Iowa Books

When it comes to veterinary drugs, this book is the bible. Does get technical in some places, but it gives you everything- interactions, and other tidbits of pertinent information. This is the first place I look to for drug info- all of our vets use it daily as well- the cover is beyond shredded! Alphabetical and in some cases both common and trade names. What more can you ask for?

I've had every edition of this drug handbook for about 10 years now, and I use it often. I've seen lots of "other" veterinary drug handbooks, but they pale in comparison to Plumb's. There's just the right amount of information here--not too much, not too little. Other handbooks seem relatively lacking in content.

I love the text book! It's one of the most useful texts in my library. I even had the 1995 CD-Rom version for my practice, and it was indispensible while on house calls. But the 2005 edition sucks. It won't work on my Mac (although the disk case says it should), uses a windows-only proprietary format that won't even search properly, has non-standard user controls, useless help files, and is basically unusable. Steer clear of this CD version and just buy the book.

This is the only book that I have that I use every single day!

I do cat rescue and needed a detailed reference book on veterinary medications. I asked my veterinarian what book she recommended and she said that this was the best book by far. She prefers it over other medical textbooks that costs hundrends of dollars. I purchased this book and use it all the time now. It has helped me resolve medication related questions in emergency situations. This book has more than paid for itself in the $$ is has saved me in veterinary bills. I highly recommend this book for anyone who needs access to information on veterinary medications, especially when it's a night or weekend and I cannot contact my veterinarian. This is a must have book for anyone who works with animals.

I used to train people to fly helicopters, now I fly emergency medical rescue helicopters. Chapter 18 alone is worth the price of the book. It details variations on the single most-important emergency flight maneuver - things that you may not learn from the average helicopter instructor. The knowledge in that chapter could make the difference between walking away and being dug out.

Having flown in many Hughes/McDac and Bell helicopters and most recently Aerospatiale Dauphin 2 helicopters for work, this book is one of best books one the subject. In the news, one sees quite a few incidents of inexperienced pilots and celebrity pilots going down in their helos with tragic results. Helicopters because of their complexity require very well trained and experienced pilots. This book is good for anyone interested in helicopters regardless of their experience. I found the Chapters on Balance Forces and Controlling the Helicopter, Advanced Engine Failures and Further Peculiarities of Helicopter Flight quite interesting.

I am a test engineer who typically works on fixed wind a/c. This gave me a good heads up on the principles of rotary wing flight. Easy reading and informative.

I recently began reading this book, and I find it nothing less than astonishing. Its large amount of tables, figures, and charts help to really explain the text. I am a younger person, and really didnt expect to understand rotary wing flight, but this book has really made it possible for me. This book is a great bok for beginners as well as experienced flyers. Overall I think this book is an excellent buy.

Excellent book for beginners and experts alike, but you might want to think twice before buying this one, as Coyle has just released a vastly expanded edition called "Cyclic & Collective: More Art and Science of Flying Helicopters", published by Helobooks.com

The short stories in this collection are characteristic of Stuckey-French's emphasis on the relationships between people, rather than plot twists. Most of the stories were very striking but ended before the reader had a chance know enough about the characters involved. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys very short-term exposure to characters. If you tend to become wrapped up in a story and involved with the characters, try Stuckey-French's full-lenght novel "Mermaids on the Moon".

This first book signals the begining of a great literary career (as demonstrated by her second book, the novel "Mermaids on the Moon"). Stuckey-French melds fascinating characters and perceptive observations with some extremely poignant situations to produce a read that had me at the brink of tears several times. I read this book on a plane, and was stunned that this book isn't making more waves (I didn't want to land). If you want funny, cutting, and moving modern fiction delivered in nice little packages - this is a great place to start.

Another reviewer here disparaged this book as self-absorbed and too strange; just keep in mind this this comes from a guy who gives Grisham's latest (and lots of other pulp-trash books for people with little imagination) rave reviews (4 stars)...

