Paula Deen's Kitchen Classics: The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook and The Lady & Sons, Too!
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Southern delights
  • My wife loves it.
  • Just wonderful with a stick of butter!
  • Paula is so entertaining....
  • Great Book
Paula Deen's Kitchen Classics: The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook and The Lady & Sons, Too!
Paula Deen
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

GeneralGeneral | Cooking, Food & Wine | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1400064554
Release Date: 2005-10-11

Book Description

As owner and proprietor of The Lady & Sons restaurant in Savannah, Paula Deen is one of the South’s most celebrated chefs. Now two of her cherished culinary classics–The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook and The Lady & Sons, Too!–have been combined into one delicious volume, available in hardcover for the first time.

As a special treat, Paula Deen’s Kitchen Classics includes candid photos from Paula’s recent wedding, as well as scrumptious new dishes from the reception, tasty creations that have never appeared in any of her other books.

Here are hundreds of mouthwatering, easy-to-follow recipes. For appetizers, soups, and salads, whip up some Georgia Spiced Pecans, Mini Onion Quiches, She Crab Soup, and Gingersnap Pear Salad. The delectable main courses will be the hit of any family supper, Sunday picnic, or dinner party. Who can resist Beaufort Shrimp Pie, The Lady’s Oven-Roasted Ribs, Ron’s Grilled Peanut Butter Ham, or Hot Savannah Chicken Salad Casserole?

Enhance any meal with heavenly side dishes like Crunchy New Potatoes, Collard Greens, and, of course, Fried Green Tomatoes. And what meal is complete without sinful desserts–from Mississippi Mud Cake and Cherry Cream Cheese Pie to Sliced Nut Cookies and Butterscotch Delight? Is your stomach growling yet?

Seasoned with Paula’s practical kitchen hints and her friendly, no-nonsense observations, Paula Deen’s Kitchen Classics is the perfect gift for experienced cooks, budding chefs, and anyone who loves comfort food.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Southern delights.......2007-09-20

Paula makes cooking easy and fun. Let's face it folks........this is NOT Cordon Bleu! The recipes are very good and makes use of plenty of 'helper' ingredients like canned cream style soups, cake mixes and self rising flour. Boy, does she ever use lots of butter!! It is a book I'll use often cuz it makes sense in our busy lives. The 'helper' ingredients were a surprise but so sensible. Plus, you get two of her books in one binding.

5 out of 5 stars My wife loves it........2007-09-14

My wife is addicted to the Food Network, and her favorite hostess/chef is Paula Deen. I bought her this book for her birthday, and she proceeded to read it like a novel. She quickly picked out her favorite recipes and made a shopping list right away. She hasn't told me when I get a taste of the new recipes, but I can't wait.

5 out of 5 stars Just wonderful with a stick of butter!.......2007-07-05

I started watching Paula Deen and like so many folks just thought she was wonderful. Her Food Network Chefography was great and showed she had an idea and a need and went for it. I purchased these book for my cooking challenged cousin as I had tried a couple of her recipies and they were fabulous, just no way of messing up. I just recently tried her Red Velvet cake for a cousin and he was thrilled. What really made me look at her books was a friend who baked Paula's sour cream pound cake with caramel topping, this was wonderful!!! As a cake baker, myself, I really don't eat a lot of cake but I'm always willing to have a slice especially if I didn't have to bake it, THIS CAKE WAS WONDERFUL! I had a couple of slices!!! I went to library and got all of her books that I could find and now I am going to buy a couple of them for myself! I unfortunately did not like the format for her friends cookbook and would rather just watch Paula's Party then read it but the recipies are still great. I hope you'll enjoy her TV shows and books too! and keep a stick of butter handy.

5 out of 5 stars Paula is so entertaining...........2007-05-14

Along with those decadent recipies, Paula is so funny and entertaining. Recipies are easy to follow....tasty and an eye pleaser. Enjoy using the book on a regular basis....favorite recipie....Shrimp stuffed wrapped with bacon....Delicious!!!!

4 out of 5 stars Great Book.......2007-05-13

Its a good Book but not what we thought it would be. But worth the money.
A Man Without a Country
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Vonnegut at the end
  • Beautiful
  • A banal book from a great writer
  • Not Kurt's best
  • A Few Last Jabs . . .
A Man Without a Country
Kurt Vonnegut
Manufacturer: Random House Trade Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 081297736X
Release Date: 2007-01-16

Book Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“[This] may be as close as Vonnegut ever comes to a memoir.”
–Los Angeles Times

“Like [that of] his literary ancestor Mark Twain, [Kurt Vonnegut’s] crankiness is good-humored and sharp-witted. . . . [Reading A Man Without a Country is] like sitting down on the couch for a long chat with an old friend.”
–The New York Times Book Review

In a volume that is penetrating, introspective, incisive, and laugh-out-loud funny, one of the great men of letters of this age–or any age–holds forth on life, art, sex, politics, and the state of America’s soul. From his coming of age in America, to his formative war experiences, to his life as an artist, this is Vonnegut doing what he does best: Being himself. Whimsically illustrated by the author, A Man Without a Country is intimate, tender, and brimming with the scope of Kurt Vonnegut’s passions.

“For all those who have lived with Vonnegut in their imaginations . . . this is what he is like in person.”
–USA Today

“Filled with [Vonnegut’s] usual contradictory mix of joy and sorrow, hope and despair, humor and gravity.”
–Chicago Tribune

“Fans will linger on every word . . . as once again [Vonnegut] captures the complexity of the human condition with stunning calligraphic simplicity.”
–The Australian

“Thank God, Kurt Vonnegut has broken his promise that he will never write another book. In this wondrous assemblage of mini-memoirs, we discover his family’s legacy and his obstinate, unfashionable humanism.”
–Studs Terkel

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Vonnegut at the end.......2007-09-27

It occurred to me while reading "A Man Without a Country", Kurt Vonnegut's last offering, that we all have it in us to write a comparable book regarding our own lives. However, few of us could write in the style of Vonnegut, and his short but pointed book is well worth the hour or so it takes to read.

