This was one bizarre and funny book. I liked the way Alice was messed up but she didn't try to be something she wasn't. Some people might not like that she didn't try harder to fit in and be so-called normal, but I thought she was great and I loved her family. The whole book was totally hilarious!

What a delightful read Susan Juby's book "Alice, I Think" is. Young readers will be able to identify but so will their parents. Susan has captured the somewhat difficult teenage years with a refreshing sense of humour. What a gifted writer to make us identify so strongly but want to laugh also and all without using foul language. I look forward to her next book. Edith MacKay, Smithers, B. C.

The whole time I was reading Susan Juby's Alice, I Think I was transported into a mind and life that was so compelling and funny I never wanted to stop. It was so true to my own experiences as a teenaged girl that I really identified with Alice, her screwy but lovable family, and the bizarre assortment of locals in Smithers, BC. I was so tired of reading all the usual books in the local and school libraries that I took a chance on this one, and I can't wait for more from Ms. Juby. I highly recommend this to readers of all ages as one of the funniest, most charming books you'll ever have the pleasure of experiencing.

Every recipe in this book is very good. Most (almost all) recipes are very easy to make and looks like you worked a long time on them. The Pesto Mold on page 20 is easy to make and everyone will ask for the recipe. The sausage snacks on page 30 are a nice change to meatballs. Pesto tortilla snacks are very easy and great tasting also. The pumpkin chocolate chip muffins and fruity muffins make great gifts around the holidays. The Parmesan Caesar salad is a salad a I make all the time. All the potato dishes are great tasting; the squash casserole is the best I have every had. The sweet potatoes are great (even if you don't like sweet potatoes. I could go on. This cookbook has a nice feature with the children's section. I have used this book so much and bought so many as gifts.

This is a wonderful book. It is full of great recipes that are not only good, but easy to prepare. I highly recommend it!

I have tried many of the recipes in this book and like 99% of them, so do my family and my friends. My favorites include; Frogmore Pickled Shrimp, Swamp Chili, Okra and Tomatoes, Pasta with Shrimp, Lemon and tomoatoes and many more than I should probably list. The book is well laid out (easy to follow), ingredients are easy to find and the serving suggestion are on target. Try this book. You'll like it.

I wish that more things in life came with a nice, compact, informative manual. :-) I recommend this book to those just beginning their adventure into green teas and also for those who enjoy green tea but don't really know much about finer greens. It starts out by covering the absolute basics like what tea is, how to appreciate it, potential health benefits, brewing basics, etc. I really liked her descriptions of how to brew in a cup/mug, teapot and guywan. Also, she's spot on with infusion baskets. Tea balls or clamp spoons are terrible and she doesn't mind saying so! She then moves on to explore some of the world's most enjoyed green teas from "Gen Mai Cha" to "Yin Hao". She does an excellent job of explaining what to look for in each tea, how to brew them and infuses her personal experiences to further broaden understanding. And, not one to leave it at that, she also talks about tea bags, what to do with spent leaves and liquor, using tea as dye and tosses in some green tea recipes that sound fantastic. I put this book on the shelf right alongside the classic "Tea Companion" by Pettigrew and "The Book of Green Tea" by Rosen. Happy tea drinking!

Good, practical advice. Helen even lists green tea by brand name and tells you how to brew each one differently so that each tea's finest qualities are brought out. Read this book and you will be a "green tea expert" in no time.

Part encyclopedic, part anecdotal, The Green Tea User's Manual has something for everyone. The author writes from personal experience at both ends of the spectrum, which makes for a fascinating way to read a wealth of information. Anyone who enjoys green tea (or black, for that matter) will thoroughly enjoy this little gem.

This set of articles, written in the early 1990s, is even more relevant today than when they were first written. In contrast to the George Bush the elder's boast that the US was leading us all into a "New World Order" of peace and prosperity, the perspective here is a sober and realistic one: the US is leading the world toward economic depression, a renewal of fascist movements, and if the working class does not take power, World War III. This assessment was based on a series of events, including the gigantic stock market crash of 1987. Preventing World War III, and all that would accompany it, is the challenge facing working people around the world and we need to organize NOW to make sure this is not our future. In light of this, this issue of New International includes an extremely informative article on Cuba, which shows that despite the "Special Period" they were living through, without aid from the Soviet Union, the Cubans were still fighting for a socialist society and because they refused to bow down to capitalist America, they continued to be a thorn in the side of the US. All of this is even more true today, as the stock market bubble of the 1990s has now decisively burst. And what is most striking today is how the jockeying for position heading into the war with Iraq is showing just what this article said: that competition between "allies" within NATO would sharpen. Just look at all the anti-French and German propaganda going around right now and you'll see just how accurate this set of articles was and still is today.

