Virginia Books

This is a heart-wrenching account of the lives lost on April 16, 2007. This tragedy will never leave me, but neither will Lauren McCain's words. Her faith, evident through her journal entries, her words of praise and her love for God have touched me so strongly that I think of her and her words of praise daily. She lived her life so deeply for someone so young and she will continue to witness to others through this book and inspire others as she has truly inspired me. She is a true child of God.

Some stories stay with you. This is one. You'll find yourself thinking of it long after you put it down, and you'll be happy you spent the time doing it!

I started reading this book last night and just could not put it down.

What an amazing story and what a special young lady Lauren McCain must have been. His story is an absolute inspiration and her parents ae very special as well.

While interviewing the author Pat Robertson said, "People asked, 'Where was God when this happened?' He was right there." And that point is made throughout this book. Award-winning journalist and author Beth Lueders brings her years of experience to bear in crafting a book that not only tells about a tragedy and its aftermath, but challenges us all to "lift our eyes" and see the good that can come from even the worst mass-murder in U.S. history.

Besides the well-written story, the book includes a comprehensive appendix with tips on how to help or receive help--both from a biblical and psychological point of view--when trauma invades our comfortable world.

Using the story and journals of VT freshman Lauren McCain, whose love for Christ emanates from her like a sweet fragrance, combined with other witness testimony and police accounts, Lueders explores the events of the Virginia Tech tragedy and tackles tough issues like God's presence in tragedy and whether forgiveness is necessary and possible.

This is not the first tragedy where someone was asked "Where was God?" or suggested vengeance and blame were more probable reactions than forgiveness. The book covers well the accuracy of understanding God is with us even in the midst of the fallout from the evil humans choose to enact. As for forgiveness, it examples and guides a truth I have learned to live long ago and wish more people knew - with Jesus Christ in your life, true forgiveness is possible and life can go forward.

The best parts of the book are taken from Lauren's journals, her myspace page, and statements from friends and family which show Lauren not as a victim of violence, but a victorious inheritor of Heaven. The book gives you permission to grieve, and power to know what a difference God really does make when the relationship is real.

I bought this because my future sister-in-law has PKU. Her mother recommended it, and the book does a good job of explaning questions I wouldn't even think to ask. It is full of information, recipes, and other resources. Some of the contact information for the specialty food distributors is out of date, but easily updated by doing an internet search of the companies and penciling in the new information. I'm not the best qualified reviewer for this book, but as far as I am concerned, it is an excellent resource.

These women are saints!! There is not enough room on this forum to describe how amazingly awesome this book is. My 1 year old Niece has PKU, and luckily enough my nephew-in-law absolutely LOVES to cook. I got this for him (along with the PKU bread maker recipes) as a Christmas gift and he flipped! He said everything in the book looks fantastic, and there is literally everything from apples to zucchini. If you're needing a low protein diet book, or even just wanting to eat healthier, this is by far the best one out there. Thanks again to Virginia Schuett and Dorothy Corry for taking the time to make low-protein foods not so boring! Generations of PKU/Kidney patients and their families will be thanking you for years to come! I know this grateful Great-Aunt does.

The food in here is really good stuff! I especially love all the cookie recipies, I haven't made one I don't like! All the special food is expensive, but it's worth it. I really don't know how people managed a PKU diet before the book came out. If you can find the second edition, though, it's almost exactly the same page for page, and I like the spiral binding better, so the book lays flat when you're cooking.

This book is one of the best helps in the world for those who are going to follow the "very low protein diet" for kidney disease to delay dialysis. The renal dietitians at JHU use this as their Bible in developing diet plans for Dr. Walser's patients. There are a number of helpful suggestions at the start of the book to teach you how to read labels and weigh foods. There are also lists that help you find low protein foods which are updated on the PKU web site. The restrictions on protein for the "very low protein" diet for kidney disease are not as severe as those for PKU, but this book teaches you how to meet those limitations.

Just keep in mind that it is not a great place to find vegetarian recipes. People with PKU cannot tolerate protein and take a special supplement to provide it. Therefore these recipes will not provide the protein that your average vegetarian will be looking for.

If, however, you or a member of your family has PKU, you should definitely get this book and read the whole thing. TWICE!

