Clubs Books

All 3 of my children (boys and a girl) loved this book and we read it endless times. I give it as a gift to every new mother. Extra fun at the end when all the bears are on 2 pages together and we played "find the blue bear ... find the thin bear etc... Entertaining for ages 2-4.

In my kindergarten class, my 5 year olds adopted this book as a favorite. After reading it through once, many of the children were 'reading' it on their own. They were so excited! As a mom of 6 pre-school kids, I find my OWN children love it just as much!

My daughter has many, many books. We both love this one. The words are lyrical and fun, the pictures of the bears are interesting for all ages. She has started to pick up the words and "read" the book herself. Our original copy came used and we will be replacing it.

All three of my sons love this book. I have an older hardcover edition of this book my older 14 year old son enjoyed when he was younger. Now I am reading it to my twin boys that are 20 months old. They truely enjoy all the bears in this book. It even has twin bears in it! If you are looking for a book for the under 5 group this is it. Kids love it.

Children adore teddy bears, and this book is just full of them. Bears of every imaginable description! It is a subtle "teaching tool" helping with colors and sizes, plus much much more. I purchase this book for friends 4 and under. My daughter wore out 2 books! We enjoyed it beary much. Hope you do too!

This book and Jonathan Trouern-Trend blog inspired me during a difficult time and was an inspiration for my own project.

I remember a few years ago listening to Public Radio and hearing him speak for the first time. I was driving down the road listening to him speak on the radio, crying and profoundly inspired all at the same time!

During this time in our dark history his work has been an inspiration and a comfort for many. There is something incredible in a person when they can rise above such trauma and destruction to produce something so beautiful.

I am also impressed with how he describes the resilience and potential of nature to serve us with healing under any circumstance. I look forwards to more of the same from this author!

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This started out as a soldiers blog, and has more of a travelogue feel, rather than a war correspondent feel of it. The author is most interesting when presenting his walks around the camp, and finding birds in back of the laundry camp and travels. And exotic birds they are: such as Squacco heron, Greater spotted eagle, Egyptian Vulture, purple swamphen, whiskered tern, and blue-checked bee-eater. What is missing however any introspection about the war, Sadam's effect on the environment, or contrast of being in a war zone and observing nature.

Being a bird enthusiast, AND having a son in the US Army inspired me to buy (and read) this book. I had originally bought it to give to my son (who enjoyed watching birds...mostly raptors....as a child), I decided to read it myself and was amazed at the species of birds this soldier was seeing over there. Sounds like (in addition to his mission) he did have some downtime and had some positive things to say about the region, which was nice. It has to be hard to be away from your family and friends for so long....and Jonathan found a way to stay busy and keep upbeat. Kudos to him, and God Bless our military!

This is a small, beautiful book. The natural phenonomena and bird-life that Jonathan Trouern-Trend desribes with such simple elegance in Birding Babylon is both comforting and poignent as it all takes place in Iraq near the beginning of our most recent conflict there.

I salute Mr. Trouern-Trend, both as a fellow "birder" as well as a poet. His writing is spare and unembelished, yet the warm sentiment he awakens in the naturalist' heart is undeniable. Here, again, poignance was the feeling he inspired, as well as admiration for a job well-done.

I love this little book. I bought 3 more copies as soon as I read it to give to friends.

Thank you, Sergeant Trouern-Trend. I salute you! Beth Hall, San Diego, CA

Because I am a birder, a friend bought me this book. It is perfectly aimed, not a pure birding, and no ranting about the war. Shows the power of nature and appreciation of nature to put a lovely perspective on even the most ugliest of wars. I wanted to know what the birds he referred to looked like so am ordering the birds of the middle east. one might wish photos or more realistic drawing of the birds, but I think that would detract from the journal-like nature of this cute little book.

I had read several of Alistair Maclean's novels, and had an 8 year break when I got a hold of this. This novel is a prime exhibit of why I enjoy him so much. A mystery, revealing tid-bits here and there, leaving you guessing who the good guys are and who are the bad guys.

