Bridges Books

This book deserves far higher recognition that it has received. It was written well on a century ago, and yet, to this very day, very few Christians know of its existence.

It's a remarkable testimony - or rather, a collection of scores of remarkable testimonies, from the life of a holiness Methodist itinerant preacher by name of C. G. Bevington, based in Kentucky, but who travelled far and wide across America.

The man developed a most remarkable (there's that word again!) faith. He took God completely at His word - in a way that very few people ever do. He witnessed outstanding answers to his prayers again and again - usually against the staunchest of Satanic opposition. But he held on till he got the victory. Most of these stories are accounts of human physical healing. But numerous others are other examples of miracles - such as the healing of animals, the death of thousands of earth worms causing damage to a crop, details prophetic visions, control over the natural elements, and numerous others.

In each case, Bevington had to fight, nearly always for hours, and sometimes continuously for many days or even weeks, to reach the point of victory. this is true intercession - though oddly the author never refers to it by that term. The intercession was usually accompanied by days or weeks of fasting, and a complete reliance on God. He distilled a wonderful ability to hear the voice of God (which, again came through many hours a day in the 'secret closet').

The book ranks alongside the likes of 'Rees Howells, Intercessor' by Norman Grubb, and 'Intercession - Your Power To Possess Nations' (a much more recent book) by Michael Howard, who in fact was the one who recommended 'Remarkable Miracles' to me. I'm so grateful that he did.

This is an outstanding read. Ok, so you may struggle a little with Bevington's personal views on sanctification ('the second blessing'), but perhaps there's something to learn here too. But if you're prepared to lay aside any small quibbles, then there's little doubt, you'll be thoroughly blessed by this testimony. I read the entire book within 24 hours. I literally couldn't put the thing down till I had read it right through!

The real test of the book, of course, is putting the principles gleaned to the test. That's the tough bit. This mustn't just be an enjoyable read. Bevington wouldn't have wanted that at all. He would want us to learn deeply from it - allowing it to change our whole lives. If we allow it, it will do just that.

G.Bevington was highly effective in prayer. I wish he had written an autobiography,in addition to more detail on how he spoke ( prayed) to God in his prayers. Also a little more explanation on the phases that he seemed to move through. I wish I could have met him! What a Saint!!

Bevington's results with the use of prayer was consistently successful. The book inspires one to pray more persistently and continue until an answer occurs. He prayed and fasted with powerful results!!

This is an important book for those interested in improving their prayer life.

I have forwarded the book on and will continue to do so with another copy.

Christ was real to Brother Bevington. This man prayed hours and hours on end, until he got an answer and then he did what God asked him to do. He spent his time in prayer and in the Bible and let God take care of the rest.

Some of the accounts are incredible and writing style reminds me of Mark Twain.

This book should be read by all Christians and non Christians. The book is his life's account of a Holy and devoted walk with the Lord. A man who would pray and recieve answer in the most amazing ways. His life should be an example to all, a truly powerfull and entertaining read on God working through a devoted servant. I have been buying books for all friends and family and they are all learning about true faith and healing.

God used this very book to give me the faith I needed to see God HEAL ME. This man, through prayer and faith alone, saw God do mighty miracles of healing, sanctification, and revival. This is for our lives today - its not gone !! If you are suffering, please read this book and give God a chance to heal you. Mr. Bevington writes, "Look up, weary one; Jesus is the same today as when He walked the Judean hills and healed many there. He wants to heal you, to get a chance to heal you". I am living proof that He can and will. 3/16/06.

It has been very informative to us in reviewing and re organising our Cell Groups in our church. It gave us very important information thru his journey in informing and make changes as he went. Our Cell Groups were not working so which is why I bought this book to give us advise and help and we have made many changes and praying that it will work this year.. I love the real life examples which we could well relate to and identify in our own journey. It is a book once you read you want to read to the end very powerful and exciting...

Both a devotional and a how to. One may need to be a bit forgiving with Cho's choice of phrases from time to time, but the principles are sound and still after so many years, revolutionary.

"Successful Home Cell Groups" is much more than a formula for church-based small groups. It is an insightful journey into God's building the largest church in the world. Using one broken man, Cho, God has created a formula for all of us to examine, emulate and admire.

