I watched the PBS show that this book originated from and immediately ordered the book. I already own over fifty cookbooks and this has become my favorite. As a native "Baltimoron", I've thoroughly enjoyed the stories and info about Baltimore. The recipes are fabulous. You must try a "Dirty Gertie". Fantastic. These recipes are the best that Maryland has to offer. John, hats off to you! Living in Ocean City, we can sample the best seafood in the world. Now, my kitchen is the best in town. Thanks.

I ended my search for the perfect crabcake recipe with this cookbook! His crabcakes are wonderful, the best ever. And the rest of the recipes and narratives in this book are delicious and entertaining, Shields provides an inviting glimpse into the Chesapeake culture and cuisine. Makes me want to visit the area someday.

This book was a Christmas gift from my husband, and it has to be one of my all-time favorite cookbooks. I thought I knew a lot about this region's cooking, but I learned a great deal from this book. The recipes for Baked Squash & Tomatoes and Oyster Stew have become standbys in my kitchen. Not only is this book full of fabulous recipes, but the stories woven through the book are worth reading just on their own. John Shields is truly a "Bawlamor boy" and one of the state's greatest assets. Highly recommended!

Kathleen

I started reading "Pennies" on a plane trip to Bermuda. I couldn't put it down.I tried to continue to read it during the extremely curvy taxi ride to our hotel. I picked it up again, after aspirins and a nap, and my husband complained that we were there for our 25th anniversary and not for a reading marathon!

When we got back, I lent it to my mother. She complained to me, too. She couldn't put it down, either. She read it in one day, didn't get anything else done, and didn't go to sleep until she finished it. She was tired and cranky the next morning.

We both thought it was fabulous and well worth the pain.
Thanks to Mindy and Callie and friends for a wonderful book!
(We can't wait to read about the rest of Callie's adventures).

This book is a page turner as well as unpredictable. The characters are well developed. Can't wait to read the next one!

With this debut novel, Mindy Starns Clark creates a memorable and unique sleuth: Callie Webber, agent of a philanthropic organization (remember "The Millionaire"?). Callie's mission is to investigate non-profit organizations to assure they are legitimate and deserving of the rich guy's grants, which can be darned generous. In this installment, however, she's just supposed to drop off a check and leave--until the recipient drops dead practically before her eyes. Even jaded mystery readers will be wondering which of the many suspects is the killer--and more importantly, why. A fast-moving, puzzling, fascinating read. Word is, there are more Callie Webber books on the way, and that is good news for anyone interested in a good mystery.

This is such an appalling, yet possible plot! One hates to think this could really happen...Great characters and the sub-plots weave together very well. Action packed - fast read! RTG's in Russia? - I certainly believe that! This could take terrorism to a new high - Huston does a lot of research and knows his subject matter. I have read all of his books and this is best yet! RAT is a super character - thought Skyles was too!

Keep'em coming Jim!

Ann Williams

This book had it all. Great action, great courtroom drama. Great characters that you love (and lawyers and liberal sympathizers that you despise). This is Hustons best book yet. My only gripe is the choice of weapons for the main characters.

In Secret Justice, the best yet of James W. Huston's highly-readable techno-military thrillers, Lieutenant "Rat" Rathman returns for the capture the world's most dangerous terrorist. As with Huston's other novels, this one is fast-paced and intertwines several compelling plot lines. The courtroom trial scenes, a trademark of Huston's novels, are remarkably believable and appropriately tense, perhaps the result of Huston's own substantial experience as a trial lawyer. Huston's diligence in research is also well-reflected in his description of the risks associated with terrorist access to the large number of aging, portable nuclear powered generators which are still to be found in the former Soviet Union. The danger that nuclear "dirty bombs" could actually be made from these sources is a major and troubling theme of Secret Justice. Rat's return to action makes Secret Justice a worthy addition to the Huston library.

