The Christmas Party is a short novel about murder in upper class America. Craig Akino is wealthy, arrogant and something of a curmudgeon. Akino is so ornery that every year at Christmas he gives a big party for all his family, employees and friends to atone for his bad behavior the rest of the year. Most years everybody takes it tongue-in-cheek. But this year he may have gone too far. It's up to a family friend and retired policeman, Marshall Edmonds, to solve the mystery since the police are happily looking at Nika, Craig's wife as a suspect.

The Christmas Party is an interesting look at life in the upper echelons of Black society. Davenport does an excellent job of creating a believable story of mayhem and murder among wealthy African Americans. There was room for more character development and the novel would have been longer if we had known just a bit more about each of the characters. In all, it was an enjoyable book.

Reviewed by alice Holman
The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

I have enjoyed reading this book and not just because I'm the author's mom! But, because it's truly a good book for any mystery reader. Chari has created fascinating characters and that butler... well... you'll just have to read it! The Christmas Party is a well written mystery novel for any age!

Chari has written a very entertaining murder mystery.You may figure out how the murder was committed ,but you won't guess who did it!
This book can be read in one sitting which makes it a great evenings entertainment.
I would recommend this book to anyone.

Reviewed by Kristie Leigh Maguire, MyShelf.com


ON THE WAY TO WOODSTOCK is a unique flashback to the age of hippies, drugs and rock and roll as seen through the eyes of Jess Martin, one of the many Baby Boomers who lived through that time of tumultuous change in America's culture.

Woven throughout the book is the story of Zoe Ryerson, one of the many children of that free spirited generation of Baby Boomers who was given up for adoption at birth. Zoe is seeking her roots, trying to find the mother and father who gave her up. She is looking for answers and is determined to find them. She has discovered that Holly O'Neal, her birth mother, is dead. All she has to go on is the name of her mother's best friend from college days, Jess Martin.

When Zoe confronts Jess in her search for identity, their two worlds collide - Baby Boomer Generation meets Generation X. Neither understands the other. But in that emotionally charged weekend that Jess and Zoe spend together reliving the life of Holly O'Neal, both women are faced with disturbing questions about their own lives - questions to which they had subconsciously been seeking the answers to all their lives, questions that they finally have to deal with.

Elizabeth Warren and Sheri Davenport have created a compelling tale in ON THE WAY TO WOODSTOCK. It is a must read for both Baby Boomers and Generation X. It is an excellent way for one generation to try to understand the other.

***...

Reviewed by Kristie Leigh Maguire...

ON THE WAY TO WOODSTOCK is a unique flashback to the age of hippies, drugs and rock and roll as seen through the eyes of Jess Martin, one of the many Baby Boomers who lived through that time of tumultuous change in America's culture.

Woven throughout the book is the story of Zoe Ryerson, one of the many children of that free spirited generation of Baby Boomers who was given up for adoption at birth. Zoe is seeking her roots, trying to find the mother and father who gave her up. She is looking for answers and is determined to find them. She has discovered that Holly O'Neal, her birth mother, is dead. All she has to go on is the name of her mother's best friend from college days, Jess Martin.

When Zoe confronts Jess in her search for identity, their two worlds collide - Baby Boomer Generation meets Generation X. Neither understands the other. But in that emotionally charged weekend that Jess and Zoe spend together reliving the life of Holly O'Neal, both women are faced with disturbing questions about their own lives - questions to which they had subconsciously been seeking the answers to all their lives, questions that they finally have to deal with.

Elizabeth Warren and Sheri Davenport have created a compelling tale in ON THE WAY TO WOODSTOCK. It is a must read for both Baby Boomers and Generation X. It is an excellent way for one generation to try to understand the other.

Kristie Leigh Maguire, author of Emails from the Edge: The Life of an Expatriate Wife, The Marcie Trilogy(Desert Triangle, Cabin Fever, Ring of Fire), contributor to Calliope's Mousepad: Women Writers Online ...

It has become chic to apply words like "turbulent" and "rebellious" to the late 1960's, and the Woodstock Music Festival has become iconic as a benchmark of the time.

Elizabeth Warren and Sheri Davenport return to that era with this complex coming-of-age story of two young women who meet as college roommates and go one to share many of the kinds of events that earmark the Sixties. It is a story of friendship, secrets and the struggle for identity no one truly escapes, although often it is far-too-long postponed.

Life is wearing Jess Martin down. The only thing remotely resembling love in her life is her affair with her married boss, and she has just flubbed a major account. Then, a young woman bearing a haunting resemblance to the woman who was Jess's best friend and constant gadfly appears on her doorstep and drags Jess into a part of the past she would just as soon not have to recall.