So how does a church of more than 800,000 believers grow and work? Small groups, one household at a time. Cho is careful to sharing both his mistakes as well as his successes. One of the prime ingredients for a successful home group program is evangelism. He insists that the cell groups focus on the neighborhoods and communities to reach the lost. Leadership, training, discipline, recognition, focus, and personal involvement by the senior pastor are other critical elements.

There is a careful balance which needs to be struck between control and freedom for each group to strengthen and grow. Great wisdom is shown in relying on the Holy Spirit to strike the right balance. As a senior partner in ministry, The Holy Spirit has grown the body of Christ in a miraculous way.

Recorded in this book are lessons for us all, laymen and clergy, large church and small.

There is no doubt about Dr Cho's influence on our modern day cell group and church movement. He is at the absolute forefront, his insights and heart for ministry are a huge blessing to the church international.

This book is one of the key books to read to help anyone understand the simplicity and necessity of cell groups for church life. The concepts are incredibly helpful and insightful.

This book stands alone on the merits of the principals it teaches. It is not a greatly written book but that is not it's purpose.

Readers that do not live in Korea or asian cultures should carefully apply the principles this book provides. It will work but it is based upon a different mindset that most American church goers don't have. There are other great books by Ralph Neighbor and Carl George that will also give great insight on the american chuches need to move to cell groups and how to do it with out destroying the church or a ministers career.

Dr Cho speaks as a lay person even though he is the pastor of the worlds largest church. I had my reservations about reading the book for fear that the content may be too detailed or uncomprehesible for a young aspiring cell-group leader, but Cho has written a simple to understand and inspiring guide to building, or transitioning to, a cell-based church. This book speaks of the principles of building such a church, which seem to be universal...what does this mean?...you will not be able to use excuses about your culture or your congregation. The priciples and groundwork laid out by Dr. Cho will change your perspective on church growth for ever.

by Susan Tam

The opportunity to go back in time and make changes - who wouldn't want a chance to do so if they could? That is the premise of Tapestry. Katherine Hurston, wants to go back in time for the man she loves. However, if she changes the past, how much of the future would she be changing?

Katherine is involved with a married man. They sneak around during the weekends. Steve breaks off the relationship due to guilt and the stress of the situation. Katherine is devastated by the break-up. She feels she has found the love of her life after all these years. Her friend, Callie Barnes tries to convince her that Steve is not the man for her but Katherine doesn't accept or believe it. She insists that Steve truly loves her and will leave his wife and marry her. Katherine wishes she could go back in time and be the woman Steve marries! Thus solving her problem of being the "other" woman.

Katherine meets Dr. Max Martin, a friend of Callie's husband. Dr. Martin's specialty is the paranormal. His company is doing research on a drug that allows the recipient to time travel into the past. Katherine is tested for it and found to be especially susceptible to it. Not many people respond to the drug but she does. Max has his own agenda for doing the research. His brother, Michael was murdered and he wants to find the murderer. Nick Kharija owns the company funding the research. His daughter is dying of a rare blood disorder. It is believed that a cure was found for it in ancient Egypt and he wants Katherine to go back in time to retrieve the scrolls. The scrolls were found by Max's brother and upon his death, the scrolls disappeared. Katherine goes forward with the experiment and what she does or doesn't do will affect her future as well as everyone else's! The question is whether it will be the outcome she wants or something unexpected.

This was a great book from beginning to end!!! The plot moved quickly and the author kept me turning the pages till the very end. Katerine is an older heroine -- she is 48 years old at the beginning of this story. A mature woman who knows what she wants but what she deserves is a totally different matter. All the characters added to the reader's enjoyment of the book whether they were the good guys or the bad. Tapestry would be enjoyed by all readers whether you like the romance or mystery genre. The author provided a satisfying ending to the book and most importantly, everybody gets what he or she deserves!!!

Tapestry was a compelling read--one worth revisiting. She has interesting characters, a well-developed plot, and a wonderful way with words. She carries you away into a fantasy of her making and doesn't let up until the last page.

I found this book refreshing and well-written. I know, I for one, will be looking for more great reads from this author.

Tapestry by Ariana Overton has to be the most riviting story I have read in the past ten years. And the very best part is that Kat Hurston reminds me of one of my dearest friends. Ms. Overtons characters are real people..... Not cookie cutter Ken and Barbies

When you open this book be prepared not to be able to put this book down until the very last page is turned. The author has done a fantastic job capturing the flavors of different genres and weaving them in to a work of art. TAPESTRY pulls you in and wraps you into its threads of suspense and romance, fantasy and murder.

