I have found Judy Lawrence's The Budget Kit so helpful that I bought copies for two of my friends who were struggling with ways to keep track of their money. It is all about making choices and the need for the information to make those choices. This book is the key to keeping that critical information up-to-date and available. Not knowing where you money is coming from or going is like driving with your eyes closed. Lawrence makes the process so positive and simple , it becomes enjoyable and empowering.

I highly recommend this book to anyone. Buy it as a wedding present, as a graduation gift, as an anniversary gift for you and your spouse.

Love this book. Esp like that the pages are perforated so you can tear them out and put them in a notebook. Fantastic book -- well worth the price!

IF YOU ARE A SCATTERBRAIN, THIS IS THE SETUP YOU NEED
IT HELPS NAIL DOWN EVERY PENNY AND YOU WILL BE SHOCKED WHEN YOU SEE WHERE SOME OF YOUR MONEY HAS GONE! THIS WILL HELP YOU RE CREATE YOUR FINANCIAL SELF!

Much like the film this book by Elizabeth Von Arnim inspired, there is something peaceful here on these pages. This is a gentle novel about the gradual internal changes brought about by the beauty of our surroundings. It is a book that reads itself as much as it is read, the author writing with the flow of the characters thoughts and feelings as their hearts are changed by the suprise of beauty.

An ad to rent a castle in San Salvatore on the Italian Riviera will prompt two British women, Rose and Lottie, with only a passing acquaintance, to inexplically leave their husbands behind for a summer that will change their lives and their marriages forever.

Joining Rose and Lottie for this holiday is Mrs. Fisher, an older woman living in the past, and Lady Caroline Dester, a grey-eyed society beauty tired of being gawked at like a majestic statue, not allowed to be human. Diverse in nature and temperment, not to mention background, they interact uneasily together until the flowers and the sea bring about a change in their souls.

Surrounded by fig and olive trees, plum blossoms and Tamarisk daphnes, and the scents of fortune's yellow rose and blooming acacia, the women slowly find their roles at this castle by the sea, and in doing so find themselves as well. New insights will prompt Rose and Lottie to send for their husbands. Lady Caroline, or 'Scrap' as she is known, will find love in spite of her wish to be alone and her great beauty. Mrs. Fisher will form a friendship with Lottie and her husband, and discover a renewed zest for creativity in this heaven by the sea.

This is a novel about life and love, told gently through the emotions of these women, as the the suprise of beauty and the warmth of being suddenly admired and seen as beautiful, when they had not been before, changes their simple lives, which were not so simple at all. You will definitely enjoy this novel if you enjoyed the film. It is about love restored, and love discovered, along the wistaria covered steps leading down to the sea.

"Enchanted April" is one of my favorite books. It is such a warm, witty, wonderful story, full of hope and romance. I hear it is going to be a Broadway show this April! (fittingly) I cannot wait... I know I'm going to be the first one on line for tickets, that's for sure. All you other "Enchanted April" lovers out there, I urge you to come see this show! I'm sure this will be one of the finest shows on Broadway in a long time!

Yay "Enchanted April!"

This is a delightful story...one of my favorite books! Gives you a little faith that even seemingly irreconcileable situations can be restored or transformed, that drastically different people can find common ground and become friends, and that people can change their lives for the better! A sunny read for a dark winter day!

I have read a couple of other books by Dr Crabb "The Pressure's Off" and "Shattered Dreams" I had never heard of "Inside Out" before and was intrigued by the back cover. So I bought it.

Insight out has proved to be life-changing for me. I became aware of areas of sin in my heart that I never even knew existed before. Reading this book was both worthwhile and painful. Dr Crabb tells it like it is, but does so in a humble and loving way. This book will give a lot to think about and ponder and points the way to a deeper walk with Christ. This is a book I intend to read again and again.

I think this book should be read by all Christians, including new Christians. But I also definitely think that older Christians will benefit greatly as well.

I also like the way that Dr Crabb discusses the importance of genuine repentance and what true repentance looks like. This book offers real solutions to a real problem.

