Fitzgerald Books

My knowledge of the Rubiyat came from reading it in Poetry Anthologies .The hypnotic rhythms , the combination of life- philosophy and striking poetry seemed to naturally lead to the memorization of many stanzas.
There is the 'seize the day' enjoy life now, ' a jug of wine a loaf of bread and thou/ kind of hedonism. There is also a certain skeptical and realistic attitude which as I understand created problems for Omar Khayyam in a Muslim society.
How I wonder is this treasure of world - literature taken, or perhaps censored in the radical Islamic Iran of today.
In any case Fitzgerald's is one of the great translations of world- literature one of those cases, some experts say, in which the translation surpasses the original.
A poem to be enjoyed .

Whether at Naishapur or Babylon,
Whether the Cup with sweet or bitter run,
The Wine of Life keeps oozing drop by drop,
The Leaves of Life keeps falling one by one.

Omar has contributed so many phrases to us that for the most part, people are unaware of their origin.
"Eat drink and be merry."
"The moving finger writes, and having writ, moves on. nor all thy piety, nor all thy wit, can lure it back to cancel half a line of it." Nothing ever written captures the inexorable one way march of time better than that single sentence by this master. But is it Fitzgerald, or is it Omar? What the hell... who cares?
Just wallow drunkenly in the rapture of his prose. Only Rumi approached this writing. But wait.. was it Barks, or was it Rumi? LOL.
Few books, excepting perhaps the Bible, have so many exquisitely crafted and picaresque sentences in them. A little tid bit from the book, unrelated to his prose:
The word Assassin, was associated with the life and times of Omar and two boy hood friends of his.
If you have not read this book, I envy you. You have before you, a stunning feast of prose by an unknown famous writer. Two of them. Omar and Fitzgerald. Although at one time Fitzgeralds star was burning bright.

"We are no other than a moving row
of magic shadow shapes that come and go,
'round with the sun-illumined lantern held,
at midnight by the master of the show.

But pieces of the game he plays
upon this chequer-board of nights and days,
and hither and thither moves and checks and slays,
and one by one, back in the closet lays."

Khayyam's Rubaiyat is a great work of amateur philosophy, as well as being one of the literary greats of all time. It combines a deeply poetic, resounding tone with ideas and images so vivid and sophisticated that one has to admire the genius of the work. Khayyam's view of the world runs back and forth, from religious to agnostic to atheistic. His central thesis, though, remains the same, that man's time on earth is limited, and he should drink the wine of fulfillment while he can, before it's too late.

"The moving finger writes, and having writ,
not all thy piety nor wit,
can lure it back to cancel half a line,
nor all thy tears can wash away a word of it."

My six-year-old (almost seven) received this book as an early Christmas gift. We are just starting to read "chapter" books together. She went wild over this! The language and familiar school dynamics were just right for her. The slightly moral message in the end about over-coming differences and giving from the heart was nice, but probably a bit over the head of my first-grader. All in all, a nice series that gets away from the "glitz and glam" of the ever closer "tween" years.

Everybody loves Nancy, but some trouble-maker has used the school Secret Santa party to play a nasty trick on her! Everybody got a cool present, except Nancy Drew!

There are a few suspects, including a snotty girl who is jealous and mean. Is she the thief? That's what you might think, but it's Nancy Drew who can really solve the Secret Santa mystery.

The Secret Santa (Nancy Drew Notebooks #3) is a fun read for young readers starting on chapter books. They'll love to solve this classroom mystery along with 3rd grade heroine, Nancy Drew.

This was a terrific kid's book. It satisfies childrens reading needs. I suggest this to readers between the ages six and nine.

How did Emily know there was candy on the card? Read the book and find out. Anyway it was great. I want to be a detective, well, got to go solve a case about a present. BYE!!!!!!

