Pet Books

Bullard, et al. have good intentions in that they want to correct environmental injustice and racism. However, sometimes they are too quick to call racism or get bogged down in statistics. My favorite chapter was the one on the Vieques people of Puerto Rico. If anything, I learned a lot about world politics.

"The Quest for Environmental Justice" by Robert D. Bullard (editor) is an excellent primer about the environmental justice ('E.J.') movement. Blending U.S. environmental and social justice activists together in the late 1970s, the E.J. movement has grown to become a significant multinational political force. The numerous authors who have contributed to this volume explore the movement's rich history and chronicle many of the noteworthy struggles that have improved the lives of many people and can provide inspiration and hope to us all.

The introductory chapters include a Foreword by Congresswoman Maxine Waters, who played an important role in a campaign that successfully relocated the largely African-American community of Norco, LA away from a highly polluting oil refinery; a Preface by Peggy Morrow Shepard, who believes that the E.J. movement is key to reinvigorating the mainstream environmental organizations; and an Introduction by Mr. Bullard, who recounts how some of the core principles of the E.J. movement were institutionalized at the EPA during the Clinton adminsitration.

The book is divided into four sections.

The first section, "A Legacy of Injustice" discusses the history of the E.J. movement. "Environmental Justice in ther Twenty-first Century" by Mr. Bullard compares and contrasts the Summit I and Summit II meetings to discuss both the growth of the movement and how its organizational tactics and principles have developed over time. "Neighborhoods 'Zoned' for Garbage" by Mr. Bullard drills into the author's personal experiences fighting zoning decisions in Houston, TX that first brought the fledgling E.J. movement to prominence. "Women Warriers of Color on the Front Line" by Mr. Bullard and Damu Smith offers a series of vignettes written by seven exceptional women who have led community-based campaigns to victory, often against formidable and well-financed corporate opponents.

The second section is about "The Assault on Fence-Line Communities". Beverly Wright's "Living and Dying in Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley'" connects the legacy of slavery and racism with environmental exploitation and relates the successes of historic African-American towns such as Convent, LA in achieving a small measure of justice for its citizens against a large Japanese multinational corporation. Manuel Pastor, Jr. et al's "Environmental Inequity in Metropolitan Los Angeles" documents the myriad ill health effects that are produced by the disproportionate siting of hazardous sites in minority neighborhoods. Olga Pomar's "Toxic Racism on a New Jersey Waterfront" discusses the legacy of industrial pollution in Camden, NJ and the importance of developing legal tools that communities might use to more effectively petition government to secure their rights.

The third section is on the topic of "Land Rights and Sustainable Development". "Anatomy of the Urban Parks Movement" by Robert Garcia and Erica Flores explores the unequal distribution of parkland in the Los Angeles metropolitan area and the Latino community's struggle to create an inner city park at an area known as the Cornfields. "Resource Wars Against Native Peoples" by Al Gedicks weaves together the experiences of native peoples in Columbia, Ecuador and the U.S. who are resisting the sacrifice of their lands in the name of unsustainable consumption. "Tierra y Vida" by Devon Pena documents the Chicano experience in the southwestern U.S. including struggles with powerful mining, agriculture, waste disposal, real estate and water interests that have long exploited labor and land for profit.

The fourth section is "Human Rights and Global Justice". Robin Morris Collin and Robert Collin's "Environmental Reparations" calls for mainstream environmental organizations to create a more inclusive environmental movement by acknowledging the interconnectedness of rural and urban ecosystems and to fight for E.J. reparations in minority communities. Deborah Berman Santana's "Vieques" is an inspiring account of resistance by the Puerto Rican people and their struggle to create a sustainable local economy. Oronoto Douglas et al's "Alienation and Militancy in the Niger Delta" details the abysmal situation that has been created in Nigeria by the confluence of oil money and government corruption but suggests ways that might prove helpful in ending the violence and nurturing a responsible form of democracy to take root.

David McDonald's "Environmental Racism and Neoliberal Disorder in South Africa" offers perhaps the book's most insightful analytical work by demonstrating how white overaccumulation and black deprivation in South Africa may explain why neoliberalism has supplanted the apartheid system as the primary means by which the privileged class has maintained its claim on scarce environmental resources. Mr. Bullard et al's "Addressing Global Poverty, Pollution and Human Rights" provides a succinct and impassioned case for addressing inequities based on race, sex and class in order to create a sustainable global community for all to share.

I highly recommend this cogently written and empowering book to everyone.

