New York Books

I couldn't put the book down. UNTIMELY DEATH is just about the best novel of its kind that I have read. It drew me in in a way that even the best mystery writers never could.

Fred and Jan Yager obviously have delivered the foundation for a franchise series of mystery novels. Hope to see Kimberly Stone and Alan Blake in action again soon.

I've read mysteries for over thirty years, and most of them are forgettable. Untimely Death was one of those joyful reads, because I knew I'd met a detective that I wanted to read a whole series about, and because I couldn't figure it out. Well drawn, interesting characters, and easily worthy of adaptation to film. Hope to see more. Soon.

This book is wonderful. I don't read mysteries very often, but I enjoyed UNTIMELY DEATH right up to the last page. The characters are exceptionally well drawn, quirky, as human beings are, and twisted, as murderers are, but not bizarre or grotesque. The plot, as they say, is a page turner and there are so many surprising gems that the resolution is truly a mystery until the end.

Don't pick up this book if you have something important to do because you will not want to put it down. Untimely Death is a real page-burner.

Character development is good -- the people are real, and I can't wait for another book featuring Kimberly Stone. The Yagers' familiarity with New York gives us Left Coasters a view you won't find in a travelogue, and the descriptions are fascinating.

The well-designed plot moves at a perfect pace, and the suspension builds steadily, until the end, when you might discover you've been holding your breath a long time.

When I see the name Yager on a title, I'm not going to look any further. I'm going to get it, find a nice chunk of time and settle down for another good read.

This book is a fast, fun read. And while that may sound odd for a book about murder - it illustrates the real power behind this book. Like any good murder mystery, there has to be strong visualization, but without dwelling on the gory details. Here, the authors take you a step further, by dealing witthe psychological and emotional side of murder. As your read on, you develop a sense of understanding about the murderer and the motivations and demons that lead a person to kill. And this is the real breakthrough. Unlike most who-dun-its, which leave a trail of breadcrumbs and red herrings, Fred and Jan Yager plant their clues by taking you inside the killer's mind. In fact, you solve this mystery by carefully matching the killer's thought patterns with the behavior of the characters in the book. I haven't seen this technique used before. I eagerly await the sequel.

This is a beautiful book and a wonderful introduction to art for young children. In addition, children who are just learning to read can read the book themselves. My kindergarten aged grandson can read most of the book and loves to talk with an adult about the art. This book links meaningfully to the Baby Van GoghBaby Van Gogh video in the Baby Einstein series.

I have been an early childhood educator for over 36 years and am delighted that "Vincent's Colors" is available to my young students, ages 3-6. It is an exquisite introduction not only to the work of Vincent VanGogh but to the observation of color and art forms. In addition, the vocabulary associated with each picture links literacy to this introduction to art. Research clearly shows that the arts strengthen brain connections, particularly during the first five years of life. Every young child deserves this book in their early library!

I am a teacher in a class of 2 year olds and they LOVE this book. I have to read it at least 3 times per week, in addition to the children "reading" it themselves. The pictures are so bright and the words are so simple. We have even done pictures based on their favorite painting "Starry Night". I highly recommend this book to be added to any personal or classroom collection, especially if you are promoting art.

Vincents Colors is a beautiful book. I purchased it for my preschool to go along with the theme of illustrators and authors. The teachers used this book as a resource to go along with that theme.The children loved looking at the pictures.

I used this book for many lessons, integrating the visual art as well as the writing component. very lovely, easy for young children to relate to, stimulates their own artisty and a lovely book to own.

This coloring book is great. The detail in it is brilliant and the NY landmarks highlighted by the book are well selected. I especially love the appearance of Conan O'Brien in the Times Square picture. I definitely recommend this book to people of all ages and sizes! And its very reasonably priced! Thanks Pierre!

"Welcome to New York City" is perfect for kids and adults. My cousins love to color draw, and what better way to show them where they live by having fun coloring! Pierre, keep up the great work with the beautiful art work you have demonstrated and I'll be on the look out for the next book!

Welcome to New York City is a great coloring book for children and adults to share time and creativity together. I ordered it for my nephew and niece over the holidays, and with them living outside of New York, I was able to sit down and spend time with them as they colored the fine landmarks of this city and asked questions about the city I live in.

I brought 5 copies about 3 years ago. Gave them to friends. They loved it. I just decided to purchased 2 copies this time around. With the events of September 11th, I wanted a nice reminder of New York City. I highly recommend this book. The images are really well drawn. And as an adult it gave me an excuse to buy some crayons.

