I've had Rodale's Synonym Finder in my reference library for over ten years, and find that I use it at least ten times a month. There is simply no other book in the English language that is more comprehensive (the number of pages is an obvious give away) nor more helpful. As a lover of language, I frequently examine other such books, and always find that they come up short against this exhaustive resource. What makes this particular reference so valuable is that it recognizes each word usually has more than one meaning, and when it gives a synonym, it is by meaning, not simply by word. Moreover, the reference gives various examples when a word is used as an adjective or adverb, and either as a noun or a verb. It's this breadth and depth that makes this particular synonym finder so extraordinarily superior to the competition. My only lament is that it doesn't include antonymns, but then the book would probably be too large and too cumbersome. As it stands now, the words are clearly displayed, and the synonyms - in all their variety - are abundant.

I've heard it said that using a thesaurus can poison your style. When applied to some of the older books in this category, that may be true, but never Rodale's. It's a treasure trove! I work from the 1978 edition in which Laurence Urdang begins his Introduction with the curious statement that "...there is no such thing as a true 'synonym.'" So use the book with caution!

No other thesaurus I've seen facilitates that caution. Rodale's enables you to look at the word choices with enough objectivity to see the wealth of nuances of meaning reflected in each one.

This book is indispensable, reliable, accessible, and fun reading!

When I bought the 1978 edition twenty years ago or so (am I really that old?), I just needed something to help me with my writing in college. To me it was just a thesaurus, and I needed a thesaurus. Over the years I have bought and used other thesauri and have discovered that none helps me find that elusive word as well as The Synonym Finder. I am not a writer, but I do value the quality of my writing. Frequently I find that I want to say something a certain way. I know there is a word that expresses the subtleties of what I want to say, but I cannot think of the word. I have found that the only book which can lead me to that word nearly every time is The Synonym Finder. No Thesaurus has ever been so consistently helpful to me. Recently I have found a stiff competitor (thesaurus.com) that works very well, but it is not a book. For anyone who wants a source that you can hold in your hand and find that word. This is your book.

I started smoking, I realize after reading this book, because of a low self esteem problem that I had when I was only 13 years old. I am now 39 and have not smoked in one year. I recently went on a "girl" vacation with some high school buddies and started puffing on the odd cigar. 3 weeks later I have bought a pakage of cigarettes. I feel very very lousy for doing it and feel the need to get my own copy of this book and read it again. And again, if I have to. I do not want to be a smoker again, I have enjoyed so much freedom from them. I do a one hour work out daily and have never felt so good in all of my life. Thank you Mr Allen Carr for this wonderful freedom that I thought I would never have. I still have people raving about the fact that I quit, because even they did not think I could.

I was a smoker for 15 years. My brother gave me the book having just quit after reading it. I let it sit on the desk for 3 months because I didn't want to know. I finally read it and haven't smoked since. If you're honest with yourself, you can't/won't continue to smoke. The nice thing is that even though the withdrawl stinks -- you don't want to smoke to relieve it. And, the withdrawl pangs go away. I didn't buy the book from Amazon, but I'm here to find it so I can send the details to a friend who still smokes. (I gave my copy to a friend).

I had been thinking about quitting smoking for some time and just happened to come across this book which seemed to get good reviews here and elsewhere. Most impressive was the claim that people read the book and simply threw away their cigarettes, not wanting to smoke anymore! I had to try it.
The book just makes sense. I believe that you have to WANT to quit to make it effective. I stretched out my reading of the book for a whole week waiting for the mythical "last chapter." The last chapter came, I thought, that's it? Kind of anticlimactic. Then I smoked one more cigarette, put it out and as of today have not smoked one in three days. This is a record for me, I have not quit for longer than 24 hours in over ten years, despite other efforts using the patch, etc. I simply don't want to smoke, because just one will start the whole cycle again. To do so would only be cheating myself. I know this time is for real.
As to others' claims of no withdrawal pangs, I doubt it. Easy? Painless? Maybe not, at least for me. I still want a cigarette occasionally, but I know I'll never smoke one again. Get the book, read it, it makes sense. Beyond the nicotine addiction, the rest is in your head! Break free.

