Bates Books

As far as supplements go, Creatures of Rokugan is pretty useful. The first few chapters deal with rules for playing spirits of various realms (including animal spirits), naga, and nezumi. Animal spirits are fairly well-done and appealing; they aren't extremely powerful, but have a number of very useful abilities that make them excellent additions for any group. Naga and nezumi have been updated and seem somewhat expanded compared to their earlier incarnations in the game; nezumi especially are very detailed and have a lot of style behind them.

After this come the various creatures, and there is no lack here. Instead of a "Shadowlands On Parade", we get a bit more diversity. Keep in mind, of course, that oni, gaki, and other hostile beings are more plentiful, but a clever GM will find plenty of extra creatures that should help them come up with some good ideas.

Is the book perfect? Sadly, no. I regret to inform you all that AEG seems to stubbornly refuse to proofread their work, or even run their text through a spell-checker. There's a lot of somewhat poor flavor text, and misspellings are so common that they'd give a teacher fits. Normally, I'm not really concerned with such things if the rules are sound, but several of the people who work with AEG have been in the business too long to be making these kinds of mistakes, and one would have hoped they'd have at least bought a copy of MS Office or something that can help them avoid the more obvious mistakes with nothing more than a few mouse clicks.

If you can overlook the poor writing quality and consider that you are buying this book to flesh out the land of Rokugan with more than just humans, you are definitely getting your money's worth. Just don't bring a lot of expectations to the store (or website) you buy it from.

This volume is an exceptional addition to the L5R game, and well worth the purchase. It includes many creatures only seen in the CCG, and that alone makes it valuable.

I am an avid table-top role-player, mainly using the standard d20 rules with the occasional vintage version of TSR's Marvel Super Heroes. But this system is great!! Combat is vicious, but not the overriding element in the game. It is a more social game, forced role-playing instead of roll-playing.

Overall, I recommend it to anyone looking for something new to try!

This is the book of monsters for AEGs Legend of the 5 Rings RPG. Note, that while previous L5R books were done in a dual format of D20 and AEG rules, this book is all AEG rules. If you have the D20 Creatures of Rokugan book, you should be able to establish a conversion base with the monsters that are in both books.

While this book does have a lot of creatures in it, the book fails to follow the most fundamental rule of a monster book, "Good Art and Lots of It". The majority of the monsters of this book are not illustrated and those that are, well the art is not that good. When you are dealing with exotic creatures like Oni, the demons of Japanese mythology, you really need pictures to visualize them. Considering all the art available from the L5R card game, the lack of monster pictures here is strange.

The book does have very good sections on the Naga, serpent people, and the Nezumi, rat people. These sections provide everything you need to play these races and takes up about a third of the book. The rest is an alphabetical list of the creatures, monsters and spirits of Rokugan and while they are described in detail, most are lacking illustrations.

The first Psi Order/Area book for White Wolf's Trinity game was useful and enjoyable. The ISRA didn't seem that interesting in the main sourcebook. Yeah they had some long-range and perception powers but they were also a bunch of monk dudes sitting on the Moon who also happened to be pilots. Though you can still play characters like that, Luna Rising introduced other interesting alternatives for ISRA characters. There are groups in the ISRA who are similar to ravers, detectives, activists, and intelligence agents.

Luna and Olympus was finally given sufficient coverage. The culture of the various levels are so diverse and varied that many adventures can be had on the Moon, no matter what the taste. Olympus is a very happening place that rivals New York City, Rio De Janeiro, Hong Kong, and any other big city on Earth. The book provides plenty of information on each sector and its associated culture. You'll be surprised to learn about Lunar casinos, amusement parks, and the fate of the first Lunar landing site.

The new psionic powers, subdivisions of the ISRA, gear, and Lunar information should help GMs assemble many fascinating games in Near Space and the ISRA. A good book overall.

