Johnson Books

My son loves to read about Harold's adventures over and over and over again. After Harold, it's Cyrano, a caterpillar failing in school in Life's Little Lessons: An Inch-By-Inch Tale of Successand then Nate the piglet that turns a school upside down when he visits in The Big Squeal: A Wild, True, and Twisted Tail. These books are so wonderful for kid's imagination...and you know what ..I enjoy them too.

I love this story so I bought it for my son. When we got it there were at least 10 blank pages in the book fragmenting the story so badly that it didnt make any sence. My beef is not with the story its with Amazon for selling it to me in that condition and with the publisher for their quality control issues. I only paid 6.99 for it so I didnt mess with returning it. Im going to try it again and see if we can get the whole story this time. If the book is not right this time I will return it and not purchase books from Amazon again. Hopefully we will get a full story and we can enjoy it like my parents and I did when I was a kid.

My sister resently bought this book for my 3 year old son & once we started to read it I remoembered it from when I was a little girl. My son absolutly LOVES IT & I do as well. To be able to create different things with just a crayon & your imagination is wonderful. It's the perfect book for young as well as old

One night, the self-reliant Harold couldn't sleep, so he decided to go for a walk in the moonlight.

Using his crayon, he makes everything he needs - including the moon. He gets himself into accidental trouble with his crayon (accidentally making a sea, not making the second half of a mountain, making a city full of windows to get lost in), but he always manages to save himself with the same crayon (making a boat, a hot air balloon, and finally his own window "right around the moon").

He even puts himself to bed at the end, knowing he's tired.

Who wouldn't want a kid as independent and responsible as this kid?

It's truly a fantastic book, and you should definitely not ignore it.

I bought this for my three-year-old and she enjoyed the way it opens up the mind to an adventure through drawing, just as I myself did. Wonderful book for children.

This is a well-organized text that clearly was written by someone who speaks with the authority of experience.

Carolyn Howard-Johnson has delivered a resource that I would recommend reading on an as-needed basis by consulting the specific chapters relating to particular marketing challenges as they arise.

The way the book is laid out, with chapters ranging from using the Web to using postcards, you'll certainly find the step-by-step details for whatever task you're trying to accomplish. Scan the book initially, to get a good feel for its organization and scope. But save the careful page views for those times when you find yourself tackling specific promotional tasks.


J.D. Mosley-Matchett, Ph.D.
Author of A month of Marketing Technology tips

Carolyn Howard-Johnson's book, The Frugal Book Promoter, is best described as a compendium of book promotion ideas culled from her personal experience as a successful and award wining author as well as what must have been considerable time surfing the internet.
A wide range of topics are covered and in some cases just briefly touched upon. However, internet resources are listed throughout for those who want to dive deeper into a specific area. The links I was most interested in were still active and I found the sites I was directed to to be helpful.
While I would likely have been able to find these resources on my own had I the time to surf the net, this guide is very good at pulling all of this information together in a well categorized fashion which saves considerable time for those wishing to promote their book.
What does stand alone in this book are the chapters dedicated to building a media kit and the credentials for such a kit. For those that have done this before, it is not new, but for newly published authors it can be very valuable.
Finally, the advice on branding yourself as an author is very true. Readers buy books because of their authors not because of the publisher or the book title. Find a way to brand yourself - Carolyn has certainly done this effectively.

Todd A Fonseca, author of The Time Cavern (www.thetimecavern.com)

This book contains so much useful information. It is definitely an outline for success. Every writer who wants to publish their book should read this book for better selling power. A must have!

Great value for self published authors looking for hands on resources for marketing their book. Alot of good information.

Authors are increasingly coming to appreciate the fact that by the time their book is written, only half of the job is done. Promoting the book may take as much or more time than writing it. Unless authors are internationally famous or very lucky the proceeds from book sales may not allow for expensive promotion. The solution is to do it frugally. Carolyn Howard-Johnson's [[ASIN: 193299310X The Frugal Book Promoter]] helps authors to do just that. While the ways to promote a book are increasingly becoming known through books and online resources, everything cannot be in one book. I found many tips in The Frugal Book Promoter that I had not seen elsewhere. I recommend it to all authors.

Mark's books are easy to read and offer the thoughts and insights of a true horseman. His methods are gentle and honor the horse. Delightful.

