I was 13 when I first read Angelique - marquise des anges, it was 10 years ago. I knew the movies from TV, but I always could see only the last ones and never knew, what the first parts had been about. When I saw the book in store, I thought: OK, I have to buy it and finally know the beginning. So I did it and fell in love with Angelique. Since then, I purchased every sequel of this fascinating novel. And after seeing all movies, I was lost for years. Most of my leisure time I lived in 17th century and was a great lady at the Court of Louis XIV. I was decided to see Paris and Versailles and when my dream came true and I visited France, I couldn't do anything but to more fall in love with this country. Angelique had a very big influence on my life - I started do study French (but still know only basic words and sentences) and was interested in everything connected with France. After readind the last book in the series - The Victory of Angelique, I was sad because of end. I re-read the whole serie many times and wanted it to continue. And it seems my another dream will come true - I found out Anne Golon was writting one or two more sequels! I am sorry of English readers not having the last three books, because they are worth it. Is there any way I could help them? PS: If you love Angelique, then you MUST read a book "Catherine" written by Juliette Benzoni, another great French writer. It is the only book better than Angelique.

I've read the series 4 times and am now on the fifth, only this time reading it to my husband out loud while we drive. He is as captivated as I and we now look forward to long trips (Hint: this is NOT just a read for gals). I first discovered Angelique in the library 30 years ago. She quite literally saved my life during a very troubled childhood. She remains my greatest role model to this day. Her spiritual growth during the span of the story is sublime, the historical background is fascinating, the scientific and philosophical details are brilliant and meticulously researched. The content was so ahead of it's time, written as it was in the 1950's - timeless. What can I say? These books have changed my life. They are as fresh and exciting with each re-reading as they were the first time. I'm going to take the plunge and learn French just so I can find out what happens after Book 9! Angelique and Joffrey Live!!

My father and I used to fight over who could read the latest Angelique book first when I was 14 and 15. My poor elder sister had to wait her turn after either of us were through. My father and I liked the series so much, we made sure we gave each other Angelique books as birthday dan x-mas presents. I'm Indonesian, and in the late 60s and early 70s imported books were hard to come by. Our family used to buy up indiscriminately any book we found in English. As it is, it's only after I opened Amazon.com that I've found out there were more than nine Angelique books in all. I've read the first seven over and over again, but have never seen "The Jesuit Trap" nor "Gold Beard's Downfall". "The Marquise of the Angels" is positively my most favourite book in all my reading life. Unfortunately, somebody borrowed my copy many, many years ago, and I've never found a replacement. I wrote to Pan Books, I rummage through second-hand book carts wherever I find them, all to no avail. The Angelique character, to my mind, is a proto-feminist. She never yielded to feminine stereotyping, and always did her 'own thing', regardless of society's disapproval. I do believe that her character made a huge impact on myself. The other outstanding book in the series is "Angelique and the Sultan" in which there are great passages comparing Islamic and western philosophy. In this age of misunderstanding in the west about Islam, I think reprinting this one particular book would be an enormous contribution to the discussion. There are other passages in "Angelique in Love" quoted by Joffrey de Peyrac which shows diligent research by Serge and Anne Golon on comparative religion, albeit still stilted towards western Christian argument. Nevertheless, seldom since have I come across such a good read which provides me with instant philosophical discourse and a crash course in French history all at the same time. I'm excited to discover that others have found the series as captivating for them as they were for me. I agree that a publisher would do well to have the series reprinted.

This is the gold standard among military history books, the masterful story of D-Day, the first day of the Allies' climactic invasion of Normandy.

This is an eminently readable book, one that most readers -- even those without interest in military or history books -- will find impossible to put down, even though the outcome is well known. Cornelius Ryan brings surprising clarity to the multi-faceted D-Day operation, allowing us to view the events of June 6, 1944 from many perspectives: German, French, British, Canadian and American. My only complaint with "The Longest Day" -- a quibble, really -- is that the soft-cover version I purchased lacked any maps, which would have been useful for a geographically-challenged reader such as me.

If you've seen the movie, I'd encourage you to read the book. If you haven't seen the movie, read the book and then rent the movie. You'll find it an enjoyable experience, worthy of all the 5-star ratings you see here.

I saw this movie a long, long time ago, then I grew older and read the book. Sorry to you movie fans, but the book is what it's about, the story.

