San Francisco is a very "livable" city, especially without a car to worry or pay for. "Short Bike Rides..." suggests two dozen fun routes in and around the city that allow you to make the most of living here without a car. From the fastest way to get across town, to a wonderful rides in Marin and the East Bay I have ridden nearly all of these rides, and enjoyed them immensely. Not only are the directions and maps clear, but Kingman's comments are often very entertaining. There is also a handy supplement in the back listing public transportation contacts for taking your bike on BART, CalTrain etc.. Absolutely essential for any SF cyclist - commuter, weekend warrior, out of towner, tourist entertainer. And for less than $10 I have used this book 10x as much as any of the other rides books I have.

One note: I would assume Kingman is one hell of climber, since he does tend to downplay the physical effort required to climb the "hilly terrain" of some the rides.

This is my favorite bike rides book. It's an excellent read and lets you see the best of the city.

Not only is Henry Kingman's book a great way for visitors to explore San Francisco by bicycle, it is also a handy reference guide for local cyclists looking for new or better routes. Every S.F. cyclist should have a copy.

If you have any interest in Jack London, you want to have this book. Buy it to thumb through at the same time as you read any other biography. This is like a lovingly assembled scrapbook. It is extremely rich in material; there must be, oh, an average of three photographs or pictures on each of its 276 pages.

Kingman seems to have found photographs of just about every place Jack London ever lived or worked and just about every person that figured in Jack London's life. How about... Johnny Heinold, owner of the "First and Last Chance Saloon?" here on p. 38; the schooner "Sophia Sutherland" on p. 43; here's Jack in Kelly's Army; here's the Erie County Penitentiary where he spent a month... here's George Sterling, here's Anna Strunsky, here's Cloudesley Johns... Here are pictures of Jack as a young sailor, Jack in the Klondyke, Jack at the Bohemian Grove, Jack on the farm...

This is a "pictorial biography" and the interest is in the pictures. The writing isn't inspired, but it is useful as a detailed outline of the events of Jack London's life. It has a useful bibliography.

Location of illustrations and the text are remarkably well laid-out. Reader friendly, does not require flipping pages to find illustrations. Kingman took ten years to create this most reliable reference and chronology.

This treatise is a must have for any compete law library. It is anteresting combination of law and policy. As a practicing antitrust litigator, I have noticed that the treatise is often cited by judges as an authority.

A real treat to read to my kids each Christmas, as my mother read to me and my 11 siblings! A wholesome book that really emphasizes the 'giving is more important than receiving' theory. I highly recommend this to folks that celebrate Christmas!

This short, sweet book tells a tale of a toddler out for romp in her backyard. Big brother and sister try to "catch the baby" who has escaped the confines of the house. Meanwhile Mom is watching from beneath a tree. The rhymes are fun and easy for a young child to follow. All three of my children have enjoyed this book. If you are looking for an exciting story to share with your child and this book is available, you should not hesitate to purchase it!

Homestyle Southeast Asian Cooking is an inspiring compendium of dishes that are exotic put easy to prepare. From Tiger Lily's Special Sweet & Sour Sauce, Biriyani (Savory Rice with Meat), and Sri Lankan Lamb & Spinach Curry, to Indonesian Spicy Omelet, Stir-Fried Squid with Vegetables, and Steamed Butter Cake, Homestyle Southeast Asian Cooking will turn ordinary family dining into a gourmet affair. Homestyle Southeast Asian Cooking is enhanced with a meal planning guide, lists of essential and alternate ingredients, glossary, and index.

This is a great book for an art lover to read. It is not only because the author Mr. Dong has a tremendus reputation in the watercolor world but also his beautiful art works with familiar city scenes. Reading this book makes you feel that you have been traveling with this great artist as a long time friend, bringing you into his life. from a young boy who like to paint the Yellow Tiger until he becomes a famous artist. Whether this book serve as an autobiography or a story book, the author put most of his art skills and philosophy into it. Such as, all his human figures are facing the same direction and think the same things, He always seems to put the oriental Yin-Yan rule into his painting. I also enjoy his soft color, the balance of shape and light and the composition for which he has become so famous.

