Smith Books

Bicycling Cuba turned out to be invaluable during our three-week trip to the western part of Cuba. The authors really know what they are writing about. Some of the most interesting and rewarding routes suggested in the book were not on the best maps available. The authors' way of describing the routes kilometer by kilometer was of great help because very often roads were unmarked. At the intersections we had no problems in choosing the right road. The book also contains a lot of other useful information, for example, on accomodation.
We warmly recommend Bicycling Cuba for independent cyclists planning a trip to Cuba.

Bicycling Cuba turned out to be invaluable during our three-week trip to the western part of Cuba. The authors really know what they are writing about. Some of the most interesting and rewarding routes suggested in the book were not on the best maps available. The authors way of describing the routes kilometer by kilometer was of great help because very often roads were unmarked. At the intersections we had no problems in choosing the right road. The book also contains a lot of useful information, for example, on accomodation.

We warmly recommend Bicycling Cuba for independent cyclists planning a trip to Cuba.

As I said, this book is a good help for plan our trip to Cuba next August.
There are a lot of details, descrpctions, not only about the kilometeres between the villages, as the places we can eat something or the places we can buy something... Than you, and I have a nice live!!

Recuerdos a Enrique

If you are visiting Cuba in the near future, BUY THIS BOOK. If you think you might tour Cuba,BUY THIS BOOK. If you don't plan to visit Cuba but enjoy reading travel narratives by those who have traveled to exotic places, BUY THIS BOOK. I have just returned from a two week bicycle trip with two friends and can report from experience that Bicycling Cuba is spot-on about everything. The Smiths have many years experience leading bike tours for a large bicycle touring company, so their guide book and route directions are presented as cyclists need and use them. Their routes cover the entire country, and the routes we follwed along the South Coast out of Santiago were accurate to a fault. Everything the Smiths wrote about the terrain, historical sites, social mores, laws,lodgings, and Cuban culture and society proved enormously helpful because everything is written clearly and, most importantly for cyclists, accurately. Anyone planning to tour Cuba by car, train, or bus will also find the book useful. I can't think of anything the Smiths left out, except maybe Fidel's personal telephone number! Europeans and other nationals should not pass up this book because it's in English. Even though written in English they will find the book invaluable. Now that I have been home for a couple of weeks I find myself picking the book up and reading about the places I have been and enjoying them all over again. Bicycling Cuba is about as close to Plato's Ideal Travel Guide as we are likely to see. Congratulations to the Smiths, and if you are thinking about a trip to Cuba, buy Bicycling Cuba. I'll bet you go.

Having never done any cycle touring, speaking very little Spanish and being a middle aged women travelling alone, I thought a few tips and hints and route advice would make my trip a little easier. I found it all and more in "Bicycling Cuba" by Wally and Barbara Smith. Their advice on what to take, where to go, where to stay, and gems to see was unsurpassed.

I had spent three weeks in Cuba previously and had used two guide books. The Smiths' advice, while not replacing a guide book, was the best: succinct, accurate and introduced me to friendly and helpful people. Their three main cycle tours, west, central and eastern Cuba cover the most scenic areas as well as the historic gems of this wonderful country. The route descriptions were accurate, easy to follow and contained good advice about difficulty, water availability, traffic problems and special sites.

The Smiths obviously love Cuba and this comes out in their writing. They include inserts about various social issues, economics and politics -- each fascinating.

I thoroughly recommend "Bicycling Cuba" with no reservations. My only wish is that the Smiths would produce some more books for other countries.

I love the writings of Clark Ashton Smith. He was the quintessenstial poet. BOW DOWN, I AM THE EMPEROR OF DREAMS. I Crown me with the million-colored suns of secret worlds incredible and take their trailing skies
for vestment. His fiction is also clothed in words that are poetry. His only peer is Lord Dunsany.I corresponded a little with Smith and owned one of his strange sculptures. I welcome this renaissance of interest in Smith (if that is what it is).I wrote a short story influenced by his writings which he critiqued and added one sentence. I lost it, if you ever come across it, the title is THE COMING OF THE BLACK NEBULA.

I've been an avid CAS reader for over 30 years. I happened on the Ballantine Books "Fantasy Series" paperback edition ZOTHIQUE when it was first released in the 70s, and have long wished for a compendium of his work.

