The kids in sweet Miss Nelson's class are rude and obnoxious, until a mean substitute replaces her. By the time Miss Nelson returns, they have learned to show their appreciation by behaving well. A great moral, certainly, but hardly sugar-coated: the children's misbehavior and the substitute's grouchiness are outrageous and delightful. This book is one of the most engaging I've ever read to my kids(ages 4-7)and a great success with my ADD child who normally has a hard time sitting through a story. It provides a great platform for inferencing and theory of mind work.

This was my favorite book in first grade. In this story, Miss Nelson's students in Room 207 took advantage of their sweet teacher. They threw spitballs, passed notes, flew paper airplanes, misbehaved during story time, and would not do their assignments. Miss Nelson had had enough so for weeks she dressed as a witch and called herself Miss Viola Swamp and treated the class badly. When she finally came back as herself, she wouldn't tell her class what had happened. And she noticed that thanks to her disguise, her class went from Being the worst behaved class in the school to being the best behaved class she had ever taught. We still quote this book all the time and love it a lot.--Robert Metz

Remember when Joni Mitchell told us "You don't know what you've got 'till its gone"? Well, even if you have never heard about the "Big Yellow Taxi" you will realize that this is exactly what the kids in Room 207 learn when their teacher Miss Nelson goes missing. This was the worst behaved class in school and no matter what Miss Nelson tried the class would not settle down, made faces, giggled, squirmed and refused to do their homework. When Miss Nelson does not come to school the next day, the children are all excited because they think that now they can REALLY act up. But it is the children who are in for a rude awakening when they meet their new teacher, Miss Viola Swamp, a woman in an ugly black dress. After a few hours with Miss Swamp, the kids decide that they really miss their old teacher and wonder what could have happened to her?

No parent ever wants to hear that their kids do not like their teacher, but then what teacher wants students who are rude? "Miss Nelson Is Missing," written by Harry Allard and illustrated by James Marshall, teaches children several valuable lessons about appropriate decorum in the classroom without the children recognizing that they are actually learning something reading this book. This book makes having a happy classroom with a pleasant teacher sound like a very good thing indeed. Which, of course, it is! However, I think you will discover that teachers will like this book every more so that children. There are at least two other adventures of Miss Nelson and Room 207 that I know about, plus you can also read this classic children's book in Spanish in "La Senorita Nelson Ha Desaparecido!"

This book has all the memory techniques that are typically taught in memory courses and other memory books. Even if they are sometimes introduced by other names, all of the techniques are variants and combinations of word-substitution (mostly used for foreign words, but also people's names and words that can't easily be pictured), link, peg, loci (sometimes called Roman Room technique) and phonetic (letter for number substitution) systems. The book is mostly re-hashed information that has been presented earlier (even by Lorayne himself), but the writing style makes it a book worth keeping.

The real strength of this book over others of its kind is the dialog between Lucas and Lorayne. They are fun to read and almost never get boring. There are anecdotes to at the beginning of most chapters and spread throughout the book.

Personally, I found Kenneth Higbee's "Your Memory" a better book, it's more complete a reference and gives much more of the why of memory rather than just the how of remembering. Depending on your needs, you might like this book more, it's got more examples on how to use the systems it introduces and is much lighter and a little less dry, although Higbee's book is very readable.

As with every other memory book, the techniques take time to learn and take considerable effort, but work very well. For a book on memory techniques, this book doesn't dissapoint.

Well, it was a very OLD edition of the memory book, cira 1976. But back in 1976 I did memorize the ENTIRE BRI bar exam course book, a huge outline of the law. No kidding, I could recite the entire outline, using a slight modification of Harry Lorraine's techniques. As a fellow law student said while I was giving a demonstration, "it's a trick!" Exactly, it is a trick. Memorizing doesn't help you UNDERSTAND what you are reciting. But you won't forget it, short term. The other caveat is, having memorized it, you do have to PRACTICE recalling it. Lorraine's techniques, at least circa 1976, didn't result in immediate storage into long-term memory. That requires recalling the information repeatedly. Also, the techniques themselves require practice, just as developing any other skill does. The work is only justified if you have a need to memorize a little data often, or a lot of data at least occasionally.

