Junior Books

I come from a long line of fantastic cooks. I read and reread cookbooks all the time. This is my favorite cookbook. I have tried many recipes from here and even though I am usually a try-something-new-cook some of these have become staples. Also the recipes lend well to improvisation. Really I can't say enough about this cookbook, my family covets it.

I couldn't wait to dive into the Junior League of Pasadena's Dining by Design cookbook. In addition to delicious and easy sounding recipes, it is full of all kinds of interesting nuggets of information. Things that you've always wanted to know but could never put your finger on in other cookbooks. It is also a lovely looking book, almost too pretty to be a cookbook. Try it, I think you'll really, really like it!

i recommend this book to absolutely everyone. i have yet to have a bad experience with any one of the recipes found in this beautiful book. Not only does the book contain tasty recipes but it contains valuable tips for cooking, decorating, entertaining and the like. this is a must buy for family and friends as well as for yourself. i sure hope the junior league of Pasadena, inc. will publish another:)

I couldn't wait to dive into the Junior League of Pasadena's Dining by Design cookbook. In addition to delicious and easy sounding recipes, it is full of all kinds of interesting nuggets of information. Things that you've always wanted to know but could never put your finger on in other cookbooks. It is also a lovely looking book, almost too pretty to be a cookbook. Try it, I think you'll really, really like it!

As expected, I was not disappointed by the Junior League of Pasadena's newest edition in their series of cookbooks. I didn't think anything could top their last, "California Sizzles", but "Dining by Design" is even better! I have dozens of cookbooks that remain dusty on the shelves, but both my Junior League of Pasadena cookbooks are very well worn from all of the recipes I use. Way to go! I recommend these delicious, easy to understand, easy to prepare recipes to everyone!

I previously read "Dear Emma," and it was a great book. I really wanted to read the sequel, and as soon as possible I checked out "Faraway Summer" from the library.
This book is the journal of Dossi, who lives in crowded Essex Street with her older sister, Ruthi, in a small room in someone else's apartment in a tenament building. She's shocked when she learns that Ruthi has filled out a Fresh Air Fund application for her.
But whether she likes it or not, she boards a train for Jericho, Vermont. She's staying with the Meade's, who live on a 52-acre farm and who own a large house. They have an eight year old girl Nell and a girl Emma her own age. Most of all, she wants Emma to be her friend.
She sees lots of new things-fireflies, huge amounts of food, cows and chickens, and large, open space-something she's never experienced before. She thinks the food is the best thing ever!
Emma remains cold and unfriendly until the end of the book. I think it's said when Emma leaves Dossi's library book out in the rain by the pond.
This was a great book and I'd recommend it to everyone. Good work, Johanna Hurwitz!

I have read lots of Joanna Hurwitz's books and i must say this is one of her best. Haddasa [Dossi for short] has nobody but her sister Ruthi and her friend Mimy. Dossi 's parents have passed out and so has her sister . Dossi and Ruthi live in a crowded tenament with just one room too do everything : Eat , Sleap , Sit , Stand ....... Ruthi works in a sewing factory. The tenament smells of sweat and OF COURES They dont have a single toy. When Ruthi signs Dossi up for a Fresh Air Fund ,Dossi objects . But when Dossi starts to like , even befriend the family she is staying with ..............

Dossi is a poor girl who lives in the city.Her parents and younger sister,Velvel have passed away.Dossi's sister,Ruthi is the one who will take care of them.She works in the factory.When Ruthi signs Dossi up to be sent to the country,on a Fresh Air Fund vacation,Dossi is terrified and surprised.Soon,the day had come to go to the country.Dossi packed her bags and brought along a library book which was a new one.She and her friend,Mimi, didn't tell the librarian that Dossi was taking it away.Dossi prommises Ruthi that she will send a postcard to her as soon as she reaches her destination.In the country,she meets the gentile Meade family.Nell and Emma are around Dossi's age.Mr. Meade and Mrs. Meade also have two sons,Timothy and Edward.Nell chats nineteen to a dozen.Emma doesn't.There are a lot of things that Dossi hasn't seen.Like fireflies,cows,two yolks in one egg and many other things.She learns about a man named Snowflake Bentley.He is mad about snowflakes.Snowflake Bentley also takes photos of snowflakes not people.Dossi likes Nell but she wants to befriend Emma too.But Emma treats her like if she is not there.Will Dossi be able to befriend Emma before her holiday in the country ends?

