Washington Books

Washington Irving's (1783-1859) claim to fame is as a pioneer of American fiction, and he is widely recognized as the "father of American literature." The book that especially propelled him to fame was "The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent." which contained his two most famous fantasy stories - "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" - both of which are contained in this collection.

But it is not merely his ground-breaking efforts that garnered him literary recognition, because Irving's stories are at the same time characterized by charming and colourful prose befitting a skilled writer. The stories in this collection (the "Puffin Classics" series) are an excellent sampling of his craft. It's not always easy reading - in fact many of these stories would be too dense even for older children. His vocabulary is extensive, and sentences structure verbose and lengthy - a style rather unlike that employed by contemporary writers. But despite this, Irving demonstrates a wonderful command of the English language, and has the ability to create a vivid picture of his setting, characters and events. Particularly delightful is the attention he devotes to describing his characters. And yet his stories are far from mere character portraits - they are exciting and enchanting tales that make the reader eager to find out the outcome.

"Rip Van Winkle" has gained the status of a classic, and is familiar to most children, but likely few have read Irving's original. It breathes an authenticity and air not found in the contemporary abridged versions of the story. Irving presents his tale as the alleged discovered manuscript (complete with postscript) of the late Diedrich Knickerbocker. The delightful story of Rip Van Winkle - who fell asleep in the Catskill mountains after drinking a mysterious brew acquired from some strange little men, and then awoke 20 years later - will continue to please readers old and new. In the course of the story, Irving makes a profound social comment about the changes happening in his America. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is renowned for its chilling tale of the Headless Horseman, and is a Halloween favorite. Actually, however, it is much more than that. It is not so much a spooky tale of a legendary village ghost as it is a colourful tale about two rival suitors. Ichabod Crane is a simple school teacher who is in love with Katrina Van Tassel, and equally in love with the estates of her father, a wealthy Dutch farmer. His counter-part is the powerful local hero Bram Bones, whose affections for Katrina mirror those of Ichabod Crane, and who is determined to put an end to the affections of underdog Crane by a mysterious and elaborate trickery. As is evident also in his other stories, it is particularly fascinating how Irving exploits the supernatural superstitions of the popular mind to create a sense of mystery and fear, but himself gives a naturalist explanation that rises above such popular notions by explaining the supernatural with natural events.

Though lesser known, the other three stories in the "Puffin Classics" collection are equally enjoyable. "The Spectre Bridegroom" is one of the most fascinating tales in the collection. A young man is mistaken for a bridegroom and received into the castle of a wealthy baron as the husband of the baron's daughter. But before the marriage can be consummated, the bridegroom dashes off, and the baron's family hears shortly afterwards that he's been killed. But then who appears again except the bridegroom - or is it his ghost? - to steal his bride and vanish once more! In the end, it is a satisfying tale more of brilliant scheming than of ghosts - although the fearful superstitions of the general public about the supernatural play an important role in the effective execution of these schemes. "The Pride of the Village" is the tragic tale of a young lady whose heart pines in love for an army officer who has deserted her, only to die at his feet when he returns. "Mountjoy" is a wonderful study of an apparently incurable romantic, described by Irving as a "Castle-Builder". When Mr. Mountjoy discovers a delicate footprint on a sandy shore, his passion for metaphysics, creativity and romance leads him to dream up an imaginary beautiful young maiden, and he promptly fall passionately in love with the nymph of his dreams. The air castle he builds and its accompanying romanticism is crushed numerous times, even drowned, but each time is renewed and revived, just when it seems that "the cobweb romance I had been spinning" would be demolished completely. In the end Mr. Mountjoy meets the girl of his dreams, only to discover that his air castles need to be reshaped once more, and in the end, destroyed completely.

Readers used to the easy diet of modern fiction will find the pioneering work of Washington Irving rather tough to chew on. But those who delight in tasting words, biting on imaginative characters and settings, with a few sips of suspense and supernatural in the process, will discover that Washington Irving's stories are just the literary serving they are renowned to be: a classic. Irving won't please all children of the modern era. But children of literature who have acquired a fine literary taste will find that despite the heightened language of his time, Irving is still digestible and enjoyable.

Rip Van Winkle is a story of an regular man that came in contact with some irregular people that would change his life forever. It all started out one day when Rip decided to go hunting with his dog. Up to this point in his search for freedom, he had lived a sleepy and uneventfull life with two kids and a wife. He was always trying to get out of work and find a way out of doing everything. One day he gets fed up with his life and finds himself out in the woods hunting;There he gets asked by a strange man to carry a keg to a nine pin party. Also during this party he ends up getting drunk and finds himself dosing off to sleep. When he finally wakes up he has a long white beard and twenty years older! He had fallen asleep for twenty years and found that he was now old, grey and still alive. At this point in the story he goes back to the village where he had lived for so long and finds that his wife and friends had all passed away and had left him. He also finds that his daughter got married and was raising a family. She sees him one day and recognizes him to be the man that was once her father. At this point in Rip's life, all he wants to do is settle down and he is satisified to become the village story teller to all who would hear his tales. This is a tale of suspense and just plain old good reading for all ages. It was written many years ago and could speak to all people of all ages and races. I would recomend this book to anyone from my Grandfather to the Queen of England.

