I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It starts of as what appears to be a breezy summer read with plenty of romance and some hot and heavy sex scenes thrown in for good measure. However, the denouement reveals that the book is much more than this. All the loose ends are tied together beautifully in the thought-provoking ending. The spirituality of the book really gets one thinking about the relationships in one's life. Why are we drawn to the people in our lives? What purpose do we serve in the lives of others? Do the choices we make in life have a greater cosmic significance than we know? Read this book. Laugh, cry, fantasize, enjoy, and reflect on your own place in the universe and the effect your actions have on others in this world and in the greater cosmic realm.

Knights in Shining Armor Sometimes Play Guitars is a
contemporary romance that refuses to be categorized by
normal standards. It is romance, it is how to be a
great lover, it is suspense, most of all it is a love
story. You will fall in love with Johanna, a brilliant
mid-management executive and Ian, a rock star from the
sixties who is enjoying continual fame and revival, as
they fall in love with each other. The fact that
Johanna has followed his career and had a secret crush
on him for the past 25 years plays a part in their
co-incidental meeting. D.P. McHenry draws the
characters so fully formed you set aside the knowledge
that you are reading fiction. The warmth of the
characters, the realistic trials, tribulations and
triumphs will have you laughing as they appreciate
life, crying as they miss each other through
circumstances out of their control and cheering as
everything seems to be winding down to a satisfactory
conclusion. Sensual love scenes tastefully done are a
great plus for this wonderful read.

Suddenly, you realize that Johanna and Ian's love
story has come full circle they are together. Then
your heart sinks because fate has to drop kick the
hero, heroine, or both, into some horrendous trial
because you are only at the halfway point in the book.
D.P. McHenry throws in her first twist here. The first
part of the book aptly titled 'Lady Slippers and Fairy
Dust' is over. Kate's Story part 2- the woman who the
book is really about, has just begun. DP McHenry has
created every woman's fantasy the perfect romance with
the perfect man in the Fairy Dust part 1. Which is
also the book Kate wrote we discover in part 2. The
book she has written to encompass her fantasy begins
to create eerie similarities to her real life. A book
signing and television appearance signal a start of
events that rival a King or Koontz novel for suspense.
This is no ordinary romance story told in the normal
order. It is not easy to tell you how the two parts
connect, but connect perfectly they do. The author has
skill fully manipulated the plot to ensure continuity
and an engaging read.
First, the reader becomes entangled -happily and
willingly - in Kate's life, but now it's hard to
separate her life from Johanna and Simon's life from
Ian's. The author is not through with us yet she
isn't about to tell us a sweet love story we thought
we were reading in the beginning. Hero meets heroine,
they fall in love, they sleep together, they live
happily every after, sorry this is not Knights in
Shining Armor... D.P. McHenry mimics real life with a few
more twists and turns that catapult the story into
high gear as we race toward the end. We cry for Kate,
we want to shake her for not seeing what we see. Our
hearts ache for Simon, because he can't see the
anguish Kate is going through that matches his own.
The final twist terror squeezing our hearts as we
follow the people we have grown to love and we find

ourselves praying for the happy endings that all love
stories have, though we are never sure. We are hanging
on by the skillful thread D.P. McHenry tethers us with
to the story.

The lyrics Ian/Simon write for Johanna/Kate are the
thread tying the two stories into a book you'll stay
up nights to read. You will want to set the book aside
after each chapter to savor the romantic renderings of
each. Until nearly the end, you will not be in a big
hurry to read forward as it is so much fun to loll in the
forever romantic of McHenry's portrayal of the woman
we all wish we were. For this reason, towards the
end, McHenry pulls out all the stops, drops a bomb on
the reader and then you need to race through the book
to the satisfying - you hope - conclusion.

Mc Henry knows what keeps a reader reading -
believable characters with a believable story. I would
highly recommend this book to the romantic in all of
us, but also for those who want an engaging story told
with the skill of a master. Don't think women only.
Men who are interested in becoming every woman's
fantasy, learn how. Read Knights in Shinning Armor
Sometimes Play Guitars and I guarantee you, you will
not have to play the guitar to snare a mate.

Admit it - what woman hasn't dreamt of actually meeting the rock star she's idolized? And what if he then falls in love with her? "Knights in Shining Armor" explores this theme, and much else, in such a believable style that you are quickly caught up in the dilemma. The work is actually a "book within a book" with two very aproachable and likable heroines, well drawn, even glamourous male characters (both heroes and villians),and warm and sensous love scenes. This is romance for the woman who is not afraid to grapple with the moral and spiritual issues of who and how to love, who is willing to work hard to suceed both in love and in life, and never lose the willingness to laugh at the world or herself. A delightful take on "It could happen to you!"

