The book "Barn Dance" by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault is a cute book for kids. It lets them know that all things arent scary. Like scarecrows, for instance, arent scary their just to keep the crows away. Also if you child was scared of animals, this book might teach them there is nothing to be afraid of. It also is a very catchy book with all the rhymes and pictures. I was very pleased with it.

Scarecrows aren't really scary unless you're a crow -- or a preschooler. My son was terrified of scarecrows until we found this book. Now, it's torn and tattered, and a favorite of both my boys and their older sister. It's the story of what goes on in the barn when (almost) everyone in the farmhouse is sleeping.

All except the skinny kid with questions in his head, Much too full of wonderment to spend the night in bed, He was up about and list'nin'. . . . . .when the night owl said, Come a little closer. . . Come a little closer. . . Listen to the night. . . There's magic in the air. . . The skinny kid can hear the sound of fiddle strings, and he looks out his window to see the scarecrow leading all the animals into the barn for a hoe-down. Intrigued, the skinny kid sneaks into the barn and hides. Pretty soon, though, the scarecrow spots him and invites him to join in.

Out came the skinny kid, a-tickin' an' a-tockin' An' a hummin' an' a-yeein' an' a rockin' an' a sockin'. An' he danced his little toe through a hole in his stockin'! By this point in the story, my kids are itchin' to get up and dance, too. But, as the night owl points out, the magic can only last so long. The skinny kid sneaks back into his bed in the farmhouse to watch the sunrise. It might have been a dream, except for that hole in his sock.

In addition to the wonderful verse that sets toes a-tappin', my kids love the illustrations. My three-year-old always points out the skinny kid's progress as he sneaks out of the house, past the hound dog, into the barn, and back. All the kids giggle at the whirling pigs, who get so dizzy that they all fall down.

Brilliant illustrations. The writing takes you into the story, which is exciting & fun. Get it, you won't be dissapionted!

The first of what will probably be several books and perhaps a t.v movie on the Robinson cybersex murders, I was impressed by the initial overview of the case. I worked with the two state probation and parole officers mentioned in the book many years ago, and knew them to be most dedicated officers. I take the Key West Citizen and the Florida Keys Keynoter newspapers, and found the author's report of the Robinson family in the Keys to be consistant with both newspapers. I attended the first international symposium on cybersex last May, 2001, in Las Vegas and found the book to be consistent with seminar information. This case will not be resolved for years, and the book gives a good foundation. A good read for true crime buffs. =30=

This story blew my mind. I had just finished the book when I stopped for fuel at the NM/AZ state line on I-40. There was a state police computer printout hanging on the door, warning women against chatting with men on the internet because of the "internet slavemaster." The state police (NM) were asking for any information in connection to this internet entity. I couldn't believe it.

Then, when I arrived in Holbrook, AZ, I ran into four highway patrolmen at a truckstop diner and asked them about the notice. We engaged in an hour-long conversation about how a predator like this can disguise himself as an upstanding member of the community and keep everybody fooled. We had the book out and several people seemed mesmerized by our discussion of this story. It has that effect! It is just so unbelievable that people are astounded.

If you have not read this book, get it! This man was the first to harness the internet for serial killing. Boy, it will drive home the fact that there is no safe ground anymore. If you have children, you will be concerned about what they are doing online. It will make you look at your computer in a whole new light. It will also make you start wondering about all those upstanding citizens that you know so well ... or do you really know them at all?

There is a flip side to this story - the world of S&M and the women that were surfing for a "master." This man could not have lured them if they had not been presenting themselves as victims. That is where the game is so dangerous - you just never know when it is going to get out of hand. I would think that it is not something you would readily trust to a stranger. I think that is the part of this story that astounds people the most. Why would a woman readily place herself into the role of slave to a complete stranger?

The author has done a fabulous job of presenting the facts in a flowing narrative that keeps you reading. I couldn't put the book down until I finished it. I can't imagine what he could have done to improve it. It was outstanding!