There is nothing wrong with Grisham - he is good at what he does. But to compare his formulas to the artistry of Stuckey-French is a grave error.

This world is in fact populated by people stranger and more interesting than any fiction, and Stuckey-French comes real close to capturing this - and the wonderful moments of transcendence that we all too often let slip by.

If you would rather read a writer with actual talent - and support someone other than the high-volume, faux-artist, coporate author-types like Grisham - BUY THIS BOOK.

Bizarre "...characters who walk a thin line between reality and delusion" make The First Paper Girl in Red Oak, Iowa a lovable, funny and pleasurable read. Elizabeth Stuckey-French writes a unique book filled with witty stories and characters that delight readers. The flowing theme of Stuckey-French's novel, "...Midwesters trying to make sense of a changing world," is portrayed by these characters that find their way out of sticky, uncommon situations. The entrancing style of writing, smart and wry, pleases the reader's mind, and puts their world into an awkward yet enjoyable vibe. One can become any of Stuckey-French's personalities due to the ample amount of detail she utilizes in her stories. Detail also sparks imagery that can be seen in any reader's imagination.
The First Paper Girl in Red Oak, Iowa takes on an inspiring and whimsical tone. With novel characters that are easy to relate to, one is inspired by each of their tales. The connection between reader and character can help seek new ways of changing life for the better. This book influences an individual to escape convoluted situations by extraordinary characters. Each has an endearing path to a solution.

My former father-in-law is from Red Oak, Iowa. I got this book, thinking he might like it. I did not pass it on.
What we have here is another Literature, Fine Arts Major writing to impress herself and her associates. It's a collection of artsy stories: offbeat, sometimes insightful, Not Necessarily Iowa based. It's urban Des Moines more than Red Oak sensibilites. If you liked Haruf's Plainsong, this collection's for you!
Reviewed by TundraVision, Amazon Reviewer

I have never been a fan of short stories, but if more were like these I'd be a real fan. The author is incredibly good at character definition, and she can create a character in just a phrase. I really felt as if I knew these some of these people. Here's an example: "It was useless to appeal to Tippy's sense of right and wrong. She played Joni Mitchell songs on her guitar and told her friends she'd written them, figuring the 1960s were too long ago for anyone to remember." My only complaint: It was TOO good! I became so immediately involved with some of the characters that I wanted the story to go on and on. The author never hits a sour note. Her style is so comfortable, you'll want to read the stories one right after another. But don't read them all in one sitting -- savor each one! Oh, and I LOVE the cover, with the little girl jumping rope!

Reading this book should be an inspiration to anyone who has a dream to accomplish. It shows how faith and positive thinking can produce unbelievable accomplishments.

Dr. Schuller has been such an inspiration to me over the years. His sermons and books have encouraged me on numerous occasions. He helps me feed my mind the right substance. I identify with his migration to California from the interior part of the U.S. The way he tells the story is a true inspiration each time I read it. I was in the Crystal Cathedral in 2002 and it was liked standing in my dream. I was there, observing what I had read about and seen on television. In the American mythology, California is still the land of dreams.
Dreams which are given by God are to be pursued, according to Dr. Schuller's teaching. That's logical. His life shows how it's done.

I didn't know much about Robert Schuller before I read this (he is a TV preacher who believes in the power of positive thinking), but I really liked his autobiography. It's a good book. I especially liked the retelling of his growing up on a farm, and his and his wife's early days with their "drive-in" church in California.

If Robert Schuller hasn't inspired you yet to think positively and trust in a higher power, this simple story of his life will. If you need proof that God has a plan for each of us, if you've ever questioned your own purpose on earth, if you are stuck in the rut of modern society, read the recollection of the trials and tribulations of the life of this simple, kind man who has done so much for so many. I've been a member of this church for a long time, but reading this story from his birth to the present has given me a new view of the awesome-ness of the mission Dr. Schuller and Arvella Schuller have built. I recommend this not only for viewers or followers of the church or Dr. Schuller, but also for the sceptics. I wonder if reading this man's journey will make you, too, look upon your own purpose and path in a different light. Above all else, I believe this is the motivation Dr. Schuller had for telling his own life story... to renew our own faith in positive thinking, ourselves and our God. Enjoy.

