My son could not stop laughing when I first read him this book, and he requested it many times after that. Morris (the moose) can never quite get things right, and Boris (the bear) becomes quite exasperated trying to correct him. By the end of the book, Boris is pursuing Morris all over the circus tent, much to the delight of the crowd - and the reader.

This is probably the best of the "Morris and Boris" series - it gives kids an introduction to the humor of word play and just plain silliness.

I liked the book because it was funny and it teaches kids that bad days can be really good days.

Some of the loveliest photographs I have ever seen in a children's book. Truly beautiful...however, I noted one big error. The number twelve is represented by what the author states are Salal berries and shows a photograph of Dull Oregon Grape berries..a totally different plant. Perhaps this was changed in a later printing? I certainly hope so, if not, it should be. Both berries are edible, with the Dull Oregon Grape (Mahonia Nervosa) being far more tasty.

Over all this is a wonderful book for all ages. Perhaps checking with a good fieldbook on plants might be of help next time. Might I suggest Pojar/Mackinnon's Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast? :)

This is a beautifully written and illustrated book for young children. Unfortunately, some of the photos were cropped during production and so there are no longer the correct number of objects in some of the photographs. This greatly diminishes the value of the book. Hopefully they will reprint the book

This flash manual, which is intended to teach not only the operation of the Nikon SB-25 and 26 but also the principles of flash photography, is filled with errors right from the beginning pages. For anyone unfortunate to have this book, see page 14 for half a dozen fundamental errors. The other thing which is annoying about this book and others in the same series is that it reads like Nikon marketing literature. Nikon's own manuals contain no marketing at all and although they are more difficult to understand, they are at least correct. Save your money.

Nikon's TTL light metering technology changed all the rules of flash photography. This Magic Lantern Guide spells them all out in plain, easy to follow concepts. After applying what I learned I find I now have more fun than ever with my clothes still on!

I felt sad reading this book. I've realized that the days of Qwill and Koko actively participating in the solution of a murder mystery are over. I will continue to read any "Cat Who" books that may be published in the future, but I feel as though I'm watching a dear, old friend approach the end of his life.

I thought Braun's question on the book jacket, "Shall we try for twenty-six [books in the series]?" was poignant. It's as if she's asking her readers if she should continue the series, seeking either encouragement to keep writing the books or permission to stop. Braun is now in her eighties and has low vision. Moreover, she wrote 21 of the 25 novels during the past 18 years. It's inevitable that time, age, and the sheer amount of physical and mental effort that such production requires will take their toll. I've adjusted my expectations of the books to fit this reality.

"The Cat Who" books are a light mystery series, based on a town "400 miles north of everywhere" and all of its lovely, eccentric inhabitants. The action focuses around one James Qwilleran (Mr. Q to his friends and fans) and his two cats, Koko and Yum-Yum. In each book, an event occurs that draws Q into an investigation which usually involves some element of the town's locales and history. There's no ticking clock, no shooting guns, no sense of foreboding in these books. Each is a return to our beloved Mooseville and the people we now consider our own neighbors. This isn't a marvel of literary fiction- it's merely a comfy, quick read as part of an enjoyable series.

The general consensus among hardcore "The Cat Who" fans is that the *real* Jackson Braun stopped writing the series several years ago. There have been about four ghost writers since, and almost all have done a poor job of recreating Braun's characters and descriptions of Moose County. In the last book, the cats were relegated to mere household pets, and Qwill rambled around with no real point to his actions. Well, I'm thrilled to report that after several strange attempts at recreating Braun's magic, whoever wrote this book got it right!

The old Qwilleran is back- as are favorite locales and neighbors. "The Cat Who Brought Down the House" revolves around a zany new arrival to Moose County, and some of the troubles that her move to Pleasant Street brings. Qwill is on the case, assisted by his two intuitive cats and several of his close friends.

Like I said above, the book isn't deep, it doesn't motivate you to get out a piece of paper and try and solve the crime. It's just a fun read, with a light mystery at its heart. I'm just happy to be able to give the book a good review and I am really hoping that the publisher keeps this writer on - I haven't felt so at home in years.

Happy reading!

