Washington Books

Matthews does not only a great job describing just about every part of northwest nature, but does it with a sense of humor. This guide is not the most in-depth out there, but it covers a LOT of different areas of ecology, geology, zoology, and botany. I consider myself more of a plant person, but sometimes I'd not only like to be able to identify a plant, but also what the name of the bug is that's eating it or the rock that it's growing on, or even the rodent that stealing all the food out of my campsite.

In addition to being a great field guide, this book is great just for casual reading. It carries a lot of standard textbook information, but doesn't put me to sleep. I actually found myself laughing out loud at a few tidbits.

Even if I never took it out into the field, this book would have been worth the purchase.

This is a great guide for anyone tromping about in the Northwest. It combines several other guides into one that is easy to carry and easy to use. The book covers almost anything you'll venture across from plant to animal. It even includes a short section on regional geography and minerals. Must have for the backpack

Most of us who enjoy nature have relied upon "bird books" or other guides to the species at one time or another as we inquire about our surroundings. These dull but thorough reference books often make their topics LESS interesting, quelling the interests that they're supposed to serve. We look up our bird, animal or plant and then move on having learned little more than its Latin name. Ugh.

This book shines like a beacon to future nature writers as it uses every description as the basis for a prosaic mini-essay; rewarding curiosity with enlightenment, fascination and delight. Imagine a reference book so enticing to read that you can't stop reading with just one description. Instead, the object of your curiosity serves as a mere starting point in the book; the first page of what often becomes a genuine sit-down-and-read-it experience.

If every nature writer put this much love into their topics, the trails would be overrun with enthusiastic hikers. Here's hoping that the author visits your neck of the woods soon, and provides you with the same exuberant writing he's given us here in the Pacific Northwest.

I also have ordered this as a gift for several this year, including the revised edition for myself. Definitely not just a reference book but a great read also. I actually read the whole book,rather than just saving for information on specifics, when I got my first copy years ago.

Most of us who enjoy nature have relied upon "bird books" or other guides to the species at one time or another as we inquire about our surroundings. These dull but thorough reference books often make their topics LESS interesting, quelling the interests that they're supposed to serve. We look up our bird, animal or plant and then move on having learned little more than its Latin name. Ugh.

This book shines like a beacon to future nature writers as it uses every description as the basis for a prosaic mini-essay; rewarding curiosity with enlightenment, fascination and delight. Imagine a reference book so enticing to read that you can't stop reading with just one description. Instead, the object of your curiosity serves as a mere starting point in the book; the first page of what often becomes a genuine sit-down-and-read-it experience.

If every nature writer put this much love into their topics, the trails would be overrun with enthusiastic hikers. Here's hoping that the author visits your neck of the woods soon, and provides you with the same exuberant writing he's given us here in the Pacific Northwest.

Many Americans know Washington Irving as the author of "the Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle". Few realize that he was also a world traveler, scholarly fluent in Arabic and Spanish and something of an Hispanophile, to the say least.
Irving's book is largely responsible for the widespread romantic image of Spain. It is a collection of observation, history, fairy tale, written in Irving's unique blend of romanticism and healthy skepticism. It is roughly framed by his journey to the Alhambra and his departure from it, an in between we are given a tour of the grounds and hear a few tales (including tales of Moorish ghosts on headless horses) which are roughly intertwined as in the Arabian Nights. Indeed, this little book is the 'Arabian Nights' of the west.
Before visit the Alhambra read this book. If you are not planning on going, read it and you'll probably change your mind.

I am a Moor and I relate to the stories well. The stories reminded me of the things to avoid for the things that will come. A Moorish Empire will rise again.
Irving starts with his personal journey then he has several stories of gallant and modest characters which makes you feel your in the garden or the palace. It brings back what love was and how it should be. I really like the story of the Father striving to keep his son from learning about love. I know no matter what you do you can never lock love away because of its power and its vast estate one would have to know it is impossible. This is a worth while reader for anyone who knows and wants the best from humanity for it is the Moors who created civilization and it is their station to restore it.

On 7/24/04 through Amazon Marketplace I purchased this used book.
It arrived within the week and was excellently packed and shipped by bea4books@yahoo.com. A lovely "Thanks for Buying!" note was included with the invoice. The book is in very good condition with wonderful pictures. A surprise was that it had belonged to the Austin Public Library - a favorite city of mine. I'll be ordering more through you! Thank you.

