Eyewitness Garden Handbooks: Rock Garden Plants

Book Description

A photographic guide to more than 450 rock garden plans by type, size, season of interest, and color.

Packed with more than 500 photographs of over 450 plants, Rock Garden Plants is an inspiring handbook to help you identify, choose and grow your favorite varieties. Discover at a glance the full range of rock garden plants available. Each entry combines a plant portrait with a concise botanical description, plus cultivation and propagation details. Helpful symbols indicate preferred growing conditions and cold hardiness. If you want a specific leaf or flower color in a particular season, the Plant Catalog will offer you the perfect specimen. All the essential considerations, such as selecting a rock garden plant, preparing the ground, watering, mulching, feeding, weeding, pest control, and transplanting, are clearly explained. Pruning details are included for both deciduous and evergreen plants. Propagation methods, from sowing seeds to rooting hardwood cuttings, are also given. Whether you are planting a new garden or seeking new features of interest for an established one, Rock Garden Plants is your indispensable, portable gardening companion. A lavishly illustrated flexibound, Eyewitness Garden Handbooks are the user-friendly guides that identify every type of garden plant with up to ten salient features, at-a-glance information on height, spread, and color, and useful cultivation symbols. There are also separate sections on gardening skills and a complete index of common names.

Customer Reviews:

A joy to browse through.......1999-09-23

This book provides a quick reference guide to more than 450 rock garden plants by type, size, season of interest, and color. The opening chapter is a helpful introduction, giving advice on choosing suitable plants for a particular site or purpose, such as for a border, container, or simply as a specimen. Following chapters are subdivided into sections according to the average size of the plants and their main season of interest. Family name, common name(s), and botanical name are provided. Photographs show each plant's main features and color. A brief description gives details of growing habits, flowers, fruits, and leaves, followed by information on nature habitat, tips on cultivation, and propagation. Symbols indicate the sun, soil, and hardiness requirements. It is cleverly arranged and a joy to page through, with more than 500 beautiful photographs.

Book Description

The author buys a replica of Spray, Slocum's boat and takes his wirfe and 3 year old son on a circumnavigation retracing Slocum's famous voyage.

Customer Reviews:

Not like Slocum's but still entertaining.......2006-02-07

I really enjoyed the story of the Bernardin family's voyage even though it was quite a bit different than I expected. I guess I thought it would cover the exact route as the original Spray (instead of Cape Horn they went through the Panama canal) and I assumed the Spray would not have an engine (but it did.) I thought there would be some exciting moments of drama (but here was very little, depending on your definition.) Even so, it was a very enjoyable read and a good voyaging and family story.

A thoroughly enjoyable, attention engaging travelogue.......2002-11-07

Sailing Around The World: A Family Retraces Joshua Slocum's Voyage is a thoroughly enjoyable, attention engaging travelogue by expert sailor Guy Bernardin, about his embarking upon a grand journey across the waves with his wife and 3-year-old-son, and learning about the thrill of life itself in the process. Black-and-white photographs and descriptive text immerse the reader in the ups and downs of a captivating journey. Sailing Around The World is highly recommended reading for armchair travelers and anyone who has every contemplating the adventure of sailing around the world.

Average customer rating:

A gathering of personal correspondence

First Daughters: Letters Between U.S. Presidents and Their Daughters

Manufacturer: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Presidents & Heads of State | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
Letters & Correspondence | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

My Dear President: Letters Between Presidents and Their Wives

Posterity: Letters of Great Americans to Their Children

Funny Letters from Famous People

Women's Letters: America from the Revolutionary War to the Present

Faith of the First Ladies

ASIN: 1579123708

Book Description

From John Adams and Thomas Jefferson through Lyndon Johnson and Bill Clinton, our presidents have taken time out of their public lives to write moving letters to their growing daughters. The best of these have been organized here into such topics as education, politics, friendship, marriage, parenting, and home life. Handsome and historic artwork and photographs throughout make it a book of beauty as well as substance.

Customer Reviews:

A gathering of personal correspondence .......2005-02-08

Readers interested in first daughters have had relatively little to choose from, with all the attention being given first ladies: the Gawalts remedy this with First Daughters: Letters Between U.S. Presidents And Their Daughters, a gathering of personal correspondence drawing upon thousands of documents from the Library of Congress and Presidential archives alike. Highly recommended reading, the individual letters from Presidential fathers to their daughters are poignant, revealing, and personal: small black and white photos of the family bring each set to life.

