Wonderfully insightfull and easy to read.

I really enjoyed this book about the stories of Put in Bay, Ohio. There are 19 th century newspaper articles included as well as the author's material. Many pictures help keep the book interesting. I would quickly snatch a copy before it goes out of print. There aren't too many books on Put in Bay out there unless you have big bucks. There is a cheaper trade paperback version available...

Gary Crew once again grabs at the emotions of the reader as a boy comes to terms with the death of his sister. Beautiful illustrations enhance the feel of the book and draw the reader into the scene. The contrast of the pictures with the text, one presenting a scene of tranquility and safeness, the other presenting the story of loss and pain make this a memorable read.

If you read Luna Bay #1 Pier Pressure: A Roxy Girl Series you will love #2 Wave Good-bye. When Luna's bff Rae's parents decide to seperate Rae is torn between the two of them. Her father wants Rae and her lil sis to live with him in Chicago and Rae's mother would be lost without Rae to help her on the ranch they own. To add even more stress on Rae's shoulders she doesn't want to leave her cocky just-turned-pro boyfriend. In the end Rae decides she wants to....well im not gonna say you'll have to read it 4 yourself!

This book is tribute to the love of the land - land that was owned and culivated by the Nearings (The Good Life). It shows in pictures the beauty of the Maine coast land, and what honest labor can bring. It also documents local culture and custom to give a flavor for the year-round life in a harsh winter and short but intense summer.

For anyone who wants to learn guitar but isn't sure which style of music to focus on (or would like to learn a wide variety) this series fills a void. Even compared to other guitar method books I have a high opinion of this series. From the very beginning a solid grounding in reading music is introduced - string by string, note-by-note along with songs to practice. Tablature is also included but it is definitely to any guitarist's advantage to take the time to learn how to read traditional music notation too. Note: All the books in this series (1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 2C) are available as a book+2cds set. [Book 1A/2CDS ISBN: 0786629274 - Book 1A only ISBN: 0786628049].

The genre's of music in this first book cover traditional folk songs, rock, blues, jazz, rockabilly, boogie, celtic, classical, country and bluegrass. And though fingerstyle is given it's due (most of these songs can be learned both ways) the unspoken preponderance of songs assumes a beginner will start out with pick. I also liked how the songs were organized by keys. A beginner starts to learn some basic music theory early on. The first book focuses on the keys of C, A minor, G and E minor. Plenty of finger studies and pick studies are included. Simply focusing on these studies alone has improved my pick-style playing tremendously. I simply start out the picking scales at a slow beat (about 70 bpm) and go no further than I can while playing without tension in my right and left hands and without missing a note.

Recognizing chords both from chord diagrams and more importantly from their standard music notation form is introduced and given plenty of coverage. Power chords, blues progressions, time signatures, various strum patterns, sharps, flats, vibrato, free stroke, rest stroke, are just some of the things covered. The fingerstyle section introduces classical guitar technique as one the representatives of fingerstyle with beautiful music that is standard for any beginning classical guitarist's repertoire. And all of this is a delight to play along with the backing studio tracks on the 2 cds. I enjoyed many of the compositions - especially toward the latter half of the book. Most are originals from the 2 authors. But even if you don't care for much of the music in this book the actual lessons taught will help anyone play any style of music they might want to practice later. For anyone wanting to learn the guitar and actually willing to take the time to devote to everything this book provides they will have a firm foundation. I am definitely looking forward to getting the rest of the books in this series. It definitely deserves an A+ !

Note: This book/2cd set is the first of the Mastering the Guitar series (book/cds - 1A,1B,2A,2B,2C).

For anyone who wants to learn guitar but isn't sure which style of music to focus on (or would like to learn a wide variety) this series fills a void. Even compared to other guitar method books I have a high opinion of this series. From the very beginning a solid grounding in reading music is introduced - string by string, note-by-note along with songs to practice. Tablature is also included but it is definitely to any guitarist's advantage to take the time to learn how to read traditional music notation too. The 2 cd's provided with each book in the series makes learning even more fun. You can play along to the backing tracks or along with the lead guitar which is helpful in associating what's on the printed page with the sound listeners will hear.

