I enjoyed this book with the variety of short stories set in various locations in the US during the Victorian era. Great characters and subject matter. The recipes at the end of each novella is something mentioned in the story. The recipes actually have a history of their own. This is a book worth reading.

In the season rush... this book was a gift that allowed me to just slip away for awhile. I loved the stories. This is a great gift for the romance book addict or just someone who needs a quick pick me up in the middle of a hectic life.

This book is perfect for the Holidays. I now plan to read the book every year. I am presently reading the story of the Christmas Cottage and the quilt series is next on my list! Nothing better to warm ones heart than romance at Christmas time! You'll love it! And the recipes at the end of every story are a Perfect ending!

This book is a great tool to identify gender bias in any school! I've been substituting in my school district recently and with the tips I found in this book I found many examples of how girls are unconsciously mistreated. This book makes a great gift for parents, students, teachers, and anyone interested in education!

This book presents the issue of gender bias in a very readable manner. I highly recommend this small, easy to read text for any parent, teacher or individual who has any contact with children. Wonderful examples of reframing available, good references and appendixes. Would make for a good gift for teachers or coaches. Very thought provoking.

This book delivers what it promises... 4 battles you surely would not have studied (unless you happened to be a "local" to one of the sites), seperate from one another but tied together by the crimson thread of Courage.

Great Stuff!

I highly recommend reading this book if you are a fan of Military History, a student of the "Civil War", or simply attracted to real acts of Heroism & Courage from an era blessed with a level of integrity and grit that is only a faded memory to America today.

To borrow the words of Shakespeare, "Courage mounteth with occasion". Far from the grand movements of the armies, the great battles and the central figures of the Civil War, one finds thousands of examples of personal courage of men who met the occasion, but have been largely forgotten by history.

Mark Crawford in "Confederate Courage on Other Fields" does great justice to four of these lesser-known stories of sacrifice, bravery in the face of great danger, suffering, and devotion to duty by men fighting for the Confederate cause. I found each tale to be well researched, insightful and easy to read.

"'Tisn't life that matters! 'Tis the courage you bring to it" -Sir Hugh Walpole. I believe Colonel Charles Blacknall of the 23rd North Carolina Infantry, as described in Crawford's book, exemplifies the courageous leadership exhibited by many men of the south. A wealthy, educated planter, Blacknall hated drilling, the study of tactics and many of the trappings of the military. However, belief in a cause led him to great accomplishment, at a price of personal sacrifice, ultimately his own life. As you read his letters, and gain insight into his devotion to his family, and his love and understanding of his men, you will admire this fellow who gave all for what he believed in.

My primary reason for buying this book was my lifelong interest of events in the bitter struggle for control of Southeast Missouri. Though considered a backwater of the War and often ignored by historians, the violence of partisan and guerilla actions in these border counties profoundly affected everyone living in the region. Instead of a five-hour skirmish or five-day battle, the fate of this area was sealed in five years of ugly, shocking bloodletting and destruction. Most folks fled. In many parts of Southeast Missouri and Northeast Arkansas the bitterness remains to this day. Crawford's treatment of the conflict between Major James Wilson on the Union side and Colonel Timothy Reeves on the Confederate side is the most fair, accurate and honest I have read. A consequence of this contest was the execution of prisoners on both sides. In reading this account you will come to appreciate the bravery and gallantry of men caught up in a struggle without rules and often driven by revenge that discouraged noble actions.

You will finish this book with an expanded understanding of the "Brother's War", and the tremendous sacrifice of the average Confederate soldier as he faced danger in a courageous or fearless manner. I hope Mark will consider a sequel exploring the courage of Union men. I heartily recommend this book!

To me this book gives well then enough evidence that Joan was not too good of a mother. The interviewer ask her about the allegations of child abuse, even though she denies it first hand she admits that she as well as other star should not have become parents. To me that's a admission that she some things wrong with the raising of her children. This book is further proof that Joan should have never became a mom.

Conversations w/ Joan Crawford is a superb book w/ Joan speaking for herself in a question/answer "interview" type arena. Roy Newquist is a great interviewer who asks the right questions & got very frank & honest answers from Joan about her life, her films, her co-stars, Mr. Mayer & her philosophies on how she's lived. She was near the end of her life at the time the book was written & little high on the sauce at moments (acording to Roy Newquist) but Joan just lets it fly. this book is Excellent & a must for any Crawford fan.

This is the only book I have found written especially for compulsive gay men. It is full of insight and the testimonials of gay men in recovery make it easy and enjoyable to read. I would have rated it with 5 stars if only I hadn't read Mr.Kettelhack's 1996 book "Dancing Around the Volcano" in which he adopts a totally different point of view: That sexual needs and fantasies of gay men should be indulged rather than suppressed. This shift in point of view makes the authenticity of "Easing the Ache" seem rather dubious.

