Wild Orchids of the Canadian Maritimes And Northern Great Lakes Region

Book Description

More than 60 native orchid species can be found in the fields and forests of the Canadian Maritimes and shorelines of the Northern Great Lakes, and this indispensable guide is your key to finding them all. Wild orchid expert and author Paul Martin Brown provides essential information, making it easy for both novices and experienced orchid hunters alike to find what they need quickly and efficiently. No other field guide has ever covered these regions so completely.

Each species and variety is colorfully illustrated with photographs, a diagnostic line drawing and a distribution map, as well as a complete description of the habitat, range, and flowering time. Specific attention has been made to the numerous growth and color forms and a full, detailed list of synonyms for each species is included in a separate section. Simple, straightforward keys assist in identification so that removal of plants from the wild is unnecessary. New concepts in taxonomy and the place of hybrids are discussed and further aided by a comprehensive list of recent literature references and a bibliography.

Geographical coverage includes:
· Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and southeastern Quebec
· Ontario's northern shores of Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Ontario
· 10 detailed area treatments: Northern Shore of Lake Superior; Isle Royale; Timmins and the Polar Bear Express; Anticosti and the Mingan Islands; The Gaspe: Bic, Mt. Albert, Bonaventure Island; New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island; southwestern Nova Scotia; Cape Breton; western Newfoundland; Cape Norman, Burnt Cape, and Cook's Harbour; The Mystery of Tilt Cove
· 55 species, 8 varieties, 72 forms, 7 hybrids

Customer Reviews:

Enthusiastically recommended for orchid lovers of all walks of life.......2006-08-05

The collaborative effort of author Paul Martin Brown and artist Stan Folsom, Wild Orchids Of The Canadian Maritimes And Northern Great Lakes Region is an excellent identification guide for lay readers and botanists alike. Featuring entries for more than 60 native species, Wild Orchids offers multiple full-color photographs for each, which is particularly useful for species that come in different colors, as multiple common colors for a given species are represented. The text each flower's name, range, distinguishing features, habitat, flowering period, and more. In addition to the photograph-filled identification section, there is a section that explains in depth how and where to find all of the different species. Durable, water-resistant binding and an index for quick and easy reference make Wild Orchids a premier guide for taking on the trail. Enthusiastically recommended for orchid lovers of all walks of life.

Book Description

Make like a royal in a Dutch Renaissance castle, sip champagne in the middle of Tivoli, watch a perfect sunset on windswept beaches or get your modern art fix on the banks of a fjord—Fodor's Denmark, 5th Edition offers all these experiences and more! Our local writers have traveled throughout the country to find the best hotels, restaurants, attractions and activities to prepare you for a journey of stunning variety. Before you leave for your trip be sure to pack your Fodor's guide to ensure you don't miss a thing.

The San Francisco Chronicle sums it up best —"Fodor's guides are saturated with information."

- You won't find a more accurate, current guidebook anywhere.
- Unlike other travel books, Fodor's guides rely heavily on local experts who know the territory best—so you know you're seeing the real Denmark.
- We give you the planning tools you need to tailor your trip. We give options for all budgets. You make the choices.

-----------------------------------
With Fodor’s you get much more than a guidebook–we make it easy for you to customize your dream vacation.

Visit www.fodors.com to find up-to-date travel bargains, mini-guides to worldwide destinations, information on local festivals, dazzling drives, maps, vacation planning tips and much more!

And, for more insider secrets, visit “Travel Talk” and “Rants and Raves” online at www.fodors.com/forums to get advice from other travelers like you.

Amazon.com

In a gay heaven, the choir robes would be designed by Gautier after drawings by Tom of Finland. Even on Earth, utopia must be approaching when the musclebound torsos and bulging baskets of Tom's manly men attract a full-length critical study. Art historian Micha Ramakers, who previously edited a monograph of Tom of Finland's drawings, argues persuasively for the influence of these hyper-masculine figures on gay culture since the mid-1950s, when the artist's renderings of fantasy men first began to appear in American beefcake magazines. Although the consistency of Tom of Finland's technique and themes over the four decades of his working life doesn't leave Ramakers much room to discuss the development of his subject's talents, he makes ample use of his few opportunities (like the introduction of more black figures in the mid-1980s, after the artist spent six months in the U.S.). More rewardingly, he uses the pornographer's work as a lens for examining the evolution of gay masculinity since the 1950s. --Regina Marler

Book Description

In this groundbreaking study of the art of Touko Laaksonen (1920-1991), better known as Tom of Finland, Micha Ramakers explores the incredible and defining impact Tom's work has had upon the culture at large. It is work whose erotic and emotional power remains unabated to this day. Lavishly illustrated with drawings and photographs, Dirty Pictures is a lively and entertaining book encompassing the rise of the gay movement, the world of fine art, and the function (and the functioning) of pornography. For the millions of fans of Tom's work throughout the world, as well as readers unfamiliar with his work, this study brings uncommon insight into Tom of Finland's decidedly uncommon work.

