This is the book to buy for little kids of all ages. The story is so sweet, the words so engaging, the illustrations and the colors so vivid and soothing at the same time. I'm delivering yet another copy to the smartest three-year-old I know in just a little while, and I can already imagine Nick holding this book and reading it to one of his kids. It's a classic, it's a work of art, it's a very wonderful teaching tool, but, best of all, it's got heart, and what more can you hope to show kids? Take a bow, Kel.

"I Bought a Baby Chicken" is a cute story and a subtle counting book. During a family trip to the general store, the narrator sees a little chick and decides to buy it. Her sister picks up two black chicks, her dad likes three striped ones, and before you know it, the whole family - cousins, grandparents, great-grandparents - has gone cuckoo for chickens. "I guess my family's lucky that I didn't want a cow," concludes the narrator, who'd better hope her family doesn't suddenly develop a hankering for friend chicken or buffalo wings. Karen Stormer Brooks' google-eyed illustrations are as silly as the story. (by Claire Martin).

This little counting book in charming verse by Kelly Milner Halls is exactly the sort of thing to brighten up a child's day or your own. Kelly gives the little story gentle excitement which will stimulate a child and charm an adult. It is the kind of little morsel I would want to grace a coffee table forever. I also thought the illustrations unusual and darling.

Many will ask just what can one do with a counting book, but Kelly has managed to do something new while staying within comfortable and familiar bounds.

My new favourite cookbook, and I haven't even tried out the recipes yet! Everything about this book seems so fresh even though the graphics are items that are over 50 years old. The copy is vividly written, just reading the recipes makes you want to throw on an apron and get grillin! The titles of recipes are fabulous, such as "Slab o' Fun Barbequed Meat Loaf" and "Cheesy-Drippin, Garlic Fumin' St. Louis Salad" and the recipes are equally creative. I love how they take classics and give them a twist! There is not a single recipe in this book that I expect to find in any other cookbook. Even if the recipes didn't look delicious and interesting I would still want this book. It's a wonderful reference for the 50's kitsch collecter...all kinds of bbq items and pictures illustrate each page, all appropriately chosen. The graphics add so much! This is a gem of a book! I can't wait to display this wonderful conversation peice on my chrome bakers rack in my retro kitchen and have my friends over for a classic patio party!

Being an excellent cook myself, I read cookbooks more for ideas than anything else. This book not only gave me lots of ideas, it brought back memories of my Mother's cooking. Also, it wasn't filled with a lot of endless, useless, chatter.

This book has incredible graphics - 50's style. I've stood it up on my counter and everyone who comes over says, "Patio DaddyO!" Unfortunately, it hasn't inspired my husband to take over the tongs. Ah well. This makes a great gift for any BBQ'er or yourself - especially if you're into the 50's/ early 60's style of anything. Worth the low price and more.

This is such a fun book, plus it has some great summer recipes (easy, too!)! It's even just a "fun" read for us "babyboomers", takes us back to the good old backyard bbq days with the family!

"Highballs High Heels" is what it says: a smart, witty cocktail guide for girls (and the authors mean anyone female, not just the young 'uns). I own this book and "Atomic Cocktails" by the same writers, and both are terrific, but "Highballs" is funkier and less basic, though still very easy to use. "Highballs" is not exclusively for women, but then, neither is "When Harry Met Sally"- it's just unlikely that men will have the same appreciation for these that we do. With recipes like Minivan Mom Meltdown Mixer and Shirley Temple's Evil Twin, these recipes are as much fun to read as they are to make. The graphics are so cool that it practically qualifies as a coffee-table book. "Highballs in High Heels" is now the first book I grab when I have the yen for a cocktail- you really can't go wrong.

OK so maybe I like to wear high heels every once in a while, but that's not the only reason why I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The simple and articulate writing, the flow of the layout from page to page and the tasteful vintage-like illustrations makes this book a really great gift or just to own for yourself.

Here are a few reasons why I love this book.

#1 It looks a lot cooler than having the Sports Illustrated (Swim Suit edition) laying around.
#2 It shows that I am sensitive to certain women's issues.
#3 I finally learned how to make a decent drink.
#4 It impressed all my gay friends as well as my female friends and left all my buddies wondering (gotta love that!)
#5 It shows how I can be in touch my feminine side.

Highballs High Heels is for everyone to anyone.
A beautiful book with a very practical nature.
Do not let the title fool you.

Before I read this book the complicated art of mixing drinks simply made my head spin. All those gadgets and gizmos, LORDY. Now I have it all...a career and the ability to please a house full of freeloaders while wearing heels and burning my bra.

This book is a fun way to be able to address the issue of sibling rivalry. Michelle writes in a way that makes it enjoyable to read with your children. You will definitely laugh when you read how a big brother comes up with a creative way to get rid of his pesky little sister. This would make a great gift for an older sibling when a new baby arrives!

