Wildflowers of the Sea Ranch

Book Description

You will relive the experience of the Huguenots and the creators of such medieval Christian masterpieces as the cathedrals Chartes and Notre Dame.

Customer Reviews:

American Library Journal.......2002-03-03

From the Library Journal, Vol. 126, No. 8, p. 117, 1 May 2001:
These guides do not lead tourists to the most popular bars or shopping districts but instead to the various Christian heritage sites in each country ... Each guide follows the same layout: Hexham begins with an overview of the history of each country from prehistoric times to the present. He then includes a chapter on literature, art, and architecture and lists what he considers the top ten Christian heritage sites in each country. Each entry thereafter is in alphabetical order ... Recommended for all public libraries.

A Best Way for the Christian Traveler in France.......2001-09-21

This is an awesome idea! When I suddenly had an opportunity to travel to France for a short time with even less notice, I came across this book, and decided to make it somewhat of a spiritual pilgrimage. I have often thought that there should be more to Christian historical travels than just Israel. We have been in a few other places. With the help of this book, I was able to have a much more invigorating and fulfilling trip. I like to be able to both plan trips and be open to serendipity, and the guides in this book allowed me that opportunity. I like to be able to both plan trips and be open to serendipity, and the guides in this book allowed me that opportunity. So I went backwards through time, visiting the Abbey de Citeaux, a reform movement that returned to simplicity and poverty. As the head of the Cisterians it became perhaps the biggest evangelistic outbreak in French history, with hundreds of monasteries throughout the world, from Great Britian to Asia, according to Hexham. I then traveled to Abbey de Cluny, out of which Citeaux came when Cluny became too worldly. Cluny itself was a reform movement, taking the power of the monasteries out of the hands of corrupt state officials and reporting only to the Pope. The abbot eventually became second only to the Pope in power in Roman Christianity. And then on to the birthplace of Christianity in Lyons, where the great Irenaeus once preached, and 20 of us were killed in about 200 AD in the first mention of the Christian sect in French history. And it was with sadness that I read and then observed the many cases where wars and especially the French Revolution had completely demolished Christian sites.

The flaws in the book were more of the nature that I wish there had been more to the book. For instance, I would have desired to actually visit sites of the Hugonauts and Waldensians, who seem to have the most revitalized Christianity in France since it's birth (despite certain heresies in the latter group). But there was only mention of what cities they had been active in. I wish there were more in this collection besides Germany, Italy, and Great Britain. It is definitely exciting to be able to locate places of one's history in different lands.

But I leave the best for last. Near Cluny I also stopped by another place, the Abbey de Taize. I am ashamed to say I had never heard of them before I read this book, and for that, I am greatly indebted to Hexham. Here is the only Protestant monastery since the Reformation, composed of monks from all over the world, and from the Roman and Orthodox churches as well. They have people regularly come from around the world to visit and worship together, coming up with a new form of worship and chanting called Taize chants, now practiced in many churches worldwide, wherein the same phrase is repeated many times in many languages. I went expecting perhaps 100 visitors. I was not expecting 3,000 people, and 4,000 more if I had made it there a few days earlier for Easter. Here people from the UK, America, Germany, France, New Zealand, Korea, and many other countries had come to simply worship Jesus together. I believe some had come to do this and were not even Christian. They gather 3 times a day, every day, to sit and chant in the various languages, lead by the monks, and beautiful hymns of praise rise to God in front of a collection of icons and candles. Most stay a week in the very cheap room and board provided there. Some of those who visited in the past were the President of the EU, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Secretary-General of the UN, the Russian Orthodox Patriarch, and the Roman Pope. I am greatly glad I took the time to purchase this rather inexpensive book before my trip.

Average customer rating:

Interesting and informative

Interesting and informative

A great overview of what's best in the various regions of FR

Edible France: A Traveler's Guide (Travel)
Glynn Christian , and Jenni Muir
Manufacturer: Interlink Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Shopping & Commerce | Reference | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
Dining | Food & Lodging | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books
General | France | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books
General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 156656221X

Customer Reviews:

Interesting and informative.......2000-05-01

This book is informative in every sense of the way. Doing a project for French class first made me look to this book but, the author opens you up to a totally different world. If you are looking to go to France or even if you would like to enhance your knowlege of the country I greatly recomend it.

Interesting and informative.......2000-05-01

A great overview of what's best in the various regions of FR.......1998-02-27

This book is NOT a listing of restaurants... It's much better than that! It is a region-by-region guide to the gastronomic specialties of France. I particularly liked the format which provides a general overview for province or region, then proceeds to list specifics in a series of box-type menus, followed by personal anecdotes. The best seasons to buy, local market days, suggestions for ordering, pitfalls to avoid... they're all included here. A most entertaining and interesting sourcebook, it's well worth taking with you on a voyage to 'la belle France.'

Sacred Footsteps: A Travelers Guide to Spiritual Places of Italy and France

Average customer rating:

Sacred Footsteps: A Travelers Guide to Spiritual Places of Italy and France
Melanie MacMitchell
Manufacturer: Opal Star Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0962972703

Average customer rating:

Great course !
Beautiful and useful!
Cool!

SmartFrench For Travelers
Christian Aubert
Manufacturer: SmartPolyglot
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1934519006

Product Description

Very handy booklet of French sentences classified by situations and numbered to find them easily on your ipod, mp3 player or burnt cd (optional audio download on the smartfrench website). Only 24 to 36 french phrases (affirmations and questions) for the traveler to France to communicate easily and to start to learn french the fun way.

