I know that Bruce G. Hallenbeck, Robert Bartholomew and William Brann co wrote this book with Paul. All in all a great read!

This is an excellent guide to the best NY restaurants and to some of the more interesting neighborhood restaurants. I wish there were a bit more information about the size and setting, smoking areas and so on. But by far the greatest drawback of this book is its execrable binding. After only limited use, my copy began to disintegrate, not exactly what one desires in a reference book that one hopes to carry around. This is inexcusable. Back to the Michelin Guides for me! I have a 39 Michelin France Guide that is still hanging together. Planned obsolescence!!!

We have been searching for a guide to wildflowers specifically for New York State and this is the first such book we have found. While it does show and describe at least 350 varieties, we have found 2 wildflowers so far on our own property that do not seem to be in this book. The color photos show the flowers of the plant clearly but we feel that there should have been more effort to include the leaves of the plant in the photo or a pencil and ink drawing of the leaf next to the photo. The written description of each plant inlcudes a description, i.e. basal, etc. of the leaf and the plant growth but this is rather difficult to understand where a photo or drawing would have been easier.

It's almost unprecedented for me to return a baseball book. It's almost impossible to find a baseball book I won't enjoy. If the book's about the Yankees, the odds of either would be non existent. Well, at least I thought they would be non existent until I began to read this one.

The book contains no new good information & is filled with mistakes. Also, the author's system of rating the players creates a premise that's flawed from the beginning.

If you know enough about baseball to know Snuffy Stirnweiss wasn't an all time Yankee great, then you find this book insulting to your intelligence.

I truly enjoyed this book. Each piece (and there are 50!) takes you back to the particular year! It has all the stats on the individual player in his best season. It has lots of fantastic photos and a terrific section on the 1998 Yankees! At the end of the book, there is a section that allows me to record my own memorable seasons with my favorite team! A must have for every Yankee fan, and those fans of baseball history!

This is a horrible book. I don't recommend it at all. The 79th New York "Highlanders" were mostly consisted of Irish immigrants and normal New Yorkers. Only 300 actual Scott's were in the unit. They never wore kilts/ trousers etc. Photos from the time period actually show this to be false about the kilt wearing. The stupidest mistake yet in the book, is how he refers to "lieutenant" Todd, when in actuality Todd only reached the rank of Sergeant. His misleading info is a horrible glance at this great unit. I'm ashamed to say I bought the book thinking it was historically accurate...only to find is was the worst book ever written. For a true glimpse at the 79th, get Sgt. Todd's book.

I was truly disappointed in this book. It is filled with inaccuracies, and frequently presents the author's assumptions and predispositions as fact, without sufficient documentation to back up his claims.

The book is terribly biased towards providing "documentation" for those who wish to portray the 79th as a bunch of Celtic yahoos, when the original 79th was nothing of the sort. He consistently ignores the decidedly non-Scottish ethnic majority of the regiment. Again and again, he seems more determined to put a Scottish spin on the regiment, rather than contibute any worthwhile historical research on it.

The only good thing that can be said of the book is that some of the photos are rather interesting. Unfortunately, he also published many modern drawings and sketches without indicating that they are not contemporary to the Civil War, or made by members of the regiment.

It is highly disappointing, as I hoped that the book would not be yet another ex! ample of the usual nonsense and drivel written about this fine regiment. As another reviewer commented, see Todd's regimental history for a real look at this highly honored regiment.

