This book has an autobiographical feel, set in Ontario in the last quarter of the 19th century. It deals with the interaction between an adolescent loner "from town" and the people and environment of the back country through woodcraft, and with his growth in that context. Though it contains much of Seton's wonderful woodcraft and illustrations, it is most valuable for the story and the lessons about human nature and rural poverty (my own youth).

My mother first read it to me from a tattered hand-me-down copy in the early 1950's when I was too young to read it for myself. It shaped my attitudes toward the natural world and helped me understand my own adolescence. To me, it is probably the single most important book I ever read.

I first read this book as a teenager, and have re-read it many times since then, discovering new levels of enjoyment as forty years have passed by. The story is set in the early or mid-1800's. Yan is the sickly city boy who goes to visit his cousin Sam in the country to recover his health. They gradually get better acquainted, making allowances for each other's differing experiences, perspectives and education. An enjoyable story and plot line unfolds, including conflict resolution, evaluating personalities, recognizing age and generation differences, and building trust. The book is absolutely filled to overflowing with fascinating woodlore information, skills and techniques, and countless drawings and sketches to explain or illustrate what the boys are discovering, doing, making or building. I have nothing but praise for this American Classic!

The first copy I read was a hand-me-down from my father. In 1924, at age 11 he wrote in it...

I pity the river,

I pity the brook,

I pity the crook,

that steals this book.

I read it the first time when I was 14 and have read it several time since then. It may be a little more difficult to read than more modern literature because of the writing style, but it is a wonderful story for anyone interested in wildlife, woodlore, Indians woodcraft, and young boys doing things on their own. Boy-scouting should be this good.

Following lead character Brooks White through his pursuit of a girl some would say is too good for him does not come across as the teen targeted, Kmart shelf paperback that any quickie summarizations may make it sound. In reality, the book is a labor of love for many things... God, grilled cheese sandwiches, crappy little import sedans, professional wrestling and, of course, a girl.

The author's natural ability to convey the humor in what are trying times for the characters he so beautifully paints does not overshadow the serious situations they wind up in or the heart wrenching lessons they learn along the way. Truly possessing a gift for bringing the surreal to the ordinary, Stroud tells a heartfelt story that in the end is not about a girl; rather, we are shown the growing up of a handful of bright, troubled young people.

The pacing is perfect, the characters are well developed (even those on the side), and I can't think of anything else to say aside from this; buy it, settle in for the night and get to reading, as it is one of the best impressions a first time author could hope to make.

...I like[d] this book.
It was extremely touching while still funny.
I can't really exactly describe it, but I stayed up late several nights in a row when I had work the next day, and could have been doing other important things like sleeping or playing video games.
Thats right, its so good it kept me from video games.

This book will go down in history as one of my favorite books. That's saying a lot because i never stop reading. The characters were amazing and the interpersonal as well as internal dialouge was captivating. Brooks catches your eye and brings you straight into his world and the way his mind works. A MUST READ.

Jeffrey Thompson's bold illustrations capture the drama, the urgency of that midnight ride on the eighteenth of April, 1775. The somber quality of Longfellow's poem is reflected in Thompson's use of muted backgrounds, contrasted with powerful black, stark white and red accents. The three-dimmensional quality of certain illustrations is reminiscent of primitive wood carvings. The design of the text pages is effective, with ample white space and an authentic, colonial appearance. Close attention to the details of the poem and time period are apparent. The historical endnote includes a map and informs the reader that Paul Revere was captured before completing his ride to Concord. He was released but sent on his way without his horse. Jeffrey Thompson has contributed his own style to Longfellows poem, in stark contrast to Ted Rand's softer, more classical paintings in his book Paul Revere's Ride. (Dutton, 1990) This is Thompson's first book - an impressive beginning.

Another Revolutionary War rider for freedom was Sybil Ludington. Read about her adventures in Sybil's Night Ride, written and illustrated by Karen B. Winnick. (Boyd's Mill Press, 2000.)

As a middle school English/Social Studies teacher, I require my students to memorize The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere. I was interested in how Christopher Bing had interpreted this most famous poem by Longfellow. I must say that I was stunned by his artistic rendering of the different parts of the poem. Most unique of all was the three dimensional letter attached to the flyleaf which was written by Thomas Gage, the British commander. This letter, sent to Lt. Col. Smith, described how he (Gage) would march a force of men to Concord to seize any munitions the Americans might have stored there. And equally incredible is the three dimensional fold out deposition by Paul Revere which described the actions he took to warn the Americans the British were coming. This book was alive with surprises and "hands on" interactivity. When I tried this book out on my 110 students, they were amazed. Then something really amazing happened....history and a poem came alive, giving them a much fuller understanding of the events of April 18, 1775. The way the poem was layed out page by page even helped them memorize the poem quicker and more accurately. The maps, illustrations, and the miscellany concerning the historical ride lend so much to this famous poem that even the most jaded American historian/teacher could learn all over again why we Americans are who we are and why we do the patriotic things we do. This is a must have book for every red-blooded American! Thank you Christopher Bing for transforming American history.

