Old Black Fly (An Owlet Book)

Book Description

Nothing drives a family crazy faster than an old black fly on a hot summer day, especially when the family's a little crazy already. And this fly is as bad as they come. He knows every low-down trick in the book--and won't rest until he's gone through them all. He ate on the crustof the Apple pie.He bothered the Babyand made her cry.Shoo fly!Shoo fly!Shooo.

Customer Reviews:

fly germs.......2007-09-27

I think the most wonderful part of this book (in response to a 2 star review) is that, after reading it, you feel like there are "fly germs everywhere!" When we read this aloud in my preschool class, the kids loved pointing out the yucky stuff on every page and when I banged the book shut to "squash" the fly and quietly opened up the book, hysterical giggles abounded. This book is great for eliciting student participation (repetition in "Shoo fly...") and for developing inference abilities at a VERY early age ("What do you think happened to the fly?" after I slam the book shut).

Whether you happen to "like" the words, flow, or illustrations, in my experience, young children do and gain a lot of out reading this book together.

Great for music class.......2006-08-28

I was an elementary music teacher and used this book in the lower grades. The children loved the pictures and singing the words of the first page periodically throughout the book. I used it to demonstrate alphabet, singing skills, steady beat, dynamics (loud and soft), etc. We laughed hysterically at Mama's hair, the parrot's belly button, Grandma's face, and the baby's drooping diaper. This book was great for making learning a game.

Shoo Fly! Shoooo.......2006-01-23

Every year I read this to my first grade students. The silly antics of the fly are enjoyable. My kids are encouraged to chant out The "shoo fly" part through out the story. Stephen Gammell's illustrations are colorful and energetic and grab your attention.

Not for my 2 yr old.......2005-10-29

This book has a few good points, but more bad points. I liked how the alphabet is bolded throughout the book (my 2 yr old identifies each letter right off) and I like the repetition of "Shoo Fly Shoo". However, the book really doesn't have a good 'flow' and I was NOT impressed with the illustrations. The family in the book is haggard and sloppy.

This book seems more appropriate for elementary-aged children. I would imagine that classroom teachers could use it quite often. I appreciate the comment of one person saying, "for those older kids who don't know their letters, this is a more age appropriate book." I agree with that.

After reading the story, I feel like there are fly germs everywhere . . .

I know an old lady..........2004-02-08

It's like the germs are flying off the page. If human eyes had the ability to see the diseases that flies spread, then this book is a fairly good indication of what the world would look like. This is, in essence, an alphabet book. On each and every page the naughty little fly (looking more like a Searle creation than anything else) bother and annoys every woman, child, and beast that crosses its path. This is not your sweet little baby alphabet book. No, this is an alphabet book of their nightmares. And it's pretty darn good.

Stephen Gammell's illustrations look as if one hundred and fifty flies sneezed a rainbow of colors onto the pages. Kind of a colorized "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" for the toddler set. The best use of this book would probably be to those children that have somehow failed to learn their alphabet and feel that they are too old for the everyday humdrum "baby" abc books you so often see on the market. Don't get me wrong. There is a real beauty to these paintings. The splatters and messes filling each page are a messy child's fantasy realm. Who wouldn't want to do all the wonderful horrible things this fly is capable of? The fly itself is shockingly realistic. Hairy and gross to the extreme. He isn't given any human qualities or emotions. This is a very realistic old black fly, and because of this, the things he's going to do are going to be a little disgusting. Don't miss the second to last SWAT in a two-page spread of exploding pink and brown cake. Says the illustrator about this story, "This is the first book of the rest of the books I'll illustrate". I, for one, hope it isn't his last.

Average customer rating:

An Instant Classic

Fun, informative book

Marvelous Book!!!

Chasing the Perfect Dream

Bamboo fly rods

Casting a Spell: The Bamboo Fly Rod and the American Pursuit of Perfection
George Black
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1400063965
Release Date: 2006-08-08

Book Description

Thirty-five million Americans–one in eight–like to go fishing. Fly fishers have always considered themselves the aristocracy of the sport, and a small number of those devotees, a few thousand at most, insist upon using one device in the pursuit of their obsession: a handcrafted split-bamboo fly rod. Meeting this demand for perfection are the inheritors of a splendid art, one that reveres tradition while flouting obvious economic sense and reaches back through time to touch the hands of such figures as Theodore Roosevelt and Henry David Thoreau.

