Caldwell Books

This book is extremely smooth to read through, and the chapters actually deal with recent global issues and modern security problems in today's society, which I feel makes it easier to keep your attention. It's not long or overly boring, and if you need to use it for research, there are pages of citations and information right in the back.

Shattering The Darkest is one of the best memoir I have ever read and will be a blessing to many, it holds a message which many 'Youth' (and Older Men/Women) need to hear and who better to tell/teach them...then the one who has Walked in Darkness and found his way to the Light (Again and Again)

I would have liked if the author had continued his story beyond where it ended but...upon reflection...it was suppose to end there so that 'He' could speak on it and then 'Show' how he was Impacted...how he is still fighting the Demons and are Now walking in the Light.

I could tell in the telling where the road became hard as there were a couple of times where in telling it the author stumbled over his words but in his imperfection...his words carried much power and I could only put down the book and pray for him...pray that he could/would continue to forgive himself (for not being perfect) pray that he realized that the journey has just begun and that he continued to find strength in that bottomless well of the faithful that are surrounding him...there are truly Angels watching over Warren!!!

THIS COLLECTION WERE CHOOSEN FROM THOSE APPEARING IN THE "NEW YORKER" DURING IT'S FIRST 15 1/2 YEARS OF PUBLICATION--FEBRUARY 1925---TO SEPTEMBER 1940.....THE COLLECTION IS A GREAT REVIEW OF SOME OF AMERIC'S GREAT WRITERS IN THE EARY 1900'S, AND DEAL WITH FACT AND FICTION---A WELL CHOSEN COLLECTION AND WORTHY OF STUDY, FOR THE WRITER OF TODAY.. ONE CAN ALWAY'S LEARN FROM THE OLD PROS.

The Periplus Adventure Guides are organized into chapters like stand alone essays on a region's culture, history, geography, animal life, and each major subregion. It's like reading a series of well-researched magazine articles that can be read independently or in sequence. The color pictures, maps, printing are of very high quality. The Sulawesi guide is no exception; it's a book that's worth keeping as an addition to one's travel library.

If you are looking for a book to chase away the winter blues then look into reading Summer Magic. I found four enjoyable stories by four remarkable authors. What I found so unique about this anthology is the originality of the four stories. All stories had one goal in mind that true love shall conquer all. Usually anthology's tend to only feature three authors, but with Summer Magic you get the added bonus of a fourth well known author. Each story is a unique work of art. They take you to settings far removed from one another. Each story can be read in one sitting, this is an added bonus for anyone pressed for time. Pamela Morsi, Jeane Anne Caldwell, Ann Carberry, and Karen Lockwood should stand up and take a bow, because they have wrote a master piece which soon will not be forgotten.

MAKING HAY Pamela Morsi Shy Vassar Muldrew and Lessy Green had become engaged. They were the most conventional citizens who looked forward to the most ordinary lives. Little did they know that when a haying crew pulled into their farm a outgoing man named Ripley would change their outlook. Ripley would open their eyes to what it meant to be truly in love.

A very sweet read. This was the first Pamela Morsi stories I have read, I look forward to seeing more of her work.

SUMMER DREAMS Jeane Anne Cardwell A horse race is the deciding factor in three people lives. Who will be the winner, and what will be the outcome for Spirited lass, Dorina Stevens, heartless Lord Julien Humbly, and the elusive scared Richard Michaels, Earl of Gloxbury. With the stakes held so high you know true love is not far behind.

Cardwell presents in this story with so many plots and twists it will get your hooked in the story right up until you finish the last page. I found myself holding my breath at the final end to see who the winner was in the horse race.

HOG Heaven Ann Carberry

A pigheaded Loralie Davis refuses to see what her future could hold. She is perfectly content in raising her pigs. Little does she know handsome Gabe Curran has other plans in store for her. Somehow I don't think it includes pigs do you?:)

Don't let the name throw you off, this is a delightful read. I found myself smiling right upon until the end.

WINTER HEATHER Karen Lockwood

Returning home to Scotland after being absent in America for the past five years Lord Glenncannon is shocked to learn his thirteen year ward Anne has grown to a desirable eighteen year old woman. Having secret hopes of returning to Scotland to wed Anne he is heartbroken to learn of her engagement. Now he must figure a plan to win the heart of his beloved Anne.

With such a rich description of Scotland, Karen Lockwood weaves this enchanting tale of love into the readers heart. Also it made we want to do further research on the history behind the Winter Heather.

