In The Animals Of Grandfather Mountain, wildlife biologist and animal habitat manager Laurie Jakobsen showcases a wonderfully illustrated collection of engaging and informative stories about the boisterous bear cubs, inquisitive deer, secretive cougars, playful otters, chattering eagles, and others who live in the Grandfather Mountain wildlife habitats of North Carolina. The Animals Of Grandfather Mountain is wonderful reading for children of all ages and an enthusiastically recommended addition to school and community library wildlife reference collections and reading lists.

This is a wonderful book for the young and the young at heart who are interested in animals and love to laugh and learn.

Reading "The Animals of Grandfather Mountain" was great fun from start to finish. I laughed out loud at some of Jakobsen's stories about day to day life running a wild animal habitat. Everyone, young and old, enjoys watching our furry friends while strolling through zoos. But this book shows you the behind-the-scenes work that makes such experiences possible. But perhaps the biggest treat the books gives readers is insight into the great personalities these animals have. The photographs make the book even more fun. I recommend this book to children and anyone who loves animals, whether they have visited Grandfather Mountain or not.

This book on tape is perfect for long car, bus, train, or plane rides. It's the story of Cyril Bonhamy, a hapless British tourist in Nice, France who somehow manages to get himself mixed up with one of France's most dangerous criminals. This is mostly due to the fact that he is under the impression that, even after all of these years, the French people really don't know how to speak their own language. He, on the other hand, speaks "fluent" French, which, of course, is really just English with a bad French accent. This story is incredibly funny. If you enjoy British humor (or, should I say humour), such as "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," then you will enjoy this story.

After a long winter of hibernation, spring is back and Moomintroll and his friends Sniff and Snufkin can finally get out and play in the woods and fields of Moominvalley. That's when they find the Hobgoblin's hat and bring it back home as a present for Moominpappa. Unfortunately, the hat's too big so they decide to use it as a waste paper basket. But overnight, the eggshell they've just thrown away mysteriously turns into five small white clouds...

Finn Family Moomintroll is a collection of several of the Moomin funny and silly little adventures following the discovery of the hat. Indeed, the sometimes absurd situations reminded me of Dr. Seuss's Cat in the Hat. Lavishly illustrated with wonderful black and white ink drawings by the author, it is also a perfect book to read aloud to your children!

Other titles in the series are: Comet in Moominland, Moominsummer Madness, Moominland Midwinter, Moominpappa at Sea, Moominpappa's Memoirs, and Tales from Moominvalley.

These books are nuts!!! Moomins! Fillyjonks! Grokes! It's insanity! How could a single mind invent such hallucinatory fantasy and still keep their sanity (relatively) intact?? The mind boggles.
I am 29 years old and into a wide variety of weird and wonderful pop culture and I would definitely place the works of Tove Jansson in the same class as Genet,Burroughs,Bugakov and Tolkien. No joke!
To explain them to the uninitiated, I would say something like...imagine a Winnie the Pooh novel composed by Dali...then double the level of surrealism! Convinced??
Finn Family Moonintroll is probably the best, narrowly beating out Comet in Moominland, a close second. In this story, Moomintroll and his friends find a magic hat which brings them all sorts of mischief and absurdity. I think I first read this thing in 1982 and it just about haunted my every waking moment. The Moomin series are books that are NOT just for the kids to enjoy. Adults with a vivid imagination would ravenously lap this sort of thing up and beg for more.
Forget Harry Potter kiddies! This is where it's at!!!

this is the very first of the moomintroll series by tove jansson. children of any age will love to read this book, or have it read to them. it is full of moomintroll and his friends adventures, in their beautiful fantasy land. i got this book before i could even read, but had my mother read it to me before bed, giving me sweet dreams of happiness and laughter. the moomins are fun-loving trolls from finland and are adventurous and go on wild excursions together. i reconmend this book to anyone who loves fantasy.

We have read to our son since he was born. He received this book as a gift, at the age of 9 months. By 14 months of age, he was able to recite, word per word, each verse describing the various different animals. He absolutely loved the vivid colors in the pictures and enjoyed locating all the tiny ants in each illustration. He is now 3 years old and demanded to take this book to his preschool class for show and tell. Need I say more?

