5 comments about The Wisdom of Big Bird.

1. this book was written by carol spinney, fan of henson, who ended up working with him and doing big bird and oscar the grouch for years.
   
   i had seen an interview with him prior to reading the book where he equates working with henson to being asked to be a member of the beatles. just awesome.
   
   this book has many anecdotes of his times working with henson, on sesame street, the story of the girl they did "big bird goes to china" with, getting punched in costume by rappers, and he tells the story of hensons death and how it affected him.
   
   for any henson fan, it really is a must have.



2. To be honest, I have not kept up on Sesame Street since I was a regular viewer from say, oh 1974-77. So I was surprised that there was but a single guy playing Big Bird! I would have otherwise presumed the role was like Vader, a guy in the suit and a guy doing the voice. Moreover, the same guy did ALL the public appearances, award shows, White House dinners. I was floored; what an interesting time this guy had stemming from the Big Bird suit. He's very matter of fact about much of this so I am perhaps overly impressed? In any case, he comes across as very genuine and extremely kind and generally a good person. He also offers odd but intriguing insights into the puppetry world. A neat short read.



3. 
   The book was easy reading, took me about 3 hours and filled with life stories/lesson's from Caroll Spinney, the man behind Big Bird & Oscar the Grouch. I laughed and cried and totally enjoyed the book.



4. A fun read. Carol Spinney is a man whom I never knew much about besides seeing his name in the credits of Sesame Street, and other productions where Big Bird made an appearance.
   
   It was interesting to read about how Big Bird's character was developed, and how just playing the part of a lovable children's icon changed Carol's life.
   
   Worth your time. For sure.



5. I'm still in the middle of reading this book. but, I'm admiring the work of Carroll very much and every time I look at Big Bird or Oscar now I imagine the position that Carroll is in to make the muppet come to life.

5 comments about His Bright Light: The Story of Nick Traina.

1. The notoriously private Danielle Steel opens up her entire life to readers in this emotional and moving true story about her son Nick, who struggled his entire life with mental illness. I highly recommend this book for any mother who has a child with a mental illness.



2. This book went straight to the heart. For any of you faced with challenging children, this book shows a mothers journey of never giving up through life's challenges with raising a challenging child.



3. This is not just one mother's struggle to help and understand her bipolar child, it is a commentary on the state of help for mentally ill adolescents. The one mother, of course, being the famous and wealthy Danielle Steel who had resources beyond most parents wildest dreams. Yet she encountered numerous educators, psychologists and psychiatrists who were incompetent and disastrous. But this book is also about unconditional love, being resourceful and never giving up. As someone who has worked in both mental health and education, I am so sad that when kids don't fall into the cookie-cutter mold (although Nick was far from that), there is such a hodge-podge of often inadequate help for them. I highly recommend this book and think Danielle Steel has really given readers a wonderful gift in sharing her story.



4. bought this book for girlfrind, she has a sizeable collection of danielle steel, an her comment when finish reading it was "that lady speaks from the heart" .she being one who knows her danielle steel,an commenting on them to me, this was one of her better recommendations. Enjoy!



5. This book is such a deep, feeling, compassionate true story of the pain and suffering Danielle Steele and her son Nick experienced. It is honest, very, very human and shows human suffering in such a clear manner that you can feel the pain of Danielle, Nick and the rest of the family and close friends. I have a son with a similar diagnosis as Nick, and it has helped me to better understand him and myself, and realize that I am not alone on this journey to support the son I love so very much through his painful experiences. Every person should read this to understand how love and bonding with others that have emotional problems is so painful - and if one is in that same situation, this book helps you relate and learn and perhaps realize there is no guilt, no blame - it is just the way it is and you can only do so much for an ill person. But what she points out so strongly is the bond they had and their love for each other, which gave her son the energy to be as productive as he was during his lifetime - and just so awful that the pain was so horrid that he had to end it all - But when you take this journey with Danielle and Nick through this book, you can feel the pain Nick had and understand a bit as to why. I recommend this to anyone who wants to understand humanity a bit more than they do - so they can help those who need the extra step of care and understanding to help them through their horrid journey of life when they are emotionally ill. How courageous and wonderful of Danielle Steele to share this with us, and open herself up to her feelings, her insecurities and her emotions. Thank you, Danielle - and thank you Nick and helping us understand your pain through your mom.

5 comments about Becoming Laura Ingalls Wilder: The Woman Behind the Legend.

