Massachusetts Books

A honest truthful story of relationships and marriage. This book is written with guidance from the Holy Spirit as Mona McQueen Dickerson tells of her struggles and breakthroughs. Her experiences relate to all men and women and how we interact daily.

Wonderful, honest book about LOVE, LOSS, HEARTBREAK AND THE LIGHT. Something everyone has dealt with at some time in their lives. GREAT READ!!! You will be unable to put it down!!!

This book touched my heart and my life. I felt that she was telling about my life and showed me how God is working for us and in us when we feel that we have been abandond. Been there and done it or just at a turning point in your life? This book will touch your life.

Wonderful book for Children. Great Photography. A must for the Christmas Stocking from Santa Claus

Living in Boston, you are constantly affected by Big Dig-related twists, turns, and upsets. One day the one-way street heads east; the next it has been re-routed west. Few of us venture into the heart of this truly amazing engineering feat, but this book shows us why we should pay more attention. Vanderwarker's spectacular photographs are thrilling to see and they give a glimpse of just why so much money has been poured into this project. We get to see things only the workers would normally see. But perhaps best of all is the glimpse it gives of cutting-edge engineering and technology. Seldom have I seen so clearly how yesterday's sci-fi has become today's "sci" and tomorrow's business as usual.

This book is so much fun to read. The photography is wonderful. Vanderwalker has such a good "eye" for beauty, even in construction.

A must buy for the kids at Christmas

Bought this book for a Italian friend who grew up in the North End of Boston. He found himself going back and reliving so much. He thoroughly enjoyed it.

I have really been enjoying this book; not only what is written, but the pictures tell a story as well.
I am half Italian born in Brockton, Ma. but live on the west coast now. I guess I can only hope that the North End will still remain quaint and special in spite of our everchanging world.

This book is like hearing your grandparent's stories, and you wouldn't believe what they have to say! Filled with short, readable stories and descriptions of life in the North End. Highly recommended!

This is a gracefully-written biography of Bram Fischer, a South African lawyer who played a key role in the anti-apartheid struggle in the 1950s and '60s. In spite of his prominence in the Johannesburg bar, Fischer rejected the racist system that oppressed the majority black population. He joined the Communist Party, worked underground, and defended Nelson Mandela and other activists. Eventually, he was arrested and jailed during a crackdown on the Party. Unlike Mandela, who lived to see the collapse of apartheid, Fischer never entered the promised land: he died of cancer in 1975, at the high point of Afrikaner power. Nevertheless, his inclusive, tolerant approach to politics and his saintly personal example influenced a generation of ANC and Communist activists, helping to shape South Africa's current multiracial and democratic constitutional order. This lovely book is a moving testament to a lovely life. Although Clingman is a bit longwinded and uncritical, anyone interested in South African history will learn from and enjoy his tome. Law students and young lawyers should also read it. Six stars!

This biography chronicles the life of an inspiring Afrikaner who, breaking away from the privileges of his family's background, sacrificed everything for his cause. Fischer's spirited dedication to human rights should provide great insipiration to all those who have ever fought for civil rights. The true treasure in this book is Clingman's ability to see symbolism in even the smallest details of Fischer's life. What an invaluable gift this book is to the Fischer family and to South African history. Truly, this book is a fascinating read.

This book is a work of top class scholarship. But when, probably at 4:00am, you finally put it down you'll feel like you've been reading the most perceptive poetry or listening to the most beautiful music. Like the Pablo Neruda inspired debut Juluka album (Universal Men) it weaves a commitment to truth, a reverence for what's most nobel in the human spirit and a feel for tragedy and transcendence together with real wisdom and what can only be described as melody. And, although this book is written with the almost clinical economy of style that characterises J.M. Coetzee's work, there is a passionate undercurrent almost as intense as the more explicit passion of a writer like Frantz Fanon.

