Sports and Hobbies Books

There is alot of good information in this book. I had been scrapbooking before I bought the book, and was really upset that I had been doing some things the hard way. Awesome book!

This book was in great condition when I received it. It is a great book.

This book is slightly outdated, which is the only complaint I have. All of the "Dummy series" are written by experts in their field and the format of the book is just excellent. A must for someone interested in starting to scrapbook.

I am still reading Scrapbooking for Dummies. It is a wonderful book for beginning to scrapbook. There are so many references to where you can purchase items needed to complete your pages. The language is clear and the illustrations are easy to understand. I like the book and am so happy too have the book for future reference.
Bentley

I'm not new to scrapbooking, but I like this book. It's very clear and simple to follow, and the advice it gives on materials is great. This is a wonderful reference to own whether you're trying scrapbooking for the first time or you've been scrapping for years.

This book is a great book containing lots of useful information. I would recommend this book to beginners and advanced shooters alike.

I thought Brsiter's work was very well written and showed how dedicated he was to the sport. For me, a person relatively new to shotgun sports and wing-shooting, this book is an excellent introduction to shotgunning fundamentals and why shooting a shotgun is so different than any other type of firearm.

In addition, Brister takes the time to provide perspective on various types of shotguns, and even more perspective on various shotshell loads. The summaries of his shotshell tests were very eye-opening for me, as they can teach beginners how shot spreads are affected by larger payloads and higher powder charges, and also, how various loads may affect your ability to produce clean kills in the field, rather than crippling game or causing a slow and painful passing for birds.

Though this book is almost 30 years old at the time of this review, ALL of the principles taught in it hold true today. Some argue that Brister was visionary when he wrote this book and I agree. Much of what is written could very well have had a huge part in shaping the shotgun and shotshell industry as we know it today.

I bought this book when it first came out over 20 years ago. I loved it then, and love it now. Much of what Brister wrote forms the bases for many current articles where his information is presented as "new" and he's not even credited! There's very little to criticize in the book. There's excellent chapters on guns, gauges, chokes, shooting styles, etc. It really was a comprehensive book at the time it was published.

That said, the book was written before the lead shot ban in waterfowl hunting, before widespread availability of choke tubes, and before the rapid rise in popularity of sporting clays. Thus the book really doesn't address these issues, and the reader will have to look elsewhere to find current information. (Well, it does talk about choke tubes some, but at that time most shotguns still were purchased with fixed chokes while the reverse is true today.)

This book should be in every serious shotgunner's library, and should be read, and then revisited every year or so, to remind the shooter that whatever recent article he/she just read was already covered by Brister!

Brister's writing style is clear and concise. The book was well edited. Most topics are explained in detail, and information is presented in such a way that most readers should be able to understand. In this day and age of computers, DVD's and other communication media, though, some younger readers may prefer a different approach.

I would love to see this book updated, with current photos and chapters covering some missing topics.

I agree with the other reviews in that this is a very indepth guide to shotguns (but with an emphasis on trap shooting). Unfortunately this is not a good book for waterfowl hunting as Bob goes in depth about *lead* shot and how it performs. While his testing methods and insights on how to shoot are good, I really would care less how #4 would perform on ducks as I can't legally use it in the US. This book was written before the ban on lead shot and hasn't been updated accordingly! This book is good for the trap/skeet shooter who can use lead shot but much less useful for the waterfowl hunter. Other than this I like the book as its a good read with clear points.

Shotgunning: The Art and Science provides a good basic introduction to almost every aspect of shotguns and should prove especially beneficial for new shooters. That said, it comes up short in any substantial discussion of wingshooting technique--which was my primary need. And while the very detailed empirical discussions of ballistics and patterning are thorough and illuminating, much has changed in shotgunning technology since this book was published 30 years ago, and, of course, none of those changes are reflected. For instance, the move away from lead shot for virtually all waterfowling applications has had a profound effect on choke recommendations. Also, the birth and development of sporting clays has rejuvenated many shooters and brought countless other new shooters into shotgunning. Sporting clays is perhaps the most popular clays game being shot today, but it arrived after this book did.

In short, buy this book for its focus on the immutable fundamentals of shotgunning, but look elsewhere for a discussion of technique or a more up to date overview of new and emerging technologies.

BUY THIS BOOK!! That's the best advice I can give you if you need to keep young children totally and happily absorbed for hours and days on end!

