Fire Places: A Practical Design Guide to Fireplaces and Stoves Indoors and Out

Book Description

What more appealing scene can you conjure up on a wintry day than a pair of comfortable armchairs pulled up to a crackling fire while wisps of smoke curl from the chimney top? All your senses are in use--the sight of the flickering flames, the sound of the crackling logs, the warmth on your face, and the fragrance and taste of wood smoke. The hearth truly is the essential core of every home, whether it is an actual fireplace or merely a mantel displaying the treasures and trophies of intertwined lives. Long past the days of strictly utilitarian purpose, fireplaces and stoves are a design feature in their own right. They are available in an array of styles, sizes, and colors; offer a variety of fuel choices; and feature benefits beyond mere aesthetics, including heat and cooking. Fireplaces and heat sources are also widely found in many rooms throughout the house, including the family or living room, bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom, as well as outdoors. And the latest innovations in fireplace and stove technologies make having one no longer an expensive proposition.

While the building market is seeing growth in the fireplace market, so too is the remodeling marketplace. In fact, many homeowners are refacing their existing fireplace, upgrading their wood fireplace to gas, or simply installing a new faux fireplace where there wasn't one before. In this book readers will find hundreds of examples of all types of indoor fireplaces--from wood to gas, freestanding, and ventless--and stoves, both wood and pellet. In addition to gorgeous photos of a full range of fireplace styles, materials, and décor for indoor and outdoor fireplaces and stoves, solid information on practical design considerations--maintaining a fireplace or stove, remodeling an existing fireplace, safety, converting a wood-burning fireplace to gas, and the like--are explained in detail, making this the only book on the market to offer the breadth of content on both the design and practical components of all types of the latest indoor and outdoor fireplaces and stoves. Aesthetic and practical design considerations for hearths and mantels, built-ins and storage, lighting, and accessories like screen, brooms, and bellows are also covered. A thorough glossary, resources, and index provide reference-like information.

Customer Reviews:

A Design Guide and a Picture Book.......2007-02-03

Fire places seem evoke some kind of hidden memories out of our distant path when the fire at the mouth of the cave kept the tigers away. This has become so important that even apartments now seem to come with fire places.

This book, as is usual with this publisher is a beautifully illustrated, beautifully printed collection of fire places that range from a simple rock lined fire pit out in the yard to fire places that are the design center of the house, wood stoves that meet the new EPA regulations, to antiques that may have come from grandmothers house.

Besides the beautiful photography, this book also includes design tips, and the regulations that come from building codes. And there are discussions of more types of fire places than you could ever imagine without seeing it.

I got this book because my house does not have a fire place, and it's the next major extension that I plan to add. This book answered all the questions that I had, except do I want something indoor or outside. We have a long season for entertaining outside.

Spearwielder's Tale (The woods out back, The draggon's dagger, Dragonslayer's return)

Average customer rating:

A Good Read
Fantastic read for all ages
A great lighter read from Salvatore
Entertaining... waiting for more from Salvatore

Spearwielder's Tale (The woods out back, The draggon's dagger, Dragonslayer's return)
R. A. Salvatore
Manufacturer: Ace Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Epic | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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The Highwayman
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The Witch's Daughter (The Chronicles of Ynis Aielle)
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ASIN: 0441011942
Release Date: 2004-09-07

Book Description

Set in an enchanted world one step from reality, R.A. Salvatore's Spearwielder's trilogy follows the adventures of Gary Leger, who stumbles into a realm of elves and dwarves, witches and dragons-and takes up the magical spear of the land's lost hero.

Now, together for the first time in one collectible volume, these three novels showcase the very best of fantasy and adventure-the very best of R.A. Salvatore.

Featuring:

The Woods Out Back
The Dragon's Dagger
Dragonslayer's Return

Customer Reviews:

A Good Read.......2007-08-16

I thought the beginning was a bit corny and I've read better R.A. Salvatore books. If you are just starting to read the fantasy genre, I would start with R.A. Salvatore's Drizzt Dourden saga and not buy this book until you've fallen in love with his writing. However, if you are a R.A. Salvatore fan or junky I would recommend buying the book. It is still a decent, entertaining read once his characters actually make it to the fantasy land he creates.