In Casting a Spell, George Black introduces readers to rapt artisans and the ultimate talismans of their uncompromising fascination: handmade bamboo fly rods. But this narrative is more than a story of obscure objects of desire. It opens a new vista onto a century and a half of modern American cultural history. With bold strokes and deft touches, Black explains how the ingenuity of craftsmen created a singular implement of leisure–and how geopolitics, economics, technology, and outrageous twists of fortune have all come to focus on the exquisitely crafted bamboo rod. We discover that the pastime of fly-fishing intersects with a mind-boggling variety of cultural trends, including conspicuous consumption, environmentalism, industrialization, and even cold war diplomacy.

Black takes us around the world, from the hidden trout streams of western Maine to a remote valley in Guangdong Province, China, where grows the singular species of bamboo known as tea stick–the very stuff of a superior fly rod. He introduces us to the men who created the tools and techniques for crafting exceptional rods and those who continue to carry the torch in the pursuit of the sublime. Never far from the surface are such overarching themes as the tension between mass production and individual excellence, and the evolving ways American society has defined, experienced, and expressed its relationship to the land.

Fly-fishing may seem a rarefied pursuit, and making fly rods might be a quixotic occupation, but this rich, fascinating narrative exposes the soul of an authentic part of America, and the great significance of little things. George Black’s latest expedition into a hidden corner of our culture is an utterly enchanting, illuminating, and enlightening experience.

Customer Reviews:

An Instant Classic.......2007-10-09

"Casting A Spell" is a genuine tour de force: magical, impeccably researched and passionate. Black recounts the grand story of nineteenth and twentieth century American craftsmen who brought the art of bamboo rod making to perfection. With a passion for detail--and a passion for the men he brings to life--he takes the reader through the wilds of Maine, into the massive Winchester armaments and tackle factory in New Haven, past the bucolic countryside of New York and Connecticut, and then sets it all (with a timing that leaves you grinning) against the glitter and grime of today's strip malls. Calling "Casting" a tour de force is no exaggeration.

"Casting" achieves numerous firsts. It is by far the best-written book of its kind. As if that weren't enough, "Casting" certainly is the first "must read" book on this topic--no fly fisherman may claim expertise without having devoured Black's wonderful book. And it is the first book that correctly puts the master fly rod maker, E. W. Edwards, in the pantheon of the greats.

A man who fishes what he writes about, Black stops occasionally to cast his own Edwards fly rods toward a few historic streams along the way (and has the humility not to tell us how many trout he catches). No other book has captured the enthusiasm of American rod makers and their sense of Yankee inventiveness as well. With great authority Black relates the ingenuity of the tackle greats who, in a few brief decades, created the standard that all fly fishermen unconsciously use today to measure the speed and "feel" of any rod.

Not to repeat myself, but did I mention that "Casting A Spell" is a must read? Get it today. No amount of praise is adequate. Black has written an instant classic.

Fun, informative book.......2006-12-05

This is a terrific book. It covers the history and personalities that shaped the evolution of the craft of bamboo fly rod making.

I bought this book thinking it would be informative, and it was. What was pleasantly surprising was how interesting and fun the book was to read. It gave me a real appreciation for the great bamboo rod makers and some insight into their lives. The author's careful research and enthusiasm for the subject matter is evident throughout. Highly recommended.

Marvelous Book!!!.......2006-11-15

George Black has written a most literary and enjoyable history of the bamboo fly fishing rod. Unhurried, with frequent fascinating digressions, he takes one through the history of the development of this remarkable sporting instrument, beginning in the mid 1800's and coming down to the present. He provides much color to persons whose names were all we knew before: Leanard, Edwards, Hawes, Thomas and more. A grand book by a great author. You will really enjoy this book, even if you are not a fly fisher.

Chasing the Perfect Dream.......2006-11-12

While the nominal subject of this book is the banboo fly rod, it's really about art. There are those who can look at the Mona Lisa and be enraptured. There are others who hear a piece of music and almost leave their bodies behind.

Then there are others who look at the Mona Lisa and see a picture not as good as a photograph, and to whom music is basically noise. (Of course to a lot of music lovers, that 'other kind' of music is just noise.)

