K Books

This book is a joy to read. It inspires anyone to enjoy all of the little blessings in life.

Mama fell in love with San Francisco as soon as she and her husband arrived in the city from Norway. Five children were born to her there, and she raised them with love and wisdom that daughter Katrin - who Americanized her name to "Kathryn" in early adolescence - would always remember.

I won't call this classic collection of real-life stories charming, because it's got too much solid and at times downright unpleasant reality in its pages. Instead I'll call it inspiring. Money, education, and influence Mama's family didn't have; but everything that really matters they had in plenty. Good food, meticulously clean shelter, solid values, and most of all - of course - love. Recommended for all ages in the highest possible terms!

This is one of my favorite books to read aloud. I taught junior highers for many years and this was a book they loved! Many times I taught sisters and brothers in later years and they would invariably ask when I was going to read Mama's Bank Account. The story appeals to both boys and girls and though Mama is the central character, I appreciated the fact that Papa was a very strong, loving support to the family. After you have read the book, watch the video! It is one of the few books that made the transition to the screen and is delightful!

I won't give away the spoiler that ties together the whole plot, but needless to say it's right up there in the title of the book and it's still a surprise even after sixty years or more since the novel was first published. Kathryn Forbes must have been a delightful woman and her book is one of the finest achievements ever to have been written in San Francisco. And that's saying something, considering what a rich and cultured city ours is. One episode that will stick with me forever is the time when the little girl and her brother are talked into providing food for their whole class at school, and "Mama" saves the day by cooking up some of her good old Swedish (I guess Norwegian) meatballs. When I first read this passage I was but a little boy and had never heard of any kind of meatballs but Italian ones! Next thing you know, my mom and dad took us to dinner and the waiter asked me what I wanted to eat and I surprised them all by asking for "Swedish meatballs on little tooth picks."

It's a family book for people whose families are no longer with us. And it will rekindle the spirit of hope in everyone, with its message of universal tolerance and mother love.

As an author, I bought this book to use as a reference book while writing a fictional story about a similar type of family. I read this book as a young woman and saw both the stage play and the movie. It is a touching tale of a more simple time and a remarkable woman. Rosalie Kramer, "Dancing in the Dark: Things My Mother Never Told Me."

This fine work was my introduction to Wendell Berry. I found it a moving experience to read it. Berry's portrayal of a rural way of life and its values serves as a doorway to a world we have largely lost. And in Jack Beechum we meet an ancient whose humanity and history live on beneath an often silent exterior. You will remember this one.

Reading The Memory of Old Jack is taking a journey through a man's life--the times he's proud of and the times he regrets but understands with a clarity that only comes from age. Soren Kierkegaard said that "life can only be understood backwards; the trouble is we have to live it forwards." Old Jack does this well and Berry manages to tell his story in a way that Old Jack's understanding brings understanding to our own life experiences.

Mr Berry is a writers writer. Eloquent without being pretentious. Brilliant without being inexcessable. He is Wes Jackson and Frederick Buechner at lunch over beans and Hoecake

Memories of a lifetime move into and out of the mind and soul of Jack Beechum, town patriarch and now-aged and retired Kentucky tobacco farmer who was born of, defined by and wedded to the richness and rewards of the toil and soil of his beloved farm. As in other Wendell Berry novels that I've read, Port William, KY is the setting for the same collage of personages who populate and flesh out these recollections of one man's successes and failures, joys and sorrows, hopes and regrets, with prose that embraces the poignant nuances of each reminiscence. Throughout, it's as if Old Jack's mind lights upon a loose, dangling thread of a past experience and, holding on and following it carefully, he wends his way back to the original whole-cloth of the event. Whether it is the poetry of the narrative, or the truth of universal insights, or the pervasiveness of gentleness and forbearance, this is literary soul food. There's nothing maudlin here, however, as these are remembrances of a pretty vigorous and rough-hewn guy, grown old but not soft. But, by gosh, this IS beautiful down-home style stuff.

For Berry readers, this will come as no surprise, but this is a phenomenal book. I love the simple elegance of the prose, and the import is incredible.

Beautiful, beautiful book.

The book kept me in suspense and could hardly put the book down. I look forward to more books in this series.

