This is no ordinary blood-and-glory sea story, with a ship full of heroes who can do no wrong. Here is real life - the misery of North Atlantic weather, in a small ship rolling constantly in the tremendous swell. An untried and amateur crew aboard a newly built ship are pitted against an omnipresent and invisible enemy below the waves, who is able to mark ships and sailors for death seemingly at will. In perhaps the most bitter fight of WW II, the crew adapt and learn, making Compass Rose a highly effective weapon against the German U-Boats.

Written in 1951, Monsarrat bases his story on his own experience as first officer of a corvette on convoy escort duty. He clearly identifies with his primary character, Lockhart, who joins HMS Compass Rose in 1939 as a very junior Sub Lieutenant. The people and ships are fictional, but this is nevertheless a true and moving story. A brilliant story, totally unforgettable!

This is an absolutely thrilling, gripping, involving story of war at sea. I have no disagreement with those who say this is one of the best novels to come out of WWII. I've had a copy with me through the years, ever since I first read it in high school. Monsarrat has a beautiful feel of the language, made more so by his own familiarity with the subject at hand. Every time I pick up the book and reread passages, I am still enthralled by the fine writing. There is even a lovely, poignant love story in the middle of it. Here is a passage describing nothing in particular, merely the ship "Compass Rose" when the convoy was a quiet one and the men aboard her could relax a bit:

"They found that some nights, especially, had a peaceful loveliness that repaid a hundred hours of strain. Sometimes in sheltered water, when the moon was full, they moved with the convoy past hills outlined against the pricking stars: slipping under the very shadow of these cliffs, their keel divided the phosphorescent water into a gleaming wake that curled away till it was caught and held in the track of the moon....Compass Rose, afloat on a calm sea, seemed to shed every attribute save a gentle assurance of refuge." (p 105, 1951 Knopf edition)

There was a movie made by the British earlier on, with Jack Hawkins as Ericson, the captain. The plot obviously had to be shortened, and I think the love story was changed a bit. The novel is better, still, and I do hope that they do NOT try to make another movie of it, for surely the Hollywood treatment will only cheapen this superb piece of work.

This is absolutely one of my favourite books, and I'm reading it for the 5th or 6th time right now.

Based on his real wartime experinces, the author creates a fascinating story of "one ocean, two ships, and some 150 men". Living from day to day through the horrors of naval war in the North Atlantic with the wonderfully-crafted characters, one is only beginning to imagine just how terrible it must have been. You breathe with them, you fight with them, you sleep with them and you live through their good and bad times - finding yourself unwilling to put this book aside.

Read this book, and Buchheim's "The Boat", and you can truly say: "Now I know what it was like!"

"The Boy Under the Bed," is about a little monster who insistently tells his parents there is a boy under his bed. His Father Tells him "There are no such things as boys!" The book then goes on a journey through one little monster's imagination and lots of boys! The story is a complete delight! The book is Fifty pages with around 25 beautifully hand painted illustrations!

The Boy Under The Bed is a charming story. My Four year old loves baby monster Giles. He especially loves the illustrations of the great tree house in the sky where all the boys live.

I like the way the story teaches children to conquer their fears. The Boy Under The Bed is imaginative and fun. A great bed time story.

Are your children afraid of monsters under the bed? Have you tried telling them there aren't? Do they still believe there are? If you have and they are still convinced then this is the book for you.

No, this isn't another monster book. This is a book that I cannot recommend enough to mothers and fathers of small children. Why, you ask? My son is four years old and afraid of monsters under the bed, actually he was, until I read him this book. After reading him The Boy Under The Bed, he asked me to let the monsters come in. He wanted to meet them.

The Boy Under The Bed is a cute picture book about a monster named Giles and a little boy that crawls out from under his bed every night. Giles is afraid of little boys because they will make "Monster Pie" out of him. His parents repeatedly tell him there is no such thing as boys. (Like we tell our children about monsters)

One night Giles talks with the boy and becomes friends. He shows the boy back home and meets his other friends. They play all sorts of games. This is a story of monsters and boys, a story of how we got the phrase, "Monsters under the bed."

The illustrator, Nicholas Dollak has also added to this fun book by adding or changing something new to every page. Look at the illustrations and try to figure out what is different. This is a great learning game for the little ones and even fun for adults.

