L Books

Bobby Jones knows as much about the golf swing and game as anyone today. In fact, he is more modern than most modern instructors. His advice is easy to follow and it works. My game will be much better for it. Oh yes, I am a single digit handicapper. Anyone who will heed this advice will improve, no matter your handicap.

after viewing the jones' videos where nicklaus points out that jones would have altered his swing to match the equipment, this book sets the record straight. jones was able to edit this book after having seen some of the steel shaft swingers and cleary points out that his way (clearly he learned it from others ie spalding i think he noted) is indeed the right way, and if you were to put tiger woods up now and compare tiger's swing to nicklaus or jones i think he would more resemble jones than nicklaus. Anyway a real great book on golf for those "old school" guys who realize the old is forever new. i started reading the book about 3 yrs ago and i'm still working w/ it. like he points out in the book its somehting you can turn back to from time to time .....

This book taught me more about golf then all the lessons, swing gimmicks and video study that I've tried put together. If you are serious about understanding the fundamentals of golf get this book.

This is one of the greatest golf instruction books ever written in my opinion. The advice presented is still relevant and can help anyone improve their game. I feel this is must reading for any serious golfer.

I never saw Bobby Jones stirke a golf ball in person. I never saw him play a full game on 16 mm film for that matter. I can only go by his unmatched amateur record and very short old grainy 16-millimeter film stock of how graceful his swing was...very controlled, impeccable balance/ coordination, unbelievable tempo and rhythm. Pure ballstriking. Pure golf.

In his book, "Bobby Jones on Golf", Jones really gets to the spirit of the game. This is a great book on the nuances, technicalities, and philosophies of the game of golf.

If you read carefully and take his advice seriously, I believe you will become a better player. I can't guarantee this, but there is no reason why a beginner can't shoot in the 80's within the first year to two years of playing. If you do the reading and practice the fundamentals; after 3 years of playing on a regular basis (at least 3 to 4 times a week) you should be shooting in the 70's.

This book is a very easy and compelling read. Moreover, I think you will really enjoy Jone's prose. It's Jone's prose that makes this an enjoyable reading experience. It's by no means flowery or pretentious, but understated and blunt.

Much like reading a Jane Austen novel; it feels like Jones is actually speaking directly to you. And this is the best way to learn about something very complicated; to have the narrator / author personalize his language by using parables, analogies, and personal stories to make it easier for the reader to understand the complicated nuiances and idiosyncracies of the game of golf

Another important note: There are hardly any illustrations and no photographs in this book. There doesn't need to be either because Jones does such a great job in his explantions that his words paint pictures. I was glad that he didn't have to resort to any photos; it would have distracted from his impeccable teachings.

I highly recommend this book whether you're a beginner, intermediate, or advanced player. Not only will you learn from a golfing master, but you will have a new appreciation for the greatest game on earth.

Along with this book, I also recommend the reading of Ben Hogan's, "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf", Mickey Wright's "Swing the Wright Way", and Harvey Penick's, "The Little Red Book".

This book is amazing! Lots of mothers with many different breastfeeding experiences share their stories...and I cried through many of them because they were so touching. When you feel like no one understands why you are so glad to be breastfeeding your baby, this is the book to have. It's very inspiring to hear what some mothers go through to establish and maintain a breastfeeding relationship and it's encouraging that even after difficulties, they're glad they stuck with it. Wonderful book!!

I happened apon this book while reading flyers at the Library. Some ladies were getting together once a month at a local coffee shop and creating a support group "based on The Breastfeeding Cafe Book" I found the book to check out and was pleastly surprised!!
This book is filled with wonderful, inspiring, thoughtful stories that women from ALL walks of life have contributed to.
I was dealing with a second round of mastitis while I had this book and it became a comfort to me when my baby and I would be waking from a nap to nurse and read a few stories and fall back to sleep. It felt as though my mid wife or girl friends were hanging out with me.
I truely recommend this to every mom first time breastfeeing or nursing your fourth child. It makes a wonderful gift for a new mother or someone that you think may not have a whole lot of support to continue if they ever feel discouraged.

