Curtis Books

Although the heroine of this story was distinctly unlikable in the beginning of the book and made some choices I felt were not actually true to the character as written, Liz did a fairly good job at showing "the new man" God can create when our lives are turned over to him. This love story is multi-layered and heartening and definitely worth the read.

This book was so much fun! It's not very often I sit and literally laugh out loud, but this book had me giggling! It's funny, inspirational and charming.

I just finished reading Bookends and was very impressed. It's the first Higgs book I have read (although I read and love her column in TCW). I will definitely be reading more of her literature. This was a warm, funny book with a bit of mystery in it. It wasn't predictable in my opinion, which was a nice change from most romantic fiction. I loved the quirky characters(including the golden retriever) and loved how realisitc it was. I had never heard of the Moravian denomination and am now more curious about it. This is defintely a cozy read and would make a good gift for a close friend.

I don't know when I've read such a delightful book! Jonas and Emilie and a whole cast of other wonderful characters wormed their way into my heart and charmed me like I haven't been charmed in a while. Incredible writing and a message of faith seamlessly interwoven...this book has it all!

"Bookends" reveals a talent of the author, Liz Curtiz Higgs, that is nice to find in Christian Romance Novels. The characters are engaging and entertaning. Best of all, you do not have to wait till the end of the story for the main characters to have fun together! In this book the stroyline is creatively weaved with humor, seriousness, and romance, from begining to end. I highly recomend it to those who enjoy quality, intelligent, romance/comedy novels.

I am adopting a 8 year old girl and she has a 3 year old sister that is being adopted by another family. She was so excited to give her little sister this book that she could read to her for her little sister's birthday. She wrote her a birthday song on the inside cover. It's really hard to find applicable gifts like this for our situation. I was very exited to find this book and my daughter loved it.

very cute book no big message here that we don't tell our children everyday but they can see the pictures of siblings having fun together and this will inspire them

My 3 year old daughter loves this book! We borrowed it from the library when her little sister was born and decided to buy it. Being a little sister myself, it's really cute and touching.

This book is absolutely darling! The pictures are adorable. I found it in a bookstore shortly after I had my second daughter. Since then, the two girls and I have loved reading it at bedtime! Now I'm looking forward to buying it for a friend of mine who's giving birth to her second daughter. I also thought the big brother little brother version was pretty cute.

This is a super photo story book. The exceptional photography highlights life in the eyes of sisters. We have 3 daughters so we can relate to many of the photos. The great photos allow you to "hear" the joy, frustration, excitement and fun that the sisters are experiencing. I highly recommend this book and "Big Brother, Little Brother" by the same author. Not only are they great kid books but many adults will find themselves reminiscing to their early days of sibling joy.

Marilyn's book is not just for Brazen Hussies, though it helps if you are one! GREAT marketing book for anyone in business. I would highly recommend it. She gives examples and real life situations to help you with your marketing. I would highly recommend this book.
Michelle Dunn

Don't be deterred by the title and subtitle, nor by the sometimes overheated diction. (Initially, I was.) This book provides an abundance of practical strategies, tactics, and suggestions which can be of invaluable assistance to males as well as to females, to corporate marketing executives as well as to entrepreneurs. Without apologies, Ross has an in-your-face style. She wastes neither her time nor her reader's in getting to the point, nailing it, and then moving on to another point.

She organizes the material within six Parts:

I. Empowering Marketing Maneuvers

II. Illuminating Publicity Techniques for Femme Fatales and Grande Dames

Note: As I previously suggested, ignore the overheated diction.

III. "Out of the Box" Thinking -- Nontraditional Marketing

IV. Mission Possible -- Unstoppable Direct Marketing

V. Maximize Your Strengths -- More Gutsy Strategies for Wonder Women

NOTE: See previous "Note."

VI. Sources & Resources Packed With More Power Than a Protein Bar

She also includes a "Recommended Reading" section. Because other excellent books have been published since 2000, I presume to suggest several at the conclusion of this review.

Ross obviously favors a tone and diction in her writing which could perhaps (just perhaps) distract some readers from the fundamentally sound material she provides. She may seem playful at time but she is nonetheless quite serious about the importance of combining prudent speed with relentless determination to achieve what Jim Collins calls a BEHAG: a Big Hairy Audacious Goal. Only in recent years have women somehow overcome formidable barriers to achieve success in the business world, most of which were installed and then sustained by men. Today, at least 80% (and probably more) of the growth our nation's GNP has been achieved by companies with 20 or fewer employees and a substantial majority of those companies are owned by women.

