A very entertaining and well presented account of how to beat the system and actually enjoy travelling again in these days of full planes, overpriced hotels and second rate service. Some of the travel tips will save both seasoned travelers and novices money on their next trip! I have adopted some of the points mentioned and they work-I can't wait to try some of the others!

Finally, a book that speaks to the regular traveller. Dr Travel's often humorous and easy to read tips on all types of travel is entertaining and informative. I've already used some of his suggestions to make my last trip better. I also enoyed the illustrations and real life examples. I would recommend this book to anyone who travels

I am afraid to fly. I am afraid to travel outside my southern Illinois home town. This book helped me to understand the ups and downs of travel. The toll free phone numbers and web pages were a great help in planning the trip of a lifetime...to Hawaii. Thanks to Doctor Travel for his advice and counsel.

Dick Francis didn't save the best for last. I have read all the DF novels except Blood Sport, which I have ordered and expect it anyday. I have loved every single one, but Dead Cert is my favorite, although Bonecrack and Whip Hand are close favorites.

Dick Francis is an excellent author because he is a master at combining three elements into his novels. Horses:), danger and mystery, and romance. If anybody reading this reveiw has never read a DF novel, please do so, you won't regret it!

This is the first Dick Francis mystery and I like it the second best. I like "Nerve" slightly better, but only slightly. This "Dead Cert" contains several impressive scenes. The most impressive is the climax in which the star horse "Admiral" plays an unexpectedly spectacular role. It is definitely THE MOST SPECTACULAR scene in ALL Francis mysteries. Highly Recommended.

In yet another gripping story of mystery, murder and British steeplechasing, Dick Francis continues his amazing streak of hit novels.

His real appeal is not racing or mystery however, it is his ability to create characters who are admirable, honorable and self-reliant. If you're looking for troubled, self-loathers who "somehow" overcome their weakness and become unwilling and unwitting heroes, don't look here. Francis' heroes revel in their abilities to withstand evil, overcome it, and end up smiling in spite of it all.

Kudos once again for Dick Francis and Dead Cert!

Equinox Zero is another full-speed, balls to the wall, no-holds barred adventure novel. It has all the elements which has made this series so entertaining for so many years. First and foremost there's the return of a villian who last we saw had fallen off a cliff in Asia, way back in Iceblood.

It's Grigori Zakat, the ruthless Russian mystic whose religious cult worshiped the mummified penis of Rasputin (I can't think of too many bad guys with that kind of bizarre wrinkle in their backgrounds).

He's pretty angry at Kane, but his mission isn't just about revenge--he's making a bid to take over Ultima Thule, the lost land of Norse gods and become a version of Odin! Unlike Sindri who is an idealist bent on world conquest as a means to to an end, Zakat's ambition to trigger another ice age is the end to itself. The way he's portrayed makes the reader believe he could really pull off his mad dream.

The lost civilization novels in Outlanders are always my favorite and Equinox Zero might be the best using this theme. The civilization of super-Vikings under the Antarctic is very vivid and colorful. I particularly liked the warrior women, the Valkyries.

I also loved the opening chapters set on the Outlanders version of Jurrasic Park, Thunder Isle. There Kane and Domi are engaged in a dinosaur hunt, trying to end the threat of a tyrannosaur that Kane has nicknamed Monstrodamus. The hunt goes really bad but in the process we see a glimpse of a potential Kane/Domi relationship...particularly after she falls into what is a dinosaur latrine!!

As usual for Outlanders, it's the three dimensioanal characterizations that make this book so entertaining. Every book is almost like a visit with old friends now, finding out what they've been up to and what's been happening in their lives. All of the characters are in fine form, each one contributing a full share even the new ones from the Moon base. We also learn more about how the Imperator restored Lakesh's youth and find out it may not be the miracle he tried to convince himself it was. Grant also has some distressing news for his friends in Cerberus.

