I LOVE Lori Wick! She is one of my favorite authoresses, (or authors). I love this particular series because they are so easy to read. Nothing to intense. You WILL enjoy this book! I guarantee it!

As Time Goes By is my all time favorite by Lori Wick! A master piece, As Time Goes By takes you back to the old fashioned days of the 1800's. Jeff and Bobby are by far the cutest couple. The special realationship they share, and the gentle romance that is weaved thoughout the book is spell binding. The great quality of this book, along with the good plot and best characters, will be a page turner you won't be able to put down!

I have read almost every book by Lori Wick, the Californians, the Kensington Chronicles, the Rocky Mountain Series, and they are all wonderful. I can never put them down! I have read 4 or 5 of them more than once. They really helped me to relate to certain trials in my life and realize how faith in Christ will help you to overcome even the worst times in your life. I hope that her books will help you all to keep trusting God in all that you do and see the rewards of doing so.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first three books of this series. I fell in love with the characters in Santa Rosa, and I was disappointed to see that they are hardly mentioned in this book. Although having Marcail move to a different city is a good way to show her independent spirit, I would have rather have read about the characters I became familiar with, instead of new ones like Allie and her family, who weren't developed at all. This book and Pretense are the only Wick books that have ever disappointed me, and I have read nearly all. She will continue to be one of my favorite authors, and I can't wait for her next book!

I've just finished this sweet book about growing up, accomplishing goals, learning to communicate and facing childhood fears. Donovan's daughter was a wonderful conclusion to the Californian series. I'm glad I was able to experience the Donovan family and their struggles and joys.

This book was just as wonderful as the first three of this 4 part series. Each of 'The Californians' books made me cry and feel a part of the family and all the experiences they went through. Great historical romance story of a family that puts God first no mater what happens.

As an owner of a "red dog" myself, I was naturally attracted to the title. As a teacher I decided to read it to my class. Five years later I'm still reading it to my class. What a winner! The kids beg for more at the end of each chapter. But best of all, the book teaches heartwarming lessons about family love and responsibility. The messages the book sends are ones all kids can relate to and are touched by. Share it with a kid.

Red Dog is a settlers point of view of how it was like to settle in the wild west. I liked this book because it grabs your attention in the first chapter and you can't stop reading. It is also very interesting because you never what is going to happen in the next paragraph. I think it should deserve a 5 star rating, it is also one of the best books I ever read.

Red Dog was the best book I ever read. It was a simply must read book. Once I picked up I could not put it down. It was so good because it had lots of action. Another reason why it was so good is it had a good ending. Once I picked it up I could not put it down. Now it would be good if he makes a sequel.

This book serves as a good introduction to the work many individuals are doing not only in Artificial Life but also in fields related to Artificial Life. If you want an indepth examination then you will probably have to find items written by the individual scientists, but this is enough to get your feet wet and thus allow you to focus your search. If you are interested in these topics I would suggest you also look at Complexity Science and the similar books there like "Complexity" by Waldrop and "Out of Control" by Kelly, though many times the anecdotes in these three stories are very similiar Waldrop and Kelly look more at Santa Fe Institute. Finally though I haven't read the reprint version of this book, the original book seems very gloomy in terms of its attitude on Artificial Life. Levy seems to think that Artificial Life will be created but the entire last chapter seems to indicate he thinks it will be bad. Anyway it's a good book overall especially if you know nothing about the subject. If you know something then it provides a good examination to a lot of different techniques and you can easily learn something you didn't know before.

This book is a quick read and a great introduction to artificial life. It combines something of the science, the personalities and the history of this field. For general readers with some technical sophistication it affords an opportunity to broaden one's horizons without too much of a mathematical stretch; for computer scientists who are thinking of their own research it can give a general idea of some of the accomplishments in the field and a place to start delving into the original research papers. Read it and enjoy the future!

I read this more than three years ago, before I started my undergraduate studies. I knew I was going to study computer science, but after reading this book I knew I would forever be drawn to the multidisciplinary fields of biology and computer science. From the question of the origin of life to intelligence, the book convinced me that a new approach is needed to solve these old mysteries.

It's not a masterpiece of literature, but it was interesting enough to forever change my research career.

