Roberts Books

This book was kind of slow but did have enough interesting characteristics to keep me reading. Not at all a bad book but just not anything that made me want to get the second in the series.

Being a fan of the Myst series since it's original launch in the early 1990's, I can say that this book lives of to the expectations that Myst/Uru fans have come to appreciate. It's easy to read, flows well, has a great underlying story. After reading, you are able to understand and appreciate the island of Myst and Riven so much more. It's an easy book to read, which makes it great for both young and old. Though the book is around 400 pages, it flies by and as always, I was sad to finish it, but there are two more sequels to entertain the Myst fan in all of us.

The Myst series was such a wonderful series, after I found out they made a book about the history of Myst, I basically thought that it would be horrible. Grave mistake. This is one of the best books I have ever read. It couldn't get any better.
The creators of Myst even helped make it, and they knew what they were making. The horrible thing is that these books were discontinued.
Even if they were discontinued, it is not a reason not to buy them. They are all wonderful books and I suggest you get all of them.

It really seems only fitting that a video game about books would have a series of books published in its name. For some reason when such books were first coming out I was sort of skeptical about their quality. I truly am glad I overcame this and decided to pick up the Myst books. I was an early enough adopter to be able to get all the hardcover texts and they are all beautifully designed. It's strange that a lot of books don't adopt this kind of method, because it really is eye catching and I'm glad the makers of Myst picked up on that. In terms of binding, it technically is rather cheaply done to support the mass market interest in this series. Rather than have a truly older styled binding, they have the typical style with embossed paper wrapped over the hard cover. The paper is of excellent quality and is embossed in sections, which adds a tinge of making it feel artificially handmade. I've had mine for many years now and there is barely any wear on it. However, when one inspects the design you can tell it is merely paper glued over the normal hardcover pressing and it is merely there for aesthetic appeal. The books in the game have a very old styled feel, which they should since they're all handmade books, but the makers wanted to keep that atmosphere alive with printing these books. Despite my inspection of the edition, I must say it was a great marketing idea and wish more publishers would do this rather than just adopt the typical dust jacket. That being said, the current editions more readily available to readers are the regular paperback and now the collected edition which was recently printed.

I wasn't sure what to really expect from this book when I first got it. I had beaten the game "Myst" and the game was pretty well written. However, the game had a lot of unknown elements in its story, and I'm sad to report that "The Book of Atrus" doesn't fill in all the gaps. It certainly fills in quite a bit, but not everything. This book acts as both a prequel to "Myst" and a bridge to "Riven". It's an interesting story in that regard because it tells about Atrus' childhood and goes into why the age of Riven is in dire need of our help!

At the end of Myst we find Atrus sitting at a desk in a deep cavern in place known as D'ni. We are transported there with him once we escape the island of Myst, but we are never told why he is there; just that he needs to make a decision concerning his sons. This is all well and good, but there are so many holes and questions, thus the novelization seeks to explain them. At one time Atrus lived with his grandmother, Ana, in a desert region. "The Book of Atrus" goes into detail about his life and learning there. It's almost an ideal childhood until one day his father, Gehn, returns and seeks to take him back to D'ni. See they are from a race of people who lived underground until they were all of a sudden destroyed. Ana, Gehn, and Atrus are the only decedents we are made aware of from this great society. So when Gehn was old enough he returned to the world of D'ni in search of its secrets, to see if he could find it and possibly rebuild it. Needless to say he sort of succeeded.

Gehn understands how to write in the books and knows the secret D'ni language to make different ages to create portal links between his world and others. However, he does not wield this power intelligently, but he doesn't want the knowledge to die with him, so he seeks out his son. He teaches Atrus everything, but Atrus has a keener mind for creating ages. Most of Gehn's worlds are unstable and if a world has inhabitants Gehn insists on be treated as a God. Needless to say Atrus' kindly nature has the better of him and he seeks to change this.

In this we get to see the bridge to Riven's story line. Riven had been an age linked to by Gehn, but the world was vastly unstable. So he and Atrus sought to fix it if they could. Gehn, being the overbearing man that he is, did not think most of Atrus' ideas were good ones. However, one thing would change Atrus' life forever when he got to Riven, he met Catherine there. Yes, the girl he references frequently in the first "Myst" game. Eventually she would bear his two sons Sirrus and Akenar, so as you can tell, I knew Atrus would succeed even during reading this, so I don't feel I am giving anything away. The book doesn't go into detail about the two sons growing up, so you never really know how everything started with them. Anyway, there is a solution to Atrus' problem, but I'll let the readers find that out for themselves. When we get to "Riven", the video game, there are further complications based around this story... I'll leave these mysteries to be discovered for yourself.