Fantastic read for all ages.......2005-08-19

I was first introduced to Salvatore through the Drizzt novels (Dark Elf Trilogy being my first Salvatore books). When I saw this book on the shelf Salvatore's name alone sold me this book.

When I got home and finished reading it, what I found is an unusual tale with an unusual hero. How many fantasy books have you read where the hero doesn't want to be the hero? Where at times the hero bumbles and stumbles and more oftent han not needs to be saved by his friends? I have said it before and I'll say it again, I love heros who have flaws and aren't all powerful.

The Spearwielder's Tale covers the story of three books all encased in one fantastic collection. I won't go into any spoilers here, but this is truly a book for all ages. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up.

A great lighter read from Salvatore.......2005-01-22

If you've read Salvatore, you probably expect a lot of over-the-top acrobatics in the fight scenes, characters whom are developed through hundreds of pages, and a world that draws you in and never lets go. Spearwielder's Tale has all of these but not to the point of over-doing it so younger readers won't feel overwhelmed by the atmosphere or the depth at the beginning. However, by the end, there may just be another fantasy lover in the world!

If you're expecting a hero as complex as Drizzt, then you're in for a surprise! Gary Ledger, the "Spearwielder," is an unintentional hero who is taken to the land of Faerie from a "gate" outside his home. There, he learns about his role in the world and learns about himself all while "saving the world!" His development is not nearly as deep as Drizzt but then again, he spends most of the books in a land he is unfamiliar with and has little time to develop his past, his full value structure, nor his plans for the future. But, throughout the story, there is enough development for any avid reader to not be asking themselves "why?" certain things are done by the character; a welcome departure from the Drizzt series, I must say.

There is light humor throughout and it isn't distracting in the least as it comes at points in the story when there needs to be a bit of humor. Like Salvatore's Drizzt series, the book is not a laugh a minute by any means but it will keep you in good spirits and repeating the phrase "heeland coos" for a while!

One small note of caution on language: There is a single word that some parents of younger children may not want them reading. It begins with an "S" and is only said twice if memory serves. Other than that, there are a few points that the characters start to curse but are stopped by various means (nothing overly vulgar). If any of these things bother you, you may want to preview the book for your children. But let me say that the context of these are all in a humorous fashion and do not detract in the least from the overall story and any child age 12 and up should have no problems reading this. And almost every "PG" movie has worse language and situations than Spearwielder!

Overall, this is a great read. The Trilogy books each end at a great point but you will always want to keep reading so the "easy pace" you impose on yourself may not be able to be kept! A book per day is the pace I read it at and I could see having read it much faster if I'd had the time. Light? Yes. Worth the read? Very much so!

Entertaining... waiting for more from Salvatore.......2005-01-05

Good read.

This book is not nearly as "deep" as the Dark Elf series (and not meant to be!)but provides an entertaining storyline with good character development. The book covers a wide range of fantasy races... much like other Salvatore releases.

Spearwielder is a lighter read than the Dark Elf books and would hold younger readers' attention as well.

Out of the Woods: Tales of Resilient Teens (Adolescent Lives)

Average customer rating:

High Valley Ascensions
How do successful teens make sense of adversity?
Powerful and groundbreaking approach to understanding and helping deeply troubled and damaged adolescents
A Map for Troubled Teens

Out of the Woods: Tales of Resilient Teens (Adolescent Lives)
Stuart T. Hauser , Joseph P. Allen , and Eve Golden
Manufacturer: Harvard University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Health, Mind & Body | Teens | Subjects | Books

Adolescent Psychology | Psychology & Counseling | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Psychology & Counseling | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books
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Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents: A Practical Guide to Assessment and Intervention (Practical Intervention In The Schools)
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The Inheritance of Loss
The History of Love: A Novel

ASIN: 0674021738

Book Description

Seventy deeply troubled teenagers spend weeks, months, even years on a locked psychiatric ward. They're not just failing in school, not just using drugs. They are out of control--violent or suicidal, in trouble with the law, unpredictable, and dangerous. Their futures are at risk.

Twenty years later, most of them still struggle. But astonishingly, a handful are thriving. They're off drugs and on the right side of the law. They've finished school and hold jobs that matter to them. They have close friends and are responsible, loving parents.

