Thomas Books

What a wonderful tapestry of relationship stories set against the backdrop of New York City in the mid-1800's. The vivid details and realistic characterizations make the reader feel as if these stories must surely have taken place. Each of the characters faces a challenge in his or her relationship to another person or persons, and the resolution of each dilemma is both satisfying and delightful.

I was once again drawn into the lives of each intricate character. I didn't want to put it down, but had to at times. (You have to eat and sleep at least a little, right?)

Susanna, haunted with fears of failure, refuses to play for Michael's orchestra when he asks her to.

Dr. Andrew Carmichael tries to find a way to tell Dr. Bethany Cole his feelings for her-and his secret past.

The MacGovern family finds that America (so it seems) is not so glorious as they had thought it would be. Will Mr. MacGovern ever find a job to keep his family afloat?

There are also other intriguing and entertaining characters such as police officer Frank Donovan, young Renny MacGee, and Paul Santi, Michael's gentle cousin.

The ending was so glorious and beautiful that I was actually weeping with joy, hearing the music Mrs. Hoff spoke of.

It was ALL wonderful-I loved it so much and want to read it again (many times, perhaps) in the future! I would recommend reading the equally good Book 1 first, of course, but this book stands on its own, too. Masterfully written! Bravo!

Love LOVE LOVE these characters!! Just as in Prelude, I jumped in this book with both feet and didn't emerge until the last page was turned. If possible, this book was even stronger than Prelude...the characters more defined and even more rich and colorful. The ending left me breathless...I almost stood up and cheered along with the audience in the scene! I cannot wait until the next one... hurry!!

"Fiction can illuminate Truth beautifully. There are few adornments more lovely and compelling than good fiction artfully woven around the neck of Truth to bring out the eternal beauty of the face of Truth."--Christian author Jeri Massi

Nowhere is that quote more aptly illustrated than in the fiction writing of B. J. Hoff, and her latest book, Cadence, is no exception.

In this second book in Hoff's American Anthem series, we become further acquainted with the appealing cast of characters we met in Cadence. There's the handsome and brooding composer, Michael Emmanuel, and Susanna, the sister of his deceased wife, who acts as a governess for his young daughter. In Cadence, Michael and Susanna deal with the growing awareness of their feelings for each other...and Susanna must face her fear of failure in regard to her own musical talent.

We get to know more about the altruistic Scottish doctor, Andrew Carmichael, and his medical partner, Dr. Bethany Cole, and discover that there is something significant in the good doctor's past. Meantime, Andrew and Bethany are another couple that realize their dawning love for one another.

The Irish immigrant, Conn MacGovern, continues to be one of the most engaging characters in the series. Proud and strongwilled, he embodies the strong immigrant spirit, and you can't help but like him and his equally strong wife, Vangie.

I suspect --and hope--we'll be learning more about a few of the characters in the next book, including the intriguing Irish police officer, Frank Donovan, as well as Renny McGee, the former busker girl taken under the wing of the MacGovern family.

I really enjoyed this book's predecessor, Prelude, but I do believe I liked Cadence even more! Maybe it's because the characters now feel like old friends, and I'm even more involved in their individual stories. As always, I relished B.J. Hoff's lovely and evocative writing and the smooth flow connecting the characters' scenes.

Most of all, this book touched me on a spiritual level, causing me to look inward and challenging me to face my own fears with the help of God's Word. An entertaining, absorbing read that points you to spiritual truth...can you ask for more?

Just one problem, though. Now I can't wait until the next book in the series!

In her true story-telling fashion, B.J. Hoff brings us the next mesmerizing instalment in her American Anthem series. Revisit the characters first introduced in PRELUDE, and be swept away in the saga that unfolds, where love grows amidst heartbreak and misconception, and hope is restored despite grievous loss. The colourful setting of late 1800's New York is punctuated with the music of the era, presenting trials and triumphs that will resonate with the reader. Old and new fans of B.J.'s historical fiction will love this story. ~~Ellie Schroder, owner of The Christian Fiction Site

Reading Chocolate Covered Friendship was like being invited into Bethany's life and sitting a spell on a quiet front porch, sipping cocoa and enjoying her company. I came away richer for the experience.

