Reed Books

We were fortunate to stay at the Round Barn Inn several years ago and enjoyed the chicken satay so much while we were there that we bought this cookbook. Once I started branching out into the other recipes in the book I realized what a wonderful collection of recipes it is. I have yet to make something that we haven't adored. From lemon blueberry pancakes to spinach salad with carmelized onions, it's all in there. The directions are straightforward and the ingredients are generally pretty common, but the results are fantastic!

I was fortunate enough to receive this wonderful cookbook as a gift...I have enjoyed making a number of the incredible recipes ~ particularly the salmon fillets in puff pastry and the Boston salad with pears, blue cheese and walnuts. What perfect items for a dinner party ~ easy and a beautiful presentation. My guests think I've been slaving in the kitchen for days! Thanks to my dear Vermont friend for sharing this little gem with me!

I was in Vermont. I could smell the smells and see the land. I could taste each recipe. This is now my favorite cooking tool. I cook and my family reads from the book. Thank you for this wonderful treasure. I will visit!

As the child of a teacher of English, I'd been introducted to many of Shakespeare's plays at a very early age. This has lead to two things - a twisted sense of humour and an appreciation of the same. The Reduced Shakespeare Company fits the bill perfectly. Silly, witty, and intelligent, the RSC puts life back into the bard. If you're looking for a serious scholarly thesis on Shakespeare, look elsewhere. If you're looking for somthing that will make you laugh until you cry, the RSC is for you! And hey, you never know - you might learn something too.

A whimsical mixture of slapstick humor and witty parody. Somewhat sophmoric at times, but generally insightful.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company knows their stuff, and are very creative about their presentation.

I've been an RSC fan since their early renfaire days, & their work is as timeless as the Bard's. This is Shakespeare thru the eyes of American pop culture with references to everything from Casablanca to Dr. Ruth to rap music. But it's not Shakespeare for dummies -- the RSC lads know the real texts inside & out. They show Shakespeare's greatness thru their humor -- & they remind us how funny Shakespeare really is. The RSC would be an excellent introduction to Shakespeare for students or anyone who thinks the Bard is stuffy & boring.

As a Japanese poet myself, I was largely influenced and moved by his being and works. His haiku restored my relationship with nature and the grace of life. The beautiful discovery of the essence and the tresurable secret in ordinary life.

This is a wonderful book that demonstrates how well the haiku form can work in English. It has a distinctly American feel but the same concentration as in the great Japanese poets. Truly exceptional.

Wills joined the North American haiku scene in 1968, during a time of transition away from the early orthodoxies of the movement. Wills himself became one of the first haijin to write a sparer type of haiku, liberated from 5-7-5 syllabic structure and the traditions of western typography. This collection, published in 1987, contains nearly all his best published work. Wills' background was in lit (PhD from Washington University in St. Louis, taught at university level for many years). After spending time studying haiku in Japan on a research grant, he left academia and lived as a subsistence farmer, an experience that probably helped give his work its pure, focused, supremely uncluttered quality. Along with Robert Spiess, he's perhaps the most persuasive and observant naturalist among North American haijin, his haiku inspiration deriving almost exclusively from the American wilderness. He's capable of magnificent compression--

boulders
just beneath the boat
it's dawn

--which juxtaposes the four classical elements of earth, water, air, and fire and documents a classic haiku moment of transition (with a hint of menace) in just nine syllables.

Elsewhere we find pointed humor:

keep out sign
but the violets keep on
going

Unforgettable images:

mule
dragging dawn
across the ridge

(clearly modeled on Virgilio's "bass/picking bugs/off the moon", the poem that first turned Wills onto haiku)

And self-deprecation in his appropriately rare personal cameos:

the footpath narrows
laurel branches take me
by the sleeve

Wills experimented with single-line haiku, meter, portmanteau words, and expressive typography, notably the use of tabs to indicate silence, space, and elapsed time. His work, both in terms of content and technique, remains a great inspiration to haijin everywhere.

I originally read this gem of a book by Maxwell during the 1970s (we had had to read "Ring of Bright Water" in school) and returned to it again several years ago while I was planning a conference about restoring the marshlands (and people) that had all but been competely destroyed by Saddam. Of the handful of mid-century books by British ex-pats about the marshes, I still think that Maxwell remains the best writer of the group. Much of my own prose in "Wetlands of Mass Destruction: Ancient Presage for Contemporary Ecocide in Southern Iraq" benefited from a third reread of this exploration classic.

