| December Book Reviews by Todd Rutherford

My Three Heroes by Audie W. Starkey

My Three Heroes, by Audie W. Starkey, is the heartwarming story of a child’s courageous fight with cancer. Mandy is the author’s daughter. Inside these pages are lessons for those who would benefit from such life lessons as overcoming insurmountable obstacles, finding silver linings, and learning to take life one day at a time.

Mandy, the youngest of three children, is Audie’s “baby girl.” The author, who habitually attends all of Mandy’s ballgames, finds his daughter awakening one morning to excruciating pain, crying out, “Daddy, it’s killing me, I can’t hardly move.” This is a pattern that would continue for several days-until the fateful diagnosis that would turn their lives upside down. Mandy had cancer.

This book presents the poignant image of an eleven-year-old forced into an impossible situation and a father who must stay strong for his daughter.

Starkey tells the story as it happened, with an authentic style that will impact the reader to the very core. The message here is that even the bleakest of circumstances can be managed by adopting a positive attitude, as evidenced by the author’s beloved “Doe,” as she literally sang her way into surgery.

Once at St. Jude’s Hospital in Tennessee, Mandy’s treatment begins. The atmosphere there is one of hope-for Mandy, as well as for all the children at the hospital. One riveting passage that appears early in the book illustrates the mind-set there: “Keep your good demeanor, sing and make other people laugh so they will feel good around you. Smile. Eat, even if you get sick, eat again. Drink plenty of fluids, Doe, you can beat this so fight it and hang tough!”

This is the story of Audie Starkey’s three heroes. Mandy leaves a powerful imprint on her father’s life by the way she handles one of life’s toughest hurdles. Enter, hero number two: Starkey’s former football coach, who forty-three years earlier had been there for Audie, helping him to mature from a boy into a man. Coach Delay is there when Mandy returns to school following her cancer treatment, and in fact, was instrumental in having her fellow students send cards and letters to Mandy during her time away.

Ultimately, My Three Heroes is a message of hope, and of living life to the fullest. Despite overwhelming odds, Mandy finds strength to carry on, and forges a strong bond with her father. Starkey shares a number of heart-wrenching episodes that will capture the hearts of readers everywhere. Mandy and her father are convinced that it was their Christian faith that added fifteen years to Mandy’s life, citing Bible verses such as, “And I will add fifteen years to your life, and I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the King of Assyria; and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David’s sake.”

This compelling story is an inspiration for anyone who has ever had to deal with pain, or has ever been touched by terminal illness. For young and old alike, My Three Heroes will keep readers turning pages as they learn how one family found the courage to draw the most out of life in the face of the grimmest of circumstances.

Learn to Study the Bible by Andy Deane

Throughout much of history the Bible has been passed down, and though millions have read and studied it, how many actually thoroughly understand the Bible’s teachings and principles? It is precisely this question that Andy Deane addresses in his book, Learn to Study the Bible, which offers a total of forty different approaches to studying the Bible.

As a pastor, Deane is sensitive to the fact that people learn differently. Using only one teaching method can often lead to confusion and frustration, especially among children and young adults who are new to Bible study.

Learn to Study the Bible is a natural extension of the author’s experience in teaching the Bible to junior high school students. He states in the introduction that “[t]he collective look of bewilderment on their faces was one of the scariest moments I’ve ever experienced as a youth pastor.” Realizing that his students weren’t “getting it,” he was compelled to produce a text that would not only instruct, but also be exciting for youth.

Andy Deane is convinced that when studying the Bible, there needs to be a plan in order for students, young and old alike, to fully appreciate the true power and knowledge that the Bible imparts. Thus, Deane provides forty step-by-step plans in order to “lift the veil of confusion,” and make the Bible easier to understand.

One example of Deane’s didactic format can be seen in Chapter 6, “Daily Bread.” Daily Bread is a biblical reference stating that followers of Christ should read and study scriptures as often as they eat-on a daily basis. Just as food, or bread, sustains the body, so too does scripture sustain the soul. This is also a reference to God’s having sustained “His people for forty years in the wilderness by miraculously providing fresh manna each morning.” The lesson here is that Bible study is a daily necessity for the growth of a Christian. This chapter also presents five basic steps for studying scripture: 1) Choose a passage, paragraph, or chapter to study; 2) Prayer; 3) Visualize the Passage Using the Five Senses; 4) Apply It; 5) Carry Your Favorite Passage with You.

