Day Books

By: Cindy Phommasy


Samantha, Rebecca's best friend, just suggested they play a game called "Seven Minutes in Heaven", a truth or dare game were the girls ask the boy a question where they can either tell the truth or go in the closet and be in heaven. The problem is, Rebecca's not really sure she wants to play because its going to be her first kiss. The real problem is yet to come when the school principal tells them that they are going to learn how to dance the tango and all that stuff. Everybody in class doesn't want Rebecca as their partner because of the last dance, where Rebecca accidentally broke Scott's toe and was called "Killer Dancer". So is Rebecca brave enough to dance and be have romance at the same time?
I would rate this story 4 stars because it's just a story I enjoy to read with romance, and friendship. I can also relate this to my life and I'm sure it will relate to your life also.

This book I just read was so exciting! It's about a girl who is growing up and getting older and she decides to have a party. Well, at the party she wants to play some games. One of the girls at her party says, " Let's play spin the bottle". Another girl suggests that they play seven minutes in heaven. Well, the main character, Andrea, said she hadn't heard of any of those games. This was really a great read for me.

I thought the book was really fun to read. I found some things that I didn't already know. For example, I never knew what seven minutes in heaven was until I read this book. I thought some of the things in the book were too descriptive. When I was reading the book, I kept on thinking, "Why are these girls going to have a party?" "Do their parents know they are having a party?" Of course, my questions never really got answered. What I liked least about the main character is that she acted like she knew nothing. I really loved this book, and I think you will too!

Aw. I love love stories, especially when they're innocent. Some of the sentences feel a little too simple. At the same time, the author cleverly does not underestimate her readers' intelligent by not putting the obvious in sentences, if you know what I mean.

The only issue I have here is the use of word "jackass." But I've learned that it apparently is an acceptable word for middle school kids--having found it in three juvenile books in a week.

An awsome book about 7th graders. The whole breaking his toe thing is really funny!! it took me less than a day to read becuase I coundn't stop. I even was reading it in history class :) I have already given the book to my friend and she lovesd it too. I think that this would be a great book for book lovers (like me) to read.

Maybe its not as well known as Harry Potter, or War and Peace, or Romeo and Juliet. But its definitly as good! Seventh Grade Tango is about a girl, she has a best friend who is a boy and their class is forced to do ballroom dancing. She gets paired with...oops. I shouldnt say...just trust me though. READ IT!

My husband introduced me to this cookbook over 30 years ago and it has been a favorite ever since. The recipes are flavorful and easy to make. The section on spices is very informative and helpful. The only thing I do differently than spelled out in the recipes is to use fresh onions instead of dried.

This book is favorite of my mother's and was given to me. I am now sending a copy to my daughter. The recipies are outstanding.

I have had to replace this cookbook, because I have used it so much...I enjoy the artwork.
I am reminded of how at one time, food might have been very bland without spices.
I cherish this book and hope I will not have to replace it again...
If you find one, buy it...at ANY PRICE!

This cookbook was a gift from my mother. I have always used it for over 34 years to find unusual or special recipes. After I made several recipes that caused my mother (a wonderful cook) to rave, she said that she wished she had kept it for herself, instead of giving it to me. Recently, I found 5 used copies of the book that I bought for my two daughters, my daughter-in-law, two nieces, and my sister-in-law. It is the best cookbook. Too bad it is out-of-print! I wish the binding were made of steel, because I have had to mend mine several times--it is loved and cooked to pieces.

My mother and her two sisters each received this cookbook in the sixties for a Christmas present, and I was lucky enough to end up with one. This has been my "flagship" cookbook...the one I turn to again and again. The stories about spices are interesting, and every recipe I have tried I have used over and over for company as well as everyday meals. There is enough basic cookery information for even very new cooks. I want to give a copy to my daughter so this can be a legacy cookbook.