I was introduced to Dr. Schuller's "Hour of Power" in 1983 when my Irish Catholic mother was dying of cancer. As her conditioned worsened, she was unable to get to Church. One Sunday she stumbled onto the "Hour of Power" and found it a source of spiritual nourishment. She quickly became a weekly viewer and told all of her great discovery.

I have watched "The Hour of Power" off and on ever since. I have been intrigued with the simplicity of his message and the corresponding expansion of his ministry to Europe, Russia, and now, the Far East.

While Rev. Robert Schuller is unique in modern US Religious History, he is, more importantly, unique as a great US ambassador. Each week, he shows the world the goodness of this country. And though being grounded in Christ's Word, his spiritual outreach is for all faith traditions.

This autobiography, "My Journey," tells his story. While a bit too detailed, and too wordy (515 pages), those that have an interest in this man and his ministry should find it a good read.

The best book of an age is a brave new form of imagination and wisdom. "Danube" is a post-generic transcendence of art and vision to an unknown zodiac of meaning. When a book is a leap of creativity, it is an honor to be a reader.

A majestic book of 401 pages and 170 chapters, "Danube" follows a mighty river(of 2,888km) from beginning to end as a journey of knowledge--of time, space, history and fate--to find not only where the river ends but also where time, space, history and fate end: in "God's plans." To know anything fully from beginning to end in an absolute feat of knowledge--the way Magris knows the Danube from the Black Forest to the Black Sea--is to know everything.

At the heart of "Danube" is a visionary outlook on time as a vastness of centuries of meaning that resides like a cosmos in a nutshell in any moment or place of our lives. Every place along the Danube is "a corner in which a vanished enchantment has taken refuge." In a memorable metaphor, Magris sees the countless years of time and history that have "mysteriously disappeared forever" as "fallen leaves" that accumulate like "humus" in the places where we live and in whose unknown depths lie the roots of who we are. For Magris, history settles as geography. With a preternatural vision of "wave after wave" of history--from the dim ancient days of the eighth century B.C. of the Thracians, Cimmerians and Scythians through the Holy Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire and the Hapsburgs to the 1981 Nobel Prize for Literature to Elias Canetti--"superimposed and deposited one upon another in layer after layer" as "the multiple, composite substratum" of Danubian landscapes and lives, Magris unpacks history out of geography or time out of space. In following a river from place to place across a continent, "Danube" is a mythic descent into buried lives and races, dynasties and empires, ideologies and movements and epochs and civilizations that becomes a miracle of ascent to an ageless meaning untouched by "the incalculable loss of things."

Written out of encyclopedic learning radiant with moral lustre and unrestricted by the contracting conventions of a particular genre, "Danube" is free and "abundant" as a travelogue, a collection of essays, a handbook of biographies, a journal of meditations, a treatise of human geography, a history of "Mitteleuropa," a volume of literary criticism and a book of books all bound with artistic accessories of imagination of the craft of fiction into a post-generic "confederation" of writing and reality.

In "Danube," Magris has re-invented the book as a signifying expression and experience. Magris's book brings to mind the history of the book as a form of expression and a structure of experience and strikes us as beyond comparison with any other book.

An immaculate unity of heart, mind and spirit as a dignity of truth and beauty in words and a profound composition of selfless surrender to "the ultimate and essential things" in which a book becomes a state of being, "Danube" is simply the best book of our time. A soaring act of writing and a sublime structure of wisdom, "Danube" is an omega of solace. With an epic solidarity with everything from beginning to end in a chorus of faculties of awareness of unknown intellectual, emotional, aesthetic and spiritual synthesis, Claudio Magris is writer as hero of wisdom.

This book records one man's journey, but because this man is so many, it's more like the record of a migration.

