The "Cornerstones of Freedom" series does an excellent job of providing in depth information about historical events for students in upper elementary or junior high school. "Valley Forge" starts with the American Army avoiding barely avoiding being annihilated at the Battle of Brandywine. In the brutal winter of 1777 the colonial army limped into Valley Forge a disorganized and low on supplies and morale. The two things R. Conrad Stein's book focuses on are the severe conditions the troops faced and how they were transformed into a more professional fighting force. Students will learn about not only the leadership shown by commanding general George Washington, but also the efforts by Nathanael Greene to provide better equipment and Baron Friedrich von Steuben to drill the troops in marching and shooting. The improvement was seen the following year at the Battle of Monmouth. This book is filled with paintings and etchings from the 18th and 19th centuries along with contemporary photographs of the National Park. One of the strengths of this book is that Stein often uses quotations from the ordinary soldiers and military leaders of the American army to flesh out the narrative. I found these quite effective in giving young readers a better sense of what things were like at Valley Forge.

As a genetics student, I found it incredibly interesting to look at historical figures and figure out why or why not they may have had a particular genetic disease. I think this book would be interesting for anyone who may want to learn more about genetic diseases because it makes it much more interesting knowing who these people are that the diseases may relate to. Robert Marion ties together historical, genetic, and social perspectives. He brings up speculative points such as how the person and the world might have been different if the historical figure had not had the disease, how the disease made them become that historical figure. It's a book that keeps you hooked like a mystery novel and is not too technical for anyone to read.

This lovely book, full beatiful photographs is a must for any one interested in American history and garden history in general. In fact it gives us Americans a garden history (slavery excluded) to be as proud of as the British are of theirs.
Lots of well researched interesting facts, useful advice, historical insight and pretty pictures make this book thoroughly enjoyable and I recomend it highly.

Lovely photos of some common and some uncommon areas of the city, and the printer seemed to care about quality!

What my (now 6 yo) daughter likes is a good story. She can learn anything if there is some dramatic action involved. This story of George Washington Carver's life is just the right length for a young student (kinder to 4th grade). It starts with the drama of the baby GWC being kidnapped and returned. The illustrations are bold and capture the flavor of the text. It's everything you want in a child's book, educational, morally inspiring, and yet a truly good to read story.

A charming glimpse of 18th century Mount Vernon through the eyes of a fictitious cat named Liberty. Captivating for children and adults.

Ferrie creates a refreshing, approachable, and exciting vehicle for examining the events and issues around the Battle of Yorktown. Unencumbered by patriotic propoganda, extremely well researched - reveals the issues and life as it truly was for those involved (on both sides and at all levels) in the struggle for American freedom. Highly recommended for elementary school and up!

This biography of the U.S.'s father figure was very informative, and gives equal attention to the important points of Washington's life. Flexner did a good job of highlighting the key parts of Washington's career: his war-time service, and his activities as President. This book does pass fairly quickly through Washington's childhood and adolescence, which I wished to have learned more about, but it is a 1 volume summation, so that should be expected. The author was very fair and objective in this book. While he sees Washington as having been an average, if not below average, soldier, Flexner does show Washington to have excelled in other areas such as leadership and management which became very critical to his success as President. So for anyone looking for a reasonably quick cover of Washington's public career, with a shorter background of his private life, I definitely recommend this book.

This book is the best one-volume biography of Washington I have found. As the title hints, Flexner takes the approach that Washington was an indispensible figure in the period leading up to and through the Revolutionary War, as well as the drafting and ratification of the Constitution and the formation of the first truly republican government. He makes a pretty good argument! This book gave me a much better appreciation of how remarkable Washington was to willingly and conscientiously refuse to assume the autocratic powers that were surely his for the taking, thus setting the precedent for the remarkably peaceful and unopposed transfer of leadership that is the hallmark of the US government to this day (recent presidential elections notwithstanding). If you really want to plumb the depths of Washington's life and career, read the entire multivolume biography by Flexner (from which this book was condensed). If you want a single-volume biography of the "Father of His Country" (who, ironically, was sterile as a matter of fact), you will not be disappointed with this volume--although I would not put it in the David McCullough class of presidential biographies (which is a small class indeed).

Several years ago, I spent Thanksgiving with the parents of a friend of mine and started reading this book based on their reccomendation. Well, this book so inspired me, I've continued with biographies of most of our Founding Fathers(including Flexner's "Young Hamilton") as well as the other Presidents and into the Civil War. James Thomas Flexner brings to life a man whom I only knew as the first President, the guy on the dollar bill, and yes, the one who chopped down the cherry tree. My perspective on American history and the man responsible for such a great piece of our history was completely changed by this book. It reads like a novel, though I admit was a bit rough getting started. Once in, however, I was hooked. This biography takes you through Washington's early years as a child, his courtship struggles and life as a surveyor: then, we travel with our hero through the Revolutionary War, the precarious aftermath and his tenure as the first President of the newly founded nation. Flexner shows us that much of this was, for Washington, a struggle indeed, and he seems very much the reluctant hero, whose journey is destined for greatness in spite of himself and the enormous odds against him. It is an epic journey masterfully navigated by Flexner. This biography is worthy of it's subject. If you are an American, read it.