What happened? How did some kids stumble out of the woods while others remain lost? Could their strikingly different futures have been predicted back during their teenage struggles? The kids provide the answers in a series of interviews that began during their hospitalizations and ended years later. Even in the early days, the resilient kids had a grasp of how they contributed to their own troubles. They tried to make sense of their experience and they groped toward an understanding of other people's inner lives.

In their own impatient voices, Out of the Woods portrays edgy teenagers developing into thoughtful, responsible adults. Listening in on interviews through the years, narratives that are often poignant, sometimes dramatic, frequently funny, we hear the kids growing into more composed--yet always recognizable--versions of their tough and feisty selves.

Customer Reviews:

High Valley Ascensions .......2007-04-14

It's a dangerous world. We need to study risk factors and pay attention to the things that can go wrong. But that can't be the whole story. Without a little balance, parents will succumb to learned helplessness and clinicians will surrender to burnout. We need to remember that most parenting is good-enough parenting, and there are plenty of examples of kids who overcome truly horrific situations. In addition to asking what is bad for kids, we should also be asking what characteristics promote resilience. While some people ultimately surrender to difficult circumstances, others seem to have qualities that allow them to overcome adversity. We can talk in broad terms. Abuse is bad. Neglect is bad. Poverty, racism, social injustice, illness, loss of a parent, clueless parents. All bad. The absence of those risk factors is good. Having a lot of competent adults in your life who genuinely care about you is good. But the actual real life way in which internal and environmental factors interact to create resilience is a mystery. Lots of kids grow up in pretty tough circumstances and they don't all turn out the same, just as the kids who start off with all the advantages don't all turn out the same.

Dr. Hauser began with a follow-up study of people who were psychiatrically hospitalized as adolescents. What we are presented with here are the narratives of a sample of individuals who are doing well now. Coming from an Anthropology background, I have a fondness for personal narratives, but I acknowledge that they can feel like something off the softest end of the `soft-science' continuum. However, at this stage of the game, this is an appropriate and useful way to explore the topic. We don't have the sophistication yet to reduce personal histories to crunchable variables (actually, there are quantitative analyses from the same data sets that produced this book. You can search out those results if that's more your thing, and there's a lot more analysis yet to be mined from this data set). In a sense, the narrative approach is a more helpful way to understand the phenomenon of resilience, since resilience itself may have more to do with the myths people make of their lives than with any particular contortions of vectors and eigenvalues. Narratives give us people's lives in the context in which they frame it. And it is this very ability to coherently develop your history into a good story that, depending on your point of view, either reflects or accounts for successful acclimation to adversity.

It is in this sense that Dr. Hauser and his gang have done a great service in presenting these tales of resilience in a way that makes them both satisfying tales to read as well as fertile ground for generating hypotheses about how resilience emergences from adversity.

It's good to be realistic but it is important to not lose sight of the positive things. The stories here are inspirational and at times quite moving. For struggling parents, as well as for clinicians fighting to stay hopeful as they tread through their caseloads and today's headlines, this book is a refreshing treat. The medical model, in particular, trains us to view the world in terms of pathology, so it is important to step back from time to time and view the world from the perspective of mental health as opposed to mental illness. Most importantly, as the phenomenon of resilience is further explored and better understood, it will without doubt contribute to better preventative approaches to mental illness.

How do successful teens make sense of adversity?.......2007-01-24

I work in Child Protective Services with families who are involved with this system for chronic neglect of their children. This book offers a look at some of the reasons parents rise above their childhood adversity. It offers the positive side of what goes wrong for so many kids as they grow to adulthood. These resilient teens had "connections to competent and caring adults", achieved "cognitive and self-regulation skills, positive views of self, and motivation to be effective in the environment." The authors use the kids' interview narratives, during inpatient and then as adults, to show how different kids make different sense of what happens to them over time, how some used adversity to reflect and make sense out of it and fit them into the context of their lives, and the others' (contrast group's) themes remained "frozen, fossils of childhood explanations that never quite grew up."

Powerful and groundbreaking approach to understanding and helping deeply troubled and damaged adolescents.......2006-08-14

This book is extremely thoughtful and well written and provides an incredibly hopeful and stimulating, if not groundbreaking, view and approach for working with teens in trouble and, perhaps, for giving greater insight and influence to the people who love and/or care for them.

