i discovered judevine in a class that almost beat the warmth out of this spectacular poetry. But, fortuneately i had the good fortune to hear david budbill do readings from judevine. I have been hooked ever since. His style is so friendly and engaging, and when combined with the rich texture of character and landscape, it quickly became my favorite book of poems.

Judevine is a must have for any avid reader of poetry. Budbill has an extrodenary ability to capture the momment and freeze it in time. You'll Love it! He has become one of my favorite writers.

David Budbill's story-poems are beautiful, heart-warming (and occasionally heart-breaking). They are best read aloud, and that may be why he's also such a great playwright. I believe these characters really exist, although David swears he made them up. Judevine is a song cycle, an epic, perhaps, of real people and real life--ennobled but not sugared over. Rich with sound, image, humor, and love.

All of Archer Mayor's books have a gripping story line. Although the stories are first class, the pictures drawn with words as the story unfolds are the best that I have ever encountered. The magnificent metaphors can create, in less than one sentence, images that may take other authors pages. Although each book is independent in and of itself, I enjoy reading the stories in sequence. There is a steady progression in character development and interpersonal relationships as we go from story to story.

If you are a mystery fan, I am sure that you will enjoy the entire series as much as I have. If you are a student taking a course in creative writing, I don't think that you will find a better word artist than Archer Mayor.

Archer Mayor is steadily turning out first rate mysteries with a strong sense of place. Set in Vermont, Mayor's books capture their setting beautifully with quirky local details. But better still are Mayor's wild (yet plausible) plots. In this, his latest, the police find a frozen body with several missing parts (which broke off when the body was dropped from a plane). They quickly determine that the body belongs to a Canadian gangster, who disappeared fifty years earlier. The plot brings detective Joe Gunther to Sherbrooke, Canada, and involves delving into the history of a suicide-mission World War II commando unit, the product of a joint Canada-U.S. effort. One of Gunther's sidekicks -- the growling misanthrope Willy Kunkle -- brings a lot to these books as a character who evolves from book to book.

Just marvelous.

Former Brattlesboro police chief Joe Gunther knows that finesse and politeness are critical if the newly formed Vermont Bureau of Investigation (VBI) is to succeed. Joe, being a former town cop, knows that the locals will not appreciate outsiders from the state. As a matter of truth, the VBI has been mired under bureaucratic inertia until the Governor, answering a reporter's question, publicly assigns its first case even if the Stowe police chief has not asked for help.

The body of Canadian Jean Deschamps has been found frozen on the side of Mt. Mansfield. Someone with surgical skills amputated his feet and an arm, and punctured his heart. To Joe, the victim seems more like a frozen fossil since he has been iced for over five decades. As Joe and his crack team investigate the homicide, he also needs to massage the egos of the local law enforcement team, the Canadian liaison, the media, and the public expectations of the VBI's capabilities. At the same time, the threat of gang warfare in Jean's home province of Quebec increases the pressure to expeditiously solve the case.

The eleventh Gunther mystery is a dramatic change in the star's role as he switches from local policing to state law enforcement. The change is smoothly done as Joe's inner values and methodology remain the same, but the type of case and the political implications have moved to a higher level. THE MARBLE MASK is a strong police procedural that will excite fans of the series with its fascinating plot that combines a solid investigation with puissant external interests hampering the inquiry. Taking a risk, Archer Mayor continues to be a leading light of the New England regional mystery.

Harriet Klausner

In his eponymous novel Marie Blythe, Howard Frank Mosher proves again why he is one of my favorite writers. French Canadian Marie, the book's heroine, is truly a remarkable woman. She survives the loss of her parents, life with a clan of gypsies, an unmarried pregnancy and loss of her child, and near death by exposure to change her identity. Over time, she goes on to learn to read, go to normal school, and become a teacher. Oh, yes, she is nearly murdered in the end by her crazed ex-lover. While all of this may sound somewhat melodramatic, it is not; Mosher makes it merely the stuff of a captivating, totally engaging story. Set, as all of Mosher's books are in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, Blythe vividly evokes both a time (post-Civil war to early twentieth century) and place (Vermont village of Hell's Gate). Above all, though, this is a novel of character, and Marie's combination of bullheadedness, naivete, energy and faith carries the day. Recalling the French Canadian priest who counseled her as a child, Marie in a time of crisis "remembered his advice to maintain a little faith in something, if only in fishing." Mosher, for his part, renews my faith again in great writing.