Just like the previous reader, I couldn't put the book down! It was such a wonderful story I only wished that I had read the first two novels! I'm a first time reader to author Jannette Oke and I'm happy that found her! It was wonderfully written and very warming to the heart. I was glad to see Virginia's strength renewed during her toughest times. May God continue to bless Mrs. Oke.

I loved the first two books, but this one is the best yet! Virgina has now grown up. At first I was sad that her teen-years adventures were over, but reading about her as an adult has been thrilling. So many things, including an abused child, her own children, a husband, struggles, and her grandmother, happen to her. Through the whole thing she realizes that her relationship with Christ is not what it should be. I think that this book has a great value to it!

I read the first two stories in this series and loved both of them. The plight of young Virginia in the first, and the older Virginia in the second gave us a glimpes into the life of a girl in that time period, I'd say, around the turn of the century. This third book introduces us to an adult Virginia, a married woman, caring for an elderly grandmother and an abused child as well as her husband, her own child, and household chores. Life for her was not easy, but she had God by her side, and He is the only one who can give you the stregnth and endurance to make it through the tough times. This book was really inspiring, and I hope Ms. Oke takes pity on us and writes the next one soon.

Virginia is so anxious to be married to Jonathan that she does not fully count the cost. When reality hits her, she is angry and disallusioned. Her home is finally built and just as life looks promising, an old friend drops in and with her a little waif daughter who ends up being Virginia and Jonathan's. Raising horses is risky and not without long hours - again leaving Virginia to fret. With a baby on the way and an wounded child to heal, horses take priority and Virginia loses her perspective on what is really important. The last straw is when Grandmother breaks her leg and must come live with them. Virginia is ready to throw in the towel when she allows God to speak to her heart and she finally listens. She is able to sort between fact and fantasy, romance and committment and wakes to the real reason for being a family. She is changed forever. Another Janette Oke thriller. Off to book 4!

This book, my all-time favorite novel, was Anthony Hyde's first novel and to appreciate it you have to remember that in 1984, when this novel was published, there was no Internet, no Google, very few electronic methods of getting information. Hyde's protagonist, Robert Thorne, a former journalist, is a Russian history expert who is drawn into a mystery that consumes him to the end. Thorne is a very likable gentleman, no quirks, utterly normal. When Thorne probes the mystery surrounding him, he uses time-honored methods of finding information, such as the Bettmann Archive, talking to people involved, etc. whereas today most journalists can simply Google someone.

As for the plot, if you've ever read Graham Greene's "The Third Man", you'll find some similiarities. Because Hyde uses the 1st person, we get every thought that Thorne is thinking, and so you get a sense of an updated Mickey Spillane "hard-boiled detective" novel, too.

Because Hyde was writing his first novel, he avoids many of the "hack" techniques other writers often employ, there are no cliches, no gratuitous sex scenes and no inane dialogue.

You can see where Hyde gets some inspiration, though; there's a little bit from "The Godfather", a scene where Thorne is in a restaurant in Leningrad, talking to a Russian KGB agent, that is straight out of "Casablanca".

But, these are quibbles - I love this book and it's replaced "Doctor Zhivago" as my fave novel of all time.

I've destroyed my copy from having read it over and over. This used to be in my father's bookshelf until I was bored as a young lady and absconded with it (SHHHHHHH. That was about ??(mutter mutter mutter) years ago.

I love Soviet history, particularly anything to do with the Russian Revolution and execution of the Tsar. This dances around it through the whole book. There's unrequited love and history and political intrigue. How can you go wrong there? Wonderful intelligent and captivating.

THere's my two cents.

This is a very readable book. The storyline is ever developing and doesn't necessarily lead you where you think it will. It also was refreshing to read a story in the first person, that did not spend enormous amounts of time building themselves up to be experts in this or that or telling you how with-it they were by wearing name brand clothes.

It is a mystery story that is believable in its development and execution. You can identify with the main character, because it could be your next door neighbour. And as an added bonus, there is a lot of information about the Soviet Union that is interesting to know. Good book!

