I started reading Mary J. Holmes books because she was one of my grandmother's favorite writers. An extremely prolific and popular romance novelist from the mid- to late- eighteen hundreds, her books are warm melodramatic love stories full of charming period details. Although never classed as literature, as such, I find her writing consistently compelling and readable. To curl up under a warm quilt with one of her books remains one of my key anti-depressants.

The Abandoned Farm tells the story of a mistaken inheritance, and an old wrong. A spirited young lady goes undercover as a serving girl in what properly should be her family home. She finds more than she expects in the young master of the house.

Connie's Mistake is the stronger story, and details the dark secret that keeps Connie from being able to marry her childhood sweetheart Kenneth. Some of Holmes' favorite themes-- indulgence in alcohol leading to dissipation and death, pure love, and mistaken identities.

This book is very well done and easy to use as a reference guide. It has extensive collections of planters, banks and cookie jars as well as other ware produced by the American Bisque Pottery. The history of the pottery was extensively researched and really interesting. The photography is just fabulous and there are some very rare pieces shown here. In my opinion, having collected cookie jars for over 20 years, I think this book is a "must have" in your research library. If you're like me, you will enjoy looking at it over and over just for the pleasure of it, but it will also help you put together an awesome collection of your own and prevent you from mistaking reproductions for the real thing. In today's world that could save you a bundle! I recommend this book very highly.

Read this book and you'll easily be able to pass any college history test. Its only about 200 pages long!!! Its the Cliff's Notes of history!!!!

Practical, Immediately Applicable - This book has helped me out of more than one jam when presenting to a hostile audience. I appreciate that is gives specific, how-to responses to specific situations that I am faced with regularly. Thanks for this book!
I would recommend it to anyone who speaks to groups of any kind or size.

If you are a stoner with a sweet tooth . . . then this book is for you! Aunt Mary Jane has a recipe for every kind of craving that you can imagine . . . from classic rice crispy treats to contemporary breakfast bars.

Her recipes are so easy to follow that even the most unexperienced baker will have ultimate success! Baking cakes from a box or from scratch will be easy as pie with Aunt Mary Jane's helpful baking tips.

My favorites are the breakfast bars. What a way to wake and bake!

The book that I chose to read for my third critical reflection was called The Pirate Queens. The book was based on the true story of the final voyage of female pirates Anne Bonney and Mary Reade. It portrays the scenario of how Bonney and Reade's ship The Vanity was overtaken by a government sent ship headed by Captain Albion. The story was one of war, pride, and deceit. The crew of The Vanity, consisting of all men, turne their back on the female pirates and chose not to assist in defending the ship. As a result, the ship is seized and burned and the entire crew was put to death. Bonney and Reade, however, were spared due to the fact that they were expecting children. At this particular time in history it was unthinkable to murder an unborn child regardless of the crimes of the mother. This book is a good read for young children for many reasons. For one, it is easy to read and understand. The author, Jane Yolen, does a great job of describing the scene in an easy to understand, entertaining way. There were several parts of the book that are written in rhyme which is something that I always enjoyed as a child because it made the text easier to follow. Also, ever couple of pages the book returns to a recurring phrase which emphasizes The Vanity's beauty, power, and presence as one of the great ships of the time. The literature is presented in a scroll fashion on the left page. This gives the book a feeling of the time it is describing. The background in which the words are written are a dull yellow which is consistent with how an old manuscript would look presently. Another fabulous aspect of the book is the illustrations. I am not in any way exaggerating when I say that the illustrations within this book are among the best I have ever seen. Each picture takes up the entire left side of the page. These pictures are extremely detailed in every aspect. David Shannon, who illustrated the book, did so with an acrylic paint on an illustration board. As a result is has a very rustic and real look to it which adds greatly to the overall appeal of the book. Each picture is very dark. This also gives the reader a feel for the time since lighting was at a minimal almost anywhere in the world, especially on sea. All of the pictures also have a phrase which describes who or what the picture is illustrating. For example there is a picture in the middle of the book which shows an enemy ship, called The Albion, approaching The Vanity. The caption reads, "The Albion engages the Vanity in battle." The idea that this book is good based solely on the fact that children would like it cut the potential of this book short. Often the idea of whether or not the book will appeal to children is what I focus on. Here, I think it is important to point out that this book is interesting enough to stand alone regardless of its intended audience. Overall, based on the illustrations alone, I think that this book is the best I have reflected upon to this point. Their is a lot of aesthetic appeal that really catches the eye and allows for a great deal of fantasy. This along with the interesting story that accompanies it are both reasons to share this adventure young children of both genders. The idea of pirate life will fascinate young boys while the fact that the two main characters were women will keep young girls interested.

This book is about a bird dog that doesn't want to be one. One day he and his master went out hunting to shoot some candian geese and thats exactly what happened. He tould the bird dog to go fetch what he shot. The goose that he shot was still alive which the bird dog nursed back to health. Once the goose was better she wanted to go south and so did the dog. But he couln't fly. So they found out ways to make it there and they finally did! This book is absolutly great. It tells the reader what a friend ship is really meant to be! even if you are a diffrent species! Get it!

This anthology of sociopolitical literature from various prominent authors of latin america eloquently illustrates the experiences that helped mold the attitudes and perspectives of the everyday people from the authors' respective countries. The pieces are poems, short stories, plays, and excerpts taken from books and novels that the renown authors wrote. The authors whose works are used were in my opinion chosen because their work made an impact on the way their society regarded key social and political issues. Writers such as Jacobo Timerman and Luisa Valenzuela from my native Argentina wrote emotional testimonials of the "Dirty War" in the form of poetry and narrative story, which indicate the feelings of the common people who fell prey to corrupt governments. The pedagogical layout is perfect for a course based on active discussion of the sociopolitical connotation of the works, featuring differing levels of complexity in which the works are composed, in their original Spanish. It also serves to suit a Spanish course that is concerned with the reader's comprehension of the text by featuring exercises aimed at questioning the reader's literal interpretation of the work, questions for debate, and even a key of vital vocabulary. In conclusion, Campo Abierto can open up new perspectives in a reader on the major political events that took place in latin america, while allowing for the development of Spanish comprehension in literature.

China Diary: The Life Of Mary Austin Endicott is the remarkable account of a missionary wife whose husband felt the call to service mainland China. In 1947, Jim Endicott was accused of treason and thus began the greatest test of her marriage, her faith, and her children, both born and adopted. This impressively presented biography, written by Shirley Jane Endicott (Mary Austin Endicott's daughter), offers an informed and informative look into a turbulent China, as well as insights into the soul of a most resourceful and fascinating Canadian woman.

I read the first 110 pages of this book immediately after receiving it. Then I took a breath and read the rest the next day. What a handy reference to keep right on my desk. With tons of basic interesting stories, the layout and graphics of this small fat volume make it very easy and enjoyable to read. The history of the world is broken up into easy-to-chew bite-sized chunks of information. Each two page-page spread is complete with text, illustrations and timeline. I recommend this for anyone of any age who wants to understand human history through the passage of time.