Sedum of North America North of the Mexican Plateau (Comstock Book)

Book Description

Read of natural wonders and man-made splendors, irreplaceable slices of Americana and futuristic marvels, and places stately and sublime. Indiana offers the weird and wacky, as well as a cornucopia of attractions, restaurants, and inns.

Customer Reviews:

THE 8th EDITION HAS SOME IMPROVEMENTS OVER EARLIER EDITIONS -- BUT THEY STILL NEED TO SELECT MORE CREDIBLE DESTINATIONS!!!.......2005-12-18

FIRST OFF:

I have the 8th edition of this book, revised in 2005, and I noticed that "South Bend" is now included in the index. An earlier reviewer had brought that up, so hat's off to the author for being responsive. BUT . . . .

BUT . . .

I selected this book because we live in southern Indiana and are interested in places near home for day trips. After looking through this travel guide rather extensively, I became frustrated with a number of flaws in its structure which made the guide book both difficult to use and unreliable. Specifically, many of the counties are given much less space and have much less information about them. Floyd and Clark Counties which are on the Ohio River and which boast large State Parks, cultural events, and some very unusual destinations were given a ridiculous treatment in the book. Floyd County has a retail store as the sole destination which is just ridiculous as it is a health food store in someone's converted garage that also sells ground buffalo meat. One might think that maybe it is a special location, off the beaten trail. Well, this retailer is located directly across from the county industrial park, on a very heavily-travelled commuting road. I have nothing against this merchant, nothing at all, but in a county on the Ohio River across from Louisville, Kentucky, I would think they could come up with a more appropriate and more entertaining family attraction than that! What exactly are kids supposed to do for entertainment in someone's garage where they offer buffalo and camel meat? If Buffalos are the attraction, in the same South-East region there is a Buffalo Farm in Elizabeth, Indiana, in Harrison county. They offer tours and are less than 20 miles from the destination they list in Floyd county, with Buffalo meat being the specific item of interest! Again, the merchant listed is a worthy destination and an interesting place to shop, but why is it the sole listing for Floyd county? Also, why isn't the Buffalo farm that offers tours in the adjacent county listed in this guide?

BOTTOM LINE:

When one does not feel it can trust the judgment of the guide, as seen in the listing of local attractions, it makes planning a trip beyond one's normal horizon based on this guide's suggestions too risky to undertake. Nevertheless, this is an improved effort over the 7th edition and hopefully this evolving effort will continue to improve in subsequent editions. Perhaps, in the 9th edition they will include county maps to compliment the regional maps already present, but first they will need to select more credible destinations for us to visit.

The poor index and maps make it very hard to use this book........1999-07-20

This book is organized by county, but it contains no map indicating counties. The index has serious omissions, rendering it almost useless. I wanted to know what was outside South Bend, but South Bend is not in the index. Neither is Gary, for that matter. Don't tell me it's because they're not "off the beaten path;" they are covered in the book. Counties are listed in the index, but of what use is that unless you know what county you're going to be traveling through? This book could be useful to someone with a good map who already knows where he is, but it does little to orient a newcomer or differentiate between one area and another. I have to cross Indiana this summer, and I'd like to take an interesting route, but I can't find one using this book unless I read nearly every page. This book needs itineraries near the major highways, a map indicating counties, and an entirely new index. To its credit, this book contains much information. Better referencing tools would help the reader find it.

Book Description

Benjamin Franklin is one of the best known and least understood figures in the history of eighteenth-century political thought. Alan Houston clarifies our understanding of his thought by making available a representative selection of his most important political writings. The entire text of the Autobiography is included alongside letters, essays, pamphlets, and manuscript notes that cover political economy, moral psychology, and religious belief and practice, among other topics.

FRANKLIN: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY AND OTHER WRITINGS ON POLITICS, ECONOMICS, AND VIRTUE

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FRANKLIN: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY AND OTHER WRITINGS ON POLITICS, ECONOMICS, AND VIRTUE
Benjamin (Alan Houston, ed.) Franklin
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press Cambridge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Average customer rating:

VERY GOOD BOOK!!!!!

