Stewart Books

An absolutly great book! The text is lyrical making it easy to read over and over again. The illustrations are colorful and fun. With each reading, your child (and you) will notice more fantastic details. The antics are zany, but Harriet's feelings are real and ones we can all relate to. This book will quickly become a family favorite!

Harriet's Horrible Hair Day is not only for the young girl whose hair won't behave, it's for the young boy who can't get that unruly cowlick to stay down. When Harriet's cinnamon-colored curl pops out of her braid, her brother is quick to tell her she looks weird. This single remark sets into motion a series of remedies that her siblings apply. Their antics are somewhat reminiscent of Dr. Seuss's "The Cat in the Hat". Creative, wild, and crazy, the cure is worse than the curl. As illustrated in the following text, Harriet's siblings are determined: "Harriet's sister plopped a colandar on Harriet's head, and her brother pulled the curls through the holes." Ms. Stewart's amusingly phonetic text will please all children, and Michael P. White's appropiate illustrations will catch their eyes. Without a doubt, this is a book a child will clutch close to his or her chest. No wonder it has sold out at our local bookstore.

A delightful story, complete with detail-rich, amazingly fun illustrations, makes this book a sure hit with children, and their parents. I can't wait for more releases from Ms. Stewart!

Every child with hair that won't behave or who has siblings that are too helpful, will delight in reading the trials put upon Harriet by her brother and sister all because of a wayward curl! The vocabulary is age appropriate and the illustrations are delightful.

Kindergarten to fifth graders enjoyed this wild tale. I am an elementary school librarian and my students loved this story and its zany illustrations. They couldn't wait to see what Harriet's creative siblings had in store for her on every page. They also loved watching the dog's and cat's antics throughout the book. As we say in Texas..."This book is a hoot!"

Even if you live in a climate that will never allow you to build a backyard rink, this wonderful little book should be read. In a age where youth sports are increasingly dominated by organization and structure and where the attraction of video games keeps kids inside on even the nicest of days, this book takes us to a place where play is unstructured, where one can lose themself in the early morning hours or under the stars, where family and friends can gather to play, skate and even sometimes compete, where the rituals of building, maintaining and disassembling the rink mark the passage of time.

Ultimately this book is as much about a family and a bond between them as is it about ice skating or hockey. Read, enjoy and take something away from the experience.

A good easy read. A must have for hockey fans in New England and for builders of backyard hockey rinks. Not a big reader, but I couldn't put this on down. Very well written.

WE took our rink down a few weeks ago, I cant wait for next years ice. In the mean time I will read this again for about the 50th time!

I have been enchanted by this book. A newcomer to hockey, as both fan and player, I have been soaking up information and lore eagerly. This book satisfies both the urge to learn about hockey, and my wish to experience more of the true joy of the game. Taken out of the huge arenas with the expensive nachos and plentiful beer, there is a game that generations have loved to play and perfect. There are kids playing here, and adults, men and women. There are friends who help shovel the backyard rink, and those who show up later. And there are stories of other backyard rinks, of ponds, and of pros. If you like hockey, I don't see how you could go wrong with this book.

I have to say in my 28 years of being alive I can count on one hand the amount of books I have read on my own. But I recieved this book from my wife for christmas this year. I guess she had hopes on me reading more. Well she was right. I picked up the book thrusday morning about 11:00 am and finished it that afternoon. I really enjoyed reading this book. It actually took me back to when I was really young and skated on a small lake my grandparents lived on in Kinston Ontario. I feel almost compelled to build my own rink in my back yard this winter. I won't but it would be great to do it.
Thanks

We took this book on a long car trip and took turns reading it aloud to the kids. I wish it had been a book on tape, because we couldn't put it down. We even read it in restaurants. Way wacky and zany, it is laugh out loud funny. That dragon -- Madam Yang -- sure is hot stuff!

This book is a winner. The author captures the real-life worries and joys of her young hero, and authentically portrays the scene in Tucson, Arizona. Like the runaway best sellers in the Harry Potter series, this book puts imaginative adventure in a totally believeable context. Young readers, like my grandchildren, are going to want to read more about Rick and his adventures.