I don't feel I am spoiling very much of the book because it is riveting in itself. Most people who read this will undoubtedly have played the video games and already know the stories' outcomes before reading this. As any Myst player knows the interesting factor is in the details, I have left every part of these out. The book is a fascinating page turner and I really couldn't put it down at all. This book leaves a lot more mystery to the reader in the end and left us looking forward to the follow up text, "The Book of Ti'ana." I especially recommend this to any Myst fan who wants to delve deeper into the story line and world of Myst. I don't think many people would pick up Myst if they didn't already enjoy reading books to find out what new worlds they would be brought to. In that spirit these books are clearly written!

I read this book when I was younger and only remember great things. Looking back on it now I can tell that the writing isn't exactly scholarly, but that doens't matter, Myst is a fun adventure story that all kids and teens should enjoy. And no, I'm not a big fan of fantasy myself, but I had no trouble getting drawn in.

Want to learn chess? If you are an absolute beginner or someone who has mastered the very basic skills then look no further! CHESS FOR JUNIORS will do the job for you. Yes, I am into advertising, but not as a profession for this book (if you know "Mr. Clean", "Hey, Mikie likes it" or "Where's the Beef" I was the person who made this possible on national TV". OK, you have got it! I am an old timer writing about a book with the "Youth Market" in mind. But then why has it been since it publication date of 1991 the #1 best selling chess book? It is GOOD, VERY GOOD!

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WHY:

1. VERY CLEAR (Mr. Clean can see everything)
2. VERY UNDERSTANDABLE (an 8-year-old or older name Mikie will like it)
3. LOTS OF MATERIAL (you will not be left saying, "where is the beef!")
4. WELL ORGANIZED (just like a "box of chocolate" - I was involved in that too!)
5. BEST SELLER (couldn't be all that bad! - it is ranked as #1)

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SOME THINGS I LIKE:

1. If you are using this book to teach someone who doesn't know a thing about chess (maybe you or your kid or your student?) then it starts off assuming no knowledge (everyone was once a beginner)
2. Once you finish you can go back and find almost every important term or concept in the index (doesn't require a college education to find something - Gommer Pyle would find what he wants!)
3. Written in a mature manner that an old guy will appreciate, yet the humor that kids will like in the book offers a perfect balance to make this a book for anyone who can read. (must only be beyond the reading level of - see spot run, run spot run)

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HOW:

1. You have ordered here before (go for it you button pusher!)
2. New, Used, or a Collectible Autographed Copy (like I have - I try and get whatever I can autographed just click on the right button of your choice)

Now I absolutely love this book. My grandkids, parents and I all have a copy and so should you. Next time you are watching TV and see a commercial, or see the author's students "Will Smith" or "Nicolas Cage", then you will be reminded of this particular book!

I run two after school chess programs at elementary schools and use "Chess for Juniors" as the text book. At first I was disapointed to see that this book has become difficult to get (if you can get a used copy grab it!). However, I found out is is going through a complete revision and will be a second edition when released later this year (as well as the entire "Chess for Juniors" series of books, including some new ones to be released).
"Chess for Juniors" is the perfect text book for teachers who are running a class for elementary age students on up (yes, it is suitable for a class for adults) beginning with an introduction to the basic rules and leading into a lot of basic material on strategy found in all aspects of the game.
What I found that sets "Chess for Juniors" (and the entire series) in a class by itself is the readability (ease of understanding the material) and comprehensiveness of the book.
Whereas, a 3rd grade reader of average reading skill can understand it, it is not going to insult an adult who wants to learn from it. It is is structured so any teacher conducting a class can easily follow the building lessons (it provides the perfect format for a ready-made class outline!).
Please hurry with the second edition!!!

I got this book a couple of years ago and now am chess club presendent at my school chess club in 7th grade. I loaned it out so many times it is getting worn out.

When I went to get a copy now I found out it is temporarily not in print because it is going to be made a new edition. I plan to get the new edition for the chess club.

What I liked about this book is that it isn't a silly little kids picture book. It teaches serious material using an easy to understand method by making the language basic enough and organizing it in an order to make it learning friendly. It would be good for anyone who can read as well as an average third grader right on up to adults. The index in the back makes it easy to find things and relook things up like terms, openings and rules.

Everyone in the school chess club likes it and uses it for continued reference even after having read it. I think this is the best first book for kids and adults.

"Chess for Juniors" is easy to read and understand for anyone who is a third grade reader on up to an adult. It makes learning everything from the basic rules of chess right on up to important strategies (tactics, endgames, openings, traps at all parts of the game).

In addition to containing a nice quantity of material it is organized so you can learn and grow in chess as you progress through the 20 lesson chapters. It has two very nice games toward the back of the book that spends lots of time going over all of the moves. When it teaches openings it tells you the ideas behind the moves. If you are starting out without knowing anything about chess, then it explains about the rules very clearly, without taking up most of the book to do it.

I had another beginning book before getting this one. It was one that was for kids, but when I was done I still felt like I was a beginner. It didn't have enough learning material and was not serious enough (it dwelled on the basic rules for like half the book and took up too much space with fancy pictures). When you finish "Chess for Juniors" you will feel plenty advanced enough to move on to more advanced books.

