Best Hikes in CMR is a great book for parents and kids to utilize for day hikes in the area. We found the most critical piece was that their ratings of difficutly and timeframes to complete are accurate. Also has many hikes in area's that are not the typical "tourist" hikes. The only negative was the limited maps that went along with the trail descriptions. Would be great if the author could point us to better maps or have a web site with them.

The series is a must-have for hiking with children. I use the CT-MA-RI book to scope out which trails would be good for hiking with my 5 year old son. We have done about 8 of the 79 so far. Each one had accurate descriptions and good indicators for difficulty. Highly recommended.

For full coverage of any travel destination, it often takes two different kinds of travel book. First, there are the books on the history, social and cultural highlights of an area. Many of these books have glossy pictures. Second, there are books with maps, directions, up-to-date information on prices and hours and a quality rating system.

This book has both. Ziffer gives full and interesting details on each of the different regions of Connecticut. Her history starts with geologic origins of the region, extends through Native American and Colonial times and continues up to the present. This alone is fascinating reading. She also gives good information on cultural, artistic and historic places of interest. Like a Mobil Travel Guide, she includes listings for various restaurants with indications of how expensive your meal will be. You can probably find the right hotel for you using this book.

However, this book is not a substitute for a Mobil Travel Guide-type book in a strictly practical sense. The maps are not detailed or particularly helpful for navigation. Restaurants, hotels and B&B's are reviewed, but there is no overall rating system. Unlike a Mobil Travel Guide, this book has many black and white pictures. And, the detail provided about each town provides a good sense of just what kind of place you will find. Ziffer gives many suggestions for interesting things to do, including various festivals and events throughout the year.

I highly recommend this book for anyone planning travel to or through Connecticut. It is a particular aid to anyone who likes to scratch below the surface of a place. I would also recommend a Mobil Travel Guide or Fodor's to bring along in the car for the nitty gritty details of the trip. But, I would start my trip planning here.

This is one of the most painstakingly well-done travel guides you'll find on any region anywhere, let alone CT. The book intelligently divides the state into seven regions: Far Northwest (Litchfield Hills), Central Valley, Far Northeast, Seafaring Southeast, Lower CT River Valley, Southwest Coast, and the Housatonic and Naugatuck River Valleys. Each section starts with a clear map showing the towns and major roads in detail, along with an inset showing how that section fits into the state. The text is filled with wonderfully researched stories of local history, interspersed with logically laid out descriptions of local events, attractions, seasonal activities, and places to stay and eat. If you're serious about touring Connecticut and you want to carry along just one book, this is the one!

The book itself is accurate only because it is printed word for word from Mr. Teale's original published work in 1974. However, the foreword was an extreme disappointment by stating that Nellie Teale "chose to die on the anniversary of Edwin's death." I have been a devoted fan of the Teales' and have visited their beloved Trail Wood. Mrs. Teale died in August of 1993 whereby Mr. Teale passed away in October 1980. It was nearly 13 years but not on the same day or month as we are told in the foreword. The misrepresented foreword would lead a reader to believe that Nellie's death was perhaps suicide when in fact she quite possibly died of cancer sinse all donations were asked to be contributed to the Cancer Society. This book along with all of Edwin Way Teale's books is well worth reading. The publisher would be better off leaving out a foreword and adding back into the paperback version, all the wonderful black and white photographs that can be viewed in the original hardcover copies.

From his beginning book, A Book About Gliders, to his Pulitzer Prize Winning American seasons series, Edwin Way Teale takes his readers on another trip, this time through his own backyard. Teale first recounts his desire to leave his suburban home on Long Island in quest of the perfect naturalist's home. After a balloon ride over a picture perfect farm-house and 130 acres in Hampton, Connecticut, Mr. Teale finally discovers what he has been looking for: "Trail Wood". Relax and enjoy the incredible descriptive writing style of Edwin Way Teale through the woods and wildlife of his home in Connecticut. Now an Audubon Society Sanctuary open to the public, you'll be amazed your not already there.

This book is about a 7-year old boy and his imaginitive ways of going through life during a war. Rufus has many siblings and surprisingly enough he acually gets along with all of them. Rufus is an imaginative, intelligent, and adorable little boy.

