Fitzgerald Books

I thought this was a very well written book for youngsters. The pages are bold and colorful with easy to read words. It is a chapter book for the beginner reader with a story relating how a child's imgination can get away from them before they come back to earth. Bill Cosby writes this book for all to learn to laugh at ourself once in a while! And to think how we would react if we were in the same position as the kids in the story!!!

Little Bill finds a huge "diamond" and thinks he's rich. Little Bill agrees to share the money with his friends. Their ideas for spending the money are sweet and thoughtful. They're disappointed that the "diamond" is a paperweight but they overcome the disappointment very quickly. They play outside and laugh at how they were fooled.

My daughter enjoys the Little Bill series and continues to enjoy this new one. If you like the Little Bill series, you'll like this one too.

This a fine book. You won't be sorry you bought it -- or sent it to a friend, as I did.

I really enjoyed this Fiona mystery. Adler's fearless Irish girl detective may not be PC -- let's face it, she's a borderline alcoholic who lets her job get in her way of her love life -- but she's pretty real. The whodunit is a good one, with a lot of action that tosses the suspicions back and forth. Another good thing: this book has a cast of other strong female characters. You can pretty well guess who the "violet-eyed moviestar wife of Virginia politician" is modeled after; this is the author's signature light touch of humor that leavens a pretty horrible murder that has racist repercussions later on.

The Victorian Era's literature filled my childhood, and its poets (along with the Romantics) remain my favorites. I picked up this biography knowing I would find it interesting, but I didn't anticipate reading it as I would a novel.

That's just what happened, though. The author achieves such readability (even, I would think, for those who don't share my interest in European history) by focusing on her subject as if Victoria were a fictional protagonist. While Woodham-Smith supplies the necessary level of detail and background, and demonstrates the solid research skills that make this a serious work, she never forgets that the reason most readers pick up this book is - Victoria! A monarch who was also girl and woman, daughter and sister, wife and mother, in an era when each of those roles conflicted wildly with the one that destiny called on her to play.

Long out of print, but well worth tracking down.

The age of Queen Victoria is frought with myths and legends about the woman and her court. Mrs. Woodham-Smith brings the era alive with a personalized look at the queen and the many goings on before, during and after her reign. There are many stories about her and her famous consort, Prince Albert. This book also brings to light the persons that shaped Queen Victoria. You will truely understand why this was the Victorian Era after reading this book.

Along with its amazing choice of words and indescribable wit, The Great Gatsby has become the greatest novel an American author has ever written. F. Scotts Fitzgerald's genuine look into "The Roaring Twenties" gives us a view of a "lost generation" of aristocratic life and the American dream. It must be analyzed and compared to our time in the late 1990's and early second millenia. This book is a classic not because critics revered its content, it is as great as it is because America embraced it. The novel deserves your attention and leaves you satisfied. So when Nick Carraway says "So we beat on, boats against the current, born back ceaselessly into the past," the reader would close their books and look at the front cover of the novel and feel a little bit more complete.

The Great Gastby is simply captivating! It pulls you into this dream world of the "night life" and you long to be with these characters. With it's intense symbols, mysterious style, and it's stunning turn of events, this is a classic.

This is a great 1st chapter book for young children. In each chapter, the main characters, Detective Dinosaur and Officer Pterodactyl, solve a mystery. The mysteries are often silly, but they are always fun. For example, in one chapter, Detective Dinosaur is following a noise in the fog and becomes lost himself. He begins singing to calm his nerves, and sings so loudly that Officer Pterodactyl easily finds him! In another chapter, they find a lost kitten and put signs up. But, no one claims the kitten. In the end they decide that the kitten is both lost and found, since it was lost, but they found it. After that, Cadet Kitten goes along on their expeditions. My son, 5, read this book to me (one chapter per night) and LOVED it. He laughed out loud at least once per chapter. I highly recommend this book for K-2 readers.

There were 3 short stories about 2 police dinosaurs in this book. It is humorous, with good color illustrations. I would recommend it for the K through 3rd grade level, as well as the teachers.

This carefully researched and well written book will be appreciated by anyone with an interest in the history of the American west, the desert Southwest, the old emigrant trails, or historic Route 66. Beale's Wagon Road, which followed the route that was later to become the famous Route 66 across the Southwest (generally followed now by Interstate 40), was actually a faster and safer route to California than the much more popular Gila Trail to the south through Apache territory --- but it was avoided by most emigrant parties after news spread of the tragedy that befell the first party that attempted to follow it. Although almost forgotten now, the disaster was so notorious at the time that it wasn't until the opening of a railroad along the route, followed by the development of the automobile, that this historic road became widely used.

That ill-fated journey by the Rose-Baley wagon party is the subject of this book, along with useful background information on the Hualapai and Mojave Indians, the Santa Fe Trail, and the Sitgreaves, Whipple, Aubry, and Beale surveying expeditions across northern Arizona in the 1850s. This is a pioneering work on an important but largely forgotten event in the history of the westward migration in the 19th century, and it is surely the definitive work on the subject to this point.

