On-the-tape

If you come from the upper Midwest, especially Minnesota, or have moved there, this is far more than a tongue-in-cheeck but accurate guide to language. It uses language to explain a geographic subculture. It's very funny but at the same time it pays tribute to an overall thoughtfulness that characterizes the Midwest. Sure, a lot of the language is indirect but that's aimed at not hurting anyone's feelings.

In its own humorous way, this is brilliant. As a former Minnesotan now living in the East, I actually learned a lot from it.

I bought this book for my brother for his birthday years ago. I borrowed it from him and haven't given it back yet. If you were raised in rural Minnesota, Iowa or Wisconsin, this book will remind you of home. The piece about hot dishes and tacos (pronounced TAH-co) really cracked me up. We still laugh about the Minnesota good-byes that resemble the ritual still practiced in Wisconsin today. You, the visitor, have to mention that it is time to go at least three times (with intermittent periods of conversation) before you actually take leave or you are considered a bit rude.

So vastly entertaining, words just escape me. If you get it you will laugh til you cry. boo hoo hoo boo hoo hoo.

Bodie Thoene has always been one of my top Christian authors, and this was another great book. I really enjoy how the Shiloh Legacy, Zion Covenant, and Zion Chronicles all involve the same group of characters. You really establish a relationship with all of them when you can see how their families have intertwined over the years. Though I've read both of the Zion series, this is the first chance I've had to read this book, and I liked having a background to all the characters in the other series. For everyone who enjoys good books with a complex plot and compelling characters, this is a great book to read!

This book is about post-world war America.It deals with the racism and bigotry of some of the people of that time.It had me in tears by the end of it,but I didn't stop there,I had to read more books of the series.A masterful storyteller,Bodie Thoene knows how to historicly enlighten while keeping you on the edge of your seat.An A+ for this book,which is one of my most favorite of her books!

The Shiloh series is the best of the Thoene's work, but all of it is excellent. What really stood out to me, reading this book, was the experience of the black soldier. He served many more hours on the front lines, fighting in the most dangerous positions. He was honored while overseas for his service. Then he went home, proudly wearing the uniform in which he served his country, and was condemned for being uppity. Who did he think he was?

These black men were beaten, accused of crimes they didn't commit, and lynched.

As a white woman, I could never live that experience. But I lived it vicariously along with Jefferson Canfield.

The characters are real, with strengths and flaws, just as the people we meet every day. They experience good things, but they also experience horrible, awful things too. That's life.

It isn't light reading, but it IS riviting. And it is educational, because you experience things along with the people in the books, things that really happened at the time. I loved the love story between Birch and Trudy and the biding friendship that developed between Jeff and Birch.

This ties in with the Zion books, too, because Max Meyer and Ellis Warne were the fathers of two of the main characters in the Zion Chronicles, I believe, David Meyer and Ellie Warne.

They are worth reading. The only drawback is that once you've read the first, you HAVE to read them all, and they are LONG books!

An amazing, thought-provoking book, "Jennie" is the fascinating story (actually a composite of several case studies of the time period) of Jennie, a chimpanzee raised as a human as part of an experiment to see how chimps acquire language. Because one of my main interests is language, I found this book extremely interesting.The research presented in this book (which is based upon real experiments) has major implications for both chimps and humans. As a story, "Jennie" is weak in parts: the characterizations can be sketchy and in some places the presentation of the information (diary entries, interviews, etc.) seems kind of gimmicky. However, this should not deter you from a most interesting read. "Jennie" shows the human side of scientific research (except, of course, for the little fact that the book's main character is a chimpanzee).. It's about the malleable nature of perception. It's about evolution, and ethics. This book raises many more questions than it answers-- and that is what it is designed to do, as the most meaningful gift a writer can bestow is to make his readers think. After reading this book, I found myself questioning exactly what my relationship, as a human, is to the world around me.

Preston uses the points of view of several different characters through their journals or scientific writings to give an account of the story of Jennie, a chimpanzee taken into captivity by an American scientist. Through these varied perspectives and with a touching story, Preston raises all sorts of questions about what sets humans apart from animals, where God fits into the natural world, etc...there's all sorts of fuel for thought. Excellently written, thoroughly researched, and an all out great book. I'm a more complex thinker for having read it, and I've recommended it to many of my professors and friends.