ON THE WAY TO WOODSTOCK is an emotionally rich journey through the heart and mind of a woman who has always sought safety in convention, even when she outwardly seemed to rebel. The authors have created characters as diverse and complicated as any who tuned in, turned on and dropped out. Their depiction of the friendship between Jess and Holly, two young women both searching for the same thing yet completely opposite in their method of pursuit, has a verity that will resonate with anyone who ever had a best friend they loved and hated and couldn't imagine living without until they had no choice.

Equally compelling is their portrait of Zoe, the illegitimate daughter Holly gave up for adoption who invades Jess's life demanding to know as much as she can about her real mother because she herself is pregnant. Her unremitting insistence on information forces Jess to take a hard look at the meaning of her life and the patterns that have dominated it, and in the process both women come to grips with who they are and how they fit into their worlds.

Those who lived through the late 1960's will no doubt experience a sense of deja vu, so clearly are the sights and sounds of those years presented. ON THE WAY TO WOODSTOCK isn't just for them, however. It is a first-rate look into the interwoven lives of three women from two generations that will enthrall anyone who has ever looked into his or her mirror and found a stranger looking back.

Forget about all that Autobiography stuff, and definitely try to forget all the recent stuff this chick's been writing. Anne Carson is at her best in the first section of this book, "The Glass Essay."

What makes this book worth it is the very first essay in the collection, The Glass Essay, a work that is written in verse and that is tinged with the kind of mix of immagination and scholarship that has made Carson's work so popular. By far, however, this is one of her best works. Certainly better than the journeys she has made into poetry exclusively recently. Read this essay before any of her other work and you will have an excellent primer for this evocative writer!

This book contains one traditional essay, a fascinating study of language and gender (classical Greece to Freud), and five poems which blur the line between essay and poetry. The net result is the exploration of very complex thoughts in a very readable form - a form that hides the complexity behind very concrete, common life images.

In "The Glass Essay" grief over a lost relationship, the relationship between the Bronte sisters, the relationship between mother-daughter, and the writings of Emily Bronte are explored in a seamless manner.

"The Truth About God" is a search for the meaning of God in our era. The opening stanza sets the tone for the exploration: "My religion makes no sense / and does not help me / therefore I pursue it." It draws from Beethoven's life, from Teresa of Avila, from the apophatic theology ...

"TV men" mixes Greek heroes and Gods with filming - meet Hector and Socrates in a new environment. "The Fall of Rome: A Traveller's Guide" explores personal relationships (or lack thereof) when language becomes a barrier not a bridge. "Book of Isaiah" explores the mindset behind the Biblical text of Isaiah.

The strength of this book is that the vast knowledge behind the writing is made accessible to the reader rather than being required of the reader. This is a book that makes the reader want to read more of the author's work.

I can't believe this is out of print! This book introduced me to sourdough baking, and I haven't had a recipe failure yet. The basic starter is foolproof, and the bread recipes are fantastic. The sourdough chocolate cake is both scrumptious and unique. I have been making extra-large sourdough onion-cheese sandwich buns for decades; they require no kneading, freeze beautifully, and make for show-stopping burgers. I hope the publisher reprints this cookbook--my copy is falling apart!

Can't believe this is out of print! My copy is very well used and I wanted to give it as gifts to friends and family again this Christmas. I use this book constantly. When I bought it the price was $4.95, that's how long ago it was. I've never had a failure with any of the recipes. The waffle and pancake recipes in many variations are outstanding. The information on how make, handle, and use sourdough starter is very good. The book is geared toward todays good cook, unlike some of the other books on the subject which tend to focus on old time recipes. Hope the publisher will reconsider.

You have gotton your sourdough starter, now what do you do with it? I love this book it is a book that focuses only on sourdough recipes. The book starts off with telling you all about sourdough, and how to keep yours alive and healthy. If you don't have a starter, this book gives you 8 recipes for different types of starter, best of all she lets you know what to expect, and how to keep it going, which is very important, as it only gets better with age.
The remainder of this book is filled, and I do mean filled with tons of recipes. She goes beyond just bread, she has recipes on yes breads, biscuits, pancakes, cakes, main dishes and so much more. This is an inexpensive book that is worth every penny for what it has to offer. If you are even considering getting into sourdough bread making, I can't recommend this book enough.

It's good to compare players using adjusted stats. However, the book should also contain REAL stats. Because adjusted stats are just approximations.

This book, and every one in the series is great. Great tips, insight and humour covering all the teams in MLB and every minor league "prospect". A must have for rotisserie league participants.

The one reviewer made the comment that any such book should use "real" stats, instead of adjusted. That defies all principles of statistical analysis! Such an approach would render the book useless, and the reviewer's comments should be struck from this collection of reviews because that reviewer is obviously unqualified.

I found the book incredibly useful, because the author made every attempt to render accurate information.

