Field Books

I decided to run a marathon, but did not think I could do it. I am an avid amazon dreamer. My wish list is too long to mention! While searching for help I came across this book. I am so glad I did. This book gives you all the tools you need to complete a marathon and helps you built your self-esteem to let you know you can!
Go for it!

This is the ultimate marathon training book!!! And it's the 3rd one I've ordered. My friend swore by this book when she was training for the Tokyo Marathon such as I did when I trained for the Marine Corps Marathon. Amazon got the book here quick too!!

My sister-in-law and I are training to run a half marathon. This book is like our bible. We are following the training advice to a tee and really enjoying the workouts. I am highly recommending this book to anyone who isn't a runner and is training for a marathon. We both love this book and know that we will be successful when it comes time to run the marathon thanks to this book!

I just completed my first marathon (Rome 3-16-08).
This book gave me all I needed to train and
complete this marathon. I started from not being
able to run for 30 minutes straight to running
a marathon within 6 months. If you follow this
book you will be able to train for and run a marathon!

The writers are very motivational. There is a 16 week
program that guides you through your training
week by week. I cannot recommend this book enough
for anyone who has ever wanted to run a marathon!

I bought this book accidentally... and I gave it to my husband. He said he likes the book so much. It gives him a lot of idea on how to run in a marathon! ;)

Dr. Orloff tackles issues dealing with difficult people and situations in everyday life. She shares how these situations stress us and lower our energy levels. With exercises and discussion, the reader is lead on a path toward a healthier life. The book is interesting without a dull moment. Anyone reading this book is sure to benefit

Positive Energy: 10 Extraordinary Prescriptions for Transforming Fatigue, Stress, and Fear into Vibrance, Strength, and Love
Dr. Judith Orloff's book has given me so many important insights about myself! One of the most important is how to act in order to maximize my positive energy. This has an impact on practically everything I do AND the things I choose not to do! Sometimes when my awareness of my true needs are a bit clouded I use one of the other things that the book has taught me: my intuition. It's so amazing that all the answers to our questions are within us but sadly enough most of us never listen to our inner voice. Earlier, I could hear my inner voice from time to time, but the voice was so faint that most of the time I chose not to believe it. After reading the book I now realise that it's the true me that is trying to tell me something important. Today its voice is a lot louder and I LISTEN carefully!
Thanks for teaching me all kinds of wonderfull things, Judith:-)!

Peter Rahm
Malmo, Sweden

What a perfect book at the most perfect time. I was skimming bookshelves and thought..."this looks good, give it a try". My intuition was right on. Dr. Judith Orloff presents in a very easy to understand and conveyed way multiple ways to promote positive energy. She is unique in her approach and dares to enter the world of sexuality for which I truly applaud her. It was such an easy and enjoyable read and I actually feel better for it. Being a therapist myself I know that I will use some of her techniques with my clients and most definitely with myself.

Wonderful information! And it's explained simply for all to understand - no mysteries here. We'd all be happier people if we'd nurture our energy in every moment.

I received this book as a gift, and I really enjoyed it. Many of us sometimes come into contact with the people Dr. Orloff refers to as energy vampires; those people who leave us feeling tired and drained.

She provides us with 10 prescriptions for boosting our energy and combating energy vampires. My favorite is "find a nurturing spiritual path that fits your own beliefs and inner stirrings."

If you like this book, you'll also like the inspiring and thought provoking Wake Up to Powerful Living: 12 Principles to Transform Your Life!.

Ugh, I don't know where to start. Poorly written and researched, at best. Try to remember that it is 'based on a true story'. But the true story part doesn't resemble the climax of the book, at all. I've read plenty of books that are baseball related, this is the only one I've ever been viscerally disappointed in.

Elroy Face learned the forkball in the MAJOR LEAGUES from Joe Page, the Yankee reliever who ended up his career with the Pirates. Save your money on this one. In honor of a great Pirate, Elroy Face, don't waste any money on this book.

Gary Moore has written a wonderful book. As a baseball fan and a military buff, Playing With the Enemy it has become, simply, one of my favorite non-fiction reads of all time. It has earned a place on my shelf of books to keep, and will be one of those books I give as gifts. But it won't be given only to fellow baseball and military historians, as this is a story that will peak the interest of anyone who likes to read of ordinary people doing the most extraordinary things while living out their private lives.