Have you ever heard of the Headless Horseman? Have you ever heard the stories about him and how he attacks people in the woods? Have you ever wondered whether or not the story is real?

Find out for yourself by reading Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I enjoyed reading this book and i think anyone who has a liking for mysterious legends and superstitions should read this book beacause of the interesting legend the town believes in. There are few characters to keep track of and the story is not hard to follow. The book is long but the reading goes quickly.

The story is set in the late 18th century in a town in New York called Sleepy Hollow. The town believes in a legend of a headless horseman who rides through the woods at night anf attacks people. The main character is a man named Ichabod Crane who is a schoolteacher from Connecticut. He moves to Sleepy Hollow in search of work and ends up going from home to home working as a tutor. One of his students is 18 year old Katrina Van Tassel who comes from a wealthy family. Ichabod gets the idea that he will try to marry Katrina in order to obtain the family's wealth. However, Katrina's boyrfriend Abraham "Brom Bones" Brut has other plans for Ichabod. As the tension rises, Ichabod continues trying to win Katrina until a breathtaking surprise appearance by the town's legend creates as mysterious an ending as they come.

The book has many strengths and few weaknesses. The author manages to create a mood in the book that keeps you always on th edge of your seat waiting for the legend of the Headless Horseman to come into play. The story is simple and easy to follow but is still very interesting. The characters are developed well and have personalities that you can understand and relate to. One such character is Brom Bones who is easily seen as an arrogant egotist. The only weakness of the book was one based on my personal opinion. The end of the story leaves too much to be concluded for my liking.

All in all, this book was a great story. The author wrote the characters in such a way that you had definite feelings towards each one of them. Also, the story line was definitely not without surprise. But if you want to discover what surprises I am talking about then I suggest you read The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

Will Moses' illustrated retelling of Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow rivals Arthur Rackham's near century-old version as the best edition of the book ever published. The Rackham version, with its moody, archetypal illustrations, has the slight edge, as it contains Irving's full original text in addition to Rackham's spectacular artwork.

However, Moses's simplification of the narrative is masterfully executed, and the colorful, playful, and numerous paintings which adorn the book have a warm period charm of genuine Americana. Moses portrays the Hudson River Valley as a lush expansive valley not unlike the Garden of Eden on the first day of creation. Happy farmers, their wives and children, cows, geese, ducks and pigs frolic together amid fields of wheat and corn; galleons approach dramatically from the river; and the Catskill Mountains, sun, and sky suggested an infinite panorama and endless horizon full of promise.

The story tells us that the Dutch colonists were a superstitious lot, and that the Sleepy Hollow region itself was or seemed to be under a spell of some kind. The farmers and their wives suspected witchcraft; strange music was heard in the air; visions were seen; and the inhabitants themselves lived their lives in a kind of continuous dreamy revery. These tales and superstitions give rise to the legend of the headless horseman, said to be the ghost of a Hessian soldier who lost his head to a canon ball in the war, and now nightly prowling the region in search of it. Moses' nocturnal landscapes of the swamps, hills and the Old Dutch Cemetery under a bright harvest moon are particularly effective. Significantly, these stark, haunted landscapes do not violate the spirit of the book, but enrich its sense of wonder.

Moses' Ichabod is a cheerful but somewhat hapless fellow, confident and foolish in equal parts. His Katrina is a strong but innocent blond beauty, and a friend to children. Brom Bones is an appropriately square-shouldered, square-jawed hooligan, rowdy and full of mischief, if not absolute spite.

Anyone familiar with the tale knows that it is not a horror story but a folktale, a fireside spook story, and a 'legend' as Irving, writing here as Diedrich Knickerbocker, himself called it. This edition of the book is appropriate for children but is equally suitable for adults. Highly recommended.

"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle" brings together these two classic stories by Washington Irving. The text of this Dover Children's Thrift Classic is accompanied by the whimsical illustrations of Thea Kliros. Both tales are set in the Dutch-American communities of rural New York State.

"Legend" tells the story of Ichabod Crane, a schoolteacher who lives in an area purportedly haunted by a terrifying spectre: a headless horseman. "Rip" tells the story of a farmer who has a remarkable paranormal experience while wandering in the mountains.

Each story explores the intersection of the supernatural with everyday life. The stories are full of vividly drawn characters and are rich with the local color of rural Dutch American communities. Issues such as folk beliefs, geography, history and oral tradition are well handled by Irving.

Irving's playful, earthy prose style is a delight to read. Passages such as a description of a Dutch-American feast are memorable. Funny, ironic, and poignant, these tales are true classics by one of the most enduring figures in American literature.

