If your love of beauty and history extends to architecture but your travel budget is limited, consider obtaining a copy of THE MAJESTY OF THE MISSISSIPPI DELTA.

Author Jim Fraiser and photographer West Freeman traveled the 200-mile length of the Yazoo-Mississippi Delta, the heart of of the realm of King Cotton, to assemble the text and illustrations for this handsome, informative little book. The result is replete with fascinating anecdotes about times long past and splendid pictures of the extraordinarily beautiful homes, churches and public buildings that stand as a monument to an era.

Beginning at Port Gibson, the "Gateway to the Delta," and the classic simplicity of St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Messers Fraiser and Freeman trace the history of this diverse and scenic region in both the lives of its founders and the exquisite constructs they created. The text is filled with gossipy tidbits as well as less-familiar history, like the chandelier from the famous steamboat Robert E. Lee that hangs in Port Gibson's First Presbyterian Church and the tale of the ghost of owner John Bobb, murdered by Union soldiers, that purportedly still roams the flying-wing stairway and double-tiered galleries of McRaven in Vicksburg.

This book is for those whose hunger for beauty extends to that crafted by the hands of man. If it has a flaw, it is that the taste of these magnificent structures it provides leaves the reader hungry to sample them first-hand. Should one be fortunate enough to do that, they could do worse than to tuck their copy of THE MAJESTY OF THE MISSISSIPPI DELTA into their tote as a reference.

Majesty Of The Mississippi Delta is as much a travel account as an architectural and art history of the homes, churches, and stores on the Mississippi Delta. Color photos of both interiors and exteriors are accompanied by quotes from historical documents and descriptions of each building. A rich history for those who enjoy architectural history in general and the Mississippi area in particular.

As an American who lived for the last 8 years in Moscow, this book was a wonderful find for me because it shows the great beauty found only indoors in Moscow -- a City that can be somewhat gray. From the baroque excesses of the Kremlin to the Art Nouveau town houses to the Soviet apartments of Moscow artists. Lavishly illustrated in a coffee table format.

I'm frequently quoted in this book, so have an interest in it
having been well done. John has done a fine job in giving explanations
that will appeal to readers from outside our community
and that should serve as a model for writers in
our field. He conveys technical information easily and makes
it interesting -- but I'm an easy sell. I have found about
6 mistakes in the text, but they are mostly trivial.

Tough Decisions is an outstanding book made even better in this long awaited second edition.

Unlike most collections of case studies, this volume does not simply present a variety of vignettes to be analyzed and evaluated. Instead, the reader is required to actually make tough decisions and then follow up on the consequences. Decisions often lead to further decisions and then still further decisions. Different readers will thus follow different paths through the text. The situations themselves are realistically described and include multidimensional characters and well-written dialogue.

The cases will provide a rich basis for discussion if this is used as a classroom text, but this is also an engaging and readable book for anyone interested in the tough decisions faced in healthcare every day.

Freeman's book is an excellent look at the 8th Air Force in England - from its first arrival in late 1942 to its departure at the end of the war. He writes so well that you actually feel as if you are there, riding along with the crews at 25,000 feet, in the harsh subzero atmosphere. The stories are remarkable - the fighter pilots; the Fortress gunners; the pilots remarkable duties while flying crippled ships - all fascinating. When the last of the planes and crews leave England at the end of the war, you can almost see the tears at this bittersweet end. Definitely recommended. My only complaint: I bought the British version - the font is smaller and as a result, more print is crammed onto a single page as opposed to American books. (But, I'd still buy it again and read it!)

This is the book to get if you want to really know the activities of the Eighth Air Force during World War II. It covers the Mighty Eighth from its inception all the way through the war. Arranged pretty much chronologically, the book is not a quick read by any means. The tiny print and comprehensive detail would make slow going for someone just trying to get a general overview of the Eighth Air Force. This is a book for the serious aviation history reader. Written by one of England's top authorities on the US Eighth Air Force, Roger Freeman, this book is crammed with excellent photographs and stories of all the major missions and developments in the war. It also has a beautiful color section showing all the planes of the Eighth, with an illustrated example from each bomb group and fighter group. This is followed by a brief unit history on every group. There is another color section on assembly ships, which have always reminded me of rodeo clowns with their gaudy paint jobs. This is followed by a short selection of vintage nose art, an illustrated listing of all the aces of the war, and another illustrated list of Medal of Honor Winners. The index is quite good, though at first a bit confusing as it is broken up according to names, places and aircraft and the listings are very specific (for example, it doesn't work for finding something general such as Switzerland). This is a high quality book, actually more of an oversized book than a standard trade paperback. It has been wonderfully put together. It is a masterpiece, the result of much painstaking research, full of excellent photographs. Anyoone with a serious interest in the Mighty Eighth would find this book to be one of the cornerstones of his or her collection, along with Ian Hawkins' books on Munster and the 95th. I highly recommend it.

