While the black and white illustrations are charming and the text is easy to read for children ages eight and over, this book contains many common historical errors and inaccuracies. The most blatant and disappointing is the author's misspelling of Dolley's name, which was never spelled "Dolly" except by later biographers who goofed. Dolley always signed her given name with the "e" before the "y," and this is how it is listed in the Quaker records of her family. The biography itself is a shallow one that focuses on a few of the "big" events in Dolley's life without really illuminating her character or drawing on the plethora of first-person sources (like letters and diaries) easily available today. One of James Madison's well-remembered sayings about Montpelier being a "squirrel's jump from heaven" is misquoted and not attributed to Madison. It is unfortunate that with so many stellar biographies of Dolley Madison available for adults, one has yet to be written for children that does justice to the lively, smart and gracious first lady who won the hearts of all who met her and earned her the title "Queen Dolley."

with their descriptions of this book. It started out interesting enough. Sort of faltered in the middle and by the end was just boring. It's a very very slim book and even then it couldn't live up to the description. My 2 stars are for the beginning when the professor talks of what it is he wants. The picture is vivid and he is portrayed as a man who knows what he wants and how to go about it. By the middle of the book you wonder where that man has gone only to be replaced by an insecure tyrant. At the end an alien professor is cuckolded by the naive girl and he exacts a terrible retribution. But not only was the author tired you are too and you don't mind so much that it is rushed and not well thought out.

I picked this book after being impressed with Tony Rothman's "Instant physics" which was a great read. Unfortunately, Madison avenue is not for the average reader who is looking to enjoy wellthought and easily presented articles. It is a series of essays/articles on varied subjects related to physics(which can very well mean everything in and beyond this earth!), which Rothman wrote during his stint as a Reporter in American magazines. The introduction piece and the the first essay "Physicist on Madison avenue" is brilliant; it is full of wit and gives a rare peek into life of a brilliant physicist juggling the demands of the revenue-minded advertisiing world of magazines. It is a racy exhilirating read and Rothman throws in the use of statistics too in this essay. The next essay is on the "musical instruments" and how physics can influence the growth/development/refinement of musical instruments and what sort of potential impact it can have on music. It is a technical essay with stimulating philosophical insights. The most intriguing subject which ROthman covers in this book is the chapter related to the "seven arrows of time". I could understand only one arrow of time - which is the time as we all see. The others went above my understanding, but nevertheless it was a fascinating read and worthwhile to explore further. The remaining pieces are related to cosmology and is too technical with full of jargon. I could not complete those chapters.

To summarise the first two chapters are fantastic. THe arrow of time chapter is intresting. The rest of it would delight somebody who can understand the cosomology/particle physics jargon well.

This short, poorly edited text contributes little to understanding Dolley Madison's life or times. Not only is the text riddled with typos, but it presents an overly-simplistic and at times distorting view of Dolley. Zall continually refers to Dolley as a "mother" to those around her, attributing her actions to her gender rather than to her individual choices in unique circumstances. This book clearly aims at elementary school students, but it should be used with caution, as its focus on Dolley mothering both to her son Payne and to those around her distracts from her other activities.

I happen to be aquainted with the author and in defense of this much respected author, I must let the readers know that this was not a finished work when published. The project was poorly handled by the publisher, and was printed from a rough draft. Modern writers, beware with whom you enter into pacts...

Although the above item is listed as a paperback book, it is indeed a poster. The "Little Book Series" label is misleading. Do not order if you are expecting something to read.