McKnight's "Blue Bonnet's O'er the Border" fell well short of this reader's expectations. First, it is woefully brief: the text of the book is but 163 pages, at least 40 of which are occupied by illustrations or maps. As any student of the Civil War knows, a mere 120 to 130 pages is not nearly enough to cover the exploits of a three-year volunteer regiment. Second, the work is full of factual errors and misleading statements, too numerous to recount here. Two exaples stand out in my mind. Clearly, the author, a 79th New York reenactor and self-proclaimed Scottish enthusiast, has used this book to prove the Scottish identity of the members of the 79th New York. To do so, he has taken liberties with historical fact. For instance, the regiment, contrary to McKnight's claims, was not comprised predominently of Scots. Though at the core of the regiment were the Scottish members of the prewar 79th New York State Militia, these 300 men were eventually equalled--or even outnumbered--in the unit by Irish immigrants. The book is also advertised as the first history of this colorful regiment. It is not. 79th New York veteran William Todd published a history of the regiment in 1886. Unlike McKnight's flimsy book, Todd's work is refreshingly candid, objective, and thorough. If you really want to learn about the 79th New York, track down a copy of Todd's regimental history.

I bought this book for my niece's fourth birthday. The pictures looked vibrant and fun, and my niece's name is Molly, too. The premise of the book looked promising: she has a much-beloved magic dress that makes her anyone she wishes to be (such as a scientist or the mayor). The author, however, describes Molly's existence with a sneering snideness. She lives with her divorced mother and anonymous housekeeper in an all-white New York apartment. Her mother, accompanied by her interior designer, takes Molly to a society wedding, where all the guests appear to be caricatures of adult types that children would have difficulty recognizing. I can't imagine any child who would have a relevant context in which to place this book (and I feel sorry for any who would!). Characterization is poor--all the characters are stock stereotypes, and it lacks the fun and imagination of Eloise, another neglected child living in privilege in New York. This is not a book for children--unfortunately, it's not really a book for anyone!

Molly has a favorite dress and it has become very worn and tattered from constant wear. When she wears it she can be anything and often includes her cat Slim Enid in her adventures. When Molly is forced to wear a new dress to a "very important wedding" she is dismayed, but packs her favorite dress in a backpack to comfort her. What happens next includes a chance meeting with a homeless woman and a miracle of a small girl's belief. I wasn't that taken with the story, noy really liking the illustrations and finding the story a bit simple. I sat down with a friend's little girl and got a whole new perspective, She loved the story! It was this little friend who told me what the story was about, nice things are good, but being nice is always better.

This book is the result of painstaking research, but will only be of interest to historians of emigration and to those family historians seeking Swedish ancestors who arrived in the US during the period in the title. It is certainly easier than using the passenger lists in the US National Archives -- provided you know that the person you want was a Swede and came during those years.

If what you want is a more general description of the Swedish emigration to the New World, this is not the book to get.

This book elaborates on author (and self-publisher)William Keisling's theory of the events leading up to the murder of Lillie Belle Allen, a young black woman (and mother)who was killed by white racists during the 1969 Riots in York, Pennsylvania. Essentially, Mr. Keisling's theory is that York Police, fueled by anger over the shooting (and subsequent death) of a young white police officer, secretly aided white thugs in their attempt to ambush a car which they believed carried rival black gang members--but instead the car, which appeared identical to their alleged target--carried a black minister and his family who were vacationing from South Carolina. (The ambush of this innocent family by white thugs actually happened--the theory Mr. Keisling presents is that York Police helped to stage the ambush). It's an incredible theory. But because Mr. Keisling did not sufficiently "do his homework" before rushing to publish this book, his information regarding my family is wrong. First, he implies that my father, who was a York City Detective during the 1969 riots, was involved with the ambush. After traveling back to York to conduct my own investigation, I have obtained statements from over a dozen former police officers, witnesses, and gang-members that my father was not involved in any regard of this atrocity. The most convincing documented statement comes from a former city councilman (and attorney) who was riding in my father's cruiser car the night of this murder. What upsets me most about Keisling's implication of my father, is that being "a racist bigot" is the absolute last thing on earth my father would ever be. Next, Mr. Keisling states that "a man who was allowed to (smuggle) a shotgun out of the murder scene that night was probably the brother of York City Police Detective Wayne Ruppert." The problem here is that my father's brother had been dead for nearly 3 years when the riots occurred. Finally, he implies that I, Wayne Ruppert Jr, was involved in the ambush. The problem with this theory is I had just celebrated my 9th birthday when the murder occurred--need I say more? [...]. Overall, I agree wholeheartedly with Mr. Keisling's obvious contempt for racists and bigots, and I agree that justice for the murder of this young woman has been long overdue--and has yet to be fully served. I just wish he would have done his research thoroughly regarding my family. If he had bothered to do so, he would have discovered the truth about my father's well-established track record for being kind-hearted and treating ALL people fairly, and would have gained an ally (in me) in his crusade for justice. As it stands now, since I personally know how flawed his information is about my father, my uncle, and myself, I now question the accuracy of the rest of his book. Overall, it's an interesting read, and Mr. Keisling is a charismatic author--I just don't know how accurate he is.

