I was born and raised in Brookfield, CT just down the road from where this all took place. I was too young to know what was going on in town but reading the book explains why the parents in the neighborhood never let us go near the house. I read the book from front to back without putting it down once. Freaked me out! I would recommend this book to anyone who has fascinations with ghost stories or is into horror. I have never been frightened by a book or movie, except for this one. It is well worth the search of finding it.

My review is the same as others. If you want to scare the pants off yourself and bring evil into your life read it...it is totally encompassing and engrossing. I think I was 16 when I borrowed and read it...and lots of insane stuff started happening...I pawned it off on my sister as a "cool book". Her whole family started arguing, fighting and basically became posessed. She threw it out in the back yard blaming her perils on the book...the house soon burned and she got a divorce. G'head its evil reading TRUST ME.

I Remember reading this book years ago, when I was a teenager. I never read anything so frighting. It transcend's all other horror books of it's kind. My Grandmother told me about possession when I was a child. This book is based upon the Fact documented case of an 11-year old who was possessed by the Devil. You will never sleep the same again!

A very good book that best describes the field of EMS. Peter Canning does well to describe what it is like to work in a city where EMS is sadly taken for granted. I volunteer in a small town 20 miles north of Hartford where he works. It gave me a good comparison of the differences between a small town versus a city. After reading this book, as well as his other book, "Rescue 471," I give Mr. Canning a lot of credit for all his hard work and dedication, though the EMS system in Hartford is, in all actuallity, a troubled system in dire need of help.

This book is a fantastic blend of gritty front-line medical care and insightful public policy perspectives. In this autobiographical journey, the author moves back and forth between the ghettos of Hartford, Connecticut, and the halls of the state legislature and healthcare bureaucracy. Mr. Canning's unique perspective (based on his experience as both a senior advisor to the governor of Connecticut and as a paramedic) on emergency medicine results in a book that raises as many questions as it answers. I, for one, intend to find out a lot more about the quality of my community's emergency response facilities, and Mr. Canning has told me exactly what questions to ask. However, it would be a mistake to think that this book is merely another exposition on the status of healthcare in America. As much as anything, this book is an examination of how we go about making life choices. Mr. Canning is refreshingly honest in examining what it is he wants out of life, and how difficult the trade-offs are when we take one particular crossroad rather than another. For anyone (at any age) still wondering "what they want to be when they grow up", or thinking that they can't change a career path in mid stream, READ THIS BOOK. It will inspire you. And even if you're not interested in public policy or self-examination, you'll find the book AT LEAST as entertaining as the best episode of "ER".

This is the most true to life book I've ever read about Emergency Medical Services. Peter Canning writes about every aspect of EMS. From his partners to his best and worst calls, to the stress on and off the job to the low pay, to the dangers faced by paramedics and EMTs everyday. I received this book when I was 15. It inspired and interested me so much, I started volunteering with my county ambulance service, and now, at 18, I'm a certified EMT for the State of Florida. Mr. Canning has written this book so that everything is explained. I would give it a 10 if I could.

In a delightful extension to his autobiographical picture story books comes Tomie dePaola's first novel - "26 Fairmount Avenue." Drawing on childhood experiences all readers will relate to - moving house, a first visit to the cinema, time spent with grandparents, starting school - dePaola weaves a magical tale so reminiscent of his superlative picture story books. Warm and nostalgic, without lapsing into sentimentality, this book will be welcomed by all who love fine children's literature. I hope more tales of 26 Fairmount Avenue are to follow.

In reading this book to my first grade class, Tomie always left them wanting to know more about his life. This first book in the 26 Fairmount Avenue series takes Tomie from the summer before kindergarten through his first year at his brothers "big" school. The story focuses on experiences dealing with moving in to a new house and neighborhood, having his teacher mispronounce his name, starting tap dancing lessons and many other events that shape his beginnings at his new life at 26 Fairmount Avenue. My students enjoyed every page of this new series, cover to cover and ended up checking out the book at the library all year! We continued to read the next four books throughout the year and continue to discuss them when we see each other around school. This new beginning biography series is a must have for every primary grade classroom.

26 Fairmount Avenue is a warm, personal story of popular children's author, Tomie dePaola. Young children are always curious about the authors whose books the read. Tomie's new book offers a delightful glimpse into his life as a child, something young readers will no doubtt find fascinating. His connections to his earlier picture books, especially those about his grandparents, will strike a familiar note with young and old fans, alike. I think 26 Fairmount Avenue provides an authentic springboard to students' writing of their own autobiographies, at any grade level (even with my university students).

