Nonfiction Books

i am a HUGE fan of grishams stories but this one kinda let me down. i'm going to tell myself that its because he told a true story, but it just laacked the excitement of his other books. the usual page-turning tendencies that i get when i have one of his books was not there...i had to push myself to finish it. if you really want to read one of his greats try the partner- ive read it like 6 times and everytime i finish in a couple days- totally cant put it down!!! i mean, reading at stop lights, taking breaks from work to read a few pages GREAT! i also like the pelican brief, the chambers, the brethren, the king of torts, and the street lawyer. they're all awesome!

I really like John Grisham's other books, and I expected ths nonfiction book to be different but was disappointed. It appears that Grisham is trying to do a book similar to In Cold Blood, but the topic here is just not as interesting. It is quite long and actually boring until the last fifth or so of the book, but it takes perseverence to get to that point. I think a shorter format would have helped.

This real-life story is very emotional, rousing and compelling and in my opinion also very exciting. Even if you know the outcome already and the writing style isn't out for suspense. The nonfictional narration is constructed as a history of a criminal case and less intended as a thriller. In the English edition in midsection there are photographs of some participants which help a lot to put oneself in there place and empathize with them. It is a book that gives a deep insight in the touching life of a wrongly convicted person, who is hit hard by destiny several times - the burst dream of a baseball career, alcoholism, drugs, women, schizophrenia and eventually the condemnation for death penalty. It is a distressing factual report of a human tragedy, put together from many conclusive pieces of a puzzle. To my mind no page is too long and no excessive information is given. Anyway I can recommend this book warmly to every empathic, humanely and politically interested reader.

I enjoyed the first half of the book. I found it interesting that it was a true story unlike the rest of his books. I also used to be a counselor so I thought the mental illness aspect was interesting. His writing style (similar to a reporter) was also different but I enjoyed the change. What I didn't like was there was way too many details and information. I ended up skimming through the last half of the book.

This was yet another great Grisham novel. I love the non-fiction writing and could not stop turning pages. The Innocent Man reads like a legal thriller you would expect from Grisham, but the reality of it makes it all the more interesting to read. Definately recommend this book.

Two weeks in to my 8th year of teaching, and I am using many ideas from this book. It really helps set a positive tone and reminds the teacher to spend the first few weeks modeling desired outcomes with the help from the students. Although I am not folowing it to a tee, the book is set up with down to the minute lessons plans, which could really be a bonus for a new teacher. I think this book would be helpful for both a new and experienced teacher!

This book gives valuable detail to ensure that your school year gets off to a great start. It covers songs, games, rules and procedures to be used during the first six weeks of school. It is the best of many books I've read. I highly recommend this one!

This book provides exactly what it says it will. It gives you a week-by-week schedule for all elementary grade levels and the rationale behind doing each thing. This would be really helpful to have before the first week of your first year teaching.

This book is a great source of information and guidance for new teachers or teachers whose school is encompassing the Responsve Classroom Approach.
IT IS AMAZING! It is explained clearly through out and the student's adaption to the concepts is simply wonderful to watch.

I began using Morning Meeting [ASIN:1892989093 The Morning Meeting Book (Strategies for Teachers, 1)] as a part of my teacher education program last year and found it to be a great benefit for encouraging positive social interactions between my elementary students. This year, I began following and implementing The First Six Weeks of School's suggestions and my students LOVE it! They enjoy greeting each other, sharing and doing the activities. I have likewise seen a decrease in the amount of behavioral issues within my classroom. The program will work with your own ideas of discipline, rules and expectations and I have found it to be invaluable as I begin my teaching career. I would recommend The First Six Weeks of School to any teacher (new or experienced) who wants to encourage a positive, socially interactive classroom experience for their students.

I purchased this book for use in the classroom, hoping to find new and more interesting ways to present the grammar material. There are several lesson suggestions that I will implement.

The book delivers on its promise to help you with grammar with humor & fun.

Do you need to write a report or memo and don't want to look like a semi-literate goon in front of your boss or client? Get yourself this book. It does exactly what it claims to do: it offers you quick and dirty answers to your most vexing questions. It is not Lapsing into a Comma or Eats, Shoots and Leaves so if you're looking for long but elegantly phrased explanations you are not going to find it here. The author has given the reader a neat, well written tool for home or work and it's all you really need for correspondence that has to be right the first time.

This is a very useful book. She often includes great explanations that help me remember which word is correct.

quick, easy to use and amusing. even if you think you are a grammar girl yourself, you can pick up some good tips for remembering correct grammar, punctuation, etc.