This is a book to savor, with pictures to salivate over and recipes to fill a chocoholic's dreams. It's best enjoyed with chocolate in hand and would make a perfect gift for the chocolate lover in your life.

A nice book to read with your favorite hot cocoa on a cold fall evening.

Thoughtful and tender, like sharing your favorite stories with your friends. A quite conversation to be enjoyed.

Delighted to read and share with my friends.

Great work from great writers. I've seen Bethany's work before; always fabulous. This is the perfect gift for all of my favorite girlfriends. Some of these stories brought back memories of my own, as well as tears to my eyes. Thank you!

I read this book cover to cover last week. What a sweet reminder of how precious our friendships are and how each friend offers us unique qualities that enrich our lives and keep us going. As the authors so eloquently point out, some make us laugh, some inspire us, some tell us the hard, cold truth when they know we need to hear it. The correlation between friendships and chocolates is perfect. And what a tribute to each of Bethany's friends! Not only do they have a yummy truffle named after them, but they are forever honored with the wonderful descriptions of how Bethany carefully selected each ingredient to reflect their personality and the specific qualities they share with that truffle. The poems, recipes and tips for working with chocolate add to the book to make this the perfect book to give to all your friends. I can't wait to try out the recipes and give the book and truffles to all of my friends for Christmas gifts!

This book covers 2 of my fav. topics. The poems are great and my family is already trying to get me to make some of the recipes...and I tell them just go buy some from "The Cocoa Tree" were they are already made.

I will have to try my hand at the peppermint bark. We really enjoy it the most.

the book is beautiful and a great gift for friends.

I love all of the Cape Light Books. I hope there will be more than 8. They are so relaxing to read, and they make you feel like you really know all the people. They bring in the Christian parts of the book and make you feel so much closer to God. I love the books so much.

Once again, visiting the fictional Cape Light for Christmas is almost like going home for Christmas! The familiar characters are like family, and the story is always interesting, uplifting, and believable. Kinkade and Spencer are truly a team of authors that bring fiction to life and build a fan-base of people, like me, who are looking for good, clean reads that have a posative Christian message.

As with all of the Cape Light novels Thomas Kinkade brings the characters to light for a teary, jaw dropping, happy loving novel. All of the past characters are brought into this book so you don't forget anyone and we even meet a new one...who is painted perfectly, you just want to tell her to go home! A book you'll want to keep reading, then when it's over, you just want MORE! I can't wait to read the next one "A Christmas to Remember"

The book is written a bit like the Mitford Series in that it is a small united community with all the ups and downs of life. There are personality clashes, misunderstandings, discouragement and all the other negatives in human relations. However, the journey to learning to love and accept others and ourselves is full of interesting thought provoking experiences.

I have read each book in this collection in a day I can never put them down..He writes with hope just like he paints the light in his pictures..I don't know how he does it but he captured my heart with this uplifting story ..we hear of so many disturbing stories and so much trash in books these days it was just awesome to read a book that made me feel good about the world and to give me hope .I love these books waiting for the next book.

As a die hard Patrick O'Brian fan and an amateur history buff this book was intriguing to me. It is very well written and presents the life story of an amazing British Navy hero not well known today.

David Cordingly does a superb job presenting the real life exploits of Cochrane, which incredibly are every bit as extraordinary as the fictional exploits of Captain Jack Aubrey in the Patrick O'Brian Master and Commander series.

I highly recommend it.

A great story and a great read about a great commander by my new favorite author, Thank You, Sir. I am going to order "Billy Ruffian".

Many readers will come to David Cordingly's The Real Master and Commander from a desire as fans of Patrick O'Brian and C.S. Forester to learn more about the remarkable man whose life provided the raw material for the tales of Jack Aubrey and Horatio Hornblower. Make no mistake, however, Cordingly's excellent historical biography deserves to be read on its own merits.

Lord Thomas Cochrane executed such stunningly audacious feats - successfully attacking much larger ships with his small sloop Speedy, leading an attack of fireships on the French fleet at Basque Roads, and helping Chile and Brazil establish their independence - that one might cry `what pitiful stuff' if one read it in a work of historical fiction. But it really happened.