CAS's style is very dense, and reflects very careful construction of prose as well as plot. His style is as evolved as Lord Dunsany, Morris, and Tolkien, and is entertaining in it's own right. Don't let this scare you off - his stories are all eminently accessible to casual readers, and numerous wry turns of phrase indicate a well-honed (but bone dry) sense of humor.

When compared to his better-known contemporaries, H.P. Lovecraft (Cthulu) and Robert E. Howard (Conan) I find CAS to be more a "readers writer." CAS is a master of phrasing surpassing HPL - his stories are less eerie than HPL, and don't slather on the dread as heavily. CAS is (usually) less swash-buckling blood-and-gore than REH, but doesn't shrink from characters hacking each other to bits when the story requires.

The only fault I can find with this series is that stories are ordered by date of publication. (Perhaps this was required by the copyrights issued to the three Ballantine collections assembled by Lin Carter.) My preference, though less academic, would be to collect the tales by story cycle to facilitate READING rather than STUDYING. Nevertheless, these volumes are without question well worth the investment - like a collection of Poe, you will find yourself returning to them many times.

This first volume in what promises to be the definitive collection of short fiction by Clark Ashton Smith is nothing short of a literary treasure. For those who have previously had to satisfy their craving for Klarkashtonia by seeking it out in scattered and hard-to-obtain tomes, The Collected Fantasies of Clark Ashton Smith is a blessing nonpareil. Do yourself a favor and get it while it lasts.

`The End of the Story' is the first of five volumes of Clark Ashton Smith's short stories. The stories are arranged chronologically by composition. The stories in this volume were written between 1925 and 1930. The stories are:

The Abomination of Yondo
Sadastor
The Ninth Skeleton
The Last Incantation
The End of the Story
The Phantoms of the Fire
A Night in Malneant
The Resurrection of the Rattlesnake
Thirteen Phantasms
The Venus of Azombeii
The Tale of Satampra Zeiros
The Monster of the Prophecy
The Metamorphosis of the World
The Epiphany of Death
A Murder in the Fourth Dimension
The Devotee of Evil
The Satyr
The Planet of the Dead
The Uncharted Isle
Marooned in Andromeda
The Root of Ampoi
The Necromatic Tale
The Immeasurable Horror
A Voyage to Sfanomoe

Most of the stories are of the `weird tale' sort, but some veer to straight Horror and some can be classified as Science Fiction (although always with a horror angle). Smith was a very flowery writer, and some of the stories can be tough going, but that's the beauty of short stories, they're short.

As established here and reinforced by the second volume, all five books in this series are essential to anyone interested in Smith's work and literate fantasy as a whole. Connors and Hilger have followed earlier textual studies by Donald Sidney-Fryer, Steve Behrends, and others with extensive studies of their own to restore as much of the glory to Smith's texts as is currently possible - and what glory! Smith is one of the few fantasists capable not only of creating multiple fantasy cultures, but with investing each of those worlds with its own distinct atmosphere, tone, and use of language. Many earlier versions of these texts toned down the richness, eroticism, and grotesquerie of these stories in order to appeal to what Smith's editors deemed was acceptable to the lowest-common-denominator among its readership. Scores of deletions, simplifications, bowdlerizations, and other alterations which have served to remove the sheen from these works have here been corrected through painstaking attention to all available manuscripts and correpondence. Here, at long last, is Smith in all his mordant, coruscating splendor. If one considers all of this, along with intelligent introductory material; alternate endings; unpedantic notes to each story detailing its composition, publication history, and its place within the larger context of Smith's work; as well as Jason Van Hollander's inspired integration of Smith and his sculptures into the macabre and affectionate cover art; Night Shade and these editors have presented to all lovers of fantasy an edition of the master's prose fiction which will serve as the benchmark for many years to come.

I find John Donne's poetry distinctly representative of the 17th century. It oscilates from being passionately sexual to passionately spiritual, and every detail seems to have been considered. The poems are augmented by Donne's allusions, but they are still beautiful to read without pondering the deeper meanings.

I prefer the alphabetized format of this collection, since chronology and subject matter are fairly nebulous when it comes to Donne. The endnotes are brief enough for readers looking for something simple, but add enough interest that those with a more scholarly bent will have plenty to play with.