Customer Reviews:

Great course !.......2007-10-15

This is an excellent tutorial to learn French. I highly recommend it for anyone who is studying/has studied French and wants to know how to *speak* French. It doesn't include grammar. This you will find elsewhere. SmartFrench, unlike other popular teaching methods, teaches how to listen to the spoken French just as it is used in real conversations. I found it to be a great confidence builder.

Beautiful and useful!.......2007-07-21

I like the color coding. It makes the sentences so easy to pronounce. I have had travel guides but they are generally too thick, with too many sentences and finally unusable. This one is just right.

Cool!.......2007-05-10

That object is beautifull as much as it is helpful. I went to the smatfrench website to download the audio recordings of the whole book and I can polish my French phrases before my trip. The book is spiral bound so that when you are at the page of the situation you choose, like the hotel for example, the book stays flat and you can easily put it back in your shirt pocket. What I like also is that each sentence is recorded on a different track, so you can find it in a second. Very cool!

Book Description

Describes the history of the famous Alamo, which was built as a mission, but later used as a fort, the battle fought there, and its significance for the history of the United States.

Average customer rating:

Truly a "Golden Door"

DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT!

THE DOOR IS NOT SO GOLDEN

Very Helpful

Good info, but poorly written

The New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica (12th Edition) (New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica)
Christopher Howard
Manufacturer: Costa Rica Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Retirement Planning | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Costa Rica | Central America | Latin America | Travel | Subjects | Books
General | Central America | Latin America | Travel | Subjects | Books
General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Look Inside Travel Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Living Abroad in Costa Rica

How to Buy Costa Rica Real Estate without Losing Your Camisa

Guide to Costa Rican Spanish

Potholes to Paradise: Living in Costa Rica - What You Need to Know

Waterproof Costa Rica Map

ASIN: 1881233561

Book Description

The updated and expanded 2002-2003 12th edition of the New Golden Door to Retirement and Living in Costa Rica offers invaluable assistance to anyone looking for a safe, affordable place to live outside the United States. This useful book contains all the ins and outs and dos and dont's and much more indispensible secret insider information about all areas of living in Costa Rica. It guides you step by step and shows how to live on a budget; how to start a business and includes 100s of sure-fire tips for making money; how to stay busy and happy ; where to; live in Costa Rica; how to aquire residency; shortcuts for learning Spanish; how to take advantage of the many tax savings for foreign residents(make up to $80,000 a year tax free), how to find high-interest investments paying 13% or more annually; how to make the break from the rat race and start a new exciting life; and even how and where to find quality peo!ple for companionship. -

Customer Reviews:

Truly a "Golden Door" .......2007-07-31

For many years Costa Rica has attracted Americans who live there for all or part of the year. Many of the ones I've spoken with say that Christopher Howard's book made the transition much, much easier. This new edition is especially helpful. It takes readers step by step through the process of finding real estate and also explains how to have fun - sunning on beautiful beaches, swimming in the ocean, playing golf or just hanging out with the neighbors. Costa Rica has excellent but low-cost medical care, and Howard's book tells readers how to find it. The book is indeed a "Golden Door."

DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT!.......2007-06-19

Christopher Howard is clearly the leading expert on Costa Rica retirement and living. He does all the research for you and gives you all the facts and information you need to make your trip a big success! These nuggets of wisdom can come only from someone who has lived in Costa Rica for nearly two decades and loves his work. Each new edition just keeps getting better and better. After you treat yourself to this masterpiece, you may want to take one of Mr. Howard's tours. If you do, you'll save much time and money in the process. You'll soon value him as a good friend as well as an amazing writer!

THE DOOR IS NOT SO GOLDEN.......2007-04-01

My wife and I read Christopher Howard's book (2X each), and found that it is overly commercial (with local CR advertising), poorly organized, has an over-emphasis on purchasing property and housing in Costa Rica without prioritizing renting first to see if you can, as an ex-pat, handle living in the culture of a foreign country. Howard's claim that you can "Live for less than you ever dreamed possible and enjoy all of the amenities of home." is vague and misleading, albeit repetitiously stated by most promoters of Costa Rica from authors to list-owners on CR blogs. Howard's claim that "Central Valley...Decent affordable housing ranges from $50,000 to $100,00..." is more often than not in "Gringoville" areas. American-built and developed housing is definitely emphasized. Tico neighborhoods are not. In fact, the statement that CR is such a cheap place to live is a plainly false, and unfortunately, a myth that represents most of what makes up Costa Rica today. The fact is that CR is fast losing it's luster (which it certainly once had) for being a lower cost of living country compared to the US. Americanized Housing and property developments are going up almost daily, promoted mostly by Americans and the prices are increasing all of the time. In areas like Escazu, Santa Ana, San Rafael, Tamarindo and many others, prices often exceed property values in the US. These "Gringoville" areas are promoted by Howard. Alternatively, what happened to the small 2 bedroom 1 bath or 2 bath houses in a middle class Tico neighborhood? These little homes are rich with Tico culture and are often safer crime-wise than the American, gated enclaves. Many Tico houses are well built and established with beautiful yards, plants and flowers.
Howard's book has good points. There are valuable listings in the midst of of the commercial advertising. Information about immigration and legal matters for obtaining residency is overly simplified, but certainly worth reading. The book is good, it's got a lot in it, but if you plan to live in Costa Rica, you need to read more. You need to get the skinny on the real Costa Rica which is the land of Ticos and not Americans.

Very Helpful.......2007-03-16

Not sure if we're ready to move to Costa Rica yet, but the book sure gives us lots of "food for thought." It covers lots of subjects that a person wouldn't normally think of.