1. This is by far the best biography on Laura Ingalls Wilder available. This is a scholarly, indepth look that goes beyond her books and looks into what made her a writer. Written for adults.



2. This is the real-life Laura and family. Biographer John Miller provides tremendous detail in a smooth, quick and fascinating read. Gives a lot of historic context from the time of Charles and Caroline's childhood through the 1950's, and many new tidbits about Laura's actual childhood. The most thought-provoking and disturbing section of the book is toward the end, covering the period between 1925 and Laura's death in 1957.
   
   Rose, having worked and travelled all over the world as a successful author, came home to Rocky Ridge for some 9 years in the late 20's and early 30's. While there, she suffered frequent depression, writer's block, financial trouble, and a frustrating relationship with her mother, Laura. Yet it was at this time that she helped Laura begin the Little House books, the first of which was published in 1932. The collaboration between the two on the series has been a topic of contention among scholars, critics, and fans from the beginning. Here we learn the truth, book-by-book, on who wrote what, and how each felt about her role in the partnership.
   
   This truth is enlightening and yet Rose's sad mental state and resentment toward Laura is a bit heartbreaking for fans who still believe in Pa's beloved, spunky, hard-working, Plum Creek-swimming, Nellie Oleson-hating, hay-making, bible verse-reciting, school-teaching, buggy-riding, half-pint who wanted nothing more than to send her blind sister to college.



3. This would be a very interesting book if I had not already read all the little house series plus the book where she went to Mansfield from DeSmet and the one where she went to visit Rose in San Francisco.
   
   This is best read before reading the other books. The books by Laura Ingalls Wilder give more detail than any of the birographys by any other author.



4. I found this to be a good book, although I wish the author would have personalized Laura a little more. The ongoing battle between mother and daughter might have been overemphasized, but one comes to learn that this probably worked for both of them. I found a lot of good information, but the statistics were a little much. I found myself reading between the lines and wanted to get back to the meat of the story...Laura.
   
   I recommend this book to any Wilder fan, for it does give us a glimpse into the woman she really was. Like anyone else, Laura was only human, faults and all.
   
   Meloni Cassidy
   Author of Everlasting Journey



5. I purchased this book to read about how Laura Ingalls Wilder became the celebrated author of the Little House series of books. I was very disappointed, therefore, that this uninsightful, dry, fragmented, and repetitious tome read more like a bad history book with too many statistics, facts and figures, rather than character analysis, leaving me with no more knowledge of Laura's character than before I read it. For example, after describing ad nauseum all the organizations and activities one could possibly participate in their town, the author states that we do not know if Laura and her family enjoyed any of them. It was frustrating to constantly read the words "probably, maybe, if, we can presume ....." The author makes too many assumptions and repeatedly expresses his inability to accurately understand and relay Laura's personal feelings due to the unfortunate lack of diaries, letters, and journals left behind by Mrs. Wilder. Relying too much on her daughter, Rose's writings, he portrays Laura as an overprotective, condescending, controlling mother and a domineering wife who refused to vow to obey her husband during their wedding. Miller is not quite sure he even believes Rose's unflattering portrayal of her mother, because she was mentally ill and emotionally unstable herself. This book contains so much one-sided information about Laura's daughter that it should instead be titled Becoming Rose Wilder Lane.

No comments about The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte.

5 comments about In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing (Thorndike Paperback Bestsellers).

1. Having been tossed into an experience of a spouse of 30 years having a critically serious brain surgery, this book rung so true to the joys, deep depression, and aganizing experience of TBI. While my experience had nothing to do with a public figure as large as Bob Woodruff nor a war injury, the end result of a TBI aptly descriped the hell that the injured, as well as the spouse/caretaker walks not just immediately, but for the long haul. The caretaker, in this case, Lee Woodruff was brutally honest about the emotions and the sheer exhaustion that the caretaker undergoes. I read this book in less than two days. It also shone light on the truth of miracles of the human brain to "rewire" itself. I applauded both Bob Woodruff and Lee Woodruff for their unending honesty in dealing with the topic of TBI.



