Maine Books

The book deals with the first months of the Ford Presidency and almost everybody should know that those were his hardest days : to complete the passage form former to the new administration, the Nixon pardon, the mid-term elections.
These were all tasks difficult to handle and happened in a very strict period of time so that to judge President Ford one should have had - ar least - a stretch of one year. Instead Reeves, who narrates the first 6 months more or less, does not spare his most harsh judgement towards a person that all of a sudden found himself Vice-President and then President.
Almost inhuman.

Few people have the time or interest to read a book about the Ford administration and I am not necessarily proud to be one of them. To be fair to myself I read the book more because of the author then the subject. I must say that I was very pleased. Again what I liked was really not much about President Ford, but the humor and insight of the author. Let's face it, most of us have a rather negative view of good old Jerry, and this book pushes that perception even further. Page after page the author details out one dim witted move after another. It just seamed as though Ford was moving in a world with about 60% of the required IQ points to succeed. All the detail about the blunders and misstep's is done with almost comedic like timing and surprise. If I did not know better you would think this was a Moore or Franklin book. The author used the subject to the fullest in the comedy writings.

The good humor aside, you really do get a negative view of the Ford administration. Not necessarily because of what he did, but more because of what remarkably little he did do. The author stretched to detail out much of anything that Ford did except campaign trips and blanket approvals of Nixon policies that still seemed to be generated within the administration. The one nice consistent with this book and about every other book I have read about the Nixon administration is that this author disliked Al Haig. How this guy has rubbed every single person he has met the wrong way I will never know, but he is the poster child for "does not get along with others". Overall the book was full of humor and some interesting facts. It is a quick read and if for some reason you are looking for something on Ford this book will at least give you a smile if nothing else.

Reeves is a veteran political reporter whose excellent insights and smooth prose are guaranteed to provide a pleasant, educational read. Although Reeves portrays Ford as a dummy, he presents him as a well-meaning dummy. Thus his take can hardly be considered critical. Indeed, Reeves assigns Ford's every success to the latter's naivete combined with his unquestioning loyalty to party. Ford's rise to Minority Leader and eventually Vice President are based on the actions of others, and the estimates of elites that Ford will be inoffensive and controllable. Indeed, he portrays the President as a captive of his own administration, controlled by the Nixon holdovers and their strong ideas, from the ubiquitous Kissinger to the reluctantly deposed Haig. Reeves explains the Nixon pardon strictly in this context, as the innocent action of true party loyalist, not as a cynical payoff for services rendered, or even a cynical partisan f-k you to the country. For those interested in politics and Presidents, Reeves should be classed with Witcover and Germond, as a must read. For those who have a passing interest he should be taken as an excellent readable primer, if it's not all you need to know, it's most of it. A bargain at any price.

Really well done. Meticulous, hand-drawn charts. Very approachable style. Now if I can just find Volume II ...

This is a companion book to Don Johnson's Cruising Guide to Maine Vol I Kittery to Rockland. See my review under that title.

As a sailer planning a world cruise, I view this book as one of the best cruising books I have read because it touches so much on the cultures and people along the way rather than merely on the sailing aspects. I have only read volume one and am eagerly awiting volume two. If you are not a sailer, this is a superb armchair travel book. You will really feel you are meeting people all over the globe. Sue manages to convey the excitement, beauty, learning and sharing of a couple sailing around the world.

This is one of the best books on the subject of Curanderismo that I have found. Curanderismo by Robert Trotter came reccomended to me as the most acurate book available today. The reader will learn about the history and practice of curanderismo, and find several common prayers and methods of spiritual cleansing and healing too. This book is deffinently one to hold on to.

Sound academic research on the under-examined beliefs and practices of curanderismo or Mexican American folk medicine. Very informative and a good introduction for further research. Objective and well-written. Printed by the University of Georgia Press in Athens, GA.

