Smith Books

This is a wonderful collection of recipes many of us who are first generation ethnic Americans grew up with. I understand the author passed away in 2004 but not without leaving many fond memories of his FRUGAL GOURMET cooking show which used to air on PBS some time ago. I used to watch his show while living in New Orleans between 1982 and 1997. Of course my favorite section is THE LITHUANIAN IMMIGRANTS which lists recipes for Pressed Cheese (Suris), Kugelis Potato Pudding, Fresh Sausage (Kielbasa), Smoked Sausages (Kielbasa), Cold Beet Soup (Saltibarsciai), Pork in Gelatin (Koselina Saltiena) and Raw Sauerkraut with Caraway. My husband's favorites, of course, would be THE GERMAN IMMIGRANTS and THE IRISH IMMIGRANTS. The author really celebrates over 35 ethnic groups not only noting some of their best recipes but giving mini geography lessons and short descriptions of each individual culture before getting into detailing their recipes. In an era which only seems to highlight African, Greek, hispanic or Italian cooking, this book is a real treat!

How could a book on immigrant ancestors leave out the English? He covers Irish, Scottish, And Welsh immigrant recipes as well as recipes from many other cultures. Did all the English settlers become United Empire Loyalists and move north to Canada? I'm a Canadian and we ignore the English here as well. We have days celebrating every other culture except the English - Carribanna (in Toronto), Black history month, St. Patricks Day, Robbie Burns Day, St. Jean Baptiste Day (especially in Quebec) but no St. Davids Day (I don't even know when it is).

It's a good book but I guess I'll just have to look elsewhere for recipes for bangers and mash, bubble and squeak, fish and chips, trifle, etc.

My title blurb is a funny quote I remembered, Jeff Smith spoke on his entertaining PBS show. Before 'The Food Network' we had the witty and talented 'Frugal Gourmet'. This book deals with some simplistic, yet very good classic old world dishes. Nothing fancy, just great traditional food!

This is yet another excellent cook book by Jeff Smith! It's full of great recipes and stories by a very talented cook and writer. This one focuses on old world cooking. I have used many of these recipes and found them to be very good. Being a home grown cook myself and having had many of my grandmother's classic recipes handed down to me, I found this book to be very helpful in expanding my culinary taste buds.

Jeff Smith entertained us for years on his PBS program 'The Frugal Gourmet'. Not only did he teach us many savory dishes, he also educated us. Not satisfied with just cooking delicious meals for his viewers, he would give detailed history lessons about the origins of the dish and made it all a lot of fun!

This may be Mr. Smiths best cook book and it is a worthy edition to everyone's cook book library. I own and have read many, if not all of his cook books, not only for the man's knowledge of cooking, but his incredible wit! This guy was funny and I would have loved to have hung out and throw a few beers down with him.

Unfortunately, this man had some very seriously bad press released about his personal life and well..... I am not one to spread rumors.....he seemed like a great guy and sadly he died before he was able to clear his name.

R.I.P. Frugs!

I never really watched The Frugal Gourmet when he was featured on Public TV. One of my Amazon Friends recently reviewed this book, and that review piqued my interest. I recently received my copy of Jeff Smith's "The Frugal Gourmet on Our Immigrant Ancestors: Recipes You Should Have Gotten from Your Grandmother." What a fascinating concept and what a nice set of recipes!

Smith begins by laying out the methodology of this book (Page 2): "We have traveled all over this great nation eating with immigrants, many of them grandmas, who know that it is terribly important to retain those characteristics of our immigrant ancestry, characteristics that will help us remember who we are." Hence, we have a cook book with a small set of recipes from many countries, from Armenia to the Basque region of Spain to Ethiopia to Jamaica to Ireland to Korea to Lebanon and through Yugoslavia (countries are in alphabetical order). I just received the book and have not had a chance to try out any recipes. But there are a number that I already find tempting and expect to begin trying these out soon!

The first part of the book is a standard discussion of cooking tools needed, a glossary of ingredients and condiments, and an essay on the immigrant experience. But it's the recipes that are the heart of this book. Let's take a look at a few examples.

Armenian Stuffed Meatballs. Ooh. This looks like some work, but it seems scrumptious! A meatball within a meatball. The inner meatball is made from ground lamb (or beef), onions, green bell paper, parsley, pine nuts, paprika, mint leaves, and a set of spices. After cooking these and rolling small meatballs, one makes the outer meatball, with a different set of ingredients.

