There were sections when the unabashed humor had me tittering like a schoolgirl. And there were sections that had me squirming, recalling what it was like to think and speak and act like a teenager. Mitchell has done a superb job conjuring the mood and scenery of Austria, along with the language and the people. He's also done a masterful job depicting the moral clashes that come from young men, unwilling to surrender their youthful playfullness, struggling to remain true to the rigid set of rules they have sworn to live by.

Mitchell does seem to capture the essence of a Mormon mission--the conflicts, the irritations, and the deep feelings. I was convulsing with some of the humor and moved by the deeper parts. It was a good read and might help someone understand a little about what a Mormon missionary experiences.

A unusual, often startling but wonderfully refreshing Mormon missionary novel. Angel, which promises to be to Mormon missionary fiction what God's Army is to the Mormon missionary film, is a moving and comical account of a young man's successful search for spiritual wholeness amidst an (Austrian) world of rejection. Tracking Elder Barry Monroe's spiritual odyssey through the Austria Vienna Mission is something like tracking Huckleberry Finn's discovery of his and Jim's humanhood, and even more like following Henderson on his comic journey into the heart of Africa in Saul Bellow's Henderson the Rain King. In fact, in Alan Mitchell we may have discovered our Mormon Saul Bellow. Writing his missionary journal in California-hip dialect (Mark Twain did it almost as well in Huck Finn), Elder Monroe, who calls everyone "Dude," is wacky and comical and essentially serious as he stands atop his bedrock Mormonness and calls the nonplused Austrians to repentance. Writing from what is obviously his own sound faith in the power of the gospel to change and improve lives, Mitchell has hung a rich and literarily satisfying coming-of-age novel upon an infrastructure of Austrian folklore and the ups-and-downs of Mormon missionary life. The result is a landmark novel unique in Mormon fiction that will delight everyone-except, perhaps, the Church Missionary Committee (Angel of the Danube will not become a supplement to the white Missionary Handbook). The rest of us will enjoy this fresh, original, thoroughgoingly Mormon, albeit wonderfully unorthodox treatment of the First Principles' pattern of the journey to belief. Hurrah for Alan Mitchell's rich contribution to Mormon letters and positive and affirming answer to the question: "what is left to be said, in fiction, about the life of a Mormon missionary!"

Richard H. Cracroft Nan Osmond Grass Professor in English Brigham Young University

If you are a dabbler in aromatherapy and enjoy the aroma oils give then this book is a fantastic reference. I have enjoyed many combinations from this book. Just remember to use true essential oils not synthetic ones to get the true effect from the aromas.

I have been looking for books about aromatherapy with recipes. I know that I must have this book when I found it in a bookstore! It is easy to read and easy to apply. It also containes lots of information on each type of essential oils. I use this book nearly everyday!

This is an excellent book..a complete guide to burning blends of oils for every imaginable emotion or cause..from blends to relax and rejuvenate, to increase work performance, creativity and help with emotional problems. There are hundreds of recipes and it is very easy to read. The presentation is just beautiful.

Although the history of TaeKwonDo is often hard to pin down, this book goes into great detail for the forms of the Chang-Hon (Chon-Ji) system. For instructors, it's great to assign to students for reading and learning about this marital art.

This book is an excellent source of reference material for the Taekwondo stylist who follows the Chon-Ji patterns and wants to learn more about the characters, history & events that the patterns are named after. It goes into great depth & includes an interesting selection of photographs & diagrams that helps to bring the pattern meanings to life. This book is a must have copy that should be in the bookcase of every serious student of the ITF patterns.

Very well written and interesting book. Contains lots of information that even TKD instructors should know. The written subject matter precisely matches the title - very fine job. Well worth the money. Now Mr. Mitchell - we need history on remaining 15 patterns!

Many mergers, acquisitions and alliances fail due to lack of preparation before, lack of care during, or lack of focus after the deal. Joining Forces is a sober, to-the-point manual directed at business leaders who want to provoke successful combinations, as well as managers and employees who have to deal with the burdens, both mental and physical, of combinations. For the past decade, corporate America has embraced M&A - often with mixed results - and the consolidation pace seems to be accelerating. But too few people inside and outside of the companies involved understand what the combination process means or how it should be handled. Organizations must be willing to focus on the psychological impacts of a combination on their employees. Joining Forces provides a rough sketch of how this can be accomplished - minus any unnecessary strategic details or legalese. We [...] recommend this book to executives, managers and employees at every level - all of whom probably will have to face the realities of corporate consolidation some day.