We have seen so much of Tomie's life reflected in his picture books. Now he has provided older readers a place to revisit old favorites from a more mature perspective. His stories help us to realize that the events of our early lives do make strong impressions.

I can't wait for the next edition!

This book kicks major[ly]! I almost want to hate the writer for keeping me up all night and making me sleepwalk through an important meeting at work. I picked this up because it takes place in my home town. Most of the time that means made up places. Not here. This is the REAL New Haven. I've eaten breakfast at the Pantry! I eat at Sally's! I hate Yalies too!Made it all the more cool. But location, location, location isn't enough to sustain a novel. The writer gives us a frenzied ride through his characters' dark sexual sides. We never know what to expect next, and unlike a lot of thrillers what does happen makes sense when you go back and think about it. (It's not a killer coming out of nowhere, and you want to throw the book out the window.) A great effort! Bring on the next one!

One word...WOW! Oh...you want me to elaborate a little?? If I must!
This is a book I was pleasantly surprised with. Went in to buy a Valentines Day present and the cover of this book looked, umm...interesting so, I picked it up for myself. Living in close proximity to where the story takes place I thought even, if for just that, I would find it interesting.
Let me tell you though, this book could have taken place anywhere in the free world and, it still would have blown me away.
I loved the characters and their little nuances they have that we can all recognize in ourselves. Bechard is a witty, humorous writer with a slightly sardonic side and, he's a great find.
The book starts out with a call girl murdering one of her "johns" and and, from there on, it's a non stop ride to the finish line. There's a tie in to a large religous group and then, another murder....!
The book is just so enjoyable to read I didn't want to put it down. Everytime I said I'll just read to the end of this chapter. BOOM, another twist and, I had to keep reading then...BOOM and keep reading! Before you know it, you're done with the book and, you wish it wasn't over.
I honestly don't know what more I can say except, buy this book!

I picked this up because I'm such a fan of Bechard's first books, Second Greatest Story Ever Told. While nothing like that book, I still could not put this one down. A perfect airplane read, with short chapters that end with a line that MAKES you turn the page and keep reading! I read the first half on a flight to Chicago, then found myself sitting up in my hotel room until 4 AM finishing it. I want Detective Shute to rescue me!

This is my first book review, but if I were to comment on any book that has moved me more than any other, this would be it. I was recommended this novel by a creative writing instructor I had in college who would eventually publish his own short stories influenced by the beautiful writing and intriguing dialogue of this novel. I have also modeled my own writing off the writing of Yates.

Revolutionary Road is one of those books that you cannot forget because the writing is so vivid and real and tangible and the dialogue and characters are so believable. Revolutionary Road is a tragic, dark novel about a failing marriage and the artificiality and isolation of 1950's suburban life. The characters are tragic but real, and possibly people you know or have known in your own life. Richard Yates was probably the most underrated author of all time - an author with the talent of Hemingway and Faulkner but without the recognition of the public. Hopefully, people will begin discovering the beauty of this novel and seek out two others which are out of print, the Easter Parade and a Good School.

I highly recommend this book. If you have an appreciation for the written word, you will truly love it.

Richard Yates is not as well known as many other mid-20th century novelists, but he certainly should be. REVOLUTIONARY ROAD is as well written and intriguing a book as you're ever likely to read - a true modern classic. The plot concerns the increasingly unhappy marriage between surbanites Frank and April Wheeler. Many other authors have explored similar territory, notably John Updike (e.g., "Couples"). However, no one has done so with such deft and beautiful writing. The plot is ultimately somewhat incidental, and you'll likely figure out the resolution quite early. However, the brilliantly realized characters, including friends and neighbors of the Wheelers, make the book so worthwhile.

The meaning of the book is likely to vary for different readers; many people are likely to see an indictment of suburban life and values. I saw it more as pointing out the dangers of being unnecessarily dissatisfied with your life, and expecting brilliance where none exists. Whatever meaning you read into the novel, it's extraordinary. Most highly recommended!!!

I read this novel with the same kind of horrified fascination with which you'd watch a car wreck in slow motion. You know these characters are ruining their lives and you can't tear yourself away from the spectacle of an awful tragedy in the making.

