What first drew me to this collection of poems is the book's cover--a pale lavendar background with a black and white photograph of the author as a young girl. It's not surprising that this defiant and strong child grew up to be someone with much to say about both the big and the small things in life. The author writes about the many facets of her life with sensitivity and feeling, both as an observer and as an active participant. I enjoyed learning more about Appalachian culture through these poems and especially liked "Lime Green Arms and Bold Independence" and "My Mom on the Crescent Moon". I recommend this book to all readers of fine poetry.

The collected works within the pages of this book definately makes the reader realize they are not alone in their feelings. It brings comfort to all. Ms. Frisk's writings will have you exploring all of your emotions. I applaud Ms. Frisk's ability to so honestly share and put into words such true emotions.

I THINK THE POEMS IN THIS BOOK ARE VERY DOWN TO EARTH. YOU GET THE FEELING THAT THE AUTHOR DID NOT JUST WRITE THE BOOK YET PUT REAL FEELING IN TO IT. SOME OF THE POEMS IN THERE MAY VERY WELL RELATE TO YOUR LIFE AND PAST EXPERIENCES. IN SHORT YOU SHOULD NOT JUDGE THIS BOOK BY ITS COVER.

This is a peek into the life of a very productive quilter and it adds so much more depth of enjoyment knowing the person who designed the patterns and the life she led.
The patterns are so stylish for the period and readily adapt to todays fabrics as well.
Every time I page through this book I feel as though I'm getting a hug of encouragement from all of our quilting ancestors.
You will enjoy the pictures, patterns and story.

An absolute treasure! Inspiring. Delightful reading and well-drafted patterns to use. A must for your quilt library.

This is a superb book for anyone interested in American quilts of the 20th century. I was intrigued to discover that Marie Webster's designs, introduced to the public as early as 1912, were the originals from which "traditional" quilt patterns of the 1920's and 1930's were derived. These include the sunbonnets (gentle here, not saccharine), the poppy applique, and the medallion floral appliques. Also, it was an eye-opener to see Webster's dogwood and sunflower designs, extremely close variants of which were popularized years later by a manufacturer of quilt batting. The photography is excellent, and the book is printed on beautiful heavy-stock paper. The essays (written by Webster's grand-daughter) are joyful and respectful and a pleasure to read. The book includes patterns for 12 of the quilts shown. I can hardly wait to get started with my needle.

This book is so good. He walked like a cat, then a pig in the mud, then a bunny. It is an old book, but it is very good.

I gave it five stars because it is a caldecott honor book. It is about a boy that is trying to walk like lots of animals. Then he does something special. Read the book if you want to know.

This book is about a young boy on a farm who tries to emulate the walks of a number of animals. It was a 1966 Caldecott Honor book (i.e., a runner-up to the Medal winner) for best illustrations in a children's book. Pre-schoolers will love it.

I recommended this book to many friends & relatives - it was such a good story. The main character Esther is very likable. She's a strong character with human flaws & your heart goes out to her. The book shows how unfair the double standard is for women vs men in many ways. I just loved it. Every part in the book keeps your interest - makes you want to keep reading until the end. For a woman to become pregnant before she's married in those times & in such a Catholic country could lead a woman to be treated so unfairly by todays general standards in the US. Again, I highly recommend this book. I don't want to say anymore without ruining the story!

that's what I look for in a book, people that get me involved. I get paid to proofread and copyedit books. Over the last 25 years and more than four thousand books, The Magdalen ranks in my top 100.

In 1952 Dublin in the birthing room of the Sisters of the Holy Saints Magdalen Home for Wayward Girls and Fallen Women, between contractions Esther Doyle thinks back on how she ended amongst the abandoned. Esther knows that in spite of her family rejection due to her unmarried pregnancy and her lover's betrayal she is a good person. From western Ireland, since arriving in the grim place, she wonders if she will ever see the ocean with her child.

Esther has earned her room, board, and medical assistance doing laundry while waiting the birth. She knows her child will reside next door in the almost as grim orphanage, but at least the infant will have sustenance. However, she knows her unborn will receive little else as even the nuns reject the infant's innocence in spite their lofty calling. Still Esther has learned from her sister "Maggies" and dreams of a life for herself with her child outside this convent prison.