Claudi Magris's work is simply the best travelogue that I have ever read: it is a work of imagination, erudition, and deeply-felt culture, and has been beautifully translated: I have never encountered English prose that better captures the cadence and rhythm of Italian!

Throughout history, the Danube has meant many different things to many different people: a highway, a playground, a barrier against the Turks, a symbol of eternal life or of life's melancholy. Magris structures this book as a travelogue, following the Danube from its source(s) in Germany through its debouchment into the Black Sea in Rumania. But in every place he visits, from a humble bench on the riverbank to the major cities of Vienna and Bucharest, he paints a vivid picture not only of the place itself, but of the people who have shaped its character and history.

I already knew that this region (for which he uses the shorthand term Mitteleuropa) had a complicated history, but I didn't realize how incredibly complicated it was until I read this book. Magris doesn't always untangle the complexities clearly enough for a non-European (and, from living briefly in the region as well as having family roots there, I'm probably better informed than most). On the other hand, his portraits of the people he meets are vivid and memorable -- from the old woman who presides over the 18th-century farmhouse where the Danube (possibly) rises, to the fisher-folk who live at the mouths of the river, to the functionaries and innkeepers who punctuate his journey and the friends who accompany him for parts of it. Writers, living and dead, are evoked as much as politicians and historians; one persistent theme of the book is how literature has reacted to, preserved, and in some instances shaped the history of Mitteleuropa.

All in all, the book is a magnificent achievement and well worth reading, even if some of Magris' observations have been rendered obsolete by the breakup of the Soviet Union. The translation is generally fluid and readable, although one can quibble with it here and there (I found a few minor inaccuracies in the sections that describe places I'm familiar with). And, as for the complaint that the regions traversed by the Danube are "too different" to be treated in one book, that difference *is* part of the story.

In this fascinating journey, Magris takes us from the very -and much disputed- sources of the Danube in the Black Forest, in Southern Germany, to the mouth of the river in the Black Sea, in Romanian territory. Along the way, Magris recreates the legends, stories and historical moments of every village and city he visits. The Danube area is, of course, full of history, since most peoples who ever set foot in Europe seem to have crossed it one way or another. Princes, wars, writers, lovers, many interesting and even fascinating stories illuminate for the reader the waters of the Danube. It really makes you want to make the same trip.

It would be interesting to read an update by Magris, especially about those places who were then under Soviet rule, now that almost 20 years have passed since the publication of the book. Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslavia all pass before your eyes like a dream.

Every town and story motivates in Magris deep reflections on history, memory, the passage of time, politics, and many other subjects. Magris's prose is dense in the best sense of the term: it is rich and deep, with a poetic quality to it. Very much recommended, it discovers for us many writers from that area who seem worth to read.

This book presents a tremendous amount of detail about Stalag Luft III. So many arcane details are presented! This includes such topics as the mental health of prisoners, religious and cultural activities of the prisoners, and even the heartbreak of POWs whose fianc?s had left them as a result of their captivity, and told them so in "Dear John" letters.

The well-publicized escapes from the camp (and also some not so well publicized ones) are relegated to only a relatively small part of the book. It is easy to see that the murder of 50 of the 73 recaptured POWs following the Great Escape did exert a chilling effect on future escapes, precisely as the Germans wanted. However, some tunnels (Margaret and George) were subsequently prepared in case the Germans attempted to kill all the prisoners in the end. A desperate revolt was also planned by the Stalag Luft III inmates in the event of such a German order. Much detail is also presented about the evacuation of the POWs from Stalag Luft III on the heels of the advancing Red Army.

When it comes to German treatment of its POWs, Stalag Luft III stands out as an exception in a very positive direction. However, there is no way of verifying the claim that the POWs in Stalag Luft III, despite their meager food rations, were nevertheless fed no worse than the frontline German soldiers.