"Chess for Juniors" is obviously the work of superb teacher whose mind and heart have fully committed themselves to the playing and teaching of chess over a number of years. It's perfectly organized and will turn any prospective or current player who carefully studies and absorbs its twenty lessons into a 1200-1300 player at least. I'm looking forward to diving into Snyder's "unbeatable Lessons" books if they're as valuable as this one.

Since I already knew the basics of chess before I bought this book, I was most interested in the approach Snyder took once he directed his readers on to the next step, since this is where introductory books on chess really show their true colors.
Snyder covers the pins/forks/skewers tactics as well as anyone, but the best part is the in-depth attention he gives to openings, defenses, and what he calls "Tactical Motifs." What this entails are insightful, detailed looks at the Ruy Lopez (the "Spanish") and Giuoco Piano (the "Italian") openings, and a group of the best-known gambits (From's, King's accepted and declined, Bishop sacrifices, Petroff's Defense). He also looks at those three to four-move checkmates like the Fool's and Scholar's--how they can be sprung on novice/unsuspecting opponents and how they can be avoided so easily if you develop the sound opening principles Snyder sets forth. If you play over and completely absorb all these openings and the basic variations as Snyder sets them down here, you'll develop a strong sense of space and begin to understand the tactical and strategic consequences of the moves you make.

Snyder also gives great explanations of some defensive responses, especially the Sicilian, the King's Indian and the Nimzo-Indian if you're playing black. The depth of Snyder's explanations is perfect, so that you learn what to do and why to do it without getting bogged down in needless details and variations. His lessons on King-Pawn, Queen and Rook endings are also perfectly set out. End games are essential of course but they are a bit dull to have to study. Again, I feel Snyder gives you just what you need to know so that you won't blow an end game with a loss, draw or stalemate when the use of a few core techniques could have made the game yours. Finally, there are a couple of instructive games which look especially at attacks on the weak f7/f2 squares and their outcomes, around which many wins or losses can revolve.

All in all, this is a superb beginner's book, either for youths or adults. I would say that there are other good ones out there too which can be fruitfully studied in conjunction with Snyder--the beginner's books by Yasser Seirawan (Play Winning Chess), John Nunn (Learn Chess), and I. A. Horowitz (Chess for Beginners). I do think it's shameful that many advocates of Snyder's fine work try to undermine these other works by pumping "Chess for Juniors" and pushing down all positive reviews of his competitors by marking these reviews "unhelpful." There seems to be some kind of strategy at work, since they always put Snyder's title in upper case letters, recommending it after they have put down the other work. Sometimes they won't even review the other work, but will just mention Snyder's. It all seems orchestrated. I'm sure an author and lover of chess such as Snyder must be too classy a man to advocate this kind of lowball campaign. Apparently his students are not.

I really enjoyed this book! I think I enjoyed it more the further into it I got because I began to realize the scope of the book. Also, because it's a series, I wasn't sure how much of the book would be self-contained vs. continuous.
I adored the way the "fantasy world" and how Coville described the various landscapes. Ditto for the creatures of the fantasy world! From both known fantastical creatures (like unicorns) to some new (at least, I've never heard of them before), delightful creatures! I felt as though each character had a distinct personality - even if it took me a little bit to figure them out. And I felt invested in them all, which is a good feat for the book being only 150 pages.
That's really my only reason for the 4 stars instead of 5. There's really nothing wrong with the book that I can find to warrant only 4 stars - but for me, I'm used to more in-depth books with great detail to the plots. This was the only thing I wanted more of; I felt there was enough plot and character back-story that the book could have been expanded and delved into further. Though, perhaps that wasn't the author's intent - or it wasn't the intent of this book since it's a series.
However, I would think this a great book to start out for younger readers. And it's a delightful treat for those of us who adore fantasy books to read between tomes!

This is an amazing book it is number 2 in my top five favorite books. And I've read ALOT of books. This is an ideal book for ANYONE who LOVES unicorns, like me! If you get this book for some one be sure to get the second one to. Why? Becuse this one REALY gets you ready for the next one. When I finished it I had really wished that my teacher had the next one, but she didn't. I checked the school libray, but they didn't have it either! I haven't read the next one yet, but I am always keeping my eye out for it and now I've found it here! I hope you've liked my review
-an 11 year-old

Into the Land of the Unicorns is a grate book for people at or abuve a fourth grade reading Levle. Thier is nothing boring about it. I liked it so mutch that after 10 mins after I got it I had like three chapters finished. It is one of the best books I have ever read. I think this book deserves more than a five star rating. You should defently read it.

this book was written when i was born, and i love it! i love the unicorns and i am hoping to finish my own series called United Unicorns, i hope i can get it pubilshed

My kids really enjoyed me reading a chapter from this book every night after their meditation time. I am about to start reading The Song of the Wanderer to them now that we have finished this book.

