Stone Books

As a amateur student of archeology I've read a lot of books that seem to take the same old tired take on ancient sites, but here's a whole new way to examine human history!

Paul Devereux has written an exemplary guide for those interested in researching this amazing topic. Much detail is given in terms of the ritual history of sound and it's many uses. While the analysis of sound throughout the ages is somewhat elementary it does do a fine job of getting one who is unfamiliar with the shamanic history of sound up to speed.
As an amatuer musician of tribal instruments, I was ingrossed with Mr. Devereuxes findings. I hope in the future there will be many more experiments into the exciting Archeology of sound.
A great book...highly recommended.

This book reveals an exciting new field in the investigation of ancient sites: acoustic archaeology. It brings to light a vanished aspect of the past with the aid of computer modelling and sophisticated equipment to calculate frequencies and resonances. These investigations have demonstrated that stone chambers, temples, dolmens, menhirs and even paleolithic caves were deliberately constructed or used in ways that would enhance the ritual sounds produced within them. In the process it reveals the very origins of music and a lost world where echoes were regarded as the voices of the spirits. It assists in our understanding of the biochemical and physiological reasons that lie behind the reasons why dance and rhythm and percussion are such powerful human experiences. Particularly interesting sections include the one on Infrasound (below the hearing ability of the human ear, but one can feel it), on brainwave states, the resonation of body parts, and music and mysticism. Locations tested and reported on, include Stonehenge and other spots on the British Isles, French and Spanish paleolithic caves, Grecian and Mayan temples. The text is enhanced by black & white illustrations, musical notations and beautiful color plates. There are also references & notes and an index. Being the first work ever in this exciting new discipline, this book is very valuable and I highly recommend it to readers who are interested in mankind's unknown past, and to musicologists, ethnologists and archaeologists.

I think this book is a very good book,in that it is a counter to the typical "price guide" arrowhead books, this book does not go that route, and discusses the lithics in more of a professional manner, and is more for people who are interested in the cultures, and the lithics and not in what something is worth. The only critique I have is that the book trys to cover too large an area...i would prefer one that is aimed at specific states (even though the boundaries lap over state lines), and would prefer the author to stick with established nomenclature as to lumping points into various categories. I think the book is headed in the right direction but needs improvements.

excellant point type guide to arrowheads of the southwest. Much information on the cultures that made them and on how they were made.

This is an essential reference. Noel Justice has done an amazing job of gathering the references and synthesizing a very complex and diverse array of "spear and arrow points" in this volume. I can also recommend "Stone Age Spear and Arrow Points of California and the Great Basin". Well worth the rather high price.

This is one of my favorite books on shamanism. I'm always pulling it out to read it again.

I also am a student and serious shamanic practitioner and voracious reader of all books shamanic. This book has deepened my own shamanic practice in ways that other teachers and books have not. Along with Tom Cowan's books and Frank MacEowen's, this volume now has a place of honor on my shelves and in my heart. If you are a serious student of shamanism, this book is well worth purchasing. Even if you are not a practitioner, it's one of the finer books I've come across which plainly explains what shamanism is and is not, why it is important to learn and continue the practice, and how it fits into a modern urban society. If you are merely curious about shamanism or are a seasoned journeyer, this book is a wonderful resource.

I own and have read almost every book published on shamanism. Mr. Crockett does a great job of explaining the basics and elaborates on more advanced concepts in a way that to date, no other author has achieved. He writes clearly and enfolds the reader in the experiential nature of shamanism, making the material real and memorable.

Words on paper glow Photographs illumine new worlds Haiku becomes real.

"Ice-cream wrappers bloom

In overflowing baskets

Summer in the Park"

Jane Yolen

This is a "haiku" from the book. Each poem is matched with a memorable picture of the city. The pictures are of everyday scenes and the haiku are easy to read, yet the effect is haunting. Although the book is only 40 pages long, a person could spend hours reading and looking at the pictures.

Children and parents and teachers will read this book over and over.

Words on paper glow Photographs illumine new worlds Haiku becomes real.

I Loved this book! It never gets boring and can be re-read section by section or just by following one family's diary exerpts. Amazing Illustrations! The more you look the more you find!

This book is awesome. It tells the pioneer stories in diary excerpts from the pioneers themselves. I assume the mis-spelled words in the diaries are not corrected from the originals. It made the reading even more fun. Can you imagine wearing a long dress, being very proper and having a bug up your leg? What the women went through! This is also a good learning tool for kids to better understand their boring history books. (At least my kids thought so.) Well done hardback, but is it out in paper back for easier reference? It's too handsome to "thumb through" and tear up.

What a thrilling way to travel the Oregon Trail! Combining historic diaries with fantastic artwork every step of the trail makes me go back in time and experience the trials and joys of those early pioneers. I have a new sense of appreciation! Also, I'm very gratefull to know that these authors took so much time, and attention to detail so that this portion of our history would be documented for the future. What a tremendous book.