The only beverage book that includes lost and almost-lost cocktail recipes from before 1920, 173 Pre-Prohibition Cocktails: Potations So Good They Scandalized A President is an amazing glimpse into the history of liquor in America, as well as a collection of so many different drink preparations that even the most gregarious connoisseur is certain to find something new and especially intoxicating. In addition to the drink mixes themselves, this book also memorializes the life and times of the recipes' original author, Tom Bullock (1872-1964), the first African-American to write a drink book. Present-day co-author D. J. Frienz has added over 40 illustrations, 20 pages of little-known facts about the history of drinking, and suggestions as to where to purchase ingredients that might be hard to come by. 173 Pre-Prohibition Cocktails is a "must" for anyone who enjoys mixing their own drinks, or is searching for a new taste in their cocktail glass.

Includes 7 absinthe recipes and a handy reference guide for ordering it over the internet. Just what I needed after seeing Moulin Rouge!

"Like a great civilization, the cocktail flourished, went out of fashion, and faded. These are recipes from the great exodus." says Mark Brown, Food Writer at The Tulsa World. "You never really miss something," says Tom Rush, bartender,"until you don't have it." "D. J. Frienz found Rufus Estes in her mother's kitchen. But to find Tom Bullock, she had to go online. There was just something about Estes' 1911 cookbook. Gravy-splattered and grease-spotted, it told a story that Frienz couldn't let die. In 1999, she published "Good Things To Eat As Suggested By Rufus" so it wouldn't. . . . . This time, it's Bullock and his 1917 recipes from 'The Ideal Bartender.' It's a remarkable collection of cocktail recipes from a remarkable, if mysterious, barman. Up to and perhaps beyond Prohibition, Bullock mixed drinks at the St. Louis Country Club and the Pendennis Club of Louisville and was quite revered for it." "Behind the bar at the St. Louis Country Club, Bullock shook cocktails for such drinkers as Teddy Roosevelt and George Herbert Walker. Sound familiar? His great-grandson is your new president." . . . . Frienz' "concoction is '173 Pre-Prohibition Cocktails." As with Estes, she's taken Bullock's original text and shaken it up with anecdotes, quotes, sources and all sorts of imagery from the cocktail's primevil period. It's a longing for the classics that inspired her." "I love things that last," Frienz said, "things that are deep and have meaning. A perfect cocktail is a beautiful thing." . . . . . "Somewhere in St. Louis, his [Tom Bullock's] old house still stands. Like the cocktail of pre-Prohibition America, it's all but condemned."

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A critically important contribution to African-American Father-Son relationships from the heart of a Dad who was raised by a single parent mom in inner city Philadelphia. I'd recommend this book to the whole family as well as any son, especially an "at risk" youth. Each of the 20 chapters presents a father-to-son perspective on earthy life issues in clear, concise narratives, with reasonable discretion and frank integrity...

*** Guns *** Gangs *** Drugs *** The Law *** Homosexuality *** Communication *** Problems & Struggles *** Friendship *** Religion *** Mothers *** Health & Fitness *** Hygiene *** Sex *** The Game *** Tenets *** Education *** Ethnic Origin *** Life & Death *** Words to Live By *** F.Y.I./Poetry ***

The "Father to Son" keynote poem will be an award winner. Reginald Bullock has been there, and his personal troubles-to-triumphs guided tour will inspire more successes.

Reggie is a very powerful writer with the ability to communicate to all ages at the same time. His knowledge and background gives him a flexibility that is very unique. Almost like James Bond, only with an urban flavor. I have read many books in my time, and most writers skirt the truth when it comes to some of the subjects Reggie has chosen; however, this book hits the nail square on the head. I would recommend better critics than myself to read the book and write a review. I see big things happening for this man.

Each chapter in the book is a lesson in itself. OPRAH needs to have this guy on TV for the world to learn from. He hits all the problems straight on and pulls no punches. So many teenagers and single parent mothers need to read this book.

As Siskel and Ebert would have said, 2 thumbs up. It's a great book to learn about the "shores" of Alaska. WTG Dr.Mason

2 thumbs up....... A book worth it's wait in gold, its a must for readers who want to learn the truth about the "shores" of Alaska.........WTG Dr. Mason

2 thumbs up....... A book worth its wait in gold, its a must for readers who want to learn the truth about the "shores" of Alaska.........

I really liked this book. It is a dark drama, one that is frightening to hear. I acted in this play and I decided to pick up the book since I liked it so much. It's about a man named Biederman. Despite the warnings of "firebugs," or what we would call more-commonly arsonists, he invited a man into his house. A large, burly man that he couldn't say no to. He gave him home in the attic of his own house. His wife objected, of course, because she didn't want anyone who may be a pyromaniac living in her home. In the morning she promised herself she would get rid of the man in a perfectly polite manner. Instead, the man gave her the sad story of his youth and Frau Biederman allowed him into her house because she felt sorry for the man. So, the man invited a friend of his, without consulting Herr Biederman, by the name of Eisenring. Together they collected sawdust and oil barrels in the attic, and even promised Herr Biederman that they were the firebugs of the city and that they were going to burn the house down. But because it is his house, Gottlieb Biederman does not dismiss the two from his house. This is the story of a man who refuses to believe, and then blames all his mistakes on fate. I really enjoyed this creepy book. I think people who respect a drama such as his will, too.