These and other practical learning tools will guide and teach what can often be a difficult subject. Deane’s Learn to Study the Bible is a pragmatic way for believers to approach Bible study on a regular basis with the goal of better understanding scripture. By applying the author’s suggestions and methods, students will see results in their personal lives as they practice and share their faith and interact with others. To be sure, this is a must-have text for students of the Bible, young and old.

Republic of Vietnam, 1963-1967: Years of Political Chaos by Vinh-The Lam

Republic of Vietnam, 1963-1967: Years of Political Chaos, by Vinh-The Lam, is an historical book shedding light on the issues surrounding the United States having sent troops to Vietnam in 1965, resulting in a period of political turmoil. Lam’s experience and expertise in this area of history speaks volumes, as he has published several journals and texts on this topic. His intended audience is varied, but mainly focuses on those studying, teaching, and researching modern Vietnamese history.

The fact is that Vietnamese and U.S. history merged in the mid 1960s, and the question that is often asked is, “Why did the United States get involved in a war between nations halfway across the globe?” Republic of Vietnam does an excellent job of explaining the issues and conflicts, and answering this and many other relevant questions surrounding the war in Vietnam.

The period from 1963-1967 is filled with bloodshed and constant upheaval. The book characterizes this period best in its opening paragraph, “During the period from the November 1,1963 bloody military coup overthrowing Ngo Dinh Diem regime and putting an end to the First Republic to the inauguration of President Nguyen Van Thieu and Vice-President Nguyen Cao Ky on October 31, 1967 ushering in the Second Republic, the Republic of Vietnam (RVN) went through a time of politically extreme chaos.”

Offering a unique viewpoint, this book is written from the perspective of a Vietnamese, not from an American. Indeed, the book is an “as-you-see-it” run-down of facts and coups coming from the mind of a renowned historian and librarian. Lam’s primary point of emphasis-and blame-is on the Vietnamese military leaders, whose lack of responsibility and complete incompetence led to years of tragedy, death, the displacement of over a million Vietnamese nationals, culminating in defeat at the hands of North Vietnam.

Having been a part of this era, Vinh-The Lam describes the political disunity and dysfunctional leadership system, stating that, “The apparent political consensus of the Ngo regime was only a screen hiding the boiling political aspiration inside. When the screen was removed, this boiling political aspiration, together with personal ambition of political leaders, was pouring out like a tornado, creating uncontrollable upheavals.” In other words, political leaders only had their best interests in mind, instead of the interest of the people.

Ultimately, Lam uses imagery and detailed descriptions of events to deliver an accurate version of the times. He also supplements his own arguments with memoirs and other classified documents of South Vietnamese leaders. Referencing a previously published book of his, Bach Hoa Tai Lieu Mat Cua Hoa Ky Ve Viet Nam Cong Hoa (Declassifying US Documents on the Republic of Vietnam), Lam establishes credibility and delivers authentic accounts of incidents that led to war.

The facts and themes in this comprehensive and highly informative book will resonate with readers on a number of levels. To be sure, Republic of Vietnam, 1963-1967: Years of Political Chaos, by Vinh-The Lam, will connect with many people from different perspectives, including those who lived through that era, or who are studying the era, and those who simply want to be appropriately informed about the actual reasons behind the Vietnam War, and why the U.S. sent troops to Vietnam. ISBN 978-0-9809558-3-5. Published: Nov. 2010. Price: 25.00 dollars (US or Canadian; please add 8.00 dollars for mailing cost in Canada or 11.00 dollars for mailing cost in US) Money order and/or Personal check should be made payable to: Vinh-The Lam and sent to: 585 Britannia Avenue, Hamilton, ON L8H 2A, Canada.

The Last Watcher Series By D. B. Clifton

Ever since J. K. Rowling decided to put the Harry Potter series to rest, the publishing world has been anxiously

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Beautiful:

Cereal, Yoghurt, Berries & Banana

Image by diekatrin
Müsli mit Joghurt, gemischten Beeren und Banane…ein leckeres Frühstück
www.morenz.de/2010/02/20/tag-4-mohreneintopf/

Refinement :

Banana, Berries & Buttermilk

Image by diekatrin
Banane, Beeren und Buttermilch…

Wonderful fast healthy food:

Hirse, Paprika, Rucola, Mozarella

Image by diekatrin
als Salat mit Zitronensaft, Nussöl, Salz und Pfeffer gewürzt

Some cool fast healthy food images:

Beautiful:

Food Pr0n – The Angry Chicken

Image by Buffawhat™
So Burger King has this new meal called the Angry Whopper. Its a whopper
with pepperjack cheese, bacon, jalepenos, onion rings, and bbq sauce.
Whoppers are meh and sometimes I just can’t handle fast food beef, so I made
my own big bite of awesome today for lunch. Just order a tendercrisp made
like the angry whopper. You’ll pay a premium for this (equals 1.50 more for
the conversion) but when you see all this garbage crammed between those two
buns, you’ll feel better there is something marginally healthy wedged in
there.