What the movie lacks in detail, the book has. 3 hours of film cannot begin to scratch the surface the way the book does. Mr. Ryan plunges into details about everything involved with D-Day, and not just shooting and fighting. There are stories about newlyweds, converted gamblers, families at home, and from both sides of the beach. Somehow he manages to cover in a bit over 350 pages, almost all that is important about D-Day. What a daunting tast this must have been! But let me say this, Mr. Ryan achieves a level of wrting quality that is very rare.

This book goes from top to bottom of the chain of command, Supreme Commander to private soldier, all have their stories told in grand fashion, but never long winded. The reading flys by, and you'll have to hang on to the book, or so it'll feel. It never gets slow, but moves from page to page with a determination that most books don't have.

If you know the ground, this book will be a great pleasure. If you don't know the ground, then you will have a great picture of it when you get there. If you like history, this is a read that will be an event in your study and/or enjoyment of the subject. It's even better the second time.

Read it now!

I first read The Longest Day as a kid after watching the movie. Cornelius Ryan is an excellent author who has the ability to draw a reader into the history he writes. It is filled with personal accounts and stories that make this an enjoyable book to read. It's a real page turner. Another excellent book on this subject is D-Day: The Sixth of June: The Climactic Battle of World War II by Steven Ambrose.

Anne Franks and Me is a novel based on a high-school aged girl named Nicole. Nicole is an average girl: not the popular one, not the geeky one and not the prettiest one. Her assignment for English, was to read "The Diary of Anne Frank". But she is so caught up doing her own every day things, that she bags her assignment and forgets about it. But, when her class takes a field trip to an Anne Frank exibit, Nicole's world is turned upside down. She finds herself in 1942 as a young Jewish Girl durring the times of the Holocaust. Is her new life just a bad dream? Or has her previous experiences(and life!) been the actual dream? I highly recommend this book to everyone! It truly has something for everyone: love, adventure, tragedy and drama! Cherie Bennett and Jeff Gottesfeld have truly done it again! They have caught the reader in such a tight grip that they can't let go!(Or put AFAM down!)This book is truly a treasure every home must own!

The more you know about the Nazi occupation of Paris, France, and the checkered French response to it, the more you will understand what a remarkable feat authors Bennett and Gottesfeld have accomplished in a book ostensibly for young adults. This book, full of the adolescent longing, romance, and expression of young sexuality that marks Anne Frank's own diary, is a veritable Sophie's Choice for teens. If only all historical fiction for young people could be this powerful. There are three main reasons for Anne Frank and Me's power. First, every teen (and this adult reader) will come to fall in love with the authors' heroine, a modern Christian tenth grader named Nicole, who describes herself accurately on her Girl X website as a "girl in the middle." She reminded me too much of too many of my own students, too distracted by the drama of their lives to do their homework. But under Nicole, and under my students, is a young woman who could change the world if only she'd let herself seize the day. Second, the authors' research is brilliant. Nazi-Occupied Paris comes to life as a teen would see it. Readers will understand all the major events, including the anti-Jewish laws, the yellow star decree, the July 1942 round-up of foreign-born Jews, the black market, the continuation of Paris' cultural life, the collaborationist press, the French fascist miltias, the killing of innocents in reprisal for acts of resistance.... It's all there. Both present and past are expertly rendered from a teen's eye view. The dialogue is crisp and idiomatic in the present, truthful in the past. The authors embrace Nicole, including the same romantic and erotic longings in her life that Anne Frank wrote about in her own diary. Nicole is in love with a boy who loves her. This love is reflected in her diary, as you might expect. Under the circumstances, knowing what we know about what is likely to come, it is both breathtaking and heartbreaking. Heartbreaking too is Nicole's chance meeting with Anne on a cattle car on the way to Birkenau. Parts of this book made me, a Christian teacher, shudder. I like to think that were I alive back then, I would have been another Miep Gies, doing everything I could to keep Nicole's--or Anne Frank's--family alive. I like to think I would have brought food to the Secret Annex. But who can deny that most of our Christian brethren were too worried about their own lives and too influenced by centuries of anti-Semitism to do what we could to protect our Jewish neighborhors? It made me uncomfortable to be confronted with this reality as I read. But so be it. The point of reading is not to be made comfortable. Lastly, this book is a great read, full of plot twists and turns that defied my best efforts to guess what was coming next. I read it in a single sitting, something I haven't done with a young adult novel since Speak. Whether you're a teen or a parent or a teacher or a grandparent, put Anne Frank and Me on your reading list, somewhere near the top. You will glad you did.

