Big Books

I enjoy minding friends' kids and try to plan things to do that will entertain them and give them new experiences. I also love reading - and sharing books with kids. So this book is perfect. It's a storybook first of all - and an easy to follow cookbook also. I'm not a good cook - but reading the story and then making one or two of the dishes is great fun - for me as well as the kids! Highly recommended for child minding days!

My 2 girls loved listening to the story and looking at the pictures. They especially enjoyed flipping to the end of the book with all the recipes and asking to eat them. This book gives you a safe creative way to spend time with your children. My kids enjoyed saying "I cooked it!"

My two girls love reading this book. They love to read the story and then always want to make the recipes in the back. The recipes are easy to follow and perfect for kids. It's a great way for a family to do something fun together.

My family loves this storybook-cookbook! Each time I read it to my children (ages 2, 4 and 6) they jump up and immediately want to cook one of the simple recipes in the back of the book. My six-year-old carefully reads each recipe herself and is very proud that she can follow the recipe. My two year old and four year old then decide which character they're going to be as we act out the story while we're baking. Of course, we always have a pretend surprise party at the end of our cooking time, just like in the book. This book makes a great gift, and besides just reading together, it gives parents other ideas of activities to do with their children.

Its a good book with cute illustrations, but I think some of the concepts could have been expanded upon just a bit more. But, at least its a start and will bring about questions and conversations between you and your child.

Joey Allen has done a great service for parents. These books present basic Christian teachings in a format that is educationally appropriate and child focused. My oldest son (5) and daughter (3) have both enjoyed these books. As a parent I have learned to better communicate my faith for little thinkers.

You will be hard pressed to find any books that correctly state these essential doctrines in a way that is simple and clear for children to understand. The storyline is great and the pictures are captivating!
B. Buie

These books are great! The illustrations are amazing and the characters will capture your heart while teaching children the truths about God. They make a perfect gift for any child or a unique baby shower gift for those who are expecting. Joey has not only presented the truth of God in easy to understand books, but his illustrations really come to life. I love them all!

Be sure to read the Forward and Afterward to Parents in this book. It is a great message to adults as well!

Tired of calculating the changes required to knit a large size sweater from an "average size" pattern? You can actually sit down and knit immediately with this book of patterns...no more rewriting before you can begin. You'll love the many creative styles, done in everything from stocking stitch to cables and intarsia, to please beginners to advanced knitters. Clear, easy to follow instructions and witty text highlight a collection of classic sweaters, snappy pullovers, and gorgeous jackets. Your biggest problem will be choosing which one to make first! This book, presented by Dawn French (of t.v.'s "French and Saunder's" fame) and Sylvie Soudan, is a "must have" for those who love their "big knits"

This book, and "Big Knits" before it (very hard to find) has the best collection of sweaters REAL people want to wear. I am not a larger size but ajust the sweaters downward because they're so great. I have made more sweaters from these two books than the rest of my patterns/books combined. When are they going to publish another collection???

Knitwear with humor, bold colors and relaxed fit are within your grasp with this book. With an average finished chest size of 56" these sweater designs look good on everyone with full figures. The photos are superb, the diagrams and written instructions are easy to understand and information is provided to help you change the length and width of sweater parts to fit your figure. Dawn French (of the "French and Saunders" comedy team) adds her sense of mirth and models these bold sweaters with joy. A delightful book that's sure to inspire your own design creativity!

If you knit and are shaped more like a sheep before sheering than after -- the 2 Dawn French books (Big Knits, and Great Big Knits) are what you've been looking for.

The biggest regret is that they are all but impossible to find.

I do the math tricks on all kinds of patterns so they will adjust to fit ME and all those out there like ME -- but in these books, the design is actually intended for my shape -- and not for a 14-year-old 3/4" dowl-rod model. Not only are the patterns measured up to fit, but the patterns on the sweaters are measured up as well. Who wants to wear a 3X sweater with thousands of tiny 1/4" roses on it?

The artist-inspired sweaters are expecially noteworthy, as well as the open-work lace styles and the sailor stripes.

Too bad the publishers don't know a good thing when they've got it and put out a new edition!!!

When I need to recycle some scrapple, this is the book I reach for to read on the throne. Funny, nostalgic and insightful. Same qualities that make BDG the best personality at Meathead Central - WIP (come back, Jody Mac ... all is forgiven). Reads like a blue-collar guy's guide to Philly. At $2.99, great stocking stuffers!

This book is a great read. It contains all kind of lists. Some of my favorite lists were; greatest Philly movies, Greatest pizza places, and especially umpire Eric Gregg's list. A great gift for any sports fan.

The book was not only a book of lists but also a history of the Philadelphia sports scene. Great easy reading and very insightful.

The authors of The Great Book of Philadelphia Sports Lists, Glen Macnow and Big Daddy Graham, are among the few 610 WIP personalities I enjoy. When I purchased this book, I did so with great expectations. Let me tell you I was not disappointed at all.

Regardless of wether or not you agree with some selections on the lists, the book will hold your attention. It is entertaining throughout (there are occasional lists few and far between that are rather dull, but they couldn't ALL be winners, could they?) and quite humorous. There are also some lists mixed in that are not sports-related. Strangely, they don't seem out of place.