This book goes a long way to explaining that there's another approach to art. The art of the bamboo fly rod 'casts a spell' on George Black. And as a professional writer he has the gift of words to explain just how it does. His poetic prose takes the reader from the technology and the reknown makers to little known streams across the country to make the perfect catch with the perfect rod. Will he ever reach the untimate? Of course not. Life is a journey not a destination.

Bamboo fly rods.......2006-11-04

What can one say about an obsession? What can one write about an obsessive book about a line of craftsmen who rarely made a profit and were never satisfied with their work?

If you fly fish, read this. If not but you are interested in technmology and craftsmanship, read this in bits. If you are not any of these, read something else.

The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales

Average customer rating:

A wonderful means of saving an art form
This copy includes a cd of Hamilton & James Earl Jones reading
Timeless classic of African American literature
Excellent! Especially when read aloud.
This book is a must have!!

The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales
Virginia Hamilton
Manufacturer: Knopf Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0679843361
Release Date: 1993-01-04

Amazon.com

Virginia Hamilton, Newbery Medal winner and recipient of the National Book Award and the Hans Christian Andersen Award, teams up with two-time Caldecott Medal winners, Leo and Diane Dillon, in this classic collection of American black folktales, winner of the Coretta Scott King Award. By turns droll, grisly, and spine-tingling, the 24 stories celebrate the indomitable human spirit, surviving under the most crushing circumstances of slavery. Traditionally, storytelling has helped people to push through sorrow and pain, especially when the stories are saturated with magic, mysticism, and fantasy. Bruh Rabbit, He Lion, Tar Baby, and other animals populate many of the stories. In others, John, the traditional trickster hero, outwits the slave owner time after time to win his freedom.

Included with this very special edition is a CD featuring the commanding voices of Hamilton and actor James Earl Jones. Eleven selections, including "The Peculiar Such Thing," "John and the Devil's Daughter," "A Wolf and Little Daughter," and "The People Could Fly," bring to life the rhythm and lyrical energy of Hamilton's text. Leo and Diane Dillon's strikingly beautiful black and white illustrations continue to mesmerize and haunt the reader. (All ages) --Emilie Coulter

Book Description

"The well-known author retells 24 black American folk tales in sure storytelling voice: animal tales, supernatural tales, fanciful and cautionary tales, and slave tales of freedom. All are beautifully readable. With the added attraction of 40 wonderfully expressive paintings by the Dillons, this collection should be snapped up."--(starred) School Library Journal.

Customer Reviews:

A wonderful means of saving an art form.......2006-11-19

As a storyteller and folklorist/historian, it saddens me that so few children today know anything about the joys of hearing a good tale from a wise elder. In Black America in particular, generations of children (including my father, thank God) had the wonderful tales of Brer Rabbit, Little 8 John, Raw head & Bloody Bones, Wiley & The Hairy Man, and the People Who Could Fly (title story) told to them as today's children are familiar with Kim Possible and the Proud Family.

I bought this for my beloved niece when she was eight and pretty soon, she began entertaining the children of the neighborhood with these tales just as I did after listening to my dad and I still do during storytelling gigs today.

Virginia Hamilton (RIP) did a masterful work in leaving this beautiful legacy to a generation where it is fast disappearing. She does a good job in interpreting the likes of Wiley the Hairy man, Raw Head and Bloody Bones (the PC crowd occasionally complains about this being too scary for kids as well as Brer Rabbit-let these crybaby fools go ahead with that sickening Barney the Dinosaur and the care bears). The edition that I bought for my neice was before the CD with Miss Hamilton and voicemaster James Earl Jones came out, but I have younger neices and nephews (and hopefully my own children in the future) that I will certainly look out for this for.

Another reason why this collection is in such need is that often, African-American parents (rightfully) complain about the lack of wholesome entertainment for their children in particular. Unfortunately, most parents of today were not exposed to these stories as I was and this often leads to well-intentioned but foolish recent activities such as the NAACP here in Charleston (SC) complaining about the lack of Black Santa Clauses in the local malls. As Miss Hamilton and those of us raised in the folklore tradition know, we have enough good things of our own culture to pass down to children than to worry of the color of Santa Claus.

Buy this, reconnect with your children, and enjoy.

