How such a wonderfully heartwarming, funny, wacky book could be out of print, is beyond me. I have read all three books in the 'Corfu series' again and again. Like the reviewer before me, the description of the different wines stands out in my memory, as does the description of the entire birthday buffet for that matter. Gerald Durrel is an extremely gifted writer, and has an excellent sense of humor. His portrayal of his family is wildly funny, and one can't help but fall in love with them, even the irritating Larry! I highly recommend this book, but read 'My Family and other Animals' and 'Birds Beasts and Relatives' first. This is a deeply touching series, for adults and children alike, and there is a good laugh on practically every page. I hope someone comes to their senses and reprints this book.

A wonderfully funny book set in sunny Corfu replete with Durrell's hilarious family anecdotes, convoluted Greek imbroglios and enchanting descriptions. The description of different wines is scintillating.

"The Garden of the Gods" by Gerald Durrell is an immensely funny biographical work telling anecdotes from the author's childhood on the island of Corfu. More to the point, it is the third part of the trilogy which begins with "My Family and Other Animals" and continues with "Birds, Beasts and Relatives". Can anyone explain why the first part of this trilogy remains widely available, while the other two books, which are just as good, if not better, are now out of print?

If you are new to the breed or old this book is a bible for breeders. Even if you are into another breed this book is very good for it covers alot that is not breed specific. There is so much information in this book one is always going back over it. No german Shepherd breeder should be without this in thier library.

Although his earlier version (1970's version) of this book was excellent, and probably the best for it's era, this version is excellent! With up to date information from various countries around the world, this book gives a non-biased background of the genetics behind controlled breeding of Quality German Shepherd Dogs. He provides avenues for further education on any one point in his book, however, I find that all information provided by Willis is sufficient in making educated decisions in any good breeding program. A must for any serious breeder, and a book that will fast become "impossible to get". Robert Frischke KAHREN KENNELS

Geneticist and German Shepherd breed devotee Malcolm B. Willis, Ph.D. is the acclaimed author of the definitive work, The German Shepherd Dog: A Genetic History. With his comprehensive explanations of genetic principles, Willis details the genetics of reproduction, behavior, hip dysplasia, and other inheritable diseases of the German Shepherd dog. This book is an essential addition to every breeder's library. It is also a remarkably educational resource for anybody who is committed to fully understanding the genetic history of the breed and preserving its future.

This is fiction in a true life mystery setting that is scary; Vietnamese immigrants oppressed and murdered by modern Nazis. The action starts in Chapter 1 and continues throughout with an exciting and suspensful ending. The story flows and the book, once started, is hard to put down.

This book seems so real that whenever I go through Denver, I look sideways at all those normal people and wonder. You can't but like the FBI agent T.K. MacNaughton -- for the first time in a thriller, the FBI agent isn't some hard-a creep pushing his weight around. This character has a heart and it gets broken. But for all the horror, this is a story of hope. Do we have to keep killing our kids? Do we have to keep killing our future? All for ideologies that twist into hatred. Incredible book!

Despite Amazon.com saying it is out of print, Herrenrasse is indeed available (Spies in Deo Publ. at $22.50, Montrose, CO 81401-8713). The book begins with a nightmare and ends with hope. It is based on actual skinhead and extremist activities in the Denver metro area in the late 1980s and early 1990's: "slamming," murder of traitors, murder of innocents just because they are in the path of hate-filled people. The author's association with extremists and anti-government groups, as well as government agents, makes this novel more than real. The center of the story isn't the murder, kidnapping and tagedies, but the courage of the people who face them. A great book!

If you want to read a boook which is, at once, intelligent, lyrical and scientific, this collection of the writings of J. Henri Fabre should not be missed. He not only walks you through his many thought-provoking studies of the insect world, but also challenges you to consider from whence came the many wonders described therein. Contrary to what other reviewers have said, Fabre's education was not a hindrance to his observations. Indeed, true science (which means, after all "knowledge") is concerned with objective reality, not theoretical flights of fancy. We in the modern world have been lulled into believing that the world is composed of random collections of atoms, that all life is derived - has evolved - from some lower form of life, that all is in flux, and, ultimately, that there is no God. Read Fabre's writings - read them carefully - and dare to think otherwise. He shows, in experiment after experiment, that the insect world is not random and that "Nature acts for an end". More to the point, the results of Fabre's experiments show us that while insects act REASONABLY, they do so without the use of REASON itself (in particular, read chapter six, "The Ignorance of Instinct"). In other words, they act upon the impulse of instinct, which, is itself entirely logical and rational. Such rational ends, it becomes manifestly clear, cannot be the result of a random process of evolution, but must arise from the unseen hand of an intelligent creator. So much for Darwin. But don't believe me - read the book, and then try taking a look at DARWIN ON TRIAL and DARWIN'S BLACK BOX as well (both are excellent books which make the larger case, beyond the insect world, that Darwin was wrong).

