Sherman Books

This book came on time and was in perfect condition. Just what i needed for my college level math class

A great book

When the late, great May Sarton was still with us...perhaps we had a treasure many took for granted. Here was a warrior woman from the early 20th century and throughout its many generations-of-changes, who made up her mind to go-it-alone as a literary artist helping to define for millions of people world-wide - what it means to be truly courageous and never surrender. We waited for each extraordinarily unique new journal to help us make it day to day. Not like many junk journals today but a true artistic genre ("Journal of a Solitude") in the tradition of the great Virginia Woolf, Katherine Mansfield, and Dorothy Wordsworth. While critics disagreed as to the merit of her poetry, and novels, the people loved them - and like the spectacular Opera singer Andrea Bocelli - one cannot argue with demand that exceeds supply on a scale that skews the formulas and confounds the brains of bean counters everywhere. I, for one, hope and pray that May Sarton's incredible body of work will never be forgotten, and this astonishingly gorgeous book is a testament to her life and work and will stand as a great work of art to either start or end...in remembering that it is always worth the price to be valiant, true, passsionate and NEVER SURRENDER!

Read it. Explore these words and you will see that in all your life she can set you free. also...I have had a quote in my head for some time...can anyone tell me if May Sarton wrote this?... ...she became for me an island of light, fun and wisdom, where I could run with my discoveries, torments and hopes and always find welcome...

A fascinating 137 pages of teaching plans for The Miracle Worker by William Gibson conveniently stored on a CD Rom refreshed my outlook on how to teach The Miracle Worker. With each Act there is pre-reading material, study questions, vocabulary (in an assortment of ways), and tests in different formats, such as, multiple choice, short answer, and essay type questions. Plus, there is an exhaustive list of writing ideas and discussion activities to promote critical thinking. In addition to all of this, there are games, activities, and puzzles for various levels of students. An impressive CD that transformed my approach.

A fascinating 137 pages of teaching plans for The Miracle Worker by William Gibson conveniently stored on a CD Rom refreshed my outlook on how to teach The Miracle Worker. With each Act there is pre-reading material, study questions, vocabulary (in an assortment of ways), and tests in different formats, such as, multiple choice, short answer, and essay type questions. Plus, there is an exhaustive list of writing ideas and discussion activities to promote critical thinking. In addition to all of this, there are games, activities, and puzzles for various levels of students. An impressive CD that transformed my approach.

"Miriam's Daughters: Jewish Latin American Women Poets," edited by Marjorie Agosin, is an impressive anthology. This book is a bilingual edition; the Spanish or Portuguese originals and their English translations are on facing pages. Twenty-nine poets from all over Latin America are represented here. Among the authors included are Jacqueline Goldberg (Venezuela), Sarina Helfgott (Peru), Alicia Kozameh (Argentina), Teresa Porzecanski (Uruguay), Leonor Scliar-Cabral (Brazil), and Ana Maria Shua (Argentina).

Editor Agosin contributes a fascinating forward (in English) in which she reflects on the "Babel of whispers, songs, prayers, and languages" she encountered growing up in Chile. Some of the subjects explored by the poets in this book include family ties, multi- and bilingualism, Jewish ritual, and the legacy of the Holocaust. Figures from Jewish history, myth, and legend often appear: Anne Frank, Ruth, Lilith, the Golem.

There are many fine poems in this anthology, but my favorites are the following: Schlomit Baytelman's "My Name is Schlomit," Diana Anhalt's historically allusive "That Jewish Crusader," Rosita Kalina's Whitmanesque "I Am of the Tribe of Yehuda," and Angelina Muniz Huberman's mystical "The Cabalists." This book is a wonderful resource for those interested in multiculturalism, Jewish studies, Latin American literature, or contemporary poetry.

Agosin has done it again---provided an insider's tour of Jewish Latin America through the eyes of the poets. Here is poetry that is lively, poetically accomplished, and in a much needed bilingual format. What a treasure! Strongly recommended.

It is very rare that I am able to say that I enjoyed every story in an anthology, but that is the case for this volume. Many of the stories have a humorous quality, not so much laugh out loud as being pastiches of various mundane mystery and other genres.

There is a great diversity in the types of stories. The characterizations and story-telling are uniformly good to outstanding. The works tend to be set in somewhat feudal cultures, as fantasy usually is, but others are quite modern or otherwise set in familiar times and places (if you credit the existence of magic.)

Worth reading both for fantasy aficionados and mystery fans.

This superb twenty collection anthology runs the mystery gamut but has the common thread as stated by Rosemary Edghill in her introduction that "a crime (preferably by murder), and magic and the supernatural had to be somehow involved". Each tale does that and though the format is short story, readers will believe in the use of magic albeit whether to commit a crime, solve a crime, or both. The contributions run the gamut from historical to modern with varying sub-genres in each. Fans of fantasy who-done-it stories will want to read MURDER BY MAGIC as a virtual who's who of authors have contributed strong works in one of the best consistent compilations of the year.

