Bradley Books

If you are a Sue Bradley admirer, be aware Travellers' Yarns and Around the World in Eighty Sweaters are THE SAME BOOK. Exactly. The former was published in England, and the latter was published in the US.

That aside, it is a beautiful book, with lovely patterns which could easily be tweaked to fit the 2000s--especially since Intarsia knitting seems to be poised for a come-back.

Colorful, imaginative, and fun to work....that describes the patterns in this book. I'm a knitter of pretty average skill who has been looking for really eye-catching patterns for sweaters. Far too many patterns these days are monochromatic, basic cable-knit or dolman type garments. This book takes basic, easy to follow patterns, and imbues them with influences from many other cultures.

There are patterns for coats, sweaters, gloves, hats and sweater-dresses in here, each with fabulous patterns from Persian rugs, South American peasant weavings, African tribal masks, Scandanavian traditionals, as well as a myriad of others.

The instructions are explained well, in basic layman's terms, and (probably most important) the garments really do come out looking like the pictures! Any knitter, from beginner to expert, can find something wonderful to create in here.

The most common complaint given by anyone who would like to get better organized is that they have lost the battle of the paper war. They just can?t manage the paperwork needed to run the household, nor can they keep track of all the papers, documents and mail that floods into the average home on a daily basis.

I?ve seen quite a few clients who stored their financial records (in no logical order) in piles on tables and counters. One client spent a week sifting through piles of mail (open and unopened) and other papers looking for her income tax refund cheque before finally calling me in to help her get a handle on her paper problem. (We finally found it being used as a bookmark in one of the cookbooks in the kitchen.)

Now when I run into someone with paper problems, I recommend At Your Fingertips because it sets out all the criteria needed to handle paper properly. The authors are records management experts and in this little book they take you step-by-step through the process of setting up a household filing system. Nothing is set in stone, the authors suggest that you build on the information given in the book so you can adapt it to work with your own record-keeping needs.

The book is not large, but there is a lot of information packed into every page. It starts with a quick overview of the reasons why we have problems managing paper and why we should be concerned when our paper is not properly organized.

Chapter 1: What To Keep? The authors discuss what decisions need to be made when sorting and filing paper and give tips for doing so.

The basis of the system is explained in Chapter 2, Where To Put It? The system consists of four file categories:

? Fingertip Files - Current papers, bills, receipts, calendar, phone numbers etc.
? Household Files - Finances, utilities, education, employment and warranties.
? Permanent Files - Health records, vet records, birth certificates, etc
? Reference Files - Books, newspapers, clippings, info you want to keep, crafts

Each category is fully explained and there are suggestions of what to put where. The authors have even included things like cash register receipts and take-out menus so you can easily see how to customize your own system depending on the kinds of paper you are managing.

Chapter 3- For How Long and Why? This is an excellent retention guideline and will be a big help to those who are scared to throw anything out. You?ll find out what types of paper can be thrown out immediately after use and what types of paper should be kept and then you?ll learn where to keep it. This is the key to solving your paper management problems. Once you set up your categories and understand the retention times for the various paper types, you can set up a workable system and never have to wonder again what to do with any piece of paper.

In Chapter 4: Under Control, you?ll learn how to maintain your new filing system. There are helpful hints for a yearly purge, as well as tips on how to eliminate and curb the paper coming into your home.

If you prefer to manage your files in a binder, rather than a file box or cabinet, Appendix A and B give detailed instructions on setting up your Fingertip and Household files using three ring binders. Appendix C has a recommendation and contact information for filing supplies put out by a professional archivist. The book ends with personal acknowledgements from the authors and has a page for your notes.

I suggest you read through the book first to get an overview of the whole system. Once you determine what your paper management needs are, you can start adapting the advice to create your own customized system.

The procedures and advice offered is sensible and very detailed, most organizing books don?t cover paper management thoroughly enough, I?m sure you?ll find At Your Fingertips ? A Household Filing System to be THE definitive book on paper management. I recomment this book to all my paper challenged clients and participants in my online paper management workshop.

