Active Books

Thank you Christine for all your hard work in compiling this wonderful collection of scout recipes! I am planning my menu for scout camp right now and including some of these recipes. Lots of great ideas! Love the pictures!

Congratulations to you Christine. I just received my copy and I am delighted with it. The format and easy to follow directions make it an excellent resource for Scouts of any rank. How great it is to have a collection of tried and true recipes submitted by so many Scouters.

The Scout's Outdoor Cookbook does, indeed bring back memories and gives new ideas! Simple, easy meals are described. Whether carried miles by backpack or prepared in a cast-iron Dutch oven, these culinary delights are practical as well as mouth watering. Also, these recipes kindle the spark of innovation, and create unique dining experiences as we all want and need in the wilds. These wonderful foods are not for the sit at home, or the weight watcher, but for the robust, trail-pounding adventurers burning calories and experiencing adventure

I'm a outdoor trainer for Girl Scouts-- this cookbook is excellent for the new to experienced person. All the receipes are tried and true, from the easy level to the advanced. Everything you need to know, how to cook using stick, one pot, dutch oven, cardboard box, paper bag, ingredients, type of fire, even to the number of charcole brickets you need are included. It's easy to read and understand. I highly recommend it to anyone that cooks outdoors. I've done 3 outdoor trainings using it, and every leader there (including people who have never cooked outside), purchased a book. The receipes can also be cooked in your kitchen. Try it, you won't be disappointed. Christine and Tim have done their homework on this book.

Simple Kayak Navigation by Ray Killen contains many practical techniques for calculating heading and rules-of-thumb. The coverage of tides and currents is excellent. The weaknesses of this book are the insufficient coverage of wind (only 7 pages) and no discussion of the Coast Guard's Navigation Rules of the Road.

This book is a well-written, methodical approach to sea kayak navigation. Utilizing common-sense language, it gives the reader a fascinating overview of navigation basics up through more advanced topics. It gives extensive treatment to navigation fundamentals that prepare the reader for more complex tasks such as calculating ferry angles and lines of position, dead reckoning, and trip planning in high current and windy conditions. Photography and illustration is excellent, and Mr. Killen's writing style brings a humorous, relaxed approach to a subject that many avoid because of fear or intimidation. Killen's knowledge is comprehensive, and his ability to reduce complicated topics to easily digested parts, then place them back in relation to the whole is first rate. As a licensed sailboat captain, diving instructor, and certified kayak instructor I have used navigation skills often. However, until I read this book, I was navigating in a counter-intuitive, laboured process. I've found many time saving methods using information and skills demonstrated here, and my navigational accuracy has increased as well. A major bonus was the inclusion of an appendix by Timothy Williams, that gives World Wide Web addresses and links (with capsule reviews) for many interesting and time-saving sites dealing with navigation. All in all, the best, most complete instructional tome available for kayakers and small boat sailors.

Well-written, in a humourous style, this little book contains a wealth of information for the beginning and advanced sea kayaker. Trip planning, compass use, tides, currents, and GPS are all well-covered here. Having many books on navigation, this is the one I turn to when refreshing my skills. I recommend it without reservation to my students, and have not heard any complaints, other than persons wishing for a follow-up workbook that presents more examples of real-world navigation problems and step-by step solutions in a hands-on format. An excellent book.

"Simple Kayak Navigation" by Ray Killan is a very easy read. It is concise, packed with excellent examples, and laced with humor. I will argue that it is the new standard for a sea kayak navigation self-study guide. It may be because Mr. Killan has been teaching coastal navigation to sea kayaker for years and he knows what works and what doesn't in getting the point across.

I originally purchased "Fundamentals of Kayak Navigation" by David Burch.
Why? Because I was told by several instructors that it is the `standard'. Well, Mr Burch's book makes for a decent desktop reference guide on kayak navigation (i.e. you want to know more about a particular navigation topic). However, if you want to learn sea kayak navigation this book is not well organized and this makes for a very difficult read (i.e. high snooze factor).

So far this is the best graphic novel I've read. I couldn't stop reading it! and the style of the drawings really support the story.