This copy includes a cd of Hamilton & James Earl Jones reading.......2006-03-09

This book is a trifecta:

1. You get to hear the author read her own writing. If you want to hear Virginia Hamilton and James Earl Jones adding their own special lyrical beauty to the reading of these stories, then purchase this version. Considering that Ms. Hamilton died in 2002, this CD is a must have.

I think it is important for children to hear the author reading their own work. So if you can't get to a book reading by the author, this is the next best thing. And you get to hear it over and over again.

2. The illustrations are magical, delicate, and powerful. Every child (but especially black and white) in this nation should hear the stories in this book. Before they know color issues, they should get to know the beauty and dignity of brown skin. To hear the dignity, power, and humanity of their own heritage or that of someone elses, before a world of anger taints them.

3. At the end of each story is a brief history of the story: it's origin, and variations, and other facts that help the story to become more real and personal, especially for a child who wants to know more about their heritage. This will inspire them to ask questions and (if they're older) do research as it cause me to do.

Timeless classic of African American literature.......2005-06-18

I read this book when I was in elementary school and fell in love with it. Virginia Hamilton really captures the essence of West African story telling and transfers that essence into American form. As an educator and historian, the lessons in this book has stayed with me for well over 18 yrs and I suspect the lessons will remain with me forever. I recommend that this book is on the shelves of every African American family.

Excellent! Especially when read aloud........2003-03-19

I read this to my daughter, Rachel, and she really enjoyed it. She smiled throughout the entire book. She loved the animal folktales about Bruh Rabbit, and Bruh Fox. She trembled with delight at the reading of the scary tales. As for her mother, my favorite was the title tale, The People Could Fly. It was magical!

This book is a must have!!.......2002-07-18

I read this book as a child. The lessons that I learned from it have lasted well into my young adult, I am now 23 years old. The illustrations are first rate. This book should be a literary standard for all children books. Anyone with a child needs to have this in their children's personal library.

The People Could Fly: The Picture Book (New York Times Best Illustrated Books (Awards))

Average customer rating:

The People Could Fly
Powerful Reading, A Classic that should be in every US home & Classroom
A masterpiece!
Only their imaginations to set them free

The People Could Fly: The Picture Book (New York Times Best Illustrated Books (Awards))
Virginia Hamilton
Manufacturer: Knopf Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0375824057
Release Date: 2004-11-09

Book Description

“THE PEOPLE COULD FLY,” the title story in Virginia Hamilton’s prize-winning American Black folktale collection, is a fantasy tale of the slaves who possessed the ancient magic words that enabled them to literally fly away to freedom. And it is a moving tale of those who did not have the opportunity to “fly” away, who remained slaves with only their imaginations to set them free as they told and retold this tale.

Leo and Diane Dillon have created powerful new illustrations in full color for every page of this picture book presentation of Virginia Hamilton’s most beloved tale. The author’s original historical note as well as her previously unpublished notes are included.

Awards for The People Could Fly collection:

A Coretta Scott King Award

A Booklist Children’s Editors’ Choice

A School Library Journal Best Books of the Year

A Horn Book Fanfare

An ALA Notable Book

An NCTE Teachers’ Choice

A New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books of the Year

Customer Reviews:

The People Could Fly.......2007-09-11

I bought this book about 20 years ago - It was a favorite of my then young children. TO this day, my daughter, son and I remember the great stories and pictures. They are now 24 and 26 years old. I have given this book for a gift as well. You can't beat this one!

Powerful Reading, A Classic that should be in every US home & Classroom.......2006-03-09

Beautifully illustrated and written. The colors only enhance the beauty of the original black and white drawings. This book will spark interest in African American history, especially that of the Gullah people.

"The People Could Fly" has it's roots in Angollah and the "Gullah" people. Tradition among the US slaves said that the "powers" of the Gullah people were very strong. How do I know this? I learned it from the comments at the end of the book.

After I read this, I remembered that Jonathan Green grew up in the Gullah culture. I LOVE his artwork, so I thought I'd do some research and find out if my memory was correct.

I found out that not only was he Gullah, but that from his birth, Jonathan Green was considered a special child because he was born with a caul which indicates "that the child is touched by uncommonness and magic that will bring inordinate grace to the community". As a result Jonathan was "deferred to and taught many things about his people, their traditions and their beliefs."

