The book discusses themes, photographs, decorations, texture, borders, lettering, collages, and other techniques to make the pages of the memory book professional and personal. The author even takes the time to discuss color and balance within pages.

This book would make an excellent basis for a school or library program, and it is a great way for kids to treasure their memories and creative expression.

Unfortunately, primary source materials are often the most difficult to find. Professional historians often spend thousands of dollars in travel expenses to visit archives and study fragile documents. However, students of history cannot afford that sort of travel expense, nor can the documents themselves survive such a level of daily use.

That is why anthologies such as these are received with such joy by history instructors serious about teaching their students how to learn from history, rather than simply how to pass tests. In this book one will find a large number of important texts written by people who lived through the events they are describing. Some are senior admirals and other important figures, but many are ordinary enlisted men who provide a perspective that often gets forgotten in the official histories one finds in textbooks.

Think of it as your own private mini-archive on the Age of Sail.

The excerpts are either French or English, with one American memoir from the War of 1812, and include some old reliables such as Coignet, Marbot, and Mercer. However, there are some that arent' seen too often, such as Marshal MacDonald's recollection of Wagram in 1809 (not always a reliable source), as well as Lejeune's story of the Great Retreat from Moscow (somewhat more reliable). He reluctantly served as Marshal Davout's chief of staff during the Retreat, serving in his normal efficient manner, having been an aide-de-camp to the Grande Armee's chief of staff, Marshal Berthier, who didn't suffer fools gladly.

On the British side there is an excerpt from William Tomkinson's excellent memoir of the war in Spain, the bloody story of the stormings of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz by William Graham of the famous Connaught Rangers, David Robertson's memoir of Egypt in 1801 and a rare glimpse of campaigning in northern Germany in 1813 by one of the few British units to participate in that campaign, the 73d Foot. As a rare treat, there is a memoir from a Kentucky militia corporal, Samuel Stubbs, who enlisted at age 63 and served at Queenstown, Lundy's Lane, Fort Erie, and at the Battle of New Orleans.

Taken as a whole, this is an interesting, informative collection of memoirs and tall tales, that is as entertaining as it is valuable. It is useful for both research and entertainment, and is a must for the historian, wargamer, and researcher. The author has done us all a great service with this outstanding work. It is highly recommended

Colorado high school students, Emilee and Christa Lawrence want only one thing in the new year. They both want their mother Sharon to find a man. It kills the Lawrence siblings that their mom is staying home on New Year's Eve because she has no one to date. The sisters decide to find their mother a man. They even tell their plan to a bemused Gabe Malone, whose company is renovating Sharon's home.

Not long into the New Year, Emilee and Christa begin to parade one male after another to their mother in hopes she will find Mr. Right. At first, Gabe finds the endless stream of men amusing, but as he begins to know Sharon, he desires to be the final person in the single man march.

A MAN FOR MOM is an extremely humorous romantic romp that will leave readers laughing due to the antics of the two teens. The story line is amusing yet carries a serious undertone message that "one is the loneliest number of them all." The lead characters are a fun pair, but it is the matchmaking siblings who steal the story line. This is a wonderfully amusing tale from the talented Sherry Lewis.

Harriet Klausner