Blair Books

Gave to a friend who moved to NC - recipient loved it.

Gary McCullough's extraordinary guide to the numerous historical sites in the great state of North Carolina stands alone as being the only publication devoted solely to the array of magnificent state-owned historical attractions open to the public. In addition to the dramatic geographical variances, the old North State is very rich in history; with remnants from the days of the pre-Columbian Paleo-Indians to the original British colony, all the way up to the modern-era, a visitor is able to experience just about every major event in American history all within this single state.

Unfortunately the cache a historical treasures contained within are often overlooked by travelers and residents alike. This is why McCullough's one of a kind guide is so vital to everyone from history buffs to everyday visitors. He accomplishes, quite-well, the task of condensing the sometimes complex history of each site with an brief overview of each listing; followed by the story of how it came to be preserved, and ending with a description of the activities available to visitors. Separated by geographical locations and all containing numerous photographs, creates a quick, easy to read, enjoyable guide to these diverse and delightful destinations.

From the Atlantic Coast to the majestic Appalachian Mountains, "North Carolina's State Historic Sites" lists the abundance of marvelous, visitable fragments of the past. Some of the sites listed are of national-significance; the Alamance Battleground-quite possibly the first armed conflict of the American Revolution, the numerous hallowed battlefields of the Civil War, Bennett place- the farm where General Johnston signed the surrender of his Confederate Army two weeks after Lee's surrender at Appomattox, and the birthplace of our seventh, eleventh, and seventeenth American Presidents. In addition to state-owned sites of national recognition, included are sites of state-prominence; the beloved Governor Vance's childhood cabin steeped in the Appalachians, or the wonderfully preserved colonial towns of Halifax, Bath, Edenton, and New Bern which should not be missed by history enthusiasts.

Despite additional state historical sites being preserved since the book's publishing in 03', all of the places listed are still alluring visitors today, and some have gained considerable upgrades- renovations or even new visitor centers. This book should not be overlooked by anyone interested in experiencing the times and authentic pieces of the state's past

This book helps the reader develop an awareness of how simple steps can make a difference towards improving the quality of ones life and towards impacting our environment.

One of the authors, Wanda Urbanska had a light bulb moment one day. Surveying the mound of cups in the trashcan near her desk she realized that if she subsituted a travel mug for her styrofoam cup she would save the landfill 72 hundred styrofoam cups over a twenty year period! She realized that simple changes can make a big difference. If we all make small changes we can make a tremendous impact.

The Urbanska's cover money, time, work, child rearing, community and more. They make suggestions to enrich your life and simplify. For transportation for example they recommend choosing ways to travel that do not involve air transportation because though only .5 percent of the total distance people travel each year is done by air, planes take up 5 percent of transportation energy. They recommend carpooling, observing the speed limit, checking the air pressure in your tires to promote fuel efficiency and other simple changes to help our environment and our life.

Though I agreed with many of the authors suggestions a few I felt were off base. For example they recommend you limit yourself to one credit card. If you can't manage your credit perhaps you should only have one or none for that matter. But most people need more than one to establish a good credit rating. If you only have one card you will not get the best rates for a mortgage as one card does not show you can handle credit. In addition, its good to have more than one card so you have a back up. When we traveled to Mexico, our credit company would not approve a charge we made for a once in a lifetime swim with the dolphins because of possible fraud. We were unable to contact them to get the charge approved. Fortunately we had another card to use. When we were in New Orleans and my purse was snatched one card was left in the room and good thing because the other card had to be canceled due to its theft. What would we have paid for the room with? But as I mentioned earlier the main reason for more than one card is to establish good credit and get the best possible rates.

The Urbanskis also urge you to buy used goods like clothing. They suggest doing this because once you have purchased an item it decreases in value by 20%. Let me say that regardless of depreciation if I find a wonderful outfit that looks and feels good and is within my budget, its worth every cent. I would rather have one fine quality garment from Nordstroms or Neimans purchased to fit me and look good on me than a ton of thrift shop items. (And I am not referring to the upscale thrifts with the slightly worn clothing) I am referring to the thrifts where Frank Urbanski buys jeans that dont stay zipped in order to save a buck (ok ok he didnt realize they didnt stay zipped). Buy less but buy the best.

Ditto on the avoid status purchases. Though some status purchases are just plain silly. There is often a reason why a product has status. Because its quality and well made. The Urbanskis question why someone would buy a status item giving Coach as an example. Well I will tell you why. I bought a black leather Coach pocket book for around $160. It was a beautiful black soft leather. It looked good. It felt good. I toted that pocketbook around for 13 years! Thats about $12 per year or $1 a month. My sister bought several pocketbooks each year! Why because they fell apart or stopped looking fashionable. But she refused to pay for a good one. She spent way more than I did and the bag on her arm didnt look anywhere near as good.

Bottomline buy cheap and weep. When my husband and I married we decided to buy the best we could afford and if we couldnt we did without. We have used that rule ever since. As a result the things we have last years and look wonderful and we enjoy them!

