There comes a point in most writer's careers when things don't look so great. Maybe it when you get your first shockingly low royalty check or perhaps it when you realize that your publisher sees you as just another one of their writers. That's when you should reach for this book. Reading Ms. Tedder's experiences and the solid advice she offers gave me the inspiration to cheer up and get back to the sheer joy of writing.

I picked up my critique partner's copy. I didn't really plan to read it because my career is going good right now, but I couldn't put it down. Now my critique partner has it back and has dog-eared it to death and won't let me borrow it. Mr. Publisher, please hurry and get some more in stock!

Normally I'd be skeptical of an author who gives so many examples from her own life and writing career, but for this book, it works extremely well. Her examples of harrowing career problems with big time editors and publishing houses are not a solitary experience. How she made it through the muck and her advice should not be solitary either. I'm glad to know someone has survived with their creativity intact. It gives me hope to overcome my own past and to write again--finally.

I just love this little cookbook! If you are a cookbook lover like me you will have to have this one. Now I am able to use all the candy bars in those warehouse club pack! Would make an excellent gift as well!

I had dessert duty at our family get together, so i made the Three Musketeers pie....a huge success, so rich and delicious.. this book is a must for any cookbook fanatic like myself.. and an excellent gift for your friends and family.

Many of the recipes are easy to make which is perfect for people like me who hate baking. The book would make a perfect gift.

An absolutely wonderful book! What quilter doesn't have scraps laying around that they "are going to use one day"? This book shows many ways to use these scraps and the quilts are beauiful. A real bonus to have in your library.

This is a wonderful book. I bought it because I had previously bought a stash of 5" squares and thought this would give me some ideas for using them. The ideas in this book go well beyond that, though. By simply cutting your scraps into 5" squares, or cutting a couple of 5" squares when you use fabric for another purpose, you can develop a stash that can be easily used for these beautiful, easy quilts. I recently made a wall quilt from one of the patterns, and could not believe how easy it was. Not only that, but the technique for creating four-patch units produced perfectly matched seams, something I've had trouble with as a new quilter. As some of the other reviewers have mentioned, changing the color schemes used in the book gives an entirely different look for the quilts. The other thing I loved is the opportunity for easy creativity. By rotating some of the blocks, use of color, and designing my own border using their patchwork units, I made my quilt look entirely different from the example in the book (which was beautiful in itself). I can't wait to play around more with the ideas...I'm going to try making miniature quilts using these techniques...and using EQ5 (quilt design software) to play around with the different looks you can create by rotating the blocks. This book will keep me occupied for a long time...

I love the techniques taught in this book. Simple for beginners and great for experienced quilter's alike. Have recommended it to several friends who are teacher's.

You'll find yourself saying "See you later Alligator" to all your work collegues and making up new rhymes with your child.

You don't need the hand puppet for this to be a fun book, so a used copy is a good bet!

I used to read this book to my son every night about 20 times. He loved it - we used the Fred puppet to tickle him. I now use it for my daughter. It teaches about rhyming, different animals, brushing teeth, bathing and just going to bed. My son even likes to read it to my daughter. I recommend this to anyone with children 15 months to 3 years of age!

This is a cute story about getting ready for bed. You can use the puppet to participate with kids. The puppet is of good quality and the book is relaxing fun! The best part of the book is that it is long enough to be entertaining, but short enough that mom doesn't have to be up all night reading it!

One of my favorite 5 bookes was Inch by Inch by Leo Lionni. The reason is, is that the worm in the story is very clever and thinks his way out of a sticky situation. That is what I like about authors like Leo Lionni. They can always come up with a great little story that influences so many children in such a positive way.

This Caldecott Honor Book is easy listening for the early child and the young child as a new schoolyear begins. An industrious inch worm is the main character. He engages himself with measuring a variety of birds and lastly outwits the hungry nightingale using his measuring savvy.