Bram Fischer, the Afrikaner Communist who is the subject of this book, was never as romantic a figure as Che Guevarra, Frederick Douglass or Steven Biko but Clingman is so aware of the drama and promise of everyday life that this book ends up being far more engaging than Jon Anderson's recent biography of Che Guevarra.

The book does have its flaws - for example Clingman's understanding of the South African black consciousness movement is poor - but in a strange way the flaws are part of what give this book its character. That's because this book is about struggle and the flaws make the reader aware of Clingman's stuggle to understand and explain Fischer and his country. So while you're reading about Fischers' struggles and South Africa's struggles and being inspired to think about other struggles Clingman's occassional slip ups make you aware of the author's struggle and leave you inspired by his tremendous, although not total, success.

This book is important and valuable in itself. It's also an important work of history which, given the extent to which apartheid and 'postapartheid' mimic the new world order (global apartheid?)is profoundly relevent to life in 1999.

Buy this book, immerse yourself in its riches until they become part of you, and you'll be a better person.

Kim Grant has undoubtedly composed quite a thorough and resourceful guide to Cape Cod! This book covers all the towns along the Cape as well as the two islands - Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. One will find information about sightseeing, shopping, dining, activities, etc.

I picked this book instead of Frommer's or any of the other travel books because Grant made it quite clear that she personally went to each and every place that is in this book - so she didn't merely compile the listings of businesses along the Cape, she went and saw them each with her own eyes. Hence, the book has more of a personal touch to it. It is quite evident that Grant spent a great deal of time putting together the valuable information which comes in pretty handy for those touring the Cape.

An excellent resource indeed!! All people who travel the Cape, regardless of the degree of knowledge you possess (or don't possess) of the Cape, have this book with you!

As a lover of the Cape; I enjoy finding new places to explore when I go there. This book has given me that and more. Ms Grant (no relation to me) gives a very personal look at places to see, places to eat, and places not to miss. I couldn't put it down. I found things in this book that I've never seen on the Cape before and I've been going there for over 20 years. Ms Grant gave very easy to read, accuarte details, phone numbers, websites and names. I've found in each area of the Cape she gives a brief, yet thorough description of stores, specialty shops, restaurants, ice cream shops. She has also included Museums, Courthouses, even Cemeteries. Also included is Medical Information. Motels, Hotels, Bed n Breakfasts, Cottages. Tennis, Golf and Miniture Golf Courses. Times, places. When they open in the spring, if they're open all year round, when they close in the fall. There was a great little specialty shop that I visit each time I visit the Cape. It wasn't in the book. So I emailed her and told her. She visited there, as did her mother and it was in the next edition she published.

Before I purchased this guide, I was able to use it in a cottage I stayed at recently. I found it extremely helpful and truthful, so I felt I needed to own it myself. I bought two and gave one as a gift. I highly recommend this if you are traveling to Cape Cod.

At Thanksgiving time this book is a feast for sport fans across the country. It is all inclusive,entertaining, and informative. Great snap shots in time. If you are a sports fan this book covers some of Americas top sport heros. Well written and extremely well organized

Boston has long been home to a number of professional and amateur athletes and sports teams. Curator of the Sports Museum of New England Richard Johnson's A Century Of Boston Sports celebrates this athletic heritage with a chronologically organized text comprised of illuminating, informative essays by journalist and historian Glenn Stout, historical vignettes, and more than 150 vintage photographs highlighting teams, events, and personalities that are indelibly associated with the city of Boston. A Century Of Boston is "must" reading for all Boston sports fans as well as students of American sports history.

Written with aplomb and great respect for all the athletes that are featured, A Century of Boston Sports is a joy to read. The variety of photographs and layout of the book are eye catching and unique. No matter your team loyalty, this book provides wonderful stories of athletes from all walks of sport. Humour and joy in sport make this a wonderfully inspiring read. Johnson shows a genuine fondness for each chosen member in this gem of a book. Give this book to any sports fan or anyone who would be inspired by reading all these diverse stories.

