Clubs Books

I absolutely love this book. I nearly salivated when I saw the numerous drawings and photos of garden structures and architecture- So I'm a "Structure" guy, not a "plant" guy. My wife literraly told me to stop bothering her because I kept showing her pictures of stairs, walls and pergolas. This really is a tremendous resource. I refer to this book whenever I need a bit of design inspiration. I found the sketches, along with photos, to be tremendously helpful.

Gertrude Jekyll's expertise is evident in this finely written and illustrated book. It covers the Arts and Crafts era of fine gardening in extensive detail. She illustrates the garden relationship to the residence and outbuildings and what plants to use to create different effects.

First published in 1912 by `Country Life' as GARDENS FOR SMALL COUNTRY HOUSES, ARTS AND CRAFTS GARDENS by Gertrude Jekyll and Lawrence Weaver was republished years later as part of the Antique Collectors Club LTD, and now as a "revised edition with additional colo[u]r illustrations" by the Garden Art Press. More art book than instructive garden guide, the modern publication includes many black and white illustrations as well as layout drawings of the houses and grounds discussed, as well as detailed examples of other features, appearing in the earlier volume, along with beautiful color photos and illustrations depicting specific design elements as they appear today. Thus the reader can determine what the landscaper saw and planned, and how well her design worked then and years later. Jekyll's foresight and intuitive understanding of the "art" of garden design (which many of us learn about the hard way) as illustrated in this book, provides the modern reader with an idea of why Jekyll is still revered among garden designers.

The book title, `Gardens for Small County Houses', may appear ludicrous to the contemporary reader, as it provides an overview of selected examples of various gardens the authors developed in Surrey, Berkshire, and Guildford, which by today's standards are quite large. Chapters cover houses and gardens in their entirety, and at least one covers the "Treatment of Small Sites" such as Cheyne Walk in Chelsea, a gorgeous town house site. Other chapters cover selected design elements, such as "balustrades and walls", "steps and stairways" and retaining walls. Most of these elements are used by modern landscape designers in large public settings and on a few "estates", but many cannot be adapted to the small scale urban garden. Many features of these "country" gardens were lifted from Roman villas and most of us don't own villas, however, some of the elements, such as pergolas, arbors, and trellises can and probably should be adapted to a modern urban garden.

Because you probably wouldn't want to attempt to duplicate these designs on an average modern lot, the value of this book other than as a beautiful art book lies in its ability to inform. You will want to study it before you visit one of the notable "estates" where Jekyll worked in England.

This book is a great point of reference for anyone looking for formal garden inspiration. It is wonderful to see the way architecture and garden design can really complement one another so harmoniously. In these cases, neither would be nearly as interesting without the other.

G. Jekyll's garden plans are very interesting to look at. They are giving me many thoughts on good plant combinations & spacing. Also, while her designs are filled with a lot of material, she seems to have a keen eye for leaving space as well.

The attention to detail is wonderful and one can really see the benefit of meticulous planning. Rather than the plant and see what happens approach, it is actually possible to make very deliberate & specific choices.

Now I just want to know who the poor people are who have to do the weeding, watering and pruning in these giant gardens - eeeks!

I have never heard of this book before I checked it out at my daughters school libray. It is a good book to read before bedtime.

My mom got this book for me for a school report and it is easy for me to read and understand. I like her to read it before I go to sleep at night. I would tell my friends about this book because it is a good book and it is about animals. I really like the end when the grandma owl comes out to tell a short story about the animals and then she says "sweet dreams".


as a closing this was an interesting and fun book to read and I even purchased 5 other books similar to this one for my girls i know they will enjoy, thank you...

Briana Adams//mom- Tonya Adams

I have been reading this book before bedtime to my son since he was born and he is now 9 months old. It's such a cute story and it holds his attention. I loved it so much, I just purchased it as a shower gift for my friend.

I had not heard of nor seen this book until my 18-month-old son found it in the library -- and now he wants to bring it home every time -- and we have to read it every night. (So it's on his Santa list this Christmas.)

It's hard to describe his reaction to this story, but when we read it, I can feel his entire body relax. (And yes, he likes the goo, glup sounds of the toadlets the best.) I read with different voices for the tiny animals, and a sing-song voice for the Wise Grandma Owl.

