The ever delightful Vesper Holly is back in this fifth chronicle by one of my favorite master storytellers. Vesper's resourcefulness, bravery and wit are ever-present while she falls in love (innocently) yet again. Her red hair, fiery personality, orphaned status and love for a certain fat cat conjure up another favorite heroine of the historical fiction world, exotic Nefret Emerson from the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters. Each of these books packs a lot of punch considering how short they are, making them perfect for any young reader.

I really enjoyed this book. It is by Lloyd Alexander, author of The High King winner of the Newbery Medal. One reason I enjoyed was that it kept on surprising me until the end.
It is not based on things that really happened, although it has people who really existed, such as President Ulysses S. Grant.
The adventure begins when Ulysses Grant comes to Vesper Holly's door asking for her help with a kidnaping of two children. The kidnaper is using the children to ransom the emperor of Brazil.
The kidnapper hates Vesper Holly, so he made it clear that bad things would happen to the children if she did not deliver the ransom. That way he can put her in danger to get revenge on her.

Vesper is so cool. One of the best reads. I love how honset and strong she is, it is one of the best girl adventure books.

The Doctor at his best! This is a warm and encouraging book for preachers. Dr. Lloyd-Jones delivered these lectures at Westminister Seminary in the sixties (I think), but they are still relelvant today for the preacher that is serious about his calling. Lloyd-Jones defends the primacy of preaching, showing that there is not any substitute for it. He delves into the preparation, shape, and form of the sermon and hits on such issues as humor, invitations, and the congregation. Best of all is the last chapter on "Demonstration of the Spirit and of the Power" which deals with the sacred anointing of the Holy Spirit in preaching. I am a preacher and if I could have only one book on preaching, this would probably be the one!

I have been a pastor of a Presbyterian churches for 25 years and weekly preaching is my life's work. Others may tell you more about the 'how' of constructing a sermon from a Bible text. However, no one will tell you more about what the task of preaching really is than Lloyd-Jones, the finest English language preacher of the 20th century, without a doubt. Yes, he is 'old school'; but it is his kind of preaching that brings the power of the gospel to bear on people to truly change them -- not all the dramatic sideshow tricks of today's 'entertainment' churches. When we hear preaching again from hundreds of pulpits like that of Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the church will leap forward by the grace of God, into a new reformation! I tell younger pastors to read this once a year, until it becomes part of them.

Covers the topic of preaching in a systematic and comprehensive manner. The author sets up his arguments on solid biblical reasonings and illustrates them with appropriate real-life examples. Fervent love for God and long experience are stamped on every page. Never fails to convince - the only danger being it might be too convincing. Keep in mind that other viewpoints might be valid as the author also admits at the beginning of the book.

This is a very complete book on the subject for the layman. It gives descriptions of a number of systems including pressure distributed dome which is my type and not described in any other book I have read. Easy reading but a good deal of information. Seem to be very current. This is the best book I have read on the subject thus far.

The basics of septic systems, from underground systems and failures to what the owner can do to promote and maintain a healthy system, is revealed in an excellent guide essential for any who reside on a septic system. Rural residents receive a primer on not only the basics; but how to conduct period inspections and what to do when things go wrong. History also figures into the fine coverage.

This book is an essential tool for owners of homes with septic systems, or for people who are considering buying or building a home with a septic system.

It is written in non-technical language and includes a plethora of illustrations, some of them humorous. It provides enough information so that reader can deal effectively with professionals, should that become necessary. While it mainly focuses on the traditional septic tank, it also describes many alternatives which can be used in situations where the standard tank may not be applicable.

There is also an intriguing history of sanitation. I was fascinated to learn that the re were flush toilets in the Indus Valley (now Pakistan) in 2500 BC!

Also included is an extensive bibiolography, including web sites, and a list of suppliers of various secptic-related products.

Interesting book that shows dozens of ways to make shelters in the wilderness. A good book for those of us who love traipsing through the bush, which in turn leaves us with that small chance of getting lost or stranded. The book I got was published by Loompanics Unlimited, and copied from the original 1914 edition, but I imagine all editions by all publishers are the same.