Washington Irving is credited with bringing the glorious history and unbelievable beauty of the Alhambra, in the city of Granada, (the last stronghold of the Moors in the South of Spain) to Western conciousness.

After spending a day at the Alhambra last Summer, and passing by the closed apartments that he occupied, I decided to listen to his book while driving one hour each way to work. (any short trips won't work because all of the 'tales' are lengthy)

My title says it all. If you are a student of dry history this book is not for you. Only about 20-30 minutes will satisfy your curiosity for the facts. If you enjoy legend and lore this book is it. The bulk of the book tells numerous stories of princes and princeses, kings and soldiers, common laborers such as mule drivers and water carriers, loves found and loves lost, and especially the perrenial human lust for long lost and buried treasure, etc., all told with a wonderous style and feel for southern Spain of the 13-th to 15-th centuries.

The factual account of how Columbus finally came to agreement with Isabella and Ferdinand to sign the contract for the three ships, almost by chance in 1492, while the two sovereigns were outside Granada laying the final siege of the Alhambra fortress, is mind blowing. History came 'that close' to having Columbus sail three French ships instead of the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria.

If you want just the facts, look elsewhere. But if you are planning a trip to Granada and the Alhambra, definitely pick up this book, along with a second, more fact based, and give a read or listen. I wish I had done that before my trip. It would have given much more life and enjoyment to the place as I walked through the various rooms and towers and gardens that Irving so lovingly describes.

This wonderful book written by a well-loved American author details his travels in Spain, and more specifically in the Castle Alhambra. These tales are delightful, and seemlessly weave from fact to fiction to history to folklore. It is a true travel log, done oh so many years ago, and done with Irving's whimcical and enchanting style. The sketches give a good description of Spain and travel in the early 1800's. Older children and adolescents would probably enjoy these sketches.

For an account of Lincoln's thought (as well as Douglas') that serves to the credit of both of them, read this book. One of the finest books I have ever read, there are some chapters on Lincoln's thought that you will read time and time again. My copy of the book is marked up with great quotes where Harry Jaffa shows great insight into the tension and wonder that is the democratic thought of Abraham Lincoln, quite possibly the greatest democratic leader in history. This book is a must read for anyone who wants to know about the mind of Lincoln before the Civil War.

This book is a most profound examination of the thinking of both Sen. Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln concerning all of the issues associated with slavery up to the Civil War. Jaffa wants to set the record straight as far as any number of contentions by well-known historians of his era, known as revisionists. Most importantly, he flatly disputes the notion that the thinking and actions of Douglas (the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854) endorsing popular sovereignty were essentially equivalent to the principled stand of Lincoln based on the equality of all men in their long-term ramifications for slavery. Those revisionist historians contend that Lincoln and the Republicans should have accepted Douglas' solution to the slavery crisis, thus not precipitating the Civil War.

Another claim against Lincoln that Jaffa thoroughly discredits is that Lincoln, in fact, did not hold Negroes as equals, and simply used the issue for personal political gain regardless of the consequences for the Union. But Lincoln understood that politics is the art of the possible. The author makes clear that Lincoln held an intense respect for the principles of the Declaration of Independence, including the rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness for all, including Negroes. It was one thing for the Union to be formed with the taint of slavery, but the contention that Southerners came to that slavery was a "positive good" was felt by Lincoln to have the potential to completely undermine the basis of the US. Perhaps it could even be justified to enslave a group of "inferior" whites. Lincoln felt compelled to move the nation back to its core principles without alienating those who did not have the same clarity as to what was at stake.

The book is a challenging read. The issue of permitting slavery in territories became and remained contentious from 1820 on. The arguments for and against slavery in territories are quite subtle involving constitutionality, Congressional acts, territorial legislative bodies, and court decisions. The Dred Scott decision in 1857 disallowing restrictions on taking property (slaves) into territories is examined. Lincoln and the Republicans, rightfully so, were very apprehensive as to the long term ramifications of that decision. It was hardly a stretch to see where free states could become a thing of the past.

The book is only indirectly concerned with the Lincoln-Douglas debates. They are randomly referred to throughout the text, but earlier writings and speeches receive far more attention. Douglas' words concerning the Mexican territories and the Kansas-Nebraska Act are well covered. The author devotes a large segment to examining Lincoln's speech to the Young Men's Lyceum in 1938, where his thinking on major issues had already crystallized. Lincoln's address on temperance receives much attention.