From Ethiopia, Lamb and Cardamom. Some onions, a couple Ethiopian sauces (recipes included in this section), lamb, cumin, cardamom seeds, ginger, garlic, salt and pepper. Once one has assembled the ingredients this looks pretty straightforward--and tasty!

A Lebanese dish, Baked Lamb Kibbe. Boneless leg of lamb, butter, pine nuts, onion, cinnamon, allspice, salt and pepper. Sautee the lamb in butter, and then assemble Kibbe (recipe on the preceding page), and move ahead. Again, a recipe that really sounds delicious.

And so on. It's fun just to skim recipes from different countries and enjoy contemplating what each would taste like! The book ends with a quotation from the author (Page 574): "The point of this book is simple. If we do not understand our ancestral table, I doubt that we can understand our history." Maybe a bit overstated, but that sums up the author's philosophy in this volume. Worth taking a look at!

I love this cookbook! I just pulled it out to look something up, noticed how torn up it has gotten, and thought I'd look online for a replacement copy. This is, hands down, my favorite and most used cookbook. Recipes are easy to follow and delicious. I've had "authentic" cooking from some of the countries included, so I can vouch for the fact that the recipes are right on target.

Bob Tucker has a unique ability to make us smile...a great gift particularly when writing stories for children. One of his characters, Sammy Snake is a favorite for both parents and children at a library story time. His book is a wonderful addition to my home bookshelf.

My son and I have read this book together from cover to cover laughing all the way. We have truly enjoyed each and every story. It would be hard to pick a favorite because all of them are so cute, but I guess it would be the one where Sammy Snake gets stuck in cement trying to write a letter to Sally Snake. What is especially good about these stories is that they teach good morals to children without boring them. It gets the message across in a humorous way that children love. My son likes the rhyming style which is fun and easy to read, and I think every child would love Grandpa Tucker's stories.

(Joni Miller)

Grandpa Tucker's Rhymes & Tales is a great book full of peoms for any ages. About half of the peoms are about a funny snake whos always on different adventures, like when he meets a vampire on Halloween night in "Sammy, The Snickers Snake" and when Sammy and his friends help out the Easter Bunny in "The Easter Snakes." Also there are other stories about people other then Sammy Snake, like "Willie Worm" and "Rodney Rooster." This is a great book and I just didn't give it a five star because with me it is harder to get a five star than it is the find a needle in a hay stack. So I award this book four stars for it being great!

I've known Grandpa Tucker my whole life, but even if I didn't his book of wonderful rhymes and stories are beloved by children all over! Its the kind of stuff that gives kids the giggles so badly that they get hiccups!

Buy this book for the children in your life!

- added: Grandpa Tucker passed away, but he left this wonderful legacy for children for years to come. If you get one book to read to your kids, get this one. They will surely love it as silliness abounds. This book will be something they treasure the rest of their lives and they will teach their children the rhymes.

This is an OUTSTANDING collection of stories!
It is a great bedtime story book and a good
book for use when a child is ready to advance
from picture books to something a bit more
advanced.

I have read many books on self-help and I find this book to be one of the best. Reading and allowing the message to filter through is an enlightening and eye-opening experience. Thank you Aretta and Ian for giving us the message to love and to be patient with the most difficult and simplest of challenges in everyday life.

The principles in Heart of the Soul are timeless and are for everyone who wishes to open their heart to express them. I felt uplifted and filled with joy while reading this book. It is not a preachy book, but states universal truths in a very warm, readable manner. I plan to place these principles in my life starting right now.

This is the type of book one reads and rereads, finding something new in each fresh encounter. Since it's values are eternal, it can never be outgrown because life is constantly providing fresh materials for us to practice the principles on. I highly recommend this wonderful book. It is a gift to our hearts from the hearts of the authors.

Aretta and Ian showed unusual courage through this book. While it is simple, it is also simply profound. Few of us dare share our experiences with the world. Few of us expose our vulnerability for everyone to see. They have. Through "Heart of The Soul," they give, to everyone who reads it and is willing and wanting to change their lives, down to earth everyday examples of spirituality in daily life. Reading this opened my heart to the simplicity and meaningfulness of the seemingly mundaneness of life. I congratulate them for their courage to put on paper the wisdom and insight that flowed through them from the Inspiration of Divine Spirit! Aretta is truly keeper of the Sacred Heart.

I had the pleasure of knowing Aretta during the time in her personal life when things weren't working out well. I witnessed how she transformed herself away from the unhappy and unsatisfying life she was in to a free spirited soul who had finally found Love. As the book states, there are many paths we can choose to follow and she choose the better one. Thank you Aretta for sharing some of your wisdom with me. I will cherish you forever.