In 1998, Marks/Mirvis and Clemente/Greenspan set the M&A world on its head with two very different yet equally groundbreaking books. The former pair's pioneering guide focused on preparing for the transition, team building, and identifying psychological barriers, while the latter duo revealed the secrets behind successfully combining cultures, strategies and processes in their timeless classic-- Winning at M&A. I've read them both many times -before, -during and -after each of my firm's acquisitions, and while new copy-cats and rip-offs continue to be published, no books as effectively walk the reader through the problems, their detailed solutions, and most importantly -- the real-life examples that offer step-by-step guidance on how to succeed. Deals fail all the time and these authors explain why and what they've done to turn failure into success. After each read, the information is still fresh, relevant and insightful. Virtually every other book on the subject is either fluff, history, or a cheap imitation. This is the real deal.

Marks and Mirvis are veterans of the merger battlefield and report the action extremely well. The book is filled with examples and approaches to resolving some of the most common problems encountered when two firms integrate. The other plus about the book is its heavy emphasis on the people and cultural issues that so often get ignored in most corporate combinations.

I used to love this series, but lately I find Meredith Mitchell, our commitment-phobic heroine, a little annoying. She calls herself independent, of course, and I'm all for the hard-to-get routine, but in her case it's getting a bit tedious. Alan Markby should really find someone else, or he'll turn into a complete wimp in the relationship area, always defensive and wondering. For quite some time now, I've wished for some serious competition for her, but in that I've been disappointed. OK, so now at long last she has agreed to marry him - in fact, she suggested it herself at the end of the last book - but somehow the fireworks are missing.
I realise this is not a romance story in the first place, but the Mitchell-Markby relationship does play an important part on the whole.
Also, in the first book - "Say it with poison" - which appeared in 1991 (I think), Meredith's age is given as 35, and now, in book 12, she is still only about 37 in the year 2000. Poetic licence? I checked all the books, and taking into account the seasons and other bits of information, she must be at least 39.
By the way: On page 10 of the paperback edition, it says: "... he heard a rumble of thunder. As he'd done when a child, Guy began to count in his head. One - two - three - four - The lightning burst across the sky ...". Perhaps it's different in Britain, but here on the Continent it's light before sound. :-)
On page 125 (still the paperback edition), an overbite is described as the lower jaw protruding further than the upper one - the exact opposite to what I thought from my experience and found in the Oxford dictionary. The author thanks some dentist for his help at the beginning of the book, which makes me wonder.
There are also quite a few spelling mistakes in this edition, which together with the inconsistencies mentioned above seem to indicate some rather negligent editing. Too bad!
Having said all this, I can still recommend this series to anyone who is interested in rural England and characters one can easily relate to. I'll certainly give the next volume a chance.

Dr. Guy Morgan calls the Bamford police station to report he found human bones in the Cotswold Lower Stovey Woods. When Detective Superintendent Alan Markby on a house-hunting trip with his beloved Meredith Mitchell learns of the human remains, he thinks back to a haunting failure. As a rookie over two decades ago, he never caught The Potato Man, a serial rapist, who vanished, after his third rape.

Alan hopes that even after all this time has passed, a break has finally occurred. However, a new concern surfaces when another dead body is found, but this one is a recent corpse. As he digs deeper accompanied by his lover, the locals refuse to cooperate making their investigation that much harder and leaving the dedicated cop feeling déjà vu as he wonders if he will fail again.

The latest Mitchell and Markby novel is a delightful village mystery. The story line contains a strong who-done-it and an insightful look at a decaying hamlet especially the surly townsfolk and their detest of the new money brought in by outsiders. The two wonderful heroes augment the enjoyable plot, especially Alan's memories of that case that still disturbs him. Ann Granger provides her usual, a wonderful village cozy that is a treat for sub-genre fans.

Harriet Klausner

This is, I think, one of the better Alan Markby & Meredith Mitchell murder mysteries.

Detective Superintendent Alan Markby and his fiancee, Meredith Mitchell, are house hunting at Lower Stovey, when news of a grisly discovery at Stovey Woods filters through. Apparently a hiker had stumbled over some human bones. For Alan Markby however, the find and the woods bring to mind a case that he considers one of his more spectacular failures -- the case of a serial rapist, known as the Potato Man, who operated at Stovey Woods about 20 years ago, and who was never caught. Could the bones be the remains of the Potato Man? And was the reason why he suddenly stopped assaulting women be because he was killed all those years ago? These are the questions Markby that haunt Markby as he begins the investigation into discovering whose bones these could be. And then a church warden is found murdered in the church at Lower Stovey. And even as Markby initiates the investigation into this murder, he cannot help but wander if this new murder is connected in any way to the rapes at Stovey Woods all those years ago? Or if the two cases are totally unconnected? Unfortunately for Markby and his team, the villagers have their own fair share of secrets that they'd rather never saw the light of day, and they soon close ranks against the police. But Markby is determined that this time around (at least) he will get a result at Lower Stovey.