I couldn't put it down! I'e never read such a book. It may sound like nothing but a sermon, but it's nothing like that! I'm a sophomore in high school, and I know excitement when I see it. On a field trip to the Holocaust museum, some students open fire, and Nicole passes out as she's trampled by the crowd, waking up to find herself in Nazi occupied France in 1942. All the people from her real life (parents, sister, and schoolmates) are here, andthe boy she had a crush on is even madly in love with her. But Nicole soon learns the real meaning of life, and that boys and clothes hardly matter as much as family, safety, and even food enough to survive when she finds herself in a concentration camp... with Anne Frank.

If you ever expect to find that little bistro on Pas. de Clery, or a park on R. du Fouarre, you'll need a detailed map. This is it. This has the stuff that is not on the other tourist maps.

There's a key map (a city map with a numbered grid showing the page numbers of the detail maps that follow for each section of the city). And there's a complete street index.

The 29 detailed city maps are divided into two-page spreads. They're labeled with sights, Metro stops, and establishments.

The bus routes are shaded gray, and the bus numbers are printed in red alongside the streets. I spent some time in Paris and came to love commuting by bus on clear days. If you plan to try it, leave some extra time to figure it all out, it's worth the effort. You'll need more info than is provided here. A current bus map would be a big help in planning your day trips, ...

Metro stops are marked on the street maps, but the metro routes are not shown. There's a small metro map on pages 2-3, followed by some very condensed practical information for tourists. (If you need guidebook information, don't rely solely on this book, get a Michelin.)

The detail maps leave out substantial parts of the 12th, 13th, 15th, 18th and 20th arrondissements. If you want something comprehensive, though not as user-friendly, look for "Paris par Arrondissement - Plan Net" by Editions Ponchet. That guide also has detailed bus routes.

I prefer the book map format over fold-out maps, because it gives me a detailed map, but I don't have to fight with it to get it folded and back into my pocket. Ironically, I did end up folding this book to get it into my back pocket. I wish the form factor were slightly narrower.

Bon Voyage!

I am not an impulse shopper, but I bought this little book when I went to Amazon to buy Rick Steve's Paris guide (also great). It has an amazing amount of information in a small but easy to read format - and this means easy to read for eyes that are not so young anymore. It fits in a pocket and weighs almost nothing. It has a Metro map, of course, but also maps of the city in small sections as you would expect in a really good atlas. You can find Metro stops, bus routes and numbers, small streets, and sights in each area. Because it is so much smaller than a typical atlas, it is easy to take with you and use - on a crowded Metro train for example. Although free maps are easy to come by in Paris, this is worth every nickel. It even has great sightseeing information. A bargain at twice the price.

Middleditch's mapguides are the best I have used (I also have used his London mapguide). The maps are larger in scale than most others, which makes them much easier to use. He indicates bus routes on the maps themselves and includes a larger-than-most Metro map. He gives you everything you need to get around in a compact booklet--no irritating folding and unfolding. His commentary on the museums and sights is informative with a personal touch. I just returned from a week in Paris and feel like I couldn't have done without it. If you purchase only one guide to Paris, make it this one!

This is a retelling of the classic fantasy Beauty and The Beast. But this version has a bit of a twist, McKinley's "Beauty" doesn't quite live up to her nickname and can be more accurately described as an awkward teenager, a girl who prefers to spend her free time with books and horses. I liked her immediately. When her Father accidentally stumbles upon the bewitched castle of the "Beast" he is forced into a promise that will forever change Beauty's life. To give anymore of the plot away would be to ruin the magic of the book.

BEAUTY is categorized as a children's book (10 and up) but I think it will appeal to anyone who loves a magical, sweet, old-fashioned love story. McKinley's characters are well-drawn, sympathetic and just plain lovable, right down to Beauty's charming horse. This was another one of those rare "unputdownable" books for me. It's a keeper and one I intend to read to my babies when they're old enough to sit still long enough to enjoy it.

Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale, and Robin McKinley's beautiful reworking of the "tale as old as time" just makes me love it even more. It's a feel-good story that I go back to time and time again, rereading my favorite parts. After wearing out two paperback copies, I finally invested in the hardcover edition. This masterful novel is perfect for young adults to children at heart. The proof? I'm a freshman in college, and earlier this year I read it aloud to my two roommates, who both adored it. And a literature course I'm taking right now has this wonderful novel on its reading list! Beauty is a strong, likeable heroine that adolescent girls will easily identify with. The Beast is a wise and noble character, and the reader finds it easy to care about him and empathize with him. Beauty's father, sisters, and brother-in-law are strong, warm supporting characters. This is the perfect novel.

I love this book. It is perhaps one of the best renditions of Beauty and the Beast, and I like it even more than the well-known fairy tale. The skeleton of the story is widely familiar but McKinley lets her creativity flow through the writing and creates a totally original telling of the tale.

Honour is not your classic so-weak-that-the-guy-has-to-do-everything damsel in distress. She is spunky, intelligent and real! The character develops into a complete, realistic person through the story, and so does the beast. Clearly one who loves fairy tales as well, McKinley tells the tale with grace, charm and enchantment, that not only gives depth to the story, but makes it real in our minds. You don;'t get a goody-good, beautiful, flawless Beauty, but rather, one whose nickname mocks her appearance (compared to her sisters) and whose character has flaws, like any other person in real life. The love story unfolds with a plot that wrenches your emotions through the unfortunate situations and have you tearing with joy at the happy ones.

Unlike many other authors, who tend to inject too much violence or sex into fairy tales to make them the "adult" version, Beauty is a remarkable tale written with originality and maturity. This book is the definitive of how fairy tales for adults should be like. Well-rounded, well-written and complete.

Read it.

All right, I haven't read many of Dumas' books but he is rapidly becoming one of my favorite writers (He's nowhere near as good as Tolkien.) I first read "The Three Musketeers" just because I loved the movie and it was a famous book, and I couldn't stop reading it.
This one picks up 20 years after the first one, with only D'artagnan still in the musketeers and Athos, Porthos, and Aramis having gone on to different lives. I won't describe the plot much except to say that, as before in the series, it is an intriguing adventure full of unmaskings, betrayals, trickery, and so on. It's much longer then "The Three Musketeers", and it's not quite as fast-paced, nor as consistently exciting. It makes up for that, however, by having moments of such unbelievable suspense that I absolutely couldn't put it down.You should definitely read "The Three Musketeers" first, though, otherwise this will be hard to follow.
Overall, this is a spectacular novel, with a few small dull moments here and there but some truly moving points, too. It's a must-read.

I really liked Twenty Years After. It's weird to end off at the Three Musketeers and suddenly find Lous XIII and Richeleau dead and D'Artagnan in his early forties, but Dumas does a great job with this book. I liked how D'Artagnan goes in search of his friends Athos, Porthos, and Aramis to reunite them to aid Cardinal Mazarin. It's really strange to see D'Artagnan as a Cardinalist early in the book, but with his three friends, they once again ally themselves with the king, of England that is. For all you readers of the Three Musketeers who were sad to see De Winter gone, beware, something far more deadly that Milady is waiting for the musketeers in this book. After you finish this fine classic, go ahead and read the Vicomte de Bragelonne and Louis de la Valliere, they may be tedious and have little to do with the musketeers, execpt D'Artagnan, but they set the atmosphere just perfect for the final book, The Man in the Iron Mask

Twenty years after, although not as good as the Three Musketeers, is an excellent novel. In traditional Dumas style it starts of slowly to reach the climax late in the book. Twenty Years after is the second in a series of five novels about Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artangnan. Once again I dare anyone not to get drawn in by these four characters. I recommend that one reads these five book in order (The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, Vicomte of Bragleonne, Louise de la Valliere, and The Man in the Iron Mask). Please write back with any comments.