Dear Aretta: I met you at a bookstore presentation and would like to say Thank You for the book "Heart of the Soul". It is kept right next to my chair in the living room. The biblical verses and quotes are really meaningful in the book. I also enjoyed your life and other people experiences. There are so many people that could use this book. My way of thinking is now changed for the better! This book has me changing my negative way of feeling about myself. I will use this book many times to develop a positive way of thinking. Thank you Aretta!

The book really helped me get ready for some big changes in my life. It helped me get ready for school and become change resilient. I let a teacher borrow it and he loved it. Its a great book for anyone. I highly recommend it.

"It" Happens! does what Who Moved My Cheese? should have done. "It" offers specific, concrete behavioral techniques for learning to live successfully with change. Whether the change is in the corporate setting or one's personal life, these techniques will work if applied consistently. The story is simple yet engaging because of the various levels of application. I applaud Dr. Smith for her insight and her ability to take a subject that can be overwhelming and break it down into manageable steps that empower the reader almost immediately.

I always thought of myself as completely adaptable to change, even seeking out change until I read Dr. Smith's delightful story. I realized that I thought I loved change as long as every one I knew and loved went along on the "change" with me. When I was confronted with a change in my life that only I could walk through, Dr. Smith's tools for examining my reactions, feelings, thoughts and beliefs provided a road map to help me on my journey. This book is different than all other "how to adapt to change" books out there, invaluable for anyone facing a change in their lives, unexpected, minor, traumatic and life-altering. Dr. Smith also has a workshop that accompanies the book and I recommended this to my organization as something we should embrace and share.

I dislike self-help books, but "It Happens!" is a remarkable exception. It is one of those rare books that actually works. It doesn't just make you aware of your problems - it actually shows you HOW to solve them. Packaged with the book is a foam Change Puzzle, a wonderful, tangible aid that you can take apart and put together in talking through problems with people. I use the book and puzzle with family, friends, and coworkers almost daily.
Here is the point: when you confront a problem or change (like a broken relationship, new job, unemployment, move, new school, loss of loved one, injury, child & teen problems, addiction, etc.), the stress and anguish can destroy you. But "It Happens!", a quick-read fable about change, has given me a concrete method for dealing with each situation. It's so simple that anyone can use it.
I keep the book and Change Puzzle on my desk at work to help coworkers deal with relationships, difficult assignments, money problems, job decisions, etc. I have a copy at home where I use it with family & friends. (My wife is a former drug/alcohol counselor and she uses the book and puzzle with friends who are in trouble.)
When you see how this works, you will become energized by the insights you get, as I have. The Change Puzzle pieces make you examine five things about a problem or change: your feelings about it, your thoughts and beliefs about it, your behavior about it, the consequences of your behavior to yourself, and - most importantly - the impact of your behavior on everyone around you. As you assemble the puzzle around your problem, you suddenly realize, "Oh - THAT'S it. THAT'S what I need to work on." It's pretty amazing.
I am using the book and puzzle today, literally, to help a coworker with a job-change decision, to help myself with a job-change decision, to help a close friend decide to enter counseling for depression, and to help that friend's spouse deal with the family mess. If everyone used "It Happens!" and the Change Puzzle, we'd have a saner, happier world!

Most cutesy management books last as long as a piece of chewing gum and like gum can stick to your shoe with minimum impact on one's thinking and performance. What's different about " "It" Happens", is its grounding in solid behavioral theory and the author's brilliance in tieing a fable to principles of change and the creation of resilience. The last part of the book pulls it all together with focusing questions and even provides a foam puzzle as a tactile reminder of the ebb and flow of the steps along the way.
Julie Smith has provided an important strategic tool that could spark improved responses to the uncertainties of today's world.

I lived in the area when this tragic, senseless, and incredibly brutal rape & murder took place near my hometown. Friends and relatives worked the case, and the entire area mourned the loss of Faith Hathaway as the peaceful innocence and sense of safety in our rural area was forever shattered.
The wounds were re-opened when Dead Man Walking came out. It was a slap in the face of everything good and true. It was an incredibly cruel blow to Faith's family, who deserved so much better after the tragic loss of their daughter.
Thank you Mike for setting the record straight, for honoring Faith's memory.

I read the book "Forgiving The Dead Man Walking" by Debbie Morris, who was also kidnapped and raped by Robert Lee Willie and Joe Vaccaro. Debbie lived to tell the story in her own words... I highly recommend it for those of you who care about this topic.