I think this book was exciting. It is about a twelve year old boy who is a volunteer at a local animal clinic. Someone has been shooting all the animals (wild and domestic). Tommy Wilson, the young veterinarian, tries to help the wounded animals and in turn also ends up solving the crime.
This is a great book for the animal lover.
-per Zach (10 yrs. old)

Michael J. Caldwell has written a very entertaining first novel. Not only does he introduce us to the art of wine and food without the snobbery, he entwines this education with the tale of a 3-generation winemaking family that we can actually care about. We are invited into their lives, we dine with them and we get to know their "varietal totems." I especially enjoyed the shift to points in time that shaped the future of the family. Grapes are on the vine and love is in the air. There's a little something in it for all you beer lovers too. So kick back and enjoy this book with a glass of your favorite red or homebrew. Salud!

I really enjoyed reading this book. It put all of my favorites into one book: suspsense, mystery, romance, strong willed/strong minded heroine. I also had the joy of growing up in a close knit Italian family, so I could relate to that as well. This is one of those Nora Roberts books that after you get through the first chapter or 2 and are hooked, you have no personal life until you are finished.

Nora Roberts continues to amaze. I have read all of her novels written by Roberts and J.D. Robb. Nora is my favorite author.

I enjoyed this story very much and the convenience of listening as I went to and from work.

While I haven't read every one of Ms. Roberts works I must state that I have read quite a few. I absolutely adore her way with words and the way she moves a story along without being obvious. Since many other reviewers have given a synopsis of this book I will limit myself to comments on the whole.

Fully rounded characters were what first grabbed my attention. It is through the central character's interaction with those around her that we learn of the events that have brought her to the present day and why she is so fiercely independent.

Ms. Roberts attention to details is one of the many things I love about her writing. Not too wordy, not too sparse, just enough to give you a perfect picture of the who or where she is describing. In Blue Smoke she is absolutely eloquent in her descriptions of fire, especially how it is perceived by some as a living thing. Her heroine, Reena, and the nemesis, Joey, are actually cut from a bit of the same cloth but the fine line between madness and sanity is what sets them apart. Both are drawn to fire because of its power but one is drawn to its capacity to harm while the other is searching for a way to quench the powerful beast.

The Hale family is down to earth as they rally to protect their own. The Pastorelli family is as dysfunctional as they come. Thrown into the mix is a wonderful leading man named Bo Goodnight (with a name like that you know he rides the white horse).

Suspense piled up as this reader tried to figure out where the arsonist would set his next, premeditated fire. I literally held my breath when Reena and Joey finally confronted each other.

I truly enjoyed this book. The final couple of chapters are definitely not for the squeamish but I didn't think they were too gruesome. I've seen plenty worse on the TV set.

I give Blue Smoke five stars for keeping me up way past my bedtime on way too many nights.

Reena Hale learned at an early age what fire could do. She was a small child when she had to watch her family's' restaurant burn to the ground thus beginning her love/hate relationship with fire. As she grew up she devoured everything possible to expand her knowledge because she continued to be tortured to fire. In college, her boyfriend was burned to death, and this is just another event that directs her to her career as an arson investigator.

Renna feels content with her life when she becomes a member of the police department, and buys her first home. She is surprised when she meets neighbor Bo Goodnight to find out he has been trying to find her since college. He saw her at a party across the room and has been trying to find her since. As they grow closer and fall in love, Renna is horrified when Bo's life is threatened again with fire. As they investigate further, it is revealed that two of her other boyfriends were touched by fire, and it is all perpetrated by the same person.

I loved this story. It is definitely one of my favorite NR tales. The characters were phenomenal. Reena and Bo are a good match, but all the supporting characters were an important part - from her loud obnoxious loving family to the creepy villain.

This book is good for a basic introduction, that is for people who have never really seen much linear algebra and who haven't taken a proof-based course before. I used it in my first linear algebra course as an undergrad, and also when I taught an introductory course over the summer.

I especially like that it has some options, such as details of R^n being presented at the end of chapter two as an alternative to covering those facts in the more general context of "vector spaces" in chapter 4. It is not especially rigorous as far as proving things, and does not get too in depth as far as computations though there are some good sections on dynamical systems. So if you are teaching a class that is half engineers and half math majors, it strikes a decent balance.

For anyone who uses linear algebra, you will not be able to get away with having this as your only book, try Strang or Axler for more computational or theoretical (respectively) treatments. It is definitely a good intro though, it gives a decent overview of the main ideas.

covers 75% of the detail and leaves the 25% up to you. it lacks clear explition is vector space secotion (row col vector nul basis etc). it seems like you do the first coumple of sections not understanding what you are getting at but when you get to chapter 6 or so the past stuff finaly makes sense. I found the book hard to understand when it was talking about maping, one to one on too. i suggest a TI-83 or higher and the solutions manual. The book also lacks pictures showing dimention row col nul basis etc.