This book will be of substantial benefit to those women but also to other women who need both encouragement and guidance, either to join the ranks of company owners or to expedite the progress of their careers within other organizations. I am also convinced that this book will be of substantial benefit to other entrepreneurs, male or female, who also need such encouragement and guidance. I urge those who share my high regard for this book to check out the Customer Reviews of the works identified by Ross in the "Recommended Reading" section.

Here are other works which should also be seriously considered: Beemer's Predatory Marketing, Catalyst's Advancing Women in Business, Jennings and Haughton's It's Not the Big That Eat the Small...It Is the Fast That Eat the Slow, Glaser and Smalley's Swim with the Dolphins, Kawasaki's Selling the Dream, Landrum's Profiles of Female Genius, Morgan's Eating the Big Fish, Breaking the Glass Ceiling co-edited by Morrison, White, and Van Elsor, Swiss's Women Breaking Through, Taylor and Archer's Up Against the Wal-Marts, and Wymard's Conversations with Uncommon Women. Amazon.com features Customer Reviews of these works also.

Great book. I never write reviews, but it was so good I was compelled to write this. Great ideas, not too advanced, not too simplistic.

This book is a gold mine of useful strategies and resources. While it ia targeted at women, as a man I find it packed with ways to market more effectively. I find the web resources cited very useful. I recommend this book to all marketers who want to penetrate their markets more deeply and more profitably.

Absolutely necessary book for anyone who wants to market and promote their product. This book was soooo helpful to me that I recommend it to everyone I come across who is wishing to find fabulous websites, helpful hints and tips to save time and money, and absolutely necessary ideas for marketing. There just isn't another book as complete, except maybe Marilyn's other title, "The Complete Guide to Book Publishing"

"Stress: Living and Working in a Changing World" provides you with the techniques and the inspiration to take control of the stress in your life and make it work for you. The book takes time - it is not a how-to-eliminate-stress in five easy steps, which makes it all the more valuable. We didn't get "dis-stressed" in five easy steps; we will not get "de-stressed" in five easy steps. All the steps are here, plus a wealth of background information to understand the physiology and psychology involved. Read the parts you are ready for, but if you are stressed - and who isn't--you owe it to yourself to read this book.

Manning, Curtis, and McMillen have created in STRESS: Living and Working in a Changing World, a resource that combines a unique blend of theory and practical application that deals with a subject that nearly everyone can relate to. The book contains numerous tools that can be utilized to further one's knowledge and ability to deal with this potentially hazardous phenomenon. With all the "self-help" resources available in the marketplace, it is unusual to find one that is so theoretically based and yet so practically presented. It is certainly going to be part of my office/home library.

James L. Besier, Assistant Director of Pharmacy/ Adjunct Assistant Professor

In the academic arena, some books offer sound intellectual insights; a few present a nuts and bolts approach to a problem. Dr. George Manning's newest book on stress is one of the rare volumes that offers both.

A seasoned and respected psychologist, George Manning has the credentials that demand respect. He also has a way of relating sophisticated truths to the real world of the workplace.

I highly recommend this book for company executives, for teachers, for clergypeople and for anyone else who must work with people who are in the state of "becoming."

John McCollister, Ph.D.

"Stress: Living and Working in a Changing World" is not just another book on stress. It is the only stress book you will ever need. This book is written for everyone caught up in the stress of living and working in a rapidly changing world. It provides insight and wisdom, techniques and strategy, and common sense approaches for dealing with the stress of daily living. Written in down-to-earth language and using real-life examples, complex concepts are easily understood. It is a small price for such a wealth of help - and all at your finger tips - in one volumn.

I found the best time to read this book was whilst on holiday (vacation) and as far away as my normal stress levels as possible. My wife, son and I took an RV to West Virginia and did a little white water rafting, walking and cooking on camp fires. We actually read the book together and I emphasise, not in any particular order. I would read the titles from the table of contents and someone would pick one. The most enjoyable part was taking the many tests together, as a family. Strangely enough, we did not necessarily complete all the tests or even analyse all the results, the biggest benefit was how it got us talking to each other. Often the test was forgotten until a long time later, when we would then go back and finish it. It almost seemed like it was easier to understand the results after following the diverse directions our conversation tooks us.