Harriet Klausner

Right from the introduction (Read, smile, enjoy, and if you happen to learn something along the way, don't get upset) Victor Borge has you laughing right through the book as he introduces you to some of the greatest geniuses in music. It's tons of fun as he elaborates on their artistic quirks and narrates anecdotes/stories from their lives.

If you want to learn about American History I'd recommend "Dave Barry Slept Here" or Bob Hope's "My Life in Jokes". Similarly this would be my book of choice for History of Music! ;)

(To see some quotes from this book you can check out http://workinghumor.com/quotes/favoritecomedies.shtml)

The irrepressible Victor Borge takes us through a hysterical journey of the history of modern music. With dozens of anecdotes to amuse, you barely know you are learning. Neither composer nor prodigy nor instrument is safe from the deeply tongue-in-cheek tales. A must read for any musician who is tired of dry, tedious musical histories.

A masterfully written, nicely paced story -- from the perspective of two career American Army officers -- of the physical, political and situational demands placed on the participants of the Carolinas Campaign near the end of the Civil War.

Both authors bring considerable real-world Army expertise, and archival-digging and networking skills to the book. Smith bringing his knowledge of Sherman and his "March to the Sea," and his interest in the Battle of Averasboro. And, Sokolosky, as a Carolina native and a life-long Civil War buff who wrote -- while at the U.S. Army's Command and General Staff College -- a related master's thesis, titled: "The Role of Union Logistics in the Carolinas Campaign of 1865." Their coauthorship brings together two talented writers whose knowledge of the Campaign is likely unsurpassed.

Still, both are not hesitant to cite and rely upon the respected work and findings of others, including: Mark Bradley, author of "Last Stand in the Carolinas: The Battle of Bentonville"; and, the expertise of Si Harrington of the North Carolina Archives, Walt Smith of the Averasboro Battlefield, and Jim Greathouse of the Museum of Great Fear.

Told from the soldier's point-of-view, this profusely illustrated book with photographs and maps and illustrations drawn by Col. Darrell Combs, USMC (Ret.), is a captivating read.

Opening with a discussion of the situation facing Gen. Sherman after his taking of Savannah, reader's will find the authors' ability -- as Army officers themselves -- to get into Sherman's mind-set and consider, along with him, his options, fascinating. Risks, rewards, and challenges of each option are weighed and considered as Sherman designs and places in motion his strategy for the Union Army's expedition through the Carolinas.

Then, as Sherman moves into South Carolina, the authors switch perspective to that facing the Confederate officers; profiling the careers of prominent figures and weighing the options they faced. Just as we often find ourselves -- in our daily work lives, whether we want to or not -- having to "manage by personality," the actions and results of strategies implemented by the principal players of both sides are examined in light of their personality, intellect, experience and predisposition to risk. Smith and Sololosky masterfully bring the reader into the mind-set of these generals and other soldiers as they play real-world chess with limited resources, difficult terrain and unknown outcomes.

While the principal focus of the book is on the fighting in and around Fayetteville and Averasboro, the authors provide a detailed, running narrative of the events leading to these battles. The best comparison I can provide is a reference to a briefing I happened upon last year; I was at the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park and the Park historian was conducting a detailed briefing for a group of 25-35 officers from Air University, (the Air Force equivalent of the Army's "War College"). It was fascinating to listen as the historian gave a detailed blow-by-blow briefing of what happened, as one military expert to another, and responded to questions -- not just from the printed historical record perspective, but with a detailed analysis of the motives as to why certain strategies were employed.

Smith and Sokolosky's writing is in this same manner -- the reader is treated as a fellow expert -- and one can't help but enjoy the vicarious pleasure and enthusiasm of listening-in as two very interesting career-Army, Civil War experts narrate the story of the Campaign and the concluding battles that served as the closing chapters of the war.

Rcommended for every academic and public library with holdings related to the Civil War, especially in the Carolinas and adjacent states, and for the bookshelf of all serious Civil War scholars and military historians.

R. Neil Scott / Middle Tennessee State University

Well reseached using primary source information - much of reconstructed from LTC Sokolosky's archive research assistants at the US Army's Combined Arm's Reseach Library in Fort Leavenworth, KS. I found the book to be logically written, with fresh details of the campaign. LTC Sokolosky and Mr. Smith have previouosly written on Sherman's efforts in NC. Both are truly experts in this area. The detailed maps found in the book lend themselves well to visualizing both sides of the fight. Extensive bibliography and notes included. This work is a "must have" for any serious historian's collection.

Most of us have stood in some little spot - maybe just a crossroads or a church - and studied a marker commemorating that place. We think about it for a bit and move on. Over time, we accumulate memories of a dot here, a dot there, each worthy in its own right, but forming at best only a vague shape, at worst no shape at all.

Jim Wise connects the dots to reveal for us the full picture of William Tecumseh Sherman's trail through North Carolina. I suspect that even Civil War buffs will whisper "Well, I'll be doggoned" to themselves. The rest of us can say it out loud.