Oh, and it tastes awesome. #snap

Beautiful:

Banana, Berries & Buttermilk

Image by diekatrin
Banane, Beeren und Buttermilch…

simple recipe for guacamole–: Need a good, simple Guacamole recipe, that I can make at home?
My recent obsession with avacados has driven me to get a good recipe for guacamole! thanks

The following is the answer: (Hint: For answers, no site audit.)

Answer by Kimberly
i have no recipe I just add things to taste! Its all trial and error

in a blender put avacado, garlic, cilantro, jalapenos, and a small tomato. Add salt and pepper to taste! Enjoy!

Answer by Tammy C
Mash the avocado and season with salt and pepper, add a little lime or lemon juice (to taste) if you want to you can add a little sour cream as well.

Answer by irishtealeyes
Grab a few ripe Avo’s… (4)
I fresh Lime
Salt to taste
1 small finely diced jalapeno
1 diced large tomato
1/2 diced purple onion

Mash Avo’s, add in jalo’s, tomato’s, onion, and salt, squeeze lime and walla… Yummy…

Answer by MeganChrista
Maybe you’re looking for something a little more ‘homemade’ but just using one of those powder mixes from the grocery store with two ripe avocados is VERY simple. And I think it tastes good!

Answer by FlO
It’s simple!
I just mash up some nice avocardos and add a teaspoon of sour cream and they taste creamy and nice.

Some people like to add lemon juice and seasoning to them too, it depends on your eating habit.

I personally don’t like much seasonings and when times i run out of sour cream…its tasty even though you just mash up the avocardos alone. Try to make a chicken and guacamole sandwich with tomatoes and lettuce…u can simply scrap the avocardos with a butter knife just like u’re scrapping butter! but it’s better to use some overripen avocardos if u’re doing it this way.

Hope u’ll like it.

Answer by
Classic Guacamole

Cumin and other basics uncover the secret to classic guacamole.

4 ripe Fresh California avocados, seeded and peeled
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tomato, finely chopped
¼ Cup finely chopped onion
¼ tsp ground cumin
3 drops hot pepper sauce
Tortilla chips

Instructions

Using a fork, coarsely mash avocado with lemon juice and garlic.
Stir in remaining ingredients to blend.
Garnish as desired and serve with tortilla chips.

What do you think? Answer below!

by mellowfood

simple recipe for guacamole
simple recipe for guacamole–: I need a REALLY simple recipe for guacamole?
My 14 month old has decided he loves the stuff so I need a simple recipe please.

The answer in the following: (Hint: The reader is not the correct identification.)

Answer by depps_lover
LOL, smart kid!!!

GUACAMOLE

Avocado Salad:

1 ripe tomato, peeled
2 avocados
1/2 onion, minced
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 chopped green chile, or to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Mash together the tomato and avocados. Stir in remaining ingredients.
Serve with warm tortillas

Answer by MARTHA A
Mash the advocado with a fork till smooth add some garlic salt and pepper….a little lemon juice and your set! I like to add soem sour cream sometimes as well!

Answer by Joyce T
Mash the avocado with a little salt and lemon or lime juice. You don’t have to use much. Add scallions (chopped fine) if you want the kid to have bad breath. Other raw onions have more of a burn to them because they are strong. You don’t really have to make guacamole for the kid. He will probably be happy eating chunks. Just so you don’t think that it’s too weird, I eat plain chunks on my salad.

Answer by bartliddy
Avocado (smashed)
lemon juice
garlic powder
chopped tomato’s
salt and pepper.

Answer by mike s
This is the only way I make it, I don’t know if its the simplest but its my favorite.
4 Haas Avocado’s, make sure they are fully brown to black and if you squeeze them it will leave a mark from your finger but no rotten spots.
1 large very ripe tomato chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 small red onion chopped small
Zest from 2 limes and juice from 3 limes
1/2 cup to 1 cup chopped cilantro depending on how much you like.
Cut avocado’s in half and remove pits. Using a big spoon scoop out the pulp in as big of pieces as you can get out and put in a large mixing bowl. Add all other ingredients and mix together using a fork. The large pieces of avocado should break up while mixing leaving you with a very chunky Guacamole. I like it chunky, but if you want it smoother then just keep mixing.