A book that has stood the test of time. First released in 1965, it hasn't dated at all. A true account of the brutal slaying of four members of a rural Kansas family and the subsequent apprehension of the murderous duo. A fascinating, highly-engaging, harrowing, and moving tale of evil that lurks within the hearts of men.

The book proved to be highly controversial upon its release since it seemed to make a genuine effort not only to understand the social factors that help shape the making of a psychopath, but also to understand the points-of-view, however horrifying and disgusting as they maybe, of the perpetrators of the crime.

Though, this novel does not overtly give away the fact, but Truman Capote got deeply involved with the killers who had slain the Kansas family. In particular, he felt very strongly for Perry Smith, whom he thought had a very similar childhood as his own. Capote used to say that Perry and him lived in the same house as children, and the only reason their lives took different directions was the fact that Capote chose to exit that house from the front, while Perry chose the back door.

This was an amazing story. I had seen the movie "Capote" and decided that I must read the story myself. It was amazing. Held my interest from page one. I couldn't put it down. It came out in the 50's but is actually timeless. I highly recommend it.

I read this book because it is on the Modern Library's Top 100 Non-Fiction List. I thought for a true crime-drama, that the story was very well written. I think he gives the reader a glance into the mind of a psychopathic murderer. He gives sympathy where sympathy is due; to the unfortunate Clutter family that was tragically murdered. The man who can kill for no reason other than just to experience the thrill of killing, is a man that doesn't deserve to live. The same goes for his accomplice. I was glad in the end when they were hung. Neither man seemed to show any remorse.

Capote is good at giving an unbiased account of the story as well, he seems to tell both sides of the story, from the beginning how the Clutter family lived, to the killers and what motivated them. There's enough information to give the reader, either empathy or profound disgust for the killers. For example when the jurors are deliberating, Capote gives us dialogue from two journalists; one feels sympathy for the murderers, the other only contempt and disgust. But without a doubt when the book is finished the most profound sympathy is for the murdered family, as Dewey imagines how Nancy Clutter would've been as a young beautiful college student. It's tragic, but it also makes for a very good read.

Now, I know this book is historically significant as one of the first "true crime" novels - a founder of the non-fiction novel genre - but that wasn't really important to me. I prefer to read things without historical context and judge how they hold up to modern standards. That said, I enjoyed the book a lot. This novel took an interesting twist from the usual crime story fare: the reader knows up front who was murdered and who did it. The only questions are "why" (and to some extent "what exactly happened"). Risky, I think, because it is tough to build suspense when the outcome is certain. But it worked well here for the most part.

The beginning was by far the slowest section of the book, with Capote taking his time setting up the scene and describing the family. I know he tried very hard to get us attached to the characters quickly - perhaps a little too hard? Things really started to pick up around Part 2 when Capote set into a detailed profile of the killers. This was interesting stuff! The organization was executed well, and I liked the shifts between character perspectives.

The third part blew me away. I won't say much about it, except that I would have cried if I hadn't been on a plane at the time. It was that moving. The last section was mostly just intellectually interesting. The book left quite a bit for me to think on. Unfortunately I don't want to share those thoughts here, because I'd be giving away story elements!

In the end, I think, Capote wanted to use his book as a commentary on the death penalty and American violence. For me, it didn't exactly succeed in either of those aspects. But what it did do was to provide a sound, well-researched and interesting psychological profile of two very different killers involved in the same crime. Yes, some parts dragged, and (I felt) the writing was at times flat, but all in all a worthy read.

The classic true crime book written by the famed Truman Capote earned its place in history as the first book of its nature - an attempt to combine journalism with storytelling for the purpose of creating a compelling tale. In this sense, the book doesn't disappoint at all. It was well chronicled and sometimes even overly inclusive of the facts, testimonies, and articles published from various accounts surrounding the murder that this book covered.

I was greatly interested in the pyschological picture painted of the two men who were guilty of the murder and I was also equally interested in the way the book was organized. From the beginning, the reader not only knows exactly who was to be killed, but also who was to do it.

On the other hand, the way the story was told was through what seemed to this reader to be long winded paragraphs portraying things such as the architecture, weather, or setting which didn't seem to add to the story in any way for me (though, in his favor, I must say that it also didn't take away from the story either).

Also, while I am someone who is 100 percent against the death penalty, it was somewhat off-putting that the last half of the 4th part seemed to be nothing but propaganda against the death penalty. I did feel that this took away from the author's intent which I understand to be to tell the story, as objectively as possible, presented as factual while still making it compelling. Besides the death penalty propaganda, this was achieved.

