France Books

This is one of our family's favorite books. My 2 yr old and 8 yr old love it equally. The words will often go over a preschooler's head (haunches, slip-shod hoofs, etc) but they will enjoy the funny storyline and amazing illustrations nonetheless. I never tire of it too, esp because there is always more detail to find and smile about in the illustrations. I esp love the part of the story about the people who take the place of the cows out in the pastures... how they like to stand in small groups, saying nothing and chewing grass, and they have to be prodded too get back on the train. I give this book often as a gift and always get great feedback on it. Good stuff!

My five-year-old son and I have had great fun with this book for years. The gentle prose is great for reading aloud, and the illustrations, with their many fine-art allusions--to Manet, Seurat, and others--introduce children to cultural heritage in a non-preachy way.

A joyous book that will make kids and adults laugh

A great read and it has tasty easy to make recipies. What more can you want, except to actualy be in France?

My husband and I and another couple travelled with Kate Ratliffe for a week on the Garonne Canalin her barge, the Julia Hoyt. The book describes both the journey and the wonderful food on board. If you buy the book you'll want to take the trip and if you take the trip you'll want to buy the book! Her 800 number is in the back of the book

I first picked this up at my library, expecting another in the growing genre of "lifestyle fantasy literature" -- you know, bohemian boomer quits rat race, goes abroad, buys quaint house (or boat), creates rustic & soul-satisfying alternative lifestyle and then =tortures= the rest of us by writing a glowing book about it... But now, Ratliffe's work is in a hallowed place on my cookbook shelf between Richard Olney's "Simple French Food" and "Lulu's Provencal Table." Like those books, Ratliffe's takes us deep into the heart (and soul) of a regional French cuisine, through timeless villages and fragrant home kitchens. Even if the book were recipes alone, it would be worth its price for the seasonal simplicity of "asparagus with scallions, mint and green garlic shoots," or "radish leaf soup." But Ten Speed Press has made it a feast for the hand and eye as well, with loving photos of the Garonne canal country and buff paper reminiscent of a sketchbook or travel journal. Few chefs write this well about the daily meditation of cooking, the inspirations, the happy accidents and the patiently learned techniques. Even if you never spend a night on the "Julia Hoyt," by the time you cook your way to "Flan au Floc" for dessert you'll feel you know this land and its people intimately.

Swartz has done a masterful job in bringing Bourdieu's complicated thought and style to an Anglo-American readership. But he has gone even further in demonstrating the ways in which Bourdieu's work is problematic and/or falls short. Truly, a remarkable work of sythesis, scholarship, and critique.

If you need to learn about Pierre Bourdieu, this book is fantastic! I had to read this book for a class, but it was one of the most clear, thought-provoking, and understandable syntheses of a theorist's works that I've ever read. If only such a book existed for Foucault or any of the other theorists and philosophers that I've had to struggle through, only understanding half of it! After reading this book, I feel that I actually, clearly understand the theory of Bourdieu.

This is a great way to get acquainted with Bourdieu's work on culture and power. Swartz provides an excellent overview of key concepts such as "symbolic capital", "habitus", "field" and "symbolic violence". This work definitely makes Bourdieu more readable, but it is no mere Cliff Notes -- there is a critical and analytical component to Swartz' treatise that invites the reader to not just take the given theories at face value but examine past criticisms these theories have drawn.

This is essential reading for sociology grad students and anyone looking for a comprehensive and comprehensible introduction to Bourdieu's scholarship. Bourdieu's own work is brilliant but is not easy reading. Swartz eases the reader into Bourdieu's world of thought, and once you are hooked, reading Bourdieu himself becomes worth the trouble.

Although there are a lot of books out there about D-Day and the German Atlantic Wall defenses, Stephen J. Zaloga's D-Day Fortifications in Normandy is a welcome addition. As usual, Zaloga is able to synthesize a great deal of useful information about a well-known subject and still produce a book that has insightful and original material. Zaloga has mined the best available English, German and French sources and these are listed in an excellent 2-page bibliography. Overall, this volume is one of the best of Osprey's Fortress series. I have been to Normandy and seen many of the fortifications that Zaloga writes about, yet I still managed to learn new facts about them in this volume.