Moore's book tells the story of his father, Gene Moore, a baseball prodigy whose promising baseball career was interrupted by the Second World War. Drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers as a teenager, Gene Moore entered the Navy in a little-known program that allowed Major League talents a chance to serve their country, play the game they love, and entertain the troops. Unlike Steven Bullock's Playing for Their Nation (2004), an exhaustively researched book which explained the various baseball programs that existed in the U.S. military during The War, Moore's book comes to life. While Playing for Their Nation is a must-have reference for any military baseball historian, Playing With the Enemy is a page-turner that anyone with an interest in human drama that seems too unreal to be real will enjoy. The saga of Gene Moore is as unlikely as any of the far-fetched but fun-to-read baseball stories by W.P. Kinsella; but Moore's is even more compelling because it is true. Readers will find themselves rooting for Gene Moore to make it: through The War, through a tragic and impossibly unfair injury, and through his fall into the darkness of alcoholism and lost dreams.

Gary Moore's book actually has much in common with another book, Flags of Our Fathers (2001) by James Bradley, the son of Iwo Jima flag raiser John Bradley. James didn't know much about his father's experiences in World War II until his father passed away. Gary didn't know much about his father's War experiences either, but was able to have a magic moment with his father just before he passed away. The result of that magic moment is Playing With the Enemy.

Playing with the Enemy is Gary Moore's first book. Either he had a helluva good editor or he is a natural storyteller. I prefer to think the latter, since the subject of the book is one very close to his heart. It's the story of his own father, Gene Moore, a small-town boy from southern Illinois who could hit a baseball "a country mile" and was one of the best catchers in the game, good enough that he was drafted at only 15 to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers. But then WWII intervened and young Gene's dreams of making it to the "bigs" were shattered, along with his ankle in an historical "friendship game" between German POWs and their U.S. guards at a camp in Louisiana. After a privileged wartime enlistment of playing ball as entertainment for the troops in North Africa and the Azores, Gene and his Navy baseball teammates had been detailed to this guard detail. It had been Gene's idea to teach the game of baseball to the German U-boat sailors. There is a lot of very strange history here that has received little or no attention before this book. Also a first class story of fathers and sons, this book pulls you in from page one and is very hard to put down. I finished it in just two sittings. And I'll bet it will make one great film too! Whether you're a history or baseball buff - or if you just appreciate a good story - read this book. I guarantee you'll like it. - Tim Bazzett, author of Love, War & Polio: The Life and Times of Young Bill Porteous (RatholeBooks 2007)

How many of us wish we had our fathers back to ask a few more questions, to learn more of his life, and to let him know how much he meant to our lives? Gary Moore had a father who held secrets, like so many of the WW2 era fathers. The fathers of that era always thought they had to be strong, they could show no weaknesses, and also could show little emotion. When we lose a father, we lose forever all that they had kept inside. But Gary's dad gave Gary a gift during his last few hours....he shared some of those secrets with Gary. Gary then made it a mission to learn more of his father's life story and ended up with an inspirational book about his father, WW2 prisoners and the life that his dad had kept secret. We all have regrets, and we all hope our father's know that we loved them. This book is Gary Moore's "I love you" to his father and we get to go along for the ride. Very enjoyable read. I'm sending it to my baseball playing nephew.

I never in a million years would have picked up this book to read for fun simply because baseball bores me. But then I found out that Gary Moore would be coming to my school so I figured that I may as well read it. I did read it, and I absolutely loved it!!! Then, yesterday, Mr. Moore came to my school and although he spent the day talking to the sophomore U.S. History classes, he also had a special discussion with my school's book club (which I happen to belong too) and it was probably one of the coolest experiences. He is such a nice man and it was so inspiring to speak with him and hear about all the "behind-the-scenes" work that goes into making a book. It was incredible!

As I said, I do not like baseball, but this story isn't exactly about baseball...it is, but it isn't. The story is about a catcher, but it isn't a book where every single chapter highly details every single inning of every single game. It is a story about handling situations when they don't turn out just the way that you planned them and it reflects real life during World War II. The history embedded in the book made it ten times more enjoyable!

All in all, an excellent book!
Thanks!