This is my favorite of Mark's books. Although I love them all. I have read all 5 and am waiting for more. I read them in 1-3 sittings, cannot put them down! I am starting to buy this book for friends and family, I think Mark's books should be a prerequisite for horse ownership! I have raised and trained horses for close to 30 years. I have read a lot, try to keep an open mind & keep learning. Anyway I have pretty much developed my way of doing things and had found in the past, by checking out more trainer's books that either I did not agree or they were for the "new to horses" person. I had read the reviews here on Mark's books, then just happened to find a couple Mark Rashid books used at a sale & thought okay, they're cheap, I'll try them! I could not put them down! Some things that Mark shares reinforce what I've learned myself, but I found lots to learn in these books too. We had an old cowboy/trainer/farrier/castrater/teeth floater/friend who lived around here for years. If I needed to learn anything about horses, I'd ask Sonny, the thing was Sonny never "gave" you the answer! He told you a story & let you learn the answer yourself! Mark's books remind me of that. Mark's books will follow you through your life. He offers the teachings of truly living well & with compassion in your daily life. 2 things always come into my head since reading his books . . . WHAT DOES MY HORSE THINK ABOUT THIS? and IS THIS REALLY WORTH WORRYING ABOUT? 90% of the time we worry about the little things that we don't need to. Mark's books are an AWESOME read for anyone!

Another good one from Mark. Makes you think of horses in a whole new way has you step into their world so to speak. A must read!

Mark has written a nice book, not clearly a manual or a How to.. book but a text full of experiences. It's not literature about horses but a book about different horses and experiences, giving clues about horsenalities and personalities. A fun and interesting book.

Quite simply, I love horses, and I loved this book.

What Mark writes about horses and humans gets to the heart of what life's all about. If I was the CEO of a big company, I'd bring this cowboy in to talk horse with my upper management, let them figure out why. I relate to his idea of quiet leadership.

I've since read three of Mark's other books. All of them have something unique to say, Mr. Rashid is a man with sharp prespective on life and a way with words.

Lawrence Ritter in his original Preface describes his book as about the early days of baseball. I'm going to make a correction. Mind you it is the only one I will make. His book is about the early days of modern professional Baseball.
With that being put aside , I must praise Mr. Ritter for his most original idea for a book. He took upon himself to travel the U.S.A. in search of the very players who established our National Pastime in the early part of the 20th Century. People talk of Shakespeare and Churchill as prolific writers of the English language. What Mr. Ritter has done is an epiphany for writing a book. His concept was indeed very simple. Why not seek out the very best living Baseball Players of the early 20th Century, and ask them to please describe their experiences.
In the early to middle 1960's when Mr. Ritter did this, he was able to talk to these pioneers of modern baseball in the twilight of their wise years. These 26 men had time to reflect on their careers and describe an age unknown to us. Mr. Ritter traveled to these men and I'm sure asked the correct questions and let these gentlemen record their responses on tape. What he captured will stir the heart of each true Baseball Fan.
For the record my two favorites are Stanley Coveleski and Bill Wambsganss. You can guess from these selections what my favorite team is.

I really enjoyed listening to the stories from some of our classic baseball heros. They brough history to life. This audio book was one of the best purchases I've made. I truly enjoyed just listening to these remarkable men tell there own stories of baseball's past.

I have been an avid reader of baseball history for most of my life and I first purchased this book in the 80's and wore it out and purchased another copy. There isn't a season that goes by that I don't read it again. When you read the interviews of the ballplayers, recorded by Lawrence Ritter, it's as if you are a fly on the wall hearing the conversations first hand and the ghosts of seasons long past are brought back to life.

You get a first person account of some of the most famous moments in early baseball history through the fond recollections of some of the participants. Merkle's boner, Snodgrass' muff, Wambsgan's unassisted World Series Triple play are all recounted. The most entertaining parts of the book recount tales of Germany Schaefer stealing first base, the chronicles of Charles Victory Faust, and Wilbert Robinson attempting to catch a grapefruit dropped from an airplane. You get a glimpse of Ty Cobb from his teammates Davy Jones and Sam Crawford. You get several different takes on the great manager John McGraw from several different players who once played for him.

This is hands down the greatest sports book I have read. It's not only a great history of the early days of 20th century baseball but a wonderful piece of Americana. The book breaths humanity and paints a portrait of the ballplayers of the past who played for the love of the game unsullied by steroids and multimillion dollar contracts.

If you love the game of baseball as it once was and still should be this is a "must read"...some of the players interviewed by Ritter were unknown to me and I was fascinated to learn of their exploits...I ordered an additional three books and sent them to long time fans of the game...If I was a GM today in MLB I would have every member of the team read this book so that they might appreciate the game as it was in its infancy...the modern player (in most cases)doesn't realize how fortunate he is to wear a major league uniform and earn the money today for playing a "game"

Statistically, baseball back then couldn't be more at variance with the game now. Cy Young threw 511 career victories, and 750 complete games. In 1909, Ty Cobb led the majors both in batting average (.377) and home runs (9). Cobb's teammate Sam Crawford hit over 300 triples in his career.

