Brown Books

35 years after reading this the first time, I found myself wanting to read all about Sue and her friends again. I have spent the last 32 years in nursing, and am still going strong in school as well as actual practice. The stories are fun, heartwarming and an excellent opportunity to re-visit the wonder of being new to the art of nursing. Great reading for a young person who thinks she (or he) might want to pursue a career in the hands and heart profession of Nursing.

I loved these books as a child, and 40 years later (30 of them, nursing) I still love them. The books are a fascinating time capsule of nursing in the 1930's through '50's. The surface of nursing has changed immensely, but the spirit of it is shown vividly in these stories: respectful, non-pitying caring for people in their crunch times. And on a third level, they're fine stories of growing up, in any age.

This is the first book in the series. It starts with Sue joining forces with her soon to be best friends Kit and Connie on a wonderful and some times frightening adventure in nursing school. This is the way nursing should be taught ......with the students living in the hospital having classes in the morning and working with patients part of day.
This book gives a delightful view of a bygone era. I highly reccomend this series for all ages.
An interesting bit of trivia......Helen Boylston was living with Laura Ingalls Wilder while writing some of the Sue Barton books. Helen and Rose Wilder were friends.

This is the first of the "Sue Barton" series. In this story, Sue enters nursing school. She meets two girls, Kit and Connie, who become her best friends. And during their first year there, Sue learns the techniques of nursing as she is gradually moved from one department to another in the course of her studies.

One running concern the student nurses have, is whether they will have the courage to risk their lives in a life-or-death emergency. Sue is especially doubtful about this. Then, one night she herself is rushed into surgery for an emergency appendectomy. Then, while recovering on the ward, she suddenly comes up against a delirious patient who is trying to escape from the hospital. Can Sue stop her --even if the situation puts Sue herself into danger?

This is a wonderful story. Having been first published in 1936, some of the dialogue is a little dated, but otherwise, the story moves quickly and builds to an exciting and logical climax. Highly recommended.

Sue B beats Cherry Ames hands down. Both are nursing series and I like them both but Sue Barton series includes character and plot development that the Ames books just don't have though they are amusing. Sue Barton is fully fleshed out character that you want to succeed.
This book is about her probationary year in which she has several exciting adventures that firmly awaken her to why she wants to be a nurse.

D.J. Brown has done a bang up job with this unnerving story. It's focused, well-written, and not a book to be taken lightly. I expect to be haunted by it for quite some time to come.

Claire Cunningham and her delightful four-year-old son Toby are kidnapped from a mall parking lot and taken to an old abandoned house out in the country. As most mothers would, Claire fights with all that's in her to protect Toby, but her strength is not enough to hold off the inevitable. One of the foulest, most vicious bad guys I have ever seen described - Jake - repeatedly rapes and beats Claire into submission or unconsciousness. His simple minded sidekick Mickey joins in at first, until the shame of what he's done prevents it. God only knows what Jake does to the precious Toby while Claire is unconscious. The abuse and torture go on for several days, during which the captives get no food or water. Toby seems to be in shock at first. He sleeps too much, or stares into space, and then the seizures set in. Jake murders Toby and then Mickey in a fit of rage, then simply drives away leaving Claire wounded and dazed.

The kindly and concerned Glen Howell sees Claire stumbling along the highway carrying Toby's lifeless body. She doesn't know where she is or what has happened, only that her son needs help.
Then begins a painful trip back to reality, and the horrifying revelation that Jake and Mickey did not act on their own.

All I can say is that Sweet Revenge is aptly named. I doubt too many readers will sit in judgement when Claire takes matters into her own hands. The romantic in me wanted Claire to hook up with her long legged protector, Glen, but Ms. Brown stays true to the subject at hand.

I was impressed with this book. My compliments to D.J. Brown for telling this story with a single-minded purpose. She writes with such clarity that I had the sense of experiencing a true happening. I hope, however, that this story wasn't true..

Full of suspense and intrigue, Sweet Revenge is a real page-turner. D.J. Brown's words paint a vivid picture of loss, betrayal, and revenge. Her protagonist, Claire Cunningham, evokes sympathy from the reader - her story is heartbreaking and believable. This book is a must read for those who love mystery and suspense as well as for those interested in reading a finely-crafted story.

