Bootmaker to the Nation: The Story of the American Revolution

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Terri Dawn

Most Outstanding American History book on my shelf!

Bootmaker To The Nation

The best read of this year

Absolutely Fantastic!

Bootmaker to the Nation: The Story of the American Revolution
John Slade
Manufacturer: Woodgate International
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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Perilous Journey: The Founding of Nashville, Tennessee, 1780-1781

ASIN: 1893617068

Book Description

An historical novel set during the American Revolution. A married couple tells their story about life in General Washington's army.

Customer Reviews:

Terri Dawn.......2007-01-16

I am also a member of the DAR, and I agree with all previous reviews. This is truly an outstanding and accurate historical fiction novel. Don't let the 700+ pages scare you. The chapters are short, and it is reader friendly. What a wonderful way to keep straight the major events the Continental Army faced. Enjoy!

Most Outstanding American History book on my shelf!.......2006-08-10

"Bootmaker To The Nation" by Dr. John Slade is the most outstanding American History book I now own. This historical fiction is "historically" accurate with real people and places while using a "fictional" family, dedicated to their country and to their Commander In Chief, to literally walk us through the Revolutionary War. The author has brilliantly made this family so real, you truly believe they were a part of the process.

As a member of the Fort Loudoun Chapter DAR, genealogy researcher, and history buff, I have read many books about America's Revolution, the founding fathers (& mothers), and the patriots who so bravely and selflessly put their lives and property at stake for freedom and the rights we enjoy in this great country today. None of my reading has left me in such awe. The author brings the whole story together in an easily read, understandable, and at times heart-wrenching book - i.e., the land battles in north, south, & central states, the naval engagements, the role of French forces (and the difficulties of many Americans to accept their aid after having fought against them in the French & Indian War as British troops & frontier settlers), the terror brought by the British & Hessian (serf) mercenaries as they swept through the countryside, the assistance of friendly Indian tribes, the Negro free men and escaped slaves who fought (and died) with the colonial white men, the absolute misery & mistreatment of American prisoners of war, and all the privations and sacrifices suffered by "rebel" citizens and military personnel. Meanwhile, the "fantasy family" participates as insiders in the drama, facing their own marriages, births, separations, and deaths while vowing to continue to support the war for freedom.

War is not glorified. Washington's seeming waffling in the early days of the conflict is explained. The lack of financial and material support for the troops while many citizens tended to and profited from their own business is described. But, mostly, we see a proud people, whose ancestors or themselves escaped to the new world from the oppressions of the old, grow from a rabble with disjointed goals to strong citizens of a new, free country - the United States of America.

This book should be required reading for every high school and college American History class and every person with a shred of patriotism in today's America.

Barbara J. Chaplin

Bootmaker To The Nation.......2006-01-30

I started reading this book early in December, 2005 and had a very hard time putting it down. I resented the Christmas season with all it's attendant obligations since it prevented me from reading and I so wanted to pick this tale up and continue reading. When obligations finally allowed me access to read on I was so happy. I did not want this book to end. I loved and absorbed every page. Dr. Slade made the story of our great country come alive for me for the first time in my life. Never in my life have I enjoyed an historical tome so much. So much so, that I have been absorbing more of the same. Now, I am re-reading David McCullough's 1776 and also investigating his John Adams (which was on PBS the other night) and of course I just drank the whole thing in since I have Bootmaker under my belt and have the "inside track". Dr. Slade made history come alive for me and awakened me to this great nation's history.
This book should be in every library.

The best read of this year.......2004-06-05

I bought this book at the bookstore in Williamsburg, because it was featured as a "Staff Pick". When I asked the salesperson why it was a pick, he informed me that it was as historically accurate as any piece of fiction he had ever read. This, alone, got my interest and so the book traveled hime with me.

The story follows the American Revolution from shot one to its end via the memories of a wonderful and heroic couple. It is fantastic. The plot flows with the energy of people in love with this country. The battles and travels are enhanced by maps of the battles and descriptions of not only the battles but the impact on those who fought and those who lived through the war. The characters in the book are so completely described and real, that I feel they are now personal friends.

What sets this book apart from other stories of our American Revolution, to me, is the complete honesty and accuracy of the author.