I will admit up front that I am a sucker for a chimp story. I think it's due in part to an overdose of "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" and re-runs of Daktari at a very tender age. But this IS an excellent novel. Preston is one half of the team that wrote "The Relic" and several other great thrillers. this is much more gentle fiction than any of those. It is character and issue driven realistic fiction. Jennie is a chimp who is raised as a human child. The story is told as if it were a true history and the viewpoint is split. There are interviews (using sign language) with Jennie, exerpts from her "father's" book, newspaper articles, and other interviews. The story's flow is surprisingly smooth for all that. At turns funny and heart-breaking, Jennie won't leave you along once you pick this novel up. It's short, but block off some time...it's a page turner. And the denouement, while not surprising (what always happens when the wild enters surburbia?) is all the sadder for its inevitableness.

You have heard of the obnoxious person who, upon meeting a biographer who has given up the last 25 years of his life to write the definitive biography of say Queen Elizabeth II, asks, "Now tell me, what's she REALLY like??" Friends, I am that person, which is one reason I always find New Yorker Profiles an unalloyed delight. Rightly or wrongly, I always believe I am getting the real insider stuff.

David Remnick makes thoughtful selections in this anthology. He has covered a time period from the '30s to the present, some very famous people and some you have never heard of, and the same is true for the authors of the Profiles. I fully intended to make a leisurely tour through the book, picking and choosing a Profile here and there for a short read. Once I read the very first one, Joe Mitchell's "Mr. Hunter's Grave," I was hooked and read the whole book from start to finish. So much for leisurely reading!

It is hopeless to attempt to select a favorite; all have their own merits. I was particularly fascinated by Truman Capote's insightful piece on Marlon Brando. Capote's flamboyant personality frequently overshadows his tremendous skills as an interpretive writer. Jean Acocella's study of Mikhail Baryshnikov is an excellent in-depth study of both the man and the artist. John Lahr's Profile on Roseanne is almost scary (or at least Roseanne is!) Joe Mitchell's, "Mr. Hunter's Grave" is so beautifully rendered you can understand why The New Yorker never took him off salary even after Joe suffered the granddaddy of all writer's blocks; he didn't submit an article for fourteen years! The New Yorker always said Joe had a "work in progress."

"Life Stories" is worth it at twice the price. Some of these profiles are unobtainable (unless you have a roomful of old New Yorkers). This is a book you will go back to again and again.

Anyone who has ever read Joseph Mitchell's fascinating profile "Joe Gould's Secret" (now a book and a movie) knows what the New Yorker does with "Profiles". If you haven't read Mitchell, here's your chance, plus an unbelievable collection of life rendered beyond simple biography by a stable of superb writers. It's a must for any serious reader !

Hemingway, Baryishnikov, and Henry Luce are the subjects of some of my favorite celebrity profiles in this wonderful book. But topping my list is "Man Goes to See a Doctor", the awesome Adam Gopnik's sweet and funny rendering of his shrink. Here's a snippet: "Your problems remind me of" - and here he named one of the heroes of the New York School. "Fortunately, you suffer from neither impotence nor alcoholism. This is in your favor." Highly recommended!

Many fans of Janette Oke have asked her to bring back Clark and Marty Davis and she does so in this series. This series is about their granddaughter Virginia, Belinda's daughter.

Virginia lives on a farm with her husband, Jonathan, and their children. Jonathan works with his brother breeding and raising horses. Lots of changes happen for Virginia in a few short years.

Their daughter, Mindy, was left with them by her mother when she was very young. Mindy knows about her "real" mother because she still has some memories of her. But since she has lived with Virginia and Jonathan she's called them mother and father because they are the only real family she's known.

Mindy hopes her mother will soon come to Christ. She prays for her as often as possible.

Mindy's mother comes for a visit and requests something that Jonathan and Virginia won't agree to.

I really liked this book! I like the Love Comes Softly series better so far but maybe I need to finish this series before I compare them. But I do suggest this series, it does a great job of continuing the story of the Davis Family.

