As an active duty Captain I was given this book by my father who is an Army Colonel. A great tabletop/bookshelf book with a history of the army which is enlightening, particulary the many photos and captions. The history is the chapters themselves is somewhat simplistic and "politically correct." Some of the Army's less glorious moments are conviently written out or glossed over or sanatized rather than dealt with in a forthright manner - i.e. the Indian wars, Civil War (southern generals are pictured but not discussed in depth), Bonus Marchers, etc. This doesn't take away from it being an excellent primer on the Army, its history, organization, values, and goals.

The many included paintings from Don Stivers, Rick Reeves, Mort Kunstler really make this edition shine. I think nearly every US Army Stivers print has made it into this edition. If you love military art this is a great value.

Four out of five stars for the sanitized P.C. history of the army. Five for the illustrations, paintings, pictures, and nice binding of this edition. Highly recommended for anyone who wants a well illustrated U.S Army history.

This book is an excellent source for anyone interested in military service history. My hats off to BG Nelson, General Sullivan, and General Shinseki for a great book. This brings to light events with which the Army is involved. Think about it, the Army brings in names like Powell, Shalikashvili, & Shinseki. All three brought in their own histories that greatly impacted the way the Army does business, and how it creates opportunities not for just a few, but for everybody wishing to commit to military service. I salute the U.S. Army for a great historical record.

Briggs has a knack for illustration that is simply awe inspiring. The bear in this book is just so big. Kids love to see such a big bear get into the house. He makes a mess of the bed and the bathroom, he dirties the floor which has to be cleaned up (good introduction to pets for children) and all the while the adults keep missing him. They just cannot manage to catch a glimpse of this huge bear wandering around their house.

This is a magical and imaginative book which my kids love. It takes a bit of reading at first, but once you get the gist of the story it is easy to lead the children from picture to picture, and it is very well illustrated. It reads almost like a TV programme.

Highly recommended by me. Suits from 2 year olds up to six or seven.

My daughter is three and she loves this book. She loves the wonderful pictures, as well as the imaginative story

I grew up in Illinois, but only after I moved away did I learn that the vast midwestern sky is unique. Irving's panoramic photos capture the beauty of the open sky as no others I've seen. Whenever I'm homesick, if I need to see a midwestern thunderstorm, I open Irving's book and I'm there.

If you live in the Midwest or try to photograph it, this may be the best $20.97 you can spend. It is a book of inspiring, panoramic, color photos of rural Illinois. Gary pulls the beauty out of a landscape that most people, including photographers, usually ignore. This book has opened my eyes to the state I live it and given me photographic ideas that I was blind to before.

What I found most valuable about "Best Red" was the complete list of vitamins and minerals. Also, the book tells you what these vitamins and minerals do and what foods they can be found in. It is written in an easy to follow way. I have really enjoyed this book and found it a much needed tool in food selections.

After having followed Ray Hope's suggestions in "The Best Red Book on Weight Control" for just one month, I look and feel better. What more can a person ask for? Great book, easy to read and follow.

Now that the iceberg of industry has receded from our urban waterfronts, cities around the world confront the question of what to do with their riverfronts and coastlines. Ray Gastil's book Beyond the Edge offers a wealth of ideas about this. Because of his position as the executive director of New York's Van Alen Institute, which focuses on the design of the public realm, Ray Gastil is particularly well suited to talk about the waterfront proposals for New York. His writing is concise, the information ample, and the range of projects he covers extremely wide. For any community or designer looking for ideas on what they might do with their waterfront, this book will serve as a valuable sourcebook. The book also examines projects in other cities, providing an important cross-cultural comparison and suggesting that New York, while admirable in all that it has done along its waterfront, does not have all of the answers.

You can't always judge a book by its cover, but you can this one. It has a very clever book jacket that unfolds to become a map of New York, showing the locations of the projects discussed within. A glimpse of the cover photo through a gap in the book jacket also creatively draws you in and, like the briskly paced prose, leaves you wanting to read on.

I highly recommend the book and I know of no other that covers this subject so thoroughly and in such an engaging manner. If I have one criticism, it is that there are not enough photographs or drawings of many of the projects. One photograph often cannot adequately convey, visually, a large urban-design or architectural proposal, and while the author's descriptions compensate for that lack of documentation somewhat, words can only go so far. But the relative dearth of photos, combined with the map in the book jacket, do send a clear message: if you are going to understand waterfront development, you need to pack up the book and, with it in hand, go see these places for youself. You will see why the careful design and development of our waterfronts is one of the major opportunities many cities now have to improve the quality of life in their communities.

