Pennsylvania Books

Americans have long had an appreciation and familiarity with Ben Franklin as a founding father and pithy author of catchy sayings, most of which appeared in his "Poor Richard's Almanack." In this, his 300th birthday year, Dr. Stanley Finger shows that he was also an important man of medicine

Previously, Finger has written on other major figures in the history of science and medicine, including a number in his book, "Minds Behind the Brain." But this is his most exhaustive study yet, and one which, in his opinion, was long overdue. Indeed, Franklin's many biographers make little mention of his contributions to medicine, although they helped to shape the 18th-century medical landscape in major ways. To aid him in his research, Finger examined some 30,000 letters to and from Franklin, as well as other historical documents.

Benjamin Franklin comes across as consistently curious, empirical, and systematic in his observations about almost everything he encountered over the course of his 84-year long life. An element not often realized about Franklin was the degree to which he carried on correspondence and networked with other great minds of his era on a great variety of topics, including pertinent medical issues. This network and his own genius enabled him to see the benefits of early inoculation methods for smallpox, the risks of lead poisoning, the real causes of the common cold, and the importance of clean air. An accomplished swimmer and a weight lifter even into old age, he also recognized the need for exercise, and even noted the warming of the body and changes in heart rate accompanying different forms of exercise.

Franklin also helped some bright American students to be accepted into European medical schools and to get additional training in major hospitals. These individuals, including Morgan, Shippen, and Rush, would then be encouraged by Franklin to start the first medical school in America. Interestingly, he was instrumental in founding the first major hospital in the colonies, a charity institution for the physically or mentally ill, also located in Philadelphia. It is no wonder that, with his honorary degrees and memberships in the leading learned societies in Europe and America, Franklin came to be viewed as a physician when, in fact, he had only two years of formal schooling!

Ben Franklin has long been viewed as America's sage. As Finger shows, with his love of experiments and hard data, he was also one of Colonial America's leading men of medicine and a man willing to share his findings and views with a much wider audience.

"Doctor Franklin's Medicine", Stanley Finger, Univ. Penn. Press, Philadelphia, 2006 ISBN-13: 978-0-8122-3913-3, HC 330 pgs. PLUS 34 pgs. Notes, 15 pgs. Index, 6 1/4" x 9 1/2" C. 3 dozen B/W illustrations.

A published writer & Univ. Prof. of Psychology, Finger explores in comprehensive & detailed manner that leser known personae of Benjamin Franklin & purveys in great detail those medical contributions which most writers generally gloss over or have completely overlooked in most accounts of this man's remarkable life.

Franklin's life & level of medical knowledge is revealed in 4 parts: as existing during his lifetime firstly in the American colony, then Great Britain, and France & finally in Ben's aging years along with recital of his own maladies (gout, bladder stone & senescence). Franklin's brilliance, pragmatism & resorting to controlled experimentations establishes a uniquely high benchmark for Enlightenment, a characteristic of the 18th century.

The book is replete with his enterprises as a printer, journalist ("Poor Richard's Almanack"), inventor (Franklin stove, lightning rod, armonica, bifocals), investigator (electricity, fraud), societal needs (poor sick hospital, med-school, sci. societies, libraries), medicinal queries (lead poisoning, variolation, colds, fevers, gout & afflictions). His many sayings & his self-practiced emphases on hygiene, sleep, exercise & fresh air were as profoundly true then as now. He even penned "...snug as a bug in a rug" in an epitaph about a beloved squirrel for a grieving youngster - so I'm at a loss as to know what he did not do. This read is inspiring -- if you haven't done so, please do.

Psychology professor Stanley Finger extends his repertoire of books on the history of medicine with Doctor Franklin's Medicine, an intriguing look at founding father Benjamin Franklin's contributions to the field of medicine. In his life, Franklin founded the first major civilian hospital and medical school in the American colonies, studied the effectiveness of smallpox inoculation, invented bifocals and the "long-arm" to make life easier for the aged and afflicted, and became a proponent of improved preventive care, bedside medicine, and personal hygiene. Perhaps most fascinating is his personal battle to debunk the eighteenth-century medical fad of mesmerism. A handful of black-and-white illustrations intersperse this sober, thoroughly researched and singularly amazing account of a truly accomplished man who pushed forward medical innovations and improvements, with beneficial repercussions to this day.

The author's stated objectives are to examine Franklin's medical contributions, show how his knowledge was influenced by eighteenth-century medicine, and describe how his life and medical views were shaped by his own chronic conditions.