Since his writing of this book, more true crime stories have followed, some in which this reader even prefers. However, one must take into account while reading this book the risk Capote took while undertaking such a risk in writing and appreciate and respect him as an author for making that risk work.

I've had this book on my shelf since published in 1991 and decided this week to read it. I am sorry I waited so long. Beautifully written and an invaluable insight into the Chinese mind. In my opinion it goes a very long way toward explaining the historical distrust between Chinese and Western peoples. Chinese people could not/were trained not to express their thoughts (and in many instances were encouraged to not even have thoughts) and this lack of ability to communicate directly is perceived as untrustworthy by Westerners. I did have to laugh when I read that Chinese told their children to be grateful for their food as children in the capitalist West were starving! (Being of an age where when I said "yuck" I was told children in China were starving and I should be glad I wasn't.) But many did starve and many more were starved of spirit and individual thought. An outstanding and extremely readable history of a period of relatively recent political events and the results therefrom. Alas, the philosophy and practices of Mao have permeated many other parts of the world.

This is the gripping story of three generations of women. It is not only an autobiography; it is the story of China's past. This book, told in story form, is a first- hand account of the many changes and horrors endured by the Chinese people. The Author's beautiful grandmother, whose feet were bound at age two, became a concubine to a famous general in the warlord government. Her parents were high officials in the People's Republic. But their positions did not prevent them from torment. The Cultural Revolution and other historical movements impacted every member of Jung Chang's family in life altering ways. They suffered intolerably. The author describes the life of her mother who raised her children without emotional support from her husband or from the Communist Party, to which both parents at the time belonged. Jung Chang is the third generation daughter of China in this personal story. The reader will learn about the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek, the Japanese invasion, the famines, land reforms, denunciations, Red Guards, Chairman Mao (who made such declarations as the burning of books and art, pulling out grass, destruction of temples, etc.) and Mme. Mao who made cruel commands of her own. There are lessons to be learned in reading about masses believing whatever their leaders tell them and following their dictates unquestioningly. It is frightening and compelling at the same time.

Although many of the author's accounts of atrocities perpetrated on the populace are difficult to comprehend and uncomfortable to read, it is a valuable book for those who want to know more about the history of a country where a fifth of humanity lives in our shrinking globe and now has one of the fastest growing economies; China currently holds a trillion dollars in U.S. securities. Reading Wild Swans is a good way to understand the Chinese culture in the 20th century and the generations who endured great hardships at the hands of those described in this book. It is uplifting to see the influence of Chang's parents in her decision making and read of her own acts of bravery and compassion. I won't divulge the ending, but Chang does find happiness.

It was inspiring to read about the personal integrity, ethical standards, courage and moral values in the face of incalculable brutality, degradation and mindless destruction of real people, not fictional characters. Jung Chang spared no detail in describing these virtues and vices in telling her story. If you want better insight and understanding of China, for a firsthand account -Read Wild Swans! This is a very significant book and I highly recommend it.

Spanning three generations of Chinese women, this 508 page tour de force is breathtaking in its scope. Each of the characters in this book is fully developed. The reader learns about life in communist China. It is almost too much to bear reading about the severe hardships endured by these brave women. My only criticism, and a minor one at that, is that as the Cultural Revolution squeezed out all of the old, beautiful and the traditional from society, it also made it difficult, if not impossible, for the author to convey the truly raw emotion that must have been experienced by members of her family and their friends as they suffered through the years of Mao. Nevertheless, as China continues to evolve and play a larger role on the world stage, this book helps us to understand how far the Chinese have come.

Stephen Ira Tamber

I won this great book when I was 18 years old. Until today, after almost two decades, I can still remember the story very well. Every page in this book is so alive with senses! I could really see the transitional period from one generation to the next; from the warlord era to the cultural revolution. It's simply amazing. At one point, I cried reading the hardship of the Chinese people. I also felt bravery in them. The unity of the people as well. Although it's not a history book, it gives an insight, a quick one, into the history of China.

I have mixed feelings about the book Wild Swans. It certainly was not a page turner, rather it was a book I could lay down at any time, and even walk away from for a couple of days, which I did a number of times. It didn't read like a novel, as some memoir/biographies do, rather it was as though the author, Jung Chang was narrating to me the history of her family, beginning with her grandmother. The narration is well written, but long, and ends when she is 26. A short epilogue at the end then updates you as to what she has done with her life in the 10 years following the writing of the book. So if you are looking for a wildly entertaining book you can hardly put down, this is not a book for you.

