. It may look like it's worth the effort, but don't bother, life without God under the sun is despair personified.'''

And that's the catch; life without God is worthless.

Still, Swindoll doesn't blithely skip to that part, spouting platitudes about God's goodness along the way. He doesn't pull any punches in describing the world we live in and his take on life is refreshingly honest as he describes the dissatisfaction, discouragement, and despair so many people feel. We are all living on the ragged edge, as he puts it, and ignoring that fact doesn't make us better Christians.

This book, however, does have insight that can make the Christian life more vibrant and authentic.

"The good life --- the one that truly satisfies --- exists only when we stop wanting a better one. It is the condition of savoring what is, rather than longing for what might be. The itch for things, the lust for more --- so brilliantly injected by those who peddle them --- is a virus draining our souls of happy contentment. Have you noticed? A man never earns enough. A woman is never beautiful enough. Clothes are never fashionable enough. Food is never fancy enough. Relationships are never romantic enough. Life is never full enough.

"Satisfaction comes when we step off the escalator of desire and say, 'This is enough. What I have will do. What I make of it is up to me and my vital union with the Lord.'"

Swindoll is an excellent teacher from the pulpit, in front of a classroom, on the radio, and through his many books (this is one of his best). LIVING ON THE RAGGED EDGE has the potential to be an important wake-up call and reminder for all of us, urging us to seek God's wisdom rather than the wisdom of the world and to embrace the mystery and messiness of life on the raged edge. The edge can be uncomfortable, but the view is amazing.

--- Reviewed by Lisa Ann Cockrel

I read this book about 10 years ago - when I was younger, single, and worked like crazy. It made me reconsider my life and realize that life without God and His purpose is pointless. Even if you choose to deny there is a God and choose to believe in nothing- you can not deny the truths about the purposeless of life and the "race of the rats". No peace or satisfaction at the end of the day. It is funny at times and even may seem depressive and dark too. But there's a lot of light at the end of the tunnel -as you read on.
I loved this book so much that I want to give a copy of it to both of my children (ages 1 and 2) as wisdom or advice for when they come of age. I hope it can impact them as much as it impacted me and will have some insight as to the "race of the rats".

It seems as if there exists no shortage of people that struggle through life believing that they alone have recognized the futility of life. Some wander though life seeking to quell the unquenchable thirst of lasting contentment through any and every means available while others concede to a life of unhappiness or death itself. It might amaze these same tired souls that it has been almost three thousand years since one of the few individuals that actually possessed the resources to explore the possibility of contentment through almost every means imaginable attempted the task and came to the conclusion that temporal existence is indeed futile. This journal documenting the futility of a merely temporal existence is known today as Ecclesiastes, and it presents the only source of lasting contentment. Those that feel alone in their grief and anguish at the reality of a meaningless existence should be comforted by the fact that they are not alone in this realization and that the answer to this dilemma existed prior to the beginning of time itself.

Living on the Ragged Edge presents the book of Ecclesiastes through a lens which might allow modern readers to fully appreciate its message. Swindoll also applies his own life's worth of understanding and knowledge to drawing out what might otherwise remain unnoticed points critical to the essence of Solomon's work. The book of Ecclesiastes is the catalyst of many conversions and Swindoll's contribution might very well add to its potency. The only difficulty that some may have with this work may reside in the thought that it seems to become mildly repetitive as it attempts to tackle Ecclesiastes in its entirety without combining reoccurring themes. This is a great book to pass on to anyone that might feel bogged down by the fast paced, pressure laden world in which we live, as well as to those who have a hard time seeing the point of life at all.

While many Christian books encourage thoughts about God's love and kindness, it's also good to see life as it really is in this world. Swindoll pulls no punches as he describes the emptiness of living to please self instead of God.

Among the many excellent points Swindoll covers are:

1. People focus on the external appearances while God focuses on the heart.
2. God can work through you in mighty ways if you let Him.
3. Wise counsel for those under pressure.
4. The world's movers and shakers are also often the most lonely people on earth.
5. Different world-views and their weaknesses.
6. How to handle the mysteries of life.
7. Excellent counsel on how to get the most out of life.
8. What keeps us from pursuing happiness.

