Goes

I first read this book when it was published under the title "The Thomas Factor".. and have since re-read it.. oh, I think 2 more times, under it's new name! This is one of those books I keep on hand to share with people I come along who need to hear it's profound message.

Have you ever wondered where God is when.. such and such is taking place... or... ever asked Him "why?". Winkie's presentation here is filled with bits of humor as well as insights as to why and how God uses the dark times in our lives for our good. This book is on my list of top 10 all time favorites (I found that the second half of this book is most wonderful).

Titles of some of the chapters might give you an idea of what you'll gain from reading this treasure....

"Elijah at Kidron: When The Brook Dries Up", "The Darkness Of God: Trusting God When You Cannot See", "The Purpose Of Darkness", "The Benefits Of Darkness".

This book really helped me to get a grip on there being a purpose in those dark and difficult times that we all seem to have to face, at one time or another, in our spiritual walk.

The scrapes which Miss Pym and Deborah get into are quite funny, and I even found myself chuckling quietly to myself on occasion. I loved the two stories going on at once during the book, the first being Deborah's romance, and the second, Miss Pym's love of her late employer's brother.

This is a good solid book with plenty of well-drawn black and white pictures to help the reader follow the story line. It tells an interesting true story of a young woman who dresses as a man in order to join the army during the American Revolution. The book also introduces the reader to various historical characters of the time, such as Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. This is an easy book for young children to read, and could be a good starting point in getting a child interested in history. Let's hope that it is reprinted again soon as it is an excellent book and is worth having on any bookshelf, private or public.

Excellent read. I had a difficult time putting book down and always looked forward to picking it up. I found myself laughing out load. Well written.

I found this book by chance and bought it as a gift for my little sister, and she loves it! The stories are scary and weird, but not horrifying (like some scary books for "children"). And they are great for reading out loud and are not too scary to be used as bedtime stories. Also, most of them have an interesting or surprise ending, which is a big plus when you're trying to entertain kids! I highly recommend this for younger scary story fans!

This is what I call GOOD literature! The writing is pure genius. The author does an excellent job of bringing the characters to life. I enjoyed ALL of the short stories. These stories aren't about the action on the field, they're about the behind-the-scenes stuff. Man, I had no idea this kind of stuff went on. The story about the field hockey girls going through initiation was classic. Hey, they say girls just wanna have fun, right? I also liked the story about the two geezers who placed bets at the high school track meets. Those guys were FUNNY. The story about the softball coach who died from stress was quite touching. In fact, the funeral scene with the teddy bears was simply beautiful. All the other stories were good, too. I'd recommend this book for anyone who's ever been interested in high school sports, both adults and young adults alike.

In this adorable book, we find a monkey named Emily who sleeps in a frilly French bedroom. She is rather mischievous and loves to swing from chandeliers, paint pictures on walls and hide.

On these pages she is found on almost every page, sometimes she is hiding between books on a shelf or playing the piano.

Sharon Watts has done an amazing job with the illustrations. This book has an added level of intrigue as some of the pages fold out. There is a lot going on behind the green curtain! The words within the pictures are often in full-color and I found the main story font was easy to read.

In this story, Madame DuBois takes care of Emily as if she was her child. We find Emily eating in bed or being carried home from a shopping trip. She also enjoys taking Emily to outdoor markets where she eats famous French doughnuts. Madame DuBois also makes sure she wears fashionable clothes.

One day, Emily goes wild and Madame DuBois takes her to the Zoo so she can be with other monkeys. She soon regrets this decision, but with some patience she learns this is best for a wild animal.

This book is filled with wonderful art, some suspense and even a good laugh on the last page. Your young children will love this book.

Betty Lou Phillips is also the author of:

Unmistakably French
Villa Décor
French Influences
Provencal Interiors

The Noddy Nodkins series of books is about a little nodding man who is not quite a toy but not quite a decoration. Readily available in London bookstores in both new (reprinted)and used versions, these books depict a toyland reminiscent of yesteryear (wooden trains, rocking horses, teddy bears...) In this book, Noddy develops a big head both literally and figuratively. Noddy struggles to learn humility and regain his proper head size. My 4 and 8 year olds have been enchanted by this little guy. I hope some wise American publisher decides to reprint these wonderful books in the near future.

I first picked this book up because the picture of the beautiful Bernese mountain dog on the cover caught my eye. (I own a Bernese.) Then the short introduction by former White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta caught my interest and I started reading. I'm glad I did.

It's the true story of how Al Shugart, founder of Seagate Technology and a legendary maverick in the computer industry, tried to run his dog Ernest for Congress in the 1996 election. He did it to raise public awareness of stagnation in the body politic. Although he never got Ernest on the ballot, he did get a lot of publicity for his ideas.

The book is both funny and disturbing. The humor comes from the campaign itself, from the letters and articles by supporters (and their pets), and from observing the bureaucratic tangle Shugart and Ernest tried to unsnarl. The disturbing part is that there's so much bureaucracy to deal with.

It's nicely designed, with a lot of pictures and reproductions ! of actual documents from the campaign.

I think it gives a good insight into what Americans are feeling about gridlock in government. It would make a great gift for those who'd like to see more common sense in our political life. Also for those who -- like myself -- love dogs.

I was actually in a production of this one-act play. In my opinion it is a fabulous work. From the author of award winning play, "The effect of gamma rays on man in the moon marigolds" comes this haunting, contemporary play. The parents of eight children run off, abandoning their kids. Each child is equally disturbed, one girl develops anorexia, another begins hearing voices in her head, one boy refuses to admit the parents aren't coming back, and all of the others develop problems as well. This play runs about 40 minutes long, and in that time provokes thought and emotion. The author, Paul Zindel weaves allusions to Greek tragic plays into this modern work and does a truly excellent job! Every actor out there should read this play or see it performed. Not only is it a great modern play, but it is helpful to any actor looking for an interesting monologue. Enjoy!