This book explains the meaning of the 1987 New York stock market crash and its repercussions; the "Special Period" (term used in Cuba for the economic crisis caused by the collapse in trade with the former USSR and Eastern Bloc, the tightening of the U.S. trade embargo, and the revolution's own admitted errors); the struggle against Stalinism and the "pockets of capitalism" in Cuba, led by the Cuban Communist Party and the revolutionary government; and why the Cuban revolution is still an inspiration for working people all over the world. The march led by Yanqui-U.S. imperialism, in the first place, toward fascism and world war, against its allies/imperialist rivals, against the post-capitalist economic foundations which survive in the workers states ( ex-USSR, Eastern Europe, China, etc.) and against the workers and farmers the world over, including those in the imperialist countries, is explained as well. Finally, this book points out that there is only one road forward for the resistance to this barbarous future: to follow the example of the Bolshevik revolution and the example of the Cuban revolution, applied to the specific conditions of each country, which is both possible and necessary even in the imperialist countries, the U.S. included. Above all, this book is a message of hope and scientific confidence in the workers and farmers of the whole world, based on the experience of the militants who are building the beginnings of a revolutionary workers party in the belly of the Imperial Beast.

This 1994 volume takes up the long-term economic crisis of capitalism and how it drives the U.S. rulers toward more severe conflicts with their international rivals, and toward a showdown with workers and farmers at home. It explains the rise of fascist perspectives, such as those of Patrick Buchanan and Jean-Marie Le Pen, as the inevitable product of the social crisis that is unfolding. And it describes the increasing use of military force to defend the interests of U.S. capitalism as the result of the needs of a declining empire, not just as the choice of certain politicians.

i am the granddaughter of molly bannakey. my mother, alpha collins, her mother, lillian borror kenney, and her mother dessie marie lett. my great grandmother, dessie, was mulato, the daughter of perry lett, the son of samuel lett, husband of jermima benneker, sister of bejamin benneker. this makes bejamin my uncle. anyone can imagine my surprise when my grandma kenney spilled the beans !! she did so by giving me a copy of this book along with many documents pertaining to our family tree. all of my life i was told and claimed italian. after learning of my true heritage, i cannot tell you how pleased i am to discover that not only were my people proud, but hard working, and true heroes !!! there are many, many more exciting things about my heritage that i am anxious to share with everyone i know, and what a thrill to see that many people everywhere are interested in the past shared by myself and the rest of my grandmothers direct descendants.

You know that a picture book is truly a GOOD book when you are reading it and enjoying it as a teenager! I noticed this picture book in my younger brother's collection, and was instantly drawn to the startlingly good picture on the book cover. Curious to see who this Molly Bannaky was, I opened the book and began to read her story. WOW!! Molly is truly amazing. She begins life as a milkmaid in 17th century England, and after accidently spilling the milk one day, she is accused of stealing it. Molly escapes the death penalty by being able to read the Bible (law in England at the time), but instead is sent as an indentured servant to America. After seven years of work, she finally claim land of her own. And Molly doesn't stop there-she buys a slave just to free him, marries him, and becomes Benjamin Bannaker's grandmother!

The story isn't the only thing that's great here. The illustrations really are breathtaking and you will find yourself simply sitting and looking at them. Soentpiet has captured the feeling of England and colonial America within these pages; the large size format makes the illustrations even more special.

The story is simple enough for young readers, yet fascinating enough for anyone to enjoy. The illustrations are timeless-what more could you want?

I think Chris Soenpiet's work was OUTSTANDING! The pictures nearly come to life. Molly Bannaky is one example. It was marvelous!!! The pictures were excellent and the writing was outstanding! That award was meant to be there. I like to read this book every night! My favorite part was when Molly Bannaky went on the boat to America.

I have recently posted a number of reviews of the Dunns' books on
Teaching and Learning Styles. Here we have a different approach based
on temperaments and personality differences. The Myers-Briggs Type
Indicator (MBTI) and its developments by David Keirsey serve as the
basis for the whole framework. It is best to first do the MBTI test,
or the Keirsey's 2 brief tests, freely accessible on the Internet
(also in the book, Please Understand Me). There are already numerous
good books on MBTI. Here the authors make excellent applications to
education. After describing in depth different types in school
contexts, you get a useful summary in Table 12, of 4 basic groups of
student preferences: Guardian, Artisan, Idealist and Rational. Ch. 12
gives many classroom techniques and a summary chart that help teachers
to be more aware of what they can do to match the personality and
learning style differences of the students. Overall, this book is a
great help for making teaching and learning more fruitful when we
understand and respect the students' uniqueness and differences in
personality.

This is an EXCELLENT book! If you are familiar with the MBTI it will be very helpful. If not, it may be a bit overwheliming. It is in detail and the authors give practical uses of the information. It is presented in a very factual, tell it like it is form. If you have liked "Please Understand Me" and other MBTI type books, you will like this. Well layed out, but more charts would have been useful to compare and contrast the different styles quickly. Have already used the information for a quick start with a difficult charter school class. Great Buy! Worth the money!

