Ten ways to wreck a date made me want to read more and more. And this book did not keep you hanging.

I think that this book is pretty good. I gave it 4 stars because usualy Full House books are always great to read. Sure at the begining it can be a little bor-ing at first. But when you get into the middle of the book, it starts getting more interesting. Thats why you never know how the book is going to turn out. Two-for-one Christmas fun is really about when Allie Taylor and Stephanie Tanner want to spend the rest of Christmas vacation hanging out together. But- then they meet this really cute boy named James that they both liked! So what is going to happen next? If you wanna know more about this book, please get the book, and read it. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Two for one Chrismas fun is very cool! It's about Allie and Stephanie wanting to spend the whole Chrismas hanging out together,intil they both meet a boy named James that they both liked! For more details,read it.

Life in Rehoboth and the surrounding islands off of southern Maine has always been difficult and tenuous at best. The islands are peopled by those who are used to working hard for a living, taking their livelihood from the sea during days and nights of long and difficult labor. But for the people of Rehoboth, 1941 is the year that everything changes-- for the worse.

The Raven (1995) by Peter Landesman focuses upon the mystery of the Raven and the impact its mysterious disappearance has on a town and a number of lives, especially that of Ezra Johnson who, at the age of nine helps his father fish so many of the drowned bodies out of the sea like so many lobster. For the town, the unknown fate of the Raven is like a curse. For Ezra who was "there and handled those bodies" and was "a part of it," eleven year later he has to face the fact that the event has had an impact upon him whether he knows it or not. The Raven is more than a well researched, well written mystery. Among his accomplishments with the novel, Landesman brings to life the sea in a brutally de-romanticized fashion. Landesman paints for us a harsh, uncaring environment in which men labor a lifetime only to see tragedy dog their footsteps and to die poor and worn out-- if they live that long.

With The Raven, first-time author Peter Landesman has created a tantalizing puzzle which won him the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction in 1996 from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The final chapter of The Raven brings the novel to a chilling conclusion filled with all sorts of irony: for the skipper of the boat, for the passengers, for the friends and family left behind, for those who have so long held secrets and suffered dearly for it, and for the reader. It is to Landesman's credit as an effectual writer that, as they begin the final chapter, readers will feel a real conflict of emotions: eager to finally have the mystery revealed, but not really wanting to know the truth because, as we have learned along the way, with the truth there comes a price. The Raven ends with a vivid, unforgettable finale that will haunt readers well after they have put the book down.

what else is there to say

(More like four-and-a-half stars) It's a shame that this book has not received the exposure it deserves. Peter Landesman has crafted a careful exploration of small-town tragedy and loss, set against the backdrop of the rugged coast of Maine. Having lived in the Orr's/Bailey Island region in the past, I was already well-familiar with the area (though not with the real historical events on which the book is based); Landesman does a phenomenal job capturing the landscape and its people without sounding too much like an outsider looking in. The prose is, at times, astounding--it's remarkable to think "The Raven" is Landesman's first novel; there are subtle echoes here of Faulkner and Joyce, but the style is uniquely the author's own. Most impressive is his ability to draw with painstaking detail the inner lives of his characters, from brooding Ezra to ghost-plagued Mavis, while maintaining an intricate, fascinating plot. This book combines the haunting atmosphere of David Guterson's "Snow Falling on Cedars" and the quiet dignity of Russell Banks' tale of small-town tragedy, "The Sweet Hereafter," and is every bit as good as either of those books. I strongly recommend "The Raven."

I'm forced to agree with the negative reviews on this page. The prose is horribly overwrought (The Sins of the Fathers! Ooga-booga-booga!) and dull. Nathan's downfall is never interesting, never achieves the level of real tragedy because we're never convinced he had the possibility of being a better person; so he played jazz saxophone once upon a time, so what? His character is really unappealing and self-pitying, the womanizing almost a Mel Brooks joke. The character of the murdered half-sister, Isabel, with whom he was involved is inexcusably thin...This book practically herniates itself trying to be Under the Volcano and is not even close. I got a headache from Blood Acre.

On a recent holiday, I made the mistake of packing only one book. A particularly troublesome mistake because it was this book. From the first paragraph, this book read like a high school overachiever's attempt to win over an English teacher. As if his dreaded prose was not enough to stop the reader cold, his poor descriptions of New York City--especially Coney Island--made me doubt his stated city of residence. For the author to name his primary character Nathan and then to refer to Nathan's Famous as "Famous," (something I've never heard in New York), showed he has more ego than talent. Even if this book was in the $1 bin at a garage sale, I'd never recommend it.

Before reading this book, it is necessary to drop all your guards and preconceived notions on what is and is not good prose. Yes, this novel starts out pretentiously. However, as the pages quickly turn...and they will, it become apparent that this is not pompous writing; it is writing by a skilled and talented author. Only a man with greatness in his fingertips can type out the consistently colorful and vivid phrases which he does. This novel is a murder mystery that I read cover to back in two sittings. I almost felt guilty reading the rich prose and hanging on to the dark and sexy storyline. I would recommend this only to true lovers of fiction. I read this after finishing Hemingway's "True at First Light" and it was an tasty turnabout from H's more terse (yet amazing) declarative sentences. Like eating fresh french baguette and then switching over to a gateau chocolat.