GB Books

This series of books are quite detailed and very nice for kids. My 6 year old daughter like these as bed time reading. Excellent.

Great idea contained in this book. Having a student present the book as her report. I used this to have my students pick artists to write a report about. Read the book to my older students. 4-7th grade. A little lengthy for the little ones.

Frida Kahlo is a very wonderful artist. Her pictures are Beautiful. She paints things really good and I think I cant even paint that good! This book tells you how good Frida Kahlo was at art. She paints herself she paints animals she paints things that blow off your head, her paintings are so good! Well, read this book to find out how frida saved her life by doing art. Reccomended for people who may want to be better at art.

I am a middle school art teacher and this book fits right in with my artist report unit. Using a graphic organizer, my students explored the world of famous artists. This book is great for kids because it breaks things down into simpler terms than academic or more adult works. Colorful, sweet and to the point.

My 9-y/o daughter absolutely loves this series of biographies and could not be persuaded to wait until our Lewis & Clark unit before she read this. While it didn't strike me as a particularly outstanding book, and the illustrations are mediocre at best, she enjoyed the fact that she could easily read and understand it. The book sparked an interest in Sacagawea and the Expedition, and she obviously learned a lot from reading it. Here is the twenty-star review she wrote for me (to be read very dramatically):
"There is a story about a young girl who was captured by Minnataree, was brought on an expedition featuring exciting adventures, leading men across rivers and through mountains with a newborn baby on her back. She found food when they were hungry, medicine when they were sick... Her name is - Sacagawea."

My 1st grader had to read a biography for a class project and this book fit the bill perfectly. Her reading level is right at the Merlin Mission Magic Tree House book level -- about a hundred pages, give or take, and pictures are still necessary to break up and amplify the text. This book is probably best for kids in the 6-10 year old range and it's not going to win any literary awards, but it's informative without being overwhelming, has lots of pictures (which are simple line drawings, nothing really artistic) and is a good gateway to other biographies. My 6 year old like this book so much she ran around pretending to be Sacagawea for about a week afterward. We went out and got a few more titles in the series, purely because they're so readable.

One caution is that some biographies include some of the less savoury details about their subjects. The Thomas Jefferson bio contains information about his affair with Sally Hemmings, his black slave (not withstanding the fact that this affair is hotly debated by historians). While this is handled in mild and appropriate ways, parents need to be aware that it's there in case they would prefer not to have their children read it. The Tom Jefferson one is one we skipped because we didn't feel it was appropriate for a 6 year old to be reading, nor did we feel like explaining it to her at this age. Just be aware that some of the bios may raise topics you might not want to address if your child is on the younger end of the reading range.

I gave this book to my 6 year-old granddaughter and this really got her interested in "history." This has turned out to be her favorite book. It helps for her to live in Charlottesville, VA (home of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello). There is a statue of Lewis & Clark downtown. If you look carefully and don't blink your eyes you'll see Sacagawea in the back of them, sitting at their feet. I explained to her that it should have been the other way around. She should have been prominent and they should have been at her feet because if it wasn't for this young native woman, the now famous trek commissioned by "Mr. Jefferson" (as the locals say), they would have starved to death/and or killed long before reaching their destination.

This book starts out in Idaho. It's about a woman named Sacagawea, who was taken away from her family. A few of her friends left her. The men who came for her called her bird woman.
Sacagawea got married when she was 15 and had a baby. She guided Lewis and Clark across the Western United States. They had to map it out for Thomas Jefferson after the Lousianna Purchase. It took a long time for them to travel to the Pacific and back. She was a huge help to them because she knew what food was safe to eat and what to use for injuries, and helped communicate to the Native Americans they encountered along the way. Lewis and Clark and her took a ship to find here family and they did. Lewis shot himself. Sacagawea died in1896. I think another title for this book should be The Life About Sacagawea. I think she should have lived longer. I will like to tell people to read this book because it's a great educational book. The best part was when she had her baby. The part that I didn't like was when she died. She is a true American heroine.

