"Welcome to Mossy Creek the town you can count on ain't goin' nowhere, and don't want to" with these words you get the flavor of life in the small southern town of Mossy Creek. The people are fiesty, funny, sad, and loving. Each chapter is a different character's story. You learn the history of the dispute between Mossy Creek and the nearby town of Bigelow. Each chapter becomes a story unto itself while characters overlap occasionally in the tales. From Miss Ida, the guardian/mayor of Moss Creek who will go to jail rather than put up a new welcome sign outside of Mossy Creek (afterall it was written by a Bigelowan!) to Casey, an Olympic hopeful whose dreams are dashed while returning from her elopement, due to a car accident which leaves her paralyzed from the waist down, you will laugh and cry with the inhabitants of this marvelous town. Come on for the ride and enjoy a few moments in Mossy Creek. It is a fast read and powerful in its emotions.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - lots of fun, quirky characters. Looking forward to the next in the series.

I read this book because I love Deborah Smith's work. I figured at least her stories in the book would be fantastic. I laughed so hard with the first story my husband finally asked me to share the joke. And it just got better after that. I can not wait for the next book to come out! The characters were all fun and lovable. It made me wish my small town was a wee bit smaller, Southern and full of Mossy Creekites!

This is one of the very best books I've ever read. Deborah Smith is my 2nd favorite author (1st is Nora Roberts). Deborah is a master of the human spirit and personality. And her heros are bigger than life. This book is not only a wonderful story, but is full of suspense and surprises. Couldn't put it down. If I could rate it a 10, I would!

It has been a long time since I read a love story that so wrapped me up -- and also one I will recommend to my 16 year old daughter and to my 60 year old mother. Wonderful character development; excellent plot lines; nice historical touches; good dialog and just on and on . . .! Give it a try -- I just can't believe you will be disappointed. This was my first Deborah Smith book -- it won't be my last.

This is the second book of Ms. Smith's I've read. I loved the first, Blue Willow, and this one is even better. Ms. Smith not only makes you believe in soul mates and love too strong to die, she is an incredible writer. If you enjoy a good love story, I promise you'll love this one.

How to describe the charm of Mossy Creek? By turns hilarious and heartwarming, Mossy Creek is populated with the funniest, homiest, sometimes orneryist bunch of characters south of the Mason-Dixon line. If you like Southern humor and superb writing, go on down to Mossy Creek!

If the Lovin' Spoonful had been in the Georgia village of Mossy Creek rather than Greenwich Village, they would know that hot time, summer in the mountains means plenty of fun, ole southern style. The townsfolk look for a quiet uneventful season, but also know their enemy in slimy Bigelow still remains on the prowl. Meanwhile the librarian pushes the Police Chief into bluffing an abusive parent while the Mayor leads by example applying common sense to seemingly difficult problems. Much of the townsfolk meet eating dessert at the diner, but along with fans will find hot fun in the summertime here.

The third Mossy Creek tale is a series of vignettes written by a virtual whose who of the irons maidens of the south (more talented than steel magnolias). The contributions differ in size while providing a slice of life in a small remote Georgia mountain town. Each story builds up on the previous contribution so that the audience receives an anthology that uses the best elements of a novel and that of a short story into a tremendous collection. SUMMER IN MOSSY CREEK holds its own with its superb predecessors. Fans of the series already know that the first two books flow smoothly; the third tale shares in common with the previous duo a southern comfort smoothness.

Harriet Klausner

This charming small town series really comes into its own with the third book, Summer In Mossy Creek. It has something for everyone--laughter, tears, romance, and the cozy appeal of lovable eccentrics.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Tales from the Featherbed. Bill Smith and Vaughn Ward managed to find just the right blend of practical, whimsical and good old-fashioned fun anecdotal stories. I couldn't put the book down until I had read them all. A wonderful, folksy look at life in the North Country in days past. I'm very pleased to have found this on Amazon so that I could write this recommendation.

Teachers College Press has just published a book from the QUASAR Project, intended to help people implement staff development. I've been reading it this week, and it's just about the most useful resource I can imagine in planning on-going staff development to help teachers implement mathematics programs designed around the NCTM standards. (At the high school level, this includes curricula like Core Plus and the Interactive Mathematics Project (IMP). At the Middle school level, this includes programs like Connected Mathematics. At the elementary school level, this includes programs like Investigations in Number, Data, and Space. Many of these curricula have been selected as "exemplary" by the Department of Education.)

The book is called "Implementing Standards-Based Mathematics Instruction: A Casebook for Professional Development". As the title indicates, it contains a number of "cases" for teachers to study and discuss, as they learn to implement high-level mathematics tasks successfully. The strength of the book is that it is organized around QUASAR's "Mathematical Tasks Framework". This framework trains teachers to analyze mathematics tasks as being at any of a number of levels: Doing Mathematics; Procedures With Connections; Procedures Without Connections; Unsystematic Exploration; Nonmathematical Activity.

QUASAR has found that tasks tend to degrade, i.e., they can be designed at a high level ("doing mathematics" or "procedures with connections") but migrate to a "lower" level either when the teacher initially sets up the lesson, or as the lesson procedes (the "implementation" phase). Their data (which I've seen in other studies, not this case-book) demonstrates that student achievement is enhanced when the task is designed, set up, and IMPLEMENTED at a high level. The case-book describes factors that cause a high-level task either to be implemented at a high level, or to degrade. Then, it provides cases (i.e., classroom teaching episodes described in great detail)in which one or the other happens, and helps teachers analyze why. Not only are the cases themselves very useful for learning: the process of analyzing the cases gives teachers the skills they need to analyze their OWN lessons.