Cochrane was a flawed man who could not restrain himself from reckless attacks on powerful forces in the navy and the government generally. When he found himself entangled in an infamous stock exchange fraud (the leaders spread false rumors that Napoleon had died and then sold their shares when the market predictably spiked), he discovered that powerful men were only too happy to see him convicted and drummed out of the navy. Cordingly judiciously sifts the evidence of Cochrane's guilt or innocence from our vantage point nearly 200 years later.

In addition to his naval feats Cochrane also fought for reform causes as a member of parliament. His intemperate tactics and language did him little good. Of course, he was quite right in insisting that either the electoral system would be reformed from within or reformed with a vengeance from without.

After several years in the `wilderness', Cochrane sailed to South America and successfully aided the rebellion against Spain and Portugal. He eventually wore out his welcome there as well, in part due to fights over prize money. From there he went to the Greek Fiasco, as Cordingly aptly names it. He spent his remaining years fighting with some success to restore honor to his name. A sad dwindling away for this remarkable man.

A must read for fans of Age of Sail historical fiction and an excellent histroical biography.

I think I am correct in saying that I have read all of the biographies of Thomas, Lord Cochrane, published in the last few decades, and I would rate this volume as the being the best of all, giving good coverage of all phases of Cochrane's long naval and political careers. Unlike some authors, Cordingly is careful to match Cochrane's own accounts of his activities against other primary sources, and to give equal balance to Cochrane's activities in the wars for South American independence with those during the Napoleonic Wars.

Cochrane was an extraordinary man, his genuine history perhaps more amazing than any of the fiction inspired by his real-world activities, this is a biography that does him justice, lauding his good qualities and achievements without hiding his flaws and failures.

Amazon.com has many comments already which praise the quality of this history of Cochrane. I thought it was good, also, and was impressed by how hard the author tried to present different viewpoints of some controversial circumstances in his life. I don't think I need to add anything to what has been written about the book's appeal to those with an interest in the age of fighting sail. I did not like the recording on the MP3 version, however, because of the length of each chapter. Tracks ranged from 20-35 minutes or so in length rather than most audio books that break up the tracks into 5-10 minute sections. Since I listen to audio books on the treadmill and am normally on the treadmill 35-50 minutes, I was always in the middle of a track when I quit and had to repeat that entire track the next day to hear the end of it. It was annoying as it is the only audio book I have that was done like this. The quality of the reading, the consistency in volume between tracks, and the clarity of the recording were excellent, however.

It is quite unfortunate that the maladroit public school system has failed to have this as a required reading. Thomas Paine has obtained immortality with these words in the minds of true conservative Constitutionalists-that of which has been obscured by both the Republicrats and Demopulicans. Having not read this in high school, I am glad I did. In a time when America is in an aberration from her fundamental principles I find myself genuflecting to her Constitution for insight-for that I am ridiculed, receive derision, and considered a conspiracy theorist and unpatriotic. Lamentation is among those of us who see the force that is reverting this country to a fusion between Fascism and Communism-a new hybrid of government. Fortunately, this is a REPUBLIC and we can fire back through political intervention and fiscal boycotts. We find it facile to intervene where we must, but that ability is shifting to arduousness with laws such as the Patriot Act-which makes docile dissent an act of terrorism. What Paine wrote in this pamphlet is very well applicable to our relationship to the Federal Government in the present. For me, this book gave me the boon to spread the message of what America was founded upon, the Constitution.

There are those men/women that are born from the process of reproduction that go beyond the mere existence of flesh and truly lubricate their being into the gears of this Machine we call life. From the conception of their ornate thoughts to the inoculation of their fluid into our being, at times we can overlook them in the present, but in the future, we revere them for their message. How many of these individuals have we murdered, assassinated, tortured, ostracized or allowed their message to become senescent in society? The recoil can at times prove that we are indeed merely in duress by the masses, but there are those of us that see the profundity in the present. Thomas Paine was not one who was ostracized or murdered for his ideologies, but it calls forth a siren in the present that is commensurate to Ron Paul's The Revolution: A Manifesto.