An excellent and highly recommended book, be encouraged and challenged to seek God's wisdom instead of the wisdom of the world!

This is our third copy--We keep govong them away to others! I find it very helpful for sermons.

This is a wonderful book to encourage a thoughtful reading of this gospel. Tom Wright has a beautiful style of bringing the stories Luke relates into modern vernacular.A great addition to the study of the Gospels.

I am loving the "For Everyone" series--great, useful translations with brief, illuminating and understandable commentary. Wright's ability to combine a (relevant!) short illustration or story and still make meaningful points about the text's meaning and application in our lives all in the course of a few pages is remarkable. Bishop Wright's work is truly a blessing to the church.
What especially impressed me about the Luke volume is the way that he illustrated the overarching story--of Jesus going to Jerusalem to enact a New Exodus-- and how he observed structural elements that underline and emphasize the substance of the narrative (like comparing the "bookends" of Jesus ministry--the story of Joseph and Mary walking back from Jerusalem when Jesus was 12, looking for him while he was about his father's business in the temple, to the walk to Emmaus---where people were also wondering what happened to Jesus, when in fact he was about his father's business). So often criticism that looks at the structure of a book feels like a dissection--leaving only a corpse. Interesting perhaps, but lifeless. Here Wright's comments give the book greater and deeper meaning from observing the structure of the book--it is more alive and more impactful, not less.
This book is readily accessible to anyone reading Luke, and offers profound insights into Jesus' life, ministry, self-knowledge, the early church, and how we should respond today. Really great.

This study book is being used by a group of women who meet every Monday morning to study the Bible and we are happy with this choice.

The author, Bishop Tom Wright has an easy approach to the Gospel of St. Luke, and his commentary is written in what I would call every-day English. The chapters of Luke are broken down into sensible segments followed by Bishop Wright's commentary which generates good discussion. The glossary in the back is also useful.

We are looking forward to the Acts for Everyone which I believe is not in print yet.

Mary W.Hughes

I cannot say enough good things about Wright's ability to write simply, with no big words, yet maintain deep theological and historical insight into the Scripture. His interpretations and ability to follow through with the gospel's on thought are unmatched in scholarship.

Every book in this series has Tom Wright's translations (of a periscope or small section of text, followed by a quick story or anecdote, followed by the Wright interpretation. It is easy to read and enjoyable.

There is much to be said about this particular book, but the best parts were his treatment of some of the hard to understand parables of Jesus such as the prodigal son, the wicked tenants, and the rich man and Lazarus. His thoughts here (and in all the synoptics) on Jesus and the son of man sayings reflecting back on Daniel 7 are insightful. He makes good sense of the "keep watch and be alert" sayings. His treatment of the Emmaus road story is also right on point. He relates the opening of the eyes of Cleopas and his companion as Jesus broke bread and gave thanks with the opening of the eyes of Adam and Eve when they realized they were naked after sharing the forbidden fruit. Wright points out that Jeus has redeemed us from the curse that came through the first shared meal of Genesis and brought sin and death into the world. This commentary is full of unique insights such as this and so I highly recommend for everyone to read.

I bought this book used hoping it would be a good addition to my reference libary. It did not cover the topics I was expecting. The first half of the text covered basic LAN technology, WAN technology and protocols. The remaning chapters went over a basic configuration of a cisco router right out of the box. Going only slighty more in depth than what can be done with the set-up help dialogue when you first power up.
I am not at all saying this is not a good book, but it is aimed at someone with very little to no basic networking knowledge, and who has never seen a cisco router before. If you fit that description this will make a good read for you.

I have just read the first four chapters, but I have already formed an opinion: This book will become a best seller. The author explains the stuff in the way I want it. Thank you for wiriting this book.

This was an outstanding book with the little knowledge I had already on Cisco routers. This books brought me up to speed in a hurt in a fun easy to read type book. I loved it. And I look forward to reading more of the Practical Series of books from QUE.

I do agree that this is the best introduction book for Cisco beginners. It gives you from all the basic things you need to know about networking concepts and then explain the features of the routers and how to configure it.

