This is a very cool book for people who love their stuff. The homes are in lots of different styles. What I really like is the attitude of the book which is a bit about breaking the rules instead of having boring, picture-perfect rooms. A very refreshing take on design today.

if you are a collector, you will love this book as much as we do. It is intriguing to see how other people decorate with their collections. The book features styles that go from modern to traditional. I've shared this book with my design clients to show them that they can edit and organize their favorite collectibles to create well-designed rooms. Lots of good design information here plus tips on specific hot collectibles. This book is a real find.

This is a great book about breaking all the so-called decorating rules. This book shows one do-your-own-thing home after another, each filled with its own unique collectibles. There's everything from fine (and pricey) Italian glassware to mid-century modern and tramp art and colonial treasures. And more. There is a lot in the book on how to decorate with and display collections. An interesting book packed with great photos and information.

I love plants and gardens! I never knew how to create a garden that would last and look great! This book has wonderful photos and is VERY easy to read and plan with. YOU HAVE TO BUY THIS ONE!

I love my yard and this book is a practical blessing for S. Florida gardeners. Takes the guess work out. Inspirational as well as educational even for an "old hand". Have now bought 3 copies as gifts for family and friends - so they don't have to borrow mine.

Although I love native Florida plants, I want a mixture of natives and non-natives in my front yard to achieve a tropical look. After checking out hundreds of gardening and landscaping books from the public library, I finally found the perfect book to help me achieve the look I want.

This book contains beautiful full color photographs with detailed information on each plant including maximum height, light requirements, pests, etc. However, what has been most helpful to me is knowing which plants will look well together with the least amount of maintenance.

I've been able to compile a small list of plants that will provide me with year round color from foiliage and flowers. The tropical look is finally within my reach, look out South Dade plant nurseries, here I come! :-)

In the book Grow Your Own Dope, Plant a Man, the author takes the reader back in time to a splendid sense of peace and laugh out loud joy in a humerous style of living a simple life with a man, willing to let her poke fun at their everyday experiences. It's a perfect gift for Mother's and Father's day, or to youself if you've ever wondered how marriage looks from the inside. Take it to read on a train ride, like I did.

This book is great and a lot of laughs. It will make you forget your troubles for a while.

Ms. Griffin writes a very funny book! Sometimes I think she has been eavesdropping on my life. I hope she has another one coming out soon.

This book leaves me with amazement at Jack Vance's range of imagination and precision. I am familiar with Vance's early science fiction novels that employ a pleasantly deliberate execution. This work retains that style and yet endeavors and succeeds in contriving an elaborate, far-stretching story of an epic level. His characters are entirely believable and emotionally charged. He draws the plot together in a natural and yet surprising manner, and his depiction of the magical arts and creatures is like a fairy tale of adult proportions. I have read a lot of fantasy novels and this one I have found incredibly refreshing in its originality and delivery. Enjoy! I look forward to reading the remainder of this trilogy.

Fairy tale allusions in an epic story. Suldrun's Garden is a light read with some depth. It succeeds on many levels.

This is the first book in the Lyonesse trilogy. Though some of the locations are fictional, others are quite real and it gives the book a plausibility most fantasies are lacking. Jack Vance has created characters that move and breathe in a intricate society of his own making. Book 1 is the quest of Prince Allias to find his son and claim his rightful throne. If you have never read these books, make up for it now.

I have enjoyed this cookbook so much, that it has become my current favorite hostess gift! The recipes are wonderful, and I appreciate the variety of the suggested menus. Most of all, this book educates the reader with "Chefs Corner" tips and a lengthy explanation of southwestern cooking terms and proceedures. Learning how to properly roast vegetables has given a healthy boost to my repetoire, as well as introductions to other southwestern staples.The pictures are also very appealing~ this is just a delightful cookbook that I would highly recommend to anyone with an interest in colorful, healthy food.

I have used several of the menus, and have received rave reviews from all my guests. Everything I have made was FLAVORFUL,TASTY AND INTERESTING. Many of the recipes easily lend themselves to advance preparation - I prefer to spend time with my guests, and not cooking in the kitchen. There are recipes for all levels of expertise, and my 12-year old daughter has made several of the dishes. The recipes interpret historic Santa Fe cuisine in an innovative contemporary style. I am so happy to have added Summer in Santa Fe to my cookbook collection....