What an interesting concept! Anyone who has completed the Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory and who now knows his/her "letters" will find this book riveting. The authors help you understand the connection between your "letters" (ISTP, ENTJ,etc.) and your teaching personality--your strengths and weaknesses. Then they describe how your personality meshes or doesn't mesh with your students who may be your opposite in personality traits. Eureka! Suddenly you understand why that shy 10th grader never speaks but writes brilliant essays. I found this approach to learning about and practicing the art of teaching fresh and innovative. Bravo!

"Genius of the World" by Alice Lichtenstein

This first novel is beautifully written. The author uses language with sensitivity and precision to capture the many subtle nuances of experience that influence the lives of her main characters as they develop over a period of nearly twenty years. The story itself is deeply personal, primarily concerned with the reactions of various family members to the complex life of Ira, a dearly loved son, brother, and grandson, as he wanders on the fringes of their own well-honed middle-class sensibilities. While the author assumes the voice and vision of various characters in different chapters, it seems that each voice, except that of the sister Phoebe, is really Phoebe's impression of what the world must look like from the unique perspective of each of the others. This approach is not without merit or interest for the reader, but it does limit the range of vision and insight that might have otherwise been possible as each character is revealed. The problem is that Phoebe herself is searching for the truth, or at least a version of the truth that will work for her, but she has not come close to finding it. She is inclined to try to piggy-back on the answers discovered by her admired big brother Ira, but what works for him, to her grave disappointment, does not seem to work well for her. Even her own, and hence the reader's, understanding of what makes Ira tick, is very limited and superficial. As a reader, I often wanted more of Ira's world view than could reasonably be inferred from the vantage point of his younger sister. The author has attempted to give us more, I think, but the fullness with which Ira's character might have been fleshed out is never adequately realized. In a similar fashion, one senses that other, less major characters, like the mother, the father, and the Nobel Prize winning grandfather, may also be extraordinary in their own different ways. If they are possible sources of inspiration or wisdom, or even of alternate interpretations of meaning or of reality, however, the reader is not given sufficient information with which to ferret out such potential treasures. If these are criticisms of the book, they are not of what has been done or said, all of which are superb, but rather a lament, a reader's longing for more. It is a tribute to the author's talent, that more is wanted, and a hope and expectation that future works will more fully satisfy a reader's hunger for insight and closure.

With compassion and wisdom, Alice Lichtenstein takes us through the minds and into the hearts of her people, from Ira the boy genius to his Nobel Prize winning grandfather, from Phoebe whose love for her brother is unbearably passionate to their mother Eileen, a woman terrified by her children's fury and desire. THE GENIUS OF THE WORLD is a shattering story told with astonishing insight and redemptive clarity. This bold novel is a journey of the body and the spirit. Lichtenstein takes us from Princeton, New Jersey to the coast of California, from a family's Jewish history into a rebellious boy's mysterious conversion to Buddhism. Their story is so tender, so fully felt and fiercely imagined, I couldn't help thinking that the writer must have lived some part of her life with the soul of each one of her characters inside her.

This novel is rich, moving, beautiful. the aithor has a remarkably light touch painting complex, difficult and compelling characters....so, the experience of reading the book has stayed with me as have the characters themselves.

This is a clear, amusing and readable account of how Joan Darrah went from being a volunteer leader to become the mayor of Stockton, CA. Her engaging style makes it seem both doable and worthwhile. She recounts how much she was able to do by diplomacy and persuasion to dramatically reduce crime in the city and to take control of the city's development away from the developers and give it back to the people. Inspiring. And she is so likable. You end up feeling as though you have just had a good talk with a fine mentor. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone concerned about civic affairs.

Women working in the political arena, whether as politicians, activists, or in a myriad of other areas, struggle with finding traveled paths relevant to their goals. What Joan Darrah has ratified is that our desires to be agents for positive change in our communities are worthy and that a path has been traveled. GETTING POLITICAL - STORIES OF A WOMAN MAYOR recounts her experiences as Mayor of Stockton, CA that led to a resurgence of community pride in her city and tremendous personal growth for herself. Darrah's book is a candid, intimate, and inspiring look at a woman successfully putting herself "out there." The community Joan speaks of is 250,000 but the experiences of a woman leading are universal to all that have chosen to put their foot forward. A must read for women that have been there and those that want to go.

Joan Darrah presents us with a remarkable testament of one strong woman's effort to change the political terrain of a community of 250,000, Stockton California. She succeeds.

Why wasn't there a book forty years ago when I was in college like this book? It is a real political primer, one which in real life stories, detail the evolution of a woman from a non-profit type leader to a shrewd politician.