Wow! Style is easy to read and the suspense keeps you turning page after page! I couldn't put it down!

Sweet Revenge by DJ Brown holds your attention from cover to cover. The writer has developed the characters such that you are drawn into the writing. When the character cries, you cry. When she panics, you gasp for breath.

All mothers can identify with the feelings that the lead character displays. And anyone with children empathizes with her struggle to retain her sanity.

This drama is well-written and a good read.

Things seem to have finally smoothed out in Claire Cunningham's life. Her four-year-old son, Toby, has recovered from the death of his father, even though he still clings to Claire a little more than he should. And, Claire has a boyfriend, Michael. But when Toby expresses his doubts about Michael, "His mouth smiles at me, but his eyes look mad," Claire decides to end the relationship. Before she has a chance to inform Michael that their affair is over, Claire's life turns down a dark and devastating road - taking away everything that is important to her, leaving her with nothing but hate - and the need for revenge.

In the middle of the storm that rages around her, Claire meets a rancher, Glen Howell. Glen is kind and solicitous, but Claire reacts with fear because of his green eyes. What is it about green eyes that frighten her? As Glen and the Chief of Police try to put together the pieces of Claire's broken life, she discovers secrets that hold a horrible truth - something she will decide to deal with in her own way.

Claire's justice is fueled by revenge. And there will be a price to pay. SWEET REVENGE will search the hearts of all concerned - including the reader's. A surprise ending is delivered with finesse. You won't forget Claire's story for a long, long time.

Brown delivers SWEET REVENGE with excellent writing and masterful story-telling skills. This is an easy to read, but hard to put down novel that presents more than a story. It presents an experience.

I highly recommend SWEET REVENGE and can hardly wait for D.J. Brown's next novel.

I bought this book based on the reviews and recommendations given by Lee say Keng, whom I have followed in a path to enetrpreneurial enlightment (thanks Lee).

Just for the fact that Dr. de Bono had the access to a diverse lot of suceesful characters, makes the book an interesting resource. What I like about the book is that not a common style or line of thought can be deduced by some sort of axiomatic method to reveal the clues of success. Still readying it, but its just wonderful

This book is not as famous as SIX THINKING HAT, and the LATERAL THINKING, which is the landmark of de bono. But it is always interesting to read the bono's book. It has great thinking-insights that can help you think and understand thinking better.

There is an interesting about success, which de bono said usually are beacuse of one or more of the 4 reasons: 1.LUCKY, 2.A LITTLE MAD, 3. VERY TALENTED, 4. YOU ARE IN RAPID GROWTH FIELD.

The book talks about success and how you can achieve it. It is an interesting read and should be useful for everybody.
A lot of the materials are based on de Bono's research of a lot of successful people.

As with all of Dr de Bono's books this one is very thought provoking - in fact I have read it a number of times and each time am able to come away with another insight.

Success, Dr de Bono shows, has more than one interpretation but at the heart it is how you define it. The average middle-class father who raises his children in a stable and secure environment yet does not stand out amongst his peers can be viewed as much a success as Bill Gates is.

Dr de Bono analyses the source of success to try and establish if there are certain traits and/or pre-requisites for success. Fortunately he shows that there are not but rather that success is a combination of many factors that combine to open a window of opportunity to each of us, but if we hesitate or insulate ourselves from being open to this opportunity, then it will be forever lost.

A thoroughly enjoyable book that is written in a very readable style. I would recommend this as compulsary reading for anyone that is a teenager or older.

This book has been written more than twenty years ago. The principal theme of the book is the exploration of success principles.

The only unusual aspect of this book is that it has been written by Edward de Bono, the man who introduced 'Lateral Thinking' to the world. Unlike most of his earlier books, about twenty of them prior to this particular one, which often put forward his thoughts, provocations, insights & suggestions for the betterment of human thinking, this one explores the valuable lessons that might be learned from some unusually successful people.

