The Spur and The Sash
595111
The storyline is refreshingly unexpected. Grede grapples with the horrors of war, the mysteries of love, the clash of cultures...and weaves them into a complex, beautiful & seamless tapestry. His narrative is so descriptive and detailed that it put me right there, seeing & feeling what the characters were experiencing.

This is a story that appealed to both the historian and the romantic in me.

I appreciated the factual details about a part of the war we seldom hear about:the last days of the war and the beginnings of reconstruction. Grede addresses the challenges of rebuilding a war-torn South, the complex politics of the time, the question of what to do with slaves that suddenly found themselves "emancipated" without a clue as to how to live on their own and the Southerner's continuing distrust of Yankees, fueled, in part, by Carpet-baggers and Northern speculators. He weaves these facts into the story with such subtlety that it enhances and underscores the narrative without ever becoming overbearing or distracting.

As to the main story itlself, I loved the variety of the characters, how Grede develops them, how they appear, fade & re-appear throughout. The scenery is especially vivid, words turning to brushstokes of an accomplished painter. The twists and turns in the plot kept me engaged and enticed me to read on, curiosity and anticipation pulling me along to the next page and then another,and another...

The Romantic aspect of the story is tastefully restrained and realistic. It is NOT love at first sight! The tension between Cap. Van Norman and Eva thaws out slowly, hesitatingly before turning gradually warmer. All along, we feel the internal conflict of both characters most accutely and experience with them the hurdles & misconceptions they must overcome as their relationship changes.

I have been a fan of other "historic" novel writers. James Michener comes to mind. Somehow, though, Grede's characters are more credible, more human, more real. This is due more to the author's writing style than the fact that the main characters  actually did exist.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book & enthusiastically recommend it to anyone who loves a good story...romantic or otherwise.
531696
The period covered in Merlyn Severn's photographs is appropriately reflected in the sepia intensity and soft edged images of the Sadlers Wells Ballet in various dances from their repertoire.  My husband is in a number of them and would not have been in the Company, but for the war which took away a number of the Company's male dancers.

This was the time before the Sadlers Wells Company finally took up permanent residence at Covent Garden and became the Royal Ballet.  There was an emphasis on dramatic works.  During the war and reconstruction period, people sought escapism and beauty.  The Ballet was immensely popular and served a useful purpose apart from providing employment for dancers.

It is a delight to have a book which records in images this special moment of flux  which flourished to a future flowering in British dance history.
1426867
The continuing theme of the scarf was unique. A beautiful segue from one era to the next.
3300529
Thackeray's finest work, a classic.  It has two truly memorable characters:  the scheming Becky Sharp and the bumbling Jos Sedley.  It is one of the top-drawer Victorian novels.
218233
A beautiful book and will be a delight for those who love Georgia history, old churches, local history, and/or wonderful photography.
155250
A good book on the way of the sword/warrior and the combination of Zen thought within this art.  I look forward to reading the translator's (William Scott Wilson) bio of Miyamoto Musashi- The Lone Samurai: The Life of Miyamoto Musashi.
1995339
One of my favorite authors, Sue Monk Kidd, a native Southerner, has written another memorable book, The Invention of Wings, a novel that spans 35 years, beginning in 1803.

For her eleventh birthday, Sarah Grimke is given a personal slave, Hetty, who goes by the name Handful. Horrified, Sarah tries to refuse the gift, but is seriously rebuked by her aristocratic family. Sarahs father is a highly respected South Carolina Supreme Court justice and her mother a rigid taskmaster who doles out harsh punishment to their many slaves.

Handful, ten when the story begins, is third-generation slave. Shes adorned with lavender ribbons, like a wrapped present, when shes given to Sarah. Although the gift cannot be rescinded, Handful and Sarah form a bond that will eventually shape their lives. Sarah refuses to treat Handful as a slave, but a slave she is and as such is expected to work long hours, then sleep on the floor in the hallway by Sarahs bedroom in the event her mistress has needs during the night.

The book artfully toggles between Sarah and Handfuls stories. Deeply affected by the mistreatment of the slaves, Sarah silently rebels. She develops a speech impediment after witnessing the whipping of a woman slave, an impediment that haunts her the rest of her life. When Sarah teaches Handful to read, an act thats against the law in antebellum South Carolina, both girls are severely punished.

Sarah has a good relationship with one of her older brothers and later, when little sister Angelina is born, the two girls become inseparable.

