Educational Books

Stanford's book is an easy read about reforming public education. He is no fan of charters or vouchers, which he thinks draws money away from public education. He also believes that increases in funding must be tied to student and system performance and not granted because the public "ought" to support educational levies.

This former director the the US Military Logistic Command knows how to marshal resources and arguments for reform. His strongest point is his systems perspective--that is, all the systems of the schools must be aimed at one fundamental objective. His was to develope a "world class student-focused learning system by 1999." He tied this statement to every plan made within a complex 47,000-student system. He does not provide the testing data to substantiate his plans, but he gives great examples of an achievment-oriented system development.

This book should be in every school library in the world (in translation, where necessary). Stanford tells us how to make public schools really work.

I was at first a bit put out by his advocacy of "running schools like a business," having all too often heard that phrase as an excuse for placing cost reduction above all other goals. But Stanford clearly recognizes and strongly emphasizes that the correct BOTTOM LINE for a school is STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVMENT! The proper test of a proposed expenditure is its anticipated effect on SAA (Student Academic Achievment) per dollar spent. Projects should be prioritized by decreasing improvement in SAA per dollar.

The most important qualification for a school administrator is not knowledge of teaching, but ability to be an effective LEADER. The successful school administrator must have the LEADERSHIP to get several constituencies enthusiastically involved in achieving a high level of SAA. These constituencies include not only teachers, school staff, and students; but also other government entities, parents, businesses, the media, and the general public.

The leader should practice management by support rather than management by intimidation. The intimidated will concentrate on keeping a low profile and covering their backsides. The leader can benefit little from such people, because no leader can provide all the needed creativity. (S)he must encourage and reward constructive suggestions from teachers, staff, students, parents, businesses, other government entities, and the general public.

In the three years before he lost his battle with leukemia, Stanford caused an enormous improvement in the Seattle Public Schools. His methods and practices could be employed in any school system, with great benefit not only to the students, but also to teachers, staff, businesses, and the public. But also read Radical Equations: Civil Rights from Mississippi to the Algebra Project, by Robert P. Moses. Moses' book complements Stanford's. If you are a parent of school-age children, or expect to be, and you want the best possible education for your children, you need the Algebra Project, which was started by Robert Moses, and is described in his book.

Both books should be required reading for every school administrator and everyone involved in the selection of a school administrator.

watziznaym@gmail.com

I found Stanford's book to be a blueprint for educational reform. He was not merely a theorist; he was an activist who took his vision from the black board to the the hearts and minds of the students. He didn't propose, he purposed. Read this book...you need to read this book if you are unclear about the means, if you need to know HOW to enact change in the bureaucratic jungle of miasmic, lackluster schools.

What I enjoyed reading about was how he emphasized having a heart for the students, caring for them with compassion and keeping their interests at the center of all educational activities. Next, I found that he wrote persuasively about running schools more like businesses than the anachronistic centers of regurgitation. Finally, I was energized by his results; although he only had three years in Seattle schools to enact many of his plans before his hard passing, the momentum has started.

This needs to be on the book shelves of administrative offices of schools across the country, but it needs to be read by anyone concerned about how to engage our students for higher achievement in learning, now.

I just graduated with a Elem. Ed degree and live in the Seattle area so I knew of Mr. Stanford before his passing. All new teachers and anyone involved with schools should read this book. Mr. Stanford details out how schools need to communicate within their walls (strategies on curricula, etc) and out in the community. He has suggestions directed at teachers, principals, parents, and businesses and how they can impact and contribute to the schools. We lost a great leader but can continue his fight for the kids!

I have not yet read this book, which has just come out. It was excerpted in last Sunday's Seattle newspaper, and the excerpt was both inspiring and exciting. It is extraordinary that this book was published posthumously. It is extraordinary that General Stanford admits that he flunked 6th grade, and had his teacher not had the courage and love to fail him, he would not have ultimately succeeded. Courage and love are the motifs of his writing

I purchased this coloring book for my 8 year old nephew. He loves to color but does not like the basic color books. This book is very detailed and offers children a challenge. In addition it has a lot of information about each scene, teaching children. Beautiful book.

