J Books

This guy is funny. I'm assuming he writes comedy for a living but haven't heard of him before. Anyway, buy this book for yourself if your girlfriend doesn't get it for you -- it is great

Funny, funny, funny. When is the movie coming out?!

This is the funniest book I've ever seen on the subject of the engagement process. Buy it, give it to a friend

Great gift idea for your brother, son, friend -- any guy you know that's going through the whole engagement thing! Michael Katz has a handle on the experience, and delivers on every page. I keep a stock of these and give them out every time somebody new gets engaged. -- Lori

Great stuff. Extremely useful for breaking the pre-wedding tension, and the truth is, I learned a lot.

You can tell when you pick up the book: quilting stitches are embossed on the cover. Quilt patches make up the cover: eggs, pie, soup, chicken. There are no photographs inside. No garnishes. Nothing about piling up the food into teetery towers and drizzling essences of something or another on a gigantic plate. YET these are America's best-known chefs. At least half of them must be James Beard Award winners. Their own cookbooks and restaurants have won most of the other awards. Cooking from the Heart is 100 chefs making up this treasury of family recipes, of familiar (to them) favorites, all designed for a home cook. Sure, there are a few recipes with a couple sub-recipes (you can't make a pie in one step...but we all do it without grousing). Sure, there are a few (but only a few) that have an ingredient that might require a trip to specialty market. But that's part of the joy in this kind of a book: finding something new to add to the standards in your own recipe file.
Unlike a lot of chef-written books, this one tells stories. Funny accounts of travels or mishaps or family members. Really touching tributes to grandparents, mentors, loved ones. And then the recipes themselves make this book a stand out. Try these titles: Brown-butter apple tart, blue cheese grits with wild mushrooms, crab cakes with a fried corn sauce. Or try something incredibly festive: a leg of lamb cooked for three days with a pound and a half of garlic--that's 1 1/2 pounds: marinated for a day, cooked for 7 hours, and rested for a day, resulting in something so tender and aromatic... A wild recipe from Philip Boulot in Portland, Oregon. The book is full of these simmered recipes that fill the house with something that's divine and earthly: Emeril's Sunday pot of bolognese sauce, John Ash's grandmother's beef stew, Suzanne Goin's devil's chicken with mustard and leeks.
Which makes this book sound too strong in the meat department, which isn't the case. Tons of great seafood, lots of homey desserts, and a big range of starters and first courses. It really is a quilt: bright patches from all across America, from every cuisine, from so many great talents. And like a quilt, something to pass on and cherish.

Sure, pick up the book because it features new recipes from umpteen James Beard Award winners, from most of the affable chefs who have television shows, from these "chefs who are the new rock stars." Okay, that might be the way you find the book. But inside, it's all storytelling. Rosen, the book's writer, coaxed the most familiar and family-inspired stories from these celebrity chefs to accompany their recipes. (And the recipes themselves also have a very accessible, personable feel to them: nothing too fanciful or formidable.)
A review, which put me onto the book said, "you know feel-good movies...this is a feel-good cookbook." It's a book to read at the kitchen table while you have breakfast, dreaming up what to cook for dinner. Dreaming of those anecdotes you tell about your own family's favorite meals. It's a fireside book. An emotional book: it about WHY we want to go to the trouble of cooking wonderful things for people we love. It's THE ideal book to give as gift, full of heart.

This book exhibits exceptional taste. The panko-crusted goat cheese on arugula and asparagus salad is worth the price of the book. And then there are 99 other great recipes.

Since we've elevated chefs to "star status" these days, we want to know all about what appliances and ingredients they use, what they themselves eat, etc. So ONE of the great things about this collection is the inside look you get at each chef's personal history. Really touching stories like Marcel Desaulnier, while stationed in Viet Nam, sharing the homemade chocolates his mother had sent. All this besides the fact that the book itself is gorgeous and just reading the recipes is entertainment enough. And as if I needed another way to rationalize buying the book, the fact that a portion of the proceeds go to an organization committed to ending hunger (Share Our Strength) had me sold. Buy this book!