Living By Russian Roulette (Bound for the Promised Land)
Moe McNulty , and Sandra McNulty
Manufacturer: Pagefree Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Criminals | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1589612361

Customer Reviews:

VERY GOOD BOOK!!!!!.......2005-07-25

I read this book in one day because I could not put it down. It's that good. I can usually tell if a book is going to be worth reading by the first few pages, and I was totally hooked by then.

The author puts true and actual events that have happened in his life into an unbelievable story. Most writers spend years conjuring up fictional material like this, but THIS is the real thing. All true and very captivating.

I enthusiastically recommend this book. BUY IT! Just don't plan on getting anything done but reading for a while.....

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New horse owner

It is Essential

It's a reject

The Essentials of Horsekeeping
Rachel Hairston
Manufacturer: Sterling
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0806988177

Book Description

A sound knowledge of horse care is as essential for owners as are riding and training. This manual, which covers everything from housing the animal to holistic healing, is the best horsekeeping teacher available. Packed with wise counsel and instructive photographs, it helps you to recognize when your horse isn’t behaving right or feeling well, understand what excites or scares him, and care for him properly in an emergency. This complete management program teaches all about barn structure and safety, stalls and feeders, fences, protecting pastures, and selecting equipment. You will master what constitutes a healthy equine diet and how to check for parasites, thrush, and other infectious diseases.

Customer Reviews:

New horse owner.......2006-05-24

Since I bought my horse a couple of months ago, I have read nearly a dozen horse care manuals. This is the best of the lot. Why? It presents the basic material that a beginner needs, but it gives more detail than most. A few examples: Many books note that the horse owner should watch for poisonous plants in the pasture, and they list those plants. This book offers full color pictures of each plant, which is that much more helpful. Likewise, the chapter on equine health care gives more information than the other manuals I've read, but not so much that it rivals a veterinary volume. I wish someone had told me about this book before I bought my horse, but I'm certainly glad to have it now!

It is Essential.......2006-01-29

This book contains everything you need to know for the care and well-being of your horse. Including feed, grooming, saddle, tack and stable. Understanding your horse's health and how to maintain it. A classic!

It's a reject.......2005-09-12

As I stated in a previous rating. The seller did not provide a 1st class new book. the book had to be a reject from the publisher. Blank page fillers were chafed and scuffed, The last page of the index was missing, and the last page shown was glued to the inside cover. In short the book sold as new was a publisher's reject and should have been discarded.

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Essentials of Horsekeeping
Rachel Hairston
Manufacturer: Sterling
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K76O76

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Another New Interest

Creative cloth doll faces.

What fun!

Creative Cloth Doll Faces

LEARNING NEW TECHNIQUES

Creative Cloth Doll Faces: Using Paints, Pastels, Fibers, Beading, Collage, and Sculpting Techniques
Patti Medaris Culea
Manufacturer: Quarry Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Toymaking | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Creative Cloth Doll Making: New Approaches for Using Fibers, Beads, Dyes, and Other Exciting Techniques

Creative Cloth Doll Couture: New Approaches to Making Beautiful Clothing and Accessories

Creative Cloth Doll Beading: Designing and Embellishing with Beads

Designing the Doll: From Concept to Construction

Anatomy of a Doll: The Fabric Sculptor's Handbook

ASIN: 159253144X

Book Description

The face is the most important feature of a doll -- it is also the most challenging. So it is surprising that there is so little instruction available on creating doll faces. This book fills that void.

Author Patti Medaris Culea began her career in art as a portrait painter and she puts that experience to work when creating her doll faces. In this book, she shows readers a simple technique for easily creating faces using her step-by-step approach. She gives her tips for how to divide the face into quadrants, graft features together, and much more.

Every aspect of doll making is covered -- from the basics to detailed techniques for making the various faces to instructions for putting a pattern together. Readers will learn how to use watercolor pencils, acrylics, and fabric paints to color a face, how to create a face using collage techniques as well as stamping and beading, and tips for working with stretchy fabrics to create indented eyes, separate eyelids, and sculpted lips.

Customer Reviews:

Another New Interest.......2007-07-19

The book is very well written, has great diagrams & some good example to get a newcomer to doll making started. Recommend it highly. A good purchase.

