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This easy-to-read novel is intended for readers 8-12 years old. The plot senters on the trials of Melissa, a spirited 12-year-old, an only child, and half orphan. Melissa, a native of New York City, suddenly finds herelf packed off to move in with her aunt in Campbell's Corners, which to Melissa seems like a dot in the middle of nowhare on the map of Ontario. Not only does Melissa have to deal with the unusual news that her father has left without a word of explanation and the realization that Aunt Katherine doesn't want her, but she also has diffiuclty adjusting to life in a country school among children suspicious of strangers, especially one as independent as Melissa. Characters are interesting in a plot that has a touch of mystery.

It's rare to read an involving account of a business leader who managed to keep his dignity and idealism intact whilst being phenomenally successful, but that's exactly what this book is.
The book not only covers Edwin Land's major technological achievements in thorough detail, but gives one a vivid feel for his visionary and practical genius that is more affirming and motivating than a dozen Robbins and Covey tomes. Land was not only prodigiously creative but also persuasively, passionately articulate with almost a Victorian missionary zeal about everything he did, and Victor McElheny's ability to balance prose and technical detail does his subject justice.
The organisation of the book into sections concentrating upon aspects of Land's work, rather than a strict historical narrative, does make sense considering the depth with which McElheny covers each topic, whether it's the political maneuverings behind the U2 project, negotiations with Detroit carmakers about polarized headlights, or colour film chemistry. It may not be considered good journalism to do it this way, but then again a "good journalist" would probably have jettisoned much of the detail so crucial to Land's work and concentrated on petty foibles, frustrations and conflicts far more than McElheny has-and McElheny's approach is ultimately more effective.
Where the book could have been better is in editing and rounding off some of the sections-for example, while there is excellent coverage of Land's involvement with classified intelligence projects under President Eisenhower, there is nothing about his subsequent working relationships with Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, let alone his falling out with Nixon. Likewise there is poor coverage of Polaroid's innovations after the introduction of colour film and before the development of the SX-70 system, such as the introduction of packfilm and the world's first transistor-controlled shutter. Yet McElheny inexplicably finds room for a whole page listing the genealogy of Land's cousins!
Nonetheless, the criticisms above are strictly of the variety once described by P. J. O'Rourke as "Sharon Stone has ugly toes"-unless you are unhealthily pedantic about such things, the overall package is still well worth checking out.

This book contains the most detailed information I have seen assembled
in one volume about the life of Dr. Edwin "Din" Land, founder of
Polaroid Corporation. Although I long have read public accounts of
Dr. Land's work, this book greatly added to my knowledge.

For
those who would like to understand the rise and fall of Polaroid and
its stock price over several decades from 1937 through 1980, this book
makes fascinating reading about some of the do's and don't's of
running a high technology company that depends on developing new
technologies and an on-going stream of innovative products.

If you
want to understand the techniques employed by Dr. Land to make
scientific breakthroughs, there are many insights here into his method
of goal-oriented empiricism. Interestingly, it parallels the
approaches used by Thomas Edison, the most prolific inventor of the
20th century. Unfortunately, Dr. Land left little in the way of
writings to draw on other than patent applications and speeches, so
these insights are limited primarily to recollections by colleagues.
On the other hand, the empirical approach is often guided by instinct
based on experience, which is hard to capture. Most scientific
thinkers dislike empiricism, so those who use this method can expect
many rebukes . . . as Dr. Land received in his work on the nature of
color perception.

Those who want to understand the scientific
breakthroughs that Polaroid made will probably come away confused
unless they already have a great knowledge of optics and chemistry
related to photography. I learned a great deal from the book, but
would have liked to learn more. I graded the book down one star for
this weakness.

If you want a fascinating, new look into the
emerging arms race with the Soviet Union in the 1950s, there is much
interesting material here about Dr. Land's role as a national advisor
on defense surveillance.

I was a guest at a dinner hosted by
Dr. Land in the mid 1960s during which he demonstrated his new
technology of instant color photography...His good humor,
generous attitude toward his guests, and his sincere desire to
transform the world, however, left me with a more profound lesson --
seeing much more potential for what a company can be than I would
otherwise have had. Dr. Land explained his vision that night in terms
of releasing the human spirit and encouraging all of us to create and
appreciate more beauty. Although glimpses of this side of Dr. Land
come through in the book, they are overshadowed by the overall theme
of a flawed genius.