I was given this book to read when I was 7 years old. I was ill at home and my mother dropped it on the bed as I had been pestering her for something to read. It looked unpromising. I liked books about war and dinosaurs and soccer. None of these seemed likely to feature in Rufus M.

Though I would not have used the word then, I was enchanted. Estes sketched out a world I wanted to leap straight into.

This is such good a book that it has stuck in my memory as a happy thought about a distant time. I found myself thinking about it as I sat at my desk this evening and googled my way here. I'm 37 tomorrow. 30 years on and it's still with me.

Sean

Found this to be a very interesting paperback book for anyone dreaming of treasure hunting/finds. But, I wish it was updated. I'm sure there are more interesting things about Florida. Not all of Fla. treasure finds are in the sea as this book notes. Worth reading.Open anywhere and begin reading.

Being an enthusiastic amateur treasure hunter myself, in years past, I diligently read each and every volume of Mr. Terry's exhaustively researched works. Although I found some the information erroneous or far from exact - for instance many locations cited as "ghost towns" are FAR from being one - there are so many intriguing stories of legends, factual evidence & stories of past recoveries that any true TH'r will be enthralled. Treasure hunting is supposedly America's fastest growing hobby: it's uniquely enjoyable for the adventure, historical aspects & healthy outdoor recreation. And when you really find something decent...Boy Howdy!! Not as easy as it sounds, though. To be a professional TH'r, one has to have patience, applying oneself with the perseverance of a detective: because that's what it takes to be successful. Exhaustive research is the key: going where people gathered long ago (old picnic grounds & abandoned schoolyards, for instance) will be beneficial for coin shooters who are after more than modern coins....for me, finding modern coins was a complete waste of time & energy. Going for the gold? Go where it is KNOWN to be & be creative: the better your equipment - i.e. a decent detector which finds gold & common sense makes this a most fascinating hobby. For some, it's a life's career. Good luck!!

While I enjoyed this story very much, it seemed to have two definite separate parts: one part contemporary love story, one part mystery. Not to complain, because I love detail and background and motivation in any plot, but, I kept anticipating the mystery part to happen and to have some sort of investigation take place! It seemed that it was a lot of plot buildup and the mystery part of the story seemed very glossed over and almost rushed at the end. This story could have been longer,with more thriller type things happening. I wouldn't have minded a longer book at all. It always kept my attention and kept the pages turning. I just wasn't satisfied with the mystery plotline. So, if you love romance, with a little thrill thrown in, this is for you. But, if you were looking for a real thriller/mystery you might be disappointed, but only a very little bit. I still felt it was a worthwhile read and I don't feel as if I was wasting my time.

Lainey, the main character, has to move in and take over her best friend's life aftger her friend is mysteriously killed. You go through all of Lainey's very real and believable problems - getting a ready-made family with two kids, dealing with a no-respect job, a failing love life, and figuring out exactly what happened to her best friend, Farrel, and Farrel's husband. This book is awesome and I couldn't put it down. I went out and bought all of Cynthia Victor's books after I read this one!

I have written several comments for Amazon.Com. regarding novels by Ms.Steel which I have read. Each time I have admitted that her books are enjoyable to me as they offer a nice diversion from the many serious, well-written novels by other novelists. I think of Danielle Steel as a novelist I like to read in-between tackling more challenging ones - like when one wants to watch a TV movie. In "Mirror Image" I have to admit I was pleased with the ending for it wasn't wrapped up in a nicely neat fairy-tale ending. I hope Ms. Steel continues to write more realistic conclusions. However, much of "Mirror Image" was disappointing. The story of Olivia and Victoria, two identical, mirror image twins, with two very different personalities takes a long time to progress. Victoria scandalizes the family by having an affair with a married man and her father, in order to rectify the family name, forces her to marry a man she does not love, but whom her twin sister loves. Much of what follows is predictable and it is not until Victoria goes to Europe to help with the war that "Mirror Image" becomes interesting. Ms. Steel is not a great writer; therefore, it is her story-telling capabilities which sets her apart from other romance writers and which always keeps this reader enthralled. Unfortunately, "Mirror Image" did not move - it just coasts along. Not one of Ms. Steel's best efforts but, as I said before, I hope she continues writing endings like this one.