My 7 year old son loves all of the books in this series. They are well written with a plot that he can follow. He wants to read all of the books in this series.

I like this book because it has my two favorite book characters in it: Wiglaf and Zack from The Zack Files. I wanted to keep reading this book until I finished. This book kept my interest. It was a funny book.

I really loved this book. It was funny and punny. It reminded me a little of "A Kid in King Arthur's Court". My whole family and I have read all 8 of Wiglaf, Eric(a), and Angus' adventures, and we can't wait for number 9!

A fascinating novel about a group of Jewish, Sufi, and Christian mystics practicing amidst the terror and prejudice of the Spanish Inquisition of the late fifteenth century

I first read this book way back in '87 or somewhere around that, when I was living in London (it was published by Arkana) and seriously beginning to study Esoteric ways.
Since I was born a Protestant,went to Catholic school, was a regular at my Jewish friends' observed days and am now a Witch, (a real religious "Heinz57"!) ,I feel entitled to understand and really empathize with Don Immanuel and his friends.
Their travails in a very diffiult time, when regardless of your faith you were persecuted, especially in Spain where the Inquisition had reached the apex of it's dreaded actions, read like the best of suspense novels.
Religion IS in this book, but really it's a story of humanity, and how respecting each other's choices is in fact a way of life, and overcoming adversities together - even forbidden love.
So even if religion or esoterism isn't you, I recommend it to you anyway :-)
oh and BTW,I'm ordering my 4th copy : the others were borrowed and never made it back to me.

This book stimulates me every time I read it, set in the Spain of the Inquisition the central character is a Jew with enough humanity and vision to work for understanding and tolerance between religious communities of his day. In the troubled world around him, Moors, Jews and Christians scheme and fight one another. In the peaceful and self-aware space around Don Immanuel people are able to listen to their consciences and live in a fulfilled way. The forces that according to Halevi shape mankind's destiny mobilise and move inexorably towards cyclic completion as Intolerance meets Reason in a grand drama where one alone can hold true to the highest standards of conduct. Mankind's honour is upheld and the Axis of the Age completes his task, though he loses his own life. The book stimulates a courageous facing up to a world where good and evil struggle, and is a must for any esoteric/fourth way/mystical enthusiasts

I disagree with the "reviewer" below who didn't enjoy Baby Alligator. (Actually, it sounds like Garret may be ready for books in the level 3 series.) Baby Alligator is typical of books in the All Aboard Reading series (level 2)--full-page, color illustrations that lure young readers to the simple text. Baby Alligator is a brief introduction to alligators and crocodiles, and the book delighted my 7-year-old daughter. She proclaimed the illustrations "very good," and said, "I sure learned a lot about alligators." We look forward to reading Clarke's next children's book.

As a former teacher and current homeschooling mother, I find Baby Alligator to be at the correct reading level for my first-grader, and at the same time full of facts that a child can grasp at this reading level. The illustrations are well-done and not overly cute. Minus one star for all the exclamation points, but this book brought us much pleasure.

Ginjer Clarke's didactic, yet simple and delightful prose, combine with Neecy Twinem's beautifully detailed illustrations of Florida's lush landscape to make "Baby Alligator" an adventurous and unforgettable read from start to finish. Geared toward children in grades 1-3, this book contains many interesting facts about our often misunderstood and sometimes feared animal friend - all told through the eyes of a baby alligator. Perhaps the final page best sums up this book: "Maybe now that you know more about alligators, you will not be too afraid of them. Just be very careful." The author and illustrator teach children (and adults) to respect and like - not fear - an animal that was almost hunted to extinction and that has been around since the time of the dinosaurs. I highly recommend this book to adults and children alike. Even I, practically a native Floridian (and much older than the 1-3 grader age group), learned many new interesting facts about alligators, with Baby Alligator as my guide.

As a child, I thoroughly enjoyed reading all the Bobbsey Twins books. I have ordered 5 of these books so far for my 7 yr. old grand niece who is showing an interest in reading. These books were a gift to her. I hope she enjoys them as much as I did when I was her age and a little older. I like to encourage reading.

