I was a grunt in a Line Company with the 3rd Marines on Operations Taught Bow at Charlie Ridge, Hastings and Prairie on the DMZ.

We might have been a little louder than recon liked, but we carried about 50#lbs more on our back than they did and we were invited to their parties. He did make it sound like we were gate crashers!

An excellent book, "Home Is Where You Dig It". It is worthy of the saying, "From the outside, you can't understand it, from the inside, I can't explain it, Semper Fi.

I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST DOCUMENTED BOOKS OF THE VIETNAM WAR.IT TELLS OF THE COURAGE AND COMMITMENT OF NOT JUST THE MARINE THIRD,BUT ALL THE MARINES WHO SERVED IN VIETNAM.THEY HAVE A VALOR THAT ONLY A MARINE COULD UNDERSTAND.THEY SEARCHED FOR AN ELUSIVE FOE THAT WOULD FIGHT TO THE END IF THEY HAD TO. YET,A NUMERICALLY SUPERIOR FOE THEY FOUGHT, WHEN PUSH CAME TO SHOVE, THESE MARINES ALMOST ALWAYS CAME OUT ON TOP. I ADMIRE THESE MEN FOR GETTING THE JOB DONE THE WAY IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE DONE.FROM THE ROCKPILE TO GETTING PULLED INTO THE WINDOW OF A CH-46 WITH THE NVA SHOOTING AT A BARE BUTT,VETTER TOLD IT LIKE IT WAS. SEMPER FIDELIS

Well done,

As a former U.S.Marine and member of "B" Recon 65/66 I enjoyed reading this book.

We lost members of our company in April through November of 65, as well as a number of us WIA during our tour.

I realize that the author wrote about his experience and had to rely on whatever documentation that he was able to revew concerning our outfit during our deployment from K-Bay Hawaii, to Camp Schwab, Oakinawa and on to Viet Nam.

Aside from a few errors concerning "B" Recon, the book is a must read for any Recon Marine and those who wish they were.

Semper Fi,

Anthony P. De Bellis

(FIRST IN LAST OUT)

This book was extremely helpful. It provides clear instruction and beautiful examples of how many different artists have used computer software to explore innumerable possibilities for a painting in a short period of time. Pollard and Little have presented the material in an easy to read style. It gets right to the point. An excellent tool for any artist.

As an artist taking a Photoshop class, i was hopelessly lost in a deluge of material. This book sorts through the material and focuses only on what is necessary for an artist. Great way to take the pain out of thumbnails and value studies!

This marvelous new book will expand and enhance the creative possibilities of the amateur (like me) and professional artist alike. I'm a bit intimidated by computers but this book has given me the needed confidence to try out new ideas using the proven techniques of professionals. Step by step instructions for using the software are included as well as how each artist uses this new tool in the creative process. Highly Recommended

An excellent book on magnetics, easy to read and understand. I was introduced to magnetic health products by a friend and have never felt better in my life. Sleeping on a magnetic mattress has convinced me of the power of magnets in health and wellness. I have a 10 year old springer spaniel with hip displaysia who also sleeps on magnets, she is an entirely new dog, more energetic and with less discomfort. After reading this book I can now comfortably talk magnets with my friends and family and highly recommend their use for a better quality of life.

I have started my own home based medical magnet distribution business and read this book whick offers a clear and comprehensive understanding about magnets and their medical properties that really work. Both for my own information, and as an invaluable sales tool, this book is a must have and had benefited me and my business enormously.

I WAS EXCITED TO SEE DR.LAWRENCE WRITE A COMPREHENSIVE BOOK ABOUT MAGNETIC THERAPY THAT COULD BE UNDERSTOOD BY BOTH THE LAY PUBLIC AS WELL AS A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. AS A PODIATRIC SURGEON AND PHYSICIAN, I INCORPORATED MAGNETIC THERAPY INTO MY PRACTICE 8 MONTHS AGO, UTILIZING THEM IN SPORTS INJURIES AND POST-OP BANDAGING AND GETTING TERRIFIC RESULTS. WITHIN A FEW MONTHS I HAVE FOUND THAT USING THESE MAGNETS TO HELP MY PATIENTS, THAT I DEVELOPED A COMPATIBLE BUSINESS WITH MY MEDICAL PRACTICE THAT HAS HELPED WITH OUR BOTTOM LINE IN THIS ERA OF MANAGED CARE AND HMO'S.