There are more than a dozen projects here, along with all the materials needed to create them. There's no need to purchase tape or glue -- it's all here. The illustrations are great, the instructions are very, very clear so that children will have no trouble at all working independently.

What a wonderful fun craft book to develop creativity while having a fabulous time! I can't recommend it highly enough.

My granddaughter and I had lots of fun with this book. It encourages imagination and creativity.

We bring this book with us when we go out to restaurants. It's easily portable because of the pockets for the scissors. The scissors are kid-friendly but still need a little supervision because they're a little sharp. The book keeps my four-year-old entertained for quite a while. Definitely recommend it to kids who are 3.5yrs or older. I've purchased five of them, to give as birthday presents, too!

My almost 5 year old will do anything to use scissors. He was very excited about getting 2 different kinds of scissors and a whole book to cut up. The straight scissors are hard for him to line up, but he doesn't really care if the lines aren't perfect. There are lots of different activities in the book and I thought this was well worth it, though we went through the book pretty quickly.

I really like this as a gift or for my kids. It has fun, easy, creative ideas and allows kids to practice their scissor skills at the same time.

Book helpful, really wanted something more technical on present day tools and finishes.
PROBLEM ON SHIPPING TAKEN CARE OF BY AMAZON.

I have spent the last dozen years as a custom contractor, crafting houses for my clients from the design through the finish carpentry. Wood seemed to me the natural material selection for a sailing boat as I already have a thorough knowledge of the medium and thousands of dollars worth of tools to work with it. Jim's book is not only very amusing and engaging, it approaches the job of renovation in a way that makes it easy to understand and accomplish for a person of any skill level. He takes the time to explain not only the specific techniques involved in boat renovation but to explain how to approach a complicated renovation in a manner that will make it most likely to succeed. The tick-stick trick, new to me, is worth double the price of this fantastic book.

The author is both very well aquainted with wooden boats and very appreciative of them. He does not advocate, as earlier reviews claimed, to simply "fiberglass over" everything. Good chapters on woodworking tools, woods (surprise, mahogany may not be the best overall marine wood!), paints, laminating and time saving ideas to get back in the water. I used several on my 36' 1965 ChrisCraft Challenger. Deals mainly with cruisers, but has a chapter on runabouts.

This is a very entertainingly written book, essential for anyone restoring a wooden boat - worth it as a fun read alone. The book is full of fun wooden boat philosophy, interesting personal anecdotes, and great stories. On the practical side, the author provides a good introduction to wooden boat types and construction, excellent information about selecting, evaluating and purchasing a boat for rennovation; planning and initiating projects; necessary tools and supplies; repairing holes in a wooden hull; and even some tips about building in cabinets and furniture.

The approach is admittedly "quick and dirty," that is, it presents practical, time-saving, and relatively inexpensive ways to get your wooden boat on the water, as opposed to nit-picky and involved pristine restoration techniques. The book isn't for the purist but for the pragmatist, and in that regard the advice and techniques offered are spot-on.

Unfortunately, however, the book is lacking in a few critical areas. Firstly, the section on hull refinishing - sanding, prepping, and painting - is insubstantial and unclear, with numerous contradictions and with no truly applicable examples. This is surprising, since the rest of the book is so comprehensible. (Indeed, ten highly detalied pages are devoted to wooden deck repair.) Also, the use of epoxies and their derivatives gets short shrift, and these days this is a critical area. It's as if here the author is an advocate but not an expert; recommendations about the use of epoxies in hull refinishing are dated and unreliable, and there is no mention of their potential, with fillers, for use in cabin or deck repair. For a book that prides itself on quick and easy alternatives this is an unfortunate omission.

Of course, for any ambitious wooden boat project you'll gather a collection of books, and be sure to add this one, since there is a wealth of good stuff here. Or get it for sure if you're an armchair boat refurbisher. But do look for additional sources if your main interest is hull refinishing or if you anticipate a lot of epoxy filler work.

I found the book both entertaining and very useful.

The author adds humor as well as knowledge which means you read for the enjoyment as well as the practical skills you will obtain.
The author covers every aspect from searching for a boat , restoring , repairing and the all important how to get a good fininsh on your final product.

Would recommend this book to anyone considering doing restoration work on a wooden boat regardless of size.

Just completed my last restoration project using this book and very satisfied with the results.

This book allows you to see flaws in basic movement patterns and shows you how to correct them. It might not seem important but it could be the difference in being injuried or not.

