Wood Books

This is a great book; people with a "reverence for wood"(Eric Sloane)will really enjoy this. Most of the projects are done with hand tools alone. There is a quiet contemplative spirit to the kind of woodworking demonstrated in this book. Good book for winter reading. Buy it and make a mess of shavings on your floor!

Being from a Birch growing state and having used birch in various craft and projects, I absolutely loved the subject matter and information. Being knowledgeable in woodcraft and carving, I would not recommend for the person looking to pick it up and start crafting for the first time. Just not enough room or photos to make that happen. Not that it is short on photos, but some of the more intricate crafts need greater detail. If you are a crafter already, you may be able to perform more. I likened my experience with the book to watching a demonstration and getting a good explanation of whats going on. The historical information and importance of this tree, is a pleasant read. A great book by Fox and the good folks at the North House School.

The North House Folk School was created to encourage lifelong learning through teaching traditional crafts, and here they celebrate one of the oldest trees used in woodcrafting, the birch. Biology, ecology, and some twenty projects using birch, from a carved box to a wooden bowl, are presented in a woodworker's guide which holds wider appeal than your usual woodworking book, and thus is recommended for any library catering to either crafters or home owners. CELEBRATING BIRCH: THE LORE, ART, AND CRAFT OF AN ANCIENT TREE packs in color photos and step-by-step instructions on every page, making it an exceptional presentation.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

For those who live in birch country, this is a book to cherish. It is artistically presented, photographically superb, and factually very accurate. I've worked with birch for years, both botanically, ecologically, and as a craftsperson, but I learned alot in this book. The joy and passion for their work these teachers at the North House Folk School in Grand Marais, MN share with us is outstanding.

Living in the northwoods & being a wood artist, I love Birch and have used it for many years with my pyrography. I have experimented with the bark and tried to understand how to use it best, which this book explains clearly. Unfortunately for all of us who love this tree/wood, many of our birch are dying off from drought/fires/etc. If you are a person in search of a light colored, strong, easy to work with wood, this book will tell you everything you need to know about this beautiful and completely practical tree.

I just finished this book and I enjoyed it immensely. Occasionally, I felt a little lost with the German sentences which didn't receive a translation, and only wished I was at all fluent in German as I have a feeling they were probably pretty funny themselves. The book only got better and better as it neared the end! And I'm not even a relative of the author!!! HIP HIP HOORAYYY! There's the next book to look forward to which Mr. Mirll has just published, and as soon as this review is done, I'm ordering it.... keep up the good work, Terry!

I promise, this is the funniest, most charmingly hilarious novel I have ever read! This is apparently Mr Mirll's first novel, and I can't wait to read more of his work.

A friend of mine had been deeply engrossed in a book for a while. She had gotten it as a gift and was unable to put it down. When she finished, I asked her about it.
"It's called Children and Fools, and it's absolutely fantastic!" was the answer I got.
If she had called it "absolutely fantastic", well, that's pretty big! So, I asked if I could read it. She said yes, and I took it home.
Mr. Mirll really has a way of writing. This guy has to be a genius or something! When I finished I didn't want to return it right away. It's terrific.

I enjoyed this book a lot and have already loaned it to a number of friends and relatives. Mirll has a great way with words and takes what may be rather standard situations and creates incredibly funny stories out of them. It's light-hearted for the most part, but you do pick up quite a bit about Austria. Having lived in Austria during the time in which the story is set, it struck me as very accurate and inciteful.

The main thing is that it was wickedly funny - at several parts I was laughing harder than I have in a long time. If you enjoy excellent turns of phrase, absurd situations and have something of a cynical turn, you'll probably enjoy this book. I'll definitely read anything else the author writes.

If you're looking for a good book to read, Children and Fools by Terry Mirll is a terrific one.
Set in Austria, this delightful tale is altogether funny. It's like Animal House, but set in Europe! The embarrassing things that happen to the star of this story, which include an acrobatic turkey and a maniacal soda machine, will make anybody laugh.
The story is set at the time of the Gulf War, and there are serious moments too, adding just a bit of suspense. The history of Austria, its ways and customs, and other details definately make this book a wonderful reading adventure.
Well written and clever, you are sure to enjoy Children and Fools- a Twisted Tale of the Vienna Woods, by Terry Mirll.

