The Women Who Raised Me: A Memoir

Book Description

The story of a remarkable woman's rise out of the foster-care system to attain the American dream—and of the unlikely series of women who lifted her up in marvelous and distinctive ways

Born as a ward of the state of Maine—the child of an unmarried Yankee blueblood mother and an unknown black father—Victoria Rowell beat the odds. Unlike so many other children who fall through the cracks of our overburdened foster-care system, her experience was nothing short of miraculous, thanks to several extraordinary women who stepped forward to love, nurture, guide, teach, and challenge her to become the accomplished actress, philanthropist, and mother that she is today.

Rowell spent her first weeks of life as a boarder infant before being placed with a Caucasian foster family. Although her stay lasted for only two years, at this critical stage Rowell was given a foundation of love by the first of what would be an amazing array of women, each of whom presented herself for different purposes at every dramatic turn of Rowell's life.

In this deeply touching memoir, Rowell pays tribute to her personal champions: the mothers, grandmothers, aunts, mentors, teachers, and sisters who each have fascinating stories to tell. Among them are Agatha Armstead, Rowell's longest-term foster mother, a black Bostonian on whose rural Maine farm Rowell's fire to reach for greatness was lit; Esther Brooks, a Paris-trained prima ballerina, Rowell's first mentor at the Cambridge School of Ballet; Rosa Turner, a Boston inner-city fosterer who taught Rowell lessons of independence; Sylvia Silverman, a mother and teacher whose home in a well-kept middle-class suburban neighborhood prepared Rowell for her transition out of foster care and into New York City's wild worlds of ballet and acting and adulthood.

In spite of support from individuals and agencies, Rowell nonetheless carried the burden of loneliness and anxiety, common to most foster children, particularly those "orphans of the living" who are never adopted. Heroically overcoming those obstacles, Rowell also reaches a moment when she can embrace her biological mother, Dorothy, and, most important, accept herself.

Ultimately, The Women Who Raised Me is a story that belongs to each of us as it shines a glowing light on the transformational power of mentoring, love, art, and womanhood.

Customer Reviews:

Review.......2007-09-07

This was a well written book. The author gives a heartfelt account of her life in foster care. She begins her story as a small child in rural Maine and concludes as an adult actress in Hollywood. This is a great book that deals with foster care, mental illness, achievements, and adversity in a young woman's life.

Wanted more of an autobiography.......2007-08-16

I know the title says the women who raised me, but I really wanted to read more about how she got into acting, what it was like to be on the young and the restless and work with dick van dyke. She spends many chapters about her ballet years, but doesnt mention what it was like to get into tv acting, which is really her career, not ballet. She is known for being a TV star. She did a great deal of research into her families/friends - I think too much. I had to skip many many pages because it got boring. She mentions her marriage, but never talks about getting divorced. I never knew if she married Wynton or not, had to look it up on the net. She doesn't get into her relationships with men much or her children. I got the impression Wynton was raising her son? but who knows. She seems very multi talented though and it was great that she put so much time into writing a book in addition to her other charities/career.

Intriguing,surprising insights about foucs & tenacity.......2007-08-10

This is an exceptionally touching journey through the life of a foster child that was exposed to a number of phenomenal women.

All their lives were woven together beautifully by the author [Rowell]and revealed that despite backgrounds that were so different, these women all exhibited determined, giving spirits through their own talents.

A must read!!

The Women Who Raised Me.......2007-07-28

A very touching story , well written and informative. So sad at times. I loved that there were pictures of these incredible women to put faces on the heroes! Inspiring too, that with love and guidance, our children can thrive in difficult life situations.
As a grandmother to a mixed race child, very distubing also, that we still have so far to go in the US.

A wonderful book.......2007-07-01

I could not put down Ms. Rowell's life journey. I knew very little about her, only that she was an actress in a soap opera. She is an incredibly strong woman. I have great admiration for her. She could so easily have turned her back on her painful past and distanced herself from orphans; but she chose not to. She embraces her birth mother and all who assisted her.

The Berenstain Bears and Too Much TV (First Time Books(R))

Average customer rating:

My kids loved these books
Problems with TV?
The Berenstain magic
oops THEY DID IT AGAIN
Big help!