Good info, but poorly written.......2007-02-22

There was a lot of great information in this book, but the grammatical and spelling errors got a little annoying. Every second or third page had an error of some sort. There were also quite a few ads in the book...didn't bother me too much, but some people may be annoyed by it.

Book Description

There's more than one kind of Texas native-we share our magnificent state with numerous other species some with four legs or more and some with no legs at all. Naturalist Jim Harris has studied most of them, and in Lone Star Menagerie he shares some little-known facts, fascinating tales, and amusing personal experiences with these creatures that we live alongside.

Customer Reviews:

excellent reading!.......2003-03-12

I bought this book simply for research material on desert wildlife, but it turned out to be one of the best books I've ever read. Highly recommended to anyone and everyone!

praise from down under.......2002-09-12

I highly recommend this book to anybody who likes animals AND to anybody who gets a kick from good old fashioned entertaining writing.

Gerald Durrel's Successor.......2001-01-07

As a child I enjoyed the works of the late Gerald Durrel, because he was a skilled zoologist and bonafide nature lover PLUS he was a funny and entertaining writer. I long thought that no one could ever take Durrel's place, but Jim Harris may be the one to do it. In "Lone Star Menagerie" he shares his knowledge of the wildlife of the West but is not afraid to do it in a humorous manner, even if it happens to be at his own expense. This is one of the best books I've run across in a very long time.

High Adventure and Brilliant Humour.......2000-07-06

There are authors who can write gripping adventure tales and there are authors who can make you laugh out loud; rarely are the two combined. If you enjoy the works of Tim Cahill, you will enjoy the works of Jim Harris. There are accounts of attempting to capture a vulture bare-handed, being chased down a canyon by a herd of peccaries, seeking out sheep-killing coyotes to protect the innocent individuals of the species from the wrath of stockmen.... And all dealt up with a large portion of entertaining wit. Highly recommended for all readers, and particularly animal lovers.

Lone Star Menagerie.......2000-05-20

Lone Star Menagerie introduced me to the state of Texas and some amazing wildlife found within its boundries, but the true charm of the book was found in the way Mr. Harris could spin the tales of his adventures. I walked away from Lone Star Menagerie with a greater respect and knowledge of Texas and its wildlife, and the bonus being, each time I recall the buzzard tale (or some of his other adventures) they still make me laugh! BRAVO!

Average customer rating:

Cullina's book is better

Don't Pass This One By

An outstanding primer on North American native plants!

An awesome all around book

Native Plant Primer, The: Trees, Shrubs, and Wildflowers for Natural Gardens
Carole Ottesen
Manufacturer: Harmony
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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

Armitage's Native Plants for North American Gardens

The Natural Habitat Garden

Easy Care Native Plants: A Guide to Selecting and Using Beautiful American Flowers, Shrubs, and Trees in Gardens and Landscapes

Native Plants of the Northeast: A Guide for Gardening and Conservation

Natural Landscaping: Designing with Native Plant Communities

ASIN: 0517592150
Release Date: 1995-11-21

Book Description

A comprehensive, region-by-region guide to selecting and gardening with exceptionally beautiful, easy-to-care-for, ecologically beneficial native North American plants. The definitive reference for an important new concept in gardening. 4-color photographs.

Customer Reviews:

Cullina's book is better.......2002-12-29

Interesting plant descriptions, with lots of information on hardiness zones, landscape uses, height, culture, etc. However, Cullina's books are more exhaustive and generally superior in all areas. There are puzzling omissions, such as wintergreen, and this is probably because the book is biting off a lot of territory.

The introductory travelogue on the regions of the United States is outstanding. When it comes to the plants themselves, though, Cullina does this book one better.

Don't Pass This One By.......2000-09-28

If you are interested in wildflowers, natural habitats, or just plain curious about what this country has to offer you and the world in native plants, this is THE BOOK. It has become my resource of first choice whenever I need data about native plants (and as a professional garden writer and environmental landscape consultant, this is frequent). Everything you need whatever your level of garden experience to plan a landscape of any size including native plants. Great ideas for problem sites, too!

Clear, easy to understand, divided by geographic region in the front, and by plant type in the plant list section (annual, grass, shrub, etc.)in the back. Packed with info and a wealth of well labeled photos, plus mature plant dimesions, soil requirements, wildlife interest and even fall color notes! Outstanding.

An outstanding primer on North American native plants!.......1998-12-18

This book gives an excellent overview of horticulturally useful and interesting plants native to North America, particularly the United States, and the number of species described is very extensive.

The pictures give an excellent idea of the plants described in the text. The text is also very helpful, providing not only the expected information pertaining to cultivation but also engaging observations by the author concerning the plants described.

An awesome all around book.......1998-12-01

This book is wonderful from pictures to text. An invaluable over-all text on native american plants.

Book Description

A thorough catalog of wallpaper designs and fabric types and patterns from 1700 to 1900

This new hardcover edition is a unique single-source presentation of the successful Fabrics for Historic Buildings and Wallpapers for Historic Buildings.

Featuring the entire content of both comprehensive, visually stunning books, Fabrics and Wallpapers for Historic Buildings offers:

More than 1,000 authentically reproduced wallpaper designs, along with extraordinarily useful advice for answering the centuries-old question: "What shall we do with our walls?"
Reliable, expert advice for choosing, buying, and installing the appropriate fabrics for historic interiors, complete with more than 600 fabric types and patterns and new information on twentieth-century fabrics

Fabrics and Wallpapers for Historic Buildings is an essential volume for everyone involved in restoring or researching American houses built between 1700 and 1900.