We need more writers like Mr. Kettelhack to help heal the scars of many bright, eager, and potentially productive (and happy) gay men. If only more boys would read this book before tripping into a bath of self-loathing and depression; what a fortune could be saved (not to mention many lives) in the mental health and recover/rehab department.

This handsome encyclopedia is an excellent and useful reference book, its publication nicely timed for the sesquicentennial of the end of the war and a renewed interest in that conflict. Introduced by a short summary of the war and a resume of its causes, the alphabetically arranged entries range from Abolitionists to Zozaya, María Josefa. The almost 500 topics covered include: battles and skirmishes, military leaders, Indian participants, the role of women, medical practices, casualties, desertion, navies, Manifest Destiny, political figures, pro and con sentiments about the war, armistices, and peace treaty negotiations. All of the entries, many of them illustrated, are followed by suggestions for further reading. Some of the entries contain colorful, direct quotes from eyewitness accounts. In addition to maps, a chronology of the war, and a comprehensive index, this book has an extensive bibliography with references in Spanish as well as English. Besides books and articles, the bibliography lists a number of pertinent dissertations. Buy a copy for yourself and recommed it to your local library.

IT IS ABOUT TIME! someone took the time and effort to write an encyclopedia on the Mexican War. As a student of the Mexican War over the last eight years, I have often wondered when a qualified scholar and writer would "fill the niche" so sorely needed in this community. Mark Crawford deserves the credit and praise of all students and "buffs" of the topic. I wish he would have produced this marvelous volume years ago which would have saved me weeks of work in graduate school. I found it to be a perfect blend, a middle ground between Col Mark Boatner's in-depth classic, Civil War Dictionary and Patrcia Fausts' artist Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War. It is balanced, thorough and well-written with just the right amount of detail but not getting bogged down in the details. The only major criticism I have of this outstanding research tool, it is very lacking in maps! There are only three maps that does not come close to illustrate the scope and breath of a very broad and comprehensive conflict. The period photos and artwork perfectly captivate and enhance the very readable narrative. I highly recommend this great work to all students of the profession of arms, especially Mexican War types like me.

Small children will really enjoy this book. It is also a toy. It contains pictures of a fire engine, fire chief's car, turntable ladder engine, airport fire engines, fire rescue truck, sky-lift engine and a water tender engine.

The pages are durable and there is a fastner to keep the book closed when it is used as a toy.

Not for children under 3.

My son absolutely loves this book. It is ALWAYS the first book that he searches out in his library. At 22 months now, he is able to name all of the objects on the pages, and enjoys the lighthearted story the pictures tell. The now ragged pages and binding attest to the popularity of the book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.

This book is full of wonderful items about fire engines. It is easy to read to my son, and he loves that I add all the sound effects! There are also lots of things to point out as you are reading. "Fire truck" is one of his first words, and he stops and stares at the fire trucks at the fire house almost daily! This book is a great introduction to fire trucks.

In a matter of hours the war was over for the bombardier. The B-24 bomber caught flak over Klagenfurt, Germany; the crew bailed into enemy territory. Within 24-hours the plane's bombardier, Second Lieutenant George Crawford, unable to evade capture, wound up in the back of a German car, a giant SS officer leering at him, telling him, "For you, der var is ofver."

So begins the bombardier's When Surrender Was Not an Option, a memoir recounting Crawford's experience as a prisoner of war in the prison camp Stalag Luft III. Told as if Crawford were recalling his imprisonment and giving an oral account, and while not graphic or gory, the book displays a vivid portrait of life in a POW camp during the waning months of World War II.

Concrete details and repeated images supply readers with a sense of the miseries the POWs endured. Space was almost non-existent; the POWs were packed in barracks in which the "bunks were layered so close that one had to be approximately horizontal to sinuously slither into the bunk." Food, or its lack, became almost an obsession. Hunger was rarely lifted. Rations usually consisted of dry black bread or Red Cross chocolate bars, and maybe cabbage in the summer. When liberated by General Patton, Crawford weighed 65-pounds.

One of the most vivid scenes is a long march in freezing weather when the Stalag is vacated and the POWs moved further into Germany as the Allies close in.

While the details and images make the war and the POW experience vivid, the book's strength lays in its depiction of the POWs' courage and character not only to endure and survive their imprisonment, but also their willingness to keep their capture from becoming surrender. Crawford details his and his fellow "Kriegie's" attempts, sometimes funny, to harass the German soldiers guarding them. The POWs dug tunnels and made escape attempts, but their most effective means of harassment was psychological.

After constructing a makeshift radio receiver, the POWs could monitor war news and had better information than the Germans. Such information shook the Germans; war maps showed that an Allied victory was at hand. For the Germans, more than the POWs, the war would soon be over.