Do you like dragons? You'll love Madam Yang, who serves as a quasi-fairy godmother (the kind who breathes fire down your shorts) to Rick. This is a zany fantasy book, chockfull of adventures and humor. A great gift book for a reluctant reader -- hard to put down. The book is set in my hometown, Tucson, AZ, lots of wild, wild west.

There has never been a dragon like Madam Yang, and I can't believe there ever will be again. Such verve, such attitude, such sense of humor (even when she's overdosed on toasted marshmellows!) She has to be the most believable and likeable dragon in storytelling history.

There's more going on in this book, too. Rick, who has lost his dad, has to move from San Diego to Tucson, Arizona, and make a place for himself in the desert. This is a book that honors those tough transitions, and recognizes that a little bit of magic makes them easier. Bedtime reading or car trips, this is a don't-miss. Five Stars!

At 47, I'm a little out of the age bracket of this book, but I still thought it was fun. Having lived in Tucson for 13 years and loved every minute of it, the references to living the local life there were very pleasant. Plus, the author is a good storyteller, and the characters were well drawn, especially the "green" one.

If not for the "Tucson" purchase circle, I would have never found this book, but I'm certainly glad I did. I notice the title has been high on the Tucson favorites list for quite a while. I think I will order some for my nephews back east.

Who knew that cheese could be so incredibly interesting and fun? Ms. Werlin's book is an accessible and interesting read and has inspired me broaden my horizons beyond my mundane grocery store dairy case.

This book gives a great overview of the different types of cheeses. I finally decided to become more knowledgeable about cheeses and this is a great first step.

This book is informative, helpful, instructive, and topics are arranged sensibly as well as beautifully. This is a book that can be picked up at any time, opened randomly, and one would find factual information about cheese types with perhaps a bit of history, or a delectable recipe, or instructions on how to care for a specific cheese type. Laura Werlin is a wizard on cheese, a food enthusiast who has common sense in her back pocket at all times.

Prerequisite: you want to know about cheese, you love cheese
Highlights:
1. colour pictures on each page
2. comfortable printing, editing, and reading (text size)
3. introductions and information of several cheese
4. how to enjoy cheese
5. simple cheese recipe included
6. Not a heavy book
7. Her personal tips on selecting cheese

Cons: it covers about 60% types of cheese.

This fantastic book would be perfect for anyone who wants to learn about cheese. Laura's eight categories of cheese are an excellent way to approach cheeses and understand just by looking what a cheese is likely to taste like. For example, the categories she uses are:
+ fresh
+ soft-ripened
+ surface-ripened
+ semi-soft
+ semi-hard
+ hard
+ washed-rind
+ blue

She spends time discussing the common characteristics of cheeses in each category.
For example fresh refers to un-aged cheese which are likely to have a creamy flavor and generally a light taste. Soft-ripened cheese softens from the outside in because of a bloomy white rind-- brie is the classic example.

This is much, much more approachable for a newcomer than the usual litany of cheese types, names, and places.

After I read this book I had a burning desire to visit the Canadian Shield and paddle a wood and canvas canoe on the Churchill River. I only wish I could have done it in 1960, when this book was written. It is a much different place today. This is an excellent book about a canoe trip of 500 miles by six friends. I only hope I will be as lucky to do such a trip someday.

It's a great book. I haven't paddled the Churchhill River yet, but rivers closeby, and you still find the wilderness and the loneliness that Sig Olson describes. After reading this book and others by Sig Olson I just want to go out paddling and enjoy the wilderness.

I first obtained this book in my youth through the old Outdoor Life Book Club (which also introduced me to other classics such as John J. Rowlands' Cache Lake Country). I'm not sure I read The Lonely Land all the way through at that first encounter, but I recently rediscovered it when cleaning out a family home. I picked it up out of nostalgia, but I soon found that I couldn't put it down.