Highly recommended!

This is a good book which presents the essentials of a home filing system without a lot of fluff material that clutters up too many self-help organizing books these days. I appreciate the authors'professional and straightforward aproach.

This book taught me to separate my "reference materials" files from my "personal/household" files. I was filing "tap dancing" next to "taxes" and it was making me crazy.

However, because the book is written by Canadians for Canadians, and I'm not Canadian, the specific guidance on records related to legal issues such as taxes does not apply to me, and I'll have to figure out those things for myself with reference to US laws and our tax system.

Black November is a well written short novel on the life of the Carl D Bradley and the men that sailed on her. An event such as the sinking of the ship could be an in depth, long novel, however this book tells the story while maintaining interest and keeping things to the point. Their is a brief illustration section mid-way through the book which is informative. I highly recommended this book for the Great Lakes enthusiased wanting to "get-their-feet-wet" in Great Lakes Shipwrecks and the like. For someone wanting to know more about the men and everyday life of the Great Lakes sailor, I recommend Gales of November-The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. All-in-all a good read and respectful to those who perished on the Bradley and their families.

I first saw Black November at the shipwreck museum at Whitefish Point and later bought it on Amazon. Now I can't believe that I had never heard of the Bradley before or the loss suffered by the family members living in Rogers City, Michigan. It is an incredible story of death and survival in the worst conditions on Lake Michigan. This book tells what it was like to survive a massive storm with giant waves and bitter cold. It tells a lot about the men who were lost and makes the story come alive with photos of the rescue, the ships, and the families. It would probably make a great movie someday. Black November should be required reading for anyone interested in the Great Lakes. Also recommended: 29 Missing on the Edmund Fitzgerald by the same author.

This is a big book with many nice piano arrangements. Love the songs. I am a late Beginner and find these songs a little harder to play than I thought they would be. If you are a intermediate, you probably have it a lot easier. It comes with the lyrics. Here are the songs you will get:
24 (End Title Theme)
Also Sprach Zarathrustra
America (My Country 'this of thee)
America, the beautiful
Anchors aweigh
As time goes by
At last
Ballad of Gilligan's isle, The
Ballad Hym of the Republic, The
Because you loved me
Before your Love
Big Yellow Taxi
Blue Moon
Boss of me (Theme from "Malcolm in the Middle")
Breakaway
Caissons go rolling along, The
California
Can't fight the moonlight
Canon in D
Clair de Lune (First Theme)
Ebb Tide
Embraceable you
ER (Main Theme)
Everybody loves Raymond (Main Title)
Far away
Flight of the Bumble-Bee, The
Funeral March of the Marionettes
Fuer Elise (Main Theme)
Game of Love, The
Good ol' Boys
Heart
Hero
Home
How do i Live
How do you Keep the Music playing?
Hungarian Rhapsody No.2
I don't want to miss a thing
I got a name
I'll be there for you
It's de-lovely
King of the Hill
Like we never Loved at all
Lullaby
March of the Penguins (The harshest Place of Earth)
Marine's Hymn, The (From the Halls of Montezuma)
Misty
Moonlight Sonata (OP.27, NO.2)
My funny Valentine
Notebook, The (Main Title)
Norweigan Dance
Over the Rainbow
Pink Panther, The
Platoon Swims
Rose, The
Save the last Dance for me
Second Time Around, The
Shape of my Heart
Singin' in the Rain
Smooth
Soak up the Sun
Someone to watch over me
Song from M*A*S*H
Sorcerer's Apprentice, The
Star Wars (Main Title)
Star-Spangled Banner, The
Stars and Stripes forever, the
Theme from "The Andy Griffith Show"
Theme from Ice Castles (Through the Eyes of Love)
Theme from "NYPD BLUE"
Theme from "SWAN LAKE"
This I promise you
U.S. Air Force, The (The Wild Blue Yonder)
UN BEL DI
West Wing, The (Main title)
What a wonderful world
When I fall in Love
When Johnny comes marching home
When the stars go blue
Where or when
William Tell Overture
Wonka's Welcome Song
Yankee Doodle
You're a Grand Old Flag
I hope this helps making your decision to buy or not to buy a little easier :-)