Franklin's views on the importance of exercise, eating and drinking modestly, breathing fresh air, obtaining a good night's sleep and avoiding things dangerous to the health are described. His improvements in stoves, furnaces and ventilation systems contributed to disease prevention. Franklin used Poor Richard's Almanac as a vehicle to make colonists aware of lead poisoning, and the importance of getting inoculated for small pox, after losing his son to this disease. He used electrical shock therapy to treat depression. His bifocals and the long arm made life easier for the aged and infirm

This book is more than a listing of Franklin's medical contributions. Dr. Finger recounts Franklin's role in founding the Pennsylvania Hospital and the first medical school in the colonies. The Library Company and American Philosophical Society were started by Franklin to foster the exchange of medical information to a much wider audience. Franklin favored hard evidence based on repeated observations and experiments when approaching his own chronic conditions of gout and a large bladder stone.

This very readable book exceeds its stated objectives. The author often lets Franklin speak for himself, the annotations are scholarly, and the illustrations enhance the masterfully crafted text.

Hundreds of books have been written about Franklin, but this is the first book to emphasize Franklin's contributions to medicine, a part of his life largely overlooked until now. It definitely should be read by anyone who wants to know more about Franklin, not just professional historians or people engaged in the healing arts.

This is a book every struggling novice dressage rider should read. What a great perspective on the nearly-impossible we're all striving for! Just when I'd begun to feel as if First Level was out of reach of my "Not Really" Level talents, Odgers jumped (with great agility and fellowship) on my dream with her detailed research and great understanding of what really constitutes success in dressage. I needed to be jumped on. I was beginning to dream about my horses working "on the bit", when in truth, I'm not sure I'd recognize it if the horse announced it in perfect English! Now I feel free to blow off first (and second!) levels with impunity since only third is worth the effort. No more tests, just endless lessons. Joy! Clinics are a superb way of life, particularly when they include lovely food and the occasional glass of sherry, and I can talk the talk without ever having to have my white breeches cleaned again.

Odgers is a joy to read, and someone I would definitely enjoy on a horsey play-date.

I came across this book just months after starting my own fledgling efforts at dressage. It is probably one of the biggest reasons I have kept at it since and not been intimidated or overwhelmed.

This book gives you new eyes thru which to see the stuffed shirt parts of dressage as something demanding and worthy, but silly and laughable! I am eternally grateful to Odgers for blessing us with this gift of humor and comic relief. If i could i would buy one for everyone in my barn!

Anyone who has ridden dressage will find this book hilarious. After I read it, I purchased three more for my trainer and two of my fellow "DQ's". We all talk about certain passages and the silly and sometimes sad truths of the typical dressage journey. A must read!

What a funny book! Ms. Odgers experiences trancend the world of dressage as her experiences contained universal truths that I am sure are felt across equine disciplines.

Highly recommend it for riders of all ilks. AND it makes a greate gift!

I agree completely with the review in the July issue of Library Journal and couldn't say it better myself. The Journal stated: "In this extensively researched, detailed, and skillfully written work of natural history and familial squabbles, Stroud, a scientific scholar and author of Thomas Say, New World Naturalist, presents a historical, political, and scientific account on the leading ornithologist of the 19th century--who also happened to be Napoleon's nephew. In a clear, precise, and witty manner, she conveys the life of Charles-Lucien Bonaparte (1803-57)from birth to death through his own letters and publications and through the letters and correspondence of his contemporaries: Agassiz, Audubon, Gould, Huxley, Owen, Say. and many other great naturalists of the 19th century. A wonderful read, this biography, the first ever of Charles-Lucien, includes a vast bibliography and over 30 pages of notes. Recommended for all libraries." Review by Michael R. Blake, formerly with Harvard Univ. Lib. Alexander McCurdy

Adding The Emperor of Nature to your "must read" list will be one resolution that you will find a joy to keep. The author's graceful style in this scholarly, yet never pedantic, biography of the complex, heretofore little recognized naturalist and ornithologist, Charles-Lucien Bonaparte, is sparked by insightful and witty asides. Players in this intellectual and political history--the contraversial Bonaparte family, both its men and women, James Audubon, Thomas Say and other natural historians--emerge as distinct personalities as we read Bonaparte's lively--often impassioned--correspondence. The drama of Bonaparte's life, marked by his lifelong dedication to the science of natural history, is deftly enhanced by rich descriptive detail as each "scene is set". Equal attention is given to the underbrush of family and scientific disputes and jealousies, to the complications of early 19th century travel and the preservation of specimens, and to physical and psychological health issues. The abundant illustrations throughout, including many from the author's own collection, (it is always so disappointing when the illustrations in a biography, no matter how erudite, are limited to a tiny center folio of tired old photographs!) were a delight to this fascinated reader.