I just finished reading Jeff Shaara's "Rise to Rebellion," a novel about the start of the American Revolution, which includes a chapter on Paul Revere and William Dawes riding to Concord to warn Sam Adams and John Hancock that the British were coming to arrest them and then go on to Lexington to capture the gunpowder and munitions stored there by the colonial militia. So when I saw "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere" I happened to pick it up. I have never been a fan of the famous poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, especially since I remember someone arguing that the only reason he picked Revere to immortalize was because it is hard to rhyme anything with "Dawes." But once I opened up this book and saw what Christopher Bing had done in the way of graving and painting, I was captivated. On the frontpiece there is a letter you can open up that turns out to be a reproduction of a letter from Thomas Gage, the commanding general of the British troops in Boston, giving the 10th Regiment, Foot their fatal mission.

The poem is told over the course of a dozen spreads; the breakdown is not in terms of stanzas and is cued more to the narrative than the form of the poem. But as much as you might enjoy this book if you like poetry, that is nothing compared to what you will think about it if you are a student of history. There are maps of "The Plan for the Secret Expedition to Concord" and "Paul Revere's Ride and the Middlesex Alarm." On the backpiece you can open up a pamphlet being "The Deposition of Paul Revere prepared for the Massachusetts Provincial Congress." Bing might be out to illustrate Longfellow's poem, but he is also very much aware that the poet made up a lot of the details. In his "Miscellany Concerning the Historical Ride of the Patriot Paul Revere" Bing keys his comments to each of this twelve spreads, explaining the "true" history of the fabled ride. In his note on the preparation of this book, Bing take equal pains to explain the stages used in creating his masterful illustrations, which involved a glazing technique to create the "glow" in the nighttime scenes. This is a superb effort and I will definitely track down Bing's earlier volume on Ernest Lawrence Thayer's "Casey at the Bat" and eagerly await anything else this talent conceptual illustrator sets his mind to do.

This is the best handbook out there. In the past I have used the MGH manual, Ferri and the Washington manual, as well as one I made myself. There is no question that this is the only book, aside from Sanford, that I use on a daily basis. I use it for calculations, quick reviews, and even for teaching. On more than one occasion I have based a lecture on the format used in this handbook.

This book is now literally the only book (besides my Palm Pilot) I carry on the wards. It has an amazing wealth of information from ECG criteria for the diagnosis of wide complex tachycardia, to Coumadin dosing algorithms, to guidelines for thyroid nodule evaluations. All guidelines/recomendations are extensively refrenced to the primary literature. Ounce for ounce, the best and most comprehensive medical handbook!

Ever since I started carrying this book around, I have had no use for all the other cards and books I used to carry. In fact this book and the palm pilot with epocrates are the only things a medical resident should ever need. The information is complete, concise and up to date with full references. The book is well written, perfectly layed out and easy to navigate. And of importance to any housestaff/medical student, it's small and light and fits in any coat pocket...

I purchased both of the How to Ace Calculus books: "How to Ace Calculus : The Streetwise Guide," and "How to Ace the Rest of Calculus: The Streetwise Guide: Including Multi-Variable Calculus."

Here in Boston, I went to several large bookstores and checked out all the "Calc Help" books. The "How to Ace" books are infinitely superior to the others. As a matter of fact, it is a whole separate species of book. The authors have an unusual ability to explain in a style that is crystal clear, and they make the subject a lot more hospitable with their wonderful sense of humor.

Most math texts are written by Ph.D. mathematicians who have absolutely no empathy or insight into the difficulties that non-math majors like myself encounter when setting out to learn subjects such as calculus. As a result, their textbooks are about as pleasant as viewing the aperture of a colostomy.

I just hope that the authors bless mankind with future titles, such as "How to Ace Differential Equations" and "How to Ace Linear Algebra." If they are so kind as to do so, I can assure you that the world will be a better place to live.

As with the preceeding book, "How to Ace Calculus..." the authors have again presented in this text something which is all too rare in the realm of undergraduate mathematics: Math for undergrads that is understandable by undergrads! I can't count the times I've had a math professor discuss something which made sense mathematically (we got the proof) but intuitively left me nowhere. Even if you understand the mathematics of a proof, it doesn't necessarily imply that you understand the concept or idea behind it. This happens a LOT in the study of statistics, that much I can attest to from personal experience.

I've discovered, due in no small part to reading both of these texts, that intuition is just as important as the actual mathematical process. I firmly believe you can't effectively learn the latter without a good helping of the former. This book does not fail the student of calculus in this respect, not by any measure. Intuition is presented, albeit with humorous examples, in a way that just about anyone can grasp. This alone makes it worth the cheap price.