It has been a long time (possibly 24 years) since anyone has read a Lilian Braun mystery story for the mystery. If for no other reason than that we often know who committed the crime before we ever know what the crime was. Instead we read them to enjoy the antics of a stellar cast of characters in a mythical town set '400 miles north of everywhere.'

The ostensible star is Qwilleran, a recovering journalist, whose life in Pickaxe began when he inherited a fortune and found it impossible to leave. His friends include almost everyone, and his deepest secret is that Koko, one of his two Siamese cats, is the true brains behind the outfit.

In this, the 25th in the series, Pickaxe is abuzz with the news of the return of Thelma Thackery, who left Moose County for Hollywood (where she eventually became a very successful restaurateur) 55 years ago. Now she has moved into one of the towns few mansions with Janice, her assistant and a bevy of colorful and outspoken parrots. Her sole surviving relative in Moose County is her nephew, who is noted for his smile and the lack of any visible means of support.

And so the stage is set for intrigue, parrot-napping, blueberry pie recipes, and an endless flow of gossip and tales. The success of Braun's books depends not on the intricacies of plot and character development, but on Qwiilleran's exuberant side trips into the nooks and crannies of Pickaxe history.

One of the dangers to any long running series is settling into formula writing and then forgetting the point behind the formula. For a while, Braun's books lost their focus, and Qwilleran allowed to become increasingly irritating as a main character. This has always been a series where a year between episodes was needed to maintain their charm, but recently a year has not been enough.

I'm happy to say that 'The Cat Who Brought Down the House' has broken this trend. Not that it isn't formulaic, but it has returned to being a pleasant, entertaining romp. Cozy mystery stories are, after all, literary comfort food. Reading this story is almost like a return to the home that might have been if the world was a bit less dire.

There is nothing in this volume that would prevent anyone from starting with it. For the most part historical relationships are explained, and there is nothing in the plot that depends on previous knowledge. If you are looking for pure escapism, consider starting here.

Short & Tall Tales, by Lilian Jackson Braun is subtitled Moose County Legends Collected by James Mackintosh Qwilleran, is just that. Qwill, as he is known in Moose County 400 miles north of everywhere, is a reporter for the local newspaper.
Those of us who have read Lilian Jackson Braun's two dozen books in The Cat Who...mystery series featuring Qwill and his two crime solving Siamese cats will probably find this short, quick reading, cute collection of 27 tales interesting. Others not having the experience will not find interest in this collection.
Now we wait her 25th novel due out in February '03.

It's a nifty little book, don't get me wrong; and you can polish it off in a single afternoon. And some of our favorite "Cat Who" personalities and families are mentioned, so it's like coming home to familiar faces. These 27 tales just won't be entertaining or meaningful to anyone who hasn't read at least a few of Braun's episodes. The best myth / legend is saved for last, in which the mystery of Midwestern scamadiddles is revealed. That one could be shared aloud with others, even if they don't know that KoKo and Yum Yum are Siamese cats. But a larger question looms here: Does this publication, authored by fictional character James "Qwill" Qwilleran, signify the end and culmination of the series? I hope not. Those of us who live Down Below still have a need to believe in the existence of eccentric Moose County, 400 miles north of everywhere. We enjoy visiting there every once in a while, even if the trip is made page-by-page instead of by car or boat.

The purpose of my review is to say whether or not, in my opinion, a book is worth buying. If you are one of Lilian Jackson Braun's "The Cat Who. . . " fans, then, Yes.

This is a book you can read in one sitting if you like. It is not a mystery, but rather just what the title says, a collection of little "tall" tales that are written as though the main character in the series, Mr. Q, would write if he were a real author.

I thought the book was exceedingly charming and although I can barely wait between publications of Bruan's mystery books, I thoroughly enjoyed this little collection. The idea of it is extremely novel and I would say it is a success from her fans' point of view.

Some of the stories were already mentioned, or alluded to, in some of the author's other "The Cat Who. . . " books, but that was OK. It was a good refresher and the stories really do cement the flavor of Moose County.

Again, I cannot say how much I just enjoyed the "chit-chattiness" of this little, easy-to-read volume. Ms. Braun has an amazing imagination--that is, she is able to reign it in and make it "fit" the imaginary people of Moose County. My railroader father especially enjoyed the tale about the hoghead.

