One of the nice things Grant does in his book, is break down ranks using a horizantal flow chart on various pages. This helps clear confusion for the novice. (page 446-7 is one example)
Other reviews have spoken admirmingly of this book, I would like to draw attention to an incident Grant tells of, where a Union soldier is stealing ALL of a Southern ladies chickens.The Southern woman vainly pleaded with the Union soldiers to please spare her a few at least.
The Union soldiers looked at the woman and said,

>"This rebellion has to be suppressed if it takes the last chicken in the Confederacy."< ( Page 555 Grants memoirs)
( how will this woman and her children eat after this?)Another following incident---

>"The South prior to the rebellion kept bloodhounds to pursue runaway slaves who took refuge in the neighboring swamps, and also to hunt convicts. Orders were issued to KILL all of these animals as they were met with.
On one occasion a soldier picked up a POODLE, the favorite pet of it's mistress, and was carrying it off to EXECUTION, when the lady made a strong appeal to him to spare it.
The soldier replied," Madam our orders are to KILL every bloodhound,"
"But this is not a Bloodhound," said the lady.
"Well, Madam, we can not tell what it will grow into, if we leave it behind," said the soldier as he went off with it."<

---------------The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant------Page 555----
( exact wording again, the capitals are mine for emphasis)

Combining Grants testimony, and Memoirs of General W.T. Sherman, ( see my review of his book, and the direct quote), there is no doubt the Southern women, children and families suffered greatly during the Civil War. There was NO MILITARY VALUE, for the majority of this.

People that deny this, should read books, by the two top Northern Generals.

As far as Civil War biographies go, this is one of the better ones.

The book is remarkable for its clarity of speech and the simplicity of its presentation, but most of all for the quality of focus of a man whose final chapter is as moving as any I have read, and written just a week before he died. I recommend that the trilogy of Grant; CAPTAIN SAM GRANT, GRANT MOVES SOUTH, and GRANT TAKES COMMAND, be read first. Then read his MEMOIRS, and follow it up with ON THE BORDER WITH CROOK. The characters in the MEMOIRS appear prominently in all the others; men known by Grant from West Point, the Mexican American War, and who served, subsequently, as officers during the Indian Wars following the Civil War. Connections such as these fascinate me. Grant's knowledge of his adversaries most of who he knew from experience was perhaps his greatest weapon. Yet, war being war, he never let let friendship interfere with his duty, which is why he became known as UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER (U.S.) GRANT. it seemed to me the more he got into his work, the better he expressed himself, and his CONCLUSION rose to the level of greatness as a writer. He seemed the perfect compliment to Abe Lincoln whose policies he hoped to carry forward.

More than the descriptions of the great battles, which were of such great scale that they were beyond my ability to grasp, I was most impressed with the courage and intelligence of the man, who wrote these memoirs while dying of a painful cancer. His assessments of the generals on both sides, many of whom he knew intimately from the Mexican war, are priceless. I think the one I like best was of General Warren -- "His difficulty was constitutional and beyond his control. He was an officer of superior ability, quick perceptions, and the personal courage to accomplish anything that could be done with a small command."

General Grant also never lost the ability to make fun of himself (a lost art among today's leaders?), recalling being mocked by a stablehand who had seen him prancing in his uniform shortly after being commissioned. Perhaps that is why in his prime Grant so often wore a simple private's shirt with his proper insignia of rank.

The anecdotes from his conversations with President Lincoln are unforgettable. So are stories from the war with Mexico, when long-range Mexican cannonballs came into his lines at such shallow angles that his men could open ranks to avoid the bounding projectiles. The language of the day - "reducing" the enemy "works" with great "execution" -- adds to the enjoyment and reminds the reader of today's "collateral damage" military jargon.

Grant, great lover of a good cigar, comments on his observations from the war with Mexico that people smoked tobacco more when it was an expensive item they they did later when the price was much cheaper.