I loved this book and would like to read more of the bobbsey twins, so... I am always looking for the books, in hardcover!

I have a copy of this book, hardcover printed in 1962 and I love the book Angel

In this book the Bobbsey twins visit Meadow Brook. In their stay they chase robbers, win money,and have great fun. One time the robbers opened animal cages and let all the animals out! HOW SAD! Read about Bobbsey Twins mystery at Meadow Brook,and more! If you want to order this book look on your Inner Net. I'm sure it's there!

Kathleen McDeavitt
Age 7

I grew up with these books. How nice it was to find them again. Now my granddaughters can enjoy them as well. Thanks

I liked these as a youngster many oh many years ago! This year I bought two for my daughter & she gives them 2 thumbs up. She's mentally challenged, so this is high marks to grab & keep her attention. I'd estimate them for grade 3+ readers.

My mother ordered the collection of The Bobbsey Twins for me when I was a little girl. I would forward to the new book for the month. I enjoyed many hours of pure pleasure reading those books. My mother had read them when she was a little girl. I was ecstatic to find the series at Amazon.com. I have purchased them all so that I can share them with my niece. I wish I had found them when my sons were growing up. My mother mentioned the books at Christmas when we were talking about how my niece reads everything she can put her hands on. So I searched for the collection and found it at amazon.com.

Intend to use this book as part of a teacher's lesson plan. Will be very helpful.

"Claude Monet: Sunshine and Waterlilies" was a terrific book for my 7-year-old daughter. Since it is "written" from the perspective of a fifth grade student doing a report on the famous artist, the language was clear, concise, and interesting to a child my daughter's age. I learned from it, too! My daughter couldn't wait to break out her paints and try her hand at an "impressionist" painting of her own! For anyone who wants their child to learn about art, this book --and the whole series of "Smart About Art" books--is a great place to start. Your child--and you, too!--will definately enjoy this book.

This is one in a series of books about artists for young children about the lives and paintings of these famous oldsters. Written as a report by a fictitious student gives a different aspect and will appeal to school children perhaps; and yet, it contains a biography of Claude Monet (the good and the bad) which appeals to adults, but especially his marvelous paintings are worth the money.

He was very handsome when he went to Paris at the age of 18, but the other painters kidded him with the nickname "Dandy" because he wore ruffled cuffs even though he was just the son of a poor grocer. As a young child in the early school years, he would draw stetches of his teachers and sell them to his classmates. The sketch he drew when he was sixteen looks like something you might see in 'The New Yorker' and is now a part of the expressionist grouping at the Art Institute of Chicago. Some years ago, my son Geoff took me there but that part was closed off for renovation. I told him it didn't matter as there was so much else to look at; as it turns out, the expressionalists are my favorites. Oh well, it was grand just being there.

'The Poppy Field' is one of his most famous, but the people in Knoxville would much prefer 'Water Lilies' because of the purple. By his 83rd birthday, he had finished twenty-two giant paintings of waterlilies. He had his own water gardens as an older man with a bridge (a photo of him standing by with his long white beard); there in his garden at Giverny the flowers were so colorful and plentiful, it could be Longwood Gardens in New Jersey. He and Renoir painted the same scene of a group of party-goers along a frog pond and the canoes pulled up for their use. Renoir's is a close-up though he has one of his trees with long hanging branches, while Monet's is more exact and clear.

He was happily married twice but the deaths took their toll; Camille had been his model for ten years before their marriage and he painted many strange pictures after her death with her face in them. When Alice died, he was so distraught he was unable to paint for some years as his eyesight diminished. In 1923, he endured eye operations and had special glasses to use for resuming his career.

Steven ends his report with "On December 5, 1926, he died (shortly after his 87th birthday). He had been happy, sad, poor and rich. In his life, Monet painted more than 2,000 paintings, which now sell for millions of dollars. They are worth it."