It's important to mention, too, that I like the simplicity, repetition, and calming tone of this book. And I love to read it to my son. Which is important when purchasing children's books...you'll be reading them a thousand times!

My three year-old daughter happened upon this book at the library the other day and we fell in love with it the first time we read it. She absolutely loved the illustrations of the little furry animals. But even more, she loved the language that the author used for the different animals. The baby toadlets were her favorite in the ubp, glup mud.

As a parent and teacher, is a great book for getting a younger child to follow a pattern. On each page "deep down in the woods at sleepytime" is used to start and then the pictures allow for further hints to the words that follow.

This is a page turner for my daughter and I love the rhythm that is created by the words. The language is soothing and gets my daughter ready for bed in an instant. This will be a book that we will definitely add to her library in the near future!

It's pretty good if you would like to solve a mystery, and at the same time learn. It does need something more, besides Abby's pet pumpkin...just a little something more twistier!

When the Baby Sitters go to a feild trip, another mystery awaits them. I think that this is the scariest of all.

This book is so good. Kristy,Mary Anne, Stacey,Mallory and Abby are going to Salem or a school trip. They don't expect to be involved in one of the most thrilling mysteries ever. Find out what I mean by reading it!

This book is an excelent example of Ann Martin's writing abilities. The plot catches your attention right away, and you feel as if you're there. You begin to sympathize with the so-called sixth grader "witch" and sit on on the edge of your seat because of Abby's bad luck. While reading, the author unearths suspects whom may have stolen the Witche's Eye, but there's no way to tell intill the end because of the plot's interesting aspects on the suspects. All fans of Ann Martin should definately read this fantastic view of the mystery in Salem. And if you've never read a book by Ann Martin, this is definately a great place to start!!!

O'Dell's story captures all the facets of an extremely dysfunctional family with raw, shocking realism - outright physical and verbal abuse, insinuated sexual abuse, incest and murder. As the novel unfolds, it becomes obvious that the male narrator is mentally disturbed but it's nearly impossible not to sympathize with his situation. O'Dell also does an excellent job of portraying his sexual frustrations, not to mention the overall confusion and desperation of a young man who has had too much responsibility thrust upon him. I highly recommend this novel. It is compulsively readable and well written.

Amazingly written book with well developed charaters. Although dark, O'Dell makes the disfunction heartwarming. I couldn't put this book down once I started.

I felt so much sadness for the main character of this book. I wanted him to get a break somewhere along the line and find some happiness but it was just not meant to be. I would love to see this turned into a movie.

The twisted storyline in this book threw me for a bit of a loop, and the intensity of the characters is riveting. I couldn't put it down. It's a very quick read - esp for the length of it. I was left feeling a bit shocked by the graphic details and twisted thoughts/actions, but in a good way. It's amazing when a book can get under your skin and creep you out a bit, but draw you in to wonder about a world in which such things can exist so easily. I would definitely recommend this book.

I have a number of baking books but this one offers something new. The baker's stories are interesting and the idea of forming a bakers club is great. I have used three of the recipes in this book in the last week and they have all turned out wonderfully. I do not always have such good luck with bread recipes and feel that the ones in this book have truly been used with sucess by real people who bake on a regular basis and have lots of experience with these particular recipes.

Not only covers different types of bread recipes but also gives some background on the bakers. Have already used one of the recipes, intend to try more soon.

A fun book to read even if you don't bake. The recipes are well written and an enjoyable experience to bake. The only book you will need to get started or to expand your knowledge.

Easy to follow recipes.. I have not been disappointed with any of them. The bio of each baker is interesting. Highly recommended.

Highly detailed and at the same time very concise; a true encyclopedia in every sense.

Full of interesting tidbits.

The Ball Clubs is an excellent book. It provides extremely informative backgrounds on ALL major league franchises. I do, however, have two rather nagging criticisms of this book. The first is that the authors seem to be excessively "anti-owner": they seem to take every opportunity to point out every flaw in anybody who ever owned or operated a major league baseball franchise, while rarely (if ever) complimenting these individuals. The second criticism, which in my opinion is much more serious, is their quite STUPID decision to separate "franchises" into separate "teams" (such as the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers). This practice reaches a ridiculous point when a continuous franchise which has played in two different leagues (such as the Pittsburgh Pirates, in the AA from 1882-1886 and the NL from 1887-present) is given two different entries - for the SAME FRANCHISE!!! (Does that mean that there will be yet ANOTHER entry for the Milwaukee Brewers, since they are transferring to the NL in 1998?)

