Montana Books

For a fiction on the chaste Amish, this book was filled with suspense, conflict, and longing! Very well written.
Couldn't wait to turn every page and will be reading the rest of this series.

This is a wonderful book. I loved reading about the Old Order Amish and was quite shocked at some of tehe customs.

The story is of the Ebersole family and thier 4 girls. The oldest Sadie is having her time of freedom and courting where she can even mied with the English. And mix she does.

Soon she has a dark secret that only is shared by her sister Leah. Secrets kept like this have dire results.
You will cry with these sisters as they live out Sadies mistakes. Leah will pay a high price also being party to the secret.

Once you read this first book you will be ordering the rest. I am now on book 3 and loving it just as much. Great series. Fast reading books.

I LOVE this series of books! I'm on book 3 now, but read books 1 and 2 in three days!! I can't put these books down. Such great reading and I'm looking forward to all of Ms. Lewis's books. Trust me on this: you won't be disappointed!!!!!

The Covenant is the very first in a series of Abram's daughters. This first book focuses on the 2 older sisters, Sadie, and Leah Ebersol. The other 2 youngest of the group are Mary Ruth, and Hannah.

Sadie is a very rebellious soul, and does not obey the strict Amish rules at all, while Leah is the obedient one, always working out in the fields beside her dad, she is her Dad's right arm. Sadie on top of being rebellious, is into her rumpschringe period, referred to as that time when these Amish children are allowed to go out and explore the worldly ways within limits of course. But Sadie meets an Englisher, Derek, whose father is the town doctor there in Lancaster. This is forbidden naturally, but Sadie sneaks out to meet Derek all the time, and the two become intimately involved. Her parents have really no idea what she is up to most nights, and Leah knows something is up, but Sadie keeps it secret from her sister. Sadie turns up pregnant much to her horrow, and hides it for a very long time as she sews dresses to hide her growing figure all the months she is carrying Derek's child. Sadie knew she had to confront him with this, and sure enough when she tells him of this horrible dilemma, he walks away from it and goes off to join the service. Heartbroken, Sadie is beside herself all the time. When it comes time to have this child, her parents still have not figured it out, though she finally did tell Leah some time before, making her swear not to tell their parents or anyone else. So Leah is there to help her when the time comes, and Lizzie, their mother's sister is the one who gets help for Sadie when the child is on the way. And the doctor to come, is none other than Derek's father, who knew something was up as Sadies had gone to their home to reach Derek crying, telling him the news. Derek's father suddenly knew what happened that night when he delivered the infant, who appeared dead at birth. So when the doctor takes the baby along for a proper burial, the child is discovered to be alive, and the doctor is not sure he wants to let Sadie know, but instead, keep this a secret in order to keep Sadie from being disgraced by her family. Whether this child living ever comes to Sadie's and her whole family's and everyone's attention remains to be seen in the books to come.

Leah is in love with Jona, and yet her dad wants her to be in love with and marry the Smithy's son, Gideon Peachey. But Leah cannot make up something her dad wants her to feel that she can't feel. And as time goes along, she and Jona fall more deeply in love.

The time comes for Jona to go away and work in Ohio for a time of about 9 months or so, and Leah isn't sure she'll survive without him. This storyline continues throughout the upcoming book of The Betrayal.

This book is fast moving and hard to put down. I thoroughly have enjoyed all of Lewis's writings.

I greatly enjoyed this book. I finished it in 2 days! I wasn't pleased with how things were going for Leah there at the end so I had to find out what happened in the next book. I finished that one in 2 days as well! So far I've read books 1,2 & 3 in the series and have just recently ordered the 4th & 5th. I can't wait to find out how it all ends for Leah.

A great series of books so far and I'll definately be reading other books by this author.

As many books this one has everything you'd like to read in a paranormal book. The problem is the end of it because you'll wait for the punch line and it'll never come. So you if you read the book don't expect more than a so so end.

I like the paranormal romances and though that this would be a good read. I was right. Nikki Styx has a close call and dies but is revived. When she comes to, she can see dead people. After a little bit of denial, she decides that the best way is to help them and get them to go into the light.

Then she sees her best friend, dead, and learns that the boyfriend did it. Nikki doesn't believe the boyfriend could do suck a think and gets sucked into a world of voodoo and evil spirits from there.

