May Books

As a former Health and Science Editor for American Medical News, I can heartily recommend "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Cholesterol." Dr. Devries offers a wonderful array of information and advice in plain English -- from what to eat and how to exercise to how to understand medical test results and work with your doctor.

One of the best features of this book is the way it merges traditional medicine with alternative approaches. This book does not present a lecture from a know-it-all conservative, traditional doctor or a treatise from a fringe physician on how health food and yoga will save your life. Instead, this book presents a balanced, reasonable approach to strong hearts and healthy lives by a traditionally trained physician who is open to new ideas, as long as they are proven and sensible. Dr. Devries integrates the best of both worlds, traditional and alternative.

Another appealing feature is the fact that some sections and chapters are clearly aimed at those who just want a simple explanation, while other sections and chapters provide detailed information backed up by rigorous research and thoughtful medical expertise for those who want to understand the science behind the suggestions.

Everyone should be as fortunate to have Dr. Devries as his or her personal doctor. The next best thing would be to read his book...and take it to heart.

Dr. Devries did an excellent work in presenting medical research on heart disease and cholesterol in an easy read fashion for the lay person. The manner in which Dr. Devries writes makes heart disease and cholesterol a "a no brainer" to understand is superb. Dr.Devries has been my health coach for the past 4 years. His understanding of the subject has made the world of difference in my understanding my own health. Through his methods, my blood pressure and cholesterol levels are closely monitored and controlled. I am very grateful for his medical care and expertise which is now offered to the world through this book.

A REMARKABLE guide for prevention and personal empowerment! Finally a source which covers a wealthy spectrum of heart healthy directives and wisdom embracing the most timely and best of Integrative Medicine.

DR. Devries presents valuable heart healthy information on every page including many helpful charts and guidlines. He also includes very informative references and resources. The book is comprehensive and oriented to achieve the most favorable results in a practical manner. Doing the advice is becoming and being more healthy. The sections entitled "TAKE THIS TO HEART" at the end of each chapter provide the salient points on which to take action.

Dr. Devries is to be commended for going a different way and presenting a program which is AUTHENTICALLY prevention oriented,a rare find in the all too often mechanistic medical model which dominates the "health" system. His holistic practice is humanizing, personalizing,and consequently truly healing in nature. The book is in layman's language and an easy read.

HEARTILY recommended!

This is excellent reading for health care professionals as well as people who are not in the medical profession. It gives a great understanding and motivates the individual to keep healthy. I have given 14 books to my friends as gifts.

This charmingly illustrated book was mine as a child of the 1960s and always stayed with me throughout my life. Happily, my mother held on to it and I still have it in my library. It's a magical and memorable book for all ages.

read this to my kids 30 years ago... the original blue & white one... and it is one story they still recall and can recite. Will purchase the new version for them at Christmas for their kids. Wonderful!

My mother read this book to me over 35 years ago and it was always my favorite. I still have the original book with pictures by Leonard Weisgard, Young Scott Books, New York MCMLXI copyright. The book has beautiful shades of blue on every page. I plan to purchase the new version for my preschool, however I'll always treasure my original!

The original book if I am correct has blue and white illustrations. I owned this book until my mother either lost it or sold it for 25 cents at a garage sale. She felt so bad that she bought me the new edition which is beautiful. I am still looking for the original copy of of this book for it is fabulous!

While his primary claim to historical fame was his "Give my liberty or give me death" speech, Patrick Henry was also one of the most influential of the founding fathers of the United States. The governor of the then dominant state of Virginia during the American Revolution, his was a strong voice for the rebellion against King George and then against the constitution until the Bill of Rights was added.
This book, a member of the Weekly Reader series for children, sums up his life. Like many people who achieved greatness, his early life demonstrated none of what was to come. His greatness began to appear in a case he was arguing before the court, he won and was very impressive to all who were in attendance.
Patrick Henry is a figure from the past that all American school children should learn about. His influence was great and this book brings it all together in a style ideal for the young learner.

Jean Fritz makes history intersting for all ages. She has an uncanny way of seeing a historical figure as a real person with a well-rounded life that encapsulates more than just what he or she did in public. The life of her subject is of more importance than dates and events. Somehow this shift of emphasis makes the dates more memorable. She tells her story fresh, not told in the typical detached fashion. Her research and enthusiasm for her subjects make the stories come alive in interesting ways for today's student reader and interested adult.

