Full Books

What a wonderful book. I used this book to train for my first 1/2 marathon, after I had knee surgery 2 yrs ago @27yrs old. My husband and I loved it so much he used it to train for his 2nd full this weekend. I've been using it to train for my next half this weekend as well and plan on taking off at least 10mins from my first 1/2 just 3 months ago. We so enjoy the book and it's easy reading style. We are looking at his 12 week triathlete in hopes of entering a triathalon sometime next year. I've personally contacted Tom by email to ask questions about my knee surgery and his training schedule. He personally answered them and offered additional advice. He seem geniuely intersted in my race performance. I think I come upon a gem in training, thanks TOM!

I borrowed this book from my cousin when I watched him run the Boston Marathon last month. I read the book needing some advice for a marathon I plan to run in October. It made me want to go running as I was reading it. Rather than make copies of lots of pages, I just decided to buy another book for my cousin so I can keep the old one.

Of the 10 reviews of this book, which readers give an average of 5 stars, I'm noticing that only *two* people have actually used this method to run a marathon! (My review makes three.) It's fine to skim through the book, look at the schedule and think, Wow! That looks do-able! Five stars! But to actually run 26.2 miles using this method? Here are my thoughts:

First, the positive. I did it! I ran my fifth marathon last week using this method, but it was my first in 14 years and my first since kids. There was no way I could do the traditional 6 day a week training, so I was willing to give this a try. I had never done any kind of core or strength training at all, and I'm now completely sold that it is a key piece of marathon training. In the old days my back would often be the sorest part of my body after a long run, but no more, and the arm strength exercises gave me a big boost on hills. Running only 4 days a week also kept running a lot of fun, and I was always excited to get out there and go - definitely not the case when following a 6 day a week schedule.

The negatives of this book: first, the training charts in the back for all but the advanced plan show 1 core weekout a week, on
Friday, but the text description of the training says there are 3 (Tues, Thurs and Fri). I had been following the chart only and didn't notice this until a few weeks before my race, so I probably didn't do enough core exercises, which gave me something to worry about during the taper.

Second, the periodization is very different in a 4 day a week program. Normally you increase the long run milage one week and decrease the next (like 12, 9, 14, 10, 16, 11), so the build up is gradual. In this program, you increase the long run 3-4 weeks in a row (like 12, 16, 18, 20, 10). I found this really tough to do when the milage got longer, and as a result my long runs were often incredibly slow. As was my marathon time. Because the mid week runs were so light (I followed the intermediate plan), and my long runs so slow, I just didn't have the base of running to step up my pace by 1-2 minutes per mile during the race, although this book claims it will happen. More specifically, my long runs were between 9:30 and 10:00 per mile. I ran the marathon with a 3:50 pace group, which is 8:47, and at mile 24 simply fell apart, which I have never done in a marathon before - I've always run negative splits.

On the other hand, I finished in 3:52 (although I don't really consider that an "intermediate" time), and the training schedule never really took over my life as it had in the past. I never felt overtrained, and there were only a few times where the really long Sunday runs cut into my family time.

So, I think if you are very busy and yet want to *finish* a marathon the intermediate schedule is a good program. If you want to run a faster time, I'm not sure it can be done on anything less than the advanced program. Personally I think if you follow the beginning program without making the mid week runs a little faster or challenging, you may finish but I would bet you will have a pretty miserable race.

I wish the author would give more specifics about how the plans connect to various time goals! He says the right plan will "reveal itself" to the reader, but I think that might not happen until after the race!

I am currently training for my 8th marathon. Tom Holland's book was able to fit my training needs. If this had been my first marathon, it would still have met my needs. Great book. I recommend it for others.

I bought this book with HUGE apprehension last year. I had just finished the 111th Boston Marathon in 3:04 and was looking for a new running plan. My previous running plan had me running in 10 day cycles with little to no weight/core training and VERY few off days. I had no problem putting the time in because I believed the more days you spent running the faster you will get. So when I bought this book and saw that I would be only running 4 days week I felt very nervous that I would not better my time. How could running less days make you a faster runner for a marathon? I was going to run another marathon that October (2007). I followed the plan as directed only missing a couple of days. In October 2007 I ran my fastest marathon to date: 2:54. 10 minutes faster than earlier in the year! Since then I have been sold on this plan.

