Greens Books

There's a Fly On My Toast by Justin Matott is a good poem book. It is a gross book because there is fly poo on Justin's toast. If you want to know more abvout the poems then read the book!

What a fantastic book! I purchased, "When I was a Girl, I Dreamed..." to read and donate to my daughter's 2nd grade class. The children were ohhhing and ahhhing about the "dreams" as well as the beautiful illustrations. They were all intrigued. Even the boys were not disappointed. When I finished reading, the children were all asking to be the first to borrow the book from the school's library.

Beautifully written, wonderously illustrated, this is a great book for girls of all ages.....It breakdowns the stereotypes of what a girl can't do...a perfect Christmas present for my 3 nieces in San Francisco!

This is an amazing book that should be in everydody's reference section. It makes it great fun to learn about the foods you are eating with old legends and historical tid-bits. It really motiveates me to continue to eat whole foods and is filled with great information of the nutritional and medicinal uses of each food. My background includes Physics, natural foods culinary school, nutrition and herbalism and I must say that this book never ceases to impress me in the breath and depth of the author's knowledge. If you must buy one book this year, buy this one and learn about why and how our food can keep us healthful. Happy eating.

This has it all - vegetables, grains, even herbs. It has lengends/lore, as well as the nutritional facts. I really love this book - very complete, not so dry that you hate picking it up. I find myself just browsing through for no real reason. Great book!

No kitchen, personal or professional, should be without this book. One can easily find information. Each subject is dealt with in an easy to read fashion, and quite completely I should add. When you feel that you "want to know", this is the place to go. An excellent investment, and I have found it makes a great gift too!

This is a story about a little girl who goes off into the world and plants seeds! She brings a stick and her dog and her watering can. The story is lovely and flows very sweetly. The pictures are wonderful. The kids and I look to see if we can find the stuff the girl is carrying from one page to the next. You can also watch the cat follow along!

Heather mama of 5

This is a delightful book with sing-song prose and gorgeous illustrations. I bought it for my baby before she was born at a book signing event. Kleven did a lovely little illustration along with her signature. My daughter is now ten months old. I really can't wait until she is old enough to appreciate this book. She is currently at the board book only stage....likes ripping and crinkling paper! I'm a bit of a children's book junky. I have many and read through them all of the time. I have some beautiful and classic children's books. This book is one of my favorites. It is a gem. I highly recommend it.

The Whole Green World is an absolute gem of a book. The text is clever and charming and the illustrations are simply exquisite! Together, Tony Johnston and Elisa Kleven have created a world that every child -- and grown-up -- will want to leap right into. A cozy, comfy and colorful world made even more beautiful by a child committed to spreading the beauty of nature around "the whole green world". This a timeless book for readers of all ages to read, study -- the details in each picture are nothing short of amazing -- and treasure!
Enjoy!!

Finally a book that starts where most leave off! If you ever wanted to sit and chat with a group of teachers and get an understanding of their individual paths, this is the book for you. Quidam has collected some wonderful interviews with a veritable who's who in today's world of self-enlightenment.

As a student of comparative religion and philosophy, I read books on different teachers and their philosophies on a regular basis. Where usually they are written by some third party that is not intimately familiar with the individual paths, Quidam has gone directly to the sources. This collection of "Interviews on Enlightenment" is not just cold philosophical summaries but the spiritual teachers and writers expressing themselves in their own words. With the unique format of asking the same questions during each interview, we get not only their understandings, but also a glimpse into each personality.

Get this book and enjoy the many ways that Enlightenment has manifested itself in these people. Agree with any one teacher or not, I CAN guarantee that you will finish with a lot to think about either way.

As I read the different interviews by Quidam I was impressed
by his format of asking the same questions to those being
interviewed. This approach helped present the essentially
same message being expressed in different words.

Quidam`s first question asked the individuals to speak from their own experience as to whether a reality such as awakening
actually exists. Wayne Liquorman points to the notion that "I am the doer" falls away in an awakening experience. Arjuna Nick Ardagh refers to the concept of "me" which falls apart when we
search for it. This is just one example of the same message but
different ways of expressing it. This book is loaded with similar examples.

Quidam obviously has these insights himself and were necessary for him to relate to these wonderfully gifted people and compile such a great book.

Thank you Quidam Green Meyers!

This book hits the nail on the head. I've read my fair share about spirituality, and frankly, I've found most of these books to be too lofty and out of touch with my own personal daily life and needs. "Wide Awake" was a breath of fresh air. I related to the individulas being interviewed, as they spoke in plain, everyday language for the most part. The author came up with a clever concept of asking the same questions to each the modern day spritual teachers interviewd in the book. It was refreshing to feel like I was a fly on the wall during their private reflections and not being preached to directly. Are there more such interviews coming up in a follow-up book? I hope so.