Earth Prayers From around the World: 365 Prayers, Poems, and Invocations for Honoring the Earth We are finding this book useful each week in our Mass readings and will continue to use it for reflection.

A friend of mine just purchased this book and we read quite a few of the prayers/poems together. They are exquisite; lovely, lovely poems that are a blessing to read and share. I highly recommend this book. Coming from a Christian faith, I found them to be a wonderful bridge to read and share of other faiths and honoring mine as well. I'm purchasing several for Christmas gifts. Wonderful gift for anyone who enjoys the outdoors.

I use this book frequently. It has many wonderful prayers that I share with others. The book was like new and arrived quickly in good condition.

This is an excellent selection of Earth-centered prayers. I borrowed an instructor's copy, and had to acquire a hard-bound copy for myself!

This eclectic collection of prayers, poems, chants, verses, and mantras from all around the world is worth keeping near at all times. A dear friend gave this to me many years ago and I've nearly worn out the copy carrying it with me while sauntering from the Rockies and high Sierra, to the depths of the southwest desert canyons, to the wild Pacific shore. This is truly a wonderful collection of wisdom and inspiration that should be part of everyone's library. Its strength is found in its extensive Native American selections. Its only shortcoming is a scarcity of poetry from the Chinese masters.

By Kyle Gardner, author of Medicine Rock Reflections

This is a very very poor field guide. The line drawings are totally inadequate and usually only show a small portion of the plant. Habit, for example, is almost never illustrated, while the drawings of the inflorescences are generally not detailed enough to help with identification save for the most distinctive grasses. For that matter, much of the book is devoted to plants that are not grasses, while many common true grasses (millet, sorghum, etc.) are not treated at all. Sedges, rushes, horsetails, and other non-grasses are all mixed in a completely illogical fashion, which is quite likely to do more harm than good to a beginner or novice. The descriptions generally include less than a full sentance of information. As a botanist working for the Smithsonian I cannot recommend this book to naturalists at any level of experience. Grasses are a difficult group to identify, but this book is very unlikely to help in that respect for most grasses that one would encounter. A general field guide like Gleason and Cronquist's "Manual of Vascular Plants of the Northeastern United States" is a much better bet to correctly and effectively ID grasses. Don't buy this book.

I am dissapointed that it did not tell me the region that this book covered before I purchased it.

As a working environmental biologist I must frequently record vast lists of species I encounter in the field. While eductaed in most plants and animals I have always put the grasses into a mental compartment of "troublesome" plants. This book provides clear and immensely helpful idenitifcation guides to a group of plants that are both common and difficult, for even the experienced, to distinguish. I now carry it as a part of my regular set of references for both the field and in-house identification. Grasses are such an important group of plants that many of us find confusing and difficult to identify. This book has made the individual species of grasses more accesible for all who use it. Any ecologist or budding amateur will benefit from the easy reading and pertinent information in this book. A further understanding of ecology and food resources for specific taxa is now more easily obtainable. I have waited for a book like this for a long time.

I think this book is the best book on grass identification for most of us. You will actually be able to identify most of the grasses you run into. It is not a treatise on grass ecology.

I am a former student of Mrs. Brown, from her Botany class at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. This guide is outstanding, and her original illustrations are genuine. As of the time of the original publication, there was absolutely nothing at all to guide students to identify grasses. Other guides copied the concept, but Lauren's is still the pioneer in this field.

I got this book to help me identify the snakes we sometimes have in our back yard and pond. It did a good job helping to identify the snakes. When I wanted more detail, I went on the internet and I knew exactly which snake I was researching. It is a good general book that teaches you the basics. It is small, so it is convenient to carry while walking or hiking.

Fantastic book covering all Florida wildlife. You don't have to get a separate bird book, tree book, fish book etc. It has all Florida wildlife in one place. A good deal.

This is an excellent field guide, with tons of color pictures, that cover lots of species of flora, fauna, birds and much more. Even though I am a Florida native, I have personally been using it for many years, and still carry it with me whenever I am outdoors. Our local Audubon chapter has also been providing it to local schools, teachers and children for many years. Highly recommend as a good, general guide to anyone interested in learning about Florida wildlife, plants and trees and much more. Co-president, Flagler Audubon Society

I sent this book to my brother who just relocated to Marco Island. I happened to call him before the date I thought it would arrive and he said he had already used it. It's a great reference book to figure out what kind of critter you're seeing.

I use this in addition to other books (Handbook of Nature Study-Anna Botsford Comstock) For nature Study. Perfect.

