Australia Books

This book shines with an exquisite simplicity and straightforwardness. The authors' knowledge in using colors will enhance and bring passion to any relationship. Gloria Van Dam, R.N., BSCN.

This book shines with an exquisite simplicity and straightforwardness. The authors' knowledge in using colors will enhance and bring passion to any relationship. Gloria Van Dam, R.N., BSCN.

This book made me take a critical look at my underwear! I became aware that the colour of your undies has an effect on the mood you exude! Gone were the white comfy cotton knickers and sensible sports bra if I wanted to send out a beckoning message to the opposite sex! Not only that, what you wear is what you feel. If you want to feel sexy, this book is a must read before you do anything else!

This book really opened my eyes and my awareness for betterromantic strategies. I loved the "MASTER STROKES" chapterwhich gives the reader great new ideas for color, sex and clothing toset the scene for a successful romance.

This edition of "Company K," by William March (a native of Mobile, graduate of The University of Alabama's law school, and WW I veteran), is one in a series called The Library of Alabama Classics, and it warrants its status as a classic. It's a beautiful little book, nicely typeset in a somewhat nostalgic manner, and deserves to be better known than it is--as does its author. Kudos to Alabama's UP for making this book available in paperback for a wide audience.

The book, first published in 1933, is a collection of short first-person narratives by the members of a company caught in the frontline in the first World War. Remarkable is March's ability to place himself (and the reader) in the positions of a great many very different characters--the company is a cross section of American society. This, his first novel, shows that March is an intelligent and sensitive storyteller.

More remarkable, perhaps, is how easily this book might be hypertexted--since all the narratives intersect, and various characters appear in various guises in other's narratives, it would lend itself easily to an HTML version in which a reader could click their way through the book without having to follow the book's order. Surely March must have seen this as a possible way of reading, since the chapter headings are the characters' names, allowing a reader of the book to easily flip from one character to another. The book, which seems to be suitable more for a spatial than a chronological way of reading, disrupts the boundaries of its printed format. I don't mean to call March a post-structuralist avant la lettre, but it is a feature that enhances, in my opinion, one of the themes of the book: the horror of war recognizes no hierarchy; war disrupts the human order.

As for horror, there is plenty of that. The point of view March has chosen is excellent in that it allows for multiple readings of the same event (for instance, the unnecessary and criminal shelling of a recon party); some of the voices come from beyond the grave and are particularly chilling.

One final note on the edition: it is introduced (not designed, as the Amazon heading states erroneously) by Phil Beidler, a professor of American lit at U of A. Beidler has shown a great interest in and loyalty to the literature of Alabama (see, for instance, his anthologies "The Art of Fiction in the Heart of Dixie" and "Many Voices, Many Rooms"), and his introduction to this book is insightful and touching. Beidler obviously knows his stuff; he knows both war and Alabama.

I believe that this book, as has been noted by others, is of the rank of Remarque's "All Quiet," and it is a wonderful and chilling read. Like most good war novels, it says "don't let this happen again," while realizing that it probably will, knowing human nature.

Slaughterhouse-five, and Catch-22 both borrowed from a powerful predecessor. Company-k is a simple read, short chapters each one a character of many narratives. Each one an insightful and heart-rending tale. It would be easy to ignore Company-K and most don't know it - except that it's written by a man who was there. Hemingway glorified war made it seem almost fun - March tells it as it was. Only Johnny Got His Gun, and All Quite On the Western Front come close to this passionate and shocking book.

Do not take it from me, Graham Greene, one of the most respected names in Twentieth Century Fiction hails March's "Company K" as the greatest of all anti-war novels, while Hemingway thought it superior to almost all other WWI novels. This novel is not an almost-classic, it is a classic, borrowing the format made popular by Edgar Lee Masters, March expounds on the concept of individual soldier stories encompassing the full breath of the war. This novel is as appropriate now as it ever was in the post-WWI era. This novel is a must read for anyone remotely concerned with WWI and the impact war has on the survivors.

March makes a compelling case in this text that he should be well entrenched in the second tier of American authors, if not the first. His WWI recollections do a fine job of bringing out the terrors and guilts of a war long forgotton and little remembered, except for the short period of the Twenties. If there is any shortcoming in this fine work, it is that it draws far too much from Edgar Lee Masters' Spoon River Anthologies. My guess is that March, who was trained as a lawyer like Masters (a former partner of the unethical (...) Clarence Darrow) grasped onto Masters' then-current work . It's not a heroic idea, but one that's occurred to me. In any event, Company K is a work that ought to be read far more than it is a century later. WWI [is] seldom remembered as the great trauma that it was in the US. Here's a book that tells how bad it was, and more importantly, why.