The authors' second collaboration of historical photos of Boston (the first was Boston Then and Now from 1982) came out ten years after the original, and shows a Boston I'm more familiar with. Much of the blight that Boston seemed to have been drowning in as late as the late 80s is gone in the new pictures in this book, and more of it is shown. The architectural finesses -- buildings with added floors, the defacement of buildings such as the former Fiske building on State St, before-and-afters of Quincy Market -- are given great attention in this book, and Campbell, the author of the text, is not happy with much of it. Especially poignant, towards the end, is a huge bit of graffiti along Columbus Ave from the 60s protesting the impending construction of I-95 through Boston; in 1992, however, the highway never having been built, it is now a park serving people from the South End all the way down to Jamaica Plain.

This book is actually a readable book, more so than the first which was all about the pictures, and much of Campbell's ideas on urban planning are on display here. Campbell, one gathers, would not be happy with the current plans to build open space over the Big Dig, yet he applauds the demolition of an old parking garage that converted Post Office Square from a desolate, confusing high-rise commercial ghetto into at least a more presentable area where the architecture of the surrounding buildings can be enjoyed from street level. Campbell's obsession with urban density comes off as being a bit agoraphobic, but it's easy to see what he means when he describes useless open space as being as much a blight as overhead highways or slums.

To those of you who might live in or regularly visit Boston, but have never seen, can't remember, or simply can't imagine downtown without the dust and construction that the Big Dig and its related projects have brought on, this book is a record of Boston just before they started tearing everything apart. It's also a valuable historical record of the evolution of a city.

My sister in law gave us this book a couple years ago when we moved to Boston. I grew up in the burbs and my wife in the Midwest so we had plenty to explore. The book sat idle for over a year, but when I pulled it down, I was amazed that I hadn't opened it sooner. This book is wonderful.

This is a city that revels in its history, and, to an outsider, Boston sometimes seems a bit mired in its parochial and seemingly unchanging ways. You can end up assuming, "Gosh, it must always have been this way with it's cobblestones and colonial landmarks." This book shattered my assumptions about the static nature of this city.

The authors peel off layer after layer from the city and as the landmarks come and go the authors reflect, educate and entertain as to how these physical changes are linked to history of the city. Some changes are success stories of planning, others fortunate twists of fate, and yet others, unmitigated urban planning disasters. All fascinating illustrations that help the reader understand the city on a more meaningful level.

I must admit that I love cities and am enthralled by the idea of so many people sharing a limited space comfortably and enjoyably. Cities, to me, have an energy that speaks to the miracle of civilization where people can grow personally by sharing in the diversity of those around them. It nevers goes perfectly, because after all we are human, but it is nonetheless comforting to frame your current surroundings in the context of those who have come before you.

With text by Robert Campbell and photographs (primarily) by Peter Vanderwarker, this book is not only a wonderful volume documenting the history of Boston, but a general and gentle instruction in the rise and fall and rise and fall cycles of many cities, focusing in particular on the "built environment". All photographs are in black-and-white, but this makes the comparison between old and new cityscapes easier. Within each of seven chapters there are a series of two-page pieces featuring photographs and an essay on such topics as: Murdering Another Street, A Waterfront Workplace Becomes a Playpen, A Landmark on Top of a Landmark, A Building That Floats, etc. The text is informative and interesting. Maps are used to supplement the material, and a good index follows. If only all history and architecture books could be this well done!

Exceptional work, highly recommended.

These stories and novellas ache with the passions, aspirations, and disappointments of ordinary people in a particular place. The craftsmanship of displaying these emotions is precise and memorable. There is nothing funny going on here, only dedication to living by the survivors in these stories(there is much made of death and dying) and, by the author, a seering, relentless insight into his craft.

Mr. Hribal has written a set of stories that not only show amazing insight into the world and minds of women and children, but also draw powerful male characters. He somehow manages to keep a startling and beautiful prose on the page without ever drawing the reader away from the story. These stories and novellas are all terrific, but the finest of them is "And That's the Name of That Tune." In this novella Mr. Hribal manages to hold an engrossing tension together while adding humor and insight into a dysfunctional family. This is writing at its best, untouched by a need to be a bestseller these stories are allowed to be kept as they are, subtle, page-turning, and deftly wrought.