What to make of such numbers? Lawrence S. Ritter's "The Glory Of Their Times" strips away the statistical confusion by getting to the heart of Major League Baseball's early days, the players themselves. An economics professor, Ritter invested his downtime from 1962-66 in interviewing elderly men, baseball players all who knew what it was like to face a Walter Johnson fastball, or have Ty Cobb slide into the base they were covering.

"People were more unique then, more unusual, more different from each other," says Davy Jones, who played on the Tigers with Cobb and Crawford. "Now people are all more or less alike, company men, security minded, conformity - that sort of stuff. In everything, not just baseball."

Transcriptions of Ritter's interviews with Jones and 21 other former players, including Crawford and two others then in the Hall of Fame, makes up the whole of "The Glory Of Their Times," published in 1966 and later extended with four more interviews in 1984. Nearly all the interviews offer both testimony and color for the game as it was then.

Bill Wambsganss tells us about his unassisted triple play in the 1920 World Series, and how Ring Lardner once used his last name to rhyme with "clam's chance" and "Ray Chapman's pants". Fred Snodgrass tells us about his famous muffed fly in the 1911 World Series, and how his New York Giants tried to psyche out the Philadelphia Athletics by sitting on the dugout bench, ostentatiously sharpening their spikes.

You hear so much about another famous World Series moment, the Merkle "boner" of 1908, that you feel like you were there on the field, too. There's a Rashomon-like quality to hearing various interviewees give their different takes on such things as the character of John McGraw and whether "Giant Killer" Harry Coveleski was run out of the league when he was caught chewing on bologna. (Snodgrass says so, while Harry's brother Stanley, a major-league pitcher himself, calls it "a lot of bull".

Not all the interviews are riveting. One wishes Ritter could have pushed some of the old players more, like the rumors that swirled around Smoky Joe Wood involving fixes. But allowing the subjects the reins probably drew more color out of them than a Grand Jury could have. I love how Crawford keeps telling Ritter he hasn't much time to talk, while giving Ritter one of the longest and most entertaining interviews in the book, describing how players would allow themselves to be rubbed down with "Go Fast," a noxious combination of Vaseline and Tabasco sauce that made them sweat like a sauna.

"I hope I haven't said anything I shouldn't," Crawford says at the end. "There are a lot of the old-timers still left,you know, and they're liable to say, 'That fathead, who the hell does he think he is, anyway, popping off like that!'"

If you like baseball even a little, you will enjoy "The Glory Of Their Times" quite a lot.

A very good book that has problems and solutions for issues with horses. All of his books that I have read have been well worth reading and this one is no exception.

This is a book for someone who is already a horseman and is looking for clearer ways to think about his horsemanship. While probably not for everyone I find this type of book much more helpful than the "do this and then do that" type of material.
If you liked this book you'll like True Horsemanship Through Feel by Bill Dorrance and Leslie Desmond

Mark Rashid really has a way with words! And with horses.
He makes you feel right there with him, and learning everything
right along with him. Very enjoyable reading.

Easy to read and understand makes all horse people really open their eyes!! I just got the book this afternoon and am almost finished with it a definate MUST READ for horse owners!!!!

Mark Rashid's story format is very mindful of my days under the spell of cowboy and farrier story tellers. Mr. Rashid is absolutely generous in getting a point across without shaking a finger or being cryptic or evasive. He softly delivers the idea and lets the reader sift out their own application.

I love the 'old man'. I actually think I might have known him, in probably about 20 different people who counseled me in my early horse days. Whether the old man is/was a real person is superfilious as he functions as a terrific metaphor providing the conduit for learning and understanding.

But,actually he really is a very, very real personality in the cowboy and farrier world at large.

This book really helps you understand your identity in Christ and all that being a child of God entails. I highly recommend this book especially if you struggle with receiving God's love for you.

Kris Vallotton's "The Supernatural Ways of Royalty" is a book well worth reading, and its message is one that could transform the life of the reader forever. Kris' writing style matches that of his speaking, both of which present the Good News in such a way that is profound, yet simple and accessible to anyone with an open heart for the truth.

The royalty of the believer is an uncommon subject in Christian literature; but in his book, Kris openly shares the various occurences in his personal journey that made this truth his reality. Through key passages in the Scriptures, he reveals the hidden road map to the Bride's seat of honor in Christ, which God ordained long ago.

