This is one of the funniest books I owned as a child. A must have for anyone who thinks that farts are funny.

This is a hysterical and at times poignant little work that casts new light on an old social taboo. It is part journal, in which the young gentleman writes about his family, his friends, their cat called Drut and their dog called Albert Schweitzer, and part dictionary, in which an impressive variety of farts is listed and described, from the Alarm Fart to the Zipper Fart. In re-reading it recently, I found myself rolling on the floor every few pages. In this regard, I found the following particularly funny: (1) The Dog Fart: 'It is necessary for a dog to be around for this fart to occur '' (2) The Interrogatory Fart: 'Seems to say, 'Oh?' or, 'Well?' It can be a very silly fart when you are alone '' (3) The S'cuse Me Fart: 'This fart excuses itself as it is farted. It is about as close to words as a fart can get. The sound it makes is like a little soft whisper that says, 'S'cuse me.' It's the most polite of all farts '' As a masterpiece of scatology and coprofilia, this book is a delightful rival to certain passages in Chaucer's 'Midsummernight's Dream.' I highly recommend it as a gift book.

I was never so happy to find a book. This answered all of my fart-finding needs, such as... what is a fart? Where does it come from? Do monkies fart? All these answers and more were found in a concise, clear manner in this marvelous novel, "Joel's Journal and Fact-Filled Fart Book." I have never felt more happy or complete in my entire lifetime. Anyone who has ever wondered about farts should read it! It's a fartin' good time!

Thumbelina is not normal girl she is about the size of your thumb, but don't let her height mistake you she can do alot of things other people can't do. Like she can fit into small spaces that you can't. So if you like books that are about people doing extremely different things that you don't think that can do then this is the book right for you to read. This book will amaze your eyes with the colorful pictures inside, and with the amazing things Thumbelina can do.

Hans Christian Andersen's story of Thumbeline is so endearing that it's no wonder that so many authors have written their own versions of it and so many illustrators have had a go at making tiny Thumbeline come to life. This version, translated by Anthea Bell and illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger is brimming with charm, rustic folk sensibilities, kindness and compassion spiked with just the right amount of perilous adventure to make it interesting, and a lovely magical feel. The story is well told in satisfyingly descriptive language. The illustrations are superb! Zwerger does a wonderful job with all of the animal characters that Thumbeline encounters and manages to infuse them with emotion and intelligence as well as country charm. Little red-haired Thumbeline is delicate and sweet in several lovely costumes with a peasant feel to them. You know the tale...a woman tells a witch that she wants a "tiny child" and the magic gives her exactly what she wishes for, a tiny child no bigger than her thumb. Thumbeline is born from the heart of a tulip. She's so beautiful and sweet that every small suitor in the neighborhood wants her hand in marriage, including a toad, a mole and a June beetle. They are not interested in the fact that she does not want to marry them! She gets help from other wee folk in the woodland community and makes a good friend when she saves the life of a swallow. The story ends happily for Thumbeline. It may be desirable to point out to your young ones that not every unattached female needs to find a husband, especially very young ones like Thumbeline, and that kidnapping and force are not true ways to get a girl to marry you! Children are smart enough to know that but it's still a good idea to talk over the odd concepts that a child may be thinking about after you read this story. I love this old-fashioned story and this re-telling adds beautifully to its charm and therefore justifies its conception.

The familiar Hans Christian Andersen story of Thumbelina has received the royal treatment from Susan Jeffers. Her large, lovely pictures make this seem like you are stepping into the story for the first time. Thumbelina is so dainty and sweet that it's no wonder the toad wishes to marry her but poor Thumbelina has a harrowing time escaping from her warty suitor. Share a trumpet vine blossom with Thumbelina, a pair of hummingbirds and a fat bumble bee or take a ride with her on the back of a gallant swallow. This whole story is enchanting from start to finish and the pictures are a delight!

This is an excellent general reference text. Can not say enough about the excellent content of this text. But it is need of an edition update with information for lake mapping and restoration. Dr. C.L. Nelson of St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, MN has an excellent small text on physical limnology for the mapping aspect. This book does do an excellent job on the biological aspects of limnological work.

The book contains a lot of information related to lakes. It's a complete work about the conditions on this systems. Include a study about the performance of the ionic particles in this systems. It's a suitable book for students like me, to understand the freshwater ecology.

Interesting and thought provoking. You will learn in-depth information about recruiting and why athletes may look at certain colleges. There is a lot of sleaze in college recruiting and this exposes quite a bit.