I would recommend this books to my friends. Well the price itself is affordable :)

Simple yet thorough.

On my desk I had:

IP Routing Primer - doesn't make good bed-time reading ;-)

Cisco Routers Black Book - very nicely written, but a bit too detailed for a quick job.

Those were given by my employer.

Practical Cisco Routers - thin and easy to read. Uses extensive examples to show you exactly how things work.

That one is a personal copy.

I only had to refer to my Practical book in order to setup the router and tell someone to set up the other end of the system.

This book will not tell you the intricacies of EIGRP or explain what the output of sh tech means, but you will be up and running in no time. I only had to read one chapter to get everything configured and integrated into my main global network.

Do yourself a favor and read it thoroughly before starting a configuration using a GUI tool. There is a lot more you need to know than you might believe otherwise.

So just how much do I like this book? I am not willing to sell it!

A must read for all fans of the Boss, Bruce Springsteen. I especially enjoyed the interview sections. They were the highlight of this book. They offered rare insight into Springsteen's thinking. I enjoyed the review of his earlier works. It does get a bit tedious at times, but overall, it is a very good and enjoyable read. It would make a welcome addition to any Springsteen Fan's collection.

Gerard Zemek
husband of author of "My Funny Dad, Harry"

I really enjoyed the majority of the pieces in June Skinner Sawyers' Racing In The Street: The Bruce Springsteen Reader. Highlights for me include Martin Scorese's (brief) foreward (always figured he was a fan) and, of all things, the excerpts from one Kevin Major's young adult novel Dear Bruce Springsteen, in which my favorite passage in the collection occurs:

"I knew he [the young narrator's father] was into your music a lot. He never listened to it much in the house, mostly when he was driving the old van we used to have. Mostly then by himself. The four of us were in the van once and he put on Nebraska. Mom made him take it off because, she said, it sounded too depressing. He sort of grunted something about she didn't know what good music was and popped out the tape. She said if you're going to spend money we can't afford on music, then you might as well spend it on something that'll cheer you up. He ignored her."

Now tell me - is there a Bruce fan alive that can't relate to that?

Though I would have liked to have seen Tama Janowitz' "You And The Boss" and Richard Meltzer's "The Meaning of Bruce" (both collected in Clinton Heylin's Penguin Book Of Rock & Roll Writing, if you're interested) included for balance, this is a solid anthology of writings on Bruce, and recommended if you're a fan.

PS Also recommended if you're a fan of great music writing (or great writing, period): Lester Bangs' Psychotic Reactions And Carburetor Dung and Mainlines, Blood Feasts, And Bad Taste.

Racing in the Street is a great book and a must for every Springsteen fan.

Racing In The Street is not so much a great biography about Bruce.
It goes much deeper.
It is a series of very insightful articles pinpointing the appeal Bruce has for so many of his fans.

He is a mega star but it is his struggle to remain normal and humble that is at the heart of this book.

For the casual fan, If you truly want to know why his fans are so intense, this is the book to read.
For his fans that have always tried to figure out why we are so intense, this book puts all that into perspective better than any other.

Highly recommended.

This book provides wonderful, informative articles that offer various perceptions of the Boss and his 30+ year career!!! I learned so much about how other people see Bruce, and gained knowledge about his life and work, which was very enjoyable. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves the Boss and wants to gain more insight into his long and amazing career. The maps, discography, timeline, and other extras were also brilliant additions to the collection!

I received this book from a dear cousin of mine during a time in my life when I was going through a rough patch. It was hard to read at first because of my fragile emotional state--that being said however, it also helped me to read some of the stories because they opened up a side of me that had stayed hidden for a long time. It took about 2 months, but I finally felt ready to read the whole book and it was truly wonderful. It was an emotional roller coaster--but an inspirational one that I needed.

I think this book was great cause it told stories that inspired me and some made me feel happy and some mad me cry. I just think the auther writes wonderful stories that touches other people's hearts. Great Job!

