Utilizing first person from her daughter's point of view, the author demonstrates through writing and photojournalism coverage the special relationship a blind person has with their dog guide and how that unique bond develops. I am an adult volunteer guide dog puppy raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., in San Rafael, and I use this book to read to school age children to explain what my pups will do when they return to guide dog school and are later matched with their blind handler. The book is written from the perspective of a young girl about 12 years old, the children in the audience immediately identify with her worry about her blind mother. The book shows the difficulty of going places for a blind person and how a dog allows them more independence and safety as they travel on their own. The black and white photographs are excellent and illustrate the everyday life of a family with one member who cannot see. I hope this book is reprinted soon, I would love to own my own copy to take to schools, not borrow the school library's.

Was Shaw gay? Dr. Peters builds a convincing argument that he probably was and that he used his vast intellect to erect every possible defense against his homosexual leanings ever coming to sustained expression. I thought I knew Shaw but I will never again look at him again now that I have read this provocative volume. I am giving it only 4 stars, however, because even my interest (and I am a fan of Shaw) could not be sustained for the entire length of this discussion of Shaw's romances/flirtations/avoidances.

If Bernard Shaw were not the second greatest playwright in the English language, this biography would not have such significance; and were it not for Shaw's multidimensional personality, this book would not possess so many fascinating dimensions. Sally Peters acknowledges her debt, and gives us a work without self-conscious authorship. It is a book that invites reading and rereading. Much has been made of Shaw's homosexuality; but Dr. Peters' focus is broader and deeper than that. A story, which often reads like the most engrossing fiction, Bernard Shaw: The Accent of the Superman, is a rewarding resource for any serious student of modern drama.

Peters, Sally. Bernard Shaw: The Accent of the Superman. New Haven: Yale University Press.

If Bernard Shaw were not the second greatest playwright in the English language, this biography would not have such significance; and were it not for Shaw's multidimensional personality, this book would not possess so many fascinating dimensions. Sally Peters acknowledges her debt, and gives us a work without self-conscious authorship. It is a book that invites reading and rereading. Much has been made of Shaw's homosexuality; but Dr. Peters' focus is broader and deeper than that. A story, which often reads like the most engrossing fiction, Bernard Shaw: The Accent of the Superman, is a rewarding resource for any serious student of modern drama.

I'm a sucker for any anthology that ends with Richard Petty accepting the National Book Award. . . This one also has a lot of heart. The first of what promises to be an annual collection of stories promoting "a rebirth of beauty and life-affirming values," the Silver Rose Anthology offers a strong mix of voices and attitudes. Not every story here will appeal to every reader (the opening story, for instance, does little for me), but the collection overall is outstanding. Personal favorites (in addition to George Singleton's outrageous "Richard Petty Accepts the National Book Award") include Robert Olen Butler's seamless "Rafferty and Josephine," Julie Orringer's touching "Note to Sixth-Grade Self" Patry Francis'"Limbe," and Patricia Hackbarth's provocative "A Brief Geological Guide to Canyon County."
Move over Bill Henderson, Katrina Keneson, and Larry Dark. Watson's in the house!

When Kevin Watson gathered the stories for this anthology, he was doing us a public service. This is a hard world: hearts break, and lives are shattered. Stories that don't deal with those realities aren't true to life. But there's so much more to life--and should be to art. These stories are "life-affirming" in the best kind of way: They don't stay sunk in gloom, but they don't stoop to easy answers. Each one shows us a new facet of getting on with life, making things work, following the path. The individual stories are excellent--I especially like the story by Pulitzer Prize-winner Robert Olen Butler, although it's one of several strong stories--and in their cumulative effect, the collection becomes (and I mean this in the best kind of way) inspirational.

i only gave this book 5 stars because i could not give it more. i went to a reading of one of the writers and soon went on to read the rest. it has a good mix of voices, but by far the best writer is Heidi Shayla and her story "The Coffin Builder's Romance", it is a beautiful story of quilts, boxes, and of course, coffins. it is my all time favorite anthology, and i would definetly recomend it.