The plot itself made me want to read this book. I found it intriguing how it revolved around a pair of beautiful twins who are identical only in appearance. The fact that Victoria had an affair with a married player causes her father to engage her to Charles. However, Olivia is obviously the one suited to him. She's the one who finds him respectful and whom adores his child. The new engagement is convenience only on both parts of the party. There is no love. Victoria marries to cover the scandal of the affair and Charles needs a mother for his child. Victoria eventually convinces Olivia to switch. She wants to go to the battlefields. Victoria sinks in a ship but later is discovered that she is actually alive. From that point on, both the twins find love. And voila, you got the plot.

And yet, it was just so poorly written at times!(the first half anyway). There were many times where Danielle Steel kept talking about 1)how identical they looked 2)how beautiful they were 3)how Charles felt Victoria was more wild and fiesty. 4)how ppl kept staring at their remarkable beauty. It just started getting corny after a while and I found myself rolling my eyes at times. I get the point after the first 5 times...

I love Danielle Steel's books but this one isn't as good as some of her others. For another book with almost identical plot, I suggest reading 'Deceptions' by Judith Michael.

So many people on Amazon gave this book a bad rating, so when I picked this book up I was almost afraid to read it. But I am so glad I did. This book starts out only one year after the Titanic tragically sinks. We meet Olivia and Victoria Henderson, two strikenly beautiful mirror image twins. One could not tell one from the other. Olivia is the calm and surreen one where as Victoria is the wild feminist. After a visit to New York, Victoria disgraces her good name. Her father becomes so horribly enraged and forces her to marry a man she didn't love. A man meant for her sister Olivia. His wife had died on the Titanis and he was left taking care of his little boy. This book will take you to New York all the way to war ravaged France. You will laugh and cry and look at life in a whole new beautiful day. This novel will make you love yourself and love the simple blessings you are granted. Don't let yourself pass this book up. Embrace it and love it like a beautiful child. Let the words speak to your heart and soul. And along the way LEARN! You will love this book.

I picked up a copy of this book as soon as it hit the shelves. I tore into it ravenously (being a Benchley fan from "Jaws" days), and found myself shaking my head at the unbelievable expectations the author wanted me to believe as the story-line unfolds. To me the whole book read like a great white shark meets a storm trooping Edward Scissorhands or, maybe, Freddie Kruegger.

First of all, the author appears to be reaching deep for any kind of sympathy or group you can hope to pull into a story -- Nazis and those who hate them, reporters and those who hate them, even sharks. Sharks are, by the way, only peripheral characters in this book, maligned and mauled by the main creature/character.

OK, I usually don't tell too much about what's in a book, but I want to save many of you who haven't read this book already. A deranged Nazi scientist develops an amphibious biological based on a human form (an ultimate amphibious warrior) that has metal teeth and claws, a ravenous appetite, and nasty disposition to match.

No one in the book knows what to make of the remains they find scattered along the beach and, later, on shore. Only at the end of a predictable series of events do the "good guys" finally figure out what's up and put and end to the situation.

I worked my way through the book in good order, mostly because I was on vacation at the time and had little else at hand to read. The book is a quick and, compared to JAWS, a shallow read.

I wish I could recommend this book, but I cannot in good conscience do that. I can't imagine who in the world I would feel good recommending it to. It's too bad that not everything out there is a 5-star item.

I gave it a couple of stars primarily because I enjoy stories with a marne setting.

I hope these comments are helpful to you.

Alan Holyoak

WHITE SHARK is perhaps one the best written dead ends in history. Although packed with ideas, some adventure, and many, many ten mile wide close calls, by the end of the book you are literally left wondering what is it you just read. Its pacing and narrative are written like the tides breaking on the shore... it rolls in, it drags out, repeat until end of novel. Every so often the waves bring up something that sparkles, but it never truly shines through. The creature here is a crackjack idea (although a lift from the film SHOCK WAVES), but Benchley spends little or no time with it. And the major players in the book are made from the thickest carboard there is - they hold no surprises, and are so routine that Benchley never breaks a sweat when writing them, because we already know them and know what will happen to them. The hero and herione will get together at the end (they do), the sidekick will pull through (he does), the son will find his first love (he does, a deaf girl with telepathic powers which Benchley mentions once, and then drops, almost like she was going to play a larger part in the story, but Benchley found it too time consuming to continue with), and the monster will die (it does, pretty quickly and easily). Not his best work. For fans, it's worth the read. For those just picking up Benchley, start and stop with JAWS.