In this exceptionally strong collection, Greece comes alive in a burst of colors--green, purple, yellow, red. But Kalfopoulou teases all of the reader's senses as she mixes the sensuous and the sensual. Throughout the poems her attention to the soil and what grows there merges naturally and inevitably with the care of the human body. We are introduced to the land: its climate, its customs, its foods, its special words. We sense the poet's attachment to Greece and her awareness of its history of battles and turbulence. We feel the omnipresence of Time and the continuity from one generation to the next. Set against the backdrop of history is the personal--the end of a marriage and the challenges of single motherhood. In "Bliss," a particularly fine poem, Kalfopoulou beautifully captures this situation in a series of deft images, letting the story unfold through a catalog of what the husband takes and what he leaves behind. A number of Kalfopoulou's images weave their way throughout the poems and give the collection a tight but subtle structure. The wild greens of the title poem, for example, surface again and again as do the contrasting images of clothing and nakedness, along with a constellation of related images--bathing, hair, wrinkles, sheets, underwear, dresses, buttons. These free verse poems display Kalfopoulou's mastery of craft. Her sense of the line break is impeccable, and there's not an unnecessary word or syllable to be found. In these admirably crafted poems, Kalfopoulou has given us poems that capture the history, the beauty, and the passion of Greece and the people who live there.

ýThunder buries the liturgy,ý writes Kalfopoulou in ýGood Friday,ý announcing the poles of her argument: ýgale winds beat ... as if His wrapped and sheeted body could be the symbol of/resurrection,ý the poetýs use of the conditional suggesting a belief that perhaps it cannot. Life refuses to be constellated. Passion outstrips it; nature abhors it. Here at the crossroads of the passions, what Greek civilization carves out of this life, moored conditionally, temporarily, to this rocky soil, is a sometimes violent, hard-won beauty its inhabitants refuse to relinquish--a beauty, one might add, that has endured for centuries, despite invasion, poverty, natural disaster, war. What transcendence is found here is found on its knees.
For Kalfopoulou, as for another Mediterranean poet, Rene Char, every life that dawns kills one of the injured. As exemplified by the subject matter of "Burgundy" and "Growing," Kalfopoulou is all too aware of what can die in the struggle: a poem, a marriage, consciousness itself. Things in her universe do not merge into a blurred likeness; they do not compromise each other or themselves by doing so. Each extreme keeps its extreme nature. Thus the energies of these poems are often ýtechtonicý and the processes which shape human life are often violent. If these energies are mitigated in any way, it is by the processes of everyday life, the sound of bee-thrum in a grape arbor, a the pinch of anitho added to boiled carrots, stolen moments of love-making, life ripe with caress of a body.
But if Wild Greens is the narrative of the harshness of this life, it is also the lyric rendering, as the bookýs epigraph suggests, of lifeýs richness, the two irretrievably entwined. In this stunning debut volume, the felt pleasure is found in the texture and detail of lived life, all of it rendered with lucid affection for the detail, even the struggle, of the lived life. Like the wild greens themselves, Kalfopoulou revels in the beauty and drama of the tempest and will risk ruin in order not to miss the electrifying drama when the lightening strikes. Kalfopoulou knows the price of poetry. In order to write it, one must have lived, and in these poems, she does with a Phaedran intensity.

Divided in 3 parts this book contains poems that touch your heart.
In the first part, all her poems refer in some way or another to Greece. Being a Greek-american myself, I find it amazing how well she manages through her poems to show life in Greece(especially in the villages), the local customs and still, use the english language so superbly. It feels like you are readind a novel except it is a poem. Greek islands float before your eyes, greek words like koliva, chrisavgi, pappou, yiayia dance before your eyes and soul. Anyone who has lived in Greece will immediately realize this and, I'm sure, get really emotional. But even if one has never visited this country he will still feel that he does know something about it, after reading these poems.
They simply "smell"of Greece (the eucalyptus, chamomile, jasmine, bougainvillea, lemons, all of these in her lovely poems).
The second and third part contain more ... poems, poems describing all kinds of relationships..., strong feelings, poems that leave a bitter or sweet feeling inside. They talk of war, of love,of rejection, of passion, of LIFE. Some of my favourite poems are WILD GREENS, THE GARDEN, DAYS, CONVERSATION, PERGOLA, WRINKLES.
I think everyone will enjoy reading them. They are very touching and full of life's experience. It goes without saying that she is an inspired poet who masters the language extremely well. I can only add that I have already read these poems more than once and dedicated a few to friends.Hope she has a new book out soon!

I am always interested in finding good stories that will teach my children important values. This particular story makes for some excellent family conversations about greed and true need --and what really makes for a happy soul. My children identify with William, and they understand why he wants to aquire his treasures. They feel that way too sometimes--the want of all things sparkly and unique. As we read, they watch how William becomes greedy and unfriendly, his eyes possessive and selfish. This was a surprise to them, as they have certainly thought that getting "things" would make them happier. As the character's development is atypcial for them, and because the illustrations are so wonderful, they've asked me to read the story every morning since we got it!