It is astounding that in such a short time the world can change so dramatically. The events in this book are a little over 40 years old yet so much has changed and so much may be lost forever. Maxwell documents the lives of these wonderful people and a land that is rapidly disappearing now. The roots of the 'otter' books are also here in the eventual arrival of Mijbil. Sadly, even the status of Mij's sub-speciation has now apparently disappeared too. Anyone with an interest in the lives of other people should have a copy of this book in their libraries.

Maxwell is one of the lost breed of British travelers who raised their adventures in unknown lands (and recordings of the same) to an art form. Like the better-known Wilfred Thesiger, Maxwell spent part of his life among the ma'dan, the Shi'i marsh Arabs of southern Iraq. His book is, like Thesiger's "Marsh Arabs," an awe-inspiring treatment of the life, work, recreation, physical environment, and culture of the ma'dan at approximately mid-century, when Baghdad had yet to extend its political governance and physical infrastructure to the marshes. Until recent decades, the economy and lives of the ma'dan remained similar to the ancient practices of their Sumerian forbears, according to other writers. These people, whose habitats, villages, and very lives are being progressively snuffed out by the Iraqi government since 1991, are one of the forgotten peoples of the world, and this book is a moving, impressive testament to what they were.

Since the first edition of this work came out in 1975, this work has been a must-have for anyone, layman or professional, who is interested in Australia's unique and very speciose collection of reptiles and amphibians. Successive upgrades through the years have kept this book up to date (but at the same time considerably larger and more expensive than the original).

Quite simply, this book is a guide to ALL of Australia's (including it's island territories) frogs and reptiles. Each taxa has a full description of it's appearance, distribution (by way of both text and an accompanying shaded map), habits and, in the majority of species, a corresponding colour photograph of the living animal. The book has very thorough and simple to use dichotomous keys that should allow any specimen in hand to be quickly identified. A comprehensive list of scientific references is also given for those wishing to conduct more in-depth research. Also included are basic guides to the collection, preservation and captive care of specimens.

I have only one gripe with the current (Sixth - year 2000) edition. Since (I think) 1992 there has been no major rewrite of the main text - instead an increasingly large Appendix of has been slapped on the end. The current Appendix is now over 40 pages long with numerous subsequently described species and nomeclatural rearrangements. It can be very annoying having to flick from the main text to the Appendix in such a large volume to see what the current information is.

Still, this is a bearable hardship to pay for such a treasuretrove of information and illustrations.

Very good book, lots of pictures and maps.

I work at David Fleay Wildlife Park on the Gold Coast and this is the reference book I recommend to those wanting to identify either reptiles or amphibians that they have in their backyard, come across while travelling or from photographs. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia is a very large, thick and heavy doorstopper of a book so not really ideal for the backpacker who wants something to carry in their backpack. If you have a car, or want it for the home though it is ideal.

As well as great photographs to compare what you are wondering about there is also a substantial amount of information on each reptile and amphibian. There are also shaded maps to indicate where you are most likely to come across each animal that you seek.

If you are after a book that covers the whole range of animals in Australia and not just reptiles and amphibians I would recommend Encyclopaedia of Australian Wildlife by Janet Healey. If you live in South East QLD then Wildlife of Greater Brisbane by the Queensland Museum is also a great reference book. For those interested only in birds I would recommend Michael Marcombe's A Field Guide to Australian Birds.

John Reed's Schubert Song Companion provides clear and literal translations to the more than 600 known Schubert lieder. Reed also includes musical analysizations and historical information about each song. This book is perfect for anyone from the Schubert scholar to the curious listener. Definately a must for any Schubert singer!

To get a start in the world of the lieder, this is the best by far. Thourogh, well organized, easy to use...

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For those who have the time and intellectual inclination, suggest you pair this book with Schubert: Lieder and go through the whole Schubert lieder experience, combining poetry, music, and criticism: a worthy pursuit of the best of humanity--amid the wrack and ruin of civilization in the 21st Century New Dark Age.
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How very wonderful to read a book that from the moment you start reading, you relive along with the author her transition from wife to widow. I have felt many emotions in my life but her gentle praise of her husband, her innate intellectual assessment of her present life gave me food for thought. How would I handle a loss? The author talks about her everyday musings, her parents, her childhood and her friends. Each of her stories are like a brush stroke on a canvas and slowly the picture evolves, a portrait of a woman coming to terms with as she writes "coming face to face with the dying time". From the first story "I See Red", I find myself seeing all the colors of the rainbow which is somehow integrated into the book. Maybe this is because her cat, Finian, named after the character in Finian's Rainbow is significant in many of her stories. Everybody who reads this book will no doubt leave with other impressions but I guarantee all will be lasting. This is a book to be cherished for a woman allowing us to look into her soul and heart.