What a wonderful trip down Memory Lane! I had a couple of uncles that worked for Marx when I was a little kid and had many of the toys featured in Michelle's book. I can only wonder what happened to my Mark toys. I guess they found their way to cousins or younger friends, but I sure would like to have them back now! Good job Michelle - I truly enjoyed paging through your book - it appears to have been a labor of love as opposed to a for profit project. Thanks for the memories!

This book would be a great companion book. Most Marx toys collectors would benefit from information on part numbers, years of production and viewing the wonderful selection of photographs featured in the book. The book covers about 30 years worth of knowledge on toys produced at the Glen Dale plant site. There is even a partial price listing on items that Ms. Smith and Mr. Whipkey were familiar with. All in all. A good book.

I enjoyed this book because of it's detailed accounts of Marx toys that I grew up with. The price guide is also handy when I'm out looking for Marx items for my sisters' collections. History of a manufacturer is always interesting and the photographs help define the pieces I'm searching for. I appreciate a good book that shows great effort extended in presenting the information. I would recommend this book to the serious toy buyer and to new seekers of antique Marx toys. Kudos to the author!

I found this to be an ideal route to fond memories of my childhood. Many of the toys in this book were basis of several Christmas dreams. As a baby boomer, I have been collecting the dollhouses and furniture with the hope that my granddaughter will appreciate them, too! This is a good reference guide to have!

This brand new (year 2000)192 page book gives you an inside look at one of America's favorite toy makers. It takes you behind the scenes at Marx to help you see and understand the company and its people. There is a beautiful 32 page full color section, in addition to more than 150 black and white photos. Many of the photos have not before been published. More than 1,200 individual items are listed, including many values. Major topics range from Play Sets, Doll Houses, Lithographed Items, to Johnny West, and Sandy Dolls. A Marx time line from 1896 to 1999 is provided along with a handy index. Toy collectors will be delighted with this new reference.

WHAT A CHARMING PIECE ON THE ANTEBELLUM SOUTH. CRAFTED WITH PURE GENIOUS AND A PEN FOR DETAIL, "THE MODERATES' DILEMMA" BRINGS TO LIGHT THE UNDENIABLE OBSTINANCE OF THE SOUTH'S PREMIERE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.THIS WORK IS A MUST READ FOR HISTORY GRADS OF ANY BACKGROUND.

I read the book, it is brilliant collection of writings. The editors offer an interesting, sophisticated analysis of the white response to busing. Being a former student of his, I can attest that Matthew D. Lassiter is an incredibly intelligent, dynamic individual. I highly recommend this book, and anxiously await his upcoming works.

Matthew Lassiter, editor-in-chief of this seminal collection, sets forth, once again, a fresh standard of scholarly excellence and eloquence. His essay, "A 'Fighting Moderate,'" illustrates one of his innumerable intellectual virtues, the ability to electrify his arduously acquired historian's sobriety with an innate psychological acuity.

Matthew D. Lassiter, perhaps the world's pre-eminent scholar of the American South, co-edited this penetrating and resonant collection of essays, to which he has contributed a characteristically elegant and astute study of Benjamin Muse, who figured prominently in the turbulent early years of desegregation in Virginia.

For my senior seminar, I wrote a paper on desegregation/busing in the South. While I was doing research, a librarian found this book for me. I had to wait 2 weeks to get it through interlibrary loan, but it was worth it!! The essays really bring home the complexity of Southern desegregation when viewed through the lens of class issues. I can only aspire to produce such insightful scholarship!

This biographical work is essential in understanding the author's greatest works. She discusses "scene making" and how it relates to memory. After reading this I plan to reread "To the Lighthouse" and "Mrs. Dalloway."

Virginia Woolf's Moments of Being is one of the great artifacts of literary modernism -- and it also possesses the virtue of being superbly written; few writers are of the caliber of Woolf when it comes to documenting the subtle nuances of human emotion and thought. Her voice is unwavering and clear; it is analytic and critical without every sacrificing its self-effacing quality and humility - and the clarity of its emotional tone. She handles the pain and loss in her life with a kind of imaginative double barreled shotgun: she destroys those that have inflicted pain on her, while exalting those that loved her. But as she hacks away at one and beatifies the other she always places both in very real, very human terms. There are also sparks of real humor here that cannot be overlooked, like the moment in the essay "Old Bloomsbury" when Lytton Strachey walks into the room and seeing a stain on Vanessa's white dressed pronounces "Semen?" and with one word ushers in the 20th centuries fixation with discussing sexual matters. We are to believe that one word carelessly said becomes the hallmark of an entire century.