A friend gave me this book to read and I haven't been able to put it down. I have done extensive research on my family geneology and my maternal Great-Grandparents were some of the very first settlers in the Dakota territory. I have documentation that matches the book content so Lauraine Snelling did her research well. I, being raised in Minnesota and my Mother born in Fargo brought back so many memories about the Bjorkland family traveling through Alexandria, MN (where my Mom's aunt lived). These settlers lived through some unbareable times and they had to be very strong to survive it. Don't judge the writer about all the deaths as that actually did happen back in those times. They didn't have the medicines and doctors we have today and they died from the simplest illnesses and injuries. I can't imagine how they survived those winters. I know it got brutally cold (30 and 40 degrees below zero). Can you imagine living in uninsulated dwellings through those temps.

I am very anxious to read more books of these series and will recommend them to anyone.

I purchased this set of books for a family member because I enjoyed them so much myself. Our family has connections to Norwegian pioneers in the Dakotas so they were even more meaningful to us.
Exciting and realistic, the stories show the trials and the courage of the early emigrants as they struggled to establish their homes in a new land. Uplifting to see how their faith in God helped them through their ordeals, and also how important the strength of family and friends were to them.

I enjoyed this series very much. Lauraine Snelling has a very good way of introducing new characters to the main story line that continue to make each book very enjoyable and the people believable.

The way that Bible Scripture and Godly lessons are weaved throughout each book, makes these books not only "good reading" but "good for your soul" books too.

Once I started I just couldn't stop reading. She writes in a way that you can see what she describes, and feel what the character is feeling. I have read all 6 in the series, plus the 3 in the Return to Red River. Can't wait for the following books that are to follow. You won't regret buying this series.

I bought this set of three books, and couldn't do anything but read, until I finished them!! My father imigrated to North Dakota from Sweden in 1905, and the book is so real, it brought back so many childhood memories, even though it is set 20-30 years before. The isolation and the harshness of the freezing temperatures of the winters was so very real, even though we were a family of ten children.But the love and respect that families had for each other made all the hardships worth while, and this love will stay with me forever. My grandchildren have a great heritage, and ask me many questions, as their life in California in the 2000's is so very different. The land my father homesteaded is still in our family, and is now in the 3rd generation. It has increased to over 2000 acres, and still sustains the Nelson family, and the 2 generations who live on the land.We had lots of Indian graves on the land ,and our father taught us to respect, and never disturb them. The Indians were still around when he first arrived from Sweden. What an adventure back in time!!!! Can't wait to get the continuing series!! Thanks, Ms. Snelling!!!

Being a military history fan and a wargamer, I can recall conversations many years ago with people of a similar nature on how a nuclear war could be won.

Having continued to read and game since those days long ago, its now obvious that no one would win a nuclear war and this book provides a first hand account of what things could easily have been like.

Read it if you can find it these days.

This is about the best of the post nuke novels around.

The plot is simple, two writers, having survived a very limited nuclear exchange between the Soviet Union and the United States journey around the United States to gather what has happenned to the Country. Along the way, as is foreshadowed above they tell their own stories of survival, as well as interview numerous people- a british navel officer, a canadian banker, a former cabinet menber, a priest and so on. This is combined with the stories of the central narrators who not only reveal their own stories, but tell of their travel.

The central premise is not so much a full collapse of society, but rather a broken and battered United States, with States and territories leaving the Union, independence movements and dependent on overseas aid primarily from the United Kingdom, and Japan.

All in all a solid novel, enjoyable and very readible. Because in many cases the interviews with people are short, you are often left wandering what happened to them in the finish. Well worth a read, and not just by "apocalyptic" fiction fans. Its better than "the stand" anyway.

Presented as an actual historical study of the effects of a limited nuclear exchange on the US, War Day and the Jounrey Onward is an intriguing read and far superior to Strieber's current non-fiction output. Recommended.

WarDay was an novel written by Whitley Strieber and a co-author. Whitley worked on the novel parts whilst his co-writer was incharge of the technical data and research of nucler warfare and fallout data. The books is very well researched and a captivating read. The story follows two men on their travels across the United States and document the after effects of a limited exchange of nuclear tipped missles and the change it has on the people.

The novel begins as an ordinary day for Whitley Strieber. There has been rumors of a oncoming conflict but nothing to be concerned about. Out of the blue, several incoming ICBMs strike New York City and the surrounding areas. Life in the United States will never be the same again. One of the best novels wriiten about this subject.

Highly Recommended.