Customer Reviews:

tom vs........2000-08-15

tom of finland is a demonstration and if you re intrested in gay-art you must have this book as soon as you can ....so this masculity is supported by heavenly drawings

A Must for Your Coffee Table.......2000-07-22

"The art of Touko Laaksonen (1920 1991), famous throughout the world as Tom of Finland, has had an incredible and defining impact upon the culture at large an impact that arguably exceeds that of any other artist working in the latter half of the 20th century. It is perhaps even more remarkable that Tom of Finland was not a traditional fine artist his work was most commonly regarded as gay pornography, and rightly so. Yet it is art that not only had a tremendous impact upon the emerging gay culture worldwide but whose erotic and emotional power remains unabated to this day. For millions of fans throughout the world, as well as those unfamiliar with Tom of Finland¹s art, this book brings uncommon insight into a decidedly uncommon body of work." - text excerpt from Stonewall Inn

Tom Tom Tom.......2000-04-10

If you love Tom of Finland, you will absolutely love this book. Seemingly hundreds of his prints, even such rarities from his early work, grace this book and give it a flavor that seems to be lacking from other pictorials. This book is utterly delightful and insightful as to the man himself. It was wonderful and I'd recommend it to anyone. Five stars all the way!

Dirty Pictures: Tom of Finland, Masculinity, and Homosexuality

Average customer rating:

Dirty Pictures: Tom of Finland, Masculinity, and Homosexuality
Micha (Author) Finland, Tom Of (Illustrator) Ramakers
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTIEHI

Customer Reviews:

Not the best.......2004-03-28

When I got this book I knew it was from 1991,but there were pictures in from 1985 it left me with the feeling it was an old book .The overall feeling of this book was that there was a lot of good info about the kennels in the U.S.A.but the lay-out is in my opninion not so good.
So overall 3 stars for the book!

Good Introductory Book.......2004-03-27

I found this book to contain repetitive information. As well, the pictures in the book (which there are lots of) unfortunately are almost all from the early to mid 80's (still lots of beautiful boys/girls). Perhaps, I'm an owner who is looking for more than general information.

I'm not slagging the book, it does have good info. It may be better suited to those who are new owners of the breeds, or those who have a new found interest in the Staffordshire terriers. It's a nice looking hardcover book, that'll look good on any owners' book shelf or coffee table. I'll keep this book handy for friends/family to read, if they have any concerns or have been misinformed about the dreaded "pitbulls".

A must buy book for an American Staffordshire Terrier owner.......1999-05-15

This is a very well written book by a very respected AKC judge and it thoroughly covers the breed. I found the kennel histories most informative and wuld reccomend this to be part of every American Staffordshire Terrier owners library.

American Pit Bull (Complete Pet Owner's Manuals)

Average customer rating:

Not as good as it could have been
great beginning book for great dogs
Very Handy To Have...
Pet Lighthouse Staff Review
America Pit Bull Terriers/American Staffordshire Terriers

American Pit Bull (Complete Pet Owner's Manuals)
Joe Stahlkuppe
Manufacturer: Barron's Educational Series
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Animal Care & Pets | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

ASIN: 0764110527

Product Description

These sturdy canines require rigorous training, but can become faithful companions or dauntless guard dogs. Books in Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals series present basic information for new or soon-to-be owners. Advice and instruction covers feeding, housing, health care, training, grooming, and much more. Texts emphasize pet care basics and are easy for all readers to understand. All books in this series are filled with high quality full-color photos and instructive line drawings. Paperback / 96 Pages / 6 1/2 x 7 7/8 / 2000

Customer Reviews:

Not as good as it could have been.......2002-12-23

While this book has a lot of information for people who have a puppy, it offers minimal information for someone like me who has just brought home an adult Staffy. The book has a lot of info on how to crate train a puppy, the importance of socialization and other topics that can pertain to adult dogs, but if there was just one paragraph on how to make an adult dog feel comfortable in it's new home, or what I should expect during the first week, I would have given this book 4 stars!

I was also looking for a book that would give me the basics on what type of collar/brush/leash to buy, but when I got to that section, the authors advice was to ask your vet.

