recent reviews

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Lauren said: "This is one of my absolute favorite books from growing up. I remember spending many afternoons reading and then re-reading this book. When my grandmother gave it to me as a gift she had no idea that she was creating a fan for life, hehe. But I still ...more This is one of my absolute favorite books from growing up. I remember spending many afternoons reading and then re-reading this book. When my grandmother gave it to me as a gift she had no idea that she was creating a fan for life, hehe. But I still have the copy she gave me, and yes, it's worn out and near to falling apart, but it's just as special to me as Anne's old carpetbag was to her :D...less "

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Jodi said: "My daughter who is 5 loves to read with her me. We just started reading this series and she loves it. "

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Isaac said: "The average quality of the writing in here is very good, and the subject matter is (inevitably) compelling - war, class, mental illness, the immigrant experience, etc, leavened occasionally by moments of joy. My major beef is that the editors, who h...more The average quality of the writing in here is very good, and the subject matter is (inevitably) compelling - war, class, mental illness, the immigrant experience, etc, leavened occasionally by moments of joy. My major beef is that the editors, who have both seen fit to include their own pieces in this book and who are largely outshined, write the kind of intros that waste little time on biographical details before starting in on you with what the stories mean and why it's hugely significant and what the author meant by this or that subtext and why while the story may appear to be this way it's really that way, all delivered with the kind of colon-blocking academic gurk that made me stay the hell out of grad school. The way that they've arranged the stories in here, and the criteria they've used to select them, are both genuinely bogus; it is, I think, an accident of fate (or perhaps a vanishingly small pool to choose from) that allowed them to pick out as many winners as they did. After the big names ("Comfort Women", "Native Speaker", etc) I was particularly taken with an excerpt from a tale of california lesbian jollity called Dancer Dawkins and the California Kid - it's very out of print, now, so if you want a taste, this is where you'll get it.

As an aside: the number of good authors in here whose work has vanished completley from the in-print listings in the intervening time is kind of scary. One wonders how much excellent fiction just vanishes....less "

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read in January, 2008

Bodilyg said: "Political games and how prayers are answered.
Intertaining and quick reading "

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recommended to David by: My Mom, Emma
recommended for: anyone

David said: "Could not put this book down. Met the author on a Mexico cruise. Very good time, great lectures. He will host a similar cruise to Russia in Jul 2008. There is a sequel and they are making a movie of the first book right now. D "

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David said: "I think this is far superior to Atlas Shrugged in terms of a novel. "

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Sahra said: "omg amazing books , can't wait for the film "

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Nawir said: "must read!!!! "

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read in August, 2007

Kelli said: "This was entertaining and interesting to read about an LDS spy in Russia. The author shares his personal faith building experiences. "

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recommended for: everyone

Janie said: "I read this book in about 3 hours. Very interesting and enjoyable read! "

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read in January, 2005

Austin said: "One of my all time favorite books. It's long but every page is worth reading. Skip the fountainhead, just jump right into this one. They're basically the same story, the difference is perspective. The Fountainhead has one main character. Atlas Shrugg...more One of my all time favorite books. It's long but every page is worth reading. Skip the fountainhead, just jump right into this one. They're basically the same story, the difference is perspective. The Fountainhead has one main character. Atlas Shrugged expands the idea to several characters....less "

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Mary said: "Great book! "

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read in December, 2007

Sandra said: "I am not really a fan of TD Jakes, I have had issues with his books before. They read more like fiction than nonfiction. I guess there are worse books to read. It was mostly hash--same info redone. :( "

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Sarah said: "the last book i read for my jane austen class.

to sum it up, on the last day of class i said that this and pride and prejudice tied for best book. pride and prejudice because it really is a classic and the story line just has all the best twists ...more the last book i read for my jane austen class.

to sum it up, on the last day of class i said that this and pride and prejudice tied for best book. pride and prejudice because it really is a classic and the story line just has all the best twists and turns of a perfect romance. obviously, emma comes in a close second because it's her second purely "fun" book.

however, persuasion was just packed with raw emotion and is almost poetic at times. it was just so...pretty. combined with a solid and engaging plot, ya can't ask for anything more.

worst novel? i said sense and sensibility. i don't know about you, but i just found the characters annoying and the plotline was craaazy....less "

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read in May, 2008

Rayni said: "I ordered 2 books through interlibrary loan & they both came today! EEK! I have to read them in TWO weeks!!! Now, the question is, which do I read first? Running with Scissors or Look Me in the Eye? Then as if that doesn't complicat...more I ordered 2 books through interlibrary loan & they both came today! EEK! I have to read them in TWO weeks!!! Now, the question is, which do I read first? Running with Scissors or Look Me in the Eye? Then as if that doesn't complicate matters enough, I also have Motor Mouth & Shape Shifters to read, ACCKK...less "

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Nikholas said: "Jadi ngerti perjalanan teori dan praxis gerakan kiri Italia hingga menemui bentuknya kini, marxisme otonomis dengan sifatnya yang anti partai dan negara. Lumayanlah sebagai tambahan pengetahuan... dulu dikirimin foto kopinya ama Michael Hardt, penuli...more Jadi ngerti perjalanan teori dan praxis gerakan kiri Italia hingga menemui bentuknya kini, marxisme otonomis dengan sifatnya yang anti partai dan negara. Lumayanlah sebagai tambahan pengetahuan... dulu dikirimin foto kopinya ama Michael Hardt, penulis Empire....but kini entah dimana dan di tangan siapa.......less "

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read in May, 2008

Rahmat said: "Buku yang bagus buat referensi bagaimana tata cara bergaul yang syar'i dari keteladanan Rasulullah SAW. Klo bisa punya lah buat koleksi bacaan di rumah. "

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read in May, 2008

Rayni said: "I ordered 2 books through interlibrary loan & they both came today! EEK! I have to read them in TWO weeks!!! Now, the question is, which do I read first? Running with Scissors or Look Me in the Eye? Then as if that doesn't complicat...more I ordered 2 books through interlibrary loan & they both came today! EEK! I have to read them in TWO weeks!!! Now, the question is, which do I read first? Running with Scissors or Look Me in the Eye? Then as if that doesn't complicate matters enough, I also have Motor Mouth & Shape Shifters to read, ACCKK...less "

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Sarah said: "It was a nicw book, but somehow dark. Well it is obvious from it's title "Crime and Punishment". "