It's a fantastic book that will help you instantly to memorize all 50 states in alphabetical order or any number of items on a shopping list (even two days later). But be prepared to spend some time and effort until you will be able to make the system work for you for some "real-life" challenges like giving a speech, improving reading abilities, or memorize difficult vocabularies of a foreign language. If you make the decision to do so, the techniques described will add a lot of value in all areas of your life, especially for those who suffer from a poor memory. The text and the dialogues are written nicely, so it is actually fun to read. Also, the chapters are categorized into specific abilities, like name remembering, again, speeches, etc., which makes it easy to pick your own selection without reading the entire book.

In preparing our list of Christmas books to share with others, we had to search far and wide on amazon to find this particular book, a paperback edition of the classic Night Before Christmas.

This is the book I've used for years when reading this story to my own children, passing on Tasha Tudor and other illustrators. Why?

Although we can find the same poem and pay a lot more, with award winning illustrators, the illustrations provided by Douglas Gorsline are surely the best. They are quite colorful, and offer details little children love looking into...cats lie sleepily on the window sill, we see an overview of the town, the presents spilling from the open sack are intriguing and plentiful, and Jolly St. Nick is -- well, quite Jolly (as you can see by looking at the cover!)

The story is an "abridged version" - I'm not sure about other parents, but we read this on Christmas Eve, and we only have so much time and energy. Everything we remember from the classic poem by Clement Clarke Moore is in this version.

(From "'Twas the Night Before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse" to "He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of a thistle. But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,"HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!" In between we have everything, from the names of the eight tiny reindeer, to a belly that shakes like a bowl full of jelly, including dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, when they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky".

In other words, don't be scared off by 'abridged'!)

Perhaps a hardcover edition might be more appropriate if you're giving a gift (unless you're giving to more than one child), but this book is one of the best offers we've found!

A classic done simply and inexpensively!

I discovered this book 31 years ago, for my daughter and it is still loved by all the family. The illustrations are wonderful, warm, charming and delightful and bring a special meaning to the story. We still read it to all the young children on Christmas Eve and for adults we read the story and pass a grab bag gift every time the word THE is mentioned. It would not be Christmas without this book. It is magical.

We have an inexpensive paperback version (see our reviews) of this classic poem, and we said that's enough for us. That was before we looked through this beautifully illustrated (by Bruce Whatley) edition of The Night Before Christmas.

The lyrics are the same, from book to book, but the fanciful illustrations in this one are enough to engage adults and children as they read this book together.

The perfect gift for any family whose Christmas tradition includes reading this classic!

When I decided to give my 16 year old daughter a copy of HARRY POTTER AND THE SOCERER'S STONE for her 16th birthday, I had no idea that it would become our secret passion together! She looked at me weirdly as if I had lost my mind. A child's book mom? But I said to judge me after she had read it. Well, the rest is, as we say, history. Now, after reading the second book, we are falling over ourselves as we rush to purchase the third book. Now I have my employer, who is reading it with two of his children, ages 14 and 15,and he is getting his mother-in-law to read it. Additionally, all my co-workers want to borrow my copy! I shall have to tell them to purchase their own copies! J.K. Rowling has broken the intergenerational reading barrier in my opinion. Her creative plots and characters, her sense of humor and the poignant side of adolescence is absorbingly real and completely draws in all ages of readers into her double worlds of Muggles and Wizardry. I shouldn't be surprised to see a movie from these series of books in the future for family viewing!

In anticipation of Harry Potter, Book 4, I had to read the first three books again. What I was struck with, again, is the sheer imaginative nature of J.K. Rowling's books. Simply put, these books are instant classics.

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" is the third in the series following Harry Potter at Hogwart's school of wizardry. Harry is now a 13-year old (his birthday occurring at the beginning of the book), and concerned mostly with classes, Quidditch (a wizard sport), and the fact that he's not allowed to visit the local wizard village of Hogsmeade with his friends on the weekends. One of the reasons for this is that Sirius Black, a convicted murderer, has broken out of Azkaban, the wizard prison, and word has it that he's out to get Harry.