In Chesapeake Rumrunners Of The Roaring Twenties, Eric Mills tells the story of Prohibition in Chesapeake Bay country with a memorable cast the includes watermen and steamer captains, mob racketeers, and "legitimate" businessmen who took advantage of a nation's thirst for alcohol to make their fortunes smuggling booze into the country. The saga also had Billy Sunday and an army of temperance crusaders campaigning to encourage Prohibition, federal agents and Coast Guardsmen burdened with the impossible task of holding back the tide of alcohol from coming into the country. In a maze of Bay waters, smuggler boats played a key role in the illicit traffic, and were built for speed and the ability to out-maneuver the law while being disguised as ordinary work boats. Chesapeake Rumrunners Of The Roaring Twenties is a vivid, highly recommended history drawing on news reports, government records, and local lore to recreate an incredible time where some men sought to change human nature and before through the force of an unpopular law, and others sought to make their fortunes in defiance of that same law.

This fast-paced, readable chronicle of an almost forgotten era in American history fills a longstanding void. The fact that it is immensely entertaining, as well as informative, makes it doubly valuable. It provides a thorough, understandable history of the social forces at play in the nation which led to the passage of the 18th Amendment and to the inevitability of its Repeal.

The author has done it again with this fine companion to his superb CHESAPEAKE BAY IN THE CIVIL WAR. Bravo, Eric Mills!

Eric Mills has mastered the rare ability to bring back the past through skillful and imaginative writing. A terrific book.

Mindy Starns Clark is proving to be a gifted writer. In her second in The Million Dollar Mysteries series, Ms. Clark once again shows her talent for character development, as well as "edge-of-your-seat" suspense! The characters are believable and well rounded. The storyline is at once credible and riveting. Although it helps to have read the first book in the series, it's not necessary. It doesn't take long to make a connection to Callie Webber, the book's main character. She is a woman of faith - strong, yet vulnerable at the same time.

I look forward to book three in the series and to other future books by this author.

It's not often the 2nd book in a series is as good as the first, but I have to say that I absoulutely loved this one better than the first, and the first book was great too!
Not only does Mindy Clark do a great job with her character profiles/backgroud but it makes you feel like you know them and are with them while the story unfolds. I found myself at times talking to them ( the characters).
In this book, Callie not only works on another murder mystery, but she also is going through some personal feelings and changes.
Her boss, Tom, is and enigma to me and there are a few nuggets of info on him that keep you guessing just what is up with him. I am so hoping in the next book that Mindy will give us some more details on him.
Mindy's books both the first in this series ( A Penny For Your Thoughts) and Don't Take any Wooden Nickels are really, really hard to put down.
Enjoy them. I know I sure did.

It is rare that an author writes a 2nd book in a series that is just as good or better than the first. I found this book to be page turning and enjoyable. And the ending was a real surprise too!

I have read all the books written about Chesapeake Bay retrievers. This was the best written book that I had read. It gave precise information about the breed, its personalitly, care etc. There was no gobbly gob information given. After reading this book. I made a final decision and now own a Chessie. Its a must read for anyone who is thinking about owning a Chessie.

When I was in the market for a medium to large sized sporting dog, I began to research dogs such as the Chesapeake Bay retriever and of course the Golden and Yellow retriever. My search led me closer to the Bay retriever because of 2 reasons: athletic ability and intelligence.

Upon closer scrutiny I soon discover from 'The New Complete Chesapeake Bay Retriever' that indead this was the superior choice over all other retrievers. The book explains that the Bay retiever is less popular than other retrievers simply because not many people have heard of this American breed. And as a benefit, over breeding has not occured with the Bay retriever. Hunters prefer the Bay over other bird dogs due to their undistracted committment to retrieve. As a family dog, they are gentle and stoic enough never to over react or bark in any situation

The book was a terrific guide for shopping for a pup and especially for raising and field training the dog as a hunter or as champion show dog.

My dog is a family pet and I owe plenty to this book for guiding me logically with the raising, training and breeding of my dog.

I discovered later that my dog's ancestry is mentioned in the book. His grandparents are previous champs and are showcased through out 'The New Complete Chesapeake Bay Retriever'.

'The New Complete Chesapeake Bay Retriever' is thorough, logical and very acurate with selecting, raising, and training the Chesapeake Bay Retriever.