There are several books that enlighten you, and this is surely one of them. Then there are books that change you, books that you take with you for the rest of your life, and these you must share with fellow seekers. These are the books that have unconditionally inspired me to be a better person and that I recommend to anyone searching for inspiration. The first is "The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho" this book is all about a shepherd trying to find his treasure. In the end he realizes his treasure was the journey, the people he met, the souls that touched him(How beautiful!) The second is "Siddhartha by Herman Hesse" A brilliant tale of a man who gives up everything for a journey of enlightenment. On his journey he meets the Buddha, he meets ascetics, and he meets his...(I wont spoil it for you). The last one is for kids, but it is still beautiful. "The Butterfly by Jay Singh" is a tale about a caterpillar in search of her smile! One day this caterpillar realizes she can no longer smile anymore because she is living an inauthentic life. She musters the courage to leave the Silk Palace to find her smile and discovers a whole new world that was hidden from her. Buy them, read them, be inspired!

This collection of stories was an amazing celebration of womanhood, including stories of love, life, and tragedy. This compilation covers all the bases of a woman's life from poverty and love in the heart-wrenching story "Christmas in the Silver Egg" to the humorous "I'll Never Understand my Wife," which deals with marriage. A Second Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul is satisfying, refreshing, and warmhearted.

These stories are heartwarming and encouraging, and even better because they are true. They are all wonderful stories. Some of my favorites are "Safe-Keeping", "The Baby Blanket", "The Wallet", and "Truly Free".

highly entertaining Harlequin Historical. This book is chock full of unusual themes for a romance-a old west book but set in Canada. The heroine-a spunky, intelligent "spinster" of 28 who loves to fix clocks and is a excellent gunsmith, the hero-a 40 year old Mountie who is also the towns primary Doctor, who is in for a big surprise when Sarah shows up but handles that surprise very well.

I had heard many good reviews for this book-they were all correct. I look forward to reading more by Miss Bridges!
4.5 stars!

This was one of the best romance novels I have read in a long time. I could not put the book down. I kept saying I would read just one more chapter, but after that chapter I had to keep reading to see what would happen next.

I really liked that this story was set in the Canadian west. It was really nice to read a story which took place in the "old west" that didn't revolved around Indians and cattle drives.

I enjoyed that the male lead character wore two hats, of law officer and doctor. It created a multidimensional character that evolved independently of the main story.

This book is full of twists that I didn't expect. I rarely read books a second time, but this will be going on my shelf for a second viewing.

The Surgeon has everything one wants in a historical romance novel. From the first page to the last, it's smart, sassy, thoroughly entertaining and plain pleasurable to read!

Absolutely first rate!

Be sure to first read 1. The Surgeon 2. The Engagement and soon to be released 3. The Proposition. All three contain some of the same characters.

There was one thing that John Calloway didn't need - a mail order bride! That was exactly what he found waiting for him in his quarters one night, though, and he was completely shocked at the "joke" that had been played upon them both. Although he was fast approaching 40 and had always longed for a family of his own, he was dedicated to serving as a doctor in the Mounties regiment. He valiently tried to save the lives of his fellow soldiers and the locals, but he couldn't get over the fact that he had lost his best friend, Wesley, to a raid by a cattle-rustling gang. It'd take a special woman to put up with the demanding life he led!

Sarah O'Neill was a special woman...John just didn't know it quite yet. She had come west with an ulterior motive, but John didn't know THAT, either. Once John told her of the cruel joke that had sent her out west, Sarah was determined to stay in town and make it on her own! As John and Sarah spent time around one another, though, neither could deny the attraction that was building between them - but was attraction enough when neither could trust the other?

This book was really different. Not only was it set in the Canadian West (something I know very little about, and was such a refreshing break from the traditional American West), but the heroine wasn't a virgin (a "non-traditional" heroine - I love it!), and the relationship between the two wasn't perfect right away. This book was, therefore, was quite different - and that made it that more interesting. Even better, there was real character growth in the book - something that I always enjoy to read about. Unfortunately, I usually have a knack at figuring out the ending, and I did this time, too. Nevertheless, this was a good book, and a keeper in my opinion.

I liked this book but I didn't understand why the couple was arguing 4/5 of the book.

