My parents grew up in Salt Lake City and as a child I spent summers there with my grandparents (one set Mormon, the other "gentile"=Presbyterian). Even with my limited memories of Salt Lake City, I found this book a hoot! I sent my 80+-year-old parents this book last week and here is their review:

"We both thank you for the Utah book. Your Dad started reading it first. Then, last night he read it to me, ALL of it!
We enjoyed it a lot, Particularly so because our Salt Lake time provided a lot of references to the places, customs and
attitudes referred to. It is very clever and surprisingly apt. Of course it is exaggerated in places but, even so, it relates."

"Green Jello and Red Punch: The Heinous Truth about Utah" is a perfect book for people who live or have lived in the Beehive State. It's witty and light-hearted and dead-on, all at the same time. I was so engrossed in it at the airport last week that I nearly missed my flight. Not rocket science (although the next edition might feature a section "You know you're at Thiokol when...), but a fun look at the cultures, mores, food and unique ways of Utah.

Inside the Battle of the Bulge is a must read for any one interested in personal accounts of WWII veterans. Blunt provides an honest first hand account of his days as a front line soldier fighting in the final months of the war. His recollections are vivid and touching. He is able to relate relative highs and unimaginable lows in a very, very impressive fashion. His accounts of passing through Belgian cities once occupied by Nazi forces are breathtaking. His memoirs of passing through the Nazi deathcamps is gut wrenching. This is really just a terrific read of a momentous and historical event.

"Inside The Battle Of The Bulge", by Roscoe C. Blunt, Jr. Westport, CT, Praeger, 1994.

If you are looking for a book that tells the story of the Battle of the Bulge, (Dec, 1944), without listing a lot of movements of this numbered division against that Panzer group, and if you are looking for a more personal and human history of the battle, then Private Blount's memoirs are for you. The sub-title of this book is, "A Private Comes Of Age". The author traces not only his march across Europe, from the logistical landing at Normandy (after the battle) up to the 84th Infantry Division's reaching the Elbe River, but also the lessons he learned about man's inhumanity to man. He grew up in the European campaign.

Unlike similar personal history books, the author presents an extra added attraction: records of the reactions of German soldiers and civilians. Young Blount had learned German in high school, so this personal memoir, written from notes he had made fifty years ago, is filled with comments from German soldiers and civilians. For example, there are some entertaining memories such as a short and chubby German woman who berated the advancing American troops, until Blount smacked her on the behind with the stock of his M-1. On the serious side, Private Blount describes in vivid detail the wounds suffered by both American and German soldiers, and how it was possible to become insensitive to such suffering. His description, however, of the concentration camp victims at "Nord Stalag III, Ohrdruf, is heart rending, on pages 173-174.

The author pulls no punches in describing the officers of the American army. In fact, his account of some incidents, such as the lieutenant being awarded a Bronze Star, while not even mentioning the efforts of Pvt. Blount in destroying an enemy tank , makes you wonder if the country should shut down West Point. Further, his narrative of his court martial for fraternization with the Germans (since he was able to speak German) makes you wonder about the commonsense of some of the officers of the time.

Over the last fifty or so years, Roscoe Blount has been "an award winning investigative journalist", (according to the back flap of the book cover), so the writing in this book is excellent. I would recommend this book to any one seeking a glimpse of how it was in the American army in Europe during the last crucial year of the war.

My grandmother read this book over, and over, and over again to me when I was a small child. I now read it to my children and enjoy it just as much. It is a fun wonderful book to be cherished.

Many many many books have tried to tell a story using only a very few words, so that children could easily understand them. This technique usually results in books so boring that they ought to be taken out and burned en masse -- except for this one. With a vocab. of not more than 70 or 80 words, this tells a hilarious tale of two bunny brothers trying desperately (and failing) to keep quiet while their papa sleeps. I just love it when Mama says, "Why is this here, and this here, and this here?" Then: "Chip and Pip were very quiet. Chip and Pip made no noise." Find this book and hang on to it.

Tanya Ann Crosby writes the story of two people who have insecurities and secret dreams hidden in their hearts. They are real people with real heart desires. Each finds the answer to their questions in the other and fall in love in the sweetest way. It's very passionate and very funny. Highly recommended. I've read it a couple of times.

Also recommended: The MacKinnon's Bride, On Bended Knee

This is my mostestesssss favorite book EVER! The characters are both witty and funny at the same time. My problem is that I read it within hours. Was not able to put it down once I picked it up, problem was I was at work at the time. By the time it was time to go home, I had finished it! :( I wanted it to last FOREVER! It had me laughing with tears in my eyes. Most definitely a keeper! I WANT MORE, like this book! Thank you Ms. Tanya Anne Crosby for the gift of your book. :)

Wonderfully different way of (biblically-based) looking at Jesus. Mr. Crosby is not afraid of quoting other authors to show a concept. He gave additional food for thought to looking at the Jesus of Revelation... never mind the prophetic imagery, look at the person of Jesus through the eyes of John the Beloved.