Katherine (Kat) Hurston, a 48 year old Professional Computer Consultant, is trying to put the pieces of her life back together. Chuck and Callie Barnes have been friends of Kats for 16 years. Callie tries to warn Kat that the relationship between Kat and Steve Davis would end so she could prepare herself for it. Dr. Max Martin is a college buddy of Chucks who specializes in Paranormal Psychology. Max has just moved there to Silicon Valley, California to head a project for Ancorp to research the possibility of people traveling from this reality to another.

During this research, they discover that Kat can travel through time to a different reality. Max's boss, Nick Kharija, CEO and owner of Ancorp, finds out about the discovery and pleads with them to find the lost Scrolls of Egypt as they contain a cure for his daughters' rare illness. Dr. Michael Renner found the Scrolls, but was killed last year and his murder remains unsolved and the Scrolls undiscovered. Max tells them that Michael was his half brother. Suddenly, the four friends are in a race against time and Kat has some hard choices to make. Should she try to change her past to get what she wants in the present? Or does she search for the lost Egyptian Scrolls so a cure can be found? Should she search for Michael's killer to help ease Max's pain?

As their search continues, more questions are found than answers. Why was Michael killed? Who is Mr. Analda? Is Nick Kharija really on the level? And now Kat has yet another problem, to figure out what is going on between her and Max.

This is an excellent book from beginning to end. Definitely a must read for mystery readers to romance readers alike. You won't be left disappointed at this books end.

A single thread, pulled, cut, or changed has the potential to effect the entire pattern of a tapestry. This profound metaphor provides an ingenious framework for TAPESTRY by Ariana Overton. Like any expertly woven masterpiece, TAPESTRY has several complex plot lines woven together resulting in an extraordinary tale of romance, suspense, and murder.

The first thread: Katherine (Kat) Hurston considers her life to be lacking. At the age of 48, she's lost the man of her dreams. Miraculously, she has learned the ability to go back in time and effect the present. She intends to coach her younger self into wealth and love with the man she's presently lost. But she never considers the negative consequences to herself or the timeline with such meddling.

The second thread: Dr Max Martin dreams of scientifically proving the paranormal by finding people like Kat who have the ability to go back in time. His hidden agenda is to find and bring to justice the man who brutally murdered his younger brother. Moreover, his budding relationship with Kat complicates both their plans.

The third thread: Nick Kharija owns the company funding the time travel research. His daughter is dying a rare of blood disease believed to have been cured in ancient Egypt. Those cures were recorded on the scrolls that Max's brother Michael had discovered, but were lost upon his death. If he has a further agenda, he doesn't intend to tell anyone.

One again author Ariana Overton presents the reader with a tale of intrigue guaranteed to entertain. Using the image of a woven tapestry, and questioning what happens when a thread changes, Ariana weaves a tapestry of thoughtful suspense.

This book is really great because I got to see more pictures of Max and Pauline. I love their adventures and want to read more about the neat places they go. I wish I was a dog or a cat too.

This book is really great because I got to see more pictures of Max and Pauline. I love their adventures and want to read more about the neat places they go. I wish I was a dog or a cat too.

Utterly beguiling. Even the rainbow could take a lesson or two from Ms. Rich's palate which fairly spills over on every page. Who knew such colors existed?! Ms. Rich, what planet are you from? A thousand thanks for settling here and bringing your paint-brush with you.

Utterly beguiling. Even the rainbow could take a lesson or two from Ms. Rich's palate which fairly spills over on every page. Who knew such colors existed?! Ms. Rich, what planet are you from? A thousand thanks for settling here and bringing your paint-brush with you.

Imaginatively written and busily illustrated by Beatrice Rich, Vanessa and the Enchanted Painting is an energetic picture book story about Vanessa, a young girl and her pals Max and Paulie who step through a painting and thereby find themselves in a mystical enchanted world. Just when they fear themselves lost for good, an angel shows them the way back. Vanessa and the Enchanted Painting is recommended as being a charming picture book story profusely illustrated with abstract-style color pastels.

We've purchased over 10 copies in the last year and plan on participating in several bible studies based on this wonderful book - enlightening and practical.