Your book is wonderful. It is giving me a blessed feeling of normalcy among all mothers...the feeling I get is of acceptance and of us all being in this same patriarchal boat together doing the best we can. It is refreshing to me after years of being an LLL leader and having my own issues with judgment and shame. I really appreciate what you've done, especially the very clear way you have written about women, femininity, biology, and work in our culture. The more we can do to pave the way for motherbaby togetherness and paid work, the better.

The Breastfeeding Cafe is perfect -- just like breastmilk! It contains all the essentials, including an intangible nurturing essence. This hearty smorgasbord of women's stories will nourish breastfeeding mothers just like breastmilk nourishes their babies. It will also fulfill lactation and childbirth professionals, as well as feminists.

Some people would call The Breastfeeding Cafe a scholarly work; others would call it a collection of intimate personal stories. Both descriptions would be accurate. Behrmann combines extensive research in the fields of medicine, sociology, history, and anthropology with anecdotal evidence cultivated from interviews with an amazingly diverse group of women. The result is a fascinating survey of breastfeeding in America today, and an in-depth examination of the ways in which breastfeeding is valued -- and devalued -- in our culture.

Mothers from all walks of life very openly share their experiences as breastfeeding women. Behrmann interviews mothers who planned their pregnancies and mothers who did not, mothers who gave birth in a hospital and mothers who gave birth at home, mothers of twins, mothers who are lesbians, mothers who are teenagers, mothers who have had breast implants, mothers who are employed in the corporate world, mothers who serve in the army, mothers who are college students, mothers who work minimum wage jobs, mothers who are immigrants, mothers who are highly educated, mothers who are former gang members, mothers of premature infants, mothers of babies who did not survive, mothers who have given their babies up for adoption.... Breastfeeding mothers are sure to see their own experiences reflected somewhere in these pages. Other women will get an accurate picture of the range of challenges and rewards involved in breastfeeding.

The focus is on exploring the physical, emotional, and cultural challenges and hardships that women have encountered as breastfeeding mothers; however, the overall message of The Breastfeeding Cafe is uplifting and encouraging. Behrmann's insights inspire hope for the future of women and babies, and for a cultural that is more supportive of breastfeeding and mothering.

If The Breastfeeding Cafe were a restaurant, its master chef Barbara Behrmann would receive rave reviews for her varied menu, her socially conscious approach, her tantalizingly original recipes, and her fulfilling portions.

I am a doula, chilbirth educator and mom of four. I absolutely loved the book. I thought that Ms. Behrmann covered so many great issues involved with breastfeeding. What was very refreshing to me was that she not only covered the "typical" topics, but also covered some of the issues that most people don't discuss. The book was highly motivating to me for continuing to breastfeed through challenges and to seek help when problems are encountered. As a doula, I give all of my clients and pregnant friends a copy of this book as their pre or postpartum gift. It very well may be the best book on breastfeeding they receive.

She had an amazing insight to what the Christian life is all about. A worth while read.

Contrary to popular belief, this is not primarily a book about God. Sayers wisely does not try to tell us about God directly, but about what is godlike in ourselves. 'The characteristic common to God and man,' she says, is 'the desire and ability to make things.' She draws a vivid and detailed analogy between the Christian Trinity and our own creative imagination. In working out the details of this analogy, she tells us a great deal about them both; but, inevitably, more about our own minds than God's.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit correspond to what Sayers calls the Idea, Energy, and Power. For a writer, the Idea is the book as he first imagines it; the Energy is the book as actually written; the Power is the impression it makes in the mind of each reader. The analogy applies equally well to all art forms. Sayers makes the Trinity seem as plain and familiar as a conversation. If you ever knew what you wanted to say but couldn't find the words, you felt the difference between the Father and the Son. If someone took your words to mean something you never intended, you felt the distance between the Son and the Spirit. Critics may say the Trinity is not real, but they can never again call it incomprehensible.

