Open City consistently publishes great stories, poems, essays, and artwork. I look forward to each issue, because each one is so different, and because this magazine continues to be vital and relevant, esp. because many literary magazines are so staid and dull....

The Physician Investigator Handbook, by Deborah Rosenbaum and Fred O. Smith, is an excellent book for every physician who conducts, or who has ever considered conducting, clinical trials. The book contains practical and useful information about the conduct of clinical trials from the physician's perspective. Physicians will learn, in a clear and concise format, about the facilities and staff required, the investigator's role, compliance with regulations, and how to prepare study budgets and work with the study sponsor and its representatives. This book is an excellent guide to help physicians decide whether to enter the lucrative world of clinical trials. Furthermore, it can save time and money for novice and experienced investigators alike. I highly recommend this book for all physician investigators involved in the conduct of clinical trials. The authors write from experience and pack the book with useful information. What a great investment!

Anyone who has enjoyed any of Joseph Cornell's books will really enjoy this one. I have found it most helpful with the 4-H club that I am involved with. The projest are based on the seasons fall, winter, and spring and ties in many different topics with these seasons. I personally liked it because that it gave me many hands on activities to work with that the kids really enjoyed. All projects are extremely easy to follow and complete which makes it even better. I would recommend this book to anyone who deals with ages 8 - 12 years old and the outdoors.

After reading Blue Willow and Silk & Stone, I was very excited to start reading this book, since it's one of Ms. Smith's most acclaimed novels. When I first picked this one up and read the first page and found that it was written in the 1st person, I continued reluctantly. I normally try not to read books written as such because the story telling is from only one person's point of view. I prefer reading stories where I can get a feel of how all the characters are thinking and feeling. It makes them seem more three dimensional to me. Anyway, as I was reading, I was mesmerized the first half of the book. My heart went out to Roanie and the environment he grew up in. And I loved the way Claire stood beside him and believed in him every step of the way. However, the second half was very disappointing. There was something lacking in Roan and Claire's relationship. The story seemed to drag on and go downhill from there. Their reunion wasn't as touching I was would have liked. But this is a good story, but very tragic. Those who love tearjerking stories shouldn't pass this one up, as well as those who love stories involving second chances and forgiveness.

"A Place To Call Home" was my first Deborah Smith book. It was highly recommended to me, so I decided, being a big romance novel reader, to heed my friend's advice. I'm very glad I did. Since then, I've had to buy Ms. Smith's other novels.

Roanie and Claire had such a special bond. My heart ultimately broke at the cruelty that Roanie had to live with because of his bitter alcoholic father, and because most of the small Georgia town he and Claire lived in often put the sins of the father on to the son.

Part one, with their story told in flashback style, was delightful. Claire was precocious and pampered from both of the town's premiere ancestral families, the Maloneys and the Delaneys, where almost everyone in town seemed to be a relative by some quirk of fate, yet her heart saw the good in Roanie Sullivan from a young age, much to the confusion and exasperation of her friends and family. Roanie is tormented and teased by some of the town, yet he and Claire become friends, a true sense of opposites attracting intellectually and through innocent love. The horrible act that would end up separating them for twenty years is heartbreaking, as neither gets a chance to say goodbye.

But two decades after, Roan is a much-changed man (yet, paradoxically, not much changed, at all) who can't keep Claire out of his mind any more than she could do for Roan, and he returns to their hometown in Dunderry, Georgia just when Claire needs him the most...as much as Roan still needs her.

While part one (with their childhood) was my favorite part of the book, by far, I did still enjoy the grown up Roan and Claire in part two. Do you want a novel that you can lose yourself in?

This one is it. So sit back and enjoy. I, for one, was disappointed when it had to end.

This book really struck a cord in me. The love between Roan and Claire, love surmounting all odds, was beautiful and refreshing. Claire's innocent and unconditional love and support helped transform and severely neglected, horrifically abused boy into a successful, devoted man. Soul mates form the time they were children, Roan and Claire had to overcome incredible odds just to be together. Violence and misunderstandings from the adults in their lives, tore them apart when they were just 10 and 15, but neither could forget the other.

Twenty years would pass before they would finally reunite, hoping they could make up the past to each other. Claire still doesn't trust her family after their betrayal and the role they played in tearing Roan away from Claire. Roan is hiding a secret that could rip the family apart. When the two star-crossed soul mates finally reunite, no one can deny the passion, but the secrets and pain of the past may be too much for them to overcome.

I highly recommend this book for all of you romantics out there. I can't count the number of times I've reread this book since I first picked it up several years ago.

Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes is a charming collection of stories that range from sweetly sentimental tear-jerkers to laugh out loud funny slice-of-life tales. And, best of all, there isn't a dud in the entire bunch. All of the stories were obviously written with love and each is an author's memory of living in the South. The book is broken up into three sections titled: Precious Memories, Family Portraits (wow, do these ladies have some nutty relatives and neighbors!) and Beloved Critters. Being an animal lover the "Beloved Critters" section contained some of my favorite stories in the collection. The hands down winner for me was Donna Ball's UP JUMPS THE DEVIL. It's about a big, slobbering, affectionate dog that sends an entire town into an uproar and gives one grasping old bitty her comeuppance. This story had me in stitches and will be reread whenever I'm in dire need of a good laugh. The book is a little pricey, at $14.95 for only 171 pages of storytelling, but I feel its stories are worth splurging on (or saving for).

"Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes" is a book of short stories. The kind of stories that family and close friends tell at reunions. The kind of stories in which truth is stranger and funnier than fiction.

You'll walk to Bible School with children in the depression. You'll wait at home with the women while the men folk go hunting. You'll see both sides of the long standing feud between a southern woman and her in-laws. You'll meet a mixed breed black dog named Lucifer who went to a picnic and a revival.

Get a glass of sweet tea, and sit in a rocker by the fireplace. Rock your way back in time with five southern women storytellers as your tour guide. You're sure to end each story with a smile on your face and a contented sigh.

Published May 2000 by BelleBooks, authors Deborah Smith, Donna Ball, Nancy Knight, Sandra Chastain, Debra Dixon, Virginia Ellis.

Open the cover of this book and prepare to enter the real South. Through this collection of short stories the authors have given us snapshots of how life is viewed by real Southerners--that is mostly with a sense of humor and always with heart. I loved this book from first page to last. Filled with love and family, quirky characters and just plain folks it's a great way to spend a relaxing afternoon. One more thing, no matter what part of the country you're from you will recognize people you have known and loved, because some things are universal.

Deborah Smith made her way into my bookshelf with "Alice at Heart." I found it such a delightful read that I searched for more books by this author. Next came "Miracle."

"Miracle" should come with a warning. "Warning: Reading this book will become habit forming."

Don't read this book if you're looking for a simple romantic love story.

Don't read this book if you want a bit of escapism and don't want to get emotionally involved with the characters.

Don't read this book if there is no time in your life to stop what you're doing and do nothing else but read this book!

"Miracle", the ten year saga of a young girl fighting her codependency and desire to be loved and a frenchman embattled with bitterness and nearly incapable of expressing and showing love, will sneak into your life and demand to be read during meals, while sitting at stop lights, or in line at the bank.

I dare you to try to casually read "Miracle."

After reading ON BEAR MOUNTAIN, I decided to read more of Deborah Smith's books. I had no idea when I started MIRACLE that I would be unable to put it down until the following afternoon when I reached the end. It is not filled with sappy weak characters. Instead, the book deals with characters who are dealt strong emotional blows and their struggle to overcome them. Sure, in the end they are stronger and wiser, but, hey, don't we all need a happy ending in this day and time? It is how they get there that makes this book worth reading.

I started reading Deborah Smith's work with BLUE WILLOW, and from there, moved backward in time to her other books. Both MIRACLE and BLUE WILLOW have a permanent place on my bookshelves, and I doubt I'll ever loan them out, either, since I'd be afraid to lose them. Even now, I sometime reread portions just as one would revisit a good friend. This book has been out a while, so at some point it's likely to go out of print, which will be too bad. It's a long and satisfying romantic tale of suffering, renewal, and redemption, with believable characters, deeply rooted passion, and a well-researched plot and setting. It is not the sort of book that one reads in one setting; plan on giving it the time it deserves. If you like a full-bodied romantic novel that leaves you feeling like you've shared a part of the characters' lives and loves, buy this book and keep it.

Deborah Smith has written an enjoyable book that is far more than just a love story - it's a tale about the social development of an entire community. The Bear sculpture shaped the lives of the entire town. It polarized people, caused family feuds and united lovers. Smith did an excellent job of developing the main characters, delving into their spearate histories before bringing them together. The entire book makes you want to be part of an eccentric southern family. My only complaint with the book was that I read it in one day. If I had known how much I was going to enjoy it, I would have slowed down and savored it with a cup of tea or two.

Another fabulous story by Deborah Smith! Deborah is a natural storyteller and nowhere is it more apparent than in her newest book On Bear Mountain. As you read, you just naturally slide into Ursula's world in the small town and Quentin's world in tough Brooklyn. Strong chemistry is evident in their first meeting but both of them carry a LOT of baggage and it takes a long time until they can admit their feelings for each other. Terrific secondary characters - Arthur, Janine, Angela, Clara, Mr. John- provide humour and heartbreak. This book was a long time coming but well worth the wait. Try Deborah's other 2 books: A Place to call Home and When Venus Fell. They are excellent, too.