Some of the phrasing is for kids to understand, but the book is so full of information not included in adult biographies it is well worth the time and money to purchase this little treasure.

Sir Alan Gardiner's "Egypt of the Pharaohs" was reprinted by the Folio Society in 1999 as "The Egyptians" in a beautifully bound hardcover edition. The text is the same as that of the first edition (Oxford University Press 1961) with some minor emendations.

"The Egyptians" is sometimes found as Used or Out of Print either alone or as part of a Folio boxed collection together with "The Babylonians", "The Hittites" and "The Persians".

Written by a master in his field and well-written at that, it is no wonder this work finds a place of honor in practically all the bibliographies of succeeding publications. Gardner covers Egyptian history from predynastic times to Greco-Roman, mentioning even the most obscure pharaohs and figures. The plates are exquisite even some forty years after the original photos for them were taken. One's only complaint might be that, since the format guidelines were somewhat different in the 60's, there aren't two spaces after each sentence, but this only takes a couple chapters to get used to. For a closing statement, I recommend you obtain this book so that you may read Gardner's own, for its closing statement rings with the charming chivalry that Gardner and many of his contemporaries practiced.

This is the textbook we use in my Egyptian History course at the University of Alabama. It is a great book on egypt stretching from the old stone age to the Ptolmic Pharaohs.

Interesting to read, I disagree somewhat with Gardiner, but i read the book thirty years after it's first publication. Gardiner's book is essential to anyone wanting to understand Egypt.

Naomi Stanford has done it again! Her work on organization design serves as a useful tool for those of us teaching the subject. The models are very useful and well-researched. The examples she provides, such as the Shackleton expedition, to make her point are enlightening.

I particularly appreciated the Appendix of sources and annotated bibliography. Well done!

Naomi Stanford believes that executives pay too little attention to changing their companies' organizational designs, perhaps because such initiatives don't promise high-profile careers. Yet, updating your organization's structure is a vital process that can make your company stronger by unleashing its energy and using its resources more aggressively. This handy publication covers material you might study in a college-level organizational design course. However, it isn't a textbook. Think of this manual as a survey of the subject, with many helpful suggestions and thought-provoking ideas. The writing is compact, a little dry and somewhat jargon-laden. However, if you want to examine what your company needs to consider in a design change project, we recommend this solid resource.

It's too bad that for most people organizational design equals the org chart. What this means is that the organization has a structure of some kind, but that no thought or care is given to the way the organization functions as an entity. Today, everyone competes with everyone everywhere. Those who are the most poised to deliver all of their energy, maximize the use of their resources, and have a design aligned with their strategy are most likely to win in the mega melee (sometimes called a marketplace).

Of course, business schools teach a lot of different courses on organizational behavior, of which design is a part. However, they also teach courses (often required courses) on managerial accounting and how many companies are limping along without those systems? The author, Naomi Stanford, wisely points out that the reason the activity of designing organizations is neglected is because it is very hard and is not the stuff that builds high profile careers. Yet, neglect of this process weakens, cripples, and then kills many organizations as they come under pressure.

In the first chapter she talks about what organizational design is and is not. She then covers each of these topics in separate chapters: 2) Discussing various design models and approaches. 3) Various approaches to structuring organizations (and how it is only a part of the design). 4) How to plan and implement your design change project. 5) What measurement of your project might mean and ways to do it. 6) The role of Stakeholders in the design process, whether you want them there or not. 7) Where to find the leaders to help you in your design project (many of them without formal titles) and what to watch out for from those who might think they will lose out in the change. 8) How your group culture will affect your ability to change your organization design.

The last chapter discusses the importance of not trying to build the one fixed perfect design. Rather, the goal should be to build adaptability into the design so the organization can change in order to successfully compete. Stanford calls this the ability to morph.

Of course, the author is a consultant on this subject and works with organizations on the design change projects. This book is a great handbook for anyone thinking about beginning such a project and a good reference for ideas, principles, and suggestions as your work your way through it.