This book is so lovely, a simple but profound story with beautiful watercolor illustrations. Dan Reeder has created a captivating, expressive character in William the dragon!

This is a gem of a book to share with your family and friends. Delightfully illustrated, much of this book's charm is derived from the simplicity of its timeless message -- tenderly told by Reeder. It's a gentle reminder that the best things in life are not things. For humans (and dragons) of ALL ages!!

What a grand pleasure it is to read a book that is not filled with moral didacticism, whining, or political posturing. One may read these stories in safety, certain to emerge from the pages not a bit better ethically, nor worse, but surely happier, and THAT must count for something.
Grimshaw's prose is crisp and sharp. The dialogue crackles with realism. His characters are consistent and so, so life-like. I like these guys and want to read more about them-and in the final analysis, how can one praise a book any higher than to say, "I want more."

I've been reading the weekly humor columns that Grimshaw has been writing for the newspaper for years. I never fail to laugh at least once. This book collects a bunch of the best ones: Great characters and comical situations that are either true stories or made to sound like they're true in the best Jean Shepherd tradition. Each is a neat, self-contained story that can be read in one, er, sitting, making it the perfect book to keep in the bathroom. If you have two bathrooms, buy two copies of the book.

Finally, a unique voice to emerge in the sea of Dave Barry and David Sedaris imitators. Grimshaw is easily one of the best chroniclers of geek-boyhood in the world of literature. WING-DING AT UNCLE TUG'S is populated by a sublime collection of losers, miscreants, and ne'er-do-wells, each funnier and yet more poignant than the last. Bravo Grimshaw!!!

This is one of those rare books you're really glad you bought because it's worth reading twice. Buy this book! Definately one of the best I've read in a long time. This is what great storytelling is all about.

It's hard when a book is set in the town you grew up in to know whether you are reacting to the book on its own merits or simply because all the familiar places have a special resonance for you. But I think anyone would enjoy this terrific book, even if they've never been to Toronto. Greene's characters will keep you glued to the page.

Terrance M. Green has delivered a crisp, profound, articulate and genuine look at life's journey. Through Martin Radey we learn of youthful mistakes, missed opportunities, and painful choices that haunt unto death, but are buoyed by the promise of redemption and second chances. Upon his death, he surveys his life and the life of his family, and the look is insightful, sometimes painful, always real and recognizable. Mr. Green has a writing style that flows in it's unique cadence, drawing his reader in at first sentence. Though short in page, his book is long in quality, style and substance. It must be read morsel by morsel and not devoured, as the reader's appetite is appeased by succulent descriptions and zestful words. Dessert is the truths realized in the story. In short, " A Witness to Life" is a gourmet feast. Bon Appetite!!

Exercises to foster a more positive attitude. Learn how to break destructive
behaviors and thinking. Find the answers for emotional well-being. Master
self-acceptance and transform your life! Highly recommend!

I believe this is cutting edge material. When people have been frozen in outdated paradigms left over from their early years, the material in this book and workbook will help them redecide in their own behalf how to take control of their unhealthy thoughts that do not work for them anymore and replace them with thoughts that bring lives into fruition. The tools and strategies used can take a person's life that is out harmony with itself and help that person live their bliss. It truly has helped me become an authentic spiritual person.

Powerful & life-changing stuff! As the Director of a Life Skills Adult Education Program, I have been amazed at the transformation I have seen in people having read this book & participating in the 10 week class. From issues of dependency, anger, loss & worry people have gained a new pespective and more importantly, the tools necessary to change their lives. It is effective both on an individual basis, small group setting or large-group format. A must read for all!

These books are precious! The characters are so animated and cute. My kids love them. The books have great messages too! I also give them out to my adult friends to remind them how Beautiful, Important, Brave, Creative and Friendly they are! This makes a great gift!

Having grown up with brown skin in a not very brown skinned community, I would have LOVED these books. Great messages, great self-esteem boosters, great fun! The illustrations are gorgeous, delicious and robust! I have bought them for every child I know, and the price point - FABULOUS! Can't wait for more Melodee Strong books! Love her!

Kali Haines

I love these books & have purchased many copies (of the whole series) as gifts for all of my neices & nephews! Amazingly, I have been blessed to have children of several different ethnicities in my family. These books have not only allowed the kids to see children that look like themselves in the pages, they also get to see them interacting (well) with kids that don't look exactly like them--which is exactly how it is in their real life (when they play with their cousins and schoolmates).

The books are great for children just starting to read & major confidence builders for those "older" kids (i.e., 1st & 2nd graders), who may be able to get through them without any trouble (it's great to see them reading the books to their younger sister or brother :).

I encourage everyone to pick up the whole set for any of the children in their lives.