Book Description

This is the only book that bridges all bad guys generations: colonial, Old West, and the Great Depression. some of theintriguing characters and fascinating places discussed in the book include The Salem witchcraft trials and many more.

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Bible Bad Guys
Bob Hartman
Manufacturer: Augsburg Fortress Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Religions | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0806640464

Book Description

Best-selling author Bob Hartman uses his remarkable storytelling ability to bring Bible characters to life in fresh, dramatic, and often humorous ways. These are the tales of bad guys turned good, good guys making bad choices, and truly terrible guys getting what they deserve. Stubborn Pharaoh, Power-mad Herod, Misguided-but-reformable Zacchaeus, and Cowardly Peter. Ten stories, drawn from the Old and New Testaments, will appeal to children and parents alike as they bring new understanding to biblical stories and characters. This is a great family book for reading aloud and discussing together.

Good Guys, Bad Guys, Big Guys, Little Guys: Upstate New York Stories from the Syracuse Herald-Journal, Herald American

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Good Guys, Bad Guys, Big Guys, Little Guys: Upstate New York Stories from the Syracuse Herald-Journal, Herald American
Dick Case
Manufacturer: Pine Tree Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Social History | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0962915998

Lawmen of the Old West: The Bad Guys: The Bad Guys

Average customer rating:

Good Guys not in the movies
The heroic, honest western lawman does exist.

Lawmen of the Old West: The Bad Guys: The Bad Guys
Del Cain
Manufacturer: Republic of Texas
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1556228341

Book Description

The lawmen in this book were serious offenders against the laws they had at one time sworn to uphold. Their skills were honed in range wars and family feuds and polished along the cattle trails, in the saloons and banks, and on the trains of the West. More than one kicked out their lives at the end of ropes strung up by citizens who were outraged by their abuse of the trust that went along with the badge they wore. These are their stories.

Customer Reviews:

Good Guys not in the movies.......2001-01-24

These are stories of the unsung good guys - the ones you've probably never heard of. . . the ones without movie contracts. A "must" read for aficionados of the Old West.

The heroic, honest western lawman does exist........1999-12-09

This book tells the true stories of several western lawmen who can truely be called "The Good Guys". Most of the men in this book are not well known, but deserve to be. They hunted outlaws and stood up for what was right, which often led to wild shootouts. This book shows that the heroic western lawman is real and not just a work of fiction.

Average customer rating:

More Bible Bad Guys and Gals
Bob Hartman
Manufacturer: Augsburg Fortress Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0806640995

Book Description

A collection of imaginative tales based on biblical stories about “bad guys and gals.”

Following on his successful first collection, Bible Bad Guys, this is another set of entertaining, enlightening stories from master storyteller, Bob Hartman. Fresh and appealing, these stories offer new insights into biblical characters as well as glimpses of God's compassion, love, and justice.

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The Turtle and the Two Ducks: Animal Fables Retold from LA Fontaine
Patricia Plante , David Bergman , and Jean de La Fontaine
Manufacturer: Ty Crowell Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Rockwell, Anne | ( R ) | Authors & Illustrators, A-Z | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0690041470

Average customer rating:
The Turtle and the Two Ducks: Animal Fables Retold from LA Fontaine
Patricia; Bergman, David; LA Fontaine, Jean De Fables Plante
Manufacturer: Ty Crowell Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000K3RQV8

Average customer rating:
Turtle and the Two Ducks and Ten Other Animal Fables Freely Retold from LA Fontaine
Patricia Plante
Manufacturer: Routledge Kegan & Paul
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Textbook Binding
ASIN: 0416007015

Average customer rating:
The TURTLE And The TWO DUCKS. Animal Fables Retold from La Fontaine.
Patricia & Bergman, David. Plante
Manufacturer: Thomas Y. Crowell,
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NYKQ98

Book Description

Here is a virtual encyclopedia of cabinet door and drawer styles and instruction for designing, constructing, and installing them. Slab, MDF, simulated and true raised panel, frame and panel, arched frame and panel, mitered panel, cope and stick, glass, and tambour: all of these types of cabinet doors—and the drawers to match—are illustrated and explained with step-by-step construction notes and measurements. In addition, all of the common methods of joinery, such as dowels, biscuits, splines, miters, dadoes, tongue and groove, and mortise and tenons are explained and illustrated.

Customer Reviews:

Incomplete.......2007-01-09

In its introduction, the book claims to fill a gap in the woodworking litterature concerning the building of cabinet doors.