The only problem I have with the book is where to keep it: on the bookshelf or in the glove compartment. I suggest the latter. Mr. Wise has skillfully blended history in with a travelogue. He takes us from interstates through back roads and even along dirt roads when necessary, giving precise driving instructions. At each stop he tells us what we are looking at, and how that place, whether humble or significant, fits into the grand scheme of things. As the outline forms, he oftimes puts shading inside the spaces by using anecdotes and letters and other correspondence (plus lots of pictures) to take us back in time.

The author's droll wit keeps him mindful of situations that a portentous historian might be inclined to let slide: go with Mr. Wise along a dirt road to the small hexagonal brick meeting place of the Richmond Temperance and Literary society. There, on the ceiling, a gold star was painted for each member. The star was painted silver for those deceased. If a member fell off the wagon, his star was painted black. Some stars have been repainted... several times.

What you might want to do is start out lazy, like me, and kick back with an easy, pleasant read as you ride along Sherman's Trail without leaving your chair. Then put the book in the glove compartment. You never know.

Civil War addicts have always had one big gap in knowledge. That's expecially true for those of us from the South.

What happened to Sherman after he burned Columbia? He shows up a few weeks later with his men marching up Pennsylvania Avenue as the Grand Army of the Republic celebrates the victory of the Union, but what happened to him and his men after they left South Carolina's capitol?

Finally, the mystery is solved. Jim Wise, historian and newspaperman from North Carolina's Triangle Area is the sleuth who has ferretted out the truth. ON SHERMAN'S TRAIL is the answer. He opens up this hidden period of our history with a clear, direct, description of the weeks as the big war wound down. Skirmishes, pitched battles, marches through swamps and fields of North Carolina are laid out as the desperate troops of the South tried to block the massive army that had conquered Tennessee and Georgia, sweeping all before it up to the center of South Carolina. Grim fighting. Deadly. Incessant. Some brilliant efforts. Some hopeless stands. Jim tells the whole story down to the last gasps in the outskirts of Durham, N.C., where he lives.

Jim Wise tells the story, but there's an extra I can't wait to test -- he connects all the places and events to the geography of today. The book can be used as a traveller's guide to the back roads of North Carolina -- roads, villages, and cities that Jim knows like the back of his hand. One can take this book and follow what Sherman's men did. See where he forded the creeks or got stuck in the swamps. Visit the cross-roads and farms he marched by and fought over.

The BIG story is just beyond this one. The story about Lee's effort, ended at Appomatox, to break through and join Johnson for a renewed struggle. We KNOW THAT story -- but this is the critical piece that's been missing.

Thanks to Jim Wise for giving us this lost chapter of the story.

Loren B. Mead

This is a wonderful book, filled with colorful photographs and lifelike illustrations by featured wildlife artist, John Dawson and an introductory chapter by Roger Tory Peterson. Many tips are given on attracting birds into your back yard habitat, along with plans for building various types of birdhouses and feeding stations. Other chapters also include bird migration, their behavior for survival, suggestions for photographing birds and the proper equipment needed for bird watching. A very thorough and informative reference book that will enhance your knowledge of the birds of North America.

This book is perfect for those who are more fascinated more with general characteristics of birds rather than pure identification. In easy to understand language, thirteen contributors describe concepts from evolutionary changes in birds, current adaptations for survival, and ecological challenges for the future. Bird anatomy & physiology is presented in non-technical terms and discussion is interlaced with examples of interesting adaptive features which enable various species to reproduce and survive. Countless examples and quality pictures illustrate specifically how birds differ in their habitats and feeding methods. Discussions and examples of differing territorial defense schemes, mating rituals, and migratory patterns make for interesting reading.

Included is a reference guide to 125 common birds plus sections on attracting birds and photographing them.

I'm planning to use this book as a High School introduction to environmental science. This has all the ingredients for interesting discussions, as well as a view of ecology from a different perspective..from a birds-eye view..

This is a well written help for any ophthalmologist or optometrist -- especially those using panoramic view SLO's like the OPTOS unit. The photos are superior quality and the supporting reviews are well written and descriptive, not only of the condition, but also of accompanying risk factors. The authors should be proud. rfn

I was in optometric practice for 25 years BEFORE I had an Optos retinal scanner in my office. I routinely dilated every patient. I felt confident that I was getting a full view of the fundus. I have been doing Optomaps since January 2006. Quite simply, Optos is the best technology you can place in your office for screening and diagnosis. It is an incredible tool for patient education and documentation. Patients love it. You will be humbled by what you, ( what we all ) have missed during routine dilations. Accept the fact that this is a new world. This book is your atlas and roadmap to it. Clear explanations by excellent authors. Beautiful panoramic images. You'll need this book when you put an Optos in your office and start to...see what you have been missing. Sincerely, Robert Conway, O.D, Rochester, NY, USA