At the beginning of the book Sarah arrives in Calgary, Canada as a mail-order bride. She believes that she is there to become John Calloway's wife & what they discover is that John's men had been corresponding with Sarah as a prank. John offers to pay for Sarah to return home but she objects to that because of her other reason for wanting to come to Calgary. She believes her long lost brother is there.

After the town treats Sarah very badly because of some embarrassing information that got out he decides to do the right thing by marrying her. So they wed & consummate their marriage & then they practically separate themselves from each other until the end of the book. They don't even sleep in the same room. At the very end of the book they realize their love for one another but I really don't understand why it took so long. I just really couldn't understand what their conflict was all about. Seemed silly to me.

I also found many errors in the book. The author used the wrong name a few times in the book & it had you wondering what was going on. Also at the end of the book you hear John's friend Logan state that he heard John had helped make guns for the enemy & earlier when that whole part was taking place Logan was actually one of the only people that knew about it but he commented about it as if he heard it through the grapevine.

Other then those few errors & the lack of romance 4/5 of the book there was a good story line. It's a quick read & if you don't need the steamy romance they you should like this book.

How can anyone not love Amelia Bedelia? The entire series is great and kids love the humor involved.

Amazing news! Amelia Bedelia has been mistaken as the new classroom teacher, and you just know she will take her duties very seriously. Look out! Amelia will follow every direction to the letter, and amaze every student with her interpretation of schoolwork.

There are lots of laughs here for young readers!

Recommended!

amelia bedelia is teaching a classroom but she does everything wrong but in such a funny way! Calling the roll, practicing a "play", "painting" pictures, planting "bulbs" and literally doing math problems with apples has never been funnier than in this book! Read it and you'll see why

One day, while Amelia Bedelia, the housekeeper who literally takes everything literally, was cleaning, the phone rang. It was Mrs. Rogers, calling from the airport. She was supposed to meet the new teacher, but the plane was late. To further complicate matters the phone was out at the school. Mrs. Rogers wants Amelia to go by the school and tell them the teacher will not be there today. Amelia attempts to do just that, but the principal mistakes her for the new teacher and that's when all the fun starts. Amelia Bedelia teaching a classroom full of children, imagine that. Well, my almost three-year-old son Devon and I imagine it all the time.

Devon already knows his letters, upper and lower case. He knows they make words and he loves to sit while I read Amelia Bedelia stories to him. We've been doing it for over a year now. At first I made up the story line as his didn't have the attention span or the ability to understand. Now I've started reading, pointing to the words as I go along. Ms. Parish has written an excellent series for children and in this one, Lynn Sweat's illustrations set off Amelia's tales to a tee. If you want your toddler to read early, and I do, then this is a series for you.

Jack Priest, Dad in Training

One day, while Amelia Bedelia, the housekeeper who literally takes everything literally, was cleaning, the phone rang. It was Mrs. Rogers, calling from the airport. She was supposed to meet the new teacher, but the plane was late. To further complicate matters the phone was out at the school. Mrs. Rogers wants Amelia to go by the school and tell them the teacher will not be there today. Amelia attempts to do just that, but the principal mistakes her for the new teacher and that's when all the fun starts. Amelia Bedelia teaching a classroom full of children, imagine that. Well, my almost three-year-old son Devon and I imagine it all the time.

Devon already knows his letters, upper and lower case. He knows they make words and he loves to sit while I read Amelia Bedelia stories to him. We've been doing it for over a year now. At first I made up the story line as his didn't have the attention span or the ability to understand. Now I've started reading, pointing to the words as I go along. Ms. Parish has written an excellent series for children and in this one, Lynn Sweat's illustrations set off Amelia's tales to a tee. If you want your toddler to read early, and I do, then this is a series for you.