Robert Scott Martin is a fabulous writer and makes his wide scope of knowledges clear in this simple and lovely work. Clairsentients are exposed as being quite the important and opportune character, and like Robert Scott Martin's other contributions to White Wolf, this bears the mark of gentle scholarship and half-mad, magnaminous creativity.

Makes Clarisents into much better psions, even for people who like to hack and slash. Clarisentsa at first seemed to weak, but other important uses for thewir powers are shared in this sourcbook

White Wolf has done well with the first area supplement for Trinity, making the least imposing group of characters - ISRA - much cooler than the original book. The color section is well done, and the information is valuable. My only complaints are that the B&W section blends player and GM information and there is too little equipment.

The single greatest book on modern advertising ever written. The word "bible" is overused to decribe great books, but this is worthy of the tag. Rosser Reeves virtually invented the USP--unique selling proposition--the basis of all great marketing and selling. It is more relevant today than when it was written 40 years ago. Read this book and you'll know more than 90% of the ad execs in NY who make $600,000 a year.

Despite being touted by some as a brilliant advertising book, Reality in Advertising was a letdown - offering just a few interesting insights. It may have been revolutionary decades ago, but there is a reason that it's now out of print.

It's a pleasant, quick read, but its insights are few and far between.

Here are the interesting tidbits, some obvious, others less so.

1. You need a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) - the concept that the reader comes away with. It must tout a specific benefit, that is unique in the category (or at least not claimed by or widely recognized in others), and be persuasive enough to lure new customers over to you.

2. Advertising is the art of getting a USP into the heads of the most people at the lowest cost.

3. Ad effectiveness varies enormously. Measure the following factors to make sure you're not wasting your money - and to see how your competitors stack up.

(3A) Penetration: The percentage of people who remember your current advertising.

(3B) Usage Pull: The percentage of customers among people who remember versus don't remember your advertising. This can be negative for a bad ad.

An ad campaign's overall effectiveness is the Penetration times the Usage Pull. Doubling the effectiveness effectively doubles the ad dollars.

4. Techniques to optimize effectiveness:

(4A) Stick to a single, strong claim, to avoid diluting the power of your core message. Secondary messages are fine only if they reinforce the core message.

(4B) Copy sometimes fails to convey the intended USP. Test the copy by asking readers to articulate the message, and calculating the percent that get it right.

(4C) Don't change your ad campaign - even over decades. Doing so will destroy Penetration. Readers won't get bored by your campaign or even remember it well.

(4D) It's better to spend your budget reaching more people less frequently, than fewer people more frequently.

(4E) Avoid visuals and gimmicks that attract attention to themselves at the expense of your USP's recall. Even jewelry can be distracting. Test to check the recall of your USP.

(4F) All senses should express the same message at the same time, to more successfuly convey it. Remove elements of an ad that don't help you convey the message. For instance, depicting a narrator is just a distraction.

Interesting? Sure - but that's the extent of the book's insight!

The video vampire is one of the most common errors in advertising. Trying to be cute and sheek is often given more weight than the advertising message.

As a student of advertising I read Reality In Advertising and learned more about the nuts and bolts of effective advertising than I learned from four years of college or any other source. The writing was succinct and the examples well chosen and revealing. I can't recommend it highly enough for anyone interested in the subject.

First of all, there was something about the writing style of this book that made it a strain to read. I don't know if it's because it's the combined writing of three authors, but for a book that's not that long, and a subject that is not that difficult, I found myself struggling to get through. There are also some annoying little spelling and factual errors, like calling the legendary motivational speaker Earl Nightingale, Bill Nightingale. Nevertheless, there is enough of value here that it's worth the read.

The authors give a different take on the idea of motivation to succeed, which is to find a goal bigger than yourself. Accomplish your goals not strictly for yourself but to go outside of yourself and to share your wealth with others or to fund a charity. Most other wealth gurus have this as a by-product of success rather than as an objective. The authors also focus on the improtance of controlling your own thoughts and determinig your own self-worth, and not to rely on what others think. A lot of what they say has been said by others, and perhaps more clearly and in a more interesting way, but there is enough here that it's worth going through.