'You are a great lover'
'Yeah I practiced a lot on my own'...
Love and Death is the funniest Allen movie, and one of his best. Not different in its comic style from his early slapstick period, (Bannas, Sleeper..), but has much more depth as Allen takes full on the Russian revolution, and literature, God and war in a very intelligent and intellectual way. You can tell how Allen was developing his on camera one-liners, or his self analysis ramblings, that he used perfectly in Annie Hall and Manhatten.
He also pays tribute to Ingmar Bergman, especially in the Death scenes. (The Seventh Seal).
Diane Keaton delivers one of her best performances for Allen, along with his underrated masterpiece Interiors.
In France and Europe, they consider film directors as artists, in the same league as poets, composers and painters, and rank Woody Allen among the finest, and quite rightly so.
BUY Love and Death and you would really appreciate how great an artist Allen is.
'I love him like a brother, just not one of my own'.
This is great moviemaking, and very fuuny to boost!.

When the American Film Institute brought out its list of 100 greatest comedies, FIVE of Woody Allen's films were listed: ANNIE HALL, BANANAS, MANHATTAN, SLEEPER, and TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN. All great movies, to be sure. You may notice that LOVE & DEATH is missing from that list. To this day, I do not understand why.

LOVE & DEATH is the most consistently funny film Woody Allen has ever made. It is one of the few of his films I can watch over and over again and not get tired of it. True, knowledge of Russian literature may help you understand some of the jokes, but it is in no way required in order for you to enjoy this film. Combining hilarious visual comedy mirroring that of Chaplin or Keaton along with witty banter that would make Groucho proud, LOVE & DEATH is the greatest hidden treasure in the Woody Allen library.

"Yay, I shall walk through the valley of the shadow of death. In fact, I shall RUN through the valley of the shadow of death cause you get through the valley quicker that way."

For me, "Love and Death" bridges together the slapstick satire of Woody's early movies with the grand verbal wit of the later movies. It never falls into the trap of relying too much on the former, and its reliance on the latter produces some of the silliest Woody dialogue I've ever heard. But it's the perfect mixture between the two that makes this my pick for funniest Woody Allen flick. So far.

I've always felt that the context (Russia in the 19th century and the Napoleonic Wars) and the content (pre-existentialist philosophy) were fine targets to satire. The opening scenes, where Woody as narrator introduces his screwball family, are truly looney-tuney. And the scenes where Woody (Boris) and Diane Keaton (Sonja) talk philosophy, serve more to make fun of the ridiculous gibberish they are engaged in than to further the philosophical discourse. The truer philosophical discussions come in the form of setup-punchline jokes delivered later on ("If it turns out that there IS a God, I don't think that he's evil; I think that the worst you can say about him is that basically he's an underachiever"). This is all good stuff.

Woody's performance here reminded me a lot of really good Groucho Marx. His wiseguy retorts to oblivious inquisitors are done in the same winking/nod to the camera manner that Groucho mined for gold. And Woody, with his messy red hair and horn-rimmed glasses, looks every bit the sarcastic clown that Groucho did. There's one particular scene ("She's a great kidder... No, you're a great kidder... No, you're Don Francisco's sister") which mimics the Marx Brothers doubletalk style perfectly. In the film's second half, Woody takes a step back, to allow Diane Keaton some grand time in the Groucho persona. And she runs with it. Keaton is an underrated comic actress, usually overshadowed by Woody. Here, she rolls her eyes, grins goofily, has great comic timing, and appears to be having a gloriously good time delivering her dialogue. You can see Woody's pride as he stands to the side and watches her go great guns.

There are many truly hilarious scenes here (my favourite: Woody, drawn into a duel, is offered to choose his weapon from a pair of guns; he picks them both up, examines them for a moment, and then says "I'll take these"), the scenery is shot gorgeously, the music by Prokofiev is jubilant and fits in perfectly with the film, and there is never a down moment. Come to think of it, the pace reminds me of the joke-a-minute style "pioneered" by the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker "Airplane" movies. Only Woody, dear Woody, bestows such intelligence and wit upon the material that it is elevated to a divine state.

