A summer in the South by James Marshall is a brilliant book! I think it has enough suspence in the beginning to keep you hooked! I admire Mr. Marshall's type of writing because it lets you view the different types of perspectives in the story. Although the story has animals in it, It definitely keeps you more hooked than a regular mystery story with REAL people. If you decided to read this book, GREAT CHOICE!

When I rented this book form the library I had no idea how brilliant it would be! It got me hooked on mystery stories and ever since Ive read all of the Nancy Drew series. Why did it get me hooked? Its amazing illustrations, its realistic (althought animal) characters. I took it on holiday with me and ended up reading it at least 20 times! Eleno Owl is brilliant and I especially love the descriptions of Maxine the cook, cleaner and just about everything else at the small hotel setting for this book!

Gosh, what would the world be like without James Marshall? I shudder violently to think of it! Oh my, where TO begin? This is a wonderful way to introduce children to mystery stories---with an obvious plotline and easy character deduction. A mystery story for kids, set at the beach in the summertime, with Eleanor Owl and her bud, Mr Paws on vacation----or are they? The story is hilarious, with the characters as the odious flasher Foster Pig, the typical hypochondriac in the story is "Don Coyote," and silly squirrel twins. The Cootie family really IS a cootie family! "Fennimore Cootie" (tee hee) to be precise! Ah, and don't forget the Ladies String Quartet, consisting of large lady baboons.....this book is a must for any kid who will sit still long enough to make it through 27 short (whew!) chapters---but if they are dying of curiousity and they are hooked on the characters, you won't be able to put it down!

In my spare time, I enjoy reading and writing poetry. I'm very selective in my preferences; very few poets strike me hard and passionately. This selection of poems touched me; 'twas painfully unfeigned. Only regret is not owning a signed copy.
Signed, Horace Petrey

This is one of the few precious books I have come across. The solipsistics are carefully moved to the side, revealing a richer view composed of all things tangible, quite alive.. & productive, in some way. My goodness, people. This precious book of poems hits the spot, quite nourishing for ones who are seeking, and equally consumed by self-actualized souls.

Mr. Naiden, I urge you to go national. To the rest of the world, do pass along the discovery of such a treasure. It is an excellent gift. The illustrations are icing on top. Congratulations and thank you for publishing Light, Expression, and Art.

I was thoroughly stimulated last week at a ~Live Reading~ of the author's lines. I suppressed an urge to get up from my seat and hold his hand in some little embrace.

I left that night with a silent prayer.

I encourage people of the world to take the time to say hello to such people. It is a given what is reaped will surpass the energy in the effort.

James Naiden, you appear to very strong in spirit, despite all your pains and vacancies. The feelings evoked from your book are piercingly heartfelt. I wish you the best in this sometimes unjust world.

This book is incredible, the essays, photography, map drawings and descriptions really changed the way I looked at the world around me. This book was used as our text book for a Senior Project class in design school.

This book will change the way you look at and think about landscape. Technically, it's a landscape architecture book, and the essays that deal with that subject are excellent. James Corner is one of the best landscape architects/theorists around, and his writing is though-provoking, lucid and enjoyable to read. He draws an wonderful comparison between this work and Le Corbusier's sightseeing flights over North Africa in the 1930's. But without a doubt, the reason to buy this book are the photographs that document the unexpected beauty that arises out of the interaction between man and nature. The incongruities of landscape, juxtaposed against the linear certainty of the Land Ordinance Act grid, farm plots and other common interventions make for stunning photography.

There are also little subplots, such as creative reuses of already built spaces (tennis courts as parking lots & football field yard lines over a baseball diamond), and the similarity of totally unrelated natural forms (who knew that from 7,000 feet, cracked pond ice looks like microscopic images of streptococcal bacteria?).

There are dozens of other little thoughts I could include, and one of most remarkable things about this book is that the photogrpahs allow the reader to draw on his or her own knowledge to make connections and interpertations. There's no right or wrong way to see these things, which makes it universally rewarding and enjoyable.

