Virginia Books

The tape media adds the dimension of keeping you going and at the same time lets you think. You may still need a printed copy to see how certain words and names are spelled. On the surface this looks like just such a novel. It even has the standard formula of princes and castles and what not. Why would I have even attempted this novel? My wife insisted that Caroline Harvey; Joanna Trollope was not mindless. O.K. so I was challenged to red this one.
Ha! I spotted the formula and as soon as Lila Cunningham hit Malta I figured out pretty much how it was going to end. A curious thing happened. By then I was hooked and had to go on. There were many details that I did not guess. Unlike most formula books that try to hook you on romance or those ones that have endless nonsensical descriptions, this book had the feel that it was going somewhere and only described what was necessary to tell the story.
After I finished the book I said "See it was a formula book." Why would someone want to read about some girl in Malta? It was pointed out that the setting is to depict a different lifestyle. This is not so much of an escape from reality, but a diversion of a different reality. Later you see that the castle and prince and even the Perrimans are the backdrop of real people that we run across everyday. Lila's situations and decisions are ones we may have to make. The real story is about Lila, her choices and consequences. The story implies that she grows up. Personally I think she changed but that does not constitute growing up.
Ayn Rand says that love is a reflection of your values as seen in the other person. You can see this as Lila's values changed, so has the target of her love. Ayn Rand also says that you should not just live for love. You should have a career and or a purpose beyond love. Lila and others discover this throughout the novel. So this novel leaves you with many after thoughts.
Well done Caroline Harvey.

For the past three years, Lila Cunningham has dreamed of leaving her small village to live in London. However, almost twenty-one, Lila realizes her hopes seem out of reach due to her Pa's bungling that has left the family near financial ruin. A desperate Lila turns to her employer, the Perriams for guidance. The elderly couple offers Lila a deal. Lila and Pa can serve as caretakers of their home on the island of Malta.

Lila and Pa find the Perriman mansion in terrible shape with a peasant family squatting inside the home. As Hitler turns his attention on the island, so do some of the residents turn their eyes towards Lila. Schoolteacher Angelo Saliba wants the Englishwoman as his own. However, Lila ignores the native islander in favor of the exciting Anton, nephew to Count Tabia. Anton goes off to war with Lila vowing to wait for his return. As the war hits home, Lila begins to realize that substance is more important than a few luxuries, but is it too late for the transplanted Englishwoman?

The first Caroline Harvey novel published in America is a joy for fans of World War II romances. THE BRASS DOLPHIN is an exciting tale whose non-stop story line centers on what truly matters in life. The characters are intelligent and make the early stages of WW II seem as if it's on the TV. Internationally renowned for her works under the name of Joanna Trollope, Ms. Harvey will leave her admiring readers demanding the release of her other Harvey novels previously published in England.

Harriet Klausner

The book offers a variety of photos from throughout Buchanan County, both past and recent. It covers historical events, places and buildings. A history in pictures.

I grew up in Southwest Virginia, just south of Buchanan County. My father grew up in Buchanan County, and this book gave me a way to visit the landscapes he experienced as a child. The book, consisting primarily of photographs, gives a vivid picture of the lives of coal miners and other laborers. The photographs of the devastating flood of April 1977 and its aftermath are especially compelling.

Novelist Lee Smith grew up in Grundy in Buchanan County, and the book includes a photograph of the building (now demolished) that housed the Ben Franklin Store her father owned. I'm a devoted Lee Smith fan, and that picture was a bonus for me.

Mr. Lepp can tell a tall tale like no other person. The stories are detailed making all of them nearly truthful. His incorporation of local West "by God" Virginia landmarks and history add to the stories. A must have for anyone who loves tall tales or is from southern West Virginia.

Bill can spin a story and there is no doubt he could sell ice in Alaska. Have heard him at a story telling and this is just a sample of the tales he can tell. Whether he is fishing with the Monster Stick or training a gun-shy dog,(Buck) Bill is pure entertainment. ROFLMAO...

This book is really well done, it covers all sorts of houses and buildings all over the state of Delaware

After a several year hiatus, and a shift from Oxford University Press to the University of Virginia Press, Buildings of the United States returns with this fine entry.