So often today we find the victim and family of an horrific crime victimized the second time. When I read an excerpt of "Dead Man Walking" and then saw who was directing and starring in the movie version I realized that this cruelty was being visited upon the family of Faith Hathaway. I have always had my doubt about the death penalty however the writers have a very valid point about the alternative punishment: life without parole. As long as the murderer is alive there is a chance of commutation of sentence (the removal of a mandatory sentence makes an inmate eligible to be considered for parole) or an outright pardon. After researching the number of commutations allowed in the past I now realize that, with great deliberation, there still is a place for the death penalty.

This book is valuable for anyone interested in the debates about justice, but particularly for readers of Helen Prejean's Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account Of The Death Penalty In The United States. I also advise reading Debbie Morris' Forgiving the Dead Man Walking: Only One Woman Can Tell the Entire Story, and the Bourgue family's Dead Family Walking: The Bourque Family Story of Dead Man Walking, both written by victims of the murderers for whom Helen Prejean was such an eloquent advocate. This is not as appealing as Dead Man Walking, not as warm and fuzzy, but it is an unflinching, indeed horrific, look at the reality of murder and vicious cruelty.

I believe that if we, as a society, release someone whom we have good reason to believe is dangerous, we are responsible for future acts of violence. Not as a responsible as we are for executing an innocent person, but still bearing a burden of guilt. What I like best about the book is that he talks about the reasons that keep me from accepting the abolition of the death penalty. Varnado points out that the arguments that are advanced against the death penalty could, with slight editing, be advanced against any punishment; at 53, I can remember when they were. Executing the murderer doesn't bring back the victim, but neither does anything else. Many of the leaders of the abolition movement, currently begging us to be content with life-without-parole (LWoP), are the same people who have been opponents of any long-term imprisonment. I don't think that we would have LWoP if we didn't have a death penalty. Given the arguments against three-time loser laws, will people who don't accept LWoP for three felonies, even if they are all violent, continue to support LWoP for a murder, however heinous? I think they'd revert to their earlier and more sincere opinions.

It's not an easy question. The legal system is simultaneously too harsh and too soft. Innocent people have been convicted. Chills go down my spine when mayors, governors, etc., announce that heads will roll if someone isn't accused within 48 hours. "Testilying", i.e., false information by the police, is apparently all too common, but the defense is no better. Obviously our legal system is not too concerned about public safety: convicts are given probation, violate it, and are simply given probation again. I hear horrifying tales of the carelessness of parole boards.

I have also come to think less of Helen Prejean, the more I know about her. I finished Dead Man Walking not convinced, but with great respect for her. As she has become more famous, and more information is available, it has become clear that she feels her cause justified lying and general carelessness with the truth. As Varnado and Debbie Morris point out, she simply accepted what Willie told her without any investigation. It was fine as his spiritual advisor to deal with the world as he saw it, but when she crossed the line into legal advocate and author, such sloppiness became irresponsible. Further, she apparently was knowingly telling a lie when she claimed Willie was remorseful. Not only did he contradict her in his own interview, but Debbie Morris told us that she admitted that she didn't think he was capable of remorse. She has now written a book about people who were supposedly innocent of the crimes for which they were executed; I suppose that I will read it, but at this point, I wouldn't take her word for it. She has co-founded a program for victims, but as Varnado points out, she remains extremely insensitive to them as individuals. Her prayer condemning the participants in an execution, including the victim's parents, is a case in point. She topped this off by not considering how they would feel about appearing in her book, let alone the movie! She's great at touching apologies, but they only mean something if one tries to do better.

Readers concerned about valuing the murderer over the victims may also be interested in reading The Victim's Song by Alice Kaminsky; Yale Murder by Peter Meyer; and The Killing of Bonnie Garland: A Question of Justice by Willard Gaylin.

Victims of Dead Man Walking has been the most difficult, tear-jerking, enraging, must read I have come across. Ever. This brutal rape and murder happened not far from my home, and Faith's memory is still well within the minds and hearts of people all over our area. She was a beautiful, smart, 18 year old young lady who had the world within her reach on graduation day. But a cruel, unrelenting Robert Willie and Joseph Vaccaro, both of them boasting about a life of crime without remorse, stole Faith Hathaway away from this earth. They raped her repeatedly, stabbed her until the gaping wounds nearly severed her head, and left her to die alone in Fricke's Cave, only to be discovered 8 days later by a then 25 year old whip detective Mike Varnado. Hollywood doesn't want you to know these things. They would rather you believe that a then 24 year old "Matthew Poncelet" (a dead ringer for Robert Willie if there ever was one), who received the death penalty by electric chair, became a remorseful repentant man when he met his fate. Nothing of the sort ever occured. His partner in crime, Joseph Vaccaro, sits this day in a federal penitentiary still serving out his sentence for yet another crime, the rape and kidnapping of a "16 year old from Madisonville".