Living in the Kansas City area I was particularly interested in the John Robinson case and followed it avidly. Glattt has done an excellent job in recounting the case and his research is first class. He also goes further and breaks new facts on the case which have never come to light before. I was very impressed by his writing style and attanetion to detail. I would recommend this to all true crime fans and have done so. This one is way up there with In Cold Blood.

When my husband died he left me a three-ring notebook which we had labled the emergency book as it contained all the pertinent information about our financial, insurance, tax, etc. situations including the location of necessary documents such as wills to help settle the estate. This book is comparable and would help anyone become better organized to deal with daily and unexpected situations. With the three ring capability pages can be added that would personalize it to your special needs. sms

A wonderful tool. This book has helped my family more than I can say. I highly recomend it.

I bought this guide for myself, then my mother was diagnosed with cancer and passed away within seven months. The workbook pages really helped me to know what questions to bring up with her. It saved a lot of time and aggravation after she passed away when I wasn't emotionally able to handle tough decisions. There are so many extra tips in this workbook; it is helpful even if you are going on vacation and someone needs to housesit. This workbook is helpful if you're 25 or 75. I highly recommend it.

Bonhoeffer exposites the Genesis account of creation with clarity and thoroughness. One thing is for sure: Bonhoeffer sticks to Scripture in structuring his theology of the creation and fall thereof. A fan of Bonhoeffer, I find the book wordy at times, but a must-read for any study of the Genesis creation account.

The fourth volume, "Discipleship" in the Bonhoeffer works series is an outstanding representation of not just Bonhoeffer the theologian, but Bonhoeffer the man as well. The fresh translation brings back to life the passion with which this man of God lived his life. Bonhoeffer viewed the church of his day as falling away from the teachings of Jesus, but within the pages of, "Discipleship", he writes of what is necessary of the Christian, in order that he or she may be true disciples of Christ.

This entirely new translation is a part of the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works, the 17 volume critical English Edition being published by Fortress Press. It is based on the text of the German critical edition, the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Werke published by Guetersloher Verlagshaus. Each volume in this new English edition provides the best available English translation, correcting errors and omissions in previous versions. An extensive introduction to the text especially for the English-language reader provides the historical and theological context necessary to understand Bonhoeffer's written legacy. This new edition will become the standard edition of Bonhoeffer's writings for the nonspecialist and the scholar as well, superseding all previous translations.

There are many things to like about this book, most of which are described well by the other reviewers. What really struck me about this book (perhaps because I listened to the unabridged tape) was how so much of the plot turned on what happens when a writer is less than precise with language. Mortimer does a masterful job of creating Felix, a writer who doesn't even realize that his misstatements are misstatements or the trouble those statements cause.

Overall, it took me a while to warm up to the book but by the end I was rooting hard for the truth to emerge. The actual ending was a little corny but ok. It's a book filled with a fun assortment of characters. More than a few humorous jabs are made at the modern publishing world and modern society in general. Not a laugh out loud book but one that made me chuckle to myself.

A New York Times notable mystery in 1997 - for those who are fond of books with credentials.

A hapless middle-aged midlist author gets embroiled in the British legal system when he is accused of fathering a child and not paying support. You may need a certain amount of anglophilia and interest in the literary scene to fully appreciate it. The only fault I could find was that it's too short. I hate finishing books in one night before I fall asleep.

John Mortimer is the writer of many charming and wonderful books, although he is no doubt best known for his stories of Horace Rumpole, the irascible British barrister. In Felix in the Underworld, Mortimer showcases his comic and satirical talents most admirably.

Mortimer reminds me a little of bestselling Japanese novelist, Haruki Murakami, in that his characters in this book are quite ordinary people who live quite ordinary lives but have the absurdly bad fortune of simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The protagonist of Felix in the Underworld, Felix Morsom, is a moderately successful, quiet, sensitive novelist at Llama Books who manages to become involved, much against his will, with a man named Gavin Piercey.