A very dark tale with a plot that grabs you. The illustrations are just perfect for the kind of story, not over elavorated, but gloomy and sombre, exactly what the story needs.

This graphic novel really is one of the genre's masterpieces. It's a perfectly paced, intricately plotted gothic novel -- and the artwork complements the mood perfectly. A moody and brooding tale of control-freak psychics, sexual repression, insanity, guilt and horror. Something for everybody. If you've read all of Sandman, Alan Moore and Frank Miller, give this little shocker a try. You won't be dissapointed.

A criminally neglected masterpiece that comfortably sits alongside the most highly regarded comics of the past decade. As a study in malevolence and truly horrific obsession there's nothing to match Strange Embrace in comics. Writer and artist David Hine begins with the psychic Alex Steadman, who murders his parents before becoming a tenant in a vast house owned by the reclusive, broken Anthony Corbeau. Probing his mind as he sleeps, Alex learns of Corbeau's youth, seemingly one of callous indifference to those around him in keeping to a solitary indulgence. As more of Corbeau's family history seeps through, a tragic story is revealed, fleshed out by the hidden diaries of Corbeau's long-deceased wife. Magnificently plotted and considered down to the smallest observations, this deeply disturbing story is ideally matched by Hine's art. Jagged and dark, his choice of African tribal carvings as a recurring motif provides profoundly unsettling primal imagery to counterpoint the preposterously formal turn-of-the-century domestic structure. In a truly graphic novel that's part Joseph Conrad, part E.M. Forster and part Edgar Allen Poe, the shocking events depicted have resonance that remains long after the story concludes. If you're interested in intelligent adult comics you should buy this book.

I'm looking forward to reading this book after seeing what it inspired locally. A local woman set up a project after reading this book. The project, called Give-A-Kid-A-Backpack, collects gently used backpacks and supplies to fill them, then gives them to needy children in Ecuador.
Any book that can get that kind of activism going must be remarkable.

I have been following Craig's remarkable story on Oprah for the last couple of years. As soon as I saw on the Oprah show that he had a new book out, I searched high and low until I found it on the free the children web site for my kids. I had bought his last book and my two daughters loved it! The Take Action is simply great. It gives them ways to become socailly involved and tells them in langauge they can understand. They are already using its fundraising and public speaking tools. I wish every school library had a copy.

I recently bought this book for my children and they simply refuse to put it down. They are organizing a fundraiser for a local charity and getting their entire class involved and this remarkable resource is showing them how. I also saw Craig on Oprah and was so moved by his story and after seeing Oprah's major support of his organization, I went out and got the book. Oprah was right again! Craig and his brother are inspirations to all children and young people. I think every parent who wants to inspire their kids should buy this book.

Take Action is an excellent resource book for classroom teachers ! The step by step guide to student involvement in social issues has been a great help in encouraging my students to take positive action in the community. The book is very attractive with colorful layouts, pictures and presentations. It has been immensely popular with my students. Great work! Well worth purchasing! I am looking forward to a French edition!

While I love all of Andrew Lang's collections, I think this has to be one of my favorites. This is a collection that pretty much goes out of its way to collect every strange, exotic, and unknown tale on the face of the planet. Far from the simplicity of other tales, these are complex and detailed. Which probably means they were not passed down quite as much, but are wondrous and inspiring just the same

Submittted by Pamela Kekst: I thought that the Violet Fairy Book was very well written and fun to read. The book is made up of many different short stories, all of them are fairy tales. Each has its own problem and solution. They all had their own setting as well. One of my favorite stories is called The Finest Liar in the World. It takes place at the edge of the wood. It is about a boy telling a story to an old man for a lying face-off. I liked the book because each story was different so you could never get bored reading the book. It was also very interesting because of all the strange pictures in the book. I would only give the book a 4 star rating, however, as sometimes the stories could be hard to follow. I recommend this book for any one that likes fairy tales.

As always Andrew Lang's books continue to be great, this book being no exception. This book contains myriad great fairy tales, great for all ages, my mom read them when she was younger and know I am reading them. The Violet Fairy Book contains 35 fairy tales and 65 black and white illustrations. Fairy Tales include: The Finest Lair in the World, Schippeitaro, The Lute Player, The Grateful Prince, Stan Bolovan, The envious Neighbor, The Enchanted Knife, The Fairy of Dawn, The Nunda, Eater of People, The Headless Dwarf and many more. This book is a great bed-time-story book.
I would recommend this book.