While the pictures were great, I would quickly trade them for more information!

great beginning book for great dogs.......2002-12-14

as a serious protection dog lover, i bought this book to buffer my growing library of "doggy trivia", and i refer to it every time someone in my neighborhood brings one home. it has been loaned out and returned a few times, and it seems to help those who take the time to read it.
it is light on the eyes (love the pictures, and my dog looks like the white dog on page 16-american bully), and light on the mind, very easy to read! i will credit this book for one very special reason, and that is that it lists legal problems one can expect when having a pit lookalike or the real thing. this book actually lead me to research further into what laws pertain in my area of the world, and it made me realize the benefit of preparing for our move next year. this aspect alone is important for any pit owner. because most insurance companies will not allow groomer or vet stats into their computers (the results would kill their ability to dole out insurance because the pomeranian, chow chow, cocker spaniel, and scottie owners would be ahead of pits for bites), this book is important. it shows that these dogs are sited for media and statistical exploitation.
i recommend it for the beginning pit lover. it shows the dogs i see in my friend's homes, the ones that love the kids and are not allowed to be a problem. please buy it if you have a pit, and if you don't buy it anyway. you may learn to discern where the propaganda came from.
as the owner of an american bully who resembles a pit, i can attest to the problems we, the good dog owners, face because of owners of dogs who will never own books!
i also recommend this book for any boston terrier owner. i have found that these dogs came from the truncated nosed pits of the 1800's. it is a great history of where your companion animal came from. see carl semencic books. go pits!

Very Handy To Have..........2002-11-11

If your thinking about getting a American Pit Bull Terrier, this book is perfect to have. It tells you the history of the breeds , how to train them , and what to exspect when you adopt one into your home. I'm a owner of 2 lovable american pitbull terrier puppies.....

Pet Lighthouse Staff Review.......2001-06-21

We found this book informative and well written. Most of the information seems directed towards people new to the breed. Helpful description explaining the basic personality of the breed, and some helpful health tips round this book out to be good reading material for people interested in purchasing an American Pit Bull Terrier.

America Pit Bull Terriers/American Staffordshire Terriers.......2000-12-08

This book is a "must have" for anyone with a pit or amstaff. It covers all the basic information about the care of the breed. It's written in an easy to read format and contains great pictures. I'll keep this book as a reference.

American Pit Bull and Staffordshire Terriers: Everything About Purchase, Care, Nutrition, Breeding, Behavior, and Training (A Complet)

Average customer rating:

Good Basic Beginners Book
basic pet store knowledge
Excellent book for potential owner of an Amstaff or APBT!
Don't buy this one
This is a very informative, well written book.

American Pit Bull and Staffordshire Terriers: Everything About Purchase, Care, Nutrition, Breeding, Behavior, and Training (A Complet)
Joe Stahlkuppe
Manufacturer: Barrons Educational Series Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Animal Care & Pets | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

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Animal Husbandry | Agricultural Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0812092007

Customer Reviews:

Good Basic Beginners Book.......2000-01-31

As a first time dog/Amstaff owner, I found this book very helpful for the first couple of months of ownership, but would highly recommend following it up with The American Staffordshire Terrier by Jacqueline Fraser ASAP.

basic pet store knowledge.......1999-12-28

Sorry folks, this is a basic dog book. You could put a poodle on the cover and you wouldnt have to change the text. Someone didnt do thier homework on this one.Its a waste of time and money at the breeds expense!

Excellent book for potential owner of an Amstaff or APBT!.......1999-11-06

I really enjoyed this book. I am not yet an Amstaff or APBT owner but I found the information in this book to be extremely informative as I attempt to evaluate whether this breed is the right choice for me. The pictures are just excellent.

Don't buy this one.......1999-09-10

This book was a waste of time and money. There was very little specific information on the breed except on probably 3-5 pages. Almost everything else should just say canine.

This is a very informative, well written book........1999-08-11

The author covers everthing from housebreaking and training to what to look for in body structure, to what to expect from your APBT. It answered all the questions I had and more that I didn't know yet. It's a great book, a definite buy.

Staffordshire Bull Terrier y El American Staffords

Average customer rating:

Staffordshire Bull Terrier y El American Staffords
Umberto Cuomo
Manufacturer: De Vecchi
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Spanish | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

American Staffordshire Bull Terrier 2005 Pet Prints Calendar

Average customer rating:

American Staffordshire Bull Terrier 2005 Pet Prints Calendar
Pet Prints
Manufacturer: Pet Prints
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Calendar
ASIN: 1843022060

Le Staffordshire bull-terrier et l'American Staffordshire terrier

Average customer rating:

Le Staffordshire bull-terrier et l'American Staffordshire terrier
U Cuomo
Manufacturer: De Vecchi
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 2732822604

Average customer rating:

Wonderful Book.