I always enjoy graphic design, but this one integrates intelligent visual graphic representation and it portraits site/landscape analysis.
Not your usual blueprint survey, but delightful new way of documentation.

Children adopted overseas adore this story, regardless of their country of origin. It is especially helpful for children adopted at an older age.

Having a home and a permanent family is wonderful, of course. But older children don't know that when they come home. They are often angry at being uprooted and taken to strange new places, where people speak a foreign toungue. They are understandably frightened. So many new things in the early days assault their senses that days can seem like a lifetime.

This soothing story eases the pain of that transition. It helps them to know that they are wanted, waited for, and loved, even before they arrive. It eases the terrible pain of the transition. If you buy no other adoption story for your internationally adopted child, make it this one. Alyssa A. Lappen

I have an adopted daughter from Korea and we have many, many books on adoption. This is the best one I've found - it describes so well the experience my daughter, and we had, and makes me cry every time I read it. I've found it helpful not only for her but for her friends and classmates to understand her experience.

As a parent of two wonderful Korean boys, this book is a fantastic story of a child's travel to be with his forever family. I read this book for the children's story at my church on my son's first Coming to America Day (the anniversary of his arrival) and the response was wonderful. My sons really enjoy listening to this story and it has provided an avenue for us to talk about their adoption adventure and the plane ride from Korea to the United States. I high recommend this book. It is a must own book for parents of international adoptees.

One of those rare books that really gives the reader a feel for the mass confusion of combat and how the little things can win or lose a fight. Makes one wonder why the 196th didn't get more recognition for their performance--lot of good soldiers.

Humphries is extrememly qualified to document the day-to-day action in the Que Son and Hiep Duc valleys of northern I Corps. He has researched the official files to glean the fine details of the units involved in fierce action against the Viet Cong and NVA.

Adding to this scholarly research, Humphries has first hand accounts of the men that fought it out with a persistent and fierce enemy. Their stories tell of the cost that was paid in the effort to secure the South Vietnamese countryside.

A special treat is the numerous maps and sketches that show the movements of the opposing forces. Paired with the gripping descriptions of those who were there, THROUGH THE VALLEY fulfills the need for the truthful telling of the sacrifices made by American soldiers in this costly war.

Every soldier that fought in Vietnam should have his story told. Humphries helps complete this necessary effort. This book is a must read.

Candor and truth imbued with wonderfully woven metaphors tells a story yet tackled about the most critical years of the Vietnam war; 1967 and 1968. Well researched and documented by those who were there is the manner in which Colonel Humphries has preserved, immortality, a part of the Vietnam War that has long been forgotten.

Gut wrenchingly honest and soul penetratingly provocative this true story chronicles events validated by over 50 soldiers interviewed that were there with Captain Humphries about an intensely controlled territory of the formidable North Vietnamese Army. A soldier's story about soldiers; what they are confronted with and how they overcome it in combat. This important book addresses all battle field conditions from survival, to being captured to being wounded.

For me, a fellow soldier, the journey into the thought process of a battlefield commander at company level was mesmerizing, insightful and validating of the importance of good leadership at the working level. Humphries describes countless situations were the commander made the ultimate difference of life or death.

In his low key, metaphorically enriched writing style, Colonel Humphries unfolds the situation on the battlefield on both sides; enemy and friendly. He adds to that a smattering of thought processes and decision-making at all levels of command from Private to the Colonel and grippingly tells it, 'like it is'.

His unique approach of weaving survival in with accomplishing the mission captivates the reader. Closeness to his men and a few select officers dominate his leadership style. This is a lesson for senior commanders to think about their commands because the subordinate will execute the command with vigor. They have the fate of the men in their hands.

In the eye of the enemy Humphries battlefield tactics were calculated and dynamic allowing the company to accomplish the mission. From a ground pounder's view, the foot soldier is seen at his craft, surviving and charging ahead as directed.