For some reason, this is one of my favorites of the Colored Fairy Books edited by Andrew Lang. Once again, Lang includes tales from many cultures including The Boys with the Golden Stars, The Envious Neighbor, The Fairy of the Dawn, The Finest Liar in the World, The Story of a Gazelle, The Girl Who Pretended To Be a Boy, The Grateful Prince and many others. I am also a fan of H. J. Ford's illustrations. Be sure to admire them and wonder at the power of black and white. END

excerpted from Muir's The Mountains of California, is one chapter I've read many times. He climbs to the top of a Doug Fir so that he can experience a 100' tree swaying 30° back and forth "rocking and swirling in wild ecstasy" I take this book backpacking (there's no ultralight version yet...) in the Sierra most times and there's always something to read that fits the setting. EWT's intro is very sweet as are the

I really enjoyed this book as it was focused on plants and animals. My favorite chapters were "The Water Ouzel" (a bird) and "Stickeen" (a dog). However, the whole book was interesting and enjoyable, including chapters about different people he met along the way ("The Robber" and "The Blacksmith"). This book is titled as "a selection from his collected work." I enjoyed his writing so much that I will look for a complete volume of his works so I don't miss out on any other great stories.

Whether you are interested in John Muir specifically or just want to read about an interesting life, this book is an excellent place to start.

John Muir had an incredible and important life, and it is told here succinctly in his own words, excerpted to emphasize the profound. It is a glimpse into a lifestyle 99.9% of us will never know, yet it is truly important to our times. His love of nature, adventure and exploration is a reminder of why we need to experience more than our 9 to 5 workdays and why we need to apply ourselves to the protection of the Earth.

Muir was a gentle but strong man, a genius with simple needs, solitary yet influential. This book is a terrific way to look into his life and his time and to gain some inspiration into our lives and our times.

I am often asked for a recommendation of what among Muir's writings, or writings about him, one should first read. After spending more than 30 years appreciating both his writings and most of the books about Muir that have been published during that time, and after ten years editing the John Muir Exhibit online, I can only turn to the same book that originally enthalled me with John Muir: The Wilderness World of John Muir, edited by Edwin Way Teale.

This book was edited by someone who was himself an able naturalist and nature-writer, and therefore someone who could understand Muir in a way that most academics, whether professors of literature or historians, cannot. Edwin Way Teale (1899-1980), has been ranked as a nature writer with been ranked with Henry David Thoreau, John Burroughs, as well as John Muir himself. His honors include being elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, receiving the John Burroughs Award in 1943, and the Pulitzer Prize in 1966. He was the author of 32 books. Teale's sympathy for Muir's message is shown in the book's Dedication page, which is "Dedicated to The Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, The National Parks Association, and all those who are fighting the good fight to preserve what John Muir sought to save."

This book serves as both an anthology of the very best of Muir's writings, and also a biography, compellingly provided by Teale.

The biographical value of this work is often under-stated, even by the publisher. The book is typically viewed as an anthology, and indeed it is, primarily; but it also contains a wealth of biographical information, far more than the typical anthology.

Teale commences his book on John Muir with an authoritative 10-page Introduction, that not merely identifies the key events in Muir's life, but provides an assessment and perspective of how Muir stacks up with other nature writers. He provides facts you won't find elsewhere: "While visiting friends, Muir sometimes would talk four hours at breakfast." Teale, writing in 1954, was able to talk with several people who knew Muir personally. He noted that everyone he talked to had a different view of which phase of natural history held first importance in Muir's mind. Some thought it was trees; another thought it was geology, another plants. Teale points out the fourth view, probably the nearest right of all: "... the whole interrelationships of life, the complete rounded picture of the mountain world. Today, Muir probably would be called an ecologist." Teale 's assessment of Muir as an "ecologist" pre-dates the "ecology movement" of the 1970s by at least 15 years. Teale admirably tells of the scope of the places, glaciers, plants, and animals named after him, and Muir's contributions to science and conservation. Although public appreciation for Muir has grown dramatically since Teale's book was first published in 1954, The Wilderness World of John Muir still provides the best introduction to Muir's life and writings.