This book is so very well written it feels as though Detective Mike is speaking to you personally. He makes it easy, while terrifying, to put yourself in his shoes, countless sleepless nights after discovering Faiths swollen, nude, decomposing body in the once family oriented Fricke's Cave. You can feel the anger rise up from the pages from a very cruel young man who boasted of his murders, who never showed remorse, but loved the attention he gained from the spectacle of a nun and the television news. After the book DMW and movie of the same name, the real story of Faith Hathaway was nearly forgotten until Detective Mike brought forth the true details of the crime. One need not be pro nor con death penalty to learn valuable lessons and true facts of Faith Hathaway. After speaking with Faith's mother personally, I learned that Mrs. Harvey (Faith's mother) asked Tim Robbins (DMW director) to at least visit the area of Fricke's Cave where her daughter was left to die. Mr. Robbins response was "I don't have the time". Please - make the time for this book, the REAL story of the Victims of Dead Man Walking. These words by Detective Mike will make you a litttle wiser to the facts of this young girl, the trial that followed, and could very well give you the knowledge to save your own life one day.

As to why the literature we know today as the Holy Bible came to be assembled as it was, one can only speculate. Compiled from jewish texts and scrolls, a series of main books emerged as the finished work. In its grand history, it has only been recently that other writing and chronicles of central characters were discovered. For whatever reason,they were deemed APOCRYPHA (related to but not included in the main text). When the author first brought me the "Lost Stories...", I admittedly had to work through a bit of personal prejudice. Down through the years many self proclaimed Apostles have had religions to themselves founded on their own unique publications, Joseph Smith and Mary Baker Eddy to name examples and I quite frankly, thought it a little pretentious.

I'm happy to say it falls nowhere in that category. It exists as an abridged compilation most notably of writings by Enoch and a few letters of the Imperical government of Rome in power at the time of Jesus' life on Earth. It struck me that current anti-semitic prejudices of today might well be founded specifically on the myopic views expressed in the letters to Pilate from Tibeius-Caesar. As much as it overshadows Gethsemane, these writings may well be an accurate translation of Roman views. And do I really need to know how suicidal Adam was in dealing with his exile?? The first chapter alone for whatever reason is a sloggy soap-opera of a read, but the same can be said at many points in the Old Testament.

The question of translation accuracy is also a valid concern especially in the wake of Babel. Have past scribes given us a clear picture of God's message in ANY available texts?? That issue is for the heart alone to judge and with no concrete guarantees, I rated the book as I did. I don't know whether I would've used the insights of Gene Scott who has always impressed me more as an old Texas Carnival Barker than a man of biblical letters, but with the Swaggarts and the Hargises and the Bakkers muddying up the waters I suppose he's none the worse for wear and even in the face of re-printing known material as opposed to many other apocryphal sources that hold historically conflicting views, "Lost Stories..." boils down to a good snack for an open mind.

Someone has finally taken the time to find the "Lost Stories" behind the stories of the Bible.

It is obvious that the author has spent countless hours researching, and had the good sense not to clutter up his pages with "Be-Gats" and the double-talk of an ancient language. His tales are in plain English.

A Job Well Done Kent Smith!

George K.

Lost Stories For All Ages is a charming book. It consists of 3 interlinked stories discovered in an ancient manuscript in 1768.
The first begins at the time when God began to create and when he created Adam and then Eve from one of his ribs. They live a charmed life at first, enjoying all the delights of the Garden until their first encounter with evil in the form of Satan. This is what leads to their expulsion. Following this they must endure living in a cave as well as all sorts of temptations and tricks played on them by Satan. But God makes a promise to them . . .

The story unravels very cleverly and leads into Fire and Blade, a story about Nimrod, the first to dare rebel against God after the flood, and Abram. The story starts just after the flood and tells of how Nimrod became a great warrior and fought his way to becoming King. He builds a kingdom Shinar, and a Palace. His power became so great that his name spread over the entire world and the population began to speak in one language.

This is shortly followed by an example of the quote, "Men are not evil in themselves, it is what they do that is evil . . ."

Abram is born soon after this and his birth heralds a spectacular omen in the night sky witnessed by Nimrod's sages, who clearly understand it's meaning but attempt to keep the king from finding out. But self preservation prevails and they all go to the King to give him the news so that they cannot be accused of hiding the truth if he ever finds out.

