Recreation Books

I was not a Jerod Haase fan at all, unitl I read this book. I am 44 yrs old and have never played basketball, but I have joined a league and want to play now. Jerod is an inspiration to all special people everywhere. Way to go Jerod! I salute you my brother! I especially liked how he credits his friends with his metoric rise. Tahoe sounds like a good place. Wonderful read!

This is one of the best books I've ever read. It takes you behind the scenes. It shows you that these guys aren't just b-ball players....they're real people. Any true Jayhawk fan NEEDS to read this book!!!!

Floor Burns was a great book. It was full of emotion and I cried and laughed. It made me think of what its like to be a college athlete. After reading this book Jerod Haase is my hero.

I thought this was an amazing book. I loved his insights. I am curantly coaching Jerod's nephew, Zac that was mentioned in this book several times, and reading this book has helped me out a lot as a coach. Good job.

A chronology of Jerod Haase's senior season at Kansas, taken from e-mail correspondence to co-author Mark Horvath. I admire Haase's courage and frankness in baring his soul, although at times the accounts get pretty cliche. If Horvath's primary role in this project was copy editing, he should be ashamed! The text is full of grammatical errors that eventually become distracting.

Warning: Missouri fans will not be pleased; they might be downright ashamed after reading about some of the Tiger antics described in this book!

If you are looking for the be all end all book on chasing striped bass via the fly, this is it. Rich Murphy has packed anything and everything there is to know about the subject into an encyclopedic book of massive proportions. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to learn more about flyfishing for stripers. Both seasoned veterans and rookies to the game can learn from this masterpiece. Top shelf.

This book just blew us away! It is well written, the photos are beautiful and it is jam-packed with helpful info. It is so beautifully done that you could leave it out as a "coffee-table book". You will not be disappointed with this one.

There are some fine books written about fly fishing for striped bass. This volume is the best. Murphy combines years of fishing experience with a great writing style and an in depth knowledge of striped bass and their marine habitat. As Rich Murphy is also a professional engineer with a technical knowledge of hydrology, he is able to write not only about the striped bass, but also the marine environment in an elucidating and factual way.

Additionally, the illustrations and photography in this book are fantastic. If you want to know about striped bass, their biology and environment, and how these determine effective strategies for fly-rodding for striped bass, this book is "one stop shopping". While the book has a New England emphasis, the knowledge contained will be useful for anglers over the entire range of the striper, as they will be able to understand the fish, their environment and effective fly-rodding strategies.

Hands down the best fishing "how to" book I've ever read and I've read many. This is a book you will read and re-read because there is so much information that its way too much to absorb in one or two passes. If you fish for stripers along the shore you need to read this book. If you fish offshore from a boat it will be helpful but if you poke around beaches, rocks, rivers or flats by foot or small boat you will become a better fisherman...the diagrams are worth the price of the book alone!

To declare this book as the all knowing guide to striped bass is a little far fetched for me. I agree the book was informative and the photography was great. But nothing was covered about fishing situations like the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel,fishing ocean stripers out of boats, or night fishing around docks and bridges. I think the title of this book should have been Fly Fishing For Striped Bass Off the Beach in Massachusetts. If you live up north and fish off the beach, this will be a great book for you. If you fish for stripers by any other means, don't expect this book to give you much information.

Coach Vanderlinden describes his Eagle and Stack concepts in great detail in a book that is both entertaining and informative. I found this to be an easy to read description of solid defensive concepts that could be applicable to almost all levels of football. The book gives thorough descriptions of each positions responsibilities including alignment and assigment. There are numerous helpful diagrams and illustrations that round out each chapter. Coach Vanderlinden does a decent job of explaining the process of how he pairs coverages with his fronts and pressures. It is possible that this book could be used as a stand alone playbook for a high school football team.

This book is by far the best defensive oriented book that I have ever read. I am a JV defensive line coach, and even though we run a completely different scheme, we applied several of these concepts successfully to our team and it worked incredibly well.

This book is seriously something you grab and review from time to time as your Co-Defensive Coordinator. If you don't want to rely on the offense to dictate your strength of formation all the time and want something that has proven to be successful, I would highly, highly recommend this book.