Episode after episode detail the daunting challenges of Stockton in the nineties: the drowning of several children by the out of control Calaveras River, the disastrous designation of Stockton by FEMA as being in a flood plain--it could have been an economic calamity for Stockton, and the tragic shooting of a property owner and a policman in a drug raid.

Nothing could probably overshadow the horror of the lone gunman who shot to death several students at their school. How does a relative newcomer handle such awesome challenges? Joan Darrah does and jumps back and forth successfully from being the loving caretaker to the shrewd politician.

One incident, however, enfolds into a huge drama with the mayor pitted against powerful gambling interests as well as the city council. Her move to get the entire community to vote and drive the gambling interests out of town, is nothing short of exciting.

The style of the book moves you along. If a detail here or there doesn't appeal, right away you will find yourself in the middle of new and even more absorbing story.

And you are learning. This story could be the story of just about any modern city in this country with a multitude of challenges. And the book tells us how Mayor Darrah's wonderful patience and courage change things for the better.

There is the colorful story at the end of the book of how ships brought men from San Francisco, bound for the hills during the Gold Rush, right into the deep water port of Stockton, where they disembarked and set off by horse or mule into the foot hills.

Joan Darrah is the first person in a half century of efforts to successfully launch the re-vitalization of this downtown area.

If the facts don't fascinate at times, then the biographical aspects of the book will have appeal. A determined girl, promoted by a high energy dad and a loving mom, Joan presents us right away with a young person with much promise. Yet, in retrospect, Joan's marriage to a fifth generation attorney from a prominent Stockton family might have been the best choice to nail down her long term possibilities of a political career.

Linking with the right people is demonstrated over and over, and Joan's affirming these persons' special contributions is a clear key to a politician's success.

In a further bigraphical vein, Joan must be incredibly proud of her high achieving three children. They are contributors in the best possible sense of the term. Joan combines the best aspects of being a mom and wife with the conviction of being the best possible mayor.

I love this book! It was the first book on organization I ever purchased, and I wouldn't be without it. It makes the awesome task of decluttering your entire home very manageable. The process is broken into easy steps, and once you get going, you can't believe you lived with clutter all your life prior to buying this book. I've read many other books, but this one is one of the best. I do have one caution. The first time I read the book, and went through the process, I followed every "rule." Basically, their motto is, "Get rid of everything you don't use, like, have room for, need or want." I got rid of binoculars (because I hadn't used them up to that point), a set of ivory dominoes (that I didn't know were ivory, until after I sold them,--because I didn't play dominoes), an antique 1 cent NYC parking meter (because it was my husbands before we got married, and we lived in a small apartment, and I had know emotional attachment to it, etc. So there are some things you keep, just because, even if you don't need them or think you don't have room.

This book was a huge help. They help you to look at EVERY area of your home. The book is laid out very simple and you can skip over the chapters that don't pertain to your own home. They did offer some advice that I don't agree with (I don't agree with getting rid of EVERYTHING) and the idea of hanging drawstring bags on the inside of every closet door?? (I think that sounds a little tacky.) But, other than that this book is a quick read, which is helpful so you can get started right away! I defintly recommend this book to anyone trying to get organized!

I've read many books on how to organize, how to declutter, etc. but have found none to be as straight forward and helpful as this one. The authors do not spend too much time trying to entertain, they teach. Perhaps there are many others out there who are not messy as much as they are overwhelmed with where to put stuff. This book helps!

Caught in the middle of war. That's a pretty good discription of Mary's situation. Mary's Father is a die heart Tory,(he's loyal to the king of England, that is) witch poses a problem, seeing as her 18 year old brother, William, is a Patriot. On the night of the Peal's ball, which they have been preparing for since page one, Mary discovers an unexpected suprise in the shed... This story deals with alot of emotional subjects: :loyalty, family pride, the deep love of sister for brother, and, no matter how stubborn both might be, father for son. I thought what Mary's father did near the end was great. It brings to mind the old phrase: Actions Speak Louder Then Words. My love of history made me want to try this, and I'm very glad I did.

I Loved this book!!!!

As the daughter of a wealthy loyalist couple during the British occupation of Philadelphia in 1777, twelve-year-old Mary lives a life filled with luxury. But all is not right with her family - her older brother, William, is a patriot who ran away to join Washington's army. Because of this, William was disowned, and Marry hasn't heard from him since then. But now, on the eve of a ball hosted by her parents for British officers, Mary discovers William lying wounded in the shed. Mary must get help for her brother and hide him from her parents and the officers. This was an excellant story that showed how the Revolution tore a family apart, and how a brave, loyal young girl strives to bring them back together.

This is the best book ever. I am intending to read more of the series. What surprised me is it takes place in one day!!! Kathleen Duey is a great writer. I think her best will always be American Diaries: Mary Alice Peale / 1777.