All this I learned because I read, "The People Could Fly". Buy this book for your children. And also buy the collection of stories by Hamilton entitled "The People Could Fly". The illustrations in the collection of stories are black and white and every bit as beautiful.

A masterpiece!.......2005-07-29

The story, prose, and illustrations of this book are beautiful and timeless.

We checked this book out from the library and it became an immediate favorite--we didn't want to give it back! I'm buying my own copy for our collection.

Only their imaginations to set them free.......2005-01-30

The death of author Virginia Hamilton in 2002 was a blow to the world of children's literature, no question. Hamilton was an extraordinary writer, creating complex fantastical books for children that seamlessly integrated contemporary interesting situations with aspects of African-American culture. Heck, one of the first ways I learned about the Underground Railroad was through her "House of Dies Drear". I hadn't read her collection of black folktales entitled "The People Could Fly" though I intended to. I was a little confused, therefore, when a brand spanking new "The People Could Fly" was published in 2004. I soon learned, though, that the book had taken one of the stories from the original collection, in a beautiful retelling of the amazing title story. This is a book that is beautiful to look at and a joy to read and reread.

For you see, they say the people could fly. Long ago in Africa there lived people who had beautiful bright black wings and who could soar in the sky. When they were captured by white slavers, the people shed their wings in the tight confines of the slave ships and forgot how to soar. They were sent to work in the field under the whips of the "masters" and overseers. One day, a woman and her babe were suffering too much to go on much longer. With the ancient words of the old man Toby, the woman and the babe remember how to fly and soared away from the farm. The story recounts how the people who knew how to fly learned to do so again with the help of old Toby and how the slaves who did not know how to fly watched them escape and retold the story to their children just as this book tells it to you.

It's a lovely story, all the lovelier due to the illustrations of Leo and Diane Dillon. The Dillons have illustrated the covers and books of Ms. Hamilton for years, so it is not surprising that they should do so again here. I've always been a huge fan of the Dillons, and this latest effort of theirs is as beautiful as anyone could hope. Even its endpapers are gorgeous, all matt black with shimmery feathers floating down the pages. What "The People Could Fly" does best is introduce children to the concept of slavery within the context of a folktale. Through this story kids understand the horrors of enslavement, rejoice in the escape of some, and understand that most slaves remained trapped and unable to fly. What really set this book apart for me, though, was the use of Editor and Author's Notes. Some great picture books (such as "Ellington Was Not a Street") are beautiful and interesting but never set their story within any context and leave you feeling very confused. "The People Could Fly", on the other hand, tells you everything you need to know about Hamilton, the origins of this tale, the various interpretations of flight (and how you can find a similar idea in Toni Morrison's excellent "Song of Solomon"), and the degradation of slavery.

All intelligent dialogue aside, this book is just a great read to kids. It'll capture their attention with the beautiful pictures, and the words will give them the additional thrill of wondering what it would be like to fly with wings. It's written with slightly older children in mind. Those kids who still like picture books but may want something a little more sophisticated than your average "Horton Hears a Who". With all the folktales out there, it's sometimes difficult to find African-American tales that aren't ALL based on Brer Rabbit. Fortunately, we now have this story to read to all the children we can find. This is a gorgeous addition to any collection and should be adored for as long as it exists.

Average customer rating:

I've Got to Go with Gary Griffith's Review
Murder, eh?
A decent police procedural set in Canada
Highly recommended
Procedural

Black Fly Season
Giles Blunt
Manufacturer: Berkley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0425209571

Book Description

When a woman stumbles into a tavern, covered in black fly bites, with a bullet in her brain and no memory, homicide detectives John Cardinal and Lisa Delorme know someone left her for dead. And if word gets out that she isn't, someone will try again

Customer Reviews:

I've Got to Go with Gary Griffith's Review.......2007-01-05

Read GG's review first.

Black Fly Season was also my first introduction to the author. I agree with Gary in all respects. I would add that the emotional portraits of both the manic-despressed wife of one of the protagonist, and the drug addicted brother of one of the main characters are spot on. These passages resonate with authenticity, especially the section on how addicts kid themselves continuously that they will quit "next Monday."

I also enjoyed the healthy dose of entymology and near-voodoo religion. Blunt was very factual yet entertaining in introducing these themes and they added greatly to the book.