The Count of Monte Cristo is the kind of book that the author has a wonderful idea, but has the thought spread too thin over the novel to keep the reader's attention. Alexandre Dumas is an excellent writer but seems to accentuate too many subplots that are unimportant. He also focuses on numerous small and confusing characters.
The basic plot, is about human nature, particularly revenge of a young man named Edmond Dantés. At the age of nineteen, Dantés has a series of important events happen to him. He is convicted of being a Bonapartist by two jealous rivals. He is unable to marry the lovely Mercedes and he is no longer capable become captain of the Pharaon, the merchant ship, on which he used to work on as a first mate. He is thrown into the notorious dungeon, Chateau d'if, for fourteen years. He escapes with a large secret: the map to the famed treasure of Spada. Naturally, he'll use it for his revenge. As they say, the rich can do anything.
The book has so many intricate subplots and minor characters that the real plot seems to be lost in a hurricane of court intrigues, treasonous affairs, and numerous social gatherings. There are at least nine chapters concerning meals and balls, ranging from brunches to dinners, suppers to breakfasts, from a mere ball to a summer ball, and everything in-between. If you understand the difference between a baron and a count, then these things would obviously make sense, and may even be interesting to you. If you don't know the difference, prepare to be a little confused.
Getting to the action takes a while, but when it comes, Dumas gives you a good read. From being captured by bandits, meeting Dantes's old fiancé (who is now married to his arch rival and has a child), to getting even with all those evil men who planned his imprisonment. Although, if you're not at the action yet, get ready for a long, not-so interesting read. Dumas, still manages to throw in some unimportant details and small talk in-between the action. You can't just go skipping around the book, because there are too many important details embedded in the small talk. If you don't read every word, I guarantee you'll get lost.
This book is jam-packed with murderous action, so if that sounds good to you, you should consider reading this book. If you are looking for a challenge then this is a book for you. We recommend this book to older, more advanced readers.

The Count of Monte Cristo is the best book I've read in quite a long while. I wasn't expecting it to be. Frankly, I tend to have low expectations for 19th-century European novels in regard to sheer readability. Like vegetables and trips to the dentist, they tend to be more good for you than simply good. Add in the fact that the unabridged version is over 1000 pages, and I felt sure that the Count would be a somewhat difficult companion.

Nothing could be farther from the truth! Edmond Dantes' adventures kept me fully engrossed from beginning to end. I was disappointed to turn the final page, left longing for more.

If you've seen a movie version of Count of Monte Cristo, expect surprises. I had seen both the Richard Chamberlain and Jim Caviezel versions before reading the book (mmmm . . . Jim Caviezel), but neither were entirely true to the storyline or the mood of the original.

Edmond himself is a thoroughly satisfying and seductive hero. (The reader must take with a grain of salt the numerous references to his drug habit; at the time, opium was unfortunatly de rigeur for a Romantic hero.) The secondary characters are equally engrossing, from the admirable Maximilian Morrel to the villainous Danglars; and the ingenious machinations by which Edmond contrives to reward the deserving and doom the guilty make the chapters fly by.

I would encourage everyone to be sure and get the unabridged version of this masterpiece. It is by no means slow or ponderous, and the thought of what must be left on the cutting room floor to reduce this book to half its size makes me wince.

After watching the movie and then finding myself compelled to read the book, I wrote a review for the DVD version of this great classic by Alexandre Dumas. I did give the adulterated movie 3 stars, even with its deviation from the far superior storyline of the novel (this story does not lend itself to being told in a 2-hour movie). But rather than 3 stars, the book is well deserving of 5, and then some. The tale of the Count is one of heavy, dark intrigue. This is not light reading, and the story will tax your patience and demand of you significant time and concentration if you are to mine its riches. Those with an attention span of a six-year-old need not apply, although any person, young or old, who yields to the lessons being lived out will come away from this book with impressive knowledge regarding the pitfalls of willful ignorance, deceit, and pride; and hopefully a better appreciation for justice, compassion, and love. As for the story itself, Edmond Dantes, a young man of considerable good character, finds himself wrongly imprisoned under dreadful circumstances. He eventually is tutored in prison by a man with extraordinary wisdom-just as the reader is tutored without realizing it as he reads the unfolding chapters. Edmond loses all, gains eternal wisdom and insight, and then begins his true journey into lands where friends and foes experience his heavy influence. The story is one of desperation and deliverance, defeat and despair, and ultimately of triumph at an awful cost. Spiritual applications abound throughout as learned from within dungeons to palaces, and our notions of justice and mercy are sorely tested as a wronged man loses all and then begins to execute what he considers to be, and may well be, God's judgment. If you dedicate the time and attention that this book deserves, you will not be disappointed. If you want to speed-read and add another title to your library card, save your efforts and do not insult the worthwhile messages that this book can bring to the soul. I say soul, but for those with spiritual understanding, the better term is spirit, for this is above all a spiritual book if you have that kind of understanding. The movie alludes to it; the book embodies it. Having now read the book and carefully endured the more tedious portions to ensure that I missed little, I can only say that we do ourselves much disservice by not committing the time to study works such as this. Love, hate, revenge, mercy, justice, and forgiveness are explored in detail in the lives of Edmond Dantes (the Count) and his friends and foes. This complicated novel is unbelievably rich in its timeless spiritual lessons.