2. This is a love story. One might question this when a journalist has to fight for his life after being wounded while covering the Iraqi war, but not once you read Lee and Bob Woodruff's amazingly poignant story. This is their love story-the story of Bob and Lee, and how their love came to be and sustained them through a year of pain, hope, fear, recovery, and dedication.
   Told in alternating time frames from the dreadful moment when Lee is called and told that Bob has been critically injured to how they met and fell in love. Lee tells her account of their love story with passion and feeling, while Bob is as always the accomplished journalist with his fact based style of recollection. Both Lee and Bob are heroes in this story. Bob's valiant effort to handle his severe injuries mostly to the brain, and Lee's courageous, steadfast support and love throughout the entire process make up this amazingly miraculous story.
   Bob, only recently having been named co-anchor of ABC News, was in Iraq imbedded with troops covering the Iraqi war while Lee and their four children were at Disney World. While that may sound almost callous to many, this is the life a journalist and his family. When a bomb explodes and Bob is literally blown to pieces, not much hope seems to exist that he will survive as Lee is rushed to her husband's side. Telling about how she got the call and what immediately transpired, Lee aptly recounts their story first hand and truly earns the title of In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing because that is what happened to this family in just one minute.
   In the above-mentioned alternating writing style, the story goes back to Bob's leaving a profitable law profession to pursue his dream of being a journalist. Bob's hard work and passion for covering the news takes him through the rank and file in many amazing places and stories as he works his way up in his journalism career. The part of the story of Lee and Bob's personal life is interspersed with the realities of Bob's day-to-day survival and recovery following the bomb in Iraq.
   Bob's 5 week coma, swelling of the brain, and many near death complications are told with detail and clarity so that the reader really experiences, as much as possible, first hand what this family went through. The never ending waiting to see if Bob will survive is a story of such devotion that in reality, you wonder just how someone can go through something like that. Lee tells this story in a way that makes you realize that you can never know, as did she, until you are tested, how you would respond in a situation such as this. At one point, after about five weeks, Lee crawls up into bed with Bob to try and hold him, with all his medical contraptions and tubes, and she tells him that he must fight for his life because she and their four children need him. Barely leaving his side, Lee is shocked when a few days later she walks into his room and he is sitting up and asking her where she has been?! It is at that point that the real fight begins for Bob to work hard to return to his life as he knew it. Meanwhile, Lee must juggle duel roles of parent and caregiver.
   This compelling story of love and devotion is told with honesty, humor, and hope. The friendships both Lee and Bob have, the love and family they share, guides one through an often graphic but also witty and very human novel. Get the book In An Instant and you will find it won't take much longer than that to be hooked and not want to put it down!
   Submitted by Karen Haney: Originally published Curled Up With a Good Book (www.curledup.com)



3. This is a memoir written by Bob and Lee Woodruff. The passages are divided between Bob and Lee, each giving their recollection of the way certain events unfolded. I found Bob's accounts to be gripping and interesting, maybe because he is the one who received the traumatic injury. I found Lee's writing akin to reading a bad soap opera script. It was almost unreadable at times. I understand that she is facing hardships with her husband in a coma, but it nothing like what your typical family has to face under the same circumstances. At one point, this Colgate educated woman wonders how she is going to pay the bills with her husband in a coma? When I read this, I got the feeling that she didn't know how to pay the bills, i.e. write out a check and mail it. I don't think money is an issue for this Westchester County, NY family. It was passages like that which detract from the book. I found Bob's account of his therapy and what he had to go through to get back to himself very interesting but too brief. In the after forward, Bob mentions he is working on a documentary about his journey and the journey GIs have to make in recovering from traumatic brain injuries. I don't know if this has come out yet, but it would be an interesting show.



4. This story recounts the miraculous survival of news anchor Bob Woodruff. More importantly, it exposes the fear, frustration, and fatigue that Woodruff's family experienced as they guided him through months of trauma.



5. This book tells the serious story of the tragedy and triumph shared by Bob Woodruff and his wife, children, friends and co-workers when he was devastatingly injured while reporting in Iraq. The trauma of his head injury is explained in a very detailed manner, and his subsequent recovery is followed mainly from his wife's point of view, describing the horrors they all went through. The ability to deal with all of this makes this book a very moving and uplifting tale of how Bob and also our brave soldiers are coping with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and why it is important for all of us to become aware and understand this signature war injury of Iraq and Afghanistan.
   
   The poignant and matter of fact telling of the process to recovery is sprinkled with humor and makes a great read for those interested in learning how to move through this difficult situation.

5 comments about Bryson City Tales: Stories of a Doctor's First Year of Practice in the Smoky Mountains.

1. Nice, homey story.....I have the series nice change from the crazy world of today. No "bad" word, no sex no violence just nornal home towm life. A young man graduates med school and starts his practice in a small town where he make adjustments, not always easy but worthwhile........