Smart Teaching: Using Brain Research And Data To Continuously Improve Learning, by education consultant and former superintendent of schools Ronald Fitzgerald, presents theories that the author has tested for ten years. All too often, teachers today use the same methods that they used thirty or forty years ago; recognizing the need for flexibility, and the importance of taking a student's learning style into account, Smart Teaching promotes a system for improving student achievement with an emphasis on practical application. Built around fundamental principles such as "Instruction is more effective if well-planned to achieve specific purposes", "Students learn more if they are motivated first", and "Documented success encourages more success", Smart Teaching spells out methodical techniques for motivating students, preparing students, providing style choices, checking and adjusting student progress, and much more. A wealth of diagrams and figures succinctly illustrate key points, and an accompanying CD-ROM includes full-color PDF and PowerPoint slides ideal for in-service training. An excellent resource for teachers of K-12 and adult classrooms, whether used as a self-study tool or as the basis for a group workshop.

I have been in education for the last 34 yrs. as a teacher, a middle manager, and an industry trainer/consultant; I must say that I have seen a plethora of materials intended for teachers and trainers. None has been as comprehensive, informative, practical and useful as "Smart Teaching: Brain Research and Data to Continuously Improve Learning" by Ron Fitzgerald. Most books on assisting teachers that I have encountered are very theoretical, and in some cases not very pragmatic. What sets this book ahead of the rest is the fact that it offers a practical and comprehensive system for classroom teaching utilizing the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle used by world-class companies as a tool for continuous improvement. This system really works!
As a high school teacher, a college professor, and an industry trainer, I have used the eight components outlined in this book and they have yield amazing quality results in the student learning. The system is divided into suggestion areas that can be worked on individually. SMART TEACHING provides concrete guidance in each area. It also contains useful hand-outs and a list of resources.
This manual outlines processes that represent a very powerful tool for boosting student learning, and it is a manual that any K-12 teacher, college professor, and industry trainer can use with great ease to move from "good teaching" to "great teaching" in keeping with the theme of Quality in Education.

Wow! You should definitely purchase this book if you are interested in:
brain-based Teaching (a teaching style that caters to the brain's natural, preferred tendency for learning), TQM-total quality management (a methodology that promotes team work and continuous improvement), visual data displays that facilitate data analysis (that shows achievement and non-achievement or strength & weaknesses, that in turn, forms a documented basis for improvement-oriented decisions).

This book is unique; it bridges total quality management with brain-friendly teaching in a very user-friendly manner. I love the brain-friendly format of creating summary/graphics on the left page and the full explanation on the right side. The information-packed book highlights an eight-component brain-friendly teaching system; Ten essential elements in TQM education; and a CD-ROM that includes hand-outs & color slides. Also, for more detail, I highly recommend going to Dr. Fitzgerald's web site http://www.smartteaching.org. This book promises to be a classic!

Dr. Richard P. Lawrence
[...]

Smart Teaching: Using Brain Research and Data to Continuously Improve Learning

Young people today are the intellectual equal to the generation before them - often even surpassing their predecessors in ability. Why then do so many learners, especially those in the higher grades, have such trouble mastering and retaining new information? The answer is easy. The youth of today has known a world of "fast-impulse learning," ie: computers, MTV, and rapid multi-messaged music. That pace is natural and comfortable to this new generation, and it has evolved that "solid learning" can only be done along new guidelines.

How do we get schools to understand this dilemma? How do we help new teachers and uninformed teachers to help our future adults/parents? Mastering brain principle-based education takes substantial time, much effort, and considerable expense. These "costs" are so steep that by the very nature, overwhelmed teachers are repelled.

Dr. Ron Fitzgerald has provided the world with a logical, effective, and critically important "first step." To insure solid learning, "Smart Teaching," written in a brain-compatible method, is the ideal vehicle for ANY teacher to redirect his/her methods to reach all learners with "no child left behind."

As an English teacher who has studied with Dr. Fitzgerald, researched brain-based learning/teaching, applied these strategies to business, literature, and basic English classes, I can state unequivocally that this system is THE MOST EFFECTIVE and brain-appropriate vehicle for learning that we have.