Turned my world upside-down. Brought me face-to-face with my hidden motives and forced me to confront the totality of my sin. I've never been the same (thank God!).

This is an amazing and life changing book but you have to be ready to confront yourself. The book challenges you to be honest with yourself on a gut deep level. Several times while reading it I had to stop and take time to cry. It was both very painful and very healing. If you are not ready to take an honest look at yourself than you probably won't get it. If you are it is definately worth it.

A truly wonderful book, Carol Queen et al have given the gift of insights into things that I have long felt and tried to convey to friends in much less eloquent language. These are real stories from real people who prove that human sexuality is never an either/or affair. It shows that narrow-mindedness and discrimination occur within nearly every group -- including within the queer community and its sub-communities. When will we accept that we are all sexual -- period -- and that we needn't categorize, condemn or exclude based on how others choose to express that sexuality? To do otherwise is to live a lie and to force others to do the same. Read this book and share it with others!

I find this book to be a classic in its category. In fact, when I run across someone in the LBGT community who wants to know what I mean when I say "queer," I promptly refer them to this little book, which is truly a queer studies page-turner.

And, in fact, I can't seem to put the book down, myself. Since I first read Pomosexuality, I've found myself returning to it repeatedly to re-read essays that become profound in new ways based on my own new life experiences. Each time, I am again impressed by the editors' choices.

The bottom line -- whether you are new to queer studies or a seasoned student of queers, you'll enjoy this book.

A small volume of essays from mostly radical sex activists who put queer theory into practice, all the way to actual erotic experiences and the identies created by them.

This work deals with the postmodern as the construction of "mulitple subjectivities" and features contributions from transsexual authors. Cutting edge stuff, more accessible than other theorists. Also written from a different perspective, one that helps close the gap between the academy and the street.

A lived testimony to the inadequacy and decontstruction of "heterosexual" and "homosexual" as discursive labels.

A disturbing work that showcases the skills and emotional depth of this up and coming (or is he already here?) author.

Looking for a quick paced mystery to get your mind running as you try to figure out whodunit? Well, Dog 'Em: A Mick Hart Mystery, fits the bill and goes the extra distance to take you into the world of Mick Hart, private investigator! It also throws in a measure of drama and romance to give it an extra twist and provide wider audience appeal.

Mick Hart can't win for losing. When he goes against the rules and bends the rules for a single mom to help her find the father of her child, he loses his job. We then take on a journey through one of Mick's cases in which he's hired to find Amanda Monroe, reported missing by her grandmother, and using his first tactic of checking the city morgues, he comes up empty handed...well, almost empty handed. Instead of finding her, he finds two corpses with similar injuries and then finds Amanda in the hospital in a coma with the same injuries. The plot thickens when he finds out that all the women know each other and are members of the Sisters of Empowering and Learning Book Club.

Their last read was How to Train the Dog in Your Black Men so perhaps that has someone feeling a bit threatened, challenged, and ridiculed by women across the country. Many women are picking it up and trying to put its principles to practice at the risk of becoming the next victim. And the serial killer is on a rampage trying to redeem himself. He's [upset] and tired of being the one dogged.

Christopher has brilliantly penned a novel that is poignant and revealing, just as it is suspenseful and intriguing. I read this book in under two hours and my only disappointment was that it was over. I look forward to the next installment in the Mick Hart series and would highly recommend this book.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal
The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

A very satisfying read, love, mystery, relationnship issues; all in a fast paced slice of life book, I look forward to more Mick Hart mysteries

Mr. Schulenberg's "Dead at the Desk" is a quick and entertaining read. For a murder mystery, there are the obvious suspects that are targeted but the plot's twists and turns which lead to the true murderer and the reasoning behind the murder was fantastic. I was floored! Since I am from Kansas, Mr. Schulenberg's familiarity with Kansas and Missouri facts added an extra bonus to my reading enjoyment. I found myself thinking of these characters and this school during the times when I wasn't reading the book. I highly recommend "Dead at the Desk".