One does not have to be an ornithologist, and I am not, to become absorbed in this scholarly yet eminently approachable biography. The life of the nephew of the Emperor Napoleon is placed confidently in the turbulent times on both sides of the Atlantic. While its focus is on the man who "helped to lay the foundation for the modern science of ornitholoy, upon which Darwin based his theory of evolution," it is, at the same time, a history of the era in which he lived. Ms. Stroud turns quite a phrase ("the ground rumbling with revolution") and I surprised myself by reading it from start to finish in one long pleasant afternoon.

Fans of the Bonaparte family and of 19th-century science have had to wait a long time for a biography of Charles-Lucien Bonaparte, Napoleon's nephew and the leading ornithologist of his age -- this is the first. Happily, it has been worth the wait. Stroud has crafted a masterly portrait of a gregarious, complicated, hugely talented man, who published the first volume of his famous American Ornithology when he was just 22. By drawing on Bonaparte's own voluminous correspondence and those of others to and about him, which fortunately survive in great abundance, Stroud brings alive a man full of contradictions. Bonaparte was fiercely devoted to his scientific efforts, though drawn away from them by radical politics. He loved his wife and children dearly but neglected them, often for months at a time. He was ever concerned about money, yet on numerous occasions gambled away what little he had. Bonaparte's time and contemporaries are equally well-drawn, with some of the foremost scientific, literary, and political figures of the day drifting in and out of Bonaparte's rich life with pleasing regularity -- luminaries like Louis Agassiz, James Fenimore Cooper, Isadore Geoffrey Saint-Hilaire, and, of course, Napoleon himself. One of the book's great contributions is a highly readable fleshing out of Bonaparte's close yet often tempestuous relationship with Audubon. Stroud has enlivened Emperor of Nature with luscious illustrations (including a beautiful color insert) chronicling every stage of Bonaparte's life, and she supplies complete reference notes and bibliography. If you liked Stroud's biography of the naturalist Thomas Say, you'll love this.

I found this book to be extremely informative and easy to follow. The illustrations were useful and guide helpful

I was able to meet the author of this book. I found both the book and the author very helpful. Bill has been hunting mushrooms all his life, and actually Penn State Press came to him to write this book and with good reason. The book has great photos and useful descriptions that are useful for the novice mushroom hunters, but plenty helpful for the experinced too. The author also give mushroom walks. I can't wait to go on one.

Author of "Hobo Finds A Home" and editor "Of A Predatory Heart"

It is a wonderful book. Lots of color photographs and packed with detailed descriptions of mushrooms. The field guide allows the reader to identify mushrooms that are common to the Mid Atlantic, but also the Eastern United States. Included are many tasty recipes that make mushroom hunting the joy that it is. It is an essential guide for both amateur and professional alike.

As a PA resident, I found this book invaluable. It is clearly written, and has great photos as well. Anyone intersted in mushrooms should... make that must, have several references, but if you live in this part of the world this is the first book to look at! Other books I've read are not always clear as to a specific mushroom's distribution. I know the fungi in this book are found here, and that focus makes identification so much easier.

Although this study is situated within some african american communities in the Carolinas, it - rather than reading gospel as a "folk expression" - takes into account gospels deep involvement in the devotional life and christian experience of its "audiences" and "artists" (each concept here inapropriate within a more christian frame of referance). To acheive this the author Glenn Hinson (who's a folklorist/anthropologist) approaches christian onthology and epistemology in a more respectful way than what has been common in the social sciences. At least in order to understand the believers point of view (concerning gospel) one has to pay closer attention to their stories. Much space is therefore left to (nonreduced) extended citations from various interviews, live testemonies, prayers, sermons, songs, private conversaution and other sources. Hinson also deliberately shares with the readers from his own process of trying to understand, his own failures and ethical problems in the dual role as seeker/researcher. A very sympathetic book indeed, and a human achievement I hold in high regard.

Fire in My Bones is an examination of Afro-American gospel surveying the gospel music program as a whole, considering how it works to join performer and audience, prayer and singing into part of the worship service and how Afro-American Christians have made gospel an integral part of their world. Fire in My Bones is a fine in-depth examination of devotions and devotional services.