I also enjoyed the size of the book. It was light and easy to hold and felt very comfortable in my hands.

I am looking forward to getting my hands on The Cat Who Brought Down the House soon.

If you are new to Ms. Braun, this book is probably not the one you should start out with. But buy it anyway and set it aside until after you read a few of The Cat Who books. After you are well introduced to the characters of Moose County, pull out this little book. If you wait, you will be able to really enjoy it better that way.

Warning! I thought I was ordering the story book which is GREAT (I got it from the library once) but this is NOT the story book "If You Give a Mouse A Cookie" and it is NOT the story book "If you Give A Moose A Muffin" - this is actually a Teacher's Guide for activities to do RELATED to the book. They should say that it is a teacher's guide in the description. I'd never heard of a 'literature unit' before. Perhaps that's a term teachers would know? Anyway, the story books are great, but this is not the story book.

Timeless, wonderful. It's the kind of book that keeps you giggling, whether you're a small child or an adult.

I especially recommend for adults to sit on the floor of a Target store and read this aloud to their friends.

I bought this book because the photographs were beautiful and I wanted to learn more about this incredable animal. I was gravely disappointed for I not only found the captions didn't describe the photo but they were boring. It was as though someone cut statements from the text and tossed them in a hat then, picked each photo and caption randomly. I didn't find the text much better. I wanted facts to learn about moose but the author never seemed to commit himself. He prefaced statements with "apparently" or "evidently" or "it seems". I've learned more watching moose out my window than I did from this book.

Great book, well written, with pages of breathtaking colorful pictures. This book is very easy to read and will fullfill every curiosity you have about the moose. It should be a must for every library.

As a critical guide to Nikon lenses, this book is quite useless because all Nikon lenses, in the author's opinion, are sharp and contrasty. He makes few distinctions but showers indiscriminate praise, making it quite impossible to make an informed judgment. Few of his assertions are based on fact, and none are based on rigorous trials.

Even as a factual guide to lens specifications, the book contains enough inaccuracies to make it useless.

I'm an experienced photographer who uses many of the lenses in the book. I have different oppinions of their performance than Moose. For instance, Moose dislikes the performance of the 85/2 AI-s and I love it.

On the other hand, lenses all vary greatly due to production tolerances, so no lens will always agree with what anyone says.

Yes, the book has a lot of info and is one of the few books of it's kind. OK, it's probably the biggest book there is on current Nikkor lenses, so give it a few more stars if it's the only book you can find. Therefore it is very valuable. However the information is not entirely accurate. Watch out for incorrect matching of illustrations and captions.

Moose is a great photographer; not a lens designer. Therefore his impressions relate to how well they relate to his wonderful work in the field, and not necessarily how well the lenses perform technically or even what all the various technical innovations mean or how they work inside the lens.

I suggest referring to "The Nikon Compendium" (also only 1994 edition) for more correct info if you really are curious about "how sharp" any lens is.

Also look at Nikon's own book, "Eyes of Nikon" from the early 1980's for the best look into their manual focus lenses of that era.

We'll see how well corrected the new edition is.

Thanks to Moose for taking the effort to write the book!

This review (c) 1999 Ken Rockwell. All rights reserved

Looking at my other review it looks harsh. This book is so-so if your interest is the lenses themselves, as the title suggests.

If your interest is how to select and use the huge range of Nikkor lenses to create meaningful photographs, then this book is unique and very helpful. Maybe a more descriptive title would be "How to Choose and Use Lenses from the Nikon System." With that title it's a solid 4 stars.

Moose's book may be the only book that puts much of the folklore surrounding the practical use of these lenses in book form. Thanks again to Moose for the great work!

I am from Switzerland and, of course, bought this guide in german. It is not due to the bad translation into english that the book lacks information, clarity and useful information. It is simply a rather hasty written review of an excellent photoworkhorse that had to be thrown onto the bookmarket as soon as poss. What a pity because the camera is fine!

the magic lanter guides are poor--they should be much better--they should get a better editor and a better tech writor from one of the photo magazines to work with them

It didn't provide any more information than the instruction manual that came with the camera did. Only advantage is the size and shape of the book which feels nicer than holding the manual.