This is a fine account of the Wright Brothers' lives and achievements. It reads easily, and sets correct some of the myths that have grown around Wilbur and Orville (such as the vignette about building the little sled).

And I really liked the line in the Preface (...) stating that this particular biography wasn't going to delve into an extensive exploration of the Wright Brothers' ancestry, that some brief information about their family history was going to be presented in the first few paragraphs, and could easily be skipped by the reader. That's definitely my kind of biographer.

There are thousands of books produced each year on history and biography that are written by people with a preeminant knowledge of their subject but whose intellect suppresses their passion or perhaps simply masks the truth that they just don't know how to write -- how to let their passion soar upon the page.

In that respect Donald Howard has done with "Wilbur and Orville" what only the greatest of biographers can do. He opens the roof on a cloistered and inscrutable family and allows you to share with two of its members the adventure of a lifetime. You bear witness to the achievement of manpowered flight, not as an Archimedean moment of "Eureka!" but as a result of a dogged pursuit of knowledge through trial and failure.

The great genius of Wilbur Wright and his brother is one of unstinting determination. Failure is not defeat but only the next small problem to solve. They knew that experimentation without failure yields only a partial truth -- that failure and success are irrevocably intertwined. Only those with the persistence not to be discouraged by the false thread will find what they seek.

As a former aeronautics librarian for the Library of Congress, Donald Howard does a tremendous job in defining precisely the nature of the Wright brothers' achievement and in defending them from later detractors who crawled from the woodwork to lay their own partial claims to invention. In truth, the Wrights leaned heavily on the experimentations of others, letting the failures of others serve as a practical classroom. What they invented was not the first machine to rise from the earth under its own power, but the first that could sustain itself and be navigated across the skies.

As we near the one hundredth anniversary of their first flight, it is an opportunity to reflect and remember those two young men whose vision opened the skies and made our world a smaller, less alien place to live.

This is THE definitive biography! If you read only one book on their lives (although there are other recent good ones), let this be it. This is the great tale of discovery -- Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" but with a spiritual quest infused with the miracle of invention. It is not just their quest, their discovery. It is mine. It is yours. Just as Kerouac lies awake thinking and dreaming of Dean Moriarty, I think and dream of Wilbur Wright.

This volume surpasses another similar effort by Tom D. Crouch that came out at roughly the same time. Both books can be read profitably but Howard is better informed technically and a good deal wittier than Crouch. Howard's description of Samuel Langley's attempt to get his contraption into the air shortly before the Wrights' is laugh-out-loud funny. Crouch also suffers from his association with the Smithsonian Institution, whose scandalous treatment of the Wrights shocks even at this distance.

Winning the net game is an excellent book for small businesses trying to develop strategies on the web. What I found interesting is how she used a story of a family business in an effort to apply it to the real world. The information relates well to anyone that may not have a clear understanding of how the web can enhance a business' operations. Winning the net game in my opinion is a must read. I'm going to contact Caroline Howard is see if she can help my business.

This book is a "must read" for anyone thinking about starting a Web-based business. It is also good for those who currently have a Web-based business and want it to be more successful. Caroline Howard writes in a clear and concise style - and deftly covers such topics as choosing your domain name, competitive market analyses, developing an e-commerce business plan, e-tailing, peer-to-peer computing, the value chain, marketing and customer convenience. I highly recommend it!
Suzanne H. Montgomery, Ph.D.
President, Montgomery-Copley & Associates

Caroline Howard has managed to capture the absolute essence of on-line business in "Winning the Net Game". Her delightful, easy to read format packs tons of useful examples and tools into a comprehensive guide. As an entrepreneur and venture investor, this is highly recommended reading for everyone from neophytes to those seasoned at E-commerce.

Thank heavens for people like William Swain who took the time to record their personal stories and let it become, in a sense, a first-person history tale to people in the 21st century. Swain goes into great detail about his trials and tribulations and you begin to care so much about him, it almost becomes a novel. It accidentally sets the reader up for disappointment in the end by Swain reaching home and the story suddenly stopping. You'll find yourself asking, how did Eliza greet her papa? What did Swain do with the meager amount of money he made? What was Sabrina and her husband's first words to each other after an almost two-year absence? Of course, it's not Swain's fault for ending his diary at home. He merely kept the journal to update his family on his journey; not give readers 150 years later an autobiography. Holliday can not answer these final questions either and rightfully so, he does not try. You are left to ponder how it ended and hopefully, after reading so many emotional passages from William and Sabrina, you can use your imagination to answer the homecoming questions.

Holliday blends the information together wonderfully by arranging each chapter into three sections:

1. an overall historical account

2. Swain's diary

3. A Back Home section in which letters written to Swain from wife Sabrina and brother George are included.

The format works splendidly for the reader and keeps everything in a proper time frame. Holliday also includes scaled-down regional maps for every chapter which lets the reader follow along on a microcosm/macrocosm scope of the total journey. Holliday has also laboriously researched hundreds of other personal diaries and includes passages from them when Swain leaves gaps or when a quirky story can be added to intrigue the reader further. The World Rushed In is a fast read and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in Western US history or is just looking for a great story.