At first glance, this book appears to be about a great white shark. This is not the case, however, as Benchley takes the reader back in time to when Germany's Third Reich is about to collapse at the end of WWII. A secret experiment German scientist's have been working on, which is nicknamed White Shark, is lost in the depths of the ocean as the U-Boat it is being transported on sinks.
Then Benchley brings the reader back to the present day where Simon Chase runs a small marine institute on a small island he bought after he and his wife divorced. His son, Max, has come to visit him, which has been rare over the years since the divorce. Simon is studying sharks with his employee, an indian named Tall Man, and much to their delight a pregnant great white shark has been hanging around. Simon and Tall Man are able to tag it and study it.
In the meantime, a whale and sea lion expert named Amanda arrives with her sea lions to study the passing Atlantic Humpback whales at Simon Chase's rather broke institute for a hefty 10,000 a month.
Strange, horrific things begin to happen around the area. People mysteriously disappear, a bird sanctuary is ravaged, one of Amanda's sea lions disappears, and the great white shark is injured. The only evidence left at each of these terrible scenes are two stainless steel teeth that resemble those of a sharks, and five slashes on the great white shark that look like those of a human hand with claws.
This book is suspenseful, engaging, and will keep you reading until the end. I liked it as much as I did Benchley's most famous book Jaws if not a little more. This is a good read for those who can suspend a little disbelief and especially good for those who like books that take place in or around a marine setting.

everything about this book felt "written." I never felt as if i'd lost track of time and where i was or who i was while i read this book. everything felt like a scene as opposed to life. it felt like i had the author standing in my face telling me over and over again "these people are sad! do you hear me, sad!" but the sadness wasn't palpable to me. it was a hollywood producer's version of what sadness does (see: emma breaking the violin, dwight's guilt and descent into violence). the way schwarz draws the plot together was too neat, too tidy (again, a hollywood producer's version of solving a crime) for my taste. and was i the only one who knew the moment that grace's father's pistol was mentioned way, way back at the front of the book that it was going to be central to the resolution? judging from all the 5 star reviews, i was. i don't think that schwarz is a bad craftsman which should not be confused with being a good writer. in the end, i didn't care about the characters as much as i cared about the resolution which, ultimately, was a wet firecracker. if anyone's interested in what i would call great writing and great writing about a child's death please read frederick busch's "girls." the sadness is on every page but busch doesn't resort to easy, emotional "scenes" .

I had recommended this book to my book club to read. It was voted down. (Their loss they missed a good one) So I went ahead and read it on my own. Im so glad I did. It was such a compelling story. I still keep thinking about it. I have tried to put myself in each of the characters place how would I have handle the situation they were in? I cant imagine it, and there are no easy answers. Which comes through in each of the characters. You can feel their pain and struggle. The characters were so well developed even the children. (Emma Sam and Josh) They just werent bystanders in the story. My heart went out to all of them as if they were real people. Yes even the bad guy who did the unthinkable. Even though I think what he did was horrible and cowardly since he didnt stop. I still felt sorry for him. His life even before the accident seemed to be spinning out of control. He just couldnt get it together. Then this happens. I may have hated what he did but I couldnt hate him. It made for a very emotional read. But I loved it. One of the better books I have read. And to think I first saw it on "Good Morning America: recommended by Charlie Gibson. Thank you Charlie. Its a book I wont soon forget.

I ordered this book after being recommended it by my best friend. He felt it was one of the best he had read, but thought I might have a problem with since I have children. It is a very hard subject and the fact that you are thrown into it within the first pages makes it that much harder. As I was reading, I couldn't believe that I was reading such a great book. I enjoyed the 3 points of view and liked the fact that the 2 men were in first person, while the mother was in third person. It allowed you to look at the husband from his view and his wife's view. Yes, the ending disapointed me when I read it, but thinking about it afterwards, I realized it was the perfect ending. A "hollywood redemption" ending would have ruined it. My friend and I discussed it at length afterwards and through our discussions realized so much more about the book and how good it was. My wife has refused to read it and I don't blame her as it is hard to take the loss. I think of this book often and I know that I'll re-read it soon. It is great on so many levels. I would not recommend this to the casual book reader looking for a simple novel. If you read it, expect to re-visit it often. And for those who read it and were disappointed, I challenge them to really think about it and see how many layers this book has.

