Sports Books

The Fit Swimmer in my initial review appears to be an excellent guide to someone willling and able to follow the advice, training programs and tips given in the book. For someone like myself, a super senior (past 75), I appreciate the advice and tips but I am not training for competition but just fitness purposes. I may adapt one of the training programs offered but for now I'll continue my swimming a mile ( freestyle, backstroke and breaststroke mixture) three times a week until I finish the book.

This book is just about everything you will need if you are looking for swimming workouts. It takes you right from the very basics to advanced workouts. It also helps you correct swimming positions. I've already decreased my free style lap time just by making little adjustments. Simply Great!

Swimming is one of those curious beasts of the American athetic sports scene: vast multitudes participate (recreational, summer, competitive, etc.), but very few really know how to improve. As in other sports, many parents wind up coaching as their children get involved in swimming as there are too few coaches available. There is much to learn! Stroke technique, using the clock, training the aerobic and non-aerobic energy systems, how to author and conduct a productive and interesting workout, etc.

To those who might feel intimidated by all this, this book brings help in the form of workout structure. The workouts range from basic beginner to advanced workouts for accomplished swimmers. I have used Marianne's book to keep my workouts (as an age-group coach and Master's swimmer) interesting and my swimmers are always eager to swim.

I highly recommend this book for coaches and swimmers who are self-coached.

Like many triathletes I had a bit of swimming in my background when I started racing, but certainly not enough to be competitive. I occasionally swam with organized groups but my consultant travel schedule made sure that was infrequent. I got a copy of The Fit Swimmer, read it cover to cover and made up about a dozen workouts from the suggested routines. The section on open water racing was particularly valuable. While training diligence was definitely part of it, this book was the #1 resource for me in competitively placing in events ranging from local races to National and Ironman distances. Ms. Brems meets 2 imperatives: she explains things simply and she gives you the tools you need to progress from a relative novice to a competitive swimmer. Like a craftsman and apprentice, she leaves it up to the reader to figure out how to best use the extensive toolset in the book. I found that creating about a dozen workouts on 3x5 cards from her suggested routines and rotating them did the trick (store them in a ziploc bag for use poolside). You can experiment with different routines to test how your body responds. I now coach people on an occasional basis, and strongly encourage each of them to read the book before we start.

This book has really helped me improve and vary my workouts and make the masters swim class I teach more interesting.

This is the grandaddy of southern cookbooks. I have many but this is what I have been looking for.

every recipe tells a story and they all remind me of my mother inlaw.
i recieved this as a gift and sent it as a gift. what a wonderful book

This is a really fun cookbook. The food is southern, but most of it has a wonderful twist or two. The recipes are well written and easy to follow. Be sure and try the Buttermilk-Sweet Potato Pie!

This is one of the best cookbooks I've ever owned. Regional food cookbooks tend to appeal to minority that grew up with that food. I'd be surprised if that's the case with the Lee Bros Cookbook. Their style is easy, chatty and filled with information and background stories. They've made Southern cooking their personal life stories and the book draws the reader into their culinary history, failures (boiled peanuts in NYC!) and triumphs. Everyone buys a cookbook for the recipes and this one doesn't disappoint. But the stories about the two transplanted New Yorkers and the food culture of the southeastern US will make this book a classic for years to come.

Bill in Houston, TX

As a southern cook myself, I found this book an excellent and beautiful additon to my collection of cookbooks. I consider myself a serious foodie and I am particularly interested in my own regional cuisine. I would recommend this as an excellent resource both for serious cooks and beginners alike. All of the recipes I have tried so far have been excellent. In particular the fried apples with bourbon are excellent and everyone who has tried them has raved.

I love Karen Kingsbury and this book is no exception. It was hard for me to put it down!!

Karen Kingsbury has done it again. I could hardly put Between Sundays down. This uplifting story tackles modern issues from the foster care system to the impact that famous sports figures have on society. If you like Christian fiction, this is a must read!

A GREAT BOOK.......I GOT IT WHEN I WAS TOLD I WOULD AND AMAZON HAS ALWAYS BEEN GREAT WITH ALL ORDERS I HAVE RECIEVED.

I couldn't put this book down! It was a great read over the holidays. Definitely one of my favorite Karen Kingsbury books. I highly recommend it!

Like Karen's other books, you won't be able to put it down. I got this from a friend for Christmas and as soon as my company left, I sat down and read the whole book. It is such a heart warming story. god has blessed karen with amazing talent. Once you read this, you will surely want to read all her others!

that money had less power over your life? Thsi book is a certain guide to breaking emotional and metal molds in one of life's touchiest areas. Lynne Twist's exploration of the spiritual side of money adn wealth is a heartening introduction to a way of thinking that can change the way the world does business. Her insights are that powerful.