This is a great book! It provides a refreshingly new look at how to connect with your children and have fun while you're doing it.

After reading numerous parenting books, I can recite the usual themes - set realistic limits, provide praise when merited, focus criticism on behavior and keep it brief, be honest, offer choices, blah, blah, blah. They're all good points, but being a responsible parent should not be all there is. Most parenting books ignore the importance of having fun with your children. It's something we're all supposed to just HAVE in our relationships with our children, and then we're disappointed when it's not there as often as we would like.

PLAYFUL PARENTING transcends these usual parenting shibboleths and supplies lessons on how to accomplish something we all yearn for - connection and fun! This book provides simple, easy to use techniques for connecting with your children and having fun while you do it. Like Dr. Doolittle with animals, Dr. Cohen understands the different language that children speak. That language is play. He explains that we need to learn to speak that language if we're going to connect with our children and be truly effective. As adults, we too often lapse into lectures and explanations (sound familiar?) when a playful approach will make us a more effective teacher. Typical of strategies provided in the book is one I now use with my children. Whenever they use some provocative word like "poopyhead" (or something much worse), I respond by saying in a conspiratorial tone "Well, you can say that if you want, but don't ever, EVER, say zoogililoo". Of course, they immediately say it, we all laugh, they get over the need to provoke, and we've connected in a knowing way.

PLAYFUL PARENTING also recognizes that children are often powerless in their relationships with parents and it provides excellent strategies for giving children more control. One strategy described in the book is called "Playtime", which is one on one time a parent sets aside with a child, in which the child gets to make all the decisions about what to do and the parent can not say "no" (basic safety considerations still apply, of course). I tried Playtime with my five year old son one Sunday afternoon and had a wonderful bonding experience with him - doing things such as swimming on a cold day (though I would have rather stayed warm and dry) and letting him hold the train ticket (though I was afraid he'd lose it). For Dr. Cohen understands parents, too, and knows that we all too often say "no" for the wrong reasons - we're tired, bored, or lacking energy. The strategies in this book, like Playtime, will challenge you to stretch yourself as a parent - but with bigtime payback! My son now asks for Playtime every weekend.

I was fortunate to be able to read a prepublication manuscript of PLAYFUL PARENTING last summer. I have employed many of its strategies to great effect with my two boys, ages 5 and 3. I have expanded my repertoire of skills for handling difficult situations, and have a more proactive approach to bonding with my children in ways that we all enjoy. I highly recommend this book to any and all parents. It would make a great gift, especially for those just getting started with the parenting challenge.

I whole heartedly recommend this book to ALL parents. Dr. Cohen's ideas completely changed the tone of our household. We were going through a very difficult phase with our 3 year old that was turning into a downward spiral of negativity. Nobody liked the way things were going. We'd read a mountain of "discipline" books, none of which was helpful in our situation. However, reading & following through on Dr. Cohen's book helped us completely turn our situation around - we now have a very HAPPY, joy-filled and fun home. Using the suggestions in this book I was better able to understand my daughter's behavior and I used many of his suggestions to connect with her. She has literally *blossomed* under this treatment - she's just a fantastic, happy little girl.

I am SO grateful to Dr. Cohen - he has helped me to become a much, much better parent and has given us a whole arsenal of wonderful parenting tools to help shape our children in very positive ways. If I could pick only one book on parenting and discipline, this would be it.

Lawrence Cohen is revolutionizing parenthood. I have a 3 year old son and a 10 month old daughter. My son is going through a tough stage right now therefore, we are all going through a tough stage! PLAYFUL PARENTING has changed my way of thinking when it comes to dealing with behaviour problems. Two weeks ago I would see my son throwing toys or pushing his sister over and I'd have to count to ten to cool off and then I'd go into a well hashed routine of "Why? That's mean. Would you like it...? etc." Now I am able to get behind the behaviour and see a child who needs love and reassurance, or "his cup filled" as Dr, Cohen outs it. I have read many parenting books and will continue to do so but if I had to chose only one book as the most important and helpful book a parent can read, this would be it.