I personally recommend "The Supernatural Ways of Royalty," as it has radically changed the way I pray, worship, view leadership, and relate to people. Most of all, understanding now that God sees us favorably has dramatically changed the way I approach Him in our private time.

The truth of God's Word, as presented in Kris Vallotton's book, will inspire you toward deeper intimacy with God. I highly recommend it.

Outside of the scriptures, this is the most significant book that I've ever read. Incredible insight into the truth of the word of God, and His heart for mankind. Kris is transparent about his own life journey. This book is the fruit of a life yielded to God's redemptive power... a slave becomes a son! An incredible life-giving message. Highly recommended! I truly believe that Kris is a model prophet for our generation.

You are a Child of the King who created you in His likeness and immage.
You are charged to do as Jesus commanded his followers- Bring The Kingdom of heaven to Earth where ever you go. You carry the very presense of the Living God as a believer. You are no longer a mere human You are a New Creation in Christ Jesus. This Book is a call to live out your Christianity daily. The Kingdom does not come in Word only but in POWER this power is avaliable to you through the Gifts given to you freely by your Father in Heaven.

This book was life changing for me. It really helped uncover the wrong thoughts that I have about myself which have prevented me from acting like the child of the living God that I am. It also helped me recognize a wrong attitude that I had towrd my spouse...an attitude of cohabitation rather than a covenant attitude. I would highly recommend this book to those who are pressing in to God to try to walk in the authority and dignity of the royal priesthood that believers in Christ are called to.

I enjoyed this book very much. The author has the ability to write in a way as to allow you to truly feel the characters. It is a great and exciting read!.. The female character Carol-Anne was very believable and her trials and tribulations were very believable. I consider the story a modern day, urban cinderalla story, which includes true and valuable lessons. I suggest this book to both male and female readers.

I loved the Carol-Anne and Max characters. I think they were developed well. I also like the storyline that was going on. This is a inspirational and uplifting book for single mothers. Where are the Max's in real life? It also lets you see how observative your young one's are and you don't even realize it. This book is an eye opener, you deserve to be happy, but you have to respect your young ones as well. Carol-Anne had serious issues she had to deal with first before she could even imagine finding happiness. The book was uplifting. Good job Ms. Johnson-Hodge. Keep up the good work.

I love the familar feel of these characters. I enjoyed the way this author took her time to paint these images...every sound they make, every tear they shed will seem real. This story of Carol Ann, a poor working class mom, doing her best under incredible odds drew me in almost immediately. Don't dismiss this as another "victims" book. This lady's a fighter and the story as moving as any you'll read.

I loved this little book (read the paperback version)...it held my interest...the characters were very well developed and the intimate scenes....made the pages of the book.....steam up! Margaret....please add me to your list of fans...you are an awesome story teller. I started this book on vacation...and really enjoyed it. Sometimes I wanted to jump in the story and hit Carol Ann over her head with a tree...but it was very well written story. Thanks for also sharing how the daughter acted once she started...."feeling grown"....as we know our kids can act. I loved it! keep up the good work. I celebrate your God given talent...only He (God) can create such a fine gift....storytelling!

The words of Roberta Flack come to mind as I recall the pages of "A New Day". I felt the author (MJH) looked into my life, and told my story. While there was no disclaimer in the front that the characters were fictional, I was confident that she wrote AS IF she knew me. While I didn't appreciate MJH telling my business, making me cry, and keeping me up all night to read this amazing novel, I was drawn into the deep well of lyrical words used to describe the characters and their emotions. Like the musician of Roberta's song, MJH was 'singing my life with her words'. Unlike Roberta, I was not 'embarassed by the sound'. Instead, I read on with astonishment because I fell in love with this book and its dimensional characters.

This story is intense from its beginning expressions of yearning to its happy ending of self discovery and true love. "A New Day" begins with a new approach - taking readers into the life of a real 'man crying in the dark'. Max Scutter is a sensitive, intelligent, stable and handsome man longing for a new day. He finds it in Carol-Anne Phyllis McClementine. As if seeing a ghost, there were several occasions when I closed the book while gasping for air because the passionate words literally took my breath away!