Having said this, I do not consider reading the book was time wasted. If you are at all interested in the history of China, especially what it was like under Mao's years in power, you would find many fascinating passages in the book. Of course most of us know that Mao was not good for the people of China, but I was truly surprised at what all went on under Mao and his wife. Some of it was so strange, that it seemed down right bizarre to me, such as when Mao determined that grass and beautiful things should be removed from the cities. People all over China were pulling up flowers and grass. Students even spent school time out in the yard pulling up the grass. Reading the book was a learning experience about a time that it turned out I really knew very little about.

I saw the movie which I enjoyed, and now am in the process of reading the book which I purchased on Amazon.....all good so far

An excellent read. It really opens your eyes to the world around us. Lots of laughs many tears and would love for a teacher like that around here for my children (England) that is! FAB!!!!! If fact have just ordered the other two related books x

this is a very good book, because it can educate everyone about the importance of the respect of other poeple with a different culture.It's also very easy to be read and contemporary.

I agree that this book was written retrospectively because I was confused by Ms. Gruwell's introduction myself. I read it more than once because I was sure I had missed something. She clearly wrote it beyond the original point she claims to have written it.

After reading only two of the first "Diary" entries I had to stop and check through the book to see who was responsible for adapting because to me the editing felt like over kill and took away from the natural flow of what were most likely compelling narrations at some point. To me it felt unnatural and contrived -- yes the stories were heart breaking, but I felt like I was getting the stories through the eyes of say a Diane Sawyer or a Lisa Ling report instead of through the eyes of the 14 old CHILDREN that had been through it.

Being a writer means finding your own voice. A big red flag went up for me when all of the entries were written in the same exact voice. The beginning entries were supposed to be private thoughts of FRESHMEN remedial students, but in no way was that reflected in the entries. You would be hard pressed to find a COLLEGE freshman these days with the vocabulary required for the entries.

Even if the student hadn't been remedial students the writing was so unbelievable! There is no way to convince me that any freshman in any academic level would chose the words and expressions to describe thier personal lives that were used in the entries. The editing did a huge disservice to the kids.

Through out the entire book, I found myself mumbling, "Yeah, right" and "What kid talks like this?" under my breath.

Of course we all picked up the book out of curiosity and admiration, but lets face it-- we also wondered about the authenticity. That is what hooks the reader from the start, draws you in and keeps you engaged. That is what shines more light on the cause.

To those of you who will figure this in bias to "inner city kids" save your breath because I was one. Also, I wanted to identify with the kids, but oddly enough, even though the subject matter is real and gritty, it feels forced and I dare say flowery. It seems they left in the four letter words for shock value, but took out the rawness, which as a reader I am much more interested in.

Although I was a little disappointed by writing style; I applaud and support the students and Ms. Gruwell and will continue to follow news about the Freedom Writer's Organization, but I must admit I was very much looking forward to settling in for an captivating read and I feel let down.

I also have a very difficult time believing that the projects the students discussed in their entries took place all in one school year let alone in one semester. You figure each class is less than an hour long there simply isn't enough time in a curriculum for it to hold true.

(Also, the movie is supposed to be an honest depiction of the book and there were entries that somewhat resembled some of the journal entries that were read aloud to narrate the movie, but the outcomes of the entries in the movie were completely different than ones in the book. So which is true the harsher stories read in the movie or the moralistic entries from the book?)

After seeing to movie and feeling moved to learn more about this group of writers, I purchased this book. As with the movie, there are some harsh realities brought to light, but it's a good read. Having grown up in a relatively easy-going community in very white America, I felt it was a good experience to see that things are not so easy for MANY kids. Now that I'm raising my own kids I feel it's important for them, also to gain a bit of perspective. This is really an important piece of literature...thanks to those who brought it to the public.

I'm usually concerned about purchasing items on line, especially books. I can honestly say that this experience was worth it. I would recommend this seller to anyone interested in purchasing good quality books at extremely reasonable prices.

Buy with confidence, I did!

It's a good book. Offers pronounciation, definitions, synonyms, and antonyms, as well as good practice. Chances are there are at least some words you'll learn from the book, even if you do well on the diagnostic test but I still suggest that you take that test to see if you should get a higher level book.