2. As someone from a small town who is in medical school and wants to do family practice, I found this book inspiring. It was reccommended to me by a friend. Some of the stories seem a little exaggerated for good storytelling (hence the 4 stars instead of 5), but overall it's an easy and fun read. I read the whole thing in two short afternoons. Definately a must have for anyone considering family practice or anyone considering a medical career in a small town.



3. Although there are certainly interesting elements here, this book has some of the most jarring transitions from one element to another I've ever read. Parts of it are strictly medical, including a tale at the beginning that would make any seasoned viewer of CSI troubled. Then there are long sports sections---high school football and fishing especially. Then the author has a religious revelation, and we read about that for a while. After that, it's straight memoir for a bit, and we learn about his family and past, but in disjointed, someone confusing pieces. None of the writing is bad, but I just couldn't settle in and really get much out of it.
   
   Also, the backwoods people the good doctor encounters are often way too stereotyped to strike me as real. This book is not set in the distant past, but the folks we meet seem straight out of the Beverly Hillbillies, with dialet and folk remedies galore. I can't say that wasn't really the case, but it seems a bit contrived to me.
   
   The background story of new doctor not being accepted is a bit confusing to me---we aren't really told enough about WHY the older doctors had it in for him quite so badly.
   
   I think the author might do well to seperate this book out and REALLY tell the stories. I'd love to read more about his daughter and her struggle with CP, something we are in the process of figuring out in our family. His medical stories are interesting also, and I would be interested to hear about his journey to faith. But it can't all be in one book!



4. Dr. Walt Larimore received excellent medical training at Duke University. Armed with a new medical degree, his wife, and 3-year-old daughter, he journeyed to the small town of Bryson City, North Carolina, to begin his practice. What he learned is that there were many things which had not been taught at the Duke Medical School. Doctors and nurses who had been in practice for many years taught him that sometimes the old, simple procedures worked just as well as the up-to-date techniques which he favored early in his practice. He also learned that appeals to the Great Physician were much appreciated by his patients and served to calm him in a crisis. He was surprised to discover that a country doctor does not only deal with human patients, but animal ones as well. All was not easy, as both of his children faced medical crises, and some of the older doctors opposed his presence in their town. Dr. Larimore's self-effacing manner and gentle humor make this a delightful read. I am looking forward to reading the next two books in the series.



5. Larimore captivated both my wife and I with his writing and tales of his experience as a new doctor starting out in a new town in North Carolina. Unlike one reader, I never got the impression that the local people were anymore "backwards" than you would find anywheres else. Indeed, it becomes quite clear as Larimore continues to develop as a complete doctor that he has a number of things to learn from the people that were around him. It is fascinating to watch him grow in his practice and expertise, in his faith, and in his relationships with the local people. His love for his patients come through quite clearly.
   
   His tales range from soul touching and heart touching to downright hilarious...the theological exposition that Christ was most definitely a fly fisherman and NOT a lake fisherman was particularly entertaining...and his experience with the couple that had just suffered a miscarriage deeply touches the soul.
   
   For those that enjoyed Herriot, these tales will fit right in - except that the subjects are people (well, most of the time!). I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.

5 comments about Bouncing Back: I'Ve Survived Everything-- And I Mean Everything-- And You Can Too.

1. I read the book and I laughed, I cried, I fell in love with Joan.



2. The audio book version of "Bouncing Back" is WONDERFUL! It's read by Joan Rivers herself, the way she intended for it to be read :-) Her moving message of survival comes through loud & clear & of course FUNNY! What a lady! What a TALENT! THANK YOU Ms. Rivers for being so forthcoming with us. Your story is truly INSPIRATIONAL!



3. Joan has some helpful advice on how to overcome obstacles in life. While she is not a psychologist, she has been through many painful things in her life and has always "bounced back."



4. Joan Rivers presents herself as the most put upon victim in the world, the ultimate survivor. Heartrending. I'm sure that the AIDS victims, the cancer patients, the Christopher Reeves of this world, will join me in sympathizing with this martyr.