ATTN: PIANO PLAYERS OF LEISURE THIS IS A WONDERFUL BOOK!!! I HAVE OWNED THIS BOOK FOR MANY YEARS IT HAS BEEN LIKE AN OLD FRIEND. IT HAS A FABULOUS VARIETY OF SONGS. IT IS SEMI-EASY PLAY BUT A VETERAN COULD ADD LIB WITH EXTRA CHORDS. MAKES A GREAT GIFT TOO! I JUST BOUGHT MY MOTHER ONE. ENJOY!

Book in VERY good condition, nothing written on the inside and no damages on the outside...EXTREMELY happy.

The title says Brief Edition, but the book still weighs in at over 750 pages. Not so brief. Calculus is calculus. However, the book is replete with examples drawn from business, economics and the social sciences. Meant to motivate readers majoring in those fields, and who have found that they need to learn calculus.

The examples are good for that reason. Motivation and relevance are key to learning calculus. Especially if many readers might not have garnered any especial aptitude for maths during their earlier schooling. Lest some of you get offended, let me point out that students who are strong in maths during primary and high school often tilt towards majoring in maths, the physical sciences or engineering in university. For them, motivation in learning maths was rarely a problem. But for others, a book like this can be useful.

I had the original Darkover Landfall, but gave it to a neighborhood a library. I Hadn't Read "Two to Conquer", so I bought the omnibus version. I reread the story and it was just as great as the first time. Two to Conquer was pretty good too.

When I`ve attempted to tackle the Darkover saga in Chronological order, Landfall was the first place to go (I`ve already had read a few of the novels). I was expecting an "origin" story, where all the mysteries were solved or hinted, but instead, this is a stand alone novel, that is vaguely connected to the rest of the saga. In it self not a very good one.
One the other hand "Conquer" is very long book, set at the end of the Ages of Chaos, with a very complex story. Sometimes you feel like quiting during the reading, but I must say that the last chapters made my journey trough all this novel very rewarding, at the end you end up loving this wounded characters.

I still have all four and was sure I would enjoy many more in the future. Then the author disappeared and the series dried up. I occasionally search for a new effort but now know it's not going to happen. Have never found any reason (author dying, retiring etc) why the author stopped. Loved the protaganists and their give and take.

Cutler uses an unconventional form for his Goodman-Bradley series which could be confusing in the hands of a writer less adept--but is instead illuminating and great fun. His heroes are Goodman, an irrascible over-the-hill P.I. whose glory days are long past, and Bradley, a young West Hollywood guy into the local scene. Cutler's books have chapters alternating the first person voice of each of the two characters which works with diabolical cleverness. Add his Hollywood milieu for the stories and you have magic. It's CRIMINAL there hasn't been a new book featuring this pair in some time

This book contains the manuscript of one of Thoreau's last works, The Dispersion of Seeds. Through his daily walks in the woods, Thoreau became fascinated with the question of how the plants he was seeing became established. A puzzling riddle of the time that local townsmen constantly asked was why when they cut pine forests, oak forests seemed to grow up, and when they cut oak forests, pine forests would take their place. Thoreau was uniquely able to answer such questions, since he had spent years wandering through the forests, taking notes on everything he saw. In this volume, he not only provides answers to the pine-oak riddle, but he also lays to rest the idea of spontaneous generation of plants, which was still accepted in many circles at the time he wrote this book.

This book represents perhaps some of Thoreau's greatest works in ecology. In it, he lays out his own theory of forest succession based on ecological observation and experimentation. He was one of the first to understand forest succession on the American continent, working almost entirely alone, with little previous research in the literature to draw on. Not only is the book a magnificent ecological study, but the text itself is sheer pleasure to read, being a prime example of Thoreau's well-crafted prose.