This is an excellent coloring book for adults who like to color, it has fine detail, fine coloring detail. it is a great collectors item

the pictures are great for my little ones to color. they enjoy hearing the descriptions under the pictures as well.

If your child enjoys animals, then he/she will enjoy this coloring book. It has realistic pictures of animals in their natural habitat. Also included at the bottom of each page is a desciption of flowers, insects, etc. seen in the background or foreground.

I just purchased these Dover COloring Books for my mother and she loves them. The detail is out of this world and the variety of colors you can use are only limited by your inagination. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

The book is medium-it isn't an easy book you only play once and then you're bored, but it isn't very difficult. Some of the arrangements are needlessly crazy, but some are well done. A piano player of about 3-5 years is about the right level.

The piano and vocals are clearly printed which makes for a good quality score. Chords for each harmony are printed in the vocal sections but not in the introductary measures. Difficulty of music depends on the particular song for example, "Somewhere" and "One Hand, One Heart" are easier. I've enjoyed playing this music and would recommend it.

If you want to play/arrange/orchestrate or simply see the genius of Berstein, this is the way to go. As an arranger, I needed reference to orchestrate a West Side Story Medley for a show, and I'm not talking your regular "standard" tunes. This vocal score is also a piano reduction of the orchestrations and was aboslutely what I needed. You can see nearly every instrument line, counter melody, even instrument indications. This was the best $50.00 I may have every spent. Saved me hours and hours of trying to "lift" off the lines. They were all there, even for the dance sections from Cool & The Rumble, which is what I really needed. Don't hestitate if you're looking for the real Berstein stuff!

The music from West Side Story is captivating, and I love being able to relive it again and again. Hearing the music from the show takes you back to the story of a modern-day Romeo and Juliet.

If you're looking for a faithful translation from the full score, this is the one. This score is based on Bernstein latest revision as reflected in the Carreras Te Kanawa recording (1985).

But be warned, this score is only for upper-intermediate/advanced pianist, classically trained. It's not a fakebook, it's not a simplified/reduced piano score for casual use. The arrangement gives two alternatives for playing some part of the song, and you can choose to play it the hard way or the easier way (which is still rather difficult). The hard way is of course the most faithful to the orchestral score.

For example, the dance part in "America" can be played by using single notes of the left hands rather than using full chord, which is great if you're trying to cope with the tempo. The arrangement for the slow pieces such as "one hand one heart", "maria", "tonight", and "somewhere" is really beautiful.

Tip: Listen to the "west side story" conducted by Bernstein himself to get a grasp of the tempo, dynamics and phrasing.

Give your child the background on which the rest can be built.
Teach them the contents of the needs-to-know series, then the school text books will make sense.

I got this book to help prepare for the PRAXIS test for Elementary Education Teachers. I have found the book to be very informative. I have heard it is very helpful for a study aid for the PRAXIS so hopefully it pays off for me!

Want to know what your child should be learning??? This is a great book to help your child along, help keep up, keep interested, or keep learning in the summer. Excellent reference for interested parents.
Jeannine C

This is an essential reference book if your child is a sixth grader in a school using Hirsch's "Core Knowledge" curriculum. An amazing amount of information is packed in to this book and is presented in an understandable and interesting way with helpful pictures (mostly in color in the visual art section) and maps and graphs as needed. All major sixth grade subjects are covered (with the exception of PE and foreign language). If your child's school doesn't follow core knowledge don't expect this to be a guide to what he is learning in sixth grade as it may be quite different. However it could still be an interesting supplemental book for your child since it is filled with information a well educated adult should know.

I bought this book to prepare my child for Beestar online tests for sixth graders. Due to the vast differences among schools and teachers in teaching science and social studies, students often receive a rather unbalanced treatment of the subjects in their classroom. This book comes as a rescue of the situation. It tells you clearly what your child needs to know as a sixth grader. My child studied several important chapters from this book that somehow were never taught by his teachers. And yes the knowledge is essential and is needed in state standardized tests.