The New York Bartender's Guide is the simplest of its type. I've been using the Mr. Boston book for years now, and find that the 'NY' does just as well, if not better because it is more up to date, and allows for easier referencing. I recommend this book highly if you are the type who likes to try new things!

This book is great for anyone wanting to learn more about making new drinks, finding out about old ones, or for a general reference guide. Has a lot of good solid information

Pond Life is like a general biology introduction to life found in ponds. All types of life are covered, albeit in very brief introductions. Plants and animals (microscopic to mammals to birds) each receive tertiary coverage. The book does not get into specifics on how wetlands function relation to other ecosystems, and such coverage would have been useful, but the overall emphasis is still relevant.

The book is likely not intended to be read from cover to cover, as it is a field guide. Field guides are really meant to be brought along in a pocket for easy reference when making field identifications. In this respect, I am a big fan of other field guides in the series.

This volume and its companions should be readily available at nature centers, but the price is low enough for people to purchase it for their own libraries. What it lacks in detail it makes up for in compactness and readability.

Golden Guides are often described as books for children just discovering the natural world. While the series is eminently usable by young naturalists, Golden Guides are solid introductory field guides. One of the strengths of "Pond Life" is its comprehensive scope covering everything from protozoa to plants to mammals. Indeed, it provides more good basic information on identifying types of water plants than any other source I know complete with measurements and color illustrations. The same applies to its coverage of invertebrates as well, though the minor objection of the previous reviewer concerning its scanty treatment of protozoa is a valid one. I would add to the strength of "Pond Life" its portability, which packs a plethora of information into a small package. Another weakness (of the Golden Guides in general) is its datedness to the 1950's and 60's. This does not affect its basic science in most cases, though it is strange (albeit nostalgic for some) to see the equipment suggested for pond watching.

E.O. Wilson, in his beautiful and brilliant autobiography, has stated that if he could live his life again, he would do so as a microbiologist who would dedicate himself to the study of a single tree and the area immediately surrounding it. He would investigate the organisms and the ecology of that small space, finding enough there to occupy his interest for a lifetime of exploration and research.

Given the same choice, I would choose a pond as my area of study, and this book would be one of the first field guides I would use. It is a basic introduction to the study of small bodies of fresh water: their defining characteristics, the forms they take through the seasons, the cycle of their lives, and the distinct forms they take throughout the United States. It also touches on the physical and chemical characteristics of water, and the importance these have for the organisms that live in or near the pond. The book introduces the concept of food webs and the multiple habitats of lakes and ponds, and also lists and describes some of the basic collecting tools of the limnologist (one who studies bodies of fresh water). The majority of the book is dedicated to the plants and animals which are frequently found near ponds. As one would expect, the emphasis is on how these organisms relate to the others in this environment, whether they are full or part time denizens, and in what types of ponds they can be found. More than merely a book about creatures found in ponds, it presents information about the pond itself and how its many inhabitants and visitors relate to one another there.

The book has two small weaknesses. The first is a slight bias towards organisms found only east of the Mississippi. There is enough information about ponds in general, however, to make this guide useful for any budding limnologist. The second flaw is that the sections on the protozoa and other microscopic organisms are far too short, but as a protozoologist I am perhaps biased. Still, I think that even a few more pages would have added to the value of this section by demonstrating the amazing complexity of these phyla.

As it is, however, the book functions admirably as an introduction to the study of ponds: it will lead beginners into the natural world, and to help them identify what they find there. It is suited for older children and adolescents, and will still be of some use at the college level, if only because it includes a list of more technical reference books. I recommend it for anyone who wants to "take the plunge" into the study of this fascinating environment!

Is George Eliot the world's greatest novelist? There's certainly an argument to be made, based on her classics Middlemarch and Daniel Deronda, which feature characters as complex and vividly, bafflingly alive as those of Shakespeare.

Yet today she seems curiously unread and under-appreciated, certainly in comparison to her contemporary, Charles Dickens. This has long mystified me, but perhaps I've found the solution in Mill on the Floss.

Seemingly the best known of her books, Mill on the Floss is certainly the one most frequently taught in high schools and colleges. And it's probably enough to guarantee that most students forced through it or its Cliff Notes won't bother with her again.