I don't like murder mysteries, so when a friend recommended Schulenberg's debut novel, Dead at the Desk, I was somewhat reluctant to buy it. I am really glad I did, though. Anyone over 50 and anyone from a small town will instantly relate to the characters and the situations. Anyone who attended a small college will feel right at home. Schulenberg's style is witty and fast-paced. His character and scene development is precise. As I approached the end of the book, I found myself slowing down, because although I did want to know how the mystery would be solved I didn't want the book to end. I'll buy anything else this author writes. I want to see how his characters will evolve in his next book.

This book is one of the most "I can't put it down" books I've read. There are several story lines and it flows extremely well. Just when I thought I had figured out the mystery, there'd be a turn in events. Those who grew up in small town America will definitely appreciate the hometown feel. I look forward to passing my book along to others that look foward to reading it as much as I did!

A DEADLY DOZEN (TALES OF MURDER FROM LOS ANGELES ) is the third anthology following the 1997 DESSERTICIDE (DESSERTS TO DIE FOR ) and 1998 MURDER BY THIRTEEN.

The Los Angles chapter of Sisters in Crime has released a book of twelve short stories, based on murder and mayhem. I usually do not like to read short stories, but these stories were fully contained with well-crafted plots and well defined characters. My favorites were Wifely Duties, because every woman can identify with Lucy and her discontent with her marriage, but I would like to think that we would not go to the lengths that she did, and with such a startling conclusion. Cats and Jammer was another favorite, it's about a teen-age detective that finds a body and the suspects are many.

Stories included are: Sentience Imposed by Kris Neri Wifely Duties by Cory Newman Push Comes To Shove by Nathan Walpow Fatal Tears by Ekaterine Nikas Miss Parker and the Cutter Sanborn Tablets by Gay Tolti Kinman Driven To Kill by Jamie Wallace Touch Of A Vanish'd Hand by Phil Mann Ai Witness by Kate Tornton Over My Shoulder by Lisa Seidman The Cats And Jammer, by Gayle McGary Copy Cat by Joan Myers Midnight by Dorothy Rellas

This book is well worth the read.

A Deadly Dozen is a compilation of short stories, naturally involving murders, written by the Sisters in Crime in Los Angeles, California. Featuring a deadly dozen stories from such authors as: Kris Neri, Cynthia Lawrence, Cory Newman, Lisa Seidman, and others, these stories provide a platform for these writers to dip their pens into stories with a twist. This group, which formed in 1986, led by Sara Paretsky, Sisters in Crime is now a respected national organization. The Los Angeles Chapter was formed by Phyllis Miller in 1989. In recent years, male writers have been welcomed into the organization. A Deadly Dozen is the second anthology published by this group.

The problem...and the thrill...of short stories is that the characters have to introduce themselves to the reader early and completely. The reader has to immediately descend into the world that the author has created, and be ready for a real jolt at the end. Kris Neri's chilling "Sentence Imposed" does just that:

"Call it fate, call it chance--either way, it'll change your life. Sometimes you just find yourself staring into a crowd, your gaze floating aimlessly over a sea of faces you won't remember the instant you look away--until one person's eyes seem to grab hold of yours and you make a connection. You can't explain it, but somehow your life and that stranger's become bound together. When I made that link, it was with a little girl."

Whatever the subject, these writers know how to pull no punches. "Wifely Duties" is a Hitchcockian tale of a wife who plots to kill her husband, and ends up as a victim herself. "Push Comes to Shove" is a wrestler's nightmare. "Fatal Tears" is a classic sibling rivalry piece. A Deadly Dozen exposure is like taking in several episodes of "Night Gallery," with cataloging students catching a murderer in "Miss Parker and the Cutter-Sanborn Tables."

Shelley Glodowski, Reviewer

I found this collection of short stories to be amazingly gripping and enjoyable. Each of the stories were well written and kept my attention from start to finish. I've not been a fan of locked room mysteries, however, I must admit that Phil Mann's "Touch Of A Vanish'd Hand" not only kept my attention but spurred me to purchase more books in this specific genre. Joan Myers' "Copycat" was another personal favorite. I tip my hat to each of these authors as well as the three editors. Thank you for such a wonderful piece of modern literature.