WEll, I got this book on sale and it did sound interesting. As I was reading through the book, the book is awesome. It went beyond my own expectation. THe author reminds us of how we really are in Christ. DEFinetely recommended to everyone, esp. those who want to know God's love so much more.

Browsing through a bookstore or online, it sometimes seems that there are as many books of photography of New York City as there are yellow cabs or unemployed dot-com workers. So the first question is why do we need another, followed by, and why this one in particular? The answer is simple. Mark Crosby has an extraordinary eye for this city, and much like Walker Evans, captures the essence of what makes it wholly unique. In Crosby's beautiful and oftentimes surprising images, he reminds you that no matter how well you think you know New York, look again, the city just may surprise you.

Mark's ability to capture the energy and essence of a scene or a life is incredible. His pictures are definately worth more than a thousand words.

Sites of NYC captured in this book are great, even for someone who lives in the city. Sometimes I marvel at how did he get that shot or even "Where is it?". A book this beautiful must have been created by natural talent - skill could never be perfected to this level.

I can't wait for the third book!

My sister and I share this as our favorite book. When I had my son she gave me our original copy of Piggle. Now my son is Two and starting to love books. This is his favorite. My sisiter lives far away now, so we call her up just to say "BEANS" (or for a two year old "BEAM"). She went on Amazon and found a new copy for him and companion books to go with it. This will be a favorite in your house. It has lasted 28 years in ours!!!

I love to read this book to my daughter. It is a unique story with funny and original characters and great illustrations. It is truly a children's book for all ages.

This is a beautifully written account of an unusual and tender relationship between an older man and a much younger woman. It is absorbing to read and hard to put down. It is a delightful surprise from an author who has only written well researched historical accounts before.

What care this author has taken--each word paints a picture, from the backdrop of fabulous locations around the world to the physical beauty of the people in its cast, for example a small child, a shopkeeper, a young girl, an older woman...The characters are very real seeming, as are their complicated lives and emotions. The story starts slowly at first, but really it is beautifully written, and the trip is worth the time as you'll want to visit all these places (or I felt that way at least). Stay with this book--you'll be glad you did!

real life american story of a lost child who was swept up in the compelling 1960's. dallas taylor's honest, revealing story tells what it was like to be a part of history - to experience the tragic/ comical reality of sex, drugs and rock 'n roll -- to suffer and battle his personal daemons and to survive drug addiction and an organ transplant. God Bless Dallas Taylor.

I should begin this review with a little info for anyone who should read this.I read the name Dallas Taylor for the first time when I was about 10 years old,I was reading a name off an old 45 single of the songs Hitch Hike and Papas got a brand new bag.I always wanted to know who this guy was and how to get a hold of him. Well, now i know who he is,or was, but I still dont know how to get a hold of him. This book taught me a lot of the man who last knew my father before he died, and I even found a few pages dedicated to the last moments of his life.I thought I knew about the sixties but this book showed me how little I really knew.Many people who have had problems with drugs or alcohol in there lives will benifit greatly from this book.I hope you all will take the time to read this book.It will help you understand things a little bit better and introduce you to my dads last best friend.

The authors bring to light the beginning of a style of singing made possible by the introduction of radio and the electric microphone. Separate from the shouting style of singing required by the acoustic horn phonograph and theatres with no amplification, the microphone allowed a more intimate soft style of singing. The book highlights the better known performers Bing Crosby, Rudy Vallee as well as informs on the forgotten performers Art Gillham, Jack Smith, Little Jack Little and others instrumental in developing the intimate crooning style.

Crooning was a distinctive music performance style that came into prominence during the Big Band era of the 1930s and 40s. Successful crooners like Rudy Vallee and Frank Sinatra became icons of the "bobbysox" generation of teenagers. Established crooners like Bing Crosby and Tony Bennett had decades long careers that including radio, movies, and television. In The Rise Of The Crooner, music historian Michael R. Pitts and Drank W. Hoffmann (Professor of Library Science, Sam Houston State University) are ably assisted by Dick Carty and Jim Bedoian to present an articulate, scholarly, informative, and engaging historical treatise surveying the trends, fads, events, and personalities that created this popular form of American music and its lasting impact on popular American culture. The "reader friendly", 312 paged text is enhanced with up-to-date biographies, bibliographies, and discographies making The Rise Of The Crooners an enthusiastically recommended addition to any personal, professional, academic, or community library American music history collection.