This absolutely gorgeous book immediately brought back memories of an idyllic summer stay I once enjoyed in Santa Fe. While the recipes themselves are quite nice, it is the photography, history of the city, and evocative intros to each section of the book that make this cookbook really stand out. The layout and design of the pages beautifully conjure the city too, with southwestern woodcut borders decorating each page. From the ripe, prettily plated blueberries on the cover, to the darling little boy in the giant sombrero in the fiesta section, this book is truly a feast for the eyes!

When I show a friend Susan's book they can hardly believe it is in watercolor. Her flowers, leaves and backgrounds are exceptionally vivid and robust. There are a few step-by-steps in it but not enough for a beginner. I hope her next book will have more steps to each picture. I feel confident we will see more from her - if she's willing. This has inspired me more than any other watercolor book. And, I liked almost all the pictures in it enough to try myself, which is alot more than I can say for any other watercolor book I've ever found! Enjoy!

I have always wanted to paint, specifically watercolours. I have have participated in classes but never really felt confident enough to move on. I purchased Susan Harrison-Tustain's book and was overwhelmed by the images I found within. Now I am working through the excercises and although previously my attempts were pretty rugged now they are not so rugged. I found the book so inspiring and easy to follow that my confidence has now improved greatly.

From the time I saw the first cover shot in a North Light flyer, I knew I MUST own this book! I have many floral watercolor books, but if I had to give them all up and keep only 1 -- this would be THE book. The breathtaking pictures (thanks to Susan) and the incredible color reproduction (thanks to North Light books) makes this book a feast for the eyes and the soul! The method of instruction that breaks down Susan's artistic process step-by-step make this book one of the most information-packed I've read. Susan is not stingy sharing her techniques-- but pictures this gorgeous are really only about 10% technique and 110% divine inspiration. Keep them coming, Susan! I too would love to see a video come out.

Although GREAT GARDEN COMPANIONS appears to be about what to plant with what, Sally Cunningham's book is about much more. Cunningham is a 'Master Gardener' associated with the Cornell Cooperative Extension in upstate New York (growing zone 6) and has spent many hours practicing what she preaches in her nearby garden. Her garden (as shown in diagrams and photographs) reminds me somewhat of those shown on National Public Television's long-running Victory Gardens (raised beds, yummy soil), but Cunningham's advice and ideas are 100 percent organic.

While many people understand organic gardening involves the use of raised beds, mulch, compost, and cover plants that enhance soil friability, retain moisture, and restore soil, few books discuss the ecosystem within which gardens exist. Cunningham works a large garden at the edge of fallow farmland (where the glaciers left very nice black soil), however, many of her ideas will work in a smaller and/or less fertile places.

Some of the more interesting sections of Cunningham's book cover "old-time" notions such as how to build row hedges that attract birds and act as wind breaks; how to identify insect friends and foes and cultivate the former while repelling the latter; why toads, moles, birds, dogs, cats and horses can be great garden companions. For example, Cunningham says moles have been given a bum rap and dogs and cats can actually help you ward off the bunny rabbits and other critters who might make a meal of your lettuce. Horses are a fabulous source of organic fertilizer-should you be so lucky to own one.

Cunningham uses virtually everything that is biodegradable to make compost. She stops by the side of the road to sweep up leaves and pine needles discarded by others. She rips newspapers into long strips and mixes them into compost piles. She buries composted material directly in the garden under straw and other coverings to decompose over the winter. These practices work. I have buried half-digested material next to my roses in fall and by spring produced fabulous flowers on 3/4 canes ordinarily measuring a third of an inch.

Regarding companion planting, Cunningham suggests mixing the members of "families (i.e. tomatoes, eggplants, peppers) in the same bed along with companion herbs and perennials. She suggests members of the same family have similar growing requirements and by combining like with like you will save work. This might be so, but many garden writers suggest the opposist--combining plants from different families as companions. These writers believe the pests and diseases that attack one member of a family are likely to attack another member of the same family and by separating them you confuse the enemy. In addition, authors like Riotte (CARROTS LOVE TOMATOES) suggest certain combinations produce synergistic results. I tend to agree with Riotte, but like much else in life, you will have to experiment with various combinations to find the answer for your garden.