I have just finished reading THE CHURCH CONFRONTS MODERNITY - Catholic Intellectuals & the Progressive Era by Thomas E. Woods Jr., taking the time to highlight in detail this excellent work for future reference in the fight for the heart and soul of the Church being waged by Catholics who know their faith, as opposed to those who are having it subtly stolen from them. Before I was even a third of the way through the book I had gone through a highlighter, which gives an indication of the importance of what Dr. Woods is saying to what is left of the Catholic world, post the ambiguities of Vatican II, in particular, post the efforts of those who would destroy the Church from within.

To be technically correct, in THE CHURCH CONFRONTS MODERNITY, hereafter referred to as CCM, Woods not only tells it like it is, but how it used to be, and, if the Church is going to survive as a viable institution in serving as the world's repository of Perfect Truth, Who is a Someone, not a something for salvations sake, which is the only reason for the Church's existence, how it must be again. Woods is right to persuasively insist that looking back to how Catholic giants in America confronted the modernists in the progressive era in combating the work of the devil is our only hope of escaping the modern catacombs in order to convert the world to the one true faith, per Christ's admonition to His disciples in the last paragraph of the Gospel of Matthew. THE problem, as Woods so clearly points out, is that "how it used to be," in reference to the Church in America, was orders-of-magnitude better than "how it is now" with the prospects for "how it will be" no better, if the lessons from the past are not learned.

The focus for Woods is on the Catholic intellectual critique of modernity during the period immediately before and after the turn of the twentieth century where defenders of the faith were plentiful because they understood what it meant to be Catholic in more than name only. This is to be contrasted with an institutional Catholic Church today that, for all practical purposes, is unrecognizable as Catholic, as a direct result of the dissenters being given carte blanche to destroy it from within with impunity. Woods is talking about a Progressive Era where Catholics knew their faith well enough to use what good they could find in Progressivism for the greater Glory of God, in particular, the Church that He founded upon the Rock that is Peter. Catholics at the beginning of the twentieth century understood that discipline is one of the highest, if not the highest forms of love, which is something parents must come immediately to grips with; else, they cease to be responsible parents. Similarly, the Church under Pius IX, Leo XIII, and Saint Pius X, understood this seminal Catholic Truth, which is a Someone, not a something. This was directly reflected in orthodox catechesis which helped formed the consciences of a generation of Catholic leaders like Thomas Shields, William Kirby, and Edward Pace, who fought the good fight against the likes of James Dewey, and other representatives of Pragmatism as it played out in ethics, education, and nationalism. These were not the unencumbered autonomous consciences of Kant but rather those of an economic and political philosophy rooted in the natural law as articulated by Catholic giants like Thomas Aquinas, consciences which were informed in accord with the infallible teaching Magisterium of Holy Mother Church on faith and morals, consciences which understood that faith and reason are married, not divorced, with faith enabling a reason, which, in turn, reinforced faith.

Woods in The Church Confronts Modernity describes how decidedly nonpluralistic Catholicism responded to the modernist assault on faith and reason, and, moreover, must continue to respond, to an increasingly hostile pluralistic intellectual environment. Catholicism insisted on the uniqueness of the Church and the need for making value judgments based on what it considered a sound philosophy of humanity.

Woods recognizes that the reason Catholics no longer know their faith is that the prime catechetical tool for teaching it to them, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, has been watered down such that many of the immutable truths of the faith are no longer a part of that sacred liturgy. Woods concurs in his Epilogue that Lex credendi, lex orandi, is more than just a pithy phrase. It is a foundational axiom for survival of the faith.

I highly recommend THE CHURCH CONFRONTS MODERNITY- Catholic Intellectuals & the Progressive Era, by Thomas E. Woods Jr. as a necessary addition to any Catholic library. - Gary L. Morella

It's a shame Columbia University Press, like most university presses, charges so much for its books. But don't let that dissuade you here. This is a brilliant and important book.

In this book, Professor Woods looks at the Catholic Church in America during the first 20 years of the twentieth century, which roughly coincide with the pontificate of St. Pius X. The book gives you an idea of what it was like to be a Catholic before the deluge of dissent and disaster that afflicted us in the '60s. That in itself is something worth doing.

But Woods does much more here. He shows that the pictures people often paint of the pre-conciliar Church are not accurate. It was not opposed to all new ideas, etc. Catholics engaged with the culture, but unlike today they did not permit themselves to be overwhelmed by it. They even said that America needed to be converted to Catholicism - and other forbidden statements no one will ever hear from an American bishop today.