I highly recommend this book for aiding in the preparation for any general knowledge test. It takes you all the way through iambic pentameter to Benito Juarez. The math and science sections are wonderful as well. It provides very complex information in a very user-friendly manner. I'm very glad that we had this book.

I found this to be a beautifully written & illustrated book about the renewal of each day. The story begins with a little boy sad to see the day end and his mother explaining to him that the day ends so night can begin. . . The prose is soothing and imaginative . . . the message is about how they day can end for you, but it begins again in another place for someone else. . . it seems to me to be a gentle way of talking about letting go. . . letting go of the day, of the season, of the wind, of things, so that these things can carry on in a different way. I think it is a great way for a child to begin to understand about the finite nature of life. Also, is addresses the immediate and strong feeling of my toddler of NO NIGHT NIGHTS!!! The prose is so soothing and imaginative it actually lulled my child to sleep. The illustrations are colorful and beautiful. An EXCELLENT book.

I can't say enough about this beautiful book. In fact, if I sound like I'm gushing, it's only because I'm completely in love with it. Zolotow's prose is lovely and lyrical, and Vitale's illustrations are gorgeous--dynamic and colorful, with enormous attention to detail, whimsical, and engaging; the use of paint on wood makes them all the more unique and reinforces the nature themes of the story. My two and a half year old son thoroughly enjoys looking at the many facets of each illustration.

To put it plainly, this is no dry exposition of the seasons and the earth's rotation--it is a gently spiritual book that uses the facts of ecology to point to the Eternal and, also indirectly, to the active benevolence of the Universe. If the reader so desired, this book could be used as a springboard to discussions about reincarnation or the continuance of the Spirit. Even leaving all that alone, this book makes a wonderful statement about the loveliness of nature and the impermanence of all states of being. Plus, it reassures children that bedtime and sleep are just as natural as morning and waking time, and just as important and lovely in the grand scheme of things. Now THAT'S beautiful!

This is a soothing, inspiring book that illustrates the truth and meaning of the eternal circle of life. It is a comfort book, and a spiritual revelation. A must for Pagan parents, and all parents. The illustrations are deep and beautiful.

"When the Wind Stops" has a very simple beginning. After a day in which the great bright yellow sun has been shining all day the sun is getting ready to sink beneath the horizon. But as the day is coming to an end a little boy is sorry to see the day end. We learn of some of the simple things he did during the day, playing with his friend in a garden and listening to his father read him a story, and when his mother come to say good night the little boy asks, "Why does the day have to end?" Author Charlotte Zolotow ("Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present," "William's Doll") provides the answer to that eternal question and others in a similar vein in lyrical prose.

The simple answer, of course, is that the day does not end but begins somewhere else. Not only the sun but the wind and the mountain tops, the waves and the rain, are all presented as being parts of the great cycle of life. One day the little boys and girls who ask such questions will be taking science courses and will receive more detailed explanations for the changing of the seasons, the water cycle, and other natural cycles. But in "When the Wind Stops" they will find the same grand ideas expressed in simple and lyrical terms. The stunning paintings by Stafano Vitale ("The Folks in the Valley: A Pennsylvania Dutch ABC," "Christmas Lullaby") are done on wood, adding a lovely dimension to this exquisite little book that will charm inquisite children and their caring parents alike.

In easy language with good illustrations, this book will help children to understand why the day has to end, where the wind goes when it stops, where the waves go when they break on the sand, where does the rain go, etc.

The story flows like a poem, yet offers insight into complex concpets, and demonstrates life's eternal evolution and motion.

First, let me point out that I am a retired school superintendent and I wrote the book, School Corruption: Betrayal of Children and the Public Trust. So from that perspective, I found Karen's book to be a shocking revelation even to me. Her incredible documentation of teacher abuse has opened up an entirely new category of school corruption. I am ashamed to admit that even though I spent five years researching corruption for my book, I did not identify the problem that she has exposed so powerfully and courageously.