Faith in a Seed, a collection of Henry David Thoreau's late nature writings, deserves a place on the bookshelf of anyone interested in the plant sciences or Thoreau's life and work. This volume consists of four previously-unpublished manuscripts, which the author left uncompleted when he died in 1862. Although compiled of rough drafts, Faith in a Seed is still very readable and enjoyable. Thoreau's last major project, The Dispersion of Seeds, fills most of this book. In it, he describes the seeds of various New England plants, as well as how they are disseminated by way of animals and the elements. The philosopher of Walden Pond roams the woods, fields, and swamps of "a world that is already planted, but is also still being planted as at first." Although this is a scientific work, Thoreau's wonderful voice and way with metaphor permeates every page, making for a very pleasurable read. Of historical interest, Thoreau was one of the first American scientists to embrace Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The idea of an ever-changing earth coincided with Thoreau's own beliefs. He felt that "the development theory implies a greater vital force in Nature, because it is more flexible and accommodating, and equivalent to a sort of constant new creation." In addition to the cornerstone of this book, The Dispersion of Seeds, three shorter selections are included. In Wild Fruits, Thoreau writes about the joys of hunting for wild berries, and teaches that "the value of any experience is measured, not by the amount of money, but the amount of development we get out of it." Weeds and Grasses and Forest Trees elaborate on the ideas of plant propagation and forest succession illustrated in The Dispersion of Seeds. On the whole, I found this book to be a welcome addition to my Thoreau collection. Even in his late years, as he became more and more interested in the technicalities of nature, he still dearly loved the wild; and this comes through in Faith in a Seed. Come, saunter with Henry through dark pitch-pine groves, the huckleberry fields of Fair Haven Hill, and the seedling-lined banks of the Concord River. Discover that "the very earth itself is a granary and a seminary."

After the first reading I really couldn't think of anything to say about this collection. I liked it well enough, but nothing struck me as memorable-one phrase only, and it's right out of the gate in "Frug Macabre": "Or is it that thought and action/are irreconcilable enemies/(as Emerson says somewhere,/and he's got lots of somewhere,/you'll have to find it yourself)". This was resonant of my own experience with Emerson, try looking into more than his essays, which are "lots of somewhere" in themselves. But as you read further you imagine that Bradley knows exactly where to locate this in Emerson. And, indeed, "Frug Macabre" also has lots of somewhere, and perhaps contains nearly every theme and idea that will be addressed in the poems to come. What becomes clear is that this is a poet of considerable craft and erudition (it is apparent from previous volumes through this latest that he is especially well-versed in physics). These are poems that must be revisited in order to begin to understand all that is present within them. They will float by, quietly as "distance drifts above a tranquil sea", but lay hands on only one of them and you will begin to open the other worlds present in poetry.

This volume has a prefatory poem with the rest of the 21 poems divided into four sections. Sections I and IV consist of one long poem each. Sections II and III contain mostly lyrics in various forms, from ode to sonnet to villanelle. It is an impressive, formal array.

Bradley ends with a Georgic (for Doug Crase, a poet, author of "The Revisionist"), a didactic poem intended to instruct or teach a skill in an art or science (see Hesiod)-in this case wine-making-while imparting life-lessons along the way, or at least bits and pieces of aphoristic wisdom. This "instruction" is really what most of these poems attempt. They teach us to see through our received perceptions, most pointedly our perceptions of morality.

But let's begin at the beginning-here we discover what we should be prepared for as readers.