Haddassah (Dossi for short) is a Jewish girl lives in a cramped apartment in New York City. Her sister (Ruthi) signs her up for a Fresh Air Fund which sends poor children too the country for 2 weeks in the summer. Dossi leaves excited and yet afraid to go on vacation with a family she doesn't know in Vermont for 2 weeks. She is stunned by things in the country and doesn't even know what fireflies are. This is one fault that I found with the book, she seems to know NOTHING of the country, now I can believe she's never milked a cow, but some of the things she had never seen are unbelievable. Anyway during the book she sprouts friendship and learns new things of her trip. She meets new people and learns what the lovely countryside is like. This is a really fast paced book, you should be able to finish it within an hour or so, but nonetheless it is worth reading.

This is a good story about a girl who spends a few weeks with a family that is very different from her own. Dossi learns other people have alot to offer her and she has alot to offer in a friendship,too. Hurwitz is a wonderful author; she makes the characters and situation come alive.

I got this for an airline ride with my 6-year-old puzzle lover. I may have had more fun with it than him!

The book arrived on time with no damages to the books. I use this book at the recommendation of my occupational therapist to regain functional brain activities that were damaged in my car accident in 2005. I found the book very interesting and helpful for me. As it is for children, I also sent a copy to friends of mine for their children to have fun working with as they learn.
A great book for all the family.
Thank You
Jean Marie Naples

I use this book with 7th and 8th graders to get their brains working during class. I love it and use it often.

Wonderful collection of games. My children (age 6 and 8) have thoroughly enjoyed this. Well thought out and great for the car too.

I purchased this book to use with my students to help them develop their visual perceptual, perceptual motor, and problem solving skills. The puzzles vary in presentation and level of complexity, so you will be sure to find something to suit. The kids are having fun, so they forget about the fact that they are also learning important skills.

Every recipe that I have tried from this cookbook is great! All the appetizers are delicious, try That Jr. League Pesto Mold in the appetizers and you can make this into 2 small molds out of one recipe. The Lemonade Cake in the Children's section is the perfect take anywhere cake! The Black Bean Salsa incredible! Or if you need a fast and easy appetizer, try the Crab & Caper Dip you actually bake it IN the bread! Great history of Gainesville, FL, too! Fantastic Cookbook!

Every recipe in this book is very good. Most (almost all) recipes are very easy to make and looks like you worked a long time on them. The Pesto Mold on page 20 is easy to make and everyone will ask for the recipe. The sausage snacks on page 30 are a nice change to meatballs. Pesto tortilla snacks are very easy and great tasting also. The pumpkin chocolate chip muffins and fruity muffins make great gifts around the holidays. The Parmesan Caesar salad is a salad a I make all the time. All the potato dishes are great tasting; the squash casserole is the best I have every had. The sweet potatoes are great (even if you don't like sweet potatoes. I could go on. This cookbook has a nice feature with the children's section. I have used this book so much and bought so many as gifts.

This is a wonderful book. It is full of great recipes that are not only good, but easy to prepare. I highly recommend it!

I have tried many of the recipes in this book and like 99% of them, so do my family and my friends. My favorites include; Frogmore Pickled Shrimp, Swamp Chili, Okra and Tomatoes, Pasta with Shrimp, Lemon and tomoatoes and many more than I should probably list. The book is well laid out (easy to follow), ingredients are easy to find and the serving suggestion are on target. Try this book. You'll like it.

This book is great. Everything I cook from it is a hit with family and friends. Try the Frogmore Pickled Shrimp in the appetizer section if you cook for the pleasure of receiving compliments. It is simply best shrimp appetizer you'll ever make.