Upon hearing what the Omen signifies he summons the child's father, Terah, and offers him great riches in exchange for his son's life so that he may never pose a threat to Nimrod. . . You'll have to read the book to find out what happens next.

As well as being an excellent storyteller, W.Kent Smith paints an enlightening picture of times then with some powerfully ivocative passages.

God's promise is carried through to the final story, Trial by Fury, which reveals the tribulations of Pontius Pilate in a place called Canaan, the ancient name for Israel.

Pilate receives a letter from Herod in which he begins by explaining that all is not well with him since the passing of Jesus, and why he believes that it is God who is punishing him for his evil deeds. His family are sick as he is himself with dropsy and
he asks Pilate to pray for him and encourages him to praise Jesus too.

Following this the details of the crucifiction come to light during Pilate's trial and W. Kent Smith will keep you turning the pages right to the epilogue, as he did me.

Lost Stories is both refreshingly entertaining and enlightening.

Ray Smith [No Relation]

Mr. Smith's book blows apart some misconceptions about mankinds origin and destiny. Some people walk around in life saying to themselves, "Why was I ever born?" Or "Am I living only to die?" These questions have an answer in Mr. Smith's book. What really happened between Genisis 1:1 and 1:2? At one time, was the earth populated with angels? Did a "civil war" in heaven occure that wiped-out the earth at that time? Could it be that mankind is the replacement for those rebelious angels? It is well written; three acts with the same theme - rescue fallen mankind (1) the garden of Eden (2) the story of Abraham (3) the death and resurection of Jesus Christ. Redeeming lost mankind is the greatest drama to ever unfold on this earth.

You may have heard these stories in Sunday School, but you most certainly never heard them the way W.K.Smith tells 'em. His approach is modern, clean and easy to understand. His characters are more human than in most tellings. But detail is his ultimate forte. Smith has certainly done his research - as he has embellished and rounded out the "lost" stories, from Adam and Eve to Abraham to Pontius Pilate, with a rich tapestry of information you'll never hear from you Sunday School Teacher.

A most enlightening read!

Tim Smith's pure approach to keeping customers loyal shows how disciplined use of the right talents can separate us in this world of mediocrity. This is one of the milestones of being a Professional Sales Rep. I would suggest it to any sales rep regardless of the industry.

This book way better than Kaizan or other Japanese book. Tim Smith the Shogun of samurai salesman!!

Tim Smith has given sales people a practical guide to establishing lasting relationships and a loyal customer base. Mr. Smith has broken the sales process down into 7 steps, which when followed, result in a powerful relationship and long term success.
Mr. Smith's approach is logical and easy to follow. Examples of how this process works are plentiful and buttress his points very well.
I found the book readable and amusing. I will strongly suggest this book to my sales colleagues who are looking to improve their sales skills.

Being a sales representitive in a competitive industry can be intimidating! Tim Smith's book Loyalty Based Selling gives you the tools to suceed from the start. Loyalty Based Selling is a quick read that avoids all the warm and fuzzes about selling and gets right into the meat of it. Tim offers a unique perspective and specific examples of whats's made him #1. Sales reps make many mistakes that could easily be avioded if they use the tools and game plan that Loyalty Based Selling offers. The book walks you through how to introduce your self to a prospective customer to celebrating the close of a big deal. This book is a must read for all sales reps.

This book is outstanding! It takes a very simple approach to communicating the best way to maintain business with current customers and grow your business with both existing and new customers. Each one of us can implement the seven steps into our selling. Mr. Smith did a great job of giving us examples we can work with. I have already recommended this book to several colleagues!

I have been looking for this book for 20 years! I also (like other reviewer's) picked it up at a grocery store one dull summer in 10th grade. I was completely lost in it...I cannot wait to read it again. Puts "Underworld" to shame!

Wow. This book stopped me and my friends right in our tracks back in 1980... there were like 6 of us who were horror aficionados in high school. We all read & exchanged Steven King, Clive Barker, Lumley, etc... then some of us started buying horror books indescriminately - at the grocery store checkouts, garage sales, etc. 'The Prey' was one of those... we came across it accidentally, but it immediately moved to the top of everyone's list who read it... we were even asking for it back for re-reads !!! (and i seldom re-read anything!). This re-read exchange went on for a few years and eventually our circle fell apart and I don't know who ended up with the original copy...i hadn't seen the book or even thought about it for maybe 10 years. then i thought about it, and realized what an impact this book had left on me, and went searchin. man was i psyched when i saw it was re-released !!! my new copy is en route and i cannot wait.
This is one of the greatest horror books ever written. everyone that i now who has read it would agree. As i type now - about 17 or so years after last reading the book for the 2nd time - I still have no doubt this is likely the best horror novel i have ever read.