I dislike books that argue for flaws in
geniuses. That approach serves to make them more human, but not in a
way that makes us appreciate them or their good points. Geniuses are
by their nature obsessed by their work, and their personal quirks can
be quite negative. ... By the standards of 20th century geniuses,
Dr. Land was a regular guy. In fact, the extent to which he retained
his humanity is part of his greatness.

I think an alternative
explanation to the one in this book of Dr. Land's limitations as a
leader is entirely possible and appropriate. Whenever he was engaged
in endeavors where strong leaders were involved as colleagues or
partners (such as on national defense issues), he was astonishingly
effective. Whenever he was totally given his head, he sometimes
strayed into areas where his vision exceeded the true opportunity.
Clearly, his talent as a technical problem solver vastly exceeded his
talent as an evaluator of product potential.

The story of
Polaroid's rise and fall as depicted here could just as easily be
rewritten as the story of a board of directors and financiers who did
not do their job of providing limits. For example, when Polaroid was
originally taken public in 1937, the investment bankers granted
Dr. Land a 10 year period of total control through a voting trust.
Although every company founder would like such control, that's simply
a bad idea. Management has to be and feel accountable...His authority
seems to me to have been much greater than that normally granted to a
CEO in taking a new product forward....Hopefully, a future book will
look at the fascinating governance challenges and issues related to
being on the board of a company led by a scientific genius who has
provided most of the company's historic value added.

After you
have finished reading and thinking about the fascinating issues in
this book, I suggest that you consider what you would like your legacy
to be. Then, consider what mistakes you will have to avoid in order
to accomplish that legacy. How can others help you overcome your
weaknesses to accomplish more?

Be willing to insist on the
impossible, when it's the right thing to do. You can do it!

Having been an employee of Polaroid for 15 years in the 60s and 70s I found this biography to be spellbinding and full of great details I never was aware of. Without being overly critical the author provides a balance of Land's brilliance and shortcomings set amidst the business world and its demands and pressures. Land was one of those leaders who was able to withstand many of the pressures of Wall St with his strong beliefs and self confidence. A good example for leaders today. He had his faults, most notably a poor selection of the management that suceeded him, leaving the company leaderless and clueless. But for all that, he was an incredible genius, business leader, inventor, project leader, scientist and inspiration to the thousands of Polaroid employees.

While Mr Sloan shows some nice examples of show kelpies (which are an offshoot of the actual working strain) he neglects the real reason these dogs were developed as a breed. Working Kelpies are the work force in Australia's pastoral farming system and should be given their due. By concentrating on the shorter-legged, heavier-coated and basically non-working show dogs, Mr Sloane has doen the forefathers of the Kelpie breed a serious disservice. Having stated all that, the book does contain some fine photographs of show dogs, which , if one likes such dogs, one might find useful.

This book offers an excellent technological and pictorial presentation of the Australian Kelpie dog.

Unfortunately, there is not much written about the personality, inexhaustiable energy and total devotion to their human masters. This makes it hard for those people who wish to use this book to decide on a kelpie as either a work animal or a family pet. (The Kelpie is brilliant at both.)

I think the book is more a manual. A more humane (canine) approach would have been attracted me more to this book.

Being a kelpie owner for over thirty years, I was looking for more.

I found Mr Sloanes book informative,reliable and essential reading for the owner or potential owner of the Australian Kelpie.Pictures of this magnificent looking animal are portrayed in this book. Whether you are looking for a work,show,pet obedience or agility dog you will find the information in this book.The Australian Kelpie is a highly intelligent breed,no matter what he looks like he will adapt to anything you want him to do.I would recommend this book to anyone looking for information on this breed.

This book was very little about astronomy and the actual history of the discovery of Phobos and Deimos, which is what I was interested in, and much more about the politics in postbellum (that is too a word; I looked it up) America.

I skimmed endless passages detailing the intricacies of the lives of men whose names I didn't know because, well, because they probably didn't have much to contribute to the pagent of history. Maybe I daydreamed through this part in history class, but shouldn't a good historical novel include an engaging introduction to the period, rather than a catalog of the doings of every bit player?

I was unable to sympathise with any of the main characters, who were all self-absorbed and self-pitying. Peripheral (and non-political) characters, like the Irish astrologer, the "Scientific Frenchman" correspondent, and Asaph Hall (the moons' discoverer) and his ambitious wife, were much more interesting to me.

Many passages were clumsily written, telling rather than showing. And before each character comes down with malaria, the author made a point of describing the protentous mosquito bite--but ignores all the other bites that every character would have suffered in the course of the muggy summer.