I have to say, A reader from South Berwick, Maine, sums it up perfectly. But I'd like to add this to it by saying it is a yet another "can't put it down" book. Mr. Mosher has captured the area he writes most about. When you read this book, you will be taken there.

This novel covers one woman's struggle to survive in the harsh environment between Quebec and Vermont at the turn of the century. You can't help but admire her strength. For anyone interested in Franco-American culture in northern New England as well as Mosher fans like me

Rosalie's best friend, a gentle Morgan named Major, is bound to be sold. Rosalie's father went to fight in the Civil War, and her mother is left with three children and a farm to care for. When she cannot pay off the morgage, she goes to plan B. "We have to sell Major." Rosalie can't believe her ears, and tries her hardest to think up a plan to keep her horse. The 10-year-old that she is, it seems impossible...when she strikes up an idea. Will her plan work and will Major be able to stay?

Since this was my favorite Treasured Horses book I'll give it a 10. Anyways this was about Rosalie Goodman, a daughter of Vermont farmer. But it's 1864 and her father took his horse Captain, with him to the Vermont Calvary to fight for the Yankees. Rosalies family, her sister Mathilde and her brother Albert, and her mother have to raise the farm themselves. Luckily they have a little help from Ed, the farmhand. But soon Mrs. Goodman doesn't have enough for the farm's mortgage. She lets Ed go and now it the plan is for the children to stay home from school and work on the farm. But that still doesn't bring in money. So Mrs. Goodman can only think of one other thing. Sell Rosalie's precious horse, Major. Rosalie must find a plan or a compromise to keep her horse, and what about her father? Will he ever come home? Will they be able to keep their farm? Read and FIND OUT!

Rosalie is determined to keep her family's horse, Major, from being sold. But how else can Rosalie's mother pay the mortgage on the family's Vermont farm with Rosalie's father away fighting in the Civil War? But then Rosalie comes up with the perfect plan to keep Major and stil be able to pay the mortgage.

This is an unusual book. John Elder has written a book that blends the rhythms of life with the rhythms of nature.

Using Robert Frost's poem "Directive" as a springboard, Elder guides the reader through a series of year-long hikes that provide a rare glimpse into the writer soul, family and surroundings. His musings transport the reader from the glaciers that shaped his the plateau for the Village of Bristol, VT., the farmers who struggled and more often than not, failed to scratch a living from the rocky soil that surrounds his adopted home.

He carries us from broken china to Abenaki settlements, meditating on family relationships and deeper relationships with the land.

This is a beautiful example of nature writing, a work that draws a balance between the machinations of civilization and the beauties of wilderness. By inviting the reader to follow the last line of Frost's "Directive," to "Drink and be whole again beyond confusion.", Elder creates a sense of hope that Vermont's balance between nature and culture can speak to the rest of the nation.

I have read many of the reviews of Reading the Mountains of Home--both before and after I studied the book itself--in various magazines and newspapers, and, while many of them summarize accurately and manage to convey fairly clearly its complex and compelling structures, the musical grace of the sentences, the unique of John Elder's vision about the interlinking of language and place and time and family, of Robert Frost's "Directive" and of the concept of wilderness in America. There is a sense also in which he has taken nature writing--a broad genre forever in evolution--and brought it to new heights through this creative interweaving.

But what I notice most is the book's quiet heroism. By this I mean simply that the author exhibits the courage to put all of his deepest convictions, his most strongly held beliefs, the raw stuff of his very life in a place for all to see. One does not see this very often in books. We need more writers like John Elder. We need people like John Elder, people who have the courage to write from the deepest parts of themselves for the greater good of all of us and the larger home we call earth. If there were six stars I would give it six stars.