Customer Reviews:

A superb reference for historic and periodic consultation and inspiration.......2005-11-07

Fabrics & Wallpapers For Historic Buildings is a new hardcover edition compiling the previously published references "Fabrics for Historic Buildings" and "Wallpapers for Historic Buildings". An immense catalog of patterns appearing from 1700 to 1900, Fabrics & Wallpapers For Historic Buildings include more than 600 fabric types and patterns, more than 1,000 authentically reproduced wallpaper designs, new information on twentieth-century fabrics, useful advice, and much more. The many illustrations are in black-and-white but have exquisite detail. A superb reference for historic and periodic consultation and inspiration.

Average customer rating:

Ornament is NOT crime

20th Century Pattern Design
Lesley Jackson
Manufacturer: Princeton Architectural Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Design & Decorative Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Textile & Costume | Design & Decorative Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

History | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1568983336

Book Description

Patterns-bold, colorful, muted, delicate, intricate, splashy, spare, figurative, abstract, dizzying, calming-are the subject in this comprehensive reference, the first to examine pattern as an essential part of twentieth-century design history. With stunning color plates and lively text, Lesley Jackson takes readers on a tour of the development of twentieth-century patterns from around the world. Organized by decade, Twentieth-Century Pattern Design details the technical innovations that affected the development of modern textiles and wallpapers. Focusing on surface pattern in the home, Jackson draws frequent parallels to the worlds of fashion, packaging, and graphics, and explores the interrelationship between painting and pattern design. The result is a book as inspiring as it is informative. Twentieth-Century Pattern Design is an invaluable resource for modern design enthusiasts and historians, collectors and interior and graphic designers.

Customer Reviews:

Ornament is NOT crime.......2007-06-29

Great Book! The physical book itself has a great feeling to it, but also is candy for the eyes. I enjoy looking at the pictures for pleasure as well as inspiration for textures and color combinations. The images themselves are valuable, but the book also goes into the history of why what was important/popular when. I'm an in house graphic designer and my co-workers like to borrow it on a regular basis as well. Good value for a good book!

The Style Sourcebook: The Definitive Illustrated Directory of Fabrics, Wallpapers, Paints, Flooring and Tiles

Average customer rating:

On fabrics, wallpapers, paints, tiles and flooring
A Must Have For the Professional
the difinative source book

The Style Sourcebook: The Definitive Illustrated Directory of Fabrics, Wallpapers, Paints, Flooring and Tiles
Judith Miller
Manufacturer: Firefly Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Design & Decorative Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Reference | How-to & Home Improvements | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Directories | Catalogs & Directories | Reference | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Arts & Photography | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Home & Garden | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1552977919

Book Description

An encyclopedia of interior design products.

The Style Sourcebook is the single most comprehensive, up-to-date and visually exciting decorating reference book -- a complete catalog of the best in decorating products and materials. This revised edition has been updated to ensure that discontinued products have been removed and up-to-the-minute products added.

2,300 color photographs cover major design styles such as Gothic, Empire, Baroque, Neo-Classical, Victorian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Hi-Tech, and Post-Modern. The history and influences of dominant design styles are organized chronologically from Medieval to late 20th century. In each section -- for example, Geometrics: Early 20th century; or Damask & Entries are wide-ranging, detailed and clearly organized to ensure quick access to the right item. The book is divided into six main sections:

Style Guide
Paints & Finishes
Fabrics
Tiles
Wallpapers
Flooring

Each entry includes purchasing details that list company, design, pattern name/number, available colors, essential measurements, composition, and uses. A glossary and detailed directory of distributors close the book. The Style Sourcebook is an authoritative reference that will be vital to working designers, decorators and stylists as well as to homeowners and design students.

Customer Reviews:

On fabrics, wallpapers, paints, tiles and flooring.......2004-03-04

This highly recommended reference will find its way to any library with holdings in the decorative arts: The Style Sourcebook covers fashionable styles of interior decoration from the Middle Ages to modern times and offers over two thousand color photos to enhance its history of the evolution of design styles. A historical overview introduction deftly blends into chapters which focus on fabrics, wallpapers, paints, tiles and flooring - each considering varieties, history and evolution, and differences in mediums. Concluding with a directory listing international manufacturers and distributors, this revised classic is a winner.

A Must Have For the Professional.......2003-12-18

The Style Sourcebook: The Definitive Illustrated Directory of Fabrics, Wallpapers, Paints, Flooring and Tiles Revised Edition by Judith Miller, published by Firefly, is a must have book for the professional. The Style Sourcebook is unique in the crowded market of interior design books because it locates materials, motifs, patterns, and colors within specific historical periods. The author, Judith Miller is co-founder of Miller's Antique Price Guides is also a regular guest on House Detectives and The Antiques Trail.
An encyclopedic book The Style Sourcebook contains 2300 swatches, from a extensive range of international designers. The up-to-date swatches are carefully reproduced in brilliant color and are accompanied by a detailed caption listing all the information necessary to order, such as manufacturer name, pattern name, size, repeats, composition and, etc. Every chapter is devoted to a product category; for example paint, wallpaper, fabric, flooring, and tile. The chapters are divided into main design types florals, geometrics, pictorials, motifs, and etc. Then they are further subdivided into time periods: medieval, 18th Century, late 19th Century, 21st Century, and etc.
From medieval to modern, The Style Sourcebook provides inspiration and the facts for selecting the right ingredients for any interior scheme. You might need two copies of this book one to loan out to clients and one for your personal reference.

the difinative source book.......2000-06-24

This book is great not only for someone who is just getting started in decorating but, also for the professional as a referance. It is broken down into six basic catagories; Style guide, Fabrics. Wallpapers, Paints and Finishes, Tiles, and Flooring. Judith Miller does an excellent job of giving a wealth of information about not only different periods but also what textiles lend themselves to these periods. I was not to impressed with the paints and finishes section however. I really liked the organization by image (ie fabrics with flowers) and style period rather than fabric type or colors. The variety is amazing. The best part of the book is that she gives you the info to find all of the textiles! Including the maker, if other colors are available, and estimated price. This is great, other style books generally do not give you half of the wealth of information that is book does. I couldn't wait to get started.

