Peter Books

Two boys cross Peking to fly a kite... and end up crossing Mongolia with some very interesting characters. I love the book, my husband loves the book, and no child I've given it to has been able to put it down -- nor have their parents when they finally get their hands on it.

The perfect adventure story, more fantastic than fantasy and truer than history, with wonderful, understated pen and ink drawings and maps. Details and characters from the author's years in China and Mongolia put the reader right into the place and time. I live for the day when broadband comes to my area, so I can follow the boys' adventures with Google Earth.

This is a book for a lifetime of rereading, whether the first reading is as a child or a grandparent. It reads wonderfully out loud. The boys are 12 and 12 is probably a good age at which to read it for the first time -- but much younger children should love to have it read to them.

A teriffic children's novel set in 1922, about 2 boys, one European and the other Chinese, who travel across Mongolia during a civil war; based on the stories of Muhlenweg's experiences which he recounted for his own children; and I agree with completely with the other two reviews! Glossary.

I've been looking for this book for 15 years and hopefully just found it. I assume it was originally intended as a children's story, but the story is so subtle, and the characters so captivating, that I have no hesitation in recommending it to a general audience. Christian, a missionary's son, and his friend Big Tiger skip school to fly their kites near one of Peking's main gates. Since there isn't enough wind to do the kites justice they accept a ride from a trainful of soldiers. Unfortunately there is a problem getting off... and before they know it, Big Tiger and Christian find themselves trekking through 1930s (?) Mongolia, encountering nomads, lamas, bandits, princes, and scoundrels, digging for buried treasure, picking up Mongolian customs, and learning the wonderful comfort that comes with the phrase "It can't be helped". If you've got a copy keep [a] good hold of it, is my advice.

I read this as a child and it has stayed with me these many years since, along with a feel for the area and a fascination for the deserts of Central Asia and Mongolia. Rereading it as an adult, it is just as engaging. A marvelous story, well told, it provides a real sense of "place." Years after reading it, when I finally came upon pictures of the people and the area in another context, they all looked EXACTLY as I had imagined they would.

I read "Big Tiger and Christian" when I was in my early teens, and I have never forgotten it. It is an exciting and unusual adventure story about two friends, a German boy and a Chinese, who live in Peking and get caught up in a civil war and are forced to flee across the Gobi. When I found a battered copy in a second hand bookshop in New Zealand about fifteen years ago, I was overjoyed. Even though it was years since I had read the book, I had never fogotten the evocative Mongolian word "Yabonah! (Let's go!).
The book left me with a life-long interest in the Orient in general and Mongolia in particular. I only recently did something I should have done years ago, and made an Internet search to find out more about Fritz Muhlenweg. I was surprised to read that he was on one of Sven Hedin's Central Asian expeditions and that he made two further trips to Mongolia prior to WWII and mastered the language. That certainly goes to explain the authenticity which is obvious on every page. What a remarkable man he must have been. Even though he lived in Hitler's Germany, it is obvious that Muhlenweg was no Aryan supremacist, but had a profound understanding and respect for Mongolia and the Mongolians and the surrounding peoples and cultures. The portraits he draws of the resourceful pair and the people they meet on their epic journey are unforgettable. It is hard to believe that the characters aren't real people. It is hard to have two central characters without one becoming the "sidekick", but Muhlenweg manages it. The sagacious Big Tiger is a strong character in his own right, not at all overshadowed by Christian (aka Compass Mountain). And I reckon Christian met his match in the Mongolian girl Sevenstars. Even the dog (which she gives to him) is memorable. I keep wondering what happened to them. A vastly underrated book, a real classic.

Mavis Jukes' Blackberries In The Dark tells of a family tradition of blackberry picking summers challenged by a grandfather's death. Grandma is alone and Austin feels his summer has lost its special magic - it's up to them both to make new traditions in this warm story of death and change, with black and white drawings by Thomas Allen.

After his grandfather dies, nine year old Austin isn't sure what he will do with himself during the ten days that he has at his grandmother's house. The previous summer Austin and his grandfather went fishing, and this year he was going to learn how to fly fish, but now all that has changed. At least that is what he thinks, but his grandmother has other ideas. Together they will start some new family traditions, and Austin will still be able to enjoy his time at Grandma's house.