I really like the banter between the characters and the humor to death in itself. I would recommend this book to everyone to read and cannot wait to read Match Made in Hell.

I agree with the readers who complained about the ? marks instead of proper punctuation and the many "wannas" and "gonnas." They make what is a slight story to begin with an annoyance to follow. The premise is interesting, which is why I picked up the book in the first place, but the execution is sloppy and in great need of a good editor and proofreader - especially the editor. One would hope that future books in the series will be more carefully tended to, since the book seems to have an enthusiastic following already. Nicki is a charismatic character, though not developed enough for my taste. That will change in future episodes, one hopes. However, I would classify this book more as YA than as adult fiction.

I read this on my Kindle. For some reason? many of the commas are replaced by question marks? in the Kindle version. This is quite distracting. Please edit the Kindle version.

That said, this was a quick, fun read. I will read the next book in the series.

What do you get when you take a quirky, fashion-conscious goth girl, a near death experience, a hunky ER doctor & add a mixed bag of ghostly visitors? You get Terri Garey's hilariously funny first novel, Dead Girls are Easy. When you read this book, you'd never think this was Ms. Garey's first foray into the paranormal fantasy & romance world. In Nicki Styx, she has created a wonderful, warm & wacky heroine. Nicki has a congenital problem that leads to just plain weird problems. Nicki's heart has a problem that brings her literally to Death's Door & the White Light. However, Nicki get's sent back with a purpose. Do unto others....The problem becomes "the others" she has to help; she must help ghosts with issues that attach them to this mortal coil, still, so they can pass on to The Light.
Nicki has some grudging helpers in this new world of Ghostly Counseling & Errand Running. She met the gorgeous, boy-next-door adorable Dr. Joe Bascombe in the ER. He proves to be indispensable to Nicki, in efforts to rid herself of malicious, Voodoo practicing ghosts, & in the romantic realm, too. Nicki also has a best friend with too much fashion sense for one man, who co-owns a vintage clothing shop with Nicki. Evan & his boyfriend, Butch, provide emotional support & a running peanut gallery commentary on Nicki's new status as Ghost Greeter.
We met Nicki & her ragtag motley crew in the ER, after a nearly fatal heart failure. Things quickly become complicated for Nicki when she realizes that the ghostly visitors she's receiving are not the result of medications, but real not-so-flesh & blood ghostly apparitions. Once she is back home, Nicki runs into an old friend who has met a bad end. Sadly, for Nicki, the friend was also a practicing Voodoo Queen in the back room of her little shop across the way from Nicki & Evan's store. Nicki finds herself in the unenviable position of trying to get back to "normal", save herself & Evan from the Voodoo machinations of her former friend, & light the fires of romance with Dr. Joe.
For fans of Sherrilyn Kenyon, or Laurell K. Hamilton, this book will fit right in on your book shelf. Ms. Garey penned a fast paced, funny, eccentric novel. The dialog is snappy & quick-witted. The characters are definitely individuals; no cookie-cutter heroines & heroes, here. And the plot is twisty & fun. As with any first book in a series, there is a certain amount of set up to be handled, & Ms. Garey has blended this into her storyline nicely, so it does not detract from the immediate tale, yet informs you along the way. If this book had a musical theme, it would be an interesting, individual piece of music with definite industrial, goth overtones, but with a nice, bouncy, jazzy feel underlying the melody.
Kudos to Ms. Garey for a fantastic first book. The RITA nominations for Best First Novel & Best Paranormal Romance are well deserved.

Not short stories: abstracts of metaphysical tomes. Jabberwocky. Speculative philosophy died and went into these stories. Some alternate titles: Hegel as Literat. Neruda makes love to the void. Vallejo on valium. Avoid.

Imagination, the Lord of Universe say mystics, poets, artists and every rebel for freedom, is hanging on the walls of this labyrinth like masterpieces in a museum of parables of desire and the whisperings of spirits telling stories that were lost for centuries on the dark side of the moon. This is a book that should be on somebody's list of greats:
100 greatest ever or 1,000 greatest or whatever - see if it makes your list.