Zaloga begins the volume with a well-written summary of the design and development of the German army and navy coastal defenses in Normandy. He manages to include a number of interesting facts, including nice-to-know items like the cost of construction. The next section deals with the actual defenses in detail, including a table that lists all strongpoints on the five D-Day beaches and another table that lists all artillery units in range of the beaches. Zaloga also provides great detail on the garrison, including mentioning individual German commanders in various bunkers. The final section on the defenses on D-Day, which covers beach-by-beach, is superb. Throughout, the volume is enhanced with an excellent mix of B/W photos from 1944 and modern color photos. Zaloga also provides excellent detailed color maps for each beach sector, which depict all the key German defenses. The color plates are also very good, depicting various types of German coastal bunkers. Overall, this volume delivers a great deal of well-packaged information for its small size.

The only item that I would disagree with is his assessment that, "the German defenses quickly failed when assaulted by Allied forces on D-Day." It is currently in vogue among many military historians to deride fixed fortifications like the Atlantic Wall as a `white elephant,' but this ignores their intended purpose. Although Rommel hoped to defeat the invasion on the beaches, it was the reserve troops who were supposed to deliver the decisive blow; the coastal defenses were merely intended to delay and disrupt the invaders long enough for the German reserves to deploy. As Zaloga notes, thirty Germans in WN 62 on Omaha Beach were able to inflict hundreds of casualties on the US 1st Infantry Division and to hold out for over six hours. In the British sector, the Hillman bunker complex prevented the British from getting into Caen on D-Day. By and large, the German beach defenses did their job admirably, inflicting several thousand casualties on the Allies and preventing the Allies from reaching many of their D-Day objectives. It was the German C2 errors that prevented a rapid and decisive commitment of mobile reserves that led to failure, not the concept of fixed fortifications. Furthermore, critics of the German Atlantic Wall rarely make any effort to suggest plausible alternatives for a resource-strapped Germany in 1944. The German defenses in Normandy were a good example of `economy of force' and not only were they useful on D-Day, but they helped to slow the Allied drive to capture ports like Cherbourg weeks after the invasion.

I can say no more except the book is a must for those interested in the invasion of Normandy.

This is the book to get is you want to know details on the Atlantic Wall fortifications in Normandy. It has just about everything one could want to know about how the Germans defended Normandy during the invasion. Excellent and well illustrated work. Highly recommended for all those interested in World War II.

We picked this book up from the library. The only time I don't have to read it to my 18-month old again and again is if her daddy is in the room when I finish. Then she scoots off my lap and runs to give him a great big hug! Kudos to "Dad Mine" for reminding my daughter that her dad is pretty great.

I bought this book and its companion (Mom Mine) for my toddler (23 months) as a gift when we brought our newborn home from the hospital last month. I wanted these books to help her understand that our feelings for her haven't changed with the new addition to our family. She loves these books and asks us to read them to her several times a day. The pictures are so cute, and since she can be quick to turn the pages, there's not a lot of reading involved. She understands the message of the books, too. She smiles and leans in for a hug when we finish each one. I would highly recommend these books if you have a toddler and are getting ready to have a new baby. These books have only helped strengthen the bond we already had with our firstborn.

This would be good for a Father's Day gift or similar. I think I can recite the whole thing, since my 16 month old daughter makes me read it 100 times a day. "Dad Day, Dad Night, Dad Black, Dad White, Dad Country, Dad Town, Dad Up, Dad Down, Dad Big, Dad Small, Dad Mine, Best of All!" OK, I am probably missing a dad or two, but you get the picture!

The illustrations are very pretty, and the child shown at the end could be a boy or a girl, so my daughter of course thinks it's a picture of her! Nice book overall.

This book is a good introduction to the complex history of humans and plants. Indeed, this is such an essential relationship, extending from basic foodstuffs and clothing to biofuels, narcotics and medicines, that one could argue this relationship has defined us as a species. The author reveals many plants that I'd never heard of as being candidates for either further research or potential as new snakeoils for a society willing to believe nature hides the next "magic bullet" against what ails us. The fascination of people with sex, immortality, intoxication and beauty will continue to compel mankind to seek succor and solace in the chlorophyll kingdom. The marriage can never be broken, to be sure, but a lack of understanding of what plants can realy deliver will often result in people's disillusionment with the initial promise of paradise. Little wonder that Genesis used a fruit as the symbol of man's hopes and dashed dreams.

