I have lost count of the number of times I've sat down with the book since the day I found it. Rarely do I have a goal in mind; instead, I simply open the book to a random page and start reading. Always, I find something interesting waiting for me on whatever page I select; often, I learn something new.

Briggs' scholarship is amazing, her research is exhaustive. Even the most fanatical of folklore enthusiasts would be hard pressed to find a character from British folklore missing from this work. (Briggs wrote in her preface that she originally planned to compile an encyclopedia of global folklore, "but to treat the fairies of the whole of Europe alone, even cursorily, would have been to produce a book ten times the size of this and founded on years of further research."

Certainly, Briggs treated British folklore with a thoroughness rarely seen in a milieu regarded by some as a children's fancy.

This book is nigh impossible to find, and an absolute necessity for anyone interested in Ireland, faeries, or folklore. Every page is bursting with myth and tradition, poetry and lore, much of it drawn from pre 19th century texts that give one a whole new perceptive on the Fair Folk (or the Gentry, or Themselves, or the Good Neighbours, and if you don't understand what I'm talking about get the book!) as seen from the point of view of those who have no doubt that they share their lands with a strange people. At the time of this review, I see that the current price of the book is $.... Please believe me: THIS IS WELL WORTH IT. I sought for ten years to find this book, paid fifty dollars from a used bookseller, and it has survived water-damage, three moves, and near constant perusal while losing none of its value or charm. This review is a plea: go to every bookseller, write to every publisher, and DEMAND this book be brought back into print.

I bought this book somewhere years ago and didn't look at it too hard. Every once in a while I'd pick it up and read about "Fairies" or "Hobgoblins" or "Brownies." I looked up "Tam Lin" after I read Pamela Dean's "Tam Lin." But it was only when I read "The Scarlet Letter" in my English class that I took a good look at this book. Some of the descriptions of Pearl--her elfish behavior, her red dress--and some other details reminded me of my Encyclopedia. So I started reading. It was hard going: there is no index. However, it was while browsing through the book that I found the most intriguing little tidbits of fairy lore.

When I informed my mother that I was using it as a major source for my English paper, she was skeptical--until she looked at the information at the front of the book. It's not a frivolous work. That is sometimes a problem--many quotations are in the original dialect or idiom, which can obscure the meaning.

This book is both interesting and useful.

This is a a delightful book to read while you're pregnant. It follows Danielle Steele and six of her friends during their pregnancies -- it's like seven separate stories compiled in one book. The moms were invited by Danielle Steele (the novelist) to participate in a prenatal exercise class -- the moms include Averil (a young, wildish New Yorker married to a doctor), Mary (owner of a skin care salon), Katherine (a bubbly, active, happy psychologist) Susan (a lawyer), Jan (a TV newswoman) and Diana (a practical mom married to an opthamologist). Some are first time moms; some are not. Some work outside the home; some do not. Some are nervous ninnies; others are not. Some had morning sickness and excessive weight gain and other problems; others breezed through the nine months. Each of the twenty-nine chapters in the book covers one aspect of pregnancy or childbearing (finding out, amniocentisis, sex, going home, postpartum depression, etc.) and has entries from each of the seven women about their experiences with respect to that topic. Reading this book is like talking with seven of your friends about their experiences during all aspects of pregnancy. It's not a scary book -- some of the women drank, smoked, didn't follow the prescribed prenatal diet regime -- and all of the babies turned out just fine, the moms were happy, and every single one of the seven was reassuring about how you WILL lose the baby weight (it seemed to come off a little too easily for some of the women). The best part -- the eight pages of pictures of the moms, their babies & their husbands.

This is a wonderful book for the first time mother. I found that I was referring to this book every time something new happend in my own pregnacy. It is a comfort as well as a joy to read. Its also great because there are things in this book that all your friends who have had babies fail to tell you. Its not the "pregnacy is scary" book. I really enjoyed the different writing styles as this is window into the life style of different womens pregnacy as well as creative ways to handle the stress of pregnacy.