I am greatly enjoying this book. The notes at the end explain some of Donne's more obscure imagery. A potentially controversial choice by the editor was to change the spelling of many words to more modern forms, which makes the poems easier to read at the expense of authenticity. Some people will like that and some people won't. Another odd choice was to list the poems in alphabetical order, instead of grouping them by subject matter or attemp to list them in approxiamte chronolgical order.
Buy this book and enjoy the breathtaking poems. You could do a lot worse with your time.

This book of poetry is quite wonderful. Donne's imagery and words are truly beautiful. His poetry displays wit, beauty and perception. Donne wrote in the sixteenth century, but his ideas and thoughts were actually quite modern. His work is incomparable when it comes to displaying the feelings and emotions of love and of friendship. Donne's poetry is often referred to a metaphysical, but it is also witty and fun. He was an extremely intelligent man, and this is reflected in his work. At times the poems can be difficult to understand, but it is well worth taking the time to do so since they are so beautiful

Finally, I've found a poet I really like reading. Donne's poems suit me more than Shakespeare's sonnets or Poe's verse, and apart from someone like Yvor Winters, I just don't get modern poetry (apologies to Sylvia Plath fans).

What rings well with me is, well, ringing well! Reading a poem out loud with a bit of drama should just sound good. That's why rap and hip hop can really be considered poetry (well, some rap and hiphop anyway).

A great example of this is Shakespeare's sonnet 129 (The expense of spirit in a waste of shame/Is lust in action; and till action, lust...). Most (not all) of Shakespeare's sonnets are harder to understand than this one, which is why they don't resonate with me as well as I'd like. Donne on the other hand is different; most of what he writes in English sounds good and is immediately understandable.

Not that I understand everything in these poems, there are many contemporary allusions that are lost on me, but there's enough in there that sounds very good to allow me to right away enjoy myself. Here are two great lines, which open the sonnet "Community", to illustrate what I mean by good sound.

Good we must love, and must hate ill,
For ill is ill, and good good still...

There are problems, themselves interesting, that bring discord to a poem. For instance in Donne's England "love" rhymed with "prove" but because today these words don't, a couplet with this rhyme is marred to our 21st century ears.

A personal note: I was in bed reading "Soul Made Flesh" about the discovery that the brain is the seat of consciousness, made by Oxford scholars in 17th century England. I had reached an account of how large audiences of curious onlookers gathered to see doctors perform autopsies. I put the book down and decided to dip into Donne before going to sleep. I flipped out when I read The Damp's opening lines:

When I am dead, and doctors know not why,
And my friends' curiosity
Will have me cut up to survey each part...

Talk about serendipity! Now if I had just read an explanation of these lines in the notes, they would not have meant much to me. But because reading "Soul Made Flesh" had transported me into Donne's England for a few moments, the dramatic effect of the opening was multiplied immensely.

In a nutshell, I find that I love Donne and I recommend this comprehensive easy-to-carry well-annotated edition. My only negative comment is that the editing is a bit unimaginative: the editor places the sonnets in alphabetical order of title simply because there is no accepted canonical ordering... Oh well.

Vincent Poirier, Tokyo

Songs and Sonnets, Epigrams, Elegies, Satyres, Letters, The Anniversaries, Divine Poems. These are some of the categories of this collection of Donne's complete works. The volume also has a short life of Donne, and an overall introduction to his poetry.
Donne, is generally considered the greatest of the Metaphysical poets. His two great subjects are Love and Death, and his passionate intellect dares to connect elements of diverse worlds into a rich metaphorical texture of poetic conceits. The bold comparisons , the bringing of all modes of experience into relation with the Divine mark out his truly great work.

Very good book. One of the few places you will a lot of trees published

I own and operate a nursery using both of these books as a primary resource when purchasing conifers from growers. When customers refer to these books at our library, they comment on how beautiful the many conifers are available. My only wish the book had w/b zone hardiness and growth habit. Buy it. ProGardens, Inc. East Amherst, New York.

This set of 2 books has an enormous amount of photographs. In fact, what is meant by an Illustrated Encyclopedia is that it is composed solely of photographs. There is no text other than the captions. Photograph quality is generally good, although some are of juvenille specimens and don't show mature form. It is also clear that culture plays a large part in the mature form in many cases, and it would be nice to show various specimens rather than just one. Still, this is an essential resource to have in your library if you want to know about garden conifers. You'll just need additional resources as well.

