Florida Books

John Hann's works are wonderfully accessible to both the specialized student of Florida history and the general reader, and this book is no exception.

Hann's studies of the Native American cultures of what today is the Florida panhandle and Alabama, particularly his study of the groups ancestral to the Creek Confederacy, is particularly helpful in understanding the dynamics of the struggles between Spain and England in the Southeast during the colonial period, as well as giving us a glimpse of the personalities, Native American (such as the "Emperor" Brims), Spanish, and English, that helped to shape the world we know.

An excellent read and very well researched. I highly recommend this book.

I got this book for my husband for Father's Day. The book was a tad pricey but learned quickly that it was well worth it. I was excited to find that this book had finally been written seeing as there is not one to my knowledge that has the unique approach that John Hann has used. He touches on many aspects of the Native American culture in the west Florida area making the book informative in many different historical aspects. In my opinion it is well written in the sense that it is informative but not "over my head" as someone that is far from an expert in this area. Besides the new knowledge it provides, it is simply good, interesting reading. We are lucky to have people like Mr. Hann that dedicate so much time to bring us new knowledge and answers to the treasure that is the history of the Native Americans. Also, thank you for focusing on such a localized area of Florida (I live in Quincy, FL)!

This book is a must have for anyone interested in native trees of south florida.

This book is truly a classic and a must-have for anyone interested in identifying and enjoying the trees and shrubs of the Keys. This wonderful guide was written and photographed by a brilliant and engaging naturalist who first saw the Florida Keys in the early 1900's from the caboose of Henry Flagler's Overseas Railroad train. For more than 50 years Paul Scurlock studied the flora of the Keys and condensed his work into this colorful, easy-to-read and use field guide. Paul Scurlock was a classic old-school naturalist and this book is a fitting testament to his work.

I like this book because it breaks down the different types of ecologies we see in Florida, unlike other books. Florida has so many different ecological niches that a one size fits all approach doesn't work. This book will show you how to fine tune "Florida Natural". It is the most complete book available, but is lacking in information on some wild plants, such as the pawpaw tree and its edible fruits and lovely blooms. (A real favorite in my garden.) In spite of these shortcomings, it is the best book on the market. I was able to use this book along with a Florida Aududon guide to collect seeds from the wild and harvest some plants at building sites about to be razed. This was a big savings over a nursery. Further, besides the savings in water bills, the upkeep is minimal. We have 4 acres and went natural and were able to get rid of our gardener. We have noticed and influx of butterflies and birds in our yard, along with other woodland animals. This book will help you create your own Eden the natural way. Highly recommend.

This little book is deceptively slim. Actually, it provides a compact but comprehensive overview of the significant differences between creating a natural landscape with native plants vs. a conventional contemporary Florida landscape of decorative exotics. It will give you a context within which the other native plant books can become useful to you.

I've been poring over books about building stuff (cabinets, furniture, built-ins, etc) on and off for years now, but rarely buy any. You can buy full-book advertisements like the books from Black and Decker (which aren't bad, actually), but you kind of need to buy the tools too.

Same goes for all the other books: they generally assume you'll somehow magically acquire a shop full of tools (not to mention plenty of space to put your shop), as well as all the materials.

Mr. Frost is a wise old dude, who has put in a lot of years of living and knows a lot of good stuff. If you're afraid power tools like me--I've known way too many people over the years with fewer than average fingers due to them--then this is a great introduction.

But if you're interested in graphic design (Mr. Frost designed the Gilbey's Gin bottle long ago), this is an awesome book as well: throughout, the illustrations illustrate not just the projects but also how to do illustration and graphic design.

And if you just feel inadequate because your dad never showed you how to use a saw or gave you positive feedback when you were learning something, well, you should get therapy--but also get this book. Mr. Frost is a gentle and sensible teacher, and his common sense comments (on using a power jigsaw: "Very little skill is needed to operate this saw, except to *remember not* to put your other hand *under* the board to feel the blade when it's running!") are more sincere than condescending.

Watch out, though, because someone forgot to proof read the manuscript (or else left lots of boo-boos in); it doesn't matter, it's still a great book.

So turn off "Yankee Workshop" (anyone could make *anything* with a 20x40 workshop and a hundred thousand or so in tools). This book will take you from the simplest of projects (a pair of sawhorses) to more challenging projects without breaking the bank.