My only complaint with the book is that Shizuka has only a minor role. Her first appearance, way back in Doom Dynasty was a case of love at first sight.

This is a tight, fast-paced adventure story with plenty of action, exciting twists and unexpected turns. The lost land of Ultima Thule is a great concept, too. Equinox Zero is a solid five stars

In this latest installment of Outlanders, only the awesomely talented writer Mark Ellis can give you dinosaurs, vikings, and a renegade Russian in just one novel!
This was definately worth every sacred nuke penny I spent on this exciting and breathtaking book. This author always succeeds in one level or another to keep this series going strong with subtle changes that only seem to enhance future books to come.
Where DEATHLANDS is failing miserably (unfortunately) OUTLANDERS delivers in spades with each and every successful novel poring out of this highly talented writer.
Kane and Domi start this novel right off while hunting an unusual old foe - Monstrodamus! A dinosaur that Kane had briefly fought on Thunder Isle in a previous book.
The action is hot and furious and the characterizations of the leads characters keep you up to the wee hours of the morning, not wanting to put this book down.
From the hot jungles of Thunder Isle, to the freezing colds of Antarctica, where vikings out of legend emerge, the excitement never stops in EQUINOX ZERO!
I just can't wait for the next one. This is by far the very best in sci-fi/fantasy action/adventure entertainment out there today.
Hollywood needs to open their eyes to this series - it would be a mega-hit the likes of which they have never seen!

I always wondered by Grigori Zakat never returned after his first appearance in Iceblood, considering the obvious effort involved in creating him.. Now the twisted Russian priest is back to bedevil the Cerberus warriors as they learn Zakat's ultimate goal is to trigger a another ice age and unite the survivors under his rule, his edicts enforced by Norse warriors from the lost land of Ultima Thule!

The set-up for Equinox Zero is terrific, featuring a Kane and Domi team-up on another "Lost World", Thunder Isle which is populated by all sorts of creatures pulled from different epochs of time. I think this element of the Outlanders saga is wonderful, offering many story springboards.

The scenes of Zakat's piracy with the Thulians are exciting. A standout sequence is a sea battle between Zakat's forces and a trading ship from New Edo, which tips off the Cerberus warriors that their old foe is back. Grant's anger directed toward Kane when he learns this is very realistic .

The exotic scenes in the timeless world of Ultima Thule are extremely well- wrought. Mark Ellis portrays the city from the days of ancient Norse mythology with colorful splendor,

There are a lot of high points in this novel: a great villain, excellent characterizations, a fast-paced plot, and incredibly exciting action sequences. Add them together and you have a superior Outlanders novel on every level. A must-read!.

This is, by far, the finest Bible I've ever had the awesome opportunity to hold in my hands and heart! It is a "door-opener" for all those who NEED to READ the Bible, but who balk at being given one, saying, "I can't understand all those begats and that old language."

I simply hand this God-Blessed Bible to someone, and say, "What do you want to read about? Family? Prophecy? Satan? Just look at the bookmark, and thumb through this Bible until you find verses that are the COLOR you are looking for! It's THAT easy!" They are ALWAYS amazed! I have no idea how many copies of this Bible I have given away in the past 10 years, nor do I know how many more I will gift others with. PLEASE never let this one go out of print; people NEED it too much!

As a 52 year old female, I have never been very good at remembering dates and names and places. This study bible has been exactly what I needed to enable me to remember more of God's word. The Rainbow edition's color code seems to make things stand out and become more personal to me. Thank you for making it easier to study and read this book of God's words to us.

Over my 40 decades of life I have seen & owned several Bibles. This one is definitely the best. It color codes every topic and makes it so easy to find what you're looking for. My favorite part is the "overview" before the chapters. It lets you know all the pertinent details of the section you are about to read. It also puts the maps right on the page where you need to use them. I highly recommend it!!

