The project undertaken is much larger than this small book can handle. It includes many of the old classic poems from which Americans know a line or two, so it is handy if you are studying trivia or if it just really, really bugs you when you can't remember what something is from. I guess that's my main use for the book. Much of it will seem rehashed if you are interested in poetry and looking for something new.

Perhaps you will enjoy this book more if you are new to poetry; my advice is to choose a poem you like, then read more by that author. On the other hand, for a dollar you can hardly go wrong adding this book to another order. You might buy a couple and hand them around just to raise awareness of poetry, which isn't read in schools as it was a hundred years ago.

............this small book of poetry contains the work of nearly forty of the best known American poets. From Emily Dickinson to Walt Whitman to Edgar Allan Poe to Robert Frost, there are poems in this collection that are sure to appeal to everyone! Also represented in this collection are ten women poets and eight African Americans including Paul Laurence Dunbar, Langston Hughes and Phyllis Wheatley. There's even a poem by Abraham Lincoln that reveals his thoughts about his childhood experiences.

This collection is a simple, inexpensive way to introduce oneself to the wonderful world of American poetry. Each poet is introduced with a short biography followed by his or her most memorable work. Great buy!

This book is a good one to have if you are interested in reading poetry or are interested in writing poetry yourself. It has some insiteful works that will help anyone see the wonders and joys, sorrows, joys and pains of the great American Poets.

The synopsis is right on the mark. This book is very old-fashioned - from the patterns right down to the print. I dare to say, even boring. The designs are (as mentioned) from decades ago, so if you're looking for young, fun designs you won't get it here. The pictures are in black and white and the print is old, typewriter style. Out of the claimed 150 designs (I didn't check to see if there are really 150), only about 5 really interested me. Even my 67 year old mother remarked that none of the designs 'jumped out at her'. On the positive side though, the book is easy to follow with charts and abbreviation guides, crochet hook conversions and 17 basic crochet stitches. I will recommend the book for a beginner who wants simple designs, but for a seasoned pro who has done it all, something newer and more challenging is needed - unless of course you lost all your mother's old books and want one with old favorites for your home library :)

I bought this book originally because of the three wide crocheted lace patterns. I love the heavy but dainty thick lace you see on antique pillowcases and sheets, but couldn't find any patterns until this book. I shy away from the cheesy multi-colored patterns you see so often in modern books, so this was a natural fit. The patterns in this book are vintage... and I'm so glad!

150 Favorite Crochet Designs edited by Mary Carolyn Waldrep, is a treasure-trove of patterns gleaned from the past. All the patterns are made from thread and date bake to the 30's, 40's, and 50's. Many of the patterns can be easily adapted by today's modern crocheter. The charted "Eagle and Motto" runner with its' patriotic E PLURIBUS UNUM detail could be the basis for a great 4th of July afghan done in 4ply yarn. Pick out a motif from one of the bedspread patterns and do it up in yarn. Tack it to a tired old pillow for some instant decor pick-me-up. Worked in thread, many individual motifs can be used for snowflakes for a Christmas tree. There are also edgings that can be used to trim baskets and caning jars. Intermediate to advanced crocheters would find this book useful and beginners can easily grow into it.

I can't see why an abridgement is necessary for Pinnochio under any circumstances. The book is very short and no chapter could fill more than two typed pages. Any child should be able to digest the unabridged translation. When you strip a story down to a mere plot summary, you remove the details which make literature exciting and stimulating for both children and adults. Perhaps this is marketed toward extremely busy parents who don't have the five minutes it takes to read an entire chapter aloud.

Indeed this is a "World's Classic." I would like to see it preserved as the author intended.

Collodi good, abridgement bad.

I indeed agree that this movie is a wonderful movie, it was funny, and sad...but that just makes it even more great....I was wondering if anyone doesn't mind helping me, I need to buy the CD Soundtrack to this movie..Can anyone help me???