I purchased 4 copies back in August during a trip to New York. Great book. I didn't know until recently you could buy it on line here at Amazon (You should promote it more!). Am planning to purchase 2 copies this time around (One copy for myself this time!). Great work, Pierre. When will we see some other states... maybe Washington?

"My professor at college read the class a beautiful book called WHAT WILL YOU DO FOR PEACE? When she read the first paragraph I started to cry. I got caught up down there that day and it was devastating to me. I almost lost my life that day and it conjured up painful feelings. I just realized sitting in that classroom hurtful feelings were still inside of me. This book is special to me now because it will help children to understand what happened on 9/11 and help to teach the children how to love and respect one another in spite of our difference. Your book should be in every classroom in America." P.T.

The pictures and words are incredibly powerful in this beautiful book. As an ex-New Yorker, it reminded me of the importance of sharing these stories with my child and other children close to me. Many of them were not born when 9/11 happened but the movement for peace that grew from this experience is something that everyone needs to know of and to continually push for. Thank you for publishing these inspiring and sensitive art works so we can all use it as a spring board to move one step closer to peace.

everything that i thought it would be, its just how i felt that day and i was so happy when my mother bought me this book. its very inspirational and heartwarming.

I know two of the co-authors because there are my best friends. I was there when everything happened and we were just in class.I read the book and it's great. I give this book 5 stars and they give different perspective of kids feeling about 9/11. I advise you to buy and it's worth it.

when my mom bought me this book yesterday i was so inspired and touched. My brothers very good friend died on 9/11 and i was so sad, but when i read this book it brought back so many memories, i cried, but not because i was sad but because i was happy to know that there are other people who felt what i felt.

After reading Cortazar's The Winners (1960), I've decided that what makes a novel a classic is that the author writes about the worst of human behavior in a style that assumes every reader is a genius. This novel called on me to use all of my perceptions and knowledge as a person, as a reader.

By now, you will have learned that this novel is about a group of people who win a lottery and the prize is an ocean voyage, and that once settled onboard, several of the passengers behave badly, and the ship's crew is such--well, I won't give it away--that the voyage comes to an end only three days after it began. You will also have read from other reviewers or the publisher's notes that the character Persio has clairvoyant abilities; in a way, Persio is the higher consciousness of the novel; his thoughts lead the reader into self-examination (or not). For me, this novel was not a simple, summer read--but don't let me stop you.

The Winners is highly metaphorical: is the ship life itself? I think so. But the writing is more beautiful than life: many of the characters have the most sensitive, humane, and literate conversations, like Claudia and Paula, or Paula and Carlos. Surely, if this novel is Argentina, then people from Buenos Aires are living among the gods of culture and human potential. In that regard, this novel is hardly the Argentina I've heard about: breathtaking landscape, and women and men who love culture, but every now and then a dictator who murders people. The ship's crew is secretive and cunning like that. Read and see.

Appropriately, there is a sinister feeling about this novel from page one; something terrible impending, something beneath the surface of these polished people. I was totally fascinated, intrigued by many of the "characters": Claudia Lewbaum and Gabriel Medrano, Raul Costa, Carlos Lopez and Paula Lavalle, and Don Galo and Dr. Restelli, and the unforgettable Felipe Trejo, the 16-ish student, passionate for life, but without parental guidance, "lured" into the depths of the ships lower cabins where the crew seem alien and unpredictable. What a textual voyage--one in which the characters had to learn so much about themselves!

Cortazar places his characters in categories I've found people all fit--one or the other--like it or not--we are each either a duck or an eagle. Ducks follow of course and eagles set new paths. Ducks may have easier less lonely lives. Unless of course they inherit wealth and power--in which case they must be very confused and inflict chaos on the less entitled. Eagles succeed in endeavors against all odds and are therefore resented by those they seek to please. None of us has an easy time co-existing with others. No one wants to admit this of course! This book encourages reflection that may have social value, but it doesn't offer much in the way of a hopeful outcome for the social redemption of mankind--at least not in this generation. Therein lies its depth. We must expect less from our companions in life. We're all horrifyingly flawed. Somehow we must find the path to honesty and forgiveness. The book--?--I couldn't put it down. Now I can't get it out of my mind. If you want to live in denial don't read it.

I enjoyed "The Winners" though at times I found it a bit "heady". Its a novel that requires you keeping track as you go along. It took me while to figure out the setting, and what was happening (which means Cortazar did his job). There's so much symbolism and historical significance in his writing. I highly recommend the short stories collection "Blow Up" if you liked "The Winners."