My assumption was that the answer to the question "Where Was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May?" would be on the floor of the House of Burgesses in Virginia, making his famous declaration, "give me liberty or give me death!" But that actually a speech at St. John's Church in Richmond, Virginia and the date was the 23rd of March in 1775. I am sure others who know a little something about Patrick Henry would make the same assumption. So the question for anybody reading this book really is "Where Was Patrick Henry on the 29th of May?"

The answer that Jean Fritz provides is that it depends because this book looks at several 29ths of May. The first is May 29, 1736 when Patrick Henry had just been born wand was likely crying in his bed drowning out the birdsong. The next May 29th comes in 1752, when Henry turns sixteen, when he was old enough to be counted among the men in Virginia. To be clear, Fritz does fill in the gaps between those two dates, and he does the same for the years leading up to the next May 29th, which comes in 1765, when he is indeed speaking on the floor of the House of Burgresses in Virginia. On May 29, 1777, he was elected for a second time as Virginia's governor, while in 1796 the 60-year-old Henry had retired from public life, three years before he died.

Henry was one of the leading opponents of the ratification of the Federal Constitution, but Fritz makes a point of turning his opposition into an argument for the adoption of the Bill of Rights. I must admit I was a disappointed a little because I thought this book would look only at Henry on a series of dates that were all the 29th of May, so I was actually surprised that all of the gaps got filled in along the way because it would be a neat idea to do an entire life looking at just one date that cover events both large and small. But even so, Fritz provides a nice mix of details that are both humorous and humanizing (Henry was a practical joker), along with insights about the Revolution.

This is one of several biographies that Fritz has written about major figures of the American Revolution, which include "And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?" and "Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams?" Both of those particular books were chosen as an Outstanding Book of the Year by the "New York Times," which is not surprising given Fritz's approach. Artist Margot Tomes provided the humorous drawings for not only this book but also for the aforementioned one on Paul Revere.

I just recently read this gem by Jean Fritz, my new favorite nonfiction author, not that thats all she does. This book tells of Patrick Henry, the untalented failure who manages to find a career as a GREAT lawyer.

Patrick Henry was a trickster as a child(example: he turns a canoe over with a group of unexpected friends inside it). As I said before, he wasn't very talented, except, well, he had a good voice. But could one use a good voice on a resume(even if resumes didnt exist then). No, someone couldn't. First he tried storekeeping, but found that didn't work. Then there was farming. But that didnt work either.I just realized that I havent told of Patrick's wedding. Yes, our hero was wedded to Ms. Sarah Sheldon. But then Henry tries the lawyer-ing biz, and it strangely works. Read about his most famous cases and his later gorverning career.

Though Margot Tomes isn't my favorite illustrator, I cant imagine anyone else illustrating this book

Fritz vs. Freedman. You decide.

An interesting twist on a children's biography of theRevolutionary War hero Patrick Henry. The device of the "29th ofMay" is used to tie the various parts of Henry's life together--from his childhood in the wilds of the Virginia countryside to his famous patriotic activities to his retirement at Red Hill. His failures as well as his successes are discussed, allowing children to see a more authentic character than many easy-read biographies. Notes from the author at the end of the book give more historical details.

This is a great little book on a big and important subject. Everyone can use a little help with the challenges of life and Carol May knows just how to do it! An easy to follow support for every day life.

I happen to hear Carol May on the radio one evening and I was so mezmerized by her voice and her information that I bought her book. This book is written simply and I feel gives clarity on how to begin working with angels and attuning your everyday life to the angelic forces all around us. I also strongly suggest going to her "lotusgrid" website and checking out her Cd's and her other spiritual work.

Working w/ Angels is a hands-on practical and usable book. I began attuning to the angels immediately. It is definately a gift to whoever receives this book. I have given copies to all my siblings and frineds and we are all enjoying the same experiences with angels. It is a must have for your library.

I found Working with Angels in Everyday Life to be extremely helpful in discovering new ways of finding whatever it is you are searching for in life. I can't wait for Carol's next book to come out.

Let me tell you, my children read this book and the excitment that they recieved is out of this world! The characters, Ohff and Grote were absloutly amazing! The animation is fun and colorful! If my children loved it so will yours - Highly recommended!!!

I am a regular reader of the Chicago Parent Magazine, and just recently I read an article in the March 2002 edition that gives the Yuggs a great review! I purchased the book, and I could not even disagree a bit, I logged on and picked it up, absolutley amazing. This story is filled with great characters and very animated illustrations. This will definitly be able to fullfill the imagination of your children as it did for mine!

