Mirrors of Paradise is a truly inspired presentation of a diverse sampling of Fernando Caruncho's architectural genius writ large on the landscape. A highly imaginative gardener by disposition, Caruncho possesses an idiosyncratic eye for wrinkles in the formal geometry of what is usually mundane. And the capacity to ingeniously comment on what he observes through design innovations which exhibit both wit and poignancy. To take but one example of this phenomena, in the Ollauri Garden which was designed in the mid nineteen-eighties, where a traditional water jet might be placed in the middle of numerous individual fountains making up a large flat reflecting pool, Caruncho plants single tall cypress trees in stone troughs. What a revelation this transformation of the ordinary creates! Such touches of imaginative whimsy permeate this man's work. But it is not caprice for its own sake. Every action is deliberate and conveys meaning. Every formal element tells a story. Mirrors Of Paradise is exceptionally well-designed, well-written, and contains a wealth of photographic images that do great justice to a man's work which is visually stunning, intellectually sophisticated and imaginatively pure.

This is a great book of tall tales and real life adventures. Harry Gordon-Cooper. As my mother called him a Jack of all trades. He led a remarkable life in the wilderness of the Yukon. From tales of wolfs tracking humans to the real life drama of child berth on a stricken bush plane. The book is well written with a great narrative style. You can almost picture Ira Biber and his clan. You can feel the call of the wild. A must book for all sourdoughs.

Oh! What a multicultural merengue*! Seven-year-old Kirsy Rodriguez takes us inside her two worlds, traveling from a snowy New York winter to the balmy Dominican Republic. We meet Kirsy's family, experience the sights and sounds of Puerto Plata, and see the contrasts and similarities between city life and life in the tropics. Martha Cooper's gorgeous photos colorfully capture the flavor and fun of Kirsy's adventures, documenting the lifestyle of Kirsy's extended family candidly and unobtrusively. Despite the exotic location, Kirsy's holiday festivities, day at the beach, and birthday party contain elements familiar to most. Short, simple sentences read as if our friend Kirsy were describing snapshots of her vacation. Unfortunately, the conversational tone assumes shared knowledge of the Spanish terms sprinkled throughout the text. Though this adds spice, the lack of a map or glossary make this a good, rather than a great resource. Nevertheless, My Two Worlds has much value as a tool to explore cultural or familial issues, is lots of fun as a read-aloud for younger children, and is likely to be enjoyed also by upper-elementary independent readers.

*Marengue: (ma-ren-GAY) A Haitian or Dominican ballroom dance or music

I would like to point out that, in fact, the word is "MERENGUE" and it is pronounced "Mer-ren-GAY". Furthermore, it is the national Dominican music. It is not Haitian at all, since Haitian music is called "Compas". Please verify your information before you put it out there for others to read. Thank you.

Very nice book, well illustrated with many representations of what a garden may be. However, too many photos of gardens full of tat, make this a slight dissapointment. Would make a fun gift for an enthusiast.

I work part time at a greenhouse (mostly as an indentured servant to my own gardening habit) and am TIRED of those whom I refer to as "Garden Nazis" - people (some of them - horrors - my very own co-workers) who think gardening is all about what you see in *those* magazines. You know the ones. This book offers a much needed and totally refreshing viewpoint that takes the onous off of we gardeners to create in just one way and opens avenues into whole new worlds! Have a look and be transported.

When I was a kid, I thought I'd like to be eccentric when I grew up. On my good days, I flatter myself that I've attained this goal. Compared with the people whose gardens are shown here, however, I'm a rank amateur. The gardeners whose work are presented have a clear vision of what they want, and they've gone to whatever lengths were necessary to create it. There's topiary, there's folk art, there's real art. I guarantee you'll find some of it ugly or tacky -- but anyone who wants more from a garden than what good taste and convention can provide will be riveted and inspired.

I have been looking for a book like this for a while. When looking for a book on modern landscape and garden design what I usually would find is a book with a few select pictures and often the same pictures from one book to the next. This is a very nice book that deals exclusivly with modern design. It is not a how to book, but a great source for insperation.

Gordon Cooper is one of America's true heroes, of a kind we don't have many of anymore. In this book, he and Bruce Henderson tell the story of the early days of the space program from the perspective of a real insider who knows what really went on and isn't afraid to talk about it. From his earliest days as a pilot (he learned to fly at the age of five!) to his fighter pilot and test pilot assignments to his astounding manual return flight in his Mercury capsule Faith 7 he proved himself to be one cool customer, and a natural at the controls. His current thoughts on the unresolved issues of UFO's and possible extraterrestrial visitations of planet Earth are insightful and provocative, especially coming from such a credible source. All in all, a smooth and compelling read and a great book. Bravo, Colonel Cooper!

This man is one of the greatest heroes of the last half of the 20th century! If only for his tremendous flying abilities, which saved his life and maybe saved the space program when his Mercury capsule suffered a near-complete failure duing his mission. But there's much more to "Gordo" Cooper than just that incredible event. In this book he tells of his early days of flying, his remarkable test pilot experience, being chosen among the elite few for the space program, the testing and training regimen, the practice, practice, practice and then, finally, the exhilirating first lift-off and so much more, including chasing UFO's as a young Air Force pilot in Germany, and having a crew of photographers actually photograph a UFO at close range at Edwards Air Force base! Lots more fascinating stuff in this excellent book. Get it and read it, you'll like it! And you'll like him, too.

As one of the "Original Seven", Gordon"Gordo" Cooper describes his unique life experiences such asbeing the last American to ever fly into space alone. From his youth in Shawnee, Oklahoma to being a fighter jock in Germany and Edwards Air Force Base in California, Cooper tells the story of his all American life and his eventual selection as one of the original seven American astronauts. Flying the concluding mission of the Mercury Program in May of 1963 aboard Faith 7, Cooper flew what many consider to be the best and most successful flight of Mercury. He made a pinpoint landing in the Pacific after all his electrical and cooling systems in his spacecraft started to die on him. He manually flew his spacecraft to a perfect splashdown. He later commanded Gemini 5 with Pete Conrad aboard which set an 8 day endurance record in space,a record at that time. Finally, Cooper reveals how he was shortchanged by two of his buddies Deke Slayton and Alan Shepard when they denied Cooper a shot at commanding a lunar landing so Shepard could get a shot. In Deke's book, he hints that Cooper had lost the edge and had not trained hard enough in a backup role to merit a lunar landing. Judging by Cooper's successful Mercury and Gemini flights, Slayton's statement seems self serving and a bunch of bull. Cooper was as good a pilot as the rest otherwise he would not have been chosen as one of the first seven astrounauts. The second part of the book deals with Cooper's reported sightings of UFO's from the cockpit of his fighter plane in Germany. He continues on and discusses his fascination and belief in UFO's and relates some of the activities he has been engaged in trying to heighten the awareness of the UFO phenomenon. I have no clue about UFO's and that issue has never had much interest with me. However, Cooper does make a legitimate case that UFO's could exist. Certainly any open minded reader should read his treatment of UFO issues with interest. Certainly, Cooper has credibility and is not some nut case. Overall, this is a fine book. Anyone interested in the history of the early space program should have this book. Cooper makes a stinging critique of NASA that after the moonlanding, America lost interest in space exploration and all the dreams of the early space race have been lost. I agree. Cooper has made his mark in history, and his story is an inspiration for anyone that aims high.