This book is a clearly written account of how ballance is truly your goal on your journey to achieving your ideal state of who you want to be. Yarnell touches on some beautiful truths and principles here that anyone can use no matter what walk of life or profession. It is truly a must-have in your success library.

Three of my favorate personal development books are The Power of Positive Thinking, Think and Grow Rich, and The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Now I have four. Self-Wealth restates some time proven self-development principles combined with alot of very inciteful new material. This is a book you can't put down, and I know I got more information from my second read. Great stuff!

When I was in my early twenties I bought my first "personal development" book, written by Anthony Robbins. Little did I know this would start a long journey of studying self-help litterature, listening to motivational audiotapes, and even attending a few inspirational lectures and seminars. Now, with all that I've read and all that I've studied, I must say that Self Wealth has probably had the most profound impact on me to date. And I say this even though it's been less than a week since I finished the book! Maybe it's because the timing and the message was right for me just now. Maybe it's the result of the book's powerful simplicity.. In any case, I really feel like "I got it!" Honestly, this book really tied it all together for me and I am sure it will be a tremendous asset for anyone. No matter what your background, occupation, age, sex or location may be, this book can really help you change, reach your goals and live more abundant and balanced lives. I know this without a doubt... Still, YOU need to USE the principles and ideas that are presented. In Self Wealth you will also find tips and excercises to help you do just this. Again, it's simple, it's easy and it's practical. It is all this and more... It's one GREAT, GREAT book!

this is an ok book to read.,.. but the stories in it are kinda boring and not really funny... kinda on the same level as the futurama comics... obviously not written by gronening. the art is cool.. but lame writing makes it kinda a drag to read.

On The First Page Of It, Bart Simpson & Reverend Lovejoy & Kent Brockman
Wore A Tie but One of them are Dark Liebelia ( i.e Purple) Dark Blue & Deluxe Red. It's a FUNNNNNNNNNY BOOK!

Although the title of this book is "Barn Burner," there are no country/farm themed comics here. In fact, a golf-related title would be more appropriate as there are several golf references at the end of this book. So, if you are a fan of golf and the Simpsons, this comic book is for you! Overall, there are a lot of good ideas here, but some of them fall flat. The book gets better after the first three comics.

"How the Vest Was Won!": Bart is named "Lil' Squealer of the of the Week" on the show `Kids Commit the Darndest Crimes' and receives a bullet-proof vest that helps him avoid reprisals from the thugs on which he squealed (Nelson, Jimbo, etc.). This one had good possibilities but the ending was lame.
"A Swingin' Affair!": Swing is back and Marge wants to go dancing but Homer is too lazy (surprise). Marge goes with Flanders instead. Again, there were possiblites here but it is just an average six-page short.
"Mayor Me a Little": To overcome a morals scandal, Mayor Quimby appeases the religious constituents by banning beer on Sundays. To stop these "blue laws," Homer runs against him on the "Keg Party" ticket but soon gets caught up with the mob. This was good but, again, the ending was weak.

"Lisa's Historical Dream": 4-page short has Lisa dreaming that the Springfield folks are historical figures sent to change history by the "Past Master" (Mr. Burns). Burns wants to create Monty Land where everybody looks like him (in other words, everyone looks hideous) and thinks his thoughts (in other words, evil thoughts). The last box is very funny. This one has possibilities for a longer comic.
"Faking the Band": Homer puts together a boy band with Bart, Nelson, Roy (remember him from the episode "Itchy, and Scratchy, and Poochie" from Season 8?), Rod Flanders and Ralph as another get-rich-quick scheme. Ralph is supposed to have a great singing voice in this comic which I cannot even fathom (I wouldn't think he'd be able to keep paste out of his mouth long enough to sing a song). You might be surprised which of the "5 From `Field" changed the most from their brief flirtation with fame.
"The Man with Two Wives": Homer wins Smithers's service in a poker game and Marge feels she's in competition to tend to Homer's domestic needs. Smithers even moves in his Malibu Stacy collection. Marge resents Smithers's "husband-usurping." Meanwhile, Bart becomes Mr. Burns's new assistant and introduces paint ball to the nuclear power plant. Any comic with Smithers is guaranteed to be hilarious.