Now bear in mind, this is a demanding book. If you've read Professor Woods' delightful Politically Incorrect Guide to American History and are expecting something similar, think again. This is a serious scholarly work, as its many endorsements in respected historical journals attest.

At the same time, it is intended not only for academics but also for the educated general public. It shows us a Catholic Church in America in which Catholics actually spoke and acted like Catholics - shocking! Professor Woods is to be commended for this brilliant study.

This precisely written, well researched book compares and contrasts Catholic and Progressive intellectual thought during the early 1900's. On some issues, such as organized labor, Catholics and Progressives reached similar conclusions. On others, such as education, they could not have been further apart. On all issues, a great fundamental difference applied: does man exist to serve man, or to serve God? So, although both sides might settle on similar remedies for social problems, their underlying principles were so different that conflict was inevitable. Progressives viewed dogma of any kind as a social nuisance or something to be dispensed with entirely. Catholics naturally held dogma to be fundamental to a well-ordered society. Progressives (generally) viewed man as a servant of the state; Catholics viewed society as the servant of man. Progressives were primarily concerned with the advancement of the state; Catholics with the salvation of the soul. Woods does a thoroughly excellent job of articulating these and other philosophical differences. In doing so, he gives us a remarkably clear picture of that time in America, as well as allowing us to judge how things have progressed--or regressed--on issues like education over this last century.

Prof. Thomas Woods wrote an informative book on the steadfastness of the Catholic Church in these United States during the Progressive Era (c. 1880s-1919). The book demonstrates that the Catholic Church authorities confidently faced challenges from such concepts such as Pragmatism, the New Sociology, the New Economics, vague calls for "pluralism", etc.

Prof. Woods examined the "isms" Catholic authorities confronted in the latter part of the 19th. century and during the first half of the 20th. century. The first chapter informs readers of the Catholic confrontation vs. Pragmatism. The Catholic critism of Pragmatism was that this "philosophy" ",,, has no doctrines, save its methods." Prof. Woods did not overstate his case re Pragmatism in that the Pragmatists including William James were not nihilists. The disagreement was with the notion that one ideas or concept was as as good as another except for Catholocism. An unidefined view of life without clarity and moral absolutes was an obvious anathema to Catholicism. Yet, as Prof. Woods carefully explained, Catholic authorities used their long standing traditions, reason, and Scholastic Philosophy to effectively answer the challenge of Pragmatism.

The Catholic authorites also answered the challenge of sociology. Auguste Comte (1798-1857)who is considered the originator of sociology argued that religious creeds were of no avail. Yet, he stated that since religion could not be eradicated, there should be a worship of Humanity with rituals and practises that would be familar. The Catholic authorities did not reject sociology per se. Their arguement was with the inductive method and the collection of data. The Catholic Churchmen always argued against such inductive reasoning and favored deductive reasoning a la Scholastic Philosophy via St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1249). The Catholic authorities also argued that the major problem with modern sociology was that such studies reduced men and women to statistics to be be manipulated by technocrats.

The Catholic authorites had similar criticisms of the New Economics. The Canon Law established limits on economic aquisition and wealth. The basic premises of the Canon Law re contracts and economic activity were based on what the Catholics considered Natural Law or God's law. Again, Catholic authorities did not reject all of the newer economic theorizing. What was rejected, again, was the inductive method as opposed to deductive reasoning. Again, the Catholic intellectuals opposed the use of data and the reduction of people to statistics and factors of production. In fact, the Catholic authorities argued that economic calamities were due to what may be considered to two Cardinal Sins (Greed and Gluntony). Prof. Woods did use these terms which can be inferred from the sources in the book. Mention of Father Jaurez (1544-1618)could have helped explain the Catholic position. Brief mention of the Medieval Canon Law re economic relations could have made a very good book a little better.

The Catholic response to modern "education" (the word education is used very charatibly)was interesting. Prof. Woods made the point that Catholics again per se did not reject new teaching methods. What was condemned was the attempt to eliminate the Classics and Scholastic Philosophy. The emphasis on science, including false concepts of science such as physical exercise, sports subjects, etc. was rejected. Notice how any new college curricula is called a science to get acceptence. Again, the Catholic authorities saw men reduced to usefullness and robots rather than created in God's Image. The new education substituted utility for moral codes, philosophy, and proper living.