Two world authorities compiled this outstanding conifer book featuring 2347 excellent, sharp photos reproduced beautifully on high quality paper. Each picture was taken at the proper distance to show the tree's outstanding detail. Captions are a sentence or two with location often included. For detail use a good companion book such as the Manual of Cultivated Conifers by Krussmann. Imperative for landscapers and a joy for tree lovers -- a bargain at the cover price. A quality book clearly at the top of my list of favorites.

pictures are great !!butlacks the necessary info on growing,care,climate zones&changes of sasons on the plants.but i love it for all it's visual contents

I had booght and read all of Wilbur Smith's book and I should say this is just one of those pieces who really ROCKS!

Having read all of Smith's books I would have to rank The Delta Decision among the top 5. The action is non-stop, the characters utterly believable, and the pace thrilling. This is definitely one book you really won't be able to put down. Make sure your calendar is cleared for a couple of days before you even turn to page 1.

I read this book ten years ago and still can't forget the character magda altman! that is the kind of effect this book had on me. Its one of the best thrillers I have ever read and was the first one for me by Wilbur Smith.

Its the ultimate page turner and I read it again few days back, same copy I've had for a decade :)

Don't miss out on this one. Its unfortunate though that the other novels by Wilbur I read weren't as thrilling, maybe coz they are more about adventure whcih is not my piece of cake.

Read the book when it first came out. It was one of those thrillers that grabs you on page one and never lets go. I've recommended it to friends for over 10 years but recently have not been able to find it in book stores. It turned me into a big Wilber Smith fan but this was his best. The intrigue and excitment of his plot has stayed with me for over 15 years and it's one of the few books I could read again.

This book is proof that Wilbur Smith is a gifted writer. Like several of his other books, he came up with a whole new set of characters and wrote about issues and geopolitics outside of his native Africa. I just read this book in the year 2000. This book was written a long time ago but still feels like it could happen today. As much as things change, they stay the same. I hope Wilbur gives us another gem soon. I couldn't put this one down.

This is an excellent reference book with more pictures, more information, more everything than the other doorstop ref books I have. Worth the money!

This is one of the most informative and detailed doorstop books to date.

The book is appropriately sub-titled "The Encyclopedia of Doorstop Collecting" It covers a vast amount of information, history, general information, with well photographed examples--over 1000, most I had never known existed. I am thrilled to have this in my library.

HIGHLY INFORMATIVE. SUPERB PICTURES. KUDOS TO THE AUTHORS ON A JOB WELL-DONE. GREAT REFERENCE FOR ALL CAST IRON.

The BEST Doorstop reference book ever!! We own two copies--one for the car and one for the house. TONS of information-- history, foundries, designers,catalogue pages, plus over 1000 fabulous clear LARGE pictures. My wife and I can't put it down--we just love it. These authors have done their homework for sure!

This book was funny, full of surprises, and romantically fulfilling in the end. Definitly a must read for all.

Want a great little book that your book club will enjoy? Try Duped by Love. This book has a story that everyone can relate to. We all laughed when we read it and laughed again when we discussed it at our book club.
The author is totally believable. Most of us have become pretty good at predicting the ending of most books. This book had a surprise that none of us saw coming. I love it when a book/author can surprise me.

Patricia Wilson-Smith definitely has made a great beginning to a promising career as an author. KC Girlfriends Book Club enjoyed her debut book and look forward to the next episode in Lacy's life!

Duped By Love concentrates on dating situations that real people go through. I laughed aloud time after time. If dating has been somewhat of a problem for the book will crack you up. The book was based in Atlanta, Georgia where the ratio of women to men is like 8 to 1 and chronicles the life of a divorced single mother, Shelby Stewart. The book takes us through the dating scene and her hysterical conclusions. This book is a must read for those a looking for laughter.

Nikki Crew in conjunction with G.A.A.L. (Gorgeous Afro American Ladies) Book Club of Atlanta

Truly entertaining and crack-your-side funny...
Everyone in my club loved this book. As a 30-something single-mom trying to navigate the Atlanta dating scene, Duped by Love was the funniest and most accurate account of what the world of dating can be like, especially with the unique challenges that on-line dating brings. Trust me, I know!!!