Creative cloth doll faces........2007-06-10

Although I haven't had time to read and study the book fully as yet, I can see that is going to be a great help to me when I want give my dolls a face and personality...

What fun!.......2007-06-03

This is the first book I was included in as an artist and Pattis patterns are so inspirational! Her dolls are beautiful and creative and a joy to make. I got to do the collage version and after several days of planning, I gave up and just played! That was the ticket!

Patti is an amazing dollmaker and I am lucky enough to live in San Diego where we share a home town doll club. I recommend, in fact, I insist (!) that all of you creative doll creators go right out and buy it! You wont be disapointed!

Creative Cloth Doll Faces.......2007-05-15

Another must have book. Wow the faces you can make in there.It has patterns,hair ideas, clothes patterns,shoe patterns,3-d ideas,easy instructions for faces,my first doll is a hoot! I can"t wait to make more.
This book is filled with colored pictures and instructions. I wouldn"t sell My newly aquired doll books .LOve it LOve It!

LEARNING NEW TECHNIQUES.......2007-03-25

I loved this book for its overall view of face painting. I found it very helpful in learning and improving my skills. I would recommend this to anyone interested in making original dolls.

Average customer rating:

Great Gardening Goodies

Shortcuts for Accenting Your Garden: Over 500 Easy and Inexpensive Tips
Marianne Binetti
Manufacturer: Garden Way Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Landscape | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Garden Design | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Tips for Carefree Landscapes: Over 500 Sure-Fire Ways to Beautify Your Yard and Garden

Easy Answers for Great Gardens: 500 Tips, Techniques, and Outlandish Ideas

Tree and Shrub Gardening for Washington and Oregon

ASIN: 0882668307

Customer Reviews:

Great Gardening Goodies.......1998-07-29

Want your garden to be unique, one that neighbors and friends "ooh and ahh" over? Read Marianne Binetti's Shortcuts for Accenting Your Garden. Learn how to create focal points and to showcase your favorite plants. If you've always wanted an archway, Marianne gives you great ideas. And you'll gain the confidence you need to add walkways, a bird bath, or garden ornaments to your yard. Best of all, this book gives easy and inexpensive gardening tips (over 500) that help spark your creativity no matter what your starting point is. What more can you ask for in this easy-to-read book! And you'll enjoy the fun that Marianne has with words. I know I'm going to refer often to Marianne's book for inspiring gardening ideas.

Book Description

Kids in the Syndrome Mix is a concise, scientifically up-to-date, all-in-one guide to the whole range of often co-existing neuro-behavioral disorders in children—from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obsessive-compulsive disorder, and bipolar disorder, to autistic spectrum disorders, nonverbal learning disabilities, sensory integration problems, and executive dysfunction.

Dr. Kutscher provides accessible information on causes, symptoms, interactions with other conditions, and treatments. He presents effective behavioral strategies for responding to children who display traits of these disorders—whether at home, at school, or in other settings—along with case vignettes and practical tips.

The author's sympathetic yet upbeat approach and skillful explanations of the inner world of children in the syndrome mix make this an invaluable companion for parents, teachers, professionals, and anyone else who needs fast and to-the-point advice on children with special needs.

Customer Reviews:

Lots of Information in an Easy to Read Book.......2007-08-27

As an Occupational Therapist I focus on the obstacles my students face in their everyday lives and particularly in school. Often my students have received a diagnosis of ADHD but actually present with symptoms that, in my opinion, are better represented by other disorders such as Aspergers and Central Auditory Processing Disorders. Dr. Kutscher's book emphasizes the co occurence of various disorders and confirms that a single diagnosis is the exception and not the norm in these complex students.
The book is packed with information that includes essential vocabulary and concepts, web sites,and reference to experts in research and treatment. While Dr. Kutscher jokes about how he may be oversimplifying concepts and brain function, he actually includes many key concepts that can greatly clarify the struggles of children in the syndrome mix. Some examples of the information presented in the book that, I believe, would enlighten teachers, pediatricians, parents,etc. include the following: the demoralizing result of receiving a zero on a school paper;the Connor's checklist;contextual clues and reading; phonological dysfunction and early signs of dyslexia;Fry's Instant Word List; establishing a hand dominence by 2; the 4 areas of communication;Theory of Mind; an adult using "child speak" to help a child develop social skills; social stories; using the child's special interests to engineer friendships; and sensory integration dysfunction. If the reader takes advantage of the suggestions in the Further Reading section then more in depth knowledge of subjects that are only touched upon in the book can be obtained.