I don't really know how to put the feel of this book into words. Its raw. Its real. There is no BS. On the back there is a review that says "This book is an anti-war book but..." but I did not get that feeling. Its just a book about war, with no bias in either direction. The book isnt based on actual people per se, but I'm sure everything in this book happened to thousands of young men in Nam. The ending of this book will make you hold back tears, I guarantee it.

This book is one of the best, if not the best book about Vietnam I have read.

This is an excellent book. Its very well written with a good story and interesting characters. I'm not a war afficienado but this was a really good read!

I am not widely read in war novels, but this one carries the flavor and angst of Vietnam as well as its dilemmas. Webb scallops the line between hero and murderer to the point of invisibility. His characters live their mostly brief lives on the edge of rage and desperation, cockiness and cool.

Fields of Fire provides glimpses of what it takes to be a fighting man. The Marine Corps can standardize them in boot camp, but the really superb ones have it in their bones- a natural alacrity that keeps them forever watchful and reactive.

Finally, if anyone wonders why combat soldiers re-up, the author demonstrates the reasons. It must be a huge rush to perform this perilous, bloody work, do it well and cheat the grim reaper. No other job is as real, no bonds of fealty are stronger. Thank you Mr. Webb, for all your services.

James Webb, now a US Senator, formerly Secretary of the Navy, and once upon a time, a Marine Lieutenant, has captured the essence of brotherhood, duty, hardship, and sacrifice that all former Marines can relate to so strongly. This book brought back so many of the long-buried ghosts of my own service 30 years ago, and then resurrected my pride in serving. Anyone with an interest in the Vietnam conflict from an infantryman's standpoint will find this book indispensable.

I am a pretty slow reader. As I read late at night before going to bed, I often only read a few pages before nodding off. It can take me a couple of weeks to finish a novel. However, I finished Fields of Fire over one weekend. I could not put it down. I found it compelling, interesting, and all-too-real. I felt like I knew the guys in the platoon. I felt their emotions, I laughed at their jokes, I wept at their losses. Better than any of the many Vietnam movies I have seen, this book painted a picture of what the life of a Marine was like during that terrible war. I hope that all Americans -- regardless of their feelings about Vietnam, Iraq, or war in general -- should read this book to gain insights that they could only otherwise get by actually being in combat.

This book contains very comprehensive explanations and descriptions with practical examples which are sometimes not so familiar with me (I'm a physician.). overall, this is an excellent book and I regret not being able to meet such a book in a way more focussing on medical fields. But this has a critical shortcoming in book-binding. you should not read this book so many times to keep the original shape. that's a reason why I gave 4 stars.

When I study my MBA classes, this book helps me a lot. The book provides essential review of all Statistic knowledge in the beginning of each chaper, and then lead readers use SPSS step by step.
Especially the practical examples and funny illustration, I will say the book is the only one interesting and powerful Statistic book I can find. I highly recommand it for readers work for Marketing, Medical , Engineering , Finance, and MBA classes. The book can lead you to resolve many "real" problems.

The book is excellent in all ways: easy to read, fun to read, easy to understand.

No one likes statistics.... well some do, but it's a necessary evil of the program I'm in. As much as I dislike stats, this book made the computer portion of it much easier to understand and left me feeling better about my abilities in the subject.The Power of Inner Guidance: Seven Steps to Tune In and Turn On

I love this book. It covers everything from the most basic t-tests and ANOVAs to factor analysis. It tells you the basics of what the test is meant to do, what sort of data is appropriate for it and it tells you how to actually run and read the test in SPSS.

It isn't the best book for someone who wants a detailed explaination of how to calculate a statistical test by hand and it doesn't give extensive detail on the assummptions required for each test. Nonetheless, it's a great quick reference book, particularly if you've already had a statistics course and you just need a refresher. Graduate students will find it useful.

My Uncle, G. Max White, gave my son a hand-crafted peanut butter feeder that he'd made and stained. He explained to his great-nephew, in specific detail, the kinds of birds he would start to see. We hung the feeder outside my son's window and within three days the birds started to arrive. My son was elated! We decided to add a birdseed feeder, a woodpecker feeder, a finch feeder, and a hummingbird feeder to his collection. We put a songbird clock on the wall next to his window so he could compare the birds he saw with it until we received the field guides we ordered from Amazon. He was in heaven!