"Wumble Jungle" as my two-year-old calls it, is a day-long safari that introduces young children to different wild animals. It features catchy rhymes that may or may not make sense (but this doesn't bother my two children, 5 and 2), and bright cheerful pictures. It's become part of our stable of bedtime story reading material. Keep an eye out for Andreae's other book, "Giraffes Can't Dance". I read it in my son's class and got applause from enraptured children at the end of the tale.

I read Rumble in the Jungle to a 3rd grade class for "Read Across America Day." I figured it might be a little below their reading ability but the humor and pictures made it all worthwhile! They loved the goofy rhymes (one is about an animal "being cool.") I'll be buying it for my own kids, ages 2 and 6!

I love to read about the Titanic, and this book satisfied my hunger for more books about it. This book provides 882 and a half questions and answers about the Titanic. It was easy to read, well written, and had many photos. This book's questions and answers were very interesting, and I learned a lot from reading this book. This is an awesome book!

This book is the most interasting book I've ever read about Titanic, and trust me I've read lots of them. There is 882 1/2 interasting answers on your questions about Titanic. If you want to know why there is 882 1/2 questions and answers in this book ? Open the first page of this book and you will see why there is 882 1/2 questions and answers in this book about the past of Titanic.

Bought this book through book club at daughters school. It is VERY informative. I thought I was up on a lot about Titanic, but this really taught me a lot more. Very good for any student or historian.

Before there was Batman, Superman, and Spiderman, there was the Scarlet Pimpernel, the greatest of all masked heroes, a man who uses his great intelligence and bravery to save French aristocrats from certain death at the guillotine. He, with the help of his band of brave English gentleman, risk their lives time and time again for this "sport." He's famous throughout England, infamous throughout France - and yet no one knows his true identity.

Enter Marguerite Blackenly, nicknamed "the cleverest woman in Europe" yet married to the inane fop, Sir Percy. In an effort to save her brother from the clutches of the new dangerous French government, she consents to help her old friend, and new enemy, to discover the identity of the elusive Scarlet Pimpernel. But with the knowledge she gains, she becomes more deeply involved than she bargained for.

An adventure, a history, and a romance all rolled into one, The Scarlet Pimpernel is a book you'll never forget.

I picked up this book when I was fourteen and have read it numerous times since. Orczy's dramatic writing fully captures the drama and the tragedy of the French Revolution. This novel has something for everyone: political intrigue, adventure and romance. I particularly appreciate the development of her three main characters. They live lives that require superhuman intellect and courage. All of them find themselves searching for something: whether it be love, power or heroic fulfillment. Orczy has a true talent for writing. She envelopes her plot with dramatic dressing. One can see this by reading the novel's first sentence: "The seething, surging, mumuring crowd of people, human only in name..." If you enjoy this book, I recommend you read her other titles in the series. Most are not in print, but usually libraries have some or most of the hard to get titles. My other favorite novel in the series is The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel. It carries the same premise as the first book but incorporates more edge-of-your seat excitement.

Having read this book roughly 4 times now,I can fully back the review of 5 stars. It is by far the best tale of Revolutionary France that I've ever read. Sir Percy's foppish tendencies keep the reader entertained while Chauvelin chases after him,adding much suspense. Percy's love, Marguerite, is who every girl would like to be. She is famed, beautiful,and wife to the swashbuckley and elusive Scarlet Pimpernel. Of course,one cannot forget the abundance of run-ins with Madame la Guillotine! I highly recommend reading this book, no matter what your usual preference of literature may be. It's amazing! "They seek him here,they seek him there. Those Frenchies seek him everywhere. Is he in heaven? or is he in hell? That demmed elusive Pimpernel." ~*

Jonathan Swift's 18th century satire, Gulliver's Travels, is an extraordinary tale of the adventures of an English ship surgeon. The ship surgeon, Gulliver, by a series of unfortunate events on each of his four voyages at sea, receives the chance to explore the cultures of the countries of Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa, Balnibarbi, Glubbdubdrib, Luggnagg and the land of the Houyhnhnms. Each land is considerably different from the others, and creates quite an entertaining read.