There were no drugs or liquor or fooling around, probably because these fighting men had no time. Their concern was fighting for their very survival. There has been little written about this critical battle-ground. I submit for the same reason; there was no time.

Well done, Colonel Humphries, lets see more books with your witting descriptive story weaving. I'm sure there is more for you to tell the world about soldiers. Thanks for a job well done.

What a great book! I found it very informative for those of us approaching seniorhood who may tend to plan a vacation a bit differently than when we were in our twenties or thirties. I especially enjoyed the humor and personal anecdotes Toland incorporated into a very valuable travel guide. I will definitely use this book in planning future trips.

So many travel books can be such a bore! Not the case here. "Travel Tips & Trips for Seniors" is an entertaining read even if you're not planning a vacation. But, if you are trying to pick a destination or are worried about travel, make this your first read. Author James Toland has some great suggestions and good, common sense advice.

So many travel books can be such a bore! Not the case here. Travel Tips & Trips for Seniors is an entertaining read even if you're not planning a vacation. If you are looking for a destination or worried about travel, make this your first read. Author James Toland has some great suggestions and good, common sense advice.

Under the Quilt of Night was a wonderful historical fiction story of an adolescent girl's experience with the Underground Railroad. The young girl takes the lead in her family's flight from slavery. She shows strength, courage, and determination. The fluid illustrations give the reader a feeling of urgency. The reader can understand the feelings of the characters through the pictures. Deborah Hopkinson captivates her readers as she takes them through the journey of running, waiting, watching, hiding, traveling, and singing. The main character remains anonymous throughout the book forcing the reader to focus on the journey.

This is a beautiful book by the same author and illustrator of Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt. However, this time, the narrator remains anonymous but is not forgotten. Without undue melodrama, she tells how part of her family is about to be sold off; the time is now or never to escape, which she and part of her family does. Though the slaves are fleeing their cruel owners, the book focuses on the good, kind people along the underground railroad who help the runaways find safety in Canada. Noteworthy are the secret codes the fleeing slaves and their protectors used, such as the owl hoot, lantern, and log cabin quilt patterns. The latter idea is drawn from "Hidden in Plain View," an adult book that unlocks much of the secret communication that enabled thousands of slaves find safety and freedom. (I recommend "Hidden in Plain View" highly.) The illustrations are breathtaking; I particularly like the geese flying north when the family reaches a northern US church (flying geese is another quilt code pattern). This book should be read with "Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt" and "Follow the Drinking Gourd." The story of the Underground Railroad is a story of how conscientious good can overcome evil. "Under the Quilt of Night" is a story that needs to be told and remembered

"I'm young/but my legs are strong./I can run.// I run so fast,/I lead the way;/the ones I love race right behind./Pounding dirt and grass,/jumping rocks and roots,/my feet make drumbeats/on the path..." So begins our young narrator's race for freedom on the Underground Railroad. She and her family travel "under the quilt of night", through the woods and across rivers and streams to a safe house where they receive dry clothes, food and a place to sleep before they're secreted away in a false bottomed wagon to the next stop on their way to Canada and freedom. And always behind them the men and their dogs, tracking this brave band of slaves. It's a harrowing journey. "...We can't turn back - /we would be beaten, sold away,/our chances gone for good./We must go on or die./I hang on tight./Fear is so real, it lies here beside me..." But this is a "ride" that must be taken; the trip to freedom..... Deborah Hopkinson and James Ransome's marvelous sequel to Sweet Clara And The Freedom Quilt is a powerful, tense, and compelling introduction to the Underground Railroad and pre-Civil War history. Ms Hopkinson's stirring text, written in free verse is full of imagery and magic, and enhanced by Mr Ransome's evocative and expressive illustrations, done in dark and ominous tones. Together word and art transport the reader back 150 years to the dark of night for an unforgettable ride, and youngsters will experience both the fear of escape and discovery, and the sheer joy of freedom at journey's end. Perfect for children 7 and older, Under The Quilt Of Night includes an author's note at the end to explain and enrich the story. "Freedom!/I take a deep breath/and when I let go/my voice flies up in a song./My own song/of running in sunshine/and dancing through fields./I'll jump every fence in my way."

