Blair Books

this novel is complete: history, romance, ethics, drama, comedy. all are present in a superb text with an easy and clear language.
it took me to a different world in all its details. it documents for a different trend of life many people want to remember, be it for its misery or its happiness.
i strongly recommend it .

I just finished reading this book and, as expected with Maalouf, I was enchanted. It reads like a fairy tale only much closer to reality (at least for myself). All vices from hate to lust are represented with such vivid imagery, The kind of book that makes you reflect after every page.

This book is a terrific example of historical fiction and well deserving of the Prix Goncourt. It contains the two most important aspects of historical fiction. First, great historical fiction must contain a great deal of information on the era and the people in which the story is told. It really must convey the `feel' of the period. This story takes place (primarily) in a Druze village of Lebanon in the early to mid 1800s. You'll learn quite a bit about the complexities of 19th century Lebanese society and the larger scale geopolitical machinations between the French, British, Ottomans, and Egyptians, of which the proto-Lebanese state is caught helplessly in the middle. Second, the story contains a thoughtful tale about human ideals and relationships that is relevant and meaningful today. Maalouf succeeds admirably on both counts. The plot centers around a Druze youth who may or may not be the illegitimate child of the local sheik. This is a story about life's lessons and frustrations, and determining one's role in the world. Without giving too much away, the ending is extremely well done. Tanios (the main character) comes full circle, going from outcast to power broker, and realizes that being at the top isn't all that he thought it would be. Highly recommended.

This is the first book for Maalouf that I've read and he's since become my favourite author.

Make sure that you read Leo Africanus and Samarkand... I think they're somewhat better than Rock of Tanios as they have more fact and substance.

`In our village, the rocks had names.' With the first words I knew that I was going to delve into this book and would not bring myself to put it down until I had finished!
Set in 19th century Lebanon, The title "The Rock of Tanios" refers to a peculiar rock formation, looking like a great stone chair, that dominated the Lebanese village of Kfaryabda. The central characters are Sheikh Francis, a Christian Arab, and the sheikh's illegitimate offspring, Tanios. When I first started reading the book, I was on the quest to find why the rock was named after Tanios. Little did I know that that was the last thing that I was going to learn from this gripping tale. Through the fates and legends of these characters Maalouf creates a historical romance filled with local myths, political games, treachery, and love.
I would have to say that one of Maalouf's main themes is lost or forbidden love; how we fall in love with what's different from us, and discover we're different from what we thought we were.
And, it is forbidden love, which tears Tanios' family apart and drives him into exile.
Deceiving as hope might be, a twist in fate and luck brings Tanios back to his mother's bosom. Ironically, as he finally makes it to his beloved home, Tanios is left yet again as the estranged boy who did not truly know his own identity, or did he?
An amazing read, Maalouf has done it again. A prize well deserved for his fascinating imagination to mix true life with fiction.

Disappointing, monothematic, redundant, slow.... Dramatically slow, it made me want to scream.
I didn't enjoy this book, the 1st chapter or two were all right filling me in with knowledge of the processes I might go through in 20 years' time but after the 2nd chapter it just gets boring and sadistically slow.

There are no other voices here except for that of the writer, and even though it is extremely courageous to write your truth like this, with raw nudity and extreme detail (there are descriptions of everything the mantelpiece, the chairs, the weather, the dreams and monotonic passing of days and nights, trouble holding the house down with mom and step dad staying there full time, the color of the sky, the need for chocolate as a mood enhancer, and the power of Mother Earth, etc.) it didn't do it for me AT ALL.

I don't recommend it unless you are suffering from body changes and memory loss or you have already been through "The Change"... basically DO NOT BUY it unless you have something to share with the author on menopause, otherwise you'll just be frustrated with the ultra slow pace of this book and will crave chick lit with a vengeance.

Thank You: Your Opinion Means Nothing To Me is the personal memoir of one woman's experience with menopause. Retelling physical, emotional, and spiritual stresses and trials with a twist of humor and the candor that comes from enduring sustained tribulation, Thank You: Your Opinion Means Nothing To Me is a sober and insightful reflection upon what it truly means to grow old, accept oneself, and find one's voice. From adjusting to her elderly mother moving back in, to the miffed realization that her sex drive is in neutral, to exploring revelations of mortality in flesh and spirit step by step, Thank You: Your Opinion Means Nothing To Me involves the reader by virtue of its very nonchalance in addressing everyday concerns as well as larger than life issues.