Apart from the inherent interest of its subject matter -- the majestic wilderness of central Canada's Churchill River drainage -- I was quickly taken by the immediacy of Olson's account. The wind, the waves, the thunder of approaching rapids all spill off the page in vivid detail, as do the detailed descriptions of each night's camp and its routines. As compelling is the exuberance of Olson and his five companions as they explore pristine lakes, shoot the Churchill's wild water, and find refuge time and again on the solid, reassuring outcrops of the Canadian Shield.

Finally, at each stage of the journey, Olson quotes from the journals of those who came before him, the "bourgeois" who led the brigades of voyageurs into the heart of the Lonely Land in search of furs. Men like Alexander MacKenzie, George Simpson, and David Thompson, who worked for the Hudson's bay Company or its competitors: the record of their observations informs Olson's account with vivid descriptions of the land as well as a sense both of how much and how little had changed over the one hundred and fifty years since they had last paddled, poled, and lined their way up the same great river system.

I know that Olson has many well-regarded books to his credit, but a new reader could do worse than enter this world of woods and water by way of The Lonely Land.

I read this book while in Antarctica, and I spent several storm days lost in Olson's vivid tale of an epic journey through the vast Canadian wilderness. His insight into the socio-historical condition of the indigenous peoples and French-Canadian missionaries and traders is unique. Also, I found the illustrations by Frances Lee Jacques to be immaculate line drawings worthy of admiration in their own right. "The Lonely Land" fueled the wanderlust and naturalist in me as much as any Ed Abbey or John Muir book.

I was looking on information on old canoe routes of the voyageurs and I came upon this book. It tells the experiences of Olson, a famous naturalist of the 50's and 60's, and 5 of his friends, as they paddle three wood and canvas canoes down 500 miles of the Churchhill River in Saskatchewan in 1960. Olson describes the setting and experience so completely, including diary entries of famous fur trappers who traveled the same route, that I have thought of nothing else but going to see the country he describes, the Canadian Shield of Northern Saskatchewan. It is a different place now than it was 40 years ago, less lonely I imagine, but still something I must do. I would recommend this book to anyone who longs to experience this land, North America, before it became overpopulated.

Great book for any cat lover

author of "Hobo Finds A Home"

If you loved the classics like "Maltese Falcon" and would like your kids to enjoy them as well, Linda Spencer's Sam, the Cat Detective novels are the best way to get them to loving mysteries. Sam, a grey alley cat with a heart of gold, is a private detective. Okay, sometimes his logic is fuzzy--he is a cat, after all. And his 'bank account' has an odor---he takes payment in fish. But, Sam always gets his man whether it be human or feline--and sometimes his woman, too.

In this book, Sam is approached by Brighid (Miss Wonderful) to help her find her lost kitten. She's of course, a beautiful liar. Sam discovers the kitten is a valuable Maltese from a line of cats dating back to the 1500's and the plot just gets thicker from there.

Even for adults, this is an enjoyable read and a quick one at just 133 pages. I highly recommend Sam and hope to see another novel by Stewart soon!

Ok, so I judged a book by it's cover but it paid off. This I got it for my niece, who likes all things "Cat", and was leafing through it to make sure there was nothing between the covers unfit for youngsters, and found myself getting sucked in. The Maltese Kitten is agile and smart, with a good sprite. I am sure my niece will love it and I don't think she'll notice the crease I left in the spine. Good book.

I have to admit I bought the Maltese Kitten because I loved the cover, but then I enjoyed it so much that I bought the two previous books of this series. Linda Stewart is funny and uses language wonderfully. Sam, the cat detective, has a wickedly accurate eye as he analyses the passing scene.
All three books are a lot of fun.

Sam, a detective who happens to be a cat ("I was on a Missing Persian case," is how the caper begins) finds he's tangled up in a tale about an extravagant missing kitten. The characters (cats) are all wonderfully well-drawn and parody the cast of The Maltese Falcon: Brigid, the temptress; Wilmer, the stooge; Jean-Clawed (who takes the role of Peter Lorre's Joel Cairo) plus hilarious new additions-- a sly Hungarian "pawist" and a cat named Dr. Laura who believes she's a licensed shrink. And though, without question, the book is written for kids, it pays them the true compliment of never talking down to them, or letting them down either. My own two absolutely hung on the tale-- or should I say tail?