Collodi knew how mischievous children can be.He was one himself when he went to school in Flroence.In his later years,he was a school reforms official,and wrote many textbooks.He believed the best way to teach is by entertaining as well.This certainly shows in Pinocchio.The little Blockhead gets into all kinds of scrapes because he rushes into things with little consideration.Pinocchio is tricked by the Fox&Cat, advised by the Talking-Cricket,helped by the Fairy with Blue Hair-and ultimately realizes that if he wants to become a real boy,his inner self must be transformed first.The final chapter is a true indication of how Pinocchio has fully become a son to Gepetto.Collodi's story has many film-television-stage versions,but the original is a true classic.

First I think that this book is really a great book. But, I have a coment on the website I think that you should let your veiwers at least read inside the book to look at the books format

A great book full of great ideas and recipes. I like the way the book is formatted, also. I would recommend it to anyone who wants good candy recipes!

This is a great book filled with delicious, fun, and easy recipies. It has easy to follow instructions and clear pictures. I would definetly recommend it!

I expected to really like Lindsay's poetry. I love Chicago and Chicago writers. Vachel Lindsay was a part of the "Chicago Renaissance" which included the poets Edgar Lee Masters (wrote the Spoon River Anthology, but I'm unfamiliar with his work) and Carl Sandburg, whose work I love. I had hoped with his association with Sandburg... Plus I had previously read "Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight" which is a superb poem. And "The Congo" has a great reputation. Lindsay's poetry just wasn't all that great--and I'm not saying that because of the performance pieces. I happen to like performance poetry, if it is well written (Marc Smith is a great example)--poetry is meant to be spoken. ... After all, he was part of the "Chicago Renaissance."

Vachel Lindsay has a distinct, very rhythmic poetic style that is often used (and was often intended for) plays and dramatic performances. The first poem of this book, "The Congo," is his most famous-- if you happen to be familiar with the movie Dead Poets Society, you might remember the chant-like selection they read, "Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black, cutting through the forest with a golden track." A great deal of Lindsay's poetry has this chant-like flow that makes them ideal for reading aloud.

Be warned, however, "The Congo" has several very racist remarks, including references to the Africans as "savages." Keep in mind this poem was first published in 1914 (in fact, this book is an unabridged reprinting of that same edition) and much of the language used was common then. However, it is difficult to read with that state of mind in today's world, and if reading it might offend you, then don't (or skip to the other poems.) Don't let that detract from his gift of rhythm and rhyme and his many other beautiful poems, which are often inspirational and moving. Take, for example, this selection from "I Heard Immanuel Singing," about David singing to God:
"No chant of gilded Triumph--
His lonely song was made
Of Art's deliberate freedom;
Of minor chords arrayed
In soft and shadowy colors
That once were radiant flowers:--
The Rose of Sharon, bleeding
In Olive-shadowed bowers:--"

Altogether, this is an inexpensive edition that would be ideal for a dramatic presentation or just for personal enjoyment.

This book of poetry is a delightful. I particularly enjoyed the poem to Mary Pickford. It must have been exciting to be the first to experience the new art form of motion pictures. Anyone who enjoys well written American poetry from a writer who did much to promote poetry will do well to purchase this book.

A set of over 4,000 crest designs, but what a disappointment! The true heraldic craftsmen drew their inspiration from true heraldic sources, i.e. the Middle Ages. After 1600 or so heraldry went into a steep decline, culminating in the truly awful Victorian concept of depicting the 'real' thing, as opposed to the brutal and wonderful power of the symbolic art of earlier craftsmen. Thus we're stuck with 'real' lions and dragons and any kind of object, complete with shadowing. Well, the book was published in 1859, so I should have known better.... If you're interested in Victorian heraldry, it's a wonderful book. If you're interested in real heraldry it's a waste of money. Try the compilations of Sir Anthony Wagner instead. Now t h a t is true heraldic power.

This book includes hundreds of components of potential crest designs shown in black and white on plates. It does not include any family names, family crests, or or any type of index to the images included in the book.

Enlarged versions of the black-and-white heraldic designs common to most coats of arms and crests. Perfect for scanning and easily adaptable by experienced graphic designers. Originally published in smaller versions in Fairbairn's Book of Crests.