At first I thought, wow! a nice book, a good gift. The premise of 100 great American chefs sharing stories and recipes for a good cause. But both the tales and the recipes exceeded my expectations. A terrific addition to my extensive cookbook collection.

This book touches on a lot of information that standard crystal guides are lacking. Very detailed, but sadly no pictures. Crystal Enchantments has a lot to say about scrying and stone divination. Although this book is lacking a few major crystals I was hoping to learn more about, I found out about a lot of other crystals I have never studied.

I really like this book. One of my friends swears by it. I only wish it was hardback.

Written in the simple and personal style for which Conway is known, this work carries on in the tradition of a more folklorical and Pagan perspective of working with minerals. This book helps integrate history, tradition, and the more New Agey perspective, and Conway also adds a bit of mineralogy to the mix.

This work largely addresses crystals for their healing and ritual/magickal connotations, and thus adds a facet that other comprehensive works leave out. This is a must-have for all crystal workers, especially those of a Pagan or Earth-based worldview.

this book provides a lot of information about stones and crystals that is informative and written in a fashion that isn't dry. Not many pictures, but the book is super reference.

I have always enjoyed stone, used to work with a stone wheel shaping them.

Always felt such power from the different ones, almost as if they called to me, telling me what shape they wanted to me. So I appreciate knowing more about them and their properties.

This book is mostly text with no "real" illustrations (only a very small handful of pictures and diagrams). Very informative and is most definatly a solid choice for reading material of this subject.

I see a lilac, smell chocolate-chip cookies baking, hear a certain tone in my sister's voice, and I miss my mother. Emotions flood back. Things we shared that I ache to share again. But there are new feelings as well. Things I never told her. Feelings we never shared. How I wish I could tell her. Tell her the new grandbaby is on the way. Tell her the other children are fine. Tell her that I have lived longer, seen more of life, and I understand more. I have changed. She might have as well.

I am not alone. Lisa R. Delman has tapped into the deep need of many women to share deep feelings with their mothers, or to enunciate them, even knowing that the mothers are not there to read the words. When Delman's own mother lay near death, she realized the depth of her feelings. Fortunately, her mother recovered. Delman wrote a series of letters telling her mother all she had learned...

"By writing to my mother instead of about her, I was able to see reflections of myself and become accountable for my part of our relationship. As I embraced her challenges and triumphs in a compassionate way, I was graciously able to accept my own humanity."

Taking her new knowledge, Delman set up an Internet letter-writing contest encouraging other women to write letters to their mothers. She received more that a thousand entries. from all over the world. Many of the letters appear in this book. Letters that concern not only grief and disappointment, but also courage, gratitude and love. Some are written and have been shared with the writers' mothers. Others, such as mine, were delivered only through the heart.

This is a good book to browse. The variety of letters--in each section, prefaced by Delman's commentary--will evoke familiar feelings and help each reader to enunciate her own. The book closes with "Ten Ways to Open Your Heart to Your Mother," a useful guide which Delman says will lead you to the right place. "The rest will follow."

To learn more about Delman's work and her on-going letter writing contests, visit her website.

by Patricia Nordyke Pando
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

This book is an amazing look at daghters relationships with their moms. The letters go beyond all cultural barriers to connect the hearts of women everywhere. If you are a women...then you are a daughter. Read this book and be inspired by the heartfelt letters of women from around the globe.

There are a lot of unsaid words and feelings bottled inside most of us. With my mother now in her eighties, I need to learn to let these out and to share them with her.
Discovering this book may help me break through the silence. I hope so.
Here's the author's words from the Letters From The Heart website: "I hope you take the women's insights in the book, Dear Mom, as a guide to explore your own relationship with your mother, and most important, with yourself.
May you make it a priority to tend to unresolved matters and discover the purpose of compassion, peace, and love throughout your life."
Wouldn't it be wonderful if all daughters could take this inspiration and achieve an improved relationship?