The illustrations were fantastic depicting a fun and goofy story! The story flows very well and the message is simple and understanding. A great book for all the young ones!

Ohff and Grote are halarious, and the illustration for this book was fantastic! This has really become one of my kids favorite books, and we cannot wait for another book in the Yuggs series to come out!

History, a great story and an authentic historical craft! Not only that, but just the right size for girl-sized hands. A+++++++ Cannot be beat!

"Dragging her screaming brother behind her, the girl turned and gave Addy a burning, hateful glare. 'Don't you step out of your place with me, colored girl!' the girl spat. 'You better go back to where you belong.'" (Porter, 18)

Benevolence. Just what is the meaning of benevolence, anyway? According to Merriman-Webster dictionary, it means "disposition to do good: an act of kindness." Doing good to others is just one of the significant lessons Addy learns in the book "Addy's Summer Place," written by Mrs. Connie Porter. But this story has an even stronger message, one in which only one word can succeed in describing. Set in the summer of 1864, Addy, Momma, and baby Esther travel from Philadelphia to Cape Island, New Jersey, to visit Papa for the Fourth of July. While attempting to act like a proper young lady, Addy finds it difficult to do so when a wave of changes and decisions comes her way. The foremost change comes to reality however, when she is exposed to the life of one poverty-stricken, white family. When Addy has the opportunity to show an act of kindness to the poor family, despite nasty remarks against her, will she do so? Or will she decide her fancy dresses and spiral curls are far more important than the lives of others? One could learn valuable life lessons from reading "Addy's Summer Place," which is set during a time period when Americans are bewildered trying to discover their own "place," in what is a cruel, negative time for so many.

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Addy Walker, a ten-year-old African-American girl living in the America of 1865. Addy gets a surprise when the railway company her father works for gives her family passes so that they can visit him in Cape Island, New Jersey. The experience begins to sour, though, as Addy finds herself confronted on every side by racism. When a little white girl pours abuse on Addy, she wishes her ill from the bottom of her heart, but later she sees the other girl's impoverished life, and begins to feel different.

The final chapter of this book has an interesting look at Cape Island (later Cape May), New Jersey, and some fun and easy directions for making your own vanilla ice cream! As with all of Connie Porter's Addy books, this one is great! The author successful shows the pain and hurt of racism, but succeeds in turning it into an upbeat and hopeful story. My twelve-year-old daughter loves her Addy doll, and loves this book. We both recommend the book to you very highly!

My Mother is an EXCellent cook. She always recommends this book. It walks you through alot of, what should be, basic cooking skills. A great book for anyone who loves to cook the old fashioned way!

Alice May Brock teaches cooks both novice and experienced to use common sense instead of recipes. She teaches how to achieve what's in your mind, such as creating a French pork dish, or an Asian beef dish, revealing basic seasoning and preparing techniques. Also tells how to make several versions of a dish.

WHEN MY MOTHER GAVE ME THIS COOKBOOK FOR X-MAS MANY YEARS AGO I WAS RATHER INSULTED! IT LOOKS LIKE A COOKBOOK FOR BEGINNING COOKS - I HAVE BEEN COOKING SINCE THE 3RD GRADE AND CONSIDER MY COOKING TO BE PRETTY GOOD BY NOW. ANYWAY IT IS MY FAVORITE COOKBOOK OUT OF MY COLLECTION OF ABOUT 60 BOOKS. TRY IT!!

And Keep Moving On: The Virginia Campaign May - June 1864 written by Mark Grimsley is a book about the massive operation called the Virginia Campaign about ow Ulyses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee saw the war. But, this is not just a battle book, it is a book with the political context of the 1864 presidential election.

Not only the election, but appraises the motivation of soldiers, appreciates the impact of the North's sea power advantage and questions convential interpretations; andexamines the interconnections among the major battles, subsidiary offenives, and raids.

The Contents of the book is as follows:

Campaign Plans and Politics
The Wilderness
"Grant Is Beating His Head aganist a Wall"
The Collapse of Grant's Peripheral Strategy
"Lee's Army Is Really Whipped"
"The Hardest Campaign"
"It Seemed Like Murder"
The Campaign's Significance

"The art of war," maintained Lt. Gen. Ulyses S. Grant, "is simple enough. Find out where your enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike at him as hard as you can and as often as you can, and keep moving on." Grant the bludgeoner, Lee the master of maneuver were, in reality, the two commanders were almost identical in style.

