This book captured my attention from the first chapter. JOhn Adams was a fascinating person and left behind an extensive amount of his own words in journals and letters. The problem for a biographer is to make it interesting and Mr. Ferling does a wonderful job of showing the good and bad of John Adams.

I think the best part of this in-depth one volume biography is how the events taking place around John Adams as well as many of his important historical contemporaries are also explored, giving the reader a true vision as to how John Adams fit into the world of the 18th and early 19th century. Franklin, Sam Adams, Jefferson, Washington, Hamilton are all discussed and examined.

Although John Adams is not typically thought of as a notable president, after reading this book, you will understand why two recent polls of historians showed that he was rated as a "great" president who was as instrumental as any in the formation of the United States. By going directly against his own party while president, he was humiliated and initially ignored, but his actions were later realized to have likely saved the US from ruin soon after it's formation. If you are interested in John Adams, or colonial history...Buy This Book.

I have been reading biographies of the founding fathers from Washington to Madison. I picked up this book knowing that Adams was the one that I, and most people, know the least about. Ferling brings this man to life to the point that I felt that I knew him personally more than any of the other bios I've read so far. I was amazed at how attached I became to this intense and profoundly intelligent person who is regrettably most remembered as a vain and awkward curmudgeon. Ferling's story is complete, covering the varied facets of Adams as farmer, lawyer, philosopher, negotiator, statesman, friend, husband and father. If John Adams is more of a mystery to you than the much celebrated likes of Washington, Jefferson, Franklin and Madison, then this is the book for you.

This book drew me in with its fascinating account about John Adams life and its historical details. Ferling has written a very entertaining and inspiring biography on Adams. Although it is not as deep in detail as Page Smith's biography on the same subject, it is full of information that will edify both students of John Adams and those people who are interested in United States revolutionary period and the early years of the republic.

One of the most extraordinary memoirs that we had the pleasure to read is John Walsh: tears of Rage, co-written by Susan Schindehette. This memoir begins with John Walsh convincing the reader how "emotionaly strong" he is. He does this by mentioning experiences that he had to deal with in the past. Although these experiences were heart breaking, John handled the situation and got the job done. John Walsh had to deal with many morrible experiences in his life, but it only made him stronger in what he could deal with.
John Walsh goes into the details about his son, Adam, who was kidnapped in 1981 at a local Sears store by an unknown assailant. In the memoir Mr. Walsh tells his readers all the things the police and him went through trying to locate his son. Mr. Walsh also worked on all cases that may have anyhting to do with his sons kidnapping. But in the end he couldnt do anything to save his son. He thought his neighborhood was safe so he couldn't understand how something like this could happen.
One of the main things that Walsh wanted to get across to his readers is that there is no where safe anymore. That everyone has to watch out and try to stop these horrible acts from happening to our loved ones.
Tears of Rage ended with a great and powerful conclusion. The conclusion is about how John deals with his son's death, and what he does about the loss. Mr. Walsh also said that he would devote all his time to the public from now on, he is doing this with his show, America's Most Wanted. The show tells the public about unsolved crimes by getting the faces of the criminals out to the public so they can identify them.
We rated this memoir a 4 star, and the reason for this is because it is a great read that talks about life and how to handle all the problems that are envolved with it. So, if you want an awesome read, pick up John Walsh: Tears of Rage, you won't regret it.

Every parent should read this book. The author makes us very aware of the scumbag by-products of abuse and neglect that walk this earth in search of innocent children to exploit for their own selfish pleasure. Instead of letting this horrible tragedy break them, John and Reve Walsh dragged themselves up from the absolute pits of their terrible nightmare to change the priorities of a foolish country that cares more about stolen cars than stolen kids. It is also gratifying to know that John Walsh joined forces with the incredible genius of ex-FBI special agent Robert Ressler (author: Whoever Fights Monsters). John Walsh is responsible for bringing to our attention that these pedophiles and lunatics are everywhere and must be stopped. THIS COULD HAPPEN TO ANYONE'S CHILD!! This book is emotionally hard to read. Your heart will go out to these two people for their grief and we can all be thankful that they cared enought to turn their tragedy around to help others.