In keeping with Harry Potter tradition, the reader can expect surprises, twists and turns, malicious rivals, uncommonly kind professors, terrible relatives, amazing magic candy, true friendships, and a whiz-bang ending.

It's delightful to see how Rowling can stay true to the feel of the previous books, and yet allow Harry and friends to mature. This book is a little longer than the previous books, but the imagination never lets up, and gradually Harry's world is widening.

I would recommend this book to ANYONE (any age) who enjoys the writings of Roald Dahl, C.S. Lewis, Madeleine L'Engle, or J.R.R. Tolkien. This is a very fun, humourous, and enjoyable fantasy novel, and one that should be read more than once!

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is an exciting fairytale about a boy named Harry Potter. Harry grows up with his aunt and uncle on Privet Drive. He has never known his parents because the most feared and powerful wizard, Lord Voldimort, murdered them. As Harry grows up he receives a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. At Hogwarts Harry meets his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Ron is a red haired, freckled faced boy who wishes he could have a glimpse of Harry's fame and glory. While on the other hand Hermoine is a bushy brown haired, know-it-all girl who could answer any question you throw at her. As Harry progressed to his third year at Hogwarts he encounters many mysterious visits from a "Grim". Althought Harry isn't scared of the "Grim", he can't help feeling that he is being followed by it. Throughout this book Harry and his friends encounter many different obstacles dealing with death and putting their lives on the line with danger to save their schoolmates and their school. To find out what happens to Harry, Ron, and Hermione as they fallow the mysterious "Grim", you must read this exciting page-turner.
J.K. Rowling's style of writing differs from other books. She uses a gigantic variety of words and also adds in some British words to add style and character to her books. All of her exotic words describe the many different details about Hogwarts, what the different characters look like, what their expression is, and what they are doing. As you read this book you will find yourself imagining a film running through your head because of J.K. Rowling's use of colorful words.

Harry Potter thought he had a fairly normal life (aside from living with his aunt and uncle who hated him), but he was very wrong. On his 11th birthday he learned that he was a wizard and had been invited to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Suddenly, Harry is plunged into an entirely new world of magic. At Hogwarts Harry has friends for the first time in his life. Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are his best friends at the school and they are the ones who help Harry through all of his troubles. From the very beginning though, Harry is slightly aware of something strange going on at Hogwarts. Harry pieces together the mystery slowly throughout the school year in while he isn't busy working on schoolwork or Quidditch (a magical game played on broomsticks).
My favorite part about this book was the world that J.K. Rowling created. While it would have been easy for her to just set the story in a school where the kids learn magic, she didn't. Things like Diagon Alley, which is where all of the students go to get school supplies, allow her to add so much more to the magic world just through descriptions of things Harry sees. Quidditch also makes the world seem much more real.
I originally read this book because I needed a young adult book for class, but I ended up enjoying it far more than I thought I would. I can't remember the last time I actually read much outside of school, but after reading this book I read the other three and am now anxiously awaiting the fifth book. I would recommend this book to pretty much anyone. It's obvious that it was aimed at younger readers, but I found I enjoyed it as much at 17 as my sister did at 11.

While Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone doesn't really need yet another glowing review, I'm not going to let that fact stop me from reviewing a book I happen to love. I was a tad late catching Harry Potter fever, coming in about the time the first movie was released on DVD, but I'm now a quite devoted fan of J. K. Rowling and the magical stories she has given to us all, dazzling young and old alike in a manner quite unheard of before. Actually, I don't think I would have recognized Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as a children's book had I picked it up with no previous knowledge whatsoever about the phenomenon. It's a rip-roaring good story filled with amazingly lifelike characters set in a truly captivating setting. Harry Potter is, in a way, the ultimate underdog despite the fame he suddenly finds himself enjoying on the day of his eleventh birthday. Ron Weasley is the perfect sidekick, self-conscious of his family's modest means and forever moving along underneath the large shadows of his more successful older brothers. Then there is Hermione Granger, my favorite character in the Potter universe, a smart yet captivating know-it-all who eventually becomes the unlikely yet essential third member of Rowling's intrepid trio of heroic friends. All of the characters are rich and alive: Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall, the unforgettable Hagrid, the fearsome Snapes, the incorrigible Draco Malfoy, etc. This book is so compelling that I can't imagine ever forgetting even the most seemingly unimportant of characters.

