Family Resources Books

This book is a tremendous help to Pastor's wives! Practical, scriptural, and encouraging -- I've purchased many copies and given them as gifts to other ministry wives.

This book was truly written by a lady who has "been there - done that". I also am married to a pastor and I couldn't have said it better than her. She covered all the bases and did it with scripture and personal experience. I can highly recommend this book!

One with a Shepherd: The Tears and Triumphs of a Ministry Marriage by Mary Somerville is one of the more helpful books on what it means to be the wife of a man in ministry. Coming from an evangelical and conservative Christian perspective Mrs. Somerville speaks directly and honestly about life in the parsonage, vicarage or manse. Having been in this place myself I have been encouraged by reading this book and I use it when working with wives of men in seminary as well as wives of men in their first full-time church setting. No book is perfect but of the hundreds out there, many of which I have read or skimmed addressing this topic I would highly recommend this book. A great companion read would be Liberating Ministry from the Success Syndrome

Excellent, insightful....the best book for christian women written!

If you are considering a life of ministry, or if you are married to a pastor and would like to have ready access to the wisdom of a woman who has spent many years in ministry, Mary Somerville's book, One with a Shepherd: The Tears and Triumphs of a Ministry Wife, is a very helpful and encouraging work. The 304 pages that make it up are worth their weight in gold. She has served as a pastor's wife for over three decades. Her and her husband, Bob, have led two churches, one in New Jersey, the other in California.

Covering just about every major aspect of ministry, One with a Shepherd is broken up into sixteen chapters, along with four appendices. Toward the end the author provides a valuable reading list on "Spiritual Growth," "Marriage," "Childrearing," "Home Management," "Discipling/Counseling," and every list is filled with very trustworthy authors. Mary writes on such subjects as the importance for pastors' wives to understand their role in ministry (Chapter 1), coping with loneliness (Chapter 6), how to deal with rebellious children (Chapter 10), and the importance of discipling other women (Chapter 14).

One of the topics that grabbed my attention most was what she wrote about pastors' wives defining their role in the church, so as not to fall into the trap of having to live up to the unbiblical expectations of others (a notorious problem in churches). For example, she writes, "If you want to be free from the burden of false guilt, you should first determine if you have yielded to non-biblical expectations." And further, "Realize too that we do not answer to everyone else; we answer to God alone for our actions...This means turning a deaf ear to the complaints and criticisms that are ungrounded" (p. 3). Another area Mary deals with that caught my attention is an issue that is seldom treated in books on ministry: the pain inflicted by members of the church. She says: "We suffer from people deserting us by changing churches. At other times they hurt us by staying in the church and attacking us with criticism, complaints, and gossip. Finally they may completely reject our ministry and us. We are tempted to give up in despair, but God actually wants to use these hurts that people inflict to strengthen us" (p. 64).

The wisdom, insight, and experience of the author make this a valuable resource for any pastor's wife, and any woman whose husband is preparing for ministry. Discussing the trials and tribulations of leading a church while in seminary would have better prepared me for ministry. And my wife would have been better prepared for our work if she'd had a book like this early on. This really is a tremendous work. Every pastor's wife--and every woman who is planning on becoming a pastor's wife--should read it. While many people may want to write a book, there are some that can only be written through experience. This is that type of book. Mary Somerville has so much to offer that any reader can quickly tell she is not simply passing on information, but passing on her life experiences, those that are common to the wife of any pastor. I wish there was a similar work for pastors. - Ray Hammond, Christian Book Previews.com

This book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in cultural resouces! As a social worker, I have found this book to be exteremely helpful for families and children. I highly recommend it!

This book is amazing! It has so much information. I have not been able to find so much information in one spot until I picked up this book. I particularly like the sites with Afrocentric children's games, online activities and books. But there is so much more than that. Parents: buy this book now! It is a worthwhile investment.

