Lewis Books

I am a long time hunter but am heading on my first black bear hunt in June. This book was exceptional in the way it explained tactics for taking a black bear. It was great learning about bear hunting from experienced and successful hunters/authors. I learned a lot about habitat, diet, and and bear activity. Although there were a few paragraphs about anatomy, shot placement and post-kill activities, I would have liked to have seen photos or diagrams showing vital organs from various angles. Also, preparing meat, head, and hide appears to be quite different for a bear in comparison to a deer. Again, I would have liked to see pictures/diagrams of post-kill activities. All in all, the book if chock full of good advice and I, too, will read it again before our upcoming hunt.
Richard Shipley, San Antonio, TX

In order to have any successful hunting adventure, it is necessaary to gain all the knowledge possible about where and what you are hunting. I found Black Bear Hunting by Lewis & Vantassell to be well written, and very informative. I will even read it again before heading to Prince of Walse Island, Alaska in June of 2008 for my first black bear hunt. I have hunted dangerous and non dangerous game animals in North America, New Zealand, and Africa, and I highly recommend this book for the novice and for the experienced hunter. Good Luck to all of you on your next adventure. John D. Beals, D.D.S., Redmond, Oregon

Having successfully applied deer and elk hunting tactics gleaned from Gary's previous titles Hunting Oregon and Deer Hunting, this current title from Gary Lewis has me eager to be in the field for the upcoming 2008 seasons.

From the perspective of someone who is relatively new to bear hunting, I found "Black Bear Hunting" by Gary Lewis to be a very good read. It is packed with great tips and insights that have me more prepared than ever to succeed during my 2008 Spring and Fall bear hunts.

This book is an excellent addition to my hunting library.

My husband, Bob, is 68 and preparing for his first big game hunt this spring; Alaskan Black Bear. He has read numerous books, consulted with experts, watched videos all in preparation for the hunt. Bob just read Gary Lewis' book, Black Bear Hunting and had the pleasure of meeting him. He found answers to his most basic and advanced questions in this fine work and Gary really "walks the walk". We highly recommend it to beginners and experts alike.
BJ in Bend, Oregon

i have thoughly enjoyed reading gary lewis and lee van tassell black bear hunting book

This book is incredibly well-researched, strongly argued, and exceptionally well-written. DuBois is someone whom I have always greatly respected, and it was a pleasure to read another of his incredible texts.

Given the way race relations have unfolded since the book was written, WEB DuBois' tome is THE essential work on the most pivotal and one of the most grossly underrated periods of American history.

Since it is told from the vantage point of a Black American, it stands as one of the essential missing voices in an otherwise neatly politicized and racially sanitized periods of American history and areas of American historical scholarship.

DuBois, writing with an impressive flair, is not bashful about giving credit where it is due, whether to noble and humane slave owners or to the vastly underrated and seldom reported contributions of Negroes during this period. This emphasis alone is a display of courage unlikely to be found except in very rare instances in other books on this subject.

Despite its flair, the book is still dense with details that only a first rate historian could uncover and organize so well. And although the book has been criticized for being too much of a Marxist economic analysis, it is nevertheless accurate, has the full ring of truth and remains relatively non-polemical. And for one partial to non-Marxist economic analyses, I find rather strangely that DuBois' Marxist analysis seems the appropriate tool uniquely suited for analyzing the circumstances of this particular era of American history.

In short, the book is not just another oblique harangue against the American system of racism as it was practiced during the reconstruction era--or as it has been practiced during any era for that matter.

Along side Eric Froner's book, "Reconstruction," this is another tour de force. For essential reading on one of the most important periods in American history, one is unlikely to find in print a better book on this subject. Amen.

DuBois goes state by ruthless state describing the atrocities committed upon black folks by white folks. In one story he tells of a black man riding a mule and a white man wants the mule so he walks up to the black man and shoots him off.
In another story he describes a husband and wife who have traveled miles on foot after the wife (who is pregnant)was beaten unmercifully by her ex-master. Her skin has been ripped to the bone by the cat-o-nine tails

This book is written like a text book on history. It is not for the faint of hear. I guess that would make sense. This is a serious read and makes you think. I learn a lot about reconstruction from the black prospective.