I purchased this book on the eagle and stack defenses and found it to be very informative. It reads easily and I will be using alot of the schemes in this book in my defensive package.

As a young coach and an avid reader I am always looking for new football books on the market. I picked up Coach Vanderlinden's book and couldn't put it down until I had absorbed everything in it. Coach Vanderlinden does an excellent job of teaching the intricate details and complexities of the Eagle & Stack Defenses in a simple language that any coach can understand. The detail included in this book is exceptional. It really is a must read for every coach from the high school level to the BCS. Offensive coaches would benefit from reading the book to gain a better understanding of the manner in which Eagle & Stack defenses choose to attack, and Defensive coaches will learn the not only the schematics, but the thought process behind using all of the calls in certain situations. Reading the book is like being able to sit in on a staff meeting at Penn State surrounded by coaches with 20+ years of experience at the highest level.

Brian Fleury
Defensive Coordinator
Sacred Heart University
Fairfield, CT

Without question the best defensive book on the market. This book contains the elusive answers that are so difficult to find. Ron teaches his philosophy and principles of successful defense and does it in an easy to understand format. This is a great resource, and should be included in every coach's library. My entire staff has a copy and it has been an instrumental tool in implementing a new defensive system at Helix High School. The secrets are in this book!!!!

Troy Starr
Head Football Coach
Helix High School
San Diego, CA

If you're looking for the perfect gift for a fan of Forumula One, this book is it. I've given a few away as gifts, and it's always a riot to see the results. Whether it's a child, teen, or adult (I've mostly given this book to adults), faces light up, and the person who receives it becomes immediately drawn into the book . . . for hours. Try giving one at a party and watch as everyone gathers around to get in on the play. This is PERFECT for the fan who has everything (or the fan who wishes to have everything . . . such as a Ferrari F300). An unbelievable amount of fun. You won't be disappointed. Enjoy!

The CD has fantastic sounds-- BRM car brings back fond memories. The Pop Ups especially the Ferrari instrument panel and the F1 with pit crew is great. All graphics, photographs are 5 star quality. This is a must book for the F1 fanatic.

I purchased this book for my husband, who has just become interested in Formula One racing. The whole family enjoyed reading and interacting with this informative book. We learned more about Formula One than we ever expected...this book has to be the best book I've purchased in years! HURRY - BUY THIS BOOK!!! Excellent, excellent, excellent!!!

All diehard Formula One fans can increase their knowledge of this wonderful sport by reading this book. The CD is fantastic,all of the engine sounds brings back fond memories. The Pop Ups especially the Ferrari instrument panel and the F1 with pit crew is great. All graphics, photographs are 5 star quality. A must book for the F1 fanatic's library.

Wow, great information, great fun! A must read, actually it is a tome to pour over. There is a lot to digest, and it is very interesting. It is a very clever layout, there are lots of pockets and flaps to explore. Not for children unattended though, it could be quickly demolished. My one beef is that I found the glasses (not 3d by the way) to be a little tough to view sometimes.

The Fragile Edge by Julia Whitty combines a science journalist's capacity for a precise and illuminating description of undersea flora and fauna encountered in remoter parts of the Polynesian archipelago and a passionate appreciation for its peculiarities and ecological complexities with a philosopher's detachment and bird's eye view of the reefs and the communities that abut them. Your reviewer is a certified divemaster, licensed boat captain and underwater photographer and I read a lot of this stuff. This one is unique in its sensitivity, attention to detail, and the writer's personality that comes through. I've given two copies of the books to other divers in my family.

I grew up in this world of tropical coral reefs and sharks and tiny bright fish but that was over fifty years ago. Tonight as I sat on the deck of my house overlooking a bay in Washington's temperate Puget Sound, I finished Julia's book and felt those long ago times flood back. And I felt joy and sadness. Joy for the memories of reef sharks suddenly appearing in the Northest pass of the Truk Lagoon; and me swimming free a hundred yards from our skiff. Joy for Moorish Idols escaping into coral forest. Joy for just being there. And sadness, for a world dying before our eyes. People, we've got too many people. When will we figure that out?