I have lived in a very rural area my whole life. I love the forest, and because of this book I've been able to enjoy it even more. "Uncle Dan" Beard has lots of great ideas and illustrations to show how poeple used to, and still do, build shelters in the forest. It's great to have a historical resource to all of these techniques and ideas that are from the past - which otherwise might be forgotten about. GREAT BOOK!!

This book comes from a time when hunters and conservationists were in league with each other. Many of the tips he gives are not appropriate for parks but are still useable on PRIVATE land. Not for effete tree hugger types.

Has 2 critical and unique features for each site -- GPS address (in addition to street address) and the accessibility for public viewing. Before this book, I've wasting much travel time trying to find sites and then finding them completely hidden from view.

As a practicing architect and architectural historian living in California, I have found this book to be an essential part to my research for projects designed by FLW. The photography is rich and alive. I have visited most of the buildings included in this book, the photography could not be more powerful. What else can be expected from such a talented author as Mr. Heinz? Another fine book by Mr. Heinz and cannot wait to see his upcoming book on Green and Green's Blacker House.

The reader from California must have the wrong book. There is no photo of a decorative detail of the Hollyhock House. I checked on the cities and found that some are noted differently than other texts but are accurate. One example is the Sturges House (page 49) listed in Los Angeles, most others list it in Brentwood. After the OJ trial, everyone now knows Brentwood is actually a neighborhood of Los Angeles. The photo of the Millard House (page 61) is printed backwards but the house is symmetrical and is still recognizable.

The book reveals a great deal of new, previously unpublished material that adds a great deal to our understanding of Wright's work such as the sections on San Francisco and Los Angeles that give locations and information of the clients or sites for buildings that are demolished to those only proposed. It helps to make the work more real and exciting.

The California reader must keep in mind that the purpose of this book is to assist all the Pilgrims making their way to every one of Wright's work. For that it is one of the greatest books available as Wright's work needs to be seen in person to be appreciated.

I am sure we are all eagerly awaiting the last of the series, The East!

This most excellent book consists of a series of sermons by Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones which were preached in Westminster Chapel, London, during the Autumn of 1963.

Readers of this awesome work cannot fail to be moved by the manner in which this subject is approached. The writer being recognised by many as perhaps one of the greatest preachers of the 20th Century.

The basis of this book is the words written through the Apostle Paul in the New Testament book of Galatians in chapter 6;verse 14;-
"God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ..."

The message of Salvation being expounded through the full gospel message of 'Christ crucified'. A message that will hold you throughout this book.

As I read I can but count it loss that I was never able to hear the learned author preach, especially in these days where the central truth of the Gospel is so often ignored amidst the perilous times now facing the World as outlined in Scripture pertaining to the last days.

One particularly moving aspect of this book is that during the course of these sermons in 1963, US President Kennedy was assassinated.

Clearly shocked and saddened by the tragic death of President Kennedy, the writer mentions his death during his preaching. We are left in no doubt as to the uncertainty of this physical life, it's transiency and our inability to save ourselves.

The meticulous study together with the fervent depth of the message provides a message that is extremely powerful. We are left in no doubt as to the importance of Salvation and it's absolute necessity for us all.

Many references are made, not least the glaring parallel between Christ's sacrifice on the Cross and the Old Testament Passover where the Jewish people were spared whilst the first born of the Egyptians were killed.

The blood of a pure, unblemished lamb having been painted on the posts and lintels of the Israelites' doors causing death to pass over them. The shedding of Jesus Christ's blood on the cross at Calvary being the New Covenant, whereby Jesus Himself is the pure, unblemished Lamb of God which now takes away the sin of the entire World, for those who believe in Him.

If you read just one book apart from the Bible about Jesus and Salvation, let it be this one. Highly, highly recommended.

Thanks for listening.

I read this book when a life threatening illness faced me. Nothing can replace the Bible, but D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones used the Bible, Philippians, in showing me how to place my complete trust in Jehovah God to face any trial. He is by far my favorite read for spiritual application in today's world.

