This book is a must have for anyone serious about entering or continuing in this market. It contains all the most up-to-date submission information direct from the publishers themselves. My only complaint, and its a big one, is that they seemed to forget about us illustrators when compiling the articles. How disappointing. It's tough enough for us that the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators requires us to pay the same membership fees and conference fees while dedicating only a fraction of their offerings (workshops and articles in newsletters) to the illustrators. Now Reader's Digest Books (the publisher of this book) is following suit.

The guy who slammed the 2002 edition of this book for its "unbalanced coverage" of new authors probably had a heart attack when he saw this year's crop of first-time authors. Four women and one man made the cut. Alex Sanchez's "Rainbow Boys" is about 3 gay teenagers which shouldn't surprise anyone because Sanchez himself is gay.

Anyway, focusing on one chapter defeats the whole purpose of the book. The two items before "First Books" featured interviews with award-winning authors Sid Fleischman and Richard Peck, who from all indications appear to be totally straight. Taken as a whole, the two interviews and the "First Books" chapter give the clearest picture of market trends. Fleischman and Peck take their place among such luminaries as Ted Geisel ("Dr. Suess"), Maurice Sendak and E. B. White while the market for new authors makes a healthy shift toward themes more relevent to the current millennium. Not everyone can get on the publishing bus at the same time, so certain authors will just have to wait until market trends desire their services again. The age of Male Dominance of the children's book trade is over.

So, if there's a message to any author who feels he's being left out, it's this:

Go back to your La-Z-Boy, your beer, your potato chips and your remote control. J. K. Rowling has the market for books aimed at boys zipped up with "Harry Potter" for the next few years, thank you, and if you're not up to the task of adapting your writing for other readers, just keep watching your football game.

Oh, and continue reading "Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market". Without it, you won't know when the trade is ready to hear from you again.

Find out what to do before your first sale. How to negotiate a contract. Protect your rights. Pay your taxes as a writer.

And that's just the first 20 pages.

The "2003 Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market" contains close to 400 pages of children's publishers, agents and magazines looking for your work. If you write children's literature or you're an illustrator for children's books, this yearly guide contains more than 800 potential markets for you to get your work in print.

Each listing shows contact names, addresses, Web sites, phone numbers, submission guidelines, pay rates and more. A majority of publishers also share tips on how you can increase your manuscript's chances of being accepted within their publishing house.

You'll also find articles on critique groups, picture books structure, promotion, creating stories, how to write for children and more. And on the other side of the publishing fence, you'll find insider reports from top illustrators, novelists, editors and publishers, all geared toward the children's writer. Plus, greeting card opportunities, play publishers, clubs, organizations, contests, awards and grants are all covered as well. There's even a special section for agents representing children's authors.

Every year Writer's Digest Books updates their annual guides. Even if you have last year's "Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market," you need the current edition. With market needs constantly changing as well as contact names, you need the most up-to-date information to increase your chances of getting published. No other guide increases those chances more.

I took a look through the 20 or so Latin books and dictionaries at my locals B&N book store. This one seems by far the strongest candidate for self-study (my intended use) - combining
a fairly attractive visual presentation with some interesting and easy-to-digest history/background information. Actually this is the only book I saw that I would consider buying. [I am thinking of learning a little Latin with my son, for fun and general education.]

I used these books in high school a few years back. Now I've picked them up to learn Latin on my own. Unfortunately I need a second language for my Masters, and my college didn't offer Latin.

The first book jumps you right into the lessons. Most books I've found, force grammer and pronounciation through the first few chapters.

People put down Latin and are afraid to learn it, saying it is hard. Considering the romantic languages and much of English come from Latin, it's a lot easier than people think. Just use common sense and you can learn to pick out words. I gave a few passages to my Latin-free husband and he got the idea of some of the sentences. It took a bit of figuring, but anyone should be able to do it.

The only negative, is using this book alone. It helps to have someone to ask questions of. At least when you get into the conjegating of verbs and their declensions. If you can find someone to ask a few questions of, then you're all set.