We purchased the National Geographic guide and The Audubon Backyard guide, but THE SIBLEY FIELD GUIDE TO BIRDS of EASTERN NORTH AMERICA is by far the best. Everything about each bird is all on one page. The illustrations, "(more than 4200 total)" are smaller but plenty large enough to see each bird's features.

We are able to see the bird's appearance from juvenile to adult and breeding or non-breeding. We love the way we can look at the characteristics of the bird, the detailed descriptions and a map showing where the bird thrives all on the same page. It is informative and concise.

My son has discovered a vast array of birds in our area. He has been intrigued by their characteristics and songs. Uncle Max's love for birds and nature, and the spirit that has been passed on to my son through his artwork, lit the spark! My son's enthusiasm for bird watching has been fueled by referencing David Sibley's meticulous and inspiring work, THE SIBLEY FIELD GUIDE TO BIRDS OF EASTERN NORTH AMERICA. Together, G. Max White and David Sibley have encouraged my son's passion for birds; a love that will last a lifetime!

This is a compact field guide derived from David Allen Sibley's highly regarded _The Sibley Guide to Birds_. This may be heresy, but in this instance the derivative surpasses the original, and that is no mean feat.

Most notably, it is compact enough to carry into the field, and that's where birders try to sort through as many diagnostic puzzles as possible. Most species accounts include fewer visual representations than the corresponding accounts found in the Guide to Birds, but the illustrations selected are usually quite sufficient.

Remarkably, the text associated with many species accounts is more informative than the information found in the larger guide: more information about habitat preferences, behavior, and description.

I have noticed some separation from the binding near the middle of each of the two field guides I have (eastern and western) but in neither instance is it really a problem. This isn't going to be my primary North American guide (I'll still rely on the National Geographic field guide for that purpose) but if I carry two guides into the field this will often be the second.

The Sibley field guides are the current standards of birding in North America. Nothing else needs to be said. If you're going to buy one birding field guide - this is the one.

The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America is the companion volume to The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America.

The Eastern volume covers the 650 bird species found east of the Rocky Mountains. As with any bird field guide, the user wants comprehensive, easily accessible, clear information that make identifications quick and indisputable. Sibley's field guides cover all the species within the range of the volume arranging the birds in vertical columns on the page with most two-page spreads showing four species. This means that there is room for large detailed, beautiful illustrations with field marks for the diagnostic features. These marks are extremely helpful for the new birder to show what to look for and how to distinguish one species from another. This arrangement is particularly helpful when confronted with the terrible and mysterious LBJs or little brown jobs. The reader can make quick comparisons between similar species.

The text covers key identification characteristics and field marks on the illustrations, whether the species is common, uncommon, rare, etc. to an area, nesting, behavior, food and feeding, and voice description. Accompanying the text is an excellent range map showing the bird's full North American distribution.

The inside of the front cover gives a quick reference guide to the parts of a bird and what the various colors mean on the range maps. The inside of the back cover provides a map of the USA and Canada, i.e., what counts as North America for birding purposes. The first leaf inside the back cover is a Quick Index to allow the user relatively fast access to the groups of species.

The volume is compact enough to fit into a hip pocket with a bit of manoeuvring. Since it covers only part of North America, it is lighter than single volume field guides covering all of North America.

The Sibley field guides have two exceptional features. One is that if there is some interesting or noteworthy characteristic about a bird or group of birds, Sibley put in a text box. For example, there is a text box on Woodpecker Climbing Motions explaining the roll of the feet and tail in climbing. The other feature is, if a species is more common in the east say rather than the west, then the Eastern volume will have more illustrations and adjusts the text to reflect more about the species. For example, in the Western volume, the Blue Jay has four illustrations and the text starts with "uncommon", while in the Eastern volume the Blue Jay has five illustrations and the text starts out with "common".

A single field guide is never sufficient. A birder needs to compare the information and illustrations of two or more field guides. This and its companion volume are excellent choices for one of the guides and I highly recommend them.

Don't order this book if you are over 40. While the Sibley guides are well loved by many people, this version challenges the printing industry in terms of small type. If you can read 4-6 point type or walk around the woods with a magnifying glass, maybe you will find this field guide useful. I myself was totally disgusted that I could not read it in the house with my reading glasses on. I wondered if I was being picky, so I compared it to other field guides I have for birds, flowers, mammals, and trees. No question. The type in this book is much smaller and harder to read than any other field guide on my shelves. In addition, the copy I received seemed to be off color for anything that was a reddish tint.