Lisa did a brilliant job of creating the concept and then weaving the selected letters into a masterpiece of human emotion. I was able to look inside of so many incredibly expressive women's worlds to be captivated by their heartfelt feelings of gratitude, sorrow, shame, anger, guilt, abandonment, forgiveness, grief, love and in so many situations there was resolution, peace and wholeness. I found it refreshing to be able to leave my fast paced hectic day and slip away for some precious time to experience the journey of Dear Mom, I've Always Wanted You to Know as the Letters from the Heart truly touched my heart. As a daughter of a wonderful mother that is finer than a priceless gem and as a mother of two teenage daughters, I laughed, cried and wanted more when I reached the end. Life can take people in so many directions and the process of finding your home can sometimes be a letter away. I highly recommend this book!!!

It goes without saying that the relationship between mothers and daughters is a complex one. Not only that, but it changes over time, so that neither mothers or daughters are ever quite the same from year to year, or even month to month. The result is an unpredictable relationship that is often difficult, but also rewarding. Lisa Delman's anthology began when she wrote her own letters to her mother. But it has moved from the personal to the many, and in doing so this book of letters touches on the universal. There are so many good letters in this volume, and they run the scale of emotions. I was particular impressed by the work of Judy Brand, who writes so movingly about making a momentous decision to save her mother's life following an aneurysm. I was also touched by Cynthia Jean Heidercker's story about being deaf, and how her mother labored to make life easier for her. These letters are all from the heart, some hurt and others made healthy again, by the primary relationships in their lives. The book offers life lessons for us all.

As a manager of about 30 people, I found this book extremely helpful. Some of the things I new before, but didn't really know how to apply them. This is not just a bunch of theory - it's real world.

This is a great book to jog your thinking and uncake your brain so you don't keep doing what you have been doing.

Rinke's sage advice will cause you to think a bit differently and try a few new tricks that will give you an edge in leading and managing your organization.

I particularly liked chapter 10, Don't Have People Work for You and chapter 13, Trust All the People All the Time. These chapters provide great insights and ideas for leading and managing a diverse workforce with plenty of Generation X and Millenium Group associates.

This is the kind of book that does not require great study or a huge reading investment, but provides great reading enjoyment and a big payoff in sound advice.

Dr. Rinke has used a fun approach to outline the necessary skills to improve leadership skills. By taking the backdoor approach he shows you exactly what to do. The book is full of wisdom, examples, techniques and humor. It should be required reading for any manager or leader.

Those words pop off the back cover to entice prospective readers to open the book. Combine that phrase with the subtitle about contrarian ways to improve leadership effectiveness and you begin to gain an idea of what this book is like. Frankly, I wasn't sure if I'd get a laugh a page or serious stuff. Turns out I got both!

Rinke, an experienced executive leader, management consultant, professional speaker, and author presents alternatives to the old saws that populate so many leadership books. Listen to some of the chapter headings: Knowledge is Not Power. Don't Manage People. Don't Be Proud. Don't Have People Work for You. Don't Focus on the Bottom Line. Don't Satisfy Customers. Are you getting the idea that you might be in for an interesting ride?

Each chapter lightly pokes fun at the common belief, though not as obviously as I expected it would. Readers will be surprised at the strong treatment of leadership skills, illustrated with stories that bring them to life. The lessons are presented in a way that holds interest and teaches practicality.

Laugh? This book includes something unique; I have not seen this done before. In each chapter, just before the summary, there is a brief section titled "Smile." Rinke shares a bit of humor with the reader to keep the book light and to demonstrate that leadership should be fun, not laborious.

If you've spent any time in leadership positions, you'll identify with the proverbial advice...and can probably create your own thinking about what Rinke teaches us. You'll spin a paragraph or two before you wonder where to go next. Rinke will be there to take you further down the path to success.

Wolf has contributed much to the fields of management and leadership over many years; this book adds tremendously to that body of knowledge.