"A Man Without a Country" blends humor, fact, sarcasm, wit and a lifetime of observation. It is Andy Rooney, Garrison Keillor and George Carlin wrapped into a small package of good writing, Vonnegut-style, of course. Age brings perspective and with that Vonnegut has plenty on which to comment. As one who survived the bombing of Dresden in 1945, the author has an earned platform to speak about war and he does so quite often in this book. But it's his humor, often black but always funny, that propels things along. Vonnegut, a humanist, addressed a group of fellow humanists upon the death of Isaac Asimov. He told the assemblage, "Isaac is up in heaven now". Vonnegut goes on to say, "it was the funniest thing I could have said to an audience of humanists. I rolled them in the aisles. It was several minutes before order could be restored." Lines like that give a warmth to the book, yet he saves his best line for "W". Vonnegut says, "...do you know why I think George W. Bush is so pissed off at Arabs? They brought us algebra". With that comment I had to take a minute or so away from the book to wipe the tears from my eyes.

I highly recommend "A Man Without a Country" for its appealing nature and visionary comment. Kurt Vonnegut departed this life with just the right things left to say. I could add that "Kurt is up in heaven now", but I wouldn't want to get my fellow humanists going. The book is a pleasure.

5 out of 5 stars Beautiful.......2007-09-06

A conversation with America's greatest writer about the same things everyone in the country had had on their minds that year, this work by the late Kurt Vonnegut was just what I was waiting for and it delivered a kind of comedy and editorial that people all over the country were holding just on the tips of their tongues. Vonnegut is suing PALL MALL cigarettes for keeping him alive in a time when the three most powerful people in the world are named Dick Bush and Colin. He puts himself out there and tells the truth like he always did.

peaCE,

Jacques Paisner, Author of Albuquerque Blues

2 out of 5 stars A banal book from a great writer.......2007-08-14

Another Amazon reviewer, commenting on Vonnegut's "Breakfast of Champions", wrote (quote) "You know that anything goes once you pick up a work by the zany and terrific Kurt Vonnegut. The man knows how to dish up satire like none other. He'll spew out his complaints about the government, the world, people, etc., and instead of making it sound like a bunch of inane ranting he uses all of that to create a crazy world filled with outrageous characters and situations."

Very nicely said. It is too bad that, at some point, Vonnegut did decide to write up "a bunch of inane ranting", which he then condensed into this booklet. I do love the two books of Vonnegut I have read, and I do think that there is much to be ranted about the government, the world etc etc, but the rants in this book are not mush more valuable than mine or yours, or those of a random guy you hear ranting on your way home on the subway.

It is unfortunate that sometimes great artists feel compelled to stray into areas which are not their own. Even sadder than their beliefs and views end up being listened to just because they come from someone accomplished in something. Unfortunately, being a great writer (and I do think he is), or a great actor or director, does not necessarily make you a very deep political thinker.

To feed any "anti-establishment" feelings, give me any day one of the outstanding investigative reporters out there. There is way too much well documented, well written, honest anti-establishment work out there (Seymour Hersh's "Chain of Command", just to mention one example) to waste time on this sort of booklet. I received it as a gift, and I gave up after a few pages, because I was really getting nothing out of it. Booklets like this one, in my opinion, do more harm than good to the ideas they want to represent.

2 out of 5 stars Not Kurt's best.......2007-08-08

Vonnegut is one of my favorite authors, and I really wanted to read some new material and get his take on the present. We're at a major crossroads in history where a new paradigm is emerging. And yet, there seems few author's worth reading anymore -- not like the Vonnegut's who gave us new and interesting perspectives on decades' past.

Unfortunately, his views on the present are tired and cliche. I almost wish I didn't read this book as it diminishes my respect for the author.

Example: he wrote something about a child being better off in an enlightened country, not the US, which had universal health care and better schools. He blames conservatives/republicans. I felt like throwing the book away! Forget politics (if possible). This is tripe. I thought aloud... we spend a _fortune_ on education and healthcare. The new perspective I was hoping for? ... Euro-socialism I suppose.

What I'm saying is, I didn't want to read tired old left-right, conservative-liberal gibberish. I was hoping for some FRESH ideas from an original, free thinker. I was looking for a new paradigm -- not liberal-lite, shallowness.

5 out of 5 stars A Few Last Jabs . . . .......2007-07-27

Kurt, Kurt, Kurt . . . A few last jabs before you went down for the count. No, this can't be compared to his earlier novels, or his later novels. It is not meant to be---it is a memoir of sorts---his last parting thoughts on the way things are. A Man Without A Country is a concise, simple little ditty, with a few quick jabs to once again jolt the minds of the choir. Like Mark Twain before him, life just plain got to him. I know the feeling. At 57, I am feeling much the same way. After spending some hard-time on earth, dealing with the workings of this world and man's never changing habits, any thinking, caring person would have to throw their hands in the air and say, "When will we ever learn!" And it seems, from Twain's time on---and from way before---back to the first primates to utter a sound and drop from the trees in search of something to kill, man hasn't changed a spit. A Man Without A Country is a dang good little book, and an enjoyable read from a man who will be sorely missed. Hi Ho! Mr. Vonnegut, Hi Ho!

Bewick Cory
Cry, the Beloved Country (Oprah's Book Club)
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • South Africa - 60 Years Past
  • So Glad I Discovered This Book!
  • Great Simplicity; Great Depth; Remarkable Humanity
  • Masterpiece of Prose
  • Cry the Beloved
Cry, the Beloved Country (Oprah's Book Club)
Alan Paton
Manufacturer: Scribner
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0743262174
Release Date: 2003-09-29

Book Description

Cry, the Beloved Country is a beautifully told and profoundly compassionate story of the Zulu pastor Stephen Kumalo and his son Absalom, set in the troubled and changing South Africa of the 1940s. The book is written with such keen empathy and understanding that to read it is to share fully in the gravity of the characters' situations. It both touches your heart deeply and inspires a renewed faith in the dignity of mankind. Cry, the Beloved Country is a classic tale, passionately African, timeless and universal, and beyond all, selfless.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars South Africa - 60 Years Past.......2007-09-01

Although this book is about 60 years old I just read it for the 1st time. It is a keeper and a treasure. It is a book that you will want to revisit often at least for awhile. I find the book to be filled with spiritual messages. You will see the making of aparthaid long before it was abolished. The story itself is quite suspenseful and Paton's writing style is unique. I like it.