A ragtag group of successful people across diverse spheres of activity has been interviewed for his book. They include, to name a few: Malcolm Forbes, Herman Kahn (the man who created 'Thinking the Unthinkable'); Paul MacCready (the man who created the man-powered flying machine, Goassamer Albatross); Mark McCormack; Sir Clive Sinclair (the maverick multi-millionaire inventor); Jackie Stewart (former Grand Prix driver); Sting; Werner Erhard (what a surprise, as he has been a controversial figure from the human potential movement in the 70's); Rafer Johnson (Olympic decathlon medalist in the 60's);

At the end analysis, the author does not narrow down 'success' to a single definition. He more or less summarises 'success principles' as complex constellations of factors & characteristics. He leaves them to the reader to assemble in any way he/she wants. Nevertheless, in spite of the huge differences in styles & approaches, there do seem to be some strong underlying agreements on success principles;

- a positive attitude;
- knowing what you want to do;
- make the most of your own talent;
- energy, persistence, determination & singlemindedness seem important in all cases;
- there is always action i.e take a step & then the next step;
- a sense of integrity toward oneshelf & others;
- an expectation of success & the ability to think big;
- ability to set goals & targets, & also to have dreams;
- creativity & the ability to see things differently & to think new thoughts;
- both a seizing of opportunities & also a creation of opportunities;
- eagerness & enthusiasm & the willingness to make things happen;

Although he says that one should make the most of one's talent in the pursuit of success, he cautions one should not expect it to be enough by itself. He cautions further: Do not be trapped into one field by some talent for that field. This is very true in today's fast changing world.

There are a lot of interesting observations & insightful nuggets as the author weaves through the following key chapters:

- Styles & Characteristics of Success;
- What stimulates success?;
- How far is success within our control?;
- Focus;
- Thinking & Doing;
- Strategy;
- Decision Making;
- Opportunity Building & Seeking (my favourite chapter!);
- Risk;
- Strategy for People as Resources;
- Tactical play;

Each chapter is logged with a crisp & concise 'Tactics' summary.

As usual, de Bono loves to share his beautiful word graphs & line drawings to illustrate complex or even simple issues. They are really gems to help you in your (visual) thinking!

This book is definitely worth reading on the exploration of success principles!

Edward de Bono has contributed a lot to our understanding of the human thinking process. He has written prolifically, thus diluting the quality of his writing. Some of his books have been very good -- others have been forgettable. This one is unforgettable.

de Bono intereviewed 50 successful persons across the world, in different areas of human endeavor (sports, business, arts...). Basically this book is a compilation of those interviews -- but, oh, what a compilation! de Bono weaves in and out of the interviews, adding his insights, isolating strands of thought, and putting them together. The result is rewarding, refreshing and thought-provoking.

de Bono's conclusion? You can not become successful by copying others. Identify your own interests and strengths. Work on those. Enjoy your work. Life will reward you.

His unique word-graphs and line drawings add more oomph to an already powerful delivery.

I bought this book about 15 years ago - and started a small book-buying spree in the office. It was a paperback, so I had it bound in leather. I have returned to it again and again, whenever I got stuck in a groove or was up against a dead-end. Each time this book provoked me into a new insight and helped me (magically?) find a new way out...

If there is one book about work that you must read, let it be this one. And if there is a colleague you like, give it as a gift.

If you can find the book, buy it! Every item in this book is perfection.

The receipes are very detailed and describe preperation in great detail. Most of the dishes have been americanized some by increasing the amount of meat and decreasing the vegetable amount. All dishes I have tried are excellent.

It is shocking that A Taste Of Chinatown is no longer in print. I have collected a bookshelf of Chinese cookbooks over the years, but the only one that I could not do without is Joie Warner's. This cookbook focuses on the American Chinatown, giving truly accurate but easy-to-follow preparations of the classic dishes that are part of the American experience of Chinese food. Although other cookbooks may offer a broader range of more authentic examples of true Chinese cuisine, no other book that I know captures the subtle differences in ratios, seasonings and methods that give the American Chinese restaurant its unique, memorable taste. If you love your local Chinese food (and you don't live in China), you can not go another day without this cookbook.

Put away all your other Chinese cookbooks. These recipes are straightforward and consistently excellent, and the photos are gorgeous. Warner is on the mark when she recommends specific brands of ingredients. What a shame it's such a difficult book to find!

I bought A Taste of Chinatown at a used-book sale several years ago for the princely sum of 50 cents. Every time I use this book I tell my wife: "This is the best purchase I have ever made." I would say the same thing if I had paid 100 dollars for it. I own a number of other Chinese cookbooks and the results from the recipes in this book are so far superior to anything else in my collection that there is almost no comparison. Simply put, EVERY dish I have ever made from a recipe in this book has been absolutely delicious. I am an experienced an accomplished cook yet I can make that claim about none of the other 40 or so cookbooks that I own. The only place this book comes up short is in the number and variety of dishes. Please, Joie, give us another book like this!