This collection of autobiographical essays was not published until 1976. They do not supplement the Diaries, but stand on their own as indispensable to an understanding of the novels and thinking of this revolutionary writer. They articulate - as the Diaries do not in an explicit way - her philosophy, and this alone makes the book essentail reading for anyone interested in Woolf or, indeed, modern fiction. But these essays offer more than that. They detail sensitive and at times painful background memories of her death-ridden childhood and adolescence, of the physical abuse by her half-brother, Gerald Duckworth.
To read 'Moments of Being' is not an exercise in the prurient, but to gain an understanding of the inner life of an extraoprdinary artist and human being.

Virginia's genius is all over this volume, esp in A Sketch of the Past. From the first sensations of childhood (waves splashing against the shore) to the tragedy of the death of her mother and sister, it is the most revealing work of creativity ever written. You'll learn about her life, her work, and even how you might become a great writer. Examine the parallels with To the Lighthouse and you'll be amazed. Yes, this is how she come to be what she is; and her life and what she writes.

People who have enjoyed Woolf's novels or diaries will surely find her essay "A Sketch of the Past" deeply moving and helpful in illuminating her other works. In "Sketch," the longest essay in this volume, Woolf recounts her earliest childhood memories--both beautiful (hearing the waves break on the shore at her family's summer home) and sinister (her stepbrother's unwelcome sexual advances when she was a small child). She develops a theory about memory and about transcendent experience in this essay. She discusses her powerful drive to reshape and write about the past: "I feel that strong emotion must leave its trace; and it is only a question of discovering how we can get ourselves attached to it, so that we shall be able to live our lives through from the start." In this essay Woolf proposes that in moments of ecstasy we have a meaningful vision of the world itself: "it is a constant idea of mine; that behind the cotton wool is hidden a pattern; that we--I mean all human beings--are connected with this; that the whole world is a work of art; that we are parts of the work of art. Hamlet or a Beethoven quartet is the truth about this vast mass that we call the world. But there is no Shakespeare, there is no Beethoven; certainly and emphatically there is no God; we are the words, we are the music; we are the thing itself. And I see this when I have a shock."

Knowing a bona fide eccentric, especially a benevolent one, is simultaneously an entertaining and exasperating experience. Sharing that experience with others is usually daunting. Either the essence of the person being described becomes lost in a jumble of amusing but disjointed anecdotes or eccentricity overwhelms the eccentric, rendering a flat, one-dimensional cartoon in place of a complex, multi-faceted portrait.

In Never Ask Permission, Mary Buford Hitz tackles this daunting task head on, the subject of this memoir being her mother, Elizabeth Scott Bocock or, as she often signed herself, ESB. Rather than take a sequential, "I-am-born" approach, the author chooses to devote separate chapters to different aspects of her mother's personality, each chapter a self-contained essay, overflowing with anecdotes, quotes, and, perhaps most illuminating of all, snippets of ESB's autobiographical sketches. (Most of these autobiographical excerpts, by the way, come from essays ESB wrote during her college years, which began after her sixty-seventh birthday.) Just as a puzzle becomes a picture as each piece falls into place, so does ESB's complex character come into focus, chapter by chapter, with a poignant, but essential clue to this charming, but undeniably complex Virginian saved until the very end.

Many CEO's could learn from ESB's capacity to set goals and achieve them. As ESB emerges from the pages of this lovingly crafted book, the reader meets a determined and creative thinker who probably would not have been impressed with "left-brain/right-brain, lateral thinking, creative problem-solving, if you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem" lingo, but who embodied the positive persona such jargon seeks to describe. With one foot firmly planted in late Victorian America and the other constantly, restlessly forcing her into the future, she was a visionary with an astonishing ability to get things done.

If you enjoy biography, if you are fascinated by Virginia, if you want some side-splitting laughs, or if you are just interested in a good read, this is the book for you.