This is a highly readable and engaging book on the topic, covering the history of abortion laws from early 1800s to the Clinton years. To explain the legal shifts throughout those 200 years, the authors describe the social, political, religious and scientific forces that have lead up to each turning point, and how those shifts in turn have influenced further shifts in a seemingly never ending chain. They do so by presenting the various sides of the debate in an even-handed and concise manner, without losing depth on the one hand and without getting bogged down with technicalities on the other. What I found of particular interest was the behind-the-scenes debates of the Justices both in Griswold v. Connecticut and in Roe v. Wade that shed light on their final decision.

One of many controversial Supreme court cases in the United States is the case of Roe v Wade. Norma McCourvey was a 23 year old pregnant divorced women. Norma took on the name of Jane Roe to secure her identity infont of the public. Roe lived in the state of Texas. She wanted to terminate her pregnancy the only obstacle was that with in the state of Texas a women was not allowed to have an abortion unless her life depended on it.Roe was pregnant from an affair she had which caused her marriage to fail. Roe took the case to the Supreme court alleging that her rights were being violated and that under the amendments 1,4 9 and 14 she had a choice. The attorneys who would carry on this case were two young women named Sarh Weddington adn Linda Coffee. Both had recently graduated from the University of Texas. Sarah at the time was also pregnant,but would go on and have the child. Attorney Henry Wade was force with the decision to allow Norma nad other women to have an abortion. Two years after the case was presented the court decided that in fact a womens right to choose on what to do with her body was hers and nobody else.
I would reccomend this book to everyone who is interested in politics. Due to the fact that no matter how someone feels towards a certain topic you may never know what your decision might be. I might one day become a lawyer and reading this book opened my eyes ;to realize that I can not allow my morals and beliefs to get in the way of my profession. I would also reccomend this book to anyone who has strong feelings on whether abortion should be legal or not. Finally I just enjoyed this book because although abortion is a very controversial topic it is also one a very easy book to read and comprehend.

The secrets are out! Thierry has lifted the curtain on the magic show he runs at his Seattle restaurant. Rover's Restaurant has and does define the superlative in Seattle and I think even transcends the category. Every detail is superb and the dining is an prix fixe experience. With this cookbook, now you can try and try to replicate the delicate and wonderful flavors in your own kitchen. Although the recipes are complex, they are also simple and not too intimidating (or is that wishful thinking). The steps to each dish are well explained and the preparation tips and ideas are very helpful. I also appreciate a lot of the substitution ideas that can accelerate the process. I expect to apply the techniques I am learning on other recipes too.

As you will find in the description, the menu is a combination of French continental together with various influences from around the world.

I am only through about 1/2 the recipes so far and I am extemely pleased. This book is well written and enjoyable to read. I think it would make an excellent gift to yourself. You will be gratified and proud to create any of these dishes and be very pleased to consume them! Get this before your friends do!

Please also note a typesetting error on page 169. Go ahead and see if you detect the missing ingredient in the Pinot Noir Sorbet. It needs 3/4 cup of sugar.

Ever since I first dined at Rover's, 12 years ago, it has been my favorite restaurant, and the yardstick by which I measure all other restaurants. The food, the presentation, the imagination, the service, the ambiance, the wine, and the personalities all combine for an experience that, time after time, reaches perfection. With that in mind, I have been eagerly awaiting the publication of this book to find out how the Chef in the Hat does it, and how I can try to duplicate it at home.

Thierry and Cynthia have been able to capture the essence of Rover's in this beautiful book, with a list of recipes that is both intriguing and enticing, without creating a "This was done by a trained professional, and should not be attempted at home," coffee table book (as so often is the case from well known chefs). There are amazing recipes here that can be prepared in a home kitchen, with outstanding results. The reason for this is that Thierry has suggestions about de-intimidating the recipes. He gives you suggestions for options from the full blown recipe to less demanding preparations, with more common ingredients. He acknowledges that the home chef does not have an army of minions and an unlimited pantry saying, "I'd rather have you cook the recipe and enjoy it without garnish, rather than have you panic about shrimp roe and chervil sprigs!" But, oh, what wonderful results!

The book is also a pleasure to read, as Thierry's charisma, humor and touching recollections about home and family add considerable warmth and charm, much like his visits to the tables do at Rover's.

This book will sit on my shelf, alongside books from Charlie Trotter's, the French Laundry, and Jean-Louis. The difference is that within a few months it will not look new, like the others do. Instead, I expect that it will look like my copy of Julia Child's, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, with a broken spine and loose and spattered pages, from frequent use.

Although this book is geared to teaching younger elementary students about the Revolutionary War, the cartoon-style pictures may be appropriate for older elementary. By using a song, with words that teach the events of the war, children have a different vehicle for learning the information.

