Gregory Books

Upon opening this exciting book,I was drawn into the bright colors and the words that were simple, yet quite powerful. As an elementary school teacher, I was looking for poetry to share with my students that was beyond the same few it seems they see year after year during February. This fit the bill perfectly. It was language my children could relate to, yet it showed some insight into important issues such as racism, segregation, and slavery. The added bonus for me was the additional text about how each poem related to Langston Hughes' life. In the book, Mr. Medina mentions that as a child, he opened one of Langston Hughes' books of poetry and saw his photograph. Not only was he moved by his work, he was pleasantly surprised and inspired because he saw an artist of color in a published work for the first time. Since then, he has been inspired to create poetry. Tony Medina has given us a beautiful tribute to Mr. Hughes as well as fresh poems for new generation!

Langston Hughes was born February 1, 1902 (in Joplin MO), and his centennial was celebrated with the publication of books honoring his poetry & life, including "Langston Hughes, an American Poet" by Alice Walker . . . & also, "Love to Langston" by Tony Medina.

For this book the author writes poems in a style similar to Hughes' - - each being biographical. These are followed by three pages of helpful notes. Some of the dates make for surprises: In 1914 Hughes protested against "JIM CROW SEATING" in his 7th grade! In 1923 he began an odyssey to learn about the world firsthand, starting with Africa: "going around the world digging life, . . mining for riches" by observing people.

His poetry was influenced by Walt Whitman and Carl Sandburg, but also by the rhythms of jazz. "Jazz makes me sing - - the blues makes me feel . . . a whole lot better . . . hits my heart in the funny bone." The bold colorful illustrations by Gregory Christie are a happy choice and complement Medina's hopeful text. This happened, too, with the 1982 "Langston, A Play by Ossie Davis" for which Jerry Pinkney illustrated the cover.

In the 1950s the specter of Senator Joseph McCarthy threatened Hughes' ability to earn a living. He was quite ill in 1967 when "dear sweet Alice (Walker)" one of the young authors inspired by his works, visited him: " ... she brings me oranges like a bag of sun." The sun can also shine into your heart through reading Langston Hughes' poetry, suggests REVIEWER mcHAIKU.

Meet James Langston Hughes in a unique and entertaining biography that brings this great poet of the Harlem Renaissance to life. Written in free verse, Tony Medina's fourteen poems follow Langston from his boyhood in Kansas marked by racism and poverty, to his trips to Africa and around the world, and finally to life in his beloved Harlem..."Harlem is the capital of my world/black and beautiful and bruised/like me..." Mr Medina's simple, yet powerful poems speak volumes, and are full of energy, rhythm, wisdom, and truth. "In Topeka, Kansas/the teacher makes me sit/in the corner/in the last row/far away from/the other kids// She rolls her eyes/and sucks her teeth/with heavy heavy sighs/and lies and lies// She tells one kid/not to eat licorice/or he'll turn black/like me// When Mama finds out/she takes me out of school/she rolls her eyes/and sucks her teeth/with heavy heavy sighs// And why why why" R. Gregory Christie's expressive, bold, and riveting illustrations complement each poem beautifully, and draw the reader into the world Langston Hughes loved and remembered. Together word and art present an engaging and evocative tribute to a remarkable and vibrant man who loved people, books, and jazz. This is much more than a creative and innovative biography, it's a labor of love. Perfect for youngsters 7 and older, Mr Medina includes notes, details, and insight to help flesh out, complete, and enrich these original poems about Langston Hughes' life, and introduce Hughes and his work to a whole new generation. This engaging biography is sure to whet the appetite of both young and old alike, and send you out looking for more. So come celebrate the life of Langston Hughes on what would have been his one hundredth birthday... "Sometimes life ain't/always a hoot/or a holler// But if you manage/to give it/a bother// Even if you miss/your mother/or don't like your father// There'll be better days/up ahead// A whole mess of/happenin' days/up ahead// You can sit and sulk/suck your teeth/and sigh// Or love and laugh/and live life/by and by"

I thoroughly enjoyed reading "Love, Lies, Linnea, and Lucky Lucifer". It is insightful, touching, and beautifully written. I was especially intrigued by DP Hymel's, "The Raptor's Monologue" and Kemp Gregory's, "Piece of the Ides of April". This is writing that makes you think and reflect on the lessons of life. It is both amusing and thought provoking.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading "Love, Lies, Linnea, and Lucky Lucifer". It is insightful, touching, and beautifully written. I was especially intrigued by DP Hymel's, "The Raptor's Monologue" and Kemp Gregory's, "Piece of the Ides of April". This is writing that makes you think and reflect on the lessons of life. It is both amusing and thought provoking.

