I don't think I've ever seen a better piece of journalism.

I didn't expect too much from this book. I bought it for the usual tourist reasons (we were in Stockbridge to hear Arlo sing in the church). Published by Berkshire House, it graces the "local shelves" tables of every local bookstore and gift shop.This book didn't actually need to be GOOD. It just needed to have some scraps of fan information about Arlo and some old pictures of the Church and Officer Obie and so forth...

I cannot begin to describe how surprisingly satisfying this book is. It is really a first-rate job. It is so much more wide-ranging and thoughtful than might have been expected.

And Laura Lee covers the exact range of topics I was interested in, with just the right balance.

For example, about a quarter of the book is devoted to the "pre-Arlo" era. It's more than a lick-and-a-promise, interesting both in itself and as a jumping-off-point for musing on How Things Change. I never realized that the little fork-in-the-road Van Deusenville area of Housatonic was once a significant industrial town... At the same time, a quarter of the book is just about enough. I didn't want to wade through monograph on Great Barrington history, and after paying proper respect to the Bostwicks and the Van Deusens, we get to Ray and Alice Brock by page 65.

The thing that makes this book so splendid is Lee's sympathetic attention and reporting of _mild_ differences in opinion. I'm not sure I've ever seen a better piece of journalism. You see events refracted through different peoples' eyes--NOT a big-deal Rashomon conflict, just, well, different people saw things a little differently.

For example, Arlo's guru, Jaya Sati Bhagavati Ma, is seen through Arlo's eyes. She is also seen directly and with respect through Laura Lee's. However, Lee also reports the Berkshire Record's description of her as "a spiritual Ethel Merman wielding a Brooklyn persona" and Alice Brock's remark "Here is this dame, she's my age, she's from Brooklyn, she's Jewish, just like me, but she had this giant scam."

Thoroughly satisfying, absolutely first rate.

I finished Laura Lee's lovingly crafted book over the Labor Day weekend, having enjoyed it immensely. It becomes obvious that Laura Lee has a special love for the Trinity Church (now the Guthrie Center) because the history of The Church is exhaustively recorded in the first half of her book. I think it's safe to say that if you need more information about the history of Christianity in colonial Western Massachusetts than what Laura provides, you're likely well out of the general audience this book aims at. I think Laura hit the highlights as it pertains to the Housatonic/Lee/Van Deusenville area, and the Trinity Church.

The book springs forward in the second half to chronicle the uniquely strange and humorous events surrounding the Alice's Restaurant Massacree, the film "Alice's Restaurant" (itself a baffling blend of truth and fiction) and the subsequent history of the Church, having fallen out of the Brock's hands and ultimately into Arlo's. Lee closes the loop on all these wonderful events and brings us right into the modern era of the Guthrie Center, leaving the reader with an intimate feeling of hopefulness about the renewed Church and the lives surrounding it.

I suggest reading the book, listening to the song, watching the film, visiting arlo.net, and visiting Great Barrington. These are all the pieces of the puzzle. Thank you, Laura, for providing such an informative, entertaining, and loving overview of the Church that was, the Church as it is, and the Church that will be.

- J. Dock, Sept 2000

Ms. Lee has really captured the enduring spirit of a community and a time in this book. The history of a church in the Berkshires seems like an unlikely topic, but add the fact that the church is the same one from "Alice's Restaurant" and an element of interest is added. What was a nice surprise was how interesting the history of the church and its surrounding community really is. Ms. Lee has given a slice of American life through the church from its beginning to its famous showing in the saga of Arlo Guthrie in the '60's and now. I sincerely hope that this book will help others to see the importance of understanding of our history and will help the Guthrie Center.

Wonderful book for Children. Great Photography. A must for the Christmas Stocking from Santa Claus

This book is so much fun to read. The photography is wonderful. Vanderwalker has such a good "eye" for beauty, even in construction.

A must buy for the kids at Christmas

Living in Boston, you are constantly affected by Big Dig-related twists, turns, and upsets. One day the one-way street heads east; the next it has been re-routed west. Few of us venture into the heart of this truly amazing engineering feat, but this book shows us why we should pay more attention. Vanderwarker's spectacular photographs are thrilling to see and they give a glimpse of just why so much money has been poured into this project. We get to see things only the workers would normally see. But perhaps best of all is the glimpse it gives of cutting-edge engineering and technology. Seldom have I seen so clearly how yesterday's sci-fi has become today's "sci" and tomorrow's business as usual.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I have moved to the Boston area only a year ago, and this book has helped me learn a lot about the life in and around Cape Cod since 1621. The characters seem almost real with all the trials and tribulations they have had to suffer. I highly recommned it to any reader who enjoys historical novels (the best!).