I've read well over 1000 novels in my life, but after this one, I felt compelled to write a review. I'm not saying it's THE best story I've ever read, but it's the most engrossing book I've tackled this year hands down. The well-conceived plot is absolutely impossible to guess and the settings are unique when compared to the cliched L.A. or N.Y. settings of most of today's bestsellers. Get this one before it's out of print.

This is one of my favorites of the cold war fictions. I loved the location descriptions and choices; you start in North American and just keep going east. This is a smart, fun book that gives the reader a great story and a lot of interesting historical facts about Russia. This really is a book that has two - three very well developed and written plot twists that makes you stay on your toes. I have reread the book and it is something how well he places the road signs. This is a great book; unfortunately he was not able to keep up this form into his next.

Sister Anne's Hands are different; that is one of the first things Anna Zabrocky notices about Sr. Anne. Set in the 1960's, in the days of hatred toward anything that made a person different, this book explores Civil Rights, learning, and love from the perspective of a black-skinned nun and a white-skinned child. Through the course of the book, we see through word and picture the image of how Sr. Anne's hands tell a story. They go from being the object of Anna's curiosity about all the colors in them, to being the expression of a child's love for her teacher in a card Anna makes for Sr. Anne. Anna learned the greatest lesson: to look beyond the fear of our differences to learn of the love we share in our similarities. This is a very intimate look, through the lens of diversity, at the love that grows between a teacher and a child.

This book is particularly useful to me in my work as a Catholic religious educator because it demonstrates through historical fiction, an approach to respecting life in all of its forms, and celebrating that which makes us unique! This book is special to me - I was attracted by the name. I have two aunts who are nuns, one of whom is named Sr. Ann. My aunts shared their vocations as nuns and their professions as teachers. I remember seeing pictures of Sr. Ann and Sr. Alice Marie in their full habits. I recall thinking about how strange they looked in their pictures because by the time I was born, nuns no longer wore a habit every day! The best memories of my aunts involve the feeling of being loved and whole in my aunts' presence, and that sense of love and being whole is very prominent in this book. Perhaps one of this book's greatest strengths is the author's ability to weave together many challenges to a person's dignity (exclusion by color, creed, and vocation) into a theme where differences and diversity are celebrated! The theme of this book aligns very closely with the tenor of the current presidential race in the US. In that, it is a timeless treasure and does not seem to have any apparent weakness.

Having lived as a child in the '60s, I found Sister Anne's Hands to be a authentic mirror of this era's racial biases and a gentle reminder that education is our best hope for an end to "isms."

Marybeth Lorbiecki takes a situation of racism and turns it around. She shares with the reader how a negative can become a positive between two individuals, even if the community at large stays negative. And with that, human lives are changed forever.

First, this is an outstanding book. It has substance and a wonderful message that makes its point without being preachy. Second, it is still a children's book that kids will enjoy reading or having read to them. Finally, the artwork is first rate and a joy to look at. It is the complete package. With so much mediocre childish children's 'literature', this is the real deal: a quality, substantive, enjoyable book. Enjoyable to read for parent and child.

Sister Anne's Hands is an incredible picture filled book about a girl growing up during the time when Blacks and white's were still at war. She learns through her teacher (Sister Anne) that it doesn't matter what's on the outside it matters what your like on the inside. Through this heart warming book your child will learn important lessons on building good character. I liked reading this book because it gave me inspiration to follow my heart through everything I do. Your sure to love Sister Anne's Hand!!! Author of Sister Anne's Hands: Marybeth Lorbiecki

visually stunning and excellent coffee table book. if you are looking for a picture book of the universe for casual purusal this book will more than do. provides very brief, non-technical descriptions of what each photograph is of. not for heavy duty research. recreational reading only. once again, the photos are...wow!

++++++

"Astronomy is one of the sublimest fields of human investigation. The mind that grasps its facts and principles receives something of the enlargement and grandeur belonging to the science itself. It is a quickener of devotion."

The above is a quotation uttered by American educator Horace Mann in the 1800s. It eloquently sums up my feelings when I viewed the images (the majority of which are taken from our Galaxy) and read their accompanying text in this fascinating book by M. K. Baumann, W. Hopkins, L. Nolletti, and M. Soluri (with astronomy consultant R. Villard).