The book eventually became repetitive as he continued to build his case against the shoe companies. Yes, there is a problem but no alternative solution was really suggested. I'm glad I read it and would encourage college basketball fans to read.

A friend of mine played D1 basketball and pro overseas. He toured America including Hawaii before he was 16 even though he came from the worst ghetto in Memphis where he say 6 people killed and was robbed twice himself. Although he started as a Prop 48, he eventually received his degree. While I don't like the influence of shoe companies, he is an example of a productive man that the shoe companies may have helped. It's not an issue with easy answers.

However not always balanced, SOLE is a page turner for sports fans that enjoy the stories off the playing arena.

Wetzel and Yaeger provide interesting cases and a great work of journalism, however the line between reporting and storytelling is often blurred.

The best way to enjoy this book is to come away entertained, informed, but not disillusioned.

As a pretty dedicated fan of college basketball, I had heard coaches rail on about summer recruiting, AAU middle men and shoe companies. Now I know why. I encourage anyone who cares about the game to read this. It details not only how things have gotten corrupt, but why. Instead of using broad strokes to declare summer recruiting as a bad development, Sole Influence shows why in detail. Myron Piggie stuff alone is worth the read. The solutions are complex, but given the amount athletic directors and college coaches are working on it, something is inevitable. After reading this, fans will know why the sooner the better. The best basketball book I've read in years. Authors make a complicated story very readable and easy to follow.

A nice little read of the diplomacy of Bismarck and Napoleon III prior to the Franco Prussian War. What is so apparrent by this book is how the French and the French government were so arrogant about their power. Most people subscribe to the fact of Bismarck causing the war. However this book shows how the inflamed opinion of the French and their government led to the war. Popular opinion blames the Prussians but it was the French who caused the war.
Wetzel shows the French interfering in the affairs of the Spain to place their candidate on the throne. The Spanish provisional government was not especially interested in their candidates, and ultimately decided on a Prussian prince. This was even more unacceptable to the French government. They then demanded the Prussian prince to renounce the throne. This the Prussians did. Then they demanded the Prussians apologize for their actions and completely renounce any interest. When this did not happen, they went to war against a German nation angered by the French actions. Subsequent actions paint the French as the victims when the opposite was the case. The French played into the hands of Bismarck.
A great read for those interested in the diplomacy prior to the war. Michael Howard's Franco-Prussian War is also a great read of the war itself.

Does a fine job explaining how the war happened. Recommend it to anyone curious about the issue.

The title of this detailed account of the origin of the FrancoPrussian war in 1870 refers to Louis Napoleon 3, nephew of Napoleon, and Otto Bismarck. The FrancoPrussian War ended the government of Emperor Louis Napoleon 3 and gave Bismarck the opportunity to unify Germany.

Wetzel begins his book by describing the characters. There is the French Emperor Louis Napoleon and his diplomats Ollivier, Gramont. Their Prussian opponents are chancellor Bismarck, and Kaiser William and their subordinates. Then Wetzel explains the background, the decline of French power and the rising strength of Prussia. We see how Ollivier, Gramont and Empress Eugenie let their passions and nationalist chauvinism blind them to the new weakness of the French army and the growing strength of Prussia

Wetzel explains the complicated succession struggle in Spain. No candidate could hope to win without total permission of France. Wetzel analyzes Bismarck's complex policy toward the succession and France and comes to some non traditional conclusions.
Wetzel follows the actions of Bismarck and Napoleon 3, as well as the actions and mistakes of their individual subordinates. We see the expertise of French diplomats such as Visconti-Venesto and Benedetti. Most of all we see the belligerence of Gramont, who left no mistake untried.

This book is not always easy to read, since Wetzel goes into great detail about the actions of all the diplomats involved. Wetzel bases his book on both primary and secondary sources and includes an informative bibliography with notes. This book ends right before the outbreak of the FrancoPrussian war, so there are no discussions of military strategy or tactics.

I was searching for a very basic text for IP telephony and it ended after finding this dummmies book. I got all the very basic till latest IT knowledge. This will help anyone who wants to learn the basics of VOIP.

This book examines a broad range of topics applying to women--including psychology, health & well-being, relationships, violence, the law, etc. Written by prominent women in Colorado and throughout the US, this book is easy to read and instigates the feminist in the reader. Although somewhat multicultural, it does not branch outside of the US--that would be another book altogether. Some of the information, i.e. statistics, are now out of date (the book was written in the early 90s), however it shows the reader that women still have a long way to go before we reach equality (if indeed that is what we are striving for).

