This is a break-out book. It was an Edgar nominee and deservedly so. The characters of the regular German Army officer and the Gestapo camp commandant are oil/water from their initial meeting as it would realistically have been. There is excellent detail in the descriptions and historical settings. The book builds to a gripping climax in parallel with the surrounding war. An excellent book with potential for an excellent screenplay, as well.

This is a small book of biographies written for young adults. Each chapter is a concise version of the lives of these famous people. The author, Arnold Madison not only told of the best known achievements of each person, but gave enlightening information about how their personalties and interests were formed.

The variety of talent and the hard work that went into their pursuits is amazing. Many of these people could have become famous for other endeavors.

Nicholas Copernicus who is considered the father of astronomy was not only a mathematician, but also a Catholic priest and a medical doctor who trained in Italy. He is also known as an economist and a statesman.

Tedeusz Kosciuszko, a military engineer, and a Polish patriot was an aide to General George Washington and directed the construction of the fortifications at West Point. He achieved the rank of brigadier general, and was granted U. S. citizenship. He was also gifted with American land, but sold it. A great believer in freedom, he used the land profits to buy black slaves in order to set them free. His efforts to help Poland stay free were never realized. He died in Switzerland, but his body was returned to Poland and was placed in the Cracow cathedral.

Count Casimir Pulaski had no formal military training, but at the age of 20 led a force of 6 thousand men in guerrilla attacks against invading Russians. The attacks were successful, but the odds were insurmountable. Pulaski became a Polish folk hero and was exiled. He met Benjamin Franklin in Paris, and offered to serve in the American Revolution. With the support of Congress, he raised an independent cavalry army and was comissioned with the strange title of Brigadier General Count Pulaski. He was wounded in battle, and died on the American warship the Wasp. He was 31 years old.

Ignace Jan Paderewski, the famous composer pianist was also a Polish statesman who worked hard to help free his native country.

He was the Chairman of the Polish National Committee, and headed the Polish government which was exiled in Paris.

Josef Konrad Korzeniowski, who became the author Joseph Conrad spend many years of his life as a seaman. When he finally became recognized for his writing, he was acclaimed as one of the greatest English novelists of the 20th Century.

Marie Sklodowska Curie the winner of the 1911 Nobel Prize for chemistry died a victim of her own discovery, radium.

The book also contains biographies of seven other great people, including, Pope John Paul II and Frederick Chopin.

Thanks to my friend Jan for gifting me with this book. Many great stories of real lives!

This is a must-read book for professional managers of fine turfgrasses, especially golf course superintendents. John Madison was the first university turfgrass researcher (UC Davis) to think and write of the management of fine turfgrasses in an environmentally systematic way. He was what would today be called an ecologist. Other academic writers adopted a "cookbook" approach to turf management (if you see this, do that...), which has generally failed to prepare their students for the vagaries of the real world. Madison was a bit of a hippy and flake, but a visionary. The philosophy and systematic approach he first espoused is viable today, 30+ years after it was written.

Writing after the fact, historians often conclude that a war was preventable. This is generally false, as the dispassionate writer is removed from the context of the times. The war in 1812 between the United States and Great Britain has often been viewed as a pointless, forgettable war, yet in fact it had enormous consequences. The war was the defining moment of the Madison presidency and a significant break from the policy of the previous Jefferson and early Madison administrations. In describing the war, Rutland is masterful in describing the context and emotions of the times, the combination of which caused a war that was inevitable.
At the time, the Napoleonic wars were raging on the European continent and both Britain and France sought to wring every advantage they could out of what they considered an upstart nation. For years, Jefferson and Madison tried every tactic they could short of war in an attempt to delay a call to arms. Finally, national pride won out over all other factors and the war began. Madison's conduct of the war was not nearly as effective as it could have been, and yet the tie was all that was needed. James Monroe, the successor to Madison, enunciated what is now known as the Monroe doctrine, which warned all nations to avoid colonization efforts in the Western Hemisphere. With little American sea power to back it up, it was the first example of cooperation between Britain and the United States, as the enforcement was due to the power of the British navy. It is doubtful that this could have happened without the war.
The ways in which Rutland places the war in the context of power struggles in Europe and in the United States is masterful, as he describes how fragmented the United States was in those years. It is also possible to see the seeds of an eventual split and internal war, not over the issue of slavery, but over commercial and social differences.
In so many ways, Madison's best years were behind him when he became president. And yet, his handling of the war of 1812 was most likely the best that could have been done, as he sought to defend a fractious nation against an old foe who afterward became a staunch ally. For that reason alone, his administration should be considered a success and this book is the most realistic appraisal of his years in the White House that I have ever seen.