"Dangerous Garden" is an EXCELLENT book on the history of plants and how humans interact with plants, a topic that I stumbled onto only about a couple of years ago. The book is broken up into eight chapters that cover about 200 pages. There are lots of pictures and color plates, so each chapter is almost a stand-alone section that is just the right length to be read over an afternoon or spread out over a couple of nights at bedtime.

Each chapter covers a category of use or effect that humans have tried to get out of plants. The chapters are:
- The Great Afflictions, covering plants thought to affect diseases such as bubonic plague, malaria and leprosy.
- The Vital Organs, covering plants thought to affect vital organs such as the heart, stomach, etc.
- The Flight from Pain, or the search for pain-relievers, with an extensive section on opium.
- Chasing Venus, which is kind of self-explanatory.
- The Killing Plants, very self-explanatory.
- The Seven Ages of Man, meaning plants that are supposed to prolong life, maintain a youthful appearance, or otherwise slow the passage of time.
- The Mind, or plants that affect the mind and have been both revered and demonized because of it, including marijuana, cocaine, tobacco and qat.
- The Mysteries of the Gods, which covers plants used in religious and shamanic ceremonies, such as peyote.

The book is definitely not a lightweight and people looking for serious information will find a lot of worth. Plants are referred to both by their common name and their scientific names and the index covers both types of terms as well. The Bibliography includes books from 1516 to the 1990s, and the Author's Acknowledgments on the last page list a number of good websites as well.

Stuart discusses the historical uses of various plants and how some plants have gone from being cure-alls in the past to being either banned or sold in the grocery-store spice aisle now. He spends a lot of time on the concept of Janus plants, which are "two-faced" plants, meaning they can both harm and heal, and he also discusses fads in medicine, including a long period of time in the middle ages where if a plant had a visible effect it was thought to be better than one that didn't have a visible effect, so plants that made people sweaty, feverish, nauseous, sleepy, etc. were prescribed in amounts that are horrifying by today's standards.

Some authors talk down to readers, but this author absolutely does not and will jump from discussion of which 19th-century herbal contained which plant to discussion of the exact chemical names of the active alkaloids in a plant, if they are unknown than which other known alkaloids do they resemble, and what current research is being done and current uses and/or speculation.

There are also numerous little facts sprinkled here and there throughout the book which the author clearly can't spend much time on because of space but which are equally fascinating in themselves, such as:
- (pg 188) Morning glory has LSD-like components that have been much studied and have variable effects in mice, rabbits and humans, with some people feeling little effect and other getting a full "trip", although often an unpleasant one.
- (pgs 7-8) Rhubarb was once thought to be an aphrodisiac by the Romans and a cure for a form of malaria by medieval herbalists; until the mid-1500s it was only available to Europe as imported dried roots.
- (pgs 69-70) There was once a great hospital atop Soutra Hill in Scotland, south of Edinburgh, its first charter dated from 1108 (!) and it reached its epogee in 1462 and was finally closed in the 1500s, razed by the late 1800s and its drains, cesspits and middens began to be excavated in the 1980s.

I could go on for pages more, but I will digress. In short, if you like history and if you like plants, you'll probably like this book.

I absolutely loved this book! Not only was it interesting and compelling reading but the book was full of incredibly obscure but very enlightening information about the usage history of the plants covered. Mr. Stuart also gave (in the majority of instances) the specific botanical names of the plants and other related species which is rare in non-scientific "History of Plants" books. The selection of illustrations was absolutely superb.

The only negative that I have about this book is that Mr. Stuart frequently listed vague references to scientific "studies" that proved his points about certain plants but there was no information, footnoted or otherwise, to definitively identitify these "studies". He also had a few scattered references to plants mentioned in unspecified publications. Who did these studies and who printed these stories? In a book of this nature, I expect to have facts and sources laid out a bit more thoroughly.