I found that this book is really targeted to beginner (nothing wrong about that) and only contains some quick and simple way of building doors.

A third of the book is devoted to basic joinery (and the book si pretty slim to begin with).

There is also an extensive section on european style hardware, the different type, how to mount them etc. The traditional hinge is mentionned in a small paragraph. There is no explanation of the different style, how to mount it etc.

Some information are just not correct such as stating that the main tool to build raise panel are the table saw and the router.

Some information is just not there. What about wood movement in solid wood panel how much clerance should I leave, where etc.

The worse part is the chatper on drawer. The book is title cabinet doors and drawers. Only 2 simple style of drawer are described. No mention on how to fit them properly. Dovetails are described in the joinery chapter but not even apply to the drawers !!!

And I am still looking for the formula to get the radius of the arch panel.

I also would have loved some nice color pictures.

All in all I don't this book is completely useless for the beginner, but don't expect this book to be a reference on how to build doors or drawers. There are tons of litterature out there that provide more in depth coverage + description on how to build the whole kitchen cabinet for a similar price.

Building Cabinet Doors and Drawers.......2005-09-17

If you want to see what kind of doors you CAN make, this book is not bad. If you are hoping to learn how to make a particular type of door, this book is not very informative. It lacks a lot of details that you'd need to know if you were going to actually make the door that the book describes.

Very helpfull.......2005-09-09

This book is great for the beginner or intermediate woodworker looking to gain insight into the process of cabinet doors and drawers. Lots of photos and step-by-step instructions. Great suggestions on hardware, tools and techniques.

Very Disappointing.......2004-04-15

I eagerly awaited the arrival of this book after reading the 5 star reviews by other readers. I do not know where to begin to express my dissapointment with the book's contents. I guess I am a more advanced woodworker than I previosly thought. I am starting my own business specializing in custom made, solid wood, raised panel doors. Obviously, I already know how to make them (one would hope !). Since this is what the book's title is all about, I figured I could pick up some good tips. Well, this book is obviously for beginners only. With this in mind, I feel bad for any beginner trying to make sense out of some of Mr. Proulx's "formulas". I got to the chapter where he shows a picture of drawing an arc for an arched panel door. I thought, "Hmm, at least I can see if he as an easy formula I can adapt (there are many !) to draw an elipse/arch based on the door width". Nope, he states the radius of the arc once, with no explanation of why, how, where he arrived at this figure. To add insult, in later pages/chapters involving similar cuts to be made, he says "Refer to chapter #, or page so and so where this procedure or formula was explained/illustrated". Aggravating to say the least. Also, all door types made are with a router and router bits (no mention of shapers in here). Nothing wrong with this, but while I have always gotten by making raised panel doors on a table router all these years, I would think that a pro/author of such a book would mention that a shaper is the way to go, especially when rasing a panel !. He also mentions 3 possible thicknesses of panels to be used in conjunction with frame (rail & stile) thickness. He completely omits my favorite: a 3/4 thick panel that is "back-cut" to make the panel flush on front and back side of the door. There's a lot more, but I'll stop here. If you already know how to make a cabinet door and drawer don't waste your money on this book. If you don't already know how, you can pick up some decent general basics. However, if you're a beginning woodworker, don't even try to understand the section on european hinges (drawings and explanations). These belong in a more advanced edition.

Great Ideas........2003-07-16

Danny Proulx has put together a great book with some really good examples of all types of doors and drawers. I've used some of his ideas in my kitchen remodel.

Customer Reviews:

Good reference work, good coffee-table book.......2003-03-01

This book is an excellent work for identification of cactus. It describes the proper growing conditions separately for each species, including sun vs. shade, kind of soil and hardiness to cold.

Nearly every variety of nearly every genera is listed and shown, with more than one picture of the cactus, if necessary, to facilitate identification (generally, one of the whole plant, one of the flower). Very complete descriptions of the cacti are provided, including the number and color of the thorns and other minutae.

The book has a handy finding-guide in the front, arranged by gross features (columnar vs. barrel vs. sprawling, etc.) to make it as easy as possible to identify an unknown plant.

Cactus from all environments are covered, including tropical, epiphytic and desert varieties.

Note that cacti, like all plants, are ultimately identified by their flowers; in particular, two cacti from much different native climates - and requiring much different cultivation environments - often look very similar; it is the flowers that distinguish them. This book cannot erase that reality - many cacti (again, like any other plant) cannot be fully identified unless they are in bloom.