I have sent in my review of this book twice! Since it was not favorable am I to assume you do not print unfavorable reviews? I usually rely on your customer reviews and often buy books that don't necessarily have glowing reviews. It makes me wonder whether I should still buy from Amazon.

We waited for this to come out because we think Reichl has done wonders for Gourmet and we thought her reviews were relatively accurate. We hate Zagat so we were willing to wait for something better. I reviewed books for the Library Journal, as Associate Book Review Editor, for 15 years so I looked forward to giving this an accurate (and I assumed good) review. Well the review is accurate but hardly good. I gave it one star because there wasn't a choice of none. Where are Tatany, Chin Chin, HSF? La Madri is hardly expensive and the wild striped bass I had there was the best I've ever eaten. Reichl seems to have honed in on only the touristy restaurants and the big names although how she could say Jacques Torres' desserts were "too perfect" is ridiculous. His genius is not only his delightful personality, creativity, down-to-earthness, but the fun, beauty, and fabulous taste of those desserts. And how she could say Asia de Cuba is better than Victors is unbelievable. I was in Cuba in 1950 and when you go to Victors the food is so very authentic and the decorations so beatifully typical of 1950 Cuba that to compare it negatively to a restaurant which incorporates so much Thai (which I love in a Thai restaurant) influence makes no sense at all. Also, where are all the restaurants in Little Italy? Umbertos has the best raw clams in New York and the rest of their food is fabulous. We intend to return this book and will wait patiently for some competent person who has no stake in favoring tourist traps and has been to neighborhood restaurants in addition to the "Name Brands" to write something decent. The book is simply made up of rehashed New York Times reviews without the egg on top. Sorry Ruth, we love what you've done with Gourmet but this book does not take the cake!

It is difficult to see why a retired British army colonel would want to write this book, which is a summarized history of the French and Indian War (1755-1763). There is little new to offer in this account, since the author relies heavily on timeworn secondary sources such as Parkman from 1884 and Fortescque from the 1920s. A professional military officer might have added value through in-depth analysis, but this is sacrificed for brevity. Adding insult to injury, the book is poorly-written and in particular, the author should be cited for excessive use of the exclamation point (usually a bad sign in a history book).

Throughout the book, Williams displays a casual attitude toward historical fact and statistics. For example, the author writes that in 1754, [Governor] Dinwiddie...selected [George] Washington, now a colonel, with 300 men from his militia to attack Fort Duquesne.." However, Washington's mission was defensive - to construct forts on the Virginia frontier - and he had only 160 Virginia provincial troops (who were not militia). In the 1758 Louisburg campaign, after the surrender of the fortress, Williams claims that, "one thousand of their comrades [the French] lay dead among the ruins". In fact, French army losses in the Siege of Louisburg were 102 killed. In the 1758 Ticonderoga Campaign, Williams also fumbles on the description of the key skirmish at Bernetz Brook on 6 July, writing that, "in the skirmish which followed, Howe, shot through the heart, was killed instantly, with 300 of his companions". In fact, British losses in this skirmish were fewer than 100, but French losses were about 300 killed, wounded and captured. These examples demonstrate how error-prone and unreliable this account is and also the author's failure to properly research his subject.