The author Durand focuses on the common mistreatment of POWs by Germans in camps other than Stalag Luft III. For example, some erstwhile American POWs claim that their treatment was little different form that of concentration camp victims, except that the latter were likely to die of shootings or gassings. Even so, Durand gives a detailed but incomplete picture of the German treatment of POWs. He mentions some killings of American POWs and dwells on the numerous Soviet POWs murdered by the Germans. However, he fails to mention the fact that the widespread killing of POWs by Germans dates back to the very first days of the war, when Germans murdered thousands of Polish troops that had surrendered to them (not to mention civilians).

Duran quotes extensively from Kommandant von Lindeiner's memoirs. In it is mentioned the characteristics of different nationalities of POWs at Stalag Luft III. For example, von Lindeiner mentions the Poles as ones who worried about the future of Poland regardless of the outcome of the war. In view of the sellout of Poland at Yalta, and the ensuing Soviet Communist puppet state, these fears proved well founded.

I did not do my research when buying this book, but luckily, it ended up having very good value. I was more interested in reading about "The Great Escape," which is covered in this book since it took place at the camp. However, it is only mentioned in a chapter or two.

Nonetheless, the book covers the span of most of WWII. There are great tales of prisoner life. Very detailed with regards to the German POW system and how Allied prisoners lived.

It reads more like a term paper and not so much like an adventure story. Sort of like you're watching a history channel special on "German POW camps." So if you're looking for a story, I don't think you'll be happy with this. It's more a research piece. The author gives you glimpses into the procedures, day to day life, etc.

Every facet of camp life is covered and for that, he gets excellent marks. Details about food, contraband, holidays, leisure activities, building the camps, administration of the camps, etc. etc. It's all here. There are some tales about the actual prisoners. But I don't think this is the book's strong point. It excels in the nuts and bolts of POW camps and POW life, however does not delve too deeply into their stories.

For the record, my father was interned at this camp as an Army Air Corp prisoner. He is no longer living and passed away in 1973 at the age of 54. I was only 18 at the time. He was not very open about his experience however what he did tell me about the camp was often repeated and brought back to life "in detail" in this book. This is a must read for those interested in our military when the soldiers fought a much different battle and served for a great purpose.

Stalag Luft III is well known to fans of the movie "The Great Escape" as the German prison camp from which 76 Allied prisoners of war escaped in March 1944. That movie was based primarily on Paul Brickhill's short but extemely well-written memoir. This much longer book by Arthur Durand is, in a sense, the rest of the story of life in Stalag Luft III.

Durand takes the long view of the experience of the Allied POWs incarcerated in Stalag Luft III. His narrative describes how some of the more memorable personalities were captured and how they came to be held at Stalage Luft III, how the camp was administered by the respective German and Allied chains of command, and how the prisoners survived the austere conditions in the camp. The digging of a series of escape tunnels, the "Great Escape", and its aftermath are a central portion of the story, but so are the mundane day-to-day details of survival for years in captivity.

Durand explores the difficult relationship between the Allied POWs and their German captors. The POWs saw it as their duty to escape, a duty the Germans essentially understood but were obviously eager to prevent. It appears that for the most part, the German Air Force staff of Stalag Luft III and the captured Allied fliers were operating from a largely shared set of assumptions about how each should behave. The Commandant of Stalag Luft III appears to have been as sympathetic as he was portrayed in the movie. At the same time, there were limits to what the German Government would tolerate; the execution of fifty escapees from the "Great Escape" was a chilling example of how dangerous it was to exceed those limits.

Durand has included a small but illustrative selection of photographs of the camp. In an appendix, he provides a short history of prisoners of war. An excellent bibliography points to the way to additional documentation for interested readers.

This book is highly recommended to fans of "The Great Escape" and to students of the POW experience. They will find Durand's account to be close to exhaustive on Stalage Luft III.

This is a fascinating book about life in a certain POW camp in Germany during World War II. Its authenticity is unquestioned, as it is based upon a diary of events that was written down at the time, rather than later, after memories faded. The book is as detailed a look at life behind barbed wire as one could want. This is a very comprehensive book.