Not that it's a bad book. If you like Eliot, you'll find plenty of her riveting, obsessive characterization and dramatic psychology here. But along with these come a fractured, frustrating structure, a dearth of narrative drive, and endless passages of phonetic, "naturalistic" rural accents. Not to mention an ending so out of left field it seems to belong to an entirely different story. Unlike Middlemarch and Daniel Deronda, or even early but more successful novels like Adam Bede, Mill on the Floss is work, and its rewards are more modest.

Mill on the Floss seems to rate the academic attention because of its autobiographical elements, perhaps for its dazzling heroine, rather than its overall quality. So don't let an underwhelmed response to this fascinating if flawed book keep you from the rest of her amazing work -- she might be the best novelist out there.

Few females were writing fiction in those days, but it says a good thing about Great Britain that most of them were British. Mary Ann Evans, the real name of "George Eliot", was an enlightened and socially conscious woman, who wrote a story about the Torvill family, from the standpoint of Maggie, a young girl with a sharp mind, struggling to be herself in a world which was hard for that kind of person. The central theme is perhaps her struggle between family loyalty and independent spirit, as revealed through her relationship with his beloved, but tough, brother. The book is long and evocative, painting with acuteness the social surroundings in which the story develops. And the development intertwines many messages and situations, always revealing Maggie's inner self. One important characteristic of the book is that it is difficult to classify, since it contains features of Romanticism and Realism; social narrative and a glimpse into what psyichological literature would be in the Twentieth century.

In THE MILL ON THE FLOSS George Eliot provides an insightful and intelligent story depicting rural Victorian society. Set in the parish of St. Ogg's, Maggie and Tom Tulliver endure childhood and young adulthood while experiencing the harsh realities of poverty, devotion, love, and societal reputation. I emphasized greatly with Maggie as I have experienced some of her own lived experiences. I truly loved every chapter of this book and didn't want it to end. It is indeed very rare that I have this type of reaction to a book. Although this book was published during the Victorian era, it's amazing how Eliot's prose flows virtually unobstructed. The reader is given a rare glimpse into rural life during the 19th century and is treated to how strictly structured society was then. I am now a fan of Eliot and look forward to reading her other novels.

Bottom line: THE MILL ON THE FLOSS is an excellent novel. Enjoy!

I've read many books about the great aviatrix, Amelia Earhart. This one tells of Amelia's role in an already failed marriage, much like our country has given us the personal failures of our own President. Although the connection to Amelia is the lure of the book, the story is based more on the author's free-will interpretations of her grandmother's diaries -- what she must have thought, reacted, felt. The entries, in Dorothy's voice, seem distorted with many episodes, imagined. Should everyone's diary be at the mercy of their relative's own interpretations after their death? If the grandmother had written from memory, exactly how it was, would the story change? Dorothy's diary held the details of a troubled life (for a woman of privilege), still (without her input) and the author's self-promoting connection as a the distant "step-great-granddaughter" is hardly the stuff of interesting literature. I would recommend readers acquire actual biographical books to satisfy real curiosity about the lives of deceased heroes.

This is the story of the Putnam family and Amelia Earhart. George Putnam eventually married Amelia, but prior to that was her publicity director and writer of her adventures. Also interesting to learn is the Putnam family was huge in the publishing industry back then but also have a part in the invention of Crayola crayons. Much of the book is Dorothy's diary, which makes it kindof a slow read.

The time and research it must have taken to write this book is commendable. We have a read so much about Amelia but to hear about Dorothy and the incredible life that she lead was truley facinating. I would highly reccomend reading this book.

The book is a fantastic collection of the most popular East Coast drinks, and I use it often, but it lacks a West Coast feel, and severl drinks from it. It's a great starter book, though.

This is just a good "tool" to have around your house. Even if you don't throw any parties this year (or any year), it will come in handy, whether you want a good martini recipe or if the evening calls for something silly like "Alabama Slamma's".

The book is easy to use, and will be well-enjoyed by the adventuresome who are looking for a buzz more refined than a "sixer of bud."

