Lifestyle Books

My wife remembers this book from her childhood and is one of her favorites. It is one of those timeless books that thrills all children. We read it to our grand kids and they love it. This same story could be in any country. Kids are the same everywhere.

This is a book most kids and adults can realate to.Its a book about friendship and celebration.(Such a wonderful read with great illustrations) I recommend this book for ages 8 and up because of challanging vocab.But a great read aloud for all ages!

I'm an American mother living in Germany. I grew up with Pippi Longstockings - but never had much exposure to the other wonderful stories. Though the English title is a little silly, this book is so wonderful...a nostalgic look of childhood in truly the most innocent of days - it is so well liked in Germany - and is on just about every child's shelf here in Germany with other stories from Astrid Lindgren. I have reccommended it often to my friends in the states and it has been well received. This year (2007) we celebrated her 100th birthday with no small oversight - she is the best loved children's author of all time in this part of the world. I can only hope that some publisher rekindle Lindgren's charm and make the children of the South, North and Middle Farms along with Michel - Lola - Madita - Kalle and Karlsson more accessible in America.

I bought the book because of the Author - I grew up on her books and my girls listen to each chapter with great pleasure

My own son is nearly out of high school and will no longer sit on my lap to let me read to him. Imagine! The rascal! But I have two boys, children of my cousin, and a niece, who are beginning to appreciate my reading talents. Their mothers have not been slow to recognize my utility on that front.
Astrid Lindgren was famous in America, years ago, for her Pippi Longstocking books. I think those are still common in bookstores. As an ex-boy reading to a boy, I enjoyed Lindgren's Rasmus books much more, and I loved the "Noisy Village" series. Lindgren's children's books are deliciously old-fashioned and rustic. Rasmus is the Huckleberry Finn of Sweden, and the five children of Noisy Village might remind English readers of Tom Sawyer and Little Women melded together. I read all these books in Swedish, and I'm just becoming acquainted with them in English for my young relatives. The translation is good - not quite as idiomatically piquant as the original, but attractively brash and blunt. Boys will enjoy the stories as much as girls. The target age for hearing these stories is about four to six, and quick-to-read children will be able to handle them at seven.
Life in a village in oldtime Sweden was little different from life in rural areas of the Upper Midwest before TV. Parents also may feel the pull of that good-natured, fundamentally decent community. There are no tickets to the past, however, except in books.

This is one awesome book. It really helps the reader let go of unwanted body fat for good so that it doesn't come back again.

Finally a book that empowers the reader with the knowledge and tools for creating health, instead of blindly following another 6 or 12 week program. I appreciate the fact that the authors of "Fat That Doesn't Come Back" acknowledge the intelligence of the reader. This book gives straight answers without sugar coating the information. This is the only book you will ever need to guide you towards a healthier lifestyle. It gives a holistic approach to health, which is truly the only way to achieve success! As a parent, it excites me to pass on the knowledge of nutrition and tools to create health to my children. Thank you Krista and Robert!

OK, how many diet books can we possibly take in this country?? You can pretty much do away with 90% of them, the only thing they offer is "eating plans" that you won't follow for more than 1 week and while you do you feel like it is torture.

This book is about reversing that mentality taking responsibility for your eating habits, but not having a "plan" where certain foods are off limits, because those are always doomed and leaving you feeling the urge to "be bad" and have a cookie. This book talks about changing your mentality from "I can't have" to "I don't want to have".....

Great book, I never review books, lots of personal examples make this interesting and the writers are very knowledgeable and
honest. Will change the way you look at carbs, fat, calories and exercise.