This book tells the secrets of insect behavior. The author observes very closely the lives of the many species he studied. This is nature at her smartest and her blindest; beauty, horror and science. Highly recommended by me.

Exquisitely written, my imagination was immediately captured by Fabre's patient observations and his poetic retelling of each adventure. Once called an "incomparable observer" by Charles Darwin, Fabre's unsurpassed enthusiasm springs to life on every page. Since reading it a few short years ago I have ever since felt inspired to sit longer in the fields and to spend more time just observing. Admittedly, Fabre was self taught and isolated. He stubbornly disagreed with the theory of evolution. Looking back on his work it is easy to see the mistakes he made, blind spots in his approach to the larger aspects of biological research. Still, if you decide to read this book I'm sure you will be inspired to be with insects. What better thing to do?

It was a very good book and I really liked the end. It was so sweet. I think other kids would like to read this. The Jewel Kingdom is a very good series, if you like princesses.

Roxanne, the Ruby Princess, finds a dragon egg and the dragon turns out to be playful. Roxanne feeds Sassy, the dragon, from a bottle that her sister, Demetra, the Diamond Princess, gave her. All of her sisters love Sassy. One day the dragon gets terribly sick. Will he get better? Read this book to find out!

An extra exciting story, telling, that you should never do something when it could hurt something.

I have been a physician for twelve years, but never knew how beneficial a service dog could be for a patient with limited mobility. This book vividly describes the real life obstacles a person encounters when she has a disability, and should be required reading for all pre-meds.

When I saw this book I was trying to decide whether to train my own service dog or remain on a service dog provider's long list. After reading JOEY MOSES, I was encouraged and informed about the challenges and the hope that lied ahead. While I cannot claim that the mixed breed I rescued and trained to become my service dog will EVER win a national honor such as Joey did, I love my service dog partner and am grateful there was a book available like Susan's to encourage me along. An informative read about what these great dogs do for individuals with disabilites as well.

Joey Moses is a well-written account of a stray-turned-working-dog. Although aimed at a younger audience, it is enjoyable for people of all ages, dog lovers or not. Ms. Duncan's style of writing engages the reader immediatley and will not let go until the end of the book. The story is part adventure, part success, and all highly entertaining. It shows how persistance, love, and hard work can really pay off in the end. Joey Moses is an inspirational story that I would reccomend to anyone who likes to read.

As the National Director of Marketing for my firm, I read and use many different marketing books, manuals and reports. However, Marketing Plans, by Malcolm H.B. McDonald is the most complete guide I have found for actually designing a comprehensive and effective business plan. The layout of the book makes it useful to the novice as well as the experienced Marketing professional. The information is stated clearly, completely and effectively. In fact, I was so impressed, that I have totally redesigned our corporate marketing and branding plans using the information from this book as the basis for that design. Thanks for all the help Mr. McDonald!!!

McDonald also wrote Key Account Management (more for salespeople) and co-wrote a smaller, but more difficult book called Marketing Plans the Work. This one (Marketing Plans: How to Write them, How to Use them) is more of a text book, which normally I think would make it more "dry" but in this case it's just the opposite: packed with information, useful exercises and a clear step-by-step approach to writing a real marketing plan. Academically sound but not "academic." Plus it can help you and your company get more of a marketing orientation, or at least understand what a "marketing orientation" is all about.

Just bought my third copy... i give one away every year to a struggling marketeer. If you buy only one book on marketing, make it this one.

David Barnes Director of Market Analysis, Philips Components

I read Puddnhead Wilson in an English Class in college. It was the first book that I had the chance to read by Mark Twain and thought the characters in the story as humorous. I would highly recommend to anyone who hasn't had the chance to read this book to give it a try and enjoy reading about the lives of Twain's characters.

Puddnhead Wilson is a very short book that can bear repeated reading. Not because it is a great literary work (it is) or because it is so important (which it is), but because in it Mark Twain exposes himself -- his nostalgia, his bitterness, his resignation, and his hope for his own life and for post-Civil War America with brutal frankness, and yet humorous approachability.