This wokderful lady adds the spirt to the money. She has accomplished much in the world, so this is not a "how to" book that is for the purpose of making money for the writer, but one whom I know lives the life and walks the talk.

Lynne Twist has written a very inspiring book that can totally tranform one's relationship with money and self.

I enjoyed the book and recommended it to friends. Lynn Twist offers up lots of food for thought on ways to view money and how to spend money so that it makes a difference in the world.

I will keep this very brief as I don't want to waste your time like the way I wasted mine by reading this book.
Key Points of the author:
- Align your transactions with your morals
- Scarcity is not real. Believe in sufficiency
- Focus on the qualitative aspects of life, like relationships

That is pretty much it. The book is a VERY touchy-feely book filled with her real life examples of volunteering with Third World countries and how deep down in peoples' souls is where fulfillment lies, not in materialistic goods. Some of the things she says and suggests borders on socialist doctrine.

If you are looking for a way to better understand yourself, happiness, and the role money plays, I suggest you look into the field of positive psychology. Money has diminishing marginal returns...in other words, the guy who earns $500,000 is not 10X happier than the guy who earns $50,000. With that said, remove yourself from the rat race, be content with the things around you, don't focus so much on tomorrow, and dedicate yourself (career/volunteer) to something you believe in. That simple equation is more valid and will transform your life more than this entire book.

Fantastic book! I use this daily when exercising our dressage/western/english horses. All the maneuvers and exercises benefit any manner of riding, not just dressage. Easy to use and understand - diagrams and instructions are clear. Highly recommended!

I'm riding an intelligent horse that, when exercises are repeated, quickly begins to anticipate. This book's creative, insightful, and well described exercises have provided me with new ways to work on developing his strength and flexibility with enough variety to keep us both interested. I leave it in the barn and pick a new exercise before each ride. Though my copy is still in great shape, I think it would be terrific if it was printed on coated (barn-proof) paper.

Very useful tool to have in every instructors library. There's a breif description on the benefits of each exercise and how to execute. Some of the exercises added another layer to the ones that I already use and I found this to be an added plus!

Brilliant diagrams, excellent keys, simply mapped out and laid out information for difficult and also the easiest of dressage manoevres. It's bound at the top for a vertical flip, with a hole punched down near the bottom so you can hang the book on a nail on your bulletin board or at home to study it and keep it open while you study it. It has handy hints how to achieve positions and gives you ideas to improve certain flaws. It is by far the best book on dressage I have read so far.

Just about EVERY page has another full A4 dressage arena on it showing the pattern where the horse is going, it shows crossbars and it shows trotting poles and where to place them, it shows where you should do a certain manoevre such as a flying change or shoulder-in with an excellent use of diagrams and patterns which have a key right next to it so the design remains uncluttered and simple to read. A best buy for anyone serious about dressage - or even jumping - to keep their horse supple and to keep their horse from boredom. Brilliant.

This book lists and illustrates a wide variety of exercises for the dressage horse and explains the value of each exercise. Good illustrations guide you through each exercise and they are logically grouped into lessons to improve specific aspects of the horse's development. However, this book is not for beginning riders. It does not explain the aids nor does it explain the movement, so if you don't already know shoulder-in, counter canter, etc. you will find this very frustrating and be forced to reference a book that does explain the application of the aids and movements. The format is too large to be of much use at the barn or ringside; it would have been more helpful to be half the size.

This is a great coffee table book. I purchased this for my husband's birthday and he really enjoys it. I am not a sports fan but the beautiful high quality artistic photos are very appealing to me.

Great basketball book. Excellent if you'd like to get an appreciation of the 60's and 70's of NBA basketball (as well as current information).

Highly recommended !

I bought the SI Basketball book because I had already bought the baseball and football books, and was very pleased with them.. I expected the basketball book to be of the same quality of writing and photos of the other two. I was not diapointed. The book is full of great articles by quality writers, and with many photos by the famed photo staff at SI. If you want a good quaility book, and are a basketball fan, this book is worth the more then fair asking price. The origins of the game to the present day game is covered as well as profiles on the superstars of each decade, is excellent. This is an exceptional book, buy it, it is worth it.

If you only read one, read this one. I have been out of motorcycling for 26 years, owned four in my earlier day. I wanted to tour then but never did. This time I am doing it. I wanted to start out right so this was the first book I read. Extremely informative. It covered just about everything I needed and more. If there is any negative maybe I could ask for more guidance on which motorcycle. However, as I found in researching motorcycles, there are just too many factors. You must know what kind of travel you'll do, set your requirements of the bike, do the research on the bikes, sit on all of them, ride if allowed, settle on the one for you, take a motorcycle saftey course, buy and have fun. Don't go too small or too big, it must fit you. Dr. Fraizer's book is good too.