I learned much about New England from this fine book -- and about Robert Frost.

I first remember seeing one of Richard Brown's spectacular photographs on he cover of Country Journal, a magazine devoted to celebrating rural life styles that ran a span of several years in the early to late 1980s. Brown's stunning photographic style showcased the day-to-day confluence of ordinary Vermonters living their lives in the rural splendor of the Northeast Kingdom in the far reaches of the lovely "People's Republic Of Vermont". Often Country Journal would feature a number of his photos inside each issue, so one subscribing the magazine began to look for them both on the cover and inside, as well. Indeed, his work was what made me search for the latest issue at the beginning of each month.

Here he stuns us with the majesty of Vermont as it transpires through its incredibly beautiful cycle of seasons in a way that only a photographer of such obvious abilities could. Herein he shares many of his favorites, and several of these I have seen before in other venues. The problem with a book filled with such gorgeously shot, developed and produced rural photographs is that one is tempted to carefully extract them for framing on the wall. They are really that terrific! Photographs range from shots of landscapes to silhouettes of a farmhouse steaming against the winter cold, from children walking down a dirt-covered tree lined country road exploding into autumn's extravagance to an elderly gentleman leaning against a barn with his favorite cat. One sits transfixed by the sheer variety of scenes and colors so native to the rural landscapes and personal portraits. This is a wonderful travelogue into the heart of New England.

Brown shows us all of the changes that transpire in the North country, a place where the changes are so frequent and so momentous that they comprise six seasons, adding both the dreaded mud season of early springtime on the one hand, and the so-called 'off-season' after the autumn glory has been swept away, leaving cold bare trees and a hauntingly spare and vacant atmosphere to settle over the region on the other. Listen a few times to folksinger Tom Rush's rendition of "Urge For Going" a few times on the CD player and you will get the idea. Brown's imaginative hand is lovingly apparent in this book, displaying both the soulful visages of local inhabitants and the unique flavor of the haunting ever-changing scenery so typically Vermont. This is a distinctive and memorable recreation of what we love so much about being native new Englanders! Enjoy!

Reviewing a book such as this again supports the truth of that old bromide, "a picture is worth a thousand words." At least no words of mine can do full justice to Brown's talent as a photographer. He settled in Whitingham in 1968 and began to teach in a small rural school. During the years since then, he has taken thousands of photographs of Vermont in search of what is, to his own eye, that state's unique character. As he explains in the Introduction, over time he shifted his attention from Vermont's natural beauty to what he calls "the cultivated landscape." A preponderance of the photographs in this volume (many of which not previously published) were taken in the "Northeast Kingdom." He organizes his work according to the seasons which include the "Off-Season" from late-October until Thanksgiving. For at least a few of those who read this review, my comments about Brown may be of some interest but, I realize, merely suggest a context for the creation of works of art which I lack the talent to describe. If you cannot visit Vermont in person, do so by seeing it through Brown's eyes. If you cherish his book as much as I do, you will also want to have a copy of The Beauty of Vermont, edited by Tom Slayton. As both books clearly indicate, the soul of Vermont is its beauty...and beauty its soul.

I was born and raised in Vermont, have lived out of the state for years, visiting annually. This book really did bring me home to the Soul of Vermont. The photographs are wonderful. They just take you in. If you want to spend some time in Vermont and can't make the trip, this is THE book for you.

About six months prior to my husband's and my trip to Vermont, I purchased Tree & Jennison's book and poured over its contents, intrigued by all that the New England state could offer these Texans. Because the authors had taken the time to visit the various locations noted in the book, I had no worries about the trip. Once in Vermont, I used the book as a bible, knowing what to expect in each village. I met many of the people that they had mentioned, and each had glowing remarks about them. Without this book, my vacation would not have been as organized or enjoyable, and we even went during Mud Season! I recommend this book wholeheartedly because the information is well researched.