"My Sister, My Sidekick": Bart is Stretch-Dude and Lisa is Clobber Girl. Marge wants them to include Maggie, so Bart and Lisa take their baby sister to professor Frink (actually, his evil clone) to transfer some of their powers creating Bouncing Battle Baby. At first she was a real bummer, but can she be useful against a new nemesis, Snakeskin?
"The Paper Chase": Bart takes over Milhouse's paper route and tries creative ways to deliver the news, then learns he can control the news, then fabricates a giant attacking moth, then Prof. Frink shows up with an anti-moth robot that runs amok, etc. Yes, this 22-page comic goes all over the place. It's good though, with a very funny ending.
"The Bogey Man": Mr. Burns plans on building his dream golf course over the Springfield Natural Preserve, but finds something he has in common with his chief adversary, Lisa.
"If Homer Simpson Invented Golf": A funny short (water traps replaced with beer traps).

A great Simpsons comics choice. Laugh-out-loud humor and great plotlines. My personal favorite is Marge Vs. Smithers. I also really love The Paper Chase. This comic book is just crack-up great, in some spots though the humor is dry and the plots are a bit dull like A Swingin' Affair. Decent jokes there, and as well as the Groundskeeper Willie "If I Invented Golf" thing? Homer's rendition is way better. Although of the hidden flaws. No need to nitpick! This book is "banjo-fiddlin' darn-tootin' barn-burnin' fun"! My good buddy, you'll be all night reading this! I know for a fact that I slept over a friend's house [...] and he could not stop reading it! He read it before we fell asleep, and he read it for 2 hours in the morning until I woke up! Well, great fun in these easy-to-picture-as-episode comics. Toe-tapping greatness!.....OK I'll stop with the dry redneck humor. :)

Shelley Bates, the author of POCKETFUL OF PEARLS and GROUNDS TO BELIEVE, finishes her Elect Trilogy with A SOUNDING BRASS, a competent, enjoyable read. It wraps up the story of the legalistic lives of members of the Elect, a cultic Christian group in Oregon that requires its adherents to wear black, seek permission for any big life decisions, and stay away from anything "worldly."

As the story opens, the Elect in Hamilton Falls, Washington, are in turmoil. Their leader, Phinehas, a former senior Shepherd of the flock, is in the county lockup awaiting trial for raping women who believed they were supposed to have sex with him in the name of their religion. Everything the Elect believed about its leadership is now in question.

Claire Montoya, a single bank employee who has just lost her job because of her association with the Elect, finds a new work home at the KGHM radio station as a bookkeeper. She's ready to succumb to the charms of the charismatic Luke Fisher, an evangelist and popular disc jockey at the station, whose good looks and winning ways over the airwaves are taking the locals by storm. Luke is also ready to help the congregation of the Elect to embrace some modern ways of thinking and reach out to the unchurched through financing a new conference center.

As Luke whips up enthusiasm and support for the project -- and the radio station rakes in more and more cash --- investigator Raymond Harper of the Organized Crime Task Force smells something rotten. As Ray cozies up to Claire in order to find out about Luke, he realizes he's interested in her for more than just her proximity to the boss. But after her change of job and the changes going on at church, Claire is reeling. "Between the teachings of the past and the changes in the present, she needed to find her balance. And that was turning out to be harder than she'd expected." She's attracted to both men. But Ray is an outsider --- and Luke is a member of the Elect. Or is he? And Ray is conflicted about his own lack of faith. "What he had was an emptiness he was trying to soothe with work and socializing and friends, covering it over with a cynical outlook on life so people wouldn't see it."