The Berenstain Bears and Too Much TV (First Time Books(R))
Stan Berenstain , and Jan Berenstain
Manufacturer: Random House Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0394865707
Release Date: 1984-04-12

Book Description

When Mama Bear decides her family spends too much time in front of the TV, she bans it for a week. Then the Bear family finds other ways to have fun and keep busy, so they watch less when TV is allowed again--and they don't even miss it.

Customer Reviews:

My kids loved these books.......2007-09-13

My kids have enjoyed every one of the Berenstain books and I like them too because they all teach a lesson in a non-preachy way. Unfortunately. the other lesson they all teach is that Papa is at best just another child, and at worst a buffoon. Sort of like the foolish fathers on the sitcoms.

Problems with TV?.......2007-06-02

When the bears have a problem with too much tv, mamma bear goes into action. The bears learn that too much tv is not a good thing.

The Berenstain magic .......2006-11-06

When my children were small they loved the Berenstain books. It still is a great pleasure to see these books. One of their finest features is the appealing way the Bears are drawn. They are so bright and colorful.
The TV book is a good one, and it has an excellent lesson for the world's children. Too much sitting and watching T.V. dulls the mind and the heart. Children need more time to be outside playing, or with their parents, or reading books, or doing many other things.
This book may seem a bit dated as today the couch- potato distractions are more diverse( and perhaps Interactive) than T.V.
In any case this little book is a fine and amusing read for children and for parents alike.

oops THEY DID IT AGAIN.......2006-02-07

these books are a no brainer!
LOVE THEM

Big help!.......2006-01-16

this book teaches important everyday values for children that are easy to understand, and fun to read at the same time!

Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?: The Carter Family and Their Legacy in American Music

Average customer rating:

A Decent Biography Of The Great Carter Family But Not Enough Infomation About the Songs
A brand new look
Not a word wasted
If You're Reading These Reviews, Then You Probably Care Enough About the Carter Family to LOVE This Book!
A Masterful story of a Great American Music Family

Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?: The Carter Family and Their Legacy in American Music
Mark Zwonitzer , and Charles Hirshberg
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0684857634

Book Description

Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone? is the first major biography of the Carter Family, the musical pioneers who almost single-handedly established the sounds and traditions that grew into modern folk, country, and bluegrass music -- a style celebrated in O Brother, Where Art Thou?

A.P. Carter was a restless man, seemingly in a constant state of motion. On one of his travels across the sparsely settled mountains and valleys that surrounded his home in southern Virginia, he met and married a young girl named Sara Dougherty. Orphaned as a child, Sara was remote by nature but seemed to find release in singing the typically melancholy ballads that were a part of her home tradition.

For fun, A.P., Sara, and her cousin Maybelle (who married A.P.'s brother "Eck" Carter) would play and sing the hymns and ballads known in their Poor Valley community, occasionally adding songs A.P. had collected during his travels. Then, in 1927, they traveled to Bristol, Tennessee, to audition for a New York record executive who was hunting "hillbilly" talent and offering an amazing fifty dollars per song for any he recorded. These Bristol recording sessions would become generally accepted as the "Big Bang" of country music, producing two of its first stars: Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family.

By the early 1930s, the Carter Family was the most bankable country music group in America, with total sales of more than a million records. By the late '30s, they were appearing regularly on high-power radio station XERA, which broadcast from coast to coast. A whole generation of country people could gather around the radio and hear the sound of music that came straight from their world. Johnny Cash in Arkansas, Waylon Jennings in Texas, Chet Atkins in Georgia, and Tom T. Hall in Kentucky all listened to the Carter Family. It was their formal schooling, Country Music 101.

Inside the Carter Family, however, things were hardly perfect. Though nobody outside the family knew it, Sara had left her difficult and quixotic husband in 1933. In 1936 she won a divorce. Even throughout the long and painful breakup, the Carters kept performing together, singing an ever-widening range of new songs they wrote or old songs they remade: songs of love, of betrayal, and of the death of fondest hopes. And they kept at it even after Sara married A.P.'s cousin Coy Bays in 1939. After fulfilling a final radio contract in 1943, Sara and Coy moved to California to settle near his family. The original Carter Family never performed or recorded together again.