Stalag Luft 3, the camp, is where the actual "Great Escape" occurred, but that is only a small part of this book, which concentrates on detailing the POW experience from capture and interrogation to the war's end.

The interesting thing that I derived from the book was that although the Germans were not completely scrupulous about living up to their obligations under the Geneva convention, they at least paid attention to these rules, and most allied POWs who made it alive to a camp did make it home alive after the war. That is more than can be said, by a wide margin, for those American and Allied soldiers who were POWs of the Japanese. Part of this, the book speculates, is because the Luftwaffe held these POWs (this was a camp for airmen POWs) and it knew that England was holding large numbers of shot-down Luftwaffe pilots. Both sides wanted their men to be treated well. It is probably accurate to say that most of the outrages that the Germans committed against allied soldiers occurred before the captured soldiers reached the German camp system. The massacre of American GIs at Malmady comes to mind. Also, when escaped POWs fell into the hands of the Gestapo, this was never good.

Despite this, however, the book makes clear the shortcomings of the German treatment of the men. The food ration amounted to slow-motion starvation, unless the men supplemented their rations in various ways including the famous "Red Cross parcels." Sanitation was rudimentary until the POWs themselves took a hand in designing a latrine system. On the other hand, the book also makes clear that the German staff of the camp got pretty lean rations too--the fact appears to be that Germany was having a hard time as the war progressed feeding anyone, let alone POWs.

The most fascinating part of the story, to me at least, was the interaction between the POWs and the German camp staff. There were collaborators on both sides, and many of the German staff evidently felt that Germany was likely to lose the war, and this appears to have encouraged some collaboration. Pretty interesting.

Another fascinating facet of the book is how the POWs at Stalag Luft III organized what amounted to a college, which actually conferred credit hours which, after the war, were accepted by many British and American universities as good credit towards a degree. Courage and hope amidst adversity! Good for them!

The degree of detail in this book is startling, and may be more than some readers want to know about camp life, but I found that this detail gave a gritty and realistic comprehenstion to the reader about what camp life was like.

An excellent piece of history that retains its relevance to the present day.

A superbly written book. Here in Omaha, our many neighborhoods were like a dozen Ames, Iowa towns. It's history now, but at least we can re-experience some of the pleasant memories by reading this story.

This is the most interesting book I have ever read about growing up in the Nifty Fifties. Nothing can compare to that era, even though I am younger. Times since then have been terribly stressful in this nation. It's a joy to re-read the book, and drift back to peacefulness. Gosh, the author is age 60 this year of 2000 ! Time flies by too fast. Ames, Iowa has been blessed to remain a smaller city, and has a great past.

Once I began reading this great book, it was hard to take a break for even mealtimes. When I was growing up here in Ohio during the 1950s, it was quite a bit like in the author's story. Not perfect, but a very good life!

It's a refreshing Step Back In Time reading. Difficult to believe such an era ever existed. Today's readers will learn a lot about how to live a simpler, equally enjoyable life.

Susan Allen Toth first appeared on my radar screen with her three volumes of travel essays on England (My Love Affair with England: A Traveler's Memoir, England for All Seasons, England as You Like It). She's a soul mate. In BLOOMING, penned in the late 70s, Ms. Toth shares coming-of-age memories as delightful as those from another of my favorite authors, Laura Shaine Cunningham (Sleeping Arrangements, A PLACE IN THE COUNTRY).

Susan was born in 1940, and BLOOMING is her account of life in Ames, Iowa until she went East to college in 1957. The ability to relate will increase to the degree that the reader's background shares commonality with the following: maturing in the late 40s and 50s, living in a Midwest plains state, being female. I can only claim identity with the first, but that limited coincidence didn't affect my ability to thoroughly enjoy this volume.