As a beginner gardner, this book is helping me to, hopefully, put my garden in order. 'Great Garden Companions' is written in a conversational style and is nicely organized. Ms. Cunningham's experience in gardening shines through with helpful hints and sound advice based on years of working with her companion system. She outlines which vegetables, herbs and flowers work best together to repel pests naturally, covers many basic gardening skills (which I need to develop), and her enthusiasm is evident on every page. I think this book would be an excellent choice for any new gardner or for someone interested in gardening organically.

I bought several books on this topic, and this book is my absolute favorite. Well written, easy to understand, fun to read.

This book is a good source for midwest-specific plantings and landscape ideas. I found I didn't have to look up the growing zones of plants I found interesting, wondering "Would this plant grow well around here?"

I also enjoy the overall friendly tone of the text. Some other books of this type that I own are written in a stuffy, almost highbrow manner.

The only thing I would have liked to have seen more of in this book is more actual photographs of the landscapes. There are many photos of the featured plants, but the book relies heavily on artwork for the landscape design images.

This book is a tremendous resource for landscaping in the midwest. It provides great ideas for landscaping for different seasons, conditions, and locations. Most of the recommended varieties of plants are easy to find at your local nursery which has always been a problem with other books I have used. The pictures and drawings really provide extreme value when trying to picture how plants will look together. It has already given me enumerous great ideas and suggestions.

A big problem I've had with gardening books is that they so often cover areas with different climates (such as the wet Pacific Northwest) than that which I have to face here in the American Midwest. This book, however, has shown itself to be an excellent resource!

It starts out with a portfolio of 23 designs, giving the reader excellent advice on appearance and what plants to use, complete with color pictures, and a sample graph paper design. After that, it has step-by-step instructions (again with great color illustrations) on building projects, such as sidewalks, walls, patios and so much more. The final part of the book is a series of plant profiles that looks at garden plants and their needs.

So, just to make everything perfectly clear, I loved this book, and highly recommend it to every gardener in the American Midwest!

This is a great book and the first I grab when I need to get information or to solve a problem. If I could only have one book on organic solutions I'd pick this one hands down.

I have lots of organic gardening books and this is one of the best overall. It is detailed, informative and written in an easy to understand manner. Great as a first book for the budding organic gardener.

I find this book to be quite user-friendly and helpful in identifying different diseases and pests that are affecting my garden. It is also helpful as I plan what to grow because I can decide which varieties are most likely to be successful with relatively little pest and disease control effort on my part.

This book is a good reference for everyone who love tropical plant and garden, many beautiful photographs from good garden and healthy plant, I note some mistakes:
(pg 50) pict 1 is not jackfruit or breadfruit
(pg 50) pict 2 is not breadfruit, it's a jackfruit
(pg 105) pict 2 is also Dracaena marginata, not a wild type
(pg 226) pict 4 is Epidendrum radicans not a Dendrobium
(pg 226) pict 3 is not Arundina, probably Arachnis hybrid
(pg 228) pict 2 is not Phalaenopsis hybrid, probably Miltonia
(pg 232) pict 2 is not Vanda tricolor
(pg 236) pict 2 must be rotate clockwise

This book is the companion to 'The Tropical Garden' by the same author, and maintains the same high standards.

The book is well-organized with a large selection of some of the best known species of tropical plants. Concise but informative descriptions of each species are provided complete with the scientific and common names. The highlight, however is the superb full-color photographs that accompany every entry. While lacking in hints for the budding gardener, this book provides plenty of inspiration as well as probably the best pictorial summary of the subject matter currently in print.

I really loved this book. As a novice gardner I was able to learn more about plants, their correct names, how they reproduce and view spectular picturers. I keep wanting more and more. I've have read it several times and I refer to it frequently. It is informative without being too long winded. A must buy for the novice gardner.