If you want to be on the edge of your seat for a while, this book will do it.

To recommand for all readers to buy, read, and re-read for n number of times. fantastic book

There are lots of surprising twists in this story including a final surprise in the last sentence. MacLean did a very good job when he wrote this book.

I'm not a fan of the circus and I hate clowns. Being a MacLean fan, but with my current mentality, I figured he had finally run out of ideas (at this point in his life). But the cover of the 1975 Fawcett Crest edition (see "customer images" for the paperback edition) was intriguing: a man falling off a high-wire, the bicycle tumbling after him. Is someone killing off circus people? I had to read.

It turns out that the circus plays as a backdrop for a secret CIA mission. Believe it or not, but the agenda in this tale is about an incredible circus performer recruited by the CIA to break into a prison (that the circus "moves" next to) to steal -- as the back of the book explains -- "a formula capable of annihilating the earth itself." Sure enough, MacLean was like the Crichton of the 70s and managed to weave an entertaining yarn around the idea of anti-matter (certainly not new in 1975).

MacLean refrains from delving too deeply into describing anti-matter or how this formula will end up being used. His somewhat amusing approach to it takes place as a discussion between semi-ignorant CIA agents and Bruno, the acquired circus performer, all of whom are frightened by the power of anti-particles.

As the title may suggest, the book is a slight deviant from other MacLean adventure tales, but I rank it up there among his best works. The book is full of extremely original death scenes that, despite being accustomed to MacLean's formulas, took me completely by surprise. There are more twists in the last chapter than there are in some of his better books, and MacLean pulls it off realistically, and without creating a convoluted mess.

Keep an eye out for Carter. While no first name is ever given, he is the doppelganger cameo of Chief Officer John Carter of MacLean's "The Golden Rendezvous." (MacLean has done this with other characters throughout his novels.)

Another great MacLean classic. In this book the hero is an American athlete, an immigrant from eastern Europe. He is recruited by the CIA and is to undertake and unimaginable mission. He, of course, succeeds, but not without the extreme difficulties that macLean's heroes always face. The story twists are awesome and the ending is both expected and surprising. A great read.

I enjoyed this book thoroughly. Just thought it ended too abruptly, maybe because I didn't want it to end...

This was the first romance novel that I have read and it still is in my keepers shelf. This tale of passion starts with Sara, who is impersonating her actress sister Delight. To give Delight time to run away and get hitched to her paramour, Carlo,Sara needs to trick Marco (Carlo's brother) that Delight is really in town. After their meeting,Marc "kidnapps" Sara via his private plane and takes her to his mansian. Yeah, being the Duca di Cavalieri has certain advantages ;). The dialogue between Sara and Marco is amusing to say the least. And the pool scene is diabolic! No more said, you have to read it to get the rest of the story and the details. All in all, the sexual tension between them startS with A SPARK AND TURNS INTO AN ALL OUT BONFIRE!! Oh my, enjoy

Poor Sara! Golden haired and beautiful, sensitive and romantic, she is still forever overshadowed by the other women in her family. Mama Mona is the most glamorous movie star in Hollywood. Half sister Delight is the most wickedly adventurous porn star in the business. Sara is in the middle, wondering -- will any man ever find me desirable?

Enter Marco DeCavlieri, the most intense, passionate, possessive, and GORGEOUS hunk in all of Italy. Worth hundreds of millions, powerful and ruthless, Marco is still brutally protective of his family honor. When he hears that his silly younger brother Carlo has taken up with gold-digger Delight, he decides to take matters into his own hands!

What happens next is just too sexy to be described. It's sort of like mistaken identity, with a bit of kidnaping, only Sara soon finds she doesn't want to escape! Her beauty and goodness inflame the dark duke, so that soon he finds himself giving in to her instead of the other way around. And then -- oh, but I can't go on. Read it for yourself!