The author is a disciple of Leo Strauss, the natural rights theorist. He does regard Lincoln as a preeminent natural rights thinker. There is some discussion of pre-civil society versus civil society. But the overall import of the book does not turn on acceptance of natural rights in a purist sense.

This book, decades after its publication, cannot be ignored for understanding Lincoln.

If you want to read one book about Lincoln's thought, this is the one to read. The first part of the book, which takes Douglas seriously and states the strongest case for him, is historically dense and may be difficult for most readers. But keep going, because the payoff will be great. There follow chapters on two of Lincoln's early speeches. Jaffa's analysis here is brilliant, though perhaps a bit far-fetched. In the final part of the book, Jaffa states the case for Lincoln against Douglas. This part is rich in its ideas, rigorous in its reasoning, and eloquent to the point of being inspirational. (By the way, if you want to read one biography of Lincoln, I'd recommend the one by Lord Charnwood. Though written almost a century ago and therefore not up to date on all the details of historical scholarship, it is judicious throughout and beautifully written.)

Perhaps the most interesting thing about Jaffa is that he wrote Goldwater's famous "moderation in the defense of freedom is no virtue" speech. If you go back and read the speech (and it is on the web, of course), it echoes both the Old Testament ("our fathers") and Lincoln. I suspect he would agree with the man who told me that Lincoln is the greatest prose stylish in the English language. As for the book, Jaffa interprets the civil war as the second, and genuine, founding of the American republic, and precisely because the principle of the Declaration, equality, was written not in ink but blood (Jaffa has his own brand of Lincolnian Christianity). Lincoln, by this reading, belongs to the "tribe of the eagle and the lion" and was neither Caesar nor Brutus but possessed the best qualities of both. To understand that part of Jaffa's interpretation, you would have to read his treatment of Shakespeare. As for the Lincoln-Douglas debates, Jaffa stages Douglas as Thrasymachus and Lincoln--surprise, surprise--as Socrates.

Professor Harry V. Jaffa's "Crisis of the House Divided" is an extremely important book. In it, he succeeds in turning back the revisionist historians of the mid-Twentieth Century who sought to devalue Abraham Lincoln's commitment to the proposition that "All men are created equal."

This tide of revisionism took two general forms; partisans for the South who placed the full blame on Mr. Lincoln for sparking the "War of Northern Aggression"; and modern historians, skeptical of any higher motives and virtues in statesmen of the past, who claimed that there were really no substantial policy differences between Mr. Lincoln and Senator Stephen A. Douglas. If the latter class of historian could prove that Lincoln didn't really believe in freedom for slaves and that his rhetoric against slavery was irresponsible (knowing how it offended Southern sensibilities) while Douglas' "Popular Sovereignty" policy would have eventually led to the limitation and elimination of slavery, then Lincoln's legacy as President could be shown to be the largely accidental.

Fortunately, Professor Jaffa's work demolishes the corrosive contentions of the revisionists, showing, beyond any doubt, that Mr. Lincoln believed America was founded on the principle of human equality as much as it was founded on the idea of democracy. That democracy and equality were the twin pillars of the American Republic and were in tension was something Mr. Lincoln well understood while Judge Douglas honored only democracy. Hence, Douglas' "Popular Sovereignty" led to the concept that the majority could decide slavery was not only legal, but also moral. In opposition, Mr. Lincoln argued that a majority did not have the right to sanction the enslavement of other men, regardless of their alleged inferiority, because "All men are created equal."

Professor Jaffa shows that Mr. Lincoln built upon the Founders' thoughts in the Declaration of Independence and urged their maturation towards the ideal. Lincoln saw how the Founders invoked passion, hatred and revenge in support of the cause of independence from Britain but how these passions were no longer adequate to the task of preserving the Union from the dangers of mobocracy or dictatorship - dangers made more immediate by the revolutionary birth of America and the tendency of unrestrained democracy to disdainful the rule of law. Instead, Lincoln recommended virtuous reason to lift the United States up, to show the world that it was truly capable of lasting self-governance. Of course, the cornerstone of this reason was the thinking through in the body politic, the practical consequences of the principle, "All men are created equal."

Professor Jaffa's book is a gift to America and the world. Were more people in office aware of the fundamental issues debated by Judge Douglas and Mr. Lincoln in 1858 during their remarkable campaign for the Illinois Senate, and their implications for policies even today, our nation would be stronger and our democracy more secure.

Reviewer: Chuck DeVore is a California State Assemblyman, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Army National Guard and the author of "China Attacks."