I absolutely LOVED this book! I'm a twenty-six year old female and far from menopause, but this isn't just about menopause, it's about life and learning to deal with, and accept, the changes that come with it, which Blair amazingly guides the reader through. Her voice is powerful, filled with attitude and wit. Some of the crazy thoughts she shares are thoughts we all experience, but don't always talk about.

This has been one of the most inspirational books I've ever read! I slapped post-it's on just about every page so I can refer back to the quotes. Though this isn't a self-help book, the wisdom and inspiration have stuck with me more than any self-help book I've read. It has given me insight as to what to expect during menopause, how to deal with life changes, and most of all, living in the moment. I already find myself applying the following quotes, "Only I can control my thoughts. I don't have to think about anything I don't want to. I can change my mind. Why not? Everything else is changing" and "Emotions are merely signposts. Let them guide you, but keep them out of the driver's seat."

In addition to being funny, interesting, informative--and reassuring, this book felt "familiar"; Blair wasn't some distant person I couldn't relate to, her experiences and reactions and feelings felt like those of myself and my girlfriends. As she finds her way to her newly forming self, it gives us permission--and hope--to do the same. I can't wait for the sequel!

Don't be fooled! This is not a "chick book!" This book is fun, intelligent, and insightful.
I'm sure women are out there reading it now; Men should be reading it to. There's a message in this book and we'll all be better off, personally and collectively, if it gets to everyone.
A must read!!!!!!
LeeHi
Philadelphia.

This is the story of a man who knew what he wanted to do very early in life and actually did it... proving that you CAN do anything you set your mind to do if you have the passion for it and persistence. The book is full of details about the particular series of flights in the X-15 but also contains much evidence of a full, well lived life. [...]

This book does not deserve a good rating. 2 stars is perhaps to harsh, but it is actually not well written at all. - On the other side I don't regret that I bought it. Because it contains a lot of information and opinions with regards to high speed and high alltitude flight from this Golden Age Of Aviation. It was of historical value for me to get a feeling of this periode. - But it seems that Scott Crossfield was pressed by a publisher to write for two audiences, and one of the "audiences" may have been the housewife of the late fifthies. (I soon discovered that I had to browse through the first 100 or 150 pages of the book.) - If Scott Crossfield had sat down today to rewrite the story, I believe it could have become a great aviation book.

Always Another Dawn tells the stort of A. Scott Crossfield, a pioneering test pilot. His greatest accomplishment was being an integral part of the development and initial flight testing of the X-15 rocket-powered research aircraft, and it in this area that the book concentrates. It is well-written, however a bit dated. I felt the technical aspects of the airplane's design were lacking, even for the average reader. Any aviation enthusiast will find this to be a great addition to his/her library.

I must admit to being a little prejudiced in my review. For, fortunate for me, the author is my Godfather. My own father, Arthur Olderich, Jr., worked with Mr. Crossfield during the 1950s and, over the past few years, has shared many of his personal accounts of those very special moments in Aviation History. This book chronicles, in vivid detail, so many of the facinating incidents, milestones, and major events that colored the lives of those pioneer aviators at Edwards AFB. I treasure my autographed copy !

This is a different book about an era that much has been written about. William Bridgeman's "The lonely sky", Pete Everest's "Fastest Man Alive" and Yeager's bestselling autobiography all talk about the same era - the development of supersonic aircraft in the late 40s and early 50s. The perspective is different, Crossfield was a new breed of test pilot - an engineer with the "Right Stuff". For one he was a NACA (now NASA) pilot from the beginning at Edwards AFB. The others were Air Force and manufacturers test pilots. He then left to join North American to push the X-15 program (a much needed research tool) to its completion. Great descriptions of both personal and organizational challenges, the preparation, design and flight testing associated with the X-15. Read "At the Edge of Space : The X-15 Flight Program" by Milt Thomson (who flew the X-15 after Crossfield had tested it) to see how well Crossfield and North American Aviation suceeded in their endeavour to make an unparalleled air vehicle. Some of its records held till the Space Shuttle broke them.