My interest was in astronomy, not politics, so perhaps I shouldn't blame the author for expounding my favorite subject, but I'm a fairly well-rounded person, I think, and if the political stuff was better written, I might have enjoyed learning about it. However, it failed entirely to engage my interest.

Extremely well-written. Lush. Eloquent. Most interesting when Mallon fleshes out the characters. The "plot," however, is so dull and the characters actions so uninteresting, that the reader is gently lulled to sleep. The premise is fascinating, and the attention to detail remarkable. But after several weeks, I have yet to finish this book.

Mallon's strength is his description of 1870s Washinton, DC. If you're familiar with the city, you'll recognize countless landmarks (both extant and extinct) referred to throughout this story. If you like local DC, as opposed to political DC, give this book extra consideration.

The characters run a close second to the setting, although the Irish astrologer was a little too stereotypical for my tastes. The two main characters (Cynthia May & Hugh Allison) are delightful in their relationship, and inspiring when their motives are considered alone. Senator Roscoe Conkling is the most fleshed out historical figure, but it's hard to discern between historic fact and the author's embellishments in the pursuit of crafting the perfect villain.

Not engrossing, but delightful and easy nonetheless.

I was there. I heard the people around Shreveport talk about the Hayride. Elvis was no big asset to the show. There are to many errors in the book for anyone to take it as truth. If he is going to take credit for anything he should also take credit for causing the show to loose it's place in Country Music.

Mr. Logan says Faron Young had a series of relatively brief marriages. Actually, Faron Young had only one marriage and it ended in divorce after 32 years. If Horace Logan is so wrong there, how can I believe anything else he says?

This volume was originally published under the title, "Elvis, Hank, and Me: Making Musical History on the Louisiana Hayride," and it's a tremendously more accurate title than the abbreviated "Louisiana Hayride Years." Although Logan was the guiding light of the show, serving as its creator and producer during its first ten years, his book focuses more on Elvis and Hank, than on the Hayride itself.

His insights into these two megastars, each at the very beginning of their climb to fame, are interesting, to be sure, but there was so much more to be covered. In addition to the two icons, numerous other country acts began or expanded their stardom on the Hayride, and though Logan provides some interesting anecdotes about Johnny and Jack, Kitty Wells, Faron Young, Slim Whitman, Webb Pierce, Johnny Horton, Johnny Cash and George Jones, he never really delves into the Hayride itself.

His dishing on the Grand Ole Opry, while probably close to the bone, is a poor substitute for a deeper discussion of how the Hayride itself worked. There's some interesting analysis of why the Hayride kept giving up its stars to Nashville, but having been written so long after-the-fact, the of-the-moment accounts focus more on the stars than the show. One never really gets a feel for the Hayride's own arc of fame, nor the nuts-and-bolts of how the show (both stage and radio) operated.

That said, and even with the factual errors noted elsewhere, this is a worthwhile first-hand account of a seminal program that fostered one of the great transitional periods in country music's history.

As a mom committed to a low/no sugar way of life for my family, I was excited to try the recipes in this book. For the most part, I was largely disappointed. The textures were strange and the food was quite bland. I would not recommend this book.

My 15-month-old loves the Applesauce-Raisin Muffins, and they were even a hit with my husband! I have several more on my list to try in the coming weeks.

The only thing I don't like is that several recipes (frozen desserts, shakes/smoothies) use raw eggs, which is generally considered a no-no these days (at least without a warning in the recipe about the risk - however low it may be - of salmonella poisoning). I may try these recipes using pasteurized egg-substitute in some cases, but the book should probably be revised to say something about that.

Besides that one complaint, I'm very pleased with this cookbook and looking forward to making more healthy snacks for my son!

I found this cookbook to be a good resource for creating sugar free recipes for toddlers. Even my 7 year old enjoyed the snacks! I'm always on the look-out for ways to serve healthy food to my children especially without refined sugar and chemicals. The cheesy griddle cakes are fantastic and my toddler loves them! However, some recipes were not as big a hit, such as the zuchinni pancakes.

This is the first book by Coughlin that I have read. It was engaging and enjoyable but not a pageturner. Coughlin spins two parallel but unrelated stories through the book. This leaves the reader to wonder if the two story lines will come together in the end or remain separate vehicles that develop the main character, Charles Sloan. As the novel progresses in a somewhat meandering fashion, the reader comes to know Sloan, who is a lawyer of keen mind and thought process, a recovering alcoholic, and, at times, a tortured soul. The story is able to hold the reader's attention but the ending is rather predictable. The story is written in the first person perspective of Sloan, much like the Paul Mandriani novels from Steve Martini. Personally, I will seek out a Martini novel before I again reach for Couglin.