While the story itself is particularly unusual, the satirical element which Swift applied to it adds another level of comprehension. If understood, one could have a nice chuckle at the way Swift mockingly portrays ideas and people through the various cultures which Gulliver encounters. Some similes, however, are intended to get a more serious meaning across. For example, in his first journey of the book, Gulliver finds himself in the country of Lilliput where the people are only six inches tall, save the king who is seven. In this land there are two groups which were distinguished by which side a person breaks their eggs on. One king published an edict commanding all his subjects to break their eggs on the small side, but many would've picked death over breaking their eggs on the 'wrong' side, so many did. By this, Swift meant to throw contempt on the exaggerated importance that people place on their differences, as on which side one breaks an egg is a very trivial thing. The two groups mentioned represent the Catholic and Protestant religions, between which were many wars and massacres during the 1500's when the Protestants first appeared.

Gulliver's Travels takes the reader to many lands, all different and unique ' each adding another perspective on traditional beliefs and ways of thinking. Gulliver changes as much as the scenery around him, and after each voyage he has changed dramatically. At the end he has transformed so much that I feel really sorry for his family ' although it's only love that could allow them to put up with his strange behaviors.

I would recommend this book to anyone with an appetite for literature, as Gulliver's Travels is an excellent satire of the ways of the thinking in the early 1700's. Also, the author does a good job in describing the lands which Gulliver visits in great detail. Although Swift may not have written this book with intense action scenes and steamy romance, it is definitely a work worthy of the people of today.

Lemuel Gulliver is a surgeon/ship¨ˆs captain who embarks on several intriguing adventures. His first endeavor takes him to Lilliput, where all inhabitants are six inches tall, but resemble normal humans in every other respect. His next voyage lands him on Brobdingnag, where a grown man is sixty feet tall, and even the shortest dwarf stands thirty feet tall. On his third trip, he travels to several locations, including a floating island. During Gulliver¨ˆs final voyage, he is abandoned by his mutinous crew on the island of the Houyhnhnms, which are extremely intelligent horses. No evil or concept of lying exists among these creatures. The island is also inhabited by Yahoos, savage, irrational human-like creatures who are kept as pets by the Houyhnhnms. Gulliver wishes to spend the rest of his life on this peaceful island, but he is banished and forced to return to England.
I really enjoyed this book, and I would recommend it to people 14 or older. Since the novel was written in the 1700¡¯s, the words, grammar and usage are a little confusing. The reader also must have prior knowledge of 18th-century politics to get a full image of what Swift is trying to convey. At some points, the author goes into detail about nautical terms and happenings, and that tends to drag. Overall, the book is well-written, slightly humorous, if not a little confusing.

I have trouble reading classic literature. I am an avid reader and I want to enjoy the classics, but just find it difficult to understand the meaning in some of the writing.

This, however, was a pleasant surprise. Although written in the early 1700s, the story itself was fairly easy to follow. Even towards the end, I began to see the underlying theme of the satire that Swift has been praised for in this work.

Being someone who reads primarily science fiction and fantasy novels, I thought this might be an opportunity to culture myself while also enjoying a good story. I was correct in my thinking. Even if you can't pick up on the satire, there is still a good classic fantasy story.

Essentially, the book details the travels of Lemuel Gulliver, who by several misfortunes, visits remote and unheard of lands. In each, Gulliver spends enough time to understand the language and culture of each of these land's inhabitants. He also details the difference in culture of his native England to the highest rulers of the visted nations. In his writing of these differences, he is able to show his dislike with the system of government of England. He does this by simply stating how things are in England and then uses the reaction of the strangers as outsiders looking in, showing their lack of respect for what Gulliver describes.

I found it very interesting to see that even as early as the 1700s there was a general dislike of government as well as lawyers.

I would recommend this book to anyone who reads the fantasy genre. Obviously, it's not an epic saga like so many most fantasy readers enjoy, but it's a nice break. I would also recommend this to high school students who are asked to pick a classic piece for a book report. It reads relatively quick and isn't as difficult to read as some of the others that I've tried to read.

I was actually surprised to find this book written so well. The first few chapters had me in stitches(so to speak). I'd love to see a dramatization, but the second half of the book wouldn't go down well with the average viewer. There is a definite change of pace, strangely enough without losing a sense of humor, throughout the tale. The tone becomes so odd that I have to give it four stars. Regardless, the story is addictive and extremely well written. This is a definite must for Stephen Fry fans, whose influence is quite obvious throughout(and whose praise adorns the jacket). There is also -at least at the beginning- a sense of the P.G. Wodehouse perspective. I've not read a better spy novel, and I've read a lot worse. If Mr. Laurie continues to write, I'm sure he will become not just a comic genius, but a great novelist as well. All in all, a strange novel by an incredibly talented man. I'm sure that the best is to come...........