There are many things to admire about this book. Yates takes on an ambitious, resonant theme - American failure and disillusionment - and dramatizes it brilliantly. You'll wince at the all too convincing portrayals of marriages gone sour (complete with bitter, epic, to-the-death marital brawls), inane cocktail parties, and absurd, soul-deadening office jobs. And you'll savor this novel's pungent dialogue; the finely crafted, and often disturbing, characters (John Givings is my personal favorite); Yates' graceful, fluid prose style; and his gripping, extremely well-constructed narrative.

Every element of this novel is remarkably well-integrated. I must confess that (to me) it came as a shock when one of the characters died. But in this novel, for once, death doesn't seem like melodramatic ploy, or an arbitrary ending for a novelist too lazy or stuck to come up with a more artistically satisfying conclusion. In "Revolutionary Road," the death is completely in keeping with the novel's themes and seems like a logical outcome of the character's particular situation/condition.

There is one level, though, on which I found this book to be especially fascinating, and that is as social history. This is a quintessential 50s text, and Frank Wheeler is the quintessential 50s male - it's all there, from Frank's post-war disillusionment (he had a "good war"), to his rants about everything from conformity to "togetherness" to picture windows, to the way that he holds up peculiarly oppressive version of psychoanalysis as a tool to manipulate his wife into "proper" female behavior.

In fact, this novel should give pause to those who idealize the 1950s. In that decade, people were under heavy social pressure to marry early, have lots of kids, and conform to rigid gender roles. Abortion was illegal and dangerous and existing contraceptive methods were unreliable. "Revolutionary Road" documents the unhappy results: ill-advised marriages and career choices, people having kids whether they wanted them or not (and whether they were good at parenting or not), an entire generation mourning the sexual, educational, and career opportunities that they passed up in order to marry young and be "good providers" (male version) and "happy housewives" (female version).

Whether Yates intended it or not, "Revolutionary Road" stands up as remarkably prescient social criticism. It is a rich and satisfying novel on many levels, and it thoroughly deserves the status of an American classic.

Excellent book, except when it uses sailing terms, such as Starboard and Port. These words make it confusing, but it is a great book. Windcatcher is about a boy named Tony, who bought a boat called the "Shark" for his summer trip to Grandma Souza's house. Chris, Grandma's friend, gave Tony lessons how to sail, but he runs into treasure hunters so he looks for the treasure too. But will he make it? Read it and see for yourself!... What I thought about the book is it had a lot of action. Also, it is a very good mystery book... It was about a boy named Tony, who wanted to learn how to sail. As soon as he learned how to sail he got into a mess of trouble. I did like the book. I do recommend this to anybody who likes mysteries and is curious. I gave it 4 stars...

I read a intersting book called Windcatcher. It's about a boy named Tony and he goes to his grandmothers house. He buys a sailboat named Snark. Then he takes sailing lessons from Chris. He fowllows these pepole that are looking for treasure. I hope you enjoy this book and that's why I'm going to rate this book as 4 stars.

Th e best book I have ever read was a book called WINDCATCHER. It was about a young boy named tony who bought a sailboat called the snark and wanted to learn how to sail it. One day tony gets lost and ask for help from people on another boat.The people are rude so he has to find his own way back."This book is definately adventourus with yet a happy ending".I am recomending this book to anyone who loves adventourus and exciting books.

Not only did I read the book, I recently saw the t.v. documentary on the discovery channel. I admit that in the beginning I thought that this story had the potential be quite frightening. And then, in stepped the Warren's and I pretty much tuned it out.
The Warren's also participated in the Amityville Horror and The Haunted. While I do not know much about the outcome of the family in The Haunted, I do know, as the rest of the world does, that Amityville was a hoax and the Warren's love to scare people.
I love ghosts and ghost stories but any story that the Warren's are involved in should be taken with a grain of salt (just my humble opinion). I'm thinking that had the family involved employed someone like Sylvia Browne, the outcome would have been COMPLETELY different and there would have been no talk of demonic forces.
The book is worth reading if you enjoy getting the creeps like I do but as to it's validity, I have some serious doubts.