Answer by caroline w
INGREDIENTS
3 avocados – peeled, pitted, and mashed
1 lime, juiced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup diced onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 roma (plum) tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper (optional)
DIRECTIONS
In a medium bowl, mash together the avocados, lime juice, and salt. Mix in onion, cilantro, tomatoes, and garlic. Stir in cayenne pepper. Refrigerate 1 hour for best flavor, or serve immediately.

Answer by ogopogo
Ingredients
3 ripe avocados
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 diced plums
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
minced fresh jalapeno
Directions
Mash flesh of 3 ripe avocados in a bowl. Stir in 1/4 cup fresh lime juice and 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice. Mix in 2 diced plum tomatoes; 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped; 2 garlic cloves, minced; minced fresh jalapeno to taste; and 1/2 tsp salt. Lay plastic wrap directly on surface of guacamole. Chill until ready to serve, up to 4 hours.

Answer by Grapes
Mashed avacado
Mayonaise
Pace Picante Salsa- to desired taste

Soooo good!

Answer by Salaam-E-Ishq
GUACAMOLE

Avocado Salad:

1 ripe tomato, peeled
2 avocados
1/2 onion, minced
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 chopped green chile, or to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Mash together the tomato and avocados. Stir in remaining ingredients.
Serve with warm tortillas.

Optional: Mix in pomegranate seeds for added color and a unique but authentic variation.

GUACAMOLE SALAD RING

If you make this guacamole in a ring mold, consider filling the center with shrimp, crab or chicken for a whole meal salad. 1 c. boiling water 2 tbsp. tomato-based chili sauce 1/4 tsp. liquid hot pepper seasoning 2 med. size avocados 1/4 c. lemon juice & finely chopped green onion 1/2 c. thinly sliced celery Citrus French dressing (directions follow) Lettuce leaves
Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Stir in chili sauce and hot pepper seasoning; chill until thick and syrupy. Peel, pit and mash avocados. Blend with lemon juice. Add avocado mixture, onion and celery to slightly thicken gelatin and stir until well blended. Pour into a 4 cup ring mold. Cover and chill until firm (at least 3 hours).

Prepare citrus French salad dressing. Unmold salad on a serving platter; garnish with lettuce leaves and serve with citrus French dressing. Makes about 6 servings.

Citrus French Dressing: Combine 1/4 cup olive oil or salad oil, 2 tablespoons each lemon juice and orange juice, 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon paprika; blend well.

GUACAMOLE

4 small avocados, peeled and mashed
1 can of Mexican Rotel, drained
1 small red onion, chopped
1 tsp. garlic powder
juice from one lime

Mix all ingredients and chill. Serve with chips.

HOPE THIS HELPS!

Answer by cahyegirl
Mash avocados, add some chopped cilantro and salt and pepper. Doesn’t get any easier. Save the pit from the avocado and put it in the center of the dip to keep the guacamole green.

Give your answer to this question below!
_______________________

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Read the Chicago Sun-Times review
from Hedy Weiss. Click here!

Worldwide, more than 13 million people have seen JERSEY BOYS. And now, the show that broke records and made critics and audiences cheer every night is "Working Its Way Back" to CHICAGO! JERSEY BOYS, is the Tony®, Grammy® and Olivier Award-winning Best Musical about Rock and Roll Hall of Famers The Four Seasons: Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi. This is the story of how four blue-collar kids became one of the greatest successes in pop music history. JERSEY BOYS features their hit songs "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Rag Doll," "Oh What a Night" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You." "IT WILL RUN FOR CENTURIES!" proclaims Time Magazine. The JERSEY BOYS creative team comprises two-time Tony Award®-winning director Des McAnuff, book writers Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, composer Bob Gaudio, lyricist Bob Crewe and choreography by Sergio Trujillo.