Easy to read, my kindergartener knew most of the words and was able to read it to me! Great for the transition from kindergarten to first grade.

The Biscuit Storybook collection contains ten different Biscuit stories that see this adorable puppy and his owner get in quite a few unusual situations and are able to see the bright side and everything turns out alright. From puppies and kittens crashing the picnic so that both owners and pets can enjoy the food and day together, to Biscuit trying to meet all the animals at the pet show in a series of "off the leash" mishaps as he ends up winning the award of #1 friend, to simply refusing to sleep despite all the hugs and midnight snacks... this includes a wide variety of places, themes and situations.

You get ten stories, held in a hardbound volume. The pages are a little on the thin side, but it's great to have so many on hand at once. I just wish they would do a second volume to compliment this one. Perhaps a holiday collection?

Both of my daughters love this book and some of the stories are simple enough that my 3 year old can read them to me. The word placement, repetition and sound switchups help encourage children to read and understand the words they are reading from the page. And of course, these are all beautifully illustrated. After seeing some of the more stylized children's books, it is a refreshing change to be able to enjoy the beauty of artwork along with the well written stories.

A perfect addition to any child's library. The smallest baby will enjoy seeing the pictures, toddlers will love hearing the stories over and over again, and older children just entering school like reading it to themselves. I have often read this to my 3 year old in its entirety, cover to cover during our read together time. And she just wanted to hear it all over again once its done.

There's no higher praise than that.

My just turned 5 year old daughter LOVES this book. She will read it from cover to cover in one sitting. The Biscuit series is such a good one for children just learning to read and this is book is wonderful to include so many of these great stories.

We received one biscuit book for a gift and my two year old fell in love with it. I saw this and purchased it for Christmas for her. It is great. It has nine stories that go from at the park to at the beach and a lot in between. It is about $1 a story. That is an awesome deal for such great books. My daughters, ages 4 and 2, loved it and insisted on reading the full 100 pages of stories the first sitting. This is a great book for beginning readers and puppy lovers.

My 6 year old loves Biscuit books so I got him this one for his birthday. It's really a good price for so many of the books. He is very proud of himself as he completes each book because he's read a lot of pages in a big book. If I were to complain I would say the pages are a little thin so you have to be careful not to tear them. Overall though I would recommend this. My son holds on to this like a favorite toy, being sure to keep it away from his little sister. Who wouldn't want their child to treasure a book!

A very good book that has problems and solutions for issues with horses. All of his books that I have read have been well worth reading and this one is no exception.

This is a book for someone who is already a horseman and is looking for clearer ways to think about his horsemanship. While probably not for everyone I find this type of book much more helpful than the "do this and then do that" type of material.
If you liked this book you'll like True Horsemanship Through Feel by Bill Dorrance and Leslie Desmond

Mark Rashid really has a way with words! And with horses.
He makes you feel right there with him, and learning everything
right along with him. Very enjoyable reading.

Easy to read and understand makes all horse people really open their eyes!! I just got the book this afternoon and am almost finished with it a definate MUST READ for horse owners!!!!

Mark Rashid's story format is very mindful of my days under the spell of cowboy and farrier story tellers. Mr. Rashid is absolutely generous in getting a point across without shaking a finger or being cryptic or evasive. He softly delivers the idea and lets the reader sift out their own application.

I love the 'old man'. I actually think I might have known him, in probably about 20 different people who counseled me in my early horse days. Whether the old man is/was a real person is superfilious as he functions as a terrific metaphor providing the conduit for learning and understanding.

But,actually he really is a very, very real personality in the cowboy and farrier world at large.

I bought a lot of chicken books before I got my first day-old chicks this past spring; this is my favorite one! I keep referring to it over and over. Great basic info. for those of us who have never done chickens before, with lots of practical tips and tricks from those who have been doing it forever! A few goofy, annoying typos and such, but I was willing to overlook those for the good info.!

Enjoyed the way the book is written and am pleased with all the good info.

I just began raising chickens a few weeks ago. I have learned so much from this book, such as why my chickens are losing their feathers. (They're molting) Who knew? Haha. I highly recommend this book for beginners.

I would hate to hurt anyone's feelings, but I didn't really learn anything from this book and it didn't appear to have anything new to say. I should have returned it when I got it, but returning items are a hassle to me. I was just hoping for some new insight or something more daring or direct. hats off to anyone that attempts writing and the criticism that evolves from such work. I hope her next effort is more interesting.

A great book. Easy to read and full of useful information for a small scale operation.

