If not this is the book for you. It has hundreds of rhymes and tunes. Many I haven't seen in any other book of rhymes. Long lost and seldom heard rhymes, alternative verses and tunes are all included. My copy was lent to me to find a tune and I have to buy me own copy now as the Childcare wants it BACK!!!

This will help you sing to your child and entertain them for hours and hours.

These days my two and a half year old is unquenchable in his thirst for song requests all day long that I need a wide repertoire of songs. He will catch sight of just any item, speak its name and expect me to sing it off my head just like that. Imagine my delight when "This Little Puffin" sort of dropped onto my lap - it has just about every song, familiar and those not so, best of all it comes with short, simple words and melodies, and lots of repetition for little minds and ears to latch on to. And wonder of wonders, I know my son has been listening cos he is starting to serenade me right back. Need I say more about this book other than it is paying off - with dividends!

This book is a good, brief source for the information found in L.M. Montgomery's journals. Mario Rubio and Elizabeth Waterson edit the "Selected Journals of L.M. Montgomery" series so they definitely know their subject! This book is ideal for anyone who doesn't want to read all four journal volumes, or who has read all four journals but wants even more information.

The authors also, I believe, have access to the original, hand-written volumes of all of LMM's journals. This means they know what's in LMM's final journal, volume 5, which may not be published for some time as some people she wrote about are still living. But they were able to include other details of LMM's life after 1935, which alone makes it worthwhile.

Writing a life: L.M. Montgomery is written by two extremely well documented authors. Very brief, this biography gives you an overall idea of L.M. Montgomery's life, ideas and writing. A must read!

The most enlightening discussion of Catholic social teaching that I have come across to date, this book is fully characterized by its subtitle, "Paradigms in Conflict." The subtitle captures the author's essential insight, namely, that Catholic social teaching from Leo XIII to John Paul II is informed by incompatible paradigms of economic analysis, which, moreover, entail conflicting social imperatives.

According to the author, three paradigms of economic analysis inform Catholic social teaching--organic social theory, the orthodox or neoclassical model, and the radical social model. Simplifying, they may be represented in their ideological origins by St. Thomas Aquinas, Adam Smith, and Karl Marx, respectively.

Organic social theory is built on the feudal vision of society as a body wherein different parts work together in harmony, so that this theory assumes the divine institution of hierarchy and the practicability of noblesse oblige. This model is the most persistent in Catholic social teaching.

Although this social model has served the Church well for centuries, conflicts, very powerful, inherent in the capitalist political economy of the nineteenth century compelled the Church to come to grips with two principal ideologies--classical economics and Marxism--prescribing divergent imperatives for dealing with unprecedented social realities.

Classical economics and its progeny assume the necessity of giving free play to market forces in bringing about economic benefits in society. Marxism and its children, in contrast, concentrate on the structural analysis of social relations and seek dialectical change in social structures.

Briefly, Catholic social teaching is self-contradictory when it endorses capitalist dynamics while at the same time it conducts structural critique, advocating systemic reform, all for the purpose of achieving feudal ideals of social justice. Catholic social teaching is conflictive, for example, when, on the one hand, with Leo XIII it affirms the right to private property as intrinsic to the natural law, while on the other hand, with Paul VI it criticizes structural injustice in international economic relations, of which the right to private property, now transformed in its very nature by capitalism global in magnitude, is an intransigent accomplice.

In surfacing occult contradictions, the book is valuable. But I seriously wonder whether the various paradigms are indeed incompatible. At some higher or more comprehensive level of understanding they may be consistent with each other, in much the same way that quantum and gravity theory work for the description of matter at varying levels of granularity, so that a unified quantum gravity theory has even been constructed.

Another valuable contribution of this book is that it helpfully places Catholic social teaching at different points of the ideological spectrum, showing, for example, how with Leo XIII and Pius XI, the Church staked its position on the right, with John XXIII and Paul VI it moved considerably to the left, and with John Paul II it has unmistakably settled on the right again.

The author concludes by arguing for the Church to take a position on the left, adopting a consistent paradigm of structural analysis and structural change. Her argument appended at the end is not altogether convincing in its brevity.

One visible weakness of the book is that it adopts a deeply philosophical approach to economics to the neglect of scientific understanding. But this weakness is understandable. After all, the author builds on her background in Catholic social teaching, which flows from a philosophical rather than scientific tradition.

This book is not an easy read. It assumes understanding of the original magisterial documents and discusses them at a rather high level of abstraction. But for anyone who cares deeply about how the Church addresses worldwide problems of poverty and injustice, it's well worth the effort.