Here is an example of how my thinking and actions have changed since reading this book. For about two months my son was in timeout so often that as soon as he saw me giving him that look of annoyance he'd start off for the bottom step of out staircase, the" "timeout" step. He would always get the talk about being mean and because of the way I was phrasing my "lectures" he began to answer my question of "Why?" with "Because I like being mean." This really disturbed me. After reading just a few pages of PLAYFUL PARENTING I began to use new language and started suggesting reasons why he might be acting out aggressively. He embraced this new approach. I began asking things like "Are you feeling angry and a little left out because I was holding your sister?" His response was so different than the beligerent "I like being mean." He began crying, wanted to be held and would start talking about feeling sad and how he didn't want me to hold baby sister. I can say without hesitation that our lives have changed because of this book. Thank you Dr. Cohen!

Mr. Christopher Bing has reconceptualized "Casey at the Bat" from being a poem that appeared in the June 3, 1888 edition of the San Francisco Examiner into an imaginary news story with drawings and artifacts in "The Mudville Sunday Monitor" of the same date. In that reframing, the classic poem takes on a greater life and significance for fans of the poem.

Each page in this brief book resembles the yellowed file copies of that old newspaper, with historic artifacts strewn across its pages. You will see tickets to the game, money, confetti, articles of that time, advertisements, a baseball, a baseball card, and the Library of Congress catalog card for "Casey at the Bat." Even the acknowledgments are put into this format.

But this would all be but window-dressing if it were not such a powerful poem that has captured the imaginations of baseball fans for generations.

"The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine . . . ."

"The score stood four to two with but one inning more to play."

Everyone hopes that Casey will get to bat, but that's unlikely. But a miracle happens.

"For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat."

Then comes the most famous and exciting at-bat in fictional baseball history.

Alas, like the Red Sox since Babe Ruth left for New York, the end is disappointment for the fans.

This book will make a wonderful gift for the baseball fan who has everything.

After you finish oohing and aahing over the great illustrations and reliving your pleasure in the poem, I suggest that you reflect over the famous at-bats that have occurred in real baseball games. Which one is your favorite? For me, none can match Kirk Gibson's hobbling home run to help the Dodgers top the Mets in Shea Stadium in the final game of the National League Championship Series and go onto the World Series. I still get chills thinking about that. Reggie Jackson's third home run in the same World Series game comes close as a thrill.

Wait for a good pitch, and hit it out of the park!

Originally submitted to a newspaper in 1883, Ernest Lawrence Thayer's poem "Casey at the Bat" has become an American classic. In essence, it is baseball's equivalent version of "Twas the Night Before Chritsmas."

"Casey at the Bat" has become a part of pop culture, and is still one of the most talked about stories of all time. Christopher Bing takes the wonderful classic, and adds in some amazing illustrations to make for a fantastic children's book. Presenting the poem with a myriad of sepia toned images is exceptional. The book reads like a scrapbook, with amazing-looking old newspaper clippings that reflect the times of the story. There are also pictures of old currency and replica baseball tickets to give it a more complete feel.

This book is put together quite nicely. Again, the illustrations are perfect, and the scrapbook appearance gives it a genuine look of something that you will want to treasure with your children. This is a classic poem that every person should have the benefit of hearing. Christopher Bing's version is the best I've ever seen, and is a must for any family with children. There will be plenty of joy in your home with this book.

Our elementary school library currently has three versions of the classic baseball poem, "Casey at the Bat," by three different illustrators. This one was added because of its well-deserved status as a Caldecott Honor book (for illustrations).

Since I usually make an annual Spring tradition of reading "Casey" to some classes, I can tell you that this edition by Christopher Bing works very nicely for group read-alouds. However in this setting kids miss out on the many interesting--but smaller--details that Bing has added to each page, such as a faded newspaper clipping about "the barbaric practice of using only a single ball throughout the nine innings of play..." Students are also drawn to the 1880s currency--bills and coins--shown on the page that says, "We'd put up even money now with Casey at the bat."

Christopher Bing has created a mini-museum display that many children will devour like an "I Spy" book, particularly if they are baseball fans or history buffs.

If you are not familiar with this wonderful poem, I'd put it in the same "classic" status as "The Night Before Christmas," by Clement C. Moore; "Paul Revere's Ride," by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; or "The Cremation of Sam McGee," by Robert Service.