If you are just starting ut in Latin, and you want to learn the language with and exciting storyline, useful grammar tips, and cultural information at the end of each 'Stage' or chapter, then you would like to buy this superior textbook. In a set of four, the first book contains twelve stages.

Americans live in a nation that outlaws certain drugs as too dangerous for public consumption. Nonetheless, a proven killer such as tobacco is readily available for any citizen over the age of eighteen. Tara Parker-Pope admirably deals with this maddening, if not hypocritical set of circumstances. The Wall Street reporter delves into the history of tobacco consumption from the early days of American history. Cotton was not the first crop requiring cheap labor in the colonies. No, it turns out that tobacco has that dubious honor. She therefore contends that the tobacco industry substantially underpinned the evil institution of slavery. Tobacco was even used to encourage Africans to betray their own to the slave traders. The author adds that tobacco played a significant role in America's revolt against the British crown. Abstract issues of personal freedom were at least partly interpreted by many colonists as a desire to lessen Great Britain's control of the tobacco markets.

Tobacco advertising has always emphasized the supposed sophistication and elite status of the user. Parker-Pope recounts an incident in the early part of the last century when an insightful public relations expert urged the Lucky Strike company to sponsor a Green Ball in New York for the purpose of enticing socialite women to be more receptive to the green color of its cigarette pack. Later members of the medical community were co-opted to allay the health concerns of an increasingly wary public. Deceitfulness has long been the standard practice of the tobacco industry. Status seeking and easily swayed youngsters are seduced by role models in the entertainment field to pass along this horror from one generation to the next. Also, the international corporate promoters of these death causing products are expanding their marketing operations to all corners of the globe. Apparently we have lost the ability to be ashamed and allow the exploitation of the less educated in the Third World communities. Missionary zeal was once perceived in a more positive manner. Now it has more sinister connotations.

Parker-Pope observes that the consumers are actually paying for the so-called tobacco court room financial settlements. These tobacco addicts merely go deeper into their wallets to make up the difference. She also agrees with my own cynical conclusion that the efforts of anti-smoking crusaders have been eviscerated by the massive financial payoffs. I suspect that the officials of the states agreeing to the settlements are guilty of shaking hands with the devil; the money is coming into their respective governmental coffers---and deep in their guts they hesitate to risk killing the goose laying the golden eggs. The tobacco industry has tacitly bribed our national leaders to pretend that staunch opposition still persists even when the evidence suggest otherwise. Outlawing cigarettes will probably cause more trouble than good. Prohibition inadvertently results in subsidizing organized crime. This, however, does not preclude other realistic actions that should be considered.

The author's work definitely deserves to be read by all concerned citizens. There are no easy answers to this national dilemma, but Ms. Parker-Pope assists us in further clarifying the issues. We owe her our gratitude.

This is a wonderful little book that excels on many levels. First of all, it's a history of tobacco from the time Europeans discovered it to the present. The story is told efficiently and well, but with an eye to the ironies of history (today, for example, states derive significant tax revenue from sales of tobacco products--so how badly do they want to stamp out smoking?).

Second, "Cigarettes" takes us through the route tobacco must follow to become a cigarette: its growing, auctioning, curing, blending, manufacturing, marketing and final sale. People might be surprised to learn that banning TV advertising, then billboard advertising, and then imposing multibillion-dollar legal judgments on the big tobacco companies, hasn't hurt them that much. Author Parker-Pope explains why.

The author is more or less non-judgmental about smoking. You won't be made to feel like a dog if you happen to smoke; she once smoked and understands what it's like to be "hooked." What you will find in "Cigarettes" is that it's compulsively readable, informative, fun, up-to-date, and global in its reach.

Cigarettes: Anatomy Of An Industry provides an exploration of one of the biggest business successes of the century - this could have been reviewed in our business books section but is included here for its insights on health and economics. From the science of marketing cigarettes to packaging tobacco and government involvement, Cigarettes: Anatomy Of An Industry provides a detailed overview of the industry's growth and connections.