Where are such men today? Probably still out there waiting for the next great challenge to bring them forward. General Grant comments that "Those who wait to be selected, rather than those who seek, can be expected to provide the most efficient service."

What a great book. Not only is it a very cute fable, but my 5-year-old loves being able to surprise his Italian Nana with the Italian phrases he's learned. We first read this as a library loaner, but my son was so reluctant to return it that we had to buy our own copy.

In the rolling Tuscan countryside a piccola crow goes into business with a wily weasel. And therein begins the story of Andiamo, Weasel! by Rose Marie Grant and illustrated by Jon Goodell, ($15.95 Alfred A. Knopf.)

This charmingly illustrated children's book is perfect for youngsters of all ages, meaning the grown-ups who read it to the children will enjoy the tale and the telling as much as the little ones. Grown ups reading aloud may even break in to the song "Funiculi, funicula!" more than once!

Youngsters accustomed to hearing parents and grandparents split their speech with words from the old country will feel right at home in this fable. Consider that all the speaking parts in this fable belong to the animals, and they all live in Italy, of course, they'll sprinkle their exchanges with a bit of Italian. (Won't the grown ups delight in translating for the little ones!)

Even the rooster, who only has one word says it in Italian, "Chicchirichi!" Frankly, we've never heard a rooster crow in another language, but if they did, we're sure this is how they'd sound in Italian. (It's that willing-suspension-of-disbelief-thing, we ARE talking about a fable here!) But the best part of that rooster's cameo word is hearing Mom or Dad or a grandparent bringing the word to life, or life to the word and lighting up a child's face.

As the glossary at end of Andiamo, Weasel! explains, piccola is small. So the crow is small and needs the help of the weasel, who ends up being prodded by the title (Andiamo, Weasel!) and rarely succumbs to work after the corn crop is sown while they merrily sing "Funiculi, funicula!"

This fable works on many levels, one of which for the children reading it is to learn that hard work will be rewarded, and that even though they might be small, or piccola, they probably are much stronger than they realize and should stand up for what's right.

As interesting and fun as is the story, I could see reading this aloud and pausing to point out the rich detail capturing the Tuscan farm country. The piccolo crow wears a flower in her straw hat; the weasel wears a neckerchief (as if he could just as easily hold up the next stage coach!) that he later wears around his broken leg when there is work to be done. In the menacing rain corn husks like vipers whirl in the wind under dark clouds.

The piccolo crow enlists the help of a wolf to frighten the weasel into doing the right thing. The wolf could have been drawn to be more scary and imposing a figure - but let's not upset the friends of the wolves in the world. And the tenor frightened off the bandstand by the piccolo crow - why was he a fat, balding man with a handlebar mustache? Ooh fah!

But these minor points are no reason that you shouldn't run out now and buy a copy of Andiamo, Weasel! for every tot you know, from 1 to 101 years old. It's the stuff of which memories are made.

This is a wonderful book for children, ages 5 to 8, to learn how to believe in their own power.

And quite frankly, it might not be a bad idea for adults to read, and think about the things that they want out of life.

This book needs to be made into a serious full length movie on the order of "Gandhi".

According to this book and other information available on the Web:

Arigo was a Brazilian peasant, with no formal medical training, or other schooling past 3rd grade. He was able to diagnose and cure virtually any malady. He did diagnosis at a glance and prescribed modern pharmaceuticals -- often in combinations and doses that made no sense in conventional terms, but which worked in virtually all cases where this could be followed up by investigators. Arigo performed operations of kinds which have apparently never been duplicated by conventional physicians. For example, he commonly excised even those metastatic tumors that extensively infiltrated vital organs, amid blood vessels and nerves. He regularly removed cataracts with a kitchen knife by scraping the cornea and removing the lens -- and his patients were able to see well afterwards. Most operations were done within 5 to 60 seconds, without anesthesia or antiseptics, yet without pain or damage or infection to patients. He commonly treated up to 300 patients/day.