Du Bois took a revolutionary new look at Reconstruction in the 1930's, providing a fresh view that went largely ignored until recent books by Foner and Litwack resuscitated this overlooked period in American history. Du Bois summons up his great intellectual bearing to illustrate that from being the unmitigated failure that Reconstruction has long been portrayed as, it was the crucible of civil rights legislation, a time when there was very definitely hope that America would redefine itself along more egalitarian lines. While the book deals predominately with the black man's point of view, Du Bois offers a principled Marxist view of labor relations at the time, and how the leading Radical Republicans tried to come to terms with the new industrial society that was emerging in America.

Du Bois was a very compelling writer, he cuts through the layers of history to reveal the soul of the persons most greatly affected by Reconstruction. He charts the troubled waters of the Civil War, and the Presidential attempts at Reconstruction which followed the Union victories in the South. He provides a candid view of Lincoln, who struggled with his own prejudices, but eventually came to accept the black man because of the pivotal role he played in the war. Ironically, Du Bois noted a black did not become a man until he showed he could hold a gun in battle.

Du Bois felt Lincoln really did alter his views during the course of the war, no longer favoring the colonist view held by many that blacks should be repatriated to Africa. However, Du Bois felt that Lincoln lacked the convictions to really push forward Reconstruction, that his principal concern remained in reclaiming the Southern states in the Union.

The mighty task of Reconstruction was left up to the Radical Republicans in Congress and the "Black" legislatures that emerges in the South during this time. Du Bois refutes the Dunning-Bowers view that blacks were incapable of forming governments, by providing a chapter on "The Black Proletariat in South Carolina." Here, he shows that blacks fully recognized the enormity of this most propitious moment, but that they ran up against a set of state and federal courts, which refused to hold up their decisions. While blacks were now members of state legislatures and of the US Congress, they did not take over the South, as is often described. Even in South Carolina, where blacks outnumbered whites, blacks were only temporarily able to seize control of the legislature, and force a new state constitution.

This is the book that forms the basis for Foner's excellent book, Reconstruction. Du Bois was the first to realize that Reconstruction was more than just an epilog to the Civil War, but the beginning of the long road to freedom, which took nearly 100 years in the making for blacks in America.

Mian Toris is traveling towards Kyuraweil Keep in the heart of the Helgebard Empire. This warrior android is on her way to confront the Empress Shion, and destroy her and the Empire. This book is a must read, the amazing art work of the city's along the way are a must see. Also one of the best chapters is "Two's company three's a crowd pleaser", this chapter is about a female wrestling competion. Johji Manabe also draws you into the story around the Empire, by giving you a little more information about where Mian is from.

This collection by Johji Manabe's Caravan kidd is just great. Everything you expect from a god storyline is here: monsters, greed, action and a little love. Read it, you won't be disappointed!

i actually discovered this series abroad and was introduced to Manabe's world for the first time. i had been an Anime fan before, but now i'm completely facinated by Manga. If you like adventure epics (Indiana Jones, Star Wars type stuff), great stories, or Japanese Animation/Comics i could not emphasize more: THIS IS A MUST HAVE!!! it may just change the way you look at the world (and maybe even yourself!).

After this check out Manabe's Drakuun, it's like Caravan Kidd up to a whole different level!

Nowone seems to have heard of this awsome series by the most famous, Johji Manabe, a legendary manga artist. If you tink Outlanders is good then you'll love this awsome series. Get all three books. I guarantee that you will love it.

Johji Manabe has got to be one of the best manga artist storytellers in all of Japan. His stories are the work of sheer genius, keeping audiences guessing, laughing, and crying until the end, and Caravan Kidd is no exception to the rule. This was his second series to be picked up by Dark Horse and translated again by the great Toren Smith, who showed the world exactly how to re-tell a story in another language without losing half the plot in the process with his work on Outlanders.

Caravan Kidd is a more humorous work than Outlanders was, but by no means should it be taken less seriously by its readers. Quite honestly, by the last several pages, the reader will be tempted to sit down and start reading the whole darn thing over again to watch all the pieces fall into place. And though it has its laugh-out-loud funny moments, it also has its disturbing, darker moments as well. For this reason, along with some graphic violence, adult situations, and stuff that younger children simply could and will not grasp, I recommend that the reader be at least 16 years of age.

Caravan Kidd is another one of those examples of how to do EVERYTHING right with a story. The words, "Show, don't tell," are more important in the comic book genre than any other literary form, and Caravan Kidd is a top-notch example of how to show the most while telling only what is absolutely necessary, and letting the reader figure the rest out for him/herself.

