Peggy Brooke has created heart-warming story of a young family's struggle to get on their feet and their unswerving faith in God. Each new dilemma has the reader facing the same emotional upheval they felt. As each new problem strikes, readers hope the family can overcome it and mentally undergo the same questioning doubt the young newlyweds face. You will root for the family and feel like they are your own. This book is a must-read for anyone with a family or anyone who has ever doubted the power of faith in God.

If you're looking to give your kids a jump-start in genetics, this is a good place to start. One word of caution: this is not for the read-it-yourself 10 year-old - it is more suitable for at least a 12-15 year old kid. If you're buying this for a younger kid, I would suggest that a biology-competent person be present to guide the child through the book so that the message is clearly understood. Let's face it - genetics is not an easy subject, but with pictures and funny illustrations, the book grabs the child's attention enough for him/ her to turn the pages.

This Cross Cultural Curriculum is amazing! This book focuses on concepts such as Space, Time, Relationships, etc. and how different cultures view these concepts. This curriculum is set up in a manner that encourages fun learning and an open mind to people's differences. It offers numerous examples of activities that help increase their knowledge and cross cultural skills. I recommend this curriculum for schools, treatment facilities, community groups, church groups and any where else that young people would benefit from learning to have an open mind. I've found it useful in Cultural Awareness Groups not only for the recommended age group of 4-8 grade but also for some high school age groups as well. I also found it mind opening for myself. I learned a lot while preparing for my groups. I have nothing bad to say about this one of kind book!!

This book provides an illuminating and fun approach to a traditionally boring topic. The mnemonic devices used by the authors make remembering grammar rules easy. Also, the excercises at the end of each chapter make the material practical in real world settings. My favorite part of the book, however, is the exercise written by the author's son, Sean.

All the Heartland books are AWESOME. I am now doing a book report on the first three, maybe four if I can get Taking Chances in time. If you haven't read these books before, they are about a fifteen year old girl, Amy Fleming, who has had a tough life yet has persevered through it. In the first book, Amy brings her mother out in a storm to resuce a horse who was abandoned by his owners. After they get Spartan in the trailer and are heading back, a tree hits their truck, killing her mom. In the rest of the books, you learn how Amy copes with her moms work, healing horses, saving Heartland, putting up with her sister, Lou, and stopping Ty from leaving after so long. So, If you like horses, or even the Chicken Soup books, I would recommend these wonderful books!

This book was so sad! I cry everytime I read it! I can't tell you much, I can just recomend this book to all people who love horses. It's really sad, but it has a happy ending. I've read all the Heartland books, and this was one of the best ever! Lauren Brooke has done it again! If you love horse books,this is the book for you! It gets pretty sad, but it has a really happy ending. You HAVE to read this book!!!!!

In this, the 3rd book in the series, Amy faces more problems. Pegasus, missing Amy's mother, has started to become listless and ill. Plus, when there's a misunderstanding between Ty and Amy, horses are taken away from Heartland and they are losing money. That is, until a reputable Arabian breeder (or half Arabian breeder, it probably should be, since the horse she brings is palomino) brings a mare who rears and freaks out when people try to saddle her. I thought this book was continuing in the great 'tradition' of the first two. Amy, once again, is a very human character. She has flaws; she loses her temper and she cannot always work miracles. I was happy to see that, for once, join-up wasn't the answer to the mare's problems, and for once, Amy didn't know exactly what to do. I mean, certain tactics don't work for every horse. I like the continuing relationship with Ty...Amy gets mad at him in the beginning and, this time, he isn't so quick to make up with her. In the end, it was very sad, but it was very thought provoking and very good.

Brooke Siler does it again!! After reading her book The Pilates Body I couldn't wait for more to come from Brooke- The Pilates Body Kit was like having Brooke right alongside of you- just like a personal trainer as you perform the moves even down to the breathing. The flash cards help to visualize exactly what you should do and how to stabilize your core for proper technique and perfect form which is one of the reasons I love it- Brooke focuses on perfect form in all her moves. The workbook that comes along with it is great to jot down your progress and how you feel when you're done. I highly recommend The Pilates Body Kit.