I'm on a mission to collect all of the Warton & Morton books. When I was growing up, I had all of them, first on tape, and later in print. I wore out the whole series listening to and reading them so much. They're very entertaining and wholesome stories that are captivating to young minds. I can't wait to read them to my daughter when she gets a little older.

This is such a sweet, gentle, loving little book.

It's about two brother toads, Morton and Warton, one very stodgy, and the other more of an adventurer. Warton, the braver brother, decides to go out into the snow (toads are supposed to hibernate in winter) to visit his aunt. Almost instantly he is plucked up by an owl who wants to eat him, but decides to save him for a week, to have as a special treat on his birthday. It turns out the owl is lonely and friendless and little by little he is won over by Warton's conversation and small acts of kindness.

On television and in movies, and even in many books, children are constantly exposed to the idea that violence is the solution to almost every problem. I love the fact that in this work, intelligence, kindness, and compassion solve Warton's dilemma.

If you have a child who is just developing enough of an attention span to sit through a chapter book, it's hard to beat this little gem. It's very short, for one thing -- under seventy pages -- which makes it great for restless five or six year olds. And it has just enough danger in it to have small children on the edge of their seats without being too scary. It's cute and funny, and it's message is a great blessing.

It also has lots of sequels, which is a big plus when you're trying to get kids interested in reading more. Unfortunately most of the other Warton and Morton books are out of print, but any reasonable library should have them.

This book and all the others by Erickson about Warton and his brother Morton were favourites at our house when my children were young. I read them out loud many times. Good conversation, delightful story with a hint of danger, and a happy ending.

Read all the Warton and Morton books - they're great!

I read several books to my 5th grade reading group before we move into the lesson of the day. They loved this book. They saw themselves in many of the characters in the book. One chapter about a little boy who had trouble reading,sparked hope iin one of my students who has trouble in the same area. I came to Amazon.com hoping that this author wrote some other books - and he did. I can't wait to read the next one. Keep them coming!

This books are so amazing! Its about those kids in the classroom at the end of the hall having trouble doing things and then there's magical werid things that can help them. That are nine (9) different stories inside. My favorite story in this book is 'Above the classroom' last chapter of this book, its about this teacher who people think his die already, but........IT LIVED ABOVE THE CLASSROOM! Howard and Frances find out.........and.......

Find out yourself!

I rate this book 5 stars because It was a very entertaining book. It was really funny but some parts were disgusting. I had a great time reading it and every time it was time up, I wouldn't want to put the book down. Every time my friends would look at me while I was reading you saw me always smiling, laughing, eyes filled with interest, etc. This book i would have to say is one of my favorite books if not the favorite. It was a fantastic book and I encourage any readers interested to read it to. I promise you will enjoy it like i did!

I have six years experience in the U.S. Army, in light infantry, special forces and as a linguist (translating Haitian Creole, amongst other languages). I have worked with and flown in most of the helicopters mentioned in Falcon Brigade. Col. (ret) Casper did an excellent job discussing attack helicopter fire support to MOUT and staff operations for a joint/multinational task force. I especially liked his discussion of using hand-drawn sketches of the cityscape for controlling close air support and the use of snipers in helicopters for counter battery fire against mortars and his account of flag- and cabinet-level politics.

However, although quite a bit could have changed between 1992, when the events in Falcon Brigade occurred, and 1995, when I joined, it seemed obvious that Col. Casper was "not read in" (one of Col. Casper's favorite turns of phrase in this book) to special operations: his familiarity extended only as far as necessary for him to provide helicopter support. For example, his few references to SOF in Haiti usually evolve around his use of his helicopters for their re-supply. The further you get from the helicopter, the more sketchy his knowledge becomes: on pg 35 he claims soldiers are "attached" to the rope when fast roping. As someone who has fast roped, I can tell you that there was nothing attaching me to the rope except my steely grip. (although fast roping is done from a helicopter, these were SOAR helicopters and not under Col. Casper's control)

I enjoyed Col. Casper's discussion of clan geopolitics in Somalia. On the U.S. side, he does show insight (but does not elaborate) into U.S. foreign policy as far as it relates to the role of the U.S. military at the flag officer and cabinet level. The description of garrison life was also interesting. It seemed that Col. Casper had a few axes to grind with some of the generals who (mis)managed the campaign in Somalia. Unlike SOF and ground combat, Col. Casper seemed well acquainted with problems at the flag level. I just wish that he hadn't pulled his punches the way I have a feeling that he did.

