An Editor's View Pont
598480
For full disclosure, I helped the author pull this book together, giving her editorial advice, typsetting it and designing the cover.

However, I've had the opportunity to edit a lot of other's work before and Anna Maria's book was the cleanest I've ever had the pleasure to edit.

Anna Maria's style is warm and inviting. It pulls you in to her story which sets you up for the remainder of the book that helps you understand basic feng shui concepts and then how to apply them to clearing your space of unwanted spirit visitors.

This is an entertaining and educational read. I highly recommend it.
3561928
The are a few run on sentence's, that a good editor would have caught. But, other than that, the book was good.
921741
Beautiful work.  Great clean lines, photography, articles are thoughtful and presentation overall is balanced.  Well edited and curated.  A magazine of the times.
913249
This reaqder is a true Anglophile and wants this new,year old magazine to survive. Judging from the amount of advertizing it receives, I'm not sure that it will. Each edition brings decorating features, some English recipies, homes for sale, and descriptions of all manner of things English. Written for North American readers, it is a delight.
1413018
I appreciate the variety of articles that each issue offers. I also appreciate the ease with which you may make comments. But the writing sometimes has been poorly edited, and words are missing so that you may have to re-read sentences or fill in the missing words. It's frustrating to see the decline of good editing online.
4133784
This year's editor (2010) is Christopher Hitchens, so readers know they are in for some interesting, provocative topics.

Each essay has been previously printed in a magazine or review, and since most of the authors' names won't ring bells, I'll mention the sources from which the essays come: The Atlantic, The Alaska Review, The New York Review of Books, The New Yorker, The Weekly Standard, The Harvard Review, The New York Times Book Review,  The New York Times Magazine, The Wilson Quarterly, The American Scholar, Oregon Humanities, Harpers, The Gettysburg Review, The New Republic.

Some sources, like The New Yorker, account for several essays.

There are 21 essays, and this paperback book is 293 pages in length. Measures 8" x 5.5"  (I include this information for purposes of determining portability -- I'm a subway rider, so there are limits on what I can haul around).

Highly recommnded for its wonderful selection of topics and authors.
3961902
The GUARDIAN WEEKLY contains a compilation of some of the best coverage taken from the previous week's daily editions of The GUARDIAN, The OBSERVER, LE MONDE and the WASHINGTON POST. The publication's format remains basically the same as when I first read it as The MANCHESTER GUARDIAN WEEKLY in 1956.

A recent issue contained news articles on a variety of topics from Syria's possible troop withdrawal from Lebanon to an account of a football game between Manchester United and Crystal Palace. The edition also included many news capsules from around the world as well as much comment and analysis on diverse subjects. Two pages were devoted to book reviews.

The quality of writing in the GUARDIAN WEEKLY is consistently high. The bias seems to be slightly to the left. I recommend it mostly because of its interesting worldview and the excellence of its reporting.
2497399
This book was somewhat interesting in spite of the strong possibility that an editor did not review it for grammar.
2692623
I really like this book. The author details how a reporter does his/her job and life in the newsroom. The layout and text can be very dense, so it feels like a longer book that it is by page count. I'd like to see the author increase the number of exercises to help enforce the chapter material more. It did its job with me: I believe I'm a better writer; and, I know how to better angle stories for my audience.
4202520
The editor should be taken to task. The last 20% of the book became interesting again, after a fitful and enraging middle.
645826
I enjoyed this book.  It was lengthy.  It took me nearly three days to read.  I would say that this work would be better classified as three separate but related books rather than one single novel.  I do appreciate the fact that I got to read it all for one price rather than having to purchase three separate books.  I tend to view it as being a better value for my money.

I have enjoyed Christ Hechtl's books despite his obvious need for a professional editor.  This book was probably better edited than his other works although plenty of problems remain.  I would suggest that Hechtl has now published enough books that he should begin thinking of himself as a professional writer and treat his work accordingly.  In short, hire a professional editor.  The book would have been more enjoyable without the errors.
1736011
Heartening to see an endorsement of the natural flow that writers have in the draft stages. Some of us think in pictures but some in sounds . I actually think in dialogue. Telling is natural for me. But editors theorise about show and tell as if all stories are meant for movie screenplays. In the process, the creativity sulks in a cranny trying to show what it wants to scream out...

Thanks, boss, I am going back to my ways.
455148
A balanced reporting of all points of view.  While the author's view is transparent, it shows a huge effort to present all positions as they would see the issues.  He shows his hopes and fears in a sensitive yet clear writing style.
I enjoyed his varied styles.  I was not as aware as I should have been of all the varieties of responses to the issue. I find his critique of American Ministry valid but sad.
3471380
The author is a journalist with an economics background. The book reads like a book written by a journalist; and her perspective as an economist is key to making this book interesting to me.

Her thesis is that aesthetics are now as important as substance in most aspects of the American economy and American life. This seems to be a result of our wealth. The book is full of anecdotes and examples with little abstract analysis, as I would expect from a book by a journalist. Fortunately there are examples from housing and architecture as well as fashion and cosmetics. We also have the toilet bowl brush example. The relative paucity of analysis and data made the book a bit light weight in my opinion.

The argument seems fresh and convincing. I was convinced that aesthetics are a bigger part of our lives and that this is beneficial. In fact I was convinced about half way through the book and could have skipped the rest. Never the less a well written book on a relevant current topic.
2434717
While I appreciated the editor's notes, which helped understand the author's flowery language ... as a "Critical edition", I found the cover jarring in that it pictures a rowboat, not a canoe. Nowhere in the text is a rowboat mentioned. And I still don't understand the author's statement that the Columbia is the "Achilles" of rivers ... huh?
277417
A lack of professional editing was distracting (misspelled words, word repetition and punctuation errors). However, the content was interesting and well written. In spite of the lack of editing, the book was an enjoyable read.
2884347
American Legend is a new magazine in need of an editor-in-chief who must compete and win a challenge for the coveted promotional position wanted by editors Molly Henderson (Quilters Heart) and Ben Weaver (Outdoor Adventures) of the same publishing company. Molly and Ben must compete for the position by switching editor positions of each others publications and completing the current projects of Quilters Heart by sewing a quilt and Outdoor Adventures by competing in a kayak race with both projects being events for charity.

Molly and Ben begin adjusting to their new projects having no previous experience in the new tasks and give assistance to one another in the beginning processes of the projects. While competing for the ultimate prize, Molly and Ben realize there is more at stake than just the competition rivalry for the editor-in-chief position that neither wants to admit to themselves. Ben has special personal reasons for wanting the job and Molly has the seniority needed to fill the position but the owner of the publishing company cannot decide who is best without the promotional campaign contest. The relationship between them begins flourishing after they work together outside of the competition but a calculated scheme by a person threatens to separate them bringing all to complete regression.

This novel is an uncomplicated and pleasurable read for a weekday afternoon or weekend reading spree in only a few hours. The story plot and characters are very likeable and easy to relate in the different situations and problems throughout this enjoyable book. I recommend reading to those who enjoy novels with personal conflict, competitiveness, and self-growth intertwined in the story line.

I received this book free from Litfuse Publicity in exchange for an unbiased opinion in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission guidelines