"That Perception Thing" outlines interesting accounts of various life observations. Many of these you have probably encountered in your own journey. While you may recognize the truth in these observations, you might still find it difficult to personally practice them. Lending a wealth of her own personal experiences, Dawn prescribes simple remedies for many of life's common challenges. The information is presented in a simplistic yet thought rousing fashion, making this book a great source of comfort during times when you might otherwise feel overwhelmed or bored by the peaks and valleys of life.

Certainly there is reassurance and self-acceptance in viewing your situation through the lens of another person undergoing a similar circumstance. Dawn illustrates several stories of real people with real issues. Many of these issues you might personally identify with, however, rather than offering hard and fast interpretations, you are allowed to develop your own conclusions based upon the choice of your response. Take, for example, the biblical story of Nathan's parable to King David. Nathan told of a rich man who took the only lamb of a poor man to feed a traveler. King David was outraged at the man who would do such a thing. Then Nathan pointed out that King David was that man!

Dawn clearly views incidents in life as opportunities to grow emotionally through a mental realization that life really is all about how you choose to view it. This type of optimistic thought process, if nurtured, will in turn favorably affect all aspects of one's life. In essence, Dawn invites you to maintain a balanced "perspective" to life's every day challenges.

I had the pleasure of meeting Dawn while vacationing in Greece. She is a very warm, charming and philosophical person, and these attributes are easily recognized in this literature.


Lisa Phillips CPA
Fairburn, GA. USA

This is an excellent book. The author uses a series of vignettes to illustrate how one's attitude is shaped by one's perception of a situation. She also shows how healing can come from seeing a problem from another point of view. Each chapter is brief and clearly written and food for thought. This book would be ideal for a small discussion group. I have found it very helpful in dealing with "difficult" people, and have lent it to several people at work who have also enjoyed it. One word of warning: be careful who you lend it to: you'll never get it back! Buy an extra copy for your personal library.

It's a very good read and I think the bright yellow
colour says it all - very upbeat, very inspirational.
I really enjoyed it!

This book is indeed even more special than its delightful cover. It is a book to read and savor slowly. And, it is the kind of book that flows gently through you and into your soul.

Dawn Brown has permeated this book with powerful but gentle messages...it is a book for us all to interpret (and perceive!) with our unique set of glasses. And even after you set down your glasses after the last word, the messages go on.

Bravo!

By writing a thought provoking book, That Perception Thing, Dawn Brown challenges the reader to think and rethink about life's experiences. Brown invites the reader to probe within himself and to see when to leave the comfort zone. I found the book refreshing and uplifting. That Perception Thing forced me to look at things differently. The book is filled with anecdotes of how Brown herself looks at life another way after helping others to help themselves. I must say that the book opens several little doors inside your head as you read along. I truly recommend it.

Davey is bored even though his move to Mars from Earth should be exciting. He and his robot dog find adventures easily - until curiosity leads to a big discovery. Large-size drawings provide a read suitable for those moving from picturebooks to the next level, while an adventure-packed space story adds exciting attraction, especially for reluctant readers.

Reviewed by Matthew Feliciano (age 7) for Reader Views (2/08)

Davey's family moves to Mars because they want to get away from Earth because there are too many people. Davey knows that there is nothing to do on Mars so he doesn't want to go, but he has to. One day he and his dog, Polaris, go on his scooter to go around Mars and explore. They soon find a crater that the dog sniffed out. When they are digging in the crater, there is a loud CRACK and water starts gushing out of it. More people start coming to Mars because there is water there. Davey goes surfing one day and when he comes back his mother says "There are too many people here. We have to move to Saturn." And Davey knows there is NOTHING to do on Saturn!

"There's Nothing to Do on Mars" was fun to read. The illustrations were not that great and I didn't really like them, but the story was so good that I could ignore the pictures. It was cool to be able to imagine living on Mars.

Beautifully illustrated and story line leaving plenty of room for a young imagination to fill in. We love this book and have read it nearly every night since we purchased it!