I own the Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide. My Dad and I are trying to finish all the books and after we finish them, we will rent the movie and see how the movie is.

This book is really helpful, because it shows you what the actual field guide that Jared has in the books. It's fun to see and hold what Jared can see and hold.

The book has different sections showing the many different Spiderwicks (Faeries). In the table of contents you will see there's different kinds of creatures like elves, pixies and other spiderwicks.

The first character in the Spiderwick Field Guide book is Thimbletack the brownie. Thimbletack is the first spiderwick that Jared and his twin brother Simon and his older sister Mallory meet.

I would recommend this field guide to other people who are reading the Spiderwick Chronicles.

Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide is a must have for the fan of the movie and the books. My son read all the books in the series, then saw the movie. He saw the Field Guide and just had to have it. Found it on Amazon.com and purchased it, since it arrived he hasn't put it down. He has even gone back and reread the books since he has the actual Field Guide to see the 'creatures'. Definitely won't be disappointed with this one!

My grandson is in the middle of reading the Spiderwick Chronicle series. He was very excited to get this book as it gives details about the characters he's reading about.

My son was a little disappointed because the outside is actually a book cover. Not as detailed as he thought. But the pictures and the writings are very pretty and it held his interest for atleast a day which is pretty good for a 7 year old boy.

My grandson loved this book - could hardly wait to receive it! He took it to school and his teacher is letting him use it for his reading material1

At age 62, I still look for writers who will change and deepen my sense of our human nature and our place in the natural world. More than writers about religion per se, I think these writers are able to help us advance our moral and spiritual understanding and reconcile our human/animal natures. For some years I've been reading Goodall and others on primates, but Next of Kin was, for me, a pinnacle illumination. Even if you aren't interested in these types of questions, I think this book will move you deeply. If you ARE interested, may I also suggest the recent Mycelium Running by Paul Stamets.

A must-read for any animal lover. Roger Fouts and the recently deceased chimpanzee Washoe are my heroes.

Although this book was written some time ago, it is exceptionally timely because the relevance of chimp behavior to our own continues to unfold. The devotion the author invests in his charges and the passion he feels about the atrocities visited on chimps both in the laboratory and in the wild drive his story. This abuse is reinforced by the backward and ignorant thinking that stems from bible thumpers who fear the truth about evolution and man's close relationship to apes. Roger Fouts and his wife have provided an invaluable service to our understanding of chimps, and their research related to sign language is truly stunning. They have succeeded in accomplishing their observation and reporting against considerable odds. All these aspects, and the Fouts' fully rounded examination of their subjects make for a gripping and emotional tale well told.

This book is a very thorough treatment not only of the plight of the chimpanzees who have learned American Sign Language, but of other captive chimpanzees and free-living chimpanzees as well. It explores science, philosophy, and philanthropy as they relate to our relationship with our next of kin. I appreciate how honestly it is written and it has since become my favorite book (ten years and counting...).

"Next of Kin: My Conversations with Chimpanzees" is one of the most amazing, heartbreaking, and inspirational books I've ever read. The book is written by Roger Fouts, a primatologist who devoted his life to studying the language patterns of chimpanzees. While in graduate school, Roger was introduced to Washoe, a precocious young chimp who became fluent in American Sign Language. Eventually "Project Washoe" expanded to include many chimpanzees, all who learned to communicate with humans using ASL and demonstrated unique personalities, complex emotions, and astounding intelligence.

I've always been a big animal lover, but reading this book taught me so many things that I never knew before. Anyone who questions an animal's ability to think or feel will get a sharp reality check after reading this book. Chimpanzees are people, too, just as much as human beings are. Unfortunately, the majority if humans in this world don't agree with that logic, and thousands of animals, including chimpanzees, are routinely kidnapped from their natural habitats and bred in captivity for the sole purpose of participating in biomedical research. In many cases, medical laboratories house animals in appalling conditions and literally torture them to death. "Next of Kin" details the horrors that go on behind closed doors at biomedical laboratories, and chronicles the steps Fouts and other animal activists have taken to protect chimpanzees from being treated inhumanely.