This is a terrific book! The stories of these 7 women having their many babies gives the reader an idea of some of the different possibilities for pregnancies and how each birth is different - as well as that each baby is unique.
Great for every woman who is pregnant to show how there is a wide range of how it all can happen. I really enjoyed the writing style and all the stories. really worth reading

This substantial book is filled with rare, many never before seen black and white photos of decades of blues players, accompanied with an entertaining and informative text.

A great book for the blues fan, but readable enough for a newcomer to the genre. A must buy at an not unreasonable price, considering some slighter, less well researched and informative volumes.

Every once in awhile a book comes along that can virtually answer all your questions and at the same time incorporate stories on artists both obscure and well-known...that keeps you from putting it down [very difficult for a book that can be considered a reference work]. The pictures included alone are well worth the price of the book. Many of them rare and never seen before by many of the blues fans who would be interested in this work. If you are going to have one book in your home library on Blues....this is the one to have. Tom tkdp@castle.net

James Lange is a practicing lawyer (drunk driving and accident cases) and a former investigator. Katherine DeWitt is a writer and editor. They claim other writers on this topic lacked legal knowledge and knew nothing of forensic science (p.ix). The writers were jurors who applied common sense and general knowledge to a problem. The authors research led them to a theory previously buried.

Joe Kennedy Sr. was not a common bootlegger during Prohibition (p.3); he made another fortune by holding import licenses for Scotch whiskies. He had made several fortunes in banking, shipbuilding, and stock brokering earlier. Like some other bankers, he supported FDR in 1932 and was given the Ambassadorship to Great Britain. Kennedy's defeatist attitude killed his political career, but his sons were ready to be all they could be. Pages 6-8 summarize Ted Kennedy's life. Ted did well as a Senator; he was a team player. Like most Senators and Congressmen, he worked in his car while someone else drove. Ted relied on other people's talents (p.10). Chapter 2 tells of Mary Jo Kopechne. No one has ever proven any irregularities in her life (p.18). The July 1969 party was at Chappaquiddick so Teddy couldn't miss it (p.20). Mary Jo didn't feel well and asked Ted to drive her to her motel. Ted made a wrong turn and ended up on the wooden bridge.

After Ted returned to Hyannis Port he was examined by a doctor (p.47). The retrograde amnesia and current confusion was diagnosed as a concussion, acute cervical strain. Ted still walked around in a daze on Monday (p.51). Ted and Joan attended Mary Jo's funeral on Tuesday. On Friday Ted plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident. Ted's candidacy for a higher office was the other victim of this accident.

Chapter 5 discusses various theories about this event. Retrograde amnesia always occurs with a concussion, and explains anyone's loss of memory (p.73). Page 117 suggests they did not report the accident immediately because of Ted's confused mental state. A tearful, emotional Ted would have ended his career. This is as good a theory as any (p.123), and avoids multiplying suppositions. Chapter 7 discusses the rumors of Ted's guilt. There was nothing wrong with a closed inquest because Mass. always did it that way (p.159). This can prevent prejudicial pre-trial publicity. Pages 160-2 explain why Ted Kennedy did NOT "get away with it".

Ted Kennedy has continued to get re-elected Senator, but has no chance for higher office. This is described as due to a "flaw in judgment". Would a drunkard and adulterer make a good President? The authors imply "no" but the history books (or the present?) suggest at least a "maybe". They ask if Nixon deserved to be hounded out of office for a "third-rate burglary" (p.166)? Yes, if "Watergate" was a cover story for the attempted assassination of George Wallace.

Edgartown was the locale for filming "Jaws" in 1974. Did the Dyke Bridge appear in a background shot of the pond? Martha's Vineyard was in the news again in 1999 when JFK Jr, his wife, and sister-in-law perished in a plane crash. We later found out JFK Jr intended to get elected Senator of NY.

No one plumbs the deeps of faith more illuminatingly than John Henry Newman, and in these fifteen sermons he affirms the dignity of our state with an eloquence and conviction that place him in the very first rank of Catholic apologists.

Pounce, gentle reader.

This book is not only well written, it is full of great primary sources. I am doing doctoral work on Mary Magdalen and it has been very helpful in my research.

This is a charming book with wonderful illustrations! The frazzled tooth fairy and the whimsical tone of the child's letters are appealing to little ones.