Lloyd-Jones, in nine chapters (sermons) on Galatians 6:14, brings to light the central focus of early Christian preaching. He shows how the cross, and it message, has been God's proclamation of deliverance throughout the Scriptures. It is not simply Paul's message, but that of Jesus, all the epistles, and the Old Testament as well. Lloyd-Jones' passion, as well as his precision in analysis, come through wonderfully in these marvelous messages. A must for thorough grounding in the Christian faith and for those who do not yet know the "heart of the gospel."

This easy to read and understand delivers the best and most accurate information for the average American consumer. Gives the knowledge and tools to improve your health by drinking lots of safe drinking water.

If you never thought about water - think again! This easy to understand book is written with facts, charts and illustrations that make learning about water informative and fun. Colors are just brilliant and the high quality print makes it a perfect gift - give one to someone who you care about. Turning on the tap can now be a choice, as municipal water systems are set to provide volume - not health. After reading this book I decided it was my responsibility to protect my family. Filtered water, distilled water, cancer causing chemicals in YOUR water, scam water sales people and more - with all topics covered. It's a book, a reference and a work to share with your best friend. I give it Five Stars and a Double Rainbow!!

If you never thought about water - think again! This easy to understand book is written with facts, charts, and illustrations that make learning about water informative and fun. Colors are brilliant and the high quality print makes this book a perfect gift - give it to someone who you care about. Turning on the tap can now be a choice, as municipal water systems are set to provide volume not health. After reading this book I decided it was my responsibility to protect my family. Filtered water, distilled water, cancer causing chemicals in YOUR water, scam water sales people and more - with all topics covered. It's a book, a reference and a work to share with your best friend. You'll give it five stars and double rainbow!!!

Eugene Bullard was an African American man who was born in 1895 in Columbus, Georgia, and lived a really fascinating live. After leaving the U.S. in 1912 to escape the existing suffocating racist oppression, he stayed first in Britain, and then settled in France where he lived as a boxer, entertainer, jazz drummer, was a war hero in the trenches in Verdun, and become the first African American combat pilot in 1917 (in French service: the U.S. would allow black combat pilots only in 1941...). After the war, like so many other African Americans, he remained in Europe. He become a well known entrepeneur in the Parisian night club life during the 20s and 30s. At the German invasion in 1940, and after a brief stint in the French army, he went back to the U.S. where he died in New York in 1961. Revered in France as a national hero during is life, and completely unknown in his country until more than twenty years after his death, the life of this extraordinary man has in this book a much deserved homage and, probably, its definitive biography.

A very well documented biography on a genuine American and French hero. Unfortunately he was born during the Jim Crow era in the south (even though the constitution which was written over 100 years before his birth mentions "all men are created equal", this did not include any non-caucasian's or women, did it? Did not use the word minority since it denotes less than some majority, there are more non-caucasian's in the world anyway and what is really meant by that word is just that, non-caucasian. I find it odd that the USA was founded by European descendants like the English, French and even though the country prided itself on it's progresive nature, it did not include equality, even though Europe itself did not practice racial discrimination). He was born the seventh child of a large family and his father always had a premonition of a very distinguished future for him and let it be known to him when he was young. Talks about his travel through the south after he left home and was told early by his father of a country (France) where all men are truly free. This had a profound effect on him because he eventually made it to France via England first.

He began his livelyhood as a theatre performer and boxer; two opposing and similar avocations. He joined the military and became the first Black American and Black Frenchman aviator and was awarded medals for his bravery, dedication and skills. Very well liked, he had a contagious personality and started working at a famous Paris club later in life and eventually became a club owner himself. He met the famous of the day like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Langston Hughes, Bricktop and many others. This biography also got me interested in Jazz age Paris to request both autobiographies of Hughes and Bricktop.

Slowly (too slowly) more is being known about this man and his acomplishments and contributions to the human race.

You won't be able to put it down. Jack Johnson's autobiography "In the Ring and Out" is another good bio of that era too.