You will forget about the outside world when you read this; nothing but sand, wind, and water. Plus some natural history, local folklore, a few shipwreck tales. Typical Thoreau; he finds beauty, interest, detail in the wilderness. The desolate landscape will help to clear your mind. Highly recommended.

Each year, in preparation for a week's retreat to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, I go in search of a book that would be perfect for a sojourn on a desert island. Of course, the Outer Banks are hardly deserted--the locals have printed up Wege's infamous photograph of a packed stretch of Coney Island with the caption "Nags Head, circa 2000 A.D."--but there we are on an island for seven days, my husband experiencing near death in the waves while I read. Sometimes we stop these pursuits and prowl the beach. Mostly we live as if we're the last two people on earth (which is easier in the off-peak season). I've learned that not every book is right for this way of life. The perfect desert island book has to celebrate the place you are in, not transport you. It should offer a tinge of society, because, after all, a human is a social animal, but it should not make you yearn achingly for what has been left behind nor should you be so repelled by it that you will never fit in again when you leave the island (you always leave the island). It should have some narrative sweep to withstand the competition of the seascape. It should make you think, at least a little: you want the stress to wash out to sea, not the little grey cells. Cape Cod by Henry David Thoreau is the benchmark by which I've chosen beach material for several years. it is the quintessential celebration of littoral life. If you are on the beach, you appreciate it all the more; if you are not, well, at least you know vividly what you are missing. There is drama, as in the specter of villagers racing to the shore at the news of a shipwreck. There is information, as in what part of the clam not to eat, how the Indians trapped gulls for food, how a lighthouse really works. There is Thoreau's contagious respect for solitude, his occasional crankiness, and that magic trick of his that can suck in high school sophomores and get them through his books without so much as a whimper. There is one flaw to Cape Cod: brevity. It lasts about a day and a half on the Robinson Crusoe plan. This is not to say that it does not withstand re-reading, it does, but at some point after you have committed it to memory, you may wish for the collected works of Shakespeare and move onto the Bard's beach play, The Tempest.

Boston has long been home to a number of professional and amateur athletes and sports teams. Curator of the Sports Museum of New England Richard Johnson's A Century Of Boston Sports celebrates this athletic heritage with a chronologically organized text comprised of illuminating, informative essays by journalist and historian Glenn Stout, historical vignettes, and more than 150 vintage photographs highlighting teams, events, and personalities that are indelibly associated with the city of Boston. A Century Of Boston is "must" reading for all Boston sports fans as well as students of American sports history.

Written with aplomb and great respect for all the athletes that are featured, A Century of Boston Sports is a joy to read. The variety of photographs and layout of the book are eye catching and unique. No matter your team loyalty, this book provides wonderful stories of athletes from all walks of sport. Humour and joy in sport make this a wonderfully inspiring read. Johnson shows a genuine fondness for each chosen member in this gem of a book. Give this book to any sports fan or anyone who would be inspired by reading all these diverse stories.

At Thanksgiving time this book is a feast for sport fans across the country. It is all inclusive,entertaining, and informative. Great snap shots in time. If you are a sports fan this book covers some of Americas top sport heros. Well written and extremely well organized

George V. Higgins has done it -- captured the life and mores of middle-level politicos in an enthralling, hard-to-put-down book. This _is_ real life writ large ... no plot to speak of, but riveting neverthless. If art holds a mirror up to life, Change of Gravity is polished, silver-backed glass without a flaw..

The dialog in George Higgins' "A Change of Gravity" is the intoxicating element that pulls you through the every day happenings of Ambrose Merrion. The nuances of class were right on. The thought processes of his car dealing father and Danny Hilliard, explaining the structure of power, are truly insightful. Getting past the seemingly trite opening (black, female judge with a basketball playing parent) was the hard part. Higgins' ability to portray the language patterns here, as he did in "Friends of Eddie Coyle", is obscenely lyrical, the beauty of the book. These are real guys talking, exposing the underbelly structure of power. They courted it, they dominated it, it layed them down. They played the game so very well and they were destined to lose. I was enthralled, and took notes. Thank you, Amby and Danny.