I have used this at almost all the middle school and high school levels. It is ok, but if a student is not great at memorizing, or is not already a great speller, this is not as helpful as some other books. It is a very typical, rote way to learn. Worldly Wise is organized and structured in a much better way. It is especially great for teaching spelling/definitions, etc. to dyslexics or children with other minor learning issues. I also think Worldly Wise does a better job at showing definitions, showing how words are used in sentences and paragraphs, and also at showing homonyms, etc. Vocab. Workshop is great as an extra tool.

In style and substance this is one of the best books I've read in recent years, as well as one of the most enjoyable. It also broadened my perspective in several areas. I highly recommend.

The connections between plants and people are fascinating. Michael Pollan writes so well, I was pulled through the book. This is a view of the web of life that I haven't seen before. Highly recommended. Another book I enjoyed some time back (not by Pollan) is "Biomimicry".

It probably reads better in print. The audio has a juvenile intonation. Not recommended for in- car use if you tend to fall asleep at the wheel.

If you are at all interested in evolution and biology, and man's relationship with the natural world, this is a must-read. Pollan presents the material in a way that makes it digestible to individuals with only a lay-person's knowledge of science.

In "The Botany of Desire", author and gardener Michael Pollan turns the tables on our view of domesticated species by presenting a would-be "plant's eye view of the world". His premise is that humans may have a more reciprocal relationship with domesticated plants than we like to believe. Perhaps the plants use us to propagate themselves as we use them to satisfy our desires. To explore this idea, Pollan recounts the horticultural histories and the human desires that created them for 4 domesticated plant species: the apple, which satisfies our desire for sweetness, the tulip, cultivated for its beauty, marijuana, for intoxication, and the potato, which gives us control. A fruit, a flower, a drug, and a staple food.

Pollan dedicates a section of the book to each of the 4 plants. The histories of the species are not comprehensive but focus on key events which affected its "artificial selection" and made the plants what they are today. For example, the history of the apple focuses on the introduction of seedlings onto the American frontier by Johnny "Appleseed" Chapman in the early 19th century, spawning an explosion of edible species from what were originally trees planted to make applejack. The section on the tulip predictably talks about "Tulipmania" in 1630s Holland, usually cited as the first "bubble" of the modern global economy, but also addresses the "Tulip Era" in Constantinople, funny and failed attempts to make the tulip useful, and the unending quest for a black tulip.

Likewise, the section on marijuana focuses on the tremendous advances in horticulture spawned by the War on Drugs that forced growers indoors in the 1980s. The discussion of the potato is particularly timely, as it talks about the genetically modified NewLeaf potato, which includes genes from Bt bacterium whose toxin is lethal to the Colorado potato beetle. This potato is designed to rescue the agricultural industry from its toxic and unsustainable strategy of pesticides and fertilizers. It's also designed to prolong the viability of monoculture, around which much of the agricultural industry in built but which is historically and currently problematic.

An interesting aspect of the evolution of these domesticated species is that three of four of them are cloned species, not planted from seeds or allowed to reproduce sexually. They're in trouble for lack of genetic diversity. They've been over-domesticated. So we shall see if Michael Pollan's thesis that the plants have put us in their service as much as we have them holds up. It seems we've made them quite vulnerable. But that premise provides an interesting entry into the subject of horticulture. Michael Pollan is opinionated, and everyone will not agree with his view of marijuana or NewLeaf potatoes, but I do think readers will see his point. "The Botany of Desire" is thought-provoking and timely.

My 13 month old daughter LOVES this book! She wants me to read it all day everyday. When she is walking around more often than not she has it in her hands. She like pointing to the babies and lifting the flaps. Your child may or may not be as intersted in the book as she is but its worth a shot.

Very round, very cute, very... childlike, for lack of a better word.

And I always appreciate the effort in making a multiracial cast of kids, not everybody does that.

Would be nice if the flaps were a little stronger, though. Unfortunately, they *will* rip off, so this book has to be supervised only :(

We are on child #2 with this book and both of my kids have requested it over and over and over and over. My youngest, 19 months, is 'reading' it to us. I found my 5 yr old reading it to the youngest one last night.

It is easy to understand, fun for the babies and easily read by my other kid. What could be better? Well, maybe a space age polymer that keeps the flaps on when an overzealous toddler continues to try and wrestle them off.

I will say that my daughter did like this book. It's a "peek-a-boo" type book. The problem is that, of course, babies want to open and close the flaps themselves, and these flaps are thin, flimsy and hard for little baby fingers to get a hold of (and avoid ripping or curlling once they do). Many of our flaps are missing, but the kids still read this book from time to time.

It would be better if it was a little sturdier.

I had low expectations for this book but my 6 month old loves this book. She giggles every time I lift one of the flaps!