I received this as a present, waited a few months, and then read it in the course of a single day. This short play is about a middle-class businessman whose biggest anxiety revolves around the Firebugs, men in the city who are responsible for a recent rash of arsons. They enter homes as guests and, after staying the night or dining, take advantage of their hosts' hospitality and trust and burn down their homes. The protagonist, at the height of such crimes, allows a couple of young men to spend the night at his house and refuses to believe (because of pride or trust or some other variable) that the sawdust, matches, and gasoline that they bring into his attic could have anything to do with malicious intents. Frisch prevents the reader from really feeling sorry for the protagonist, who is humorously pathetic. The most interesting part, to me, is that what seems at first glance to be a caricature of human nature is, in fact, so close to reality.

Reading this book I truly felt that I was walking with Peter O'Shea through the woods listening to his wonderful stories. This book is lovingly written and provides the reader with vivid, memorable descriptions of what I know to be a magnificent area of New York State. Well worth reading!

Peter O'Shea's "The Great South Woods" is a detailed and heartfelt account of the flora, fauna, geography and people of the Northwestern part of the Adirondack Park. All the native creatures of the area are described in detailed narratives similiar to one heard around a deep woods campfire. Golden eagles, racoons, bears, bobcat, snowshoe hare, beaver and white tailed deer are just a few of the animals reviewed in detail and passion. O'Shea easily describes the large variety of trees native to the area. Black cherry, white ash, tamarack, sugar maple, white birch and white pine read more like personalized characters rather than simple plant materials. The rivers and famous waterfalls of the region are also portrayed in delicate prose, prompting one to want to visit them over and over, if only in this book. Hiking along these ancient trails, O'Shea conveys a magical aura to everything he views, including the sweeping vistas from the many peaks and the experience of having a quiet hike interupted by a flight of a grouse or the discovery of a rare plant in a bog. Not content to stop with these topics, O'Shea delves further into the local lore and legend with well researched stories of the trappers, guides and sportsmen that first discovered and then protected this land. You'll find many favorite passages here and a wealth of information that will last lifetimes.

I've given this book to friends as a part of their birthday gift. They love it too. I'm constantly finding wonderful gems and read other parts over and over again. A delightful book and highly recommended. I keep thinking of people I want to give it too. Will buy 3 more.

This is a delightful and creative book -- full of clever rhymes and uplifting thoughts. A great gift for someone you care about.

I found this to be one of the most useful books for teaching writing skills. It is loaded with ideas that can be used in the classroom and can be used with teaching teachers how to teach writing skills. This book has some of the most creative and effective ideas I have seen in a long time. In fact I loaned it to someone about a year ago and have not seen it since. This demonstrates its quality. It is an easy read with samples that one can use in class forever. I recommend it highly.

This book provides numerous ideas and suggestions for creative and purposeful writing activities for upper elementary level students. The activities are easy to intergrate in a busy classroom, can be adapted for different grade and ability levels, and the kids love them!

I took a tour of a local titanic display not too long ago. And as i saw the picture of Mr.Thomas Andrews and remembered the recent movie by James Cameron, mainly the brilliant performance by Victor Garbor as Mr. Andrews. I was inspired to find out more about who this man is and what sort of person he was. Searching Amazon.com, I found this book and bought it right away. Information about Mr. Andrews is not very abundant and hard to find. This is a very short book and the language is a little different, due to the differences between the last turn of the century and this one. The content is right on the mark, concentrating on the subject at every turn. Pulling back the curtains of history past to see the story, behind the story of the man and the power behind his success.

This book was such a lovely find; I had been fascinated with Mr. Andrews from the first moment I saw a picture of him. His intelligence, intensity, and presence jumps out of the picture. After hearing from so many sources of just how wonderful he was, I was so happy to receive this book. Even though it is written in yesterday's English - it is a delight to get insight into such a wonderful soul as this. My only hope that in some place in the world, this man has reincarnated so that others will have a chance to be around someone of this caliber. A wonderful book, a wonderful man.

Andrews is a man who died with his ship and should be called the best man in the world he is a saint even if i am not cathlioc

For most of the past century, there have been two schools of thought about Hitler and Stalin. One states that Stalin wasn't really so bad, because he fought the Fascists; the other insists that Hitler wasn't really so bad, because he fought the Communists. Alan Bullock leaves both viewpoints in the dustheap of history, where they belong. Both Hitler and Stalin came as close to pure evil as human beings ever get; both stood for the utter repression of the human spirit and the annihilation of anyone who might possibly be suspected of standing in their way. Bullock demonstrates this in exhaustive, but never exhausting, detail. More people should read this book, if only to be cured forever of any temptation to support any form of totalitarianism, any time, anywhere.

