"The Blue Faience Hippopotamus" is one of the most beautiful books I've ever read, a story for both children and adults. The writing is top notch, featuring what is almost a "hero's quest" for children, ending with an exquisite example of unselfishness and the true gift of love and life. While similar in many ways to "The Velveteen Rabbit," it is neither an imitator nor an homage; I cry each time I read the story. In addition to the excellent writing are the illustrations, featuring beautifully crafted images which bring the tale to life while utilizing numerous historically accurate artistic motifs of the ancient Egyptians. Although this book is currently out of print, I believe that a story of such lovliness should be reissued to entertain and enlighten those fortunate enough to read "The Blue Faience Hippopotamus."

Miss Marple is attending a dinner party at the Bantrys' with 3 other guests this evening: Sir Henry Clithering, retired Comissioner of Scotland Yard; Jane Helier, the actress; and Doctor Lloyd. (Sir Henry, as the Bantrys' houseguest, asked that she be invited, having met her the previous year.) Each of the six dinner guests tells a story during the course of the evening, some mystery to which he or she knows the answer, and the listeners attempt to work out the solution. (Miss Marple wins every time, and baffles the others when she tells her own story.) Only 4 of the six stories appear in this recording, an excellent narration by Joan Hickson (who gave the best performances I've ever seen as Miss Marple). The final pair can be found on her narration of _The Herb of Death and Other Stories_.

"The Blue Geranium" - Colonel Bantry doesn't believe in ghosts, which is why this story worries him so much; Mrs. Bantry invited Miss Marple at Sir Henry's request, partly because she'll be thankful to see the question settled, if possible. One of the Bantry's friends was married to a complaining invalid, who went in for spiritualism. Then a new medium gave her a prophecy: "Never have blue flowers! The blue primrose, warning; the blue hollyhock, danger; the blue geranium, death." And so it came to pass...or did it?

"The Four Suspects" - Sir Henry, before his retirement, undertook to have Dr. Rosen protected from the German secret society he had exposed to the police, but ultimately the society had identified him as a spy, and somehow passed a message to one of the four people in his household who must have killed him. It can't be proved as murder; just an old man falling downstairs. But Sir Henry is troubled, because one of the suspects - the secretary - was one of his own men, put there for safety. How did the society pass the kill order to the assassin in the isolated country house?

"The Companion" - Dr. Lloyd's story is a remembrance of his days in the Canary Islands. He remembers a night when he met a beautiful Spanish dancer, and a pair of bland, ordinary, English ladies seeing the world, and being completely mistaken in thinking who would have adventures. The key to this mystery is a point that Christie used in at least 1 other Marple story and one of her novels, incidentally.

"The Christmas Tragedy" - Sir Henry protests on behalf of the downtrodden males, since none of the ladies has yet told a story, so Miss Marple takes up the gauntlet. But since she's telling it, the story has a different emphasis than usual. When she first met the young couple, she was convinced that the husband meant to kill his wife for her money, and tried everything she could to prevent it, but in the end, Gladys died. But how did he do it?

The Blue Mother centers around the recollections of two brothers. Man, are these two screwed up fellas! Benno is a mentally ill basket case who's institutionalized for an attempted suicide due to several bizarre homosexual encounters. His brother Raf may be more intelligently aware, but he's a psycological basket-case as well as alcoholic & marital cheat. The book has a soap opera-like theme to it, but Kihlman is a brilliant writer and the novel is hallucinatorily surreal. Here's another amazing writer virtually unknown to American readers & it's a shame. He's a genius.

Gilles de Rais is probably an unfamiliar name to most, but he was a lieutenant of Joan of Arc's. They fought closely together but after she was executed, well, he became one of history's first serial murderers. He killed up to 200 children in horrible ways--Dahmer and Bundy have nothing on Gilles de Rais. Wolf writes very well, and tries to understand the psychology of such a character. De Rais was contradictory--murder for him was a way to reach God, or the Devil, or something divine and not of this world. Wolf is an expert on horror & Gothic lit. Well-researched & more readable than others on de Rais. If you're one of those people who think movie & tv violence instigate horrible acts, just remember Gilles de Rais. He wasn't wasn't watching no Oliver Stone movie, that's for sure.

This is a guidebook full of practical theory and examples of real-life situations Directors encounter with staff in day care centers. It is my model for implementing change - great or small - and for evaluating myself as an administrator and my staff for their yearly review. Excellent book!

The Boo and Baa books are a delight! They have that incredible Scandinavian quality (think Ingmar Bergman) of restrained dignity. My children love Boo and Baa at Sea especially, for its sense of play. Each Hemingway-esque one liner is bound to bring a laugh. A great learn-to-read book.

This book is a must for both the potential and actual owners of the Akita. Joan McDonald Brearley has given the reader an enormous amount of information most valuble to the understanding of the breed. From puppyhood to adulthood one can see the progression of a small "teddybear" face puppy to the most regal of all canine faces. Changes not only to the physical aspects but to the mental attitude of the adult dog. This is disgussed thru out the book. She also has supplied the reader a much larger than normal amount of photographs of high quality.This in my mind, is most valuable if one is to compare for breeding stocks, types from other countries, and or just for the pleasure of viewing such beautiful animals. After ten years of owning this book I still am unable to refrain from looking at it if not for the written information or maybe the photographs alone. The author has provided a wonderful service to both the Akita breed and their owners/admires by sharing her knowledge with us.

This book is another must have for those who are dedicated maltese dog fanciers and/or show people. The book contains a wonderful history of the maltese dog, as well as prominent kennel names, etc. Get this book if you can!

I thought that the book was great. It gave me a better understanding of the breed. It also helped me with the choosing of my puppy (a Chinese shar-pei). Thanks amazon.com for having a book on the breed in which I have been trying to find out more information about.

This remains the only book on Boulez's life. He was not one to give-up personal details on his life, he said so to a reviewer arrongantly when he was newly appointed music director of the New York Philharmonic. Peyser had access to rehearsals,dinners,lunches and insider trades and gossip, and all that is here, but also we find Boulez at work, the conductor and composer, a rehearsal schedule in included here ;when he looked for an apartment or an eye doctor appointment. Peyser is not a creative person so the sorry side of the book is that it remains as an outsider looking in, for Boulez's creative secrets are not revealed simply from hanging around him as she did. No you need to have studied the Boulez aesthetic, where it comes from, from the roots of modernity, Mallarme, Paul Klee, Schoenberg and recently Francis Bacon.Those books do exist and excellent one by Dominic Jameux, and there are a few on specific aspects of the Boulez aesthetic, (harmony Lev Koblyakov, one on Mallarme,another on conducting,Jean Vermeil) I still enjoy re-reading this work, Peyser knows how to tell a good story, how to pick at details of the everyday, the excitement of creating and conversing.