No one is prepared when the doctor looks at you after examining your child and his/her demeanor gives away the news: your child is seriously ill. Everything changes. What was a normal day becomes a vacuum that keeps you and your family prisoner while the rest of the world continues to move, breathe and enjoy life.

You feel you're suffocating as well meaning people throw words like "I know how you feel" at you when they can't possibly know how you feel. You vacillate between wanting to scream or disappear, finding that it's a dream and your family is intact. But it isn't a dream, and it won't go away. And though you shout "THIS ISN'T FAIR," and it isn't, nothing changes.

As two mothers who are also nurses, the authors readily admit their medical backgrounds are not necessarily an asset when your child is the subject of chronic illness. They take you through the experiences shared by any parent who finds that in a few seconds, their future and that of their child has been forever altered by the ravages of the disease.

There are implications for the family, and especially those for the caregivers and the siblings. Hoekstra and Bradford draw upon their strong Christian faith to answer in part the questions "Why?" and "Why me?" Their practical advice coupled with their spiritual insights make this a MUST READ for the parents of chronically ill children.

As a grandparent of a child born with severe heart problems, the book was a wonderful find. It's been given away nearly a dozen times -- to parents of a child with a fast growing tumor; to parents sitting in the neonatal unit of a children's hospital; to a pastor who often finds himself counseling heartbroken parents who need answers.

The final result will depend on the outcome of each story, but for this reader, the encouragement given by these mothers provided a way to endure the days of shock, frustration and discouragement. The sun is bring again, not because the circumstances have changed, but because the perspective has sharpened, thanks to Bradford and Hoekstra.

This academic tome is the best introduction to the many delights of the famed Cloisters Museum in upper Mahattan.

Thoughtful and scholarly articles by leading authorities on medieval art make for wonderful reading for the medieval art scholar or serious enthusiast.

This book is special. The author has a real knack for writing children's stories. The storyline is a very original idea. I recommend this book to everyone.

This is a great study of the roles of women in early modern Spain. Normally, books of this nature focus on women of the nobility or elite classes. However, Perry takes an indepth look at such women as prostitutes and healers. The author also incorporates many personal stories reconstructed from a variety of sources such as court records or Inquisitional records. This is definitely a book for all with the care the author has taken in presenting a "readable" account.

Who doesn't love those period movies with the wonderful costumes and romantic plots? After I saw "Elizabeth", I found this book on a shelf at my mother's house and loved learning about this powerful woman who ruled England when women weren't "allowed" to do much of anything. I happened to rent "Queen Margot" (French language movie w/subtitles) and that helped make the Elizabethan time more vivid. The book was written in a narrative form; not as a history book but as an amazing story. I only put it down to feed my toddlers or sleep (or so it seemed). Ms. Luke held my rapt attention throughout each chapter. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in finding out more about probably the most amazing woman who ever lived.

I did not use this book while teaching my child to read. This book requires the child and the teacher to learn a complex system of notation. More than just learning the different sounds letters can make together, this book requires you to number, actually write out and memorize a number, for each letter than can be sounded out in more than one way. So the words you learn to write, spell, and read are diagramed with numbers. It's very complex. I would not even attempt to teach my child using this system. It seems very frustrating. This program also requires the child to be able to write everything that is to be read. My child is beginning to read well and enjoys practicing writing, but he is not required to write the word before he can progress in his reading. I recommend instead Phonics Pathways by Dolores Hiskes and the excellent starter books by Nora Gaydos in the Now I'm Reading series.

We have tried several reading programs, but this is by far the best. Your child will learn handwriting, phonics, spelling, and most of all, reading! After just a few months of using the program my children's reading took off. My first grader can read on a fourth grade level, and my third grader can read on a sixth grade level. Do not confuse this all new book with its predecessor (4th edition). This book is twice the size of the old version and includes step by step instructions for implementing the program as intended by its creator, Romalda Spalding. You can't beat the price either. Other guide books exist to use with the WRTR, but it would be a waste of your money to purchase them. Stick with the original and best! I can't say enough good things about this program. If you're looking for an effective and lasting program to teach your children to read (and spell and write), do yourself a favor and purchase The Writing Road to Reading.

I strongly recommend the Writing Road to Reading (5th edition). It is a godsend for anyone helping a non reader of any age. It is a tremendous asset to home schooling parents. The Writing Road to Reading is a total Language Arts program. The 5th edition has simple instructions for implemetation. There isn't another Language Arts program on the market which is as comprehensive. The Writing Road to Reading begins with the fundamentals of handwriting and phonics and proceeds through spelling, grammar, reading and comprehension. It is modestly priced. The simple paper back book will serve generations. For those who want to understand the reasoning behind the instruction, there is great chapter on current research (Chapter 4-Theoretical Foundations).