After reading this book, I was thrilled! There is so much useful information in it. No matter if you use the Internet sporadically or if you peruse the Net everyday, all day like I do, then there is something for you.
This book is simply a condensed and Black parenting specific search engine compiled into book form. No longer do parents have to be bothered with tooling around search engines, when most likely the results will be scant. Stacey Montgomery has done all of the work for you and keeps an updated list of Black parenting web resources on her website. A must buy for Black parents looking for Black parenting websites!

Stacey Montgomery has done a phenomenal job compiling about 375 web sites -- designed for the Black family -- into one resource. Her book is truly a "one-stop" shopping of information that is divided into 20 categories. There's something for everyone in this book.

For the regular Internet user such as myself -- who stays on the lookout for unique educational products for my family -- Montgomery's book is hard to put down. However, for those persons who surf the Internet very little or not at all, "Black Families Online" is still a powerful resource to have nearby because of its good-to-know information.

Thanks to this book, I have already begun compiling a list of my own of places to shop on the web for Christmas items and such. In "Black Families Online" I've come across web sites that I never knew existed that offer products that I never knew existed........a Multiplication Hip Hop CD and puzzles and interesting games that teach Black history, just to name a few.

In addition to providing an annotated list of web sites, Montgomery has added some nice additional touches, too. Quotes throughout the book from web site owners and parents answering the question, "Why go online?" or stating "Why my business is online" are also fun to read.

This book is a masterpiece. Montgomery should be proud of what obviously took a lot of time and effort.

Many thanks to her for a resource that has truly enriched my life. When not in my hands, this book is sure to stay close to my computer. I know I'll be using it often!!!

This experience was one I wish I had more often. I received the item I ORDERED, it was new and in excellent condition and it arrived on time!!!! What more can be said??? Except THANK YOU!!!!!!!! Linda

Frogs Without Legs Can't Hear: Nurturing Disciples In Home And Congregation

A Must Read for congregations wishing to have its people grow spiritually strong. A wonderful help for congregations struggling to figure out how to equip parents for their most important job of faith formation in the family. The rationale for this comes right out of scripture.

This has got to be the BEST Youth and Family ministry book that I've ever read. It touches on EVERYTHING that the other books don't. There are way too many books that focus on just one age group or just the leaders and youth to make a point. This book speaks of how everybody is needed in faith formation and how those little things like simple smile, handshake, or hello can help a person "come to faith."

The metaphor may seem cheesy at times, but it is very apt. While books like Doug Field's "Purpose Driven Youth Ministry" are good books, they don't touch on how everybody is involved in faith formation. They talk about programs and certain aspects of the ministry that still give congregations problems.

While there's no "one solution" to ministry as it differs from place to place, FROGS WITHOUT LEGS certainly opens one's eyes - it's a great tool, and a great read for anybody interested in youth and family ministry. It brings lots of issues to light.

Anderson and Hill came up with a crazy title and a valiant attempt extending a metaphor for how faith is formed in the lives of young people. But, beyond the "frog without legs" metaphor is a very readable book of solid material based on scripture, research, and experience that invites a cultural shift in how youth ministry is traditionally understood and practiced.
I strongly recommend this book for anyone who has interest in Christian ministry with families, children, youth, young adults or couples. The holistic, integrative perspective presents a healthy, sound course for more effective ministry...or rather, for endeavoring to form a true Christian community of nurture that is assimilated into daily life.
Although it is still popular to speak of "Youth and Family Ministry" as a combined effort in local congregations, Frogs Without Legs... is one of the best volumes that fills out what that phrase actually might mean in practice. This is a great book for groups, parents, or ministry teams to read and discuss together.

There's a lot of confusion about what bisexuality is. This book gives a great in-depth look about what people (bi and not) think about bisexuality. It's great for folks of any sexuality who want to learn more.

I found myself nodding vigorously in agreement with some, feeling like there were other people out there that feel as I do. I also disagreed with some folks. This book is an unbiased look at voices all over the world -- plenty of people, poor to rich, different cultures and ethnicities.