THIS BOOK IS A TRUTHFUL BOOK WITH ALL THE NAMES CHANGED . MOST OF THESE PEOPLE I KNOW OR KNEW . IT GIVES A VIEW OF THE PLACE I GREW UP. BUT I NEVER RELIZED HOW BAD THE PLACE REALLY WAS . UNTIL THIS DAY I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SUBMORINE .I HEARD MY PARENTS TALK ABOUT IT . THE AUTHOR COULD HAVE USED A FEW LESS NASTY WORDS . BUT IF HE WAS WRITING LIKE POEPLE TALK IN THAT TOWN THEN HE HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD. A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T LIKE THE BOOK BECAUSE IT IS GRAPHIC BUT THAT IS JUST THE WAY IT WAS AND STILL IS ONLY IT IS IN REVERSE NOW.

I grew up in the South, and although Junior Ray is somewhat older, I understood his millieu. I had friends who were as bloodthirsty, and relatives who were as racist, but I knew no one who was as philosophically sophisticated as Pritchard's protagonist. JR is a latter day Falstaff, Caliban, Aaron the Moor, and Don Quixote combined into one marvellous character. Don't be misled by the setting: Pritchard's planters, bankers, "niggas," and "white trash" are all around us still, and if we look deeply enough, JR is us. Let's hope that Pritchard will delight us again in the near future. In the meantime, Junior Ray will remain a cult classic -- unless of course, the NYTimes has the courage to review it.

PS: Junior Ray includes by far the most amusing human copulation scene ever to appear in literature.

It would be easy to characterize Junior Ray Loveblood as some sort of redneck avatar. He IS, after all, a self-proclaimed racist; he's unreflective, vulgar, and casually violent. His personal philosophy is based on angry class consciousness; he knows his place in the caste system of the South: redneck/white trash. Junior Ray is an enthusiastically diversified bigot who hates lots of things: bankers, planters, women, blacks, foreigners, preachers, politicians, etc. And he's not shy about saying so. "...what I was really up against was all them versus me."

But that's not all there is to Junior Ray. In spite of the crudity, in spite of the trash talking persona, Junior Ray is a nuanced character (though I'm sure he'd whup my ass for saying so). He's a strange hybrid--what you might get if you crossed a wounded Cape Buffalo with Pap Finn and Samuel Pepys.

Junior Ray is Juvenalian satire, Southern Fried. This book is scathingly and sctologically funny ("I guess if I could say one thing about screwin' sheep, it really made me appreciate family values."). Above all, Junior Ray is honest. And he's not even a very good racist--having a sneaking fondness for "niggas" who he says have a kind of humanity that bankers and planters don't have, and with whom he seems to be more comfortable.

The South he grew up in has been totally changed by civil rights, women's rights, political correctness, and urbanization--the loss of farms and woods and more importantly, human scale. None of this suits Junior Ray. He's not exactly a good ol' boy--he's the antithesis of goodness, and he's honest about that too--but he's a true rendering of a type. A lineal descendant of the Snopes. You might not like Junior Ray, but you will remember his voice, and you will probably laugh at his story. John Pritchard has created a character who "casts a shadow" to use Faulkner's terminology.

From the adventures of "Mr. Floppy" and "Miz Squint," to all my other favorite parts, each time I re-read them, I laugh out loud louder!

Hooray for Junior Ray!

Pritchard has succeeded in creating a character on the par with Holden Caulfield or Ignatius Reilly: you don't like them at all really, but you can't stop reading to see what they'll do next. At a time when the modern South constantly tries to show that it has left behind its old ways, Junior Ray Loveblood doesn't give a crap whether you approve of his way of looking at things. This book is funny, aggravating, intriguing social commentary from a man whose time has gone.

If you're very image-oriented, you won't like this. But to read it is absolute fun. I should have chosen something with less text and more images as a gift for my young nephews, but now their Dad is reading it for them and they're enjoying it very much. That Nicolas is something!

My French teacher gave me one of the "Petit Nicholas" then I'm so hooked to it. "The GREATEST book ever!" is all I can describe. You'll find Goscinny + Sempe are made for each other and createsd such a GREAT & SUCESSFUL Nicolas series. Just so so so so so...... much fun reading it! Smiles from bottom of heart!

This is the second Petit Nicolas book I've read. I love him. I think the book is at a 5th or 6th grade level in French. I love them because I don't need a dictionary to read it and the stories are cute and entertaining. Also, I've memorized this statement, "Je me suis mis a pleurer...", because if he's disappointed, he always begins crying! No wonder his mom and dad sent him to summer camp this summer.