THERE'S NOTHING TO DO ON MARS is the delightful and charming book of a very bored boy named Davey Martin. His family has just moved to Mars (in a spaceship, which resembles a pre-1950s Airstream trailer!) and he is contemplating that age-old question of "there's nothing to do!"

Written by award-winning illustrator, Chris Gall, it is filled with unique illustrations. I especially liked how Polaris, the dog, looked just like MY dog! (Well, except for the little antenna tail!)LOL Davey was portrayed in the coolest manner as well. His face and spacesuit were reminiscent of the art from the 1930's - 1950's. And totally loved his tennis shoes!

The Martians and monsters on Mars were scary and fun! Unfortunately they smelled really, really BAD - because they hadn't bathed in like forever!

Join Davey and Polaris, his dog, as they set out for adventure on Mars; build forts; and make discoveries...on Mars. It will help all students and kids come to the realization that you can explore and find fun and excitement WHEREVER you go!

This book is a treasure for old and young alike. It would be especially helpful as a gift for any youngster whose family is moving or who is "the new kid at school." And if your child is constantly complaining, "Mom! I'm BORED! There's NOTHING to do!" - well, it would be sooo totally appropriate.

While the other reviewers noted the charm of this book in general 'fun and nice for a child' ways, I have a different slant. Being a child of the Apollo days and growing up when the idea of going to another planet was the only thrill that could be imagined I've become a bit empty over the decades noticing that that excitement is no longer a major force in our children's lives. Politicians talktalktalk about Education (the industry) while they slashslashslash the budgets of programs that actually make children have a reason to want to learn anything.

But on I hope.

My son is now four and I have looked several times for space oriented books but have overwhelmingly found only science books targetted at 10+ kids (and even then the mentions of Humans on other worlds are depressingly tinged with the yellow of it all having happened three generations in the past, making the excitement level about as high as hearing about Columbus; Mildly important but not anything that that seems like something that they can grow up to do themselves and definitely not something that a little kid can ponder doing right now in their current little bodies).

While poking through the store shelves, with a copy of SkippyJohnJones in my hand I spotted this... luckily far away from the science books and instead "where the fun books are, daddy"

The artwork (amazingly *Hand-Engraved* out of clay covered board, it explains in very tiny print on the copyright page) is like a mix of 30's pulp scifi but with a touch of atomic age, and the simple text, not more than a handful of sentences on each page, made it really jump out as being quality but also easy for a little guy or girl. These lush, but also simple, pictures span both pages and the story takes up just a sliver down either side; Absolutely perfect for the Story Times at a preschool (I join my son sometimes in such a circle when I can pick him up early enough and have observed that this kind of format is something that the teachers prefer because it seems to work well).

And about that story... it is the little things that make it so special. There is no banging the kid over the head but there is actual learning in the words.

Point one: The "treasure" that Davie and Polaris were looking for - and that they dug up; That "the treasure" Is there just a bit below the surface (as we adults now know for a fact) and that it makes all the difference to Mars and to people on Mars is presented so well.

Point two: Something that my son just asked about all by himself tonight - on one page the boy builds a fort(!) and it's really easy for him to build a great one because on Mars he can pick up big rocks all by himself; my son said "why can he do that, daddy?" and I could say casually 'because on Mars things weigh less and little guys can do big, strong things there' I saw his mind turning that one over for a little while (After all, doing big strong things is important to little people who often feel powerless, isn't it?)

Point three: That last page that other reviews have mentioned is more than just a cute little twist. Once Mars is ours some Humans with desire will be looking even higher for more worlds to explore.

Now, you might think me some nut Father, trying to push my child into something... maybe so but I do try to not press, I just want to expose my child to the excitement of possibilities beyond just one already-explored-and-known place. And it's so hard to find those possibilities expressed in ways that he can understand.

Chris Gall does it with this book.

Maybe, maybe some child who has a parent or grandparent read it to them will get a spark and maybe turn that spark into a real space exploration again (or even grow up to be a politician who can think beyond next week's polls and actually do a big thing instead of just talking big ... I have faith that that can happen too ... call me a romantic ;-)), but at the very least if only for a few minutes this book will make your child aware of the fact that other planets aren't just pictures that lifeless robots take for us watch-it-on-tv comfortzoners, that they are places that real people can go and do special things that even a kid would want to do.

