This book came in the nick of time. Sometimes I thought I knew what was going on in the market, but I didn't understand why. Other times I was clueless. I gained practical insight into how to approach investments, including a better understanding of the whys behind investment decisions.

Victoria Collins' latest book is for the investor needing crucial information about the high-tech market. Because of the global economy this book is relevant for the present as well as the future. Collins has indeed created a valuable guide.

This book is so Victoria Collins! It adds yet another precious new-comer to my books of online wisdom. Reading though the pages tells more and more about the real world of online business. How the Internet has changed things forever. It's just like listening to a preacher who only talks about wise things. There is always another side in the day-to-day life of e-businessmen, and in the today's media, unfortunately we are only told about the up-side. Victoria so passionately tells us about where and when caution is as important as ambition. How to weigh factors in the winds on change. Why there are more to the Internet business than what's already there. And last but not the least, how it can be really the best tool a businessman could ever wish for if he only knew how to work it out.

You can feel a warm voice whispering in the screaming world of the Web. Holding the map to an uncharted territory. Showing us the way in the mid of shear forces pushing us back and forth, left and right. When you'll read Invest Beyond.com, you can easily tell the person who wrote this book is equipped with so much knowledge, expertise and courage to talk about what's beyond this still-mysterious phenomena to most of people. As if she has this overview that we are all missing. Above doubts and speculations. Enter the reality of living online every single day. Sail to the other shore confidently and wisely. It takes a thousand words to draw one picture, and it takes many years and effort to picture those scenes of the "Internet back-stage" - if you like! Easy plain language, suitable for highly professional people the same way as to others. If you are about to invest some money on your Internet gear, don't miss Invest Beyond.com, the book. It would prove that it's beyond it's value.

I loved this book. I read it before I gave it to my daughter. It is a fictional family, but all the information is true to life. Interspersed with the story of the Robertsons, you can learn how to make your own cheese, dip a candle, or learn to tell the time from the sun.
This book will add to your library, and is a nice complement to Laura Ingalls Wilders books. Homeschooling familys will enjoy it, I know we did.

The Pioneer Sampler

The Pioneer Sampler is a fun and fascinating book. It tells about a pioneer family. Can Nekeek and Willy catch fish by hand? You'll find out. This is a fun book.
I'd give this book a five *...

Barbara Greenwood has written a wonderful book that is as much fun for adults to read to children as it is for the children to read themselves. She doesn't just 'tell' about the Robertson's, she 'shows', drawing the reader into their lives...a pleasant place to be. I especially love Granny's story about how she came to America,on a ship, from Scotland.

The book is beautifully illustrated...all the way through...by Heather Collins. The pictures are so well done that, even as an adult, I would like to step into the scene!

There are instructions for simple, fun activities such as growing a potato plant, dyeing fabric using an onion, or making a cardboard jumping jack; pioneer games that will even entertain today's children for hours such as shadow shapes or knucklebones; and recipes that are easy for children.

Reading this book to a child is a great 'stress releaver'...it's like a little escape from the treadmill of life!!!

I received this as a gift and a wonderful gift it is. The paintings by Gary Collins are unlike any golf art I've ever seen. The writing is amazingly insightful. I find I go back and reread different chapters time and again.

AS A NEW GOLFER, READING THIS BOOK GENERATED A MOST THOUGHT PROVOKING ATTITUDE FOR ME THINK MORE SERIOUSLY AND CONCENTRATIVELY ON MY GAME. THE PHILOSOPHIES ON LIFE AND PLAYING THIS, OR ANY GAME, HELP ME TO ZERO IN ON THE TASK AT HAND, WHETHER I'M OUT SWINGING A CLUB OR INVOLVED IN A PARTICULAR SITUATION. THE ART IS EXCEPTIONAL AND ABSOLUTELY ADDS A DIMENSION TO THIS BOOK OF MESSAGES. THIS BOOK IS DEFINITELY HIGH ON MY LIST OF GIFTS TO GIVE FOR ANY OCCASION.