The books in this series are expensive, and let me tell you why. First, they're written by top experts in this particular field, for the use of architectural historians for reference and research. The amount of work that goes into writing and publishing one of these books is enormous, so the prices reflect that fact. Let me be the first to tell you, however, that any of the books in the series, and this one in particular, are endlessly fascinating for serious amateurs as well. That's why I've shelled out the money for more than a few of them. Architecture guides just don't get any better. This series sets the standard.

Little Delaware is like a diamond (to quote Lofland), and art historian W. Barksdale Maynard has compiled a superb collection of important historic and modern sites for this book. Wilmington, Newark, New Castle and Dover all get the extended treatment you would expect, but the author also brings us comprehensive coverage of smaller towns and the rural landscape. There are 450 well-chosen entries here, all supported by interesting brief essays. There are about 250 small monochrome photographs that are adequate but not distinguished, mostly borrowed from other sources. The photography is pragmatic rather than artistic. The author introduces each district and town with a brief descriptive abstract, which includes reference to some of the important structures to which he does not dedicate a specific entry. This is a nice device for expanding the comprehensiveness of the survey. Trust me, you're favorites are here! For those of you who like age, Delaware contains some of the most ancient examples of European-American architecture in the original 13 states. Newark has probably endured the most destruction of its original colonial fabric of all Delaware towns, but there are many more examples across the state. And while Newark has suffered through haphazard development, it contains one of the loveliest public spaces in the country at the University of Delaware.

Keep in mind that this is a selective survey. Wilmington alone has a building stock to support a survey of over 1,000 buildings, so respect and appreciate the author's keen eye for what he believes we will enjoy. He's done a lovely job of selecting important and interesting sites for all tastes.

A true rarity for a book like this, the introductory essay is excellent, and a feature in itself. Don't just flip past it to get to the catalog. Maynard gives us an historical overview, a discussion of the geography and landscape, a description of the built environment, and an overview of important architects working in Delaware.

All this good stuff is framed by sidebars spaced throughout the text on important topics such as the du Pont family and the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

Well constructed in cloth and nice thick-stock paper by UVA Press, this book is proof that the Society of Architectural Historians remains dedicated to this important series.

This is a very good discussion of Madison's role in the development of the Consitution. Very readabl

The Busines of May Next is easily the best book I have ever read on James Madison's intellectual journey from his dismay over the ineffectiveness of the Articles of Confederation to his draft of the Virginia Plan, which was the underlying foundation of our Constitution.

The title is taken from a letter Madison wrote in which he discussed the "business" of the upcoming Constitutional Convention (in May of 1789), of which Madison--along with Alexander Hamiltion--was the prime mover.

Miller's book expertly and eloquently explores the influences on Madison's thinking, from his reading of David Hume's essays on the ideal conditions for a republic, to his correspondence with Washington, Jefferson and many others in which he fleshed out his ideas of how to turn the weak, ineffectual Articles into a government that had both power and staying power.

As Miller points out, Madison's genius was his understanding of human behavior, and his awareness that any government must be shaped in ways that take advantage of the "better angels of our nature," but also (more important) minimize, or at least accommodate, the darker side of our nature.

By fashioning a government with limited and shared powers; by holding frequent elections in which the leaders are held accountable; by ensuring that the people possess certain rights that no government can threaten (on pain of being altered or abolished), Madison was the first among equals in the creation of a truly representative government that has lasted more than 200 years and shows no signs of dying out.

Miller himself is one of the few (William Manchester is another) historians whose thorough research is matched by his delightful writing style. I have two copies of the book--a hardcopy for reading and a paperback for underlining.

I use this as a companion to my Butterflies through Binoculars book. The great thing about this book is the caterpillars that it shows. I'm consantly finding caterpillars in our garden and wonder what they'll turn into. This book helps sort all that out. The pictures are really good as well

I had purchased three other butterfly field guides prior to this one and this is the best in terms of help in identifying species seen in the field. Based on my experience, the butterfly photographs displayed in this book do the best job I have seen of accurately portraying species as they appear in the field. Photographs of like species are lumped together on the color plates and both upperwing and undersides are displayed. Both common and latin names are given in the species descriptions, which I personally find to be very beneficial. I found the overall format of the book to be very well done. I feel that any one living in nearby areas can be benefited by this book but, for someone living in West Virginia, this book is the definitive work on butterflies. True, there are other books that contain more, in-depth reference information, but none that exceeds it as a useful field guide. This is the book I have been waiting years to see!