10 years or so ago, I bought a copy of the Blinky Bill kids stories during a trip to Australia. I basically walked into a bookshop with a reasonably good children's section and asked them to steer me in the direction of the most popular kids book for 3 to 5 year olds. Blinky Bill was the answer. I bought it as a present for a nephew. He loved it, so did his sisters and so do my kids when they get a chance to have my brother read them a story.

The tale of a baby Koala (Blinky Bill) separated from his mother due to his curiosity and naughtiness. We join Blinky as he encounters various Australian bush creatures (Angelina Wallaby, Mrs Snake and others) and his inevitable run-in with humans.

The illustrations are delightful, the characterisations are superb and the story is really good fun for 2 - 6 year olds. Older readers will enjoy reading this story to someone younger!

The issues of habitat destruction, hunting and extinction are dealt with seriously but in a way that children can relate to. It should be noted that this story was first published in 1939 - long before there was public awareness of these problems.

This is always in print in Australia and just about every child has a copy bought for them. Clearly the relevance for American children would not be as great, however it is well worth reading to them anyway if you're after something different.

Blinky Bill was first introduced to Australian children in the 1930s. Dorothy Wall wrote a series of books about Blinky and his friends and his irresistible appeal as a likeable, witty and rebellious child hero quickly endeared him to children and adults alike.

He has certainly been a perennial favourite for at least three generations in my own family.

Blinky Bill is a true Australian larrikin: fiercely independent, eternally mischievous and extraordinarily brave. His capacity to get into (and out of scrapes) is unparalled. Blinky Bill's friends include an assortment of Australian animals: who generally interact as children would like to but usually within some recognisable boundaries of their own species.

The Adventures of Blinky Bill have never been out of print, and were adapted for television in the 1980s.

I recommend this book to all readers. Those with small children can read the stories with them, older children will enjoy exploring the adventures of Blinky Bill for themselves and adults can discover (or rediscover) a wonderful childhood experience.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Blinky is just like most children, sometimes naughty, sometimes sweet, and always up to something. I picked up a copy in Australia a long time ago, and thoroughly enjoyed it as an adult. I have read it time and again to my daughter (age 5), and she never tires of hearing of the adventures of Blinky, Snubby, Nutsy and all the others. I think this is a book that, even though about Australian creatures and the bush, transcends that to appeal to all children about the kinds of escapades children experience. I highly recommend it.

The Complete Guide to Food for Sports Performance is the best sports nutrition resource I have come across. It covers a great variety of sports and is suitable for the recreational sportsperson to the professional athlete. It covers eveything anyone would want to know about sports nutrition and is set out in an easy-to-read manner. Every sports person or sports professional should have a copy of this book

It is hard to keep reading about what "the athlete" should eat. The athlete doesn't exist. But gymnasts and runners and swimmers and basketball players do, and they all have really different needs and interests. This book begins with a section on the principles of sports nutrition - from the science to the general practice. This part is good, and provides an up-to-date view of the latest ideas in eating for peak performance. This shouldn't be too surprising since the author is the head of nutrition at the Australian Institute of Sport. The language is easy to read and makes scientific principles comprehensible.

But it is the second half of this book that is unique and special. It takes a focussed look at various sports, providing a personal glimpse of the nutritional needs and the real life eating practices of the athletes involved. Sports really differ in their lifestyle, their competition needs, their traditions and the ways in which their athletes/players eat to be at their best. These chapters discuss the key nutrition issues that arise in a sport, providing specialised strategies to deal with these issues. It reviews applied sports nutrition studies that can answer specific questions in a sport, and provides case histories to illustrate the special nutritional challenges and solutions. Find out how Tour de France riders refuel during their event. Read how gymnasts manage weight control issues, or whether weightlifters need to eat more protein. Read some of the letters written to body building magazines and compare the answers provided in the magazines with the advice of a real sports nutrition expert. Compare the strategies that football players or runners need to use to stay hydrated during their events. This is the first time that I have gained specific insights into the real life world of sports nutrition. I hope this book continues to be updated to provide a great blend of the science and practice of sports nutrition. I would recommend this book to athletes, coaches and parents. But I also think that many sports science and medicine professionals will benefit from the "birdseye" view of sports nutrition.

I regularly use the book as a quick reference when developing resources or planning a lecture. It is an easy read and provides nutrition tips and issues specific to individual sports. The way the book is set up, allows you to access the information quickly.

The complete guide to food for sports performance is an excellent resource for athletes of all levels. Not only does it provide detailed nutritional information during training it also provides very useful tips for competition (pre-, during and post). The second part of the book addresses a wide range of different sports from distance running and rowing to gymnastics and diving. This part is particularly useful as it highlights problems and nutritional deficiencies that are experienced by athletes in this sport, thus helping the reader to pinpoint (or watch out for) certain eating "mistakes" in their favourite sport. Case studies offer very useful examples on how even small changes in the diet can make a big difference. A brilliant book for anyone interested in sports nutrition.