I bought and read this book in preparation for moving from San Diego to Norfolk...I wanted to get a flavor of the area. What a pleasant surprise! A fascinating read and one that will make you want to visit the area to see where ESB lived, and where she had such influence in preserving historical Richmond.

If the moral of Never ask permission lies in the title, I will jump to the front of the line to praise it. The narrative careens around corners and bounces over bumps so merrily that the reader has only fleeting moments to enjoy the insiights and hoot at the comedy while holding on tightly to that pale yellow tailgate.

Mary Buford Hitz has done a remarkable job of portraying a very special person in a very special place during a very special time - the middle to late years of the twentieth century. Elisabeth Scott Bocock was a mover and shaker in Richmond, Virginia, the person who did more than anyone else to see that the city became aware of the importance of preserving its antiquities. She was one of a kind. Her daughter has written a family memoir that touches all the joys and sorrows that all families know and many delightful eccentric experiences that only her family knew. As a sensitive but un-self-conscious exploration of the mother-daughter relationship, this book cannot be beat. Mary Buford Hitz is perceptive about herself, her family, life and the world. In describing her remarkable mother, she also describes herself. Beyond that, she puts her finger on the changing mores of the twentieth century and paints a marvellous picture of her mother, a whirlwind catalyst who left no one she touched unchanged. Auntie Mame pales beside Elisabeth Bocock. This is a well-written, absorbing, wonderful chronicle - ostensibly of one woman's odyssey, but at the same time it touches on every one's odyssey.

Mary Buford Hitz has done a remarkable job of portraying a very special person in a very special place during a very special time - the middle to late years of the twentieth century. Elisabeth Scott Bocock was a mover and shaker in Richmond, Virginia, the person who did more than anyone else to see that the city became aware of the importance of preserving its antiquities. She was one of a kind. Her daughter has written a family memoir that touches all the joys and sorrows that all families know and many delightful eccentric experiences that only her family knew. As a sensitive but un-self-conscious exploration of the mother-daughter relationship, this book cannot be beat. Mary Buford Hitz is perceptive about herself, her family, life and the world. In describing her remarkable mother, she also describes herself. Beyond that, she puts her finger on the changing mores of the twentieth century and paints a marvellous picture of her mother, a whirlwind catalyst who left no one she touched unchanged. Auntie Mame pales beside Elisabeth Bocock. This is a well-written, absorbing, wonderful chronicle - ostensibly of one woman's odyssey, but at the same time it touches on every one's odyssey.

This is an awesome book.
Anyone who loves horses and God will love this book.
It is especially very interesting because I LOVE horses.
The second book in this series, Stolen Gold is great too.
I could not put either of these books down, they were so fascinating.
This is a must read!

The Palomino is a wonderful book that my horse crazy daughter couldn't put down. The story is entertaining and educational. The characters were people we could identify with. It provides a great example for my daughter of loving family relationships and show how reliance on their faith can get them through any difficulty. My daughter has read all three and asks often when the next book will be available.

My daughter read these books and greatly enjoyed them. I picked them up, and they work. The prose is not Tolstoy, and the plot is predictable, but...when I finished reading it I could finally understand my daughter's love of horses, and...I bought her a horse. It is a sweet and lovely book.

This is a great story of a young girl who loves horses and Jesus. She is a loving child with wonderful and understanding parents. She works hard to earn her way to a horse training camp. And learns to be an excellent rider.

Perfect for girls from eight to fifteen.

I happened to read this because it was given to my daughter for christmas. It is a very moving story. Once you start to reading it, it is hard to put down. Once this was read I continued on with Stolen Gold. Also a fantastic book.

A fine book, evoking a lot more than just thoughts of fiddles. It brings back a lot of memories. There's endless stories winding on late into the night and square dances at the fire station with bright lights and cake walks. It's playing rhythm guitar while sitting on the porch hypnotized by the "play of the fiddle", playing those simple little tunes over and over and over, breathing life into them till they break loose and come alive. Reading Jerry's book was like stumbling into an attic full of memories.