Don't let the thinness of BLACKBERRIES IN THE DARK fool you into thinking that there is nothing worthwhile between the covers. This book has more meat in its 58 pages than can be found in any number of books that are two or three times longer. Mavis Jukes does a wonderful job of telling this story about grief and love. It is very easy to see what is going on, but at the same time, it is also easy to put yourself in the place of nine year-old Austin.

That's not to say that this book is flaw free. The entire story takes place over the course of about 12 hours. I kind of wish that Jukes had spread the events out a little more. However, that isn't a major thing, and it doesn't take away from the fact that BLACKBERRIES IN THE DARK is a really good book to sink your teeth into.

(...)

The Title of this story is Blackberry's in the Dark. The authors name is Mavis Jukes, and the pictures were done by Tomas B. Allen. There's a little boy named Austin. He goes to his grandparent's house every summer. He's not so happy this time, his grandfather past away not so long ago and so this time it's just his grandmother and him. He goes to pick some blakberries by the riuer. His grandmother comes up later with some fishing gear. His grandfather was going to teach him to fly fish that year, but now the grandmother is going to try to teach him even though she doesn't know how, she was thinking maybe her and her grandson could try to figure it out together. Here's a phrase to help you see how they talk in this book. "I didn't Know" began Austin. His grandmother drew him near to her. "Nobody knew, Austin." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Nobody knew that would be the last summer we'd all have together." She pressed Austin's cheek against her sweater and they stood there for a few minutes, roking back and forth. After a while she asked..." I would recommend this book to some people. I liked it because in a way it was touching but in a way it was fun. I woudn't recommend this book to someone that just really doesn't like calm books, they mostly like action books. I haven't read any other books like this one yet. It's good!

While reading this book, your heart is filled with sorrow. Sorrow for those who are already dead,and sorrow for those who remain. Through simple and clear images, this book leads you to reflect on life and its meaning...Pilar Barrera Wey.

Probably the best young children's book on the subject of a death in the family.

Very beautifully written, tears will almost definitely flow from the adult reading it. One might then ask, why bother with this book if it's about death, a heavy subject my kid hasn't been exposed to? Well, actually, it is a very uplifting story about life itself. No psychobabble or religious references, just a simple story of family, bonds, and tradition. Jukes' writing is beautifully crafted, making this simple story very meaningful. Death itself is dealt with matter-of-factly, and there is nothing scary in the book.

Though tinged with sadness, it is truly wonderful, and there are even a couple of good laughs. (Like life itself, no?)

Highly recommended.

This is an excellent book for children ages 10 & under; the whole series is equally excellent.

These were my favorite books in grade school!!!!!! The Billy and Blaze books I had read over and over and over. Nothing is like them. They are the dreams of horse lovers: this partnership between horse and human. I had wished I was like Billy when I was young (even though I was a girl).

If you have a child who has a love for horses, learn about horses and encourage your child to get involved despite the expense. There are opportunities to work for riding lessons. That is a good thing. There is also sponsership/lease available for part-time riding (3days a week) which helps both the owner and the sponser.

My favorite books from childhood. I dreamed about horses and learned to draw them from the very realistic illustrator of these books. Highly recommended for creative learners.

First a comment about the review on above: That review from Publisher's Weekly has nothing to do with this book. I don't know what book it has to do with.

Billy and Blaze books are a wonderful series about a boy and his horse and the adventures they find while out riding. I think any child could appreciate these gentle stories. They are a nice break from the commercialized books usually marketed to boys that are based on cartoons and toys and movies.

This is a great book for young readers, especially those who love horses. This is a refreshing story about a boy named Billy and his pony named Blaze.The two have a very special bond and care very much for each other.One day they go for an outing and events happen which put them in danger. Readers are kept in suspense as Blaze and Billy struggle to get home. I would recommend this book to all young readers.

I read this book a while back. I was looking for another book by the same author and I noticed that Blood Father only had 4 reviews. You've got to be kidding! This was a great book! It was very different from what I usually read, but so well done that I want to read another one by the same author. Something different. Something good. Go for it!