Beyond the characters, who are even more irresistible than we have come to expect from Higgins, he captures a place, class, times, and moral ambiguities among shifting standards. The dialog is, of course, superb; and, in this book, carries all the burden which Higgins places on it. This is a wonderful novel by any measure.

Entertaining, informative, indispensible for exploring one of America's most fascinating destinations, City Smart: Boston belongs in your carry-on bag. Veteran travel writer Lisa Matte, a Boston-area native, is as smart as the city itself, and she brings to the book a real insider's expertise, with anecdotes and stories that perfectly illustrate Boston's quaint, colorful and sometimes quirky history. Abundant photos and maps quickly acclimate readers unfamiliar with Boston. If you're planning a trip to Beantown, get familiar with this book.

The best guidebook makes you feel like you've got a good friend in town, one ready to share the out-of-the-way finds and to keep you clear of the tourist traps. City Smart Boston is one of those guides. Author and Boston resident Lisa Matte offers up suggestions on her hometown that range from accommodations to dining, from shopping to cultural activities, all designed to help you make the most of your visit.

We especially appreciated the accommodations section, covering properties that range from five-star to bed-and-breakfasts. Details important to romantics, from terry cloth bathrobes to on-site gourmet dining facilities, are included in the hotel writeups. Along the way, readers find a sprinkling of fascinating trivia (hey, bet you don't know which Boston hotel called John Wilkes Booth a guest just a week before he shot and killed President Lincoln!)

Romantic travelers also find plenty of sizzling nightlife activity covered in this guide, including where to see the Boston Pops and the hottest places to dance the night away. A special section takes a look at Boston's best Irish pubs.

DON'T visit Boston without consulting this informative and easy to read guide book. Local residents to international travelers will find this guidebook the key to planning visits that memories are made of. The best guidebook I have ever read.

"Clinical Anesthesia Procedures of the Massuchussets General Hospital" offers concise yet thorough coverage on all aspects of anesthesia. From preoperative visit to basic airway management, from fluid requirements of the surgical patient to specific considerations on cardiac, respiratory and liver diseases, this book has it all in an easily accesible way, especially when your above the "blood-brain barrier". I would especially recomend the chapter on resuscitation of trauma and burns victims, because of the thorough coverage of the subject, better than in many surgical textbooks I have read.

I have over 15 years of experience as an anesthesiologist at the prestigious Yale-New Haven Hospital in Connecticut. I've seen it all; however, this text challenged me. I highly recommend it, and every practicing MD and CRNA should have a copy to review and use as a teaching tool and guide.

This book encapsulates all the necessary information for clinical practice of anesthesia. It also includes MANY charts and protocols for drugs, malignant hypothermia, ACLS, etc. I can't enter the OR without it.

Mr. Samito's work is a careful examination of a tumultuous period in American history, and a compelling human drama. Would make a great movie- better than Braveheart or The Patriot!!

This compelling book truly transported me to the nineteenth century. Mr. Samito eloquently presented the words of this little known figure in a truly remarkable fashion. The history community is truly in debt to Mr. Samito for uncovering these long lost treasures of the nations past. Any history "Buff" worth their salt needs to read this book. I only hope Mr. Samito continues to produce works of this quality for some time to come. Ken Cooper

I don't normally read historical books, especialy ones about little known Civil War generals, but this one came highly recommended by a friend so I gave it a shot. I was won over immediately! As it turned out, the life of Patrick Guiney was remarkable and compelling. His letters to his wife were eloquent and heartwarming, and his courage in the face of what must have been a very painful injury was inspiring. Samito's editing was never intrusive, and elucidated the more ambiguous aspects of the text. I found his explication of the Boston cultural and political scene of the time to be particularly insightful. Overall, a surprisingly good read! Nick Cavuoto

To the powers that be: Please re-release this wonderful book, one of the best by Linda Barnes, and certainly worthy of attention from readers new and old.

In this Carlotta Carlyle classic, a serial killer is stalking Hispanic women, all illegal aliens, in Carlotta's native Boston. The murders are grisly and vicious, and fear of being sent back to their equally grisly and vicious native lands are keeping the victims' friends from talking. Carlotta finds herself in the middle of the trouble after an anonymous woman asks for help--and it's soon Carlotta herself who needs the help.