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unleashthis.tumblr.com nttp authorsunleashed.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Beautiful:

The LONG EMERGENCY (Kunstler wrote the book in 2004, with publication early in 2005) .. 2011 – Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-first Century — It resembled the efficiency of cancer (page 222) …

Image by marsmet511
He states that as energy becomes scarce, transportation will become difficult or impossible, causing food and other necessary commodities to become unavailable in many communities. It will be necessary for local communities to become self-sufficient for food production, but many communities will be unable to do so, particularly large cities. The result will be mass starvation, disease, and civil unrest. Kunstler suggests that governments will be incapable of managing these problems. This period of scarcity and collapse will possibly last for hundreds of years, hence the "long" emergency of the book’s title.

……..***** All images are copyrighted by their respective authors ……
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…..item 1A)…. The Long Emergency … From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Emergency

The Long Emergency: Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-first Century is a book by James Howard Kunstler (Grove/Atlantic, 2005) exploring the consequences of a world oil production peak, coinciding with the forces of climate change, resurgent diseases, water scarcity, global economic instability and warfare to cause chaos for future generations.

The book’s principal theme explores the effects of a peak in oil production, predicted by many geologists, on American society as well as the rest of the world. In both this book and in his other writings, Kunstler argues that the economic upheavals caused by peak oil will force Americans to live in more localized, self-sufficient communities.

Kunstler’s premise is that "cheap, plentiful" oil is the foundation of industrial society and the pervasiveness of its effects is not widely appreciated. Through the 21st century, oil and natural gas will become increasingly difficult to obtain, becoming increasingly expensive and ultimately unavailable. Scarcity of petroleum will cause significant problems for transportation and generation of electrical power.

In addition, shipping of food and manufactured items will become increasingly expensive, ultimately prohibitively so. Also, natural gas is vitally important to food production as it is the raw material for much of commercial crop fertilizers. In the industrialized West, most food production and manufacturing is performed far from, and generally abstracted away from, the end consumer.

The author further argues that alternative sources of energy will be insufficient. As petroleum sources become scarce, environmentally harmful or risky technologies such as coal and nuclear will become necessary but not sufficient for our energy needs. Hydroelectric, solar, and wind power, even in combination with coal and nuclear, will also be far from sufficient. Kunstler does not consider hydrogen to be a true energy source since one cannot drill into the earth and obtain hydrogen. Hydrogen must be extracted from other energy sources, such as natural gas or using electricity at a total net loss of energy.

He states that as energy becomes scarce, transportation will become difficult or impossible, causing food and other necessary commodities to become unavailable in many communities. It will be necessary for local communities to become self-sufficient for food production, but many communities will be unable to do so, particularly large cities. The result will be mass starvation, disease, and civil unrest. Kunstler suggests that governments will be incapable of managing these problems. This period of scarcity and collapse will possibly last for hundreds of years, hence the "long" emergency of the book’s title.

Kunstler, a long-time critic of suburban design, advises communities to change to accommodate walking and bicycling as the primary modes of transport. Populations should be moved out of big cities into smaller communities that have nearby arable land with adequate water and favourable climate for agriculture. People should begin learning to grow food.
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…..item 1B)… George Kelley … THE LONG EMERGENCY By James Howard Kunstler

georgekelley.org/?p=5964

Last week I scared some of you with the prospect that the plastics in your kitchen and bathroom were leeching carcinogens into your food and body with Slow Death By Rubber Duck. This week’s entry into the prospect of “gloom and doom” is James Howard Kunstler’s The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of Oil, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century. I read The Long Emergency because Kunstler has written a series of novels based on his conception of a post-oil society. You’ll be seeing those reviews in the weeks ahead. As for The Long Emergency, it could have been titled: Worst Case Scenario. If all of Kunstler’s predictions about the end of oil and the effects of climate change and food shortages come true, we’re looking at the end of civilization as we know it. Yes, this is indeed scary stuff. GRADE: B+

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 26th, 2010 at 1:00 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

14 Responses to “THE LONG EMERGENCY By James Howard Kunstler”
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…..item 1C)…. Daughter Number Three Blogspot … TUESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2011

daughternumberthree.blogspot.com/2011_08_01_archive.html

Kunstler’s premise, as is pretty widely known, is that we’ve just passed peak oil, worldwide. He spends his time spinning scenarios of what will happen to daily life and the economy once we no longer have access to cheap, portable fuel. He (somewhat gleefully, it seems to me) shoots down the "cornucopian" arguments of those who think technology will save us (hydrogen fuel cells, as well solar, wind and nuclear power). The upshot: small cities and large towns are the places to be, especially in parts of the country that have access to fresh water and the possibility of hydro power. Hence, his home in upstate New York north of Albany. Do everything you can to be prepared for your new career as a subsistence farmer, or maybe a carpenter or shoemaker.