If you enjoyed the movie but haven't actually read the original novel, you really owe it to yourself to pick up the book. The movie is amazingly faithful to Rowling's novel, with only a few rather minor changes, yet the book offers so much more to the Harry Potter story. For one thing, his life on Privet Drive with the Dursleys is actually much worse that it appears in the movie. The story behind Snapes' immediate dislike of Harry is told in these pages, as is Harry's first and highly significant meeting with Malfoy early on in Diagon Alley. It's really quite amazing to see how many little tidbits of future significance are scattered throughout this original story, giving one the impression that Rowling had a pretty clear vision of Potter's future in mind quite early on. Perhaps most importantly, the ending works so much better in the novel; the movie ending just seemed to lack a little something, but the book not only fills in some gaps, it describes a much more trying set of warding charms and traps Harry, with the help of Ron and Hermione, must pass through in order to save the day. Not only is this story enjoyable from start to finish, it is also both inspirational and educational. Children can learn a great deal from Harry Potter and the way he fights for good against evil no matter what the risks, remains forever loyal to his friends, and never gives up under the most trying of circumstances. Brave, noble, and true even at the worst of times, yet humble and shy in his moments of success and achievement, Harry Potter is truly a hero for the ages.

Harry Potter has lived a dismal life with his aunt and uncle, the Dursleys. He sleeps in a closet and has never had a birthday party or Christmas presents. Even worse, he has to endure life with his horrible spoiled cousin, Dudley. Then on Harry's eleventh birthday, things change when a letter arrives, (by owl), inviting him to attend the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Suddenly Harry finds himself among friends, learning about potion-making and magic-wand waving and broomstick riding. There're chocolate frogs and Every Flavor Beans and a three-headed dog and Quidditch-a game better than soccer. Also, Hagrid, a lovable gamekeeper who befriends Harry; Hermione Granger, a witch who's read all the school books and knows all the rules; and there's Ron Weasly, Harry's best friend who has quite a legacy of his own to fill. Hogwarts treats him well, even with the abomidable Malfoy's mean tricks or Professor Snape's obvious hatred of Harry. The soon Harry finds himself in the middle of a mystery at Hogwarts, and together with his two new friends, embarks on adventures he never dreamed possible.

The book is engaging with its imagery, humor, plot twists and real-life child problems. The book doesn't only appeal to children but adults as well. She's a master on fantasy. She really can, with no difficulty at all, think herself back to 11 years old. You will love the whimsical descriptions, humorous quotes and the fun characters.

Browsing through the internet, I found Harry the Dirty Dog. Harry was my favorite book as a child. I am 35 years old now, and I have rarely read anything that makes you feel this good. Harry is a great Dog. He made me feel loved, and I still like the way he hid his scrub brush under his favorite pillow. I still remember in vivid detail, the pictures of when he slid down the cole shoot and changed from a white dog with black spots to a black dog with white spots. I still love Harry. In fact, I'll stop by the local book store on my way home and buy my niece a new copy. ( Believe it or not, I have Harry the Dirty Dog packed with the rest of my old College Text Books ). I still love you Harry.

I love the Harry the Dirty Dog series! A great story for kids and adults who like to read a good children's book.

Harry is an adorable white dog with black spots (as is repeated throughout all of the Harry books)... and he's always getting dirty. His entire family loves him and he loves them right back. Even when he's dirty, Harry is still family... which makes a great parable for parents explaining to their children that while they may not be happy when their kids mess up, they are still loved nonetheless.

The illustrations of this happy dog frolicking around are absolutely precious. The story is endearing and I have my copy sitting on my coffee table.

I remember reading this book when I was in school and I always enjoyed it.

Harry takes off from his family, and gets so dirty they don't recognize him. He has a fun time around town, but when he realizes his family does not know him, he needs to have a bath to prove that he is their dog.

This is a cute story, which my 7 year old loves to read over and over. A five star read for kids of any age.