Having mastered the lessons of "Smart Teaching," ANY educator can
successfully accomplish the following:
*Reach ALL learners
*Address the Multiple Intelligences in a class
*Address diverse Learning Modalities
*Incorporate a repertoire of charts, graphs, and other visual tools to complement traditional vehicles
*Build student self-esteem
*Increase student reading abilities in document and quantitative styles as well as prose
*Build solid writing skills in students who traditionally fear this art
*Motivate students to use Statistical Analysis as a measuring tool
*Model for learners the process of consistent self-improvement
*Teach students to self-assess, self-adjust, and improve finished work
*Develop an awareness of the "magic of literature"
*Build an understanding in young people of their brain functions and how such activities affect their decisions
*Prepare the youth of today for the unknown world of work of which they will soon be a part

"Smart Teaching: Using Brain Research and Data to Continually Improve Learning" - the road to success!

Sebastian R. Paquette
English Teacher
Lexington, MA

I first read this when I was in fourth grade. I thought it was wonderful than and I think it's wonderful now 4 years later.

This is the book that really got me started on reading and I would recommend it to anyone.

It is truly one of the funnest books you'll read. I would seriously say buy it.

I always feel that the characters are real--Jeanmarie, Malcolm and Tallulah!! What a wonderful story. So sweet. Witty. Provoking. I really love it.
Whether you're a girl or a boy ( or a future scientist or future actress), you would do very well to treat yourself to this book. HIGHLY recommended.

I read this book years ago, and still find that its quotable quotations have come up in many relevant situations. The full wit of these quotations only came up years later.

In fact, they are the single best reason for picking up this book.

Examples below:

"Good explanations are like bathing suits: Meant to reveal everytying by covering only what's necessary."

"Never have a long conversation with anyone who says 'between you and I.'"

"The light bulb and the telephone were invented by men who knew how to make them work without knowing why. I believe that's the way people should raise children."

"Exercise is good for the heart, the lungs, and the unemployed."

This is absolutely one of the best books I have ever read in my entire life (and that's a lot). I first read it in fifth grade, and it's been on the top of my "Best" list ever since. E.L. Konigsburg's characters are realistic and funny, and her message about stardom is poignant but not preachy. I would recommend it to anybody.

I teach first grade and have used this book for several of my reading groups. Since many schools in California are required to teach reading and math most the day now, it's great to have the opportunity to bring in a little science. Excellent pictures, simple text, complex concepts... My students loved it!

Most young children would enjoy reading this book at home as well.

This is an excellent science book for young children. At each turn of the page they will find clear, bright, interesting photos that demonstrate the growth cycle of our amphibian friends.

The text is good. The sentences are simple and clear and easily understandable by toddlers on up. (A good read-aloud.)

Amazon has the reading age as 4 to 8, but the book is *Level 2*, which the book itself suggests for children in the 6-8 age range.

Five Stars. We like this little book. Good Read-aloud. Good information. Pictures and information appeal to all ages whether they can read or not. [They really did manage to find very attractive frogs-lol]

My son is 7 and he read this book at the library to me while we were doing a unit on frogs. The book had get real frog pictures. Also the book only had a few words per page so it's great for begining readers. Lot of great info in the book as well!

This fun little book is filled with big, detailed image of frogs from every stage, from egg to frog, It does an excellent job at showing the different levels of growth of tadpoles. There are some nice shots of tadpoles with legs starting to sprout.

There are no more than 16 words per page, making it reader-friendly for ages 5-7.

I fully recommend "Where Do Frogs Come From."

Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com

i keep this book right by my side and i read other books about the jfk assassination.when i come across a new name,i find the name in my a to z reference book and read a quick summary that gives me a fairly complete picture om who this person is.

Just got through reading this book. What a wealth of info. I am now going to read High Treason, which is referred to many times in the A to Z book. If you don't walk away from this without a doubt that there was a major conspiracy, I don't know what planet you're from. Just when you think you know who did it, there are more and more people introduced to the theory, leaving you consumed by curiosity. What a great book. This books lists alphabetically the people who were involved in the assassination, the Oswald shooting, and the Tippit shooting.

Michael Benson, whom I know from research conferences (and who mentions me a few times in his follow-up book), has written a great compendium of information on the JFK assassination. This is truly a great all-in-one-place volume. Get this!
[...]

