Browning Books

Barbara Browning is the best. Read this book

A lovely full-color book with nicely layed out projects. The variety of projects was pleasing, offering everything from ideas and instructions for a garden apron, several options for plant pots and vases, as well as tiles and garden signs. I appreciated the range of methods and mediums used - "sandpainting", mosaic, claywork, decoupage, metalwork, painting, and more. I've tried a couple of the projects and really enjoyed the whole process from start to finish. It's nice to work on something with clear directions that you can get a truly attractive finished project in a reasonable amount of time. I didn't find that any of the materials for the projects were or would be difficult or expensive to obtain. This book is a nice source for gift ideas.

Is a fine portrayal of my step-grandfather. The descriptions of his life experiences and accomplishments were well done. The author wrote another book about him, later.

Actually, this book is excellent for people who are not only thinking about becoming self-employed but who are already self-employed and want to understand better the mentality transition from being an employee to being a business owner. Paul and Sarah Edwards are engaging. They present the information sincerely, thoroughly and realistically without spoiling the dream. In fact, their own passion for self-employment and enthusiasm for helping others to be successful in their own business is evident throughout. I enjoyed this audio book because it addresses what books on the mechanics of operating a business leave out - that is the kind of mindset, the fears and ability to overcome them required to be a successful business owner. As a business owner, one tends to be isolated and does not have a boss to go to for advice and guidance. Paul and Sarah Edwards are an excellent coaching team. Rich with instructions, insights, examples and exercises for self-employed people to develop themselves as their own leaders, I found this book extremely valuable. I have listened to it several times already and with each listen, I glean more golden nuggets!

A bilingual teacher must have for their classroom library! The story is a refreshingly creative story about how the Cascaron came to be. The story is both in Spanish and English which allows for language development in both languages. The illustrations are vivid as the legend itself!

Anyone interested in Victorian literature or interpretations of writings during the Victorian era should read this excellent commentary. Also an example of feminist criticism at its best.

This is a consice history of the Left throughout the years 1620-1980. I found this incredibly informative and interesting. It also includes a comprehensive list of the most influential people of the progressive Left. This is a history too often buried in footnotes, the history of idealists and true Americans.

I read this book long before Cold Case Files or CSI were part of everyones television experience.I literally could not put this book down. It kept my interest from the first page until the very last one!

What are the social, legal, medical and psychological implications of the fact that marriage is good for you? This collection of essays seeks to answer that question.

The social sciences have make it quite clear that marriage confers a number of benefits on those who partake of it. Married people live longer, healthier and fuller lives than those who do not marry. How are the various professions, such as law, medicine and therapy, to respond to these facts?

A number of family experts, theologians, and social scientists here address these questions. The professions, they argue, have tended not to discuss such issues because marriage is often viewed as a strictly private and personal affair. But as we begin to understand the public nature of the institutions of marriage and family, the professions need to look more closely at some of the new findings concerning marriage.

For example, if marriage is indeed good for couples, good for children, and good for society, how should family law reconsider its role? What changes might business leaders make in the light of the new research? How should governments respond to the findings of the social sciences?

The 14 chapters in this book address these issues, and explore a number of related themes. The result is a new examination of marriage and its importance, especially in its social and public setting.

Several of the chapters alone are worth the price of the book. The chapter by David Popenoe and Barbara Dafoe Whitehead on "The Personal and Social Costs of Divorce" is a very fine summary of what the social sciences have been discovering over the past few decades. Their concluding remarks are worth repeating:

"It is clear that children are hurt by divorce, often seriously and much more than many adults seem to believe. And high rates of divorce create a social climate in which the kinds of intact families most likely to help children thrive are in ever shorter supply. Through its gradual corruption of a strong culture of marriage, childbearing, and child rearing, divorce may have negative consequences for society far greater than we now realize."

Equally important is the article, "The Health Benefits of Marriage" by Linda Waite. She provides a helpful overview of the available evidence which tells us that married people do indeed live longer, healthier and happier lives than do non-marrieds. Singleness, cohabitation and other relationships simply do not compare with that of marriage.

The implications of these truths are spelled out in the remainder of the book. Legal changes, for example, seem to be in order if it is true that easy divorce has such bad ramifications for children, adults and the broader community. A return to some kind of concept of fault in divorce laws is one possibility. Covenant marriage is another. But societies must make marriage more secure while making divorce more difficult.

Likewise, in education we need to do more to spread the message that marriage is a valuable social good, as well as a benefit to individuals. And the negative impact of divorce also needs to be made known. Just as society has cut down smoking, drink driving and other harmful behaviours by education campaigns, such an approach is needed here as well.

In the same vein, counselors and therapists need to reassess their approach to marital difficulties. Instead of simply blessing a quick divorce, more work needs to be done on getting couples to work through their difficulties, and reinforcing the ideal of marriage. And marriage educators need to restore the social dimension of marriage, instead of treating it in such a highly individualised manner. Marriage is much more than a private, individual affair, and this needs to be kept at the forefront of any counselling.

Indeed, on every front we need to affirm the goodness and usefulness of marriage and family, while pointing out the negative results of divorce and family breakdown. Individuals and societies both need to hear this message.

As John Witte concludes in his article on the goods and goals of marriage: "Stable marriages and families are essential to the survival, flourishing, and happiness of the greater commonwealths of church, state, and civil society. And a breakdown of marriage and the family will eventually have devastating consequences on these larger social institutions."

We now know this truth conclusively, with a wealth of social science research to back it up. The next step is to act accordingly. This book helps us to do just that.

As someone who has studied both Homeric and Modern Greek, I found this book about the evolution of Greek fascinating. There is also an interesting chapter about the dialects of Modern Greek.

The book is written in an extremely readable style. I read through it in only a couple of days. There is a large bibliography at the back of the book and I intend to look up some of the references.