Everything you've heard but forgotten put in proper sequence and total truthful facts. This is the best chronology of the whole civil rights movement that I've ever seen. It puts all of it in proper sequence and perspective of the times. This is a must read for anyone that believes in freedom for all...get it, and read it twice...the index is super...it's a library keeper. And buy one for your friends!

You probably haven't heard of any of the poets collected in this exciting anthology. That's okay. They publish their poems in little literary journals and their books are mostly published by obscure presses. Most of these poets haven't published more than one book. I'm pretty familiar with contemporary poetry, but the majority of the writers collected here were unknown names to me.

Now I know their names, and better than that, I know their poems. My life is fuller, and I'm grateful to Michael Collier for creating such a diverse and vibrant collection. There is truly something for just about everyone here, from the lover of the bizarre and experimental to the traditionalist yearning for poets who know what meter is (there's not much rhyming, though).

Where do you start with a book like this? You could just dip in somewhere at random and see what you find; with this collection, you're probably going to pull out a moment of wonder no matter which page you flip to. If you've got to start somewhere, check out Olena Kalytiak Davis -- she's one of the most amazing poets alive, I think, and Collier has collected some brilliant recent work which didn't make it into her book And Her Soul Out of Nothing. But maybe you prefer something a little less daring for your first try -- check out the amusing, thought-provoking poems by Roger Fanning, written with perfectly accessible diction and syntax. You'd certainly like the poems by Richard Blanco, for I've shown his work to a number of very different people, all of whom liked it very much. If you want something which makes you feel like you're really reading cutting-edge poetry, check out D.A. Powell -- you'll have to hold the book sideways to read his poems. Don't miss Nick Flynn's "Bag of Mice" or Adrienne Su's "I Can't Become a Buddhist", or Campbell McGrath's wonderful "Capitalist Poem #36", which begins, "We've got this cheese down here to give away,/ tens of thousands of pounds of cheese."

The New American Poets was published in celebration of the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference's 75th anniversary, and I can't think of a better tribute to the conference which has played such an important role in the lives of many of the greatest poets in the U.S. than this anthology, a wonderful gift to all readers of poetry.

This book follows the different lives of two girls and how they discover their similarities and differences in a friendship. It is the sort of book that you can not put down and wil read again and again!

What a great resource for Antique and Modern dolls. Julie Collier knows her doll collecting and values and shares them with you. Can't tell you how many times this book has come in handy. Gives advice of dealing with private sellers as well as what to expect out of selling your dolls. You name the year and or the doll and she can break the value down to you in terms anyone could understand. Very informative, and enjoyable....I would read it just for the sake of learning about my dolls and find some of the most sought after ones as well.

I had no idea when I watched Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop on television as a child that her grandfather was a rabbi. So we learn in the introduction to this charming book. "I found myself weeping as I read of the indomitable spirit with which endless generations of Jews have faced a hostile world," she writes.

The book includes 20 stories, none more than two pages, and several of them related, touchingly, in only one. Several are Biblical, such as Abraham and the idols, how Moses became a stutterer, Jonah and Ninevah and one of David. Children will also delight in Solomon's lesson about the importance of small creatures.

Other tales are Talmudic, for example one about the boy who prays with a flute.

Still others are humorous, like the tale of the cobbler from Chelm: On a trip from Chelm to the big city, he falls asleep under a tree, but first points his boots toward Warsaw so he'll know which way to go when he awakens. As he sleeps, a branch dangling from the side of a wagon turns the boots around. When he wakes, the toes point towards Chelm so he follows them back home. He arrives thinking, "Why is Warsaw so famous? This is no different than Chelm."

Kids love these stories so much that our copy is falling apart. Alyssa A. Lappen

"The Paradox of Jamestown: 1585-1700," the second volume in The Drama of American History series, focuses on the enormous role played by Virginia in the creation of the United States. After all, this was the first English permanent colony on the mainland and its most famous citizens would be in the forefront of the battle for Independence. At this point in the story of American history, the emphasis is on the fact that these settlers were predominantly English (the series volume on "The French and the Indian Wars: 1660-1763" tells how the English came to be the dominant European power in North America). One of the strengths of this series is how it focuses on a particular topic without being diverted by what else was happening at the same time; instead of comparing and contrasting Jamestown and Virginia with what was happening with Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay, Christopher Collier and James Lincoln Collier deal with that part of the American experiment in a separate volume ("Pilgrims and Puritans: 19620-1676"). If anything, this volume might help to shift the relative importance of each colony in the mind of young readers who are swayed by thoughts of Pilgrim Fathers, the first Thanksgiving, and recurrent themes of puritanical thought throughout the nation's history. The Colliers make a good case that what happened in Jamestown is ultimately of more importance to understanding the American mind.