A wonderful book - easily the basis of study and devotion. I used it as the basis for devotionals with a teaching team in China. We really did want to walk with, through and like Jesus. This helped unpackage all of His character.

This is a must-own book. As a pastor of a small church I used this book to lead our congregation weekly on how to walk as Jesus walked. It proved very fruitful. The chapters were concise and insightful and the author brought much contemporary application. Highly recommended.
Mark LaCour, Pastor of Grace Bible Fellowship, Baton Rouge, La.

I just finished a 16-week study on Wednesday evenings based on Walking Like Jesus Did. I speak on behalf of the congregation when I say that it has been a fascinating study! As a pastor, I had been looking for a study guide that points the believer to our Master as the example par excellence for Christian living. Walking Like Jesus Did is that study!

One can't help but admire the life of Christ. Many different religions claim him as a man to emulate. This book gives good biblically-based insights into his core character that help us walk with the same principles 2000 years later. Simple, practical, and easy to read (yet insightful)--this is a great book for all ages, all religions, and all cultures.

Everyone with any interest in bridge should read this book. The bridge hands are interesting and instructive, but the characters are what make the book great.

Skid Simon writes about club bridge, and how to deal with various partners.

We kibitz a rubber among Mrs. Guggenheim, The Unlucky Expert, Mr. Smug, and Futile Willy. A loong rubber.

A reasonable player in any of the seats would have won the rubber for his side. Bidding is British style, but what the heck...

The truth of the book is eternal, and the style sparkles with humor.

The essence: play for the best result possible with this partner, not the best possible result.

The bridge-bidder's arsenal is usually full of "gadgets": non-literal bids meant to convey or suggest information that might escape the normal bidding sequence. Even by the time this 1940s book appeared, "scientific" systems by leading bridge "experts" were all the rage. Who would disagree with scientific "experts"? After all, you can't fight progress.

WHY YOU LOSE AT BRIDGE dares to differ. S.J. Simon, author of this enduring little volume, shows us the genuine odds behind competitive bidding and play and explains things the highly regarded experts of his day didn't know -- or didn't want us to know.

[Note: the following two grafs assume some bridge experience.]
Would you almost automatically double a competitor's bid of "Six Spades" (12 of the 13 card tricks) if you had two "quick tricks" in your hand? Think about it, Simon warns. If the opponents have even a one-in-three chance of winning, your unthinking double will give them between four and six times the number of points for making contract considering vulnerability. Besides, when they hear your double the declarer will figure you for the two Aces and act accordingly. Watch out for the sure things that really aren't.

And sometimes (usually, the author implies) the scientific gadgets aren't worth it. At one tourney, following tortuous symbolic bidding, one partnership came to a contract of four spades and went down one. How had the author and his partner bid that "impossible" hand? Like this: South - 1 NT; North - 3 NT. Simple and literal.

After offering a bracing immersion in what I all "unlearning," Simon spends the second half of the book on the psychology of bridge, starting with the times a partner or opponent starts what he calls "trancing" -- mulling things over. Chapter Eleven, "The Logic of Luck," typically illustrates Simon's curmudgeonly attitude. We could almost blame him for the high-British-arch tone of his writing, except that he is always right!

WHY YOU LOSE AT BRIDGE is a tremendous book for bridge beginners, perhaps even more so for intermediates and even the more experienced players trying to cope with a new partner. Of course, this WAS the 1940s so the author assumes that major suits (Hearts and Spades) can be bid upon with only four of them in hand as opposed to today's more prevalent "five-card major" approach. And I have to wonder what Simon would make of today's bidding in general.

Entertaining and informative,especially for rubber bridge players.
A bit old fashioned now but the message gets across loud and clear.
A must for all bridge fanatics.

S. J. Simon's Why You Lose at Bridge remains (since its original 1945 publication) the best text on improving one's partnership available anywhere at any price. Read it. Practice what you learned. Watch your partnerships improve. Read it, again ...

If you have a standing partnership, read it together. Even the most capable professionals may well (re)discover ways to improve their game as they absorb Simon's words of wisdom. Improve your partnership, and your game improves. Simon sez ...

Anointed for Burial is a great book for anyone seeking the Lord's name. I reccommend tis book with a strong yearning that the reader can get out of it more than they had ever hoped for.