Helpful Resource for the Wannabe Green Gardener

a fun and interesting read filled with useful & practical tips

What an excellent book!

EAT MORE DIRT is fun and informative !

Eat More Dirt: Diverting and Instructive Tips for Growing and Tending an Organic Garden
Ellen Sandbeck
Manufacturer: Broadway
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Organic | Techniques | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Techniques | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Slug Bread and Beheaded Thistles: Amusing & Useful Techniques for Nontoxic Housekeeping and Gardening

Organic Housekeeping: In Which the Non-Toxic Avenger Shows You How to Improve Your Health and That of Your Family, While You Save Time, Money, and, Perhaps, Your Sanity

Ann Lovejoy's Organic Garden Design School (A Rodale Organic Gardening Book)

Better Basics for the Home: Simple Solutions for Less Toxic Living

Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening

ASIN: 0767909208
Release Date: 2003-02-11

Book Description

A witty, whimsical gardening primer for anyone who wants to tend their patch of earth with a truly green thumb.

A garden can either bring you bliss or drive you insane, but organic landscape gardener Ellen Sandbeck has spent a lifetime discovering creative, effective techniques for growing and tending a garden with ease—while being kind to the earth itself. Eat More Dirt is her delightful compendium of homespun tips and tricks for designing, planting, nurturing, and beautifying your land without the use of harmful chemicals and pesticides.

From peat moss to irksome pests and predators, Sandbeck explores the lively world of compost heaps (which can be used to naturally “vaccinate” your garden against disease), growing good soil, choosing plants well-adapted to your climate, weed warfare, planting protocols, and eco-friendly ways to quench your garden’s thirst. Whether you tend an acre or just a window box, Eat More Dirt is an essential guide to keeping your garden thriving, the natural way.
• Build up topsoil without toxic fertilizers or noisy machinery • Compost, the other black gold
• Eradicate weeds with sunflower seeds • Protect berries from birds with a sugar-water spray
• Gentle pruning techniques • Banish beetles with wheat bran • Drive off furry pests with cayenne pepper
• When life hands you a seep, dig a pond—transforming garden irritants into garden pearls
• Pre- and post-gardening stretches • Dancing with tools • The Zen of puttering •

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful Book........2007-05-24

Eat More Dirt is a great read: funny and informative. I read it cover to cover on a flight and then started reading it over again. It is full of great tips for organic gardening that are easy to implement. It helped me realise that my garden doesn't need to be "flawless" to be beautifuland that I need to design it around the work that I enjoy and have time for so that it is a pleasure, not a rod for my own back. Thank you Ellen Sandbeck. Keep writing. I am going to order your last book right now!

Helpful Resource for the Wannabe Green Gardener.......2007-05-18

This book is an enjoyable journey--and tribute--toward a better world. Written by Sandbeck after the 9/11 tragedy, she wrote this book with the purpose of creating a safer environment, beginning in our own backyard. At times, this book is whimsical; at times, it is philosophical. But the theme of greener living resounds throughout. A very thoughtful and thought-provoking read for those of us that want to be more eco-minded.

a fun and interesting read filled with useful & practical tips.......2005-08-31

in addition to her practical organic knowledge, ellen sandbeck writes with whimsy & a knowledge of history - taking the reader on amusing & informative tangents while passing on some simple techniques to make gardening more productive & more enjoyable.

What an excellent book!.......2004-06-01

EAT MORE DIRT is fun! More than just a gardening handbook, it's about how to get what you REALLY want out of your garden (all the time -- not just when you're resting on the lawn, avoiding the mower.) It's about how to provide the very best for all involved by using what you have to your advantage, and refusing to poison your soil, your plants, and yourself. (You might be surprised at what constitutes poison.) It's also an acerbic sort of love song for the land, one that will inspire you to "sing" organically to your own little corner of Mother Earth. (Whether or not you choose to literally sing to your plants is up to you -- and perhaps your neighbors!)

As a novice gardener, I was raised by parents whom I always felt used too many chemicals and WAY too much water! Of course, their garden is beautiful, and in that I hope to emulate them, but I'll be using Ellen Sandbeck's organic advice, appreciating her alternately dry and silly wit along the way. Check out this book: it's a joy to read and a BIG help in the garden.

EAT MORE DIRT is fun and informative !.......2003-02-16

EAT MORE DIRT, by Ellen Sandbeck, is a fun and informative way to learn more about organic gardening. I laughed, I cried and I learned a lot! I loved the original art work by Sandbeck and all the tips that I can use right away to improve my garden's health! It was such a fun, painless read that I sat down and read the whole thing! Check out all the great illustrations, too!

