This book was extremely helpful to me as an already practicing professional artist. It had helpful suggestions for handling new details that I hadn't approached in a long time. For the beginner to the professional,this book has something for everyone. If you are interested in learning new techniques for solving some of the problems you may encounter, this is the book for you!!

This is an excellent book for both the two dimensional artist or the three dimensional sculptor. It has a wonderful assortment of various ethnic faces for reference and gorgeous children of various ages and backgrounds. The proportional head charts are the best that I have seen. "Keys to Painting Faces & Figures" is beautifully presented and would be an asset to any artist's library.

I absolutely could NOT put this book down. There is a laugh on every page. The plot has so many wonderful twists and turns that there is also a surprise on every page. I had no idea how it would end. What a wonderful, original, funny, suspenseful, unique take on the old fairy tale. Smart kids will love this, but so will adults who appreciate rich satire.

I picked up LITTLE RED one morning and thought I'd read a chapter or two, just to see what the wolf's angle on the story was. The next thing I knew I was reading and howling with laughter. My wife opened the bedroom door to check and see if I was okay. Needless to say, for the next hour I was enthralled with Peter Lawrence's funny tale about what REALLY happened to Wolfie, Little Red, and Grandma (Ma Barker). The child in all of us will embrace LITTLE RED.

Until I stumbled upon the Wolf's book, I had never been able to get a mint condition 1888 Springfield Rifle to shoot anywhere accurately! For anyone shooting the Trap Door Springfield, this book is an absolute must. For anyone interested in how the Frankford Arsenal used to make the .45-70 ammo and the improvements thereof, the book is essential. I have two copies of the book, the original edition and the later revised edition which is currently available.The book has helped me win more than a few bets from people who doubted the Trap Door's ability to shoot accurately. Although Jack passed away several years ago the book is a fitting memorial to his memory and his efforts to resurrect the long lost knowledge of making the ammo for the Trap Door that allows it to shoot with great accuracy.

Tom Pearson

Having lived with this book for the past year or more, I cannot help but highly recommend it. It helped me move from the disappointing performance of standard black-powder loadings for the "Trapdoor" into the realm of fine accuracy. Not intended as a continuous thread, it is more like a series of loosely joined articles. There is much repetition from chapter to chapter but the somewhat disjointed format well serves its purpose...teaching the shooter to assemble Black Powder .45-70 Gov't rounds which duplicate the 1880's originals. This allows the shooter to use the original sight settings...no mean feat! No other book or article deals with loading for historical accuracy. I used Wolf's techniques to bring my 104 yr. old trooper back to life. Without this book, I would have traded the rifle off long ago. With it, I'm proud to own a working piece of history; proud to know how to handle and care for it as originally intended; proud to hear the deep-throated bark & feel the "mule-kick" thump as my great-grandfather likely did

The striking cover art by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley for Volume 7 of the Lone Wolf and Cub manga epic is one of his best, but I have to think it would have been more appropriate for Daigoro to be on the cover because in "Cloud Dragon, Wind Tiger," two of the five stories focus on the Cub rather than Lone Wolf. Kazuo Koike continues to provide a few additional details about the quest Ogamii Itto has taken along the assassin's road, but the emphasis has become a bit more about character than violence at this point in the tale. Furthermore, those characters being studied are now, more often than not, others besides the title characters. "Cloud Dragon, Wind Tiger" offers up five more episodes:

(34) "Dragnet" has the Yagyu clan trying to find a way to kill Ogamii Itto without seeming to break their promise not to do so as long as the ronin stays out of the Edo Funai. Their plan is to have the police round up the Lone Wolf as a common criminal. But, of course, Ogamii rises to the challenge, seeing it as the perfect die to die.

(35) "Night Stalker" is the first of the volume's two Daigoro stories, in which the youngster becomes enthralled by a lumber center while waiting for his father to return. In his explorations Daigoro stumbles up the handiwork of another assassin. This story relies primarily on Goseki Kojima's artwork as the dialogue, as you would expect, is rather minimal.

(36) "Cloud Dragon, Wind Tiger" provides us another glimpse into the past life of Lone Wolf as the assassin encounters a man he had met in his former life. The title story is about a duel that has been a long time coming and serves as a fitting reminder that Lone Wolf is not the only former samurai of honor. Certainly a worthy story for providing the title of this volume.

(37) "Inn of the Last Chrysanthemum" is another classic story in which Lone Wolf and Cub are essentially minor characters. This is really the story of Oi-Chan, one of the "Put-Out Girls" at the Inn. She persuades father and son to spend the night at the Inn, although she has been promised to another that night. Eventually we learn the story of her family's disgrace that has forced her to this position (which involves several scenes of sexual violence), and how Oi-Chan now has an opportunity to exact her revenge. (The cover art is for this story.)