Based on the words that are used to define "corruption", I categorized them as follows: cheating and deceitful practices, waste and mismanagement, and fraud and stealing, but teacher abuse does not fit the categories. Only one word fits "teacher abuse" and that is the word "evil" (one of the words that defines "corruption"). That is the only word to describe teacher abuse. So now I must add "evil practices" to my three categories.

What makes her book so compelling is the first hand accounts from so many different individuals who have been the victims of uncovering wrongdoing in school practices. They all chose ethical behavior and their concerns for students over their own careers. The real problem is why are board members, who are supposed to represent the public and students in monitoring school resources, so impervious to the plight of honest souls who are willing to sacrifice themselves if need be? The administrators retaliating is no surprise, but school board members participating in such retaliation is hard to understand and accept. Of course, as she points out, there are many others who participate in the retaliation by refraining to do anything about it and that includes the one group that should be protecting them--the teacher's union.

Now that the problem of teacher abuse has been exposed, one can only hope that support will be provided to those with such courage and ethics, and that actions will be taken to protect those who are certainly viewed as "whistleblowers."

Because of school scandals in many New York districts, legislative reforms were enacted. Among the original recommendations was protection of whistleblowers that would have provided action against those who retaliate; unfortunately, it did not pass as part of the reform legislation. It certainly would have been the kind of support honest souls needed, and would have encouraged others to expose injustices and corruption by school administrators.

Obviously, Karen is to be commended for her dedication and skill in exposing the truth about teacher abuse and by keeping the discussion and interest active through her National Association to Prevent Teacher Abuse. Perhaps her book and activism will be the catalysts for enacting reforms that will protect teachers who expose "evil practices." Let's hope so.

I taught at Navarro ISD in Geronimo, TX. I taught there for the final 3.5 of my 10.5 years of teaching. The .5 is the buyout I agreed to instead of filing a whisteblower complaint in District Court against the Administration and Board of Navarro ISD. I filed over 2,000 pages of documented violations of Texas Education Law with the school district and the Texas Education Agency. Neither the school board, the TEA or the local newspapers did anything. 25 clear and documented violations of law and they did nothing!! I even turned my entire files over to the local newspaper, the Seguin Gazette...who did nothing. The bad part...I found out when I left that I was not the only one who had been ostracized, demonized, and essentially forced out of public education. I was one of many. But I would not go quietly!!!

Come on Oprah...I dare you to read the book and take the challenge to do an expose on what really happens in education in the U.S.

A scholarly and comprehensive work documenting what is happening to teachers all over the nation once they are targeted for "removal" from the classroom. This displacement takes many forms. It can be forced retirement, failure to be "reinstated", "reassignment" or outright termination of teachers from their careers that they have held for decades. It starts with harassment, a hostile work environment, and the infamous "U" rating which enables the public school hierarchy to dismiss teachers via "the process". False charges of incompetence usually close the deal of getting rid of teachers who have been anything other than "subordinate" to public school administrators who must fulfill their business agendas. It is the idealistic, competent, talented, committed teachers who are targeted. It is often those with outstanding skills and experience, those who cared, whose only crime was to speak out about the abuses are being hidden behind the closed doors of academia. They are replaced with "newbies," the younger, newly "certified" teachers, straight out of colleges, teachers training and certification mills, who, unknowingly, also face a limited shelf life in the present teaching system, before they too, are replaced, and their lives and careers are destroyed. For over a decade, Karen Horwitz has documented the heinous practice of teacher abuse that has infected our nations' education system and which only now rising into our common awareness. A must read for all concerned about education, our children and our nation's future.

I'm sure that as word gets out about this book, there will be others who will share here a brief summary of their "treatment" by the current nightmare that is the education system. As Horwitz points out at the beginning of the book, it will be hard to believe the stories related within its pages; they are too frightening to believe. I can tell you that they are true; we're not makin' this stuff up. How could school administrators treat teachers so poorly? How could administrators be so uncontrolable? How can they act with such impunity? How could school boards be so blind, trusting, and in some cases, collude with these corrupt administrators? How could state boards of education look the other way when notified of these behaviors? How can the courts not see and give appropriate, legal relief to those affected rather than side with the corrupt school officials, further adding to the harassment of good, honest teachers?