This book has wonderful information on the history, breed standards, and the hidden advantages of owning a Chesapeake Bay Dog. I have owned (or been owned by) a Chesapeake for 4 years now, and this book was nice to fill in the gaps of information that most people do not know about. I can tell that Janet Horn has a true understanding of the breed, an understanding that only comes from owning and being in the company of such wonderful dogs. I appreciate her geneology research for this work. Her passion for the breed is what makes this book such a joy to read. This book does not cover training tactics and is not meant to do so. Please take great care in researching training methods for Chesapeakes, as many methods (used on Labradors and Goldens) are not productive on these dogs.

If I hadn't been too lazy to review _Sing It To Her Bones_ when I first read it, I would have given it 5 stars. I loved the fact that it was really a book about people and relationships and that the mystery just fell into the rest of the book. I particularly enjoyed the complications of Hannah's relationship with her husband, and all the intricacies of her role as mother. So I thought the book was very readable, and couldn't wait to pass it on to my mother (my mom is Hannah's age; I'm Hannah's daughter's age).

But then I read Marcia Talley's second Hannah Ives book, _Unbreathed Memories_. It blows _Sing It To Her Bones_ out of the water. Since she doesn't have to start at the beginning with Hannah's history, Talley has more room for plot, and the story is much more interesting. I stayed up all night reading it and couldn't turn pages fast enough.

If you're wavering about buying this book, BUY IT! But you should also buy the second one, _Unbreathed Memories_, because you shouldn't miss it either. I wonder when the third Hannah Ives is coming out?

Marcia Talley was the winner of the 1998 Malice Domestic Grant.

I am certain when you open the cover and read the excerpt titled, Swan Song, you will instantly take a liking to Hannah Ives. She comes across as an honest, witty, and courageous character.

After surviving surgery and treatment for breast cancer, and a job lay-off, Hannah goes to stay with her sister-in-law, Connie, at the family farm near Pearson's Corner, an old fishing community on the Truxton River in Southern Maryland. While there she discovers a body in a well. Being the person she is, Hannah feels since she is the one who discovered the body, she has an obligation to the victim to solve the murder. This is one obligation that leads her and Connie in to some dangerous waters....

Marcia Talley is coming out of the chute strong with her first mystery. I understand this is to be a series and I'm glad to hear it. I'd like to see more about her husband, daughter and son-in-law. IMHO, Hannah Ives is going to be one of our favorite protagonists and Marcia Talley will be one of our most talked about writers.

Sing It To Her Bones was an excellent mystery. I couldn't put the book down once I started reading, the pace is fast and one is never bored. It is a great book for an airplane flight for the hours do fly when reading an intense mystery such as Sing It To Her Bones. The answer is not revealed until the very end and the result is satisfying.

I live close to many of these hikes, but never knew about them. Yes, there are some that just about everybody knows, but this book also takes you to places that are really overlooked. I like many things about the book: the chart in the front that lets you know about the hikes at a glance, how it is organized by region, and how the author tells little stories about the history, plants, and animals of the area you are going to visit. I own five other hiking guides to hikes in and around the area, and this one is, by far, the best of the lot.

I had bought Adkins' 50 Hikes in Maryland, so I thought I would give this one a try. He did it again for me. Short hikes, long hikes, overnighters--there is something here for everyone. And again he does it in an easy style of writing. As a response to one of the other Amazon.com reviews of this book; Adkins tells of general camping areas, but does not point out specific sites. He does this to help preserve and protect areas from overuse. Get this book--your feet will be happy and your eyes will enjoy the places it brings you.

50 Hikes In Northern Virginia is a superbly written and presented compendium of outdoor hiking trails that range from the rugged summits of the Allegheny Mountains to the gentle shores of the Chesapeake Bay. There are hiking opportunities for the novice, the experienced, the young and the not-so-young. An overview chart provides information on each of the fifty hikes at a glance. Each hike description includes directions to the trailhead, a detailed account of the route, a topographic map, and entertaining infobits on historical and natural points of interest. If you are seeking an outdoor adventure in what Northern Virginia has to offer, begin your planning with Leonard Adkins' 50 Hikes In Northern Virginia!