Because of this book I was able to genuienly take in and understand the material of my calculus III (multivariable & vector calc) class. I've gained a tremendous amount of self confidence when it comes to math. What I used to fear I now embrace learning and eagerly study like any other subject of interest. This book, indeed both in the series, will above all else help liberate you from fearing mathematics. You will see, even if it has to be through some humor, that math is nothing to be afraid of and can be understood just as easily as any other subject in college. All you need is the desire to learn and a clear exposition of the material. Wanting to learn is up to you, but this book can and does provide the rest.

No book is a replacement for an instructor and a "raw" classroom text with rigerous exposition and gross detail. This text and it's authors explicitly state this is not their purpose. Instead they provide a much needed bridge between the depth of a typical classroom text, and the needs of the typical student to have the processes and ideas presented in a manner they can actually relate to. Once that gap is bridged, you can actually learn something form your regular classroom text and instructor.

Do yourself an immense favor and purchase this book. Even if you only use it once or twice you will certainly get our money's worth.

This is an excellent book for learning calculus 3. I read one chapter on partial derivatives in this book at ths store, and I instantly understood them after trying to learn them for a month. I knew this book was for me.

I've read through 2/3 of the book as of now, and it is superbly written. It's actually pretty humorous at times (and not with esoterically lame math jokes).

I recommend it for anyone taking calc 3 or anyone who wants to learn it.

I picked up the new novel about terrorism called "OMAR" by Craig O. Thompson, at the Arizona Book Festival. It is one of the most intelligent reads I've purchased in years. More than just the blood and guts that most bottom-line, leveraged buyout publishers seem to throw at us, these days, "Omar" gave me thoughtful passages and carefully threaded stories to unite the plot (which deals with terrorism under the Atlantic and a very famous sunken ship). I would compare to the best of Cussler and Clancy.

I have been a rabid fan of Clive Cussler and Tom Clancey for all of their literary lives. I still can't wait until their next novel hits the stands. After reading Omar, I eagerly added Craig O. Thompson to my roster of favorite suspense thriller novelists. I thoroughly enjoyed Omar and am axiously awaiting Thompson's next novel. It doesn't matter that Craig O. is a great friend of mine...he got this recommendation because he earned it and because his book is well worth reading and well worth adding to anyone's library. This will be a Hollywood blockbuster movie someday soon. And you can take that to the bank!

It's always difficult to review the work of a friend (for obvious reasons), but in this case it was an absolute delight! OMAR is an exciting, thought-provoking novel that Craig O. Thompson has painstakingly researched down to the last detail. The characters are multi-faceted, the plot is complex without being confusing, the action sequences are fast-paced and descriptive, and the details show incredible knowledge of the subject matter without being pompous. OMAR puts the reader in the story from page one. If you like the idea of the depth of Tom Clancy combined with the story-telling ability of Wilbur Smith, OMAR needs to be in your collection. I can't wait for the sequel! By the way, even though Craig is a friend, I BOUGHT this book, so I could review it with a critical eye. I'd suggest it to anyone who loves action adventures.

Great book. Great detail.A must for anyone who has seen the film. Gives you a 100% more info and detail.

Sure, if you're not into the film "Goodfellas" that much or if you don't care for screenplays, then chances are that this would be rather worthless to you. Might as well find something else to buy, because this isn't going to do anything for you.

But, if you DO love the film and would like to read the screenplay, then this is just the thing for you. Written by Martin Scorsese and Nicholas Pileggi, "Goodfellas" is an amazing script that sucks you in right away.

Henry Hill has always wanted to be gangster, as he states in the very beginning of the film. This is his story of how he became one and everything he had witnessed and experienced. It's a tragic story of how good things always have to come to an end. It's also about how power and money can grab hold of your life until it's too late to turn back. A tale full of crime, murder, paranoia, and greed, "Goodfellas" is a trip down Mafia Lane that you will never forget. This is Mr. Hill's story.

The script is based on Nicholas Pileggi's novel, "Wise Guys," which is also based on a true story. The dialogue is sharp and very realistic and gives us a window into the lives of people in the Mafia. It is a very quick read, only about 130 pages. That's pretty short, considering that the movie was at least 2 and a half hours long. But, it's just dialogue, which is why it is very easy to read it quickly. I finished it in less than a day.

If you love the film "Goodfellas," and are interested in reading screenplays, then this is the perfect book for you. Here's your chance to relive some of your favorite moments, this time in writing. A very fine screenplay, it is.