This book is also not a tutorial for growing cacti. ...

This Illustrated Encyclopedia is a reference work, though the beautiful pictures make it an excellent coffee-table book as well. Indeed, opening the book randomly to nearly any page reveals breathtaking photography of cacti at their finest.

If you want to have no more that _two_ books on growing cacti, I recommend this Illustrated Encyclopedia ....

Great tool to identify your cacti.......2002-03-18

I'm an avid cactus collector and I get most of my cacti from the local supermarkets and greenhouses. Most of these stores will sell you the plant but will not give you any information about it. This is the reason why I needed a book that would help me identify my cacti and give me care instructions specific to each species. Well, that is exactly what this book will do for you.

The author of the book makes no assumptions about your background (you don't need to be a biologist or anything to benefit from it).

The very first section provides a guide that helps you narrow down the possible genera of your cacti by simply looking at its basic shape and other visible characteristics (like type of spines, number of ribs, type of clustering, etc.). Once you've chosen a set of possible genera, you go to the main section and look inside the chapter corresponding to each of the genera you chose. Inside each chapter you will find an item for each species that belongs to that genus. Each of these items contains a color photograph which will make it very easy to make a final decision about what species your cactus belongs to.

Each item will give you additional information like a list of synonyms for the species, a brief paragraph describing the plant, its country of origin, cultivation details, the shape of the plant (when fully grown), it tells you whether it is day or night flowering, the length of the flowering period, how much light it needs, the type of compost it needs, and the minimum temperature required.

As a bonus, the book contains a brief section about cultivation techniques (only four pages long).

A very precise and descriptive look at all cacti........1998-11-25

This is the most detailed source of cactus infomation that I have come across in the past eight years. The descriptions are very precise, especially; size, cultural habits,and all the basic growing necessities, with a great number of column cactus included. That's terrific! Most cacti enthusiasts will be overwhelmed by the photos(over 1200), which can captivate anyone into the beauty of cacti. Details such as: number of spines,ribs, and projected size can be a novelty for the ameteur collector. Also, there is added information about growing requirements,such as; light, temperature, water, and different soils mixes to be used for certain cituations. Mr. Innes and Mr. Glass have put together the best book on cacti that I had found,nevertheless, the price is very affordable.

An easy read, informative, bargain-priced publication........1998-05-04

Reviewed for THE AMATEURS' (Cactus) DIGEST BY Dave McRitchie, Toronto, Canada. This new book is a re-issue (November 1997) of the book first published in 1991 and covers some 1200 species. The photography is excellent, at least equal to that of the very popular "Cacti-The Illustrated Dictionary" by Rod and Ken Preston-Mafham and has the additional advantage of showing the columnar cacti which are not included in the latter volume. Of interest to many will be the inclusion of many hybrid species. This certainly has inspired me to want to try my hand at hybridization. For the newcomer to the hobby, there is information re soil, light, temperature etc. for all the described plants plus a section on identification. I don't know if there are any errors in taxonomy or description. I'll leave that up to more knowledgeable collectors than myself.

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cacti and Succulents

Average customer rating:

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cacti and Succulents
J. Riha , and Subik R.
Manufacturer: Book Sales
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Gardening | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books

Average customer rating:

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cacti and Succulents

Manufacturer: Book Sales
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Similar Items:

Simon & Schuster's Guide to Cacti and Succulents: An Easy-to-Use Field Guide With More Than 350 Full-Color Photographs and Illustrations

ASIN: 0706414926

Cacti and Succulents (Illustrated Encyclopedias)

Average customer rating:

Read the book, look at the flowers;then you'll understand
I genuinely like this book!

Cacti and Succulents (Illustrated Encyclopedias)
Miles Anderson
Manufacturer: Lorenz Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

House Plants | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Reference | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Gardening | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This handy reference book, which details the botany and classification of cacti and succulents, examines their diversity of size, shape and form. It includes design ideas for growing succulent plants in the home, complete with tips and ideas for hanging baskets, patios and terraces, garden settings, and indoor and container cultivation. The photographic plant directory provides a definitive reference section for cacti and care, and the cultivation section provides step-by-step guidance on all aspects of buying, planting and maintaining cacti and succulents, as well as techniques for planting, propagation, grafting, and maintenance.