This book captures, for me, something close to the heart of Vermont--it's clean, simple, direct, truthful, and deeply entertaining. I have done a lot of travelling in the state over the last 18 months, and found the Explorer's Guide reflects with accuracy and cultural compassion the experience of living and wandering here. Some people will buy it for the inn and the restaurant listings, but its real strength is in its quiet delineation of the regions and their differences. If I were allowed another star, I would use it.

We did not know much about Vermont but the book got us on our way quickly. The different sections are clear and get straight to the point.Wide variety of things to do, places to stay, eat and shop. A very satisfying purchase.

This is a book I found hard to put down. It describes one summer of a boy growing up on a Vermont farm in the thirties, when farmers still used horses, housewives canned all their food, and boys and girls walked to school. Lewis Hill tells of his boyhood with wry humor and vivid detail, and the reader is right there with him building shocks of hay with a pitchfork, chasing after the family's cats to keep them away from the mower, and wondering with almost unbearable excitement how to spend his thirty cents at the Barton Fair. This book is a wonderful companion to Mr. Hill's previous reminiscence of life on a Vermont farm: Fetched Up Yankee.

Many books about the past in rural areas fall into the trap of painting the past as a perfect time when all was right and good in the world. Hill spares us that disservice by showing us the real Vermont he grew up in. Along with the fun and adventure of youth are the day to day worries and hard work that helped to make life what it was.

The people are portrayed so well that you might well expect to met them if you were to go to his home town. Hill is also a master of building the story and wrapping the reader into it. He delivers the local dialect accurately and amazingly enough even the cadence of rural Vermont.

Like his FETCHED UP YANKEE this book isn't only entertaining it is a window into the past. Like Hill, I was raised in rural Vermont. Much of what he tells about had begun to go by the way when I was a child. Almost all of it has gone now. Sadly, in Vermont like the rest of the country, local culture has faded as the culture of the mass media grows. Read this book and have a view into another time in an America that is fast disappearing.

Lewis Hill grew up in the northern farm country of Vermont during the 1930s. The town of Greensboro, Vermont was then, as it is now, a mecca for vacationers from the cities who have own summer homes there and a fascinating mix of local Yankees, French Canadians and Scots who tilled the hard soil for a precarious living. Hill, a highly respected local historian, recounts in fascinating detail life in this hybrid New England community in the years that made up the heart of the depression before another World War changed life in Greensboro and America forever. Hill allows the reader to relive those days. YANKEE SUMMER is written in almost a lyrical manner that is great fun to read and hard to put down. This work is a "must" for any student of American history.

CDaniel Metraux, Mary Baldwin College, Staunton, VA 24401

This book was very good. I couldn't put it down.

This title was appreciated by enough students and professional librarians and teachers to make the Year 2000 list of nominees for Illinois' childrens' choice award named after the Illinois author Rebecca Caudill. This book is best for grades 4-8.

Howard Coffin has established himself as the premier authority on Vermont and the Civil War. He has exhaustively researched Vermont's historical records including countless letters and diaries from the actual participants. He allows them to directly share their personal, heroic, sorrowful and inspiring stories and insights. It is difficult today to appreciate the pain and suffering which was brought home to every Vermont family during this Campaign. Mr. Coffin does honor to their memories and has provided a valuable research source for those interested in this period.

A powerful historical account of Vermont's role in the Civil War, The Battered Stars: One State's Civil War Ordeal During Grant's Overland Campaign by American Civil War historian and expert Howard Coffin (himself a sixth generation Vermonter with four ancestors who served with the Vermont regiments in the Overland Campaign) is founded on a wealth of primary sources and archival materials, including wartime letters, diaries, and newspaper accounts. The state of Vermont paid a toll in blood from the strife of the war, and the brutal battles are explored in detail as well as the resolve of those who stayed at home and did their best to keep the wheels turning. A welcome and much appreciated contribution to the growing field of Civil War Studies, The Battered Stars is a powerful, fascinating account highly recommended for civil war buffs, as well as anyone native to Vermont who wants to immerse themselves in the gripping saga of a watershed time of civil war.