This sounds like a fairy tale, but was extensively documented by highly respected physicians and other scientists from America (led by Henry Puharich) and Brazil. They made detailed films, and performed on-the-spot diagnoses and examination of patients before and after treatment by Arigo. His "instant" diagnoses agreed with their diagnoses at least 96% of the time.

This is not only among the best-documented records of psychic healing, but among the most intruiging sets of evidence for psychic phenomena in general. Instead of just rehashing the same o same o notions of telepathy, clairvoyance, etc. it opens up entire new phenomena. In particular, it suggests a radically new perspective on the nature of disease and healing.

Granted, this perspective has something in common with notions of the so-called etheric body and how it can be operated on -- an approach common in Brazil, where physicians commonly combine so-called spiritist practices with modern medicine. (But Arigo's skill and the intelligence underlying it went far far beyond that of his peers.)

This is the so-called intellectual Karcec school of medicine, and is reputedly practiced by hundreds if not thousands of physicians who have graduated from top ranking medical schools [including American and European schools] and who publish regularly in professional journals.

The Kardec approach involves consultation with spirit physicians -- discarnate beings that were allegedly once alive on Earth -- through mediums. Arigo was unusual in that he was his own medium. His spirit helpers either gave him advice or used him like a puppet to perform treatments -- at which time he was in a trance.

Although this sounds extraordinarily far fetched, the documentation is good enough to warrant serious thought. Alas, Arigo was killed in a car wreck before his work could be studied in enough detail for his methods to be passed on to other healers. Many healers aspire to emulate him, but apparently none has equalled his prowess and gentleness.

This is the kind of book I've been waiting for for 30 years. I only wish that the films and detailed medical records were available too.

According to James (The Amazing) Randi, most if not all of what Arigo accomplished was mere sleigh of hand (magic) tricks with perhaps some of the placebo effect involved (people's expectations being met). While I tend to agree, I am puzzled as to some things which can't be explained away such as the thoracic surgery performed on Senator Betancourt, some leukemia cures on babies, and Arigo's use of the German language.

If only there were so good guides for every other region of the world!!!! It is simply the best guide I've ever had. It ^has very good paintings and perfect descriptions. Impossible to miss one identification with that. And it's also not so heavy to transport, so you can easily bring it to the field. BUY IT!!!!

ý havent read it but my friend said to me it was perfect than ý will buy it as soon as possible..

This field guide has been awaited with excitement (already having existed in Swedish and Danish for a year or so) - now I know why. I have seen a huge variety of field guides, but this is simply the best yet. It covers Europe (east of Ural), Northern Africa (north of ca. 30 degrees north), and the Middle East (e.g. Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Armenia and so on). Also included is the islands of the Canaries and Madeira. All species naturally occurring (and several species not considered to be native) in this area are included. The only exception being a number of species only recorded a few times (usually meaning ones or twice) in the area. These rarities are included in a list. The species are dealt with taxonomically, and each group (e.g. Swans) starts with a short (or long in the "hard-to-id" groups) introduction. Each species has a text which I can only refer to as perfect. All relevant information is included (id, habitat, voice etc.). Also included is a map. However, the truly incredible thing is the drawings. Not only are they precise, they also include all kinds of plumage's and positions (often shown in a natural habitat as you would see it in the nature) that you could only wish for in most guides. Arrows (with a short and simple text) point at features of the birds especially important for identification. A thing most (if not all?) will find great is that the drawings are placed next to the text (and map) - no more endless going through pages. Incredibly it is still a handy guide. This is the field guide for the beginner as well as the pro. Sorry, I'm not able to find any bad things to say about this guide.

I have read six books on college financial aid and this is the hands down winner. It has everything you need to plan and execute a faultless fiancial aid strategy. I checked this out of the library but I am buying my own copy. It is a good read and a good reference. It has all the secrets to getting the most financial aid possilbe with web sites of places to get more info.

If someone finds a better book for parents, please let me know!

I have been a high school guidance counselor for 20 years. This book really explains the FAFSA process to my students and their parents, I highly reccomend it!!Also love College planning for dummies. It really simplifies the college admissions process and search journey for my kids.