I can't say enough good things about this book. In ON BEAR MOUNTAIN, Deborah Smith gives us unforgettable characters in an irresistible setting, all bound together by an inextricable sense of destiny. She does destiny nearly as well as John Irving, but her voice is all her own--uniquely Southern, by turns gritty and gentle, soft and sassy, and etched with a tender irony that can make you laugh out loud or break your heart. She writes with genuine emotion and sentiment, but never stoops to manipulative sentimentality. Like her protagonist, Quentin Rinconni, she is a brilliant and sensitive artist who can instinctively find and give meaning to the complex patterns that define even the most ordinary of lives. Bravo, Ms. Smith, and thanks for another extraordinary read!

L. Frank Baum's enduring story is wonderfully presented in this elegant edition and the Washington Post called Lisbeth's The Wizard of Oz "the loveliest edition imaginable."

However, the assessment of the local kids is the drawings are "weird." Perhaps intended for a more adult audience, the illustrations are beautiful--I enjoyed them--but their idiosyncratic style may not appeal to the younger set.

The characters pictured in the illustrations are dramatcially reinterpreted by the artist, however this may disappoint some viewers. The Scarecrow will look nothing like any scarecrow you've imagined. The Witch of the North is difficult to identify. This fresh point of view will be enjoyed by some but is sure to disappoint others.

I also felt the illustrations don't tell the story as well as the edition by Michael Hague or the original edition with W. W. Dinslow. (This is more important to the younger, read-to crowd, than the older, I can read it myself crowd.)

My daughter asked that we return the book and get a different edition for her. I would urge you to carefully consider the sample pages, except the sample pages don't cover a broad range of the illustrations included with this edition. The sample pages do include an image of the dramatic and striking cover. Unfortunately, in the judgement of several reviewers from 4 to 40, the other illustrations were noticably more "weird" than the cover and I don't think the sample pages represent the overall reading/viewing experience scrupulously.

The Wizard of Oz written by L. Frank Baum is a wonderful book about a young girl who goes on an adventure full of excitement and fun. Dorothy the main character lives on a small country farm in Kansas with her Aunt, Uncle, and small dog, Toto. One day a twister comes over their country farm and whisks Dorothy along with her little dog away to a make believe land called Oz. There she is greeted by the people who live there. She asks them how she can get home to Kansas. They tell her that the Great Oz will help get her home. But before she heads on her way to Oz the Good Witch of the North kisses her on the forehead and says that with that kiss no one can harm her. So she and Toto head on their way to Oz. On her way she meets The Scarecrow who wants a brain, a Woodman made of tin who wants a heart and a Cowardly Lion who wants courage. These four new friends eimbark on an adventure to the great city of Oz. Will they all get their wishes? Find out when you read the Wizard of Oz. I loved this book because not only did it have fantasy but it is a great book for all ages. I recomend it to anyone who loved being a child.

The Wizard of Oz is about a girl named Dorothy who is a farm girl from Kansas. One day Dorothy is carried away by a cyclone to a magical land called Oz. While she is there she meets a tlaking scarecrow, a man made of tin, and a cowardly lion afraid of his own shadow. Dorothy and her friends follow a yellow brick road to the Emerald City where they hope to find the famous wizard that can grant each of their wishes. But the wicked witch keeps trying to ruin their trip to the Emerald City.
The setting of the book is in a magicla land full of little people called Munchkins, flying monkeys, and a wicked witch that will melt if touched with water. The characters have their separate reasons for wanting to see the wizard. As the story goes on, the reader can not help but fall in love with them.
The text gives great detail as to what everything looks like and with those details the whole world of Oz can come to life in the readers imagination.

Hush McGillen Thackery knew at a very early age that she was going to be someone. Suffering through her family's poverty and losing both her parents by age sixteen, Hush decided she would turn the family apple orchards into a profitable business again.

Though she was made fun of for selling apples from a road side stand, it only inspired her. Hush kept going. Surviving.

She was given control of Sweet Hush Hollow and custody of her five-year-old brother, Logan. Her childhood friends, Davy and Smooch, vowed to help her.

When Hush becomes pregnant with Davy's child, she reluctantly agrees to marry him, knowing he will not be faithful. Hush is still determined to make the orchards a success.

She handles the obstacles one by one, choosing to keep her family life discreet. The years fly by and Hush has turned Sweet Hush Hollow into the profitable family business she knew it could be.

Life is good, comfortable...until one day her now 23-year-old son calls her to let her know he is on his way home from college. He arrives with the President of the United State's daughter in tow. They are married and pregnant.

Hush is thrown into the public eye. Her life of secrets is threatened as she discovers a real bee charmer and ultimately her true self.

Deborah Smith did an excellent job bringing these two families through a crisis and to an understanding of each other. There were little stories within the overall story which kept the pages turning through the night.