A 50,000 year old Astronaut found dead on the moon? Hogan makes the story and the science understandable and plausable. One of the best Hard Sci-Fi books I've ever read!

My 6th grade homeroom teacher, Mr. Ed Silcox, opened my eyes and changed the way I saw the world and science by recommending this book in a "book show-and-tell" session. Believing that anything that Mr. Silcox recommended *had* to be pretty good, I ran out and bought it and never looked back! This is the single best science fiction book I have ever read -- I cannot give it better praise. Like a good mystery, you'll never guess what plot twist is coming around the next corner and like a good puzzle, each piece builds upon the last one. You'll want to read this again after you're done.

This is real science put into a narrative format - if you've never been into science before, you'll see it in a new light. For you science buffs out there, this is what you've been waiting for - smart, educated people doing exciting things with their minds, not lazer guns and rocket ships!

The sequels are also very good -- let's just say at the end of Inherit the Stars, there's still a lot to be learned about the mystery astronaut from the moon!

Thank you, Mr. Silcox!

It's been more than 20 years since I first read Inherit the Stars, and yet I still rank this book #1 of all my favourite SF books. Like other reviewers have already mentioned, how do you possibly explain a 50,000 year old corpse on the moon? Hogan spins an interesting and believable tale and the result is a page turner you can't put down. Three sequels followed this novel, and although all enjoyable reads, they can't match the freshness and originality of this hard SF classic. Read Inherit the Stars - you won't be disappointed.

The study helps and insights were very enlightening. The articles of life in times were informative and educational in today's understanding. In each book of the bible there was something extremely interesting which I had never read or heard of before. I love the Word in Life Bible.

I really have found the book very easy to read and understand. for a begainner the person would find it understandable. the book is a good source of information.

This is probably the best study Bible I've ever read. It has so much help for anyone seeking the truth of what the Bible is all about. It opens windows to understanding the Bible and completely erases any difficulty or dryness. The Bible has come alive for me and I understand so much more because of this Study Bible. It's awesome and well worth every penny. The definitions, maps, comments and helps in understanding how it relates to me and my life are life changing for me. The Bible has now become more than just my favorite book, it has become life giving and teaches me daily how to live for Christ and remain faithful to His Word.

This was an awesome book!! There were so many dilemma's. At the end Lucas seems like he is fighting for his life. Why? You'll just have to read the book but, I can tell you this much, you won't regret reading it (unless you haven't read the other 6). Katherine Applegate did an excellent job with this series. There are so many cliff hangers. I really suggest you read this series.

I Just Love Applegate. She is the best and the Making Out series is too awesome. I can't wiat to get the newest book. But they come out monthly and my friends in England are up to like thirty something. That is so unfair! In this book I can't wait to see what happens to Zoey and Lucas And Jake and Claire. I just hope that Claire doesn't get with Lucas it just wouldn't be fair for Claire to get him AGAIN!!! I just hope that Christopher also realizes that its wrong to get revenge no matter how sweet and everything works out for Zoey's parents. The only person who has their head on their shoulders is Benjamin and I'm starting to wonder what'll happen to him. E-mail me and we can discuss the upcoming books.

I love the making out series and Ben's in love is my fave. but this is my second fave. Since Zoey's parents are getting a divorce and have a half sister things are confusing for her. but something happens between lucas and claire which i wasn't expecting. I think Nina and Benjamin make the cutest couple and i recommend Lucas gets hurt. I can't wait for the next book Aisha gets wild.

I borrowed this book from a friend at Airborne School this past May, and tore through it in about three days. What a great read! It's so entertaining and gripping, I kept checking the inside flap of the book to make sure it wasn't fiction.

More than just a war story, this is more or less a biography of James Parker. Since the Vietnam conflict was so lengthy and controversial, it's worthwhile to see how it affected his life after James left combat. This is a guy who saw it all: he hit the beach in knee deep water in the early years, and was one of the last CIA guys to leave the island nation years after the U.S. had abandoned the country militarily.