Following the admirable Introduction, each of the 51 excerpts from Muir's writings commences with a preface by Teale, of up to a page in length, presenting in chronological order the story of Muir's life, and putting each of Muir's writings into context.

Although serving as a biography, the Wilderness World is, in fact, primarily a superb anthology. Rather than simply re-printing the full text of such of Muir's works as The Story of My Boyhood and Youth, A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf, My First Summer in the Sierra, Travels in Alaska, Our National Parks , and the Journals, Teale provides short snippets from the best of Muir's writings, arranged into seven broad categories:

I. Memories of Youth - reprints Muir's writings about his boyhood in Scotland, life on the Wisconsin Farm, seeing immense flocks Passenger Pigeons, nearly dying of choke-damp while digging a well, his inventions, and his enrollment at the University of Wisconsin.

II. University of The Wilderness - Excerpts from A Thousand Mile Walk, including people by the way, camping among the tombs of Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, and Muir's visit to Cuba and New York.

III. The Range of Light - Muir's adventures in the Sierra, including his first glimpse from Pacheco Pass and crossing the bee pastures of the Central Valley, his first visits to the High Sierra, climbing on the brink of Yosemite Falls above the Valley, tributes to wildlife including bears and grasshoppers, and his telepathic experience sensing the presence of his former University Professor Butler in the Valley.

IV. The Valley - Muir's glorious tributes to Yosemite Valley's waterfalls, the water ouzel, the earthquake, and Ralph Waldo Emerson's visit.

V. Forests of the West - Including Muir's adventure high atop a Douglas fir during a wind-storm, and writings about Silver Pine, the Douglas Squirrel, Sequoia, Nevada Nut Pines, and Muir's clarion call to protect the forests, "Any Fool Can Destroy a Tree."

VI. Glacier Pioneer - Muir's discovery of the Sierra glaciers, his climb of Mount Ritter, his perilous night on Mount Shasta, and his travels in Alaska, including his discovery of Glacier Bay and his adventure with Stickeen.

VII. The Philosophy of John Muir - excerpts from many scattered sources focusing on Muir's views on mankind's relationship to Nature. For many, this is the favorite part of the book, the part one returns to again and again for inspiration.

Despite this, the book does have some failings. The book belies the importance of Muir's family and friends, which becomes so evident upon reading his extensive correspondence. Nor does the book do more than barely mention some important places in Muir's life, such as his global travels to such places as the glacial mountains of Europe, the forests of Siberia, the Himalayas and forests of India, Australian and New Zealand forests, and, the fulfillment of his life-long dream, his last trip to see the forests of South America and Africa. The book emphasizes Muir's appreciative writings about Nature, and only briefly mentions the conservation battles which consumed so much of his life, including his long campaign to protect Hetch Hetchy. To obtain a whole picture of Muir, the reader will need to also read another work about Muir's conservation campaigns, such as Roderick Nash's chapter on "John Muir: Publicizer" in Wilderness and the American Mind, Stephen Fox's John Muir and His Legacy: The American Conservation Movement, or John Muir and the Sierra Club: The Battle for Yosemite by Holway R. Jones.

Since the book was originally published in 1954, it is not informed by some of the more recent research resulting from Muir's unpublished journals and correspondence, published in the John Muir Papers in 1980. Given the popularity of this book, fifty years after its first publication, the publishers should consider a second edition, again using a nature writer rather than a literary critic or historian to update the book.

Overall, in this book Muir comes alive, as someone who can can at once write inspiringly and poetically about trees, storms, mountains, glaciers, and forests, but yet also show the attention to detail of an analytical scientist. Muir is revealed as adventurer, a lover of nature, a person who can still excite the imagination of readers. As Teale concludes, "Rich in time, rich in enjoyment, rich in appreciation, rich in enthusiasm, rich in understanding, rich in expression, rich in friends, rich in knowledge, John muir lived a full and rounded life, a life unique in many ways, admirable in many ways, valuable in many ways.... In his writings and in his conservation achievements, Muir seems especially present in a world that is better because he lived here."