Some revelations I found in the book:

—– The success of Thatcherism had a lot more to do with the North Sea oil boom (now over) than it did with the correctness of conservative policies.

—– The U.S. energy crises of 1973 and 1979, which I experienced as a teenager, were all about the passing of the U.S. oil peak, and the transition to control of supply by other nations (OPEC). The fact that prices and supplies then eased for such a long time is also explained (see the bit about North Sea oil, above). All of which Americans took as an excuse to forget about energy conservation, building farther out from city centers, flying more and more, moving up to SUVs, and killing what was left of our railroads.

—– The U.S. will never give up its swollen military budget as long as there’s a drop of oil to be controlled worldwide. I don’t mean to say I didn’t realize we’ve been fighting wars for oil. I just hadn’t quite internalized how deep-seated our nation’s attachment to its military budget is.

—– Despite the fact that Kunstler wrote the book in 2004, with publication early in 2005, he completely nailed the Wall Street stock casino, the housing bubble and the subsequent implosion. It was eerie reading his description.

When Kunstler tries to explain everything about geopolitics, he can start to sound a bit light on facts. But he sure can turn a phrase:

….. Our ability to resist the environmental corrective of disease will probably prove to have been another temporary boon of the cheap-oil age, like air conditioning and lobsters flown daily from Maine to the buffets of Las Vegas. So much of what we construe to be among our entitlements to perpetual progress may prove to have been a strange, marvelous, and anomalous moment in the planet’s history (page 12).

….. When media commentators cast about struggling to explain what has happened in our country economically, they uniformly overlook the colossal misinvestment that suburbia represents — a prodigious, unparalleled misallocation of resources (page 17).

….. I do not believe that the general ignorance about the coming catastrophic end of the cheap-oil era is the product of a conspiracy, either on the part of business or government or news media. Mostly it’s a matter of cultural inertia, aggravated by collective delusion, nursed in the growth medium of comfort and complacency (page 26).

….. Fossil fuels provided for each person in an industrialized country the equivalent of having hundreds of slaves constantly at his or her disposal (page 31).

….. Globalism was primarily a way of privatizing the profits of business activities while socializing the costs (page 186).

….. The dirty secret of the American economy in the 1990s was that it was no longer about anything except the creation of suburban sprawl and the furnishing, accessorizing, and financing of it. It resembled the efficiency of cancer (page 222).

With Michele Bachmann promising a gallon gas if she’s elected, and now saying she would drill in the Everglades (while also eliminating the EPA so no environmental checks could be done), Kunstler is more timely than ever. Reading The Long Emergency, I have to say I became convinced that — barring a cornucopian invention of free flowing energy — we’re about to experience a crashing oil hangover. The best we can hope is that it happens gradually and not suddenly. But given our political climate, I don’t think gradual is in the cards.

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Categories: Afflicting the Comfortable, Books, Life in the Age of the Interweb, Reading YA
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Refinement :

Dot Grid Book perforations

Image by paperbits
Every time I open the thing, the binding gets bound up like this.

A minor detail, but I’m hoping that in a year or so I don’t have pages falling out of the thing because the perforations get repeatedly stressed.

Refinement :

today’s new picture books

Image by your neighborhood librarian
Reviews from Pink Me: Children’s books reviewed for grownups.

The only boy in ballet class, written by Denise Gruska with illustrations by Amy Wummer.
Hey! Billy Elliot, his own story! No. Good lord. It’s a wonderful and heartwarming story about a boy who loves ballet and who gets picked on and teased until one day when he… wins The Big Game. The other kids see that the jetés and chassés that they derided as poncy and fey are effective strategies for avoiding defensive linemen. Kind of stretching it a little here.

Llama llama mad at Mama by Anna Dewdney.
I may be the only mom, and certainly the only librarian I know, who ever didn’t fall in love with Llama llama red pajama. As for this one: aw, no. Llama llama pitches a fit at the supermarket and throws all the crap out of the cart and instead of indicating her displeasure at his behavior, Mama suggests that they work together as a team to get the shopping done. Go on, pull the other one. Still, the rhymes and pictures are excellent, and I could see reading this to a three year old and saying, "Oh my gosh! Isn’t that a terrible way to behave?"