Great book. Conrad and his wife Leela were two very different and dynamic characters. Definitely some great dark humor in the story and a nice twist at the end. I thought there were some great ironies that people could definitely relate to. I highly recommend to my friends.

"The Stone Cabin" is a hilarious indictment of our post secondary educational system. Conrad Miller, the novel's main character, is a bumbling, officious oaf with Tourette's who winds up sleeping with one of his students with hysterical results. It is a dark comedy to be sure, but the second installment from a talented young writer, who is witty and pithy and uses the written word like a razor.

Once I started reading The Stone Cabin, I couldn't stop. I had to find out what was going to happen to Conrad and his wife Leela. The ending knocked me out, it was a total surprise that I never saw coming. The main character, Conrad, is a literature professor and I loved all his descriptions of his favorite books. A real plus for any book person. I highly recommend it!

This book is fun for kids and grown ups. Is beautifly done. It makes a very good present.

Tracy's book, Stone Crazy, is a unique blend of artistic craft and written craft. She has created visual inspiration with her mystical dolls tucked within nature's stones. After reading her book I was hooked and now plan to collect the entire Little Crazy Series. Check out, Shell Crazy, Tree Crazy, Snow Crazy, Coffee Crazy and I am sure others yet to be created!!! Also take time to visit her website www.tracygallup.com where she displays her many dolls and illustrations. Such a fun read, gift and collectible.

Tracy Gallup is a talented and imaginative expert at creating unusual dolls that are quirky, fun, emotionally evocative, and connected to a stone. "Stone Crazy" is a compendium of full color photographic pictures that showcase her handmade figures, each of which is joined with an uncommonly distinctive stone and together - the figure and the rock - create a visual image that gives rise to a series of individualized stories. Each picture is provided a line or two of lyrical commentary that tells a story of that particular image. Also very highly recommended is Tracy Gallup's companion title "Shell Crazy" in which she uses the same figurine story telling process to create doll images joined to all manner of seashells.

John Taylor
Reviewer

Please bring this bizarre yet lovable tale back! I loved it as a kid, and know my kids would too.

Reprint this book! I remember it from childhood and would love to have copies for myself (my old copy is lost, naturally) and to give as gifts. Excellent story.

Somehow I discovered this book in paperback when my (now) 30-year-old son was preschool age. I read the book to him, to his sister who is nine years younger, and to many children with whom I have worked in public school as a speech language pathologist. Finally I gave the well-worn book to my son because he is now a father. It's guaranteed to warm a child's heart. Sister Brute has no one to love until she gets an "ugly kicking dog" and a doll made from a stone. Then she discovers that there are other people to love.

I throughly enjoyed this book. This book is just like the Gwendolyn Gardener series, this book helps you escape into another world. Its is very magical, and I believe that children in the elementry grades will enjoy this book very much.

This book was great. the charaters were believeable other than the fact they were from another world. This book is one of the best books i have read. the chapters went together well and the intro strung stuff together.

The Stone Garden is a series of stories that together tell what happens when several children enter the house of fantasy writer, Gwendolyn Gardner. In Ms. Gardner's house they find creatures and characters from her books have come to life.

The only disappointing thing about this book is that the characters never actually enter the fantasy world of Turnre. Hopefully the author will write a sequel that shows the kids in the other world.

In reading The Stone in the Sword, or the Quest for a Stolen Emerald, prepare to follow an adventure requiring both wit and skill. This fantastic book is filled with many hidden objects waiting to be found by the reader! The Stone in the Sword is a masterpiece for the whole family to enjoy -- a wonderful book to have on hand for a rainy day or a moment of boredom. The story follows Loefric, a young squire who while polishing his master's sword the day before the well-known winter jousting tournament, loses a precious emerald that is afixed to the sword. As the gem falls to the ground, Loefric's michievious monkey grabs and makes off with the emerald! Loefric is soon in hot pursuit all over the castle and beyond after his pet trying to retrieve the precious stone. He soon learns that it is not just a monkey that might want an emerald, and will he recover the emerald in time?
With wonderful illustrations that lend a perfect medieval atmosphere, this book is both exciting and hard-to-put down, and requires skill and concentration to help Loefric retrieve the gem in time for the tournament! And not only does one follow Loefric in his timely quest, they have to find and identify people and things along the way!!
This book is definitely, without hesitation a 5 stars book, enjoyable for ALL ages, to be read again and again with objects to find everytime! Get this book and you will not regret it!!!

The Sword in the Stone is a fiction book about a young, poor boy named Arther. He is a squire and is going to assist a knight in a contest. Auther meets Merlin, a magician. They become good friends and Merlin shows Auther all of his magic. Auther forgets the knights swords and has to find another sword quickly. Auther goes to the sword in the stone and pulls, and it comes right out. He is now hailed as King Auther.

My four-year-old son loves this book! He likes the "eye spy" aspect of the story and all of the clues that lead you through the book. The colorful and very detailed drawings will appeal to any child -- boy or girl. It is appropriate for his age, and I believe he will like it for a few more years. We recommend this highly.