If you read only one book about the founding of our country, make it this one. If you need to find out why men continue to die for freedom, read this book. If you want to celebrate America. READ THIS BOOK

Absolutely Fantastic!.......2003-08-15

If I could give this book 10 stars, I would gladly do so. Dr Slade has hit a historical homerun with this well-told tale of the birth of our republic.

Told from the viewpoints of Benjamin York, a pressed British seaman that deserts in 1775 Boston, and Genevieve, the Massachussetts farm girl he marries, this story takes us from the beginning of our war of independence at Lexington & Concord, to it's end at the Battle of Yorktown.

Not only does Slade tell the story well, he does something that will truly shock some people: He teaches you as well! This is no dry historical tome that will send you off to sleep after the first few pages. No, indeed. When you put this book down, you will have a real feeling and understanding about the American Revoultion that so few people ever get.

When you read this book, Breed's Hill and Bunker's Hill will become real places and real battles, not just dry factoids from high school. Not only will you see the battles as real, but the pople as well. From the hunger of the foot soldier, to the real moral and tactical dilemma's facing the various commanders.

Slade makes people like George Washington, and Nathaniel Greene real flesh-and-blood men, not the cardboard heroes we often read about. The fact that he makes them human makes them all the more heroic.

Another point in Slade's favor is that he doesn't fail to discuss the southern theater of operations. Many Americans don't realize that some of the bloodiest fighting of the war took place in the Carolinas, and that the most militarily significant battle of the war was that of Guilford Courthouse, in North Carolina.

Slade has done nothing short of brilliant work here.

Buy this book. You won't be disappointed.

Average customer rating:

God is a polar bear named Bob

Nice sequel to White Apples

Glass Soup and Toast

Good, but not perfect

Soup to Nuts to This
Glass Soup
Jonathan Carroll
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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White Apples

The Wooden Sea: A Novel

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The Land of Laughs: A Novel

ASIN: 0765311801
Release Date: 2006-11-28

Book Description

For connoisseurs of imaginative fiction, the novels of Jonathan Carroll are a special treat that occupy a space all their own. His surreal fictions, which deftly mix the everyday with the extraordinary, have won him a devoted following. Now, in Glass Soup, Carroll continues to astound . . . .

The realm of the dead is built from the dreams--and nightmares--of the living. Octopuses drive buses. God is a polar bear. And a crowded highway literally leads to hell.

Once before, Vincent Ettrich and his lover, Isabelle Neukor, crossed over from life to death and back again. Now Isabelle bears a very special child, who may someday restore the ever-changing mosaic that is reality. Unless the agents of Chaos can lure her back to the land of the dead--and trap her there forever.

Glass Soup is another exquisite and singular creation from the author January magazine described as "incapable of writing a bad book much less an uninteresting one."

Customer Reviews:

God is a polar bear named Bob.......2007-08-31

Jonathan Carroll is one very strange writer! This is the first book of his that I have read, and I certainly intend to read many more of them. I understand that this is a sequel to one of his other books, but it certainly stands on its own after some initial confusion. The whole book is surreal, and there is a shock and surprise on every page.I certainly don't want to spoil anyone's enjoyment who hasn't read the book, so I refuse to discuss the plot, except to say that it kept me quite interested from beginning to end. If you want to find out why God is a polar bear named Bob, you're just going to have to read the book for yourself!

Nice sequel to White Apples.......2007-08-16

I'm a big Jonathan Carroll fan, ever since I read The Land of Laughs: A Novel. Carroll manages to mix mundane with mystical in a very charming way. Glass Soup continues where White Apples left the story of Vincent, Isabelle and their child messiah. This makes recommending this book very straightforward: if you've read White Apples and enjoyed it, Glass Soup is a must read book. If you haven't read White Apples, start there.

That said, I think this is quite a worthy sequel to White Apples. The story is quite as odd and profound as it was before. Carroll weaves the events beautifully, as the main characters travel around Vienna and cross the borders between life and death. There's odd humour, curious characters, and fairly deep thinking. The opening of the book is delightfully surreal.

Glass Soup and Toast.......2007-02-12

I am biased. Jonathan Caroll is one of my favorite writers. It doesn't matter if I'm reading one of his best or least novels. His exploration of the metaphysical within a physical world that is easily recognizable consistently captivates me. In the interface we inhabit, between fundamental spiritual visions suited to a global village, Carroll's bit of adult magic is welcome. I've read all his novels, even Child Across The Sky, which I had to order from England. I cannot find a reasonably priced used copy of his short story collection Painted Hand, or his novella, Black Cocktail, or an odd piece called The Heidelberg Cylinder. Nonetheless, I toast what I can get my hands on.