Finally! Someone writes a book with pratical insight as to how to resolve a conflict diplomatically, tactfully, and without offending the offender. The author also balances her writing, and admonishes the reader to look into what s/he has done to contribute to the conflict before confronting the offending party. Personally, I would suggest only one change to the book, and that is an admonishment at the front of the book to read the entire manuscript before beginning to practise your new confroning skills as confronting with incomplete wisdom can make a mess of things. All in all, however, this book is a first class, five star treasury of wisdom. If any reader of this review has not already purchased this book, than I would admonish you to do so, before it is too late and you wish you had. (I literally scoured the planet for ten years searching for the wisdom contained in this book; so if you still have any doubts you need this book, hey, 10 years of searching. Spare yourself.)

I have read many books on the flora native to the Eastern US and I would rank this book as one of the best. The book gives excellent descriptions of many interesting items and details, almost as if the author were writing a biography. After reading about each plant I felt compelled to go look at it growing in the wild and sure enough - the book was right!

Without a doubt Deborah Smith is my favorite author. I first discovered her when I read 'A Place to Call Home'. I was thrilled when she followed it up with 'When Venus Fell'. Since then I have picked up her earlier books. Therefore you might find it ironic that I purchased 'Blue Willow' last year but just this past week read this wonderful book. No one develops characters better than Smith. You will find yourself doing those necessary jobs with the book tucked under your arm just in case you get a few minutes to read more. So why did I put off reading this book? The reason is the same as ordering other desserts between the times you indulge in your absolute favorite one. Her writing is so incredibly rich and emotional that I need to wind down with lighter romance books before I pick up another of her novels. I worry that she could truly spoil my tastes for other authors.

Blue Willow is the first book I read from Deborah Smith. I saw it first here at ..., i was convinced by it's book review that only recently bought it from a book sale shop. Unfortunately, I cant' find it in any of our leading (national)bookstore. Blue Willow is a great book, I love it! I fell in love with Lily and especially with Artemas. It made me laugh and cry! It's hard to put it down. This book will be worth keeping, reading all over again and again, and I'll definitely recommend it to friends. As Blue Willow was my first, it's definitely not my last.

I emensely enjoyed "Blue Willow" by Deborah Smith. Smith has the ability to make her characters seem like an actual part of the reader's life. However, I found the book terribly difficult to read due to the monstrous amount of cosmetic errors. I do not blame the poor editing on Deborah Smith however, she is a talented author. This problem is the fault of her editors. All in all, a great read, just try and overlook the minor flaws.

These guys could concoct a recipe for woolly mammoth meatballs a la mode, and I'd be willing to try it. Talk about imaginative, tongue-massaging food! But the recipes need to be examined closely, particulary with regards to proportion. The amount of liquid called for in the ancho-bock smashers is excessive, as is the amount of salt in the butternut squash, granny smith apple soup. Despite these glaring errors, this was without a doubt THE BEST COOKBOOK I purchased last year. Twice!

This is one of, if not the best cookbook of the year. You don't have to be the world's best cook to enjoy it and create successful meals. And a great gift idea! Bon Appetit!

This tasty piece of literature invites you to open your soul take a deep breath and dive in! As you become saturated in it's contents you realize this is not just about cooking fearlessly this is about living fearlessly! Come up for air and then go deep to discover the intense splashes of color seasoned with just the right amount of humor make the flamboyant artwork as appetizing as its gastronomical counterparts! This coupled with amazing photography and damn good writing make this a fascinating read that is sure to stimulate your creative and digestive juices simultaneously! Katherine the Great

Unlike a lot of cookbooks, this was a delight to read. I find Deborah Madison to be a good observer, and the subject matter benefits from her keen eye--and ear. She certainly finds creative ways to exploit the typical farmer's market fare. The only significant flaw with this book is that Ms. Madison simply tries to cover too much ground--literally and figuratively. Many of the ingredients are obviously regional in nature and availability, and are therefore beyond the reach of many readers. Still, this is a finely crafted volume and the author should be commended for elevating the subject matter to a very high level. Well done!

Deborah Madison's "Local Flavors" hews to her longtime trajectory along the path of encouraging her readers to make use of what's fresh. Of course what's fresh is always better than what's been shipped in, and Madison focuses on this edict with this cookbook chock-full of recipes making use of fresh, fresh, fresh produce from the farmer's market.

The cookbook is handsomely done, with easy recipes and numbered directions (so helpful when you look away and then need to find your place again). While readers on the coasts or in big cities will have no problem finding the ingredients they need, those in smaller or rural areas will have some difficulty. Ingredients that are regularly called for here include palm sugar, blood oranges, lemon verbena, pineapple sage, chantarelles, orange flower water, and more. Still, the recipes are imaginative, the photography sumptuous, and Madison's enthusiasm for her subject positively contagious.

I just purchased this new cookbook by Deborah and I am not disappointed. Deborah Madison comes across as a teasured friend in all of her cookbooks. You can't help but trust all of her tips and recipes because she is so passionate about fresh, healthy food. In Local Flavors, she packs the book with so much information about shopping and enjoying farmers markets. Buying and using fruits & vegetables in season is not only practical, but ensures you are getting the most delicious produce. This book is for all who believe in "eating by the seasons" and for those who support locally grown foods!