"Information Technology Control and Audit" is an outstanding book! It provides a step by step of IS auditing process and tremendous amount of up to date information on IT control as well as audit related issues. This book provides information starting from the importance of control and auditability, audit role in Computer Information System, the use of Computer-Assisted Audit Tools and Techniques in audit, and the complexities of CIS operations and control issues. The appendixes of this book are also valuable. We can find audit cases that are related to real life situation, professional standards applying to IT, and samples of audit program on them. This book is really worth to read. If you can only keep one book with you, this book is the one!

The Information Technology Control and Audit's book provides a step by step and an up-to-date information of information audit in today's complex and fast changing computing environment. I have gone through chapter by chapter and I found that this book is like a tour guide for the new people who is entering in IS area. It provides a thorough guidance on the audit process in an IS environment, control in system development process, application risks and control, operational controls, using tools and techniques in IT operation review, many more topics related to IS audit. In addition to the people who are already in the IS area, this book is like an audit bible where you can find all the information you need to refer to regarding an IS audit. Besides, this book also talks about the legal issues in IS auditing today and in the future and its impacts to IS auditor's role in assisting management and legal counsel. Not to forget the appendix's section, which consists of some, useful IS audit case's study, a bibliography of selected publications for information technology auditors, professional standards that apply to information technology, glossary, and a sample of audit programs. These gives us a reference where to find both standards and guidelines related to information technology established by professional organizations in addition to a better understanding of IS audit that is covered in the first several chapters. I strongly recommend this book to everyone who wants to know or need a deeper understanding of IS auditing.

PROS: Information Technology Control and Audit is a great book. If you are interested in the profession of IT auditing, then this book is for you. This book covers everything you need to know about the field of IT auditing. Topics covered in this book include: CAATs , IT auditing standards and guidelines, audit planning, internal controls, auditing of operation systems , auditing of applications, auditing of the software development process, auditing of CIS operation and network security. In addition, This book is a very good research tool. Its appendices have lots of information about IT professional organizations. Students and IT professionals who want more detail information about a particular topic covered in this book can visit these organizations' web site for more information. To help people without technical IT skill, this book has a glossary that explains complex IT terms in plain English.

CONS: I found some minor spelling errors. Also, this book does not have any colorful charts and graphs. This makes it look really boring.

Signals came to me in a very serendipitous manner, and when I opened it up to read it, I had "chills" I could not explain. I've read many books on "life after death", watched many mediums connect with those who've passed on, but something was different about Joel's story......something that connected to my SOUL like nothing else ever had.

Throughout this book, I found hope, encouragement, affirmation of love as well as closure that I'd not been able to find through any other way. (I was especially thrilled to know that Albert, like my dearly departed mother, loved hummingbirds too! And mom fed every stray cat around as well!) This book gave me hope -- reminded me that those we've "lost" are NOT gone..... they are just not "seen", and that LOVE, never, ever, dies.

Instead of crying with grief over my "lost" loved ones, as I usually did after reading such a book, I closed Joel's book and literally cried with JOY! For the first time since my loved ones passed on, I felt that they truly were with me and not "gone" forever.

This has been one of the most inspiring and heartwarming books I've read and I am truly grateful to Albert and Joel for reminding me that love is the ONLY thing that matters!!!

I loved SIGNALS written by Joel Rothschild, a man with AIDS, who lost many of his friends to that disease. His best-loved friend, Albert, who also suffered from AIDS, committed suicide leaving Joel desolately alone. The two had made a pact that whoever died first would contact the other. Well, Albert did, and in many startling, magical and also, symbolic ways, demonstrates his continued life on another dimension. Following Albert's death, Joel, a skeptic in the beginning, receives the gift of perception that allows him to sense the presence of souls wishing to communicate with their loved ones. Joel's story is highly engaging and thought-provoking. It will tug at your heart and it will open your mind.