This book has reall helped me in school. It contains vocabulary that I found was useful in both the High School Exit Exam and the SAT's. I recomend this book to students that want to amplify their vocabulary or to anyone who wants to boost-up their vocabulary.

This book has all the elements that make a novel worth reading. It has humor, (Cedric is hilarious) it has tragedy, suspense and most of all it sends a clear message about a very serious issue, but it makes it interesting to read. It is really an insight to teenage life and best of all it is really easy and fun to read!
This book is really a 'Slam Dunk' on teenage novels, Check It Out!

I really enjoyed reading this and I'm not a sport fanatic. Thought provoking, funny, great characters that remind you of people you know.

If you're thinking about it...buy and read it...you won't regret it.

Our teacher read us Classroom at the End of the Hall by Douglas Evans which is the prequel to this book. I thought it was very funny, but Math Rashes is even funnier. The students in this book sound like students in my fifth-grade class. I like the Chatterbox, The Pencil Grinder and the Homework Gnome. All teachers should definately read this book their class!

Our classroom is at the end of the hall and Miss Howard just read us Math Rashes which is a sequel to Classroom At the End of the Hall by Douglas Evans. We thought this book was even better than the first. Our class has a chatterbox and a pencil loser and a boy who complains a lot, and it was very funny reading about the "cures". These books are like the Mrs. Piggle Wiggle books but more up-to-date. So if you want to read a funny book that's about your classroom order math Rashes, and Other Classroom Tales right now!

I would like to recommend this book to any student in grades 3, 4, 5. I thought it was funny, original, and clever. Each chapter is about a student in the classroom at the end of the hall and each student has some problem that gets solved in the story. One girl hates spelling and a boy never follows directions. Their problems get solved in the funniest ways. It's also easy to read, but not too easy. I used to hate reading, but this book got me interested in reading some other funny books.

As a fan of wacky humor a la Carl Hiaasen, I found this book quite good. Given the reality of some of the insidious license agreements out there, however, some of Townsend's ideas are eerily close to the mark! No doubt, this comes from his expertise as an Intellectual Property lawyer. If he can either grab enough material from that field to write others or extend his style to other areas, we may have another Hiaasen on our hands. The courtroom interrogation of a German Shepard near the end had me in stitches.

Or off the cuff. This is one of the funniest books I have read. I was laughing out loud. One of life's pleasures is to sit down with a good book. Secrets of the Holly Grill certainly qualifies. Obviously a spoof on the high tech world that we live in. The techies have invaded our lives! The barbeque? Who would have ever thought they would get to us there.
The books starts with a bang and the sparks fly with every following page. Mr. Townsend thank you for the laughs.

JUST when you assure yourself you're being paranoid...that technology REALLY doesn't control you...you open SECRETS OF THE WHOLLY GRILL. You laugh a little, adore the author's clever use of language and puns, and know that you might have been on the right track after all.

Clever, yes. Absurd, maybe. A little too close to the truth? DEFINITELY! Lawrence Townsend has written a truly original novel, as they say, "ripped from today's headlines."

If computers, software, food and cigarettes form the core pleasures and meaning of YOUR life, read on, my friends. You will enjoy the ride!

I received this book as a gift, and what a gift it was!

This is the story of a man and his book.

The man is Michael Servetus. He was a brilliant young Spaniard born into a world of religious upheaval and burgeoning science. Though he would become a well-respected physician who was the first (even before Harvey) to discover pulmonary circulation, he ran into trouble when he passionately espoused anti-Trinitarian beliefs--beliefs deemed heresy not only by the Roman Catholic Church but by important Protestant strongholds as well.

The book is Christianismi Restituto. It was in this book that Servetus argued his unitarian stand and put forth his idea of pulmonary circulation. What was believed to be the last known copy of this book was chained to Servetus' leg as he was burned at the stake in Geneva in 1553. Of course, the book did survive; otherwise, there would be no story to tell and Servetus would be lost to history.

In fact, as we learn through the pages of this wonderful book by the Goldstones, three copies of the book survived and are now extremely valuable. As a book collector, the story of the provenance of the three surviving copies is fascinating in itself. But there is much more of interest here than the story of a book.