Whoecver heard of the Chicago Whales? While Chicago would be the last place one would go to find a whale (outside captivity), there was a team by that name at the turn of the century. I enjoyed this book as both a baseball fan and a historian. One fault that I do find, however, is the absence of the Negro Leagues. Maybe this oversight can be corrected in a future edition or even in a separate compendium. Also, while mention is made of the original Milwaukee Brewers AL franchise in 1903 in the St. Louis Browns entry, there is no separate entry listed for that particular franchise. The 1903 Brewers had as colorful a year as the 1969 Seattle Pilots (which themselves became the modern day Milwaukee Brewers).

If you had to buy just one book on baseball then "The Ball Clubs" should be the one you choose. It presents an in-depth look at every professional baseball club in the history of "America's pastime". Everyone knows of The Dodgers, The Yankees, The Braves et al, but how many have heard of The New York Mutuals or Altoona Mountain Citys, who also played a role (however brief) in the formation and history of Major League Baseball as we know it today. Well researched and written, this book should become a standard among baseball literature and will hopefully be updated on a regular basis. The writers demonstrate their love and knowledge of the game and this comes across in the book which not only includes bare facts but amusing side stories as well. This book is an enjoyable read and should form the foundation of any baseball book collection

This book was very interesting. Not only did it have plenty of photos, the text was actually useful and have a great message. Reading Galen's work is just as great as looking at it. I had never even heard of or seen most of the places in the book until I got the book. Now, I'm walking some of the same trails I discovered in the book.

An incredible photographic argument that nature is ever-present, fecund, and indomitable! Rowell and Sewell capture the majesty of one the world's most beautiful urban areas to describe nature's ability to adapt and thrive next to mankind. A surprising array of wild animals are photographed within the ex-urban landscape and combine with dramatic Bay Area landscapes to make a compelling story of the beauty that surrounds us--if only we can take time out from our busy lives to see it! This is a great gift to bring back East for the holidays.

Galen Rowell is showing here surely the nicest landscape shots I have ever seen. The Bay Area, that I didn't know, is here in spades, and if you know a little bit of tech, you see several uses of Galen special shooting way (flash, A2 Nikon filtering, s.o.)

Galen Rowell and Michael Sewell have compiled their photography of the San Franisco Bay Area's remaining natural areas into an excellent book. The photography in Bay Area Wild illustrates the Bay Area's vast greenbelts and natural areas. For someone who has only been involved in still photography for eleven years, Sewell is an amazing wildlife photographer. The text is extremely interesting and informative--Rowell reminds those of us who live in the Bay Area how lucky we are to have such a wonderful backyard abundant with a great diversity of flora and fauna. However, conservation of our wild places didn't come easy. Rowell discusses the many struggles involved in preserving these places. This is a book I've been waiting for!!!

The Beach Club, Richard Poloma's first book, reminds me of Joesph Wambaugh's early police novels.

The swing shift at the Eden Valley police department, while actually highly functional, is at the mercy of a back-stabbing lieutenant, Alex Santos. The Beach Club is the nickname given to the swing shift, and refers to disciplinary time off given from Santo's, and spent cooling their heels on the beach.

The story begins with an attack by a serial rapist with a changing M.O. As the story begins to flow, Richard has developed a cast of characters with excellent results.

There is the usual dysfunction within the police department, and the lives of the characters. No story would be complete without the local after-hours hangout, the womanizing, and tension between staff officers and detectives, and the police management.

Richard has spent over fifteen years in law enforcement in San Francisco and the San Joaquin Valley. If you're a fan of Wambaugh, you would probably like this book.

Richard's website is http://www.richpaloma.com
Published by Helm Publishing

Excellent reading, Mr. Paloma's book grabs from the begining and keeps you until the end. Very informative on the conflicts and camaraderie of fellow officers. You feel like you are actually "there" Very tastefully done.