I have read this book many times, it is both humerous and touching. I enjoyed reading about Norton and his adventures. Gethers has the ability to make even mundane events sound very interesting, and he has the gift of being an entertaining writer. Any cat lover will just adore this book.

One of my best friends, and as it just so happens, one of my cats, Adam, "bought" me this book for Christmas, 2001.

I think he's trying to tell me something...

I didn't have a clue what this book was about, and almost didn't read it. I'm glad I did, because once I started, I didn't stop. The Cat Who Went to Paris is now one of my favorite books.

The star of the book is Norton (sorry, Peter -- but you're a close second!), a Scottish Fold who, as his human Peter Gethers (who also happens to be the author) describes him, is "an extraordinary cat."

Cat-hater Peter receives Norton as a gift when he's still a kitten. Seeing this cute little kitten, it's ears folded over, and he's suddenly converted to cat-addict. They develope a close bond -- maybe too close. Peter takes Norton everywhere, carrying him around the streets of New York in his jacket pocket as a kitten (as Norton gets older, he gets a shoulder bag to sit in). They fly across the US to California, go on dates together, and eventually, to Paris, where he meets Roman Polanski and Harrison Ford.

The Cat Who Went to Paris is as much about Norton as it is about Peter, and we, the reader, become so close to them, we're left feeling like old friends. Over the course of the book, Peter brings us into his personal life, and most significantly, the death of his father -- something I had to read through watering eyes. It's this closeness which makes this book so incredibly powerful and enjoyable and personal.

This is a novel of life (with a cat), and all the laughter, pain and love that goes along with it. If you own a cat, snuggle up with him or her and give this a read. Trust me, you'll want your little purring friend close while reading The Cat Who Went to Paris.

Peter Gethers book 'The cat who went to Paris' is a enchanting read about his beloved cat Nortan. I personally love this book as Gethers invites you to fall in love with Nortan. I highly recomend this book to anyone.i myself am not a cat lover and after reading this book wanted to go out and buy myself one.I have recommended this book to all my friends and they have all bought it and enjoyed it.

I have heard that Nortan unfortunatly passes away and i would like to offer my condolences to Peter Gethers.

Does anyone know if Peter Gethers is writing another book about Nortan? As i have hears rumours that he is, does anyone know when this book will be published?

Incidents in the Life Of A Slave Girl is a harrowing, personal experience of a AA female born and raised during the tumultuous, infamous and tragic era of slavery in America's history. Harriett Jacobs, aka Linda Brent, tells in her own voice-one that is explicit and easy to understand-the story of a young woman born into the brutal, horrendous slavery era who later escapes to freedom in the North. Incidents is emotional and the feelings are raw as you experience the tale of a slave who desired freedom so badly that she hid for SEVEN YEARS in a narrow, cramped quarter without much freedom of movement. The story is riveting and moving and shows what an individual is able to accomplish in spite of sex, race and slavery. Incidents is a story of bravery in light of insurmountable circumstances and ones belief that they can succeed in spite of unmeasurable difficulties.

Incidents is an excellent reading selection for a bookgroup and a book that I highly recommend to everyone. Remember the story and share the story so that history doesn't repeat itself.

Intended to convince northerners -- particularly women -- of the rankness of Slavery, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl presents a powerful autobiography and convincing writing that reads like a gripping novel but is organized and argued like an essay.

Incidents follows the "true story" (its authenticity is doubted in some places) of Linda [Jacobs uses a pseudonym] who is born into the shackles of slavery and yearns for freedom. She lives with a depraved slave master who dehumanizes her, and a mistress who mistreats her. As the novel progresses, Linda becomes increasingly starved of freedom and resolves to escape, but Linda finds that even escaping presents its problems.

But Incidents is more than just a gripping narration of one woman's crusade for freedom, and is rather an organized attack on Slavery, intended to convince even the most apathetic of northerners. And in this too, Incidents succeeds. The writing is clear, and Jacobs' use of rhetorical strategy to preserve integrity is astonishing.