Book Description

Indonesia has been home to some of the most vibrant and complex developments in modern Islamic thought anywhere in the world. Nevertheless little is known or understood about these developments outside South East Asia. By considering the work of the leading Indonesian thinkers of the twentieth century, Michael Feener, an intellectual authority in the area, offers a cogent critique of this diverse and extensive literature and sheds light on the contemporary debates and the dynamics of Islamic reform. The book highlights the openness to, and creative manipulation of, diverse strands of international thought that have come to define Islamic intellectualism in modern Indonesia. This is an accessible and interpretive overview of the religious and social thought of the world's largest Muslim majority nation. As such it will be read by scholars of Islamic law and society, South East Asian studies and comparative law and jurisprudence.

Studies In Modern Islamic Law And Jurisprudence (Arab and Islamic Laws Series)

Average customer rating:

Studies In Modern Islamic Law And Jurisprudence (Arab and Islamic Laws Series)
Oussama Arabi
Manufacturer: Kluwer Academic Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

International Law | Law | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

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General | Law | Subjects | Books

Jurisprudence | Perspectives on Law | Law | Subjects | Books

Islamic | Legal History | Law | Subjects | Books

General | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books

Law | Islam | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 9041116605

Book Description

This book shows 19th and 20th century Islamic Law as a dynamic process casting its net into the 21th century and shaping of major constitutional and legal developments in the Arab and Muslim worlds. The introduction and nine chapters of this volume provide insight into the ongoing transformation of the Shari'a into the law of a nation-state. The book contains studies on Marriage and Divorce, Contract Law in the new Civil Codes of Egypt, Iraq and Syria; the ideological springs of Muhammed 'Abduh's visionary program for the reconstruction of Shari'a, the place of Islamic law in the judicial doctrine and policy of the Egyptian State and Legal Capacity.

Average customer rating:

A fantastic book that will entertain and inspire the reader

One of the best Christmas gifts

Inspirational True Story

Boyhood dreams become reality

A Love Letter from a Son to his Father

Rocket Boys
Homer Hickam
Manufacturer: Delta
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
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Similar Items:

October Sky (Special Edition)

The Coalwood Way

Sky of Stone: A Memoir

We Are Not Afraid: Strength and Courage from the Town That Inspired the #1 Bestseller and Award-Winning Movie "October Sky"

Back to the Moon: A Novel

ASIN: 0385333218
Release Date: 2000-01-11

Amazon.com

Inspired by Werner von Braun and his Cape Canaveral team, 14-year-old Homer Hickam decided in 1957 to build his own rockets. They were his ticket out of Coalwood, West Virginia, a mining town that everyone knew was dying--everyone except Sonny's father, the mine superintendent and a company man so dedicated that his family rarely saw him. Hickam's smart, iconoclastic mother wanted her son to become something more than a miner and, along with a female science teacher, encouraged the efforts of his grandiosely named Big Creek Missile Agency. He grew up to be a NASA engineer and his memoir of the bumpy ride toward a gold medal at the National Science Fair in 1960--an unprecedented honor for a miner's kid--is rich in humor as well as warm sentiment. Hickam vividly evokes a world of close communal ties in which a storekeeper who sold him saltpeter warned, "Listen, rocket boy. This stuff can blow you to kingdom come." Hickam is candid about the deep disagreements and tensions in his parents' marriage, even as he movingly depicts their quiet loyalty to each other. The portrait of his ultimately successful campaign to win his aloof father's respect is equally affecting. --Wendy Smith

Book Description

The #1 New York Times bestselling memoir that inspired the film October Sky, Rocket Boys is a uniquely American memoir—a powerful, luminous story of coming of age at the dawn of the 1960s, of a mother's love and a father's fears, of a group of young men who dreamed of launching rockets into outer space . . . and who made those dreams come true.

With the grace of a natural storyteller, NASA engineer Homer Hickam paints a warm, vivid portrait of the harsh West Virginia mining town of his youth, evoking a time of innocence and promise, when anything was possible, even in a company town that swallowed its men alive. A story of romance and loss, of growing up and getting out, Homer Hickam's lush, lyrical memoir is a chronicle of triumph—at once exquisitely written and marvelously entertaining.

Now with 8 pages of photographs.

A number-one New York Times bestseller in mass market, brought to the screen in the acclaimed film October Sky, Homer Hickam's memoir, nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award, comes to trade paperback with an all-new photo insert.

