LOVING MARIE by Dawn Reno recounts rebuilding a life alone after divorce. Krista Bordon-Hathaway moved from Hartford, Connecticut to Morrison, Colorado to find answers. Her best friend Marie Alonzo had died when Krista needed her most. Now she must learn who she is, and who she wishes to be.

Years of Marie's letters filled Krista's life with beauty. Marie wrote of her "perfect" life and her love for her Colorado home. But an accidental discovery of Marie's journal reveals the pain and joy concealed behind that perfect life. Her journal reveals the emptiness of a marriage gone wrong, the joy watching a child mature, and the guilt of stolen love.

As she begins rebuilding her life, Krista meets Peter Goddard, the man Marie had once loved. Her own growing feelings are tainted by the insecurity of knowing her beloved friend had loved Peter, too. Further, Krista feels torn, having left her daughter with her grandmother when she came to Colorado.

Desperately trying to raise enough money to bring her teenage daughter to Colorado, Krista can't do it fast enough to prevent her abusive ex-husband and her own mother from taking custody of her daughter. The ensuing battle for her daughter lends a depth to the novel not to be missed.

LOVING MARIE is of those gentle, thoughtful stories that touches the heart without devolving into sentimentality. Indeed, LOVING MARIE combines the quest for self identity with a love story, both with love between man and woman, but also with love between mother daughter, thereby touching three generations and revealing the true depth of emotion concealed beneath the surface. While the quest to regain her daughter takes Krista into the deepest realms of the heart, the pain and the passion doesn't overshadow the quest for self-identity, lending the novel a unique balance seldom achieved in mainstream fiction. This is one of the year's must reads, and an absolute keeper. Very highly recommended.

What a pleasure to find a new voice in contemporary women's fiction! LOVING MARIE is fresh, stirring and memorable. Great hook, wonderful first-person voice, and real, believable characters with human flaws. By the end of the book, I ended up loving Marie too. This was a real button-pusher (the e-equivalent of a page-turner.) Looking to hear more from Dawn Reno! - Anne Carter, author of IN TOO DEEP

Like Krista, we all need to escape from the unpleasant realities of life from time-to-time. This story was just so real. The abusive relationship, the innocent child, and learning that we sometimes don't know our friends as well as we think. Krista and Marie's friendship was palpable and heartfelt. I have nothing but superlatives for this story.

I bought the previous edition of this book several years ago and learned so much from its straight forward, well-organized and clear presentation (I am neither an accountant nor a tax person) that co-workers and family members began quizzing me on matters of estate planning. This book allowed me to answer many questions and also enabled me to have a very intelligent conversation with a professional estate planner. I consider the book such a valuable resource that I just purchased the updated edition.

I am an estate planning attorney, not affiliated with any of the author's companies, and I think this book is a "must read" for anyone who is serious about planning his/her estate.

By the way, estate planning is for everone, not merely the "wealthy." The cost (in time and fees) to have a customed designed and implemented estate plan will probably be the best investment you will ever make to protect and preserve your wealth for your loved ones.

Outstanding book to educate yourself on estate planning. This book will prepare you for the planning process so you can understand what your estate planning attorney is talking about and what he or she is trying to accomplish for you. It also very clearly outlines the fallacies inherent in trying to conduct estate planning without competent legal counsel. The authors tell you know how to find competent advice and how to arrange conduct free consultation interviews with any prospective estate planning specialists. If you are even thinking about estate planning, GET THIS BOOK!

This book is one of the best travel guides that I have ever used. There are so many historical landmarks and places of interest along Highway 395. This book encourages the reader to stop and visit. If time doesn't permit, it stimulates your curiosity and imagination. Ginny Clark uses her many years of travel on Hwy 395 to pass on her love of this unique area. This book has been loaned out to more people than any other book that we own. In fact, I am thrilled to find it on Amazon so that I can order it as a gift. Highly recommend!

We purchased this book in preparation for a vacation in the area of Reno, Tahoe and eastern California, and it was a gem. We visited many sites we would not have known about except for this book, and had a great time. Out thanks to the author for writing this very useful book. We recommend it to anyone.

Seldom has anything moved me as much Mr.Reno's pictorial depiction of people and situations that occur throughout this sometimes rapid and other times slow and stoic planet of ours. My wife and I have spent quality time together looking at and wishing we were experiencing the spontaneous myriad of eclectic events that Mr. Reno has so professionaly captured. We both say BRAVO and bring on Ground Time 2!