Gary Felton

Excellent account of CSA partisan rangers and the yankees that chased them in western Virginia. If you like soldier stories, you will enjoy this book, filled with exploits and accounts of actions and their impacts on a local family.

By the Banks of the Holly: Notes and Letters from the Desk of Bernard Mollohan by Marie Mollohan. 2005 by iUniverse, 649pp., $36.95 softcover; 46.95 hardcover.

Marie Mollohan has done a marvelous job of distilling decades of central West Virginia history through her great-grandfather's desk. Her sharpest focus is on the history and key characters related to Webster County, especially in the years covering the Civil War and Reconstruction.

The genius of her use of the desk is that those records were but a microcosm of what everyone in the region experienced during those years. Bernard Mollohan himself must have been a known union loyalist to have become the county surveyor after the war. Such was an important position when only "loyal" citizens could even vote, and much land was being contested for various reasons. But Bernard's loyalties did not keep Marie from giving a fair account of the tensions experienced by so many. Her family, and neighbors were divided into all three sides, as well, during this period. Why do I say all "three" sides?

Marie captures the irony of there being the obvious Union and Confederate sides of the war, yet none were stationed in Webster County. There were no serious battles about which one would read in a national text. That is because a third "side" existed. They were most often known as "bushwhackers". They were not in either army, and were a law unto themselves. People throughout the region experienced loss of life, destruction of property and a general sort of, unofficial, martial law. In the name of protection "bushwhackers" preyed on others, even apart from professed loyalties at times. It became very personal and dangerous in this period, especially for the families of those who chose to serve in a regular army, and left loved ones with little protection. Maybe we could say that Marie has helped to visualize what Webster County's version of the movie "Cold Mountain" might be. There was an insurgency not unlike what we see today in Iraq, and some took advantage of the ill-defined political chaos. Marie captures the personal side of this from true of accounts of family and their friends in the period.

Marie's chapters on the Civil War (pp.121-460) and related endnotes (pp. 547-592, 615-632) are a treasury of information for those interested in this subject. She has corrected lots of misinformation and added new light to this subject of the Civil War in that region. Key characters are treated with balance and insight. Such names as Tuning, Chewning, Haymond, Spriggs and Connely are among the several cited as leading Guerillas. Incidents such as the burning of Sutton (county seat of Braxton County), Gardner's Store and the march on Addison are given in a detailed and interesting manner.

Webster County's hills and rivers were said to have been a natural funnel through which contraband people and goods would flow when Union forces controlled the main routes. Guerilla forces could more easily hold this ground between the counties along the Little Kanawha River, and Greenbrier County, a doorway to the Old Dominion. Guerillas and others could find a ready market for the horses and goods of their neighbors with one army or the other.

Of special interest should be some little-known material on how the Union's 36th Ohio came to deal with the known and hardened irregulars. The whole tension today of legal rights for "terrorists" was a problem for Union troops. They dealt with people who were repeat offenders in murder, theft and destruction. The 36th Ohio evolved to a position of "take no prisoners" (not meaning "parole"), and all of this long before the national policy had hardened enough toward insurgency to be comfortable with the destruction of Sheridan and Sherman in 1864. There were what many would call "war crimes" today as Union forces fought in Guerilla fashion. One group, called "Snake Hunters", battled with such groups as the Moccasin Rangers. But, for the details, you must read it yourself.

This brings me to the point of where only a few regrets might be noted about the work.
The title doesn't seem to catch the gist of the content for a reader like myself. Because this is a history, done through a family lens, the fact they lived around the Holly River makes the connection to the Holly River seem right. To me, this is a history book, uniquely capable of being told through real people and their real experiences. The title, to me, just seems to miss the mark. But I have no alternative to suggest. It definitely needs to be cross classified as Civil War somehow. The final editing might leave the English major a little unsettled at the number of simple mistakes of punctuation, or subject and verb agreement. I also found myself wanting a better map to keep track of the references to the various rivers and their branches. That would have smoothed my enjoyment of an otherwise well written, well told story of a heroic people, and area, in tough times. It is a story of the founding of Webster County and the state of West Virginia (even our country) through the mysteries of a desk that intrigued a girl who delivered on a promise to tell this story.

