This is a wonderful book for all doll artists.
It show step by step the process the late Robert McKinley
used to complete one of his dolls. Excellent!

Many dollmakers relish anything they can find from the late, great Robert (Bob) McKinley. His outstanding work and terrific personality made him a real hit with anyone who knew him, and influenced many others who only experienced his genius "second-hand".

At this time, his book, "Sculpting Dolls in Paperclay" is almost completely unavailable, with used copies fetching prices upward of $200. However, there is a source of his four video collection and his other book, "Dollmaking: One Artist's Approach" online at dollvideos.com.

Many doll aritsts who have either seen the videos or read this book have said that it is almost like being in the workroom with Bob. Can you imagine a better way to learn his terrific dollmaking skills!

It is unfortunate that the terms of Mr. McKinley's will prevent the sale of his books or videos by any other means.

If you want to learn to sculpt the human figure -- buy this book! I had struggled for a very long time to learn to sculpt, then I found this book. The very next figure I did was radically better. While I have evolved my own "hand", my basic technique is based on the fundamentals I learned in this book.
This book covers every aspect of the dollmaking process. From sculpting the head and hands, drafting a body pattern, constructing the body and armature, to drafting and constructing the costume and finishing the base. Every stage of creation is documented in step by step photos of a single doll, which is an especially invaluable feature unique to this title.
I was fortunate enough to have met Bob briefly and this book captures not only his working methods but also the giving nature of his personality. We are all of us fortunate indeed that this book was written, and that this information is still available to anyone willing to learn and grow as an artist.

This book will allow you to get the right conceptions for producing a good golf swing. And as Percy says, it is the swing rather than hitting the ball that is the thing. It is not a technical book but he does make technical points in it. Its key virtue is that it gets rid of several common misconceptions about how to swing a golf club. Percy's tone is absolutely wonderful and he has a nice sense of humor. It would have been a joy to experience his teachings in person. Buy the book, read it and then practice its concepts and you will find yourself capable of nailing every shot. Of course, the result is that golf becomes a very fun game again, as it should be. Best golf instruction book I have ever read and I have read a bunch, including Penick, Hogan, Armour, Leadbetter, Haney, Harmon, etc.

I first read the book 10 years ago when I was learning the game. Got to a 14 handicap. Reread it this spring and just shot my first 79 today!

Of all the golf books I have read, and I have read over a hundred, this pearl has done the most to improve my game. I learned why standing on the practice mat trying to think through the swing did not improve my game. And I learned what had to be done to improve my game. My score, which had languished around 110, started dropping soon after I adopted Boomer's concepts. After three months, I am now in the low 90s to mid 80s and am still improving. Don't pass this gem by! Boomer was the Harvey Penick of an earlier generation and his ideas are still true.

This book provides clear, simple and realistic sugestions to building a strong family. It is easy to read and entertaining. It has helped me and my family termendously!

Thank you Jacqueline Penney for making my introduction to watercolor painting fun, informative and very helpful.
The book, Painting Greeting Cards in Watercolor, was a step by step introduction to watercolor painting through the practice of greeting card design. The lessons were fun, quick and very easy to follow, making the student beg to beging the next lesson. After every lesson I felt like I really learned something and was proud of my accomplishment. I'll be honest, as a first time watercolorist I would have given up if this book wasn't easy, fun and easy to understand. Luckily it was a superb introduction and I am very happy.
Thank you again.

I really enjoy using this book for inspiration and practice. I don't use her ideas for greeting cards, but for small paintings. Most of the paintings can be finished rather quickly. The topics are appealing and I have sold a number of them. I like her 3-in-1 compositions, dividing the paper with masking tape and having related subjects treated differently within each block. It is a practical and user-friendly book, well worth the purchase.

I have painted all the pictures in Jacqueline's book. Her detailed instructions make copying her art miniatures easy. Her instructions apply not only to miniatures but also larger sized pictures. I have used several of her designs for greeting cards.

This is a beautifully written, beautifully illustrated book, however, it is definitely for the advanced bead collector. Its main focus is on beads the average person could not find or afford. I am a beginner in the bead collecting world and needed a book that was more of an identifying guide. The chances of me running across a bead that was illegally excavated from an archeological dig in a foreign country are slim..and I wouldn't know what to do with it anyway. I'm returning the book and continuing the search.

This is a work of immense proportions. Robert Liu is both a scholar and an artist. This is a work which draws on both sets of skills, and the result is wonderful. For bead lovers it's a definative work. As a scholarly piece, it likely has material of interest to those interested in art history and world culture as well. It's an important book and one that would be sorely missed if it ever went out of print--I say this as one who's passed on books like this, only to search the world over for them when they were no longer available...get this one now. You won't regret it.

Robert K. Liu is one of the foremost authorities today in the field of collectible beads. In this book he gives clear and succinct insight regarding collectible beads from all over the world. In some cases he gives approximate monetary values, but the book is mostly a celebration by someone who knows as to the place which beads have played in cultures around the world from ancient times to the present. A necessary help for anyone who collects or is thinking of collecting beads. It will save time and money.

Ever since building our first piece of "Stickley" style furniture I've been looking for a book with more ideas. This one certainly filled the bill. Given the time, I could outfit my whole house with these attractive pieces! Mr. Lang's style helped make it an enjoyable read while his hints and advice came in useful from the start. An added benefit was the facinating history of the Stickley company. It really gave me some insight as to the designs.