Well written, convincing, entertaining, Incidents is an amazing book.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Linda Brent is a deeply touching narrative of a slave woman's journey through the heinous institution of slavery to her eventual emancipation. Through her description of bonded labor, the reader very poignantly realizes what it was like for millions of African Americans to be brutalized and ravaged by slavery. Written in 1861 to educate the Northerners, especially the women, about the evils of slavery, the autobiography is a harrowing account of a woman's life, what the author ironically calls her 'adventures'. The abuse that the palpably intelligent and veracious author had to undergo has the power to humble every one of us even today.
Linda Brent was born as a slave in the household of a miraculously benevolent mistress. She lost her mother at the age of six, but her mistress, who was her mother's half-sister, took good care of her and endowed on her ward the gift of literacy. The degradative reality of slavery was hidden from the author till she entered her early teens, when within a year both her mistress and her father passed away, and she was acquired by the household of Dr. Flint. At his plantation, the author had to bear the full force of slavery. From this time to the author's eventual freedom, the reader gets a glimpse of the persecution that a slave had to face.
As mentioned above, the book was written to illustrate the depravity of slavery to people living in the North. It is striking to see how humbly, or even apologetically, the author has used her life to explain the circumstances of slavery. She has used fictitious names and concealed the names of places so as not to offend any person, black or white. As one reads the book, the author can definitely be identified as a pious and truthful person, and becomes easy to see why the author places so much emphasis on her secrecy. The book is not written to garner sympathy from readers, but to shock readers into the realities of slavery. It was an appeal to the people who the author thought had the power to defeat slavery to act on it.
The author's main argument is that slavery is not just about perpetual bondage, but it involves the absolute debasement of a people. She painfully acknowledges that the 'black man is inferior', but vociferously argues that it is a result of slavery, which stymies the intellectual capacity of her race. She believes that 'white men compel' the black race to be ignorant. Although she was wronged by many Southern white men, she does not blame the white race for her ills. She believes that the institution of slavery has ample negative impact on the household and psyche of a white family as well, and that white males are coerced into being brutal. She rebukes 'the Free States' in her own pacific way for condoning slavery in the South. Her stand is that a life of manumit destitution is radically more acceptable than bondage, and that is the general idea that the author wants the readers to remember.
The book is sequenced more or less in a chronological order. The author's astoundingly comfortable childhood is shattered by the nefarious demands of being a pubescent female slave. She explains how even the body of a slave is not her own, and is considered to be a property of the slaveholder, that can violated or abused according to his wishes. Her analogy to being traded or shot like pigs demonstrates the extent of shame that a slave had to bear with. Her infatuation and blind faith in the goodness of a white man make her the mother of two children, and her determination to keep them away from the evils of slavery becomes her primary goal. In her attempts to flee from slavery, she has to hide in a den above her grandmother's house for seven years. The anguish of a mother who can see her children but not be able to communicate with them is heart wrenching. The story of her escape to the North is also incredible. Even after reaching the north, she had to resist prejudice and fear for a long time before she and her children eventually became free.
By reading the book, the reader can definitely get to experience the life of a slave. Perhaps the shocking brutality of the truth is shielded in the book by the author's conscious effort to not be a cause of affront. She wrote this book because she had a message to give to the readers, but was held back in a way by her goodness. On the other hand, reading a book written in a simple way, as though the author was narrating her story in front of the reader, goes on to validate her tragedy. It is explained in a more personal way than a historian would explain it, and the harsh emotions experienced by the author break through, even though she tries to suppress her sadness. The author's argument that slavery is humiliating is proved by the fact that the author does not explain exactly how she was mentally and physically abused. She only points out that she had to bear physical and mental decadence, but does elaborate on the techniques of the likes of Dr. Flint.
It has to be remembered that this book was not written to be a historical text. It is about a woman's personal fight with slavery. It cannot be argued that her emotions were wrong or that her views about slavery can be challenged in any way. Readers who have not experienced slavery are not in a position to do so. This book definitely manages to do what it was intended to do, and that is to make the reader aware that slavery was a harrowing experience for the African Americans. As a book of past injustices and future hopes, it is a must read.

