Walking Papers by Jay Cronley is one of the funniest books I have read in my entire life. The main problem I had with the book is that while reading the first chapter I laughed so hard it hurt. I had tears streaming from my face and had to actually put the book down. The "problem" is that while the rest of the book is very funny it is almost a let down because of the first chapter. Whenever I need a laugh I go back and read that first chapter and it has not failed me yet.

This is one of the most enjoyable travel books I've read in years. As someone who is not Jewish, I'm don't spend a lot of time reading about Jewish history or culture. This book really opened my eyes to the contributions many unheralded individuals have made to our lives through their explorations.

And Garfinkel himself is one of them. I would have liked to have read more about the author's own adventures. He's certainly an insightful, engaging and thoughtful traveler.

Haunting. Surprising. So funny it hurts. These were some of my thoughts after reading "Flag Day," the first story in "We Find Ourselves In Moontown." I put the book aside for a day and thought about the amazing short story I had just read, then went back for more. I wasn't disappointed. Set in the kind of Southern California that recalls block parties, barbecues, and little league games, Gummerman's characters confront heartache with a kind of melancholy humor that is too often absent in American fiction. In many ways, Gummerman creates a homesickness for times that never were, evoking powerful emotions of redemption in the midst of loss. From the one-armed little league umpire whose only wish is for "The Fugitive" to come back on the air, to the escaped convict who accidentally crashes his sick mother's birthday party, Gummerman takes care to show each character as a human being, full of innocently tragic flaws and yet graced with that nobility Shakespeare was always going on about. (If you've read Katherine L. Hester's "Eggs For Young America," you'll know what I'm talking about.) A trip through "We Find Ourselves In Moontown" is an emotional voyage, full of sadness, dreams that don't come true, and fragile love. It's too bad that Vintage Contemporaries pulled the plug on this outstanding collection of short stories, because when an extraordinary book like this is shelved, everyone loses. If you happen upon it in a used bookstore or if you see it languishing in a friend's bookcase, do yourself a favor and snap it up.

The author, himself an Olympic gold medalist and university coach, shares with his readers a thorough perspective of this activity. The book opens with historical notes of interest, then proceeds to illuminate all facets of this activity. His approach is no-nonsense and should meet everyone's needs in the real world. I coach also and recommend this book to those I train.

You can quickly run through all salient works on wetland economics through 1989-1993. Indicies include listings by title and author.

This is an excellent book for teachers in all areas of education. Since reading is the basis for all learning, this book is very useful for classroom teachers, parents, reading specialists, and other readers who would like to become more efficient at reading a variety of texts as well as developing independent skills within the process of reading, rather than after-the-fact. Specifically for teachers, this book outlines basic strategies that can easily be used in the classroom. For students with minimal reading ability, the strategies are explained with the use of academic language that many disabled middle school and young adult readers would appreciate as lifelong strategies to use in a variety of reading contexts. I appreciate the fact that while the authors gave credit to instruction of the past, they provided reasons for change in application as we move students toward a world of problem solving and decision making. In my opinion, I cannot think of any other way I would want to teach my students to read and develop a sense of purpose and love of learning. I'm sorry that my teachers did not approach reading instruction with such a worldly view. Not only am I a better teacher, I am also a better reader.

What To Do On Thursday is an extremely helpful book! It helped me learn how to take the scripture that I am reading and apply it to the daily situations that I am faced with. I am so glad for the skills that I learned from this book. It is very high on my "must read again list". I highly reccomend it to anyone who is interested in learning how to apply the scriptures to their life.

I first decided to read this volume because of the great influence poet William Jay Smith had in its production. I have become a recent fan of Smith, since I read his latest collection of poetry, The Cherokee Lottery. What impressed me about that collection was the way in which Smith was able to use poetry to illuminate a probing historical issue, the relocation of Native American tribes along the Trail of Tears, and infuse it with meaning for a contemporary American audience. Smith and his fellow translators succeed on a similar level in their work on the poetry of Gyula Illyes. Of course, Gyula Illyes is not exactly a historical figure. He only recently passed away a mere seven years ago. However, the prestige Gyula Illyes earned in his native Hungary for his inspiring poetic output certainly renders him his place in literary history. Unfortunately, much of Gyula Illyes's incredible work is unknown to American readers. Or at least it was until now, when Smith decided to tackle the task of translation and bring Gyula Illyes verses to a vibrant, colorful life for modern-day, English-speaking audiences. Now, thanks to Smith, it is possible for readers in America to become acquainted with Gyula Illyes and appreciate the struggles of the Hungarian lower-classes through the powerful, poetic vision of one of the country's most beloved citizens. Like Bela Bartok, Gyula Illyes was an instrument of the passions of the Hungarian people. And like Bartok, Gyula Illyes deserves to be remembered for many years for his amazing artistic accomplishments.

I think we have all experienced the feeling of "distance" between us and our God. In this book, Joy uses so many wonderful, personal illustrations to remind us of the awesome qualities of our Lord. I had no idea that God's name had so many Hebrew meanings...beautiful names that help us get a better glimpse of who Our Father is. Thank You, Joy!!