This is a superb, gripping and very personal account of one man's experience travelling to and from the California gold rush. The fact that Holliday had access to virtually all the letters sent from him and to him on the trail makes this book even more enticing. It made me feel that I was taking every step with William Swain on his journey, sharing in his joys and sorrows and those of his brother and wife back home. I thoroughly recommend this book, I couldn't put it down.

This book tells the story of my wife's cousin, William Swain. Swain witnessed over a hundred cholera victims, alive a day earlier, now buried in the sand banks of the Mississippi River. Bodies strewn along the Nevada trail, he viewed the tragedy. Ships, valued in the millions, he viewed abandoned in San Francisco bay.

As family members, we have John Holliday to thank. Moreover, I was thrilled with each page of Holliday's book. The 1849 Gold Rush extracted more from its participants, due to gold fever, than they got in return from the California mines. That's exactly what happened to William, who, in May of 1848, left his lovely wife, Sabrina, a newborn daughter, his brother George, and his farm residence in Youngstown, NY. William, in his heart, knew he would make it big in California country. At least he must try. And, Sabrina, not knowing the hardships and penniless outcome, gave her loving agreement. Along the way William witnessed death and deprivation, loneliness and hunger. He arrived hopeful in gold country, plied his efforts, and came away luckily with the skin on his back. He differed from most in one important way: William kept a journal. And, Sabrina and William wrote and saved their letters, from which Holliday made one of America's finest narratives. William, weighted with introspective highlight, wrote to George, "If you're thinking of coming out here, for [Gosh] sakes, do not!" William pleaded. Prospectors and miners everywhere, food scarce, prices high, California gold fields deluded nearly all. "And no one I know has gotten rich," William offered. William, beaten in his quest, longed to be with Sabrina and brother George. Ready to return, he had saved $400. He longed to bring it all home, to hand to Sabrina. But, think of it, did you ever try to get from Sacramento to Niagara Falls in 1850, while tired and broke? Yikes. No train. William would have to walk the same way home he came, over that horrible trail. He couldn't face that prospect. So, William scraped his pockets clean, and purchased passage on a ship, via Panama. Just one catch: There was no Panama Canal. That happened 60 years later. William made his way to San Francisco bay. He boarded ship. He endured sea sickness. He ate crummy food. He arrived at Panama, shaken. Next, he and all passengers traversed the 50 mile overland eastward trek with a guide. Threatened with abandonment in the jungle, he paid double. Weak, he arrived at the east side of the Isthmus, broke. William struggled on board ship. It traveled north, taking forever, to arrive at New York City. There, George, who knew to meet him from William's earlier letter, stood waiting at the gangplank. William, broke and sick, 25 pounds skinnier, staggered into his brother's arms. George helped William toward home, finally past beloved Niagara Falls, north to Youngstown. There, adoring, relieved, Sabrina faithfully nursed William back to health. Asked late in life if it was worth it, William avoided answering. He merely declared he loved his Youngstown. Can you read between the lines on that one? 'Nuff said.

I am a fitness instructor for prenatal and post partum women and I just love this book. I debated between several of the "mom-yoga" type books and I'm so glad I decided on this one. The exercises are safe, easy to follow, and wonderfully illustrated. It is even easy to follow if you are not a "yogi". My only criticism is that the binding does not lay flat so it's difficult to review the exercises during your workout. Otherwise, I recommend it for both prenatal (an entire chapter is dedicated) and postpartum women.

This is one of a very few books that has simple excersises, done with your baby, and illustrated with clear and beautiful photos of moms actually doing this! If you need a mommy and me yoga book, buy this and you won't need any others!

When my wife Sue started getting noticeably pregnant, she found Jyothi's class and it became one of the highlights of her entire pregnancy. If you're not lucky enough to live in New York and attend Jyothi's classes, this book is like bringing her into your home for a private lesson. Her voice comes through in the book, and the photos are clear (and really cute!). If any husbands are reading this, give Yoga Mama, Buddha Baby as a gift to your wife--she will be in a great mood for all nine months!

Ken Hoffman really has a way of putting a smile on my face. This collection of stories is easy to read and hard to put down. I have just lent it to my mother and know she will enjoy it, too.

This is the only time I have received a book as a gift that I actually liked. Someone gave me a copy at work. I LOVE IT. Now I am going to give it to my sister to read.

Ken Hoffman has a unique way of looking at the world. His ability to find the interesting aspects of everyday life make for a thoroughly enjoyable read. I would recommend this to my friends.

Understandings are important for any relationships. Having gone through step 1 to 10 in the book, I started to understand more what love really is, what I can/cannot control, and what to expect in my relationship. In fact, applying what I've learned from the book with my real-life relationship, I have puzzled out one frustrating issue inside my wife's unconscious mind about fear and insecurity. Once I made sense out of it and explain to her, things are really improving now.

Hannibal was fantastic! You can't put it down. The story twists in ways you cannot imagine. If you love thrillers, this is the book for you...but don't read it when your alone! It's scary!!

