For those of us who will never attend a service academy, books such as "Return of Philo McGiffin" give us a glimpse of what it takes to get through these tough institutions. They are colleges in one sense but as a character in the book says "this is your first duty assignment in the Navy!" For anyone thinking about Annapolis or who has a friend or relation who will attend, this book is a must read. My grandfather went to West Point and spent almost 40 years in the Army - now I have an idea of how he got there. Philo McGiffin is great book for anyone who is a fan of our Naval Academy but wants no illusions of how hard it is there.
My hats off to all Annapolis Alumni!

I can only add to the plaudits below. I didn't go to Navy, but my father and brother did. I've always wondered if plebe year was as wierd and hard and fascinating as they said it was -- now I know the answer. But beyond the wonderful introduction to USNA life, this is a terrific story -- great, complex characters, inspiration as well as sardonic humor, and a terrific twist at the end. Anyone who is interested in military life will enjoy this book. I'm about to buy several copies to send to friends.

From all indications, the Naval Academy is not a place for humor but with this book, David Poyer has shown that humour can thrive in a military environment even though it really doesn't have a place. The characters were well developed and the ending had a surprising twist. A wonderful read for anyone interested in the military way of life

Ram Dass has the remarkable ability to deal with profound topics - the planes of existence, chakras, the nature of Being in his unique, effervescent, frank, and lucid style.
The backdrop of Ram Dass - an acid researching, Harvard psychologist, who went to India for answers to his questions on existence, mysticism, and spirituality, is needless to say, unconventional. I frankly didn't know what to expect from the book. And I was not only surprised beyond my expectations, but also intrigued to a point where I rediscovered many of my latent questions about life.
If you are coming from a path where you've read some of these:
Lobsang Rampa, Aldous Huxley, Blake, Sri Aurobindo, Gurdjeff, or others who try to explain eastern philosophy/mysticism/what lies beyond/Karma/astral travel/the meaning of life, in a manner that we can understand, this is definitely a great book for you.
Good look, I hope the book gives you some "answers" on your quest
!

An excellent, underrated spiritual book. Ram Dass is brilliant, spontaneous, and loving -- his messages are clear as a bell.

For reference, the book is a sort of "transcript" of talks given at the menninger Foundation in 1970 and at Spring Grove hospital in 1972.

Here is a classic quote from the book: "I used to hang out with the Mellon Family. The Mellon family is very rich. Each of the parents has 700 million dollars. That's rich in my book. The kids were poor. They each had only 20 million. I hung out with one of these kids who had 20 million dollars and he felt like a bum... That's far out from my point of view."

Ram Dass skillfully uses stories like this to illustrate the spiritual truths that craving objects leads to suffering, that peace of mind lies within, and so on.

Excellent book. Thanks Ram!

This is a great book. I highly suggest this book for anyone interested in western culture connected to eastern religion. Ram talks of everything from chakras to love. but mainly its about consciousness and the nature of it. The dance of life or in Ram's words "the only dance there is"

I see children fight cancer day in and day out, as a pediatric oncology nurse. I picked this book up one day at the book store because of the pictures. However, once getting it home and reading it...it depicts a very realistic look into childhood cancer. It is currently on my bookshelf, however, I have read and reread it many times.

I am one of Eli Kahn's sister's best friends, and as someone who carpooled with the Kahns' every day for three years straight, I got to find out just what it was like to go through. Nowadays, when I go over the Kahns' house, Eli has no signs of anything happening to him - and he always beats me at Nintendo 64!

I am friends with Eli Kahn and his sister, and ever since kindergarten, I have liked Eli and have experienced what this happens. I remember going to his house in the morning and seeing Eli. It made me worried what would happen to him. Now, just seven years later, I sometimes go over their house, and Eli's just a normal eight-year-old. This book is very touching, and it's a good one too.

Imagine being young and talented and having the opportunity to go off to college
and better yourself. Also, imagine a family life that's riddled with poverty,
abuse, and responsibilities beyond what any teenager should have. This is the
life of Peggy Dana, a while teenager who ise offered a basketball scholarship to
play at University of Maryland. Her mother, who initially insists she stay home
and help take care of her siblings, reluctantly lets Peggy Dana go off to college.

Due to the dorms eing filled, it's arranged for Peggy Dana to live with a couple
off-campus during her first semester of college. The couple, who is black, and
Peggy Dana are somewhat shocked to find they don't have race in common, but the
journey that the trio experiences as they live and love together will outmeasure
any differences they have.