Mountford's prose sets vivid scenes and her historical research on the ponies is evident. She skillfully weaves history and modern-day questions to give us a mystery that keeps us reading and is not soon forgotten.

"Bloodlines" is a masterfully developed mystery that grips interest with its unflagging excitement, its tapestry of history skillfully woven in as background, and a story colored by the embracing atmosphere of coastal Carolina. Mountford is an author who knows the lure of the land she describes and whose research adds a significant dimension.

Reviewer: RBH, NC native

i live on the cystal coast.. the area that this book takes plan in... i felt as if i knew some of the people in this.book.... to me it was very real.. and it held my attention...i really enjoyed this book , so much that after reading the library copy.. i went out , purchased a copy to have in my own home library...

This book is not worth the time to read. The plot is convoluted and unbelievable, the characters are not interesting, and the horses (ponies) are poorly delineated. I gave it every chance, but got so bored with it I started skipping pages madly less than a third of the way into it. Even for confirmed horse-lovers (me, for one), the book rates low. Good grief, horses just do NOT act in the manner described! Who ever heard of a "wild" stallion leading a person to a foal's grave and pawing it up? It just doesn't happen that way, folks. Do yourself a favor...pick some other book to read at the beach.

Wonderful and surprising story. Her first book was captavating but this one far surpasses it. Hope she writes more as I am anxious to continue the travels with all the characters. Author has a very good way with words. This is a MUST READ book.

I think this book really touches one's heart. Many passages that uplift sorrow and help one to carry on with God's help. I love the book.

My husband is a huge fan of Bluegrass music and also likes to cook. This book is the perfect present for him, because it contains a heap of interesting information about famous bluegrass bands, as well as a selection of their favourite recipes. It may not rate too high on the health scale, but is great fun.

Two years ago during medical treatments I was too tired to concentrate on Biblical passages. "Hope for a Woman's Soul" was given to me. I found that reading one or two pages of this book lifted my spirit out of the disappointment and fear that met me everyday. My soul was refreshed daily by reading one or two pages. Some pages I read over and over. They reminded me of God's great love for me and they gave me hope for a better day. This book was my lifeline to God during a difficult time.

Encouragement, compassion, faith and hope can be found in these beautiful scriptures and personal testimonies. Great guide for any woman in today's world needing a little inspiration from our Savior, Jesus Christ. Very comforting book that just reassures us that no matter what we're going through, our merciful Lord is right there with us.

Great meals from great pickers

The books of Trotter's trilogy, "The Civil War in North Carolina" (the other volumes are "Silk Flags and Cold Steel: The Piedmont" and "Ironclads and Columbiads: The Coast") were published as independent works and can be enjoyed that way. But one can't get a good understanding of the war in the Old North State by reading about a single region. I strongly suggest that serious students of the war, or of North Carolina, take time to read the entire trilogy.

Aside from John G. Barrett's "The Civil War in North Carolina," Trotter's trilogy is the only modern comprehensive account of the war in the Tar Heel state. (See also my review of Barrett's book at Amazon.com.) Unlike Barrett's rather academic, formal approach, Trotter is as concerned with telling some good stories as he is with documenting North Carolina's role in the war. He includes a fairly extensive bibliography in each volume, but apparently he relied mainly on published sources, and the footnotes are very sparse. This is not to say that his work is inaccurate or invalid, but it is hardly the ultimate account of the war in North Carolina.

His geographical division of the three volumes also presents some problems. Much information about the state's entry into the war and about its political aspects is found in the volume on the Piedmont, "Silk Flags and Cold Steel," but the most important battles in the first three years of the war -- which had an influence on these political events -- are covered in the "Ironclads and Columbiads" volume about the coastal war. These two volumes also contain many later events that "interact," for example, the closing battles in March and April of 1865. And some events in "Bushwhackers" - most notably, Stoneman's cavalry raid in the final weeks of the war - also lap over in to Piedmont. Again, a full understanding requires reading all three of these books. Trotter, while adopting a mildly pro-Confederate tone like Barrett's, doesn't do as good a job of tying events in North Carolina to those of the wider war.