The chapter titled "Syncretism" is interesting. The idea that all religions should be reduced to one religion or combined in the name of religous freedom was contradictory. The idea of one religion without moral codes, concepts, liturgy. etc. was opposed by Catholics. The idea of a vague religion was perhaps the most restrictive religion in that it would tolerate no creeds, liturgy, theology,etc. The Catholics wished all men good will and mercy, but they would not abandon their Catholic Faith that had a 2,000 history.

The final chapter titled "Epilogue" dealt where the Catholic Church had been and where it was going. The Catholic authorities and lay people held to their Faith with a sense of confidence and self assurance. Yet, Prof. Woods stated that after Vatican II (1963), the Catholic authorities and laity lost their confidence and their nerve. Prof. Woods states that the Vatican II documents were badly written and vague. This is in contrast to pre-Vatican II councils whereby the Popes and Catholic authorties were clear, concise, and logical in their terse pronouncements. The apparent contradcitions in the Vatican II sources created internal strife in the Catholic Church and showed a loss of clarity and self confidence. Yet, this book was published in 2003 prior to the election of Pope Benedict XVI(2005) who has actively worked to restore the Latin Mass. The Gregorian Chant, to use Prof. Woods' phrase had the pride of place in the Catholic Mass and is now almost forgotten. Yet, within the last few years, the Latin Mass and Gregorian Chant have been restored in some parishes. In other words, there is the possibiltity of the confidence of Progressive Era Catholicism may be return which could not be forseen when Prof. Woods' book was published in 2003.

This book is useful for Catholics for obvious reasons. Furthermore the book is good for those not familar with the philosophical concepts mentioned in this review. Prof. Woods gave readers a fair and clear explanation of these terms. This book again shows Prof. Woods' clear writing style which makes it more accessible. This book is suggested for devout Catholics and students of the Progressive Era History.

Woods' book is an amazing display of erudition and insight in less than 200 pages. For too long, postconciliar Catholics have been led to believe that the pre-Vatican II Catholic Church in America was intellectually barren, reactively hostile to new ideas, and fully deserving of being labelled a "ghetto." Some scholars, such as historian James Hitchcock, had previously revealed problems with that view. But Woods has gone even further in exploring our not-so-distant past. He has systematically and thoroughly examined the American Catholic response to "Progressivism" and philosophical pragmatism in the early 20th Century and found that the response was cogent, coherent, intellectually sound, and orthodox. Not all Progressivist ideas were bad, and some of its "forms" could readily be assimilated, but the essential "matter" was rejected. The Catholic intellectuals of the time (to include the Jesuits at the magazine America) could tell the difference.

After reading this, one may feel that if the Church as a whole had taken a similar approach during the Second Vatican Council, and not simply kowtowed to modernity so much, the Church would not be in such a mess as it is now.

Put simply, this book is gracefully written, thoroughly researched, sober, and balanced--reminiscent of the great Catholic historian Christopher Dawson. Any American Catholic, seeing the disarray of a Church mired in scandal, dissent, and heterodoxy, and interested in the "old days" should pick this book up and read it. If he does, he may find himself asking at the end: "What happened to make it all go so wrong?"

I'm a chemist and in my practical experience in the laboratory I have to say this is probably the best text you will find if you are a analytical reader. Of course, this book is not written with a enjoyable style, but if you bear to read it carefully and really analize the details, you will not regret the effort. This is great for reference and if it wasn't so dull in style It will make a great job as a textbook too, besides this is a classic.

I'm medical student from Hong Kong. I find it very useful in preparing Problem-based-learning tutorilas. The interpretation of the laboratory results are the most useful. It helps me understand more in the PBL cases.

Simple and delightful , filled with nice illustrations this book is necessary to every doctor not only clinical pathologists and laboratorits but everyone who handles daily with ambulatory and infirmary pacients. A must in every uptodate doctor or even meddicine students bookshelf.

I rate this book a "4" as it's essential reading for residents in clinical pathology. A large number of the pathology board questions come directly from this book, making it necessary reading. It's also VERY dry reading, even for a pathology textbook. After reading this book you'll be ready from something comparatively exciting, like watching paint dry. However, due to its importance in studying for the boards, I highly recommend it.

This reference receives from all reviewers the top recommendations for comprehensive, concise, understandable presentations. Every laboratorian needs this reference. The 20th edition is due in February, 2001.

This guide is helpful on the face of it. It will be intereting how quickly I absorb the basics and begin to branch out to my own work and designs. The guide looks very useful.