If I am not mistaken, I am sure I can be indicted for an act of terrorism, have Storm Troopers breach my home without warrant, be shipped to Guantanamo Bay for torture and denied rights to Due Process, all for exercising my right to free speech by writing this review; and, not to mention, for saying that the Federal Government is subordinate to the Constitution and must yield to the States; States yield to Counties; Counties to Cities; Cities to Communities; and Communities to Families-that is "the REPUBLIC for which we stand!"

Common sense was at the right place at the right time, written by the right person. It created an inflection point that changed the world!

Most major changes in life are cause by events called inflection points. An inflection point is an event that changes how you view the world, who you are, or your life in general.

Think 9-11. People in the United States felt safer before that day. After 9-11 we realized our vulnerability to terrorists. There are many inflection points in our history.

Tomas Paine's Common Sense created a major inflection point in history!

In early 1776 Thomas Paine published a 46 page pamphlet called Common Sense. It helped inspire the writing of the Declaration of Independence and motivated a nation to start a revolution.

The book was written for the common man and was estimated to have sold 120,000 copies within three months of publication and 500,000 copies within a year. It is worth noting that this was in the United States when there were only 3 million people--and many couldn't read!

John Adams and others had been arguing for the United States to become an independent nation. The release of Paine's Common Sense was the inflection point that caused the nation to become independent.

Thomas Paine used his Critical Thinking skills to determine that the time was right to inspire the people to take action. He argued convincingly that the young nation had to make a choice for independence now--not later. Paine explained that within fifty years the personal interests of individuals who would acquire status and money by then would resist such a change. And, the colonies would be more established and would resist such a change.

"A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right." ~Thomas Paine


The Re-Discovery of Common Sense: A Guide to: The Lost Art of Critical Thinking

This book was originally written as a pamphlet in 1776. It was crucial in advancing the thought and spirit of the American Revolution to the masses. I found this book to be amazing in how forward thinking the author was. Declaring "The cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind". He spends the first part of the book logically explaining that Monarchy is wrong and having heirs to a throne is ridiculous. He uses the bible as part of his argument that kings and kingdoms are man made and the origin is corrupt so they should be done away with. He goes on to explain how a fair practice of representation in government could take place in the colonies after independance. He writes that America had no logical need to submit to Great Britain's dominion any longer and that after the treatment America received, she had every right to independance. Paine predicts that America would emerge as a powerful nation with its natural resources and location. He says that the pride of kings results in wars. He states that in a monarchy the King is law, in a democracy Law is king. This book is a wonderful trip into logic and reason concerning Americas independance, I enjoyed it. Thomas Paine's vision of America came true, and you can read that vision in this book.

"Men read by way of revenge."

A forerunner of both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, Common Sense should properly be regarded (at least in a historical, though not a legal, sense) as one of the founding documents of this nation.

Paine makes the case for independence in strong moral terms, clearly based on the Enlightenment political theories of John Locke. The list he gives of the Crown's abuses should already be familiar to the reader from the Declaration (Jefferson did not give sufficient credit to Paine for his obvious influence on that document), though Paine's recounting is somewhat more detailed, as he could treat the topic at greater length in his pamphlet.

Paine also offers suggestions in some detail about a Constitutional Congress and the drafting of such a document, and based on the course of subsequent events it seems that the other Founders took Paine's suggestions to heart.

And of course, few other books in history (and particularly non-fiction works, since art can have a power that plain argument does not) have so effectively rallied public opinion.

Read this book. You will be surprised, even if your expectations were already high, and you will certainly be inspired.

This was a required reading for a graduate humanities class. John Keane's biography succinctly showed that Tom Paine (1737-1809) was the consummate revolutionary and a daring adventurer. Not only was he an important figure in the American Revolution, but he also traveled to France in 1791 to give that revolution a push. Paine traveled from England, just in time to stoke the flames of the revolution with his pamphlet Common Sense, in January 1776. To call Common Sense a sensation in the colonies is actually a bit of an understatement. It was an unparallel sensation and monumental work of Enlightenment rhetoric that quickly fanned the flames of rebellion throughout the colonies. In four months, over 120,000 copies were printed in the colonies--over 500,000 copies by years end. No other pamphlet printed in seventeenth century America came close to its success. Most importantly, Common Sense served to get the colonial patriots to drop their fear of open rebellion, and also emboldened those delegates who favored declaring independence from Britain. The delegates now had the confidence that a large segment of the colonists would support rebellion. Similar to the Declaration of Independence, the philosophical ideas in Common Sense are primarily from the English philosopher, John Locke (1632-1704). The most moving quote from the pamphlet became quite prophetic, when one considers the impact it ultimately had on the delegates in the congress, the drafting of the Declaration of Independence, and on the world. "We have it in our power to begin the world over again."