"Bushwhackers" stands best on its own among the three volumes; here Trotter does a vastly superior job to Barrett in portraying both the nastiness of the mountain conflict and the difficulties the Confederates had in defending the western area of the state, especially in the latter part of the war. Much of "Bushwhackers" focuses on Thomas's North Carolina Highland Legion, a unit made up partly of Cherokee Indians, which fought throughout the war and gained a fearsome reputation in Great Smokies area. Trotter also spends much space here on Confederate deserters and draft dodgers who flocked to the mountains to hide out (shades of "Cold Mountain!"). (In his other volumes, Trotter also devotes ample time to draft resisters and Unionist guerrillas in the Piedmont and Chowan River regions.) However, his account of the war in the mountains is more episodic and less cohesive than the accounts of the other two books, perhaps because the North Carolina mountain war was more diverse and source materials about it rather scarce and sometimes apocryphal.

One failing that Trotter shares with Barrett is the poor quality of his maps ("Bushwhackers" has no maps at all!) and the lack of description of battle sites, roads, and other places in modern terms. It took me a while to figure out that the town known in 1861 as "Warm Springs," on the French Broad River, is named "Hot Springs" on modern maps; and I never did figure out if "Quallatown" is the same place as the present-day Cherokee, North Carolina. (If not, it must be very close by.) A copy of DeLorme's "North Carolina Atlas and Gazetteer" is a vital supplement to these three books; modern place names and locations of battles and other events should have been located using modern landmarks, included as footnotes.

Trotter's trilogy is "popular" history, entertainingly related and highly readable. He doesn't hesitate to have occasional fun with purple prose- "The obsidian mountain night engulfed them like wraiths" -but the writing usually is lively and flows well. There may be more recent and more thorough books about various aspects of the Civil War in North Carolina, but Trotter's trilogy presents an introductory survey in a convenient package.

Not much has been written on the Civil War in the Appalachians, where, as William Trotter so eloquently puts it: "The killers had names, the victims had kin, and everybody had a gun." Bushwhackers is the best-researched, most thorough account of the mountain war that I have found. When I was researching "Ghost Riders", my novel about the Civil War in the mountains, I found that Mr. Trotter's book was the most useful guide to the chronology of events and their significance. In addition to primary source material and histories, I consulted his book at every turn to make sure that my narrative on Zebulon Vance and Malinda Blalock agreed with the historical record. When other authors disagreed on some point of information, and I had to chose whom to believe, I always chose Trotter. This book is a distinguished piece of scholarship, and an invaluable resource to the Appalachian historian. Highly recommended!

A very good book---makes you feel as if you in the mountainsduring those times. I would recommend this book to anyone thats lovesgood mountain air END

Bushwhackers; The Civil War in North Carolina The Mountains written by William R. Trotter is an epic backrop for the great military war that occured behind the scenes in the Mountainous regions of the western North Carolina Appalachian's. The book attempts to document much of the voilence that did take place such as Fratricidal Raiding and Bushwhacking skirmishes that took place amid small bands of men whom operated under no regular military command. There was no Official Reports filed on most of this fighting. Major connections to East Tennessee, as well, this book is a pleasure and more a treasure for anyone interested in history and genealogical findings on their ancestors that traveled thru the southern states to freedom.

Bushwackers is a reader friendly account of the civil war in the mountains of North Carolina. Besides the historical accounts, Trotter includes stories that have been passed down and are rich fodder for storytellers. Trotter has a creative non-fiction style that brings this time and place alive. :)Mary Z. Cox

Cade Merrile is a seventeen year old owner of a webpage called blairwithfiles.com. His cousin Heather died in the making of a student documentary on the blair witch. Cade puts a message up on his site asking for information on one of the many cases of the Blair witch. In 1825 there was a mysterious drowning of a young girl. Eileen Treacle was only ten years old when she drowned in 'East Tappy Creek" and several witnesses testified that they saw a 'bony white hand' reach out of the water to pull the girl in. He looks through tons of e-mails until he comes across one written by Cecelia Northrupp, a girl who claims to have seen the ghost of Eileen Treacle. Without hesistating, Cade decides to check her story out and uncovers the story of three more mysterious deaths near the same creek.