Jeff Benedict's book has touched a raw nerve. The "average customer review" of 3-1/2 stars masks individual reviewer ratings, which are almost entirely 5 stars versus 1 star, depending on where readers stand on the highly emotional issue of tribal recognition and Indian casinos.

This book rasies some serious flaws in the recognition process that supporters of the Mashantucket Tribe would rather not have come to light. Indeed, there are already calls for a Congressional investigation as a result of Benedict's expose. No wonder some folks rate this book only one star.

On the other hand, residents of the host towns surrounding the Mashantucket Pequot reservation (where this book is a best seller) who have confronted first hand the issues Benedict describes, give the book Amazon's highest five star rating.

The book reads like a novel but it is by no means fiction. The people Benedict writes about are real and so are the events. This book is essential reading for people throughout the United States whose communities face the prospect of Indian casinos or tribal recognition.

In his well written and well researched book "Without Reservation," author Jeff Benedict traces the history of the formation and rise to tremendous wealth of the "modern day" Western Mashantucket Pequot "Indian" tribe of southeastern Connecticut. It is the incredible story of a fraud perpetrated upon the taxpayers of our nation. It is the story of how state and federal government officials were duped into believing that a handful of ordinary citizens were the remnants of the ancient Pequot Indian tribe. It is a story of opportunism, greed, and abuse of astronomical proportions. A flawed system designed to help poor tribal members of American Indian tribes is cleverly manipulated to serve a handful of opportunistic and undeserving people. After reading the book, two adjectives come immediately to mind: "astonishing" and "outrageous." A more perfect example of the insanity that is today's Federal Indian Policy cannot be imagined.

Attorney Tom Tureen had masterminded Indian land claims against several New England states based on their alleged violations of federal statutes known as the Trade & Intercourse Acts. Among other things, the Acts forbid the purchase of Indian lands without federal approval, but the applicability of the Acts within the 13 original colonies was and is an ongoing unsettled controversy. Under the direction of attorney Tureen, a handful of relatives of the last surviving resident of the 200 acre Pequot reservation, Elizabeth George, decide to form the new tribe in order to join the land claim litigation. To accomplish this "They needed to come together and start acting like a tribe," and "most importantly, the group had to establish residency on the reservation," writes Benedict. Regardless of the fact that tribal membership was completely foreign to them and that they knew little or nothing about the culture or history of the Pequots, the group proceeded with its charade. Elizabeth George however, the one person upon which the tribe was basing its ancestry, had only a faint connection to Indian ancestry, but to the Narragansett Indians and not the Western Pequots asserts Benedict.

The newly manufactured "tribe," with the help of Tureen and the Native American Rights Fund (NARF), files a land claim against the state of Connecticut and wins their claim by forcing an out of court settlement. Tureen is quoted in the book as describing these Indian land claims as "something we made up" and were based on "an utterly untested theory." Tureen states, "If the Supreme Court ever tested the issue, it would say that the Nonintercourse Act did not apply to any of these tribes. So settlement was critically important to our strategy in all of these cases." Incredibly, against the protestations of the Bureau of Indian Affairs(BIA), Congress ratifies the Pequot land claim settlement without knowing whether or not the people claiming to be the Western Mashantucket Pequot tribe are indeed the genuine descendants of the historic tribe, since the "tribe" had thus far successfully avoided the BIA's tribal recognition process. The settlement awards the "Pequots" $900,000 and allows them to expand their reservation to some 2,000 acres. The tribe then proceeds down a road leading from high stakes bingo to the riches of their Foxwoods casino - all made possible by the special laws, perks, and privileges created for Indian tribes by federal Indian policy.