The poetry in itself is exclellent: however, the low grade stems from having a hard time understanding the nature of the poetry.

...but I have to ask how 50 pages can possibly be considered to constitute an anthology.

I'll admit it was the poetry (which is mostly if not completely modern) rather than the traditional songs which attracted my attention. In particular, I quite liked "This Is No Movie of Noble Savages" by Adrian Louis and the poems by Sherman Alexie. One thing in particular that annoyed me with this book, however, was what would seem to be an anachronism perpetuated by the translator(s). Namely, several traditional Native American songs in the book from different tribes refer to 'the Milky Way'. Now, I don't know what the words are that these were translated from, but I'm fairly sure that there weren't any Native Americans (or anybody else at th time) that were calling anything a Milky Way.

"Native American Songs and Poems: An Anthology," edited by Brian Swann, is an impressive volume overall. At 56 pages, it is a concise but rich anthology. The book can basically be broken down into two sections: (1) traditional ethnic songs from various cultures, and (2) poems by contemporary Native American authors, again representing many cultures.

The traditional material includes the Seminole "Song for Bringing a Child into the World," the Navajo "Hymn of the Horse," the Pima "Quail Song," and more. Contemporary authors included are Beth Brant (of the Mohawk people), Joy Harjo (Muscogee), Simon J. Ortiz (Acoma Pueblo), and others.

The book contains a useful bibliography. However, there is almost no biographical data on each contemporary author, and very little data on the various nations represented. The book would have been stronger if such data had been included. Still, this is a beautiful and enriching anthology. Topics covered include spirituality, animal and plant life, conflict with Eurocentric culture, Native language loss, and more. Some of the best poems include Joseph Bruchac's moving "Geese Flying over a Prison Sweat Lodge"; Maurice Kenny's sensuous, mystical "Sky Woman"; and Carter Revard's deeply spiritual "What the Eagle Fan Says." I recommend this book both for classroom use and for general reading.

This book is important for the historian who wishes to get a glimpse into the workings of the mind of an important figure in American Revolutionary history, but it doesn't stand on its own. It is written almost entirely as a response to Edmund Burke's "Reflections on the Revolution in France", so I would not recommend reading this one until and unless one has read that one. Otherwise, it is impossible to judge the fairness of the rebuttals of Burke's points, as one only sees them through Paine's perspective, and Paine is far from a fair and impartial debater; he misses no opportunity to belittle his opponent's arguments, and even his opponent himself. I would not be at all surprised to discover that he gives an inaccurate picture of what Burke had to say, particularly given that history speaks rather better of Burke's misgivings than of Paine's panegyrics. Both books were written before the Reign of Terror that resulted from the revolution in 1793; the second part of this book came out in early 1792. Also, history shows us just how silly some of Paine's claims for a Republican, representative government are: 200+ years of representative government in the US have hardly banished wars, or the high taxes associated with them, even though the world as a whole is far more democratic than it was at his time. He makes some good points, and certainly it is hard to stand up against him in favor of hereditary monarchy, but it is apparent that he failed to see that not ALL "democratic" movements were necessarily benificent, even if it would be hard to have much sympathy for the autocratic regime that they overthrow.

This book, above all others, reveals the breakdown of classical (libertarian) liberalism into the statist liberalism of today. Although the first part of the work, being a refutation of Edmund Burke's silly nonsense, is stellar, and is well worth reading. Regardless, the second part, the chapter on "Ways and Means" in particular, is composed of the most despicable, anti-liberty doctrines that one can find. What Paine basically proposed was a late 18th century form of the welfare state, replete with progressive taxation, subsidies for child birth, and other fine statist amenities. Thus, as all of these things are, in his words, to be claimed as rights, the title of this book comes to mean nothing whatsoever. It is indeed sad that Thomas Paine has gained such an enduring legacy as a friend to liberty. In truth, he is actually one of its worst enemies, as he combines a just zeal for resistance to oppression, revolution, and reason, he sabotages his entire political philosophy.