Teacher Note: This book can be used to introduce the young child to using standard measurement tools. It can also be used for activities with creative non-traditional measurement activities. For example: Paper clips, hands, feet, craft sticks, shoes, beans, etc. This book can be a springboard to a thematic unit on measurement. It can be extended for study of birds, other nature studies, art experiences, and musical activities as well.

A children's book about an inch worm who loves to measure things and then saves himself by measuring. The book was the 1961 Caldecott Honor book (i.e., the runner-up to the Medal winner) for best illustration in a book for children.

Jim Henson was a man who managed to sum up the whole intire feeling of what it was to be young, and full of energy in his fantastic creations. His work, from Mupets to films such as 'Labyrinth' and 'The Dark Crystal', showed us that he could tap that part of our minds that wanted to let go, and be free to live in our fantasies. This book, unlocks the back door to the mind that created our most cherished characters from the Henson world. It shows us where these characters came from, and also gives us an insight to the man who made it all happen. I found this book to be a real Gem, and an adventure. Just seeing the doodles Jim did as a child, or a teen, and some of his non character based art work, was fascinating. Buy this book If you are a fan of Mr hensons work. It is not the most complete book, as far as his other projects go, and some people may wish that some of his film work had got into the book. But for those that like to get closer to their idols, and want to feel like a close friend looking through his old scrapbooks, get this book. You won't be dissapointed.

This is a must for all you muppet fans!

The wonderful new long awaited book, Jim Henson's Desings and Doodles is almost a museum on paper. It shows Jim's best artwork, from storyboards, to puppet desingns, even a very early Kermit sketch. The book also features a never before seen look at the never produced special, "Johnny Carson and The Muppet Machine" which was to be a physcedelic trip into the 1960's. The artwork is very detailed, and even has a stone carving of Ed Macmahon! The book also shows some of his early work, including silkscreen images of meloncholy (which was inspired by the death of his brother , Paul) and concert posters and crazy characters who were soon to be Frackles!

One of the best parts of the book is Henson 's early commercial storyboards, which feature the two popular commercial Muppets ,Wilkins and Wontkins, Hansel and Gretel Muppets, and Kermit, The Snerfs and Rowlf (the IDEAL doll ad where Kermit sings the unfamilliar jingle"Oh buy us, oh buy us, oh buy us we beg! If you do not buy us, we'll bite you in the leg!!!) . Early drawings of the La Choy Dragon, and Nutty Bird(Royal Crown soda ads, precursor to Big Bird) are also featured.

The book brings us for the first time many illustrations of show ideas that never made it to the small screen. The Zoocus (The Zoo Circus), The Entertainers, and Martian Landing are all examples shown by illustrations from Jim's fertile imagination. The Zoocus was to be a show full of new Muppets such as Mr. Ripple and Carbourator Jones and had a guest star on each show (Sound like TMS to you?). The show would be a variety but would mostly ,as shown in Henson's drawings,be a talk show with the guest, where the Muppets would lounge behind large alters and other sets. The Entertainer was to be a show about a travelling vaudevillian show where Muppet men (and a can can girl) would sing popular songs at the time. This was also to be a Variety type show. Martian Landing would feature Muppet Koosebaine like creatures that would swap jokes and do skits on another planet. It was to be a Live variety show. It ashame these didn't get aired.

This book has so much I haven't mentioned yet, (I don't want to spoil it!) and it is definetly worth every penny. By far, one of my favs. among a long line of Muppet Books. Enjoy!

Jim Henson was one of the most imaginative people of this past century and this book beautifully captures some of his brilliance in the form of sketches, doodles and small art pieces. If you've ever marveled at his artistry, or wondered at his talent, then this is the book for you.

What I most enjoyed about this collection are the sketches and stories from Jim Henson's earliest years and most obscure projects. Alison Inches has included Jim's cartoons from college, High School program designs, album covers, advertisment ideas and story boards, as well as characters like, Taminella Grinderfall, Thog, Chicken Liver and Baskerville. Have no fear though, plenty of more widely known projects and characters are featured as well. We're taken through the steps from Sam and Friends, to the Muppet's succesful commercials, to Rowlf the Dog's appearances on The Jimmy Dean Show, through The Muppet Show and Sesame Street. Along the way we're also treated to many unrealized puppets and projects. It's a facinating journey and one that you're sure to revisit many times over.

