Why We Stay Together is a collection of essays and poetry and fiction about the critical moments--turning points--in a marriage. The pieces vary in style and genre, but they are all thoughtful, honest explorations of the travails and rewards of marriage--without sugar coating. Highlights are John Bayley's haunting excerpt from Elegy for Irish, Louis Auchincloss's "Anniversary," and Cheryl Jarvis's piece about her experiment with a "marriage sabbatical" -- a break from being a wife & mother. A few of the pieces are over-exposed and predictable selections (O. Henry's "Gift of the Magi"), but overall it's a carefully chosen anthology, fun-to-read anthology.

Every submission isn't the most interesting thing in the world -- but there were a few things I've read that have absolutely changed certain behavior in me for the best. This is why people read things like this anyway -- to affect behavior. I've read so many books over the years. This is one to keep -- and to find the particular sentences that makes you reflect and ponder.

EXPLORE adds 18 well-selected tales of adventure to the Adrenaline series. They blend of humor, like Tim Cahill's Peruvian expedition with two eccentric companions; dangerous adventure, including A.N. de Vaca's exploration of America in the early 1500's; and more scholarly accounts, such as David Roberts' search for lost cliff dwellings in New Mexico. The best feature of this book, and the series as a whole, is that it exposes us to writings that we would otherwise never see. Ms Schwamm has cast her net widely and hauled in four centuries of engaging exploration stories. Some are excerpted from works out of print, but the bibliography makes it possible to track these books down if you must hear the rest of the story. So why only four stars? As a collector of the entire series, I find this volume less spine-tingling than the rest, with fewer stories of death-defying danger, which is okay - not all exploration involves a struggle to survive if you go about it properly. If you like National Geographic and the Discovery Channel, this is a book for you.

I love wizards, be they the unusual, young ones or the old gray-bearded Gandalf/Merlin types. But I and many others Iove wizards. As the title suggests, this is a collection of some of the best wizard stories out there, by some of the best writers of fantasy ever, including but not limited to: Jane Yolen, Ursula Le Guin, T.H. White, C.S. Lewis, George MacDonald, and so on.

Much of this material is excerpted from other books, such as Le Guin's story ("Wizard of Earthsea"), George MacDonald's ("At the Back of the North Wind") and several others. While readers may have heard of some of the books ("Wizard of Earthsea," "Wizard's Hall," the Narnia Books) this is a good introduction to other works by older authors, like T.H. White's excerpt from "Once and Future King," Phillippa Pearce, George MacDonald (who died before Tolkien!), Beowulf (the one excerpt that may be beyond the average 9-12 reader); and a few of those who are simply obscure like Mark Helprin and Nikolai Gogol. (Not all the excerpts are from wizard-related books, tho)

On a non-reading level, this book is beautifully bound with a gorgeous cover, though a little pricey for a paperback, in my humble opinion. Nevertheless, if you are not acquainted with some or all of the authors inside and/or are looking for good wizard stories, look no further. It's a good way to kick off your fantasy reading.