The previous reviewer hit nail on the head. This mystery novel was a completely enjoyable and engrossing read. And "A Restless Evil" turned out to be one of the best cozy/police procedurals that I've read all year. Ann Granger does a wonderfully job of skillfully guiding the reader through each new development, and each new development added a new dimension to this richly nuanced mystery novel, thus making this mystery in particular a truly brilliant read. The mystery unfolded smoothly and seamlessly, and Granger did a magnificent job of maintaining the level of tension throughout the book.

With the cooler and greyer weather, and shorter daylight hours, "A Restless Evil" is just the thing to curl up with one of these winter nights. Definitely a worthwhile read.

This book provides a good background for the subject of woodland management for both timber and enjoyment, blending the two subjects well. It does not provide much in the way of specifics, as the subject is too broad, and often recommends professional help rather than suggesting ways of helping yourself (i.e. further reading).

This book is a basic introduction to woodlot management with a focus on the forest ecosystem, basic valuation metrics for trees, reforestation, and conservation.

The major difference between this title and the Beattie, Thompson, Levine text is that the latter devotes substantially more space to financial, legal, and logistical issues associated with harvesting trees. Conservationists will probably prefer this book while the reader focused on income from his or her woodlot will prefer Beattie et al.

Neither text goes very far helping the reader identify specific health problems in a woodlot; look more to Pirone et al. for an excellent introduction.

Excellent source of information. It is one of a few books of its kind - well worth the investment. The author(s) did an outstanding job of telling the whole story. Everything I wanted to know was available to me in this book. I'm ready to manage!

I am a big fan of Paulette Mitchell's cookbooks, with several recipes from her 15-Minute Gourmet Chicken and Noodles cookbooks at the very top of my favorite-meals-ever list. I couldn't wait to try the third book- The 15 Minute Gourmet Vegetarian.

I was not disappointed by the quality of the recipes, I was instead disappointed by the very thin section on entrees, compared to the bulk of the book that is dedicated to salads, deserts, and other things. In my experience, vegetarians don't need more salads and deserts. Most salads and deserts are vegetarian anyway. Entrees are the sticking point- many meat eaters I know would happily give up the occasional burger if they could find something just as satisfying without the meat. This recipe book gives a few suggestions, but not as many as I would have liked. Many of the recipes call for a simple substitution of tofu where the meat would have been, which I consider a very uninspired approach to vegetarian cuisine.

If you are already a vegetarian and want a few entrees to supplement an already extensive vegetarian repertoire, you might like this book. Just reading the lists of ingredients on some of the salads makes my mouth water, and the desserts are converting me into a dessert-lover. However, if you are a starting vegetarian, this book does not give you enough full meals. I would suggest buying one of the Moosewood Collective cookbooks instead (ignoring the fish section if you are a real vegetarian, of course).

Six years after purchasing The 15-Minute Vegetarian Gourmet, I can still say that this is the most often used cookbook in my collection (and the most often shared). Recipes are simple, honestly delicious, quick, healthy, and distinctive without being too strange for mainstream American tastes. I have blessed Ms. Mitchell many nights when it was my turn to cook and I was exhausted. This is also a good source of "company food" for people whose gifts do not lie in the kitchen yet want to entertain with a (manageable) bit of flair.

Pasta with Szechwan Peanut Dressing, Vegetable Stir-Fry with Ginger Sauce, Vegetable Curry and Mixed Fruit Chutney, all now our delicious and fast favorites from The 15-Minute Vegetarian Gourmet by Paulette Mitchell. These recipes have intriguing little taste treats which lift them above the ordinary. The book stands by itself as the most practical and satisfying when you are looking for something truly good as well as easy and quick to prepare, a busy cook's treasure. Ms. Lee Costello Scott, Chariton, Iowa

This book was needed years ago. Now we have it. It is chock full of good stuff about AMC's cars, which were the also-rans of the American automotive industry. However, AMC did mighty well, thank you, and the cars in the book reflect that. The biggest gripe about the book are the photographs. Many are rather poor in quality- it almost seems the author took them himself instead of relying on a professional. Still, I think this is a book that will complement any collection.

This book was needed years ago. Now we have it. It is chock full of good stuff about AMC's cars, which were the also-rans of the American automotive industry. However, AMC did mighty well, thank you, and the cars in the book reflect that. The biggest gripe about the book are the photographs. Many are rather poor in quality- it almost seems the author took them himself instead of relying on a professional. Still, I think this is a book that will complement any collection.

I am a new AMC convert and I love this book! I have a hard time keeping my hands off of it. I learned a lot by reading it and I liked all of the great pictures too. My only grip is that I wished it would have covered the larger AMCs a bit more. A V.I.N. decoder and total production numbers would certainly be a big plus. Overall, a definate must read for any AMC freak!