After your child reads this will he be asking to play with monsters? ...

In this beautifully illustrated book, Preston McClear takes the reader on an enchanting tale. McClear's imagery is playful and unique! Nicholas Dollak's art is mystically brilliant!

The Sailor and the Sea Witch is a romantically haunting tale; one of a feared Sea Witch who becomes captivated by a lonely sailor's seafaring journey and the comforting sound of his flute.

*This story's premise, being a romantic tale, seems appropriate for the maturing reader, age 8 and older.

A Kids Can Click Review

This is the tale of a Sea Witch who likes to capture sailors and take them deep under the sea. This one sailor, though, who liked to play the flute, seduced her with his music.

She came closer and closer to his ship each night, and she was entranced by his handsomeness and his beautiful music.

When the sailor left his seafaring life for one on the land to look for a wife, the Sea Witch became angry and sad. For she loved this sailor and would do anything to get him to notice her.

She went on the land and changed herself into a beautiful princess and went looking for the sailor. Read The Sailor and the Sea Witch to see what happens when the princess finds him and his reaction!

This is a great story! Beautiful illustrations compliment a well-told tale. Keep up the good work guys!

by Lisa, BookReviewCafe.com

Illustrated in superbly executed watercolors by Nicholas Dollak, The Sailor And The Sea Witch is a unique fairy tale by Preston McClear about a love between a mysterious sea witch and the sailor who lived for the sea. A haunting, wistful story, The Sailor And The Sea Witch is enhanced with an addendum that includes a fascinating vignette teaching young readers this picture book was made.

Delightful book with delicious recipes. The Summer Pasta Salad and the Brownie recipes are out of this world! This book not only contains delicious recipes, but it also allows the reader into the lives of Jacqueline Kennedy Onasis and her children, letting you see a side of them through the photograhps in this book, that has rarely been seen in the past. It is a reminder that the members of this close family are ordinary people, rich in their tradtions. A very enjoyable book and great to give as gifts to other cooks in your life.

This is a delightful book, full of warm reminiscences and wonderful recipes. I recently made Marta's delicious scrambled eggs, and now my husband doesn't want them prepared any other way. I am anxious for summertime, when I will try some of Marta's fresh vegetable salads and her summer pudding.

The photos in this book show the private side of the Kennedys, which evoked bittersweet feelings in me. I remember Camelot and the tragedies that followed; paging through the photos in Marta's book brought back some of the warm, familial feelings the Kennedys engendered. Since the recent death of JFK Jr., the memories chronicled in this book are especially touching.

Marta, you have written a charming tribute to the Kennedy family, whose members you obviously love and respect. Brava!

I loved this book! In addition to providing delicious recipes, the author recounts family stories which pay tribute to the Jackie branch of the Kennedy family. Marta's recollections read like an episode of "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," yet throughout, the family always seems warm and down to earth. Also included are many family photos of John, Jr.

We have an inexpensive paperback version (see our reviews) of this classic poem, and we said that's enough for us. That was before we looked through this beautifully illustrated (by Bruce Whatley) edition of The Night Before Christmas.

The lyrics are the same, from book to book, but the fanciful illustrations in this one are enough to engage adults and children as they read this book together.

The perfect gift for any family whose Christmas tradition includes reading this classic!

I discovered this book 31 years ago, for my daughter and it is still loved by all the family. The illustrations are wonderful, warm, charming and delightful and bring a special meaning to the story. We still read it to all the young children on Christmas Eve and for adults we read the story and pass a grab bag gift every time the word THE is mentioned. It would not be Christmas without this book. It is magical.

This beautiful book was in my family as a hard cover edition for many years and was a Christmas Eve tradition for my four sons when they were growing up. It's poor battered body disappeared some time after the last of my little ones went off into the adult world. I am so delighted to see it back again, though this time as a nicely affordable soft cover. Clement C. Moore's enchanting story poem already provides an atmosphere filled with warmth and joyful expectation and with the addition of Tasha Tudor's quaint, nostalgic water-colors from an antique New England the Christmas magic is complete!
The winter landscapes fill our senses and Tasha's own gray tabby cat and Welsh Corgi welcome us into this charming world.
Tasha's Santa that you will meet in this book has been portrayed as the poem describes him...a right jolly old elf. He's not that much larger than the corgi and his team really consists of eight "tiny" reindeer. His pointy ears and his Eskimo mukluks add to the delightful ambiance of the book. He dances with the toys and with the happy animals and we can truly believe it will be a happy Christmas for all.
I hope this book becomes a Christmas Eve tradition for many, many more families.