Dr. Hauser's courage in challenging society's practices of discarding kids who don't fit into the most homogenized profiles and production-line approaches to education in America -- which he calls "using adolescence as the great 'tracking' and 'sorting' period" -- is nothing short of inspirational to me. We are far too quick and eager to ostracize and incarcerate anyone who doesn't fit some excessively standardized norm we've defined and/or accepted in our society, and we lose so much of the power and value that diverse ideas and collaborative thought can offer. I believe it to be a documented fact that our institutions are filled with many highly creative and talented souls, and Dr. Hauser's observations, perspectives and theories offer light and hope for helping more of those souls to successfully navigate the paths of their fractured childhoods, by helping them to find and use reflectiveness ("curiosity about one's own thoughts, feelings and motivations"), relatedness ("engagement and interaction with others") and agency ("conviction that what one does matters" and that "one can intervene effectively in one's own life") to overcome their pasts. This book talks about how to look for and nurture these characteristics, which underlie the observed traits of resilience he witnessed in the young people, followed over decades, who proved best equipped to find their way back from the depths, and successfully emerged as valued and contributing members of society.

`Out of the Woods' is a hopeful testament to the critical importance of mental health care and its advocates in and for our society. The ideas that Dr. Hauser and his fellow researchers put forward, for me, seem to question the wisdom of our recent societal movements away from valuing psychological care and intervention, in exchange for increasingly exclusive overuse of our legal and penal systems.

This book truly inspires optimism and hopefulness about the capacity of people to overcome adversity, and to repair dysfunctional childhoods, and not based on gimmicks or psychobabble but on insightful and well founded observations, drawn from the decades-long narratives of damaged teens who found their way out. As a former near-casualty, my heartfelt thanks to you and your team Dr. Hauser!!

A Map for Troubled Teens.......2006-05-16

"Out of the Woods" documents the difficult and sometimes harrowing adolescences of four resilient teens and former residents of the High Valley psychiatric facility. Their stories offer universal lessons for how troubled teens can adapt to and overcome adversity to lead successful, happy adult lives.

The first chapter introduces the idea of resilience and asks the question of how some teens manage to overcome deeply troubled teen years to reach adulthood relatively intact and function successfully in the adult world while others seem unable to find a path "out of the woods." Some face a more difficult task than others, but even the most disadvantaged can overcome seemingly impossible odds, while others who have almost everything they need, including stable, loving homes and a safe, supportive environment, can find themselves in a nightmare of violence, depression, and drugs. These extremes demonstrate that factors within the individual are as important, if not more so, as external factors, in coping with adversity and securing a more hopeful future.

Before getting to the interviews with the four individuals who make up the heart of the book, the authors explain their motives and methodologies behind their longitudinal study of 70 individuals, all of whom were under 15 when they were institutionalized in the locked psychiatric ward of High Valley. The researchers explain how their psychoanalytic and therapeutic approach in their search for adaptive mechanisms led them to answers from interviews with the teens themselves, the most resilient of whom accepted their own share of responsibility for their situations as they attempted to understand their experiences and empathize with those whom their behavior affected.

Each of the next four chapters tells the story of a resilient individual in his or her own words from interviews spanning many years. While each life appears different in the details, their common success in finding ways out of the woods of their troubled pasts leads the researchers to identify three common elements crucial for resilience: acceptance of personal agency in overcoming adversity, the ability for honest and objective self-reflection, and a sincere commitment and dedication to other people and relationships.

I identified with each of these teens in my own, particular way. I remember when my mother would punish me for biting the nanny, even though the nanny was mine to do with as I pleased. And then there was my tenth birthday, when my parents got me a Shetland pony rather than the Dartmoor pony I wanted. The worst may have been my sixteenth birthday, when I specifically told my parents that I wanted a Porsche 911 type 996 GT3, but they tried to buy me off with a stupid Boxster instead and ended up embarrassing me in front of all my friends. I could go on about my parents' abuses, but I am slowly learning to put all that horror into proper perspective. I am using the lessons from this book, exercising my personal agency by taking control of my trust fund, reflecting upon and dealing with past traumas with the help of the best doctors and pharmaceuticals, and committing myself to the people that matter most to me, especially my publicist, stylist, and personal assistant.

