Barry Books

Barry's Beginning of the West is a 'must have' reference book for studying pre-territorial Kansas. It is a chronological listing of people and events, and is very well indexed.

Ben-Hur: The Odyssey Ben-Hur is alive again in this exciting sequel to the classic story. What ever happened to Ben-Hur and his lover and friend, Esther? What circumstances and people shaped the first century's horrific era? Clifton answers these questions in a moving tale where fiction and history are interlocked with love,lust,war,and faith. Ben-Hur's famous reputation as a champion chariot racer of the Great Circus is an enormous influence in history. Clifton has kept the original characters souls in tact. As you catch up with the lives of Ben-hur, Paul, and the others, the events that follow take you on the adventure that changed the destiny of the first century and the Church. The Roman Empire seems doomed with Nero, a young emperor, who rules carelessly and selfishly. His inhumane actions caused this reader to want to join the fight for righteousness and freedom for the people. You wonder, can Nero be stopped? Ignoring counsel, Nero is unfaithful to his wife, Octavia. and orders the murder of his mother Agrippina. Ben-hur's love for the people and His faith is the motivator that keeps him going and that keeps him alive. The transitions in the early pages are a bit abrupt at first. Then the contrast between transitions sets the stage for shocking dramatic next scenes. I found myself getting caught up in the drama , the love, the horror, the suspense. Clifton leaves you hang for a moment until the right time and then the story continues. Many uplifting messages are to be found in the pages such as keep pressing on and the righteous will prevail. A surprise ending made this book even more satisfying.

Mr. Wilson, a Canadian journalist, has done a remarkable job bringing the little-known aspects of Benedict Arnold to life.

He skillfully describes the political, personal and social factors which made Arnold the man that he was (both good and bad). The focus is on Arnold as an adult, following him through his days as a Yankee trader, as a superb General and leader of men, as a "turncoat", and then as a trader, husband, father and litigant. His years in eastern Canada and England are dealt with in some detail.

Like so many others, Benedict Arnold was, to me, more a symbol than a man. I knew the basic events surrounding the "incident", but virtually nothing else. Thanks to Barry Wilson, this is no longer the case.

The Berry-Birds combines author and artist Barry Temple's storytelling originality with his wife Glenda's flair for poetry. The result is a delightful 32-page picturebook story for young readers designed to show that very different individuals can indeed cooperate successfully! When Mr. Berry-Bird's nest proves to be too small for his family, he rejects a finch's offer to help build a new one, but when a terrible disaster strikes, Mr. Berry-Bird learns to rethink his knee-jerk reactions and understand the importance of accepting help in times of need. Colorful and whimsical illustrations of the bird families and their travails add the perfect touch to this upbeat storybook.

Mr. Harris has produced for us a book on Michelangelo, the greatest artistic genius of the Renaissance period of art. THis book is brilliantly illustrated and profusely written. A real page turner from beginning to end giving us a well rounded portrait of one of the greatest artistic geniuses of all times. This book is indispensable book on Michelangelo, his times, and his world.

This booklet has the feel of a "fat" brochure. But it is not particularly costly and it does a nice job of explaining how leaders can appraise, promote and fire their subordinates. The booklet is divided into the following five chapters:

1. One-on-one performance management
2. Promoting employees
3. Dealing with underperformance
4. Evaluating team performance
5. Implementing performance management

I particularly liked the 6-page summary at the end of the booklet that was called "Off-and-Running." I probably would have liked the booklet better if the summary had been situated at the front of the book instead of at the end.

The booklet is packed with wonderful checklists and lists making it very easy for the reader to use the book to evaluate employee performance without having to read and study a long book on the subject. For example, one list included was entitled "Progressive Discipline Steps" and read as follows:

Informal Feedback
Performance Reviews
Oral Reprimands
Written Reprimands
Probation
Termination

All in all, this was a wonderful little booklet. 5 stars!

This is an excellent book to help teachers create invitations for students to learn. In the back there is an appendix with some sample lessons and invitations. I have taught for 21 years and have never quit learning. This book has taught me some new strategies to incorporate into my classroom.

THE BEST BOOK I EVER READ!! EVERYONE MUST READ THIS!!

In Lynda Barry's collection of comics, Big Ideas, she explainsthe mysteries of life - from love, death, heaven & hell, tofull-scale nuclear holocaust with the simple brilliance of a scientist and the wit of your best friend. Her vivid drawings add an uproarious dimension to each story. In one scene, a doctor visits a woman in her sleep. He clutches her diagnosis entitled "the Awful Truth", and tells her that "not only do you have cancer of everything, you are also a total failure and you did leave the coffee pot plugged in at work and the whole place is on fire right now." Ms. Barry grabs onto her readers worst fears and shakes them in front of us guffawing at them. She also pinpoints our greatest passions and makes us yearn for more. Though out-of-print, this book is well worth the Amazon search as it could very well change your life - or at least make your day.

Some time ago I listened to an interview the BBC did with the writer who edited all the writings of Bimbashi. It grabbed my atention because an ordinary school teacher went to Egypt and got involved with the undercurrents of political intrigue. He rode a horse across the desert sands and generally made lots of friends and had a good time. But behind the scenes here was an active British agent operating at the time when the Turkish empire was on the point of crumbling. The descriptive accounts are good. Watch out for bullets as the battle impressions are quite something.
Cleveland W. Gibson