McDonald's Books

A work of art! full-color cover of German folk art and reproductions of wood blocks by Albert Durer from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1943. It is a treasure of art and wisdom. This book is a beautiful addition to personal collections, as well as a thoughtful gift.

Examples of German proverbs:

"We hang minor thieves and tip our hats to major ones."

"Revenge is a meal that must be eaten cold."

"Death is the poor man's doctor."

"He who believes easily is easily deceived."

"Sweet song has betrayed many."

"Remorse is lust's dessert."

"Sweet wine makes sour vinegar."

"Get up and Glow" is a great book. Some of you may be able to read it straight through, but I doubt it. The emotional journey the book takes you through allowed me only to read one or two chapters at a time. That's probably the best way to read it, becuase there are exercises (and basic soul-searching) that you'll do throughout the read. I found the book to be better and more fulfilling than many of the other well-known self-help/spiritually titles of the last 10 years. Unlike other books, "Get up and Glow" does not preach or judge. It's written from the heart and with love. The book is also well written and edited. There are truly some "lightbulb moments" in the book. I won't spoil it, but the essence of "Get up and Glow" is found late in the book when refering to "Home."

"Rainstorms and Rainbows" is a delightful compilation of stories and anecdotes. Over a span of more than three decades, Barbara Phillips Stuart wrote this wonderful collection. Through the pieces in this compilation, the author, a doting mother and an indulgent grandmother, shares the pleasures and pains and the joys and vexations of child rearing. She expresses, "Life is a series of rainstorms and rainbows. Enjoy the sunshine of your life and when the rainstorms come, try to see the beauty in the lightning, enjoy the rumbling thunder, and treasure the life-giving raindrops. For only with rain can there be life. And the rainbow will come, its beauty enhanced because of the rain."
The first and larger section of the book is devoted to tales of the author's children. Though Stuart and her husband were blessed with three sons, aged ten, eight and two, and a six-year-old daughter, the couple chose to adopt another six-month-old baby girl. Stuart draws an interesting analogy between her children and a game of poker. She counts herself lucky to have the winning hand in the game with a full house - three kings and two queens.
The author wittily recounts numerous tales of the youngsters' childhood. Her vivid descriptions bring alive the children's endearing yet incorrigible behavior and mischievous antics and clowning. Handling their tantrums, disciplining them, indulging their whims, mediating their disputes, accompanying them to circus shows and movies, motivating them to help with chores, chauffeuring them to and from their diverse extracurricular activities, nursing them through their illnesses, and dealing with their adolescent concerns, Stuart shares how she coped with it all and brought up her children lovingly and patiently. "Being the parent of a preschooler is time-consuming, but being the parent of a teenager is mind-consuming," she says.
The second section of the book features amusing anecdotes of Stuart's twelve pampered, precious grandchildren, whom she refers to as "multiple blessings." The author highlights the little ones' sweet innocence, impishness and precociousness, honesty and candor, and power of observation and creative imagination. She relates how once she was tricked to allow her four-year-old granddaughter to clamp her with a handcuff, and her hand almost turned blue due to lack of circulation. She could not free herself until the child found the key quite some time later and unlocked her.
Witty, humorous, and insightful, these tales are a must-read. Mothers and grandmothers all over the world will be able to relate to many of the author's experiences. Each story or anecdote is complemented with adorable black and white illustrations.

"Grant Wood and Little Sister Nan draws Nan Wood Graham out of the larger tapestry of Wood's life and gives definition to her loyal support of her brother and her own achievements. She was a pathfinder whose contributions extend into areas that cannot be easily measured." writes Mary Bennett, Special Collections Coordinator for the State Historical Society of Iowa.

Julie Jensen McDonald pieces together the spirit of the Wood family during the demanding and daring times of the 1920s and 30s, capturing the substance that nurtured the talent, resourcefulness, and fierce loyalty demonstrated by Nan Wood Graham until her death in 1990 at the age of ninety-one years. Intriguing and enchanting details, garnered from the vast collection of Grant Wood memorabilia now held by the Davenport Art Museum, and other sources, profile the woman behind the face in American Gothic. Nan tells how she was wooed by her brother into posing for the painting by a promise that no one would recognize her. As the Gothic couple became one of the most celebrated images in art history, she speaks candidly of the joy as well as the vulnerability of "celebrity," including the innumerable parodies which depict a wide range of social conditions.