Stephen Hawking, who wrote the book's forward, tells us that "the [spectacular] images in this book represent some of the most up-to-date and high-definition data available." Yes, the more than 180 images are truly spectacular and were selected because they were judged to be the "most important" examples to highlight a particular topic. (The earliest image was taken May 1967 and the most recent was taken Jan. 2005.) Each photographic image has a standard data area that gives key information about the image. For example the data area of the image that's on the front cover of this book (shown above by Amazon) might be as follows:

(1) Identification icon of the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft. (I will explain more about these icons below.)
(2) Saturn with its moon Enceladus appearing near its south pole
(3) Visible-light image (metallic color added)
(4) Cassini orbiter (Note that this spacecraft consists of this orbiter and the Huygens probe)
(5) 16 May 2004
(6) 12.5 million miles (20 million km) from Earth

Each topic is presented alphabetically with a brief, easy-to-understand, descriptive, and interesting text to explain a topic. The letters covered are from "A" to "W" (excluding "K," "O," and "Q"). Topics under each letter range from one to several. For example, under "A" are two topics covering four pages but under "C" are six topics covering ten pages.

Thus each topic generally has three pieces of information. For example, the first topic under "A" is "Asteroid." Then there is:

(1) a descriptive text of an asteroid
(2) an actual image of an asteroid--in this case asteroid Eros
(3) a data area for asteroid Eros (which, as shown above, has (i) an identification icon (ii) image description (iii) image type (iv) image source (v) date image taken and (vi) distance celestial object is from Earth).

At the end of the book are three sections. One section lists with a brief description the mechanical and human image-makers that made the images in this book possible. Another well-written section explains the science behind the images used in this book. The last section is a glossary of important terms.

The section regarding the image-makers is one I found especially interesting. Over forty image-makers are listed and well described. These image-makers are divided into four groups:

(1) Earth-based (like observatories)
(2) Near-Earth (like space-based telescopes)
(3) Spacecraft, probes, & cameras
(4) Individuals (who work with accessible and mobile equipment).

The identification icons I mentioned in the sample data area above are in this image-makers section. Any icon that appears in the book can be matched with the same icon in this section. For example, the icon of the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft mentioned in the sample data area above can be matched with the identical icon in the above-mentioned third group. Then below the icon is a brief description of this spacecraft that I found quite interesting.

Finally, I did find some problems with this book. I should emphasize that these in no way affect the book's readability but I found them to be irritations:

(1) There is no introduction. There is a four-paragraph blurb on the inside front jacket flap that promotes the book and at the same time tries to give some indication of what to find in it. It does not do the latter very well. For example, how to use the icons is not explained at all. There should have been a good introduction included within the book itself.
(2) Three astronomical images located on the first two pages are not explained at all. Why?
(3) There are no references for the text. True, we are given the names of almost sixty scientists and space professionals who shared their knowledge. But throughout the book's pages are certain figures that must have been looked up somewhere. These sources are not given credit.
(4) The glossary is somewhat redundant. For example, the first word in the glossary is "asteroid." But as I mentioned above, it's a topic in the main section of this book! Why include it in the glossary? I found this for several other words as well.
(5) Right after the index of this book (that is, on the very last page) is a description of a newly discovered phenomenon that is "a telltale trace of other Earth-like planets out beyond our solar system." I found this VERY interesting. Why was it on the very last page of the book? It should have been included in the main narrative.

In conclusion, if you're an armchair astronaut like me, you'll appreciate this visually stunning and informative book that reveals the awesome beauty and mystery of the cosmos!!!

(first published 2005; forward by S. Hawking; the Milky Way; celestial phenomena from "A" to "W;" science behind the images; the image makers; main narrative 175 pages; glossary; index; picture credits; acknowledgements; Earthshine)

+++++

Splendid images, combined with descriptions of what you're viewing, abound in this book, available for less than $20.

It's arranged alphabetically, so you can either browse from page 1 onward, or go to your favorite subject, such as "galaxy" or "black hole." And, it runs from our backyard to the edges of the universe, so whether your interests are planetary, interstellar, or deep space, there's plenty here for you.