What is most fascinating about this novel dual biographical approach toward understanding both Hitler and Stalin is the startling degree to which such an unorthodox approach illuminates one's understanding not only of their remarkable similarities, but also their philosophical, tactical, and personal differences. This truly is a fascinating and absorbing book, and it is well enough written that the narrative seems to spin along on its own strength, and we find ourselves captivated by the degree to which these two seem star-crossed in terms of their destinies. As Bullock deftly illustrates, the main differences between the two dictators were found in their personalities. Yet, even after all these crucial differences in both personal style and substance are considered, the degree to which they were similar is both remarkable and frightening to comprehend.

Stalin was a creature of bureaucracy, the ultimate insider, someone who knew how to use the organization bonding the Communist Party together for his own rise to prominence and power, an increasingly clever, adroit, and masterful practitioner of power politics. He was nothing if not careful, cautious, deliberate, and shrewd. Hitler, on the other hand, was a gambler, a masterful politician, a bold, easily bored, and endlessly distracted dreamer whose natural ability to charm, captivate, and enchant helped him to rise by extraordinary means. In many ways, these men came to prominence in quite different ways; Stalin, by mastering the art of bureaucratic manipulation and quietly assuming key roles within the organization that gave him friendships, alliances, and information that he used masterfully to rise through the ranks of the faithful, and Hitler, the manic-depressive natural leader whose charismatic popular appeal and desperate, authoritarian, and often violent measures were used to gain political power through extraordinary means.

Yet Bullock shows how similar both men were in terms of the way they used their power once established to execute their national responsibilities, and in the way they ruthlessly pursued their goals without mercy, remorse or any concern for others who suffered for their sake. Both used extralegal means to maintain position, both cruelly purged potential rivals through purges or political overthrows. Both bordered on being psychotic; Hitler coming close to being declared certifiably insane, and Stalin by having all the symptoms of classic paranoia. Certainly both had personal histories that can most kindly be described as bizarre in terms of the ways in which they treated those close to them as well as the populace in general. Both also seemed convinced of their own central and unique role in terms of their country's destiny, and indeed each identified his own importance in terms of succeeding in accomplishing that historical mission. Also, both were guilty of massive crimes against humanity, both against the opposing forces they captured and their own subjects. Hitler persecuted German citizens who were Jewish, Gypsies, or otherwise "undesirables", while Stalin persecuted Ukrainians in general and peasant farmers in particular, not to mention the systematic purges of thousands of Army, Navy, and Air Force officers he or his cronies suspected of potential disloyalty.

This is a wonderful book in terms of its insights, unusual research sources, and provocative speculations regarding each of these two quite unique historical figures. The narrative carries itself in an entertaining, edifying, and comprehensible fashion, and his use of photographs and maps serves the text well. All in all, I would have to describe this book as a must-read for anyone seriously interested in how the personalities and characteristics of these two key leaders in 20th century history figured into the unholy calculus of madness and mayhem, otherwise referred to as World War Two. I highly recommend it. Enjoy!

To describe Sir Alan Bullock's Hitler and Stalin: Parallel Lives as a duel biography does not do it justice. It is no less than a history of the formation and evolution of the most violent and pathological dictatorships in the history the world, and an understanding of these dictatorships is necessary to an understanding of the twentieth century. However, Sir Alan Bullock tells this story primarily through the two men whose efforts, paranoias, prejudicies, and impressive if ultimately evil intellects made their regimes possible. Without a doubt, he tells their stories masterfully, interweaving their lives within the context of twentieth century history and ideas yet maintaining their distinct personal and political identities, talents, and mistakes. His book is both interesting narrative and unquie analytical fair for both the general reader and specialist. In their latest book, Stalinism and Nazism: Dictatorships in Comparison, Sir Ian Kershaw and Moshe Levin write of their subjects: "Studying the history of inhumanity, perpetrated on such a vast, unprecedented scale, has an emotional and psychological cost. It is not like studying the history of philosohpy, the Renaissance, or the age of the cathedrals. The subject matter is less uplifting than almost any other conceivable topic of historical enquiry. But it is history al the same. And it is important. The emotional involvement has to be contained, even when the very effort to arrive at some balanced and reasoned interpretation seems an affront. . . There is nothing else . . . than to adhere to scholarly methods in the hope that knowledge might inform action to prevent any conceivable repetition of such political pathologies as characterised Stalinism and Nazism." With his most recent work, Sir Alan Bullock has gone a long way toward achieving the ideals set forth by Kershaw and Lewin. I highly recommend this book