Soon after meeting Piercey, Felix notices the man everywhere in his life: at book signings, during radio talk shows and, most especially, at one fateful meeting where Piercey introduces Felix to a woman named Miriam. This meeting will have serious, but hilarious, repercussions on Felix's life.

From the moment Felix meets Miriam, his life becomes one of turmoil and wild, unbelievable events. He receives a letter from an agency calling itself PROD; he is accused of a brutal murder; he becomes involved with London's homeless population.

Mortimer's handling of the plot is superb, his writing as smooth as silk and the characters, although slightly cliched, are still polished and hilarious. One of the funniest is the lawyer, Septimus Roache, the man Felix turns to in desperation when he attempts to prove his innocence in the murder. Roache is an obtuse and self-satisfied man who has little to no interest in his clients and really doesn't listen to a word Felix is telling him.

Mortimer, who himself was a successful barrister before becoming a writer, knows how to create a rollicking good murder mystery and this is part of why Felix in the Underworld works as well as it does. Another large part is Felix, himself, an engaging character we can't help but like; a man who maintains his dignity and poise even in the face of adversity of the highest, and most unexpected, order.

Mortimer calls himself a "Champagne socialist," and is a champion of the poor and the downtrodden. In this book he manages to take us on a trip through contemporary British society, especially homeless society. The book is fun, though, above all, and never sounds like polemic. We can credit Mortimer's superb writing skills for that.

The snobbish character of Simon Tubal-Smith, Felix's boss at Llama Books is contrasted wonderfully with Esmond, a homeless man who was, at one time, a manager in a supermarket. Esmond left his job and home for a life in the streets when tragedy struck. Felix, himself, spends some time as a member of London's homeless population and is reminiscent of George Orwell's Down and Out in Paris and London.

The dialogue is pure Mortimer and always fun. When Felix is temporarily residing in jail, his cellmate is a man named Dumbarton who allegedly beat another man to death. "You killed him?" Felix asks. "Thoroughly," Dumbarton replies, quite satisfied with what he did.

Felix is both self-effacing and hilarious as he attempts to cope with unhelpful lawyers who do just as much to convict as help him, as he tries to sort out the mystery behind PROD, as well as develop his budding relationship with Brenda Bodkin, his publisher's publicity agent.

Although this book is a little formulaic at times, the formula works and works well. Maybe that is because Mortimer is a master who never lets us down. Felix in the Underworld is a first-rate murder mystery, a comedy of errors and a satire of the British class system. It is always delightful and filled with surprises up until the very last page.

This was the first book I ever purchased off Amazon and I really enjoyed reading Mr. Martin's work. He does a very good job of telling you what to use and where to go in southern Colorado. I plan to take it with me this summer along with my 3wt and use it when i am on the water.

Scott Cash Thompson

This is a book to use in planning a trip to an unknown area. I've flyfished warm water for years but I know little of trout fishing and nothing of doing so in Colorado. This book provides the detail to make decisions on which drainages and particular streams to fish. It clearly points out what is public and private water, what fish are there and provides some information on rod weights and lengths (though I would like to see a bit more of this) and good information on flies and lures to use.

I ordered this book in planning a fly fishing trip to Colorado. I'm still haven't yet decided where to go but this book provides the information to make a decision. The is plenty of detail on what to expect, how to get there, what fish are in that area, how to fish for them and particularly what equipment (rod lengths and weight, leader length, tippet size etc) is needed. This was money well spent.

Having written an entire data warehousing system in db_lib I thought I'd like to call attention to this book's very good introduction to db_lib. The sample application builds a bulk loader that requires NO, I repeat, NO disk storage. This is possible because Sybase put in a special sub-set of db_lib that implements a bulk-load API, and Microsoft got that in the bargain too. Using these techniques I have been loading 91 million rows to 38 tables in 5 hours on a old Compaq Proliant 4000. The total memory requirement for my loader, which is MetaData driven and so is doing a ton of other stuff too, is 4MB. It occured to me that somebody out there might really find this chapter a god-sent so I decided to add this footnote to my previous review. If you're doing SQL programming and you don't have this book you're working WAY too hard. Good luck!