I had earlier learned of some of Eugene Bullard's exploits, but Craig Lloyd's book spotlights an endless list of amazing achievements that seem unbelievable for any man to accomplish in just one lifetime. It's a shame Bullard's life has been up to now unexplored and uncelebrated. Hopefully this extremely well-researched biography will fix that.

I am not a huge fanatic of Frank Lloyd Wright's but when i saw this book on a bookstore table i hat to buy it i accully got this book at B. Dalton's it was only 4 dollars so i could not pass that up but it is worth the money to buy it here.

I love Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture. This book is unusual in that it features a lot about the interiors as well as the exteriors of some of his houses. There are photos of some of the most gorgeous rooms (dining rooms, kitchens) and also some nice layouts featuring decorative items like lamps and stained glass windows.

If you are interested in Mission-style decorating, which is in vogue at the moment, you will find this a valuable resource. I love every page in this book.

As a 13 year old Wright fanatic, i have read books all about different aspects of the Frank Lloyd Wright Design. One book for furniture, one for the house design, one for the glass, one for the Usonian concept. Upon opening this book I didn't expect to find anything different. Concentration in one area. What I actually received was a complete look at the Wright design. Instead of buying seperate books, I could find out all about Wright aspects in this one book! This book is a must have for any fan of Frank Lloyd Wright!

Although Bruce Catton was an accomplished historian in his own right, In _Grant Moves South_, one cannot help but notice the influence of the great Sherman biographer Lloyd Lewis. Anyone who has read Lewis' _Sherman: Fighting Profit_ will recognize similarities; the heavy reliance on primary sources and the uncanny ability to allow the reader to draw his or her own conclusions without explicitly stating the writer's intentions, not to mention that sinuous narrative style that captivates and draws the reader deeper into the manuscript. Unfortunately, however, Lewis only lived to publish the first of a multi-volume biography of Ulysses S. Grant titled _Captain Sam Grant_ . Lewis' widow commissioned Bruce Catton to finish the project utilizing much of the notes Lewis had gathered in the course of his research. The results are the two subsequent biographies authored by Catton: _Grant Moves South_ and _Grant Takes Command_.                 Catton begins his story in June 1861 when Grant, appointed Colonel, takes command of the 21st Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Catton portrays Grant as a man of few words, yet possessing an ability to earn the respect of his men. Grant stresses discipline and training particularly of his company grade officers. About half of the book is devoted to Grants participation at the battles of Belmont, Fort Henry, Fort Donelson and the near disaster at Shiloh. The remainder of the text focuses on the Vicksburg campaign.                 Catton prefers a loosely structured chronological approach and provides his readers with a commanding view from headquarters. Catton relies upon letters, cables, and other communiqués between officers, which tends to keep the focus on Grant and other high level players. Besides Grant's known habit of scribbling handwritten orders on scratch paper and other official documentation, Catton allows Grant to speak for himself through the only vestige we have: his memoirs. In contrast, Catton listens to what other observers have to say about Grant in their memoirs, particularly William T. Sherman and the unpublished memoir of Grant's wife, Julia Dent Grant. Juxtaposing this top-down approach is Catton's ability to portray the human frailties of Grant's personality. Grant's drinking is a recurring theme in which Catton bestows an admirable defense.                                Catton devotes considerable space to the Grant's uneasy relationship with General Henry Wager Halleck. To the charge that Grant disobeyed orders and failed to communicate his intentions from his Headquarters at Fort Donelson, Catton counters by stating the Union communication system, as a whole was substandard. He goes on to point out that evidence suggests Confederate sympathizers manned telegraph offices squelching vital communiqués.   Catton gives Grant's nemesis credit however, when Halleck played a vital role in saving Grant's command during the controversial political maneuverings of another of Grant's rivals: General John A. McClernand.                 Catton concludes that Grant certainly had his hands full. On the one hand, Grant had a military campaign to plan and orchestrate; On the other hand, Grant was the target of dubious machinations from jealous staff officers and politicians in Washington bent of relinquishing his command. Grant was also faced with economic issues and the problem of what to do with displaced contraband slaves that were pouring into his army camps on a daily basis. In the chapter "A Noun is the Name of a Thing," Catton again comes to the defense of Grant in his handling of these sensitive civil-military relations. In a controversial order issued on 17 December 1862, Grant categorized northern businessmen attempting to exploit profits from the sale of cotton as "Jews." Referring to the former slaves as "Darkeys." Grant immediately put the Negro refugees to work maintaining roads, bridges and other military necessities that required manual labor. Admitting that "Grant and most other men were children of their time '," Catton minimizes Grants derogatory comments. These complex topics surrounding Ulysses S. Grant, are significantly important, yet diminish the significant effect of the Vicksburg Campaign. Taking into account that this is a biography of Grant and not a comprehensive treatment of the pivotal campaign that sealed his place in history, Catton could have evened out the balance rather than treating the Vicksburg campaign as a mere backdrop. It is not surprising, however, given Catton's eloquent literary style and his excellent syntheses of primary sources, why scholars in the literature of the Vicksburg Campaign repeatedly cite this book. Though sympathetic to the treatment of his subject, Catton's volumes on Grant deserves an honored place on the shelves of any serious student of the Civil War.