I was at a standstill in making the big vaccine decision for my baby. After reading this book, I feel completely educated about the diseases and the vaccines and I feel very comfortable with the decisions that I have made.

FINALLY some unbiased information on vaccination!!!!
This is a MUST HAVE for every parent in order to make an educated decision on the vaccination of your children. If you are contemplating no-vaccination, delayed vaccination schedule, selective vaccination schedule or the regular full vaccination schedule, you must read this book to make your decision in good conscience with all the facts. This is a very controversial subject as many people do not want the responsibility of choice and would prefer to blindly the doctor's advise. The problem is... the doctor typically blindly follows the FDA's advise and the FDA has not fully diligently tested everything that gets injected in our little ones!

Good luck to you and your family!

All parents should read this book before they allow their babies to be vaccinated. It's your duty as a parent to be informed about what is being injected into your babies body. Ask questions and be involved.

I'd just like to echo what other reviewers have said. This book is the real deal. I originally got a book on immunization called "Vaccines: What Ever Parent Should Know" because Dr. Sears book was sold out and checked out of every library branch in the greater Boston area. What a joke that other book was - it presented none of the concerns that Dr. Sears shares. And after a bit of research, I found that the author of that book (Dr. Paul Offit) is a vaccine inventor and on the board of advisors for Merck. You'd think in the spirit of fair disclosure it would have said that on his author's profile. But I digest... :)

Dr. Sears' book is comprehensive and very balanced. He presents parents with the pros and cons for each drug as well as his own personal recommendations. His Alternative and Selective vacination schedules are worth the price of the book alone. Just be prepared - we requested to follow his selective vaccination schedule and were told that we could stay with our pediatric group practice if we did that. Its too bad - we really liked our pediatrician in every other respect. Just starting with a new practice that is more flexible and gives us a greater degree of choice in how we care for our child.

Couldn't recommend this book more highly. I'm buying a second copy for the pediatrician we are leaving. Hopefully, she'll read it and understand our decision a bit better.

So if you're like me with an autistic child, no doubt you have heard the hype. Vaccines. Are they the culprit? Some parents swear yes, some swear no. I have heard both sides and they both have very valid arguments. Both biased to their own cause. Then came my baby daughter. Do I vaccinate her or not? Diseases are coming back due to parents not vaccinating. But what about all the press? Is there a safer way to vaccinate? There is! Dr. Sears alternative schedule is clear, easy to understand and my daughter's pediatrician not only had no problem with it, but wanted to get the book for herself. It's a great reference guide too.

My library carries this book on Playaway and it was recommended to me by the librarian as "an entertaining, well-written fantasy story for all ages." I found out the book was also highly recommended by Voya and is something of a pop phenom as it is also mentioned in "Complete Idiots Guide to Elves and Fairies" and "Ancient Art of Fairy Magick".

I enjoyed listening to the story so much I decided to buy the book. The audio was wonderful and I loved how the characters came to life and the reading was excellent. Like the audio, the book is of exceptional quality with its dozens of full-page illustrations and illustrated end notes.

This second book continues right where the cliffhanger in the first book left off. Again, the story revolves around three central characters: Adrina, Vilmos, and Seth. It tells their story as the story of their imperiled worlds unfolds. Adrina is a young princess who has everything and nothing. Vilmos is a mischievous village boy. Seth is a powerful warrior elf.

As with the first book, this second book has many twists and turns that make for wonderful reading. Stanek continues to show a strong command of language and excels at building mystery and intrigue. The reader can't help but feel they are right there in this rich fantasy world. You feel for Adrina as she starts to see the world in new ways. Your heart wrenches for Vilmos when he is chased by shapeshifters called wolmerrele. Your gut aches when Seth is betrayed.

Stanek has a knack for writing strong prose. There are enough details to see everything that's going on but not so much the story is bogged down. The dialogue continues to be excellent as well and it's one of the reasons the story works so well in audio.

I highly recommend The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches II (Reader's Choice Edition, Keeper Martin's Tales Book 2) (Keeper Martin's Tales) but don't miss The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches (Reader's Choice Edition, Keeper Martin's Tales Book 1) (Keeper Martin's Tales). You need to start with the first one to understand the story.

I also recommend

The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches III (Reader's Choice Edition, Keeper Martin's Tales Book 3) (Keeper Martin's Tales)

The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches IV (Reader's Choice Edition, Keeper Martin's Tales Book 4) (Keeper Martin's Tales)

Over all an excellent series and like C. S. Lewis's Narnia this is one story everyone should read at least once in their life. If you are looking for a good read or listen, I don't see how you can go wrong with this one.

This book created a beautiful picture of a world that every child has or will dream of. The Kingdoms and the Elves #1 is one of those please don't end books. You would think there is no possible way Book #2 could be better but it is. This is a book is for all ages to sit down and enter a world full of magic.