Magnificent, epic length, and sexy, this tale of passion between a proper English society girl and an uninhibited Italian Duke is truly the best of both worlds. It has the elegance, luxury and mystery of a great historical -- Marco is really more of a 16th century Corsair than a modern jet setter, even if he does have his own helicopter, sports car and mansion. On the other hand, golden-haired Sara is really more of an innocent, chaste, Jane Austen heroine, even if she is the daugher of a famous -- and sexually adventurous -- movie star.

Even the minor characters are fascinating, like Carlo, the Brooklyn born stepbrother Marco protects, and Delight, the party girl with a heart of gold, and even Serafina, the stern old housekeeper who functions as a mother figure for Sara. Great story, great romance, great settings and characters!

For such a twisted "love" triangle I throughly enjoyed Mrs. Rogers work, and I really didn't want this novel to end. It is a love story on a major detour, and is something I certainly wouldn't have thought of, but I am glad Mrs. Rogers did. As surprising as the plot was, I was even more surprised by the ending, and would really love to hear more about how all turned out in the end. I truly wish that more of the story was still left to read.

I really enjoyed reading this book and I can't help but be a little critical but I wish Rosemary would put a little more sex in her scenes. If you've read "The Insiders" now that was sexy and erotic, it really turned you on at times, but then again there were some scenes that were uncalled for. "The Insiders" was the beginning of my book collection. I also loved "Crowd Pleasers." Anyway, "Love Play" was fun to read. There was a lot of spitting drama between the two main characters which I enjoy. I thought Rosemary could have done a better job with the ending....it was just too easy to figure out that the characters would have been happily in love with each other. I mean she just went into "boy, I think I love you" and it was over. I thought if the two characters were going to keep bickering, their should have been a lot more passionate sex between the two and not in the last quarter of the book. I was getting tired of waiting till something sexual would happen. I've read a lot of Rosemary's novels and think this book will be my last. I've been reading a lot of Kat Martin books lately and I now have a new collection of her books. She has a lot of steamy loving, clean of course, sexy scenes that really turn you on and make you feel good and a very well written stories. You should check her out. Sorry fan readers. I guess I'm just a little more disappointed with Rosemary's books. Anyway, I really think this book is still worth reading. I just felt I had to speak my peace.

Laymans genetics is a good term for this book. I am 4 years new to the dog world and this book laid out important information in a way that kept me interested! Most books are either so complicated as to be boring or so simple that you come away with nothing but verification of something you've already read. Not this book - it is perfect and the advice is invaluable. I will keep this book forever!

A magnificent source of history, technique, philosophy and guidance for the serious dog breeder and exhibitor. Examines history and trends in many breeds. Acquaints you with the greats on four legs as well as two. Not a light read, but definitely worth the effort.

This book has taught me and has had me understand just what it takes to be BORN TO WIN :BREED TO SUCSEED a must read for all dog people of all experiences.The way Mrs. Trotter has wrote this book anyone can understand just how to get the job done.

Patricia Craige, who ranges from top Norweigan Elkhound breeder to top dog show competitor, shares her insights in the canine field to a new audience eager to eat her every word. Why do I give this author such high acclaim? For three simple reasons:

a). Mrs. Craige shows the reader many examples of dogs who have succeeded inm both the show ring and the whelping box. Many dogs, ranging from the top-producing dog of all time to the dog with the most Best-In-Shows (the highest honor at any dog show), are shown, with in-depth study on how the greatest of dogs made their way to the top.

b). The book is very well understood thanks to the authors' personal experience. Mrs. Craige is an owner-handler, the lowest on the totem pole in the canine realm. However, one of her glorious Elkhounds became the top dog all breeds in the year 1970. This astounding tribute to the hard work and dedication she put into breeding and raising top dogs is followed up with a string of top dogs of any breed. She also bred, owned, and handled the top Elkhound of all-time and one of the top winning hounds of all-time with sixty-six all-breed Best-In-Shows. Her last big winner was shown from 1993-1995, daughter of the top winning Elkhound and two-time Westminster Hound Group winner (Winning at Westminster is the highest honor any owner, handler, or breeder can aspire to). Despite all of this, the author's down-to-earth writing style solaces the reader, allowing the reader to thoroughly enjoy the book.

c). Why don't you tell me? THere are so many reasons to applaud this book. I am sure that if you were to add it to your collection, you'd find your own reasons to back up the notion that this book truly is BORN (err, published) TO WIN!!