My endurance has been increasing and this fall went looking for another marathon plan in order to break 2:45. I felt like I would need to run around 70-80 miles during my peak in order to reach my goal. After much research I decided to stick with this book adding mileage to the days without increasing the number of days running. I will be sticking to the 4 day running plan with core workouts in between.

I have been doing more research on the 4 day a week running. I noticed that even the running plans on runners world have started to move to running less days during the week. Also, there are many articles coming out on this subject.

About the book itself. I found it to be a good read. He gives advice for the newbie marathon runner and information that the veteran runner could brush up on. He gives three different training plans for the novice, intermediate, and advance runner. Also including the training for a half marathon. He gets very specific on the training days, telling you how long of a rest in between tempo runs, which I enjoy. I enjoy the specificity of the training plans and the information he gives you in the chapter to tweak the plan to your goals.

I consistently refer to this book also have referred this book to friends. This book has worked for me and I will continue to use it during my marathon training. It is great for the newbie and advance runners alike. I challenge advance runners who are running 6-7 days a week to just try this for a 16 week period and see how your next marathon goes.

This talk is simple, yet deeply wise. I have listened to many, many talks and teachings about the spiritual path and this is by far the most useful and the most healing. Not only are the precepts which he outlines, practical, effective and healing, but the sound of his voice is truly a healing presence in itself. I have my own copy, I gave my son a copy (he's 21) and I also gave a copy to my partner. I have explored various spiritual paths and would not consider myself a buddhist, but can't image these teachings being foreign to anyone who believes that god is a loving and truly compassionate being. I've rated this as five stars but the truth is it's off the star chart.

My husband bought me this book for our 10th wedding anniversary. It was one of the best gifts I've ever received. It speaks to the reader in a very personal way. It makes one believe that with love for all beings, we can achieve peace. Even if it's as simple as not being upset when driving in your car. It helps one to realize what/who is important in one's life and to learn to appreciate it/them.

I love all of Thich Nhat Hanh's writings, this is no exception. He will speak directly to your heart, and your heart will resonate with the truth of his message, no matter which of his books you read.

The author has this flow in his writing that captivates you. No matter what religious practice you follow, this book will touch your heart in some way and definately elivate your mind. It is written by a Buddhist monk but his teachings are universal and it truely opened my eyes to new light. This is a must have in any person's book collection that has any want to grow as a person.

Zen Master Thich Naht Hanh's approach to teaching Zen Buddhism is enlightening. I have found many of the teachings very useful in the practice of true Dharma. I believe anyone can practice these teachings regardles of faith or religious affiliation. It is a wonderful book which anyone following a spiritual path can profit from. It is inspiring and full of the energy of mindfulness we all need to live freely and happily.

Great book, all instructions are very well written and patterns are well done, can't wait to get started on this project!

Love it

Perfect book for the beginning quilter who wants to make a first attempt at a Hawaiian quilt. This small blocks are perfect to get a taste of the techniques involved and to improve your skills.

I found this book to be absolutely great!! There is a great variety of easy, medium, and more challenging blocks to complete in this book. Also, there is a good variety of designs amongst the blocks. Each block is represented in color on the front and back covers. The rest of the book is in black and white. Root also gives you an idea of how each block could be quilted. Although I only have 1 thing that I would change, and it's probably just my own personal curiousity but nonetheless, I wish the blocks had a little tid bit of their own history saying why that design came to be immortalized in a quilt. The book still deserves 5 stars!

Very well constructed book, with excellent drawings of patterns and thorough instructions included. There are additional graphics depicting suggested quilting ideas, which, for the novice hawaiian quilter, such as myself, is an excellent tool to create an outstanding finished result. Her patterns are full sized so you do not need to re-size the patterns to use them. You can trace or copy them for use. Overall, an excellent hawaiian quilting instruction book.

This book adds humor and warmth to the nightmare that is dating. Once you get into it-you can't put it down.

Amy and Mark have written a book that is both smart and funny, wry and poignant. A must read for any one trying to understand not only contemporary dating, but the current state of relationships between men and women. Buy this book!