This book was very nice: lovely pictures, gentle storyline that was also informative. I enjoyed it very much.

This is a great way for young and old to lean about sweet grass basket making! Perfect for late elementary school students.

The book's illustrations were very interesting and creative. The story line was an accurate dipiction of slavery and the history behind it. It connected strong family ties from generation to generation with the beautiful basket weaves and family customs. Those who are associated with the geography of the book can make a strong personal connection to the atmosphere of the book. For teaching purposes, it relates the importance of family history and bonds throught the generations. It also shows how far we've developed as a society. It would be part of our text set for slavery in our classroom.

If I were making a very short list of books to remember Charleston by, this would be on it. The language is lyrical and wonderful to read aloud. The illustrations are gorgeous. Both Raven and Lewis do a superb job of sharing the meaning of family ties across generations, as well as sharing the Gullah culture. I'm a newcomer to the Low Country, and I don't have any African heritage, but still, something in this story really resonated with me. Highly recommended!

We love the South Carolina Low Country, and are proud to own a number of sweetgrass baskets, most made by the same lady. This book was a wonderful find to share with my daughter, who is almost 4. The pictures are lovely, and the history is honest without being too brutal for younger listeners. Older readers will certainly get the depth of the slave history, while it serves as a good introduction for the younger. I found it to be a poetic and lyrical read, and a good explanation of how the art of Low Country coil basket weaving (also known as Charleston sweetgrass basket weaving) has been passed down.

Here in this book you will find some of the finest poetry that any author from Britain has ever produced. Owen writes with style and uses words in such a beautiful way that one can only wonder how he was able to do it. His non-war poems are just as astounding as his war poems and this collection is great for any reader of poetry. Highly recommended, this book will not dissapoint.

I was first exposed to the poems of Wilfred Owen in high school and it has had a lasting inpact on my appreciation of poetry and the horrors of war. The imagery that Owen uses in his classic Dolce et Decurum est about the callacousness and futility of modern warefare leaves one with both awe and disgust, especially when concluded by the saying sweetness and honor is to die for one's country. Tragically whose knows what Owen might have produced had he lived longer.

Seeing a posting for a new biography of Wilfred Owen reminded me to return to this anthology of his poems. Every war has produced great poets and WWI was fixed in our minds by the sensitive words of Siegfried Sassoon and especially Wilfred Owen. Writing from the trenches Owen managed to keep his eyes and mind and heart wide open while he witnessed the horrid plunder that surrounded him.. That he was able to transpose these experiences into the transcendentally beautiful poems that fill this book is a major wonder. Yes, WWII had WH Auden et al and the hungry monster machine of war was again made into words. And poets wrote of Korea, of Vietnam, and other countries' poets wrote of other wars. But again the threats and facts cloud our lives and world, and their words seemingly fall on deaf ears. Would that we could take heed of the poems of such perfection as those here by Wilfred Owen. This is the time to study this book........daily.

War and poetry- two concepts infrequently mentioned, much less allied, in the same breath. Yet during World War I a number of writers took the horrific experiences of the Western Front and turned them into some of the twentieth century's finest, most disturbing poetry. Among these "war poets", Wilfred Owen is indisputably one of the greatest.

From the opening declaration " Above all, I am not concerned with Poetry... My subject is War, and the pity of War..." through the dreamlike madness of "Strange Meeting" to the elegiac fury of "Anthem for Doomed Youth", Owen hones the poetic craft he learned as a juvenile romantic versifier into a rapier on which he skewers the futility of the war, the blind official stupidity which kept it going, and the inhumanity shown by each side to its own men as well as the enemy.

Killed in action not long before the Armistice, Owen saw little publication of his work. However, his verse- carefully arranged, meticulously researched and documented by Cecil Day Lewis- is not only his epitaph. As relevant and affecting today as in 1918, it's as fine a counter-argument as any ever written against those who dismiss poetry as flowery nonsense. And for the rest of us? Few media can express the true nature and terrible costs of the First World War as eloquently as poetry at its finest can- and Owen provides it in plenty.

This is a wonderful book, and one of the most powerful collections of anti-war poems ever put together. Wilfred Owen was not a man who was describing war from the safety of his own home. He was in the thick of it, and he paid the ultimate price.