As a graduate student in philosophy and history, I heartily recommend this timeless classic to anyone who is interested in political philosophy, and history.

This is a great gift book for your Republican/conservative friends. It's title tells all--it is a charming little quote book of ideas from our fortieth president. Biographies by family members are always superior to biographies written by distant observers, and this non-exception proves the rule.

It is a great gift book, meaning that it has dainty fonts and stunning pictures. It is organized topically, but is not indexed so you may have to hunt a little for your favorite quote. The cover is a nice balance of a thoughtful black and an autumn rust, reminding us that Reagan is in the autumn of his life and slowly heading to black. However, the cover has a border of gold remind us of the gold ofg life after death.

We need politicians with wit--Kennedy and Reagan both had the Irish blarney, but the silver-tounge seems to be scarce among the current chain-gang in Congress. This book should be a manditory study gude. We need to eradicate the superficial smashmouth so common on the Sunday shows!

Favorite Quotes:

"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it." (p. 111)

"What American needs is a spiritual renewal and reconciliation-firt man with God, and then man with man." (p. 75)

"Since I came to the White House, I've gotten two hearing aids, had a colon operation, a prostate operation, skin cancer, and I've been shot. Funny thing is, I never felt better." (p. 22)

Pros: (1) Michael Reagan has gathered an admirable collection of Reagan's utterances. (2) He has packaged the volume in an appealing design with useful topics and short, bulleted style.

Cons: (1) I hoped to find more of Reagan's humor in the book. (2) I guess you expect a collection of quotations to come from a devoted fan, but for me, the overall presentation would have been better received if some of Michael Reagan's gushing had been curbed.

I've been doing my own little research project on Ronald Reagan, and this book was great. It describes some things about him that only a family memeber could describe. You can definitely tell it was written by an adoring son, but it gives insight that no one else has, and reminds us of what a patriot, team player, and forward thinker Ronald Reagan was.

@In this book I have underlined or marked 115 partsAall of which can help me stay optimistic and start afresh in any difficult situation. The best feature of this book is the author's (President's son) brief comment in each chapter before President's quoted remarks. Through each bit of the author's episodic description of Ronald Reagan, I believe we can take a glimpse of Ronald Reagan's sincerity, honesty, dedication for the good of the United States and after all for democracy. The author's friend, a White House speechwriter for Reagan, personally told the author how Reagan, disapproving of his national security adviser's frantic opposition, had come to give a famous speech before the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin, "Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" Reagan told the author himself on the occasion of the Reagan family gathering what he really wanted to whisper to the Russian Secretary General at the side of a negotiation table. The author's description on personal exchange with President, in coordination with well-selected quotes, successfully can show me who Ronald Reagan is and bring me to further reading on Reagan. @

There are times when words alone do not do justice. This is one of those times. I have never read a book so uplifting and righteous. Simply put; if you did not appreciate Ronald Reagan when he was the leader of the free world, you now have an opportunity to look back at the wit and truthfulness of the greatest president to grace the oval office. This is a fast read; excerps from speeches, etc. If you read only one passage, let it be the chapter on Leadership. You will truly understand the greatness of this American hero.

This was purchased as a birthday gift, and it was a big hit! My daughter liked it very much. She has done a lot of work looking into our family's history, and so this was very helpful to her.

A great resource to not only learn about the history and mechanics of heraldry, but also for inspiration for creating one's own coats of arms. I mainly picked this up to create heraldry for my strategy table top war game, but the historian in me enjoys it as well for scholarly purposes.

Good book - just wish it explained more simply and clearly - in a concise way - the symbols.