I bought Kids Knitting to help my daughter,11, learn to knit. I looked through it and loved the format and cute patterns. I have made a hat and socks from the book. I had a little trouble with the twisted rib on the socks, but once I made one sock, it was easy to do the other. We had fun making the knitting needles from dowels and putting homemade balls(Sculpey) on the ends. The wooden needles are really nice to knit on. The book is great for "kids of all ages," as the subtitle says.

This is the book my 8-year-old daughter and I used together to learn how to knit. As the subtitle says, it's a book for kids "of all ages".

When you read through this book you will not only learn how to knit, but you will have a deeper appreciation of needlework in general. The author covers what basic supplies you need to get started, how to make your own knitting needles (yes! And it is a lot easier than you may think), how to decorate your needles, why you should start using two different color needles, what to do when you don't have any needles (you can still knit with your fingers, the book shows you how!), how to make "kool-aid" yarn in super-fun colors, and where yarn comes from. The instructions were much simpler to understand than those in the traditional "adult books" and after finishing a few of the basic projects, I actually felt inspired to learn more, as did my daughter.

If you are looking for a terrific alternative to TV and video games then definitely buy this book. There are plenty of photographs of girls AND boys from all different races and creeds who seem to be enjoying their time spent knitting, and the pages are splashed with fun colors and typeface.

5 Stars. This is the very best beginners book on the market!

I fall into the category of kids of "all ages." I'm an adult who wanted to take up knitting as a hobby, with hopes of making a few holiday presents along the way, too. This book taught me the basics and gave me some great ideas for projects. I was able to take the ideas given here and go off on my own... as well as read more advanced knitting patterns. This is a great starter book for anyone who wants to learn to knit!

Cancer Ward is often overshadowed by its predecessor, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, and its successor, the immense memoir, The Gulag Archipelago. While the worldly impact of those two works is perhaps greater, the aesthetic power of Cancer Ward is stronger than both of those works. The story is poignant and powerful, reaching out and probing deeply into the essential questions that are never answered by not only Soviet society, but western culture as a whole. The religious message that emerges is stunning and unique, recalling the works of Dostoyevsky. Overall, this is an excellent book, and any reader who enjoyed One Day or Gulag will be blown away by this work.

Having read a good bit of Solzhenitsyn's books, I can safely say that this is the pinnacle of his work. It simultaneously examines how people cope with the loss of freedom (to the Soviet state and the cancer ward), with the death that surrounds them, and with their own mortality. Through the whole work, too, through death and triumph over disease, runs Solzhenitsyn's recurring theme of the survival and growth of the human spirit under terrible conditions, seen as the main character and those around him realize former errors and deficiencies of character and seek to redeem themselves by doing good for others. I would highly recommend this book to all readers of Solzhenitsyn and, really, anyone.

Having just finished reading it for the third time, I believe that Cancer Ward is a very fine novel, rich at many levels: in its depiction of Soviet provincial society in 1955, a poor society just emerging from Stalinism; in its portrayal of many separate characters (doctors, nurses, patients, hospital workers) in that society, many of whose lives have been permanently damaged by the terror and the GULAG, but in different ways; and, as I know from personal experience, in its depiction of the isolated world of the cancer patient, from which the rest of society is seen dimly, as though through dirty glass. In spite of all medical progress, the basics of this world have not changed much in 50 years: the core treatments are still surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, and the side effects both long and short term can still be brutal.

The ending of the book will disappoint those who want a happy ending, or just an ending with all the loose ends tied up. In real life, though, loose ends usually stay loose. My thought is that Solzhenitshyn intended the reader to understand that for the characters and the society who are so damaged by the past there can be no happy endings; the best they can hope for is to continue from day to day, grasping at whatever happiness briefly comes their way.