Like many of Oke's readers, I have followed the saga of the Davis family in the Love Comes Softly Series and now The Prairie Legacy. Like Gold Refined, the conclusion to the Prairie Legacy series, continues the story of the Davis's grandaughter Virginia. In the first three books of the series, readers saw Virginia mature from a flighty teenager to a caring young wife and mother. In Like Gold Refined, Virginia's path to maturity continues as she has to accept the physical changes in her aging grandparents, Clark and Marty Davis. She does not want them to grow old, to leave their farm, or to change anything in their lives. Her mother Belinda has accepted these changes and makes plans to deal with them, but Virginia wants to hang on to the past, keeping everything the same. When Virginia and her husband Jonathon have to suddenly deal with a court battle over their "unofficially adopted" daughter Mindy, Clark and Marty's problems take a back seat to their own setbacks. Over the ensuing months, Virginia and Jonathon travel to the city, leaving their young family, battle with judges and lawyers, and risk losing their livelihood as they go in to debt to pay legal fees. All the while, Virginia tries to maintain a normal household and keep things the same. Finally, it is Mindy who realizes that changes must be made and she makes the decision herself about where to live. After it is all over, Virginia explains to Mindy that some things are meant to change, and that it is all in God's plan. Through her own journey with Mindy and their problems, Virginia finally realizes and accepts that her grandparents are aging and must leave the farm. If not for the trials that Virginia suffered with Mindy, she would not have come to grips with the fact that even her grandparents' lives must change. Oke has done an excellent job with the two storylines, using one to bring about the resolution of the other. She has also come up with a fitting conclusion to the story of Clark and Marty, and has indeed shown the complete transformation of Virginia from a contented, yet carefree, housewife to a sensible young mother whose trials have formed her into a wise Christian woman, much Like Gold Refined.

this book is so great. i loved it. i hope Janette oke
does write another series. or is there already ?

I first saw the equally good movie due to the AFI's 100 Greatest Movies rating. It looked like it might be interesting and I was amazed. The movie (made in 1961) directly assaulted McCarthyism and the red scare in a rather apocalyptic satire. This prompted me to seek out the book that the movie was based upon thinking that it could only be better, as books commonly are. Little did I know that the book could have been a companion to the movie and vice-versa. This was undoubtedly due to the fact that Richard Condon, the author, collaborated with the makers of the movie. The book provides insight that the movie couldn't possibly have put in including a heroine-addicted incest-loving rapist.

All around the political and social commentary in the story (I'm using story since I suggest that in order to get a good all around view of the author's vision one should both read the book and watch the movie, in either order.) carry the book beyond the author's masterful narrative. If you have any interest in suspense, intrigue, literature, or history this story is a winner.

Although I have read several other Condon books, this is by far his best work. I had the rare pleasure of reading this book aloud with a friend. It is so beautifully written that I would stop and re-read a paragraph just because of the way the words rolled off my tongue. The story is engrossing, and the characters are very well developed. It is very easy to visualize every word. This is one of the few books I have read that actually translated well for the movie, (I still recommend reading the book first).

If you like devious political thrillers with a sly comic edge, this is the book for you!

Condon has written a fascinating thriller on brain washing bordering on science fiction.The programmed individual is thoroughly under the handler's control who can kill his own mother, wife or anybody they chose at random like a heartless robot. The point was not as much to prove its plausibility but to show its absurdity if it can be mastered. We are also given a high dosage of McCarthyism and pure demagoguery of American politics.

Raymond Shaw, an ordinary soldier is captured along with his comrades during the Korean war and were brain washed by a Chinese doctor for three grueling days and returned to the US. He is the one chosen, to be used as an assassin through his American handler. What a handler it turned out to be! His platoon officer, Major Ben Marco, suspects Raymond and the race against time begins. Ben has to decipher the code which transforms Raymond into a ruthless killer and stop him. He has to reconstruct his nightmares of those ghastly three days of mental torture and sort out the truth through mist and fog of illusion and delusion.He knows his friend is a mere tool and yet he lets him play one last deadly act and hopes he has the trump card to outsmart Raymond's handler. Does he succeed?

A tour de force indeed.

"My Brother Michael" was such a good book! It has beautiful descriptions of Greece, and the characters were so interesting. I've read almost all of Mary Stewart's books, and they all give that kind of depressed feeling. Not that they're sad (well, the Merlin Trilogy is), but her books just envelope you, and you can't stop reading them. I love her books, and I wish that she'd written more.

I love all of Mary Stewart's early suspense novels and wish I could buy new copies of them because the battered old ones I have are 20-30 years old, yellowing, and falling apart from repeated re-readings.

I particularly loved the ones set in Greece which was a country that had always captured my imagination. This one in particular made me want to go to Greece and see Delphi and The Charioteer. Five years ago when I finally beheld The Charioteer myself and stood on the theater at Delphi and looked out over the mountains my first thoughts were of Mary Stewart. I recommend this book highly to anyone who can find a copy of it. It is well worth because it is a marvelous read as are all of Mary Stewart's earlier books.

Sadly it appears that most of her early wonderful books are out of print, and the only ones still available are mainly the later and less skillful novels - though a few of the good early ones are still available.

Look for this one. It's a winner.

