Tommy and his little brother want to buy a big special marble from a tough kid down the street. But first, they need to find out how to get the money - without trying to sell mom's prize roses! His brother and he find a snake and try to make a trade with that. Several episodes fill the hunt to get such an exciting marble. Each episode is its own chapter and seems to end with Tommy getting into trouble.

A nice introduction to chapter books, because the chapters are kept short. Furthermore, kids can relate to Tommy's adventures because the logic he uses is common for 9 year olds. This book is a slight departure from Fletcher's usual intermediate novels but is none the less enjoyable.

Why 4 stars?:
I liked this book from a teacher's standpoint because of its value as an introductory chapter book and realistic characters (something found in all of Fletcher's books), however, I didn't find the story to be very interesting. This could keep kids from continuing in it and getting a negative feeling about chapter books. Still, most children will still enjoy it and so it does belong in a classroom. It is already in mine.

This book is a beginning reader with very few words. To the critical eye of an adult, the book can easily be grouped with books of few words which offer little to the young reader.

I have had this book in my classroom collections as a K and 1st grade teacher for several years. It is a book which remains out all year because the children are driven to the subject, simplicity and illustrations. A good buy!

Just finished reading John Wright's book called "Traveling the High Way Home: Ralph Stanley and the World of Traditional Bluegrass Music."It was published in 1993 by the University of Illinois press. I think all of you would enjoy this interesting look into Ralph Stanley's world and should add this book to your library. The book is not a personal biography. Rather, it starts with one chapter of biographical information, but the bulk of the book is testimony from people in Stanley's world to provide a portrait of him. Most of these transcribed statements are from interviews that John Wright conducted in the mid-80s. I enjoyed reading these insider views from musicians, record company executives, promoters, producers, and fans. This oral history compilation includes statements, in their own words, from individuals like J.E. Mainer, Ruby Rakes Eubanks, George Shuffler, Melvin Goins, Larry Sparks, Curly Ray Cline, Jack Cooke, Dick Freeland, Junior Blankenship, Charlie Sizemore and many others.

I personally would have liked the author to further research and explore Ralph and Carter's upbringing and life. Reading all of the interviews is another approach to gain an insight into Stanley's life, but it does require the reader to assimilate a large quantity of information and draw their own conclusions.

After reading this book, my basic conclusions are pretty much what I already knew: that Ralph Stanley is a man of much integrity and high ideals who adheres to the code of the mountains. His own interview in Chapter 5 of the book is actually a composite of material from eight interviews conducted by various people between 1966-1987. This chapter should be required reading for everyone involved in bluegrass music.

The subtitle of this book ("Traveling the High Way Home") is based on a classic Molly O'Day song which Wright feels could "easily serve as a theme song for Ralph Stanley, personally as well as artistically." This book paints a picture of Ralph Stanley as a man who is an astute and confident professional, who "holds himself up and respects the music." Stanley is still presenting his art, which he calls "the old-time style of what they call bluegrass music." Wright's book is an important and fascinating look at the man and his old-time style. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)

I could not put this book down! I finished it in about 2 days, and lost sleep because I couldn't stop reading! In addition to the great narrative about his experiences on the cattle drive, Ralph added quite a bit of history about the area. This book could sell you on trying a cattle drive for yourself.

A very helpful book. Parts of it contain more details than I wanted to know about specific detailed applications of the decision-making techniques to government and industry. However, I did enjoy the parts where Keeney describes how he uses the techniques in his personal life. Particularly amusing and informative are the parts where he talks about how he and his wife decided what to name their baby, and how he decided not to get tested for colon cancer and spent the time playing squash instead.

A superb book full of kind words and amazing insight. Ralph Bandini spins a reel of good times with this old classic as he takes us on an adventure that only a man of fishing under his harness can weive. I recommend this book to an angler who is looking forward to getting a good deal of knowladge about tuna, broadbills, and the oh-so-dreaded feel of defeat, while diving into the saltry passion of victory.

This book is just an introductory text to image compression. The algorithms are not illustrated in a detailed fashion, but they provide the reader with a good overview. The MPEG section is well developed and the few pages dealing with wavelets give you an idea of the way the subject should be approached.

Good coffee table style book on antique farm tractors. Covers all major manufactures and a chapter on orphans. Shows a good range of tractors for each make, but not the full line or history. Great color pictures. Above average for this style of general book on antique tractors.

Ralph is a dynamic speaker and writer. This book helps teachersof all ages and subjects to tackle the complicated issues ofwriting. He is able to engage the reader with humor and wit, something technical books ever do. I read this book in a day! Another wonderful piece by him is: What A Writer Needs.

Wellsprings For Wisdom is a truly enlightening book to read for all ages. It uses storytelling as a method of processing thoughts that often seem difficult to explain. The topics range from life, religion, loyalty, family, to everyday common sense. A down to earth book you'll never stop talking about.