There's something hypnotic about the sound of a fiddle, and Jerry weaves his own spell. All those countless, nameless, fiddle players were drawn to it and just couldn't ever get away. Way back "up the holler". It seems like the devil got hold of them & wouldn't let go. It's like sitting around a campfire, deep in the woods, listening to the baying of the hounds and just wondering what's really out there. Lot's of mystery up in the mountains and those old fiddle players felt it and made it sing out. Jerry really loves his fiddle music, but I think he really loves the spell of the mountains even more. Seems to come out best in the sound of a fiddle, played on the front porch, all alone, nothing but that fiddle sound, a full moon, and the deep silence of the endless woods. That fiddle music just floats in the silence. The hills don't care, they just sit there, and the fiddler plays on, just hearing that sound, going on and on and on...

Yep, it's a pretty good tale.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Milnes provides good descriptions of the history and the cultural contexts for fiddling in West Virginia. He provides especially good descriptions of dances. My favorite part of the book dealt with some of the traditional beliefs and practices associated with fiddling. There are fascinating traditions that fiddlers continue to use, and there is a wealth of folklore associated with the instrument. Milnes also provides a fine history of dulcimer music in Appalachia, and his work provides a corrective perspective about this instrument as he challenges the degree of purism and perhaps "snootiness" that is associated with fiddling.

Gerry Milnes knows more about the tradtional music of West Virginia than probably any other writer on the subject.

This book presents a delightful look at the history of West Virginia fiddling, profiles of the players, and the culture in which this music thrived. It is well researched and presented in a very engaging style. Of particular interest to me were his profiles of some of the musical families of the state. In addition to his look at fiddlers, other folk music traditions are covered as well, including a look at the fretted dulcimer players and builders of the region. There are many helpful and interesting photographs as well.

Also recommended: "Fiddles, Snakes, & Dog Days," Milnes documentary film on the same subject which features the playing of many traditonal West Virginia musicians.

As a storyteller and passive folklorist I found this book to be extremely useful and well written. The work the author has done to trace the origins of lore is an incredible journey into the past and speaks clearly to the persistent little voices in my head that are always calling out- "Now how on earth did someone think that up." The book does much more than instruct the reader: It creates a whole new world around folk traditions that is as colorful and as engaging as any novel and as useful for understanding Appalachia as any history book.

Along with providing a good understanding of old-time fiddling in West Virginia, this book also provides a wider discussion of other forms of folk music within the state. Milnes's discussion of the various folk traditions associated with fiddling is really interesting to read. He has fine descriptions of house parties, square dance callers' patter, and a good variety of the folk beliefs associated with fiddle tunes. The chapter on the ballad of Naomi Wise is especially good, and I also appreciated the chance to learn more about the dulcimer tradition in the state. Prior to reading this book, I thought that the dulcimer was primarily a recently introduced instrument that became popular only with the 1950s and 60s folk music revival. Milnes broadens that view and demonstrates that there has been an interesting and rich tradition of dulcimer playing in the Appalachians.

Great read, especially if you enjoy historical and romantic novels. The author is able to transport you back in time to the early 1800's. She paints an intriguing picture of Plantation life on the James River touching on slavery, inheritance, Quaker religious issues. Highly recommended although I am not certain of any basis of historical fact.

Just when I was convinced that this summer would leave me irritable and dissatisfied with fiction, I chanced upon this wonderful read! The main characters are well drawn, and despite a mystical tendency to see and feel past events and current ghosts, believable. The situation is a new look at the old returning scion theme, with a female character who is refreshingly unlike most in period novels, yet true to her time and station. Charbonneau weaves in several story lines well, leaving only one that tugs at greater exposition, that of the Frenchman, "Fayette". On the whole, a marvelous way to spend some reading hours.

Ms. Charbonneau has woven another masterful, compelling tale. I found the narrative richly layered with drama, action, and heartfelt romance. Readers will fall in love just as the main characters do! Judith Mercer is a warm, unique heroine; and Ethan Randolph is deftly drawn as a man both simple and complex, endearing in his innocence and attractive in his strength.

Anyone who thinks all romance novels are alike have never read a novel by Ms. Charbonneau! What I always like best about her work is her fresh, unique voice. THE RANDOLPH LEGACY does not disappoint. The plot is unusual and intriguing. The language is spare but visual, painting pictures of sailing ships, bustling ports, sunny plantations and lighthouses by the sea. This is a book you won't want to put down!