Claire is tired. Tired of letting others dictate where she lives. Tired of wearing black --- even down to her pajamas, which are black flannel. Bates gradually lets Claire come to grips with her disillusionment about her legalistic religion, while still keeping the core of her faith. Through Claire, Bates does a great job showing the perils of religion as practiced by those who love power and control, rather than embracing the true freedom of faith.

Readers of the earlier books in the series will be glad to catch up with Dinah Traynell and the resolution of her story. No particular earth-shaking plot twists or turns occur in the novel; the reader will have a good idea of where things are headed from the earliest pages. But that makes this story no less enjoyable. Bates is a good writer, and her characters are interesting ones who the reader will empathize with. (I would have enjoyed seeing even more about the bookseller and Claire's landlady, Rebecca Quinn, who makes some cameo appearances throughout the book.) There's some good discussable material here about the role of religion and choices in contemporary culture, and a reading group guide included in the back is a nice addition for book clubs.

Readers who enjoyed the Elect Trilogy will want to look for Bates's next book, OVER MY HEAD, which will be published in May 2007.

--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby. Contact Cindy at phrelanzer@aol.com.

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (6/06)

"A Sounding Brass" is a really good Christian fiction novel. It is written for everyone, and would even be appropriate for teenage readers. The story is engaging and well written so it can be enjoyed by people from all walks of life. The main theme centers around the corruption that is involved with a toxic church.

Claire Montoya is the heroine in this novel. She is involved in a cult-like, strict Christian sect. She finds the lifestyle to be suffocating, however, she stands firm to her beliefs and does not want to let the secular world drag her in. When the head of her church is arrested for sexually molesting a couple of female members, Claire's foundation is shaken and she begins to question her beliefs.

A non-Christian investigator arrives in town around the same time as a charismatic radio evangelist. The investigator tries to open Claire's eyes about the evangelist. The evangelist begins showing his true colors to her. Claire discovers that he is not a good man and is bilking the community out of money. The investigator, operating at his own end, discovers that this man has a really bad past and tries to intervene before he does any more damage. As the story progresses, Claire begins to step out of her pious shell and adopt more "normal" styles of dress, such as wearing clothing colored other than black. It is interesting to watch her develop into a more mature, confident woman.

I highly recommend this book to women's reader groups. There is a reading group guide in the back of the book that can be used to facilitate discussions. I read the questions before I started the book and they gave me a deeper perspective on what the story is really about.

"A Sounding Brass" picks up where Bates' previous novel, "A Pocketful or Pearls" left off, switching the main character from Dinah to Dinah's friend Claire Montoya, who is still in the clutches of the "toxic" church, the Elect.

"Brass" is not nearly as captivating "Pearls" was, although it continues and concludes the story of the Elect quite nicely. The content of "A Sounding Brass" is also no where near as racy as the preceding novel... and while I am not one who thinks that edginess is necessary to make a novel good, I think "Brass" lacks that certain dark intrigue that "Pearl" captured well. The story is unique, entertaining, worth reading, and over all a good book - but considering how fantastic "Pearls" was, I was a tad disappointed with "A Sounding Brass".

Grade: B-

Heroines. We love `em all, and the best are those with whom we identify strongly. Does she feel as I do? Would I have the strength to face her trials? Gotta love `em. Bimbos, damsels in distress, rebels, forces of nature. The main character in this third novel in Shelley Bates' "Elect" series qualifies in the last category.

We're told today's heroine should be a kicker type. But you don't need to be Angelina-with-a-semi-automatic to be strong. It takes more strength to re-think everything that forms the framework of your life; to truly turn the magnifying glass on your own soul, to find yourself wanting, to change as you must--to survive. If you like a heroine like this, who must revamp everything she has ever been taught, about love, faith, and her place in life, Claire Montoya is tailor made for you.