McCullough's intensively researched, thorough, and moving biography of Harry S. Truman is an accessible account of a president who is almost effaced by the times in which he lived. Remembered mostly (if at all) as a little gray man who fell somewhere between Roosevelt and Kennedy, Truman's accomplishments, failures and personality often fade into the background, against the likes of FDR, Churchill, Stalin, or even Joe McCarthy.

McCullough's biography captures the man who inserted a civil rights plank to the Democratic Party platform, risking his presidency, and splitting the party; who fought in WWI, married his childhood sweetheart, failed at business, then succeeded beyond his wildest imaginings at politics; and who, yes, dropped the only two atomic weapons ever used in warfare. McCullough presents Truman in all his contradictions, and his affable, easygoing style. I went and read _Truman_ because I had profound ambivalence towards him, and his actions as president. While this bio did little to clear up my ambivalence, it was expertly and cogently crafted, and I found myself personally liking the subject, even though still troubled by him. In this world with few saints, this is the best one could ask for in a comprehensive biography.

McCullough writes from his subject's corner--one can discern a genuine affection for the man in his pages. However, the author does an excellent job of presenting the evidence; of showing the reader that McCullough is a man of his craft; of demonstrating that, while "objective" history may be a myth (yes, certain things did happen, and others did not. What that MEANS, however, is up for constant debate), responsible history is not. Readers who detect bias in the biography are undoubtedly correct. The reason this is troublesome, though, is more that the author's bias does not agree with the reader's, rather than the sheer existence of bias itself. Not that this is necessarily a problem; it simply is the way of things.

The last few years have seen an upswing in the reputations of Republican presidents--the renaming of Washington National Airport, and Oliver Stone's laudatory biopic of Nixon being two examples that come immediately to mind--, while Democratic Presidents, such has Clinton and Kennedy have, sometimes deservedly, sometimes not, come under fire. _Truman_ comes as a breath of fresh air to one who is increasingly disturbed by the tenor of our national historical dialogue.

I recommend _Truman_ to anyone with an interest in the period or the man.

This book is without a doubt the best book I have ever read. McCullough covers everything from his life on the farm to his position in the Pendergast organiztion, to WW1, the Senate, Vice Presidency, and finally Presidency. There were five aspects about the book that I found most interesting:
1. The segments of the book concerning the Pendergast political machine. It was interesting to read about the power they held in Missouri and the relationship with Truman after he became President.
2. The whistle stop campaign of 1948, the election that nobody thought HT could win.
3. The relationship between Truman and his top advisors and cabinet members such as George Marshall and especially Dean Acheson.
4. The process of nominating a President and more specifically a Vice-President. This book tells you what takes place behind the scenes at the democratic national conventions of 44 and 48.
5. The Potsdam meeting between Churchill, Stalin, and HT.
If you want to read a book about American Politics, this is a good one. If you want to read a book about WWII after FDR this is a good one. And if you want to read a book about Harry Truman this is the one.

David McCullough's Pulitzer Prize winning biography "Truman" is undoubtedly the best Presidential biography I've read in recent years. Written in a graceful and powerfully eloquent style, it is meticulously researched, and accurately captures the essence of the man who was the 33rd President of the United States.

McCullough challenges a commonly held view of history that Harry S Truman was nothing more than a common man of mediocre abilities who became President almost by accident, and owed his political success to his loyalty to the Democratic party and the Kansas City political bosses. By tracing the life of this self-made man - a farmer, artillery captain during World War I, haberdasher, local politician, U.S. Senator, Vice President, and ultimately President of the United States - the author acquaints the reader with a highly intelligent, competent and complex man. Here is seen the highly principled politician whose ability to judge the character of others enabled him to select outstanding men like Dean Acheson and George Marshall to serve in his administration; a Chief Executive capable of making some of the most momentous decisions of the twentieth century, such as ordering the use of the atomic bomb against Japan in 1945, integrating the Armed Forces in 1948, and firing General Douglas MacArthur in 1951. But, here also is seen a man who remained loyal to personal friends and Democratic party bosses and tolerant of their often disreputable activities; and who, in a fit of petty anger, authored a threatening letter to a music critic who wrote unfavorably about his daughter.