The second volume in Stanek's popular "Keeper Martin's Tales" continues the story begun in The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches. Vilmos the unlikely mage and Xith, his mentor, are journeying toward destiny while Adrina, the young princess of another land, is caught up in the struggles to save her people as she journeys south. Seth, the leader of the elves, is in trouble, and all hope for him and his people seems lost.

Stanek's skill as a wordsmith shines in this one. There is a large cast of characters and complex story lines, yet the clear thoughtful prose makes the plot easy to follow. Readers must be familiar with the first novel before beginning this sequel.

The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches 2 is a wonderful book with an epic story and detailed environments. The author, Robert Stanek, describes the world of Ruin Mist with such detail that you can envision every place in the book easily, every character as if they were right in front of your, and every event as if they were unfolding right there before you. The book starts with the divided companions coming together, some for the first time. Previously, Adrina and Emel had split up, Xith and Vilmos were separate, and the elves were struggling to stay afloat. The story is amazing and immediately sucks you in so you have to see what happens at the end. I give it five stars out of five stars.

To sum it up in one word: AMAZING!!! I discovered this author about four years back when I read his "The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches #1." I've since read everything he's written and have multiple editions of each. My favorite editions of the illustrated ones - all of the illustrated ones are top shelf.

Many reasons to like a good Stanek novel have been pointed out in the reviews. His prose is spare yet his descriptions are sharp. He is a master storyteller and able to create whole worlds and whole characters. The plots of his books are well paced with many twists and turns.

In this book, the many threads finally come together fully and the reader finds out exactly what's happening (at least part of it). Adrina meets back up with Emel. The elves arrive. Vilmos gets to use his magic. Lots more. I was surprised when I got to In the Service of Dragons and found some of the things foreshadowed here come to fruition.

Highly recommended.

Bought this book for my 5 year old granddaughter who is really into Dinosaurs. She was thrilled with it.

Since opening it, she wants to look at it every day. It's been 2 weeks now and she is still enjoying it.

At first glance, you may not notice all the "small pockets" on each page which also pop-up to reveal even more 3D pictures.

Overall, a great purchase and I would highly recommend it.

In selecting this book for a young boy who simply adores anything dinosaur, I felt it was something he would really like. I underestimated his reaction. He was simply thrilled and he especially liked the several smaller pop-ups located in each page's corners. It was defintiely a winner as far as he was concerned.

Kids love pop-ups and my son Miquel who is 6 loves this very much and it educates him as well. Very highly recommended

Item arrived fast and was as described. would buy from seller again. Thanks for the great item and price.

This is likely the most fabulous pop-up book I've ever seen. I first saw it in my doctor's waiting area with the kids' items. I immediately emailed my husband the title so that I could buy one myself. We'll definitely have to be extra careful with it around my three year old because it would surely be pretty easy to destroy, but that's a small price to pay for such a fabulous book. It's almost like a work of art. A must have for any dinosaur enthusiast over 6.

This book will open your mind on how to launch a bew business or innovative product or server. However the authors could write this book in a more simple way and not with a hard to read english text.

Before reading the book, “The Ultimate Competitive Advantage” it seemed to me that most management books were written for “big” business problems. Most authors quote one case after the other to make their own case. A collection of postmortem reports of different companies to tell you how they failed.

This is the first book that has taught me however small a business may be, its success depends on competitive edge it creates with its own resources. There are numerous ways that even limited resources can create an added benefit for the customers and increase my business. The example of “free cold water” on an off beat road is one such method in the book to remember as a simple but brilliant solution to attract customers and add value for the customers. The authors give a set of tools to help one think in a different manner. I recommend this book especially to young person trying to get their business started and also those seeking to break out of dead end situations. A great work!

Mitchell and Coles have done businesses a tremendous service in writing this excellent book. They have done so by providing a practical toolbox of ideas with which to stimulate entrepreneurs, business leaders and managers to enhance and improve their business prospects in today's very competitive marketplaces.

I must admit to having struggled with this book for a long time. Not because of difficulty in reading and understanding. To be sure this is a very lucid and comprehensible book and is accessible to all levels from a twelve year old bringing out his lemonade stall for the third year in a row and adding iced tea to his product range to the CEO of a major corporation.

My struggle was with trying to make overarching sense of what lessons the authors were trying to encourage readers to learn. It became clear to me after several periods of reflection upon completion of the text. The crucial significance of this book in a practical way lies in understanding how deep into national economic systems the process of globalisation has seeped. We see the reults in our everyday lives, how quickly new or improved products come into the marketplace. We see how quickly established businesses change or die, we see cheaper and better products come from remote parts of the world leaving us a greater part of our disposable income to spend on the things we would prefer to spend on them.