DeVincent-Haye's novel, 22 Friar Street, was an excellent read. I was quickly
brought into Peggy Dana's mind and world and felt the conflicts that dwelled inside
her about her family back home and her family with the Ellens. Each character was
vividly drawn, with individual feelings, personalities, strengths, and weaknesses.
I was touched by the gentle way the race issue was dealt withi n this story, though
I did find the "Mister"/"Missus" references by Peggy Dana a bit too much to take at
times. Overall, 22 Friar Street was an extremely fast read for me, that touched me
and moved me and made me care about the characters and the problems they faced.

Reviewed by Shonie Bacon

Imagine if you will a poor, inner city, Caucasian girl living with an elderly, middle class, childless black couple. An aspiring college athlete accepts a basketball scholarship to the University of Maryland too late and there are no dorm rooms available. Through a university program Peggy Margaret Dana is able to bunk at Doris and Martin Ellen's home for the semester. What she and her surrogate parents learn are lessons in humility and unconditional love.

Peggy Dana never knew what it was like to be loved by a parent who set boundaries. The product of a single parent home due to the death of her father, Peggy had it rough growing up. Because her mother worked two jobs, she was expected to be the caretaker to her younger siblings and the children of her mother's boyfriend. Bitter and depressed, Peggy's mother did not encourage her to attend college, was resentful of the fact that she did and was jealous of the relationship that she cultivated with the Ellens. Throughout Peggy's four years and beyond with the Ellens, she learns the true meaning of giving and accepting love.

Told through the voice of Peg some twenty-seven years later, we the reader are able to capture the spirit of Peg, the Ellens and their extend families. The other characters that are sprinkled throughout add a flavor to this wonderful recipe that dabbles in race relations, joy and pain. 22 Friar Street is great coming of age story adequately examining the "Cycle of Life" and the "Ying and the Yang." "It's all a cycle; the ultimate in life is giving, sacrificing for others." 22 Friar Street will touch your soul and stay with you long afterwards.

22 Friar Street is an exquisitely written novel by Nan DeVincent-Hayes about Peggy Dana, a young woman struggling through school and college, and her relationship with an African-American family. 22 Friar Street is highly recommended as a touching, refreshing story revealing the positive side of the human condition, and the balance between the friendships of ordinary people.

I picked up this book without realizing that it was the genesis of the television program by the same name, and I was immediately dragged in to the stories. Written as a yearlong narrative of the events and personalities of the Baltimore Police Homicide Division, it really gives the reader a feeling of being along for the investigation. The dialogue and descriptions are so realistic and insightful that I found myself wondering how the Detectives felt to read this objective reflection of themselves. The pacing of the book contributes to the overall effectiveness of the narrative by educating the reader slowly as to the characters, the lingo and the mentality of a Baltimore homocide detective. By the end (and I was sorry to have it end) I felt like I knew the detectives and the criminals and the victims and their families. If you like true crime, this is the book for you!

Simon does a great job relating the job of overworked, underpaid, overstressed homicide detectives... Just the parts on the forensic science of homicide investigations are worth it. Ever wonder why they put paper (not plastic) bags on a homicide victim's hands? Or how it isn't so easy to determine which hole in the body were caused by a bullet's entry or exit? Or just how the coroner does an autopsy? Or how a small-caliber bullet can do so much damage in a body? This is the book for you..... The parts about essentially how if you are arrested for a felony in Baltimore County, you did the crime (and how you'll probably have your hand slapped) are very revealing...

This book follows a year with the Baltimore Police Deparment Homicide Unit. This is a thoroughly riveting novel which manages to allow you to emphathise with the detectives featured as they investigate cases ranging from the straightforward to the impossible. It describes the procedures and obstacles faced in bringing a felon to trial. I urge all crime fiction readers to read this book if they read any nonfiction, it's a bit heavy going in places but it's worth it (beware - you'll be able to see huge holes in your fictional detectives investigations afterwards!)

Visiting Ocean City since I was very small, I found this book very relaxing and entertaing. It took me back to the place my heart will always be, in Ocean City.

I enjoyed the book immensely. Ms. Kelly's character development and wry sense of humor are both excellent. She obviously knows Ocean City well because her settings are accurate. I hope she has another book out in the near future; I will definitely buy it.

A dead boss, a handsome stranger, and a wacky assortment of co-workers and local characters keep Meg Daniels' vacation at the Jersey shore anything but dull. Meg is both funny and likeable, and her quest to find the murderer(along with intriguing P.I. Andy Beck), salvage her vacation, and stay alive combine for a really absorbing and entertaining page-turner.