For anyone seeking information about motorcycle travel, this is THE book to have! Dale does a great job of covering many aspects (dare I say All?) for traveling by motorcycle, and then some. Everything from weatherproof riding gear, GPS, suspension, campers, tents, seat cushions to suggestions for wiring new equipment into your bike can be found in this comprehensive guide. The book is loaded with full color photos. I've been riding a number of years now, and thought I'd kept up on the latest gear and travel info... until I read this book. I've learned a few things and found a few new gadgets to look into. Highly recommended for someone just beginning to travel my motorcycle, or the seasoned rider.

The book was bound with the pages out of order!! Cheap China manufacturing, no quality control from what used to be a trusted publisher.

If you are even just thinking about motorcycle touring a must read. I read this book as I was planning a long trip which helped on what to take, how to pack and what to expect on the trip. The information is top notch and I will read it again before my next trip.

A good companion to this book would be:
Proficient Motorcycling: The Ultimate Guide to Riding Well
by David L. Hough

I have been planning on taking long trips in the near future and this book should be every long distance rider's bible. Lots of great info on what, where, how and why you should do things in order to travel long and comfortable. Covers every aspect about traveling on a motorcycle. Why not prepare well for a trip and enjoy? What you don't know do due lack of knowledge may ruin your trip. "Motorcycle Travel" will take care of all the possible problems. Written by those who have already done it, and know what to do and not to do. Ride smart, buy "Motor Travel".

Although my 18 year old grandson is a champion golfer, not a seall player, he found much value in this book.

Just trying to make up a catchy paragraph for each letter of the alphabet does not amount to much. You may get a few throw away one liners from this book, but confusion is assured.

This is a really beautiful book to read. It is a must for all pitchers and their coaches. But it is more than that because it is also about life in general though especially relevant to anyone who loves baseball. It is about being philosophical about our failures and being courageous enough to go out to win in the face of them. In that sense anyone who reads this book will feel a little wiser about life both on and perhaps also off-field regardless of whether they are a baseball player or not.

This book gives exactly what is needed to pitchers who have not explored their craft to the fullest. This book gives you, the pitcher, the opportunity to not only get better, but to become a professional at the game you love.

Noooooo !! Don't let the book aside because it seems to be a usual or boring ABC dictionnary. Take your time to look at the content. The paragraphs are linked together with a lot of callbacks. It really forms a great GLOBAL mental APPROACH to the act of pitching and not only a sum of psychological analyses. This book is mainly descriptive, based on experience and examples and that can repulse some people. However if you have the commitment to go further reading, you will profit from the KEY POINTS and PRACTICAL ADVISES given at the end of each paragraph. Put these tips into your practice program progressively, learn them, try them, adapt them, get feedback down the line and adjust. If not used, this reference will be wasted and will only remain a good book that you have read on the sofa. It is said "Every player and coach will HAVE one". Even if it is highly interesting only reading it, I hope that every player and coach will USE it to complement its program in the bullpen. It will be hard to write a better book on the subject before a long time.

Are you kidding me?! This book won the Texas Bluebonnet Award! The book had some cool ideas to ad to the sci fi genre, and it could have been an amazing book. But this Conor Kostiock doesn't know how to write one. The characters are so flat and unreal that it's like they're mindless zombies. They have no personaility at all and just go around and try to save the world. There is no reason that there should be a sequel. It just doesn't lead you anywhere. The only hook that Kostick provides to lead on to the sequel is that the heroes haves to save their father from exile. That was the main reason through the whole dang book that they have an adventure. *Spoilers* Then after so much effort, this problem remains unsolved. It just didn't fit with the plot at all. Like an unfinished jigsaw puzzle. He was just shoving the pieces into the wrong places. What does he do next? He destroys the computer game. (the computer game is like the Matrix but in fantasyland) He should of had the heroes rescue the guy from exile by the end of the book then make the computer game survive. That would've really give people a good motive to read the next book. They would wonder "will they destroy the evil computer game?"
What about the villains? The evil government is pathetic. They're just a bunch of rich nerds. The one villain that had REAL POTENTIAL was a vampire. Vampires always make excellent villains when done right. He was so cool, scary, and real. Well, as real as Kostick can get a villain. You could really be sympathetic with him because he had real motives. Then Kostick gives him the axe. What a shame. A good villain will hook the reader into the book. I felt as if Darth Vader died in Star Wars: A New Hope ,Voldemort got killed by Harry in the Sorcerer's Stone, and Sauron was destroyed in The Fellowship of The Ring. This Kostick guy needs to know how and where to take the book.

I feel guilty writing a 3-star review after several have deemed Epic a 5-star novel. However, I believe there's reason for criticism.