Dr. Kutscher reminds us not to treat these complex children as typical because they are not. One can view them as having a wonderful uniqueness or as having a disability that needs to be accomodated for. I agree it is very important not to expect typical behaviors from these children. For them to become all that they can be and to have good self esteem, they need special consideration and help.I enjoy working with these children and I am often impressed by their uniqueness and gifts.

Thank you, Dr. Kutscher!.......2007-07-30

I want to know how the author knew my kid to a "T" without ever having met him! This book was amazing and tied together several of my son's challenges in ways that no one ever had before! Instead of dealing with each "diagnosis" in isolation, they were related to one another and the interactions - positive and negative - were examined. Just knowing why something that "should" work didn't - in such clear and reasonable language - takes SO MUCH of the stress off of us as parents, advocates and caregivers.

The language, terminology and humor made this a very accessible and comfortable read. The density of information made it a reasonable slow but very rewarding read. I would HIGHLY recommend this book to any parent, teacher, grandparent, friend or cargiver of a child (or adult)with any of the neurodevelopmental disorders it covers. You'll most likely find out that the picture is more complex but definitely more manageable and less frustrating when all the variables are considered.

Thank you, Dr. Kutscher!

Expectations fulfilled to the max.......2007-06-09

i received the book in perfect condition and a timely fashion. A pleasure!

fantastic.......2007-06-08

OK, this book covers it all! My dear daughter is still waitng for a diagnosis and this book just pegged so many of her problems. I have read, re-read and highlighted it! If your child has been labled with ANY of the topics in this book then this book is for you! Thanks so much, really very very good!

kids in the syndrome mix.......2007-05-13

I had first read this book at the library but it had so much helpful information that i decided i needed it in my home library as a reference guide to go back to-this book is one that any parent who has a child with emotional disorders should read.I have recommended it to my sons therapist/counselers/doctors/teachers and my own support group.

Children with Tourette Syndrome: A Parents' Guide

Average customer rating:

Easy to understand, comprehensive, helpful!
Children with Tourette Syndrome: A Parent's Guide
Excellent Resource For Parents
Jam Packed Guide for Parents and Professionals
Very informative, enormously helpful, with great advice

Children with Tourette Syndrome: A Parents' Guide
Tracy Lynne, Ed. Marsh
Manufacturer: Woodbine House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Special Needs | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

Tourette Syndrome | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Nervous System | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1890627364
Release Date: 2007-01-24

Book Description

When first published, this guide for parents of children and teens with Tourette syndrome (TS) was the only book to offer up-to-date information and advice for families. Now in an updated edition, Children with Tourette Syndrome offers even more. There's new information on the latest research and medical developments in the field, and sections on education, legal rights, family life, daily care, and emotional issues are thoroughly revised.

Written by leading experts in the field and experienced parents, this guide provides an excellent blend of professional expertise and empathetic advice. Families with newly diagnosed children find answers to their most pressing questions about this often perplexing neurological disorder, as well as coping strategies and emotional support.

The second edition includes new information about the effects of Tourette syndrome at different stages of development from childhood into adulthood. There's more on coexisting conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, Asperger syndrome, and learning disabilities. The book also provides an overview of the biochemistry of TS, what to expect from a medical workup, as well as a discussion of more than 30 different drugs used to treat TS and related conditions. There are strategies for coping with many of the challenging characteristics of TS such as impulsivity, obsessive thoughts, attention and sleep problems, and difficulties with sensory integration. A new chapter on Habit Reversal Training (HRT) explains how this behavior intervention can help some people control tics. Parents find the latest on special education rights, and expanded information on how to design an appropriate education plan for their child.

For families raising a child with TS, this comprehensive handbook gives them hope and relieves their sense of isolation. It's also essential reading for professionals and teachers who need to understand this complex disorder.