John Walsh and Susan Schindehette have done an excellent job in bringing the nightmare of child abduction and lack of victim's rights into focus within the pages of this remarkable book.

From the moment I started reading, I was hooked and drug , sometimes unwillingly, into the reality that has been Mr. Walsh's life since his six-year-old son Adam was abducted and killed on July 27, 1981. The authors spare no details and I often found myself wondering how John Walsh was able to re-examine the past in such a way that I can only imagine was like pouring salt into a wound that can never heal.

The book reveals the extent that the Hollywood, Florida Police department bungled the Adam Walsh case, but even worse how this bungling occurs daily throughout the United States as victims of crimes continue to have little to no say in their own cases and investigations.

The graphic reality in this book may not sit well with all readers, but I guarantee that it is a necessar! y ingredient for opening the reader's eyes to the problems that existed and exist within our legal system.

The title Tears of Rage is an appropriate one for I found that the book started with tears and ended with rage, for both the Author(s) and the reader. Once you've opened the book and read the prologue, you'll find it very hard to put down.

The only negative thing I have to say about the book is that since finishing it, I haven't slept all that well, because I keep dreaming about being in a situation where I want to help some abducted kid, and I keep running into road blocks. Luckily for me it is just a nightmare, for Mr. Walsh and thousands of other parents it was and is reality.

I have seen the Reduced Shakespeare Company perform this play and these guys are absolutely hysterical! This book provides a side splitting look at Shakespeare in all his glory and wretched excess.

Despise reading Shakespeare? Not to worry, as the RSC introduce you to Shakespeare in a variety of hilarious ways - via a cooking show, a football game, even a rap song! Indifferent to Shakespeare? Well, don't you worry either. The RSC cover the Bard's plays and sonnets in ways you'd never imagine, prior knowledge of the plot becomes unnecessary. Love reading Shakespeare? Then you'll still enjoy this book!

Plus, there are brilliantly clever footnotes (I've always hated them before, but I loved these!), funny forewords and humorous pictures. This book is brilliant and funny and worth every penny!! Buy it!

I am a actor and performer in high school and I often compete in the literary circuit. This piece alone has won me several awards. I recommend it to any aspiring actors who need a piece to start on or any established actors who need something new. It is also great for an entertaning read or for high school Shakespeare students who need a new twist on the Bard (especially the view of Hamlet as a meat allegory!)

If I were asked the funniest play that read I would answer "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)." Now I can answer the same if I were asked the funniest book I have ever read. All hail to Jess Winfield, Daniel Singer, and Adam Long! The gang has sucessfully written a very intricate and accurate book of William Shakespeare and his complete works. Wait -- they have distorted and sucessfully gutted some of the most perfect pieces of literature ever written and it is absolutely perfect. While reading the book make sure to take the time to read ALL the footnotes. You will really appreciate the tactful placement of every irreverent word and insite into the life and works of William Shakespeare that Jess, Adam, Jess, Daniel, and Jess have. Definately a must read and certianly a must see.

These are the days of Sony Playstation 2 and Harry Potter, activites that do not really ever try to tell a great story that also gives a lesson without being preachy.

The Velveteen Rabbit is heartwrenchingly beautiful. The Rabbit who yearns to be Real and whose love for the boy was unconditional is both imaginative and sad. I cannot read this book without a lump coming to my throat and being transported to simpler days when the love of a toy was the greatest thing in the whole world.

This is a book with an ending that is mixed, that touches on the ambiguity of life and loss. But there is also hope of a new beginning. And I think children can understand that and grow from it.

I cherish this book deeply.

A great book on love! I really loved this book as a kid and still remember when my Gramps used to read it to me when we would visit him in the province. He gifted me the book on my 7th birthday and became a real sentimental favorite. My original book got lost when my family vacationed in Milan when I was 12, too bad. I could recall how depressed I became when I discovered that I left the book in the hotel. I missed that book terribly and eversince I was on the look out for another copy, until 16 years later, my beautiful girlfriend gifted me one on our anniversary when she returned home from Munich. I was so happy as I lifted the copy out of the box and I couldn't help but shed a tear out of happiness! Since then, it remains on my bedside table. It is very enlightening, heart warming and full of love. I really love toys up to now and this book really manifests unconditonal love. I will surely treasure this book and in time gift it to my future kids. It's a real classic , something to be treasured forever!