anyone who likes watching equestrian events, from the 'high life' of polo to the down and dirty racing action of a steeplechase in the country, should own a copy of capitol horse country. it's a guide of events around the capitol area, washington, maryland and virginia. you'll find out what to wear, what to bring, and most importantly, what to expect when you spend an enjoyable afternoon watching a top notch equestrian event. it's a must have book if you live in the capitol area....or if you love horses. the history is also fascinating. if you like this title, the author also wrote 'equal to the challenge' about the pioneering women in horse sports. give it to a young girl or woman and inspire them to reach new heights. great author and fascinating subjects.

anyone who likes watching equestrian events, from the 'high life' of polo to the down and dirty racing action of a steeplechase in the country, should own a copy of capitol horse country. it's a guide of events around the capitol area, washington, maryland and virginia. you'll find out what to wear, what to bring, and most importantly, what to expect when you spend an enjoyable afternoon watching a top notch equestrian event. it's a must have book if you live in the capitol area....or if you love horses. the history is also fascinating. if you like this title, the author also wrote 'equal to the challenge' about the pioneering women in horse sports. give it to a young girl or woman and inspire them to reach new heights. great author and fascinating subjects.

Everyone knows the story of Pocahontas - or at least "a" story of Pocahontas. Pocahontas WAS intelligent, capable, curious, and brave, but real life isn't as palatable or black-and-white as the Disney-ized version of the story.

Wendy Lawton continues her "Daughters of Faith" series with "The Captive Princess," a respectful portrayal of Pocahontas and the people of her world, a story that recognizes the ambiguity of life. As the great Powhatan's daughter, Pocahontas enjoys both special privilege and responsibility within her family and her tribe. When Englishmen come to the Powhatans' shores, Pocahontas is both curious and wary. She knows there will be eagerness and distrust from both those new and those familiar to the land. She works to bring peace and trust between the two, but is betrayed. As she struggles to come to terms with the "grayness" all she has experienced, Pocahontas learns, in the words of a minister who befriends her, that "we battle between what we long to be and what we fall back into." When Pocahontas learns to accept God's forgiveness, she learns how to forgive herself as well.

The Captive Princess is a must read for fans of the "Daughters of Faith" series and new readers alike. Wendy Lawton's well-researched attention to historic details and her always present glossary of terms make "The Captive Princess" the perfect choice for a fun read or as part of a larger study of American history.

Most of us studied Pocahontas and the Jamestown settlement in American History. I enjoyed going back in time with Wendy Lawton and getting to know the young Pocahontas even better. Lawton does an excellent job bringing the young princess to life and makes learning the customs and language of the Powhatan Indians and the early Jamestown settlers an enjoyable experience. History has never been so fun. Pocahontas' compassion, spirit and faith will inspire you.

Virginia Stem Owens's latest book is a tremendously valuable account of the author's intricate relationship with her elderly mother, ill with dementia. While it reads as an absorbing narrative--sometimes sad, sometimes funny, always keenly honest--it also offers a carefully observed and researched medical history, bound to be instructive to both older and younger readers.

When her mother's physical frailty became problematic and Owens left her Kansas home to stay nearby her parents in Texas, she had no idea the sojourn would span seven years. In that time, her mother's diagnosis moved from Parkinson's disease to Alzheimer's, and Owens watched what she calls the "slow dismantling" of the intelligent and capable person she had known all her life.

What distinguishes this book from other records of a similar kind is Owens's unfailing sense of irony. She takes no prisoners. No one, including herself or her mother, is spared her perceptive eye and subtle wit. Doctors and medical staff particularly, are depicted with total frankness--too busy, too hasty, forgetful, insensitive--including the psychiatrist who tells the patient chirpingly to "get out more" and "find a purpose in life."

Yet the book is fair and full of compassion and the tone throughout is exactly right, an unusual accomplishment when the topic itself runs the gamut of emotions and human idiosyncracies. This is a tough record to read, but hardly depressing, and a wise-spirited author helps you through.

This book is very true to life. Since I am in the eighth year of caring for my 98-year-old mom with Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, I can definitely relate to many of the incidents written here. There are so many similarities to our past and present. I think it is a good book, especially for someone who is just beginning to care for their loved one. It helps with some of the unknowns "down the road."