Perhaps what I enjoyed the most about the book is the many guest contributions from Philadelphia athletes, broadcasters, journalists, or others with local ties, many from outside the world of sports. These lists include local PA announcers' favorite names and greatest locker room feuds the fans never got to see, just to name a few.

If you are a Philadelphia sports fan, don't just go by my recommendation, go out and pick this up yourself. You'll be glad you did.

I have not perused the section on historical instruments in depth, so none of my comments apply to it. However, the section regarding modern instruments impresses me continuously each time I open the book to look for references. I am a bass trombone player as well as a composer, and although the section on the trombone is rather brief (although accurate enough; and the listing of trombone family members, i.e. soprano, alto, tenor, tenor-bass, bass, and various contrabasses, grossly underdeveloped), Everything Else offers unparalleled information for the modern composer or arranger. Particularly useful is the citation of examples in contemporary music of instrumental prominence (where although certain composers are favored, this is perhaps done out of necessity given the slew of living composers today; and Stiller's choices of examples are superlative).
Dr. Stiller may underestimate the availability of certain instruments, however. The market for contrabassoons and contrabass trombones has increased greatly in recent years, and more slightly so for bass and tenor trumpets. As a rule, orchestral principal trombonists almost ALL own alto trombones (in alto clef, overtone series based on the Eb2 fundamental), and as aforementioned, the alto trombone is erroneously omitted from this book.
To create an inpenetrable weapon of scholarship, combine this book with Samuel Adler's "Study of Orchestration" and Kurt Stone's "Music Notation in the Twentieth Century", which is available at NPCimaging.com.

Stiller has created a fabulous reference source for the contemporary composer. He accurately covers information on almost every instrument and gives both detailed information as well as quick chart summaries. He spends a great deal of time dealing with modern and experimental techniques for many instruments, something which is not often dealt with in these kind of volumes. Its easy to use indexing system also makes it a wonderful "quick reference" source for when you might quickly need to know a piece of information like instrumental ranges. In my opinion, this is one of the best books of its kind available today.

unlike other orchestration texts, this states pretty much the facts and just the facts. very handy for impatient young composers or arrangers who just need to read about an instrument and not dig through endless examples of an instrument's usage through the ages (although that's always nice too). the information is quick and easy to find for the most part, but does not skimp in the least on detail. my only disappointment (and this is for an older edition, it may have been corrected since) in is in the slightly skimpy coverage of electronics and electric guitar while instruments like the crumhorn get comparatively massive coverage given their relative modern importance. worth every penny, and then some.

This is simply the best book of its kind I have ever seen. Each family of instruments receives an exhaustive chapter on its features amd capabilities. Impeccably accurate line drawings (with rulers showing the scale) illuminate the text in ways that no photographs could. Precise range charts include extended ranges, with a percentage estimate of how frequently the extended range can be produced, and maximum and minimum dynamics for each portion of the range. Detailed fingering charts for woodwinds are provided, including alternate trill fingerings. The book is oriented strongly to the contemporary composer. All musical examples are from contemporary or late 20th century pieces, and extended techniques receive thorough examination. If I have any complaint at all, and this is quite minor, it is that sometimes the author is rather aggressive in stating instrumental possibilities. The given maximum or minimum ranges are occasionally not universally accepted by all professional players, or the charts showing the maximum reaches for string double-stops include reaches that some players with smaller hands will refuse to execute. These are minor points. In most cases the book clearly distinguishes mainstream practice from advanced or extended practice, and personally I prefer a book that errs on the aggressive side. If you need to know how orchestral instruments work, including a wide array of percussion, look no further. The author rarely mixes opinions or dogma with facts (a rare feature for this kind of book), and when he does he clearly delineates which is which.

Wishbone is a lovable ,talking, pooch full of stories. He has a tail overflowing in excitement, as the humans around him try to grasp what is truly going on.
Aside from all the cuteness,Wishbone explains words the reader may not know. His words are bold, for simple reference.
This story isn't overly scary, nor wordy. It has enough adventure to keep young readers wanting more.

Someone is haunting the clubhouse that Joe, Sam, David are hanging out in with some new kids. The person is found, but the REAL mystery is just beginning!

This book is super! This mystery has another mystery inside the first one! The end of the book is extremely surprising!!! I finished this book over the weekend because it was so good!

As in all Wishbone tales this story has us looking at a famous book and dealing with another story. In the case of the mystery tales we have a mystery in another mystery. This makes for a doubly mysterious book. It was funny and kind of scary. It as a surprise at the end as all mysteries are. I liked the book and thing everyone should read the whole series.

Best Big Sur Hiking/Backpacking Book Out There! I'm a local, I try to get into the mountains whenever possible & this book is the bomb. I've checked out a few others & this is the best by far.


It has detailed topographic maps with trails drawn in & great descriptions of each trail including elevations @ points along each trail. Elevations are critical because the Sur is all about elevation 0-5150 ft.