It is always interesting when a story is based on the experiences and knowledge of the author and Mr. Paloma has done an outstanding job in
using his to bring his storyline to life.
There is a sexual predator loose in their fair California city and the swing shift, known as "The Beach Club" is heading the investigation. The city is afraid, the Mayor is up at arms and they are being hindered by a Lt. Alex Santos, an administrator who is pursuing his own interests in future promotions and plans to find this predator and take all the credit, no matter how he has to do it.

The story takes you into the heart and minds of several of the officers; it shows the inner turmoil that often plagues them in their personal life and also in their line of duty, giving you an inside look into the workings of the department, the unity and disunity of the officers, and the stress that is put on their families. It also allows you to take a seldom glimpse into their minds and helps you realize the part they play in helping us live in security. Thank you!

I enjoyed this work, not only for the informative value, but also for the great mystery storyline that it has. It held my attention and I was surprised at who the culprit was. The ending was excellent, heart thumping and moving at the same time. All in all a great read and I recommend it.
Shirley Johnson/Reviewer

In the style of Joseph Wambaugh's classic novel, "The Choirboys," comes "The Beach Club" by Richard Paloma. As a member of the local Writers Group, I was thrilled with the opportunity to review an advanced reading copy.

Paloma's novel is an intriguing police ride-a-long through the fictional East Bay city of Eden Valley, California newly plagued by a serial rapist. More than a look at department politics and procedures, readers are invited into the investigations, antics and lives of the swing shift officers, affectionately dubbed "the Beach Club."

Officer Vincent Patrone, Detective Ray Depietro, and fellow swing shift officers are endangered not only by the perils of the street, but by departmental politics and their choices for on and off-duty activities. Personality and depth are displayed as they clash with "The Regime" of aspiring chief of police, Lt. Alex Santos and his henchmen while searching for an elusive sexual predator.

Throughout the book, Officer Patrone has to contend with his personal demons; sympathy for victims after the attacks, feelings of helplessness after responding to a suicide attempt, an escalating affair with a woman he met on-duty, and the of guilt of adultery. Navigating this rocky terrain and looking to understand his feelings, Patrone, befriends Father Tony, a local priest.

Lightening the harsh realities of being on the job with slightly twisted humor, the shift finds amusement at the mishaps of a canine unit, the hilarious drug testing of a suspicious substance, a miscommunication of international proportions at a ball game, and a final prank on arch nemesis, Santos. Yet the "Beach Club" officers tackle incidents of fleeing felons, auto theft, arson and the vexing pursuit of the rapist like a championship team.

Powerful action scenes combine with strong displays of police wit and humor. Paloma effectively ties in anectdones and subplots leading to a fast paced and surprising conclusion.

It's a quick and enjoyable read.

By the way, a sneek peek at a chapter of his next book promises another page turner.

Valerie Yow has done it again. I was absorbed by her biography of North Carolina writer Bernice Kelly Harris; now, with Betty Smith: Life of the Author of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, she has given us another fascinating, highly readable and meticulously researched and documented biography of a major woman author.
Since I first read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn--at about age thirteen--it has remained one of the books that have remained bright in my memory. Valerie Yow has brought me into the world and the writing life of the complex and determined woman who was its author, and the author of many other memorable works. Yow is herself an excellent writer. She gives us a story that is a true pleasure to read, and which also demonstrates her strength and professionalism as an historian. This biography deserves wide readership. I recommend it highly to anyone interested in Betty Smith's work, as well as in the writing process and the writing life during a period when the way was not often easy for a woman writer.
Joyce Allen

Fans of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1943) will find a rich treat in Valerie Yow's biography of its author, Betty Smith. Smith is best known today for the largely autobiographical Tree, but she was celebrated in her day as a prolific playwright (she wrote some 60 plays), and three other popular novels that, like Tree, drew from her own life: Tomorrow Will Be Better (1948), Maggie-Now (1958), and Joy in the Morning (1963).

Though Smith's dramatic work (King Cotton, 1937; So Gracious Is the Time, 1938; The Desert Shall Rejoice, 1941, with Robert Finch) is little-known, Yow examines it thoroughly, and shows that Smith first found her voice in theatre - a lifelong passion.