The best features of this book are James' crystal clear recollections of his war buddies and his involvment in the CIA effort. What other book out there has a detailed personal account of the positively heroic efforts of the secret combat operations after the Army left? Also excellent is James' tense telling of a huge operation to lure the VC into attacking a dummy convoy.

This is a man who has done it all. If you're interested in the Vietnam War, this is requred reading.

Last Man Out: A Personal Account of the Vietnam War by James E. Parker, Jr. is the best book I've read in a long time. If this author didn't have a tape recorder or a diary that he wrote in everyday then I have to say he has a most remarkable memory. James takes the reader back to his home in North Carolina and introduces his family and friends. He continues as he makes the decision to enlist in the Army at a time when others were already doing everything they could to avoid serving their country. The reader goes through Basic Training with James and his buddies at Fort Gordon, Georgia in February 1964. Two months later after being named "Outstanding Trainee" James reiterates some of his time while at his Advanced Infantry Training. You are there when he signs up for Officer Candidate School and while he waited to be selected. You go through that six-month course with him too beginning in November at Fort Benning, Georgia. Upon graduation James goes to Jump School. From there the book gets even better. James first Permanent Party duty station was at Fort Riley, Kansas with the 1st Infantry Division. Then through his Tour of Duty in Vietnam. James told about an encounter with General William Westmoreland following a mission. The general flew in to review the troops, present medals and then was gone. It was a mere media event. When the general departed, another officer walked the line and took back the medals. After Nam James next assignment took him to Fort Ord in Monterey, California. He became the Officer-in-Charge of the 6th Army Area Drill Sergeant School. It was a great assignment. BUT James was thinking about leaving the Army but he "felt guilty about forsaking my duty, abandoning my obligation to country at a time of war." Unable to find a job that suited him he applied for and was accepted as a member of the Central Intelligence Agency. By September 1971 James was headed back to Southeast Asia "as a case officer in the Lao program, the CIA's largest covert operation." James was involved with several operations before heading stateside in 1973. He spoke openly about them. By January 1975 James was the only American left in Vi Thanh province. At that point he secured himself a "bodyguard." James wrote of the fall of Ban Me Thout, Hue, Da Nang, and Saigon. He took part in the evacuation of the Vietnamese who worked as agents for the CIA. He spoke of the problems encountered onboard the USS Vancouver and the transfer to the USNS Pioneer Contender. James Parker Jr. wrote an incredible account of his military and civilian service to our country and the people of South Vietnam. It is a book well worth reading. I'm glad I had the opportunity to meet the author in person in 1998. AND I'm glad I took the time to read his book. You will be also.

If my son were to enter the service, I would require him to read Mr Parker's book. The details of how to survive Army life are staight forward and important. I found the book easy and enjoyable to read. Could not put it down. As with any super book, I often found myself looking at the number of pages left to read-the more the merrier. Mr. Parker has truely made something of himself and the people of the United States have reaped the benefits. Thank you Mr. Parker.

This book was a good book for children to read and enjoy. It was not to long and was easy for me to understand. In the story, a Princess named Lenore was sick. Her dad told her that anything she wanted, he would get her. She told him that if she could have the moon, she would be better. Her dad, the King, told his wise men what she wanted. They didn't know how to get it or even if they could get it for him. If you read this story, you will find out exactly what happened.
Brandon M.

This delightful Caldecott Medal winner is classic James Thurber and as such is filled with sweet humorous prose with a witty little message. Louis Slobodkin's simple yet evocative ink and water color illustrations help bring the story to life. When a little princess is ill her father, the king, is worried and is willing to get her anything her heart desires if only she will get well. When the princess decides she wants the moon she sets off a chain reaction of worries for the wisemen of the court as well as for the king. All of the best minds of the kingdom are dismayed when they cannot come up with a way to get the moon for the princess. Their final analysis: IMPOSSIBLE! The court Jester gets to the heart of the problem and with the help of the princess and the wisdom of childhood, not only presents the princess with her heart's desire but can explain why the moon still appears up in the sky. Don't miss this lovely book. It's a great tucker-inner and is as fun to read aloud as it is to hear it read.