Jack Priest, Dad in Training

What I Call Life by:Jill Wolfson
What is life? Whats your life story? Are you living your life or someone elses?Then OMG...you have to read this book!!!! Now hurry hurry!!! Time is running out!
It was the best book I have read! The main character is a girl named Carolina Anges London Indiana Florence Ohio Renee Naomi Ida Alabma Lavendar,Cal for short. She has a unabrow,she is 11,and her mom is mentally challenged.Cal gets taken away from her mom and sent to a house that everyone calls the pumpkin house(a foster home). The owner is called the Kitting Lady.The other girls in the pumpkin house are Whitney,Amber,Monica, and Fern.
Once Cal arrived at the pumpkin house everyone starts to change.Amber stops pulling her hair out,Monica isnt scared of everything anymore, and Fern doesn't giggle at everything. Whitney is the only one who didnt realley change. I think Cal learned that no matter what she still has friends and family to support her. She also leraned that what ever she does whereever sh goes is her real life.She and the other girls leave the pumpkin house and the Knitting Lady knows but,didnt stop them. Will they come back?Red to see what happens next!
This book is all about what happens in life and not what will happen. It's even happening as you read this.R ight now there are childeren out there who are being put in foster homes or running away. They are thinking exacly what Cal was thinking. That their parent(s) are coming back for them. But they're not. That's what life is!
Brandi C.

I loved this book. Jill Wolfson created a spunky, endearing character in Cal Lavender from the first words on the page. Readers will be drawn into the world (and personality) of this lively, teenage girl living in foster care. But Wolfson's quirky characters don't stop with Cal - short for California which in turn is short for Carolina Agnes London Indiana Florence Ohio Renee Naomi Ida Alabama - there are a whole host of fun, lovable characters to get to know, including the Knitting Lady who runs the girls group home. (Check out Wolfson's website, she loves knitting. Could she be the Knitting Lady?)

No matter what the life situation of teenagers, they inevitable feel alienated from those around them. Wolfson's What I Call Life may be about a teen in foster care, but her voice expresses the needs all teens feel to fit in.

What I Call Life by: Jill Wolfson

What is life? What's your life story? Are you living your life or someone elses? Then OMG...you have to read this book!!!! Now hurry!!!
Time is running out! It was the best book I have read! The main character is a girl named Carolina Anges London Indiana Florence Ohio Renee Naomi Ida Alabama Lavendar, Cal for short. She has a unabrow, she is 11,and her mom is mentally challenged. Cal gets taken away from her mom and sent to a house that everyone calls the pumpkin house(a foster home). The owner is called the Kitting Lady. The other girls in the pumpkin house are Whitney, Amber, Monica, and Fern.
Once Cal arrived at the pumpkin house everyone starts to change. Amber stops pulling her hair out, Monica isn't scared of everything anymore, and Fern doesn't giggle at everything. Whitney is the only one who didn't really change. I think Cal learned that no matter what she still has friends and family to support her. She also learned that what ever she does wherever she goes is her real life. She and the other girls leave the pumpkin house and the Knitting Lady knows but didn't stop them. Will they come back? Read it to see what happens next!
This book is all about what happens in life and not what will happen. Its even happening as you read this. Right now there are children out there who are being put in foster homes or running away. They are thinking exactly what Cal was thinking. That their parent(s) are coming back for them. But they're not. That's what life is!
Brandi

What I Call Life is an excellent read, quirky, fast-paced, interesting dialog, with even more remarkable characters. Cal Lavender (11 years-old) is a strong protagonist trying to survive, emotionally, after being dumped in a group home for girls. Knitting Lady (the group-home-mother) and the other girls are brought to life with fascinating descriptions and realistic dialog. The story intertwines their lives with the story Knitting Lady is telling throughout the book.
Teachers and Media Specialists: This novel does include a little language, so you would want to preview it before reading aloud to a class (it would still be an appropriate read-aloud). It would also be a good novel for introducing or reinforcing the reading strategies of predictions and inferences.

This is such an endearing story - spoken through an eleven year old girl's voice and thoughts with a refreshing honesty. The girls in this group home all display different strengths, coping methods, and vulnerabilities which are revealed one by one as the story progresses.

The Knitting Lady is an insightful and patient woman, who is not presented as simply "all-knowing and wise", but also as a caring person with her own wounds and self-doubts. She does seem almost too good to be true: occasionally relaxing the rules and letting the girls learn truths on their own, going with the flow and being totally present - but, as I said, she does have her own self-doubts. I feel that the Knitting Lady was not only the girls' mentor in the story, but that she has become my mentor as well.