I can't say much that hasn't already been said in other's praises, without sounding redundant (there's too much of that in this field already.) This book is worth every cent paid. Of all the poorer-quality publications out here, esp. those with reams of endless prose and little substance, this one comes through. I do apply several criteria when judging a computer book (yes, even "theory" has its place...sorry), but the ultimate test is: does the book REALLY address useful issues, and solve problems. This book scores. Make sure you keep this baby close to your computer at all times.

I really enjoyed this book. It is well organized and well written. Plus, it deals with issues and topics that just aren't covered in the twenty pounds of books that Microsoft provides with SQL Server. All the information on data storage, transaction processing and, especially, query opitmization is invaluable to any serious MS SQL Server DBA/developer. Knowing how the query optimizer "thinks" helps solve most SQL tuning problems.

I was impressed by about a third of the stories in this book. The rest ranged from mediocre to mildly interesting. My favorite was "Truth", one of the most interesting treatments of telepathy that I have ever read. One disappointing factor was the numerous glaring typographical errors that jarred my reading experience. Not a bad collection but the few outstanding stories made the others pale by comparison.

Except where noted, I think the stories herein are well worth reading.

Berliner, Janet: "Interview with a Mutant" begins with the narrator noting a wire story about 'the world's first hand and forearm transplant', saying the patient got such weird vibes afterwards that he petitioned to have the hand amputated. She'd like to refer him to the *real* first, whom the world doesn't know about.

Bilgrey, Marc: The narrator's empathy means that Doug often makes "Lucky Guesses" about what people will say through reading their feelings; at least, that's what he called them as a child, when they were erratic. But over the years, his power has steadily increased, with his accuracy - and the difficulty of concealing his ability.

Bischoff, David: "Mutant Mother from Hell: A 'Fizz Smith' Story" I dislike this one; the style reminds me of the "Scott Free" dream-sequence (drawn from Kirby's "Fourth World" titles for DC comics) in Gaiman's _Preludes and Nocturnes_; here we don't even have the redeeming feature of being used as the setting of a nightmare within a better story.

de Lint, Charles: "Freak", written for this collection, also appears in de Lint's _Tapping the Dream Tree_, but de Lint fans may prefer West's "Truth"; the narrator's learning-disabled, and expresses himself clumsily and crudely.

duBois, Brendan: "In the Dark Valley" is told in a braided style, one thread following Claire's desperate attempt to escape by car during a winter storm, the other her arrival with her new husband 9 months before. Having family was wonderful, in this close-knit valley - but her dreams were strange, the town lacks records - even obituaries. Shades of Innsmouth?

Foster, Alan Dean: Bull Threerivers can smell electricity, which helped him diagnose electrical problems in cars - until he started milking slot machines. Unfortunately, various Native American casinos' security personnel noticed him. Now several tribes have decreed "The Killing of Bad Bull", seeing in him a threat he doesn't fully appreciate even when running for his life...

Haber, Karen: Even "Behind His Gates of Gold", Prosper Mephisto doesn't really abandon his elaborate defenses, retaining his mask even before fellow super-rich members of the Diamond Club - much to the disappointment of Hugh Carter, seeking to reestablish his reporting career. While not drawn as stupid, Hugh doesn't use his brain: even after his fall to obscurity his cover should've been blown...

Hoffman, Nina Kiriki: "Sensitives" Art, the narrator, is sensitive to anything with a high enough copper content: once in his mouth, such an object "remembers" where it's been. He covers himself by claiming he picks up pennies for luck; his mother and uncle between them have taught him not to seek "penny visions" when anyone's watching, but nobody's perfect.