If you ever knew, or know anyone who served in the 8th Air Force in Europe during the period 1942-1945, this book will asnwer the question, "What Did You Do During World War II? If a member of your family flew with the 8th during that period, this is a must to keep as part of your family history, for generations yet to come. It deserves a prominent place on the family tree. It is well illustrated, and tells it like it was. I know, for i was there, and this is the way it was.

I've read this book just prior to starting my child on the diet. We are very optimistic, and the book answered many questions. It it used as a guideline by our dietician. The book is easy to follow and subjects are grouped nicely for later reference. The book offers some recipes, but more ideas on "creative cooking" would have been helpful. We bought 3 and gave one to each family member that would be preparing meals, and to grandparents, who need gentle convincing that the benefits from the diet are worth the sacrifice and effort!

The book talks about how more studies are needed on the keto-diet, but it would have been nice to add how one could become part of a study.

The book goes into detail regarding how to do the calculations, but when you are in the program, the dietician should do that for the family.

Overall, I found the book easy to read and not too lengthy, but with enough information. There aren't alot of other educational options in book form related to the keto diet, so your choices are limited, but this book fills the need.

In trying to search for Kimberly's method of treatment, the book An Introduction to The Ketogenic Diet along with Seizures and Epliepsy in Childhood helped me decide which way to go. While preparing myself to start the diet, the book prepared my for what to expect before and during the diet process. I referred to the book often when I had a question. When Kimberly would get and ear infection and recently a urinary infection, the list of what type of prescriptions should be used came in handle for the peditricians . Since I went against two neuroligist to start her on the diet, I was on my own. I had to travel 3 hours for the nearest Ketogenic Center, the book along with God were my biggest preparers for what would become Kimberly's cure. She is seizure free and drug free, but with God's will, she will be ready for the weining stage. Thank you for a will prepared book.

This book don't exist here in my country. I really want to know if some editorial (publishing house) import this book about epilepsy diet, but in spanish. A friend of mine got 4 children, the two men got epilepsy. She go to USA every year for different kind of treatments, but the ketogenic diet is really new for us. Please try to help me. Sincerily, Claudia Cortez

This book documents what was quite possibly the largest and finest exhibition ever devoted solely to fauve painting. This brief movement, sandwiched between the towering achievements of impressionism, post-impressionism, and cubism, is a relatively overlooked one in the history of 20th century art. Concentrating on landscape painting as the heart of the fauvist view of reality, the essays are some very fine scholarly re-appraisals of the social and economic history of fauvism. The book itself is beautiful, with a superior design and extremely high standards of photographic reproduction. My only quibble is the near-total exclusion of figure-painting from the discussion (even as a point of comparison), and the authors' focus on social history leaves little space for aesthetic issues to be discussed. The essays treat these fantastically beautiful paintings as mere documents of economic relationships, a common art-historical focus nowadays, but one which does little to educate the reader in the marvelous way of seeing represented by these images.

A lot have time was put into writing this book I can tell by the way it was written. Very good book on a hard period of art to write about.

Many people feel that this play of Shakespeare's is either unfinished or a poor effort. But I do not think this is accurate or fair. The reality is that many people can never find a middle ground. It is actually (in my opinion) quite common for people to only be able to see things from one extreme or the other. Despite Apemantus' cynical nature, there is no denying that whatever his faults are, HE DOES HAVE RIGHT ON HIS SIDE when he tells Timon: "The middle of humanity thou never knewest,/ but the extremity of both ends...." (4.3.342-343). Critics also tend to think Apemantus is unlikable, but are we missing a crucial point? I can not help but think Shakespeare is commenting on the fact that more people DON'T have a concept of reality. Apemantus refuses to join in the delight when Timon thinks highly of his false friends. Apemantus is aware of reality and no one wants to hear it. In my opinion Timon and Apemantus are VERY TRUE to life. In addition, the roll of Flavius is very touching. He can not dessert his master even when he knows (or thinks) Timon has nothing. Finally, I can not over estimate the mastery of Shakespeare when first Timon has money, he can not do enough for his so called friends and when he has nothing they dessert him. When Timon through fate gains a second fortune, he does not turn back into what he was, but rather he uses his 2nd fortune to destroy Athens. It is interesting that Shakespeare derived this play on the legend of 'Timon the Manhater,' and decides to take it a step further and show how he got there. And how much more realistic could Shakespeare have made this than by first showing Timon as a 'manlover?' Many people feel Timon should have somehow found the middle of humanity, but if he had, that would have defeated the whole purpose of this excellent play.

