In trying to teach students algebra, I tried to use this book to teach them from, but I found that all the concepts were introduced at what is seemingly high school level. I think that a moderate high school student (with some curiosity) could teach himself the basics of algebra with this book. As an undergraduate text, though, it is way too slow and way too elementary.

This excellent book was my textbook for 2 semesters of senior level abstract algebra. The unique feature of this book is that elementary number theory, equivalence relations, and permutations are carefully introduced at the beginning. Other books launch right into groups and then have to make long digressions to cover these topics. Comparing this book to the best-selling Contemporary Abstract Algebra by Joseph Gallian, I like that Gallian's book adds many applications which students will find interesting. However, Beachy and Blair's book puts a greater emphasis on developing student's ability to do proofs. The book also incorporates more number theory than many other texts. Answers to selected problems are included, so I recommend this book for self study as well as a textbook for any undergraduate abstract algebra course.

Building Christian Character is a very good resource for parents and christian educators alike. Yet caution must be taken concerning the writer's sect and their belief system.

This is absolutely the best book out there for developing Christian Character in children.

Building Christian Character examines 22 Scriptural elements of character and then gives examples of positive and negative character traits.

Honor is contrasted with dishonor, responsibility with irresponsibility, etc.

Each character trait is also divided into subcategories. Example: the positive trait of being responsible is divided into bringing a job to completion, working as unto the Lord, being diligent.

Building Christian Character shows us and our children what it looks like when a child is showing scriptural character traits. And because a bad attitude can be comprised of so many different facets, we are shown that too.

Not just for use within the classroom, a strong Sunday School program for elementary school age students could be developed by using this important book along with memory verses and a Bible study.


This needs to be required reading for home educators and Christian School educators alike.

Despite its age, "Desertion During the Civil War" remains the standard introduction to the topic. The book's major shortcoming is touched on in William Blair's introduction to this reprint: "Lonn relied primarily on the 'Official Records.' Although adequate for the time, this would be considered merely a good beginning today."

The "Official Records" are the most complete and impartial documentation of the Civil War, and the necessary foundation for any serious research. But they were never edited for accuracy, and many reports were condensed for space, and the information about the South was especially spotty in the 1920s. Modern historians are severely cautioned against relying on them without corroborating evidence.

Historians from Prof. McPherson on down have been saying for years that there needs to be a fresh study of desertion, especially in the Confederacy. But that would require a couple of people to spend the rest of their natural lives sifting through tens of thousands of provost marshals' reports and muster rolls of thousands of regiments.

So we're left with Ella Lonn. Her analysis of the "disease" takes into account both North and South, as well as mentioning the Napoleonic armies, Wellington's experience in Spain, the U.S. military before 1861, and the Franco-Prussian War.

Part of her thesis, now much-shaken by better information than was available in the 1920s, was that the South had a serious desertion problem for much of the war, and that it spiraled out of control in the last months. She wrote that the North seemed to get its own desertion problem under relative control about the same time -- largely by draconian measures.

Her conclusion is that one out of every seven men deserted from the Union Army, and one out of every nine men deserted from the Confederate army. Though the Union lost proportionately more to desertion, she feels the South suffered more because of the initial difference in manpower, and that desertion ultimately was instrumental in the South's failure to achieve independence.

Lonn concludes that Union desertions helped prolong a war that the South was losing, because the news of them gave the South hope and allowed it to cling to a dream of eventual victory long after that was practically out of reach.

Lonn seems to be writing with an eye on her own time, in the wake of World War I, which brought up a great many of the ugly things in American democracy that we think only emerged during the Cold War. She alludes to it often, and seems intent on pointing out that the horrors of war -- any war -- are more worthy of note than the characters of men who desert from armies.

I was prompted to read this book after having read "Cold Mountain" and having someone complain to me about the hero of that book being a deserter. How could someone write a book glorifying desertion! That got me to wondering and led me to Lonn's book. I found it very informative about many aspects of desertion, including: the reasons men deserted, what happened to them if they were caught, the means the governments (both Union and Confederate) used to persuade deserters to return to their units, the bounties paid to capture deserters, and many more aspects that I had never considered, most importantly, the effect it had on the outcome of the war. She also examines the effects of desertion on the civilian population, and how the stigma of desertion became what it is today. Some chapters were a bit redundant (she covers both North and South), and the sections on the numbers who deserted and from which states, etc. bored me, but overall I would recommend it to anyone interested in the Civil War.

"The Reluctant Warlock" by Donna Bell. Shy Gertrude Gillingham rescues a black kitten from Sir Felix Baring by breaking an umbrella over his head. The kitten belongs to Felix's aunt, a woman who is convinced Felix is a warlock, she is a witch, and the cat is the reincarnation of Felix's late father. Too short a story, there is barely time for Gilly and Felix to fall in love. The cat's role was too small, a complaint I had about the remaining two stories.