5 out of 5 stars So Glad I Discovered This Book!.......2007-07-26

The story of one man's quest to find his son and to seek forgiveness. I had never heard of this book prior to the 1001 Books To Read list (it had not been required reading in high school), and I am sorry I didn't read earlier. This book is one of the most memorable books I've ever read, and I know I will look forward to re-reading it again one day.

I understand some here have not taken kindly to Mr. Paton's writing style, but I found it engaging and very easy to read. His descriptive style, for me, was far from boring and kept me involved in the story to the point where I could envision all that was happening. For me, his words just flowed so evenly.

The story may be a little dated for today's politics being as the novel was written in 1946; however, it provides a thought-provoking point of view of the beginnings of apartheid in South Africa. The issues are complex, and the answers are not always easy or simple, but the effect on people is amazing and long-lasting. Mr. Paton describes how every facet of life is touched through this horrible policy. The dilemma of complexity is driven home when the stories of two men, Kumalo and Jarvis - one black, the other white - come together. Sympathies for both men are strong and the reader can find their hearts wrenched at what happens simply because that's the way it is done.

Well done and thoroughly enjoyed!

5 out of 5 stars Great Simplicity; Great Depth; Remarkable Humanity.......2007-07-11

Many friends recommended CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY to me over the years, but it was not until May of this year that the book came my way in the form a gift. I picked it up one evening and--much to my own amazement--read it in a single sitting. Yes, it really is that good.

Published in 1948, the book tells a simple story. Zulu-born Stephen Kumalo is the elderly Christian priest of a tiny church who has seldom set foot outside his rural South Africa village; he is both uncertain and frightened when he summoned to Johannesburg to attend his sister, who is in great crisis. Once in the city, however, he determines to locate his son Absalom, who also lives in Johannesburg and from whom he has received no news for quite some time. Kumalo conducts his search with a mounting sense of despair--and ultimately finds himself in the midst of both personal tragedy and public scandal.

Although the story is grim, the novel itself is not. Alan Payton (1903-1988) wrote several novels, but CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY is best-known and most widely read work, and much of its power rests on the remarkable way in which he styles his prose: it possesses a shining simplicity that not only seems to capture the vocal cadence of South Africa but also allows the reader to see through the novel's several levels with a remarkable sense of clarity.

Much of the novel's power resides in its portrait of South Africa in this particular era. The word "apartheid" had not attained its full implication in 1948, but Paton not only identifies the almost accidental seeds of apartheid, he forecasts the ultimate result as well. Paton also endows the novel with a very clear idea of what Christianity should be in actual practice as opposed to what it too often is in actual fact, and although the story is indeed dark, the humanity involved is such that one never feels the darkness cannot be dispelled.

The older I become, the less inclined I am to keep books; these days I read them and give them away, and new permanent additions to my library are rare. But CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY is a keeper, a book I've no doubt I'll return to again and again.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer
With Thanks to Kate, Whose Gift This Book Was

5 out of 5 stars Masterpiece of Prose.......2007-06-13

I didn't think I would like this book. I have never seen a writing style like this, so it was a little strange to start. However, I quickly changed my mind. It was a wonderful book that is uplifting and thought-provoking. I cried at the end of it because the story was so beautiful. This is a must read.

4 out of 5 stars Cry the Beloved.......2007-05-15

Alan Paton's Cry the Beloved Country is an eye opening look into 1940's South Africa. The main character pastor Stephen Kumalo tries to save his family from the trap that is the city of Johannesburg. Once in Johannesburg Kumalo quickly realizes hard life is in the white dominated society and how easy it is to fall into the trap. The book does start off a bit slow but by the middle it will have you sucked in. Paton vividly shows how crupt people can be but also shows how good hearted people can be. If you are looking for a book with emotion and life lessons this is a must read.
The Story of Little Black Sambo
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • little black sambo
  • Review of book purchase.
  • Important historically, but not delightful
  • Rembering the good old days
  • Noteworthy Because of its historical context
The Story of Little Black Sambo

Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0397300069

Book Description

The jolly and exciting tale of the little boy who lost his red coat and his blue trousers and his purple shoes but who was saved from the tigers to eat 169 pancakes for his supper, has been universally loved by generations of children. First written in 1899, the story has become a childhood classic and the authorized American edition with the original drawings by the author has sold hundreds of thousands of copies.

Little Black Sambo is a book that speaks the common language of all nations, and has added more to the joy of little children than perhaps any other story. They love to hear it again and again; to read it to themselves; to act it out in their play.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars little black sambo.......2007-09-16

check book dimensions. I was surprised at the size. My mother read this book as a child and has always wanted a copy. I knew of the controversy but had never seen the book myself. After buying it I was eager to see what the fuss was about. I don't get! Apparently it is the pictures which were not done buy a professional(in 1899). As for the name sambo, it was turned into a slur by some bigot and probably would have happened with any name chosen. I'm sure many will be offended when I say "get over it" you brought more attention to this "offense" than it ever would have gotten otherwise. EVERYONE has had an unflattering portrayal at sometime. Let it go. I thought it was a cute story.

5 out of 5 stars Review of book purchase........2007-09-10

I was very pleased with my purchase - prompt and efficient service, reasonable price. I was a little surprised that the book was "mini" size and wished that had been indicated; but I liked it nevertheless. I would definitely purchase again.

