I haven't read any of Kathleen Morgan's previous books, but she has brought inspirational fiction a gift. The reference to intimacy as santified in marriage (physical, emotional and spiritual) is acurate and powerful. It's wonderful to read about this in realistic terms although not graphic. Imagination has it's own rewards. The story line is great! The characters seem alive! Keep writing inspirational fiction, Kathleen!

Since Amazon didn't post an editorial review, here's the description from the back of the book to help you decide if this book is for you: "Her mistake was falling love with a cop. Now she's pregnant -- and he's missing. Shelby Beaumont is madly in love with homicide detective Johnny Spencer. They've been together for the past year, they've just become engaged. And though Johnny doesn't know it yet, Shelby's pregnant with his child. But Johnny's been investigating a possible case of police corruption. And someone on the force has found out ... Then a bomb is rigged on Johnny's boat. And Johnny's onit. Or is he?"

This book is an excellent introduction to defect chemistry of materials. But, as an added bonus, it also comprehensively covers most of the fundamentals in the defect chemistry theory making it an excellent textbook.

If you enjoy dry humor, this book will have you in stitches. The first time that I read it, I had to put the book down - often - because I was laughing so hard.

It would be very difficult to explain this book, it's just something you have to read for yourself. The diary includes photocopies of letters Petty receives in reply to his letters asking for assistance from various government, military and private agencies. The replies seem legit - the correspondance isn't fictional - and are sometimes as funny as Petty's musings.

I've included a couple of excerpts from the diary to help the interested reader get a feel.

[Petty communicates his intentions to the authorities ...]

Wednesday, 23 February

The big day. I have posted off a letter to Mr Andropov, the Soviet leader, explaining my decision to declare my house and garden a Nuclear Free Zone and enclosing a diagram. The zone runs from the shiplap fencing in the east, along the fence, up past the greenhouse and fishpond to the pavement in the west. The pavement isn't actually mine but I have included it in the zone because, although it belongs to the council, it would be a bit difficult to get around the back of the house if it were destroyed in a thermonuclear exchange.

[Oh, there's more - so much more. Much later in the book (entries are made in the diary almost daily) Petty is trying to figure out ways to protect his home from a nuclear exchange.]

Tuesday, 19 April

A disappointing letter from the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston, about converting our microwave oven into a missile deflector. They say they are unable to give any assurance that it would be effective. If they can't give any assurance, who can? Still, I shall let Roger loose with the screwdriver; we don't use the oven much anyway, and it will soon be the season for salad.

[I wish I could include more excerpts. This book is a gem.]

This book is absolutely great! Written primarily for legal professionals, it showcases almost all possible cases and clarifies the issues on which taxes are discharged in filing for Chapter 7, 11 or 13. This book saved us literally tens of thousands of dollars in penalties while saving thousands of dollars in legal fees. It proved to be a great source of knowledge as well, stating cases that provided greater insights than my own lawyer who specializes in corporate bankruptcy !!! If you are considering filing personally or as a business and have a large amount of unpaid taxes, this book is well worth its steep price. Highly recommend.

Dorothea Tanning shows an incredibly wide range of artistic styles in this compilation of her works. Some of the most intruiging and inspiring paintings I have ever seen!

During my recent trip to New York I decided I would visit all the major bookstores and buy myself lots of books about Renaissance drawing. Surely, I thought, sophisticated New York bookstores would have such books in abundance. Here are the results of my arduous researches:

1) There are VERY few books about Renaissance drawing.

2) This book is by far the best of the lot.

Probably Carracci is nobody's favorite artist, and I'm sure I would never have bought this book if I hadn't had the chance to leaf through it first. Photos of preparatory sketches by a not-so-famous painter for $90? Yeah right.

But this book is great. Carracci's paintings may be stiff, but the drawings are definitely not. He was a master of the kind of drawing that just doesn't exist anymore -- elegant, accurate, offhand but truly observed. I don't suppose he was a better draftsman than Titian, say, or Raphael, but this book shows him to be among the real masters.