We receive another gift from Joel's book. Through his afterdeath experiences with Albert, Joel is taught about the preciousness of life--to live every single moment with full attention and awareness. He also learns the role of attitude in health and healing. Joel attributes his long-standing survival of AIDS to this knowledge. After reading SIGNALS you will never think about the moments that comprise your day in the same way. And, you will want to stop any negative thinking in its tracks!

The flow of life is an orchestrated miracle, and SIGNALS helps us to see and understand the messages of love which the universe personally sends to each one of us. More than a book of hope, more than a story of healing, SIGNALS gives us the beautiful life-affirming gift of being able to actually see the messages of love for ourselves. A quick and easy read, and yet SIGNALS is one of the most important and powerful books I have ever read. Whether you already believe in life after death or simply wish to know that there is more to life, this book will truly be an eye-opener. SIGNALS has changed my life forever. Joel Rothschild's book has given me insights and understanding, as well as new ways of seeing endless gifts of love and life which can only increase. Miracles abound, and SIGNALS is truly a miracle in itself.

It's a sweet story of a 'simple' stuffed rabbit amidst the more 'complex' modern toys in a boy's "toy collection". The rabbit starts to believe that in order to get the love of the boy, he needs to appear 'real', or be able to zoom about like the motorized toys...
(And I'm not going to tell you the end hahahahaha!!!)
It was great having that read to me, while I was hugging my stuffed animals in bed.
But -- in a way, at first glance it looks like a simple story, but it is actually a surprisingly complex story. Leave it on your child's bookshelf as he/she grows up and he/she will reread it again and again as he/she questions issues such as "who am I?", "what does it mean to be 'real'"?, "what is my role in this world?", and even "what is death"?

I make sure I use this book with each class I teach--3rd and4th graders. They always get it--that love makes us real, too. Theymake the connection between the Skin Horse becoming shabby and people getting old. I always bring in my stuffed velveteen rabbit I bought years ago and it starts making the rounds and popping up on different children's laps. It is a pleasure to see them become attached to the rabbit instead of "mechanical toys that were very superior, and looked down upon everyone else." They also relate to the lessons the Velveteen Rabbit learns from the Skin Horse about how becoming real is a painful process sometimes and can take a long time.

This book is a simple work of art. Its beauty in itself is virtually indescribable. When I was little, it was my favorite book. In fact, I've had it ever since I was born. It is about a boy who owns a stuffed rabbit, and longs for it to be real. Eventually, because he loved the rabbit so much, his wish was granted. The book is so well written that it brings tears to my eyes almost every time I read it. It is definitely one of my all-time favorites.

A coffeehouse friend loaned me this thin book and encouraged me to read it. "It's one of my favorites," she said, smiling enthusiatically. Derived from his own "meditation and experience," James Allen (1864-1912) wrote this inspirational, turn-of-the-century book on the eve of the Industrial Revolution in England. He gets right to the point of his book in its opening sentence: "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he." We are literally what we think, Allen explains, and our character is the sum of all our thoughts. "Good thoughts and actions can never produce bad results; bad thoughts and actions can never produce good results," he writes. "This is but saying that nothing can come from corn but corn, nothing from nettles but nettles. Men understand this law in the natural world, and work with it; but few understand it in the mental and moral world."

Life is complicated and Allen is frequently simplistic, but his little book should not be underestimated. Short in length but deep in content, it will take you on a life-affirming journey through seven chapters in which Allen asserts that life is better lived with self-control, right thought, and calmness. His observations will appeal to deep-thinking contemplatives and visionaries, alike. A calm, contemplative man, he observes, is like "a shade-giving tree in a thirsty land, or a sheltering rock in a storm. 'Who does not love a tranquil heart, a sweet-tempered, balanced life? It does not matter whether it rains or shines, or what changes come to those possessing these blessings, for they are always sweet, serene, and calm'." The dreamers are "the saviors of the world," Allen writes, and our dreams are "the seedlings of realities." "The oak sleeps in the acorn; the bird waits in the egg; and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs." And for those "tempest-tossed souls" seeking more tranquility and balance in their life, Allen's book offers an excellent starting point to a sweeter life.