Borges is a writer with his own voice, non-conformist, well read, man who experienced first hand political persecution in his native Argentina. Borges is a kind of writer able to transform his uniquely complex personal sensibilities to millions of his readers from all over the world. The beauty of his work is that he was able to merge the ideas of many writers, philosophers and thinkers into a style of his own. This is presentation of his work that includes stories and other writings long after Borges went blind and was able to dictate his work. Definitely type of writing meant for sophisticated minds. I completely enjoyed this book.

In "How To Read a Book" Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren describe the fourth level of reading. Synoptical reading challenges the reader who, having carefully and thoroughly understood several individual works, strives to hear the conversation of their ensemble. "Labyrinths" brings us the dreamlike reflections of Argentine author Jorge Luis Borges's profoundly synoptical reading. Borges heard the conversation of writers across cultures, centuries, languages, genres. Then he came back to outline over and over the one nearly infinite and unattainable truth in these stories, essays, and parables.

Yet Borges's writings remain humble and personal. With the voice of a shy, erudite uncle, Borges recounts magical reveries that came to him deep in the stacks of some dim basement of the library. Throughout the text the reader feels at once the quiet loneliness of the bookworm, the presence of the immortal, and the terrible portents in the twilight rustling of leaves.

Having decided to find out what all the references to Borges were about, I bought and read (barely) this collection. I have read and enjoyed several Latin American writers and have several more I am looking forward to. Borges, however, is unique. I just haven't figured out - uniquely what? Frankly, I was bored 80% of the time I was reading this. I have given 3 stars for the mental workout and the occasional gem.

have not got into this series at all, still a good book but at times abit slow

This book was brain candy. It was well paced and just interesting enough to keep you going, but didn't require any effort to read. There were weak moments and moments of serious eye rolling (the over use of poetic quotes for example became tedious and lost impact). The character, Braden, the male lead was well done. He was the best developed and the only really developed character in the book. His handicap was a bit of a twist right off the bat. It was slid in so easily that I found myself stopping and going, "What? He's what?" and flipping back a few pages to review. The weaknesses she "tells" us about in Braden, would have been better "shown." But still he is the most interesting of the characters in this book. The female lead, Cassidy Holt, is over the top naive and innocent... and sorry, but no girl from the old west who hearded cattle and worked a ranch is this innocent and naive.

The biggest complaint in this is that it is the pinnacle scenes for a romance novel (nudge, nudge) that fall absolutely flat. The romantic tension is done well as it builds, but during the culminating moment, the writer's cliched and even down right silly analogies and vocabulary pulled me out of the moment and hand me giggling. One can use petals as a simile as in "soft as a petal," but one should never use "petals" as a euphemism for a body part. It is simply silly.

All in all it's a nice pleasant read. A nice curl on the couch with a cup of tea or coffee and forget about the outside world book.

I can't give a rounded synopsis of this book because I only made it half way through. The book itself has a good premise, but the characters lack dimension and depth.

Cassidy has hidden strengths and a certain amount of vulnerability that at first endeared her to me. However, by the middle of the book, she hadn't grown up or expanded her personality.

I'm a huge fan of the Laurel K Hamiltons/Katy McAllistars of the world and between books I go exploring for new Authors. I'm sorry to say Susan Krinard doesn't make my list as a must read.

For the most part, I really enjoyed this book. Krinard makes werewolves real and serves up emotional tension with a backhoe. Braden is a complex hero, and not always heroic, but he recognizes his errors and grows as a character. Cassidy remains somewhat innocent throughout the book, but that's part of what appeals to Braden; plus, the hurt and betrayal that strike at her innocence are beautifully rendered, making the reader hurt, too. Her need to be belong is palpable. You can feel the heightened tension when the werewolves are together and challenging each other. There are moments when the book falters (for example, Bredan's fall into his grandfather's outlook and behavior is never fully explained), but it serves as a thorough introduction to the Forster family. The love scenes are the weakest part, and Krinard's euphemisms are so laughable as to almost be more uncomfortable than crass words. Sometimes the exposition is too long or slow, but once the action begins, it moves with good speed.