John Link is an ex Hells Angel, his mission in life is to find his runaway daughter and reconnect, keep his life simple and stay clean. One phone call from that runaway daughter, Lydia, and his life is changed forever. Go on the run with Lydia and Link as Link accomplishes what must be done to keep Lydia alive while she is being chased and hunted by a drug cartels thugs. Throughout this wild drama Lydia is finding out for herself just what kind of mess she has gotten herself into and the realization that Link has always wanted to be there for her and how far he is willing to forsake himself. This book was awesome and in some ways hit close to home to the point it was scary. I look forward to going back in time with Craig's previous titles and to whatever he has planned next.

Set on the streets of LA among the violent gangs who mete out their own unforgiving brand of vengeance, this is a story of survival, regret, fear and hatred. Blood Father plunges fully into the twisted psyche of a twisted part of today's society, visiting with the seemingly hopeless plight of the drug addicted kids caught up in the LA street gangs. Peter Craig has given us an absorbing story featuring an estranged father / daughter relationship that has been brought back together in a grim fight for survival.

I found Blood Father to be a particularly moving story that is a modern day tragedy about a former Hell's Angel who is just putting his life back together after a long stretch in prison and his daughter, a wild child rebel whose addiction to drugs and danger have thrown her into trouble way above her head.

This character-based story is dominated by Link and Lydia Jane, the father and daughter who have to learn and accept each other as they also try to evade an array of pursuers.

Link was a member of the Hell's Angels, a biker who lived life on the absolute edge, often through a haze of drugs and alcohol. There can be no doubt, he was a loser on a one way ride to self-destruction and his imprisonment for manslaughter was not only inevitable but also partly his salvation. The other part came before he went to jail when his girlfriend gave birth to a baby girl. She was born very premature and it seemed unlikely that she would survive her first week. She did and Link named her Lydia Jane. Although Link loved her, he and her mother moved apart and he fell into trouble and a long prison stretch.

Through a series of marriages, Lydia's mother turned herself into a high society woman, part of the rich set leaving her days as a biker's woman well and truly behind her. Lydia however was a rebellious girl who was occasionally abused by her stepfathers and she turned to drugs at a young age. Gradually, she moved in with a smooth talking dealer, unaware just how dangerous he was until she made one mistake too many and had to run.

When Lydia joins Link they head for open country with the initial fear that the police were after them and then later, the cold realisation hits that someone with a grudge against Lydia was also on their trail. But this seems so much more than a simple grudge, her pursuers leaving behind a frightening trail of devastation leading Link to wonder what she had left behind her and how he was going to protect her.

Blood Father is a grim story oozing with hopelessness with both father and daughter in desperate need of support with one either picking up the pieces of his life and the other strung out on drugs. They are a couple who are simultaneously fighting their own demons, learning to love and respect each other while distracted by the terrible danger that seems to be a mere step behind them.

Although the second half of the book steams ahead with the frantic thrill of the chase, the pace is a lot more leisurely at the start with a great deal of groundwork put in place regarding the character backgrounds. I appreciated the background detail finding it gave a greater feeling of depth and understanding for Link and Lydia, not to mention stark insight into the type of people who would be coming after them later.

Peter Craig has done an outstanding job of creating an extreme situation with a strong leaning towards tremendous violence and has made it seem entirely plausible. He has written a powerful story, filled it with flawed heroes and then has made us care about them. It gets into the dirty cracks of society prising out the greedy, the needy and the vicious who thrive on the blooming drug culture. The focus for us is whether two people will be able to escape from that life unscathed.

Well-written and provocative, this is an excellent modern noir thriller with relevant themes that are portrayed all too realistically. Because happy endings are never assured in real life, nothing can be taken for granted her either other than the certainty that this book will move you.