WOW! Start with the cover with its dawn view across Baltimore's famed Inner Harbor of Domino's "Sugar House." Inside it gets even better. Laura knows Bawlmer and brings it to life. Throughout the Tess Monaghan series, she brings you the sights; the smells of McCormick's spices wafting across the harbor; the taste and diversity of the ethnic neighborhoods and foods (although I think I'll pass on the 'green pepper rings with powdered sugar'). Combine this with a well rounded mystery story with well developed and believable characters (including the animals) and you have a great book. Each of her books can be read individually, but I recommend starting with the first of the series, BALTIMORE BLUES, and following the series in order. And it's not just for Baltimoreans -- most other cities have similar neighborhoods, so no matter where you're from you will ENJOY!

Tess Monaghan is a blue collar woman in Baltimore, the ultimate blue collar city. She agrees to take a case for a friend of her father's--trying to find out why the friend's brother died in prison. Her investigation leads her into both the upper reaches of society and down to a strange underworld of prostitution, unethical centers for treatment of eating disorders, and crooked politicians.

Laura Lippman has surrounded Tess with a charming assortment of friends and family members. Their obvious affection for Tess makes her more compelling to the reader. As Tess steps more and more deeply into danger, you'll find yourself turning the pages faster and faster. The mystery is well crafted and Lippman dangles clues, one by one, leaving the reader like Tess certain that there is a way of connecting them without actually able to do it.

This book is especially popular in Maryland which is great--as a longtime resident of Maryland I felt at home reading it--but it is far to good to be missed out on by the rest of us.

THE SUGAR HOUSE may be the best mystery you read this year.

As a mystery writer with my first book in its initial release, I genuinely admire Laura Lippman, an author who is clearly at the top of her game. SUGAR HOUSE is Lippman's first hardcover mystery, and it is a fabulous novel. Lippman's protagonist, Tess Monaghan, agrees to her father's request and attempts to identify a nameless dead girl whose murderer himself was murdered. To accomplish this task, Lippman takes us on a tour of the Atlantic coast. Tess journeys from her usual stomping grounds of Baltimore to Annapolis, Philadelphia, and Maryland's Eastern Shore. Lippman continues to develop her Tess character, as well as several supporting characters. SUGAR HOUSE's plot is first-rate, and Lippman's writing is smooth. It is difficult to believe that it has taken five paperback books for Tess to reach hardcover. SUGAR HOUSE is a great mystery, and I recommend it highly.

Perhaps most impressive of all of John Barth's picaresque classic is the fact that it succeeds on many levels. It is quite difficult to imagine anyone taking this novel completely seriously, however it can be read as an epic. Most likely it will be enjoyed as a brilliant satire providing most readers with innumerable passages that will have them laughing out loud. However one senses many philosophical statements and themes communicated through the characters' preposterous actions and attitudes. It was the characters, in fact, that impressed me the most about "The Sot-Weed Factor," while appearing at times ridiculous to the point of being hilarious, most readers will likely find a little bit of themselves in characters like Ebenezer Cooke, Henry Burlingame, etc. My favorite character was Ebenezer's servant whose name eludes me at this time. Barth has coined himself a "smiling nihilist" and this book is a fine example of this sentiment, though most readers will likely spend less time smiling and more time doubled over in laughter. A must-read!

If you've read the book, then you know exactly what I'm talking about and are probably doubled over in laughter just at the mention of it . . . if you haven't, well there's just one more reason to start reading this. Widely considered Barth's best novel (I'm very much a novice with him, this being only my second book so I'm no man to judge) I can easily see why it deserves such a status. A parody of historical novels, Barth writes the story in the style of that time so it seems like all those books your teachers made you read in high school, but better. The book is massive and concerns the various adventures of would-be poet Ebenezer Cooke, writer of the poem "The Sot-Weed Factor" as he becomes involved, willingly or otherwise, in more situations than any man should reasonably have to undertake. An attempts to summarize the plot are useless, it's too sprawling, people who want instant gratification will be at a loss here, this is a book you have to absorb over the course of a few days and get used to the style before it sinks in just how much fun it is. The characters play everything seriously, making the jokes (and there are plenty, with the funniest of a vulgar nature and often involving the story of Captain John Smith of Pocohantus fame) come off as utterly hilarious, but at the same time Barth manages to make you care just a little bit about them, as quirky as they are, they still come across as typically flawed human beings. Probably the best thing about the book is its sheer unpredictability, not shackled by the morals of the 16th century, anything and everything does happen, nobody is what they seem and situations shift gears so rapidly that it'll make your head spin even as you can't stop laughing. A truimph on nearly every level, this is something a lesser writer would have only managed to turn into a stale stylistic genre exercise, something to wow the kids in the creative writing workshop . . . what Barth creates here is something lasting and no matter what century it was written in or evokes, will probably wind up being timeless.