Grant took over the hard luck Army of the Potomac and Lee had his Army of Northern Virginia and that ensured that the spring campaign of 1864 would pit the Civil War's two most successful generals against one another in a duel that became legendary.

The fighting was not restricted to a duel between Grant and Lee, either. In order to maximize his chance of success, Grant put into motion virtually every Union soldier in hte eastern theater. As a result, the struggle between the main armies... eventually dubbed the Overland campaign... was only part of a larger offensive that included major expeditions in western and southeastern Virginia as well as numrous impromptu raids aimed at the Confederate transportation infrastructure. Grant and Lee not only had to take these maneuvers into account, they often supervisedthem as well. It is therefore better to think, as they did themselves, in terms of a single, massive Virginia campaign of spring 1864.

Grant confronted Lee with four subsidiary offensives in addition to the Army of the Potomac's main advance: two in southwestern Virginia against Confederate salworks, lead mines, and railroads; a third in the Shenandoah Valley under Major General Franz Sigel; and a fourth in the James River estuary under Major General Benjamin F. Butler. Grant intended these lesser offensives to divert strength from Lee's army and, if possible, to achieve significant results on their own. He had particularly high expectations of Butler, believing that Butler could threaten Richmond, interdict Confederate communications with the Deep South, and help place Lee at a ruinous disadvantage. But by shifting their outnumbered forces adroitly, the Confederates thwarted Grant's offensive at every turn, defeating Sigel and Butler and administrating sharp checks to the Army of the Potomac in the battles of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, the North Anna and Cold Harbor.

You really get a feel for how the Virginia Campaign was fought in this book making it a definate addintion to you American History library. The narrative is easy going and the insights are engrossing, making for an informative and educational read.

Mark Grimsley does not seek to break new ground in "And Keep Moving On: The Virginia Campaign, May - June 1864". Up front he states: "This is primarily a work of synthesis. As such, my foremost thanks are due to the authors of the specialized studies on which it is based." These specialized studies are, either through their daunting size or their limited availability, unfamiliar to most persons interested in the Civil War. Mark Grimsley has performed a valuable service for such readers by drawing upon those narrow analyses to craft a comprehensive and lucid narrative about the Overland Campaign and its associated operations. In less than 250 pages of narrative text, Grimsley covers the fundamentals of not only such grand battles as the Wilderness, Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor, but also Butler's fumbled thrust towards Richmond, cavalry raids in West Virginia, and fighting in the Shenandoah Valley. Moreover, he relates the pace of military matters to the political background (1864 was a Presidential election year in the North) and to state of civilian morale.

In discussing combat, Grimsley includes sufficient first-hand detail so the reader does not lose sight of the ultimate reality that the contending armies were made up of living, breathing, dying individual soldiers. Nonetheless, the book's primary focus is on the senior commanders. Grimsley states in the preface that he "evaluated the principal leaders as sympathetically as possible, always bearing in mind that they were intelligent men who operated under extraordinary conditions and pressure ... I have encountered few historical actors - even such perennial goats as Ben Butler - for whom I could not muster at least some respect." It seems that Franz Sigel, justifiably in my opinion, fell outside the author's range of sympathy. In writing of the battle of New Market, Grimsley quotes William C. Davis with favor about that hapless officer: "Franz Sigel was not just an incompetent; he was a fool."

The results of these several weeks of combat in the early summer of 1864 are presented by Grimsley as a mixture of limited success and deeper failure for both sides. Grant sought to destroy Lee's army, but he only succeeded in depriving Lee of the initiative while both armies battled each other into stumbling weariness. Lee tired to drive his enemies back from their invasion, but only managed to resist destruction while being driven back to the static defense of Richmond. In an absorbing extension of his analysis of the results of the campaign, Grimsley discusses the historical memory of these battles as filtered through the Lost Cause mythology of the post-war South, which portrays Lee as the flawless soldier of genius and Grant as the merciless butcher who wins by numbers alone. Grimsley rightly exposes such thinking as shallow and inadequate.

In his acknowledgements section, Grimsley pays special tribute to Gordon Rhea who has, thus far, published five excellent volumes on the Overland Campaign. The influence of Rhea's work is clearly evident on Mark Grimsley's book (Rhea's most recent book, "Cold Harbor", was unfortunately published too late to influence "And Keep Moving On"; if it had been available, I believe Grimsley would have rejected tired conventional wisdom about Union casualty rates during that battle and instead would have followed Rhea's illuminating evaluation of the subject), but even an enthusiastic reader of Rhea's histories can find much of value in "And Keep Moving On." The narrative is delivered in an engaging, persuasive manner, moving briskly towards its conclusion without a feeling of being rushed. This volume has found a permanent spot on my crowded Civil War bookshelves, and I can only hope that Mark Grimsley some day may write a similar volume about the Petersburg campaign that followed.