A beautifully executed publication, however as a collector of Victorian Trade Cards, I was greatly dissapointed NOT to find ANY of the cards in my collection listed. I would have expected at least ONE to have been referred to, but the items in the book are mostly geared to the collector of tobacco insert cards. If this is your thing, this is your book. Forget it if you are more geared to Tradecard collecting

The book is great historical lesson. Reading about the history of the Tobacco cards has been very informative. The writers have dedicated many hours to thorough research of this topic.

Colorful and interesting pictures provide an easy to use reference guide. The text is clear and concise with indepth information on value and various other aspects of collecting. I would highly recommend this book for serious collectors, antique dealers and those interested this aspect of American history.

Come on people. Now I've read several mystery novels but this one is probably one of my least favorite in my collection. Basically in this story a man named Andrew Penhallow had a girlfriend whom he loved and had a child with. Andrew realized that no longer he loved that woman and carried on with his life on to marry a woman named Carla Penhallow. Carla finds out much later in the book that Andrew has a mistress who is the woman he had his first child with. Carla ends up killing Andrew because of the shock. Then she kills a car repairman in fear that he knows too much about the murder. The book mentions a ghost of the past but that's only in the first or second chapter. This ghost of the past is supposed to show up everytime there is a disaster. Well I suppose the plot was a disaster and I mean literally. Ideally in a mystery novel this one girl Kate Drago, Andrews daughter, couldn't have caused all that pain. Whatever Andrew did, Andrew did, this girl didn't have anyone to turn to. Her mother had cancer. The book then talks about two love couples that don't end up together except from where they started. I had no thought in my mind that the way Kate Drago's character was written that she could even maintain a relationship. Anyway, this Harry guy was just thrown in the book as somebody that gets killed just in case he spills the beans on Carla committing a murder. What I would have done was make the ghost the killer if it is supposed to show up evrtyime disaster strikes(no reference to the movie) and then have the detectives uncover the mystery of how the ghost did the killing. The book would have been a little more suspenseful. I'm not trying to turn this book into a horror novel but just trying to add a little more spice to it. However it was exciting in a few parts of the book that's why it gets three stars but take your time with the sequel.

While driving home, Meredith Mitchell picks up a hitchhiker whom she drops off near the home of European VIP Andrew Penhallow and his family. Meredith soon enjoys the comfort of being with her lover, police superintendent Alan Markby. The next day, Andrew's wife finds her spouse murdered. Suspicion immediately falls on the hitchhiker.

Alan conducts an official investigation while Meredith makes her own inquiries. Apparently, the much traveled Andrew had two families with the hitchhiker being his neglected daughter from the other side of the tracks. However, were Kate's feelings strong enough to murder her father? Alan leans in that direction, but Meredith thinks otherwise and plans to sell her lover with a different scenario.

CALL THE DEAD AGAIN, the eleventh Cotswold novel, is an interesting British police procedural that, like its predecessors, adds elements of an amateur sleuth to the tale. The story line moves rather quickly, only slowing down when Alan and Meredith are doing anything except sleuthing. The characters are warm and cozy. Of major interest is the victim, who dies in the first quarter of the novel, but the revelations about his life spin the story line forward. Ann Granger provides genre fans with a fine entry to the Mitchell and Markby Cotswold series.

Harriet Klausner

You should enjoy the book even if you haven't read any of the earlier entries in the series. Ann Granger will gently fill you in on what has gone before. Marby and Meredith's relationship moves forward by the tiniest of steps, so you won't have missed much. The murder weapon is interesting. The mystery unravels nicely. You won't be sheltered from the hard facts of life, but you won't have your nose rubbed in them, either. Personally, I think every adulterer who thinks s/he is going to get away with it should read this book. It fits the old saying about being sure that your sin will find you out. (That's not giving away much. It's obvious early on that adultery is the root of the matter.) I've always enjoyed learning that an author whose works I like shares an interest. I'm pleased that Ms. Granger chose to mention *Sprig Muslin* of all of the late Georgette Heyer's many regency romances, because that's my favorite of her books. (From the description of the cover, I'm sure that mine is a different edition, though.) For readers who are not familiar with Heyer's work, she also wrote mysteries. "Penhallow", the name of one of the characters in this book, is the title of one of Heyer's mysteries. I really, really, hate the fact that so many hardcover books have boring or ugly dustjackets compared to paperback covers. I'm pleased that this mystery has a dustjacket that fits the mood of the book. [Note to the publisher: Given the title of the book, the last line of the quoted epitaph should probably be "call the dead" instead of "all the dead".] Ann E. Nichols