This book is more than "something for everyone". It's "a LOT for everyone."

This book has a huge variety of authors from around the world. I have never seen such an international anthology. It was really interesting to see what was going through the minds of people from such different places and cultures.

This is a must-read for people who are looking for multiple perspectives on what it means to be bi. The approach of using many voices is extremely powerful and shows that not everyone agrees and that there is a huge variety of self-expression.

This book is amazing! It is certainly the most international "international anthology" I've ever read. Rather than interpreting other people's experiences, the editors created a well-designed and organized anthology of a wide range of people describing their lives and experiences in their own words. There are 184 essays, from 32 different countries, written by teenagers, grandparents and everyone in between. In essays and in poems, authors talk about coming out, tell their life stories, discuss bi community, relationships, politics, and desire. Each contribution is accompanied by a short author bio, and most have photos. This book literally puts a face on bisexual identity. I recommend it to people of all sexual orientations -- to those who identify as bisexual, and to those who don't. A rich and rewarding reading experience and a great resource.

This astounding collection of essays, comments, information and more by and about bisexual people from around the world literally runs the gamut of A to Z -- Argentina to Zimbabwe -- with writings from countries you'd least expect, incredible insights from diverse walks of life, and thoughts so vast and varied that even the most casual reader will come away with a profoundly expanded and enriched appreciation of the vastness of the human spirit. The book is an eye-opener for both bi people and others in that it shows how bi people perceive life and the world around them from so many different points of view, even from each other, making for both a thrilling intellectual and visceral experience. The struggles, joys, angst and ecstasy expressed in the multitude of articles is riveting, and the comprehensiveness yet breadth of views from so many lands is simply mind-boggling and jaw-dropping. Bravo and congratulations to the editors and their contributors for this seminal book. [Full disclosure: I'm one of those pictured on the cover (to my utter surprise)and am quoted very briefly in one section of the book, but had nothing whatsoever to do with the astounding assemblage of voices collected nor the production of this remarkable landmark tome.]

This book is really wonderful & has gotten me really excited with all of the great ideas. Highly recommended!

This book combines the down home charm of the author with sound research. Jenn speaks from the heart about her love of the environment and her children. THE GREEN PARENT is filled with suggestions that protect, enlighten,and educate, our children so they can become safer and healthier, and more respectful and responsible. Our planet and our children are blessed. Thank you from all eco responsible parents. H. Johnson

The Green Parent is an essential read for all parents and parents-to-be who endeavor to find ways to improve energy efficiency even as their family continues to grow. It offers a wide range of tips and suggestions that cover every aspect of life while raising children. Taking just a few of these and incorporating them into the daily routine can easily help your family save money as well as reduce waste. Most importantly, there are fun and creative ways to involve children in the effort so that the lessons of protecting the environment are taught early and often allowing parents to set the example and educate in ways kids can appreciate. If (like me) you ever thought having children made going green too difficult or challenging, The Green Parent will convince you otherwise. - J.K., father of two

The Green Parent is a very valuable resource for any parent that even remotely cares about raising a family with an eye towards sustainability and environmental responsibility. Aside from the fundamental purpose of the book, the Green Parent is a great book for a few reasons. For starters, the book is well researched. There's no fluff. Secondly, it's a very practical book. And that's probably its greatest benefit. The ideas Jenn presents are easy to digest...there's no pontification and you won't feel guilty after reading it. Her wise use of bullet points, light narrative and to-the-point suggestions are a breath of fresh air...pun intended. The Green Parent is a good read on its own, and it has staying power in that you'll be coming back to it as a reference again and again.

These books by Beverly and Tom Rodgers are fantastic books with great help and easy to understand and real down to earth living!!

I am thirty-eight and have never married. I almost gave up and I found this book. It showed me what a healthy relationship is all about. It also helped me learn to become healthier as a single person. If your single you ought to get it!