Michelle Harper

I have found most self help books are too cut and dry. This book is very useful in real life situations, from dealing with personal relationships to work related issues. Captain Bob writes with a good sense of humor that adds to the enjoyment of the book. This book is a real delight to read and very easy to digest.

Captain Bob gives the gift of Eat Stress For Breakfast like a loving parent who wants you to have the best possible life. He is respected by fellow firefighters across the country for his humorous speaking abilities on this topic. He is a wise soul that you should trust. I am grateful to report that his dream team concept made me review my beliefs on balancing trust, independence, responsibility and teamwork. As a firefighter Captain Bob is a seasoned veteran of chronic and acute stress. It is no coincidence that firefighters must teamwork. Freelancers who take things to task alone are dangerous. I have seen burned out coworkers distance themselves from others. I no longer think this is a coincidence. This is just one of the tools Captain Bob gives so you can bring back that loving feeling.

This book was mistakenly titled "Eat Stress for Breakfast". It should be titled "The Operator's Guide To Life", or better still, "The Guide for your _________ ( mate, children, boss, job, situation, life ) that they did not come with. If your stuck on the problem and your are ready to find a solution, this is the guide that can help you get past being stuck in the same problem time after time. Need solutions to everyday problems that cause stress in your life? Captain Bob has a PROGRAM for you that gives you the power to find the answers to manage and reduce the stressors in your life. You can't change people, but you can change you and that is how to get people to act differently towards you!

Eat Stress for Breakfast was a fun, quick read.

This is a book that you'll spend a few days getting to know and you'll be glad you did. It makes you laugh and learn- the best combination. Too many "advice" books are too long to finish- not this one!

Captain Bob makes his advice easy to understand, but he doesn't insult your intelligence by treating you like a child.

He's like the cool parent we all wish we had- he has the life experience and brains to teach you how to get the edge at home and at work.

Buy this book as a gift for anyone that you want to see succeed, but most important- read it for yourself first. You'll be glad you did.

This book explains it all! Relationships, jobs, how to make it in this world... it's a wealth of knowledge packed into a quick, fun read. The information presented is practical and easy to understand without being so simply put that it insults your intelligence.

It's a guide to life.

Reading this book will give you an edge- it's like having the cool parent that all the kids want: one who knows the secrets and shares them all. I'd give this book to anyone you'd like to see succeed, but start by reading it yourself...

My passion is to research, collect and create new dishes all the time. I'm always looking for something different. And this book brings a high level of intense flavors to the table. If you love spices you'll love this. I've never been to the restaurant but after having this book..I'm ready want to go to the restaurant! Excellent soup stock made with fennel and cloves, roasted chicken with clove, Sweet Pea soup with smoked paprika oil, spicy Harissa sauce, pickled lemons and Rosemary flat bread. The Rosemary flan is exquisite! Book is on nice glossy paper. Recipes are laid out well and will motivate you to try the recipes. Numerous pictures in book but not on all recipes.Instructions on how long you can keep sauces are very helpful. I got this book because there were alot of raving reviews on this book. And today I add one more 5 stars to this book's buckle. I salute you El Farol!

El Farol is one of those cookbooks that makes you hungry when you read it. Chef James Campbell Caruso has an easy going, conversational style that feels like you're in a tapas bar talking with friends, eagerly waiting for the next delicious dish to arrive.

El Farol has a modern look and feel, with bright, vibrant photos of beautiful dramatic platings. The recipes are mostly grounded in classic Spanish ingredients and flavors (chorizo, paprika, etc.), but also incorporate non-traditional flavors such as various Southwestern chiles. I recently cooked the Grilled Honey-Caper Shrimp, and Smoked Salmon Potato Cakes. Both were easy to make and delicious.

If I was choosing one definitive tapas cookbook, I'd probably choose Penelope Casas' wonderful "Tapas: The Little Dishes of Spain". But El Farol, with its' more modern look and feel, is an excellent companion to Casas' classic.

El Farol is a favorite restaurant in our family. I bought four copies of this book for family members, and every recipe I have tried is delicious. Out of all the cookbooks I own, this is the one I use the most. The glossary of Spanish ingredients and sources is especially helpful.