I disagree with Dixie who had written the previous review! The book was not written for 3 year olds! A good parent reviews the info and suggested age levels in the review section before buying. We have been very happy with these books. After buying one other, we bought this one and love it just as much. These experiments are simple to read and study. But the teach important science concepts so I am as happy as a mom can be...but again...I read the age level before buying the book! Someday I hope to make a list of recommended books...this will be one!

My children and I have used this book until it has become tattered and torn. Not only are the science activities easy to understand, they are easy to do and don't require any special equipment. I would highly recommend this book...I loved it so much, that I now have a collection of all of this author's books.

I bought this book for my 3 year old son since he has an interest in science. When I got the book I was disappointed in the experiments listed, such as disecting an osyter and fish. Not that I have problems with that, but I was looking for something that you can find objects around the house and more cause and reaction type thing.

My children loved this book becasue they had fun with experiments. But my husband and I loved this book because it taught our children science conepts that we could never teach. We used this book until it got raggedy and torn and then my kids insisted on getting another copy!
We highly recommend this book.

Karen and Fred

My DH is using this and other books for a science and gadget class with 10 K-2 kids. He likes this book as the experiments are easy and fast paced enough to keep the kids' attention, a real issue with this bunch.

Some 50 million parrots are kept as pets in this country, yet their nature remains oblique to many. Parrots score at the level of three- to five-year-olds on human intelligence tests, they can live to be a hundred, and the species has also become fragile and is vanishing. OF PARROTS AND PEOPLE comes from a journalist and parrot expert and blends science with history and humor, making for a winning, appealing book highly recommended for non-specialist general readers with parrots for pets, any general-interest library, and academic library science collections specializing in natural history.

As a parrot lover, I found this book fascinating, informative, and eye-opening. I was appalled at the cruelty of much of humankind toward these lovely and intelligent creatures, and this book has motivated me to consider ways to help preserve both parrots and other endangered species. The author has done animal lovers a service with this well researched book.

This book is a must read for all who are involved in any way with the "pet" bird industry, from the parokeet owner to the scarce macaw collector.
As a person who shares her home with four Macaws and an African Grey, I was certainly aware of the more uncomfortable moral aspects of captive birds, both from the individual bird's viewpoint and from a collection viewpoint. This book presents all the implications of the exotic bird trade in one package. It is well written and well presented. The facts seem to be accurate and impartial.
The topics included are not comfortable for we exotic bird owners, but this book will make you think about, not just the everyday living conditions of individual exotic birds in captivity, but our nation's and the world's public policies on unrenewable living resources like exotic animals.
Everyone who owns a bird should read this book and everyone who is thinking of acquiring a bird should be required to read this book.

Of parrots and people by Mira Tweti, is a vast collaboration of intense research and knowledge regarding parrots. I will have to say it has been quite some time since a book has held my interest so deeply that I spent two days reading it from cover to cover. I didn't want to put it down because I was so appalled at some of Tweti's findings. Tweti is an excellent researcher and has put together a single book that covers more than enough topics from avian history to avian future. Every current bird owner, prospective bird owner, and avian enthusiast should read this book. The stories are both heart wrenching and heartwarming. It really opened my eyes to the nature of bird economics, trapping, smuggling, and species survival/demise. Humans have really impacted the bird world by willingly torturing parrots and violently destroying their ecosystem. The end result is likely extinction of many innocent species. This book will make you truly think about the choices you make for your pets. My own feathered companions live harmoniously with humans, receive excellent care, and are regarded as part of my family. Tweti found that is not the case in most situations. Unlike many birds in unkempt breeding environments and unwanted birds I strive to meet the needs of my avian family members. I am a true animal lover and many of the stories were difficult to fathom. It is truly sickening to see and hear of such tragic situations. I too, have seen firsthand the disgust of neglected breeding environments on more than one occasion. It hurts me deeply. I truly cannot understand why people neglect and abuse such beautiful and intelligent creatures.

Having been involved with parrots for over 30 years and having now having my own Parrot rescue Sanctuary, I can say with conviction that this is one of the most amazing, well researched, delightful books I have ever read! The author covers alot of territory re: all aspects of captivity, abuse, behavior etc. it is a fascinating read and should be a keeper for all involved with parrots in any way or those contemplating acquiring a parrot. I congratulate Mira Tweti on a job well done!I am purchasing several copies for parrot friends. I could not put it down.A truly important and fantastic book! Sabra Brea, Sabra's Parrot Rescue