This book is one of the most rich and thought provoking collection of views of the human condition I've ever seen. It prompts my imagination with its range of scenes and moments in the lives of people around the world, and inspires great curiosity about what "must have been going on" at those moments captured on film. At the same time, many of the images remind me of the universals in people's lives, and the culture-bridging quality of some emotions and experiences. Mr. Reno has a perfect sense for what Cartier Bresson called the "decisive moment." Visually, the book is a real tour de force --- the quality of the images is astonishing in their richness and depth, and just plain elegance. Mr. Reno has clearly mastered the darkroom craft, and then some. The book is a treat for the eyes and for the spirit, and is the kind of thing I will return to again and again for pleasure and inspiration.

"The Historic King Arthur" is perhaps not a book suited for first-time travelers through the murky forests of Arthurian history, searching for the reality behind fifteen centuries of myths and tales. It might be best to first read one or more other works dealing with this great mystery before tackling Frank Reno's highly detailed, deep-delving study of the ancient sources that shed light upon the question. That way, the journey through the writings of Gildas and Nennius and Geoffrey of Monmouth and various scribes and poets will not be quite so daunting. But make no mistake about it, once some fundamental grounding in the basics of the Arthurian quest has been obtained, then "The Historic King Arthur" (and its sequel, "Historic Figures In the Arthurian Age") should be read carefully. Reno minutely examines each source (and most of them are to be found with numerous variations) to lay out his case for his solution to the central questions of the Arthurian mystery: Who was King Arthur? Where did he live? When did he live? Who were his enemies? What was his role in history? And what was really his name?

Reno acts as a guide in this journey in search of historical truth, explaining his methods and logic in evaluating the evidence, but he does not rigidly insist upon the absolute truth of his conclusions. Frequently, he explains that there are other reasonable answers to the questions than the one he favors. Sometimes, such as in his analysis of the locations of many of the battles fought by Arthur (as described in Reno's "Historic Figures In the Arthurian Era"), he concludes that no single "best" answer is really possible. At times, his explanations are complex and subtle to the point where the reader may have difficulty following the path Reno is laying out. That is perhaps a natural consequence of the type of evidence that must be used and of the detail in which it is presented. Usually, however, Reno returns to the same subject of investigation later in the book to again address the questions and to clarify his answers. Thus, attention to detail on the reader's part is required and patience must be exercised as the author slowly builds his case.

And what are Reno's answers to what above I termed the central questions? He believes that Arthur was of a Roman-British background, operating as a high king primarily in Wales and the adjacent midlands, although also in southern England and northern Gaul, from the middle of the Fifth Century AD through the early portion of the Sixth. Reno contends that many of Arthur's campaigns were waged not against Saxon hordes fresh from Germany, but against Saxons who had been settled in Britain for one or more generations, these "English" Saxons being in league with leaders and forces of native British. And Reno believes that "Arthur" was a man known otherwise to history as Ambrosius Aurelianus and as Riothamus and finally as Arthurex, not a name at all but an epithet connoting his status as a great leader.

I will not claim that I am yet wholly convinced of this "triad" equation of Ambrosius Aurelianus, Riothamus, and Arthur but, as the author himself points out, rejection of this total identity does not negate the validity of many parts of Reno's overall work. I found to be especial important Reno's conclusions regarding Cerdic, a "Saxon" king with a wholly Celtic name, and Cerdic's people, the West Saxons. If Reno is correct, our understanding of the Arthurian era must be substantially altered, with a consequence that the course of events becomes much more clear. I expect Reno's conclusions to be challenged - this is inevitable in a field where evidence is scant and subject to multiple interpretations - but at the very least he has provided us with a provocative, comprehensive portrait of man and era.

To my knowledge there is no other Arthurian study available to the general public that explores the ancient sources in such depth to provide answers to the old questions. If I might be critical of some peripheral features, I do wish that the index was somewhat more comprehensive and illuminating (given the complexity of the issues at hand, I found myself turning to the index again and again to go back to earlier points) and the maps, although numerous, sometimes lack the visual clarity that could have been achieved. Nonetheless, "The Historic King Arthur" and "Historic Figures In the Arthurian Era" are books that should be of great interest to anyone seriously interested in attempting to glimpse the real King Arthur.

This book took a time and a man, explained the truth of the time and captured my heart. Knowing there was King and how Mr. Reno went about proving his existance was interesting, intreeging, heart warming and fun. I can not wait for the next book!

This book is the memoir of a young woman from a Russian Jewish family growing up in Shanghai during World War II. The setting is multicultural, multilingual and multiracial, and the author provides fascinating details from the history of a city that no longer exists. Shanghai had Chinese, White Russian, French, British, American, German, Iraqi and many other citizens. The author lived there under the Japanese occupation, but this is not a Holocaust story. Some people were interned and imprisoned, and there was some anti-Semitism, but there were no mass deportations to death camps or a "final solution" as was taking place in Europe. The city was full of refugees from many governments, including Nazi Germany, Communist Russia, Fascist Italy and Franco's Spain, as well as "stateless" people, many of whom had escaped to China following the Russian Revolution. The author documents publications of the day, Japanese propaganda, and news from the U.S. and its allies. She also explains well what happened to various people later, what rumors turned out to be true or false, and gives her sources. First-rate research, good writing, and an interesting story add up to a great read. I add that I read this after becoming interested in pre-Communist Shanghai after reading Kazuo Ishiguro's When We Were Orphans. If you liked that book, try a real-life version!