A great book, full of important information for breeders. One of the real strengths of the book is the section on genetics and inheritance. I've read a reasonable amount on gene theory but this book really clarified how things work. I also really like the section on litter evaluation. Ms Trotter's style is emminently readable, and certainly one can't argue with her experience in breeding for success!

I loved it - if you live in LA you HAVE to read it!

I was a bit hesitant to buy this book, since I'm not really a "plant person". However, I'm certainly not a "horse person", but I always enjoy Dick Francis. Knowledge or enjoyment of succulents is not necessary to enjoy Nathan Walpow's first mystery novel featuring commercial actor Joe Portugal.

The book doesn't really fit into either the hard-boiled or cozy category: Joe Portugal may be an amateur sleuth, but there's lots of action to keep things moving. Wait until you have some spare time, because you won't want to stop reading until you find out whodunit.

Nathan Walpow has a winner with his Joe Portugal series. Set in contemporary L.A., the book provides an enjoyable view a group of succulent enthusiasts and the world they inhabit. Solving one major problem with many amateur detective mysteries, Mr. Walpow succeeds in providing his hero with a believable lifestyle that allows him time to search for a murderer - he's a totally-lacking-in-ambition actor in commercials living in a house owned, but not inhabited, by his father. In fact, the father and his friends are vibrant minor characters I look forward to learning more about in future titles. Congratulations to Nathan on a promising mystery debut!

Not your garden-variety mystery. A succulent little book, with a down-to-earth detective, a thorny problem, good plot, and very good and believable characters. I've written a longer review for our website and am posting this one as a personal favor to Nathan; however, I am recommending this book, not as a personal favor to him but to mystery lovers everywhere, whether you like plants or not. Don't waste thyme. Buy this book now!

I do read the reader reviews on Amazon but never thought I would be writing one of my own. This book was so good I thought it needed some more help reaching book buyers, so here goes:

Joe Portugal is a 40 something actor in commercials in Los Angeles who belongs to a club devoted to cacti and succulents. He has the good fortune to be somewhat successful in his career, live in a paid-for house courtesy of his father, and have a best friend (who happens to be female). He has the bad fortune to be be house, plant and bird sitting for the club president when he discovers her dead in the shower with a broken euphorbia stuffed down her throat. Police detective Casillas seems to think Joe knows a bit too much about the victim and type of murder weapon (the euphorbia sap is quite poisonous) and follows Joe about as more murders are committed. It doesn't help Joe's case that the rest of the euphorbia shows up in his greenhouse while the detective is interviewing him the next day.

What I liked most about the book was that no one was phony- even in Los Angeles, people can be normal. Joe wasn't a caricature, neither was Gina (the female friend), nor the police. They weren't supermen- able to take a pounding and then pop up fresh as a daisy ready to run up Mt Everest. Joe's dad is a retired (due to prison time) enforcer who worries about Joe and asks a friend to "watch over" him as Joe continues to investigate the killings. The interactions between characters was lively, funny and true. The situations that develop aren't forced- the coincidences aren't too far out. Maybe it's because I've been suffering thru some really bad fiction recently, I don't know; but this book is a prime example of really good writing, fascinating real characters you get to care about (oh that phrase!) and a story that plain sucks you in until you *have* to know what happens next and who did it. And, for the record, I didn't guess who did it before it was revealed. My guess died second in the book

You will learn a great deal about cacti, euphorbias and poinsettias while reading the book. A wonderful botanical guide to the plants mentioned is included in the back of the book.

