Resorts Books

My interest in Jewish history was borne from my love of the Catskills in New York. Having grown up in a Jewish community provided me with a background that prompted many questions for which I never quite found answers. As a young person my favorite comedians were all Jewish-their sense of humor and timing was uncomparable. I could laugh and cry at the same time and it felt good. Upon venturing into the local library in my town upstate in the quest for answers to the whys and wherefores of the names around the Catskills and the pockets of Hasidic communities around my little town, I spotted Stefan Kanfer's hardbound book. A quick glance at the title and the jacket was all I needed to decide this was must reading. From the first few pages my fascination began with the accounts of the immigrants at the turn of the century from Russia settling in New York City and their reasons for looking for 'a land flowing with milk and honey'; their determination to make a living as peddlars of assorted wares; their 'at odds' relationship with other incoming Jewish immigrants; the origin of many of the words we use today; the notoriety of the little towns along Route 17 and the 'not-so-nice' goings on; the rise of the empires of the many Catskill hotels that started out as places for immigrants seeking a 'cure' from TB; the true (and perhaps unknown to many) story of the Grossinger family and others; how many famous comedians got their start in these hotels, (Daniel David Kaminsky for one) and learning the real names of these men and women was a pleasant surprise; and, finally, the sad decline of the summer exodus to the catskills by the succeeding generations as times changed. I would venture to say that the Catskills were "made" by these Jewish immigrants and the knowledge I gained from this book was worth its weight in gold. I cannot imagine it absent from my bookshelf and know that is truly one of the finest books I have ever read. This is a 'must read' publication for any Catskill dweller. Thank you Mr. Kanfer.

Hi! well, if you are looking for a good book on a boring day, this is the one. Ive only read 7books of Cherie Bennette, but I think she's a great writter. The sunset books, are about a group of girls, who live in and island during the summers as baby sitters (ua pairs?) well, the all become best friends (carrie,Emma,Sam) and they meet a couple of guys and thats when there real life starts happening, the problems and all that. These books are all really cool.

A thoroughly well researched, practical and well thought out guidebook that is really useable. This author really knows her stuff. I've seen other features in publications and other guidebooks she's written and she always gives you just the right info for travelling with your family. I've used this one twice, and it helped me navigate the city easily.

This was his last book, I am SAD to say!!

It is TRULY A MUST read for those of you who RESPECT your elderlys.

He wrote this when he & his GREAT wife were in the nursing home. He was
infuriated at the administration, and GOOD ol' JOHN WON his point, not the
administration at the nursing home where RESIDENTS have to pay atrocious
amounts!!

OH, this book EXCEEDS a 5 STAR rating easily!!
JOHN won the case!!

PS: He was a friend of my cousin, and what a dry DOWNEAST sense of humor in this great gentleman!

Any avid snow visitor will find this guide to the top European resorts compelling and useful, picking the top 50 of such resorts for close inspection. 'Close' means that details include overviews of instruction, schools and academies, descriptions of resort mountains and ability ranges, tips on events, accommodation, and eating out nearby: in short, everything a planner needs to make the most out of snow season in Europe.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This is a wonderful book with amazing pictures of the most beautiful hotels in the world. Great to use as reference or to display on your coffee table!

I have had this book for a while, and I have found Mario Collura and his company to be a leader in the timeshare industry. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to find out about resorts available in the US and abroad.

I thought this was a very good addition to the Replica series. Other than the fact that in "Happy Birthday, Amy" amy was transformed into some one older than 13. I assume that this would have happened to all of the other girls as well, seeing as all of them had the same genes. What bothered me was that in Trouble in Paradise, the other girls still appeared to be 13 years old, and I doubt that all of them were shot by a laser gun (at least I think that's what it was) and the gene was removed. I thought this was a bad example of using a character's past history to make a book more interesting.

Heck, I am a Turkish American (in the States since '80) and I used this book during my last visit on '97! It is well organized, fun to read, and mostly accurate, which is all I expect from such a book. Two thumbs up!

This book was given to me as a gift and I love it! The pictures of the different spas are beautiful and inspiring. The pictures are very tasteful.
The second half of the book has recipes for spa treatments as well as pics and descriptions of quite a variety of spa services. Great gift item for anyone who loves spa!