This lovely book, published at the time of the 200th anniversary of the occupation of the White House, consists of a compilation of essays written by a panel of distinguished writer-historians. It contains over 100 illustrations, including the earliest photos, taken in the 1840s.

The introduction, entitled "Like No Other House" says it all!The White House is unique: a "private" family home, the hub of our government, a tourist attraction, and a place of ceremony. It has been the scene of some of history's most important events and some of history's most important figures have stayed under its roof.

The White House has survived: from the burning by the British only 14 years after John and Abigail Adams moved in through many periods of neglect and mismanagement.

The book focuses more on personalities than on politics, especially the First ladies, who are given great credit by many of the essayists.

Beginning with John and Abigail Adams' short residency, the first essay follows Abigail on her long journey from Massachusetts to the "marshlands of the Potomac", where she found a barely furnished house with no wood to heat it, an unfinished staircase, and plaster walls that were still damp.

Dolley Madison managed to combine simplicity with high style with the help of architect Benjamin Latrobe. The Madison's tenure was cut short when the British burned the Executive Mansion, as it was called, in 1814.

The house was rebuilt as a national symbol, but by the time the Lincolns moved in over 100 years later, it was a shabby place. The once-elegant public rooms had threadbare rugs, dirty upholstery, faded draperies, and few amenities. Mary Lincoln immediately took upon herself the transformation of the President's house, traveling to New York and Philadelphia during wartime to look for rugs, wallpaper, china, and crystal and having much of the furniture restored. Despite her efforts, during public events, people actually cut off pieces of the wallpaper, rugs, and curtains for souvenirs.

Theodore Roosevelt "remade the presidency and reinvented the White House and his models for both have lasted a century" according to the essayist who wrote the section about him. He changed the name from the Executive Mansion to the White House and added the West Wing for executive offices. Unfortunately, the renovation was finished too fast and was mainly cosmetic. Only 50 years later, a massive structural rebuilding had to be undertaken.

I learned much more about those who have occupied the White House, but will control myself and not go into any more of that here! Believe me, this is a book that you will learn from, even if you think you know American history fairly well.

this book took you back through the times the each president lived there

Accounting a trip made by Indiana political figure Jonathan Jennings to Washington as a congressman, the book should appeal to younger readers and those with a vivid interest in Indiana history. The difficulties of the journey in that period are imaginatively portrayed, and the book is replete with well-researched details of the period

I can't believe this book isn't available. I loved every minute spent with it. Robert Pyle is scientist and poet and he writes about the Willapa Hills with the same love I feel for the Oregon coast - also overlogged and abused but beautiful nonetheless. He teaches and shows how to look in new ways. Fantastic!

Another Fiona FitzGerald mystery with bite. As with the previous novels, a good read and a lot of fun.

Ferrie creates a refreshing, approachable, and exciting vehicle for examining the events and issues around the Battle of Yorktown. Unencumbered by patriotic propoganda, extremely well researched - reveals the issues and life as it truly was for those involved (on both sides and at all levels) in the struggle for American freedom. Highly recommended for elementary school and up!

This (like all the other books in the series)is an excellent book.The elephant is very much the neglected piece.Often dismissed or ignored by others.This book proves them wrong.The many subtle uses of the elephant are described in detail in the quiet opening ,the mid-game and its often crucial role in the end game.The elephant is MUCH more than just a defensive piece and this book teaches you how to use it to full advantage.One of the best books i have ever bought.

This is an indispensible reference guide for dining in the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis areas. It is easy to understand and navigate with reviews of most restaurants in terms of food, decor/ambiance, price etc. The reviews are right on for the restaurants I have tried. Also very handy are the crossreferences for many categories such as brunch, parking, late night dining etc. Probably the best feature is another index listing the "best" restaurants for various occasions as identified by readers.

Highly recommended, I get a new one every year.

Les Miserables will be a tough read for some. Victor Hugo, in typical Nineteenth Century prose, is exceedingly verbose. His character introductions go on literally page after page, covering minute details that some modern readers will find tedious. Not only are they long, but they break the modern writing rule of "show rather than tell." When he presents new characters, we don't hear them converse or see their actions to form our own opinions. Hugo simply regurgitates a ten or twenty-page biography on them.

But this was how books were written then, and he did it as well as it could be done. The language is marvelous and rich, the characters interesting and complete, and the story sweeping and classic.

