Perhaps best known today as the Formula One team for which Mika Hakkinen, Alessandro Zinardi, Johnny Herbert, Nigel Mansell and Ayrton Senna all drove early in their Grand Prix careers, Colin Chapman's British F1 group revolutionized the sport -- everything from monocoques to wings to sponsors -- and were the McLarens of their day. Like March, BRM, Tyrrell, Brabham and other now-defunct F1 organizations, however, Team Lotus could not keep pace in the increasingly capital-intensive realm of modern F1 racing. This detailed and well-referenced tome is a wistful, race-by-race record of the most influential Formula One team of all time.

This book was a marvelous read. The author kept my interest throughout the first two-thirds of the book. However, he does deal blandly with Grant's political career. Overall though, quite touching and well done.

I used this book to pick out a couple of places to stay in Vermont, and regretted it. I should have been tipped off by the fact that every single review in the book is glowingly positive; a dead giveaway that the book is not independent. It seems very likely to me that this is one of those guides where the inns and hotels pay to be included, and may even write their own reviews.

The book is divided up by types of place, so there's a "Country B&B" section, a "Romantic Getaway" section, a "Lakeside" section, and so on. We booked one of the "Gourmet Getaways" and one of the "Farms"; the former was a disaster, but the latter was OK. The gourmet place, a fancy inn in Ludlow, was described as providing "sumptuous feasts" for breakfast, with "excellently trained and most personable" staff, and the option of picking up a "sophisticated picnic lunch". It's hard to imagine the editors actually ate at this place: the staff clearly hated the management and were close-mouthed and unfriendly (and we overheard the owner loudly berating one of the waitresses); the cooking was very good, but not extraordinary, and the picnic was ridiculous--for $25 a head we each got a nice little ash bucket with a quarter bottle of very cheap champagne, a chunk of cheese, and a hunk of bread.

The farm was described a little more accurately--the views were truly incredible, and the cooking was home-cooking, wisely not praised in the guide book.

At the gourmet place, in Ludlow, we met up with a couple of friends from Britain. They'd booked on our recommendations, but had bought a guide book anyway, and we were alarmed to discover a much harsher evaluation of where we were about to stay. In the end, we enjoyed ourselves enough--good company and Vermont scenery can overcome most ills. When we shop for a vacation now, though, we always look for a guide book that seems willing to criticize.

This book has been an invaluable source for my business - New England B&B Reservation Services. What I like most is that many of the places I have called out of this book have been gracious and professional. I have to make a lot of "cold calls" in this business when I get requests for areas outside of my listings. It is nice to know that my call will be received well. We only carry those hosts who offer exceptional hospitality, so if I don't have a good conversation with the bed & breakfasts and country inns, then I cannot recommend them to my clients. The descriptions set forth in this book are generally true and honest. When I visit the places personally, I already know what to expect.

This book contain abstracts of resurveys of land, abstracts of land warrants, and loose warrants issued by the governor. Resurveys were usually performed because of a dispute about the original survey; some details of the dispute are included. Land warrants were issued to authorize the survey of land prior to a grant being issued. Fees had to be paid after the warrant before a grant issued; so there may not be a grant for every warrant. But the warrant does indicate a person was interested in a piece of property in North Carolina. The warrants issued by the governor were for a variety of reasons. These warrants could be used to buy land, pay taxes, or (sometimes) pay the grocery bill.

While the information available in this book is factual, it is far from complete. The book may be useful as a starting point for older children's research or for research for brief elementary school projects; however, middle school students will need much more in depth information. It also does not have information about lesser-known tribes. I found the book "500 Nations" to be a better all-around resource on this subject