Customer Reviews:

Read the book, look at the flowers;then you'll understand.......2001-07-06

When I first bought this book, I was sorely disappointed, not by the beauty of the blooms (and they are truly magnificent), but by the fact that they hid the body of the plant underneath in most cases. I didn't know as much about cacti as I do now. I also felt that I couldn't equate my humble little 5" pots to the outdoor giants depicted too. Now I know. You need to know about the flower before you can understand the cactus, and quite often, trying to identify one cactus not in flower from another is almost impossible because so many have similar characteristics. Just wait until the flowers start, and then you understand exactly what's what, and why some succulents look like cacti, but aren't. Sound confusing? It is, to begin with, but Miles Anderson brings it all to life in this glory of a book, and gradually, all the pieces begin to fall into shape. I would recommend this highly to anyone with an interest in knowing what they're growing, or with a penchant for beautiful photographs. Read his advice carefully, and you'll soon have the blooms for your identification. A lovely book.

I genuinely like this book!.......2001-03-06

In my never ending quest to find informative, user-friendly guides on houseplants, this one comes up a definite winner! The author's stated intent is to provide a guide to identification and growing, and the entire book is geared to exactly that, with a friendly, informative tone throughout.

The book is prefaced by a brief overview of shapes and forms, natural habitats, and design ideas. The body of the book is comprised of two sections on plants, one for cacti, the other for succulents. Species are presented alphabetically by genus, with an overview of the genus --its basic forms, preferences, and care-- followed by more detailed descriptions of individual plant species within the genus. Description include particulars of height and form, a rundown of cultivation preferences, and often details on propagation. The appendices at the back get a bit further into care and cultivation, particularly propagation, plus there's a glossary of terms, and several plant lists for conditions and interests. The index includes both scientific and common names.

What I liked best about this book was that it discussed growing environments in terms of tolerances, rather than ideals. It is all good and well to know that a plant grows best at 83 degrees, but how far can you push the envelope before the thing drops over dead? Descriptions like "It grows well in a half day of sun and will tolerate light frost without much damage" are ever so much more interesting and useful! Also, my hat is off to the photographer, for a most excellent job throughout.

I would recommend this book to absolutely anyone with an interest in cactuses. My particular interest is growing and identification of the various (unlabeled) things I've acquired over the last few years.

Average customer rating:
Cacti and succulents (The American Horticultural Society illustrated encyclopedia of gardening)
Alice Quiros
Manufacturer: American Horticultural Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Gardening | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00072UEQG

Average customer rating:
THE ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CACTI & OTHER SUCCULENTS.
J. & R. Subik (edit Gillian & Kenneth A. Beckett). Riha
Manufacturer: Octopus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000O8DNFW

Average customer rating:
THE ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CACTI AND OTHER SUCCULENTS.

Manufacturer: Select
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 1856480666

Average customer rating:
The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Succulents A guide to the natural history and cultivation of Cacti and cactus-like plants
Rowley Gordon
Manufacturer: Salamander Book
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

History | Encyclopedias | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000UF76E8

Average customer rating:
Illustrated Encyclopedia Cacti and Succulents
Miles Anderson
Manufacturer: Sebastian Kelly
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 1840812532

Average customer rating:

They Don't come Much Better

Illustrated Encyclopedia of Cacti
Glass Charles
Manufacturer: Headline Book Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0747204020

Customer Reviews:

They Don't come Much Better.......2004-10-30

This author has been very prolific over the years and I would rate this the best book of the bunch. With his co-author he has set out to make the book as interesting and colourful as possible. This is a plant finders dream and until recently there was nothing else that came close to it. The pictures are excellent and the text informative. There are masses of information for the hobbyist, truly something new for everyone. I only wish I could get a copy of it for my collection. Copies seem to be few and far between in England and the sellers who have it on Amazon.com do not ship to the UK. I digress. This book filled a huge void created by the books published before it. If you do not have a copy try and get one.

Book Description

Responsibility is a skill that can be taught. This book shows parents how encouraging this skill will produce a youngster who becomes a competent adult. Questions about discipline, household chores, homework, and independent living skills are answered through examples and exercises. Book includes a job chart listing average ages kids do household chores.

Customer Reviews:

I Highly Recommend This Book!.......2001-10-18

Elizabeth Crary really impressed me. This book was very well structured with content logically presented for parents to assist their children in developing skills and then developing self-motivation. She provides ample references to other authors for further reading as well.

Our child is in pre-school. We have just about finished potty training, and have told him how proud we are when he makes. I learned in this book how important it is that we verbalize that we are proud of him and he should be proud of himself as well.