Life for Hush McGillen-Thackery got off to a rough start with the loss of both her father and her family's clout in a small rural area in Northern Georgia. However, despite her obstacles as an adolescent, she became one of those people who confronted adversity with an air of challenge. And she turned out to be a strong character in Deborah Smith's SWEET HUSH.

Hush stuck me as one of those people who knows what they are destined for, as she rebuildt her family's empire as one of the heavyweight apple farmers in the state. The Sweet Hush apple, named after Hush's foremothers, was a sweet and rare fruit, and remained a central theme in her life.

When Hush's son brought home the daughter of encumbent U.S. President Al Jacobs, Hush's quaint, quiet life in the Hollow of Sweet Hush Farms withstood some noteable changes. Hush had to look, once again, to the apple trees to guide her and console her through decisions she never thought she'd have to make.

As this was my first time reading a work by Smith, I embarked on this reading journey with an open mind. I was looking for a good story with love, action, and lessons. I found these things in SWEET HUSH, a sensational novel.

Reviewed by CandaceK
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

The fifth of her line, Hush McGillen Thackery believes people are born to be whoever they want to be. It is all in how they tell their story. Hush spins a tale of true love, of the perfect Harvard son and of a successful apple farm. But love was rotten to the core with a man who did not live up to revered image, but whose presence made it acceptable for a business woman to succeed. Now secrets from the past threaten to bring down Hush's idealist image and destroy all she holds dear when her son Davis brings the world's scrutiny because he brings home his secret bride--the president's daughter.

The president and his wife are convinced that Hush has ulterior motives and that the marriage between their daughter Hush's son was somehow coerced. They vastly underestimate this Appalachian queen who rules her home, farm and county. When they send the president's cousin Nicholas Jacobek to bring the situation under control, Hush meets the only man in her life who can match her skill at charming bees. But Jacob's dark past conceals a man of kindness and of mercilessness who will do anything to protect family, even kill.

Author Deborah Smith succinctly captures the flavor of the south and of powerful matriarchs in SWEET HUSH. Readers will find it impossible to forget these rich characterizations and mesmerizing prose. Hush is blunt, fierce and determined, deserving of a hard man like Jacob. The president's wife Edwina would be easy to hate except Smith carefully reveals her vulnerabilities, devotion and motivation in a way that not only makes her understandable, but likeable despite her bitchy ways. Readers will delight in the image of Hush and Edwina throwing rotten apples at each other in the White House. Easily followed shifting points of view provide interior views of complex motives and tantalizing possibilities. In all, three love stories wind their way around the reader's heart, resulting in a must read tale reader's won't want to miss. SWEET HUSH earns the WordWeaving Award for Excellence.

I have always loved Ms. Smith's books, her attention to detail and her in depth plots. While I did not like When Venus Fell as much as Miracle, Silk and Stone or Blue Willow, this book did have its own charm and redeeming parts. This is a story of two families who have problems and deficiencies, but who desire so much more for themselves. Everyone has some sort of hurtle to overcome before they can all function as a capable unit. Maybe that is part of what turned me off to this book. EVERYONE had an issue to overcome. I know we are all not perfect and most authors err on that side, making everyone into fairytale heroes, but we have two extremely dysfunctional families here. Yet, like a fairytale, in the end, everyone finds the peace and happiness they want/deserve.

Although Venus and Gib are our obvious leads, this is not a story about how two people find each other and love and then live happily ever after (though there is an element of that). Because we had so many characters, none of them really get to be fully developed. We come to understand why everyone behaves as they do, but I felt we skimmed the surface too much and didn't dig deep enough into any one character.

Be warned for those romance readers out there, this story is more novel than romance. Although I feel this story deserve more than just an average rating (of three stars), I did not feel that it was strong enough for a 4 star rating. If I could, I would give this 3 ½ stars, better than average, but not superb. Get ready to leave reality at the door, because this story could never happen anywhere that I know of.

"When Venus Fell" is right up there with my other favorites, "A Place to Call Home" and "Blue Willow". I enjoy the journey this author takes us on through her characters, who all are working their way through deep, emotional pain. She is a very sensitive writer and if a reader "does the work", the satisfying payoff is worth the effort. This is not to say that her books are too heavy. In fact, I often find myself laughing out loud. A talented writer will touch the reader at many levels. My favorite books are always the ones that make me laugh and cry. Yes, as one reader commented, "Venus" has some rough edges. Watching the way her edges are smoothed over is one of the most enjoyable aspects of this story. I, for one, am looking forward to Ms. Smith's next book!

This is the first story by Deborah Smith that I have read, and at first the first person point of view took getting used to, but I quickly got involved and interested in the story. The characters in the book are well-developed and the remembrances of the past are easily woven into the story in such a way that they don't interfere with keeping the present-day story on track. It is also a great love story between Venus and Gib, as well as a great read with the very interesting Arinelli sisters and even more interesting characters in the Cameron family. Definitely an enjoyable reading/romance adventure.