"Eleni" is an hymn to the author's mother. It describes the strength of his mother's love for her children that helped the family survive through a variety of hardships - the father's absence in USA, civil war, poverty, hostility by other villagers. The book describes a compelling story of the family, their struggles and the escape of 9 year old Nicholas Gage to the U.S.A. As an adult, Gage returns years later to get revenge from the people who tortured and murdered his mother but at the end he decides to honor her by following her teachings instead of revenge. The book provides a look in the life of small villages in the Balkans and the beginning of cold war. It is a great novel and the author is a masterful story-teller.

Unfortunately, despite Mr. Cage's credential as an investigative reporter, the book falls short on historical accuracy and serves as a [...] tool for the pro-western faction of the civil war against the "evil" communism. It is a romanticized version of the actual events as witnessed by a young boy who wants to "protect" the memory of his mother since he was not there to defend her life and as re-told by the villagers who want to absolve themselves of any crime.

Great portrayal of a mother's love for her children just do not buy it for its historical value!

This book is a tribute to a mother by her only son, celebrating a woman who sacrificed herself to save her children. Whether you know anything or not about the Grecian Civil War, Nicholas Gage's book will inform you, albeit not without partiality; the story is as much about his need for revenge as it is about Eleni Gatzoyiannis, a woman of incredible courage. The reader will wish for more information on some of the events surrounding this story, or for a little objectivity in the case of Eleni's accusers, her fellow villagers; but Gage contains over a decade of story in a book just over 300 pages without crowding it in. As far as the objectivity goes, Gage doesn't pretend it, so the reader shouldn't expect it. There is little sentiment (a Godsend in this sort of biography), but a great deal of emotion meshed into the narrative, and it flows without interruption. This is Gage's grave-offering to Eleni, and it is peerless.

I read the book some 5 years ago and found myself closing the book to the horrifying scenes of torture. This is the true story of an era of shame in the history of Greece that so many Greeks tried to hush and distort the truths about the so called "civil war". It is an honest encounter of the horrors of that war. But most of all it is the story and glory of a mother whom words cannot describe her grace, her love for her children and her courage. Nocholas Gatzogiannis bears a legacy of a mother that very few people can understand. Should Eleni's spirit sees him from above, she can only feel proud of her son. For he not took revenge but instead wrote the TRUTH.

Being an American Muslim, I am fascinated with the Arabic language, because it is the language that the the Holy Quran was revealed in. So it was important to me that I learn it, so I would not have to totally depend on the translations of others.

I had tried several Arabic classes , but ususally, something would happen, for one reason or another, I couldn't finish the class, or the class would discontinue.

Then I stumbled upon this book, and within a month I was reading and writing and working on my vocabulary and grammar. I learned in my spare time at my own pace, with excellent results.

I highly recommend it.

I was pleased to find this brief text so useful as a supplement to "Alif Baa (with CDs)", and "Beginner's Arabic Script". The Alif Baa CDs are absolutely invaluable, and each of these three works seems to contribute something that the other two don't. I recommend the package of three as a good basis to begin study of book one of the "Al-Kitaab" text and four CDs published by Georgetwon University Press, which assumes working familiarity with the writing system.

I have been reading and re-reading this little booklet for several weeks, and it's quite helpful... There's something embarrassing about purchasing a "book" on such a basic topic. Therefore, I recommend thinking of this as a "booklet," which it really is, anyway, at under 100 pages.

The layout is as follows. First, there's a handy little "Introduction to Arabic," which warns the reader about such curious features of the language as a lack of clear distinction between nouns and adjectives. Arabic, evidently, has many such linguistic features, which are somewhat off-putting to a Western reader. I have been lucky enough to have taken a couple of linguistics courses, which made this brief chapter a little easier for me to get through. However, there's almost no linguistics terminology, and the chapter, on the whole, should be perfectly accessible to anyone. The next chapter is a sixteen page overview of the alphabet, giving the reader useful tips about how to pronounce, and memorize, the various letters. This chapter only gives the "initial" and "isolated" forms of each letter -- most Arabic letters change their appearance if they are in the middle of a word, or at it's end. The third chapter goes into more depth, and shows the "medial" and "final" forms of each letter. At the end there are some recommendations for further study; a verse from the Qu'ran for you to wrestle with; some notes about handwriting; a quick table of the alphabet for ready reference (bookmark this)!; and a map of the Arabic speaking world, with all the countries labelled in Arabic.