Joan Liffring-Zug Bourret, Penfield Press publisher, presents a pictorial documentary along with a"Passages in Time" of the Wood family, and rare insights from friends, acquaintances and admirers of Nan and her brother Grant Wood.

Essays by friends and close associates reveal the extent of Nan Wood Graham's devotion to the memory of her brother and to the places where they spent their early years. Personal letters and other commentaries provide a view of her fondness for time and place: early years in Anamosa, Iowa, growing up in Cedar Rapids, the generosity of friends in the Amana Colonies in times of great need, and the support of friends and mentors in the Iowa City and Davenport areas. Nan was often cast as a "fierce guardian of the truths of her brother's life." The Epilogue "Myths About Grant Wood," based on several years of research with Nan and other sources by the late John Zug, presents some truths to dispel many of the myths that often accompany notoriety.

This book adds a dimension to the woman in American Gothic. At age eighty three, Nan said the painting saved her life from being drab. Even though she didn't think the "painted" lady looked anything like her when it was first displayed, she had now decided that: "We look a lot alike. She's really become me."

As a regular reader of "Colonel" Fred Brown in the Knoxville (TN) News-Sentinel, I welcomed the prospects of this new book. It exceeds expectations! This team of writers accomplished the "impossible" by arranging to interview author Shelby Foote personally and that chapter alone is worth the price of the book--then there are Welty and other bonus chapters. Highly recommended!

A fast moving romantic Western set in Texas at the end of the 1800's. I enjoyed it immensely. It has saloons and drunks and passion and betrayal with a kidnap and gunfights thrown in. All you could want in a Western. A ranch won and lost over a poker game and lives thrown into turmoil, all told at a pace. Recommended!

Heartwood, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, is packed with poems that are playful, touching, accessible, and real, and, though the central theme is death, there isn't a single morbid line in the book. Vermilya's wit is razor sharp and her observations are brilliant. If you like Billy Collin's work, read Vermilya's; beneath her cleverness is heart.

The graphics and color bring the play alive and the three text versions provide an excellant transition for the age of your child. Why let the introduction to Shakespeare wait until a High School class when you can educate their young minds with his great work using this novel idea. Plus you can simple choose the text level to start them on; I choose the Quick text for my 10 year old.

In this version of Classical Comic's HENRY V, adapted by John McDonald, you're dealing with the Original Text. By that I mean that you get the entire play, just as William Shakespeare wrote it. Classical Comics has also published two other versions: Plain Text, which takes the original script and converts it into modern English, and Quick Text, which reduces the dialogue into as few words as possible (as many graphic novels do).

Thanks to the wonderful artwork of many talented illustrators (Neill Cameron for pencils, Bambos for Inks, Jason Cardy & Kat Nicholson for Coloring, and Nigel Dobbyn for Lettering), the result is a colorful, heavy-duty, true-to-the-script version of one of Shakespeare's most recognized plays.

This is the perfect book to introduce reluctant teen readers to Shakespeare. Whether they read it for fun or for a class, they're getting the original play, act by act, and they get it in a convenient, reader-friendly way. In this day of graphic novels, it's important to remember the classics, and HENRY V doesn't disappoint.

The additional information at the end of the story, including a short biography of William Shakespeare and one of Henry V, a detailed description of the Battle of Agincourt, and even a guide to the creation of the graphic novel's pages, only add to the value.

If you're looking for a well-made and instructional graphic novel based on HENRY V, look no further than this edition.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

Stevenson looks at the history of the Gaelic fringe of Ireland and Scotland in the seventeenth century with a refreshingly unromantic eye. Gone are the quaint stories of Highland laddies, and villanous Cromwellians. Stevenson's "Highland Warrior" is thick with intrigue. Alasdair Mac Colla emerges from these pages looking super-human, but certainly not heroic in the conventional sense. However, in the fallen world of the seventeenth century, Mac Colla and his sidekick Manus Ruadh O'Cahan may be the closest one might ever get to heroic figures. They are, at least, extremely interesting individuals. This is a magnificent book, and it is a must read for any student of Irish or Scottish history.