Dino's book told of numerous of his life experiences.

He knows how to work with anyone, regardless of party and does so WITHOUT giving up any of his principles. He has always been able to find something in anyone, even Democrats. He can find something he shares in common with them, like DWI concern and work toward legislation to make Washington a better place.

He is a positive, glass-half-full person. He should be our governor to this day, but we can only hope this classy, honest and humble man will run again in 2008 because he'll win yet again then!

Thanks you, Dino, for this very meaningful book. GO DINO!!

This book consists of a helpful concept where the author provides personal antidotes and lessons learned from past experiences followed by application of these experiences to practical advice. While many of this advice falls into generalities and does not presume to be offered with empirical evidence of scientific study, the conclusions are indeed good and useful. Overall, readers will benefit from the advice and will see examples of how the advice has been implemented in successful manners.

Dino Rossi calls for leaders who have consistent principles and values yet are flexible enough to adapt to changes while remaining strong enough to lead others. Not all followers will agree with their leader, but a good leader commands their respect and enables other to work together agreed upon goals. As the author noted, he explained the situation in a campaign speech by stating "we aren't going to agree with 100% of the time. But, hey, I bet you don't agree with your own spouse 100% of the time, and I'm not asking you to marry me."

As a State Senator, the author worked on issues such as alleviate traffic congestion, a growing problem in Washington and passing the nation's first mandatory ignition interlocking law for drivers convicted of DUIs. In preparing to tackle such issues, he advises that the fear of not finding a solution should never stop one from taking action and seeking answers. Paralysis can lead to failure. Fearing that advocacy on an issue will lead to defeat should not be the reason to give up, as success only comes if one tries and works towards one's goals.

The author's daughter learned not to give up when faced with seemingly impossible obstacles. Dino Rossi thought he could stop his daughter's desire to get a dog by telling her the only way he would get a dog would be if President Bush told him to get her a dog. His daughter wrote President Bush, who then took time from his search for Bin Laden to write Senator Rossi to tell him his daughter should have a dog.

Politics means making opponents and often enemies. Still, the author advises to avoid disliking an opponent. It is better to forget about past conflicts and concentrate on moving forward on new, existing issues. Often, past enemies can become allies or adversaries with whom one may negotiate and find workable compromises. He tells of a sign on the wall in a Washington Caucus room that reads "We don't attack people, we attack ideas. We attack ideas with better ideas."

Dino Rossi chose to be an effective legislator upon his election to the State Senate by going to the committee chairs of the three committees to which he was appointed. He asked ask chair: "I want to help you be the best chairman you can possibly be. How can I help you accomplish that?" That turned out to be the correct way for a freshman Senator to win the admiration of the more senior Senators. Among Senator Rossi's subsequent legislative victories included passing a "two strikes, you're out" bill that provided for life imprisonment for twice convicted child molesters and rapists.

Dino Rossi rose to be Senate Ways and Means Committee Chairman. As others helped him before, Senator Rossi saw to it that he assisted newer Senators in their careers. As a leader, the author recommends setting the parameters and goals of your service and following and sticking to your intentions.

Much of the book contains partisan arguments for positions and actions taken by the author as a Republican politician in a state with Democratic Governors. Your prior view of these issues will determine if you like what he has to say on partisan issues. Still, as a general guide on leadership advice, this is a decent book with application to life, business, and politics.

In addition to counting on family, friends, and mentors, everyone has a set of books to which they refer over the course of their life at moments of reflection and decision. In a highly entertaining format--akin to Chris Mathews' Hardball and Tip O'Neill's All Politics is Local--Dino Rossi shares with readers an instructive set of anecdotes and analysis. This book is a great buy for anybody, and a must-have for those interested in political and business management.

From his humble beginings to him being certified (twice) to the governorship of Washington State, this was a riveting tome.

I encourage everyone interested in furthering the quality of their life to read this book.

Considering the recent news from Washington, DC, with scandal, failed trust and broken promises, it is a relief to read of a true optimist from Washington State who focuses on making his home state a better place for his children.
Following Dino Rossi's narrow loss in the 2004 governor's race, and after three highly questionable recounts, he took some time to write a book about his life and his vision. After the closest loss in American gubernatorial history, it would be easy to imagine a person becoming embittered and focusing on the "why me" aspect of such a loss.
Not this guy. His life story is inspirational, his work ethic and belief in the American system unshakable, and his vision for the future is compelling.
I was pleased to read this book, and recommend it highly. For Dino Rossi and his family, the sun shines brightly, even on a cloudy Seattle day.

i loved this book. i felt as though i was right there with him and his family through every phase of their lives. this book had everything going for it, sadness, chaos, happiness, tragedy. it was so personal and you just felt as though the author let you in to share with him.