The prefatory poem, "6 X 10 X infinity" ("infinity" is printed as the sign for infinity, the sideways 8), begins with the image of the hand of the poet (and reader-for we must perform the same acts of interpretation) removing a book from the shelf and entering into the world of the book, which is more than one other world, but many. This is surely intended to mean this book and what follows. The language used also prepares us: the book is a "levelled block of reason", the poem "a small aperture", this life "worn and circumscribed", the "general life" found in the book is an "immense atmosphere." And what is central: "Here is no response, simple of the soul, physic/Compound of metaphysics, broken wafer to make us whole." We will not get answers-these poems will not absolve us, will not lead us to unity and bring our science in line with our religion. Poems must cast light on the interior ("candles dancing on the desk") for "Outside, it is any time of day. Outside, night falls." Our solace is Here, in this book, in these poems, in the mind's other worlds where "we transform ourselves, become things seen,/Fetching, even as starlight, our wink infinite." This is playfully serious ("a wink infinite"), and this poem and its companions are "fetching" even as they do indeed "fetch" fire down.

The Fire Fetched Down, George Bradley's 1996 poetry volume, is a tour de force. But let me warn the uninitiated, Bradley, like Yusef Komunyakaa, is a consummate wordsmith. Plan to read with a huge unabridged dictionary nearby. Bradley's poems were well worth that exercise!! He delights in using the exact technical term or to flesh out the simplest of scenes, the most common of actions.

My favorite poem is Bradley's "A Georgic for Douglas Crase," ostensibly about the fine art of wine-making--from the planting to the harvesting to the tasting and bottling. However, the care with which the speaker instructs the grower is a metaphor for the writer's ars poetica. Since poetry can be defined as compressed language, Bradley's word choice is as exact as humanly possible. Like the variables which beset the wine-maker, this poet wends his way through the labyrinth of human discourse--the oral and written--to produce highly individualized poems, rare vintage all.

I would stronly recommend Pogue's series if you want to learn about Marshall. According to Pogue Marshall did all he could to help the U.S. win WWII. What is probably less known is that he gave through pure tenacity everything he could to the fighting man except as Pogue pointed out girls for the flyers. That they had to find on their own. When he found out the Army needed something he acted quickly. He even helped soldiers he found out about through letters.
Marshall's role in Pearl Harbor was exhaustively researched by Pogue. Marshall is stronly questioned by Pogue but it is uncharacteristic for Marshall to have sacraficed people to enter the war. Marshall didn't have a very strong relationship with FDR as history alluedes to. I'm up to the Sicily campaign and Marshall seems to have as much say as Stimson on the war and less access to the President than Harry Hopkins.

John Navarra
Daytona Beach, Florida

Ordeal and Hope: 1939 - 1942 by Forrest C Pogue is the second volume in a multi-volume biography of Gen George C. Marshall. It may seem strange for the author to have selected the period that he has, yet, in hindsight; Dec 1942 is a natural turning point in the war. From that point forward, the Allies would consistently beat the Axis back. Unfortunately, this fact, like so many others, is only apparent in hindsight.

By the end of 1942, the allies had landed in North Africa, conducted the Doolittle Raid, won decisively at Midway, and were winning the brutal war of attrition on Guadalcanal. In the meantime, the U S government had formed the Joint Chiefs of Staff, developed plans and policies to provide logistics support for China and Russia's respective war efforts, forged a plan to work with Free French Forces, and built the largest military in American history.

Ordeal and Hope is the day-to-day story of how George Marshall oversaw that transformation. Unlike the first volume, this book paints a fairly realistic picture of a man with normal personality quirks. Indeed, the Marshall portrayed in this biography is not only very political but at times downright devious.

One of the key takeaways from this book is how complex and fast-paced the early days of World War II were. While they had some models of what had worked in World War I and twenty years of academic thought on how it might be fought, leading a multi-national coalition against Fascism was a new experience for this generation.

The real power of this book is that it shows the complexity and difficulty of real change. Despite the academic thought of both the Naval and Army War Colleges, despite the growing likelihood of war, despite the efforts of Army and Navy planning staffs; the very nature of war brought about unforeseen challenges and opportunities. While the planning and study resulted in the knowledge and context required to win, in itself it was not sufficient for victory. To this reader, creativity, flexibility, and optimism are those essential elements of victory.