I got the book at the store that night (along with SkippyJohnJones)... and tonight after my son picked the book out himself from the shelf and asked me to read it to him I came to Amazon to buy a copy for his school.

A kid has to dream that he can make a difference, right?

Have you ever been abused or seen anyone being abused and didn't do anything about it? This is what happened to Logan. His best friend Zyler was being abused by his Dad and he was the only one who knew about it, one day he saw something horrible happen, but Logan got too scared and ran away with out letting anyone know what he saw.
The setting is on a street called Judge and his old street that he and Zyler both lived on Mullholand. The main character is Logan, he is kind of depressed and misses his best friend Zyler. He doesn't do much but he always thinks about how things were when Zyler was there.

The problem Logan faces is getting his best friend Zyler taken away when he is abused by his father. He feels that there is no hope and he is depressed a lot. His parents had tried everything, they even took him to a counselor but still he ran away. When he goes to his new school he meets a girl named Laurel, they don't talk much in the beginning but they sent notes to each other called palindrome. This is an example "racecar". The theme of the book is that you should never give up hope because you never know if it will work out or not. The meaning of the title is "This Is What I Did" because he feels that what happened to Zyler is his fault.

I would recommend this book to people in middle school because it is kind of depressing and it has something's that elementary students might not understand. The pacing of the book is a little slow. The authors craft is depressing and it is in dialog. This book is not in a Christian perspective because it has to deal with child abuse and it also ahs some bad language. The genre of the book is realistic fiction because it could happen. The author is Ann Dee Ellis and I would rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.

I can see why this book made the short list for the ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers. The story is captivating, the characters are endearing and the writing style is amazing. It's a short book (just 176 pages) with a lot of power to it.

Logan is trying to keep it together after witnessing a horrible crime, but that's not easy when he's being bullied at school, judged poorly by adults and watching his parents fall apart. And he really doesn't want to talk about it--especially to the councilor his mom tricks him into seeing. But maybe, just maybe, with the help of some people who truly care about him and a whole lot of inner strength, Logan will be able to get through this.

Written in a free-verse, stream of consciousness style, Ann Dee Ellis allows you to see into Logan's mind. Even the format of the book is eye-catching: with no chapters, the sections are divided by graphics that give you clues as to what will happen next. Some palindrome notes between Logan and a girl at school also give lightness to a pretty heavy tale.

This was a quick, creative book that kept me reading with anticipation to the last page and wanting more even days after finishing the book.

"That's when I got up and walked out. I just walked out.
"I didn't stop in the waiting room either. I didn't stop in the hall. I didn't stop down in the lobby. I didn't even stop at the car. I just kept going. But soon I was running. I sort of ran up the hill.
"A hill.
"I didn't know where I was exactly except that we were by the university, but it didn't matter. I ran up a hill and there was a construction site there and a bunch of guys jackhammering.
"I ran past them.
"I felt stupid for all of them to see me running but I didn't stop.
"I kept running and panting and almost dying until I passed them and got to the base of the mountain. I can't really describe where I was or what it was like because I didn't know and I was about to pass out.
"All I know was that all of a sudden I was at the base of the mountains where the trails start and I sat down by a tree where no one was around and no one could see me from the road.
"I sat down and then
I yelled."

"I think I might be sort of messed up," is one of the few things that the frank and awkward eighth grader Logan Paloney will admit to, and he only admits that to the reader, not to the people in his life who care about him but are, for the most part, too busy with their own stuff to really help him. We don't know what happened, exactly, but we do know that Logan witnessed something horrible that involved his best friend Zyler and a girl in the neighborhood that both boys had a middle school crush on, and we know that Logan didn't do anything about whatever it was that happened.

"Last week Bruce kicked me in the balls at Scouts and all his buddies were there laughing and I started crying."

In the aftermath of the unknown incident involving Zyler, Logan's parents have moved the family across the city. It clearly would have been better to have moved across the country, for news and the rumors of Logan's involvement in something terrible have followed him across the city and, as a result, he is continually being beset upon by the eighth grade bullies at his school, at Scouts, and around the neighborhood.