They say that some of the best writing out there is by authors few people have ever heard of. Okay, I don't really know if anyone has ever actually said that. But it's something that I have often found to be true, and it certainly is in this case. Kemp Gregory and DP Hymel are not household names; in fact, until now, only avid readers of poetry and fiction magazines have ever seen their work. Hopefully, that is about to change, for these two individuals have created something very special in Love, Lies, Linnea, and Lucky Lucifer.

The first thing that struck me about this book was the cover design. The ghostly image of an arched window hovers within what strikes me as a fragmenting brick wall. I imagine the design will ultimately prove symbolic of as many different ideas as the book has readers, but leaving that aside, it is very interesting to look at and contemplate. It grabs your attention and thus achieves its purpose, albeit more elegantly than most.

On the surface, this book is a collection of Gregory's poetry and Hymel's fiction, drama, and spoken-word jazz variations. Gregory's 54 poems in this book range in length from a few words to a few pages and touch on such varied subjects as New Year's Eve, the items on his desk, the experience of growing older, and a (one sided) conversation with his daughter. What I love about his poetry is that it's so accessible. By that, I mean I don't get the feeling that he's trying to impress me with his artistry, just speak to me. And speak to me he does, expressing his perspective of the world in a way that entertains, amuses, sometimes hurts, and most importantly, encourages me to question things. He has a remarkable ability to express an idea by drawing on another, and he also artfully puts into words ideas we've all had at one time or another. Some examples of both:

In "Highlights," he recounts his memory of the McCarthy hearings through childhood recollections of Clint Eastwood westerns.

We see Martin Heidegger in command at the shrine of Texas independence in "Heidegger at the Alamo."

"Strange Ironing Board Scene at Brunch" reflects his musings on observing his cat and dog exhibit their true, pre-domesticated nature.

Films often lose their initial impact after repeated exposure, a fact hilariously explored with "On Succumbing to Analytic Rigor While Viewing Braveheart for the Third Time."

Another enjoyable thing about Gregory's work is that he knows when not to take himself too seriously. I'm not a huge fan of poetry, but after reading these and his 50 other offerings, I realize how much of one I could be -- if only other poets were more like Kemp Gregory.

The other half of this collection is written by DP Hymel, who has included 2 short stories, two contrasting scenes from a play, and some wonderful spoken-word for jazz.

If you happen to be an actor, the pair of scenes included offer two monologues that alone are worth the purchase price of the book. In "Dennis Rodman Ate my Baby!" we observe three friends sitting down for lunch and debating the truthfulness of one of the trio's claim that his father was responsible for settling the West 150 years ago. As the discussion progresses, one of them goes off on the Mother of All Tangents, meandering through a truly excellent comedic monologue. A fine dramatic monologue is provided by the aptly named "Raptor's Monologue," in which a vampire offers a deliciously confident, polite rebuttal of our Bela Lugosi/Stephen King/Anne Rice ideas of his race.

Probably the most uniquely interesting section of the book is "The Perseids: a jazz composition for trombone and spoken word." Consisting of varying spoken-word ruminations on the annual Perseids meteor shower, it is immediately clear that Hymel has a true Jazz Man inside him. While his words perfectly capture the nighttime display he describes, you can almost hear the absent trombone echoing and elaborating on his observations. Truly a unique piece of work.

Of the two short stories Hymel has contributed, the beautifully poignant and (for me) surprisingly heartbreaking "Bennie and Guerito" will remain with me the longest. A true story as told to the author by a friend, this is a wonderfully woven story of friendship and remembrance, loss and remorse, and the scars that we all have in one form or another.