The rest of the book concentrates on the purely human maker. The longest chapter, 'Scalene Trinities', discusses the ways that the creative imagination can go wrong, and classifies them as failures of the Idea, the Energy, or the Power. I find this the most useful part of the book. Whatever kind of work we do, we find it all too easy to become obsessed with technical details (the Energy). We almost forget that we are trying to express an Idea, and so our work loses the Power to benefit other people. We need to be fully aware of all three parts of the process.

The Mind of the Maker is a brilliant book. But if you read it just for its theology, you will miss two-thirds of the brilliance. It has still more value as a guide to human creativity. If you are a Christian, or if you do any kind of creative work, this book will do your mind good.

If you are interested in an airtight, supremely reasoned, brilliantly explained, and determinedly impersonal description of what Christians state in their creeds, this is the book for all time. Beware, Unbelievers...**

**Of all the silly things written in the name of "atheism," probably the silliest is that God is the product of our minds. Well, duh.... How are we to know God except through our human minds? How are we to describe God except through our language and actions? It's only a question of which came first - God or the human capacity for an idea of something greater than ourselves who must have created us. I am infinitely more interested in the thoughts and writings of those who have studied and labored over a subject for all of their lives and built on the ideas of those who have done the same since the beginning of self-conscious thought. I am bored to tears with the ravings of those who just can't accept as the result of, say, several weeks - or a lifetime - of intermittent, random thoughts that there is something greater than themselves and with rules that go along with this being. So, on the grounds of depth, completeness, longevity, and logic, I prefer "The Mind of the Maker" not only to anything ever written denying God but to all other books about God.

The Mind of the Maker by Dorothy Sayers is a classic for a reason. She is an excellent writer and a wonderfully deep thinker. At times I honestly got lost in the depths but, as I look back, the truths and nuggets of "ah ha"s are worth a few head scratches.

She opens the book explaining that it is not an explanation or a defense of the Christian faith. The book is her attempt to "demonstrate that the statements made in the Creeds about the Mind of the Divine Maker represent, so far as (she is) able to check them by (her) experience, true statements about the mind of a human maker." (preface) There is a universal truth found in the act of someone who creates and the Creator of all things.

She explains how Father, Son, and Spirit can be well understood by the creative mind's "Idea", "Energy", and "Power". She mainly focuses on the illustration of the writer (her occupation and obviously greatest experience). The essential nature of an idea working its way with the energy of a person writing with its connected power that is released is an incredible thought. I've been meditating on it often.

Many times, as a follower of Christ, I focus on "just" one aspect of our God: the Father or Son or Spirit. I too often miss and do a vast injustice to Him as I do not focus on the eternal relationship that they all together forever work. Sayer has given me a new way of remembering and reflecting on my Love and Hope which has affected me.

I believe that being creative can be a spiritual discipline. This book will be my "proof text". We are most like our God when we exhibit his love and work in a finite yet glorious way while we create something. Be it a new song, photograph, painting, story, etc. Hmm, maybe even creating another blog entry... a bit.

I highly recommend The Mind of the Maker even if you can't run through it, it is worth a slow soak. Don't be afraid to put it down and ponder. This book isn't for the "fast food" reader but it is accessible to all.

Sayers starts with the orthodox concept of the Trinity and suggest that the mind of man as creator is analogous. By examining the mind of man as creator and the work he creates, we can acquire a better understanding of the Holy Trinity. While this might seem outlandish at first, it works! When you think about theological concepts just as concepts, they can be very hard to grasp. But Sayers uses concrete examples to illustrate theological concepts, and avoids the temptation to overextend her analogy. She concentrates mainly on the writer-creator, since she herself is a writer. Her insights on the creative process of writing are almost as interesting as the light they shed on the nature of God. These insights go well beyond the concept of the Trinity--she offers an interesting perspective on the existence of evil, free will, and much more. I've never read anything like this.