THIS BOOK WAS VERY SCARY AND I ENJOYED IT ALOT, BUT THERE WAS ALOT OF THINGS I FOUND UNBELIEVABLE, IF YOUR HOUSE WAS HAUNTED BY A DEMON WOULDNT YOU FIND A WAY TO MOVE TO A SAFER PLACE FOR YOUR FAMILY? AND AS FAR AS THE DAD (AL) GETTING RAPED IN THE REAR BY THE DEMON WAS A BIT TO MUCH. THERE WAS A SHOW ON DISCOVERY ABOUT IT LAST NIGHT CALLED "A HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT" THAY WERE CALLED THE PARKERS IN THIS SHOW BUT IT WAS DEFINATELY THE SNEDDECKER STORY ( IF THATS EVEN THERE REAL LAST NAME)
I WENT TO SEE THE HOUSE A FEW YEARS AGO AND I SPOKE TO NEIGHBORS AND THEY TOLD ME ALOT WENT ON IN THAT HOUSE WHEN IT WAS A FUNERAL HOME. BUT THEY DIDNT KNOW MUCH ABOUT THE SNEDDECKERS STORY. I BELIEVE THE HOUSE WAS HAUNTED BY SOMETHING BUT IM SURE NOT TO THE EXTREME THE SNEDDECKERS SAY IT WAS.

This book, In A Dark Place, is, without a doubt, the best book I have ever read. It's exceptionally written, terrifying, and unsettling: just to think that such a thing could really happen to a family like the Snedekers. The most frightening thing, for me, was Stephen's transformation from a happy, normal boy into the dark, brooding, evil person he became, as he was, in essence, posessed by these demons and spirits in the house. I still wonder if he's ok now. The description in the book is so vivid, and I felt as though I was there. With the spirits in the basement, the voices that were heard, all of it. Stephen, Carmen, and the whole Snedeker family, I wish you the best of luck in the future. I highly recommend this book to anyone, who, like me, is an unofficial, though truly dedicated, ghosthunter.

I have mixed feelings about writing a lukewarm review. On the one hand, there are so few real coming of age novels out there about the gay experience, and even fewer from the African-American male experience, every time one is published, i should shout with joy. My problem is not so much with the story content... what a nice thing to read a gay coming of age novel where the character doesn't fall into the club scene and get a great apartment and a really hip social set. By the end of the novel, our character still has many things to learn, and mile to go before he sleeps. That much was very appreciated.

I just found that the writing style itself while very lucid and classy, was also a bit too sedate. The narrative voice rarely goes into high or lows of higher emotion. I was not gripped while reading this book, and I think mainly because we are kept at a distance from the characters. I call this "lithium fiction"... eliminating highs and lows. The story itself is also fragmented. We spend 3/4 of the book on one subject, and the last 1/4 on an entirely new situation. The two events just do not flow together so seamlessly. This resulted in me not wanting to rush home and read it like I do when I am reading a really good book.

Call my cynical, but with its measured and careful non-offensive prose, the study guide in the back (how awfully presumptuous to include a reading group guide)as well as the book design, it would seem that all fingers point to having this book aspire to being considered for Oprah's Book of the Month.

I look forward to reading more from Wright in the future, and think while this book is an uneven debut, it is a book that needed to ahve been written. perhaps next time, with more spirit.

Louis Bowman, the main character is portrayed as a boy in search of himself. He has male figures in his life but no one really takes an in depth interest in him. His mother loves him but is unable to train him for manhood. His encounters during the story lead the reader to wonder if he is leaning toward homosexuality.

The writing is good and the dialogue is real. The reader is drawn into the story and the flow of the narrative. It made me laugh in numerous places.

I think it would be a good read for teens and parents, especially single mothers raising sons. It might also be a good book to use in a psychology or literature course. The Reading Guide inside the book is a plus for directed reading and discussion. In reading the book I wanted to cheer Louis on in hopes that he never stayed down for "the count" and would come out a champion. Mr. Wright has created a character I would like to read more about.

A very good story from Bil Wright that took me by a bit of a surprise. Sunday You Learn How to Box was a nice read that pulls a reader into the life of a young man going through lots of stuff while the rest of the world was moving along too. Louis reminded me of many boys I've known in life who are raised by parents who have lost their minds (and I think all parents get that way, I know I'm losing mine now); who go to schools that focus on moving the group instead of moving the mind (the circumstances were different in this time setting, but the results ring true today); who live in places that force you to be tough just to be at home; and who develop that first set of real feelings for someone who is both close enough to touch and too far away to hold on to.

I didn't expect to like this as much as I did, but the relationships were very compelling -- the boy and his stepfather, the boy and his crush, the boy and his mother, the boy and his mentor -- and made the story hard to put down.