Benedict's book is extremely important in that it reveals a controversy regarding an alleged fraud of monumental proportions that demands a just solution. The good news is that Benedict's allegations are readily verifiable. Television news program "60 Minutes" is reportedly in the process of taping a segment on Benedict's book and the municipalities surrounding the Pequot reservation and its Foxwoods casino are calling for a congressional investigation into the allegations brought forward in "Without Reservation." A forthcoming solution may well prove disastrous for the "Western Mashantucket Pequots."

"Without Reservation: The Making of America's Most Powerful Indian Tribe and Foxwoods, the World's Largest Casino" by Jeff Benedict is an absorbing portrait of an extraordinary phenomenon - the emergence from obscurity within the past three decades of the Mashantucket Pequot Indian tribe and their rapid climb to unparalleled wealth through their Foxwoods Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut. I am sure that many people view these events as a particularly gratifying example of a "rags to riches" story, given the justifiable sympathy now widely felt towards Native Americans after centuries of betrayal and injustice. However, as someone who has spent most of his adult life as a resident of southeastern Connecticut and who is personally acquainted with some of the people discussed in Benedict's book, I have been long aware that the story of the Pequots and their casino is more complex and perhaps less inspirational than might appear at first glance.

"Without Reservation" raises serious questions about whether the Mashantucket Pequots are who they claim to be, a legitimate tribe of Native Americans. Simply put, are they instead merely opportunists claiming an Indian identity to fraudulently cash in on laws and programs intended to help genuine Native Americans? Some historic tribes in the East after centuries of intermarriage with persons of European and/or African descent and through acculturation with the white society have ceased to exist. According to Benedict's research, Richard "Skip" Hayward, the leader who formulated and led the supposed resurrection of the Mashantucket Pequot tribe in the 1970's, has no traceable Pequot ancestry at all. Benedict contends that Hayward's entire Indian descent comes solely through his great-great-grandfather, a man who identified himself not as a Pequot, but as a Narragansett (ironically, the Narragansetts were one of the tribes who allied themselves with the English during the 17th Century war which destroyed the power of the original Pequot tribe). Records indicate that Hayward had consistently identified himself as being "white" until the mid-1970's when it suddenly became advantageous to claim he was a Native American to gain possession of the small "Western Pequot" reservation maintained by the State of Connecticut and to pursue a legal claim against neighboring properties. Benedict further asserts that the Mashantucket Pequot tribe, when granted Federal recognition by a special Act of Congress in 19XX, would have been wholly unable to meet the Bureau of Indian Affairs requirements for such Federal recognition. In his view, many people, sincere in their desire to help Native Americans obtain financial and cultural security, were deceived into supporting a fraudulent cause and unintentionally allowed a small group of imposters to gain extraordinary power by operating a gambling casino shielded from taxation and state regulation. The enormous quantity of dollars flowing through Foxwoods Casino has radically altered the economic structure of the region, for good or ill, and has given the Mashantuckets enormous clout through their frequent and heavy contributions to political parties and elected officials.

Hayward as presented in Benedict's book is a fascinating paradox. Is he a charismatic visionary who followed his dream to skillfully lead his people into wealth and independence, or is he a deceptive manipulator who lied and cheated nearly everyone en route to personal riches and influence? The answer supplied by Benedict's book seems to be that Hayward is both. "Without Reservation" does not stop with Skip Hayward's climb to wealth and power, but continues on through his subsequent fall from tribal leadership, overthrown by other Mashantuckets whose claim of Pequot identity is as suspect as that of Hayward himself. The picture which Benedict paints is one of naked greed and arrogance rising to the top.

I am certain that some people will dismiss Benedict's book as being "anti-Indian", but that is not the case. His contention is that the Mashantucket Pequots are simply not an Indian tribe in any genuine sense of the term, and that they have taken advantage of and have perverted situations created for the benefit of actual Native American peoples. I am equally certain that his claims will be vigorously denounced by the Mashantuckets, and I eagerly look forward to seeing what evidence, if any, can be produced to counter Benedict's arguments.

Jeff Benedict has written a book which tells a compelling story, although undoubtedly it will not be the final word on the subject. It is a story skillfully told in a gripping narrative which vividly depicts the actors in the drama: the Mashantuckets, the politicians, the ordinary citizens who woke up to find the world's largest casino springing to life in their rural community, and of course the ever-present lawyers, eager to distort and shade the truth in their roles of advocates (or in their chase of the big bucks).