I like this booklet. It's inexpensive, and I think it's a good way to make the Arabic script less exotic and intimidating. If you decide to continue beyond this, let me just mention that I've asked around at several of Boston's numerous universities, and many of them seem to use the book "Elementary Modern Standard Arabic," by Peter Abboud and Ernest McCarus, published by Cambridge University Press. I am not going to pass myself off as an expert, however -- do some comparison shopping on your own, and see what you think.

All in all, this is a very nice idea for a booklet. Two thumbs up.

The story of the last of the Romanovs is one that still keeps audiences interested, whether the focus is the revolution or the Mad Monk. This is the last gasp of old style royalty that the 20th Century was to experience and despite Massie's tendency to somewhat romanticize his subjects, the domestic tribulations of Nicholas and Alexandra make an interesting and illustrative foil for the civil strife that was going on outside the palace. It is fascinating to read some of the anecdotes recounted in this book that show the Tsar and his family to be, in many ways, an ordinary family, yet at the same time probably the wealththiest family in the world at the time. The dispair and extreme poverty of Russian peasantry is very lightly treated here, but then, this is the Romanov's story and like royalty everywhere and at all times, they were isolated from direct confrontation with unpleasant sights and sounds.

Whatever else, this is a great story - of love, family tragedy, political blundering, inepept military decisions, court intrigue, conspicuous consumption, religious meddling, hypocracy, self deception, and hope - all part of the opening act of the new century. The old world of Tsarist glitter passes and the new world of Bolshevik drabness begins - and Nicholas and Alexandra are, with their family, caught in the middle.

"Bloody Nicholas". "Alexandra the German". These and other epithets were used to descibe Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra, the last Tsar and Tsarina of Imperial Russia. However, Massie brings to light and to life, the personal, human side of both Nicholas and Alexandra and their families.

With unusual and fascinating insight, the lives of Nicholas and Alexandra are explored in the context of their backgrounds, upbringings, experiences, and the very public role which birth had conferred upon them. The impact these influences had upon them personally and the resulting impact upon Russian and world history is laid out in a poignant, tragic tale which will leave only the most jaded reader unmoved.

Massie's writing style makes you feel as if you were actually there listening to and observing the Imperial family. His sources include the letters between Nicholas and Alexandra, letters from them to members of their families, and the memoirs of people who knew them personally and/or worked with them closely, such as tutors, close friends, ambassadors, and government officials.

The insights gleened from these sources portray not vicious, callous rulers concerned only with their selfish ends, but rather two well-meaning and personally kind people whose personalities, education and limited perspectives ill-suited them for the roles into which they were born. Add to this the impact of the then untreatable disease of hemophilia which afflicted their youngest child, their only son and heir to the Russian throne. This does not excuse them from the disastrous role they played in the fall of the Romanov dynasty, but rather helps us to understand why they acted as they did.

One cannot read this work and come away without a profound feeling of sadness. The "what if's" string on endlessly, most tragically in the contemplation of their five innocent, young children who were brutally murdered along with their parents by the Bolsheviks because of hatred for their parents, and a merciless political desire to ensure the monarchy never returned.

This work will appeal to many: to students of Russia, history, royalty, political science, public relations, and of course, those interested in a story of romance in a privileged, elite world.

The Author, Robert Massie, happened upon the writing of this book through his research to find out how others dealt with hemophilia. His son suffers from the disease as did the son of the last tsar of Russia. Wow...I happened upon this book by first seeing the english production of the film nicholas and alexandra. The movie was excellent but the book exceeds that of course. Read this book and obtain an understanding that people even in power are to be pitied. These poor souls were first the victims of their sons disease, Rasputin, the mystic but resourceful priest and the changes that Russia inevitably was to go through. This history of a country and a ruler, his wife and his family has often times made me wonder about their horrowful fate. These people did not deserve what they received in the end and I hope you draw this same conclusion after you read this novel. As the trailer notes state..."A larger than life drama, so bizarre, so heartrending, and above all, so apocalyptic that no novelist would have dared invent it"... Read it, you'll agree.