Though I have not met Max yet, almost everything else from the novel is a page from my life. Beginning with Carol-Anne's middle name being my first, Phyllis. Her last name, McClementine, is uncanningly similar to mine, McLaughlin. Add to that, her single mamahood to daughter, Nadia (who has glistening eyes), vs my daughter, Dasia (whose eyes sparkle when she laughs). If the names can be written off as sheer coincidence, how do you explain why Carol-Anne (like myself) quiets her passions, fears, and LOUD Thoughts with mellow jazz music and books late at night in her comfortably, worn chair? And here I sit confessing even more in this review at 3:46 am EST. As I savor every word of this delectable read, I wondered is MJH psychic or is this coincidence? I couldn't let my skepticism stop me because my heart was already consumed, and my eyes were already soaked.

When Max meets Carol Anne and almost immediately pours out his wealth upon her poverty, I thought to myself, get real Margaret. Who would believe such nonesense? What man would do so much for a woman he just met? Not even a hopeless romantic like me will fall for that. Then I was reminded when I turned back to pages 1-3, 11, 90, and many pages throughout that unveil Max's uniqueness.

After reading more, I thought again... Aha! I caught the diva of romance with her pen down:-)! Feeling somewhat victorious at the discovery that MJH never gives an explanation of why, how or when Max comes to love Carol-Anne, I could not deny Max's strong emotions that permeate the pages. The author convinces readers that Max is distinguishable from all others. So, don't bother trying to compare Max to your Dad, your best lover, and not even Superman. Just accept him because he is very real and real compassionate. Though Max is not the primary focus of the novel, I learned to love him too... just like I love myself, Carol-Anne, and Nadia. MJH makes sure you feel him and all the characters as they jump off the pages and into your heart!

With amazement and sheer ecstasy, MJH entices readers with details of fiery love scenes throughout. Not being satisfied with a brief declaration of the couple's love, MJH drowns readers in unbelievable passion as she lusciously describes the scenes with such grandeur.

Eeew wee! If the detailed love scenes are not enough, prepare yourself for the intense account of Max's anguish over being without his family, Carol-Anne and Nadia. The breathtaking account begins on page 133 and literally climaxes on page 135 as he is 'seduced by memory'. Oh my goodness, I 'wept out loud' with this man and stopped breathing too.

MJH knows how to cleverly evoke intense emotions that will make you wonder how she got into your heart and mind to create such an ache and inevitably, tears. Makes me marvel at how MJH is able to contain the creative talents that God has poured into her. Then I realize, she manages by writing and dumping on hopeless romantics like me... poetic justice, I guess.

"A New Day" is very enlightening and will encourage readers to search within for the new day that makes every day more beautiful than before. This is a must read for those bold ones who dare to dig deep within themselves. I HIGHLY recommend this novel!

Being a wedding officiate for four years, I wish I had found this book for my first wedding. This book gives it all to you. The ABC's of a Wedding. Out of all the books I have purchased over the years (now collecting dust) this is the book that stays within my reach at all times. You have just become engaged, now what, or you have been officiating for a while and need something to inspire you for the next wedding. For the engaged couple this will walk you threw the questions, answers, and things you have not thought of. It will answer the questions that everyone keeps telling you has to be done this way or that. You now have the guide to know what you want to do and not what family and friends say you should do, your wedding your way. For a new officiate or the officiate who has performed for awhile this book will help you understand things you might not have encountered before, it will give you new phrases to get the creative ideas flowing so you can create the perfect ceremony for your couples. Even if you are renewing your vows this guide will walk you threw it all. If you are a couple with children from a past relationship this book will give you all the guidance you need to include your children in your wedding ceremony, creating a family wedding ceremony. I often use post it notes on pages that I want to refer back to for future ideas that will fit a specific client. I started marking pages of Judith's book and had to stop, the pages were all posted with sticky notes. I love how this book will help me when I become stumped on a phrase or wording for a new ceremony, this book will give me the ideas and words that I need. I receive compliments all the time from guests and the couple how the ceremony wasn't a cookie cutter ceremony and it wasn't like all the other weddings they have been to. I start out with ideas and phrases, then search Judith's book to see if there is a phrase or sentence that will blend with my ideas, I always find something that is better and more inspirational for my ceremonies than the last ceremony. Everything from Religious to Non Religious. This book has given me so much that I will be able to create ceremonies for a long time to come.
Thank You Judith for such a Complete wedding guide. I recommend it to all future Brides and Grooms at our first meeting. It is a great resource for them to know what questions to ask, it gives them a piece of mind knowing this is the only book they need to buy, this is the number one guide to a wedding.

I highly recommend this book for anyone planning a wedding. It takes one through each step of the wedding and write the ceremony. The Wedding Ceremony Planner is a must for those arranging their own weddings.