(38) "Penal Code Article Seventy-Nine" basically says that age is no excuse for breaking the law. This Daigoro story has the three year old once again waiting for his father to return and going off to investigate something of interest: this time a festival. Also there is "Quick Change" O-Cho, the famous pickpocket and her bag man. Pursued by the police, she gives a wallet to Daigoro and "If you keep this for me, I'll give you a Mon, okay? Promise...?" Of course, neither the thief nor the police can understand the importance of those words to a son who has observed that once hired, you did what your client orders to the last. We will also learn that Daigoro knows another word besides "Papa." Another extremely moving story from Koike and Kojima.

The three "guest stars" of the last three stories are all extremely well drawn characters and you become so captivated reading about their lives that you forget they are but incidental characters, never to be seen again after the tale is done. You know, I am going to stop counting how many times I think that I have just finished reading the best volume in this series. I am just going to continue reading one episode a night and savoring them. Just do not explain why I have waited this long to start enjoying one of the classic "comic book" stories of the 20th century.

Following in the footsteps of the earlier editions, Ogami Itto continues in his slow but unfaltering quest to reveal the crimes of the Yagyu. And the Yagyu are aware... In this issue Itto and his son Diagoro face a Yagyu dragnet, a lone samaurai from an execution past, a young woman willing to give her life to avenge her family, and Diagoro witnesses the murder of a princess. Amid the varying side plots the intensity continues to build - how should a lone man and a young child with no material resources continue against the odds of a clan, luck and life pitted against them ? This is again, a fabulous book....

The fact that I know there are 28 volumes in the Lone Wolf & Cub epic certainly enters into how I read the stories collected in Volume 25, "Perhaps in Death." If I was reading Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima's epic manga as a regular comic book then the way the final confrontation between Ogami Itto and Retsudo Yagyu is being drawn out may very well have driven me crazy. But given the perspective of the long view there can be a greater appreciation for how these final impediments only add to the grandeur of the conflict. Although poisoning the blades of the two samurai failed to kill either one of the foes, Abe-No-Kaii has revealed the Yagyu letter to the Shogun and Retsudo is now under house arrest:

(122) "Perhaps in Death" focuses on Okan as she obeys Retsudo Yagyu's orders and uses the Wolf Fire to call forth the grass to Edo to aid their master. Meanwhile, Abe-No-Kaii watches over Retsudo while trying to come up with a new poison plot and Ogami Itto learns that his foe may be delayed in returning to the place where their two swords are standing in the ground.

(123) "Tales of the Grass: Oyamada Shume" is the first of a trilogy of stories on how the grass, members of the Yagyu clan hidding in secret by living as ordinary folk throughout Japan, respond to the call, of the Wolf Fire. Not only must they pass along the signal, they are also required to fake their deaths.

(124) "Tales of the Grass: Nakodera Busho" finds the call of the Wolf Fire coming next to a priest while ringing his temple bell.

(125) "Tales of the Grass: A Day Like Any Other" is the final story of this trio about the grass being called to Edo, and one of the most upsetting tales in the Lone Wolf & Cub saga. I have been reading one episode an evening before going to sleep, and it was difficult to sleep after this one.

(126) "Breakfast, Lunch, Snack, and Brunch" finds Abe-No-Kaii deciding to use Retsudo Yagyu's pride against him since the old man refuses to eat or drink anything set before him by the servants of the master poisoner. But Kaii's spies also report that Retsudo is just sitting there, not even lying down to sleep. The story continues the developing effort to make Retsudo a nobler figure, both in contrast to Kaii and even in comparison to Ogami Itto.

(127) "By His Own Hand" finally returns us to Ogami Itto and Daigoro, who are being watched by the Shogun's bugyo. In a shack by the shore the young boy practices repeatedly with a long stick, suddenly rushing at his father and whacking him. Those watching have figured out the meaning of the two swords stuck in the ground and the hundred mounds each covered with a stone, but they cannot understand the lesson that is being taught by father to son.

I sure hope the final volume of Lone Wolf & Cub is published soon (it has already been delayed almost a month) so that I do not have a gap in my reading experience, but certainly I could appreciate the lesson if that turns out to be the case. I have not bothered to find out the original schedule these comics were published, but assuming a montly schedule this volume would mark ten years worth of stories and I would be hard pressed to name another comic book that maintained this high of a standard for so long a period of time. When you step back and look at the epic in its totality you can appreciate the way Koike and Kojima are putting the pieces into place, slowly but surely.