This is not the ultimate book on the overland campaign as Rhea's series of books from the Wilderness through Cold harbor captures all the detail of troop movements, decisions and action along with great documentation. But Grimsley is the big picture book of the overall campaign explaining the global strategies of Grant's attack plan for Virginia with coordinated raids (Sigel, Averell, Crook) along with a major move on Petersburg (Butler) while concentrating on Lee. Excellent short bios on the participants and Grimsley get sraight to it as why actions failed or succeeded. There is a remarkable chapter after the North Anna that covers a very serious side as the author details how the casualties fared as the armies continued to move, he covers the effect of fatigue, battle stress, the fate of prisoners that all grips the reality of war. A very fascinating, and appropriate account of the human effects of war on the participants. The book also comes with very adequate maps and the campaigns are given in fast moving detail. Even after reading Rhea's great books, as I have, I have enjoyed Grimsley's book that virtually stands back and looks at the action and movements of the commanders in broad strokes while explaining their decisions and reactions. For example, after understanding Grant's odd command structure of directly taking charge of Sheridan and Burnside's corps while Meade commands the Army of the Potomac, one understands how stressful and difficult it was for Meade to coordinate his attack plans. If you are going to throw one book in your knapsack for a field tour of the Overland Campaign, this is a great book to read and bring as a reference. Its going with me on my Pamplin Spring tour of the Wilderness through the North Anna this weekend.

Angels Bound touches the heart of all. It is, indeed, a book for all ages.

This is a beautifully worded and soulful book that expresses the inner beauty within us all. R.A. Lenio's poetry expresses what it means to find the good in all the things around us. When you read this you will expose yourself to pure emotion and hopefully find the angel within you.

This is a beautifully worded and soulful book that expresses the inner beauty within us all. R.A. Lenio's poetry expresses what it means to find the good in all the things around us. When you read this you will expose yourself to pure emotion and hopefully find the angel within you.

A collection of poetry, folklore, short stories, biographies, and other non-fiction. Includes a history and discussion of children's literature with suggestions for using this literature.

Part one includes over 500 poems about people, animals, traveling, play, humor, magic and make believe, wind and water, days and seasons, wisdom and beauty.

Part two is Time for Magic and is a collection of folk tales, myths, epics, hero tales, and modern fantasy.
Some of stories are:
Story of the Three Bears;
Story of the Three Little Pigs;
Henny Penny;
The Bride Who Out Talked the Water Kelpie;
Connla and the Fairy Maiden;
Hansel and Gretel;
Clever Elsie;
Snow White and Seven Dwarfs;
The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood;
Cinderella;
Beauty and the Beast;
The Pancake;
The Husband Who Was to Mind the House;
Little Freddy with His Fiddle;
Mida;
The Golden Touch;
Gilgamesh;
Charlotte's Web;
The Real Princess;
The Borrowers (Danger!);
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe;
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland;
The Hobbit;
The Pushcart War (The Pea Shooter Campaign..Phase I);
The Twenty One Balloons;
Farmer in the Sky;
A Wrinkle in Time (Aunt Beast);
And many, many more!!!!

Part Three covers Time for Realism: Facts and Fiction
Some stories are:
Did You Carry the Flag Today, Charley? from The Thing by Rebecca Caudill;
Ellen Tebbits,
Justin Morgan had a Horse,
The Midnight Fox,
The Family Under the Bridge,
Capricorn Bracelet,
Calico Bush,
Johnny Tremaine,
And many more...


Biographies:
The Seven Queens of England,
Penn: The Trial,
Benjamin Franklin,
George Washington,
Paul Revere,
Helen Keller,
Shirley Chisholm,
Etc.

Part four covers children's literature published, awards, etc.

1089 pages.

This anthology, with it's many selections from classic to modern children's literature, was a gateway to many different works for me. I learned my love of diverse literature from this book when I was a child. Any child who received this book would be receiving a gift beyond value.

I read this book when I was little, I read this book when I was big, and if I get the chance, all my children will do the same. I first picked up a copy for 25 cents at a boyscout garage sale and it has remained my all time favorite. It has stories, poems and many other styles of literature that have lead to my being an admitted book worm. I hope that there will always be books like these.