Customer Reviews:

Easy to understand, comprehensive, helpful!.......2007-07-02

I initially checked out this book from the library to learn more about the disability we suspected our son has. Because I was so impressed with it, I bought the book. It is an excellent source of information on TS (Tourette Syndrome), along with other related conditions, both for parents of children who have been diagnosed with TS or parents who simply suspect their child may have TS. She educates parents on how to go about getting an accurate and comprehensive evaluation for their child, information on dealing with the challenges of TS, and being an advocate for the child with TS.

Children with Tourette Syndrome: A Parent's Guide.......2007-04-12

This book is an excellent resource for parents whose child has Tourette's. It explains the disease, treatment, interventions, resources, and so forth. Excellent and easy to read. Great resource also for those with ADHD, especially since ADHD and Tourette Syndrome sometimes go hand in hand. I highly recommend it both as a grandparent of a child with both Tourette's and ADHD, and as a health professional!

Excellent Resource For Parents.......2005-03-31

My son has Tourettes. This was the first book that I bought when he was diagnosed and I found it to be invaluable. It is a great resource for the parents of the newly diagnosed or even those who have been dealing with it for some time. The book lets you know what to expect and how to cope. A must have for anyone dealing with a special needs child with this disorder.

Jam Packed Guide for Parents and Professionals.......2002-03-25

This is a compact little guide is packed with useful information both for parents and professionals. It is not cluttered with long narratives of people's "personal stories". While there is definitely a place for that approach, I needed a quick primer that would easily acquaint me with the full range of difficulties faced by a child with Tourette Syndrome as well as those faced by her parents. As a clinican, I needed to arm myself in a hurry with an understanding of the essential issues relevant to this population in order to manage a school crisis. It gave me everything I needed to effectively advocate for my young client and her parents.

It is a quick read, informative and clear. The book humanizes TS and provides basic information about etiology, development, and treatment, medication, symptom management, and guidlines on how to interact with school staff. Suggestions for designing an effective educational plans,advocacy strategies, and a basic description of legal rights are also included.

I recommend this book without hesitation.

Very informative, enormously helpful, with great advice.......2001-06-13

My 8-year-old son has ADHD, OCD and tic disorders (though not full-blown Tourette Syndrome). This book was an enormous help for me in understanding the tic disorder and also the ADHD and OCD which often co-occur with TS and tic disorders. It is written in a very easy to read, friendly, compassionate way. There is a lot of clear advice here. TS is complex and often misunderstood. The book helps you cope with and understand many of the related problems. It teaches acceptance, dealing with friends, relatives, schools, etc. It is a very thorough book. After reading it, I felt less helpless and more empowered to deal with these issues. The book talks about the importance of acknowledging your child's frustrations and feelings, which will help him to learn to share them more directly with you. For example, saying, "I know you're trying really hard, and it's frustrating when the other students can't seem to understand that you can't stop doing certain things." This book helps you to also empower your child, and to embrace what is special about him. It says, "If you believe in your child as an individual whose Tourette syndrome is only one aspect of her total being, your child will also be more likely to see herself as someone with abilities, rather than disabilities." I strongly recommend this book. It will help.

Tourette Syndrome: A Practical Guide for Teachers, Parents and Carers (Resource Materials Forteachers)

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Tourette Syndrome: A Practical Guide for Teachers, Parents and Carers (Resource Materials Forteachers)
Amber Carroll
Manufacturer: David Fulton Publish
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Tourette Syndrome | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Education | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 1853466565

Book Description

This handbook provides the knowledge and information required to equip teachers and learning support assistants with the understanding and skills needed when working with pupils with Tourette syndrome.

Clinical descriptions and medical treatments are discussed and advice on diagnosis, identification and assessment in the classroom is given. Responding to the learning, emotional and behavioural difficulties pupils may experience, the authors provide multi-disciplinary strategies for application within a school.