I bought this book with the hopes of reading more about time travel and it's possibilities which
this book offers up with some interesting, yet controversial possibilities on how future humans,
aliens, or both might be visiting earth during it's past, present, and future. The information in this
book is well researched and documented into an easy to read format that leaves the reader with
enough information to make individual opinions on the subject. The author of this book obviously
has a passion for the subject and that in my opinion makes for a good and interesting read. I for
one appreciate the effort put into this and I now have a more open mind when it
comes to UFO's and other things thought to be "non fact" by the general population. However, I
thought the text could have been written in a more interesting fashion as to grab the attention of
the reader and keep it fresh and interesting during the long drawn out stories of interviewed
people. I sometimes thought this was more of a compilation of other books and articles slapped
into an easy to read manual which to me is not a book. The authors opinions and theories,
however, intriguing they may be, probably could have been written in a chapter or two. I, probably like
many people, think some of the ideas in this book are wrong, but that is to be expected. The
beautiful thing about this book is the author encourages that thought process and openly admits
that statistically some of his theories are wrong. I do recommend this book to a fan of the mystery
that is UFO's and to anyone curious about their origins and purposes. The theories in this book
are by far the best I have read yet and it is a must read for anyone interested in the subject of
UFO's and time travel.

I read this book several years ago and have met Marc Davenport personally as well as heard him lecture. The information is well presented and answers the problems of how ET vessels are able to travel thousands of light years between planets and star systems. Doplar evidence is presented indicating the UFO type of technology upon entering, movement and leaving our space time continium. It is esentially sub space travel ( travel at a higher frequency of vibration than the physical). The Mountauk series of books by Preston Nickols and information about the USS Eldrige Naval experiments in 1943 ( Project rainbow and the Philadelphia Experiment) to render a ship invisable to radar relates to the same technology. I think you will like the book if you wonder about how practical space travel is possible and how ET's have been able to interact with humans throughout history as evidenced in William Bramley's "Gods of Eden", Rule by Secrecy, by Jim Marrs, Alien Agenda, by Jim Marrs. Also Courtney Browns remote viewing books (Cosmic- something?) that have targeted Alien vessels and their technology are interesting. Even Robert Monroe's books, Far Journeys and Ultimate Journey touch on the alien technology of sub space alien travel ( in his Out Of Body Explorations, and in which he trained Intelligence personnel for covert intelligence gathering operations in the 1980's ( many books in this area published such as David Morehouse "Psychic Spy"). Once a vessel is in sub space or in a higher vibration than our physical reality, time travel is relatively simple as the vessel can reinsert itself forward or backward in time over great (many light years) distances in minutes if not seconds to our physical reality ( a lower vibration than sub space). ( Spiritual beings such as Angels in our holy books also happen to reside in these higher vibrational levels of reality and exist outside of "Our Time") It is absolutely facinating. I believe some human organizations have this technology which will be evident in coming years. Read the book and others I have mentioned here for a great mind expanding experience. I dont have a spell checker here so forgive the possible misspellings.

This book is the closest thing to seeing aliens alive. My personal experience with aliens corresponds to the explanations given in this book. Time is the obsession and the object of manipulation of aliens. The message of this book is that through the control of time human consciousness can be easily manipulated. When are human beings going to go beyond time??? That is the only answer.

The 1990s may well be remembered as the decade of employee empowerment (at least in management theory circles), but very few companies ever put their money where their mouths were when it came to dismantling the old "command-and-control" structures. Thomas O. Davenport makes a fresh case for empowerment by placing the argument in the context of the current tight labor market, and presenting scarce knowledge workers as investors of human capital. These human capital investors should be valued, nurtured and rewarded by companies in much the same way that financial investors are cared for. Although many of the conclusions that result from this novel theory mirror those of earlier works in employee empowerment, we [...] strongly recommend this book for its original take on the changing nature of the employer/employee relationship.

This book is a valuable and well-written summary of key elements in the equation of how to entice employees - human capital investors - to invest in your enterprise to the benefit of both parties. It pulls together in one book, and one coherent framework, lots of valuable concepts. It is also full of practical ideas on how to implement those concepts. It's worth reading for those who are interested in leading people effectively.

Actually, if you are interested in this subject, there are at least four books to read: this one, Fitz-enz's The ROI of Human Capital, and two different books with the same title, Intellectual Capital, by Annie Brooking and Tom Stewart. So often, we hear someone say that "Our most valuable assets walk out the door at the end of each day." That's true. But what does it really mean when assigning value to human "assets"? Davenport has written a very solid book (I'm NOT damning with faint praise), one which I strongly recommend. Given the importance of this subject, I again suggest reading at least the four books previously identified. Who knows? Davenport may be, in your considered opinion, the most hepful. He has a sharp mind. He writes very well indeed. His observations and suggestions are rock-solid. (Chapter Nine all by itself is well worth the cost of the book.) My initial rating of his book was Four Stars but as I began to formulate my thoughts which comprise this brief commentary, I've changed my mind. When transmitting to the Amazonians, I shall increase that rating to Five Stars. How valuable this book is to you is a determination only you can make. One final point: For the cost of only one hour of my time as an independent management consultant, you can purchase at least four books on this critically important subject. If that isn't great value, I really don't know what is.