So I do think the Urbanskis miss the mark on certain things. But the concept of doing more with less and making small changes is a powerful one that should be heard. So kudos to the Urbanskis for sharing their thoughts and Wanda I would give you my old Coach so you could avoid buying a new pocketbook but I sold it at a yard sale. The lady bought it because she said "It was a Coach and they are known for their fine quality!"

Lee Mellott

This is a fun book for something different to do in the music classroom or as a family fun activity. I used it for summer school. The garden hose horns were a huge hit. The accompaniment music leaves a little to be desired on the "cool" side.

Randy and her friends have a new health teacher. Their homework is to be parents of an egg and hip Randy gets Mr. Goody-two-shoes! She thinks they have nothing in commen... or do they!

In 1831, the Turner rebellion shook America's cotton kingdom to its core. Nat Turner, a slave who had become a preacher, felt he had been chosen by God to lead an insurrection. A solar eclipse provided a sign that his time was now. Turner led approximately two hundred slaves in the massacre of sixty Virginia whites. Once his uprising had been broken up by a white militia, Turner hid in a Virginia swamp for more than two months before his capture. The leader was eventually tried and executed with sixteen of his coconspirators but the South would never be the same. Turner's rebellion unintentionally caused the bonds that imprisoned slaves tightened. Teaching slaves to read, black preachers and unsupervised assemblies were outlawed, while instances of cruelty escalated. Planters saw the bloodthirsty fire ignited in its caged workforce became frightened and paranoid.

Daniel Pagner attempts to bring this historic event to life in Ol' Prophet Nat. His narrator, a collector of old books, comes across a family Bible in which Turner, while hidden in the Virginia swamps, wrote his story. The premise is slightly hokey but Ol' Prophet Nat still effectively recreates Nat Turner and his uprising. The flimsy, grimy old cabins; the hot days and long hours; the bleeding black flesh and a community's collective fear and anger are all described in stunning detail. Turner himself becomes quite the literary character. He considers himself a Moses and the African Americans, the Israelites and the gut wrenching decisions he must make to do what is right, despite its futility and detrimental outcome, is truly affecting to readers. This fine account of the Turner rebellion animates the dusty pages of history into vibrant life.

This is--despite the fact that the protagonist is a man--effectively a cosy mystery set in Vancouver, British Columbia, the city in which I happen to reside.

The author, Michael Blair, demonstrates a certain amount of professional competence. Nevertheless, it is evident that he his still early in his journeyman days as a novelist. His basic wordsmithing is solid, if not particularly memorable. He has the typical cosy characters all firmly in place: the protagonist, Tom McCall, who is the owner of a small business, his slightly ditzy sidekick, his obnoxious sister who turns out--maybe--to be not so bad after all, the over-talkative local cop (who is like no VPD constable I've ever encountered, but that's almost to be expected in a cozy.)

The story, such as it is, revolves around the unknown middle-aged man who had crashed the protagonist's fortieth birthday party. When, on the following morning and still a bit bleary-eyed from the previous night's revels, Tom McCall stumbles up toward the dock of his floating home (NOT, we are emphatically informed, his "houseboat"), he discovers Mr. Mysterious is still aboard, sitting lifeless on the roof, and generally making himself about as inconvenient as an uninvited corpse can be. As the plot progresses, it becomes evident that Mr. Unknown may or may not have been in possession of a valuable McGuffin that he may or may not have hidden someplace, perhaps with the increasingly exasperated protagonist. Needless to say, the existence of a McGuffin in a mystery story implies the presence of shadowy, dubious and dangerous characters in hot pursuit of it. Mr. Blair is already a good enough writer to recognize quality when he writes a knock-off, so "Overexposed" boasts of an antepenultimate scene that is recognizably akin to one of Dashiell Hammett's most famous and brilliant efforts.

"Overexposed" explores no new ground, contains at least one supposed twist that should be almost painfully obvious to any true mystery fan from the very moment the preliminary groundwork is laid for it, and introduces no particularly memorable characters. Nevertheless, it is well-enough done that I have reasonable hopes that author Blair will advance his skills with each of the inevitable sequels to come.

Hardly great, but still good--that seems worth four stars to me.

Attention all future or practicing LPN's and LVN's! This is a useful, practical guide for those of us who are a part of the nursing world. This book advises on schooling, testing, employment, and time & stress management. I just wish it was longer!

This book has a lot of color photos of Route 6 in PA.
We find it very interesting.

I used this text for a medical school physiology course, and found it to be a very good compromise between a textbook and a review book. If you're in medical school, you know that you don't have time to read a textbook. Still, most review books opt for outlines, charts and tables, and some concepts take a bit more full-sentence explaining. Each section in this book (e.g., renal physiology, respiratory physiology) can be digested in about 2 hours, and you'll learn more than if you sit down to read a review book and try to fill in the blanks yourself. The Oklahoma Notes books are especially good to read at the beginning of your deep studying prior to course exams.