Morivania, a young man from Austria, after having observed his father succumb to the powers of a mysterious man named Luther is out to avenge his father's death. Luther and his agents take on the form of wolves and follow Morivania, dog him, if you will, across Europe while he searches for the secret to destroy Luther. The wolf-beasts attack and devour unsuspecting victims while on Morivania's trail. (During my reading of this, I had to periodically check that my own black dog was still a big galoot and hadn't morphed into one of these frightening creatures!)

This book had the feel of a classic! The style and language literally transported me to the 1800's during the time of the French Revolution. Smith's first rate talent as a writer will keep you in bone-chilling suspense as Morivania enters ghastly catacombs and numerous dark wooded trails. There are plenty of moments which will make your hair stand on end and which develop into outright terrifying events!

The Prey is a magnificent novel that is sure to please fans of classic horror. I can't recommend it highly enough!

Morivania, a young man from Austria, after having observed his father succumb to the powers of a mysterious man named Luther is out to avenge his father's death. Luther and his agents take on the form of wolves and follow Morivania, dog him, if you will, across Europe while he searches for the secret to destroy Luther. The wolf-beasts attack and devour unsuspecting victims while on Morivania's trail. (During my reading of this, I had to periodically check that my own black dog was still a big galoot and hadn't morphed into one of these frightening creatures!)

This book had the feel of a classic! The style and language literally transported me to the 1800's during the time of the French Revolution. Smith's first rate talent as a writer will keep you in bone-chilling suspense as Morivania enters ghastly catacombs and numerous dark wooded trails. There are plenty of moments which will make your hair stand on end and which develop into outright terrifying events!

The Prey is a magnificent novel that is sure to please fans of classic horror. I can't recommend it highly enough!

I enjoyed reading this novel very much. The author has a great way with description, even though some of his characters are somewhat one dimensional (and by the end of the novel there are a lot of them). What really drives the story is the overwhelming pursuit of the main character by diabolic forces that are portrayed as so powerful, you have little hope for his survival. Mr. Smith has also embedded a number of unique plot devices within his story which I enjoyed very much.
However, the payoff after all of this great setup is very disappointing. I can't go into detail without spoiling the ending, so suffice it to say the end seems very rushed, almost as if the author hit his word limit and had to rap it up as quickly as he could.
After reading some of the other reviews (as you can see, many are just repeats of each other) it makes me wonder if we read the same book. The person who made the analogy of classic horror movies that used suspense instead of blood and guts is dead wrong in their assessment; this book contains enough violence and grue to keep the most jaded gore-hounds out there happy.
I'm giving it 3 stars for the first 11/12ths of the book which I thought was a good, pulpy read. If the ending matched the build up, I would have gone to 4 stars.

I discovered and read Ms. Carter's lush tale of four intertwined lives some months ago and still remember my regret mixed with exhiliaration at turning the last page. Not wanting a book to end is probably among the higher compliments a reader can pay to fiction; to end a nonfictional story feeling thus, is rare indeed. Prior to RRG, Donna Tartt's fictional masterpiece "The Secret History" was my lonely, sole contender for this sort of accolade...
... It was precisely the lack of any undue focus on the women's probable physical intimacy, alongside a riveting collection of photographs that immediately caught my attention and held it. Throughout the whole of this story crept a quiet, matter-of-fact, stylistic elegance that kept this readers attention first and foremost on the place and the times, on three lives dedicated to art, on four women dedicated to each other. Brava!

Some great reproductions here too, of some Pre-Raphaelite-style art from the Philadelphia area about 100 years ago. Violet spent over 25 years painting huge celebrations of the founding of Pennsylvania in the Harrirburg State Capitol. She may not ne Michaelangelo, but is not far behind his Sistine Chapel! This small coffee table book will never go out of style, and does a great job bringing back 3 great lady artists!

Alice Carter has written an incredible story about three inspiring artists. It is ununsual to find a book with such a scholarly, intelligent perspective that is presented with a human warmth and emotional attachment to the individuals that are portrayed. The sensitive approach of the author is perhaps related to the fact that as a young child Professor Carter knew and admired these woman and they served as an inspiration in her life. Whatever the reason, she has crafted an outstanding, beautiful book that will stand as a classic story in the history of art, the struggles of women, and the nobility of the human spirit.