Stars is an enthusiastically written guide to modern stellar theory, pared down to the basics for the educated layman. It was written in the early 1990s so it's quite up to date. Advances have been made since then (lots of extrasolar planets detected, age of universe determined, etc), but the theories regarding the internal workings of stars have not been significantly modified. Although few of these theories have actually been proven, the empirical foundation supporting them is voluminous and highly convincing.

The first couple chapters of Stars serve as a refresher course in basic astronomical theory and history. I think it would have been better to jump right into the stars themselves, as there are plenty of other books that do the general astronomy better and presumably the reader would have already learned the basics anyway before getting this book. Kaler spends a lot of worthwhile time on the HR diagram and on stellar spectra. It's simply amazing how much has been deduced from points of light that to the naked eye essentially vary only in color and luminosity. Other major topics include detailed discussions of the births and deaths of stars. Curiously, he chooses to discuss star birth *after* star death. But it helps get his point across that star birth is often triggered by pressure waves produced by dying stars.

The paperback version is in a somewhat unwieldy large format due to the huge margins, which are used for many of the illustrations. The quality of the illustrations is generally very good, especially the charts. Many of the photographs however don't come across too well, because a lot of resolution was lost when the editors shot them down to fit them into the margins.

Overall, recommended to all readers wanting to know how stars work!

In the Belmont Society, we think it's a shame that most of us don't understand how a star works. We glance up at them every night, and look at them through binoculars and telescopes, but for the most part we have no real knowledge of what makes them tick. James B. Kaler has created a significant work of importance in that regard. This book is a manual of detail that describes the workings of stars that is thrilling to read and easy to understand.

To those absorbed in amateur astronomy, Carl Sagan's eloquent phrase, "We are all made of star-stuff", was arguably the most quintessential statement of the late 20th century. Over three decades later, James B. Kaler paraphrases the statement with equal facility by asserting that stars are "...the principal means for the conversion of matter into energy, and are the sources and sustainers of life itself." The book represents an exploration of the supreme stellar mystery - the origin of luminosity. Why do the sun and stars shine so brightly?

Kaler begins (quite logically) by taking us on a tour of the Sun. He presents in vivid detail, the complete solar assembly. We're shown everything from core to corona, discovering astonishing particulars, like the characteristics of granules and supergranules, and the tumultuous conditions at different stratta.

We are given understandable explanations of the chromosphere, photosphere, corona, solar flares, mass ejection, sunspots, prominence, etc. And we're "clued-in" to some as yet unsolved mysteries, such as the strange period from 1645 to 1715 known as the Maunder Minimum, when sunspot activity was virtually non-existent, nudging the Earth into a minor ice age. "To know the Earth and stars we must know the sun".

Kaler describes "How to Build a Sun", and describes the incredible conditions necessary for hydrogen fusion to take place, giving us a generous understanding of stellar dynamics, and their correlation to luminosity. We learn about the birth of stars, their life cycles, and their violent endings. And we come to realize that a star's mass is the controlling discipline that determines how long a star lives and how it will die. In addition, there are explanations of how a Cepheid Variable works, and what goes on inside RR Lyrae and Mira stars.

There are illustrations and graphs to augment the text. There are also some formulas. If you're a whiz at calculus and chemistry you'll be happily familiar with them. But that kind of background isn't required. Trust me - you'll still "get it". That's the merit of "Stars". Although not quite down to that level, Kaler has basically written us a manual for dummies.

The Belmont Society has selected Stars as the latest addition to its "Required Reading" list for the amateur astronomer. We feel it is written in a style that is easy to digest by all levels of interest. If you have any curiosity at all about the sun and the stars and how they work, this book will greatly ease your comprehension. Highly recommended.