This one is brand new, hot off the press in the U.S. and a terrific read. Billed as "Bertie Wooster meets James Bond" (N.Y. Times-glowing-Book Review), I though the reference had something to do with the fact that the author plays Bertie Wooster in the PBS series. Wrong. Laurie manages to merge the wit of a P.G. Wodehouse with the suspense of a Robert Ludlum and the derring-do of an Ian Fleming to produce...well, a Hugh Laurie. I was on the edge of my seat half the time - the other half I was regaling anyone within hearing distance with the funny bits. There are loads of them, along with intricate terrorist plots, deadly helicopters and a very satisfying ending. This is Laurie's first novel and I hope he is currently mopping the fevered brow over his next one

Mr. Laurie has done little to discourage us from imagining his stage persona Wooster as we picture the protagonist of "The Gun Seller," Thomas Lang. In fact, the image fits perfectly -- one to one. And that's all right. But unfortunately it has the effect of minimizing another aspect of the novel that is ultimately far more rewarding: Lang's brilliant ruminations on the subject of... just about everything he encounters. Again and again (like five times per page), the story comes to a grinding halt while Lang comments on the absurdity of the moment. These comments are not only laugh-out-loud hilarious, but they can also survive the kind of critical scrutiny usually lavished on Louis Carroll's conundrums and brain teasers. You'll do yourself a disservice if you make this book a "quick read." Throw each of these comments about from one brain cell to another (like the way you slosh wine around your mouth during those wine tastings you abhor but seem to attend anyway) and see if you don't agree they're worth the attention. The plot isn't too bad, but it is definitely merely a vehicle for Lang's observations of his peculiar world. A better plot would have forced me to award a 10 to this otherwise quite perfect specimen of a book.

I spent a whole term going over this book in freshmen English class. It is an overall good book, full of interpritations. There are many symbolisms and allusions. However, it is important to remember that this book was originally a serialization, as it came out every week in the paper. There are some parts when Dickens drawls on with his plans, events, ect. However, there are scenes that are very fast paced and action filled. The overall plot is a young, naive boy of about ten lives with his sister and her simple husband named Joe. However, Pip is given a secret benefactor and is thrust in the life of nobility. Pip is tangled in his probelems of leaving Joe behind and his encouters with the shallow (and I mean SHALLOW) Estella and the wicked Miss Havisham. Dickens is a master with characters and the languege, but he doesn't describe any everyday events. For example, Pip goes to study law, but thats all we know. In my opinion, it gives the characters this higher than life importance, and less real. But, if you take this book slowely, maybe a chapter a night (instead of the five I had to do), you will definately enjoy this book.

I've never read any Dickens of my own free will. I was forced to read "A Tale of Two Cities" in high school and I thought that was enough for me. However, one day, on a whim, I bought a copy of Great Expectations. I'm not sure what I expected, but I certainly didn't expect to love it as much as I did.

Dickens is not a writer to read at a swift pace. Indeed, this novel was written in weekly episodes from December 1860 to August 1861 and, as it was created to be a serial, each installment is full of varied characters, great descriptions and a lot of action which moves the plot along and leaves the reader yearning for more. Therefore, unlike some books which are easily forgotten if I put them down for a few days, Great Expectations seemed to stick around, absorbing my thoughts in a way that I looked forward to picking it up again. It took me more than a month to read and I savored every morsel.

Basically the story is of the self-development of Pip, an orphan boy being raised by his sister and her blacksmith husband in the marshlands of England in 1820.

Every one of the characters were so deeply developed that I felt I was personally acquainted with each one of them. There was Pip's roommate, Herbert Pocket, the lawyer, Mr. Jaggers, and his clerk, Mr. Wemmick. And then there was the wicked Orlick. The dialogues were wonderful. The characters often didn't actually say what they meant but spoke in a way that even though the words might be obtuse, there was no mistaking their meaning. I found myself smiling at all these verbal contortions.

