Big Books

A fantastic book for anyone who is interested in big cats. The book covers all eight of the world's big cat species, giving details on such things as; population status,habitat,prey and physical characteristics. With stunning photo's and a clear and concise text, this really is a must for anyone who has a love for these majestic creatures.

This is among the best books I've ever read. It has my top 8 most favorite animals, the eight big cats, in it, the information is etched in terrific print and detail, you can learn tons from it, and the photos are absolutely glamourous. There are few, if any, large cats I have seen photographed that are more beautiful than the ones in this book. Any cat lover should buy it. By the way, here are the eight big cats, in the order I like them(I love them all, but this is just how MUCH) Okay then, my lineup! Here goes:

1. Lions and Lionesses

2. Tigers and Tigresses

3. Jaguars and Jaguaresses

4. Leopards and Leopardesses

5. Cougars and Cougresses

6. Snow Leopards and Snow Leopardesses

7. Cheetahs and Cheetahesses

8. Clouded Leopards and Clouded Leopardesses.

Sensing a trend here? If you are, good. You want to learn and love the beautiful and majestic animals that are the big cats? Buy this book. It's as good as they get. At least in some ways.

This book is a excellent reference for the person who wishes to learn about the "Big" Cats and the "Great" Cats. It goes into detail on all species including sub-species, range, habitat, behavior, the status on threatend species and the tragedy of now extinct species. Superb photography and graphs make this book the perfect addition for your library. The references section of this book also points out other publications which would be benificial to the reader

Mary Randolph Carter, aka "Carter", is Queen of all things Junk! Others may use that title, but Carter owns it. The fourth (!) book in her "American Junk" series, "Big City Junk", finds our heroine Carter trapsing through the junk yards, stores and flea-markets of more cosmopolitan outposts. As usual, Carter's unique gift is her ability to photograph junk in its "natural state", and giving the discarded, outdated and seemingly unimportant the artistic presence it deserves. Subconciously, every compulsive junker has always understood the "power of junk", and Carter's "Big City Junk" is a celebration of that understanding. Particularly poignent in "Big City Junk" are Carter's photographs of various paintings, sketches and souvenirs of New York and The World Trade Center. Odd and touching how a few photos of humble junk express that which cannot be said in a million words.

BIG CITY JUNK, which was probably in production on September 11, 2001 (it arrived in bookstores a couple of months later), carries a special resonance because of the events of that day. What would otherwise be a lark of a style book appealing to the collectibles crowd becomes a small shrine as well for a piece of the New York lifestyle and psyche. In the course of celebrating the cast aside and disposable, Mary Randolph Carter, the author and photographer caught a lasting, brave, prophetic comment about fear and city living rendered in the temporal medium of a sidewalk chalk message. But she is also onto something else that is so very much a part of the economy and ecology of the city: the cycle of "stuff" in a population intensive, small place. The sociological angle raises this volume in Carter's Junk series above the others.

This is not to say the book isn't fun. It is fun. And it is very fair: Carter gives very specific information about how much things cost (or don't) and where they were found. She provides lists of flea markets and thrift shops in the major metropolitan areas she covers. Her method is to focus on individual collectors in locales like New York, San Francisco and LA, profiling how they find their stuff and what they do with it.

Like a novelist who succeeds in creating a world and staying true to it, Carter has established a vision that makes junk matter. I need open, less cluttered surfaces in my own environment, but when I read the Junk series, I can certainly enjoy that collectible urge.

I love this book, and I will admit, I am the subject of one of the chapters in the book (Lost and Found). But I was a big fan of
Carter's books before I met her 2 years ago. I remember the excitement I felt when I saw "American Junk" for the first time.
A woman after my own heart! (I have been making art from junk for the last 6 years.) Thank you Carter (she prefers to be called that), for helping us to see so many fun ways to decorate inexpensively and recylce, reuse, and clean up the environment.
Carter writes in an inviting, cozy manner that makes you feel like an old friend. And I really enjoyed watching her photograph
for my chapter, no fussy rearranging of things, she captures the
images as she sees them and moves on. Packed full of inspiration!

I find myself picking this book up just to read, without having a particular word in mind. It's a great tool for boning up on one's vocabulary. I can thumb through easily without being distracted by archaic terms and definitions that are usually found in an unabridged dictionary. These are the words that I really want to use!