This is not only a best read, but a must read. Encouraging and uplifting, this book will strengthen your faith in God and give you a comfort with the reality of the Holy Spirit's ministry in our lives. As you read the miraculous events portrayed in this book, it is clear to you that what is being described is not only factual, but absolutely divine. God "showed up" to bless his "little ones", just as He is apt to do. Read this if you can find a copy! My walk with God was tentative as a new believer, until I read this book. Today I am a pastor, in large measure, I believe, because of the influence of this single volume of Holy Spirit inspired writing at the right moment in my early walk with God. It was as a result of this book that I found myself able to truly experience God firsthand. God bless Todd Burke and his family.

Whether you have a heart for missionary work in the far-reaches of the world or to give a place for the Holy Spirit to work through you to reach people around you where you live, this book will impact you in that it reads like the Book of Acts, yet with the transparency of witnessing from the sidelines a genuine, God-seeking couple who faced true uncertainty in the face of swiftly changing times (but with God's blessing and timing evident).

This book evidences the birth and growth of the Lord's church in Cambodia, a seed that is now, in 2004, having positive implications for the nation as the church is now exploding at the seams (having doubled in number in just one year). ANOINTED FOR BURIAL reads especially meaningful in light of what was about to come on Cambodia (the genocide of over one million Cambodians).

Highly, highly recommended for any believer seeking to walk in His leading and to have within them His heart.

Sean

I'm so glad someone else recommended this book to me and that I found it for sale at this web site! Being a missionary to Cambodia myself, this was a great book for me to read. Reading how the Lord worked in the lives of the Cambodian people in the past, reminded me that He can and will still change people's lives in Cambodia today! I would really recommend this book to anyone who can find a copy!

This is an incredible book that shouldn't be so hard to get ahold of! You can't put it down. The power of God is evident throughout. Best missionary book I've ever read; I've also heard it compared with "Bruchko". Definitely read it.

This beautifully written reminiscence of growing up in Brooklyn captures neighborhood life in the 20s in Brooklyn and goes beyond, containing all the elements of childhood dormant in our minds and inherent in our experiences growing up in cities around America. Life was simpler --Bernice Carton brings the beauty of that life vividly to the page and helps us reenter a world that is well worth recapturing.

Bernice Carton's Beyond The Brooklyn Bridge gives today's reader a slice-of-life look at growing up in another, more simple era. From the street games kids played to the medicinal remedies we no longer use to parental guidance of a kind we no longer experience, Bridge takes the reader on a journey back in time. Written in a thoughtful, evocative style, Carton's book is a delight to any reader - no matter where they grew up. I recommend it highly to the young and not-so-young alike. Carton's fictionalized account of growing up on a specific block, on a specific street in a much-loved part of America is a treat for the imagination. It's a book that makes you comfortable - like cookies and warm milk.

I am a Californian who has lived in Brooklyn Heights since 1991. Beyond the Brooklyn Bridge is a delightful story about a Brooklyn that was here long before I arrived. The characters in the book are the kind of kids with whom I would love to have played. The Mothers are to sort of lovely people one would like to have gotten to know. I recommend the book for those who are new to New York and to people all of the country who would like a view of Brooklyn past.

Reading her book made me feel I knew her. Certainly, she took me by the hand and led me down Memory Lane and it was fun all the way. I haven't heard anyone say "Holy Cow" for long time. I loved the part about the empty lot because a house burnt down. The kids on my block in New Kensington Pennsylvania had an empty lot, too. There, we had roast "mickies", too. We didn't call them that, but we loved eating them. Cindery black though they were, and usually raw in the middle. Open streetcars. Penny Candy. I had to laugh out loud when I read about ice cream plopping out on the sidewalk to "Good-bye, Charlie!" It's been a long time since I heard that, and "Hot diggety dog!" I was surprised to learn that Brooklyn kids used the same expressions that we did in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, where I grew up in the 1920's. I guess I didn't expect the use of language to be the same everywhere. This book gave me so much pleasure!

Entranced by this wonderful compendium of nostalgic reminiscences - written in a lively, irresistible style - I have given the book as a gift on every occasion that calls for one. Without fail, recipients tell me that not only did they thoroughly enjoy the trip down memory lane, but, in turn, "lent" the book to friends and relatives, who, in turn, have "lent" it to others... In each case I receive lengthy letters, e-mails or telephone calls of thanks from people wishing to add their own personal memories to Bernice Carton's remarkable store of nostalgia...This includes readers in locations as disparate as Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, California, Canada, Australia, England and France. Not just Brooklyn! (I have recently learned through the grapevine that this book now even numbers among the possessions of exiled Prince Michael of Rumania himself, a gentleman whose presence graces the pages of this work)!...What a wonderful springboard for hours of delightful conversation! It has proven itself to be the gift of the century... Everyone tells me they are eagerly awaiting the sequel - tales of Ms. Carton's adolescence in Brooklyn...