This book is by far the best book in the "Le Petit Nicolas" series. It humorously captures all of the little (and big) things that make travelling with children such a tiring and hilarious adventure. The funniest chapter is called "La Plage, c'est chouette" and I have never laughed so hard as when I read the chapter. The vocab wasn't too tricky and I would recommend this book to anyone learning French or anyone who knows French. C'est tres interessant, et moi, je l'aime. Et je pense que vous allez aimer "Les vacances du Petit Nicolas"! Achetez-le aujourd'hui! Buy it today!

If you know some French, even just a little bit, then you should not miss this book! The stories are from the perspective of a mischievious young French boy, and his observations and ideas will make you roll with laughter. The stories themselves are excellent, but in my opinion it is the way they are told that makes the book a real gem of comedy. The Petit Nicolas books are helpful for those learning or brushing up on French. I'd say that anyone who has completed a French class in high school or college should have enough knowledge of the language to appreciate this book. If you're one of those like me who has forgotten a lot of French, then I recommend reading it with a French dictionary handy...it is worth the effort! Recommended highly for those who like to laugh and have at least a basic reading knowledge of French.

I bought this book after meeting the author. The book cover doesn't look as pretty as other books but they are wonderful! The writing is marvelous! I learned a lot about the Lewis and Clark Expedition from this book. I was also impressed with the activities that go along with the book. Very nice. I wish I had bought the book on Columbus and the exploration of the New World, it is out of print, but I bet it's good!

This book is full of information and activities that are interesting to kids. Many pieces of information that I never came across in other books. For younger children (4-7), the best one might be Lewis & Clark: A Prairie Dog for the President.

Build a keelboat, learn how to use a compass, carve a canoe - all of these adventures await you in The Lewis & Clark Expedition! Terrific book which makes the Expedition come alive. The activities and illustrations are excellent and have proven to be winners with children of all ages.

What a lot is packed into this brief (112 pages) activity book for children! It's a vivid account of the Lewis & Clark Expedition, rich in adventure, yet also presenting the journey from many political and cultural angles. Activities and lively descriptions bring out not just the physical conditions of the trip, but leadership dilemmas, and moral issues faced along the way.

The book is filled with apt and frequently witty illustrations. Also, numerous intriguing asides about the trip mesh nicely with the main narrative.

Facts are presented; questions are posed. Children are asked to think - and after the mental activity - they'll come away from the book feeling they were there

The Lewis and Clark Expedition, by Carol Johmann, is a fantastic book filled with first-hand information about two of our U.S. history's famous explorers. Johmann includes excerpts from Lewis & Clark's own journals, as well as from some of their fellow soldiers. This lends a great deal of authenticity to Johmann's book, as well as gives the reader a feel of being right alongside these men as they progress on their journey west.
As a home-schooling mom, I especially find Johmann's kid-friendly style of writing refreshing as well as informative. The inclusion of various age-appropriate crafts throughout the book is a great way to stimulate further interest in the reader, and gives the child an even greater understanding of what these two men and their crew dealt with during their journey.
I highly recommend this book. For the home-schooler, this is an excellent social studies curriculum combining intellect with creativity. For public schools, it's a fantastic way to draw the students in and give them a more thorough understanding of the trials and accomplishments Lewis & Clark underwent. For parents who want to give their child(ren) (or themselves) a more informative and well-rounded experience of Lewis & Clark's exploration for westward expansion as well as to determine if a single water route existed across the continent to better accommodate for trade, this is the book for you!
Ms. Johmann, two thumbs up!

As we know, there 's a popular film showing in US named' The

Lizzie McGuire Movie'. Unluckly, I'm not in US, so I can't

watch the film.I've watch the preview and I like it very

much.This book is full of imagination, it's a bit similar to the

book' The Princess Dairies'. It's the best book for all the

girls who liked to dream(including me) ------being a famous pop

star, having all the clothes and food you want. I like the

ending best, because it is unexpected. I think that it will be

one of the favourtes of the girls who liked to dream !!!

- Lucia Lee, one of the readers of this wonderful book

This book was really great. I would reccomend it for ages 11 or 12 and up because it has a bad word in it and it has the word sexiest in it. So if you know any 11 or 12 or older person get it for them if they are a Lizzie McGuire.

