I really enjoyed this book. The title gives little clue about what is inside, except for the fact that the British-born author has set out for herself the daunting task of explaining what is gives Catholicism its specific character, and where it all came from. Her approach is to describe the Church as having two very unlike roles: Mother Church, which [to oversimplify] is the 'left-brained' and currently dominant institutionalized part of the Church; and Sophia, which I would describe as the 'right-brained' mystical aspect of the Church. Haughton explains in detail not only what these aspects are but what cultural/social/political forces engendered them, and how Mother Church became ascendant. She discusses medieval--and earlier--history, cultural considerations, politics (of course), and large dollops of human nature in order to make her point in an evenhanded way. For me the heart of her message and the best example of the flavor of this book is on page 151: A Catholic Church must...include people of all kinds. If it includes a number of saints and sages, it will also include a number of hypocrites and cynics....It must reach people where they are, in their own cultural milieu, whether that be an Austrian village or an American city, and in the process the message will be restricted, scaled down to meet their level of love and understanding. If it were not, they could never realize that it was for them, let alone have a chance to respond. That is what 'Catholic' has to mean in its cultural context. This book was an act of scholarship and love. I highly recommend it.

Both Pat Fenn and Rosemary Gower-Jones tell it like it is. It's very rare to find such honesty to-day, you can be sure that each Chambres d'Hotes is just as they say it will be.

To travel in France without this book is to travel in America without insurance, foolish.

I received this book in a box of my late great aunt's belongings. Without anything to read at the moment, I thought I'd give it a try - Well, it turns out that it's simply a great book - no wonder my aunt kept it.
It's written from the author's point of view, similar to the Little House books. In the early 1900's Ms. Taylor's parents ran a boarding house in Arizona and these are a collection of humorous stories about some of the boarders they've had over the years. Even though it was written in 1945 and it's 2002 now, the stories are still fresh, original and very entertaining. It's definitely worth the 2 or so dollars they usually ask for it at a used book store.

Children's Voices From The Trail: Narratives Of The Platte River Road by Rosemary Gudmundson Palmer is an astute collection and interpretation of primary sources, especially letters and journals, of young people who set forth with their parents upon the pioneer trails west and who wrote about their lives. Offering eye-opening insight into what it was really like to grow up in the 1800's frontier, beset by both natural and human enemies, Children's Voices From The Trail is a superb contribution to academic American History Studies reference collections and highly recommended for the non-specialist reader with an interest in the real life conditions of growing up in the American West.

The amazing illustrations reveal a drab gray world that transforms into a "circus of color" when what appears to be a bum picks up a red clown's nose and tries it on. The wording is simple and occupies a small portion of the full-page, dramatic works of art (which literally go cover-to-cover). It has a Cirque du Soleil kind of spirit and although the build-up is better than the finale, it is a feast for the eyes and the imagination of a child.

I used this book for additional reading and reference for a course in Sociology at Penn State. It is very well written, easy to read (usually means short length of subject) and gives varying views of social observations of differing subjects and cultures. I recommend it for reading as my text book has too much stuff to remember.

After many years of Chinese take-out, I decided to take a stab at Chinese cooking myself. I got a few books and took a shot at it. The results were less than satisfactory. I found that my cookbooks left me unsure and confused about certain ingredients. Then, I picked up a copy of "Classic Chinese Cuisine". With this book, I was able to come up with some pretty impressive meals. Rosemary Moon clearly explains ingredients and cooking methods. Although ingredient preparation still takes time, I'm confident that once I have everything at hand, it all comes together in a flash. Basic ingredients blend wonderfully to create uniquely pleasing tastes - even in the hands of a beginner like myself. Anyone just starting out in Chinese cuisine would truly benefit from having this book

I have long been interested in classical Greek and Roman civilization, and have spent hours thumbing through the wonderful Loeb Classics library editions jotting down random bits of wisdom or hilarious observations. Before I found Atchity and McKenna's book, however, I never quite knew how to tie it all together. The book's style is far more interesting than an encycolpedia's style, but the volume of information is perfect for novices. The chapters consist of chronological excerpts from a wide variety of Greek academics. Whether your interest is history, literature, philosophy, art, math, science, or an amalgam of any or all of these, you will find something fascinating to read here. Parents of high school and college students should think about giving this book as a gift to their children--it would be invaluable to students in the arts and sciences.

This book is very comprehensive with a large amount of information. The information is easy to find with more than one indexing system. The quality of the paper and photos make it enjoyable to use. Highly recommend.

Poor "Colonial Home" magazine. After decades as the premiere magazine of antique American homes, it changed its name to "Classic American Home" and then was out of business in the ad-pages slump that followed September 11th, 2001. It was a great loss to those who love viewing and learning about historical American homes.

Fortunately, even if you were never a "Colonial Homes" subscriber, you can still indulge your love for classic American style via Rosemary Rennicke's lovely "Classic American Decorating." The homes features herein are all taken from the pages of the magazine, and they amply show the magazine's high quality and standards. There is no country-kitschy stuff here--everything is distilled to its purest essence, whether it is a keeping room in an 18th century Connecticut home or the bedroom in a high-rise Manhattan apartment building.

The book is divided into chapters covering architecture, furniture, accessories, and so on. The photography is handsome, and the book design is pleasing to the eye. Rennicke's text is admirable not only for its insight, but for its restraint. She leads the reader gently along, pointing out what is of interest without being intrusive or overly pedantic. This is a coffee table book home-lovers will turn to again and again for a sweet indulgence in domestic day-dreaming.