Peter Craig's Blood Father follows on the heels of his hugely entertaining literary crime thriller Hot Plastic. And while his prior work drifted closer to Thompson's noir territory, this book finds him in an Ellroy sort of mood, reveling in the criminal underground seething through the streets of LA and the baked nowhere deserts of Nevada. You can check out the plot synopsis above, so I won't recap it here, but it is a fairly traditional setup. The difference in Blood Father is the way Craig carefully crafts each character so that they transcend their thriller archetypes and become living, breathing people whose interactions drive the plot as much as the fast-paced machinations of the setup. And Craig's research into the dynamics of prison life, early Hell's Angels crank-trade, and the workings of the AFO and Mexican Mafia are all fascinating.

The elements for a classic thriller are here. Fully realized characters (including intensely brutal bad guys)- Check. Unexpected twists which redefine your perception of the depth of the story- Check. Awesome insights into prison life and aspects of the criminal underground- Check. Hard-boiled dialogue- Check. Gonzo pace, rich setting, and a hugely satisfying resolution- Three more checks.

There are moments in the book where it feels like it was being written for eventual film adaptation (i.e. cutesy quips during intense action scenes, or action scenes that occasionally defy physics for the sake of "something really cool happening"), but the pace of the book and the overall quality of the writing make these elements negligible. I can only hope that the eventual film of Blood Father will convey the richness of the prose and the wonderful relationship between Lydia and Link.

I'm not alone in hoping that Craig will soon craft a crime novel of epic proportions. He's clearly proven his ability with character-based road thrillers (and, really, the intense drama of familial relationships). Now I'm looking forward to an American Tabloid or Traffic-type sprawl. If any new crime author is up to it, it's Craig. Meanwhile, Blood Father comes very highly recommended.

Lydia Carson, on the run from her boyfriend Jonas' gang, calls her long estranged father for help. Her dad, Link, is an ex-con and ex-Hell's Angel. Lydia doesn't know it, but Link has been trying to find her for years, ever since he went to prison and she disappeared with her mother. Link jumps at the chance to help Lydia, and thus begins a wild adventure across the southern California desert. Link must use all of his wits to keep himself and his daughter alive.

Peter Craig's third novel builds on the themes he explored in the previous two--particularly, the adult child's relationship with the father. Although his work is primarily character-driven he has achieved a new level of storytelling with Blood Father. His navigation through back story is particularly skillful, he has the knack of writing flashbacks which do not distract and give emotional depth to the characters. The language in this novel is beautiful, and bestows a quality of grace to these characters who the reader comes to care about deeply.

The choice of songs in this songbook is excellent. It's full of good, often played bluegrass songs. The guitar tablature for the songs is the most unusual I've ever seen, but it does trace out the simple melody for the tunes for those not familiar with them. Also, the rhythm designation, which only shows the downbeat for each measure leaves much to be desired. I like to see tablature with markings for half, quarter, eighth notes, etc. so I can get the full rhythm, not just the downbeats. Bluegrass songs have many versions of lyrics as perfomred by different artists, but I like the lyrics chosen in this book very much. Still, in summary, it's a lot of good, often played songs all crammed into one book.

This book is an excellent resource for both learning some bluegrass standards and also refresahing up on some classics. There is also plenty of great information about bluegrass in genreral from some of the bluegrass legends.

This book is aimed at the singer attempting to get to the basics of that "high lonsesome" sound that characterizes traditional bluegrass singing. But even if you can't sing a lick, I find it very useful for the musician who is looking for bluegrass songs to add to his or her repertoire. Plenty of classics with lyrics and chords....great for figuring out play alongs if you're a begininning bluegrass musician. My only regret is that some songs couldn't be licensed for inclusion, but that doesn't keep this from being a great compilation.

This book covers over 140 traditional bluegrass songs. The tablature is non standard but is well explained in the book and is simple to follow.

If the musician learns half the songs in the book (s)he will be welcome at bluegrass jams. This is the book to own and learn from.

The author lists recorded versions of the song of the singer to listen to. There is an section covering how to sing bluegrass harmony, guitar chords, etc.

I wish the author would put out a volume 2 of the book.

Every single jam session I have been to somebody or practically everyone has a copy of this book. Most are very dog eared meaning that they get used. This book has probably 99% of all the songs you will hear at a typical parking lot jam. Highly recommend.