This book captures the most amazing similarities between golf and life. For one to understand the game of golf, truly has a passion for life. From the moment I picked up this book, I was captivated by its wisdom. The Secrets to the Game of Golf & Life should be required reading for all those who wish to master the game of golf. There are no guarantees that it will improve your game, but it will improve your mental awareness of it. The rest is up to you.

This extraordinary little book packs a gigantic punch. I'd love to summarize it here, but as soon as you buy the book, get straight to Chapter One. It's enough to make you sick in the stomach.

Is America a "democracy"? After Ch.1 you really wonder. A sample from p. 15: Around the turn of the century, shortly before WWI, the top 1 (one) per cent of the population owned 56.4% of the country's private wealth - at the same time, the authors tell us, "the wealthiest 10 [ten] per cent of households owned 90% of all wealth." Now, think about it: 90% of Americans together owned a mere 10% of the country! (And most of the country's wealth was in private hands, because the government at all levels owned very little of value. There wasn't even a national park in existence!) That's neither justice nor democracy.

American society started to improve since then, especially after the introduction of income tax. But things have again gone in the opposite direction in the last two decades, so that "the United States is now the most unequal society in the industrialized world." (p. 14)

This fact is borne out in the UN Human Development Report 2002. (I was surprised that this authoritative publication is NOT cited anywhere in this book.) This report gives the "Gini Index" for each country, among numerous other data. The Gini Index is not something out of Aladdin: It "measures inequality over the entire distribution of income or consumption. A value of 0 represents perfect equality, and a value of 100 perfect inequality." (p. 197) Ranked are these selected countries in the industrialized world: Denmark (24.7 - the least unequal society), Japan (24.8), other Scandinavian countries (including Finland) at around 26, then Germany (30.0), then English-speaking countries like my own Canada (31.5 - the lowest in this group), Australia (35.2 !!), the UK (36.8 - hardly news, what with their queen and lords), and finally the United States at 40.8. (France, the host of the French Revolution, is a surprising 32.7.) For comparison, developing China is 40.3 (beats the US by a hair - but not for long), India only 37.8 (I guess only a couple of people can be called rich there), and Russia is the most unequal of all at 48.7.....but then Russia is now run by a mafia of ruthless moneylords, much like America a century ago, when men like Rockefeller and Al Capone ran all the shows. (Still it is better than the gulag and secret police. And anything is better than communism.)

Getting rid of the estate tax won't help one bit. On the other hand, not repealing it in and of itself is just a small step in the right direction, hardly enough to stop the country from sliding down the slippery slope to a second Gilded Age. This book makes a very convincing argument why getting rid of the estate tax is truly a form of insanity the name of which is still not in the psychiatric textbooks. Bill Gates Sr.'s position is supported by his son (the world's richest man - mostly self-made). Warren Buffett, the world's second richest man (also self-made), disagrees with them only because he thinks the estate tax as it is does not go far enough. (He'd prefer to tax 100% of the super-rich's inheritance not given to charity.) This estate tax is absolutely, undoubtedly no "death tax" - as though everyone has to pay it, even the poor. Rather, it is really just "rich kids' tax"! Let's start calling the thing by its right name.

This book is densely argued and extremely clearly presented. The 24 pages of sources in this slim little volume show the authors have done their homework, despite the omission I mentioned. Bill Gates Sr.'s authority is undeniable not only because he was already wealthy himself BEFORE his son became the world's richest human being (for at least the past ten years as far as I know), but also because he is himself a highly successful tax lawyer and in charge of one of the world's largest charitable foundations, the Gates Foundation. (One day it will be the world's largest.) If he doesn't know what he is talking about, I don't know who does. This book's Foreword is aptly written by the formidable Paul Volcker, former Fed Chairman.