There are rare occurences where a movie outshines the story on which it is based, such as with Bladerunner or 2001. In that vein, I have to give Charles Beaumont, Twilight Zone veteran and screenwriter for the film "The 7 Faces of Dr. Lao", some real credit, as he completely transcended the source. Seeing the movie and then reading this book... well, there's no comparison.

I know that Charles Finney's novel "The Circus of Dr. Lao" is a cult classic and loved by many, but I have to offer the other side of the coin, as the book was a huge disappointment to me. The basic plot has a mysterious asian man appearing in the town of Abalone, AZ, to put on the strangest circus the residents have ever seen. Far from being populated by clowns, acrobats, and animals, Dr. Lao's circus is full of mythological beasts that provide insight into human nature. We are introduced to a cast of cardboard locals who, while serving as a vehicle to introduce the oddities of the circus they attend, play no worthwhile part in the story. Finney's writing style is uneven in the extreme - there are a few bits of brilliance that completely overshadow the predominantly unpolished text. It's almost as if the book is a collection of notes for what would have been a much larger novel, and it could be a work of art if expanded upon and given some direction. As the story is only ~100 pages, expansion would have been appreciated instead of the pointless appendix of characters, creatures, items, and study questions (!) which is oddly in-depth for a story with such lightweight content. The ending of the story is very abrupt and has no real explanation. Nothing is solved, and there is no conclusion: did anyone learn anything from their encounters? We never know.

As a final note, think twice before throwing this one at your kids: this is not a book for children, and while some of the situations may seem somewhat tame by today's trash novel standards, it's obvious that the objective was to titillate readers in 1938. So, if you want something with real focus and a message, I recommend that you view the movie "The 7 Faces of Dr. Lao" instead of reading the source material. The only reason I hold on to this book is because of my love for the movie, as well as the beautiful illustrations by Boris Artzybasheff.

It is difficult to describe the wonder of this book. It is a short book of a little over a hundred pages. The category that it has been sold under is science fiction. The book has no plot but tells of a strange circus setting up in a small town. The owner of the circus Dr Lao is a Chinese man who changes between being a strange 1920's racist caricature to a person of the clear flowing oratory.

The book develops as the residents of the small town visit each of the exhibits. Each exhibit opens up a world of magic. The author attempts to satirise the residents of the town by contrasting their mundaneness with a world of passion and mystery.

The one exception to this is a dialogue between a sea monster and an office clerk. The sea monster is so large that it could destroy any other creature with a flip of its tale. Its power is dwarfed by the power of the clerk who is unremarkable but representative of the power of humanity as a collective mass.

The climax to the book is one of the most humours pieces of writing in science fiction. This book is now sadly out of print and will probably never be published again. Yet it is a work that deserves to endure for ever.

A definite must-read for anyone who appreciates real literature.

This is a truly fantastic book. It's amazing that something written so many years ago can make such an engaging read today. The relevance and staying power of this intriguing book is a testament to the author's brilliance. In fact, there are few contemporary American authors I have read that can match Finney's skill and mastery of the English language. The subtleties in the dialogues, the multi-faceted characters, and Finney's brilliant economy of words make it difficult to put this book down.

The story is a timeless one, it is set in an unknown small Arizona town but Finney brings the events magically to life.

I found this a brilliant work that doesn't necessarily fit the modern science fiction genre. It's a refreshing and intellectual break from tired "classics" like Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Star Wars.

I first read "The Circus of Dr. Lao" as a teenager and it's characters and events have stayed in my mind all these years. I'm very pleased to see it in print again, and I hope to see more of Finney's works on the shelves soon. He obviously deserves to take his place among the "greats" of American literature.

Peter David does another fine job in book 10 of the New Frontier series. The characters are as strong as always, and with every new book, I get more attached to them. I think the fact that David was given his own Star Trek series is a testament to how well respected he is as a Star Trek writer.

Where book 9 mainly focused on Kebron, McHenry, Soleta, Si Cwan, and Kalinda, this book focuses on Lefler, Morgan, Selar, and Burgoyne 172. Si Cwan and Kanlinda do manage to make a quick appearance at the end though.