I have also given this book to a couple of friends who are normally difficult to shop for on their birthdays, and they both loved it. Cheers!

This is an excellent book for the professional bartender to the home partier. The drink list is unlimited; it's filled with the most popular and most unlikely drinks, it will keep your guests entertained for hours. It does lack a "shooters" section, but overall it is great.

Wouldn't it be great for Lucas to turn his genius to an epic for our time, one that has relevance. He missed Lord of the Rings. HE has a change to do Defenders of the Holy Grail, but somone will probably beat him to it. We need movies that connect us with today's emotions, GEORGE

Well, this is a great book that helps you know more about the 20th century greatest myth maker: Mr. Lucas. Although the book is a little repetitive (You just can read so many times the story behind Thx or how he became a film maker) it lets you inside the professional life of a man known for not giving many interviews in a year. The best article is by far the 1997 interview-story that John Seabrook wrote. And here's a little note for the editors, in page 186, the writer mentions that Lucas adopted 3 daughters, so next print you may want to correct that one. Enjoyable book, but get the cheap edition :-)

My previous experience of reading George Eliot (admittedly about a decade ago) had been unhappy - her celebrated humanism seemed like so much fussy interference; 'Silas Marner' was too cosy, and I could not get past the infuriating first chapter of 'Middlemarch'. I've always felt a bit guilty about abandoning 'the greatest English novelist', and this volume of two short tales was a perfect opportunity to see whther my tastes had matured.

'The Lifted Veil' is a dark masterpiece, part-Gothic tale, written in the stilted style of famous horror stories like 'Frankenstein', in which inexplicable horror is described with unnervingly inappropriate articulacy; part-Henry James study of an idle, wealthy man tormented by the unknowability of a woman and her faithfulness (shades of Proust too, who worshipped Eliot).

As Gothic, its influence on cinema has been slight, although the narrator who narrates his own death looks to 'Sunset Boulevard', while a character who can see others' minds was recently enacted in 'What Women Want'. The story begins with one of the best, most shocking openings in English literature, as the hero Latimer, blighted with the gift of 'prevision', gives a detailed account of the way he will die, alone in a crumbling mansion, abandoned by careless servants.

At times, the story reads like a textbook psychological study with a solipsistic hero who lost his beloved mother at a young age, whose father resented him as inadequate, and whose brother's fiancee he loves. The various previsions he has are full of those details Freudian critics enjoy. But those previsions are described in ominous tableaux, and the switch from 'real life' into these states has a genuinely disorienting effect on the reader.

The text has always been seen as valuable as a rare instance of Eliot in effect denying or questioning the humanist principles of her most characteristic work and her interest in progressive science - its narrative is hermetic, anti-humanistic, circular: conflating time to an eternal, hellish present.

'Brother Jacob' is more like the Eliot I remembered, the story of a confectioner's apprentice who steals from his mother to emigrate to Jamaica where he intends to be given his fortune. Although it is a (sour) moral fable, with every character emerging badly, rather than warmly humanistic, the novels' irritations are here - the bossy, intrusive narration; the portrait of a growing, bourgeois community, lifelessly focusing on their obsessions with status and money, where every metaphor is inextricably linked with commerce and consumption. Each character is a caricature: the 'humour' is smug, smart-alecky, sarcastic and sneering. The tale is full of the details English Literature critics enjoy - colonialism, mental defectives, assumed identities etc.

The volume is worth reading for Sally Shuttleworth's exhaustive introduction, which discusses the stories in the context of Eliot's life and work (both are seen as negative allegories for writing and the writer), British Imperialism, laissez-faire economics, gender, the growth of science and progressive philosophy as the new religion etc.

A little-read story of George Eliot's "The Lifted Veil" is a lovely example of the intersection between humanities and science in 1859: it ends with a revivification scene worthy of Mary Shelley. Written just before Eliot admitted to being the author of *Adam Bede*, the emasculated protagonist, Latimer, mirrors Eliot herself in his desire for solitude. Exceedingly well-crafted Victorian writing. (I don't know the other story *Brother Jacob* well: it espouses that the wages of sin are embarassment and ostracization.)