I really loved this book. It has the wry insight of a Douglas Coupland novel and just enough steamy scenes to keep you warm in bed at night. The two main characters write each other back and forth for a year, seemingly oblivious to the fact that the more they regale each other with tales of their own dating misadventures, the more they are in fact falling madly in love. I won't give it away, but the ending is...well...perfect.

I received this book as a gift, and opened it with intentions of reading it over the course of a week....but ended up finishing it in hours! It is so insanely 'human', while still offering a great escape from daily life. I found an instant connection to the main characters, and discovered that I could easily share in their many emotions and adventures. It is packed full of joy, sorrow, triumphs, losses, and tons of laughs!It's insightful, touching, and honest. I caught myself giggling out loud more times than I'd like to admit, and also feeling the pain of their heartaches every step of the way. It reaches in and yanks on that deep-rooted human need that causes each and every one of us to put ourselves in all sorts of situations in our search for love, and yet it remains funny and entertaining from start to finish. It will definitely leave you questioning if it's really a work of fiction, and you may even wonder if they are writing about YOU. Men and women alike will enjoy this book. GET A COPY!!

Reading this book made me want to rent the authors by the hour: Mark, to tell me how guys really think, and Amy, to make me laugh out loud when I'm wallowing. They really are the best friends a reader could ask for.

Given how expensive American Girl clothes can be, this book offers a way to make your own clothes at a fraction of the price of buying them. It is a nice collection with a variety of clothes to make a complete wardrobe. A bit of experience in sewing is definitely helpful though. Most patterns are a bit complex for a child to do alone, but anyone with some sewing background would find them quite straight forward. Full size patterns are included for all the clothes. Definitely recommend this book.

Found this to have excellent sewing instrucions with illustrations. Very versatile pieces that can be interchanged. Accessories easy and add to the wardrobe.

This book was great for ideas and general instructions. However, I found the patterns to be way too large for the 18" dolls, and I found several errors in the construction directions. As a seasoned sewist, I knew how to work around this misdirection, but newer sewists may not.

I can still recommend the book though just for the inspiration.

This book contains full size patterns that sew beautifully. Great selection of outfits and complete insructions that are very easy to follow.

My daughter (who is 10 years old) got her American Girl doll for Christmas this year...and after spending all that money on an 18" doll, I wasn't about to pay $24 per outfit.
I have some sewing experience. I can hem up jeans, sew pillows, fix a seam or button if need be...but that's about it. I've never used a pattern before.
The hardest part was finding the pattern pieces. There are two large tissue papers tucked away in the back of the book. Each piece appears to have hundreds of little patterns. Once you find the pieces for what you are making, it is a breeze.
I will warn you, there are some things that just can't be sewn with a machine. Invest in a thimble and proceed.
Half the fun is teaching my daughter how to sew. She loves her doll and wants it to have a wardrobe exactly like hers. I warned her that the deal was if she got the doll, she would have to help make the clothes. She agreed and we've been able to sew many outfits that closely resemble hers.
This book, in my opinion, contains the most modern clothing patterns. It also has very easy to follow instructions. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an American Girl doll.

Handy, Handy, Handy, you have to get this book.

Great images, Great info.

Get it with the Blackberry 8700 Quick source guide

You will not regret it

This the second book that I have used from this author. Both have been a very important in learning and useing all that the Blackberry has to offer it's owner. They are very easy to understand which makes it simple to apply the information.

Dear Martin:

As a healthcare professional and inventor of a product that helps people get eye drops into their eyes without missing, called ezdrops. I have both versions of Blackberry Made Simple. The e-version and the hard copy. My hard copy of Blackberry Made Simple and my Blackberry 8700c has saved me hundreds of man hours by not having to wait to be at a computer for my e mails and text messages. Blackberry Made Simple has proven to be my "bible" and I keep in with me in my brief case for the times that I travel as well as the need to find short cuts on my Blackberry 8700c. quickly. Martin has made the Blackberry device extremely user friendly by making Blackberry Made Simple very easy and fool proof to understand.

If you decide to get a Blackberry device then you MUST get the Blackberry Made Simple hard copy version.