As readers of these mysteries know, Carlotta has a beloved "little sister," a Hispanic child named Paolina, whom the detective loves dearly. But with the dark mystery threatening the Hispanic community, Paolina changes overnight from a sunny, bright and loving child to one who is surly and uncommunicative. Is Paolina's mother Marta in danger from the serial killer? Is Paolina herself being threatened? What is the secret they will not reveal?

Even though this reader guessed the killer about halfway through the book, it in no way detracted from the great story, and chilling secrets revealed in the end.

A great read, and worth digging for.

Illegal aliens, immigration officers, fear and distrust combine for a great book. The author has intertwined the abuse and turmoil illegal aliens face and written an interesting and captivating tale. The main character, Carlotta, standing six-one with red hair, demonstrates her strength while maintaining her allegiance to others. As the dead bodies emerge, Carlotta is determined to identify the victims and find the killer. The police can't get fingerprints and the people who might know something won't talk. Mix in the tender relationship Carlotta has with her 'little sister' Paolina, the complicated relationship with her ex boss, and the drive she maintains to solve the crime, and you have a book you don't want to put down. The variety of characters created by the author provide a humorous, yet realistic, aspect to the book. Very entertaining and enjoyable to read.

Carlotta Carlysle drives a cab, has convoluted love life and precocious little sister, but has time to take on bad guys and lead her reader on a non-stop thrill ride as she ferrets out illegal alien underworld. A real page-turner. A must-read if you like Sue Grafton's books.

I remember reading these books on my summer vacations to my grandparents...I was bored and the local town librarian recommended them to me. Many years later, looks for books on mysterious houses for a nephew, I remembered and re-discovered them. My favorite is An Enemy At Green Knowe. The story is full of twists and turns and quite frightening events, with the excitement lasting just long enough to tantalize the reader. You feel the house itself is a living breathing character, as is true of the entire series. This is the kind of book an adult needs to put in the hands of the student -- as is true with A Wrinkle In Time -- and sit back while the child becomes wrapped in the world of Green Knowe. A superior children's book!

Why is this book out of print?

In this, the fifth Green Knowe book, Tolly AND Ping come to spend the summer with Tolly's great grandmother, Mrs. Oldknow, and do battle with the forces of evil as personified by a newneighbor, Melanie Powers.

Absolutely wonderful -- my favorite part is the very end, where everything comes together serendipitously to defeat Miss Powers, leaving you to feel that all is right with the world.

Like Tove Jansson's Moomin books & Arthur Ransome's Swallows & Amazons series, L.M. Boston's Green Knowe books remain underappreciated by American readers. Even so, these three series are arguably of vastly superior quality to the ubiquitous Harry Potter, Narnia, and Roald Dahl books. An Enemy at Green Knowe is the 5th in this series of 6 which do not need to be read sequentially. Tolly, the protagonist of the first 2 books is now united w/ Ping, the hero of books 3 & 4. Those familiar w/ the series will know that the "shadow protagonist" is Mrs. Oldknow, Tolly's great-grandmother & owner of the manse Green Knowe & its magical environs.

Green Knowe is a place whose past haunts its present. Mrs. Oldknow relates to the 2 boys an incident out of Green Knowe's past, when the mysterious Dr. Vogel took up residence at Green Knowe as the family tutor in the year 1630. Dr. Vogel became caught up in some nefarious activity, and as the boys soon learn, the evil force that was unleashed by Dr. Vogel still lurks in the present day. They must confront this challenge to Green Knowe and its proprietor in a series of hair-raising events -- although written for children, this book is not for the faint of heart.

The Green Knowe books differ from one another quite a bit, but in my estimation this one ranks w/ Children of Green Knowe as the best. While that one was delightful for its innocence, this one is notable for the way in which it gives the reader chills.

Boston's prose is graceful & intelligent & is recommended for the literate grade schooler. These books are the logical starting point for a reader to progress to the works of Susan Cooper, Alan Garner, and Robert Holdstock.

No mention of the Green Knowe books would be complete w/o mention of the marvelous illustrations by Peter Boston. Unfortunately, the Odyssey Classic reprints chose hideously garish covers, although to their credit they preserved Peter Boston's interior illustrations. Still, their choice of covers probably explains why these books are now out of print.