Disciple and the child with TS: A guide for parents and teachers of children with Tourette syndrome

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Disciple and the child with TS: A guide for parents and teachers of children with Tourette syndrome
Ramona Collins
Manufacturer: Tourette Syndrome Association, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Tourette Syndrome | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006REXEG

Book Description

John Mortimer has led an extraordinary life as a playwright, bestselling novelist, and former practicing barrister. In The Summer of a Dormouse, the third installment of his autobiography, he describes what it is like to be seventy-seven years of age but to feel like a child. While he suffers from the afflictions that his father had to contend with-asthma, glaucoma-and added some of his own, he continues to live with boundless energy, passion, and humor. The Summer of a Dormouse is a warm and charming chronicle of one year in a rich and very full life.

When most people his age are in full retirement, John Mortimer is still motoring through life, taking on new projects-working on a film with Zeffirelli in a house in Rome, contriving the renovation of the Royal Court Theatre building, and championing his most passionate cause, prison reform. Whether in the English countryside, the center of London, the heart of Tuscany, or the streets of Morocco, he embraces life and work with enthusiasm and compassion, revealing himself as one of the most astute and generous figures of his generation.

Customer Reviews:

Aedes Gliris.......2006-01-07

Mortimer, with what I'm sure was a subtle twinkle in his eye, had the words Aedes Gliris -- Latin for "Summer of a Doormouse" -- stitched onto his shirts, as a motto for a happy life that in retrospect passed quickly.

This book made me smile very often, with its understated hilarity and reminiscences of adventures that would exhaust most men, never mind a man of 80 years. Mortimer celebrates his good fortunes in art, in the law, and in love. We learn that women friends had dubbed him "the thinking woman's crumpet."

I enjoyed this small book, but then I should confess to having read all the Rumpole stories many times. I see Mortimer as full of joy, self-effacing, and very wise at this time of his life.

May he write much more.

For what it may be worth.......2001-11-06

I read a little of this book and then found that I just didn't want to waste my time reading any more. And it sounded so interesting in the NYTimes review! I feel this book is pure garbage. He seems to be under the impression that every thought and memory which flits through his head is of great value. Just as power corrupts, fame insufflates the ego - unless you have the supreme wisdom to resist it. I read halfway thru another book called something like 'the delights of aging'. It was just as disappointing. And I'm aging. Are there any books which genuinely make you believe aging isn't as bad as it feels? Like that music isn't as bad as it sounds? Maybe self-delusion is the only way to joyfully tolerate the whips and scorns. Maybe that's Mortimer's real message here - message by example.

A Man in His Best Season.......2001-10-21

Everybody and their brother and sister, which includes Gertrude Stein, of course, seems to be penning memoirs. A caveat to the form practiced at its best: The memoir of a man nearly eighty should be read quickly. In part to raise demand - if the recounting is revisited in prose artfully and summons forth a brilliant life - for a return engagement of cottage industriousness from the un-retiring pensioner, and chiefly because the best memoirs offer frothy recollections and musings which naturally propel alacrity.

In the case of "The Summer of a Dormouse" by John Mortimer, the episodic visits taken around the world and within the circle of the celebrated novelist, Queen's Counsel, playwright, knight (bearing a unique coat of arms), and "champagne socialist" end all too soon. We need some levity to dispel the infirmities of old age, septuagenarian John Mortimer advises.

The adapter of "Brideshead Revisited," Mortimer compares his life to scriptwriting's pace, "scenes get shorter and the action speeds up towards the end." And sped-up indeed it is for Mortimer. He plays the strolling scribe and player, from the "Chiantishire" to San Francisco and Watford to Antibes, respectively. He loosely adapts Franco Zeffirelli's life in "Tea with Mussolini" and Laurie Lee's (with whom he worked in government films during WWII) "Cider with Rosie"; for the former he is whisked off to Cinecitta - enclave of la dolce vita for the film industry set.

Back in London, Sir John chairs the Royal Court Theatre's - presenter of George Bernard Shaw and John Osborne - rebuilding. Despite stupefying behind the scrim skirmishes, he soldiers on through meetings with overly sensitive playwrights of the cut-off-your-nose-in-spite-your-face variety. Finally, Mortimer's common sense prevails and the theatre gets built. The redoubtable David Hare, none the worse for bygone artistic differences, writes a play for the new stage.