At a time when many Americans worry about losing their jobs, when every citizen pays for the defense of the country, this is no time for the estate tax repeal - just so that the Forbes zillionaires own and control even more of the country while the rest have nothing or next to nothing. The supremely selfish, extremely greedy, totally irresponsible, unbelievably small-minded and short-sighted people who oppose the estate tax - and therefore dislike this book - hate and despise their fellow Americans more, and do more long term damage to America, than any Middle East terrorists because this kind of injustice (in Buffett's choice word) was what caused the downfall of Rome and is still yet another reason which encourages neo-Marxists everywhere.

I can't praise this book enough. It can go further though, as the public and private statements by Warren Buffett - a good friend of both Gates' - explain clearly why. Andrew Carnegie is frequently quoted in this book, for good reasons. This mega-hero of the Gilded Age, who rose from abject poverty in a foreign country to become the richest man on earth, literally built America - with the steel from his furnaces, used in railroads and highrise buildings. He went even further than Buffett: "Any rich man [or woman, I assume] who doesn't give away his money to charity BEFORE he dies is a shame and a disgrace to society," as he said over and over. Carnegie certainly practised what he preached. (Before he died he gave away at least 95% of his worth, mostly to create free libraries for people too poor to have books.) Carnegie also believed in the estate tax: "Of all taxes this seems the wisest," in a memorable quote in this fine book.

Despite its admirable conciseness, this book can use a good general index at the end. (I want to be sure who said what when and why.)

Most controversial issues have two sides. The authors of this book present the arguments in favor of abolishing the estate tax in "the best light" by quoting at length and in context the abolition proponents' rationale. They then destroy these arguments by showing how and why they are based on false and often misleading "facts." They also make the case as to why an estate tax on those few accumulated fortunes which are, even under the pre-2001 law, subject to the tax is an important foundation stone of the American Experiment. I am not naive enough to believe that those who have made a career of opposing the estate tax will be swayed by the authors' book, but anyone with an open mind should be.

This brief book strongly explains how society will benefit from keeping an estate tax on the wealthy. It explains how the estate tax allows America to be a meritocratic place where the best and brightest rise to the top and can make the most positive social change. It explains how charity giving will increase during wealthy individual's lifetimes if they know they face a big tax at the end. It gives a brief history of the estate tax and why it was introduced in the first place. It exposes the hypocrisy of Bush's estate tax repeal that expires in 2010. All in all, it provides a very concise argument why we must give back to the society which enabled us to have the potential to become wealthy in the first place. I never thought I'd be able to read through a book on tax law without putting it down. This book is brilliant.

I first read lives of the musicians when I was about 7 yearsold or so. Then, I thought it was terrific. I still do. However, I amnow 12 years old, and now that I have paid more attention to it, I see several faults, but overall it is still a very good book. First of all, their choice of musicians is not the best. I would have recommended Debussy and Schubert, like the Kirkus Reviewer. Some of the composers I have hardly ever heard of, like Igor Stravinsky or Nadia Boulanger. And while Clara Schumann was a great pianist, I think they should have focused more on her husband, Robert, a prolific composer, whose works are among the very best. Also, some of the parts of the biographies are questionable. Frederic Chopin may not have actually been romantically involved with Aurore Dudevant (George Sand), but in love with the Countess Delphine Potocka. The book states that the Waltz in D-Flat, or Minute Waltz, was written for George Sand's dog, when in fact it was probably written for Potocka. However, the book was still very well written, and I enjoyed it, despite the possible mistakes. I recommend this book to anyone who likes music, classical or not. So sit back and enjoy!

I loved this book because it made those musicians seem like real people instead of great-all-star-super-geniuses. It is full of strange little facts about all the famous musicians like Bach,Gershwin,Beethoven and Schmann.

---Megan W.