G. Merritt

I picked up this book because of the title, how we think and why is an interesting subject, but this book goes beyond that. I loved how the book immediately went to the point of it's subject. It explains how we as human thinking machines can alter our lives for the better just through our thought process, James Allen gives a simple explanation on how what we think is what we are. As deep and way out there as it may sound, he doesn't just babble, he gets to the point with examples and explanations of why this is so. The book just gives you the key to this power we all have and can easily develop by just changing our thoughts. There's a chapter for different aspects of our lives, and it's easily read in a short time, I've read it 5 times myself, and love it everytime. It's a very positive and inspirational book, and written decades ago by a man "I Beleive" really cares, and was not out just to make money on this "New Age Generation" (with no offense to other authors, there are good ones out there)

I ran into this little book in a bargain bin. And what a bargain it was! It clearly shows how the workings of your mind have a direct effect on your life. Like the old computer adage, "Garbage in, garbage out", it shows how we sabotage ourselves with our own thoughts and further reduce our energy to deal with whatever comes our way. It also made me think of the people I have known who have inspired me or brought me down, what kind of person they were, and how they thought about life. Negatives will get you nowhere! Although I'm in my 60's now, I wish I had read this book as a teenager. The precepts in this book can only help you to be more fulfilled, successful, giving, centered, wise, and happy to be you! Buy this book, or even more to give away, because you won't want to let yours go. I just keep going back to mine. After reading this little gem, I got the book called "The Wisdom of James Allen, which contains 5 of his inspiring essays, including this one. We should share the word about this amazing and under-appreciated writer to those around us.

"The Sopranos" is a landmark in the history of television. Themes and motifs previously avoided on the small screen are common fare on this exquisitely written series. In writing this book, Mr. Rucker has performed an act of extraordinary generosity appreciated by all fans of this weekly drama. My only criticism, however slight, is to echo the complaint of a fellow reviewer and neighbor of ex-President Clinton, Mr. James P. Finnegan from happy Chappaqua, NY. Like Mr. Finnegan, I felt that the ever-lucid writing of Jeffrey Wernick would have been better served in a longer introduction. This a paltry criticism based on a personal admiration for Mr. Wernick's eloquence. Nevertheless, this tome has my unqualified 5-star recommendation.

As a huge (pronounced "yooge") fan of "The Sopranos," I approached this book with some trepidation (pronounced "trepidation"). I've seen every episode at least three times and I've been known to start reciting lines from the show at business meetings and in Church. I worried that the book would be written by some doozybotts who didn't know nothing about the show. I was very surprised to find that, not only does Mr. Rucker know everything there is to know about "The Sopranos," he knows even more about the Sopranos. In other words -- if I've lost you -- he tells us stuff about the family that we haven't learned from the show. The book reads like a Mario Puzo novel in places and not at all like some trashy TV companion book. (I once read "Where the The Real Car 54 Is," allegedly written by Gunther Tooty, and it wasn't worth the paper it was written on.) My only complaint is that the introduction, by crime reporter extraordinaire Jeffrey Wernick, was not longer. That man has some insight! Buy the book today!

This book is awesome. The author is a mafia expert and a Sopranos expert, and the combination works well. Some of the highlights include FBI files on the whole family as well as the full history on where the Soprano family fits into the crime world. As a Soprano junkie, this book represents the ultimite fix. This will keep you busy during the cold bleak off season. Buy this book!

Let me start this review by confessing that I am biased. One of my letters from Vietnam is included in the book. I therefore view the book differently from the average reader.

I also got an advance copy of the book a week before the official release date, and have been able to read it.

Andrew Carroll produced this book by reading through almost 50,000 letters and selected roughly 200 that best show what everyday life in the military - and in war - are like from the viewpoint of the average soldier, sailor, marine, and airman.