Thomas Paine's "Rights of Man" is truly a classic defense of self government and reprsentative republicanism. Paine copmletely demolishes Edmund Burke's defense of aristocracy and monarchy as outmoded and absurd institiutions. Paine shows the immorality of monarchy and the plunder that it commits on it's own people through high taxes,unjust property laws,and priveleges for the nobility. Paine shows the virtues a representative system has over the monarchial form. He denounces aristocracy and monarchy as "frauds" and based upon tyranny. The first review by Will Murphy critsizing Paine as a sort of statist is way off the mark. Paine did recommend many ideals of the welfare state. It must be remembered he was speaking to an age where a large wealthy aristocracy ruled alongside the monarch, living in luxury off the high taxes drained from the middle, lower and working classes. Paine was one of the formost defenders of freethought in religion,speech, and ideas.To imply Paine was a sort of 18th century fascist is utterly absurd and ahistorical. Paine was not an enemy of property, just an enemy of aristocracy,who in his day did not obtain property by hard work. Usually property rights in monarchial nations were written to favor the wealthy and powerful, and grant them priveleges at the expense of the populace. Paine completely destroys the ideal that a chosen few were meant or ordained by God to rule. If you love freedom, you can't go wrong with the "Rights of Man".

The book is not meant to be like Plato's major philosophical works. It is about the nature of love, discussed with a frankness about homosexuality not seen until thousands of years later. For anyone interested in what the Greeks thought of love, it's all there. I found them interesting, also revealing the nature of Plato's writing that is more artistic than technical. Socrate's talk of love being a divine madness or the myth of man and woman once being one are beautiful. The Greeks had a tendency to discuss everything in rational terms or in relation to their mythology, so that some of their ideas seem nonsensical or naive, but that is just from the perspective of someone living centuries later.

The Symposium was a great book but it was a little hard to understand. I like the way opinions were expressed of the topic of "love!" It makes a person think about "love" in general. What it really is and what it really means. There are many opinions of "love" and not one person has the same idea of love in the book. There are creative ideas expressed in the book about what a person thinks "love" is. It is hard to agree with just one person in the book because all their ideas are great and they all make sense in one way or another. A person may agree or disagree with a speaker in the book because they may not agree with the speaker or they may like the idea of a speaker and agree with him. A person may also agree or disagree with some parts of the idea from a speaker because they may think that the idea starts off great but does not end. A reader may compare and contrast ideas of all the speakers and they may come up with another idea of what "love" is or how it is felt. The Symposium was great to read and it makes you think about what everyone else in the world thinks about "love!"

Symposium, Plato's most dramatic dialogue, skilfully interweaves six voices together in a discussion of love. More than any other dialogue, this work creates effective characters and provides insight into the Athenian culture's view of love while blending humor into the text. Phaedrus, a later dialogue, is less dramatic in nature but continues the inquiry into the nature of love. Juxtaposing the two in the same text gives the reader a sense of how Plato's style evolved over time

In fairness, I would have given a 2.5 rating if that were available. Admittedly, this is a reasonably priced book, so one doesn't lose much by giving it a try. My problem with it, is that it is heavy on the "tell" and not very good at the "show." While the embroidery stitches are explained with (very basic) line drawings, the actual flower designs are described in writing with no sequential drawings. This leaves the reader flipping back and forth between the earlier "stitch glossary" pages trying to work out how each flower is made. The book is probably fine for a more advanced hobbyist who is mainly interested in the iron-on transfer patterns. I would not recommend it to a beginner or to someone who has no knowledge of basic three-dimensional embroidery stitches.

Got excited about this one when I saw it, but found the designs WAAAAY to intricate. This may be a matter of taste, or the nature of Brazilian embroidery, but the book is definitely full of very similar-looking designs. It just wasn't what I was looking for in transfer patterns.

This book truly is unique. No other book I have ever read gives such fine instructions on how to...and also provides you with such intricate designs. Now a days, you see books on how to, plenty of instruction, but they are really cheap with designs. Not this book! Money well invested.

If you're wanting to learn to how do Brazilian embrodiery...this is your book!