"Don't Oil" is a common sense book that is an easy read, but is chock full of info spread over 20 engaging chapters that can be easily consumed.

A must buy for your library.

There is no such thing as a bad Ross MacDonald novel, but while this is good, it isn't typical of his best work. MacDonald's Lew Archer novels are correctly judged to be the great successor works to the great stories and novels of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. Together the three writers constitute the Great Triumvirate of the American hardboiled school. While MacDonald doesn't write prose quite as brilliant or memorable as his two predecessors, he created characters of greater depth and complexity. He also wrote a larger quantity of great novels than either Hammett or Chandler.

Despite all this, THE DROWNING POOL does not stand out very far from what Hammett and Chandler had achieved and it did not really put on display MacDonald's later innovations. If there is a theme running through MacDonald's best books like THE CHILL or THE INSTANT ENEMY or THE MOVING TARGET is it this: "The sins of the fathers will be visited unto the second and third generations." In almost all of his mature novels Lew Archer starts off investigating some incident in the present that ends up having roots 20 or 30 or 40 years earlier. His novels always puts me in mind of Yeats's "Leda and the Swan," where the rape of Leda by Zeus in the form of a swan inevitably leads to the tragedy of the Trojan war: "A shudder in the loins engenders there/The broken wall, the burning roof and tower/And Agamemnon dead." There is an intricate causality in the Archer novels. Things happen not because of anything happening right here and now, but in almost foreordained fashion because of actions in a previous generation. THE DROWNING POOL has a smidgen of this, but not much. The causality developed here is the later view of causality in embryonic form.

The amazing thing is that even though this is not quite as breathtaking as later MacDonald novels, it is still absolutely first rate. Ironically, this is one of his best-known novels, even if it isn't one of his very best. The reason is easy to identify: it was made into a movie starring Paul Newman. In fact, though MacDonald is clearly one of the Big Three hardboiled writers, unlike Hammett and Chandler -- both of whose novels have been turned into several great films -- MacDonald's books simply do not lend themselves to conversion to movies. Paul Newman did play Lew Archer as Harper in two movies, but they were not of the same quality as the best films based on Hammett and Chandler books. HARPER was a film version of THE MOVING TARGET, so both the title and the main character underwent a name change. Unbelievably, MacDonald's best book -- and one of the two or three greatest hardboiled novels ever written -- THE CHILL has never been made into a movie. The film that is closest to the world of Lew Archer has no connection to any novel by MacDonald, Roman Polanski's CHINATOWN, which is much closer to MacDonald in spirit than to either Hammett or Chandler.

Still, this is must read MacDonald. His books would get better, but that isn't to say that this isn't a good, even a great, novel.

Of all the classic heroes in hard-boiled fiction (Spade, Marlowe, etc.) I've always found Lew Archer to be my favorite. Maybe it's because MacDonald does such a superlative job illustrating Archer's flaws, doubts and shortcomings. Rather than some iron-jawed superhero, he's a compellingly complex person whose battered conscience ultimately makes him more heroic. Many readers consider The Drowning Pool to be the best Archer book and it's hard to argue that contention. If pressed, I might rank The Way Some People Die just a little bit higher, but both books are so good it's stupid to quibble. I haven't read The Barbarous Coast yet, but look forward to diving in soon.. and afterward I might have to revise my opinion regarding Archer's best case once again.

A different Lew Archer here than THE BLUE HAMMER Lew Archer. The tone is in TDP is more gritty and hardboiled. Lew is less the romantic toward the ladies he meets. I like Macdonalds' writing in TDP. A less polished and more direct style has its appeal. There's less psychological development of the characters, more emphasis on plot.

I hesitate to call this a classic because some people consider "classics" as dull and out-dated. And there's nothing dull or out-dated here (well, maybe that paying $10 to be driven from Las Vegas to L. A. is a bit out of date).