This book is an excellent study of religious expression and gospel music in African-American congregations. Hinson takes his readers through an anniversary service for a gospel group while providing thorough and insightful descriptions of salient aspects of the context for the religious expression that he presents in this sensitive and articulate study. Although Hinson allows for a range of interpretations about what the participants are experiencing in religious devotion, he makes a strong argument that is too easily dismissed in academic research. Namely, rather than explaining away encounters with the supernatural as physical or psychological phenomena, the researcher will gain a different understanding of culture if he or she takes the claims of a believer as a valid starting point for ethnographic inquiry. Hinson suggests that experiencing divine presence provides a new way for readers to truly "understand" what he writes of in this book. I have attended countless gospel services, and Hinson's book provides an excellent resource for gaining a greater awareness of what I have seen as believers "have church." Hinson's methods, theories, and insights as a folklorist provides an incredibly rich and accurate way to complete ethnographic study. This book is also beautifully illustrated with the superb photography of Roland Freeman.

This examination of Afro-American gospel examines the gospel music program as a whole, considering how it works to join performer and audience, prayer and singing into part of the worship service and how Afro-American Christians have made gospel an integral part of their world. A fine in-depth examination of devotions and devotional services.

Thanks to Thomas Poffenberger's book, From Germany to Antietam, I can now confirm where my mother's gggrandfather Daniel Poffenberger was born. After 20 some years of researching, I now know Daniel was born in Berks County, Pennsylvania, who his parents were and when and where he was baptized.

The history all through the book is an asset to any reader with an interest in the history of Berks county as well as Germany. I am indebted to Thomas Poffenberger for the book and the hours of research he and his wife did.

Dr.Poffenberger has answered all the questions about my father's ancestors that I never would have been able to discover myself. I recommend that anyone who has read this exceptional book goes to Mistelgau,Germany which is in a beautiful rural part of Bavaria.In this little village is the 14th century church preserved with it's original carvings and painted icons where the Poffenberger family worshipped.It just gave me goosebumps to think that my ancestors stood where I was standing.

I enjoyed this book very much. Mr. Poffenberger did alot of reseach and I really enjoyed learning about where they came from in Germany. There was even some pictures! We had been searching,hoping to find a clue linking our family to the Pennsylvannia group and with his help we have done that. The book also gives you history in Germany and in Pennsylvannia. The Poffenbergers were certainly in the middle of all the early wars and managed to survive.

I have been tracing this family for about 5 years now. Thomas Poffenbarger filled in some of the gaps and answered the many questions that come up after you find that next clue. I read it cover to cover in two days. I went to Germany 15 years ago and had a wonderful visit with the friendly locals, this makes me want to go back soon.

If you plan to through bike/hike the GAP, this is a helpful planning tool and an entertaining read of the history of this route.

This is what a tour book should be - it has great maps, detailed descriptions of the history of the trail and how you can see what remains of it. There are also many interesting sidebars and annecdotes which make the history more relevant and connect it to things you already know.

Absolutely a superb book. The author is a cartographer whose maps are the basis for many local trails. In this book he shares the history of the area and tells the stories behind the things you see on the trail. This book helps you understand the area you're passing through. Well written, highly usable; glad I bought it.

The Great Allegheny Passage Companion: Guide To History And Heritage Along The Trail by writer, editor, map maker, and enthusiastic bicyclist Bill Metzger is a detailed, mile-by-mail guidebook to the Allegheny Passage Trail. Especially written for bikers, hikers, rail buffs, armchair travelers and the non-specialist general reader interested in learning more about the colorful past of the great state of Pennsylvania, The Great Allegheny Passage Companion is replete with extensive historical anecdotes for every leg of the journey distinguishing this especial guide. Nicely enhanced with a profusion of black-and-white photographs, maps, and solid travel advice, The Great Allegheny Passage Companion is an invaluable travel planning resource and reference for anyone seeking to fully experience what the Allegheny Passage has to offer the contemporary traveler.

