Published by the same press as "Attics" (Creative Homeowner Press) this book has lovely color illustrations, but adds little to the simpler book.

This collection presents more of the Mutual Broadcasting System's Holmes radio shows from a time after Rathbone and Bruce had left the show, as had writers Anthony Boucher and Dennis Green. Unlike the Simon & Schuster collections of tales from the Bruce/Rathbone era, this collection presents 12 consecutive tales in chronological order of presentation. Also, unlike the Simon & Schuster presentations, this collection dispenses with the pre- and post-story commentary. With the extra tape, they present three, rather than two, stories per cassette.

Every third story is an adaptation of a Conan Doyle story, so the quality of those stories is superb. When Meiser is left to her own devices in writing, she can produce very uneven work. "The Case of the Well Staged Murder" makes for satisfying listening, but "Professor Moriarty and the Diamond Jubilee" is quite contrived, and "New Years Eve in the Scilly Isles" is downright silly. A firebug is seen deserting a ship as it sails out of harbor. The Captain is radioed that the ship will probably go up in smoke at the stroke of twelve on New Years Eve. The lives of 2,000 passengers and crew hang in the balance. So does the Captain turn around and go back to port to unload the passengers and search for the time bombe? Nope. He sails on for 18 hours until he is far at sea and there is only an hour left until midnight. But Holmes arrives in a yacht just in the nick of time. This has my vote for the most contrived Holmes radio pastiche of all times.

John Stanley sounds more like Rathbone than Rathbone, and doesn't muff his lines as often. Alfred Shirley tries manfully, but he cannot quite convey the warmth of Bruce's Watson. The organ music is more subdued and not quite as annoying, but Meiser makes Holmes far too disagreeable. He is the rudest Holmes I have encountered, and very nearly the most conceited. I'm sure that on several occasions, the only thing that prevented Watson from inviting Holmes outside for fisticuffs was the fact that Holmes was an expert amateur boxer.

The 60 page booklet that comes with the collection is a gold mine of information for Holmes afficionados.

Shirley Deane attempts to present a picturesque view of Ambon and its surrounding islands. Without any doubt, the group islands of Moloccus (Maluku) is indeed known for its spice trade, perhaps it was the greatest attraction of the East in the Age of Discovery during the 15th and 16th century. Although, Indonesia is 90% Muslims, but in Ambon it is more or less a Christian island whereby roughly half of the population are Christians from either the Dutch Reformed Church or the Roman Catholic Church. The remaining 50% are made up of recent immigrants from either far away island of Java or nearby islands of Sulawesi; these latest immigrants are more often that not adherents of the Muslim faith. Notwithstanding, Ambon remains the epitome of racial and religious harmony where the different communities live side by side. However, the strain of religious dichotomy lies just beneath the surface as explained by the author. The author mentioned of some incidents of sarcasm between both faiths, e.g. the intolerance of the Christians for the call of prayer by the Muslims etc. Eventhough there was peace and harmony but the anger lies hidden. Therefore it is not strange that in the 1998 and 1999, religious riots broke out in the fable Island of Spices. I would say that it is not simply a spontaneous manifestation of discontent but a long period misunderstanding and anger that were bottled-up for a reasonably long period of time. "Ambon, The Island of Spices" brings to light the experience of the author as a guest lecturer at the University of Ambon. She lectures the English language in the Faculty of Arts. It is important to note that the University of Ambon is a totally different concept as compared to Malaysian universities. In Malaysian universities, it is a concentration of faculties, amenities etc in a single main campus. But in Ambon, the university is dispersed all over the Ambon Town and even across the Ambon Bay. Deane made some interesting account on the university library. In order to reach the library, one need to take a bus along the narrow coastal road to a point where the bay is narrowest and then take a connecting prow (perahu) across the bay of Ambon. Definitely, this tedious journey would not be a boon towards good readership at the library. Deanne wrote some interesting observation on the student profile. Most of them are from poverty-stricken background. Ambon is a distant island from Jakarta, the nation's capital:- It is common to see rampant poverty in far away islands like Irian Jaya, East Timor, Borneo, Sulawesi etc. Ambon is no different, the author did stress that too much wealth is being concentrated in Java especially in Jakarta. However, poverty is certainly not a bane for further education in Ambon. It does not impede upon the zest for knowledge and learning, this is proved by Deane's students which come from a cross section of all type of students, from all ages, working, not working, single, married etc. Deane outline various peculiarities in Ambon. I was attracted towards two very interesting chapters. The chapter on superstition was very well written. I enjoyed all the remarkable stories of ghost, magical phenomenon and the after-life. The brief portrayal of Nenek Lahu, a ghost that kidnaps foreign men as their slave husbands was very refined, it does brings a certain dejavu of the hantu pontianak story in Malaysia. Besides the supernatural, the author outlined some cultural practices of bond-ship or pela between the various tribes in Ambon. Although Ambon is a mixed Christian-Muslim island, the bond of pela dates back far before the arrival of Christianity and Islam. The animist background remains deeply engraved in the heart and soul of all Ambonese. The author noted that for an amateur, the ritual of bikin panas pela or renewal of bond-ship brings memories of war dances as performed in the various Polynesian islands. Ambon is without doubt the Island of Spices. I would say that this book is a very informative detailing the relationship and the daily lifestyle in Ambon and its surrounding island. Although this book was written during the early 1970s, many parts are still relevant today. In fact, it is a very resourceful reading if one need to understand the background conditions that shaped the current chaos and riots in Maluku today