Jean Valjean, freshly released from a French prison, is caught stealing silver from an extraordinarily pious Bishop. Amazingly, this Bishop denies the silver is stolen, allowing Valjean to go free. Valjean, brutalized by nineteen years of life in "the galleys" and suffering poverty and maltreatment as an ex-convict, is so affected by this merciful act that he vows to reform. Seven years later he has changed his name and transformed himself into a righteous and contributing member of society, now a prominent factory owner and town Mayor. Life is good as he shares his profits and kind heart with the poor and unfortunate--until his past catches up with him. Valjean is then faced with an incredible predicament whose genius and complexity can be appreciated only by plowing through the full text.

Historically, this is an important literary work. Much of its political and religious sub-text may be lost, however, on those unfamiliar with the basics of the French Revolution. Like Valjean, readers will be better people for making the journey through this book. --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Wake Up Dead.

Les Miserables begins in the same year as Dumas' Monte Cristo (1815) with the escape of Jean Vajean from prison, where he spent 20 years for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his family. After becoming the mayor of a French city under another name, Valjean meets a woman named Fantine and a police inspector named Javert. One's desperation will move his heart to pity while the other's relentless adherence to the letter of the law will cause him to live in perpetual hiding.

I read this book in high school and, to tell the truth, I can't really remember what I was thinking at the time I started it. After all, I don't think most high school students (myself included) would understand the full historical weight of such a work. If Monte Cristo is a historical lesson unto itself, Les Miserables is a veritable tome of 19th century French culture and politics. Weighing in at 1463 pages, Hugo's story will bore you sometimes but will also move you at least as much. This is the book wherein lies Hugo's famous account of the Battle of Waterloo (which, at about 60 pages, has apparently little to do with the actual storyline) in all of its detail, dark descriptions of Paris' sewers which were used by revolutionaries, and of course the vivid account of the city of Paris itself in all of its glory. Hugo names every street and shop and almost every other minor detail and character you could possibly imagine along the way. We follow the characters of Valjean, Fantine, Cosette (the daughter of Fantine), Javert, Thenardier, Marius and others for nearly 20 years. Aptly titling his work "The Miserable", Hugo takes us to the very bottom of Paris' underground world of poverty, prostitution, and suffering. Indeed, Les Miserables involves, like most novels, a struggle of sorts. But here everything seems more painful, more hopeless than your typical novel. The fictional characters, embedded in a stunningly detailed historical time and place, are unusually real and fallible. And in the end this is a story about justice, mainly for the weak and the opressed.

Now for some casual thoughts. The only other novel I've read that's similar to this one (at least in time and place) is Monte Cristo, so I often find myself comparing the two. Although they share a common historical backdrop, the two works are very different in feeling. Dumas' is a story of justice and revenge but it incorporates adventure and psychological thriller purely for entertainment. Monte Cristo is also a lighter read, more agile on its feet and quick to please; we get engaging and tense dialogue and characters who are slightly unbelievable in their wit or lack thereof. Les Miserables, however, is a heavy book (in more ways than one). Hugo takes all the time in the world to introduce us to each and every character and describe geographical, political, and historical events with a ferocious attention to detail. And while Monte Cristo is primarily about a single man and his fallible-ridden philosophy of vengeance, Les Miserables is about a whole society and its faults. Hugo's scope is thus incomparably more vast than your average novel.

After reading this book I felt like I'd been on an epic journey to other worlds and back, and at the end of it all I was...tired, very tired. But then again a lot of great literature is like that.

My experience with Victor Hugo's classic, Les Misérables, was quite by accident. While studying France's political turmoil during the 1800's, my tenth grade world history professor decided to waste some class time by showing us a video. At first, I paid no attention to the video, considering the fact that most of the movies he showed us were taped off of the history channel a good century ago. Soon I found myself intrigued with the plot twists and characters. After we finished the movie, I decided to read the book for English. Thinking that if the book was too boring, I had already seen the movie so I could fake my way through the essay test. I have never loved a book so much in my life! I found myself reading it during films in Spanish, under my desk in history, and losing sleep because I was staying up all night to read. I finished the complete unabridged novel in five days, a very enormous feat for a busy teenager! I found Javert to be the most interesting character and felt that if his dedication to justice hadn't been misguided, he could have been a hero in the story. He could have been Enjolras. I wish every high school student was required to read this book, although I know it would not bring them as much joy as it brought me. The only reason I love this story so much, is because it wasn't force-feed to me. I now have tickets to see the musical this summer in Toronto and can hardly wait to go. Everyone can find a character they identify with. Many young girls can relate to Eponine's love for Marius that is not returned, while others may relate to Enjolras' continued struggle for his beliefs. There are many lessons Hugo has included in this book: redemption, forgiveness, justice, honor, love, war, poverty, bravery, and the division among social classes. Even though this book was written in a different time, in a different place, its controversy and story will always live on because its themes are timeless.