WARDAY is the literary equivalent of a Peter Watkins film; indeed what it most closely resembles is his brilliant 1965 "documentary" THE WAR GAME. What the writers of WARDAY share with Watkins is a wholly originaly concept for dealing with a work of art that depicts the possible effects of a nuclear war: treat it like a documentary about the dread event--as if the nuclear war HAD occurred. The scenarios (spun out and supported by a ton of research)of what occurs after a "limited" nuclear war( just NYC and WASH DC and parts of Texas actually get vaporized) are so much more chilling than other books of this kind--because of that intensely personal and REALISTIC feeling that the authors are able to achieve--and also because the nuclear war depicted isn't so devastaing as to be incomprehensible; this is one of the top three apocalyptic novels of the late 20th century; truly a masterpiece. This book frightened me like very few others precisely because it felt so real; let's all just hope that we never have to find out first hand whether Strieber & Kunetka were correct in their speculations.

The story takes place in Indiana, in a public school, a Hoosier teacher being the main character, and written by an Indiana teacher/writer was my reason for buying this book. Reading Indiana writers, especially books with a Hoosier setting, are a passion since I also am a Hoosier retired teacher and writer. (Not under the name above.)

"Why Johnny Died" is "right on" when it describes the school, teachers, staff, administration, and the relations between them. That part of the story is not fiction. Marlis Day does a tremendous job mixing the fictional tale of a murder into the school setting. Realistic? Close. I'm not sure most teachers are as adventure questing as the self-appointed detective, Margo, in the story; but then...stranger has happened in the public schools.

School personnel will love this book. "Claude Dupree, assistant principal, was temporarily promoted to main principal...spent an inordinate amount of time mapping the school and assigning new duty posts...disaster drills have become more regular...most of the faculty feel that the emergency has already occurred and pray for a speedy decision on the part of the school board in hiring a new principal."

And this: "In stunned silence we stared at each other--he with his gun in the doorway, and I , seated . . . as most school principals, Leo (Fitzbaum)had been given the gift of glare, and could beat me in a staring contest any day of the week."

Or take Roxie Rayburn, Science teacher and Margo's co-crime investigator, like Tonto to the Lone Ranger, or Barney Fife in Mayberry. "She unfailingly wore costumes rather than clothes...three earrings in each lobe...her smoker's voice and slight drawl...going to college in the sixties had taken its toll on Roxie, and I always suspected that she had a tattoo. Most likely, a dragon or a smoking gun was carefully concealed under her stirrup pants."

Like my first reading of a book by Marlis Day was "Death of a Hoosier Schoolmaster", actually her second book (I didn't read them in order). Both are next to impossible to put down, even at bedtime. Both with a twist at the end making it near impossible to guess who-dun-it.

Short, easy to read mystery, filled with the non-fiction of life for a teacher in the public school. Glad I never had a student murdered by putting a poisonous snake into his bed. The whole story can't be told for you, but now I KNOW Why Johnny Died.

Funny and mysterious. Now excuse me, Marlis Day has a third to read, "Curriculum Murders." Another Margo Brown Mystery coming up right now for this Hoosier reader.

I must tell you up front that I know Ms. Day. He is a fine school teacher who is now retired. I am very happy that she serves on a non-profit community center with me. I am the president, she is the vice.

Marlis loves to write and you can tell that in her style of handeling a story line. She is working on a new title and I am very much standing in line waiting. Most of what she writes about has some basis in fact. I can go out and say what parts, just keep in mine much of what she says is non-fiction written as fiction. She has a way with works that makes her works very entertaining,

Buy this book and the rest that come out. If you want more info on her work with the "Blue Jeans Community Center" then visit us at [...] We will even tell you where the name comes from.

Bless you all and enjoy Marlis' future books.

"Kerry Dean" Teverbaugh
FOX 7 TV Weathercaster
Evansville, IN

Marlis Day has been a teacher for 30 years. She holds a BS degree from Indiana State University and an MS degree from Indiana University. She is also a freelance writer, having published ten articles in Christian magazines and educational journals. Why Johnny Died is her first Margo Brown mystery.