Toth's remarkable memory of her childhood and teenage years could serve as the source for Norman Rockwell paintings as she remembers swimming pools, boyfriends, girlfriends, science classes, the public library, parties, summer jobs, the traditional holidays, and yearly trips to the Minnesota lake where relatives owned a cabin. She was unusually reticent about her immediate family. We learn only that her father died when she was in the third grade, and she and her sister were raised by their mother, a teacher. This absence of familial information is somewhat disappointing as it's perhaps a gold mine of stories not told. For instance, Susan writes about her sister, one year older:

"My sister and I, who fought most of the time, declared an unspoken truce on Christmas morning and hugged awkwardly as we exchanged gifts. For those brief moments, we really wanted to please each other." So, what did they fight over? Boys? Clothes? Maternal attention?

The realist might point out that most of the world's children, and many in America, didn't live formative years as idyllic as depicted in BLOOMING. True enough. But I lived the male version in Southern California, and Toth's was sufficiently similar in rhythm to remind me of those Good Ol' Days when I didn't know how good I had it. Thank you, Susan.

...

Ever since I saw the movie "It's a wonderful life" 9 years ago, I have been captivated by this truly amazing woman! Since then I have purchase many items about Donna Reed Mullenger, her biography (In seach of Donna Reed, which was truly a work of art, and I sure can relate to the feeling Mr.Fultz has for her!) also many movies staring this wonderful creature. I only wish I would have known her personnally...
Anyway, I sure would like to see more DVD movies available to the public, staring the beautiful Miss Reed.

Not a typical Hollywood "tell all", this book is really geared towards fans of Donna Reed. Though very informational, the writing lacks professional polish that perhaps a more experienced biographer would've been able to use to spark it up a little.

I rediscovered Donna Reed less than a month ago. I had forgotten just how good she was in It's a Wonderful Life. The more I saw, the more I looked. The more I looked, the more I realized just how far the public perception of her is from reality. I found a copy of Jay Fultz's "In Search Of Donna Reed" online and ordered it. By the time it arrived I had become immersed in IAWL facts and all I could find out about this woman who had seemed to appear and shine so brilliantly for a moment and then disappear. My only memory of her show was that it seemed loved and hated-I never saw it, so you can guess where my dad stood. Soon I would learn that, for some strange reason she was, and still is, the undeserving victim of a very determined slander campaign. I picked up the book and met Miss Mullenger. She was the sweetest little girl who just seemed to get better with age. Her performance in It's a Wonderful Life is so much like the Donnabelle Mullenger I met in this book-bringing the sense of quality that, I think is one of the reasons it endures. She is the reason Mr. Stewart's anguish is real, because I can see it reflected on the very real face of Donna's Mary. The hurt she felt at his hands two years later was one answer I was seeking, they had such perfect "chemistry" in IAWL, why is this the only film they both star in? According to Jay, she would say to "ask Miss Allyson."

Two days after I met her, I felt as if a near and dear relative was at death's door. Even though I KNEW that twenty years had passed, reading (at work) Mr. Fultz's account of the death of this remarkable woman awakened in me a sense of loss so powerful that I had to finish reading it in my car...

While looking for a way to contact Mr. Fultz, I came across what was called a review of this book in a popular magazine (I won't say it's name, but it covers the movie and TV industry) . The hate in it for Donna and for anyone who would praise her was simply appalling. They didn't even try to discredit the research, but rather selected biased facts from her life and even lied in a subtle way to attempt to trivialize her contributions. I now realize that those who don't like Donna Reed are almost always those who don't know her. They mock her TV show as "bland" but never say how many thousands of troubled children must have found refuge in her "home" each week, as evident by the letters she received from a tiny fraction of the 35 million plus viewers at her peak. We see a Donna Reed who fought studio and sponsor desires to maintain the stereotype she fought against in the movie industry, and that her fight for women's rights cost her more than many who have gotten better press at far less personal cost. In Search of Donna Reed is backed by over twenty five pages of detailed notes of sources: interviews, documents, letters, an amazing amount of material that show Mr. Fultz to be a dedicated researcher fully capable of producing an honest account that is worthy of the memory of Donna Reed, even if it is a labor of love-or perhaps because it is.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading along as Jay Fultz sought out Donna Reed. Did it answer all my questions about her? No. But that was part of the guilty-pleasure appeal of this book. I learned things about Donna herself and her life and career than I previously knew, and it was a pleasing experience to just sit back and enjoy the ride without becoming a backseat driver. Fultz's respectful excitement in the process of "discovery" comes across in every chapter. A charming, intelligent retrospective worthy of Miss Reed's memory.