MORE Woodworkers' Essential Facts, Formulas & Short-Cuts: Hundreds of All New, No-Math Rules of Thumb Help You Figure it Out (Woodworker's Essentials & More series)

Average customer rating:

MORE Woodworkers' Essential Facts, Formulas & Short-Cuts: Hundreds of All New, No-Math Rules of Thumb Help You Figure it Out (Woodworker's Essentials & More series)
Ken Horner
Manufacturer: Fox Chapel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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

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

Scientific Instruments | Experiments, Instruments & Measurement | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Woodworkers' Essential Facts, Formulas & Short-Cuts: Figure It Out, With or Without Math (Woodworker's Essentials & More series)
The Woodworker's Problem Solver: 512 Shop-Proven Solutions to Your Most Challenging Woodworking Problems (Rodale Home and Garden Books)
Popular Woodworking Practical Shop Math: Portable,Accurate,Complete (Popular Woodworking)
David Thiels Power Tool Maintenance: Power Tool Maintenance (Popular Woodworking)
Bill Hyltons Frame & Panel Magic (Popular Woodworking)

ASIN: 1892836211

Book Description

This essential woodworking reference provides jargon-free explanations of the behavior of wood, allowing craftspeople to enjoy workshop success without being troubled by difficult mathematical setbacks. Providing detailed solutions to workshop equations, chapters address popular issues such as dyeing wood, rust removal, moisture protection, shaping with patterns and templates, and inlay intarsia. Math-free solutions coupled with explanatory notes on the science of wood made this handbook an essential addition to any workshop.

Amos Camps Out: A Couch Adventure in the Woods

Average customer rating:

A Keeper for Kids and Adults

Amos Camps Out: A Couch Adventure in the Woods
Susan Seligson , and Howie Schneider
Manufacturer: Joy St Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: School & Library Binding

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

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

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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Amos: The Story of an Old Dog and His Couch

ASIN: 0316774022

Customer Reviews:

A Keeper for Kids and Adults.......2002-01-21

This is the only book in the 'Amos' series I didn't previously own. After finding it in zShops, I snatched it up immediately. What a find! If you like the 3 other 'Amos' books, you have to have this one, too. It's one of the best. Amos goes camping in the woods with his family (of course they strap his couch to the top of the car) and has quite an adventure. I am a real dog lover, and enjoy ALL the 'Amos' stories. I wish Susan would write another! She writes with the ability to appeal to children - while amusing us adults.

Average customer rating:

Offutt turns on the overhead light and throws off the sheet.
High Praise for Chris Offutt
Poetry
voices audible
Flannery, Breece, and Chris: Reference Standards

Out of the Woods: Stories
Chris Offutt
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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Kentucky Straight: Stories
The GOOD BROTHER : A Novel
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No Heroes : A Memoir of Coming Home
Town Smokes: Stories

ASIN: 0684853760

Amazon.com

Out of the Woods starts with one man leaving his Kentucky hollow and ends with another who realizes he can't return. In between, Chris Offutt's broke, lonely, or just plain down-on-their-luck characters find out exactly how difficult it is to go home again, and how equally difficult it is to stop wishing they could. The critically acclaimed author of The Good Brother (a novel), as well as a memoir and a previous collection of stories, Offutt writes with rare honesty, insight, and restraint. "Sometimes I don't think I've done anything to leave my mark in this world. I'm the kind of person the world leaves a mark on," admits the narrator of "Two-Eleven All Around." The same might be said of all Offutt's Appalachian transplants, from the small-town sheriff of "Melungeons," forever marked by the violence and beauty of his mountain upbringing, to the rootless ex-con of "Moscow, Idaho," who wonders "if he'd ever find a woman, a job he liked, or a town he wanted to stay in." These lives are rendered in prose stripped so bare it reads like poetry--and yet is not without its own flinty wit. Given his first glimpse of his brother-in-law's corpse, the protagonist of the title story allows as how "he didn't look dead, but Gerald didn't think he looked too good either. He looked like a man with a bad hangover that he might shake by dinner." These are characters who get inside your head and stories worth reading again and again. As spare and simple as a Shaker chair, Offutt's tales should prove every bit as enduring. --Mary Park

Book Description

Seven years ago, Chris Offutt made his literary debut with Kentucky Straight, a fiercely original collection that earned him not only critical praise but many prestigious awards.