Johnny Benson, a seventh grader with a sweet personality and a rotten home life, is found dead by his mother of an apparent snake bite. Margo Brown is his teacher, and when she reads a journal Johnny wrote for her class, she is convinced that he is too smart to have carelessly picked up a snake. She concludes that he was murdered, but no one believes her, except her colleague Roxy. Together they piece together a chain of facts that implicate their ever so stern principal in Johnny's death. Dr. Fitzbaum transparently tries to dispose of Johnny's journal because it has incriminating evidence, and he would succeed if it wasn't for Margo Brown's penchant for adventure:

"In stunned silence we stared at each other-he with his gun in the doorway, and I, seated in his chair with my arms full of his private papers. . . and Johnny Benson's journal. As most school principals, Leo had been given the gift of glare, and could beat me in a starting contest any day of the week. I'm sure my expression was a combination of terror and wide-eyed astonishment, while he was calm and feral."

Why Johnny Died is a mystery with a purpose, as Ms. Day clearly expostulates in her epilogue. Teachers see children from broken homes; children who are abused; and children from homes full of alcohol and drug abuse every day. Because of the legal system, teachers no longer have any real control over their students' lives. Therefore they cannot come to the assistance of children in need. This is a national tragedy. It has pushed good people out of teaching, and made the act of teaching that much harder. Children who are troubled are simply thrown back into the classroom, where they disrupt the atmosphere and interfere with the learning process for all children. Ms. Day writes her extremely entertaining, witty, but sad story to get our attention. Children are the single most important resource we have...thanks, Ms. Day.

Shelley Glodowski
Reviewer

Marliss Day has written a wonderful book that is engaging and entertaining. The story keeps you guessing and makes you laugh too. I hope she will continue writing many books with the same characters....if you love a good, cozy, mystery, check this out.

Margo Brown, a seventh grade language arts teacher and protagonist of Why Johnny Died, never planned to be a detective. It's only when one of her students dies unexpectedly - an event never before experienced in her twenty-year career - that the veteran educator turns sleuth. Her decision to give Johnny Benson's school journal to his grieving mother seems like a good one until Margo reads the final few entries in the book. Driven by a need to know the truth about her young student, Margo and fellow teacher Roxie Rayburn use their status as faculty members of James Whitcomb Riley Middle-High School to gain entry to the homes of those people closest to Johnny Benson. Their snooping eventually leads to a confrontation not only with school authorities but also with an extremely desperate killer.

Marlis Day has created a set of realistic characters in Why Johnny Died. Anyone who remembers their own school days will recognize Dr. Leo Fitzbaum, the slightly officious principal known as "Old Fuzzy balls" to the less reverent students of James Whitcomb Riley. Clude Dupree, "the only man I ever knew who actually tied his sweater sleeves around his shoulders," is the formidable but well dressed assistant principal in charge of discipline. Frances Updike is the teacher we can all recall, the one who "consistently wore dark skirts with matching blazers as her school uniform." And those of us who have been forced to sit through endless seminars in the name of continuing education will appreciate Marlis' humorous take on a workshop attended by Margo and Roxie. Having "traveled to Indianapolis in search of intelligent life," the audience "sat like amiable toads in harmony of purpose. There was no discord in our ranks; we were bored in unison."

Why Johnny Died is characterized by clean writing, good characterization, and a believable plot. Anyone who appreciates intelligent writing will find more than a mystery in this first novel by Marlis Day. I look forward to the further adventures of Margo Brown.

An excellent book that gives the reader a fantastic insight into what makes Lou tick and how to succeed in both sport and life. Filled with humour it is easy to reaad and very informative.

Lou Holtz, currently the head football coach at the University of South Carolina, has written one of the best, and most enjoyable leadership books I have ever read. His game plan for success was largely told through his gridiron experiences, but this plan is about much more than just football-it is a proven, common-sense guide for succeeding in the game of life.

What makes Holtz's life and leadership insights so compelling and believable are his dynamic life experiences and his incredible list of accomplishments: parents were divorced; fiance' broke off their engagement, but they later married and remain so after 40 years; only coach to lead 4 different programs to top-20 finishes and 6 different programs to bowl games (William and Mary, N.C. State, Arkansas, Minnesota, Notre Dame, South Carolina); 23 of 32 college teams he coached have received bowl bids, with 18 top-25 finishes, 8 top-10 finishes, and one undefeated national championship; 3rd winningest active coach and 7th place all-time with 243 victories; wife's heroic battle with throat cancer; fired or let go as assistant coach more than once; polled as the best motivational speaker in the country two years in a row, and his motivational video "Do Right!" is the all-time best-seller; guest speaker at most Fortune 500 companies; and was invited to the Oval Office by four different presidents.