Michelle Adams made me laugh. Then she made me laugh again and again as I moved quickly through this delightful story about a loving brother and his "bothersome" little sister.

With four brothers, I've been there. Most likely so has everyone else who grew up in a house with one or more siblings. That's what makes "Sister for Sale" such a special little tale. It's true, it's real, and it's funny.

Michelle writes in a simple, rhythmic fashion that helps you glide through this story and never miss a beat. The facial expressions in the illustrations are priceless!

I loved this little book. So did my wife, and 13-year-old son.

Sister for sale. How about a brother for free?

I give Sister for Sale a 5 star rating. I really enjoyed reading the book even tho it was a children's book. I would recomend this book to any parent for their child. I read it as soon as I recieved it. It is written so any child may understand it.
Louise Meadows

I think this book is fab! i now own both of the first 2 books in the dream hair series and totally love them. this is a book with credibility, like kevyn's makeup books. the dream hair books have tips galore and cute side line storys for the 4 girls in the book. amazing pictures and advice even down to vitamin supplments to help better care for your hair (well, maybe that's in the city hair book... so buy them both!) i'm obsessed with beauty books but will only buy the good ones, these are definitely worth it

I don't cook a lot of fancy, labor-intensive food. I like being imaginative and speedy in the kitchen, and I usually figure I don't need a book that is going to have me go through 40 steps just to cook a pice of chicken. But despite my wariness of cookbooks, I now own all of Karen Brooks' (and her different partners') food and cocktail books. I never thought I'd be such a fan of...cookbooks? Yup. "Dressed to Grill" is as fun to read as it is to use. When it comes to barbecue, women have traditionally taken the roles of preparing side dishes and smiling as they chew charred pieces of red meat. Well, this book makes tending the flames extremely accessible to women, from the basic how-to's and the tips on buying grills to the de-emphasis on meat (and a great low-fat chapter). The snappy writing and graphics that are the trademark of Ms. Brooks' books are present again here. Just broke up with a guy? Look in the "Bonfire of the Miseries" breakup chapter for recipes like Jerk Chicken with Grilled Bananas, Who's Sari Now?, and Chauvinist Pig (all delicious recipes). And for the absolute best version of a classic: Forget Caesar: A Bang-up Cleopatra Salad. The recipe for Campy S'Mores Sundae with toasted marshmallows is super-easy, tasty, and what the authors call "An urban girl's idea of a Girl Scout campfire dessert experience."

Whether you're cooking for one, entertaining friends, or trying to give a guy some tactful advice on how to take barbecue to a whole new level (tell him to try the Hot Girls Spice Rub - the recipe, not a spot in the red-light district) you should own this book. Yeah, being so effusive about a cookbook may seem weird, but only until you read this one.

"The Magic Box: When Parents Can't Be There To Tuck You In," by Marty Sederman and Seymour Epstein (Magination Press/American Psychological Association, 2003, 32 pages. Ages: 3-7. Paperback,...) When children are faced with a parent's overnight absence, they can be frightened, angry or unhappy. Here's book that shows how families can cope with absences and even have fun with them.

It tells the story of Casey, whose father announces he has to leave town for work again. "Oh no! Don't go!" Casey pleads. Dad explains that although he misses Casey, he simply has to travel sometimes for work. Then he challenges Casey to plan what the two can do together when he's gone. The next day, Mom helps Casey locate where Dad is on a map, and, when he's particularly blue, she surprises Casey with a glittery magic box Dad left for him. The box is filled with hugs and kisses and new markers, the note says. Casey feels much better and decides to make a surprise for Daddy, too.

"The Magic Box" includes a note to parents by clinical psychologist Ann Rasmussen, who explains how temporary absences can actually be positive learning experiences when children find ways to plan for the absence, stay connected to the traveling parent and look forward to the reunion. Such skills, she says, will help kids later in life.

Although the traveling parent in "The Magic Box" is the father, this book may also help families where the mother must be out of town at times for work.

---Sonja Meyer...

In this busy and fast paced world we live in, it is becoming more difficult to keep family members connected. It is especially difficult if a parent has a job which requires a lot of traveling. Children often do not realize why a parent has to leave so often. This book provides a wonderful way for traveling parents to stay connected to the daily lives of their children. It also gives the child the knowledge that even when dad is not at home he is thinking of him.

Magic for children who miss their travelling parents!
At last a book that reaches out to children facing issues of parental separation of any kind!
I am a professional child-care provider and the mother of a four-year old. Some of the children that I read this book to have parents that are gone for weeks or days. For others, the parents are just out for the evening. But all the children who hear this book, including my son, identify with Casey and Whittnie and are comforted by the story. They are also captivated by the illustrations and are inspired to make magic boxes of their own.

Parents and teaches will find the "Notes to Parents" at the end of the book very helpful.
This book is a must for every home and school library. Definitely five stars.