If you are a civil aviation buff, this book has a wealth of detail on the latest version of the venerable 747, the series -400. The book contains a wealth of information on the design, construction, and operation of all versions of the -400, both outside and inside the aircraft (including the cockpit). Operators of the series -400 are surveyed, and a history of the type is presented. I find myself looking through this book over and over!

This book was superb. It had meticulous detail and very informative, clearly written parts. I especially liked the big -500/600 chart somewhere in the middle of the book. It is the best book I have ever seen about the 747-400.

i really liked this book . you get to know . just about every airline that owns a 747-400. if you have any questions about 747-400 just ask me

A super book for any fans of the Jumbo jet. The book briefly discuss various systems of the 747-400, along with a long list of it's clients. Evolution of the 747 from very first, to SP and finally the dash 400. A great light reading book for those who want to know a bit more of the 747-400.

The Airlife's Airliner series of books cover individual commercial aircraft types in an interesting, in-depth manner.

Each volume of this British series covers a unique commercial aircraft type from its design, production, entry into service, its usage by airlines, and in some cases eventual demise.

Each volume features plenty of color and black and white photographs of the subject aircraft along with a complete construction list (accurate to date of publication for aircraft types still being built).

This volume covers the most recent incarnation of the Boeing 747 ... the most successful widebody airliner ever built. The 747 may be credited with bringing air travel to the masses ... making airfares affordable to the general population due to the large amount of seats available.

The 747-400 ... while technically similar to its older sisters ... is in fact an almost brand new aircraft ... featuring newer technology and a more advanced wing. Regardless, the 747-400 still carries the same sweeping, unmistakable lines of its earlier sisters ... making it one of the most recognizable shapes in the world.

Nobody gets it like Kay Koplovitz. Women in record numbers are breaking away from the constraints of corporate life to seek fulfillment in business on their own terms. Kay captures the spirit of that movement in her book. A must-read for every woman who aspires to create her own destiny.

Women can learn how to play the entrepreneurial game for bigger stakes: the author went from selling cable TV series to running her own major cable TV franchise, and in Bold Women, Big Ideas tells the aftermath of her venture. She learned some tough lessons on venture capitalists and where they choose to invest their money (with male business owners), creating her own venture capital forum in the process, designed to help women develop networks to get the money they need. Bold Women, Big Ideas is packed with important business insights.

I have been thinking for a while about what the next step would be in the much maligned feminist movement, unrepentant former bra-burner that I am. I think I've come upon it in Kay Koplovitz's new book, Bold Women, Big Ideas. Not everyone, myself included, will dream up patents for new biotech (or any other tech for that matter) processes. But sometime in an independent, creative woman's life, she may want to produce something besides the children she's birthed (no disparagement here, I have one myself), something that will cause the revenue stream to flow in, rather than continuously siphon it out. This book is the roadmap to that place, with everything you always wanted to know about making a solid business plan to finding the venture capitalists and convincing them to fund your new baby. Koplovitz serves as the best model herself, a bold woman who had the big idea of USA Network when the cable industry was in its infancy. She shares with her readers her own mistakes and insights learned from those mistakes ("if you're not an owner, it's not your business"). I was inspired, reading about the other fascinating women with big ideas and how they learned to allow their personalities to emerge when pitching their product to the men with the money. And it is the men who usually have the money, guarding it for the most part, from women's businesses, or, perhaps worse, assuming that where a woman's business may not necessarily be in the home, the home should be what her business is about (a la Martha). This is the book that the men who form the tight circle around the money don't want us to read.

As one of the many people Ms. Koplovitz mentions in this book, I found it to be as honest, up front, inspiring and instructive as she is in person. Its appeal is in its focused, quick moving style that engaged me from the first paragraph.
In a comfortable, easy voice, Ms. Koplovitz openly shares her own experiences, good and bad, and also presents case histories of three other women entrepreneurs. I found it easy to identify with so many of the challenges discussed, and so helpful to read about her own story as well as those of the other women CEO's, and their quests for success in the venture capital and entrepreneurial arenas.
Over the years, she has also had business dealings with some of the more "colorful" characters in the contemporary business scene. Her anecdotes about Barry Diller, Edgar Bronfman, Jr., Sumner Redstone, Larry Ellison and many more, are fun to read as well as insightful.
The message Ms. Koplovitz urges is clear. It's time for women to stop banging their heads against the ceiling, and move towards the open skies of entrepreneurship. This is an accessible, forthright book that avoids unnecessary complexity and addresses issues relevant to all women in the workplace. I recommend it highly.