"Right As Rain" introduces private investigator Derek Strange, a middle-aged black ex-cop hired to investigate the death of young black cop Chris Wilson at the hands of young white cop Terry Quinn. The story takes place in the racially divided inner-city neighborhoods of Washington, DC, and the author places racial issues front and center throughout, adding to the tension inherent in encounters among characters existing on the fringes of society. The Washington streetscape is described in such detail that I feel like I would recognize every city block were I to find myself in Strange's neighborhood. It's not an idealized capital city but rather one in which vibrant ungentrified neighborhoods give way to filthy ruins dominated by the drug trade. The story is told in tough, spare prose, and even the good guys are men of action, not introspection. They place great importance on musical tastes, but otherwise are more likely to express their feelings by hitting someone, taking a drink, or visiting a prostitute. In the course of the investigation, Strange and Quinn develop a tentative friendship across generational and racial lines, and much of the book involves their negotiating boundaries of trust. Which leads to my complaint - there is an awful lot of driving around listening to music relative to the amount of plot and character development. Perhaps future installments, in which Strange and Quinn's relationship will already have been established, will have more real story.

Right as Rain is gritty social realism at its best. Pelecanos works against the straight-jacket of the detective genre to bring us a novel that is equal parts detective novel, social commentary, and roller coast ride entertainment. In the end, it's easiest just to call Right as Rain a detective novel, but it could just as well fit on the literary or mainstream book shelf inside a bookstore. It is that good!

One honest word of caution to anyone who may be reading this review trying to make up her mind whether or not to buy or read Right as Rain -- it is a very "male" novel. It is macho. It is violent and gritty in its depiction of drugs and drug use, and women take subordinate roles to men. If you want great women characters go read Jane Austen, if you want a shotgun and Sharmba Mitchell, Pelecanos is your man.

Right as Rain is the story of private detective Derek Strange and former cop Terry Quinn's first meeting and first work together. Quinn has been forced into retirement for shooting and killing a plain-clothed black cop (Chris Wilson) in a morally compromised situation, and the story is primarily about his ability to redeem himself. The race issue is described in multi-textured layers where honesty proves the better line to walk than PC social convention.

Both Quinn and Strange have mature issues to work through. For Strange, he must decide how much to commit to a role as father and husband, while working the thankless streets of D.C. And at the center of their work is the lost junkie sister (Sondra Wilson) of the cop Quinn killed. She may hold the answers to why Wilson was going ballistic on a slimeball kid named Ricky Kane, which drew Quinn into pulling his gun in the first place.

All of this makes Right as Rain sound like a heavily weighted character novel, and while the characters are heavy the novel itself never gets weighted down. Pelecanos's pacing is about as good as any writer writing today, regardless of genre. You get the sense that he just writes each chapter on the fly, and when done well this makes for the best kind of novel -- one with a pulse, man. One with a very strong pulse.

I highly recommend Right as Rain to ...anyone who likes really good fiction. I'd also suggest checking out "Shame the Devil," a novel who's opening twenty-five pages may be the best opening twenty-five pages I've ever read. Pelecanos doesn't mince words. When he gets into writing a novel, it's the fiction equivalent of Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali. The fight is for truth, justice and moral redemption, and the result is an undisputed knockout!

Stacey...

Oddly, no one from DC has thrown in their 2 cents on the latest Pelecanos book, so I guess I'll give it a shot. I've lived in DC for 20 years, my family is from here, and Pelecanos is only the second author I've come across who writes about the DC that I know and recognize (the other Edward Jones, check out his story collection "Lost in the City" if you can find it). In this new book, he steps away from his established characters Nick Stefanos and Dmitri Karras, and launches a new duo, black, middle-aged PI Derek Strange, and younger, white ex-cop Terry Quinn. Through them, and the story of Chris Wilson, an off-duty black cop shot by Quinn, Pelecanos displays the racial awkwardness and tension that pervades Washington, D.C. The central message of the book is that everyone, regardless of race, carries preconceptions with them about other groups. That doesn't make them racist-that term is reserved for those who carry hatred in their hearts.

Strange is hired to investigate the shooting of her son, Chris Wilson, leading him to Quinn, who works in a little used bookstore in Silver Spring (Like all the locations in the book, the store really exists, it's a few blocks from my office and I sometimes swing by on my lunch break). The two men fall into an uneasy partnership as this discover more about he events that led to Quinn's killing of Wilson. They make an engagingly effective odd couple as they verbally spar with one another about race, underneath their respective flaws, they're good men. At the same time, both men are struggling to make relationships work, Strange with his divorcee secretary, and Quinn with a Latina student/waitress. As with most of Pelecanos's men, they often make selfish or simply clumsy moves in looking for love. And like most of those same guys, they have well-defined tastes in music, cars, movies, and books.

Following the tone of Pelecanos's previous work, what is gradually revealed is a sordid tale of drugs and corruption, with some powerful drug pushers, and a few violent rednecks. All this unfolds in a world instantly recognizable to Washington natives, where drug dealers work in the open, neighborhoods revolve around local restaurants, and corruption has spread to even the upscale oases (the well-known high-end restaurant Red Sage being one example). As we have come to expect from Pelecanos, everything comes together in a cinematic violent climax offering some attempt at justice. If you've read and enjoyed previous books of his, you're likely to enjoy this one as well. It's got two great new characters, and is a bit more explicit in examining racism, but is otherwise very much in keeping with his previous work.