This book is what one would expect from a team of American academics starting from scratch trying to assemble a definitive body of knowledge while based on US soil and focusing on a population located inside of the US. The focus is on Mexican Americans in South Texas, and the researchers are basically English speaking white folks, helped by Mexican Americans who led them to the operations of folks with shingles hanging out in front of their homes announcing that they were curanderos and curanderas. A method was used in interviewing the subjects and cataloguing the findings which seems to be very extensive and complete, and the conclusions that are drawn are pretty much right on the money. For instance, the authors make it clear that curanderismo is definitely rooted in Catholic culture imported from Spain much more so than it is rooted in anything else, which will come as a disappointment to New Agers and Indianists, who would like to think differently, and who have generally perpetrated a myth that things are otherwise.

The authors also investigated the contributions of the two most influential curanderos who have helped set the stage for the current modes of curanderismo in the region there, namely, El Niño Fidencio and Pedrito Jaramillo. And they show how the concepts of sickness and health are rooted in a set of beliefs that include the elements of classical Greek medicine, and of the malevolent power of witches - which are not viewed in any sympathetic light ala New Age and Wicca interpretations - and they highlight many other basic facts about curanderismo that anyone who has studied this first hand will be in complete agreement with.

For all of this, they should be commended.

Where the failure is apparent, however - and this is why I did not rate this as five stars - is that they seem to have blinders on when it comes to the existence of a place called Mexico, which is the place from whence all of this folk culture comes. And this seems to be the failure in general of writers and researchers on this topic. They are generally not Spanish speakers, and they rely on Mexican Americans to help them out as they traipse around the Texas Valley and San Antonio and places like that, but they would likely find that they would have a much more difficult time with this if they were to actually cross the Rio Grande into Mexico with those same Mexican American translators and guides.

Considering the sheer size of Mexico's population, and the fact that the vast majority of Mexicans do believe in at least some of the concepts that the authors would describe as being those of curandismo, then this belief system dwarfs those better known and more celebrated Latin American and Afro-based systems of Santeria, Voodoo, and Hoodoo. Although curanderismo has much in common with these cults, in many ways it is radically different. If one were to concede that they authors of this text really did not set out to do anything but a study of folk beliefs there in their region and nothing else, then one would have to say that the field is still pretty much wide open for someone to do such a study on the real subject, which curanderismo per se - as opposed to the much more limited and peripheral concept of Mexican American curanderismo in South Texas. And this being the case, maybe the authors should have entitled their book something along those lines.

While the advice in this book is valid, anyone who is not profoundly Christ-centered may find themselves uncomfortable with the Bible references and Christian focus on every page. If you're looking for a secular goal-oriented book to motivate yourself with, I'd suggest checking out "The Power of Focus" by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and Les Hewitt. (The Chicken Soup for the Soul series guys). Packed with information, yet humorous enough to keep you reading, it's twice this book without the preachy-ness! (and not at twice the price, either).

My friend has this book and I read it upon his recommendation. After reading this book, I came to Amazon.com to buy a copy for myself. I found it to be inspiring and a dare to discipline yourself! If you believe you are disciplined and don't need this book, my friend, let me tell you that you do need this book! This book will open your eyes! God Himself has inspired the writing of this book!

...to go to the next level in every area of my life. I receive the scripture references in this book. There are areas in my life that need DISCIPLINE and this book gives me spiritual and natural insight to realize it is the will of God for me to be disciplined, in order to have what the Word of God say I can have. I believe I have been called out of mediocracy into great exploits. Dare to Discipline Yourself is a great tool to use(read) continually which will set me on the right path, in Him. I give this book a five star rating. Eventhough, all topics may not be a challenge for me at this time, I believe I can read all to relay to someone else. Thank you for making available this priceless treasure.

A fast, easy read of some interesting "true cases" of ghosts, haunted houses, and possessed relics and antiques. I particularly enjoyed the tales of the terrifying fog of Jonesboro, the tragedy inside the haunted house in Dennysville, and tales surrounding the bad little water falls of Machias. The author also writes of the former Victorian-styled Robinson House in East Machias and "America's most famous ghost," Nelly Butler. My favorite was the creepy and fascinating curse of "The Mask of Bali," about the unfortunate mishaps that befall the owners of an imported carved wooden mask.

