This is an interesting, delightful read, which will make any Southerner, and, for that matter, any American, stop and think about the way things were. As suggested by Guice in the foreword, "There is hardly a 'plain vanilla' or 'B-flat' sentence in the entire book," and, indeed, there is not, as this book reads like a story, as opposed to a typical historical record. The author quite successfully describes "what happened" in terms of the tactile, visual, olfactory and auditory. A terrific account by a fascinating historian.

The harrowing 1804 expedition of Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark across the American wilderness has been well-documented on a library full of history books. Western expansion was the dream of then-President Thomas Jefferson, and so the co-commanders Lewis and Clark began a cross-country trip through the pristine wilderness stretching across North America to the Pacific Ocean to not only stake a claim in the west, but also to collect specimens of plants and animals, map the unfamiliar frontier, find a northwest passage for men to follow, and to establish trade with Native American tribes. This informative book for elementary and middle school students touches on all those matters, but takes a unique approach by concentrating on one particular aspect of the expedition: North American flora and fauna. What new and exotic plants did Lewis and Clark see during their cross-country trip through the pristine wilderness? What specimens of plants and animals did they encounter? Why were trees so important to the success of the expedition? What new sources of food did they discover? How did they discover uses for wildflowers? What was the fate of Lewis's specimens? Most species collected were new to science at the time Lewis collected them, so this historical look at the scientific nature of the journey is a valuable one indeed. "Plants on the Trail with Lewis and Clark" will not only instill knowledge in its young readers, but also a healthy desire to preserve the natural and historical places of the western U.S.

As a registered play therapist and professor of early childhood, I can tell you this book is one of the most comprehensive and well-written books on the subject of children. Our society no longer values play in children, and this book illustrates what happens to children if they cannot play. Play is essential for the overall development of a child. Piaget and Vygotsky were just two major theorist that support Joe Frost's contentions. This is a must book for anyone doing a literature review for research involving the overall development of a child. It is a must book for any one in an educational setting whereby one teaches future educators about children.

Sir James Clark Ross went from end of the world to the other in a little wooden ship (or so it seems to me, comparing the expedition craft of the early nineteenth century with the supertankers and aircraft carriers of today).

His uncle, Captain John Ross, managed some of the most successful Arctic winterings-over of his time, as well as suffering some of the most appalling privations. (Captain John Ross' operant procedure for the prevention of scurvy deserves respect and praise.) At the same time neither of these gents was perfect in every respect, and Captain John Ross' career may be said never to have recovered from a premature decision he made to abandon a search for the Northwest Passage based on a disputed sighting of a mountain chain (later found to be non-existant) that would have made northerly progress impossible.

This book presents the accomplishments, and errors, of uncle and nephew in full recognition of their human failings and failures of judgment; but appropriately credits them for their accomplishments -- which are unexpectedly significant when seen as a whole.

It also traces the history of the animosity that existed between Captain John Ross and Secretary of the Admiralty John Barrow -- a relationship characterized by sometimes truly puzzling venom. It seems pretty funny now to read about the violence and vitriol with which the two of them spoke of each other in print, and there is probably something to be said about the cultural environment then versus now; but the conflict was very real, and had very real -- sometimes tragic -- repercussions.

This book may be very profitably read either by itself -- for the entertainment and interest it provides -- or in conjunction with Fergus Fleming's "Barrow's Boys," which also provides a window on the tension between Barrow and Captain John Ross (one is tempted to say, sometimes between Captain John Ross and the world).

It is a biography that covers a remarkable span of Polar exploration during the glory years of Royal Navy expeditions. A readable and intriguing study of the careers of two of the English-speaking world's more influential Polar explorers!

A truly superb book! Clark is kinder to economists in the Introduction to the 2nd ed. than he was in the 1st ed., though his criticisms of economists for their pretense of being "value free" and "objective" probably was more accurate in the 1st ed. We'll find unicorns grazing in the flower bed before we find value free and objective economists, or value free and objective science for that matter.

The 1st 2 chapters read very much like a text book and may be difficult to wade through for those with minimal backgrounds in economics and political science. But this should not discourage readers as Clark's discission of the 4 major schools of political economic thought--Classical Liberalism, Radicalism, Classical Conservatism, and Modern Liberalism--is excellent. Though relatively succinct and written at an "introductory" level, Clark does an excellent job of laying out the fundamentals of each of the 4 schools of thought as well as the evolution of thinking within each school through summary discussions of the "architects" of each school. He then offers a brief and very fair critique or each school of thought. For those unfamiliar with the diversity of political-economic thought, which is most people (and, sadly, certainly includes virtually everyone who majored or minored in "business school" economics in college), these 4 chapters alone make the book worthwhile reading .