TOUCH OF THE WOLF is a pedestrian effort. The story - about an American werewolf who goes to England to find her family - is choppy, with holes here and there in the plot, quotes way too much poetry, and is cast with characters who aren't that interesting. The heroine, Cassidy, is not very endearing - she's irritatingly naïve (my eyeballs are rolling right now) and is way too desperate to find love. She also fixates on Braden right from the start, though I don't know why exactly, other than he is the first werewolf she meets. I thought Braden was more flushed out a character than Cassidy or his two siblings. His handicap was promising, though there seemed to be a lot of moments in the book where, superhuman senses aside, the author seemed to forget he WAS handicapped. The story also seemed to suffer from moody melodrama and a need to make a secret out of EVERYTHING. I understand that TOUCH OF THE WOLF is the first of a trilogy, the other two books following the stories of Braden's siblings (an annoying ice queen named Rowena and a cowardly trickster named Quentin). I'm not quite sure I want to bother with their stories. The reason I read TOUCH OF THE WOLF is because I adored TO CATCH A WOLF, which is about Cassidy's brother, Morgan. I'm pretty disappointed that Cassidy's story was so dopey. Oh well.

Update as of Jan 4, 2005: I just read a young adult novel called BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE that dealt with many of the same topics as TOUCH OF THE WOLF, including real-life issues such as fitting in, dealing with the loss of family, etc., as well as werewolf issues like determining the leader of the pack and the rules associated with breeding/mating. I have to say the teen book, BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE, was a lot more sophisticated than TOUCH OF THE WOLF in every respect and was a much more engaging read. BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE was shorter and set in modern times with a angst-filled heroine and, while it didn't have the full-blown love scenes found in a romance novel, it had a sexually-tense love triangle that was fun and exciting to read about.

A verifiable monster of a book, The Second Sex is an extraordinarily important work in the development of contemporary feminism, but it cannot be lightly tackled. Although there are excellent chapters that cover specific situations, specifically periods within a woman's life, the book as a whole is a bit thick and dense to digest in one sitting, even if that sitting were to last an entire semester. Instead, most people I have spoken to recommend reading just De Beauvoir's introduction and one or two chapters that are relevant to an individual project. I would have to pass along the same recommendation.

I wish I was aware of this insightful study on women when I was in high school or even junior high--it might have saved me some adolescent grief!

Anyone who wishes to better understand women would benefit from reading this. Simone de Beauvoir's thinking and writing is lucid--she explains things exceptionally well. There are a few literary and philosophical references that are over my head because I'm not familiar with a certain author, nor do I have a philosophy background, but that is a minor distraction.

Some have complained that this work is dated. To my mind, it is only dated from the time she wrote it. Sure, some things have improved for women in the last 60 years in varying degrees, but it's not enough. If it were, why are there still such grave problems related to gender inequality around the world today, in the 21st century: domestic violence, violence against women with impunity, spread of AIDS, poverty, pay inequality, sexual harrassment on the job, etc.? The issues she raised are as relevant today as when she wrote them.

She clearly describes and explains contradictions that women feel in love, marriage, and work. She writes of the ways in which women's frustrations with men--and vice versa, manifests in destructive ways in relationships, and how women's anxiety about work due to parental and societal expectation hinder progress, etc. Much of what she wrote I could certainly relate to!

Her historical, biological, mythical, and literary chapters in the beginning of the book provid much food for thought and helps me to understand how many ideas about women came about. Every chapter in the book seems to flow seamlessly into the next. Whatever thoughts or doubts I had growing up and have now--she has helped to clarify, from the standpoint of societal views and expectations.

I am deeply passionate about women's issues and I LOVE this work. I intend to read it again more than a few times...there is so much to learn and digest!

I found this book enlightening in a number of ways, but especially to understand our contradictory feelings towards marriage and children. This book should be obligatory reading, at least for Argentinian women!

Pleased with the book. We got what we paid for and what we expected. Arrived in a timely fashion.

In "the second sex", de Beauvoir is conducting research to determine how females came to occupy a subordinate social role to males; she turns to biology, historical materialism, and literature where she finds undeniable differences between men and women and countless examples, but no clear reason or justification for woman's implied inferiority.