I found Dr Rankin's book 10 Steps to a Great Relationship really helpful and enjoyable. It has always seemed to me that people use the word "love" in many different confusing ways and the book helped me understand what love really is. I liked the author's easy style, case histories and humor and I especially appreciated his non-judgmental tone and useful techniques that helped me assess my strengths and weaknesses as well as giving me practical suggestions about how I could improve in love.

- Based on 25 years of travel and research, this is the ultimate guide to agaves. This is the second printing of a classic. - Eco Travels in Latin America website END

Back by Popular Demand The University of Arizona Press called this week, to let me know that they have reprinted Dr. Howard Scott Gentry's Bible of the Agaves..."Agaves of Continental North America." This book, originally printed in 1982, is an indispensable guide to the Agaves, a group of plants that have been used by the people of Mesoamerica for well over 9,000 years. With a copy of this book in your fat little hands, you can learn how to brew up a few cups of killer Mescal and weave a mat to rest on while you contemplate the authority of your brew... Dr. Gentry gave twenty-five years of his life to the Agaves, conducting field research from central Nevada south to the islands off the coast of Panama. Widely recognized as the world's leading authority on the Agaves, Dr. Gentry was an agricultural explorer for the U.S. Department of Agriculture for more than 30 years. I first met Dr. Gentry while on a field trip in Mexico in the late '50's. I was asked to be his mailman. I delivered mail from the U.S. to him and took mail back to post from El Paso. I learned more about the Agave family in one night around the campfire than I could have learned in two semesters at a University. I was invited to a reception honoring Dr. Gentry back in 1982 at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix. The occasion was a giant celebration of the publication of the book Agaves of Continental North America. Part of the funding for the book was from a grant from the National Academy of Science. A day after the reception, Dr. Gentry took me over to his office to share some field data and photos with me. When I asked Dr. Gentry about the fine points of funding research and writing, he smiled and said: "You know, I would rather re-write the entire book and do all of the field work all over again than I would fill out all the paper work necessary to obtain funding from the National Academy." Dr. Gentry's book is one of those rare books that speak to the scholar and to the layman. Every serious student of desert plants needs a copy of this book. I know that Dr. Gentry is in Agave heaven, visiting with Mayahuel, the Goddess of Agaves and together, they are profusely thanking the University of Arizona Press, for this important reprint!

Exhaustive, well-written, highly-detailed, indispensible for a correct classification of agaves. Nothing currently in print is as authoratative and complete

Mathematicians and lovers of algebra: this is it. This has been the best algebra book I have seen since the mid 1980s. The explanations and proofs are clear and easy to follow. One could only wish that other authors could write like prof. Cohn does. it is extremely unfortunate that the publisher (Wiley & Sons) has kept this book, and the other two (Algebra vol.2 and vol.3) out of stock and/or out of print for so long. Maybe one day these three books will once again be more accessible in the US.

I entirely agree with the reviewer from Tokyo. The book is comprehensive, and at the same time the presentation is very humane. It's time to assign every other textbook to the flames and start using this one in every respectable algebra course. I envy those English students who have had the course from the author himself.

One of the best textbooks on algebra (together with Vol. 2 and Vol. 3 that cover more advanced topics.) Far more accessible than the textbook by Serge Lang.

This lovely book is composed mostly of short essays by professional therapists who have published books on relationships or who run relationship seminars, and Art Linkletter (!). The theme is that love changes, and true love is as much a maturing of self as knowing the right things to do or say. The many authors each have their own unique wisdom and perception of what love is, and it makes for pleasant, encouraging, and enlightening reading!

Definitely a book worth reading! It reads easily, like a book of short stories, in that the essays are brief and easily readable in short sittings -you can pick it up, read an essay or two, and pick it up again later. Each essay puts forth a concept about an aspect of love, relationships, marriage -- and there is always a morsel - or more - that one can relate to. I found it fascinating to look at my marriage through the lenses and philosophies of these wise authors and experts; to validate and illuminate those things that ring true for me/us, and even spotlight potential pitfalls to avoid. Some of the essays speak more to me than others, but that's what makes this book work so well...there is something here for everyone to relate to and learn from.

A detailed exploration of love and marriage. Not just a book about different methods of succeeding in a relationship... it also details the scientific aspect of love: what happens to the body and how these chemical influence our emotions. As well as thought provoking essays on why some relationships go "stale" and why others do not. Highly recommeded.

Thurman stands on his own as a giant. The only weakness of the book is that often the compilers feel the need to tell us what Thurman is going to say.

Not sure so much from Disciplines of the Spirit needed to be reprinted.

I read much of the book during a 12 hour Prayer Vigil and found it very enriching and satisfying.

I recently returned to Thurman's autobiography after 15 years. I am developing a course in Composition/African-American Literature. Thurman's words will be the springboard. His prose is elegant and concise; his sensitivity to nature, a poetic model; his expansive spirit, inspirational. Many chapters will serve as exercises for writing; e.g.: his instruction for the preparation of sermons. In fine, his response to life is a guidline for good writing and holy living.

Howard Thurman's autobiography is a defining, powerful collection of one man's life-stories that inspire family, schools, churches, nations and gives timely revelations into the transforming power of God's grace that spans the many gulfs that we call racial, economic, religious, political lines. This is a must read text.