And the book is a model for what art books should be. It is big but not painful, with pages that are almost square so that the drawings can be shown to their advantage and not run into the gutter. Each drawing is shown compete, but it is the details that make the book. Many are reproduced full-page and in true color, so that the real feel of the paper and touch of the line come across.

Though all the works in this book are by Carracci, it still comes across as a kind of survey course in drawing because this one artist drew in so many ways. Every kind of drawing is here, from the quickest preparatory scribbles to Holbein-like portrait drawings, clearly intended as finished works. The text is of the "This drawing was formerly attributed to Mr. X but now is attributed to Mr. Y" variety, but the text is not why you buy a book like this.

In the end I came home from New York without any books, ordered this one from Amazon, and felt that I had accomplished my mission.

Lucien Morgan has probably the neatest way of making understanding dreams and symbols clear and simple. I've always been into dream study, but never has a book been so helpful and easy to understand. The most enjoyable aspect of this book is that it begins almost too simple, but before you know it, the whole concept becomes instantly clear. With this easy to follow transition, I think anyone can understand how much our subconscience comes out in dreams by using symbols and "known elements" for deeper understanding of ourselves. Not only did this delightful book show me a much clearer way of what dreams mean, but it also taught me how to look into the dreams to reveal what I might not want to deal with. Basically, I just love this book to death, and I really hope that my review will show why I think anyone could benefit from it.

I don't cook a lot of fancy, labor-intensive food. I like being imaginative and speedy in the kitchen, and I usually figure I don't need a book that is going to have me go through 40 steps just to cook a pice of chicken. But despite my wariness of cookbooks, I now own all of Karen Brooks' (and her different partners') food and cocktail books. I never thought I'd be such a fan of...cookbooks? Yup. "Dressed to Grill" is as fun to read as it is to use. When it comes to barbecue, women have traditionally taken the roles of preparing side dishes and smiling as they chew charred pieces of red meat. Well, this book makes tending the flames extremely accessible to women, from the basic how-to's and the tips on buying grills to the de-emphasis on meat (and a great low-fat chapter). The snappy writing and graphics that are the trademark of Ms. Brooks' books are present again here. Just broke up with a guy? Look in the "Bonfire of the Miseries" breakup chapter for recipes like Jerk Chicken with Grilled Bananas, Who's Sari Now?, and Chauvinist Pig (all delicious recipes). And for the absolute best version of a classic: Forget Caesar: A Bang-up Cleopatra Salad. The recipe for Campy S'Mores Sundae with toasted marshmallows is super-easy, tasty, and what the authors call "An urban girl's idea of a Girl Scout campfire dessert experience."

Whether you're cooking for one, entertaining friends, or trying to give a guy some tactful advice on how to take barbecue to a whole new level (tell him to try the Hot Girls Spice Rub - the recipe, not a spot in the red-light district) you should own this book. Yeah, being so effusive about a cookbook may seem weird, but only until you read this one.

It is refreshing to find a book devoted to the experiences of dyslexic adults, since much of the available literature focuses on children. The Dyslexic Adult in a non-dyslexic world was a welcome addition to my bookshelf. It is eminently readable and combines an 'academic' understanding of the issues with down-to-earth examples based on interviews with dyslexic adults. I particularly liked the fact that it gave a 'voice' to many people who have previously been ignored; namely, those adults whose dyslexia was not identified at school. Their stories, told through their own words, are well integrated into the various themes of the book. As the parent of an adult dyslexic son, I was able to identify my son's experiences with many of those described by the interviewees.

This book presents a realistic view of the problems and difficulties encountered by many dyslexic adults, but gives a balanced account by also exploring the many strengths which dyslexic adults may possess. It should appeal to a wide range of readers, including non-dyslexic members of the dyslexic adult's family, teachers, employers, friends and, perhaps most importantly, to dyslexic adults themselves.