The Birds of Pennsylvania by Gerald M. McWilliams and Daniel W. Brauning is a special interest book, being a state distribution book, but is one that you should consider adding to your library. For those who like to read distribution books in general and those birders living in the mid-Atlantic states in particular, THIS IS A MUST HAVE. I fall in the former group and must say that of all of the distribution books that I have this is the easiest reading because of the writing style. It is also the most informative from a general perspective: For each family there is a basic information opening ala David Sibley's Guide to Birds. Then for each species there is a general status that discusses the species distribution over its entire ranage. Next is a description of the habitat in which the species is found. Then comes the information that concerns Pennsylvania in particular -- Seasonal Status and distribution. Next is a history of the bird in PA. Last is a comment section that gives id problems, endangered status, nest box requirements and placement to attract Bluebirds, etc. Finally are footnotes.

Facts that I have picked up from jumping around in this book are: How cormorants differ from other birds -- they have their four toes connected by webs and THE ADULTS HAVE NO EXTERNAL NOSTRILS and breath through their mouths, p40. Why Waxwings are called Waxwings, p345.

So give this book a look. I do not think you will be disappointed if you are into distribution books. And if not, this book just might get you into them! As to how it measures up to being a desirable distribution and status book for Pennsylvania birders, I will defer to Kenn Kaufman from his forward: "Now there is an outstanding book to fill that need."

Kenn closes with his forward with "I congratulate McWilliams and Brauning on an impressive achievement and heartily recommend this volume to anyone who cares about birds." So do I.

This review has been also posted on Birdchat, a birders listserver.

Dan Culler headed off to war, the son of Quakers, because he felt it was his duty to his country. He put love of country and the ideals of democracy and freedom above his own faith, and in so doing, ended up in a situation where he was abandoned by the nation he loved, and left to die in a hell-hole of a Swiss prison, Wauwilermoos. This is Dan Culler's story. No one who reads this will come away from the experience unchanged. No one will ever read about Wauwilermoos or the miscarriages of justice Culler was forced to endure in a typical history book. The story should make the United States and Swiss hang their heads in shame. The truth about some of the hardships endured by American airmen interned in Switzerland during World War II has been supressed by publishers and editors for years. Dan Culler's book does a lot to shatter some of this official silence. The first part of this well-written, sensitive book describes Culler's training as a B-24 flight engineer. It follows Culler and his crew from the States over to England, where they almost immediately fall afoul of the operations officer, who tries to appropriate their sleeping bags. Failing this, the man makes sure that Culler's crew flies the oldest, most decrepit B-24's in the squadron, and in the worst position in the formation. This is Culler's first intimation that things are not as they seem Stateside. Their lives hang on the whims of higher-ups. Culler's plane, crippled by flak, limps into neutral Switzerland. Life as an internee is not terribly harsh, but Culler takes the command of his superiors seriously--it is an airman's responsibility to escape and return to his unit to fight another day. So he escapes. He is caught. And for his trouble, he is sent to a Swiss federal prison, Wauwilermoos. Wauwilermoos is a maximum security prison meant for the worst criminals in Europe, both Swiss and those who have escaped to Switzerland. Culler's crime-trying to escape and return to his unit. He is thrown into a barracks which approaches Dante's Hell, where he is tortured by his fellow inmates day after day. When he goes to the commandant for help, he finds his own government has abandoned him. The U.S. military attache', Gen. Legge, has sent out a message commanding US troops not to escape, and furthermore, has decreed that any who try will be sent to Wauwilermoos, where the Swiss can deal with them as they see fit. In addition, according to the U.S. government, officially there is no such place as Wauwilermoos, and there are no Americans held there. If not for a kind British sergeant who comes to check on his own nation's troops imprisoned in the camp, Culler would never have emerged alive. As it is, the story of his incarceration and escape is every bit as intense and thrilling as anything Hollywood could concoct. The reader is kept frantically turning the pages, empathizing with Culler and rooting for his success. Once Culler makes it back to England, he finds he has been abandoned again. There is no such place as Wauwilermoos. He has never been there, so he has never been a POW. Therefore, he doesn't qualify for any POW benefits or medical or mental treatment for his many physical and emotional wounds. He tries to continue in the military, first as a highly-qualified techinican and then as a pilot cadet, but all his attempts are foiled by the military and he is discharged. It is my hope that the reader's interest is aroused by this review, short as it is. You will come away from this book feeling Culler's sense of hopelessness and betrayal at the hands of the US and Swiss governments. You will be angry to learn the fates of the US military attache, Gen. Legge, who countermanded official military policy, and of the Swiss commandant of Wauwilermoos. And you will be angry along with Culler as he attempts to get recognition and medical treatment for the hell he has endured in the service of his country--a country that, sad to say, let him down when he needed it. This is a powerful book, carefully and sensitively written. It deserves to be read by anyone interested in the air war, in POWs and their fates, or in the strength of the human spirit. I recommend it very highly.