Great information, very practical. if you want to understand the biblical need for planned and purposefully church communications, read this book!

I am heading a marketing team for our church's Appreciative Inquiry process. Our team jumped in to the task with both feet, but were starting primarily from a corporate standpoint, and without this book's ability to refocus our efforts, we would have missed the most important question. "What face is our church showing the community now, and how can we change that?" ChurchMarketing 101 asked a number of hard questions, and is making us look at our church with new eyes which will enable us to move forward in a much more effective manner. It is a must read not only for the marketing team, but for our ministers and board as well. I highly recommend it for any church that wants to do a better job carrying the message.

Good book, great insights, will really make you think about yor church at whatever size or level you find yourself. I found it a little bit frustrating that the author does not include some "self-help" tools and "do-it-yourself" steps to surveying and ananlyzing the local church marketplace, however. This leaves the reader in the unfortunate position of feeling the need to hire a professional to get the results they want, something not everyone should do or can afford to do. -Pastor Gary Mauro

For those interested in pin-pointing some of the modern trends in successful church venues. This book is insightful. Short of hiring a PR person for the church or ministry, this book is a great directional tool in putting your best foot/face forward for success in working with people/the church as well as the unchurched visitors in the 21st century.
Basically saying first impressions are everything and talks about ways to accomplish this. Not so much image as best face and in my opinion not any cheesier than "Write(ing) the vision on the wall that all may see and fun with it." It is scriptural. Visual fortification is scriptural and effective. Great resourse.

If you know anything at all about basic marketing do not bother buying this book as it is just redundant to what you already know. I was looking for true ideas and strategies not run of the mill Marketing 101 info. If you know NOTHING about marketing then not a bad buy but even then do not expect any big inspirations.

... No psycho-drama authorship trying to turn historical facts into "entertaining history". This book takes the documented history of the Vietnam air war, thoughtfully analyzes the data, and presents rational conclusions that can be used as lessons for the future. This is "intelligent history" at its best. Well-done!

This book is an excellent account of the "corporate" deficiencies of the USAF in the late 60's and early 70's. The deficiencies of the air-to-air missiles in the Vietnam war are strikingly similar to the deficiencies of the torpedos in the USN in the first two years of WWII. Equally striking was the smug attitude of the service about the superiority of US aircraft ("The F-86 had a 13:1 kill ratio over the MiG-15. Who cares that they slaughtered the F-84s?") and the poor pilot training that occurred for both USAF and USN F-4 drivers. The MiG-21 was indeed a nasty surprise. With a higher thrust-to-weight ratio and a lower wing loading, it could both out-accelerate and out-turn F-105s and F-4s. The only American advantage was a higher clean top speed, and external ordinance stores and fuel tanks often abrogated this. The MiG-21 had poor visibility, and a short range, but was an excellent point defense interceptor that transitioned well from bomber defense to dog fighting. (As an aside to the book, with modern electronics, the MiG-21/Lancer and MiG-21/2000 are excellent low-cost fighters today, but each air-air missile will cost you as much as the airframe!) The book details both the combat adaptations that worked (jamming pods, IFF interrogators) and the effective efforts of the USN and criminal negligence of the USAF (and I write as an ex-USAF officer) to improve dog fighting capabilities between the end of Rolling Thunder in 1968 and Linebacker I/II in 1972. The Navy instituted the Top Gun school and made effective modifications to the AIM-9 Sidewinder - the Air Force made a couple of ineffective changes to the AIM-9 and some moderately good ones to the AIM-7, though much of the better performance of the latter during Linebacker was due to higher engagement altitudes resulting from the use of laser guided bombs for the strike packages. He does make the point in the end that the USAF attitude improved after Vietnam when the junior officers of that war increased in seniority and that the introduction of AWACS and trading top speed for maneuverability and visibility in the new generation of fighters cured many of the deficiencies seen in the Vietnam war. A minor objection is that the book does not refer to officers below general rank by name.