Most of the material in the book is for children older than preschool but there is plenty here for preschool parents to think about. We will refer to this book for many years to come. I am definitely interested in reading more books by Elizabeth Crary. I highly recommend this book!

Sanity for Parents!.......2000-10-25

No parent wants to raise a child who is a slob, a couch potato and a brat. But how to help them grow from a toddler to a responsible teen is a daunting task. This book helps parents get a gameplan for teaching their children self-respect as well as respect for others. It also reduces frustration by helping you see what is realistic for different ages. With large doses of humor and many practical tips, this is a VERY helpful book.

Your children's college roommates and future spouses will thank you... :)

great resource for parents who want to instill discipline.......1997-12-02

I recommend this book all the time to friends who complain about having lazy kids. My son's hardly perfect, but he's done his own laundry since he was 4! This book helps you figure out what to reasonably expect and how to get the whole family to participate (so that you don't have to nag). It's great--even if cleaning house isn't your life's focus. It has tons of information about learning styles, developmental stages, and so on.

Amazon.com

Peter Ostwald, who died shortly after completing this sensitive analysis of the legendary Canadian pianist Glenn Gould (1932-82), is one of those rare biographers equally qualified to assess his subject's artistry and psychology. Founder of the Health Program for Performing Artists, the psychiatrist-author was also Gould's friend for 20 years. Lucid prose captures Gould's formidable, unconventional virtuosity and unmasks a deeply troubled man who was uncomfortable with audiences, fearful of human contact, and able to maintain relationships only when he was in complete control. The eccentricities and the genius, as Ostwald persuasively demonstrates, were inextricably intertwined.

Book Description

The Canadian pianist Glenn Gould was a child prodigy and a musical genius whose 1955 recording of Bach's "Goldberg Variations" catapulted him to world fame. He was also plagued by lifelong depression, was terrified of playing before live audiences, and consumed prescription drugs by the handful. He died at fifty of a massive stroke. In this acclaimed biography, the late psychiatrist Peter Ostwald-himself an accomplished violinist and longtime personal friend of Gould's-raises many questions about Gould and his music. Was his genius sponsored by eccentricity or vice versa? Do those with genius sacrifice themselves for a higher ideal while remaining personally unfulfilled? Ostwald lays bare the energy and contradiction behind Gould's brilliance.

Customer Reviews:

Contemporary Hoffman.......2007-09-14

This book is quite well-written auto-biography of the legendary Kapellmeister Kreisler with Katers Murr.
In Advance praises for Saint Francisco Club...

THE ubiquitous comment about GG --- "eccentric" --- but what of the why of it! .......2007-05-13

My difficulty with books on Glenn Gould is that there always seems to be two extremes so to speak: he was, to put it in colloquial parlance, either a "flake" ==or== that virtually everything he did was "understandable and even pardonable from the point of view of a genius." Question is, where is the middle-ground assessment of the man although it seems to be that every write-up on Gould from squib to article to hefty tome duly contains the word "eccentric" and essentially as a given from the get-go!

Well, I incline towards Gould as highly eccentric yet there are those who would say that absent the piano, the word 'eccentric' could then be down-graded, as it were, to in fact an all around flake! He 'was' different, to be sure, and had no difficulty literally denigrating those great composers which he personally didn't relish as they didn't quite measure up to the Gould 'standard' [whatever that was!] .. like Mozart and Beethoven [Ohh yes!] and the Gould given 'reasons' for same. Even with the Bach "Goldberg Variations" hoopla, folks tend to forget that these renderings were as 'Gould' felt they should be and hence the standing joke, "Bach: As written by Glenn Gould."

So too, Glenn could indeed be "very personable" at least up until the time the other person had an opposing view! That could easily set the stage for a rather rapid write-off ... by Glenn Gould. You know, those types where an opposing view no matter how diplomatically rendered is taken not as a simple disagreement or indeed one's prerogative to hold an opposite opinion for that matter but viewed as a literal personal 'insult' and de facto relegated forthwith as an 'uninformed speculation' at the very least. In effect, one had to continually walk on egg shells with Glenn Gould and many did while concurrently providing social crutches for Gould's bahavior and demeanor in the process or making mini eye-roll references to ad hoc bromides of "genius is often like that." Is it now? By whose definition?