I liked this book because it reveals the dirty little secret that men play power games in business at the expense of women. More important, it takes a good look at how women are doing amazing things to take business power for themselves. I liked what I saw. Koplovitz pulls no punches. She names names -- the good, the bad, and the ugly. And there are alot of names.
Koplovitz decribes how, after twenty some years of high flying success, she was pushed out of USA Networks, a company she built from nothing to several billlion dollars. She was a CEO without equity despite her repeated offers to buy in. The boys said no. That was O.K. because they let her run the show. And she made them a fortune. But when Barry Diller, a member in good standing of the incestuous old boys network, ended up owning USA, he pushed her out so that he could play with his new toy. Koplovitz makes this tale a good read. But the book is alot more.

Koplovitz is convincing that she is not bitter. She describes her catastrophe as a wakeup call. The glass ceiling turns out to be lead if you want to own a piece of the men's game. So she has set out to make it happen for herself and for other women who want to own big dollar companies based on the kinds of risks that earn big payoffs. She takes us along on her journey to find money for women with great business prosects.

This is more than a serious "how to" book for anyone who wants to raise venture capital, although Koplovitz offers several chapters that read like a "to do" list if you want to win the hearts (and money) of venture capitalists. The book also inspires. It includes terrific stories of women who were sucessful participatnts in the Koplovitz brain child, Springboard 2000, a kind of boot camp to give hard driving women the unique presentation skills that rake in ventrue capital. Koplovitz initiated Springboard 2000 after she was appointed by the President as chair of the National Women's Business Council, a sub-cabinet department in Wasington D.C. She tells how hard it was to get ventrue captialist-- mostly men-- to participate in the Springboard forum where women presented their business plans. But the ventrue capitalists came and this is the tale of how the women conquered. Koplovitz's success to date suggests that hers is the best revenge-- that is, living well as the owner of her own business, Broadway Televison Network (BTN), and watching scores of other women push into the business and money game where it won't just be for men any more.

The Mom's Choice Awards® honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, Ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times Best-Selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, Motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books, Florrie Binford-Kichler
Founder of Patria Press, Inc. - an award-winning independent publisher, President of PMA, the Independent Book Publishers Association, and Member of The Children's Book Council; Tara Paterson, Certified Parent Coach, and founder of The Just For Mom Foundation(tm) and the Mom's Choice Awards®. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards® seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families. This book is an honored recipient of this distinguished award.

Computer designed by Ivan Ivanov and featuring lively, colorful illustrations by A&O Ivanov, Boomer To The Rescue by Peter Parente is the story a lavender skunk who is nervous about his first day of school because he is so different. The other children tease him because he has a different smell! But when a grizzly bear corners the other children and threatens to eat them, Boomer uses his gift to turn the tide and save the day. Created to help children relate to everyday situations and understand that being different can be something to be proud of, Boomer To The Rescue combines an involving story with brightly-colored illustrations. A final page offers suggestions for protecting and rescuing America's endangered forests in this enthusiastically recommended storybook.

Peter Parente works with exotic animals and his work is his inspiration for Boomer to the Rescue.

He utilizes stores of animals to teach children valuable lessons. He has a two-toed sloth as a pet and the story of Boomer is actually based on a loveable lavender skunk.

Not all skunks are black and white; they also come in shades of brown, gray and blond. They can also have spots and swirls mixed in with stripes.

The art is adorable and children will enjoy the appearance of Roger the mouse, the animals in the forest school and will probably be able to relate to the bully squirrel.

When Boomer is ostracized, he runs away and cries. Then, suddenly a huge grizzly bear arrives and decides the squirrel would make a great appetizer. Boomer uses his God-given talents to dissuade the bear and gains the respect of all the forest animals.