This is the best book around! It tells the exact same story as the movie. There aren't differences in this book as the movie. I read the first two pages of the book when I first bought it

i'm a big fan of lizzie, i think this book was very cute, it's very funny. i hope the movie turns out the same way.

The Lizzie McGuire Movie by Susan Estelle Jansen is an awesome story about one girl that is to clumsy to do anything and then she goes on a trip to Rome and finds out otherwise.

Lizzie is just about to graduate from junior high and she messes up real bad! Her brother tape records it and sends it to Good Morning America. Then she goes on a class trip to Rome and she tells her best friend Gordo that they need to find adventures. Then Lizzie bumps into pop superstar Paolo and she does find adventures. He tells her that she looks just like Isabella the girl he sings with. He tells her his story and she agrees to help him. She becomes Isabella for a couple of days dodging her new principal while doing so. Gordo covers for her and gets himself in tuns of trouble. Read this wonderful story and find out what happens with Lizzie and her singing career and Gordo and Isabella.

The characters really jump out at you. Lizzie is so clumsy and she seems to always fall down. The characters were really believable and the story seemed to be real to me. This book is really hard to put down you always want to know what is going to happen to Lizzie and her friends. You have to pay attention very closely so you aren't lost or confused. The plot is so interesting and the ending will blow you away. I really believe any girl who reads this would want this to happen to them.

I loved this book. It is every teenagers dream. This is such an exciting book it really lets you feel like you are leaving the `dream'. I would recommend this book to teenage girls looking for a good read because they would enjoy it and keep it as one of there favorites. The book will be enjoyed by all whom read.So read this book and please with all means `enjoy'!!
-Patricia Harnish 13

As the parent of a 4 year old I try to incorporate math into our daily routine. This book gave some excellent examples and ideas for fun games and easy ways to incorporate math into our lives. I loved the chapter that discussed language and math. It gave specific suggestions on how to teach the language needed to understand math.

This book deserves all 5 stars and should be required reading for every elementary school teacher and parent.

When I think of Dr. Patricia Kenschaft, the first image that enters my mind is that of a Unicorn. Dr. Kenschaft is a unique person for which you would be hard pressed to find an equal. Her ability to teach mathematics to virtually anyone is only the beginning of her many special talents. I consider myself priveledged to have had the opportunity to study with Dr. Kenschaft in my time as a student at Montclair State University. Even if you are never fortunate enough to cross paths with a person like her, do read her book, Math Power. It will change not only your outlook on mathematics, but your outlook on many of life's other challenges.

It's a real shame that this book is now out of print. If you have young children, and you can find a copy of this book in the used book store, buy it at any price. Kenschaft is a math professor whose daughter is also a mathematics professor. She gives incredibly useful advice on how to get your child interested in mathematics and drives a nail into the coffin of the myth that there is a "math gene", and that some (most?) people are simply genetically unsuited to do math. All too often the problem is that kids are taught that math is boring.

Why do so many popular nursery rhymes involve counting? Kenschaft points out that favourites like "one-two, buckle my shoe" and "1-2-3-4-5, I caught a fish alive" teach kids to count to ten. I never met a kid who didn't like nursery rhymes; Kenschaft offers reams of useful advice on how to kindle that spark and keep it alive.

As an aside, a really good companion volume to this one would be Sarah Flannery's "In Code - a (young woman's) mathematical journey".

If you have concerns about the ... math acheivements in our country you must read this book and take action. If you have kids you will learn that they depend on you to teach them in ways that their teachers may not even be capable or prepared to do.

Math is usually taught in such a way that it actually discourages kids from liking it, feeling competent in it or wanting to pursue it.

While the primamry focus of the book is Math, its principles apply to all branches of education and learning. Learn that there are pitfalls to standardized testing and minimal competency standards.

The book includes practical advice for parents on how to encourage their children to hone their math skills and encourage their analytical skills since their teachers may not be equipped to meet children at their level in order to fully communicate and cover a subject in depth.

Seems that many teachers are not prepared to teach math in successful ways. We must put the focus and resources into preparing teachers in order to acheive the kind of results we want from their students.

