Reed Books

Reviewed by Debra Gaynor for Reader Views (1/07)

"In 1879 through 1881Bodie, California was one of the richest mining towns in the West." Located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the town is now a historic state park. Both gold and silver were excavated from the town's mines. "Bodie is the best-preserved ghost town in the West.

James Watson and Doug Brodie combine history, legend and never before shared stories with their readers to bring to life the image of Bodie, once a thriving town now a ghost town.

The author's discuss how to obtain an education in an obscure isolated town called Bodie. "The Bodie Public School opened its doors the second Tuesday of March, 1878." There were 10 eager students. Within two weeks there were 40 students. The teacher was paid $100.00 per month.

The town is located 15 miles from Mono Lake. The lake has been referred to as "the Dead Sea of the West." The lake was used for transporting materials "to build the railroad and to haul wood products and lumber."

In 1911 a blizzard hit the area resulting in three avalanches, leaving nine dead. "The tremendous weight of snow on the mountainside gave way and with a roar bore down on the unsuspecting occupants of the dwellings....Within seconds the powerhouse and cottages were ripped off their foundations and flattened."

"Big Bad Bodie: High Sierra Ghost Town," by James Watson and Doug Brodie, is fascinating. The combination of facts and myth helps to teak the reader's interest. The photographs add much to the story, bringing the town to the reader. I found myself pondering the photographs. My husband and I are born tourist, we definitely want to see Bodie. I highly recommend this book to those interested in history, travel, ghost stories and nonfiction.

The collaborative effort of James Watson and Doug Brodie, Big Bad Bodie: High Sierra Ghost Town is the history of a Western ghost town of the 19th and 20th centuries, as compiled from newspapers, personal testimony, research in the Bodie area of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and more. Black-and-white photographs complement the primary sources that compile an accurate and memorable picture of what life in Bodie was really like. Big Bad Bodie is a welcome addition to Western American History Studies collections and would well serve as a template for specialized "yesteryear" histories of other western communities as well.

I grew up in L.A. near Central Avenue. While I knew much of the music scene from the late 50's to 70's, this book blew me away and showed me how much I didn't know. The history lessons, photographs, posters and ads make this truely a collectors treasure. Tom Reed has done an outstanding job, but the passion shown throughout this book you would not know he wasn't born and raised there.

This book is not easy to rate because there is so little to compare to it. The writer not only covers the music history of Los Angeles, but also gives a peak into the community itself; which supports the music scene. This book is a must have for any entertainment historian.

This book is an absolute delight! The prayers and blessings are uplifting and honoring to our furred, finned and feathered friends. The anecdotes and ceremonies are wildly entertaining! This book is a must read for anyone who loves animals!

Blessing of the Animals is a priceless collection of ceremonies and blessings to the emerging field of Animal Chaplaincy. As Chair of the Interfaith Association of Animal Chaplains, we immediately added it to the syllabus in our training program for new Chaplains. Personally, I heartily reccommend this wonderful book to anyone interested in animals and spirituality. Whether you are in an animal-related profession, are crazy about your companion animal friends, or know someone else who is, you will find inspiration and practical uses for the many delightful blessings in this book. Blessing of the Animals is a MUST READ for all animal lovers, spiritual seekers, and those who serve them.

I purchased this book not having any experience with bone carving, and it has got me started in a big way! I now carve and have successfully sold my own carvings. It is instructional in both the history and techniques of bone carving. The illustrations are great. The author provides an excellent step-by-step approach to carving, including preparing the bones, tools to use in carving, and finishing techniques (including braiding necklace cords). It has been my only source of information and has been all I have needed. I whole-heartedly recommend it!

This is a very well written, well illustrated book on the complete process of New Zealand bone carving. The book covers making your own carving tools, creating designs, choosing material, all stages of carving and finishing, and string lashing techniques. The author smoothly mixes traditional designs and techniques with modern interpretations and tools. This is a complete how-to book if you want to create beautiful bone jewelry, or just a fascinating read if you are interested in Maori culture. If you enjoy this book, also try Moko: The Art and History of Maori Tattooing by H. G. Robley.

This is a great book. I got it at the dollar tree store and have read it a million times. Its not to big and a young Star Trek fan could read it.

A+

Wonderful book! Well written! Gives insight to the emotions of hatred and betrayal toward the Borg.

I have not read a funnier book since Bill Clinton's "My Life."

This collection of short pieces is just priceless. Each hilarious piece is a page or two long, so you can read here and there. Hilarious, sane, and educational.

I am buying this for all my friends.

Fred has topped himself with a witty vivisection of every form of modern political corretness. Fred pokes ,prods and bludgeons with a purpose, however he clearly is a man who understands that evaluating the modern condition cannot be done in a historical vacuum but must accompany honest evaluations of the strengths and weaknesses of the past.

A Broken Reed is a book that ignites imagination in the heart of its' reader. Unlike so many authors nowadays Ron Miller has captivated the youth, innocence, and beauty of the old south. His descriptions of the small town in which the story originates sparks a special bond between you, the reader, and the characters. You find yourself cheering them all on as they struggle to find a killer. I can't wait to read more of Mr. Miller's work.

Life in the rural American south during the middle decades of the twentieth century was very hard for most people -- including a fourteen year old boy who found himself caught up in a web of intrigue, mystery, and murder. A Broken Reed makes the southern experience of living in a small town in the late 1950s come alive both with a meticulous attention to background detail, a variety of memorable charecters, an unfailing ear for regional dialect, and most of all, for a complex and unpredictable storyline. Clearly documenting Ron Miller as an extraordinary and original novelist, the only complaint is the exceptionally small type font making the text difficult to scan for anyone without excellent vision. It would have been better to make this 376-page volume expand into a 450+ page length with a larger and more "reader friendly" font size.

I really enjoyed this audio - very well written and the reading was excellent, too.

I really enjoyed this audiobook. It's extremely literary (something often lacking in the erotica genre), and also very sexy. A very believable tale about a young woman's sexual coming of age. Definitely recommended.

I haven't enjoyed a book as much as this for a long time. I've read this book at least four times and refer to it on a regular basis. Unfortunately, the average Christian and/or "sinner" (non christian) will not have any inclination as to why this book is so relevant.

Gerard Reed has validated a lifetime of dissatisfaction I've had with contemporary Christianity and solidified my determination to continue to seek God despite my faults and the hypocrisy of modern churches.

I've read Lewis for years and the underlying current of unconditional love and overpowering strength of God's love has been completely realized in "...The Bright Shadow of Holiness".

Your passion just might be God's calling card! The idea that God is a creator/architect and the ideals that we, naturally, come about during our lives, may just be evidence of the divine. Lewis recognized later in life that the "joy" he felt when he was having revelation of a thing, or the appreciation of beauty and perfection, may have been the wooing of the Holy Spirit, drawing him to God. This book describes in detail the possibility that God may have been active in your life, whether or not you've sought it out. You may be closer to God than you think.

I keep extra copies to give to friends and family.

The book is genius!

Thought holiness was stiff, legalistic and restricting? This book will change the way you see yourself and the way you see God. Holiness is explained the way it has always meant to be. Enjoy it. You won't regret owning this book.

Last year I bought Helena Nelson-Reed's Call of the Goddess calendar and loved it, so naturally I had to have the new one as well. I can look at her paintings for hours and still discover new details. Further more it is the perfect calendar for everyone who likes mythology and love their Goddess.

I purchased this as a gift and had to fight myself from keeping it! The artwork is beautiful and the information included for each month is very information and interesting.

I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in beauty, and especially those who appreciate the emergence and rise of the Goddess Religions again.

But buy if for the beauty alone.