Sure to make kids giggle and learn something about the advantages of having unique talents.

~The Rebecca Review

This is a story of Boomer, a lavender skunk who goes to school for the first time and is riduculed by Frankie the squirrel because of his color and odor. He is defended by his friend, Roger the mouse, who says different isn't a bad thing, but Boomer's heart is broken and he runs off into the woods. Roger tries to comfort him, but to no avail. Then they hear screams coming from the school where a large bear is about to eat the school smart aleck.
Boomer warns the bear to let go of his classmate and when he doesn't, the little skunk lets him have it. The bear runs off and Boomer's classmates cheer him and accept him. The lesson is clear, don't judge someone by how they look. This is a good book for children to read, particularly if they are "different." I particularly liked it because I had Samuel LePeuw, a pet mutant skunk who was almost a lavender color. They act just like the book says and will turn their back on you, hit the ground with their front feet and spray you. Luckily my Samuel was deodorized before I got him.

Boomer, a lavender skunk, is worried about the first day of school. His worst fears come true when the school bully says he's not allowed to play with them. When Boomer gets the chance to show his special qualities, others stop and take notice. This is a story that reminds kids (and their parent readers) about the pitfall of judging others. Our preschoolerloved it right away, especially Boomer's lavender coloring. We were asked to read this one several times in a row, for several days running. This is a sweet story. Predictable, but cute. The author creates a great way for parents to talk with their kids about their fears, which likely mirror Boomer's: first day of/new school, being made fun of, feeling left out.

This is an excellent coloring book with outstanding detail. Just be aware you need to purchase colored pencils. I spend an hour each evening coloring a few pages. Its a great learning tool!.

I find this guide most helpful as a learning tool for the subject of Botany. The information set out is well presented along with the detailed illustrations which help further clarify the subject matter. Great study tool!

This book is wery interesting. There you can to colour the pictures. Colour the pictures you can learn wery fast botany.

very good book! enjoyed good illustrations
even can be used as a coloring book.
love it!

Very pleased that this is both a botany book, covering basic principles of botany, and at the same time an 'adult' colouring book (a la Anatomy or Physiology colouring books), which allows you to actively reinforce your learning by colouring in the plant sections accompanying what you are reading. Very nice book.

This is a very good and quite readable oral history about the Brooklyn Dodgers of the 1940-1950's. That celebrated team won several pennants, integrated baseball with Jackie Robinson, and had many colorful and talented characters. Written in the 1980's, we hear from ex-Dodgers stars like Roy Campanella, Duke Snider, Ralph Branca, Pee Wee Reese, Leo Durocher, and even some fans. We see how this team played in quaint little Ebbets Field, mostly succeeding except for some heartbreaking losses in the World Series against the Yankees. But sadly, the real heartbreak came when greedy owner Walter O'Malley looked at declining attendance and fled to Los Angeles after 1957. This book should be of great interest to baseball aficionados, particularly those that remember their heroes in Ebbets Field. Readers should also enjoy THE BOYS OF SUMMER, a superb if melancholy account by Roger Kahn.

Born and raised in Brooklyn USA...Golenbock's "Bums" is the best book I've read on my dear Dodgers...The quotes from former members of the team are outstanding and offer a direct insight how the players felt about management, other players and especially the fans..I've re-read it about ten times..Great to pick up when one is a "how I miss my team" mode....Get it! You'll enjoy it and treasured it.

super oral history of one of baseballs most fabled franchises. great insights into the inner workings of the baseball organization and front office, as well as player interviews which reveal the real people and lives of the players and fans of "dem bums"

This is a wonderful book if you're a fan interested in the early days of baseball, especially the New York teams. The author captures everything around the human spirit surrounding the Dodgers, Ebbets Field, the fans that treated the team like family, Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, the Giants and Yankees rivalries.

The strength of this book lies in the first-hand accounts given by the players, executives, and fans that made the Dodgers franchise what it was. It is around these accounts that the book is built, and there is nothing more fascinating than hearing contemporaries reminisce about Campy or the Duke. This moves the book away from journalism and makes it something deeply personal. A must-have for any fan of the game, and especially of the Brooklyn Dodgers.