Professional cabinet maker and draftsman Bob Lang's Shop Drawings For Craftsman Furniture: 27 Stickley Designs For Every Room In The Home is an a draft book filled with precise, exacting line drawings that can be used as models to create a wide variety of elegant and practical home furnishings. A beginning section aptly introduces novice builders to the art of interpreting shop drawings, and the drawings themselves come with brief commentary and instructions. Overall, Shop Drawings For Craftsman Furniture is a superbly presented, highly recommended do-it-yourself guide, and especially useful for building a handmade holiday gift when store-bought gifts just won't do.

There are a lot of books about making Arts and Crafts furniture, but only a few really good ones. Some offer inspiration, some offer detailed instructions, and all offer a brief history of the Arts and Crafts movement. Very few offer the kind of detailed drawings it takes to really build the furniture pictured.
I'll confess that I haven't built a piece from this book yet, it's simply too new, but a review of the drawings tells me that I could start on a piece tomorrow knowing that the dimensions are accurate.
Here's where the experience part comes in. There are no step by step instructions. It is up to the reader to interpret the drawings, decide on the construction techniques to use and plan the project before starting. This book won't tell you the order in which to assemble the parts you make, you'll decide that, among many other decisions. To me, that's part of the fun and challenge of building furniture.
If you are inexperienced in building furniture, buy this book for future projects and also buy one with some detailed instructions in it for your first few pieces. (I'd recommend "Authentic Arts and Crafts Furniture Projects" by the editors of "Popular Woodworking" magazine.)

This short memoir is a true love story. The author loves both shopwork and his friend Archie. It is hard to tell which this book is more about. You need not be a shop - either metalworking or woodworking - enthusiast to enjoy the book. Archie was a truly interesting guy and the author portrays him well. The memoir is appropriately brief. Mr. Probert does not waste time nor is there any hint of self-aggrandizement (always refreshing in a memoir). An enjoyable quick read.

Some of us are lucky enough to find a true mentor in our lives, someone who opens our eyes to a special world, and in so doing, gives us a glimpse of ourselves. Such a person is Archie Raasch, the subject of Richard Probert's book Archie's Way. A man of few words and many talents, Archie is an unforgettable character whose down-to-earth wisdom is vanishing from our hurried world.

Archie's Way sparkles with the joy of discovery implicit in new relationships. Probert's mastery of visual, sound and textural detail gives the book sensory complexity without being overbearing. A few of the mechanical descriptions, though were a little too technical for one unfamiliar with the landscape of the workshop. But this was only a minor flaw and did not distract from my overall enjoyment of the book.

There is a line of tension throughout the book that is skillfully drawn so as to tantalize the reader to discover the true nature of Archie and to tap the wellspring of his enigmatic quirkiness. The later chapters move from the technica of the machine shop to the mysteries of the wood shop and the labyrinthian paths of Archie's woods. There amidst the fragrance and beauty of the natural world, the layers of Archie's character are respectfully revealed, the book takes on a warmth, much like the patina of well-worked wood.

Probert is an engaging storyteller with a wonderful sense of character. Archie's Way is a rewarding glimpse into a sadly disappearing way of life.

Wonderfully crafted story depicting life in a small midwestern town. Reminded me of my own father's workshop. He and Dick Probert would have been great friends. Causes one to ponder what really is important and how values are formed. As an instructor in a technical college, I would like to have this book on the reading list for every student and faculty member.

Robert L. spencer delivers tools of the trade for personal empowerment based on examples from current foreward-thinking authors such as Dan Millman, Carlos Casteneda, Brooke Medicine Eagle, and others.

The ideas of these authors are not brought forth to debate their reality, but rather what we might find useful from their ideas to break out of old comfortable habits and find new ways of looking at life and seeing ourselves.

Spencer quotes Millman and Casteneda, "The happiness of the ordinary person is tied to the events of her day. Warriors generate their own happiness."

I find Robert Spencer's book to be an excellent textbook distilling many of the key concepts of Castaneda, Millman, the Shambhala tradition, and the other warrior traditions from which he draws material. This, along with Ken Eagle Feather's "A Toltec Path," are, to me, good outlines for the framework of the warrior's path -- the path of hunting for personal power, reducing self-importance, and gaining freedom. More depth of course can be found in the literature of any of the traditions he cites as resources -- e.g., by reading Carlos Castaneda's books, or by learning under a Feldenkrais teacher. Nevertheless, the book serves as a good starting point for those unfamiliar with the warrior's way to knowledge.

A great introduction to the life of being a warrior.
I can't think of any other way to open up your mind to the vastness of the world we live in.

A generally amusing Freddy adventure. My favorite line: "Mr. Bleech was a pretty mean man. Anyway, nobody in his senses would expect a kind action from a man who would steal from a rhinoceros."
Brooks had such a gift for gentle and humorous characterization that I wish he had had a stronger editor. I would enjoy the books about twice as much if somebody had red pencilled his compulsive and relentless use of "pretty" as an intensifier (see above quote)! I drop them when reading the books to my six year old son.
My favorites: "Freddy the Politician" (unfortunately, this volume has lost its original title, "Wiggins for President," the best title Brooks ever came up with!), "Freddy the Detective," "Freddy and the Ignormus." "Freddy goes to Florida," the first and perhaps easiest, is a good start for younger children.

I have read these books, the entire series, all 18 or so of them, once every 3-4 years for the last 2 decades, and I love them all! Having them republished is a great boon to the world! This one in particular is just vintage Freddy, it doesn't strand out for any particular reason, just excellent like the rest.