I attended a seminar by the authors and it include works from the book. Within two weeks of the seminar I met an awesome guy. We have started dating and he really makes me happy. Before the seminar I never felt happy with any of the guys I met. I am now more clearly recognize the healthy traits men have and what are my old issues that cause problems. I feel releaved that I have a good start to a healthy relationship.

Have been aware of the importance of self healing from childhood pain, but have never read anything that put the process into workable application, until I read this book. My goodness, I wish I could share my personal growth from reading the book, with all my single and married friends. I do like it when a light comes on..

This book was recommended to me by our Lead Pastor for the ministry internship that I am doing with him. We are working through the book, chapter-by-chapter. I have been in church leadership for over 20 years and could have greatly benefited from this book if it were available back then. I'm thankful that it is available now for us. It's a must read for seminary students and professors and anyone currently in church leadership or aspiring to church leadership.

I have read this excellent book by Anderson, Personally I want to say that this book is excellent and extraordinary. Because of his insight and scholars background plus his background of practical ministry that make this book became awesome. Beautiful insight and the richess of his experience make this book easy to read and nice. I encourage to all Christian leader to read and apply this principle in this book, this is a book for the future leader in this generation and to the next generation. Thanks and God bless you.

This was a great book. I thought of many mistakes I've made in the ministry.

This book is a steal! Where [can] you get in one place such practical wisdom from a successful, significant, and sacrifical pastor like Leith Anderson. He successfully combines an understand of character and comptence, with a conviction that great leaders have both.

He successfully juggles the practice of pastoral ministry with the ability to write and speak about the broad spectrum of pastoral ministry. Leith is one of the top five communciators about pastoral ministry in North American today.

One quote sums up the book: "Leadership is figuring out what needs to be done and then doing it." [51]

When you read Leadership That Works you are not hearing primarily about the success story of Wooddale Church, you are hearing about the principles of leadership that actually will work for you in your place of ministry.

I can personally testify to the validity of Leith's ministry having heard him speak, engaged him in dialogue, visited with him in his own church for worship, and seen his authentic ministry at work.

My child checked this book out from the library at school. When it was time to bring it back she cried and cried, so I let her keep it for one more week. The next week the same thing so we finally bought it (could only find it on Amazon and we looked ALL over!)

She loves this book! She is 5 and is not able to "read" herself yet. She loves that she can guess what the words say because of the wonderful illustration and simple pages. It is a book that is read at least 3 times a week for the last year. The interaction between the siblings is sweet and uplifting. Her only other sister is 12 so it hits home with kids that can't do what the older kids do, and to the older kids that are slowed down by the younger ones. It lets kids know, in a simple way that is easy for young 'uns to understand, that all kids will eventually be able to do the same things that the older ones can do.... some are just later "bloomers". Wonderful book and now we are going to get the prequel about when the older brother was young called "leo the late bloomer". Hope this helped!

I am the mother of a child with special needs and this book has a beautiful way of explaining what it is like to be different from typical children. I highly recommend it to anyone who knows a child with special needs. I am buying several copies to give to family members and friends to help offer perspctive on what my son's life is like. It is a precious story.

I am the mother of a child with special needs and this book has a beautiful way of explaining what it is like to be different from typical children. I highly recommend it to anyone who knows a child with special needs. I am buying several copies to give to family members and friends to help offer perspctive on what my son's life is like. It is a precious story.

The first time I read this book I started to cry. It touched my heart so deeply. Louie doesn't play like other little kids, or speak either. This has his big brother Leo(from the first book, Little Leo the Late Bloomer)very concerned. Leo decides he will help his little brother how to play, write, and speak. To no avail. Soon Leo finds that Louie just does things differently from the norm. I have an autistic daughter with a big sister who is alway thinking of her little sister. This book is cute, warm and endearing. The illustrations are wonderfully alive. If I had enough money I'd buy this book for every big brother and sister with a special needs sibling.

In this already venerated work, Catherine Clark Kroger and Nancy Nason-Clark embark on a research-supported analysis and exploration into the widespread abuse of women existing both in and out of the evangelical Christian Church.