I spent one evening talking to my son (14) over a blazing and eventually dying campfire for several hours. I know the book inspired us to do this, or at least put us in the right frame of mind. After I had returned from this most relaxing of holidays, I realised that the best form of stress relief was what I had just experienced. Sharing, listening and talking to the family and getting to know them even better. Also reaffirming a long held belief that they are the most important things in life, not my job or house or the other trappings of our materialistic society. I am a great fan of George Manning's, I loved his book 'Building Community, the human side of work'. It defines so clearly the things I really hold to be true and essential for a GREAT working existence. This book(Stress.....) really helped me understand more about the topic and even more importantly, how to manage it. I still haven't read the whole book, but I am looking forward to our next trip together, so we can tackle some more of its' contents, and see where it takes us this time.

As a teacher intern I am always looking for new books to integrate into my classwork and for my future classroom. This book is a wonderful resource for our students and will be a integral part of my cross-curriculum teaching. I look forward to sharing this book with all of my colleagues so they can incorporate this book into their classroom as well.
I have a 15 and 12 year old who think the book is adorable and a 6 month old along with 18 month twin niece and nephew who will soon too love it.

Here's a book for young turtle lovers, especially budding scientists. It begins when Maggie finds eggs in her old sandbox by the beach. At first she doesn't know what kind of eggs she has found but soon she figures out that they are turtle eggs. Maggie and her mom learn everything they can about turtles and becoming a "turtle-sitter." They enlist the help of the "turtle lady," use online sources and anything that will help them learn how to care for the turtle eggs and then the turtles.

Excellent, well-written information on every page. Includes a helpful five-page educational supplent in the back. The illustrations are just right for this subject and young readers.

I bought this book for my 3 year old son and he is now competely enthralled with turtles. He wants to be a "turtle sitter" and laughs hysterically when Maggie names the turtles. He has also asked me to buy this book for 3 of his friends. It's a great book whether you live near the water or not. My son and I highly recommend it as a very entertaining yet educational book.

Early one morning Maggie is surprised to find turtle eggs buried in her sandbox. Mama Turtle must have thought Maggie's sandbox was the beach. Maggie and her mother call the Turtle Lady. She explains what needs to be done to keep the eggs warm and safe until they hatch. All summer, for 55 days Maggie keeps a close watch on the eggs.

One hot September day, Maggie sits on the edge of her sandbox and witnesses the birth of the speckle faced babies as they peck their way out of their eggs. Maggie names each turtle as it is born. The babies remain in their secure nest for a few days, and then they are transported indoors to tanks with heat lamps. Maggie and her mother become part of the "head start" program. The turtles eat cut-up fish and turtle pellets. They live in slightly salted water until early summer.

On the first day of summer Maggie helps the wildlife expert place metal tags through the edges of the shell of each turtle. The tags don't hurt the turtles but could possibly help the experts learn more about them. The 9 month old turtles are released into the bay, Maggie waves good-bye as they disappear into the sea.

This story and website, [....]are based on a real program that allows students in Maryland to help wildlife experts protect and learn more about their state reptile - the diamondback terrapin. Terrapin Station was started by a woman affectionately know as Maryland's Turtle Lady, Margaret Whilden.

The "Creative Minds" section is filled with turtle facts. The last pages of the book have line drawings of three different types of turtles: a diamondback terrapin, a loggerhead sea turtle, and a desert turtle. Turtles In My Sandbox, is another winner from Sylvan Dell Publishing.

A few decades ago, it was a common thing to have terrapins as pets in homes and classrooms. One could win them at fairs and buy them with painted shells at seaside resorts. It was a shame then that there was not more education about terrapins and their natural habitat. Jennifer Keats Curtis' most informative book would have been welcome then as it surely is now.

Children can easily relate to Ms. Curtis' book and the tale of Maggie who finds terrapin eggs in her sandbox! With the help of the Turtle Lady, Maggie and her mother care for the eggs until the turtles hatch and are released back into the sea. It is a delight that Ms. Curtis uses the scientific terms for the body parts of the terrapins as it helps children stretch their vocabularies. Emanuel Schongut's watercolor illustrations are clear, detailed and offer excellent support to the text. The facts and color activities at the end of the book are a first-rate addition to the book. This book is highly recommended for ages 4 - 10, and will be a great addition to second to fifth grade science units in classrooms.

This is the first of the O'Reilly books I have been disappointed in. I bought the book for one reason-- to find out how to restore a / and /usr file system off a remote tape drive. Unfortunately the book does not answer this question, all of its examples assume the server has a local tape drive attached. The authors spend their time touting freebie utilities at the expense of a thourough discussion of the backup and restore capabilities that come with the operating system.