The text material greatly adds to the value of the book (if that is possible).

For instance, under the pictures of different types of galaxies, readers will get an explanation of how barred spirals or ellipticals are believed to develop. But, that's not all.

In the caption for each photo, the authors carefully note what satellite, explorer craft, or telescope took the picture, what wavelength it was used, how it was filtered, etc. and otherwise brought to "normal" visible light, etc.

And, that's not all. There's more for backyard astronomers with telescopes.

In all pictures of nebulae, M or NGC numbers are provided for nebulae so identified.

Not many things in the world can literally take your breath away. Maybe it was your first kiss, or maybe when your son or daughter finally became part of the living. But this book cannot be excepted from that category, because these pictures seem to live and breathe just as we do. Light years and light years away.

Mars is viewed up so close, you feel like you're actually breathing in the dusty storms of the planet and you're surrounded by barren red wasteland, where life might once have existed. Jupiter's moon, Europa, has so many stunning pictures, as each one depicts its greenish-blue hue cracked with red lines and ice that fit in with the satellite so icily, but coolly. And don't get me even STARTED on the nebulae! They are so unbelievably beautiful - swirls of reds tingling with blue and a shiver of yellow belting down an orange, with sparkles and beauty outlining every inch of it. I think the nebulae deserve fifty chapters just for themselves.

All the pictures are arranged alphabetically from their title, from A for Asteroid to W for WMAP (check the book if you don't know what that is ;D), this book has it all. All the pictures are high-definition and just a frightful wonder to look at, staring at the deep, stellar field of space.

But as another reviewer said, don't miss out on the captions! There's an universe of information to be read, and they just can't be ignored because the pictures are so gorgeous. They're extremely factual and faultless, and only glorify the images with much information, unlike other space books where one-liners just dismiss the true meaning behind the pictures.

This book is highly recommended. I can't imagine a better source to start a lifelong interest in space, or to simply indulge in the beauty of space.

Stephen Hawking provides the foreword to WHAT'S OUT THERE: IMAGES FROM HERE TO THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE. Here are nearly two hundred of the most important images ranging from close-ups of Mars to views of the most distant nebula. An alphabetical arrangement allows for quick and easy reference and topics which lend to commentary by experts as they accompany striking color photos. Photos have been culled from archives and astronomical sources from around the world and beyond the planet and provide an amazing A-Z picture record of striking images. Very highly recommended; especially for college-level astronomy holdings.

Democrat-Republican,Liberal -Conservative,Left-Right,Socialist-Capitalist are all labels we attempt to apply to the political aspirations and ideas of people within society.And they are only broad descriptions.To those,we have can add an endless number of terms we apply to special interests ,such as; Free-Traders,Pro-Lifers,Bleeding-Hearts,Hard-Liners,Appeasers,Self-Reliants,Fundamentalists,Libertarians,Fascists,Secularists,Isolationists,Enviromentalists,Freedom-fighters,Nationalists,Patriots,Dissenters,Free-Speechers,people who believe in big Gouverment and those who believe it should be restrained,and Activists of all descriptions;just to name a few.
However;all these philosophies ,more or less fall into two broad categories;namely Socialist or Conservative. While;at times, there are some overlappings. Nor is it possible for any one person to agree with either of the two main camps on every issue.Political expediency is an everpresent force and for that reason some people tend to alter their political party affiliations over the years;while others hold to their party of choice;regardless of issues.
The Author has done a magnificient job of defining what a Conservative in America ,and in fact,the whole western world,really is at these times in history. In other words ,if you believe in the ideas professed in this book;you are a Conservative thinker;and if you don't ,you are by default, not.
Rather than write a ling disertation,the author has chosen to approach a large number of Conservatives and have them write short essays of a couple of pages,to explain what being a Conservative is all about.
In all,we can read what 54 well known Conservatives have to say about defining Conservativeism.
Personally,I came from a very staunch Liberal background and considered myself one for many,many years, However as the 60's came to an end,I found there were many things that changed the way I thought and I no longer felt compfortable with that side of the political spectrum and for the last two decades have moved to the Conservative philosophy.
What I found startling is that so many of the people who wrote the essays in this book went through the same prosess as did I.
This has always concerned me and I think the words of Ronald Reagan pretty well explains things when he said ;"I didn't leave the Democratic Party;they left me".
Another thing I liked about this book is that it stays with defining what it is to be Conservative in a positive manner and is virtually free from negativism towards other points of view.
I really believe even someone who is not a Concervative could enjoy this book,they may well not agree with the philosophies of the writers.That is all well and good because the book does an excellent job of informing without being insulting,dismissive or disparaging to other points of view.