Justin Bond just discovered that his mother is, Miranda Fortune, of the wealthy Texas Fortunes. Miranda was just a child herself when she became pregnant. Seperated from her family she felt that she had no other choice but to let her twin babies be put up for adoption. Miranda left her children at the Sheriff's door.

Unfortunately, Justin and his twin sister were never able to be adopted because Miranda never signed away her rights. Justin grew up in the foster care system. He never formed a bond with anyone and never knew the meaning of love and family. Now as an adult Justin still has trouble connecting with others. He has been seperated from his wife for over a year, and he learns the truth about his mother and her family. Seeing the Fortunes and the love that they have for one another makes Justin think about all that is missing in his life. Justin knows one thing for sure-he wants his wife back. Getting his wife, Heather, back turns out to be more difficult than he thought it would be. There is also Heather's little secret that stands between them.

I like the Fortunes of Texas series, so I had to read this book. I can't say that I enjoyed it all that much though. And my reasons are strictly personal-I HATE stories that revolve around a man not being told that he is a father. In this book Heather, in my opinion, is selfish in keeping the truth from Justin. No matter how hurt she was or what her feelings were towards Justin, he had a right to know about his son. She was not only punishing Justin, but she was punishing their son by denying him his father. The story was great in that we once again meet another Fortune. We also get to read about characters from past books. This book was very well written and I have all of Shirley Rogers books and I enjoy them. So, if you enjoy this series and author than don't let my personal bias stop you from reading this book. I look forward to reading the next book-the story of Cameron's illegitimate son Jonas.

Shirely Dunn's guide to celluloid provides a useful history of the "Celluloid Era" of 1888 - 1920, including manufacturer's marks. She also includes color photos of a wide range of celluloid items, from clocks and toys, to manicure sets and advertising ware. Without an index, it is not very useful as a value guide.

A good book for beginners, but not too terrific if you want to identify & value a specific piece.

The author notes that if you don't pick up this book in November, then you should not start at the beginning....start where ever you are in the calendar. Her purpose in writing this book is to "help the reader become more aware of times and seasons." (ix) One of the important things about Celtic spirituality (and the reason so many people are embracing it) is that the Celts, unlike others in the "Western" world, saw the goodness of God in all His creation. They lived in the world and they loved it. So Shirley Toulson takes us through the year as the Celts lived it, celebrating their saints from the great three of Columba, Patrick, and Brigit to the more obscure, the great seasonal feasts--holidays--such as Beltain and Samhain, and of course the holy days as well. Well illustrated, containing maps to many of the holy places (of which the Celtic lands have so many), and lots of literary excerpts, poems, and prayers, this is a book to enjoy year after year. Organized by month and season rather than day, as the Celts lived and we should too, this is a book to keep close and consult often.

This is a good starter book, excellent for travelling and getting around in Portugal. The audio lessons are pretty well done, but there is not a clear definition of what is brazilian vs continental portuguese pronunciation. My wife successfully used this book as the text for an introductory Portuguese class

This is a good story and it's nicely told but the manuscript needs help. An spell checker could've saved the author the embarrassment of having a novel that is riddled with spelling and syntax errors being released into the public. A designer could've made this a beautiful looking book. A copyeditor could've fixed the continuity problems. I see a good book here but it's like a diamond in the rought so I cant' reccomend it to anyone but the most patient of readers who won't be distracted by the proofreading errors.

Elmo Doolan though being a mouse was dull, and that mice in general were dull. Father Mouse knew what had brought that on; Dimblehauser, the grumbling cockroach with no real love for mice had. And the time had come, Father decided, for Elmo and his sister Midge to learn who the rodent family really was. But the encyclopedia yielded little to impress - fascinating detail about distant relitives, and not so fasinating comments on the habits of certain very close relitives. Someone who really knew mice ought to write a book - why not Father? As the Doolan family researched, Elmo searches for the most exciting story of all - The Golden Mouse. Little could be found on him; was he even real? In the outcome, Elmo makes the discovery of a lifetime, Father writes an extradinary book. Dimblehauser too finds what he wants most. Charming and well written, but doesn't really have much in the plot and point department, except lots of information about mice. Interesting, though. :-)

This collection of recipes utilizing four ingrediants is great for singles on the run. It helps keep us out of the fast-food places!