So, I liked the book; I could relate to the characters, just because they seemed so real and not fake. Paul Zindel I believe Is an author with true talent, and links real life into his books, to make his characters come alive. The title alone got me interested in it. it took me an hour and a half to read it because it was so intreging I couldn't take my eyes off of it. I It really upset me when their mom killed their rabbit though. So it's filled with laughter and tears, murder (the rabbit), and lieing. Truley a surreal book.

The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-moon Marigolds, is just as interesting as its title is if not more. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for drama, this book illustrates the story of Tillie, a young girl who escapes through science the bitterness of her surroundings - her featherheaded, thanatophobic sister Ruth, the unstable mother Beatrice who doesn't seem to find any meaning in life. The author, Paul Zindel, takes you through a short play of laughs and tears as you realize that beautiful marigolds can bloom from compost heaps such as Tillie's home... and the story behind the compost heap.

"Atom... ATOM... what a beautiful word." - Tillie, "The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds" by Paul Zindel.

So, I liked the book; I could relate to the characters, just because they seemed so real and not fake. Paul Zindel I believe Is an author with natural talent, and links real life into his books, to make his characters pop alive. The title alone got me interested in it. it took me an hour and a half to read it because it was so intreging I couldn't take my eyes off of it. I It really upset me when their mom killed their rabbit though. So it's filled with laughter and tears, murder (the rabbit), and lieing. Truley a surreal book.

A huge disappointment!! If you are a Madrasi/looking for authentic or serious Madrasi - tasting dishes, forget it!! This will be O.K for somebody wanting to imitate Madrasi/south indian cooking or for a brand new beginner. Most of the recipes call for couple of basic spices (eg. chilli pd.,turmeric pd.,ginger-garlic)...That's it! But, the names given to these recipes are madrasi-sounding definitely.Any way what kind of cookbook author would call a curry leaf- neem leaf!! I am pretty sure it was not a printing error.

As a tamil Sri-Lankan-American, I was looking for a cookbook that would give me dishes that were more spicier than what you would find in most north indian styled restaurants. This book turned out great. The recipes are very easy to follow and the curries turn out well even if you aren't exact about what you're adding. Some recipes take a long time but worth it.

For anyone who already owns an Indian cookbook - and the place to start is Madhur Jaffey's encyclopedic Indian Cooking - this is a rich source of authentic South Indian recipes. I have tried most of them, and have yet to be disappointed. Be warned though, these recipes produce hotter dishes than most Indian cookbooks, and assume a basic familiarity with Indian cooking techniques. South Indian cooking is associated with vegetarian dishes, but this is Tamil cooking, and there are as many meat dishes as vegetarian, including beef, lamb, pork, chicken and duck. As for seafood, there are wonderful crab, lobster, shrimp and fish recipes. This is an excellent source of recipes for an underappreciated region of Indian cooking.

American Music: A Panorama is a cd that has many different tracks from American Music History. I think that it contains many good examples of this, but there could be so many more. Elvis, the artist of the century, has no songs, as well as many other influential artists from the 50's and 60's. The booklet in it also had many errors in track numbers and song title numbers in it. Overall it was good but could be better, and I definitely do not think it was worth the money.

I teach a course in United States music history at the high school level, and this college text is a good stretch for my students. It is clearly written, well organized, and provides great points for departure in my lectures. The accompanying CD set, though not perfect, is a convenient way to bring in examples and allows for some independent study. Music history teachers can augment the examples with their current CD holdings.
The text surveys "American" music, not just music of the United States, although that is in the majority. The distinction of American versus U.S makes for a good discussion point throughout the semester. We do not take the chapters in order (we begin with music of the early European settlers), and the book lends itself to that flexibility.
Although there may be better texts for specific music history topics, (i.e., Jazz or contemporary "serious" music) this is an excellent survey text for the advanced high schooler or college music history survey course. Term paper suggestions, questions for additional research and bibliography are included at the end of each chapter.