The Style Sourcebook : The Definitive Visual Directory of fabrics, Wallpaper,s paints, flooring, Tiles

Average customer rating:

The Style Sourcebook : The Definitive Visual Directory of fabrics, Wallpaper,s paints, flooring, Tiles
Judith H. Miller
Manufacturer: Mitchell Beazley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000M4T9J2

Floral Home, The:: From Floral Wallpapers and Fabrics to Arranging Fresh and Dried Flowers

Average customer rating:

Floral Home, The:: From Floral Wallpapers and Fabrics to Arranging Fresh and Dried Flowers
Leslie Geddes-Brown
Manufacturer: Crown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decoration & Ornament | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0517588331
Release Date: 1992-03-24

19th Century European Textiles: Dyeing & Wallpaper

Average customer rating:

19th Century European Textiles: Dyeing & Wallpaper

Manufacturer: Books Nippan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Textile & Costume | Design & Decorative Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

History | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Japan | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

Textile Arts | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 4568501121

19th Century European Textiles: Dyeing, Weaving and Wallpaper : The Kamei Collection

Average customer rating:

19th Century European Textiles: Dyeing, Weaving and Wallpaper : The Kamei Collection

Manufacturer: Books Nippan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Textile & Costume | Design & Decorative Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

History | Fashion | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Average customer rating:

Fabric and Wallpaper
Mary Schoeser
Manufacturer: Dutton Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Textile Arts | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 052524462X

Fabrics and Wallpaper (20th Century Design)

Average customer rating:

Fabrics and Wallpaper (20th Century Design)
Mary Schoeser
Manufacturer: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Textile Arts | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0713526580

Fabrics and Wallpapers: Sources, Design, and Inspiration

Average customer rating:

Easy to Read, Well-Organized, & Highly-Educational

Fabrics and Wallpapers: Sources, Design, and Inspiration
Barty Phillips
Manufacturer: Bulfinch Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Textile Arts | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decoration & Ornament | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0821218719

Customer Reviews:

Easy to Read, Well-Organized, & Highly-Educational.......1998-05-07

Being an interior designer, this book would be one of the best reference on my book shelves. The autour's knowleadge on fabric seems to be highly proffessional so that I believe this book could be an excellent textbook for schools. The book covers a well-summerized, but not superficial, history on each types of fabric from all over the world, and it further examines fabrics by catagories of different design subjects. Special terms on fabric design are well explained. The design of the book is pleasant, and many beautiful pictures are given which are helpful to understand the content. This is the kind of book I have been looking for, since I was an interior design student. (I studied in the U.S. so that I have seen so many other related books published there to compare !!!)

Book Description

Newspapers, magazines, TV talk shows, album covers -- all display a proliferation of film star images. In the past we have tended to see celebrities as cogs in a mass entertainment industry selling desires and ideologies. But since the 1970s, new approaches have explored the active role of the star in producing meanings, pleasures and identities for a diversity of audiences. Stardom brings together some of the best recent writing which represents these new approaches. Drawn from film history, sociology, textual analysis, audience research, psychoanalysis and cultural politics, the essays raise important questions for the politics of representation, the impact of the star on society and the cultural limitations and possibilities of stars.

Contributors: Christine Gledhill; Janet Staiger; Richard de Cordova; Charles Eckert; Thomas Harris; Karen Alexander; Richard Dyer; Charlotte Cornelia Herzog; Jane Marie Gaines; Charles Wolfe; Behroze Ghandy; Rosie Thomas; Jackie Stacey; Barry King; John O. Thompson; Andrew Britton; Michael Mourlet; David Lusted; Tessa Perkins; Miriam Hansen; Andrea Weiss; Kobena Mercer.

Average customer rating:

Stardom: Industry of Desire
Christine (editor) Gledhill
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MBQY5M

Book Description

Douglas Haig's popular image is an unenviable one. For the last fifty years he has invariably been seen as a callous butcher, fighting battles at the Somme and Passchendaele without intelligence or imagination and unconcerned by his losses. The reputation is undeserved and at odds with the historical record. In fact, Haig masterminded a Britishled victory over a continental opponent on a scale that has never been matched before or since. Whereas Wellington commanded forces at Waterloo in which the British were only a minority, in the final stages of the war, Haig controlled a vast British Army, which had grown from a mere six divisions to sixty over the course of the war. The British Army in France in 1918 compromised nearly three million men - only a third less than the population of London, then the largest city in Europe.

Contrary to myth, Haig was not a cavalry-obsessed, blinkered conservative, as satirized in Oh! What a Lovely War and Blackadder Goes Forth. Fascinated by technology, he pressed for the use of tanks, enthusiastically embraced air power, and encouraged the use of new techniques involving artillery and machine-guns. Above all, he presided over a change in infantry tactics from almost total reliance on the rifle towards all-arms, multi-weapons techniques that formed the basis of British army tactics until the 1970s.