This book is not specifically written for abused women. Instead, it is directed toward Christian pastors and laypeople willing to increase their awareness of, and provide support to, abuse victims around the world. The global prevalence of abuse and violence against females is surveyed throughout the text, along with a concluding chapter on our "global responsibility" to suffering women.

In its scope, a reader will learn 59% of female homicides occur by the hand of an intimate partner (in Zimbabwe); that 18% of women seek emergency care because of domestic violence (in Papua New Guinea); and that (in Cambodia) 50% of women report sustained injuries due to spousal abuse. In addition, the authors address female circumcision, foot-binding, dowries, and other important global issues.

A useful resource, this book provides insight into the dynamics of abuse: cycles of violence, why women remain in dangerous environments, the personal characteristics of the abusive man, etc. Useful tools for Christian counselors and pastors are specified, for instance, "Questions to Ask Yourself When Responding to an Abused Woman," and checklists such as "How Caring is My Congregation" and "Unhealthy [Church] Responses [to Abused Women]," are interspersed within the chapters.

One's heart and stomach will turn while reading these pages, endeavoring to maintain the sentiment of Philippians 4:8 "...whatever is...noble,...right,...pure,...lovely,...admirable,...excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things" while still addressing this troublesome issue. Vignettes of women experiencing physical and sexual abuse at the hands of their husbands offer more than a glance at the most disturbing reality of violence and serve to provide the reader deep awareness, sympathy, shock and motivation to promote change.

Critiques of the Church are present throughout, illustrating instances where churches have acted with neglect and evil: a Bible college dismissing a woman who was beaten in public by her husband, a parish condemning the divorce of a woman who was left for dead in the woods after a third murder attempt, a woman beaten with a metal tricycle in her sleep, a husband trying to turn his wife into a prostitute (and "despite her frequent pleas" she was encouraged to endure), one vignette where a pastor rapes a parishioner, and there are many more.

To balance, the text provides several examples of ministries that provide excellent support and care for abused women, churches that hold up women through long periods of need.
In addition, the authors do well to provide a biblically solid position against abuse, and correct several misuses of Scripture including 1 Peter 3:1-6, "...For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master..." which is often misused to the travail of women.
The greatest asset of this book is its solid research foundation, for all points are referenced fittingly, and I

commend this text for lacking any breaks in logic, or unsupported speculations. In the end, this scripturally sound book is disquieting, eye-opening, and persistently optimistic about reform and an improved future for women worldwide.

FInal Note: Telephone and Online Counseling might be a good way of helping hurting women. To learn how to provide telephone and online counseling, try this very well prepared book: The Therapist's Clinical Guide to Online Counseling and Telephone Counseling: The Definitive Training Guide for Clinical Practice

I teach a distance learning course about family violence and this is the required reading for my course. The students are required to write a paper on this book, and usually their response includes that they can't believe that spousal abuse happens in the church.

Christians can easily hide abuse that happens within the home. We can easily put on our "Sunday face" when we're around our church family, but at home, it's a different story. If you work in any ministry within the church, I would recommend that you read this book. What I like about this book is that it also has an international focus - it's not just focused on the U.S. So, even if you're a missionary in another country, this is a good read for you too. This will help you to understand the problem and cycle of spousal abuse and how you can help those in the midst of it.

I teach on the college level on the topic of The Biblical Role of Men and Women. I found this and the other books by Catherin Clark Kroeger to be excellent! How in the world did The Prince of Peace's followers ever think that violence was approved by Jesus Christ? He never did! This book should be made available to every pastor, teenager and young engaged couple! A must read!