"Truman" is above all a fair and balanced portrait of one of the most unique and greatest of American Presidents. In my view, this extraordinarily well written book is destined to be the biography of Harry S Truman against which all others will be measured. Highly recommended!

The great strength of Rowling's works is her conscious effort to never let the messages in her stories overshadow their readability and sense of fun. All books should first and foremost tell the story, and Rowling never forgets that. That said, her latest installment, The Goblet of Fire, takes us back to Hogwarts for another year of magic, danger and intrigue. This book is the pivotal part of Harry's seven year tale, and ends on a note that many readers may find unsatisfactory, as the issue of accountability and leadership in the Ministry of Magic comes to light.
Goblet of Fire reads on many levels; younger children will delight in the fast and inventive pace of the plot and storytelling, and older readers will find themselves waiting to see how the issue of Voldemort's true return and the Ministry of Magic's reaction are resolved or expanded in book five.

Don't be put off by this book's length! The newest Harry Potter book is fantastic, altough its plot remain similar to the last three installments. The first chapter, while dark and menacing, is excellent. The following 100 pages, however, are rather dull and may leave the reader regretting their purchase. Thankfully, the plot picks up quickly and soon you can't put it down. New additions like the Yule Ball and the Triwizard Tournament keep things interesting, but I couldn't help noticing how alike the outlines of the series' books are. The pattern for every plot goes like this: Harry gets rescued from his uncle's house by Ron, Harry goes to Hogwarts, Harry meets new Dark Arts teacher, Harry fights in climax, Harry discovers DA teacher's mysterious secret, Harry goes home. This isn't nessecarily a bad thing, but it could get tiresome by the next book. Nevertheless, if you liked the last books, or haven't read any of them, you won't want to miss this. J.K. Rowling's references to everyday life such as her thoughts against racism and the troubles of the poor add to the storyline. Anyone who takes the time to read through its 750-plus pages will find themselves satisfied (and surprised!) upon finishing it. And a final word: If you haven't read the last three books, don't start with this one. It gives away all of those books' best secrets.

J.K. Rowling has hit another home run with her fourth instalment of the Muggle confined wizard Harry Potter in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." In this book, our young hero is 14 years old and on his way back to Hogwarts School of Withcraft and Wizardry to the great company of his two best friends Hermione Granger (played by Emma Watson in the movie) and Ron Weasly (Rupert Grint). But before anything that might be construed as boring and anything that will cause learing in our heros, they must first go the biggest sporting event in the wizarding world: The Quidditch World Cup. Dark things are going down right at that time though, which everybody except the villian Lord Voldemort and his faithfull servent Peter "Wormtail" Pettigrew are not knowing of.

This book as everything that a loyal Potter fan and even somebody who hasn't read one can enjoy: adelescent angst at the schools Yule Ball, a sleazy reporter and magic up the wazzoo. Making a very welll plased return in this book as Harry's godfather is Sirius Black who made his debut in the third book, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban."

The tone and tempo of the series so far has gone flawlessly. The first book is very inoccent and fancyfree, the second one dwells deeper into the darker portions of the characters lives, the third one steps outside of Hogworts and the fourth one takes all three of the themes and crams them together. Most people that I have talked to have said that it is too long, but I think that is what makes it great; the things that happen can't be contained in a 350 page book. The end will make you feel like your watching a reunion on a TV show and waiting to see the rest of the cast join the main character. Mentioned in the essential hospital scene is none other than former Dark Arts teacher Remus Lupin and a name that you might recognize: Arabella Figg.

What makes the Harry Potter series much more entertaining than the Lord of the Rings trilogy is that Harry and his friends do more than wonder around and look for a magic ring and actually interact and participate in things that are fun, but also be in periliss danger.

Althought this book is much darker (The Death Eaters) it still has a sense of goodness in it that manifests itself perfectly in his godfathers extreme loyalty to Harry. "Goblet" is the Wizard of Oz of our time and is not only a childrens fantasy novel but also a great detective story and such a fast read that you will want to read it again and again and again.