I have been a high school guidance counselor for 20 years. This book really explains the FAFSA process to my students and their parents, I highly reccomend it! Also love College planning for dummies. It really simplifies the college admissions process and search journey for my kids.

I first learned of this excellent book at a professional development workshop that was offered by my school. I was immediately driven to buy it and learn all that I could about the backwards design process. One year later I find myself planning ALL of my units around enduring understandings and essential questions. It really makes sense that students can demonstrate understanding in various ways, and that it is our duty as teachers to allow them to do that with as many opportunities as possible. This year I finally feel that my students are really connecting with what I want them to learn, and they are seeing the "big picture." I will never design a unit the "traditional" way again!

McTighe and Williams successfully expound on a subject often mired in philosophical debate: how to assess understanding and evaluate true learning. It is an outstanding framework for developing curriculum intent on extending beyond traditional methods of teaching and preaching to students. The authors contend that true understanding can be assessed by measuring performance against six facets of understanding: explanation, interpretation, application, perspective, empathy, and self-knowledge. These facets are vital to developing curriculum and the authors do an outstanding job of presenting the material in charts, and exercises, making a difficult topic easier to understand. Comparing and contrasting covering material and uncovering knowledge serves to help teachers think like assessors, rather than activity planners. Helpful design tools are included throughout the book and teachers are instructed to evaluate the effectiveness of their teaching with thoughtful and probing questions.

Understanding by Design will serve as my guide for evaluating my own effectiveness as a teacher. I expect to rely on it to gauge my own competency in developing and executing lessons. Examples throughout the book illuminating the practical applications of each of the six facets are well organized and easy to follow. I found the use of keywords and charts especially helpful in furthering my own understanding of how to uncover knowledge. I am confident that if I remain faithful to the tenets of this book, I will be able to put into practice what I believe constitutes effective strategies for learning: student-centered activities which call upon students to question assumptions, draw upon past knowledge, and advance understanding through incremental learning

"The student ...(believes).. that there is neat and clean knowledge out there and it is my job to learn (i.e., memorize) and use it as directed. A key challenge in teaching for understanding is to make the student's view of knowledge ... more sophisticated by revealing the problems, controversies, and assumptions that lie behind much given and seemingly unproblematic knowledge."

I found this book on the way to another book, and I couldn't have been more delighted. Professional educators often feel the dichotomy between meeting national, state, and local goals and standards, and the real teaching that seems to have nothing to do with district benchmarks or standardized tests.

These authors propose a "backwards design process" that begins with the standards or outcomes desired, but then using these as guidelines to developing essential questions & understandings that actually matter beyond the classroom, then structuring the curriculum around these posed questions. They discuss the difference between covering the material, and using questions to 'uncover' the material. They using first hand examples of practice and texts to clearly exemplify what they mean. I found it exciting, inspiring, and extremely helpful.

This is an incredible story of courage, love and strength and a real page turner! After reading this book, I realized that others may try to victimize you, be you never have to "own" victimhood. Ms. Morris-Grant proves this point again and again in her story. She isn't afraid to reveal the truth about herself (all of it), and in doing so, she challenges the conscientious reader to do the same.

While I would highly recommend this book to anyone, I would ESPECIALLY recommend it to women who feel trapped in abusive relationships. Ms. Morris-Grant proves that you can truly rise above even the worst circumstances with faith, love and a continued sense of hope.

Ms. Morris-Grant has truly been through a MAJOR life event and has shared her experience with the world. She is a gifted writer and her story is compelling. As a man, I had no idea that what Ms. Morris-Grant went through would be considered abusive behavior. My eyes have been opened and I am ashamed. Buy this book! It will open your eyes. I await her next book!