"I closed my eyes and wasn't with Jack and any of those guys.
"Just me and Zyler.
"Hanging out.
"Like that one night when it was so snowy and we rode our bikes in the blizzard.
"Down the middle of the road because there were no cars anywhere.
"We didn't even have coats on but it didn't feel cold.
"And Zyler was yelling things like: Santa Claus is dead! We own you all!
"I was laughing. And riding around. And wasn't even scared about what Mom would say.
"The snow landing on my tongue.
"On my cheeks.
"On my bare arms.
"In circles and circles and circles.
"And I was not here. Not here. Not HERE. Not here."

Will the girl at school with the big nose and a penchant for palindromes be the real friend that Logan needs? Will he ever tell someone what really happened?

THIS IS WHAT I DID: has a lot of line breaks like a verse novel and a lot of dialogue, making it an extremely quick read. Even the more reluctant readers will be gulping down this compelling nightmare of a contemporary YA mystery tale, in one sitting.

Zyler is gone. Logan is drowning in guilt. Will an attempt to make a new start really work?

Logan is a different kid. He has twin younger brothers whose lives revolve around sports. His dad cares, but he's busy. His mother is pregnant, something he'd rather not think too much about. They care, but they don't know what to do to help him.

Not a kid with lots of friends, Logan seems to manage to participate in life at a normal level. Boy Scouts offers him a chance to mingle with other boys his age, but most of them are bullies who use him for target practice. He does fairly well in school and is gutsy enough to try out for the school play and nail the greatest on-stage fight scene they've ever seen. He has friends (or at least acquaintances) that surround him and fill his life, but none like Zyler.

Zyler and Logan had a special friendship. They rode bikes together, did projects together, heck, even liked the same girl together. They knew each others' strengths and weaknesses. Logan even knew how Zyler's father treated his son, but respected Zyler's need for privacy.

Once again, Zyler is now gone, and Logan's family has chosen to move a short distance away to give Logan a fresh start. Hopefully a new school, new friends, and new activities will allow him to forget that night. Unfortunately, the guilt moved right along with Logan.

Ann Dee Ellis uses a unique style of prose to take readers into the mind of Logan Paloney. There is a bit of a wait for readers to discover the exact cause of Logan's oppressive guilt, but the journey is worth the effort. This disturbing story makes one wonder about the personal and private worlds of those around us. Logan's actions could have changed the outcome of events in one person's world, but is that a risk just anyone is willing to take?

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

As a middle school teacher, I make an effort to read new authors as their books come out. I'm certainly glad I read this one! "This Is What I Did" is a fantastic book with an engaging story and characters. The author has a unique voice and writing style and I finished reading the book the day it arrived in the mail!

The TOOT & PUDDLE series are wonderful. This is a great one about really knowing a friend. Our 2 1/2 year old loves it and so do we. Holly Hobbie writes this series of books so simply (for the young) and intelligently (for all of us).

This book is charming, and the illustrations are great. My 7-year-old granddaughter loves the book.

The best story lines, the best art, the best characters... I love it!

When Puddle got up that morning, Toot was already gone. "Puds, gone for a walk. Be back soon. T" Only Toot didn't come home that morning, or afternoon, and by dinner, Puddle had decided it was time to go out and search for him. Thinking just like his best friend, Puddle soon finds himself at the airport on a plane to Provence. "Now that was one place Toot had never been." In no time, the two old friends find each other, and after having a wonderful time in the French countryside, decide to travel on to Nepal. "They have the highest mountain in the world there..." Holly Hobbie takes the reader on another heartwarming and entertaining adventure starring her endearing pint-sized piglets, Toot and Puddle. Ms Hobbie's gentle and witty text is engaging, but it's her sweet and captivating artwork, filled with bright colors, warm humor and dazzling, playful details, that really steals the show. Youngsters 3-7, who've enjoyed the previous books in this series, will revel in this latest adventure. Toot & Puddle: Top Of The World begs to be read aloud and shared, and is a fun-filled, magical story that shouldn't be missed.

One of the sweetest children's books I've seen this year. The illustrations are so beautiful and the story is so charming you'll come back to it again and again. The plot is simple enough for the four and five year old set, but there is enough subtle content and gentle humor to the story to satisfy the six and seven year olds too. This book would even appeal to an adult friend -- especially one who loves to travel. Finally, if you are a fan of Olivia you will feel right at home with Toot and Puddle.