I have only had a chance to look through the book, but it looks like it has a lot of the newer tatting that I am looking for.
Barbara

This is a wonderful book. It is very inspiring. You find it hard to decide what to tat first. This is one of the best tatting books I have seen in awhile. Well worth purchasing.

This book is a great one for a tatter in any level. What I like the most about the book is that you can find some techniques that are not very commonly use in Tatting and at least a pattern to practice that technique. Also some patterns "play" with beads, something that makes tatting more beautiful!

What a great tatting book! The beginning has very good instructions for several techniques and then there are 15 lovely patterns demonstrating them. Lots of nice, large, color photos and diagrams with clear written and charted directions.

This is a tremendous book that will certainly dominate my coffee table for years to come. It might be useful when referring to various species (e.g. when buying mail-order) but it does not contain any aquarium care information- a task that is best left in another volume. If you are interested in the subject, however, I highly recommend this book.

This is the greatest coral book ever written! It is a masterpiece and includes some of the best underwater coral photography ever published. It is mostly a pretty version of Dr. Veron's 5 vol scientific journals, and is a little hard to see it's true use in the reef keeping hobby, because it talks about corals strictly out on the wild reef, but if you take the requirements of the animal in the wild and apply it to your home aquarium you can not fail. This book is also the best for identifing all of those mystery stony corals you have in your tank. There is not one stony coral on the reef that this book does not discuss. If you have stony corals or plan to have them in the future then this book is a must have on your list. The price tag is a little high I know, but worth every cent. The great pictures alone make it a great coffee table book and worth the price right there,if you love corals don't pass this book up!

Corals of Australia and Indo-Pacific is the ultimate resource for stony (SPS) Corals I have found to date. I am a reef aquarium hobbiest and I use Verons book almost exclusively to identify species of aquarium coral. The book is also extremely helpful in requard to the taxonomy of the SPS.

Corals of Australia and the Indo-Pacific is by far the best reference for coral reference on the market today. This book is for the serious Reef Aquarium Hobbiest or Marine Biologist. While this book does not give reference to aquarium conditions, it does provide the reader with a comprehensive review of the major SPS corals not given in any other puiblication that I have found. If you are are an SPS reef aquarium hobbiest. You need this book

My son loved the book as a young boy now the grandchildren are having it read to them and beginnning to love it.

This is a fabulous book integrating math and literature. Frank reminds us of someone we all know. You will laugh yourself silly, no matter what your age is!

This is a story for younger children, about a boy who likes to ask questions. Not about dragons, or witches or monsters, but about the ordinary things around us like ball-point pens, and peas, and his dog Frank. The best and biggest question is of course 'What if?' "What if I drew with this ball point pen until it ran out, how long would the line be?" "What if I ran this bath until the room filled up with water, how long would it take?" These are the sort of questions that all kids ask. The difference is that this kid has the answers. I found this book a delight with colourful and amusing illustrations. I would recommend it to anyone with children aged 4-10. Also to grown-ups who still have the enquiring mind of a child

This book contains wonderful illustrations of a boy and his unforgetable dog Frank. The boy, as he's referred to in the book, uses Frank as a unit of measure. The boy also calculates fascinating and interesting facts about peas (his least favorite vegetable), humpback whales, his father and the bathtub. It inspires readers to reconsider measurement and allows them to laugh at the same time. It is a wonderful book full of intresting, if sometimes seemingly useless, facts about numbers, calculation and one amazing dog name Frank!

This book is a guide by someone who has been to each location but apparently has no commercial stake in your going there. The money saving tips and low cost suggestions were particularly attractive. For the physically active, like myself, bike trips and hikes are outlined in great detail. Advice on where bicycles can be rented and what equipment to use for trips are especially helpful. Close up bare bones maps with attractions noted gave me the feeling that I would never be lost in going to each location. Finally, if you don't plan to go but would like an interesting tour of each location, this book provides a running commentary providing a view of the overall atmosphere together with a detailed visit to the major and minor attractions in each area. A very enjoyable read but also a very practical guide.

I recently purchased this book prior to traveling down under. The book was immensely helpful in making my trip an a memorable adventure. The trips listed in the book are not the run of the mill tourist(y) trips listed in the more well know guides and provide exciting enhancements to anyone's itinerary. I found myself reading the trips I was unable to take just to learn more about the local culture and flavor.
The local info on transportation and food etc was timely and accurate and a great help. Highly recommend this book for anyone desiring to experience Australia or just learn more about this wonderful country.

Far from being the usual dry and boring travel guide, the author of this book presents comprehensive information on a variety of interesting destinations accompanied by witty descriptions and refreshing honesty. It also inspires confidence in the potential tourist to know that most of the adventures have been personally researched, road tested and evaluated. I found this book very easy to read and having already visited a few of the destinations listed in the book myself, would recommend it as a must-have bible for anyone intending to travel 'down-under' to experience the real Australia, both on and off the usual well trodden tourist paths.