I have just read Black in 2100 The Quest by Daniel! Although this book is categorized as fiction literature, its context is very real! Black in 2100 focuses on past and current challenges of every day life for Black Americans--and--offers a solution to those challenges. Most books that I have read only address the issues of past experiences but Black in 2100 steers you towards the prize--and that is, freedom from blame.... Those representing Americans in government should read this book! Many thanks to the author for taking the time to address the future. What a positive experience!!!

by TT reviewer Anita Jo Stafford [full review on our website]

The Black Orchid from Aum is an anthology of stories by Gerard Houarner. "In the City of Aum anything can be bought. But you must always pay the price." All of the stories focus on the inhabitants and travelers through Aum, the reason they have journeyed to Aum and the price they pay for their desires.

All travelers must pay for Aum's tongue, a parasitic bug that works as a universal translator. Without the translator the travelers to Aum cannot communicate and are destined to become less than the human population. People can only travel to Aum when their planets are aligned. When the convergence occurs, travelers can leave Aum for the planet that is aligned with the gateway. The city is dark, violent, decadent and in many ways beautiful. It is a multifaceted world in which danger lurks on every corner.

The first story involving the debt collector draws the reader into the heart of Aum. It is an excellent way to introduce the reader to the realities of Aum. Cray's story shows the reader the first of several stories that provide the reader an excellent view of life in Aum. As collector, Cray settles unpaid debts. After suffering through an abusive marriage, she no longer desires love. While she collects debts for others she is accruing one of her own. As the debt collected from Cray is revealed, the reader is drawn deeper into the book just as travelers are drawn to Aum. Kings, Princesses, rulers of all shapes and form pay for their desires in Aum. The title story, Black Orchids from Aum is riveting. Like the rest of the stories the Princess gets what she desires most. However, the price that Aum takes as payment again has a profound impact.

The Black Orchid from Aum is an excellent anthology and an insightful look into the human condition. The stories are well written with excellent imagery and plotting. This book is a good one to start with as a sampling of the work of Gerard Houarner. It catches the reader's attention. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Aum is a place where anything within the imagination is possible for a price. The price that the inhabitants pay is often everything. This book is unique and ingenious. Depending on what the reader wants to take from the stories, they can be anything from dark fantasies to warnings of what could be in a world with too much excess. This book is highly recommended.

As I prepare to write an academic paper on Matthew 24:30 and Jesus' claim to be the "Son of Man" coming on the clouds with power and great glory, I find no other resource as helpful as Darrell Bock's "Blasphemy & Exaltation."

The scholarship is impeccable. His evaluation of critical scholarship is incisive and largely critical, yet he does not try to "beat something with nothing." He offers his own evaluations of the evidence in compelling ways. His compiling of Jewish views on Blasphemy makes for a tremendous resource for any student of the New Testament to make sense of Jesus' claims.

Do you want to know what Jesus actually claimed at his trial? Do you want to know what was so offensive to the ears of Jewish leaders so as to merit capital punishment? Read this book.

One caveat: if you are not used to reading works of scholarship on the New Testament (i.e. you are a layperson), this work can get very technical. You need to be aware of the tools of NT criticism (form, source, redaction, literary, etc.)in order to understand Bock's interaction with them. In other words, this book is not for everybody. It's not a "popular" treatment. But, if you want a workout, go for it!

I am very grateful to Dr. Bock for this resource.

A strong voice in contemporary poetry. Though his early works deal primarily with factory life, this latest collection deals with life as a father and observer. He captures the situations that go on around us everyday that we are usually too busy to appreciate for what they are. a brilliant collection.

I tumbled into this book with no expectations, except that I'd heard of the poet from word of mouth as being something of a legend in the 60s. I was happily surprised to find the poems direct, lush, exciting, and somehow leaping off the page into my consciousness. This is a poet who's not afraid of flying! And he very deftly takes us along with him, into spaces that are both familiar and exotic at the same time. He sounds conversational, he doesn't approach poetry with overweighted intellectual baggage, and he's a believer in God, but in a way that transcends the usual pieties. Since Rumi is now so popular, it's great to find a homegrown American voice that sings in some of the same registers!

at turns painful and reassuring but always powerful, Daoust's poems are always alertly written. The book's namesake is a poem about the thorny love between the poet at 6 years and a 20-year old, but this potentially repulsive subject is so hypnotically worded as to cause addiction. Several pieces stick out in my mind, like "A New York Prayer", a needy plea for material boon, and "The Sleeping Angel", lush balm for the ear of desire. Buy it - a bewitching compendium of a seductively malign poet's work.

great book for use with the insurance and restoration industry. This book actually reports the price of what the contractors should charge for specific trades. It also contains some very hard to find prices on water drying equipment and hazardous waste cleanup as well as your everyday trades.

Awesome. Does lack a little in contents replacement costs but has all the contents cleaning anyone could want. It is also the easiest price book as far as being straight forward in its costs.

Get this one over means or craftman, its just better and represents the industry a little better.

The Blues in Gray is a very readable account of the Republican Blues service in coastal Georgia with exciting battles taking place on the Ogeechee River at Fort McAllister south of Savannah, Georgia. William Daniel Dixon was 23 when he began his private journal which he kept throughout his Confederate Service. He was a native of Savannah and lived his entire life there. The editor, Roger Durham, has done an excellent job making Dixon's voice heard. I am Dixon's great granddaugher and am delighted that this primary material is available to readers and scholars.