This book will be enjoyed by all who read it for it is a story of survival from the ashes of the Holocaust. This book is also an excellent book club selection that will spark much thought and conversation.

Joseph Berger has written a story that needed to be told, but he has included too much extraneous material about his own life. Much of what he tells reveals what it was like growing up as the child of a refugee, but who cares whether or not he dated in high school?

The best parts of this book were those about his mother's life and about how she managed in the United States as a refugee. Berger's writing is more journalism than story telling. He's got all the facts, but none of his descriptions flare above the mundane. His mother's reminisences are far more artistic, and reveal more than the words on the page.

New York Times journalist Joseph Berger has created a masterful, evocative and moving account of the ever-present duality of his life: his identity as an acculturated American child of Holocaust survivors. This duality gives his account of his mother's life and his own evolution from a bewildered refugee child into an accomplished American a poignancy and power. "Displaced Persons" will stand as an important contribution, not only to our understanding of the long-term implications of being a survivor of the Holocaust, but of the unique burdens, pressures and responsibilities children of survivors inherit from their parents.

Berger is acutely aware of "the unmentioned sorrow that was the subtext to everything [his] parents said or did." Haunted by memories, devastated by enormous loss, handicapped by their arrival in America in their twenties and driven to provide security for their families, Holocaust survivors often perceive their children as replacements of beloved family members who perished and as repositories of hopes and dreams denied them. Worried about their children's safety, happiness and future, Berger muses about his parents' perspective, "What could I say about the dread and suspicion with which they encountered a world that had proven maliciously fickle?"

As the author emerges from childhood, he begins to chafe from his mother's protective, controlling instincts and desires to assert himself as his own man. Berger's wrenching analysis of his status becomes the overarching theme of his memoir. "I saw myself now an an American...I would no more be the timid refugee boy with one leg planted in the fearful shtetls of Poland, with a mother ever vigilant that no more perils come to the remnants of her kin." It is this unspoken loving tension between Joseph and his mother, Rachel, that gives "Persons" its dynamism.

Alternating between two narratives, one his own and the other the gripping account of his mother's survival, Berger deftly intermingles past and present. Aware of his distinct heritage, the young Berger recognizes others in his impoverished Manhattan neighborhood who share his background. "We knew one another, knew in our young bellies that our parents were the same dazed and damaged lot, had the same refugee awkwardness, the same whiff about them of marrow bones and carp." Now attempting to wrest coherence in America, Holocaust survivors tend to frustrate Berger with their problem solving techniques. Berger prefers the American way of standing up directly; survivors "were always scraping by on a willingness to do what was necessary to survive, even if that meant surrendering pride or principle."

Raw emotion floods "Displaced Persons." Rachel's symbolic mourning of a dead child in Warsaw at the onset of World War II serves to remind us that she has no "mental picture" of the actual murder of her family. Unspoken grief undulates throughout the memoir. Berger's stoic father Marcus scarcely articulates his unfathomable sense of loss; nearly half a century passes before he can utter the names of his sisters. Guilt ebbs and flows in Rachel's description of her survival. Anguished over refusing to bring non-kosher food to her hungry brother during World War II, she has never forgiven heself, calling it "the worst thing I ever did in my life."

Yet life surges and humor emerges in Berger's descriptions of growing up in New York City in the 1950s and 60s. With both parents working at dreary, tiring jobs, the author experiences a freedom of movement he admits he would never conceive of allowing his own daughter today. His descriptions of his initial exploration of Manhattan reveal the sheer joy of discovery, the incredible exuberance of youthful hopes and the awesome sense of possibilities Berger recognizes in his new home. Berger's frantic disposal of an illicit girlie magazine carries universal appeal; he becomes an American everyboy. His struggles with self-confidence, academic competition and sexual frustrations are those of not only his generation, but of those before and after.

Written with conviction and compassion, "Displaced Persons" is that kind of memoir that not only describes, but instructs. Through the author's descriptions of his resolute, stubborn and proud mother, survivors attain an identity beyond that of suffering and loss. His own life's story shapes our understanding of the purpose of our national experience and the sacredness of an American identity. Treating both the Holocuast in its past brutality and its implications for the second-generation children of survivors, the memoir blends sorrow and joy, heartache and hope, pain and redemption.