The novel may be called "Puddnhead Wilson" but the most memorable character is a highly intelligent slave woman named Roxana. Through Roxana and the rest of the townspeople living in a pre-Civil War Missouri, we find some of Mark Twain's most oft-quoted statements among biting characterizations of the American mentality.

I cannot recommend this little book enough. It has its weaknesses (so many critical essays have been written about them that it's unnecessary to discuss them here) but they are really minor and certainly do not detract from the sheer enjoyment and contemplation that it gives the reader. Not to mention that the apologetic forwards to both Puddnhead Wilson and Those Extraordinary Twins are brilliant short letters from Twain on writing.

I cannot speak about Those Extraordinary Twins because I've never been able to get into it, or read past the first chapter. It's extremely odd, being about a circus freak -- siamese twins joined at the hip -- with each side having the complete opposite philosophy and constitution than the other. That is, one side drinks alcohol and doesn't feel affected while the other side gets drunk; each side has different taste in clothing; etc.

It seems like hardly anybody reads Mark Twain anymore, which is a shame, because he has so much to say about American society and human nature. "Pudd'nhead Wilson" is unquestionably one of his greatest books, maybe even his best. It's at least the equal of "Huckleberry Finn," which I had the good fortune to read with a superb high school English teacher in 1975, a year before her department banned it from the school's curriculum because of its supposedly racist portrayal of Jim.

"Pudd'nhead Wilson" manages to be a social satire, a murder mystery, a compelling commentary on race and racism, a brief against slavery, a courtroom drama, and a lifelike portrait of a particular time and place in American history, all packed into a short novel of some 170 pages. The story moves along quickly, hilarious in places and appalling in others. It's hard to understand why this easy-to-follow, entertaining and instructive novel isn't more widely read and appreciated, especially given the importance of race as a topic for thought, discussion and historical inquiry in the United States.

"Pudd'nhead Wilson" is set in a small Mississippi River town in the slave state of Missouri in 1830-1853. The critical event of the story occurs early on, when Roxy, a slave woman caring for two infant boys of exactly the same age, one her son and the other the son of one of the leading citizens of the town, secretly switches their identities. This deception is possible because her son is only 1/32 African-American and appears white (his father is in fact another leading citizen), yet by custom if not by law, the boy is a slave. The deception results in Roxy's son growing up in privileged circumstances, treating blacks with contempt, having the other boy as his personal slave, and attending Yale; yet the son, despite having all the advantages, develops no moral grounding whatsoever, and spends much of his adult life stealing, drinking and gambling. At one point, aware of his true identity but desperately needing money, he sells his own mother "down the river," into a more southerly cotton-growing region where the overseers are said to be especially cruel.

Twain gives us fewer details about the fate of the boy who in reality is all white, but we are made to understand that the boy's upbringing is typical of male slaves: he grows up with violence and degradation, illiterate, and with few skills either for making a living or existing in white society. This proves to be a cruel fate when the deception is exposed. Though he eventually comes into a substantial inheritance, he is never comfortable with or accepted by the town's respectable citizens, yet the prevailing racial code prohibits him from associating too closely with the blacks with whom he grew up.

Pudd'nhead Wilson, a lawyer, exposes the deception during a murder trial. Wilson, the town oddball, is an amateur fingerprinter, and it turns out that he kept the fingerprints he took of the boys before their switch, and is able to prove both their true identities and the identity of the killer. Wilson is the only halfway honorable character in the book; most of the rest, black and white, are exposed as dishonest, selfish and corrupt.

Mark Twain published "Pudd'nhead Wilson" in 1894, but its meaning still resonates today. A book that says so much about the ironies of appearance vs. reality, about the injustices of a rigid racial classification system, about the importance of values and upbringing rather than skin color in the formation of character, and about the realities of American slavery, deserves a more important place in our national literature.

The campus novel, written both by British and American writers, became a recognized subgenre in the last 50 years. Most of these books, produced by writers with academic appointments, are not very interesting. This book, however, is a real exception. This is simply the best campus novel and a devastating sendup of academic pretense and radical chic. In many ways, this book is also the best novel of the 60s as well. A key feature of this book is that Bradbury's characters are not caricatures; he is very careful to mix real elements of sympathy with his satire.

