Cape Cod is perhaps one of the best places to bike in New England. The rolling hills, the stunning views of the Atlantic and the jewel-like kettle-hole ponds in its interior sections make it a bicicyclists paradise. During 2 weeks in late springs several years ago, I used the bike routes in this book alone to make my way from the upper Cape near Sandwich down to the Outer Cape into Truro and Provincetown. I was not disappointed. The maps in combination with written directions offer just enough detail so that riders are always on the right track. And vista after vista was exactly what this rider was hoping for. The routes in this book helped me to come away with an intimate knowledge of Cape Cod and too many fond memories to count. It's obvious that the folks who wrote this book rode these routes time and time again, perfecting them and finally compiling them into this incredible guide to the most stunning bike routes on Cape Cod. If you want to get to know Cape Cod better, or if you're just looking for a variety of top-notch biking experiences in Eastern Massachusetts, this is the place and this is the book!

I had heard a lot about the author's work from a friend of mine, but hadn't had an opppurtunity to read him. Finally I managed to secure this book, and I must say it is excellent. The book is primarily a collection of essays which the author writes from his own experiences. He is a countryman who has moved to the city and describes his dilemmas of living in a city as compared to the country, and the adventures he has, as he goes along making friends and understanding people in the city. There is nothing melodramatic in this work, however it is excellent literature. The author's style is superb and as you read the essays, you get a feel of the cosy atmosphere of the country and the warmth and simplicity of human relationships, which is what most of us crave for but somehow overlook. In his essays Grayson brings out simple but most profound truths about people and the process of living in general. After reading it one can't help but get the feeling that human relationships are so true, simple and beautiful. All that is required is an open, kind, friendly and fearless mind, so that we can understand (as Grayson says)and thus be at peace and in harmony with nature, ourselves, others and life in general. Overall an extremely charming, enjoyable and enlightening read.

This book humanized history by relating the stories of Natalie Rothstein's emigrant ancestors, and her parents, to events in Europe and the U.S. over the past hundred years. The author has turned scholarly research into living, breathing stories. It was fascinating to me, a non-Jew, to see how the succeeding generations of American Jews yearn to know and appreciate those who have gone before. I have often observed something similar in Hawaii, where I live now. Like Rothstein, people who are three and four generations away from the Orient often return to their ancestral villages in China, Japan, the Philippines and Korea for visits at least once. I felt the same way when I finally got to England.

The book takes on a more immediate tone when we reach Rothstein's own era. Through her eyes, we experience the Thirties, Forties and Fifties. She reminds us of famous Jews in every walk of life.

Most interesting to me were the years she and her Army captain husband spent in rural Germany with their three children. He was a doctor at an Army base. What mixed emotions they felt as Americans and Jews in the country so recently dominated by Hitler and his Nazis! She's a wonderful writer, observant and thoughtful. We get the viewpoint of a well-rounded modern American woman, refreshing in these days of trashy ghost-written bimbo biographies.

An American Family reminded me somewhat of Barbara Tuchman's books (Guns of August and Night of the Generals) in that it fleshes out history and takes you there where and when it was happening.

This book raises some interesting questions about the roles of religion (specifically Puritanism), mourning and grief in early American literature, specifically Rowlandson's Captivity Narrative. I recommend this book to anyone who does serious research into early American literature, history, and cultural context. This is *not* an easy or light read.

I use this book everytime I go hikin

This book, edited by Philip Van Doren Stern, is a dream come true for diehard Thoreauvians (like myself). If you think you know everything about Thoreau's Walden, think again. This book is full of fascinating footnotes that shed light on particular turns of phrase and allusions that one thought one had grasped. The footnotes are particularly illuminating in re turns of phrases that have gone out of style. To learn, for instance, that train wrecks and such were commonly referred to as "melancholy accidents" in the papers of the time, lends an otherwise missing mordant wit to Thoreau's criticism of the railroad when he says that "it will be perceived that a few are riding while the rest are run over-and it will be called, and will be, 'A Melancholy Accident'."-Absolutely delightful! Why is this book out of print with so many purported lovers of Thoreau out there?!?

A good account of Swedish people in the Boston area at the begionning of the 20th century. Well written with some surprise s in the photo line. Seaburg is a well known Boston poet so I was not surprised that he did such a fine job in this volume.

If you want to know where the water flows in Massachusetts, this is the book. It shows the major river systems throughout the state and the significant tributaries within them. Although it was probably intended for environmental study, it could be very useful to canoeist and kayakers. A rating system describes the smoothness and scenic attractiveness of many navigable rivers, as well as showing the locations of dams.

This is an excellent study of the youth movements in the USA during the 1960's and 70's. Borowski's work has provided many insights of the complex communal revitalization movements thus
giving an understanding of the basic factors of a functional society: ideology, leadership and infrastructure.
I consider this book as the best among the many publications
regarding social innovations, coomunes, kibbutzim, leadership,
and the functionof values in a society.

I highly recommend it to faculty and students in sociology, political science, and American history.

Recipes are easy to follow and contain many dishes that are absolutely spectacular. The book gives a little history of the famous Beach Plum Inn on Martha's Vineyard. One of my favorites is the Ceasar salsd dressing- awesome!!