With Sara gone, A.P. retreated home, opened a general store, and lived out the next two decades in obscurity, the odd man out in a new and reconfigured Carter musical clan. Meanwhile, Maybelle and her daughters (Helen, June, and Anita) went out and got themselves new radio contracts, working in Richmond, Virginia; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Springfield, Missouri, before ascending to country music's ultimate stage, Nashville's Grand Ole Opry. Nearly fifty years in the business won Maybelle the title "Mother of Country Music" and the adoration of generations of guitar players and just plain listeners.

The story of the Carter Family is a bittersweet saga of love and fulfillment, sadness and loss. Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone? is more than just a biography of a family; it is also a journey into another time, almost another world. But their story resonates today and lives on in the timeless music they created.

Customer Reviews:

A Decent Biography Of The Great Carter Family But Not Enough Infomation About the Songs.......2007-08-25

The Carter Family are one of the greatest and most influential acts in the history of American music. Having my own family's roots dating back over 200 years in the Southern mountains, listening to the Carter's songs evoke powerful feelings in me. I feel transported back into another time that I never lived through but somehow know.

The writers do a credible job of telling the extradorinary Carter Family story. For example,the 1927 recordings in Bristol, Tennessee where Ralph Peer signs both the Carters and Jimmie Rodgers to recordings deals. This began the popular era of what would later become known as country music. Also covered are the broadcasts from the Mexican border town megawatt radio stations which brought the Carter's comforting voices to a nation suffering through the Great Depression. The circumstances surrounding the divorce of A.P. and Sara is discussed, as well as numerous other stories about life, love and family in Maces Springs, Virginia.

But what I found to be missing is a serious analysis of the Carter Family's music. Part of the Carter's greatness is based on A.P.'s "songcatching trips" where he travelled the Southern mountains in search of old hymns and folk ballads for the Carters to sing. I would have liked to learn more about the history and meaning of these incredible songs. Instead a larger percentage of the book is taken up with old family stories and anecdotes, often based on the lives of cousins, uncles, nieces and neighbors rather than the primary Carter Family members. I would have preferred more concise and music focused writing, perhaps dropping some of the corn pone humor and scaling the book back from it's nearly 400 pages. Also I would have appreciated a more scholarly look at the Carter's place in American music as well as more attention to compelling subjects such as the influence of African American music on the Carter Family.

For Carter Family fans and interested newcomers this is a book still worth reading. But I do hope a more song focused and analytic biography of the Carter Family will eventually be written.

A brand new look.......2006-12-26

So, you think you know everything about the Carter Family? Well, you don't until you read this book. Every single word tells about a signifant history in the Carter Family's life. From the Originals to the Carter Sisters, to Mother Maybelle, this is any Carter Fan's treasure! I absolutely loved it, and the pictures make me smile every time I look at them with even just a glance. This book will bring you lots of happiness for the rest of your life. Be sure to read my other reviews for June Carter Cash's Keep on the Sunny Side: Her lfie in Music, Wildwood Flower, Press On, The Best of the Carter Family, From my Heart, A proper introduction to the Carter Family, and Louisiana Hayride: Live Performances. Honestly, after you read this book, you'll have a brand New look at the Carter Family and their music!

Keep on the Sunny Side,
June

Keep on the Sunny Side

Not a word wasted.......2006-07-09

This book, along with Jimmy McDonough's biography of Neil Young "Shakey," is one of the best written books about popular music that I've ever read. The breadth of the research is staggering, and the prose is a curious mix of cussing and twenty-dollar words that relays the events surrounding the ascention of the Carter Family with the immediacy their massive cultural and artistic impact deserves. Zwonitzer not only provides succinct yet detailed descriptions of the Carters' everyday lives, he also lays out a vivid portrait of the full context into which the Carter Family fits. It's a fairly quick read, with tremendous amounts of information crammed into every sentence. As with the best Carter Family recordings, not a breath here is wasted, and every note hits the stomach like a punch.