This whole series of fun songs about American History by Michael Dahl are great! My 3 year old daughter loves them as much as my 5 year old son. Since they love to sing, they learn the words very quickly and sing them OFTEN. But, it is very rewarding when we are reading another book about Washington crossing the Delaware and my son remembers that it was Christmas and that they were fighting the British!

"Sarah and Me and the Lady from the Sea," is part of a trilogy of excellent historical fiction books set on the Pacific coast of the Long Beach Penninsula in Washington State. The other titles are "O the Red Rose Tree," and "The Nickel-Plated Beauty." All three titles by Patricia Beatty take place in the same region, within a few years of each other at the turn of the 20th century. There are only a few common characters, so it doesn't really matter what order you read them in.

I like to compare these books to the Laura Ingalls Wilder titles. They were quite popular during our Washington State Centennial in 1989, and still get read by students who like historical fiction.

It's nice to see a review here by a student who says this is her favorite book. That says a lot. These titles are not on any "top ten" lists, but are certainly worth reading. Beatty has a knack for bringing an unknown part of history to life, and adding adventure, as well as accuarately describing the weather and locale of this region.

I recommend this book and the other two titles!

This is the best book i have ever read. I have asked my mom for it for Christmas. It is my favorite book and i read it in 5th grade and have been looking for it ever since. This is a great book for a book report seeing how it has one main character. It must not be very popular because it has 0 reveiws. It is about a girl (whos name i donot remember) whose family has some finacially bad problem due to a flood. They move to Washington for the summer. She meet a girl named Sarah who at first she despices but becomes friends with. They were riding on the beach when they find a lady who they found out was from Russia and had survived a terrible thunder storm on the ocean. This is a great book for preteens. like I said, it's my all time favorite book!

Someone recommended this book to me and gave it to me as a gift. I was less than thrilled until I started reading the book. I truly enjoyed it, far beyond what I had imagined. Bradley uses a light touch and every page is lifted with Bradley's unique sense of humor. Highly recommended.

I have been teaching for nearly 20 years and came across School Daze on the Internet. I purchased the book hoping to compare my first year as a teacher to Bradley's. When the book arrived, I read the book in two days. It is an extremely accurate portrayal of the life of a first year teacher. Also, the humor Bradley uses really takes the book to another level. I highly recommend School Daze.

I love this book. If you can get a copy that comes with the cd, do it. The music is so real, so encapsulating. I know you're going to love it, just as I do. My biggest recommendation is to get the book with the cd; I cannot stress this enough. You will feel the scene rise up in you. Ahhh...real, for once. In fact, leaf through the book while listening to the cd...it's an experience, to say the least.

If it's possible to see music, this is where to look. From Kurt's upside down guitar playing to Andy Wood's heartbreakingly direct gaze, these photos are riveting. I felt like I was there.

Having lived for many years in Seattle and the Northwest, I was eager to read this book. I am pleased to say that this book truly captures the essence of Seattle and is filled with wonderful text and photography.
Kudos to Mr. Rogers for a lovely and sensitively written book.

Most city photo books are for tourists, awards or perhaps libraries. They usually don't give you a sense of the people and emotions of the city just some photos of landmarks. Joel Roger's book is different because he knows Seattle so well and he is a great photojournalist. His book left me happy I live here and reminded me of many sweet and breathtaking moments. It is the perfect book to hand to my house guests when they arrive asking, "What should we do?"

Walt Crowley and his gang at historylink.org provide a valuable service to anyone interested in the history of Seattle, King County, and western Washington generally. While this book is necessarily less comprehensive (and less easily searched and updated) than the online version, it's still an interesting and informative browse-through for Emerald City residents and a good introduction to the greater wealth on their web site.

This small title's pages are packed with colorful illustrations and punchy copy. It probably works better to open and read it at random than to try to follow it systematically from page to page, because while it's basically organized chronologically, there are so many sections, subheads, and sidebars -- plus the timeline itself on nearly every page -- that trying to keep it all straight could get maddening. It's much more fun simply to open a page and read about why Seattle's streets aren't aligned north and south of Yesler Way, what happened to the communities known as Squack and Slaughter (they're still here, under different names) and why there were as many arguments about light rail 50 years ago as there are today.

On the whole, any Washington resident with an interest in this city would probably find something entertaining or worthwhile to justify browsing this title. Gene Logsdon writes that one of the ways to avoid provincialism is to know your own province really well. This book is one useful way for Seattleites to do that.

(...)This compact volume is chock full of interesting information, some of which has never appeared in other histories of Seattle. It is readable, very attractive, and includes mention of the September 11 attacks and other recent events.

Some of the new stories include Pioneer Henry Yesler's Native American family, the early smallpox epidemics that decimated the local tribes, the last several decades of the 20th Century, Ivar Haglund, and the arrival of the Buffalo Soldiers.

I'm buying several as gifts.

Just finished reading Murdoch's latest mystery. Great read for a rainy Seattle day! Love the cover!

if you lived in seattle, you will really appreciate reading this book. If you have never lived/visited seattle, you will still read it start to end in one seating. Must read novel...