I loved the book. Fusco tells a story of an Italian-American family outside New York, but it is not for those of Italian ascent only. It is a warm story about growing up in two cultures, being third generation, which should appeal to those from Mayflower on and immigrants alike.

Nunzio, the 12 year old I of the book, who cares about his big brother and dad to the point where his stomach aches, who is thinking, loving, scared of crimes, awakening sexually, superstitious, and unforgettable.

Oh yes, it's also a crime story. But most of all it is a tale about growing up, reminding me of Mark Twain. The characters around Nunzio are also a treat, like the female gypsy cab driver Johnny from the Deep South, an ex-cop distant cousin in a wheel-chair with a monkey assistant, and much more. Also his Scottish mother and Italian relatives are quite a crowd.

Don't miss it, the humor is great. It's more a coming of age story than a thriller, but the thriller theme is all right, too.

I picked this book off of the shelf hoping for a gripping crime mystery. I wasn't able to put it down because it is so much more. Being raised in a blue collar Italian/American community, much like the setting of this novel, reading this book did more than keep me on the edge of my seat. It brought me back home. The author brings to life with remarkable realism, Saukiwog Mills, a once booming industrial town whose manufatcuring mills are now in ruins. Through the Paradiso family we follow a mystery that is taut with intrigue and we experiemce through young Nunzio, a 3rd generation Italian/American, the magical and sometimes mysterious culture of our first generation. Through "La Strega" and "ma'occhio" young Nunzio's America is one that is influenced by Old Country witches and evil eyes. Along with Sunday sauces whose ingredients bring old country to an American kicthen.

The author uses a family business, a junkyard, whose discarded automobiles sometimes yield unexpected treasures (like golf clubs, 1940's Police gazettes, and catcher's mitts) as a metaphor in salvaging a city that is going to scrap. But small treasures are not the only things that the skeletons of junked car wrecks disclose in this story. The contents of a Pontiac trunk lead young Nunzio and his brother Danny Boy on a mission that takes us to places that are tense with danger, riveting with quirky characters, and rich with family history.

Delightful in its humor and touching in its conflict of three ethnic generations, Paradise salvage works beautifully on several levels. This is a real page turner that exudes mystery, celebration of culture, a hard look into family, political corruption, and coming of age, all set in an enviorment that is stark in reality yet rich with dreams. A splendid piece of story telling alive with unforgettable characters. I loved this book.

I love this story. Because when I finished reading this book, it made me smile. Last three words remain in my heart and made me feel the same cool wind (toward the future) which 12-boy Nunzio should've felt after the last summer in his boyhood. I think "PARADISE SALVAGE" is about an Italian-American boy's coming-of-age story as well as universal children's one. I was surpried at some critical reviews here and considered why? When we were childs, small things were not small things. So once you see the world from Nunzio's viewpoint,things were filled with wonders and I smiled,laughed,wept,thrilled, and was moved while reading. I enjoyed several episodes about Italian-American lives. Those are realistic and visual. I've read this book as "a novel" and I recommend you who want to read a mix-cultured and adventurous boy's story.

In this book Mr. Eager introduces us to James, Laura, Kip, Lydia, Deborah and Gordy....not to mention the magic of the wishing well. In this book James and Laura have just moved to the country from New York. They are both excited about this move. A move to the country, for them, signals the beginning of adventure. They find adventure, too, when Lydia suggests to Laura to make a wish upon the well in hers' and James' new backyard. Some of the good deed adventures in this book are exciting, some are not; however, interesting insight is offered into each character-which will come in handy when reading "The Well Wishers", the sequel.

I love all of Eager's books. "Magic or Not" and "The Well Wishers" differ from his other five books in that the magic is less overt. It might be magic, it might be imagination, or ???? This book introduces readers to the joys that a love of the past can offer. The mystery centers on an abandoned house--who lived there? Why did they leave? The children are realistic, and you'll want to eat Lady Baltimore cake after reading this book. I read it at 8 and checked it out again and again just so I could keep it on my bookshelf. I'm happy today to own that original hardcover (the same one I checked out 30 years ago) as well as one of the newer paperback editions. The illustrations are great too.

I have read Half Magic and Knights Castle and just finished Magic Or Not?, and out of those three, my favorite is Magic Or Not? I recomend this book for all children who can read (and adults too)!