What to say about this sardonic book that won't sound like an essay from the journal of the Modern Language Association? Yes, it's liminal. Yes, it's Lacanian. Yes, it's an existential comedy. Oy! Poor Julio Cortazar put himself in the sites of all the scholars of pretentious post-modern interpretation - just check out the amazon list of articles and books designed to take the fun out of reading him - and it's just about spoiled his reputation. But The Winners is a wild ride, my friends, an outrageously entertaining book in which a whole zoo of oddball Argentinians wind up together on an ark of satire.

There's an old tradition of books depicting a "ship of fools", from Erasmus to Sebastian Brant to Katherine Porter to Cortazar, and I suspect Erasmus had a classical model. They're all fun; I've never read a ship-of-fools book I didn't like, though I wouldn't mind NOT being a passenger on that ship myself. Reading The Winners reminded me strongly of Herman Melville's most experimental novel, The Confidence Man. None of the critics, so far as I've noticed, draw any connection between Cortazar and Melville. Heads up, PhD grubs! There's a thesis topic for you! Likewise, lovers of reading just for its own sake! I'm giving you two recommendations: The Winners & The Confidence Man. In the climate of the upcoming American elections, books about bunko and deception are bound to be comforting.

I read and enjoy Cortazar in the same way I enjoy Luis Bunuel films, in fact I think Bunuel could have made a wonderful film of THE WINNERS. Like Bunuel, Cortazar finds the things we accept as normal to be quite absurd but also like Bunuel he has a certain affection for those he makes fun of. All those on board the Malcolm are guilty of some sort of petty prejudice or limited world view but they all mingle and tolerate one another to a point. When things go absurdly wrong the lottery winners begin to wonder what it is they've actually won. Cortazar is an existential comic. A book which succeeds because it never forgets that despite our differences we are all bound together by our not knowing exactly what is going. With a little help from Cortazar we can see that knowing is just a pretense.
Perhaps the novel like Camus Plague is a parable with many possible levels of meaning. Not the least of which is the political level. After all Cortazar left Argentina under Peron to live and write in exile.

This book is simply a continuation of one woman's life in the Adirondacks, in a house she built by herself. But if we look deeper it really is another look into the life of a fascinationg woman who chose to leave civilization and do what she truely wants. Each chapter is a different adventure and you follow her life with her dogs and her friends and especially the land on which she lives. The writing is beautifully descriptive and you can't help but wish you were her.

Reading this book summarizes not only one woman's experience but my own more limited experience in the world of humans and the world of wilderness and animals. Hopefully one or some will be raised to a greater awareness/conscience. Anne has made a GREAT difference with her honesty, love, strength, initiative... I mark all of her books with hopes that those reading after me will learn that I, too, agree with her insights and assertively support her work! Anne's books are 'must reads' for EVERYWOMAN, not just 'wilderness types.'

Mind you, I am a great fan of Dr. LaBastille and have nearly all of her books; most of them signed. However, this third installment of her career as a "woodswoman" seems achingly final. All three books are adventures in the North Woods, however, this one clearly shows how her writing has matured with her own experiences. With harsher stories of vandals, environmental scoundrels and the personal tragedies, she seems to counter it all with great stories of bravery, incredible freindships and profound people. She still endears the reader with magical stories of the woods, lakes and mountains. Marking her third decade living in the Adirondack wilderness, Dr. LaBastille's writing is more realistic, world-wary and sometimes achingly mature. Facing ageing, near helplessness at the pollution and noise on wilderness lakes, she still keeps her sense of humor with great dignity. A gracious gift or a book for your collection; she shares her life of passion.

An interesting account of a woman living alone in the wilderness with tales of courage, bravery, and tenderness in her love for her dogs and the Adirondacks. I have read all of Ms. LaBastille's books and have enjoyed them all.

I couldn't put this book down! Anne has a way of sharing her experiences with the reader that made me want to consider a major lifestyle change, and has made me much more sensitive to environmental concerns. Her descriptions of the land and people are reminiscent of Thoreau and Hardy...truly inspirational!

For years I have shared Joe's grief at watching TV Shows and reading books based on the NYPD. It was apparent that the people involved couldn't find NYC on a map!
Joe puts you there...In the front seat of the "RMP," as you speed to the next "Job...", wondering if it will be a DOA or just another "unfounded" radio-run.
Thanks Joe for filling in the blanks..Hope you "civilians" appreciate his hard work!.

Resume patrol.....Mike D. (NYPD HWY 1)

Many books have been written attempting to explain law and police procedure for crime writers; few are written by real cops. This book, written by an 11-year veteran of the NYPD, looks at real police procedures in the Big Apple.