If You're Reading These Reviews, Then You Probably Care Enough About the Carter Family to LOVE This Book!.......2006-07-06

If you are a fan of the Carter Family, then you will find this book interesting to the same extent that you enjoy their music, I would say!

WILL YOU MISS ME WHEN I'M GONE is a great biography that goes pretty in-depth, and explains the joys and sorrows of the lives and musical careers of the Carter Family!

It is really fascinating to read about who the original Carter Family trio were -- (A.P. CARTER, who was the songwriter, researcher, arranger, bass backup vocalist and leader of the group; and SARA CARTER, his wife, the lead vocalist and harpsichord player; and MAYBELLE CARTER, their younger cousin/in-law, backing vocalist, and the most underrated and forgotten guitar playing pioneer in musical history!), -- and how they got into the music business, and how they influenced the early music industry and country music.

All the Carter Family members sang, and their harmonies and vocal interplays are among the most sincere, skilled, and enjoyable of all country music, of any time period, though they did it first and best on record. That's a fact, in my opinion!

The second version of the Carter Family, (mother Maybelle and her three daughters, Helen, June, and Anita), is also covered in-depth in the second half of the book! This is where many characters overlap characters seen in the 2005 Johnny Cash biography movie, WALK THE LINE, (also highly recommended by me, to you).

There are plenty of interesting, informative, and entertaining photos (both family and professional promotionals) sprinkled throughout the book, too!

If I had to criticize anything, I would say that sometimes the author wanders too long explaining the peripheral things going on in America and/or the music industry. These things are fascinating, but you start to wonder why it's all included. Thankfully, most of it pays off later when these obscure, forgotten people and events cross paths with our heroes of the story, the Carter Family! Stick with it, it's worth it!

I actually started reading this book a few years back, but I got bogged down trying to picture who was who, so I ended up putting it on the shelf for years. After I saw the recent Johnny Cash biography film, WALK THE LINE, which featured some of the Carter Family members, I was better able to put names with faces and characters, and that film also rekindled my dormant interest in the Carter Family.

There is a pretty decent DVD from PBS called THE CARTER FAMILY: WILL THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN, which shows the author of this book, and is a terrific companion piece for this book. In fact, I'm not sure if you should read the book first, or watch the DVD biography? You decide whichever format you prefer first, and you will likely get both eventually.

The DVD sort of shows, accidentally, that there are two kinds of Carter Family fans: actual people from the South who love and live the music, and folk music loving intellectuals who love the music and its place in Americana! I am of the latter, but I grew up around plenty of Southern people, though the youngsters preferred Skynyrd, while only the older folks liked the really rootsy classics.

You should also get the two 5-disk CD sets from JSP Records, 1927-1934, and 1935-1943. These two CD sets are affordable from amazon.com, and they are the best and most economical way to have a virtually complete library of the original Carter Family's studio recording history, and there is no better collection currently available to my knowledge!

I would recommend the 1927-1934 set first, which has the most historic stuff, the most energy, and the best vibe. The 1943 set is after they had stopped living together, but is more professional sounding, yet less energetic (more melancholy); but you will likely get both after hearing the 1927 set, I trust.

A Masterful story of a Great American Music Family.......2006-03-13

A truly great book! The Carter Family left a tremendous legacy in American Music, and the author tells the complete story of it all. Wonderfully written, and very difficult to put book down once I started reading.

Goodnight, John Boy: A Celebration of an American Family and the Values That Have Sustained Us Through Good Times and Bad

Average customer rating:

Good story, John Boy
A great companion to the television series.
Oh, well...
Goodnight, John Boy: A Celebration of an American
had to read it before giving it as a gift

Goodnight, John Boy: A Celebration of an American Family and the Values That Have Sustained Us Through Good Times and Bad
Earl Hamner , and Ralph E. Giffin
Manufacturer: Cumberland House Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1581822987