I have been reading books on the assassination of John Kennedy my entire life. Then I came across this book, "Who's Who in the JFK Assassination", I couldn't beleive it. Never before did I read through a book so fast and when I was done, I had to go back and start over. It's not really meant to read cover-to-cover, though. When I am reading a book on the assassination, and see a name I don't know, I can flip to it in this book and know just who this man is. For anyone who has looked at the assassination, they know you come across hundreds of names and you can't remember them all, thats where this book came in. Let's say I see the name Ruby Henderson; I can look her up in this book and find out she saw TWO men in the 6th floor of the TSBD, one of whom had a rifle, but she thought they were with the secret service. Anyway, I would tell ANY person looking for information on the Kennedy Assassination to get this book anyway they can. What else can I say, Michael Benson did a GREAT job.

In recent years, I have been doing a little research on the topic of men's and women's ministry in the ancient and contemporary Church. While there may still be not enough compelling evidence for the ordination of women as priests, Dr. FitzGerald avails her readers to evidence from liturgical, hagiographical, canonical, historical and theological resources regarding the ministry of women deacons ("deaconesses").

She brings together all of this information in English for the first time from the (frequently overlooked) perspective of eastern Christian theology and spirituality. Many important theological and historical concerns are examined regarding the ordination of women to ministry. There is also a detailed theological analysis of the beautiful ordination rite and prayers. This section in particular, while thoughtful and scholarly, is uplifting and reflects "catholic consciousness". Western Christians still have much to learn from the East!

A number of women deacon saints are identified, as well as their life stories. The book has cover endorsements from two Orthodox patriarchs and has received much scholarly praise from Catholics, Orthodox and others. It is written so that the well-read general reader will also appreciate this study.

This book must be taken seriously by anyone interested in the vocations of men and women, the history of women's ministry and the theology of ordination and ministry.

"Women Deacons in the Orthodox Church" should become a "basic text" serving Catholic and Orthodox male and female candidates for ordained ministry!

"...we take joy in your completed work now in publication, related to patristic sources, Byzantine liturgical texts, as well as to the fundamental characteristics of ordination as a call to holiness and ministry....We wish that your written contribution may encourage and incite others to a broader and deeper understanding both of the tradition of our Church generally and of the development of women's special gifts specifically."

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople

(The above comments are taken from the cover endorsement of this book.)

This is a significant and thought provoking study which will contribute positively towards the future of our Church...Many issues regarding the participation of women in the life of the Church have been addressed by the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Antioch...This study is worthy of attention and appreciation."

Ignatius IV, Patriarch of Antioch and all the East

(The above comments are taken from the cover endorsement of this book.)

...Little known marvels constantly surprise the reader, particularly the Orthodox Christian reader, who is generally ignorant of the glorious history of women in the diaconate. The author traces this office from rudimentary New Testament roots through the height of its popularity in Byzantium and its eventual decline, though not final demise. Indeed, Dr. FitzGerald bids the reader to peruse twentieth century documents and debates relating to the female diaconate and welcomes her audience into a world heretofore pondered by select contemporary historians and theologians.

...The author also makes a sound case for the fact that women were 'ordained' rather than 'appointed' to the diaconate. Citing the work of two highly respected and dedicated Orthodox theologians, Professors John Karmiris and Evangelos Theodorou, both of the University of Athens, the author fairly debates the point. Her evidence highly suggests that at least the Byzantine ordination rite for women had essential characteristics which distinguished it as a major order. For example the formula "The Divine Grace..." was used; the ordination took place at the altar during the Eucharist [the same time as the male deacon]; and the deaconess received her stole and Holy Communion at the altar....

...This book is a must read...The dignity and grace and direction it affords a Christian woman can only be welcomed. The author's ecclesial concerns, which are related to the female diaconate but extend to the issues of the diaconate and ordination generally, are handled with patience, refinement, gentleness, and intelligence. Certainly any author who garners the privilege of having both the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Patriarch of Antioch write a cover endorsement deserves attention. Thank you, Dr. FitzGerald for your twenty years of labor. "Axios".