The eight new stories in Out of the Woods mark Offutt's return to the form in which he first displayed his astonishing talent. Offutt, who "draws landscape and constructs dialogue with the eyes and ears of a native son" (The Miami Herald), is on strong home turf here, capturing those who have left the Kentucky hills and long to return. These are stories of gravediggers and drifters, gamblers and truck drivers a long way from home, tales that are so full of hard edges they can't help but tell some hard truths.

Customer Reviews:

Offutt turns on the overhead light and throws off the sheet........2001-12-15

Because I love short stories and Southern writers, I discovered Chris Offutt. Out of the Woods was his first book I read. It won't be the last. His fiction is serious, his characters haunting. Haunting because of the writer's honesty. Offutt turns on the overhead light and throws off the sheet. His protagonist in "Two-Eleven All Around" sums up all of his characters when he ponders, "Sometimes I don't think I've done anything to leave my mark in this world. I'm the kind of person the world leaves a mark on." Offutt has left his mark.

High Praise for Chris Offutt.......2001-01-10

Presently you won't see Chris Offutt's name on any bestseller's list, but please don't let that discourage you from reading his wonderful work. In "Out of the Woods," Offutt follows the lives of ex-cons, alcoholics, gamblers, and drifters as they struggle to find direction and purpose.

Offutt's characters share one common thread, they were all born and raised in Appalachian communities in Kentucky. Reared in a culture in and of itself, these Kentuckians face harsh realities as they try to carve out a path for themselves in mainstream America. Most grapple with a strong desire to get out and see the world yet simultaneously they fight the urge to return to the comfort and security of home. In "Moscow, Idaho," a young prisoner on grave digging duty aims to turn over a new leaf and wonders if he will ever find a woman, a good job, and a town to settle in. "Two-Eleven All Around" is the story of a man who is so desperate for attention from his girlfriend, that he stages his own arrest in hope that she will hear about it while listening to her radio. These tales combine perseverance and heartbreak into poetic prose.

There have been comparisons of Offutt's writing to that of Raymond Carver's. Only in my opinion, Offutt is better. Carver's characters tend to present with a flat affect, but Offutt is able to take the reader subtly and deeply into his characters minds. Chris Offutt excels at what he writes about because he lived the life of his characters. He grew up in a small Appalachian community and at the age of nineteen he meandered across the country where he went through more than fifty jobs before returning to home and raising a family. Chris Offutt has come full circle and there is no doubt that he will find himself a place in the world of literature.

Poetry.......2000-05-11

This book of stories rivals Denis johnson's Jesus' Son as oneof the most compelling books of stories written in the last decade.Economically written and darkly funny, not one word is wasted. And the landscapes are etched with a painter's flare for light and form. I've read Mr. Offut's novel and memoir and they are very good. But this book is truly original, an example of how much promise the short story as a significant art form in 2000 and beyond.

voices audible.......2000-04-02

Ain't no such thing as a perfect story no matter how masterful the crafter is. That's what art is, I guess. It's the "imperfections" - maybe the particularities, the quirks and indiosicracies - which strick you in that very personal way like the writer is writing for you and you want to shake the hand which wrote that tale, which made your life a little better just now and you really want to say - thanks! After awhile, if the work is good, you don't feel like you're reading some book. This guy, Offut, is actually a very ordinary proser. It seems. Seemingly, not that much extraordinary stuff is going on. No sense of immediate beauty or anything like that. He writes as if he's one with the tale being told. There's this intimacy here, OUT OF THE WOODS, like you don't get in many places. He honors - people, life, words, and the putting together of. That's what I think. Some phrases jump at you with a real live human voice. ("I'm going with Jack," she said. "I'm sorry." - in TOUGH PEOPLE) ("What the f--- do you want?" - in TWO-ELEVEN ALL AROUND) I've been keeping these sentences in me for awhile and as corny as this sounds, they make me want to be a better person.