Book Description

For eight wonderful years The Waltons, the story of a family living in the foothills of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains during the Depression, entertained America and the world. Yet this television show was more than entertaining. Each episode combined wonderful stories and "teachable moments" in which adults and children alike learned the importance of honesty, hard work, respect, responsibility, self-sacrifice, and kindness. As is true in most families, the Waltons faced many challenges, occasionally stumbled along the way, but they struggled to live their lives within the framework of the values they believed and taught. Goodnight, John Boy is a memory book of The Waltons, the number-one television show of its time. Filled with behind-the-scenes anecdotes and profiles of people who appeared on the show, it introduces readers to the Hamner family members who later became characters on The Waltons, suggests events and locales that inspired many of the episodes, and traces Earl Hamner's life as a writer from Virginia to New York to Hollywood. Included is a description of each episode plus reminiscences, comments, and personal feelings from numerous people connected with the series—writers, actors, directors, producers, family, and fans. Heavily illustrated with publicity shots and personal photographs taken by cast, crew, and others, Goodnight, John Boy will be a welcomed book by millions of loyal fans. When The Waltons first aired in 1972, it was at the bottom of the Neilson ratings—by December it led the list. That dramatic leap came about because fans told their friends about it and wrote the CBS network to praise the show and to plead that the show not be cancelled. Thirty years later, Goodnight, John Boy is sure to touch the hearts of the show's fans again.

Customer Reviews:

Good story, John Boy.......2007-07-03

This is a genuinely lovely book that explores the life and work of Earl Hamner but, more importantly, this book has a synopsis of each episode and comments from the actors. I would highly recommend "Good Night, John Boy". It was a terrific summer read!

A great companion to the television series........2007-06-15

This is an excellent companion guide to the television program (now up to its fifth season in DVD). It offers some good general info on how the series came about, as well as a description and some personal commentary on every episode. For anyone who may be interested, I am putting together a Bible study using The Waltons. It can be found online at AC21DOJ.org/AFruitfulBibleStudyWithTheWaltons.html

Oh, well..........2007-03-09

The photos are great, and there was just a little information about the "real-life Waltons", but unfortunately the vast majority of the book is taken up with episode summaries. Not really what I was looking for, but it is valuable for a Waltons fan.

Goodnight, John Boy: A Celebration of an American.......2007-01-19

Great book, Tells of Actors and history

had to read it before giving it as a gift.......2006-09-23

I was a baby when this was on the air.. but recently i have been buying the walton dvd's for my parents as gifts, and got hooked on the Waltons as a result (wathing with mom is great bonding). so for my mom's birthday i decided to buy her this book (since season 4 isnt available yet). I was sure to order it in time to read it before i had to give it to her and I Love it, i will order the two movies Earl talks about that lead up to the series.. and i had NO idea he was the producer of the version of Charlottes web i adore. This is a wonderful gift for anyone who loves the waltons.

Average customer rating:

Worth Every Minute
CULKIN OFFERS A FRESH LOOK AT WHAT IS A BOOK
I'm so glad I didn't spend full price for this book!
Disapointing
Something Different

JUNIOR
Macaulay Culkin
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1401352340

Book Description

Junior would like to get a few things off his chest. He does not know how to write a book. (Except [maybe] for this one.) He does not like books with introductions. (So this book has six of them.) His therapist says he has issues with closure. (Granted, this book has seven endings.) This is not a novel. (Everything in it is entirely true - except for the large portions that are completely fictional.) And finally, Junior has no issues with his father. (Nope, really, not a single one.) In a dizzying kaleidoscope of words and images, actor and writer Macaulay Culkin takes readers on a twisted tour to the darkest corners of his fertile imagination. Part memoir, part rant, part comedic tour de force, Junior is full of the hard-won wisdom of Culkin's quest to come to terms with the awesome pressures of childhood mega-stardom and family dysfunction. He understands that "having fun and being happy are two totally different things," yet at the same time he warns, "the end of the world is coming - and Im going to have unfinished business." Searingly honest and brain- teasingly inventive, Junior is breathtaking proof that Culkin has found his own utterly original voice.

Customer Reviews:

Worth Every Minute.......2007-06-27

I couldn't put this book down. Yes, I'll admitt I've been intrigued and cheering on Macaulay Culkin since I was 10. I'm now 26. My husband says I'm biased. However, I think it teaches all of us that celebrities, "Child Star's" are just like everyone else. They fall in love, get arrested, pick up bad habits, and watch too much T.V. I found this book so refreshing and honest. It allowed me inside the world of someone I thought I knew. I feel like a stronger person for having read this book.