I bought this book after buying his, "Whacky Toys, Whirligigs & Whatchamacallits" book. His writing style is truly clever and engaging, and his knowledge of the subjects he writes about is deep and beyond well rounded.

Even if you never actually pick up some tools and craft all the projects in this book, it's a great read, and Mr. Frost shares his wisdom on many topics, not just woodworking. It's philosophical without being ponderous or windy, and extremely practical. I can't praise this book enough, and consider myself blessed to have both of Mr. Frost's books. They fill in so many little gaps in my woodworking and tool knowledge (like the other reviewer, I have read tons of other woodworking books). This book has real "soul", and I urge anyone even remotely interested in this topic to buy this book ASAP! It's truly amazing what one can do with a few simple tools and a little bit of practical knowledge.

The book is a good reference source for Reconstruction in Florida. The author covers the subject well, and the bibliography is excellent. It's the place to begin.

This first book gives us an expectation of the great work to come from this historian of Reconstruction Negroes in the South. Dr. Richardson has been cited by many of his fellow historians as an expert in this field and many of his students will attest to this fact. Any scholar or student interested in this era of our history can use this volume as a jumping off place for the books that followed: the history of Fisk University, the study of the Amer. Missionary Assoc., et. al. Beginning with this wonderful book Joe Martin Richardson has set the standad by which we can judge subsequent works on this area of history. It proves itself as well researched, well writter and well thought out from inception to conclusion. Keep wtriting for us, Professor Richardson.

This book fills a much-needed gap in the literature on circuses, which for the most part have only examined three-ring circuses--despite the fact that circus in the United States had one ring before it had three. These books focusing on three-ring spectacles have also been, for the most part, rather dry histories that take all of the excitement out of a topic that is (to me) very stimulating. This book treats circus as the art form that it is, and puts interesting individuals and characters back into the story of the American circus with its excellent personal interviews. I wish other literature on the circus could be as engaging.

In America circus books come in two categories: Children books, giving an infantile look at a kind of circus which exists, most of the time, only in the author's imagination; and "circus history" books, usually compilations of previous works on the subject repeating the same anecdotes, collection of trivia, and "facts" whose sources are often mysterious (and thus make these facts often arguable).

Ernest Albrecht's work is different: It is a knowledgeable study of the state of the American circus today -- more specifically, its recent evolution from a three-ring, commercial spectacle often disconnected with the reality of the modern world to a contemporary form of performing art.

This evolution -- or revolution -- didn't happen in one day, and its pioneers (Pickle Family Circus, Big Apple Circus and, of course, Cirque du Soleil) were not born out of thin air. When and where did their creators find their inspiration? Who were these revolutionary creators? Why did people who, by in large, had originally nothing to do with the circus decided to reinvent it? And did they actually reinvent anything?

Ernest Albrecht, a theater critic who came to develop a keen interest in the "new circus" movement, asked himself these questions and went on to find answers.

Here is a rarity in this country: a book on the circus that dispenses with the usual nostalgia attached to anything regarding the American circus and treats its subject seriously, as would be any other perfornming art. As such, it is a must read for anyone interested in the theater, the performing arts in general, and (evidently) the circus arts. It is also a must read for any curious mind -- any one who wishes to see the circus from a point of view different from what P.T. Barnum wanted us to believe when he launched his "Greatest Show On Earth" as a uniquely American commercial venture more than one and a half century ago.

Dominique Jando

If you enjoyed The DaVinci Code, you will surely be fascinated by this book, which demonstrates that the Gawain-Pearl poet "encoded" mathematics, music, architecture and more within the expertly crafted pages of his manuscript.

One need not be a medievalist to find this book compelling. Mathematicians will enjoy this book's demonstration that mathematics and language can work together toward a poet's goal. Yet one need not be a mathematician to appreciate the Gawain-Pearl poet's stunning artistic triumph, which this book so masterfully illustrates.

If you enjoy finding "codes" and patterns and symmetries in literature, which not only challenge the reader but also enrich the meaning and enjoyment of the text, you will surely appreciate this book. Professor Condren has unlocked the rich mysteries of a little-known medieval manuscript with this thought-provoking book, which may even change the way you look at literature.