Clashes deals with the air war over North Vietnam, something I've had a fascination with for some time. Why, because I wanted to understand why servicemen were put into a dangerous position and what did really happen. To help answer this, Col. Michel takes on the entire air war over North Vietnam (Rolling Thunder, Linebacker I, and Linebacker II). Rather than looking at it from the cockpit view (ala Thud Ridge: F-105 Thunderchief missions over Vietnam or When Thunder Rolled), Col. Michel takes us up to the operations level and provides a good high level breakdown of many of the raids and the engagements between fighters and the North Vietnamese air defenses. The book is divided into two parts (Rolling Thunder and Linebacker) with subsections focusing on different components (both parts use equipment used, early engagements, later engagements, and summary). In each of subsection, Col. Michel does a very good job describing what is occurring and what the Americans and North Vietnamese are doing. In addition to describing engagements, Col. Michel does a great job describing the involvement of EC-121's (College Eye/Disco) and Red Crown (a naval ship controlling the fighters) and their impact on the fight. Unlike other history's, Clashes does not name the pilots involved, rather their radio call signs are used.

Parts I Loved:
Clashes gives us much information about the aircraft involved, the abilities of the men flying them (their training and tactics), and the environment they're fighting in. I loved the drawings, they do an excellent job showing the differences between a fluid four and a loose deuce. I also loved Col. Michel including the technical aspects; performance test of captured MiG's, the Command and Control aspect (often overlooked), and the power and effect of jamming.

Parts I Wish Were a Little Stronger:
Iron Hand missions were a little on the weak side. I have a love and fondness for Wild Weasels and wish that more had been brought out about their support of the missions and how they operated (I'm sorry, this was weak in comparison to the attention paid to Chaff bombers). I also wish more had been brought out about rescue missions and the work they did there.

Bottom Line
Rating wise, this is a very solid 4.5 star book. I am giving it the node to 5 for Amazon purposes, but for my personal rating I can't rate it up there with Fire in the Sky: The Air War in the South Pacific by Eric Bergerud (I'm sorry, Fire in the Sky is my personal favorite or telling the story of an air war. Clashes though is right behind it!). I understand why Col. Michel focused heavily on the air-to-air engagements and for the insight he provides there this a solid 5 star book. No matter, if you want to know about the Vietnam Air War (mainly in Pack's 5 and 6), then this is the book for you.

This is simply the best book on the air war over thenorth. Here you found both technichal datas, doctrinal debate and combat history. Michel style is dry, he ocnentrates on fact rayther than personal memoir or oral history, but reading this book you will have the best picture of the actal missions over the North Vietnam. Tha autohrs follow the history of the air war both from US and DRV perspective comparing airacraft, weapons and doctrines. The book is full of detial form the advantages and disavanteges of the various aricrafts to the dreaded flight four USAF formation. He actually dispel some myths (especially adressoing the real effectiveness of the SAM defense). If you are interested in air war this book is a must.

"Clashes:Air Combat over North Vietnam 1965-1972" is the best book I have ever read on aerial combat over North Vietnam and one of the best books I have read on aerial combat in general. It provides an excellent analysis of what went right and what went wrong in the skies over North Vietnam. I was truly amazed to read how often the air to air missiles, especialliy the AIM-7 Sparrow, malfunctioned. For anyone interested in aerial combat, this excellent book is a must!

Easy to read and VERY INFORMATIVE. I wish I would have know about this book earlier.

I purchased this study guide after reading several of the reviews. I am too impressed with the overall quality of this book. It provides preview tests and practice tests for Early Childhood, K-6, 5-9 and 7-12. I began studying three months before the test and used one other reference text book; Effective Teaching Methods by Gary D. Borich. I passed both the Elementary Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment and the Content Area Exercise on the first try. Now on to student teaching--Yeah!!

Very thorough overview of what will be on the PLT and excellent outlines of the information that will be tested. This book eliminates the need to go through textbooks from other classes to look up information, which saves time and effort.