Goaded by a politico hostess to "have a go" at [then] Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw, this former barrister uses a lunch encounter to argue the defense of civil liberties and Magna Carta, and he hosts another lunch, a fundraiser on behalf of prison reformation, where a CEO is drilled over the company's annual report by a major stockholder--a convict--at the prison's groaning board. He also dispatches his opinion to the newspaper on the crisis in farming, easily deducible from the vantage point of his countryside home that is roundly ignored by Tony Blair's New Labour government. In fact, Mortimer questions whether "the promised land of a Labour Britain" looks or acts any different from its Conservative Party predecessor.

Mortimer recalls, from his youth, the Shakespearean passages his father quoted and conjures the blinded in middle age, intrepid, yet reliant for personal matters such as daily dressing on his wife (Mortimer's own Shavian, strong-willed mother), barrister that mirrors Mortimer's own age-related frailties - from use of a wheelchair to not being able to put on socks anymore - to wistful effect. A tinge is likewise evoked during a visit to an old artist friend with late-stage Alzheimer's who has, nevertheless, recapitulated a radiant painting he had done twenty years earlier, "this was only an echo, something left stranded on the beach after the sea had retreated."

Famed as Mortimer is for his Rumpole of the Bailey series, he acknowledges that when filling up his writing pads he draws more interest from failure than success. Coincidence, perhaps fate, abounds in his lifetime, and he attends the funeral of his first wife, Penelope, with his wife, Penny (for Penelope), surrounded by children of the first marriage and his teenaged daughter from the later union. The couple of years chronicled in this memoir include an eclectic cast of friends and colleagues: Muriel Spark, Neil Kinnock, Stephen Daldry, Sir John Gielgud, Sir Alec Guinness, Lord Richard Attenborough, Joss Ackland, and twins, Vicky and Jackie, who married Deep Purple band members. When an elegiac tone sets in, as birthdays come and friends die, Mortimer says the "cure is to be found among the living..." And so it is.

In the interim between another trip down memory's lane, once past the surfeit of this writer's well-lived life is consumed, the reader can go back to John Mortimer's catalogue of autobiography (now in three published books), novels, and plays. Then, with delight still at the fingertips, perhaps the champagne-tippling dormouse will serve up yet another rich and textured morsel from a gracious and blessedly prolonged summer for Sir John Mortimer, Esquire.

More like a door stop.......2001-08-29

John Mortimer is a wonderful English author. My husband is a great fan of his work. I read of this book this summer in England and when I returned home I rushed to buy it.
My husband hated it! He said he had already read most of the stories in other works. The author also gives his opinion on the wonderful Labor Party in England. His mother should have taught him not to discuss politics in polite society.
It is really a dreadful book. Only useful as a door stop on a windy day.

Not going gently into that dark night............2001-08-06

SUMMER OF A DORMOUSE takes it's title from Byron who said when one subtracts sleeping, eating and other personal maintenance one has about as much time to be productive as the summer of a dormouse. Of course Lord Byron himself was quite productive until he was bled dry by leeches says John Mortimer whose wife gave him a ring with an engraved dormouse on his last birthday.

DORMOUSE is Mortimer's third installment in his autobiography (the official one, Rumpole is unofficial). In his earlier entries (CLINGING TO THE WRECKAGE, MURDERERS AND OTHER FRIENDS) he covered his childhood, life with wife number one (Penny) and wife number two (Penelope) as well as his writing and legal career through age 65 or so. In DORMOUSE, Mortimer continues the tale covering recent events in his seventies (with flashbacks).

Mortimer has not slowed down very much though he is blind in one eye and forced to use wheeled conveyences through air port terminals (sometimes at the risk of life and limb) as he whizzes around the globe on various book-signing tours and other business trips. For instance, during the 1990s he was busy writing the screen play for the film 'Tea with Mussolini' -- an autobiographical account of Franco Zefirelli's boyhood in wartime Italy starring Dames of the British Empire Judy Dench and Maggie Smith as well as Lady Joan Plowright. As a result of his involvement, he has been privy to the behind the scenes antics of the old gals. Seems these pillars of the theatre were caught nude in Franco Zefirelli's swimming pool one afternoon. (I knew Dench couldn't possibly be as dull as her biographer suggested!!)