«There is nothing so hurtful to Christian wisdom as that it should not be known.» - Pope Leo XIII, Encyclical Letter *Sapientiae Christianae* (1890)

I have a personal debt to Pope Leo XIII. In 1879, a year after his inauguration, he issued an encyclical- a circular letter in Latin addressed to all high Church officials- in which he urged his «Venerable Brethen, in all earnestness, to restore the golden wisdom of St. Thomas, and to spread it far and wide for the defence and beauty of the Catholic faith, for the good of society and for the advantage of all the sciences» (*Aeterni Patris*.) Out of this encyclical, and other efforts of the Pope such as the preparation of a new edition of the works of St. Thomas in the 1880s or the foundation in 1891 of the Institute of Philosophy of Louvain, came the great neoscholastic revival of the late 19th century, one of whose fruits was the publication of a book which finally convinced me of the existence of God.

*Aeterni Patris* is only one of the documents reproduced in this thick, 580-page volume, which offers a selection of Leo XIII's epoch-making encyclicals, as well as a few apostolic letters and personal letters, arranged chronologically.

According to the *Catholic Enclyclopedia*, the function of encyclicals is to «condemn some prevalent form of error, point out dangers which threaten faith or morals, exhort the faithful to constancy, or prescribe remedies for evils foreseen or already existent». Potential readers of this book should therefore be warned that encyclicals are not merely presentations of Church doctrine, but that they are also composed to a large extent of orders, exhortations, advice, prayers, congratulations, condemnations and other non-argumentative passages.

Among the most important encyclicals collected here are those dealing with the social doctrine of the Church, from the repeated, unequivocal condemnations of socialism, communism and anarchism, to a strong criticism of the separation of Church and state or a defense of the sanctity of Christian marriage against the encroachments of the state. Conservatives and classical liberals might wish to have the following words engraved in gold letters on their mantelpiece: «The first and most fundamental principle if one would undertake to alleviate the condition of the masses, must be the inviolability of private property» (*Rerum Novarum*, 1891.)

Of great relevance to modern discussions of «civil rights» is the Apostolic Constitution *Officiorum ac Munerum*, which briefly summarizes the history of Church control of the press and contains the text of the «General decrees concerning the prohibition and censorship of books», spelling out the general rules to be observed by Church officials and the faithful generally concerning various sorts of potentially dangerous publications. As for the principle behind these rules, it is best summarized by a short sentence in the Pope's 1908 *Review of his Pontificate* : «the rights of truth [...] are superior to the demands of liberty», an unpopular position in our relativistic age, which often explicitly rejects certainty for fear of its political consequences.

Other historical landmarks include an apostolic letter on the Anglican Orders (1896), which declared absolutely and for all eternity «that Ordinations carried out according to the Anglican rite have been and are absolutely null and utterly void»; and the Apostolic Letter Vigilantiae, which established the Biblical Commission, based on the principle that «God has not delivered the Scriptures to the private judgment of the learned, but has confided the interpretation of them to the teaching of the Church.»

*A Light in the Heavens* is a collection of documents that deserve to be read by all Catholics. Those documents, however, are widely available on the net, and apart from its rather cursory four-page preface and the fact that it is bound, the present book offers no single advantage over a homemade printout. There is no index, no introduction to the various documents (one of which is not even dated) and no elucidation of obscure references and technical terms (such as subreption and obreption.) It is also difficult to know just how complete the documents are. For instance, according to the *Catholic Encyclopedia*, one of the purposes of the encyclical *Au Milieu des Sollicitudes* was «to guard against the dangers of the new style of apologetics founded on Kantism and now known as Modernism .» However, the present text merely deals with relations between Church and state in France.

Readers interested in more systematic (and indexed) treatments of the social doctrine of the Church based on the teachings of Leo XIII might be directed to Rev. E. Cahill's *The Framework of a Christian State* and Rev. Denis Fahey's several volumes on the Mystical Body of Christ, both of which contain copious extracts from the encyclicals featured in the present volume.