Yow portrays Smith as a complex individual, at home in the lively, combative streets of Brooklyn as well as its quiet library. She had a fine intellect, nurtured by study at Yale and a circle of literary friends; but as a writer, she did not seek the companionship of the intellectuals of her day. An introvert, she immersed herself in raising her family through three complicated marriages and years of poverty; and in writing polished, sometimes controversial, plays that explored the dark corners of contemporary life in the mid-twentieth century. With success came the stressful glare of public life; but with the accompanying money, she was able to afford weeks of solitude at Nags Head, on North Carolina's Outer Banks, where the diminutive, city-bred author rose at dawn to revel in the sunrise and fish for hours in the Atlantic surf.

Much of the revelation of Smith's character and life in Yow's book comes through well-chosen excerpts from her correspondence and published personal interviews. Yow, an oral historian and psychologist,also conducted lengthy interviews of Smith's surviving family, friends and associates; spent years ransacking obscure archives for information on, and photos of, her subject; and thoroughly immersed herself in the places that Betty brought to life in her semi-autobiographical fiction: Williamsburg, Brooklyn; Ann Arbor, Michigan; Chapel Hill, North Carolina; and Nags Head.

Yow's excellent analysis suggests Smith's enduring appeal arises from her realism, for in her fiction she developed the full, flawed humanity of her characters - most famously, Francie Nolan's beloved, alcoholic father, Johnny Nolan in Tree. At a time when "literary" fiction was expected to have an overt social and political agenda, Betty Smith explored more personal terrain, though nonetheless gritty; for her characters pick their way through messy personal relationships that both nurture and thwart their hopes and dreams.

Yow points out that Smith's wise studies of individuals struggling in the barbed embrace of family and community remain compelling more than a half-century after she wrote them. Despite critics who dismissed her books as "sentimental" because they dealt with the personal, rather than the political, Smith's realistic approach has survived seismic cultural changes, and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn has become what few of her contemporaries can claim to have produced - a classic.

Having loved "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn", I picked up Ms. Yow's biography of Betty Smith with curiosity and a measure of trepidation. I expected an academic treatise but what I discovered, to my delight, was a rich, full-bodied, insightful account of Betty Smith's life.
Ms. Yow is a skilled story teller and this talent combined with her keen research skills and her expertise as a psychologist, yields a book that is not only informative and perceptive but a great read, as well. You won't be able to put this one down.
Anyone who has read and loved "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn" will enjoy this biography. Ms. Yow helps the reader achieve a new understanding of the genesis of Francie Nolan and her family through her compelling analysis of Ms. Smith's own story.

In Betty Smith: Life of the Author of a Tree Grows in Brooklyn, author Valerie Yow has done a masterful work of making a non-fiction biography read as entertainingly and engrossingly as a well-written novel. Using a compelling narrative style, Yow tells the fascinating story of this little-known woman writer of mid 20th century. Amazingly well researched, this biography never feels moribund by facts. Instead they are used to paint a compelling picture of a writer's life and the times in which she lived. Yow provides a telling analysis - both literary and psychological - of Smith and her work. From her impoverished beginnings in Brooklyn to her turbulent life in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Smith's story is even more compelling than that of the character Francie in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. After reading Yow's biography the relationship between author and characters, between author and the people in his/her life becomes even more understandable, as is the relationship between an author and the times in which he/she lives. This book is more than just a great read, it is an invaluable resource for writers and historians and anyone interested in literature.

The BFF sisters are a really great bunch. My daughter loved this book. She related to Jennah and her friends right away. We cannot wait for the next book!

The BFF sisters are a really great bunch. My daughter loved this book. She related to Jennah and her friends right away. We cannot wait for the next book!

WOW!! I must say that I was very impressed with this children's book. I originally bought this book for my nine year-old daughter on a tip from a friend. However, once I began reading it, I couldn't stop. This comedic, yet touching, portrayal of a young Muslim girl's life in the US is precisely what we need in our changing world today. The language, situations, and issues which the protagonist encounters gives an inside look into a culture that is often misunderstood. I was happy to find a new kind of literature to share with my daughter. I highly recommend this book, and all the future titles in this series, to both young and old readers. What a great find!

As a mother of two children I recommend this book for both Muslims and non-Muslims. The book is great for entertainment as well as learning basic knowledge about Islam and cultural diversity. It teaches essential qualities such as listening to elders and respecting others of different nationalities. I would even suggest this book as an entertaining read-aloud piece. I can't wait to buy the next book in the series.