Any designer, puppeteer, artist or Muppet fan will be fasinated by this book. But don't think you'll be geting a comprehensive career retrospective. I'd recomend "Jim Henson: The Works" for that. The focus here is squarely on the creation and design, which is right where it should be and it makes Designs and Doodles the perfect companion piece to Jim Henson: The Works. One giving you a look at his projects and the other a glimpse into his mind. And oh, what a marvelous glimpse it is!

Carol Doak's outstanding 40 Bright & Bold Paperpieced Blocks provides twelve inch designs in block style to be used as quilt foundations and inspirations. Eight projects cover wall to bed quilts, small and large. Blocks are gorgeous and provide fine examples of color-coordinated piecing.

The best word for this book is "WOW"!! I thought Carol's last book ("50 Paper-Pieced Stars") was terrific, but this one tops it. Carol has really outdone herself on this one & her use of color is sensational. I've already found two quilts I *have* to make! If you like paper-piecing, don't wait another second to get this book & dig in, because Carol makes it very easy & the designs in the book are stunning - wait 'til you see the way she moves color around & how easy these blocks are to make with her methods.

If you're the type (like me) who can't deal with counting calories (consumed or burned), and just want someone to tell you "Eat this for breakfast, that for lunch, this for dinner, do these exercises 3 times a week. You're done." -- this is the book for you.

I've done the 32 day plan twice and have had great results both times. (Obviously the fact that I've done it more than once means I have not done well on the maintenance side of things, but that's a different issue).

My only complaint with this book is with the recipes (yes, it even includes ALL the recipes of what you're to eat), many of which include gloppy sauces made with corn starch (like the "Mandarin Chicken" -- yuck!). Generally, I would simply bake or grill the meat in those recipes, forget the sauce, and have a little extra fresh vegetable.

Be forewarned, though, that the "super-slow" exercises are HARD. But given that the workout only takes 20 to 30 minutes, and is only 3 times a week, most guys should be able to do this.

Good luck!

Dr. Darden provides a clear step by step process to lose weight slowly and steadly. This includes both meal plans and a brief intro to weight training. As a person who trains consistantly with weights I never concerned myself with the counting and monitoring of calories until I gained 35 pounds in 7 months. I tried Adkins, good, but strength decreases too much. Also tried extensive cardio, helps, but for me, calorie restriction was needed. Been on the 32 day diet for 26 days so far, reduced my weight from 221 to 207. Waist size from 40 to 36.5. Strength is down about 20%. However the hit you take in the ego from the loss in strength is made up in the feeling of "old" clothes fitting again. Two recomendations, if you intend to begin the diet take before photos, Darden says to do so, I didn't , wish I had. Second, Darden discourages using the diet with a spouse, I have and it has been very convenent. It's hard to eat clean while your spouse is eating pizza. Females if you use this plan you may want to reduce the recomended calories by about 15% since it is inteded for men. GOOD LUCK

Dr. Darden provides a clear, concise easy to follow methodology that works. I am only halfway done, and cut my body fat from 12% to 9% along with dropping 7 pounds while increasing my strength. Highly recommend this book for anyone serious about losing weight and body fat!

In 1890, Fragrant Lotus is a young Chinese girl who loves her grandmother very much. But one day her grandmother decides it is time that she bind her granddaughter's feet, a tradition going back a thousand years, and Fragrant Lotus' life changes forever.

Though having bound feet is exceedingly painful, her grandmother does an extremely good job and through the beauty of her feet, Fragrant Lotus is able to move up through society and gain wealth, power, and prestige normally out of reach for the lower-class. However, the Communist revolution is coming.

Where once Fragrant Lotus was the epitome of female beauty, in the 20th Century, footbinding becomes a symbol of the "old" China...a China that the government wants to escape. Fragrant Lotus continues to 'stand up' for footbinding, but it is a losing battle.