This book provides interesting insight into the lives of composers. I teach music to elementary and high school students and I read this book to all of my students. They all enjoy learning the details of the composers lives. The book presents the composers in such a way that the students remember the information about the composers. The book does not provide information about what the composers' music sounds like, and that is something I also like to teach. A great book to gain kids'interest in famous composers.

Ashleigh loves Shadow, a filly she saw being born. An unkind trainer who delivers a stallion to Edgardale, he sees Shadow and wants her. Ashleigh's parents turned down his offer. He sneaks up to Edgardale that night and steals her. Ashleigh finds Shadow at Churchill Downs, where she is helping out, but the trainer moves her again. Ashleigh finds the trainer's farm and is happily back with her filly. I can't believe that somebody will steal a horse! Let alone a foal! That was the best book in the Ashleigh series so far out of the 3 I read. Read it!

This book made me cry. It is the saddest book in the Ashleigh series!! Even though Ashleigh finds Shadow at the track, it still made me cry when she was gone. What i really like about Ashleigh is that she never gives up hope like her parents did!! Ashleigh and Mona found her beloved filly and that is another reason why I cried!!!

this book is great

It is difficult to top a book on Michael Collins composed primarily of his own words. After all, what better way to peek into his brilliant mind than by reading his words? This book was indeed published to coincide with the release of Neil Jordan's film in 1996, ostensibly to give curious moviegoers a way to better understand Collins before or after viewing the biopic. Tim Pat Coogan's foreword to the book is excellent and shows him in his usual top form. The book's chapters are "Advance and Use Our Liberties," "Alternative to the Treaty," "The Proof of Success," "Four Historic Years," "Collapse of the Terror," "Partition Act's Failure," "Why Britain Sought Irish Peace," "Distinctive Culture," "Building up Ireland," and "Freedom within Grasp." This book sheds light on how articulate, well read, historically aware and insightful Collins actually was. It is too often thought that Collins was a country bumpkin whose knowledge of anything beyond 'murder and mayhem' was quite limited. This simply isn't the case and it becomes apparent almost immediately into the book that Collins was a more than capable thinker. Collins discusses Ireland's tumultuous history, the accomplishments of the Easter Rising, the political events of 1914-1918, the many aspects of British rule, the potential resources of Ireland, and the work of Sinn Féin.

If you are looking for a traditional biography on Collins, this is probably not the right selection for you. _Michael Collins: The Man Who Made Ireland_, the book Tim Pat Coogan excerpted his foreword from, would be a much better fit for that need. If you are already basically familiar with the life and times of Collins, this book will give you a much richer sense of how his mind worked.

These essays or articles are engrossing reading for the insight they provide into the mind of one of the most fascinating revolutionary leaders in modern history. Thought of by many during his time and even now as a 'terrorist' or gunman, these writings reveal Collins to be a thoughtful, intelligent leader with a far-ranging interest in all aspects of the present and future of his country. Had he lived it seems very clear that the quality of his mind and the compassionate concern he had for his people would have made him as formidible a leader in peacetime as he was in war. His death was Ireland's great loss but he left an impressive legacy.

Michael Collins own words provide a clear and insightful look at life in Ireland circa 1921, delving into the social conditions and circumstance that led to the infamous Black and Tan War. This book helped me see that enormous importance of the independence movement of the time, how Ireland was not even recognized as its own country, and what it meant to finally achieve that status. I could not picture a world without a free, seperate Ireland, its amazing to me that this was the case up until well into this century. Micheal Colins here is addressing the people directly, so you get a head-on view of the realities of the times without a lot of historical or sociological analysis. Thats good, because its better to encounter his words personally, to understand the case he is making in all its simplicity: The Irish people are, now and forever, Free!

This book is all about the show. It has lots of pictures. Even summeries of all the episodes with what songs were sung. This book is perfect for anyone who loved the series. Even comes with posters!

Although this book doesn't really have that much info on the band, it has billions of pictures. There are several fold-out posters, losts of collages, and an episode guide, too.