Summary of Their Eyes Were Watching God
This book written by Zora Hurston tells the story of a black lady whose name is Janie. The story takes place in the state of Florida apparently after World War II. Janie grew up with her grandmother, who gave up everything to raise her and her mother. Janie's grandmother lived a hard life, which is the reason why she wanted Janie to marry a wealthy person. Janie had her own ideas about love, but she was not strong enough to stand up and defend them.

Life with Logan her first husband was not good because she married him thanks to her grandmother, who forced her to do so. She did not love him and besides that, Logan did not treat her good. She prayed for the end of this relationship. Latter she met Joe, and she thought that he was the man of her dreams, and the type of romance that she was looking for.
One day when Janie and Logan were arguing really bad, Logan threatened her with an ax and he told her that he will kill her. She ran out of the house with Joe, and that afternoon before the sundown she married Joe. They moved to a town where there were a lot of black people. Joe bought land and then he sold it to black people that were moving to the town, he set a store also. After the years went by he became the major of the city. For Janie life was not easy with Joe either. He treated her as an ornament. He was so interested in becoming somebody important in the community that he did not pay attention to Janie, and eventually he became aggressive. Before he died Janie told him that the problem in their marriage was that he did not listen to her. When he died Janie acted like she was sad, but inside her heart she was happy.
One evening Janie met a guy named Tea Cake in the store, they played and flirted for a little bit, and that was the beginning of a new relationship. Compared to the relationship between Janie and Joe, the relationship between Tea Cake and Janie progressed slowly and playfully. The people in the town criticized her relationship because for them it was too soon for Janie to meet another person. Phoeby, Janie's best friend shared all the secrets of the relationship, and sometimes Phoeby wondered how her friend Janie had such a big change because she did a lot of things with Tea Cake that she did not do before.
Tea Cake was a new world for Janie. He took her to places that her Phoeby latter described as "places where she [Janie] had never been". At this point Janie was so tired of not living the life she wanted. Janie often described her life as her "Grandma's way to live". She decided to sell the store and move out of town.
Janie and Tea Cake got together. It is interesting to see that their relationship as a couple was not easy either, but this time things were different because Janie loved him. They overcame a lot of bad situations such as when Tea Cake took all the money from Janie and spent it with his friends. He latter on recovered the money by gambling, even though they had to move out of town because some people were mad against Tea Cake. Latter Tea Cake had an affair with a woman named Nunkie. Janie even forgave Tea Cake for beating her up because he wanted to show Mr. Turner's brother that he had control over Janie. Then in the stormy night Tea Cake get rabies from a dog that bit him on the face. This caused Tea Cake to become quite bit insane, that he even shot Janie with a pistol. Janie shot him with a rifle and she killed Tea Cake. She explained her cause to the court and she got free from all charges. She prepared a nice funeral for Tea Cake and then she returned to her old town, and she shared her story with Phoeby. The book ends describing how happy Janie felt at that time about how she had lived her life.

This is a story about a woman named Janie. Janie is a black woman, living in the south and is taught through her grandmother, that a man must take care of her; she must be married off right away. The book outlines the details of Janie's life and her experiences shared with three different men. Through the book, she must overcome town gossip, traditional roles and gain the freedom to express herself and do as she pleases. In the end, she finds the most satisfaction by living her life in her own way. And walked with her head high and no regrets.

I thought that book was great. Zora Neale Hurston, did not get the recognition she deserved in her time and thank God for the people who fought to get her books re-published. I must admit, the language in this book at the beginning was a bit hard to grasp but after a short while, it became easier to read. I love the main character, Janie. I love her independence and her carefree spirit. Read it!

Several reviews previous to mine mentioned that as high school students they couldn't understand why this book was considered a classic and what was supposed to be so wonderful about it. I too read the book this year for English and I can tell you why. On an anylytical level, Hurston's imagery is astoundingly beautiful. It mirrors her unique and fesh vision of what it means to be a woman. What Hurston says about the emotional turmoil of Janie, without telling the reader directly is amazing. Part of the strength of this book is it's ability to communicate emotion, to reach out to a reader who is emotionally aware (that's the catch for the readers who didn't comprehend the book) and pull them into Janie's life. Then every symbol, such as Janie's tied up hair, begins to communicate it's meaning in a clear and touching way. This book is amazing, and not enough can be said for it. It is a celebration of true love, of self-revelation, and of what it means to live a dream. I can see why some people might not understand it...at least not in high school.