The story with a surfeit of delectable images and colorful characters is every child's delight. What adds to the reading pleasure is the curiosity generated by the improbable demand of the young Princess. The young reader is captivated with mounting anticipation as the Court Jester works out the solutions to the problems-twice in the story, while the wise men of the court eat humble pie.

While amusing the grown-ups for the same reasons the story also throws up many interesting points for them to mull over. Here are some of them:

To start with, young children will always come up with unattainable demands, and the parents-doting or otherwise-would do well not to dismiss them offhand. The King chased the impossible dream of his ailing daughter and came out successful.

Next, the story shows that people in power are often prisoners of their own rigid patterns of thinking and doing things. If they must come anything near to solving problems they have to break the shackles of convention. The Lord High Chamberlain was trapped in the web of his bureaucratic achievements and the Royal Mathematician could not think beyond his complex rules of calculation. They, unlike the Jester, did not leave any space in their minds for new ideas to sneak in.

The story tells us to use the perspective of a child, at times, for a change. Innocent and uncluttered minds may throw up fresh ideas, which are often blocked by our mindsets and in-depth knowledge. Only when the Jester decided to look at the problem with the eyes of the Princess did he find that the answers lay in the child herself. Creativity must be nurtured in a mind that is a fresh green pasture. This story has a very good lesson in divergent thinking and would make great reading in the creativity and problem solving courses.

It has a great stress-busting lesson too. We worry most of the time for causes, which do not exist. The King fretted about the unpleasant consequences when the Princess would look at the sky, but did the real moon bother the Princess at all?

I have spent hours since this book arrived last week just trying to decide which dishes to make first. I ended up making a "Southern" dinner for my Wisconsin mate using the Calabash Cole Slaw and "Brown Paper Bag" BBQ Chicken (I used a Reynolds Hot Bag, thank you!) from this book and Cheddar Cheese Grits from Martha Phelps Stamps' "New Southern Basics" (ISBN # 1581822413 -- another excellent Southern cookbook). It was a big hit and nothing was wasted (next day: grits with breakfast, cole slaw and chicken for lunch!).

As a bonus you get the story behind many of the recipes and running commentary from Villas' mother on many of the recipes. It is clearly a give-and-take mother and son relationship when he says his mother drives him crazy over this or that ingredient and she implies that his version of the family recipe is a little "uppity". She says Jimmy makes his hush puppies with yellow corn meal, but she prefers white. It is both bitchy and sweet at the same time!

I already have my next meal planned from this wonderful book and can recommend it for the cole slaw and BBQ chicken recipes alone - not to mention the lively stories and commentary. Enjoy.

This is the cookbook I can pull out and count on to produce a wonderful dish every single time. I haven't come across a dud yet. Martha Pearl is delightful (and yes I AM hinting for a dinner invitation) and so are her recipes. The macaroni and cheese is a family favorite that already has stains on the page because I make it so often. The pecan coffee cake is another recipe I have made many times and always get compliments on. I live near Charlotte and keep hoping to run into Jimmy and Martha Pearl picking over the Silver Queen corn at the farmer's market. I would unabashedly tell her what a devoted fan she has made of this transplanted Yankee.

Martha Pearl is a spunky wonderful character. More than that, she is a wonderful Southern cook. Her son,James, shares her sense of humor and love of cooking. I adore the way she puts him in his place when he wants to "fuss" with her recipes. I am almost through with the entire cookbook. I have laughed and underlined and referenced. It is a great, wonderful read. Knowing recipes as I do, I can tell you that you can trust this book to give you great food. Don't wait. Don't even put this on your wish list. It's a keeper. Yum