With the acceptance of out of wedlock children in recent years, THE MAGDALEN may seem obsolete, but instead, the novel is a powerful historical tale that sheds a light on 1950s morality. The story line brilliantly written in a first person dialogue enables the audience to feel all that Esther feels as she garners empathy from modern day readers to the plights of her and her soon to be born child in a world that condemns even the blameless. Marita Conlon-Mckenna provides fans of mid twentieth century historical novels with a juggernaut of a morality tale that is one of the genre's best in recent years.

Harriet Klausner

In his eponymous novel Marie Blythe, Howard Frank Mosher proves again why he is one of my favorite writers. French Canadian Marie, the book's heroine, is truly a remarkable woman. She survives the loss of her parents, life with a clan of gypsies, an unmarried pregnancy and loss of her child, and near death by exposure to change her identity. Over time, she goes on to learn to read, go to normal school, and become a teacher. Oh, yes, she is nearly murdered in the end by her crazed ex-lover. While all of this may sound somewhat melodramatic, it is not; Mosher makes it merely the stuff of a captivating, totally engaging story. Set, as all of Mosher's books are in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, Blythe vividly evokes both a time (post-Civil war to early twentieth century) and place (Vermont village of Hell's Gate). Above all, though, this is a novel of character, and Marie's combination of bullheadedness, naivete, energy and faith carries the day. Recalling the French Canadian priest who counseled her as a child, Marie in a time of crisis "remembered his advice to maintain a little faith in something, if only in fishing." Mosher, for his part, renews my faith again in great writing.

I have to say, A reader from South Berwick, Maine, sums it up perfectly. But I'd like to add this to it by saying it is a yet another "can't put it down" book. Mr. Mosher has captured the area he writes most about. When you read this book, you will be taken there.

This novel covers one woman's struggle to survive in the harsh environment between Quebec and Vermont at the turn of the century. You can't help but admire her strength. For anyone interested in Franco-American culture in northern New England as well as Mosher fans like me

Jiri Weil has here a masterpiece, a series of events involving a host of characters. Children hiding in a closet, German soldiers of high and low rank, elderly Jewish council members and scholars. What really chills me was my visit to the Holocaust museum days after finishing this book. The identification papers you draw upon entering that I received were for a man in the exact region of my Slovak grandparents. Before leaving much later that day, I viewed newsreels in the library. They provided actual background for the description of Reinhard Heydrich's assassination, told in detail in Weil's book. I highly recommend this excellent book.

In short vignettes, the author explores the difficult choices faced by the people of World War II Prague, from Reinhard Heydrich (never named by name) to individual soldiers, civil servants and Czechs and Jews of all stripes. Some episodes are absurd and full of humor, particularly the moment when the workers try to identify which statue on the roof is actually Mendelssohn's (they choose the one with the largest nose and are about to make the maximum possible error when they are stopped in the nick of time). Others are almost painful to read, such as the choices of a Jewish scholar hired to work on the museum built to illustrate the lives of his people; he realizes the purpose is to describe a people who are to be eliminated from the face of the earth.

Unlike many Holocaust novels, this book presents its points in a subtle and wonderful manner. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

This book opens with a black humor scene: how to remove the statue of Mendelssohn from the Prague concert hall during the Nazi occupation? From there, it shifts to short portraits of the gestapo, guards, ghetto residents, children, etc., all living in Pragu and trying to succeed/survive. It has been a long time since I have read a book so moving as this, and I highly recommend it

This book is well worth the money! Even if you haven't seen the movie that originated the book, you'll be fascinated by the small world of insects. As a 3D artist, I strongly recommend this book for its rich and wonderful reference pictures of insects at different stages of their lives. The diversity of their shapes, the richness of their textures. After the 2nd or 3rd page, you'll find yourself empathizing with these little creatures!

I saw this book in a bookstore but did not buy as it was overpriced (more than US$38) !!

But, it is indeed a good book showing insects and other creepy crawlies in action and close proxity. How the photographers did it was a remarkable achievement and certainly deserve to win awards for this work.

Anyone who likes good photos of insects will undoubtedly love this book.

Although this book is out of print, Warner Home Video has produced a VCD by the authors of the same title, and it is perhaps even more stunningly beautiful and awesome.

If you can, get the book and the VCD.

a must have for macro photographers--even for fine art photographers. beautifully depicted insects in detail never seen before. the world of insects shown as an amazing fantasy land.

A beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful book. I am so impressed with the author's prowess, using so many different voices (no easy feat), and so cleverly using a science fair experiment to talk about many important things in the world from a seventh grade point of view. This is a creative and original work and a very fresh voice in children's literature. I am still wiping the tears from my eyes and hoping that, like the kids in this story, the author goes on to win a lot of prizes.