'Anthem for Doomed Youth' may just be the most powerful of all anti-war poems, and it was voted 8th in a list of Britain's favourite poems in a BBC poll. This poem like Owen's work generally is written in an unpretentious style. His poetry is very moving, but without being sentimental. He's painting pictures with words, and the pictures aren't pretty.

All his renowned work is here, including 'Dulce et Decorum est', 'Disabled', and 'Mental Cases'. The notes are very interesting, as you'd expect from a literary heavyweight like C. Day Lewis, and there's also some of Owen's non war poetry, but that's still bleak!

If you want to buy any book of Owen's work, I'd recommend this one for starters.

Twelve-year-old Grace, daughter of immigrant parents from Canada, is a bouncing, energetic, vivacious rural Vermonter. Grace is torn between her teacher's desire for her to make a better life through education and her mother's desire for her to work in the mills to support her family. Highly intelligent Grace is eager to grow up and go to work, but discovers that, being left handed, she is less capable than the other workers. One day, Lewis Hine, a photographer, comes to secretly investigate the mill and takes Grace's picture. This fantastically well-written book (completely in Grace's voice) is one of the best young adult novels I've ever read. Grace's world is very real, from the detailed descriptions of the mill to the characters that surround her and determine her destiny. The historical tale (set in 1910) makes us, as Lewis Hine's photographs do, look directly into the eyes of the child labor issue. Grace, in her excitement and need to work in the mills to provide for her family, but her even deeper need to do more with her life. Grace--as all young teenagers do--must face her domineering mother's expectations for her life and to become her own person. A beautiful, funny, clever, well-characterized, poignant, and powerful novel. Grade: A

When a children's author wishes to write a piece of historical fiction, there are a number of ways to do so. They can write about a specific historical moment. The fall of Pompeii, for example, or perhaps a battle during the Civil War. They can also just pick a period in time rather than any one single moment. The most difficult historical fiction, however, is when an author decides to incorporate a real person into their fictional narrative. This technique is a staple of poorly written children's books. You know what I mean. The old idea that falls along the lines of Martin Luther King Jr. meets a kid from the future and teaches him a valuable lesson, yadda yadda yadda. Ugh. It takes a careful hand and a steady talent to do what Elizabeth Winthrop has accomplished with, "Counting On Grace". Winthrop knows that if you were going to write a book where, for example, a small girl meets someone like Lewis Hine, you're going to have to give your hero (not the historical figure) enough of a backstory and life to make her just as real as Hine himself. The joy of "Counting On Grace" is that even though this is a story about a horrific time concerning horrific events, it's not depressing or much in the way of a downer. It's a beautiful, emotional, remarkable little book. Mangled hands and all.

Grace can't stand still. Every day her family goes to work in a Vermont cotton mill while she goes to school with the other mill children. She's a good student, of course, but she can't even read without her feet dancing about. That changes fairly soon, however, and much to her delight. She and her friend Arthur are going to go work on their mothers' machines in the mill, she willingly, he unwilling. But finally making some money for her family isn't as much fun as Grace had anticipated. She's incredibly tired and Arthur seems to have a dangerous plan in mind for getting out of working. It isn't until the two kids help their former teacher Miss Lesley contact the authorities about the working conditions of the mill that something begins to change. Something in the form of a photographer by the name of Lewis Hine. Now Grace needs to decide what to do with the rest of her life. Spend her days working in the mill or seek something more?

The inspiration for this tale, author Elizabeth Winthrop says, came in the form of a picture of a young girl named Addie. The photograph, taken by Lewis Hine, was on display in the Bennington Museum in Bennington, Vermont. The photograph is shown at the back of the book, and Winthrop tells the story of the real girl shown there. Her tale is just as interesting as that of Grace's and "The Story Behind the Photograph" worthy reading in and of itself. Add in Winthrop's meticulous Bibliography and you've got yourself some well-researched top-notch writing.

Part of the wonder of this book is that Grace's parents are neither heroes nor villains. There's a great deal of respect given to their difficult situation. They love their children, of course they do! But these are poor people who need as much money as they can get, given their circumstances. Sure, their kids could get seriously hurt tending to the machines in the mill, but there's always the thought that the attentive ones will survive the "lazy" or inattentive ones. At one point the schoolteacher Miss Lesley complains that she's tired of wanting more for the mill children than their own parents want. This lack of ambition for a better life could easily have turned the story into a children = good, parents = bad tale. But life itself is not that simple. Nor, for that matter, is this book. Grace's mother is a rough woman with a great deal of violence to her, but you understand why she does the things she does. Still, it's hard not to agree with Grace when she happens to remark, "Suddenly, I don't like the family God gave me".