The story is told by Cecelia Northrup herself and involves a high school camping trip that takes place 174 years after the strange death of Eileen Treacle. Immediately, (as in most of the other stories) things start to go wrong: some of the kids become sick,the weather is really cold, and ghost of a little girl appears to one of the seventh graders. So she is convinced that something is wrong and the behaviour of one of the teachers and her boyfriend Mark is soon putting everyone's life in danger. What is causing these strange events to occur and how are they linked to the Blair Witch herself? The other books in this series are good but not as messed up as this one. It really can freak you out.

This book was very intense and creepy. I like the way nothing is ever proved in these books and anyone who likes to get a little creeped out now and then should read it. If you aren't into this kind of thing, then you shouldn't read the book.

I recomend it if you are interested in reading more tales and myths about the Blair Witch. It is very, very good. It explains things that you don't get by watching the movies. I probably recomend buying the other books too if you want to have a clear understanding view of what's happening with the Blair Witch legend.

The 3red installment in Cade Merrill's Blair Witch Files. Suprisingly eerire. A high school girl named Cecilia and her boyfriend Mark,go on a camping trip along with 2 of there friends, two teachers, and 30 something seventh-graders. As time passes Cecilia's boyfriend and her teacher get very mean after falling into a creek. Cecilia begins to worry and afetr a while she finds both teachers gone and Mark acting very irritable. Wanting to get herself and the kids out of the woods she finds the school bus gone. Now Cecilia and her friends find themselfs in a race against time to get out of teh woods alive. Things get more horrifying each day- finds teachers finger nails and other teachers body. No one belives her. Mark finally tells the group the will walk out of the woods. But is he really leading them to civilization or deeper in the woods were an unknow evil lurks. Great ending. WHY ARE THE BLAIR WITCH FILES GETTING HARDER TO FIND. I WILL BE VERY SAD IF THEY GO OUT OF PRINT. Ther are not corny as some people say. Belive me I've read 4 books in this series and they were all grat. I suggest reading this trilling series- that I hope won't stop for a long time!

When Cade Merrill, seventeen year old owner of the website, theblairwitchfiles.com comes across a newspaper article dating from 1825 about the mysterious drowning of a young girl, he decides to investigate. Eileen Treacle was only ten years old when she drowned in `East Tappy Creek" and several witnesses testified that they saw a `bony white hand' reach out of the water to pull the girl in.

When Cade posts a message on his website asking for information on the legend, he doesn't expect success. After wading through dozens of replies, he comes across an e-mail from Cecelia Northrupp, a girl who claims to have seen the ghost of Eileen Treacle. Without hesistation, Cade decides to check her story out and uncovers the story of three more mysterious deaths near the same creek.

The story is narrated by Cecelia Northrup herself and involves a high school camping trip that takes place 174 years after the strange death of Eileen Treacle. Immediately, things start to go wrong: the weather is freezing, some of the kids become ill, and ghost of a little girl appears to one of the seventh graders. Cecelia is convinced that something is wrong and the behaviour of one of the teachers and her boyfriend Mark is soon putting everyone's life in danger. But what is causing these strange events to occur and how are they linked to the creek itself?

This book was fast-paced, entertaining and fairly creepy. I think it was less `psychological' than the previous book in this series, "The Dark Room", but equally enjoyable. I have to say I like the way that nothing is ever proved in these books and that the reader is left to make up their own mind about the unexplained events that take place. Overall, five stars and I recommend it to any teen who likes horror stories.

2 teachers, 4 high-school seniors, and 30 7th-graders go camping near the creek where Eileen...was supposedly pulled under by the arm of what people believe is the Blair Witch. Bad things start to happen when two people fall into the creek, and come out with totally different personalities. Then all the children walk out of the cabin at different times, each found without a clue as to why they are doing--except that they want to play. This story implies that there might be more than one evil force. Ultimately, this is simply FRIDAY the 13TH: Part 6 with a better plot.

I've purchased this item for 11-13 year olds. It is an interesting, varied, not-your-run-of-the-mill activity book, with cute illustrations. A caveat is a large scatter of difficulty among activities, which created frustration when activities could not be figured out (it would've been better to mark activities with level of difficulty so children knew when they were approaching the most difficult ones), and some unusual and rather idiosyncratic answers that were difficult even for adults to come up with or explain. Overall, good fun.

Nice activity book but would not recommend for younger children (ages 6-7) as many of the activities are too difficult for that age.

nice layout, could have used better quality paper and more color print, but all in all a good series of books, great for older kids.