This book was extremely helpful to my husband and I as we planned our wedding. When we decided to get married, we knew that we didn't want a church wedding, but beyond that, we weren't sure what we DID want. We didn't even know where to begin. I found this book, and it immediately put my mind at ease that we'd be able to create a beautiful, personalized wedding.

The book itself is logically laid out and simple to use. And the various writings provide a wide range of styles and tastes. Working from the book, my now-husband and I mixed and matched, edited and rearranged, deleted and added, and ultimately came up with a ceremony that truly spoke to who we are and who we hope to become together. The word "elegant" was used by many guests to describe the ceremony.

There is a particularly useful section on "special circumstances," such as children from previous marriages, friendship circles, ethnic traditions, etc. My husband has a six-year-old son from his first marriage; we always knew he was going to be the ring bearer, but we didn't have any other ideas of how to incorporate him into the ceremony. When we read the "special circumstances" chapter, we found exactly what we wanted to say. It expressed perfectly how I feel about my stepson, and how we all felt about becoming a family. It was the highlight of the ceremony, and I don't think anyone in the audience survived without crying!

I would highly recommend this book to any couple who wants to write their own ceremony, or to any officiant who is new to the field.

Great book, really useful! We didn't have a "real" officiant who did weddings a lot so we wrote our own ceremony using this book. Lots of options with different ceremony aspects which was great. There are no readings in here, however, which would have made it 5star.

I bought this book on the recommendation of another bride and I am SO happy I did.

We are having a first time officiant (uncle) and wanted to a) identify the elements that were most important to us in a ceremony b) give him a guideline of words that spoke to us and c) write our vows.

We aren't religious, and wanted a very comtemporary ceremony and this book was a huge help. It has religious passages, spiritual ones, and secular ones. Helps you customize and gives you great ideas while keeping you organized and focused.

We were able to put our ceremony together is a few hours, and it was nice bonding time focused on the most important part of what is going to be a big day!

One of the best recommendations I've received for my wedding planning, hands down!

Ms. Johnson's book, The Alley of Wishes deserves five stars for her character development, story line and romantic drama and an additional five stars for her poetic writing style which totally engages the reader in this most poignant story of two people broken by war and life. I read Ms. Johnson's Grass Dance several years ago and hoped there would be more wonderful prose coming from this exceptionally talented writer. I wasn't disappointed and you won't be either.

It isn't often that readers fall in love with a book's protagonist before reading chapter one, but that was the case for me with Beck Sanow in THE ALLEY OF WISHES. The author's description in the book's dedication of how Beck came to be in her imagination was enough to establish a permanent place for him in my heart, and he never once disappointed me throughout the story.

The story of Beck and his wounded French songbird Cerise is written in Laurel Johnson's poetic style that reads like a sonnet to her readers. Theirs is a love that transcends the horrors of war, the savagery of evil men, and the debilitating sorrow of losing a piece of one's heart. The amazing thing is how the reader is left with an enduring sense of hope and joy even after enduring so much heartache with the characters, and that can be attributed to the author's gift for lyrical storytelling.

My only complaint is that Beck's parents and their own love story aren't introduced until near the book's end, because I wanted to experience it firsthand as I did their son's. I guess I'll have to hope for a prequel as well as a sequel to this unforgettable book.

The Alley Of Wishes is just one of those books you never want to end! I loved everything about this story and think most readers will agree with me! Buy it today. You'll be glad you did!

A friend gave me her copy of "The Alley of Wishes," to take along with me on my flight overseas. Reading this wonderful story made the long flight seems like only moments in the air. I loved this story and am thrilled to have found a new writer that I enjoy and will now go in search of more books by Ms. Johnson.

Laurel Johnson, is a beautiful woman as well as a beautiful writer...SUCH A TALENT! ~ I have been a fan of this fantastic writer since her first book, "Grass Dance." Ms. Johnson has a way with words that make her stories come alive...so alive in fact that the characters she writes about seem to jump out of the book and come to life in front of the readers eyes. "The Alley of Wishes," by super-writer Laurel Johnson is a book I know you won't want to miss...not in this lifetime anyway! (Highest Recommendation!)

V~

Somewhere in the 409 pages of this book you'll find buried a truly great work of American literature. It is hard to fault Kerouac for his devotion to spontaneous and unedited writing; though these methods imposed limitations on what he could accomplish as a writer, they also contributed to what makes his books so fascinating. If Jack had lived in Hemingway's time, he would have submitted Desolation Angels to the publisher and would have been handed back a 300 page masterpiece.