Huff, Tanya: "Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice", despite the title, is unrelated to Huff's "What Little Girls are Made Of" from _Magic in Ithkar 3_. Danielle, the narrator, is far from sugary-sweet, despite being (apparently) 4 years old. Her parents made the mistake of accepting help with their infertility from the Director of Research at the Benjamin Avob Basic Biology of Aging Center. Danielle, despite her appearance and Dr. Thorton's rough handling, has the mind of the bright 15-year-old that she truly is, and she *really* wants payback.

Masson, Sophie: After his son Henry's failed suicide attempt over a girl earlier in this year 1712, William Featherstone took him to his late wife's family home in Wales, concealing his hurt over Henry's foolishness in thinking he doesn't understand love. Featherstone didn't believe the family legend of descent from one of the sealmen of "The Great Deep"...until by chance a wounded selkie came ashore before his eyes.

Norman, Lisanne: The art students are banned from trespassing during their week's stay on the estate; is it to prevent meetings with Cassandra, who isn't allowed to meet strangers? When Anne gives Cassandra a "Paint Box", she learns that while Cassandra can't draw, other things happen. How can Anne unravel the mystery when Cassandra's brother hovers over her?

Nye, Jody Lynn: Thanks to the Anti-Mutant Act of 2166, Demetrios with his heat-sensitive vision, Stu with his enhanced sense of smell, and the gang who *aren't* fakes from the circus are being deported off-planet. This "Rite of Passage" serves a double purpose of removing mutants from overcrowded Earth and providing expendable guinea pigs for Calderon Hop Drive ships.

Pack, Janet: Duncan's ability to manipulate storms led him into meteorology, but his unorthodox forecasting methods have left him vulnerable to professional - or rather, unprofessional - attack by a penny-pinching acquisitions creep. And in response to Duncan's frustration, storms swirl about Kansas City, piling on more stress with "Fire and Rain"...

Patton, Fiona: Everybody around Blind Duck Island is "Family", with odd abilities - and they all make heroic efforts to see that their kids are born there, despite the high rate of birth defects and lack of technology. They've dealt with investigative reporters before - but George Prescott's descended from one of their own.

Rusch, Kristine Kathryn: "Trust" is Carter's gift with all animals, especially dogs: they seek him out when in need. His talent's a side effect of genetic alteration in this near-future; he daren't have meaningful relationships for fear of betraying his parents - and condemning himself to second-class citizenship. The latest of his rescues, however, is a mystery in her own right.

West, Michelle: When young Callie's telepathy told her more of the "Truth" - or is it? - than she could bear about her family and friends, ran away from home. She's now under the wing of the mysterious Scrape, a fellow homeless person whose talent for silence makes him bearable to her, though he tells her home truths she resists hearing. Reminds me strongly of de Lint, including some light taps on the conscience regarding homeless people.

For those of you who like the X-Men this book has lots of short stories that will make you think about mankinds direction. With human clones about to be a reality (in the news today);it makes you think about how we treat one another. I especially liked the sci fi themed stories. Without repeating all the other reviewers comments I have to say this one is worth the money

Dillenberger presents a selections of treatises, Biblical commentaries, and sermons sensibly arranged with a good introduction. Two missing works were the Small Catechism and his speech at the Diet of Worms ("Here I stand ... I cannot do otherwise"). In three key works from 1520 "An appeal to the ruling class of German Nationality", "The Pagan Servitude of the Church" and "The Freedom of a Christian", Luther develops (re-discovers?) the doctrine of justification by faith and emphasis on Scripture. Luther steers from a legalistic life of a Christian ("Beware lest you make Christ into a Moses"). He vigorously attacks the practice of indulgences, Papal Supremacy and the papal court: "At present there is a crawling mass of reptiles, all claiming to pay allegiance to the Pope, but Babylon never saw the life of these miscreants". At times he practices his own demagoguery; of St. James he does "not hold it to be of apostolic authorship".