Good, but not perfect.......2007-01-10

This book is a sequel to "White Apples," but you'll be able to understand it just fine without reading the first book. It's a surrealistic tale of the struggle between good and chaos, and the main characters slip back and forth between modern-day Vienna and a dream world. It's frequently very funny and I find the characters likable despite their flaws.

I didn't like this book as much as its predecessor, however. For one thing, it goes over some of the same explanatory ground. I suppose this is good if you've never read the first book or if you've forgotten it, but otherwise it's a bit tiresome. Second, the plot is just a bit too unpredictable. Not that I want to be able to predict everything, of course. But the danger of a plot involving God, chaos, and dream worlds is that you can make just about anything happen any time you want to, and the helpless reader can't really complain that it's unbelievable. I mean, if you're willing to swallow octopus bus drivers and people made of butter, anything goes, right? But this can make it just a bit too easy for the heroes to and villians to accomplish their goals. The entire plot is sort of one big deus ex machina. Finally, I found the ending a bit unsatisfying, not too mention that it leaves several loose ends.

All these criticisms aside, however, it really is an enjoyable book and I do recommend it. I just wish it was as good as some of the author's other works.

Soup to Nuts to This.......2006-10-20

This novel is a pretty good attempt at transcendence and deep ruminations on life and death, but a lack of focus keeps the story a few steps away from genius. In fact, those very same transcendent thoughts come across as abrupt statements, rather than ideas that arise organically, while the sly humor is also occasionally effective but usually seems forced. The vaguely surreal plotline is complex and intricately constructed, but many aspects are equally under-developed and poorly explained, especially the functioning of chaos and most of the characters' motivations. And speaking of inconsistent characters, most of them here display a social snobbery and emotional promiscuousness that is very difficult to love. Jonathan Carroll also has the habit of breaking the momentum of his story with dreadfully boring and sappy dissertations on the complex emotions of shifting relationships, which may seem deep at first but take on the characteristics of the worst of over-written but under-conceived romance novels. Carroll is a strong writer with some potentially groundbreaking ideas, but he needs to decide what kinds of themes and characterizations he's really trying to explore, before those explorations can really go anywhere interesting. [~doomsdayer520~]

Book Description

This book is a wonderful work of fiction by H.G. Wells, the author of "The Time Machine." It is the tale of a fallen angel who simply cannot adapt to society in a small English village. The angel's reactions to the villagers, his pureness and wholesomeness make him an enemy of the people. As time passes on earth, he becomes more and more human, falling in love and suffering all the human trials and tribulations.

Click Magazine October 1941, Lana Turner on Cover in Wonderful Majenta Hollywood Evening Gown, National Picture Monthly, Hyde Park The estate of President Roosevelt a Photographic Visit, Belle Starr, Pin-Up Girl

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Click Magazine October 1941, Lana Turner on Cover in Wonderful Majenta Hollywood Evening Gown, National Picture Monthly, Hyde Park The estate of President Roosevelt a Photographic Visit, Belle Starr, Pin-Up Girl
Bill Stern,Tom Hargrove, Jr.,etc articles by Walter Duranty
Manufacturer: Click Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JD5ANU

The history of Mr. Polly ; The wonderful visit (Works / H.G. Wells)

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The history of Mr. Polly ; The wonderful visit (Works / H.G. Wells)
H. G Wells
Manufacturer: Heron Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

The Time Machine, The Wonderful Visit (The Works of H.G. Wells - Volume 1)

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The Time Machine, The Wonderful Visit (The Works of H.G. Wells - Volume 1)
H. G. Wells
Manufacturer: Classic Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1582014000

Walt Disney's Snow White Visits the Seven Dwarfs (Disney's Wonderful World of Reading)

Average customer rating:

Great follow-up to the classic!

Walt Disney's Snow White Visits the Seven Dwarfs (Disney's Wonderful World of Reading)

Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Customer Reviews:

Great follow-up to the classic!.......2000-04-05

This is a fantastic book for children as well as adults. We get to read what happen to our beloved 8 friends. Very stylish and charming. To bad it is out of print.