CULKIN OFFERS A FRESH LOOK AT WHAT IS A BOOK.......2007-04-30

Culkin offers a fresh look at what is a novel- hats off to the author. When the Generation Xer anthologies came out, I loved them for their short stories and off-avenues; Culkin's book is so reminiscent of this style. Hard thought not necessary and should you have any issues keeping your attention on-stream for any length of time, this book pulls you in and keeps you. Love it, read it, and keep it. Macaulay has issues with his father....

I'm so glad I didn't spend full price for this book!.......2007-04-20

I'll give it credit in that it is original, but I'm sorry I wasted the hour-and-a-half it took me to read through it!

Disapointing.......2007-04-14

This book contains lots of profanity. Seems like it was written like foolish doodling on a computer and was published that way. It is original; but my opinion is that only is 10% worth reading.

Something Different.......2007-01-10

Different. Unique. Inspiring. Those are the three words I use to describe Junior. Yes it is different in that there is really no structure, yes it is Unique due to its lack of plot or storyline, but yet it is very Inspiring in that he allows you to get a glimpse into one of America's greatest child actors and the problems he faced and I'm sure many actors faced growing up in front of the camera. In writing Junior, Culkin truly opened himself up to readers and into his life of chaos, loneliness, and tribulation, but I believe it made him a stronger and better person. I admire him much more now than I ever could have before, because in him many of us have gone through the same issues of being lost, being abused, and somewhat left out of living normal lives. I thought the mix of drawings, poems, and short stories very really cool and showed a different view of what writing can be. Writing can be anything a writer chooses it to be, there are no rules and there shouldn't be, and Culkin proved that very well in Junior. As a college student I admire Culkin for writing such a deep book on his life as a younger person still lost and constantly trying to find himself.

Family Guy: Stewie's Guide to World Domination

Average customer rating:

If you like Stewie...
It gave me a few chuckles
Whitty and Humerous
Stewie is the best!
World Domintation?

Family Guy: Stewie's Guide to World Domination
Steve Callaghan
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Accessories:

ASIN: 0060773219
Release Date: 2005-04-26

Book Description

For the first time ever a cancelled show has been resurrected on the basis of its cult following in syndication, on the internet and on DVD (Over 2.2 million DVDs sold to date!) and we've got the tie–in book authored by one of the show's hilarious lead writers and animators!

At first sight, the Griffens may seem like a normal blue collar family from Quonochontaug Rhode Island, but Peter (the family's loutish dad), Brian (the erudite, martini–swilling pet dog) and Stewie (the evil toddler son) set them apart from all others.

Now Stewie––a true baby genius and the most popular of the Griffen clan––speaks out. Having been hell bent on achieving world domination ever since he escaped the cursed ovarian Bastille he was incarcerated in for nine grueling months, he has finally decided that in order to rule the world we live in one must first understand it. Herewith are his musings on family, love, parenting, preschool, work, pop culture, politics and more. If only we knew then what Stewie knows now, adults everywhere could have defeated their mother's matriarchal tyranny and toppled the "gynocracy" she ruled over . . .and god knows what else!

This book is for the insufferable child in us all, eager to buck the ways of the old guard or just eager for a laugh.

Customer Reviews:

If you like Stewie..........2006-01-24

My whole family loves Family Guy, so I bought this as a gift for my father (who normally doesn't read at all). Come Christmas morning, he couldn't put it down, and the laughs just never ended. Haven't read it yet myself, but I'm sure it must be hilarious...

It gave me a few chuckles.......2005-10-29

Overall, this book is nothing to write home about. Don't get me wrong now - I'm a huge Family Guy fan, and I love Stewie. Steve Callaghan - a producer and writer for Family Guy from its very first season - did a great job writing this book as though it was written by Stewie, and at times it's quite amusing. Unfortunately, Stewie's sarcastic and misanthropic wit isn't half as funny on paper as it is coming from Seth McFarlane's mouth and with his brilliant delivery, and most of the jokes here are stale and predictable - quite a lot of them were actually recycled from the show. More than that I was disappointed by the artwork - which is all snatched directly from the Family Guy episodes, hardly any new material was made freshly for the book.