Dorothy Hayden Truscott's BID BETTER, PLAY BETTER has been in print for over twenty years, and no surprise. This is a generous and well-explained guide to correct evaluation of the hand, with an emphasis on "reading" what your partner and opponents are holding; Ms. Truscott excels in making us read the context of the bidding process. And this book offers sound strategies for the playing of the hand as well.

This is not my very favorite book for rank beginners (in my opinion BRIDGE FOR DUMMIES by Eddie Kantar is actually quite good and more comprehensive), but it is really meant for developing players -- advanced beginners and intermediates. Those who would forego Ms. Truscott's no-nonsense prose style might instead consider S.J. Simon's WHY YOU LOSE AT BRIDGE. Like BID BETTER, PLAY BETTER, it deals with how not to form bad bridge habits or how to chuck them a-borning, but its take on bridge-playing is more social and Simon's prose style is appropriately quite droll.

This is a new, updated edition of one of the greatest bridge books of all time. Teaches you how to think like a bridge player. Much of the material is aimed toward advanced beginners and intermediates, but even new players will benefit from her clear approach and practical advice.

I was looking for a book without a lot of blather. This is it. It's straight forward and simple. I can sit down and read a particular section and get the idea quickly. No cute stories or long-range examples covering 50 years. I'm happy.

This book explains bridge in a simple manner and the information that my partner and I (she lives in Dallas and we play on Bridge Base Online) have utilized from this book has improved our game, and our understanding of it. It is in sync with the bridge lessons I have taken from my genious and excellent educator bridge teacher Bob Hinkle in Tucson Arizona.

Thank goodness Dorothy Hayden wrote this classic BEFORE " for Dummies" became the obvious title for any non-text book one might read to learn ANYTHING. Yet, that is really what this book is about. Reading (and practicing what you learn by reading) will indeed develop "card sense" where once there was very little (or none). After you have the basics of our amazing game in hand, this book can help you take another step toward mastery.

If you're up on modern bidding methods, you'll feel a temptation to skip the "old" material on bidding. Don't do it. Unless you're expert enough to design a complete bidding system from earth, air, fire, and water; the presentation of the fundamentals herein will help you improve both your understanding of Standard American (or 2/1) biddng methods AND your grasp of the foundation of your own bidding methods (even if you bid differently). That foundation will help you intelligently incorporate (or reject) new methods as your personal biddng methods and style mature.

How smart this dynamic author/illustrator duo was to disguise learning as pure reading fun. Love the story, wish I'd written it myself!

This is a remarkably original and highly educational book. Kids will greatly enjoy the witty dialogue, and learn new vocabulary.

Boris Ate a Thesaurus is so cute my 9 month old laughed out loud when I read him all of the synonyms in the book. The story is fun, the illustrations simple and engaging and overall the story is educational while being entertaining to read. It is a witty approach to children's books that is entertaining for parents too. I bought one for all of my nieces and nephews and highly recommend it!

Boris Ate a Thesaurus is a children's picturebook about a young boy who happens to eat a thesaurus - and suddenly starts talking in synonyms! His fame and popularity increase, and he is even invited to meet the President and deliver a big, giant, huge speech to all of America. But is one boy up to giving a great speech, or will his grand words suddenly disappear, evaporate, vanish? He discovers the answer in the Library of Congress: "All the words in the world are right here in these books. The secret to remember is that books are for reading, not for eating. Every time you read, you discover new words that last a lifetime." Playful illustrations by artists Barry M. Chung round out this friendly picturebook ideal for encouraging young people to read more.

This is one of the most original stories I have read in a long time (and I have read alot of stories!) My boys were so captivated by the exciting adventure that they didn't even realize that they were learning an important lesson regarding synonyms at the same time. In addition to the clever story the illustrations are superb! I would highly recommend this book for all 1st-4th graders. This book would make a great birthday and/or holiday gift. It is sure to become an all time classic!