This book is important for System Administrators and DBAs. The book is well-written and have discussed all the major UNIX flavors back and recovery. The author went further by discussing the Backup and Recovery of major databases on these UNIX operating systems.
I give 5 stars.

As a former Unix system administrator, this book proved invaluable to me. Backups are a dreaded responsibility for most as they are not glamorous, but when a backup is needed, the administrator can become a hero or out of a job very quickly depending on thier backups. The author provides some deep insight into the art of backups, drawing upon real world examples that provide insight into the recommendations. The authors quips on real world backup stories is worth the price alone as there is great knowledge to be gained from someone else's mistakes and failures. Truly a gem that should be on EVERY system administrators bookshelf.

Even though I was still very new to Linux/UNIX, this book was able to help me create a fully automated backup routine as well as how to restore from those backups. I found the book very easy to read and not at all dry.

This is *THE* Computer System backup book. It contains all the basics of why you want to backup computer systems, plus many of the real world experience details. It is written from a Unix perspective, but is still applicable to Windows and other non-Unix environments.

I've been using this book as a general guide for several years now. It was a book I watched work it's way through the O'Reilly system from first announcement to general release. I bought it when it first came out. I have not been disappointed in it.

Many people think of computer system backups as a dry old musty topic of interest to nobody in particular. But 9/11 showed how important good disaster recovery planning and procedures could be to a business.

Some of the specifics are now a little out of date, but not by leaps and bounds. It is still very good for its core reason for being - Backups. It is very much less out of date than other computer books on the market today.

I have been dealing with large-scale computer system backups and disaster recovery for large employers for years... and I still consult this book regularly to make sure have not missed anything important. It covers all the topics you need.

This book was very entertaining. I was able to identify with the characters. I have a friend or family member that could easily have been one of the characters. He really brought the characters to life. In the future, I would love to see him bring one or two characters back.

Curtis did an outstanding job bringing this book and all of its characters to life!! "Black Jack" has so many twists and turns, it'll keep you on the edge of your seat!! I found it easy to read, very captivating, and difficult to put down once you've start reading it. I can't wait for the sequel, and would definitely like to someday see it as a movie. Great job Mr. Rayford!!

This story appeared to get off to a slow start but the author managed to hook me by describing the town setting so clearly that I began to feel as if I could personally relate to this town and it's set of problems. Once drawn into the plot and to the characters, I found myself determined to know the outcome and unable to set the book down. I felt as though I was right alongside of these strong black women in their struggle to bring about positive changes within their distressed community. Throughtout the story, these everyday women are up against very powerful and corrupt leaders; they don't have much to lose but can they and will they come out on top? Mr. Rayford also does a great job by writing such a powerful ending which catches you by complete surprise. I hope to read about these ladies taking on additional challenges and social issues in the future, so hopefully this isn't the last time we'll read about them. It has the potential to become a wonderful series.

THANK YOU C.E. RAYFORD for an enjoyable story!

I couldn't put this book down! Mr. Rayford has a very inviting way of telling a story. Within a few pages I was drawn into the adventure of this creative plot. It was easy to grasp the full personality of the characters and marvel at the intriguing way they played out their parts in this great story. This was a great read!

I REALLY THINK THAT BLACK JACK IS A GOOD BOOK FROM BEGINNING TO END. I THINK EVERY HOUEHOLD SHOULD HAVE A COPY.

My two and a half old son loves anything that has to do with the moon. When I first saw this book, I knew instantly that he would love it. Boy, was I right. The words flow gracefully as we read it together over and over again. This book is a family favorite that is read by someone in my home daily. The illustrations are captivating and will hold a child imagination for hours. Highly recommend.

I bought this book having bought "Picture This" which was illustrated by Allison Jay. My 22 month old loves it!! I like the fact that there are only a few words per page and the story has wonderful rhythm when read out loud. My daughter now tries to say the words along with me and tries to read it to her doll "Dolly". The illustrations for some reason arouse a feeling of nostalgia in me, and my daughter loves to point out the moon, the cows, the swing in the park and the various other wonderful pictures. Well worth a look!

Is about how many times my 3-year old daughter would read this book, (if she could.)

This book is beautifully illustrated and the prose is wonderful. This is a favourite of everyone in our house. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. My son is 2 1/2 and will find joy reading this for years to come. The illustrations are magical. A must have.