I am very pleased to find a quick usable dictionary. This format allows me to find words quickly and most importantly get a definition that is short and to the point. It's just like the book says- it's very handy for those words I know but I'm not sure of the exact meaning. I find myself using it to write with as well, since I know a certain word but can't recall it exactly but I know it may begin with the letter "C". So I can easily look through the words that begin with "C" and sure enough there is the word. It's a real aid to memory, especially when you sort of recall the word, but not accurately.

I teach English and English as a Foreign Language - online and in person - and have for many years. The Big Dictionary is the perfect solution for my students. It gives them precise, concise definitions without confusing them with a lot of information they do not need.

I find myself preferring to use it too! It cuts to the chase. It's big in content, as complete as needed for daily use, and small in size - fits easily into my purse. I've been looking/hoping for this dictionary for years. Thank you Mr. Darro.

Wonderful book for Children. Great Photography. A must for the Christmas Stocking from Santa Claus

Living in Boston, you are constantly affected by Big Dig-related twists, turns, and upsets. One day the one-way street heads east; the next it has been re-routed west. Few of us venture into the heart of this truly amazing engineering feat, but this book shows us why we should pay more attention. Vanderwarker's spectacular photographs are thrilling to see and they give a glimpse of just why so much money has been poured into this project. We get to see things only the workers would normally see. But perhaps best of all is the glimpse it gives of cutting-edge engineering and technology. Seldom have I seen so clearly how yesterday's sci-fi has become today's "sci" and tomorrow's business as usual.

This book is so much fun to read. The photography is wonderful. Vanderwalker has such a good "eye" for beauty, even in construction.

A must buy for the kids at Christmas

Big Doc's Girl is a classic of its genre. Mary Medearis is an Arkansas native currently living in New York. You can purchase paperback copies of her book at WordsWorth Bookstore in Little Rock, AR., 1-800-880-0122.

I accidentally happened upon this book and will be forever grateful that I did. Although the novel is unique in having strictly one point of view throughout, the heroine is engaging enough to hold the readers interest. I loved how the author painted the picture of what was going on. The writing style is reminiscent of the old "classics" with a lot of attention to detail. The setting, the story, the characters, and the writing are all excellent. I loved the book, have recommended it to many, and am looking to purchase. A rare treat that I will read time and again. Absolutely beautiful.

This novel is told from the point of view of Mary Clayborne, the teenage daughter of a small-town Arkansas doctor during the Depression. When tragedy strikes the family, Mary must choose between her dream of attending the music conservatory, marrying her father's young resident, or staying and becoming head of the household for her younger siblings. A deft portrayal of life in rural Arkansas, a fine translation of the back-country mores, and a convincing dose of teenage angst and ennui.

John Kraus, a radio amateur, physicist, inventor of antennas publisher of many books in the field of physics and electronics and builder of radio telescopes shares with us his exciting life and the progress of science and engineering in his book BIG EAR TWO.

Exciting chapters in this book will carry you from a young man's early experiences in radio and electronics, though developing electronic countermeasures during World War Two, on to Building BIG EAR, a radio telescope at the Ohio State University.

We heartily recommend this book to the engineer, astronomer, physicist, radio amateur, student of the history of science and technology as well as anyone with a general curiosity science. Well written and entertaining, "BIG EAR TWO" is a major revision to the earlier work, "BIG EAR," that was published in 1976.

Ed Sharpe, Archivist -for Southwest Museum of Engineering, Communications and Computation Glendale Arizona

John Kraus, a radio amateur, physicist, inventor of antennas publisher of many books in the field of physics and electronics and builder of radio telescopes shares with us his exciting life and the progress of science and engineering in his book BIG EAR TWO.

Exciting chapters in this book will carry you from a young man's early experiences in radio and electronics, though developing electronic countermeasures during World War Two, on to Building BIG EAR, a radio telescope at the Ohio State University.

We heartily recommend this book to the engineer, astronomer, physicist, radio amateur, student of the history of science and technology as well as anyone with a general curiosity science. Well written and entertaining, "BIG EAR TWO" is a major revision to the earlier work, "BIG EAR," that was published in 1976.

Ed Sharpe, Archivist -for Southwest Museum of Engineering, Communications and Computation Glendale Arizona - couryhouse@aol.com

John Kraus, a radio amateur, physicist, inventor of antennas publisher of many books in the field of physics and electronics and builder of radio telescopes shares with us his exciting life and the progress of science and engineering in his book BIG EAR TWO.

Exciting chapters in this book will carry you from a young man's early experiences in radio and electronics, though developing electronic countermeasures during World War Two, on to Building BIG EAR, a radio telescope at the Ohio State University.