Written about the "headstrong" Austrian archduchess Maria Antonia (as the future Queen of France was called as a child), this book portrays her as a girl who wants to be herself. Tired of her mother's incessant attempts to mold her into a beautiful, ladylike Queen, Maria Antonia just wants a chance to develop her own character and make decisions for herself. This book also deals with Maria Antonia's marriage to Louis XVI, the Dauphin (or Crown Prince) of France. Maria Antonia has been meticulously prepped so that she will make a good impression on the Dauphin and his grandfather, the incumbent French monarch. However, when she actually meets her fiance, Maria Antonia discovers to her shock (and horror) that he is not at all handsome and that he is overweight--which is completely the opposite of what she was expecting him to look like. But Maria Antonia and her husband grow closer throughout the final third of the book and become good friends at last. They are on the verge of falling in love when the book ends. Maria Antonia also has to deal with Countess du Barry, the King's mistress. Du Barry is unfriendly to Maria Antonia and goes out of her way to insult the young Dauphine. In spite of this, Maria Antonia is expected to talk to du Barry and be courteous to her--which the Dauphine refuses to do. The book also talks about Maria Antonia's bond with her older sister Elizabeth, who was once a great beauty but whose skin is now scarred as a result of smallpox. Titi, or Theresa, who is Maria Antonia's seven-year-old niece (the daughter of her older brother Joseph and his late wife Isabella of Parma), is also a close friend of the Archduchess. A principal character in this book is Queen Maria Theresa (Maria Antonia's mother), who is controlling and strict (but not cruel). This book interested me in the history of the Habsburg family (of which Maria Antonia was a member). The author aptly describes the scenery of Maria Antonia's home(s) in Austria--expertly enough so that I could recognize every single landmark mentioned in the book when I visited Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, coincidentally a few days after I finished the book. An excellent read!

The year is 1769; the place, Austria. The pressure is on thirteen-year-old Maria Antonia, youngest daughter of the Empress Maria Theresa, to excell so that she will be chosen to marry the future king of France. Antonia, as she is called, must learn French language, fashions, customs, and etiquette so that she can impress the king's messengers. She is given no time to act her age; when she does attempt to enjoy life as a girl should, she is severely punished. When she is sent away to France, her life is little better - she makes enemies of the mistress of the current king, who is the grandfather of her husband-to-be. She is forced to observe customs she can barely keep straight. And she is having a hard time getting along with her fiance. I viewed Marie Antoinette differently after reading this book. It was obvious from the book and the afterword that Marie and her husband were not trained well by their parents and teachers on how to become good rulers, and Marie had been taught from the time she was young that the most important thing was to look good. This is most likely why they became such bad rulers and ended up losing their lives.

This book, Marie Antoinette, was written by Kathryn Lansky. It was set in the years 1769-1770,when Marie Antoinette was a young teenage girl, growing up in the palace of her mother, Maria Theresa, Empress of Austria.

In the first part of the book, Marie Antoinette's mother is trying to make a match between her and the Dauphin, Prince Louis 16th of France. Marie must have her portrait done and learn French etiquette (which she thinks is very boring) if she is to become the Queen of France. Thankfully, she has her riding lessons, which she loves. After the plans for the wedding are set, she must prepare to go to France, to marry Louis and join the French court as his wife. She tells in her diary of all the endless preparations to be made for the journey, like being fitted for fancy new French dresses. Then when Marie goes to France, she must adapt to the ways of the French court. For example, when she eats meals with her husband, she is watched by thousands of courtiers. She really hates being displayed in front of everyone like an animal in a cage! But she does enjoy horseback riding with Louis.

There are some really neat things about this book. First, the author wrote this book in diary form, with the date and year at the top of each quote just like a real diary. Second, when you read Marie's diary it is just like she is talking to you about her innermost thoughts and feelings. She tells you the sad, lonely, angry and the happy times that happened in her life. Third, the author did a great job explaining the book in great detail. For example, when Marie had to have her hair done for a fancy ball, afterwards she had to sleep with her hair on a board, to preserve the hairstyle! Another example is when she taught her young prince husband how to throw a snowball for the very first time. I love the way the author wrote this book in such a fun way to read!

This diary book has a blue and gold cover just like the one in the story. The edges of the pages are a beautiful gold color. On the front of the book, there is a beautiful picture of Marie Antoinette all dressed up for a ball. There is a section in the back of the book that has historical facts, plus pictures of Marie Antoinette and her family, where you can see how big their fancy ball dresses really were!

This diary tells of the events of Marie's life as a teenager, as well as her thoughts and feelings as an 18th century princess. Marie Antoinette was a very pretty, fun-loving girl who is really interesting to read about. This book shows how girls today are the same and different from girls back then, in an exciting, fun-to-read way.