But for most readers, the real forte of the book comes in Part III in which Clark examines the major issues in political economy today; such as, inflation, unemployment, poverty, inequality, labor, minorities (to include women within the political-economic arena), education, culture, the enviornment, and international trade. Within each of these areas, Clark identifies the arguments of each of the 4 schools of political economic thought in terms of what each sees as the roots of the issue, the nature of the issue today, and what should and/or should not be done about it.

For someone looking for a relatively brief examination of these issues, which gives a genuinely fair presentation of diverse and competing views, there simply is no other book published today. One important strenght of Clark's work is it does explode the myth of economics as a "science", as well as the myths of the discipline of economics being value free and not grounded in ideology, and the myth there is some kind of general consensus among economists.

Regardless of a person's political-economic ideological orientation, readers will become more aware and more appreciative of alternative and competing points of view. And they will be able to see more easily what passes for "economic" reporting and analysis in the news media and by government officials is little more than propaganda--the promulgation of the favored econmic world view as truth. This is extremely important because, even (especially) for those who agree with "mainstream" economic analysis, there are numerous dangerers in falling into the trap of believing the fundamental ideological/value questions of economics and the relationship between the economic and political system have been asked, answered, and agreed upon. Such tunnel vision is a prescription for disaster which Clark's book can help us avoid. So put on the hip boots; wade through the 1st two chapters (heavy but necessary); and then enjoy.

I grew up with this book, read it to my own kids and read it to the children in my first grade classes. The book is appropriate fr ages 2--8. The stories are simple, but engaging, and the language is gently repetitive and delightful. You will want to read it aloud again and again just to hear yourself say "Andrewshek's Auntie Katushka."

Ably edited by Nicholas Barker, A Potencie Of Life: Books In Society is a welcome and impressive collection of erudite and knowledgeable essays by leading biblio-scholars on the history of the book. The contributions comprising this unique outstanding compendium include: American Papermakers and the Panic of 1819 (John Bidwell); Bookbinding and the History of Books (Mirjam M. Foot); A New Model for the Study of the Book (Thomas R. Adams & Nicolas Barker); The Codex in the Fifteenth Century: A Manuscript and Print (Lotte Hellinga); The "Trade of Authorship" in Eighteenth Century Britain (W.b. Carnochan); and Libraries and the mind of Man (Nicolas Barker). An excellent reprint of the first edition and co-published with The British Library, this Oak Knoll Press edition of A Potencie Of Life is enthusiastically recommended for bibliophile reading lists and academic reference collections.

Kenneth Clark makes a wonderful job of giving practical and informative advice on aspects of ceramics: techniques, clay, decoration, glazes, kilns. firing - he also uses examples of artist work in a way to inspire. This book is a must for all potters.

As a result of decades of conservation research we now understand the basic underlying value and fundamental necessity of sustaining prairie wetland ecologies for the overall well-being of the ecosystem, with implications for wildlife habitation, and the impact of human activity (including agriculture) upon natural resources. Henry R. Murkin, Arnold G. van der Valk, and William R. Clark have successfully collaborated in summarizing the findings of the Marsh Ecology Research Program (MERP) in Prairie Wetland Ecology: The Contribution Of The Marsh Ecology Research Program, which also reflects the contributions from ten field experts. This comprehensive and long term prairie wetlands research project was a joint effort of Duck Unlimited Canada and the Delta Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Station. Prairie Wetland Ecology is a superb and highly recommended introduction to prairie wetland ecology research in general, and MERP in particular, as well as providing a superbly informative background for further ecosystem research.

Aside from the Bible itself, this book had the greatest impact on my understanding of God's plan of salvation of any I have ever read. Written from the perspective of a 5-point Calvinist, Dr. Clark fully and faithfully examines the doctrine of biblical predestination.

Granted, this book is not easy reading! I kept a Bible and a dictionary close at hand (although some of you Ph.d types might not need the dictionary) whenever I opened it. But any "work" that went into the reading was more than amply rewarded with a rich understanding of this doctrine that seems to frighten and confuse so many Christians. Dr. Clark loaded the book with irrefutable, Scriptural justification for his position.

I could not recommend it more highly!