This is the second book by Dickens I have read so far, but it will not be the last. "Bleak House" is long, tightly plotted, wonderfully descriptive, and full of memorable characters. Dickens has written a vast story centered on the Jarndyce inheritance, and masterly manages the switches between third person omniscient narrator and first person limited narrator. His main character Esther never quite convinces me of her all-around goodness, but the novel is so well-written that I just took Esther as she was described and ran along with the story. In this book a poor boy (Jo) will be literally chased from places of refuge and thus provide Dickens with one of his most powerful ways to indict a system that was particularly cruel to children. Mr. Skimpole, pretending not to be interested in money; Mr. Jarndyce, generous and good; Richard, stupid and blind; the memorable Dedlocks, and My Lady Dedlock's secret being uncovered by the sinister Mr. Tulkinghorn; Mrs. Jellyby and her telescopic philanthropy; the Ironmaster described in Chapter 28, presenting quite a different view of industralization than that shown by Dickens in his next work, "Hard Times." Here is a veritable cosmos of people, neighbors, friends, enemies, lovers, rivals, sinners, and saints, and Dickens proves himself a true master at describing their lives and the environment they dwell in. There are landmark chapters: Chapter One must be the best description of a dismal city under attack by dismal weather and tightly tied by perfectly dismal laws, where the Lord Chancellor sits eternally in Lincoln's Inn Hall. Chapter 32 has one of the eeriest scenes ever written, with suspicious smoke, greasy and reeking, as a prelude to a grisly discovery. Chapter 47 is when Jo cannot "move along" anymore. This Norton Critical is perhaps the best edition of "Bleak House" so far: the footnotes help a lot, and the two Introductions are key to understanding the Law system at the time the action takes place, plus Dickens' interest in this particular topic. To round everything off, read also the criticism of our contemporaries, as well as that of Dickens' time. "Bleak House" is a long, complex novel that opens a window for us to another world. It is never boring and, appearances to the contrary, is not bleak. Enjoy.

After years without picking up a novel by Dickens (memories of starchy classes at school), I decided to plunge into "Bleak House", a novel that had been sitting on my bookshelf for about ten years, waiting to be read. Although I found it heavy going at first, mainly because the style is so unfamiliar to modern readers, after about ten pages I was swept up and carried off, unable to put the hefty tome down until I had finished it. This book is a definite classic. The sheer scope of the tale, the wit of the satire (which could still be applied to many legal proceedings today) and the believable characters gripped me up until the magnificent conclusion. One particularly striking thing is the "cinematic" aspect of certain chapters as they switch between different angles, building up to a pitch that leaves the reader breathless. I can't recommend "Bleak House" too highly. And I won't wait so long before reading more Dickens novels.

"There is little to be satisfied in reading this book"?? I couldn't disagree more. Bleak House left a profound impression on me, and was so utterly satisfying a reading experience that I wanted it never to end. I've read it twice over the years and look forward to reading it again. Definitely my favorite novel.

I don't know what the previous reviewer's demands are when reading a novel, but mine are these: the story must create its world - whatever and wherever that world might be - and make me BELIEVE it. If the novelist cannot create that world in my mind, and convince me of its truths, they've wasted my time (style doesn't matter - it can be clean and spare like Orwell or verbose like Dickens, because any style can work in the hands of someone who knows how to use it). Many novels fail this test, but Bleak House is not one of them.

Bleak House succeeds in creating a wonderfully dark and complex spider web of a world. On the surface it's unfamiliar: Victorian London and the court of Chancery - obviously no one alive today knows that world first hand. And yet as you read it you know it to be real: the deviousness, the longing, the secrets, the bureaucracy, the overblown egos, the unfairness of it all. Wait a minute... could that be because all those things still exist today?

But it's not all doom and gloom. It also has Dickens's many shades of humor: silliness, word play, comic dialogue, preposterous characters with mocking names, and of course a constant satirical edge. It also has anger and passion and tenderness.

I will grant one thing: if you don't love reading enough to get into the flow of Dickens's sentences, you'll probably feel like the previous reviewer that "...it goes on and on, in interminable detail and description...". It's a different dance rhythm folks, but well worth getting used to. If you have to, work your way up to it. Don't start with a biggie like Bleak House, start with one of his wonderful short pieces such as A Christmas Carol.

Dickens was a gifted storyteller and Bleak House is his masterpiece. If you love to dive into a book, read and enjoy this gem!

'Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets' is the second book in the seven part series of stories concerning a young wizard (Potter), and his life at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, where he learns about his heritage, and continues to grow into a decent young man of magic. He is once again accompanied by his best friends, Ron and Hermione, and all the familiar wizard professors are back to scold the students for "breaking the rules". The story is very much a mystery, as someone (or something) has re-opened the dreaded Chamber of Secrets, and evil is afoot. It's up to Harry, Ron, and Hermione to get to the bottom of things and uncover the culprit, before Hogwarts is closed forever.

Though it may be unfair to do so, I can't help but compare this book to the first in the series, 'The Sorcerer's Stone'. I was somewhat sedate concerning the array of characters in this book, compared to the last one. Perhaps that is because most of the characters were returning ones, and the ones who *were* new were usually bad guys (or creatures). The mystery kept me intrigued until the rather convoluted revelation at the end, which explained too much for its own good. Upon the book's end, looking back, there were some parts of the plot which didn't quite make as much sense as they should, and even some characters (and scenes) which seemed unneccessary.

All that said, the story was still *very* enthralling, was written well, and had me captivated from beginning to end. I love the world which J.K. Rowling has created, and look forward to visiting it again. We should have more writers as talented as her.

For those readers who have not read the first Harry book, "The Sorceror's Stone", I advise you to read my review of it as a more general review of the Harry Potter series as a whole. Anyway, although I enjoyed the first Harry Potter novel immensely, I think that "Chamber of Secrets" is even better. Since readers who have journeyed this far with Harry and his friends already are familiar with Ron, Hermione, Dudley, Malfoy, and the rest of J.K. Rowling's delightful characters, this installment focuses on developing their personalities further. We see some of the characters start to change. Who would have thought that Hermione Granger, the goody-two-shoes, would actually devise a plan that broke more rules than any they had done before? We learn why Hagrid got expelled from Hogwarts, and we see Draco Malfoy evolve from a schoolyard bully to a real menace. We also meet Malfoy's sinister father, Dobby the house elf, and the hapless Gilderoy Lockhart. "Chamber of Secrets" is a little darker, a little more complex, and a little more satisfying than "Sorceror's Stone." The plot is more sophisticated, and a bit like an Agatha Christie mystery. Remember that unpredictable plot twist at the end of the first Potter book? There are more here, and they get even more bizarre. For every question answered in this book, many more troubling ones come up in its place, until the climax when everything fits together in typical Rowling fashion. It is very rare that a sequel live up to the expectations of fans, especially with something as popular as Harry Potter. However, "Chamber of Secrets" does just that. (I gave it four stars instead of five only so that someone would read my review.) And I really, really want a flying car.

A review by Andrew
Harry, Hermione and Ron were trying to find out about the chamber of secrets all book and then they find that it has been opened. And the monster was out and petrifying all the muggle-born kids. Harry finds that he can sort of scar the snake away by yelling at it in passel mouth. Then all the kids think that he is the heir to Slytherin. This makes a lot of kids scared and mad.

Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets is an exciting and fitting sequel to Book I. I think that J.K. did a great job of developing the plot and characters. If in Book 1 I felt Harry's emotions, here in Book 2 I ended up caring for Harry and his friends. I found some of the characters annoying and ridiculous (Lockhart & Dobby), they nevertheless paved the way to bring out Harry's best qualities. While Lockhart prided himself with his fame, charm and good looks, Harry has proven himself humble and not at all hungry for fame and publicity. Dobby, the house-elf who tried to keep Harry away from Hogwarts failed because of Harry's determination to go back, and was even more determined to stay upon learning of the threat against the lives of the Muggle-borns. The events that happened to Harry and his friends has proven once again that Harry is not just a wizard, but also a compassionate and self-sacrificing individual who will go to great lengths in saving another person's life. And although he was suspected to be the Heir of Slytherin because he is a 'passel tongue', it nevertheless showed that his inherent goodness has the power to outweigh whatever qualities Voldemort passed on to him on their first encounter where he ended up with the lightning scar.

I recommend this book for all. I thought that this book was great, I enjoyed it greatly. I plan to read the rest, and others should too.