By walking us through the stages of female's life, de Beauvoir tries to prove that women are not born feminine but shaped by external forces into dependent inferior creatures, or as she put it in her own words:" One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman". Maternity caused society to label women and rob their individuality during youth. Labeling women and forcing them into certain roles inevitably results in women living lives of incompleteness and immanence. Age and the subsequent loss of reproductive ability ends woman's purpose and in turn her identity and usefulness.

Great work, great research but the only reason I'm giving this work three stars is because of the mixed feelings I have about it: I agree with some of de Beauvoir's conclusions: the importance of financial independence for every woman, female character is a result of her situation not the opposite, the difficulty of breaking free from the myth of "femininity", and most importantly, women's own role in reinforcing their dependency and otherness. I strongly disagree though with the claim that being a mother or a wife are unfulfilling roles that exacerbate a woman's inferiority. For me, asking for absolute "equality" and taking away woman's motherhood is as cruel and dehumanizing as depriving females of subjectivity and turning them into objects.

Not to criticize de Beauvoir's personal life, but her fixation with resisting the myth of feminine inferiority drove her to the extreme position, rejecting marriage and having kids. Even though de Beauvoir was committed to her relationship with Sartre, she didn't want to marry him and allowed him and herself marginal romantic encounters with males and females.

The paradox of de Beauvoir loving some body and allowing herself to be with somebody else, to me, is as damaging as what she criticized in her work. It is exactly acting like the men she criticized for treating "the other sex" as objects.

I thought the author wrote it well. I truly felt Keeli's emotions and debates and understood where she was coming from and why she didn't want to do what she had to do and why she did what she did. A strong woman, she rides on her instincts, even when she doesn't want to. The war within herself is huge, and with Michael's help, she gets through it.

I though Michael could have used a little more work. As the Vendix, I got where he came from, the how and why of it all, but I found the constant use of his thoughts a little on the sissy side for a guy who's supposed to be a `tough guy'. Strong, he too rides his instincts and does what he needs to in the heat of any moment.

I do have to say I found the author's descriptions top notch. I truly felt like the walls were crowding me at times, being underground with so many others. I really hope that, sometime in the series, one of the authors will touch base as to how the world came to be as it is. Mind you, there is always distrust between vamps, weres and humans, regardless of the story, but I'd really like to know how the city came to be as it is in the story. As it is, this novel is a great addition to the sci-fi, urban paranormal fantasy genres and should be read.

romance, werewolf/vampire love book. Yes, there were love scences but not as graphic as I thought they would be overall loved the whole concept of different supernatural love. after watching underworld I had hoped there would have been more werewolf/vampire romances

I read the 1st book in this series, "Crimson City" and was familiar with the set up of future Los Angeles. This particularly installment deals with the underground world of the werewolves. Liu's description of the tunnels were good - I almost felt the walls closing in on me at times.

The book takes place over a span of a few days - The plot began to get just a bit mired down when the two main characters, Keeli & Michael, hung out in the tunnels just a bit too long. Lots of jockeying for power and dominance within the werewolf community.

One thing I noticed, the characters had lots of "thoughts" in italics. Though I don't read many historical romances, this style reminded me of that genre. I thought those types of thoughts for Michael were just a bit too girly. He is this big, bad loner and, yeah, he immediately likes Keeli. I just didn't picture his character thinking these types of thoughts as much as he did. A few here and there would have been fine.

As I mentioned in my review of the 1st installment, "Crimson City", I would have like to read a bit of background on how LA became residence to three species - humans, vamps and werewolves. Understanding the history of how they got there would have enhanced the storyline. It would have revealed why the werewolves are so poor and looked down upon. That type of message would also explain in more detail their distrust of the vampires and humans.

Overall, a good read. I will get to the 3rd installment soon.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE VAMPIRE AND WEREWOLF BOOKS AND I BOUGHT THIS ONE BECAUSE IT ACTUALLY HAD BOTH.

I MADE IT PAGE 23 WHERE I RAN INTO THE WORD "F____D". I ABSOLUTELY HATE BAD LANGUAGE IN BOOKS, MOVIES, ETC. I AM OF THE BELIEF THAT PEOPLE WHO USE IT HAVE LESS THAN AVERAGE INTELLIGENCE OR THEY WOULD HAVE USE PROPER ENGLISH AND NOT SPOIL THESE BOOKS FOR THOSE OF US WHO CANNOT ABIDE IT.