Everything that could be said about the literary genius of this book is contained in the other reviews here - so l will just add that when l read it over 30 years ago l thought it was the best book l have ever read - now l know it is the best book l've ever read - there is simply no other work of literary fiction that has haunted and beguiled me like this book.
If you haven't read it - give yourself time to adjust to the language and style but stick with it - do not miss this book.

About the book A Face First by Priscilla Cummings.
This book is about a twelve-year-old girl named Kelly. She was in a car accident with her mother. She was burned especially her face, and broke her leg. She went to the hospital and she was in surgery, while she was in surgery she was trying to remember what happened to her. She could remember some parts but the rest was unclear. When she woke up after three days she was very weak. She had to do exercises to get her body moving again. She has to wear a mask because her face is burnt. Who understands her?
This book is good because it makes it realize how Kelly felt and had to face many challenges that normal people wouldn?t.

This book is about a young girl named Kelley. After a terrible accident Kelley has to go through painful treatments. She also has to wear a mask to help her face. She worries what everyone will think of her but realizes they like Kelley for the person on the inside. This book was good and sort of sad at first. But towards the end when Kelley truly discovers herself, it makes you feel really good.

I'm reading this book in class, it is really good. It's very well written, and discriptive. Our teachers loved this book actually so much that Priscilla Cummings is coming to our school! It's also a real story.

From the beginning page you are introduced to the killer and the knowledge that he is watching someone again stays in the front of your mind as you get to know him better. His history and his thoughts are sprinkled throughout the book and lead you to "The Last Place."

Tess is a private investigator with a past that haunts her. Her ex-boyfriend was killed years prior and she continues to suffer from occasional nightmares, reliving his death.

She has issues with anger management, which are portrayed quite well when she gets a little revenge on a potential child molester. She is arrested and sentenced to anger management counseling.

Tess's wealthy friend, Whitney, offers her a private investigator assignment which involves reviewing old, unsolved domestic abuse murder cases in order to help bring about lobbying for funding and training for small town cops handling domestic abuse situations. Whitney is part of a group of several non profit foundations that have joined together and are in search of ways to reduce the number of domestic-violence homicides in their state. Though Tess's old archenemy, Luisa O'Neal, is somewhat involved in the group, Tess accepts the assignment with the understanding that Luisa is not an active member of the board.

There is a list of five unsolved cases for Tess to investigate. She was not hired to search for the killer but rather to check into the specifics of the police investigations on each file.

Initially, the cases do not seem connected but then Tess begins to question whether or not they are in some way. She always begins to wonder if Luisa O'Neal had more involvement in this project than Tess was told about, or anyone was told, for that matter. Soon Tess is questioning everything and everyone looking for the link.

You will find yourself flipping back through the pages you've already read, checking details, looking for confirmation of the places the clues are leading you. Just when you think you're sure you know who the killer is, another clue is added that doesn't quite fit in and you are sent on your search again. You will be guessing until the end.

Tess Monaghan (very poor) is a private investigator who is hired by her best friend Whitney Talbot (very rich). She is asked to work for a consortium that concerns itself with domestic violence. Tess is given six names of persons who have been killed in the last six years. None of the killings were solved. Tess is to find out if law enforcement did a sloppy - and presumably prejudiced - job.

So Tess goes to work, interrupting it only shortly to spend time with her boyfriend Crow. At first, nothing outrageous happens. She then teams up with retired Toll Road Police Officer Carl Dewitt.

The story is interrupted occasionally by the voice of the killer.

There just is no substitute for that vision thing when you want to reach conclusions that are not based on any known fact. And what is missing here is the kitchen sink. But then the author got a big medal from the mayor of Baltimore for writing so much about his city.

And the perpetrator became a mass murderer because he used to love Tess Monaghan. Go figure.

I love Tess. So this is going to be biassed.

If you don't know Tess, the first half of the book is a very interesting description of Baltimore and its surrounds. And the people who will feature later on.

It shows Tess in a way I think is unfair because it is so human. It is a newspaper or story kind of way. Given that Laura Lippman used to be a journalist that is fair enough. And a true achievement.

Tess is a fictional character (not to me but I acknowlegde that this is so) and the story is fiction but it could have happened this way.

If you are interested in human foibles and failures, this will slowly draw you in. If you are a Tess aficionado, you will suffer as I did.