I am pleased to recommend "whom Shall I fear" to any and all readers. Ms. Morris-Grant reveals all sides of the story in dissecting her life from her childhood up through the present day in relation to her own self-image and her relationship with herself, God, and, most compellingly, her husband.
She is typical of many women who are abused verbally but who don't know what to do and are actually in denial about the existence of a real problem. Her husband is portrayed as endearing. I found that I, too was as surprised as the author when unappealing aspects of his character pop up. Ms. Morris-Grant strikes a balance. There is no glorification of herself and her actions. She is brave, she is strong, but one never feels that she finds herself to be infallible. Indeed, the flawed and honest portrayal of a wife and mother breaking away painfully, trying to identify the issues that plague her life, and to cope with them is done expertly. You feel as if you know a man who one could portray easily as a monster, as a man who has the chance to follow several roads, but who follows a tragic one. You feel as if you know the author extremely intimately, and she is also a regular woman who has several paths to choose from. She, however, chooses a path filled with light and makes the best out of what could be a devastating turn of events.
For anyone who thought that batterers (or worse) have horns on their head or have 'DANGER' clearly written on them, and who don't understand what goes on inside the life of a victim, here's a great book. to anyone, like myself, who has witnessed abuse of this nature, I say the same. In truth, there is no one who could not benefit from this compelling story.

The message of this book is great, but it's just kind of dull. I think it would be good to read aloud to a kid, but for an adult, it didn't have as much content as I had hoped. The ending was beautiful, though. Worth reading....

This book is a delight to read. In just one sitting it so clearly show's you the heart of Abba, as only Manning can do. The tender story of healing in a boy that is you, and is me. As you turn each page the layers of your heart are stripped away to expose the tender heart that God created. The heart that beats only to love Him and to enjoy fellowship with Abba! I will be reading in anytime I need to be reminded of His love for me.

Perfect in it's simplicity, Manning's parable will warm your heart by revealing God's unconditional love and promises to you. What a joy to read for young and old!

This book caught my eye in the college library while I was researching the topic. I didn't put it down for the two days it took me to read it. It covers not only "historical ergotism" (which has been deemed the culprit of the Salem Witch trials and other witch hunts by some) but also the case of the 1950's Pt. St. Esprit poisoning in France, which was attributed by the local authorities to a mercury pesticide. Read it, be absolutely amazed, not only at the events, but at the "official judgement" and subsequent injustice of the later rulings towards the poisoned survivors of that fateful night. I also recommend Mary Matossion's Poisons of the Past for more info on historical ergotism.

This is an amazing book. The historical account is fascinating. I am also floored by how well Fuller wove in a multitude of personal stories, gave a rich account of a very complex incident, then beautifully encapsulated the 15-year legal tragedy that followed the original tragedy. You don't come across stories like this every day, and you certainly don't often come across treatments of them that are this good.

It's not written at a sixth-grade level -- a plus for me -- but nowadays I doubt an editor would let Fuller get away with all the French phrases and excerpts he put in the book. Back then I suppose authors could assume they had a more sophisticated readership. I liked the sprinkling of French, sometimes even original letters (translated to English, of course), but if you don't know any French at all, you might want to read this with a dictionary at hand.

This is an extensive analysis by a journalist of the outbreak of ergot poisoning in Pont St.Esprit, France (Provence) in 1951. It is based on personal interviews and documents, as well as on discussions with the doctors involved. It is perhaps the most complete case study of mass ergot poisoning in literature. It is very valuable to any historian wishing to understand one of the most feared and puzzling diseases of the Middle Ages.

Catton has a fine narrative style which is a pleasure to read, and the book includes insights into Grant's personality and the growth in his generalship, as well as detailing political and military history of the Western Theatre 1861-1863. The war in the west has been overshadowed in history by the war along the Atlantic coast (even by Catton, with his Army of the Potomoc trilogy), but it is arguably more important than what was going on in Virginia in this period. The book shows Grant feeling his way to an understanding of what it would take to win the war, and it becomes clear why Lincoln, by the end of the book, chooses him for head of the Union armies. For example, at the battle of Shiloh (1862), the Union forces were surprised and almost beaten the first day, but Grant retained his optimism and rallied the troops to fight hard and hold off the Rebels until reinforcements arrived that night. The next day they took back all the ground they had lost, although they didn't take the opportunity to destroy the Army of the Tennessee. Any other Union general in that situation would have (and did, in similiar battles in Virginia) retreated the first evening and lost the battle. One comment: If you want a hardback copy of this book, it can be easily obtained in on-line used bookstores. I just bought a good copy for 7.95 + taxes and shipping.