But oh my! Can this lady write. Thanks.

What a treat to enter the underwater worlds of the South Pacific with documentary filmaker Julia Whitty as your guide! The writing is absolutely gorgeous: "The humphead wrasse who the Tahitians call mara and the French call Napoleon is an imposing fish up to seven feet long and four hundred and twenty pounds, with an overhanging forehead, thick lips, and a blue body overlaid with squiggly patterns of green and yellow that look like the inside of a crcuit board." It is easy enough to get lost in the descriptions of life in the reef, up close and personal, but Whitty doesn't stop there. She brings in philosophy, Darwin, yoga, the history of the people on the islands she decribes, and Buddhism, as she observes life in the reefs, so that the reader feels she is not merely observing what's before her but contemplating it, trying to understand its mysteries. She makes the more humorous sides of this underwater world come alive, all the while getting her message across of the dire straights the worlds coral reefs are currently in. She has a vast knowledge of fish and reef life but makes it accessable, even providing a glossary at the back for the layperson so you come away with new knowledge about worlds you might otherwise never know. I loved this book!!!

Ten years ago I had the opportunity to snorkel with a marine biologist in East Africa. He was studying the bleaching of coral reefs and his worries about the future of marine life as he knew it was palpable. As a writer I had to ask myself, now that I know, what do I do? Thank you Julia Whitty for giving voice the growing awareness among scientists that the fragile balances life depends on are being pushed so sadly out of whack. The elegance of Whitty's prose and the beauty of her images do justice to the majesty of our lovely but put upon planet. She combines the dispassion of science with the passion of art in a way many writers aspire to but few accomplish to such good effect. Whitty gives us the facts with which to reason and the poetry to make us care deeply. This is a breakthrough book everyone should read.

"All day we have been observing the surgeonfish..." Julia Whitty begins, and from that first sentence onward, the reader of "The Fragile Edge" is one of the party. Whitty is there with you, chuckling good-naturedly at the antics of an undersea creature or (more likely) of those crazy humans topside. In one of my favorite moments, an account of how the funky old hotel with its peculiar charms has been taken over by new owners whose pampered guests pay $500/night to lounge by the infinity pool is interrupted just at the moment when you think she might succumb to sentimentality or some other curmudgeonly temptation by her confession that, "I like the pool, too." Similarly, Whitty clearly and firmly presents her environmental concerns without, so to speak, wallowing in them. Instead of putting the book aside because you're tired of hearing about how the end of the world is at hand, you're motivated to keep swimming along with a guide whose curiosity and expertise extend to the natural history of molecular plants and animals, as well as the more glamorous sharks and dolphins, from Western science to Eastern metaphysics, and from dissolving atolls and bleached corals to the raw fish marinated in coconut milk served at a Tuvaluan wedding reception. Finally it's her love of the coral reefs she has come to know over many years of diving and study, rather than her fear that global warming will destroy them, that Whitty is most eager to share.

Freddy is helping his old friend, Mr. Camphor, with a couple of problems. One of them is his aunts; one is too gloomy and another is just plain mean. In addition, Mr. EHA and the rats are planning to take the old hotel. Can Freddy help? This book is great and uses lots of humor. You must read this book!

Freddy is back and going camping! This cute pig always makes every exciting now he is back and flipping flap jacks and solving the crime about the ghosts!!!

Probably before you were born, the bookmobile would stop off at our school and I looked forward to reading "Freddy" books. I enjoyed all of his adventures and friends (Jinx had a few adventures of his own). Now those books are collector's items and rarely show up in used book stores. As much as I miss the originals he is back and just as ornery as ever. One Day I hope the earlier one will get republished. In the mean time Even thought these books are geared towards young ones, they still can hold the attention of old codgers.

Kurt wise does a good job of illustrating and for those that have never reads Freddy you have a great mystery ahead of you.

My first encouner with Freddy the pig left me feeling like I had just found Tut's tomb. His stories are loaded with treasures-wit, well-developed characters, and clear evidence that Brooks understood and RESPECTED children's intellect and character. Two foretrotters Up!!