Luther attempts to remove the differences between cleric and public classes by opening the Eucharist to everyone and his German Bible made Scripture available to German peasantry. Luther grants spiritual rights to the individual, and states importance of the Christian community, but he did not extend this politically, and should not be viewed as advocating political democracy. The "Appeal to the ruling class" was popular among the nobility because it provided justification for not sending money to Rome.

After reading St. Augustine's Confessions, it is interesting to see how this Augustinian monk extends the idea of grace. The works on free will were the most paradoxical for me. He seems to argue both that without grace man is incapable of free will, but also that "God has taken my salvation out of the control of my own will".

Martin Luther accused the Catholic Church of abandoning the teachings of Christ. Rather than preaching the Bible to the masses, the clergy instead oppressed them by forcing them to follow multitudinous Church customs. Luther didn't oppose customs per se, but only the Church's placement of man-made doctrines over the Bible. His most vehement criticisms were leveled against works, especially the practice of indulgences. Luther argued that the Church had replaced faith in Christ with good works as the means to salvation, to the detriment of the masses. Worse, this erroneous doctrine was not accidental but a deliberate scheme by the clergy to acquire wealth.

Luther blamed even St. Francis for establishing such customs as monasticism and asceticism that resulted in a division of the body of believers into a laity and a clergy. Luther laid the most blame for the Church's waywardness on the popes. As leaders, it was their responsibility to ensure that the Bible's doctrines are taught and followed. However, not only did they allow to be practiced doctrines that contradict the Bible, but they also violated Biblical teachings. For example, popes owned vast real estates and excommunicated individuals to intimidate the disloyal. Consequently, the Catholic Church of medieval Europe became a powerful political entity, despite Christ's admonition to Christians to abstain from worldly affairs. In view of these gross and blatant violations of Christian doctrine, Luther referred to the contemporary pope as the antichrist and an agent of the devil.

Although I am not Lutheran, this book provides an essential overview of the issues that fueled the Protestant Reformation. It should be read by people who are interested in European history, with an emphasis on the beginning of the Renaissance.

If you've never read any of Luthers works before, you should read this book. There has never been a stronger writer on the subject of faith, than Martin Luther -excepting maybe for moses or St.Paul.Try this book or "The basic theological writings of ML" -I am not lutherine.

FOR ALL THE READERS THAT ARE INTERESTED IN ARQUEOLOGY.

Although it is less than 100 pages in length, don't let the size fool you. This book is power-packed with information about the art of Roman crucifixion and how the cross is foolishness to those who perish, in former times as well as today. The book is a translation from German, and as in many translations, the flow seems very uneven, making it hard to keep pace. In addition, Hengel uses plenty of technical terms and refers constantly to other languages, especially Latin and Greek, so some laypeople may have a hard time wading their way through it all as well as the numerous footnotes at the bottom of the page (which sometimes takes up half a page or more). But, if you work hard, you will find a number of excellent items to highlight. In the end you will realize that crucifixion was anything but a bloodless punishment. From the whipping that normally took place beforehand to the way people were stapled onto the crosses, this was torture at its worst. This was the method that the Son of Man paid the ultimate price for our sins. This message is the central theme of the historic Christian faith. Amen.

Translated from German, this is outstanding look at this practice in the ancient world and the cross of Christ.

The great reversal of God's Son crucified and this is good news? is a scandal to the natural mind of humankind.

Hengel shows these two aspects well, carefully documented his sources from ancient history and Scripture.

The theology of the cross vs. that of glory is reflected in this theologian's writing, e.g. "The heart of the Christian message, which Paul described as the 'word of the cross' (logos tou staurou--transliterating the Greek), ran counter not only to Roman political thinking, but to the whole ethos of religion in ancient times and in particular to the ideas of God held by educated people."

Still true today. This is excellent reference for your shelf, also try and obtain Paul Maier's "In Fullness of Time," and Eric Kiehl's "The Passion of Our Lord."