This book is definitely the one to get! This book has TWO practice tests for each test, whereas the ETS book only has ONE test. This book also reviews important concepts and explains them clearly and in an organized fashion. Highly recommend!! The ETS book is not as helpful.

This book was a very thorough study guide. The practice tests were very valuable, as was the extensive information regarding theorists and other information that was on the test. I just took my Praxis today, and I left feeling very confident, thanks to this book!

Plain and simply REMARKABLE. This is one of the best books I've read to date. The simplicity/complexity in which it was written was a unique experience to come across. Its the type of book that you don't want to put down. The way the author describes in great detail the scenery of every event and the thoughts of all the characters, makes it the more phenomenal and interesting to read, as it also makes you live a vivid image of the events. I STRONGLY recomend this book to everyone, as it is a good book.

CinthyaC.

All I can say is I read this book, in one day and then read it again. This book had love, sex, family issues, sisters in stress, men who are greedy, I swear it was like eating gunbo. Sheba knows that Sol loves her, and knows that he could be the one. However in Sheba mind money control the world. Sheba is afraid of being poor so she lives this fake life until Mr Sol shows her something different in herself.

This is my first time reading a whole noval by Mr. Allen but this will not be my last. Sheba was not perfect and neither was Sol, but that is what made them so GOOD for each other. I wish a man could love me half as much as Sol loved Sheba.

Keep up the good work

Mr. Allen's writing skills are masterful. I could not put the book down until I reached the end. The manner in which he weaves the story keeps you guessing. The book is very well written and there is never a dull moment. The characters are well developed. Some of them you'll love and others you just want to jump into the book and strangle. I recommend you read it, you will not be disappointed.

The book is hot, steamy, and erotic without question. The descriptions in this book are intense enough to make an Eskimo sweat. The book takes place in Miami, Fl. which I appreciate, being a native. My one major concern with this book is how modern the vernacular is. Although, coupled to the descriptive nature of the settings and characters the vernacular manages to further depict each character vividly and build the readers mental image of them. My testimony being that I read through the first three chapters of this book in twenty minutes and didn't miss an ioda. Very discriptive and intense. I look forward to my experience to come in this class. I may have forgotten to mention that Mr. Allen is my English Proffesor.

From the very first pages to the very end of the novel I was embeded in the book. The erotic development of the characters along with the stylish and modern slang or prose that the novel was written in makes it a hell of a read. I have never read a book in such a short period of time, simply put I just couldn't put it down.
I guarantee you will not be bored for a second. A great novel.
Read this book , and if I where you I would look into another one of the authors works as well.

I bought about ten of these because they are so easy to carry around and are printed with easy to read type and sell at a very good price. I have many other editions of Shakespeare's plays but these are perfect for what I wanted. I have lots of other editions with introductions, evaluations, etc. and I don't really need that in my bag. These editions are a great way to read the plays without carrying around five pounds of book!

this is shakespeare's most accessible comedy. it's a farce about mistaken identities among identical twins. nothing complicated here. the play has it's funny moments. it's not the bard's best comedy; that's 'much ado about nothing', imho. but this is not a bad place to start.

