Louise Peacock's first book is a tribute to her excellent work as a historian. Although written for children 9-12, it is a book that that will appeal to all ages. She has a rare talent for writing a simple story that evokes the reader to find depth and insight. Her unique approach of blending three story lines allows the reader to experience the Battle of Trenton from a wide range of perspectives. Truly a work of art, this book comes highly recommended.

Survivors of the 60's will be surprised and delighted by Curtain Creek Farm, a new book by Nance Van Winkle that reads more like a novel than a collection of stories. There's just nothing used or hackneyed in it; every place, every character, every event seems fresh and new. I came to love both the characters that formed the original commune, and the young, contemporary characters who find a refuge there. The stories are original, funny, and touching. These stories will stay with me a long time, not only because they are original, but because they are beautifully written. They offer sharp, immediate description, and an insight into the larger metaphors time, of life and death, of the search we all have made for a sense of place, a way to feel we might belong on this earth after all.

What a wonderful alternative tour guide to DC this book makes! It belongs in every public library of any size, and anyone interested in film or Washington, DC, will prize this book. It is THE definitive guide to movies made in Washington, DC.

The book is divided into several sections. The first part provides walking tours of DC neighborhoods in which you can see the film locales of such movies as "The Exorcist," "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," "All the President's Men," "Enemy of the State," the sci-fi classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still," "Independence Day," "Pelican Brief," "Bye, Bye Birdie," "Born Yesterday," Spike Lee's "Get On the Bus," "Broadcast News," "True Lies" and countless other familiar movies, new and old.

The book also has a list of films made in DC which tells all DC locales used in the film. It even tells you the very second when you can see each locale in the film! If you want to know exactly where Will Smith shopped for ladies' lingerie in "Enemy of the State," this book tells you the location of the shop AND when it happened in the movie.

Finally, the book provides countless bits of interesting film trivia in a "fun stuff" section. There you can find such things as locales outside DC which doubled as DC locales (for example, the Baltimore subway has often been used as the DC subway in films) and mistakes made in DC films (like Holly Hunter giving wrong directions to cab drivers in "Broadcast News").

This book is a delight from cover to cover. If you love films, and if you live in or plan to visit Washington, DC, this book is a MUST SEE!

This book is the best source I've found for camping and outdoor recreation. The maps are extremely detailed. I highly recommend it!

I admire Denzel Washington very much as an actor, so I decided to read this book. After I have finished reading it, I was not disappointed with him as a man. This book is an accurate, though modest, description of Washington's life up-to-date (1994-1996). It tells about his childhood, youth, and his family background. Then, the author goes into tracing Washington's life according to the films, he has been making at the time. This book does not have a lot of good pictures and it is not about a "Hollywood Hunk", "the most handsome man", etc. Instead, it talks about a real man, who is very good at acting as well as at living his life of a Hollywood star. If you like Washigton as an actor and as a personality (granted, he is also an undisputedly and exremely charming man), then you should read this book and see how he became what he is now.

Developing Competent Youth And Strong Communities Through After-School Programming is an impressive display of scholarly, informative essays that will prove of immense interest and value to those working with school-age children in need of after school activities and programs to counter familial and community shortcomings. The topics covered include the strengths and weaknesses of sports programming, developing programs for girls, the role of arts in youth development, the use of festivals to develop healthy youth and strong neighborhoods, as well as an informative examination of the elements of social competency and community characteristics that significantly contribute to the positive development of youth.

Rarely does one read a book where the author lays out a litany of problems and then goes on to offer reasonable solutions to thwart those problems. In The Devil is in the Detail, brother Ellis Washington does just that. Ellis begins with the problem of the lower case "b" in black when speaking of a designated racial group in legal scholarship. His solution: get it right next time. It takes little or no effort to follow the correct procedure and capatilize "b" (which is the rule). That African-Americans are referred to in the lower case is a slap in the face and another hurdle to leap in the realm of 21st century race relations. Ellis also expounds on more traditional ideas and problems many which are unique to American society. His handling of the issues of evolution, positive law and the separation of church and state were particularly significant in this book. The way he approaches each of these issues evokes the quesition which Glen Tinder eloquently raised: Can we be good without God? Ellis' strong Christian background and faith urges me to realize that the answer to that question is an emphatic NO. These are all ideas that were forced upon the populace and were not a part of the Framers' original intent. They emphasized natural law. Positive law is the death knell of liberty. Ellis warns us that we will be victims of a Leviathan government if we don't rethink the way that we make, interpret and enforce the law. This was a very riveting book and would be an excellent tool in the classroom as a supplement to the standard texts.

Once you start this book you won't want to put it down. You just have to see what happens next. Plus a lot of the places and events in the book are real...or were at the time the events happen. That makes it interesting from a historical perspective.

This very attractively produced book serves as a terrific guide to the wines of Washington. I'm pretty much of an ignoramus when it comes to wines in general so I learned a great deal from this book and appreciated the non-exclusive tone of the writing, but feel sure there is ample depth here for the winoscenti. In addition to learning my Syrah from my Viognier I enjoyed the section on the history of the wine industry in the area and especially on the production and elements of winemaking.

My favorite segment of the book may be the extensive appendix full of all kinds of great material in addition to the useful glossary and list of resources and directory of Washington wineries. The appendix includes indispensable advice on pairing wines with food, tips on selecting wineglasses, and how to remove corks from champagne and sparkling wine bottles.

Now I'm waiting eagerly in hopes the author will start work on "Discovering Washington Beers."

I have read this book and I have to tell you, it is so well written and eloquent, a real page turner. I have also read Sons of the Profits, another book from Speidel and it is one of the best books I have ever read in my life. The books are funny and notoriusly accurate for the Seattle history.