Archer's hired to discover who sent his client's husband a letter accusing her of infidelity. Introduced to the family and friends at a party as a Hollywood agent, he is sensitive to the growing tension and explosive atmosphere. The reader knows of course that somebody's going to be murdered, but these early chapters are among the most skillfully written to build suspense that I've ever read.

Written in 1950, the inclusion of a homosexual couple was quite daring although there is not graphic description, and isn't significant enough a factor of the plot to either offend or attract a reader.

Read this and I'm sure you'll find it on your own list of crime classics.

In this skillfully written tale of murder and intrigue, Ross MacDonald manages to "out Chandler" Raymond Chandler. It's Southern California, circa 1950, and hardboiled detective Lew Archer finds himself traversing the same landscapes Chandler's Philip Marlowe does in The Big Sleep, High Window and The Long Goodbye.
The plot of The Drowning Pool is complex enough to be interesting without being convoluted or forced. Greed, blackmail, homosexuality and family dysfunction all play roles in advancing the nicely paced narrative. Thrown in for good measure are seductive women, a number of action scenes and a Lolita like teenager named Cathy.
MacDonald's very descriptive prose is quite effective. And there's plenty of memorable dialogue. My personal favorite: "Your reminiscences fascinate me. May I take notes?"
You'd be hard pressed to find a more satisfying example of noir crime writing. An enthusiastic 5 stars.

This book was given to me in May as a gift by my fantastic husband, and I have been a fan since. It is truly a touching story; heartrending when you read what wonderful Dwight had to go through to follow his dream only to die young. Yet triumphant in that, through the years, he has posthumously procured many fans through his many film roles, and not just in the Horror genre.This is the best biography I have ever had the pleasure to read, and I may have to order a spare in case I wear the first one out! Happy reading!

We fully expect to read about vice and seediness within the life of a Hollywood actor. After all, few live within the lifestyle of Hollywood and come out unscathed. However, Dwight Frye was just such a man. This is the story of a man who loved his family and the stage with equal passion. While others concerned themselves with pleasure and fame, he simply wanted to enjoy his craft and put food on the table. Reading his biography restored my faith in humankind just a little more, knowing that there are people who walked the Earth who truly enjoyed and appreciated the things that really mattered. The book is also filled with wonderful photographs of his theatrical accomplishments from long before his appearance in film, as well as some delightful family photos. The list of his stage credits is quite thorough and impressive. All in all, it was a wonderful, refreshing read.

I enjoyed this book a lot. It's very well written, and while reading it, I wished it'd go on forever. Frye was a remarkable actor, and deserved a better fate. So sad his life and career was cut short. (Shouldn't someone film this story ?.) I highly recommend the book, not just to Horror fans.

I have been a Dwight Frye fan for five years and I have had this wonderful book that long. It is worn and old but when November 7 roles around I usually pull Dwight Fryes Last Laugh out and start reading. He was an incredibly talented actor and I wish he would have been given a chance in Hollywood. I believe he would have made it big. Thanks to the authors Gregory William Mank, James T. Coughlin, and the late Dwight David Frye. Thank you Dwight I. Frye for all the inpiration!!

Very interesting reading, I enjoyed this book so much, because I have always been interested in Dwight Frye as an actor , but didn't know where to turn for information on him....Lucky me, I found this great book on the internet....I have read it over and over and make many references to the book along with the movies it covers... This book is about a great character actor..Must Have...

I rate this book as amongst the most influential in my life. The author spends the first half of the book explaining why even though things may look much more advanced and different now than 2000 years ago, the same underlying forces are at play. The powerful are in control and we live under a system of mercantilism and not anything resembling the free trade we are taught at school.

I have read widely and believe that the solutions proposed by Dr Smith in the second half of this book focus too narrowly on the economic aspects of peoples lives and tend to be very prescriptive such as specific taxation reforms. I prefer the writings of Noam Chomsky who is less proscriptive but generally has more the right idea - that as human beings our main goal should be to let everyone live in freedom and peace where everyone is able to be himself. People just want to be free to control their own destiny and economics is only one part of this solution.