Shakespeare's vision grew tremendously over the course of his writing career. However, this play demonstrates that his uncanny power as an artist grew quickly and was present in some form from the very begining. It is exceedingly hard to buy the common notion that this was his first comedy when it is so much better than "The Two Gentlemen of Verona" in nearly every way. The dialogue is fast paced and screamingly funny. The characters interesting if broad and there are some surprising touches that, aside from being interesting in and of themselves, point down the road to later, darker comedies. Chief among these is the amazing opening, perhaps still unequaled in all comedy for the level of grimness. These are the first words uttered in a play long seen as a kind of sitcom of Shakespeare's plays: "Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall, and by the doom of death end woes and all." The speaker is Egeon, a merchant about to be put to death for simply coming from the wrong country. The whole first scene feels like a cloud is hanging over it and there is a sense of fear-infused urgency that catches the mind off guard and makes the joyous, lunatic story all the more welcome while at the same time coloring it with real drama, making it all the more exciting. To be sure, there is little real depth and much of the play is like a sitcom but only the best of sitcoms and perhaps "Monty Python" at their most absurd is a better comparison. The plot is well chosen (from the Roman comic dramatist Plautus) and well handled. For some reason the play is not well known even among the early comedies which is a shame. It is probably the best of them, even surpassing the wonderful "The Taming of the Shrew". Aside from being an easy read, keep in mind the play is good to perform as it holds up well and doesn't suffer from being tinkered with. I've seen one production that was mostly straightforward but did a few weird things that worked like magic. They would've sunk almost any other Shakespeare comedy. I must also mention the last moment between the two clowns. It is as heart-warming and humane as it is funny. The master is already present AND growing. Do yourself a favor and pick up this play, you'll laugh your head off!

I recently re-read THE COMEDY OF ERRORS prior to attending The Colorado Shakespeare Festival's performance of this farce-like play under the summer stars here in Boulder. Based on Menaechmi by Plautus, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) produced this romantic comedy between the years 1592-93 and published it in the First Folio in 1623. While on its surface this early play may seem superficial and frivolous when measured against KING LEAR or HAMLET, it is not without its own unique depths. It also shows that the Bard had a sense of humor. It tells the hilarious story of two, identical twin brothers (Antipholus of Syracuse and Antipholus of Ephesus) and their identical twin servants (both named Dromio), all of whom were separated at sea during their infancy until redisdovering each other through a series of madcap mix-ups, mayhem, and mistaken identities in the apparently insane town of Epheseus. Meanwhile, Egeon (the father of the Antipholus twins), has been granted a day to raise local ransom for illegally entering Ephesus. In that day, the separated twins are reunited, Antipholus of Ephesus pays his father's ransom, and Egeon discovers his long-lost wife (Aemilia) living in the local priory. In the end, THE COMEDY OF ERRORS is as much about the power of family as the search for completing oneself. It is a play that reminds me that it is perhaps better to re-read and understand Shakespeare than to devour one bestseller after the next.

G. Merritt

One of the problems that great artists present to us is where to begin in getting to know their works. Their masterworks are often so full of what they have spent a lifetime developing that most of it is lost on those who have not yet put in a significant amount of effort becoming familiar with that artist's style and means of expression. Yet, if one begins with their apprentice works one may become discouraged because they lack the miracles of the masterworks. So, where does one begin?

Shakespeare offers the reader an additional challenge of an English that is removed in style and idiom from us by 400 years. It is not an insurmountable challenge. In fact, it is quite easy to overcome with a bit of time reading it and getting into the flow. It just seems strange in the beginning, but it really does become easy to read once you spend some time with it. However, getting over that small hill has kept many from enjoying the glories of Shakespeare.

This play, "The Comedy of Errors", is clearly an early work. It has many virtues, but despite them it does not offer much of what we really value in Shakespeare. It is a very fine play and is constructed very well. It is a wonderful first work to read of Shakespeare because it is short and has a very simple plot. The new reader does not have to spend much effort contemplating characters or the immense subtlety of language of the great works. Its charms are direct and what it has to offer is pretty much on the surface of the words.

The plot is, like all farces, ridiculous. It involves twin brothers who are served by twin slaves. They are separated early in life and when the play opens one set does not know the other exists. One set (the Antipholus and Dromio from Syracuse) visits Ephesus where the other set (the Antipholus and Dromio of Ephesus) lives. The play involves people confusing the two sets to the bewilderment of those suffering from the confusion. It really is quite funny. Of course, eventually, all is resolved to everyone's delight.

This edition, like all of the individual editions Arden offers of these plays, has a wonderful opening essay that offers a great deal of background on the play including a discussion of its performance history, sources, and discussion of the play itself. The appendices in the back offer excerpts from the sources and some brief information on the Gray's Inn performance of 1594.