5. I can't believe that those who are putting down this book have gone through much of a crisis in their lives. Having gone through the fire myself with losing a father, nephew, and son in addition to illnesses and financial troubles, I found this book to be very inspirational. This may be because Joan was echoing what I have come to believe on my own, but sharing it with the world takes a huge amount of courage. I never cared much about her as a comedienne but a person's work does not necessarily reflect who they are inside. I felt very sorry for her when her husband committed suicide and, at the time, I remember wondering if she was just going to shrink into herself and go off on her own to lick her wounds. Well, she didn't and I say, bravo, Joan! Edgar is gone but you and Melissa are still here and to keep plugging away at life takes strength. I have had so many people ask me how I go on and say they couldn't do it. Well, you have two choices: you either give up or you go on. We are big on humor in our family and a bit of black humor does come out now and then. I am just very careful as to who I allow to hear it. You need to separate Joan from her work to get what she is saying in this book. And, if you can do so, and if you can learn from it, you will go on and you will be stronger. Those who nitpick specifics like decorating your house and all will be well are totally missing the point. What she is saying is to find what makes you feel better and get up off your bum and do it. Don't sit and wallow in self-pity and pain. Believe me, when a loved one is no longer there in your life, just vegetating can be SO attractive. It takes a huge amount of strength just to get out of bed in the morning. Who says we aren't supposed to laugh after someone dies? My son loved to laugh and to not do so would be to dishonor his memory. I know he is out there laughing with us just as Joan's Edgar is applauding her efforts to get on with her life.

4 comments about The Good Times (G K Hall Large Print Book Series).

1. ...I was surprised at how dated some of his 'contemporary style' writing has become. I used to read and enjoy his column in the NY Times every Sunday. I realize the man is from an older generation (most of the book takes place in the 50's, when he was in his late twenties); many of his phrases and patterns of speech reflect that 'gee-whiz-bang' time. Unfortunately, no one says 'Gee-whiz-bang' anymore. Baker also tends to repeat himself a bit, and his name-by-name tribute to every good (and bad) newspaperman he could think of won't mean much to the layman.
   Don't get me wrong--I couldn't put the book down, and some of his personality portraits of the leading politicians of the day were illuminating. Baker's own humility is overly self-conscious, but most definitely genuine.
   Remember that reviews you read of this book by other publications--especially newspapers--will really tend to gush over this.
   But buy it anyway--it's a good, solid read.



2. I was forced to read this book for one of my journalism classes and I had the 'typical' student attitude: 'I will skim through this book and guess my way through the paper'. I decided to read the first and last chapters of the book to get a basic understanding and then skim the rest. I started the book and realized that I could not put it down. This language in this book was very natural and the stories that were told were interesting. Being a journalism student, I was fasinated seeing all of the hardships that Baker went through to become the famed reporter that he is today. For once an assigned book that was actually interesting and worth reading.



3. While I was "forced" to read "Growing Up"--part one of Russell Baker's autobiography--by my high school English teacher, I anxiously sought out this sequel. Baker's descriptions of the everyday life of a reporter makes for an intriguing book. While he has a tendency to romanticize situations, Baker provides enough details to give a clear picture of the type of challenges that reporters constantly face, especially early on in their careers. Baker's writing style is clean and straightforward without being simple. (I would zip through 20-30 pages at one sitting without even realizing it.) This is one of the few books I've read more than once and boy, do I wish he'd write another "chapter" of his autobiography. If you like the so called "adventures" of a reporter, an effortless history lesson, and lots of behind-the-scenes stuff, buy this book.



4. A gently but lively autobiographical memoire. For me, reading this book was a rare case of pure enjoyment, and one which I expect to repeat about once a year until ... .

No comments about Between Heaven and Ground Zero.

2 comments about My Mark Twain (Large Print).

1. this is a must book for anyone really interested in mark twain... thank you for publishing it...



2. If you really want to know Mr. Clemens, don't stop with the modern biographies. Read this one by his long-time good friend and consultant. Howells wrote this book in 1910, the year Clemens died. It is a fond recollection of the 44 years he had known the author. Clemens was a complicated man and Howells admits that he did not always understand him. But Howells, a great writer himself, comes close to describing the multi-faceted person that Clemens was. Yes, he was Mark Twain, but that was just one part of a man who surely must be one of the most interesting Americans who ever stood in the spotlight of the world. He was a superstar before radio, TV, and movies. This is certainly not an unbiased account of his life. Howells was clearly in awe of Clemens, a man who was unlike himself in so many ways. He was fascinated by Clemens and drawn to him. How lucky we are that we have this insightful and personal biography, beautifully written by someone who obviously wanted to get it right. Howells put Clemens at the top of the list: "Emerson, Longfellow, Lowell, Holmes - I knew them all and all the rest of our sages, poets, seers, critics, humorists; they were like one another and like other literary men; but Clemens was sole, incomparable, the Lincoln of our literature."