Sincerely,

Lenny Muroff, President
E-Z Drops, Inc.
Port St. Lucie Florida 34985

"BlackBerry Made Simple" is a real great help for beginners as well as for power users. I have found most useful hints that allowed me to work faster and better with my blackberry. Best of all: Martin Trautschold even answered my e-mails with additional personal questions very friendly, quickly and precisely!

I'm on my fourth Blackberry and am pretty familiar with the device and its functions. After buying BB Made Simple for Full Keyboard BB's, I was blown away at how much more I could do with my Blackberry. Currently on an 8700 I was able to pick up loads of useful information to really take me to the next level. I HIGHLY recommend this book to ANY full keyboard BB user...you WILL NOT be disappointed. A worthwhile investment!!!

This was a nice read. I enjoyed it from the beginning to the end. I ENJOYED THE CHARACTER ALEX. Unfortunatly the book club I was in has dispersed therfore I had a few friends read it and they all enjoyed it as much as I did. There was a cliff hanger so, I am patiently but excitedly awaiting the sequel...

This is definitely one of the best books I have ever read, it was so detailed that I felt as if I were watching a movie. It was a very easy read it only took me 2days; my husband told me if I didn't hurry and finish he would hide it (lol), that is how much it kept me engaged wanting more. I can't wait for the SEQUEL.

Maritza has completely captured the urban relationship all the way down to the lingo. As an urbanite growing up during the 90s this book speaks directly to the types of relationship issues that frequently occured. The main character Alex is someone most women can relate to at some stage in their life. Maritza brilliantly transports the readers and makes it easy to visualize all of the scenarios depicted. This book is a great read for both women and men. I would highly recommend it!

AWESOME book! Read it in a day and a half...it's a must read especially if you are from the Stamford, CT area. Missy, you did an excellent job with the story line cause we have all been there and done that, so you can definitely relate to the characters and scenes in the book. I couldn't put it down and I can not wait for "Part 2"...job well done!

Definitely a must have for your repertoire. I could relate to the various characters within the novel and it brought me back to my old school days. Maritza's words were visual to me and I appreciated the details. Can't wait to purchase the next sequel. Please don't leave us hanging!!

This is a great on site guide for any one looking for a simple and accurate guide to building rafters.

I had a copy of this book when I worked as a carpenter. I rebought it for my son who is in the trade, and is planning to start cutting roofs in Montana. This will be a very valuable asset !!!

I have probably ruined five of these books, due to rain, losing them, etc. I just keep on buying them. After you measure spans you do not have to go back up on the roof. This is the best roof framing book of all. Five stars.

Trig calculators are for guys who wear visors, carry framing axes, and use sinker nails because they don't know how to drive a common nail. This is the book that the salty old man who takes pride in the fact that the house aint a quarter out; it's plumb level and square keeps on hand. I bought an extra copy for the old man who wore his out after 35 years, and taught me the value of doing things right. Read it and use it and you can frame any roof based on the principles it effectively teaches.

I learned to be a carpenter from my grandfather, and other master craftsmen that I worked under during my five-year union apprenticeship in Southern California. That was during the time when a lot of the carpentry teachers were still wearing white-bib overalls instead of the toolbelts we wear around our waists nowadays. This book review is derived from many sources: The various conversations I had with some of those long-gone master craftsmen from years ago, the good things that master framer Larry Haun said about this book in his Framing Roofs DVD, the use of this book by master roof cutter Steve Peters in his video series, "The Art of Roof Cutting," and a few other things that I learned along the way while researching this text, carpentry history, and this author.

An early settler and carpenter, born in 1889, by the name of Augustus Frederick John Riechers wrote this book, "Full Length Roof Framer," and published it in 1917. Then, in 1944, he renewed the copyright for a second time right around the same time as D-Day, on June 6th, 1944, when Allied Forces landed on the beaches of Normandy to fight for the liberation of Europe during the Second World War. I'm also told by a family member of Augustus that this book received its last renewal copyright in 1969 before it changed hands to a new copyright owner in 1992.