I learned a great deal from "Counting On Grace" about why these children worked in the mills as often as they did. At first I couldn't understand why Arthur's mother insisted that he help her in the mill when it was clear that the two of them preferred him in school. It becomes far more understandable when you see that the mill owners owned their employees' homes. A child that didn't work in the mill could place his or her parents' jobs in danger. Lewis Hine probably said it best when Winthrop quotes him saying, "I have always been more interested in persons than in people".

I know I said that the book wasn't depressing, but not all endings in this book are happy ones. They're there to give the novel a feeling of authenticity. Winthrop doesn't employ any miraculous occurrences or deus ex machina. Still, there is happiness here. And as Winthrop herself says of historical fiction, "I'm not saying it happened, I'm saying it could have happened". A remarkable novel.

Although identified as a children's book, "Counting on Grace" is a book that should reward readers of all ages. The author, with great skill and sensitivity, weaves a fictional account of a young girl who is forced to work in the local cotton mill with historical fact about the documentation of these conditions. especially by the renown photographer of working children, Lewis Hines. With three grandchildren exactly the age of Grace, I found this gripping story provided a rare look at how some children were forced to enter the adult world, with its difficulties and dangers, and were summarily deprived of their childhood and education. This is a unique look at mill towns and the people and families who struggled there at the turn of the 20th century. I highly recommend "Counting on Grace" for readers whatever their age.

As you will probably all find out, the true story of Addie is in this month's issue of the Smithsonian Magazine. I have not yet read Counting on Grace but I will do so now that I have seen the magazine article.

This book is probably one of my favorites. It is based on a picture, which is very unique. Some parts were confusing, like the parts about the equipment and how Grace had to do her job, but once reread was clearer. I also wish something more would have happened between her and Aurther.
A great book, though. I reccomened it for all ages.

Lewis Mehl-Madrona reveals insights into traditional and non-traditional medicine. He is an interesting multi-faceted medical practioner. It is impossible to sum up his contributions in a sentence or two. He breaks the bonds of traditional medicine by incorporating ancient medical practices into his healing work.

Great book if this is the first book of this author that you read. However, it is an extraordinary book if read after reading Coyote Medicine. As a follow-up read, the reader has a greater understand of the "whys". If you are a Native American or have worked in the field of mental health/ psychiatry -- or better yet both, you find yourself going, "Yes, you are so right!" often times as you read. Such a moving book. It touched not only my mind, but also my heart and soul. I could not put it down until I finished it.

Lewis Mehl-Madrona, M.D. has written one of the best books on healing ever to be published. This book should be required reading for all cancer patients and survivors, for anyone suffering from chronic physical or emotional disease, and for therapists in all disciplines. Dr. Madrona's stories are poignant and will linger with you long after you've finished the last page. This book offers hope. It teaches that health truly is a mind-body-spirit phenomenon.

Dr. Mehl-Madrona's magnificent first book, COYOTE MEDICINE, was seen through wide-eyes: a young doctor discovering his own roots and shedding illusions about the omnipotence of science. By contrast, COYOTE HEALING reveals a sure sense of purpose and conviction in his approach.

One senses a mission- that this book is more than an account, but an active attempt to spread the word. No longer exploring, Dr. Mehl-Madrona has become the guru; here he is at the height of his powers and conviction and acts as advocate.

Operating from the perspective of a shaman, Dr. Mehl-Madrona respects the patient's ability to cure himself, but also "straddle(s) cultures," drawing on his varied expertise. As he explains, "Activating the inner healer is the most important aspect of what I do... I use herbs, diet, vitamins, exercise, drugs and a myriad of other techniques, but I recognize that the inner healer makes all these approaches work."