Dickens' work is richly detailed and he explores the nuances of human behavior. I enjoyed wallowing in the long sentences and letting myself travel backwards in time to a different world. However, even with the footnotes, I found myself sometimes confused by the British slang of 150 years ago, and there were several passages I had to read over several times in order to get the true meaning. Of course I was not in a particular rush. I didn't have to make a report to a class or take a exam about the book. This is certainly a pleasure.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good read.ting from the secret wealth of Magwitch, who made a fortune in Australia after being transported. Moreover, Magwitch's unlawful return to England puts him and Pip in danger. Meanwhile, Estella has married another, a horrible man who Pip despises. Eventually, with Magwitch's recapture and death in prison and with his fortune gone, Pip ends up in debtors prison, but Joe redeems his debts and brings him home. Pip realizes that Magwitch was a more devoted friend to him than he ever was to Joe and with this realization Pip becomes, finally, a whole and decent human being.

Originally, Dickens wrote a conclusion that made it clear that Pip and Estella will never be together, that Estella is finally too devoid of heart to love. But at the urging of others, he changed the ending and left it more open ended, with the possibility that Estella too has learned and grown from her experiences and her wretched marriages.

This is the work of a mature novelist at the height of his powers. It has everything you could ask for in a novel: central characters who actually change and grow over the course of the story, becoming better people in the end; a plot laden with mystery and irony; amusing secondary characters; you name it, it's in here. I would rank it with A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist and David Copperfield among the very best novels of the worlds greatest novelist.

GRADE: A+

Dickens, along with Dostoevsky, stands atop my list of novelists who could most accurately portray the subtleties of human emotion and passion. "Great Expectations" is simply a masterpiece of 19th-century fiction, and is pure Dickens. In this semi-autobiographical work (a trademark of Dickens' writings), the life of a poor young boy, Pip, is followed from his humble beginnings to his rise into the middle-class, due to the mysterious aid of an unknown benefactor. His pursuit of Estella, a beautiful young girl raised to break the hearts of men by her jilted caretaker, Ms. Havisham, is a classic of literature that has been repeated countless times since. The tragic, gradual break between Pip and his family (particularly the humble but caring Joe) is heartwrenching. Pip's eventual realization of the insincerity of the middle class, and his love for Joe, brought tears to my eyes.

"Great Expectations" is a wonderful, moving book that has been copied and satired again and again, from Mishima's "Forbidden Colors" to South Park. An important and unforgettable novel!

There really is one very good thing about this novel. It is the last one. With no EEEEVVVILL France left, Sir Percy must find a new hobby. Perhaps he will take up bottle-cap collecing. Anyways, I harbor particularly averse feelings to this particular episode of Pimpernel antics because of its sickening portrayal of Robespierre. Orczy sure outdoes herself in terms of historical laughability this time. Actually, I would laugh but I'm too scared thinking off all the poor misguided people who take the Baronness' word on this. OK, tell me...is there something wrong with this picture. Robespierre, that EEEVVVVILLL man, dreams of beheading all of France. Saint-Just, who anyone who knows anything about the Revolution at all knows was more radical than R and who supported Robespierre in everything, is described as "one of the most romantic figures of the entire Revolution." This is enough to make one's head ache, if one were inclined to believe that it is of the least importance at all. Fortunately for me, I am saved from that unhappy predicament. Like all the rest of the Pimpernel novels this is a series of unlikely adventures rescuing aristos...to heck with the common people!....with very little grace of writing and an absolutely deplorable grasp on reality.

Triumph is the first SP book I've read after the original story. I enjoyed it, but it wasn't excellent. I found the beginning to be very drawn out; it took me a very long time to read the first 75 pages or so, before it got going. Once it did start, (with Theresia and SP meeting for the first time) I found it to be fast paced, and I looked forward to reading it. However, the long beginning brought it down to a 3 star book for me. Also, the ending wasn't really explained at all...one second, literally, Robespierre is the tyrant in charge, next paragraph, well, no spoiler, but suffice to say he's not. Even in real life, the change was not so dramatic, and surely Orczy could have written a page or two more explaination.

Furthermore, I was disappointed that while St. Just, Andrew, and Tony were mentioned, that was about it; they were barely in the picture at all.

A fun adventure.....but not much more than that.

Triumph is an excellent ending to an excellent series. Sir Percy has to face his most difficult challenge. One that will bring him face to face with his most implacable enemey, and also save the life of the woman he adores. Full of Pimpernel wit and audacity, this is a must for all Pimpernel fans!