It is clear that in life and not just in business the process of change has quickened and that as individuals we must be more adaptable and more attune to the world around us to the opportunities that exist. It is as if we need to become our own business in ourselves.

Mitchell and Coles focus on but one part of this continuous change and that is on the business model. Their strong focus on this area has great strength but we must also learn the broader lesson from their well researched work. To survive in today's world we must not only accept change but we must embrace it as people, as workers, as entrepreneurs. It is as Schumpeter pointed out inherent in the nature of capitalism. But, to be sure it is inherent in the nature of all life, as Hayek observed. We must change or die.

I would heartily recommend this book to everyone, for there is much to be gained from within it's pages. Mitchell and Coles have produced an excellent book which far and away exceeds it's remit as a business book.

The Ultimate Competitive Advantage is a gold mine with a rich vein of unusual ideas from Mitchell and Coles' nimble minds. Its stated purpose is to help readers develop and implement a superior management process for continuous business model improvement. The book goes ahead to do just that.

The authors' approach make deliberate what used to be an accidental, hapazard, uncertain and hard to repeat process.

This book, like Mitchell and Coles' others, is best used as a workbook. After each chapter, several questions are posed to stimulate your thinking, and 95% of the value of the book will be unlocked for you when you take the time to think through them rigorously. Serious entrepreneurs looking for fresh ideas for getting out of the rut and improving their businesses will.

This is a practical book, but it is not a "how-to-book" instead, it deals with the what, when and why; with such tangibles as pricing, cost of doing business and benefits to stakeholders. The authors- Donald Mitchell and Carol Coles researched and found out that unsuccessful companies doggedly apply outdated business models while the successful ones improve their models every 2 to 4 years. The book provides a straightforwad and a systematic method which any company can use to review and improve its business model basing on its key components: pricing, cost of doing business and benefits to its shareholders.

At one time, this was my favorite redwall book. It was also the first redwall book I read all of. In this book, the fearless badger lord Urthstripe the Strong leads his army of long patrol hares in a battle against the cruel Ferahgo the Assasin. Read this book, it's great!

While the book itself is very good (according to my 12 yr. old son), the size is different than the rest and he likes things orderly (especially since there are so many in this series) so we ended up going out and purchasing the same book, but by "Ace" publishers so they would all fit on his bed shelf.

The Book of Salamandstron



Salamandstron, written by Brian Jacques in 1992 and published in 1993, is the fifth book in the Redwall Series. Like all Redwall books, Salamandstron is an animal adventure saga, which picturesquely describes a stunning tale set in medieval times. Intently, because of the strength of the story line, the reader will continue on through the book, like a bookworm, to find out what happens in the end When finished the person who examines this book, will have perused 391 obsessive pages, which, as interpreted, would have taken the reader through the world of Redwall.



Since the book, at times, tells five different stories, there are several different main characters and several antagonists. The first main character to be introduced is Lord Uthstripe the Strong, the Badger lord of Salamandstron, a mountain fortress. The Badgers lords of this massive mountain are mysterious characters. They are fierce fighters and reckless worries, who at times can be possessed by the terrible blood wrath and kill all in sight. Uthstrip's adopted daughter Mara, at the beginning of the book, was not content with her life at Salamandstron. The military fortress was strict and forcible, and Mara did not like her restrictions. Samkin, a young squirrel, contentedly lived at Redwall Abbey. In the beginning he was very mischievous and many times because of his carelessness, almost caused serous injuries. Ferahgo was an evil, cruel, pain-causing tyrant, who was the assassin weasel and chieftain of the horde of corps makers. Cruelly he Murdered Urthstripes parents and caused Urthstripe and his albino brother to be separated. Ferahgo's son Klitch was just as evil and crafty as his father. Fighting against each other, both wanted control of Salamandstron. Another enemy (although not a living creature) gets introduced about half way through the book. A terrible sickness called Dryditch Fever takes hold of the Abbey. It almost wipes out all. Although the characters all have different story lines within the book, each one is tied together in the end.



Opening at Salamandstron, the story begins with gloom. From the first, as Urthstripe reveals his anxiety for Mara with the words "Any sign of Mara yet?" it tells of Mara's discontentedness with the strictly ruled life she is living. It opens with her gone on one of her frequent run-a-ways. When she returns after two days absence from the mountain she brings two vermin, one of them Klitch, who falsely befriended her. Urthstripe throws the weasel and his companion out of the mountain, and Mara becomes so angry that she runs away for good. Accidentally (at Redwall) Samkin finds the skillfully crafted sword of the Legendary Hero, Martin the Warrior, but two stoats evilly steal the magnificent sword. The vermin were part of Ferahgo's horde but deserted. Samkin and Arula (Samkin's mole friend) chase after the stoats because the sword, which they took, represents the spirit of Redwall and could not be lost. They met some peculiar friends. Back at the Abbey Dry Ditch Fever broke out. Everywhere, from Salamandstron to Redwall Abbey trouble seemed to be taking hold of the good guys.