This book is a simple work of art. Its beauty in itself is virtually indescribable. When I was little, it was my favorite book. In fact, I've had it ever since I was born. It is about a boy who owns a stuffed rabbit, and longs for it to be real. Eventually, because he loved the rabbit so much, his wish was granted. The book is so well written that it brings tears to my eyes almost every time I read it. It is definitely one of my all-time favorites.

This book, when I first read it in the 70's as a kid, cemented my desire to be a firefighter. It went past the gleaming paint and chrome and really showed me the grit of the job; that it wasn't always the glorious one I had envisioned but more of a thankless one. Dennis Smith's vivid imagery makes you feel like you're in the battle right there with his company. It also shows the toll that firefighting takes on it's participants, the physical as well as the emotional scars the job leaves. Smith takes you through his personal life, discussing his humble childhood and the effect his career has on his adult life.

All in all, a wonderful story that grabs you at the beginning and doesn't let go until the last page.

"Report From Engine Co. 82" had a huge impact on my life. I was about 8 years old and was used to reading science fiction, so this book was 'out of my genre,' so to speak. I had been watching a television show called "Emergency." When Mr. Smith came on the "Today" show, I was moved by his down-to-earth qualities and the rave reviews the book received, so I rode my bicycle down to the public library and checked the book out to see if real life firefighters were anything like Gage and DeSoto (my heroes from "Emergency.") I was surprised, and at times, shocked. The book's first-person narrative style had me hooked from the get-go. It was as though I was reading a diary. I hurried home from school each night to read more. I loved the vignettes of New York City. (I grew up in a small town in the west.) There were parts of the book I was too young to comprehend, such as the cruelty of someone pulling a false alarm. Parts of the book were frightening, then a few minutes later I saw the human side of firefighters told through their practical jokes. How else could they keep their sanity? This book was probably exceptionally 'heavy' material for a young boy to be reading, (my teacher exclaimed "what on earth are you reading!") but I developed an enormous respect for firefighters after reading this book, and my feelings of respect still remain strong. I probably wanted to become a firefighter for awhile after reading this book. Easily one of the most moving reading experiences of my life.

Dennis Smith takes us into a world seldom seen by the average person. His accounts are gripping and have you believe you're on the hoseline backing up the nozzleman. It is a truly captivating book that shows the reader what really is the root of urban decay. As a fellow firefighter, I couldn't put this book down and have re-read it several times. It is a timeless piece that shows what it's like to be a New York City firefighter. I recommend this to everybody.

Adams's Maia rivals the "greats" in its ability to create an entire world of believable characters, religions, and politics. The complex world in which the novel's action takes place is breath-taking. The novel actually serves as a prequel to Adams' previous endeavor, Shardik (itself an underrated and beautiful work), but Adams takes his Beklan Empire to new levels of epic sophistication with the introduction of the naive and good-hearted Maia; the grotesque and unforgettable Sencho; the wise and gutsy Occula; and the erotic, ambitious, and evil Fornis. Perhaps the only works of fiction more encompassing and completely original in their creation of an entirely new reality are Frank Herbert's Dune novels; however, Adams work maintains a beauty and sensitivity that is lacking in those science fiction giants. Overall I have to rank Maia as one of my all-time favorite works of fiction. I have read it three times and have to stop myself from picking it up again too soon in order to preserve the rewarding pleasure I receive from reentering Adams amazing world.

As a sophomore in high school, I was a bit doubtful when my father recommended this book to me. But because I was out of other things to read, i decided to give this bible-length book a shot. Within the first few chapters I was completely lost in the world that Richard Adams created, and was following Maia's every step closely as she meets the other characters. For those who love fantasy, this book is everything you could wish for--it has mystery, suspense, imagination, creativity, love, friendship, and much more. For those who in the past haven't tried reading fantasy, this book will get you hooked. It is a wonderful story of growing up, falling in love, and heroic deeds centered around a very real main character, Maia.