August, 2004

This is part of a collection that I am ordering, a few at a time. I hope to have the whole set displayed in my dining room available for my grand-children and I to share.

With tales such as The Blue Mountains, The Cat and the Mouse in Partnership, The Dragon and His Grandmother, Fairer-than-a-Fairy, The Flower Queen's Daughter, The Glass Axe, How To Tell a True Princess, and many others how can anyone not find this book fun to read? Once again, Lang edits a book full of fairy tales from many lands that will entertain children and adults. The black and white illustrations are also superb.

What makes this particular volume of Lang's collection remarkable is its collection of quite unknown stories. While we all love "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Cinderella", there is nothing wrong with venturing for more complex stories, and that is what this volume provides.

I have not researched these, but I am under the impression that many of these stories were actually "written". I'm not sure how everyone will take that threat to oral folklore, but good fantasy is good fantasy, and I enjoy reading a fairy tale-esque story with extra complexity that still holds the same aura.

The illustrations are gorgeous, as usual, and display intricacies that fit the stories superbly.

Perhaps a more wild collection, but for that I love it all the more.

When I was younger my Mom used to read me a book until I fell asleep. As I grew older, I began to read myself to sleep. As things changed only one thing stayed constant, my favorite books are still Andrew Lang's Fairy books. The Yellow Fairy book is a collection of 48 fairy tales written the way they were supposed to be written. Each tale ranges in length anywhere from a couple of pages up to about 20. The tales are fairly easy reads, but they don't lose any of their appeal. The book also contains several wonderful illustrations.
Some of the stories include: The Six Swans, Story of the Emperor's New Clothes, The Crow, The Cat and the Mouse in Partnership, The Three Brothers, The Magic Ring, How to Tell a True Princes, Thumbelina, and more.

I would suggest reading this book, I love it!

I have been trying to learn how to program Access for a few years and this is the only book that I am confident will help me master programming Access 2007. I purchased the Access 2003 version last year and then the 2007 Access a couple months ago. To my surprise, Ms. Korol had added more than 200 pages to ensure that folks understand how to use Access 2007's new features, including the Multi-value Data Type, Attachment Data Type, Append Only Memo Field, Rich Text Memo Field, and PDF/XPS files. Although I have not studied it yet, there's an entire chapter on customizing the Ribbon.

The very best aspect of the book is that it contains code samples for just about everything that you'll need to build a robust Access application. Most code samples are given as both DAO and ADO.

You'll still need other books in your Access library but you'll probably want two copies of Access 2007 Programming by Example -- one for home and one for the office. This book will save you lots of time on user community boards whether you are a beginner or an advanced developer. And although the first section says no previous programming experience is necessary, I would still recommend a beginning Access VBA course or programming class.

There are many books on Access development using VBA. Most are written for those who are new to writing code or those who have limited experience.

For those who have been programming for some time, this book will give a rush. Ms. Korol does an excellent job of getting right to the core of her examples. Not only does she show code (and excellent code, at that), she also shows both DAO and ADO. When most other authors preface their books with a paragraph about DAO being dead, Ms. Korol does what is so needed - she keeps DAO alive. And, she travels farther using XML and ASP in easy to understand examples.

If you're new to development with Access, I would still recommend this book because some day you'll be looking for a procedure to accomplish some task and need help. All you'll have to do is look in the index for ideas.

Thank you, Ms. Korol, for taking what must have been a great deal of time and writing a book for me (and, of course, others, too).

If you are looking for a book to learn basics of Microsoft Access then you are looking at the wrong book. If you want to impress your boss with Access Macros, it is again a wrong book.
It is however an excellent book that covers the whole nine-yard of Microsoft Access VBA development. It starts out directly into basics of Modules and Visual Basic Editor environment. Takes you quickly through basics of VBA. This is followed by details on how you can use VBA on MS Access Database (and on other external databases through MS Access). Book lives up to its title, it is loaded with excellent examples of VBA code. I read through some of the other Access VBA books before getting this book and on side-by-side comparison; this book stands out in depth, examples and detail.