A.C.Fox-Davies:HERALDRY
I already had a great respect for Mr.Fox-Davies, having two of his great books:THE ART of HERALDRY and HERALDRY-the magnificent pictorial archive for artists and designers. And I expected to learn quite a lot from the HERALDRY book.Guess,I was right.
.The texts are very,very good,BUT,there are just too many unnecessary and detailed descriptions of British and Scotch Armory.Was it because Mr.Fox-Davies wanted to show off( with his long description of many personal Arms,which I doubt had any great interest for the general reader-mentioning only a few Im sure he could have got his point) or maybe,he was just carried away by his wish too make a good(fat)book?Nevertheless,Mr.Fox-Davies is among the VERY FEW experts who dared mention the painstakingly long and slow development of Armory,from Moses and the Scriptures onwards,explaining that it were first the personal signs and symbols which existed long before the Heraldry proper.And are still going strong,not as Arms,but LOGOTYPES of more or less famous brands.
There is no" Deus-ex-Machina "Heraldry for Mr.Fox-Davies .It was a slow and painful process influenced by both the traditions and technology,development of society , classes and unfortunately.warfare..And I guess,Mr.Fox-Davies leans too much on the Crusades Myth,closed HELMETS etc..
By the way,closed helmets existed long,long before the iron clad warriors ! Many of the drawings and other examples are very good,so that the small percentage of superfluous ones,do not play a significant role.All in all,for anyone willing to learn more,and think while reading the book,the number of lines and pages should not be tiring.It is satisfying to know that even in the days when the book first appeared,there was somebody who was NOT a stereotype,somebody who really loved the job and loved the knowledge he so willingly transferred to his readers.

I can not possibly imagine a more complete guide to Heraldry. This engaging book really brings you into the world of crests, family honor, and ancestry. It gives a comprehensive guide to all the symbols used, and their various meanings. If you are even remotely interested in Heraldry, pick this up today.

Dear Ms. Maltby,

My name is Jen and I live in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. I have been married to my husband for a little over six years, and we are not able to conceive children. The last year has been the most difficult year of my life, and frankly I'm in a battle like I never thought possible. This past fall a variety of issues in my life came to a head, and I crashed. As a survivor as child sexual abuse, I have struggled with depression on and off for about twenty years. My marriage is falling apart, and the issue of infertility continues to haunt me. I have been involved with a wonderful Christian counselor who is guiding me with God's help toward healing, but there are still a great many battles to be fought before my world will be sitting upright again.

I stumbled across your book in the local Lifeway store, and the provocative title led me to pick it up. I decided to purchase it, and from the last page of Chapter One I was in tears. It seemed that every chapter held something to say about some profound truth that was affecting my life, and I have never been so blessed by someone else's words. I am a follower of Christ, and as such I know what the Word says about truth. But my life experiences have twisted many of my beliefs and I struggle every day to remember who I am in Christ and what that means about how this journey through life trials will ultimately work out. Your work addressed many of the pitfalls I find myself struggling with, and your gentle, loving delivery was like a salve to this battered heart. Thank you, dear woman of God, for the insights and reminders. I know that as I re-read your book I will glean something new from it each time, but for now know that your inspired work has changed me. Thank you for allowing God to use you...a. perfect stranger...in such a powerful way in my life.

May God continue to bless your ministry...you are making a difference for His kingdom, and I'm so happy to have found your book.

Much love in Christ,
Jen

Tammy is awake to what others have buried their heads in the sand to: we're all broken inside, and our journey to wholeness comes in sharing our stories with one another. Why is it that we struggle so with this?

Why does it seem like Christians are the last ones in on the joke: we claim to love others, yet are known to our neighbors as hypocrites? Motivated more by guilt and shame than by love, we hide our hurts from everyone including ourselves. It's a broken way to live and it certainly isn't Jesus' way.

And that's why we need more books like "Confessions" as an invitation to others that says not only is it safe to be vulnerable, but that is the only way to health, and in fact, is the only way to be a true disciple of Jesus. In "Confessions" you'll recognize parts of yourself and you'll see where perhaps you still need healing and how that healing can begin.