This book digs deeper into the relationship between Selar and Burgoyne. Burgoyne and the reader find that there is much more to hirself than just a sex craved Hermat. Robin and her mother Morgan run off to the planet Risa for a bonding vacation. Surprisingly enough they run into Scotty.

Unfortunately, since this is a series, any new reader would be pretty lost if they just started with this book. I would strongly recommend that anyone new to New Frontier start from book one. To me, few of the books can stand alone, and you would be missing much is you didn't start from the beginning.

As I side note. I don't understand why Zak Kebron and McHenry show up on the cover, considering they aren't even in the book.

I definitely recommend this book to any New Frontier fan.

Book 10 picks up where 9 left off with the continuing saga of the Excalibur crew. This book focuses on Selar, Burgoyne, Robin, and her mother. In addition it continues the story of the Si Cwan story. Also you finaly learn why the Excalibur exploded. There are also a couple of guest appearances in this one as well. I can't wait for the upcoming hard cover as well as the upcoming comic book from Wildstorm press. In case you have not heard about it, it should be out on SEPT 27.

Peter David continues the series that he created with some great books, he shows once again that he will always have a place in the Star Trek universe.

I have a love/hate relationship with Peter David's book...I love them so much that I can read them in one sitting, but I hate that they have to come to end. Such is the case with the new addition to the New Frontier series--itself the second portion of a trilogy that won't be completed until November (thankfully it's not a year otherwise I'd have to be seriously upset with Pocket Books). The storyline continues to follow the crew after the destruction of the Excaliber. There are only two plotlines going this time around. The first finds Selar and Burgy battling (literally and figuratively) for the future of their son. The other features the mother-daughter team of Robin Lefler and her mother, Morgan. Of the two, the vacation that Robin and Morgan takes seem the more lightweight of the two until the final fifty pages when David pulls the rug out from under the reader (to say too much would, honestly, ruin the fun).

David pays homage to the history of Trek by bringing in old characters from the past and actually making them useful to the story. The characters aren't just there for shock value but actually contribute to the plot. Especially nice is a chance to catch up with David's vision of how Scotty might turn out, trapped in the 24th century, many years after his time.

This is an enjoyable and fun novel to read. The final 50 pages are staggering in that they take some disparaging threads together and serve as the jumping off point for the final leg of the trilogy in which we will hopefully find out the fate of Captain Calhoun (I don't think for an instance he's dead) and what really happened to the Excaliber (we're told how the ship was destroyed here and it's truly a wonderful moment of revelation).

Staggering and superb, this series only gets better and better. And it only makes waiting until November that much harder.

This book is from Willa Cather's middle period of writing -- between My Antonia and Death Comes to the Archbishop. This may be the least known but best portion of her output.

As does My Antonia, The Lost Lady pictures the American frontier in the middle west and its closing due to urbanization, the demise of the pioneer spirit, and commercialization.

Together with its picture of the changing of the West, the book is a coming of age novel of a special sort and a portrait of a remarkable, because human and flawed, woman.

As with many of Cather's works the story is told by a male narrator, Neil Herbert. We see him from adolescence as an admirer of, and perhaps infatuated by Marian Forrester, the heroine and the wife of a former railroad magnate now settled on a large farm in South Dakota. Neil matures and leaves to go to school in the East. We see his idea of Ms. Forrester change as he learns that there is both more and less to her than the glittering self-assured woman that meets his young eyes.

The book is also the story of Marian herself, of her marriage, her self-assuredness, and her vulnerabilty. She is independent and a survivor and carries on within herself through harsh times and difficult circumstances, including the change in character of her adopted home in the midwest.

This is a tightly written, thoughtful American novel.

A novel of retrospection, A Lost Lady (1923) tells of events several decades earlier, when the rapid growth of the railroads was both expanding - and ending - the western frontier. But that is the larger, the national, backdrop against which more intimate dramas are played out, dramas that have to do with youth and age and beauty, and with adultry, sadism, and the growth of a young man, Niel Herbert. Niel idolizes Captain Forrester's young wife, Marion, and in this he is not alone. All who visit the Forrester's home find Marion's warmth and vitality captivating. In Cather's imagination, Mrs Forrester embodies the natural energy of the west itself: ageless and utterly unselfconscious of its own vibrant beauty. So, too, the Captain stands for all that once was the best in America but is now being lost in a greedy bid for money and land; the Captain is a man of conscience - strong, honorable, solid as a mountain. Their home, Sweet Water, is a kind of Eden on the prairie, and even the willow stakes he planted to mark his property lines come to bloom.