Despite not agreeing with all the solutions posed by Dr Smith I still fully rate this book because it is the first half that will blow your socks off. You do not have to agree with the second half and can pick and choose which reforms should be implemented as I did. This book changed my thinking forever and I now realise and understand the real forces at play when I see news items and read books.

Essentially this book is an extremely in-depth deconstruction of neo-liberal economics/politics. I had long thought myself almost unique (outside Academia) in the depth and breadth of my reading, but after having read this book, I realized that I understood very little about what was really going on. It was a humbling experience, to say the least. But it was also liberating, in that for the first time in my life, the opaque inconsistencies between what I had been taught in university and the realities I saw happening in the news became transparent. The author additionally offers many progressive ideas for a more just, efficient and ultimately sustainable economic system, which in my experience is very rare indeed. If you are looking for something more substantial than Michael Moore's often inarticulate rants - albeit less entertaining - than this is the book for you. BE WARNED: once you read this book, nothing will ever seem quite the same.

I've searched my whole life to the reasons for and the solution to world poverty and hunger. This work offers both in a well reasearched and thought out, realistic approach. The reasons for poverty become obvious after reading Dr. Smith's book. The posibility of ending poverty by building buying power in the Third World while improving the standard of living in the developed world is as brilliant as it feasible. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for answers to solving the world's ills

I was first impressed by JW Smith's book, The World's Wasted Wealth 2, filled as it is with ideas about how to reduce waste. His Economic Democracy book exposes the roots of world poverty and identifies how all people everywhere can become truly wealthy while respecting and conserving the world's ecology. I use several chapters in the undergraduate sociology course I teach called, Cooperation and Conflict. Every chapter is packed with information that we all need to know in order to participate responsibly in redirecting government policies.

A professor of economics once told me that "mainstream economics is 95% ideology and only 5% social science." This wonderful book by J.W. Smith shows why that is true. I found it utterly complelling and could not put it down. By exposing the macro-economic mechanisms of the past five centuries, Smith blows neo-liberal ideology right out of the water. This book should be required reading everywhere in the world. It points the way toward a liberated and decent world-order and shows that a just world-order would not be that difficult to achieve. This book lays the foundation for a new global economics of freedom and prosperity. Thank-you Dr. Smith!

A friend loaned me a copy of this book and before I was more than a couple of pages into it I was hooked. I liked it so much I rushed to see if there were any others by this writer. This is one of the best books I've read. It's so good that I've read it twice. If anyone wants to take a chance on a new writer, this is the one. You'll be hooked like me and wanting more.

I'm not much of a reader, and was hesitant to even start this book. Am I glad I did!! Once I started reading I couldn't stop. I even gave up television just to read. This gal can tell a story that keeps you glued to every page. I loved the book and recommend it to everyone who wants the kind of book that makes you feel like you're watching a movie in your head. It's great!!

I'd never heard of this writer, but now that I have I'll definitely be looking for more of her books. Element 115 is one of the most exciting reading trips I've taken in a long time. I couldn't put it down and when it was finished I wished it wasn't. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a good story with action, excitement, intrigue, romance and a story that keeps you guessing right up until the end.

In the tradition of Big Boned Lap Dog and No! I'm Not Glad to See You, It's a Serious Medical Condition, Element 115 is guaranteed to satisfy everyone, not just afficianados of Lesbian Fiction.

The intricate plotting and realism of the characters hooked me before page 10. The ending of the book stayed with me for days and has prompted me to look for more books by this writer.

I am a child and adolescent psychiatrist and a parent. I came across this important book as I was researching my own.

If you care about how your kids live through their childhood and make their way forward through a world saturated with media and technology, you must read this wonderful and informative book. Many principles discussed here may be extrapolated to the Internet.

Don't miss it!

Eitan D. Schwarz, MD, DLFAPA, FAACAP

I picked this book up already convinced that t.v. is basically the worst thing that ever happened to society, so I was skeptical to say the least. However, as the authors state, their intent is to admit that t.v. is here to stay, and for the overwhelming majority, getting totally rid of it would not be an option, and offer guidance in how to make watching it as beneficial as possible.