This book is beginning to attract quite a bit of attention from historians, history buffs, and general readers alike. While there are a multitude of books recounting the history of the California, Santa Fe, Mormon and other historic trails, surprisingly little has been done on a little known Trail that originated in Ft. Smith, Ark., traversed southern Oklahoma, crossed the northern tip of Texas into New Mexico and Arizona and ended at the Colorado River crossing on the California-Arizona border. I predict it is the first of a flurry of studies looking at an amazing story this is largely untold.
In 1857 the War Department, eager to find an alternative route to the main California Trail that was considered risky given the mounting pressure to subdue Mormons in Utah, and the lengthy Southern Route that ran through Apache territory, commissioned a survey that resulted in the Beale Wagon Road. It was to be the first federally funded interstate road to traverse the rugged southwest desert, canyons, and rocky terrain obtained from Mexico at the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848. Edward Fitzgerald Beale, a retired Navy Lieutenant, was chosed to survey and construct a road that was to attract emigrant wagon trains and save an estimated 200 miles and thirteen days of travel. Not only was the mission unique but also his crew of 50 men traveled with a most unusual contingent of pack animals: 22 camels from the Middle East were used to carry the supplies and equipment for the expedition.
The book traces the history of the Beale Road in general terms and specifically recounts the experiences of the first emigrant wagon train to attempt the crossing in 1858. The story of what came to be known as the Rose-Baley wagon train, comprised of a group of Missouri and Iowa emigrants that met in Albuquerque, is an exciting and tragic account of an effort to arrive in California and the "land of plenty." To say the attempt was a disaster is perhaps charitable. The road was not as passable as the civic leaders in Albuquerque stated; water was much more scarce as originally thought; the so-called experienced guide was lacking in knowledge and directional aptitude; the peaceful Hualapais Indians were more hostile than advertised; and the reception encountered at the Colorado River crossing, instigated by the Mojave Indians, was deadly.
In a highly readable, narrative style Baley recounts the story and reviews its aftermath and legacy not only for the Rose-Baley emigrant party but also for the Mojave's and Beale's Wagon Road. There is an index, bibliography, appendix, extensive endnotes, and helpful maps and photos. This is a major contribution about the first emigrants attempt to traverse what was then known as the 35th paralled. Most now know it as old Route 66 and I-40. Highly recommended.

If you've read other Dora books, you know that not all actually capture the essence of the show...I know it's not Shakespeare, but come on... at least try & get the basic elements that the kids recognize into the books such as if we need to know where to go, ask the kids who they need to as (Map!) then explain where their going, let the kids yell, "Backpack!" & then pick what item they need to help Dora & her friends, etc. The book includes counting, singing silly songs (a favorite of our daughter's), and an extra bonus if your child loves Diego too, he's along for the ride. We read this book about every night (it's one of our daughter's favorites), and it isn't painful-like some children's books can be. I have fun singing & listening to my daughter participate, sing along (something she started with this book) & laugh, and you probably will too.

I am not a parent, nor am I experienced in reading books for small children, but I had heard of Dora the Explorer and, when I saw this book at the office, where I worked, about to be tossed out, as it was getting pretty beat up, I thought I would give it a try.

This is a glossy, 8" by 8" 24-page paperback, that is very colorful, and it is aimed at ages baby through preschool. It is meant, I believe, as a read-to or read-along book. The text is by Lisa Valdes and the illustrations are by Dave Atkins.

The illustrations are large, plentiful, very colorful, and decidedly upbeat. The text is cheerful and adventurous in tone and suited well for its purposes and target audience. The story involves Dora and her friends wanting to put on a play about pirates, but having their plan waylaid when piggy pirates snatch their chest full of costumes. The piggy pirates mistake the chest for a treasure chest, and whisk it away to an island. Using a very helpful and talkative map, Dora and her friends sail off in pursuit. Along the way, there is a counting task, in Spanish, plus they have to help the singing bridge sing its silly song the right way. The conclusion involves a non-violent confrontation with the piggy pirates, that lends a touch of suspense, without being scary.

The tone of the story is not only fun and adventurous, but also very inviting. It repeatedly, but not annoyingly, invites the reader and those being read to, to join in. The counting and the singing are clearly aimed at this. The story moves quickly and that, combined with the abundant and colorful illustrations, should make it good at engaging and holding the attention of young children. The characters are depicted as cute and friendly, with Dora definitely taking center stage. While Diego is along for the ride, he does not say anything.

The book itself, while the copy I read was pretty beat up, looks very durable. I work in a children's mental health clinic, and the book likely got a lot of use by several children, some of whom might well be quite aggressive and destructive. That this book survived, for months, in our waiting room, is a testament to its heartiness.

I featured this book in my 4th grade class's unit on "How We Came to California." It was the best book that told about the journey of many families to the Golden State during the Dust Bowl Days because it included why they left, how they came and the struggle once they got here. To make it even more special, my grandmother came to read it to the students because she lived in CA during this time and helped the people who came to her town from Oaklahoma and Kansas. Having an elder read it to the kids was the most memorable thing to many of the kids who simply did not know about this period of their family's history.

Gradeschool children who read this story identified with the story characters. Students went away with appreciation for this time in American History. It was easy to read and informative. It made many students realize how fortunate they are.

I found this book in the juvenile biography section of the library, although the information given...doesn't indicate that it might be suitable for teens. In my opinion, both teens and adults could read it with profit. It covers much of the same ground as Bud Kliment's book but goes into a little more detail. All the photos are grouped together in the middle of the book, which is probably a less appealing placement for teens. I didn't like the sans serif typeface; most people find this style of type more difficult to read.

I found this book in the juvenile biography section of the library, although the information given doesn't indicate that it might be suitable for teens. In my opinion, both teens and adults could read it with profit. It covers much of the same ground as Bud Kliment's book but goes into a little more detail. All the photos are grouped together in the middle of the book, which is probably a less appealing placement for teens. I didn't like the sans serif typeface; most people find this style of type more difficult to read.

This is a beautiful and enlightening collection. The book is very easy to read, yet also very powerful. It would be disgraceful if men did not also read this book. We can all can learn from the strength and humility of both the saints and the authors.

This detailed account of 7 women of faith is both educational and encouraging. I am rejuvenated by their demonstrations of enduring strength that shine most brightly in times of substantial adversity. These humble women with extraordinary faith "come alive" and provide spiritual inspiration and hope. This is a collection valuable to anyone negotionating the often trying and lonely path God has laid out for them.