Yagyu Retsudo, the mortal enemy of Lone Wolf and Cub is finally brought up on charges of treason against the Shogun for the infamous Yagyu letters. Awaiting trial under the care of the poisoner Abe who plots to kill him still, Retsudo summons the 'Grass' in a final attempt to change his fate - ninja infiltrators hidden for generations among the Samurai families all over Japan. Duty, the main tenet of Bushido is evident in the way the ninja obediently destroy all traces of their former lives (and in some cases, their offspring as well) as farmers, soldiers, and priests, to answer Retsudo's call to arms. Elsewhere, Ogami Itto patiently awaits his promised duel with Retsudo while teaching son Diagoro what it means to wield the sword of the Samurai.

Having followed the saga of Ogami Itto and his son Diagoro since book #1, I must say the stories keep getting better and better. While there is less of the violent physical encounters that characterized Itto's earlier adventures, the tales depicted in the book are no less gripping. I particularly liked the focus on the other major character of the series, Itto's nemesis Yagyu Retsudo. One could almost admire the man for his tenacity, honour, and Bushido spirit, despite his ruthlessness.

Sometimes it is hard to remember that Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima are maddening slow in parceling out clues about the secret message hidden in the Yagyu letter because our attention is always riveted on the particular tale being told in the manga epic of Lone Wolf & Cub. Volume 14 of the saga, "Day of the Demons," offers up the next four episodes of Ogami Itto's path along the Assassin's road:

(69) "One Rainy Day" is another poignant tale that takes place while Daigoro is waiting for his father to return from an assassination. A samurai renders the judgment of the people of twenty-six villages and slays the Daikansho, a corrupt local official. By taking responsibility for the killing, Harada Zenbe spares the peasants from being punished. After the official investigation, he will be allowed to commit seppuku. While waiting under house arrest, he encounters Daigoro--but only on days when the sun shines.

(70) "O-Shichiri Man" refers to the special runners who delivered letters written by the lord of Han, each of whom is assigned a shichiri (17 miles) over which to run. They are granted the samurai right to kill (up to three people) to make sure the mail is delivered. However, this particular O-Shichiri has to contend with the hatred of his wife because of something he has done. Eventually Ogami Itto becomes involved in the matter--after a really neat demonstration of his skill with a sword--until the tale reaches the twist at the end that we have come to expect in such tales.

(71) "The Kyushu Road" is over 100-pages long and finds Ogami Itto beset by masked assassins, including the spear instructor for Kuroda Han. The question becomes why the Kuroda are aiding the Yagyu, and Ogami Itto is invited to ask that question of Lord Kurdo himself. In doing so, we learn a bit more about the Yagyu letter.

(72) "Day of the Demons" is a story of the persecution of Christians in Japan during this period. Daigoro finds a young girl to play with, but when she and her family are rounded up as Christians, he stands by his new friend. Given a charge by the girl's dying mother, Daigoro is asked by his father: "You want to finish what she asked of you?" We know the answer to that question and we suspect the sort of heartbreak we will find at the end of this unforgettable story."

Once again I marvel at the way Koike and Kojima weave together all sort of different stories as they prolong our enjoyment of the journey Ogami Itto and Diagoro take as they life in Meifumado, at the juncture of the six paths and the four lives. For me the violence and the sex are so secondary to the character studies being offered up in these stories. Koike and Kojima are able to give the characters who appear in single episodes a sense of depth that makes their lives (and usually their deaths) a rich part of the tapestry. I have been reading one episode a night before I go to bed and I will probably start all over again once I finish "Lone Wolf and Cub" to better appreciate the grand design of this epic comic.

Lone wolf and cub is a fantastic set of stories. Here we have another collection of great stores from the classic Japanese series.

It's usually hard to comment on these stories uniquely. They all reflect and explain Japanese culture and for that reason alone are a fine addition to any person collection or bookshelf. The storytelling is fantastic and the artwork first rate.

The second story in the segment WAS available in regular comic book form. I suspect there may have been some change in order in printing. If you like me thought the series was totally published in order, it may force you to check out some eariler issues to make sure you missed nothing.

As for the tears, they involve the last story. It deals with an encounter with a group of Japanese Christians who were hunted down, bounties offered on them and given the choice of denying Christ and Mary or death. Any faithful Catholic reading this story will be moved particularly when you consider events in Indonesia and China these days. It brings to mind the passage: "Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me bofore others , I will deny before my heavenly Father" (Mt. 10:32-33) Of course nobody familar with the culture of Japan will be shocked since faithfulness unto death to any cause is a part of the culture.

Reguardless of the reason you buy it, buy it.