Holtz's game plan consists of ten steps. Each step is explored in detail in its own chapter. The colorful, real-world stories and humorous anecdotes Holtz used to present the steps' lessons perfectly complemented his conversational writing style. The final chapter is considered the "end-zone" of success-where you can be if you have the courage, desire, and character to apply the lessons described within the plan's steps.

The book is jammed full of common-sense, spiritual, philosophical, and motivational life and leadership perspectives. The most memorable passages for me as a father, leader, and follower were Holtz's thoughts about discipline:

"For me, a disciplinarian is someone who requires that people understand the consequences of their decisions. You use discipline to reinforce choices. Our athletes and my children knew that if they chose to misbehave, they were also choosing to pay the consequences...In each case, I never punished anyone; the offenders chose the punishment themselves by their actions."

He illustrated his commitment to being a disciplinarian by describing the circumstances that led to him suspending his top three Arkansas players before the 1977 Orange Bowl (against Oklahoma), and to suspending two of his best players before his top-ranked Notre Dame team played the second-ranked University of Southern California in 1988:

"[They] recklessly violated our Do Right rule, which governs personal conduct...These were not bad guys; they simply made a bad decision...I didn't want the keys to our offense to miss our biggest game of the year, but when they decided to break our rules, they also decided to miss the game. Now I had to support that choice."

Holtz is a master motivator and a proven true winner in football and life. My highest recommendation for this book is best captured by Holtz himself when he wrote, "As you know, the only things that will change you from where you are today to where you want to be five years from now are the books you read and the people you meet." I hope I someday get a chance to meet Lou Holtz and thank him for his outstanding book on life and leadership.

If you are looking for pure Lou Holtz motivation, you will not be disappointed. There are no "silver bullets" here, but the book will do a good job of reinforcing some great principles for creating a successful team or organization.

I happened to notice this book one day when I took my daughter to the library. A friend of mine is a personal acquaintance of Lou's so I decided to see what 'Ol Lou is all about for myself.

This is a book of (mostly humorous) stories that makes it a fun, easy read. At the same time, each story has powerful success principles and truths embedded within.

If you want to see powerful leadership in action, this is a great book.

If you want to get more from your interactions and relationships with people in every area of your life, this is a great book.

If you find yourself doubting your abilities and potential, this is a great book.

If you want to be able to learn from someone who started out as a nobody with nothing and ended up as somebody who had something, this is a great book.

If you weren't fortunate enough to have a parent or adult-figure who taught you how to win at the game of life, then I heartily recommend this book to help fill in that void.

If you don't see yourself in the preceding statements, or, if you have read all the success books and you are looking for something brand-new that you have never heard of before, then this probably isn't the book for you.

When you read the reviews here, you'd think this guy could walk on water, but this book is long on motivation and short on application. Now, if you want something that will blow the concepts and information in this book right out of the water and, at the same time, get rid of the "Big Daddy" syndrome which this book fosters too, read SUCCESS CYBERNETICS by Uell S. Andersen - a book that's never been out of print since it first appeared in 1966! SUCCESS CYBERNETICS is available from amazon.com too, go see the reviews and get it. Forget the "Raw Raw Raw, Sis Boom Bah" approach that this one contains.

Now THIS is what I'm talking about! I don't know how the movie will be, but this book was great. If you love vampire and/or zombie novels, you'll truly enjoy this. This is the first book I've read by author Tim Lebbon, but if he writes this well in all of his books, it won't be my last!

This is probably one of the best movie tie-in novelizations I have ever read. Usually books based on the movies are rather watered down and pale in comparison to the movie. Strangely enough, the power of the written word in this case wins out. The novel moved at a fast pace and was difficult to put down; the author did a fantastic job of fleshing out the main characers and I thoroughly enjoyed it reading it within two days.