Timon of Athens has often been thought the work of a madman. Disjointed, polemical, irrational, and downright inelegant, many have thought that Shakespeare (or whosoever it may be) suffered a mental breakdown. This and more surrounds what I believe to be a tragic under-appreciation of this play. This play is NOT the story of a naively generous soul who eventually "faces reality". This is instead the story of a glorious Dionysian self-expender, who, upon realizing the cowardly conservatism of his so-called "peers", runs off to the wilds, to continue expending himself in body and soul. He dies on a curse, the climax of all the "evil wind" he has been sending out, the ultimate self-expension, his ultimate glory. The "tragedy" is the stone cold tablet that lies atop his corpse at the end, and the message of frugality it seems to send out, which is all too easily accepted by fatally declining cultures.

Among the least performed of all the Shakespeare plays, is probably the most disturbing. In the beginning, Timon is (not to put too fine a point on it) stupidly philanthropic; in the end he is equally misanthropic. When Timon is on top of the world, we have the cynical Apemantus to be our voice and let him know what a fool he is. In the last two acts, we simply wish (I do, at least) that our hero would stop complaining and let us "pass and stay not here," as he would have all men do in his epitaph.

But a recording is to be judged on its performances, not so much on its text. The Arkangel series, now in its last laps toward completion before (I am told) it is all redone on CDs, has every reason to be proud of its "Timon of Athens," thanks to its strong and intelligent readings. The opening scenes of artisans and poets building up the play's themes of wheel-of-fortune and gratitude/ingratitude are almost intelligible without a text open before you. Alan Howard, whom I saw in New York long ago as Henry V and as the main character in "Good," has that kind of friendly voice that is so well suited to the extravagant Timon in the open acts that we feel all the more for him when his false friends deny him in his need.

The snarling voice of Norman Rodway's Apemantus is a perfect counterpoint, and he casts out his invective in those early scenes with a hint of humor. However, when Timon becomes the misanthrope, his voice darkens and coarsens; and it is very hard to tell it from Apemantus' in their overly-long exchange of curses in 4:3. If the actor playing Alcibiades (Damian Lewis) sounds far too young for the role, that is a minor quibble--and perhaps the director wanted him to sound like a young Timon.

The incidental music sounds sufficiently Greek but too modern; still, Ingratitude knows no particular time period. A superior production of a much flawed play and a very welcome addition to any collection of recorded drama, especially since the old Decca set is long out of print and Harper audio does not yet have a "Timon" in their series.

I know this book is about child's laws, but, I find it hopelessly flawed when it comes to parental rights and how to protect your rights. If a parent loses their rights, it affects the children. I think there should be a chapter on how to protect yourself during a CPS investigation. The author doesn't really acknowledge that CPS is sometimes wrong and sometimes show a blatant disregard to the rights of the parents and the child. Those issued should be addressed. However, it does seem to cover the judicial process pretty well. Has some good information in all other areas. I think for the price there should be more. I would NOT make this the only book in your library.

I found Ramona John's book informative and invaluable. It is a handy reference for anyone contemplating divorce or concerned about custody, abuse, or parental rights since it covers all aspects of problems likely to be encountered. Concisely and clearly, she explains, among other things, parental rights and duties, getting an attorney for your child, what to expect in a courtroom, how to make a favorable impression on a judge or jury, how paternity is established, adoption is decided, when parental rights can be terminated, and when abuse can be suspected. Disabled children and their special needs are also considered. Although it is written for Texans, I believe this information is probably applicable nationwide. Adults can gain insights and find understanding about themselves in the section covering the effects of abandonment and neglect. I highly recommend this book to anyone faced with the predicament of divorce or concerned with abuse of a child.