In direct comparison with Bart Simpson's Guide to Life, Stewie's Guide to World Domination is less an original work and more an excuse to suck a few more bucks from the show's fans. Perhaps Family Guy just doesn't have enough years behind it to be as mythological as the Simpsons; or perhaps the book could have been funnier had Seth himself written it, but I doubt that would have made much difference. Stewie just isn't that funny on paper. Mind you, the devoted Family Guy will want to add it to his merchandise collection (I'd like to use this opportunity to point out that I'm wearing my Brian Griffin boxer shorts as I'm writing these very lines) but keep your expectations low. And for anyone else, you'll probably get very little out of it.

Whitty and Humerous.......2005-10-26

If you are thinking of entering world domination this toddler can get you on the right foot!!

Stewie is the best!.......2005-10-21

very funny....a perfect addition to our collection of Family Guy dvds

World Domintation?.......2005-10-11

Its a great book but it won't help you take over the world, which was my sole purpose for buying the book.

Average customer rating:

good book

Is It My Turn Now? (Little Bill)
Catherine Lukas
Manufacturer: Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0689864825

Book Description

"Hello, friend."

Children love to learn and are always figuring things out about themselves and the world around them. And the more they know, the better equipped they are to handle the challenges of growing up.

Little Bill encourages children to value their family and friends, to feel good about themselves, and to learn to solve problems creatively.

I hope young readers will see Little Bill as their friend and enjoy his real-life adventures.

Happy reading!

-- Bill Cosby

Customer Reviews:

good book.......2007-01-18

This book really helps kids understand that just because other people get attention sometimes they are no less important. There is time for everyone and we should support each other. Great lesson.

Television and the American Family (Lea's Communication Series)

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Television and the American Family (Lea's Communication Series)
J. Alison Bryant
Manufacturer: Lawrence Erlbaum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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philosophy hope in a jar daily moisturizer

ASIN: 0805834222

Book Description

This second edition of a trend-setting volume provides an updated examination of the interaction between families and the most pervasive mass medium: television. Charting the dynamic developments of the American family and television over the past decade, this volume provides a comprehensive representation of programmatic research into family and television and examines extensively the uses families make of television, how extensions of television affect usage, families' evolving attitudes toward television, the ways families have been and are portrayed on television, the effects television has on families, and the ways in which families can mediate its impact on their lives.

The volume is an invaluable resource for scholars and students in the areas of media and society, children and media, and family studies.

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An exemplary family history
the hornes

The Hornes: An American Family
Gail Lumet Buckley , and Lena Horne
Manufacturer: Applause Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1557835640

Book Description

An inspired, intimate history of musical legend Lena Horne and her family, written by Lena's daughter, Gail Lumet Buckley. More than a loving biography of a true show business legend, Lumet Buckley traces Lena's, as well as her own, roots as the latest in a long family line of America's Black elite.

Customer Reviews:

An exemplary family history.......2006-12-03

An absorbing trip through American history, courtesy of a family of vivid dreamers and high achievers. Gail Lumet Buckley had access to a remarkable family archive of scrapbooks, photographs and journals and does great justice to it, crafting a multigenerational portrait that is enlightening and highly readable. Although Buckley's mother, Lena Horne, is the most famous member of the family, the book makes it clear that she was only one of its noteworthy success stories. For anyone wanting to know more about what America was like for middle-class blacks in the Reconstruction and beyond, "The Hornes" is a wonderful place to begin.

the hornes.......2000-03-23

Fabulous insight into a family with ties to every important event in US History.