Robert and Krista,

Thank you so much for such a great, inspiring book. Being a professional Martial Arts instructor and teaching in a systematic way for my students, your book used the same organized approaches to send the message for all types of learners. The concepts of this book: healthy eating, healthy lifestyle, and overall quality of life are very simple and easy to understand. It is very inspiring and motivating for the reader. Personally, I felt I was already fit, but as I applied the principle of healthy and balanced eating, I realized I had consistently improved my energy level. Learning how to balance the intake of protein, fat, carbohydrates and the importance they play in your life, makes it easier for the individual to understand eating and being healthier. After reading this book, I became very cautious and aware of what I might say to my students, so then I recommend it for their own reading as to erase their books of "so-called-dieting." Furthermore, I like the idea of "releasing" the fat. It is interesting because releasing the fat seems to be more permanent than losing it. When you lose something, you always have the possibilty of finding it again. My wife and I, have throughly enjoyed this book so much that we apply it personally to our lives and encourage our children so they can also begin to understand what a healthy lifestyle is about.

I have tried practically every diet on the planet. No longer because this book has helped me transition in to a lifestyle free of dieting. The authors are right on with this book and I will do what I can to encourage others to benefit from it as I have. It includes everything. From the mental importance to the physical exercise to all that a person needs to know about nutrition. This book was an easy read. It was inspirational. It moved me and I am now enjoying a life that will forever evolve. The book is excellent!

Excellent book with great, user friendly ideas to improve the quality of your life and your home. Recipes for cleaners are excellent. Some of the rituals described are a little far out there but are thought provoking and are worth exploring.

I use this book as a home reference all the time and it has been extremely helpful and chock full of wonderful ideas for your life, home, body..inside and out.

What an absolute miracle! Thank you, Annie for a great book! Buy it, everything you need to know is in here.

I do not have a lot of time to read with four kids and this book was a easy fast book to get through. Lots of information that was displayed easily. Not the big words either. And in the back it a huge wonderful list of resources I could look up on the internet. Wealth of information. I gave this book to our school hoping when they remodel they consider what was written.

This book helps you take better care of yourself and your love ones. We are concerned about what we eat and if it's safe. We also need to be concerned about what we use to clean our homes with and what we use on our skin. In this book there is lots of good, practical receipes for a toxin-free home. This book will be on that I will use often.

Have you ever wondered about the long-term effect of cleaning products in your home? What about pesticides, chemicals and all the other potentially toxic goods that invade our lives?

Twice poisoned by such things, author Annie Bond, host of "Annie's Healthy Living Network" online, offers realistic remedies for a natural and nontoxic lifestyle that include everything from eating and cleaning to gardening and dressing. A comprehensive path toward ecologically-healthy living.

There isn't much content in here that someone who has been homeschooling for a year or more doesn't already know, but it could be useful for a parent just starting out. One thing to keep in mind if you are currently considering a purchase is that much of what the author advises is *really* out of date for the contemporary homeschooler. For example, she strongly encourages that you attend a homeschool conference and join a group like HSLDA, advice that was more helpful ten years ago when the book was written. If you are new to homeschooling, this book isn't worthless, but make sure you read more up-to-date stuff as well, like homeschooling magazine & internet content.

Good book which gives honest, detailed advice about getting started in homeschooling by age. An easy read.

We never intended to homeschool, but after our six year old daughter became subjected to sexual harrassment and bullying at recess at our local and well-recommended public school, we pulled her out mid-year. Now we are homeschooling. This book was a lifesaver in the midst of a very tumultuous time.

Other reviewers have pointed out that this book doesn't sugar-coat the topic of homeschooling. I appreciated hearing the facts, as well. The book does point out that homeschooling doesn't work for everyone at every time. It handles the challenges of socialization and curriculums very realistically.

After reading this book, I really felt that I had a good handle on what the pros and cons of homeschooling are. I feel more prepared to proactively handle issues that might arise as a result of homeschooling. This is important because oftentimes problems with homeschooling can be greatly reduced or eliminated if only you are aware of the issue and take measures to prevent/handle it before it becomes a problem (for example, those who have concerns about legal issues of keeoing children out of public school).

This book is an excellent overview of the topic. Please note it doesn't provide a great deal of in depth information on curriculum. There are books much more specific to that topic. This will point you in the direction, however, and should answer most questions regarding the how-to of homeschooling. This will also help you ask yourself the right questions to figure out f homeschooling might be a good option for your family.