One of the most beloved bestsellers in recent years, Rocket Boys is a uniquely American memoir. A powerful, luminous story of coming of age at the end of the 1950s, it is the story of a mother's love and a father's fears, of growing up and getting out. With the grace of a natural storyteller, Homer Hickam looks back after a distinguished NASA career to tell his own true story of growing up in a dying coal town and of how, against the odds, he made his dreams of launching rockets into outer space come true.

A story of romance and loss and a keen portrait of life at an extraordinary point in American history, Rocket Boys is a chronicle of triumph.

Download Description

With "October Sky" (originally titled Rocket Boys), Homer Hickam introduced millions of readers to Coalwood, West Virginia, a 1950s haven of small town charm and hometown magic:
-- "October Sky" was a three-week #1 New York Times paperback bestseller and has spent a full uninterrupted year on the New York Times extended list.
-- By popular demand, 8 pages of photos have been added.

Customer Reviews:

A fantastic book that will entertain and inspire the reader.......2007-06-20

I cannot believe it has taken me so long to getting around to reading this book. Our community had one of those reading together projects and the paper back version of this book was free. I cannot remember exactly when I got it (it was either the fall of 2001 or 2002) but I got it because I had seen and enjoyed the movie.

Well as is often the case the book is far superior top the movie. I found it hard to stop reading this at times keeping me up way past my bed time at times. I haven't had a book that grabbed my attention like this one in decades. It is moving and inspiring. It truly shows what you can accomplish with hard work and determination.
The book adds depth that the movie doesn't have time to cover. IT explores the family dynamics of Homer, Elsie, Jim and Sonny. It makes you feel like you are a part of that family living in Coalwood, WV in the late 50's. I have read many other books about NASA by people who were Astronauts or worked at NASA but this was by far the most engaging. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

I would recommend this as a read to anyone, but especially to teens. It deals with the struggles of going through adolescence and trying to find your place in life.

One of the best Christmas gifts.......2007-03-26

As I have nephews, I'm always looking for something to share with them to encourage them to dream big. My friend gave me this book over Christmas after I talked about how great a movie that "October Sky" was.

Homer Hickam's memoir is a wonderful story of a young man growing up in Coalwood, West Virginia during the late 50's and early 60's just as the space race was in full bloom. However, Coalwood was in the process of dying.

Hickam beautifully describes how his life was growing as he decided that he wanted to build rockets. Even though, he was not doing so well in some subjects like algebra, once he discovered that understanding math and science would help him to build his rockets, then he definitely had a desire to understand both subjects to help him reach his goal.

From all of the reports about how the United States is lagging behind in math and science, this book should be a must read to help inspire young people to pursue a path in math and science.

Hickam shows with his memoir that it is always possible to dream big and that with persistence and determination you can achieve anything that you want. I would definitely recommend this book to adults and teenagers.

Inspirational True Story.......2007-03-22

This is the story of a boy growing up in a coal-mining community in West Virginia. In this town it is expected that every boy who grows up will eventually go into the coal mines to work. This is especially true for Homer, because his father runs the coal mine. But Homer has other ideas. He is enthralled with the idea of space, and after seeing the Russian launch of Sputnik that put so many Americans into a panic, he decides that he would like to build rockets.

Homer recruits several of his high school classmates to help him to gather supplies and build his rockets. They start off with crude designs that don't really fly and actually end up being dangerous. But Homer and his friends become more dedicated to building good rockets. With the encouragement of Homer's mother and his science teacher, Homer begins to take rocket-building seriously. The boys invent rocket fuels, build specialized nozzles, and Homer even teaches himself calculus so he can do the calculations for his rockets. The ultimate goal becomes the science fair. Can a group of boys from West Virginia actually will and gain national attention?

There is a lot more to this book than the story of rocket building. This is really the story of Homer growing up, and I enjoyed reading about his thoughts throughout high school. It made me a bit sad to read about how Homer described his town and how he related to his father and his brother, so that was a smudge on the inspirational story.

Boyhood dreams become reality.......2007-03-18

This is one classic must-read for anyone, child or adult, who thinks they can't live their dreams. Homer did, supported by his loving mother and his begrudging father.

Homer describes a life in West Virginia dominated by coal mining, Communist superiority with science, and 1950s norms of what one can and can not do. It was this setting that inspired this rocket-obsessed boy to go against the grain--within limits--to pursue his dream of making rockets. He tells this story with a boyish humor, a juvenile naivete and an adult's sense of reality in the end. He never gave up to pursue his dream no matter how many walls he broke with his rockets, or how many times he was banished to his room for creating a ruckus as one of the town's Rocket Boys. When other boys played football and lived to be heroes, Homer was a hero-in-waiting.