Andy was able to get these letters by persuading Dear Abby to publish an appeal in her column on Veteran's Day in 1998. The column urged readers to contribute these letters so that the sacrifices of the writers would not be forgotten. The result was a flood of 50,000 letters - some faded, some muddy, some blood-stained, and one pierced by a bullet. One letter was written on Hitler's personal stationary by an American sergeant who worked in Hitler's personal quarters in Germany just after WW II. What could be a better symbol of justice?

The letter writers' views are very different than the views you will get by reading the memoirs of a general or an admiral. When I was in the Army, there was a wonderful comment that explained life in the Infantry:

"The general gets the glory, The family gets the body, and We get another mission."

Your view of the military - and of war - changes depending on your position in this food chain.

Overcoming an enemy machine gun is an interesting technical problem when you are circling a firefight in a helicopter at 1,000 feet. You take a very different view of the problem when you are so close to the machine gun that your body pulses from the shock wave of the muzzle blast.

These letters were written by soldiers while they were in the military. They are describing events that happened that day, the pervious day, or the previous week. Their memories are very fresh. Their views also are very different from the views that someone might have when writing his memoirs thirty years later. In thirty years the everyday pains, problems, and terrors could very well be forgotten or become humorous.

The book groups these letters by war or police action. There are sections for letters from the Civil War, WW I (the war to end wars), WW II, Vietnam War, Desert Storm, and Somolia/Bosnia/Kosovo.

Some things never change. The Civil War letter writers grumble about poor food, tiresome marches, mindless sergeants and incompetent officers. The Vietnam letter writers (myself included) grumbled about the same things.

One anguished letter was from an officer in Vietnam who was torn by his need to hide his opposition to the war for fear of demoralizing his men. At the end of the letter is a brief comment explaining that the officer stepped on a mine and died shortly after writing this letter.

Welcome to life in the military. Welcome to war.

You should read this book if you want to see what life was like and is like in the military and in war.

Let me start this review by confessing that I am biased. One of my letters from Vietnam is included in the book. I therefore view the book differently from the average reader.

I also got an advance copy of the book a week before the official release date, and have been able to read it.

Andrew Carroll produced this book by reading through almost 50,000 letters and selected roughly 200 that best show what everyday life in the military - and in war - are like from the viewpoint of the average soldier, sailor, marine, and airman.

Andy was able to get these letters by persuading Dear Abby to publish an appeal in her column on Veteran's Day in 1998. The column urged readers to contribute these letters so that the sacrifices of the writers would not be forgotten. The result was a flood of 50,000 letters - some faded, some muddy, some blood-stained, and one pierced by a bullet. One letter was written on Hitler's personal stationary by an American sergeant who worked in Hitler's personal quarters in Germany just after WW II. What could be a better symbol of justice?

The letter writers' views are very different than the views you will get by reading the memoirs of a general or an admiral. When I was in the Army, there was a wonderful comment that explained life in the Infantry:

"The general gets the glory, The family gets the body, and We get another mission."

Your view of the military - and of war - changes depending on your position in this food chain.

Overcoming an enemy machine gun is an interesting technical problem when you are circling a firefight in a helicopter at 1,000 feet. You take a very different view of the problem when you are so close to the machine gun that your body pulses from the shock wave of the muzzle blast.

These letters were written by soldiers while they were in the military. They are describing events that happened that day, the pervious day, or the previous week. Their memories are very fresh. Their views also are very different from the views that someone might have when writing his memoirs thirty years later. In thirty years the everyday pains, problems, and terrors could very well be forgotten or become humorous.

The book groups these letters by war or police action. There are sections for letters from the Civil War, WW I (the war to end wars), WW II, Vietnam War, Desert Storm, and Somolia/Bosnia/Kosovo.

Some things never change. The Civil War letter writers grumble about poor food, tiresome marches, mindless sergeants and incompetent officers. The Vietnam letter writers (myself included) grumbled about the same things.

One anguished letter was from an officer in Vietnam who was torn by his need to hide his opposition to the war for fear of demoralizing his men. At the end of the letter is a brief comment explaining that the officer stepped on a mine and died shortly after writing this letter.