In this book of fiction, the author draws comparisons between the bound feet of Chinese women and the "bound" minds of modern China after the Communist revolution. Readers of Chinese fiction, literary fiction, historical fiction, and those interested in Chinese history will devour this novel.

What a treat it is to stumble upon a master storyteller! Feng Jicai tells this story with brilliant wit and intelligence. Kudos to the translator as well. He uses historical references to fill the reader in on the tradition of foot binding, as well as weaves a creative plot. The book focuses on Fragrant Lotus, a girl who has her feet bound in the golden lotus style, and her father-in-law, who collects daughters-in-law to serve his foot fetish. He and his other "lotus loving" friends have contests and long debates in their quest for the perfect bound feet. Fragrant Lotus eventually reigns supreme in the family by virtue of her stylish feet, but Jicai uses an ironic twist at the end of the book to ask the reader an underlying political question-- why the people of China have participated in things that caused them to suffer, such foot binding and the Cultural Revolution, and why social change often comes about with cruelty. This question is all the more touching because Feng Jicai's family was persecuted during the Cultural Revolution.

Subtitled "a novel of foot binding", this book was first published in China in 1986 by the enormously popular Chinese writer, Feng Jicai and translated into English in 1994.

Told as a "once upon a time" story, the writer skillfully combines myth, reason and a compelling tale while bringing the reader into the world of the "three-inch golden lotus", the tiny bound feet of Chinese women.

Everything I have ever wondered about this fascinating custom is right here in this book. From the agonies inflicted upon young girls whose childhood includes broken bones and searing pain to the high esteem these tiny feet bring them as adults, it's all here, including the group of men who erotically adore them.

Set in the early part of the 20th century, Fragrant Lotus has her feet bound by her grandmother as an act of love and tradition. Later, her small feet catch the eyes of a wealthy man who makes her the bride of his oldest son. The women of the family all compete in family "foot contests" at which "lotus loving" friends of her father-in-law spend hours debating the fine points of the history of foot binding and its many nuances.

Through the years, Fragrant Lotus becomes the head of the family and comes face to face with the changing movement to outlaw foot binding.

At only 229 pages, this book is a great read on many levels. The writer really captures the world he has set out to describe, does a excellent job of characterization and keeps the tension high with his minute descriptions of the foot contests. He also has a way of making this all into a satirical tall tale as the concepts of truth and reality are constantly explored. Deceptively simple, this story has a far deeper meaning as a metaphor for the cultural revolution as standards of beauty change.

Highly recommended.

Books from a successful Broadway or off-Broadway show are typically pretty silly, or at least pandering about how fabulous it is. This is a decidedly curious marketing tool, since it comes out after the show has lost its steam in New York, before the movie is made, and while the show is sort of on tour.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch was a really fabulous off-Broadway show, though I don't think the script on paper will quite capture the experience and power of it. Still, as it is a most worthwhile production, any marketing tool behind it is assuredly for the bet.

For some people, the stage production of Hedwig And The Angry Inch was this greally great Off-Broadway musical. For others it taught them a little bit about themselves, about those around them, and about their lives. John Cameron Mitchell's text laces beautifully with Stephen Trask's lyrics to dish out an emotional beat down that hurts so much you love it.

If you haven't seen it, I'll admit, reading the script isn't going to do it for you, but if you've at least heard of it, go out and get yourself the CD and read along between the songs. There's also some incredible photography to look at, many of which haven't been seen before. You get a semi-decent idea of what's going on on stage, anyway. It's quite a show by some extremely talented people. I will never forget Hedwig or her brain parents as long as I live.

Well, I guess what I really have to say is, "wow!" I've been listening to the Hedwig soundtrack since it came out, but I never got a chance to see the play, and, consequently, I missed out on a GREAT deal. While this book doesn't replace seeing a show, it does contain the entire script. So now I've caught up and know more exactly what all of those fabulous songs are about!! And what a story . . .

Buy the soundtrack, and if you are at all moved, the next logical step is to buy the book. You will not be disapointed.