As the book continues the troubles grow worse. Mara, after being chased by Ferahgo's horde, escapes, but was betrayed into the hands of King Glagweb, the head of a cannibal toad tribe. Unfortunately she and several shrews, which were also caught, were going to be served up at a special occasion. Back at Redwall Thrugg, a brave otter set out on a journey to the mountains of the north to try to find the Icetor Flowers, which will cure any sickness. Sadly, however he gets trapped. Attacking him, a horde of crows in a pine forest almost overwhelmed Thrugg and his little friend baby Dumble. Samkin and his mole friend Arula were still persistently chasing after the vermin who stole the sword, when, one died of Dryditch fever and the other was killed by Ferahgo's tracker rats. The head of the trackers took the sword and headed back to Ferahgo's horde, but Samking and Arula still followed. They followed to get back the sword, they followed for their friends at the abbey, and they followed to slay the takers of Martins legendary blade. At Redwall Abbey, as dry ditch fever took victim after victim, all but two or three animals were stricken. At Salamandstron there was great famine because Ferahgo who besieged the mountain somehow destroyed or poisoned all the mountains food. Will Redwall Abbey be wiped out, or will Thrugg get back in time with the Icetor flowers? Will Mara and her friends be eaten or will they find a way to escape? Will Samkin retrieve the great sword? Will Salamandstron hold out? To discover what happens, READ THE BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



If The book Salamandstron is amazing it is because it seizes and holds the readers attention. Having a good story line, this book is extremely well written. Undoutedly, another reason this book is so good is because Brian Jacques uses very descriptive adjectives and excellent verbs as illustrations for every scene. The story builds up suspense. Throughout, it never contradicts itself. The story is very vivid. Salamandstron is not just a book, which might be ok to glance over; it is a must-read saga.

What would you do if you were being attacked by an army of vermin, or your abbeys most prized possession, or if your abbey was being threatened by a deadly disease? Would you defend yourselves, find an antidote, or would you go after the possession? Well that is exactly what the charaters in this story did. This little world is filled with badgers, hares, vermin, mice, moles, shrews and squirrels. Also thisworld is also filled with a volcanoe, woods, seas, dunes, lakes, rivvers and enormous mountians.

In this fantasy a bagder named Mara left her home because her strict father was always punishing her. When she left, her friend ccame along with her. His name was Pikkle. On their journey they met two vermin who became frineds with them so they woild lead them to Salamandastron )(Mara's fathers fortress). There had been many rumors that there is a great fortune somewhere inside the volcanoe. So now the vermin were going to attack the fortress. Another two vermin acted as if they were lonely travelers (but they really weren't) and went to Redwall and the Red wallers accepted them. They tricked the Redwallers and stole the sword of Martin the Warrior also killing one of the Redwallers. When the vermin escaped one of them died of a deadly disease. He got the disease while at Redwall and now the Redwallers are at great risk.

What will happen to everyone? Will Salamandastron survive? Will the Redwallers perish? Will they get the sword back? This book was relly good and every time it would sound good, it would change to someone else. I would really recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy, action, and adventure. This is the fifth book of the 17 book series.

-Peyton

I like salamandastron for many reasons.0ne is the book has lots of action .the bookis writen by Brian Jacques.This book is fantasy because animals have human abiltys.brian writes many more books.

I ordered this book for my 8 year old niece. She really likes it, especially the tornado page at the beginning. She is just discovering the world of books and is always thrilled when she can actually keep one versus having to return it to the library!

This book was recommended by a friend who has it and reads it to her granddaughter. I bought it to give as a gift to my granddaughter, but was so thrilled at the charming and spectacular content, I have kept it for myself. The pop ups have such amazing color and are on heavy enough paper that it should last a long time. I have been a great fan of all the Oz books (which I Have, some printed in the early 1900's) and believe this will be a great addition to my collection.
Sincerely, Lise Jones

My father got my sister and I some beautiful fairy tale popup books from Europe when we were children. We have never seen a popup book come even close to the details in those books. I took a chance after reading the reviews and ordered the Wizard of Oz popup for my sister for Christmas. Well, it comes very close to the books we had as children. Its very entertaining, even for us "older" kids.

Purchased item for my niece who adores the wizard of oz. The item was as described. Shipped promptly and she LOVED it.

I BOUGHT THIS BOOK FOR A 2 MONTH OLD BABY FOR WHEN SHE GETS OLDER.I OPENED THE BOOK WHEN IT CAME IN THE MAIL AND I FELT LIKE A LITTLE KID IT WAS SO AWESOME. EACH PAGE IS FILLED WITH AMAZING DETAIL. IT WILL REALLY PUT A SMILE ON YOUR FACE

It just came to my attention that a new revised and corrected edition with a little additional material will be released in a couple of months! I have the orignal Random House edition and this is a great collection of instructive games with analysis of every move. I have enjoyed it with the "More Unbeatable" book as well.