The story revolves around the sleepy secluded town of Barrow, Alaska, battening down the hatches and preparing for the annual 30 days and nights of darkness. Sheriff Eben Oleson and his estanged wife, Deputy Stella Oleson are struggling to keep the threads of their marriage together but soon discover that their marriage is not the only thing they are soon fighting for, because this time, something is hiding under the cover of the Dark, which begins with the mysterious arrival of the Stranger and his portent of an impending evil, then suddenly the Olesons find they are cut off from civilization and the townsfolk are being hunted and savagely and swiftly slaughtered by an evil horde of vampires who have decided to make this their feasting ground....can the survivors last the remaining days til daylight??? Great storytelling and better than the movie! Tim Lebbon has outdone himself!

I just want to start off by saying do not start this book unless you have plenty of time to finish it! This is the first book in a long time that I have actually read all the way through. I am very easily distracted and most books just do not have enough story to them to keep me interested. With this book once I started reading I could not put it down. I ended up staying up all night reading it. I was a little disappointed in the ending, but it also was because I did not want it to end. A great read for any fan of a horror/suspense.

Wow, this book is truly spectacular. Although I haven't seen the film itself, Mr. Lebbon does a fantastic job bringing the people and the fear of being hunted to life. Though these aren't your classic vampires, they are terrifying nonetheless.

I would recommend the novel to readers of vampire novels and fans of books based on graphic novel.

PARTY ON, DUDES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I could not put this book down. And, I don't recommend reading it at night, either! What a vampire book. Wew! Vampires that not only drink blood, but eat flesh. I was lifting my legs to help "the good guys" escape and run faster! I would have preferred it to end differently and that's all I'll say about that. Barrow, Alaska oh my...

Abby's having a " HOORAY IT'S SUMMER PARTY " for the whole fifth grade, boys ,the cool girls and everthing. But as soon as she hand out the invitations, she started to worry about what people will think. Will they like the food and drinks? And this question is what Abby worried most: Will they think her bedroom was boring?
Then Abby decided it was a perfect time to give her room a makeover! Until the last minute, will she finish in time for the party?

P.S. Do people actually paint their rooms because they're worry about what people think? I wonder who.

Abbey wants to throw a big party for summer! Then Ms. Bunder asks the class to write a report about their rooms and Abbey realizes how boring her room is. So she turns her room into a Palace of Purple and throws a big party, too!

Abby Hayes is a fifth grade girl. She wants to throw a Hurray its summer party to the whole fifth grade. When she gives the invitations, she wonders if they will think that her room is not cool and then Abby Hayes decides to give her room a makeover. But what if its too late to get a makeover.
I thoght this book was funny.

I think this book is great if you are reading the Abby Hayes
series. It's a great book if your in the 4-6th grades. I really enjoy the Abby Hayes series a lot and read some of them in a day or less. I give this book a great review.

The book Amazing Days Of Abby Hayes the More the Merrier, by Anne Mazer and illustrated by Monica Gesue, is book number 8 from the Abby Hayes series. This story is fiction with hundreds of made-up characters you will love!
In the story, Amazing days of Abby Hayes, Abby is trying to plan a party for the end of the fifth grade year. During the story she struggles along the way to get thing done but at the end... well you can figure that out our self. (I don't want to spoil the surprise.)
I think that the author's writing style is very unquie and diffrent form alot of other stories. She has good word choice and interesting taste in how to do stuff.
I like the way the author, at some points, will write with purple pen. When she does write with it it means that Abby is writing in her journal. I feel when Abby is writing in her journal it is easier to relate to the character. I recommend this book to 3rd-5th grade because I started reading them at 3rd grade and I'm not sure if I will like the series in 6th grade.

This is an excellent book for summer reading. We checked out a libray copy and renewed it all summer long. This is definitely one to add to the home collection.

Fun rhyming beach book for the young and young at heart! Sweet illustrations and a story line that takes you right through a cherished day at the beach. Reminds you of happy beach memories or helps the young anticipate their next trip to the beach!

Don't forget to pack this book when you head to the beach. The illustrations are beautiful and the sing songy text will lull little ones like the waves do grown-ups. Enjoy! It's our favorite beach book!

My 2.5 year old daughter and 6 year old son loved the book for our summers here at Lake Tahoe!