Flannery, Breece, and Chris: Reference Standards.......1999-08-20

There's only a few writers that I hold as examples of what the art should be, and Chris is one of 'em.

Average customer rating:

A bike accident tosses her into another world, where fairies and adventures result.
Courtesy of Teens Read Too
Why I Let My Hair Grow out
Something fun and different
A magical world.

Why I Let My Hair Grow Out
Maryrose Wood
Manufacturer: Berkley Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books

Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books

Being a Teen | Social Issues | Teens | Subjects | Books

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Sex Kittens and Horn Dawgs Fall in Love
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ASIN: 0425213803

Book Description

Being sent to your room is one thing. But being sent to another country?

Morgan's boyfriend dumped her on the last day of school-it seemed the only thing to do was to hack off her hair and dye the stubble orange. Unfortunately, Morgan's parents freaked and decided a change of scenery would do her good. So they're sending her off on a bike tour of Ireland.

But Morgan gets more than she bargained for on the Emerald Isle-including a strange journey into some crazy, once upon a time corner of the past. There, she meets fairies, weefolk, and a hunky warrior-dude named Fergus, and figures out that she's got some growing to do-and she doesn't just mean her hair.

Customer Reviews:

A bike accident tosses her into another world, where fairies and adventures result........2007-08-07

Maryrose Wood's WHY I LET MY HAIR GROW OUT is the fun story of a girl who cuts off her hair and dyes the stubble orange when her boyfriend dumps her - and how her parents send her on a bike tour of Ireland to find herself as a result. A bike accident tosses her into another world, where fairies and adventures result.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too.......2007-06-02

When Morgan's life sort of crashes and burns, and she cuts off all of her hair and dyes what remains orange, her parents freak out. For some reason, they decide that what she needs is to go on a biking tour of Ireland. Of course, Morgan thinks they're insane, but she has no choice in the matter, so it's off to the land of leprechauns and shamrocks for her!

Her trip turns out to be way more than Morgan bargained for when she hits her head and finds herself in some sort of fantasy world hundreds of years in the past. Yeah, you read that right. She's not just in the land where so many myths come from; she's living out those old fairy stories herself.

Both the fantasy parts of the story and the real, modern-day parts of Morgan's life are amazing! The fantasy felt a little weird to be stuck in at first, but that just shows how completely great the more contemporary part of the book was.

WHY I LET MY HAIR GROW OUT is definitely a page-turner. I loved Maryrose Wood's first book, Sex Kittens and Horn Dawgs Fall in Love, and this one is even better (and very different).

I absolutely loved the characters; all of them are very interesting and three-dimensional. This is a funny, smart book that readers are sure to love!

Reviewed by: Jocelyn Pearce

Why I Let My Hair Grow out.......2007-05-11

I was amazed by this amusing and well written book. The Characters are marvelous. It is a well written piece with an amusing story, and then another amusing story inside the first amusing story. Her play with Irish Myths is terrific. A darn good book.

Something fun and different.......2007-04-17

I grabbed this book because the title was very eye grabbing and so was the cover art (fantastic job!! to the designer). What I found inside was a very fun coming of age tale, Morgan fresh from her first serious relationship has been shipped off to Ireland by her parents. They've decided (especially after she cut off all her hair--mind you this was written before Britney Spears did it--though I read it that week so it was sort of surreal fo rme) that the only way for her to get out of the awful funk she is in is for her to have a bike tour of Ireland.

She goes because she has no choice really--and having abandonded all of her friends, previously during her relationship, she has nothing to fall back on at home. At first on the tour she is bratty and irritating, really letting the world know that she does not want to be there. But after an accident which leaves her with a minor head injury and the ability to randdomly go back in Ireland's past to a time when Cuchulain roamed about things start to change. Morgan starts to grow up and notice the people around her and how they might need her, not just how she doesn't need them.

Its told in a first person narration, and there is some mature language and themes, its probably on parr with Meg Cabot's 'All-American Girl' series--though a bit more serious. I wouldn't be surprised if this turned into a series also, very fun. Plus I just loved that she used those old Celtic myths!