Because of the success of his first book, many people seek him out, and we hear their stories. They have usually been told their cases were beyond hope. Working with the author, some patients do recover, others sadly, do not. But Dr. Mehl-Madrona refuses to speak of "failures," nor does he use cases to argue for or against shamanic or complementary approaches. Rather, he sees the healing process itself as the miracle. As he says:

I build hope. I don't help everyone [in terms of cures]...I help them to show their true humanity, their true spirit, despite adversity...Each of my patients told me what a difference I had made in their lives. All I did was to recognize their true selves and coax those to the surface, despite everything else that was happening... Hope- not despair, not denial, not giving up, not demanding success...It comes from knowing that the Universe cares about us, even when our desires are not possible... The peacefulness of integrating these apparent contradictions is truly a miracle.

Much of his work involves Native American storytelling, using characters in stories to shed light on the patients' struggles. So, a woman who helps many people but is now undergoing chemotherapy is told a story of the "Gatherer," a Native American woman who collected healing plants, and was kidnapped and tortured, but made it through. Another woman who has been ill for decades is told a story about a young woman who was kidnapped, who had to throw away some prized items in order to escape. Here the doctor was showing his patient how to discard illness as an identity.

Some major themes emerge. A loss of community is said to cause disease, and one violently schizophrenic man finds his way back to sanity by being made an "honorary Indian" on a reservation. Another theme is illness as sublimated negativity in one's life.

But the doctor does not "blame the victim." Instead, he defines "disease" as literally that, dis-ease. In the eyes of a shaman, cause of illness is everywhere, and awareness of imbalance will lead us to finding "ease." In the author's words, "I can no longer imagine a physical problem that is not simultaneously psychological, spiritual and social..."

But we are not being punished by our illness, only being told that something is wrong. Gary Null echoes this when he talks about the fires burning in our (physiological) houses, and how often we ignore these fires, whether stress, abuse, self-hatred, etc.

Whether you believe in complimentary healing approaches or not, COYOTE HEALING helps define what it means to fight for wellness with dignity and peace. Having met Dr. Mehl-Madrona at his healing circle, I know his real voice: soft, thoughtful, nonjudgemental, and mischievous. In these pages this voice comes through, and brings comfort. Thank you again, Doctor.

COYOTE HEALING is an interesting book which describes an approach to healing which is based on the experiences of the author who is a practicing physician and a graduate of Stanford University School of Medicine. The main thrust of the book is to reveal the characteristics of exceptional patients who beat the odds against killer diseases such as cancer. Many inspirational stories are included.

The healing strategies used throughout reflect Dr. Mehl-Madrona's own childhood exposure to a mixture of Christianity and Cherokee spirituality. A strong emphasis is placed on the need for the patient to think positively. Any feelings of personal blame for having the illness are eliminated and replaced with a sense of hope. This step leads to peacefulness which in turn sets the stage for a potential miracle. The patient next tries to locate the inner healer before starting on a healing journey. The latter emphasizes a radical transformation of oneself and one's relationships. The journey itself ultimately becomes more important than the destination.

I purchased this book since I had no prior knowledge of daylilies. This is a good book to provide the "beginner" with overview of daylilies. Only subject I found so far which was missing from this book was a more thorough explanation of when transplanting or planting bareroot daylilies there is a period where the plants outer leaves will die off and new growth will begin. If I hadn't asked on a garden forum about this, I would have assumed I was killing my daylilies. An updated publishing of this book would be better as well but content is still okay.
Overall, it's still a good reference but not for a more experienced daylily gardener.

As I started reading it, many of my impressions and assumptions about daylilies disintegrated and a whole new concept was formed. They originated in Asia and there are more than 32,000 cultivars. Some consider them to be the perfect perennial because they tolerate a variety of conditions. Culture, pest, and propagation is covered along with requirements for registering new cultivars. It gives advice on which cultivars are best suited for your soil. Lists of cultivars are useful for selection since they indicate what size they are and how hardy they are. Good book!

This book is really the "how to" manual for beginning daylily addicts. In addition to a history of the species, it identifies high quality cultivars, describes various steps in planting, and most importantly is very informative about hybridizing. I use it as a reference manual as well as enjoyable reading.

As I started reading it, many of my impressions and assumptions about daylilies disintegrated and a whole new concept was formed. They originated in Asia and there are more than 32,000 cultivars. Some consider them to be the perfect perennial because they tolerate a variety of conditions. Culture, pest, and propagation is covered along with requirements for registering new cultivars. It gives advice on which cultivars are best suited for your soil. Lists of cultivars are useful for selection since they indicate what size they are and how hardy they are. Good book!