Love, Lies, Linnea, and Lucky Lucifer, in addition to being an entertaining and fulfilling work, is also a fine example of good, solid writing that will be of great benefit to any student of the art. It is appalling to consider how often mediocre (or just plain bad) writing is rewarded and good writing ignored. One can crank out regurgitated sophomoric tripe for movies like Big Daddy, Joe Dirt, American Pie, or A Knight's Tale, and make millions. Yet work of true substance is viewed with apathy or worse, not viewed at all.

Before I wrote the above paragraph, I had intended to state that it was puzzling to me that these two authors have to keep day jobs rather than make a fine living from their abilities. But considering the often sad state of literature in this country, perhaps it isn't puzzling at all.

But it is an injustice.

I bought this book because I was lost and I needed some direction. The Meaning of Life has clarifyed so many things for me. Tom Gregory earnestly bares his soul into this magnificent piece of literature. The book is written in a fun style: full of lists, charts, personal allegories, quotes, and fundamental truths. The book is accessible to anyone, regardless of background or age. Tom Gregory has changed my life forever. His words have helped me to become in tune with the consciousness of love that manifests itself as our world, our lives. We are all perfect, unique beings of the Earth. Tom Gregory has made it easier for me to realize that. He covers a plethora of subjects. I am so very grateful that someone has brought these words alive. This is a novel that has changed the world.

"The Meaning of Life" is enlightening and a great reference guide to answer many of life's questions. It is a combination between the bible (without the guilt) and a new age guide. I love this book beause it just makes so much sense.

This is a wise and compassionate guidebook that addresses a wide variety of spiritual questions, that anyone, whatever their spiritual path or religion, will find of value. With a spirit of tolerance, clear-cut solid advice, and a subtle dose of whimsey, Tom Gregory shows us not only how to infuse life with meaning, but how to create a better world.

This book is an excellent text. The use of radial basis functions for approximation and collocation is widespread, but there are few texts which provide both the theoretical foundation and application of their use. Greg Fasshauer has produced an extremely useful guide for both novices and experts and it will certainly be around for some time.

The two real tests of a practical guide on a technical subject consist of how well the guide facilitates transfer of concepts to your applications and how quickly does that happen. I am happy to say that Gregory Fasshauer's new book on Meshfree Aproximation Methods with MatLab passes both tests with flying colors (Happy because it means that I didn't just blow 50 bucks for nothing!). I find the exposition to be clear and well-developed. The author builds up concepts in a very organized and logically consistent manner. The examples and code listings make it simple to start making immediate use of the techniques discussed in the book. The range of coverage is also very good, starting from simple scattered data interpolation (with discussion of optimality), to compactly-supported RBF to moving least squares methods, to Hermite interpolation to RBF Galerkin methods and more. The author also provides an extensive bibliography to lead you to more detailed or deeper expositions of the material. This book is a great jumping off point for more theoretical treatments such as found in the books by Buhmann and Wendland or in the research literature. With the paperback edition out at a reasonable price, there is no reason not to get this book.

I loved this book because of the practical aspect and the Matlab codes it provides. This makes the subject very easy to understand.
I had read many papers on the subject of meshfree approximations but most of them keep repeating the same theoretical aspect. This book shows you how you can actually impliment it.
Seeing the implimentation of meshfree approximation methods, I was able to better understand the theoretical aspect of it.
The only unfortunate thing in this book is that the part dealing with the solution of differential equations is somewhat brief. However, this is just a minor thing as all the essential tools to be able to apply the methods to solve differential equations are provided.

My husband bought this book for my sister who came to visit for Christmas. We tried Pa's Ham Bone & Bean Soup while she was here. Oh my goodness, it was the best soup I've eaten in years and I never liked beans!

Tonight, I called her to get the recipe and made the soup myself. This is a shocker as I spent over 50 years hating beans. I had two bowls and my husband had three. I'm buying this book for myself now as there are numerous recipes I want to try -- there goes the New Year's resolution.

Try this soup, you'll love it. Thank you Michael Baruch. Sto Lat!