This book is a good companion to the Chip Carving DVD by Wayne Barton - it reinforces many of the items presented in the DVD, shows numerous finished examples, and provides patterns and techniques for creating patterns on the wood you use. Highly recommended!

Not only is this a complete book on chip carving it is well written and easy to understand with many excellent examples.

This is an excellent book and it is very complete. If, however, you have a number of Barton's previous books, there is not much new in this one, and that includes the designs shown. So, if you are an experienced chip carver and know Barton's work, I think that you would be disappointed with this book.

I carve wedding plates, jewelry boxes, and borders on relief carvings. This book provides many samples I can use for my work. It is a super book well worth being a part of any chip carver's arsenal.

As the daughter of a semi-country doctor, I grew up with the experience of having a father who always seemed to be on call. Dr. Macdonald's anthology of cases was an excellent read, and after the first story I immediately called my mom to share it with her. We both had a laugh over it, and I am going to recommend that she buy it, along with my 2 older sisters. I enjoyed reading the stories, and they are set up such that you can read for as long or as short a time as you want. A must-buy for any child or spouse of a physician!

I thought this book was excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed this book... you'll laugh out loud and you'll cry as you see everything through the eyes of one rural Minnesota doctor. I'm couldn't wait until his second one came out! Read it!!

A Country Doctor's Casebook: Tales From The North Woods is an anthology of autobiographical stories by Dr. Roger A. MacDonald, a physician who has served the people living in a remote region of northern Minnesota during the years after World War II. Vignettes of sickness, compassion, feuds, dangers, births and deaths make A Country Doctor's Casebook unforgettable and very highly recommended reading.

Dr. MacDonald's book is a welcome remembrance to those who lived in Northern Minnesota in the 40's & 50's. His stories of survival (and sometimes not surviving) are very descriptive and detailed. When he tells of a trip through a swamp he carried his wife through to help a patient, you almost feel as though you are sloshing through the mud with him. His stories are NOT about heroics that he performed on helpless rural Minnesota residents, although he certainly could do that as well. They are about the heroics of those people he cared for. This story has it's humorous parts as well as parts that make you cry for the brave and futile attempts at life of his patients. I am grateful to Dr. MacDonald for this book, and I hope to see more from him in the future.

I got this book because I too come from Minnesota and work in health care, but once started on Dr. MacDonald's A Country Doctor's Casebook Tales from the North Woods, I was hooked. The author was what we would now refer to as a family practitioner who worked in a small rural community near Duluth from 1947 to 1980. His charming collection of stories is a delight to read, and I literally read the book from cover to cover over about three hours without putting it down. The tales of the doctor and his patients pull the reader through the pages without tricks of style, just the author's natural talent for telling a simple story: the life and death struggles of members of his community, the happiness of new lives begun, the suddenness of unexpected death, incredible courage in the face of adversity, acceptance of the setbacks of life, amusing vignettes of simple people living life among their neighbors.

FOR THOSE WRITING PAPERS in English, creative writing, journaling, journalism, history, and sociology, this would make a nice format to follow or a good bibliography entry. The author has used his own life experiences to create a history of his practice, community, and time.

Go ahead - try some fun in worship! There is enough here to delight all ages and involve all levels of worshippers.

I love this book! Packed with resources and real life stories, it leads the reader to consider ways to faithfully and sensitively lead the congregation into experiencing the word authentically and engaging with each other in ways that will build community and hope. Also check out their other book, Talking Faith, which is similarly well written and full of useful ideas.

This book is filled with fantastic ideas that will have you thinking about your church's worship in new and different ways. There is true depth to this pool--"Dare to Dive In" dares preachers and worship leaders to go into the deep end of encounter with an unpredictable God. The authors challenge those of us who usher others into the presence of God on Sunday mornings to engage mind and body, left brain and right brain, as we present our worship. There are terrific ideas here, presented with deeply faithful rationale. Let yourself be inspired by this book to find a new freshness in worship.

How can we communicate the message of our Christian faith in ways that can be deeply heard by all generations of people? Dare to Dive In answers this question by utilizing creative ideas for the parish that will both excite children AND engage adults. As a pastor of a small congregation, I understand the difficulty of communicating the word of God in a way that can be understood by all ages of people. This resource provides a creative and intergenerational approach to worship. It is neither "contemporary" nor "traditional" but simply "creative." Once again, the authors -- both pastors themselves -- have come through with ideas to invite all ages of congregants into worship. I highly recommend this book for pastors and worship leaders who are ready for a change.