Hilarious book, with many shades of humor, from outright farce to gentle satire. Some home truths about academic life and radical chic mixed in. Wonderful characters and situations, but never wordy. Worth reading for the absurd staff meeting alone. I laughed out loud as I was reminded of similar afternoons in the company of not-so-learned colleagues and feckless students.

What a marvellous satire

Unfortunately, I was far less enamoured of The Light of Day than the four reviewers who have already posted. I love most of Graham Swift's novels: Last Orders, The Sweet Shop Owner, Waterland, etc. I was very excited to purchase and read TLOD. The experience was very disappointing. I wouldn't mind the narrowness of the book's temporal span (essentially, it follows the protagonist's emotions over the course of a single day, although memories and flashbacks reach back many years), were it not for the fact that I find the book's emotional and thematic range similarly limited. By the midway point of the book, Swift had pretty much covered the range of emotions experienced by George and exhausted the character's development. From a thematic and emotional standpoint, the rest of the book was mostly repetition of ground that already had been covered.
Also, the pseudo-detective story overlay for the novel wears thin quickly. Any real "suspense" dissipates quickly, leaving the gumshoe-as-metaphor-for-exploration-of-mysteries-of-the-heart concept a fairly intrusive and clunky affectation to drag through the remainder of the book.
This may have been a good idea for a long story or short novella, but it doesn't hold up for a whole novel. Frankly, I had to force myself to finish it, which is remarkably different from my experience with other of Swift's novels.

Initially resembling an old-fashioned, hard-boiled detective story, this novel becomes, as the perspective widens, an investigation of love, man's need for love, and the sacrifices we are all willing to make for love. Private detective George Webb allows the reader to "tag along" during one day of his life in 1997, talking to his readers about aspects of his life as they impinge randomly on his consciousness. Description is not a big part of George's life, and it takes the reader some time to understand all his references in this lengthy interior monologue. We don't know, at first, why Nov. 20 is a significant date to him or where he goes every other Thursday, nor do we know about his personal relationships with the women introduced at the beginning, or the reason he's buying flowers, or why he's had a woman's handbag in his possession for two years.

As George's recollections, memories, and observations expand, however, we gradually come to know him and his past, including his relationship with his father, his own broken marriage and the circumstances surrounding it, his alienated daughter, his womanizing, the scandal which has resulted in his leaving the police force, and his decision to specialize in "matrimonial work." We learn, too, that George's client, Mrs. Nash, is now in jail, the reasons for this unfolding even more gradually, as we come to know her, her husband Bob, and the privileged life they've led. Always, however, our opinions of these characters and their relationships are colored by George's point of view, and we, as objective observers, learn as much about them from what George does not say as we do by what he does say.

All of George's memories are concerned with the vulnerability of people who are in love, as Swift raises questions about whether we choose the people we love, or whether we are chosen by them. Does love just happen? What makes it last? What happens to lovers who are "unchosen"? And can we love too much? Although a mystery story is not usually the framework for such a serious, philosophical analysis of love in all its permutations, Swift manages to make this work through his beautifully wrought character study of George, buffeted every which way by the loves in his life. In the lean, unemphatic prose style he first employed in Last Orders, Graham Swift presents a sensitive investigation of love with all its mysteries and ineffable sadness. Mary Whipple

After waiting seven years from his Booker prize-winning novel, Last Orders, we finally have Swift's latest work. I am reduced to a cliche': it is worth the wait. The Light of Day is a beautiful meditation on time (not an unfamiliar theme with Swift) and the inability to understand our choices and what we are really capable of.
George's narrative is Faulknerian with its weaving in and out of the present. And, like Faulkner, Swift brings in so much of the past that corresponds to the present. In fact, the present and the past (all of the way back to Napoleon III) blend together in a wonderful collage of "the things we do for love."
For some, the first 50 pages or so may seem confusing. All I can say is, Stick with it. The more you read, the more you will understand. You may not come up with "an answer," but you will gain an understanding of the mystery, even the absurdity, of our decisions.
Swift is, in my opinion, the greatest living writer. No other author brings a mix between narrative complexity (pretty common) and great story telling (too uncommon) to one novel.
Put Dickens, Faulkner and Proust into a bowl and mix them. You will find Graham Swift.
Perhaps Waterland or Everafter is a better place to start. Regardless, all of his works challenge the reader to understand how the past and the present are intertwined together. The past is like a ghost that haunts all of our decisions, all of our actions, and all of our memories.
Graham Swift delivers again (I only hope that we won't have to wait seven years for another brilliant novel).