BEAUTIFUL PROSE, WONDERFUL PICTURES. My two-year-old son LOVES this book. The assonance (vowel rhyme within the words) in the prose makes it flow much like a poem but much more sophisticated than the popular, "Good Night Moon." The first line: "I took the moon for a walk last night, it followed along like a still summer kite, high in the sky through darkness and light, when I took the moon for a walk." Animals and people appear from page to page with wonderful landscapes that reward readers when closely examined. I am a librarian and this book should be on a list of BEST CHILDREN'S BOOKS, EVER.

Well maybe not, but it is over 450 pages of Blackadder! "This book, sir, contains every word in our beloved language." Just kidding, I just had to say that. What this book does contain is the complete scripts for all 24 episodes of the entire Blackadder series written by Richard Curtis & Ben Elton, who are both "as clever as a stick in a bucket of pig swill." and starring the "quite brilliant" comedic talents of Rowan Atkinson, Tony Robinson, Hugh Laurie, and Stephen Fry, among others. If you have not seen Blackadder, you have no idea what you're missing. However, if you have seen it and don't like it, then I hope you get an extremely itchy rash on "the soft dangly collection of objects in your trousers." There are plenty of other things besides the scripts but I'll leave it as a surprise (or you can just read one of the other reviews). Keep in mind that these are the original scripts, not word for word what you hear on the show. For the most part it is exactly the same, but every once and a while there are different words used in the book. Don't worry, it doesent take away from any humor and the only person that will notice it will be someone, like myself, who has watched Blackadder over and over. Seriously, I put Blackadder III in my DVD player before I go to sleep and sometimes the last thing I hear is "Once upon a time there was a lovely sausage called Baldrick and it lived happily ever after." Anyway the book is essential for the Blackadder fan who can't get enough of the hilarious and original writing. Here are some lines you can read continuously for the rest of your life once you buy this book:

"Population: three rather mangy cows, a dachshund named Colin, and a small hen, in its late forties."

"I took over for the original electorate after he very sadly accidentally brutally cut his head off while combing his hair."

"I am delighted to have been instrumental in keeping your bosom free of arses."

"...eternity in the company of Beelzebub and all his hellish instruments of death will be a picnic compared to five minutes with me and this pencil..."

By the way, all royalties from the sale of this book go to Comic Relief UK. So you're actually doing two good things: Donating to a worthwhile charity and owning a book "so cunning, you could stick a tail on it and call it a weasel."

"Blackadder" is one of the most brilliant television shows ever. The star, Rowan Atkinson, along with other series regulars such as Tony Robinson (as the perpetual dogsbody with a cunning plan,) Tim McInnerny, Stephen Fry, and Hugh Laurie carry this show through four distinct historical periods, with more laughs than could possibly be expected. Series one starts in the fifteenth century, with Atkinson as Prince Edmund, the illegitimate and despised son of the lunatic king, Richard IV. During this season Edmund adopted the moniker "The Black Adder" only after Baldrick advised him it was much more awe inspiring than his original choice "The Black Vegetable." (Note that while his name is spelled "Blackadder" in the scripts, when it is used as a title in season one, it is spelled "Black Adder.") This season sets the stage for Blackadder as a conniving and scheming con man, a reputation he and his Blackadder descendants live up to through the rest of the series.

Seasons two and three see a progression though history with Edmund first becoming Lord Edmund Blackadder, in the court of Elizabeth I (who is delightfully played by Miranda Richardson,) and later becoming the butler to Prince George, the Prince Regent, who is the idiot offspring of crazy King George III. These seasons provide the most laughs of the series for me, and I am particularly enthralled with the episode "Ink and Incapability" in which Baldrick burns Doctor Johnson's new dictionary. This episode is the ultimate in Blackadder humor, witty and urbane, yet full of madcap comedic moments as well, especially when Blackadder introduces new and confounding words for Dr. Johnson's considerations: "Contrafibularities, sir. It is a common word down our way....I am anaspeptic, phrasmotic, even compunctious to have caused you such pericombubulations." (Of course in true Blackadder fashion this only gets him in trouble, as Coleridge, the poet and Johnson ally threatens to thrust an Oriental disemboweling cutlass up his "ignoble behind.")