It gives the street addresses, coverage areas and major landmarks for all the precincts in the five boroughs. It describes the various units and other personnel within a precinct, like the Integrity Control Officer, the Anti-Crime Unit, the Borough Task Force, the Emergency Services Unit, the Squad Commander, the Hate Crimes Task Force, and the Organized Crime Control Bureau, among many others. There is now no reason for a writer to put a precinct in the wrong part of the city, or to have a crime investigated by the wrong part of the precinct.

The author then explores what really happens at the scene of a homicide. Rigor mortis is part of practically every murder novel, but is usually done incorrectly. It does not turn a body permanently rigid; after about a day and a half, the body returns to totally flaccid. A reliable way for the medical examiner to determine the time of death is to check the contents of the stomach during the autopsy.

The first patrol officer on the scene will often make or break the case. He or she will establish the crime scene without contaminating it, and detain witnesses and suspects. Everything starts with a clear and accurate description, whether it's of a lost child or a murder suspect.

Other chapters look at police lineups, what the Miranda Warning is all about, courtroom testimony (including how to survive cross-examination), the various types of serial killers, and sex crimes and child abuse cases. There is also a handy glossary of actual police lingo and a list of police acronyms.

This is a very complete book. For writers of crime novels, especially NYPD novels, this book belongs on your reference shelf. For everyone else, read this book and see for yourself just how well, or how badly, TV does the police business. Highly recommended.

All authors are going to take some license when it comes to writing crime fiction, but the key to selling an unlikely scenario (I mean, how many serial killers are there in real life as opposed to in books?) is to make it as believable as possible. That depth of story and vision is a lot easier to achieve if you peruse through WCNYS. Giacalone breaks down the hows and whys of policework, providing lots of insight and useful details without getting bogged down in endless technicalities. The book covers everything from proper police ranks to how to get a suicide jumper off a roof. All the while, this info is told with a minimum of clutter, and more than the occasional laugh (the culmination of his suicide jumper example is worth the price of admission alone!). It's an enjoyable and very educational read.

This book is an insightful, detailed and entertaining resource for all crime and mystery writers, as well as informative for crime show watchers. Learn what really happens from an NYPD perspective about crime and criminal investigations, and spot the "felonies" perpetrated by TV police dramas. A fully researched guide that includes police procedure, definitions and glossary of police lingo. I keep going back to it again and again! A five star book!

This book is filled with an insider's look at NYPD procedures and methods. It explains in laymen's terms what the NYPD does and does not do as well as which group's within the NYPD are responsible for what. A great resource for any crime writing author or for anyone who would like to see the inner workings of the NYPD.

Witty yet useful, the book reads like a novel which is probably a good thing, especially when reading about the dark ages. In fact, this book probably focuses more on the losing years of 1903-1920 and 1965-1975 more then any other writer so this probably the most comprehensive book to date on the Yankees.

This book has lots of text -- that is a good thing! This is not a picture book, but more of a detailed history with some good photos. I enjoyed all the details and seeing some pictures that I had not seen before. Probably one of the "keepers" of the Yankees 100th craze.

As a Giants fan I've never had much love for the Yankees, but I picked up this book for a friend after reading RED SOX CENTURY. I started flipping through it and was totally engrossed -- what Stout has done is give us the full story of this team, not just the same old stuff about their wins, the famous players, and George Steinbrenner, although that's all in here too. And the photos are just great. I'd recommend this one to any Yankees fan, as well as anyone interested in reading a good, multi-layered story about baseball.

I'll have to agree with Book Magazine on this one, which named this book one of the best sports books of 2002. Of all the Yankee books out this year (and there are many), this is clearly the best, combining hundreds of stunning photographs with what is easily the most detailed and comprehensive history of this team ever written. Quite simply, it makes all the other Yankee books out there seem as if they were written for children. That's not to say this is a tough read or anything, but it is a comprehensive book that you can spend days and weeks with, and is critical when it needs to be. I also think it's the only Yankee book in recent memory that contains anything NEW - there are literally dozens of stories in here that don't appear elsewhere, like the story about why Boston sold Ruth (it's no curse SOx fans). It is particularly good with early Yankee history and the last decade, both of which are rarely written about in other books at all. There are also essays by people like Ira Berkow and Paul O'Neill's sister, just enough stats and a huge index that makes it possible to look up just about anything. This book is certain to become the definitive history for the first hundred years of the Yankee dynasty and is a must-have for Yankee fans or anyone interested in baseball history.

I was led to this book by a recent review by Eric Neel on ESPN.com. He wrote, "It says here that 14 percent of Americans root for the Yankees and the other 86 percent root for their demise. No fence sitting ; you're in or you're out with the Yanks.