Is this a cozy? hmmm, maybe. No animals die in the book- unless you include some wasps.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone whoever tried to get a cactus to grow and hates wasps; and to anyone looking for a great read period!

This was a very good book.Claudia made some new friends in 7th grade in BSC #101 Claudia Kishi Middle School Drop Out.Then her teacher Mrs.Amer says she's not a STAR student she says Claudia you're going have to go back to 7th grade says Mrs Amer.She said you'll start on Monday.

THIS WAS A GOOD BOOK. IT WAS MY SECOND BABYSITTERS BOOK. I WANT TO BE A BABYSITTER JUST LIKE CLAUDIA AND STACEY AND MARY ANN BECAUSE THEY ARE MY FAVORITE BABYSITTERS IN THE BOOK!!!! I AM 8 YEARS OLD AND IN 2ND GRADE

This book was really good! Throughout the series Claudia really never had much of a "love life". This book gave her some. Also in this book, we get to know Claudia's seventh grade friends better. I think it's great that Claudia's adjusted to seventh grade, and still going strong with the other members. Keep it up Ann!

Claudia was chosen for Queen of seventh grade, and they chose Mark for the King. (Claudia has a crush on Mark) Josh Rocker, One of Claud's friend is jealous of Mark. And he becomes even more jealous when he learns that Claud has a crush on Mark, and they Kissed! Yes! I said KISSED! That's why I'm Saying it's It's "Romance For Claudia." But I can't tell you more, or else I'll give it away. You've got to read this book in order to find out MORE! It's the best book anyone can imagine! -Grace

When Claudia is back in seventh grade she becomes Queen of the seventh grade. Claudia has a steady boyfriend called Mark. Mark is King Of the Seventh Grade. Claudia meets other people that she makes friends with.

Many Americans know Washington Irving as the author of "the Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle". Few realize that he was also a world traveler, scholarly fluent in Arabic and Spanish and something of an Hispanophile, to the say least.
Irving's book is largely responsible for the widespread romantic image of Spain. It is a collection of observation, history, fairy tale, written in Irving's unique blend of romanticism and healthy skepticism. It is roughly framed by his journey to the Alhambra and his departure from it, an in between we are given a tour of the grounds and hear a few tales (including tales of Moorish ghosts on headless horses) which are roughly intertwined as in the Arabian Nights. Indeed, this little book is the 'Arabian Nights' of the west.
Before visit the Alhambra read this book. If you are not planning on going, read it and you'll probably change your mind.

I am a Moor and I relate to the stories well. The stories reminded me of the things to avoid for the things that will come. A Moorish Empire will rise again.
Irving starts with his personal journey then he has several stories of gallant and modest characters which makes you feel your in the garden or the palace. It brings back what love was and how it should be. I really like the story of the Father striving to keep his son from learning about love. I know no matter what you do you can never lock love away because of its power and its vast estate one would have to know it is impossible. This is a worth while reader for anyone who knows and wants the best from humanity for it is the Moors who created civilization and it is their station to restore it.

On 7/24/04 through Amazon Marketplace I purchased this used book.
It arrived within the week and was excellently packed and shipped by bea4books@yahoo.com. A lovely "Thanks for Buying!" note was included with the invoice. The book is in very good condition with wonderful pictures. A surprise was that it had belonged to the Austin Public Library - a favorite city of mine. I'll be ordering more through you! Thank you.

Washington Irving is credited with bringing the glorious history and unbelievable beauty of the Alhambra, in the city of Granada, (the last stronghold of the Moors in the South of Spain) to Western conciousness.

After spending a day at the Alhambra last Summer, and passing by the closed apartments that he occupied, I decided to listen to his book while driving one hour each way to work. (any short trips won't work because all of the 'tales' are lengthy)

My title says it all. If you are a student of dry history this book is not for you. Only about 20-30 minutes will satisfy your curiosity for the facts. If you enjoy legend and lore this book is it. The bulk of the book tells numerous stories of princes and princeses, kings and soldiers, common laborers such as mule drivers and water carriers, loves found and loves lost, and especially the perrenial human lust for long lost and buried treasure, etc., all told with a wonderous style and feel for southern Spain of the 13-th to 15-th centuries.