The forth season of Blackadder sees Atkinson as Captain Edmund Blackadder in the British army during the trench warfare of World War One France. This series also had a lot of laughs, with my favorite episode being "Private Plane," in which Blackadder and Baldrick join the Royal Air Force and are forced down behind enemy lines. They are subsequently interrogated and insulted by the Red Baron ("How lucky you English are to find the toilet so amusing, for us it is a mundane and functional item, for you it is the basis of an entire culture.") and sentenced to teach home economics to a convent of nuns for the duration of the war. One thing about this season (and two of the others) is that in the last episode of the season the entire cast dies, which elevates the series into a peculiar blend of black comedy and social commentary which I have still not grown fully accustomed to.

The book is a collection of scripts and has several extras germane to the time period being satirized which are also well done. I like the excerpt from "Dr. Johnson's Dictionary" provided on page 106, with definitions such as "left behind - part of the sitting apparatus of a personage," and "leek - a long, thin Welsh tomato." There are also helpful lists of the "Duties of the Prince Regent," "Duties of a Butler of a Royal Household" which includes "Commissioning moleskins (as and when necessary)," and "Duties of an Underscrogman." Baldrick, being the Underscrogman serving under Edmund is responsible for (among other things): "Removing and making good all squoles, whiffen-plugs, and blunters," "Cleaning the wulger-hole," "Quilping," "Cliving," "Groving," "Arranging the sheep droppings into neat little pyramids," "Frossiking the hounds," "Folding the glut-pile," and of course, "Making sandwiches."

This is a wonderful book, though if you are unfamiliar with the series, I recommend buying the DVD set and watching the shows first; a subsequent reading of this book will ensure many more laughs. As a side note, profits from this book go to the charity Comic Relief, a brief history of which appears in the last three pages of the book.

I recommend this book very highly for intelligent wit, and I likewise recommend the television series on DVD interphrastically.

The Blackadder series, begun in the 1980s, was a comedic masterpiece set forth by Rowan Atkinson and his comrades. From start to finish, the first series was a masterstroke of wit, irony and comedic styling that fits both the contemporary and medieval situations perfectly. The combination of slapstick and intellectual humour blended well, and the literary types will not miss the occasional credit of William Shakespeare as a collaborating writer on some episodes -- this might well be the kind of comedy Shakespeare would have produced today.

The first series was set in the pre-Tudor royal family, projecting that Richard III won at Bosworth Field, and Richard IV succeeded him, until after many adventures, the entire royal family was done in, and Henry Tudor reworte history thereafter. The first series starred Brian Blessed and Elspet Gray as the King and Queen, and Robert East as their eldest son, the Prince of Wales. Rowan Atkinson played the second son, who with companions Percy and Baldrick (Tim McInnerny and Tony Robinson) create most of the comic scenes. BlackAdder variously becomes the Archbishop of Canterbury, the betrothed of the Spanish Infanta, a witch on trial, and finally, however briefly, King of England.

The second series sees Percy and Baldrick following a descendent of Blackadder in Elizabethan times; as befits the period, the characters are more vibrant and saucy, particularly Blackadder, who still seeks his fortune as one of the Queen's suitors. Here he variously becomes the royal executioner, a sea-faring discoverer, a bankrupt noble, and finally a traitor to the crown, albeit not without a sense of humour. Miranda Richardson puts in a spectacular performance as Queen Elizabeth, with Stephen Fry and Patsy Byrne in attendance. Stephen Fry will recur throughout the series.

In the third series, Blackadder is still close to the crown, as the butler of the Prince Regent, a despised position to a despised person. Baldrick is still around, and the Prince is played by Hugh Laurie, who will recur in the final series. Done almost as a period comedy, the very titles and situations pay hommage to the day of the Scarlet Pimpernel, Dr. Johnson's dictionary, and the conflict with France. Through an interesting set of circumstances, butler and prince trade places, and the Blackadder finally becomes his intended goal, albeit in the name of someone else.

In the fourth and final series, Blackadder has fallen from a great height, and is an officer in the trenches of World War I. Baldrick is still there, and Percy and the Prince have transformed into fellow field officers, with Stephen Fry playing a bellicose general here as he did Wellington in the third series. The main device of this series is the effort by Blackadder to escape the trenches, by variously becoming an artist, a theatre producer, a chef, but to no avail finally, producing a sombre end to the dynasty.

The book is a fabulous companion piece to the series, as the BBC is known to do with television series of success. The six episodes of each of the four seasons is laid out in script-narrative form, with a generous collection of side offerings, such as the Blackadder family tree, the menu of Mrs. Miggins' pie shoppe, and other pieces of interest related to but not found in the actual series. The cast is included at the beginning of each series section. The book concludes with a partial collection of some of Blackadder's best insults.