If you are not comfortable reading about atomic spectra, nuclear fusion or magnetic flux, you probably should find a star book that is more basic than this one. But if you've got a strong high school background in physics and chemistry, then you will enjoy an amazing journey when reading this book. Rich in diagrams and photos, "Stars" won't lose you between any of its pages. Although I thought the section on celestial orientation (azimuth, etc.) was unnecessary and a little weak, the material on stellar structure and evolution is the best I've seen.

Poet Ezra Pound once told literary critic Hugh Kenner that Kenner had an obligation to visit the great people of his time. In "Street Conscious Rap", H. Samy Alim takes this counsel to heart and hand, as he, with James G. Spady, records the words and ideas of hip-hop's innovators and creators. The resulting rarity--the makers of hip-hop speaking, without interpretation, of what they, themselves, think and do--is a resource for study and insight; a document with archival muscle; a testimony for all time.

The interviews in this book are so detailed and in-depth that it made me think differently about some hip hop artists and hip hop as a whole. For instance, Method Man, Common, and Xzibit provide some real insight into the creative processes and abilities involved in hip hop. And Grandmaster Flash provides a first-hand historical account that makes you feel like you were there when hip hop was just getting started. All of the artists tell such amazing stories about their lives and experiences that we don't really read about anywhere else. The book also shows how important hip hop is culturally, historically, and socially -- and the impact it's had on the world. If you're serious about hip hop, this is the book you need to get. It's off tha hook, y'all!

I have always believed that hip hop, is America's only TRUE culture. Originated in the U.S., and flourishing all over the globe, hip-hop has become a subject of great interest over the last decade. This book gives much insight as to the origins of hip-hop with interviews and ideas from legends like Grandmaster Flash, Doug E. Fresh and LL Cool J. At the other end of the spectrum, some of hip-hops newer and most intriguing artists are covered from Method Man to Busta Rhymes and even including some of the hottest local and underground rap groups to show the evolution of hip-hop in America. You will see that this virtual encyclopedia of hip-hop facts and philosophy doesn't miss a beat, as you find yourself continuosly nodding your head in awe of the detailed content as you turn each page. Anyone who has a thirst to learn more about the thoughts of their favorite rap artist, or to better understand the culture, philosophy and art of hip-hop, should purchase this book.

I used this for a class in creative writing. Anytime I got writers block I would read a few of the stories in Sudden Fiction. It didn't always help but all the stories are highly entertaining and from time to time the stories inspired me to pen up my own experiences in their voice or mine. All in all, whether you're using it seriously or not, you'll enjoy this book's short stories. There's a wide variety for all moods and writing styles. It'd be hard not to like at least some of the stories and if you're a writing student or pro I'd think this type of material would be essential for those lean times.

This is priceless collection of very short stories from all over the world.In this cosmopolitan range of stories many known authors such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez,Julio Cortazar,Heinrich Boll,Nadine Gordimer and Mrozeck are joined by those we will come to know better later by reading their well crafted short short stories.
I have translated 37 of these collection into Farsi.The Farsi title is Dastan e Nagahan meaning Sudden Fiction.
Thanks to the talented authors of this anthology and its fine predecessors,Sudden Fiction and other titles like Flash Fiction and Sudden Fiction Continued.
I recommend the readers to buy this book and enjoy its taste in discovering a world wide scenery,multi cultural surprises and find new friends.
The stories are indeed perfect for bed time reading

A great book for those with short attention spans, short story writers (or aspiring short story writers), and those who want to see the variety of short shorts available. These stories are short but they have a sharp impact on the reader. The Afternotes section provides extra information about the author, which is often not included in short story collections. It also provides interviews with the authors on their inspiration for the story of theirs included in this volume and occasional interviews with translators on how they set about getting the most accurate translation of the story.