Augustus Riechers was born during a time in architectural history when the Victorian style homes were still enjoying their success on American soil as well as Great Britain. These old Victorians, especially the Queen Anne styles, were a true testament to the incredible craftsmanship and talents of carpenters at that time. Sophisticated rooflines and elaborate turrets adorned these homes like jewels never again to be replicated! These were the master carpenters that Augustus learned his trade from, and they didn't have the fancy scientific calculators that we do today with their sine, cosine, and tangent functions to cut those roofs and turrets.

Even so, according to what some of the long-gone carpenters and my grandfather told me many years ago when I was an apprentice, was that they did utilize one little booklet titled, "The Carpenter's and Builder's Practical Rules for Laying out Work." This book was written by a brother carpenter named Milton N. Rogers in 1901. I'm also told that in its day, it was very popular with carpenters because it contained useful information such as reading a steel square, rules for kerfing, along with information concerning common, hip, jack, and valley rafters. In addition, I was told that the carpenters back then really liked how this book fit into the pockets of their bib-overalls along with their carpenter pencils. However, this booklet, as popular as it was, did not cover enough information specifically for cutting roofs, so they just relied more on their good-ole framing squares or drylines.

Let's continue on with some important dates in the history of this book. It's 1944, what is happening in our country? Well, for starters, we're still at war with the Japanese, and Americans are looking forward to getting back to normal life. However, it will still be just over a year until the Japanese surrender. Then, finally, it happens! The war is over! The Japanese sign the surrender agreement that's referred to as V-J Day, on September 2, 1945. Victory over Japan!

With the Second World War finally over, life in America was about to change dramatically again. Returning veterans by hundreds of thousands now back home wanted to secure jobs and start new families. Married veterans desired the same aspirations with the wives and children they had left behind. Factories that were converted to producing supplies and materials for the war effort could now begin switching back to their normal operations, and the millions of courageous women that we refer to as "Rosie the Riveter," that ran those factories during the war, could once again return to their homes to be with their families. With these situations going on, however, we now had another growing problem: How in the world are we going to build enough houses fast enough for these thousands upon thousands of families?

Enter again now, the carpenters. They now have the enormous task of building homes for literally hundreds of thousands all across America! How are they going to keep up with the huge demand? That's where resourceful carpenters like the author of "Full Length Roof Framer," as well as many other talented craftsmen, took on the challenge and began developing newer methods for building homes more efficiently. This book, by Augustus Riechers, was certainly one of the tools that they came up with and utilized. At last, the carpenters had a book that could be carried inside a pocket, and still give every rafter length that was needed to get the houses built faster to meet the demand!

Now, and in conclusion, here we are today in the 21st Century. We're much faster production framers than our brother carpenters were in those days with our nail guns and roof trusses, but it's still nice to have a little book like this around for the times when we do stick-build a roof or two. At any rate, the next time you hear about this book, or read a review on it, consider owning it for nothing else but the short history behind it and its place in carpentry history. In addition, don't fret about which is better, calculators or rafter books. It's just a simple matter of preference. To some, calculators are faster. To others, rafter books are faster. I recommend this Library edition because it's very thin and compact. It fits nicely in the pouch of your toolbelt and it doesn't care if you get a little sawdust on it or drop it like my construction calculator does. I'll close this review with this: I own two copies of this book. One to use on the job when needed, and one to keep safely wrapped in our family's hopechest for our children.

This book review is dedicated to the memory of this legendary master carpenter named Augustus Frederick John Riechers, who passed away in October 1978 in Palo Alto, California. I, as well as countless other carpenters worldwide thank him for taking the time, and effort, to write a book like this to make the carpenter's job a little easier. It's also dedicated to the long-since-gone craftsmen in their white-bib overalls that left the rest of us a legacy and example to follow, and to keep this tradition going by passing along what we have learned to all carpenters far and wide.

This is a powerful book. I use it daily as a resource. I recently attended the author's "Start Your Own Part-Time Business" workshop, with the intention of opening my own business. I am now further along that path, and everything we did in the workshop helped me get to where I am now. I keep going back to Karen's book and I use the workshop materials all of the time.