The most problematic section is the first one, "Desolation in Solitude." I understand that Kerouac wanted to convey the sheer insanity of his isolation as a lookout, but considering that he already devoted about 30 pages to this in Dharma Bums, he essentially retreads the same mystic nonsense for another 70 pages without giving much new insight into his experience. The one interesting bit that comes out of the whole ordeal is the gradual dissatisfaction that Kerouac feels for Buddhism (which, through his interpretation, seems to fall a bit close to nihilism) and his reacceptance of Christianity.

But after this first section, things pick up and Kerouac delivers one painfully sad and and transcendentally beautiful insight after another (one of my favorites: his frustration at receiving a $3 jaywalking ticket on the way to a job, costing him half his day's pay-- but you have to read the way he puts it to understand, of couse). It is worth noting that Desolation Angels really is two different books written almost 5 years apart. The first half he wrote while in Mexico City (during events he describes in the second half, Passing Through), while the second half was written in Florida (I think) while he lived with his mother. Thus, Kerouac's interpretation of life radically shifts when you begin the 2nd half. He also suddenly becomes a lot more candid, talking about his life as a writer, his use of drugs, and the homosexuality of his peers in a lot more detail and honesty than he could manage before. It is also important to understand that "Desolation Angels" (part 1) was written BEFORE On the Road was published, while "Passing Through" (part 2) was written AFTER. His sudden brush with fame can probably account for this shift in perspective.

I don't want to go into too much detail about the multitude of spiritual revelations within the book, as its better to hear it out of the mouth of the mystic. Reading the book, one can't help but notice that Kerouac, even when past his literary and spiritual peak, was not the embittered and impotent wreck that he's usually considered-- not based on his touching insights in "Passing Through." He clearly has a lot of faith in humanity, and of the necessity that people act out of love and respect rather than hate and fear. Many critics quickly dismiss Desolation Angels as a "lesser work," but I think that if you're willing the persist through the dense opening section, the rewards are nearly as profound as those of his more famous novels.

There is a lot in this book to enjoy and think about. Why it wasn't included in the syllabus for Post Modernist Fiction when I took it at Columbia in the 1970's is puzzling. Why read "Ulysses" or "The Sound and the Fury," two "classics" that leave you empty and frustrated, when you could read this book and at least walk away somewhat empowered? Why read two uninteresting drunks when you can read an interesting one? Maybe Kerouac might motivate you to take over Low Library or, better yet, drop out of Columbia and get a life. There must have been some reason.

Kerouac was apparently schizophrenic and I tend to prefer the thinker to the party animal, especially now that there are more party animals than there are parties to house them. What makes Kerouac interesting, though, is the way these two aspects of his personality interacted with each other. Scorn for the status quo, popularized in the "60's", whatever on earth the "60's" connotates in God's mind, can be traced back at least to the French symbolists, was then manipulated by 20th century national socialists, then rediscovered by the Beats and finally morphed itself into its opposite (the status quo) by the hippie-yuppie-military-Madison-Avenue-God-knows-what-else establishment we are currently enslaved by... I think I've run out of sentence. Ask Dennis Hopper when he's not making a commercial for Wall Street. Anyway, Kerouac gets this insanity at some very lucid level and it sets him apart from his peers, who were less (not?) able to view themselves, or their "generation," very critically. This all helps one muster up the (courage?) to deal with the current train wreck we're witnessing, with car after car mindlessly piling up on the smoldering heap. Not that Jack didn't add much to the smoldering heap. In fact, without the schizo element, it would be hard to believe that the same could get as heavy as he does in this book.

You can mindlessly read the first section of "Desolation Angels" on Desolation Peak. Kerouac seems like a normal, oversensitive guy and the section has a nice brevity and completeness about it. His existentialism is more current than Sartre or Camus and he is a better writer in many ways. He doesn't need to fictionalize because he sees that life provides the best material, so why muddy the water with a bunch of "lies?" Kerouac's only real "lies" are his bop prosodist excursions, during which his natural writing talents are short-circuited by his need to be "cool" and mimick Joyce and the other masters of confusion and tedium. The fact that Kerouac contradicts himself philosophically and morally almost constantly throughout is not a problem: he's B-E-A-T remember, like with a stick. And you're supposed to be as wasted as he is when you cognate, so what's the problem? It only matters when his stomach suddenly starts hemorraging in 1968, and then only to him really. He's like a star NFL quarterback, easily replaced once some 350 pound goon turns him into nursing home material. In "Desolation Angels," we get to witness the end of humanity as it was once known and Kerouac takes entire centuries of thought and sensibility with him to the grave.