Prior re-evaluations of Haig's achievements have largely been limited to monographs and specialist writings. Walter Reid has written the first biography of Haig that takes into account modern military scholarship, giving a more rounded picture of the private man than has previously been available. What emerges is a picture of a comprehensible human being, not necessarily particularly likeable, but honorably ambitious, able and intelligent, and the man more than any other responsible for delivering victory in 1918.

Customer Reviews:

Image and Reality of Sir Douglas Haig.......2007-03-10

If we know of Douglas Haig at all, it is that he was the idiot that butchered a million soldiers of the British Empire in World War I. Haigs' blunders are well documented for us, from "Oh, What a Lovely War" to Black Adder to BBC documentaries. Everyone knows he was a blustering fool. Except, according to Walter Reid, the professional historians of the last few decades. Among them there is a consensus that he was an intelligent, effective general who more than any other in the First World War was responsible for the victory.

So, how to explain this difference between the popular image and the scholarly image, and which is the true image? That is what the book sets out to do, and does it quite well. It details what Haig actually did and accomplished based on reseach of the last few decades. It describes the change in his popular image from a post war hero in Britain up to the 1950's to a poster child of the evils of militarism in the 1960's to the present. From a man who had the largest non-royal funeral until Churchill's to one whose portrait in his old school was vandalized.

It covers his entire life, but of course concentrates on his role in World War I. It is not a fawning look. Haig had attributes but also flaws, and the book details both. He was not a Marlborough or Wellington. He made mistakes and men died unnecessarily because of them. But, in the end it is argued that it was the British army that was primarily responsible for the wearing down and final collapse of the German army. Haig created this instrument of victory and lead it. It could have been done better, but with the possible exceptions of Allenby or Plumer, not by anyone else that was available.

Overall, the book makes an interesting case for Haig.

DOUGLAS HAIG: The Educated Soldier (Cassell)

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Lame apologia dressed up as history
long on detail short on proof
Hero-worshipping biographer

DOUGLAS HAIG: The Educated Soldier (Cassell)
John Terraine
Manufacturer: Cassell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Book Description

The definitive account of the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in the First World War.

The history of the Western Front and the First World War is one of battles of attrition against an entrenched enemy, with terrible casualties suffered by both sides in some of the worst fighting ever.

Over the years a picture has emerged of British generals, remote and detached from the reality of the trenches, who repeatedly sent their men to die in pointless attacks against the enemy. This book, by the renowned historian of the First World War John Terraine, scrupulously researched and brilliantly written, takes a more objective and accurate approach to the figure of Haig-the supreme commander of the British Army-and to the history of the war.

Customer Reviews:

Lame apologia dressed up as history.......2004-09-08

John Terraine, in trying to burnish what little reputation that D.H. has, has managed to make a fool of himself by this plainly biased, scantily researched (there are no references to the sources, and no bibliography at all, as usual!) but not badly written semi fiction.

In this book, which sources consist solely of the Haig hagiography by his inept and sycophantic sidekick, Charteris, and the fraudulent Official Histories written and doctored by Edmonds (who had never attended collge, nor was trained in historiography, and who suffered a mental breakdown just 14 days into the War, as a result of getting too close to the front for the comfort of his fragile mind, the armchair warrior par excellence like Haig, who had never been to the front, nor put himself under any remote physical danger), we are treated to the abusrd theses like

1. D.H. was the most "educated" soldier in the Empire, and arguably the whole Europe, by which Terraine means he's the one who has learned the art of war and applied them successfully, this in contrast to the accepted view that D.H. is a blockhead, a total idiot who can think of nothing else but attrition, and one who failed his Staff College examination!
2. That D.H., in his doctored war diaries, managed to predict the shape of war to come (long, industrialized) and the means to win (RFC, tanks, trench mortars)while ignoring the fact that he won nothing onb his own!
3. That Haig's GHQ is the most competent and professional one in the war, that despite the contempt and hate the Tommies held to Haig and his band of cowards, who never once visited a divisional HQ, not to mention the trenches, and whose tactics consist solely of costly frontal assaults preceded by heavy artillery bombardment, and the wholesale scapegoating through sacking of commanders when those attacks failed
4. Terraine has also conveniently omiited the fact that Haig owed his Staff College admittance through his frienship and more with the homosexual clique at Court, people like Lords Esher and Kitchener, and that he replaced French through his constant sniping and intrigues behind his superior's back,with the full support of his homosexual buddies Esher, Kitchener, Robertson (CIGS) and King Edward.
5. Terraine also omitted to mention that Haig, as armchair strategist, had never fought a battle, and as a lifelong coward, always cowered in his luxurious GHQ miles behing the line, enjoying fine food, wines, horse riding, chess and more.

All in all, a most despicable attempt to rehabilitate one of the biggest asses in the history of warfare.

long on detail short on proof.......2002-04-09

This book is meticulous in offering detailed 'evidence ' to back up the authors clear positon as a supporter of Haig.I t is diifficult to find any objectivity in Terraine's approach to the character of Haig. There are some fleeting attempts to reduce the effect of his idolotry of Haig but they are far too infrequent to remove the suspicion that he had his mind made up on Haig from the outset. Despite the hero worship, his exposition of Haig's 'greatness' does not, in the end, show any more military ability than that of a hard 'grafter' with little or no spark of genious or innovation about his work.