I distinguish between people who love the Truth above all else, and those who love their opinions. Charles Fillmore belonged to the first category. He was willing to learn, to grow in his spiritual understanding, to adjust his views. He was often bold in his statements, but this boldness always stimulates his readers to re-think the traditional ideas, and his passion encourages us to move forward in our quest. I am sure that you will find that this book is a masterpiece.

Some ideas of Charles Fillmore in "Talks on Truth" are controversial and they are not shared by all of Unity students in our days, for instance, his teaching on "immortalism." However, let it not stop us from gaining valuable insights from his writings. I am confident that if Charles would be alive, he would object from making a dogma out of his books. He was a thinker and a student of Truth; and it is better for those who read him not to blindly accept his words, but to follow his attitude.

I was happy to translate this book into the Russian language and to publish it on the web.

I first read this book in high school and loved it! I own it and re-read it every once in a while. Mrs. Mike is a fascinating look at life in Canada so many years ago. I always like to know "what happened next" and I am wondering what happened. The last I read was that Katherine was a widow. What happened to Sergeant Mike? Did Katherine move back to Canada? Did their adopted children live until adulthood? Did Katherine have grandchildren? How long did she live?

I first got this book when I was in 7th grade over 25 years ago and have read it at least 8 times. After our cat used it to make a birthing bed I searched for it again until I found another. I recommend this book to any women young and old, I could read it over and over.

I read this book when I was in high school. I graduated 40 years ago. I have never forgotten the impact this book had on me. I truely fell in love with Katherine Mary and her adventures in the wilds of Canada. I have never read any other book that has such an impact on my self-worth. Thank you Benedicts for this wonderful book.

Nearly 40 years ago, as a 15 year old girl, I took this book from my parent's bookcase on a cold, Sunday in March. I held out little hope because it was my mother's book, but I was bored and had run out of library books. From the opening page I was enthralled. I read all afternoon and into the evening. The love story of Kathy and Mike appealed to my young, romantic heart. But as I moved into the middle of the book, I missed the romance and found it less exciting. Their married life was not as romantic as their courtship. I read it again twenty years later and saw a different book, one about a maturing marriage and the problems it faced. It seemed much more relevant as a 35 year old mother. I read it again a couple years ago and saw even more in the story; it became a much richer novel each time I read it.

This book was a wise purchase by my mother in 1947 for it has continued to live, and grow. As a girl it was a love story, 40 years later it is the portrait of a marriage. I found a copy in a used book, just like my mother's. I will read it again.

I am 13 years old. I just finished reading Mrs. Mike. My mother found the book at our public library and told me I should read it. I didn't bother to find out what it was about. You know how people always tell you not to judge a book by it's cover? That is exactly what I did. Since it was old and worn I expected it to be a book that I wouldn't find interesting, or very good. I was SO wrong! I have read many books and this is the VERY BEST book I have ever read. My mother told me that the book has stuck with her ever since she read it! I can see why. I couldn't stop reading it! It is a very well written book telling about a young Boston Girl, Katherine Mary O'Fallon and Sergent Mike Flannigan, a Canadian Mountie, who fall in love and start a new life in the Canadian Wilderness. There life is full of love, hardships, and friends you will never forget. I recemmend this book to anyone who can sit still long enough to read it!!

I literally can't remember when I read this book for the first time. What I do recall is how much I enjoyed it, although I certainly was too young to understand the romance between Katherine Mary O'Fallon of Boston and Sgt. Mike Flannigan of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. To me it was simply a grand adventure set in the Far North, with (always a plus!) a young woman protagonist.

I finished re-reading "Mrs. Mike" last night, and I know exactly why it's considered a classic. Everything I loved about it in my girlhood is still there, with the grand adventure even more powerful to my more realistic adult imagination - but now the rest of the story is accessible to me as well. And I can only say: Magnificent! Because this is that rare and wonderful thing, a love story about women and men as they really are. The stark realism of life as Kathy and Mike face it, in a land that's isolated, dangerous, and at times nightmarishly brutal, makes the happiness they find together shine all the more brightly. It also gives new meaning to the phrase "dearly bought." The same applies to the friendships Kathy finds with other women, each of whom is a memorable character in her own right.

I am so glad I visited these old friends again!