This little book is a collection of 54 essays on the subject of "Why I Am a Conservative." Each essay was written by a well-known member of political or media class, ranging from Bob Dole and Bill Frist, through Michael Medved and P.J. O'Rourke. Overall, I found them to be quite interesting and quite often a lot of fun (especially P.J. O'Rourke, naturally). So, if you want to understand the Conservative movement more, you really should read this book. I highly recommend it!

This book contains synopses from several figures on what it means to them to be classified as a Reagan Conservative. Great book. A really fun read if you're on the go. Read a chapter or two in the airport at Atlanta, read another on the plane, read another when you arrive at JFK, read another in the cab...
Well composed! I was very happy with this book!

This book is a collection of short essays from different politicians, activists and writers that claim to be Reagan conservatives. It's a truly entertaining, uplifting and colorful compilation; most of the essays are only a couple of pages long and will reveal personal stories - and the message of each of them is beautifully obvious, yet thought-provoking. Don't expect detailed academic papers - we have enough of those in other books. The miracle of this one is actually its modesty and simplicity. You'll get several up front, honest, extremely hard to argue confessions that might "satisfy the skeptic as well" - as it says on the cover.
As of today, it's undoubtedly one of the greatest tributes to the man whom history books are likely to be going to call the greatest American President of the 20th century.

Edited by Michael Deaver, this is a series of essays by prominent Republicans who are remembering Ronald Reagan. Reagan will probably go down in the history books as one of the better presidents during this time period. After all, at the beginning of the period we were in the midst of the Cold War and at the end it was over, the Soviet Union was no more. Untold fortunes spent, tremendous risks of nuclear war, all were gone, the Cold War was over.

Note that this is concerned with Ronald Reagan conservative views. This is not necessarily the same as the George W. Bush views. Mr. Bush seems to have taken the conservative agenda re abortion, affirmative action, and other issues much further than did Reagan.

The present day conservative Republicans would have you believe, would like to believe themselves that the country has made a major turn to the right wing. They view the past election as confirmation of this rightward shift. I believe they are ignoring the fact that a couple of week candidates in the form of Kerry/Edwards, and good fundamental politics on the part of the Republicans (especially the Ohio grass roots effort) enabled a victory.

It is at their risk that they forget that the country isn't as right wing as the stalwarts of the Republican party. Nor is it as liberal as the hard core of the Democratic party. One thing about our country, there's another election coming. The country votes for the one considered the most center oriented. The country doesn't want gun or abortion control.

This book is worth reading as a view of what these particular party members are thinking.

This is the best book in the series. I really started to like Yorick in this book. And the story begins moving forward after being drifting in the Midwest for a long time. It is well worth the read if you get the opportunity.

Ever since the first issue of the Safeword arc, "Y: The Last Man" has been a non-stop ride of awesome issue after awesome issue after awesome issue. Fans will be especially pleased with this book, the fifth collection of the series, as it is by far the longest one yet. It collects eight issue, and is composed of the two-issue "Tongues of Flame" arc, the one-shot "Hero's Journey," and the five-issue arc, "Ring of Truth," which this trade paperback is named for.

Until this point, Brian K. Vaughan has been building the story quite nicely, leaving us asking question after question, but always satisfying us with each twist of the plot. But things start to change here. New developments are made, yes, but as Yorick, 355, and Dr. Mann finally reach the destination they've been aiming for since the first volume, answered to those burning questions are heaped upon us like food on a Thanksgiving Day plate.

+ What was up with that Toyota lady from One Small Step?

+ Who were those cloaked women who assassinated Agent 711 in Safeword?

+ Why did Yorick's mother work with the Russians in One Small Step?