A lifelong member of a "toxic" church, Claire lives in reluctant obedience to a set of rules whose senselessness would insult a child. After she's fired from her bank job, a newcomer--the bouncy, charismatic radio DJ who's advising her church on how to change--hires her on the spot to keep the station's books. Or is Luke Fisher all he seems? Detective Ray Harper, in town to see a rape case come to trial, smells something unsanitary in the eager-beaver Mr. Fisher, and stays to investigate. As he and Claire begin to click, he grows restive about his attraction for her. How can a man lacking faith make a match with a woman whose faith is her entire life?

With an unbeliever falling for her, and Luke's increasingly puzzling deployments of donated money, both men rock Claire's regimented world on its ear. As her outlook realigns, so does that of the Elect--can they be wrong about the nature of a faith-guided life, after all?

Shelley Bates tells the engaging story of a woman struggling to re-evaluate her faith. Though lacking the dark themes of the previous book, Pocketful Of Pearls, the journey is every bit as compelling. Claire's quiet, stark courage made her a winner beyond compare.

Five stars in my book.

Reviewed by Deb Kinnard
7/5/2006

"Blue Butterfly is a gripping mystery that is gritty and creepy."

"John Bowers and his new partner Minola Raye at the Central Precinct are investigating a murder. The victim is Marcy Pringle, she was found dead outside a lounge. It appears Marcy's line of work as a call girl is connected to her murder"

"As the sergeants continue to investigate this mysterious case a cover up within the bureau begins to unravel revealing some dark secrets someone wants to keep buried."

"Blue Butterfly is a shocking murder mystery that will have readers completely engrossed."

IF YOU ARE A FAN OF PROCEDURAL CRIME NOVELS, THIS IS A BOOK THAT WILL GET YOU HOOKED ON THE PORTLAND SCENE, THE WITTY PLAYERS AND THE A+ WRITING SKILLS OF THIS NW AUTHOR. A VIP IS INTO KINKY SEX AND WINDS UP KILLING A CALL GIRL. THE HUNT LEADS RIGHT TO THE POLICE BUREAU AND A BACKLASH AS THE COVER-UP BEGINS. DETECTIVE JOHN BOWERS IS A REAL-LIFE KINDA GUY YOU WISH YOU COULD SPEND SOME TIME WITH -- THE BOOK IS THE NEXT BEST THING. HIS NEW PARTNER MINNIE RAYE IS A SPICY CREOLE DISH JUST BEGGING FOR SOME MATCHES TO START A FEW FOREST FIRES, LIVING LIFE ON THE EDGE TURNS ALL HER LIGHTS ON. THIS IS POLICE FICTION WITHOUT THE PHONY GLITZ AND FANCY WRAPPING -- I LOVED THE HUMOR, THE WITTY DIALOGUES AND THE PLOT THAT TOOK ME THROUGH S&M, OLD HOOKERS RELIVING THE "GOOD OLD DAYS" AND MURDER WITHOUT LOSING TRACK OF THE CHARACTERS AND THE STORYLINE. AND FOR ONCE, THE AUTHOR DIDN'T BOUNCE BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN A DOZEN DIFFERENT CRIME SCENES AND CASES LIKE SO MANY PROCEDURALS BUT STAYS FOCUSED ON THE MAIN STORYLINE.

I LIKED IT FOR THE WRITING STYLE, THE GREAT CHARACTERS, THE REALISTIC PLOTLINE AND THE NORTHWEST SCENE. I'M HOPING THIS MEANS WE'LL GET A SEQUEL AND BE ABLE TO ADD ANOTHER GREAT NW CRIME WRITER TO THE LIST.

I like the approach used here by author Bates -- this is a procedural that's gritty when it needs to be but also able to show different, softer sides when the story calls for it. The main character Det. John Bowers is SO likeable and believable -- he's a veteran of the streets but hasn't lost his touch for connecting with the people he hunts. I like that he's also vulnerable and many-dimensional unlike so many crime characters.
The Portland scene is very well done and the touches of irony and humor hit just the right chord. In a chain of events leading from a hooker's murder by a VIP to the realistic conclusion, I felt I was an on-the-spot bystander watching and listening to real people do a job that as the author says so eloquently: "they sometimes love to hate". ALmost makes me want to bring a cop home to dinner.