What this amounts to, it seems, is telling readers that your children under 7 are basically confined to 'Sesame Street', 'Mister Rodger's Neighborhood', 'Blues Clues', and nature shows on Discovery channel. I found their assessment of Sesame Street a little over the top in their praise of its supposed benefits, though later on in the book they admit that merchandising has begun to compromise the integrity of the show and its imitators. The fact is, there are a number of major studies that have directly challenged the ability of shows like Sesame Street to produce real-life results in reading and mathematics, and much of the research the authors cite as supportive of the show was done or funded by the creators of the show themselves, a definite conflict of interest when funding is on the line.

The research on content in terms of sexuality, violence, and materialism that is dealt with is pretty accurate. My biggest disappointment was that the authors failed to spend any real time dealing with the long term effects of visual media on learning ability at the neurological level, a subject that in and of itself makes one quite wary of significant exposure to television. There was maybe a paragraph or two, but that's all.

Overall, the impression I got was that the authors have an underlying uneasiness with the whole idea of t.v., and if they thought enough of their readers would accept it, they'd recommend chucking the thing out the window. However, as stated in the beginning, they know this is impossible, so the book ends up sounding like a hesitant admission of the fact and an almost reluctant setting forth of strategies to overcome the inherent and perisistent flaws of the medium, punctuated here and there by brief offerings of lavish praise for the possibilities of t.v. to expand our horizons and foster meaningful conversation. In short, most chapters give all kinds of wonderful suggestions, but are interspersed with admissions that seem to contradict their earlier celebrations of the potential benefits of television.

Personally, I would still recommend the book since I know also the futility of asking people to abandon t.v. altogether. However, I would strongly urge the reader to also get a copy of 'The Plug-In Drug" by Mary Winn, a book written about ten years ago that comes to the same basic conclusions and recommendations, but is more forthright about the downside of television and the industries it propogates. I find it significant (and revealing), that it was never cited by the authors of this book, considering that it is seen by most who have followed this subject for some time (as the authors obviously have been) as a seminal work. Critics of Winn have labeled her a Luddite, but while she does come off as somewhat hostile toward t.v., she is also realistic and manages to stay objective. It is a necessary companion to this book.

Finally, there is a book I can recommend to help parents make informed choices about the television viewing in their homes. This well-referenced book is a comprehensive summary of the existing research about TV viewing and youth, yet it remains an accessible read, peppered with interesting personal vignettes. Rather than telling people to throw out the tube, this book offers practical tips to help parents get the most out of what's good on TV, and strategies to mitigate its harmful effects. Reading this book I found both the evidence and the solutions needed to control the role of TV in the lives of children.

TV has been around for over 50 years and has become for most, an unquestioned or unexamined part of life. It just IS. Is what? Good for you? Bad for you? How do we know? We should be critically examining many facets of our culture. But how? Pediatrician and scientist Christakis and Zimmerman give us ways to decide by presenting reasoned opinion backed up by studies in a very accessible way. The concepts are mostly intuitive but not easy for many of us to act upon to benefit our children. Much of what kids watch on TV isn't good for them, nor for society. They give good guidelines for how to use the beast. Ignore this book at your grandchildren's peril.

If you have a television and a child, you must read this book! Without being remotely preachy or judgmental, The Elephant in the Living Room lays out both the benefits and pitfalls of TV watching for children, and gives manageable solutions for minimizing the bad and maximizing the good. The anecdotes lay out the issues in a way that's clear and entertaining, and the advice is specific and realistic. Each chapter ends with a sort of action plan, which makes it easy to keep track of the important points and put them into practice. The book is also funny and entertaining, making it not just a painless way to get important information, but a pleasant one. There is nothing else like this out there--The Elephant in the Living Room really is a must-read for anyone raising children in today's media packed world.