Horwitz details ten years of data collection of these horror stories of individual teachers who have tried to protect their students and themselves from power-hungry administrators. The lengths to which these administrators go to eliminate concerned teachers is astounding: lies, bullying, destruction of careers, falsifying documents, coercing other teachers to join in the shunning of the targeted teacher. Those of us who have been through it understand that this is NOT an effort to weed out poor teachers, but is, in fact, an effort to weed out the good, vocal teachers who are morally opposed to the actions of these administrators in order to bring in inexperienced, pliant teachers, fresh out of college who will just be ground up by unreasonable demands of the overloaded system in a few years anyway.

My story includes the elimination of my ability to provide "rigorous" curriculum to my students by limiting my ability to use the National History Day curriculum in my classroom. It includes numerous verbal attacks from the principal and surrogates in the office staff as well as fellow teachers who needed to curry favor with the building principal for their own survival or protection. It includes constant reminders that "if you don't like it here, you can go someplace else." It ended with the witnessing of bullying of STUDENTS by the principal and my attempts to get SOMEBODY to do SOMETHING about it. My "inconvenient truth" gave the district grounds to get rid of me and allowed the principal to have a "leave of absence" for a year and return to the district by apply as an assistant superintendent in charge of teaching and learning. Oh, yes, and there was the "no trespass order" signed out against me and my wife (who "retired" six years early rather than continue to work under these people) by the administrator who originally refused to listen to my reports of abusive behavior by the principal. Nice little club they've got there.

Administrators will surely mount a counter-attack that these victims are just "complainers" or "crazy" or in some other way "deficient." The truth, however, is that it is the administrators themselves who are the deficient ones--devoid of morals and eager to control others in order to get what they want for themselves, NOT "for the children" as they so often claim.

This is a "must read" book for any parent who has children in public school as well as for any college student thinking about making teaching their career. A word of warning: don't.

A shattering expose of how the multi-billion dollar world of education in America has been turned into a business. This seminal work by an expert who has spent her entire life in the field of education pulls back the curtain and exposes the almost unbelievable degree of corruption that exists in the Wizard of Oz world of educating our nation's children.

It has become less about what is good for children and more about how tens of thousands of people, reaching to the highest levels of government have found countless ways to skim and milk the system of money that should be going towards helping educate children in the classroom.

Teachers nationwide who dare to expose this corruption, that manifests itself in countless different forms, (both within schools proper as well as inside the labyrinthian bureaucracies that control the funding), are dealt with swiftly and harshly.

I myself was one such Whistle-blower who attempted to report massive corruption, financial mismanagement and ongoing Federal Civil Rights violations occurring in schools in New York City. My reward for doing the right thing was that I was removed on trumped up allegations and found myself fighting a "David versus Goliath" legal battle for the past four years and counting.

Should anyone wish to know the real reason/s I was removed from my position, it is only necessary to visit the United Federation of Teachers website:

http://www.uft.org/news/teacher/top/axed/

There one will see a photograph of me being decorated by former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani in New York's City Hall as a "Teacher of the Year" for Exceptional Achievement in Education. I had designed, built from the ground up, and personally funded, the first premiere Medical Illustration Program in the United States for gifted Minority students. The goal of the program was to serve as a launching pad to propel those highly intellectually gifted students from socio-economically deprived backgrounds into Ivy League Universities and into careers including Medicine, as Physicians and research Scientists.

The success of this unique program was such, that it attracted the attention of Pulitzer Prize winning Journalist, Clara Hemphill.