It seemed that those who remained on Glenn's "good list" so to speak were those who did not question his findings or revelations or pronouncements. Especially those dealing with musical issues. Even ol' Lenny [Bernstein], not one himself to embrace counter-arguendo with open arms either, felt so flustered by Gould he had to address the audience and reinforce that there were 'major differences of view' on the piece to be performed between conductor and interpreter. Remember that one? The go-alongs, shall we say, endured. Phone contact inclusive. You know, one "goes along to get along" kind of thing. Unfortunately, those not possessing a 'go along to get along' type of personality or demeanor themselves nor in any way dependent on Gould's good graces or his moods can find it particularly hard slogging. Or simply their own nature at play, so to speak, in refusing on principle to 'go along to get along' not to mention the egg-shell tolerations with other personalities. No matter who they are!

Gould himself admitted [you know, in the car scene as Glenn is driving along and pontificating about his philosophy in the DVD] to that veritable embracement and indeed preference of the 'cloud over his head' but could not understand when the others around him tended to pass on the perpetual rain. Or the fog. Or the storms. Or, indeed, the 'wind' [!] as it were.

What's that? Sure, I could live with the GG printed message handed to folks in lieu of not shaking their hand [cough-cough] or the viewer getting a frown for not embracing the televised Gould 'personas' [with German accent or New York City 'cabby' accent or wigs and metal detectors a la mode] as seemingly akin to the Second Coming in terms of their "instructional value" or even the multi-voiced up North jumble thing or Gould by way of Ed Norton-like "Don't touch me, nurse, I'm sterile!" back-off mannerisms but when one does their own thing 'totally' with 'variations' of one's own making as allegedly de facto surpassing that of the original creator [read: composer] while concurrently knocking the others as mere dabblers or "carnival music composers" or "dog barkers" , well, I'm not so sure where 'genius' gives way to 'flake' or is it, as some suggest, a mixture of the two! Question is, what about the percentages of each one independently! Ahhhh! How much alleged genius ... how much bottom line flake!

It's not a question of 'disliking' Glenn Gould by any means as it is challenging some of his etched in stone opinions which some seemingly relegate to Ex Cathedra mongering or the Burning Bush itself since it comes from Glenn "I detest audiences" Gould and hence that becomes the last word. Not necessarily. Although Glenn would no doubt and vociferously have ... disagreed. Good! That, I'll defend! But allow the same privilege for the other person sans the blow-off! Or the famous Gould temper tantrum. Including certain chamber music types and assorted Gould write-offs for the 'sin' of non compliance .. to that of Glenn Gould. Peter Ostwald inclusive.

Doc Tony

With friends like these...!.......2006-04-25

As a person who suffers from hypochondria, I read this book mostly out of interest in the struggles of a world-class hypochondriac. But I found it more interesting for the glimpses it provides into the much stranger minds and motivations of psychiatrists such as Peter Ostwald and Joseph Stephens.

The book does drip bitterness, in places deteriorating into a disorganized hodgepodge of personal gripes against Gould. But Ostwald goes beyond the typical and easily spotted hatchet job: He often appears to couch his contempt for Gould in arrogant psychiatric digs, some even contradicted by some facts in his book.

I certainly wouldn't want such a `friend' who was discussing me behind my back in clinical terms with another shrinker (Joseph Stephens) who was also pretending to be a friend while instead withholding honest expression and respect essential to any sort of emotional intimacy in favor of trying to surreptitiously fix me!

Even more weirdly, neither Ostwald nor Stephens seems to have a clue that they were using Gould rather than being his friends. Ostwald hilariously hints that if Gould couldn't have real friendships with the likes of him and Stephens, he must have been incapable of friendship with anyone. It seems far more likely, given Gould's keen mind, that he knew the exact score and was in turn simply getting what he could from them, understanding that such deeply dishonest and unperceptive people aren't capable of emotionally intimate relationships.

One of the most bizarre of Ostwald's assumptions is that Gould had little or no insight into his many difficulties with hypochondria, anxiety, and psychosomatic illnesses - and hence was in desperate need of psychotherapy. However Gould's own writing and other published statements reveal many subtly and imaginatively expressed ideas indicating a rich perspective into his quirks and problems.

By luring in musically oriented psychiatrists, apparently Gould was able not only to get a constantly available free supply of medical reassurance (very handy for a constantly medically anxious person), but was also able to in effect charm and control `the enemy' - those he knew were eager to plaster him with nasty psychiatric opinions, just as these two sneaky, gutless `friends' have done after his death. And I cannot help but suspect that Gould also may have enjoyed a heightened sense of control from observing how effortlessly he could hide in plain sight from members of the supposed `mental health god class.'