I WILL NOT BUY ANOTHER BOOK BY THIS AUTHOR AS I WOULD NOT WILLINGLY CONTRIBUTE TO SOMEONE'S INCOME WHO HAS NO BETTER SENSE THAN TO WRITE BOOKS WHICH WILL OFFEND.

I WILL STICK WITH CHRISTINE FEEHAN, SHERRILYN KENYON, AMANDA ASHLEY, ETC. MARVELOUS AUTHORS WHO KEEP ME NICELY SUPPLIED WITH TOTALLY ENJOYABLE PARANORMAL LITERATURE.

SARA JANE TURNER

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

NOTE: I had the audio version of this book so cannot guarantee all of my spellings are correct.

Vampires and werewolves are bitter enemies until someone starts killing vampires in Crimson City (formerly known as Los Angeles), framing vamps and weres alike. Weres and Vamps are on the verge of signing a peace pact so these murders are adding to the stress already present between the species as they try to meld their different ways.

Keeli Maddox, grand daughter to the grand dame alpha werewolf and Michael, vampire vendix (punisher) team up to investigate the crimes in hopes of finding the killer. Their hopes are to find the killer before the accusations prevent the coming peace treaty from falling apart. Subterfuge is the name of the game with both species scheming to gain the upper hand.

Enemies not eager to work together, Keeli and Michael begin to discover many disturbing facts that bring them ever closer. Soon they begin to wonder... is it possible for a werewolf and a vampire to find love together with A Taste of Crimson?

One nice aspect of this story is that so many of the unfolding events are happening concurrently to the story in the first book, Crimson City. There are little bits here and there talking about events in the previous story while this one is happening in another part of town. Action is never ending in A Taste of Crimson, whether we are in the tunnels underground where the werewolves live, or on the streets mixing it up with the humans. Suspense levels are high as we follow along with Keeli and Michael as they investigate leads and try to find the killer before any more vampires die. The discovery of the killer is not quite as surprising as it could be however for savvy readers who follow the clues.

Keeli is an incredible heroine - spunky and tough with a soft underbelly she protects from all others. Michael is the strong silent, stoic type who's been scorned by his own kind for things beyond his control as a young vampire. These two make a great team and you'll be cheering them on to find the happy ending they both desire... together.

The Crimson City series is a compelling urban fantasy series and I can't wait to see what happens in book 3.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, January 2008. All rights reserved.

Fall in love with Venus and Gib. The story jumps right off the page and into your heart. This is a fun read!

Great reading for anytime.
Wonderfully eccentric and vivid characters. Plenty of time to get to know them.
Rich sense of place and time.
Wonderful pacing.
This is my second Deborah Smith and I am thinking this is
an author to search the bookshelfs for.
The way she writes is very fluid and I reiterate FUN.
The characters were so interesting I could easily imagine some follow-up adventures from them.

This is the fourth Deborah Smith's book that I read and once again I struggled to put it down.
I love her writing style, her interesting characters and unusual twists to the story, her detailed description of scenery, emotions and relationships.
I'm already looking for more work from this author

I first bought this book "because the title sounded good." I had no idea that I would fall in love with Venus and Gib and their complicated, beautiful story. I love the vivid imagery, the "clashing of cultures" and the sardonic, dry humor Venus conveys throughout the story. It is now my favorite book in the entire world! A must-read for anyone who has ever felt different and like they didn't quite belong!

A fun and entertaining read. I wished I lived in that enchanting forest with all those amazing and endearing characters. A book I'll read over and over again just for the pure joy of it.

Loved this book; well-written and a wonderfully descriptive and entertaining journey through a year on a working Montana ranch.

It took me a while to get into this book, but once I did, I really enjoyed it. The author, a newspaperman, spends a year on a large ranch in western Montana, and his account of that year is the best book I've ever read on modern-day cattle ranching as told by a cowboy. McCumber, in fact, is not a cowboy and has to learn nearly everything there is to learn about it on the job. And the reader learns along with him.