I bought this book because of the title. I have been a 2100+ USCF-rated player for fifteen years (I am thirty years-old)and have never quite made it to master-level play. Talk about a plateau! Anyway, I found this book's practical approach to the problem of chess self-improvement refreshing and unusual. The author is, I think, very much like the engineers I work with: eccentric, precise, literal, and his book reflects this. His approach to solving time-pressure problems is overly complicated, his analogies needlessly detailed. He defines the components of chess strength, states that any one of which negatively impacts all the others (the "weak-link" concept), and then admits that several of the components are largely un-improvable. There is useful info here (I like his emphasis on studying one's own games for one's weaknesses), but upon reflection, I could have skipped the book and: 1. Studied my own games for MY specific strategic and tactical weaknesses. 2. Studied master-level games for ideas by the world champions. 3. Studied tactical problems to improve my calculating abilities. 4. Exercised regularly for physical and mental well-being. Come to think of it, I already do the above. Read this book, it's competently written, decide for yourself, but these books are like diet and self-improvement texts: they sometimes work only because a plan, an active plan, is better than just waiting and hoping for luck.

This book is very interesting to read. The first portion of the book could be skipped if you are willing to take his ideas on faith alone - I skimmed the first section and concluded that the ideas were reasonably sound.

The second part of the book consists of the actual improvement methods. The main lessons from the book are that

1) most people get stuck at a certain level after a number of years of playing chess, 2) unless you study smarter (not harder) or do something drastically different in your routine, nothing will change, 3) you need to allocate some of your study time to re-inforce what you already know, 4) you MUST study your own games - especially losses very critically and honestly.

In my opinion, some of the earlier reviews were unduly harsh regarding the use of computer technology or flashcards and gave the book an artificially low review. It is the method and the ideas that are important. It really doesen't matter so much whether you use hard-copy, computers, flash cards, etc. Just do what works best for you, BUT DO IT!

This book consists of effective tools in studying the game of chess and not so much on instructions. The tools the author shares (flashcards, APROP) is no joke in the effectiveness of its results. I was surprised to see how often certain positions show up in my games and how effective the use of flashcards, suggested by the author, have been. My only complaints is that the author tends to be a bit too opinionated in his approach to chess improvement and therefore I do not use all his techniques but the ones I do use has improved my game from level B to expert/candidate master (USCF) in a 13 mo. period. At a stuck rating, the question to ask yourself is "Which effective techniques have I done to get to where I am right now (considering you are a strong player)? and "Which techniques are not producing the results I want?" To consistently use what works and change the approach that doesn't. You know you are getting better when you make different mistakes. To study and to train like a "beginner", because beginners learn the quickest. This know-it-all mentally which strong players develop (and I am speaking for myself) actually makes it more difficult to absorb information. Believe me YOU WILL NOT LOSE WHAT YOU ALREADY KNOW!

While a terrible illness, CRS is not "suffered" by patients, since they do not even recall being ill most of the time.

A weak memory can be something to laugh about, and can also be a big handicap. This book examines the pathological experiences of the authors, who tried to find a catchy name for the malady so patients would remember it. Using the initials, they did indeed succeed even with the most affected boy, Roy, who forgot his pi decimals all the time. The scatological resonances are brilliant since they directly excite the reptile brain, where they are stored permanently.

The humane view presented here is overwhelming: you will never derogatively call a friend "ethilene lover" after watching them go round and round the street trying to remember Schrödinger's equation in polar coordinates.

If the book does not earn the fourth and fifth stars, it is only because of the badly drawn cover: the "can't" is beautiful, the "remember" is pure art, but the dung pile makes a bad rebus.

If your'e going to take the EIT test, you better all ready know everything in this book. Because this book is not going to teach it to you. This book is purely a reminder of things that you better know if you want to pass. You also better understand how everything in this book relates to everything else in this book.

Many of the equations are wrong. The topics it covers jump around. Transitions from one step to the next are "purposely" missing.

Final Thought: If you all ready know everything in this book, why buy it?

An easy to read test preparation guide, which helps you to refresh fundamental concepts quickly.

Out of the 13 chapters of this book, there are 116 problems and solutions( arranged under 10 chapter headings). Further there are two practice tests with 120 problems and detailed answers.

The Ethics section is presented with NSPE cases and analyzed in a masterly manner, therby helping the reader to grasp the nuances well.

This book's value would have been greatly enhanced, if the solutions had been worked out in a manner that encouraged the use of NCEES FE Reference Handbook.