Though sketchy in parts, Crawford's memoir is a realistic portrait of war. It lends perhaps just enough detail to allow imagination to fill in any gaps. It portrays courage and fear, tears and laughter, and perhaps a better understanding of what war is like.

It would be hard to describe this story without using words like 'gritty,' 'horrifying,' and 'engrossing.' George Crawford of the 456th Bomb group (Heavy), along with James Lee, tells his first-person story of flying the giant American bombers over enemy targets, surviving being shot down, and more importantly, surviving being a prisoner of war in the most dismal conditions one can imagine. Told in a no-nonsense, straight-forward approach to the facts, you will find yourself turning the pages rapidly, not able to put this fascinating account of one man's challenges in wartime down until every word soaks in. Should be required reading for every high school student in the US, along with the classics of the genre like "Those Who Fall" by John Muirhead.
Roy J. Firestone ...

With each passing year, the heroes and reality of WWII fade. When Surrender Was Not An Option presents one man's experiences as a POW in Nazi Germany: the brutality, the bravery, the heroism of surviving. Everyone, young and old, should read Second Lieutenant George Crawford's story. If you've ever served in the military, you'll identify with this honest tale. If you haven't, you'll appreciate and be astounded by the sacrifices Crawford and all soldiers make in the name of freedom and survival. Helen Ginger, Editor, Doing It Write!

I generally dislike split perspective writing, (i.e. two protagonists and two points of view) but I love this one. Crawford takes a unique POV on life in the dregs and makes it very interesting and even more entertaining. Fair warning however Rossacota is not a place for the squeamish.

I've just finished reading this book and the two that precede it, _The Sure Death of a Mouse_ and _Rouse a Sleeping Cat_, and I was pleasantly surprised by what I thought was going to be another throwaway fantasy. This was not helped by the publisher who, inexplicably, decided to publish the second book first and the first second. This didn't throw me, though--even reading them out of order was enjoyable! The author has put together a society with plenty of backstabbing and political intrigue, and given us solid, three dimensional main characters who have to deal with it all. He has a nice touch with the dialogue, sometimes making me laugh out loud. All in all, I was very pleased, and would like to see something else by this author!

Having read all three books (Mouse, Cat, and Dog), I must admit that Dan Crawford has done well in his world of Rosacotta. This is an excellent fantasy series.

The land of Rosacotta is one of extremes of good and bad. People are cutthroat and mercenary, yet some actually care about their land. Who is who and what one's real agenda are is something else. This story, though confined largely to one city and one castle complex, never lacks for characters and depth.

The main characters, Polijn and Nimnestl, are both outsiders to the royal court yet both become nearly indispensable in foiling plots and helping the young king and his regent. I admit that at times I was a bit confused as to who was who and whose plot was whose, but, then again, that's probably what the main characters were feeling, too. And the scenes about life in the Swamp, especially those that feature the wizrd the Vielfrass, are worth reading the book in their own right.

I hope that this isn't the end. Both Polijn and the king are so young. They both deserve future volumes, maybe focusing on the realms beyond Rosacotta and on life when the regency ends and the king comes into his own.

A very good read. (Though it may get harder to find). If you can get it read it. You won't be sorry.

This book provides important insight into an insufficiently examined aspect of Tudor and Stuart history. The research is impressive, the chapter summaries most helpful. The illustrations are judiciously selected. Indeed, the book is undeniably informative and interesting.

However, I can't honestly say that this work constitutes what I would regard as a masterpiece of contemporary prose style, or even a brisk and refreshing "read". I found the feminist approach here a tad doctrinaire; perhaps this somewhat heavy-handed approach can be justified in the context of a thorough re-examination of the matter. Reservations still endure. At the risk of seeming intemperate, I call down a pox on all social- scientific newspeak. Yea, the devil seize all references to paradigms, discourses, modalities and any other such bits of post-modern scholarly vocabulary. I would be delighted if there were a moratorium on the use of such words in any academic writing for at least a generation!

This book is an exciting history of all aspects of the everyday lives of early modern Englishwomen. "Female culture" is my favorite chapter because it shows how resourceful women were, despite patriarchal constraints, in developing their own traditions and bonds of solidarity. The authors even discovered a marriage between two women!

I have the privilege of being a pupil of Patricia Crawford's at the University of Western Australia, so naturally I was interested in reading the product of her colloboration. For a history student this book is marvellous for an introduction into the history of our female ancestors and a welcome relief from those dry products of academia which delight in annoying and perplexing the humble reader with page long sentences, words which I suspect the author has made up and long dry recitations of 'facts'. This is an easy to read and very informative piece of work, which I would highly reccommend for all who are interested in discovering a hidden voice of early modern history - the mighty female. And just in case you're thinking my review may be laced with bias, read this book and you will see that its not.