Martin Scorsese's "Goodfellas" is, hands down, the best gangster film ever made. "The Godfather" created the mythical imagery of mob families that was forever buried by this gutty, bloody real life drama. Based upon the true story as told by the film's main character, Henry Hill, "Goodfellas is the best filmed example of the real life glamour and woekmanlike drudgery that goes with being a wiseguy. It is difficult to imagine a show like "The Sopranos," for example, had not "Goodfellas" reinvented the gangster film genre.

Ray Liotta is excellent as Henry, but the movie's real showcases are the performances of Joe Pesci and Robert DiNiro as his partners in crime. Pesci in particular gives a tour de force performance that is downright frightening. Other first rate performances come from Lorraine Bracco as Henry's Jewish wife and Paul Sorvino, whose performance as a real life Godfather could not be more different than Marlon Brando's.

This film is a must see for anyone who enjoys gangster movies. It also has to rank as THE best American movie of the 1990s.

This tome purports to explain why GWB is a talented leader of the American people and the world.

In fact, it demonstrates conclusively that the American people suffered a collective fit of halluciantion when they voted this incompetent man into office.

The book has some nice information about Crawford, Texas and the Bush's dogs -- but it does not tell us anything about the psychology of the Boy Emperor. Perhaps this is becuase the BE has no particular psychological nuance to display? Perhaps.

Leadership, as Fred Nietzsche once opined, is about breaking the rules when others think that rule breaking would be a mistake.

Bush's "leadership," as noted by the author, consists of learning the rules and efficiently applying them with charm and gingerly worded disinformation. Then again, maybe the book isn't half bad. I learned how to be manipualtive and nice at the same time.

There are so many wonderful leaders out there and many books about what they do. Oh yes, this book is about what Goerge W. does but most important for me, it tells step by step how I can be disciplined like he is and develop my personal core values and hold people accountable, etc.

If you want to enhance your ability to lead - read this book. Mine is covered with notes and I bought one for each of my staff!

I am an avid reader of biographies and this book provided a biographical sketch of President Bush's lifestyle and then used that foundation to show how his management skills transformed his life. I grabbed a pencil and highlighter half-way into the first chapter and began writing in the margins. I liked this book because I could open to any page and find a nugget of information with a down to earth example. Some of the examples were just real funny and actually made me laugh out loud.

Then after reading the first few chapters, I realized that this book was not about President Bush's politics (although there was some strategies revealed) or about his faith (although his personal convictions are the heart of his core values) or even about his IQ level (his emotional intelligence is recognized as highly intuitive). This was a book was about how an average person can become the leader they want to be.

I finished the book quickly from a purely biographical point of view and now am going back over each chapter to concentrate on the leadership competencies and how I can learn from the examples. The authors know what they are talking about but they also made it real easy for the reader to put into practice the lessons that need to be learned.

After reading this book, I also came to appreciate and admire President Bush and how his personal discipline is one of the timeless principles of his leadership. I am glad that I read this book at this time in history.

I really loved it. I like the part were she went in the war and was fighting. I felt like I was in it. I can't believe it was true! BUY THIS BOOK!

Hi, I'm Marah. I really loved this book. I like the part were she went in the war and was fighting. I felt like I was in it. BUY THIS BOOK!

The Secret Soldier is a marvellous biography about a valiant woman named Deborah Sampson. She was undoubtedly one of the most courageous and adventurous woman in America. This book is a fabulous story of a youthful woman who was born impoverished, and was ent from house to house until she came of ge to be on her own. Determined to discover adventure, she disguises herself as a soldier and fights in the Revolutionary War. She wanted adventure and she certainly got it.
I highly recommend this book to any variety of children. It is a quick read but at the same time it's very intriguing. I relished this book because it is a true story about a real girl who really lived. It captures your attention and doesn't let it go until the very end!

As a New Yorker, I particularly enjoyed this book because it is chock full of references to places I know or have been. The story is engaging and romantic. And, the characters are believable. You can easily see this as a made-for-TV movie. Read it, you'll see and enjoy!

wendy coakley thompson's "back to life" is a real piece of literature that details the interracial romance experience in real terms. the attention to themes of the day and music of the moment adds a special spice to the book and helps to set the mood. i just love hearing "what's playing in the background". lisa and marc show us the conflict one feels in a situation like theirs. and it's also a treat to see how their exes factor into the relationship as well. a good read!

I enjoyed reading 'Back to Life' not because it was such a well-written, heartwarming love story, but because I was able to relate to it as I lived in New York during that time period when all af those events took place. I was able to relate to it too as a woman of colour who had a history of physical abuse, and also as one who knew several mixed couples who weathered great storms to be able to stay together and maintain their love for each other. The author was able to provide such imagery that there were times when I felt I was actually inside the story listening to Nina Simone singing 'Mississippi god damn' and eating guava duff which is a delicious, sumptuous Bahamian dessert, more so when rum is added to the sauce. The story was believable, the details of the events were so accurate.
I am looking forward to viewing this story on the 'BIG SCREEM'