Great book, if your considering a book about all Big Sur has to offer beyond Highway 1 this is the book.

This is a great book. A friend and I had a trip to Big Sur planned and the book came several days before so that I was able to study up and enjoy the area even more!

This book isn't great, but it is very good.

Pros
1. It is inspiring. I feel like I want to go do the hike after I read the description
2. Good pictures. Some have people in them and these are done very well.
3. Good descriptions. These aren't little one page jobs.

Cons
1. Pictures - The pictures are black and white, not color and I think color pictures can mean everything. But this does not detract that much from this fine book

The book was wonderful to have on our trip to the Central Coast. Objective information with enough opinion and subjective information to help us decide where, how, when for each hike. The back of the book with the top list organized by theme was very helpful. One way the book could have been better is with a cross-reference chart... so if you want both "ocean" and "redwoods" as themes you could look it up, instead of a bunch of page flipping. The author does a good job appealing to a wide range, level of hikers, rare in a guide book.

So many times have I heard stories about career(or dream)-ending injuries and knew it wasn't as mellow to them as they made it seem. It was nice to see Robinson rewarded with the HOF(Seton Hall) in the end. Biggio was destined for greatness, Valentin was better than I thought he was, and Vaughn was a monster from the start. They all have some facinating human stories that make it hard to look at them the same.

The Hit Men and the Kid Who Batted Ninth by sports writer David Siroty is an involved and involving study of the lives of Craig Biggio, Mo Vaughn, and John Valentin, three renowned baseball players, each of whom earned MVP honors, Gold Gloves, and more, -- as well as the life of Marteese Robinson, a friend and college teammate of the three men who was left behind from the professional baseball world. Robinson would eventually find a way to join his friends; just not a way that any of them expected. The Hit Men and the Kid Who Batted Ninth is an engaging tale, featuring an aside with a quotable quote from the men it spotlights on almost every page, as well as an inset section of black-and-white photographs. The Hit Men And The Kid Who Batted Ninth is a very fine read -- especially for baseball fans.

Maybe I'm a bit biased since two of the four players profiled in this book are now Mets, but I really enjoyed their stories. Siroty takes you from their childhoods through college, to the minor leagues and the majors. Every player has a different path, and not all of them have the traditional happy endings. Every page mentions a new player whose name you'll recognize - I always wondered how every baseball player seemed to know each other, even if their teams never competed. You'll love this book if you love baseball - because it really shows the players' passion for the game.

David Siroty writes a factually accurrate account of the Hit Men from Seton Hall. As a former Pirate player, I spent some time with these guys and they were all good guys and had one distinguishing trait in common; they all had the burning desire to play the great game of baseball. Excellent job by Siroty telling a great story about the greatest game on the face of the earth.
Brought back good memories. Wish I was there!
Can't wait to bring my son to Mike Sheppard's Basball Camp...keep the hustle.
PS: Marteese Robinson was one of the nicest guys in our high school, SHP.

Until recently, I hadn't thought much about cumulative tales helping with memory but they do. I recommend not skipping a word as you go back over the previous steps. Children (and I) love the art work also in this edition.

I also recommend these cumulative tales and songs.
There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly,
The Buggy That Boogied Away, and
She'll be Coming 'Round the Mountain.

My one-year-old son adores this book and brings it to me several times a day to read it to him. It's text-heavy with tons of repetition, so we skip every few verses. He giggles at the rhythm of the text and sometimes even dances side to side. The illustrations are very colorful, consistent with the author's other books and those in this series. I highly recommend!

The illustrator adds a special delight to this old cumulative tale.
In addition to the visual and auditory treat, tales such as this are a great boost to language skills.

I read this book as a child, and now am reading this book to my nieces and nephew. What a joy it is to read such good books to young children. This is a must for anyone with youngsters. Buy it! You will not regret it.

Now that stroker cranks and heads are more affordable for Small Block Mopars its more a case of why wouldn't you stroke. This book follows along the lines of How To Hot Rod Small Block Mopars by Larry Shepard and includes various engine packages in the rear - which is great and gives you an idea of what can be achieved and what parts are required to do it, it also includes heaps of websites to check which is also great. The photos are great,gives superb guidance and ideas to pursue and really is a must for anyone building a stroker. Some of the detail can be a bit light if you are the type that really wants to know everything, but I think for 90% of readers like me its excellent and you won't regret the purchase price. In the long run it will probably save you money e.g. fitting Eagle Rods instead of resizing and grinding the block for your original rods.

I am planning on building an engine. There was a lot I had picked out, but this helped take me into a place I didn't think it was possible to go with a little money.

Too little, too late, too generic has been my complaint on Mopar based engine books. Even the factory manuals have ignored the small block, especially the R series. At long last we have a book that at least acknowledges their existence. This manually actually focuses on the performance heads and blocks available instead of just the 30 year old factory stuff. A must have for anyone with a small block mopar.

This book is very complete and a necessary read for the small block builder who is not up to speed on current theory and component availability for the LA series. Building a big stroker from a small Chrysler can be an intimidating project because there is very little published that isn't about a Chevy.

Worth the money....and a great addition to your tech library.