We heartily recommend this book to the engineer, astronomer, physicist, radio amateur, student of the history of science and technology as well as anyone with a general curiosity science. Well written and entertaining, "BIG EAR TWO" is a major revision to the earlier work, "BIG EAR," that was published in 1976.

Ed Sharpe, Archivist -for Southwest Museum of Engineering, Communications and Computation Glendale Arizona - couryhouse@aol.com

This is a book about an aspiring journalist who's senior in high school and who writes a series about being fat for her school paper and for a journalism scholarship. The book takes place over a couple of months, starting at the beginning of the semester and ending right before Thanksgiving. Jamie juggles her boyfriend, her two best friends, her editor-in-chief, the school play, her newspaper column, the ACT and more, all with a slightly unrealistic splash of drama.

I very much enjoyed the book. It definitely made me rethink fat people. I've never even really thought about the fact that I even have a set of viewpoints on fat people. It just never crossed my mind before. I have family who is overweight. I need to lose ten pounds, probably. I've never hated the people who struggle to gain weight because I've been in that boat. I also know how hard it can be to lose weight. I'm often self-centered, even unwittingly, so I've always thought of weight in terms of my own life, not in the lives of others.

So, yeah, Big Fat Manifesto gave me something to think about. Oh, and it was funny.

Jamie is sexy, talented, smart, hard-working, and oh yeah, fat. Not a typical insecure size 10 swimming in a sea of zeros, Jamie tops the scale at over three hundred pounds. She is inspirational as she describes the challenges of being morbidly obese in a world that is unwilling to drop the "thin is beautiful" sterotype. Although Jamie dosen't always come out on top she never blames anybody else for her weight and she never lets it slow her down in her quest to live a ordinary (make that extraordinary) life. Big Fat Manifesto is a great read for people of all sizes!

Jamie Carcaterra is outspoken, opinionated, talented, sexy, not afraid to be in the spotlight - and fat. She starts her senior year with her FAT GIRL column to let people know what it really means to be a fat girl.

I just loved Jamie's verve and nerve but even more the humanness she tried to hide. Her friends are also great - loyal but honest. Then when Jamie's boyfriend decides to get his stomach stapled - WOW! First of all, I had no idea about the dangers and sideaffects of that procedure which were awful enough - but the real question is, how will Jamie handle having a 'thin' boyfriend.

This is a great book for teens and adults. You'll never look at a 'fat girl' the same.

Does the world discriminate against fat people? Jamie Carcaterra thinks they do, and she is out to change things.

Proudly calling herself "Fat Girl," Jamie has started a feature column by the same name in The Wire, her school newspaper. Making people aware of the unfairness suffered by overweight people is her goal. She is also hoping her top-notch journalistic efforts will help her win the National Feature Award which could earn her a fully paid college education.

With the help of her friends, Freddie and NoNo, Jamie has planned an attack on a popular clothing retailer offering clothes in sizes designed for the very thin. Jamie weighs in at over 300 pounds, and her plan is to enter the store, request an item, and demand a fitting room to try it on. Armed with her notepad and a video camera, she gathers material for her column.

Jamie is comfortable with her size. She doesn't try to disguise the fact that she is fat. Her mother is fat. Her father is fat. Her boyfriend, Burke, is fat, but not for long. Another issue Jamie explores in her feature column is the fact that Burke has decided to undergo gastric bypass surgery. The risks are enormous (pardon the pun) but Burke tells Jamie he is tired of it all. She agrees to support him, but will things ever be the same?

Teen readers of all sizes will relate to Jamie. She has lots of friends, is active in school activities, and is feeling the stress of senior year with ACT pressure, college applications, and financial concerns. She candidly reveals her thoughts and feelings about being fat in a world that worships those who are thin.

BIG FAT MANIFESTO is a must-read. Susan Vaught offers everything in this book. She has great characters, humor, roller-coaster emotions, and romance along with interesting statistics and opinions about being overweight. I hope she will give us another peek into the life of Jamie Carcaterra some day.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

Any small to mid-sized nonprofit that requires funding cannot afford to be without Andy Robinson's book. In a nutshell, he demystifies major donor fundraising and makes it accessible to busy board and staff members. In short, direct chapters he helps remove people's natural fear of the process and instills the sense that asking for money is not only honorable but also incredibly rewarding.