But once I became a Whistle-blower the New York City Board/Dept of Education went after me with a blistering degree of vengeance and retaliation not witnessed in decades and has led to the Legal arm, known as NYSUT, of the United Federation of Teachers, filing a $ 30,000,000 (thirty million) NOTICE OF CLAIM against schools Chancellor Joel Klein, Esq. and the New York City Board of Education on my behalf.

My case, in the way the press and other assorted news media have reported the above story, in the most skewed and distorted manner possible, makes the case one of the poster children of Karen Horwitz's amazingly factually detailed book. Ms. Horwitz recounts dozens of stories, like my own, all part of an ultimately shocking and illuminating expose of how the world of Education has become a form of billion dollar "piggy bank" for those in a position to raid and feed at the trough of publicly funded Education budgets.

The countless stories of the fates that have befallen teachers nationwide and the abusive, often sadistic and illegal methods that have been utilized to retaliate against and silence teachers who have tried to report egregious wrongdoing and outright theft of taxpayer money is ultimately heartbreaking but a story that must be told.

This is a landmark and seminal book, painstakingly researched over a decade, that will hopefully serve and assist the long overdue need to expose the rampant theft of the enormous financial resources that are intended to educate our children. This monumental work will also hopefully call the public's attention to what has happened to the lives and careers of hardworking, dedicated educators nationwide, who at great personal and professional risk to their careers, have spoken out about WHITE CHALK CRIME: The REAL Reason Schools Fail.

David Pakter, M.A., M.F.A. Artist and Instructor of Medical Illustration
www.OldMasterPortraits.com david@OldMasterPortraits.com

Troen and Boles give a grim outlook for the state of public education in the United States, but they offer hope and some real solutions for improving education. They believe strongly in professionalizing teachers and they should be listened to. I highly recommend this book!

Everyone's talking about the need for great teachers in every classroom. Almost nobody is encouraging their own smart, well-educated, creative son or daughter to consider teaching as a CAREER. This book explains the disconnect and what we need to do about it. How to make teaching an attractive career for well-educated young people who can write, who enjoy mathematics, who like being with children -- that is the key issue that no one else is talking about. This book gets real. - a former classroom teacher

The malaise of education seems pretty obvious to many people and the first half of their short book provides a summary of that common harangue in clear, solid, soundbite-proof language. The authors identify what they call a Trilemma Dysfuntion in schools that has a crippling effect on reform strategies. First, since there are "not enough academically academically able students...being drawn to teaching," the pool of talent and ambition has diminished. Second, "teacher preparation programs need substantial improvement," since their certification and renewal procedures have historically been much less than rigorous. Third, "the professional life of teachers is on the whole unacceptable," that is, professional development and growth opportunities remain stagnant. These three dysfunctions feed into and maintain a malformed culture in schools. What is worse, teachers have operated for so long under this cultural dysfuntion that they regulate themselves with their own myopic, bureaucratic chains (cf. Foucault's Panopticon).

What really made this book a wonderful reading and learning experience for me, though, remains in their providing hope, that is, a plan. Since teacher improvement lies at the heart of any educational reform strategy, the authors declare that empowering teachers to do their job well must be the premise and promise of the profession. Their blueprint for school reform contains the Millennium School, an attempt to revive the profession of teaching, re-organize the roles of educational personnel, and improve educational leadership. The bedrock principles that comprise the Millennium School consist of four tenets: first, "multi-tiered career paths for teachers," next, "teaching in teams instead of in isolation," then, "performance-based accountability," and finally, "ongoing professional development for all teachers and principals" (p. 185).