Prophesied by St. Malachy as "A light in the heavens," he truly was, as these great Encyclicals more than prove. Sheds the light of Faith on virtually all major problems of the world--problems we still face. Written 100 years ago, they read like written today. Modern man founders in a sea of problems of his own making. Like a becan light, these great encyclicas show the solutions. All his famous letters: *Freemassonry *Angilican Ordes* Working Classes* Americanism, etc. We today witness the extremity of the errors Leo addressed. Says that the Catholic Faith is the answer. A book every adult Catholic should read.

Rerum Novarum has been revisited more than any other encyclical in the last century. It is arguably the most important encyclical in the modern era. Leo XIII's other encyclcals and writings are vital for serious research not only of the 18th century church, but of the development of doctrine in the 20th century as well. No other work has these documents together in one volume.

In this book, Simak explores ideas about what it means to be human, mankind's search for knowledge, the need for spiritual fulfillment, and what ultimately brings us happiness. Heavy stuff for a science fiction novel, and this is a great book to handle it.

This was the first of Simak's books I read, and it inspired me to immediately look for more. I think it's a real page-turner for the intellectual set and if you're into books where there isn't a lot of action but there's plenty to think about, you'll love this one.

My one caveat is that the ending is a bit weak - I was left with the feeling that while the most vital elements of the plot had been resolved, the story could easily have gone on for another thousand pages or so. Perhaps Simak didn't do a good job of bringing conclusiveness to the end of the book, or perhaps he just created such an interesting story that I was left craving more, it's hard to say.

Very interesting and very clever. Interesting, because Simak presents new insights in the longstanding debate between theology and science, faith and knowledge. Clever, because Simak's characters and their worlds are breathtakingly imaginative. He peoples his planet, the End of Nothing, with a variety of fascinating creatures, from robot cardinals to a computer pope to a sentient cloud of molecules. All have souls and all seek the truth. In many ways, this novel reminds me of C.S. Lewis -- had Lewis not been so sure of himself and his theology.

What is a robot to do when the world's largest Christian religion refuses to recognize it as a child of God. Start its own religion, of course. And this is what project Pope is all about, robots' search for God. In the end, they succeed beyond their wildest dreams, proving that God does not discriminate, but makes Himself known to all who seek Him...even robots!

A very inspirational novel!

After a brief recapitulation of the eventful first volume in this series, Pope picks up the day to day adventures of Lt. Lord Ramage in his first command. Carrying the love of his life to Gibraltar, Ramage falls in with frigates, both Spanish and British, has an onshore diversion spying on the enemy, has a run-in with a Levanter, and returns to save the day for the fleet and his beloved Commodore Nelson.

Ramage is a clever dog, and Pope smart enough to keep us in the dark about his hero's tricks until he's about to crash aboard an enemy ship. I love the atmospheric detail of antique things and actions, but Pope is also a bit talky, his factual asides occasionally breaking into the action, rather like a sprinkle of sand on plum duff. Often his asides serve to draw out an action to interminable, almost real-time, length. For example, Pope has Ramage engage in a monologue on the texture of deck wood while he makes a fateful decision during Adm. Jervis' great fleet battle off Cape St. Vincent in 1797 (NB: this is NOT Nelson's fatal battle at nearby Trafalgar, in 1805). In such ways Pope stretches a single-ship action to 80 agonizing pages, with hardly a page for the actual cut-and-thrust of boarding. Maybe Pope is trying to give us a study of the thought processes of successful leadership, at close to the last time leaders were wholly on their own. Good thing Ramage has the loyalty of his crew and the luck o' the divil for his thrilling but disobedient series of escapades here off Spain, or he'd've been flogged 'round the fleet. (If you want to try your own hand at sailing a radio-controlled model square-rigger, my search of the Web suggests it will cost us thou$ands vs several hundred$ for a fore-and-aft rig.)

I suspect many of the episodes are exciting fantasy, but set in solid historical contexts (easiest to write while the hero is still a minor officer unlikely to have been mentioned in dispatches). The jolly steadfastness of Ramage's tars could become tiresome; reminds me too much of Marryat. Kudos to McBooks for the typography that catches the insouciance of Ramage, and for the thrilling wrap-around cover art of Paul Wright.