This is an excellent place to start when you first being to consider the option of homeschooling. It offers a wealth information on where to start and issues to consider. It covers a lot of the startup issues you need know abut, how to integrate it into your own life and lots of brief stories from real people are used to illuminate whatever topic is being covered in that section. I particularly liked the section that covered the issues and concerns people might have about socialization for kids are homeschooled.

In many ways, it accomplishes what the "Dummies..." and "Idiots..." series books do...but with an intelligent, competent and professional style.

I'm a new homeschooling mom, and I found this book to be a great hands on resource book about how to start homeschooling your children. It has detailed learning ideas for primary, middle and teen years. If you are looking for answers to alot of tough questions like when, why, and how to homeschool your child, then "The Homeschooling Handbook"by Mary Griffith, will be a valuable tool for you. Whether you homeschool your child or not, read this book for it's many helpful fresh ideas for working with children.

This book was useful and interesting. Although I am conscientious about what I eat, I don't think I am interested in going to such extremes as this author would have you go. It did provide alot of helpful information.

If it's Not Food,Don't Eat It, covers all the questions anyone can have about eating correctly. It's easy to read and understand and makes a lot of sense about how processed foods have been a huge part of why most people have not been able to become healthy.

Zig Price.

This book was recommended to me by a chiropractor in my AP mom's group. I read it quickly the first time, let the ideas digest (so to speak), and am now re-reading it slowly and thoroughly. The message is profound and simple: what you eat affects you (in a big way) and to only eat real foods (i.e. whole and fresh). I've read "Plenty" and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle", both of which I loved, and didn't know where to begin. This book is the link. Her writing style is straight-forward and empathetic. I've just started the five day diary, and will be going through the cupboards today to clear out all the Frankenfood. I'd love to gift this to every member of my family!

I think this is one of my favorite books on eating for health. Some read like encyclopedias and some are so self-righteous you feel guilty for shaving your legs or flying in airplanes. This is humorous and informative and full of ideas you can use right away, with lots of the statistics removed to sidebars so it reads smoothly and conversationally. My copy is well-underlined. My husband grabbed it first when it arrived and read it through in just two days. We already had a pretty healthy diet but there's always more to learn, especially the why's behind the decisions you make in the grocery store aisle.

Kelly Hayford has written a very practical book with an approach that is much different than other nutrition books that I've read. The idea of eating only real food is so simple and so common-sense that I'm surprised I haven't seen this advice much more from other nutrition experts. I've spent so much time reading labels for sugars, saturated fats, fiber, etc., but have never really given much thought to the long lists of chemicals on most labels. I just figured that they must be okay if they are allowed in food. Since Kelly's book opened my eyes, I have made major changes to the quality of food that I bring into my house, and I feel a lot better about what my children and I are eating. I do find, however, that if I take this type of advice too seriously, I get way too obsessed about food. I just try to follow nutrition advice like this as well as I can. (I will never get to the Level 4 described in the book, but Level 1 or 2 is better than I was a couple of months ago!) I stongly recommend this book for anyone who wants to improve his diet.

Who'd a thunk it? Ronald Reagan finally gets his due. At long last, someone of stature finally concludes, as I did long ago, that President Reagan was not only "The Great Communicator" but also a great leader. To me, it seemed obvious. He came to power at a time when many Americans had come to believe that the United States was in decline and that the job of President had simply become too big and too complex for any one man to handle. Jimmy Carter had supposedly worked harder at it than any other president, yet he was a miserable failure. Then along came Reagan, described by his political enemies as a more or less simple minded actor and shallow thinker who had to be stage-managed by his handlers. But strangely enough, Reagan came to power during a period of crisis, a weak national defense, high unemployment, ultra-high interest rates and inflation, and a persistent national malaise, and somehow solved all these problems. How did he do it? In this book, Mr. Strock explains how President Reagan led and managed and how other would-be leaders should do so. He takes Reagan's seemingly "intuitive" leadership style apart piece-by-piece, explains what each piece means in terms of leadership and why it is important, and cites examples of how Ronald Reagan used each piece in the fabric of his style to help put the nation back on track and achieve his ultimate goals. This is an excellent book which is long overdue. It isn't light reading, but I would highly recommend it to anyone seeking to improve his or her leadership skills, especially those in the highest levels of management.