As a man who was recently laid off with the opportunity to change my career , I found Full Time Woman, Part-Time Career to be an extremely valuable resource. I am looking for a more flexible environment where I am not tied to a desk all of the time and, since my wife and I are planning to have children soon, I want be able to spend more time with them. This book gave me many ideas and has given me some direction for my new career.

As a certified life coach, I have have known many women who are looking for flexibility in their lives. This book is a step-by-step guide to becoming self-employed and creating a home-based business using your existing professional skills. I highly recommend this educational book, which explains the qualities necessary to go out on your own. I was especially impressed with the information in the coaching chapter on how to become a coach. Never before have I found a resource like this for women, all in one place.

[...]

Full-Time Woman, Part-Time Career- The Professional Woman's Guide to Building a Flexible Business by Karen Terry, is a descriptively definitive book describing the difficulties in business which a woman may well encounter after having children, and the even greater struggle with finding a career position after rejoining the world of work outside the home. Full-Time Woman, Part-Time Career greatly fortifies the understanding that a woman must have while starting up work again after bearing a child, as well as how to coordinate raising children and running a business with the agility to, in essence, balance and support one-another in unison. A "must read" for the newly mothering parent, Full-Time Woman, Part-Time Career offers a perfect angle from which to approach a perfectly desirable spectra of businesses.

Reviewed by Kornelia Longoria for Reader Views (2/07)

How many of us have wanted to stay at home with our children and bring a steady income at the same time? How many women hate working at their current job and moving nowhere and feeling like a slave to the system? How many women would just want to take their career in their own hands and start a business on their own?

"Full-Time Woman, Part-Time Career" by Karen Steede Terry is a comprehensive guide to starting your own business that is not only successful but most importantly, fits your personality, your lifestyle and your own expectations. The author divides the book into short chapters focusing on the very basis of making it work on your own. From the very beginning of the book, she helps us see what it takes to start your own business and what kind of qualities are essential in doing that. She gives a lot of examples and even samples of conversation starters to promote your business and to get through to a wider range of potential customers. She goes through the most essential subjects, such as the start-up cost, setting up the office, writing business plans and whether you should incorporate or not. She explains it all in a very clear and comprehensive way, making it easier for us to make the right decisions that would benefit us in the best way. The author devotes a big part of the book to advertising your business, getting and maintaining customers and growing your business bigger and more successful. She also expands certain types of businesses, such as professional coaching, freelance writing, teaching software computer classes and public speaking, where the reader can find much more detail and tips for starting one of these businesses. Finally, the end of the book consists of very valuable appendix, where we can find all kinds of addresses and phone numbers to business registration agencies, networking organizations, franchise opportunities etc.

I really liked the fact that the book was addressed directly and solely to women. The author knows exactly what kind of obstacles women encounter in starting their own business and how to work to overcome them. The language is very clear, comprehensive and to the point. "Full-Time Woman, Part-Time Career" is definitely a book to be read if you consider starting your own business.

I've been gardening for years but only recently started growing flowers from seed. This book has absolutely everything you need to plan and grow successfully. The entries are thorough but succinct, packing tons of info into a compact space. Every flower I've been interested in (100+) has been listed in here along with nice color photos. General information about seed starting and other methods of propagation in the beginning of the book make it a comprehensive reference for any type of gardening. Especially helpful are the special sections within the entries about caring for the plants. The author even includes suggestions for companion planting. All around a great reference for the beginner and experienced gardener alike. Oh and be certain to check out the appendix that concisely charts heights, hardiness, bloom time, color, etc. for all species. Makes planning your flower bed a breeze!

I used this book extensivly this spring for starting all my flowers and veggie. I found it easy to use and most flowers etc were listed. Great book for my library and I will use it in the future for sure.

I have a library of gardening books and this is the book I reach for every time I need info on a plant. It has all the info you need from starting from seed to maintaining your plants. When I wear my copy out, I'll buy another. It is also THE gift to give to new gardeners.

This book is an excellent reference book describing seeds.
Giving the botanical name and common name. Most helpful with information on germination and were the seeds will grow best. And the the section that has thumbnail pictures
is excellent. The ease of using the paperback is all so great.

Bought this for my wife and she loves it! She was reading this book like a novel. Provides good information and tips on a wide range of flowers. Bought this book due to good reviews as well!