This book is full of text on cultivating and raising daylilies. Has some color photos-could use a few more, but an excellent learning tool.

I am a third grade teacher and I use this book to help teach writing. When I read the book to my students, I ask them to look for how the author used certain crafts. This book contains many teachable elements.

Hetty is a well-developed character. Students who have failed at a task despite their best efforts can identify with Hetty. The realistic watercolor illustrations enhance the text and show the emotions that Hetty is feeling. This well-paced story gives an accurate depiction of life in the country. The onomatopoeia used in the story helps the reader to visualize the setting and Hetty's actions.

This was a very good book. This story shows a young girl who is given the responsibility of going to the store alone. When she makes a mistake she is afraid to go home. The story showed how the young girl corrected her mistake. It also showed loving parents who were understanding and supportive. This was a great family story. The girl learns about responsibility. The illustrations were done in watercolors and are beautiful.

What a charming story of a little girl who learns about responsibility, forgiveness, and making the best of a mess. We love this story!

Our family loves this book. It's a great example of forgiveness and families that work together to get us through the tough times. Our Afr. Amer. daughter particularly loves the beautiful pictures of this AA family.

(...)

After reading Lazaris' Dragonman: The Adventures of Luke Starr, I anticipated that we'd soon hear from our morphing protagonist, Luke, and the tenacious team of Starr Investigations once again. In this sophomore creation, Lazaris utilizes his crafty skill of piecing together sequenced ambiguities and mysteries and revealing their significance to the reader at precise moments, which signifies creative and structural mastery of a writer over his abilities and work, like a concert pianist who can perform Chopin in his sleep. We witnessed this exemplary technique in the first born Dragonman: The Adventures of Luke Starr, but Lazaris' second spawn Dragonman and the Poseidon Encounter showcases this artistic foresight at a discernable level.
Now realizing the extent and implications of his powers, Luke battles with the conflict of how his gifts will affect his future, his endeavors, and even the lives of his offspring, were he to have children. Each intriguing chapter possesses imagination that is authentic and events that are unpredictable. Lazaris has conjured many memorable tales, combining elements of mystery, science fiction, and even allusions to mythology. After a climactic encounter with the God of the Seas in search for the Trident, Luke is reunited with his Grandmother, an incident that propels the novel to its dramatic conclusion-a conclusion that leaves readers thirsting for Lazaris' hopeful hat trick.

New York Times best-selling author
Ellen Tanner Marsh
Dragonman and the Poseidon Encounter

In Ted Lazaris's first fantasy adventure novel, Dragonman, the Adventures of Luke Starr, the reader was introduced to the likeable Luke and his seemingly normal way of life growing up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Luke was portrayed as a quiet, average kid plagued by all the inherent problems of the typical American teen: dealing with a crush on a girl he's too shy to approach,
pesky sisters constantlypoking their noses into his business, bullies at school and exams to study
for. But Luke, readers soondiscovered, was burdened by a far greater weight than any of his peers, as he struggled to come to terms with his birthright as The Chosen One, savior of the distant world
of Spellville. Not only that, but, like hapless Peter Parker forced to juggle his complex life as Spider-Man while pursuing his love interest and his not-always-easy career, Luke had to learn to harness the enormous powers of Dragonman, his super alter-ego, a persona that regrettably did not come with an instruction manual. In this second, action comic-like installment, Dragonman and the Poseidon Encounter, Luke seems to have come to terms with his legacy and appears well in control of his super powers--which he will be called upon to use this time around to save the world from an evil demon who seeks to claim the souls of every human being on earth.
The mood of impending danger is set from the very first page, when author Ted Lazaris takes off his gloves to delivering a knock-out of an opening scene: Five-year-old Bobby Blakely, running downstairs on the morning of his birthday, finds not the hoped for brand new bicycle as a gift, but rather an enormous blue whale that has somehow "washed up" in the small lake on his parent's isolated farm. While many consider the whale's appearance a hoax, others believe it to be a sign of impending Biblical doom. And it is enough to rouse Luke's suspicions that worse is about to happen--which it does.
In a pace that never flags, Poseidon Encounter unfolds in a complex thread of differing tales, from an old-fashioned detective murder mystery to a science fiction fantasy, all neatly stitched together by an intriguing cast of characters, both good and evil and not-exactly-as-they-seem. An imaginative writer, Lazaris blends magic, mysticism, religion and the fast-paced action of the comic book world into a book that fans of the first Dragonman tale will find hard to put down.