This is a revised edition of the book originally published in 2003. The main difference between this edition and the earlier one are:
1) The format has been changed to double column on the pages. This allows the explanations of the moves to be closer to the diagrams which accompany the explanations.
2} Some of the analysis has been updated and expanded to further help the student.
3) A result of the new format and slightly smaller print has been a saving of space (less white space per page}. Therefore, the new edition has the same number of games and explanation, but in under 200 pages. At less than 1/2 the thickness of the previous edition, it is much easier to carry.
4} A new edition gave the author a chance to correct many typographical errors and rephrase explanations to make for further clarity.

Like its predecessor, this book is for anyone (not just juniors) who want to understand why certain moves are played. Those who have read Irving Chernev's "Logical Chess: Move by Move" will be even more delighted with Mr. Snyder's book. Instead of the lengthy explanations that are repeated over and over again in Chernev's book, the book by Mr. Snyder gives the important information once at length and then relies of the reader to review if the explanation is needed again. When a move is a simple recapture he keeps the explanation to a short senctence. In the case of the opening moves being repeated in a later game, Snyder does not give the explanation again, but relies on the reader to refer back if explanation is needed. Half of the games are those of the author and half by other masters. Some important features of the book for students are:
1) Games are arranged by opening and thus start the player on developing an opening repretoire to play against opponents.
2) Analysis (i.e. alternate moves) is kept to the minimum needed to help the student gain understanding of what is happening and of alternate possibilities.
3) There are numerous diagrams (generally after every 3 or 4 moves) to help the student make sure of the correct position. And for stronger players it allows for them to read the book without the need of a board.
4) Explanation of moves are clear and concise. Anyone from about age 11 or 12 and up should have no trouble understanding the material.
I recommend this book for anyone who seriously wants to improve their play.

After having learned the basics from the same author's CHESS FOR JUNIORS book I decided to get this book for myself, my children and grandchildren.

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I just finished reviewing CHESS FOR JUNIORS, which I consider to be an 8th wonder of the world, and now I discovered the 9th!
CHESS FOR JUNIORS leaves off at the end with with nicely analyzed games (move by move commentary) and UNBEATABLE CHESS LESSONS FOR JUNIORS adds 24 more games. You will learn just what the author knows you need to learn once completeting CHESS FOR JUNIORS (well, if you know the basics well, then you can skip CHESS FOR JUNIORS and jump right into this book).

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I might also suggest that you get WINNING CHESS TOURNAMENTS FOR JUNIORS in this series, which provides an explanded opening system, intermediate level tactics and endgames and lots of information on how to improve and prepare for tournaments.

ENJOY!!!

I really enjoyed reading Unbeatable Chess Lessons For Juniors. I felt that I gained a lot of knowledge especially in the following areas,
a) Learning how to build an attack. The placement of your pieces and planning aheady.
b) Learning how to use sacrifices and to recognize when they work and do not work.
c) Positional play - manuvering your pieces and planning the use of Pawn structures.
d) Many tactical ideas were covered.
e) Learning the openings. The openings in the complete games are well covered with important opening lines being show. The games are organized by the type of openings being used. This makes it easy to study openings. The lines being shown are up to date and very accurate.
f) There are not a lot of endgames but the ones covered are very instructive. What I like is to see how plans were made to get to the winning endgame right from the opening! This book then gives a step by step explaination of how to win the endgame.
Some special features I liked about Unbeatable Chess Lessons For Juniors,
a) You are asked to find the best move. This forces you to think and makes for fun problems to solve out of games. This is much different than most books.
b) All the moves are analyzed.
c) General rules are pointed out. But, what makes it really nice is when the exceptions to the general rules happen, they are pointed out.
I like the nice easy flowing style of the author. For a person who already knows the very basic stuff about chess this book is just right. This is because there is both a review of important ideas and a depth of analysis making this book interesting for a more advanced player as well. The author uses a lot of his own game where he has used them in chess lessons with his own students. This makes the explaination very clear and things that only an experienced chess teacher knows need to be covered are right there. I have read some of the other reviews which have been helpful to me in being able to point out some of things that I agree with.
If you really love chess and like to study to improve this book is good for any age. But it is written so a 6th grader can understand it.
I understand that this book is going through a new printing correcting any typos and may be hard to get for a while. It would be worth waiting for if you cannot get it now or even getting a used copy for now.

The idea of explaining the idea behind every move is a good. I wish that more books would do this for the Beginning and Intermediate level chessplayer.
There are several problems with this book; 1) The book is overly focused on the opening - it should spend more time going into the middlegame and endgame, and 2) It often would not answer the questions I had about a move or what was going on it the game, and 3) half the games are of the author, who is only a measly master. However, overall I can still recommend this book.
This book does not compare in quality to my favorite book, "Logical Chess, Move by Move, which just recently was updated."