His employer, Bill Galt, is a hard-driving man, leaving no room for error and no time to rest. The men on his ranch routinely put in 12-hour days, working seven days a week. They work in all kinds of weather, including long winter months of snow, wind, and bitter cold. McCumber's account of the year includes calving, branding, irrigation, fencing, haying, fire-fighting, trips to sale barns, moving cattle, and maintaining equipment of all kinds. Largely mechanized, working cattle in traditional ways ahorseback is a rarity.

Besides Galt, several of the men come to life on the page with particular vividness, especially Keith the foreman. A young cowboy, Jerry, who tries everyone's patience, is also memorable. This book is for anyone who has ever thought of leaving a tiresome job and working on a ranch. What it shows is that cowboying is hard, back-breaking, dangerous, exhausting, unending work, requiring countless skills. And you understand the measure of pride that men who choose this kind of work take in what they do.

In June 2001, I visited Birch Creek Ranch after picking up the book (The Cowboy Way)at a local chapters in Richmond Hill Ontario, Canada. After many arrangements, I travelled to White Sulphur Springs and met Bill Galt, his family and his crew.

I visited and worked with his wonderful crew (different visits)
(Dave, Kirk, Tyson, Mike, Russ, Terry, Don, Aaron,& Justin) throughout calving, haying, irrigating and branding, from which evolved some of the most memorable moments of my life to date.

I can tell you first hand that this book is a true account of the daily routines found on this working cattle ranch.

The honesty, integrity and vastness of the land and the people I was so fortunate to meet is indescribable!!!!

A.

What happens when a 44-year-old assistant newspaper editor becomes a working cowboy on a Montana ranch? This is an intensely personal account of 2 years spent in open country (although written as if it were one year)---a book that paints a colorful, insightful and humorous canvas of what cowboys on a working ranch really do (changing oil, riding ATV's, building irrigation dams, running loaders, feeding cattle... and yes, even a good old-fashioned roundup.)

Like many new jobs, he's expected to simply jump in and lend a hand his from his first few minutes on the job- which he does. Fortunately, he had admitted up front that he knew nothing about being a cowhand, which the owner (an incredibly hard-working guy named Bill Gault in the book) found refreshingly direct and honest. Over the course of two years, McCumber goes from a green newbie to a more experienced hand. He learns much about himself and others in the process. And he shares much of that insight with us in a refreshingly direct manner.

It's astounding what today's cowhand does. It's not easy work- in fact, it's some of the hardest work imaginable. From changing out truck engines to performing C-sections on pregnant cattle, to cleaning up sheds to cutting hay (and eating bull testicles) McCumber describes it all in great detail.

The book has insight, candor and humor. It's become one of my favorites.

David has a natural, easy way of describing such a difficult land. I have never been to Montana but long to go there, and this book makes my longing more profound.

David was fair to everyone in this book, to the cows who naturally were raised for food, to the ranch owner and manager and the many ranch hands he worked with. He even made me like ranchers even though I am more of an environmentalist.

The countryside, the skies, the sun, the weather, the winds, the mooing of the cows, all gets described so passionately in this book. And even though men of this genre tend to herofy themselves, David was more than honest with his readers and admitted weaknesses at many ranching skills. But we can forgive him because he rewarded us with a well-written, well-paced country-adventure involving obstinate cows, irate ranchers, aching muscles and dog-gone determination.

I am convinced that Sandra Day O'Connor did not write this book herself as its observations are devoid of any depth and is written on a grade-school level. While the book offers a much appreciated glimpse into the Arizona of days gone by, it reads as a series of disconnected events without any personal reflection on the part of the author. I expected much more from a former Supreme Court justice.

I liked it.

Sandra Day O'Connor's family was a strong, practical and loving one that raised cattle across a huge expanse of the arid Southwest through virtually the entire 20th century. That family was an extended one--by choice and necessity--and included the cowboys who made the ranch work. Ultimately though, family dynamics, the government and technology overtook that way of life; the ranch that Justice O'Connor knew is no more. This book tells that story.

The writing is clear and descriptive, but almost too simple. Sentences are often choppy and the dialogue feels stilted--perfect grammar, no contractions, etc. I also found it awkward when the dialogue of all the characters was kept in the same paragraph. The book is credited to Sandra Day O'Connor and her brother Alan Day, but I had trouble with the voice. It is written in the third person, but it feels that it is primarily Justice O'Connor's voice. That feeling was occasionally rattled when an "Alan" story was told with details that she wouldn't have known. It is a frustrating arrangement. Too, the pacing and timing jump about a bit more than is necessary.