This may well be the best of the Freddy books written by Walter R. Brooks (its only competition is Freddy the Magician). Children and adults alike will find this one of the most fun books they've ever read. I can still remember the delicious chills I felt when reading this book at twelve, and still enjoy reading it today. As usual, Freddy gets into trouble trying to help friends -- Mr. Camphor to get rid of his aunts and an innkeeper whose hotel is haunted.

This beautiful book exposes so many of the abuses that Tennessee Walker showhorses suffer along the way to winning ribbons and trophies for greedy owners. It is a shame on the industry that these abuses STILL occur today. Offenders have even made a science out of covering up their transgressions and only get what amounts to a slap on the hand for getting caught. This book not only makes you despise the abuse but also respect and admire the proud history of this fantastic breed. The gentle horse who is the narrator in the book does everything he can to please people despite the awful way he is treated, and this is so typical of Tennessee Walking Horses. I think anyone who enjoys this breed or even anyone who loves horses at all should read this book. It is touching. I hope it helps turn the industry towards sound, naturally gaited horses.

Anyone who reads this book and is not motivated to change the Walking Horse training methods has no soul. The horrors that Walking Horses are put through in the name of beauty are absolutely and without a doubt the most cruel and unhumane practices on the face of the earth. If people would just appreciate the horses' natural ability and gait it would be a much more enjoyable association.

Every horse lover should read this book. It is so heartbreakingly true it will bring you to tears many times as you read. Someday this abuse has to be stopped. I love the way the book is written, with the horses telling the story. A very powerful book.Thank you, Mr Davis for writing this book. So many people choose not to see what is happening to these beautiful and naturally unique horses.

My family is just getting into the Walking Horse industry, and I felt this book was a good way to find out some of the history of the breed.

I was very upset of find out that these animals are treated in such a manner. It almost makes me embarressed to say that I want to be a owner and breeder of these fine animals.

All I can say, is that now that I know what is actually happening, I can try to do all I can to promote sound horses and help in the fight to get this to come to end someday.

More people need to read this book, and maybe someday there will be enough of a push to make all this torture end.

I showed pleasure Tennessee Walking horses for years and a padded horse on one occasion. I saw most all of the things mentioned in this book done to these wonderful horses, with perhaps one exception. Although I never sored any of my own personal horses, due to the fact I love them too much and a blue ribbon isn't that important to me, I was shown how to do it and encouraged to do it and did show horses which were sore (although I was not their owner but was riding them for their owner). I cared to much about my animals to sore them and was very interested in reading this book when I found out about it. It is pretty painful to read but it is very honest in describing what does happen to these wonderful horses. Unfortunately today the plantation pleasure horses are going through as much as the padded horses, only minus the pads. If only they could talk and Mr. Davis has done a really nice job giving them their due. I hope this book will enlighten many, but at the same time will not turn anyone away from this breed because it is a wonderful breed to own, ride and show; and all these things can be done successfully without abusing the horses. Funny how the characters in this book really remind me of some of the exact big time walking horse trainers and showmen I know of.

Those who want to learn about hockey - and not just what Alan Eagleson did to it - should run, not walk, to buy this book.
Conway's book is superb, and his work on Eagleson made him a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
It's a must-read for any sports writer, too. It's like having an "Investigative Journalism 101" class taught to you, and for a fraction of the money you'd pay at a university.

This is the most interesting book I have ever read. I studied it to do an oral presentation for Grade 9 English class a few years ago and was so intrigured by the Alan Eagleson story that, now in my first year of University, I am pursuing a career very similar to that of Alan Eagleson...one in which I would essentially deal with the business side of the NHL where I would love to make some sort of a positive influence, as Eagleson did. However, Alan Eagleson's corruption, which is described in this book, is an excellent example of how one person can cause a negative influence on many people's lives through illegitimacy and how public opinion of that person can change almost instantly as a result. Russ Conway did an excellent job of investigating Alan Eagleson, and his book is a wonderful summary of his work. I would recommend this book to anybody, whether they are a hockey fan or not.