Much along the lines of the trend started by Dava Sobel in Longitude, the Goldstones tell the story of a much forgotten but most important moment in history. Amid the background of the development of printing and the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation, we learn of a man who made a huge scientific discovery that was basically forgotten for most of a century and re-discovered by the man who is usually credited with the discovery (Harvey). But, more importantly, we learn of a man who is swept up in the spirit of Protestantism and yet is destroyed by the very forces he helped to create.

In fact, the story of the conflict between Servetus and Calvin is the most fascinating part of this book. In a world where the word "Inquisition" is a staple of criticism against the Roman Catholic church, it is important to be reminded that Protestant churches were often quick to burn those they considered heretics as well. Which makes it even more ironic that one of the three original surviving copies of this heretical book is Calvin's personal copy.

All in all, this is a fascinating book. It is a wonderful history not only of a person but also of an era of upheaval and intellectual ferment. Anyone interested in book collecting, theology or Renaissance history will enjoy this book.

I first learned of "Out of the Flames" from a review written by The Rev. Rosemary Bray McNatt in the November/December 2002 isssue of "UUWorld," the magazine of the Unitarian Universalist Association.

McNatt's description of the personal conflict between Michael Servetus and the famous John Calvin and the martyrdom of a heretic at the hands of a Protestant founder intrigued me. As both a member of a UU congregation and a humanities teacher in the public schools, I wanted to learn more about this part of our religious struggle.

The book grabbed my attention right from the prologue, and, except for some detailed and belabored connections near the end, held me. Anyway, I was more interested in first two thirds of the work, the story of Servetus and his conflict with Calvin. The last section of the book follows the history of the surviving books by Servetus after his execution

The life of Servetus and his adventures is portrayed in an exciting fashion, fleshing out the characters, both obscure and famous. The trials and tribulations of this heretic who dared to question the Biblical foundation for the trinity, were captivating. The authors seemed to have a keen sense as to exactly how far they could take me down a path before bringing me back to the main story line, clarifying the importance of what at first may have seemed like an interesting but unimportant detour. With a summarizing statement or a simple declaration, the intrigue was palpable.

I was both saddened and appalled by the intolerance displayed by so many of our religious ancestors. The horrible fate of Servetus seems brought on more by personal enmity than by the disagreement over religious doctrine. But the antitriniatrian position held by Servetus was certainly not popular then and is still widely misunderstood today.

I would strongly recommend this book to all, trinitarians, antitrinitarians and those who are interested in our religious history and are not too apprehensive to encounter some uncomfortable and maybe some unsettling conclusions. To me, this story seems like a very important aspect of Protestant history that was omitted from my Sunday school lessons. I believe this work would make an excellent addition to almost any school or church library. (Our students can use all the support you can give.)

What a fascinating book. It is superbly written and almost impossible to put down. Nonfiction history books that read like bestselling thrillers are hard to find indeed. But that is definitely the case here.

Throughout the ages, how many individuals have markedly changed the world we live in, yet are not found in most history books? The name Michael Servetus is one that should be known by any serious student of Western Civilization, yet sadly his story has been missed by so many historians.

Kudos to the authors for a job well done.

This guide provides a good overview of the special education and IEP process, as well as some sample forms and letters. It also usefully collects the relevant federal statutes and regulations. But I found the descriptions of the process to be quite different from what happens here in D.C., so that ultimately its utility was somewhat limited. There is, perhaps, no solution to this -- the book can't be written for every school district in the country. So while the book is useful, in many areas you will be well served to hire a special ed consultant and/or attorney.

I am just beginning to navigate the special education maze and have found this book to be a valuable resource in plotting my course. It not only informs you of your rights, in non-techical terms, but it also provides insights, organization and planning tips as well as, a multitude of writing templates. It has allowed me to feel as though I am much more in control of the situation, versus feeling as though the process is "being done to me". I hope it helps you.

I found this book to be the MOST informative book on the market for writing an IEP. It gives examples, details and actual pull out pages of the forms necessary for writing a complete and accurate IEP. I reviewed MANY books and none were as informative as this book. I am going to my sons IEP with a complete and thorough knowledge and understanding of the process. I highly recommend this book to any parent who has or is having a child in Special Education or mainstreaming into regular classes.