I wanted to share my personal experiences in Shanghai both before World War II and during the Japanese occupation (1923-1949). I base my book on my private diaries, notes taken during radio broadcasts, and years of research. My father, who at the time was the Editor of the best known Jewish weekly in Shanghai and Honorable Secretary of the Russian Jewish community, put all his personal papers at my disposal. This book describes the end of imperialism in Shanghai and, I believe, is of interest to the general public, Jews and non-Jews alike. Rena Krasno, author.

Drawing upon fieldwork in a number of troubled regions, Reno has produced a compelling and insightful examination of political realities within Africa's war-torn states. A valuable alternative to the more common hand-wringing and finger-pointing of most African political appraisals.

In the midst of my research on timber Liberia, I was told that the only person who really knew what was going on in West Africa was William Reno, assistant professor at the University of Florida. When I called him to ask for information, he told me about the book that he published just this year. I tracked it down in the library, and was very relieved (after much fruitless searching) to find a readable and informative explanation of the politics of so called "weak states", along with four case studies on West African Nations. Reno's book provided by far the most comprehensive and readable explanation of the modus operendi of this region.

The first two chapters, entitled "The Distinctive Political Logic of Weak States" and "Africa's Weakest States After the Cold War", outline useful background information on the unique political systems in place in sub-saharan Africa. Reno does an excellent job of balancing his political theory with hist! orical examples. The next four chapters, which subsequantly cover Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and DRC (formerly Zaire), provide detailed analyses of the economic and political situations in these countries. Reno places the factions, the foreign business partners and the conflicting European vs. African interests in a solid context. On Liberia he writes, "The way we think about Liberia is strongly influenced by images of chaos and random violence.... In fact, war in Liberia has followed a clear logic. Warlord pursuit of commerce has been the critical variable in conflicts there. Stongmen have used commerce to consolidate their political power within a coalition of interest among themselves, businesspeople, and local fighters"(p.79).

Reno has combined information gleaned from his travels, dozens of interviews, and unique primary documents to provide a cohesive picture of the West African political system, a challenge of sorts to the conventional World Bank wisdom! that would have all "weak states" conform to its! idea of economic viability. He places in context the confusing behavior of rulers of weak states, with their tendency to avoid bureaucratic efficiency and free market enterprise, to the chagrin of first world observers. Reno writes, "Rulers who face threatening internal behavior intentionally cripple the arms of the state, which weakens the agencies that outsiders prescribe as the best means to mobilize resources to alleviate pressure form the international economy, such as debts, balance-of-payments imbalances, and instruments to enhance state revenues"(p.19). The behavior is necessary, he writes, in order to keep local strongmen in check. The conclusion that he draws from this may cause one to ponder; "The joining of political struggle and accumulation-- even as a violent Kalashnikov lifestyle of protection rackets, forced labor, and fencing of stolen goods-- is as much a candidate for a Weberian capitalist style of life as is a Protestant ethic or a Japane! se way of doing business"(p.30).

Rather than criticising from afar, Reno writes from the vantage of a frist hand observer. His ideas are provocative and well stated, valid for both the ignorant student (myself) and the seasoned researcher.

Overwhelmed by how to eat with food allergies? This book takes an easy, straight forward approach to buying, cooking and eating for a food allergy-free diet. Not everyone has the same food allergies, so these folks have substitutions right with each recipe. No need to second guess or hunt through other books trying to figure out what would work instead. They don't focus just on the major allergies (wheat, sugar, dairy, corn, soy, yeast). They cover a wide range of allergies. And their recipes are good. There's also a section that explains what food substitutes are out there and how to prepare them. For example, instead of wheat, there is oat, barley, rye, kamut, spelt, amaranth, teff, quinoa, etc.

As an avid collector of just about everything, I was delighted to receive this book as a gift one Christmas. Its organization into topics and subtopics make it extremely easy to find information on any particular subject; the photographs are excellent; and the prices well-researched. Obviously the prices will change with time, and hopefully the author will revise the book in a few years. But meanwhile, the current edition can't be beat for its extremely interesting and informative articles on each topic. The best part about this book is that the reader not only gets an education about black collectibles, but a good read as well!

As author of FOXGLOVE, I wanted to announce that this novel is a finalist in the 2001 EPPIE Awards, which are given yearly to the best in electronically published books. Enjoy!