Recovering alcoholic attorney is involved in two different cases. In one he is representing assistant police chief who's accused of stealing money used to pay drug informants. The charges seem to be political in nature. In the other, he is called into to represent various suspects being questioned in murders of seven year old children. The child murders cause him to question God although he is a lapsed Catholic and also cause him to slip in his alcohol recovery program. In the end, He's able to vindicate the police chief and secrets of the police chief's past are revealed. In the other, he discovers who the child-murderer is (really not too hard to figure) and confronts him.

I have read a number of Coughlin's books. Some are better than others, but this one proves again, as do his other novels, that Coughlin is among the best of the lawyer-novel authors. His plots are always interesting and developed; his writing is very good; there is humor and sophistication to a degree that is rare in this genre.

This book shows beautiful faux finishes, but goes more into the natural and/or elaborate elements needed to attain the beautiful finish. It doesn't teach the beginner or home decorator the basic steps needed to attain the wonderful results. I am no closer to a beautiful faux finish in my livingroom than I was before purchasing this book.

Although this book might not be the choice of a first-time faux painter, it is invaluable if you want the secrets to a classy, authentic paint job. Classic Paints & Faux Finishes has unlocked the mystery of the strange paint on my 1850's ceilings and why no other paint will stick to it; has authentic alternatives for treating plaster walls without resorting to inappropriate "plastic" paints and it provides simple recipes to create beautiful historic paints that are otherwise nearly impossible to acquire. The color and pigment charts are also very helpful. This is an excellent and inspiring reference book that should join your library when you wish to preserve the integrity of the past or when you cross the line from craft to art.

This is not a beginner book. However it is perfect for the professional finisher - especially if you take an interest in historic paints and techniques. There are many excellent recepies for historic paints, including calcamine. For the serious decorative painter this book is top notch.

Extremely thin in both observation and inspiration, this celebration of the '60's bachelor male is like an extended booklet for one of the CD's in the Ultra-Lounge catalogue. Colorful, yes, and initially fun, but leaving no lasting impressions. I liked the paperback book covers, the hip records, the naughty napkins, but the book falls short on exploring drinks and music--which should've been the focus of the piece. Instead, we get a tiki section(with grass skirt ads!)and a chapter on the Beatnik movement. I don't know about you, but the bachelors I knew in the 1960's were self-appointed Kings of Suburbia, not pot-smoking guys in berets who listened to Lenny Bruce(those were KIDS, not bachelor men). Therefore, the bongos and the hippies are just wasted space in what should've been a much more precise and engaging look at a specific genre.

This book looks great and has tons of photos- it is an enjoyable collection of eye candy. Do not expect any new info from this one. The text describes what the author might imagine this time was like, instead of alowing the reader to draw their own conclusions.

This super cool little book is full of the coolest vintage "guy stuff"! Man, I wish life was still that GONE! This book will have any normal,red-blooded hipster lookin' for a time machine so he can get his but back to the crazy days of cocktails and girl chasin'! Oh lord how the 2000's seem like they are gonna be LAME compared to those wild days. Please get me out of here and back to the NORMAL, techno music free past...PLEASE!

The author had good intentions, but needed a much lighter touch for this book. The premise of an isolated island community rocked by a shocking murder is very intriguing. Unfortunately, the author didn't bring any new ideas to the mix. The killer is obvious from the first few chapters, and the rest of the book is comprised largely of heavy-handed caricatures and anvil-dropping. I don't like books that talk down or preach to the reader, and this did plenty of both.

Though I agree the writing at times was a little elementary, the story was disturbing to me, not just because of the theme of child molestation/murder but also because of the racism aspect. I am a non-white person living in a small community in the Northwest (about 2 hours from Seattle) with very little crime. While I have never experienced blatant racism, I have encountered some innocent/ignorant comments from people who were not hatefull; I'm assuming they were just not very culturally aware, so I can relate to many of the situations/feelings in the book. This is not a story with a happy ending; rather, it was sad (police chief and detective's relationship) as well as disturbing (altering crime evidence, guilt by association, hidden racial and militia agendas). It would seem to be a book to spark discussion groups on these multiple themes. I will read the author's first novel.

I have ready many, many mysteries over the years and this novel is one of the best I have ever read! The twists and turns of the suspect, the bigotry that is as chilling to the bone as the murder itself. This book is provocative and stirring. The characters on this island are absolutely hateful! I look forward to reading "Guilt by Association". Thank you Susan...