How very wonderful to read a book that from the moment you start reading, you relive along with the author her transition from wife to widow. I have felt many emotions in my life but her gentle praise of her husband, her innate intellectual assessment of her present life gave me food for thought. How would I handle a loss? The author talks about her everyday musings, her parents, her childhood and her friends. Each of her stories are like a brush stroke on a canvas and slowly the picture evolves, a portrait of a woman coming to terms with as she writes "coming face to face with the dying time". From the first story "I See Red", I find myself seeing all the colors of the rainbow which is somehow integrated into the book. Maybe this is because her cat, Finian, named after the character in Finian's Rainbow is significant in many of her stories. Everybody who reads this book will no doubt leave with other impressions but I guarantee all will be lasting. This is a book to be cherished for a woman allowing us to look into her soul and heart.

This is truly an unbelievable book. Each day is started with a title, when followed takes you into the mind of a woman searching for a resolution to the torment churning within every fiber of her being. The one titled "Death the Great Liberator" is so profound and yet so heart warming. She mixes emotions with laughter and loss with independence. I love her titles, The Gregarious Recluse, Waiting for Godot and other Stories, Eternal Standard Time and the Cat's Meow. Her poems are deep and dark; and then she finds time to write a funny ode to Chinese food. I find myself following her pilgrimage through time. After reading the one titled "Is Anyone Listening?", I want to respond and say I am listening, all who read this book are listening....you are not isolated or alone. We care, all of us care. And another title "Attention Must be Paid". This is so very, very true....attention must be paid to our friends and loved ones. I am truly overwhelmed by the unaffectedness of the writing. Being an animal lover myself, I find her cat Finian a great asset in the book. He is obviously a well loved cat and in his own cat way returns this affection.

Sexism and Science author Evelyn Reed, writing her Introduction in November, 1977, explains that this book is as important as and similar in purpose to the books written to reveal the racism that infiltrated supposedly scientific researchers in biology, genetics, zoology, sociology, and anthropology. As a lifelong student of anthropology, Reed has no problem exposing many authors as unscientific and sexist by quoting and then destroying their main arguments. Among these are Lionel Tiger, author of Men In Groups, Robert Ardrey, author of The Territorial Imperative, Konrad Lorenz who wrote On Aggression, and Desmond Morris, writer of aked Ape. She reserved a whole chapter for the famed Harvard zoologist Edward O. Wilson and has a field day describing his version of 'social Darwinism'--the erroneous view that human societies are simply varieties of animal societies and human nature is identical with animal nature. Women surrounded today by these same backward ideas will love this book. for its confident and well-researched content. The ardent animal lovers of today also should read this small, powerful book for our differences and similarities are intriguing in the able hands of this Marxist-feminist author.

This book by Evelyn Reed sweeps away the sexist, unscientific views that have prevailed among academics for decades. When she wrote these articles twenty-five years ago, Reed warned that this trend in anthropology would be used to blunt the lessons of the women's liberation movement and submerge our thinking about the future of humanity in a morass of pessimism and liberal guilt. "Animal Rights" is the perfect example of what Reed was warning about. If you look at the way humanity created itself out of the primates, you get a liberating respect for what we can accomplish. If you look at the tremendous accomplishments of the long period of female dominance (without romanticizing it) you are in a position to refute the idea that women will always suffer domination. If humanity is to avoid capitalism's descent into barbarism (and we will), women will once again play the leading role.

This is a fascinating collection of articles by Evelyn Reed, a long-time socialist activist and Marxist writer, author of Woman's Evolution and other works. She tackles questions of the evolution of human beings and human society out of earlier animal species; emphasizing things that make humans different, including tool-making, intellectual capacity and the ability to organize in broad social groups to be able to transform nature to meet the needs of human beings. Reed also analyzes the divisions of society into classes of producers and exploiters, the emergence of patriarchal society from earlier matriarchal forms, and the deep-seated roots of woman's oppression today.
"Sexism and Science" polemicizes extensively on facts and methodology with academics whose views on anthropology and biology are warped by the prejudices of modern capitalist society. Among those are Desmond Morris, author of "The Naked Ape," Edward O. Wilson, author of "Sociobiology," and the prominent anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss.
Want to understand better the roots of poverty, racism, and sexism today and figure out a way forward for humanity? You'll find the issues raised, the facts presented and the materialist methodology Reed employs are extremely useful.