The factual account of how Columbus finally came to agreement with Isabella and Ferdinand to sign the contract for the three ships, almost by chance in 1492, while the two sovereigns were outside Granada laying the final siege of the Alhambra fortress, is mind blowing. History came 'that close' to having Columbus sail three French ships instead of the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria.

If you want just the facts, look elsewhere. But if you are planning a trip to Granada and the Alhambra, definitely pick up this book, along with a second, more fact based, and give a read or listen. I wish I had done that before my trip. It would have given much more life and enjoyment to the place as I walked through the various rooms and towers and gardens that Irving so lovingly describes.

This wonderful book written by a well-loved American author details his travels in Spain, and more specifically in the Castle Alhambra. These tales are delightful, and seemlessly weave from fact to fiction to history to folklore. It is a true travel log, done oh so many years ago, and done with Irving's whimcical and enchanting style. The sketches give a good description of Spain and travel in the early 1800's. Older children and adolescents would probably enjoy these sketches.

WOW! Now this is the book to read! With all the facts & fun you get to know the BSC real good. I just say : READ IT! =)

This book tells you all that you need to now about the babysitters club. It brings back good memorys about ther other books and gives info from ther other books you didn't read. I recomend this book to all of the readers of the babysitters club SO READ IT!!!!!!

Everything you ever wanted to know about the Baby-Sitters Club is in this book. It is very detailed.For example:One of the facts is that Kristy's little sister's worst enemy in her class, Bobby Gianalli, his father's occupation is working for an insurance company.

This is the book for you! It has everything you need to know about the BSC and all of Stoneybrook. Find all there clients, friends out of the club, and Beyond Stoneybrook. Read it!

The COMPLETE guide to the Baby-Sitters Club. It's an excellent book, it tells you all the baby-sitters clients, about their family, friends out of the club. There's a lot more to it. But I won't llist all of them, if you want to know, than read the book and find out! GET IT OR GET OUT!!!!!!

This is one of my favorites of the entire S&A series. It is one of the most sailing intensive books providing great details about sailing through tidal river regions. The Norfolk Broads region described is sort of a sailing paradise. Like all of these books, the adventure is very lightweight, and only really suitable for a child with some degree of patience. Part of the appeal is how realistic the books are. I think children enjoy reading stories in which child characters are doing so many fun things on their own with very minimal adult intervention. In my experience these books appeal most to children in the 9-11 age bracket. The book's theme of nature preservation and activism is one that also is fairly relevant even today.

If you have read any of the Swallows and Amazons books and liked them you will love this one too. In my opinion they are all good, but this is definitely one of his best!

This is the fifth of Arthur Ransome's "Swallows and Amazons" tales, although, in fact, it features not a single member of either the Swallows or the Amazons. Nor, indeed, is it set anywhere near the English Lake District. Instead, it describes the Norfolk Broads boating adventures of the two D's (first introduced to the reader in the previous book, "Winter Holiday").

The tale is set in the children's Easter holidays, just a few months after the events of the preceding book. In it, Dick and Dorothea are anxious to learn the rudiments of sailing so that they can take a more active part in the fun when they next meet up with the Swallows and Amazons. Dick is also keen to do some bird watching. It is almost inevitable, therefore, that soon after arriving in Norfolk, they find therefore themselves tangled in up in (and helping out with) the troubles of the Coot Club - a group of local (boat-mad) children dedicated to the protection of the Broads' unique bird population.