I am new to Pilates and have just purchased The Pilates Body Kit, with which I am very happy. Learning the control required to complete the exercises is difficult, but Brooke's narration really helps, reminding you to 'scoop' your tummy, when to inhale and exhale, etc. I was skeptical at first, but the CD really is the perfect format, it allows me to totally focus on completing the exercises instead of craning my neck at the TV. It almost seems like I am actually taking a Pilates class from Brooke! Also, the kit is nicely packaged, with color-coded cards for beginning and intermediate exercises. Overall, I highly recommend this kit for anyone wanting to learn Pilates.

I'm new to Pilates but was familiar with Brooke's book which I think is the best, clearest explanation of Pilates that you can buy. But I could never figure out how to look, read, AND DO pilates at the same time. These CDs and cards make it easier than I ever thought possible. I'm able to glance at the flash cards for visual cues but then focus on what MY body feels like while I'm doing these exercises. Plus I can repeat sections of the class until I get it right and with a video you just have to keep moving. If I had to watch a video, I would not be able to focus as well. And as Brooke says, Pilates requires focus and attention. The little drawings on the flash cards bring home the details of each exercise. And Brooke's instruction seems to be answering every question I have the very second I have it!! She is truly a gifted teacher and I'm amazed at what an effective teaching mechanism this is.Thank you, Brooke!!

I must admit I cheated and saw the movie before I read this book. I've had the novel for so long, but never got around to it. The film was stunning and I was sobbing at the end. Now after the reading the book - I am pleased to say the film follows the book closely and Gillian Anderson really captures the moral complexities of Lily Bart. I love how Wharton was able to find the hypocrisy in nineteenth century high society. Not only did she expose its follies, she also unveiled its fragility. Lily could have easily maneuvered her way out of nearing poverty, but she possesses a kind of morality that her privileged, back-stabbing friends do not. It is only by turning their backs on the truth do her peers hold up their shameful facade. I do find it disturbing that Lily believes her only way out is death...that she has nothing else to offer the world. Wharton uses this tactic, though, to symbolically represent the rich snubbing the poor - how they exist without even seeing them.

However, the most intriguing part about this novel is Lily's relationship with Seldon. In the beginning, he seems to always remind her of her vain attempts at marrying rich men. She can't go through with her designs, though. He strings her along, all the while he's having this under-handed liason with one of the most pretentious women of their social circle. Lily never gets to tell him how much she really loves him. Her pride reverts to bravery as she realizes she must face her future without his companionship. Does she die for an empty purse or a broken heart? I choose the latter.

I stumbled upon a review of the recent film of THE HOUSE OF MIRTH in the TLS and, in order to have the novel firmly fixed in my mind (that is, before the lush, seductive images of film forever eradicated Wharton's novel from me) I dragged my copy off the shelf for a re-read. It had been 16 years since I last read of Lily Bart and her life, and I didn't realize how much I had missed her. For me, this is one of the great reading experiences, one of a handful that make reading a book the deeply moving and human exchange that it is. Despite the distance of wealth, property, time and manners, Wharton manages to make Lily's world and life palpable to anyone who will listen. The clash of money, morals, personality and circumstance is infinitely developed and played out in front of a never fading natural world. Once again, I was deeply moved by Lily Bart and at the end, felt I had lost someone myself.

High school students are often assigned Ethan Frome, and the Age of Innocence gained many readers because of the movie, but this is the Edith Wharton book that everyone should read. In many ways, this is similar to a Jane Austen book in which a member of the upper echelon of society has money problems and needs to marry well in order to stay at the same level of society. Forces and other people are contriving against her, but there seems to be at least one man who would be a good match for reasons of love. The first twist here is that the good match is not financially well off and therefore won't be able to support the heroine as she wants to be supported.

Lily Bart was orphaned many years ago, and her family had been financially ruined before that. However, she is accustomed to beautiful things and wants to continue to live at the top level of society. Unfortunately, her heart and soul long for more than these creature comforts. She yearns for excitement, intellectual and emotional honesty and probably true love, although she is confused about that. As she has gotten towards her late 20s, her prospects are dwindling and the only person who has the resources to support her and is already a part of polite society is Percy Gryce, a singularly boring man.

Lily rebels against Gryce just as she is about to marry him when she has a couple of heartfelt conversations with Lawrence Selden, a person she decides she might love, but who makes clear that he is not rich enough to support her as well as she should be supported.

Her choices other than Gryce are slim. There is Simon Rosedale, who is portrayed as an upwardly mobile person and therefore undesirable. He is also Jewish, which Wharton never overtly says is a problem with him for Lily, but probably figures into Lily's calculus (Wharton mainly talks about his Jewishness in the context of saying that Rosedale is more patient and able to face disappointment than others in his position because of what his people have dealt with over the centuries).