Mortimer has literary flashbacks, amazing tales to convey, and engages in a bit of reflection as he faces "Timor mortis" which he says becomes rather acute after age 75. During the course of his book, several old friends and his first wife Penelope exit the stage. From time to time he feels like throwing in the towel himself but something always seems to come along set him going again. For example, the ulcer on his leg hasn't healed and after two years it seems to have become a permanent part of his anatomy when he encounters two twins who suggest he try an alternative approach to healing.

From Mortimer's perspective some politicians seem bent on destroying England, so he and wife Penny do what they can to stall the barbarians at the gate. As friends of the Kinnocks, the Mortimers find much to take on including the movement by the "politically correct" to deny accused rapists access to cross-examination of the accuser. Sometimes the local populace is with the Mortimers and sometimes not. For example, they are not opposed to fox-hunting--which earns them the enmity of extremist animal lovers who send very bad things through the post.

From the scuba diver scooped up and dropped on a blazing forest fire which leads to an insurance battle over the cause of death, to the lightening struck movie star with a melted phone receiver in his hand, to wife Penny's escapades in Cuba with headless cattle, not much escapes Mortimer's notice. On the other hand, he's not above burning his trousers and radio in the rubbish pile or forgetting the name of the actor he just saw on tv for whom he is writing script. Like Rumpole, Mortimer continues the fight against premature adjudication.

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The Summer Of A Dormouse

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Summer of a Dormouse

Manufacturer: Harcourt, Brace & World
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The Summer of a Dormouse
John Clifford Mortimer
Manufacturer: Viking Penguin
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ASIN: B000O3TFCM

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The Summer of a Dormouse
John Mortimer
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
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Summer of a Dormouse
John Mortimer
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Dr William Stukeley (1687-1765) was the most renowned English antiquary of the eighteenth century. This study discusses his life and achievements, placing him firmly within his intellectual milieu, which he shared with his illustrious friend Isaac Newton and with other natural philosophers, theologians and historians. Stukeley's greatest memorial was his work on the stone circles of Stonehenge and Avebury: at a time when most historians believed they were Roman or medieval monuments, he proved that they were of much greater antiquity, and his influence on subsequent interpretations of these monuments and their builders was enormous. For Stukeley, these stone circles - the work of 'Celtic Druids', were a link in the chain that connected the pristine religion of Adam and Noah with the modern Anglican Church. Historians today belittle such speculations, but Stukeley shared his vision of lost religious and scientific knowledge with many of the great minds of his day; this account shows how throughout his distinguished career his antiquarian researches fortified his response to Enlightenment irreligion and the threat he believed it posed to science and society. DAVID BOYD HAYCOCK is a Junior Research Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford.

William Stukeley, Science, Religion and Archaeology in Eighteenth-Century England.(Reviews of Books)(Book Review): An article from: Albion

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William Stukeley, Science, Religion and Archaeology in Eighteenth-Century England.(Reviews of Books)(Book Review): An article from: Albion
Margaret C. Jacob
Manufacturer: North American Conference on British Studies
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Book Description

This digital document is an article from Albion, published by North American Conference on British Studies on September 22, 2003. The length of the article is 756 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: William Stukeley, Science, Religion and Archaeology in Eighteenth-Century England.(Reviews of Books)(Book Review)
Author: Margaret C. Jacob
Publication: Albion (Refereed)
Date: September 22, 2003
Publisher: North American Conference on British Studies
Volume: 35 Issue: 3 Page: 493(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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William Stukeley: Science, Religion and Archaeology in Eighteenth-century England.(Book Review) : An article from: Folklore

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William Stukeley: Science, Religion and Archaeology in Eighteenth-century England.(Book Review) : An article from: Folklore
Juliette Wood
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
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ASIN: B000CR8NUK
Release Date: 2005-12-08

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Folklore, published by Thomson Gale on December 1, 2005. The length of the article is 770 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: William Stukeley: Science, Religion and Archaeology in Eighteenth-century England.(Book Review)
Author: Juliette Wood
Publication: Folklore (Magazine/Journal)
Date: December 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 116 Issue: 3 Page: 355(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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