Lucky is the parent who can raise a child in today's world without at least one brush with the law. Even if your child never commits a crime, with two out of three marriages ending in divorce, there are issues of custody and child support that must be legally resolved. What if your child runs away from home or is caught dealing drugs? What if you are deemed an abusive or negligent parent and the law steps in to remove your child from the home? When your child is in trouble, wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to talk to a personal friend who just happens to be a retired juvenile court judge? Not many of us have a friend like that, but the next best thing is Ramona John's book "Children and the Law in Texas -- What Parents Should Know." In a non-threatening, conversational tone, John helps the reader understand the nuances of the juvenile justice system. "Get comfortable, this will take a while," she advises before answering a particularly knotty question on paternity. Personal observations and anecdotes are a helpful reminder that even judges are human. Some, like John, are warm and human. The question-and-answer format makes it easy for parents to concentrate on the subject matter even when they may be under stress because of their child's circumstances. The chapter "Keeping Your Child out of Trouble" is worth the price of the book even if you don't live in Texas. Reading it could prevent that dreaded brush with the law that is every parent's nightmare. The best parents may know the guidelines of parental behavior intuitively, but for the rest of us, John's list is a succinct reminder and a starting point for discussion. While good parents teach their children they are responsible for their own acts, that, unfortunately, is not the case where illegal acts by minors are concerned. The question of whether and to what extent parents can be held responsible for their children's acts was thrust into the national conscience by the Columbine school shootings. By giving you an idea of what the law says about parent/child relationships and responsibilities, the book could save you time and money when you need to consult a lawyer. The book will be an eye-opener if you don't know the answers to questions like these: Can a child have more than one presumed biological father? If you face a situation where you must hire an attorney for your child, do you have the right to be present every time your child speaks to the attorney? Do you know the difference between Teen Court and juvenile court? After reading John's book, one can only wish that she could be the designated "explainer" in charge of re-writing the juvenile justice and family codes all over America so they can be understood by ordinary people. After that, she could tackle the federal tax code.

Great, creative curtain designs, marvelous for inspiration. There are solid instructions for basics such as estimating yardage, seam types, lining, etc. However there are NOT actual instructions for making most of the styles shown. The occasional detailed instructions are patchy (just showing the basics of one detail, rather than how to achieve the whole effect, and sparsely illustrated) I give this book 5 stars for photography and ideas, but only one star for detailed instructions for all but the most basic curtain sewer. There are many lovely curtains in this book I'd love to know how to assemble. It is so frustrating to see all these cool ideas and then find only the barest coverage of the techniques needed to create them!

Curtains are more complex than one would think and this book does a great job of getting you through the basics and into advanced designs. It book starts out helping you choose fabric, curtain fittings and poles. Preparation for sewing both curtains and shades, planning, measuring and caring for your curtains is also covered. A section on estimating amounts of fabric and accessories needed was a big help.

In the first set of examples you learn to make tiebacks, folded, and roman shades. Sheers and lightweights are next. I love the one decorating with flowers. Projects include a kitchen gingham with bindings, a hook back curtain and a pin-tucked lined curtain.

Lined and interlined curtains as well as flat and gathered valances follow. You are shown how to make hand-pleated, gathered, hand-gathered, rolled edge and bunched headings. Hook bands, frills and Italian stringing are also covered. Projects include an appliqued curtain with tabs and patchwork curtains. There is great advice on adding contrasting linings or quilted borders and mixing and matching fabrics too.

The project instructions throughout are excellent. The entire process is explained step-by-step with demonstrating photos. A large photo of the finished project accompanies these and a great variety of styles and fabrics are used.

The last chapter focuses on basic sewing skills. This is a great reference and very helpful for beginners to sewing like myself. Here you are shown how to make seams and mitered corners. Several stitches, borders and piping are also illustrated. There is even a discussion of bought trimmings, a glossary and a list of suppliers. This is a great book for anyone who wishes add that special touch or save money by making their own curtains.

If you are inspired by visualization, this book is for you! I purchased this book primarily for ideas and and I received plenty of them. What stands out far and above everything are the beautiful photographs. They are pictures of the different types of drapes and curtains that Ms. Luke has created for the homes of various clients. She has created alot of wonderful drapes that also serve as creative artwork.

I have never made a curtain or drape in my life, but I am an experienced sewer and in my opinion Ms. Luke takes the time to explain everything in an orderly fashion in order to familiarize the reader with what to expect as well as providing you with a break-down (both in metric and U.S.) for how to measure your windows or doors with acuracy as well as how much fabric to buy. In addition, she also gives instruction for how to do various hems, tiebacks, valances, and interlinings. She describes the different types of drapes you can make to get the dramatic looks you want. In all honesty I will probably have a professional make a pair of drapes from the book for me before I do it myself because I want to make sure they are done with precision, however, that takes nothing away from the instruction that Ms. Luke has provided- what I want I don't have the time to do right now.

I would gladly recommend this book to an experienced sewer or an adventurous beginner.