Though a dense and academic-oriented work, Professor Edward Condren's The Numerical Universe of the Gawain-Pearl Poet also opens a lay window into the medieval mind as important and accessible as Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror. This may not have been the Professor's intent, to appeal to a non-academic audience, but the book's conclusions are immensely appealing and compelling. The author strips away 600 years of modern thought and filters, and in the process manifests the fourteenth century intellectual and spiritual mind.

Together, the four poems in the Cotton Nero A.x manuscript are a literary, pre-decimal attempt at using irrational numbers, arithmetic and harmonic ratios, and their link to infinity to describe The Infinite. The Indescribable can have metaphors via mathematics and the rest of the quadrivium that effect God's true values and instruction for man.

Professor Condren layers direct observation, a history of academic criticism, as well as directly leaning upon Plato, Augustine, and Boethius to fix the primacy of math in the medieval philosophical consciousness. Mathematics was seen "to bridge the worlds of flesh and spirit." (p. 3) This should not be a stretch when we reconsider the "belief" in alchemy.

Professor Condren has to ride multiple analytic horses to build his case. He combines Phi expansions implying infinite growth, concentric rings implying spiritual growth, to iconoclastic textural analysis to build his argument and coordinate disparate disciplines well enough to convince readers who may only have knowledge in one of the disciplines that he relies upon.

The Pearl Poet uses the medieval quadrivium as Umberto Eco uses semiotics and James Joyce used Shakespeare. By grounding his four poems in the quadrivium, the poet makes use of a known system for better explicating his world. Just as readers should not attempt Joyce's Ulysses without the New Bloomsday Book, one should not begin any of the poems of the Cotton Nero A.x manuscript without The Numerical Universe of the Gawain-Pearl Poet.

Joyce Marie Taylor's newest romance novel, Off Course- A Seaworthy Romance, is an absolute gem! This book has everything! It's a love story and a mystery, as well as a tragicomic adventure on the high seas. You find yourself falling in love with every one of the crazy, goofy characters she has created in this book. She knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat, wondering what's going to happen next, up until the very end! She'll also have you itching to visit South Florida and the Keys with her descriptions of the scenery and the events in this thoroughly enjoyable tale. This is a must-read for any devout romantic or anyone who just wants to read a darned good book!

As the author of this novel, I can assure you it really is a great book to take to the beach, since that's where a lot of the story takes place, and it's also where much of it was written. If you like romance, with a little mystery, then Off Course - A Seaworthy Romance, is the book for you. If you're also a dreamer like me, you'll identify with the heroine, and if you like humor, well, there's plenty to go around. For more Hollywood Beach stories, check out my other novel, The Ruby Con, and figure out the mystery of the Johns!

I heard about this book and it will be the perfect gift for my FL friend. We chose the desert for retirement but love FL too.

My husband and I are considering retiring in Florida so picked up On Florida Time: A Lighthearted Look to help us get a feel for the place. What a smart move. The book offers insights and observations difficult to find from more ordinary sources. I found Judy Nyhus's unique perspective refreshing, witty, and honest... what I was hoping for to understand the "real Florida." My husband, a non-reader, stayed up late reading the book and laughing aloud. For me, that easily makes for five stars.

This book about the Second Seminole War, written by an American officer who served in it, is an outstandingly useful source for researchers containing much first hand information unavailable elsewhere. It includes eyewitness accounts of the war by both American soldiers and Seminole warriors which give a fascinating insight into America's longest war against its native peoples and which cost $20,000.000 andthe lives of more than 1,500 Americans. It is essential for academic research and I would also recommend it to anyone interested in the conflict between whites and American Indians. A masterpiece of its kind.

Sprague's account of the Florida War is, to my knowledge, the definitive source for any student of this American conflict. It is one of the few book-length works on the subject and, without any doubt, the most complete treatment of the war. Sprague includes letters from the commanders, copies of U.S.-Seminole treaties, as well as detailed reproductions of civilian accounts of some events. The style of writing employed by Sprague is easy to read and hardly ever dry as his personal passion comes through in his voice, without overbearing didacticism.

For anyone interested in the history of the Seminole people or U.S.-Native American conflicts, this book is a must have for your library!