I suppose that I am a little jealous of the authors. They have written the book that I have always wanted to write. This is my way of giving it very high praise because it resonated with me in a profound manner. If I were to criticize it, it would be that for all its fine writing, eloquent arguments, and scholarly support, the authors do not provide a Millennium School model at the High School level (my arena), only at the Elementary School level. (Wait. Maybe there is still time to consider writing that book after all. Better go now--)

Do you have children in school? For anyone interested in education - whether they're a parent, teacher, policymaker, legislator - this book explains why education reforms fail. It's an inside look into the classroom, the culture of teaching, the reasons why teachers are so poorly prepared for the realities of classroom life, about the culture of schools, and mainly why there's a critical shortage of over 2 million teachers. Do you believe that classroom instruction is getting worse? Do you think that teachers of today are less capable than the teachers of 20 years aago? Do you think your children are getting teachers who are not as smart as the teachers you had when you were in school? Well, you're right, and this book tells you why. It's the truth, and yet it's so well written, it reads like fiction. The authors reveal the history behind how classroom teaching got to be the way it is, and then they tell you how it could all be better. How teaching could be a respected profession, like medicine or law, and what it would take. They describe the "perfect" school, and how to construct it. We spend, as a society, billions of dollars on schools and terribly much of it is wasted. This book tells us how we could make our money better spent, and how we could get the teachers our children deserve.

With all the talk about "Leaving No Child Behind," it's refreshing to read a book that explains clearly and credibly how the entire teaching profession has been left behind. While the state of teaching in the United States is truly disheartening, Ms. Troen and Ms. Boles give us hope that it can, in fact, be resurrected. One can only hope that enough people heed their sage advice.

This book addresses the issues related to trauma that are prevalent within our schools. We are often so busy focusing on educational issues that we do not get to the core issue....the presence of trauma. In this book, readers are given helpful insights to acknowledge trauma as a learning issue....and the potential for creating resources for students to help them to thrive. This is a tremendously important piece of work.

I have completed reading this book and found it to be both revealing and alarming. I am neither an educator or parent but I found myself glued to the next page. She is both an excellant writer and quite engaging.

What struck me most about her book is its honesty and the courage to speak openly about helping our kids to be the best they can be. She has challenged our educators and parents to step up to the plate and acknowledge that many of the problems are preventable and in many cases misdiagnosed.

Reading the stories about the children she has worked with was just heartwrenching and insightful.

The amount of PASSION Dr. Melrose shared with her readers about this important work on behalf of our children and the future of our society was beyond commendable.

I have passed the book on to friends and expressed how vital it is for all of us to be eductaed about what is happening to the future of our children and their education. Furthermore, this book helps you to recognize what you can do about it.

We are all better off having this kind of material and education at our fingertips. Kudos and many applause to Dr. Melrose for caring about our children enough to say enough already!!!

This book is an excellent resource for both teachers and parents. I can relate many examples in the book to different children I have taught over the years. I have more insight into their behavior and now have a resource to help deal with it. As a parent, I am aware of what to look for in my child and can be proactive.

Dr. Melrose has written a concise and relevant book on childhood trauma and its long-lasting effects. As a practicing school counselor, I found the book both informative and practical. With the catch-all label of ADHD being attached to children by everyone from school administrators to teachers to grocery clerks, it is encouraging to know that someone has taken the time to look deeper, more thoughtfully, at the whole child. The book's use of narratives helps to illustrate the concepts presented and integrate the modalities suggested. Particularly invaluable to the school counselor are the "Tools for Tolerance" presented in Chapter 7. Throughout the book, Dr. Melrose strikes the perfect balance between the presentation of historical perspective, which allows the reader to employ their own theoretical framework to the matter at hand, and practical mediating approaches that give the practitioner - be they school counselor, psychologist, social worker, therapist or teacher - the tools to assist this heretofore mishandled population.

In a clear and accessible manner, Dr. Melrose provides a wealth of information to aid any educator who wants to feel more equipped in facilitating the academic success of EVERY student, even our most challenging and misunderstood.

I loved this story about the Wise Woman. In a fairytale format, it depicted the consequences of bad behavior while at the same time, showed the positive side of doing the right thing. Great story for kids and parents.

The Wise Woman, while being a wonderful story also shows amazing insights that the child care specilists seem to just be getting, and it helps parents and the child themselves see cause and effects of different parenting! If you don't have the money to buy it, borrow it from someone!

Next to the Bible, this book has impacted my life more than any other. If one would truly enjoy taking a good, honest look at one's character, this is the book! It is a frightening mirror of our own humanity, yet one that will inspire change!