I still gave this book FIVE STARS because it was so much fun to read. I have lots of other books with which to cross reference and confirm some of the more vague references so I wasn't particularly distressed by the oversight although, in my view, if you are going to thoroughly research and document some things, then you should thoroughly research and document everything.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Thirteen-year-old Cesa de Haro lives and breathes the vast and beautiful Rancho del Valle de la Madrugada where she lives grandly with her father, brothers, grandmother and their many servants. Her mother has died eight years before and Cesa has since grown up as a proud, pampered and head-strong child who both chafes at the limitations imposed on women in her culture and experiences her budding sexuality for the first time.

Mexico has lost the war of 1846 to the United States and history soon overshadows Cesa's personal concerns. Her beloved California now belongs now to the crass Americanos who invade her once-secure Rancho. greedy for land, gold and contemptuous of Cesa, her people and the culture of all Californios. A strong and moving coming of age story with a defiant Californio heroine who discovers her interior power as her outer world changes forever.

What a compelling read this was! Cessa, the thirteen-year old protagonist, is a feisty, engaging character on the cusp of womanhood and resisting it mightily. The Gold Rush era and the Mexican-American War provide a thrilling backdrop to this story of change, both natural and forced. Buy this book today, and settle back for a rich, lyrical read that rewards readers of any age. And whatever you do, don't miss the scene with the Grizzly Bear!

This is a part of California history they never taught us in school. Frances Wood takes her young readers to a time, a place and a culture they might otherwise have missed completely. Cesa is the spunky daughter in an aristocratic Mexican family in what will become California, USA. She's grown up in a world of wealth and privilege, fully expecting her life to remain that way. She learns otherwise when the rude, smelly Americans show up, with golden expectations of their own. Madrugada means dawn -- and that's what this is, the dawn of a new era in California, in Mexico, and in the life of this very appealing heroine. The story will tug your heart.

This book does not deal so much with military tactics and the genius involved in planning and executing Operation Overlord, but rather it gives us a close to the ground perspective of what it was like to suffer the discomfort, pain and fear of June 6, 1944. The many different experiences of these men let us see the ingenuity and determination that were inherent qualities of the Allied soldiers and sailors. There are chapters that expound on the Canadian, American, British and German participants in the invasion. A view from the French residents of the area is also presented giving the reader a look at the total experience of those days. I highly recommend this book to any avid student of WWII.

In this book, written in 1959 when memories were still fresh, David Howarth presents the human face of D-Day through the experiences of its participants. Each sector of the operation - airborne and seaborne - is covered and given its full due. Mr Howarth has no bones to pick or axes to grind. Instead, through the stories of a small number of individuals he shows us how 'ordinary' people can, in extreme circumstances, often behave in extra-ordinary ways. He shows respect for all those involved. All of this is presented in a most clear and readable style. Despite its age this is an inspiring book and a must for any student of Operation Overlord.

The clear advantage Howarth's book has over the many written of the famous D-Day on the 6th of June 1944 is that he tells the story through the testimonies of those that survived, but from both sides. Yes, there are way more accounts included from the allied soldiers compared to their German opponents, but the German account-element is there as well and it's what gives you a more spherical view on how those who were there experienced that monumental day.

For students of military history not well or not all acquainted with the Normandy story, there's much to be discovered through this book. First of all the collosal size of the operation, unparallel until that day and since. Thousands of ships as well as planes carried tremendous numbers of infantry and marines, as well as tanks to the shores of Normandy in an attempt to critically shift the balance in the war towards the Allies. Alone the logistic considerations were beyond imagination and a failure in that sector would've resulted in unbelievable disaster. There were, to a degree such failures but not to a level which would have devestated the attackers.

Then the tactical planning itself, an issue all on its own, an issue on which Howarth does an exceptional job informing the reader but without tiring him in the manner other military historians often do by overwhelming him with numbers and codes. This is not the approach he takes as he aims more to inform those not so much interested in the microdetails of the operation.

Even more interesting, and possibly the least known aspect of that operation, was the undertaking of misinforming and confusing the Germans about where and when the attack would take place. A formidable task when one considers how difficult it was to keep a massive assault of that type disguised from enemy intelligence and, more importantly, to even throw them off trail.

As the book reaches the attack itself everything comes alive in its pure horror dimensions. Unexpected failures that resulted in unexpected situations and countless victims. The despair of the German defenders as they discover the apparently hopeless situation they are in with zero airforce support and being pummeled initially by the naval artillery as well as bombed heavily by both American and British planes only to see 1000s of soldiers following to the shores. Still, what commenced was a merciless battle that resulted in piles of bodies in the water, in the sand dunes, in the trences, everywhere.