The Nutcracker Doll, written and illustrated by Mary Newell DePalma.
Just in time for Chri- …. oh, I’ve made that joke before, haven’t I? Wouldn’t it be nice if our holiday books were processed in time for the holiday in question? This is a nice little one, for all the ballet-mad girls. Kepley gets to be onstage in a production of The Nutcracker. Pretty straightforward, and as it turns out, that’s because it’s a true story about the author’s daughter. If it were me, I’d have included that tidbit on a page at the beginning or end. Maybe it was there but I missed it.

Br’er Rabbit Captured! A Dr. David Harleyson Adventure, by Jean Cassels.
Cute, cute, and more cute! It’s fractured Br’er Rabbit! The narrator’s uncle is trying to catch up to Br’er Rabbit to paint his portrait, and he is aided by the other characters in the folktales. Told in epistolary multiple first person narrative, a favorite for fractured stories (think Hoodwinked), we get to hear many of the tales retold in the course of trying to find the rabbit. Really fine art.

Magic Night, by Isobelle Carmody, illustrated by Declan Lee.
Don’t let your adult fantasy readers get their hands on this – it’ll never get back to the children’s section. A pixie-like thing gets into the house and things start transforming weirdly, with only the cat to see. BEAUTIFUL illustrations, the kind that make you look at a coffee mug full of pens and wonder what it would look like if it came to life. My Big Man is going to love it, and any other Spiderwick fan is too.

Ivan the Terrier by Peter Catalanotto.
Just like Mélanie Watt’s cat Chester, Peter Catalanotto’s dog Ivan takes over this book, interrupting every story the narrator tries to read. The cover, a straight-on portrait of Ivan, is the best thing about this book, and I’m not being bitchy.

The Mine-o-saur by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen, illustrated by David Clark.
Sharing. Dinosaurs. But! David Clark, we love that guy! He illustrated Gakky Two-Feet, which was super-weird, but worth it for the pop-eyed hominids (it’s the only picture book I know about natural selection) and the smart colors.

When dinosaurs came with everything, written by Elise Broach, illustrated by David Small.
Now, why aren’t all picture books written like this? The mom is very mom-like, and the kid sounds just like my 6-year-old, who, when asked the other day if he bugs the kid who sits next to him with too much talking, said, "No. Sometimes I ask him, ‘Dude, how’s it going?’ but that’s all." The kid in this book, upon learning that he gets a dinosaur instead of a sticker after his checkup, crumples slightly, knees together, throws back his head with his arms up, and cries, "YESSS!" And I LOVE the scratchy pen and ink and watercolor illustrations – David Small also illustrated The Gardener, one of my all-time happy weepie picture books. I even love the typeface, the same one used in 17 Things I’m Not Allowed to Do Anymore. In other words, unless In Jesse’s Shoes turns out to be an unexpected superstar, I think we have our Book of the Day!

Keep love in your heart, little one, by Giles Andreae, illustrated by Clara Vulliamy.
No, no. Shut up. How am I going to know that I can’t stand books like this unless I read one every now and then? Well, I have to say, if you’re going to take home this kind of book, Keep love in your heart is a good option. The illustrations are quite beautiful, with lovely little details. And it’s not pure schmaltz… it’s more like… lemon curd. Probably because it’s British.

In Jesse’s Shoes: Appreciating Kids with Special Needs, by Beverly Lewis, illustrated by Laura Nikiel.
Yes, that Beverly Lewis, the one who writes the "dirty Amish books", as one of my Monday-night patrons calls them. That explains the heavy God content of this otherwise perfectly ordinary, maudlin book about Allie and her developmentally disabled older brother Jesse, who she feels guilty about being embarrassed by. Sort of like Al Capone Does My Shirts for a younger crowd. And with divinely-inspired guilt in addition to ordinary empathy-deficit guilt.

Ziba came on a boat, written by Liz Lofthouse, illustrated by Robert Ingpen.
Afghan(?) refugee child. What it was like in her village before everything went to crap and what it was like when it went to crap, plus Ziba’s dreams of freedom. So many questions, starting with: what’s she doing on a boat? What part of which cold, mountainous, headscarf-wearing, goat-eating country – it certainly appears to be Afghanistan, an impression that is backed up by the author’s short biography – do you flee in a boat? Too distracted by that one question even to enjoy the lovely illustrations by the always-classy Robert Ingpen.