1 out of 5 stars Important historically, but not delightful.......2007-04-26

To me, it is not a matter of being offended or not. But if you can read this without any discomfort you need to review your history. Of course kids can like it, but they like throwing rocks at ducks too. What is disturbing to me is how anyone can be nostalgic for a colonial past. Sambo is very lovable, but that is the point. It paid to maintain that the 'primitive' races were childlike, endearingly innocent. This idea of a paternalistic love actually supported Western dominance. They were the 'white man's burden,' permanently in childlike relation to the West, incapable of self rule or living in a modern world. In exchange for being guided to civilization, their natural resources could be had for the superior races. The childlike, innocent native is cut from the same cloth as the threatening cannibal, or the easily scared servant, or the lazy slave. All of these stories came out of that system of beliefs. This is not an Indian folk tale, however clever and tricky Sambo is. This is not, as one reviewer writes, "A loving attempt to reach across the racial divide." The historical record contradicts this reading. Read just a line or two from the official reports written by colonial administrators like Helen Bannerman's husband. This kind of nostalgia erases the history of colonial rule. Maintaining divisions between a ruling class (British) and a subaltern class (colonial subjects) was the whole point of colonialism, of which this tale is a product.You and your children may find this character cute and cuddly, but stop and think about that. So are puppies. It is quite possible to love your mammy or your servant, just as you love your dog. (The mother in this tale is a direct relation of Aunt Jemima and her pancake mix, introduced at the Chicago World's Fair just two years previously) Exactly WHO is nostalgic for this past? I understand how remembering black slaves and coolies as 'happy darkies' is a lot less painful than actually remembering the truth. This was not a simpler time but one in which brutal subordination of a people was sanctioned by the state. If you miss that 'simpler time' I hope you don't live next door to me. My children would not be safe.

5 out of 5 stars Rembering the good old days.......2007-03-09

My wife and I had this book when we were children. We are now in our late 60s.And often talked about this book. Didn't know we could still buy them. This was a great little book.Think every one should read this book. keep up the good work. Thanks

4 out of 5 stars Noteworthy Because of its historical context.......2007-03-05

I recall Little Black Sambo from my childhood as well. My Aunt worked as a domestic for a Jewish household and they would give her their children's discarded playthings to take to her nephews. Little Black Sambo was among the offerings. I remember reading with fascination the story of this child and I knew nothing at the time of its racist connotations. Unfortunately, despite the denial of some of the prior reviewers, it cannot be ignored that this book might be considered offensive to some. Just like the black lawn jockeys that were so popular at one time, and the Aunt Jemima pancake box before they took the bandana off of her head, these icons represent post cival rights era reality. I supppose some of you see nothing wrong with the Little Rascal character Farina with the rags tied in his head, or Buckweat either. I would not advocate banning any of the aforementioned symbols, because I think they should be cherished as a sign of just how far we've come. I have mammy salt and pepper shakers, cookie jars, etc., because as a Black man in America, I want to remember and cherish the past. If I find the version of this book I had as child in which Sambo was jet black with white eyes and huge red lips, I'd add it to my collection in a heartbeat!
Norton Anthology of Western Music: Volume 2: Classic to Twentieth Century
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • its a classic
  • history
Norton Anthology of Western Music: Volume 2: Classic to Twentieth Century

Manufacturer: W. W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0393925625

Book Description

The ideal companion to A History of Western Music, Seventh Edition, the two-volume Norton Anthology of Western Music, Fifth Edition, includes 172 historically significant scores, 71 of them new to this edition, with a strengthened emphasis on twentieth-century music. Revised and enlivened commentaries closely examine the scores to clarify their historical significance, and professional recordings of all works in the anthology are included on CDs, many in dynamic new performances.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars its a classic.......2007-03-13

this is vol 2 of the 2 classic texts for studying the history of european music. These are a must have for the serious student of music

4 out of 5 stars history.......2006-02-27

I had to buy this new volume for my last history class. I'm a tad bit pist that I had to spend so much but it is indeed alot better and more indept.
The Woman in White (Penguin Classics)
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • This detective novel is a classic--but it's also a lot of fun.
  • Wow! I just finished this book
  • The best of Victorian suspense
  • Totally gripping
  • Woman in White Book
The Woman in White (Penguin Classics)
Wilkie Collins , and Matthew Sweet
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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  5. I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman

ASIN: 0141439610
Release Date: 2003-04-29

Book Description

Edited with an Introduction and Notes by Matthew Sweet.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars This detective novel is a classic--but it's also a lot of fun........2007-09-17

I'll confess that I almost put The Woman in White down after the first fifty pages or so. It seemed obvious to me what would happen: a beautiful and delicate heiress falls in love with a poor drawing master, but is forced to renounce him for the evil nobleman who really only wants her money. Then, the intricate plotting (the story is related in the voices of different characters) drew me in and the plot turned out to be not quite so obvious, after all. Sure, you can read quickly past some of the verbose descriptions, Marion is too good to be true, and Collins does deal in stock figures when it comes to the "lower" classes. Despite these flaws, the mystery at the heart of the novel will keep you turning the pages. It's a wonderful diversion when you're too tired for more weighty reading matter and you'd like a detective story that's decidedly NOT contemporary. The portrait of the "invalid" uncle, Mr. Fairlie, is wickedly delicious, too. Have fun.

5 out of 5 stars Wow! I just finished this book.......2007-08-01

and I loved it. I couldn't put it down. It is a 19th century puzzle that is so well written and so much fun.

5 out of 5 stars The best of Victorian suspense.......2007-07-10

Collin's novel is the best example of Victorian mystery and suspense. Full of tangential story lines and detailed, lush descriptions of nineteenth-century England. A must-read for any student of literature and anyone interested in Victorian history and culture.

5 out of 5 stars Totally gripping.......2007-06-26

I have read this book several times and just reread it after many years. I don't understand those who think it hard to follow. If one pays attention the plot is easily understood. Too many people are used to being spoonfed and have trouble with Dickens and Collins because they demand attention.

This book is frightening and not in any supernatural way but because I wondered what I would do if I had been Laura or Anne, shut away in an asylum against my will. what would I do if I were trapped and unable to reach anyone to help me? It's this helplessness that is so frightening and the inability for the law to do anything without proof.