This book is a MUST HAVE. You can be free from abuse!!
If you have been looking for a book that speaks on abuse and what God says about it, look no further. This is an excellent book, a resource for every library. This book is a helpful tool for an abused woman who finds herself in an abusive relationship but feels trapped due to traditional teachings on marriage and family. What does God say about it? It will show her how clearly the Lord is vehemently opposed to abuse and what she can do about it. This book is invaluable in the hands of leaders in the church and lay people who find themselves face to face with abuse, whether it be a friend or relative or church member. You can be instrumental in ministering hope and healing for those involved in such relationships. I also recommend with five stars "The Verbal Abusive Relationship: how to recognize it and how to respond" by Patricia Evans. Another fantastic book that gives an inside window view of the day in the life of a marriage suffering with abuse and real helps for those hurting.

Online Roots by Pamela Boyer Porter, and Amy Johnson Crow is the companion book to Genealogy 101 also published by the National Genealogical Society (NGS). This is a must have book. Like the 101 book this is packed full of more resources than you can even process in one sitting or read. The first chapters are a repeat of some basics like interviewing your oldest living relatives and record their stories and info. Then gather all documents and records around your home and immediate family. Then compile your tree and gather the vital documents.

Now enter the internet. The internet or web is a vast window into so many areas of research that can help your find ancestor's names and possibly their port of entry and country of origin for the emigrant ancestors. There are many chapters that help you flesh out the names and dates. This book reminds you that each of those names is a person with a life that deserves to be remembered. They had a job, family, successes and failures. So with chapters like Wading Deeper, Visiting the Courthouse, Finding clues to Military service and discovering Ancestors at work and worship, you find different avenues you never thought of to put flesh on the bones of your pedigree. Read the history of the area they are from and discover why they moved there or left. Read about the jobs or booms in the area and get a better understanding of the life your ancestor lived. Maybe you will find court papers from a trial or divorce. Maybe you will locate land deeds or bills of sale for items in a town. Each thing may give a clue to finding the next generation or even clarifying a mystery in the family lore.

This was definitely a great book to read through for a novice like myself to start planning, but I can see this book will also become a companion and reference book as I climb my own family tree. As I take each branch I will use this book to ensure I flesh out as many details as I can before skipping to the next. I think this tool will help ensure that I pass on a full, interesting and informative family history and not just a list of names and dates to my kin now and unborn.

I have to admit this book was a bit overwhelming for someone trying to get a handle on geneology, and just focusing on certain of his lineage without too many frills. This is not a criticism, however, since this book is supposed to be a reference book more than anything else, and the author is trying and succeeding in giving us as much information as she can. I did read it from cover to cover to get the lay of the land, and found it well-written, thorough, and careful in its exposition of the subject. It was recommended by the more general Geneology 101, and was a good follow-up. This book took 101 a step further in showing us how to take max advantage of the net and save some foot steps.

It was interesting to me that the author pursued so much detail about so much of her extended family, such as great-great uncles, and third cousins once-removed. I also was intrigued by her effort to get supporting information about the areas her forbears lived in, the geographical properties, the commerce going on there, the character and feel of the area, etc. It is more than I would want to go after, at least just starting; though it would be fun to have some of this background.

The biggest tips are to sign-up for a paid online service like ancestry.com, and to join a geneological society, even if only an online bulletin board set-up. Indeed, all roads seemed to end at ancestry.com as I found out. I would start out on a free website sited in the book, looking for something specific, and would be led to ancestor.com, with its notice of a 14-day free trial. Now that I've read Geneology 101 and Online Roots, I'll probably take advantage of that offer.

She also strongly recommended looking for work someone else has already done on your family tree. There are sites where you can get this, and again it looks like ancestry.com is the biggest. She also recommended free tutorial websites before getting started, and that might have been the best advice of all.

I believe I'm ready to start my journey and I'll update this review when I see how it goes.

This work is one of the first that seems to approach the use of the internet as a great tool, while still supporting and instructing standard research techniques. Easy to follow and loads of examples make this book a useful helper with my own family research.
The variety of online sites is enhanced with actual case studies and sample screens for beginners. I would recommend this book for a novice or experienced researcher.