Robinson has written an excellent and pithy introduction to the art of soliciting gifts - it's a relief to have the advice written in a clear and concise manner that's just right for the board member who has any trepidation at all about asking for money but wants a quick primer on how to make a significant difference in their fundraising skills.

What I like most about this book is that it's so practical and seems so doable. I know that most ordinary citizens would probably choose a root canal over the prospect of having to ask someone for a big ($500 to $5000) donation, even for a cause they really care about. But with the help of this book, you'll feel confident that you could really do the things that the author, Andy Robinson, is suggesting. Why? Because Andy de-mystifies the process of fundraising by breaking it down into easily conceivable steps. And, you feel like you can trust him because he seems like a regular guy, not a superhero. If he's done it, then you can too. I like that he shares what's worked for him. An added benefit -- you can read this enjoyable book in less than an hour. (Of course, you'll want to pick it up again and again for its handy advice.)

Absolutely love this book! My mom use to read this book to me as a kid and now I get to read it to my kids. Such good memories.

I absolutely LOVE this book!!! As a teenager my mother made me get rid of most of my childhood possessions, this being one of them. What a mistake! But, luckily in this age of the internet, I've been able to recapture the JOY of this FINE BOOK of POETRY. I've actually bought several copies, in order to have a spare, and for gifts. The poems are Fabulous as are the Illustrations. My Favorites, off the top of my head, would be "The Baby Goes to Boston" (What Does the Train Say?), "The Sugarplum Tree", "The Animal Store", and "Choosing Shoes". The Illustrations, as I said, are Wonderful. I highly Reccommend this book!!!

This is a wonderful book from my childhood that I recommend to all parents. I wish it still was in print. Favorite poets, such as Robert Louis Stevenson, Eugene Field, Ogden Nash and James Whitcomb Riley, and many more fill the pages with well known and some long forgotten poems. My favorites have always been "The Tale of Custard the Dragon" and "Little Orphant Annie", the latter keeping me on the straight and narrow and in my bed at night as a child "...An' the Gobble-uns 'll git you ef you don't watch out!" The simple line drawings and full-color illustrations are an extra delight.

I'll have to admit that I was a little worried about a book where a man cuts off his big hairy toe! I had visions of "Stephen King meets Jan Brett" in a new genre called Horror Picture Books. Instead, I was left with a smile over a very warm and tender story of a girl who visits her grandparents and the fun they have telling spooky stories. The carefully chosen words and wonderful illustrations make The Big Hairy Toe a great read.

The story begins, quite innocently, with the narrator remembering visits to her grandparent's house when she was younger. Because they didn't have electricity, they had to use oil lamps to see and a wood stove for heat. Then, one particular night, they gather together to hear Grandfather tell a story about the house's previous owner, a man who accidentally cut off his big hairy toe. From there, the story unfolds and the suspense builds, leading up to a surprise and lighthearted ending!

I truly enjoyed hearing the rendering of this tale, and I think it's done perfectly. It's one of those books that can be read to children from kindergarten up to even third grade. It's suspenseful enough to capture a young person's attention, but not scary enough that the story would be inappropriate. Likewise, I can clearly see this book being used with older children to explore their own memories of visits to their grandparent's or even as a springboard to writing their own scary tales.

The real power to this book, I think, is in the unsaid. Viva Lou Carey and Brett Key carefully craft The Big Hairy Toe to draw the readers in and let them use their imagination. So many picture books today have too much writing and illustrations that are too full. This book seems to have the perfect balance: the authors give us just enough to direct our thoughts and eyes, then let our imaginations do the rest. This, for me, is what a picture book should do. For this reason, I highly recommend The Big Hairy Toe.

Thomas Bolme, Jr.
An Independent Professional Book Reviewer

The Big Hairy Toe, is certainly suspenseful and a sit on the edge of a chair type of book. Children would absolutely love it. It is a good campfire story for families who go camping. I highly recommend this book and know children will definitely respond to the contents. I know I would be cuddled up next to my grandmother when I was little when the story was told by Grandpa. Appropriately illustrated.

"The Big Hairy Toe" by Viva Lou Carey is a great book. It is a great story and is illustrated by a person that is tops in my opinion anyway I thought his illustrations are as good as illustrations get.

The story is also as good as a story gets. After I read this book I thought "WOW" I am glad I ordered this book and it is definitely a keeper. This book reflects highly on the author, Illustrator, and Publisher.

I would recommend this book for all age groups. It is definitely a book that parents could read to their children over and over again. If you want to see a quality book that you can read to your children, this is it.