This book is as much fun to read when your front yard is covered with snowdrifts as it is when the temperature is soaring! I began borrowing this book from the library in mid-December when my daughter was 2 1/2. Since then we have reached the renewal limit on this book a number of times. It is always a pleasure to find a children's book whose illustrations and text are equally appealing as happens in Beach Day. Maggie Smith's delightful, detailed watercolors will capture your child's imagination and inspire them to look at the book over and over. Karen Roosa's poetic text captures the essence of a day at the beach with lines such as "Waves roar, rush and soar, rolling crashing to the shore" and "Noon light, shimmers bright, in the distance, hot and white". I knew I needed to buy my own copy when I heard my daughter (now 3) reciting verses from Beach Day while playing in her swimming pool. This book is a must-have for any child's library.

I'm reading this book now, i'm when Roger is crossing the Taurus to Jerusalem, and i make to myself the same question that, surely, makes a lot of people: Is this HI/story truth? or just a simple novell of a brilliant man like Stephen? cause, i been reading "Cabayo de Troya", from J.J. Benítez (spain) that tells a story about Jesus, that he say is true, but i have some doubts about it! . Please, i really wanna know... Thanks a lot. Deus le Volt!

the book is great!very good really!Ni!
of course i had some doubts if the book was true..(eustace part) but
anyway...i really thought it was true..this means just one thing...that his research and work are brilliant!Ni!
(could also mean I'm a little idiot to believe in that..)
its a very good story and i recomend anyone to read it!

So be it!

-Foge cão, que te fazem barão!
-Para onde, se me fazem Visconde?

The critics do this novel an injustice by stating that it is a slow read and more of a documentary than a epic novel. True, there are many historical points and notes which root the story in actual history, but these only help to show the richness of the history and help to express the story's fine details. I could not put this novel down, and I have gained a seemingly firsthand knowledge of the tragedies and glories of the crusades. I recommend this book to all interested in the crusades as well as those wanting to learn more of military camp life and history without the trials of textbooks.

The Booke of Days is the story of a minor lord from Southern France who joins the first Crusade. His name is Roger of Lunel. Roger joins the Crusade because the Pope has promised absolution for any who fight, and kill, for Christianity. The irony of this is not lost on Roger who keeps a diary of his journey. At first Roger examines the ideas of the crusade even as he compares them to the reality. Knights who ravish women in southern France, wear body parts cut off from their enemies, and murder other Christians who don't follow the proper pope. These are the people who will save Christianity?

With this start, I was concerned that his book might become an anti-Christian or anti-West book. It is not. It is a realistic look at the Crusades which describes the good and ill, of all sides. A Booke of Days also describes the people, the customs, and the times, better then any book about this period I have encountered. Some of the twists of the personal story seem stretched, but I liked the story so much I will was willing to believe. In the end, rather then being a book about the Crusades, it is a book about Roger of Lunel, set in the Crusades.
I liked Roger, so I loved this book. I also loved the hundreds of small touches which show the effort and the artistry of the author. If this book really isn't true, it could be. And anyone who has even a passing interest in History or Romance should read it.

The Booke of Days is the story of a minor lord from Southern France who joins the first Crusade. His name is Roger of Lunel. Roger joins the Crusade because the Pope has promised absolution for any who fight, and kill, for Christianity. The irony of this is not lost on Roger who keeps a diary of his journey. At first Roger examines the ideas of the crusade even as he compares them to the reality. Knights who ravish women in southern France, wear body parts cut off from their enemies, and murder other Christians who don't follow the proper pope. These are the people who will save Christianity?

With this start, I was concerned that his book might become an anti-Christian or anti-West book. It is not. It is a realistic look at the Crusades which describes the good and ill, of all sides. A Booke of Days also describes the people, the customs, and the times, better then any book about this period I have encountered. Some of the twists of the personal story seem stretched, but I liked the story so much I will was willing to believe. In the end, rather then being a book about the Crusades, it is a book about Roger of Lunel, set in the Crusades.
I liked Roger, so I loved this book. I also loved the hundreds of small touches which show the effort and the artistry of the author. If this book really isn't true, it could be. And anyone who has even a passing interest in History or Romance should read it.