A biography of a truly beautiful woman! Some celebrities went trough life with everything handed to them on a silver plate, not Donna Reed, she realy had to work for everything she stood for back then and today, not only has a superstar but also as a human being. From her early years in Denison Iowa to her movie and televison career to her activist days to being a devoted mother and wife, get to know about some of her life struggules and pleasures in Jay Fultz's A-1 bio of a wonderfully private person that didn't let fame get the best of her. Under that star image is a down-to-earth extremely intoxicating person with a very charitable heart and giving nature.

In my heart she definataly was one of the greatest woman that ever walked God's green earth and is the closest thing to human perfection!.....Rob J.

this was good book.you can learn a lot.some of it is hard to remember,such as which type bonnet etc.but it was good.she could have even went into more detail of the mistreatment she felt she received from her family,but its the amish way not to offend.nadia rehmani -authoor of sharper than a two edged sword-one woman's walk into Islam and out.thats my story

This is the true story of how one woman made the change and left the Amish lifestyle. It tells of the personal struggles of leaving family and lifetime friends all behind to adventure into a new life and follow one's own convictions. Very well written and informative. You can almost feel the pain this lady went through to start her new way of life!
I feel that all books are over-priced and for that reason I give this book only four stars!

It was so enlighting. It really was interesting to me to actually read about the Amish communitity.

Timely shipment and in great condition. I was very pleased with order.

This was an interesting book. However, the content was, in my opinion, limited. It was more like an outline with a few details. Information was interesting; but seemed to skim the surface of everyday Amish life.

As I read this remarkable volume I felt I was being transported back to those Civil War days, telling me how it was both in the war zone and back home in Iowa. Jacob Ritner is a remarkable figure, inspiring admiration and eminently worthy of emulation. His accounts of the battles he was in are vivid and immediate, and the editor of this volume has performed a most worthwhile service in resurrecting from the buried past this correspondence to inspire all who value patriotism and fidelity to duty and to one's marriage vow. One cannot but be enriched by following Captain Ritner and his wife thru those perilous years from 1861 thru 1865.

What a splendid work of Civil War history! Hats off to Charles F.Larimer. I couldn't have imagined there was so much historical data in intimate letters. The details are all here. What trials and tribulations our forefathers and mothers went through to perserve our nation. I now find myself becoming a Civil War buff after reading this book, and it only took me three days! As I read on, I found myself in my great-great grandfather's shoes fighting along the side of Cpt.Jacob Ritner and the boys from the 25th. How involved you become. I enjoyed the little jousting that Jacob and Crane had. Buy it today and enjoy a sentimental piece of Civil War history..........

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book!. Some times, historical correspondance can be dry. However, these letter are not! They are very readable, offering a interesting insight into the real lives of people during the turbulent era of the Civil War. Charles Larimer has done excellent research and his annotations add to the context of when the letters were written. Highly recommended. I look forward to reading his Scottish Stories from Loch Ness.

I am not a reader of books nor a student of the civil war. However, I found this book to be fascinating. The horrors of war and the loneliness of soldiers are universal, and the insights into this particular war and historical era are compelling. It is very easy to read, and is both educational and entertaining. Please give me more by this writer!

As an amateur war historian, I find that all too rarely do we see the war on both sides. The hardships of everyday Americans during the Civil War were not only occurring on the battlefield, but in the homes left behind in the cornfields of Iowa. This unique perspective is presented in the heartfelt correspondence between Jacob and Emeline. A rare opportunity to behold the searching meditations of a man gripped by both love, and patriotism.