What an awesome book! For kids who loves puzzles, mazes, and word games, this is the perfect gift. I'm giving this to my son, who is 11, for Christmas -- I know it's going to be a winner!

My 8 year old grandson loves this book that we got him for Christmas. He works on it all the time. Would like more Canadian stuff in it but not really a huge problem. Would buy this for the others when they are older.

I purchased this book to get myself in the 'mood' for a trip to Savannah, Georgia. I found the stories unengaging, the attention to detail poor (Interstate 80 is not in Georgia), and the writing style did nothing to make the mainly second-hand narratives exciting or interesting. It was all I could do to make it through the Savannah portion. The stories are bland and the retelling is even more bland. This book's ghost stories make 'America's Most Haunted City' Savannah sound like your average city. If you're looking for good ghost stories, this is not your book.

I recommend this book for anyone who lives in Georgia.
I live in Bowdon, Georgia where the haunted Inn is in the
book. I know the woman who lives in the Inn. She told
me one time that she had a guest in the house and they
were talking in the hallway , and that a door slamed shut
right in front of the guest. The guest left vowing never
to come back.

I have been reading Nancy Roberts books for many years and they keep on getting better and better. She is extremely knowledgable about her subject and the photography done by her husband, Bruce, is always an excellent accompaniment to her writing. Nancy Roberts is a fellow Charlottean that I am extremely proud of. Anyone who enjoys folklore, storytelling, or just a good ghost story will love this book and her others as well.

The stories Ms. Roberts shares are well-written and chilling. Georgia residents, in great detail, give eye-witness accounts of their experiences. Ms. Roberts writes these eye-witness accounts without being biased that spirits remain behind or not. A great travel guide to visit the historical south.

Nancy Roberts is a brilliant author, a great story teller I enjoyed this book, I gave it to my mother to read. NANCY gives you the history behind the story.

If you love dogs, and good, rousing ghost stories, then you need to read this book. I read it in two nights, it was very hard to put the book down. These are not all tales of the "dawn of the dog-dead" variety; there are stories of dogs' loyalties to their former guardians; tales about canines who continue to protect their humans from the "other side"; and also tales that I am sure we have all heard in one form or other: the black dogs that haunt and harass. The best part of this book is the rich southern flavor, and being able to identify the cultural cross-overs in these stories. I highly recommend it as a good solid read, and food for thought about our relationships with our canine companions!

Using Southern folklore, which is passed down verbally by predominately mountain people, these twenty stores are about the shadow side of man's 'best friend.' They come in all shapes, sizes, colors and temperaments. One story has humans coming back in the shape of dogs -- large black dogs).

In 'Devil Dog' from Rich Mountain in North Carolina, it is reminiscent of the movie 'Cold Mountain,' this story takes place after the Civil War. The Yankee soldiers descend on the Confederate war widows and abuse them and their female offspring. The girl telling this story relates how she, her mother and some other women took guns to the spot where these rough-and-ready Yankees were sleeping and shot each in the head. After that, tall black ferocious dogs were seen in those woods, and one (the Devil Dog) is waiting for the grown-up girl to die.

In Tobes Creek at Turkey Knob Gap in the Smoky Mountains, a beagle named Hamblen was a most unusual dog who had a lazy master. However, Enzor discovered some bones in the caves of Tennessee and whittled a coffin to place them in, so as to let the spirits of those who had been drown rest in peace. His dog went with him to the caves and saved him from being drown. He continued to look after the old geezer.

In Knoxville, Linda was almost hit by her father as he was driving home from work and she was out in the street on her bicycle. She had a hard knock on her head and lay in a coma. Afterwards, she suffered from severe headaches, and always a tiny dog, only ten inches high with big, upright ears that looked like butterfly wings, would appear to make her feel better. It seems that at the time of the accident, some friends of a neighbor has such a dog called Papillon which had run out to save her and the car killed him.

In Nashville, out in the Belmont Hillsboro area, there lived a crazy beekeeper who owned a guard dog, Preston. He would supervise the children's trick-or-treating every Halloween. One year he died from cancer at the vet's the day before Halloween, but the woman's granddaughter had not been told. When she and her friends arrived at the house, Preston as usual accompanied them on their adventure and ran out in front of a car to save a younger child; then, his body vanished. He was already a ghost.