If you desire to study Shakespeare and are willing to spend time reading many of his plays, "The Comedy of Errors" is a good work to start with just to ease into the language and get a feel for some of the conventions of Elizabethan theater. Just don't stop here. Shakespeare has so much more to offer that you owe it to yourself to continue your exploration of this supreme artist.

Here is the story of a fourteen year old girl dealing with all the issues that many other fourteen year old girls go through. Zeises tells the story through Lara Doyle without any dead spots and lots of action. However, some of the characters seemed a little fake and unrealisitic to me. Even Lara (the main character) seemed to go overboard a few times. Even though it was cliche, I would suggest this book for any girl just now going into puberty or just now starting to read young adult fiction. It's a good starter book but for advanced readers, I wouldn't really suggest this book.

Lara I absolutly love your book i consider myself somewhat of an avid reader and have read around quite a bit and let me tell you, future readers of this book preprare to be delighted by the realistic charm and humor that lucy (biscuit) exudes. As much as i loved Contents Under Pressure I found myself wishing for more. Do Tobin and Lucy stay together? What happens to the baby. TELL ME!!! please help me by writing a much awaited sequel!

lara you should write a squel to it because it fun exicting a gives a view of things you tell the story like your are really her and take the book into a far away land that you can't put the book down you just keep on reading until the book is finish and we want more and want to see if another book is coming out.We love your book and you should write more for your fans out which is me and million and billion of people

Contents under pressure by Laura M. Zeises is a really good book for teenagers ages thirteen to seventeen.

This book is really good because it is really easy to relate to. This is a good book for teens going through adolescence because they can relate to what fourteen year old Lucy is going through. Like having an older boyfriend, wondering about dating, having your older brother's pregnant girlfriend move into your room, and having a dad who's always at work instead of with his family.

After reading this book I couldn't put it down I finished it only a few hours.

This is the first book I have read by Lara M. Zeises, and I was happily surprised.

The book follows fourteen-year-old Lucy Doyle as she falls in and out of friendships, battles home conflicts, and eventually gets a boyfriend. I found the story itself, quite readable and realistic.

One of the things I liked about this book was that it didn't seem to make any of the horrible and all-too-common mistakes that other books have. For instance, I hate it when main characters treat depression, mental illness, and other family problems with an almost bored tone as in "I'm so-and-so, I'm tall and skinny, have a dog, and have a mother who hasn't gotten out of bed in three weeks." Another thing I hate is when the girl/boy's situation is a my-dad-is-in-jail-my-brother-is-suicidal. "Contents Under Pressure" avoided both these problems. The situation at home was realistic and just as life-changing, and the Lucy had genuine reactions that changed over the course of the book.

You can sympathize with Lucy and all of her friends at the same time, instead of hating one person one page, and hating another the next. The same thing goes for her brother, jack, and his girlfriend, Hannah. The way she meets her future boyfriend is quirky and unique.

Overall, I definitely recommend "Contents Under Pressure."

very good book, could not put it down, great insite into what goes on the the adoption process

This is a good book for anyone interested in international adoption. It goes through her personal story and the process of adopting from another country.

I loved this book, the writer has a positive outlook on life. She explains things about adoption very well. One of the only books that I have read where the adoptive couple are not infertile but just feel the need to have a child through adoption. Intresting read!

When I read about the author first meeting her baby in China I cried, on the bus. I couldn't believe how emotional this moment must be. I can't wait to be able to adopt a little baby girl.

The author dealt with the issues of adoption with a lot of tact and was honest about some of the negative things that her family went through, from bureaucratic delays to their daughter's health problems. I was fully resigned to the fact that it would be a totally sappy story, but surprisingly it was just sweet but not overly emotional, so that's a plus for me. This book is informative not just for those in the adoptioin process (which I am not) but anyone interested in child welfare in general, or just a nice story about becoming a mother. All of the profits go towards the non-profit organization that the author founded so in addition to enjoying this book I am happy to be helping her cause.