This book was printed in aid of Comic Relief, who give a brief outline of their history of funding good causes in the last few pages.

This is a must-have for any Blackadder fan. Regretably, it does not contain the addition special features (such as the Victorian Christmas of Blackadder), but for any devotee of the series, this is a requirement.

1983 saw the airing of a hilariously funny new British television show, Blackadder. This show had four separate seasons that chronicled the lives of four members of the Blackadder family: Edmund Blackadder in 1484, son of Richard, Duke of York; Edmund Blackadder, favorite of Queen Elizabeth I; Edmund Blackadder, butler to Prince George, son of King George III; and, finally, Edmund Blackadder, Army captain during World War I. This book is a companion to that wonderful series, filling in the holes left in English history, giving all sort of useful information drawn from the Blackadder family archives, and the full scripts of each of the shows!

This is a great book, and a must-have for any fan of the Black Adder. The scripts are great to have, and the other information demonstrates the same great humor as the show. Having been created in 1998, the book does not contain any information on the Y2K special, Blackadder Back & Forth, which makes sense. What doesn't make sense is that it completely ignores the 1988 Christmas Special! But, that said, this is a nice book, one that I highly recommend to every Blackadder fan!

I stumbled upon the Black Adder comedy series one night in the 1980s while channel surfing. Something was weird, I thought--there's this sniveling coward, and this even more sniveling sycophant, and then the dogsbody who has dung all over him. Looks interesting. And as I watched, I found it extremely funny, as well. It required a knowledge of history (or Shakespeare, as you see fit), yet wasn't afraid to do the occasional fart joke. Puerile, yet intelligent. That described me at the time as well.

The successive series (Blackadder II, Blackadder the Third, and Blackadder Goes Forth) shifted over into the more intelligent realm (with the third series being the most so), although the running jokes about Baldrick (the dogsbody) being little better than the dung he came from remained. Blackadder II, set in the court of the virgin queen, starred Miranda Richardson, who was perfect in her cruelty towards the hapless Blackadder. The third series had Hugh Laurie as the Prince Regent, a befuddled German idiot who is being taken advantage of by Blackadder, the butler (think of a dark Wooster/Jeeves match, where the Jeeves character retains his aplomb but becomes extra greedy). I never got to see the fourth series on television, so my experience with it is through this book alone.

And what a great book it is. Published to benefit Comic Relief, the organization trying to aid the poor and destitute in England and Africa, it contains the scripts to each episode of the four series with faux historical documents and a running summary of the line of Blackadder. For an American, the scripts are almost a necessity to catch some of the more obscure language used in the series--especially the curses. The endpapers have color pictures of the main characters in each series, and there are some black and white stills with humorous captions included within the pages.

To say that Black Adder is my favorite TV show is true. I liked the 1970s American sitcom, SOAP, as well, but from its hilarious beginnings, it tapered off into pure silliness (as most American shows tend to do). The nice thing about the Blackadder series is the way that the British limit themselves to sets of shows, rather than endlessly milking the cash cow. Yes, I would like to see a fifth Black Adder (I've seen the Christmas Carol, which was wonderful), but only if it can be of the same quality as these. If not, let's not ruin a good thing, shall we?

I have to say that I find this book to be one oriented to men. And there are not many books on the marriage subject to be aimed at men. That alone sets it aside as a landmark in the firld.

Dr. Curtis has a background in both marriage and business counsulting. What he has produced here is a book that bridges the two. It's a book on marriage, but it is written in a style and using words that will be familiar to any MBA student. He uses words like Funding the Partnership, Branding and Marketing Your Relationship, Job Descriptions for Couples, Compensation and Benefits, Meetings and Retreats, Mergers and Acquisitions.

I'm not so sure that women, who approach life differently than men, will appreciate what this book is saying. But men will. It plays on the way men think, talk and understand.

I perhaps should re-word this comment. I like and understand the approach given in this book. It makes me think differently about the whole marriage situation. I don't think my ex-wife would have read it at all.

Until I read this book I would never have equated business with love. They appeared miles apart to me but now I see the connection. I am almost 80 years old and was married at the age of 18 in a different time with different concepts. I always felt that my marriage was better than most of my friends but realize it could have been improved by using some of the ideas brought out in this book. I hope others will read this enlightening book and benefit from it.