Who better to learn from than "The Great Communicator"? Studying President Ronald Reagan will not only make you better at politics, it'll make you a better person! Being decisive, negotiating from strength and crafting a compelling vision are just a few of the lessons you'll learn from James M. Strock's fabulous book about President Reagan's leadership.

A diversely experienced leader and manager with an easy-to-read writing style focused on a great, recent example of truly effective executive leadership and decided to share what he learned. The result was a truly outstanding book of leadership thoughts, concepts, principles, and analysis complemented by exemplary vignettes and anecdotes from the life of arguably the most respected and admired president in United States history. Do not miss this book if you are a student or practitioner of leadership.

The book is a four part study of Reagan's leadership effectiveness: the critical elements of his vision-based leadership approach, his mutually supporting leadership and management styles, the skills that made him the "Great Communicator," and the personal character that transformed his beliefs and vision into powerful realities. At the end of each chapter is a list of summarizing leadership lessons and principles. Strock's thorough research and insightful analysis made each list pregnant with meaning and importance.

Strock made a very strong case that Reagan's brilliance as a leader was his gift of a compelling, five-part vision (family, work, neighborhood, freedom, and peace) and the integrity of his consistent and disciplined actions relative to his vision. Strock also discussed some Reagan leadership flaws and failures-not many, but enough to appear honest and balanced.

Strock's Reagan was an authentic man of vision, purpose, and character. Read this book and you will understand how Reagan was willing and able to communicate great thoughts with authority as the leader of the free world, and why his vision for America was believed in by so many people here at home and around the world:

"Ours is the land of the free because it is the home of the brave. America's future will always be great because our nation will always be strong. And our nation will be strong because our people will be free. And our people will be free because we will be united, one people under God, with liberty and justice for all."

Let's begin accepting the obvious: I'm a foreigner, I'm not part of the system of politics of USA and I'll never be. And let's make the not-so-obvious plainly visible: I'm a real admirer of USA, and don't buy ideas like imperialism and the like and I think they have some of the greatest leaders of all times. Being Reagan himself one of them and one of my greatest heroes since long time ago. I've got a major in mass comunication and I like to study things like messages, followers, leadershp and so on.

And it's in this sense this book became a disappointment. It so... shallow, I think it's the word best suited for it. The author is a Washington insider but not in the higher ranks. He didn't interview (not for the real thing, at least) the president, and he doesn't have a real academic background in topics like the title of the book promised: leadership and comunication. What did he wrote? Well, he knows some things about the life of Reagan, but of course he knows the best the period of the presidency. So he took a set of events, applied to them his method and ideas of leadership and then concludes "That's why Reagan was such a great leader". Come on... the air controller' strike, the Tripoli bombing, the debate with Bush Sr. about "voodoo econonics", everything was reduced to a man with a mesianic message, total control over his values and the values of the cabinet and total rapport with the familiar values of the american people. In this book, Reagan didn't have a single problem, even the smaller one; he didn't hesitate for once; he was the cheerished of the gods and EVERY scandal in his administration (just for the record: going to Nicaragua challenging the express will of the congress; the s&L scandal, which american people still are paying and will do for the next generations; the raise of the junk bonds of Wall Street; the bargaining with terrorists...) is minimized or dismissed explaining how it was impossible for Reagan to have known about those ugly things.

And I closed the book saying to myself: "One of three; one, Reagan was the son of Apollo or Zeus, Captain Marvel himself and being that is not an example for anybody; or two, maybe Reagan INDEED hesitated and wasn't sure all the time about every single decision but the guy who wrote the book couldn't know that because not everybody speak to a president, so he did what he could: he took the newspapers of the time and wonder what should've HE do had he been the president; or three, maybe it's just the real biography and thoughts of Reagan haven't been written yet...