Daytrips Eastern Australia is a valuable tool for anyone who is looking to visit this amazing country. It is also a great resource for those who are simply interested in getting better acquainted with the Australian culture. I am currently planning a trip to Australia, and I was able to find more information in this one book than on the internet. The author includes a variety of helpful resources, such as information on transportation, food and drink, accomodations, and much more. Throughout the book, the author makes you feel as if you are right there with him. Overall, it is a great way to prepare yourself for a rewarding trip to Australia.

This is much more than just a story of a climb to Mt. Everest (which is a inspiring story on it's own!). This is a story about the strength of the human spirit. There is no scientific explanation for his survival. It is obvious the strength of his mind/spirit is what brought him down from that mountain. The story was written well and enjoyable to read. Although I enjoy the outdoors, I am not a mountain climber, and I found this book so inspiring!

Over two years ago, Lincoln experienced the best and the worst of Mt Everest. He was reaching the summit when he got a severe case of altitude sickness. His group attempted to revive him, but when that failed he was left for dead, very close to the summit. As fate would have it, a group of climbers making their way up, saw him in desperate need of help and ultimately saved his life. He writes about his horrible ordeal in this amazing book.
His hands and feet were absolutely covered in frostbite. He has had some limbs and toes and fingers amputated, and various other surgeries as a result of his experience up there. He refers to May 26, 2006 as the day he died, and writes in here the pros and cons for climbing Everest. He puts his family on both lists; on the con - the fear of leaving his wife and kids without a husband or father and on the pro list, the idea to show them that he was willing to take a chance to live out his dream. He describes the bitter cold and all the thoughts running through his head. It's a book that takes you through different emotions - triumph, fear, relief and everything in between.
Whether you like mountain climbing or not, this book is a great read. It is moving and interesting and it's good to see a happy ending. I really enjoyed this and hope you will too.

This is an excellent book- very well written and hard to put down. I have read many books on climbing and Everest, and this is one of, if not the best. His survival is incredible, and it's nice to read how histhoughts and love of his family kept him going (and played into whether he would attempt the climb at all) at a time when so many people only think of themselves. I highly recommend this book.

I got this book a year ago thru a friend from Australia when it first came out over there. I read it in one sitting and could not put it down. For those who have read Beck Weathers Left For Dead, Lincoln Hall goes even further into the fight for living after the physical part is gone. I have all of Lincoln Hall's books he has wrote, and along with Blood On The Lotus this is his best writing.If you are into the physical and mental demands of what climbing Everest is about, Lincoln really blows you away with his own mind trip that night as he lay there in a fantasy world of his own.Excellent read..

THE DEAD OF NIGHT is the 2nd book in John Marsden's TOMORROW WHEN THE WAR BEGAN series. THE DEAD OF NIGHT continues the sorty of a group of teenagers who have to learn how to survive after their country has been invaded. This book is really good if you like suspense.

All the books in this series are brilliant

I was first introduced to this serioes at school, we were assigned to read it for English, before this book all books assigned to us in school were all garbage and I expected the same, as did most the other students in my class, most wouldnt bother to read it, so the teacher read it aloud in class, for most of it upuntil the half way mark I ignored most of it, until it dawned on me that this book was actualy sounding o.k. When I got home i got my copy from the bookshelf and actualy started to read it, and I read at any chance I had, and when I finished I read the second and third and then had to wait while the rest were written and released
The amazing story starts off with a group of teenagers going camping, and when they return the find the Australia has been taken over by another country, they go to the bush again to hide, but can't just sit back and do nothing and decide to fight back in what ever way they can, although unconventional, when all is said and done and the series is over they made a huge impact on the war, sometimes planned, sometimes fluked, of coarse not all survive and with every loss you can not help but feel the emotional pain of the others, it is the best comming of age story I have read, and although it is listed as a young adult series, it will be unforgetable to all ages and you will develop a bond with Ellie, Homer, Kevin and the rest of the gang, I have never fell in love with any fictional charactors the way I did with these guys, not even in T.V series
A story like this comes along once in a life time, do not, and I mean do not missss this book

The Dead of Night is a fascinating follow-up to Tomorrow, When the War Began. I teach a class of 7th and 8th graders and we have read both books aloud throughout the current year. The kids simply love this series. Marsden is no dummy! He knows how to cleverly pull in the teen readers. In this series, the adults have managed to screw things up and it is up to the kids to correct things. He offers a sense of adventure along with a sense of power to his teen readers. Furthermore, he deals directly, yet responsibly, with a number of issues that are especially important to teens. Somehow, he manages to capture the true feelings and concerns that are universal for most teens.