There's nothing I enjoy more than a book about true ghost experiences, especially when they're set in one specific area. This one has lots of Maine history, the stories are well written, and a couple of them (The Demon Family in particular) made my hair stand on end.
I really enjoyed this one. Excellent!

One of the best collections of ghost stories ever put together. It is a book that will actually send chills up your spine.

I read this book when it was first published, and recently purchased a copy for a friend. If you, like I, are interested in the Religious history of the United States I can highly recommend Fair, Clear, and Terrible: The Story of Shiloh Maine by Shirley Nelson. This is the kind of non-fiction work that would make a great movie. The author sets the tone right in the beginning of the book, with that whispered about "thing" in a family's past. The author shows how when the focus of one's faith is not God, but the preacher, something terrible usually will happen, and at Shiloh it did. This book is a good study in the cult of personality. I don't want to give too much away but will end in saying that Fair, Clear, and Terrible: The Story of Shiloh Maine by Shirley Nelson should be republished in paperback, it is that important of a book to those interested in the Religious history of the United States.

Shirley Nelson's _Fair, Clear, and Terrible: The Story of Shiloh_ is one of those rare history books that's plotted and executed more like a mystery novel than a documentary. Nelson, whose parents met at Shiloh, took an interest in the site at a young age, and thus grew up always in its shadow. Through the years she gathered as much information as she could, and reports on it all here. However, this isn't just a regurgitation of the facts. Nelson's family ties to the place give her, it would seem, a reason to write about it with more heart than most historians, coupled with a sardonic, not-quite-suppressed sarcasm that leaves the reader laughing on occasion. And when was the last time you laughed at a HISTORY book?

A wonderful piece of work. Highly recommended.

Shirley Nelson did a great deal of research for this wonderful book! She not only took her own family history, but dug into other sources to put together a complete and fair minded look into a fascinating piece of Americana. The pure faith that took believers to Shiloh comes through as well has the hardships and abuse they endured as they tried to please their leader, Frank Sanford. She did a great service to many who were still in the movement of their forefathers at the time the book was published. Many of the facts of the history of The Kingdom movement were hidden or glossed over so that present members did not understand what the true story was. This book started a lot of questioning of the leaders of the church and helped in bringing to light lies and half truths. I would highly recommend this book, not only to those interested in history, but also to those who are or have been in a cult. So many common threads run through cults. So many innocent people trying to live their faith while the doctrines they are taught to love more than their own families carries consequences down through many generations. Highly reommended reading! For more information on the history of Shiloh and The Kingdom movement see the website fwselijah.com.

The first time I herd this story was on Star Island in Main. This past Summer and it was read by a man named "Fred" The best story teller I have herd.

This book is best read with a Maine accent, and is a wonderful colloquial expression of the dry Down East humor. A fun book, and for me, a personal memory.

I own a first edition copy of this book, autographed by both the author and illustrator. It is, without a doubt, one of the funniest, most tongue-in-cheek works I have ever read. I doubt many people without a Maine background would appreciate fully some of the humor, but it is excellent nonetheless.

This book proved itself very useful for out weekend drive up the coast. Naturally, there are many places to stay or dine, but you can't list them all (in this "portable" book). However, we did need to purchase a Maine Highway Map for better directions. I wish I'd gotten the book BEFORE I made Hotel reservations!