Russ Conway has written a wonderful investigative piece about a man who is truly a disgraceful figure in the history of Canadian hockey. Russ brings forth, with his own agressive style, the wicked ways of a man who calling a crook is an understatement. First, he never backed down to get his answers and his writing is first-rate. Anyone who follows hockey should read about a man who almost destroyed it.

All hockey fans owe Russ Conway a debt of gratitude for helping rid hockey of the parasite Alan Eagleson. He documents Eagleson's criminal and disgusting behaviour in great detail, helping fans to better understand what hockey players faced in the past, the necessary background information for many of the issues facing pro hockey today. I haven't read such a gripping book since "Net Worth". Eagleson will be back in the courts again before long, no doubt willing to lie about the charges being brought forward by a number of retired hockey players. Read this book and you'll see that the players have justice on their team.

This is one of the most important sports books ever written. Through his exhaustive work, Russ Conway exposes the greed, corruption and financial swindling that plagued the NHL throughout Alan Eagelson's reign of terror and the financial and emotional price that so many players faced. Most importantly, Conway's work served as the catalyst for Mr. Eagleson's downfall and proving many player's assertions of corruption. Put simply, this is an important piece of journalism that every fan of sports should read, whether you are a hockey fan or not.

I loved this book - it has great ideas for games to do with just you and your horse or with a group of others as well. The instructions are clear, with nice pictures. A good choice for your horse library

Games on Horseback is becoming a well-deserved classic. Games range from the simplest that even a fairly inexperienced rider can handle, to more challenging games that require greater skill. The book is useful to instructors wanting to inject some fun into learning,and amateur riders and owners. Games are clearly explained with colorful photographs.

I bought this as a reference for a camp for kids with cancer and it is perfect. It has beginner to advanced games and suggestions for variations. Highly recommend it.

I help in teaching therapeutic riding, and I purhcased the book for some ideas of different games to incorporate into the lesson. The book was exactly what I needed. It has several great ideas, and you can easily adapt the games to fit the population you serve.

THIS BOOK IS GREAT FOR USING DURING GYMKHANA SEASON AND BATTLE OF THE CLUBS AS IT HAS ALL THE PATTERNS RULES AND PENALTIES ALL LISTED AND EXPLAINED
AWESOME BOOK

This book really is cool and worth the money. I ordered through Scholastic and paid a little bit less. My intent was to be able to teach my 8-year-old, 3rd grade daughter some cool principles, tricks, games for math so she could improve. She's (surprisingly, right) not interested in the book really. I think she's just a little bit too young for it. But I loved the book. When we work over the summer, I will do a little bit at a time with her: Prime Numbers lesson, history of number systems, etc. Little chunks should help improve her understanding and I think ALL kids should be exposed to the lessons in this book early.

It doesn't matter how old you are, if you were interested enough in mathematical books to click this review you should buy this book. My PhD engineer liked it, and so did my fifth graders.

This is a truly awesome book, full of fascinating insights, entertaining all the way through and amazingly wide in scope, ranging from school math to jokes, puzzles, games and high-level topics like chaos. Note that the "mistake" mentioned in the first editorial review is not really a mistake but an old joke: How many animals of each sex did Moses take on the Ark? The answer of course is "none - it was Noah who built the Ark!"

I found this book incredibly interesting, and I'm no maths fan - I leafed through it while babysitting for a friend who has a son of 9, then I bought the book for myself! It is so well written and extremely funny in parts. I would recommend this book to anyone of any age. I guarantee you will learn something new.

As a homeschooling parent, I have read a lot of math books written for children. Go Figure! is one of the freshest and most fun! The pages are saturated with information, and my one complaint is that it feels a bit visually overwhelming. Don't let the colorful pages fool you, this book is very meaty and will take some time to digest. My son really enjoyed the section on ancient number systems. The chart on pages 24-25 compares Babylonian, Hebrew, Roman, Mayan, Hindu, and others. Readers can also learn about the golden ratio and phi, prime numbers, Pascal's triangle, buckyballs, and much, much more. There are nearly 100 pages of information here, geared toward middle school and up.