The organization and the treatment given to most subjects are well below what one would expect for a Wikipedia entry on each respective topic.

Anyone who uses this book for any kind of self-study is unlikely to get more out of it more than a few examples on multiplying matrices, row reduction, and some poetry about eigen-spaces and vector spaces.

Take a look at ``Linear Algebra Done Right'' by Alxr.

I used this book to teach myself linear algebra using a lesson plan developed by a teacher. A few things I found really helpful:

Lay constantly admonishes the reader to carefully study the text, by reading and re-reading. He understands that students learning linear algebra are likely to to be embarking on more abstract/advanced mathematics in the future--and he cares enough to teach good study skills as well as math. I've followed his advice, and found that with proper effort, I am able to teach myself.

Many of the questions are conceptual or True/False, which helps me to retain new concepts.

The study guide (sold separately, but very important if you're self-teaching) only includes answers to odd-numbered exercises. However, the answers are nicely detailed.

I especially appreciate that Lay refuses to flat-out offer answers to conceptual and True/False questions. Instead, there are hints and references to page numbers where helpful information can be found. This is important, not only because it (again) helps reinforce good study skills, but it encourages students to really try a problem before giving up and looking up the answer.

The introduction of new concepts is always followed by one or more examples, which helps to link theory to practice. In general, there are many examples that illustrate good problem-solving techniques. Proofs are detailed and well-justified, and there are some simple proofs that are left as problems in the book. These proofs are simple enough to not be terribly daunting to the student who is new to more abstract mathematical ideas.

For the student who would ask, "well what is it good for?" there are plenty of sections dedicated purely to applications of material learned in previous sections.

Detail-oriented methodical learners like myself should benefit from this book.

This was the textbook that my school has been using for its first and second year Linear Algebra courses. I found it somewhat terse. It seems like it could be a great book for someone already familiar with linear algebra or the logic aspect of mathematics; I don't recommend it for anyone who is not very familiar with proofs. Fortunately, it doesn't lack examples of how to solve computation problems and solutions to the odd-numbered problems are provided in the back of the book. Unfortunately, when it comes to the proof problems, instead of just providing the reader with the answer like most other texts, the author will either mention a hint or refer the reader to the study guide (mine came with a disk which has to be installed on a computer), which could be a problem for readers not familiar with how to do proofs. Serving as a somewhat of a mediator between these two extremes are true/false questions which accompany each chapter in each section of the text. While those start out somewhat fun in the beginning, they can also get tiresome and repetive very quickly. The solutions to these, like the proofs, are not provided, but fortunately, all one has to do is read the text carefully in order to determine the appropriate response.

If you want to understand the human evolution, you might read the original though. Of course, there are some misunderstandings, then you might read considering the historical influence and personal conflicts of Charles Darwin. Essential for researchers on sexual selection.

Just as "Origin of Species is misunderstood, I believe "Descent" to be also, although the latter is a more entertaining read. "Descent" fails to concentrate on man without deviating. It is a book of observations and study. It concentrates on how animal life, has, by sexual selection, brought forth the variety in the species we see today, through millions of years. Darwin covered his beloved pigeons in depth in "Origins" and continues at length on many other bird species in "Descent". I agree with him that all the different types of birds we see today probably came from one ancestor of the pigeon. This is called variation of kind. We see this in just about every living creature and flora. The problem arises when the next step is taken, the rise of one species turning into another (reptile to bird). Throughout the book Darwin does admit to this fact, but he still maintains that it must be, with much difficulty. He does hint to nature having some "power of thought", where does this come from? How does nature make these choices? Why did Darwin focus so on the black tribes: their practices, looks, sexuality, if he did not believe them a lower race? Of course he only hints at this, and his belief of evolving from apes is scant, but obvious. Does not the use of race to distinguish only separate? His theory on idiots as somehow lower is also disturbing. And what of the rudimentary parts and vestigial organs. As we progress in our scientific study we understand more on their uses, and there may be much we will never understand. In the end he gives a poor argument, and a convoluted book.

There is no doubt there is a tremendous amount of work that went into his book. It is a difficult and painful read, although there are many interesting and detailed observations. One does need to know his enemy. Darwin is not the originator of "evolution." There are many who came before him, since the dawn of time. He was influenced by numerous men of his time, some being more radical. Darwin was nothing new, he just maid it "hip." What he started has turned into the secular humanism the world has adopted. I don't think he meant for this disease to spread like it has. From his writings I understand him as an agnostic, but doubtful. I believed he struggled with the possibly of a deist. It is safe to say it was his only ambition till his dying day to prove "evolution" as proof of our existence. What of the missing fossil record?, he new they would be found. He was a confusing man.