Hero-worshipping biographer.......2000-12-09

This is an outstanding work and a necessary read for anyone interested in the First World War. The author's thesis is that Haig was a truly great man, whose hard slog,"wearing down" tactics were the only way to defeat the Germans, and who has been falsely vilified by spiteful politicians and half-baked historians (a la "The Donkeys") ever since the war. The detail is mountaneous, and in the end the proof seems based more on circumstantial evidence than the myraid concrete facts Terraine presents. Only a specialist in warfare and Haig would have the knowledge to offset the author's own conclusions.

However, the book is another one of those lamentable histories that ring with Toryism. The author likes to snuggle up with the upper strata. Titles are thrown around unnecessarily (like referring to Churchill as Sir Winston when referring to him 60 years before he was knighted, and to George V always as H.M. The King). That's clearly the kind of person Terrain is, but in me it sews the suspicion that he is not inclined to be objective about his protagonist. There is also a suspicious reference to his disagreements with Liddel Hart's statistics on casualties. I wonder how much else they disagreed on.

Book Description

There's a commonly held view that Douglas Haig was a bone-headed callous butcher, who through his incompetence as commander of the British Army in WWI, killed a generation of young men on the Somme and Passchendaele. On the other hand there are those who view Haig as a man who successfully struggled with appalling difficulties to produce an army which took the lead in defeating Germany in 1918, winning the greatest series of victories in British Military history.

These are therefore the diaries of the most controversial British general of the twentieth century. Just as the success of the Alanbrooke war diaries can be put down to its 'horse's mouth' view of Churchill and the conduct of WWII, so Haig's Diaries, hitherto only previously available in bowdlerized form, give the C-in-C's view of Asquith - he records him getting drunk and incapable - and his successor Lloyd George, of whom he was highly critical as well as his never previously published day by day accounts of the key battles of the war, not least the Somme campaign of 1916.

DOUGLAS HAIG: 'The Preparatory Prologue' 1861 - 1914 Diaries and Letters

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DOUGLAS HAIG: 'The Preparatory Prologue' 1861 - 1914 Diaries and Letters
Douglas Scott
Manufacturer: Pen and Sword
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

World War I | Military | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1844154041

Book Description

As a young officer in the prestigious 21st Lancers (motto 'Death or Glory') Douglas Haig played a leading role in Kitchener's bold expedition which ended in the defeat of the Khalifa of Sudan at Omdurman. He described the action, as he did the whole campaign, vividly in words and diagrams which survived virtually untouched at the family home Bemersyde in the Borders.

These letters and diaries allow the reader to trace Haig's career and developing character. What they reveal may well surprise his critics.

Field Marshal Lord Haig will remain a hugely controversial figure due to his pre-eminent role during The Great War. He was a hugely popular public figure in the post WW1 years and revered by those who served under him. His death in 1928 was a major occasion for mourning. Only later was he heavily criticized for the slaughter of the trenches.

Haig's Command: Earl Haig and the Background to the First World War

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Critical, Revealing Analysis of WWI's Most Polarizing Personality
Very apt expose of Haig as a fraud
A polemic, not history
Mendacious Nonsense
poignant, credible and sad

Haig's Command: Earl Haig and the Background to the First World War
Denis Winter
Manufacturer: Viking Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Reference | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0670802255

Customer Reviews:

Critical, Revealing Analysis of WWI's Most Polarizing Personality.......2006-08-16

With this book Denis Winter seems to have launched a near-quixotic quest to get the real facts regarding Haig's command. One of the most important conclusions reached is that almost all the official histories, cabinet minutes, unit reports, and similar works have been very carefully vetted and 'cleaned up' before being published. Not even individual memoirs can be relied on as the gov't often had carrots and sticks in hand to deal with more independent-minded veterans. Winter suggests a broad, self-serving conspiracy by those at the top to preserve their reputations and to save the public the additional grief of learning that their sons/husbands/fathers may have died incidentally due to bureaucratic incompetence, amateurish leadership, or the sheer indifference of chateau generals.

Winter deconstructs the official mythology regarding Haig and exposes him to be a well-connected careerist interested more in being field marshal than in pursuing the effective and successful leadership of his troops. This isn't so surprising or unusual in that most democracies at least initially heavily rely on political appointees in times of mass mobilization (American Civil War, Pershing, Smuts, etc.). However, Haig seems to have devoted much of his WWI energies intriguing for the top job and writing daily diary entries (apparently meant for later public consumption). How is it that so many leading British figures found time not only to keep copious, detailed diaries but also to manage an entire war?

The book is divided into the following major sections: Haig's Credentials, The Attrition Battles of 1916-1917, The Attrition Period, 1918: A Year of Mobility, and Falsifying the Record. 'Haig's Credentials' examines how Haig's top-level connections with Esher and the king eventually unseated French and placed Haig securely in power for the remainder of the war. 'The Attrition Battles' critically analyzes Haig's refusal to stop a battle once it became obvious it would not succeed (usually the first 48 hours). 'The Attrition Period' looks at the Commonwealth armies under his command and his heavy reliance on Canadians and ANZACs. '1918' discusses Haig's poor preparations to meet the expected German spring offensives and his near panic, followed by placing supreme allied command into Foch's hands. 'Falsifying the Record' then goes into particular detail involving the cover-ups and manipulations of Haig's memoirs - apparently three different versions of them.

Denis Winter's analysis is highly critical, but he does give Haig some due credit for correctly anticipating the time and place of the German attack. But for the most part, Winter shows Haig in the likely true light, that of an aspiring careerist officer struggling to learn the military side of his trade and often scapegoating others for his own failures, e.g. Charteris, and selectively releasing self-serving diary excerpts. All in all a very insightful book about Haig that I recommend to any serious student of WWI. Consider reading John Terraine's To Win a War for an alternative pro-Haig/establishment view.