"The Black Kitten" by Catherine Blair. Lord Jonathan Griffith was so eager to get his hands on the Harrington Egyptian collection that he was willing to woo Lorna Harrington, the daughter. She was testy, thought of as a witch, and had turned down 14 previous suitors. Griffith had even bet a friend one hundred pounds that Lorna would be engaged by All Hallows' Eve. He never expected to be attracted to her or to learn how lonely Lorna was, living with only her cats for companions when her selfish father travelled the world. Lorna and Jonathan are two lonely people who need each other. The cats' roles are small, but essential.

"A Cat by Any Other Name" by Joy Reed. Miranda Strong knew she was destined to be a spinster, but to be given the spinster's usual companion, a kitten, was mortifying. The night Tom the cat ran off, Miranda met another Tom, Lord Thomas Longworth. Miranda can't believe Longworth could possibly be interested in her. Poor Miranda, afraid of being alone, but equally afraid to grab the happiness within reach.

This book was excellent! I especially enjoyed the Catherine Blair story, with its combination of romance, subterfuge, Egyptian historical references, and kittens. Blaire's understanding of Regency social nuance combines with her outstanding writing style to produce an extremely entertaining read. The other two stories are also entertaining, but "The Black Kitten" was my favorite.

I bought the book for the Adirondack set plans (Chair, ottoman, and table) and while the finish product is very nice and I am very pleased with it, the plans are full of errors. Cut lengths are not listed right for legs, the plans call for 1X6 stock when it should have been 1X4, etc.

This book is a collection of 13 projects (small cupboard, blanket chest, box planter, country bookcase, storage step stool, window box, small sideboard, Adirondack chair, Adirondack table, Adirondack ottoman, picket planter, plate rack, and message center); complete with plans, supply list, and step-by-step instructions with color(!) photographs. Also included are chapters on choosing lumber, choosing tools, construction techniques, and finishing ideas.

This wonderful book is a godsend to inexperienced woodworkers! The basic idea behind this book is projects that can be made with a minimum of skills and power tools - which includes using lumber that does not need to be resized for the project. This is a great book.

About life in front of and behind the veil, this book presents a compelling read: the body becomes the battleground for men and women to take ownership of their own bodies, and in some ways, consequently their own minds. I was considering this book for a world literature class, but the sex scenes are a little risque for 10th grade. However, those scenes are not gratutious--they have their place in this book. Perhaps, however, not for 15 year olds, just yet. Djebar writes the book in both first person narrative and directive narrative (second person)--what results is that we're inside the head of one woman and the commanding voyeur with the other. Djebar makes us uncomfortable looking in and directing a woman who clearly wants to escape such structures. What we're left with is an uncomfortable with our positions, but the wiser for having become uncomfortable. A great read! Well worth it.

I thought this book was pretty good. It is a story that follows two women, both wives of the same man. When Hajila sees an "unveiled woman," she too, wants a life "beyond the veil." This book does a good job of describing some of the traditional restraints placed on these women, and how they work to escape them.

Amish Values "Wisdom that Works" is a good general overview and introduction on basic principles of the Amish life. Ruth Seitz "plainly" explains 10 values that are guidelines for the Amish. The photography by Blair Seitz is fantastic, capturing the realness, happiness and contentment in daily life.

Cherry Stone

"An Appple From Eden" follows the lives of two extremely different Scottish families in post World War I Scotland, the working class Irish-Catholic Flynns of Glasgow and the Seatons on their inherited estate near Perth. While the Flynns struggle to eke out a living in the grimy slums, the Seatons and their friend, Andrew Drummond, head of the whisky distillery of the same name, lead a life of comparative ease. The families' stories become connected when Bridie, the Flynn's pretty and intelligent daughter, is employed as a domestic servant at The Haven, the Seaton's estate. Once again Emma Blair describes brilliantly the destructive forces of religion and class distinction which bring the story to a sobering and sad climax.

I read all the Girl Talk books and loves them.

I read this book during the summer 1997 so my memory is rather foggy at this point. The book spans three generations of Scottish women, from the Great War up to the late 1970s (I think). Each woman (mother, daughter, grand-daughter)has their trials and tribulations concerning their romantic lives, all within the historical context of their times. One thing the women also have in common is their love of books (something to which I could relate). I enjoyed this book thoroughly because I guess I'm just a romantic at heart. Also, books of this genre are not meant to be read for a deeper meaning but for strictly entertainment purposes. I seem to remember reading the entire thing in one or two days - a real page turner, I guess. The Blackbird's tale, to sum up, is something to sink your teeth into on a cold, rainy summer's day. Enjoy!!!!! P.S. The Blackbird is the name of a book shop in Glasgow which is important to each character in a different way.