My daughter observed me while tears ran down my face a few times when I was reading the book and asked, "Why are you crying Mom? Is it sad?" I replied, "Some parts are very sad, but the parts that make me cry are the happy ones.."

This is a very touching book.

The girls, the Knitting Lady, and their stories stayed with me for days after reading the story. Actually, they haven't left - I can still feel them. They make me want to be a better person.

Thank you, Jill Wolfson, for giving all of us this story and for giving us the Knitting Lady.

This is one of the better children's books my kids have read. Just right for my 7-year old who likes to read, but needs something great to get all the way through a book without being prodded. Very fun.

I absolutely loved the Encyclopedia Brown Series growing up. I read and reread them so much people called me Encyclopedia Jones. Actually, I did get pretty good at helping people find things. Too bad I didn't charge 25 cents!
This book, like all of Donald J. Sobol's Encyclopedia Brown books, makes you think, and pay attention, but each case is lots of fun. Leroy Brown, son of the chief of police, is the only boy detective in Idaville. He is so good at solving problems, locating missing items, and investigating crimes, that he starts his own detective agency.
Each book in the series has about ten cases. All of the clues needed to solve the case are provided in the story. The answers are in the back of the book. But what fun is it to peak at the answers?
I hope that any one reading, the Case of the Secret Pitch, one of my favorites, is sure to enjoy it, even if, like me, you need a little help from the answer pages.

This is a good book.The cases are about a secret pitch,a balloon man accused of kidnapping,a cowboy that's ambushed,stolen gold,a hitchhiker who is a witness to a holdup gang,a boy poet who gets in a fight,a boy who gets shot by an air gun,a stolen penknife named Excalibur,a man who gts tricked out of his violin by a glass of ginger ale,and a stolen bike.

Leroy's back! Ten all new cases! He still solves them for his dad(chief of police)and has his own detective agency. This is good for kids my age since it really gets your brain thinking. This is the second book in the series and it's just like the first one except there's different cases.

I liked this and recommend this for anyone who:

1.likes Mysteries or
2.is ten years old

If you read this book then you will like it too!

Encyclopedia Brown is a 5th grade boy who solves puzzles, crimes and mysteries as easily and as unconsciously as breathing.

Each book is a series of short mysteries (5-10 pages each) ending with a question - usually "how did Encyclopedia know that X was responsible for the crime". The answer to each mystery is at the back of the book. Solving the mystery takes no special knowledge, but it does require paying attention to detail. Don't turn to the answer too fast.

This book is the second in the series, but the books do not have to be read in order. I loved the Encyclopedia Brown books when I was growing up. I am reading them again before I give them to my nephew who I hope will enjoy them as I did.

Adults who like this series may also enjoy the Lateral Thinking Puzzles books.

This is a great book for anyone who wants creative ways to use and display their antiques, family heirlooms, and flea market finds. The photos are inspirational and the instructions are easy to understand. I've bought two additional copies for relatives who saw my book and loved it.

This is the most fun.. creative book I have seen in awhile. I love this book! Wonderful ideas..great pictures.. absolutely..beautiful ! Fun~ Delightful book! If you like art, quilting, sewing, crafts, home decorating.. and Mary Engelbreit to Martha Stewart Livng and Laura Ashley decorating.. you will like this book! Totally cool!

This very personable book offers a novice or an accomplished crafter wonderfully interesting ideas to make with very practical items found at garage sales, flea markets, antique shops. I am now ordering books for other members of my family who have seen my book. The instructions are very easily to follow. I have already begun 3 different projects one of which is a teacup wreath that is breathtaking especially for a teapot and cup collector like myself. There so many ideas for the reasonable price of this book. It is beautifully photographed, and the authors are shown as real as the rest of us who haunt flea markets, etc.

You will love this book. It contains a variety of projects with easy to understand instructions. Highly recommended for anyone who loves doing crafts.

Let me start by saying I am NOT a "crafty person." BUT, the pictures, illustrations & directions seem simple to follow! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE this book!!!!!!! When I looked through it, I immediatedly thought about different friends I wanted to get one for. If you like crafts & flea markets, buy this book! You won't be disappointed!!!!!!