BIG RUSS AND ME: FATHER AND SON: LESSONS OF LIFE

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FANTASTIC STORY
Big Russ and Me: Father and Son Lessons of Life
The Father with the One-Liners
ONE lesson of life: to be loyal to your friends!!!!
A Great Father & Son Story

BIG RUSS AND ME: FATHER AND SON: LESSONS OF LIFE
Timothy J. Russert
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1401359655

Amazon.com

Veteran newsman and Meet the Press moderator Tim Russert is known for his direct and unpretentious style and in this charming memoir he explains why. Russert's father is profiled as a plainspoken World War II veteran who worked two blue-collar jobs while raising four kids in South Buffalo but the elder Russert's lessons on how to live an honest, disciplined, and ethical life are shown to be universal. Big Russ and Me, a sort of Greatest Generation meets Tuesdays with Morrie, could easily have become a sentimental pile of mush with a son wistfully recalling the wisdom of his beloved dad. But both Russerts are far too down-to-earth to let that happen and the emotional content of the book is made more direct, accessible, and palatable because of it. The relationship between father and son, contrary to what one would think of as essential to a riveting memoir, seems completely healthy and positive as Tim, the academically gifted kid and later the esteemed TV star and political operative relies on his old man, a career sanitation worker and newspaper truck driver, for advice. Big Russ and Me also traces Russert's life from working-class kid to one of broadcast journalism's top interviewers by introducing various influential figures who guided him along the way, including Jesuit teachers, nuns, his dad's drinking buddies, and, most notably, the late New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, whom Russert helped get elected in 1976. Plenty of entertaining anecdotes are served up along the way from schoolyard pranks to an attempt to book Pope John Paul II on the Today Show. Though not likely to revolutionize modern thought, Big Russ and Me will provide fathers and sons a chance to reflect on lessons learned between generations. --Charlie Williams

Book Description

Now in paperback-the #1 best-selling Father's Day book of 2004, with over half a million copies sold in hardcover. Tim Russert, one of America's most watched and trusted news anchors connected with readers across the nation with his critically acclaimed mem-oir about growing up in the 1950s and the special bond between fathers and sons.

Customer Reviews:

FANTASTIC STORY.......2007-07-19

TIM RUSSERT IS ONE OF THE MOST KNOWLEDGABLE POLITICAL ANALYSTS EVER.
HE IS ALSO A GREAT AUTHOR OF THIS FANTASTIC, HEART WARMING STORY OF A FATHER AND SON'S TRUE RELATIONSHIP. "WISDOM OF OUR FATHERS" WAS A GREAT READ ALSO. TIM: WRITE MORE!

Big Russ and Me: Father and Son Lessons of Life.......2007-07-16

I recieved the book as promised..in "like-new" condition and it was delivered in the time frame promised. I bought the book for my 90 yr. old Dad to read while he traveled to his bithplace and towns he lived in in Montana with my older brothers. Am sure they had thier own stories to share with one another! ~~ dsquire~~

The Father with the One-Liners .......2007-06-29

Imagine going through your life and professional career leaning on your father's one-liners. Tim Russert describes his life and around every corner he calls his father. His father undoubtedly picks up the phone and throws out one of his famous one-liners. Russert uses that one-liner on TV the next day to boost his career. There are good thoughts in this book about teachings that every child should learn. I liked Russert's thoughts on teachers and how children have lost respect for them. Yet, I am sure that is what every generation has thought about their children compared to their own childhood. I wouldn't expect anything deep and provide from this book, unless you are looking for a couple of good one-liners.

ONE lesson of life: to be loyal to your friends!!!!.......2007-05-20

Mr. Don Imus helped you promote this book and was a great friend of yours. Where were you in Imus' hour of need? I am extremely disappointed.

As a result of the way you handled that situation, I will no longer be buying any of your books nor will I watch you on television, and that includes your show.

A Great Father & Son Story.......2007-05-04

I absolutely loved this book and could not put it down. I loved how Russert interwove the antecdotes his father taught him throughout his life and made them relevant to the decisions and actions he has displayed through his youth and into adulthood. Russert understood growing up in Buffalo that his father was a hard-working man who might not have been able to spend a lot of time with him, but made the time they did spend together valuable. It was so typical of the times and Russert understood that and took that work ehtic with him into as a grown man.

They have a very special relationship and it shows now in the relationship Russert has with his own son. I love the stories about Tim working for the Buffalo Sanitation department all the way up to his meetings with the Pope. I was sad when this book ended because I wanted to hear more of his wonderful stories between him and his father and some of his NBC stories.

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