Adams takes the talent for building exceptional and realistic characters that he showcased in Watership Down and the Plague Dogs to unbelievable new levels in this gem. One of the greatest books I have ever read. Absolutely inspiring for anybody who writes fiction and easily as engrossing as Eddings and Tolkien. This is simply a magnificent novel: adventuresome, erotic, well thought out, and addicting! Reader beware...you will not be able to put this book down! Adams takes his characters beyond what most usually think of as fantasy and turns them into real people. His beautiful and familiar writing voice fills the pages with subtle poetry which makes it difficult to put down and more difficult to resist re-reading immediately! Recommended for anybody who enjoys reading any genre from fantasy to romance to mystery to just plain fiction. This book has it all! ...And who doesn't love Occula?

Nancy is my favorite character in the book Sideway Stories from Wayside School. I like it because... the chapter is very funny because if you think nancy is a girl you are totally wrong! It's a boy! He has big handsand feet and he thinks Nancy is a girls name. His class, Mrs. Jewls's class, thought his name was odd too. There are 23 people in his Class (not counting him). Before they had Mrs.Jewls they had Mrs. Gorf. I'm going to tell you about the whole story. So read it if you like weird books you will love this book !

Over the summer, I read a book called Sideway Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar. This book talks about very silly characters. There was one story that I liked the most, which I will tell you about first. (By the way, the yard teacher was the one who wrote the book.) Okay! back to the story. Jason was in class listening when he heard a bubble pop. He spun around and there was his enemy, Joy, chewing bubble gum. He told his teacher Mrs. Jewls. Mrs. Jewls was disappointed at Joy, so she was going to write her name under the word DISCIPLINE!! Jason stopped her and asked if he could write it on the board. So when Jason got out of his seat, Joy stuck the bubble gum on his chair. Jason sat back down, but when it was recess time, he tried to get up. But he couldn't! He was stuck! Mrs. Jewls tried everything she could to get him off, but nothing worked. Do you know how he came off? Finally, Joy had to kiss him on the nose. Jason fell and bumped his head.

This story reminded me of a time when my leg was stuck on the monkey bars. I was hanging upside down. Then I saw my friend. When I tried to get down, I found that my leg was stuck. I stayed there for a while, but then I got a idea. I calmly twisted my leg to one side and it was loose. I was free again!!

I would recommend this book to whoever likes to read about different characters or likes entertaining stories and enjoys laughing. This book is also recommended to third graders and up! So this is my review about the book Sideway Stories from Wayside School.

It opens with children-turned apples turning their teacher, Mrs. Gorf, into an apple and giving her to their gym teacher, Louis (the author) to eat.

Need I say more?

This book is hilarious. I could just see kids I know going to a school thirty stories tall, with a classroom on each side, struggling through torturous mosquito bites, a teacher who thinks you're a monkey, and all sorts of kooky and downright hilarious characters. I could read this over and over. It is so realistic, yet oh so spacy.

I first read this book when I was about seven or eight. I have read it over and over with each of my five younger siblings and it gets funnier each time. Sachar has a way of appealing to all audiences.

Parents, the Wayside school series is the easiest way to get boob-tube obsessed kids to read a good book for a change.

And it is a good book!

While often embarrassing in a public place, laughing out loud while reading is an example of pure pleasure that so rarely occurs that any author capable of producing this effect should be commended. Douglas Adams is such an author. The only problem is his writing style should be taken in small doses, because when read all together you start to get buried in all the clever little comments and they lose their effectiveness. The first two novels in this series are two of the funniest books I have ever read. The basic plot is simple: Earth is destroyed to make way for an interstellar highway and Arthur Dent, one particularly hapless Earthman, is taken along by an interstellar hitchhiker to the far reaches of space. This synopsis does not do justice to the incredible universe Adams drags us into: Ships that run on improbability factors or restaurants checks, a two headed former president of the galaxy who is looking for a real good time, and other events and people too bizarre and numerous to summarize. The problem is that each succeeding book seems to jettison some whimsy for a more serious form of science fiction until in the last book the laughs are hard to find. The first two books deserve the highest rating, but this review is based on all the content contained within. But once you start, you'll want to read all of them, Adams does make sure that the reader wants to know how it all turns out. Hopefully you'll enjoy the journey.