Finally, a cookbook that works! This is so much more than just an ethnic cookbook about Polish food. After years of collecting stodgy, uninteresting and badly written Eastern European cookbooks, it is refreshing to finally come across one that is well written, beautifully photographed and is fully laden with well rounded chapters of recipes that actually work. I recently purchased a celebrity chef cookbook and was so disappointed with the recipes offered that I sent it right back. It seems to me the price tag on those celebrity books is inversely related to the content and value. Not so with Chef Baruch's New Polish Cuisine. At $32.00, it is a real bargain. As a grandmother of 12, it's highly admirable that this accomplished young chef took it upon himself (without any help from a big publishing company as the book is self-published) to lighten up, revitalize and Americanize a cuisine that is generally heavy and fat laden. Most Polish cookbooks I own were published in the 60's with recipes and techniques from the dark ages and have never held any interest for my children or grandchildren. However, Mr. Baruch's book has renewed my family's interest in the food of their ethnic heritage and the history related to it. The 3 pound, beautifully hard bound book with full color pictures is this grandma's favorite gift to give. Besides the fabulous recipes, the stories and introductions to each chapter are heart warming and bring comfort. Kudos to Chef Barch for bridging the generation gap!

`The New Polish Cuisine' by Chicago chef Michael J. Baruch and `Polish Cookery' by Marja Ochorowicz-Monatowa, translated from the Polish by Jean Karsavina are two common extremes in the presentation of a national cuisine, if that cuisine is not French, Italian, Spanish, Indian, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, or Mexican. I have seen many of the latter style for virtually every nation from Norway to Rumania, most especially from the central European countries. Many of the recipes are presented in the most simple of forms, with little or no discussion of technique. Their primary virtue lies in their containing a lot of authentic recipes so that if you are handy around the kitchen, you should have no trouble with the simple instructions. After all, Elizabeth David started her prodigious career as a food writer by doing a book on Mediterranean recipes with relatively simple recipe descriptions.

As a native Pole wrote `Polish Cookery' in Poland, I have to assume the authenticity of the recipes is unimpeachable. And, in spite of my picturing the recipes in books of this class as `bare bones' descriptions, I am especially happy to say that the general introductions to all the major sections have great suggestions on how to get the best out of each type of dish. The introduction to the section that includes pierogies is an especially good example, as it gives excellent general rules for preparing pastry fillings. These rules are:

1. Cook meat until tender, but do not brown, or it will be too dry.
2. Grind meat at least twice through a meat grinder.
3. Pates may be baked, but they are best steamed, as baking dries and toughens them.

These three simple rules contain an enormous amount of wisdom as they clearly distinguish this cooking style from braising and sauteeing and show a great common ground with the famous steamed meat filled dumplings of Chinese dim sum. This second rule also points out that the author is talking about a kitchen where a meat grinder is a common appliance and a blender and food processor are not. This may seem odd, except that my Hungarian grandmother did have a meat grinder and used it on a regular basis. (One warning is that while the index is excellently done with both Polish and English entries, it may be just a little difficult to find some familiar dishes if you only know the English name. I had to look carefully to fine pierogies recipes, as the only reference to pierogies was in Polish.)

I give this detail to warn anyone who may be inclined to ignore this book in favor of the volume with which I will compare it. This little book is marvelously inexpensive, hard covered, and sound. As complete as it is, I am surprised that it does not include any bread recipes and most basic pastry recipes are attributed to the French.

This is one thing which pleases me so much about Michael Baruch's book, as it starts out with a chapter of excellent recipes for fresh yeast breads, featuring great rye and pumpernickel bread recipes, which are not always available in bread baking books. All bread recipes are done with a yeast sponge and technique that would make Peter Reinhart proud.

I am happy that chef Baruch started out with such a great opening chapter because there is much in this book to turn one off if you are inclined to nit-pick. In fact, if this book were a general cookbook by some new TV celebrity show off cook, I would pan it for its misspellings, conceits, and clumsy statements. As it is an excellent presentation of Polish cuisine as interpreted by an American chef with several worthwhile sections and good details on cooking techniques, I overlook the copy editor's mistakes and focus on the chef's content.