A book worthy of the event it describes, well written, impeccably researched and accessible to the layman but equally interesting to the specialised reader as well.

An excellent work, it paints a harsh portrait of de Gaulle. A brave man with physical courage to go, he was possibly one of the greatest military thinkers in history. But he was vain, socially and politically unskilled, and an extremely poor judge of those on whom he depended to fulfill his ambitions: Churchill and, especially, Roosevelt.

Unable to gauge these two, or to assess their intentions from their side of the table, he stumbled from miscalculation to miscalculation. Only the greater mistakes of others like Giraud and the fact that most of France was sidelined by occupation and collaboration gave him the opportunities he used and these none too successfully.

Worse for de Gaulle, he could not see, as Roosevelt did so clearly, that post war France would have no greater status than a large U.S. state. Roosevelt toyed with de Gaulle as he would have toyed with any the state governor hopeful seeking his attention. De Gaulle neither understood this nor forgave it. Neither has France.

Although De Gaulle's entries have the ring of memoirs written after the event, they may well have been spoken.
Fateful moments tend to evoke grandeur of speech, especially in French parlance.
The General has always been a reference for Middle East scholars and politicians alike ...........

Jean Lacouture is a great writer, and I love to read his books.

This is an excellent volume on the life of the great French Leader. This book chronicles the early years including DeGaulle's time as a German Prisoner of War during World War I. The book concludes with DeGaulle's triumphant return to Paris after the liberation in 1944 and is hailed as a national hero. While DeGaulle is really a controversial world figure, he is still a person of great historical importance in the world and France in particular. This book is a great read and is well researched and presented. A must read for anyone who wants to know about the life of Charles DeGaulle.

I bought this book for my 9-year old niece and she absolutely loved it. She is a reluctant reader but she ended up reading the entire book in one sitting! She especially enjoyed reading about the friendship that developed between the two reluctant pen pals.
I choose this book for her for the cultural tie-ins and for the confidence building aspects. The main character Jenny has to think of a different solution to reach her pen-pal when she discovers that Sameera cannot write English well; while Sameera has to learn to believe in her abilities and not fear writing. Both characters grow not only as students, but also as self-confident individuals. A very positive read for any child.

Dear Whiskers is the story of a fourth grade girl and her struggle with her second grade pen pal.
The main character, Jenny, is a fourth grader. She is assigned a second grade pen pal, Sameera. Jenny and Sameera have never met and they know nothing about each other. Jenny's struggle begins right away.
Throughout the book, Jenny is confronted with challenges involving Sameera. When Jenny (Whiskers) writes Sameera, Sameera doesn't answer and Jenny is disappointed to look around and see all the other students with letters. Later on in the book Jenny goes to the second grade classroom and finally meets Sameera. Jenny finds out that Sameera is from Saudi Arabia. Sameera can't speak very much English. Jenny struggles with this throughout the book.
In one scene Jenny goes to the second grade classroom again. She is planning on reading two books to Sameera. Sameera is nowhere to be found. When Jenny finds her she leads her back to the classroom. Jenny and Sameera sit down and read two books. Sameera never actually talks to Jenny but they understood each other a little better.
Throughout the story Jenny keeps going to see Sameera. Jenny kept asking her teacher for a new pen pal, but her teacher, Mrs. Steele, just said, "keep trying you can do it". You can tell Jenny makes a huge effort to help Sameera and be her friend.
At the very end of the book Sameera finally writes Jenny a letter. It says, "Dear Whiskers, I have a mouse in my desk. I like him. My friend Jenny made him."

Dear Whiskers is a wonderful children's book. As a fourth grade teacher, reading this book would encourage imaginative writing of my students. Children ranging in grades from second to fourth would enjoy this story of friendship and learning. I loved this book especially because it can be related to language arts and creative writing. There are many enrichment ideas that can be used with this particular book. Fourth grade children could be encouraged to write their own letters as an animal or other creature to a younger child. Second grade children would benefit from learning how to write letters. I think this book was delightful and shows students that getting to know someone through the use of shared reading can benefit not only an individual, but also an entire class.