Even though it's a bit old, every S Club fan should own this!

The S Club 7 has millions of pictures, good info about the band, and 2 great posters that I put on my locker @ school. The pictures are great, and for their birthday!! Happy reading!

Hi, i am a dutch girl, i ordered this book, and i'm really happy that i have it now!!! This book is very cool, I like the part where mary-kate pretends she is Ashley and break the frienship with nicole!!! If you are an Olsenfan you've got to get this book, i'ts great!! one of my friends has read it to, and she loved it even more than i do!! I think this is one of the best books i have ever read..... so buy it!!!! P.S. sorry for my english, but i am dutch and i don't have a lot of time to type now, so sorry!!!

This book was such a great book and it can also give you tipson friendship too. They are so cool. You just have to read this book. Ashley makes a new friend named, Nicole and then Mary-Kate feels left out so she calls Nicole to comeover when Ashley has ballet practices and pretends to be Ashley. Then she tells Nicole that they can't be friends anymore. Mary-Kate made her cry. Wait until Ashley finds out-will I don't want to spoil it so buy it and read it now! The book means a lot then just friendship it shows that being twins doesn't just mean looking alike, it also means...

It's a pretty cool book ! The twins Mary-Kate and Ashley get into a fight. Ashley found a new best friend (nicole) and Mary-Kate feel really left-out...one day she tells Nicole (she says she's Ashley, the both look very similar) that their friendship is over. It works. M.K. and Ashley are forget their fight and everythings seems to be perfect, but then Ashley found out everything !

I have finished reading the book and I must say I am impressed with the authors imagination to take us to a place where I believe she had never been before.
It saddens me how she could write about a Filipina and completely knows nothing about Filipinas in general.
Many of her characters has been fictionalized to the point that as a Filipina I would be embarrased to tell my friends about her book.
The Filipina in this story has been degraded and I hope the author will no longer write about the Philippines and its people, unless that author has studied the Philippine culture and heritage in depth.
To all Filipina readers out there, don't even try to read this book it would only insult you!

"Wild Gardenias" is indeed an exceptional read. P. Elizabeth Collins has created some terrific characters in this war-era novel. The war behind the scenes -- the family war -- being fought over wealth, inheritance, and women,overshadows the realities of combat in and over the skies of Viet Nam. Ted, the consummate professional naval pilot and heir to a publishing dynasty, falls in love with a beautiful orphan, China.

But wait, Ted is engaged to marry the rising starlet Jeannine. Enter the domineering mother -- Katherine. Ah, the plot has ripened for lies, deceit, and -- "murder"? Oh my, this book is a page-turner par-excellence. As I read it, I wanted to reach out and slap the protagonist silly. Engrossing, explicit, and filled with fast paced twists of fate. "Wild Gardenias" by: P. Elizabeth Collins is a must, must, must -- MUST -- read.

Personal wars, wars of the heart, entrap our combatant military men and women behind the front lines. Liberty Port? An escape from conflict? Not hardly in this soul-gripping tale.
Elizabeth Collins paints a vivid word picture of a Liberty Port and the ugly happenings between its visitors and its oppressed islanders. Ted, amid the sins of war -- finds incarnate love. But wait! He's an heir to a lofty publishing thrown and betrothed to be wed. Oh, China, a fragile beauty of flesh and mind, has to fight for her own liberty and the genuine shot at the golden ring -- via Ted.
But wait yet again, There's an actress on stage, antagonist par excellence, and she's as devious as a naval ship-rat, to boot. Behind the scenes, power ploys, scandles, and unfeeling parental wishes continually sniper down on these "true" lovers.
My one and only disappointment in the tale is the mercy shown by Elizabeth Collins with the flamboyant ... Jeannine. Were it up to me? I'd have boiled her in a vat of crude oil for all of eternity. This Is a big "powerful" read. Be warned! It's a genuine "can't-put-it-down" read.