This is a very entertaining book, with an real barn-burner of a battle at the end. The best thing about this book is the unusual and creative tactics Ramage uses during the battles. The battles in this book are not the usual artillery slug-fests. The book is fairly well-written, although Pope doesn't come close to Patrick O'Brian in terms of quality prose and witty dialogue. The characters are likable but not terribly three-dimensional. One of the reasons I really like Pope, though, is that he was incredibly knowledgeable about sailing and the age of fighting sail and it shows in his writting. At one point, Pope gives a brief history of the ships of the line in Sir John Jervis' squadron (real historical ships) and he lists every major battle they fought in and who commanded them at the time. Of course he could have just looked all that up, but I think that he just knew all that history. The final battle is essentially the Battle of St. Vincent, but it is greatly modified for dramatic purposes. Pope obviously loved his subject matter. At one point he gives about a page and a half description of all of the beautiful features of a ship of the line. I have also read that of all of the major writers in this genre, Pope was the best real-life sailor. (He spent many years of his life living on and sailing his boat, the Ramage). But anyway, this series is excellent so far; one no fan of nautical fiction should miss.

.

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Review of the Ramage series of novels:

Don't read this until you have read the first book: Ramage, by Dudley Pope.

Book 1: Ramage

Book 2: Ramage and the Drumbeat

Book 3: Ramage and the Freebooters

Book 4: Governor Ramage RN

Book 5: Ramage's Prize

Book 6: Ramage and the Guillotine

Order them all, because you won't want to stop. The action is fast and furious.

This is second in a series of historical fiction by Dudley Pope. All of these are fictional novels based on British Admiralty records of the Napoleonic era. Written in the best tradition of Forester and O'Brien, these books will capture your imagination. And if you haven't read the Hornblower series by Forester, or the Aubrey/Maturin series by O'Brien, try them also. All of these are excellent books that you will treasure and reread. I particularly like these books by Pope. I recommend that you buy them all at once and read them in order. You will be glad you did.

If you enjoy reading accurate descriptions of naval maneuvers in the age of sail, or simply a good adventure yarn, Dudley Pope delivers. Pope conveys how the best of the best, handle emergency situations. He portrays these situations with realism and authenticity.

Review of this book:

Ramage, in command of cutter Kathleen, is ordered to proceed to Gibralter to support Lord Nelson. On the way, he manages to find a unique way to capture a dismasted Spanish frigate and untold other adventures, that I won't give away.

This book describes Ramage's exicting activities immediately prior to and through the battle of Trafalgar where he plays a pivotal role. The actually battle of Trafalgar, aside from a few liberites take with respect to our hero, is not surprisingly accurate in the account of battle. The book is great fun and so is the next one!

*************************************************

Conrad B. Senior

Pope writes heroic stories of the British Navy in the age of sail, not as easy as Capt. Marryat nor as grimly vicious as Jan Needle's. The stories in this series are suitable for anyone from a youthful age. They build well to the moments of intense action and there's darn little vivid blood, "salty talk" or eloquent cursing even in situations that demand it; Ramage is one ferociously cool customer. These books have a generous look and feel, like a hardback without the boards (or price).

This is the first Ramage novel based substantially on true (if minor) historical events. Maybe for that reason there are fewer daring action scenes here than in the previous four novels. Ramage is assigned another thankless and politically dangerous mystery to solve, loses his fourth ship in 5 books, faces his second mutiny and second privateer, upsets the Admiralty again, requires an Act of Parliament to be passed, and is still a Lieutenant. We learn such things as the British mail packet-boat system (when surface mail was faster to the Caribbean than it is today!). Also, how to fiddle insurers, the loading of guns, detecting wood rot, rules of neutrality, the giving of parole, and the origin of mahonnaise, among other bits of nautical lore. Pope seems to give Ramage expert knowledges that such a young man might not have known. Pope can write evocatively of the seas and seacapes when he turns his mind to it.