But, Kerouac has two things going for him: he remains lucid enough, for the most part anyway, because he is documenting "simple life," as he might describe it. And, hence, secondly, he is able to convey greater complexities because he generally avoids the rhetorical stream-of-consciousness trap. It's like a Don Johnson "Miami Vice" shoot-out scene taking place in a library, with Don protecting himself from a stray bullet with a copy of Malraux, then opening to a page and reading an excerpt. If you're not laughing at least once every page, you're not reading closely.

Personally, I'd rather read Gauguin or van Gogh because they saw it coming. The issues were the same: freedom vs. modernity. Kerouac has many of their insights, but he thinks America, the open road, and guys who don't bathe regularly are going to save him and, by the time he finds out that they're going to kill him, it's too late. Apparently, like all blue-blooded Americans, he could be a pretty mean drunk. Fortunately, succeeding generations dropped their souls like Neanderthal Man dropped his tail and, so, there is no existential problem anymore. But, as Mr. Bowie notes on "Heathen," some of us "stay behind." For him it's 1982. Why 1982, I couldn't tell you. For me, it's 1903, the the year Gauguin died. For Jack, it was probably 1957, or therabouts. Either way, this book takes you back to a space that is now nowhere to be found, only recalled with pangs.

Of all parties mentioned, only Gauguin really completed his mission, as he had the sense to get out of Western Civilization before it turned him into one of those pickling cucumbers you stare at in horror at the grocery store, as it rots before your very eyes. No, Gauguin paints some beautiful pictures of the savage life that is dying, calls Schuffenecker an "idiot" and then, fulfilled, quietly dies. For Kerouac, this option was attempted (the Buckley interview was it?), but not really possible. However, it is most likely what he needed to do to complete the Duluoz legend. Unfortunately, Lowell, MA is his idea of the tropics. Ultimately, Jack's rucksack got full of too many sins, omissions and Americanisms to get him very far, so he ends up on a Greyhound bus with Memere too drunk to make out the next stop on the bus ticket.

All of this is much easier to comprehend if you view it as classic comedy, which is something Americans were once very good at making.

I read this book while travelling in India. I was amazed and touched. I haven't thought that Kerouac could write any better or even at the level of Onthe Road and The Subterraneans, I was wrong. If you like Keorouac, not to say a fan, buy this book.

Jack Kerouac's 'Desolation Angels', written about a period of his life roughly 10 years before his death, acts as a nice bridge between 'On The Road' (which was awaiting publication during the course of events described in "Angels") and a subsequent publication, Big Sur, both of which I've read.

During his two month self-imposed exile to work as a fire ranger on Desolation Peak, Jack Kerouac was forced to confront many of his pre-existing or emerging demons. The location for this period of his life is especially apropos for the 'desolation' surrounding Kerouac, much of which was self-created, as he sank further into depression and alcoholism.

The book covers more of his life than just the two months on Desolation Peak, but as Jack re-emerges into society, you get the sense that this 'loner' was only comfortable being 'alone' amongst others...that while he could see, smell, and wander amongst others, and feel tolerably 'isolated'...he could not stand the true isolation he could achieve, to remove himself from society altogether.

Jack wanders from the American Northwest to Florida, to Mexico, to Tangiers, to California with his mother in tow, and eventually back to Florida, when his mother grows further depressed with their cross-country move after only a month.

Many players from Kerouac's former novels appear in this one as well, albeit with different names...the poet 'Gregory Corso,' to whom Kerouac lost 'Mardou Fox' in "Subterraneans" is called 'Raphael Urso' in "Angels"...'Dean Moriarty,' from "On The Road" is 'Cody' in this incarnation.

Kerouac's detachment from the Beat Generation, his status as their reigning 'king', his fame, and his Buddhist beliefs all come into focus during this novel, one of his finest, in my opinion. If you rode shotgun with Kerouac for On The Road, explore his life further, and you will uncover far more about this dark, troubled, but fascinating author.

Kerouac at his best. Like the former reviewer, I agree that it times it can be thorny. However, if you take these "lull" moments for what they really are, you will see that much can be gained from reading them and not taking them as another Kerouac run-on. This novel, which I read third in the sequence of On the Road, Dharma Bums, and then Desolation Angels picks up nicely from the conclusion of Bums, and provides a great trilogy for those getting into Jack. Perfect character descriptions, encounters with his fellow beats, and the absolute wallowing of Kerouac into his Self...this being the best part of the novel, which the other two lacked. 5 Stars. Take your time with it, this is a beautiful piece of work.