"Hribal slides the emotional fabric of America under a literary microscope to reveal the lies, betrayals, and yearnings that connect and divide us all, giving his stories extraordinary power. He establishes an American landscape in the tradition of Cheever and Updike, though his is a world not of cocktail parties but of trailer parks, bars, and courtrooms. The subtle power of these stories will leave the reader hungry for more."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

These poems are simply transporting. Black paints portraits in words, so real you can reach out and hold them in your hand. She goes beyond the myth and stereotypes of the south and gives the reader a taste of the southern soul. I've read this volume a dozen times now and can't help but come back for more.

Cottonlandia never betrays itself as a first book. Black is winking at us, sly smile, unafraid of her footing, "I've built a fort from the alphabet,/ its scattered letters." Here, Eli Whitney, William Bartram and Captain Walker are carried by Black with the same linguistic precision and self-awareness as her personal histories. The past, whether in the 1700s or 1989, is conjured, not scribed, "God of histories, make yourself known," and though mounds are cleared and floodlights 'totemic,' Black's draft of the past is mercurial, irreverent- "Paper fans given by competing/ funeral homes disappeared after/the church got conditioned air."
The first two sections of the book ('Photographia' and 'Invention of the Cotton Gin') transgress, trespass through history book and family lore, the third, 'My only Golem,' is where we find the true magic in Black's writing.
Here 'Miss Black' and 'Mephista,' her golem, trade verse that is sharp, mean-spirited at times, but a treasure to readers. "I do your dirty work, Missus. I'm that wench." Mephista slings at Miss Black. 'Mephista as the Desert Rose,' and 'Vegas and Environs,' are treasures in this collection, for sure, but also help prove that Black's work belongs with the best of those writing today.
Cottonlandia is truly a joy to read, reread.

Poetry scares me sometimes. Despite that, I had heard some of these poems at a reading by the author and I was looking forward to this volume. And I wasn't disappointed. Quite simply, these peoms made my laugh, smile, frown, and even at time tear up. And only occasionally reach for my dictionary.

This important work is an unvarnished first-person account of one man's lifelong battle to secure rights for the mentally retarded citizens of Massachusetts. With no holds barred, Ricci chronicles the plight of the mentally retarded in Massachusetts during the second half of the twentieth century. In a style reflective of his unrelenting advocacy, Ricci recounts the painful decision he and his wife made to place their six-year-old son at Belchertown State School in the 1950s, the horrific medieval conditions he discovered and exposed in that institution, his founding of Advocacy Network, that organization's fight against uncaring state bureaucrats, and their hard-won, landmark federal court order to improve the lives of the mentally retarded. Crimes Against Humanity is a must-read for anyone with a social conscience.

This important work is an unvarnished first-person account of one man's lifelong battle to secure rights for the mentally retarded citizens of Massachusetts. With no holds barred, Ricci chronicles the plight of the mentally retarded in Massachusetts during the second half of the twentieth century. In a style reflective of his unrelenting advocacy, Ricci recounts the painful decision he and his wife made to place their six-year-old son at Belchertown State School in the 1950s, the horrific medieval conditions he discovered and exposed in that institution, his founding of Advocacy Network, that organization's fight against uncaring state bureaucrats, and their hard-won, landmark federal court order to improve the lives of the mentally retarded. Crimes Against Humanity is a must-read for anyone with a social conscience.

Ricci's CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY is an essential read for anyone with a relative, friend, or client who suffers from mental retardation. Holding nothing back, Ricci recounts the horrendously inhumane conditions of Belchertown State School in Massachusetts during the 1950s and '60s, his formation of an advocacy group to support the retarded and their families, and a 20-year landmark federal court class-action suit to secure rights and protections for mentally retarded citizens. A work of courage, persistence, and faith.