Review:I love this book, and recommend the movie! Oskar is a young boy in Sweden, he doesn't have many friends, and he constantly harassed by bullies. A young girl, Eli, and her 'father' move in next door. Oskar and Eli become friends, and strange things begin to happen in the neighborhood, and Oskar begins to wonder; How come he never sees Eli during the daytime? Read more

Review:If you are a young writer looking for quick, solid advice on how to develop your craft then this book is an excellent place to start. If you are an experienced writer with a couple professional publications under your belt but you still have your doubts about your ability to make money at the craft of fiction, then this book will add greatly to your toolbox. However, if you've taken a few college level creative writing classes, or if you've already got a novel on store shelves and are working ... Read more

Review:I disagree. I loved Henry V! I've memorized parts of it because it's just that good. Today Shakespeare's work is almost universally considered some of the best literature written, but he really wrote to entertain and to educate. What more can you ask for? Read more

Review:There have been several excellent translations of Dante in the past few years, all worth reading in their own right. But I retain a special affection for John Ciardi's version, as it's the first one I ever read, at the unprepared & overwhelmed age of 15. I knew of its reputation as a major classic & I was ignorant enough to be unfazed by the prospect of reading it.

Well, to say that I was soon in over my head is an understatement! But Ciardi's fine, lyrical translation, as well as... Read more

Review:I teach creative writing in the UCLA Writer's Program (online) and always recommend this book to my students as one of the two best books (along with Janet Burroway's "Writing Fiction") on the craft of writing ever penned. I have used the information in this book time and again in writing my own novels and stories ("The Death of Tarpons" (novel), "Monday's Meal" (story collection), "Over Easy" (thriller forthcoming from Random House, 1999). A more intelligent book than this has yet to be wr... Read more

Review:I am going through Ann Whitford Paul's book, "Writing Picture Books," now, and I love it. It's teaching me more about writing rich, layered books that I ever could've learned on my own. I'm actually using it as a textbook, taking notes, making the signs to post by my computer as she suggests, reading the books she refers to, and doing the homework "before you go on" activities at the end of each chapter.

I've been struggling with two historical fiction stories that aren't all rainbows and... Read more

Review:Very good book. Learned a few new things about the teaching and understanding of nonviolence tactics and how useful MLK used it as a tool to fight Bull Connor and the rest of the segregationist in 1963 Alabama. Read more

Review:As a retired English teacher I found this book to be gem when trying to sell Shakespeare to kids who are really not all that interested. The modern translation followed by the original prose is really helpful for kids who must study English as a compulsory subject but who interests lie more in the maths and science field. I wish this book had been in my possession when I was still teaching. Read more