The genre's of music in this first book cover traditional folk songs, rock, blues, jazz, rockabilly, boogie, celtic, classical, country and bluegrass. And though fingerstyle is given it's due (most of these songs can be learned both ways) the unspoken preponderance of songs assumes a beginner will start out with pick. I also liked how the songs were organized by keys. A beginner starts to learn some basic music theory early on. The first book focuses on the keys of C, A minor, G and E minor. Plenty of finger studies and pick studies are included. Simply focusing on these studies alone has improved my pick-style playing tremendously. I simply start out the picking scales at a slow beat (about 70 bpm) and go no further than I can while playing without tension in my right and left hands and without missing a note.

Recognizing chords both from chord diagrams and more importantly from their standard music notation form is introduced and given plenty of coverage. Power chords, blues progressions, time signatures, various strum patterns, sharps, flats, vibrato, free stroke, rest stroke, are just some of the things covered. The fingerstyle section introduces classical guitar technique as one the representatives of fingerstyle with beautiful music that is standard for any beginning classical guitarist's repertoire. And all of this is a delight to play along with the backing studio tracks on the 2 cds. I enjoyed many of the compositions - especially toward the latter half of the book. Most are originals from the 2 authors. But even if you don't care for much of the music in this book the actual lessons taught will help anyone play any style of music they might want to practice later. For anyone wanting to learn the guitar and actually willing to take the time to devote to everything this book provides they will have a firm foundation. I am definitely looking forward to getting the rest of the books in this series. It definitely deserves an A+ !

This book is meant to be an additional source of study for the first and second volumes of the excellent Mastering the Guitar book/2cds series (this is the only one in the series that is book-only, no cds are available). However, it can be used in addition to any beginning guitar method as a source of additional study and songs. It begins with an introduction to traditional music notation, rhythm and some basic music theory.

There are plenty of studies for plectrum picking, crosspicking, fingerpicking, chords, moveable finger patterns, finger-agility studies, etc. After the studies are songs for applying the skills learned in the studies. The studies and songs are all grouped according to keys. Thus, for example, the first key introduced is C and it has all of the studies I mentioned above followed by several songs. The songs represented are of several styles of music. Everything from folk and classical to rock and blues is here.

The majority of studies are presented only in music notation but all of the songs are presented in both standard music and tab. I realize this was done as a concession to the marketplace as there are many guitarists who don't want to know how to read music. However, for anyone with even the slightest curiosity I would encourage to give learning how to read music a go. For only a bit of effort at the beginning the later rewards are considerable for thereafter NO style of music is off-limits to you. You'll be one of the few guitarists able to read, practice and play ANY kind of music - even music written for another instrument and be able to adapt it to guitar. This book certainly makes learning to read and play standard music notation fun. The songs are fun to play, cover several popular music styles and a beginner will have complete songs to add to their repertoire to play for family and friends. Don't be like some folks I know who know many rock tunes but only know bits and pieces of them and can't play any of them in their entirety. In my opinion, a beginner who can play even one single piece well is actually more truly deserving of the title "guitarist" (and is definitely the better musician) than such dime-a-dozen guitarist-wanna-be's. If you love the guitar and don't want to be one of those guitarist-wanna-be's I mentioned above this book will definitely help you on your way to that goal.

I bought the copy of this book that had the CD and I'm glad I did. I loaded the CD in my CD alarm player and it plays every morning and is a delightful as well as gentle awakening to each day. Each cut is of a different dulcimer player and the selection is diverse. Since I am new to dulcimer playing, it gives me a way to listen to a multitude of styles on the mountain dulcimer. There is the guitar blues style of Janita Baker, Don Pedi playing his Appalachian style, Mike Casey with his hard driving Celtic pieces, Madeline McNeil on a tenderly rendered, Fanny Power. Some other artists that are included are Jerry Rockwell, Susan Trump, and many others that I have heard for the first time. The book has a black and white photo of each artist, a short bio and full tablature and playing tips for his/her tune on the CD. I anticipate the photos will be helpful when you attend a dulcimer workshop and festival as you will be able to identify faces with playing styles. The only major player that I found missing in this collection was David Schnaufer. This collection is clear and thoughtfully arranged and would be a great addition to the library of any dulcimer player.

This is an awesome book. Anyone interested in fife or rudimental drumming must have a copy on their shelves. Be sure to purchase the CD too, as it includes many tunes played by some truly gifted musicians.
A book filled with traditional tunes arranged for the fife and drum with accidentals, breath marks and suggested playing style marks to help the beginner and expert alike.
Great for the Revolutionary War through Civil War reenactor too, this book has selections from all eras.