Still, I really enjoyed getting to know the characters, and felt real empathy for the family. I found the descriptions of ranch life interesting, colorful and informative, and now enjoy a much broader knowledge of cattle raising and horse riding than I did before. I also enjoyed the solid, honest and commonsensical feel of the family and the cowboys.

I guess the mark of a good book is that it leaves the reader wanting more. In this instance I wanted more details. I'm guessing that the editor wrestled with the authors to get the book arranged and the gaps filled in a manner that yielded a book that was coherent and comprehensive enough to pass muster. That the effort was successful, and left me wanting to know more, is a good thing.

I'm very glad I read it.

This is one of the best books I have read in a while. I thoroughly enjoyed Sandra Day O'Connor's vivid depiction of her youth living on a ranch in the southwest. Particularly impressive were the connections made between lessons learned on the ranch and her philosophy on life, which ultimately shaped her career. I couldn't put the book down. I have purchased several copies to give to friends and family who have connections to ranching and/or the southwestern U.S. I highly recommend this book, even to those who do not have connections to ranching. As the majority of the population moves further away from agrarian life, this book is a refreshing reminder of the importance of agriculture and those who labor to provide for our basic existence.

LAZY B by Sandra Day O'Connor gives the reader a picture through words and photographs of life on a ranch in the arid southwest. But it also presents the development of independence, the value of a job well done not for praise or monetary considerations but because you believe in yourself.
The way of life is fading into myth and legends, but an aspect of the value of children to the economic unit of the family needs to be examined and studied to give us greater insight into our educational processes. Productive work is the hallmark of a human being, it shines through the dust for this family and their employees.

A wonderful and genuine book that provides great imagery and a window into the real and raw Southwest. The book is less about Justice O'Connor and more about our magnificant Southwest. Environmental issues, farming, education, and family relationships are all discussed in an authentic and beautifully descriptive way. It's not a page turner but it's a lovely book if you want a picture about growing up in the Southwest when cowboys roamed and cattle were plentiful.

16 year old Hattie Brooks is tired of being Hattie Here-and-There. So when she recives a letter stating that she has inheriated her late uncle Chester's claim, she jumps at the chance. Soon she is headed off to Montana with high hopes and big dreams. But there is one little thing, she has to prove up to her new land. And to do so, she must set up 480 rods of fence and cultivate 40 acres of land. Hattie thinks that she can't do it. But she learns that with good friends and a lot of hard work, she can do anything.

Hattie Big Sky is an engrossing, reader-friendly book. It gives an honest, non-sugar-coated view of the trials and tribulations of homesteading. I have a new admiration for the people who settled the West.

A really sweet story with twists and turns. The story is told through the eyes of an independent 16 year old girl. It made me appreciate homesteaders, Montana, and what Americans faced during WWI. Even though it will make you laugh AND cry, there is an ending of hope. I bought 2 more copies to give as gifts to friends who enjoy historical fiction. Good for all ages above 12 years.

I purchased this book without really knowing much about it. However, as I began reading the story I became thoroughly engrossed and just wanted to keep reading. I am not normally a fan of historical fiction, but the author did a wonderful job of taking the reader into the story, and making it feel like you were right there with Hattie as she struggled to find herself and to learn how to homestead. The author does a great job of painting a picture without overemphasizing any aspect or beleaguering points.

Some reviews have disparaged the way the author decided to end the story, saying that it wasn't true to her grandmother's story. However, I had the opportunity to meet and spend some time with Kirby Larson at a Childrens' Literature Conference and she explained that while the story was inspired by her grandmother...it was not her grandmother's story. Even without the author's explanation, I thought the ending was wonderful. A true happy ending that is was not unrealistic. I put the book down with a huge smile on my face and a realization that I had fallen in love with this book and the story. It is a must read and thoroughly deserves the awards it has received.

For upper elementary school children who are studying American history this gives a vivid picture of what Montana was like for homesteaders. The story is captivating yet eye opening. It is easy to forget the attitudes of early settlers toward Germans during WWI. The vocaulary is good, some new words, yet not too many.