The book presents an interesting first-person study of how the 53 mile-wide Chesapeake impact structure was identified. The 40-million year-old feature is not apparent from surface observation, and its unmasking forms this classic tale of scientific detective work at is finest. The author is not hesitant in issuing praise to those who knew some atypical feature was present, but who lacked the means or opportunity to categorically identify the structure for what it was. In this respect, the narrative is delightfully free of much of the acrimony that has marked so many of the works about the Chixulub dinosaur killer.

The book's text is highly readable and explains in an unpatronizing manner many of the tools and concepts used in solving this great scientific puzzle. Also, the book's author doesn't allow himself to be bogged down in minutiae, an all-to-easy peril in a work of this nature.

The book is recommended to any teen or adult with a limited background in science, and to any and all persons with an interest in earth science or the scientific method in action. I liked it very much. Enjoy.

Geology is a fun science and part of the fun is due to the historical nature of much of geology - geology is all about solving ancient mysteries. Chesapeake Invader by C. Wylie Poag excellenty describes the solving of one such geological mystery. Starting in the middle of the 20th-Century, geologists began to find unusual rock formations in coastal Virginia that didn't have a garden variety geologic explanation. The plate tectonics revolution, which provided so many solutions to so many geologic conundrums, didn't unravel these weird East Coast rocks. This mystery had to wait until humans wrapped their minds around one of the last great discoveries of geology, the realization that asteroid and comet impacts are an important force in our Solar System and that the Earth is not immune from the devastation of these impacts. Poag gives the reader a good glimpse of how geologists [and scientists in general] go about solving problems. Folks who enjoy learning about impacts, but are tired of reading about the end of Cretaceous impact, should enjoy Chesapeake Invader as a welcome change of pace. [If you haven't read enough about the end of Cretaceous impact, I would highly recommend The End Of The Dinosaurs by Charles Frankel and Night Comes To The Cretaceous by James Lawrence Powell.] I enjoyed going along for the ride while C. Wylie Poag solved this great geological mystery and I recommend that you also take this ride.

This book is well-written non-fiction.

Poag tells of a fifty-year geological research project on the East Coast of North America. He tells us how the findings of several natural sciences have combined to demonstrate, beyond reasonable doubt, that a large meteor impacted Earth at Chesapeake Bay, some 35 million years ago. In doing so, Poag teaches the reader about undersea sonic surveying, about core drilling to determine the structures surrounding impact craters of various types, about fossils found in seabed (and former seabed) rocks, and about how those fossils permit approximate dating of sedimentary deposits back to life's origin on earth, some 4 billion years ago.

We now know that large meteor impacts have played a major role in the Earth's evolution. Striking only 35 million years back, Poag's "Chesapeake Invader" was a relatively recent such event. In its closing chapter, his book addresses the present NASA search for the NEXT one.

Naiche is described so stirringly in this book by Dr. Tayac that any native or non-native American would want to know him. Many American children in 2002 grow up multi-culturally and this wonderfully written children's book clearly evokes a compelling portrait of Naiche's world. The richness of Naiche's Indian culture will expand the horizons of any child who reads this page turner.

This is a timely book, especially with the typical flurry of Native American activities that start in November in schools around the nation. One of the best qualities of this book is that it shows that Naiche is like any other American boy: has a family, lives in a house, eats pizza, plays soccer, and wears cargo pants. Native Americans are still the subject of stereotypes fueled by many aspects of society. For example, sports team mascots that reinforce people's ignorance. This book goes a long way toward showing that Native children have the same dreams and needs as all of our children.

This is a beautifully written and photographed book that should be on every teacher's reading list, public library, and family bookshelves.

Having seen an advance copy of this extremely informative and enjoyable book, I can urge teachers and parents looking for entertaining material on how Native Americans in the East live today to buy this book. It tells the story of a multi-tribal boy and his daily life. Dr. Tayac has an engaging writing style and the history and culture are presented in a very accessible manner.