The 'Wise Woman' is my favorite fairy tale of all time. George MacDonald is wonderfully creative, pulls in just enough 'magic' to be interesting but not confusing, and builds strong characters. The tale has a very strong moral content which goes almost unnoticed by the strength of the story and its characters. I certainly recommend this for young people but I am a 'Senior Citizen' and still find it delightful and a bit thought provoking.

Richard Pendleton

The standout of this collection is the title story, "The Wise Woman, or, The Obstinate Princess." The princess in question is Rosamund, whose royal parents have spoiled her absolutely rotten. In fact, they are sick of her, she's so disgustingly violent and selfish (thanks largely to their 'care'). Enter the Wise Woman, who steals Rosamund away underneath her voluminous cloak and takes Rosamund to her cottage, which is miles away from nowhere--and bigger on the inside than the outside. Here, for the first time, Rosamund begins to learn that her wishes are not what the world revolves around. Very slowly. Before that happens, however, she enters another world through a picture and takes the place of another spoiled brat, Agnes, daughter of a shepherd and shepherdess. Agnes takes Rosamund's place. The Wise Woman does her best to save both girls, whose (to paraphrase Burke) intemperate minds mean that they cannot be free; their passions have forged their fetters. I can't tell you how the story ends, however. You'll have to find out for yourself.

MacDonald writes in an elegant, leisurely style (he takes three pages to describe a rainstorm at the beginning), and the story is rather long for a story--a 100 pages, give or take a few. But these are not really drawbacks. To adult readers, the story is a rather obvious, but effective, allegory of God's offer of redemption to humanity. To child readers, it is simply a good story; they will probably miss the parallel, but get the message. The story is filled with memorable scenes and images: the little cottage, the Wise Woman's eerie song, Agnes in her bubble (in more ways than one), Rosamund losing her temper with the little child in the boat. These make as much of an impression as the ideas, especially the recurring one that it is not enough to good; that's easily done when one's in a good mood. The goodness that counts is that done against one's inclinations--a hard doctrine that negates most of my good deeds, if nobody else's.

In short, this is a haunting book. It is well-written, it is thoughtful, it stands up both as a strong story and as a sermon, it entertains, it rebukes; it rewards repeated reading with additional meaning.

I purchased this coloring book for my grandmother who has Alzheimer's. It helps her feel as if she is accomplishing something and also she is using her mind and hands to stay in the lines. It's an ideal coloring book for anyone who wishes to color like they use to.

This is a great book to color. It shows all the wonders of the Ancient World as well as many "newer" wonders, such as the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and Macchu Picchu. A fun challenge to pick your colors, and interesting information about each site. Highly recommended.

This Wonders of the World coloring book is ridiculously inexpensive but offers excellent versions of the wonders to color.

When I worked as librarian at my university, I entered a standing order for all Dover publications for many years, as they are all very cheap and all beautifully done!

My little girl loves to color when I read, and I like the coloring page to be related to topic. When I found this book I was so happy. It really made school easier and more fun for both of us.

One of the problems with many history texts is their focus on warfare and military history -- fine as far as it goes, but not the only human story worth telling. This coloring book, featuring 27 architectural and engineering feats from 3500 BC - 1325 AD, is a great way to approach history in a non-militaristic way, looking at constructive accomplishments as a lens through which to discuss civilizations. Each entry has a couple of paragraphs of informative text. A very nice book.

The 27 wonders are: the Parthenon, Temple of Artemis, the Olympian Zeus, Mausoleum, Colossus of Rhodes, Lighthouse of Alexandria, Pyramids at Giza, Great Sphinx, Abu Simbel, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Petra, Persepolis, Stonehenge, Colosseum, Taj Mahal, Shwedagon Pagoda, Borobudur Temple, Angkor Wat, Great Wall of China, Stone Heads of Easter Island, Banaue Rice Terraces, Machu Picchu, Tikal, Palenque, Tenochtitlan, Mont-Saint-Michel and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.