My father's story parallels Joseph Berger's in eerie ways...they were both at the Schlactensee DP Camp and the Landsberg-Am-Lech DP camp...Berger's mother's story of her youth could be my grandmother's, from an unpleasant step-mother to the flight East to Russia. My father was born during my grandparents' refuge in the USSR, and crossed illegally with his family into Poland after the war ended. I have always been close to my grandparents, but this book brought clarity and insight into topics they don't generally discuss...the duality that immigrant survivors (the displaced persons) felt between their new lives in America and the tragedy and loss left in Europe. When I look at my grandparents' happy faces at family occasions---graduations, weddings, bar mitzvahs, birthday parties---I wonder if the events make them remember times similar back in Lithuania. Berger's story, beautifully written and researched, is a must-read.

Young readers will be stimulated by Jean Fritz's story of a young lad who wants to know all there is to know about George Washington! There's a lot that he knows, but he just doesn't know what Washington ate for breakfast.

Following from one step to the next, he researches until the mystery is solved, demonstrating that persistence brings a reward. Kids will want to read this book over and over again. (And the hoecakes aren't bad, either!)

I think this book is very awesome especially if you want to know what
George Washington ate. It talks about a boy who is named after George Washington and has the same birth date. If you want to find out more read it yourself.

This book is wonderful and engaging. It is about a little boy, George W. Allen who shares his name and his birthday with George Washington. He knows many facts about George W. but he wants to know more. One day he decides he wants to know what George W. had for breakfast and the learning adventure begins!! I read it to my boys 6 and 4 and they loved it. My sons enjoyed the facts about George W. like: he had two horses named Nelson and Blueskin. There were many "fun facts" such as this in the book. I loved it because in addition to learning about George W., it shows children different ways to search for information. George Allen first goes to the library from there to the card catalog, and then the biographies. Then his family took a trip to Washington D.C., and to George Washington's home in Virginia. It's a great addition to any family library.

You have the wrong illustrator listed. The illustration on the cover is by Tomie dePaola and you have Paul Galdone listed.

I am a second grade teacher, and have a 8 and 4 year old at home. I loved this book, both at school and home. We read it every President's Day, and bake up a serving of hoecakes. It is a really fun way to teach children about the history of George Washington.

I knew nothing of rock n' roll life in the 70's before picking up this novel so not only was the book entertaining, it was educational. The book gave a raw, honest perspective of life in a band - the good, the bad, and the ugly. I would never have expected to be able to relate to characters that are so completely different from myself but I found myself understanding, sympathizing, and caring for the guys in the band. It was a sad moment when I turned the last page; leaving Daniel, Rob, Mick, Yogi, and Sam behind. I would snag the sequel in a second. Great read.
(Favorite quote: "It's turned black! And it's all your fault!" page 166)

I'm honored to be able to review "Getting in Tune." Roger and I spent many a night with our writing group editing each other's work. I never doubted he would be right here selling his book. Anyone that loves rock'n roll will enjoy making the journey from Creedly, California to Puente Harbor on the Olympic Penninsula with Daniel, Rob, Mick, Sam and Yogi--the Killjoys--in search of Pete Townsend's Universal Chord and the big break that will rocket them to fame. A great summer read, winter read, spring and fall. Congrates on a great accomplishment!

Getting In Tune is the kind of hands on, authentic rock'n'roll story that can only be written by someone who's lived the experience. You're taken not just to the front and center of the stage, but inside the head of a talented musician who seeks the transcendence that only music can provide. Trott gets all the details right as he chronicles the highs and lows of a 70s band on the verge of realistic success, and I was pleased that I found it was 4:00 one morning when I set it down; I was reading it all night. It's that kind of book. I look forward to his next outing.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable summer read for me as a fan of rock music of then and now, and it brought back so much about the 1970s scene. On the surface it's an easy, fun read but it also has some introspection about the author and the other characters. What a great first book from Trott--I'll be looking for more from him.

As a writer, I like this book because there's nothing fussy about the prose. It's clean, straightforward, and the characters are engaging right off the bat. Yes, they're recognizable types, but they feel true. Equally entertaining is how much Trott captures the details and mood of an era. Was cracking up all the way through. The water bed right at the beginning, the phone booths, the songs playing in the background. Hell, the word bodacious, the smell of the amp tubes and the wires and litter on the stage floors. This book captures the energy and drive and confusion of a particular culture. Even better, it recreates the high of loud, rocking music when everyone's locked in to the same groove.

My son recently moved to Washington State and I wanted a book that would help him get acquainted with his new home state. I enjoyed reading it, and he has found it to be an excellent resource.

I turn to Moon Handbooks first for nearly every trip, and I haven't been disappointed yet. This is the first time I've bought a Moon Handbook that covers an entire state; the coverage is less in-depth for specific sites of interest like Olympic National Park, yet there is plenty of information for the many places a visitor to Washington State might want to see. Reading this book made me look forward to my trip even more.

Even though published in 2003, this is by far the best advailable WA guide book. I would not think of visiting a state without the appropriate Moon supplemented by the WPA guidebook for that state[published in the thirties]

You'll find no fancy illustrations in this book - simply good information.



The author makes some snarky comments toward a local Christian ministry - which seems pointless - and includes a great deal of information specifically geared toward homosexual travelers. I didn't realize that was a niche market, but evidently it is.



Regardless, the book is quite thorough, if opinionated. I prefer the "Hidden Washington" books for pointers on places off the tourist track.



Recommended.

The first Moon book that I purchased several years ago was the book on Oregon. We made significant travel arrangements based on the information in that book and we were never disappointed.

An upcoming trip to Seattle/San Juans is based on the information in the Washington book. The real beauty is that the book leads you to the most likely area to visit, gives references to hotels, etc., then you can complete your research by reviewing up-to-date information about that spot/hotel online. We chose Orcas island for 2 days before heading to Seattle and I do not expect to be disappointed.

The authors are even-handed and complete --- they are not elitists, reviewing only the high-end accomodations. They have a good sample of a broad range of places. They point out lesser known restaurants and scenic spots as well.

I have found their advice in the Oregon, Washington, Coastal California and New England books to be quite excellent.

I have purchased quite a few different travel books in the past, but Moon Handbooks are my travel book of choice.

Hazel Wolf really understood how to organize and shares her knowledge with the reader. But don't be fooled by the practical nature of that remark: Hazel Wolf was also a great character and funny. This is a thoroughly enjoyable read about a woman with an amazing (and very long)life who knew how to get things done, how to grow and move with the times, and never lacked the self confidence to go for what she wanted.

Hazel Wolf was a friend of mine and fellow board member on the Seattle Audubon Society for nearly 25 years. Susan Starbuck's book about Hazel is both highly entertaining and a very personal view of this unique woman. Susan has done a masterful job of weaving together a myriad of stories from and about Hazel into a coherent guide to Hazel's life as a dedicated organizer of social movements from her early life through her death at 101. Hazel never saw a wrong that she felt could not be righted. She dedicated her life to achieving justice, whether it was for working men and women, for jail inmates, for racial justice, for the environment or against war, often at the expense of her own personal and family life. Hazel led the way for women's independence and liberation through hard work and example without ever thinking about the meaning of those terms. At a recent celebration of Hazel's 105th birthday, Congressman Jim McDermitt and Governor Mike Lowry both said that in these times of Bush's war, we need Hazel's example of leadership more than ever.

A powerful woman! If you think you have energy, read what this woman did right up to the end of her 101 years.

Hazel Wolf could have been your grandmother. A real tomboy, she grew up with her toes in the sand of Pacific Northwest beaches and her fingers around a basketball. The working class kids of Victoria B.C. were her "gang," and the comradeship and fun they cooked up animated her whole life.

Later, working as a secretary in Depression-era Seattle, Wolf organized fledgling unions wherever the bosses assigned her. They'd fire her for organizing, re-assign her to a new job, and she would begin organizing again. Like she always did, Hazel was just making friends and having fun.

In one of the "Hazel Stories" that fill the book, sheriff's deputies tried to evict a down-and-out family from their home by carrying the furniture out onto the sidewalk. Hazel and her friends, who sometimes cared to call themselves socialists or communists, simply carried the chairs and tables back into the house through the back door. The sheriff eventually gave up.

The U.S. government tried to deport Hazel Wolf during the McCarthy period because she was a) a communist, and b)Canadian. Just like the sheriff, the feds failed, too. Hazel had thousands of friends, and she wasn't afraid of political pressure. As she said, "I was just there, powerless and strong, someone who wouldn't chicken out. Somebody always stops the nonsense all through history."

Author Susan Starbuck says Hazel Wolf knew her life would make an important story; that it might evoke the next generation of social and environmental activists. At bookstore readings, Starbuck tells prospective readers, "Hey folks, here's an owner's manual about what to do when your government runs amok." The message of "Hazel Wolf: Fighting the Establishment" is theat we, too could have fun being activists...and also change the world.

I have just completed reading Hazel Wolf's biography by Susan Starbuck, which was published by the University of Washington Press. Ms. Starbuck has skillfully knit together the words of Ms. Wolf, based on years of interviews with her, with her own author's narrative. Because Ms. Wolf's life was so dramatic and has been so vividly presented by the author, the book is interesting and preserves an important part of Northwest political history.

The Hopes of Snakes is a great collection of, well, tales from the urban landscape. As so many of us rush from appointment to appointment, spending most of our time in in cars or in front of computer screens, it is so refreshing to read these essays that remind us that nature and beauty are all around us. Living in the city, it is easy to overlook it. But Lisa Couturier's sharp eye and beautiful prose encourage us to take a closer look. I especially enjoyed the essay "Rediscovering the Potomac." Read it aloud -- it sounds like poetry!

Bill Diskin
Charlotte, NC

Lisa Couturier writes with great power and sensitivity, pulling the reader in, teaching and thrilling and spinning a yarn like no other nature writer. Along the way, the words tumble together in new ways, and the charm and delight flows in a torrent. In the end, we are moved, we have learned, and we want more. I hope you will share my delight with this book, and share it with friends. I've bought about 30 copies that I've given away to people I knew would enjoy it.

This book is just so great that ZipcodeZoo.com named Lisa Couturier Nature Writer of the Year.

I live near an eight-lane freeway, and every time I hit the onramp, I look for the red-tailed hawk that can be seen most days scanning for his prey from his perch on a light pole. He would no doubt prefer better hunting grounds than this ice plant thatch that shelters suburban rodents, but after we humans filled in the nearby wetlands and covered the hills with house tracts, this is about all we've left for him. My daily glimpse of him is a vitamin to me, and a reminder that I don't have to travel to a national park to have an encounter with wildlife.

For readers who routinely seek soul-restoring encounters with all that is wild, Lisa Couturier's The Hopes of Snakes will be a tonic. To refer to this book as a collection of essays would create a far too stuffy impression of it. Part of the subtitle, Tales from the Urban Landscape, pegs it precisely: this is a collection of personal reminiscences, musings, meditations and analyses that make for darn good storytelling. The common thread that stitches together all of these tales with a seamless cohesiveness is Couturier's abiding respect for wild animals, many species of which are scorned and hated when they edge themselves back into habitats that were stolen from them by humans.

True to its title, there are uplifting tales here, not just of snakes, but of coyotes, turkey vultures, pigeon ladies, and many others. Nevertheless, this is not an anthology of sticky-sweet, cute animal stories. The overriding tone is one of reverence, not sentimentality. Even so, Couturier's poignance is often moving, and when you read "Take the Long Way Home," a posthumous letter of thanks to Mr. Boyd, Couturier's neighbor and mentor of her high school years, you just might find yourself shedding a tear or two.

Even in the deepest heart of a city, the animal world is all around us, as my freeway redtail reminds me every day. The Hopes of Snakes will help you rediscover, in case you ever forgot it, that despite all our collective efforts to turn wilderness into "civilization," humankind does not exist in isolation from our animal kindred.

Students of urban natural history and casual readers alike receive a celebration of Northeast urban wildlife in The Hopes Of Snakes & Other Tales From The Urban Landscape. Her thirteen essays observe urban animals from Manhattan skyscraper-dwelling falcons to mice who live on the subway tracks of New York. Wildlife has adapted to human habitations in surprising ways: hers is a celebration of the underlying world of animals which live alongside people.

Lisa writes about her experiences with wildlife that occupy cities and suburbia and how they interact with humans. As Lisa writes, some animals fare very well while others do not.

Lisa's ability to capture small details about the cirtters with whom she interacts make her essays all the more endearing and important. Although accused of anthropomorphising about the surivivors of the Human onslaught, her descriptions present an important understanding of urban wildlife and enable many otherwise unknowing citydwellers the opportunity to engage with nature's cast outs.

As Julie Warner said in Doc Hollywood: "Most people are merely on the Earth, not a part of it." Lisa Couturier gives us the opportunity to experience first hand those rare species that share their world with the Human invaders.