All in all, a very enjoyable read, and I'm looking forward to a sequel.

Now a BBC video, the Larkin family rollick through Britain of the '50's. I think you have to be both an Anglophile and addicted to out-of-print British authors--both of which am I!--to enjoy this. Nothing less like Angela Thirkell can be thought of--these are the adventures of the Lower Class. And highly enjoyable they are.

I first read The Darling Buds of May about thirty years ago. Recently BBC added some episodes and turned it into a series starring David Jason, which was acknowledged as the very best of British Comnedy. Incidentally, Catherine Zeta Jones got her big TV break in this series as the beautiful Larkin daughter.

If you get a chance to get hold of a copy of H.E.Bates classic tale of Pop Larkin and his family, you should do so, just for the joy of reading something that is so funny it will split your sides.

Absurd and hilarious, H.E. Bates introduces you to the strangest family you're ever likely to meet. A tax officer is sent to their house to collect overdue taxes, only to find himself thrown into their somewhat chaotic, but extremely loving and fun life. Set up with the daughter, he throws away his old life to join theirs. Wonderfully written, humorous and kind, one to be read when you're feeling down, or if you're outside enjoying a summer day - best enjoyed with an iced drink and a picnic blanket. H.E. Bates is sure bet for an excellent read - I have read eight novels by Bates now, and have yet to be disppointed.

These novels are sort of wonderful and very strange. Though I'm certainly not an expert in mid-20th century British popular fiction, I will say that Bates' Pop Larkin books are like nothing else I've encountered. They are a fascinating mixture of wit, broad humor, subtlety, narrative minimalism (i.e. sometimes not much "happens"), daring-for-the-time eroticism, offbeat sentimentality, and purple prose. Given the frankness and ahead-of-the-times "free love" attitudes, I'm surprised that they weren't banned when they appeared in 1958-1960. How nice that (as far as I gather) they weren't -- and thus they were able to provide a merry, titillating (if perhaps implausible) romp in the English countryside, with characters who almost always love life. In this magical, make-believe world, drinks flow endlessly with no ill effect, and nearly all in sight adjust their pace to the idiosyncratic idyllicism of Ma and Pop Larkin and their brood.

Within this book's 331 pages are the first three of five novels in H.E. Bates' "Pop Larkin" series: The Darling Buds of May, A Breath of French Air, and When the Green Woods Laugh. For anyone looking for a light, sunny, happy, warm-hearted, gently-humourous book, I just cannot recommend this one highly enough. In fact, it's one of the few books that can easily be read and reread again.

The novels are set in rural England of the 1950s and centre around Pop and Ma Larkin (actually they're not married, but somehow it just never seems to matter) and their brood of six (make that seven) children. The world in which they live can only be described as a pastoral paradise. Although we get an inkling that the Larkin's farm is, in reality, rather like a junkyard, the novels are a testament to that old saying that life is 90% attitute and 10% circumstance. We see the farm and its surroundings and inhabitants largely through Pop's rose-coloured perspective. As a result, we escape into a world of fragrant golden buttercups and bluebells, into fields of plump, ripe strawberries, and into a kitchen that endlessly emits the heavenly, mouthwatering aromas of Ma's rich, delectable country meals.

Pop is quite a character, and his sunny, carefree disposition and overwhelming generosity, together with his acute focus on the sensory delights of his surroundings, imbue the book with a sense of warmth and beauty that one seldom finds in novels. Pop and Ma take life as they find it and people as they find them, and they never seem to let anything rattle them. Though it's never spelled out, one gets the feeling that life is simply too short a journey to spend it focussing on the bumps one incurs along the way.