Welcome to life in the military. Welcome to war.

You should read this book if you want to see what life was like and is like in the military and in war.

This book, War Letters: Extraordinary Correspondence from American Wars, by Andrew Carroll (Editor) is a touching book. With the recent release of the movie Pearl Harbor, the questions that my generation wants to ask the veterans of war are rising out of the ashes once again. Carroll did an excellent job of putting together a collage of soldier's letters which portrays the true emotions of our freedom fighters. Recently having studied many of the wars included in this book, War Letters pulled everything into one book; from the Civil War all the way through Bosnia/Kosovo. The letters in WWI and WWII seemed more hopeful, and 'the great generation' seemed more patriotic. While the soldiers fighting Vietnam had more of a sense of urgency, kind of 'get this over with already' attitude. A common theme with all the letters was they were writing to loved ones, and would claim they would see them soon. Unfortunately, many of these letters were the 'last letters' to the families, some even written on backs of photographs, on scratch paper, or on Hitler's personal stationary. Also, these letters are written a few hours, days, or weeks after the events happened. The soldier has no opportunity to hear what the media said, or how the nation reacted to such a horrific event. They write with their souls, spilling their guts to their families, and shedding their blood for their nation. Granted, having just completed one year of US History helps me understand these events just that much more, but all in all, this book was everything from terrifying to heart warming.

You will laugh, cry and be confused when you read this book. This book can teach you that what you think is good is not always good.

There is a boy named Peter Pan. He sprinkles fairy dust in Wendy and her two brothers. Then he shows them how to fly. He takes them to Neverland and shows them to the Lost Boys who live there. Wendy becomes their mother. She makes up rules, like any other mother would do. The boys have to follow these rules. Everything was fine until Captain Hook came with his crew to where the boys and Wendy were. While Wendy and the boys were at the lagoon, where they go every day after dinner, they see a girl named Tiger Lily, princess of her tribe. She was captured by Smee, one of Captain Hook's men. Then Peter saved her. A few days later Wendy and the boys were on their way to Wendy's house when they too were all captured by Captain Hook. Then Peter saves them. Then the lost boys, Wendy and her brothers go home. All except for Peter.

It is mostly about what the people in the book think is right with childhood. The kids in the book think that if you grow up it is bad, but in our case it is actually good.

Peter Pan is a violent book not really made for children under the age of 10 but people 10 and up can read it. It is violent because of the language that is spoken and the idea that killing could be fun. Also, the vocabulary is very difficult for children under 10 to understand. Even if you're older it is difficult to understand.

Overall, it is a good book but watch out for the violent ideas if you are reading it to little children.

When talking of literature, people tend to look solely at books they read today but forget what they used to read, namely the ones we read as children. It is a common misunderstanding that children's literature is to be read by children and children only, but when we come to think of it, which one of us are not children, at least in our hearts?

One of the best books any child, young or old, can read is Barrie's Peter Pan. Although written in the past century, it has something for any generation at any time. Its humorous views at the world from a child's mind left me rolling over the floor, laughing; the exciting storyline kept me busy with reading until the end; and the serious undertone made me think of whether the world wouldn't be a better place if we realised that deep down, however deep, we are in fact all children. So if YOU are a child, which you most certainly are, get yourself a copy and enjoy your ongoing childhood.

This is an utterly charming work. It has been retold myriad times, but nobody else has done it as well as the original teller, J. M. Barrie.

It's difficult to know what to say about a book like this... everybody knows the story. But I guess that unless you've read this book (not just seen a movie or read a retelling), you don't really know the character Peter Pan, and without knowing the character, you don't really know the story. So read it.

By the way, if you enjoy this, you probably would also like "Sentimental Tommy" and its sequel "Tommy and Grizel", both by Barrie. There are differences (for one thing they're not fantasy), but there are also compelling similarities. Anybody who found Peter Pan a deep and slightly bittersweet book would be sure to enjoy them.

-Stephen