I really enjoyed this book. Many of the most up-to-date and exciting areas of astro/geo science are well covered and the state of the art is detailed. Yet to my opinion the fact that the articles are high level publications re-written in an (almost) popular way is problematic for one or two, where the author do not put enough "feeling" in his prose.

If you want to see what the art of the quilt is all about, this catalog of 80 quilts of the "highest aesthetic and artistic quality" will show you. This juried exhibition was selected from almost 900 entries from the U.S. and abroad and, in my opinion, is the best VISIONS yet. The jurors were asked to pick quilts that flow with color and sparkle with excitement and to present works that represent the best in art quiltmaking today. The range, complexity and cohesion of the quilts shown make it a worthwhile purchase. The photography and color reproduction are very good, although pictures of some of the larger quilts fail to convey the full power of the originals, a problem not unique to this catalog. The book follows the format of earlier Visions catalogs, devoting one color page to each quilt, with the artist's statement and details of size, materials and techniques used. An index is included.

I recently finished reading the novel "Voluntary Force" and I really, really enjoyed it. At first I wasn't sure that I would like or appreciate a novel about the military as I myself and not very military minded and could never see myself within the stringent life of rules and regulations that the military affords. Now, however, I have a true understanding of the difficulties that face anyone in the military, especially a woman, specifically during a time where women were rare in the military. Before reading "Voluntary Force" I did not appreciate the life of the military or understand what took place in the military during peace times. I realize that the novel was a work of fiction based on experiences of Ann Thompson and others in the military in the 70's and 80's, but I have a greater respect for her and the other women like her who forged a new road for all mankind, in particularly womenkind, and were able to survive the hardships faced in military life and survive with a greater sense of themselves and others in the service of our country. I wish Ann Thompson greater luck in all her literary endeavors and have already recommended her novel to others, (I actually sent my copy to a good friend, I finished it in 2 days I was so engrossed), and would eagerly like to read any other works that she publishes.

An amazing account of the ruthless acts of lawyers and how abusrd many of the new environmental laws are. A real eye opener.

This book is a collection of humorous and at times sad examples of the misconceptions about women's bodies throughout antiquity. At times it is a bit heavy on the Feminist jargon, but this is not intolerable at all. Overall this is a great book and I would recommend it to anyone (of any sex) interested in the history of women's issues and gynecology.

It's been more years than I would like to admit to, when straight out of high school, I took my first American history survey course in college. Teaching the course was a young professor not too many years out of graduate school. That professor, Jerry Thompson, was so engaging in his lectures on American history, that even with my measly note-taking and average ability, I was still able to make an "A" in the course. Many years later, Jerry still has that knack for storytelling and what a story he's got to tell in Warm Weather & Bad Whiskey.
The 1886 Laredo Election Riot was one of the most violent yet least known political feuds of the American West-one that overshadows the notorious El Paso Salt War, the killings in New Mexico's Lincoln County, the genocidal Graham-Tewsksbury feud in Arizona's pine-shrouded Pleasant Valley, and the war in Johnson County on Wyoming's frigid Powder River. The "boot and sandals" political rivalry reached its sanguinary peak on April 7, 1886, during a victorious political parade when the Guaraches fired on the Botas with a cannon-certainly the only example of feuding with artillery in the history of the Old West. More importantly, the violence between the two partidos-the Guaraches and the Botas-gave rise to the all-powerful Independent Club, the Partido Viejo as it came to be known in Laredo. This political party, like a phoenix risen from the ashes of political violence, dominated Laredo politics for over eighty years and had a major influence on regional, state and even national politics.

Thompson brings to bear his engaging literary style to this assidously researched, mostly from primary sources, Guarache-Bota confrontation to not only tell us about that dramatic and bloody spring day, but in essence to give us an insight into the history of politics and political elites of Laredo from the time it got absorbed into the United States. Of the feud, Thompson says, "[It] was not sheepmen against cattlemen, homesteaders against ranchers, the unscrupulous against the righteous, or the powerful against the weak. It was a feud between several closely related and powerful families with shifting and often confusing allegiances that cut across racial, religious and class lines. It was an economic and political struggle for power and money, a struggle to determine whether an existing political machine under the banner of reform, would dominate Laredo and border politics." The result, Thompson tells us, was that "it became evident in the dusty streets of Laredo, as well as in smoke-filled rooms of the state capital, and beyond to the banks of the Potomac River, that the Independent Club had become the most powerful political machine on the Texas-Mexican Border."

Thompson, Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities at Texas A&M International University, received the 1988 Earl Davis Award for his contributions to Texas Civil War history, and in 1989 was named to the prestigious Piper Professorship for outstanding scholarship and academic achievement. He is also a fellow of the Texas State Historical Association. He is the author of more than nine books and numerous articles in historical journals and magazines.

For a book on Watt Pottery, this book is an excellent value and well worth your time and energy. I had to special order mine, and it took a while to get to me, but I was very happy with it.

This book is an enticing account of the history of the Hondo Army Airfield. This account is derived from interviews which the author conducted with the actual people involved in the planning, development, construction, and the actual use of the Hondo Army Airfield. The events which led to the need for Hondo Army Airfield were the same events which led to World War II. Interviews with the family who originally owned the land; and the interviews with the actual users of the airfield bring to life the usually dull historic books in this case. You can see the anguish in the faces of the family being evicted from the family farm by the law of emminent domain. You can see the flash of flames coming out of the exhaust stacks of the engines of the aircraft as they are started on the large flight line. Training for war! If indeed one can actually train for war. A truely personal and lively history of Hondo's once active Army Airfield and those who made it so.

This is a classic text which presents a study of the structural forms and cultural patterns of the Japanese living in rural areas from the late feudal period to the 1960's. Particular emphasis is placed on agriculture, family life, village life, and the governmental forms of hamlet versus village. The chapter on the unchanging mentality of the Japanese farmer is very enlightening, and can be easily compared to similar attitudes of farmers throughout the world. This is a highly recommended and unfortunately out of print book which should be read by any and all students of Japanese culture and history.

I came to this book as a relative beginner in nature observation, I could pick out the major tree species, but not much more than that. This guide was of tremendous help to me in learning to see relationships between tree types and the soil, exposeur, water, and other plants. The text is focused on Vermont, but I found it very helpful in New Hampshire, and I am sure it would be useful in Maine and New York as well as some of the Great Lakes areas. It is also very beautiful to look at, though some what difficult to read straight through from cover to cover. Take it with you on a hike, or during fly season look at it when you get back.

I hope there are or will be additional books of this type for other areas of the country / world. The authors and artist have set a high standard.