Over time, as Niel matures, his "lady" too ages. And when the Captain dies, she falls on bad times, hurt rather than aided by advice from her lawyer. Her fall however is as much moral as it is financial - or at least it is in Niel's eyes. He notes that she has begun to use cosmetics and sherry. He finds her voice too loud, her laughter too forced. Niel loses his lady- or perhaps he gives her up.

There is a kind of poignancy to this brief novel, and a unity that is as pleasing as the story itself. It is, on the one hand, the story of the West's golden youth and fading future. On the other hand, it is the story of a young man's growth and an aging woman's refusal to live as others would prefer.

Ms. Willa Cather has a way of deceiving her readers. Her novels are small simple looking stories when you begin and then you realize you are reading much more. Things are not always as they seem. I loved A Lost Lady-if only I could hear her laughter once more....

Having searched the market for a book that would appeal to me, I am pleased to be able to report that "Derivatives..." makes few attempts to over-complicate and confuse. Unlike many other books that dazzle the reader with closely argued attempts to build up a picture from first principles, Wilmott presents the world as it really is, with all its confusions and inadequacies. Having tried and failed to understand the mathematical underpinnings of the formulae I have to use on a a regular basis, it was refreshing to discover that there really was little coherence to the derivatives market (49 chapters!). I would recommend this without reservation to practitioners everywhere who need reminding what a beautiful chaos lies under the surface of their chosen field. Superb!

Wilmott's Derivatives is an accessible introduction to the partial differential equation (PDE) approach to mathematical finance.

The basis of mathematical finance is the observation by Black and Scholes that when pricing a derivative contract, for example a stock option, the randomness of the value of the underlying stock can be used to balance the randomness in value of the option in such a manner as to eliminate all randomness. A trader can thus by continually rebalancing his positions guarantee the price of an option. This price is the solution to the famous Black-Scholes equation. Thus the pricing of derivatives becomes a suprisingly rigourous branch of mathematics.

The Black-Scholes equation itself is not a particularly difficult equation -- indeed a few simple changes of variables transform it into the one-dimensional heat equation and a closed-form solution for the price of an option can be written down. The proof that it holds and the implications of the proof are however not so trivial and the book does well at explaining these.

Mathematical finance does not end with the Black-Scholes equation for two reasons. The first is that more and more complicated derivatives products are continually being innovated which require new mathematics to be invented. The second is that the equation is based on certain assumptions which while providing a reasonable first approximation are not perfect; the research of new more accurate models is therefore active and ongoing.

The author starts with the definitions of the basic financial instruments and gradually builds up to the Black-Scholes equation. He does so in a clear and detailed manner. He then goes on to discuss various generalizations to exotic options and more complicated models of stock price movements.

The principal defect of the book is that mathematical finance is not a branch of PDE theory or applied mathematics but rather a branch of probability theory. The probabilistic aspects of the subject are skimped on with only a brief coverage of binomial trees, and the concept of an equivalent martingale measure which is the fundamental concept of mathematical finance not discussed. Interest-rate options and many exotic stock options are more easily priced both practically and conceptually from a probabilitistic point of view and the PDE approach to them can become contrived.

To summarize, this book is worth buying but the reader should treat its contents with a pinch of salt and concentrate on the first two hundred pages. It should be read in parallel with another book, such as Baxter and Rennie, which concentrates on the probabilistic approach to the subject.

Derivatives is the best book I have read on derivatives theory and pricing. It includes clearly written and readable theory on derivatives pricing, from plain vanilla to exotic options. Worked examples using Excel or Visual Basic span the gap between theory and implementation, which is often overlooked in other textbooks. In terms of usefulness, I would compare it to Tuckman's Fixed Income Securities.