Ransome loved the Norfolk Broads with a passion that possibly even exceeded his love of the Lake District. In this book, he paints a portrait of Norfolk, its waterways and the people who live on or by them, making plain his love for this unique environment and its way of life. The story centres on his concerns over their continuing destruction through ever-increasing tourism (and the increasingly thoughtless actions of its visitors), a major problem even 65 years ago. (It is far worse now, of course!) Unlike his Lake District stories, this one uses the real names of the places that feature in it and revels in describing them. Indeed, the book reads almost like a guidebook at times, although you barely notice this, for it is never anything less that engaging in its content. As always, Ransome combines both narrative and instructive content with consummate ease, tempered here with an excitement to the events that unfold. He weaves a tale that is as enthralling and captivating as ever, that will appeal to lovers of good tales whatever their age. The author's own pen-and-ink drawings are as charming as ever, too.

This is one of the few Swallows and Amazons books that can be read earlier in the sequence than it appears (if you really must) without major detriment to either itself or the earlier stories (except, perhaps "Winter Holiday"). You do need to have read it before most of the ones that follow it, however, as the events described here feature heavily in later ones.

After being introduced in the last book, WINTER HOLIDAY, the D's (aka Dick and Dorothea Callum), have their own adventure.

It's the Easter holiday following their winter adventure, and they're going to the Norfolk Broads to stay with a friend of their mother, Mrs. Barrable, to stay on a boat. The D's are eager to learn some sailing but are desolated to find out that they can't. But soon they're involved with the Coot Club: leader Tom Dudgeon, twins Port and Starboard, and the Death-and-Glories, a trio of youngsters who play at piracy. The Coot Club watches over the waterbirds nesting in the Broads, and after a boatload of crass tourists anchors near an important nest and refuses to move, Tom sets them adrift and ends up being hunted. The D's and Mrs. Barrable come to the rescue, hiding him on their boat and using him to teach sailing.

Ransome's fondness for the Norfolk Broads shines through. I didn't get into it as much as some of the other books, mainly because I miss the Swallows and Amazons as well as the lake setting. But this book is interesting for some of the more serious themes that creep in. This is the first S&A book that takes a strong environmental theme, and it's great to see that in something from the 30s. It also explores the theme of sometimes you have to take a stand for what you believe in, even if it gets you in trouble. We also see the tension between residents of the broads and noisy vacationers who don't respect them or the rules of the area. There are also elegiac glimmers of the passage of time, of how the Broads aren't quite what they used to be, although that might not necessarily be bad. It's also fun to see Mrs. Barrable referred to as "The Admiral" by the crew.

It's a fun book, and easy for me to visualize after visiting places like Chincoteague and the eastern shore of Maryland. It's nice spending time with the D's and seeing some of the new characters, who will make a return appearance later in the series. Next book: PIGEON POST, in which the D's reunite with the S&As and return to the lake.

In this book Ransome focuses on the two most recently introduced members of his juvenile cast, Dick and Dorothea Callum, who are sent to spend part of their Easter holidays with Mrs. Barrable, their mother's old schoolmistress, along the rivers of the Norfolk wetlands. Eager to learn to sail so they can take part in the adventures planned for the lake next summer, their spirits plummet when they learn that Mrs. Barrable "can't sail her boat by herself" and plans to use it only as a houseboat. Unexpected salvation occurs in the form of Tom Dudgeon, son of a local doctor, who finds himself a fugitive after setting a motor-cruiser adrift to protect a coot's nest being observed by himself and his five friends (Port and Starboard, the twin girls who live near the Dudgeons, and the Death and Glories, Joe, Pete, and Bill). Seeking shelter from the outraged motorboaters aboard Mrs. Barrable's rented craft, he meets the trio and finds instant common ground, and quickly agrees to serve as Captain and teach the Callums "the ropes." Though there's less imaginative play in this book than in the rest of the series, it still features Ransome's splendid insight into juvenile minds and character, plus loving description of the countryside and a strong consciousness of the environment that must have been unusual in the 1930's. Though this volume will never be my favorite of the series--somehow things are never so lively without Captain Nancy Blackett on board!--it succeeds on its own terms and will be a pleasant change of pace for families reading aloud in sequence.