If you're like the great thundering herd of Christians that, lost in the dust and the noise of others around you, struggle to voice the broken parts of your story, you need this book as a catalyst to your healing and growth. The paradox is that by confessing your humanity to others, Christ, the God-man, is formed in you. Read "Confessions" and weep - with joy and recognition.

I would highly recommend this book. The author Tammy Maltby lays out her life on paper so candidly and honestly. She gives so much inspiration to women out there who are facing the same issues. Trying to be the perfect christian girl and yet faced with depression, abuse, addictions and suicide. Tammy shares what most of us good christian girls would be too ashamed to ever talk about. Those of us who hide in shame on church pews, being paralyzed emotionally because of sin and past regrets. Tammy lays out steps in order to overcome and be victorious. This book is scriptural and guided by bible truths and the promises of God. She writes about how we should step out in faith, pray, and and know that God wants more for us than what we want for ourselves. This book is for any women who may be living in emotional or physical bondage or in some situation that prevents you from living a peaceful life due to circumstances. This book will bless your life with all the tools you need to find peace and understanding. You will learn how to not suffer in silence and get out of the personal prison you've been living in. Most importantly, Tammy Maltby will give you the help you need through her own personal circumstances and how we can move forward to the life that Christ so lovingly wants us to have. This book will bring you the freedom you've been searching for.

Confessions of a Good Christian Girl: the Secrets Women Keep and the Grace That Saves Them is powerful...and seasoned with grace. It's filled with wonderful quotes and more importantly, points to the one who can heal all of our brokenness. Many times throughout reading, I thought...Oh that is powerful...Oh that ministers healing...It's the kindness of God that leads us to repentance and it's the brave woman of God, willing to be transparent, that ministers to the broken. I know the darkest hours of my life exposed the tenderness of God the most. Though I never would wish a divorce on anyone...for me it proved to be the time God revealed His grace most powerfully. I felt as though I committed the ultimate sin. It broke my self-will and my belief that somehow I might earn God's love...As I read your book I realized you learned the same thing and it encouraged me. No matter how "good" we are we can never merit God's love or our salvation. That's the beauty of Christianity. We don't need to have all the answers or be perfect because God loves us no matter what. His grace is for every area of our life...not just our salvation. He equips and empowers us to "be" for Him. Each of my dark seasons produced more of Christ character and caused me to love others more unconditionally. He loves us...because He chose to...and nothing can change that.

When I first became a Christian at age 22, I devoured every possible Christian book, I needed all the direction and information I could get! After a while, I got burned out, so I took a break from them ~ for years.... However, this book has brought me back in a big way. It is refreshing, honest, edgy, real, hopeful and different. If you are a women who doesn't feel she fits in to the classic mold, but one who feels she has to put on a smiley face and hide her real pain and confusion, then be encouraged with this book - you will find women just like you, who aren't perfect, but find the hope and love of Jesus. Tammy, thanks for writing a book that's filled a much needed void....Bravo

As a cookbook collector,this book is a fantastic addition to my collection. I have already made several of the recipes and they are definitely keepers.

The cookbook is excellent with many of the recipes that I remember growing up, some with a new twist. I have already tried about 5 of the recipes out of the cookbook, and they were very good. I have also eaten at Johnnie Gabriel's restaurant in Marietta, GA and the food was delicious. I had the pimento cheese sandwich with bacon,lettuce and tomato and the Southwest soup. Both were outstanding.

As a longtime fan of Paula Deen, I was familiar with her cousin Johnnie Gabriel, having seen her on Paula's show. When I saw the cookbook, I couldn't to get a copy. When it arrived, I read it cover to cover & then tried a couple of her recipes. Loved them. The book is well written, the recipes sound wonderful-my only complaint is I wish she would've put more of her dessert recipes in the book. Another example of the best things come from Georgia!

But why isn't the famed and delicious Chocolate Chunk cookies (*drooooooooooooool*) recipe in here?

Gabriel's Desserts is a fabulous restaurant, and Johnnie's cooking is amazing! Especially the cookies. (You know what cookie I'm talking about, right? *mmmmmmmchocolatemmmmmmm*)

Well laid out cookbook, fantastic food photography. Delicious and intelligent recipes. Yum.