MIND GAMES brilliantly juxtaposes the voices of six different seventh graders as they attempt to solve their science premise along with their relationaships with each other.

With precise language, featuring an economy of words, the author deftly moves from one character to the other in this tightly woven novel.

The imaginative format found both inside and outside the book itself add immediately to its charm and originality.

Jeanne Marie Grunwell is master of her material with each sentence of each paragraph on every page. The varied format, including exhibits, adds interest. The characters are neither simple nor stereotypical. Each is an individual with distinct needs to be met. The resolution is gratifying and complete.

Personally, I have rarely been so moved by such excellence in a novel which may be aimed at a middle grade audience, but is profoundly satisfying for the 'older' reader as well.

"Mind Games", by new author Jeanne Marie Grunwell, is simply superb. This is one of those books that you won't want to put down, and will read in one sitting. An inviting mixture of colorful characters, an involving story line(..a school project exploring ESP..), all presented with a true ease of writing style. Young people will relate with the middle school students here, as they embark on a most adventurous exploration. "Mind Games" is sure to interest readers for years to come--it's the kind of book I loved as a young adult..and still do! I can't wait for the movie version!

This book is superb! If Anne Walsh were my mother, I'd probably have ended up a little better off than I am - but I plan on writing my own book soon to, with inspiration from her. If you ever had any questions on how to raise a child - this book won't show you how to change a diaper, but it will show you how to deal with a cranky kid or a typical teenager...

I was in a book store the other day looking for a book to give as a gift at a baby shower.I saw this beautiful little book sitting on the bottom shelf and started to read. I could not put the book down. Ms.Walsh makes so much sence. There was only one book in the store I visited, I checked here to make sure I could purchase more of her books. Ms.Walsh's book was the highlight of the shower.

How could such a little book be packed with so much wisdom? The illustrations are charming -- you should consider making cards. I'm going to give this to every new mom I know.

I want to exalt Anna Jaworski for writing one of the most thoughtful books that I have read in a very long time. Inspired when her son Alex had to be hospitalized for open-heart surgery, the author saw the trauma on her other son, Joey, and realized there was a need not being addressed in this area.Her work has met this need with flying colors.

Of course when a child must undergo an operation, we all zero in our attention and affection on them, and we should. However, without meaning to, we often forget the other children in the family and do not realize the emotional conflicts that they are encountering. This book will open your eyes to their feelings.

Ms. Jaworski does a wonderful job in "My Brother Needs An Operation" in showing, with honest words and colorful illustrations, what will happen during this time.

She establishes the family relationship, the different activities they share and the bonding between siblings.She speaks of the fear that the sibling feels when he hears his brother will be in the hospital and she begins to deal with that fear in many constructive ways. She takes you into the mind of the child, what he is thinking and feeling. Excellent!

Ms. Jaworski includes in the back of the book a Hospital Diary and Activity Pages.
This is great. She has pages for the child to fill in his name, feelings, draw pictures and play games.

I can not even imagine the heartache a parent feels when their child must undergo an operation, but I will tell you this. If you are experiencing this trauma,and you have other children in your home, this book is a must for you.
It is one of the most outstanding books, touching the emotions of a hurting child, that I have read in a very long time. If I could stand and applaud this author, I would.
But all I can do is write a review that I hope will touch you enough to make you seek out this book, if you have this need or know someone who does, it is a must read.

My Brother Needs An Operation, words from the heart of one who knows.

Highly Recommended!

This is a story about a young boy needing open heart surgery and how it relates to his brother. It deals with feelings, and with staying with relatives while his brother is in hospital, plus more. It is a wonderfully told story, with questions to ask your own child as you read through it together. I found the tips for parents especially helpful and the back of the book has activities for the sibling/s to do while the brother/sister is in the hospital. I originally bought this book to read to my twin boys when my older son will need further surgery, but it is he who loves this book and asks me to read it to him often. I change the words around to suit his needs and I believe it has helped him cope with his own medical issues. This will be a book that we will treasure for many years.

If so, this book is for you. My son loved the suggested questions, the diary, & activity section. He felt more involved plus, it helped him pass the time away from us. Our son is young so we wrote in the diary & helped with the activities. Plus, you can make it a sister also. The story is written on an easy to understand level for young sibs & easy read for older sibs. Anna Jaworski did a great job on this as well as "Heart of a Mother" which I also reccomend. This book is based on her son's experience, therefore it is realistic.