Tm 3 is da bomb!! The cars are cool, the music rocks, and I abeat the game with every driver. So go get it

Ineed the codes to the game twisted metal 3 toget sweettooth and darksid

I KNOW ALL THE CODES AND HERE THAY ARE

RIGHT RIGHT RIGHT LEFT LEFT MINON LEFT LEFT RIGHT RIGHT RIGHT SWEET TOOTH UP DOWN UP DOWN UP DOWN INFINATY SPEACIL L1 SQUARE X R1 STARTB GOD MODE

I need codes for darkside and primeve

To kid who needs code for Sweettooth and darkside- Sweettooth - left,left,left,right,right darkside - no code found for darkside

I started learning thai with the AUA series and have gone through the three books. All build on each other in an orderly fashion, you really have the choice of just focusing on speaking or you can incorporate the reading/writing too. The only negative is that the vocabulary is often times not as useful. "A cow is smaller than a water buffalo" I combined this series with the Colliquial Thai course and the combo addressed each others weaknesses.

I've been learning Thai on and off for a while now. When I was in Chiang Mai, I took courses at the AUA there (they were very good), and they roughly followed these books for the classes. From looking around both here and in Thailand, they are really the ONLY comprehensive set of books that teaches english speakers how to speak thai. I also believe that the few college courses in america that teach thai also use these books.

The books were published a long time ago, but they still work fine. We had a laugh in book 2 during one of the exercises where they were arguing between 8 baht and 9 baht for a taxi ride (a.k.a. 18 cents or 20 cents nowadays)

I started with book 2 because I was already partially conversational. The books include vocabular, tone exercises, dialog practices, reading for comprehension, and how to read and write the thai characters. Each book contains perhaps 20 lessons. The lessons are not especially subject oriented (i.e. chapter 8 foods), but rather they are more a progression of words and sentance structures that are used most frequently.

Anyways, buy them, go to thailand and take the classes, have fun.

I studied this couse while in Thailand and can attest to it's effectiveness. As there is only one other review I thought a second might be helpful to an aspiring Thai learner. This course is for serious students though. Expect to spend about 100 hours+ per book and cassette pack. By the way... you must study with the tapes. It starts out with subject matter a little less useful than a guidebook because it presupposes that you are in it for the long haul and will pay your dues in order to REALLY learn Thai! But like I said "you need the tapes!" so here are the addresses if you can't find them on the net:U.S.+CANADA SEAP Publications, East Hill Plaza, Ithaaca, NY 14850 AUSTRALIA+NEW ZEALAND MIP Publications P.O. Box 416 Chatswood N.S.W. 2057 AUSTRALIA and from all other places THAI STUDIES DEPT> AUA Language Center 179 Rajadamri rd Bangkok 10330 Thailand

This book is the first in a 6 book set that starts from very basic Thai right through to upper intermmediate/experienced. The major reasons that make this set of books the best I've seen and used are as follows: 1, very well structured logical progression. 2, Use of IPA phonetics 3, Use of Thai script from page one 4, Use of useful language (you can actually use it!) 5, Use of colloquial Thai (book 4 'Small Talk') 6, Use of many styles of hand written Thai and not only typed script. (very useful!)

If you are looking for a book on Thai language this is definitely the book I would recommend. When I picked up this book I knewonly a couple of words in Thai, now I am quite fluent.

This is a great course. It is as good as "Pimsleur's Thai" but A.U.A. has more substance. This fairly short course teaches basic Thai. But instead of just giving you the vocabulary (like many other courses I have tried), it gives you a lot of practice exercises and drills. Because the chapters are so short, a smart person can master one chapter everyday. For the average person, it might take 2 to 4 days to master a chapter. Though reading and writing Thai is taught, the emphasis of this course is on speaking and understanding spoken Thai.
Which leads me to the major draw back of this "BOOK." If you don't have the Cd's that go with this book, than it is probably not worth using. Without the Cd's or tapes to listen to, it will be extremely hard to learn Thai using this course. What is worse, (as far as I know) Amazon does not sell them.
You can buy the course with Cd's form Cornell University at http://www.lrc.cornell.edu/sales/catalog/thai. But it is very expensive.
If you can afford the whole package, this will be a 5 star course. If not... Then, forget about it. Don't waste your money by buying just the book.