Think of this as an idea book for worship planning. Dare to Dive In is exactly what's needed by worship leaders who want to lead experiential worship services. The authors are creative powerhouses and their book is packed with one great suggestion after another. Whether you're looking for liturgical season planning ideas or ideas for special worship services, this book is a great resource. Best of all, reading Dare to Dive In spurred my own imagination and creative thinking for worship.

The book provides many useful examples of core technology issues in building a JWS powered web site. Its treatment of the upcomming jsp standard (in JWS 2.0??) is helpful, but points to the fact that compiled pages (jhtml) may be short lived.

The clearest explanation I've seen of multithreading and synchronization

The authors explain the JWS, administration server and admin tool in very clear terms. The second part of the book does an excellent job in discussiing JSP, Servlets, and other advanced topics. Very practical.

This book is without peer. It is succinct and yet covers the JWS in depth and detail. The writing style is fluid and the organization is excellent. Alas, now that this superb book is available, Sun has announced it is pulling the plug on JWS!

With regard to this talented author and developer, all I can say is Larne Pekowsky ROCKS! This book is a great investment -- Larne Pekowsky truly IS Java Web Server Development.

referring to a review I just read -- Silent Tom was the fifth man -- I read the books in 1944.

My father introduced me to Henry Ware and his mates when I was 7 or 8 years old. I have treasured every adventure with the "Five". My two sons have carried on my love for stories of the American frontier in the early late 1700's. Mr Altsheler has a unique way of explaining the flavor of the times.

Almost 40 years ago, as a young girl, I read and treasured all eight of the Henry Ware stories. As an adult I have re-read and treasured them again. Joseph Altsheler's descriptions of the great American wilderness will be with me always. Who recommended them to me? My mother. This is great writing - for boys and girls!

I read "eyes of the woods" as a lad in high school(behind a literature book in studyhall) as well as 7 other titles by Altscheler. Thqt was in 1936 and 1937. There were five young woodsmen..four I still remember ...Paul Cotter, Henry Ware, Shiftless Sol, Long Jim Hart and???. Any red blooded American boy, that can read, will find it difficult to put this book down as well as any others in the series

As a young girl in the early sixties, I read every Altsheler book the library had. The writing of these novels is so colorful and detailed, the reader easily feels a part of the story. The characters in the Young Trailers and their descendants carry on through the historical periods covered in Altsheler's other books. Must reading for anyone enjoying accurate historical novels. Note: First reviewer missed Tom Ross as the fifth Trailer.

There is always something audacious about reading other people's letters. You have the feeling that you are secretly looking into the soul and mind of the letter writer without his or her knowledge.
Unfortunately, in today's age of emails, television, and every other modern day distraction, we have little time or the patience for the letter writing that was quite prevalent years ago.
Luckily for us, many letters written by famous people have been saved, providing a virtual gold mine of information pertaining to these individuals. Gleaning through these letters, you will also discover a great deal of humor as evidenced in Charles Osgood's collection Funny Letters From Famous People.

One of the difficulties of publishing this kind of a book is to decipher hundreds of letters before deciding which ones to include in a book that has as its principal objective humor.
Osgood, who is the anchorperson of CBS News Sunday Morning, succeeds admirably in his presentation of letters written by politicians, authors, artists and show business personalities.
We can't help but have a good chuckle reading the letters of Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Groucho Marx, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Eugene O'Neill, Charles Dickens, and many more.
As an example, an extract taken from one of Chopin's letters to his friend Julien Fontana pertaining to Chopin's health describes how awful he feels after contacting a cold and goes onto to say that three doctors examined him. The first doctor said he was going to die, the second indicated that he was actually dying and the third told him he was dead already.
In another letter, American short story writer and novelist John Cheever and his wife Mary were asked by their friend Josephine Herbst to take care of her cat Delmore. After several years, Cheevers writes to his friend to recount his experiences with the cat. He tells of how the cat used the Kleenex box as a place to "dump a load," and unfortunately for Cheevers, who had a cold at the time, used one of the tissues to wipe his nose. Cheevers goes on to recount that he took Delmore to the kitchen door and dropkicked him into the clothes yard. I hope animal rights activists will not come knocking on Cheevers' door!