You've probably heard that youngsters who are anxious about math also do poorly in math. A lot of folks thought this was just because students with limited ability appropriately worried about the subject. Not so!

Just the other day I clipped a short piece that described a scientific study demonstrating that this "math anxiety" itself gets in the way of doing the math. The chicken that comes before this egg is not low ability but high anxiety. Finding ways to lessen that math anxiety can improve math achievement.

As a parent and as a math teacher this is important news. Many parents have worried about how they could help their children with math that is often very different from when they were kids. These studies tell us that we'd do better to try to find ways to turn a math "phobic" home into a "Math Power" place. Patricia Kenschaft's book is a wonderful blueprint for such a home 'remodeling' project.

The significant subtitle of this book is:

"How to Help Your Child Love Math, Even If You Don't."

There, as Shakespeare said, lies the rub. After all, most parents bring those same childhood math anxieties right up into their adult lives, right to the dinner (or homework) table. What Kenschaft does is to show you a wide variety of ways, starting even in pre-school, that you and your child can explore math in wholly new forms. You don't have to memorize the rules for fraction division all over again; you just need to find new ways of looking at math.

This book does the best job I have seen of describing the failings of the "old school" approach to math. It has an entire section entitled "Why so many children are damaged" including chapters entitled "How drill and kill cripples U.S. Math education" and "What every parent should know about testing and grading." (My only critique of the book is that this section is placed near the end of the book - you might read it first if you think that going back to the good ole days is the sort of change we need).

The book emphasizes the math of children up to about age 10 or 11, wrapping up with a chapter called "The Fifth Grade Crisis." I had never seen this term used before. But as a 6th grade teacher I believe she has captured an important soft spot in our math education system. Although the ups and downs of kids' math in school all sum up over many years, some important cognitive shifts take place as they open the door into adolescence. Fifth and sixth grades are often the place where they "decide" they are "no good" at math... decide they "can't do it". Kenschaft shows how much of that decision is just a reaction to some truly damaging practices in schools.

Kenschaft also encourages you to take a new view of your role in the school - beyond bakesales! She provides practical advice for you to become a school-math activist without being antagonistic. A chapter entitled "Getting along with your child's teachers" is full of good, practical advice. She concludes with a whole section about change entitled "Tweaking the Machine". Finally there are useful appendices and a great bibliography.

This book is especially powerful because it weaves the very personal with the broadly `political'. Its combination of practical advice with broad policy discussions is unique. If you are a parent wondering how to approach the troubling questions surrounding your child's school math program, at both levels, this book will give you lots to think about.

Marshall retells many of the stories of Britain in a way that makes them easy to remember and understand.

We homeschool using the Charlotte Mason method, and my 8 year old son loves this book. His 14 year old brother doesn't have to read it, but often does...that's how interesting it is.

I read this aloud last spring to my 3 boys, ages 10, 12, and 13. They all really enjoyed it and I enjoyed reading it.
The only (small) negative I could give it is that there are several spelling mistakes-mostly a missing letter in a word. I corrected that as we went along for the next time I read it aloud. It really wasn't a problem but I just thought I should point that out.
We are now reading the sequel about our own country (America) called "This Country of Ours" and enjoying that one as well. I can highly recommend both books, as well as "Fifty Famous Stories Retold" which is usually bought along with these two. That one is especially easy to narrate from as the stories are very short-often just 2 pages.

I ordered Volumes I and II of the audiotape version of The Island Story (history of Britain from mythology through Queen Elizabeth I) and listened to it with my boys aged 10 and 12 before we went to England this spring. We all really enjoyed it. While written for children, the history and color (eg tie ins to words/expressions we use today) were fascinating for me too. The book was written in the early 1900's which makes a few of the references to Britain's current day "empire" amusing but no less interesting. I will be saving this set of tapes for my grandchildren!

We have been reading about one a week for over a year. My girls love these stories! One of our rabbits ended up with the name "Boudacia" after we read her story.
At the beginning they might be more folklore than fact, but none the less they are wonderful. There are some great moral lessons to be learned from many of the stories.
After I bought the Yesterday's Classics I found an old hardback with great color pictures. It cost a bit, but what a treasure!
Highly recommend.