In my oppinion, this book is one of the best books on alien abduction ever. I am just reading the Reference guide from the same author.... It is great too.

I was amazed at the content of this book. Not only did it provide details of the ET experience from an experiencer point of view, it sought to deal with the issues faced by individuals involved in a phenomenon about which there is little or no publicized objective data.

I would heartily recommend this book to anyone seeking to understand the nature of the abduction experience.

For those looking for practical solutions that will help them synthesize the nature of this labrinthine topic, it is an outstanding tool for their library.

It was not what I expected from ufo books. I found it refreshing and information. It is very good for reading about ufo occupants and what they are doing on abduction victims. I expected it to be of abduction much like Travis Walton or Betty Hill and that is all. It told more than just medical test. It told more than just scared people. It was very good to read.

Saj W.

I recently took this guidebook on a two-week trip around the UK and found it to be just as useful and dead-on as every other LP book I've used (even though it is almost two years old). I looked at some of the others, and this the only budget guide for Britain worth picking up. Forget Fodor's, Frommer's, and Let's Go - this book is all you need for a trip to the British Isles.

I have traveled to England a dozen times and I own current editions of 12 different guidebooks. This is far and away the best. It has the most useful information in the easiest to use format. For one thing it has all the travel planning facts you need. In addition, the destinations are described with writing that is evocative, imaginative and accurate. The recommendations are reliable and I was never steered wrong in selecting lodgings and restaurants. Before I found this book, I had to combine three different books to get all the information that's included in this one. From a veteran traveler, I highly recommend the Lonely Planet guide.

This summer I took an awesome two week tour of Great Britain with Contiki Tours. The tour was great because of how it mixed a rigid tour with free time. My free time was excellent thanks to the information in this guide. I had used Lonely Planet before when I visited China. They did a great job on that book and they did a great job on this one. The information, history, culture and advice are priceless. This is a great guidebook to have. Lonely Planet might not have zillions of colour pictures, but it has priceless information and commentary.

Although I am sure a lot of time and research went into this book, the statistics listed and projected in no way relate to real life baseball numbers. I guess if you want to transplant Chipper Jones into Fenway Park or the Astrodome you can make somewhat of a comparision, if that is what you are into- but this in NO WAY relates to real life baseball as we know it. In fact it is only the author's opinion regarding his concocted logic and values that measures different leagues, stadium effects, etc.

Does this help the fantasy league player? It might- but who knows since I am not involved in these leagues. I bought the book on a friends advice that it was an interesting and fine resource book. I tossed it into the trash after studying and reading thru it once. What a mistake and waste of 20 bucks. It seems that one man's opinions and outlook on what skills/statistics are important to rate players on dominates his projections and conclusions. This book may be "the berries" for some of you but it was NOT for me.

Baseball Prospectus is the probably the best of the yearly annuals. With the addition of Pitcher Abuse Points to their excellent roster of stats and reports on minor leaguers, it's a book that's a useful companion for the year ahead.

But Baseball Prospectus has two problems: first, the statistics contained aren't real. If you quote a batter's statistics to someone in an argument over a player's worthlessness, you can get caught making stuff up. The statistics for players are translated to park-neutral etc. While this is fine and good, in one sense, in another, I'd like to know what a player's K/BB ratio was for real, not what it should have been.

The other problem is that Baseball Prospectus does a lot of hedging in comments (I think so that each year they can say "Correctly forecasted the rise/decline of Player X"). Too many players have comments like "If healthy, look for him to have a great year. Otherwise, expect a steep decline." For a book with such a strong sense of its own place and an original perspective, it's disappointing they'd stoop to this in order to make good quotes for the next year's back cover.

That aside, Baseball Prospectus offers great information unavailable anywhere else. Get it first, then complain.

I have often admired those who can spout names and numbers, ERAs, and any other fact you might want to know about baseball. Now I know what the fact finders do when there is no night baseball! Any fan, parent or relative of a fan now has the perfect gift to give. BASEBALL PROSPECTUS 1999 is a book a baseball fan cannot put down, "literally or figuratively". As a bonus, it is enjoyable and light reading. This book gets us from first to second to third base and home again. And between games, you should also read THE 2,000 PERCENT SOLUTION, by Mitchell, Coles and Metz which will get you from first base - you have a problem, to second base - identifying why you are stalled, to third base - learn ways to develop many solutions to "help you hit the ball twenty times as often or twenty times as well" , and take you home again to begin perfecting the process. Because each time you run the bases, you will get better at it and find more ways to succeed. If you are a baseball fan, you will score by reading both of these books.