I have a lot of other preschool curriculum books and have started a home preschool. when this came in the mail I scrapped all other plans because these ideas were SO good! It is way more interesting and fun than other ideas and it really does teach the kids something. I am adding a little more pre-reading activities but other than that I am using ALL of the ideas and looking to get her other book!

I've been teaching pre-school & up for 20 years. I've always enjoyed unit study type learning. I would spend hours hunting for activities for letter A, you know Apples, Alligators etc... Lots of work! I now am homeschooling my 5 children and I can't put that kind of time into hunting even though the internet is a wonderful resource it takes time. While looking for a better ready made program for my 5 and 6 year olds I stumbled across this book and it is fantastic! I love the topics, you get 2 or 3 per alphabet letter. I love the ready to copy games, crafts, and activities. Even the illustrations are adorable. Take X for example. X-ray fish is introduced, a short child friendly facts portion is first, suggested activities are visit a pet store, make your own x-ray goggle fish glasses for a pretend journey down the Amazon river searching for x-ray fish hidden around the classroom, suggested reading is "Fish Eyes" (this is a counting book), then a science experiment about salt water, then a large motor chase game called "X-ray fish on the loose", and last an art activity making an x-ray fish with shaved crayon and wax paper. The other topic for letter X is Xylem (do you know what part of a plant that is? We do!) Really this book is well worth the money!!!!

I have had a preschool in my home for the last 2 years. I follow this book from A-Z and all the kids love it!! I highly recommend it for moms who want those extra activites for their preschooler!!!

This is probably the best book I have read to date on sculling. It is geared toward the novice and treats you as an intelligent reader.

I have been sculling for the last 6 months, so I am a newbie to the sport. The information contained in this book is wonderfully presented and arranged. It is easy and enjoyable to read.

For those of you interested in training this book lays down a good base with which to further your skills and performance.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in rowing.

VERY readable, very informative, very helpful and very inspiring. I enjoyed it immensely and found the various training drills and chapters on diet and physiology both useful and fascinating. If you wonder why you bother with sculling and are fed up with not getting any better, read this.

When I first took sculling lessons a year ago, this book and Essential Sculling were recommended by the instructor. I ordered both, and though I read both, I didn't really appreciate the wisdom contained in The Art of Sculling until I fell out of the shell a couple of weeks ago.

I had done a capsize recovery drill in the beginner shell, but not in the sleeker boat to which I'd graduated. Fifteen minutes of flinging myself at the edge of the shell sent me back to the book, and a 2 week hiatus while my sore side recovered gave me much-needed time to reflect. I realized that, like trying harder and harder to recover but with improper technique, I was trying to improve my sculling by working harder, not smarter. I realized that if I really wanted to improve, I would need to learn everything I could about exactly how to scull properly.

I had a new appreciation for so many of the points in this book, like "Good sculling is made up of two very basic ideas; using your energy efficiently and allowing the boat to work for you." Nowhere does he say to just strap yourself in and pull like mad. And he's right! The scullers who invoke envy are pulling smoothly and gracefully and efficiently.

The real value of this book is its' exactness. Everything he says is correct and detailed, and though the importance of a seemingly basic sentence like the one above may not sink it at first, with repeated attempts at learning to scull one does eventually relate, and 'get it'.

The Art of Sculling covers buying and rigging a boat, but the real gold is in the Advanced Technique chapter. Paduda tells you not only what you should be doing, but the how and the why, and exactly how you should feel when you are doing it. He explains how memory works, and modeling and visualization in exacting detail. These are not things that most of us can absorb with one reading. I am finding it helpful to row, then read, then row, then read, and I suspect I will for a long time.

If you are serious about sculling properly, this book is a huge help. - I would say indispensable. I also found that learning to erg properly let me get muscle memory for body movement that transferred to the boat, allowing me to concentrate on bladework, boat movement, etc. when I am in the boat. In that regard a Concept 2 erg, and their DVD on the subject, were extremely helpful. I also used the erg to build up the strength and stamina to row on the water with proper technique, to the extent that I am able, for an hour or so.

Good luck, happy rowing, and may you always have flat water.