The Future of Fantasy: A Book Review of Ted Lazaris' Dragonman: The Adventures of Luke Starr
by Jason Rodriguez (Editor) www.edit911.com

Fantasy and science fiction have maintained their rebirth stage in recent years. Not since Star Wars and Star Trek have fantasy aficionados and rookies alike been on such an orbital high. With the emergence of Harry Potter and the resurgence of Lord of the Rings, the new generation of Trekkies and Tolkienites are rekindling fantasy's fire. While these giants have reached the best-selling bookshelves and mainstream matinees, what is next for this growing genre? Although still working its way through the underground, Ted Lazaris' Dragonman: The Adventures of Luke Starr will inevitably unleash its ground-breaking tale into the fantasy/science fiction arena with undeniable force. Lazaris and his work have the potential to take this genre of literature from the initial stage of rebirth to the full-blown development of a renaissance.
This masterwork fuses elements of neo-fantasy with enchanting escapades of a mythical hero's journey. The phenom Luke Starr carries the blessing and curse of being anointed "The Chosen One." Through the guise of the heroic Dragonman, Luke breeds righteousness and counteracts the infections of evil with his superhuman abilities and capacity for generating miracles. Lazaris intertwines the tale of Luke's prodigious path with connecting plot allusions and links that give the novel symmetry and composition. He skillfully balances these storyline strategies with the benevolent, witty dialogues between Luke, Jessica, and Crystal, which masterfully merges orchestration, thematic implications, and the idiosyncrasies of the adolescent characters' innocence, curiosity, ambition, and compassion. Within this human element of the novel, Lazaris also incorporates unforgettable and imaginative episodes involving a blood brother bond between dragon and human, puzzling serial murder mysteries, an alien invasion, and encounters with the devil in the form of a plausible psychic. Although this work has been paralleled with the revered creations of Rowling, Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and other fantasy virtuosos, Dragonman: The Adventures of Luke Starr possesses a creative and inventive authenticity that is incomparable.

New York Times best-selling author
Ellen Tanner Marsh
DragonMan The Adventures Of Luke Starr

Question: What do C.S. Lewis, L. Frank Baum, J.K. Rawlings, J.R.R. Tolkien and Stan Lee have in common?

Answer: In some way, shape or form their magical characters find a presence in Ted Lazaris's Dragonman, the Adventures of Luke Starr. The similarities are irreverent and fun; Dorothy's adventures in Oz (in Baum's outstanding series of books, not the 1939 MGM movie) are no more strange and fantastical than young Luke Starr's trek through the mythical world of Spellville in search of his kidnapped friends. J.R.R. Tolkien's evil orcs and wizards are equally well represented by Lazaris's hag demons and gruelbores, and Luke falls afoul of as many odd creatures in Spellville as Harry Potter does at Hogwarts.
But the journey for Luke is not so much a mission of mercy as one of self-discovery. For despite his humble Midwest origins, Luke is no ordinary teenager. Imbued with super powers following a ritualistic exchange of blood with a dragon, Luke soon discovers the awesome legacy of his birthright and must learn to accept the fact that he is known in this other world as the Chosen One. Still, in the tradition of Marvel Comics' Stan Lee, creator of modern superheroes like Spider-Man and Silver Surfer, Lazaris's Dragonman is unquestionably human, grappling with his doubts and fears even as he sets off to save Planet Earth from alien beings hell-bent on destruction.
"My book is about good fun and a means of escaping your daily routine," Lazaris tells his readers, and keeps his promise by delivering a fast-paced fantasy in which the epic struggle between good and evil rests squarely on a likeable hero's young shoulders.
"You were bound by destiny," a being of light tells Luke, "and will embark on a life of great adventure and mystery, with the power of unlocking the doorway to any world."
And as if that weren't enough, Lazaris offers up an eye-popping array of intertwined subplots linking Luke's fantasy world to his real one, wherein unsolved murders, a mysterious psychic and an ominous stranger keep the action rolling until the satisfyingly climactic conclusion.

I admire your efforts, through writing adventure stories, to encourage people of all ages to enjoy reading. I send my best wishes for your success.

Sincerely,
Laura Bush
First Lady