as a newcomer to the madison, wi area, this map has proven invaluable to me in finding my way around. it is up to date, accurate, easy to use, and most of all....DURABLE. this map is laminated in such a way that you can fold it to expose any given area of the city. you can also mark on it with dry erase markers to mark spots of particular interest. there is a road index to help find where your going (or where you are!) and lots of inset maps of outlying areas of interest. i would recommend one of these city maps wherever you are.

Mortimer J. Adler once wrote, "Aristotle For Everybody: Difficult Thought Made Easy," in which he truly does show that Aristotle is not so completely abstract (in contrast to Plato, Aristotle is not abstratct at all), that most everyone who can think or reason to some degree could understand him; that is, you don't have to be a professional philosopher. John M. Cooper's book, Reason and Human Good in Aristotle, is like Adler's book in that he is extremely clear in articulating what Aristotle thought about eudaimonia, theoria, and intellectual and moral virtues. This is a scholarly work. Cooper deals with the greek to defend his view. However, he leaves most of that in the footnotes. Cooper's book, then, is very accessible to lay persons who have a minimal philosophical understanding (some background is necessary, but nothing like a degree).

One thing that Cooper does that other commentators on Aristotle do not do is interpret Aristotle's coneption of human flourishing as involving an inclusive end, rather than a dominant one. Traditionally, scholars have interpreted Aristotle to be that eudaimonia consists of reflecting upon intellectual virtues, and everything else is a means to doing that. Cooper thinks that this is erronious and he works through Nicomachean Ethics and Eudemian Ethics to establish his case. This is a great read - both intellectually and in terms of clarity - for understanding Aristotle, or at least one interpretation of him.

This cookbook is a great choice for anyone who loved the book. The spinach soup and vegetable spaghetti are really good. The layout gives you the entire menu for the meal. I really enjoyed it and everyone I've served has loved the food!

If your a Bridges of Madison County fan, you'll enjoy this book. A nice collection of photographs by someone that lives in Madison county. Makes a nice gift.

Henry Morris, founder of Institute for Creation Research, is amply qualified to comment on any portion of the Bible, and his commentary on Solomon is a real treat. The wisest and richest man who ever lived is recorded in God's Word as explaining the "vanity" of pursuits beyond what God has called us to do. It is a book which every parent should read, to put perspective on what values, exactly, they should be conveying to their children. It is a book for those without children to reinforce the direction in their lives, as they try to reach those who may not have a close relationship with God. Finally, it is a book for anyone who is yearning to make their relationship with God a closer one.

This book is so profound and thought-provoking that I could only read a portion of a chapter at a time. Morris breaks down groups of verses to be commented upon, and in each section there is ample food for thought to keep one's mind and heart busy for an evening.

Enjoy turning the pages slowly in this treasure of a book.

JD Hylton presents a hilarious look at coming of age and life in a small Iowa town. Hylton's homespun humor reminds me of Tom (We'll leave the light on for ya')Bodette.

The story resolves enigmatic issues. For example, why do cows wear necklaces? What's the best defense against an attacking casket? What future does life hold if you can't be a midget? How can an Iowa town of 200 souls dispose of its dead whale? How can a croquet set and a suit of long winter underwear aid the attempt of three small children to bombard Madison County's courthouse with a Civil War cannon? And, why wait three days to invite a burglar to breakfast?

The answers evolve as this story unfolds: After fleeing the scene of a hit-and-run accident he caused, the 18-year-old protagonist lies about his involvement, fails to accept the responsibility, and seeks to escape the consequences. His dilemma is accentuated by a host of offbeat characters whose sidebar stories dispel the widespread myth that life in a small Iowa town is quietly pastoral and idyllic. These strikingly different supporting characters highlight scenes that range from boisterous to bizarre.

The story chronicles 36 hours in the fall of 1951 and is set in Madison County, Iowa. Although it is the same locale Robert James Waller picked for The Bridges of Madison County and lies near Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres, the people and action in Searchlite Stop create an extraordinary counterpoint to those books.