One thing in this book that is odd to find in a volume on a minor national cuisine is a catalogue of cooking and baking equipment. I tend to pan these lists, as they are often a basis for buying things you may never need. This is particularly true of the list of baking equipment. The list of pots and pans has it's foibles, as certain types of equipment are listed twice for no reason, but if you overlook that, the list is especially good, especially with the recommendation for having two non-stick fry pans. I do warn you against his critique of Calphalon pots, as I have found their anodized aluminum ware to be excellent and their inexpensive all metal Teflon ware to be perfect for the amateur cook.

For an oversized book with really excellent photographs, I find the $32 list price to be a very nice deal. One thing the author establishes very well is the influence on Polish cooking from Renaissance Italy. The danger in this observation is that it is sometimes hard to distinguish between Polish dishes with Italian influences and Italian dishes the author added to pad his pages. If you think I am just guessing about this, check out the recipe for `Hail Thaddeus Caesarski Salad'. In spite of the Polish name, the recipe looks almost identical to the original prepared in Tijuana by Caesar Cardini. This filler is odd in that the author states that he has enough material for another volume sometime in the future. I strongly suspect the contents of this volume have more to do with Chef Baruch's professional repertoire and childhood experiences in Chicago than with a comprehensive presentation of Polish cuisine.

In one very important area, Chef Baruch may have the advantage over the translation from the Polish. The sections on pirogues gives recipes for at least three different doughs, none of which are French and all of which were probably prepared by legions of Polish grandmothers.

If you really love Polish cooking, get both books. If you simply want a book on Polish recipes to round out a collection of national cuisines, get the `new' book.

I first read this book in 1974, shortly after reporting to my duty station aboad a US Navy vessel. I read it because I remembered that Dick Gregory was a very funny man, and I really needed a good laugh. I got MUCH more than I bargained for.

Each of us has some pivotal moment in our lives. I guess I was waiting to arrive at mine, because I remember being pretty apathetic about most things. THIS BOOK was one of three that served as my wake-up call. Dick Gregory's insight is an invaluable resource, and will serve as inspiration to almost anyone who undertakes to read this very enjoyable book. (In case you're wondering what the other two books were, one was Robert Pirsig's "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" and the other was "The Autobiography of Malcom X".)

This book was great. No More Lies tells history like it was, not like every white guy wants it to be. Gregory teaches about parts of history ignored in our high school books. He uses quotes and keeps it real. Also, his great sense of humor beats out any other modern history writer. Gregory keeps your attention throughout the whole book. For anyone looking for a fresh and often sarcastic perspective on history this book is highly recommended.

- Cheese
white female
read this senior year of high school

i picked the book up years ago in a bookstore while in college..really speaks to the orgin of "His-story"...history written from the perspective of those group in "power"...much respect to Dick Gregory as an author,as well as front-line activist...

I recommend this book highly. Tim Hauf?s remarkable photography captures the many regions of Patagonia - the diversity of landscapes, the various moods and raw beauty, a stark grandeur. The uncivilized immensity of mountains and water, sometimes filled with icebergs other times with whitecaps, some misty above the power of falls, leaves the viewer in awe. We are surprised and delighted by the variety of images, from the smallest of flowering bushes to the romping of guanacos, but overall we are speechless before the vastness of empty space. Fortunately, Conger Beasley?s text brings the photography into a semblance of understandable. By introducing us to the history of the region alongside tales of the personal journey that he shared with Hauf, Beasley brings the reader into the wild and foreign land as a fellow traveller. We are less intimidated by the endless wild.

Tim Hauf is one of those photographers who raises to the level of visual art with his spectacular, full-color photography. Patagonia: Wild Land At The End Of The Earth continues to document his ability to capture truly memorable and impressive imagery -- this time to that wild and desolate region near the bottom-most tip of South American known as Patagonia. This latest showcase of Tim Hauf's photography is enhanced with an informative text by Conger Beasley as we tour through the history of this obscure but fascinating country which is sparsely populated, yet offers visions of granite towers, glaciers, wildlife, farmlands, and breathtaking landscapes of incredible beauty. Patagonia: Wild Land At The End Of The Earth is a welcome and highly recommended addition to personal, professional, and academic landscape photography collections.