Although Bruce Catton was an accomplished historian in his own right, one cannot help but notice the influence of the great Sherman biographer Lloyd Lewis. Anyone who has read Lewis' _Sherman: Fighting Profit_ will recognize similarities; the heavy reliance on primary sources and the uncanny ability to allow the reader to draw his or her own conclusions without explicitly stating the writer's intentions. Catton imitates Lewis' sinuous narrative style that captivates and draws the reader deeper into the manuscript. Unfortunately, however, Lewis only lived to publish the first of a multi-volume biography Ulysses S. Grant titled Captain Sam Grant . Lewis' widow commissioned Catton to finish the project utilizing much of the notes Lewis had gathered in the course of his research. The results are the two subsequent biographies authored by Catton: Grant Moves South and Grant Takes Command Catton begins his duel biography in June 1861 when Grant, appointed Colonel, takes command of the 21st Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Catton portrays Grant as a man of few words, yet possessing an ability to quickly earn the respect of his men. Grant stresses discipline and training particularly of his company grade officers. About half of the book is devoted to Grants participation at the battles of Belmont, Fort Henry, Fort Donelson and the near disaster at Shiloh. The remainder of the text focuses on the Vicksburg Campaign. Catton prefers a loosely structured chronological approach and provides his readers with a commanding view from headquarters. Catton relies upon letters, cables, and other communiques between officers, which tends to keep the focus on Grant and other high level players. Besides handwritten orders and other official documentation, Catton allows Grant to speak for himself through the only vestige we have: his memoirs. In contrast, Catton listens to what other observers have to say about Grant in their memoirs, particularly William T. Sherman and the unpublished memoir of Grant's wife, Julia Dent Grant. Juxtaposing this top-down approach is Catton's ability to portray the human frailties of Grant's personality. Grant's drinking is a recurring theme in which Catton bestows an admirable defense. Catton devotes considerable space to the Grant's uneasy relationship with General Henry Wager Halleck. To Halleck's charge that Grant disobeyed orders and failed to communicate his intentions at Fort Donelson, Catton counters by stating the Union communication system, as a whole was substandard. He suggests Confederate sympathizers manned telegraph offices squelching vital communiques.   Catton credits Halleck for saving Grant's command during the controversial political maneuvering of General John A. McClernand. Overall, Catton concludes that Grant certainly had his hands full during his early campaigns. On the one hand, Grant had the Vicksburg Campaign to plan and orchestrate; On the other hand, Grant was the target of dubious machinations from jealous staff officers and politicians in Washington bent of relinquishing his command. What is more, Grant was faced with economic issues and the problem of what to do with displaced contraband slaves that were pouring into his army camps on a daily basis. Referring to the former slaves as "Darkeys." Grant immediately put the Negro refugees to work maintaining roads, bridges and other military necessities that required manual labor.Catton again comes to the defense of Grant in his handling of these sensitive civil-military relations. In a controversial order, Grant categorized northern businessmen attempting to exploit profits from the sale of cotton as "Jews." Though these complex themes surrounding Ulysses S. Grant, are significant, they tend to diminish the genius for war Grant displayed during the Vicksburg Campaign. Taking into account that this is a biography of Grant and not a comprehensive treatment of the campaign that sealed his place in history, Catton could have evened out the balance rather than treating the campaign as a mere backdrop. Catton's eloquent literary style and his excellent syntheses of primary sources, make this a must have for any Grant afficionado.

In this book Catton describes Grant's movements in the West. From Belmont to Vicksburg. It is outstanding, because it also desribes the soldiers story, without being a novel.