I'm sure the 14 percent have this book already and that they're reading it aloud to their kids every night before bed, wiping tears from the kids' faces, letting them know how deep and wide the Yankees history is.

If you're the other 86 percent, you ought to be reading it too. First, because there's something devilishly satisfying in reading about the early days, when the team was nearly shut out of Manhattan, playing on a sloppy, cobbled together frield with a sawamp in right. Second, because as you turn the pages you come to realize that from DiMaggio to Mantle, from Bucky Dent to Reggie to Paul O'Neill and El Duque, these guys and the things they've done (sometimes to you, sometimes in spite of you) are part of your history, part of how you remember and imagine your life. An third, because it's insanely thorough, full of details you've forgotten or never knew, and very good looking.

Stout started this series with Red Sox Century in 2000. Dodger Century is in the works. These are rich, dazzling books, standard-setters, fully-realized, complicated portraits of the ways a team and a game weave in and out of politics, history and popular culture.

O'Neill's sister contributes an essay that sums up the series appeal much better than I can: 'In our family we tell stories. We don't really Talk. We let baseball articulate the hopes and fears that we'd never consider telling each other.'"

In this case, I found the review was completely accurate. Of the spate of books out now that claim to tell the history of this team, this book, in almost 500 pages of words and photographs, is the only one up to its subject. If you don't believe me, or ESPN, I suggest you read the excerpt about the birth of the team - even hard core Yankee fans will learn something new.

My daughter received this book as a gift on her first birthday. The illustrations are beautiful, but because she is so young, and we want to preserve the book, we mostly listen to the music with her. My wife holds my daughter and dances around the room to the sweet and happy melodies. When she sets her down my daughter makes the sign for "more more more"! Once the music begins, she laughs and reaches up, wanting to start all over again.

The music is not overly "classical", nor is it annoyingly childish. It is just wonderfully simple and can be enjoyed by anyone at any time.

absolute gem!!! wordless story told in pictures and original musical score- everyone should enjoy this book

A very pleasant book. Great to use on a rainy day with the music. The illustrations give a sense of constant motion and are complemented by the fast tempo music. The pictures have a strong correlation between shape, size, and environment, with everything seeming very deliberate. A great medium and angle to depict the journey to school. All the different umbrellas seem to have their own characteristics and throughout the book you are left to wonder who is under the umbrella and where are they going. Beautifully illustrated!! Should be read with the music.

... so much so that I chose to review it. It is an atypical "counting" book... one in which a certain object, in this case -- umbrellas, is added to each page. But the twist is that a CD comes with this book. The CD has various cuts of original piano music. Each cut wonderfully reflects the setting of the given page. On one page, as the umbrellas cross over a bridge, you can hear the plink-plink of the raindrops on the water below. On another page, you can hear an approaching train as the pianist speeds up his delivery of original music. The artwork is beautiful, with a subdued rainy palette used for backgrounds. Only the umbrellas themselves are vibrantly depicted. It's only at the end of the book in which we actually get a glimpse of the people (children) carrying the umbrellas, and even on that page, one only sees their legs. My two sons enjoyed trying to guess who might be carrying the umbrellas and where they might be going. My 9-year-old said, "Wouldn't it be funny if they turned out to be monsters!" Monsters notwithstanding, the audio-visual combination makes for a wonderful experience just before dropping off to sleep.

My daughters (3 and 5) received the book from their Aunt. The first night we popped the CD in and slowly turned the pages...I watched their eyes as we went page by page and saw smiles come and go throughout the book. The fact that there are no words makes us slow down, mingle music with imagination and every now and then we make up our own words - sprinkled here and there among the raindrops - to take the story in new directions whenever we choose.

Now...the CD player in the car brings the pictures back to the girls as we travel down to Rhode Island to visit family. Fabulous choice - thanks Aunt Betty and Uncle Duck.

Everyone who wants to eat well in NYC needs a Zagat guide. It lists almost every kind of cuisine, price level and restaurant location in the city. The reviewers are people just like you and me, they like to eat and they are willing to share their experiences. If you are visiting NYC for the first time, or for the 20th time, you need this book.

If you are planning to take a trip to New York City, be certain that you have the latest copy of Zagat's with you. It will totally enhance your dining experience. don't leave home without it.

i have been to new york city several times and always consult my zagat guide. it has never let me down! i would not dream of not going without it!

This book is awesome!! If you like to go out to eat and try new things this is the book to help guide you. I get one every year and use it all the time. I recommend this book to anyone who goes out to eat in NYC!

Where would we be without Zagat? I don't always agree with their reviews, but it's somewhere to start. After you read the review you can always check out the web site. If anything the reviews are more critical than they need to be. I have never been disappointed.