Ray Ross, Jr. in Tiptonville, Tennessee, had a boxer who loved to go fishing with him. At night they could catch the biggest catfish. General George jumped into a whirlpool one night and became a mermaid's ghost dog.

In the South, pets are a part of the family and treated like children. Others of these stories contain dogs from Kentucky, Georgia, and South Carolina. The writers enjoy researching these mountain stories and have written THE GRANNY CURSE AND OTHER GHOSTS AND LEGENDS OF EAST TENNESSEE and MOUNTAIN GHOST STORIES AND CURIOUS TALES OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. They live in Asheville, and the back flap photo shows them out in their yard with leashes on their invisible friends. It reminds me of tha dandified dog walker in MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL in Savannah, Georgia.

Ghost Dogs of the South is full of tales that come straight from the south of the United States. With tales such as trick or treating and a ghost dog saving you ("Trick or Treat") and a tale about magical dog teeth ("The Silver Locket"), you will find every kind of dog, person, and tale to fit a perfect collection of stories. Randy Russell and Janet Barnett have out done themselves with finding these tales of southern folklore. With 20 stories of amazing encounters to downright spooky stuff, Ghost Dogs of the South can leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

Although not perfect, this book comes very close. Twenty stories from all over the south, from Texas to Georgia, it makes up for the few mistakes made. Some mistakes include nothing about the authors and a confusing forward. But other than that, this collection is very highly recommended for reading.

This book has received an Award of Merit from the 2001 Southern Books Competition. "Ghost Dogs of the South presents itself to us through an evocative hand-colored photograph of a boy and his dog in times of old. And it just gets better. Wonderful photographs in interesting faded-edge shapes change from chapter to chapter. The book is hand-sized, almost a prayer-book testimonial to the dogs in our lives. The designer has created a book begging to be read." Congratulations to the authors, book jacket designer Debra Long Hampton and publisher John F. Blair.

This is such a wonderful book; it is just precious (a word I rarely use). Ghost lovers, dog lovers, folktale lovers--this is your book. The stories are wonderfully tongue-in-cheek, folksy tales that capture much of the oral traditions from whence they assuredly came. This is in no way, I should say, a parapsychological study of ghosts; in a couple of stories, a ghost is only briefly mentioned. This is all about the story and the story-telling. We are treated to the internal thoughts of the characters, including the dogs, which might sound silly but works wonderfully. Seeing things from the eyes of the dogs provides a lot of unique perspectives and leads to many smiles and laughs, and it strikes me that we can learn more about human nature (at least the good part of it) from dogs than from many people. My favorite stories involve heroic actions performed by beloved dogs for their masters and even for strangers. The dog who saved a child from getting run over by a car and who returns each Halloween to watch over trick-or-treaters is incredibly touching. There are also some sad, even heartbreaking aspects to some stories--even the bravest, most loyal dogs sometimes pay the ultimate price for their devotion, and some are brutally and senselessly hurt and killed (as are other poor animals). Any dog lover will tell you that the bond between a dog and that dog's human is stronger than death; those who scoff at such a thing will not enjoy this book.

I know all dog lovers are wonderful wherever they live, but the fact that these stories take place in the South certainly made them much more meaningful to me as a Southerner. These are our stories; several of them come from places "just up the road a spell" from where I live. Each tale features a tidbit of Southern history I was not aware of. You certainly don't have to be a Southerner to enjoy this book, but those of us from Dixie will feel a little closer to these stories than others might. You may notice that the term "Civil War" is never used in these pages; old-timers (and some of us younger folks) know to refer to that tragic period as the War Between the States. There are a lot of little things like this that help make this book so special to me. As an added bonus, you will learn the difference between ghost dogs and dog ghosts, and you will even get to find out why dogs' lips are black and why dogs chase cats.

Finally, this book is a work of art. The care and effort that went into the production of this book deserve some kind of award. Besides the touching cover photo of a boy and his dog, there are old-time photos of men and women, girls and boys, blacks and whites and their dogs interspersed throughout the book. These pictures are not pictures of the dogs whose tales are told in these pages, but they give the book a wonderful, personal touch that evokes the kinds of feelings that are only understood by dog lovers the world over.