I discovered this lovely series through watching the wonderful dramatisation starring David Jason (as Sidney "Pop" Larkin) and Catherine Zeta Jones (as his daughter Mariette), which I also highly recommend. Whether or not you've seen the dramatisation, if you're looking for a cheery, thoroughly relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable read, you'll enjoy this sweet book. In short, it's absolutely "perfick"!

Within this book's 331 pages are the first three of five novels in H.E. Bates' "Pop Larkin" series: The Darling Buds of May, A Breath of French Air, and When the Green Woods Laugh. For anyone looking for a light, sunny, happy, warm-hearted, gently-humourous book, I just cannot recommend this one highly enough. In fact, it's one of the few books that can easily be read and reread again.

The novels are set in rural England of the 1950s and centre around Pop and Ma Larkin (actually they're not married, but somehow it just never seems to matter) and their brood of six (make that seven) children. The world in which they live can only be described as a pastoral paradise. Although we get an inkling that the Larkin's farm is, in reality, rather like a junkyard, the novels are a testament to that old saying that life is 90% attitute and 10% circumstance. We see the farm and its surroundings and inhabitants largely through Pop's rose-coloured perspective. As a result, we escape into a world of fragrant golden buttercups and bluebells, into fields of plump, ripe strawberries, and into a kitchen that endlessly emits the heavenly, mouthwatering aromas of Ma's rich and flavourful country meals.

Pop is quite a character, and his sunny, carefree disposition and overwhelming generosity, together with his acute focus on the sensory delights of his surroundings, imbue the book with a sense of warmth and beauty that one seldom finds in novels. Pop and Ma (who, by the way, is tremendously overweight) take life as they find it and people as they find them, and they never seem to let anything rattle them. Though it's never spelled out, one gets the feeling that life is simply too short a journey to spend it focussing on the bumps one incurs along the way.

I discovered this lovely series through watching the wonderful dramatisation starring David Jason (as Sidney "Pop" Larkin) and Catherine Zeta Jones (as his daughter Mariette), which I also highly recommend (and which is available, at the time of writing, on video and DVD). Whether or not you've seen the dramatisation, if you're looking for a cheery, thoroughly relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable read, you'll enjoy this sweet book. It's well worth ferretting out a copy. In short, it's absolutely "perfick"!

When Lincoln was killed he was an old man of 56, while Booth was only 27 at the time of the assassination. I really can't figure why this fiction was written, as the travesty was done when John Wilkes Booth was gunned down from a slat in the barn. He had no way to escape!

It's just like the rumors which spun about Elvis Presley that he was an informant for the FBI and did not die of an overdose of drugs in his mansion in Memphis, Tennessee, that he was relocated to Germany. Do you think that man could have spent all these years hiding and not singing. No Way!

Just like the fiction that Booth lived to confess years later. Could he have gone on with his life without acting on the stage? Whyever would he confess and link the Vice President to the conspiracy. Andrew Johnson was supposed to have been abducted at the same time as Lincoln, only his assailant got too drunk to do the deed. Now, this little myth maker tries to make us think that he was in on the kill of Lincoln so that he could take over. He had his hands full of the reconstruction and other things which were continually going wrong. He was definitely not like Lincoln in any way, but a man from Tennessee who had been governor of this Volunteer State would never have done that. Now Texas is another matter altogether. Why this was written, I'll never know! It's just not worth the bother to look at, or read trash about an honorable assassin. He had health problems and perhaps though he was dying anyway. Who will ever know? No one who reads this volume in history.

All Lincoln scholars will find this book of interest particularly for when and how it was written. Had to have been a "bestseller" in 1908!

This book is great and he did act on stage after the assassination. Why the other person wrote that this book is not worth reading I will never know. It shows two pictures of Booth after the assassination when he was living under an alias. It is filled with evidence. If you would like to know who was killed in the barn instead of Booth you should read "Return of the Assassin John Wilkes Booth". It is filled with new evidence. Both of these books are must reads.