I have to admit that, unlike Ethan Frome and The Age of Innocence, it took me a while to get into this book. Perhaps, I picked up this book to read a story of Old New York and manners and was not ready for such an intense character study. But once I got to page 100, the last 250 pages went by in a flash. It is beautiful and eminently interesting. You will be interested in every twist in the story.

A couple of words of caution. If you buy this edition with the Anna Quindlen introduction, DON'T READ THE INTRODUCTION FIRST. It gives away too much in the first page--when I stopped reading it until after I finished--and the rest of the introduction gives away the rest of the plot. Finally, as with Jane Austen books, the actions of the male characters are often either inscrutable or irrational. It may be that men actually acted like this in the early 20th Century (or 19th for Austen). But I think it more likely that Wharton is misconstruing the male characters in ways that male authors almost always do with female characters. But this is a minor flaw, especially since Lily is so central to this book.

This book does well in capturing the essence of the cat. Any cat lover would appreciate this book as a gift.

Brooke McEldowney (who is a man, by the way) has great talent- and I can only hope to see a comprehensive 9 Chickweed Lane book in the future.

Other fan of McEldowney's work should be sure to look for his other comic strip: Pibgorn

9 Chickweed Lane has been a favorite comic strip for some time. Brooke McEldowney uses heavy lines and negative spaces to capture a unique atmosphere. These strips about the family cat, Solange, and her feline quirks are some of the best.

Unfortunately, the book's addition of pink to the otherwise black and white comics detracts greatly from his artwork. A book in the same format as Mutts or Calvin & Hobbes would have been much preferred over this "special" book. And I hope that 9 Chickweed eventually gets such a collection.

I've been a fan of Brooke McEldowney's "9 Chickweed Lane" for some time, and have been hoping it would show up in book form - especially the "Hallmarks of Felinity" sub-stream. Fans of the strip need only know that the book contains Hallmarks 1 through 46 (since the current count is around 119, I hope another book's in the offing), and that you want this.

To cat-fans who don't know the strip, I recommend this book; each of the "hallmarks" encapsulates an all-too-familiar attribute of our feline companions, as illustrated by the winsome Siamese, Solange. Some of the hallmarks are charming, some exasperating, some hilarious. (See Hallmark #12, "Grace" - depicting oblivious cat strolling along mantelpiece as bric-a-brac tumbles behind her... Well, OK, maybe that one's hilarious when it's somebody else's bric-a-brac.)

It would have been nice if there were more strips included in the book, but it's still a charming, funny collection that I consider a must-have for the cat-humor section of the bookshelf. [What do you mean, you don't have a cat-humor section?!?]

If you are looking for tragedy and a dark bloody drama then I recommend Macbeth with no reservations whatsoever. On a scale of 1-5, I fell this book deserves a 4.5. Written by the greatest literary figure of all time, Shakespeare mesmorizes the reader with suspense and irony. The Scottish Thane Macbeth is approachd by three witches who attempt and succeed at paying with his head. They tell him he will become king, which he does, alog with the aide of his ambitious wife. Macbeth's honor and integrity is destroyed with the deceit and murders he commits. As the novel progresses, Macbeth's conscience tortures him and makes him weak minded. Clearly the saying "what goes around comes around," is put to use since Macbeth's doom was similar to how he acquired his status of kingship. He kills Duncan, the king of Scottland and chops the head off the Thane of Cawdor, therefore the Thane of Fife, Macduff, does the same thing to him. I feel anyone who decides to read this extraordinary book will not be disatisfied and find himself to become an audience to Shakespearean tragedies.

Noble Macbeth and the story of his decay due to the seduction of the forces of darkness - I liked it. The play sets off with an impressing scene, the chant of the three witches, a perfect use of language, I dare say. It takes only about a page and I knew it by memory after two times reading. We used to quote it during the breaks, and actually still do so sometimes. "When shall we three meet again...and so forth. After this promising start the language gets quite hard (I'm not any native form Enland, the US or any other english speaking part of this planet). One can follow the action though and every five or six pages there's a reward for your patience, at least for anybody who likes the power Shakespeare's language is able to display in their good or best moments: "Have we eaten on the insane root?" and the likes. Of course there's also the famous "It is a tale, told by an idiot...". It's for these moments, where Williams knew how to transfere a feeling of one of his caracteres into the realm of a universal significance, that I enjoyed the play...