Funny how a book needs a DVD to help demonstrate. So get the DVD too. Not much to say other than a good reference, the value is in the whole book.

This book changed the way I look at fitness and is appropriate for the weekend warrior or professional athlete. The author's expertise is expressed in such a manner that comprehension and practical application is easily reached.

Push your body to its limits and get the most out of it with these training drills. As a physical therapist, the author shows you the safe way to workout.

This is an OUTSTANDING complement to the DVD. I hoped that the DVD and book would not merely be redundant...and they aren't! The overlap to some extent so that you can get results with only one or the other, but I am VERY glad to have both. They fill in some gaps that each has.

Well written booklet that will cause you to clear space and buy plywood. Easily understandable for the beginner and enough information for an expert to appreciate. The section on community/educational boatbuilding is an inspiration.

We have made these as part of youth programmes in Western Australia. They take us about 30 hours to build with groups of 4 to 5 working on them. These people have never made anything before so progress is slower than you would first think. They are a great project, we use cheap ply and paint them well seems to work fine. The group gets a great deal for the building process. I keep meaning to build one for myself, perhaps this time round I will

My friend's dad just did this at the Stoney Creek Wooden Boat Shop in the Rochester, Michigan area with a group of kids as part a youth program. It's a simple and rewarding boat to build and it really can be done rather quickly. It definitely took longer than 6 hours with a group of unexperienced kids, but the project was easily finished over a few weekends. Highly recommended. Have fun building one yourself or with kids in your neighborhood! If you have the slightest interest in building boats, this is a great place to start.

Although the six hours refers to someone with experience and possessing all the tools and wood, the design is perfect for people (me, for example) with no woodworking experience. Because I had little experience, I had to refer to Tom Hill's extraordinary Ultralight Boatbuilding, which though written for a skilled woodworker includes important details left out of Six-Hour. There are only a few things I would want to change to Six-Hour:
There are two lists of materials, one on p. 11, one on p. 58. They do not match. The one on 11 has a frame bottom, but this is not in 58, and 58 does not list the keel. They mention a "full sized pattern" for the gussets on p. 18, but no such pattern exists. They also might as well include the butt block procedure for two 4x8 pieces of plywood in the main part of the book because most places on the planet do not have 4x16 pieces of marine grade plywood. Also, readers should work hard to find a source of cheap bronze screws before they start (the project requires about 120 of them--not the 50 given in the text--and they are expensive!) It would also have been nice if they had photographs showning the canoe at main stages in the process. The above minor points did not detract from the 30 hours or so of pure enjoyment I had in using this book to build a canoe. I hope the authors come out with the sailboat version they promise.

I have taken a class a Buffalo State College with John Montague, the author. In the class I built the weekend skiff, a row boat/sail boat. I have also built the 6-hour canoe with high school age kids in the Adirondack Mountains at a summer camp. It took a group of 6 kids to build 2 canoes and approximately 4 days working about 4 hours per day, this includes painting the canoe which is not part of the 6 hours of building the canoe. The directions are easy to follow and the cost is very inexpensive. The canoes have lasted 2 summers so far and look to withstand many more. They are made of marine grade plywood. Have fun building one yourself.

This book is nice for motivated older children (8 and up) to flip through on their own before a family camping trip. They can fold down the pages of things they'd like to try and really play a role in preparing for the adventure. Its also great for an organized parent who wants to have some rainy day plans, arts and crafts projects, or nature activities on hand. Just make sure to check the supply lists (all pretty basic) before you go on your trip. FYI, a lot of the projects are great for doing in the backyard, too. A nicely laid-out book with a nice tone.

Saw this book reviewed in Family Fun Magazine and it sounded good so I bought it. Turns out the review was true - this book is excellent and it's not just for kids. I really enjoyed reading it from cover to cover and learned a few things myself. This past weekend we brought it with us to Fool Hollow Lake State Park in Arizona. The campfire recipes are great. I loved the Banncock Bread. It was delicious! My daughter also enjoyed the ghost stories in the back of the book and we sang the songs (The Frogs Keep Hopping On) around the campfire. I recommend this book if you and/or your family are beginner campers and want a little inspiration and basic information about what to pack, how to pack and how to make the most of a rainy day in a tent.

This book had everything we needed to go on a survival hike and camp. It had tons of good ideas, fun games, lists of what we needed, etc. I would highly recommend this book.