One of the other reviewers downplayed Blunt in comparison to Steve Hamilton's Alex McKnight series placed in the UP of Michigan. Those were nice, but there is far more characterization and plotting in this book than in either of the first two by Hamilton.

I am getting my hands on everything Blunt has written with high hopes they're all as good as Black Fly Season.

Murder, eh?.......2006-08-26

I enjoyed this novel. This is my 2nd Giles Blunt novel, the first being Delicate Storm. I liked this one better. For one thing, it seemed somewhat more plausible. It was certainly gripping. There were enough strange but plausible twists, oddball characters, and unexpected developments to keep me going, wondering what would happen next.

There are several specific things I like about this, or perhaps Blunt's writing in general. First, and perhaps most important for me, is the sense of place. The locations, the dialogue, and the characters, all come across as very authentic. Even some of the screwier characters that appear in passing are sketched very nicely. Blunt is to northern Ontario as Mankell is to the Skane region in Sweden.

The characters, the action, and the dialogue generally seem very natural. As the plot unfolds, at each step the characters' actions and dialogue seem reasonable given the context. Things go right or wrong, people react, and move on. Even in the face of very complex or unpleasant situations, the characters seem low-key and their reactions fairly professional. I contrast this approach to writing with that in some other contemporary mystery series, where it seems like everything the lead characters do or say has to be over-the-top in order to sustain the reader's interest.

As some of the other reviews mentioned, there is a side-plot involving the medical condition of Cardinal's wife. Normally this sort of thing really turns me off. I really dislike mysteries that spend more time talking about the main characters' issues, whether alcoholism, illness, or a relationship, than they do about the main plot. I am thinking in particular here of some of the Rebus novels, which in a few cases became more about Rebus and his personal demons than about solving a mystery. Fortunately, Blunt keeps the elements involving the wife's condition in check, and the related passages are brief enough that they are not an annoying and melodramatic distraction in the way that such digressions often are.

A decent police procedural set in Canada.......2006-07-15

I bought this book based upon the review of Gary Griffiths who has a spotlight review on this book here. I think we are not supposed to refer to other reviews here, and I am not going to do so. I am going to refer to the reviewer though because I think he does a fine job and I admire his reiews a lot. Gary writes honest, insightful reviews and if he thinks a book is great then there is a fair-to-middlin' chance I am going to think it is great too. We don't always agree though and this book is one of those instances.

I thought this was a good book but not a great book. All the pieces were there. Interesting, sympathetic characters, with interesting human-scale problems of their own, a puzzling crime, interesting forensics, clever/weird bad guys, and a great setting that is unusual: the north of Canada. Somehow though, somehow....when I finished this book my honest summation is that this is good, really good actually, but it doesn't quite reach that memorable plateau which defines a novel as "great". Perhaps I should have started at the beginning of the series and worked forward for a better appreciation of the characters and their devleopment because as it stands I don't think this book and the characters will be that memorable to me. If I was going to make a recommendation for a "northern" mystery series I would recommend the Alex McKnight series by Steve Hamilton first. In my mind that is a truly great series.

So my opinion is this is a solid, good mystery that won't disappoint you at all. You'll enjoy reading it and won't regret the investment of time and money. Yet for a truly great series of reads, in a similar setting and environment, check out the McKnight series by Hamilton. It's first-class, memorable stuff that is wonderful enough to make you anxiously await the annual next installment year after year.

Highly recommended.......2006-06-13

I loved Blunt's first book and was extremely happy to note that this second one is even better. He paints a brooding, uncomfortable picture of a Canadian town, but contrast the gruesome storyline with very human and at times gentle lead characters.

Procedural.......2006-05-20

Perhaps starting in the middle of a series has lessened the impact, but I found this to be just average. I'll have to go and look for the beginning.