Very apt expose of Haig as a fraud.......2004-07-14

One should read it opposite the John Terraine hagiogrpahy on Haig, and be prepared to be surprised by all the gloss, flasehoods and lies by the British Establishment to cover up its idiocy in prosecuting the war in the hands of an incompetent like Haig.

A polemic, not history.......2003-09-02

Part military history, part rant, part character assassination, and part conspiracy theory, Denis Winter's "Haig's Command" has, in a morbid sense, something for everyone.

The central thesis of the book is simple, yet sensational: The "truth" about British military operations in France during the First World War was concealed for nearly fifty years because Field Marshal Douglas Haig, with the complicity of the British government, bowdlerized and rewrote the official records so that his own incompetence (and indirectly that of the British Government) would be hidden. Winter claims that the true story can be pieced together by comparing the histories and minutes of the Dominion records (i.e. Australian and Canadian) that escaped the censorious scalpel and became public record in the 1960s.

From beginning to end, Winter unleashes a firestorm of abuse on Haig. To begin with, he says, Haig's military career is the story of a completely fabricated C.V. and the patronage of a few, well-placed figures in the British Army. Moreover, the author hints that Haig's relationship with these key mentors -- most notably Lords Kitchener and Esher -- may have been homosexual in nature. As a Corps commander under Sir John French during the opening months of the war, Haig bungled every operation he was entrusted with, Winter says, so his eventual promotion to Field Marshal had nothing to do with battlefield performance.

From the moment Haig takes command in December 1915, Winter's book so entirely rewrites the history of the Western Front that it is impossible to synthesize his points and accusations. Needless to say, everything you've read before is wrong; everything Haig did was a moronic disaster; and everything in the British war records is a willful, malicious lie.

This book comes with the imprimatur of dusk jacket praise from Norman Stone, a respected historian of the First World War. It also lists some prominent endorsements for Winter's previous effort, the widely acclaimed "Death's Men." It isn't surprising that John Keegan and others refused to sign up in support of the author's latest work.

If you are a serious student of military history and the First World War in particular, it may not be a bad idea to familiarize yourself with Winter's arguments, if only to reject them out of hand. Otherwise, don't bother with this book.

Mendacious Nonsense.......2003-04-22

Denis Winter's nickname in Great War history circles is "The self-appointed Witchfinder General of the Great War". It's not catchy, but it's pretty accurate.

This book is a nonsense that would be ridiculous were it not worryingly popular. Winter's thesis is effectively a vehicle to advance his own agenda and has been debunked by a number of highly reputable historians, including Australia's two most eminent historians of World War 1, Robin Prior and Trevor Wilson (neither of whom could be described as fans of Haig). It has also been disowned by the staff at the Australian War Memorial. Not a very glittering endorsement.

Winter accuses a lot of people (pretty much everyone in Britain, basically) of covering up Haig's deficiencies and generally lying. Aside from that fact that it is generally unwise to buy into any conspiracy that requires more than three people to keep their mouths shut, Winter's thesis doesn't have much credibility when one considers that fact that half the people accused of conspiring harboured massive personal animus agaisnt Haig and would have taken delight in sticking the knife in where possible (as Brigadier James edmonds did on more than one occassion). Given the shockingly bad reputation Haig enjoys among the public at large, Winter's book has been described by one historian as "surely the most unsuccessful conspiracy in history". Well, quite.

On top of this, ironically given the relish with which he accuses others of lying and distorting history, it has been demonstrated that Winter systematically misquotes and selectively edits sources and distorts the evidence. For example, from a letter by a staff officer saying "You might think that the quality of the army has not improved a jot in the four years since the outbreak of the war but I would most strongly disagree with this assessment and would argue that our performance has demonstrably improved in leaps and bounds", Winter will simply lift the bit that says "the quality of the army has not improved a jot in the four years since the outbreak of the war" and present that as evidence of British generals covertly condeming themselves out of their own mouths. Of course, for people without the time to look or access to archived material it is fairly difficult to refute this sort of thing and for a long time Winter's claims went unquestioned (aided in no small part by the fact that he was often telling people what they wanted to hear). Judging by some of the reviews of the book on this website, some things haven't changed.

In summary, this is a terrible book. It is bad history. It is polemical. And above all it is intellectually dishonest. There are far better books on great war generalship out there, if only people would care to look. Sadly, most people seem happier reinforcing their prejudices with this sort of thing and as long as this is the case I don't doubt Winter's books will continue to sell like hot cakes while more worthy academic works will continue to gather dust on the shelves.

poignant, credible and sad.......2002-07-10

Confirming generally accepted shortcomings among an outclassed 'officer class' at the end of an era of British dominance in trade and power, Winter brings home the reasons for the decline and the terrible price paid by the common soldier for the towering incompetence of Haig and his ilk. Haig was it seems in many ways an exemplar for the expertise vaccuum at the very top of the British army. Just as in consecutive Afghanistan campaigns and the Boer war, where soldiers were compelled to march to their slaughter in highly visible red uniforms, Haig seemed not to be able to grasp the reality of modern warfare, such as the fortified machine gun, while the Germans patiently mowed down a generation of young Englishmen with methodical precision. Heartbreaking and compelling reading, and though emotionally charged, Winter brings us a detailed work of scholarship.

The Ends of Greatness: Haig, Petain, Rathenau, and Eden: Victims of History

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A hackneyed repot with limited critical inter