Grant was a somewhat dispirited and discouraged man living in Illinois when the war began, but he thought he might have something to offer the Northern cause. Offering it and obtaining it, however were challenging. Eventually he was assighned to Cairo, Illinois where circumstances, partially of his own making, contributed to victories along the Tennessee River. His reputation, and a bit of politiking, put him in command of the campaign to open the Mississippi River by taking Vicksburg, a veritable fortress, and key to Southern Hegemony in a recognized vital area. New Orleans had already been captured. Shilo was the nearly disastrous prelude in a story of one imaginative tactic after another against a formidable adversary whose position was one of dominance. Finally, the practical and decisive move was determined by Grant, and worked. Vicksburg was taken from the rear after his army glided down river and on to Jacksonville to stop reinforcements from reaching the battle.

Grant had the advantage of having known many of his adversaries with whom he fought during the Mexican American War. Victory coincided with that of Gettysburg, PA, and the South was in full retreat as Union forces cautiously pressed into Tennessee and Alambama. As is often the case, luck played a part in success, but the Southern back was broken, and it was just a matter of time before the Union won. So great were the losses on both sides, and so hideous, as well as human, the circumstances, that I am confounded by the combined strength of the two armies. Abe Lincoln called the political shots, but it was Grant and his field commanders of the west who determined the War's outcome. Grant did what had to be done, though he was unjustly criticized at times. The conclusion of this volume leads naturally to the last; Grant Takes Command, the only general ever to defeat Lee.

Bruce Catton is arguably the greatest Grant biographer and is largely responsible for changing the negative views about Grant in the 1950's and 60's. Catton wrote several books about USG and this is the second part of a grand Grant trilogy begun in 1949 by Lloyd Lewis with "Captain Sam Grant." The final volume of the trilogy is Catton's "Grant Takes Command" (both books are available on Amazon).

Bruce Catton thoroughly understand Ulysses Grant and became his vociferous proponent. He correctly grasped that Grant was the preeminent strategist of the civil war and was also the war's greatest, most innovative and most determined general. Those who errantly believe Grant won with brute force or superior numbers need to read this book. Others who espouse the line that Robert E. Lee was the real genius of the war also need to consult this volume. At its conclusion, you will change your mind and realize that Grant was not only a magnificent soldier, he was also a highly intelligent, humorous and marvelously humane man. He has been unfairly maligned and Catton sets the record straight.

Catton writes with perception about Grant as a father and devoted husband, but the thrust of the book is painting an incise portrait of Grant in the pivotal period 1861-1863 when his greatness was forged. This is a "must have" book for anyone interested in U.S. Grant or the American civil war. There are few, if any, factual errors and the narrative flows smoothly from beginning to end. Highly recommended.