Inspired by a recent vacation in Andalucia, near Jerez, I wanted to prepare a tapas meal for a friend's birthday. This cookbook was excellent - I was able to pick out several recipes for small dishes that were all easy to prepare and delicious.

The Grilled Artichokes in Saffron Butter were a huge hit, and the remaining butter sauce was very popular on bread. The Ginger Fig Puree was wonderful with grilled pork ribs. Also popular was the Chicken with Harissa, and the fish I prepared using the grilled sardine recipe. Unable to find a "flavorful small fish" at my local supermarket, I chose a mundane cod filet, which I cut into small pieces to be eaten in a tapas style, and prepared according to the recipe. This has now become my standard recipe for any type of white fish, as it is simple and delicious.

I love reading this cookbook for inspiration. I started a jar of El Farol Preserved Lemons, and can't wait to start using them when they have aged. I have yet to try the dessert recipes, which are very tempting. Having executed several recipes successfully, I feel very confident that even the first time I try another, I will be able to serve it to my guests to rave reviews.

James Campbell Caruso has shared with us some wonderful ideas and recipes on how to add great flavor to food in a straight-forward fashion that a home cook will have no problem understanding or recreating.

I am living in Italy, close to Parma, so I am used to good cooking and food. When I buy El farol I wish to learn to cook some spanish dishes, but what I have found is more. Recepies are written in an easy way, step by step, and it is impossible to make a mistake. There are a lot of suggestions and I have immediatly tried to cook Caldo Pescado and Gambas al Alcaparra.
There is a lot of living joy in this book

I REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK BY EMMITT SMITH FORMER DALLAS COWBOY. THIS WAS WRITTEN BY EMMITT VERY EARLY IN HIS CAREER. ALONG THE WAY HE TELLS US OF HIS BOYHOOD IN FLORIDA AND FROM THERE TO HIS COLLEGE CAREER AT FLORIDA. EMMITT DOES A GOOD JOB TELLING HIS STORY AND IT REALLY GETS INTERESTING WHEN HE GETS TO HIS TIME WITH THE COWBOYS. FROM THERE, EMMITT WOULD BECOME THE ALL TIME LEADING RUSHER IN NFL HISTORY ALONG WITH INDUCTION TO THE HALL OF FAME AND TO WIN 3 SUPER BOWLS. JUST AN AMAZING CAREER. JUST A FEW YEARS AGO, HE ALSO WAS THE WINNER ON THAT NAUSIATING SHOW DANCING WITH THE STARS. I RECOMMEND THIS FOR ALL FOOTBALL FANS.

excellent book. very open and honest. inspiring, but boring in parts

If you are into sports books then The Emmitt Zone is a great sports book to read. It is probably one of the greatest sports books i have ever read. In this book Emmitt talks about football being a contact sport and discribes the sport of football. He tells you some records about some players that play in the NFL. He also tells you about his College Football and National Football career and records. Then finally Emmitt talks about his life style when he was grewing up from a little boy to a Football Star.

Emmitt Smith has gone through many ups and downs in his career. Some of include three Super Bowl titles and a rushing record. Some of the downs include living in the projects and having a semi-rough childhood. Emmitt grew up in Pensacola, Florida. He lived in the projects for a few years. Emmitt had a very large immediate family; all of them were very close and helped Emmitt through a lot. Emmitt attended the University of Florida for college, where he broke numerous rushing records. Emmitt was the Dallas Cowboys' first round Draft pick in 1990. In the NFL Emmitt Smith is one of the premier players.
This autobiography gives a great insight to life. Emmitt Smith really did a great job writing this novel. This book gives you a good look at the NFL - from the top. I recommended this book to anyone who wants to read a warming story about someone who worked hard to get where he is today.

As a Cowboys fan for over 20 years, I really loved this book. It's a great portrait of a great running back and a role model we should all emulate. My only criticism is that it was written a bit early in his career - the book doesn't cover a great deal of events that readers are sure to want to hear about, such as Super Bowl XXX, Michael Irvin's retirement, Troy Aikman's retirement, the rushing title, etc. But, I still recommend the book highly for Cowboy fans who want to smile and remember the early 1990s, when Dallas established itself as one of the most dominant football teams ever.