I absolutely loved this book. Reading it made me feel close to Washoe and her chimpanzee friends, even though I never met any of them before. (Sadly, Washoe passed away last fall at the age of 42, but I hope to visit members of her family at the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute in Washington someday.) Parts of this book are incredibly depressing and difficult to read, but hopefully learning about the terrible ways animals are treated will inspire people to take action. I admire everything that Fouts, his family, and his colleagues have done to protect chimpanzees, who are our next of kin on the great evolutionary scale. I hope other readers get as much out of this book as I did.

I bought this book as reference material on the advice of an architect friend. He told me "If you need help figuring out the style of a house then buy this book" and he showed me his copy. He was right. The book is well organized which helps compare styles quickly and the many black and white pictures of houses that the author uses as examples are great because the b&w contrast helps your eye focus on details. This a great book to have in any architectural office. Its great for novices and experienced alike.

As a writer, you need lots of details to keep the reader interested, and this book has details on houses most people wouldn't know. Of course, if you give no details the story is not interesting, and if you give wrong details, some reader will know it and be disapointed. A book like this can be invaluable.

Great book!!! I'm using for my company to get a true representation of many styles for many of the house I'm designing. A great resource for any firm!!!

great at housing history
great describe for the house component
good picture to show handy book to show at real estate

After some introductory chapters on the history and theory of homebuilding, the McAlesters commence with descriptions of the different styles. Each major style is described with a large stylized diagram with its identifying features labeled, a description of the major subtypes, descriptions of the style's unique elements, a paragraph on the frequency and locations of its occurrence, some historical comments, and then dozens of black and white photographs. The styles are ordered roughly chronologically, from native dwellings and colonial houses in 1600 to the neoeclectric houses of the 1970s and 1980s. (Even my 2006 printing ended with the 1980s.)

I read the field guide cover to cover - something I never before done with a field guide. By the end, it seemed repetitive, but overall I was impressed with almost everything about this book from the introductions to the last diagrams. Every time I travel though a historical neighborhood, I am glad that I read this book.

I cannot imagine being a successful beginning runner without a plan like those presented in this book. I have tried running before, but with this book, I have been much more successful. It was a great find!

The book has been a great guide for me on how to recover the fit condition I once had, step by step, and without the risk of injury. I have recently started the training program and already feel improvement. The motivation and anti-excuse propositions the book offers for beginner runners really get you to move. A good compilation of medical and technical information support the suggested programs, so it gives you a lot of confidence in what you are doing and what to expect from the exercise.

Probably the most comprehensive book on running that I have ever seen. Not to mention it was without any pressure, Bob and group were relaxed about how things should be done, I never felt like I was pressured to run in a certain way or speed. Helped me to get back into running again. Thanks everyone.

I will not bother going on and on about the book, since there is already such an overwhelmingly positive collection of reviews.

Suffice it to say, this book really kick-started by love of running, and was filled with everything the beginner needs to know.

While it could use illustrations for good stretches, for example, it is still the classic keystone in any runners library, and strongly recommended!

If you have any sort of interest in running, I can't recommend any book more enthusiastically than this one. Although it may seem strange to get a book about running--I mean, what is there to it, right? But it turns out there are a couple of good reasons to pick up a book on running: one, it's motivating; two, there is a ton of useful information crammed into this book. It will be the only running reference you'll ever really need.

With over 700 pages, this isn't a lightweight book. It truly is about as comprehensive as you can imagine, and will serve most runners more than sufficiently. It is an oddly engaging read, sucking you into the world of running (or jogging) while giving you all sorts of information you never even thought you could need. Everything the beginner could need is covered, from the minutae of day-to-day running (track etiquitte, cold weather clothing, eating, and on and on) to larger topics like training plans and moving into competitive racing. The book will take you all the way through intermediate running--which Glover defines as regular sustained running, maybe with an occasional race thrown in. If you are already an experienced or regular runner, you will probably find this less useful than the true beginner. However, no one but the most experienced coach would be unable to learn something from this book. Just be aware that it is geared towards the recreational runner; if you are looking for a reference specific to competitive running, you should look elsewhere.