First things first - I am reviewing this as a book on tape.

I am a big reader of mysteries and police dramas and I appreciate it when someone comes up with a unique twist and this one pulls that off in spades.

This is the 8th in a series of David Handler books about a novelist/crimesolver named Stewart Hoag. You do not need to have read the other books to follow along.

The book gets a 'B' overall - an 'A' for the plot, a 'C' for the fairly lame police characters.

The book on tape is read by Gene Corbin who does an admirable job. The cover says it lasts approximately 3 hours, but in reality it's more like 2 hours and 40 minutes.

I have been a huge fan of David Handler since I read the first "Hoagy" novel. This latest installment is excellent! Witty, sharp, and leaves you guessing till the end.

David Handler continues to amaze me with his wonderfully witty works of the adventures of "Hoagy". His books are always thrilling, exciting, and leave you guessing until the end. "The Man Who Loved Women to Death" is no exception.

I just recently discovered David Handler with "The Girl Who Ran Off with Daddy" and was thrilled to finally find "Loved Women to Death." My only complaint is that it's so hard to find his books (i.e. out of print, etc.). I highly recommend him for anyone with a sense of humor who also loves mystery. He's as clever a writer as I have read.

As one who has read all the Stewart Hoag mysteries by David Handler I feel qualified in saying each one is better than the last! Not only are the books getting thicker, they are getting more rewarding and entertaining. The characters, plots, dialog, humour and Handler's voice improve with age. In this outing, an old Ivy League classmate of Hoag's is accused of murdering women. The suspect clearly fits the bill given his violent and abusive past . . . and present! Though 'King Tut' Tuttle is suspected even by his good friend Hoag of committng these murders, 'Hoagy' owes it to himself, Tuttle and their faded friendship to investigate as only he can. The story is filled with great characters, moments of suspense and enough likely suspects and red herrings to keep the reader entertained and guessing throughout. Readers familiar with this series will be happy to know Lulu, Merilee Nash and even Hoag's beloved vintage Jaguar continue their usual prominent roles.

This is one of the most beautiful combinations of poetry and art. The poem is really quite beautiful. The art is inspirational. I don't knwo that I'd give it to a couple for their wedding though, cause the poem is about a man who is cheating on his wife....So don't take the advice of the other reviewer, the couple might look at you funny!

It's a book filled with Chagall's thought provoking art and E.E. Cumming's whimsical and witty poetry. They are the perfect match for such a book. And if you have never read Cumming's "May I Feel Said He," you'll fall in love with its surprising and funny subject.

If you are a Chagall or e.e. cummings lover, this book is not to be missed. It is an absolute treasure and such a beautiful marriage of words and art! The images perfectly complement the text. Highly recommended, even as an introduction to either of these two artists.

Just got this book and I love it. I purchased it based on reviews that I read and they are 100% correct. Beautiful pictures and a touching poem. Great as a wedding gift.

A terrific combination of art appreciation classes and literature for reading outdoors--took me back some 35 years to college days in its content, and then back up to the present in its pervasive wisdom. A joy for the ear and eye, just like its message--lovemaking is for lots of ages and stages and a delight to the senses. Should be on every bookstore's front tables.

The play opens and closes with a corpse on stage, but the laughs never die in between. This is dark humour at its exquisite depth. Its treatment of humanity, loneliness, and the socially eccentric is delicate, hilarious and poignant. It's a fast, funny and touching read, and its production should be brought to life over and over again.

[ASIN:1438250347 Morticians in Love]
[ASIN:B001BNORN6 Morticians in Love]

Stewart-Brown's play is a master lesson in economy. Each word points the action forward. There's not a breath wasted, not a moment of indulgent writing. And it's terribly darkly funny with a poignant undercurrent and great ending.