If you want to learn about some lessons of leadership form some greatest men of America, "Lincoln on leadership" or "The founding fathers on leadership" are better options. Not masterpieces, but at least theyhave the advantage of some SERIOUS historic perpective.

President Reagan has always been a hero of mine. At the age of 8, I became intoxicated with politics in large part because of the 1980 Presidental campaign. As a Canadian, I watched this incredible leader from a little farther away then an Amercian, but came away impressed. I therefore began to read or watch anything I could find on President Reagan. The problem was all the information I gathered failed to answer the key question for me: how did Reagan lead? Much material is available on what he did, but I never received the practical tools I was looking for. Reagan on Leadership clearly and concisely describes his techniques. Strock reached deep into Reagan's tool box and paved the road for how I can apply these tools to my life. It is the only book or article I have read that answers the question I have asking about Reagan for years: not what did he do, but rather how did he it.

"The Jesus of Suburbia" by Michael Erre is one of the better books I have read over the years. It challenges me in my living out my Christian life. There are so many things that we can easily get wrong about our Christian walk.

I found that reading "...Suburbia" a chapter at a time worked best for me. Reading it is not like reading a page-turning novel. Reading short passages in one sitting allowed me to reflect on what the author said. The chapters are not overly lengthy, and they are divided into sections that make tracking one's progress easy. Erre offers much scripture and extensive sources in his notes not only as documentation but also to allow the reader to pursue the subjects further.

I will be reading the book again shortly. I will be meeting with several friends for a book study in which we will consider ways that we need to rethink and change the ways we live.

Ken Rhoades

If you want a fresh look at Jesus, here's a great door! Readable, and great for a group study or personal reflection. CS Lewis comes to mind in a number of places. Great wisdom.

This book is never over your head yet doesn't lack substance in any way. This is something i would give to any Christian tired of a Jesus that only exists in stained glass and books.

Mike Erre challenges the "average Christian" to really take a look at JESUS and how He lived his life - against the grain, counter-cultural, and subversive - and then asks if we too will live in this same way. I certainly felt challenged and convicted. I liked the book's focus not on methods or checklists, but truly on Christ our Savior, and modeling the way we live after Him.

You can tell Mike knows his stuff - his writing demonstrates that; yet it is relevant and accesible to any reader. I highly recommend this book.

The Jesus of Suburbia challenges the America church to become what Jesus intended: a fellowship of Christ-followers which redeems and transforms the culture around it, reaching out to others with the incredible love of God. Read this book to rediscover biblical Christianity.

This book is just great. Rose is one of my favorite character. She like to read books and has a great appeal. I think every girl who are around 11~12 would find this book wonderful. So I give 5 stars to this book.

This book is just great. Rose is one of my favorite character. She like to read books and has a great appeal. I think every girl who are around 11~12 would find this book wonderful. So I give 5 stars to this book.

The girl was quite a firecracker. Again, just as charming as Little House, but the storytelling is a bit more complex and more reflective of who Rose was. This series truly equals the charm and storytelling of Laura's story. Kudos to those who thought to bring this series to print.

...I found this book quite enjoyable to read. Rose is growing up and I had a Feeling she would Fall in love with one of the Cooley boys. I was also delited to learn that Swiney had a real name.(Although it took some getting used to, I was used to knowing him as Swiney). I was also saddened when I read that Grandpa Wilder had died...

Little Town in the Ozarks is the fifth book in a series about Laura Ingalls Wilder�s daughter Rose. Rose has many fun, exciting, and scary adventures, such as getting Pneumonia and rolling down a hill in a barrel.
One of my favorite characters, is Nate who lives on a farm with his older brother, Abe, Abe�s wife, Effie, and Effie�s twin babies, James and Elza. I like him because he is nice , like when Rose gets sick, he comes to see her a lot.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read about 12 year old girls who have lots of adventures and who love to read. One adventure is when a tree falls on their henhouse, after a big ice storm, and makes a big hole that the chickens escape out of, and then they have to find all of the hens and roosters.