Punk Farm on Tour by Jarrett J. Krosoczka.
You know I just want to love everything JJK does: Bubble Bath Pirates was such a fave at our house a couple years ago, partly because the mom is a pirate too, and besides, the man is just so damn funny. But when I took Punk Farm (this book’s predecessor) home, it got a totally ho-hum response. Aaaand… I’m not sure this one’s gonna rock the house either. The band covers "Wheels on the bus"… that’s kind of never a good sign.

Chester by Ayano Imai.
What do you call this kind of book? Underappreciated family member runs away from home but does not find comfort anywhere else and then comes back home and now they love him. Do you call that Wizard of Oz? Goldilocks? Whatever you call it, it is Oh My God So Very Done. I’ll forgive Ayano Imai because she has spent most of her life in Japan and maybe it’s not such a tired trope there, and besides, her pictures are just excellent.

Romeo and Lou Blast Off by Derek Anderson.
Well, it’s cute. Romeo and Lou are a penguin and a polar bear (do you get as cheesed-off as my six-year-old does when people put penguins and polar bears in the same environment? Even when it’s a silly book, it’s still just Not Right.), anyway, an Arctic mammal and an Antarctic bird build a snow rocket that magically takes off and crash-lands them in a city. As they try to figure out how to get home, they interpret the city sights using their native vernacular: they think two guys with mustaches are walruses, kids in bright-colored swimsuits are fish, etc. Kind of a dud.

This is the day! Adapted by Phillis Gershator, illustrated by Marjorie Priceman.
I don’t always go for Marjorie Priceman’s sort of Chagall-y work: I know it’s meant to be gestural, but it often falls over the edge into slapdash for me. But boy do her willowy women and 1950′s wirework furniture work in this book, an adaptation of an old song that goes "Monday’s the day we give babies away with half a pound of tea. Here comes a lady who wants a baby. ‘I’ll take this one,’ says she…" It’s an irresistible song, light-hearted and with an adoption theme, and the illustrations are sunny and swingy and the whole book just really works. Besides the fact that a different song with the same title is one of my favorite songs of all time. ALL TIME. THE THE ROCKS, PEOPLE. (And oh my, wasn’t Matt Johnson cute back when he had hair!)

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A few nice book reviews times images I found:

Refinement :

Take Time for Paradise by A. Bartlett Giamatti

Image by sillygwailo
Acquired as part of LibraryThing’s Early Review Program.

tips:book reviews times–: NY times book review website?
I’m on the site and im wondering how to get to previous sunday book reviews. In my class i have to choose two book reviews from the october sunday book reviews

The following is the answer: (Hint: The answer is not necessarily.)

Answer by cjvw622
You’d find them in “archives”, but I think you have to subscribe to get past issues.

Add your own answer in the comments!
Refinement :

MICHELLE OBAMA’S BOOK

Image by roberthuffstutter
A BRIEF REVIEW OF MICHELLE

michelle…a biography by Liza Mundy. Party affiliation didn’t prevent me from purchasing this beautiful book about the lady who would become America’s First Lady. Published by Simon & Schuster, New York, New York, copyright by Liza Mundy. Well written and personal in that many of the future First Lady’s ideas and ambitions are mentioned. I enjoyed the book and the insight it provided me about the Obama Family and their time and place in American history. Mundy’s biography of Mrs Obama should inspire and encourage most all readers. One of the most attractive biographies on the market, and one of the most attractive smiles in the nation.

TV Celebrity Transformation Specialist, Chris Powell, www.chrispowell.com and his wife, Heidi Powell, Personal Fitness Trainer and Life Coach, sit down to discuss ” Healthy food shoping Tips” a key factor in reshaping your body and losing weight — integrity. Often asked, how does one stay motivated to eat right, exercise and to stick to one’s weight loss goal, Chris and Heidi tell us that motivation, at its deepest root is integrity, or keeping one’s word. Keeping your word with yourself is how you stay motivated and on the path toward success. Full of tips and suggestions on how to keep your word, not only with others, but more importantly, yourself, whether it be about a tempting food, not wanting to go to the gym today, or other struggles and weight loss ruts you may find yourself in, this video will help you understand how integrity is a key factor in your diet, whether you are carb cycling or following any other weight loss plan. Heidi Powell has empowered the lives of thousands across the globe, becoming a household name in the world of fitness. Starting as a professional trainer when she was only 19 years old, Heidi has become a well-known health expert and life-coach, who has leveraged her years of transformative experience to help educate and inspire individuals to lead healthier, happier and more successful lives. Through her career and life experiences, Heidi realized the power of the human mind, and the need for proper instruction to help others overcome many …

tips: