Washington Books

I was floored when I finally got my hands on a copy of this book. The number and quality of the pictures is outstanding. Though there are both photos and drawings (I usually prefer photos) the level of detail in each hand drawn illustration is first rate. Illustrations are of recovered artifacts, both those with a known purpose as well as some who's purpose is as yet unknown. Descriptions and additional pictures of the use of the tools/artifacts makes this book a fine addition to any bookshelf.

It's been awhile since I picked it up, but I was impressed by the ease with which a layperson could understand the intricacies of the lore and ethnology of the Native Americans. The photographs and drawings are beautiful, the information about artifacts and culture are accurate.

As we traveled along Interstate 10 between New Orleans and "Red Baton," I mused about the girders which held the highway up out of the bayous. What must travel or life in general have been like in that part of Louisianna a century or so ago.

George Washington Cable first collected these seven stories about Louisianna and published them in 1888. He calls them true stories. They are stories from times before his own from 1782 to after the Civil War. At the same time these stories are strange to Cable because life had changed so much in Louisianna between the time that the stories occurred and his own time.

The stories start with the story of Louise who came to Louisianna and almost became the dinner of a local chief. This tragic tale is quickly followed by the "bright and happy" story of Francoise and Suzanne who travel through the "wilds" of Atchafalaya. Alix's story is next. She was once introduced to Marie Antoinette. Then the French Revolution came and Alix lost her first husband. She will be a character that I long admire but I ask you to read the story to see why. Salome Muller was a German who lost most of her family enroute to Louisianna. (Some 1200 of the 1800 who attempted to make that trip never arrived.) Salome became a slave. Yet some 20 years or so later her family took her case to the State Supreme Court to free her. The
"haunted house" is the house of Madame Lalaurie who chose to save her possessions rather than her slaves when a fire burned her house. The story of Attalie Brouillard reminds me of the con men of the movie "The Sting" with Paul Newman and Robert Redford. The last story is a diary of a Union woman who lived in the South during the Civil War. To these I would like to add the story of George W Cable who begins his book by telling his readers how he got these other seven stories.

These are true stories from people who lived in Creole Louisianna, a time strange to us now.

Seven unusual, true stories set in Louisiana comprise the reissue of George Washington Cable's STRANGE TRUE STORIES OF LOUISIANA. First published in 1888, these stories are a gold mine of cultural lore and historical facts. As interesting as the stories themselves are the accounts of how Cable acquired them.

"The Young Aunt with White Hair" is set in Spanish occupied Louisiana in 1782 and describes the horrors experienced by a young woman on the long journey to New Orleans from Germany: robbed by sailors on the ship; an Indian attack near the mouth of the Mississippi River, during which her husband and baby are brutally murdered; being held captive by Indians and told she was to be the chief's dinner. Her ordeal was so great that her hair turned snow white in a matter of hours, and she never recovered from the experience.

Humor and suspense make "The Two Sisters" just plain fun to read. Two teenage girls- one a tomboy and one a demure, sweet lady- undertake a dangerous trek across the Atchafalaya swamp to North Louisiana in 1795. It's not only a good story, but the details of clothing, places and people are priceless. "Plaquemine was composed of a church, two stores, as many drinking-shops, and about fifty cabins, one of which was the courthouse. Here lived a multitude of Catalans, Acadians, Negros and Indians. ..It was at Plaquemine that we bade adieu to the old Mississippi.."

The story if "Alix de Morainville" reads like a fairy tale: the birth-deformed baby farmed out to a peasant family; the arranged marriage that turns out to be a love match; the convent stay; the marriage of dear friend Madelaine to Count Louis de la Houssaye and the couple's departure for the Louisiana colony; presentation to Queen Marie Antoinette; Aleix's grand wedding at Notre Dame Cathedral; the onset of the French Revolution; widowhood; rescue; and flight first to England and then to Louisiana.

The other stories are "Salome Muller, The White Slave," "The Haunted House in Royal Street," "Attalie Brouillard," and "War Diary of a Union Woman in the South."

This book is the most incredible collection of random scribbling I will ever find. This, Roethke's 'Collected Poems' and Camus' 'Lyrical & Critical Essays' comprise my collection of most sacred books. The outstanding feature of Straw for the Fire is that the scribblings are so overwhelming emotionally. Roethke is one of the most underrated poets to ever exist, and his talent is so obvious by this book of spur the moment thoughts and unfinished poems. If you love Roethke's work -- any or all of it -- this is a must-have. It says so much about him as a poet, a human being, someone whose confusion and awe of life are so charismatic. His weakness and strength shows plainly and beautifully in this incredible collection.

i first saw this book in the hands of a boy who admired the brevity and stark reality of these words. these lingering tangents are for readers who sometimes admire just the leaves rather than the whole tree.

I have listened to Shari Rush talk as well as I have read her book and meet her. She is unbelivebly inspirational, just hearing everything she has been through showed me how bad people have it and how much we need to be there for them.

I had the unique opportunity to hear Shari Rusch speak at a high school graduation ceremony, and then I read her book. Everyone who has ever known anyone with learning disabilities should read this book. It was heart-warming and very inspiring. My problems seem very small in comparison to hers, and anytime I am discouraged, I will try and remember what she accomplished even with all those strikes against her.

They Dream, They Cry, They Sing is an outstanding anthology of Spanish/English bilingual poems that will please students and adults wanting to hone their linguistic skills and enjoy the wonderful word-play in both languages that this superb collection offers. Moonrise: When the moon comes up/bells fade away/and hidden pathways/return./When the moon comes up/the sea covers the earth/and your heart seems/an island in space./No one eats oranges/beneath the full moon./You have to eat green and icy fruit./When the moon comes up/with a hundred identical faces/silver coins/in your pockets sob. (Federico Garcia Lorca)

They Dream, They Cry, They Sing is an outstanding anthology of Spanish/English bilingual poems that will please students and adults wanting to hone their linguistic skills and enjoy the wonderful word-play in both languages that this superb collection offers. Moonrise: When the moon comes up/bells fade away/and hidden pathways/return./When the moon comes up/the sea covers the earth/and your heart seems/an island in space./No one eats oranges/beneath the full moon./You have to eat green and icy fruit./When the moon comes up/with a hundred identical faces/silver coins/in your pockets sob. (Federico Garcia Lorca)

This book shows the history of Mount Rainier National Park, from Sunset to Paradise. The photos are great and the paragraphs are informative and don't run on. The book also goes into the history of the 14,411 foot Stratovolcano, and how 5,600 years ago, the peak was at 16,500 feet, but a major eruption caused a massive collapse and created the peak we know, love and cherish today.

The Sleeping Giant... The Mountain...Mount Rainier...

Years ago I hiked at Mt. Rainier, took pictures in its flower meadows, and slid in its summer snow. I thought someday I'd climb its glaciers to the summit, 14, 410 feet. That never happened. But this book brings back all the old impressions and delights-and adds to them. Lots of photos (280!). Lot of information, most of it new to me. Richard P. Kratz, M.D. Clinical Professor, Ophthalmology Univ. California, Irvine

As one who grew up just a block from No 26th & Proctor St's I highly recommend this wonderful historical review of this neighborhood shopping district during the 20th century. The pictures tell it like it was and they cover almost everything of any importance that went on there.

A great read for anyone who is interested in Tacoma. Lots of key photograps on the fire station, Washington school, bowling alley and many other landmarks including the building where the NW shop is now.

Seeing the historical buildings through the years in this small neighborhood is pretty amazing.

Thanks for writing this book Bill.

Beth and Allen Cheng live a quiet life with their three small children in the small town of Bellevue, Washington, close to the mountains of the west coast. Beth works as a wildlife biologist and her current project is tracking the goat population through the high elevations.

Though Beth enjoys her job, Allen hates that she must work to supplement their household income. They had agreed that she would work so he could take the pastor's position at a small local church.

The story describes their quiet, yet comfortably hectic family life as Beth leaves for the airport to board a small plane that will take her high above the mountainous terrain to count the goats. While she and her family go about their routine, Dennis Doyle experiences a far different existence.

Instead of family, he has chosen a life of solitude deep in the hills, as far from humanity as he can get. His Vietnam past haunts him even after thirty years if living alone.

Beth and Dennis eventually cross paths high in the mountains. Her Asian appearance brings back the nightmares of the jungles of Vietnam and he has moments where he can no longer distinguish between the past and the present. Beth, being strong in her faith, fears for her life, but she knows God has a purpose for putting her with this troubled man.

Bette Nordberg brings to life the horrors of war and how the experience can manifest itself in one's mind. She does a wonderful job of helping the reader get to know Dennis Doyle and Beth Cheng. And, though Dennis appears on the surface to be a selfish, crazy hermit, we come to find that he still has a warm heart no matter how hard he tries to stay detached.

And Beth, though she is thrown into a situation where she must face much suffering, she questions her faith, but she never falters. She continues to seek God's will and asks for guidance and strength through Him.

Bette Nordberg has produced another work of dazzling fiction. The suspense in Thin Air kept me glued to the pages even when other responsibilities called. I lived in the skin of Beth, feeling her pain when the plane crashed, her longing for kids and husband, her fear she would never see them again. I came to understand Viet Nam vets in a way I never could in the past--even though I am married to one. Bravo to Nordberg once again. I eagerly await her next novel.

I have absolutely zero natural sense of direction so this guide is perfect in its level of detail. It seems to cover every inch of Portland, including a full street index in the back that makes it easy to locate an address.

I have purchased the Thomas Guides for Portland for the last several years and have found them to be an absolutely indespensible navigational aid. Every street in the metro area and surrounding suburbs is detailed within this guide. Its comprehensive detail and ease of use make it a real help. If you have to drive in Portland even occassionally I cannot recommend strongly enough that you buy this guide.

I decided not to go fancy, and buy a GPS navigation system. However I wanted a reasonably compact map book that I could carry in my truck. I drive mostly in Pierce County. I gave this map book a five because it illustrates all the local roads, and points of interest, at a fine level of detail. I use this all the time to look for shortcuts or to route around traffic jams and construction. Even if I had GPS navigation, I would still keep this book as a backup.

If you're still using paper maps instead of GPS, this one is the one to have. Without a doubt, get the 3 county instead of the single King county map. It's big, but it's effective. Load the free cd in your computer too.