The Drama of American History series emphasizes what the authors call the "core content" of the subject, which deals with the broad strokes of issues and movements rather than the minutiae of names and dates. Consequently, "The Paradox of Jamestown" is developed in six chapters: (1) England on the Eve of Colonization clearly looks back at this period from the present, isolating the key facets of English life that would become important to the self-concept of Americans; (2) Capitalism and Colonization is a very short chapter that looks at how massive unemployment, religious and political conflicts, and the new capitalism all motivated Englishmen to travel to the New World; (3) Indians Greet the Englishmen is the story of the first failed English colony at Roanoke, remembered for botching relationships with the natives and the fabled Lost Colony that left behind the word "CROATAN" carved into a tree; (4) Powhatan Loses a Daughter and the English Get Tobacco is, of course, the "real" story of Pocahontas within the context of the founding of Jamestown in the second effort by the English to establish a colony in Virginia. Young readers will be shocked to learn that the natives, once again treated horribly by the English, turned on the colonists who were besieged and resorted to cannibalism before supplies and reinforcement arrived from England. Meanwhile, the colonists found tobacco to be a profitable cash crop, especially when the fields were worked by slaves. By the end of this chapter, the English are permanently established in Virginia.

The last two chapters in the volume focus on the socio-political evolution of the Virginia Colony that would have major consequences for American history: (5) Representative Government Comes to Virginia covers the political system that developed because of the significant problems of communicating with London. The result, the creation of an elected legislative assembly, was a radical departure from even what was practiced in England. This colonial assembly would lead to independence and the Revolutionary War, just as tobacco crops would lead to slavery and the Civil War. (6) Slavery Comes to Virginia develops this second significant thread, tracing both the economic and cultural practices of slavery. Taken together, these last two chapters crystallize the title's paradox: that the same place that created a legislative assembly that was leading to greater equality and freedom for ordinary citizens would also rely on the institution of slavery that would send millions into oppressive servitude.

I know The Drama of American History series is geared towards 6th-9th graders, but the "central core" approach works on other levels as well. The story of Pocahontas, who is kidnapped by the settlers before becoming Christian and heading off to England to die, is interesting not for its fanciful elements of romantic adventures, but because in the larger context it reflects the English sense of superiority over the natives. Given their callous disregard for the natives who were helping the Jamestown colony to survive its early years, it is not surprising that these same people would embrace slavery so willingly. The paradox developed by the Colliers also goes a long way towards explaining the major moments of American history from now until the end of the Civil War. Teachers might find it difficult to get classroom sets of this series for their students, but they can certainly use it to provide a solid sense of structure to their study of American history.

I also want to note that while this volume does include history etchings, maps, and such, it also relies heavily on contemporary color photographs of the recreated Jamestown, with reenactors showing what daily life was like in the colony (for slaves as well as freedmen). The result is a rather fascinating mix, especially given that many of the historical illustrations, such as Pocahontas rescuing Captain John Smith, are ironically less realistic.

This is an excellent guide to the web. Just the sort of book we've all been waiting for! Easy to understand and highly informative. It tells you in straightforward terms how the world wide web developed from the early Internet days, how it works and you can use it in many different ways. For example, it points you towards very useful web sites on health, education and business.

I passed my copy onto my young nephew. He was fascinated by it and has now begun to use the web himself to help him with his studies and find out lots of info about his favourite sports!

Sorry about the five stars, but I write as the author of this book. A second edition of Philosophy, Rhetoric and the End of Knowledge is currently in preparation. It will be shorter than the original (which was over 400 pages) and expressly designed for classroom use. I am working with James H. Collier, a specialist in technical writing and the rhetoric of science at Virginia Tech. The new publisher is Praeger/Greenwood, and hopefully the book will be ready by the end of 2002.

The author provides a no non-sense approach to a subject that a lot of us get fustrated with. If you follow along in the book from begining to end with a keyboard instrument, about half way through the book you'll begin to feel the confidence of a musician! J. Collier's writing style is such that, you feel as though he knows the struggles that you may be having with music concepts and magically puts them easy to understand layman's terms, as if he is talking directly to you. If you want to really understand music, get this book. I hope to meet J. Collier one day.

Robert Collier is very inspiring and has an easy to read style. I have quite a few of his books and have found all of them to be great. You can be any religion or none and still connect with his books. I am more of a spiritual person than religious and find his writings to be top of the line.