Black Watch: The Men Who Fly America's Secret Spy Planes

Average customer rating:

Enjoyable & Interesting Book

Black Watch: The Men Who Fly America's Secret Spy Planes
Ernest K. Gann
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0394575075
Release Date: 1989-08-05

Customer Reviews:

Enjoyable & Interesting Book.......2002-04-14

If you are into US Air Force equipment and history then this will be a very interesting and fun book for you. The book covers both the aircraft that have been used over the past 35 years to gather intelligence and the missions the crews undertake. The book focuses on the jet age and really spends its time the aircraft that were in use when the book was published, the U2 and the SR 71. The author does a great job of describing the aircraft and the corresponding pictures within the book are a great help. I was also very impressed with the detail he goes into with the types of missions the US is performing now.
The author does a good job with his writing, at times when describing aircraft performance etc it is difficult to make it fun to read, but this author did it. With JSTARS and the unmanned craft now in use this book is a bit dated, but it offers a great review of the U2 and SR 71 plus an interesting view at what was to come out in the 90's - equipment we are seeing being used today. This is an interesting book and one for the collection.

THE HARD BOILED OMNIBUS - Early Stories from Black Mask: Sail; Taking His Time; Death in the Pasig; The Man Who Liked Dogs; Fly Paper; Inside Job; Red Goose; Red 71; Best Man; Kick Back; Clean Sweep; South Wind

Average customer rating:

THE HARD BOILED OMNIBUS - Early Stories from Black Mask: Sail; Taking His Time; Death in the Pasig; The Man Who Liked Dogs; Fly Paper; Inside Job; Red Goose; Red 71; Best Man; Kick Back; Clean Sweep; South Wind
Joseph T. (editor) (Lester Dent; Reuben Jennings Shay; Ramon Decolta; Raymond Chandler; Dashiell Hammett; Raoul Whitfield; Norbert Davis; Paul Cain; Thomas Walsh; Ed Lybeck; Roger Torrey; Theodore Tinsley) Shaw
Manufacturer: Simon and Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GVZ3XC

Average customer rating:

Outstanding book for the beginner or the expert.

Bass on the Fly
A. D. Livingston
Manufacturer: Ragged Mountain Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0070381518

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"The author, unlike snootier fly rod types, is very eclectic in his bass fishing background, arriving at the fly rod via bait, baitcasting and spinning tackle, and (he) absolutely embraces whatever innovations have made the bass fisherman more knowledgeable or effective."--"Gray's Sporting Journal."

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Outstanding book for the beginner or the expert........1998-10-14

A. D. Livingston's writing style informs, entertains, and provides insight into this form of fly fishing. Unlike other books on the subject, the book doesn't have that feel of being a sales tool for a company's products. From basic casting to fly selection, Livingston covers all aspects of using the fly rod for bass. He is an accomplished fisherman and his superb knowledge of the species provides very educational reading. My only complaint about the book is that it was originally written 20 years ago. He gives opinions and recommendations on matters that are somewhat dated. However, I still highly recommend this book because of A. D.'s style. As you read, his personality jumps out of the words, making you feel like he is in the room talking to you. You will find yourself smiling, wishing you could have this guy over for dinner sometime, just to hear more of his stories and opinions.

Black Bird Fly Away: Disabled in an Able-Bodied World

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Blackbird Fly Away
Gallagher's polio battles, losses and victories.

Black Bird Fly Away: Disabled in an Able-Bodied World
Hugh Gregory Gallagher , and Geoffrey C. Ward
Manufacturer: Vandamere Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0918339448

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Blackbird Fly Away.......2001-12-01

What a wonderful honest account of the struggles of a man, Hugh Gregory Gallagher who at his peak suffered a tremendous loss as a result of polio. Yet in spite of it, and in part because Mr. Gallagher was blessed with a smart mind and strong spirit, overcame the obstacles, making a statement to society about his worth as a human being, as he pursued his dreams, then ultimately made the world a better place for thosewith disabilities. As a polio survivor and one who is facing the challenges of the late effects of post polio, I applaud Mr. Gallagher for his courage and have read and re-read his book to help me gain my strength and courage to face the challenges before me.

Gallagher's polio battles, losses and victories........1998-10-28

From Jack Trombadore Book Reviews New Jersey Polio Network
NEWSLETTER, Fall, 1998.

In this collection of essays, journals, writings and personal recollections spanning almost half a century, Hugh Gallagher courageously reveals himself in a compelling autobiography as both protagonist and antagonist in a drama with countless scenes in three acts. Throughout the first two acts he forces himself to overcome the role of emotional anti-hero until he achieves final freedom from the talons of clinical depression at the beginning of a long, ongoing and productive third act.