Regular readers of my reviews (here and elsewhere) will know that I cast a chary eye on books that purport to introduce the reader to the miracle of "Internet genealogy." I've read and reviewed dozens of such titles from the viewpoint of a researcher of more than thirty years' experience (beginning in the days of spiral notebooks and 3x5 cards) who is also a thoroughly wired computer geek and a heavy user of the Internet. I have long maintained that online research is simply the (sometimes) more convenient continuance by other means of traditional, tried and true methods. There is no "royal road to genealogy," no universal database from which you can immediately download your entire lineage back to Adam. Most of the books I've seen fall into two categories: Introductions to traditional genealogy with a thin icing of information on genealogical software and Internet how-to, and "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Computers and the Internet"-type volumes that include specific genealogical applications as an afterthought. There are a few, like Elizabeth Powell Crowe's *Genealogy Online: Researching Your Roots* (1998), Matt Helm's *Genealogy Online for Dummies* (1998), and Pamela Hahn's *The Unofficial Guide to Online Genealogy* (2001), which actually are quite useful and are worth reading (though all three are inevitably becoming dated), but these are very much the exception. The rest are simply exercises in marketing.

Pam Porter is a Certified Genealogical Records Specialist, a very experienced author and lecturer who has edited the APG QUARTERLY and presently serves on the FGS Board of Trustees. Amy Crow, a Certified Genealogist, also is well-known as an author and speaker, has served on the boards of several national organizations, and chairs First Families of Ohio. (She also is the overall editor for this series.) And the acknowledgments section lists many other names that are immediately recognizable. Their stated target audience includes (1) those new to genealogy but seasoned computerists, (2) those experienced in family research but novices online, and (3) those new to both. In other words, almost everyone. But it's encouraging to note that the third paragraph includes the explicit warning, "No, it's not all online yet." Yes, field trips to courthouses and libraries and your local Family History Center are still necessary. But more and more information is indeed being made available online everyday, especially by government agencies for whom online public access is a great money-saver in terms of staff time. The authors point out, too, that much of what you'll find online, while not necessarily an answer to a specific relationship question, provides easily accessible contextual information -- county histories, details of migration patterns in previously unexplored states, the locations of railroad corporate archives, and similar data to help you to profitably focus your research. But "you won't be able to construct your entire family history on the Web." Planning your online research is not that different from planning a library or courthouse visit -- it's still a matter of defining goals, identifying which facts you need to uncover, finding the sources for them, analyzing the results, and recording and evaluating what you're learned - but now you're using search engines and "pathfinder" sites instead of (or in addition to) card catalogs and document indexes. When you do get ready to make a courthouse visit, the Web will assure you that you've identified the right one, and often will tell you whether they're likely to have the class of records you need, and for the right time period. Moreover, you can save on gas and stretch your research budget, and you can carry on your research on Sundays or in the middle of the night if you care to. Their recommended "Internet Research Log" is remarkably similar to the classic courthouse log we all use (or should). One of the best uses of the Internet, in my own experience, has been in locating other researchers with intersecting interests, something which was very time-consuming and very hit-or-miss in the old days. The chapters on "Finding People in the Modern Era" and "Sharing with Others" provide excellent guidance on carrying out such a quest as well as turning up those long-lost distant cousins your grandfather told you about. The U.S. census (and also, now, those in the UK) is largely available online these days -- the actual images, not just printed transcripts or extracts -- and much of that now is accompanied by searchable every-name indexes that far outstrip the old Soundex and Miracode files. Naturalization records and federal land purchase records are now coming rapidly online. So are local property records. And back runs of newspapers. And older military records and unit histories. And there's hardly a library anymore without an online-accessible catalog, which is a boon to Interlibrary Loan users. And yet, while outlining these exciting advances and interspersing the discussion with frequent screen shots from useful websites, the authors keep hammering on the important point: The essentials of research haven't really changed! You still have to think and analyze and evaluate! Although any book on such a volatile subject will begin to be out of date almost as soon as it's published, I have to say this is one of the best treatments I have seen.