I have read the first five books in this series and I would say that this one and Ramage and the Drumbeat are the best of the five. This one has an interesting plot (involving captured post office packets) that is something a little different from the norm. Creating complex, realistic characters has never been Pope's strong suit, but I think he does a little better here than usual. The best thing about this book, however, is that there is some good action at sea and another situation that develops at the end that is very suspenseful. Another very good thing about this book is that there is not yet another new, bland romance for Ramage to get involved in. His first love, Gianna, returns and is as fiery and funny as ever. Pope's books are certainly not great literature, but they are fairly well written and make for good, light reading.

Review of the Lord Ramage series novels:

Don't read this until you have read the first four books of the Lord Ramage Novels by Dudley Pope.

For more historical information on history of ships of the Royal Navy, read SHIPS OF THE OLD NAVY by Michael Phillips.

Lord Ramage Novels

Book 1: Ramage

Book 2: Ramage and the Drumbeat

Book 3: Ramage and the Freebooters

Book 4: Governor Ramage RN

Book 5: Ramage's Prize *

Book 6: Ramage and the Guillotine

Book 7: Ramage's Diamonds

Book 8: Ramage's Mutiny

Order them all, because you won't want to stop. The action is fast and furious.

This is fifth in a series of historical fiction by Dudley Pope. All of these are fictional novels based on British Admiralty records of the Napoleonic era. Written in the best tradition of Forester and O'Brien, these books will capture your imagination. And if you haven't read the Hornblower series by Forester, or the Aubrey/Maturin series by O'Brien, be sure to try them also. All of these are excellent books that you will treasure and reread. I particularly like these books by Pope. I recommend that you buy them all at once and read them in order. That is what I am doing.

If you enjoy reading accurate descriptions of naval maneuvers in the age of sail, or simply a good adventure yarn, Dudley Pope delivers. Pope conveys how the best of the best, handle emergency situations. He portrays these situations with realism and authenticity.

Review of this book:

Ramage, is given the task of determining why Post Office packets, delivering mail from England to the Caribbean and back are disappearing. This story was based on true events. Post office packet brigs were surrendered to French privateers in the manner described because of "ventures", insurance policies, carried by treacherous officers and crews, and a Post Office packet was ransomed at the neutral Portuguese port of Lisbon in the same circumstances and difficulties as the Lady Arabella of the story.

In the age of Nelson it took 45 days for mail to be delivered from England to the Caribbean. Today, surface mail from England, takes 60 to 90 days to reach various islands in the Caribbean.

Buy the series in the hard cover--worth keeping and handing down.

A good yarn. Buy them all. I starting reading the next one last night. Conrad B. Senior S/V Echo

This book, by Kristen Pope and Ray Whebbe is an excellent resource that was put together as only they could with a unique look upon wrestling's past using pictures, words, and memerobilia.

I definaley would reccommend this book to anyone putting together their own book or website as no historical wrestling book I have seen has this type of look back on the wrestling ups and downs of yesteryear.

What you get: News clips, well-written articles, pictures, collectables, and a new view of wrestling and wrestlers past.

The only problems are lack of completeness to the history and it only begins to dig into as much as expected from it's title: Encyclopedia, but who could?

Overall, I reccommend this book to everyone... buy it today.

This book is pretty good. It has a lot of really neat picture and tons of good facts and stories. Any wrestling fan should own it. There are several spelling mistakes, however, which make the bok seem like an amateur effort. Overall, still worth reading and owning

The authors of "Professional Wrestling", Kristian Pope and Ray Whebbe have outdone themselves with this one. If you are a wrestling fan, young or old, long time or new, there is something in this book (actually a whole lot of things), to keep you interested for a long time to come. My favorite chapters were the "Ring Beauties" and "Slamographies", the former because there is not a lot of press about the ladies around and over the years they have had a profound influence on the "sport" both in the ring and behind the scenes. The last chapter "Slamographies" tells you every thing you ever wanted to know about every wrestler that has made some sort of impact on the sport. I am going to test my wrestling fan friends with the info presented here and maybe pick up a few bucks in the process. Great Stuff - Thank you Kris & Ray

I was taking a course on storytelling for children when I came upon this book. What first caught my eye were the old-style illustrations by Troy Howell. They were done in such a way as to enhance the book without distracting from the story. When I was able to peruse the book, I was impressed with the way the author chose and arranged the stories so that you could almost track the evolution of medieval storytelling (and quite possibly has one of the more easier versions of Beowulf that second and third graders could manage). The stories are short enough that they can be read out loud for a class or reading circle; yet have enough content to hold the children's attention.