As a fan of Barbara Michaels/Elizabeth Peters work, this book at first moved slower than I am used to. However, the book delivered on many of the elements that makes me most interested in picking up a mystery novel - historical/archeological/mythological themes, exotic settings well described, a strong female heroine, adventure, and maybe just a touch of romance (not too much). What I found most interesting/facinating was Mary Stewart's ability to paint with words a richly detailed/atmospheric landscape (in this case the rugged mountains of Greece and historically significant center of Delphi) was enough to leave a lasting impression, like snapshots in your mind of time spent in a place that just by being there spiritually uplifted you in some way. Armchair travelers with an interest in experiencing through osmosis impressions left on people upon visiting historical/mythological places will like this book.

Other recommended authors: Sharyn McCrumb, Nevada Barr, Jessica Speart, Beverly Connor, Lyn Hamilton, Susanna Kearsley, and Kathleen Skye Moody.

... should make this book available again now that the movie HARDBALL has hit the screens. I read this book about three years ago or so when it first came out and thought it was a great read. I gave it to a fellow baseball fan, who is a supervising probation officer in our county. For those who feel that youth baseball (and youth sports) can often be more than just a game, this book is for you. Watching the movie last week brought back thoughts of this book. The movie does some Hollywood license on the story line (they win the title in the film) but essentially is well done and gives the essential message the author sought to convey.

This book and the film should be required viewing for suburban Little League teams which have as "must have" items the latest version $250 bats, batting gloves and all the new fangled gear that passes for "essential" baseball equipment these days.

In the film one of the kids is asked by the coach character as the kid returns to his housing project home full of problems and malingerers "What do you do for fun?" The kid responds: "I plaky baseball for you....." Ain't baseball great. This book plus the a little too sappy film shows us all why.

Coyle gave a great story. He was very descriptive. His writing had the affect to make me able to visualize every character and setting. I've spent time in the projects on many occasions' with friends who stay there and I see these things all the time, except children are growing more love for basketball and football. Yet they still show the heart on the court and gridiron as they did in this story in the diamond.

As a coach in the Near North Little League, I certainly have a biased opinion of the book. What a great read. It couldn't be more accurate as to the descriptions of the neighborhood, the kids and their interactions, and dialect, as well as baseball in Cabrini-Green.

The book was short but full of inspirational thought. Noah benShea does a great job of creating such a timeless character who teaches us a lot about life and ourselves.

Sorry, you won't be able to learn baking from this book, instead, you may find it's something more like Zen.

This little poetic story lead us to a place where we can have perfect peace of mind. The reason why Human Being are Human Being is we can better utilize our thinking power.

Jacob is a humble yet great influencer.
Each of the little stories inside the book sounds or looks very simple, but there are always great thoughts behind.

A must have for the ones who embrace life and humanity.

This book is great. Some people may be reluctant to buy the book because the fact that it is somewhat a religious book, or the fact that it has some "Christian" teachings installed into it, but that should not turn you away from this great book of life lessons. It is a book of many proverbs that the author claims to thought up of himself. That in itself is impressive. Each proverb can be applied to daily life and we can easily apply it to our own lives. One proverb states "A fish cannot describe water until it is caught." It has a lot of depth but is a very light read. It is like "chicken soup for the soul" book series. There are stories that accompany these proverbs. Stories that at first glance may seem pointless, but analyzed, can give you a lot from it. Why not try this book?

In a world where our work becomes our life. Where we are asked "Who are you?" and you tell people what you do for a living... something is wrong, very wrong. Read this book, and you will start the journey to productive work/life balance.

Read this book ... then buy a copy for your boss too.

In the beginning I was without direction, usually without a guide or guidance. My path had been very directional with successes but not the achievements of passion that I truly wanted. Now, midlife and midlife crisis finds me looking to my inner self for answers. I was introduced to this book "The Journey", last year by Jed Selter. This succinct and poignant tale of two strangers on an airplane speaks in both poetry and prose of the path of life. It puts in perspective where you are and where you are going down that road. It is a storybook as well as a textbook that can be applied to everyone's life story and reaffirmation of the self. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

How often do we live our lives as if we are victims...discouraged, distressed, separate from ourselves and the ones we love? Living a full life, a life of joy and fulfillment is a matter of choice. Selter and Tumey guide us on a marvelous journey where we discover that changing our mind can change our life. In an engaging conversation between two fellow travelers, their stories guide us in our own journey to reconnect with the things that truly matter in life. Ultimately, as we give of our selves, selflessly, we return to our higher calling as human beings. The message is simple, potent, empowering, engaging, and profound.

The Journey has an urgent message for us to hear. Absolutely, it gives us simple, straight-forward insight and advice on how to return to what matters in life. For me, this book lays a powerful foundation for our collective transformation to a responsible global community. Indeed, our lives depend on it.