I write this with the perspective of someone who's learned several languages. The book is seriously flawed as a self-instruction course. Explanations as to the workings of grammatical points, such as hard and soft nouns, are incomplete; there are not enough practice dialogues; more vocabulary and grammar is introduced at the early stages than exercises with which to practice and reinforce what one has learned. From chapter 8 onwards things begin to look up, but I will be looking for another book to get myself up to the level required for chapter 8 of the Hugo book. At that point, I might return to the Hugo book, as it has a lovely sense of humor in the later dialogues, well worth learning for colloquial conversation.

In this book, as in many collections, the quality differs from author to author. The selection on racism in the works of Robert Heinlein was interesting, as was the study of black characters in the works of Stephen King. The comparison of children's authors like Nesbit and Cooper was also handy and entertaining. On the other hand, some of the selections just dripped with ideological overload and ignorance of other opinions. Worth reading as long as you pick out the good ones and skip over the ones that strike you as ultra-judgemental.

This is a nice collection of works that deal with the Tibetan Buddhist approach to death. Note that it is basically an edited volume of translated pieces, and as such is not perhaps the best introduction to the subject. The first two translations in the volume, especially "Death and the Bodhisattva Trainings" are very instructive and inspiring. Many of the other translations, however, are quite esoteric and detailed. If you have some previous knowledge of this subject, this could well be a rewarding read. If you are looking for a good introduction to the topic, however, better would be "The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying."

This little hardcover book has patterns for using needlepoint stitches on plastic canvas. Small and larger projects, potted flowers, pincusion, scissors holder and more. These things would be well suited for the budding needlepointer child who is just starting out. There is a pattern for a standup doll, picture frames, a butterfly. A nice little book, but nothing too fancy.

For those of us unable to make the trip to Stockholm to view the Nobel archives, Crawford has compiled an excellent reference guide for historical study of the Nobel prizes in chemistry and physics. The Nobel Population 1901-1950 is an updated version of her 1987 census, identifying every nominee and nominator by name, date of birth, nationality, and institutional affiliation. It includes an introduction detailing the nomination and selection process and explaining the rational behind the information included in the census. The book concludes with a useful and (as far as this reader could ascertain) accurate name index of everyone mentioned in the Nobel committee's secretaries' lists from 1901-1950. Also included is a user-friendly CD-ROM. This interactive tool provides all the information in the book, and allows researchers to organize and sift through the information in a variety of ways. It is easy to view entire lists of nominations for and by individuals and reorganize the entire database by nominator or nominee country of origin, year, or science. In the computerized database, prize recipients are clearly noted by a golden coin next to their name. The Nobel Population, and especially its accompanying CD-ROM, should be an essential companion for any scholar studying the Nobel Prize in the first half of the 20th century, or any reader with in an interest in the statistics behind the scientific award.

The Primal Cheeseburger attempts to delve into the history of basic food groups while utilizing the supposed All American Cheeseburger, Fries, and Coke meal as a guideline. There are certainly some interesting historical notes on how meat became an integral part of certain cultures meals. Some good discussions on the origins of bread, cheese, etc.

However, this book tries to cover way too much ground. Some of the changes in the authors subject matter are introduced a bit too abruptly. Perhaps the author could have organized this book so it flowed better and covered a few things well instead of many things haphazzardly.

Nonetheless, this brief history of food around the world has its moments.

This was an enjoyable Regency anthology built around the Christmas season. However, as is common with anthologies the stories were not all equal. The best story was Carla Kelly's "The Christmas Ornament". Olivia and James, were refreshingly unlike the typical Regency couple, especially James, whose shyness and absent-minded professor personality was truly winning. You could just picture a young Jimmy Stewart or Hugh Grant playing the character. Of the five stories this was the one that I wish had been a full-length novel. My second favorite was Edith Layton's "The Hounds of Heaven", which was full of humor and the true spirit of the Christmas season, despite having the least amount of Christmas "trappings" in the group. Again, a charming hero and a sweet and different plot twist. The only drawback for me was that Helena, the heroine, was not fully drawn-out, probably as a result of the limitations of the short-story format. Barbara Metzger's "Three Good Deeds" and Elisabeth Fairchild's "Felicity's Forfeit" were both pleasant Regency fare. Both stories managed to fit a great deal of detail and some originality into their short frameworks. The only story I didn't enjoy was Allison Lane's "Second Chance". The hero, Jeremy, was actually quite attractive, but I could not warm up to the overly dramatic plot, and found Alice annoyingly self-pitying rather than tragic as she was obviously meant to be. It's hard to enjoy a romance when you only like half of the couple. All five stories featured very charming and well-drawn male leads, and in fact most of the stories were told from their points of view, which I enjoy, since I read romances for the heroes. Overall, a nice group, which Regency fans should enjoy, and which does get you in a pre-holiday spirit.

Vornarburg paints a bleak picture of the future where humanity is divided into those who have locked themselves in the City and those who crudely survive outside it. Humanity is dying on both sides of the City walls. An aging scientist in the City creates a young girl with very special powers to rejuvenate humanity. But is she the salvation of the city or of the barbarians outside...

Vornarburg creates a very dark mood without the fancy glitz of high tech. (Think Neuromancer without the fancy cyberspace cowboys jacking in and out. The mood feels more like PKDick than WGibson.) This book is more an intense drama and almost devoid of any real action. Nevertheless, the concepts are very intriguing.

This book provides useful suggestions on how to engage infants and toddlers in conversation during a parent's day to day activities. It also provides guidelines for introducing children to books and to maintain their interest in word discovery through literature, songs and rhymes. There is a wonderful chapter for parents to make their own inexpensive but imaginative toys. I had already read several books on children's linguistic development before buying this one, so I was disappointed with the redundant information I found in this book and was a little surprised to discover the authors using a very straight-forward and simple writing style. However, when I finally read the back cover of the book, I realize they intended the audience to be "low literacy parents and parents for whom English is a second language". I actually admire their down-to-earth approach compared to the high-jargoned variety of books that fill the bookstores. This book will be useful for daycare providers who need ideas to communicate to parents in an effective manner.

For such a small book with only 95 pages, this course gives you a good start. I liked the way it involves the learner, with a progress chart. The flash cards help too. It is fun and stimulating, with a certificate at the end. It is all very communicative but it gives you quite a bit of grammar that helps you understand and make your own sentences. This is on the good side, but there are some typos and this is annoying. The Portuguese word for tennis is spelt sometimes with an acute accent, others with a circumflex accent. I am told that one is the European spelling, the other the Brazilian spelling. Perhaps it does not matter, it is only an accent.