Another bonus to the book (for parents and teachers) is that Ms. Osborne in her introductions gives her reason why she chose the tales in this volume... and (for the kids, as well as parents and teachers) in the back there is a glossary of sorts-- notes to each story as to where it came from, and why it was written, brief writeups for the different cultures, story forms, time periods, and evolution of the English language. There's even a small section with words.

This would be a good book to have in libraries for teachers and parents; for the children to be exposed to several different classical stories, as well as give them a variety to read and experiment with. It might encourage a love of history as well as a love of literature.

Well, I don't really like Osbourne's "Magic TreeHouse" tales, but don't judge THIS beautiful book by "those." THIS BOOK is very nicely done. All the representative tales from the middle ages are here, retold in a clear, easy to read (or listen to) prose that captures most of the original (in most cases.) The illustrations are captivating. Each tale includes a title page that has a short quote in the original language (with a modern translation) which will intrigue some children, and there is a fine time line at the back of the book. We used this to supplement medieval studies in our homeschool for a second grader. A great resource.

As Mary Pope Osborne tells the reader in her marvelous introduction..."In the beginning of medieval times in Europe, books did not exist. Most people were unable to read or write. Nevertheless, there were stories - stories of heroes and monsters, told by minstrels and poets, that were passed down orally from one generation to the next..." Eventually, these stories were written down by scribes, and Ms Osborne has collected nine favorite tales to share. From Robin Hood And His Merry Men, The Sword In The Stone, Sir Gawain And The Green Knight, and Finn Maccoul, to Beowulf, The Werewolf, The Song Of Roland, Island Of The Lost Children, and Chanticleer And The Fox, these engaging retellings are dramatic and entertaining, easy to read, and often better when read aloud. Meet monsters, knights, heroes, and dragons, and travel to faraway, mysterious, and enchanting places. Troy Howell's vivid, lush paintings, stay true to the medieval style, and add just the right touch to enhance each story. Ms Osborne and Mr Howell include informative reference notes on the stories, medieval story forms, people, time periods, language, chronology, and the art of the middle ages that is sure to peak the interest of young and old alike. Perfect for youngsters ten and older, Favorite Medieval Tales is a masterpiece of intriguing storytelling that will whet the appetite, and send readers looking for more.

This fabulous compilation of short stories comes across to me as one big collective, yet subtle, transmittal of coping mechanisms and strategies during a crucial time of adversity in a person's life. It is definitely informative and dares to venture into the category of inspirational, spiritual and academic texts. To make it fit into the category of fiction, certainly took careful planning, sound structuring and incessant premeditation/implementation. This, is an ability acquired only by hard labor and a natural ability acquired only through birthright. The author is certainly brimming with expression awaiting to openly manifest and emerge. I would certainly support, assist and encourage this vehicle of enlightment that she can be through more publications or any other vehicle wherein in-depth expressions of this sort can be shared. keep up the great work Stella (Telita).

The stories are collectively, a provoking subtle inducement into a personal examination of the in- trinsic realm experiences each of us in our humaness, compiles throughout life's till and toil. Yet, this is superbly accomplished, masterfully even! Making the stories so humanly palatable by transmitting the striking similari ties that exist in each one of us, by virtue of our humanity, most effectively, clinicaly, methodically yet warm and down to earth thereby enabling the reader to easily relate to and enjoy. Uplifting to the point that it dares to inspire hope, under the guise of fiction. Excellente!!!

Duarte opens a window into the soul of the barrio as she explores the hearts and minds of her beautifully rich characters. A multifaceted collection of colorful tales that impressively displays Duarte's literary talent. This book envokes a myriad of emotions as the genuiness of her Hispanic charcters irresistably draws you into the depths of human experience. "Fragile Night" is a true cultural journey.