I read a lot of travel books of all sizes, and I've traveled to Maine quite a bit. This little Frommer's guide is the best I've found for those who want an introduction to the Maine coast that they can carry around with them on their trip. On my first trip to Maine, I used it in tandem with a larger, more comprehensive book (Maine: An Explorer's Guide), which I consulted ahead of time and left at home because it was too cumbersome to carry around. (The larger book also tended to list lots of activities and places but lacked many of the pertinent details that are included in the Frommer's Guide.) The authors of the Frommer's Guide pack a lot of good information into a small volume, selecting their details carefully and reliably -- I found that all of their descriptions were on the mark, and all of their suggestions were well taken. (Without this book, for instance, I might have bypassed the spectacular Harpswell Peninsula.) You can't include everything in a little volume -- and for readers who want more, there are bigger, more comprehensive books out there. But I find myself returning again and again to this little guide every time I plan a trip to the Maine coast -- its focus is more on quality than quantity and it's extremely well organized, well written, and easy to use. It's also great at pinpointing places that are a little unusual and not overrun by tourists. Highly recommended!

This book is not quite as comprehensive as I had hoped. At approximately 200 pages, it tries to cover the most popular areas of the Maine coast. It does list prices and reviews hotels - perhaps the best feature of all. The print is also quite small in this little guide. It is indeed portable/pocket size, but you may need other guides to help supplement the information given in this book.

This book is very inspiring, brilliant and incredibly colorful. It showcases some of the great variety of gardens, and also points out the challenges that face the gardener in this northern most New England state. It is well designed, with many large photos, and the reading is very easy, but informative. The photos have been choosen to inspire and delight, and the captions are hardworking-explaining tasks and identifying the plants. A very beautiful piece of work!

This is a model garden book. The superb photographs provide the backbone of the book. The text is short, not filled out with unecessary words copied from other garden books as is often the case. The photos show what is working in other peoples' gardens and are replete with good ideas.

This is a fairly good and helpful book on gardening in Maine. Being a citizen of Maine myself I know a thing or two about gardening up here, for instance there is a very short season here. If you have trouble gardening, no matter what type, being herb, vegetable, spices, fruits, or even trees this book will most likely give you some long awaited answers. This book even shows you how to garden indoors for those times you don't feel like getting eaten by bugs. So if you love gardening then this is a fairly good choice, but look into some other books first.

Do you want to be a millionaire? This book is called the get rich quick club by Dan gutman. This book is about a group of kids who want to be Millionaires so they try to get a real UFO so they can take a picture of it and gives it to a newspaper reporter so they can be millionaires. But will they be rich? Will they ever get to see a
Real UFO? Well you will have to read this book to find out!
I like this book because it starts with this really weird dream
It is about... you thought I was going to tell you right?
That's why you should read the book to find out. Another
Reason I like this book is because it has this really
Exciting part that you do not want to miss. This book is
A humorous book. I shouldn't tell you anything
Else because I might tell you the secret! I recommend this book
To people who like money. I hope you enjoy this book.
If you read it!

The Not So Well Club!


Will the 5 boys get rich by selling a fake U.F.O picture or will they not get rich by
selling the picture!

The Get Rich Quick Club is about 5 boys find an idea of a fake UFO picture and they plan to sell it to get money. The boys don't make it, but they all have fun. One of the kids tells the people that the picture is fake. What will happen next?

I think the author's purpose is to tell kids to be truthful and to entertain kids.

My favorite part of the book is when the boys start the get rich quick club because the boys all try to think of funny ideas to get rich. For example, they tried to create a fake UFO picture using house supplies. The picture kind of worked...they didn't get rich, but they got famous.

I recommend this book because it is funny. It also shows kids how they can make money.
By: Julia

Have you ever wondered about UFO`s or the secret of the universe? Well there is a book with adventuresome kids who experience all of this. This great book is titled The Get Rich Quick Club. This marvelous book is by the famous Dan Gutman.
This book is all about a girl who loves money and who`s role model is Bill Gates who was the richest man in the world. Her name is Gina Tumulo and she made a oath to make her first million dollars by the time she is twelve. The problem is that she is eleven and time is running out. Then one day she goes to the tree behind her house and finds her friends Rob, Quincy, Eddy, and Teddy. They decide to form a club to make a million dollars. Then they decide to snap a phony UFO photo.
I would rate this book 4 out of 5. I would recommend this book for anyone between the ages 7 and eleven. I enjoyed it a lot. I hope you read it.

by Sean