An excellent, interesting life review and interpretation.......2003-12-31

Ostwald has done an excellent job of ferreting out the details of an unusual life and making it readable, regardless of the readers experience in music and/or medicine. The book can be read cover to cover, or the reader can easily jump around without losing too much from not reading previous chapters.
I have heard it said that Ostwald is somehow "jealous" of Gould and that his book is a restitution for Gould's scorning of the Psychiatrist-author. On the contrary, I don't think that Ostwald is severe enough in his description of Gould's neurotic antisocial behavior. Nor is he critical enough of Gould's self-serving (mis)interpretation of various piano pieces, such as the very difficult sonata #29 by Beethoven. Or, try listening to Beethoven's "pathetique" sonata played by Gould. It is so violently fast as to lose all sense of musical flavor, phrasing and inflections.
My only other criticism of Ostwald is his (or his editor's) less-than-perfect grammar usage, such as the misuse of the words "whom" and "myself". Small points, at best.
In all, Gould was brilliant at the keyboard and an interesting though troubled figure away from it. This book captures the essence of the man to the point that I feel like I met him, and wish that I had.

Interesting, but should be read with reservations........2002-02-10

Glenn Gould was, by all accounts, a fascinating and extraordinary man, but difficult to know ; apart from his art, he was renowned for his perceived eccentricity, his reclusiveness, and his wish to keep his private life entirely hidden and separate from his public persona. Various books and endless articles have attempted to present a portrait of Gould, but to my mind, no writer has ever come close to the "essence" of the man; perhaps this is as Gould himself would have wished. His primary mode of communicating with the world was with his music, and music -related writing and broadcasting, and the author of this book makes that very clear. It is mostly concerned with the glorious music, not with Gould's private life, and this is how it should be. But Peter Ostwald, the author, was a doctor and a psychiatrist as well as a gifted musician,(Well, I have read that he was a gifted musician; I've never heard him play!) and does therefore concentrate one one aspect of Gould that he finds interesting and important to understanding the man: his attitude to health, and his emotional state. Gould was, notoriously, considered to be a hypochondriac, although this is not to suggest that his ill-health was imaginary; he did indeed suffer with a number of serious health problems throughout his short life that affected his ability to play the piano. Ostwald considers these, and Goulds mental states, from a medical point of view, although he rather irritatingly does not form any definite conclusions about the roots of Gould's difficulties and does not offer the reader more than a mere suggestion of diagnosis. (there is a brief mention of the possibility that Gould had Asperger's syndrome .... an idea that seems to arouse the wrath of many Gould admirers!) Yet the subject is fascinating, although I feel that some of the personal details given are a little intrusive. But then, Ostwald knew Gould personally.
And therein lies my greatest reservation about this book. Ostwald writes as though he wishes us to believe that he and Gould were very close friends (despite the fact that he is describing a man who, sadly, seems never to have been truly close to anyone outside his family) but this idea is belied by the facts. Ostwald's last meeting with his subject was some years before Gould died: and he mentions that even that meeting took place after a gap of several years. They had some disagreement at this final meeting and it appears that subsequently Gould cut off all communication beteween them. And this , alas, seems to have affected Ostwald's attitude towards his subject; despite the protestations of friendship and admiration, there is an undertone of bitterness and resentment throughout the book that shows in the writing, as of a friend scorned. No; this book certainly does not leave the reader with the impression that the two men were ever truly close. Despite this, though, it is an informative book, and will interest many, especially - but not only! -those who find Gould's music incomparable . But perhaps it is best not to trust all the conclusions that the author draws; when it comes to Glenn Gould, we will probably never know the man's heart.

Glenn Gould: The Ecstasy and Tragedy of Genius.(Review) : An article from: Notes

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Glenn Gould: The Ecstasy and Tragedy of Genius.(Review) : An article from: Notes
Carl Morey
Manufacturer: Music Library Association, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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This digital document is an article from Notes, published by Music Library Association, Inc. on December 1, 1999. The length of the article is 949 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: Glenn Gould: The Ecstasy and Tragedy of Genius.(Review)
Author: Carl Morey
Publication: Notes (Refereed)
Date: December 1, 1999
Publisher: Music Library Association, Inc.
Volume: 56 Issue: 2 Page: 431

Article Type: Book Review

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