True Color

I, a son of Wilkes-Barre, spent weekends with my father and grandfather in the Heights Section of this fabled coal-town. Though, my time there came years after Cohen's published street work, I can still relate to those dusty images, a virtual urban playground for little boys. Tackle football in the backyards, bordered by massive, dilapidated fences; the distinct, sharp smell of cigarettes in the hands of kids no older than 13; boarded windows, with peep-holes just my height. The alleys I walked never struck me as eerie, they were the norm, they were Wilkes-Barre and to some degree the same is true today. Cohen's unique visual-ethnographic study of urban banality, makes beautiful the unusual and awkward character of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

I lived on Grim Street . In the mid 1970's I lived in the Heights Section of Wilkes-Barre Pa where Mr Cohen did many of the photos in this fine collection. He was a quiet fixture on those streets on a late Sunday afternoon. One would see the tall lanky stranger in his army fatigue jacket and horn rimmed glasses walking along those streets occassionally stopping to quickly photograph a stray dog or an unwashed child along the sidewalk. There was almost a random approach to his subjects but he would bend and sometimes stoop as he would click off 4 or 5 quick "snaps" of his subject and then be off after his next subject. I was in my early 20's at the time and curious as to how anyone could find interest in those mundane often grimy if not grim scenes in that neighborhood. I now have the answer over 30 years later. This fascinating collection evokes a time and place that could represent any of our inner city neighborhoods. The black and white of the pictures captures the mood and feel of the subjects. I recommend this volume as a must have for any serious student of photography or urban life over the past century.

Mark Cohen is a restless poet of a photographer. In GRIM STREET he demonstrates his enormous ability to grasp a winking moment of life in the back streets, isolated fleeting views of the ordinary made extraordinary. This very fine book of photographs is less attuned to compositionally correct images as emotionally charged ones. As such it is a monograph of the smarmy, dark, seedy and at times embarrassingly immediate life of the underbelly of America as represented by the streets of Wilkes-Barre, PA.

Cohen's successful forays in to this territory are accompanied by 'interviews' conducted by Anne Wilkes Tucker and Thomas Southall. The composite result is a book that 'reads' like a novel and will remain compelling present in the mind's eye long after perusing it. Fine work! Grady Harp, August 05

"A lot of it is mood driven, but I don't exactly know where the motive and inspiration to take pictures comes from. So it's very spontaneous work; there's not a lot really to plan." So it would seem at first glance upon Mark Cohen's masterful collection of work presented in his first (and hopefully not last) book Grim Street . From this revealing quote by the author, we are lead to believe that Cohen himself discovers in his darkroom much of the beauty portrayed in his work.
As anyone who has followed Cohen's work knows, Mark has been influenced greatly by the renowned street photographer Cartier-Bresson with his ability to capture the unfolding "decisive moment." But Cohen's work is anything but unfolding, on the contrary; it is literally in-your-face obtrusive, grabbing on film fleeting sublime moments, otherwise lost forever in eternity. One can almost amusingly imagine Cohen, armed with his trade mark flash and wide angle lens, scurrying around a photo-opportunity with Bresson. While Bresson contemplates from a distance the "decisive moment" to release the shutter; Cohen (in his own words) uses "grab shots" often without even the use of a viewfinder to capture what could be called "multiple moments." It is apparent from this exquisite body of work that Mark Cohen is the heir apparent to the recently deceased Bresson, and, one might say, an "impatient" 21st Century updated version of the master.
Ignoring for a moment the obvious psychological and sociological content of Cohen's work, the visual subject matter of Grim Street is indeed at first glance difficult to digest. It is anything but "cheery", often times seedy, sometimes voyeuristic, and occasionally downright lascivious. But the ultimate irony is that these qualities of course are passing and superficial, as fleeting as Cohen's flick of the shutter. For it's only with pausing and contemplating the work that the disquieting subject matter "disappears" and the true mastery reappears. That perfect wisp of hair, that "just so" turn of a cat's tail, that flawlessly lit foreground and carefully nuanced background, those repeating diagonals inside exquisite compositions, and all the artistic universals that forever have withstood the test of time, are there to be discovered in this collection.
May this reviewer be so bold as to suggest an answer to Mr. Cohen's own query about the source of his inspiration referred to earlier? A grim street is down-and-dirty, mean and often times dangerous. Surely there is no inspiration to be found in such a secular reality, unless one has the genius and magical gift to capture a transcendent glimpse of a more perfect place. The source of that gift, the inspiration is not temporal. Undoubtedly we're all traveling on a type of "grim street." Thank God we have inspired and graced artists such as Mark Cohen to give us an occasional glance at our idyllic destination.

This book is as complete a work on the development of USN torpedoes used in World War II as one is likely to find.

The work covers the topic in a clear, easy to understand format delving in to the development of these weapons systems. It covers the technical developments without becoming so technical as to make the text difficult to read.