This is a wonderful collection of humorous letters to meander through, as it adheres to the often -quoted adage "laughter is the best medicine."

Norm Goldman Editor of Bookpleasures.com

FUNNY LETTERS FROM FAMOUS PEOPLE by Charles Osgood,
the acclaimed broadcaster and humorist, is a humorous collection
of correspondence from politicians, writers and show business
figures--organized chronologically . . . there are contributions
from those you might expect, such as Groucho Marx and Bob
Hope, as well a surprising entry from George Washington . . . I
also got a kick from reading Dwight D. Eisenhower kvetch
to Mamie about Patton.

Some of the letters are actually quite touching; e.g., one
from an aging and convicted Oscar Wilde, as well as another from an
ailing but resilient Frederic Chopin . . . they appear to be written by
men trying to laugh in order to avoid crying.

Osgood's commentary also added to my enjoyment.

My only criticism: There are very few women represented in this
male-heavy collection.

Among the many passages that caught my attention were the
following:

* Truman was, of course, famous for his "plain speaking." He did not
suffer fools lightly, and he found a good deal of his job as president
to be a tremendous waste of time. In a letter to his sister in 1947,
Truman wrote: "All the President is, is a glorified public relations man
who spends his time flattering, kissing, and kicking people to get
them to do what they are supposed to do anyway."

* As Elizabeth Dole's fame and power grew over the years, even to
the point of being-with her husband-a front-runner for George
Bush's choice of a vice president, Bob Dole was utterly undisturbed.
When she was appointed Secretary of Transportation, Dole
remembered, "There were a lot of stories and a lot of pictures taken.
I was always in the picture, but I was never identified. They said,
'The man on the left is the husband.' PEOPLE magazine took an
interest in Elizabeth, so a photographer followed us around and took
about three hundred pictures. They wound up using three, and one
showed us making the bed.

"Some guy out in California whose wife had read the story wrote
that he was now helping make the bed. He said, "Senator, I don't
mind your wife getting the job. She's well qualified. She's doing
good work. But you've got to stop doing the work around the house.
You're causing problems for men all across the country."

Dole wrote back:
"Buster, you don't know the half of it. The only reason she was
helping was because they were taking the pictures."

* From time to time throughout her illustrious career, Julia Child was
attacked by people she began to refer to as "food police"--those who
thought her recipes and culinary edicts were too high-fat and unhealthy.
One such attacker wrote asking why Child couldn't advocate healthy
foods in her books and television programs-after all, she'd been
seen in public eating a salad.

Julia sent her the following recipe for a healthy life:

Small helpings,
no seconds,
eat a little bit of everything,
no snacking,
have a good time,
and pick your grandparents!

very funny book that gives a glimpse into the lives of famous folks. a great read for a trip or to share with friends and family.

When I picked up this book, I thought the letters in it would be more ha-ha funny, or maybe unintentionally funny. Instead, I was treated to finely-constructed correspondences from politicians, authors, and entertainers. Some of my favorites: everything from Abraham Lincoln, Churchill's treatise on the unintended consequences of praying for rain, Bush The Elder's letter to the chairman of the Roach Bowl in Hawaii, Lewis Carroll's over-the-top apology for missing an appointment, everything by Mark Twain, groaners by Dorothy Parker and Carl Sandburg, and the exchange between Eddie Cantor and Florenz Ziegfeld.

Some letters are laugh-out-loud funny, but many are more subtle, understated, and dry. All display the wit and expressiveness of their authors. While I don't want to give up telephone and e-mail, I can see how these technologies have made the thoughtfully composed letter an endangered species.

So read this book and then get out some stationery and write a real letter!

Wow. Charles Osgood you, my friend, have done it again. This book is absolute dynamite, KA-POW! I am twenty two years old and many of my friends don't consider "Ozzie" to be "cool" or "hip". Well this book is physical evidence of the overwhelming sweetness that is "The Oz". The following is a quote from a letter written by Abe Lincoln (Yes, the President!) to his wife Mary Todd:
"Mary, I have recieved word that you have made a cuckold of me with the young man who trims our hedges. I am dismayed. I spoke to a large group of soldiers today but all through the speach thought of nothing but you lying in MY bed, orally gratifying the young lad, and then laughing about my mole over a snifter of brandy."
Need I go on?! This is just a sample of the hijinks "Ozwald P. Funny Man" packs into this small book. Do yourself a favor, read it today.