There are 42 chapters in the book, divided into 12 major sections: Fitness, Getting Fit, Training, Racing, Equipment, Food and Drink for Health and Energy, The Running Environment, Running Lifestyle, Special Runners, Illness and Injury, Running Form and Supplemental Training, and Wellness. The three chapters in the Fitness section give you basic information about what exercise and fitness are and why all of us ought to get out there and move a bit more. The third chapter outlines various ways to measure your own current level of fitness, providing a useful set of technique that you can come back to as your level of fitness improves (with your running, of course). The chapters in the next continue along this same vein, first dealing with getting started on a fitness regime (rather relaxed or intense) and then keeping yourself motivated enough to stick with it. The principles of exercise are outlined, with an entire chapter devoted to the important three-part model: warm-up, run, and cool-down. The last chapter in the Getting Fit section is called "The Fit Prescription: How Often? How Fast? How Far?" This is an important chapter, since beginners do often struggle with finding the right balance, either overdoing it and burning out, or not working hard enough to get the desired results. The last section in the book, Wellness, goes into more depth on all of these ideas. The chapters cover a holistic approach to health and fitness, the cardiovascular aspects of running, stress and weight management. The final chapter, "Running Inside Your Head", deals more emotional aspects of running: how it can help with depressions, anxiety, self-esteem, and creative thinking, and finally moving onto the infamous "runner's high". It's an interesting read.

Parts III and IV take the ideas of the last chapter of Section II and run with them. In part III, Training, you will learn how to keep a good runner's diary and find three running training programs: beginner's, advanced beginner's (for more running-experienced readers), and intermediate. Glover helps readers identify which program (and where in the program) they ought to begin. He also convincingly argues for patience in building up ability before trying to progress. Then in Section Iv, he talks to both those who may be interested in moving into competitive running, and those who may just like more structured goals. Racing isn't always about competition, for instance. So he addresses both frequent 5k races and marathons, giving the reader many ideas of why they may want to participate in either. Finally, there is a chapter on the importance of speed training, which will be useful to any runner who wants to learn to run faster, for whatever reason. Part XI, Running Form and Supplemental Training, gives four chapters with further training information, and serves as a great supplement to those who have mastered.

Three sections of the book deal with wider running lifestyle issues, including Part VI (Food and Drink for Health and Energy), Part VIII (Running Lifestyle), and Part X (Illness and Injury). The section on food and drink includes chapters on basic nutrition as relates to running, food and drink that serves as running-specific "fuel", and the importance on good hydration in running. The Running Lifestyle part covers safety, running while traveling, managing time (as in life in general, and working running in), and the importance of balancing running with life and work. Part X addresses two issues that we'd rather be able to ignore, but shouldn't . Illness is just a human thing, and sometimes it's best to not run--Glover will convince you whan that's the case. Injury is a similar issue, as we will inevitably get hurt at some point, and while we can sometimes work through things, more often than not we will be better served to allow ourselves to heal.

The remaining sections deal with more specific, and generally pragmatic, issues. Part V, Equipment, discusses running shoes and apparel and how to choose what is best for you. These obviously aren't going to give you extremely personalized information, but the important things for you to consider are all identified. You will feel much more confident the next time you go into a running shoe store. The Running Environment, Part VII, covers environmental issues, which are very import for runners. After all, most of the time, we're running outside. People tend to overdress for cold weather, and Glover gives numerous tips for avoiding this (and he will make you much more comfortable giving cold weather running a shot if you're still a bit intimidated). The chapter on hot weather running is also very important, andprovides readers with better ideas of how to manage hydration and exhaustion in uncomfortable climates. There is also a chapter on handling the unpredictability of weather in general. Finally, the ninth section offers four chapters on specific categories of runners: women runners (including an interesting history of women and running, health issues specific to women that may impact running, like osteoporosis, pregnancy, and menopause); older runners (covering the impact that agining in general can have on running as well as the benefits); runners with specific health or physical limitations (including topics such as chronic health conditions like asthma, arthritis, or diabetes, as well as other phsyical issues such as hearing and visual impairments); and younger (child) runners (covering both running with kids in strollers and health and safety issues specific to child runners, reminding us that "children are not minature adults").

As some of the other reviewers have alluded to, this is a strangely addictive and exciting book. You wouldn't think so (I certainly did not). But the writing is excellent, and a very nice balance between a packed informative tone and an amusing anecdotal style is maintained throughout. Glover knows how to motivate, and if you are like me, you will find yourself reading this entire book in a series of sizable chunks, and then going back later and rereading parts as your running experience expands. You've got to take some breaks to actually run, right? I can sum up my opinion of this book with one simple statement: if you are the least bit interested in running, buy this book and you will soon be a knowledgeable and active runner.