Deborah Malacky Belonick

(These are excerpts taken from a more extensive review which will be published in "The St. Nina Quaterly".)

I can't even tell you how much this has helped my life. I now have the tools to understand alcoholism. It is a disease that has destroyed so many families and ruined so many lives. It is important for us to understand the disease in order to try and help those who suffer. We need awareness and this book indeed opens our eyes. If you or someone in your family deals with addiction, you MUST read this book. It is the only book that deals with everthing from family issues, intervention to recovery. A MUST GET!

This book was very helpful for me to understand alcoholism as a family disease. I finally found a book that spoke to me in my own language. It seemed to know my life. I now know that this is a disease and not something I could control on my own. This wonderful book saved my family. Everyone in the world should read this. It relates to everyone!!!

This is an inspiring book for anyone who is or knows an alcoholic. My mother-in-law is in the final stages of alcoholism. I felt like crying when I read this book because I felt like the author had met her or seen her. Just when we think there is no hope and that we are alone with this disease, we realize that others are out there, and that we can learn from their experiences. The descriptions are detailed and the personal accounts are vivid. Anyone who is an alcoholic or who knows an alcoholic should read this book.

This book is the second in the series about the kids in a neighborhood in Florida (see "Crossing Jordan" for list). The main character is real preteen dealing with the uncertainty of the foster care system. It is a book about a girl who not only survives, but also builds a life for herself and thrives among an unlikely family. She is a character full of life and determination. A great read for 4th grade through beginning high school! This book is full of North Florida local color (the real Florida away from the glow of Disney World). I know because it is set in our town and she captures it to a T with all of its fun and quirkiness! It makes a great read aloud! My son begs me to read more each night!!

I love the characters in this book. They have flaws and virtues and could all realistically exist in the pretend neighborhood of Anna Casey's world. (which is loosely based on a a very real neighborhood that is located a few blocks from the school where I am a media specialist.) Many of the students that have already read, "Crossing Jordan," eagerly read this second novel of Adrian Fogelin and enjoy it very much. Not only because they recognize characters from the first book, but because there is much adventure and character driven
comedy in this book as well.
I have always felt that the cover of this book did not reflect the quality of the story within. I noticed that the cover has been changed--but it is still a cover to attract elementary school girls--while there is much in this story to interest both elementary and middle school boys as well. I'd like to see the Vietnam vet portrayed with a wooded scene and the two main characters hiding from him on the cover. This book is well written and entertaining and still deserves a more intriguing cover.

This book was one of the best books I have ever read! In this book Anna and her friend Eb are living with a foster parent named Ms. Dupree and they are trying to fit into her environment! Other events also make this book interesting! This was such a good book I could not stop reading it!In the end Anna learns her place in the world!

Wow! I finished this book in 1 day-I haven't read a book worthy of such a big chunk of my time in quite awhile! The 5 women characters are so wonderfully rich and engaging. You won't be disappointed. Read this book, and I am sure it will become one of your favorites of this summer, as it has of mine.

The Bed She Was Born In by Jeri Fitzgerald Board is an entertainingly original and superbly crafted novel of five different women who unknowingly provided the future generations of women with the tools for political and social changes which were to revolutionize American life. There is Adaire Sanderson in the terrifying years of the American Civil War, as well as the lives of Anna, Ludie, and Millie in early 1900's, on through to the adoption of Maddie Gatson. The Bed She Was Born In carries its readers the fascinating personal stories of five examples of empowered, empathetic individuals from 1865 progressively through to 1932. For its remarkable insights, The Bed She Was Born In is very strongly recommended for readers with an interest in feminist literature -- and a welcome addition to any community library American fiction collections.

Spanning the years from 1864 to 1941, Dr. Board has portrayed the interwoven lives of two families: and the Sandersons who had been the owners prior to Emancipation and the Sanders who remained to attend the family. It is a sweeping novel of with stong plot lines and extraodinary characterizations of the five women who hold the families together.