I bought this book with the idea of finding out more of the types of relationships women shared at the beginning of the twentieth century. I was astonished to find more than I bargained for. The Red Rose Girls provided more than insight into these relationships, it also provided a look inside the rise and fall of the progressive and arts and crafts movements. Pre Freud, the relationship of these woman was accepted and cherished as they lived together, and created their art. Post Freud, their relationships deteriorated as did their careers. All in all I found this book extremely entertaining, as well as heartening (a forty year relationship between two of the women) and the pictures are absolutely beautiful. If nothing else, as an art book it is extraordinary.

It was some months ago when I discovered and read Ms. Carter's lush tale of four intertwined lives. I still remember the regret and exhiliaration I felt on turning the final page.
Not wanting a story to end is perhaps among the higher compliments I would pay to a book, and usually one relegated to a rare work of fiction. In fact, prior to Red Rose Girls, Donna Tartt's masterpiece, The Secret History was my lonely sole contender for this sort of accolade. To add my name to the chorous of other reviews teetered on redundancy, lily-gilding or worse....gushing. But then, we New Englanders are a stiff lot, and loathe to such displays.
It was interesting then, to trip over a Feb. 8th review in which a reader, also from my birthplace, expressed some criticism of Carter's speculation on the probable physical nature of the characters relationship, finding it presumptuous and distracting. (my words)
It was precisely the lack of any undue focus on lesbianism, alongside a riveting collection of photographs, that caught my attention and held it for the duration. Throughout this fascinating account crept a quiet, matter-of-fact, stylistic elegance that kept my attention firmly on the place and the times, on three lives dedicated to art, on four lives dedicated to each other. Brava!

ONE word....AWESOME!! This book was so good I have read it three times. I love the chemistry between Sebastian and Francesca! The way he noticed her when she was dressed in a mu mu and her hair wasn't done. He could see the beauty in her. Plus the suspense was enough to keep you guessing. One of my favorites from Maureen Smith... more like my favorite!!!!

This book captured my interest from the first page. I truly could not put it down until I was finished. Sebastian was truly a hero! What a wonderful combination of romance and suspense. I will definitely be looking for other Maureen Smith books.

Whisper My Name by Maureen Smith is a fabulous romantic suspense! Great mystery, hot love scenes and a surprise ending. What more can you want.

Francesca is one of those hidden beauties that doesn't realize how beautiful she truly is. Her younger sister Tommie is more flashy and sexy and got all the male attention so Francesca is doing her own thing as an expert scientist in spiders and teaching classes at a local university. It's while having coffee at her favorite cafe that she notices this sexy speciman of man staring at her. She's so flustered she actually chokes on her coffee.

Before he can introduce himself to her, Detective Sebastien Durand is called away on police business. Little does he know his case is going to reunite him with his mystery lady from the cafe. He needs her knowledge of spiders to help him find a serial killer in town. This New Orleans native moved to San Antonio with his grandma after Hurricane Katrina destroyed their home and he has made himself quite at home in Texas. He's happy to find out the beautiful woman who hides herself in frumpy clothes is his spider contact and goes about wooing her right away.

Francesca can't believe this handsome, sexy detective is actually interested in her, but Sebastien wears her down. Together they investigate the killer who keeps striking closer and closer to home.

I really enjoyed this book. And I'm never able to figure out who the serial killer is in these books either! While Sebastien & Francesca did move rather quickly with the physical aspect of their relationship, it worked for me. And their friends, family and associates were a hoot! Loved Sebastien's partner. Hope he gets his own book one day. And maybe in a few years so can Tommie, but she needs to grow up big time! I would definitely recommend this story to fans of romantic suspense.

I was a fan of maureen smiths since i read, a legal affair.
This is my third by her and i was expecting more 'ump'
this was indeed a good book,but the ending was over too fast and solving the mystery,which by the way, u will never guess who the killer is.
Usually authors first few books are the best and then they start to dwindle, not the case here.In this book comparng it to her later novel "legal affair" she definitly got a whole lot better.

Whisper my Name was a refreshing book to read. It was not just about the romance but believing in yourself and finding your inner beauty. Frankie could not get past the fact that Sebastian choose her when he could have any woman he wanted. Her sister Tommie is the beauty while Frankie is the brains. Love is love. But loving yourself comes first. Ms. Smith did a fabulous job with this story and had a great mix of romance and suspense. This book is full of surprises, and you won't believe who is behind the spider tattoos. I hope Ms. Smith does a follow up on Tommie.