Shakespeare's shortest and bloodiest tragedy, MACBETH is also possibly the most serious. Macbeth is a warrior who has just had his greatest victory, but his own "vaulting ambition," the spectral promises of the three weird sisters, and the spurring on of his wife drive him to a treason and miserable destruction for which he himself is completely responsible. The ominous imagery of the fog that hovers over the first scene of the play symbolizes the entire setting of the play. Shakespeare's repeated contrasts of such concepts as fair and foul, light and darkness, bravery and cowardice, cut us to the quick at every turn. MACBETH forces us to question "what is natural?" "what is honor?" and "Is life really 'a tale/ Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury/ Signifying nothing?'" Few plays have ever illustrated the torments of Guilt (especially how it deprives one of Sleep) so vividly and stirringly.

I have read this play curiously as a child, excitedly as a teenager, passionately as a college student, and lovingly as a graduate student and adult. Like all of Shakespeare's writing, it is still as fresh, and foreboding, and marvelous as ever. As a play it is first meant to be heard (cf. Hamlet says "we shall hear a play"), secondarily to be seen (which it must be), but, ah, the rich rewards of reading it at one's own pace are hard to surpass. Shakespeare is far more than just an entertainer: he is the supreme artist of the English language. The Arden edition of MACBETH is an excellent scholarly presentation, offering a bounty of helpful notes and information for both the serious and casual reader.

I loved this book but it was so sad! I was practicly crying when Wonder had to be put down. Wonder was my favorite horse. But now my favorite horse is Star, Wonder's last foal. Sorry if I gave something away, but it is pretty obvious by the title.
This book is about how Wonder has to be put down after having her last foal. Ashleigh has a very hard time recovering after Wonder's death and hates the foal. But, Christina, Ashleigh's daughter, loves Star, the foal. As Christina and Star form a bond Ashleigh ignores him. Ashleigh decides to send Star to Townsend Acres because she can't stand to see Star. Christina is heartbroken and super mad at her mom, until she sees Ashleigh crying over a photo of herself and Wonder.
This is a great book, but I only gave it 4 stars because it was so sad.

This book was so SAD! It is the most heart-wrenching book I've ever read. I feel so horrible for what Ashleigh, Wonder, Christina, and Star all go through. The book is well written, suspensful, and intriguing. The ending leaves you craving the next book, Star in Danger, to see what happens next to Star and Christina. I'm so glad that Christina is getting better. She can like eventing, as long as she changing her attitude towards racing, as she is! I can't wait for the next books. It won't be the same without Wonder. She was so awesome, but I don't understand why Ashleigh can't focus on the positive. Wonder had a long and wonderful life with Ashleigh. Christina needs to remide her mother that if it weren't for her, Wonder wouldn't have lived in the first place. Ashleigh's behavior towards Star is dissapointing, especially for us die-hard Ashleigh and Wonder fans, and her lack of respect for Christina's feelings is somewhat dissapointing too, though most of us wouldn't know what agony Ashleigh is in. I'm glad I felt a glimmer of that old "Thoroughbred" feeling again. Good job.

In "A Horse Called Wonder" a sickly foal is born on Townsend Acres--the farm where Ashleigh Griffen's parents found a job as breeders after they left their own farm, and sold Ashleigh's favorite mare--Stardust. After she left Stardust Ashleigh swore she would never give her heart to another horse--not even the new foal that everyone is sure will die. But in the end she can't help loving Ashleigh's Wonder, which is what everyone on the farm called the foal after Ashleigh miraculously raises her into a beautiful filly. But now Ashleigh must save her beloved horse from the auction block...

Now Wonder has come to Whitebrook with Ashleigh, who has decided to breed her prize mare just one more time. But Wonder's last foal is born under even more tragic circumstances then his mother was, and Wonder has to be put down. With Ashleigh grieving over the loss of her horse, her orphaned baby colt will surely die. Ashleigh's daughter, Christina, has also vowed never to give her heart to another horse after she found Sterling Dream and has been eventing him and working towards her dream of winning an olympic medal. But she loves Wonder's Star--she named him because of the beautiful star on his forehead--and she raises him from a shy, sickly, little foal to a promising colt. Then disaster strikes--after all her hard work Ashleigh is giving the colt to Brad Townsend--his co-owner--for training. Christina is losing the horse she has grown to love, and there is nothing she can do about it!