+ What made Hero so bad? (Hero actually gets her own one-shot in this issue, which is composed entirely of flash-backs. I was apprehensive when I saw it coming up, because I found the "side story" at the end of One Small Step to be frustrating. But my weariness for another tale that deviated from the main story line of Y were blown away by "Hero's Journey." It's one of the best comics I've read and gives us invaluable insight into one of the series's most interesting characters.)

+ Also, most importantly, we finally hear Dr. Mann's theory on why Yorick survived the plague.

With humor, drama, and some of the best action you'll find in comics, wrier Brian K. Vaughan and penciller Pia Guerra (who illustrates all eight issues this time around) continue to blow me away with Yorick's epic story. I'm sure fans and critics alike will agree that this, as the cover boasts, is "top-notch."

9/10

Volume 5 was incredibly exciting, and answered the one question Y readers have been asking since the series began; "What caused all the men to die?" This volume also shows how complex Hero is, and how she tries to fight the demons within herself. If you read the first 4 volumes, this one will not disappoint.

This is one of my favorite collections in the Y: THE LAST MAN series. I've been reading/rereading the books in the series in anticipation/celebration that the entire epic story is finally coming to an end. This is the volume that shows the end of Yorick, Agent 355, Dr. Mann, and Ampersand's cross country journey come to an end. They finally reach Dr. Mann's laboratory where she is able to determine that Yorick was shockingly not the key to the survival of malekind, but Ampersand. The next stage in the series is set into motion when Ampersand is kidnapped by the mysterious ninja who had been until now looking for Yorick.

There are a lot of fun things in this book, from Yorick's hook up with another blonde named Beth to Hero's emergence as something of a hero to the culmination of the Culper Ring story. And for the first time since the initial issues Beth returns as a character (the old Beth, not just the new one).

Some readers did not like the preceding issues. I did, very much. But I'll grant that these issues are among the highpoints in the series. They not only sum up everything that the series had been leading up to before but also provide a transition to all that would occur next.

Yorick and his allies have finally made it to California. Dr. Mann now as access to the information and tools she needs to try and work out exactly why Yorick is alive and all the other males on the planet are dead.

The female of the species also demonstrates that they are equally capable of war and crime when given the opportunity.

If someone said 'ninja monkeynapper' to you generally, you would probably laugh. Here, it is no laughing matter.

I loved this book so much I have decided it is definitely a keeper. I will reread it over many times

Funny, touching, passionate. Make me laugh and then cry. There's no doubt, this book is the best novel i've ever read.
Read it more and more!

WHEW! HOT, STEAMY. he's a hunk but he is mean in the beginning this book will make you cry. It is Diana at her best.

I enjoy all of Diana Palmer's books, but this one is especially good - highly recommended.

Description from the book back cover:

It all started as a joke. Sabina Cane was only pretending to be engaged to her best friend, millionaire Al Thorndon. Al had talked her into this scheme as way to trick his older brother, Thorn. Al had no choice but to lie and make Sabina his accomplice, and she thought it would be for just one night. So when Thorn accused her of being a gold-digger, she just laughed it off. She didn't think of the repercussions - that Thorn would dig up her long-buried secrets. Revealing them now would destroy everything she'd worked so hard to put behind her. But she couldn't let her best friend down, could she?

Diana Palmer is so good! This is another one of her wonderful novels. Why is it that I always get so upset at the male leads and then fall head over heels for him? It must be because she expresses the male character so well, you can't help but understand his conflict and reactions. I became emotionally involved in this book and it satisfied me in every way!

I really enjoyed this book though I like the second edition better. That one unfortunately is only available through a foreign language publishing company and I can't seem to remember the name. Something like the Carlex watch....

What an amazing tool!

I think this is a wonderful book, especially for the parent who wants to start early introducing their children to a foreign language.

This is the most incredible foreign language book I've ever seen! My two children are literally glued to the book!!! Amazing...

This is an absolutely incredible book! Simple children's games turned into foreign language learning games! And the part about monolingual-friendly is amazing yet so simple. You really don't have to speak a second language to teach one...Every elementary school in America needs a copy!!!

This is a wonderful book, that will help children get a better understanding of the Spanish language.