Reviewed by Stephanie Rollins for Reader Views (11/06)

Dr. John Curtis has a background in both business consulting and marriage therapy. I suppose it is inevitable that he would combine the two into a recipe for marital success. Dr. John Curtis penned "The Business of Love" to save the most important business venture anyone will ever delve into--marriage. If you do not think that marriage is a business, try getting divorced. I believe that you will see things differently.

Why does Dr. Curtis believe that marriage is a business venture? Dr. Curtis views each individual as a sole proprietorship. They have functioned on their own for many years. When they marry, they merge into a couple or a consolidated company. Dr. Curtis points to the unity candle that is used in weddings symbolizing the joining of the couple. Anyone who has studied business knows that mergers create complications in cultures.

Sometimes it is the small things that grate on a spouse's nerves. Does one person let the laundry pile up on the bathroom floor while the other loathes that horrible habit? Maybe one spouse expects all the canned goods to be faced the same direction. The other spouse may consider that to be over-the-top.

Dr. Curtis teaches his readers to discover what their expectations as a couple are before they become a couple; however, this book will help couples who did not do so. He teaches that everything needs to be laid out. Couples must discuss topics from religion to bill-paying. He also encourages couple and couples-to-be to discuss sex. Even if you have refrained from sex until marriage, it must be discussed.

Dr. Curtis approaches the start-up of marriage as a start-up of a small business. The first question you are supposed to ask yourself when starting a small business is, "What business are we in?" This leads to the formation of the vision statement, mission statement and objectives. For those who have not studied business, "The Business of Love" details each step. For those who have studied business, the application of business planning to marriage will seem like a no-brainer, but how many of us really have utilized this brilliant plan?

"The Business of Love" has many lists of topics to discuss with your significant other. Some of the items may not be relevant now. For instance, maybe you do not have children yet, so you may not think that those questions are relevant. Think about them anyway. Even those of us who do not plan for parenthood are surprised by it sometimes.

Vision statements, mission statements, and objectives are subject to change. Look over them from time to time. Alter them accordingly. From time to time look over the checklists in "The Business of Love." This is not a book to read and give away. Keep it and expect to reread it throughout your dynamic relationship. Dr. John Curtis brilliantly wrote "The Business of Love" to help all couples--married or not, male or female. Read "The Business of Love" and may your relationship grow splendidly.

A business trainer I worked with guaranteed that he could improve your company's bottom line. His main thrust was to improve employee performance one step. Employees at A level were given more responsibility. B level employees would become A's; most C employees moved up to B level. BUT he fired all D and E level employees. Working only with A, B and C level employees, annual personnel turnover dropped to single digits, and the most reliable employees were promoted to supervisory and administrative positions.

"The Business of Love" appears to me to follow the same strategy. Magic words do not exist that can transform slackers, beaters and cheaters into successful partners. Wasted years cannot be brought back. A major problem necessitates evaluating the person who is, or might become, your spouse. This does not mean remaking the partner, as much as developing yourself to the fullest to attract the best partner.

Curtis states in his dedication: "the key to a happy healthy intimate relationship is not to find the right person, but to be the right person."

All nine steps of business practices require hard work, and the spouse who is willing to invest time, energy and money into building or saving the marriage can learn those steps and apply them. The best place to find a person who will help build a successful marriage is not at the singles bar, not at the ball game, nor even at church. Look first in your mirror. Then read and apply the principles from "The Business of Love."

"The Business of Love: 9 Best Practices for Improving the Bottom Line of Your Relationship" is a self help book that applies successful business practices to marriage relationships. To approach marriage as a business joint venture may be radical, but due to the percentage of marriages that fail, perhaps this revolutionary new outlook is justified. Appealing to the success-driven members of generations X and Y, "The Business of Love" is reassuring in its practicality and specificity. The nine best practices include creating a vision of your relationship, developing your relationship's objectives, funding the partnership, branding and marketing your relationship, growing the relationship: mergers, job descriptions for couples, relationship feedback for partners, compensation and benefits, and meetings and retreats. A plethora of tables and graphs and illustrations are used to demonstrate the sound business principles that are applied in "The Business of Love." In all, Dr. Curtis' background as an organizational development consultant, business trainer and researcher has been put to innovative use. Billed as a practical book to help normal men and women with normal challenges, "The Business of Love" promises to decrease the failure rate of marriages (50% of all first marriages fail), based on sound business concepts proven to work.