I bought this book because we are planning a trip to Patagonia. This book with its magnificent photographs has been a huge help in planning the trip. Not because it gives any travel tips, but the photographs speak for themselves. This is not a travel advice book. There is no information regarding where to stay or eat. However, the photographs tell me what not-to-miss sites to include in my tour. The photographs are so gorgeous that I cannot hardly wait to get there. This book plus a good South American travel agent have allowed me to establish a travel plan to the most scenic locations. The photographer must have spent a long time traveling the area. His views of glaciers, lakes, dramatic clouds and wildlife show his talent. Many outstanding panoramas are included. These must have been taken with a high quality panorama camera. This is a very nice photo book, to be looked at over and over again.

I started reading this book as I left the surgeons office and my fears started to go away too. This book is a must if you have breast cancer. It will take you step by step through what's next to what we should be asking the doctors.
But more importantly, it will and does bring back the hope. Written by a professional who understands we all get scared!
I have a copy to give my family doctor. Why? So the next women who is waiting to see the surgeon can read and feel the hope and help that is out there for us all.

This book is packed with information that was very helpful to me in what could be a hard time. I recommend it.

I found this book incredibly helpful. During the most trying time of my life, any questions I had in the middle of the night were answered by using this book. I think every woman who has been diagnosed with breast cancer and her family should own this book.

This text represents a great deal of work on the part of the authors to bring the chiropractic profession a thorough discussion on pediatric chiropractic. I have used this book extensively as a resource to turn to for pediatric chiropractic data and treatment.

I would highly recommend the text to others.

Warren Bruhl, DC, DICCP
DIPLOMATE ICA COUNCIL CHIROPRACTIC PEDIATRICS
Glencoe, IL

This is an outstanding work, with contributions from many distinguished clinicians. It is a "must" for every chiropractor's library.

Claudia A. Anrig and Gregory Plaugher have made use of their inherent capabilities to put together such a worthwhile book for the Chiropractic Profession and other Health Care Providers.

This book was written with the intention of helping provide quality Chiropractic care for children. It is not intended to substitute the Medical Paediatritian, but rather to carefully illustrate that the Chiropractor is an appropriate and necessary provider of health care for children.

This books content has been well referenced and the diagrams are easy to follow. The layout is tasteful and allows for easy comprehension.

Most importantly, this book was written to inform practitioners that Chiropractic is safe, effective and natural for the paediatric patient.

Well done!

JUST AS MY TITLE READ!! THIS BOOK IS PART 2 OF HIS 1ST BOOK, I MUST SAY, "I COULD NOT PUT THE BOOK DOWN".. I FINISH IT IN ONE DAY! THIS AUTHOR WILL BE AROUND FOR AWHILE.. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO READING PAIN FREAK.. I LOVE TO READ MY PEOPLE!!

THIS BOOK WAS BETTER THEN THE FIRST ONE DON'T MIX THE BITTER WITH THE SWEET WHICH WAS GOOD BOOK. THIS ONE START WERE THAT BOOK ENDED.

I ENJOYED BOOK ONE AND BOOK TWO WAS JUST AS GOOD. THIS BOOK HOLDS YOUR INTREST ALL THE WAY THROUGH. WORTH EVERY CENT. MR. GARRET IS VERY TALENTED. CHECK THIS ONE OUT YALL.

The cover is just as hot as this book!! This book starts where "Mix the Bitter with the Sweet" Left off. Dontae is now serving a thirty year bid and his wife Q-Tee is trying to be a ride or die chick. Q-tee is trying to do right by her kids and Dontae but when she runs across Marco a Club owner and Drug lord all bets are off. Marco remembers Q-Tee from back in the day and he knows her situation and wants to be there for her. Dontae has to survive in prison and try to fight all kinds of obsacles being thrown his way.Q-Tee is trying her hardest to get Dontae's sentence reduced but he refused to be labled a snitch and wants to ride it out. This book shows the true meaning of keeping your friends close and your enemies closer. Mr. Garrett is a gifted story teller and his stories make you feel as if you are right there as it is happening. A real page turner you will love this book!