This book is very well written. Dr. Grant participated in some ofthe early clinical trials of hormone pills (those used for HRT, by the way, are the same as those used for birth control). The trials for men stopped when men started getting shriveled parts; the trials for women continued in spite of deaths of participants. Yikes. Having read this book, I will never ever again take hormone pills and will definitely be advocating different family planning methods to my friends.

This is a book which exposes much of the hype and plain misinformation peddled about these dangerous drugs -- both the Pill and HRT -- from a medical, *not* a religious or moral, standpoint. She is not against the concept of contraception, but the method used -- these powerful drugs.

What it makes clear is how these drugs are steroids, just as much as corticosteroids and anabolic steroids with many of the same effects, entirely suppressing and replacing the bodily sex hormones not only in the ovaries but also in the adrenal glands. Unsurprisingly both the Pill and HRT can be shown to hugely increase the risk of sex hormone dependent cancers such as breast cancer and other medical conditions such as thrombosis, antiphospholipid sydrome and other autoimmune disorders such as Lupus and Raynaud's syndrome in women not previously predisposed to these conditions. Dr Grant has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, The Lancet and the British Medical Journal.

Dr Grant says the lowered doses in more recent drugs does not lessen the risk of many disorders. What docs are now saying about HRT, Dr Grant was saying far more strongly many years ago when HRT was being lauded.

She shows how these powerful external steroids (and it doesn't matter whether they are synthetic or so-called "natural") are many hundreds of times more powerful than bodily hormones, interfering with all the systems in the body. She also says, "All this can lead to more infections, more food and chemical allergy, weight problems such as anorexia or obesity, osteoporosis and cancer". She demonstrates that HRT and The Pill are basically the same drugs with the same effects on girls and women prescribed these drugs for contraception, menopause, menstrual disorders.

This is a book which demands to be updated and reprinted for basic information (including lots of clinical proof) about these drugs, otherwise usually unavailable to lay readers in plain speaking language.

This book shows the long term effects of synthetic hormones leading to cancer and thrombosis etc. in women and side effects on men. Its well-researched and written by one of the Doctors who did the first trials on the pill in the 60's & 70's and shows the side effects. Also shows how the scientists distorted the results of the tests to give the impression that the Pill was good for you and ignored the fact that most of the women who started the trials of HRT and the pill gave up before the end of the trial because of severe side effects and only reported on the people left at the end of the trial saying they had no side effects. Explains about the dangers of high oestrogen from eating animals (given hormones to boost growth) and hormones given to pregnant women and underage teenagers. Its a must read.

I probably put off reading this book because it has a picture of a dog on the front cover, and not being much of a "pet-person" myself, I didn't think I'd be able to get into this story. Well, was I ever wrong! It wasn't about pets at all, but about giving love and shelter to troubled youths. Claire was such a gutsy heroine - someone to be admired and looked up to because she never backed down from a challenging situation. With a warm and soft heart, she reached out to the lost and lonely, and helped them find themselves and their way in life. I appreciated the slow and patient way Nick and Claire developed their friendship and grew to trust each other over time.

I enjoyed this love inspired book very much. I think partly due to the fact that I used to work with troubled youth so parts of the story I was really able to relate and identify with. I enjoyed the romance between Claire and Nick and how they had to both develop a trust with one another.

I hate to attempt to purchase a book without knowing anything at all about it, so I am writing from the back cover. I hope this is ok. This was a very good book.
Who was this handsome stranger who'd save her life--twice? That was what Claire Wilcox wanted to know, especially after she'd impulsively invited the man to stay at her shelter for runaways. She sensed there was more to handyman Nick Andrews than met the eye--there was a great loss this loner was trying to run from. Claire knew what running was all about. A former runaway herself, she'd established a haven for troubled teens. As Nick earned his keep repairing damage to the shelter, he grew closer to Claire, to the kids she cared for...and to the God he'd shut out of his heart. Could Claire's faith begin to fill the spiritual void in his life and give him a new reason to love?