The wonderful conversion and life of the Russian Jew Isaac Levinsohn: With some fragments of his visit to the "land of his fathers."

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The wonderful conversion and life of the Russian Jew Isaac Levinsohn: With some fragments of his visit to the "land of his fathers."
Isaac Levinsohn
Manufacturer: [s.n.]
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00072Q1P4

Average customer rating:

The Wonderful Visit

Manufacturer: E. P. Dutton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000I3G0F8

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The wonderful visit to Miss Liberty
Elizabeth Starr Hill
Manufacturer: Holt, Rinehart and Winston
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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Wonderful Visit To Miss Liberty
Elizabeth Hill
Manufacturer: HOLT RINEHART & WINSTON
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000TXEXGA

Customer Reviews:

My husband can't put this book down - BEST SAINT story book.......2007-07-02

My husband and I have shared the bedtime story routine for many years, but in the past year his work schedule had him giving that opportunity primarily to me. That was, until this book. He has now become the only bedtime story reader! In fact, I would often catch him reading the "next saint" after the children went to bed. The stories are fascinating and inspiring. Often the children (9 & 10yo) request a story repeated again and again.

Despite reading many saint story books over the years, I had never heard of most of these saint stories. I also have saint books that have sat on the shelf as they were too dry (born this year, known for this ...) for the children. However, this book is ALIVE and told in an engaging "storytellers" fashion. My children even request we read the stories to their friends when they are visiting.

I anticipated the need, as they were getting close to the end of the book, and ordered the sequel book BEFORE they finished this one; my husband and the children were very grateful (actually almost relieved - they didn't want it to end).

The only negative is that these books are so wonderful we are spoiled forever; we cannot wait till a third book is published and hope it is very soon!

It couldn't get better..........2004-10-18

I read this, a saint at a time, to my 5 and 8 year old sons at bedtime. They loved it and want more, more, more. The eight year old proposed the title of this review. I liked it because the saints are not saccharin but they are hereos of virtue and the author makes them touchable. I'm at Amazon now to order the sequel.

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Whimsical introduction to the saints
Christian Fairy Tales

More Once upon a Time Saints
Ethel Pochocki
Manufacturer: Bethlehem Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religions | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 1883937345

Customer Reviews:

Whimsical introduction to the saints.......2001-03-29

This book is a compendium of brief lives of the saints told in the manner of fairy tales. The approach has the advantage of capturing and holding the attention of young readers (it did mine). The author is an excellent storyteller and in a marvelous way is able to capture the spirit and personality of each individual saint. No child who reads this book will ever hold the stereotype of saints as pious bores!

Christian Fairy Tales.......2000-03-28

Lives of the Saints books are common to many Catholics, but this book adds a delightful twist by telling the stories in the manner of fairy tales. My children have enjoyed them immensely although the dividing line between real and legend is sometimes hard to tell.

St. Petersburg Once upon a Time: Memories of Places and People--1890s to 1990s

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St. Petersburg Once upon a Time: Memories of Places and People--1890s to 1990s
Del Marth , and Marty Marth
Manufacturer: Suwannee River Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
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More Once Upon a Time Saints
Ethel Marbach
Manufacturer: St. Anthony Messenger P, US
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0912228512
Release Date: 1980-01-01

Once-upon-a-time saints: Faith-tales for children

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Once-upon-a-time saints: Faith-tales for children
Ethel Pochocki
Manufacturer: St. Anthony Messenger Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Religions | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0912228377

Once upon a time in Assisi;: The life of Saint Francis, told to children

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Once upon a time in Assisi;: The life of Saint Francis, told to children
Jeanne Ancelet-Hustache
Manufacturer: Franciscan Herald Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Musgrove Plantation today and once upon a time

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Musgrove Plantation today and once upon a time
Burnette Lightle Vanstory
Manufacturer: The Author
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00071CXN4

Once Upon a Time: A Guide to Spiritual Formation in Community

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Once Upon a Time: A Guide to Spiritual Formation in Community

Manufacturer: Curriculum Design and Southern Baptist
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000GTDZG6

Average customer rating:

Once-upon-a-Time Saints : Faith-Tales for Children

Manufacturer: Saint Anthony Messenger Press & Franciscan Communications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HNO4HU

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