I first read "Little House in the Big Woods" 15 years ago as a 10-year old in the Philippines, and acquired my complete collection of the Little House books two years later when I moved to America; the collection was given to me as a gift by my older sister. Twelve years later in the Philippines, I opened another gift from the same sister, and my eyes nearly popped out when I held "Little House on Rocky Ridge" in my hands! I had never known that a whole new series of Little House books were being produced, as the books are not available in the Philippines! I was so pleased with this book, even before reading it, because now I could finally get all the answers to my unanswered questions about Laura, Almanzo, and Rose; I also had a new series to collect and dog-ear with endless readings. To my joy, I made a few more discoveries about the Ingalls family -- Pa had become Justice of the Peace, Mary was now living at home, and they now lived in a bigger house. I also realized that the story does not just focus on Rose, and the reader who knows Laura's style very well, can probably sense this easily, because Rose does not tell her own story. However, much in the tradition of the original Little House books, MacBride gives us a glimpse of a young girl's happy childhood: making, breaking, and mending friendships; helping Papa and Mama make a home; teaching herself how to grow up and adjust to change; witnessing the generosity of friends and neighbors; and embracing the love and perseverance her parents lived and taught Rose so well.

If you like history books then this is a good book for you. The book that I read is Little House On Rocky Ridge. If you read all the other Laura Ingalls series then you'll know what I'm talking about.You see Laura Ingalls is older with a husband and a daughter who is curius, and her name is Rose. So the 3 of them and their friends moved to Wisconsin but there is a problem not a big one but a minor one. They had a 100 dollar bill from when Laura's working at the sewing place but they lost it. Will they ever find the 100 dollar bill? But there's more problems! Read the book and you will find out all the problems. This is a real good history book you will love so read this good history book!

Only Laura Ingalls Wilder will ever write the way Laura did, and Little House fans who understand this will love this book and the rest of this new series. This book could stand alone as a portrait of a farm family driven off their land by greedy speculators in South Dakota and searching for a new home where the rain is plentiful. But it also works as a fascinating answer to the question many Little House fans have had: what happened to Laura, Almanzo and Rose after Laura's books ended? Mr. MacBride does an admirable job of following Laura's style as the family treks by covered wagon to Missouri where they must start life anew, with their old friends, the Cooleys. For those who don't know, this is a true story told in novel fashion. Rose is seven, and the book sees the world through her eyes. But the payoff comes from reading the whole series, through Bachelor Girl, when Rose is a grown woman making hard decisions to go out on her own when women were expected to marry or stay at home and become old maids. Aside from the portrait of Laura and Almanzo as mother and father, and Rose's point of view, these books tell the story of America at a time of tremendous technological change, just as today. Only instead of the Internet, it is the telegraph, telephone, and the like. Rose is a believable character, strong-willed like her mother, independent, and smart. Taken together, this series of eight books make a powerful impression on adults as well as children.

I don't read romance novels. I don't even know why I bought this book, but I'm glad I did! The book beautifully and realistically describes how a young woman grew up in the savage West with two brothers, one of whom was her husband and the other whom she wanted so desperately. The tension between Clementine and Zach throughout the book is incredible and sensuous. The book also has many other interesting characters and "side plots." Not the best book I've ever read, but definitely enjoyable.

This would be a wonderful epic saga of the old west and romance. It would fit in with North and South. I could not put the book down once I started it and it is a long book. I was really depressed when it ended. The fire and passion between Clementine and Rafferty is breathtaking and it goes on for years since she is married to his brother Gus which she loves but Rafferty is her heart fire the one that her body and heart craves. But you also love Gus and his gentle ways and he truly loves his wife. The other characters in the book are just as wonderful - Hannah the ex-whore, Erlan the Chinese bought wife, and Saphronie the struggling girl that was taken by indians and saved. They are all looking for their great love.

Of all of Ms. Williamson's books, I have enjoyed "The Passions of Emma," "The Outsider," and now "Heart of the West" the best. In "Heart of the West," Ms. Williamson indeed writes to the heart. This is not a silly romance - it is an epic novel about many people seeking what we all seek - love. It's about the strength of women and men and how those different strengths come together and make each relationship unique. Emphasis is on the "forbidden" love of soulmates Zach and Clementine, and this love will leave a lump in your throat and an ache in your heart - but don't worry, it's a good ache. Don't miss this book, you'll have missed something good.