Charbonneau's latest novel represents both a brilliant celebration and daring augmentation of the historical romance genre. In The Randolph Legacy, Charbonneau demonstrates to the hilt her mastery of all of the traditional elements of her craft: the weaving of a deep mystery around the fascinating male protagonist, Ethan Randolph; searing and sensuous descriptions of carnal passion unfolding in the beautiful Quakeress heroine, Judith Mercer; convergence of fast-paced subplots on the harrowing denoument of the central mystery; all served up with sedulous attention to the regional cultures of the United States in 1815. But, in addition to these traditional elements, Charbonneau audaciously bestows upon her most sympathetic characters certain shared powers of extra-sensory perception that enable them to transcend their cultural limitations and that also enable Charbonneau to further her ethical investigation of the ambiguities, hypocrisies, and redemptive possibilities of interracial human relations on the slave plantations of Virginia.

In 1805 on the high seas, English Captain Willis has a twelve year old American lashed for refusing to work as a sailor under the English flag. Due to the fast action of a French prisoner, the lad's life is saved, but he mentally and physically crippled.

A decade later, a Quaker Judith Mercer escorts a strange young man to the Windover Plantation in Virginia. She swears to the wealthy Randolph family that the crippled creature is their lost son Ethan, who allegedly died at sea ten years ago. As Judith helps Ethan regain his physical and emotional health, the pair falls in love with each other. However, Judith has demons of her own to surmount before she can ever think of entering into a loving relationship. Then there are those who would prefer the heir to be impressed by the British again. With all this hanging in the air, it appears that two deserving souls will still fail to find happiness.

THE RANDOLPH LEGACY is a fast paced historical fiction, with a strong romantic thread running through the well researched and fascinating story line. The issue of British impressment of American citizens are seen through a fresh perspective, a trademark of Eileen Charbonneau. The lead protagonists are endearing character, who add emotional depth as they struggle to overcome their personal histories to forge a future together. The colorful story line is brisk and exciting. Ms. Charbonneau, known for her young adult novels, should receive acclaim as a multi-genre talented author.

Harriet Klausner

I had been hoping for a more happy read. I know that not all search and rescues end happily but this book has many grim endings and some graphic details. I had a hard time reading certain sections and can't imagine what it was like for Beth Barkley to live them.

Because of her amazing courage and perseverence I could not put the book down. I'm glad I read it but I don't think it is a book I would re-read because it is so sad.

It doesn't have anything to do with reviewing the book but I came away wondering why on earth someone willing to face machine guns, hostile populations and sleeping in a tent in an Armenian winter had to worry about whether she could afford to take off work to go on these missions of mercy. You couldn't pay me enough money to do what she does. Why should anyone have to use their vacation time and be set back financially to do this?

The stories in this book could almost stand on their own. I can't imagine doing this dangerous and time consuming work for free, and for so many years! The copy of the book I got has a White Shepherd on the front, much more interesting than the picture shown here. I read it all in one night, couldn't put it down!

Being and animal lover it was more than anything the stories about the bonds forged between the dogs and their "persons" that drew me in. I'd always looked at dogs sniffing through rubble and thought "that's all there is." How wrong I was. Search and Rescue gave me a glimpse into the years long training, the poignant and oftimes funny adventures, the sacrifices and fortitude on the part of both person and dog that it takes to do this work. I was fascinated by the interactions between peoples of all nationalities, how they worked together all over the world, and the inside workings of the governments behind the scenes. What touched me the most was what Search and Rescue came to mean to one courageous woman and her three white German Shepherds. Search and Rescue will bring smiles, tears and understanding to all who read it.

I expected more technical information about training dogs, but was captivated by the stories and adventures. I wish there had been pictures of the White Shepherds. My 10 year old and 12 year old (boy and girl) liked the book very much.

I enjoyed this book VERY much since I do search and rescue but THIS IS NOT A TRAINING BOOK but a true story of a woman and her two dogs. if you are looking for a training book I would suggest the the book by Susan Bulanda called "Ready, the training of a search and rescue dog" it is a very good book. I used it to train my current SAR dog. Happy Searching!!!