I highly recommend this book. And Marian Halcamb is a true heroine in a Victorian era, fighting back at injustice. These are characters you won't soon forget although Laura is very much in the Dickens mode: pretty, complaisant, mostly, and depending on others. A woman of her times.

5 out of 5 stars Woman in White Book.......2007-05-25

The book was in very good condition and arrived in a timely manner.
A Sand County Almanac
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars Indeed
  • A Breath of Fresh Air
  • A sublime experience, but not for everyone
  • The first of its kind, and still the best
  • Wonderful
A Sand County Almanac
Aldo Leopold
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0195007778

Book Description

First published in 1949 and praised in The New York Times Book Review as "a trenchant book, full of vigor and bite," A Sand County Almanac combines some of the finest nature writing since Thoreau with an outspoken and highly ethical regard for America's relationship to the land. Written with an unparalleled understanding of the ways of nature, the book includes a section on the monthly changes of the Wisconsin countryside; another part that gathers informal pieces written by Leopold over a forty-year period as he traveled through the woodlands of Wisconsin, Iowa, Arizona, Sonora, Oregon, Manitoba, and elsewhere; and a final section in which Leopold addresses the philosophical issues involved in wildlife conservation. As the forerunner of such important books as Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Edward Abbey's Desert Solitaire, and Robert Finch's The Primal Place, this classic work remains as relevant today as it was forty years ago.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars 5 Stars Indeed.......2007-08-20

I knew I would enjoy this book right from the start, when I found the following passages in the Foreward: "There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot..." and "For us of the minority, the opportunity to see geese is more important than television..."

If you can relate to those statements, you will love this book. Guaranteed. Aldo Leopold was a conservationist, but he was so much more. He was a visionary. Read those statements again, and when you realize that he wrote them back in 1948, you might be amazed. But as you read the book, you will come to understand how special he was. Facts or knowledge that we take for granted today (e.g., predators play an important role in a healthy ecosystem), Leopold was talking about them over 50 years ago. Time and again I found myself checking the copyright because I could not believe someone was actually thinking this way so long ago.

However, it's not just the ideas of Leopold that made him special. The way he wrote was special, too. His talent drew you in, even though he was writing about something that, by the sound of it, might be kind of dry. For example, in a section called "Good Oak," he connects the passage of years to the rings of a fallen tree that he is cutting for firewood. Starting with the 1940s he relates one environmental tidbit after another for decades or years: "Now our saw bites into the 1890s...when the last passenger pigeon collided with a charge of shot near Babcock." By the time Leopold is done cutting the fallen tree, the reader has received a fascinating and sobering account of what had transpired to the environment in the area of this oak tree for the previous 80 years. The way he used the backdrop of cutting the tree rings as "markers" of environmental mishaps was masterful. It is Leopold at his best, but fortunately, the book is full of writing like this.

It is divided into three sections. The first one follows a calendar year on his farm in Wisconsin, with Leopold relating little vignettes about chickadees, skunks, flowers, or whatever else he comes across. It is probably the most charming part of the book. Part two ("Sketches Here and There") contains short remembrances of Leopold's travels to different parts of North America. Unfortunately, the story usually has a "bad" ending - at least, for the environment or for a species (like the now-extinct passenger pigeon). But Leopold had a reason for that. He moves to part three, "The Upshot," where he spells out his ideas for saving the land and the wild things that live there. It is too much to discuss here, but Leopold again hits the mark. His goal was to try and change how Americans think about the use (and abuse) of our environment. Pehaps his biggest lament then, and mine now, is that not enough people care about what we are doing to the land.

That's why this book was published. The hope of this book was to change the hearts of the average American. It still is. Over fifty years later, it's still in print, and it's still relevant.

Five stars. Absolutely the best nature/environment book I've ever read.

5 out of 5 stars A Breath of Fresh Air.......2007-02-20

Life got you down? Live in a big city? Take a refreshing break and escape to the Wisconsin countryside in this beautifully written little book about the land and the plants and animals that live and grow there. Aldo Leopold's writing is more compelling than John Muir's,and more knowledgeable than Thoreau's. In a series of short sketches you follow the cycle of the land from January to December. Along the way you learn about history, meet amazing plants and animals, and experience the drama of both the destruction and the rebirth of our land.

5 out of 5 stars A sublime experience, but not for everyone.......2004-12-21

I keep this book on my nightstand and read an essay or two after my pj's are on and before going to bed. My bookmark is a pencil for making notes in the margin when particularly wonderful passages are encountered. The margins are very full.

Aldo opens our eyes to worlds in our own backyards which have always existed but which have remained undiscovered due to our own dull-sightedness. I considered myself an avid nature-watcher, but the extent to which Mr. Leopold carries this hobby is humbling. He inspires any true fan to learn the names and habits of every tree, shrub, weed, thistle, bird, insect, and critter native to one's home county, and to hone one's journaling skills and master the talent of imagery and metaphor.

But, this book is not for everyone. I've read favorite passages to friends only to watch their eyes glaze with disinterest. If you're the outgoing, life-of-the-party, must-always-be the-center-of-attention type, then perhaps The DaVinci Code would be of interest. But if you enjoy solitary walks in the woods, canoe paddles on distant foggy lakes, or reading prose with your pj's on, then this is required reading.

5 out of 5 stars The first of its kind, and still the best.......2004-09-05

"Thus always does history, whether of marsh or market place, end in paradox. The ultimate value in these marshes is wildness, and the crane is wildness incarnate. But all conservation of wildness is self-defeating, for to cherish we must see and fondle, and when enough have seen and fondled, there is no wilderness left to cherish." (from "Marshland Elegy")

"It must be poor life that achieves freedom from fear." This, from reflections on being caught on horseback during a lightning storm, is a comment on the "civilized" mindset that wanted all to be safe, and so feared and destroyed wildness.

These essays were written mostly in the 1940's, although some of them are about earlier times in the author's life. In a way, reading Aldo Leopold is like watching Humphrey Bogart in those old movies, with his smoking and tough-guy sexism. We understand these as disreputable today, but can put them in context. Likewise, Aldo Leopold was in many ways a typical countryman of his time and place. He loved to hunt and fish, and even reflexively shot wolves, like everyone else. He came to regret that, and in fact to realize that in the new era, where hunting and fishing have become mass recreations, that the old ways just don't work anymore. But they did in his day, and he does not retrospectively apologize for having been, in a sense, just another predator.

But he was also a college professor, and an expert naturalist and ecologist. In this book he is a poetic writer about nature and a loving reporter of all things wild. No matter where I lived I would love this book, but having lived not too far from his sand counties and walked his restored prairies makes it the sweeter.

5 out of 5 stars Wonderful.......2004-03-25

Read Walden, then read Sand County Almanac. They might just change the way you think about the world.
The Oxford Companion to English Literature
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • A handy if heavy friend!
  • A worthy companion
  • A (Very Historical) Companion to English Literature
  • very good refrence
  • very good refrence
The Oxford Companion to English Literature

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0198662440

Book Description

Based on the text of Margaret Drabble's 1995 edition, this sixth edition has been completely reworked and expanded. There are nearly 600 entirely new entries to reflect the new figures and issues of English Literature in the new millennium, and the existing entries have been extensively revised and updated to incorporate the latest scholarship. But this new edition remains faithful to Sir Paul Harvey's original vision of an authoritative work placing English literature from the Classical world, Europe, Latin America, and beyond. In addition to the extensive coverage of writers, works, literary theory, allusions, and characters, there are sixteen featured essay-style entries on key topics including black British literature, fantasy fiction, and modernism.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A handy if heavy friend!.......2005-02-17

A wonderful resource and superbly edited by Ms Drabble to not only meet the founding principles of this work (which first appeared in the 1930's) but also to consider the ever changing parimeters of what good and great literature is, a highly subjective notion at best.
The title almost does not do this work justice, it bestows it with a crusty old British acaedemic image. You almost imagine having to blow the dust off it before you can begin! But it is so much more rich and diverse than this and should not be avoided by those made nervous by it's title; it is not the untouchable work it sounds like it may be.
If literature is a love of yours, whether by author or genre, then you will find this brilliantly informative. Don't be put off by this being such an enormous book, it needs to be, it will become a dear and chubby friend in no time!

5 out of 5 stars A worthy companion.......2003-07-11

The first 'Oxford Companion to English Literature' was published in 1932 under the editorial direction of Sir Paul Harvey (no relation the American radio commentator). Half a century and five editions later, this is still a standard, authoritative reference work necessary for scholars and interested non-experts alike.

Under the editorship of Margaret Drabble, author and biographer (known for 'The Witch of Exmoor' and the more recently published 'The Peppered Moth'), this volume remains faithful to Harvey's intention of placing English literature in its widest possible context while exploring the deep classical and continental connections that underpin much of the history.

How can literature be divorced from cultural context? Surely it cannot be -- hence the newest entries into the edition include topics that read as if they were taken from today's best-seller shelf:

- Anglo-Indian Literature
- Simon Armitage
- Kate Atkinson
- Louis de Bernieres
- Censorship

- Ben Elton
- Gay and lesbian literature
- Hypertext
- A. L. Kennedy
- Lad's literature
- Literature of science
- New Criticism
- New Irish Playwrights
- Carol Shields
- Travel writing

This sample listing of the latest entries is representative of the more established categories, in that the entries (encyclopedic in character) include Authors, Subjects, Titles, Events, Characters and Critical Theory. The entries are unsigned (an ever-controversial practice in reference works such as this) -- well over a hundred contributors assisted in this volume, including the likes of Matthew Sweet, Salman Rushdie, Ceridwen Lloyd-Morgan, Katherine Duncan-Jones, and Brian Vickers.

This volume serves the general reader well in that one may follow cross-reference trails through the text. Take, for instance, Aaron the Moor -- the reader will be directed to Titus Andronicus, to which one is directed to Shakespeare, and from there a host of other cross-references historical and modern. Under the entry of Gabriel Josipovici, one is led back the entries of Rabelais and Bellow, influences as well as objects of Josipovici's study.

The appendices are new features of this edition. The first appendix is a Chronology that lists the chronology of the production of English literature from c.1000 to 1999 side by side with major historical events in Britain and beyond, and the significant events in the lives of literary figures. Appendix 2 lists the Poets Laureate in chronological order, from 1619 (when the office unofficially began) to the present -- surprisingly, there have only been 21 (19 official). Appendix 3 lists major literary award winners: Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Library Association Carnegie Medalists, and Booker-McConnell Prize for Fiction. Obviously not all of these are British authors, but it helps to place British literature in the wider world context of the twentieth century (as all of these prizes are twentieth-century creations).

In addition to the encyclopedic entries, there are major essays scattered through the text. These include the following topics:

- Biography
- Black British Literature
- Children's Literature
- Detective Fiction
- Fantasy Fiction
- Ghost Stories
- Gothic Fiction
- Historical Fiction
- Metre
- Modernism
- Post-Colonial Literature
- Romanticism
- Science Fiction
- Spy Fiction
- Structuralism and Post-Structuralism

These essays include history and current development of the genre or topic, as well as bibliographic information for further research, which (regrettably) the smaller encyclopedic entries rarely have.

This is a terrific, one-volume reference that should serve well anyone with a need for quick and ready reference material. It should find a welcome home on the shelf of any avid reader, fan of literature and modern fiction, history, religion, or any devoted Anglophile.

2 out of 5 stars A (Very Historical) Companion to English Literature.......2003-01-22

Disliking an Oxford Press book makes me feel like a heretic. The majority of their Companion books are superb, remarkably concise yet thorough works of scholarship. The English Companion is an unfortunate and surprising exception.