Divided into six parts, the book progresses through Sarah and Handfuls lives and the social attitudes of the time.

Sarah and  sister Angelina move north, to slave-free Philadelphia, and begin promoting abolition of slavery and for womens rights. Surprisingly, they find strong support for abolition, but resistence for womens rights.

Meanwhile, Handful has reached middle-age and yearns to be free. Sarah and Handful have remained friends, keep up a correspondence, and struggle for their common goal, freedom.

The Invention of Wings is loosely based on the true story of Sarah and Angelina Grimke who became famous, even infamous, speakers against slavery and for womens suffrage.  Many of the situations portrayed are real-life events. Kidd describes the barbaric mistreatment of slaves in vivid detail. The story takes place pre-Civil War, and Kidd does a good job presenting both sides of slavery. I highly recommend this powerful and sweeping novel of American history.
737034
I did enjoy the book, I learned a lot about Scottish history while reading the book because I have a habit of going to Wikipedia and looking things up, I even found that something I looked up involved my ancestors.
Laird Alex Grant takes his brother Brodie among others with him when he is summoned by King Alexander III to discuss the defense of Scotland against the invasion of King Haakon of Norway. On their way there Brodie witnesses what he believes to be a young lady trying to kill herself by jumping from a tower but when he inquires at the home he is told no young lady lives there so he climbs the tree next to the tower to see for himself and finds the beautiful Celestina who has been locked in her room and sold to the highest bidder.
I still enjoyed Brodie and Celestina's story
The reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 stars
Are the same as other people who had the spoiler alerts on them, no need to repeat, still worth reading
3501768
The historical Vectorians are brought to the lime light on the stage, individually and collectively. The book is informative, insightful, it is a gem.
2979891
This is an attractive book in your hands, hardbound and filled with colourful illustrations and garden photography. The text by Katie Campbell, especially the exceptional introduction covering the political and design trends of history leading up to the first distinctly English gardens, is generally a pleasure to read even though it wanders a bit.

The chapter on the Victorian gardens of gentleman orchidologist James Bateman in Staffordshire, for example, examines the many and varied areas of Biddulph Grange with reference to the passions of the day, from evolution (Bateman was not a fan), to a fashionable interest in the Orient (he had Himalayan slopes and Chinese temples built). Other chapters wander off at times: the chapter on the Nymans estate devotes several pages to the changing fortunes and descendants of the Messel family who developed it, to the point where the reader is presented with potted biographies of offspring whose influence on either garden history or the design of Nymans is never established.

Overall, though, the high quality of the photographs, including full-bleed prints over two pages, and the eclectic scholarship of the author is a rewarding and wonderfully detailed tour through its varied people, places and times.

Would make an excellent gift for those with an interest in English history or garden design. The marriage of the two here is a fruitful one.
3082972
The sash is long enough for a 5'7 female. Its nice it is so soft. The pins are cute. The tiara had all its gems but the tulle was kind of ugly and stuck up funny. Great deal though.
3647549
A facsimile of Roworths 1798 Edition of The Art of Defence on Foot.
There is some excellent work with his photography and processing of the images with the result as clear (if not more) then the original copy they worked from.
Includes copies of the figures that cross over pages (which due to the binding lose some of middle) and a brief biography of the author
2213315
great book  on early spurs. i deal in antiques and the info in this book helps me to know the value of spurs.
60828
A great peek into the world of the tip of the spear when it is being thrust and when it is not.
3822549
I purchased this Tie bar for a 1920's Great Gatsby party. I'm a larger than average fellow and while the construction of this piece is good, I found it a bit on the small/short side when it came to encompassing my 20" collar.
2954414
Might want to iron before using.  Feels like silk and works perfectly.  My girlfriend had an amazing time and even got a few shots from the use of the sash!  Definitely lets people know that you are 21!
503742
This is another good work from Stephen Lawhead, in which he uses his usual blend of history and myth to spin an engaging tale of one of Ireland's patron saints. Lawhead's feeling for the period, and his love of all things Celtic shines through as strongly as his usual redemptive Christian message. However he departs a long way from what we know of the historical Patrick. Don't mistake that for a lack of research though. He is well read in the extant literature on St Patrick - he just chooses to spin his tale in a direction that the literature does not always lead.

As long as you don't use this as a historical source book, there is much to enjoy in this story. My only criticism is that, having read quite a lot of Lawhead this year, I am beginning to find the formula for his books somewhat rehearsed. Not totally though - this is still a fine read.