Some parts of this book are quite interesting in its ideas for activities. All the games described are basically hide & seek while making animal sounds. the recipes are easy and fun for kids, the packing list and common sense tips are straightforward, easy for kids to follow or read. the songs and stories are typical, been there, done that, nothing new. Illustrations are quirky and cute.
reccomend for the 1st time camper or if you want to give your kids something to read before the trip.

Camp Out! is full of creative and informative lessons and fun activities. Truly a unique book. Any kid from video game addict to natural born scout will find this book engaging! it contains kid-level explanations without talking down to kid-level. As an adult I enjoyed reading this book and felt the cartoons weren't too cutesy. Good for both boys and girls.

This arrived in brand new condition, and well packaged, and quickly. Since I'd seen it in the library I knew what to expect...a beginner's guide. It is easy to understand.

The book was much smaller than I expected. Read it cover to cover in an hour or so. Good information, though no real revelations. Kind of spendy for such a small book.

Good book, no doubt. I enjoyed it and found it very useful. But that's not the issue. Why is it for sale from $19 to $45 when the actual price is $14. Look at the back cover! Buyers beware.

Honestly, we didn't expect this to be an in-depth letterboxing tool, just a neat way to explain the hobby to our kids, and interested family members.
However, the presentation is easy to read and has tips we had forgotten about & find very useful.
This book is graphically pleasing, in an aesthetic format, with little touches that truly capture how enchanting letterboxing is.
It has now become a constant gift for people we love.
You will not regret this purchase if you have an interest in a family-friendly activity with an artistic touch.

This compact little book is both a great overview of the wonderful world of letterboxing as well as great "how to" practical knowledge about this hobby.

This set has provided many hours of enjoyment for a 9-year old child who loves to be creative.
A very good value.

I bought this for my son to develop his fine motor skills. It is pretty difficult to master but after time it gets easier. A flat surface is best and it can be used on any paper and with most ball point pens. We just concentrate, with my son, that any design is great even if it doesn't turn into a full spiral.

This toy is a winner in the hands of the right person. I wouldn't give it to a four-year-old, or one who is challenged in the manual-dexterity department. It does require patience, and the desire to experiment to find the right touch.

However, for a tween to adult, this is a great toy.

Would you expect anything less from Klutz?

Not just for children. I am an artist and use the Klutz product to design mandala-like images. The possibilities are endless and you can superimpose the designs on one another with different colors and shapes.
When you work with children you need to teach them to hold down the template holder securely and put it on a flat surface, otherwise it can be frustrating. Like anything else worth doing, it requires some effort and thought. While probably not for the very young child, what better way to help children develop their creativity and life skills!

To the author, nothing is wrong! Nothing is a mistake! If you didn't complete a spiral, you can create something better and unique! Full of great ideas!!!

The book came in expected condition. They shipped quickly and did a great job.

Girls will be girls and what was girly and cool 100 years ago is still girly and cool today. A fun look into history loaded with good old fashion fun. Every girl in our neighborhood has found something they love in this book. Giggles and smiles. This does seem to be a better fit for a girl who already enjoys reading otherwise you may end up doing the loins share of the reading which could be just as rewarding for your relationship with your special girl.

I received this book for Christmas and it is one of my favorite books. It has crafts and activities ranging from preserving flowers in wax to turning an old straw hat into a drawstring bag. Along with fun crafts and games, and even interior decorating, this book shows one how life was like back in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This book is over 100 years old, and the activities are still really fun and easy to do! I recommend this book to any girl, young or old!

Sure, it might be a little outdated, but it's a great glimpse into a past time. And today's kids would probably enjoy the chance to do some old-fashioned things described in this book, like making their own hammock or refurbishing some old furniture. The instructions for painting and drawing and basic and useful, and many of the ideas presented are things forgotten about and could stand resurrection. Lots of attention paid to girls getting exercise and being healthy, contrary to modern perceptions of Victorian women. Good for parents and teachers, and kids who are fond of history and open to old-fashioned ideas.

My mother bought both for me as a child. I spent days going through the American Boys Handy Book but the girls version bored me to death. I was excited to learn of the amazing things boys got to do in older times but what girls were doing sounded a great deal like chores. The best bit with the American Boys Handy book is you get history and crafts together. There are many things you can still build, at least if you don't live in too urban an environment. If you do live in the city or want more female crafts than trapping, fishing and animal training, get a more modern craft book for your children. The American Girls doll company likely still makes interesting period crafts if you'd like to go the historical route. They did when my nieces were young.