This book will make any reader aware of this story and the tecnology/development of a weapons system that is often mentioned but rarel explained in any depth.

This book is an excellent reference source for anyone interested in the development of American torpedoes during WW2 and is highly recommended.
The reason for the four star rating is because the work contains some minor errors and is unclear in some more important areas. OK first the minor errors. Page 68 describes hydrogen peroxide as "H2O2O". Funny when I received my degree hydrogen peroxide was H2O2. Next the line drawing on page 42 illustrates what is known as a "steam" type torpedo and yet the illustration is labelled with an electric motor as being the propulsion unit even though the illustration contains no batteries. It does show the air and fuel flasks of a "steam" type torpedo and the description accompanying the drawing is consistent with a "steam" type torpedo. Actually, although small, the drawing shows what appears to be a turbine and bevel gear unit- again consistent with a "steam" type torpedo engine- even if they are labelled as an electric motor.
OK So much for the minor errors. I consider them unimportant as they in no way detract from the value of the book and any skilled reader can easily compensate.
The problem comes on page 48 where the Japanese "Long Lance" type 93 torpedo is described as being driven by "liquid hydrogen peroxide". Although not a US torpedo this book is so authoritative and well written that all its disclosures clearly carry weight. Given the state of the art in the 1930's I would tend to believe that compressed pure oxygen gas was used in the type 93(ie not H2O2) and indeed a number of web pages support this view. (search for yourself to check this out).
Unfortunately the author does not help matters as at page 135 he says "during the war the japanese skippers preferred the "oxygen" hydrogen peroxide torpedoes". Now although when hydrogen peroxide decomposes it does produce oxygen as well as high temperature steam it is a different chemical species to oxygen and within the naval world an "oxygen torpedo" is one that uses compressed O2 gas. A peroxide torpedo is a peroxide torpedo. I have been unable to track down the authors references for the peroxide Long Lance but from the book they do not appear to be primary sources. Given that the Japanese Long Lance had twice the speed and around five time the range of the best US torpedo and came as an almighty shock to the allies I would have preferred some more details from the author to support his views on the Long Lance.

Silent Victory contains a fair amount of data regarding the torpedo problems experienced by the U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet Submarine Force during the Second World War. This book goes into considerably more detail regarding the background to those problems and their solutions--both bureaucratic and engineering--and how U.S. torpedo technology literally moved two generations ahead during wartime.

This is a magnificent book about the torpedo development in the US Navy. Mainly focused in the WWII period, the book details all the problems that plagued US torpedoes and the way they were solved. This is a great book. Every person interested in WW II naval technology, submarines or naval weaponry shall be delighted with it.

I really enjoyed this book. It portrays the Moravian community of North Carolina in great detail, while never losing sight of an engrossing plot featuring Nicholas Blum, who needs to grow up, and Abbigaiil Till, who needs to grow out--out and away from the father who has been running her life.

There is a great secondary romance as well, between Nicholas' brother and the woman Nicholas thought he was in love with once upon a time. The Blum family was interesting enough that I plan to go back and read Stanton's first book, WILD INDIGO, and I'm hoping for more books set in this time period and place.

Another great romance novel from Judith Stanton. I'm very particular about romance: I can't tolerate dishrag heroines, obnoxious heroes, or contrived plots. Abbigail and Nicholas were perfect. If you like great storytelling about intelligent, passionate, funny people, check out this book.

His Stolen Bride was a wonderful follow-up to Wild Indigo. Nicholas is a warm and honorable hero, and the history was beautifully done. Ms. Stanton's stories are never sappy, but always touching. This is the best romance I've read this year.

Unlike many of the historical romances I read, in "His Stolen Bride," Judith Stanton has used her setting - the Moravian community of Salem, North Carolina, in 1795 - to shape her story and the actions of her characters.

The hero, Nicholas Blum, is something of a square peg in a round hole: an energetic, charismatic man in a society that values restraint and conformity. Sent by the community to Bethlehem, PA, to learn how to be a shopkeeper, Nicholas finds himself thinking more and more about his employer's daughter, Abbigail Till, while still considering himself betrowthed to Catherina Baumgarten, back in Salem. When he learns that Catherina has been betrothed to his younger brother, Matthias, Nicholas' impetuous reaction precipitates a crisis.

I found Nicholas an unusually interesting hero, both because of his imperfections and because of the conflict between his natural character and the constraints imposed by the community he loves. Abbigail was a feisty heroine, if a bit short for my taste...why can't we have a few tall heroines?...and the setting was memorable.