Surprising, hilarious, quirky and true to life as we all really know it. Whether you read it to yourself, share it with a group of friends or - gasp! - put on a show, you'll have them rolling in the aisles.

i think thomas merton said that....this play has dark elements, sure...but its IN the darkness that a love story of the heart emerges, and the relationships here are all too familiar. Anyone who has experienced any degree of unrequited love will fall in love with Limer. It would be a good double feature with the film "Breaking the Waves" in terms of what it says about the degree of sacrifice one goes to in the throes of love. The metaphor has never been stronger than in this extremely funny, extremely sad play. Joe Orton with a heart. Christi Stewart-Brown is a remarkable writer.

...Morticians in Love! So glad it is available here now. I first saw it on stage at Woolly Mammoth Theatre in Washington DC. It would make a great film. Brilliant dark comedy!

My husband and I have been in the Senior Move Management business since 1990. We share this valuable book with out Move Managers and also spread the word of it's value to the many senior seminars we present to. We find it an excellent tool and resource.

Diane Bjorkman
www.gentletransitions.com

If only I could have used this book several years ago when my sister and I had to move my mother out of her home of 40 years! Linda Hetzer and Janet Hulstrand are warm, witty writers who get right to the point in this short, concise, and immensely helpful book. Now I'll save it to use myself when it is time for me to move to smaller or different quarters, and I'll advise my daughter to consider it her handbook. This is a much-needed addition to "how-to" books.

I found this book to be an excellent source of practical information. The organizational tips given by the authors were excellent. I particularly noted the guidelines for preserving familiy documents and papers. I purchased one for myself, my sister, and my daughter!!

Moving On is "a practical guide to downsizing the family home." It is full of practical suggestions as to how to tackle the concrete task of emptying a house, how to categorize the multitude of things that accumulate over the years, what to do with them, how to keep the things one wants to keep and how to dispose of the things one wants to get rid of. But this is a book that is by no means only about things. It is very much a book about people, the first generation of people who collect things, write things, hoard things, love things, and the next generation of people who necessarily have the task of deciding what to do with all these things.
It is a book full of understanding for the agony of closing up a family home - after all, closing up a family home is saying good bye to people who have played a huge part in one's own life and are ceasing or have ceased to do so. As their belongings disappear one by one through the door of the house, so they themselves seem to disappear. This book suggests ways of making this process of saying farewell a dignified one, one without rancor and one without regrets. It deals in practical ways with problems that far exceed the practical. It makes concrete suggestions for coping with issues that are far from concrete.
It is also a book that manages to look in two directions at once, speaking directly to the reader who stands at the crossroads of the aging process, that point in life at which the older generation is moving from the scene and the younger generation is inexorably turning into the older generation. In emptying your parents' house, do you not inevitably begin to think, "And what will happen to my house?" For the first time, perhaps, you return home, and begin in your mind's eye to see the next generation picking up your treasured belongings, and saying: "What shall we do with this?" Moving On speaks to you, suggesting ways that you can look this painful thought in the eye, see it as an opportunity to do things the right way now, so that you will be eased through the ultimate moving-on that will come to all of us.
Moving out of a house is a huge practical job. Moving On is a transforming experience.

I was really glad to discover this book. Several friends in their fifties and sixties are coping with clearing out Mom's stuff so she can move into an assisted living facility. Quite a few also have to clear out a lifetime's accumulation of their own, so they can retire and relocate.
Here's the topics covered in chapter one (Planning Ahead, Remembering Who's in Charge, Preparing for the Day, Agreeing on a Family Plan, Dividing Up the Belongings).
Chapter two covers Sorting It Out, Getting Started, Considering Storage, Making It Work. In chapter three it handles the emotional part of downsizing (Preserving Family Heirlooms, Finding Archival Materials, Preserving the Memories Themselves).
Chapter four tells how to turn some of it into cash (Yard Sales, Estate Sales, Auctions, On-Line Auctions, Secondhand Retailers, Selling Direct). Getting rid of the rest is covered in chapter five (Giving It Away to Friends or Family, Donating and Recycling, Throwing Out the Trash).
The book also lists
*Helpful Books and Websites
*Organizations (Professional, Trade, Consumer, & Support Groups)
*Suppliers of Archival Materials
*Donation and Recycling Directory
*A Checklist of Questions to Ask