I was put off, though, by Col. Casper's annoying use of the word 'crony.' According to Col. Casper, the "Crony" clan must be the largest and most prestigious clan in Somalia: every important Somali in the book is surrounded by Cronies. Why is it that Americans have assistants, aides, XO's, etc., but Somalis only have cronies? And, why is it wrong for Somalis to get through battle chewing khat, but not wrong for Rangers to get through battle chewing Skoal? Why the double standard?

Unfortunately, Col. Casper's description of Haiti and the Haitian people was rather ignorant. The Crony clan seems to be equally widespread and well placed in Haiti: every Haitian leader has the perequisite entourage of cronies. I'd really like to get 'read in' to this Crony clan! Then, on pg 201 he claims Port-au-Prince is a city of 1 million, but on pg 208 the population suddenly grows to 2 million. Either Port-au-Prince experienced some pretty intense activity nine months previously, or there is a mistake here.

His description of Voodoo on page 209 shows the typical American condescension for this religion. Why is Catholicism capitalized but "voodoo" is in lower case? Why is Catholicism acknowledged as a religion but Voodoo is just "magic"? Why do Catholics pray and Voodoo adherents 'cast spells'? Contrary to his claim that Voodoo lacks theology or clergy, Voodoo has a very well developed pantheon (the Loas) and clergy (the Hougans). Then, on page 221, Col. Casper claims that clairin, an alcoholic beverage, is the national drink and the 'sole pleasure' of the Haitian peasant's life. This is a rather skewed and unwarranted representation of the Haitian peasant. Why the double standard? I believe American per capita consumption of beer is far greated that Haitian per capita consumption of clairin, but I would certainly object to America being characterized as a nation of beer-swillers. If we are to believe Col. Casper, then it may have been a hiccup in the clairin supply that led to the sudden increase in population noted above.

On a more serious note, I believe that, regardless of military might, any U.S. peace keeping operation is doomed to failure unless Americans acquire a knowledge of the local people beyond the bare minimum necessary for combat operations. If we knew the people better we probably wouldn't have to fight them. As Col. Casper noted, U.A.E. had good rapport with locals and were able to accomplish the same tasks that severely tasked American military ability peacefully. Col. Casper's stereotypes of Somalis and Haitians as of khat-chewing, clairin-drinking, spell-casting, cronies will not help to establish that rapport.

Seeing as this book is entitled 'Falcon Brigade: Combat and Command in Somalia and Haiti,' I expected a balanced account of the U.S. involvement in Haiti (and Somalia) tempered by Col. Casper's personal experiences. Unfortunately, the account was largely about helicopters and I didn't find a lot of detail on Somalia or Haiti beyond what was visible from the door of Col. Casper's hooch or through NVGs from Col. Casper's cockpit at night. If you can't get enough 'Black Hawk Down' and are already 'read in' to the special forces portion, this may be the book for you. Stylistically, this is an enjoyable page turner with little complexity to slow you down. However, if you want true grit on the situation in Haiti or Somalia, this book may be somewhat of a pricey disappointment.

When we were at Ft Ord with the 7th Infantry Division and
D Company, 7th Combat Aviation Battalion, from 1981 through 1984.

Colonel Casper was a consumate leader in all regards, and if I had a chance to serve with him again, I would not hesitate one moment.

This is an outstanding book to have in one's library if you have an interest on American military involvements. COL Casper book is well written and you get to see the picture of what happened not only from a soldiers perspective but from a BRIGADE COMMANDERS view. A must for any soldier or military historian.