Kimberly Thayer

I am a 3rd grade teacher. I used this book in my class to introduce the topic of deafness and how helpful pets can be. This is a touching story that is both informative and funny. I loved it and so did the kids!

My aunt Gloria wrote this book about my cousin Elana. It's a true story, down to the name of the dog, Lacey. It was was very cute and funny. I hope everyone out there can read it and enjoy it, even if it doesn't relate to them personally. :)

Well written and beautifully illustrated children's book. My children and I both enjoy this sweet story!

Remember when swing was king, '57 Chevies ate up the road, and I Love Lucy premiered on the tube?? Why just remember the 50's, when you can relive them? Reading Atomic Cocktails: Mixed Drinks for Modern Times, is like peeking through a looking glass into the Atomic age. With drinks like Neon Watermelon Margarita and Rocket Man surrounded by vintage ads and paraphernalia, you can't help but go retro. So cue up Old Blue Eyes, and turn up the night with this collection of classic cocktails.

A fun and tasty look at the kitschy side of cocktails pleasantly put together and easy to look at. I bought this book and Hollywood Cocktails which looks at cocktails through the silver screen. Why have just one cocktail when you can have more?

Atomic Cocktails is a great book if you are interested in mixing up some potent potables, but you can find a thousand other books that give you the same information. What separates this book from the pack is the retro-packaging. Done up in a kitschy, campy style, the book harkens back to the lounge lizard days of the 50's & 60's. The book honors the time when drinking a martini was the height of cool and does the fine art of mixing drinks proud.

Pond Life is like a general biology introduction to life found in ponds. All types of life are covered, albeit in very brief introductions. Plants and animals (microscopic to mammals to birds) each receive tertiary coverage. The book does not get into specifics on how wetlands function relation to other ecosystems, and such coverage would have been useful, but the overall emphasis is still relevant.

The book is likely not intended to be read from cover to cover, as it is a field guide. Field guides are really meant to be brought along in a pocket for easy reference when making field identifications. In this respect, I am a big fan of other field guides in the series.

This volume and its companions should be readily available at nature centers, but the price is low enough for people to purchase it for their own libraries. What it lacks in detail it makes up for in compactness and readability.

Golden Guides are often described as books for children just discovering the natural world. While the series is eminently usable by young naturalists, Golden Guides are solid introductory field guides. One of the strengths of "Pond Life" is its comprehensive scope covering everything from protozoa to plants to mammals. Indeed, it provides more good basic information on identifying types of water plants than any other source I know complete with measurements and color illustrations. The same applies to its coverage of invertebrates as well, though the minor objection of the previous reviewer concerning its scanty treatment of protozoa is a valid one. I would add to the strength of "Pond Life" its portability, which packs a plethora of information into a small package. Another weakness (of the Golden Guides in general) is its datedness to the 1950's and 60's. This does not affect its basic science in most cases, though it is strange (albeit nostalgic for some) to see the equipment suggested for pond watching.

E.O. Wilson, in his beautiful and brilliant autobiography, has stated that if he could live his life again, he would do so as a microbiologist who would dedicate himself to the study of a single tree and the area immediately surrounding it. He would investigate the organisms and the ecology of that small space, finding enough there to occupy his interest for a lifetime of exploration and research.

Given the same choice, I would choose a pond as my area of study, and this book would be one of the first field guides I would use. It is a basic introduction to the study of small bodies of fresh water: their defining characteristics, the forms they take through the seasons, the cycle of their lives, and the distinct forms they take throughout the United States. It also touches on the physical and chemical characteristics of water, and the importance these have for the organisms that live in or near the pond. The book introduces the concept of food webs and the multiple habitats of lakes and ponds, and also lists and describes some of the basic collecting tools of the limnologist (one who studies bodies of fresh water). The majority of the book is dedicated to the plants and animals which are frequently found near ponds. As one would expect, the emphasis is on how these organisms relate to the others in this environment, whether they are full or part time denizens, and in what types of ponds they can be found. More than merely a book about creatures found in ponds, it presents information about the pond itself and how its many inhabitants and visitors relate to one another there.

The book has two small weaknesses. The first is a slight bias towards organisms found only east of the Mississippi. There is enough information about ponds in general, however, to make this guide useful for any budding limnologist. The second flaw is that the sections on the protozoa and other microscopic organisms are far too short, but as a protozoologist I am perhaps biased. Still, I think that even a few more pages would have added to the value of this section by demonstrating the amazing complexity of these phyla.

As it is, however, the book functions admirably as an introduction to the study of ponds: it will lead beginners into the natural world, and to help them identify what they find there. It is suited for older children and adolescents, and will still be of some use at the college level, if only because it includes a list of more technical reference books. I recommend it for anyone who wants to "take the plunge" into the study of this fascinating environment!