Josefina's Story collection is a very nicely done book. It is edged in gold, has a ribbon bookmark, and a transparent dust jacket. It contains all six of her stories. My only complaint? That all of the Peek into the Past sections have been removed except for the last one, the one from Changes For Josefina. If this were truly a keepsake edition, it would contain all of the Peek into the Past sections as well as the stories.

I liked the Kit Story collection book, however, I noticed that the Peek into the Past selections have been removed from the book, all except for the last one. The original six books about Kit all have the Peek into the Past selections in the back, which give you an idea of what growing up in each American Girl's time was like. But with all the Story Collections, Pleasant Company apparently felt that the Peek into the Past selections were not neccessary. If all of the books had been fully intact, including the Peek into the Past selections, then I would have given this book 5 stars instead of 4. 4 Stars is for the effort...but the book is lacking something.

Candace Leutzinger

I think the American Girl series are very interesting, learning about the past your in a fantastic adventure. I started reading one book just to see if I might like it, now I'm almost through the series!!! Learning new information while having fun is a very important thing in an education.

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Molly McIntire, a ten-year-old girl living on the home front during World War 2. It is summer 1944, and Molly is at camp Gowonagin. It's time for the big hike, and Molly dreams of being like her hero, Sacagawea. However, when she should be following the rules of hiking, Molly sets out on her own, and into trouble.

My daughter and I just love the American Girls books, and this one keeps up the tradition of excellence that you expect from them. The story is gentle, and yet teaches an important lesson. The final chapter has a lesson on Sacagawea and trail hiking, which we quite enjoyed. My daughter loves these books, and yours will too!

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Molly McIntire, a ten-year-old girl living on the home front during World War 2. When Molly is paired up with her friend Susan to do a report on George Washington, she believes that this will be the best report ever. However, when Susan starts moving the project in new directions, Molly begins to fear that the project will end in disaster. Molly believes that doing things in a different way is always bad, but perhaps different can be better!

My eleven-year-old daughter and I love these American Girls books, and this one is just as good as the others. The author succeeds in driving home her point with a gentleness that makes the story a joy to read, even while you are learning something. The final chapter has directions for making Cherry-Nut Cupcakes, which have little to do with the story, but my daughter enjoyed making them, and I enjoyed eating them. (Actually, as a father, I do hope that they keep up with putting recipes in their new books!)

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Molly McIntire, a ten-year-old girl living on the home front during World War 2. In this book, Molly is quite happy that her new puppy relies only on her and plays only with her. However, when the puppy begins to spend too much time with Molly's brother Ricky, she decides that she will make sure that no one can spend any time with the puppy but her. However, Molly learns a lesson when the puppy begins to need more time and attention than any one person can give it!

The final chapter of this book has a great look at dogs during (and in) World War II, and a wonderful recipe for making your own, homemade, dog treats. This is another wonderful Molly book, one that keeps up the fine tradition of the American Girls books. My daughter and I both enjoyed this book and recommend it to you!

This is a book that brought tears to my eyes as a child. This is a book I would be unable to read out loud today because it is just too sad.

An Elkhound puppy becomes separated from his litter mates and has to fend for himself in the cold, cruel, snowy world. His life is one of hardships and survival; he breaks his leg and has a long, painful healing process. Fortunately, the dog's bone does mend and fortunately he finds his way home.

This book has lovely illustrations, but the story always got to me. It always made me sad to think of this poor, lost dog, suffering in the cold.

The world of horticulture was shocked when Dr. Raulston was killed in a car accident almost two years ago. He was known worldwide for his plant expertise and especially for the new plants he brought into the public eye. Kim Tripp honed her craft at Harvard's Arnold Arboretum, so when these two recommend a plant they know what they are talking about! The book is well written and easily to follow season by season. Particularly recommended for serious gardeners.

Has to be the worst Sql book I've wasted my money on. Absolutely horrible. Practically every chapter has some over generalization or plain bad advice. You get the impression that the authors haven't really ever deployed any of these systems they talk about so much. It appears they have very little time "in the trenches." On top of that, the writing is just awful. I had a real tough time just reading through it. If you want to find good info on Sql's high availability features, read the Books Online and *don't* waste your money on this book.

This book collates the experience of installing 'Real World' SQL virtual servers on Windows 2000 and Windows 2003.
Even if you have already deployed a SQL2000 clustered instance, there will be tips in this book for you.
There are numerous chapters including Disk configuration, Installation and Service Pack management.
As with any major undertaking, the book underpins the need for planning and research without forgetting the detailed technical stuff we all love.
The Knowledgebase articles referenced in the book make it that little bit easier to be confident that you are following Best Practise.

This book is the fast track way to gain confidence in deploying a Microsoft SQL 2000 or 2003 Virtual Server.
Even if you have deployed SQL clusters, this book will probably have a few gems that you haven't seen.
The references to the 2003 Operating System are excellent.
The chapters on disk configuration, deployment and Service Packs are valuable in the real World.
The Authors have given you a complete process for rolling out a successfule SQL deployment. The fact is that planning and process are the key to a rollout and this book has that and the technical stuff we all love.
If you only buy one book on SQL and high availability deployment, this is the one.

Kit's Home Run was not quite what I expected it to be. It seemed like a run down of the books, spending too much quality time going over the facts about what happened to Kit. Then Pleasant Company decided to recycle some of the graphics from "Kit Saves the Day." While to book is cute, I was somewhat disappointed. This is supposed to be a short story, an extension of the six other Kit books. Instead, it seemed like a run of the mill mass-produced series book, rehashing facts as though readers were not already acquainted with Kit and her family. Anyone who has read "Meet Kit" knows what happened to Kit and her family, and anyone who read "Kit Saves the Day" will notice that several of the graphics were recycled. Put bluntly: the book could have been more original. Several of the others seem to be better..but perhaps that is because they actually came from American Girl magazine, and before Mattel took Pleasant Company over...

This is another in the American Girls Short Stories series about Kit Kittredge, a ten-year-old girl living in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is 1934, and Kit wishes that she could go see a Cincinnati Reds game like she and her father used to before the Depression began. When she's hurt during a neighborhood game, Kit finds a way to help someone else!

I am a fan of the Kit books, but must admit to feeling somewhat disappointed by this one. A part of what I like best about them is the life lessons that they teach, but this one is a little thin on the lesson part. But, that said, my daughter loved the book, and we both liked the illustrations. The final chapter was a look at baseball in 1934, and a project for personalizing a baseball cap, which my daughter is already planning out right now. So, overall I would say that this is a very good Kit book, but certainly not one of the best.