I thought this book "The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy" by Douglas Adams, was amazing. I have never laughed so hard while reading in my life. Adams has a unique style of putting the extremely bizarre into fairly common language. He also has a witty humor that will get you rolling with laughter. The books center around two main characters, Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect, and their adventures so to speak around the galaxy. The two are faced with many bizarre and life threatening events throughout their journeys. They do varies tasks from finding the meaning of life, to saving the galaxy, and watching as the universe is destroyed as they eat a cow which they had had a conversation with a few minutes before hand. The whole book is full of mind-bending contradictions and hilarious out of the blue humor. The plot that I derived form the book, I doubt it is right, is don't sweat the small stuff. The events that happen to Arthur Dent are far worse then the petty stuff we complain about in life. If you read this you need to be up to laughing the whole way through, and a little time to decipher what Adams is saying in the book.

Comedy is so much more likely to succeed in movies than in novel form. So there is that much more reason to celebrate good comedy novels. Douglas Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series started out as a radio serial, then went to book and was finally made into a television series. I even hear it may see the big screen soon. For me, the best format so far is the novels.

Adams writes well, has a fertile and sometimes bizarre imagination, peoples his stories with self-absorbed characters and isn't afraid to make the central hero a pessimistic boor. There has been science fiction comedy before this but Adams has earned the crown for the best Sci-Fi satirist, in my opinion at least.

This five-book trilogy revolves around Arthur Dent, supposedly a typical English loser. Poor Arthur gets thrown into one difficult situation after another, not because he is in any way special, but because his best friend, Ford Prefect, happens to be an alien reporter for the most popular book in the history of the universe, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy." Ford saves Arthur from Earth's immanent destruction, thus derailing Arthur's equilibrium. He doesn't regain his balance until four books later when he falls in love.

Adams is the modern day Oscar Wilde or P. G. Woodhouse. His dialogue is so witty and surprising, that when I first read these books it was impossible to hold in my laughter. And it's not just the occasional quip, sprinkled into an otherwise standard tale; the whole thing tends to build into a crescendo that is almost too funny to bear. I've read this series so many times I've almost memorised each word. Don't miss out on some of the funniest writing to be seen in the last 50 years.

This book discusses co-opetition, the act of competitors working together in a collaborative effort to increase the pie overall. Co-opetition is a hot topic right now with new competitor-to-competitor exchanges. If you are a game theory enthusiast, you'll be a big fan of this book.

This book gives a good background on co-opetition and on game theory and business strategies. The book starts off dry - but it starts getting really good after the first 30 pages.

This book applies game theory on business and does so extremely well. I think game theory is clearly the way to approach the subject of strategy, because regular "corporate" and "business" strategy literature seems only loosely connected to actual strategic thinking. Game theory, on the other hand, is an actual theory for thinking strategically. No-one should probably even refer to himself or herself as a strategist without being literate in game theory.

The authors do a wonderful job laying out the principles. They introduce and give a thorough treatment of the concept of complementarity ("making the pie grow"), which is bound to make you a better strategist. What I also liked in this book is the notion that the best way of increasing profits is often not to play the game well but to actually change how the game is played. Reading about this really gives your mind a jump-start.

PARTS refers to the strategic levers of a game, that is the dimensions across which the game of business can be analyzed and changed (to your advantage of course). The book is filled with case studies where the principles can be seen at work. Co-opetition is simply great value for money.

If, after reading this book, you feel like digging further into game theory (there's a good chance you will) I recommend Games of Strategy by Dixit, which is a superb introductory book.

Co-opetition debuted before the net arrived commercially, however it could easily have been written about today's hyper-speed corporate environment. (Many companies in the Dot-bomb dead-pool may have benefited from this kind of rational strategic thinking.) As the title indicates, the book is about competition and cooperation in the marketplace. Much of that discussed in the book stems from game theory, determining what moves to make in a game (or marketplace) based on the anticipated actions of the other players. The book presents numerous case studies from a variety of businesses. Each example provides a background of the competitive environment, the implications of different possible moves, and ultimately explains the results of each particular decision. It's a fantastic book, and contains valuable lessons for decision-makers in virtually any capacity.