For all its romantic history as a great port, not to mention its hundreds of miles of shoreline, New York is barely known today as a waterfront city. But after reading "Beyond the Edge: New York's New Waterfront" by Raymond W. Gastil, you'll be convinced that New York's future is on its waterfront. Gastil confronts the city's post-industrial malaise and demonstrates that after decades of shoreline deterioration, New York is on the verge of becoming a "dynamic waterfront metropolis." The book, which covers an array of exciting developments in all five boroughs--not just buildings, but also parks, ferry connections, water treatment plants and even the restoration of the world's largest garbage dump--is the most complete and up-to-date picture of change and opportunity on the New York watefront. At the same time, the book is much more than a survey or an architectural showcase of pretty pictures. It is above all a book of big ideas. As a participant in many New York projects and a writer/historian of the Brooklyn waterfront, I particularly appreciate Gastil's far-reaching scope and intelligent, well-informed analysis. With both a keen sense of local history and an international perspective, he describes cutting-edge projects in other world-class waterfront cities and sets the same high goals for New York. He sees the waterfront as an extension of the vital city, a place not just for high-rise housing, but as an integrated part of the urban infrastructure. Whether rebuilding Ground Zero or planning new sports facilities for the Olympics, New York should "celebrate its infrastructure," he maintains, with designs that challenge expectations and connect the waterfront to the city. And while the book is an argument for good planning, Gastil does not rest his case on abstractions. His prose is as clear and sharp as the book's striking photographs and graphic design. Even the cover jacket tells the story, reversing to a map of the New York waterfront with pullout photos of major projects. This is a book for everyone--a practical, visionary and inspiring guide to the city's future.

This book is very dynamic in its broad spectrum of education. For the student of the Navajo culture or th historian wanting to know the insides and motivation of the Native Americans known as Navajos, this book is the best.

Detailed, historical and filled with details on the "white mans" conquest. Their habits, traditions, dreams, beliefs, goals, society and place in the history of the New Americas.

A must read for anyone wanting to learn about a society that has been opposed, oppressed and often forgotten. They are a brilliant culture.

Get this book. Read it well. (I read it three times!)

As a layperson with an interest in Native Americans of the Four Corners region, I was captivated by this comprehensive history of the Dineh. The book is a scholarly, yet highly readable account of the history of this proud and persevering people. There is much for us to learn of Navajo legends, ancestry and customs, as well as the shameful treatment of the Navajo at the hands of the Spanish, Mexicans, other Indian tribes and the U.S. government. The enslavement of Navajo women and children by other cultures was particularly well-documented and shocking in its extent, as was the forced relocation of the People and taking of their homelands.

This work provides any interested party with a much deeper appreciation of the strength of the People. Mr. Locke is an eloquent advocate, and evokes in the reader an overwhelming shame at our government's role in fostering the appalling conditions among which many Navajo live to this day.

The book would be enhanced by addition of maps denoting the changing tribal boundaries of the Navajo and surrounding tribes, as well as a timeline of major events in the history of the People.

Loved the book. Detailed Brickey history right down to the first one in North America.

This is an excellent history of the Brickey family in America! If you are a Brickey and you want to know where your family came from, you need this book!

Rev. Allen shows each of us that forgiveness is possible with the help of God and our faith. This is an incredible story of a courageous family through one of the largest cruelties of life. The author also share his vision as to what church and Christianity is really about and how to aspire a more Christian heart toward humanity.

Few books reveal the soul of a family faced with aids like this one. I highly recommend it to those trying to understand this facit of American society today.

_Carver Country_ is a fascinating look at Raymond Carver's personal life. Warning: one feels like a snoop reading through this book. There are photos of Ray's desk, complete with ashtray and paperweights; his childhood home; various landmarks in and around Yakima, WA and Arcata, CA; and portraits of Ray's family and friends. These last are especially powerful. But aside from the photos, there are words - unpublished letters written by Ray, an excerpt from a 1983 interview for _Poetry_ magazine (which includes my favorite line - "That's the last Christmas you'll ever ruin for us!"), and a substantial introduction by Tess Gallagher. It is wonderful and strange to see the places that were turning points in Carver's life, and the accompanying text is haunting. Gallagher's introduction is especially fine, and worth reading many times. Get this book.

Carver was a wonderful, wonderful writer. It's great to see his house, his study, his wife and friends photographed so beautifully. It's great to read his stories, his poems, more than 10 years after his death and to find them as powerful as ever. This book is very moving.