Abe-No-Kaii has had the last laugh, so to speak, and Volume 27 "Battle's Eve" sets the stage for the final confrontation between Ogami Itto and Retsudo Yagyu, whose blades still stand in the ground awaiting their return on the field where they fought. But having learned nothing from the demise of the Yagyu and Ura-Yagyu, all cut down by Lone Wolf's sword, Retsudo sends forth the grass as well:

(133) "To Protect and Defend" is probably a literal translation of the Japanese title for this story, but it certainly fits. Daigoro remains on the beach to guard the swords and encounters a man who makes imado-yaki, (roof tiles). It seems the swords and standing in special clay, the sort that can be used to make tiles that can resist fire. If this is the last Daigoro story then it has an ironic element that is most appropriate. All this time by the river a quartet of police officers have been keeping an eye on Daigoro, and like the readers of these stories they have been affected by the samurai spirit of the little boy and are moved to help him in his duty. As always, this Daigoro story is a poignant episode of this epic saga.

(134) "For Whom to Die" tells of Retsudo Yagyu's efforts to convince the Shogun of his loyalty. After all, Retsudo remains under house arrest because of the Yagyu letters and he cannot resume his duel with Ogami Itto until he is freed. Fortunately, the grass have arrived in force to help their master in his hour of need.

(135) "Way of the Warrior, Way of Man" contrasts Retsudo Yagyu's final orders to the grass to kill Ogami Itto and Daigoro in obedience to the way of the warrior. Meanwhile, father and son enjoy the gift of the way of mankind, visited for a fleeting moment upon a father and son trapped in meifumado, a land beyond hope.` Again, Koike and Kojima show their ability to provide the saga with an ebb and flow, allowing the eye of the storm to pass over the characters befoe the final battle begins.

(136) "Battle's Eve" finds the cops have been recalled from their watch and they leave as the first of Yagyu grass arrive. The time has come for the two blades to be taken from the ground and for the battle to resume. But this time Ogami Itto must cross swords with the greenest shoot.

(137) "Grasses That Never Flower" reveals another reason why Ogami Itto dug all those holes on the beach as the Yagyu grass make a final full assault on father and son. Even at this point, over a decade into the saga, Koike and Kojima come up with new ways of trying to kill Lone Wolf.

I was hoping that the final volume of the Lone Wolf & Cub series by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima would have been published by the time I finished Volume 27, but that has proven not to be my karma. Publication has been delayed on Volume 28 over a month (so far) and now for the first time in 138 days I do not have a Lone Wolf & Cub story to read tonight at bed time. However, I do have the six movies based on the epic manga series and they should help me pass the time. Then again, I might have to just reread the entire series up to this point to better appreciate the final episodes left to be told. "Lone Wolf & Cub" is an epic tale, regardless of the fact that it is merely a "comic book."

The Yagyu grass planted accross the country has been recalled. The secret spies that have, some for five generations lived among the people and given the Yagyu the power to rule the country through the Shogun have been uprooted for two purposes:

To save their leader from the wrath of the Shogun and finally to destroy the Lone Wolf who has slain every other Yagyu except for Retsudo. Any tactic is fair game. What will be the result of the penultimate assault on Itto? Will the grass be cut? Will they slay Itto, or is something even more subtle in the works?

Buy this second to last issue to find out.

This is the sequel to Brother Wolf and it is an excellent book. The other review under my name listed here should have been under Brother Wolf Not A Man Called Wolf. I'd read Brother Wolf first, but both are great reads. I just reviewed the wrong book first. Pardon my mistake, but don't miss out either book. You won't be sorry!

Based on a true event, Parkinson takes you on a roller coaster ride through rough and tumble southwest Kansas in the late 1880's. Son of a murdered sherriff tries to solve the murder of his father. Parkinson is a first rate novelist and his stories always keep you from doing work that needs done. This is one of my favorites because it covers the area I grew up in. Find a copy where ever you can. You won't be sorry!

I have been using this book as a text for an undergraduate college course that I teach on Management for Non-Profits. It is a great primer offering a a beroad survey of the issues I have found to be the ones that most threaten a small non-profit organization's ability to carry out its mission and survive.

This book offers a concise lesson in organizing or re-organizing any nonprofit organization. There are many real-life examples of problems and solutions that have been developed over the years and have stood the test of time. This will eliminate many hours of soul searching for the solution to organization problems and allow you to continue the good works for which your nonprofit was founded instead of drowning in the details. This will also save many hours and dollars of consulting fees to just get your organization off to a good start or to re-vamp a failing one. Before you hire a consultant, read this book.

I borrowed this book from the MS Society library and was disappointed it was out of print when I tried to buy it. The section on Baclofen was especially helpful to me. Also the sections on bowel/bladded management.

As a recently diagnosed patient with MS, this book summarized and explained some of the feelings, both mental and physical, that I am dealing with on a daily basis. The fact that it was written with the help of MSers gives it a humorous slant that is so different from other "serious" texts on MS.