Co-opetition is especially for those interested in game theory and business strategy. It brings to light the fact that no decision is made in isolation, and demonstrates that a win at all costs mentality is often not the most successful plan of action. Learn to analyze a situation, understand the scenarios that may result because of particular actions, move forward with a better understanding, and well thought out contingency plans for anticipated counter moves.

Having had a difficult couple of years since my son was born and my husband left me, I was living as a vegan on "autopilot" but no longer had that feeling of passion for the subject that I used to. In fact, when people asked why I don't use dairy products, I would mumble something vague, so lost in my other worries had my veganism become.

_The_Vegan_Sourcebook_ has got me feeling inspired again. In an intelligent, compassionate way, she neatly summarizes all of the problems with animal products--the cruelties done to the animals, the environmental devastation, the oppression of the human workers on factory farms and in slaughterhouses (a subject omitted from many other vegan books), and the damage to health. Not only does she discuss the negatives of animal products, she emphasizes the positives of veganism, with inspiring quotes from a diverse array of vegans which really humanize the vegan movement.

The nutrition section by Virginia Messina is positive but realistic, with all the information you need to plan a sound vegan diet for yourself and your family (though I would have prefered more emphasis on the importance of breastfeeding). This is a book that vegans will want to refer to again and again, and show to their nonvegan family members, friends, and health professionals.

When my wife and I decided to go vegetarian in early April, 2001, we really had no plans on cutting out all animal products from our diets (eggs, animal milk, dairy cheese, etc.), but after reading more than one of Joanne Stepaniak's books, we committed to the more extreme step just days after we became vegetarians.

Who is Joanne Stepaniak, you ask? After writing at least a half dozen excellent Vegan cookbooks, and now authoring this unique sourcebook (I don't think there are any such others), Stepaniak has become one of America's most famous and authoritative Vegans. And with good reason! This impressively comprehensive survey should be subtitled "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Veganism ... But Were Afraid to Ask" and it's an amazing and engrossing read for Vegans and non-Vegans alike; I should know -- when I started on Page 1 I was not a Vegan ... well before I finished the book, I was.

Stepaniak covers the entire gamut of Veganism from the elimination of animal flesh and products from our diet (for health reasons, for environmental reasons, for moral reasons) to the total elimination of animal byproducts in other areas of our lives. But Stepaniak is also a realist who repeatedly recognizes the futility of taking such an ethic too far -- and she continually reminds her readers to see the forest for the trees (a refreshing characteristic sadly lacking in similar literature). And never for a moment did I detect any aggressive proselytizing, any holier-than-thou attitude, unlike other books on similar topics. Stepaniak's greatest trait is her ability to balance compelling arguments with gentle compassion and understanding and this is evident on every page.

To anyone interested in improving life on this planet, including their own, I can't recommend this book more highly.

This book shows how beautiful sincere compassion can be.

As a vegan, I found this book to be most enlightening about aspects of veganism I had never understood—specifically zoos and circuses. I didn’t understand why they were wrong. How naïve I was! This book addressed this and many other questions I had in a thoughtful and lucid manner.

Joanne covers every aspect of vegan living, from clothing to household products to diet. If you have questions about being vegan, this is the book to read, and of course Being Vegan. Interspersed through the book are quotes from other vegans that serve as inspiration while reading through the tough parts of this book (i.e. those that explain how animals are treated.) I found these quotes to be very helpful.

Regardless of whether or not you are already vegan, compassion shines through every page of this book. I’d find it hard to believe anyone could still not be vegan after reading it. If you *are* vegan, this book will reinforce your faith (so to speak) and provide valuable information and delicious recipes (always a plus, right?)

And on another note, I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Joanne on the Grassroots Veganism site... and she is truly as beautiful as her writing makes her seem. If you have some time, come visit us there. It’s a fantastic atmosphere for new and old vegans alike. It’s inspiring.

This book will remain on my shelf indefinitely. It has enriched my life in ways I can’t begin to express here, and only other vegans can understand how much I mean this. I know my life will be better for having read this. How many books can *you* say that about?

And one last thing, I like how Joanne clarifies to the reading public that veganism is not a diet. Veganism is a lifestyle of compassion. Read this book and you will know why.

Buy it. Buy it now.

Thanks Joanne.