Stricken with severe paralytic polio at nineteen, Gallagher never walked again. A freshman at Haverford in the spring of 1952, he was young, beautiful and free; he was in love with a beautiful girl, the novels of Thomas Mann, Italian opera, politics, and with life. He was young, strong and invincible.

Polio, My Account, was written twenty years "after the event" and never previously published. Here, he tells us what it "felt" like to have had a life sentence of disability imposed without hope of pardon or parole. The physiological aspects of his polio were just representative of the inward tragedy of the collapse of a young life. He saw himself watching his own deterioration from outside his body. He saw the horrific progression of the disease the first days: legs, trunk, breathing, arms, hands, neck, double and quadruple vision, the tracheotomy on a body too weak for anesthetics, the rush down corridors in the arms of non-medical personnel to the iron lung, the108 degree fever, last rites.

His body was the battlefield for the doctors and his presence was "accidental." No one disclosed what his ravaged body would be like if they succeeded in keeping him alive. The overwhelming question became: stop or go, yes or no, live or die. He decided to live.

After a year in hospitals, he was admitted to the Warm Springs Foundation in Georgia. He spent nine months there, learning the "functional" tricks of the trade that would enable him again to live in the outside world. He was physically independent, healthy and in a wheelchair. He still is.

He obtained his American B.A. in 1956 from Claremont McKenna College in California. It was the only college of the forty to which he had written that was fully accessible. His first application for a Rhodes Fellowship to Oxford was returned unprocessed; Gallagher was not "fit in mind and body" as required by the will of Cecil Rhodes. His was the first application Oxford had ever received from a disabled person. However, he did attend Oxford with a Marshall Fellow scholarship and studied there for three years at Trinity College, the only one of Oxford's thirty-five individual colleges that was "wheelchair accessible." He was the only person at Oxford in a wheelchair. There he endured unbelievable hardships.

The water closet was a block away, down a ramp and up a ramp, nearly always slippery from the constant rain. The bath facilities were inaccessible and he did not bathe or wash his hair for a year at a time. His legs turned blue from the cold and stayed blue until the late spring. Despite having acquired an outstanding education and lifelong friends, Gallagher now looks with awe and disbelief at the hardships he willingly endured in those three years.

In 1959, as a member of a senatorial staff on Capitol Hill he was once again the only person there in a wheelchair. There was no handicap parking, there were steps everywhere, and the bathrooms were not accessible.

In 1962 Gallagher began his life's work, the search for equal access and equal rights for disabled persons, when he joined the staff of Alaska's powerful, popular and supportive Senator Bob Bartlett (D. Alaska), a member of the Appropriations Committee. The Senator authorized him to work on disability issues and agreed to support this work. Gallagher drafted the Federal Architectural Barriers Act of 1968, the first legislation anywhere to treat equal access of disabled people as a civil right, and the precursor to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

One is thrilled by the account of the political maneuvering, and the political blackmail engineered by Gallagher and the ever-willing Bartlett in the Johnson years to achieve accessibility to the Library of Congress, the National Gallery of Art, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, federally funded hospitals across America, and many more sites.

On Bartlett's death in 1968 Gallagher went to work for British Petroleum, Ltd., where he acted for five years as that Company's chief political officer in London and Washington. The discovery of vast oil reserves by BP on its Alaska holdings made it the holder of the largest crude reserves in America. Gallagher tells us he was playing with the "Big Boys."

On the 4th of July weekend, 1974, Gallagher left his office and never returned. He was in total mental and physical collapse and spent the rest of the decade recovering from his clinical depression. It had begun two years earlier at his 40th birthday party when he realized that "youth was past." He had been frozen with fear as he felt a giant black buzzard flapping its wings high above him. The experience was repeated in a few months. He continued working until he could no longer do so, filled with dread and unable to go out.

"The great black buzzard sat heavy on my shoulder. It would not go away." " ...the pain of acute paralytic polio in no degree equaled the agony and despair, the abject helplessness of depression." This period of Gallagher's life ended after a long and successful course of psychiatry and psychoanalysis.

Gallagher has long since assumed center stage in the Third Act of this heroic human drama, writing (FDR's Splendid Deception), traveling, speaking, and advocating nationally for the rights of the disabled. A must read.

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Born to Fly: How to Discover & Encourage Your Child's Natural Gifts
Thom Black
Manufacturer: Academie Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0310402832

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