How can one even deny a boy presidency of the Big Creek Missile Agency? Reading about the BCMA reminded me of my own childhood fantasies of being Super Teacher or Super Explorer of the backwoods around Chicagoland, my hometown, all that was destroyed for new land development by the time I was a young adult.

Coalwood, WV knew what they had with this boy. Even though Homer did his share of scaring the begeesus out of some of the townsfolk, the town supported him anyway, knowing that Homer possessed something that many others in Coalwood didn't have: a chance to pursue his dreams. The narrative of this book, always written with that childish sense of humor, leaves the reader wanting more. I was hooked after just a few pages.

The final chapter was also touching, describing what happened to all the Rocket Boys, what they were doing now, and what happened to all those Football Fathers and boys. In the end, they all didn't achieve nearly as much as Homer did.

I can understand why this book was made into a movie (a movie I've yet to see). We need more such stories of childhood dreams and fantasies, childhood loves and community idealism.

Too many memoirs today are about adults who describe their negligent parents, their alcoholic father or their abusive mother, memoirs that are often filled with anger or pain. This story is non of that, and because of this uplifting tale, a must-read for everyone who even doubts they can not fulfill their dreams.

A Love Letter from a Son to his Father.......2007-01-31

I don't tend to read many memoirs - too romanticized, too maudlin, too many happy (or unbearably terrible) endings. *Rocket Boys* is an incredible exception. While there is much nostalgia, there is no overly romantic sentiment. Just reality, as it appears through the eyes of a man looking back to his boyhood.

There are many key elements that make the story work - Sonny Hickam's alternating love and repulsion for his town, his relationship with his mother and father, the coming-of-age dynamic in finding his rockets - but the facet that draws me in most deeply is the father/son relationship so powerfully depicted in his work. It is complex, painful, dynamic and stagnant . . . rewarding and unfulfilling . . . the paradox that lies at the center of many parent/child relationships.

It is easy to assume that the elder Homer understood nothing about Sonny, and that it is to his mother that he owes his personality and drive. And yet, if you read the book as it is written and don't rely too heavily on the film, you see a man who is much like his youngest son. Perhaps as a young man he WANTED to be Jim, and therefore he lives vicariously through the accomplishments of the star athlete, but it is Sonny with whom he shares his major accomplishment - his career, a position of prestige without the benefit of education, at the mine. And it is from Sonny that he feels the ultimate rejection when his son does not wish to follow in his footsteps.

It is this rejection, at war with his ambitions and dreams, that makes him deny Sonny help with his words while supporting the cause with his actions - allowing the supplies to be procured, etc. In the closing chapter, at the final launch, those dreams win out and he chases the rocket that his son has built. It is an ultimate moment of elation and understanding. And you wish it was the foundation of a close-knit tie between them. Yet, as the reader learns in the epilogue, it wasn't. Just another chain in the struggle.

For all of the complicated emotions, an adult "Sonny" seems to see his Dad as a whole individual. It is that portrayal that elevates this memoir to something very special, even if you don't know or care much about rockets.

But . . . a word about the rockets. In my region, manhood is defined by the "Jim"s in the crowd. What sports do you play? How good are you? School and good grades are mostly for girls. Sadly, you even see this attitude among coaches and teachers who just assume that the majority of young men will just naturally prefer video games to books and television to original thought. I hope that young men will read this book and understand that there is nothing feminine about schooling, education or excellence in academics. And that excellence of the mind is just as important as excellence in the body.

Hardy Boys 57: The Firebird Rocket (Hardy Boys)

Average customer rating:

Very simple plot, nothing more than we are used to
Decent considering The Era
Below Average
Something went wrong
It's a good book all right , I have to say , Franklin's good

Hardy Boys 57: The Firebird Rocket (Hardy Boys)
Franklin W. Dixon
Manufacturer: Grosset & Dunlap
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0448089572

Customer Reviews:

Very simple plot, nothing more than we are used to.......2004-01-28

The Firebird Rocket is not very exciting. There are no overly exciting action sequences, no twisters, just one main thing--the Hardys are directed to Australia where they DO NOT go to very extensive means to search for Doctor Jenson.

Also, it just happens that Mike Moran, another person they are looking for, pops out of the dark just when Doctor Jenson does! This is very rare and not likely to happen, for we are given no hints that the two are connected.

But everything else, including the trapping of the criminals, the surprise of Professor Young being on the enemy's side, and the ruthless attempts on the brothers' lives, is okay. (I don't mean I want the Hardys to die, however, as the previous sentence may try to reveal.)

So go ahead and read this book, but don't expect too much.