Cooking in the South with Johnnie Gabriel
As a longtime friend and customer of Johnnie Gabriel's, I am just thrilled to have my own copy of her fabulous cookbook, "Cooking In the South". Not a birthday goes by without one of her delicious confections. Thank you, Johnnie for sharing your beloved recipes. You have also made my Christmas shopping easier for 2008!

A poigniant first-person memoire of life in the mining camps at the turn of the 20th Century. Excellent prose. Very clear, descriptive, and engrossing writing. The theme is a surprising brush with the notable politically, socially, and historically famous folks in a most unexpected place: an isolated, mostly poverty ridden mining camp at very high elevation in one of the richest gold mining areas. The author's father played an important role in the exploration and development of the gold and silver discoveries there. Chronicles her childhood and flowering as a woman of distinction who knew tradgedy and trauma, yet grew into a very wholesome adult.

A candid look into the hardships of life in a mining camp, through the eyes of a young girl growing up there. This book was an eye opening account of what it was really like in a rugged mining camp and how families coped with hardships. I also found this book extremely entertaining and full of historical accounts that I was unaware of. It definitely paints a vivid picture of Cripple Creek's hay day and makes it a place that is not to be forgotten.

This is a brilliant novel which engages the reader fully. The plot twists and turns as if this were a work of fiction rather than a biography. The characters are vivid, unique and unforgettable ... and they were real people. Ms. Barbee Lee was a keen observer and her descriptions are fascinating. Most of all, I liked how she tells us interesting gossip about some of the powerful people involved in the Cripple Creek gold rush and then, explains how things turned out and why. Some of these explanations needed enough time to pass in order to be told. While reading this page-turner, I felt like I was watching the events unfold through a window. I have recommended it to friends just because it is a really good book. The fact that it is true and will give the reader more insight into the past and into Colorado's mining history is just a bonus.

What I Liked: The author's love of her adopted hometown comes through very well. Her descriptions of people and places are vivid enough that one can almost see them when they close their eyes while reading, between passages. I also liked how a lot of clichés and stereotypes about the Colorado Gold Rush era are avoided. Yes, some characters do talk and act the way we've seen them act in Western films since many actually did, but this book doesn't act as though they made up the entirety of the region. We meet people in this book who are articulate, people who are more cynical and jaded than "frontiersman" like, who are religious, but don't proselytize. Another aspect of this book is the period correct dialogue. The languages and attitudes of the people of the day isn't toned down or made politically correct to avoid offending anyone. Yes, some of the people in the story, even the likeable ones, use words and phrases we of 21st century Colorado recognize as racist and/or stereotypical, but that is simply how people talked in that time. Overall, reading this book reminds me in some ways of how I enjoyed the film Little Big Man, another period piece set in roughly in the same timeframe.

What I Didn't Like: The author doesn't always do a good job of conveying time in the book. More than once, I actually got lost and couldn't figure out what year an event was occurring in, or how old she was. Transitions aren't always smooth, such as when her brother goes from newborn to whiny toddler in a matter of a few pages. It can be jarring, but is not uncommon for first time authors. Granted, I don't actually know if this was Mabel Barbee Lee's first book, but if it was, it shows. Another negative aspect is the description on the back of my copy of the book, which spoils the book somewhat by listing nearly every major event from the first half of the story except for the death of the author's younger sister, the incident involving bandits where she tried to hide a silver dollar in her mouth, and the boxing match described by her father as "the fight of the century."

This book captivates a sense of innocence and honesty that is palpable on each page. Mable Lee Barby wrote the book I always wanted to read about the district that as a child I wandered and wondered endlessly. Mable is buried between "Jonce" and "Kate" overlooking the town. Cripple Creek has mostly disappeared from what I knew. There are no more "old timers" sitting on chairs in front of screen doors of dusty old shops holding so many individual memories of the characters that made Cripple Creek such an special place. The wheel house is almost gone from the surrounding hills but there is a spiritual core of a history that will never die.

Frank Waters did a wonderful job with his two books and there have been others but when I see Bennett St. or even pass the front steps of the old stone building of Colorado College I think of Mable Lee Barbee. In this book she left a record of her and others lives that will never be equaled. There is a sweet fragrance!