The Mr. Putter and Tabby series is a delightful and whimsical set of tales about an older man and his pet cat. These are simple tales, no complex Russian novel-like characters with conflicted psyches (although his neighbor Mrs. Teaberry is a little strange). Arthur Howard's illustrations are a perfect match for the story - just the right mix of whimsy, expression and humor. The last illustration of Zeke looking out the window at the incoming pears still makes me laugh.

Pick the Pears is one of best in the series (along with "Walk the Dog" and "Feed the Fish"). Our kids range from five to eight and each loves the book which has put the book on heavy rotation in the bedtime story schedule.

I agree with all the reviews. The Mr. Putter books are all wonderful beginning-readers, but this one is especially enjoyable. My Kindergardener read it to me over the last few days, and he was laughing out loud! He really enjoyed reading this book. He thought that Mr. Putter shooting apples through the air with a sling shot was increadibly funny (as were his pink poodle underwear!) He loves the characters, Mr. Putter and Tabby. I'd recommend any book in this series for children learning to read, but I highly recommend this one because it is so much fun!

I use the Mr. Putter & Tabby books for my ESL students. Mr. Putter & Tabby Pick the Pears is their favorite. The language is perfect for either children to build vocabulary or for older language learners for translation and acquisition. The stories are cute and charming. The illustrations are delightful. They look deceptively simple, but really are extremely well done with watercolor. The artist truly brings the characters' personalities to life.

What is particularly nice is the gentle humor used and the continuing themes. Mr. Putter is constantly referred to as "old" or not receptive to silly jokes (i.e. the poodle boxers) during the books but there are flashes of his playfulness throughout the series. while he is set in his ways with his garden, his tea and his love of opera, he still loves toys, trains, car rides and planes. Mr. Putter & Tabby are perfect companions who also have a very close relationship with Mrs. Teaberry, the next-door neighbor and her good dog Zeke. Tabby and Zeke have no dialog but their personalities shines through as well.

This series of books cherishes the differences between people and respect for the elderly. It has been my honor to present seven of these books to my students. They love them. Mr. Putter & Tabby Pick the Pears is the best of the series although they are all gems.

Mr. Putter and Tabby are just a delightful reading experience. Pick the pears invokes the fun and creativity sometimes forgotten in today's much more fast paced world. We have this entire series and read from it at least weekly, but Pick the Pears is easily in the top three.

Some books have magic in them. You know the ones. They stay with you long after you've closed the cover. The rhythm of Ryland's words along with Howard's whimsical illustrations will have you "zinging pears" right along with Mr. Putter.

The Mr. Putter series is just about as good as children's writing gets. You can't go wrong with any one of them. But this one is our favorite.

My 11-yo daughter and I are doing a study on the Westward Expansion and Pioneers. We read this aloud to each other yesterday afternoon within a period of a couple of hours and both thoroughly enjoyed it. It is written in journal format by a 10-yo making the journey from Illinois to California with her family. Wonderful read!

A student asked me to buy this particular book and she has been pouring over it since it arrived.

I like the book because ,it is writer in letters. Rachels likes to writter in like 12 day. I will read more of other book like it .

Though this book is meant to be an aid in the classroom, I found it highly enjoyable even for the casual reader. It informs while entertaining. By using the medium of a girl's diary, the author is able to show facets of pioneer life not often brought out. This book is well worth the price, both as a fun read and as a useful reference.

Just like Marissa Moss' "Amelia" books, this was a hand-written, journal-style book, with lots of pictures. It is the journal of ten-year-old Rachel, who travels with her family of pioneers from Illinois to California in search of a better place to live. In her journal, she records the trip and there are many details! It has humor thrown in, great pictures, and a nice journal format. I've enjoyed reading this book, and I can't wait to read all of Marissa Moss' other historical journals.