150 years later and there still has been no intermediate fossils found to prove the case. In fact we are discovering more that validates creation.

Why don't we see a scale or a feather erupt occasionally on man? Is it because it is not in our DNA, and never was?

The theory of evolution caused Darwin to loose his faith and his experience has been repeated in countless lives. Evolution is an acid that eats away at the mind, a cancer.

One only needs to open the pages to Michael Behe's book, "Darwin's Black Box", to understand the futility of the evolutionary theory. The engines of life at the molecular level are so complex that there leaves no other possibility than a creator of the universe. There should be no excuse.

Wish you well
Scott

This book is totally boring and idiotic.
Only a fool would believe that our ancestors were gorillas. If you believe that we descended from gorillas and/or lizards, you probably also believe that The Earth revolves around the sun.

The Earth is stationary, just like it seems. The sun revolves around The Earth, just like the moon (except hotter). Use your noodle. It's common sense.

The Lord created The Earth (and the heavens) out of sawdust, clay, dinosaur bones, and mud. He did so in six days, and slept on the seventh day. This occurred 6000 or 7000 years ago. Evolution could not have occurred in such a short period of time.
Wake up, you've been duped.

The 'Descent of Man' is really the better of his two earth-shattering books.He unleashed 'The Origin of the Species' book for the scientific rebels and christian theologians to chew on and debate.And then came ,'Descent of Man', and the book continues to fire mass debates everyday.The other great thinker of his day,was Karl Marx.And both men had their writings misunderstood and exploited by ruthless montebanks.I read some of the reviews for the 'Species' book.For the record,Hitler was an 'Anglo-phobe' and hated anything that was British.Hitler saw the writings of Darwin as 'English-Jewish Non-sense'.Hitler felt that his Aryan people were the true 'children of God',and uniquely seperate from other human pagan races. Hitler was an uneducted insane Christian,who almost enslaved the world with his 'Kernwaffen' and almost imposed his self-styled christian views on the planet.After 150 years of discussion,this Darwin book has freed the minds and hearts for all rational people. And this book continues to irritate the filthy apes that live in darkness and fear.

Just as "Origin of Species is misunderstood, I believe "Descent" to be also, although the latter is a more entertaining read. "Descent" fails to concentrate on man without deviating. It is a book of observations and study. It concentrates on how animal life, has, by sexual selection, brought forth the variety in the species we see today, through millions of years. Darwin covered his beloved pigeons in depth in "Origins" and continues at length on many other bird species in "Descent". I agree with him that all the different types of birds we see today probably came from one ancestor of the pigeon. This is called variation of kind. We see this in just about every living creature and flora. The problem arises when the next step is taken, the rise of one species turning into another (reptile to bird). Throughout the book Darwin does admit to this fact, but he still maintains that it must be, with much difficulty. He does hint to nature having some "power of thought", where does this come from? How does nature make these choices? Why did Darwin focus so on the black tribes: their practices, looks, sexuality, if he did not believe them a lower race? Of course he only hints at this, and his belief of evolving from apes is scant, but obvious. Does not the use of race to distinguish only separate? His theory on idiots as somehow lower is also disturbing. And what of the rudimentary parts and vestigial organs. As we progress in our scientific study we understand more on their uses, and there may be much we will never understand. In the end he gives a poor argument, and a convoluted book.

There is no doubt there is a tremendous amount of work that went into his book. It is a difficult and painful read, although there are many interesting and detailed observations. One does need to know his enemy. Darwin is not the originator of "evolution." There are many who came before him, since the dawn of time. He was influenced by numerous men of his time, some being more radical. Darwin was nothing new, he just maid it "hip." What he started has turned into the secular humanism the world has adopted. I don't think he meant for this disease to spread like it has. From his writings I understand him as an agnostic, but doubtful. I believed he struggled with the possibly of a deist. It is safe to say it was his only ambition till his dying day to prove "evolution" as proof of our existence. What of the missing fossil record?, he new they would be found. He was a confusing man.

150 years later and there still has been no intermediate fossils found to prove the case. In fact we are discovering more that validates creation.

Why don't we see a scale or a feather erupt occasionally on man? Is it because it is not in our DNA, and never was?

The theory of evolution caused Darwin to loose his faith and his experience has been repeated in countless lives. Evolution is an acid that eats away at the mind, a cancer.

One only needs to open the pages to Michael Behe's book, "Darwin's Black Box", to understand the futility of the evolutionary theory. The engines of life at the molecular level are so complex that there leaves no other possibility than a creator of the universe. There should be no excuse.