The entry for 'New Criticism' is an efficient example of the book's shortcomings. For one thing, there's a laundry list of authors, dates, and books but very little is said of the IDEAS that characterize New Criticism. The entries are generally hamstringed by a focus on the sociopolitical and historical aspects of writers and works. The effort is laudable but inappropriate and uneconomical for a reference work. In its most extreme form, the historical emphasis goes into bizarre detail about an author's upbringing -- is it really necessary that we know where an author went to grade school and when? Entries love to entertain tales of writers' deaths and and of their insignificant travellings. I often felt as though I were reading minibiographies.

One will also notice, in the case of 'New Criticism', the absence of any mention of the 'organic'. This is ridiculous and indicative of the book's lack of attention to concepts as such. There is a non-cross-referenced mention of 'organic' under Coleridge, yet even there it is only mentioned as one of his ideas, not in terms of what the theory tried to say. I would compare it to someone's asking, 'What does X mean?' This book's reply: 'X was one of so-and-so's ideas'. Too often, the response ends there. Literary theory entries are usually on the thin side, though the deconstruction essay is solid. However, even in the longest lit theory essays there is more of an emphasis on people and movements -- far less on ideas.

Along with the lack of depth (or conceptual emphasis), there's little sense of the overall significance of ideas, works or characters (ironic given the attempts at a social-historical approach): Caliban is mentioned in the Tempest entry, and even gets his own paragraph elsewhere, but there's nothing about his character as it's been re-elaborated and re-invented by a long tradition of English writers (Auden, Browning, Joyce, and Wilde for starters). There's nothing about Caliban's portrayal in that tradition, nor mention of Caliban's mirror, etc. Under 'hubris' (which is found, in turn, under a terse account of 'the Poetics'), there's nothing about Icarus, nor is there anything about hubris as a specific theme in so many works.

Speaking of hubris, it's baffling to me that Drabble's entry is longer than either Hill's or Heaney's. The general editor would have been better off focusing more of her energy on other writers: that expansive babbling space could have been put to stronger use had a more thorough background been given on either of those poets, among others.

Readers seeking to understand why an author alludes in his work to a character or poet will be little helped by nebulous terms like 'icily poised' or 'sensuously textured', which are more suggestive of gastronomic, rather than literary, criticism. To my mind a reference's primary function should be to offer a quick source of the 'essentials' of a book or of a writer's ideas, an understanding of which would illuminate one's reading of the alluding work. While I appreciate that entries shy away from 'this or that' critiques or strict (canonical) interpretations, giving lists of facts does an injustice to the works themselves and to the way these works have been interpreted by others. (Believe it or not, people CAN come to their own conclusions even after being introduced to an opinion.)

The book's scope is appropriate to literature, as literature tends to allude to so many disparate disciplines. But if one were truly trying to give an encyclopedic account of literature, the book would have to be much bigger. In this case, specialization suffers. I would have preferred a much more focused account of 'literature' as such; I'd then supplement this with other references focused, for example, on English history. One gets the sense that too many entries end up attenuated in this book.

On the positive side the plot summaries are strong and more nuanced, though many entries are badly written (full of odd, obscuring, convoluted syntax). Again, good editorship would have recognized this.

The book primarily succeeds as an enervated survey. Nevertheless, readers will occasionally happen upon some interesting, well-summarized topics.

I'm going to check out the Cambridgean counterpart to the Oxford Companion, and I'm hoping it will give a more in-depth account of ideas and themes. The other Oxford Companions are, however, truly amazing works and deserve a close look.

3 out of 5 stars very good refrence.......1999-09-08

An excellent resource of information about English works of art

3 out of 5 stars very good refrence.......1999-09-08

An excellent resource of information about English works of art
Mary Emmerling's American Country Classics: The New American Country Look
Average customer rating: Not rated
    Mary Emmerling's American Country Classics: The New American Country Look
    Mary Emmerling
    Manufacturer: Clarkson Potter
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Hardcover

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    ASIN: 0517571684
    Release Date: 1990-09-16

    Book Description

    Mary Emmerling takes a fresh look at American Country decorating, showing classic examples of the style in updated, sophisticated, and eclectic settings for the 1990s. 400 full-color photographs.
    Town & Country's Social Graces
    Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
    • Entertaining, delightful, instructive, and clever
    • Do you take this woman to be.....RING...RING....
    Town & Country's Social Graces
    Chesley McLaren
    Manufacturer: Hearst
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    Binding: Hardcover

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    ASIN: 1588160807

    Book Description

    “Will enrich your spirit while providing a few gentle laughs and thought provoking insights.” —Houston Chronicle. “Fifty-four esssays by some of the sharpest social observers around address everything from modern technologies to guilt-free apologies.”—Gifts and Decorative Accessories.

    Customer Reviews:

    5 out of 5 stars Entertaining, delightful, instructive, and clever.......2005-11-18

    A wonderful collaboration by a group of talented men and women that would make an excellent gift for most everyone. I will begin this review with notes on the introduction and all nine chapters and bring it to a conclusion with a bit of fanatical gushing.

    The introduction of `Town & Country's Social Graces' is a cleverly written and well thought out piece written by the Editor in Chief of the magazine, Pamela Fiori. It first details why the Social Graces department was created in 1995. Then it goes on to describe some of the subjects that the article addresses. For example, some of the issues faced were about the "flagrant use of cell phones in public by people who simply cannot keep their business to themselves" and "the arrogance of certain individuals who, once in the driver's seat (literally), believe they have `The Right of Way'". It is clear by this introduction alone that the essays that fill this book are abundant with intelligence, wit, and acuity.

    Chapter one comprises eight essays that focus on the subject of `Modern Times'. The first essay, `Privacy... or What's Left of It' by Jay McInerney, is about just what the title leads you to believe, privacy or lack thereof. It's told with a sense of humour but don't let the jokes fool you into thinking that the author isn't serious about humans' dwindling respect for privacy, both their own and others'. The fifth essay, `The Sound and My Fury' by William Norwich is perhaps my favourite out of the chapter because I can relate to it so well. It's about how rudely people can react when politely asked to speak more quietly when out in public, to silence their dog's incessant barking, or to take a break from playing a loud instrument in the next apartment over. A few other interesting essays that can be found in this chapter are `On Accountability', `The Etiquette of E-Mail', and `Smugly American'.