While the concept of RPG-based worlds is not exactly new, it is thrilling, especially for those of us who enjoy video games. Likewise, the political somewhat big-brother plot lines were intriguing. However, not only does the book fail to provide any compelling plot twits, but also the characters provided are practically made of cardboard. The understated romance between Erik & Injeborg is trite and uninspiring. The plan to rescue Erik's father is never properly fleshed out. The style of writing itself is quite mediocre and fails to submerge the reader in either the real-world aspect of Epic or the gameplay realm. Considering how much potential the book had, this is truly disappointed.

All this negativity aside, Epic is a fun summer read if you've nothing better to do. I don't regret buying the book - I simply regret that it could not live up to even meager expectations. For those seeking an RPG experience, I recommend actually playing a game -- Warcraft, Guild Wars, etc. Or watch the anime .Hack//sign. Or go out & swordfight/roleplay with your friends. Seriously, there are better ways to fulfill the lust for fantasy adventure than to read Epic. Sadly.

Being a lifelong gamer and someone who spent close to 2 1/2 years immersed in Final Fantasy online, I loved this book. You must enjoy RPG games to enjoy this book I feel. It's quite the different twist on the world being "destroyed" and a new form of government. In Epic the government is run by Central Allocations and everything takes place inside the game. People still live outside the game, but that's really only to get by. It's kind of scary to have it in writing how an online game can take over your life or the life of a world. What did throw me, was how the game came alive. I'll say no more to avoid spoiling it. I highly recommend this book to all sci-fi and game loving folks. Young and old.

When i first picked up Epic, i thought, "Eh, sounds okay." When i opened the book and started reading, "Somewhat interesting." When i put the book down after nonstop reading for five hours, no words could describe it. Epic is probably the best book i have read, and i have read a ton of books.

Epic is set in a world where there is no violence allowed. Saga is the new worlds legal, government, and economic system, and everyone plays it. Erik is one in a million, one who doesn't work in the game, he plays the game. He looks outside of the game and sees that his world is slowly dying, everything in this society is wrong.

More than that, the game is no longer just a game. It has evolved into something more, and it takes Erik to find out how to save his world by beating epic.

A terrific video-game-based fantasy that also works as social commentary. In a world where we could desperately use joint social action, why are we wasting our precious time on video games and other similar distractions dreamed up by corporate America? This book will be devoured by good upper-elementary readers too; it is unclear why the publisher says it is for 8th graders and up. For anyone familiar with Heir Apparent, this one is even better.

I've been working from this book several months now, and the deeper I dig into it, the more impressed I am with its range of exercises, the intelligence with which the exercises were selected, and the clarity of the instructions. And I am a picky editor when it comes to clarity! This book is excellent. Highly recommended.

Excellent book. It is a little to techncal for people who are inexperienced in exercise, as it seems to be written for trainers. It is a great book for fitness trainers who want to expand their swiss ball and medicine ball workouts. As a Personal Trainer, I appreciate this book and DVD.

Although I knew a lot of the execises what I like most about the book is that it explains the effect of each movement and it shows photos for proper positioning. Each exercise also has a basic, intermediate and advanced version. For me, it was worth the purchase.

this is a very informative book. the dvd made it easier to get the exercises right. i would recommend this book to anyone who wants a strong,toned,well balanced pysique.

This book is worth twice the price. The accompanying DVD is also worth twice the price. It's a lot of information for the money!

Background: until a couple of weeks ago I exclusively lifted weights for strength training. Then I hurt my back, and decided I needed to get some more dynamic training into my regimen. I bought a few medicine balls, and immediately hurt my back again! (In a different spot.) I ordered this book (along with Gambetta's medicine ball book) to teach me the right way to use medicine balls. I was a bit unsure about this book because I really didn't want all those stability ball exercises -- I was just looking for med ball ex's.

In the meantime I went to a few stability ball classes at the Y because I figured that they wouldn't hurt my back. I actually enjoyed them and looked forward to the book's arrival.

The exercises in the sample program look pretty easy, that is until you watch the DVD and learn the *correct* way to do them. For all you macho guys out there who think that stability balls are for sissies, well let's just say that after I completed the beginner workout, I felt like I had been beaten by hammers all over my body. But in a good way! :-)

The DVD is very professionally produced. They film the exercises from multiple camera angles, and use slow- and stop-motion liberally to illustrate the critical parts of each exercise. (My 3 and 6 year-olds were mesmerized!) There is narration during the slow/stop sequences telling you what to watch for.

Short story, I sent Gambetta's book back because it pales in comparison to this one.

By the way, today I went to the Y and it was a beautiful day (60 degrees in February!) so the place was empty. I had my choice of an empty weight room or an empty aerobics studio. I chose the studio and the stability balls! What does that tell you?