Decent considering The Era.......2003-01-05

Like all volumes after The Mystery of Spiral Bridge, in plain English they were "bad". However this volume is worth reading and did manage to hold my interest. The brothers travel down under and like so many books during this era incorporated way too much educational material about the place they were visiting. Hello - This is a Mystery series - not an atlas! Horrible artwork. No surprise there. Overall the book ranks between horrible and average. It did contain a little suspense in a few places. That is more than I can say about some of the other higher volumes. RATED C-

Below Average.......2003-01-05

FRank, Joe and Chet travel to Australia to search for a missing scientist, kidnapped by a gang that is trying to prevent the launch of the Firebird Rocket. This book was not one of the better books of the series. The mystery is average, but lacks any original thought. The first 100 pages of the book are somewhat boring and rarely entice the reader to continue. After that, the book gets better and is fairly interesting until the end. If you can make it through the first half of the book, the second half is worth reading.

Something went wrong.......1999-09-24

The author really missed when he wrote this one. No excitement, no mystery, and the action seems added on to take up space on the pages. What could have been a good book jumps around and there are too many coincidences even for the Hardy Boys.

It's a good book all right , I have to say , Franklin's good.......1999-09-05

The hardy's were awsom taking 2 cases at once . But all were kipnapped cases .

Average customer rating:

Rocket Boys: A Memoir (Large Print)
Homer H Hickman
Manufacturer: Delacorte Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0739400096

Cub Scout Grand Prix Pinewood Derby Guidebook (Also includes Space Derby rockets and Sailboat Regatta)

Average customer rating:

A must have for your first Pinewood Derby

Cub Scout Grand Prix Pinewood Derby Guidebook (Also includes Space Derby rockets and Sailboat Regatta)
Boy Scouts of America
Manufacturer: Boy Scouts of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0839537212

Customer Reviews:

A must have for your first Pinewood Derby.......2001-02-18

This short book has everything in it for those new to the Cub Scout's Pinewood Derby. The book walks the reader through the Pinewood Derby rules, designing and building the car (graph-paper included), a Pinewood Derby song (set to Camptown Races), and coaching hints for the parent. As a bonus, there are also sections on making Space Derby rockets and Sailboat (Raingutter) Regatta boats.

This is a great book, containing everything that the scout will need. There is information on the use and placement of weights and lubricant, which is something every Scout *must* know. It's a wonder to me that this book is not automatically given to every Scout before his first Pinewood Derby! If your first Derby is coming up, then you *must* get this book!

Average customer rating:
#57 The Firebird Rocket (Hardy Boys)

Manufacturer: Grosset Dunlap
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000H0Q21E

Average customer rating:
AFCRL
Bruce Peril
Manufacturer: faber and faber
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: B0007KFQFC

Average customer rating:
Albert Herbert Hawkins (the naughtiest boy in the world) and the space rocket
Frank Dickens
Manufacturer: E. Benn
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: 0510225071

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Albert Herbert Hawkins, the naughtiest boy in the world, and the space rocket (Benn book collection)
Frank Dickens
Manufacturer: DoubleDay
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: 0385133278

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The Boy Who Dreamed of Rockets. How Robert H. Goddard Became The Father of the Space Age
Robert Quackenbush
Manufacturer: Parents Magazine Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NUQCVS

Average customer rating:
The boy who dreamed of rockets: How Robert Goddard became the father of the space age
Robert M Quackenbush
Manufacturer: Parents' Magazine Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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Rare Treasure: Mary Anning and Her Remarkable Discoveries (Rare Treasure)

My Brothers' Flying Machine: Wilbur, Orville, and Me

ASIN: 0819309966

Average customer rating:
The Hills: More Tales from the Blue Stacks
Robert Bernen
Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0241110033

Average customer rating:
The Hills: More Tales from the Blue Stacks, Stories of Ireland
Robert Bernen
Manufacturer: Scribner Book Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0684180057

Average customer rating:

Modern man's encounter with pre-modern agrarian Ireland

Tales from the Blue Stacks
Robert Bernen
Manufacturer: Macmillan Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0684155400

Customer Reviews:

Modern man's encounter with pre-modern agrarian Ireland.......1997-11-26

Rare account of an American living in contact with subsistence agricultural tradition founded in ancient(?)Irish/European culture. Work, animals, family, neighbors form a human world tiny in scale yet infinite in drama and morality.

The Hills: more Tales from the Blue stacks..

Average customer rating:

The Hills: more Tales from the Blue stacks..
Bernen Robert
Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OPZ1JG

Average customer rating:

Tales from the Blue Stacks
Robert Bernen
Manufacturer: Hamish Hamilton, 1979
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000VJ5PM8

Average customer rating:

Tales from the Blue Stacks
Robert Bernen
Manufacturer: Hamilton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OQ9FN8

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