A magical world........2007-04-11

It starts yout with Morgan doing something drastic to change herself because she felt like she couldn't cope when her boyriend broke up with her. Her parents noticed a change in Morgan and think since it's summer, she needs a vacation. They sign her up on a bike tour in Ireland. At first Morgan is a bit pissed about it, but then she meets Conner, a hunky Irish lad who works for the bike tour. Things take a turn for the other worldly when she falls off her bike and finds herself in the land of fairies.

This book really wasn't anything like I expected it to be. It was a fun to read and I found myself relating to the main character Morgan very much.

Average customer rating:

Out to the Ball Game With Tom Wolfe
Tom Wolfe
Manufacturer: Schiffer Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Sculpture | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0887404979

Book Description

Tom Wolfe takes his creative talent to the National Game: Baseball. With easy to follow, step-by-step instructions. Tom helps the carver bring the classic ballplayer out of a block of wood. Each cut is illustrated with a full-color photograph, an important visual aid to learning this fun craft. These projects are exciting and challenging, but with Tom's guidance even the novice carver will find they have the ability to bring them to successful completion.

Book Description

"The future of sculpture has only just begun. Its potential is greater now than ever before, and its possibilities are just starting. Its language and its forms are just beginning to evolve." So says Tony Cragg, a believer not just in sculpture, but in freestanding, made-from-scratch abstraction. Cragg refuses to accept the domination of installation and the ready-made. His dedication to the form as he works in it--to its complexities, to its ability to interrogate the world and heighten our sensitivity--and his consistent espousal of that dedication, have given him an intriguing and unusual role in contemporary art. Cragg is a promoter of his medium in an age of anxiety about medium-based definitions, an age of crossover. There are plenty of words here, in an interview and three essays, but it's the sketches, watercolors, installation views, studio photographs and the sculptures themselves that make up the bulk of this new volume.

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A treasure by a birdwatcher and bird lover, for birdwatchers and bird lovers.
comfortable read

Out of the Woods: A Bird Watcher's Year
Ora E. Anderson
Manufacturer: Ohio University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Rural Life | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Birdwatching | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Personal Transformation | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Themes | History & Criticism | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0821417428

Book Description

Out of the Woods: A Bird Watcher’s Year is a journey through the seasons and a joyous celebration of growing old. In fifty-nine essays and poems, Ora E. Anderson, birder, bird carver, naturalist, and nature writer, reveals the insights and recollections of a keen-eyed observer of nature, both human and avian. The essays follow the rivers and creeks, the highways and little-known byways of Appalachia, and along the way we become nearly as familiar with its numerous bird, plant, and animal species as with the author himself.

These are not the memories of a single year, however, but of a long lifetime spent immersed in the natural world. Out of the Woods, presented with humor and passion, is an account of a well-lived, productive, and satisfying life. The essays offer an intimate portrait of a half century of life on Anderson’s beloved old farm (more nearly a nature preserve), where he lived in harmony with birds and nature and followed the rhythm of the seasons. We are invited to share the joysâand the disappointments and sorrowsâinherent in such a life.

Generously illustrated with Julie Zickefoose’s detailed drawings and evocative sketches, this book will delight bird watchers, artists, naturalists, backyard gardeners, and anyone who is sometimes tempted to take a rutted, overgrown, and unused path just to see where it leads.

Customer Reviews:

A treasure by a birdwatcher and bird lover, for birdwatchers and bird lovers........2007-09-03

Written by journalist, conservationist, and naturalist Ora E. Anderson, Out of the Woods: A Bird Watcher's Year is a memoir reflecting upon the joys of birdwatching, the majesty of growing old, and the wondrous natural diversity of Appalachia. Wit, gentle humor, and an abiding appreciation for avian life from geese to woodpeckers to songbirds fill this appreciative guide, lovingly illustrated with beautiful black-and-white sketches of feathered friends feeding, migrating, flying, or raising their young. A treasure by a birdwatcher and bird lover, for birdwatchers and bird lovers.

comfortable read.......2007-06-08

I would compare this book to sitting at your grandfather's knee, listening to the old stories, rambling on. Maybe you heard that one before, maybe a similar one someplace else? Just a comfortable, sit by the fire while it's raining outside kind of book. Doesn't require a great deal of thought, conveys no remarkable insights. Comfortable....

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