    Chapter two comprises five essays written about how `Little Things Mean A Lot'. The very first essay in this chapter, `On Being a Gentleman' by David Brown, was my personal favourite. The author not only gave examples of true gentlemen and what made them so worthy of the title, but he also included a list of rules to live by. If more people were able to find it in themselves to follow at least one, two, or, even better, three of these rules on a daily basis their good attitudes would spread out like the rippling effect caused by a stone tossed into a body of water. Just imagine the possibilities. A couple other interesting chapters are `Respecting Our Elders' and `Say "Thank You"'.

    Chapter three comprises seven essays written on the subject of `Family Affairs'. My favourite essay in the chapter is `Missing the Point' by Patricia Beard, which is about how adults should treat children with the same courtesy they would treat their spouse or friends. Other interesting essays are `Nagging Habits', `A Single Parent's Say', and `With All Due Respect', the latter of which concerns those irritating, though well-meaning, questions about an unborn baby to an expecting mother.

    Chapter four comprises six essays written on the subject of `A Word's Worth'. The essay in this chapter that stood out most to me is `Put It in Writing' by the author of the book `The Writer's Rules', Helen Gurley Brown. The essay was about how letters, whether typed on a computer or typewriter, or handwritten will brighten somebody's day, especially if they're unexpected and much deserved. A list of clever ideas can be found to give the reader some examples of how to write a good letter, such as "short is usually better than long", "write the thank-you now", and "give a little extra thought to writing a letter expressing your anger". A couple other interesting essays are `Just Say You're Sorry' and `In Memoriam', the latter of which is about the proper etiquette that should be shown when giving eulogies and having a memorial service for a deceased loved one.

    Chapter five, `Honour Thy Neighbour', comprises six essays. In this chapter, the essay that most stood out to me was `The Boor of the Grease Paint' by Wendy Wasserstein. The essay was about how carelessly disruptive people can be in theatres or, in some cases, just be plain rude to those around them. Anyone who has ever been forced to sit through a ballet, play, movie, etcetera, surrounded by people coughing, engaged in conversations on cell phones, or unwrapping candy, will appreciate this particular essay. Other essays that stood out in this chapter are `Cellular Phonies' and `Don't Waste Time'.

    Chapter six comprises seven essays written about `A Touch of Tolerance'. A great essay to mention here is `Straight from the Heart' by Lauren Picker, which was about people's reactions to people who are different, such as a little girl with a hand that had not fully developed in utero and a woman who used a wheelchair. This essay did a remarkable job of pointing out that "minding your language has always been a sign of respect" and "just because a person requires a wheelchair doesn't mean her life is lacking in richness or meaning". Other insightful and thought-provoking essays are `Sobering Thoughts', `Political Stomping', and `The Measure of a Woman'.

    Chapter seven comprises six essays on the subject of being the `Life of the Party'. One of the more interesting essays in this chapter is `Utterly Shameless' by Letitia Baldrige. Its focus is on how "a rude person is often careless and unthinking but is usually too fast-moving to realise just how much she or he has offended others" whereas shameless people "often know full well when they're doing something mean-spirited or overly self-serving". Other distinctive essays are `Speak Easy' and `Please Don't Interrupt'.

    Chapter eight, `They Also Serve', comprises five essays. The essay I found the most interesting is `Give Me the Civil Life' by Anne Taylor Flaming. It was about the decline of consideration and kindness people show those who service them on a daily basis, such as cashiers at grocery stores, waiters in restaurants, and so on. Other interesting essays are `A View from the Fridge' and `The Forgotten Groom'.

    The final chapter, chapter nine comprises four essays written on the subject of `What Grace Does'. The essay that most impressed me from this chapter is `When Daddy Was King' by Frank Langella, which was about the relationship between a father and his daughter. I found it to be very touching, and I appreciated it even more as a daughter who never had a father.

    Although the advice in this book is presented in a good-humoured manner that doesn't mean it shouldn't be taken seriously. These simple rules of etiquette are displayed in an amusing way that hopefully opens your eyes to your everyday, easily correctable mistakes, and allows you to have a few good laughs on the way.

    The colours used in the book's design compliment each other and the font is easy to read. Every chapter page features an entertaining illustration by Chesley McLaren. The book's size is just right to fit inside a small bag or purse, so that it's easily transportable so you can take it anywhere you might find having a book useful. Each essay is about four pages long, told with an insightful sense of humour that makes the reader feel a bit guilty and sometimes even a little ashamed but also makes us laugh at ourselves whilst learning from our mistakes and how to deal with other people who have yet to discover this treasure of a book.

    I highly recommend 'Town & Country's Social Graces' to anyone and everyone, not only for the clever advice, but for the humour as well.

    4 out of 5 stars Do you take this woman to be.....RING...RING...........2003-01-24

    If you or someone you love has ever had their cell phone ring during a performance, church service, wedding, movie, etc....YOU or they need to read this book. It's not about stuffy manners. It's about consideration of your fellow man.

    Whether it's not sending thank-you notes, cell phones ringing inapropriately, self-centered children interrupting or any of the subjects contained in this book, manners matter. No one is asking anyone to wear white gloves or to place a salt cellar at your dinner plate. It's about greasing the gears of civilized society.

    One hilarious chapter deals with Politically Correct Americans making a HUGE ruckus over Europeans smoking. Throwing a massive tantrum over someone smoking in a French or German Restaurant will only identify you as a boorish American, and get you nothing more than a sideways glance and a shrug...while asking someone kindly if they would mind not smoking around you might just get the desired effect.

    Another favorite chapter of mine was close to home, as I sometimes feel that the Tattoo Fairy has visited me in the middle of the night and inscribed "Tell me about your SEX LIFE" on my forehead. People just love to tell me their most intimate details which I do not seek and have not asked for. Evidentially, it is at epidemic stages and I am not alone in this observation.

    This is a perfect length for a plane trip or a car trip, and you will nod in recognition and laugh out loud at some of these situations which require that we all brush up a bit on our manners.

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